Just Trust (The Reluctant Heart Book 2)

by Jeannette Winters

  “Because you might want your shit when I toss your ass out of here. Consider yourself lucky that I’ve given you a warning.” Jerry stared at Bobby until Bobby backed down.

  “Can’t fucking believe this. Now what am I supposed to do?” Bobby mumbled.

  “How about grow the fuck up and get a job. Take care of yourself and don’t come back mooching off Reanna. Is that a long enough list for you?” Jerry growled.

  “Asshole,” Bobby said half under his breath.

  “This is me being nice. Trust me, you don’t want to see me when I’m an asshole,” Jerry said before climbing the stairs to go and talk to Reanna. He didn’t get too far. She was standing at the top and from her expression, she’d heard everything.

  Fuck. I can’t get a break, can I?

  He slowed his pace and softened his voice. “Reanna, can we talk?”

  She nodded and turned, walking into her room. He followed and shut the door behind him. So many things were running through his mind, but all that came out was one word. “Sorry.”

  Reanna stepped closer to him and he wrapped his arms around her. They stood there just holding each other. Maybe all the words weren’t needed right now. Maybe all it took was one. One from my heart.

  Reanna woke to the smell of bacon. She hadn’t dared to use the stove since the mice incident. She could go down and offer to help, but Jerry was doing great at making up, why stop it now? Besides, she was tired. After Jerry made sure they had the house all to themselves, they spent the rest of the night making love. She wasn’t complaining, but at some point, this woman needed rest.

  She rolled back over and closed her eyes. If she was lucky, she might be able to squeeze another ten minutes in. She must’ve dozed because when she opened her eyes again, Jerry was sitting on the bed with a tray filled with a variety of breakfast items.

  “Good morning, honey. I didn’t know what you’d feel like so I made—”

  “Everything in the house,” she smiled. “I hope you’re eating too.”

  “I ate earlier. I wanted to let you sleep in. You seem tired,” he said.

  “Gee, I wonder why?” she smiled.

  “You better eat. It’s already getting cold,” he said.

  “Cold, I just smelled you cooking the bacon,” she replied.

  “About an hour ago. I brought it up but you were snoring away. I couldn’t bring myself to wake you,” he said.

  She sat up, “I don’t snore.”

  Jerry chuckled. “Old houses make funny noises. Must’ve been that,” he teased.

  “I’m going to let it go, because I’m starving.” She took a sip of the orange juice then picked up a piece of toast. It was cold. So were the eggs and bacon. He had even made her oatmeal. “Did I give you the impression that I eat enough for a family of five?”

  “I’ve never made breakfast before. So I just cooked what I saw,” he said.

  She looked at him. “What do you mean you’ve never made breakfast? How do you eat in the morning?”

  “I don’t, and if I do, I stop and grab something.”

  She looked down at the platter of food. “And you did all this just for me?”

  He leaned over and said, “I’d do anything for you, Reanna.”

  “Then I do have a request.”

  “What is it, honey?”

  “Can you please put this tray on the bureau and come back and kiss me?”

  Jerry grabbed the tray and practically tossed it. When he returned, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back onto the bed. “Now for dessert.”

  Her heart thumped wildly with anticipation of making love again. She would never have enough of him. He made her feel like she’d never felt before. To her this wasn’t just sex, it was a way they could be close and never need to say the words. Maybe that was all Jerry would ever be capable of, but for now, it was enough.

  She wiggled out from beneath the blanket. There was only one thing she wanted between them and right now it was hard and she was aching for it to be inside her.

  Jerry seemed to have his own plans, and she liked his as well. His hand travelled down between her legs, and she opened willing for him. She arched her hips in invitation. She was more than ready for him. When he finally slid his fingers into her, she gasped with need that seemed to become greater each time they made love.

  “Please Jerry, I…I need…” The ache was so intense, as though they hadn’t been together for months, instead of a few hours.

  Jerry inched himself lower and added his lips and tongue to the sweet torture. His touches drove her wild and she found herself begging for him. Jerry knew damn well what she wanted, but he wasn’t going to rush it. And she was going to enjoy every sweet kiss, nip, and stroke he gave her.

  When she couldn’t take another moment, Reanna demanded, “I need you now.”

  He reached into the side drawer, pulled out a condom, and sheathed himself. When he returned to her, he positioned himself at her entrance and they locked eyes as he entered her. She moaned in pure ecstasy while Jerry let out a deep, raw growl. Over and over again, he filled her, each stroke hitting her G-spot and taking her to new heights.

  Soon, she was gripping the sheets as her body shook from the tension building up within her. She felt it coming, the explosive connection that she had only ever felt with Jerry. The waves began to wash over her. She closed her eyes and cried out his name over and over again, “Jerry. Jerry. Jerry.” She arched closer to him as her body exploded, clenching around him, enticing him to follow.

  Jerry wasn’t far behind. She heard him growl and he gripped her bottom as he plunged deep into her, his own release sending her spiraling into yet another.

  He collapsed on top of her completely spent and struggled to catch his breath. It was heaven on earth, and she didn’t want to let it go.

  When he rolled over to lie beside her, she felt a chill with his absence. “I liked the feel of you on me,” she said.

  “I’m too heavy,” he replied.

  She giggled. “Not to me. You’re the perfect blanket.”

  He placed a leg and arm over her. “How’s that?”

  “Better.”

  “Reanna, I know I told you last night, but I’m sorry.”

  “I know,” she said softly, not sure she was ready to hear what he had to say. “Let’s not talk about it.”

  “That would be the easiest thing to do, but I’m not sure it’s the best.” Jerry raised himself up onto an elbow and said, “I was an ass.”

  “Okay. Now can we drop it?” She knew he wasn’t ready to say the words, or for a commitment. Talking now wouldn’t change anything. All it could do was bring them back to where they were. Apart. She didn’t want to risk that.

  “Reanna, what are you afraid of?”

  “You like asking me that a lot,” she joked.

  “I’m serious. Why don’t you want to discuss this?” he asked.

  She sat up and pulled the sheet tightly around her chest. If he wanted to talk, she wanted him to concentrate. “The truth is I don’t think you’re ready to. You seem to be fighting yourself. And until you know what you want, what makes you happy, how can we talk about it? I just don’t want you saying what you think I want to hear. That won’t do either of us any good. And in the long run, neither of us will be happy. We are okay for now. And when the time is right, we can talk. But for now, let’s not risk what we have for something we’re not sure we want anyway.”

  He looked at her for what seemed like an eternity. “Reanna, why do you put up with my dumb ass?”

  She smiled. “I’d have said because you’re cute as hell, but now I think it’s your cooking skills.”

  He chuckled. “I’m not saying I’m better than you, but if you notice, there weren’t any rodents on the menu.”

  Reanna pretended to get sick by covering her mouth. When his eyes widened and filled with regret, she removed it. “Got ya!”

  He reached out and yanked the sheet from her. “Yes you do. And
hopefully I got you too.”

  Jerry claimed her lips. You’ve had me from the first kiss.

  Reanna was going to take her own advice and enjoy what they had. Either way, it was more beautiful than she’d ever dreamed of, and she didn’t want to miss one second of it.

  Chapter Eight

  “Shanda, I’m really sorry about missing your party,” Reanna said. “Things got a bit out of hand.”

  “Is Bobby still hanging around?” she asked.

  Reanna shook her head. “Jerry sent him packing.”

  Shanda grinned. “Really? How romantic is that?”

  “I don’t know if I’d call it romantic. Maybe more embarrassing. I should’ve been able to make him leave myself,” Reanna sighed.

  “You had once,” Shanda reminded her.

  “As a policewoman, I should’ve been able to get him to leave this time. But when he was standing there and telling me how desperate his situation was, I shut down. Guess it is the guilt for leaving him in the first place.” Reanna knew deep in her heart that Bobby made his own choices, no different than she did. “If he’d spent as many hours at a job as he did chasing after other women, maybe he wouldn’t be broke and homeless now.”

  “Good for you. I’m glad you see that. I hear the talk in town. You’re the one who always steps up, helps everyone. Maybe it’s time for you to make other people accountable. Your shoulders weren’t meant to carry the weight of the world,” Shanda said.

  “What do you mean talk?” Reanna asked.

  “Do I need to give you an example?” Reanna nodded and Shanda added, “Why are you working the night shift this week?”

  “Because one of the guys is on vacation and—”

  “Officer Long was the only one who could switch her life around,” Shanda said sarcastically.

  Reanna laughed. “You make me sound like I can’t say no.”

  “I know better. On duty you are by-the-book, and ‘no’ is something you say a lot. But outside of work, you want to make sure everyone else is happy.”

  “I wasn’t out to make Bobby happy. I just didn’t want to hear it anymore. He really believes that his life would be so much different if I hadn’t divorced him,” she said.

  “He’s right. You would’ve taken care of everything. That doesn’t mean you should’ve stayed married to him. Damn it, what kind of man leans on his wife for everything, and then goes behind her back with other women? He’s lucky your brother was serving overseas and didn’t know about the crap he was doing to you,” Shanda added.

  I think Jerry would’ve been equally deadly. “And now Jerry knows about Bobby, and what an ass he was to me. We spent longer than I wanted, talking about Bobby. At one point I think Jerry had been contemplating searching for him just so he could kick his ass. I explained to Jerry that there was nothing we could do to Bobby that was worse than the life he was choosing to live.”

  Shanda smiled. “I’m glad things are working out between you and Jerry. I had a feeling you two were a match when we had dinner together.”

  “Just think, if Brenda would’ve shown up for that blind date, it might be her with Jerry,” she said, hating the thought, but knowing it was a possibility.

  Shanda burst out laughing. “Brenda and Jerry?” She laughed even harder. “He almost didn’t want to be the best man because we were asking Brenda to stand up with him.”

  “I didn’t know they knew each other,” Reanna said.

  “They met briefly at a party we had at my home. Let’s just say Brenda left a lasting impression, and not a good one,” Shanda explained. “Your sister can be loud and pushy, if you haven’t noticed.”

  “She has been all her life.” Reanna had told Brenda to tone it down more times than she could count. Over the last six months, things had been getting better. I miss you, Brenda. Wish you were here so we could talk like this. Funny thing was that even if she were, Brenda wouldn’t stop long enough to listen. She was always on the go.

  “Funny how different Brenda and I are, but I love her anyway. She makes a great friend. A lot of fun to be around,” Shanda said. “Just it’s going to take someone with a lot of patience to date her.”

  Reanna chuckled. “Maybe someone hard of hearing.”

  “Who knows, maybe she’ll find him in California. Wouldn’t it be great if we got invited to her wedding?” Shanda said.

  “Let’s see how long she lasts at that job out there first. But if she finds her match, I’ll be on the first plane to—”

  “Make sure he’s good enough for her?”

  Reanna nodded. “That’s what sisters are for.”

  Shanda reached out and grabbed Reanna’s hand. “And friends.”

  “Definitely,” Reanna smiled.

  “Good, I’m glad you consider me one, because friends always speak the truth, right?”

  She wasn’t sure if Shanda had set her up on this or not. Only one way to find out. “I would like to think so.”

  “Good. Then I want to talk to you about Jerry.”

  “I thought we did that already,” she responded.

  “Okay, then let’s talk about you,” Shanda added.

  “Did that too,” she reminded Shanda.

  “You know what I mean. You and Jerry as a couple.”

  “Couple of what?” she joked. Shanda wasn’t having any of it.

  “Are you afraid to love again?” Shanda asked.

  “No. And for the record, I was so young when I married Bobby that I’m not sure we were ever really in love. More out to prove we were grown up. And we know one of us didn’t pass that test very well.”

  “So you know Jerry is nothing like Bobby.”

  “The only thing they have in common is their gender, and even then, I’m not so sure,” she chuckled.

  “Okay, so let’s look at what you and Jerry have in common,” Shanda said.

  This subject needed to change. She was trying not to think too much on it. She already knew she was falling for him. But she also knew that his life was in Boston and eventually he’d grow tired of her.

  “I thought you wanted to talk about wedding stuff,” she reminded her.

  “I do. But not mine. I can see you and Jerry married with a bunch of children,” Shanda said, smiling from ear to ear.

  “Did you slip something in that iced tea? Because you’re talking crazy.” Not only was Shanda planning a wedding for them, but a family too.

  “I’m not the only one who thinks so either. Kenneth said you guys are a good match. Of course, he thinks Jerry might need a little help to see that.”

  “Shanda, if someone doesn’t see it, maybe it’s because it is not there,” she clarified.

  “Clark said Jerry has not been himself since he met you.”

  “Who is Clark?”

  “Kenneth’s baby brother. That’s right, you haven’t met them. Okay, let’s see if I got them all right. Phillip is the oldest, then there is…Jerry. After that it is…Andrew and Richard. My honey is next, and last is Clark. Wow, I can’t believe I got them all in order.”

  “This just proves to me that you’re wrong about me and Jerry.”

  “How is that?” she asked.

  “You know more about his family than I do,” she said firmly.

  Shanda huffed. “I also know all the members of the city council, but that doesn’t mean I love them.”

  “No, but it means we don’t know everything about each other.”

  “Reanna, that is what a lifetime is for. Learning about all the little things.”

  “And what are the big things then? Favorite foods and movies?”

  “Nope. It’s so much deeper than that. Okay, when you two are lying in bed—and don’t even pretend like you two aren’t sleeping together because it’s written all over your face—so when you’re in bed just lying there holding each other, what goes through your mind?”

  That I never want this to end. That I’ve never been so happy or scared in my life. That my heartbeat sounds like it’s in sy
nc with his. “Getting mighty personal, aren’t we?”

  “I’m sorry. I just know Kenneth is worried that Jerry might get in his own way and…well…I’m worried you might do the same. It’d be a shame if you let love slip away because neither of you want to be the one to admit this is something real, something good.”

  She wanted Shanda to stop, but that didn’t mean what she was saying was wrong. Reanna was afraid of saying how she felt. What if she did and Jerry didn’t feel the same way? She couldn’t stop thinking of the words he’d said: ‘I don’t want anyone to know about us.’ She said she just wanted to forget it, but the truth was, she couldn’t. What if he felt that way again? It would kill me. Or at least it would remove what trust she had in him. And once that was gone, she wasn’t one who gave it back easily. I don’t let people burn me twice any more. Been there, done that and regret it. She wasn’t going to make Jerry pay for the mistakes she made with Bobby, but she also wasn’t the naïve girl she used to be years ago either.

  “I promise, it won’t be me who walks away,” she said.

  “But will you sit back and let him?” Shanda asked. “Sometimes people need a little push.”

  “Like the one you’re giving me? Because this doesn’t feel little,” she smirked.

  “I’m just showing you how it’s done,” Shanda laughed.

  “I appreciate it, but trust me, Jerry and I are okay the way we are.”

  “Funny thing about love and marriage, it seems to sneak up on you when you’re not looking for it,” Shanda stated.

  Please, not again. “So glad you and Kenneth found each other. So, let’s get back to what we’re supposed to be doing: planning that wedding.”

  “Fine, but only if you promise me that you’ll remember everything I said.”

  “I will.” If it means we don’t ever have to talk about it.

  Jerry was surprised to see Kenneth in Boston. “Thought you’d forgotten your way here,” he teased.

  “Believe it or not, Shanda and I come here more often than you know.”

  “Really? I never thought Shanda would like being in Boston,” Jerry said. Shanda seemed to like her country living too much.