I turn my head and glare at him. The anger stirs inside of me. "f.u.c.k you, Blake. Stop telling me who I am or how I feel. Why is it so hard to accept the fact that I don't want to just f.u.c.k some chick. I want Kallie," I growl.

He laughs and throws his head back, looking up at the sky. "Honestly, Jax, I don't even feel like I know you anymore. You've become a p.u.s.s.y, just like your brother," he says.

I stand up so fast I kick the chair out from under me. I reach over, grab a hold of his shirt, and get right in his face.

"What the f.u.c.k did you just say?" I hiss.

He grabs my hands and tries to pull them off, but my fury is in complete control now. I'm breathing heavily in his face, my nose practically touching his.

"Relax, brother," he chokes out.

I pull back just enough so he can see my face clearly. "f.u.c.k you," I shout.

I push him, nearly knocking him backward, and kick my chair across the patio on my way to the door. I go into my room and I punch the wall over and over until my knuckles are bleeding and sheetrock is scattered on the floor.

That was last week, and I'm still p.i.s.sed at him. We talked it out the next morning, and he apologized repeatedly. The thing that gets me, the thing that made me want to rip his heart out, is that he's right. I am turning into my brother, and that's something I promised I'd never do. Having a woman string me along, not getting involved with anyone else...that's him. I don't want to be him, not in my love life. The only way to stop it is to do something about it, so I called Kallie this morning and told her I needed to talk.

I'm sitting outside trying to figure out what I'm going to say when my phone rings. I don't know the number, but it could be a photographer, so I pick up.

"Hey, is this Jax Burke?" Yep, a photographer.

"Yes," I say and light a cigarette leaning back in my chair.

"Hi, this is Braden Gregory, Kallie's brother," he says.

I sit up quickly with fear in my gut. "What's wrong? Did something happen to Kallie?" I rush out.

"No, no, nothing is wrong. Kallie is fine. I just got off the phone with her," he rea.s.sures me.

I blow out a sigh of relief. "Thank G.o.d. So, what's up, man?" I ask, curious as h.e.l.l as to why he's calling me.

"You really do like her, don't you?" he questions.

Holy s.h.i.t, is this like the big brother talk or something? I'm not ready for that...not yet.

"Yeah, I really do," I say.

I hear a little voice and I smile, knowing it's Kallie's niece. She adores her brother and his family, and hearing that little voice, I start to understand.

"I'm glad to hear that. So listen, Kallie's birthday is next week, and I want to throw her a party. My family and I are going to be leaving for a while, and I want to do something for her that will make her smile," he says.

He's leaving? Why the h.e.l.l didn't Kallie say anything? Maybe that's why she's been so distant.

"She'd love that. So what's the plan?" I ask.

We talk for the better part of an hour about the party. He wanted to do it at her place, but I told him I would do it here. It will be more fun for everyone. We make a list of people, and we are each going to contact half. The night of the party, I'm going to work it so we do a shoot at her place. I'm going to have Shannon, her old boss, call her saying she needs a photo of me and Brinley for a book cover. Together, we'll be able to keep her busy until everything is ready here.

After Braden and I hang up, I smile. He seems like the great guy Kallie told me he was, and the way he talks about his sister is sweet. I'm actually excited for this whole thing.

"Hey, you," Kallie says behind me.

I stand up, turn around, and see Kallie for the first time since the shoot. f.u.c.k, she looks stunning in her short shorts and white strapless top. Her hair is up in a ponytail, and d.a.m.n it, her bare skin is calling me. f.u.c.k, I need to focus.

"Hey. You look beautiful," I say.

She shakes her head but smiles at the compliment. She sits in the chair by me, so I sit back down.

"So what's up?" she asks.

I smile at her and reach for her hand. "I just want to make sure everything is good with us. The way things went the last time we saw each other, well, it wasn't a stellar moment. We good?" I ask.

She squeezes my hand and gets that amazing smile on her face. "We're good," she says.

f.u.c.k, what a relief. We sit and talk for a few minutes about the weather, of all things. I know she doesn't want to talk about what is happening with us, but s.h.i.t, the weather?

"Besides the weather, what's been going on?" I ask.

She looks away from me and stares off into the distance. "Braden and his family are going to North Carolina for a while," she whispers.

There it is. I reach for her hand and just like before, she lets me take it.

"I'm sorry. Why are they going?" I question.

He told me they were, but I didn't ask why. Not my place.

"He said Sarah needs help with the kids; it's been overwhelming since Tiffany was born. I'm really going to miss them. I hate that they need to leave," she says with so much sadness.

I blow out a breath and lean back in the chair, still holding her hand.

"Listen, sometimes things just need to happen. We might not understand them or even like them, but they are meant to happen. Maybe they'll only be gone for a short while," I say.

She looks at me with a forced smile. "Maybe. Can I be honest?" she asks.

s.h.i.t, that's all I ever want from her.

"Of course."

She looks away again, pulls her hand from mine, and crosses her arms. "I'm p.i.s.sed at Sarah. I feel like she's taking my brother from me. I f.u.c.king hate saying it because that is so selfish, but d.a.m.n it, I can't help it," she says.

s.h.i.t, what the h.e.l.l do I say here? I know if I don't agree with her, she'll be p.i.s.sed at me, but I don't know the circ.u.mstances.

"You're ent.i.tled to feel that way. It's a big change," I say, playing it safe.

She slowly turns her head to me and smiles before she starts laughing. What the h.e.l.l?

"I'm sorry, but who the f.u.c.k knew you were this sensitive guy ready to dish out advice?" she asks still laughing.

I lift one eyebrow before giving her a grin and wink. "Kallie, you have no idea what I can dish out," I joke, well kind of.

This causes her laughter to get louder, and I eventually join in.

"Oh, I'm sure you can dish it out, Jax. I have no doubt. I'm sure you've dished it out a lot," she says, around her laughter.

I get up, still smiling, and stand in front of her. "Keep laughing," I threaten.

She continues, and I lift her up, tossing her over my shoulder.

"What the h.e.l.l are you doing? Put me down," she shrieks, hitting my back, but still laughing.

"I think you need to cool off," I say as I walk over to the pool, and she grabs onto the bottom of my shirt.

"Oh my G.o.d, don't you dare," she yells.

I swat her a.s.s, causing her to yelp and straighten up. I quickly pull her down so she has her arms around my neck.

"One, two..." I jump and she screams.

We hit the water, and I let go so we can swim to the surface. Once I'm up, I wipe the water off my face and push my hair back. She comes up just about two feet from me. I start laughing when she flips me off, and she swims a bit closer.

"You are an a.s.shole," she says and leaps at me, pushing on my shoulders, and son of a b.i.t.c.h, she's strong. I go under and laugh again when I hit the surface. She's laughing, so I splash her. We both start splashing each other, and for the first time in a long time, I feel carefree. "Wait, wait," she yells.

I stop and look at her. She's fixing her shirt that has fallen down, showing off her strapless white bra. Luckily for me, that does nothing to conceal her hardened nipples. I smile and swim closer.

"Need help?" I ask, wiggling my eyebrows.

She rolls her eyes but takes my hand and adjusts her shirt with the other. We are both kicking to stay afloat, so once she fixes her shirt, I pull her to me. She wraps her arms around my neck, and if my d.i.c.k could smile, it would be.

"What if I couldn't swim?" she asks giggling, and I wipe the water running down her face with my thumb.

"Then I would have saved you," I quietly say.

Once again, we stare into each other's eyes, but this time, I notice she licks her lips. Holy s.h.i.t, I need to taste her. I pull her even closer so she has to wrap her legs around me and I hold onto her a.s.s. Having Kallie wrapped around me like this is so hot, but having her wet and flushed with desire is f.u.c.king explosive. I trace her bottom lip with my thumb, and she sucks in a breath. f.u.c.k this. I start to lean forward...

"What the f.u.c.k are you two doing?" Blake says.

Kallie drops her legs and looks at me with wide eyes. f.u.c.king Blake. I'm going to kill this a.s.shole for ruining this moment. I was this f.u.c.king close to finally tasting her. I turn my head, and he sits down in the chair and lights a cigarette.

"We're swimming, a.s.shole. What the f.u.c.k are you doing?" I ask, staring him down.

He lifts his shoulders and takes a drag. "Smoking." Yep, I'm going to kick his a.s.s. "Hey, you want to go to the bar tonight?" he asks, acting like it's just the two of us.

At this point, Kallie is almost to the stairs, so I swim to the side and hop out. I go over to the tote where we have towels and get one for each of us. I hand her one when she gets out because I'm sure she doesn't want Blake checking out her t.i.ts.

"Thank you," she says and wraps herself in it. She smiles at me before dropping her head. "I should probably go. I need to change, and I have dinner plans with Braden tonight."

I lift up her chin, making her look at me. "You don't need to leave. Blake is just being his a.s.shole self," I explain.

She searches my eyes and smiles again. "No, that's not it. I just need to get ready." Once again, right when things start to feel intimate, she pushes away. "Thank you," she whispers and pushes up on her toes kissing my cheek. f.u.c.k, I want to pull her into my room and take these wet clothes off her.

"For what?" I question, before I'll keep doing it.

She tucks the towel around herself and crosses her arms. "For making me smile and laugh. For getting my mind off s.h.i.t, even if only for a few minutes."

I pull her into a hug, and she doesn't resist. She actually melts into my arms. "You can stay, Kallie," I whisper in her ear. d.a.m.n it, please stay.

She sighs and pulls away. "Not today. I'll text you later." She grabs her purse, says hi to Blake, and walks to the door. "Oh, by the way, I'm taking this towel," she says and winks at me before walking into the house.

f.u.c.king h.e.l.l. Not only would she have let me kiss her, but she's flirting. I smile and sit down next to Blake.

"Blake, f.u.c.k you. You are an a.s.shole and you know it," I say through clenched teeth.

He sips his water and smiles at me. "I know, but I'm just watching out for you," he says shrugging his shoulders.

"I don't know how to make you understand this, but Kallie is what I want. Either support it or stay the f.u.c.k out of it. I'm not asking you, I'm telling you," I demand. He pulls his shirt over his head, rolls it up, and puts it behind his head.

He pulls his shirt over his head, rolls it up, and puts it behind his head. "Got it," he says.

I look at him and he has his eyes closed, letting the sun beat down on him.

"Good. By the way, I'm having a surprise party here for Kallie next weekend," I inform him.

He cracks open his eyes, turning to me. "Am I invited?" he asks.

f.u.c.king idiot. This is why I can't stay mad at this a.s.shole. I laugh and slap his shoulder as I stand up.

"You're invited."

I start walking to the house to get some s.h.i.t done, and he's talking a mile a minute, asking me how many hot chicks are going to be there. Unf.u.c.kingreal.

The last week has been fairly normal. I worked, either hung out with Kallie or Blake, slept, and did it all over again. I did also invite the people I was supposed to and got in touch with Shannon and Brinley about the cover shoot. Kallie called me, all excited, and I just smiled through the whole conversation. Braden and Sarah took care of all the decorations, because let's be honest here, I don't do decorations. I ordered all the food from this awesome catering service, so my work is done. Actually, my work is just beginning, because I'm getting ready to head over to Kallie's for the shoot. She has an a.s.sistant with her today that Shannon sent over to make it appear more real. She's just starting out, and Shannon thought this would be great practice for her since it's not actually a real shoot. Kallie told me last night she was a little nervous to be working with someone because she's so used to doing things her way, but I told her to just roll with it. That, of course, wasn't the advice she was hoping for.

I head out to the living room and see Blake lying on the couch in his boxers. "Dude, put some f.u.c.king clothes on. Kallie's family is going to be here in a little bit; they don't need to see your d.i.c.k," I say.

He laughs and grabs himself. I just shake my head and go into the kitchen. I grab a bottle of water, look out back to make sure everything is good, and start running the list through my head. The caterers will bring the food and set everything up in about three hours, Braden and his family will be here in an hour to start setting up, and people are supposed to be here in about two and a half hours. It's plenty of time for the shoot and keeping her away. She thinks we're coming back here for one of Blake's parties, so she won't question all the cars.

"Jax?" I turn to Blake and he's leaning on the doorway. "I'm sorry I've been such an a.s.shole. I just don't want to see you get hurt the way Brody did, all right? I mean, I see you doing all this s.h.i.t for her, for a girl you've never even seen naked. I guess I can see you really do have feelings for her. So, I'm sorry, and I won't talk s.h.i.t anymore, I won't interrupt you when you're swimming, and I'll support you. I just don't want to lose you as my friend. We've been through too much s.h.i.t together," he says.

I grin and we give each other a quick hug. "Thanks, brother. I know you don't understand it. s.h.i.t, I don't either, but your support is all I'm asking for. Now please, for the love of G.o.d, go put some clothes on, and throw those holey, nasty boxers away," I say, laughing.

He flips me off and smiles. "I'm not throwing these away, they're comfortable," he says running his hands on them.

"They have rips in them, and your d.i.c.k is going to fall out," I say.

He laughs and walks down the hall. "Makes later that much easier," he calls over his shoulder.