Page 60 of Dark and Dangerous

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Have you been there long?”

“We just moved in over the summer.”

I expect her to gossip, to tell me her version ofhisstory. But instead, she asks, “So you haven’t seen Jace play?”

“Some. But not in an actual game.”

“Electric,” she says. “It’s the only way I can describe it… the way the crowd roars whenever he gets near the ball… it’s like we all know…”

“Know what, exactly?”

“That we’re witnessing a miracle in the making.”

39

Harlow

By the time I get back out to the yard, my seat has been taken by one of the guys on the team. I hand Jace his water and look around for somewhere to sit, but before I can spot one, Jace throws his arm around my waist, pulling me down to his lap. I take a moment, squirming on his legs until I’m comfortable. When I’m settled, sitting sideways, my knees between his, he brings his mouth right to my ear and whispers, “Where’d you go for so long?”

“Why?” I half turn to him, my arm around his neck. “Did you miss me?”

“Maybe.”

He flattens his hand on my stomach, the warmth of it sending heat pulsing through my bloodline. We’ve never been this close before. Sure, we’ve slept in the same bed, but we haven’ttouched—not like this.

For minutes, we sit in silence while I try to ignore the way his hand feels resting on my bare thigh. His thumb moves, stroking so gently I almost don’t feel it. As if that wasn’t bad enough, he runs his nose along my jaw, ending at my ear. He pauses there a moment before movingaway. I stutter a breath, and I wonder if he notices. If it’s the reason he does it again.

And again.

Each time he does it, he lingers at my ear, his warm breath coating my neck, until finally, he nuzzles into my neck, kissing me there and whispering, “What is that smell?”

Too lost in his touch, it takes a moment for me to catch up to his words. “Perfume?”

“Have you had it on all day?”

I shake my head but don’t respond in words. I’d dabbed the tiniest amount behind my ear when I used the bathroom earlier for no other reason than I felt like it.

“It’s driving me fucking crazy, Harlow,” he says, his voice deep,rough. Then he adds, tapping my leg, “Come for a walk with me.”

I stand, and he follows but keeps his arm around my waist, holding me close, and when my back presses against his front, I realize why. The boy ishard… from our closeness alone, and I get it. I’m feeling the same kind of way.

“We’re going to go for a walk,” he tells whoever is listening, and then he’s guiding me, still ahead of him, toward the tree line. Eventually, he releases me, just so he can walk beside me and link our fingers. We don’t talk. And even though I have no idea where we’re walking to, I don’t ask. I just walk with my head low, doing my best not to trip over any tree roots. “Harlow,” he says, and the moment I look up at him, his mouth slams down on mine. And it’s not an innocent kiss like our recent ones. It’s not just a peck. It’s his hands on either side of my face, pulling me to him as he parts my lips with his tongue, begging for more. I open for him, every muscle in my body softening with each flick of his tongue against mine. He pulls away before I’m ready. “Sorry sorry sorry.”

“Why?”

“I—”

I pull him by his nape until my lips meet his, and this time, I kiss him. Arms around his neck, I run my fingers through his hair, smiling when he lets out the tiniest of groans. Then he pulls away again. Hedoesn’t apologize, just looks around us until he finds what he’s looking for, and then he faces me again, his lips red from my assault. Without warning, he grasps my waist and lifts me off my feet. I let out a squeal as he carries me a few steps, lowers me again. I’m higher now, standing on a fallen log, my back against a tree trunk, and then his hands are everywhere, all at once. His lips too. From my mouth, to my neck, my collarbone. And every time he meets me for a kiss, I lose my breath again. He runs his hand up my side, beneath my top, his thumb stroking the underside of my bra as he deepens the kiss, curses into me. “Fuck, Harlow.” His other hand’s on the back of my head now, fingers laced through my hair, and he tugs.Hard. I moan in response, craning my neck so I can meet his tongue stroke for stroke. He breaks the kiss and mumbles, “The things I want to do to you…”

I run the back of my fingers over the front of his shorts, and he bites his bottom lip in response. “Do them.”

At those words, a switch flicks inside him, and not in a good way. He drops his head to my shoulder, trying to settle his breathing, and I realize it’s the first time I’ve ever seen him like this. Out of breath. “Jace?”

He steps back, taking my hand and urging me to step off the log. I suddenly feel smaller now—both physically and otherwise. After releasing his hand, I wrap my arms around my stomach, shrinking in on myself.

I’m too much.

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