Page 31 of The Sandover Beach Billionaire

Chapter Ten

Jenna screamedin the darkness and Jackson’s hands pulled her close. She felt his lips on her hair as he murmured comforting words, words she couldn’t hear because she was still screaming. His hand cupped the back of her head and this grounded her enough to close her mouth, her scream becoming more of a dull whimper against Jackson’s chest.

“Hey, I’ve got you. Just a little bit of darkness. We’re still fine, Monroe. Look—can you see the light from up there? That’s the second floor right there. It’s going to be okay.”

Jackson’s words shouldn’t have calmed her so much, but she didn’t question the effect they had on her, or how she was basically clinging to his body. Or the fact that she got a thrill every time he called her by her last name. They could deal with what all that meant later. Or not.

After the humiliation of how she had attached herself to him in this tiny, hot space, she might run from his house and not look back. Especially considering this whole thing was her own, stupid fault. Who opens the door of an elevator while it’s moving?

No matter what happened after they got off the elevator, right now Jackson was the only thing standing between her and sheer panic. She wasn’t going to question it. Instead, she pulled even closer to him, despite the fact that she could feel sweat dampening her shirt. Her eyes sought out the tiny sliver of light from the floor above. After a moment or two, her eyes adjusted. It was still almost pitch-black, but with the little light from under the door above their heads, she could just see the slope of Jackson’s shoulders and his head.

Jackson moved one of his hands from her shoulders and brushed it lightly over her lower back. “You okay, Monroe? Talk to me.”

“I think so.” It hurt a little to speak after the screaming. She really liked the feeling of his hands on her back. Not that she would say that to him. And she liked how he called her by her last name. No one had ever called her that. It felt right.

As much as the darkness had startled her, she felt more comfortable with all the touching now that she didn’t have to face the intensity of Jackson’s face. It also kept her mind off the size of the elevator. It was more than small. It was tiny. Did the darkness make it feel like it was getting smaller?

It wasn’t getting smaller, was it?

Her breathing hitched and she felt the panic welling up again.

Breathe.

“Jackson? Can you talk to me? About anything. I don’t even care. I need something else to focus on so I don’t lose it.”

“Sure,” he said. “So, I’ve never been stuck in an elevator before. Have you?”

She groaned and pressed her forehead into his chest. “Not about elevators. Anything but elevators. Something else.”

“Sorry. Any favorite topics?”

“Bears. Gardening. Politics. Celebrity gossip. Books. I don’t care. I just need a distraction.”

“Bears, politics—hm. Not sure I can speak to either of those. Don’t keep up with celebrity gossip and haven’t read a book in a while. Other than the Bible and The Field Guide to Birds.” He was quiet for a minute and Jenna almost groaned again. “How about a confession?”

That got her mind off the elevator. “You’re not a murderer, are you?”

“Interesting that your mind went there first. We might need to have a conversation later about the way you see me. No, I am not a murderer.” He cleared his throat. “You ready?”

“Jackson, just keep talking.”

“Sorry—I’m pretty bad at this. Drumroll please! Here’s my confession: I had the biggest crush on you in high school. Like, embarrassingly huge.”

Jenna was already sweating and hot in the small, almost airless space, but heat still rose to her face. Something fluttered in her stomach. She was suddenly very aware of every place that they were touching and the soothing way his hand moved over her lower back. It still felt comforting, but also now seemed to wake up every nerve ending in her body.

“You did not. You dated like half the school, but never showed any interest in me.”

“It’s true. Cross my heart. I had this picture of you I cut out of the school paper and I kept it in a book on my bedside table for years. It’s probably still in the book, packed in a box somewhere.”

If the lights were on, he would see the blush that she could feel on her cheeks. She was having trouble wrapping her head around this. “Wow. I was not expecting that. I mean, again—you never even flirted with me or asked me out. We hardly talked in high school. Did we ever talk?”

“I asked you about English homework once. And you didn’t know because I was so smooth, obviously. Like a ninja. Or a kid with absolutely zero game.”

Jenna snorted, thinking of the long list of girls Jackson did date. “Oh, you had plenty of game. Game was not your problem.”

For a moment, Jenna had reverted right back to the snappy remarks she had been tossing at Jackson all week. She mentally chastised herself. This was the guy currently holding her close in a sweltering, dark elevator. He had given her plenty of reasons this week to let go of her anger. She was about to apologize when he spoke again.

“Ouch. You’re right, though. I did date a lot of people. But I didn’t like any of them the way I liked you. I really did like you and it made me afraid to ask you out. I wasn’t used to that.”

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