Jackson’s Destiny(10)

Bailey was feisty and full of surprises. She was untamable, nothing like what you would expect from a woman who had so many painful memories tucked safely inside her head. We shared that pain because we had both lost someone we loved. Someone so close to us that we knew going on without them in our lives would be next to impossible.

Without hesitation, I traced her jaw with my thumb, and she leaned into my touch. She was painfully beautiful, and my chest felt tight from the overwhelming sensation of being so close to her.

My phone chirped, muffled from where it was in my back pocket. I hadn’t removed it the night before and was surprised it still had enough battery life to be on. Slowly, so as not to wake Bailey up, I lifted my ass from the cushion and slipped the phone from my pocket.

Sure enough, it was showing a low battery message. I was just about to check my messages when it began to ring as Ryan’s name flashed across the screen. I hit Answer before it woke Bailey and lifted it to my ear.

“What?” I whispered.

“Where are you?” he barked. “I’m up here shoveling shit on my own. Noah is inside with Mom, and your ass is, what, still in bed?” I could tell by how out of breath he was that he was hard at work.

“Not in bed, but on the couch.”

“Bailey still with you?” he asked. “Amber said she didn’t stay at the apartment last night.”

I looked at Bailey, and once again that damn ache in my chest took over. “Yeah, she’s here. She just needs some time.”

“Well, I can guarantee you that Amber will be seeking her out today. She was climbing the walls last night with worry.”

“Bailey has a lot of shit in her head, bro. Things she needs time to sort through.” I hoped Ryan understood what I was trying to say.

“I understand needing time, Jack, I do. But Amber is freaking out. She knows it has something to do with Carla, and the not knowing is driving her insane. I don’t think she slept last night. And seeing her worry only makes me wanna fix things for her. It may sound selfish, but if she hurts, I hurt.”

“Same here,” I assured him.

“Oh yeah?” He chuckled. “So Hercules is falling, huh?”

“Don’t push it, Ry. Just know that I get what you’re saying. Bailey is just a lot more than I took the time to see three months ago, that’s all I can say.” She was more than I think a lot of us took the time to see.

“We need to get them together. They need to work it all out.” He took a deep breath. “It’s the only way either of us are gonna see a smile on their faces right now.”

“I’ll be up in a bit. I just need to wake her up and move her to my bed.”

He chuckled, and I hung up before he could make some stupid-ass comment. I laid the phone on the arm of the couch and worked my other arm out from behind Bailey’s shoulders. Moving slowly so I wouldn’t wake her, I slipped one arm beneath her legs and the other behind her back. When I lifted her, she wrapped her arms around my neck.

“What are you doing?” she whispered hoarsely.

“I’m taking you to my bed. I gotta get up to the ranch to help Ryan, and I didn’t want to leave you on the couch, sweetheart,” I assured her as I carried her to the bedroom and nudged the door open with my hip.

Just before I laid her down on the bed, our eyes connected, and she smiled back at me. Damn if that didn’t hit me like a punch to the stomach and make my knees just a little weak. Her happiness had come to mean so much to me, and it was still a new feeling.

I lowered her to the bed and slowly pulled my arm out from under her shoulders and legs, but I still hovered over her as our eyes locked on one another’s.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

My body moved of its own accord, and I lowered my lips to hers and kissed her softly. The kiss started out gentle and quickly became heated and more intense, and Bailey gripped the back of my neck, holding me close. She and I had been attracted to each other for months, and after our first kiss, that attraction was almost like an uncontrollable pull and just as hard to fight.

I pulled back, allowing my forehead to rest against hers, breathing her in. I kept my eyes closed as I spoke, my voice sounding weakened by lust and need. “Stay in bed, relax. I’ll be back in a few hours.” I inhaled, attempting to calm myself. “We’ll go grab something to eat then.”

“Okay.” Her soft whisper sent chills over my back and arms.

After kissing her once more, I stood tall and took one last moment to take in the beauty that now lay tangled in my sheets. Visions of joining her fought against the need to get up to the ranch. Finally, I slowly took a few steps backward, shaking my head to clear it of the images of spending the day rolling around in bed with her. The smile that spread out over her lips told me she was having the same thoughts.