Tell Me You Want Me (9 page)

"You shouldn't be dating anyone until you finish with school and have a good job."

You shouldn't be dating anyone.... Going out on a date is a bad idea....

The difference between Sara and Jane's mother: Sara didn't want her dating Austin; her mother didn't want her dating at all.

"You need to be able to take care of yourself. Don't make the same mistake I made."

"Mom, I can take care of myself. I'm twenty-two. I'm an adult."

"I realize that."

"I don't think you do. I've been focused on school for the last three years—"

"I'm surprised you could focus at all while going out on all those dates."

"Mom, let me finish. I will graduate this year with excellent grades."

"I hope you can."

"Listen to me, Mom. I can get good grades, play soccer, and go out on dates too."
And have fun doing it!

"Jane, you can't have everything."

"Why not? I've worked really hard these last three years. I deserve to have a little fun. I've earned it."

"Hard work is its own reward."

"Good lord, Mom, think for yourself for a change."

"You watch your language, young lady."

Jane didn't have time to argue with her so she gave up trying. "Mom, I'm going to practice. I'll study for my exam after that, and I'm going out with Austin again, and we'll have a great time." She packed up her books and headed toward the soccer field.

"Hm. What are you going to do with him?"

Good thing her mother couldn't see the evil smile on her face. "I haven't decided yet, but it doesn't matter. He can make anything fun."

"Oh, Jane, be careful."

Her mother sounded so worried that Jane had to laugh. "Mom, he won't do anything I don't want him to do."
Ugh. Why did I say that?
"Austin's a good guy," she fibbed.

"Hm."

That was her 'I seriously doubt it' hm. "But even if he isn't, I'm going to have fun with him just because I want to."

"That's hardly a good reason to—"

"I don't need a reason."
Good or otherwise.

"Jane, you need to be responsible—"

"I am responsible!"

Both Jane and her mother stopped and took a deep breath.

"Do you remember what the grief counselor told us?" her mother finally asked.

Jane sighed, "Don't take it out on each other."

"I'm sorry I was so harsh with you, dear. I worry too much. I need to remember that you're an adult, and you make your own choices."

"I'm sorry I yelled at you. I know you worry because you care about me." They were repeating words the counselor had given them, but they worked.

"I love you, Jane."

"I love you, too."

"What's his name again?"

"Huh?" She forgot they'd been arguing about Austin. "Oh. Austin Sinclair. I met him...."
Do not tell her that story!
"...at football practice."

"You play football?"

"No, he does." She laughed.

"Oh, right." Her mother laughed too. "It's nice that you have athletics in common."

"Yeah." Finally, they agreed on something. "I gotta go to practice, Mom."

"All right. Have a good time."

Jane knew her mom had made an effort to say that.

"But remember school comes first."

Back to her old habits.
"I'll remember."

"Call me if you need anything, okay, honey? I know how much you miss talking to Dad, and I want to be there for you too."

"Okay." Jane choked as her eyes misted.

She sighed and hung up the phone, glad soccer practice started in a few minutes. After the emotional rollercoaster she'd ridden today, she needed to kick something—hard, fast, and repeatedly.

***

"Gooooaaall!" Austin's voice echoed across the soccer field, stopping Jane in mid-kick.

She smiled as he walked over to her, then she lined up behind a row of soccer balls and kicked each one into the goal without mercy.

"Damn, girl, I hope I'm not the guy who pissed you off."

"Not this time." She lined up again.

"Good." He winced as her foot connected with the ball with a solid thud. "Great legs, Janie." He grinned as his eyes swept over her. "And I mean that in more ways than one."

"Why do guys like legs?" She looked down at hers.

He smiled and stared at her powerful thighs. "Because legs lead to more interesting places."

"Is it always about sex?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

She laughed, then lined up on the last ball and sent it sailing over the goal. "Oops."

"Feel better now?"

"Yeah, a little."

"Rough day?" He followed her to the bleachers.

"I had a fight with Sara this morning. I was pretending the ball was her head." She grabbed a bottle of water and collapsed on the players' bench.

"Ouch. Poor Sara." He sat down beside her. "Who's Sara?"

"My roommate."

"Yeah, roommates can be a real pain in the ass." Austin liked the idea of trading his roommate in for a female model. "What did you fight about?"

A slow smile lit up her eyes. "You."

"Not the first time women have fought over me." He watched as she rolled her eyes.
Jackpot
—exactly the reaction he'd hoped for. "Is she jealous?"

"No. She doesn't like you."

"Yeah, women either love me or hate me."

Jane's smile faded. "And then my mother called."

"Not good?"

"No, it wasn't."

"Did you tell her all about me?"

"I didn't intend to tell her anything about you—"

"But you couldn't help bragging."

"Oh, please!"

Wow, two eye rolls in the same conversation. Bonus points for that.
"Yeah, that was a little much, even for me."

"Just a little."

"So what did you tell her?"

"I told her I know how to manage my time."

That didn't sound very interesting. "Uh-huh. And then?"

"And then she almost talked me out of going out with you again."

Holy hell!
"Almost?"

"I was this close to getting sucked in by her guilt trip."

"What talked you out of it?"

"She did. If I let her talk long enough, she eventually stops making sense."

Austin laughed. "She sounds just like my dad. We should get those two together."

Jane cringed. "Oh, I think that would be an extraordinarily bad idea."

"Let's just hope your roommate and your mom never get together."

"Sara has never met my mom."

"And yet they both hate me."

"No, Mom just hates the
idea
of you."

"Ah. Big difference." He didn't quite get it, but as long as Janie still wanted to go out with him, he didn't need to.

"It's big enough to keep me from going along on that guilt trip."

"Mmm... I think that means you like me."

She blushed. "Yeah, I like you." She leaned close and brushed her shoulder against his. "Don't worry about them. Sara's just cranky. Mom is...
really
cranky."

"Needs to get laid, huh?"

She gave him a disapproving look. "Sex doesn't solve everything."

"Sex is a part of life. It's not a separate thing. It's normal, natural, fun. It's a lot of fun. It's no different than anything else."

She smiled. "I like that idea."

"Maybe you should give it a try." He bumped his thigh against hers.

"Hey, you chose to go home early."

"I know, I know. Don't remind me."

Jane laughed.

"Have you decided what you want to do for our next date?"

"I have an idea." She bit her lower lip and kicked the grass at her feet.

"Are you gonna tell me about it?"

"Not yet. I need to work out some details."

"Mmm... I like details."

She raised an eyebrow, a hint of a smile tugging at her lips. "You can make anything dirty, can't you."

"It's a gift."

"One of many, I'm sure."

"Would you like to find out?"

"I think you know the answer to that."

Was she undressing him with her eyes, as he'd done to her?

"Come here." He grabbed her hand and led her off to a half-hidden doorway on the far side of the gym. Someone could see them if they looked hard enough, but Austin didn't care about that right now. He suddenly felt the need to kiss her, and he didn't want to wait until she figured out when their next date would be.

He leaned back against the wall, pulled her in close, and held her face in his hands. He touched his lips to hers and slid his hands down her back. She fit against him so tightly that only their damn clothes came between them. If he could do nothing but kiss Janie for the rest of his life, he would die a happy man. He'd have an eternal hard-on, but he would be happy.

Happy without sex? What a weird thought.

Jane squirmed in his arms. He didn't want to let go, but she managed to pull back enough to speak. "Do you know what I like best about you?"

This ought to be interesting.
"Let's see... my dashing good looks, my devastating charm, my dirty sense of humor, my—"

She shut him up with a kiss. "Your full-body-contact kisses." She kissed him again, crushing him against the wall. "Please don't ever stop kissing me like this."

"Mmm... my kind of girl." He ran his hands up and down her body. "You're not so stiff anymore."

"You are."

"That's all your fault, you know."

"Really?"

"Oh hell yes!"

Finally, she looked up and smiled. "I like that."

Definitely my kind of girl.
"Get used to it."

He wanted to pull her closer, to crawl on top of her and know her from the inside out. He wanted that so much, but he couldn't do it here. Voices approached their not-private-enough location, so he gently pushed her away and nodded in that direction. They pretended to talk about something else until everyone had disappeared.

She moved closer. "I want to... um...." She stopped and took a deep breath. "I want to make dinner for you."

"Wow. I'm impressed."

"Wait till after dinner to say that." She looked away, pink coloring her cheeks. "I just need to find out when Sara won't be home."

"Okay. Just tell me when you want me."

She peered at him over the top of her glasses.

"Yeah, yeah."

"Soon." More people walked toward the gym. "I promise." She kissed him and jogged away.

He ran his hands through his hair and leaned back against the wall. Yep, he would be running around the football field tonight.

Jane checked the oven timer then scurried back to her bedroom to finish getting dressed. What was she thinking trying to cook for him? She searched through her closet with shaking hands, sprinting back to the kitchen in her underwear when something boiled over. The only other people she ever cooked for were Sara and her parents. They loved her, so they loved her cooking. Austin would be a real test of her ability.

She pulled on her jeans and a fitted shirt with a deep V-neck she'd borrowed from Sara. It showed a little more skin than she usually liked, but she felt like being bold. She decided not to wear her glasses, and when he knocked on the door, she quickly yanked a brush through her hair.

Ack! No time to find shoes. Why did I invite him over so early?
A little smile lit her eyes.
Stupid question.

She ran to the door and looked out the peephole, distracted by an unknown humming noise. A big bunch of flowers covered Austin's face. Jane laughed and opened the door.

Austin's mouth fell open, and for a minute, he gulped like a fish. His bad blue eyes raked over her all the way from her messy hair to her bare toes. "You look good enough to eat." His smile made her shiver.

"Thank you."

"I, um, flowers." He gasped again. "I brought you flowers."

"They're beautiful. Thank you."

"My pleasure." He pulled her close and kissed her, molding his body against hers the way she liked. "No glasses tonight." He kissed her closed eyes.

"I'm near-sighted so I can see things that are close up."

"Then I'll make sure I keep you real close." He bumped his nose against hers.

Jane knew she had something important to do, but when his lips touched her skin, she forgot everything and melted in Austin's arms.
Melt....
That sounded familiar.

A sizzling sound from the kitchen snapped her back to reality. "The butter is burning!" She tore away from him and ran to the kitchen. She rescued the butter, checked the potatoes, flipped the chicken, and put the flowers in a vase.

He caught her as she ran past him, nibbling her neck as she searched the fridge. "Mmm... yummy."

"Stop distracting me or you won't get any dinner."

"You're so tasty." He kissed her until the sizzling started again.

Jane grabbed the hot pan, and her finger bumped the rim. "Ow!" She turned on the faucet and stuck her hand under the cold water.

"Let me take care of that." Austin examined her fingertip. He softly kissed it, pulling it into his mouth and sucking on it. "Better?" His eyes sparkled as his tongue soothed her.

She nodded, breathing hard.

"Glad I could help."

It wasn't what he said so much as the way he said it. His tone dripped with suggestion and his wicked eyes said what his sweet lips didn't.

"You bad boy." She turned back to the stove before he could see her smile.

He put his hands on her hips and turned her around, trapping her against the cabinets. "I think you like me because I'm a bad boy."

She shook her head, biting her lower lip. It didn't seem possible, but he'd found a way to move closer to her.

"I don't think you've had enough bad boys in your life."

"One is more than enough." She braced herself against the counter when he kissed her, letting his hands explore her body.

"Think you can handle me?"

"I'd like to." Oh, the things that came out of her mouth when she talked to this man. She wanted to handle him in all sorts of ways. She wanted to let him be as bad as she knew he could be, and she wanted to be bad with him.

He laughed and lifted her up onto the countertop, standing between her spread legs. He slid one hand under her shirt, stroking her hot skin, while brushing his other hand against her inner thigh, teasing her. "No more waiting. If I wait any longer, I'm gonna explode. That beeping noise is a warning." His hand stopped moving and he looked around.