You Can't Go Home Again

by Aubrianna Hunter

  “It still looks the same.” He turned to face her. “You really haven’t been back here at all, have you?”

  Dani raised her eyebrows, throwing him a sarcastic look. “What, you thought I was just avoiding you? Don’t flatter yourself.”

  Knowing he deserved much worse than that, Jace took the comment in stride. He strolled into the living room, settling into one of the chairs.

  “Please, make yourself at home,” Dani muttered under her breath.

  * * * * *

  Seeing the smirk, Dani knew he’d heard her. Rolling her eyes, she followed him into the living room. Her mother would roll over in her grave if she saw this total lack of manners. Feeling like a cranky teenager, Dani offered, “I don’t have much here, but I have coffee, water or a soda. If you want something to drink.”

  “No, I’m good, thanks.”

  She plunked down on the couch. Deciding at the last minute that she’d rather just sit on the floor, she slid off the edge and crossed her legs.

  He smiled again, shaking his head slightly. “You always did like to sit on the floor.”

  “Some things change, some don’t.” She waited a beat before asking, “Why are you here, Jace? I figure you said everything you needed to say last night.”

  “Yeah. About that… I didn’t mean any of it, Dani. Not a word.”

  “Aaahh, Jenn sent you to apologize.”

  “No, actually she told me not to. But she also said that you agreed with me…thought I was right.”

  He looked up at her, and for the first time she saw a glimpse of her friend, the man she remembered.

  “Well, I may disagree with the delivery, but the message wasn’t wrong. I never did fit, Jace. I am different. I’m sarcastic, not perky, quiet, not energetic, artistic, not athletic. I knew I was different.”

  He shrugged, shaking his head at the same time. “Maybe. Different but better. And you fit…with me, with Jenn.”

  “Really…then why all the hatred? You’ve been spewing venom at me since I got back into town.” Unable to sit still, Dani hopped to her feet and started pacing around the room. “I have a hard time believing that this is all because I didn’t come back for five years. And it can’t be because of…”

  She stopped short, turning to face him. Her voice had been steadily escalating, and was climbing toward a yell.

  She could see that her anger was starting to rile his. He stood up, taking a slow, deliberate step toward her. She didn’t know if he was trying to encourage her to finish her sentence, or intimidate her into shutting up. “Can’t be because of what, Dani? Because you never called? Never even gave me a phone number so I could call you? Or because you left me? Ran away, left the damn state, before I even woke up.”

  Now he was just a couple of feet away from her. One long stride and they were literally toe to toe. “I can’t possibly be angry about that, can I?”

  Dani refused to be intimidated. She leaned up on her toes, bringing her five feet seven inches much closer to his six-foot-one frame. “It was just sex, Jace. One night of drunken sex. Why would you be so pissed? Is it a male pride thing? I left before you got the chance?”

  “Is that what you think? That I’m pissed ‘cuz you beat me to the punch?”

  His mouth was mere inches from hers. Just as she felt the pull of his body heat drawing her even closer, he stepped back. One giant step, putting a decent gap between them.

  She closed the gap, stepping forward with her next sentence. “What else am I supposed to think? If it’s not that, then you’re just an ass to all the women you fuck! If that’s the case, I should probably tell Nicole. I kind of liked her; she deserves some warn…”

  Before Dani even saw him move, she felt his hands in her hair, tugging, yanking her head backwards. A split second later she felt his lips on hers. Startled, her body tensed, prepared to resist, her fists moving up to his chest. When he pulled harder, one hand on her waist yanking her against him, she gave up even the pretense of a fight and let herself go.

  Her hands slipped up his chest, glided around his neck until her fingers found his hair. She shoved her fingers through his silky strands, pulling, pressing his lips harder against her own. At the touch of his tongue slipping in to graze hers, she moaned softly, every muscle in her body turning to liquid fire.

  Her breasts were getting heavy, achy. The tips were hard, begging for his touch. Dani began to rub from side to side, desperate to ease this ache. Jace’s hand ran up her side, the thumb just grazing the underside of her breast, teasing a small whimper from her. As his hand slipped farther up, Dani was sure she would burst into flames at his touch.

  * * * * *

  Hearing her soft sigh brought one of his own to Jace’s lips. Feeling her body pressed full length against him set off a riot of sensation. He was already hard, had been since she opened the door in that tiny tank top, but his shaft pulsed, growing even harder and longer with every sweep of her tongue. His response to her was so intense, he actually thought he might be losing his mind, but if this was insanity, he welcomed it.

  He felt her nipple, a tight little bud pressing against his palm, felt her whimper against his lips, and ripped his mouth away in a groan. He grazed his thumb over her tip, sensed the shiver running through her. Bending her backward over his arm, he leaned his head down, trailing kisses down her neck, across her collarbone. He pushed the tank top off her shoulder, desperate to wrap his mouth around her breast. Another whimper…

  “Ah, Christ. You’re so beautiful.” He glanced down and saw her breast, the dark pink nipple pouting, begging for his kiss. “I want to taste you, to suck your nipples till you come.” He ran his tongue around the edge, teasing without satisfying. “Are they still as sensitive as they used to be, Dani? Can I make you orgasm this way?”

  Jace ran his free hand around her back, sliding lower to cup her ass. He pulled her closer, lifting slightly until her sex pressed against his shaft. He didn’t think she was even aware of her hips rolling gently against him, but he was. He grabbed her thigh, hitching her leg up, her knee at his hip. He groaned, thrusting against her, when she wrapped her leg around his back. He felt his cock throb, pressing against his zipper until he thought it would bust. The need to touch her, to feel her wet heat was overwhelming.

  * * * * *

  She loved it when he talked to her like this. Just the sound of his voice, throaty and slurred with desire, was enough to send shivers through her. When she felt his lips finally close over her breast, his tongue teasing the tip before suckling deeply, Dani couldn’t help but urge him on. “Yes. God, yes. That feels so good.”

  Dani was already on the verge. Her sex was throbbing. If he touched her right now, he’d find her wetter than she’d ever been. She could feel the damp heat and wondered if he could too. When his shaft pulsed against her, she thought she might come apart right then. She grabbed his head, pulling it back to hers for another kiss.

  And the doorbell rang.

  She and Jace jumped apart like two teens caught necking in a closet. Which, was not entirely off base.

  She looked up at Jace, horrified at what had just happened, what would have happened if the doorbell hadn’t rung. He was all but engaged to someone else. Nicole was sweet; she didn’t deserve this.

  * * * * *

  Jace saw the expression, the horrified look. At once, the anger that was never far away around her boiled back to the surface. Remembering her last comment, he let the venom come. “It’s not just anyone, sweetheart. Apparently it’s only fucking you that makes me act like this.”

  He turned on his heel, heading to the front door, just as the handle turned. He saw Jenn and tried to calm the angry look, knowing he hadn’t quite succeeded.

  He nodded at her, his attempt at a greeting. She raised her eyebrows in response.

  * * * * *

  Jenn watched Jace pull away on his bike, leaving black tire marks in Dani’s driveway. She turned to Dani, and saw a shocked, slightly devastated expression. Jenn
sighed. Apparently Jace’s apology hadn’t gone well.

  She held out a bag, grease leaking through from its contents. She gave Dani a small grin, trying to help without really knowing the problem. “I brought tacos and French fries, both. Which do you want first?”

  Chapter 12

  She and Jenn ate the greasy tacos, then headed back to Jenn’s house to clean up. She could feel Jenn’s eyes on her, watching, waiting for her to tell her what Jace had said. But she didn’t ask. Just waited patiently.

  They got the kitchen cleaned and made some salads for lunch. Of course, since breakfast had been after eleven a.m., lunch was around three. When all was said and done, they ran back to the grocery store to pick up some things they needed for tomorrow.

  Walking through the store, her mind wandered. Dani sighed a little at the thought of tomorrow’s barbeque. More questions, more people to see. More of Jace. And she’d have to face Nicole.

  Dani hadn’t been lying when she’d told Jace she liked Nicole. She really did. The woman was way too sweet not to like. Now she had to look her in the eye and pretend that she hadn’t been wrapped around her boyfriend in the last twenty-four hours. Another wave of guilt swept through her. As much as she was enjoying being here, coming back had been a huge mistake.

  She thought about the fight with Jace. She still couldn’t believe she’d screamed at him, let alone what she’d screamed. She had always been the calm one, more in control of her temper, her emotions. He seemed to bring out the worst in her. She had managed to keep control of her own anger the first two times he’d insulted her, so maybe this venting was exactly what she’d needed. Maybe now they could talk and put all of this behind them.

  Dani rolled her eyes at her own thoughts. Not bloody likely. So, tomorrow, instead of allowing another scene at the party, she would simply avoid him. If she managed to avoid Nicole in the process, well, then so much the better.

  She figured it had to be better to avoid him, since she wasn’t at all sure she could hold her tongue any more. She had been trying to keep things calm for Jenn’s sake. After this morning, finally letting her anger run loose, she didn’t think she’d be able to rein it back in. In fact, she was fairly sure she would scream at him again. And she would enjoy it. Again.

  After the kiss, and her response, she’d been humiliated. She’d always found cleaning therapeutic, and about halfway through Jenn’s kitchen, she’d gone from humiliated to irate. Dani had always had a fairly long fuse, but once she was mad, the mad tended to stay awhile. And right now she was furious.

  When Dani grabbed a container of Ex-Lax and tossed it in the cart, followed by denture cream, Jenn couldn’t hold her tongue any more.

  Giggling her way through the words, Jenn asked, “So… You’re constipated and you need more denture cream? When did you lose your real teeth?”

  “Huh? What are you talking about?”

  Jenn laughed even harder at the completely stumped expression Dani was wearing as she pulled the two packages out of the grocery cart. “You’ve been out of it all morning. So far, I have pulled out a package of diapers, a gallon of apple juice, fabric softener and…oh, I left the maxipads. Did you need those?”

  Dani stared at her, holding the Ex-Lax in her hand. “I grabbed this?”

  At that, Jenn roared, laughing so hard tears started to run down her cheeks. “Okay, just tell me what he said this morning. You were obviously upset when I got there, but I was giving you time to work it out. So, what happened?”

  Dani set the package back on the shelf, pulling out the maxipads as well. “Nothing, really. We just fought again.” She shrugged. There really wasn’t much she could tell Jenn without telling her everything, and she really didn’t want to get into that.

  “He was going to apologize. He told me last night.” Jenn kind of wiggled her head at Dani’s look. “He came back while Brian was taking you home. He apologized to me, said he’d talk to Bri today and that he’d apologize to you, too.”

  “Well, that at least explains part of the conversation.”

  “So, what explains the rest of it? You looked shell shocked when I got there, like someone had just shot your dog, or something.”

  “It’s just…” How did she explain this? “It would be like fighting with you. We’re friends, or we were at least, so it feels worse. Plus, just like with you, he knows me too well. Knows too much about me. I still don’t really know why he’s mad, not the whole reason, but he’s pissed enough to strike out at me, and knows me well enough to have perfect aim.”

  Jenn nodded. “I get that part. I really do. If you or Brian were ever really pissed at me, it would hurt a lot worse than anyone else. But, Dani…well, last night he seemed more hurt than mad.”

  “That doesn’t make any sense, Jenn. Other than leaving town, I’ve never done anything to him. And that seems a bit excessive, really.”

  “Well, there’s something that I think I should tell you…”

  Dani heard the hesitation, even thought she sensed nervousness in Jenn’s words. She waited a beat before finally prodding, “What?”

  “No, never mind. It probably doesn’t matter anyway. Let’s just finish shopping so we can go rent a movie. I think we need more beer. Oh, and champagne. I have a three-day weekend before the last-minute rush of next week, so let’s enjoy it.”

  * * * * *

  Jace picked Brian up at his office, heading over to the local Mexican food place for lunch. They grabbed some food and sat down at one of the tables outside. Jace needed to apologize and wanted a little quiet to do it in.

  Before he even opened his burrito he blurted out, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that last night. I was an ass and I’m really sorry.”

  Bri set down his food, wiping his hands and mouth before he said anything. “I know. Jenn told me you came back last night while I ran Dani home. You apologized to her, made her feel better, so we’re square. But, Jace, man… What the hell is going on with you?”

  “I don’t know. Every time I look at her I get pissed off all over again. I even tried to go talk to her this morning, to apologize to her, and I just made things worse.”

  “But why? Seriously, dude, I’m kind of tired of having this conversation.”

  “I know…you and me both.”

  “So, knock it off.”

  Jace laughed without any real humor, scrubbing his hand over his face. “Yeah…I’ll do that.” An image of Dani, flushed with arousal, lips swollen from his kisses, flashed in his mind. Easier said than done.

  “Look, there’s only a couple more times you’ll have to see her, and there will be a lot of people around most of the time. Just try to stay away from her. Tomorrow at the barbeque, stay with Zack and Sean. Dani will be with Jenn most of the time, so just steer clear. I promise not to take it personally. Austin’s pretty big. You should be able to avoid her for the rest of her stay. And Jenn already adjusted the seating for the rehearsal dinner this morning. She had you guys sitting next to each other, but she moved everyone around.”

  Jace nodded. “I’ll do that. Tell Jenn I said thanks.”

  “I will, although I think it was more for Dani’s benefit than yours. Just hang with Nicole and the other guys. Speaking of… Have you talked to Nicole today?”

  Jace shook his head. He was ashamed to admit that had been the farthest thing from his mind. He couldn’t tell Brian that. “I didn’t get up in time this morning, and she’s working right now.”

  “Well, you’d better go see her tonight. She wasn’t real happy with you either, from what Zack says. I don’t think she’s ever seen you be that big a jerk. To be honest, I’m not sure I have either.”

  “I’ll talk to her tonight. I don’t think she’s ever even heard me yell. We’ve never even been in an argument, Bri.”

  “Really? In a year, you’ve never had a fight?”

  “No, not that I remember. But that’s good, isn’t it?”

  “Yeah, sure. I guess.”

  The words were
right, but the tone didn’t sound so sure.

  “What? Do you and Jenn fight all the time?”

  “No, not often, really, but yeah, we fight sometimes. Nothing like the bullshit you pulled out on Dani last night, and Jenn usually yells back, but we do fight.”

  Jace’s mind rushed again to this morning. Dani on her tiptoes going face to face with him, staring him down. She’d always been direct, and she’d gotten even stronger over the years.

  “Maybe a fight will do you some good.”

  “Yeah, maybe.” He thought that might be just the ticket. Maybe instead of avoiding her, he should just pop on by one more time. A good heated argument might just clear the air. If he could keep his hands off her. “You might just be right.”

  “Besides, the make-up sex definitely makes it worth it!”

  Jace’s head whipped up, confusion and shock evident in his eyes. “Make-up sex?”

  “Yeah. It’s the best sex you’ll ever have in your life, dude. Surely you remember from college? You and Nicole never fight, but you used to fight with some of your girlfriends then.”

  “Right, Nicole. Make-up sex.” Guilt started to creep in. Jace had never cheated on anyone in his life, not even in high school. And now, instead of worrying about Nicole, he was still thinking about Dani. While he hadn’t slept with her, he knew that what they’d done was still cheating. Shit!

  Jace watched Bri’s head tilt to the side as he seemed to be trying to read Jace’s mind. When he saw Bri smirk, Jace knew he’d been caught. Bri knew he hadn’t been thinking of Nicole. With another silent cuss word, Jace figured it was time for a change of subject.

  * * * * *

  Later that night, as Brian and Jenn snuggled down in bed, he leaned over and pressed a soft kiss against her shoulder.

  “Jace came by today, took me to lunch. He did apologize.”

  “That’s good. He stopped by Dani’s first and screwed up an apology. Hopefully he did better with you.”