The Sweetest Fling Ch. 06

Meg ducked to avoid a low hanging branch, glancing Jack's way as they wandered through the butterfly park north of Tabanan.

She took in his low-slung shorts, his tanned shoulders and biceps, thankful he'd worn a tank top today. It made checking him out on the sly a whole lot easier. With his jaw covered in stubble and his dark hair all ruffled, he looked deliciously scruffy, and she wanted to do inappropriate things to him every time she set eyes on him.

They'd already taken in the main attractions around the park, where Meg had seen an array of butterflies so vivid in color, she'd found it hard to believe they were real.

She'd recognized many of the tropical flowers along the way, stopping to appreciate the Ashoka blooms and Heliconia Bihai. She'd even allowed a rhinoceros beetle to crawl across her palm, squinting as she fought the urge to shake it off her hand, while Jack watched on with a smile.

Now they were strolling around the boundary, where lush greenery filled the garden beds and fewer tourists roamed. A myriad of pathways wound through the acres of land, sometimes shaded beneath the cover of the trees, other times exposed to the harsh afternoon sun. They were in one of those sunny spots now, and Meg had to fan the neckline of her white sundress for some relief from the heat.

Amidst the activity, she'd noticed Jack stealing glances whenever he thought her attention was elsewhere, appearing deep in thought one moment, amused the next. She suspected the reason behind his interest was her change of mind that morning, but asking him before she'd had the chance to enjoy his curiosity would ruin her fun.

Meg smiled, remembering the expression on his face when she'd suggested their no-strings-attached arrangement; part shock, part desire, but the hardness inside her told her he was more than on board with the idea. It gave her a thrill knowing she could surprise him because he'd had her on edge from the moment they met.

Now all she could do was hope the idea wouldn't come back to bite her.

A bright yellow butterfly landed on Jack's hair, distracting her from the turn her thoughts had taken. Meg urged him to stop and lifted her hand, encouraging it to crawl onto her finger. The prettiness of the insect against the dark backdrop of his masculine features made for an appealing view.

She held the creature between them, following its journey as it continued onto the back of her hand. Meg flicked a glance at Jack and smiled, noting he'd found something other than the butterfly to watch.

He took in each of her features as if seeing her for the first time, and when his eyes lifted to hers again, the warmth there made her want things from him that she had no business wanting.

"What's going on with you today?" she asked, feigning innocence even though he'd see straight through her act. "The whole time we've been here, you've been looking at me strangely."

Jack gave the butterfly a gentle nudge, causing it to take flight and make its way to the branch of a frangipani tree. He tracked its movements for a moment before shifting his attention back to her. "Just trying to figure you out, that's all."

She looked up at him, fighting to keep her expression neutral when all she wanted to do was laugh. "Which part's confusing you?"

He smiled. "As if you don't know. The part we talked about this morning."

Her sense of fun only increased. She wanted to tease him mercilessly right here when he couldn't do anything about it, stir up enough tension between them that he might want to get revenge later.

"You mean when I said I want your unbelievably gorgeous body as often as I can, as hard as you can possibly give it to me?"

The intensity in his eyes let her know if she kept talking like that, he'd give it to her right this very second. His gaze raked over her, and the corner of his mouth quirked. "I don't remember you mentioning the second part, but if you don't change the subject right now, I'm dragging you into the bushes."

Meg bit her lip to keep her laughter inside. She couldn't decide if she wanted to keep pushing him or dial it back a bit. Teasing him was way too entertaining, and she loved the way he looked at her.

For the sake of peace and enjoying the rest of the day together, she went for the less fun option. "Nice weather we're having today."

Just like that, his face broke into a grin and the heat dispersed. Jack linked his arm around her neck and tugged her against him in a hold that bordered on a headlock. His playfulness drew another smile from her, and she slipped her arms around his waist to give him a quick hug before they let each other go.

When they set off walking again, he grabbed her hand and slipped his fingers between hers, the gesture seeming so natural it filled her with warmth. Meg glanced off to the side and feigned nonchalance, but she couldn't remember the last time a man had taken the initiative and held her hand. It felt nice. Protective, comforting. Something she could get used to far too quickly.

Oblivious to her reaction, Jack plucked a flower from a jasmine shrub, looking her way as he twirled the stem between his forefinger and thumb. "How old are you?" he asked.

The question came completely out of nowhere, and she laughed in surprise. "Umm... twenty-eight?"

"You mean you're not sure?"

Meg nudged his shoulder. "No. I'm just wondering if my age bothers you."

He frowned and lobbed the flower into a garden bed. "Why the hell would it bother me?

"Because you asked!"

He swung their joined hands between them, giving hers a squeeze. "Maybe I'm trying to get to know you."

"Oh." Meg dipped her head to hide her smile, strangely touched. She met his eyes again and asked, "How old are you?"

He took a few seconds to think it over. "Thirty?"

She laughed and gave his shoulder another bump, wondering why his teasing made her want him so much. No one had made her feel this way before, but then she hadn't spent time around a man so genuinely laid-back and funny either.

"Since we're getting to know each other, we've covered that I'm an only child. When we first met, you said that you have a brother. Any other siblings?"

Jack spared her a glance as they continued along the concrete path. "No, just Josh."

"Is he older or younger?"

"A couple of years older."

They came to an area where the path opened onto a wide expanse of lawn. A picnic table was situated right in the middle with a group of trees bordering the space, casting shadows over the grass that looked cool and inviting. Meg pictured herself lying there with Jack and lazing the afternoon away, and she noticed a dark-haired couple had already spread a blanket out there to do exactly that.

"And he's been married for ten years, right?" she asked, picking up the conversation again. "Any nieces or nephews running around, Uncle Jack?"

"No." He didn't elaborate further, letting her know she may have stumbled onto a touchy subject.

They walked on in silence for a while, and when Meg looked up at him again, he was staring straight ahead with his face blank of emotion. He might have been with her physically, but his thoughts had taken him somewhere far from here.

It reminded her of the night they'd met when she asked him about the vow renewal ceremony. He could have used the opening as an opportunity to describe his family, share a funny story or two, but he'd said nothing about his brother--or sister-in-law for that matter.

"Are you and his wife close?" she asked, hoping her digging wouldn't come across as too obvious.

He hummed his agreement but didn't look her way. Tension and humidity thickened the air, and her chest tightened. When her hand turned clammy in his, she wanted to pull it away.

Meg knew she should stop poking around in his business, but she couldn't seem to shut up. "Jack, is everything okay?"

She didn't need any experience with holiday flings to understand the rules. Stay out of his personal business and don't delve too deep. Keep it as a surface-level attraction only and remain unattached, so her heart would still be in one piece at the end of the week.

She was breaking the rules already--after two days.

For the first time since she'd known him, the smile he gave her looked forced. "Everything's fine, Meg."

It clearly wasn't. "You can talk to me if you want to, I'm happy to listen." She sounded like a counsellor, a profession in which she had zero experience. Meg closed her eyes and mentally kicked herself for her approach. "Sorry. I'm just trying to get to know you better, too."

Jack let go of her hand and stopped walking. He cradled her face, then caressed her cheek with his thumb. "I know, but that subject's off-limits."

His touch was surprisingly affectionate for a man who'd just shut her down. Meg fought off the sting of rejection, refusing to show weakness when she'd walked into personal territory knowing it wouldn't end well.

"Okay." Her cheeks were hot, but she sighed dramatically and tried to inject some humor into what had become an increasingly awkward situation. "Be a man then and keep it to yourself."

"I'll do that." His gaze softened and the usual warmth returned to his smile. He took off walking again and sent her a glance over his shoulder, raising his brows as if questioning whether she planned on joining him.

Meg bit her thumbnail and watched him leave. She wanted to run after him, grab his arm and beg him to open up to her.

He'd created a mystery that she desperately wanted to solve, a desire to learn more about a man who seemed intent on keeping the best parts hidden. But pushing harder on a topic he'd made it clear he wouldn't discuss would only lead to tension and cold shoulders, and she wouldn't ruin their time together.

She blew the hair from her eyes and stared up at the sky, trying not to take his rebuff personally. He'd tell her what he wanted her to know in his own sweet time... or maybe not at all.

Either way, she'd just have to rein in her curiosity and remind herself it was none of her business.

~ * ~

Jack lounged in the cane armchair tucked into the corner of his balcony and sipped from a beer as he contemplated his afternoon with Meg. For a day that had started out so well, it hadn't taken long for it to go downhill.

One minute they were laughing and teasing each other, the next she'd turned into a shovel while he became hard-packed ground. No matter how much she tried to dig, she kept coming up against resistance.

He had to give her credit for dropping the subject as soon as he made it clear it wouldn't go anywhere, though. She even caught up to him and tried lifting the mood after that, chatting all the way back to the hotel as if his abruptness had no impact on her. Only the two bright spots of color on her cheeks had given her away.

Instead of explaining it to her like he probably should have, he took the easy way out and told her he was heading off to his room to spend some time alone.

Since Meg came up with the idea of their casual arrangement, she couldn't exactly question why he hadn't invited her along. Even so, Jack caught a glimpse of the hurt in her eyes before she turned and walked away.

An hour later he still felt like an asshole--and all he'd done by insisting she leave him alone was give himself time to think.

The bottle dangled from his fingertips as his mind shifted to Catherine again. It didn't matter how many times he thought he'd moved on. Something always triggered the memories, and he got to relive what he'd lost twelve years ago all over again.

They were both in their last year of high school when he met her. She'd relocated from Sydney to Melbourne with her family, transfering to his school halfway through the year when friendships had already formed, and she had little time to make the connections he'd spent years building.

He stood talking to friends in the courtyard before the bell rang on the first day of the semester, and Catherine came rushing through the crowd with her backpack bouncing against her spine and an anxious look on her face.

Jack stopped talking in the middle of a sentence, captivated. His heart slowed to a heavy thud, and he had to remind himself to breathe as she raced toward him.

She had a face like one of those porcelain dolls his mother used to collect. She was all long limbs and blonde hair. Perfect, untouchable. He couldn't recall what she'd been wearing--some floaty thing that looked out of place amongst the buttoned-up uniforms everyone else wore--but he remembered it was blue because it matched her eyes.

She ran right past him, too focused on where she needed to be to notice him standing there. Jack turned to watch her go, only snapping out of it when he heard laughter and copped an elbow to the ribs from one of his friends.

For the rest of the day, he gathered whatever information he could about her from the other kids in their year level, but no one knew much. It took until Economics class three days later for him to finally talk to her himself.

She slid into the spot beside him without looking his way, then sat there looking quiet and composed on the surface while she fidgeted with a rubber band under the desk.

Since he'd never been the awkward type around girls, Jack leaned over and spoke to her in a low voice while the teacher's attention was elsewhere. "Where's your uniform?"

Her fingers stilled and she gave him a brief smile, her eyes darting over his face as if she wasn't sure what to think of him. "Still on order. We had to move here earlier than my dad planned, so I got here before my uniform did."

He thought about saying he hoped it never arrived because her own clothes looked better on her than any uniform ever could, but he didn't want to leave her with a lame first impression.

"What's your name?" He had no idea if she'd been introduced in any of her other classes, but the teacher had made no mention of her in this one.

"Catherine McPherson." She glanced down at the table before meeting his eyes again, as if it didn't come naturally to her to be direct. "What's yours?"

The corner of his mouth lifted, and he watched her shoulders relax a little. "Jack Townsend."

"Hi, Jack." She held the eye contact for a fraction longer this time, then returned his smile.

"Hi, new-girl Catherine." He gave her a quick grin and flicked a glance at Mister Hardman, otherwise known as Mister Hardass. The teacher had caught on to their conversation by this stage, so Jack gave up on any further attempts to talk, vowing to learn more about her outside of class.

Over the following weeks, his efforts paid off.

Catherine opened up to him bit by bit, letting him see the more fun, outgoing side of her personality.

She talked to most of the students in their year level, but always seemed more at ease whenever he was by her side. It sounded crazy when he thought about it now--especially given the way everything turned out--but he felt like an anchor to her back then, giving her stability and keeping her grounded.

He began inviting her over to his place, using homework sessions as an excuse at first, when he just wanted to spend as much time with her as possible. With his parents working long hours and Josh away at university, those days were his favorite memories of his final year at high school.

After a while, she started coming over on the weekends as well, and the two of them made the most of his swimming pool on the warm afternoons as spring slipped into summer. They'd raced from one end of the pool to the other, had splash fights that usually ended with one of them getting a dunking, and he'd spent many long minutes hiding his physical reaction to her tiny red bikini in the water.

Jack set his empty bottle on the side table and leaned forward. The breeze swirled around his bare feet and dead leaves skittered across the tiles. He rested his elbows on his knees and remembered the exact moment it had all turned to shit.

He was chasing Catherine through the pool, grinning through his nerves at the sounds of her screams and laughter. Jack had planned on letting her keep the lead for a bit before he caught up to her and grabbed her by the ankle to drag her toward him.

He wanted to kiss her for the first time while she was all breathless and wet, her lithe body pressed against him, her eyes wide with shock. It had the potential to be the best or worst thing he ever did.

She took him by surprise, though, and surged ahead on those last few strokes.

While he hung back at cruising speed already planning his next attempt, Catherine gripped the edge of the pool and dragged herself partway out of the water, giving him the rear view that he'd often thrown a race just to watch.

Jack stopped swimming to do just that, cursing the interruption when someone opened the sliding door.

His brother chose that moment to step out onto the deck in all his pretty-boy, bronzed, blonde glory. Home from uni for two weeks, Josh wore board shorts with a towel draped around his neck, and a fucking movie-star grin on his face. He'd been out catching up with friends when Catherine showed up that morning and hadn't been introduced to her yet.

Although she knew she'd be meeting him at some point, his sudden arrival must have shocked her because she froze right there, half in and half out of the water.

Josh stared at her, Catherine stared at him, and several awkward seconds ticked by before she pulled herself together and finished climbing from the pool.

No straight guy could look at her and not be affected by the vision. Long, blonde hair streamed over her shoulders like wet ribbons. She stood in a puddle of water with her red bikini bottoms digging into the cheeks of her ass, two triangles plastered against her breasts with her nipples hardened into points.

Jack felt like a slack-jawed idiot around her most of the time, so he couldn't fault his brother for reacting the same way--but Josh stared at her long enough that it began to piss him off.

"How's it going?" he asked, mostly to snap his brother out of it.

Josh kept his eyes on Catherine while he answered. "Good. Really good."

She made a giggling sound Jack had never heard before and went back to the nervous fidgeting he hadn't seen in months.

Even from his vantage point, Jack could feel the chemistry between them. Her fleeting eye contact and Josh's body language left him feeling like a third wheel who'd stumbled onto a private moment he had no business watching.

His stomach dropped and everything inside him tensed, but he made himself swim to the edge of the pool and climb out onto the deck.

Josh didn't wait for him to make the introductions. He moved in and extended his hand to Catherine, holding her gaze while his fingers slid across hers. Jack didn't know if the sudden gust of wind had been the cause or if Josh's touch inspired the reaction, but a visible shiver ran over her.

He forced back the urge to knock his brother's teeth down his throat, watching as they smiled and leaned into each other.

Jack heard their voices, but the words were lost amid the pounding in his ears. They'd shut him out as if only the two of them existed, and it hit him then that he'd just lost a game he hadn't even known he'd been playing.

He remembered the changes in Catherine after that; they happened overnight and left him reeling.

No more playful touches or wrestling in the pool. The hugs she used to give him died a quick, silent death. Instead of spending all her spare time with him, she even talked her parents into letting her visit Josh by bus five hours' drive away.

The loss of what could have been devastated him.

Given the way he blocked Meg's attempts to find out more about him this afternoon, Jack had to wonder if he'd ever get over it.

He pushed off the chair and wandered over to the edge of the balcony, leaning on the railing to watch the activity below.