Rising from the Ashes by Jessica Prince Page A

the past seven years?”
    I leaned my head against the glass and squeezed my eyes shut. “With an iron will.”
    She started laughing on the other end of the phone. “How’s that working out for ya right now?”
    “Well, considering I’m two seconds from knocking his ass out just so I can take advantage of him, I’d say not so good.”
    “So, he’s still leaving you hot and bothered every night?” she asked, still chuckling.
    I wanted to reach through the phone and choke her out.
    “Yes, he is. And it’s really starting to piss me the hell off.”
    “Oh, someone’s edgy when she isn’t getting laid.”
    I let out a low growl. “It’s not just that. It’s the fact that he insists on turning me on almost every friggin’ day, and then he leaves me high and dry. If I had balls, they’d be blue as a fucking Smurf right now.”
    That set Lizzy off into a fit of hysterics. I couldn’t appreciate the humor in my situation at the moment.
    “I’m serious, Lizzy! Maybe I should roofie him. Can guys still get it up when they take that shit?”
    “Why don’t we try to stay away from the felonies? Have you tried something simple like, I don’t know, maybe seducing him?” She said it like I was an idiot for not coming up with that plan already.
    A light bulb went off, and I knew exactly what I had to do. “Lizzy, I gotta go.”
    “It’s about damn time you pulled your head outta your ass!” she shouted right before I disconnected the call.
    Armed with a plan, I ran to my bedroom and started stripping out of my ratty sweats, and then I went on the hunt for the perfect outfit. Five minutes later, I headed out to my front yard just as Jeremy was finishing up. If we lived anywhere other than Texas, my plan wouldn’t have worked. It was one of the only times I was thankful for Texas weather.
    I spread my beach towel out on the freshly cut grass, and began rubbing sunscreen onto my bikini-clad body. Thank God I’d never been all that modest about my body, or I might not have been able to pull this off. After I was properly SPFed, I slid my sunglasses on, stuck my earbuds in my ears, scrolled through my playlist for The Neighbourhood, and lay back, propping one knee up in an attempt to look sexy yet casual at the same time.
    After about five minutes, I started to doubt my plan when Jeremy hadn’t made his way over to jump my bones, but then a large shadow spread over me, blocking out the sun. I lifted my sunglasses and saw Jeremy standing above me, wearing a knowing grin. Without a word, he reached down for the glass of iced tea I’d sat next to me and guzzled it.
    “Thirsty?” I asked with a sassy smile.
    He gave me a crooked smile and laughed. “Yeah, just a little.”
    I propped myself up on my elbows and crossed my feet at my ankles. “Kinda hot for November, isn’t it?”
    “Seeing as you’re lying there in a bikini, I’d say, yeah, it is.”
    Why isn’t he all over me yet?
    “You know”—he took a seat beside me on the grass and lay back with his hands behind his head—“I know what you’re doing, and it’s not gonna work.”
    Shit.
    I could feel a blush creeping up my neck to my cheeks. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I lied. “I’m just trying to get a little sun.”
    “Sugar, all you have to do to get me to sleep with you is say four little words. We. Are. A. Couple. It’s not that hard.”
    I let out a huff and lay back down, completely defeated that my plan hadn’t worked. The asshole was even more stubborn than I was! I didn’t know that was possible. “Is it a crime for a girl to work on her tan?” I replied testily.
    Jeremy stood, and to my displeasure, pulled his shirt from his waistband and put it on. “Jesus, you’re stubborn, woman!”
    I shot to my feet, full of not-so-righteous indignation. “Look who’s talking, asshole! You kiss me like you want to fuck me every damn time you see me, but you absolutely refuse to make a move. What do I have to do?