Page 16 of Before Us (Next Generation 3)

He chuckled. “I think it worked. For me anyway.” He winked.

I gave him a small smile, my cheeks burning. “I also remember all of our parents freaking out. I think my dad was more upset than my mom.”

“Well you did cut yourself on glass,” Jaron reminded me.

“True.” I turned to him, curling my leg under me. “You guys all did it first.” They had broken beer bottles against something hard, trying to be cool. I did the same and ended up cutting myself. “But I didn’t cry.”

“I think that’s what impressed me most.”

I shrugged. “I’m not a crier.”

“No.” He cupped my calf. “I guess you aren’t.”

***

(Jaron)

She was difficult and driving me fucking crazy. But I found that I liked it. Although I had said it was just sex, both of us knew that it was more than that.

Cyrus and Sammy couldn’t find any more information than we already knew. The mayor was good at covering his tracks. I had to give him that.

As my fingers linked with Piper’s, I couldn’t help but wonder what would come of this. Piper wasn’t easy like most of the women I had been with. Even though it didn’t take long to get her into my bed when we were in Paris, she sure as hell wasn’t letting me into her heart. Did I want her to? I wasn’t sure anymore, but I did know that I would fuck her for as long as both of us needed.

Aiden and Ashton wouldn’t get in the way. No matter what I had to do, she would be mine.

Again.

Piper

“BROGAN’S RETIRED. THEYboth are. Aren’t they?” Our parents didn’t talk much about what they did before us kids were born but stories went around about Brogan and Coby. She was a bad ass when she was our age. But that was all we knew.

“Doesn’t matter,” Jaron said. “I need to talk to them because I need them to watch over all of you. They’ll talk to Creena and Stone and they’ll do the same thing. Until I can figure this shit out about Brody.”

“What has Brody done to make you leery of him?”

“Nothing we’ve been able to prove yet,” Jaron muttered.

“Were you watching me this whole time?” I asked him as we pulled down a gravel road. I realized then that we were no longer in town.

“I was, or I had someone else watching you. But either way, you were being watched.”

“Why?” This side of Jaron threw me off. I wasn’t sure how to take it, but I knew that if he kept this up, I could fall, and I could fall damn hard. Oh, who the hell was I kidding? I had already fallen.

“I had to make sure you were okay when I wasn’t around.” He shrugged. “That’s the truth, Piper. You can take it however you want.”

“Why would you care what happens to me? If this is just sex and all.” The car suddenly came to a complete stop and the next thing I knew, I was back in Jaron’s arms.

“Say that to me again,” he growled, inching his hands beneath the hem of my dress.

“You told me it was just sex.” I brushed my thumb over his bottom lip. “Is that not correct? Were you worried that something would happen to me? Do you actually care about me, Jaron?”

With a tug, he snapped the sides of my panties. “I like you, Piper. Is it just sex? You bet your sweet ass it is because I know that’s all either of us can handle right now. But yes, I care about you. Of course I care about you. Paris fucked me up. It fucked me up in ways I never knew were possible. You’re the first woman I’ve ever continued sleeping with.”

“We haven’t done much sleeping.” I shivered, enjoying the feel of his rough calloused hands on my lower body.

“No. I guess we haven’t.” His eyes moved back and forth over my face. He stared. He stared to the point I could feel him reaching into my soul and finding out all of my dark and dirty secrets. Secrets that I wanted to share with only him.

“Have you fucked anyone else?” I murmured, running my fingers through his hair.

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