"We should fight more often," I murmured sleepily into the mattress.
"No," he replied in a firm, no-nonsense tone. "We shouldn't."
I laughed a little and then turned to lie on my back and stare at the ceiling. "Fuck. I missed this."
He grunted. "You have no idea." There was a pause and then he added. "At least you were getting some."
I turned to study his flushed, handsome profile, taking it all in. He was here, lying next to me, talking to me, wanting me. It was like coming home. I belonged here. But...she belonged with me too. My chest clenched with pain when I thought of Skye in her room, alone. She was my sweet girl. My beautiful baby. Gorgeous, warm, caring. I missed her too.
Jasper glanced at me, took in my expression and narrowed his eyes a little. "What?"
I shook my head, blinked back the unexpected tears and tried a smile but I was sure it came out all wrong.
"I'm sorry about the way I acted," I said, my voice husky with emotion. "I got mad because I didn't want you to want her. I know that's selfish of me. You've been so great. But that concept of 'mine', let’s just say I take it a little too seriously."
He was quiet and looked away from me as I talked and I wondered what he was thinking but was afraid to ask. He had not made a single sarcastic or rude comment about Skye since he returned hours ago and though I was glad that he did not seem to resent her as much, it also made me uneasy.
It had not escaped my attention when they had shared some sort of look when Jasper had first entered the house. I did not even want to think about what that meant.
"Jasper," I murmured and leaned over him, taking his mouth again. He responded at once, kissing me back with renewed hunger.
My hand drifted to his cock and I glided my fist from the base to its head firmly. He let out a strangled groan as he hardened again under my touch.
"This has been mine for so long," I whispered into his mouth, stroking him slowly. "The thought of it belonging to someone else makes me want to punch a hole in the wall."
"Yeah?" he growled. "Imagine how I must be feeling then. She had you for two fucking weeks. It's my turn now."
His tongue twisted around mine as he moved and pinned me underneath him, thrusting his hips smoothly into my hand. A growl rumbled in his massive chest and he broke the kiss to graze his teeth along the side of my neck.
"Harder," he demanded roughly and I tightened my hold. He blew out a breath, screwed his eyes shut and fucked my fist with a force that made my wrist hurt from gripping him. "Oh, fuck," he grated and I bit his ear in response.
If he had not pounded my ass twice already, I would have let him do it again but a pounding from Jasper was like hurtling across space at lightning speed. I needed more time to recover.
"Get on top of me," he gasped suddenly in the heat of the moment much to my surprise and delight. "I want you on top. Now."
Releasing his dick from my hold, I pushed him onto his back and mounted him. The uninhibited roar he let out as I pleasured him with my whole body made me think of Skye.
A gut instinct that came from loving someone too much and knowing them inside out told me she was not using her headphones to drown out our sounds but I was too busy making hard-core love to my boyfriend to explore that thought any further.
Chapter 21
Jasper
I yawned my way out of the bedroom the next morning only to find a vision of blonde loveliness sitting atop my kitchen counter dressed in white shorts and tank top with long, tanned legs dangling in my line of sight like some kind of sweet offering.
She stopped eating her cereal and stared at my bare chest like she had never seen a man before. I cleared my throat to get her attention away from my half naked body and she blinked and gave me one of her breathtaking smiles, her glossy pink lips curving to reveal straight, pristine white teeth. I wanted to take her picture again. It was almost worth getting in trouble again just to capture this moment. Almost.
Cole had definitely hit the jackpot and I could not blame him anymore even in my heart. She was perfect.
"Bourn giorno," her warm, honeydew voice greeted me in Italian as she resumed eating her cereal. She jerked her head over her shoulder at the coffee machine. "I brewed some for you and made green tea for Cole. I heard you guys talking," she explained when I raised my eyebrow to question how she knew we were awake.
Oh, yeah? What else did you hear, you little minx? I wanted to ask but kept my mouth shut and headed behind the counter.
"Thank you," I said gruffly after a moment.
She turned her head to look at me. "What did you say?" she asked me in a dramatic whisper. "Who are you and what have you done to Jasper Wells?"
I narrowed my eyes at her but could not prevent my mouth from quirking into a smile. "Don't get used to it," I told her, bringing my cup to my mouth.
She grinned at me. "Don't worry. I think I like you better when you hate me," she confessed, putting her cereal bowl away. "Maybe I'm a masochist or something."
A tense silence followed her words. I didn't think she meant to say that last sentence out loud. Instead of taunting her about it, I decided to take the high road which was so out of character for me, it was unsettling.
"I think it's safe to say now that I was mostly mad at you and wanted to hate you because I saw you first but he was braver than me and decided to keep you," I said so quietly, I almost wished she did not hear me. It was so hard to admit that. "I was the one who told him to be with you and I meant it until I actually met you. That's when I realised I made a mistake thinking I could go through with this."
Skye turned her head to give me a wide-eyed look, her eyes so blue and innocent. So full of emotions. She looked at me for a long while and then whispered, "No. It's not safe to say that. Ever."
I swallowed at her nervous tone and nodded, understanding her warning. She was with Cole. Of course. I knew that. Just because she found me attractive did not mean she wanted other parts of me. I turned to pour out Cole's green tea and she spoke again from behind me, this time in a less serious tone.
"I can't believe you decided to be mean to me and treat me like shit when Cole actually fell for me hard whereas all you did was perv at me while I was in a bikini."
I paused in the act of pouring tea and for some reason, my chest ached at her words. That wasn't the first thing I noticed about you.
"It's such typical guy logic," she continued lightheartedly. "I saw her first so I call dibs?"
Despite my mind protesting at her assumption that my interest in her was so shallow, I made myself smile at her.
Skye gasped. "Oh my God, is that a real smile?" she teased. "I don't believe it. Do it again."
I looked skyward, then picked up the teacup, deciding to get the hell out of here because distance was necessary when it came to my interaction with Skye Madison. She was starting to grow on me.
As I passed by her, she swung her legs to and fro, opened her mouth and asked me a question in a breathy voice. "So...was he a good little boy last night?"
I halted, turned to face her and reached out with my free hand to tug playfully but firmly on a long, blonde lock of her hair making her wince. "Like you don't know already," I murmured with a lift of one eyebrow.
She grinned at me like the curious little minx she was and that was when my bedroom door opened and Cole walked out, rubbing his eyes.
I stepped away from Skye so fast, I almost spilled scalding hot tea on myself. Cole just paused, looked at us both and frowned a little before mumbling something that sounded like 'good morning' and heading towards the bathroom.
I blew out a breath through my teeth and walked away without sparing Skye another glance.
~~~
Skye
"Wow. I didn’t see that coming," I said in a surprised tone as I snuggled next to Cole on the couch that night, my arms and legs draped over him as we watched an animated movie Jasper had chosen on DVD.
Jasper, as I had discovered, was a fan of the DC uni
verse and Batman was his favourite superhero. Hence the movie. Cole actually hated those whereas I kind of enjoyed it. This one was interesting. Batman had teamed up with Harley Quinn along with Nightwing as a sidekick to save the world from and I quote, 'the veggie apocalypse.' It was actually kind of funny.
And sexy. In one of the scenes, Harley Quinn tied Nightwing up in her bed and proceeded to effectively seduce him. I had never realised Batman cartoon movies could be so...PG-13.
"He looks like you," I commented after studying Nightwing again. "Like a pretty boy. Strong but submissive as well."
Cole chuckled at my words while the clink of glasses in the kitchen told me Jasper was fixing himself a drink. He let me have this moment of physical closeness with Cole because they were spending the night together again. Yup. We had it all worked out. The entire month's schedule. Who gets him for the night and everything. Cole was in high demand.
I giggled as I recalled the scene where Batman discovered his sidekick playing on the job with a former villain and my thoughts turned naughty. In my imagination, I pictured myself as Harley and Batman telling Nightwing to be a good little boy and have his way with me while he waited for his turn with us both.
My core tightened in response and I gasped and straightened on the couch. Cole frowned at me in concern. "Skye? You okay?"
I blew out a nervous breath and laughed shakily. "Yeah...um...I'm good."
He cocked his head, studying my features in that way of his. "Spit it out, Madison."
I looked back at the screen and settled into his embrace again. "They're kind of turning me on," I confessed. "Especially Nightwing. I want you to wear that costume while I tie you up. Is that weird?"
He started laughing again at my words and held me tighter against him. We had never tried anything like role-play or bondage.
"Sure, baby," Cole finally said in my ear and kissed my neck. "We'll work on that tomorrow night," he promised because he was a wonderful boyfriend.
I bit my lip and cast him a sidelong glance. "Of course. Tonight's his turn," I stated, without taking my eyes off Cole and something in me dared to venture further in this line of conversation. "So...are you a top or a bottom?"
I could tell my question caught him completely off guard because he gaped at me for a while before saying, "Huh?"
He probably never expected me to ask him something like that and was not sure if he had understood me properly.
I smiled and raised my eyebrows. "You know...you and...Jasper," I finished in a whisper so that the blond guy in the kitchen would not hear.
Cole blinked and shook his head at me, quickly recovering from his surprise. "We're not talking about this," he murmured, his eyes avoiding mine.
I poked him in the ribs. "Come on. You can tell me. He's a total Daddy type so you must be a bottom, right? But with me you like to dominate most of the time so I'm just curious what that means.
He sucked on his bottom lip, glanced at me briefly and then looked over his shoulder at Jasper. Then he sighed as I kept staring at him expectantly.
"I'm a switch," he said in a low voice. "Jasper likes to top but he lets me do it sometimes because he knows I need it. He doesn't enjoy it as much though. It's mostly him fucking me."
I licked my suddenly dry lips, totally awed by the information he had given me and equally stunned that he had spoken at all. This was the most forthcoming he had ever been regarding his sexual interaction with Jasper and I did not know what to make of it.
He flicked another glance at me, took in my floored expression and frowned. "You're way too curious about these things," he commented and I closed my mouth and turned back to the TV, snuggling up with him again as Jasper returned to take his position in the recliner.
I watched the other guy while hugging Cole but Jasper only sipped his drink and kept feasting on nachos, relaxing in his chair with his eyes glued to the movie. I didn't miss the way his lips curved during some of the funny scenes.
That was how I fell asleep, with my body wrapped around Cole and my eyes fixed on Jasper, feeling like I belonged there while aching for something more at the same time. A missing piece of the puzzle in my almost perfect life.
I stirred when I felt someone draping a blanket over my shoulders and opened my sleepy eyes to find Jasper's face inches above mine.
He put a finger to his lips and smiled at me with a quirk of his sensual mouth.
"Just like Batman," I whispered involuntarily.
He gave me a questioning look and my sleep-fogged brain registered that I was still wrapped in Cole's arms on the couch with Cole breathing evenly underneath me.
"Oh my God, I'm so sorry," I whispered to Jasper, feeling like I was in a dream. "It was your turn with Nightwing."
He had switched off the main lights but it appeared to me as though he was trying hard not to laugh.
"Don't worry about it," he whispered back. "Good night."
I smiled in the semi darkness, his musky scent enveloping me along with Cole's unique one. "Mmm. Good night," I murmured, my eyes closing again in blissful contentment.
I felt a pair of warm lips touch my forehead and peeked at Jasper to find him dropping a kiss on Cole's mouth as well before he straightened and backed away from us.
No. Don't go. Stay with me, I wanted to say but I was too sleepy and my eyes closed against my will again.
~~~
Chapter 22
Skye
I paused on the doorstep of the apartment to send a quick text to Cole, Taylor Swift's Blank Space putting me in a chipper mood.
Baby, please pick up some coffee on your way back. I forgot. -Skye.
Sighing, I fumbled for the key and stuck it in the keyhole, humming kind of breathlessly because I had just gotten back after my morning run. Cole and I had gone together but he always took a longer route and I just could not keep up. The guy had a runner's body; he was built for this kind of stuff. Me? Not so much.
A hand curled around my arm just as I opened the door and I turned around to frown at whoever was manhandling me but I could only let out a gasp as a bulky man sneered at me, growled something in Italian and then pushed me through the door. We both stumbled as we entered and my survival instincts kicked in causing me to scream and curse at him to get out while kicking out at him simultaneously.
He grabbed my slim body and pinned it on the floor beneath his, speaking in fluent Italian.
"Been waiting a long time for this," he rasped in my ear as he locked me into place with his knees and used one hand to tug my hoodie up over my stomach.
I screamed again, loudly, and struggled, realising this scary looking stranger was about to rape me in my own home.
"No, please! Get off me! No!"
He was stronger than me. So strong and merciless. I tried to scratch him but he pinned my wrists as well and I could not lift my knee to aim at his crotch.
Fear clutched at me and I sobbed at my helplessness when his hand groped at my breasts.
"So lovely." He grinned at me, the look in his dark eyes evil and greedy as he licked his lips.
Then he let out a cry when something hit him on the head, jolting him. I raised my eyes to find Jasper standing above us, clutching a wooden stool while hitting the man again and causing him to loosen his hold on me.
I scrambled free, pushing the intruder away with all my strength and looked for something to help Jasper with. The man was huge, taller than Jasper even and he blocked the next blow from Jasper clumsily before removing a knife from inside his coat.
I cried out a warning to Jasper but it was too late because my attacker had already lashed out and sliced a cut in Jasper's arm.
"Jasper!" I yelled as he winced with the pain and then barked at me to call the police while he continued to batter the stool at the man.
Crying in fear, I tried to do as he asked even though my hands shook and I could hardly remove my eyes off him.
The man lunged again but Jasper ducked this time and let out a kick, catching him
in the knee.
"The police are on their way!" I suddenly screamed at the stranger just to give him a scare, hoping he had not noticed that I had not actually called anybody. I could not concentrate on anything but Jasper's bleeding arm in that horrendous moment.
The man had stumbled and dropped his knife when Jasper hit him and Jasper kicked the weapon away before launching himself at his weakened opponent and throwing multiple punches at him.
"Jasper, no!" I cried out, fearing for his life because he was fighting with an injured arm whereas the man was still stronger and more dangerous. "Stop! Please!"
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