Perfect Match (16 page)

“Not making fun. You actually look adorable
in it.”

She felt her face get warm all over from the
combination of his compliment and the look he was giving her. His
grey blue eyes were intent on her, but had a bit of a hopeful glint
to them. His smirk was more of amusement than maliciousness. She
couldn’t help but be drawn to him. That is what made him so good at
his job as well. He had a way of winning people over with just a
smile. “Well, you want to know what I think?”

“I do.”

“I think you should put a hat on too.”

“Get me a hat and I’ll wear it all night if
you want.”

Noelle gave him a little squeal and found
another party hat for him. She put it on his head and laughed. “You
are so cute, Jackson. Your Bullet fans should see you now.”

He smiled and then said, “Hey, I have a
birthday present for you.” He handed her a gift bag.

“You didn’t have to get me a present,” Noelle
said as she opened up the bag. She nearly fell over laughing when
she saw what it was, “A Bullet t-shirt?”

“For your gym clothes collection. Now you
have the best.”

She was touched by the gift and couldn’t wait
to wear it. “Thank you.”

“Want another drink?” He asked.

“I think I will. It is my birthday after
all.” She followed him over to the table and he poured her another
glass of wine and grabbed himself a beer.

“I’m going to go grab a seat downstairs. Come
with me,” he said.

She thought at that moment she would follow
him anywhere. She walked behind him to the theater room. Currently
it was the quietest room in the house. The party people stayed
upstairs where the food and drinks were at. She actually was
looking forward to some quiet time. She watched him as he sat down
in one of the oversized leather recliners. He seemed so comfortable
in his own skin. She thought it was because he was able to be
himself. He didn’t have to worry about being asked for autographs
or being in “character.” He was able to use his real voice which
was actually quite soft-spoken. As much as she enjoyed watching him
on TV, this was the man she was most comfortable with. This was not
Bullet, this was her Jackson. She took a seat on the recliner next
to his and he said, “How cool is it that you can have dozens of
wrestlers at your birthday parties.”

“I guess there could be worse people to have
at a party. Pop always managed to have one or two at any function
we ever had. Pop goes all out. You know him.”

“Yes I do.”

“He loves you. I think you are the son he
never had.”

“Larry’s great. Scary as hell a lot of the
time, but he’s like a second dad to me.”

Noelle made a face and said, “See I am just
like a sister to you. Just like you told everyone at the bonfire.
I’m like a sister to you. ”

Jackson chuckled, “No…you know that I
definitely do not look at you like a little sister. Especially when
I all am thinking about right now is how much I want to kiss
you.”

Noelle froze at his words and thought
everything around her stood still. He wanted to kiss her. She
wanted him to kiss her. She stared wordlessly at him, her heart
pounding with every breath she took. She knew that he didn’t think
of her like a kid sister. Especially not after the way they kissed
each other. They are alone, and all she could think about was him
kissing her the way he did in her massage room. He leaned closer to
her until his face was right in front of hers. He leaned in just a
little bit more and his lips were on hers. His kiss was
surprisingly gentle for being how big he was, it was like a
whisper, as if he wasn’t sure if he should be kissing her at all.
She parted her lips, hoping he’d accept the invitation to deepen
the kiss. He did. She felt his tongue trace her lips then dance
with her tongue. She was ready to wrap her arms around him and get
closer when she heard someone come down into the room. They broke
apart quickly and saw Jennifer come down. “There you are.” She
stopped and looked at them. She looked from Noelle to Jackson and
back at Noelle. “I’m not interrupting anything?”

“No. Just getting away from all the noise.
What’s up?” Noelle asked hoping that her voice sounded normal.

“Pop sent me down to see if you were ready
for cake.”

“Yeah. Sounds great. Come on, Jackson,”
Noelle said and went up the stairs with her sister, leaving him
behind. She knew that she was acting like a teenager being caught
by her mom with a boy but she knew the significance of what she
did. Even if she was starting to get past her no dating a wrestler
rule, her getting involved with Jackson was not something Pop was
going to tolerate. She had to end it before it went any
further.

Damn, was all he could think as he watched
Noelle go off with her sister. He finally got to kiss her again and
he didn’t want to stop. He should have taken Jennifer walking in on
them as a sign to stay clear of Noelle tonight, knowing how
strongly her father felt about her not getting involved with a
pro-wrestler. Jackson didn’t work that way. He kissed her, and he
loved it, damn it! That made him want her all the more, and with
all due respect to Larry, he had to do what his heart was telling
him to do.

Once upstairs he stayed a short distance away
from Noelle, but he couldn’t keep his eyes off of her. She was so
beautiful to him. Yes, he had to agree with Mike when he said that
Noelle wasn’t glamorous. He didn’t want that. He worked with women
like that who cared more about their sex appeal then having
anything real to offer. He wasn’t even attracted to that type…the
bleached blonde princess with the over-the-top attitude. He had
that before. Didn’t want it then, and doesn’t want it now. Noelle
was everything he found attractive in a woman. She was beautiful
and didn’t need to flaunt it. She carried herself like a lady and
her smile melted his heart. That one kiss tonight solidified his
feelings for her…he loved Noelle Reid. He couldn’t stay away from
her.

He could tell that she was acting nervous.
She was by her sister’s side; as if to make sure she didn’t go near
their dad alone. She wouldn’t make eye contact with him. He didn’t
let that worry him. Her reaction to his kiss told him that she was
into him more than she let on. She wasn’t going to accept his love
for her easily. She didn’t want to hurt Larry, not to mention her
major trust issues. He vowed he wasn’t going to hurt her. He was
going to win her trust and her heart. Just not right here and now.
Right now she was reacting to almost getting caught by Jennifer. He
smiled to himself. He felt like a teenager again. He thought he was
over this stage. Sure Jennifer was able to guess what she
interrupted. One had to be a fool not to. He made eye contact with
Jennifer and smiled. She looked away without a smile in return.
This wasn’t going to be easy, but he knew that the good things in
life never were.

People gathered around the table and sang
happy birthday to Noelle. Mike took that opportunity to have a word
with him. “What are you doing?”

“What do you mean?” Jackson asked. Surely,
people didn’t hear about the kiss yet.

“You are staring at that girl like a love
sick puppy. Larry is a smart guy. He is going to catch on.”

“I can’t help how I feel, Mike.”

“Jackson, give it up. She is off limits. You
don’t think that not only will Larry break your neck, but he can
end your career? I have us a double date lined up tonight

with a girl who will not cause you any drama.
Is she really worth it?”

Jackson looked over at Noelle and watched
with amusement as she blew out the birthday candles and she finally
looked at him. She radiated joy. She smiled at him and he was
almost embarrassed by how happy that made him, but that wouldn’t
stop him from trying to make her smile. She quickly looked away. He
remembered the way her perfect lips felt on his. “Hell yes. She is
worth it.”

“I hope you know what you are doing.” Mike
reached for his cell phone to make a call. Probably to cancel the
girl he had lined up for him.

“I do,” Jackson said as he walked over to
Larry. He noticed that Noelle was watching him.

“Hey, I’m going to head on out.” Jackson gave
him a one-armed hug.

“So soon?”

“Yeah, I have some things I have to do. You
sure know how to throw a party.”

“I do. Rest up, son. Thanks for coming
tonight.” Larry said.

“I wouldn’t have missed celebrating Noelle’s
birthday. I’m going to go say goodbye to the birthday girl.” The
truth was it was Noelle’s party and suddenly his presence really
made her uncomfortable. He had all intentions on seeing her later
but he wanted to make sure she enjoyed the rest of her party. He
walked over to her and noticed her stiffen. “Got a minute?”

She nodded and they walked towards the back
of the house. “I’m going to go,”

he finally said.

“You don’t have to.”

“Yeah, I do. I want you to enjoy your party,
but this isn’t finished.”

“Jackson...”

“Shh, not here. I’m going to come by your
place tonight. What time do you think you will be home by?”

“Jackson…” she said again.

“Noelle, please.” He’d beg her if he had
to.

“I should be there by midnight at the
latest.”

“I’ll be there. Happy Birthday,” he said and
giving her a hug. He smelled her hair. He loved the way her hair
smelled. It was a mix between coconut and pineapple. She was
intoxicating. He felt her squeeze him a little tighter than needed,
and that gave him some encouragement. She was going to try to say
this wasn’t right for them and end it on the spot. He’d let her
speak, but then do some convincing of his own on why they should
give this a shot. “I’ll see you.” He winked and sauntered out of
the house. He turned to look at her before closing the door behind
him, and gave a quick nod as he shut the door.

***

Noelle was a bit shaken by everything that
happened in the last few minutes. She had thought she convinced
herself that the only way to have any kind of friendship with
Jackson was to never kiss him again. She was fine with that, or so
she led herself to believe. Now everything had gone crazy again the
moment he kissed her. Damn him for making her crazy again! Damn
herself for being mad that he was gone. If she were honest with
herself, she would realize that she wanted the kiss and only
regretted it because Jennifer interrupted. She wasn’t ready to
figure out what was going on between her and Jackson. She also
wasn’t ready to admit it to any of her disapproving family members.
Pop would freak and she’d break his heart, and Jackson could lose
his career. The risks were not worth it; no matter how good he made
her feel. No matter how much she was beginning to trust him. She
knew that they would probably find an excuse to always kiss each
other whenever they were alone, and she wasn’t sure if that was the
best idea. She would have to be strong again with him tonight.
Convince him that it was in everyone’s best interest if they go
back to what they were before. Just friends.

She walked back into the living room and
couldn’t help but feel somewhat of a loss with Jackson gone. She
felt her sister’s gaze on hers. She knew it would only be a matter
of time before she questioned her.

Sure enough as she was helping straighten up
some of the mess, Jennifer approached her. “Hey Birthday Girl, did
you have great day?”

“I did. Pop throws the best parties. However,
I think your twenty-fifth was a bit wilder than this.” She threw
some cups away. She saw Jennifer look around to make sure they were
alone and then fired her question.

“Um, what did I interrupt downstairs with you
and Jackson?”

“Nothing.”

“Don’t give me that, Noelle. I’m not stupid.
The two of you looked like you were getting hot and heavy.”

“Don’t be so dramatic. Jackson and I are
friends.”

“I know this, but tonight it looked like
more.”

Noelle stopped what she was doing and turned
to look at her sister directly in the

eye, “Jenn, don’t make this into something it
is not. We kissed. Nothing more. I know what I am doing so there is
no need to give me that look.”

“I was watching him tonight before and after
the kiss. He looks at you like he is in love with you. You wanna
know something else? You give him that same look. He is a wrestler,
Noelle!”

“Jennifer, I know this. It’s complicated. I
have feelings for him, but I’m scared.”

“You told him, didn’t you? It was him you
meant in your text message.”

Noelle nodded. “He needed to know, and it
made me feel better. I know he should be off-limits. I know it, but
he’s so good to me.”

“Noelle, listen. You have to do what is right
for you, but he’s not some guy with a career in real estate. Your
issues aside, you have Pop to worry about. He doesn’t want you with
him, no matter how great of a guy Jackson is. It could be more
trouble than it’s worth.”

“Believe me, I know this. Jenn, this isn’t
the first time we kissed.”

“What?” She practically screamed.

“Keep your voice down! We met at Monroe’s
before I started working at BRAWL, before I knew who he was. He
swept me off my feet, and a few days later I found out who he is
and what he does for a living. Well, it’s hard to turn off those
feelings. I was so excited to finally like someone again, but
pissed because of what he does for a living.”

“Listen, I think Jackson is a great guy, but
you need to be sure because so much is at stake here.” Jennifer
hugged her and said, “Be careful. That’s all I’m going to say.”

At that moment she was beginning to think
Jennifer was giving her the same advice her mother would have given
her if she were still alive.

Jackson was ringing her door bell at 10
minutes to midnight. She opened the door and took a breath in. Not
only because of the cold but he looked great standing there in his
jacket and silly jester type winter hat on. He was also holding a
beautiful bouquet of flowers. “As much as I would love to stand
here staring at you all night, Noelle, I’m freezing.”