She blinked once and her lids lowered to half-mast. Her lips parted. She wanted him every bit as much as hewanted her. It would have been so easy to slide his other hand behind her head and bring her mouth to his.
Desire twisted in his groin and urged him to grab her up and hold her against him. He dropped her hand.
'I've missed you, Jack,' she said. 'I didn't even realize how much until I came back.' She took a step forwardand raised onto the balls of her feet. She ran her palms up his jacket to the sides of his neck. 'Did you ever missme?' She placed her soft lips against his, then asked, 'Even a little?'
He stood completely still, staring into her dark eyes. His chest burned as he breathed in her exhaled breath.
'Even when you didn't want to miss me?'
The dull throb of desire settled heavy in his groin, and he grabbed her shoulders and pushed her away. 'Don't dothis, Daisy.'
She looked up at him. 'Matt Flegel asked me out.'
Shit. 'Bug?'
'He never liked when you called him that.'
'Are you going to go out with him?'
'Do you care?'
He looked right into her eyes and answered as if he didn't want to punch Flea in the face. 'No. I don't care whatyou do.'
'Then I'll probably go out with him.' She turned on her heels and bid him goodnight over her shoulder as if shehadn't just tried to kiss him and get something going. He watched her disappear into the tent and he turned backto the fire.
She could do whatever she wanted, he told himself as he took a seat. So could he. He hadn't had sex since he'dhad it with her on the back of the Lancer. Maybe that was his problem. Maybe he needed to get laid to get herout of his head.
He waited until the coals burned to ash before he entered the tent. When his eyes adjusted to the darkness, hediscovered that Nathan had taken the sleeping bag on the far side, which left Daisy asleep in the middle. Whatshe thought of sleeping so close to Jack, he didn't know. She seemed okay with it because she was out.
Jack took off his boots and jacket and crawled into his sleeping bag. He put his hands behind his head andstared up at the ceiling of the tent. He could almost hear her breathing. Almost hear a soft hush of breath passher lips.
He turned his head and looked at her through the darkness. Her back was to him and her blond hair spilledacross her pillow. He'd made love to her. He'd made a child with her, but he'd never spent the night with her.
Never seen her sleep.
His last thoughts as he fell asleep were of her, wondering what she'd do if he hooked his arm around her waistand pulled her into his chest.
When he woke, the ceiling of the tent was awash in predawn light. He figured he'd gotten about five hours as hegrabbed his jean jacket, shoved his feet in his boots, and headed out of the tent. Early morning shadows clung tothe campground and the buttes surrounding the lake. He built a fire and put coffee on to percolate. The sun roseover the water as he poured his first cup. Nathan was the first to join him. His son's hair stuck straight up inback, and he wore a big blue sweat shirt, jeans and his sneakers. Nathan grabbed a bottle of juice and a bag ofChips Ahoy and the two of them walked to the shore.
'Today before we leave,' Jack said as he blew into his coffee, 'we'll go after some channel cats.'
'My dad and I went deep-sea fishing once.' Nathan ripped open the bag and held it toward Jack, offering him acookie. 'Have you ever done that?'
'Thanks.' Jack took one chocolate-chip cookie and bit into it. 'I try to fish in the Gulf at least once a year. Nexttime I go, maybe you can come along.'
'Tight.' Nathan stuck the bag under one arm and polished off two cookies before he spoke again. 'My dad and Iused talk about stuff.'
Jack took a drink and looked out over the lake, at the morning sun lighting up the surface like glass. Hewondered if Daisy had told him that she had a hot date with flea. It wasn't his place to ask. 'What kind ofstuff?'
'Stuff a guy can't talk to his mom about.'
'Like?' he asked and ate his cookie.
'Girls.'
Ah. 'Do you have something on your mind?'
Nathan nodded and took a drink of his juice.
'Maybe I can help you out. I've known a girl or two.'
He looked at his toes and his cheeks turned pink. 'Girls are complicated. Boys aren't that complicated.'
'That's true. Girls are contrary as hell. They tell you one thing and expect you to get the meaning to somethingelse.'
He turned and looked up at Jack. 'You said you and dad used to look at porn. So, what I want to know is...'
blinked a few times then asked, 'Where do you touch girls? I saw a diagram in health class, but it wasconfusing. Boys aren't confusing. Everything we have is just hanging out there.'
Whoa. 'We're not talking about a girl's emotions are we?'
He shook his head. 'My friend stole his mom's book about sex. It sounds like you have to touch a girleverywhere at once.'
Nathan looked so serious. And he'd come to Jack. Not Daisy. 'Any girl in particular you're thinking abouttouching?'
'No. I'd just like to have it all figured out before my first time.'
'You want to be an expert right out of the chute?' Jack thought Nathan was a little young to be worrying aboutsex. Then he thought back to the NBBC and he realized Nathan wasn't too young at all.
'Well, yeah. It's going to be scary enough the first time without worrying about sucking at it.'
Jack rocked back on his heels and weighed his words. He really didn't want to screw this up. Warmth spreadthrough him and tightened his chest like a fist around his heart. Suddenly, for the first time in his life, he feltlike a dad. His son had come to him with questions about sex, just like countless other sons had gone to theirfathers. Just like he had. 'The first thing you have to know is that any fool can have sex, but it takes a real manto make love. If you don't feel something for a girl, then you have no business unzipping your pants.'
'Yeah.'
'You have to wear a condom. Always. If you're not mature enough to protect yourself and the female, thenyou're not mature enough to have sex.' As he spoke, he wondered if Nathan got the irony of this conversation.
He waited for him to point out that Jack hadn't always practiced what he was preaching, and he took a drink ofhis coffee as he figured out a good response. He'd obviously have to admit that he hadn't always beenresponsible, but that -'I know about safe sex,' Nathan said, interrupting Jack's thoughts.
Jack swallowed. 'That's good.' He smiled at his son, vastly relieved that there would be no hard questions abouthis own sex life.
'What I want to know is...' stole a look back at the tent. 'Where is the clitoris exactly?'
Jack's smile fell and he opened his mouth. No words came out so he closed it.
Nathan had no problem forming his words, though. 'And what the heck is a G-spot?'
Chapter Seventeen
Driving wasn't as easy as Nathan thought it would be. On his second day of driver's education, he got to drive aSaturn. Not exactly his idea of a hot car, but the other class had to drive a station wagon. By the third week, he'dmastered the Saturn and figured he was ready to take his new dream car for a spin. Jack's Shelby Mustang. Jackdidn't know it yet, but Nathan wanted to drive that car. Bad.
After the first week, he'd made a few friends with some of the other boys in his class. They didn't ride horses
