Beyond Control (24 page)

“You know what I mean,” she said, shoving me to the kitchen in time for the crust to be done.

“Be kind,” I hollered after her.

Pulling the crust out of the oven, I placed it on a rack and grabbed the apricot jam out of the fridge.

“You got a text from Jason,” Brandy yelled from my room.

“What does it say?”

“He’ll be here in thirty.”

“What? I should have another hour, at least.” I whined, plopping the jam and spreading it over the crust.

Brandy came into the kitchen and raised a brow. “Seriously? I have you all packed, your bars are almost done, and all you have to do is run a brush through your hair.”

“I know. I’m panicking and I have no idea why.” I crumbled the last of the cookie topping on top of the apricot mixture and shoved it back in the oven.

“See? Everything’s working like magic. And you’re nervous because you know there might be something more with him,” she said, pulling her hair into a ponytail.

I shrugged. “We’ll see.”

“Yeah right.” She rolled her eyes. “Just leave me a few bars. I’m gonna go back into my room to try to get some reading done before the semester starts.”

I gave her a quick hug and was about to unzip the bag she packed for me, but she smacked my hand away before she took off down the hall.

It was hard for me to believe how excited—like, truly excited—I was to see Jason this morning. It was like all my worries fell away as I thought about getting to spend some time with him.

I stood in front of the bathroom mirror, brushed my teeth, brushed my hair, and I tugged slightly on my tank top to expose the scar. I spotted the special body makeup I had on the counter that I sometimes used to conceal it. Not that it really did. Actually, all the makeup did was make me more insecure as I worried about it rubbing off on my clothes or anything else that my skin might be in contact with. Instead, I reached for some face powder and mascara and called it good.

A loud knock on the front door interrupted my thoughts, and my hands got immediately clammy. What was happening to me? This wasn’t how things went in my world. I was supposed to be in control. I grabbed an elastic band for my hair and walked quickly to the front door.

“Who is it?” I asked, buying myself a fraction of a second.

“How many people are you expecting?” The sultriness in his voice about knocked me to the floor, and I still had the wood separating us.

I swung open the door to see him leaning against the doorframe. The outfit he was wearing did nothing to help the functioning of my mind. It also didn’t hurt that as he raised his arm to push his sunglasses back, his white shirt tugged up just enough for me to see the slight V-definition leading down into his loose fitting jeans.

I looked up quickly, but he had caught me staring. I was about to make an excuse but didn’t even bother. What I did do, however, surprised us both as I stepped outside and wrapped my arms around his neck.

“Good morning,” I said softly, looking up into his eyes.

“Good morning to you too,” he murmured, hugging me tightly. “Something smells delicious.”

“It’s the apricot bars I made for our ride,” I said, watching his lips move closer to mine.

“No, it’s something like raspberry or…”

“Oh, that’s my lotion.” I couldn’t help but smile as his eyes held the look of complete intoxication.

“Like I said, delicious,” he murmured, sending a chill up my spine.

I couldn’t help but giggle, but his lips found mine instantly quieting me. Closing my eyes, I felt his body press against mine as our kisses deepened as if we were picking up where we left off last night before…

The oven chimed and I felt his arms loosen around my waist.

“Our timing sucks,” I groaned, pulling his shirt to follow me inside.

“Are you here alone?” he asked, his voice low.

“Nope,” I said, walking into the kitchen. “But we could…”

He shook his head. “Sorry. It’s hard not to get ahead of myself with you. Let’s just stick with the plan.”

“Whatever the plan is,” I said, laughing.

He followed me into the kitchen and I took the apricot bars out of the oven and put them on the stove.

“They’re not cool enough to cut,” I said, weighing my options. “But I could probably slice them in half and use a spatula to get them into a container so we can get on the road.”

“Now that I’m with you, I’m in no hurry,” he murmured, coming up behind me.

He slid my hair to the side and placed his lips against the crook of my neck, sending a wave of pleasure through me. He began gently placing kisses along my shoulder, and I was frozen in his presence, feeling the desire that continued to grow between us.

“Baking has never been so fun,” I said, my voice trembling as his lips continued tracing along my skin. He hadn’t shaved this morning, and the stubble tickled my flesh with each movement.

“That’s good to hear,” he murmured, pulling back. He held me in his arms for a few seconds, turning me slowly to face him.

The intensity in his eyes wasn’t like anything I’d experienced before. Seeing that type of hunger, that type of need directed toward me made my pulse quicken.

“You ready for our ride?” he asked, grinning his wicked grin that almost made my knees buckle.

“Yeah,” I said, my voice breathless. “I’ll get my leathers on and…”

“God! That sounds sexy,” he said, laughing.

“Don’t let it go to your head. We’ve got a full day ahead of us,” I said, secretly wishing we could scrap the ride.

I went to the hall closet and grabbed my jacket, pants, and helmet. My eyes fell to the bag down the hall that Brandy packed, and I almost started laughing. How was I going to look inconspicuous lugging that down to the bike and strapping it on.

“Need help?” Jason asked, walking slowly toward me. His eyes coasting along my body as I stepped into the pants.

“I think I’ve got it. You could put the bars in the Ziploc container,” I said, hoping he’d leave so I could have a moment to get my wits about me.

“Sure thing,” he said, glancing at the bag in the hall. He turned to look at me and smiled as he saw the flush crawl up my face.

“Well, I thought I might need—”

“No need to explain anything here,” he said, laughing.

I watched him walk down the hallway and noticed that there wasn’t a bad angle to be found on that man.

“I snuck a bite, and I have to tell you that these are amazing,” he said, smiling, as I walked into the kitchen.

“Like I can tell if your intentions are solid,” I said, scrunching my face. “But thank you. Ready?”

“Let’s hit it,” he said, grabbing the bag that I had hauled from the hall.

As I grabbed my phone, I received a text from Carla, letting me know my dad was getting released earlier than expected and that he’d be home resting before the afternoon even ended.

“The medical advancements nowadays are crazy,” I said, shaking my head. “If only my grandpa could’ve held on a few more years, I think he’d still be here.”

“Very true,” Jason replied, opening the front door as I slipped under his arm. “If only more people would be open-minded about organ donation too.”

The moment I heard those words I froze and turned to look at him. I studied his expression as he came into the hallway with me. He didn’t seem to be pointing it directly at me, but the coincidence seemed too great to brush off. Did he know?

“Very true,” I replied, pressing the elevator button.

“Do you have any places you have your heart set on seeing today?” he asked, his eyes mischievous.

Okay. I think it was only coincidence. Not that it really mattered at this point since I was planning on telling him soon. But still, I wanted to be the one to tell him.

The elevator opened up and I climbed in with Jason following close behind. My helmet clanked against the wall as I leaned against the railing. I had my helmet in one hand and the apricot bars in the other.

“You know I was thinking if you’d be up for it,” he hesitated for a slight second.

“Yeah?” I prompted.

“I only had a small bite because it burned the piss out of my mouth, but those bars were incredible. If you’d be interested, I’d love to sell some at my espresso shop.”

“Really?” I asked, stepping out of the elevator into the lobby.

He nodded.

“You don’t have to say that to score points, you know.” We both started laughing as we went through the glass doors to the sidewalk.

“I have a business to run. I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t mean it,” he said as we walked to his bike

Then it hit me. I was turning into a complete ditz in his presence.

“My bike’s in the garage,” I admitted sheepishly.

“I wondered about that,” he said, smirking. “But I didn’t want to ask.”

“That was very polite of you,” I said, shaking my head. “You just have this way about you.” I tapped my helmet against his shoulder.

“I’ll put your bag on my bike and then you can be the keeper of the apricot bars,” he said, his eyes falling to my mouth. “I’ll wait for you to circle around.”

“Perfect,” I replied. “And I’ll try not to pull any U-turns or anything.”

“You work on that,” he said, securing the bag on his bike.

We had ridden all over the island, stopping twice to snack on the apricot bars, which were now gone, and once to pick up an iced-latte from his espresso shop. By the time late afternoon rolled around, I was exhausted. But as I followed him down a long, narrow driveway, headed toward the water, my stamina magically picked up. Cedar trees lined the drive, along with equally monstrous rhododendrons speckled underneath, and I could spot a glimmer of blue off in the distance. As we rounded the corner, there was no missing the house or the guesthouse or the second garage. Wow! Not what I expected.

The home was gorgeous, and even though it was large, it didn’t take away from the beautiful landscape the home was tucked in. Jason pulled in front of the large porch and turned off his bike, and I did the same. He took off his helmet and placed it on the seat, waiting for me to get off my bike as well, but I was too busy taking in the surroundings. Even though the sun was shining brightly, the large conifers shaded the entire area, dropping the temp probably ten or more degrees. Perfect after riding all day.

The style was definitely rustic and fitted Jason perfectly. The siding was stained a dark brown, with exposed shingles tucked under the peaked eaves. The porch was wrapped in flagstone, and there were a few pots with straggly looking plants. Apparently flowers didn’t flourish everywhere on the island. I turned to the left and saw the large garage, which matched the exterior of the main house and guesthouse.

I unstrapped my helmet and ran my fingers through my hair to loosen the braids I had pulled my hair into a few hours ago and noticed as much as I was taking in the property, Jason seemed to be doing the same to me. I hid my smile and glanced at him before looking over at his extra garage.

“That’s where my shop is,” he said, walking over to me.

“I thought you had a shop in Seattle,” I said.

“I do. This is for my personal collection and side projects.”

“Wow. That’s nice,” I said, my eyes taking in the guesthouse.

“Do you get lots of guests?” I asked, arching a brow.

“You’d be surprised,” he laughed.

“Really,” I said, crossing my arms.

“Something about living on the islands and people suddenly want to visit. When I was renting a place I learned that the hard way. I had a two bedroom and the second one was always filled. Needless to say, I realized I might have more hermit tendencies than I realized. Plus if anyone’s had too much fun, they can crash in privacy.”

“Nothing wrong with that,” I said. “You just like your space.”

I thought about Brandy and I adored living with her. She was an awesome roommate, and it worked for us both, sort of. As long as we weren’t in relationships it was fine, and back in college, that’s just how it was. Now I wasn’t so sure I was a believer.

“The grounds here are lovely. Everything’s so beautiful,” I said, taking in a deep breath, feeling the balmy air enter my lungs.

“Thank you,” he said, reaching for my hand. “Ready to take a peek inside?”

“Absolutely,” I said, feeling a wave of excitement push through my veins. I had to calm down.

“Your father made a really generous offer to us both,” Jason said, sensing my awe as we walked toward the main house. But it wasn’t so much that I was in awe over the house, but rather that our tastes were so similar.

“My father’s never generous. He only makes smart business moves,” I said, smiling. “What you had to sell was obviously worth paying a good sum for. But still, I’d bet that you both got the shaft.”

Jason’s laugh cut through the quietness of the setting, and I turned toward him, flashing a smile. “Sorry. That’s just the truth.”

“Aaron said the same thing,” Jason said, shaking his head. “It was more than enough for me, though. I was able to do what I really wanted.”

“That’s what matters.”

We walked toward the front door, and I heard barking coming out from behind the front door.

“You have dogs?” I asked.

He turned around and smiled at me. “Two. Tomato and Sunny,” he said, beaming.