Chapter 52
Private Moments
SHADOW
Six Years Ago
Ilinger in the shadows in the far corner of Jessica’s dorm room. She sits at her desk in one of my white button-down shirts. I can see that she’s not wearing her bindings underneath. The clacking sound of the keyboard stops for a brief moment before she continues to type.
Leaning against the wall, I fold my arms as I continue to observe her.
Call me a creep, or a hormonal teenage stalker, like Emily does, but I like watching her from within the shadows.
I love seeing the many different emotions that flit across her beautiful face—the way she smiles to herself when she’s satisfied with a new composition she wrote or the determination and stubborn lines that form when she attempts to master a new weapon.
My favorite thing about lurking in the shadows is catching her by surprise, so I can steal a kiss or two.
Since that night after we, Toby and I, shared our secret, and she accepted us for what we are. I realized how fast we moved and how overwhelming it probably felt to her. We, Jessica included, agreed to start our renewed relationship slowly.
I focused on building our friendship and limited our physical contact to stolen kisses. Our bond has grown over the past several months. I smile at the memories we made together, how much we have both grown together.
Every day, I find myself falling more in love with her, and I can’t imagine continuing on this path of life, wherever it may lead, without her. She’s my future, and I can’t wait to see our relationship blossom when we no longer need to keep it a secret.
Unable to take the silent treatment, I transport behind her chair and lift the laptop from her desk. Before she can protest, I transfer myself onto her bed. I skim over what she's written so far, erasing the last paragraph. I probably distracted her when I came into the room.
Jessica straddles the chair in front of her desk, facing me.
The first few buttons of my shirt are undone, giving me a peek at the top of her breasts.
Fuck, she’s not wearing shorts. Through the slats of the wooden chair back, I glimpse lilac panties covering her sex.
I groan at the sexy little vixen in front of me.
My dick twitches. In the past few weeks, her kisses and touches have been bolder, more seductive.
She’s testing my restraint, and I’m not sure how long I can keep myself from giving into my urges. I clear my throat and shift my eyes up to hers. “Princess, I told you multiple times that you can’t dress like that, even in your dorm room. Someone can walk in and see what belongs to me.”
She snorts and rolls her eyes.
I’ve been telling you for the past couple of weeks that she’s been hinting that she wants more than stolen kisses.
Don’t start this again, I grouse at Toby, but the asshole laughs and ignores my warning.
But tonight is different. I think she’s punishing you. You must have done something to really piss her off.
She folds her arms on top of the chair, chin raised and eyes narrowed with annoyance. A wisp of hair falls into her icy blue eyes. She quirks an eyebrow, waiting for me to say or do something.
Quickly, I type a revised version of the deleted paragraph and add a few more.
Scanning it one last time, I save her work and email it to her professor.
She gawks at me, when the distinct sound of the email being sent fills the silence in the room.
I wink at her before closing the laptop and toss it to the side.
“What did you do?” she asks. “I wasn’t finished!”
Shrugging, I reply, “I finished it and submitted it for you.”
“Tyler! That’s cheating!”
I smirk. Standing up from her bed, I prowl toward her.
“I don’t want to graduate from college knowing that I cheated.”
“That, Princess, is not cheating. When have I ever interfered with your college courses?” I hold eye contact, daring her to challenge me.
She doesn’t waver. “Besides, you were practically done. I simply revised and summarized your conclusion and executed it with flair.” I run my fingers through her hair, tilting her head back, loving that she’s finally letting it grow out.
“I have much better things I want to do than wait in my room for you to finish your paper.”
Bending down to kiss her full lips, she turns her head before I make contact. I growl at her denial. I transport into her chair. Her eyes widen when she finds herself straddling me instead.
I grab her chin. “Now, tell me why you’re tempting me, dressed like this, and then deny my kisses.”
She leans back, crossing her arms under her full breasts. Dammit, this wasn’t a good move.
“You know why,” she grumbles, defiance clear on her face.
Pulling her arms away from her chest, my hand grazes a nipple.
She emits a sharp inhale. I bite down on my inner lip, preventing myself from responding to the way her breaths pick up, when I wrap her arms around my neck and slide my hands down her lithe body, then back up her thighs to her round ass.
She shifts her hips. I stifle back a moan. Squeezing my eyes shut, I take a steadying breath to calm myself down and glide my palms back up to gently squeeze her hips.
“As much as I love a little banter, Princess, you’re fucking killing me. Use your words and tell me what the fuck I did so I can make it up to you.” I pull her into me, settling her on my very hard and painful cock.
She gasps. Taking advantage of her parted lips, I crush my lips into hers and stroke her tongue along mine. I rub her backside with my hands, pulling her against me at the same time.
“Words, Princess. Talk to me, unless you want to let me into your head,” I whisper.
“I found Owen scrubbing the swimming pool with a toothbrush! A toothbrush, Tyler!”
Laughing at her outburst, I kiss her chin and wrap my arms around her.
She pushes her hands against my chest, and I capture them in mine. “It’s not funny! What is wrong with you?!”
I kiss her hands and return them to my shoulders. She slaps my arm. “Ouch,” I joke.
“Seriously! What is wrong with you? He didn’t do anything wrong. You have to stop picking on him. You’re being a bully!”
I bring her face closer to mine. “He had his arms around you. He touched what is mine,” I snarl, my tongue swiping at her lips.
She pulls her face out of my hands. “He gave me a one-armed hug for completing the obstacle course and breaking your record, by the way.”
I was proud of her for that accomplishment.
Truthfully, I was a little jealous that he congratulated her first. All I could do was stand there and act nonchalant.
I was jealous that he stole my moment, so I had Ean yank him out of class today and clean the pool.
It wasn’t my idea, though, to make him clean it with a toothbrush.
I shrug. It was a win-win situation. I got to pick on him for touching my girl, and he got out of doing something that bored him to death. When he finished cleaning some of the pool, I asked Ean to work with him on some things I knew he needed help with. But I’ll keep that my little secret.
She narrows her eyes. “Stop picking on him. I mean it, Tyler. He’s my friend.”
“You don’t see it. Do you? That kid is in love with you.”
She scoffs and shakes her head. “You’re looking way too much into it.
We’re. Just. Friends. And maybe I don’t see it because you’re the only one I see.
I’m in love with you, Tyler. You don’t have to harass innocent guys to mark your territory.
You didn’t see me lose my shit a couple months ago when that redhead hit on you at your parents’ charity event. ”
Laughing at her, I run my hands down her thighs. “Sure. Because Emily had your back and dumped wine on her dress.”
She feigns innocence. “Emily did not dump wine on her dress. She accidentally bumped into her, and her wine spilled.” She mimics my shrug.
I didn’t notice that redhead until Emily started a commotion.
All I could see was her, my Princess, in her pretty gown and long hair.
She wore a wig, but it reminded me of the way she looked when I brought her home that night I found her near the pier.
She was perfect in every way, not just in appearance.
She held conversations with anyone who approached her.
Most were merely curious about her, as the Princess, since the royal family didn’t officially announce her adoption.
She handled herself with grace and even rose a time or two when someone challenged her intelligence.
She held her own, not needing Anders, her parents, or myself to defend her.
She didn’t back down or shy away, as I expected.
She handled the challenges with finesse and a bit of wit.
In the end, she won everyone over, and no one could stop talking about her.
I squeeze her in closer at the thought, nipping at her chin, wanting to keep her in my hold forever, “I didn’t notice the redhead because I only had eyes for you.”
She grabs my chin in her hands and leans in closer. “That’s my point, Tyler. Emily was more irritated with the redhead than I was. I trust you, and I know who you belong to.”
She’s the love of my life, and sometimes, as perfect as everything has been, it scares me that I could still lose her. “Are you saying that I don’t trust you?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
I gaze into her eyes, seeing the underlying hurt—an emotion I put there—and I hate it.
I do trust her. What she doesn’t understand is that it’s in our natural instincts to want to mark our territory.
Since I can’t do that, not yet anyway, I want to chase away any threat that prevents her from being mine.
“I do trust you, and I’ll prove it to you. I’ll lay off the kid and stop using my position to pick on him.”
She stares into my eyes, chewing on her bottom lip. “There is one way you can prove it to me. You’ll behave when he comes to my house for dinner tonight for my birthday.”
Briefly I close my eyes, making a disgruntled noise. “You’re fucking killing me, Princess.”
Smiling down at me, she raises an eyebrow.
I want to say she won’t like because she really doesn’t see it. Inviting him to her house is not a good idea. She’s giving him false hope by letting him into a part of her private life, a part she has kept secret for almost a year.
We banter for a few minutes, but I know I won’t get my point across this way.
I concede to her demand. “Fine. Invite him to your dinner party, under one condition. You sit next to me for the duration of the meal so I can touch you and hold your hand under the table.” I entwine our hands together to accentuate my point.
She snorts. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” She drapes her arms over my shoulders and willingly gives me her lips. Our kiss intensifies, and she begins to rub her sex against my already-hard cock.
I break contact and push her hips back a fraction. “Speaking of birthdays, there must be something you need or want but are too stubborn to ask for.”
She masks the disappointment clouding her features and tilts her head in thought. “Let’s see. I have a family, the bestest friends anyone could ask for, and...” she smiles, “a sexy, secret boyfriend.”
I playfully tug at her hair, pulling her head back to direct her gaze at me. “Not going to be a secret for very long.” I crash my lips into hers, never missing an opportunity to kiss her. I nip my way down her neck.
Her fingers play with the hair at the nape of my neck. “I enjoyed the trips and concert you took me to last year.”
I groan against her skin. I did, too, but a trip outside of the territory means risking our secret being exposed.
I lift my head. It pains me to deny her anything she wants.
“We can’t this year. I promise, when things settle and we no longer need to keep this a secret, I’ll take you anywhere in the world.
For now, there has to be something you desire and refuse to get for yourself.
” I narrow my eyes in a mock-threatening way.
She simply shakes her head and replies, “Nope.”
I bury my head in the crook of her neck and grumble, “Come on, Princess. Give me something, anything.”
“Anything?” She waggles her brows.
“Not that. Not yet.” I contradict my earlier actions by pulling her against me, but fuck, I can’t help myself. She’s practically naked under my shirt, and kissing her makes my blood race. Hell, just fucking looking at her turns me on.
“But it’s been almost a year since you touched me that way. I’m eighteen. I’m ready, Tyler. I want to take the next step.” She rolls her hips forward to accentuate her point.
“Princess,” I chastise, my voice husky with desire. “You know that I want our first time together to be on our wedding night.”
“But—”
“No, Princess. You know I will do anything you want. I’ll turn the fucking world into hell for you.
I’ll make friends with that little shit who follows you around with his eyes full of hearts for you.
But not this. Let me do this right for you, for us.
I want our first time together to be special, not in your dorm room or your ensuite bathroom or even my apartment.
You’re not just some girl I’m sneaking around with.
You’re my future, the one and only love of my life—my endgame. ”