Seaside Sunsets(13)

Her eyes fluttered open and her lips curved up. There wasn’t a hint of regret in her eyes. God, he loved kissing her, loved the way she looked at him. He touched her cheek, then pressed a soft kiss to her lips.

“I’m not even going to try to pretend that I don’t want to keep kissing you.”

She blushed. “I’d like that.”

She opened the door and he walked right in. Their lips met in another heated kiss. His resolve to back off liquefied, and his hand slid down her ribs to her hip and over the soft swell of her thigh. He eased back, softly kissing her lips a few times before forcing himself away again.

“Now I’m going to pretend I don’t want to kiss you, or we’re going to get kicked off the beach for indecent activities.”

That earned him a soft laugh. He moved his leg off of hers, allowing her the freedom to move. She remained on her back, the pulse at the base of her neck beating wildly, two taut peaks pressing against her bikini top, and a satisfied smile on her lips.

“Want to go in the water to cool off?” she asked.

“I think I need a minute.” Or ten, to get rid of my hard-on.

They spent the rest of the afternoon swimming, kissing, and lying in the sun. As the afternoon sun disappeared and evening rolled in, they gathered their things and headed back to the parking lot. Jamie couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so relaxed and happy. They threw their things in the back of his car and he reached for her hand and drew her in close.

“I’m not ready for our day to end. How about if we go back to Seaside, see if you’ve heard back about the baseball, shower, then head into town for dinner and a walk?” He gazed into her eyes, and she flashed her dimples with a sweet smile.

“I’m not sure I know you well enough to shower together.” She lifted her brows and he had to kiss her again.

“Damn. I had my hopes pinned on the shower.” He opened the car door for her and helped her in.

“What about Vera? Maybe we should invite her to dinner.”

“I love that you’re thinking of her, but I don’t think she’ll mind if we go alone.” He slid into the driver’s seat. “In fact, I’m pretty sure she’s at home hoping we stay out all night. I smelled matchmaking going on with her this afternoon.”

Back at Seaside, they checked her email and she still hadn’t heard back from the seller, so they sent another message.

“You know, we can probably find the seller’s actual store and then send a message there, too. Have you searched for it yet?” Jamie stood behind Jessica’s chair, looking over her shoulder at her laptop.

“Searched on eBay?” She looked up at him with eyes so wide and innocent he had to lean down and kiss her forehead.

“No, on OneClick.”

She drew her brows together. “Isn’t that a thing like Google? I always get lost when I’m searching. I end up spending an hour going from website to website and never find what I’m looking for.”

“Here, let me show you.” He sat beside her and typed in OneClick.com and the OneClick search window came up. “Type in My Mom Threw Out My Baseball Cards.”

“What’s that?”

“The name of his store. Didn’t you see it on eBay?”

She shook her head. “I only saw Seller.”

He put an arm around her and kissed her cheek. “I’ll give you a quick lesson on eBay after we do this.”

“No, that’s okay. After I find this baseball, I’m done. This stuff is hard for me. Give me sheet music or even just play a few notes, and I’ll pick it up fast, but this?” She pointed to the computer. “It’s like one big headache waiting to happen.”

“What would make it easier?” He searched for the store and found that it was no longer around. He turned his attention back to Jessica and made a mental note to do his own search later that evening.

“It would be easier if you did it for me.” She leaned forward and kissed him. “I can pay you in kisses.”

He drew her onto his lap. “Now, that’s a deal I’ll take.”

He sealed his lips over hers, and she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him as she had the other night, only this time, he knew her mind was clear of alcohol. He liked kissing her even more without the distraction of wondering whether she’d remember it in the morning and if she’d regret it. She was still wearing her bikini beneath her sundress, and she felt so damn good that his hands began to wander, to her hips, her outer thighs, then beneath her dress to the curve of her ass. She tightened her arms around his neck and arched her chest into his. She was open to taking this further, but Jamie had never been a wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am kind of guy, and he really liked Jessica. Maybe more than he should after two days.

Tearing his lips from hers drew a groan from deep within him.

“You groaned.” A playful smile curved her lips.

“Yeah, I know.” He blew out a breath. “It was either that or…You’ve got to get off my lap before we head someplace you may regret.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Why would I regret it?”

“I don’t know. Because you’re a woman, and…” He lifted her easily from his lap and set her on the other chair, then ran both hands through the sides of his hair to try to clear the lustful thoughts from his mind.

“And? Do women often regret being with you?” Her voice was serious, but her eyes were teasing.

He took her hands in his. “Not that I know of, but...It’s easy to jump into sleeping together. Three moves and we’re there.” He lowered his voice. “Not that I don’t want to be buried deep inside you—shit. I can’t even think about it without getting all hot and bothered.”

She pinked up again—hell, he liked her reactions.

He kissed the back of her hand. “I want to know you, Jess. I want to know about your life, your family, why you’re on a hiatus. If we start with a sexual relationship, I don’t know. It’s just that I like you too much to do that. It would feel like we were working backward.”

She let out a long breath. “Really? You don’t mind waiting?”

“Don’t mind? No. Jess. Do you mind? Maybe it’s just me, but this feels different from just another date. Being with you feels different.”

She dropped her eyes to their hands and bit her lower lip. He lifted her chin so he could see her eyes.

“What is it?”

“I…Okay, this is really hard to say aloud, but…” She closed her eyes for a beat, drew in a breath, then opened her eyes with a nervous smile. “I’m a little relieved.”

“Was I pressuring you?”

“No, no. Nothing like that. My body was pressuring me. I keep wanting to touch you, to go further, but I’m not used to all of this. Well, any of this, really. I almost never date, Jamie. I don’t spend the day at the beach or walk around flea markets with hot guys and a woman I could spend all day talking to. My life is hours of practicing my cello and evening concerts. I’m almost always in symphony mode. You know, prim, proper, demure. It’s been ingrained in my very soul since the time I was a little girl.”

“Jess, I like who you are. All of you.” Jamie loved how open and honest she was being, and he could tell that it wasn’t easy for her to reveal her innermost feelings to him. He wanted to reassure her, to let her know he wouldn’t push her.

“We’ll take it slow.”

She nodded, swallowing hard and blinking away the dampness in her eyes. “I don’t even know if I want to go slow. I’ve never felt like this before. I’ve never wanted to touch anyone the way I want to touch you. You’re like…chocolate-covered potato chips. Sweet and salty. A guilty pleasure. Oh God, I’m making no sense.” She covered her face and he folded her into his arms.

Every single thing she did endeared her to him. She was completely different from any woman he’d ever dated, and he liked her more for it.

“You’re making total sense.”

She pressed both hands to his cheeks and gazed into his eyes. “Make no mistake about me wanting you. Ever since I beaned you with my phone and you smiled at me, I’ve wanted you, and then we kissed, and…I was a goner. As relieved as I am that we’ll take it slow, let’s not take it too slow, okay?”

He laughed, then touched his forehead to hers. “What does that mean?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe we should have parameters, like a three-date rule or something.” She lifted one shoulder and blushed.

“Babe, tell me what you want and I’ll do the best I can, even if it means three cold showers a day. What is a three-date rule?”

“You know, like we won’t be intimate for three dates, then…” She lifted her shoulders. “Then I guess we go with whatever we feel.”

“Three dates? We went to the flea market, then the beach. Is that two?”

She laughed again. “I don’t think that’s how it works.”

“Okay, so no touching for three dates.” He nodded. “I can handle that.”

Her smile faded.

“What?”

“I thought we were talking about being really intimate, not touching.”