by Laura Pavlov
A wide grin spread across his handsome face, and I saw the wetness in his eyes in the glow from the moon. “Brilliant, talented, and beautiful might be a stretch, Ace.”
I put a hand on my chest. “Not a stretch. Not by a long shot. You are one of the smartest people I know. Look at Sherman and me… we can’t function in AP calc without you. You were offered a four-year full ride from more than thirty amazing universities to play football. You willingly get in the cage with badass fighters to help your mom pay the bills, and, come on, look at you.” I bit down on my bottom lip to keep from laughing at how sappy I sounded. But it was all true. Jett Stone was the whole package and then some.
“I’m sorry for shutting you out,” he whispered, grazing my bottom lip with the pad of his thumb. Chill bumps spread down my arms.
“We need to stick together, okay? Have one another’s backs. If my mom says something to you, you have to tell me and let me handle it. Deal?”
“Deal.”
“And thanks for telling me about what happened to your mom. But Jett, that has nothing to do with you or who you are,” I said, running my fingers through his wild, disheveled hair.
“Doesn’t it? What do you think your mother would say if she knew the truth? She basically called my mother trash and said the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. What would she think if she knew about my father?”
Rage engulfed me at his words. That my mother would say such disgusting, hurtful things to him. It stung and it angered me, and I didn’t know how I would be able to look at her with anything other than disdain for a long time.
“He was a sperm donor, nothing more. And the fact that your mother faced all that judgment after going through so much trauma is horrific. My heart hurts for her. Does your grandmother know?”
“I don’t know. This is the first I’ve ever heard of it. That’s why I’m struggling with Wren. He’s always hanging around, looking after her. Keeping an eye on me. For a lot of years, I wished Wren were my father. But after I overheard this conversation, I hated him. Because who else could it be?”
“It doesn’t make sense that he’d be violent and then be watching out for both of you, though, right? Maybe you should just ask him?”
“How do I ask him if he raped my mother?” he asked, his fingers tracing the side of my face as my head rested on his chest.
“You don’t. He doesn’t know you know. Nobody knows you know besides me, right?”
“Right. So, what do I ask him?” he asked, and I swiped at the last of my tears that had run down my face. Sadness had swallowed me whole, and I was still processing all that he’d shared.
I sat up, meeting his gaze. “You ask him if he’s your father. Or you could ask your mother if Wren is your father.”
“I’ll think about it. It would suck if I’d been hating him these past few months for no reason. But if he did it, then what? I can’t let him get away with that. Maybe it’s better if I don’t know.”
“Maybe. But the truth usually comes out. Whatever you want to do, I’ll support you.”
His face was so close I could feel his warm breath on my cheek, as his eyes searched mine. “I fucking love you, Ace.”
“I love you more. We’re in this together, okay?”
“Okay.”
“That means if you’re sad, you talk to me about it, Jett. It’s normal to feel all sorts of things about this. I know you’re hurting for your mom. I can’t imagine how that feels, but I’m here. I’m here, okay?”
He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close. His heart pounded against my chest. I’d never felt closer to another person than I did in this moment. Not my family. Not the Magic Willows. He’d trusted me with his deepest secret, and I wanted to be there for him. I wanted to fix it, but I knew I couldn’t. But I could love him with everything I had. And that’s exactly what I intended to do.
It was nearly two o’clock in the morning when we walked to my house. He didn’t want to risk waking my family by driving his bike, so he walked with me to the tree, and his eyes bulged out of his head.
“You’re climbing a tree?”
I chuckled and covered my mouth to keep quiet. “This is how I sneak in and out.”
I kissed him one last time. “I love you, Jett Stone. Thanks for telling me what was bothering you.”
“Thanks for listening to my shit. I love you.”
I turned and started to climb, and he followed.
“What are you doing?” I whisper-shouted.
“I’m making sure you don’t fall.”
I made my way up and leaned over to push my window open. I climbed inside and turned around to face him as he balanced between two branches and I blew him a kiss and watched as he made his way back down.
I washed my face, got on my pajamas, and slipped into bed. The tears started to fall again, and I covered my mouth to muffle the sobs. My heart hurt for Mae Stone. The thought of her being raped and then finding out she was pregnant. And raising that baby all on her own with all of Willow Springs judging her.
I stopped and said a prayer of thanks that out of all that darkness came this beautiful boy.
I thought about how my mother had treated him. The things she had said to him.
I wondered if I would ever be able to forgive her.
But right now, that wasn’t my priority. I didn’t have time to focus on how small-minded my mother was.
Because all I cared about was making sure Jett was okay.
And I’d be there for him no matter what.
Because I’d never loved anyone the way I loved him.
Chapter Twenty
Jett
The next few weeks went by in a blur and things had shifted for Adelaide and me. The whole drama with her mother had only brought us closer in the end. It felt good to tell her what I’d overheard about my mother and my monster of a sperm donor. The crazy thing—I trusted her completely.
She had my back and I had hers.
She and her mother had not discussed what happened, and they were barely speaking. I encouraged her to let it go, because truth be told, Savannah Edington didn’t need to like me. I didn’t give a shit. All that mattered was that her daughter did. But Adelaide had a lot of pent-up anger toward her mother, and I didn’t want to be the reason they grew apart.
Did I think her mother was batshit crazy? Hell yes.
But I wanted my girlfriend to see that all on her own. I didn’t want to come between them. Hell, my mother was the center of my universe, so I knew they’d need to work this shit out or it would just weigh my girl down.
Adelaide, Ma, Gram, Jax, and Shaw had all been by my side when I signed my letter of intent with Texas University. It was a big day and the most important people in my life were there. Shaw had signed with a big football program out in California, and Jax would be playing ball in Colorado. Everything was falling into place.
We were meeting friends at the lake. Adelaide’s arms were wrapped around my middle as she held on for dear life as she sat on the back of my bike. She always slipped her hands beneath my shirt to feel my warmth. I fucking loved it. We parked down by the water of a popular area where everyone liked to hang out. She climbed off my bike, and I reached for her hand. I swung a leg over so that I was still sitting, and she moved to stand between my legs, looking down at me and searching my gaze.
“You need to talk to your mom, Ace. It’s eating you up.”
She smiled and pushed the hair out of my face. “How do you know me so well?”
“It’s a gift.” I chuckled. “I think I’ve always known you.”
She nodded. “How about you then? I’ll make you a deal. You talk to Wren and at least find out if he’s your father or not, and I’ll talk to my mom.”
I let out a long breath. “All right. I’ll do it.”
I needed to fucking know if he�
�d been the man who violated my mother. Took away her ability to trust and love another man again.
“Good. I’ll go with you if you want me to.” She wrapped her arms around my neck and rubbed her little nose against mine.
So fucking adorable.
Yes, I had a wicked case of blue balls, but I didn’t even fucking care. That’s how much I loved this girl. We made out until my balls threatened to explode every day. We explored and touched and brought each other over the edge every time we were together. But we hadn’t had sex, and I sure as shit wasn’t going to pressure her into it. Hell, I knew she was it for me. Didn’t matter when it happened, because I knew it would. And Adelaide Edington was more than worth the wait. I’d wait for her forever if she needed me to.
“You going to be my backup?” My hands slipped beneath the cardigan and T-shirt she wore and moved up her back, feeling her soft skin against my fingertips. She moved closer, and my dick strained against my zipper.
“Always.”
“I think I’ve got this one. You want me to be there when you talk to your mom?” I settled my hands on her slim waist.
“Nope. If you’re there, I’ll probably end up tackling her if she looks at you wrong.”
“I love you,” I whispered against her lips.
“Love you more.” She giggled.
“Um, somebody call the fire department, because you too are on freaking fire.” Coco’s voice pulled me from my haze.
Adelaide’s head whipped around to see her best friend and Shaw standing there laughing.
“Damn. Where did they come from?” she said, stepping back and straightening herself.
I pushed to my feet and grabbed her hand, intertwining our fingers.
“What’s up?” I said. Ivy, Ty, Maura, Gigi, Jax, and Lydia waited for us a few feet away. We’d all been hanging out a lot and Ty and I had become damn good friends despite the fact that his best friend gave him endless shit about it. We just never talked about the elephant in the room, but Adelaide told me Ty was taking a lot of heat for hanging out with me.
“I’m guessing, your dick,” Shaw said with a raised brow.
I shook my head and laughed because he was an asshat, but he wasn’t wrong.
Adelaide and her friends were laughing about something that happened at school before she glanced back up to look at me.
“Are you going to jump off Key Point?” she asked.
We always came out here this time of year, and jumping off Key Point was a rite of passage when you lived in Willow Springs. It was the highest point on the lake and taking the plunge when the water was still freezing had become a local challenge. I’d done it a couple hundred times, so it didn’t faze me. It wasn’t actually all that high, it had just been built up by the locals for as long as I could remember.
“Sure, do you want to?”
“Um, no. I mean, yes. Someday. It’s a bucket list. But I’ve never done it. I’m afraid of heights.” She paused and shook her head. “I swear that’s actually Alec’s fault. I was going to jump two years ago, and he pretended he was going to push me, and I lost my footing and slipped. Cut my shin pretty bad and almost fell in.”
“Are you talking about when that douchebag pretended to throw you off a cliff and you nearly fell in?” Coco hissed.
Adelaide’s cheeks were flushed, and her eyes welled with emotion. That piece of shit had only made her fears worse. It pissed me off.
“Yep. I haven’t even climbed up there since then,” she said.
“In his defense, he thought it would be funny. He didn’t mean for you to fall. He just took it too far, and it backfired majorly,” Ty piped in.
What the hell was fucking funny about threatening to push someone off a cliff who was already afraid of jumping?
“He’s an asshole, Ty. I don’t know why you defend him,” Coco said.
“Tell us how you really feel, Co.” Ivy looked up at Ty and winked. I understood it. Ty was loyal to his best friend. Saw beyond his flaws. The dude obviously had some good qualities or Adelaide and Ty wouldn’t have been as close to him as they were. I’d just never seen those parts of Taulson. He’d reserved all his douchebag qualities for me.
“Oh, I will. Trust me.”
“Are you going to jump this year, Addy?” Gigi asked as she and Maura walked beside us.
“I want to do it before we graduate. I hate being the only one who hasn’t done it.”
“Well, it’s not the only thing you haven’t done.” Coco winked at Adelaide. “Although when we pulled up, I thought you two just might do it right here in the parking lot,” she said before whistling and causing everyone to break out in laughter.
I squeezed my girl’s hand. There was no shame in saving herself for someone special. And I knew her best friend’s teasing was in good fun.
“Why are you so crude?” Gigi said through her laughter. “Don’t feel pressure to jump, girl. You’ll do it when you’re ready.”
“That water is also cold as hell. I don’t know if I want to do it today. Maybe we should wait until it’s warmer out,” Maura added.
“Do you want to do it?” I whispered to Adelaide, so only she could hear.
“Yeah. Someday.”
“I’ll do it with you if you want. We can jump together.” I shrugged. I’d do it all day long with her. Because I’d already jumped off a cliff with this girl in my mind. Taken the plunge and let someone in in a way I’d never done before. Doing it in the literal sense would be a cakewalk.
She nodded. “Really?”
I laughed. “Really, Ace. I got you.”
“I didn’t bring my swimsuit because it’s so cold.”
“I don’t think anyone brought swimsuits.” I chuckled. Everyone jumped in their underwear, it was just what we did. And then we’d huddle up with blankets around a bonfire to get warm.
She bit down on her bottom lip and stared straight ahead. “Let’s do it.”
She wasn’t afraid of heights—she was afraid of falling. And I’d never let her fall.
“I’m jumping today,” Adelaide announced when we dropped all our shit on the beach. Her friends all turned to look at her.
“All right. If she jumps, we all jump,” Maura said.
Jax agreed to collect all the clothing and bring it back down to the beach, as he had a cold and he’d jumped more times than he could count. He was happy to sit this one out.
“You really doing this?” Coco asked as we hiked our way up to the top.
“I think so.”
Her hand trembled in mine, and I squeezed it. “There’s no pressure. Get to the top and see how you feel.”
She smiled. “Good plan.”
We made it there quickly and a cool breeze bustled around us, and I wrapped both arms around my girl. I rubbed my hands up and down her arms to warm her up. The water would be cold as hell, but your body adjusted quickly, and the fire would warm us up within a few minutes.
“Okay, I’m getting it over with,” Gigi said, and she dropped her clothing, down to her panties and bra and didn’t hesitate. We all leaned over to watch as she hit the water and then screamed out in laughter. “It’s cold as hell.”
“Oh my god,” Adelaide whispered. “I don’t know if I can do it.”
“Then don’t do it. We can do it another day,” I whispered against her ear.
She nodded as Ivy and Ty took the plunge next, screaming all the way down like fools. We all laughed, and Adelaide squeezed my hand harder.
“I’m going first, Shaw. You best meet me down there,” Coco said, sauntering to the edge. She glanced over her shoulder to look at her best friend. “You’ve got this, Addy. Love you, girl.”
Shaw jumped next, completely unfazed, and he howled when he came up for air.
“Don’t feel pressure,” Maura said, squeezing Adelaide’s hand. “You
don’t have to do it, okay?”
She nodded. “Okay. Be careful. See you down there.”
It was just me, Adelaide, and Jax now. She looked down at her friends who were still in the water but had swum out of the way. They didn’t yell for her to jump, because they knew she was nervous. But they waited, just in case she got the nerve to do it. I realized in that moment what a supportive friendship they all had. They were always there for one another, and that was what friendship was all about. Hell, Shaw and Jax were always there for me, and I knew Adelaide had my back too. I guess I had a little more in Willow Springs than I’d ever given it credit for.
“What do you want to do, Ace?” I asked as Jax gathered all the clothes in a pile.
“I want to do it. I just don’t know if I can.” Her gaze bounced around, landing everywhere but on mine.
“Of course, you can do it. If this is something you want, I promise I’ll help you do it.”
She nodded. “Okay. Let’s go.” She yanked her sweater and tank over her head and unbuttoned her jeans. I’d never seen Adelaide beneath her clothing. Sure, I’d felt her. Felt every inch of her. But seeing her… Jesus. She was fucking perfect.
“Turn the fuck around,” I snarled at Jax, and he bellowed out in laughter.
It was just known that you didn’t stare or gawk when people stripped down to take the plunge. I’d always looked away when the girls walked to the edge. But Adelaide was different. I couldn’t look away if I tried. And I sure as fuck didn’t want Jax staring at her. Adelaide didn’t seem to notice. Her mind was on jumping and nervous energy radiated from her hot little body.
The sun shined down on her, and her tan skin glistened. She wore light pink panties and a matching sports bra. Her nipples poked against the fabric, as it was cold as hell. My dick had no shame. He was standing on end at the sight of her.
I dropped my jeans and yanked my shirt over my head, chucking it at my best friend as he smirked.
Asshole.
“Let’s do this.” I held her hand in mine as we walked to the edge. “Do you trust me?”