Jace (10 page)

“You’re like a little kitten.”

Her gaze flicked up to meet
his. “Kitten? Oh, I like that. If I get to be a kitten then you’re my bear.”

“Come here.” He loved these
rare moments when she was just herself and not worrying about Corey. When she
was silly and smiling.

She was the perfect height,
almost a touch too short. She came right up to chest level. When he pulled her
into his arms so many things felt right about her from her size and how her
cheek rested perfectly against his heart to her lithe, beautiful body.

“Did you finish?”

Blushing, she nodded. “Yes.”

Groaning, he grew hard again.

But then someone knocked on the
door with stern urgency.

“Yeah, what is it?” Mara asked.

“You better not be in there making
it with your bodyguard friend, Mara Colgen.”

Mara shut down completely at
the sound of her boss’s voice. Jace could see the change come over her. The
dulling of the eyes, the tension creeping into her body, the frown turning down
the corners of her mouth. He wanted the other Mara back, the fun, playful one
that wasn’t worried that Jace would hit her one day. If only she knew how far
from the truth that was.

“We just…I’m so sorry,” Mara
said. She rushed to put on her clothes.

His jaw jerked. Fun time was
over. “Well I’m not.”

A pained expression came over
her face. “Jace…”

“Don’t.”

He turned and left. He almost,
just almost slammed the door shit behind him. On the other side of the door
wasn’t much better. He faced Gio, Tia, and Sherry. They each looked worried.
Something must be wrong. He doubted their worry was about the blowjob Mara
snuck him.

“What is it?” he asked.

Sherry cleared her throat. “We
received some phone calls over the past hour. At first the calls were going to Mara’s
work voicemail, but after her voicemail filled up the man identifying himself
as Corey Williams started calling the front desk. .”

Chapter
10

Jace glanced over at Mara for
at least the tenth time since they left work. She hadn’t taken the news well.
Then again, who would in her situation? Immediately her eyes had dulled, her
shoulders sagged, and then she nodded as if resigning to her fate. Like there
was no way out. He knew that look, he’d seen it before in his mother’s eyes as
his father terrorized her.

During the time Mara had been
working, her ex, Corey, had called a total of 108 times. This took place over
the span of about two hours. Sometimes he’d hang up. Sometimes he left voice
messages. Those were what had Jace worried. He was escalating dangerously fast.
Luckily, they had the voicemails recorded so that would provide some good
evidence to put Corey away. First they needed to catch him. Two different
police precincts wanted him for the questioning. He was dangerous, on the
loose. And he wanted Mara. Jace didn’t let Mara finish her reports on the
products she tested, and he’d ordered Gio to put taps on the office phones. If
they were lucky maybe they could get a regional location for Corey.

“What’s your favorite movie?”
Jace asked suddenly.

Mara glanced at him in
surprise. “Why?”

“Just curious, I guess. A
person’s favorite movie says a lot about them.”

Mara bit her lip looking
suddenly shy. “I don’t know if I have an all-time favorite or anything, but…
Steel
Magnolias
is far up on the list.”

Jace grinned. “For some reason,
I’m not surprised.”

“And why not?” She was
beginning to smile, the haunted look in her eyes fading.

“Because it’s funny, sweet,
ridiculous, and dark. Everything you are.”

Her smile faded and she looked
away. Then her stomach made a loud rumble. “I need to eat. How about you?” she
asked.

His stomach agreed. “I’ll make
dinner when we get home.”

“You can cook?” She looked at
him with surprise.

“I’m no Gordon Ramsay if that’s
what you’re asking, but yes, I am capable of cooking a few meals. Why, is that
weird to you?”

She shook her head. “You don’t
look like the type that can cook, that’s all.”

“Didn’t your momma tell you not
to judge a book by its cover, Mara?”

“Haha,” she joked, smiling.

After they got back to his place
he started dinner. He made one of his old favorites his momma used to make
him—barbequed pork chops slowly roasted in the oven with sides.

“Why don’t you go take a shower
and relax? The TV’s in the living room. Feel free to turn something on,” he offered.

She gave him a thankful smile
and left the kitchen.

Jace got busy on the food but
his mind was wrapped in thoughts of Mara. He was in trouble with that woman.
Deep trouble. She had him wrapped around her finger and she didn’t even know
it. Thank God; if she learned, she’d find a way to get away from again. He
couldn’t have that. Not when being around her felt so right. He and Mara had
something. He wasn’t so stupid to not notice or to let it go so easily. He was
a fighter and he was prepared to battle Mara, for Mara.

*  *  *

Mara washed the filth from the
day down the drain. The hot water helped to make her feel sane and normal.
Lately she’d been feeling like her life was caught in a bad movie.

Corey had called while she was
at work. Of course he did. Any time she experienced some sort of pleasure with
Jace, Corey had to be there to ruin it. Well she’d been thinking about it all
day. The more she thought about it the angrier she became.

I will not let you control my
life, Corey.

She brushed her wet hair while
staring at her reflection in the steamed up mirror.

I will not let you control me,
Corey.

She had messed up, she
realized. She had let Corey come back into her life and scare her and thereby
control her. She swore months ago that she’d never let him manipulate her
again. Starting right now she was done with his games.

She was going to be stronger
than she ever knew she could be. She didn’t know
how
to do that yet, but
one step at a time.

First she was going to stop
doubting her heart and listen to it. Jace was great, he was
really
great. He stirred up feelings she’d never experienced before. This warm
anticipation built whenever she thought about seeing him, and when she was
around him it felt like a dear, close friend was there to support her.

Now that she’d had some time to
calm down and really think about things, she didn’t feel the same as she had.
Did she really think Jace was anything like Corey? As she learned more and more
about him, that possibility stretched further and further away. At least when
it came to intimate play they had no problems.

Today at work, before the bad
news came, she had such a great time with Jace. Pulling him into that room to
pleasure him had been one of the naughtiest things she’d ever done. But it was
only the tip of the iceberg in terms of what she wanted to do with Jace.
Because she wanted to experience it all with him.

Mara dressed and went to rejoin
him. The house smelled of tangy barbeque sauce and juicy meat. Her mouth watered.
She didn’t find him in the kitchen. The back door was open and a light on. She
found Jace leaning against the railing of his deck. He had woods surrounding
his house. She rather liked it. They both had houses buried beneath something.
She had willow trees and shrubs, he had a forest. His house even had a fence
all around the edge of the property with cameras watching 24/7.

“Why do you have such an
expensive security system for your house? Are you afraid of being robbed?” Mara
asked, curious.

Jace turned around. His gaze
warmed her as it roamed over her body. The shorts and T-shirt she wore suddenly
felt scandalous under his heated gaze.

“I won’t sell anything I
wouldn’t use myself. I also enjoy my privacy out here. I don’t want hunters,
bums, or lost people drifting onto my land. And I really don’t want them
messing with my house. I like my things just the way they are.”

“You know, when you say it like
that, I agree. I could have used a system like yours last night.” The smile
died on his face. She’d meant it as a joke. “I was joking.”

“I’m sorry, Mara. That was my
fault last night. I should have had the cameras installed the first day you
came to me. Then we would have him on camera. You’d have proof he violated the
Order of Protection you have against him. With the slew of other suspected
crimes he’s involved in he’ll be locked away for years,” Jace said.

Mara followed him back into the
kitchen. He pulled what looked like pork chops smothered in a mouth-watering
barbeque sauce out of the oven.

“Can you set the table?” he
asked.

As soon as the table was ready,
Jace plated the meat on it with some string beans on the side. Simply
delicious.

They dug into their food with
relish. Halfway through her plate she started to slow. “What’s your favorite movie?”
she asked, picking up their earlier conversation.

“
Steel Magnolias
,” he
answered immediately.

Mara burst out laughing so hard
she snorted at his witty response. “It is not, you liar!”

He looked at her with a deadpan
expression. “It is.
Pink is my signature color
,” he quoted from the
movie.

Mara lost it completely then,
laughing so loud and hard her sides hurt. Jace couldn’t hold back any longer
and he joined her. Tears leaked out of her eyes. “Oh my god. You are too funny.
I can’t believe you just pulled that quote from that movie.”

“I have seen it once or twice.
Honestly though, my favorite movie would have to be
Rocky
,” Jace said.
He finished his plate and she did the same.

“I love
Rocky
! The
Italian Stallion. I once had a friend in high school who loved that movie so
much, every Halloween he’d dress up as Rocky from that final scene of the
movie. He’d color his eyes to make them look bruised, oil up his body, wear a
black wig, white shorts, and his boxing gloves. To this day, it was one of the
funniest things I’ve ever seen.”

Jace smiled. “That’s definitely
not me. If I went as anyone during Halloween it was Apollo Creed. He’s the
reason those first three movies are amazing. That man was my idol.”

Mara’s lips formed an outraged
O
.
“Apollo Creed is so not better than Rocky freaking Balboa. Take it back!” She
felt so good having this flirty banter with him. So normal and happy.

“Excuse me?” He snorted.
“Apollo Creed was already the champion before Rocky was even on anyone’s radar.
That man was a champion and at the end of the first
Rocky
, he doesn’t
even defeat Apollo. That’s how good the man is. He could only tie Apollo
Creed.”

“Yes, fine, but in
Rocky II
,
rocky totally defeats Apollo Creed,” Mara said.

“Yes and Rocky can have that
win but everyone always makes it out like Rocky’s the best. Remember, Rocky
lost that first fight and that second one was close. Even then, Apollo Creed
was a bad ass. Look at it this way—the only one capable of putting him down was
a Russian boxing machine. That’s how tough Apollo was. He was the man.”

Mara shook her head. “I don’t
even know you. Rock is the best, a boxing god among men. People want to be
him.”

“And he’s slow from all the
hits to the head. Apollo still had a clear head on his shoulders after a career
of boxing. What did Rocky do? A few matches and he loses IQ point for each
punch he takes.”

Mara giggled. “You are so full
of it right now. This is blasphemy I tell you, blasphemy.”

“The only thing that’s
blasphemous is when you stop smiling like that,” he said.

Mara’s face froze. “What?”

He didn’t repeat the
mind-numbing compliment. Instead he gathered their plates and started washing
the dishes. All without another word. Mara squirmed in her seat, uncomfortable
and blushing and feeling frisky.

“Why don’t you go find
something on the TV? I’ll be there soon.”

“Whatever you say, traitor.”

Mara went to the living room at
Jace’s chuckle. She flipped through the channels and found
Rocky
. Her
eyes lit up. This was too perfect. She turned it on and waited for him to come,
smiling smugly as she got comfortable on the couch. Maybe by watching the movie
with her she could prove to him that Rocky was better than Apollo.

Jace stopped as soon as he came
in the room. His eyes were locked on the TV. “You’ve got to be shitting me.”

“Nope. I’m going to prove to
you once and for all that Rocky is the best boxer ever. Now be quiet, I’m
turning this up.” She sat back and cranked up the volume.

And then he took the seat right
next to her. Mara sucked in a breath of nervousness. She’d figured he’d take
the other sofa, the three-seater. Instead, he sat next to her on the love seat
meant to only fit two. She already had her legs up and reclined; with him so
close her leg touched him.

Mara slowed her thoughts down.
She’d been intimate with the man twice so sitting close to him while watching a
movie should not be a big deal. But it felt that way because all she wanted to
do was lean against him or crawl into his lap to watch the movie. She made a
soft sound just thinking about it, a sigh.

Jace glanced at her. He sat so
close he made her heart race.

“You gonna watch me or the
movie?” Jace asked, not looking away from the TV.

Mara gasped and looked straight
ahead. “Jerk.”

He reached over and folded
their hands together. There were so many reasons why she shouldn’t touch him
ever again. But there were so many good ones. Like this right here.

Halfway through the show, Mara
could no longer focus on the movie because Jace was rubbing his thumb back and forth
on her hand. The touch was soft and gentle yet kept her on edge. She heard
dialogue from the movie but all the colors just blended together as all her
attention stayed on his thumb.

As nonchalantly as possible
she’d scooted closer to him. He leaned deeper into the sofa with his legs
spread open and his body relaxed. Jace was the sexiest man she’d ever seen,
especially when he was worry-free like this.

Little tingles tickled between
her legs. She wanted to rub up against him, crawl in his lap and let him hold
her. But that would be terrible. She wasn’t even sure why, but just thinking
about doing it seemed revealing. She was vulnerable enough with him as it was.

Wait, who was she kidding? She
single-handedly gave him a blowjob while at work today. If she could do that
then she could cuddle with him, dang it.

“I want to cuddle with you,”
she told him, her words daring him to deny her.

Jace’s eyebrows rose, then he
opened his arm to her in the
come hug me
pose. Mara practically dove
into his offering. She curled facing the TV and buried her head across his lap.
His hand immediately moved to play with her hair. A sighed escaped her. His
touch was heavenly.