The Hastings Series

by Vanessa Siena

  Then, the way he held me on the couch, so careful yet determined to keep me close. This man. Not sure how any other guy would ever be able to make me feel better than he can. I felt safe in his arms, even though we only just met a few days ago.

  Letting him sleep out there didn’t feel right at all. That’s why I was sitting in his bed, contemplating whether to get up and ask him if he wants to join me in his bedroom. Just a small, kind gesture, right?

  I stared at the door a while longer, then finally decided to get up. I walked over, opened the door slowly, hoping he wasn’t asleep yet. As I stepped outside the bedroom, I saw Jagger sitting on the couch with just a shirt and boxers on, and a book in his hand. Of course, he reads. I almost rolled my eyes. Could he get any sexier?

  He looked up, noticing me standing there in the hallway. His eyes moved from my face down my body, seeing that I had one of his sweaters on which just covered my bottom. Silence. We were getting good at silence. I liked it when we sat on the couch after dinner. It was nice knowing there were no words needed at times.

  But I had to speak to let him know what I wanted. “I’d like you to come to bed.” My voice was soft yet demanding. Not sure why I felt the need to tell him what to do in his own home but letting him know what I wanted was important. I didn’t like miscommunications, and by being straight forward, I would avoid them.

  Jagger put his book down on the couch next to him, then stood up and walked toward me slowly. I watched him carefully, and when he stopped in front of me, I smiled. Close. That’s what I wanted him to be.

  He was still silent, and with one more look at the sweater I had on, he reached up to tug my hair behind my ear. “I don’t think I will be able to keep my hands off you if we lay in the same bed.” His voice was husky and low, and his hand was now on my hip, already confirming that he would not keep them off me.

  “Maybe that’s exactly what I want,” I teased. Our eyes met again, but his soon dropped to my lips, a grin appearing on his face. Now, all that was left to do was make the next move. And I thought, if I started this, I could continue it. So, I did.

  I moved closer, put one of my hands on his chest and the other on the side of his neck, leaned in, and met his lips halfway. His hands soon were on my body, one holding me close to him on my lower back and the other gripping my hair at the back of my head. His lips were soft, and they moved gently over mine. I had no doubt they would feel this good.

  Jagger moved, pushing me back against the wall right next to his bedroom door. His body leaned in against mine and I pulled him closer, so I was able to deepen the kiss. Our lips parted more, and I felt his tongue against mine immediately. He sure knew how to kiss. His rhythm was just right and the way his hands held my body made me shiver all over again. But then, his hands were one of the main things I liked about him. He knew how to use them. He knew what felt good when he touched me. But that also meant he had a lot of experience.

  No, I’m not going there. What he had in the past with other women is not my business.

  His right hand moved back to my hip, then slowly made its way to the side of my thigh, lifting the hem of his sweater and pushing his hand under it so he was able to touch my skin. His hand was warm, and the tenderness with which he touched me was perfect. When his hand moved up to my waist, his other hand reached behind me to cover my bottom. Right where I wanted it.

  My hands made their way up to his neck, gripping and tugging on his hair lightly. He had nice hair. Full locks. Just how I liked it.

  His knee pushed between my legs, seconds later he pulled me up by my bottom and I wrapped myself around his hips, feeling his hardness right at my center. He stepped away from the wall, carrying me into his bedroom without his lips leaving mine. He stopped at the end of the bed, putting one knee on it, and lowering me back onto the mattress, following me and still not breaking our kiss. The word passionate was too weak to describe our situation. He leaned over me, one hand gripping my neck to deepen the kiss even more and pushing his tongue further into my mouth. God, it felt so good.

  My sweater was pushed up, exposing my belly. He was holding himself up with his left hand, but still let his body push down on mine with my legs up against his sides. “Tell me what you want, Gray,” he mumbled against my lips and I quickly touched the waistband of his boxers. Instinctively, I grabbed for what I wanted to come off. But I wasn’t sure going that far was necessary just now. This was our second date. Although sleeping with Jagger sounded exciting, I didn’t think it was the best thing to do. There was an obvious attraction between the two of us, but I liked us back on that couch, just holding each other, becoming close without using too many words. Kissing him was also enough for now. Even if my body told me a whole other story.

  Moving too quickly when dating someone never ended well for me. I got bored easily, and I wanted to take my time with Jagger. As much as possible. I wanted to get to know him. So, him asking what I wanted was perfect. He had enough respect toward me to find out what I wanted, other than just pushing us in a direction we both might regret sooner or later.

  “I want you to hold me again,” I whispered against his lips, taking my hand off his waistband and touching his stomach instead. He looked down into my eyes, the tip of his nose touching mine. He smiled, then moved his hand from my neck to my waist, pulling down the sweater to cover me back up. Jagger then moved to the side, adjusting the pillow behind his head, and laying back against it.

  “Come here.” He opened his arms, offering me the spot between them. Without hesitation, I moved closer into his embrace and nestled my face into the crook of his neck.

  “You okay?” His voice was low and had a hint of concern in it. I nodded and gripped his shirt tightly, just like I did on the couch before. Something made me want to hold on to him. I felt safe with him. Protected. But I wasn’t sure if he only acted that way to make people feel good and fall for his charms. No, that sounds wrong, I thought, he’s not that kind of guy.

  “I’ve never been better,” I told him.

  I felt his chest vibrate and heard a low chuckle escape him. “Fuck me,” he mumbled, then pressed a kiss to my head and put his hand on top of mine. “You’re too damn sweet.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jagger

  The last time I woke up with a girl next to me, Bliss was still coming around. Well, it hasn’t been that long since she last came by, but I didn’t want to compare Bliss with Gray. It felt different. Probably because Gray wasn’t an old friend I’ve known for almost all my life. This was new. And better. So much better.

  My arms were still around Gray, keeping her close to my body and feeling her warmth. The sun was shining through the big window, and I kept my eyes closed, enjoying how the rays felt on my face. For the first time in weeks, hell, even months, waking up in this bed felt right.

  Gray’s breathing was slow, and I could barely hear it. How was it possible that even in her sleep, without trying, she was being adorable? It fascinated me how calm she was. And that might’ve been why I was feeling safe and relaxed next to her. She reminded me of Harlow in a way.

  My sister had a way of pulling me down to earth every time I was high on adrenaline or stressed from work. The moment I opened the front door and heard Harlow’s sweet voice greet me, I was safe. She often told me I was her safe place. But she had no idea that I felt the same way about her. I often held her close on the couch, stroking her hair and waiting until she fell asleep with her head on my shoulder. She needed it. She had no other person in her life who would comfort her when she had a rough day at work. Well, until Hunter came around.

  With Gray, I wondered if I would ever become what Hunter is for Harlow. Even if it was too early to tell, I knew I wanted to keep her close.

  I moved my hand up her back, then gripped the back of her neck and turned my head to kiss her forehead, my eyes still closed. She moved in my arms, then a noise escaped her.

  “Morning,” she mumbled, and I now looked down at her. She had a smal
l smile on her face, and a chunk of her hair was blocking my view. I moved it behind her ear and kissed her forehead once more before replying.

  “Good morning. Sleep well?” I asked.

  She nodded, then finally opened her eyes to look up into mine. She was gorgeous. “You?”

  “Me too. I’m glad you let me come sleep here in my bed with you.”

  She laughed and pulled the covers up to her chin, then closed her eyes again. “I’m glad I let you too.” A chuckle escaped me, and I started massaging the back of her head, and with the other hand I grabbed her hand, which was laying on my chest.

  “Are you hungry? I can make us some pancakes,” I asked, looking out the window and squinting at the sun. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen rain.

  “Sounds good.” She moved again and I felt her lips pressing against my jawline. “I’ll go take a shower.”

  I watched her pick up her clothes from the floor and walk into the bathroom. I couldn’t help but look at her barely covered bottom. I liked my sweater on her. A lot.

  My hands moved into my hair, and I stayed in bed for a minute before getting up myself and walking out to the kitchen to make sure I had what was needed for pancakes. Of course, I didn’t have any eggs. Great. I should be prepared for situations like this next time.

  I looked at the clock on the wall and decided that it wasn’t too early to go upstairs and ask Sage if she had any eggs for me to borrow. With a glance to my bedroom, I walked to the bathroom door. “Hey, Gray?” I called out and knocked on the door twice. “I’ll go ask Sage if she has some eggs. I’m out.”

  “Okay! Tell her I said hi,” came from the bathroom and the shower turned on. Perfect. So, she didn’t feel weird about her cousin knowing that she was here with me. I smiled at the thought of that and made my way back to the kitchen. I quickly googled how many eggs I needed for the pancakes and rolled my eyes when I saw that I would only need one. But the recipe said it’s “The best pancake recipe ever,” so I wasn’t going to mess it up. I needed that egg.

  I put on a pair of sneakers to walk upstairs to Sage’s apartment and knocked on her door. Just seconds later, she opened the door with a big frown on her face and a robe around her body. “Don’t tell me she left already,” Sage warned and crossed her arms over her chest.

  “What? No…she’s taking a shower.” I wasn’t really surprised that she knew about Gray being at my place. Gray must’ve told her. “I need to borrow an egg. I wanna make pancakes for her.”

  “Good choice. She likes pancakes.” Sage walked back into the apartment and kept talking. “I’m glad she stayed overnight. She really needed that.”

  I raised a brow and leaned against the doorframe. “Really needed what?” I asked, watching as she walked back toward me with an egg in her hand. She imitated my facial expression and laughed.

  “Sex. She needed to finally come out of that shell of hers. She’s been tense for months. I’m glad you two finally did it. She’s not been with a guy in so damn long.”

  Normally, if Gray and I having sex was the case, I would be annoyed by Sage’s words. But knowing Gray, even for this short amount of time, I knew sex wasn’t what she was looking for. She was the one who stopped it last night, and I was glad she did. If she wouldn’t have, I probably couldn’t have stopped myself from stripping her naked to feel my cock inside her.

  Christ, Jag.

  I wasn’t sure if I should tell Sage that we didn’t have sex—just to make sure she wasn’t interpreting anything into what Gray and I had. But then, I didn’t like people playing a part in my personal life. Not when it came to girls. It’s not like I walked around Hastings and told everyone about Bliss and me. So, I decided to let it slip.

  I reached for the egg and smiled. “Thanks for this,” I told her and stepped away from the door again. “See you around.” And with one last nod, I turned to walk back down to my apartment. As I entered it, I saw Gray standing in the kitchen with her wet hair up in a bun at the top of her head and an orange in her hand. She turned to look at me and smiled.

  “Mind if I make some orange juice?” she asked, holding the orange up.

  “Go ahead,” I said and walked over to her, put my hand on her lower back and kissed her cheek, close to the corner of her mouth. “You feeling good today?”

  She looked up into my eyes with a soft smile and nodded. “Very.” Then her lips pressed into a thin line and a small crease appeared between her brows. She suddenly looked conflicted, which made me chuckle.

  “What’s wrong?”

  She kept frowning at me, and I couldn’t help but grin. She was studying my face and I was waiting on her to answer. “Is it okay if I get used to this already? I mean, waking up in your bed and making breakfast with you?”

  I glanced down at her, eyeing the turtleneck and skirt she wore to our date last night. I puckered my lips, looking back into her eyes. “Only if you promise me that next time, you’ll leave on my sweater.” I wanted to see a little more of her legs. The skirt she was wearing was short, but I liked the teasing of her ass peeking out from under the sweater.

  Her face relaxed slowly, and a smile appeared on her lips. She nodded, moved closer to me, and kissed me quickly on the lips. “Deal.” Then she turned back to the counter and started cutting the oranges in half. I let out a chuckle once again, then shook my head and turned to find the other ingredients needed for the pancakes.

  She felt comfortable around me and Gray’s words contradicted what Sage told me. She wasn’t here just to get her frustration out. She was here for me. To get to know me and spend time with me. And I was happy that’s why she was with me. I was starting to get used to her too. Slowly, but very surely.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Gray

  “Are you full?” Jagger asked, nodding to my clean plate. I had enough pancakes and the burgers from last night were still taking up a lot of space in my stomach. I nodded and put my hands on my belly. “Very full. Thank you.”

  Jagger smiled and leaned back in his seat, studying my face once again. He did that a lot lately. And I didn’t mind. Although his eyes were hard to read, I could tell he was satisfied, so I kept my eyes on his face too. “What are you up to today?” I asked, pulling one knee up and resting my chin on it.

  “Your brother offered me a job at his club. He’s picking me up at six.” I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. “What? You don’t like the idea of me working for your brother?” he asked with a grin and a tilt of his head.

  “No, that’s not it. I somehow knew it would happen.” I puckered my lips, then smiled at him softly. “Dallas told me about your fighting career years back. He knows I don’t like what he’s doing. It’s stupid and dangerous.”

  Jagger nodded, seemingly agreeing with me on that. “It is stupid and dangerous. But it’s also very calming in a way. Well, at least for me it was.” He shrugged, letting me know that my opinion on fighting didn’t matter. It didn’t. I just hoped Dallas would stop with it.

  “Why did you fight?” I asked him, hoping to get a little backstory on it. Some people did have a reason to fight. Dallas just did it for fun and because he somehow became kind of famous. He was good, I’d give him that. But his reasons for beating up other guys for money were weak.

  “I started when I was young. Fourteen or fifteen. I was struggling with some family stuff and needed a way to get my anger out. And since my parents didn’t have any money to take good care of me and my sister, fighting became the only way to help at home, and give Low a better childhood. I sucked when I first started, but I kept training. Turned out I was secretly the crowd’s favorite. Then, when I moved town, I stopped. I had enough of broken noses and bruises all over my body.”

  “So…what did you do then?” His story was somehow dark but sweet. He took on all the beatings from strangers so his family could have a better life. That’s a good reason. Dallas just did it to be the greatest. Selfish. I still loved him, but I hated seeing him hurt.

  “I f
ound a job as a mechanic. Turned out I was good at fixing cars and motorcycles. And it was fun. Harlow didn’t approve of the fighting, anyway. I didn’t want her to worry anymore.”

  I smiled at his words. Harlow’s lucky. Having a big brother like Jagger must be nice. Not that I don’t think Dallas is a good brother, but he has that annoying big brother thing. Always trying to act like my protector but getting on my nerves most of the time.

  “Speaking of Harlow,” I said with a nod to his phone right next to his plate. It lit up once, then twice, with her name written on the screen. Jagger looked down and read what his sister texted. A sigh escaped him, and I couldn’t help but be curious.

  “Something wrong?” I wondered, keeping my eyes on him.

  ***

  Jagger

  I stared at Harlow’s text for some seconds before looking up at Gray again. “No, nothing’s wrong,” I assured her and smiled. “Before I came to Newton, I let Hunter move into my home with Harlow but I’m still the owner. She needs me to sign some papers so they can be set as owners. I could ask her to send me the papers, but she wouldn’t do that. I need to go back to Hastings for a few days. Make sure she’s not freaking out about me not visiting her in a while.”

  Gray nodded but didn’t say a word, seemingly thinking about something. I kept my eyes on hers, knowing she was about to propose something I may or may not regret agreeing to. “Would you like some company for the long ride?”

  A grin appeared on my face because that’s exactly what I expected her to ask. I knew taking her with me to Hastings was a big step. First, she would be meeting the two people who were closest to me, and second…Bliss was there. Hunter told me about Bliss and Harlow hanging out more often, and there was no way around her when I went back to visit my sister. But then, if Gray was with me, and Bliss saw how close we had gotten, she might finally let go of her obsession over me.