Page 74 of Tainted Gifts
He knows I'm talking more about him than I am about Kellan. The fact she wanted to kiss Jase hurts so much more than her and Kellan sharing a kiss.
"Fair enough, but I don't have a best friend as to me as Simone is to you. She's more like your sister. So, work it out. Mom's orders. The three of you should be able to handle a full blood on your own."
Does he know what you are?
Jase shakes his head, and then Mel leans over to hand Jase his phone. "Call us if you need us. I'll be running point on this. Good thing I'm a general and can make such calls," she jokes, giving him a wink before heading out the side door.
"I'll call you later," Jase says, lying back down.
Kellan doesn't say anything before he disappears from the RV. In fact, he hasn't said anything at all since he took me to Jase and handed me over to where I belong.
"Please stop thinking like that," he murmurs. "It's giving me too much hope, and it'll kill me if you choose him."
The driver starts moving the RV again, and I snuggle into Jase. My skimpy skirt isn't as comfortable as the satin robe I spent hours in. The very low cut shirt is bare in the back, which has kept Jase's hands all over me since I put it on.
It's not far from dawn now. Our nights and days for the week have been a blur. I feel like we've lived on the road.
"I'm choosing you. Stop accusing me of anything else. I just haven't had the chance to tell Kellan alone," I whisper. "Does Mel know I know what she is?"
He nods, shrugging somewhat. "I told her I was going to tell you. I told her she could tell Rex about me after I told you. I wanted you to know first."
I love you.
He smiles, cupping my face before drawing me in for a deep kiss.
"I love you, but you can't do this until you're better. Stop torturing me with too much hope. I know my odds with going against your counter. I'm worried you'll have a different opinion when you don't need me to keep you sane anymore."
I want to object, but his eyes shift to hybrid blue, letting me feel his emotions. He doesn't want to argue with me. I wish I could read everyone this easily. I've never been able to distinguish the emotions of others from my own. It's usually more annoying than it is helpful. But with Jase, it's incredibly refreshing.
"Is it?" he asks with an adorable grin.
Very.
I hop up and break contact with him for the first time in hours to refresh my makeup and comb through my hair. When I return, I see Simone handing Jase a vial of blood.
"I never got to use it, but I guess I don't have to now. I wanted you to have it back because I wasn't sure how you wanted to dispose of it."
He nods, shifting uncomfortably as she starts averting her eyes from his. I'm sure she overheard some of our conversation now, and he's reading it in her mind. She knows I love him. She knows I want him. But I don't care. It's the truth.
Jase looks over at me, stifling a grin as he overhears my thoughts. Simone tries to smile at me, but I meet her with an icy glare. She frowns and sighs out while walking back over to a bunk, grabbing up her purse as the RV comes to a crawl in front of our destination.
"You're going to interrogate, I assume?" Jase says teasingly, motioning to my skimpy attire.
"Mom said she likes to be seduced... by women... so, sit back and enjoy the show. There's no one else here licensed to interrogate, and this chick likes to play before talking."
He loosens his collar as we follow Simone out, and his hand slides down my bare back to rest just above the top line of my skirt.
"I don't know if I can watch you interrogate. You're much better than you once claimed, and I'll want you afterwards. I've got a jealous nature, you know?"
This feels like it did before we broke up, and I love it. He offers me a tight smile, and I pull him to me, kissing him in front of the hotel and everyone on the street. He kisses back, his tongue slipping in to raise hell as his grip tightens.
Behind his closed eyelids, his hybrid blues must emerge because I feel it... all of it. His crazy desperate need for me pounds into me with an invisible force, and I jump up to wrap my legs around his waist.
Please take me.
He releases a strangled moan, and he forces my back against the wall of the lobby where a few gasps erupt. I ignore them, not giving a damn. We're hybrid. We're allowed to be this way.
He smiles behind the kiss, pulling back as he slips free from my ensnaring legs.
