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  “Who was that?” one of Russell’s girls asked after Jenny had left. She stood up straight, practically thrusting her breasts into my face as she spoke.

  As far as I could tell, she didn’t know any other way to stand. Even when she sat down, she did so in such a way that she looked thoroughly uncomfortable. I needed to tell Russell to stop letting all these random women into my house. He’d let Jenny in without even consulting me; if I’d known she was coming I could have shoved the girls into the main party room before she saw them.

  “Just a friend from home,” I replied. Jenny was far more than just a friend. I couldn’t describe her as my first love because we’d never quite gotten that far, but she had remained in my thoughts for the last four years. She’d tortured me from the other side of the Atlantic Ocean without even realizing it.

  For a second or so after Jenny had walked in, I hadn’t recognized her. All I could see was a woman drenched to the bone, dripping water all over my floor. It was the eyes I recognized first. I would never forget those green eyes that held so much life and vigor.

  It took all of three seconds before I was infatuated with Jenny all over again. She always had a sparkle in her eyes, even when she was wet, cold, and angry. That spark reminded me of her passion, lust, and the sharp wit that she had used against me on more than one occasion.

  She’d grown up a lot in the last four years. Her body shape had remained the same, although perhaps her breasts were slightly larger than before. Her face had definitely changed though. It held more maturity than it used to. She didn’t have that girlish look to her any more. Jenny was a woman now.

  I suddenly noticed Russell’s friend had her hands on my chest and was nuzzling at my ear. “Me and the girls are getting tired,” she whispered. “We were thinking of going to bed now. Why don’t you join us?”

  One of her hands moved down between my legs and squeezed gently on my cock. Thankfully, she got no reaction down there from me. The last thing I wanted to do right now was jump into bed with these women, especially after the way they had treated Jenny.

  “No, thank you,” I replied. I had half a mind to throw them out, but Russell was probably in one of the bedrooms screwing a couple of them already and I didn’t want to ruin a teammate’s evening. We’d be going on tour soon and I was rooming with Russell. It wouldn’t be a good idea to get in his bad books before that.

  “Are you sure, baby?” the woman asked. She gave my cock another gentle squeeze. It stiffened slightly—I was only human after all—but I quickly pulled her hand away and stormed back into the game room, slamming the door behind me.

  I must be crazy to turn down a night with two or three gorgeous women. They would see to my every need and desire if I let them, but I couldn’t shake Jenny from my thoughts. I’d wanted to run up and hug her, but the plan had always been to ignore her and let her get on with her life. I had to look annoyed at her sudden appearance, not pleased to see her.

  I’d been such a jerk four years ago, but I was still convinced I’d done the right thing. In the end, my decision to abandon Jenny had been unnecessary, but I couldn’t have known that at the time. I couldn’t take the risk. Anyway, that was no excuse for my behavior tonight. I could’ve offered her a room for the night or at the very least let her take a shower. I didn’t even call her a cab.

  Did I still need to ignore her? I’d almost got in touch with her three years ago, but she’d just started seeing someone and according to my mom they looked happy together.

  My plan had been for her to get on with her life and forget about me, but the plan seemed to have worked a little too well. Was she still with the same boyfriend? She gave off a ‘single’ vibe, but it was hard to tell with her.

  I’d gone back to sleeping around after finding out that Jenny had a boyfriend. I wasn’t sleeping around for the shear fun of it; I slept around because of Jenny. Sex with other women didn’t exactly take my mind off her—I usually thought of her during the act—but at least it helped relieve the pressure a bit.

  In my attempts to move on, I had pretended I was attracted to Jenny because she was my stepsister and therefore forbidden. If any part of me believed that lie, it quickly surrendered when I set eyes on her tonight. God, she looked stunning.

  I’d spent the evening surrounded by skinny women wearing next to nothing, but they had faded into the background compared to Jenny standing there soaked through, looking furious and like she’d rather be anywhere else but in the same room as me. She’d been dragging her suitcase behind her—leaving marks all over my floor in the process—so she must have come here straight from the airport. How could anyone look that good after a transatlantic flight, long train ride, and then getting soaking wet in the cold rain? I’d wanted to tear the clothes off her and drag her into the shower with me.

  There was no reason we couldn’t be together now, but clearly Jenny hated me. I couldn’t blame her—that had been the entire point of what I did four years ago—but it hurt nonetheless.

  I fell asleep to the faint sound of moaning and groaning coming from one of the other bedrooms. Russell was having a fantastic evening, but I’d never been so frustrated. I had to see Jenny again. There had to be a way to rekindle what we had before. I could never tell her the truth about what happened that night, but perhaps she could forgive me for what she saw. I had to try.

  -*-

  The receptionist at Jenny’s hotel recognized me and didn’t hesitate to tell me Jenny’s room number. I didn’t like the hotel she was staying in. I wouldn’t usually stay in anything less than a five-star hotel myself, but I could cope with a lack of amenities if need be. The problem with this hotel was the location. Jenny probably had no idea, but this wasn’t exactly a safe neighborhood. If she’d let me, I’d pay for her to move somewhere else. That is, if she wasn’t leaving soon anyway.

  I knocked and Jenny opened the door wearing just a dressing gown. Once again, her hair was wet, but she had wrapped it in a towel this time.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked. The gown was tantalizingly open just enough for me to see parts of her breasts. Not a lot—less than what I could see on the sluts at my house last night—but it was more than I’d seen of her chest in four years and I couldn’t take my eyes off it. Jenny noticed me staring and pulled the dressing gown together although it immediately fell open again. This time I tried to keep my eyes focused on hers.

  “You told me where you were staying,” I said. “You must have wanted me to pay you a visit.”

  Why did I always act like such an arrogant jackass in front of her? I could have just said I had missed her and wanted to catch up, but no, I had to be rude. I couldn’t help it. From the moment we’d been introduced I’d teased and flirted with her. Even when we’d taken things a step further, I’d still been cocky and arrogant around her. A part of me assumed she liked me acting that way. That was the version of Jaxon she’d fallen for, so who was I to deprive her of that?

  “Christ, Jaxon. Just because you know where I’m staying doesn’t mean you can come here and harass me.”

  “I’m not here to harass you. I just wanted to say ‘hi’ properly and apologize for last night.”

  “Oh. Really?”

  It probably spoke volumes about me that Jenny was surprised I would apologize. “Can I come in?”

  Jenny considered it for a few seconds and then stepped back and motioned for me to come inside. She quickly dashed around the room picking up dirty underwear and shoving it back in her suitcase. We’d lived together for almost a year so it wasn’t like I hadn’t seen her dirty panties before.

  “You’d have thought New York United would’ve sprung for a better hotel room for such an important employee.”

  I meant the comment genuinely enough, but I could tell Jenny thought I was being sarcastic. “I’m not an important employee, as you well know. I’m just here to convince the hotshot soccer player to switch allegiances. For some reason my boss thinks you’re the type of person who would p
ledge himself to one club and then change his mind at the drop of a hat. I wonder why he thinks you’re so disloyal?”

  “I deserved that,” I admitted. Jenny sat down on the bed. I considered sitting down next to her, but that seemed too presumptuous at this stage so instead I sat down on a chair in the corner. “That was a long time ago. I’ve changed a lot since then.” And it wasn’t what it looked like, I wanted to add. If only I could explain.

  “If this is your idea of an apology then you might as well leave.”

  “Okay, I’m sorry. There. How’s that?”

  “Brilliant,” Jenny replied. “That completely makes up for what I went through four years ago. Now, how about you come over here and fuck me like you promised.”

  “I’m going to assume you’re being sarcastic,” I said, only just about resisting the urge to go over and spread her legs like she asked. I’d never seen her naked. Not completely. I’d gotten as far as feeling her breasts, and my fingers had touched her sex, but she’d stopped me before I could go any further. God, what I wouldn’t give to taste her right now.

  “I guess you aren’t as dumb as the average soccer player then,” Jenny said. “Look, if it makes you feel any better then I accept your apology. Whatever, I really don’t care at this stage. If that’s all you came to say, then you should just leave.”

  “When are you leaving?” I asked. I knew I had to take things slowly if I wanted to get back in Jenny’s good books and I doubted I had enough time now.

  “As soon as they book me a new flight. I might even head down to London today just on the off chance. At least it gets me away from you.”

  “In that case, I’ve got bad news for you. You’re going to be seeing me again soon.”

  “Please don’t tell me you’re actually considering moving to New York United?”

  I laughed. “No, not that. However, it just so happens that my team will be doing a summer tour of the US starting next week. It would be rude not to pop home and see Mom and your dad. I haven’t spoken to him in a while; I think he misses me.”

  I hadn’t planned to see Mom or Sheridan on the tour at all, but if there was a chance I could spend more time with Jenny then I had to take it. I took a huge risk four years ago. It had been the right thing to do, but I still regretted it every day.

  “Great,” Jenny muttered. “This summer is just getting better and better.”

  “You can play hard to get all you like,” I said. “Need I remind you that you were against the idea of us getting together four years ago as well and I won you around in the end. What makes you think I won’t be able to do that again?”

  “Because four years ago you broke… nevermind. You know what you did. Just leave. Please.”

  I opened the door, but turned and looked back at her. She was still sitting on the bed and had her back to me. “I am sorry,” I said honestly. “I made a mistake four years ago, but I convinced you to be with me once before, and I intend to do so again. Consider yourself warned.”

  Last time the only hurdle I had to climb was the whole stepbrother and stepsister thing. That problem was still there, but the more immediate issue was my betrayal of her confidence. I had three months before the soccer season started again. It wasn’t long, but it would have to be long enough. I’d been forced to give up on Jenny four years ago, but I was damn sure not going to give up on her now.

  My boss refused to accept my request for an earlier flight time, and despite what I told Jaxon, I couldn’t afford to stay in a London hotel while I waited. That left me hanging around in my hotel room for three days, not wanting to venture outside in case I bumped into Jaxon. I was being overly paranoid; Liverpool was a big city and the chances of me bumping into him were slim to none, but knowing my luck that’s exactly what would happen.

  The trip had been a complete waste of time. Not just because Jaxon had refused to even contemplate a transfer to New York United, but because he was going to be in the States soon anyway as part of a tour.

  I typed out an angry email to my boss explaining that I could have stayed in New York and approached Jaxon when he was in the city. Fortunately, I came to my senses before sending the email. I hadn’t been working there long enough to get aggressive with my boss, and I did need the job after all.

  After accepting the position at New York United, I’d turned down the other opportunities I had lined up and now most potential employers would have all their graduates lined up ready to start. I would still be able to get a job somewhere—a Harvard degree pretty much guaranteed that—but finding one that would look good on a business school application was another matter altogether.

  I hadn’t been surprised to see Jaxon turn up at my hotel room. Deep down, I probably wanted him to; that’s why I told him where I was staying in the first place. His apology had taken me by surprise though. I’d expected him to just pretend the whole thing had never happened, and even though he did gloss over it a bit, the apology had sounded sincere.

  Perhaps the biggest shock of all was that I wanted to accept the apology and move on. I’d spent four years dwelling on the events of that night and I always thought that if I ever saw Jaxon again I would scream at him, yell abuse, and probably hit him, for all the good that would do. Instead, we veered dangerously close to going back to where we were before that night. He started flirting with me and my body responded to his words in the same way they always did. It hadn’t helped that I’d been naked underneath a dressing gown at the time, but even so, the way I’d instantly wanted to forget the past and pounce on him was frightening.

  My feelings for Jaxon were different now than they had been four years ago and not just because of his betrayal. Four years ago I’d been a virgin. As much as I’d wanted Jaxon to take me, I’d also been apprehensive about losing my virginity and worried I would be shit in bed. Whenever we kissed, I’d been almost as nervous as I was horny.

  I wasn’t a virgin anymore though. After a few months at Harvard I had started dating someone, and we ended up being together for about nine months. Even though I’d never been in love with him, the breakup hit me hard because it was my first serious relationship and I’d convinced myself I had feelings for him. I dated a few more guys in college; enough that I was no longer nervous about sleeping with new guys, but not enough to make me forget Jaxon.

  Four years ago, my nerves had held me back, and that was one of the reasons we hadn’t had sex. That and the fear of our parents finding out. Now there were no nerves to keep me in check, and I wasn’t sure how much time I could spend around Jaxon without giving in. If he kept teasing and flirting with me like he had in the hotel room, I didn’t know if I’d be able to put up much of a fight.

  I’d fantasized about what it would be like to have sex with Jaxon even when I was sleeping with other men. Especially when I was sleeping with other men. The guys I’d been with at Harvard were competent enough in bed, but they’d hardly set my world on fire. Not one of them made me react in the way that Jaxon could with the merest touch of his fingers on my skin.

  I’d managed to come during sex with my most recent boyfriend, but that was less down to his skill and more down to me furiously rubbing my clit while riding his cock. In his defense, he’d resisted the urge to finish before me, so that sent him straight to the top of my short list of sexual partners.

  I still kept in contact with all of my old boyfriends. They were nice guys and we’d split on good terms. That was part of the problem though, they were nice guys. When Jaxon and I had been fooling around he’d pulled my hair and devoured me with his lips. The discomfort of having my hair pulled had been a little weird at first, but it soon made me react between my legs in a way I hadn’t been expecting. Jaxon knew it as well and he never missed the opportunity to get a little rough with me when no one was looking. I could only imagine what he would do to me if we finally slept together.

  The best thing to do was avoid spending time with him. At the very least, I had to avoid situations where we were alone. He pro
bably wouldn’t do anything in public in case people recognized him. In big cities like New York where there were a large number of soccer fans, Jaxon would be recognized most places he went. Unless he wanted a news story being thrown around about how he was fucking his sister, he would probably behave in public.

  The flight home was slightly more comfortable than the flight to England, and I actually managed to get some sleep for a couple of hours. I often woke up from naps feeling grumpier than before, but at least it helped pass the time a bit.

  I arrived home around dinnertime and heard excited conversation coming from the dining room. I took my suitcase upstairs and changed into some yoga pants and a sweater, before going back downstairs to join in with dinner. I hadn’t told Dad I’d be home for dinner, so there wouldn’t be any food for me, but he usually cooked too much anyway so I could dig into the leftovers.

  Dad looked up with a smile on his face when I walked into the room.

  “Jennifer, look who’s here for dinner,” Dad said.

  I looked to Dad’s right and saw Jaxon sitting there, making short work of his plate of food.

  “Hi, sis,” Jaxon said enthusiastically. “It sure is good to be home.”

  “What are you doing here?” I asked.

  Jaxon was set next to my dad seemingly playing happy families while his mom sat across the table looking stone-faced and glum as usual. I never understood what Dad saw in Carrie. Dad was hard-working and ambitious, but that was nothing in comparison to Carrie who seem to be working every second of the day. Even now she had her phone on the table ready to answer any emails that came through.

  “You insisted I come to New York to discuss this deal,” Jaxon said. “I was hardly going to come all the way here and not say hello to your dad.” He deliberately didn’t mention saying hello to his mom which came as no surprise. He actively hated her, and we rarely got through a family meal without the two of them arguing.