words. A warm evening breeze carried through the open window, but Jasper only felt the chill. “Seeing what I did shouldn't still be stickin' to me this much.”
Sarah slipped around Jasper's side and perched herself on the windowsill in front of him. She'd only fastened the buttons of her pink shirt between her breasts and the plackets spread at the bottom to reveal black panties. She rubbed his abdomen up to his chest, and Jasper's arms vibrated with strain to keep from touching her. He wanted to crush Sarah to him but feared she would recoil from the need coursing through him right now.
She looked up and offered a small smile. “You're a sensitive person, Jas. There's nothing bad about that.”
Sensitive . Code word for pussy. Nobody wanted to fuck a wuss. “Jace didn't react like I did.” Jasper banged his open hands against the wall and pushed back a step so he could breathe. “Jace was solid every second he was out there. Even when he was right up close to the body, and when he touched her too. I thought I was gonna throw up the second I saw her. But he was steady as a rock the whole time.”
“It's Jace's job to know how to react and how to handle a crime scene. That doesn't make him tougher than you.” Reaching out, Sarah grabbed hold of Jasper's hand and pulled him close again. “You help animals give birth out at the ranch; you help castrate the calves, among a host of other very difficult tasks. Jace wouldn't be able to do your job any more capably than you'd be able to do his.”
“It ain't— isn't —the same.”
“No, you're right, it's not.” She twined her fingers in his, but this time her touch did not act as a balm. “I've also seen you get on the back of one of Caleb's bucking bulls and try your hand at a ride. There aren't a lot of guys who would do that, not even some of the cowboys you work with, from what I've heard. But you've been around the animals, you feel comfortable with them, and you're confident enough in your abilities to get on them and help with their training. That is a big deal and brave in the eyes of others, yet it feels very natural to you.”
Jasper snorted. “Gettin' on a bull ain't the same thing as dealin' with dead bodies and helpin' solve crimes, so don't try to, you know, pacify me, or whatever the damn hell the word is.” Jasper's mind spun with all the conversations he'd overheard today, many of which had Jace right in the center of them. “Jace is somethin' special. He's tough. When he interviewed me, he knew how to talk to me to get me to give the answers he wanted, all commandin' and clever in that room, even though I don't think he even likes me. He's smart, and he's confident, and he's in control in big-time situations, things that are life-and-death. That's a lot more important, and somethin' to admire, than being a ranch hand. I saw him today in a way I never did before, and I see why you like him so much and why so many people admire him. He's amazin'.”
Sarah tilted her head. “Do you simply admire Jace?” she asked, her voice a little high. “Or did watching him today spark an attraction to him?”
Shit . “What?” Jasper's heart kicked up to triple time, and he tugged his sweating hand out of Sarah's hold. Stumbling backward, he kept moving until his ass hit her dresser. “No. No. Of course not.”
“Hey, don't walk away from me.” Sarah jumped up and strode to Jasper, her dark hair waving in tandem with the curtains behind her. “Don't hide from this talk. I thought we weren't going to be the kind of couple who never talk about anything important.” She crossed her arms under her breasts and looked right at him. “I saw the way you reacted down at the station when Jace touched your hand. It went through you deeper than just a handshake. Your whole body jerked when he touched you. Shoot, I had my hand on your back and felt it. And the way you just said what you said about him…seemed like it was about someone who has captured your interest
Sarah slipped around Jasper's side and perched herself on the windowsill in front of him. She'd only fastened the buttons of her pink shirt between her breasts and the plackets spread at the bottom to reveal black panties. She rubbed his abdomen up to his chest, and Jasper's arms vibrated with strain to keep from touching her. He wanted to crush Sarah to him but feared she would recoil from the need coursing through him right now.
She looked up and offered a small smile. “You're a sensitive person, Jas. There's nothing bad about that.”
Sensitive . Code word for pussy. Nobody wanted to fuck a wuss. “Jace didn't react like I did.” Jasper banged his open hands against the wall and pushed back a step so he could breathe. “Jace was solid every second he was out there. Even when he was right up close to the body, and when he touched her too. I thought I was gonna throw up the second I saw her. But he was steady as a rock the whole time.”
“It's Jace's job to know how to react and how to handle a crime scene. That doesn't make him tougher than you.” Reaching out, Sarah grabbed hold of Jasper's hand and pulled him close again. “You help animals give birth out at the ranch; you help castrate the calves, among a host of other very difficult tasks. Jace wouldn't be able to do your job any more capably than you'd be able to do his.”
“It ain't— isn't —the same.”
“No, you're right, it's not.” She twined her fingers in his, but this time her touch did not act as a balm. “I've also seen you get on the back of one of Caleb's bucking bulls and try your hand at a ride. There aren't a lot of guys who would do that, not even some of the cowboys you work with, from what I've heard. But you've been around the animals, you feel comfortable with them, and you're confident enough in your abilities to get on them and help with their training. That is a big deal and brave in the eyes of others, yet it feels very natural to you.”
Jasper snorted. “Gettin' on a bull ain't the same thing as dealin' with dead bodies and helpin' solve crimes, so don't try to, you know, pacify me, or whatever the damn hell the word is.” Jasper's mind spun with all the conversations he'd overheard today, many of which had Jace right in the center of them. “Jace is somethin' special. He's tough. When he interviewed me, he knew how to talk to me to get me to give the answers he wanted, all commandin' and clever in that room, even though I don't think he even likes me. He's smart, and he's confident, and he's in control in big-time situations, things that are life-and-death. That's a lot more important, and somethin' to admire, than being a ranch hand. I saw him today in a way I never did before, and I see why you like him so much and why so many people admire him. He's amazin'.”
Sarah tilted her head. “Do you simply admire Jace?” she asked, her voice a little high. “Or did watching him today spark an attraction to him?”
Shit . “What?” Jasper's heart kicked up to triple time, and he tugged his sweating hand out of Sarah's hold. Stumbling backward, he kept moving until his ass hit her dresser. “No. No. Of course not.”
“Hey, don't walk away from me.” Sarah jumped up and strode to Jasper, her dark hair waving in tandem with the curtains behind her. “Don't hide from this talk. I thought we weren't going to be the kind of couple who never talk about anything important.” She crossed her arms under her breasts and looked right at him. “I saw the way you reacted down at the station when Jace touched your hand. It went through you deeper than just a handshake. Your whole body jerked when he touched you. Shoot, I had my hand on your back and felt it. And the way you just said what you said about him…seemed like it was about someone who has captured your interest
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