finding Reese.: a SAFELIGHT novel vol.2 (SAFELIGHT Series) (17 page)

“Umm, good morning to you too,” I reply awkwardly. As soon as I hear Jackson’s hearty chuckles, I shield my eyes trying to avoid the direction in which his voice is coming from.

“Hey! Sorry for the birthday suit, Cat. Sam popped in late last night to hang out,” Jackson explains matter-of-factly in between munches. “I’m standing behind the counter. You can look now.”

My hand falls from my eyes, and I blink a couple of times to allow my vision to adjust. Jackson’s smile meets my own, and then I wave hello to Sam.

“I didn’t mean to barge in on you guys. I’m going to grab a cup of coffee and get out of your hair. My name is Catalina, but everyone calls me Cat. I’m pleased to meet you, Sam.”

Unlike Jackson, Sam is fully dressed thank God, and she opens her arms to greet me with a hug. “Samantha, but everyone calls me Sam. Nice to meet you too, Cat.”

For the briefest of seconds our eyes connect, and then she quickly walks away towards Jackson. She has sun-kissed blonde hair that barely touches her shoulders, large expressive honey-brown eyes, and raised cheekbones. Sam is
really
pretty, and from what I can see her personality matches her stunning looks; an athletic build and a graceful walk, and while she’s wearing one of Jackson’s t-shirts, I can tell she has an enviable body underneath.

“I’m surprised you’re up so early . . . let alone walking,” Jackson jokes with a small laugh.

Heat rises to my cheeks, and after grabbing a mug from the cabinet, I turn around and stick my tongue out at him. He smiles, then winks devilishly that is, until Sam elbows him on the shoulder and gives him a threatening glare. Jax looks at her with wide eyes, and raises his hands, mouthing, ‘What?’ Judging by the way they are interacting, it’s easy to see they’ve known each other for a very long time. Turning around to give them a semblance of space, I face the counter waiting for my cup of brew. As I’m standing there the sound of them kissing makes me blush, but at the same time it makes me smile.

“Do you want breakfast?” Jackson asks her, and I grin even wider, thankful they can’t see the excitement plastered on my face.

But curiosity gets the best of me. I turn around and see Jackson taking a lock of her blonde hair between his gruff fingers and tucking it sweetly behind her earlobe. I’ve
never
seen this side of him before and, holy hell, I feel like a voyeur watching them. His eyes twinkle as he looks tenderly into hers. Gone is the mischief and joking, and in its place is deep affection. Even though I’m standing, metaphorically-speaking I’m on the edge of my seat waiting for Sam’s response.
Say yes, woman, yes!

“No, Jaxy-boy. I have to get going,” she replies quietly. Through my eyelashes I catch the disappointed look on Jackson’s face. The frown he’s been sporting since the accident is back. His eyes meet mine, and I smile, but he rolls his eyes and twirls his index finger in the air silently asking me to turn around. I hear him leaving the kitchen, followed by the sound of a door slamming shut.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I turn around and without sugar-coating shit, say, “Why’d you say no?”

Sam replies, “Because you and I both know what that means. I’m not the girl that stays. What’s it to you, Cat?”

“Jax is my friend, and he’s been through a lot of shit in case you didn’t know. Yes, I don’t know you and yeah, I’m shocked to see you here, but seeing him smile was really something. The least you could do is accept his offer of a meal. It’s just food,” I emphasize as calmly as I’m able to.

Sam smiles. “You really care about him, huh? I do too. We have an understanding . . . It’s fun and nothing more. I refuse to commit to anyone and neither can he. It is what it is.”

I tilt my head to the side, and before I can ask a follow-up question, Stryder’s throaty voice fills the room. “Call me crazy, but I swear I heard Sam’s voice in here.” And when they see each other, they hug fiercely in front of me.

“Jupiter!” Sam exclaims happily. “What a pleasant surprise!”

Great. They know each other too.
An unsettling feeling builds inside me and I’m pretty sure there’s a little troll inside of me dressed in green named Jealousy. I’ve never been the jealous-type, but seeing them hugging and smiling at each other prompts my mind to imagine all kinds of fucked-up scenarios that have me close to leaving the room.

Stryder’s arm curls around my waist, and he pulls me close to his chest with a kiss. “Sam, meet my girlfriend, Catalina Pardo.”

“Yes, we made our introductions earlier. Wow. I thought I’d never see the day you’d be linked to someone who wasn’t Olivia. Thank God! Good for you, Jupiter,” Samantha exclaims with a grin.

Okay. I like Samantha. A lot.

“Sometimes you come across people who make you want to be a better, happier man.” Stryder declares, with another kiss on my temple. “Maybe you should stop fighting and start trying, Sam.”

Samantha looks down and exhales. “No, Jupiter, certain things need to be left as is.” She pauses to clear her throat. “Listen, it was nice catching up with you. As you can see,” she says gesturing at Jax’s t-shirt, “some habits die hard. I’ve got to go. Pleased to meet you Cat. I’ll see you around.”

And with that she walks away towards Jackson’s bedroom with confident steps. I look up at Stryder and a knowing smile quirks his lips. “Oh, such a curious little one you are!”

I poke him in the rib, “Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You know damn well what I’m saying.” He chuckles.

“I kind of have an idea. Jax seems to like her a lot, and I’d be a liar if I said I’m not intrigued . . .”

Stryder releases me to grab a mug from the cabinet. I watch him make coffee, patiently waiting for him to spill the beans. Of course, he takes his sweet-ass time. Once he’s done with the first few sips of his coffee, he finally speaks.

“They used to date a long time ago, but their careers and schedules made it impossible to have a stable relationship. Sam was born and raised here just like Jax. She’s a cross country skier for the US Olympic Team, and last I heard she lives in Denver, but that was a while back. It’s been a long time since we’ve talked.”

“I see. She’s the one that got away, am I right?”

Stryder quirks his head, but keeps his eyes fixed on the coffee maker. “Yeah. I guess you can say that. They are both willful people with similar backgrounds. They butted heads a lot, but when they are together it’s something special to watch.”

I stand there thinking about Jackson’s happiness and how having a woman in his life, especially now, could help him. I’ll make sure to have words with him when Stryder leaves. I want him to be himself whether he’s with Sam or not. Jackson needs someone to ride his ass when I can’t, and someone to care for him when we can’t. The thought of him finding love thrills me. Perhaps Cupid needs a Cupid of his own.

After finishing his coffee, Stryder places the empty mug in the sink and walks over to hug me. I wrap my arms around his neck inhaling his scent and committing it to memory. I’ll miss him more than I’ll ever care to admit.

“I woke up this morning thinking about something, Catalina,” Stryder muses, as he rubs circles against the small of my back.

I smile. “And that would be?”

“Valentine’s Day,” he whispers gruffly. “We were so busy with the press tour, the day came and went without us even realizing it.”

“Wow. You’re right. Valentine’s Day . . . In my defense, I’m used to not celebrating it.”

Stryder takes a step back and his steady gaze meets mine. “I know. I used to feel the same way that is, until I fell in love with you, Catalina.”

My heart beats furiously at his words. “You are not alone there, Stryder. I think I fell in love with you the moment you put your arm around me in that SUV to calm me down. I was a hot mess then. I still am, but I’m better with each passing day. Thank you for loving me.”

Stryder cups my face with his large hands and kisses my lips lovingly. “And
I
fell in love with
you
the moment you sat beside me on that plane. I’ll never forget the warmth of your cheek against my shoulder, your scent, and more importantly how
you
made me feel on the inside. I was a jaded man before I met you, Catalina, and now I’m such a happy, lucky bastard.”

We stand in the middle of the kitchen gazing into each other eyes, confessing our feelings for each other out in the open, and damn it feels wonderful. “I love you, Stryder.”

“I love you too, Catalina.”

The sound of a throat being cleared makes us aware we are not alone in the kitchen, and we turn around to see Jackson and Sam holding hands, looking at us with warm, tender smiles.

“They’ve got it bad, Sam.” Jackson nuzzles his nose into the crook of her neck.

“I know. This is nice to see, Jupiter.” Sam winks, combing Jax’s wayward hair with her fingers.

They love each other in their own unexplainable way, and I wonder if either of them realizes it. Smiling, I wrap my arm around Stryder’s waist. “The view of you two isn’t so bad from here either, you know . . .”

Sam separates herself from Jackson and walks over to say goodbye, hugging us both. The three of us walk towards the foyer to see her out.

“It was nice to meet you, Catalina,” Sam pipes, wrapping her gloved hand around the doorknob.

“Likewise, Sam. Don’t be a stranger.” I wave, and she waves back as she opens the door.

With his hands in his pockets and a pained expression on his face, Jackson mutters, “I’ll walk you out to your truck.”

Stryder and I make our way up the staircase towards our room, and on the way there I take a glance out of the window. Jackson and Samantha are kissing beside her snow-covered truck. Feeling intrusive, I quickly look away. I can’t help but think she’s the owner of Jax’s heart, and nothing would make me happier than to see them experience the same kind of relationship Stryder and I share.

“He loves her,” Stryder mutters as we walk into our room. “He always has.”

I figured that out the moment I saw them kissing in the kitchen. Jackson’s eyes were soft and tender in ways I’ve never seen before. I wonder if that is what Jackson saw in us back in Whistler. Perhaps he needs a reminder−a sip of his own medicine.

Sitting on the small chair next to the bed, I prop my legs over the arm and watch Stryder walk into the closet. “What do you want to do today?”

He walks out with some clothes in his hands and lays them out on the bed. “We are going out on a date, Raven Girl. It’s almost March, but I’ll be damned if we don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day before I leave.” He grins, walks over to me, and bends down to kiss my forehead.

“Sounds perfect,” I reply, my heart skipping a beat. Thoughtful, handsome, and loving . . . He says
he’s
lucky. I respectfully disagree.

Stryder goes all out for our belated Valentine’s Day date. We drive to a rustic movie theater downtown, where we steal kisses from each other during the movie. His constant displays of affection have me like a pot on the stove set to simmer.

The weather isn’t terribly cold as we walk down the quaint sidewalks of downtown Casper. Stryder pulls me by the hand practically dragging me into a flower shop. As a native New Yorker, I’m used to seeing colorful bouquets sold on each street corner . . . flowers for people on the go, but to see them beautifully displayed inside the shop like this really takes my breath away.

I peruse the aisles and find a colorful bucket full of gerberas, and smile, remembering the first time Stryder gave me flowers back in Whistler. Stryder hugs me from behind, and whispers, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” With a grin on my face, I nod.

Stryder motions the shopkeeper over.”I’d like to buy these, please,” he says pointing at the bucket. The woman walks over and trims the gerberas’ stems; the colorful splashes of orange, red, yellow, pink and purple contrast beautifully with each other in the cellophane wrapping. After paying, Stryder pulls a red gerbera from the bouquet, and, snapping the stem, he pushes it softly into my hair. “Red is definitely your color, Catalina,” he whispers sultrily.

I wasn’t expecting to celebrate Valentine’s Day today, and I’m at a loss as to what to do for him. As we walk past a corset maker’s shop I take a peek through the frosted windows, and that’s when the light bulb in my head clicks on. It’s my turn to drag him inside, where he looks at me with a raised eyebrow and a salacious grin.

“Since this is our Valentine’s Day, I’d like for you to pick something out for me,” I say, gesturing at the racks and feeling brazen all of a sudden. Our eyes meet, and the way he looks at me makes feel like butter melting in the middle of the lingerie shop.

Bending down, he whispers into my ear, “Naked is how I want you, Catalina. Naked is how I’ll take you, and naked is how I’ll make you writhe beneath me begging for more. That is how I’ll make you come . . . over and over again.”

His words hit me like a tidal wave, traveling through my cells at the speed of light. My body trembles as the seduction simmering in my belly slowly unfurls. My thighs instinctively clench against each other, seeking reprieve from the overwhelming ache pooling there. Through my layers of clothing, my skin tingles, and my hardened nipples push against the padding of my bra and sweater. My lungs feel like they are void of air, and I can hear blood rushing through my ears. I glance to my sides nervously and when I see the coast is clear, I grope his cock, slanted and hard in his jeans. He lets out a hiss of approval when I squeeze him gently. Thankful his pea coat is hiding my movements, I rise on my tippy-toes, and whisper into his ear.