A muscle jumped in his jaw. “I never really had them.”
Part of her wanted to stand down, but she wanted to give Blake something more than her body. She wanted him to trust her as a friend. “Why not?” she asked.
“We didn’t have the all-American, apple pie life you had growing up, Jessie.” His grip tightened. “They were busy. Running from bill collectors, unable to hold steady jobs. While they were keeping what little they had from going, I looked after Maisey.”
Something tugged at her heart, making her ache. “That means you had to look after yourself,” Jessie said. She couldn’t imagine the loneliness that accompanied parental neglect. How readily she’d taken that for granted with her own parents. And that was going to change ASAP.
“I handled it.”
“True. Now you’re rich and famous. People all over the world adore you.”
“They’re fans, not friends.” He shrugged and raised a brow. “But they do pay the bills.”
He’d raised his guard with that subtle movement, and Jessie understood the need to protect himself from more scrutiny. “I’m a fan.” She brushed his lips. “And I’m your friend.”
“A very sexy friend.”
His arousal pressed against her, making her hum with anticipation. Before she acted on the impulse to rush into another heated sensual sexcapade, she’d make sure Blake did believe that he could rely on someone else. “I bet you never had Christmas with all the trimmings, right?”
“No.” He moved his thigh between her legs. “You planning on giving me a present?”
Her nipples pebbled and need spiraled through her. Oh dear Lord, he made her want to lick him from top to bottom and back up again. “Yes. No. I mean…if you want to have a taste of a real Christmas this week…”
He caressed her back, circling to the small dip just above her bottom. “You inviting me over for Christmas dinner?”
Her sex pulsed. “Unless you have something better to do,” she said, her voice raspy.
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be than with you and your family for Christmas.”
“Awesome,” she said. “And by all means, consider this an early present.” Jessie coiled her arms around his neck and brought his lips to hers.
Chapter Seven
The day after Christmas, Jessie looked down at Blake’s handsome face, wanting to remain connected to him, but also aware of the LED display on the alarm clock next to his bed. Outside, the glimmer of moonlight reflected off the snow covering the resort’s expansive lawns.
“You’re fantastic,” Blake said.
She caressed his jaw, felt the rough early morning stubble, and remembered the decadent feel of it against her skin as he’d brought her to the heights of ecstasy moments ago. How quickly he’d become more than a fantasy and such an integral part of her life. Their six days and nights together had imprinted him in her mind, and a little in her heart, if she was completely honest with herself.
That he’d joined her family for Christmas dinner yesterday had made him far more real than the movie icon she’d once fan-girled over. But this was casual. “And you scored a ten out of ten in the sex department.” Jessie reluctantly eased off him.
Blake caught her waist, rolled her over, pinning her. “How about we shoot for one more stellar round of awesome sex?”
“Seriously, Blake, wild sex is not a replacement for working out.” She wiggled in a halfhearted attempt to escape him. “Mom outdid herself with dinner yesterday. I feel like I’ve gained ten pounds overnight. I’ve got to hit the gym.” And she really had to forget how adorable he’d looked when he’d washed her mother’s roasting pan.
He nibbled her lower lip, his green eyes filled with humor. “You know you want to,” he said.
A thrill thrummed through her veins. How could anyone resist that dimple? Or the teasing light in his eyes? No wonder he had hundreds of thousands of adoring fans. But she had seen other sides to Blake, sides that revealed more about his character. Sides that made her wish for more.
He imprisoned her with his body, his skin on hers, brushing against her sensitive breasts. Everything inside her vibrated with anticipation, longing to keep him there.
“I do,” Jessie conceded with a laugh, then yielded to his possession of her body, one he’d developed to an amazing degree in six days. It was as if he could read her body’s instinctual responses.
And after he’d read her body twice more, she stepped into the shower feeling sexy, satisfied, and extremely satiated. An hour and a half later, she’d worked up another layer of sweat with Blake guiding her through his rigorous training session.