Jackson sat up and flipped the light on so he could take a closer look at my neck. I smiled as he looked at my bruising with a serious face. He seemed like he was examining the stocks for the day. I couldn’t help but start to laugh.
“What are you looking at?” I giggled.
“You.”
“Well, I’m all right. You don’t have to keep looking at my horrific bruise.”
“It’s not so bad. I mean, if you like the purple scarf look.”
“Oh, no, is it already purple?” I said as I jumped up and went to the mirror to look at it.
Jackson was quickly behind me and I felt him move my hair away from my neck to behind my shoulder. His fingers gently moved across my back and I watched in the mirror as he leaned down and gently kissed my neck.
It felt so good to have him touching me. I wanted to hate it. I didn’t want to fall for Jackson. But the gentle touch of his lips sent my heart fluttering into the stars. He was the whole package and as much as I didn’t want to sleep with him, I did want to keep him around forever. His touch was exactly what I needed in my life.
My eyes fixated on him in the mirror and the gentle touch of his kisses. He towered over me and his body was, at least, twice the size of mine, yet he was so gentle. Jackson was a giant with a sweet heart and a good soul.
I let my eyes close as I felt the softness of his touch on my skin. It was sweet and calm and nothing that I had felt in a very long time. He didn’t grab onto my body; he didn’t pull me close to him. Instead, he just continued to hold my hair out of the way as he kissed the back of my neck.
Then, I felt his kisses as they moved slightly around to the side of my neck. He continued to kiss me gently and paid specific attention to my purple bruises. I opened my eyes to look at him in the mirror and saw him bent over as he tried to reach my neck. Finally, he just sat on the dresser and pulled me toward him.
He pressed my chin up into the air so he could continue to kiss each and every section of my bruised neck. It was soft and sensual, and I longed to stay in that moment for as long as possible.
Jackson continued to turn me as he made his way across my neck with his lips. He moved slowly and gently until he had finally turned me all the way around and his lips touched the back of my neck again.
I sat down on his lap as I pulled his arms around me and held onto them while his lips moved up and down my spine. There was a part of me that wanted more. I felt the need to ditch all my clothes and pull Jackson into the bed with me.
But then there was a part of me that just wanted to stay right there in that moment with his soft lips pressed up against my injured body. It felt safe, it felt romantic. I liked every second of it.
There was a contradiction with Jackson that was hard for me to get my mind around. He was a tough and rugged guy, yet when he kissed me, he was soft and sweet. I suspected that the true Jackson was somewhere in the middle of all that. And, I really wanted to get to know that man. The guy who didn’t pretend to be tough just to show off. I wanted to know that guy.
“I need to shower and then we can talk about the day ahead.”
“Me, too. I think I know how we can get into Stephano’s house. He’s angry with me, but I’m sure he will let me in. Then, you could come in right behind me and we could find her quickly and sneak her out,” I said as I turned around and faced Jackson.
“How about we start with showers and food? Then, we can move on to planning our mission for the day.” He laughed.
I knew I was taking things seriously, but I liked having a purpose that didn’t involve taking my clothes off. I enjoyed feeling useful and I really wanted to find Ana and make sure she was safe. I hated the idea of Stephano having control over her. I hated that he was such a dangerous man and she was so vulnerable.
Ana wasn’t at all like the other girls at the club. She
wasn’t at all like me. She wasn’t going to be able to protect herself and that just made me sick to think about. Stephano would use her and abuse her all he wanted. He didn’t care if a guy wanted her kept clean, he always did whatever the hell he felt like doing.
“All right, one…two…three. Go!” I yelled as I ran toward my shower.
Jackson just laughed and made his way to his room to get his shower done. There was a part of me that wanted to invite him to shower with me or even for me to jump into the shower with him. But I didn’t want to push things. I liked that we hadn’t had sex yet. I liked the feelings that I had for him. They were such a mix of things that I had never really experienced before. I just wanted whatever it was between us to keep going. I didn’t want to ruin it.
“Take your time,” I heard Jackson yell about five minutes after I got into the shower.
Men were always so quick at their showering. They didn’t have nearly as much to do with their upkeep as women did. I relished the warm water on my body as it hit all my sore muscles. It felt wonderful to simply relax and take in the enjoyment of a nice long shower.
“What should we get for breakfast?” I yelled out as I climbed out of the shower about fifteen minutes later.
There was no answer.
I wrapped myself in a towel and opened the bathroom door. It was eerily quiet in the two hotel rooms. I walked over to Jackson’s room and I saw a note on his table.
Stay here. Don’t leave. I’ll be back after I get Ana.