In Love with My Brother's Best Friend: Complete Box Set (23 page)

Jackson:
No I wouldn't have. I wanted to kiss you that night, and Tim knew it.
That was when he made that stupid promise up. I was damn fifteen.
What about now? Would you give me that control now?

I
knew what he meant and instantly felt my thighs clench together under
the water. There was no way I was going there with him on the phone.

Me:
Do you really see my mom a lot?

Jackson:
Nice subject change. You must be thinking about it. I do see your
mom, all the time. We go out to lunch once a week. I live over an
hour away, so we see each other when I'm around for meetings. She's
important to me. Tim doesn't see them that much, and you live as far
away as possible. She really does miss you. We talk about you all the
time.

Me:
What do you say about me?

Jackson:
That is between me and your mom, Tiny. She always talks highly of
you. She's so damn proud that you make a difference in kids' lives
every day. Why did you lie about Chris at the wedding?

Me:
You really want to know?

Jackson:
Yes.

Me:
Let me finish my bath. The water is freezing. I'll text you after.

Jackson:
Let me guess, your tub is huge and there are jets everywhere.

Me:
What?

Jackson:
I bet you can go under with your entire body at once. Shit! I'll be
in my gym until you're done. Enough talks about baths.

I
couldn't believe he remembered all the things I'd said so long ago.
What shocked me even more was that I was hurrying through the rest of
my bath so I could talk to him. Nothing ever came between me and a
relaxing bath.

Once
I was dried off, I got dressed for bed and crawled under the covers
before sending him another text. I thought for a moment about calling
him, but I couldn't do it. There was no way I could be honest with
him if I could hear his voice. Through text, it was different. I felt
like I could be honest, and he couldn't make fun of me. If he was
doing it in the background, I didn't know. For all I knew, he could
have been showing his friends or a girlfriend or something. I would
never know, and that was better for me.

Me:
You had your hand on her back. That was the first thing I noticed.
She was absolutely beautiful. I saw the smile on her face and
couldn't deal with it. Tim was happy. You were happy. I didn't want
anyone to know I wasn't happy. I'd been gone for so long, and I
wanted everyone to think my life was just as perfect as theirs.

My
phone rang moments later, but I didn't answer it.

Me:
How's that for honesty.

Jackson:
My hand was on her back because she tripped over her own damn shoe. I
didn't realize until later that your brother and his woman were
trying to set me up that night. She wasn't beautiful. I wanted to
pummel that fucker the second I saw you with him. None of our lives
are perfect. What do you mean not happy? I want to hear your voice so
bad, Tiny.

Me:
She had perfect hair, makeup, eyes, legs, and everything else. Don't
give me that shit. You'd have been all over that years ago. I'll
never come close to her or any of the rest of them. I don't care to
anymore. I'm just me. Chris is hot. I'll give you that. We joke about
being together all the time. You're not so bad though. I didn't mean
I wasn't happy. I meant not being in a relationship. I learned long
ago that hooking up wasn't what I thought it would be. It was fine
for a few years, but I don't want that shit anymore. I can't talk to
you. You'll do that crazy Jackson shit you do, and I'll be thinking
you actually care.

Jackson:
Way to hurt the ego. He's hot, and I'm not so bad. You're lucky I
have a meeting tomorrow or my ass would be on the next flight out of
here. I was being honest. Not one thing about Bridget was sexy to me.
I haven't been that guy in years. You're the one that's fucking
perfect, Tiny. I'm not so sure about that cocky mouth of yours
though. I can't decide how I feel about that yet. As much as I wanted
to spank that ass for you talking to me like that, I also couldn't
wait to see what you came up with next. I do not want to hear about
you hooking up, ever. How long has it been since you've hooked up???
I do care.

Me:
It's been two years since I've been with someone.

Jackson:
Ouch. I guess next time I need to be more memorable then.

Me:
I meant before that. You were memorable enough I guess. I'll get back
to you on that.

Jackson:
You wouldn't be talking shit if you weren't so far away. I bet you
have to biggest smile on your face right now.

Me:
You have a meeting tomorrow. What time? Do you wear a suit and act
all important?

Jackson:
Eight o'clock. Sometimes.

Me:
Do you have your own office?

Jackson:
I do. I have my own assistant as well.

Me:
You must be big stuff. I can't imagine you as a boss. Are you a
control freak?

Jackson:
I can tell you that you're the only one that has gotten away with
talking back to me in a very long time.

Me:
Really? Does everyone else kiss your ass then? That guy at the
wedding seemed pretty impressed by you. He was all “I've not
done as well as Jackson.” I see you have everyone under that
Jackson spell of yours.

Jackson:
You're not under the Jackson spell. Everyone does not kiss my ass,
Tiny. I'm not that important. I just don't put up with people talking
snotty to me all the time.

By
the time we'd gone back and forth, I could barely keep my eyes open.

Me:
It's a good thing I'm not just anyone then. I'm falling asleep, and
you have to be up early.

Jackson:
Am I boring you?

Me:
You, boring. Is that even possible, Jackie? I can't imagine that.

Jackson:
Where's my Tiny? What did you do with her?

Me:
Goodnight, Jackie.

Jackson:
Sweet dreams, Tiny.

When
I woke in the morning, I felt more refreshed than I had felt in a
very long time. The sun was shining, and I couldn't help but be in a
great mood. I opened my eyes just before eight o'clock, so I grabbed
my phone and sent a quick text.

Me:
Good luck at your meeting. May they all kiss your ass. Don't you have
an ass you need to be kissing as well?

By
the time I got out of the shower, I had a response.

Jackson:
Thank you. I seriously almost spit my coffee at a table full of
people. The only ass I want to be around today is yours, but I can't.
You work today?

Me:
I do. I have many asses to kiss. The bigger the kiss, the bigger the
tip.

Jackson:
I do not want to think about that. I have to fly out later today. Can
I call you tonight?

Me:
Where to now, Mr. Important? Don't go off punching people or
anything. Not sure what time I'll be home. You can text me whenever
you want. I might be with Chris after work.

Jackson:
Is it bad that I'm still jealous of him? If he changes his mind about
women, I'll be there to kick his ass. I have a meeting tomorrow in
Virginia. Who knows, maybe I'll find my way to New York one of these
days.

Me:
You fly a lot?

Jackson:
I do. The more I work, the less time I have to think.

Me:
What does the amazing Jackson have to think about?

Jackson:
Regrets.

Me:
I'm sure we all have those.

Jackson:
What are yours?

Me:
Don't you have something you need to be doing? I'm going to get ready
for work now. Be careful. Have fun in Virginia.

The
days that followed were more of the same. I text back and forth with
Jackson every single day. That was the only time I text first. After
that, I waited for him each time. I knew eventually he'd get tired of
sending them. The rest of that week, I either hung out with Chris or
went home after work. When the weekend came, I never got out of my
pajamas. I cleaned my apartment, read, watched movies, and text
Jackie. I even got him to watch the same movie as me. If he lied, he
did a great job. I made sure to ask him things about what was
happening so I could make sure he was really watching it. It was the
best, most restful weekend I'd had in a very long time. I started
thinking maybe I didn't want him to stop texting me, and I caught
myself wanting to learn more about him.

Jackson

I
text her every day that entire week. She made me text first each
time. It made me laugh that she wouldn't talk to me but would text me
all night long. There were nights we text for four or five hours
straight, but she refused to answer if I called her. I even sat
through a damn girlie movie while sitting alone on my couch. She
wouldn't let me cheat either. I actually watched the whole movie. I
hadn't even done it get laid. There was nobody there with me.

I
found myself sitting through meetings without paying attention. That
wasn't going to work. It wasn't just me that had to deal with my
decisions. There were other people counting on those choices as well.

As
soon as my ass was home, I'd be hooked to my phone like a teenager
with a crush. It was ridiculous, but I wouldn't have had it any other
way. The only time I got any work done was while she was at work.

I
didn't even mention my flight to California and back to her. She
didn't seem thrilled that I'd flown to Virginia, so I didn't really
see the point in telling her anything else.

Tina
was all I could think about while I was awake or asleep. There were
times I was at my desk laughing so loud after reading a text from
her. My assistant even came to check on me one time. I looked like a
complete fool. I couldn't remember the last time I'd gotten along
that well with anyone. She didn't care about who I was or what I had.
Well, she didn't even know what I had, but I knew it wouldn't make a
difference. She wouldn't care if I was poor or rich, she'd hate me or
like me all the same.

The
weekend came, and I knew I needed to see her mom. I had to face her
eventually, and I really needed her advice. Tina had no idea how
lucky she was to have parents that loved her for who she was. Her mom
would never judge her. I wasn't so sure she wasn't going to judge me
though. When I called, she seemed very friendly and told me I could
come over no problem. She even offered for me to stay the night
there. She always did. I never took her up on the offer, but it was
nice to know I was welcome.

As
soon as I parked the car, she had the front door open and was waiting
with open arms to hug me. I was so damn nervous to walk into that
house.

“
Don't
give me that look, Jackson,” she said. “There's nothing
in there to get you.”

I
let out a laugh and walked in.

“
Come
in the kitchen,” she said. “I'm making dinner. Tim came
over and took his dad out for the day to some new movie. I knew we'd
need time to talk. You hungry?”

“
You
know I'm always hungry for anything you make, mom,” I said, as
I looked at her with the biggest smile I could put on my face. “Can
I still call you that?”

“
Of
course, honey,” she said. “You'll always belong here. You
kids must think I'm blind. I've known forever that you and Tina had a
thing for each other.”

“
What?”
I asked, as I sat down at the kitchen table.

“
Oh
my,” she said, as she moved to the stove to stir something she
was cooking. “That girl's had it bad for you since she was so
young. Even when she walked in with that very handsome guy at the
wedding, she couldn't keep her eyes off of you. You're no better than
she is. You've watched over her since you started high school. I have
to give you two credit, I never thought anything ever happened
between you. I have to say, I was a little surprised at the
reception. I think I was more surprised with her potty mouth than I
was that you two had been together once. I wasn't real happy it was
when you were so young though. It makes sense. That was around the
time you two grew apart and she took off running from here. I always
thought she was ashamed of us. I had no idea it was because of you.”