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him standing behind me.

Chapter Three
    JAX
    I forgot to get her name. Damn. I’d been so fascinated with her and her responses I hadn’t gotten her name. I knew the guy’s name was Mark or Matt or Marcus. Hell, I couldn’t remember. I was just glad she wasn’t with him. Not that it mattered. It wasn’t like I was going to make a move on her.
    When I’d seen her earlier outside my room, I’d thought she was going to have to go. I’d hated the idea of it even then because she was gorgeous, but I’d been with enough gorgeous girls to know that they could also be crazy as hell. This one didn’t want me. I was pretty sure she didn’t even like me. That was a . . . strange, yet refreshing, change.
    For the first time in years I wanted a girl to like me. My brother would tell me I was losing my mind when he got here. The sexy slant to those blue eyes of hers and the body that the outfit she was wearing hadn’t been able to conceal wouldn’t get to Jason. When it came to girls, he didn’t trust many. He was cautious with who he chose to date. It wasn’t just a pretty face that got his attention. He needed reassurance they weren’t after him just to get to me.
    When I walked into my bedroom, I made my way over to the window overlooking the front yard. I didn’t want to think I was looking to see if she was leaving . . . but I was. Admitting it or not, I was looking for the girl.
    SADIE
    Marcus was standing in the kitchen, drinking sweet tea and talking to Ms. Mary. He stood when he saw me. “Well, how did it go?”
    “He thought I was a fan who slid in through the cracks, and he wanted to know how I did it. I informed him that I had replaced my mother because of her pregnancy, I wasn’t a fan, and I didn’t realize this house belonged to him when I took the job.”
    Marcus frowned. “How did he take your explanation?”
    “I don’t think there will be any problem now that he knows I’m not a crazy fan about to slip him my number on a dinner napkin. I doubt he notices my existence from now on.”
    Marcus raised his eyebrows as if he didn’t believe me.
    Ms. Mary walked forward and took the tray from my hands. “Good. I knew you were gonna work out just fine. Now go change out of your uniform and head on home. You won’t be expected in until seven in the morning.”
    I hurried to the laundry room. Once I’d changed back into my own clothing, I headed for the door. Ms. Mary hummed while she cleaned, and Marcus stood leaning against the door, waiting.
    “It’s late. Did you drive or walk?” he asked when I got to the door.
    “I rode my bike.”
    He opened the door, and we walked out into the night together. “Let me put it in the bed of my truck and take you home.” He genuinely seemed worried about me.
    “Okay, thank you.”
    Once we were both in the truck, I relaxed and leaned back on the worn leather seat. “So, how long have you worked at the Stone mansion?”
    He looked over at me. “I just started last summer. I only work summers here. I’m a local, but I’m currently attending the University of Alabama. This is a summer job for me.”
    “It’s obviously just a summer job for me, too. I will begin my senior year this fall. We just moved here from Tennessee.”
    We sat in silence for a few minutes, and I watched out the window as families walked down the sidewalks, still in their beach clothing. I’d never seen the beach before we moved here. I couldn’t help but be fascinated, catching glimpses of the waves crashing on the sandy shore.
    “You seem so much older than a senior in high school. In fact, you’re more mature than most girls I go to school with.”
    I smiled to myself.
If he only knew.
But tonight wasn’t the night to unload my life story on someone who just might turn out to be a real friend. “I know. I have always been an old woman in a kid’s body. It drives my mother crazy.”
    “I wouldn’t call you an old woman, just more mature than the average seventeen-year-old