Finding Dandelion (Dearest #2) (35 page)

As I sink down, he moans. “Fucking fuck, you feel good.” I’d love to revel in the fact that I’m making him fall apart, but all I can mumble is “mmm.”

I still to get used to his invading size, but after a minute, I want more and sink down as far as I can go, and we both groan at the sensation.

My skin is flushed and damp from sweat as our bodies begin moving against each other. Leaning down, I kiss him, and his hands tangle in my hair.

And it’s at this very moment that my head decides to freak out.

I still have another year of school to go, and Jax is graduating in a few months. Doesn’t that kind of thing screw up relationships, especially since he’s been talking about signing with a professional soccer team?

The words come out of my mouth before I can stop them. “What happens after you graduate? If you sign with a team, you’ll go on the road.”

 Jax stills beneath me and reaches up to tuck my hair behind my ear. “You know that answer.” He stares long and hard into my eyes before he pulls my mouth to his for a gentle kiss. “We stay together.” He holds my face with both of his hands. “Because you’re what makes me want everything else.”

Tears fill my eyes and I collapse on top of him and bury my face in his neck. His arms wrap around me, and we lie there entwined.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper as his hand rubs up and down my back. “It’s is a stupid time to talk about this.”

“Sweetheart, being together is the only thing that matters to me. We’ll figure out the rest.”

I turn and kiss him, for minutes or hours, I can’t tell. All I know is I get lost in the way he tastes, in the way our bodies meld together. And then he flexes his hips, and the swelling sensation between my legs has me desperate all over again. Even though I just had this weird emotional break down and I should probably be embarrassed, when I look in Jax’s eyes, all I see is his love for me.

He holds the back of my neck as he shifts so we’re on our sides. His hand wraps around my thigh as he tugs it up over his hip, and he presses deeper into me.

His thigh slips between mine until our legs are scissored together, and my breath catches. I’ve never had sex like this, twisted around another person so intensely that I can’t tell where I end and he begins. Everything—from the way our breaths mingle to how his fingers are twined through mine as he looks into my eyes—tells me this is love.

I’m pinned by his stare, the intensity unraveling the part of me that’s been afraid. All week, I’ve been waiting to be disappointed. Waiting for him to change his mind. But right now I feel anchored to him, like he’s my mooring. Like I’m his. And just like that, my fears melt away. I don’t know what’s going to happen, what the future holds, but I do know I want to take this journey with him.

Jax nips my shoulder as he slowly pushes in and out of me. His arm wraps tightly around my thigh, hugging me to him, and I can’t get close enough. The drag of his skin against mine is so exquisite, the throb between my legs intensifying until everything inside of me tightens and pulses, and I’m falling apart. With a scream, I gasp, and a moment later, he tenses as he comes.

The room is quiet but for the sound of our heaving breaths. Jax runs his hand along my back in a slow drag, pressing the tips of his fingers into my skin.  Although exhaustion weighs all of my muscles, I reach up and thread my fingers through his sweaty hair, and he murmurs his approval.

“Jax,” I whisper, “thanks for coming to Chicago to find me.”

I close my eyes as he pulls me closer, and I nestle my head against his chest and listen to his heartbeat.

“Dandelion, I’m starting to think you’re the one who found me.”

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

- Jax -

If the truth be told, I have a hard time concentrating when Dani is sitting so close. She may be in the passenger seat as I drive, but the scent of her hair and skin and clothes make me want to pull over to a rest stop and pin her underneath me.

She said it again this morning, and it’s all I can think about.

We were loading my SUV with her luggage and a few boxes, and as I slammed the back hatch closed, she grabbed my jacket with both hands and yanked me to her. When our lips touched, she said it.

“Jax, I love you. So much.”

She reaches over and laces her fingers through my free hand. “What are you smiling about?” she asks.

“You and all the love.”

She giggles. She fucking giggles. I love that sound.

“Babe, you need my new number.” When she doesn’t say anything, I glance over to find her frowning. “Your phone. Get it.”

She reaches for her cell, still looking confused. I call out my digits as she punches them in. “What happened to your old number?”

“Too many unwanted callers. I changed it last night.”

I don’t get a chance to look over again because her arms wrap around my neck. “So no more sexts from random girls, huh?”

“What girls? I only have one, and she’s the best sexter I know.” It was comical how fast I moved yesterday afternoon when I got that text from Dani, who was parked out in the living room as I cleared out boxes in the garage.

She places a sweet kiss on my cheek before she settles back in her seat. We drive in silence for a while. But she’s quiet for too long.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

She nibbles on her lower lip. “I’m worried about how all of this is going to affect your relationship with your mother. I hadn’t really thought about it with everything going on in Chicago, but I don’t want to cause any problems, and I—”

“Stop right there.” I grip the steering wheel. “I’ve already been offered two contracts with pro teams and a few endorsements.”

I’ve never been into the whole modeling thing, but it’s a smart move business-wise. After I found out what my mother put Dani through with the non-disclosure, I decided I’d had enough. If I can put my face on a few ads for athletic wear or underwear to pay the bills, then so be it. My sister’s book is selling well, so I’m not as worried about her as I was a few months ago.

“If my mother chooses to cut me off financially, that’s on her. I’m not going to law school anyway, so I doubt any fallout will have to do with you. I’m doing what’s right. I love you, and I’m not going to sit in Boston while you’re in Chicago. Fuck that. I finally found the right woman, and I’m not letting you go.”

When I look at her, she has tears brimming in her eyes. “So I’m kinda stuck with you, huh?”

I smile. “Fuck, yes.”

She kisses me on the cheek, and damn it if my heart doesn’t do silly little backflips. Yeah, I’m totally fucking whipped, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Dani reaches over and wraps her hand behind my neck, massaging my sore muscles. “Are you getting tired? Do you want to swap and I can drive while you take a nap?”

“I’m good for a while.” I peek over at her. She has her hair tied up, and red swaths of color come tumbling down over her face. I love her hair, whether she’s dyed it red or pink. I imagine just her normal dark brunette hair is gorgeous too.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

I grin. “I’m counting the minutes until we can stop for the night and I can get you naked.”

Her eyebrow pops up. “You know… we could always take a break at a rest stop.”

My foot comes off the gas as the thought of ripping off her clothes overpowers my brain. I have to clear my throat to speak again.

“A girl after my own heart,” I say, eyeing the next exit.

When we eventually reach Boston, it’s two days later than I expected, but a guy can’t stop that frequently and not expect to get behind schedule. As I eye Dani, who is sleeping in the passenger seat next to me, I think school be damned. Every extra stop was worth it.

I unbuckle my seatbelt and reach over to brush the hair out of her face. Her eyelids flutter open and she smiles.

“Hey,” she whispers.

“Hey back.”

She sits up and kisses me. It doesn’t matter that the moment I turn off the ignition I can see my breath or that I should be moving her stuff into her room because I don’t want to remove my hands from her body.

A knock on the window jars me.

“Hey, loser, do I get my roommate back anytime soon?” my sister yells, a huge smirk plastered on her face.

Dani’s cheeks ignite in embarrassment, and I grin. “How about we unload your stuff and then stay at my place tonight?”

She nods, still looking sheepish.

I make her hang with her roommates while I bring her luggage up. When the last box is unloaded, I reach for Dani’s hand.

“You ready, babe?”

Clementine cuts me off. “You’re taking her?” I give her a look that she should understand, and she rolls her eyes. “Fine. Go have obnoxiously loud sex somewhere else.”

She hugs my girlfriend who looks mortified again, and Clem laughs. “Let’s do lunch later this week. I miss you. Jax is going to have to share custody of you.”

Dani smiles. “I’ve missed you too.”

My sister shakes her head. “The girl who tamed my brother. Maybe it’s the sign of the apocalypse.”

I put her in a headlock and she screams, “Dani, I’m not taking him back. I have a no-return policy on my dipshit little brother.”

“You’re three minutes older,” I remind her.

“Exactly. Older. Wiser. Smarter.”

I give her a noogie, and she squeals.

A small hand wraps around my wrist, and I look down as Dani stands on her tiptoes. She leans over and whispers in my ear. Two seconds later, I have my jacket and my girlfriend, and I’m dragging her down the stairs. Clem’s laughter echoes behind me.

“I don’t even want to know what she said to get you to leave that fast,” she yells after us.

I look over at Dani who licks her lips like a little vixen. “Dandelion, I have plans for that tongue, so you’d better put it away for now.”

She grins as she gets in my SUV. “I can’t wait.”

I adjust myself in my seat, straining against my jeans. She’s reduced me to a horny teenage boy.

She reaches over and threads her fingers through mine. “If you’re going on the road with your team this summer, I might need to give you a few good memories to take with you.”

I laugh. “Hell, yes. Bring it, baby.”

EPILOGUE

(Six months later)

- Jax -

This never gets old.

I give the row of kids high-fives as we wrap up practice. The straggler at the end stops in front of me. “Jax, thank you so much for the scholarship.”

I look down at Alejandro, who is ten and a natural-born soccer player. “No problem, buddy. Work on those drills I showed you today until I get back next week.”

He grins ear to ear. “Coach is putting all of your games on the projector so we can watch them.”

“Awesome. I wanna get your feedback. Let me know if there’s anything I should work on, okay?”

That grin gets wider. “You got it!”

He jogs off to his friends, and I grab my gear as Coach Patterson strolls up and pats me on the back.

“Jax, I’m proud of you, son.” He motions toward the pack of kids headed toward the locker room and smiles. “These kids will never forget what you’re doing for them. Plus, it’ll give the BC boys something to keep them out of trouble this summer. I’m glad you coordinated this camp.”

“Sure thing, Coach.”

“How are your practices going?”

I started playing with my new pro team this spring, and I’ve never had more fun. I feel like a kid again. But the best thing? Looking up at the stands and seeing my girl.

“I’m having a blast, and the soreness I had in my quad is gone. My trainer says I’m cleared for Thursday’s game.”

“That’s what I want to hear.” He taps his clipboard. “Kick ass out there next week. You’ve got thirty kids here cheering you on.”

“Thanks. I’ll do you proud.”

“I know it,” he says with a smile as he heads off the field.

A few more boys come up to talk, and we chat for a while, but I’m starting to get anxious. We can’t be late tonight. Finally, I see my girl and take off in her direction.

“Those kids love you,” Dani says as I wrap her in a sweaty hug.

Her tank top dips down, and I spot her tattoo. I love that ink. It couldn’t be more fitting because that’s what she is to me, my North Star.

I wipe my face on her neck and she laughs. “You stink.”

“I’m giving you something to remember me by when I leave for my game in a few days.”

“Don’t remind me.” She pouts, jutting out her lower lip. Glancing around to make sure I’m not giving anyone a show, I lean down and nibble on that little morsel.

She smacks me in the chest for being unable to control my public display of affection. Shit, she should be used to this by now.