Last First Kiss (35 page)

Giselle smiled. “They had him all dressed up like a princess...it seems like an eternity ago. He looked good in that pink feather boa, didn’t he?”

“
He sure did.” Jackson turned his gaze on Giselle. “I miss him too, you know.” She nodded and he kissed the tip of her nose. It was an intimate gesture in front of the most recent snapshots of Toby. “Are you okay with this?” he asked, gesturing at the photo frame.

“
Yeah, the more I look at these, the easier it is. I was lucky once, and maybe I’ll get lucky again.” She smiled at him.

He closed his eyes before asking her. “Do you think some day I could be a part of this family?”

She relaxed against the kitchen cabinet and pulled him closer. “I think it’s possible. Does that scare you?”

He leaned in for a kiss. “Not even a little.”

She kissed him in return then pulled away. “It should, you know; with three women in the house, you’ll be out numbered. Not to mention the fact that in about seven years, you’ll have to deal with three different sets of PMS symptoms—all that crankiness and mood swings.” She grimaced.

He nibbled on her neck
.
“Fortunately for you, I’ve been pre-conditioned to crankiness and mood swings.”

She reached up, put her arms around his neck. “Yes, I guess you have,” she said, pulling her body as close to him as she could, while wondering about their potential relationship. Giselle slipped her hands under his tee shirt to explore the soft, silky matting of fine black hair on his chest and lower abdomen. She splayed her hands on his highly defined abs, and gently traced the ridges and hard planes of his torso.

She nestled her face into the contours of his neckline, and opened her mouth to taste him with her tongue. He groaned low in his throat when she scraped him lightly with her teeth.

“
You’re making me crazy.” He pulled away and she closed her eyes as he treated her to the same tenderness, tasting her, then lightly biting and nipping until she shivered.

“
You see?” he breathed.

She nodded, unable to speak, barely able to open her eyes.

He slipped his arms around to massage her back then moved his hands under her shirt to feel the soft skin of her sides and belly. She inhaled sharply at the touch and pulled him to her for a kiss, wanting more of him as his hands inched closer to her breasts. When he pulled away to bury his mouth on her neck, she was primed and ready for his touch. She moaned when his lips touched her hot skin, gasped as his fingertips brushed the décolletage of her lace bra. She let her head back as he brushed the back of his hands up the sides of her breasts.

“
Jackson...,” she whispered hoarsely, “Please.”

“
Please what, baby...I don’t know how far I can go.” He pulled her to him roughly as she nearly sobbed with frustration.

“
I want you, Giselle, but I don’t know if you’re ready for this.”

“
Jackson...please...”

“
Tell
me what you want, hon. What can I do?”

“
Please,” she begged again, unsure how to ask him to do what she wanted him to do. “Hold me. Touch me.”

She watched as Jackson unbuttoned her shirt with shaky fingers then stood, as though contemplating what to do next. When she reached up to unhook her front bra closures, he covered her hands with his own, stopping her.

“
Not yet,” he said, giving her a slow shake of his head. “Not here...not now.” He cupped her breasts softly and began stroking the pads of his thumbs over the thin fabric covering her nipples. He rubbed in small circular motions, increasing the pressure until she was panting with need.

Giselle groaned from the pleasure of having Jackson’s hands on her, arching her back to be more accessible to his tender touches. Jackson bent low, placed both hands under her thighs, and lifted her easily so that she rested on the counter top. He opened her legs and stepped in between them so that he was right up against her heat.

Giselle wrapped her legs around his hips and pulled him to her, demanding. “Jackson,” she moaned, desperate for some form of relief as he pulled her closer and ground against her, thrusting his hips forward.

Pulling her close with one hand, he kissed her as he continued the circular motion with his thumb on her nipple. It only took moments before Giselle cried out with her release.

He held her face in his hands and kissed her forcefully, thrusting his tongue into her mouth with a furious need.

Giselle kissed him back as she reached down to unbutton his shorts.

“
No,” he gasped, pulling her hands away.

“
You need...” she began.

“
Not like this,” he said, cutting her off. “It has to be right,” he whispered, his voice hoarse with need. “It’s too important to me.”

“
But Jackson...”

He shook his head anxiously. “I’m fine,” he said, as he shook with the effort it took to control himself. “Or I will be in a few minutes. Just give me a few minutes,” he gasped.

Giselle took his face in her hands and kissed him. She brushed back the hair from his dampened forehead and rested her head against his. “Jackson,” she whispered.

He pulled away, drinking in the sight of her, shaking his head slowly as his eyes shimmered with emotion. “My God, you’re beautiful,” he whispered. He took his time re-buttoning her shirt and adjusted her collar.

She laid her head on his chest, still able to feel the pounding of his heart. “I hate that you didn’t get to...”

“
Don’t worry about me,” he interrupted. “I’m a big boy.”

“
Yes, you certainly seem to be.” She looked down. “I have to admit, you’ve got me wondering what it’ll be like if and when we consummate our relationship.”

“
It’ll be wonderful, when the time is right.” He wiped the sweat from his brow again. “Until then, I see numerous cold showers in my future.”

CHAPTER 21

They jumped at the shrill ring of the telephone.

It was Gretchen, letting Giselle know they would be home around three o’clock. “What do we do until then?” she asked.

Jackson wiped at his brow again. “Anything that gets us the hell out of here. Any ideas?”

She nodded excitedly. “Let’s go get the bike.”

He nibbled on her ear. “The sooner, the better.”

“
Give me a minute,” she said, pulling away from him.

“
Hey, bring your swimsuit.” He grinned at her questioning look.

“
I don’t do rivers or lakes,” she said, shaking her head. “I hate snakes, and the thought of fish nibbling on my toes freaks me out.”

“
Just get your suit,” he said, laughing.

They drove to Jackson’s house, traded the Avalanche for the Indian, and rode for two hours. Around eleven, he turned into Bill’s driveway and pulled up to the house. He unlocked the front door and ushered her inside.

Bill’s home was a rambling log cabin style home, rustic looking on the outside, but full of comforts and amenities on the inside.

“
Okay, this place is nice, Jackson, but why are we here?”

“
You’ll see.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her along with him. He walked her out through the back door onto the patio area. There was another huge building to the rear of the home, with several windows along each exterior wall. He unlocked the building and led her inside. Giselle stood in awe of the huge indoor pool. The entire room was set up for entertaining and comfort, with several round tables surrounded by chairs, chaise loungers placed around all four sides of the pool, and several huge potted plants placed throughout the room to make it feel inviting.

“
I am amazed! I had no idea this was here.”

“
When he bought the place it had a pool in the backyard, but he decided if he was going to have one, he wanted to be able to use it year round. He had this built several years ago when he used to do a lot of entertaining for his oil company, before he retired, of course. He swims every morning to keep in shape.”

“
Now that you mention it, he did tell me he swam laps every day. It never dawned on me that he had his own pool. Is it heated during the winter?”

“
It’s the same temp year round. You ready to swim?”

In seconds, Giselle had shimmied out of her shorts and slipped off her halter top.

Jackson’s jaw dropped. “Oh, hell, I didn’t realize you had your suit on under your clothes—I thought I was getting a free show.”

She smiled, stepped out of her sandals then dove in the pool head first. “The temperature’s perfect,” she told him, after swimming to the side.

“
Be there in a minute.” Jackson came out of the bathroom a few minutes later wearing his trunks and carrying two large towels. He walked to a corner of the room, pushed some buttons and country music played from a built-in stereo system.

Giselle tread water as she watched him walk with deliberate slowness toward her.
What in hell is he waiting on?
Jackson stopped to pull the drawstring on his trunks then re-tied it. She kept her eyes on the two pads of muscle just above each hipbone where the trunks were hanging kind of low. She raised her eyes to his luscious abs and shoulders, all freshly bronzed from the previous day of fun in the sun at Red’s. Their gazes met and she noticed the sparkle of hidden laughter in his eyes.
So
big boy wants to play, does he?

She swam to the ladder and climbed out, swinging her hips seductively as she walked over to the diving board. She placed one delicate foot carefully in front of another, taking her sweet time to walk over to the end of the board. She glanced at him and knew he was as captivated by watching her as she had been by watching him. She steadied herself then took several good bounces, cut a flip in the air, and sliced smoothly into the water.

The second Giselle hit the water, Jackson did too, diving headfirst into the opposite end.

She broke the surface, wiped the water out of her eyes, and looked around, unable to see him. He surfaced silently behind her making her gasp as he pulled her close. Giselle turned then wrapped her arms around his neck as he treaded water. He kissed her on the nose then dipped his head to kiss her deeply as his tongue explored the soft inside of her sensuous mouth.

“
You are, without a doubt, the most beautiful woman I’ve ever known,” he murmured.

“
Thank you and you are so incredibly handsome and sexy.”

He kissed her again, and they sank as he lost concentration and forgot to tread water. Neither of them broke the kiss, but continued it until he brought them back up to the surface. He side paddled to the edge of the pool where he could hang on and kiss her without having to work so hard. They became lost in each other, their hands all over one another until he finally pulled his lips away from hers. “We have to stop” he groaned, “or I won’t be able to.”

“
I don’t want you to stop. Make love to me,” she whispered, wrapping her legs tightly around his hips.

“
We can’t take this back. Are you sure?”

“
I’m sure,” she panted.

“
Yes...Giselle...Oh God, yes,” he groaned as she buried her face in his neck and tightened her legs around his waist.

“
Make love to me, Toby,” she whispered hoarsely in his ear.

Jackson swore his heart skipped two full beats before it started up again like a jackhammer. She continued kissing him, unaware of her slip. He put her at arm’s length and kissed her lightly on the forehead. “I’m sorry, hon...We can’t do this right now.” He avoided looking at her, so she wouldn’t see the hurt in his eyes.

“
What? Why? What’s wrong?”

“
It’s too soon,” he explained patiently, climbing out of the pool to grab a towel. He knew the slip had been innocent on her part, but it didn’t seem to help.

She followed him out of the pool. “No, we need to talk.”

“
Giselle, for God’s sake-just drop it,” he pleaded.

“
No! Why did you change your mind? We’re both adults.”

He knew she wouldn’t drop it. Toby always said a bulldog had nothing on his wife when she was determined.
Toby’s wife.