Stepbrother Forever: A Stepbrother Romance (27 page)

His body is damp and his
muscular form is glistening in the morning light. I am immediately taken back
to last night and arousal sweeps over me. I know he has to leave soon and I
don’t want to seem too eager, so I just look and let the feeling pass.

He flashes me a wicked little
grin. “Good morning, Ashley.”

“Morning. I made some coffee,”
I reply.

“I would. I like it light, no
sugar, if you don’t mind. Try and remember. I have a feeling this is only the
first of many mornings we will be having together.”

I shake my head at him, hiding
a smile of my own. “Oh? What makes you so sure?”

“I’m a smart man, as you know,”
he says, stepping closer to me and wrapping me in his arms from behind, “and I
know you felt what I felt last night.”

“I think I’m feeling it again,”
I chuckle, noting his growing erection pressing lightly into my backside. He
growls softly against my nape and I shiver all the way down to my toes.

“I think you know what I really
mean, Ashley. This feeling,” he says, bumping into me softly, “you will have to
wait for. But I promise, it will be worth it.” Then Jayson takes his mug from
the counter and goes to sit at the breakfast bar. I can sense a smirk on his
face without being able to see it. I take my coffee and sit next to him.

“I did feel it, Jayson,” I
confess. “I’m still afraid, but I know there is something special about you—or
us.” We look up at each other and I shyly smile.

“I know you’re worried. You
made that very clear,” he says, looking right into my eyes. “But I promise you,
I will not hurt you.” And I believe him. Even if it is naïve of me, I just do.

We finish our coffee and Jayson
goes back to my room and gets dressed. He only has the clothes he wore the
night before, but he seems okay with that. I get up to say goodbye when he
steps back out, looking as handsome as ever.

“Well, thank you for an
incredible evening Ms. Porter,” he says, taking my hand in his and kissing it.

“No, thank you, Mr. Elliott. I
had an amazing time.”

Jayson puts his hands around my
waist and pulls me closer, kissing me. He pulls away slowly and takes me in.

“See you later, beautiful.” He
smiles.

I smile back. “Have a great
day.”

He opens the door and turns to
look at me one more time before heading down the hall to the elevator.

“I can’t wait to see you
again,” he adds. And then Jayson is gone.

______

I am wandering around my
apartment in a state of pure bliss. There is a happiness inside of me that I
haven’t felt in a long time—not even with Michael. I still have a few hours
before work, so I decide to clean up a little and take my time this morning.

I head into the bedroom and
smile as I look at the bed. I wish Jayson didn’t have to leave so early this
morning so we could make love all over again.

I step over to the side and
start to pull the sheet and blanket to make the bed as I do every morning. A
jolt of electricity shoots through my body as I remember last night: Jayson’s
body on top of mine, looking into each other’s eyes as we climaxed together.

I get into bed and lay down,
pulling the covers to my face to try and get a sense of him. It’s silly, but
even the scent of his cologne on my sheets makes me smile. The way he made me
feel, the way I feel now, is so new and unfamiliar to me. I know it’s foolish
to believe so soon in a relationship, but I think I love him.

The second the thought crosses
my mind, my smile fades. I am being ridiculous. I can’t fall in love just like
that. Just over a week ago, this same man I think I am in love with was using
cheesy pick-up lines on me at a bar and hooking up with different women. I
can’t let myself fall for him like this. He could be playing me just like he
plays so many others. I thought I sensed love and truth in him, but what if
it’s bullshit?

Not to mention the possibility
of my mother and Tom progressing their relationship. I’m sure my mother would
be mortified if I was dating her potential husband’s son. The fact that he’s so
much older than me would kill her. She wants me to be happy, but with someone
my own age that I can grow with. Definitely not with a man who is, technically
speaking, old enough to be my father. The fact that my own father left her for
a much younger woman with almost the same age difference as Jayson and I
doesn’t help anything, either.

How did I become so smitten
that I let Jayson convince me to just let things be and “not think too much?”

My bliss is turning to
bitterness as I sit, thinking about what happened some more. I am crowding my
thoughts of last night with “what if’s” and “whys.” I am suddenly in a complete
state of confusion and panic. Minutes ago I was in love, and now I am
questioning every feeling I had last night. I can’t decide if it was real or
just in my head.

I get up and go to look for my
phone. It’s in my kitchen so I pour another cup of coffee and sit at the table.
I dial Rachel’s number and hope that she is available. I need to talk to
someone.

I get her voicemail and leave a
message for her to call me back. I’m being ridiculous—I felt Jayson’s passion,
and the man I had dinner with last night was real. I can’t let the negative
voice in my head convince me otherwise. Still, I’m having a hard time letting
those thoughts go.

My phone rings, startling me. I
look at the screen. It’s my mother.

“Good morning, Mom,” I answer.

“Good morning, Ashley.” She
sounds way too cheerful.

I raise a brow. “What’s up?”

“Not too much. It was so nice
seeing you last week. We still haven’t had a chance to chat and catch up.”

“I know. Tom seems like a great
guy and you both look so happy together. I’m glad I finally got a chance to
meet him.”

“I’m so glad you feel that way,
Ash! I’m just head over heels for him. He’s amazing and treats me like a queen.
I never thought I would meet a man like him—not after your father.” She sighs
dreamily. “And he was delighted to meet you and Eric. It’s great that we all
got along so well. Like we’re family already.”

I roll my eyes as my stomach
flip flops.
Like family.
I just had
sex with my might-be brother last night. Wonder how Tom would feel about that?

“Yeah. I thought it might be
awkward at first, but it actually felt very natural,” I reply. I’m not sure if
I’m talking about our little get-together or what happened between me and
Jayson last night.

“I’ve had the pleasure of
meeting his sons once before, Jayson and Matt. They’re good guys. Their
business does very well and they are respectful and decent to Tom. He always
speaks highly of them, although when it comes to their personal lives, he has
doubts they will ever settle down—especially Jayson. Tom says he’s never had a
serious girlfriend and sleeps around a little too much for his liking. Reminds
me of your father. It’s one thing to test the waters, it’s another to be a
gigolo. Is that even a term people use anymore?”

I cringe. “Not really. But it
still has the same meaning.” She’s making me feel like such a fool.

My mom chuckles. “I think we
talk about our children so much it feels like we know them more than we
actually do. I think his boys are fantastic—I probably shouldn’t be gossiping
about what they do or who they do it with. As long as they treat me with
respect, I’m happy.” She sounds like the perfect stepmother already.

“Well, Mom, again, I’m so happy
for you. You deserve a guy like Tom. And you certainly deserve to be treated
like a queen, after all you’ve been through.” I try to steer our conversation
away from “The boys.” My mother would kill me if she knew what happened with
Jayson, more so if she knew how I felt about him this morning—how I’d thought I
was in love.

“Can we do lunch this week,
Ashley? I can come in on your day off if you like,” Mom offers.

“I would love that,” I reply,
and I really would. “I’ll know my schedule on Sunday.”

“Sounds good. Won’t it be nice
when you finally decide on a major and work in your own field?” she adds. I
knew she would have to get one shot in about my job. She hates that I’m a
waitress and not trying harder to explore what I really want to do with my
future.

“Of course it will,
Mother,
” I answer, making sure to call
her by her least favorite maternal moniker.

“You know I have to say it,
Ash,” she says, and I can tell she’s smiling on the other end. “Love you. Call
me when you have your schedule.”

“I will. Love you too, Mom.”

I send Rachel a quick text to
call me when she has a few minutes. I need to hash this out with someone
rational.

I take my robe off and step
into the shower. I let the water flow over me to try and relax and calm my thoughts.
I finish and towel off, put on my work clothes and makeup, and go back to the
kitchen to have a snack before I leave. I notice my phone is indicating a
missed call and text so I pick it up.

I read the text first:
Last night was incredible. I miss you
already,
sent by Jayson. I smile to myself. Maybe I was going a little
overboard with all the negative things I was thinking about him this morning.
So he was player before—people can change, right? Maybe I just don’t have the
confidence to think I’m the one that can change him.

I’m not sure what to write back
yet, so I check my voicemail. It’s Rachel. She’s going back into the studio and
will stop by for a drink later if she can. Perfect.

I contemplate what to write
back to Jayson. I want to believe him so badly, but something inside me is
making me hesitate. I type and erase messages several times before I decide
exactly what to say.

I
had a great time. Talk soon.
It’s simple, to the point, and
not committing to any feelings. I hit “send” feeling satisfied, grab a trail
mix bar from the pantry, and head off to work.

________

The restaurant is pretty slow
when I get there. It’s just about lunch time and there are only a few tables
sitting. I continue to speculate and try to rationalize my emotions and
feelings throughout the day. I go back and forth, loving Jayson, then being
annoyed that I even believe that. Being disgusted that we might be related at
some point in the near future, then rationalizing that it doesn’t matter.

Maybe Jayson was right about
one thing: I should stop thinking so much and just let things happen. Even if
he said that to get me to give in for the night, at this point it seems like
great advice.

After the lunch crowd
disperses, I pour myself an iced tea and go sit outside for a few minutes after
the dining room is reset for the dinner crowd. As usual, I take my phone out to
waste some time and see another text from Jayson
. I can’t stop thinking about you.
Again, I smile. I don’t think he
would continue to text me if he was playing games, I really don’t, but I’m
afraid to believe that he really likes me.

I’ve
been thinking about you too,
I reply. I haven’t been able
to stop thinking about him.

Can
I see you again tonight?
Jayson writes back. I can’t see
him yet, I’m not ready. I need to decide how I feel before I can face him
again. There is no way I can resist him so I need to be sure about how I feel
before I can be face to face.

Sorry,
working late and meeting Rachel
, is all I say. That’s all he
needs to know.

You’re
not brushing me off, are you?
he replies. It’s hard to tell
if he is hurt or being sarcastic through a text.

No.
Just can’t tonight. Have to get back to work now,
I send
back. It totally sounds like I’m blowing him off, which I guess I am. I’ll
explain everything to him once I’m in a better emotional state.