Bound to the Past (Starville Series Book 1) (17 page)

“I doubt it, Nic.” Her hilarity fled. “He doesnʼt think heʼs ready for such a big event yet, and I canʼt blame him. Too much crowd, and not exactly friendly.”

Nicky frowned. “Oh no. Another visit from our lovely mayor?”

“Worse. Wayne gave Jack a not-so-pretty shiner at The Cove the other day.”

“Yeah, I heard about that.”

“Me, too,” David interjected, taking a sip from his bottle.

A resigned sigh escaped Saraʼs lips.
Darn small towns
. “Of course you did.”

“Sorry.” He shook his head with a laugh. “I have to say, though, I canʼt wait to meet Starvilleʼs black sheep.”

“Yeah, well, just do me a favor and donʼt punch him in the face when you do,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “What about you guys? Are you going to the fair?”

“Oh, yeah. David is eager to take me―right, dear?” Nicky batted her lashes at him.

“More like she tricked me into taking her,” he whined, and Sara couldnʼt help laughing again at his pained face. “Itʼs going to be fun. Youʼll see. And Nickyʼs a cute date, after all,” she joked.

“About that.” David cleared his throat and turned to Nicky. “Darling, I know I asked you not to tell anyone about me, and I do appreciate your keeping your word,” he said in a serious tone that surprised Sara. “However, I believe we should tell Sara the truth.”

Saraʼs curious gaze moved from him to Nicky. Her friendʼs cheeks were so red that she wondered how they hadnʼt caught fire yet. “All right, whatʼs going on?”

David smiled at her. “Honey, Iʼm sorry you misunderstood, but thereʼs no romance between me and Nicky. Iʼm gay.”

She choked on the sip of coffee sheʼd just taken. It took her a few moments of wheezing and sputtering with Nickyʼs hand pounding on her back before she finally stammered, “But… I thought…”

“Itʼs my fault,” he explained, amused. “I asked Nicky to keep it secret because Iʼm new here, and as you know, Starville is such a small and narrow-minded town. I didnʼt want people to know yet.”

“Of course,” she assured him with a wink. “Donʼt worry, I wonʼt tell anybody,”

***

When Sara pulled up her driveway a few hours later, she immediately noticed that Jackʼs Harley wasnʼt parked in its usual place.
Strange
. He hadnʼt mentioned wanting to go out.

Sheʼd barely finished that thought when she heard the deep roar of an engine behind her. Her stomach flip-flopped, and she counted till five before turning around―but dear God, it didnʼt help. Jack looked stunning riding his motorcycle. She could have sworn the darn man got more and more handsome by the day. “Quite the timing, huh?” she said, watching him slow the bike to a stop and lean it onto its kickstand.

He slid off it in one fluid motion. “How was your evening with Nicky?”

“Fun, as always. How ʼbout yours?”

“It was great.”

His tone made her frown suspiciously. “Where have you been?” she asked, and immediately slapped her hand to her mouth. My, did she really sound like a nagging wife? Thankfully, Jack didnʼt seem to notice it.

“I got myself a little toy,” he said with a shrug as they walked together inside the house.

“A toy?” The moment she asked that, she noticed the rectangular box heʼd just laid on the coffee table. He opened it for her with a smug grin. “Ainʼt she pretty?”

Sara peered into the box…and jumped back a couple of feet at the sight of the silver, shiny object inside. “Itʼs a
gun
!” she shrieked.

“Yep.” Jack took it slowly out of the box, holding it in both hands almost reverently. “This baby is top of the line.”

Shaking her head, Sara took another step back. “I donʼt like it.”

He slid her a glance and frowned. “Itʼs just a gun, Sara.”

“I donʼt like guns.”

“Itʼs only for protection.”

“I donʼt like it.”

“Yeah, I got that.” Jack rubbed the back of his neck. Took a cautious step toward her. “Itʼs okay. Trust me, I know how to use it.”

Sara rolled her eyes. “How come donʼt I find that comforting at all?”

“Tell you what, why donʼt I just put it away?” Walking back to the coffee table, he put the gun back in its box and slid it into the drawer. “See? You wonʼt even know itʼs there, I promise.”

She slanted a disgusted look at the table. Suddenly, she burst out laughing—an almost hysterical laugh that made Jackʼs frown deepen.

“Are you sure you’re all right?”

“Yes. Man, I’m going to get such a kick out of this at the next book club meeting” she said between chuckles, “serving tea on that very coffee table, in my dear grandmother’s precious china set, knowing thereʼs a gun in the drawer. Mrs. Pearson would have a heart attack if she knew.”

He sighed. “I’m sorry, Sara. I didn’t think you’d react like this. I can put it somewhere else if you want.”

“No, no, it’s fine,” she assured him. “But I’m wondering if I should start serving something different from now on. You know…a Bloody Mary, for instance. It might be more appropriate, don’t you think?”

Jack couldnʼt help laughing at that. Probably better not to tell her that he didnʼt exactly get the gun through legal channels, either. Shaking his head, he erased the distance between them. “You know what, forget about this whole gun deal. Letʼs do something fun tonight.”

Saraʼs eyes widened. “Like what?”

“I donʼt know.” He rubbed his chin in concentration. “Letʼs watch a movie or something. Letʼs open a good bottle of wine.”

“Uh…”

“Come on, itʼs Friday night, and itʼs early. Letʼs live a little!” Jack slid a horrified glance at the TV cabinet. “Iʼll even watch that atrocious chick flick you got the other day. How ʼbout that?”

She gaped at him as if heʼd just grown a set of horns, then flattened a hand on his forehead. “Youʼre delirious. Are you running a fever or something?”

Chuckling, Jack removed her hand and clasped it in his. “Say yes, sweetheart. I know you want to.”

Sara stared into his eyes—those deep, magnetic eyes of his—and knew she was lost. Darn him, didnʼt he know that she would follow him to the moon and back if he asked her looking at her like that?

Yes
, she thought, in a daze.
Yes, Iʼll watch a movie and eat ice cream with you tonight. Yes, Iʼll have sex with you. Yes, Iʼll marry you and have a dozen of your babies
…. “Yes!”

“Thatʼs my girl.” He winked at her.

God, she loved when he did that! She let out a sigh. “Give me a few minutes to call my mom, and Iʼll join you, okay?”

“Sure. Iʼll get the wine.”

As she hurried toward the den, Sara looked over her shoulders and slanted a grateful look at the coffee table. Buying that gun might not have been such a bad idea, after all! A few minutes later, she was done with her call and grabbed a rawhide bone for Lance. “Stay here,” she murmured, planting a quick kiss on his head. He carried the treat to his favorite spot, on the rug by the desk. When he plopped down and started chewing on his prize, she took a deep breath and headed back to the living room. She didnʼt really know why she felt so nervous―but her heart started pounding harder when she saw Jack sitting on the couch, a glass of wine in his hand. The TV was on, but the sound was down. Her nervousness grew exponentially.

“You werenʼt kidding about the wine,” she said with an uncomfortable smile, accepting the glass he handed her.

“Nope.”

Sara sat down beside him and took a sip, hoping it would calm her nerves a little.

“Howʼs your mother?”

“Good, thank you.”

“Does she know…about me?”

She shook her head. “I havenʼt told her yet. She just got back home a few days ago but will leave again for Nigeria tomorrow morning, and I donʼt want her to have anything on her mind. It can be dangerous out there. She needs to stay focused.”

“Sheʼs pretty brave, huh?”

“Very.” She smiled and swirled the wine around her glass. “At times I wonder if thereʼs anything in the world that she might be afraid of, and the only answer I keep coming up with is no.”

“Sounds a lot like her daughter.”

Sara turned her head to give him an incredulous look. “What? Iʼm afraid of everything.”

He rolled his eyes. “Please. Youʼre one of the bravest people I know.”

“My mom is. You, Nicky, and Brent are. Iʼm just a girl whoʼs always chosen the easiest path and done her best to live a quiet, tranquil life.”

“Trust me, thereʼs nothing wrong with that.”

“There is, when you realize that all youʼve been doing is being a spectator to other peopleʼs lives but youʼve never really lived.”

Jack frowned. “What do you mean?”

“My mom and I…well, we couldnʼt be more different from each other. Sheʼs determined. Unstoppable.” Sara took another sip of wine. “Donʼt get me wrong, I do love her to pieces; but I was twelve years old and following her in her all-around-the-world adventures when I swore to myself I would be a different mother for my children. They would have a solid home. Stability. Roots. From that moment on, I put all my efforts into that. I studied hard to become a teacher and left the big city as soon as I could. I moved to Starville, got myself a nice house, and found myself a secure job.”
Or what I thought was a secure job
. She scoffed a humorless laugh. “But the truth is, Jack, Iʼve always been scared. Scared of taking risks, scared of failing. Iʼve always been so worried about letting people down that I donʼt even remember how to be myself anymore.”

“Sara…”

She shook her head. “You know what, though? Iʼm tired of being scared. Iʼm tired of hiding. I want to be more daring, and I want to start living for real.”

Jack gave her a long stare. Hell, he did not like the sound of that. It sounded almost as though she was trying to prove something to herself, trying make up for a lifetime spent sitting on the sideline by living recklessly all of a sudden. It made him wonder if her determination to help him wasnʼt just some sort of amend for her past lack of courage or something. It almost made him feel…used.

“So this is why youʼre so set on helping me, Sara? Because you want to prove to yourself that you can be brave?” he asked in a low voice. And, damn, he hated the way her expression turned all pensive, as if she was actually thinking about his words as a possibility she hadnʼt yet considered.

Something indecipherable flashed across her eyes, but then she looked away and shook her head. “I admit that maybe it was, at first,” she admitted sincerely. “But Jack, meeting you is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I like the person I become when Iʼm with you.”

Jack swallowed hard, his intent gaze fixed on hers. “And what person is that?”

“One who knows what she wants and is not scared of going for it. One who doesnʼt let other peopleʼs opinion rule over her own. One I can be proud of. Iʼve always wished I could be that person, but I never knew I was capable of it―until I met you.” Sara took another sip of wine, as if trying to find the courage to continue, and raised her gaze back to him. “The truth is, Jack,
you
make me that person. You make me stronger, you make me braver. And I donʼt want to lose that.”

Well, shit
. Jack definitely liked that. So much so that he had to clear his throat before he spoke. “For what it’s worth, I think there is plenty about you that you should be proud of, already,” he said, toying with a long strand of her hair. “You are fiercely loyal. You stand up for your friends and for what you believe is right. Iʼd say thatʼs pretty damn brave.”

“Thank you.” Sara glanced at him over the rim of her glass and blushed. “Thatʼs a very nice thing to say.” Her hand shook slightly as she set her wine back on the coffee table.

Jack put his glass beside hers, thinking she was absolutely adorable. What followed was a blur. He wasnʼt even sure if he started leaning in first or if both moved at the same time. All he knew was that one second Sara was looking at him timidly, the next his hands were curled around her face, and he crushed his mouth against hers.

Taking advantage of the shocked gasp that parted her lips, Jack thrust deep inside her mouth and braced himself for her reaction. A groan of male satisfaction rumbled through him when, instead of pushing him away as he half expected, she slid her arms around his neck, threaded her fingers through his hair, and returned his kiss with a passion that mirrored his. Every coherent thought fled his mind. J.T.ʼs murder, the years spent in prison, the accident…all were gone.

He felt Sara suck in her breath as he wrapped his hands around her waist and swung her up, settling her across his lap. Once again amazed by how soft and small she felt in his arms, he drove his tongue deeper into her mouth―tasting her, savoring her. She tasted so good. Like wine and chocolate. She tasted like heaven. Like a drug heʼd been denied for too long…and something else he couldnʼt explain. Something so deep and dangerous he didnʼt want to, couldnʼt allow himself to consider. But heat spiraled low and deep in his stomach when she trailed her fingers up and down his back, making his every muscle contract. God, he never wanted to put her back down. Breathless, Jack released her lips and slid his mouth to her cheek, down the side of her neck. Sara tilted her head sideways to give him better access. And dammit, he did want more. He
needed
more. His hands trembled as he struggled to unbutton her light blouse. Sliding her bra up, he stroked softly, almost with reverence, every inch of skin he bared.

The heated touch of his rough hand sent delicious tingles throughout Saraʼs body. She couldnʼt help it. An uncontrollable moan slipped from her as his mouth moved down to her breast and closed over her nipple. His tongue swirled around it, teasing it until she forgot to breathe. Saraʼs fingers tightened in his hair as he drew on her and sucked hard.
Ohmigosh, yes!
She threw her head back at the electrifying sensation and instinctively arched into him. Big mistake. She forced her eyes open to meet his, but the smoldering desire blazing in his gaze only seemed to make her dizzier.

“Jack,” she whispered, hot and weak with longing.

He stopped cold.

Cursing under his breath, he dropped his arms and slumped against the back of the couch. His eyes squeezed closed. “Sorry.”