Page 85 of Entangled

“In case I didn’t make it clear earlier.” He presses another kiss to my stomach, melodic voice unusually raspy. “I’m already a goner where you’re concerned.” A small grin plays across his face as he stands, moving his hands to my waist. “Ellie.”

“Fine,” I grumble, looping my hands around his neck. “But only in bed, okay? I have a reputation to uphold.”

“Mmm,” he answers noncommittally, dimples flashing as he lifts me up and sets my ass down against the top of the deck railing.

I tighten my hold around his neck at the precarious position, heart hammering away in my chest as he pushes his boxers down and moves in closer. Hitching my legs up around his hips, I lock my legs around his back and watch as he lines us up. That piercing at the tip of his impressive cock glinting in the fading sunlight of the day. But as he begins to thrust into me, that glint disappears and I dig my fingers into his back at the feeling of the skin-to-skin intrusion.

Jace brings a hand up to my chin, gently lifting my head until our eyes meet, keeping our gazes locked while he seats himself fully inside of me. The feeling of him inside of me with that piercing nudging at the deepest part of me while his eyes hold me captive is almost too much for me. His usually playful gaze holds nothing but soft reverence as he looks at me. The moment painfully intimate and infinitely special as he drops his lips to mine, pulling at them teasingly while he brings his hand back to my ass and begins to thrust inside of me. I can taste myself on his tongue and it only adds to the intimacy of the moment as he exquisitely fills me up with each thrust. He uses his grip on my ass to press me harder against him every time he powers into me and his piercing drags over my inner walls. Running over that glorious spot inside of me and causing my pussy to become impossibly more slick with need.

Feeling my eyes start to prick, I break our kiss and bury my head in his neck, breathing in the sea-spring scent of his skin. I wrap my whole body more tightly around him as my legs begin to shake, inner walls twitching at each pass of his cock inside of me. A soft moan escapes my lips as I ride the edge of ecstasy. Jace brings his hands around to grip my hips, fingers digging in hard enough to leave bruises as he picks up the pace. I can feel the metal of his piercing bumping up against the deepest part of me with each hard stroke and it only takes a few more thrusts before my inner walls clamp down around him. He pushes into me one more time, seating himself impossibly deeper and grinding against my clit as we both fall over the edge together.

The orgasm has tears leaking from my eyes against his skin that I know he can feel as I clutch him, gasping against his neck. His own groan of release sounds as his cock twitches inside of me, filling me up and setting off more shocks of pleasure throughout my pussy. I listen to the fast pace of his breathing, softly trembling against his body as I start to come down from the high. He brings a hand up after a minute and starts to soothingly run his fingers up and down my spine. Caring for me, comforting me as he gives me a moment as I come to terms with the reason for my tears. And I know what it is, deep down in my soul, it’s the act of letting go. I don’t need to ponder or analyze to figure it out, it’s an instinctual kind of knowledge.

It’s the letting go of a shattered dream to make room for this new person winding their way through my being.

And in a way, they’re tears of relief.

Jace drops a kiss to the side of my head after another moment and brings his hand up to tug at my hair, checking to see if I’m okay in his own way.

I press a kiss to his neck in response before biting down lightly on the spot.

Don’t worry, Dawson. I’m still with you.

I feel as much as hear the soft melodic laugh leave him with how tightly I’m still wrapped around his body. “So you’re taking me to LA with you?”

I smile against the curve of his neck and speak into his skin. “Probably.”

Chapter 23

One Year Ago

Coop and I had spent the rest of the day worshipping each other’s bodies after our tumble in the rain, followed by the most restful sleep I could remember having in years. We had woken to find the rain still coming down and after coming up empty in our search for breakfast, had quickly run into town to restock our food supply. And ice cream, I had told him, lots and lots of ice cream, it was necessary for rainy days. When we had gotten back, Coop had turned the giant monitor on his desk around to face the bed and we had climbed back under the covers, powering it up. Both of us were so happily relaxed after exorcising our demons yesterday that he hadn’t even noticed when I queued up the first episode of this season’sKeeping up with the Kardashiansand pressed play.

That was four hours ago.

A long, suffering groan sounds next to me after a particularly catty comment from Kim and I feel him turn his eyes on me. “I can’t, Princess. I tried but I just can’t. How do you watch this shit?”

I dig the spoon into the carton in my lap without looking down, attention rapt on the screen. “The family dynamics fascinate me,” I tell him honestly, plopping the scoop of dulce de leche ice cream into my mouth.

He returns to his silence long enough for me to get dragged back into the show and his question surprises me when he speaks again.

“Were you lonely? Growing up?”

I turn my head and find a rare look of unsurety on his face, as if he’s worried that he’s crossing some invisible line that will have me pulling back again. But after yesterday… Well, there really are no lines between us anymore, and I’m done pretending there are.

“Not really.” I give him a small smile and pause the show. “I had my aunt Yvie, who is amazing. And Stef, his nona, the guys.”

“Wait.” His brows drop sharply. “Is Stef the friend who wanted to know where this place is?”

“Yep.”

“And he’s a guy?”

I roll my eyes at him. “Yes, Stef is a guy.”

His eyes darken possessively and I roll my eyes again, digging out a scoop of ice cream and popping it into his mouth when he opens it to speak. “Stefano and his nona moved in next door the summer before we started junior high. Mac and Kai came with him… they were always just there, kind of a package deal. Anyway, they used to climb over the hedge and bug me to use our pool because Stef’s was still under construction and I don’t know. We just kinda became a family of sorts.” I cock my head in thought, looking back on those early memories and trying to decipher when exactly I let them in. “I think I was still too young to really have the walls I do now, so it was easier for them to get close to me. Plus, Stef wouldn’t take no for an answer, bugged me every day and took on the role of big brother when he realized we went to the same private school.” I shrug, returning my eyes to his. “I guess the bonds forged in youth held strong because he and the guys have been my family ever since.”

“Stefano?” he questions, dark look holding.

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