Tame This (The McCallans, Book Two) (17 page)

Jay slowed as the
y stepped onto the back porch. “You called my dad? Uh, your dad?”

“Yeah,” Tyse nodded.

“Hmm. And how did that go?” Jay asked as they entered the house.

“Well, let’s just say I’m not surprised because my mom already told me how he’d react,” Tyse lightly laughed. “He pretty much told me not to bother heading this way. He told me he didn’t have any money for me, but if I wanted to work my way into his father’s go
od graces, maybe he’d consider meeting up with me if I had something to compensate him for his time.”

“Oh my fucking hell!” Jay laughed out loud. “That is so classic! Yeah,” Jay nodded. “He’s used that on us, too. Jesus, he’s an asshole.”

“Yeah, pretty much,” Tyse nodded. “And no, before you ask, I didn’t come this way to work an angle with your grandfather. I just wanted to meet him. On the phone he was actually—”

“Hold up, you talked to
Gramps on the phone too before you came this way?” Jay asked as they both stopped in the kitchen to eat.

Tyse leaned against the counter and crossed his arms over
his chest. “My mom did first. He actually knew about me, but agreed with my mom years ago to just let her live her own life. He told her to let him know if she would ever let him be a part of my life, but that he respected her decision. But yeah, he was the one that told me to come meet him whenever I was ready. But to be honest, I was more interested in meeting you and Kellie, so that’s where I started first.”

“Hmm, interesting,” was all Jay said as he started pulling out items to make sandwiches.

“You’re pissed, huh,” Tyse stated.

“Not at all,” Jay replied just as quickly. “Just not surprised, I guess. This family is so full of secrets and shit that nothing fazes me anymore. I just wish it could all stay with them and leave me the fuck alone. I want no part of anything complicated in my life.”

Tyse went to work making his own sandwich in silence, but just as Jay was about to head to his room with his food, Tyse said, “Just don’t write something off too quickly if it seems ‘complicated.’ Sometimes it’s really not. Or sometimes it’s just totally worth a sacrifice or two…”

Chapter Fifteen

Jay:
Where u at?

Melanie:
Just got off work, heading to swim

Jay paused. Fuck, she was
headed up to his grandpa’s? He instantly wondered if Tyse was there too. Jay had been working out in his garage all day, but hadn’t seen Tyse since the night before. And Melanie had been busy with her own stuff so he’d barely even heard from her.

The last time he saw her was two nights ago when they’d kissed…

Melanie:
Wanna swim? Come join me. Pretty please???

Jay had to pause again. It was five o’clock, and even though he had to wait until tomorrow for Teague’s help hooking the engine to the hoist and lowering it into the car, Jay wanted to claim he was too busy. But…he couldn’t help it.

Jay:
Only if ur in a skimpy bikini

Melanie:
Hahaha! Yeah, me and baby bump. I’m sure it’ll be sexy

Jay had to smile:
Good, then count me in

He quickly grabbed what he needed and left the house. On the way to Malibu, he stopped and grabbed some takeout at Islands Restaurant. He knew Melanie loved the chicken club wraps from there, and since Jay didn’t care what the hell he ate, he got a few of them. He was so hungry he ate two of them while he drove, and when he
punched in the security code to his grandpa’s mansion, he was stuffed full.

After parking on the
pool side of the property, he let himself in through the wrought iron gate. He could already see Melanie’s blonde head and yellow bikini in the water, slowly swimming from one end to the other. No one else seemed to be around, but Jay was sure at least the live-in maid was in the house.

He just stood there for a minute, off to the side where she didn’t notice him, but eventually he made his way to a lounge chair and set the bag of food on the one next to him.

“Oh my god, please don’t tell me you’re going to sit there and eat that in front of me,” Melanie said as she swam up to the edge of the pool. “I’m starving and I love that place.”

“Hell yes, you keep swimming,” he answered, motioning her back t
o the water.

“Just one bite?” she asked with a playful pout. She opened her mouth for him as a hint to bring something over.

“You come over here and get it,” Jay answered smugly. He pulled out the last chicken wrap and waved it at her.

“You are evil!” she scoffed.

“It’s the only one,” he smiled. “Come get it or I eat it all.” He unwrapped one end of it and held it to his mouth.

Melanie was up the ladder in about five seconds, dripping pool water all over his legs to take it from him. “You’re a liar,” she glared. “I see you’ve already had one.” She waved a finger over his t-shirt at the spots where he’d dribbled food as he drove.

“Fucking traitor shirt,” he shook his head. He yanked it off and threw it on the lounge chair as Melanie sat next to him.

“Oh my God,” she mumbled after taking a bite. “I shouldn’t admit this out loud, but I owe you big time.”

“You always owe me, so it doesn’t matter if you admit it.” He lounged back on the chair and kicked his shoes off.

“You’ve got chicken wrap on your shorts too,” Melanie observed. “Maybe you should take them off as well.”

“Maybe I should,” he gave her crooked smile. “Lose the bikini and I will.”

Melanie chuckled after swallowing another bite. “I’m already wearing less than you.”

“True.” Jay looked at her again but wasn’t exactly subtle about the head-to-toe observation. His eyes rested on her lips, and all he could think about was how much he wanted to take them between his teeth again.

Her hand
covered her mouth, breaking his gaze. As she wiped at her face she asked, “What’s on me? Stop watching me eat.” She reached into the bag to grab a napkin and dabbed at her lips.

With a smile, he leaned over to her lounge chair and said, “You’re not even close, sweetheart.” When she
raised her eyebrows at him, he lowered his mouth to her upper thigh and sucked off a small drop of juice from her chicken wrap. He lingered longer than necessary, turning it sensual as he used his tongue right along with his lips. Fuck, her skin was so soft. And he was tempted to explore a little further, especially when he felt her fingers softly touching the back of his neck.

He tilted his head so he could see her reaction.
Oh yeah, she was totally affected by his mouth on her leg. She was biting that damn lower lip, and when her eyes met his, Jay’s playful actions seemed to be compromised. It was almost impossible to keep things light when she looked at him like that.

He sat up and smiled at her
anyway, but Melanie’s expression still appeared lustful. Jay felt the same way, but refused to let it show. He reached across to her far arm and grabbed her wrist. She was about to drop her chicken wrap on the ground and he righted it for her.

“You eat, I’ll be in the water,” he winked, and he turned away from her before she noticed the massive hard-on in his swim trunks.

Jay sat at the edge of the pool with his back to her and his legs in the water. He obviously was not able to fool around with her and forget about it, and now that he’d kissed her, the challenge had become even tougher. This was getting fucking ridiculous. He had no idea what to do because Melanie was going to be in his life for a very long time. She would always be Camryn’s sister, and Camryn and Teague were always going to be together. If he screwed up his friendship with Melanie, it was going to be really fucking awkward for everyone.

“Always such a goddamn joke,” he murmured to himself, in reference to the circumstances in his life. He just couldn’t get a damn break.

Jay shook the thought and dropped into the water. He needed to just keep his distance from Melanie and stay her friend instead of the asshole that would just complicate her life later on.

That was the only solution.

After spending ten minutes in his own head as he swam leisurely from one end to the other, Melanie sat at the edge of the pool and dangled her legs in the water.

“I’m stuffed now,” she said. “I don’t know if I can even swim.”

“Tell me about it. I ate two of those fucking things.”

“Two of them?” she chuckled. She leaned back and patted her little pregnant belly. “Do you have a food baby like this?”

When he laughed, Jay totally forgot about his new rule to keep his distance from her. He was already swimming to her side of the pool and pulled himself onto his elbow at the edge next to her. Puffing out his stomach as much as he could, he patted it and said, “I’m way bigger than you, sweetheart. This is…what? –A six or seven month bump?”

She laughed out loud and then shrugged. “Yeah, I’d say so. Good lord, suck that back in.”

“You don’t like the changes in my body?” he playfully pouted, rubbing a hand over his stomach. “I will always think you’re beautiful no matter what, and you’re already wanting to dismiss me because I gained a few pounds?”

He expected her to laugh but she didn’t. She was looking at him pensively and he quickly tried to backtrack his words to figure out what the fuck he said wrong.

Finally he just said, “I’m sorry.”

She looked surprised. “For what?”

“I have no idea. You’re just looking at me like I’m a jackass.”

She laughed that time, but then
shook her head and said, “The opposite, Jay. That was really… Well, I won’t say the word because you’ll deny it and I’d rather believe what I want to believe.”

“Believe what?”

With a pause, she slowly shrugged. “Just that I’m not an unsightly mess in your eyes.”

He raised an eyebrow at her. “Unsightly?” he chuckled. “What do you mean? You’re the most gorgeous female that I know.”

“Oh wow,” she lightly laughed. “Now I know you’re full of shit because you date models and beautiful actresses.”

“So?”

“So? You can’t possibly think your preggo friend is up there with that.”

“What the fuck does being pregnant have to do with how beautiful you are?” he asked sincerely. Never once had he ever thought being pregnant had downgraded her looks. In fact…

No. He wasn’t even fucking going there.

“Never mind,” Melanie sighed, and she pulled her ass to the edge of the pool like she was going to drop into it.

“Don’t ‘never mind’ me,” Jay smiled, moving in front of her until her knees were against his chest. He was only four feet deep in the pool, which made him eye level to her bright yellow top. Why he didn’t just let her drop the subject like she was about to do was beyond his comprehension.

She nudged his chest with her knees and smiled. “I need to work off some chicken wrap calories, so let me in the pool.”

“What’s the magic word?” he taunted, holding her legs so she couldn’t move.

“Um… I’
ll tell Teague that you saw Camryn’s boobs last week.”

Jay let go of her instantly and moved out of her way, and Melanie laughed out loud.
“Wow, that was easy.”

“I don’t need him getting all territorial and shit on me.”

“Oh, and it has nothing to do with Teague knowing you saw Camryn’s assets?”

“I don’t need to be lectured about walking into the house unexpectedly
, even though I saw her from the end of the hall because she had her bedroom door open. And it was a pair of tits. I think I’ve seen a few in my life.”

“Well you scarred my sister for life,” Melanie told him. When he laughed, she added, “And don’t tell her I said that.”

“What if I said that I’ve seen
your
assets, as well?”

“You have not,” she smiled at him. He only raised an eyebrow at her to disagree and her mouth hung open. “When
?!” she scoffed with disbelief, splashing him with water.

“The night you fractured your arm. I finally got you to take some pain medication and it made you…
really
loopy.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “I’m calling bullshit because I don’t even remember that.”

“Exactly. I walked you to your room to make sure you got in bed okay, and you took your top off right there in front of me.”

“I did not!”

“Yep, you did. Took your shirt off, and then took your Marvel comics bra off right after it.”

Her mouth hung open for a few seconds but then she lifted her chin with a challenging smile. “You could have seen that bra anywhere. Like in the laundry or in my room.”

He only smiled and continued with, “You grabbed a blue t-shirt out of your dresser and put it on, and then took your pants off. Well, tried to. You had a hard time with one arm in a cast and being wacked out on pain pills.”

“Liar!”

“I had to throw you on the bed to yank your pants off of you.”

“You are so full of shit, Jay McCallan,” she shook
her head at him. “You just—”

“You have a heart-shaped freckle on your breast,” he cut in evenly, locking eyes with her. She only stared at him with surprise, so he took his finger and pointed to a section of her bikini top. “Right
under there,” he added, holding his finger against the fabric close to her nipple.

She didn’t say anything at first as they continued to stare at one another. “You could have just heard me mention it or something,” she finally spoke softly.

“There’s another one about two inches away from it. Right about…” Jay moved his finger slowly down her breast to a new location and stopped. “Here.” He slowly smiled and winked. “It’s not heart-shaped, but it’s just as cute.” When she didn’t respond he added, “Wanna prove me wrong and show me?”

He could tell she was trying to hide
a smile when she answered, “Nah, I believe you.”

Melanie pushed back into the water and then finally laughed as she kicked water all over him while swimming away. All Jay had to do was lunge forward and grab one of her feet, causing her to squeal really loud as she continued to kick water in his face with her other foot. He grabbed tha
t one too and pulled her toward him.

“No use trying to fight me off, gorgeous. Unless, of course, you’re just trying to burn those calories you mentioned.”

“You ass, let me go!” she half laughed, half screamed. But he quickly pulled her all the way to him and wrapped her legs around his waist. She stopped fighting him and slid her arms behind his neck, but was totally out of breath as she did it.

“I call you gorgeous and you call me an ass,” he smirked at her. “I guess we are always honest with each other, huh?”

She barely smiled, but her hands moved from his neck to the side of his face as they studied each other from inches away. Her lips and eyes were fucking him over again, and now he had her wrapped around him once more with barely anything on. If he didn’t get his mouth all over her in the next second—

Melanie
closed the gap between them and Jay became oblivious to anything else at that point. He had her lips between his and her skin all over him. He slid his hands up her sides and to her back so he could press her against him even harder. He moved with her to the side of the pool, and as much as he loved having her tattooed around him this way, he set her down slowly without breaking their kiss. His hand grazed over her breast as the other one pressed between her legs, and a soft noise came out of her as she kissed him harder. Their tongues and lips were a tangled mess.