What To Read After FSOG: The Gemstone Collection Part Two (5 page)

By the time we made our way down to the beach the sun was scorching hot. My headache subsided as I swam in the crystal clear water and reveled in the feel of the soft sand between my toes. I relished the feeling of the sun drying each droplet of water as I relaxed into my lounge chair listening to the ocean waves lightly crashing on to the shore. The rhythm of the surf eventually lulled me to sleep as I lay on my stomach listening to the tranquil sound.

I moaned as I woke to the luxurious feel of the big hands massaging my back. I was groggy and it felt so good. My muscles relaxed under the pressure of the skilled fingers. My sleepy haze drifted, reality seeped into my fantasy, and I jumped as I realized that I was at the beach and had no idea who was touching me. Jack’s strong hands gently but firmly held me down on my stomach in the cushioned lounge chair as I attempted to jump up. His words were low, but there was no mistaking his sexy voice. “Don’t get up, Jill, I untied your top to rub in the sunscreen and you’ll give the whole beach a good show.”

“You scared the shit out of me! Do you make a habit of rubbing down strangers as they sleep?”

He leaned down close to my ear, his front pressed firmly against my back. His voice was low and velvety. “Do you really want to waste one of your ten questions on my habits for rubbing down strangers?”

Shit. Though I didn’t want to be, I was instantly aroused. His voice, his confident words, and his bare chest pressed up against my back, sent my body into a frenzy. My heart rate sped up and my breathing became more labored.
God damn it, control yourself, Sydney.
“You scared me half to death.” I was hoping that he would believe that my reaction was from being scared and not to being near him.

“I’m sorry, baby.” His voice sounded sincere and I was surprised that the man apologized for anything. “Now, if you want, I’ll tie that string you call a top back on and you can get up, or we can both take a few more minutes to enjoy me rubbing your back some more.”

I didn’t want his hands off of me. I sighed, pretending it was a sacrifice. “Keep rubbing.”

I heard a devious chuckle before he sat back up and continued to rub my back until I was completely relaxed again. Then he tied my top back on so that I could sit up.

I righted myself in the oversized lounger and caught the first glimpse of him of the day. I had a picture of him in my head as he was rubbing me, but the picture didn’t come close to the real thing. His shirtless body was even more delectable than I imagined. He had strong, square shoulders, toned pecs and a six pack, which I thought only really existed in air-brushed magazines. His dark plaid swimsuit hung low on his waist, revealing a deep v that pointed to what I imagined was probably also perfect down below. Jack stood and held out his hand to help me up.

I stood and he smiled a sexy devilish grin. “My turn.” He slowly looked me up and down, taking his time to admire all my girl parts. He leaned down to my ear. “Even better than I fantasized, baby.”

I laughed and then went up on my tippy toes to whisper back in his ear. “You took the words right out of my mouth.”

He growled, literally growled at me. Then he scooped me up and started walking toward the water.

“I can walk you know.” I pretended to be annoyed, but did a lousy job since I was smiling the whole time.

“I know you can, but I’m going to take care of you the way a woman like you deserves to be taken care of this week baby.”

I think my heart skipped a beat for a minute at his words. Or maybe it just started beating again finally.

I leaned back in my lounge chair and took a deep, cleansing breath, enjoying the moment. Jack was sitting up behind me, my back to his front, his hands clasped tightly around my waist in a possessive hold. We listened to the waves crash against the surf and watched the sun setting through an amazing bright orange and purple sky. It was the most beautiful sunset that I had ever seen and it felt so natural to be sitting in Jack’s arms watching it.

“Why did you call off your engagement?”

“Are you cashing in on question number one, Jack?” I dared him.

“Yes, so let’s hear it. And remember, I’m using one of my precious chips here, so I want the full story.”

I hadn’t really told many people the full story; it was still difficult to put into words. The people who really knew me just knew I was making the right decision. I wasn’t sure where to start, so I decided to start from the beginning. “I met Michael in high school. We went to the prom together. We were together for six years when he proposed. I said yes, and we planned a long engagement before the wedding.” I paused, contemplating before I continued.

“I don’t think I ever considered not marrying him, it was just the normal progression in our long relationship and everyone expected it would happen. He would have preferred a shorter engagement, but I wasn’t ready yet so I dragged it out as long as I could get away with it. He treated me really well over the years—at least I thought he did. He was every parent’s dream for their daughter. He came from a good home, earned a good living as an attorney, and had nice manners. He seemed like every girl’s dream too. But as the wedding got closer, I grew more nervous. I started to wonder if I had made myself into who he wanted me to be instead of who I really was. I started picturing myself having 2.5 children with a white picket fence and lunches with PTA moms who wore sweater sets.

“In the time we had been together, I had stopped singing with a band and went to school to get a music degree to teach. As my wedding date got closer, I was starting to question myself on why I had done that, when I really loved being in my band. Michael and Sienna didn’t get along, and he didn’t like me traveling at night to different clubs, so I eventually gave it up, even though he never actually asked me to.

“One morning I woke up having a panic attack. I realized that something was missing in our relationship and that something was me. So I sat down one night to talk to Michael about what I was feeling and he completely flipped out. He blamed it all on my last visit to NY to visit Sienna and her filling my head with crazy unrealistic singing dreams. But the truth was, Sienna never said a word to me. She accepted me for whoever I was and didn’t try to change me.

“I told him that I didn’t want to teach and wanted to join a local band again. He told me that his wife was not going to be a stupid band slut traveling around town with a bunch of men. We argued back and forth and then things got really heated when he realized that I had already made up my mind. The next day I felt badly about the way that we had left off, so I went to his office to talk to him and walked in on his secretary on her knees.” I stopped and thought for a moment and Jack tightened his grip around me.

“I left and he tried to apologize again the next day. Eventually, when I wouldn’t accept his apology, he got mad again and spilled that he had been sleeping with his secretary for more than a year anyway. I moved all of his stuff to the front lawn by the time he came home from work that night, and had the locks changed.” I paused and regrouped from telling my sad tale. I forced a happier voice. “Everything happens for a reason. I quit my job teaching and started singing again last month. It’s just a job as a house singer at one of the Heston Hotels, but it’s a start on my trip back to me.”

Jack was quiet and didn’t say anything for a moment. “You work at one of the Heston Hotels?”

I laughed, thinking it was odd that of everything that I had just told him, that was the part of my story that caught his attention. Men. “Is that really a question that you want to use your second chip on?”

“Definitely.”

“Yes, I work at Heston Hotel in New York City. That’s how I was able to afford this fancy schmancy Heston Resort. They give a great employee discount. I moved to New York from Boston last month. I’m starting all over and doing what is right for me for a change. I’m going to start singing with Sienna again once in a while too, now that I am back in the same city again.”

Quiet again. I turned to look at him and his face was unreadable. He looked into my eyes and gently brushed the hair on my face back. Then he kissed me. A different kiss from last night, not a passionate, groping kiss, but a beautiful tender kiss. It took my breath away. I couldn’t remember the last time a kiss stirred so much inside of me. He watched me intently as I recovered from the moment. “Room service or Restaurant?”

I smiled at him. I wanted more than anything to say room service, but I was enjoying making him work for it a little bit. “Restaurant.”

He looked at me seriously. “Whatever you want, babe. But wear a dress and forget the underwear. I want to know that it won’t take me long to bury myself deep inside you after dinner.”

I probably should have been offended by his crudeness, but instead it turned me on. Two could play his game. “I’d like to use my first question.”

He arched one eyebrow in response, intrigued.

I volleyed his serve. “Do you prefer to be on the top or the bottom?”

His response was fast and dead serious. “I prefer whatever makes you yell louder when I fuck you harder than you’ve ever been fucked.”

I gasped at the instant visual that his words inspired in my head. Damn, I needed a cold shower.

He stood and held out his hand to help me up. He didn’t let go when I stood; instead he pulled me hard against his chest and looked down into my eyes. “And I’m going to have you both ways tonight anyway.” He smiled an evil victorious smile and grabbed my hand and started to walk into the resort.

I
drank a glass of wine as I got ready in my room for dinner. I was glad that Jack had said he had to take care of some business before dinner, because I needed time to pull my thoughts together. Sienna had made plans to have dinner with Tyler and we were singing at the top of our lungs as we blasted music from my iPod. I truly missed those moments, where we were both happy and singing and dancing. I didn’t even realize how long it had been since I’d felt so carefree.

I picked out a pale blue strapless dress that hugged my curves in all the right places. It was the dress I knew looked good on me and always brought me compliments. My legs looked long and lean under the short skirt and the pale blue showed off my dark tan. Last time I wore it, Michael had told me that the pale blue color in the dress matched my eyes perfectly. I left my long hair down, framing my tan face. The dress made me feel pretty and gave me confidence. Oddly, I wasn’t feeling as nervous as I had expected for my dinner date, and, more specifically, what was to come after dinner.

I was feeling good, and closed my eyes as I lost myself singing along with one of my favorite songs, when I turned and saw Jack standing in the doorframe. He took up most of the doorway and looked freaking amazing.

His voice was low and husky. “I was enjoying the show.”

“How long were you standing there?”

“Sienna opened the door for me on her way out. You look fucking incredible.”

I shook my head at his compliment and smiled, pretending I found his words harsh. “You have such a way with words.” They may not have been the most eloquent, but I felt them somewhere deep inside of me. His words were raw and honest.

My comment didn’t faze him in the slightest. “If I take one step into this room, I won’t get to enjoy that dress and we definitely won’t be going to a restaurant. So let’s go before I eat you for dinner.”

Even though he said it in jest, I knew he wasn’t really kidding. I grabbed my bag and went quickly to the door. I opened my bag to put my room key in and a dozen condoms that must have been crammed in came popping out.

“I am going to kill Sienna.” I was completely flustered and embarrassed.

“I’m going to thank her.” Jack smiled a full smile and took my hand to lead me to dinner.