Page 104 of Reputation
Gently, Jax laid her back on the couch, covering her body with his.He kissed her slowly, thoroughly, stroking her body with lazy passes.Gone was the rush of desire that built into a fierce frenzy.In its place was passion, affection and…hope.Hope that they could both heal the scars of their past.Hope that they might have a chance at a future.
They divested each other of their clothes slowly, peeling away one layer at a time, pausing to explore each new patch of skin that was revealed, running her fingers across the hard ridges of his abs.Hands gripped and caressed, lips and teeth nipped and tasted.When he finally slid inside her, it was slow and sweet.In this moment of sweet, sweet passion, Eavie gave herself over to him—completely.
When she broke around him, a few tears fell from her eyes at the beauty of it.Her emotions gave life to things she had never felt.She wanted to speak, to tell him, but the words got stuck in her throat, clogged by the tears that streamed down her cheeks.
Chapter Thirty Five
Eavie
At the office the next day, Eavie quickly realized how much harder it was going to be to keep their relationship—or whatever it was—a secret.Every time she heard his voice or saw him, a swift rush of heat and excitement washed over her.She had to work hard to keep her focus on the tasks at hand and her eyes away, as her mind constantly wandered to him.
That afternoon, she passed Jax in the hallway as she walked with Sam.He was chatting with Brooks, on their way to a workout or PT.Her eyes connected with his as they approached each other, and the electrical current that ignited between them sparked.
As they brushed past each other, Jax subtly reached his hand out, his fingers skimming her waist in a touch that had her sucking in air.
The movement was so small, the touch there and gone, that she wondered if it even happened, but the effects blasted through her, making her crave his touch again.She continued to look into his eyes as they stepped past each other, turning her head as far as it would go to keep their contact.After two steps, he flashed her his panty-dropping smile and winked.
Licking her bottom lip, she shot him a flirtatious smirk before turning around and walking back to her office.
It had taken all her control to continue moving as his wink left all kinds of dirty, dark thoughts flooding her brain.Rolling her neck, she forced herself to push the delicious images from their weekend to the back of her mind while at the office.
The following two days, the team traveled to Jacksonville to face the Jackals on Tuesday and the Richmond Eagles on Wednesday.With Jax being away, Eavie tried not to let herself miss him.It was silly for her to—they’d only been sleeping together for a few days, and they hadn’t even been on a date.Even with the logic of it, she couldn’t entirely suppress the slight twinge of loneliness as she left the office on Tuesday.
Sitting on her couch Wednesday evening watching the game, she contemplated her precarious position.She knew she was already on thin ice with her feelings for him.She had seen a different side to him—a vulnerable side that he kept hidden under his cocky exterior.It called to a long-buried part of her to wake from its cage deep inside.
After they made love—honestly, there was no other way to describe what transpired between them—on Sunday afternoon, Eavie no longer knew what their relationship was.In a matter of hours, they had gone from seeing where things went, to sex so emotional it made her cry.
Regardless of what he’d shared, she knew keenly that he was still the casual type, something she now understood, knowing how cold and callous his fiancée had handled their breakup.The problem was she still wasn’t the casual type of girl.
Sighing to herself, Eavie accepted that while she didn’t know what this was between them or where it was going, she knew the depths of her feelings had gone beyond anything she’d felt before.
The team was back home Thursday, and she did her best to go about her day as normal as possible.Despite her efforts to stay professional, as she was walking alone down the hallway on the player’s level, she turned a corner and spotted Jax heading in her direction.
An automatic smile lit her face.Glancing behind him, she noted they were alone, and figured it would be safe to stop and chat with him for a minute, like any co-workers.
Before Eavie could open her mouth, Jax grabbed her around the waist and lifted her off her feet.Caught by surprise, she automatically wrapped her legs around him as he shoved them through a door into a dark meeting room.
Kicking the door closed, he pressed her against it, using his hips to pin her in place while he devoured her mouth.She let out a moan as his smooth taste exploded on her tongue.Jax kissed her deeply and thoroughly, not stopping until they were both gasping for air.
“Jax,” she said breathlessly.“We can’t do this.Someone is going to see us.”
“I missed you,” he ground out as he kissed along her jaw.
She sighed and tilted her head, giving him access to her neck.Despite her better judgment, she answered, “I missed you, too.”
“Let me take you home tonight,” he said between kisses.
With his body pressed against hers and his scent clouding her thoughts, all her efforts from the past few days to remember their unclear situation vanished like mist in the sun.She had no willpower to resist this man.
Pulling his mouth back to hers, Eavie kissed him again, tangling her fingers into his hair.Releasing his mouth, she licked her lips.“I’d like that,” she said.
When his cocky smile spread across his face, her eyes flicked to it as an answering heat roared through her belly.There was no way she could resist this man.
Giving him one last hard kiss, she loosened her legs from around him so Jax had to put her back down, holding onto her until she steadied herself.Placing her hand on his chest, Eavie pushed, creating a small amount of space between them.
She looked up at him coyly through her lashes.“Meet me in the garage at five thirty,” she said, her voice low and seductive but stern.“We can’t risk you coming to my office.This,” she pointed around them, “was already bad enough.”
She slipped out of his arms and cracked the door open without waiting for him to answer.Making sure no one was in the hallway, Eavie stepped through and continued on as if Jax hadn’t just stolen her breath and made her heart gallop like Snow’s hooves on the packed earth.
