Page 20

Chapter nineteen

I want you. Do you want me?

Jake

I ’ve been patient, giving her the reins to set the pace, but I can’t wait anymore. Not tonight. The need to show her just how much I want her and how much she means to me is overwhelming.

And then I hear her start to apologize, no doubt to tell me I don’t need to be here. That I don’t need to stay. It’s frustrating as hell because all I want is to be near her, to be part of this with her.

Before she can finish, I press her back against the wall, my body caging hers, capturing her mouth in a searing kiss. She gasps, but then melts against me, her hands threading into my hair, pulling me closer. The kiss is hungry, but I can feel the way she’s holding back too.

“Jake,” she breathes, her voice trembling with hesitation. No more, Charlie girl.

I pull back just enough to look into her eyes, my hand still cradling her jaw. “I won’t let you doubt this, Charlie,” I say. “I want you. All of you. Do you want me?”

A soft moan escapes her as her resolve crumbles and she nods, tugging me closer with the same desperation I feel coursing through me. Her hands glide up my chest and over my shoulders, pulling me closer. I step into her, my fingers traveling down her back, g ripping her hips and tugging her flush against me.

I lift her effortlessly, her thighs tightening around me like she’s been waiting for this as much as I have. The need between us is electric as I carry her to the nearest flat surface—the kitchen counter— and set her down gently. My hands slide up her thighs, fingers tracing the curve of her hips as I lean in, capturing her mouth in another frantic kiss.

“I’ve been waiting all week to do this,” I murmur against her lips, pushing her back on the countertop. She breathes hard as my hands slide up her top, planting soft, heated kisses over her stomach. Her skin is warm beneath my lips, and the way she arches up into my touch drives me crazy.

“Oh my God,” she breathes, fingers raking into my hair.

I grin against her skin as I inch her top up higher, exposing her black lace bra. Her skin is so soft, and I can’t resist dotting kisses and gentle bites across the pillowy flesh of her breasts, savoring the way her breath catches each time.

Looking up, I catch the need and hesitation warring in her eyes. I can’t have that.

“You’re fucking perfect,” I rasp, one hand sliding up to cup her breast through the sheer lace, the other stroking her jaw as I claim her mouth again. My thumb finds her nipple, and I roll it in slow, deliberate circles above the fabric, pulling a deep moan from her throat.

Trailing down to her jeans, my fingers unbutton them with a roughness that mirrors my own need. My mouth drags along the delicate skin of her throat, inhaling her scent and nipping at her, drinking down every sound she gives me. Soft, breathy whimpers. Fuck, I want more.

I slip a hand under her waistband, then look up, seeking permission. Her eyes are hazy with desire as they meet mine.

“Tell me to stop, Charlie.”

She bites her lip, the softest plea escaping her. “Don’t stop. Please.”

Something in me snaps at her words. I’m done for. This isn’t just want anymore, it’s need —bone-deep, primal, and only for her.

“God, you’re soaked," I groan, my finger sliding through her wetness and dragging a slow, teasing circle over her clit. "That all for me, baby?”

“Yes,” she breathes, her hips lifting and begging for more .

I won’t deny her. Not tonight.

Tonight, I want her writhing and wrecked, her voice breaking as she sobs my name. I want to show her how good I can make her feel, and I want her craving more. To think about this for days to come, and remember that it was me, only me , that made her feel this way.

I slowly run a finger through her again, swirling over her clit and eliciting the sweetest sounds from her mouth. Then I pull her jeans and thong down in one motion, peeling them off her body. She’s laid out before me like the most tempting feast I've ever seen, and I'm fucking starving.

My hands slide up her legs, gripping her thighs and spreading them wider. And when I look down at her, I nearly lose my goddamn mind.

Pink. Glistening. Absolutely drenched.

Lifting my eyes back to hers, a low sound leaves my throat as I slide a finger inside her, watching her body swallow it down. Then another.

“Oh my God, Jake…”

The breathy way she says my name is everything.

With my eyes locked on hers, I lower myself, lips tracing slow kisses up her thighs, inching closer to her center until I finally reach her clit. I suck slowly, and her head falls back, exposing her throat. Her hands tangle in my hair, and I let out a vibrating hum of pleasure that makes her hips jolt.

Fuck, yes.

Satisfaction spreads across my face as I lap at her. She tastes like heaven, and I know I’ll never get enough. Crooking my fingers, I hit a spot that has her throwing an arm over her face to keep her voice down.

No fucking way.

“Eyes on me, baby.” My voice is a rough command as I look up at her from between her legs. Her eyes meet mine, flickering with desire as I suck her clit, and I swear to God I could come just from the way she's looking at me right now.

She’s so outrageously gorgeous and doesn’t even realize it, her head lifting between her peaked nipples to watch me, like the best sunrise I’ve ever seen.

“Fuck, you taste so good,” I grunt, pumping my fingers and feeling her tighten. I curl them, coaxing every ounce of pleasure from her, our gazes locked.

“Please, Jake, don’t stop. God, that feels so—” She gasps, her head falling back, mouth open in a silent cry.

I press a hand against her thigh, ke eping her spread and increasing the pressure, my tongue swirling as she bucks against me. Her breathing turns ragged, fingers tightening in my hair, thighs trembling as she teeters on the edge.

“ Eyes, Charlie,” I command, continuing to devour her. Her eyes find mine again, glazed over with pleasure, and the look in them is enough to undo me. “That's it, baby. Such a good girl, riding my mouth. You want more?”

A shudder rolls through her, and a soft whimper slips out as her nails dig into my scalp. I can barely breathe from how fucking perfect she looks like this. Needy. Desperate. Mine.

“Yes,” she breathes, her hips lifting to meet my mouth, chasing every flick of my tongue. It’s the sexiest damn thing I’ve ever seen.

“You gonna come for me, Charlie?” My voice drops low in between strokes. “I want you to come on my tongue, baby. Let me taste you.”

“Jake—oh my God—” her voice breaks as I curl my fingers and press one last open-mouthed kiss against her clit, before sucking it in deep.

“That’s it, baby. Soak my tongue. Make a fucking mess of me.”

She shatters with a cry, her body arching and thighs trembling around my head, and I take every bit as her climax pulses through her. I don’t stop, won’t even consider it until I’ve wrung out every last drop, until every desperate little moan has been mine to devour.

A half-crazed prayer fists in my chest, begging the universe to let me be the only man who ever gets to do this to her over and over again. Only me.

Charlie’s body relaxes and she lets out low, uneven pants, her fingers still tangled in my hair like she doesn’t want to let go. Good. She won’t have to.

I press one final kiss to her inner thigh, before dragging my tongue over my lips, making sure she sees just how wrecked I am for her. My eyes roam over her gorgeous body sprawled out on the counter, a masterpiece of my own making.

“Sweetest thing I’ve ever fucking tasted.”

Leaning in, I brush my mouth over hers, letting her taste herself on me. She hums softly, deepening the kiss as her fingers slide down to my waistband, ready to return the favor.

But I catch her hand, holding it firm.

“Jake,” she whispers, still breathless, her eyebrows drawing together in confusion as I shake my head.

“Not tonight, Charlie girl.” My voice is low and laced with a restraint my cock is definitely not listening to. “Tonight was for you. I needed you to feel how much I want you—beyond reason, beyond anything else."

I press my lips to her temple, my next words murmured against her skin.

"Just you.”

Her eyes search mine, wide and questioning. “But I—”

I press a finger gently to her lips. “Shh, let this be enough. Let me be enough.”

She bites her lip, her breath hitching as she nods slowly. I can see the flicker of doubt in her eyes, the way she’s clinging to control, trying to keep her vulnerability at bay. But I’m not letting her hide a gain. Not with me.

I run my fingers through her hair, cradling her face. “You’ve been carrying so much, Charlie. And you’ve been doing it so damn well. But you don’t have to do this alone… let me in.”

She stares at me for a moment, her face unreadable. A shiver runs through her as she speaks, like it's taking all her effort to form the words. “I’m scared, Jake. I don’t want to mess this up. I don’t want to get hurt, or hurt the kids, or you . What if…” Her voice trails off in a cloud of vulnerability.

I lean in to silence her fears with a soft kiss, refusing to let her slip into this abyss of doubt. “You’re not going to mess anything up. We’ll figure this out together, one step at a time. Just… don’t shut me out.”

“I want to trust this… us,” she whispers.

“That’s all I need,” I murmur, my lips skimming down her collarbone. “I promise you I won’t break it.”

The weight of everything we’ve just shared hangs between us, and I can see the change in her, the walls she’s been holding up starting to crack. This is the beginning of something real, and I’m ready to fight for it—tooth and nail.

I help her off the counter, watching her shimmy back into her jeans with a soft smile, the faintest blush painting her cheeks as she steps back into my arms like she's done it a thousand times. It makes my heart race all over again.

“Thanksgiving’s soon,” I say, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Ryan’s hosting, and I want you and the kids there. You’d love it.”

She blinks up at me, surprise flickering in her eyes. “Thanksgiving? I mean, I know it’s soon, but we’ve never celebrated it. It’s not a thing back home.”

I grin, already imagining the day. “Then you and the kids are definitely coming with me. We’ll eat too much food, watch football, and you'll get the full American experience. I want you guys to be part of it.”

Her smile softens. “Okay. I’ll think about it.”

“Good.” I hook an arm around her, pulling her in tight. “Let’s go get comfortable. I’m not staying, but I wanna hang out a bit longer. Is that okay?”

“More than okay,” she whisp ers, melting into me as we make our way to the living room. “Stay as long as you want, I’m not ready to say goodbye yet.”

Neither am I. Not now. Not ever.