Jackson’s Jewel

Chapter Nineteen

It was a very different scene a few days later when Emerald got out of her car and stared at the blackened remains of the barn. Her life had changed irrevocably, but the world still moved on.

Jackson had stayed with her the first night, but then she’d felt him pulling away from her. He’d only had to stay overnight for observation and the next morning he was gone, citing his need to be back on the farm. She understood it, truly she did. It was September and the harvest was now in full swing. Jackson was working day and night trying to pick up the pieces of his life.

The authorities had interviewed them both separately and the police back in New York had found all kinds of evidence of Derek’s obsession with her in his apartment. She’d demanded all the details, needing to know in order to cope with her ordeal.

Her parents and sisters had descended on the hospital the next day, creating quite a stir in Meadows. They were all staying at the B&B in town until she was well enough to leave.

Her mother had cried and hugged her; her father had stared at her with a sad look in his eyes that had her bursting into tears. He’d gathered her into his strong arms, telling her everything was all right even as he admonished her for not telling them about the stalker. Her sisters hovered, showering her with love and attention.

Her family had met Nathan, Carly, Erin and Abel, but Jackson was conspicuous by his absence. She made excuses, but she could see the questions in her parents’ and sisters’ eyes. Thankfully, none of them asked any. She wasn’t sure she’d have any answers.

Emerald was grateful that her car had been parked in the newer barn or it would have gone up in flames, and that Erin had been kind enough to collect it and drive it into town. Her new friend had figured that she might want her own transportation and Erin had been right.

This was one trip that Emerald insisted on making alone. She was hoping to see Jackson for herself and talk to him. She loved him and wanted to stay. But after what happened, she wasn’t sure how he felt. He’d been injured and almost killed, his home damaged, lost his barn, had his livelihood threatened and had been forced to almost kill a man. All for a woman he’d met only a few weeks before. She wouldn’t blame him if he couldn’t wait to see the last of her.

That’s why she was here.

She straightened her sundress, smoothing out nonexistent wrinkles, and started toward the house. The screen door pushed open and Jackson stepped out. She stopped, just drinking in the sight of him. From the tip of his scuffed boots to the tips of his reddish-brown hair, he appeared even more ruggedly handsome than she remembered. He was wearing faded blue jeans and a T-shirt, which was his normal work wear, but he made it look incredible.

His sky-blue eyes narrowed as he examined her from head to toe. Her body tingled, her nipples tightened. If she’d been wearing panties, they would have been damp, but she was naked beneath the dress. It had a built-in bra and that was good enough. She had plans. She only hoped Jackson would cooperate.

Her heart was pounding, her palms sweating as she took a few steps closer to the house. It was ridiculous to feel nervous all of a sudden, but she was. These next few moments were crucial to the rest of her life.

“How are you feeling?” She shivered as his voice washed over her like a gentle caress.

She licked her dry lips. “I’m good. How about you?”

He stood there as still as a statue, his wide shoulders straining the seams of his shirt and the soft fabric of his jeans molded to the thick muscles in his thighs. “I’m fine.” His face showed no emotion as he continued to watch her.

“Do you have a minute to talk?” How polite they were. Watching them, you’d never know that they’d had hot, sweaty sex many times before. They were acting like strangers who’d just met.

“Sure.” He motioned her toward the porch swing.

Emerald wiped her hands on her skirt as she strode forward. Ever the gentleman, Jackson seated her first. He towered over her for a moment before lowering himself to the bench seat beside her.

She slid off her low-heeled sandals and pushed gently. The swing began to sway. With his eyes, Jackson tracked her bare feet and up her calves until they disappeared beneath the hem of her dress.

“What will happen with the barn?” There was a large blank space where the structure had stood.

“I’ll rebuild something smaller and more efficient. The old barn was too big and not very economical anyway.” He shrugged as if it were no big deal.

“Will your insurance cover it and all the equipment inside?” She knew he’d lost a tractor in the blaze and that kind of thing cost big money. She clenched her hands in her lap. The monetary aspect of things had worried her while she’d been laid up in hospital.

His lips thinned, and she could see the muscles in his jaw twitching as he clenched it tight. “Money is not a problem.” He glanced at his watch. “Is there anything else? I have to get back to work.”

Emerald’s stomach jerked. This was not going as she’d planned and now he was angry with her. Sighing, she took a deep breath and plunged forward. “What about us?”

His booted foot came down heavy on the porch as he stopped the swing from moving. He stared off into the distance, not looking at her. “What about us?”

A light breeze brushed her skin and teased the ends of her hair. A crow cried out as it pitched low in the air before swooping upward again. A bee buzzed as it went from flower to flower in the planter on the edge of the porch. Emerald wasn’t quite sure what to say to that. She swallowed the lump in her throat. “You’re going to pretend that nothing happened between us.”

Jackson swore and dragged his hands through his hair before swiveling on the swing to face her. “Damn it, Emerald. What do you want me to say? It was great. It was fun. But we both know that you have a life back in New York and the only reason you’re here is because of your stalker. That threat is gone now, so I guess it’s time for you to go home.”

Anger bubbled and boiled inside her. How dare he try to reduce what they’d shared together. “So it was fun, was it?”

“Yes, it was. Did you think it was more?” For the first time ever, she couldn’t get a read on Jackson. It was as if he’d closed himself off from her. She wasn’t having it.

“Silly of me if I did, isn’t it? If it was fun.” She put all the emphasis on the last word. “Then we should finish what we started in the bedroom the night of the barn fire.” With righteous fury guiding her, her fingers went to the buttons at the front of her dress and began sliding them from their holes. If it was a good time he wanted, she’d give him one he’d never forget.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“What does it look like?” The dress was open to her waist, exposing her naked breasts. Turning suddenly, she threw her leg over his thighs, straddling him. His hands gripped her waist, holding her steady as she grabbed the sides of his head and yanked him closer. “I’m having fun.” She slammed her mouth down on his.

For a moment he didn’t move. The heat of embarrassment began to fill her. Oh God, she was making an absolute fool of herself. Then he groaned, his fingers tightening around her waist as he hauled her closer.

His lips ground against hers as he devoured her mouth. His tongue plunged past her teeth, tasting and stroking. Her hands slid from his head down to his broad shoulders. She wanted his shirt gone. Needed to feel his warm skin beneath her fingers.

Jerking the material up, they broke the kiss long enough for her to drag his shirt over his head and toss it aside. Jackson tangled his fingers in her hair, dragging her back down so he could nibble and lick at her mouth. She felt as if he were eating her alive. All her doubts disappeared beneath the growing heat. There was no denying the explosive connection that existed between them.

“Jackson,” she gasped his name when he trailed hot, open-mouthed kisses down her throat. He licked at her collarbone. Her thighs clenched around his. Her pussy was hot and wet, aching for him to fill it.

“You are so damn beautiful.” His voice was gruff and ragged as he tore at the remaining buttons on her dress. One of them clattered to the porch floor as he gave one final tug. The dress parted, exposing her totally to his view. Her breasts were heavy with desire, her nipples puckered into tight, rosy nubs. She took a deep breath and they swayed. Jackson cupped them in his hands and buried his face between them.

Emerald clutched at his shoulders, feeling the tenseness of his muscles. She arched forward, pressing her mound against the bulge in his jeans. They both moaned at the pressure. She did it again, undulating her hips in a pleasing rhythm.

“Emerald, you have to stop or I’m going to come in my pants.” Jackson was panting hard now, his chest rising and falling with each harsh breath.

“I don’t care,” she muttered. She was past caring. It had been days since she’d even laid eyes on him and she needed to touch him, to reconnect with him, to feel him beneath her hands. Part of her loved the fact that he seemed to be as vulnerable to her touch as she was to his.

He growled low in his throat as his lips latched on to one of her nipples, drawing it into his mouth as he began to suckle. Emerald cried out, dragging her hands down his chest, gently scraping his flat brown nipples with her nails. His entire body jerked and he tore his mouth from her body.

Reaching between them, he ripped open his jeans and shoved his underwear aside. His cock sprang forward, hot and ready. She grasped his shaft in her hands, pumping them up and down. The plum-shaped head was dark and engorged with blood. The veins that ran down the thick length pulsed against her palm, and as she pumped, a bead of whitish liquid seeped from the slit. She wanted to taste it but settled for spreading it over the tip with her thumb.

Jackson dipped his fingers between her thighs, a deep rumble of pleasure coming from him when he touched her damp heat. She tilted back her head and cried out as he stroked two of his fingers into her core and then dragged them back out again.

“More,” she demanded as she squeezed his cock.

Jackson grabbed her hips and lifted her until she was up on her knees. Using her grip on him, she guided him to her. The thick head of his erection squeezed past her opening. She loved the way he stretched her each time he entered her. It was tight, but he fit as if they’d been made especially for each other.

Cupping his face in her hands, she watched his expression as she slowly lowered herself onto his cock. He hissed out a breath from between clenched teeth. His blue eyes flickered with the flames of lust, searing their expression onto her soul.

When she was seated as far as she could go, she wiggled her hips and managed to take him even deeper.

“Hold on to me.” She had no idea what he planned to do, but she trusted him implicitly. Grabbing on to his shoulders, she held on tight.

She felt his right thigh flex and then the swing began to move. Emerald wrapped her hands around his neck, twining her fingers together as Jackson clasped her hips in his hands and began to guide her.

As the swing moved forward, he dragged her close. As the swing drew back, he held her away from him, his cock sliding out until only the head remained inside. This time when the swing came forward, he drove back in hard and deep. Emerald cried out as fire shot from her core to flood the rest of her body.

She began to work with Jackson, catching the rhythm, anticipating each swing. Using his right foot, he kept the swing moving at a slow and steady pace. Emerald writhed in his arms, panting and moaning as desire spiraled higher and higher within her.

A light sheen of perspiration covered her body and Jackson’s shoulders were slick beneath her hands as she stroked them. She felt the familiar contractions begin deep in her womb. Her inner muscles flexing and relaxing. Getting tighter. Tighter.

Jackson slipped one of his hands between her legs and stroked her swollen clitoris. That was all it took to drive her over the edge. Her hips jerked, slamming forward, driving him deep and hard. Contractions rippled through her core, squeezing his cock tight.

She felt the flood of his seed as it filled her, the hot jets of semen pumping through his shaft and into her body. Her inner muscles tightened around him, wringing moans from both of them. Aftershocks were still pulsing through her when she collapsed forward.

Jackson’s strong arms came around her. There was almost a desperate feel in the way he held her so tight that she could barely breathe. Wrapped in each other’s arms, neither of them spoke. As the minutes ticked by, Emerald could feel the closeness slipping away and she didn’t know what to do to hold it.

Knowing she couldn’t stay like this forever, she slowly pushed herself upright. She bit her lip to keep from crying out as the move made his still semi-erect cock flex within her.

Jackson swore and eased himself from her. “We didn’t use a condom.” His voice was flat.

Flustered now that the heat of passion was past, Emerald grabbed the edges of her dress together and began to button them. “It’s okay. I’m on the Pill and I’ve never had sex without a condom before so you don’t have to worry about disease.” She fastened several buttons, not looking at him. It was cowardly, but she didn’t want to face him until she was covered again.

“I’m clean too. I’ve never had sex without a condom. I knew it felt too damn good.”

She stopped what she was doing and scrambled out of his lap. His hands tightened briefly and for a split second she thought he might pull her back into his lap. But the moment passed and he let her go.

His eyes tracked down her body as she stood and she realized that the bottom of her dress was still askew, revealing her damp, glistening pubic hair. Twitching the dress closed, she fastened a few more of buttons, ignoring the one that was missing near the bottom. When she looked back at him, he’d just finished fastening his jeans. She felt hot, sticky and uncomfortable, but Jackson barely had a hair out of place. Leaning back against the swing with his shirt off, he appeared cool and composed.

“There’s nothing for you to worry about.” The heat from his eyes had faded, replaced by the cool, closed expression he’d had when she’d first arrived. “So where does this leave us?” She locked her knees and fisted her hands in her skirt to hide their trembling.

His eyes narrowed as he pushed out of the swing. She took a step back. A muscle twitched beneath his eye as he stared at her. “Right where we started.” He bent down and snagged his T-shirt, turning it right side out before pulling it back over his head. “It was fun, Emerald. It was great. But we both know that your life isn’t here on this farm. Your work, your life is in New York.”

Emerald felt curiously detached as she watched him, a peculiar numbness coming over her. Her heart felt as if it had shattered into little pieces. He wasn’t going to ask her to stay. Didn’t want her to stay. She’d gone into this knowing there were no promises or guarantees, but God how it hurt.

It wasn’t his fault that she’d fallen in love with him, but he didn’t love her. Like he’d said, they’re both adults and they had a good time together. Now it was over. She wouldn’t make a scene even if it killed her. He’d saved her life for heaven’s sake. The least she could do was get out of his life and let him rebuild what her coming had shattered.

“I’ll pack my things and go.”

Jackson nodded. “That’s probably for the best.” He opened his mouth as if he might say more, but closed it again. The muscles in his jaw were tight and his hands were fisted as he stalked away from her. He stopped at the bottom of the steps and for a second she hoped and prayed that he might turn around and come back to her. One word from him and she was ready to admit that she loved him and wanted to stay.

Tension surrounded them. Emerald could almost feel an invisible thread between them, holding them together. Then it snapped as Jackson thumped down the steps and hurried across the yard. He didn’t look back.

She watched him until he disappeared from sight, swallowed up by the orchard. Tears filled her eyes, slowly overflowing and trailing down her cheeks. Swiping at them, she shuffled into the house. The room she’d stayed in had escaped most of the damage from the kitchen fire, but it had been cleaned and aired. Emerald yanked her bag out of the closet and began to stuff her clothing into it. It didn’t take her long. Her laptop was gone, destroyed in the explosion, but she’d get another. She still had her sketchbook with all her original drawings and ideas. Not that she’d ever forget the farm or the man who lived here.

Dragging her bags out to her car, she threw them into the trunk and slammed it shut. She went into the house one last time and walked through it. Standing in the doorway to Jackson’s room, she stared at the chair where he’d held her so tenderly while he’d fed her. Her eyes strayed to the bed and her feet moved forward as if some unseen force were propelling her.

She sat down on the bed and inhaled, dragging Jackson’s unique outdoorsy scent into her lungs. A shirt was tossed onto the end of the bed and she picked it up, bringing it to her nose and sniffing. It smelled like him. Standing, she tucked the shirt beneath her arm and left. Her bare feet made no sound on the stairs as she padded down to the main floor. She ignored the fresh, new kitchen as she strode through it, didn’t stop to admire the brand-new maple trestle table situated in the center of the room. Tears pricked her eyes, but she wiped them away.

She was alive and her stalker had been caught. That was all that mattered. She’d shared an incredible few weeks with an exceptional man and now it was over. It was time to move on with her life.

Tilting her chin up, she walked out of the farmhouse and closed the door behind her. Stopping long enough to snag her sandals, she hurried to her car without looking at the porch swing. Emerald slid into the front seat of her car, shut the door and turned on the ignition in one smooth motion. She backed the car away from the house and headed down the road, refusing to look in the rearview mirror as she drove away.

Jackson watched from the edge of the tree line as Emerald left the house for the last time and got into her car. His fingers dug into the trunk of the tree to keep from running to her and dragging her back inside. He didn’t want her to go, but he had no right to keep her here.

Their relationship had been intense because of the circumstances that had brought them together. But he knew that her life was not here. She was a city girl, reared in a famous family. Her family and her career were in New York. He was a farm boy through and through and could never be happy anywhere else.

These past few weeks had been the best of his life. Emerald had filled a void he hadn’t even known existed until she’d arrived. Smart, funny and beautiful, she’d brought joy and sunshine to his mundane existence. There was no doubt in his mind that he loved her. He could easily picture growing old with her, rearing a family together. But that wasn’t in the cards.

He loved her enough to let her go.

He knew himself well and knew there would never be another woman for him. Emerald, with her curly black hair and her gypsy looks was the one for him. Any other woman would pale in comparison.

As the car pulled away, he took a step forward, reaching out his hand as if he could somehow stop her. He blinked as his eyes began to sting. It was only dirt on the breeze, he assured himself as he dragged his hand over his eyes. As the car disappeared from view, he turned and slowly trudged back to work.