Conquer Your Love (15 page)

I groaned with irritation.

Why was I even thinking of that? It wasn’t like I wanted to sleep with
him. That wasn’t why I came here
at all
.
I was so immersed in my thoughts that I didn’t hear Jett coming in.

“You said you’ve sworn off alcohol, so I brought us iced coffee
instead.” He placed a long drink glass with a creamy brownish liquid and a
straw in front of me as he held on to his.

I looked up, startled. My face caught fire, partly because I was ashamed
of my thoughts, and partly because I
knew
he knew. It was pretty obvious from the amused glint in his eyes and the way he
moistened his lips, flicking the tip of his tongue over them lazily, suggesting
all sorts of naughty things. He was torturing me without so much as touching my
body.

“I want to show you the lake,” Jett said, “since you might want to live
here when you inherit the estate.” He held out his hand and I interlaced my
fingers with his. His skin felt warm. Climbing up the stairs, I felt his gaze
on my ass and couldn’t help but sway my hips just a little bit more than usual
because I wanted to have the same effect on him as he had on me.

We walked up to the deck where we lingered for a few moments, enjoying
the stunning view.

“This is where I spend most of my time when I’m here,” Jett said.

“It’s beautiful,” I whispered, realizing my words couldn’t do it
justice. Decorated with brown wicker outdoor furniture consisting of one love
seat with creamy white cushions and a long coffee table plus a side table, it
held enough space to accommodate a whole family. There were three sunbathing
areas forward, aft and alongside the steering console of the cockpit.

“Let’s get this baby going,” Jett said. Through the glass partition, I
watched him step into the cockpit and then behind the steering console. His
long fingers wrapped around the helm as he expertly pushed a few
buttons—and there were plenty of those. Everything looked so complicated,
and yet Jett seemed as though he had done nothing else his whole life.
Obviously he knew what he was doing, which relaxed me.

An instant later the boat came to life and we left the dock, slowly at
first, then faster. I slumped onto a lounge chair and peered at the clear blue
water around us as we moved farther from the shore and from the people walking
up and down the promenade.

Being out here with the waves crashing around the boat and the wind
blowing through my hair, I felt a sense of tranquility and happiness. For the
first time in my life, I felt alive…and safe. As if the wind and the water
could wash away the pain and the disappointments of the past ten years.
As if I could leave my past behind and sail into a new future.
And the fact that Jett was standing just a few feet away made the whole
experience even more profound.

Boats passed as by periodically, and the shore became nothing but a
narrow strip of brown in the distance. And then even that disappeared, and my
mind drifted off to memories of his deep voice and sinfully sexy eyes.

***

‘The Rock’ slowed down—I could feel the gentle vibrations of the
engine. Realizing I must have fallen asleep, I opened my eyes and squinted
against the sunlight as I tried to adjust to the glaring brightness. We were
far out on the lake, with no people in sight. Surrounded by mountain views, the
spot looked quiet and secluded, far away from civilization. The engine whirred
and then all became quiet and the boat was floating idly in the water.

Realizing it was just Jett and
me
now—on
water, alone—I sat up and looked at the partition. He wasn’t there. A
moment later, I felt his presence behind me. I turned and smiled and he
rewarded me with a lazy grin.

“Had a good nap?”

“How do you know?”

He leaned forward and brushed a stray strand of hair out of my face.
“Because I know what you look like when you wake up. You have a sexy, carefree
look about you, like you’ve been to a different place.”

I felt my cheeks catch fire. “Sexy, huh? I like that. I always thought I
looked grumpy. Sexy definitely sounds way better.”

“Even your grumpy looks are sexy.” He reached out to help me up and
turned me around, wrapping his arms around me so my back was pressed against
his front. I snuggled against his chest and craned my neck to accommodate his
exploring lips on my earlobe. My skin felt warm—hot even—and not
just from the sun.

“How long have you been driving a boat?” I asked to distract myself from
the sudden tension in the air.

“I took my first course six years ago, but my father taught me the
basics as a child.”

“That’s nice,” I said, leaning into him so he wouldn’t stop his
nibbling. “You sure know what you’re doing.”

“You mean the boat, or this?” His teeth grazed my skin just a little bit
harder than was necessary, sending a jolt of pleasure and pain through me. His
caress made it hard for me to keep my composure, so I pulled away and stepped
aside to put some much-needed distance between us.

“Come on. Let’s go inside.” He grinned and held out his hand. I eyed it
carefully, not quite trusting that he wouldn’t just grab me in his arms and do
whatever he had been about to do. “I won’t bite—unless you want me to,”
Jett said.

“Why? What’s inside?”

“Iced Tea? Water? You must be dehydrated.” And I was. But I still didn’t
trust the dangerous glint in his eyes. “Besides, it’s cooler inside.”

“No funny business.” I said.

“You know me.”

Hell yeah, I did. “Which is exactly why I don’t trust you when we’re
alone.” He smiled that panty-dropping smile of his that always made me want to
rip the clothes off his glorious body and wrap myself around him. Was there
pride in his eyes? I groaned, irritated with myself for inflating his
over-inflated ego some more. “I didn’t mean it like a compliment. It’s not like
you’re a sex god or anything.”

“Why thanks, baby. I’d love to prove my worth.”

Oh gosh. Why couldn’t I just keep my big mouth shut?

A lazy grin lit up his face and my brain switched off for a second.
Annoyed, I rolled my eyes and took off across the deck and down the stairs to
the master saloon, confident that he’d follow behind.

I sat down on the couch and watched him pour us two glasses of bottled
water from the fridge.

“Thanks,” I said as he passed me a glass and sat down opposite from me.
I took a few sips and placed the glass in front of me on the table, all too
aware of his intense gaze.

Through the windows I could see the sparkling water, and the soft
movement eased my tension, but not enough to make me feel less nervous around
him.

“I don’t know anyone who owns a boat, let alone can navigate one,” I
admitted. “I think it’s pretty amazing. Is there anything else you’ve been
keeping from me?”

He inclined his head. “I’m not particularly good at flying. My brother’s
way better than me, which annoyed my father to no end. They’re both highly
competitive, challenging me to beat them at whatever it was that caught their
attention. But it was always the not particularly risky stuff. You know,
flying, gambling, hunting, sky diving… you name it. I was more interested in
other stuff.”

I laughed. Was he serious? I wanted to point out that all of the things
he mentioned were risky, but I decided to dive into that later. “What other
stuff?” I asked instead.

He leaned so close I could see the tiny lines beneath his eyes and feel
the delicious warmth of his breath. His piercing gaze met mine. “For some time
I had the crazy idea to work undercover.” I raised my brows in confusion and
his grin widened. “You know…head hunt people. I took martial arts classes,
trained in all the James Bond stuff you see on TV. I joined a gang. It was my
way to handle anger.” He waved his hand like it didn’t matter. I almost choked
on my breath.

“Wait a sec. Rewind a bit. Did you say ‘gang’?”

He grimaced. “Sort of. Though not the drug dealing type you probably
have in mind. Everyone said I had problems with authority, which I guess was true.
I didn’t listen to anyone. Not my father, not my teachers. No one.”

“And by head hunting I assume you’re not talking about sifting through
prospective candidates to fill a job opening.”

He shook his head, still grinning.

“Wow.” I stared at him, open-mouthed. It was difficult to imagine
Jett—the refined CEO of one of the largest and most successful real
estate companies in the world—doing something dangerous, and yet I was
inclined to believe him. He had struck me as the bad boy type all right when I
first met him, and I was thrilled to see my people knowledge didn’t suck as
much as I always thought.

“It’s in the past now, but I can’t say I’m proud of some of the
experiences I made.” He ran his fingertips over my lower arm absentmindedly.
His gaze was averted so I couldn’t read his expression, but I didn’t fail to catch
the strained undertones in his voice. He was hiding something. I couldn’t
pinpoint what drove me to that conclusion, but I knew I was right.

“Well, we all make mistakes. It’s part of humanity,” I said.

The way he bit his lower lip, hesitating, I could tell he didn’t want to
disclose more, which was a shame because I loved hearing about his life. It
made me feel connected to him. Maybe he didn’t trust me enough to share
everything with me. Maybe by pressing the issue, I’d be asking for too much too
soon when every single women’s magazine tells you to take things slowly.
Obviously, I didn’t want to be the pushy kind—the one who had to know
everything and ended up asking stupid questions like ‘what are you thinking’ or
‘how do you feel about us?’ I knew enough people who made that sort of mistake,
and I honestly wanted to learn from their failures. He’d confide in me,
eventually. Unfortunately, I had already told him one of my biggest secrets. So
there was no way in hell I’d let him get away with not telling me one of his
own. It was only fair he open up so we were even.

“What made you give it up?” I asked.

A few moments passed and he didn’t answer. I thought he might be pissed
that I took the liberty to insist on a topic he obviously wasn’t comfortable
talking about. And then he turned to look at me, and I flinched inwardly at the
pain reflected in his expression. His eyes were deep like the ocean and filled
with darkness.

I knew this was the moment he’d either share it all, or pull away from
me.

“I got involved with the wrong crowd and ended up doing some very stupid
things for them,” Jett said. “I had to learn the hard way…it was either jail or
let my father buy me out of the mess. I have changed since—” He trailed
off, leaving the rest open to interpretation.

The energy he exuded made it clear something bad had happened. The image
of him hiding, destroying, fighting, popped into my head and other feelings
rushed through me—excitement, fear,
arousal
—at
the knowledge he used to be someone else. Or maybe he wasn’t so different now;
he just hid it well. Either way, I realized my opinion of him hadn’t shifted.

“I wish I could tell you more, but there’s no sense in telling you
something that I can’t change. Something I can’t explain to myself,” Jett
murmured. “We all have secrets. Mine may be worse than I care admit, but I
don’t want you to think less of me by telling you what happened, because my
past’s nothing but baggage resulting from bad choices and foolish mistakes.
What happened can’t be undone. I’m lucky enough to be alive and that’s all that
counts. Maybe one day, when I’m confident that nothing can scare you off, I’ll
tell you more.”

It hurt that he thought whatever he did would make me run for the hills,
and yet I understood where he was coming from. Secrets aren’t easily revealed
when you have so much to lose.

“Whatever you did is in the past.” My hand gripped his, giving it a
light and reassuring squeeze, signaling I wasn’t one to judge, just like he
hadn’t judged me when I disclosed my past. “It’s human nature to make
mistakes.”

He caught my glance and something passed between us. A mutual
understanding that not knowing everything was better for me.
For
us.
For whatever there might be between us in the future.

I
was okay not knowing
.

“I’ve been there and I understand.” I forced a soft smile on my lips.

“Thank you.” His gaze passed through me like a current, piercing into my
very core, and his thumb began to stroke my fingers. My skin tingled: strong,
noticeable, but invisible. For the umpteenth time I wondered whether he could
feel our connection. Two opposites drawn together like magnets. As much as I
had pushed him away, hating him for the pain he caused me, I couldn’t deny the
fact that he was a part of me now. Wherever I went, he would be there, buried
deep within my heart. Never letting him go.

“For what?” My voice was husky. “I haven’t done anything.”

“For trusting me.” He cupped my face and forced me to meet his heated
gaze. His thumb caressed my lips, his touch as soft as melted chocolate.