Breathless (2 page)

Jasmine shook
her head when she started to replay that night in her mind. When
she’d sought and found comfort in Eli’s arms, it felt so right, as
though she’d finally found her way home. That had haunted her for
years--she still felt guilty about it--but she had to move on.
Brent and Eli had, and it was time for her to do the same. Living
in the past was torture.

“You keep
telling yourself that.” Nellie smiled over the rim of her mason
jar. “I think you didn’t want him to ask that girl he was dating.
What was her name again…Bambi?”

“Barbie.”
Jasmine wrinkled her nose. “That’s what she looked like too: a
plastic Barbie doll. Don’t tell me a girl like that is gonna wanna
go four wheeling with Eli on his parents’ ranch.”

“When was the
last time you went four wheeling with Eli?” Nellie chuckled. “It’s
not exactly your thing either.”

“Yeah, but I
grew up on a farm. We like to do a lot of the same things. We
always have a good time at the shooting range and--” She stopped
when she realized she was trying to convince her friend she was
compatible with a man she didn’t even want.

“I think it’s
interesting you’ve never liked any of Eli’s girlfriends.” Nellie
waited until the waitress set Jasmine’s drinks on the table. “Ever
wondered why?”

“Because he
always chooses women who are all wrong for him.” Jasmine set up the
drink and threw it back before she could remember the pain of the
burn. “Maybe if he chose someone more his type, I wouldn’t have to
question every decision he makes. He’s one of my best friends. I
don’t want to see him get hurt by a woman who doesn’t deserve
him.”

“What kind of
woman would you like to see him with, Jamie? Someone like you?”

Eli, Nellie,
and her family were the only people who still called her Jamie.
When she moved to Los Angeles, she’d changed her name because her
modeling agent suggested it. She always hated the name Jamie. It
made her feel like a boy. Jasmine made her feel like a woman.

“I want to see
him with someone who’ll make him happy.” She threw back the second
drink. That would have to be her last. She couldn’t stomach
another. Hopefully four would be enough to get a serious buzz. It
should be. As Eli liked to remind her, she was a lightweight.

“I just find it
curious that you don’t think he’s ever had a girlfriend who’s good
enough. Lord knows he’s been through at least a hundred women since
y’all broke up.”

Nellie was
right. Eli was a player, but since he was gorgeous and a wealthy
professional athlete, women seemed willing to accept whatever
scraps he threw their way. Jasmine thought his taste in women was
pathetic and told him so every chance she got, but he always
laughed and told her he was passing time with other girls and
saving himself for her.

***

Eli cursed
Jamie’s name all the way to Jimmy’s bar. Aiden called to tell him
his ex-girlfriend was wrecked and probably needed a ride home. Eli
had been on a date with a lovely lawyer
Lasting Connections
set him up with, but he’d cut the evening short. That’s the way it
had always been. Jamie needed him, so he dropped everything to come
to her rescue. He loved her and always would, as simple as
that.

She considered
him a close friend, which was why Eli didn’t push for more. He
wasn’t desperate. He’d never had a shortage of women willing to
keep him company, but when he befriended Ava, who ran an upscale
dating service, he decided to look for a woman he could be with
forever. He wasn’t getting any younger, and he’d already wasted too
many years loving Jamie. It was time to find a woman who would love
him back.

He pulled his
Land Rover into the parking lot and barely threw it in park before
jumping out. Someone as stunning and falling down drunk as Jamie
would be a target for the cowboys at Jimmy’s. He had to get in
there and stop her from doing something stupid. Just the thought of
someone taking advantage of her made his blood boil. He’d been
looking out for her as long as he could remember, and even if Ava
helped him find someone else, he couldn’t cut Jamie out of his
life. She had been his anchor for too long.

Eli nodded to
the doorman who ushered him inside. He quickly spotted Jasmine
sandwiched between two cowboys on the dance floor and headed
straight for her. “The lady’s with me,” he said, grabbing her upper
arm and pushing the men aside. Both men glared at him until
recognition dawned in their eyes.

“Hey, you’re
Eli Rea, aren’t you?” one of them asked.

“Eli!” Jamie
said, throwing her arms around his neck. “What’re you doin’
here?”

He tried not to
get distracted by the scent of her shampoo or the way his body
reacted to her over-zealous greeting. God help him, he didn’t know
if he’d ever get her out of his system. Grabbing her chin, he
forced her to hold his gaze. “How much have you had to drink
tonight?” He glared at the two cowboys she’d been dancing with.
“Did y’all buy her any drinks?”

“No,” the
smaller of the two men said, raising his hands, “we just hooked up
with her on the dance floor. She said she wanted to dance, so we
were obligin’.”

“Yeah, I saw
that.” He shot both men a warning look. “Get lost.” They wasted no
time obeying his command.

Aiden came up
and put his arm around Eli’s shoulders. “I’m glad you made it,
buddy. The lady definitely needs a ride home.”

“No, I don’t,”
Jasmine said, pouting. “We took a taxi.”

Eli looked
around the bar for a familiar face. Was she there with a date who’d
let her drink so much? If so, Eli intended to teach him a thing or
two about how to treat a lady. “Who’re you here with?”

“Me,” Nellie
said, coming up behind Eli. She laughed and stumbled backward when
Jasmine threw herself into her arms. “She’s a hot mess, isn’t she,
E?”

Aiden laughed.
“Something tells me she’s gonna be paying for it tomorrow. Now that
I know she’s in good hands, Ry and I are gonna head home. Y’all
have a good night.” He smiled when Jasmine blew him a kiss. “Hope
you feel better tomorrow, sugar.”

Eli had been
there enough times to know she’d feel like death. “Thanks for
calling me, coach. I’ll see you later.”

“Oh, I love
this song,” Jasmine said, leaning back a little too far.

Eli grabbed her
arms to steady her when she bumped into another girl . “Sorry,” he
mouthed to the petite brunette.

She grinned and
winked at him. “No problem, handsome.”

“Let’s get her
out of here,” Eli whispered to Nellie.

“I’m not
leaving until you dance with me,” Jasmine said, folding her
arms.

It was a Lady A
song about first dances and lost love. Eli would rather have a root
canal than hold his first love while country crooners did their
worst to him, but he knew Jamie wouldn’t leave until she got her
way. Since he didn’t feel like making a scene, he said, “Fine, one
song. Then we’re leaving. Agreed?”

Nellie nudged
Eli’s shoulder. “I’ll go settle our bill.”

“Don’t bother,
I’ve got it,” Eli said, taking Jamie in his arms.

“You just enjoy
the dance. I’ve got this one.”

Jamie had
already settled her head on Eli’s shoulder, but she told Nellie,
“Hey, tonight was s’posed to be my treat.”

“You can treat
me next time,” Nellie said and headed off to find the waitress.

“She’s the
best,” Jasmine muttered. “So are you. The best.”

Eli would give
anything to be home in bed and away from the temptation. He’d
almost forgotten how small she was without five-inch heels and how
perfectly her body fit his. As though they were made for each
other. It had always felt that way. As if every other woman he’d
been with was a poor substitute for Jamie.

“I’m glad you
came,” she said, tucking her head under his chin. “I’ve missed
you.”

He’d been
trying to keep his distance so he could give Ava’s service a
chance, but it hadn’t been easy. He missed Jamie like crazy. “Why’d
ya get drunk tonight, baby?” He knew she wasn’t the type to drink
for no reason.

“No reason. I
just felt like cuttin’ loose for a change.”

He’d seen Ava
at her office earlier. She was wearing a huge diamond on her left
hand, and Eli suspected that might have something to do with
Jamie’s state. “You know you can talk to me about anything,
right?”

She sighed.
“I’m sad. And lonely.”

Her admission
sliced him. Why couldn’t she see it didn’t have to be that way?
“Why’s that, Jamie?”

She tipped her
head back to look at him. “Why do you still call me that? You know
damn well I prefer Jasmine.”

He knew she was
trying to change the subject. Jimmy’s wasn’t the place for a heavy
conversation, so he let her. “You’ll always be Jamie to me. Jasmine
was the girl you were trying to be when you didn’t like yourself
anymore.”

He knew she
still felt guilty for cheating on her fiancé. He knew it was wrong,
but he couldn’t feel bad about something that had felt so good. In
his heart, Jamie would always belong to him. The Brent Armstrongs
in her life were just detours. But he couldn’t continue to torment
himself by living with a fantasy that would never become reality
unless she saw things his way. He’d watched Jamie fooling herself
into believing she and Brent would find their way back to each
other. Her stubbornness had resulted in heartbreak, and he refused
to make the same mistake.

She sighed
before settling against his chest. “You know me too well, Rea.
You’ve seen me at my worst. I don’t know why you still talk to me.
If you were smart, you would have cut me loose a long time
ago.”

“You forget,
I’ve also seen you at your best,” he said, kissing the top of her
head. “And that’s most of the time.”

Jamie was a
perfectionist, and she often judged herself too harshly. In school,
she’d worked hard to be the best student. In her career, she worked
tirelessly to be the best architect. For a brief moment in time,
when his life seemed perfect, she’d worked hard to be the best
girlfriend. Jamie didn’t seem to realize she was already
perfect.

He heard her
sniffle, and he slid his hand into her hair to tilt her head back.
“Hey, why’re you crying, baby?”

“I’m sorry.”
She tried to turn her head away, but he wouldn’t let her. “I just
love you so much. I know I don’t tell you that often enough, but
it’s true.”

If only she
could love him the way he needed her to. “I love you too, but
that’s no reason to cry.” He brushed her tears away. “Come on now,
no more tears.”

“I don’t want
to lose you, E.”

Eli felt the
same way. He’d had a full life--a career he loved, dates every
other night, lots of friends, and a great family--but without her,
there had been a gaping hole nothing could fill. “I’m not going
anywhere.”

“Yes, you are.
You’re gonna meet someone who’s perfect for you. You really think
she’s gonna want you to be best friends with your crazy
ex-girlfriend?”

Eli had already
tried putting some distance between them. Being around her, given
the way he felt, wasn’t good for him, but he couldn’t imagine
cutting her out of his life completely. “You have nothing to worry
about, honey. I’ll always be there for you.”

“You say that
now, but you don’t mean it.” She looked sweet and vulnerable as
fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. “You think you do. But you
can’t put your relationship with me before the woman you plan to
marry. That wouldn’t be fair.”

“We’ll work it
out.” He didn’t want to think about choosing, especially when there
wasn’t really a choice to make. Jamie still owned every little
piece of his heart, and he didn’t know to share himself with anyone
else, no matter how perfect they may seem.

“Where were you
tonight?” she asked.

“I had a date.”
He’d always been honest with her about his dates, hoping she would
confide in him as well. She hadn’t dated much, and he selfishly
preferred it that way. He wanted them to be honest with each other,
but he didn’t really want to hear about her spending time with
other men.

“What was she
like?”

“She’s nice.”
Jamie seemed to be waiting for more, so he said, “Pretty.”

“That goes
without saying. She wasn’t another puck bunny, was she?”

He laughed.
“No, definitely not. She’s a lawyer.”

She frowned.
“How’d you meet her?”

“Ava introduced
us. I asked her to help me find someone. She did. No big deal.”

Jamie stepped
out of his arms, looking stunned. “Let me get this straight… Ava’s
trying to help you find a wife?”

He didn’t
expect that reaction and wondered whether she was just being overly
emotional because of the alcohol. “Uh, if things work out… I
guess.”

Her face
crumpled. “It wasn’t enough she took Brent? She has to take you
away from me too?” She turned away from Eli and weaved through the
crowed until she found Nellie at the bar. They exchanged a few
words before Nellie pulled Jamie into her arms.

What the hell
was that about?

Jamie felt marginally
better by the time they dropped Nellie off at her apartment. She
still couldn’t believe Eli was actively looking for a wife. She
knew he would meet someone eventually; she’d just expected to have
more time to prepare. She didn’t expect the news to hit her so
hard. She stole a glance at Eli. He was so handsome. It was no
wonder women made fools of themselves trying to capture his
attention. “So do you like her?” she asked.

“Who?” He
turned down the radio so he could focus on her.

He was always
so attentive. Would she ever find another man who listened to her
the way he did? “The woman Ava set you up with… do you like
her?”