Where Love is Found

by Tiya Rayne

  I should be distancing myself from Jackson, but yet again, I found myself spending more time with him.

  I climbed out of my car, my contribution to tonight’s dinner in my hand. As soon as I walked up to the porch I could hear the dog barking.

  Jackson’s home was nice from the outside. I could tell the ranch style home was older, maybe built in the 1950’s. The brick exterior was painted a metal gray and the trim and railings were done in white. It was one level with a single car garage and a short walk way to the front door.

  The most beautiful thing about the house was the gorgeous yard. Neatly trimmed shrubs, beautiful grass, and cut out flower beds ran along the walk way and along the front of the house. It was obvious Jackson took good care of his home.

  The moment I stepped in front of the door it opened. Two things stood out, how good Jackson looked in his gray t-shirt, and the smell that was wafting out of his door. I didn’t know what he was cooking, but it smelled delicious.

  “I brought wine,” I said, holding up the fifty-dollar bottle of Cabernet.

  Jackson chuckled and stepped aside for me to enter the house. The inside of the house was just as cared for as the outside. Dark walnut hardwood floors ran throughout the house. Beige paint coated most of the walls. To my left was a living room with a fire place. A short hallway led straight back to the kitchen.

  Jackson took my purse, hanging it up on the coat rack by the front door, and then he grabbed the bottle of wine.

  “Come on,” he said, turning towards the kitchen.

  His kitchen was slightly smaller than mine, but it was still very well kept for a man. Shaped like a short narrow hallway, a stainless steel refrigerator was to my left as I walked in. The wall to my right must have been recently removed to open the kitchen to the dining room. Recess lighting in the ceilings helped give the kitchen a cleaner look. The white cabinets up top that blended well with the white walls, and the cabinets from the waist down were done in a grayish blue, all smartly thought out to give the kitchen a bigger and lighter feel to it. It was gorgeous.

  “Your home is beautiful, Jackson.”

  His face turned a deep red. “Thank you. Although, I can’t take all the credit for it. Jessica picked the colors and the design, I just did the work.”

  “So, little sister is good with fashion and home interior.”

  I watched as Jackson dug through his drawers to find a wine opener. He finally found one that looked completely unused and twisted the cork out of the bottle of wine.

  “Jess has always loved fashion and designing. She wasn’t always good at it though. When she was in middle school, she got a sewing machine for Christmas one year. She made everyone matching shirts. My parents even took a picture with all of us wearing it. It was a disaster.” He laughed as he poured me a glass of wine. “You ever saw that episode of the Cosby show when Denise made Theo the shirt?”

  I burst into laughter. “The Gordan Gartrell episode?”

  “Yep. It was like that but much worse. Thankfully, she got better over the years, but I’ll never forget that first shirt.”

  I chuckled as I took a sip of the smooth full-bodied tasting wine.

  “I bet it wasn’t that bad, you guys just couldn’t pull it off.”

  He smiled then leaned up against the counter facing me. For a moment, we watched each other. My eyes danced with his as I remembered the feel of his hands between my legs. From the way he was smiling at me, I knew he was remembering it too.

  “So,” I started the conversation back up, “what’s for dinner?”

  “I thought I’d do something simple today. Porterhouse steaks, sautéed vegetables, and baked potatoes.”

  Damn! And he called that simple. “That sounds delicious.”

  He just smiled as he pushed away from the counter. “Come on out back, I was just about to put the steaks on the grill. How do you take yours by the way?”

  “Medium rare.”

  He turned to me and smiled. “My type of girl.” I chuckled as I continued to follow him to his back porch.

  The front yard was gorgeous, the inside was beautiful, but the back yard was downright breathtaking. I’d never seen anything so beautiful. As soon as you walk out the back door, a short covered walk way led you down three steps into a dug out pit that was turned into a fully furnished outside lounge area. Beautiful stone pavers surrounded the area. A large free standing wall held a fire place and flat screen television. On the other side of the drop down sitting area are four steps that led up to a covered outdoor kitchen. Planters with beautiful green plants ran along the back wall of the sitting area. It was gorgeous.

  “Here, have a seat.”

  Jackson took my hand to help me down the three steps. I took a seat on the long curved couch. Jackson walked over to the kitchen area. He opened the mini fridge and pulled out a covered tray I imagine contained the steaks.

  “Did you design this?”

  Jackson turned to me briefly then turned back to his job of preparing the steaks.

  “I did. I bought this home for an amazing price. It was a foreclosure, and it needed a lot of work, but I bought it for this back yard. I took one look at it and saw all the potential.”

  I was starting to have a lot more respect for his gift. I knew Jackson had to be good at his job, he did own his company after all, but I was never into yards. I just thought he cut grass for a living and planted a few flowers, but he was truly talented.

  “I really love your place,” I admitted.

  Jackson chuckled as he joined me on the couch with a beer in his hands.

  “Well, thank you. It doesn’t have the class or the square footage of your place, but I like it.”

  I laughed and then took a sip of my drink. Jackson smiled at me before turning his beer bottle up.

  “So, how was the family gathering?”

  He snorted. “I knew you were going to ask about that.”

  I shrugged and waited patiently for him to tell me.

  Jackson sighed and leaned back on the couch, his legs spread and beer rested at his side.

  “At the time I thought that dating someone my brother knew would be a good idea. I was still trying to bond with him. I still wanted to have that big brother/ little brother relationship, but with age and time, I’ve come to realize, some relationships just aren’t meant to be.”

  I stared at the side of his face. I tried not to get lost at how gorgeous he was. Most people are attractive head on, but their side view made them look like a cartoon character. Jackson was perfect both ways.

  “So, I’m guessing big brother wasn’t too happy about your last roll in the sheets with the ex?”

  “No! He wants me to commit to Vanessa and stop using her. He puts all the blame on me, like she doesn’t come willingly to my bed. And of course, she runs to him with every single problem thinking he will make me take her back.” I could hear the annoyance in his voice. “She acts as if she’s some type of victim in this. I’ve never forced her to my bed.” He ran a hand through his hair and then took a sip of his drink. “He falls for it every time. I guess it’s always easy to make me out to be the bad guy, like I’m incapable of changing.”

  I felt there was more to this story than what I was getting, but I wasn’t going to pry.

  I sipped my wine again. “Well, she’s pretty. In a basic, plain kind of way, but if that’s your type…”

  Jackson tossed his head back and laughed. “Very subtle, Char,” he teased before placing his beer down on the table in front of us and headed back to the grill.

  “What? They say you can tell a lot about a person by their ex?”

  Jackson cuts his eyes over to me while he flipped the steaks.

  “And what does my ex say about me?”

  I placed my glass of wine down and turned in my seat to face him. “She says you like quiet submissive women. Ones that do as told and is always ready to please her man. It also says you like vanilla sex.”

  Jackson stood at the gril
l crossing his arms over his chest.

  “I have no problem with quiet or as you call them, submissive, women. I also don’t have a problem with independent outspoken women that sometimes read people badly.”

  I laughed at his little diss.

  “I love women, Char. Simple as that. I don’t have a type. And I won’t even comment on that sex crack. There is nothing vanilla about my sex except my ass.”

  I threw my head back and laughed.

  ***

  Dinner was fantastic. Jackson was a great cook and host. We ended up on the couch laughing and talking.

  My phone going off in my purse woke me with a start. For the first time in forever, I felt well rested. I didn’t wake up at all last night. I felt invigorated. I rolled over on my bed and nearly hit the floor, if not for the tight grip around me.

  “You better be glad my reflexes are good. You were about to eat that floor up.”

  I lifted up off my big comfortable bed to find Jackson lying underneath me.

  “Why are you in my bed?”

  Even this early in the morning, his gorgeous smile affected me.

  “Not in your bed. You’re on my couch.”

  I jumped from my spot and climbed to my feet looking around. Indeed I was still at Jackson’s house. My shoes were off, and my purse was on the coffee table. I quickly grabbed my phone out and turned off the alarm.

  I just spent the night with Jackson. Technically, this was the second time we’ve slept in the same house, but this time, I actually fell asleep in his arms. I ran a hand through my hair and immediately cringed at the tangled tracks on my head.

  “You’re cute when you’re sleep. You snore.”

  “First of all, I don’t snore. Secondly, why were you watching me sleep?”

  Jackson sat up on the couch and placed his hands at his lower back pushing out his chest. An unmistakable cracking sound was heard.

  “You absolutely snore, and I watched you sleep because I didn’t get much last night.”

  He stood up and the action was accompanied by another cracking sound.

  “Are you alright? Why didn’t you wake me up to go home?”

  He smiled at me as he pulled me by my waist into his chest. “And miss a chance to sleep with you in my arms? I’d take a sore back for that any day.”

  Damn it, I blushed.

  “Still, you could have at least put me in the bed.” I play pouted. “I feel bad about your back.”

  Jackson placed a kiss on my lips. It was quick and not lingering, but just enough to wake my senses and leave me wanting. He pulled away and walked off.

  “Did you sleep well?”

  I followed him into the kitchen. “Yes, I slept really well actually.”

  “Good,” he said washing his hands in the sink. “Then that’s all that matters. How about some breakfast?”

  I looked down at my watch. “Actually, I have to go. I need to shower and get dressed for work.”

  Jackson pulled out a frying pan and put it on the stove. “Aren’t you the boss?”

  I nodded.

  “Ok, then. You can afford to be late today. Besides, I’m not letting you leave without getting a sufficient meal in your belly. I’ve been in your kitchen. You need to eat.”

  I rolled my eyes playfully at him.

  “Whatever! Let me call my assistant and tell him I will be late.”

  I turned to leave, but he grabbed me by the waist again pulling me back to him. He palmed my ass bringing me snug into him. I placed both hands on his chest. Jackson leaned down and placed a slow kiss to my lips that turned hot and steamy when his tongue dipped into my mouth and danced with mine.

  I’m not much of a kisser. Never really had a reason for it, but I lost myself in his kiss. I got so caught up in how good it was, I didn’t even think about the fact that neither of us had brushed our teeth. Instead of that, I thought about how good his hands felt on my ass, and how good his lips felt on mine. Finally, Jackson pulled back slowly, placing soft kisses on my lips. He smiled down at me and patted my ass releasing me.

  “You’re getting a bit too comfortable with all the kissing,” I said, heading towards my phone back in the living room.

  Jackson chuckled behind me. “You like my kisses, woman.”

  I didn’t answer. Only because the answer, damn right, was on the tip of my tongue. I wasn’t trying to lead Jackson on. Nothing had changed between us. We were still just friends.

  FOURTEEN

  I was still able to make it to work at a reasonable time. And since all this bullshit with Cliff started, I was actually in a good mood today. My belly was full and a permanent smile was on my face. I wasn’t in denial. I knew that my good mood and smile was from Jackson. He had this way of making me laugh and relax, unlike anyone else I’d ever been around. Even still, I knew that all this was temporary. Eventually, Jackson would lose my interest, and he’d be just like all the other guys I’ve slept with. However, I was determined to ride this out for the time being.

  “Charlice, a Detective Myers is here to see you.” My secretary came through my intercom.

  “Send him in, Patricia.”

  I stood to my feet and hit the button to frost my office glass. It was a habit whenever I had visitors in my office.

  I wasn’t sure what brought Sean to my office. Hopefully he had news about Cliff.

  My office door opened, and Sean walked in. He was wearing a black button up shirt, dark gray slacks and a gray tie. He was looking exceptionally edible today. Damn, he knew what those fitted pants did to me.

  I gave him a one arm hug, and he wrapped both arms around me. We broke free, and I offered him a seat.

  “What brings you to my office?” I said, leaning on my desk.

  “I can’t just come and see you?” He gave me his beautiful white smile.

  I raised an eyebrow and placed a hand on my hip. He didn’t need me to answer that question. I didn’t do pop ups, especially not at my job.

  Sean started to laugh. “I’m just kidding with you.” He waved me off. “I went by your house last night to give you some news, but you weren’t there.”

  He once again left the end of his sentence open for me to answer.

  “Yeah?” I said, encouraging him to go on with his story.

  Sean chuckled and shook his head. “Well I thought you would want to know that the detectives assigned to your case spoke to Cliff’s family. They said that Cliff went up North to stay with relatives. The detectives believe he ran because he knew we were looking for him. We’re still going to keep an eye out for him, but you can finally relax. You’re safe.”

  I felt the weight of the world lift from my shoulders. This Cliff stuff was really stressing me out.

  “That’s great news. Thank you, Sean!”

  We both stood so I could give him another hug. We released quickly, and I headed towards the door to see him out.

  “I’m glad I was able to help you, Charli. You know I will always have your back.”

  I stopped at the door and held it open for him. He stood in front of me.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked when he didn’t leave.

  “I…um… Rochelle left.”

  “Sean, I’m sorry to hear that.” I shut the door to my office for more privacy.

  As I said, this wasn’t new. Rochelle did this at least every few months. Whenever she couldn’t get her way, she would walk out on Sean just so he could grovel at her feet to get her back. She was a whiney and needy bitch that often used Sean’s love for her against him. No doubt she would be back in a few weeks once Sean finished jumping through all the hoops she required. That’s why I usually fucked his brains out while he waited on her to come back. It was my little way of supporting my friend.

  “I think it’s for good this time, Charli,” he said, shaking his head.

  My heart went out to the broken look on his face.

  “Are you kidding? Just a few months ago we were ring shopping?”

  I picked out a da
mn good ring for that bitch.

  Sean laughed. “I know, I know. But I’m kind of tired of playing this game, you know?”

  I wasn’t commenting. This was Sean’s thing. One moment he was over her and in my bed, then two or three months later he would be telling me they made up. No matter how bat shit crazy she was, Sean loved her.

  “I’m sure it will all work out,” I told him. “If not, you will find a nice girl that isn’t a bipolar bitch.”

  Sean threw his head back and laughed. “You really didn’t like her.”

  I shrugged and rolled my eyes.

  “Well,” he said stepping towards me, “until then, I’m free.” He grabbed me around the waist and pulled me into him. I went with ease. The familiarity of his arms comforted me. His lips found my neck. This definitely wouldn’t be the first time I’d fucked him in my office. He hit that shit so good against my glass walls one time that it took three cleanings to get my ass print off the glass.

  His hands dropped down to the hem of my skirt and lifted it up my thighs while he sucked on the sensitive skin where my neck met my collar bone. That’s my spot. Just one nibble there, and my legs would spread wide open.

  Just not that time.

  I stepped away from Sean’s soft lips, and he quirked an eyebrow at me.

  What the hell, Duck? the words screamed in my head.

  “You should go.”

  Sean looked shocked, not nearly as shocked as me at the words coming out of mouth. There had never been a time where Sean was available, that we weren’t fucking. Except today, there was still no urge to retract my statement.

  “O..K..!” Sean held his hands up in surrender. “Call me if you need me.” He planted a quick kiss on my lips, then slipped out of my office.

  I stared at his back, wondering why the fuck did I just let him walk out. Any other time we would have fucked all over this office, maybe even went back to my place and spent most of the day rolling in my bed. Yet, the thought of it didn’t feel appeasing at the moment.

  My phone went off on my desk, and I walked over and picked it up.

  Jackson: We’re going out Saturday.

  My face lit up, and my heart started to race.