He ignores me and pushes on. I watch as he runs down the street, looking in every nook and cranny. Every now and then, his eyes dart back to me. I know what he’s doing. He’s making sure I’m still safe. He doesn’t need to go looking for the boogeyman, though. I know now that it was all in my head. It was simply a danger conjured by my imagination—brought on by my fear of being alone. “Jake!” I shout again, knowing full well he’s still going to ignore me.
I sigh but let him get it out of his system. In a sense, it’s kind of sweet that he fears for my safety like this. As I calm down from my run—and my little scare—I let myself get lost in staring at Jake as he runs around the street. I watch his muscles flex as he takes long, domineering strides from one garden wall to another. My God, he’s perfection. He’s wearing a pair of jeans which rest just right on his ever so squeeze-worthy hips. He’s also wearing my favorite blue polo shirt. It’s my favorite because it shows off just how taut and strong his arm muscles are.
Closing my eyes on a sigh, I watch him as he leans to look over the fence. His polo shirt rises up just enough to reveal his lick-worthy stomach. Without meaning to, I actually do lick my lips, wondering what it would be like to taste him. Just one small taste is all I need.
Heat rises everywhere, including my face as my heart beats faster for an altogether different reason. Shit, I came out for a run to stop all of these thoughts, and now I’m more worked up than ever. Cold shower. That’s definitely what I need once I get myself home.
Just as I think this, Jake runs back towards me. I immediately feel silly. “I didn’t mean for this to happen. At the time, I could have sworn I saw—”
“Are you okay?” he asks, grabbing my arms and robbing me of speech. He looks genuinely concerned for my wellbeing.
“I– I– I’m fine. Thank you. I feel really stupid now.” My God, his touch is electrifying. Just that one small grip on my arms has my loins waking up like never before.
Jake eyes scan all over my face like he needs to make sure he doesn’t miss a thing. Although I realize it’s just an anxious gesture, I can’t help but wonder how his eyes would look if they were exploring other parts of my body.
“What did you see?” he asks again.
Haven’t we already covered this?
I take in a deep breath to try and control my breathing. “As I said, I was out running when I suddenly realized I was on my own. I think my imagination was playing tricks on me because I could swear I saw Al– I mean, a shadow. When I looked over at it again, I saw it was just a big, long plant.” I point at it again. “That one over there.” I take another deep breath, cursing myself for almost mentioning Alan’s name. If I did that, a whole heap of questions would come up that I have absolutely no desire to get into now … or ever.
“And that was it?” I can’t understand why he’s so worried about something so trivial. The danger was only in my imagination after all.
“Jake, it’s fine. I’m fine,” I answer as soothingly as possible. “I was spooked by a jack-in-the-box. It was nothing. Really.” In my quest to calm the situation down further, I again step over the boundary by grabbing his hand. It’s a mistake as—yet again—my loins awaken just as quickly as last time. Jeez, if he can do this to me with just one touch of his hand, then what would it be like if he touched me in other places?
For a moment, we remain silent as we stare at each other—our hands linked together as one. His green eyes dance across my face like he’s making love to it. The thought makes me dizzy as his gaze connects with mine.
But, as usual, the moment I was hoping would last forever is ripped away when Jake clears his throat and pulls his hand away. “Only if you’re sure,” he murmurs, looking everywhere but at me yet again. “Maybe it’s best if you stop running for a while. You know … just to make sure.”
I frown. “Make sure of what? I was frightening myself more than anything else. I feel stupid now—” I am about to continue, but Jake interrupts me.
“Still, I think it would be safer for you to stay inside as much as possible. Maybe it would be better if you used my gym for a while.”
I laugh a little at his absurdity. “I appreciate your concern, but it is broad daylight right now. I think as long as I keep to the busier streets, I’ll be okay. I like running, and I’m not about to stop just because a plant scared me.”
Jake visibly grits his teeth like he is desperate to say something but is trying to rein himself in. It looks like he is starting to say something anyway, but he succeeds in holding himself back. He then inhales a very deep, sharp breath in an obvious attempt at regaining his composure. He closes his eyes, exhaling slowly before looking at me. “Dinner is almost ready. That’s why I came out looking for you. Do you want to grab a quick shower before we eat?”
For a moment, I remain silently stunned by his sudden change in demeanor. “Um, yes, that would be great if I can. I am quite sweaty.”
For a brief instant, I see Jake’s gaze roam over my body before he quickly averts his eyes again. “Okay,” he says, sweeping his arms in the direction of the house. “After you.”
He smiles a little, and my knees turn to jelly. Lord knows how I manage to move my feet towards Jake’s house, but somehow, I do.
Yes, a cold shower is definitely a must.
5
It’s been a few days since my ill-fated run. Jake has been doing his best to avoid me—again. But that’s not an unusual occurrence. He’s thrown himself into his work, and I’ve taken the time to exercise in the gym to release some sexual tension. On the days Jake stayed home, I went out with Jessie, so there hasn’t been any further contact between us.
It’s Saturday, and I’ve decided to go for my morning run since I’m up early. I’d gotten up at eight, though I don’t know why. My body must have felt it had had enough sleep. Normally, I like to lie in on my days off, but today I woke up bright and early, full of energy.
Jake’s already up and out for the day, and Matthew’s getting ready to spend the night round his friend Clive’s house. I know I will have the house to myself when I get back, and I feel glad about that in a sense. Sometimes, knowing that Jake is there with me is too much to bear.
Everything is normal as I say goodbye to Matthew and wish him a great time with his friend. He seems really happy. Matthew is always happy, but he seems different with it today. It’s almost like he has a glint in his eyes that wasn’t there before. It makes me wonder if a girl has something to do with it.
The run is pretty nondramatic and straight forward, but for some reason, I keep feeling like I’m being watched. I don’t know what it is, but the hairs on the back of my neck are definitely standing at attention. I shake off the feeling and keep on running.
Once in, I switch my shower on. First, there is an icy jet of water, but then it stops as if I had shut it off. I proceed to turn it off and switch it back on again, but nothing happens. It’s obviously in the mood to be acting up something chronic yet again. I don’t have time for this. I have to have a shower because the heat is getting to me like nothing else. The sweat is just pouring off of me after that run.