Clean

Jamie walked across the lawn, heading towards the music, blasting out of Bree’s open garage door. It had been a few days since the barbecue, since he’d seen her last and he’d been busy catching up with family and friends. When he’d pulled into his parents driveway he’d heard the music and decided to see what she could possibly be up to in there. He found her elbow deep in a cardboard box, pulling out papers and tossing them into piles.

“Hello?” he interrupted, watched her jump in surprise whipping around to face him.

“Oh hey!” Bree smiled turning the music down as he walked into the garage. “Its not too loud is it?”

“No I just heard the music so I thought I’d come see what you were up to.”

He knew she was alone in the house, had been for a few months and he never saw anyone come or go that wasn’t delivering food.

“That’s sweet but I’m fine.” She tossed another box of garbage down in her trash pile and wiped her hands down her jeans. “How are you?”

“I’m good.”

“Going stir-crazy yet?” she laughed. “Maybe a little cabin fever?”

“Not yet but the summer is only starting.” He smiled at her. “So what are you doing here?”

Whatever it was it looked like she’d been at it for a long while.

“I’m just cleaning out junk since my grandparents have hoarding tendencies.”

“You want some help?”

Bree snorted at his offer, wiping her hands down the front of her jeans again.

“You can’t be that desperate for something to do.”

“Well you look like you could use all the help you can get.”

He looked around at the three individual piles spread around the garage floor, at the boxes stacked higher then she could reach, she must have been going at this for hours.

“How about I make you a deal.” Jamie negotiated. “I’ll help you out if you’ll do something for me later.”

“I don’t like how open-ended that sounds.” Bree laughed. “I hope this isn’t how you negotiate your contracts.”

“I’ve got an agent for that.”

“Good cause your terrible at it.” She teased looking around the garage. She’d been at this all day and hadn’t even realized how late it was till now; it had to be nearing dinnertime.

“Okay Jamie, name your price?”

“Dinner once we’re done.”

So he would help her get rid of this stuff and then they’d have dinner together?

“I hardly see what you get out of this.”

“I get to spend time with you without anyone interrupting us.”

“And you’re considering that repayment?”

“I am.”

“Well then come on in.”

He followed her into the garage, dodging boxes on the ground and nearly knocked into her when she turned suddenly. She didn’t say anything, just looked at him till he was self-conscious of just about anything he could think of.

“What?” he asked.

“I appreciate you helping me but something is bothering me.”

“What’s that?”

“Well first of all you can’t wear that in this house.”

Bree reached up before he could even react, pulling the black on black New York Yankees cap off his head. This was a hardcore Toronto Blue Jays house and if her grandfather had seen this he would be rolling in his grave.

“And second of all?”

She watched him push his hair back into place; between that and the amused smile plastered across his face she felt her stomach flair into full on butterflies.

“There is no second of all.” She confessed. “That offensive hat just really needed to go.”

Bree pressed it into his chest, holding it there till he reached down and took it from her. He contemplated putting it back on to see what she’d do but then decided against it, slipping it into the back pocket of his shorts. Their dynamic was so different now and he was pretty sure she was flirting with him.

“So where do you need me?” he asked and automatically her mind short-circuited. A question like that could really get her into some serious trouble.

“Umm can you reach those boxes up there?” she pointed to a taller shelf where a few boxes sat and watched as he turned his back to her. Slowly the muscles bunched and flexed in his shoulders and arms as he pulled them down and her mouth went dry. She could watch him do that all day, maybe at the gym, maybe shirtless…

“Bree?”

His voice knocked her back down to earth and instantly she felt the heat flair into her cheeks. What in gods name was wrong with her?

“Yeah?”

The smile on his face told her that he knew he’d caught her off guard and he didn’t particularly look like he minded.

“I said where do you want these?”

“Oh over there, just by that pile please.”

She turned her back to him as he moved away, dropping the boxes into a corner and when he turned back he looked over at her. Her hair was tucked behind her ears, held back with some kind of pin exposing the long line of her neck and the slope of her exposed shoulder. The neck hole of the shirt she was wearing dipped down, exposing a brightly colored tattoo covering her left shoulder. From his vantage point it looked like a flower or a cluster of them. He wanted to know about it. What it meant? If she had more he just couldn’t see.

“You want me to take all these down?”

He watched her, when she turned her head to look at him the ends of her hair brushed over her shoulder, slipping off that tattoo and curling around her shoulder.

“Yeah please.” She started. “I have no idea what’s in them so you’ve been warned.”

Some of these boxes had to have been here for years. She’d found years of stuff she’d sent and made her grandparents when she was younger, pictures, crafts, letters, they’d kept it all.

“Consider me warned.”

He pulled down the last of the boxes she wasn’t able to reach and then flipped open its lid.

“Bingo.” He shouted pulling out the nearly new pair of bright white figure skates. Bree saw them in his hands and took them from him.

“Leave it to you to find these.”

Jamie reached out taking them back from her, testing the edge of the blade with his finger. These hadn’t been used in years and when they had been they definitely hadn’t been sharp enough.

“I don’t think I ever remember seeing you with those.”

“That’s because I’m a terrible skater, like the worst ever.”

Her parents had put her into lessons like most kids but even after a year she’d been so bad that she hadn’t wanted to go back. So she’d quit and barely skated since then. She’d gotten these skates when she was a teenager cause the boy she’d liked had wanted to take her and it had gone about as bad as expected.

“I don’t think I have the center of gravity for it.”

“Ill teach you.”

“Many have tried Jamie.” She started. “None have succeeded, not even professionals.”

“Well that sounds like a challenge if I’ve ever heard one.”

“I don’t know…” Bree hesitated. “I don’t wanna be responsible if I take you down and you break an arm or something.”

“I can handle you.”

“Okay but if something happens to you don’t send those angry fans after me.”

It was the middle of the summer so she wasn’t taking his threat too seriously but if somehow he really wanted to try, well it was his funeral. Bree took the skates back from him, putting them in the pile of stuff she planned on keeping before she moved back to the boxes she’d been assembling. Everything was quiet for a moment, just the low hum from the radio and the breeze from out the door as they worked side-by-side. By the time they’d gotten everything cleaned up and the food ordered it was late into the night. Jamie dropped onto the couch looking down at the various containers of takeout littered across the coffee table.

“You know when I said dinner this is not what I meant.”

“But you didn’t fight it either.”

No he hadn’t and when the food had shown up he hadn’t paid for it either. She’d beaten him to it and when he’d tried to pay her back she’d shook him off incessantly. It was stupid and minimal but it was the first time a girl had ever paid for him, even something as trivial as takeout. He watched as Bree sank down into the couch next to him, tucking her legs under her body as she dragged her plate into her lap.

“So tell me about you life.”

“What do you want to know?”

“I don’t know.” She shrugged. “Tell me about Dallas.”

“Dallas is great.” He explained. “They treat me well, I’ve made a bunch of friends, weathers nice.”

He had nothing to complain about as far as the organization went. Sure he wanted them to be more competitive, to win more games, to have more people actually show up; to be as good as he knew they could be but that would come.

“And you get to play with your brother, that’s kinda cool.”

“Yeah it is.”

“And your mom told me last time she was there she met a very nice girl you were seeing.” Bree bragged. “Where is she?”

“In Dallas I guess.”

“Oh.”

That didn’t sound like it ended well.

“I’m not seeing anyone.” Jamie shrugged. “Not for a while.”

And he was a little embarrassed that his mother had said otherwise.

“So you talk to my mom a lot?”

“Not too much.” Bree answered shifting her body. “She asked me to keep an eye on the house while they were gone.”

And when his parents had come back they’d taken her out to dinner to thank her. That’s when she’d learned about the girl his mother had labeled, not good enough for her son and Bree hadn’t asked for details.

“What about you?”

“What about me?” she played coy taking a bite of her food.

He gave her that look, the one that said she knew exactly what he was asking about but she wanted to hear him say the words. No way was she jumping to conclusions then looking like an idiot.

“Are you seeing anyone? No husband or boyfriend back home?”

“I’m not seeing anyone.” She mimicked. “Not for a while.”

Not in years actually but he didn’t need to know that.

“Good to know.”

“Oh yeah?”

He nodded without saying a word but Bree could see the color rising up his neck, whatever he was thinking of was making him a little uncomfortable and now she really wanted to know what it could be. She watched as he started to eat his food and then did the same. After a few minutes of sitting side by side in silence he blinked first.

“You know I used to have the biggest crush on you when we were kids.”

That was probably the most embarrassing thing he could admit to her but he wanted her to know. After years of not seeing her he was going to take every opportunity he could, he was already out on a limb he might as well take the leap.

“Your brother used to always say that to me.”

“And you didn’t believe him?”

“Well it is Jordie.”

He’d never lied to her but if there was one thing he liked to do more then anything it was tease Jamie and he’d always used her as the catalyst.

“Well its true.”

He shrugged putting his plate down. It was true then and it was still true now, just in the last few days he’d felt those feelings bubble up again but he wanted to make sure it wasn’t just residual.

“You were always so sweet, a little quiet but once I got you started...” She smiled remembering him then. “Its hard for me to connect you then and now.”

He was more forward now, certainly more confident but there were still small parts of him that were the same. The guy who approached her the last few days, who’d initiated conversations and had just told her he’d liked her was a one eighty from the boy she knew.

“Are you saying I’m not sweet anymore?”

“Oh no, I’m sure you still are.” She confirmed with a laugh. “But for very different reasons.”

“I don’t know what you’re taking about.”

“Play innocent all you want big boy but I’m smarter then you think.”

They finished their dinner in relative silence, the hum of the TV in background and just as she was about to get up and collect the dished he stopped her with a question.

“What are you doing tomorrow?”

“Ill probably go see my grandmother tomorrow afternoon.” She answered. “Not a whole lot before or after.”

“If I pick you up can you be ready by 5?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Great so I’ll pick you up tomorrow morning?”

Wait did he just say morning?

“Morning?!” she gulped. “Like 5 AM, in the morning?”

“Unless you’ve got something else to do.”

“You mean besides sleeping?”

“It’ll be worth it, I promise.”

“Alright.” she conceded. “But you owe me breakfast.”

“Deal.”

She had no idea what was up his sleeve but she was definitely curious now.

“Well get out then.” She joked pulling him up off the couch and shoving him towards the door. “I should have been in bed hours ago if you want me up at that hour.”

He laughed letting her momentum push him, feeling her small hands pushing into the hollow of his lower back as she guided him to the door. It felt nice, the only way it could be better was if her hands were his skin. He could only imagine how soft they really were.

“Alright, alright I’m going.” He held his hand up in surrender. “Just make sure your ready on time.”

“I will.”

He pushed the door open, turning back to look at her.

“Thanks for helping me today Jamie.”

She said his name a lot and for some reason he loved hearing it come out of her lips.

“Your welcome.”

Bree looked over at his hand braced on the doorframe, followed the intricate tattoos patterned up his forearm and into the peaks and valleys of his bicep where they disappeared beneath the sleeve of his t-shirt. Physically he’d changed so much but inside there was still so much of that warm, gooey center she’d always loved so much about him. Despite his success, despite the money she was sure he had and the women she was sure threw themselves at him he was still that sweet, sometimes quiet boy she remembered. The strong and silent type, with an emphasis on strong.

He looked so very strong…

Before she saw it coming she felt his lips on hers, his hands sliding into her hair. Tunneling the silky strands between his fingers he used his size to his advantage pulling her as close as he could. Her lips were so soft that he sank into them and this close he could smell coconut coming off her skin. It was everything he wanted and he hoped to god she didn’t slap him when he pulled away. When her hand brushed his elbow he moved and she looked up at him but didn’t say anything and that’s when he started to feel like an idiot, like he’d misread this whole situation.

“Sorry I…”

There was no way she was letting him finish. Bree reached up, on the tips of her toes and pulled him back down to her lips. She thought it might be awkward or even a little weird at first but it wasn’t any of those things. His lips were firm and sure and his hands on her hips told her he knew exactly what he was doing. He smelled so good this close, like a perfect balance of clean laundry and expensive cologne. When he pulled back this time he looked down at her with the biggest grin she’d ever seen.

“I’ve wanted to do that since I was thirteen.”

She burst into laughter and pushed him the rest of the way through the door.

“Goodbye Jamie.”

“Ill see you in a few hours.”

Bree nodded then shut the door firmly behind her. When she leaned against the door she could feel her heart racing, could feel her blood pounding and when she reached up, brushing her fingers against her lips she could feel how swollen they were. Wow, she thought moving towards the staircase, getting to sleep tonight was not going to be easy.

Notes

Your guys are amazing and your feedback is awesome and I love you all!

I was hoping to get this chapter up a little sooner but as always life got in the way haha So I made it extra long for you guys, enjoy!