Page 42 of Secret Gifts
All I want is you.
His lips stroke the back of my head, and then I hear the man in the other room crying as my mother unwinds her legs from around his waist and stands to her feet.
“Did you get all that?” she asks while walking in to join us.
Shit. No. Not a damn word.
Jase smirks as he tilts my lips up to meet his, and then I hear a bit of giggling as my stepdad jerks my mother out the door to wrap her up in his arms.
“I’ve got it recorded,” Jase whispers in my ear, and I grin while blushing feverishly.
“Good, because I managed to miss the entire thing.”
He smiles while pulling both of my hands in his, and then he kisses them along the edges of my knuckles as my mother returns with a more suitable outfit - though still Araya-sexy.
“Brazen and I were wondering if the two of you would join the rest of us for a bite to eat in our room? Grayson, Angelica, and Rex will be there as well.”
I could eat with my family, or I could fuck the hottest guy I’ve ever seen. Decisions, decisions.
“I’m fine with that. Aria?” Jase interjects.
Crap. Now I have to say yes.
“Yeah. Um, what about your sister?” I ask while turning around. “Didn’t you say she was meeting you?”
His lips tighten as if he’s forgotten, and my mom shrugs.
“Bring her along. The more people the better. I’m sure Brazen has ordered enough food to feed an army since he loves eating,” she teases, and he kisses her while shaking his head.
“That sounds perfect. I’ll call Mel right now,” Jase says sweetly while walking out of the room.
“Don’t say it,” I caution, my eyes turning away from the false hybrid blues staring expectantly at me.
“Say what?” she asks, feigning innocence.
“Whatever it is you want to say. I like him. That should be enough to keep your momma-bear routine in hibernation.”
She laughs lightly, and then her fingers intertwine with mine as she leads me out of the room.
“I think he’s good for you actually.”
I almost trip over the words that just fell out of her mouth.
“What the hell? Who are you and where is Araya?” I scoff, and she frowns a little.
“Am I that bad?” she huffs.
“Worse,” Uncle Brazen chirps while coming to scoop her up and carry her bridal style.
My hand slips free from hers as I watch her smile in a way I worried she never would again after my dad’s span ended. Even though it’s a little weird to see her with Uncle Brazen, it’s also very comforting.
He’s her full blood. If she hadn’t known dad first and loved him the way she did, she might have completely overlooked him and married Uncle Brazen right away.
“Mel said she’d be there,” Jase says to the newlywed couple that is oblivious to the world as he rejoins me at my side, his smile finding me and lighting me up.
Damn, he’s so fucking perfect.
He smiles lightly before draping his arm around my shoulders, and Mom giggles as her husband spins her around. I let a laugh escape when I accidentally delight in her happiness, and Jase’s smile only grows as we follow them out of the doors of the interrogation tower set up in the Northshore city.
