Even infuriated, Hope was already ready to admit that, but it didn’t matter. “I want your promise that you’ll let me leave at the end of the two weeks, never expose me and never bother me again,” she told him abruptly.
She saw him flinch briefly. A wounded look crossed his face before it was gone. It had only been an instant, but she’d hurt him, and her heart ached because of it. No matter how big of a jackass he was at the moment, this wasn’t the Jason she’d grown up with. He couldn’t have changed that much. Somewhere in that complex brain of his, he thought he was protecting her.
“Agreed,” he said hoarsely.
“I’d like some time alone. I’m going to take a bath.” She needed to relax, give her body and mind a chance to calm without Jason’s presence. Her body still trembled with reaction, and she needed room to breathe.
“I have a better idea.” He took her hand and pulled her firmly back down the hallway toward the bedroom.
Hope went, her body tense, but trusting Jason enough that she didn’t think he was about to forcibly take her. They passed the master bedroom they’d slept in, continued to the end of the long hallway, and he pulled her into another guest room. She startled until he went to a sliding glass door and they exited the inside of the house and followed a rock pathway for a short distance before he stopped.
She recognized the rocky, steaming pool immediately. “Hot springs.” She sighed. The smell of minerals and the warm, humid air instantly relaxed her. It was a good-sized pool in a natural setting, large boulders that could be used as seats beside the water, and a mini waterfall where a person could sit on several levels.
“You’re familiar with them,” Jason guessed. The anger left his voice.
“We have a large hot springs not far from Aspen. I knew Rocky Springs was one of the largest natural hot springs, but I’ve never been here.” She looked longingly at the pool. “And I didn’t know they had private pools here.”
“I never got to try it last time I was here,” Jason admitted huskily.
“You should,” Hope confided. “It’s amazing.” It was starting to get dark, and the heat of the day in the mountains was over. It was a fantastic time to sink into the hot springs.
Jason unbuttoned his shirt. “Come with me,” he cajoled quietly.
Hope’s mouth went dry as he exposed his massive chest. “I don’t have a swimsuit,” she sputtered as she watched as though compelled while he revealed those perfectly formed abs and chest.
His blue eyes grew darker, more like sapphires, in the dim outside lighting, and they were persuasive and hot as they roamed her body. “It’s private. Get naked. It isn’t like I haven’t seen you that way before,” he reminded her smoothly.
Hope hesitated. Her eyes were glued to his nimble, strong fingers as he unbuttoned his jeans, a sexy happy trail revealed at an agonizingly slow speed. She held her breath, and waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, he slipped out of the jeans he wore, and took the boxer briefs with them. Hope nervously licked her suddenly dry lips as Jason stood in front of her, gloriously nude. Not that he needed to be shy. Jason was...absolutely perfect, from his fuck-me messy hair and fathomless blue eyes, to his sculpted, ripped body that was covered in golden skin.
Oh God, I want to touch him.
He moved to the pool, and gave Hope a glimpse of his firm, toned backside that made her want to grope it just to see if it was really as hard as it looked.
“Are you coming?” Jason asked with false innocence.
He was completely aware of how he affected her—smug bastard. She watched as he immersed himself immediately, no waiting like he should have done, and emerged from the water with his skin shimmering from the moisture and his hair plastered to his head.
Oh. My. God.
He moved to the side of the pool closest to her and rested his forearms on the rock surface. “I’m not going to force you into anything or attack you, Hope. Come relax with me.”
He didn’t smile, but his expression had softened. Hope was torn. She wanted to climb into the water, let the seductive warmth soothe her. She was lonely, still torn up over David’s death, and she wanted company. Yet, she was still surprised by Jason’s earlier cold, nasty demeanor. Yes, she’d lied, but not directly to him, and they didn’t even really connect as friends anymore. Yes, they’d had that incredible New Year’s rendezvous. Still, his reaction had been pretty extreme considering the fact that they’d been distant before and after that night.
Maybe both of them were screwed up, neither one knowing the other anymore. Jason was uncovering all of her emotions, things she buried so deeply inside her that she didn’t think they were ever going to surface. He could fire her temper faster than any man on earth, including her brothers. Lord knew he had definitely ignited a sexual spark, an intensity she’d never experienced before. He was tender when she needed comfort, made her want to lean on someone for the first time in her adult life. He could make her laugh one moment, and make her want to cry the next. That range of emotions was exhausting, and she wasn’t sure where she wanted their relationship to go from here. Letting him touch her heart would be disastrous. He might want her for now, but she’d end up destroyed later.