“Why aren’t we watching the movie in here?” Jax asked, looking around. “You have theater chairs. Ashley would love this.”
“I thought about asking if you wanted to bring her over this weekend. Maybe we could have a Disney movie marathon or something.”
Jax glanced over her shoulder at me as she ran her finger down the pool table. “She’d love that.”
I watched her walk around the large room, then turn and look at the six oversized theater chairs before picking up the remote and pushing a button. A large screen came down from the ceiling, causing Jax to stop and stare. Under the screen sat a fully stocked bar. I walked over, set my beer down, and grabbed a bottle of whiskey to pour myself a drink. I needed something fucking stronger than the beer.
“Drink?” I asked as I held up the bottle.
“My oh my, you have good taste.”
I raised a brow. “You know your whiskey, huh?”
Jax shrugged. “I know a good bourbon—grew up around whiskey.”
I stared at her with a questioning look. “You’re going to have to explain that one a bit more.”
She laughed. “My father was originally from Kentucky, and let’s just say he was in the whiskey business.”
“Okay,” I said with a slight chuckle.
She leaned against one of the two large wooden beams that held up the twenty-foot cathedral ceiling. “He owned a few bars. That’s what brought him to Boston. He followed his older brother there. They opened up a bar, then eventually two. He still shows up every damn day to that bar and works.”
“Is that a bad thing?” I asked, noting the slight bitterness in her voice.
“For my mom, it is. She’s been waiting for him to retire so they can travel. Dad never really took time off, so we didn’t do a whole lot of family trips. That’s something I intend to change with Ashley. I’ve got a trip booked to Yellowstone National Park this May. Hoping to go before it gets too busy.”
“Never been there.”
“Really?” she asked with a tilt of her head. “If you could pick one place you’d love to go, where would it be?”
I turned and focused back on the TV, pulling up the movie that was last played. “I’m not really much of a travel kind of guy. I like being home, here in Boggy Creek.”
Jax sat on one of the chairs. “Are you hiding from something?” Her smile said she was kidding, but I wondered if there was another question hidden in there.
“Not at all. I can get on a plane and go to Paris tomorrow if I want.” I shrugged. “I just don’t want to.”
She exhaled. “Well, traveling alone is no fun. I’d go to Paris with you.”
“Would you now?” I asked as I sat down in the chair next to hers. “I bet Ashley would like it there.”
“I bet she would.”
Glancing away, I hit play and Top Gun started.
Jax laughed.
I held up my hands. “Don’t look at me. Kyle was the last one in this room watching TV.”
She narrowed her eyes. “And what were you doing?”
“Probably playing pool or foosball with Hunter.”
Jax laughed. “I’d like to meet your friends sometime.”
My smile faded some. “Yeah, they’d love to meet you…and Ashley.”
Finishing off her wine, Jax set it on the table that was off to the side. Then she stood, took my glass of whiskey, and drank it all before she crawled on top of me.
I smiled and let her take the lead as she sank down and pressed her hips against my body. She laced her fingers through my hair and tugged softly until my head tilted back, enough for her mouth to cover mine.
Her kiss felt both foreign and thrilling. I placed my hands on her hips and thrust up, causing her to moan. But my cock was being a stubborn asshole. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to come out and play.
“Bishop,” she whispered against my lips, then down my neck. “I want you right here in this chair.”
Christ Almighty.
Breaking her soft kisses, she sat up and pulled her shirt over her head, giving me a view of her upper body. Her breasts practically spilled out of a red lace bra. Clearly, she’d dressed with the anticipation of us having sex tonight.
Why in the hell did that not turn me on?
Still, I instinctively reached around her body and unclasped her bra. Jax let it fall down each arm, then tossed it to the floor. When I lifted one of her tits and put the nipple in my mouth, she moaned in delight.
A strange sensation ripped through me. It wasn’t pleasure—at all.
I let the nipple fall from my mouth and blew on it. The fuck, Bishop? You’ve fucked other women since Abby. Get your head out of your ass…now.
Jax dropped her head back while I took her other nipple into my mouth. She rotated her hips, then reached for my jeans and swiftly undid them. Right as she began to stick her hand into my pants, I sat back, grabbed her wrist, and stopped her.
“Wait.”
Her chest heaved up and down—and it was clear to me then. Jax wanted this a hell of a lot more than I did.
I shook my head. “I can’t…I can’t…I’m sorry, Jax. I can’t do this here.”
She slowly pulled her head back and gave me a confused expression. “In the chair? We can move to your bedroom. Or if you’re worried about protection, I’m on the pill.”
I closed my eyes tightly and shook my head. Was I really going to tell this woman—this beautiful, hot woman—that I didn’t want to have sex with her? What in the hell was wrong with me?
“It’s not that, Jax. I can’t have sex in this house. It…it feels wrong.”
“Wrong?” she asked with a solemn laugh. “Because why? If you’re worried about me having a daughter, trust me, that doesn’t change the fact that I like to have sex.”
I scrubbed my hand down my face. “That’s not it, either. Fuck.” I lifted her off of me and stood.
Jax looked hurt as she reached down for her bra and shirt while I zipped and buttoned my pants.
“Jax, I want you, trust me.” I paused for a moment. Did I want her? Considering my not-hard dick, I wasn’t so sure. “My wife…ex-wife…this was her house. I mean, she helped design so much of this house. She picked out these chairs, the other furniture, the drapes. Fucking everything in this house reminds me of her. I can’t do this.”
Jax gave me a warm smile and slipped her shirt back on. “I understand, Bishop. Does this mean we’re not going to go out again or…?” Her voice trailed off.
“No, I want to go out again. I want to have Ashley over for movie night. I’m just not ready to do…that, with you, here. I’m sorry—I didn’t mean to lead you on or anything.”
A real belly laugh fell from her lips. “That’s not usually something a guy says to a woman. You didn’t lead me on. If I remember right, I’m the one who came on to you.”
I winked. “I liked it.”
She pressed her lips together tightly. “I did too. So, are you up for trying this again sometime?”
“When?” I asked, sure that my inability to get hard was simply due to the fact that I was in the house I had shared with Abby.