“I was just thinking about you.” Stepping toward him, Jody took the monkey and the rose. The meaning behind the stuffed toy hadn’t been lost on her. He’d paid attention when she’d told him about the very personal moment that had transformed her life. Jared had found a parallel and related it back to them, making it their story now. Her heart melted at his thoughtfulness. Jody’s smile continued to broaden as she moved in for what she really wanted—her lips on his.
Jared pulled her into his arms and kissed her forehead. “That’s good,” he said, bending down to taste her lips again. “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you at all.” The tingles which always seemed to be present when he touched her had her smile brightening more by the minute.
Jody pulled away and reached for his hand. “Come in.
“Why don’t you sit here at the kitchen counter while I find a vase to put the flower in?” As if he’d been starved for the sight of her, she could feel his eyes on her as she moved through the kitchen. Looking through cupboard after cupboard, disappointment set in when there wasn’t a single vase to be found. Jody finally gave up the hunt and filled a drinking glass with water to put the flower in.
When she turned back and found his gaze still glued to her, the heat of embarrassment pricked her face. Jody could only guess at the impression Jared must’ve gotten when she didn’t even have a simple vase in her home. Loser. She tried to shrug it off. “I must have gotten rid of all my vases.”
Everyone who knew Jody seemed to think of her as a plant person. She’d always been the practical friend. People never took into consideration the fact that sometimes she just wanted a rose, or a daisy, or some other beautiful flower. Not even old boyfriends had seen her as the type of woman who longed for a fanciful posy now and again. In the short amount of time she’d known Jared, he’d already given her flowers on two different occasions. That thought squeezed her heart a little tighter and made her insides turn to jelly.
Every time she found herself this close to Jared, something about him compelled her to walk into his arms and stay there in a perpetual embrace. She chuckled under her breath. Yeah, right. If she were completely honest with herself, what she’d really wanted was to put her hands all over him and hear him beg for more. Slow down!
Since the decision had been made to allow the relationship to advance, she couldn’t trust herself to keep her distance, or more importantly, her hands off of Jared. Knowing this, Jody moved to the counter and stood on the kitchen side. In doing so, she placed a cold, hard barrier between them.
“I was wondering, are you busy tonight?”
His grin was full of the devil. “I am now.”
“Do you like baseball?”
“Who doesn’t like baseball?”
Consoling herself with just a small touch, Jody reached for Jared’s hands and started playing with his fingers as he’d often done with her. “Nathan’s having a big get-together over at his house tonight. He’s going to barbecue and turn on the game. I was wondering if maybe you’d like to go with me?”
Anticipation had her holding her breath as he moved purposely around the counter, never losing eye contact with her. Jody could tell by the gleam in Jared’s eye that her need for his touch would soon be satisfied. Oh, Lord. He rested his hands on her hips and pulled her to him.
“Well, I don’t know.” His voice was so seductive that she could have melted into a puddle right then and there. He ran his hands up and down her back, clearly enjoying the game right here in front of him. “Are you an American League fan or a National League fan?” Twisting his head to look at her sideways, he smiled playfully. “This is important, Jody. Think very carefully about how you answer.”
After regaining her senses, she smiled crookedly at him. Two can play at this game. She brazenly ran her hands up his chest. His muscles tensed with her caress, and the little whoosh of breath he involuntarily released as her touch became more sensual had her internally squealing with delight. Jody’s hands came to rest on his shoulders as she offered him her best teasing grin. “I’m going to have to go with the National League all the way, sweetheart.”
Jared opened his mouth to speak, but she placed her finger over his lips to quiet him. Instead of looking him in the eye, Jody kept her gaze brazenly glued to that beautiful mouth under her finger. Breathlessly, she said, “If you say you’re an American League fan, I’m going to have to boot your ass out of here.”
He playfully nipped at her finger. “I like a woman who knows her baseball.”
She couldn’t contain her giggle. Under that tough exterior, he’s playful. That’s a great big plus.
“Why don’t you sit on the couch, and I’ll get us something to drink?” She started to move away, but he drew her back to him. He didn’t seem willing to let her go just yet which pleased her very much. Jared placed a sweet kiss on her nose in a way that shouldn’t have stirred her up, but his lips were like magic. When they touched her, the tingles she’d been feeling had quickly grown into sparks. Jody did a little happy dance in her head. Was it really just a few short days ago she’d believed it would be impossible to open up enough to another human being to feel those burning, lustful sensations again?
As Jared released her, the loss of contact between them left her feeling empty. She took a much needed moment to catch her breath and watch him walk away. Now that’s another great big plus.
“What would you like to drink? I’ve got just about everything from beer to water.” She hoped her voice didn’t sound as shaky to him as it did to her. Those sparks in her body were quickly growing into a slow burn making her a bit wobbly.
“Don’t go to any trouble. I’ll have whatever you’re having.”
Jody put their soft drinks on the coffee table and sat next to him on the couch. After getting comfortable, she couldn’t help but notice his goofy grin.
“What?”
He answered with laughter.
“I don’t get it. What’s so funny?”
Jared reached for her hand and brought it to his mouth. His kiss, no more than a gentle caress on her palm, left her feeling lightheaded. If he didn’t stop soon, she’d end up embarrassing herself by jumping him and taking that mouth for another test drive.
“Every time we sit together on a couch, you turn your body toward me and pull your leg up under you. When you do that, it makes me feel like I’m the only person in the world. You always give me your full attention and make me feel like my thoughts and opinions count for something. No matter how benign the subject, having a conversation with you always turns into something special.”
Stunned by his admission, Jody could only sit there and stare at him with her mouth gaping open.
“What makes it even more extraordinary is that you don’t realize you do it. It’s endearing.”
Beside herself that he would notice something as simple as the way she sat with him, had her taking a moment to come up with a response. “I guess I didn’t realize I did that.” Leaning into him, she kissed the side of his mouth and then put her hand to his cheek so there’d be no mistaking her opinion of him. “You are important to me.
“Talk about a perfect segue.” Her nervous giggle escaped before she could catch it. She made a show of clearing her throat to cover the embarrassing chuckle.
“So I thought that since we are in the,” she threw some air quotes out into the air, “getting-to-know-each-other phase of our relationship, maybe you’d like to tell me a little about yourself. I don’t know anything at all about you.”
Jared’s hand reached out, his finger gently tracing patterns on Jody’s leg. As he teased her with his touch, it took every ounce of self-discipline she had to keep her thoughts on the conversation.
“I was kind of hoping to find out more about you.”
Recognizing his none-too-subtle tactics for what they were, Jody tilted her head toward Jared questioningly. Her forehead furrowed, indicating he wouldn’t be getting off the hook this time. “I think you know enough
about me for now. I don’t know anything about you.”
“Okay. You win. Ask me anything you want.”
He’d been uncomfortable opening himself up to others, so his response pleased her. At least he seemed willing to try for her. That was a big deal for him, and she gave him kudos for allowing it. Witnessing Jared’s hesitancy of giving up personal details propelled remnants of Nathan’s earlier conversation to run through her mind. Why on earth doesn’t he want to talk about himself? What could possibly be so bad?
Deciding the best way to get him to open up would be to start with the ridiculous, Jody inquired, “Have you ever killed anyone?” Her eyebrow wiggled the way she’d seen cops do in old movies when interrogating gangsters. The corner of her mouth lifted, all but betraying her jest.
A sparkle of humor lit his face before throwing his head back and laughing. “Not even with kindness.”
“Hmm.” She tapped her finger to her lips as if she had no idea what to ask next.
“Do you ever lie?”
Jared chuckled and reached out quickly to playfully pull her onto his lap. “You’re asking that to make sure I’m telling the truth about never killing anyone, aren’t you?” He did his best to copy her eyebrow wiggle. “Smart girl.”
She gave him a playful huff. “The smartest.”
Leaning into him, Jody laid her head on his shoulder. Sitting on his lap gave her the warm and fuzzies and had her stomach doing somersaults. With all that going on, it became difficult to concentrate on the task at hand.
Still aiming to keep the conversation light, she thought she’d be able to draw him out with another playful question. “Tell me something about your childhood. What was the one thing you did as a child that got you into deep trouble, but you never regretted doing?”
Instantly she felt his body constrict beneath her. The hand which had previously been stroking her arm momentarily stalled. A strangled cackling sound came from deep within his chest. A telltale sign she’d inadvertently touched on a sensitive subject. The tone of sarcasm in his laugh hadn’t escaped her.
“That’s easy. I was ten. My parents were out of the country, and I was scheduled to leave for boarding school in Switzerland before they got back. I wanted to see them before I left, so I went to the garage, climbed into my dad’s favorite little sports car, and proceeded to total it.”
Appalled, she sat straight up. Unable to hide her dismay, her eyes widened, and her chin dropped to her chest. She didn’t know what shocked her more—the fact his parents had left him behind when he was only ten years old, or the fact they’d shipped him off to a foreign land at such a young age.
He tried to downplay the emotional pain by shrugging his shoulders as if the neglect he’d suffered was nothing out of the ordinary. “It was the only way to get their attention. They came back in time to get me out of the hospital and send me on my way.”
His admission staggered her. The tension of the past mistreatment encircled them both, leaving the air around them thick with melancholy. He’d tried to act as if what he’d just told her had been the most normal thing in the world. His voice and mannerisms told her differently. He’d tried to conceal the pain of his words, but hadn’t been successful. Now she understood why he’d never spoke of his past.
The abuse he’d suffered in his childhood was a huge admission for him. She felt privileged he’d been honest with her and shared his story because she was certain he’d never told anyone before—not even jokingly.
He’d always been cordial around her. It was evident to her, though, he wasn’t comfortable letting go and just busting a gut laughing or showing joy of any kind. Maybe he doesn’t have anything in his life to be joyful about? As soon as that thought raced through her mind, she wanted to weep for him.
As Jody reviewed what she did know about Jared, it had been plain to see he had a habit of dismissing any emotion, with the exception of amorous ardor of course. He seemed to appreciate touching her and receiving her caresses. Thank the good Lord above for small favors! Come hell or high water, she resolved to teach him how to let go and really enjoy himself.
Experience with channeling spirits had shown her that when dealing with other people’s misery, the best way to handle it was through laughter. She’d do that for him now and hopefully make it easier for him to tell his story in the process.
“Okay.” She dragged the word out for several seconds. “I was thinking more along the lines of shoving a dead frog in the face of some bratty little girl, but your story sounds interesting, too.”
To diminish the sting of the past, she cradled his face and lightly kissed his lips. “Tell me about it.”
Jared pulled her back into his body and held her tight while he told her about his miserable childhood. He’d never spoken of it to anyone else, but felt a deep-seated need to tell her.
He was sure Nathan had already cornered Jody about his concerns regarding his personality, or more accurately, lack of personality. He knew Nathan had told her never-ending stories of his darker, more reclusive side. He felt compelled to let her know why he behaved the way he did with others. Hopefully, in doing so, it would shed some light on Nathan’s opinions of him.
“The condensed version is that I come from an extremely wealthy family. The wealth started building generations upon generations ago, growing by leaps and bounds over the years. Each of the Bastion men made their own considerable contributions to the family coffers.” He unleashed a laugh, but it contained no joy. “It’s much easier to make loads of money when you already have it.”
Reliving the past had him carelessly shrugging. “As a child growing up, I was raised, clothed, fed, and educated by paid employees. I rarely saw my parents. When I got old enough, they sent me to be educated as far away from them as possible. Child rearing has never been a priority in my family.
“My father died when I was twelve. The last time I saw him, I was in the hospital. I was ten at the time.” His snicker was laced with sarcasm. “He was so pissed at me for wrecking his antique car and making him come back to the States from their home in London that he couldn’t even look at me.
“After that, I learned to depend on myself for everything.” Jared couldn’t maintain his cynicism. Even he could feel the air surrounding him becoming dense with pent up sorrow.
“For as long as I can remember, I’d been raised to believe emotion and dependency on anyone else was a form of weakness. Those qualities were certainly not something a Bastion man would submit to. In other words, I come from a long line of assholes. I learned to depend on myself for everything. I kept myself busy so that I wouldn’t miss companionship in my life.”
Surprising him, Jody jumped off of his lap and started pacing the floor. She turned and yelled, expelling the anger she felt toward his parents. “How dare they treat you like that? That’s the lowest form of child abuse I’ve ever heard of and believe you me, I’ve heard some horrible stories.”
After several more moments of rage filled pacing, she pivoted to face him. Every muscle in Jody’s body was taut with anger. Her eyes were wild and full of fire. She pointed at Jared and punctuated her words by stabbing the air with her finger. “That’s it! You and me. Together we’re going to show you all about the power of love. We’re going to teach you about the power of friendship and what exactly can be accomplished when you share those emotions with others.”
Jared couldn’t fathom what was happening right in front of him. On his behalf, Jody had worked herself up into a frenzy, and it made him feel good. No one had ever cared enough before.
“I’m going in there to get ready to go to Nathan’s house. You get your ass up and prepare yourself to have a little fun with friends tonight.”
Excitement building for no other reason than having Jody in his life, Jared couldn’t take his eyes off of her as she stomped from the room. Her solicitude had somehow lightened the heavy load of his childhood which he’d carried around with him throughout his life. Afraid of breaking the spell of the blis
sful moment, he sat motionless, glued to the chair.
When she suddenly came barging back into the room, what he saw had him doing a double take. “What are you wearing?” His lighthearted laughter rang throughout the room.
Jody did a little pirouette for him, showing off her favorite baseball attire. “This, fine sir, is a Diamondback jersey, and this,” she said as she tapped her hat, “is a Brewers baseball cap.”
“You’re rooting for both teams?”
“Of course, I am!” She stated as if he were an imbecile. “The D-Backs and Brew Crew are my two favorite teams. I thought you said you were a baseball fan. Haven’t you figured out yet that the best games to watch are the games where you like both teams? It doesn’t matter who wins. You end up happy either way.”
She was adorable. It was no wonder he’d had such a hard time concentrating on anything but her since they’d met. Somehow, Jody had worked her way through his defenses in the snap of a finger. While it made Jared a little uneasy, he was pleasantly surprised he’d actually fallen head over heels in love. If he wanted to keep her in his life, he’d have to work on opening himself up. He had to be willing to share the good and the bad about himself. This relationship business was all new to him and he’d be the first to admit he was, at best, stunted in the feelings department. He prayed he’d be able to give her what she needed emotionally.
He crossed the room, dipped her backward and lavished her with a sloppy kiss. “You’re wrong. It doesn’t matter who is playing. If you’re there watching the game with me, I’ll be euphoric.”
Jody threw her arms around his neck and purposely cocked her head as if he’d just stated the obvious. “Damn straight, and don’t you forget it, sweet baby. And by the way, Jared, I’ll have you know that I would have burned the whole damn garage down.” Before giving him a chance to react, she pulled herself from his embrace, opened a drawer, and retrieved a huge plastic Diamondback toy rattle. She shook it at him with force. “Now get your ass in gear, and let’s go have some fun.”
Troubled Spirits Page 17
