Page 35 of Undeniable Love

Ty: That’s why I didn’t want to go, but she wore me down

Ty: But now that I’m at Sandy’s, I’m glad she did

Ty: Thanks for getting her out of here. I’ll see you in the morning

Okay, that was done. Getting to his feet, he walked to his bedroom to change, all the while wondering why his friend was okay with letting Lucy be alone with him, but wasn’t okay with her hanging out with the team. It made sense that Ty was protective of her, and he supposed it made sense that he trusted Jax with her considering their history.

Raking a hand through his hair, he let out a long breath. “If only he knew that I’m not so trustworthy…”

Pushing the thought aside, he quickly changed, grabbed a towel, and stepped outside. Lucy was standing next to the hot tub looking absolutely perfect. As he strolled toward her, he caught her impish smile and told himself she was just being herself. It didn’t mean that she was being flirty with him or anything.

“Just in case you were still worrying, I texted Ty and he had totally forgotten about changing your flights, but he’s doing it now.”

“Okay, whew! Thanks, Jax.”

Nodding, he added, “He is, however, spending the night at Sandy’s.”

“That part I could have lived without,” she replied, but then laughed softly. Having already turned on the jets, she climbed into the tub and got comfortable, and Jax immediately followed.

“Damn,” he said gruffly, sinking lower in the water. “I do this almost every night and every night it still amazes me at how good it feels.”

“I told you, if I had one of these at home, I’d be in it every day too.” Humming, she sank lower under the water too. “Aquatic therapy is wonderful for kids. If you weren’t planning on putting a pool in for the kids, you should. It should be indoors and about the size of one you’d find at the local YMCA.” Another hum. “Hydrotherapy. Children can also benefit from hot tubs. Again, the size of one you find at the Y would be sufficient. You know…if you were wondering.”

Her eyes were closed so she couldn’t see him smiling. “I’ll keep that in mind. Any other suggestions?”

“That’s the biggie from a therapy point of view. I’d have to know more about the specifics of the camp before I could really give an informed opinion.”

“We’ve been talking about it all weekend,” he reminded her.

“About the property, logistics, timing…you’ve mentioned making it accessible for kids with disabilities who can’t play on traditional teams or maybe who want more than what the Special Olympics offers. You haven’t talked to me about the specific activities that you’re planning.”

Right now, the camp was the last thing he wanted to talk about.

“I’ll show you the plans tomorrow.” They sat in companionable silence, and while Jax didn’t know why Lucy had gone quiet, he knew he was trying to turn the conversation toward a more…personal one.

He just had no idea how.

If Lucy were any other woman, he wouldn’t feel this tongue-tied. But considering how just a handful of days ago she pretty much despised him, he was afraid of doing or saying anything to make them go backwards.

They’d already talked about family, the camp, football, Wichita, movies, food…pretty much all the usual small talk conversations people had when they were getting to know each other. So what was he supposed to talk about now?

“I can hear you thinking from here,” she said, interrupting his thoughts. “If you’re tired, don’t feel like you need to stay up and entertain me.”

He seriously almost groaned.

“I’m not tired,” he assured her, opening his eyes. “Just didn’t want to talk about the camp or family or football.”

“Then what do you want to talk about?” And yeah, this time there was a sultriness to her voice that wasn’t there a minute ago.

Then she slid across to his side of the tub.

In the moonlight, he could see her green eyes shining, the smile that was the perfect combination of sweet and sexy, and the swell of her breasts that were pure temptation.

I should be stronger than this. I shouldn’t be thinking about her breasts or how I want to taste those lips…

But he wasn’t strong; he was only a man.

A man who wanted this woman more than he wanted his next breath.