Chapter 10 Eris #2
“Bedroom,” I remind him, nipping at his lip.
He chuckles against my jaw, breath hot. “Assertive.”
“Efficient.”
I swear he takes the stairs two at a time, carrying me with little effort, every step heavy with intent. Promise. Power.
Need coils through me as he shoves the bedroom door open, one hand holding me securely to his body. I release my grip, unwinding my legs from around his waist to fall onto the bed with a soft bounce.
Jace just… stands still, like he’s soaking in the moment, refusing to look away. There’s no rush to his movements as he reaches for my ankle, almost as if waiting for permission.
The button on my skirt pops open with a little flourish of my fingers, and I smirk up at him. “Take it off.”
His smile tilts, caught somewhere between reverent and reckless as our eyes lock. The space between us disappears, and his hands are on me before I can overthink it.
“Fuck,” he whispers, voice low and rough, probably only meant for his ears. “You’re not real.”
“Then you’re dreaming,” I murmur back. “So, why would you stop?”
He throws my skirt over his shoulder into the darkness that teases the edges of the bedroom. And the rest falls easily after it… Clothes, logic, dignity. All of it undone piece by piece.
Jace kisses his way down my stomach, teeth grazing delicate patches of my skin. Every touch is careful, then not… Like he’s repeating some sequence that’s meant to crack me open. Each sound I make spurs him onward. He answers me with a possessive growl that vibrates all the way through my core.
His mouth finally reaches where I want him, need him, and his name leaves my mouth on a breathless moan.
“Jace.”
He freezes for a beat, as if he forgot he even told me his name in the first place. And then he smiles against me, a slow, dangerous curve of lips that turns into pure delighted torture for me.
“Say it again,” he murmurs, breath tickling my sensitive skin as he looks up the length of my body. “My name.”
“Jace,” I whisper, leaning my head back as he rewards me with a quick swipe of his tongue.
“Again.”
I can feel his smirk against my skin when I try to move so I can see him better. The small shift of my hips earns me a quiet warning sound from him that reverberates through my core. It’s the kind of sound that means don’t… So I don’t. I can’t.
Every nerve I have is tuned to his frequency. His breath, the nip of his teeth. The teasing press that never gives me quite enough.
“Jace,” I grind out, a warning of my own, though I’m not sure if I’m asking for more of this teasing torture or if I just want to come.
I don’t really get a chance to decide.
He rises to the challenge in my tone without further prompting.
Jace doesn’t stop until I break, his name leaving my mouth again. Only this time, it’s much louder… And I have a fist full of his silky blond hair, somehow pulling him closer and pushing him away at the same damn time.
He finally relents, nipping his way up my body while I try to catch my breath. I hear the familiar sound of a wrapper and almost thank him for thinking about protection… Because I definitely was not.
Still am not… Even as I watch him roll the glistening condom down his impressive shaft.
I’m probably going to be sore tomorrow.
He lines himself up, watching me closely, waiting for me to say yes or no… Or fuck off… Or there’s a troll in the corner of the room. I don’t know.
“What are you waiting for?”
He slides inside me, a low groan falling from his lips that sounds suspiciously like relief. It also matches the moan that spills from me because I’m pretty sure he just hit every glorious nerve inside me.
“For your undivided attention,” he finally answers me.
I’m caught between a snarky response and smacking him, and I’m almost sure he sees my reaction written all over my face. He grins, like a charming bad boy here to make me forget—
Jace rolls his hips, and I swear my vision blacks out for a moment. But my body is totally on board with every motion he makes.
We move together as if we’re anticipating each other. There is no push and pull, no fighting for dominance. This is ripples on the water, a constant flow that triggers the next motion effortlessly.
It’s as if our bodies had already memorized this dance long before we met.
His touch finds all of my favorite sensations, his name quickly falling from the tip of my tongue again. He changes pace, choosing a deeper press that leaves me aching in places that haven’t been reached in months.
Maybe ever.
My body matches the rhythm he creates, but he’s always half a second ahead of me, giving me everything I need before I know I need it.
When I come a second time, he follows me into bliss, murmuring something against my neck. I don’t catch the words, yet I feel them pulsing along my nerves as my orgasm slowly subsides.
His hand inches up, fingers finding my jaw, guiding me back to him, reminding me where I belong. Where my attention should be… As if it could be anywhere other than on him.
Jace slides out of me slowly, giving me time to adjust to the loss of him. He shifts onto his side, not going so far that he isn’t touching me.
The room is silent. Neither of us says a word as we observe the other, but he gazes at me like he’s trying to figure out what the hell just happened.
Same. But when he settles beside me, all I can think is… Yeah, I will gladly do that again.
With one arm braced behind his head like he owns this bed, Jace studies me like I’ve just rewritten something vital. And he patiently drags a finger up my thigh, checking to see if I’m still real. Or at least, that’s what it feels like…
I should tell him to go. Leave. This is supposed to be a one-time thing, and you can’t stay here with me.
But I can’t bring myself to say it and mean it.
Morning comes like a serrated knife to the gut.
Painful.
Sunlight cuts across a bed that isn’t mine, dust spinning in the rays as if it has nowhere else to go. My head pounds, dull and mean, a stampede thundering through my ears.
My clothes are… Scattered, but my panties are on the floor just inside the bedroom door, a stark black spot on Roo’s cream rug. My dignity is probably somewhere under the nightstand beside me.
No point in looking for that.
I roll onto my back and exhale harshly. The other side of the sheet is cool to the touch, though I can still feel the lingering sensation of his fingertips.
Jace.
He’s gone.
Of course he is.
It was a hookup. I knew that before I ever agreed…
But I really hate one-nighters that leave me wanting more.
I wouldn’t mind seeing him again. Too bad I didn’t get his number.
I reach over to the nightstand and grab my phone… It’s nearly dead, hanging on by a thread. I plug it in, ignoring about a dozen texts from Roo asking for the details of my conquest and one new number belonging to said conquest.
So, he put his number into my phone. I find that… presumptuous… and also appreciated.
I still open the app before anything else, like it’s a reflex. It would be easier to stop a sneeze.
Locke:
You’re quiet this morning.
I hesitate before typing.
Eris:
Hungover.
The pause is a little longer than normal.
Locke:
Or guilty?
I type slower this time, my brow pinching as I stare into my front-facing camera like I might be able to see who’s watching me.
Eris:
Why should I be guilty? You’re not real.
The reply comes immediately.
Locke:
But you want me to be.
I stare at the words until the screen dims, though I can’t answer.
Because it isn’t wrong.
But also because… I’m starting to believe it is real.