We jerked back from each other at the interruption, our breathing a little harried, and when we turned our heads toward the doorway, Jake instantly dropped my hand at the sight that greeted us.

Melissa.

She stood like a beacon in the crowd, flanked by two friends. The pain in her features made me want to crumple inside myself. I glanced up at Jake for direction but he was already making his way through the students toward his ex-girlfriend.

When he stopped beside her, she snapped at him, her eyes filling with tears as she gestured angrily toward me. Jake reached out to soothe her and she pulled on his shirt, her expression suddenly pleading. He ran a hand through his hair and nodded, nudging her toward the exit. Before he left with her, he mouthed an apology my way and held up his hand as if to say, “I’ll be five minutes.”

Just like that, our reunion was destroyed and all my happy was being eaten alive by guilt.

“Ye okay?” Rowena asked softly. She stood by Claudia’s side and the two of them were gazing at me in concern.

I shrugged. “I’m fine. He’ll be back soon.”

Unfortunately, Jake wasn’t back soon and I never got a text or a call as to why. By the time The Stolen’s set was finished, I still hadn’t heard anything from him and I was beginning to worry.

“I’ll walk Claudia home,” Denver offered as we were getting ready to leave the now-quiet bar. “You go back with the guys to their place. I’m sure he’s there.”

Deciding it was the best thing to do or I’d end up having another sleepless night, I followed Lowe, Beck, and Matt back to their apartment. Their common room was surprisingly clean considering a bunch of guys lived there, but then I remembered Beck telling me that Lowe was a bit of a clean freak.

Jake wasn’t there in amongst all the clean.

Lowe shrugged and pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge and handed it to me. “Just hang out here with us until he gets back.”

Feeling my annoyance building, I nodded but pulled out my phone and shot a text off to Jake asking him what was happening.

No reply.

The guys attempted to keep my mind off where they knew it was wandering—into irrational jealousy land where Jake was hooking up with his ex—but by one o’clock in the morning, I was starting to get pissed. And more worried. “Do you think something has happened to him?”

Beck frowned and shook his head. “Nah. They’re probably just hashing shit out.”

“They hashed shit out weeks ago. What else is there to say?” My shoulders slumped when they all looked anywhere but at me. “Look, I’m not a bitch, okay? The expression on Melissa’s face tonight … yeah. I hate that I’m a part of that. But we’re not even together, barely, and he’s already …” Shutting me out. I waved my phone at them, not saying out loud the words I was thinking.

When it hit two o’clock, I’d gone past feeling bad about being angry and was just plain mad. What the hell was he doing with her at two o’clock in the morning?

I shot to my feet. “I’m going to go,” I muttered, grabbing my coat.

“I’ll walk you,” Lowe insisted.

“No, it’s fine. It’s two minutes away.”

“I don’t care if it’s five seconds away. I’m walking you.”

Deciding to give into his chivalry, I was brittle as I marched out of the building. I couldn’t believe how terrible the night had been, a night I’d been looking forward to all week. A month into our “relationship” and Jake was already letting me down.

We’d barely taken two steps onto the pavement when Jake appeared around the corner. He saw us coming out of his building and started hurrying toward us.

My eyes narrowed on him, hating that he looked so good flushed from the cold, his eyes soulful and searching as he approached me. “Baby—”

“Save it,” I snapped, shaking my head and darting past him.

“I’ll walk her home,” Jake said sternly behind me.

I stopped and whirled around. “You will not. Lowe is walking me home.”

Jake’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Unless you want me and Lowe to have problems, you’ll let me see you home.”

Lowe held up his hands in a surrender gesture. “Sorry, Charley, but I’m exhausted. I’ll let Jake walk you home.”

“Traitor,” I grumbled to Lowe’s back as he hurried inside. My eyes flicked to Jake and I pinned him with my darkest glare to cover up my hurt. With a grunt of annoyance, I spun back around and started down the Cowgate toward my building.

Jake rushed to catch up. “Charley, let me explain—”

“Explain how you disappeared with your ex-girlfriend until two in the morning? Well, this should be good.”

“Don’t be like that,” he replied, a sharpness in his tone that told me he was pissed. “Mel’s having a difficult time letting go. She was trying to talk me into getting back together with her. I couldn’t leave her like that. It wasn’t exactly comfortable.”

Remembering the look on Melissa’s face, my shoulders slumped. “I don’t imagine it was,” I replied wearily, “but until two in the morning? And I texted you. You never replied.” I pushed open the door to my stairwell and started quickly up.

“I couldn’t. She was a mess. I was trying to handle it.”

“You were trying to be a good guy. I get it. But you broke up with her two months ago and if you’d been final like you said you were and explained everything like you said you did, Melissa wouldn’t have appeared tonight begging you to take her back. Which leads me to believe that your breakup must’ve been a little lukewarm, and if it was a little lukewarm, then what the hell are we doing here … taking it slow!” I hissed at him, shoving my key in the door.

I caught his glower before I pushed inside, hurrying down my hall to my bedroom. I wasn’t quick enough as I unlocked it and strode in with the intention of shutting it in his face. Jake shoved his way in and slammed it behind him.

“I have roommates,” I reminded him snippily.

“I couldn’t give a shit right now,” he growled. “Let’s rewind to the part where you think I don’t really want this with you.”

“Fine. Let’s do that.”

“You know what I think?” He stepped menacingly close, the air between us thick with ire and something much more powerful. “I think tonight I hurt you again and you know I didn’t mean to because you know I had to make sure that Melissa gets that we’re over and that I do that in the kindest way possible. I don’t think you’re angry about any of that. I think for the few hours I was away, you let yourself start to panic that I’m going to hurt you a whole lot worse than tonight. You started to panic because you still don’t trust me.”

I couldn’t say anything. I could barely catch my breath. Just like old times, Jake had read me, unbalanced me, and I didn’t know whether to haul him close or throw him out.

“You know what? I know I’ve got a lot to prove, but I’m still pissed, because I thought for sure you knew one simple truth.”

“And what’s that?” I asked, my body vibrating with Jake’s nearness.

“This.” His mouth slammed down on mine, his kiss hard and brutal and bruising as he wrapped a hand around my neck and yanked me against his body.

The familiar taste of him rushed through me and my body instantly lit up for him.

As I kissed Jake back, his kiss grew softer but no less heated, no less hungry, and suddenly we were tearing at one another’s clothes, desperate to meld skin to skin.

Our mouths broke apart as we tugged our sweaters off. Mine was barely gone when Jake’s strong hands were on my waist, caressing me, molding me, as if memorizing the shape of me. I pulled him back to my lips, my fingers digging into the golden smooth skin of his broad shoulders, my tongue licking his, urging him to control the kiss, to deepen it.

He answered my silent plea, our kiss wet and frantic, driven by the pure need to taste one another as deeply as possible. I gasped into his mouth, trying to catch my breath as he unhooked my bra. It slid slowly down my arms to the floor.

Goosebumps covered my breasts, my ni**les erect in the cold air. I shivered but when Jake leaned back to stare down at me, a heated flush crept quickly back over my skin. I watched him in a lusty haze as he scraped his lower lip with his teeth, his study of me so intense the atmosphere between us blistered.

Slowly he reached out his hands and cupped my breasts, squeezing gently before rubbing his thumbs over my nipples. They pebbled under his touch, arousal coursing through my belly and down between my legs. Remembering how sensitive I was, Jake ducked his head and closed his hot mouth over my left nipple. I moaned, bowing my back, my fingers sliding through his hair to grip him close.

I grew damp … so ready for him.

My h*ps undulated against air as I whimpered his name.

Jake’s control snapped.

His mouth was back on mine and his kiss was hard again, demanding, biting, almost punishing, and I gave him as good as I got, sucking hard on his tongue. Jake shuddered against me, muttering a curse against my lips as he shoved me roughly onto the bed, his fingers deftly unbuttoning my jeans. With a quick tug, he slid them down my legs along with my panties and then he got on the bed, nudging my thighs apart as he stared down into my face. I’d never seen him look at me like that before. Desperate, possessive, needful.

And since I was feeling exactly the same way, my body was frenzied to answer his need.

Parting my lips on a rushed sigh, I slid my arms above my head so my br**sts arched up toward him.

In response, Jake leaned over me, his hands encircling my wrists as he pressed his jeans-covered erection against my na**d body. “You’re mine,” he whispered hoarsely against my mouth. “Always.”

“Jake,” I groaned, wild for him.

His right hand left my wrist to draw down his zipper. He shoved his jeans low enough to release his dick and then returned his hand to my wrist to pin me to the bed. I felt him throb hot and hard against my inner thigh.

Then all thought was lost as he slammed inside me before I could draw another breath. I cried out on an exhalation at the pleasure-pain that surged through me.

My thighs gripped Jake’s h*ps instinctively as he pulled back out only to thrust even harder. His rhythm was fast. It was definitely rougher than any sex we’d had before. Desperation to feel every inch of one another guided us. I could feel every inch of him and yet I gasped for more. “Jake, harder,” I begged as he pounded into me, his features fierce and taut with lust.

The bed surged against the wall as Jake f**ked me toward cl**ax. As the orgasm tore through me, ripping me into little pieces, I cried out his name so loudly, I’m sure the whole building heard me.

Fluttering back to earth like confetti, I felt Jake’s h*ps jerk against me. He threw his head back as he came and I watched him through lidded eyes, feeling my inner muscles contract in aftershocks around him as his cl**ax drew out. Finally, he shuddered to a stop, his head dropping forward to my shoulder. His hands relaxed around my wrists as he kissed me and pressed a clammy cheek to my muggy skin. “Baby,” he moaned. “What was that?”

I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. “That was a loss of control,” I whispered, still languid and dazed.

Jake’s fingers gripped my hip as lifted his head to look into my eyes, his own suddenly filled with remorse. “Did I hurt you?”

I shook my head, a small smile playing on my lips. “You exhausted me, but not hurt.” I brushed a thumb tenderly over his mouth. “It was … wow.”

“Yeah,” he agreed, seeming just as dazed. “I … I’ve never wanted anyone the way I want you.”

I smiled at him, shielding him from my inward wince as he pulled out of me. “I’m on the pill, by the way,” I murmured casually since he’d obviously forgotten about protection in his determination to have me.

Jake groaned as I moved over to make space on the twin bed. “I’m a genius tonight.”

“We’re good,” I assured him and he smiled as I yawned. “Sorry. You’ve tired me out.”

He kissed me softly, the tip of his tongue just touching the tip of mine. “I’ll let you sleep.”

“Mmm, I guess we’re done taking it slow.”

He laughed softly, enfolding his arms around me. Jake snuggled me close and I decided for tonight not to think about anything too serious or too worrying and just delight in the languorous satisfaction of mind-blowing sex that had melted my limbs.

I was relaxed, at peace for the first time in a long time, when Jake pressed his mouth to my ear and whispered, “I love you, Charley Redford.”

Stiffening at the confession, it took me a few seconds to get my breathing back under control. Fear shot through me, paralyzing me, and the words I was sure I felt, lodged in my throat.

I couldn’t say it back.

I wasn’t ready.

Instead, I snuggled deeper into him, hoping he’d understand my silence.

Jake’s fingers brushed through my hair gently. “I can wait.”

Chapter Twenty-Six

A heavy weight was settled on my back, foreign limbs tangled with mine, and I felt trapped against the mattress for a second as I tried to work out what was happening.

I pried my eyes open, wincing against the light filtering in through the thin curtains at my small window. The bleariness eventually cleared from my vision, and I caught sight of my hand on the mattress beside my head and realized masculine fingers were curled around my wrist.

The night before came flooding back to me and the memory of Jake surging inside of me had my lower belly clenching in lust. My wrist twitched in his hot grip and I felt and heard a masculine purr against my shoulder.