Chapter 8
CHAPTER EIGHT
The bang of a metal door slamming against the brick wall echoed through the alley.
A roar split the air, angry and afraid, and Tazzy began to rethink all her recent life choices.
Looking down, she saw exactly who she’d cried out for, exactly who she needed.
The last man she wanted to see. At least, that’s what she told herself.
Her hands ached when his footsteps pounded on the pavement as he ran to the small shed just down the alley and grabbed the ladder leaning against its side. He propped the ladder against the wall beneath her and started to climb.
“Hold on, Darkling. I’m coming.”
She barely understood what he was saying over the pounding in her chest, but his calm, controlled voice eased her fear. He wouldn’t let her fall. He was Jaxon. She vaguely registered that he’d called her Darkling. Funny that it didn’t make her feel as good as she thought it would.
It was forgotten a second later when the rope slipped again. She let out another yelp, which, for some reason, Georgia echoed. All thoughts of pet names vanished as she pictured herself falling.
“Is that Jaxon down there?” Georgia called, still squatting on the edge of the roof.
“Yes.”
“Thank God! Tell him to hurry.”
But there was no need. Jaxon’s warm hand grabbed her ankle. The next thing she knew, his arms were wrapped around her as he guided her toward the ladder.
Even though her fingers ached, she couldn’t make herself let go of the rope. The wind tugged at her hair, whipping strands into her eyes, already wet with her tears. When had she started crying? Her chest was so tight she could barely breathe. How could she be crying?
Once her feet were on the ladder, he stood behind her, guiding her steps and cradling her in safety.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice low and steady.
She was still catching her breath and didn’t answer.
“I’ve got you, babygirl. I won’t let you fall.”
“I know.” The words were out before she could stop them.
“You’d better,” he muttered. “I’m not letting you go.”
Tazzy’s stomach twisted. He was talking about more than the roof, and they both knew it.
Time was funny in a crisis. A few minutes could feel like forever. She had no idea when she’d burst into tears.
“Georgia, get your ass back up on the roof,” Jaxon yelled, even as he guided Tazzy step by slow step down the ladder. Tazzy looked up just in time to see Georgia jerk her head back from over the edge of the roof where she’d been watching them. It made her dizzy.
How could his very presence steady her the way it did after all these years?
She’d worked so hard to become independent and strong, only to find out she needed him.
If she wasn’t terrified at that moment, she’d be really pissed off at herself.
It was hard to be mad at him, though, since he was the one keeping her from plummeting to her death.
She was still twenty feet in the air, but she’d be fine because he wouldn’t allow anything else.
She might have all this ridiculous equipment on, but he was her lifeline.
Step by step, he eased her down, making sure to only stay one rung ahead. His arms bracketed her waist, making it impossible for her to fall.
“Stay away from the edge, Georgia,” Jaxon called, just to make sure.
Hutch burst into the alley. “Was someone screaming Georgia’s name out here?”
Jaxon jerked his head in the direction of the roof and looked up. “Georgia, can you hear me?”
At first, there was nothing but silence. Then a very reluctant, “yes,” could be heard drifting down to them. Hutch took one look at the gear Tazzy was wearing and growled, “Fuck!”
Looking around, he saw that the fire escape had been lowered. Hutch scrambled up the fire escape. It wasn’t long before he was walking Georgia back down as well.
Tazzy and Jaxon made it to the ground first, but when Hutch and Georgia touched down. Hutch didn’t even pause, throwing her over his shoulder and heading back into the shop. As the door closed, he said, “Peaches, you are in so much trouble.”
Tazzy and Jaxon still stood at the base of the ladder.
Once Hutch and Georgia left, Tazzy slumped against Jaxon.
As much as she hated to admit it, nothing had ever felt better than his arms around her waist. Why was life so damn hard?
Fighting with Jaxon was easy compared to the fight going on inside her.
She closed her eyes and rested her head on his solid chest, the way she used to.
The rise and fall of his chest soothed her. And as much as she’d accused him of not having a heart over the past many years, its strong beat reminded her it was still there in more ways than one. Slowly, she pulled air into her lungs, finally able to breathe again.
She could have stayed like this for hours, pretending the past didn’t exist. But ignoring the truth about things she didn’t like was something Old Tazzy did. New Tazzy faced the world as it was, not as she wanted it to be.
She pulled back and made the mistake of looking into his intense blue eyes. Instantly, her lady bits tingled.
Tazzy shoved away from him and marched toward the shop door. She refused to let the wildfire racing through her veins turn into something she would regret. She had only taken three steps when a hard hand closed around her arm and yanked her back around.
Spinning to face him, she slapped her palm against his face so hard it made her hand sting. She froze, shocked at what she’d just done. Had she really slapped the guy who just saved her life? How effed up was that?
He barely flinched. Instead, he looked down at her with that slow, dangerous half-smile that made her stomach flip. “Feel better now?”
“No.” She glared at him, trying to control her breathing, but that was a mistake.
He looked delicious standing there. She had such conflicting emotions.
On one hand, she wanted to knee him in the nuts for everything he’d put her through.
On the other hand, she wanted to lick him like an ice cream cone. Her favorite flavor.
His dark shirt stretched tight across the chiseled muscles of his chest. His jeans sat low on his hips. And that whole raw, don’t-even-think-about-it energy rolled off him in waves, the same energy he had worn like armor since the day he came back to Darling.
Crossing her arms, she hugged herself, nervously rubbing her arms. It reminded her of the way his strong arms had held her as he practically carried her down from the roof. The way he had moved like a man who would walk through fire to reach her. The way he had protected her without hesitation.
Like a Daddy. Just not her Daddy.
Not again.
Never.
But who, exactly, was she trying to convince?
Why did he have to be so horribly, achingly sexy? She needed to slap her heart silly, but she would still have to deal with the treacherous feelings it kept forcing on her later. Right now, she needed to remember she was furious, not thankful.
After all, he had interrupted her rappelling practice. She couldn’t admit the real reason her heart pounded whenever he was near, so she reached for something petty and stupid instead. “You started this whole thing,” she said. “This was all your fault.”
“This should be good.” He crossed his arms. “How?”
“You ignored me,” she snapped.
“I did not.”
“You stood over there texting on your phone for ages. You did not even notice when I left the shop.” She tried to sound angry, or at least indignant. Instead, the words came out small and hurt.
Jaxon let out a slow breath. His chest expanded beneath the dark fabric of his shirt.
“I knew you had left the room. I just didn’t see you slip out of the building.
I wasn’t expecting you and Georgia to pull an escape,” he said.
The tight set of his jaw told her he hated that he had missed it. “I had business I needed to handle.”
“You should have noticed anyway.”
His jaw flexed. “Yeah,” he admitted quietly. “I should have.”
The simple words nearly knocked her knees out from under her. She stared at him. “Did you just apologize?” Old Jaxon apologized when he’d done something to hurt her, but she never expected New Jaxon would.
He gave a short, rough chuckle. Anger still burned in his eyes, but something softer flickered beneath it now. “I was wrong. I should not have stayed on my phone that long. And I damn sure should have seen you leave.”
She blinked, stunned. What was she supposed to do with that? “Okay. Well then. You shouldn’t even be here if you are not going to do your job.”
He widened his stance and watched her, waiting. When she stayed silent, he said, “You’re right. I’m sorry. I should have paid better attention. Now it’s your turn.”
She lifted her chin. Her spine straightened one stubborn inch at a time. “Me? I didn’t do anything wrong.” The second the words left her mouth, she knew she had made a mistake.
Jaxon moved.
Fast.
She barely had time to draw a breath before he closed the space between them.
His arm banded around her waist and lifted her clean off the ground, taking her to the wall and setting her down.
“Hey!” Her protest came out as a startled squeak just before he pinned her arms gently but firmly against the brick wall.
Her breath caught.
“What did I tell you earlier about your personal safety?” he asked, voice low and rough.
“You are not my Daddy anymore. I don’t have to listen to a single word you say.”
His eyes narrowed to dangerous slits. “I strongly suggest you change your tone. Now apologize and promise me you will not put yourself in danger again.”
“Not in a million years.” She would not give in on this. She could not let him slip back into the role of Daddy again. She simply could not.
His eyes glittered with dark intent. “All right.” Then he kissed her. Hard.
She tried to pull her arms away from the wall, tried to kick at his legs… tried to stay angry. She meant to push him away. But the moment his mouth claimed hers, the fire that had been simmering between them exploded.
This was no sweet, gentle kiss. It was fierce and demanding, full of eight years of frustration, pain, and raw need. When she tugged against his grip, he let go of her hands. But he was still way too close. They were touching foreheads.
She stood there panting.
Then, without her permission, her hands flew to his shirt and fisted in the fabric before her brain caught up. Pulling his lips back toward hers.
Jaxon made a low, rough sound in his throat.
Then he kissed her again. This kiss was deeper. He took his time, letting the anger bleed into heat that rolled through her body like summer lightning.
Her arms slid around his neck. Without thinking, she wrapped her legs around his waist, clinging to him, her body responding even while her mind screamed that this was dangerous territory.
“Tazzy,” he breathed. His emotions roughened his voice. His words both dared and warned. She rested her forehead against him for a moment. “You are going to apologize, babygirl. The easy way or the hard way. Up to you.”
It took a second for the words to sink in. She leaned back, glaring at him. “No.” She knew he would take this as nothing less than a dare.
His smile was slow and full of wicked determination. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
Her stomach flipped. Heat pooled low and insistent. Her body was completely out of step with her brain. The man was solid muscle, nearly unbreakable.
She had noticed it when he moved her refrigerator, as if it weighed nothing. When he’d snatched the cigarette from her fingers and crushed the entire pack in his hand.
And now he looked at her like she was both infuriating and irresistible. Her tingles spread, vibrating every cell of her body.
“Time’s up,” he murmured.
She froze. “I don’t understand.” Her gaze kept drifting to his hair, so different now than before. The desire to run her fingers through it to feel how the lengths differed was too distracting.
What had he said? Oh yeah. “I am not scared of you,” she said. He might be terrifying when he was angry or with other people. But he’d never hurt her.
“I don’t want you scared of me. However, you will obey me when it comes to your safety. It seems I haven’t made that clear, but I can fix that.”
He moved then, forcing her to tighten her legs around his waist to keep from falling as he carried her away from the wall and toward the back of the building. “While you are under my care, and make no mistake, you always will be, it is my job to keep you safe.”
How utterly Daddy of him. “I can keep myself safe.”
“Oh yeah?” His voice was soft, low, and edged with steel. “Is that why you screamed my name while you hung off that roof?”
No. Definitely not.
When she’d been dangling between life and death, the only name she could call out was his. No one else even crossed her mind.
She had known, deep down, that Jaxon would come. He would always come for her. Wasn’t that why he was back in Darling?
Nope. Not going there. “That didn’t mean anything,” she lied.
He answered with another kiss. Her legs wrapped tighter around his hips, and she pressed her body against his.
When she made it back inside, she was having a serious conversation with her body. They had to get on the same page.
Breaking the kiss, he said. “It means everything, naughty girl. When you willfully put yourself in danger, it makes me very unhappy.” He kissed her again, his mouth taking full command of hers before releasing again. “When anyone else makes me unhappy, I punch them.”
“So are you going to punch me? You’d better be careful, I’ll punch you back.”
“No, like I said, that’s what I do when other people make me unhappy. You are not other people.” She was having a hard time keeping track of the conversation. “What about when I make you unhappy?”
“Well, no punching.” His voice dropped even lower. “But I am going to punish you.”
Her clit throbbed in her panties. Her nipples tightened rock hard against his chest. Her breathing stopped completely.
Swallowing hard, she whispered. “Um… no?”
That’s it, be assertive.
His smile was knowing and determined. “Not thinking you get a vote right now, Darkling. You’re taking the rest of the day off.”