Chapter 7

JoJo jerked upright in bed at the sudden pounding on her door. "What the hell?" Her head felt fuzzy and full of cotton. She'd stayed up late last night. After torturing herself with obsessive thoughts of what Seth might be doing—or more accurately who he might be doing—she'd decide to distract herself by watching a movie. She chose It Follows. Not a smart decision. Women living alone should not watch horror movies. After watching the movie, she'd spent most of the night jumping at innocuous noises. She'd had to turn off her ice maker. Ice dropping in the middle of the night was seriously noisy!

Eyes barely open, she whipped the covers back and slid to the floor. Her long oversized cotton nightgown twisted around her ankles and she almost fell with her first step. She managed to catch the tall bedpost and keep herself upright.

Her robe was draped over the end of the bed and she snatched it up and headed for the door as someone began knocking again. She shrugged on her robe before looking through the peephole. Her heartbeat sped up even more when she spotted Seth.

She smoothed a hand over her hair though she thought the effort was wasted. She'd parted it down the middle last night and plaited it into two braids. With her old fashioned gown and her hair, she imagined she resembled someone's grandmother.

"I brought you breakfast," Seth said, sliding past her and entering her apartment. He held up a bag from McDonald's.

JoJo blinked as he began unloading food onto her table. She moved closer to see what he'd bought. She wasn't a fan of fast food for breakfast, but she wouldn't complain about not having to cook when she was still so exhausted from a poor night's rest. "Why are you here so early?"

"Couldn't sleep."

"So that means I shouldn't sleep either?"

His gaze travelled over her. "Were you still in bed?"

"Yes."

He grabbed the tip of one of her braids and tugged. "Your hair is really long."

Her hair fell well past her had inherited their long hair from their great grandmother who was dominican, although naomi had way longer and darker hair. "And you got a haircut," she noted. More of a trim really. His hair was still the same length that went past his ears to the whole length of his long neck. Then she squeaked as he wrapped her braid around his broad palm and pulled her close. "W-what are you doing?"

"Damn, JoJo, I know I said I would be your friend, but I can't do it. You make me so fucking horny." She shivered at the desire in his voice and he smiled. "And you want me, too, don't you?" Before she could protest, he had his arm wrapped around her reeling her in until she was pressed against the hard wall of his chest.

JoJo spread her fingers out and pushed back. "We agreed this wouldn't work. We don't want the same things."

"And if I give you what you want?"

She shook her head. "You can't."

His face twisted with some undefinable emotion. "I think I'd like to try."

He brushed his lips over hers and she trembled at the sensation, but she turned her head when he would have kissed her again. She wanted more of his kisses, but she knew it wasn't wise. She was not going to be his experiment. At best, he would quickly grow bored with the idea of commitment. At worst, he could be lying to her to get what he wanted. She hated to think that the latter could be true, but it wasn't out of the realm of possibility.

"Please, JoJo," he whispered, his lips caressing the sensitive skin behind her ear. "We could be so good together."

"Y-you said you'd never do anything I didn't want you to do."

"Oh, you'll want me to do it." He trailed kisses down her neck until he found a spot that made her breath catch. Then he paused there, nibbling, kissing, and sucking. Her hands fisted the cotton of his t-shirt as her knees grew weak and wobbly. She could easily imagine his mouth on more intimate parts of her body, suckling her nipples, coursing over her stomach, sliding between her thighs.

With a moan, JoJo wrenched herself from his arms. That was it! She was going to quit reading erotica today! "Seth, are you saying you want to date me?"

He sucked in a deep breath. His eyelids were heavy and his irises were darkened with desire. "Yes."

"But you don't date."

He ran a hand briskly over his hair. "I don't want anyone but you, JoJo. You're all I think about."

She blinked in surprise. This was too much to take in this early in the morning. She hugged her robe around herself. "I-I'm not conscious enough for this conversation. I need a shower." And to brush her teeth. She couldn't believe she'd let him kiss her before she'd brushed her teeth!

"Go ahead. I'll wait right here."

She nodded and swiftly made her way to her bathroom. She brushed her teeth and then quickly stripped. She stuffed her braids under a shower cap to keep them dry. Under the revitalizing spray of the shower and away from the seductive influence of Seth, JoJo decided that she really only had one choice. The smart decision was to say no. He seemed like a nice guy, but she didn't know him that well. Two dinners wasn't enough to judge him by.

She dried off and dressed hurriedly before she lost her resolve.

Seth was sitting at her kitchen table sipping orange juice and running his thumb over his phone's screen. He stopped when she walked into the room. Straightening up, he cleared his throat.

Joining him at the table, she took a deep breath. She tried holding his gaze, but found she couldn't. She didn't like delivering bad news. And, damn, he was too gorgeous. The overhead light picked up bronze tones in the thick, dark waves of his hair. "Seth, I-"

"At least think about it," Seth interrupted as though he knew exactly what she was going to say. "JoJo, look at me." He leaned across the table and took her hands in his. "I know I'm asking you to take a risk and that's not something you're not comfortable doing. I can promise you that I will be completely honest with you. I want to do this with you."

"Seth, I'm not the type of girl who can deal with being on your arm while you use your x-ray vision to mentally undress another woman."

His fingers tightened over hers. "I wouldn't do that to you. The only reason I watched you that way was because I couldn't not look at you."

"But I thought we both agreed that this was a bad idea. I'm just a boring ordinary girl. I spend most of my nights alone, watching television or playing computer games. I've never been in a club or a bar. I can't dance. I don't know any fancy sex tricks-"

Seth burst out laughing. "Don't worry about that, sweetheart. I'm sure you will satisfy me just fine."

JoJo rolled her eyes. "You know that if I do agree to date you, it doesn't mean we're going to have sex right away?"

He grimaced. "How long will you make me wait?"

She should be concerned about his attitude. Instead, she found herself seriously turned on at the knowledge that he wanted her so badly. "I haven't even decided if I will date you yet."

Growling softly, he laced his fingers with hers slowly until the two of them were as close as they could get with the table separating them. JoJo had always felt that she had average sized hands with rather long fingers. Seth's hands dwarfed hers. "Oh, JoJo," he rasped, "you definitely want to date me. I'd say you want to date the hell out of me."

She swallowed. From his tone she knew he wasn't talking about taking walks in the park or going out dancing. But before she could think of anything to say, he kissed her fingers and pulled back.

"We'd better eat this before it needs to be reheated." He gave her a breakfast sandwich and chose one for himself. He pushed a juice at her as well. "I remembered that you didn't like coffee. And as for the other stuff, clubbing and bars, you haven't missed much. If you want to go to one, I'll take you, but otherwise, I'm clubbed out." He unwrapped his biscuit and bit into it.

JoJo shook up her juice and opened it. "Seth…I'm…shy," she said at last, thinking that he needed to know what he was getting into.

"You say that like you're confessing a crime."

"Well, people think you'll get over it or if they continually push you into social situations that you'll change. Things that you don't think about are hard for me. I have to psych myself up for social interactions." She toyed with the wrapper of her biscuit. She needed to make him understand that she wasn't anything like the bubbly, outgoing girls he usually brought home. "I-I will never be the life of the party and I…I don't own any cropped tops or even a single pair of shorts."

"You don't own shorts?"

"No. I've just never felt comfortable in them in public. I feel naked."

"JoJo, I don't care about any of that stuff. Well, except the shorts. Maybe you could get a pair to wear at home."

She could see that he was going to refute every argument that she presented. So finally she said, "Okay, I'll think about it."

He nodded. "That's all I ask."

"Two Saturdays in a row! To what do we owe this honor?"

"Hi, Dad," Seth said as he joined his father behind the counter. After his breakfast with JoJo, he felt he could use some advice. Since he hadn't tried to keep a woman around longer than a couple of days since eighth grade, he figured he was going to need all the help he could get. He was certain that she liked him, but convincing her to take a chance on him was not going to be easy.

He couldn't believe some of the excuses that she had given him. Like he couldn't tell that she was shy! He knew she was different and he found that intriguing. "Where's Mom?"

"Abandoned me to go off shopping with her friends." He placed a bookmark in the book he was holding and put it down. "Are you here to work?"

Seth shrugged. And then he sighed. "I wanted your advice."

William's eyebrows rose in exaggerated shock. "Really?" He rubbed his chin. "I think the last time you asked for advice, you were fourteen."

"Good grief. Keep this up and I'll just go ask AJ."

"Just savoring the moment. Must be serious though if you'd consider asking AJ. What can I help you with?"

"How did you convince Mom to date you?"

"Oh, that's easy—lots of begging and pleading."

"Dad," Seth drawled. Why his father persisted in thinking he was funny, he didn't know. "Can you be serious for a second?"

"All right, all right. I asked and she said yes. I won her over with my stunning personality. Why do you ask?"

This wasn't helping at all. His parents were still very much in love and they rarely argued. To hear them tell it, they clicked immediately. Two months after meeting they were engaged. He needed to talk to someone with a different experience.

As though he'd conjured him up, Dean strolled into the store with Renee in tow. Dean did a double take at seeing him behind the counter. Renee waved before disappearing between some bookshelves. "What are you doing here on a Saturday?" Dean asked as he approached.

"I gotta find something to do with my Saturdays since you abandoned me to play with a girl."

Dean glanced over in the direction where Renee had disappeared and grinned. "Like you haven't abandoned me a million times over a pretty girl." Dean nodded at William. "Hi, Mr. Rollins."

"Hi, Dean. Don't believe him. He came to get dating advice from his old man."

"Really? What kind of weekend fling requires advice?"

"Actually, I was thinking you'd be more helpful since Mom and Dad practically got married on their first date." Seth came around the counter. "Come with me." He led Dean to the more secluded seating area in the back. Dropping down onto the comfy sofa, he asked, "How did you convince Renee to go out with you? I know she had some reservations about you because, well, you were a player."

Dean joined him on the couch. "I was a mini-player. I did have the occasional girlfriend." He shrugged. "But she was tough on me. I bought her flowers. I picked her up from work when her car wasn't working. I'd send her messages just to say I was thinking about her. I didn't stop asking until she said yes."

All of that sounded doable.

"Don't tell me you're thinking of dating Alexa?"

Seth jerked. "No."

"Good."

"Why?"

Dean arched a brow. "Do you really have to ask? I'd hate to have to kick your ass when you made her cry."

Seth scoffed. Dean was several inches shorter than him and about fifty pounds lighter. "Get serious."

"Besides, I thought you'd gotten over that momentary urge to fuck her."

He laughed. "Yeah, I have. I think I was just getting missing her confused with something more. No, this is about JoJo."

"Ah, the neighbor. I should have guessed since you've been eye-fucking her for months." Dean stood. "Renee's at the counter. I gotta go. Why don't you bring JoJo to the party next weekend?"

"I'll see if I can convince her. She's shy so I don't know if she'll want to come. Oh, and Alexa is bringing some dude she wants me to check out for her. Guess what his name is."

"What is it?"

"Alexa."

Dean shook his head. "How long do you think this one will last?"

Seth stood and walked with his friend back up to the counter where Renee was purchasing a couple of books. "This is a rebound. Probably a week or two. She still hasn't said why she broke up with Buddy."

"Yeah, she hasn't said anything to me either. You know Alexa. She'll tell us when she's ready. Hey, want to come to dinner with me and Renee?"

"Sure." It couldn't hurt to have a woman's opinion.

JoJo was surprised when Seth showed up at her apartment shortly after dinner. She was also relieved because it meant she didn't have to wonder what he was doing and who he might be with. They lounged on her couch watching nature documentaries. Seth winced as a pride of lions took down another animal. "I can't help but feel sorry for the prey," he said, leaning over so that he rested his head on her shoulder.

She giggled. "I'm on the side of the predators. They've got to eat. And they're so strong and beautiful."

"Who would have thought sweet, little innocent JoJo would be on the side of the bad guy?"

"What? They can't become vegetarians. And if they don't thin prey animals, they would die of starvation because there wouldn't be enough food for them all." She laid her head on top of his so that she could rub her cheek against his hair. He smelled good and so did his hair. Seth linked his fingers with hers. She noticed that he seemed to like to do that. She never would have thought such a simple action could be sexy but with Seth it definitely was. The sight of his thick, large fingers entwined with hers made her think of what it would be like if their limbs were tangled in a passionate embrace.

"Seth, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Why don't you date? Did you get your heart broken? Or…something?" She'd been curious. She needed to know what she could be getting herself into. If he was too emotionally scarred to make a commitment, it was better that she know it before she got too attached. She didn't make friends easily so she tended to cling to friendships once they were established.

"No, nothing so noble. I've never been in love. I've never been married or even close to it. My parents and my brother are married and disgustingly happy. I've just never wanted to be tied down. I guess I've never met anyone I wanted to see beyond a few days. What I feel for you, I've never felt before."

"So, you're saying you were…sowing your wild oats?"

Seth turned so that his face was pressing into her neck as he nodded. His breath tickled. "I'm not going to make excuses for it."

"And you're giving that up now? I mean, you're not going to be trolling bars for women while I make up my mind?"

He sat up abruptly. "Hell, no. JoJo, I may not have tried this as an adult, but I'm not a complete relationship moron."

Relieved, she nodded. "Thank you." She wouldn't have demanded he be celibate while she made her decision because she really had no right to do so. But that didn't mean it wouldn't hurt. And if he couldn't keep it in his pants for such a brief period of time, she knew she would never be able to trust him with her heart.

"While you're making up your mind, does that mean we can't kiss? Because I'd really like to kiss you."

Her gaze dropped to his mouth. Good grief, she loved his mouth. It was so full and looked so soft, especially in contrast to the dark stubble shadowing his jaw. She'd barely nodded before Seth was cupping her neck and pulling her into his kiss. JoJo moaned at the sensation of his lips pressing into hers. Unable to resist, she licked his bottom lip before capturing it with her mouth.

Seth pulled back, surprise evident on his face. Then he groaned and his mouth crashed down to cover hers once more. When his tongue teased the seam of her lips seeking entrance, she opened to him. She expected him to simply thrust his tongue inside as had been her previous experience with men. Instead, Seth's exploration was a deliciously languorous affair as though he were savoring every moment. It made her feel precious and appreciated.

JoJo went limp in his arms. He could have done anything he wanted to her in that moment and she wouldn't have resisted. But he kept one hand at her neck while his other large palm rested lightly at her waist. She was far less circumspect. Her hands cruised up his hard chest, over his broad shoulders, and finally wound up fisted in his thick hair.

She brushed her tongue along the length of his before circling his lips and sliding it into his mouth. Seth's big body shuddered and he groaned. The hand on her waist tightened. He sucked her tongue briefly before breaking the kiss.

"We'd better stop," he said, his voice rough and deep with arousal. His eyes were heavy lidded and his pupils were so dilated that his irises were barely visible. He cupped her cheek and stroked her swollen lips with his thumb. "Shit, that was intense."

JoJo leaned into his touch. "I love your mouth."

Seth groaned. "Oh, baby, I love your mouth, too." He clasped her wrists and untangled her fingers from his hair. He kissed each of her hands before releasing them. He took a deep breath and stood, a slight grimace crossing his face. "Give me a hug and then I need to go."

She could tell he was on edge so she didn't protest even though she wasn't ready for him to go. She could have kept kissing him forever.

The thick ridge of his erection was clearly outlined by his jeans where it lay against his hip. She couldn't help but notice it since she was still sitting, putting her at eye level with his cock. Her eyes widened. He was huge. Her gaze went to his hands and feet. Well, he certainly lived up to the stereotype. She wondered what he would feel like when he was thrusting deep inside of her. Delicious, she mused. JoJo nibbled her lip.

"Don't look at me that way," Seth groaned. He reached down and tugged her into a standing position.

She didn't bother to ask in what way she'd been looking at him. No doubt her thoughts had been written all over her face. She moved into his embrace and closed her eyes as she felt his hands spread wide over her back. He didn't hold her too close. Their stomachs and hips didn't touch. He rested his chin on top of her head. "JoJo, don't make me wait too long, okay?"

"Okay."

Omg you guys i love all of your reviews! it makes me so emotional! Im glad you like the pacing and medium slow burn of the story! Please keep reviewing and the next chapter will be out tomorrow!