Chapter 10 Jack
Chapter ten
Jack
The tree lot glows under Christmas lights, every bulb flickering against the deepening blue of a cold November night.
The ground’s slick with half-melted frost and pine needles, and the air crackles.
I spot Autumn near the cocoa stand, cheeks flushed from the wind, hair escaping her beanie.
She’s laughing at something Mia says, and the sound makes me smile.
The evening passes in a whirlwind. We dodge excited kids with cocoa mustaches, play referee as Connor and Mia argue over who sold more trees, and haul a massive blue spruce together, barely managing not to drop it on our toes.
When we’re alone, her fingers slipping into mine, and we share a quick kiss behind the wreath display that leaves us both grinning.
By closing time, we’re both exhausted, our jeans streaked with sap and cocoa, but neither of us wants to leave. I find her inside the barn, alone, the noise finally fading. She’s lost in thought.
I come up behind her, sliding my arms around her waist. She leans back, fitting into me like she’s always belonged there.
“Come home with me again,” I whisper against her ear. “Let’s disappear for a while.”
She melts into me, her head tipping back onto my shoulder. “I thought you’d never ask.”
The drive to my place is quiet, but the silence between us buzzes with want. She slides her hand onto my thigh, fingers tracing slow, distracting patterns. By the time I park, my heart’s pounding, blood rushing hot.
Inside, the house glows. We shed our boots and jackets in a trail, her giggle echoing down the hallway as I pull her in for a kiss against the wall, my hands tangled in her hair.
We barely make it to the living room. I lift her onto the couch, her legs wrapping around my waist. We kiss deep and slow, tongues tangling, teeth nipping. She tugs at my sweater, mumbling, “Off. I want to see you.”
I obey, yanking my shirt over my head. She sits up, hands roving over my chest, nails scratching lightly down my abs, her mouth following the same path, kissing, biting, teasing.
I groan, pushing her back, helping her out of her sweater, then her bra.
Her nipples harden in the cool air, and I take one into my mouth, sucking until she gasps, arching up to meet me.
“Jack,” she breathes, one hand fisting in my hair, the other raking down my back. “Don’t tease. Please.”
I want to take my time. I want to savor her.
But the way she squirms beneath me, the way she begs, has me stripping her jeans and panties, spreading her thighs, and settling between them.
I trail kisses down her stomach, across her hips, until I’m exactly where she wants me—where she’s soaked, swollen, desperate.
I look up, catch her gaze, and hold it as I lick a slow stripe up her center.
She shudders, a high keening sound escaping her lips.
I swirl my tongue over her clit, then suck gently, just enough to make her hips buck.
I slide a finger inside her, curling just right, my other hand splaying over her belly to hold her down.
She chants my name, thighs shaking, breath coming fast. “Jack, oh, god, yes, don’t stop—”
I don’t. I work her with my mouth and fingers, relentless, loving every sound she makes. When she finally breaks, she comes hard, clutching my hair, crying out. I keep going, riding her through it until she’s spent, limp, smiling.
I crawl up and kiss her. I roll us over so she’s straddling me, eyes blazing. “My turn.”
She slides down my body, palms tracing my abs, undoing my jeans, freeing my cock. She wraps her hand around me, stroking slowly, her mouth hot and wet as she takes me in, tongue swirling, sucking, driving me insane. I fist my hand in her hair, hips jerking, cursing under my breath.
“Fuck.”
She laughs, voice rough and wicked, before climbing back up, kissing me hard. “I want to feel you. All of you.”
I grab her hips, guiding her down onto me. She sinks slowly, gasping, head thrown back, hair a dark halo. We move together, rocking slow, then faster, her nails raking my chest, my hands on her ass, pulling her closer. We lose ourselves, hands and mouths everywhere, bodies slick and desperate.
She rides me until I can’t take it, flipping us so she’s beneath me, her legs locked around my waist. I thrust deep, kissing her everywhere, murmuring how beautiful she is, how much I want her, how I never want to let her go.
She comes again, clenching around me, and I follow with a groan, spilling into her, both of us shuddering, gasping, holding tight as the world narrows to this moment.
After, we lie tangled on the couch, wrapped in a throw blanket, legs entwined. She’s draped over my chest, tracing circles on my skin, her hair tickling my jaw.
For a long time, we say nothing. Our breathing is the only sound, matched to the crackle of the fire. I press lazy kisses to her forehead, her temple, her lips, memorizing the taste and heat of her.
“Do you ever get scared?” she murmurs, voice small in the darkness.
“Of course,” I say, stroking her back. “Especially with you. It’s like I’ve wanted something like this for so long, but I never let myself hope it could be real.”
She kisses my collarbone, then looks up, honest and open. “Me too. I want it to last, Jack. I just don’t know how.”
I cup her face, brushing my thumb along her cheek. “I want to wake up to you every morning, fight with you about cocoa recipes, haul trees with you in the cold. I want it all.”
She smiles, tears glittering in her eyes, and kisses me.
We talk, curled together in the dark, about dreams and fears and what comes next. I tell her about my family. She tells me about growing up here, about loving the farm and hating it sometimes, about her life in the city.
When her voice finally trails off, she snuggles closer, her body soft and warm in my arms.
I hold her tighter, watching the fire burn low. I want her to stay, but I don’t want to clip her wings. She leaves tomorrow, and I don’t know how to ask her to stay.