Page 3 of Jaked

Pathetic, I know.

Plus, watching him move, I was more than a little distracted. I gave his naked back a good, long look. It was just like Maddie had described, a tattooed mass of hard muscle that tapered to a narrow waist, slim hips, and long legs, clad in expensive-looking black tailored slacks.

The tattoos were new. The body wasn't.

As if my eyes had a mind of their own, my gaze drifted to his ass. No wonder Maddie hadn't wanted to let it go. My hands, resting beside me, gave my bed-coverings an involuntary squeeze. The motion felt oddly unsatisfying. I cleared my throat and flattened my palms against the bed. Mentally, I gave myself a good slap to the face.

He was Maddie's guy, not mine, even if Ihadknown him first. With an effort, I yanked my gaze upward and reminded myself to keep it there.

Good thing too. I'd barely looked up when Jake turned around to face me. His gaze flicked to the shabby wooden dresser that stood beside the bed. "The dresser," he said. "What's in it?"

"Clothes, mostly." Of the unmentionable variety.

"How many?"

"Not a lot." It was true. There were five drawers. Four were empty.

He gave me a good, long look. "Uh-huh."

"Like you should talk," I said, giving his bare chest a pointed look. I felt myself swallow. "You're not even wearing shirt."

"Not my fault," he said.

"Why's that?"

"I had one," he said. "It ripped."

I was still looking at his chest. That long-lost shirt, wherever it was, wasn't the only thing ripped around here. Damn it. With an effort, I pulled my gaze upward yet again. "Ripped?" I said. "How?"

"Bedroom casualty."

I gave him a smirk. "That's nice."

"Nah," he said. "But I've got a spare in the car, so, eh, whatever."

"Seriously?"

Again, he turned toward my closet. "You think I'm gonna drive around with no shirt?" He pulled a suitcase from the top shelf. His muscles tightened, making the ink on his back shift with the smooth motion. Sure, hecoulddrive around with no shirt, but with a body like that, he'd be a menace to any girl who wanted to keep her eyes on the road.

He tossed the suitcase onto the floor and said, "Here. Pack your stuff."

As interesting as this was, I had someplace else to be. That was probably a good thing, all things considered.

"Sorry," I said, glancing at my watch. "But I've got to work at eight." It was kind of a bummer, actually. Today was Saturday. Somehow, I'd always envisioned that when I graduated from college, I wouldn't be working weekends anymore. But a lot of things hadn't turned out exactly the way I'd planned.

"So," I continued, "I'll just pass on the whole packing thing if that's alright with you

"No," he said. "It's not alright."

This was getting ridiculous. "Excuse me?"

"And about that job?" he said. "You quit yesterday."

I gave a little laugh. "Sure I did."  If only Icouldquit. It wasn't exactly my dream job, but a girl had to start somewhere, right?

"Yeah," he said. "By email."

I stared at his face. Was he kidding? He didn't look like he was kidding. "Quit messing around," I said.