Page 51 of The Sacrifice
“Hussy.” He shakes his head and hauls her to his side until she’s safely tucked under his arm and glued to his body. “She’s forever making me pay for my mistakes. Even though I didn’t do anything. Someone else lied on me the first time, and then, the second time we were together, she broke up with me. But it’s an endless battle of worshipping her. I’m exhausted all the time.” Tony winks at her. “It’s ridiculous what she makes me do.”
Jenna leans forward and whispers, “It’s all super dirty and demanding.” Her attempts to control her laughter fail, and my nerves about meeting his friends disappear. They’re real-life couples who love to tease each other. “But we want to hear about you.”
After the waitress brings our drinks, Jackson laces his fingers through mine and rests our entwined hands on his thigh, slowly rubbing his thumb in a circle on the back of my flesh. It’s to relax me, but it has the opposite effect. Of course, any time he touches me, adrenaline surges throughout my body.
“There’s not much to tell. I’m kind of boring. I got a degree in early education in college but didn’t use it. I’d grown up here, and my parents hated to travel, so we never went anywhere. I wanted to see the country, so I worked as a nanny on the East Coast. I did get to travel, but I didn’t see anything.” I chuckle at my naivety. “I was with the kids when the parents went out exploring.”
“Ah, that’s too bad.” Jenna glances up at Tony. “Remind me when we go on our next trip to make sure to give our babysitter an extra day off for sightseeing.”
“On it.”
She waggles her eyebrows. “I’ll gladly get on it.”
“Lord, woman.” He clutches his chest. “You’re embarrassing me.”
Jackson wraps his arm around my shoulders and pulls me closer. When I inhale, it’s a mixture of his cologne and the fried food smell of the bar. I’m not complaining about either scent. “I’m sorry. Sadly, all my friends are this mature.”
“It’s great. I love it.” The affection between Tony and Jenna radiates off them in waves. This is what I want. They’ve been together for a while, and still flirt and banter with each other like they’re newly dating.
I take a sip of the drink in front of me.Yum.The Sex on the Beach is delicious. The bartender is better than the one at the last club I went to in New York.
After Jenna sets down her drink, she tilts her head. “So, if you were on the East Coast, how did you end up helping Jackson?”
I cringe, not wanting to bring up all the old crap again, but it’s inevitable. I’m the new one on the block. “I was dating a guy for several years. He was perfect, in my opinion.” Jackson’s hand stills on my leg. “Perfectly wrong for me.” Once I clarify my statement, he instantly relaxes against me. “He was an overachiever and worked too much. And because of our schedules, we only saw each other a few days a month which is how we stayed together so long. And we were so flipping boring together.”
“Those things happen.” Jenna smiles. “When I moved after college to get over this big lug–”
“Sexy beast.” Tony smirks, takes a drink of his beer, and sets it back down on the scarred wooden table.
“Right.” She rolls her eyes. “I dated a guy who was the exact same. I thought I wanted a boring 9 to 5 kind of guy.”
“Who was a total loser.” Tony flexes his biceps. “And you needed an over-the-top stud that could give you an orgasm with one look.”
“You are so right.” She gives him a look, and my panties almost spontaneously combust.
“Mia’s lucky and found the same thing.” Jackson leans down until our lips are inches apart. I love him so much. I’ll never get used to it or take it for granted.
“Yes, I am.” His lips cover mine, and my toes curl.
“Oh, Tony. They’re so adorable. I want to put them in my pocket and take them home.”
“How about putting me in your pocket when we get home?”
I laugh against Jackson’s lips and pull back to keep from turning things from PG-13 to rated R, but he’s not having any of it. He runs the pad of his thumb over my bottom lip. “I fit perfectly in your pocket.”
The heat in his eyes makes my sex convulse. Over-the-top men for the win. Why did I ever want a boring man who never took a moment to enjoy life?
Well, until he did. Obviously, I was as boring to him. Now, not so much. The bathroom is sounding more and more appealing by the second.
I turn away from him and inhale. This is the first time you’ve met his friends. Don’t act like a wanton slut in front of them and have everyone talking about you. “Anyway, to make a long story short, my ex snapped and took off with a Hooter’s girl. He quit his job and moved to the Caribbean.” I arch my eyebrows. “We get along better now.”
“It’s funny how we think we know what’s best for us, and we’re usually wrong.” Jenna laces her fingers through Tony’s. “I love Tony’s humor and sarcasm. He brings out the fun side of me, and he’s an awesome father.”
“You aren’t lying there.” Jackson nods in agreement. “He was one the first people on the team I went to when Roxanne dropped off Hadley. I respect his input on raising a child.”
Tony kisses the top of Jenna’s head. “Babe, I’ll pay you back later tonight for the compliment.”
“You’d better. The kids are staying with Rich and Chloe tonight.”