Midnight was the best time to take photos of the campus, especially after stressing over finals. All the streets were brightly lit but empty, the silvery sheen of moonlight turning whatever it touched into a black-and-white still painting.
Jaike stretched luxuriously, arms over and behind her head, her joints aching after being on her knees taking close-up shots of roses that were just about to bloom. The night was colder than usual, making her wish she had worn something thicker than her cotton shirt and denim shorts.
Looking around, Jaike found nothing familiar in her surroundings. Even after two years of college, her mind still couldn’t quite grasp at how enormous the university’s property was.
Just as Jaike was about to turn around and retrace her footsteps, something rustled behind the trees, followed by sounds that seemed like moans of pain. Jaike stilled, waiting for another sound even though she prayed at the same time that there wouldn’t be one.
Another pain-filled moan emerged, and Jaike quickly fumbled for her pepper spray and torch from her pockets. Keeping her footsteps quiet, she slowly walked past the row of rose bushes circling the gazebo, her heart beating faster as the moans grew more frequent and louder.
“No more.”
“Shut up. You know you want this.”
“No.”
“Yes.” A grunt in the darkness.
“No!”
Reaching the edge of the bushes, she stepped past it and shone the light at where the sounds were coming from.
The moan turned into a shrill scream. “Shut the light off!”
“I’m sorry!” Jaike gasped, unprepared to see a couple making out instead of the rape scene she was expecting. She clumsily struggled to switch the torch off, wishing there was a way to forget what she had just seen.
The girl had her arms around the tree’s bark, bent halfway so that her ass was up in the air while the man she was with thrust in and out of her from behind.
“Mind your fucking business next time, bitch,” the girl snarled.
Jaike looked up in dismay and was even more embarrassed when she saw the girl hastily putting her clothes on. “I’m sor—-” Her voice died when the guy turned around, revealing a familiar set of features, but now the dark hair was matted with sweat, blue-gray eyes wide in shock.
She walked away. But it wasn’t enough and soon she was running. Her feet pounded the pavement in heavy steps, the pain lodged inside her heart making her breath come out in broken gasps as she silently urged her legs to move faster.
“Wait!”
Jaike almost fell down in her haste. But it was a futile effort, and he caught up with her in seconds, forcing her to spin around to face him. It felt like the worst kind of déjà vu, a nightmare that only the most twisted mind could create.
Moonlight cast Derek’s face in light and shadows, with not even a single shade of gray to numb the pain.
He had been fucking another woman.
The thought made Jaike gasp involuntarily, and when she noticed his partially unbuttoned jeans, a broken cry slipped past her lips.
Derek cursed when she saw where she was looking at, his fingers automatically going to the buttons. “Jaike—-”
She shook her head furiously. “You don’t have to explain.”
“Then why are you looking at me like that?”
Jaike couldn’t speak. She knew that the answer to it was inside her somewhere, but she had buried it so deep she didn’t know where to find it anymore.
Derek swore and she flinched at the sound of it.
“Don’t look so goddamn hurt,” he snarled.
She lifted her chin. “I’m not!” But her voice shook at the end.
“Fuck! Fuck!” A look of bitter rage darkened his face and Derek looked around wildly as if searching for something he could thrash violently. “What did you fucking expect me to do, Jaike? You’re another guy’s girlfriend!”
“I know!” She shouted the words out. She had to. If she let herself soften just one bit, she would break down, and she wouldn’t ever be the same again if that happened.
“What did you think I’d fucking do? Wait for you forever?”
Jaike shook her head, crying now. She hurt. They both hurt. But she just couldn’t see a way out for both of them to escape with their hearts intact.
He grabbed her hand and placed it on his dick, which was still fully erect. “Do you feel that, Jaike? I’m fucking hard for you all the time and it’s goddamn hell knowing I can only touch myself and imagine that it’s you. When I fuck some other girl, I have to pretend she’s you.”
A look of pained pleasure twisted his face as Derek pushed her hand harder against his dick. “I wanted to fight for you, Jaike. I goddamn wanted to steal you away from that prick!”
He curled his hand around hers, forcing Jaike to curl her fingers around his dick. “When I tried to make you choose me, you made me pay by being fucking his! And now that I’ve stayed away, you’re looking at me like I’m goddamn wrong again!”
She sobbed out, “I don’t know—-”
“Bullshit! You’re not crying because you don’t know, Jaike. You know what you want me to do but because you’re such a goddamn coward you’d rather let Valencia play with you—-”
Jaike snatched her hand away from his hold and slapped him. “You don’t understand!”
“Then make me!” Derek roared. “You have me on my fucking knees, Jaike. Do you want me to fight for you? Do you want me to stay away? Tell me what the hell I can do just so that you won’t fucking belong to someone else!”
“Derek—-mmph!” His lips slammed over hers. Passion exploded between them, and the sheer strength of it made her lips part in shock.
Derek’s tongue immediately thrust in, swooping into her mouth, tasting her as if his kiss was meant to mark her as his. There wasn’t anything sweet and tender in Derek’s kiss. It was raw and demanding, and she loved it. She was obsessed by it. Putting a stop to Derek’s kiss didn’t even cross her mind, the kiss claiming her in a way that Jaike was no longer herself. She was simply his.
Derek’s tongue thrust in and out of her, mating with her tongue, and she could have died for the sensations that his deep and masterful kiss churned out. His kiss demanded, and she yielded.
His lower body pushed against her, and she pushed back without thinking, loving the pulsing heat of Derek’s hard length.
The next thing she knew Derek had jumped away from her, and the glare in his eyes made Jaike gaze back at him in hurt confusion.
“You’re so fucking confusing you’re driving me crazy!” he growled.
“You’re so fucking confusing, too,” she half-screamed, unable to understand how Derek could be so mad after the kiss they had shared. “What do you want from me?”
“You know what I fucking want. It’s you who doesn’t fucking know what you goddamn want!” Derek took a challenging step towards her, his chest shaking with every ragged breath he took. “Tell me, Jaike. Does this fucking mean you’ll leave him? Are you mine now?”
His words worked like a bucket of cold water thrown at her.
Oh God, oh God, oh God. What had she done?
“What’s it going to be this time, Jaike?”
The skies answered him with a drizzle, the raindrops falling harder and faster that they were completely drenched in seconds. But the cold didn’t penetrate her body, and Jaike didn’t even think of pulling away when Derek grabbed her hand. She was gutted by Derek’s words, so conflicted and torn Jaike didn’t even know how or where to start fixing what was wrong between them.
“Let’s make a run for it!” he shouted over the rain. Derek didn’t hesitate with the twists and turns as they ran, stopping only when they came upon an empty waiting shed.
Jaike sat on the bench, teeth chattering but not because of the rain. She was frozen inside with terror. She and Derek had kissed. Just the memory of it frightened her, and she didn’t even know how to tell Angelo about it.
“Cold?” Derek asked.
She shook her head. Her tears had dried but the pain in her heart hadn’t receded.
An entire minute passed before he spoke again. “What now, Jaike?”
The icy fingers of terror clawed at her, and Jaike hugged herself tightly. “Nothing,” she whispered.
Derek inhaled sharply.
Jaike felt him turning to her, but she kept her gaze glued to the front and away from him. It was the only way she could survive this.
“Why can’t you choose me, Jaike? Why won’t you stop running away?” He sounded shattered, and the lies she was had planned to spout died on her throat.
Jaike whispered, “Too scared.”
Derek stilled. “Of me?”
She shook her head. “Of what you make me feel...it’s not what I want.”
His voice turned grim. “It may not be what you want but it’s what you need. I’m the one you fucking need, Jaike.”
She bent her head down so he wouldn’t see how hard she was trying not to cry again. “I’m with Angelo now. I’ll always be with Angelo.”
Through the haze of her tears, she saw Derek’s fists clench at her words. “You will be with me one day. It will happen and you won’t be able to stop it. You’re mine. Always been. Always will be.”
“Derek...” He frightened her when he was like this, but what frightened her more was how every cell of her being cried out for him at his words.
He stood up and she could feel him looking down on her. “It’s just a matter of time.”
She quickly covered her mouth to keep a sob from rushing out when she felt him press his lips to her forehead. “Call Valencia now and ask him to pick you up.”
Derek walked away, and she pressed her hands harder to her mouth, struggling for control. It took her a while to regain her composure, and only then did she call Angelo. When he arrived, she couldn’t stop herself from looking around, hoping and not hoping for a glimpse of Derek at the same time.
There was none, but she knew he was there, could feel his gaze like it was a chain around her body that she wanted to be locked with forever.
Chapter Eight
Derek’s soft, worried voice penetrated her mind, drawing Jaike out of the past. “What is it?”
Her lips still tingled at the memory of his kiss, especially with the way Derek was looking at her now. Only now did she realize how much control he had exerted over himself in all the years they had known each other. But now, Derek wasn’t doing anything to hide how much he wanted her, how much he needed her to submit to him.
Knees buckling, she clutched the back of the sofa to steady herself. She gestured to her surroundings, hoping it would stop Derek from gazing at her with such naked hunger. “M-make yourself at home.”
Derek wanted to, he planned to, but first he had to ask a question that had been burning inside him the moment he stepped into her suite. It was beautifully and neatly kept, furnished cozily and with feminine touches all over. He couldn’t find any sign that the prick had lived with her but even so – he had to ask.
“Did you let Valencia fuck you?” When she blinked at him, he gritted out, “Answer me!”
Jaike whispered, “No.”
The relief he felt at her words was excruciating.
“W-would you leave me if I had let him touch me?”
“No.” He didn’t have to think about it. “But if he had touched you, it would mean that he mattered to you—-”
Jaike couldn’t let that pass. She just wasn’t built that way. “He did. Angelo mattered to me,” she choked out. Even now, with Derek’s presence clouding her judgment, she still couldn’t make herself forget the pain of seeing Angelo with another girl.
Derek smiled grimly. “Maybe he did, but not in the way he should. Not in the way I matter to you.”
He strode forward then, and she forgot whatever she wanted to say. The nearer he was, the tenser she became, and she was stiff as a board when he finally stopped, close enough that their lips would touch if she so much as breathed.
You’re the classic case of a sub. Marcy’s words echoed in her mind.
And Derek, oh God, Derek wanted to be her Dom.
They were graduating in months. Derek was poised to take over his family’s business while she had her future all mapped out, her admission to her dream law school a certainty. They shouldn’t be thinking about this, but oh God, her body craved his authority like it was an addiction it had from the very first day.
Everything felt so twisted, but it felt oh so right, too, and the knowledge fucked with her mind.
Their gazes met again, and this time Jaike’s courage totally deserted her. She looked away, unable to bear the possessive heat in his gaze. Taking a step back, she asked, “Do you want anything to drink?”
“No.”
She blurted out, “I do.”
Dom. Sub. The words overlapped each other in her mind, teasing and seducing her.
She walked to the refrigerator and took out a can of beer, one of the dozen she had made sure to stock her fridge with for Angelo. The memory made her hand shake as she pulled the tab and drunk it in one gulp.
Derek scowled when Jaike started choking. Walking to her, he took the empty can away and threw it to the trash. “No more.”
She decided not to tell Derek that it didn’t matter if she only had one can of beer. It was more than enough, her tolerance level for alcohol so low that in a matter of minutes she would be completely out of her mind.
The tenderness with which he brushed her hair away from her face brought fresh tears to her eyes. It reminded her of the last time Angelo had touched her, just as it reminded her of all the times she had run away from Derek.
Derek was still frowning, concern etched on his face as he asked, “Do you want me to call a doctor?”
She would have laughed if she hadn’t known he was serious. “I’m fine.” Jaike hated the heavy tension in the air, making it hard for her to breathe. She looked up at Derek with a determinedly bright smile. “I bet you never imagined the two of us spending time in my place without sniping at each other, right?”
His lips quirked. “You mean without you sniping at me, right?”
She flushed at the truth of his words. “Sorry for being a bitch to you in the past.”
Derek waved his hand languidly. “No need to apologize. I liked it.”
Her eyebrows shot up in surprise.
“It meant no other guy would have an easy time hitting on you.”
That was a good point, but only if it was reasonable to assume that so many guys wanted her she had to beat them off with a stick. And it wasn’t reasonable, wasn’t even possible.
Not knowing what to say so that Derek would understand how misguided he was about her, Jaike awkwardly gestured to the sofa. “Please have a seat.”
His lips formed a smile. “You’re sounding like a nun again.”
She glanced at him in exasperation as she took the smaller couch across the sofa. “I just said ‘please’ and that makes me—-” Jaike broke off when Derek sat next to her instead, the limited space forcing his thighs to brush against hers.
“Enough with the small talk, baby.”
She raised startled eyes to him.
“You can talk to me about Valencia.”
A strangled sob came out at the words she never expected to hear him say.
“Don’t cry,” Derek said harshly as he pulled her into his arms.
Jaike didn’t even bother struggling. “He didn’t love me,” she whispered dully. “Why did he go out with me for fifteen months if he hadn’t loved me at all?”
“He was a fucking asshole.” It was the most diplomatic answer Derek could think of.
The effects of her one can of beer were beginning to set in, tempting her to say words that would only cause pain to both of them. Angelo had been good to her, too good, which was probably why the way he had so coldly dumped her hurt too much.
“Did you love him?”
Had she loved Angelo?
; She felt Derek flinch when she pulled away from him, and she hated herself for it. Now was the time to make a clean break, and Jaike knew it was the only chance she would have to save herself from what fate had in store for her all along.
Derek’s gorgeous face was taut as he waited for her answer.
“Yes. I loved him. I love him.”
Derek tried not to react even though the words were like a fucking blow to his chest.
Jaike swallowed. “But I didn’t love him the way he deserved to be loved.” The flare of surprise in Derek’s eyes was a lovely sight, but the faintest glimmer of hope that followed was even more beautiful.
Derek wanted to haul her back into his arms when he realized what she was saying. Finally. The word was all he could goddamn think of. He wanted to shout, wanted the whole fucking world to know that he finally had the girl who had been born for him. But he didn’t do any of those because it just wasn’t the right time yet.
“Come here.” His voice was both a command and a caress, and Jaike’s body instinctively responded to it. Her tears slowly dried out, her body molding softly to his.
Derek tipped her face up once more, and this time it felt entirely natural to raise her lips as he lowered his head.
The first touch of his lips was gentle, the very opposite of their first kiss. His lips moved softly against hers, licking and nipping tenderly. His tongue slipped between her lips, exerting a pressure that Jaike welcomed because it took the decision entirely out of her hands.
Slowly, she let his tongue in, and Jaike wanted to cry at just how beautiful his kiss felt. His lips felt and tasted even better than she could remember, and his passion as scorching and raw as it was when they had first kissed.
A hard arm curled around her waist, pulling her closer until every inch of their bodies touched. His other hand gripped her hair, pushing her head forward so his tongue could move further into her mouth. And then his hands were drifting lower, caressing her back before curving around her buttocks.
Derek’s kiss continued to mesmerize her. When he shifted her in his arms, leaning back against the sides so she could lie on top of him, her eyelids fell shut. Mind already made hazy by alcohol, her heart made numb by pain, her body was completely free to take over, and Jaike gladly surrendered to its urges.
Tangled: A New Adult Romance Boxed Set (12 Book Bundle of Billionaires, Bad Boys, and Royalty) Page 162