He sensed a “but” and leaned against the counter, crossed his arms.
“Do you compare us?” she asked.
“No!” he burst out. How could she think that, even for a second? “There is no one who compares to you.”
She flinched. “I just...I don’t...”
Forcibly controlling his tone, he added, “Tell me what you want me to do, and it’s done. Burn my bed and get a new one? Done. Buy a new house? Done. The only thing I won’t do is stay away from Jessie Kay. The two of you are a package deal, honey, and that’s never going to change. You know it, and I know it. Besides, if I ignored her, it would hurt her, which would hurt you.”
“I don’t want you to ignore her,” she said. “I don’t want any of those things. I just...I don’t know.” She stomped across the room, but she didn’t draw him closer when she was within reach. She pushed him, as if daring him to react. “I’m so frustrated with us both right now. There’s no quick fix for any of this.”
“Trust me, I know.”
She looked down at her hands, as if she couldn’t believe what they’d done, before turning away from him.
He gently latched on to her waist, stopping her. “You do whatever you need to do to me, as long as you stay with me.”
*
MY RESISTANCE IS melting all over again, Brook Lynn thought.
Seeing Jase with her sister had caused the darkest, most primal surge of jealousy to shoot through her. It had been irrational. It was irrational, not to mention illogical. She trusted him not to cheat. And she trusted Jessie Kay. But...
The emotions were still there, frothing, propelling her toward madness. Even knowing she was out of line didn’t help. And now she couldn’t shake the questions rapid-firing through her mind. Questions she voiced. “What sets me apart from my sister in your mind? What makes you want one of us but not the other—when you once wanted the other, too?”
Warm breath fanned the curve of her neck, making her shiver. His chest pressed against her back, the strength of him buffering her from the rest of the world. He picked her up and turned, placing her on the kitchen counter. Parting her legs, he stepped into the cradle she provided.
He framed her face in his big, callused hands. “You’ve known hardship, and yet you’ve never allowed it to define you. You are serious...about having fun. You carry responsibilities too heavy for your shoulders, and yet you don’t seem to notice. And I have never wanted a woman the way I want you. Never needed one the way I need you. You were made for me—she wasn’t.”
“Jase,” she said softly. Had more beautiful words ever been spoken to her?
“I’m not done.” His hands moved to the back of her neck, fisting her hair. Ravaged, he said, “You are pleasure to my pain, hope to my fear. You are everything I’ve ever needed but didn’t think I’d be lucky enough to have. I adore the way you think and the things you say.” Voice going husky, he added, “And don’t even get me started on the way you move.”
A tremor danced along her spine as she played with the ends of his hair. “That’s the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me.”
“Brook Lynn,” he said.
“Yes, Jase.”
“I love you.”
Oh...wow. She’d been wrong—more beautiful words had been spoken to her. “But...you can’t. You shouldn’t. I abandoned you when you needed me most.”
“Not your fault. I started our relationship in the wrong place. But we’re on the right track now. You know everything. I can prove myself. I will.”
Well, it was suddenly clear to her that she had things to prove, as well. “Jase, I—”