Author's Note: I'm getting a ton of reviews for this fic! 27 already! I'm very pleased that you all like it so much! Continuing on, I really hope that you enjoy this chapter. I'm having so much fun writing this story! Review at the end if you want! I'd appreciate it!
Courtney groaned as she rolled over onto her back and turned her head to look at the clock. 10:42. Sighing, she placed her hands on her throbbing head and rubbed her temples.
She was right about that morning after regret. She was sure that she'd kissed the man who'd hired her. She'd broken her number one rule. He probably had no respect for her. Probably thought she was easy…
Then Courtney thought of something, how the hell had she gotten back to her room? The last thing she remembered was lying on the beach with Jason, looking at the stars.
Flashback
"It's beautiful here." Courtney said, sleepily.
"You've said that about a thousand times."
"I can't say it enough. I don't remember the last time I was this happy."
Courtney allowed herself the luxury of closing her eyes.
"You're beautiful." Jason said, placing a kiss on her temple.
"So are you." And she was asleep.
End Flashback.
Jason smiled as he thought back on the previous night. He had stopped with the ever-mounting paperwork on his desk, just long enough to see if Courtney was awake yet. He really hoped she was.
As he rode up in the elevator to the twenty sixth floor, he started to think. Jason knew that Courtney was going to regret drinking so much. She'd probably regret dinner, dancing, their kisses, and the beach.
"I don't mix business with pleasure." She had said. Too late, Courtney. Too late.
Jason took a deep breath before he knocked on her door. Of course, if she didn't answer, he had a key. He preferred not to use it though. He didn't want to push her away by invading her privacy.
He couldn't help but smile when the door opened.
Her hair was sticking up in places he wasn't aware hair could stick up in. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy. The bathrobe she'd wrapped around her body was hanging off her shoulder, revealing her bare skin.
"Jason." Courtney tried not to be horrified. She hadn't looked in the mirror yet, but she was sure that the sight wouldn't be pretty.
"Good morning. Can I come in?" Jason asked, noticing that she wouldn't meet his eyes. Ah, well. At least he'd thought about what he was going to say before he came. He was prepared.
"Uh," Courtney pretended to think about it for a minute before allowing him in. "Sure."
Combing a hand through her hair, Courtney closed the door behind Jason.
"Have you had breakfast?" Jason asked, though he knew the answer.
"No, and really. I'm not the least bit hungry." Courtney said as she began to make the bed.
"Room service does that." Jason watched as she smoothed the sheets, and folded them over with care.
"I'm used to it. My mother used to be a maid, and she used to take me with her when she cleaned hotel rooms, so I could help. I always loved the people that made their own beds." Courtney explained as she tossed a fancy pillow back into its rightful position.
Jason looked at her thoughtfully. From the little he knew about Courtney, he had already deciphered that she'd had a difficult childhood.
"Jason? Would you mind if I took a quick shower? It would make me feel somewhat alive." Courtney sat on the edge of the now-made bed, and placed her aching head in her hands.
Jason took a chance and moved over to the edge of the bed and sat down with her. "I think you need to be standing up to take a shower."
"I just need a second. I'm so lightheaded." Courtney felt Jason's hand massaging the back of her neck and smiled into her hands.
"It's okay. I told Rodrigo to bring up some orange juice and black coffee for us. It should be here by the time you get out of the shower." Jason helped Courtney stand.
"Thanks, for doing all this. Can we talk after I get out of the shower?" Courtney asked as she stepped away from Jason.
"Absolutely." Jason nodded as he watched the blonde stagger into the bathroom and turn the water on. He watched the steam come out from the crack of the door and sighed. What he would give to be in that bathroom…
Flashback
"Would you like to dance?"
Jason was startled by her request. He didn't dance. He couldn't remember the last time he had. But the way her eyes looked straight into his, the way her lip stuck out stubbornly, Jason found himself unable to say no.
He stood up and offered his hand. Courtney smiled and took it. She knew that she was being seductive, that she had way too much to drink, and she could care less. She was in the arms of an attractive and kind man. She could shut out the rest of the world for just one night, couldn't she?
"You're asking for trouble, Courtney." Jason moved his hand down her bare back, her skin was as smooth as the pedal of a flower.
"I don't normally do this type of thing."
"I don't normally dance, talk to people, or buy presents for women that I barely even know." Jason countered.
"Then why are you doing it for me?" Courtney asked, taking her head off his shoulder and looking into his eyes. They were a darker blue now, darkened with desire.
"There's something about you, Courtney," Jason said softly as he pushed the hair out of her face and placed a kiss on her forehead.
Courtney moaned quietly and leaned into him, placing her head on his strong chest. Her head was starting to spin slightly; maybe she just needed some air. Maybe she just needed him.
End Flashback.
Courtney smiled as the scorching water hit her back. The heat caused her body to warm immediately and woke her up a little bit more. And as hard as she tried not to, she thought about the man sitting in her hotel room, waiting for her to finish her shower.
It was her second day in San Juan, and she really had to get started on her research if she wanted to meet her deadline for Denial. She promised herself that she'd get on the computer and out and about the city today as she washed her hair with her favorite, Strawberries and Champagne, shampoo.
During the soap part of the shower, Courtney thought, again, about Jason Morgan. She didn't know anything about him, except that he and his so far unnamed business partner owned the casino. She also knew that he had the bluest, deepest eyes she'd ever seen, and the kindest smile. The most wonderful hands. Far softer and gentler than her ex-husband's, Kent had been.
But could that be enough?
Could she even learn to trust again? After her sham of a marriage to a man she'd convinced herself she'd fallen in love with, to the messy divorce… did she even want to?
She chided herself for even entertaining the thought of having a relationship. She was here, in gorgeous Puerto Rico, for two weeks. Two weeks only.
Turning off the water, Courtney wrapped a towel around her body tightly, and did the same with her hair. She looked at her reflection in the mirror, making sure that there were no random streaks of black down her face, from the eyeliner or mascara she'd had on.
Satisfied, she opened the bathroom door. Jason was nowhere in sight.
Courtney allowed herself to slump her shoulders just a little bit. Why should she be surprised? She wanted to talk, and he bolted. Just like every other man…
"Courtney?" Jason called, from the balcony.
Courtney felt her face flush crimson. Jason wasn't every other man. She'd known him for two days, and she could tell already.
"What are you doing ou…?" She stopped in her tracks when she saw the scene in front of her.
Jason had set up a table on the balcony, complete with tall white candles, even though it was now 11:30. There was, much to Courtney's relief, a large pot of hot coffee, and orange juice in champagne glasses. The sliver platters indicated that there was breakfast underneath them. Courtney hoped that she wasn't gawking.
"I was thinking mimosas. But I wasn't sure that you'd want any alcohol for a while. So it's just regular orange juice." Jason stood up, and pulled out her chair for her.
Courtney smiled and let him help her into her chair. "You didn't have to do all this, Jason."
"I know." He smiled back as he settled into his spot across from her. "If you're not hungry, that's understandable. You don't have to eat the pancakes and sausage if you don't want it."
Courtney could have sworn she groaned. Could he have possibly known that pancakes and sausage were her favorite?
"Oh trust me, if I can eat it without having it come back up, I will." Courtney poured herself some coffee, and loaded it down with cream and sugar. Jason winced.
"How can you drink it like that? Now it's not even coffee. It's caffeine with cream and sugar."
"Black is just too strong for me, I guess." Courtney watched as Jason poured his own coffee, putting only one sugar in it, and no cream.
"So how are you feeling now? Better?" Jason inquired, taking a sip and feeling the warmth slide down his throat.
"The shower helped, a lot." Courtney admitted. "Can we talk about last night? Or should we just pretend it never happened?"
"I'd be terribly disappointed if we pretended it didn't happen." Jason said honestly, reaching across the table for her hand.
She stared at his open hand, wondering what to do. Take it? And take a risk? Leave it, and stay safe?
What was life without risks?
Courtney placed her hand into his. "I'm not that clear on a whole lot."
"You remember dancing?" Jason smiled as he watched pink inch up her cheeks.
"Yes. And I'm extremely sorry if I made you uncomfortable in any way. I normally do not drink that much, so quickly. It was an error in judgment, and I promise that it won't happen again." Courtney was talking to him as if he were her father, and he was about to scold her.
"I found it endearing." Jason admitted, squeezing her hand.
"I was drunk." Courtney laughed.
"I'd love to take you out to dinner sober too, don't get me wrong."
"Before we talk about that, I have a question." Courtney pulled her hand out of Jason's and placed it on her lap, clenching and unclenching her fist.
"Shoot." Jason placed his elbow on the table and rested his chin on it. It certainly wasn't a hardship to look at her with just a towel on.
"What happened? You know, after the beach…?" Courtney glanced down, not wanting to meet his eyes.
"You passed out on me. I stayed for a while, listening to the sound of the waves crashing and the sound of your breathing, and I looked at the stars. I tried to see what you see in them."
Courtney had to look up. What Jason had just said, touched her in a way she'd never known.
Jason continued on. "I'm not sure that I succeeded, but the look in your eyes made me want to experience what you do when you look at the sky. When I looked up, I saw possibilities. And then I looked down at you. And I'm sorry if what I'm about to say makes you uncomfortable, but when I looked at you, sleeping, I saw my future."
Courtney didn't know what to say. What could she say? Thank you didn't seem sufficient. "Dreams."
"I'm sorry, what?" Jason asked.
"I see my dreams when I look at the stars. And I also… I see my dreams when I'm looking at you."
And all of a sudden, how Courtney had gotten home didn't seem so important anymore. Her article didn't seem to matter, and she'd left her brain in that antique shop. And, for once, she didn't even care as Jason leaned over the table, smiling softly, and gave her a kiss she'd remember forever.