Chapter 21
Twenty-One
XANDER
Fifteen years ago
I look down at the pin Jose sent me of their location as I fly down the freeway. There’s not a single fuck to be found in my body about my own safety. The look on Jade’s face as I was trying to get to her will haunt me forever.
Chase is the last person I would ever introduce any girl to, especially one I care about so much. It enrages me to know he approached her. That he touched her.
When I finally pull up to Jose’s house and throw my Jeep in park, I’m ready to beat his ass.
A little pink tricycle sits on its side in the small front yard.
Sidewalk chalk drawings cover the path to the front door.
Their presence reminds me that Jose’s little sister is probably home, which means I might not be able to beat the motherfucker’s ass like I want to.
Before I can even knock, the door swings open. Jose’s expression mirrors my own.
“Is Cece home?” I ask him. His sister is adorable, and usually I’d stop to play with her for a couple minutes. Not this time, though.
“No, she’s at the park with my mom.”
“Good.” I walk into the house. “Out back?”
“Yep.”
Jose lives in the garage, which his mom converted into a small apartment. I stalk through the cozy home, navigating my way around the dolls and stuffed animals littering the floor. Jose follows silently.
Chase and Zach are sitting on the couch passing a joint back and forth between them when I storm into the apartment.
Their eyes are already bloodshot as I approach.
Chase doesn’t even get a word out before I grip the collar of his shirt and slam my fist into his face.
Pain explodes in my hand, but I don’t give a fuck.
This piece of shit touched Jade. Made her uncomfortable.
He drops his joint and charges at me, wrapping his arms around my waist and knocking me to the floor.
He was a wrestler in high school, but the weed has dulled his reflexes.
He lands a punch to the side of my face, and I relish the pain that comes with it.
I’m a lot taller than him, so it’s fairly easy to maneuver us back until I get the upper hand again.
I land two more punches, one to his face and the other to his stomach. He manages to connect his knee with my ribs. I catch his jaw with my elbow, and bloody spittle flies from his mouth as his head snaps to the side.
Through my rage, I feel two hands pull me off him. I know it isn’t Zach because he’s just sitting on the couch watching. He hasn’t moved a muscle to defend his cousin. I lift my hands up, so Jose knows I’m done.
I stand and look down over Chase. “If you ever come near Jade again, I’ll ruin your life.” I crouch down and grab him by the jaw, squeezing until he whimpers. “I mean it. I’ll use every bit of the power of my name to make sure you never escape this shitty existence you carved for yourself.”
As my final fuck you to him, I spit on his face, so he doesn’t forget he’s less than nothing.
Zach meets my eyes when I stand and wisely says nothing.
The fact that he didn’t try to stop me tells me everything I need to know.
I’ve spent enough time around Chase to know he had to have said some fucked up things for Zach to not get involved.
Jose gives me a nod as I walk out. He’s the only one I’m interested in ever seeing again. I know the only reason he ever spends time with these guys is because of his childhood friendship with Zach. I don’t hold it against him.
Blood trickles down my temple from a cut I still can’t feel due to the rage and adrenaline pumping through me. I flex and squeeze my hand a few times, letting the sting of the split skin of my knuckles burn and ground me.
Blasting some nineties grunge through the speakers on the drive back helps settle my nervous system down. I’m hitting rush hour, so while the drive down to Newport only took a little over an hour, I know I’m probably looking at least two hours before I’m home.
The scent of tacos fills the car when I pull into the garage. I grab the bag of greasy Mexican food from the passenger seat and walk into the house. I drop my keys and the bag on the counter and look around for Jade. She’s not in the living room or by the pool.
“Jade?” I call out, too tired and hungry to go hunting further for her. “I have tacos.”
“Coming,” she calls from down the hall.
She’s showered and let her hair airdry, so the waves are a bit out of control. With her face free from makeup and the touch of sun she got earlier today, her freckles stand out proudly. But the smile drops from her face when she sees me.
“Xander? What happened?” She rushes over to me.
“Nothing.”
She reaches up, her fingers grazing the scab on my temple. “This isn’t nothing.”
“Here.” I hand her tacos and a couple packets of hot sauce.
She gasps when she sees my knuckles. “Your hands. My god, Xander. What the fuck happened?”
“I went to have a conversation with Chase.”
“A conversation with your fists?” A flash of anger shines in her eyes when she looks up at me. “This is so stupid. You could have hurt yourself.” She holds my hand up in front of my face to show me my damaged skin. “Let’s clean you up.”
I pull my hand away. “The food will get cold.”
“I don’t care.”
“I do.” I unwrap a taco. “I’m starving.”
She crosses her arms and glares at me. “Xander.”
“Eat,” I say around a bite.
She grumbles but takes her food and sits down on the other side of the island from where I stand eating. We eat in silence with her shooting daggers at me from her eyes. It’s actually pretty cute, and the one time I let my lips tilt upwards into the tiniest smile, she scowls at me even harder.
After I finish inhaling my food, I crumple up the wrappers and toss them into the garbage. “Diet Coke?” I ask as I open the fridge to grab a Coke for myself.
“Yes, please.”
I slide the can across the marble countertop to her as she finishes her last taco. While she pops open her drink, I reach over and grab her trash.
“Thank you,” she says after taking a drink. “Now, let’s go get you cleaned up.”
I follow her upstairs to her room, admiring the way her shorts ride up with each step up. She has one lone freckle right below the crease of her right butt cheek. My fingers twitch with the desire to reach out and touch it.
She leads me into her bathroom and points at the counter. “Sit.”
“Yes, ma’am.” I do as she tells me, the cold of the marble immediately seeping through my clothes.
“Ma’am is for old ladies. Don’t call me that.” She bends down and opens the cabinet.
It takes her a minute to find what she’s looking for, but eventually she stands back up and sets a first aid kit on the other side of the sink. I watch as she pulls out a few alcohol wipes and tears them open. She lifts my right hand and starts to dab the wipe over my split skin.
“I can’t believe you risked your hands like this.” Her gaze moves up and catches mine. “It’s really fucking stupid.”
I shrug. “I don’t think so.”
“Chase?” she asks.
“Yes.”
“You didn’t need to do this. I’m a big girl. I told him off before you even got to me.”
“I know.”
She opens a new wipe and cups the side of my face with her left hand to start working on the cut at my temple. I wince at the sting which only makes her press harder.
“Ouch, that hurts.”
“Good.” She locks eyes with me again. “You deserve it.”
I lift my hand to the sliver of skin exposed between her top and the waistband of her shorts. Her skin is so soft. She stills as I run my thumb up and down, sliding under the hem of her shirt and back out.
“I’d do it again.”
“Xander.”
Fuck if I don’t love the soft, breathy way she says my name as she sets the used supplies aside. She steps between my legs and studies my face. Her brow furrows, and she lifts her fingers to my jaw.
“You’re going to have a bruise here.” Her touch feathers over my skin.
“You should see the other guy,” I joke.
“It’s not funny, Xander. It wasn’t worth the trouble.”
“You’re worth it.”
Neither of us breathe for a moment as our gazes lock. I stand from the counter, my body coming alive as it brushes against hers. She doesn’t move when I lift both hands to her face and tilt her head back.
Before today we haven’t kissed since Mexico. It’s been killing me. Seeing her all day, every day but not being able to feel her against me is torture. I’ve never craved anything the way I crave the feel of her body against mine.
She rises onto her toes and closes the distance between us.
Our lips brush once, twice. There’s a hesitancy between us, knowing it’s something we shouldn’t do but can’t stop ourselves.
I run my tongue along the seam of her mouth, diving past her parted lips as she makes the sexiest whimper known to man.
I drop my hands to the back of her thighs and lift her into my arms. Her legs wrap around my waist as she clings to me. Our kiss never breaks as I carry her into her bedroom and lay her down. She scoots into the center of her bed and pulls me down beside her.
My dick has never been so hard. I can feel it pressing against the zipper of my shorts, aching to be touched. She slides her hand under my shirt, her fingers tracing feather light circles over my heated skin.
I pull back from the kiss but keep our foreheads pressed together. “Do you want to keep going?”
“Yes,” she rasps.
“How far?” The last thing I want to do is make her uncomfortable or go further than she’s ready.
“Not all the way.” She looks down, tearing her gaze from mine. “I’m not ready for that.”
“Okay.” I lift her chin. “We’ll go at your pace. Tell me if I go too far or do something that you don’t like.”
She nods and her fingers curl around the hem of my shirt. “Will you take this off?”
I answer her with a grin while I reach behind my neck and pull my shirt over my head. She traps her lower lip between her teeth as she lets her eyes and hands explore my body. I wince as her fingers hit the tender spot on my ribs.