mean?”
He opened the passenger side door for her. “With you around in your little bikinis? I went home ten degrees hotter than when I’d shown up. Surprised I didn’t die of fever, that last summer.”
“Really, or are you just teasing me?” She took her seat, unable to keep from staring as he did the same.
“Cross my heart.” He turned the key in the ignition. “Construction work was rough in the summer, but my apartment had central air. All it lacked was the beach view.”
“Why didn’t you say anything? If all you wanted was to spend time together, we could’ve done something indoors.”
Her heart raced as she waited for his answer, much like it had years ago when she’d watched him on the beach.
“You were way too good for me, and I knew it.”
She huffed, searching his face for some sign of a joke.
He was looking straight ahead at the street as he drove.
“Seriously.”
“I’m dead serious. The struggling kid from the wrong side of the tracks trying to woo the smart, beautiful college girl even though he has nothing to offer her but his dick? Sounds like a bad movie made for teen girls.”
She almost laughed, but the sound died in her throat before reaching the tip of her tongue. Was that really how he’d felt?
“What do you mean struggling? And for the record, I’m the lower-middle-class daughter of a nurse and a factory supervisor. It’s not like I was some princess.”
“You were to me.”
Her head spun with disbelief, amusement and a surprisingly potent sadness. “Is that really how you felt?”
“Yeah. And by struggling, I mean I shared an apartment with three other guys and was still living paycheck to paycheck. Had no idea what to do with my life. I was twenty-something, and I was nothing. Far as I knew then, that’d always be true.”
Belle frowned. Strong, gorgeous and hardworking, Jackson had turned heads and teased hearts everywhere. When he’d walked onto the beach, women had often sighed – or sometimes catcalled – in his wake. And he’d seen himself as nothing?
It boggled the mind.
He’d stood out among other guys his age, a man in a sea of boys. He’d been the polar opposite of the carefree, entitled guys she’d rubbed shoulders with at college, and his maturity had fascinated her.
“You know, the sexy construction worker stereotype is a fan favorite among women. It may not beat hot cop, but it’s up there.”
That wrung a laugh out of him.
“Nothing sexy about a twenty-something who has a GED and took the first job he could get, playing in the dirt for a living.”
But that wasn’t true – his work ethic was and always had been something she’d admired.
“Look at you now, though. You have a totally different career. You even graduated from college.”
He nodded. “Things have changed a lot.”
“Obviously, you underestimated yourself. And here we are.”
“Yeah. Nothing to stop me from going after you now that I’m solidly lower middle class.” He grinned.
“Well, as Assistant Director of Admissions at a trade school, I probably make about as much as a city cop. So I’d say we’re a pretty even match, financially.”
He nodded. “If this works out, we could be living the high life together. Think about it: with our combined wealth, we could ditch our apartments and upgrade to a condo. Maybe even a little house – a bungalow, or something.”
She laughed. “Already talking about moving in together? I must’ve made quite the impression on you six years ago.”
“Oh, you did, Princess.” He flashed her a grin. “Don’t let your guard down, or I’ll sweep you off your feet and over a condo threshold before you can blink. By the time you realize what I smell like when I get home after twelve hours of sweating in Kevlar, it’ll be too late.”
A smile lingered on her lips for the rest of the ride. She liked his teasing. Most of the other men she’d known would’ve sooner eaten dirt than spoken a word about moving in
He opened the passenger side door for her. “With you around in your little bikinis? I went home ten degrees hotter than when I’d shown up. Surprised I didn’t die of fever, that last summer.”
“Really, or are you just teasing me?” She took her seat, unable to keep from staring as he did the same.
“Cross my heart.” He turned the key in the ignition. “Construction work was rough in the summer, but my apartment had central air. All it lacked was the beach view.”
“Why didn’t you say anything? If all you wanted was to spend time together, we could’ve done something indoors.”
Her heart raced as she waited for his answer, much like it had years ago when she’d watched him on the beach.
“You were way too good for me, and I knew it.”
She huffed, searching his face for some sign of a joke.
He was looking straight ahead at the street as he drove.
“Seriously.”
“I’m dead serious. The struggling kid from the wrong side of the tracks trying to woo the smart, beautiful college girl even though he has nothing to offer her but his dick? Sounds like a bad movie made for teen girls.”
She almost laughed, but the sound died in her throat before reaching the tip of her tongue. Was that really how he’d felt?
“What do you mean struggling? And for the record, I’m the lower-middle-class daughter of a nurse and a factory supervisor. It’s not like I was some princess.”
“You were to me.”
Her head spun with disbelief, amusement and a surprisingly potent sadness. “Is that really how you felt?”
“Yeah. And by struggling, I mean I shared an apartment with three other guys and was still living paycheck to paycheck. Had no idea what to do with my life. I was twenty-something, and I was nothing. Far as I knew then, that’d always be true.”
Belle frowned. Strong, gorgeous and hardworking, Jackson had turned heads and teased hearts everywhere. When he’d walked onto the beach, women had often sighed – or sometimes catcalled – in his wake. And he’d seen himself as nothing?
It boggled the mind.
He’d stood out among other guys his age, a man in a sea of boys. He’d been the polar opposite of the carefree, entitled guys she’d rubbed shoulders with at college, and his maturity had fascinated her.
“You know, the sexy construction worker stereotype is a fan favorite among women. It may not beat hot cop, but it’s up there.”
That wrung a laugh out of him.
“Nothing sexy about a twenty-something who has a GED and took the first job he could get, playing in the dirt for a living.”
But that wasn’t true – his work ethic was and always had been something she’d admired.
“Look at you now, though. You have a totally different career. You even graduated from college.”
He nodded. “Things have changed a lot.”
“Obviously, you underestimated yourself. And here we are.”
“Yeah. Nothing to stop me from going after you now that I’m solidly lower middle class.” He grinned.
“Well, as Assistant Director of Admissions at a trade school, I probably make about as much as a city cop. So I’d say we’re a pretty even match, financially.”
He nodded. “If this works out, we could be living the high life together. Think about it: with our combined wealth, we could ditch our apartments and upgrade to a condo. Maybe even a little house – a bungalow, or something.”
She laughed. “Already talking about moving in together? I must’ve made quite the impression on you six years ago.”
“Oh, you did, Princess.” He flashed her a grin. “Don’t let your guard down, or I’ll sweep you off your feet and over a condo threshold before you can blink. By the time you realize what I smell like when I get home after twelve hours of sweating in Kevlar, it’ll be too late.”
A smile lingered on her lips for the rest of the ride. She liked his teasing. Most of the other men she’d known would’ve sooner eaten dirt than spoken a word about moving in
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