Protection: A Bad Boy Stepbrother Romance

by Wood, Vivian

  “Are you okay?” Jace asked. He looked at her with serious concern, as if she might have some kind of brain damage.

  Tessa blushed, nodding. She shouldn’t be thinking about Jace’s smell like a giant weirdo.

  Don’t think of them as people, it makes it easier, James had recommended.

  Yet here Tessa was, thinking about Jace’s scent and general dreaminess. James would have scolded her in the harshest terms.

  They’re savages. They may seem human on the outside, but inside they’re killers. Every last one.

  James’ voice echoed in Tessa’s head. The words turned her stomach a little bit.

  Tessa wasn’t like James. She didn’t think that Shifters were less than human, but that didn’t mean she should be lusting after them, either. Look what had happened when she’d eyed James up. And that had been nothing but innocent flirtation…

  It must be the gunshot wound. Loss of blood could make you feel all sorts of weird things.

  Chalk it up to fever, she decided.

  “Tessa?” Jace asked, reaching out to touch her uninjured arm. She jumped, though his touch was gentle. Her blush deepened, and she shook her head to clear it.

  “I’m fine,” she said.

  Jace frowned and shooed her up the porch steps into the house. They stepped into the house’s living room, and she was aware of Jace’s towering body just inches behind her.

  Tessa was struck all over again by his height and muscled frame. He was big and solid and imposing, but there wasn’t an ounce of fat on him. It was like hanging out with a male supermodel-cum-lumberjack, and Tessa didn’t know how to handle being around him. She looked away, examining the house instead of its owner.

  The room was done in white paint and chestnut wood. Though she didn’t know him well, it seemed to Tessa to be a very Jace sort of place. She looked Jace’s gorgeous chocolaty eyes and hair, and thought that the room even brought out his coloring.

  The living room of the house was furnished in a simple style. A massive desk, a sleek leather couch, and several sets of shelves crammed full of books. All done in the same dark wood, accented only by the white walls and a floor-to-ceiling sliding door that let sunlight stream in the room. No color, no frivolous touches. A bachelor’s home, but also a quiet sanctuary. No woman would live in such a Spartan manner.

  It fit Jace well, Tessa thought. Quiet, dignified, but not sterile. Just… masculine and unassuming.

  “I’ve got to look at your shoulder,” he said, jogging her from her thoughts.

  Jace held his arms wide, herding her into the living room. She sat on the couch, and he sat next to her. He tugged the leather jacket off, every tiny movement causing Tessa a wealth of burning pain. She bit her lip, and looked down at the floor.

  “Can you lift your arms up without too much pain?” Jace asked.

  Tessa tried, but tears welled up as soon as she tried to move her left arm above her waist. Jace caught her frustration and shrugged, as if she shouldn’t be too worried.

  Rip.

  Tessa half jumped out of her skin when Jace shredded her cardigan. When his fingers touched the neckline of her white camisole, intending to rend it, she slapped his hands away.

  “Hey!” she gritted.

  “I need to look at your shoulder, but your clothes are in the way.”

  Why does that sound kind of hot?

  “I have a tank top on. You only need to get my sweater off,” she grumbled.

  Better than saying what she really wanted… to find out what his lips would feel like when they brushed her own…

  Jace grunted and peeled off both sides of her sweater, taking great care with her injured shoulder. He examined the wound with a tender touch, but every touch still stung.

  “Am I going to make it, doctor?” Tessa joked, trying to take her mind off the pain.

  Between keeping her mind off her arm and keeping her mind off ogling Jace, Tessa was hard off. For his part, Jace didn’t seem to notice her pain or her attraction to him. He was absorbed in examining her wound.

  “You were lucky. You’ve got a single laceration, surrounded by a bad burn. It’s already started to pull together. The only thing we need to do is clean it and wrap you up,” he pronounced.

  “That’s anticlimactic,” Tessa sighed. “It hurts like crazy. From the way you were tapping my leg on the way here, I thought you were expecting me to fall off the bike.”

  “I didn’t know what to expect. The tapping was supposed to be reassuring,” Jace said, amused.

  “Well make a note: ‘leg tapping more scary than comforting’. For the next time you swoop in and rescue a random girl.”

  “That was the last nice thing I’ll ever do, so I’m not too worried about it.”

  A joke? Couldn’t be. She must have heard him wrong. Since the moment she’d met him, Jace had been all business.

  “So my rescue was out of character? It makes me wonder about your motives, sir,” she teased.

  “My motives are my own business, and I’ll thank you not to question the purity of my heroism.”

  This time there was no denying it. Jace had just made a joke. It was the first time she’d heard him make light of anything. He really must feel more comfortable back in his own home, and Tessa couldn’t help but appreciate this relaxed version.

  Jace settled her on the black leather couch, and headed down the hallway. Tessa looked out the sliding doors into the backyard, if you could call it that. The grass ended after about ten feet, and a solid wall of woods rose up there. She stood and peeked out the door, looking around the clearing. The entire house was enclosed in trees. If Jace was some kind of axe-murderer, no one would ever hear her scream, or find her body in the woods.

  Rolling her eyes, she sunk back onto the couch. Tessa was less worried about this than the situation seemed to merit. She supposed that if Jace wanted to kill her, he could have done it last night.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Jace awoke in the darkness, his harsh breathing loud in the silent bedroom. He’d been dreaming of the same thing he always dreamed about; his mother’s scream, his father’s quiet acceptance. Gunshots, and a flash of his baby sister’s face, frozen in a mask of terror. It was always the same dream. History was doomed to repeat itself in Jace’s subconscious.

  He lay still, controlling his breathing until his heart stopped racing. On a normal evening, Jace would have rolled out of bed, pulled on some running clothes, and headed on his nightly jog around the Den. Tonight, though, he had the human to think about. He stifled the urge to move, to run, to check on Maddie. His protective instincts didn’t let up, but he kept them in check for the moment.

  Jace turned to look at the soft figure in bed next to him. The girl had rolled over onto her back, giving Jace a nice view of her face and neck. He took a moment to admire her. Her face was heart-shaped. She large, expressive eyes, a pert little mouth, and a nose that would have been a shade too big on any other female. Her skin was the flawless color of fresh cream, but the bridge of her nose was lightly dusted with freckles. Her wild vanilla curls shot in every direction, and sleep made her look much younger. The stark curve of her neck sunk down into a delicate collarbone, and Jace’s eyes were drawn further and further down.

  Just as he was about to chastise himself for ogling the human, her lips parted and she whimpered just a bit.

  Jace’s wolf perked up, interested in what the female was doing. Jace shooed him back a few steps. Then the female sucked in a breath and moaned softly, a smile curving her lips.

  Shit, not this again.

  Jace and his wolf were riveted. Tessa shifted and bit her bottom lip, then darted her tongue across the same spot. Jace’s body tightened, his wolf was giving him images of what they ought to do to the female. Smell, taste, touch. Fuck. Scent was rolling off her in waves, rushing through Jace’s blood. This was more than Tessa’s usual sweet scent, so strong that Jace couldn’t muddle through his own thoughts. It was all he could do not to strip her and ru
b her scent all over his body, fill his mouth with her breasts, the wetness he’d find between her legs…

  Tessa lifted a hand and brushed it against her ribs, coming close to the underside of her breast. When she gave another little oh and ran her fingertips up to the tightened peak of her nipple, Jace couldn’t help but reach out and pull her closer. He ran his shaking hand over her flank, but she just bit her lip again and squirmed.

  Surely by now she was awake? If she was awake, she was willing, and he could take her right now…

  Tessa’s hand slipped down again, crossing her flat belly, feeling the curve of her own hip. She slid one finger past the elastic of her borrowed pajama bottoms, and sucked in a breath. Jace was pretty sure he’d forgotten how to blink. If she touched herself and made more of those little noises she was making, he would be lost.

  Stranger or no, Jace would take her. The heavy scent of her arousal rolled over him again and he breathed it in, readying himself to fuck her, bite her, mate her.

  Jace froze.

  Mate her? Jace wasn’t about to take a mate. Especially not a human. Tessa was human. She was a stranger. She was also being stalked by Jasper McDonough for unknown reasons. She might not be all that she seemed.

  Jace breathed out, pushing the heavy scent away and tearing his eyes from her explorations.

  The scent.

  How could he be so stupid? This wasn’t the first time he’d been overwhelmed by her scent; clearly his proximity was causing her wolf to ascend faster than usual, making up for lost time. Jace guessed that it was supposed to ensure that the Ascendant would be discovered and protected by her pack, presumably by a newly-found mate.

  If Tessa had simply shown up at the Den like the others had, she would have already found her proper mate. All she had to do was let her wolf choose the strongest contender, and that would be the end. Whichever male her wolf chose would be her mate, no questions asked. At least until Tessa came back to herself some time later. By then she’d be marked, and it would be too late. The idea of Tessa, helpless in the arms of another male, made Jace sick.

  Jace ground his jaw, angry at his own reaction. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Tessa slipping her fingers below the waist of the pajamas. Her breath was coming fast now. For a moment, Jace wondered if he ought to just mark her now and save her the trouble of going through that whole process. She would understand… someday. His wolf was very strong, and she would be in the top tier of the pack if they mated.

  He’d already claimed her out loud, come to think of it.

  No. This is wrong, and not just for the girl.

  She was still a human. Humans were bad news. And then there was Jace’s own sister to think about.

  Maddie would never forgive Jace. She would remind Jace that humans were dangerous and hateful. She would bring their dead parents into the argument. She would cry. And she would win, as she always did. Jace had never been able to face down Maddie’s tears, and he wasn’t about to hurt her over some girl. Not even a luscious, tempting one like Tessa.

  Jace reached out to Tessa, but instead of ripping her clothes off he restrained her. He slipped his huge hands around her small ones and pulled her into a tight embrace. She struggled, but Jace just held her tighter, pulled her closer. When her plush rear pressed against his erection, a moan escaped both of them. Jace thought he might lose the fight and be inside her within moments, but he summoned an image of his tear-stained little sister to keep his cool.

  Jace melded her form against his aching body, ignoring her struggles until they ceased. Slowly she relaxed, and the mating scent diffused enough for Jace to breathe in comfort. He stroked her soft curls and waited for her to drop into a deeper sleep.

  The sound of her breathing relaxed Jace and he drifted off into a light sleep interrupted only by dreams of Tessa finishing what she’d started.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Jace awoke in the darkness, his harsh breathing loud in the silent bedroom. He’d been dreaming of the same thing he always dreamed about; his mother’s scream, his father’s quiet acceptance. Gunshots, and a flash of his baby sister’s face, frozen in a mask of terror. It was always the same dream. History was doomed to repeat itself in Jace’s subconscious.

  He lay still, controlling his breathing until his heart stopped racing. On a normal evening, Jace would have rolled out of bed, pulled on some running clothes, and headed on his nightly jog around the Den. Tonight, though, he had the human to think about. He stifled the urge to move, to run, to check on Maddie. His protective instincts didn’t let up, but he kept them in check for the moment.

  Jace turned to look at the soft figure in bed next to him. The girl had rolled over onto her back, giving Jace a nice view of her face and neck. He took a moment to admire her. Her face was heart-shaped. She large, expressive eyes, a pert little mouth, and a nose that would have been a shade too big on any other female. Her skin was the flawless color of fresh cream, but the bridge of her nose was lightly dusted with freckles. Her wild vanilla curls shot in every direction, and sleep made her look much younger. The stark curve of her neck sunk down into a delicate collarbone, and Jace’s eyes were drawn further and further down.

  Just as he was about to chastise himself for ogling the human, her lips parted and she whimpered just a bit.

  Jace’s wolf perked up, interested in what the female was doing. Jace shooed him back a few steps. Then the female sucked in a breath and moaned softly, a smile curving her lips.

  Shit, not this again.

  Jace and his wolf were riveted. Tessa shifted and bit her bottom lip, then darted her tongue across the same spot. Jace’s body tightened, his wolf was giving him images of what they ought to do to the female. Smell, taste, touch. Fuck. Scent was rolling off her in waves, rushing through Jace’s blood. This was more than Tessa’s usual sweet scent, so strong that Jace couldn’t muddle through his own thoughts. It was all he could do not to strip her and rub her scent all over his body, fill his mouth with her breasts, the wetness he’d find between her legs…

  Tessa lifted a hand and brushed it against her ribs, coming close to the underside of her breast. When she gave another little oh and ran her fingertips up to the tightened peak of her nipple, Jace couldn’t help but reach out and pull her closer. He ran his shaking hand over her flank, but she just bit her lip again and squirmed.

  Surely by now she was awake? If she was awake, she was willing, and he could take her right now…

  Tessa’s hand slipped down again, crossing her flat belly, feeling the curve of her own hip. She slid one finger past the elastic of her borrowed pajama bottoms, and sucked in a breath. Jace was pretty sure he’d forgotten how to blink. If she touched herself and made more of those little noises she was making, he would be lost.

  Stranger or no, Jace would take her. The heavy scent of her arousal rolled over him again and he breathed it in, readying himself to fuck her, bite her, mate her.

  Jace froze.

  Mate her? Jace wasn’t about to take a mate. Especially not a human. Tessa was human. She was a stranger. She was also being stalked by Jasper McDonough for unknown reasons. She might not be all that she seemed.

  Jace breathed out, pushing the heavy scent away and tearing his eyes from her explorations.

  The scent.

  How could he be so stupid? This wasn’t the first time he’d been overwhelmed by her scent; clearly his proximity was causing her wolf to ascend faster than usual, making up for lost time. Jace guessed that it was supposed to ensure that the Ascendant would be discovered and protected by her pack, presumably by a newly-found mate.

  If Tessa had simply shown up at the Den like the others had, she would have already found her proper mate. All she had to do was let her wolf choose the strongest contender, and that would be the end. Whichever male her wolf chose would be her mate, no questions asked. At least until Tessa came back to herself some time later. By then she’d be marked, and it would be too late. The idea of Tessa, helpless in the arms of a
nother male, made Jace sick.

  Jace ground his jaw, angry at his own reaction. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Tessa slipping her fingers below the waist of the pajamas. Her breath was coming fast now. For a moment, Jace wondered if he ought to just mark her now and save her the trouble of going through that whole process. She would understand… someday. His wolf was very strong, and she would be in the top tier of the pack if they mated.

  He’d already claimed her out loud, come to think of it.

  No. This is wrong, and not just for the girl.

  She was still a human. Humans were bad news. And then there was Jace’s own sister to think about.

  Maddie would never forgive Jace. She would remind Jace that humans were dangerous and hateful. She would bring their dead parents into the argument. She would cry. And she would win, as she always did. Jace had never been able to face down Maddie’s tears, and he wasn’t about to hurt her over some girl. Not even a luscious, tempting one like Tessa.

  Jace reached out to Tessa, but instead of ripping her clothes off he restrained her. He slipped his huge hands around her small ones and pulled her into a tight embrace. She struggled, but Jace just held her tighter, pulled her closer. When her plush rear pressed against his erection, a moan escaped both of them. Jace thought he might lose the fight and be inside her within moments, but he summoned an image of his tear-stained little sister to keep his cool.

  Jace melded her form against his aching body, ignoring her struggles until they ceased. Slowly she relaxed, and the mating scent diffused enough for Jace to breathe in comfort. He stroked her soft curls and waited for her to drop into a deeper sleep.

  The sound of her breathing relaxed Jace and he drifted off into a light sleep interrupted only by dreams of Tessa finishing what she’d started.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “Tessa?” Jace practically shouted when awoke sprawled out over his bed, alone.

  No answer, but the shower’s soft hiss let him know that she was safely occupied. Jace slumped back onto the mattress and tried to get his bearings. The sun slanted through the window, telling Jace that he had slept into mid-morning. He and Tessa had bunked down when the sun was just setting, so they must have slept half a day.