When it hit two o’clock, I’d gone past feeling bad about being angry and was just plain mad. What the hell was he doing with her at two o’clock in the morning?
I shot to my feet. “I’m going to go,” I muttered, grabbing my coat.
“I’ll walk you,” Lowe insisted.
“No, it’s fine. It’s two minutes away.”
“I don’t care if it’s five seconds away. I’m walking you.”
Deciding to give into his chivalry, I was brittle as I marched out of the building. I couldn’t believe how terrible the night had been, a night I’d been looking forward to all week. A month into our “relationship” and Jake was already letting me down.
We’d barely taken two steps onto the pavement when Jake appeared around the corner. He saw us coming out of his building and started hurrying toward us.
My eyes narrowed on him, hating that he looked so good flushed from the cold, his eyes soulful and searching as he approached me. “Baby—”
“Save it,” I snapped, shaking my head and darting past him.
“I’ll walk her home,” Jake said sternly behind me.
I stopped and whirled around. “You will not. Lowe is walking me home.”
Jake’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Unless you want me and Lowe to have problems, you’ll let me see you home.”
Lowe held up his hands in a surrender gesture. “Sorry, Charley, but I’m exhausted. I’ll let Jake walk you home.”
“Traitor,” I grumbled to Lowe’s back as he hurried inside. My eyes flicked to Jake and I pinned him with my darkest glare to cover up my hurt. With a grunt of annoyance, I spun back around and started down the Cowgate toward my building.
Jake rushed to catch up. “Charley, let me explain—”
“Explain how you disappeared with your ex-girlfriend until two in the morning? Well, this should be good.”
“Don’t be like that,” he replied, a sharpness in his tone that told me he was pissed. “Mel’s having a difficult time letting go. She was trying to talk me into getting back together with her. I couldn’t leave her like that. It wasn’t exactly comfortable.”
Remembering the look on Melissa’s face, my shoulders slumped. “I don’t imagine it was,” I replied wearily, “but until two in the morning? And I texted you. You never replied.” I pushed open the door to my stairwell and started quickly up.
“I couldn’t. She was a mess. I was trying to handle it.”
“You were trying to be a good guy. I get it. But you broke up with her two months ago and if you’d been final like you said you were and explained everything like you said you did, Melissa wouldn’t have appeared tonight begging you to take her back. Which leads me to believe that your breakup must’ve been a little lukewarm, and if it was a little lukewarm, then what the hell are we doing here … taking it slow!” I hissed at him, shoving my key in the door.
I caught his glower before I pushed inside, hurrying down my hall to my bedroom. I wasn’t quick enough as I unlocked it and strode in with the intention of shutting it in his face. Jake shoved his way in and slammed it behind him.
“I have roommates,” I reminded him snippily.
“I couldn’t give a shit right now,” he growled. “Let’s rewind to the part where you think I don’t really want this with you.”
“Fine. Let’s do that.”
“You know what I think?” He stepped menacingly close, the air between us thick with ire and something much more powerful. “I think tonight I hurt you again and you know I didn’t mean to because you know I had to make sure that Melissa gets that we’re over and that I do that in the kindest way possible. I don’t think you’re angry about any of that. I think for the few hours I was away, you let yourself start to panic that I’m going to hurt you a whole lot worse than tonight. You started to panic because you still don’t trust me.”
I couldn’t say anything. I could barely catch my breath. Just like old times, Jake had read me, unbalanced me, and I didn’t know whether to haul him close or throw him out.
“You know what? I know I’ve got a lot to prove, but I’m still pissed, because I thought for sure you knew one simple truth.”
“And what’s that?” I asked, my body vibrating with Jake’s nearness.
“This.” His mouth slammed down on mine, his kiss hard and brutal and bruising as he wrapped a hand around my neck and yanked me against his body.
The familiar taste of him rushed through me and my body instantly lit up for him.
As I kissed Jake back, his kiss grew softer but no less heated, no less hungry, and suddenly we were tearing at one another’s clothes, desperate to meld skin to skin.
Our mouths broke apart as we tugged our sweaters off. Mine was barely gone when Jake’s strong hands were on my waist, caressing me, molding me, as if memorizing the shape of me. I pulled him back to my lips, my fingers digging into the golden smooth skin of his broad shoulders, my tongue licking his, urging him to control the kiss, to deepen it.
He answered my silent plea, our kiss wet and frantic, driven by the pure need to taste one another as deeply as possible. I gasped into his mouth, trying to catch my breath as he unhooked my bra. It slid slowly down my arms to the floor.
Goosebumps covered my breasts, my nipples erect in the cold air. I shivered but when Jake leaned back to stare down at me, a heated flush crept quickly back over my skin. I watched him in a lusty haze as he scraped his lower lip with his teeth, his study of me so intense the atmosphere between us blistered.
Slowly he reached out his hands and cupped my breasts, squeezing gently before rubbing his thumbs over my nipples. They pebbled under his touch, arousal coursing through my belly and down between my legs. Remembering how sensitive I was, Jake ducked his head and closed his hot mouth over my left nipple. I moaned, bowing my back, my fingers sliding through his hair to grip him close.
I grew damp … so ready for him.
My hips undulated against air as I whimpered his name.
Jake’s control snapped.
His mouth was back on mine and his kiss was hard again, demanding, biting, almost punishing, and I gave him as good as I got, sucking hard on his tongue. Jake shuddered against me, muttering a curse against my lips as he shoved me roughly onto the bed, his fingers deftly unbuttoning my jeans. With a quick tug, he slid them down my legs along with my panties and then he got on the bed, nudging my thighs apart as he stared down into my face. I’d never seen him look at me like that before. Desperate, possessive, needful.
And since I was feeling exactly the same way, my body was frenzied to answer his need.
Parting my lips on a rushed sigh, I slid my arms above my head so my breasts arched up toward him.
In response, Jake leaned over me, his hands encircling my wrists as he pressed his jeans-covered erection against my naked body. “You’re mine,” he whispered hoarsely against my mouth. “Always.”
“Jake,” I groaned, wild for him.
His right hand left my wrist to draw down his zipper. He shoved his jeans low enough to release his dick and then returned his hand to my wrist to pin me to the bed. I felt him throb hot and hard against my inner thigh.
Then all thought was lost as he slammed inside me before I could draw another breath. I cried out on an exhalation at the pleasure-pain that surged through me.
My thighs gripped Jake’s hips instinctively as he pulled back out only to thrust even harder. His rhythm was fast. It was definitely rougher than any sex we’d had before. Desperation to feel every inch of one another guided us. I could feel every inch of him and yet I gasped for more. “Jake, harder,” I begged as he pounded into me, his features fierce and taut with lust.
The bed surged against the wall as Jake fucked me toward climax. As the orgasm tore through me, ripping me into little pieces, I cried out his name so loudly, I’m sure the whole building heard me.