“Our child,” Jax had reminded her, only to receive a reply of “whatever” from Fiona.
But Jax had been worried. Harley’s heart worked double time even after the surgeries she’d received early on. Wouldn’t all that energy make it pump harder? Would her heart break? The doctors had assured him that people with Harley’s condition had a brighter outlook on life. They were positive and delightful, less worried about the nuances which would often bring stress to others. Harley just loved life.
However, when she turned four, she became too smart for her age, and began to understand what life was about. What life with her mother was like. Harley’s heart only broke once she realized how irresponsible both her parents were. And at such a young age. For the past few years, Jax had seen the light dimmed in her eyes. The stress of having to look after her own mother and the lack of attention from her own father, him, had sucked the life out of little Harley.
“Never again,” Jax whispered in the dim room. He curled a lock of her hair around her little ear, and kissed her on the temple. That was his promise to his daughter, just like the title of the song he’d written for Harley.
Never again would she shed tears for others. Not the least bit for him. From now on, there would only be laughter and fun in her life. No complications. Not if he could help it.
As he made a step toward the door, he heard Harley shuffle on her bed.
“Daddy?”
Her small voice pierced right through his heart. He sat on the edge of her bed, tucking her pink bear back under the sheets with his daughter.
“I didn’t mean to wake you, sweetheart. Go back to sleep.” Jax brushed his lips over her forehead. “You feeling better?”
Harley nodded as she rubbed her eyes with the back of a hand. “Yeah. Cade and I just hung out today. We had a movie night.”
“Oh yeah? That sounds fun.” He wanted to ask about Cade, but he figured he could search for her himself and get her all alone.
Harley raised a questioning brow at him, followed by a smile. “She’s not here.”
“Who’s not here?” Even he wouldn’t believe that he knew whom Harley meant.
Sure enough, Harley barked out a laugh. “You do know I’m eight, right?” Jax feigned knowledge, drawing his brows together, and rubbing his chin. Harley rolled her eyes at her father. “Cade’s not here. She had to go back to her apartment because of a flooding from a burst pipe or something.”
An alarm went off in Jax’s head. “She left you alone?”
Harley cocked her head to the side. “You and I both know that Cade would never do that. I barely had time to go to the bathroom without her checking on me.” With a yawn, Harley stretched out her arms and wiggled her body back down under the blanket. “We had a movie night, then her landlord called about the flood. She called her friend Juliette to look after me while she was gone. We thought you’d be back tomorrow morning. Cade promised to return before you do.”
“You really like her, huh?” Jax nudged Harley’s chin.
“So do you.” Harley yawned once again, before snuggling with her pink bear. “Make sure you don’t go into Cade’s room. I think Juliette is in there. She’s very loud. She might wake up the neighbours if you wake her up.”
“Har, we’re on the top floor. We have no neighbours.”
“Exactly. Goodnight, Dad. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Night, Har.” Jax waited for Harley’s breathing to steady, a sure sign that she’d fallen back to sleep before he stepped out of the bedroom.
As Harley’s door clicked closed, he heard murmurs coming from the open main floor. From the landing, Jax witnessed something he thought he would never see. There, in the middle of his living room was Zee and a woman in sleep clothes. Could this be Juliette? Jax assumed so.
What was surprising was seeing Zee with his head bent and his lips pressed against the woman’s. The woman in a hot pink tank top and candy striper shorts wasn’t someone Jax thought Zee would be interested in. But who really knew what Zee liked?
To avoid any awkwardness, Jax cleared his throat to make his presence known. Zee heard him right away, dislodging from Juliette and stepping as far away as he could, as though she was fire and he had been burnt.
Try as he might, Jax couldn’t keep the grin off his face as he descended the stairs. “You must be Cade’s friend, Juliette.”
Juliette was a head shorter than Cade and beside Zee, she appeared much tinier, but her eyes widened as she saw Jax. “Oh my god!” Yep, Harley was right. Juliette was loud.
Jax eyed Zee, who was scratching the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable. He had his hand stretched out to shake Juliette’s, but she pulled him in for a hug instead.
“Ju-ju,” Zee muttered a low warning, “Calm down.” Zee sent Jax an apologetic look. “She’s a big fan of yours.”
Juliette released Jax, straightening his shirt with the palm of her hands. “Number one fan. Oh! Cade’s not here. I was just telling Zee. Well, I was going to, but we got…” She waved her hand in front of her face. “Never mind. Cade’s at her apartment.”
“Yes, Harley told me. Is she okay?”
“Yeah, she called when she got there. She said her place was a mess. I think most of her stuff is soaked. She’s just going to clean up then come back as soon as she’s done,” Juliette explained. Not only was she loud, she was also a speed-talker.
Jax crossed his arms over his chest as he contemplated how he could see Cade without disturbing her, and without making it obvious to everyone that he was trembling in his boots from the anticipation. Before he could open his mouth to speak, Juliette beat him to it.
“She probably needs help. You should go see her.”
“Ju-ju!” Zee’s voice boomed. Juliette turned her head and challenged him with one brow raised. “Baby, I’m just—”
“Just nothing, babe. Can’t you see that Jax wants to see her too?” She faced Jax next. “Am I right or am I right?”
“Ummm…” Jax ran his fingers through his hair.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Zee rub his eyes. “I’ll take you to her. Ju-ju, go back to bed and I’ll be back to…help you watch over Harley.”
“Sure, babe.” Without warning, Juliette swung her arms around his neck and smacked her lips over his. “I missed you.”
Inside the elevator, Jax tried not to tease Zee. The man could probably pound him into the ground if he said anything about how much he was whipped by his woman. Jax smiled to himself as he sensed Zee’s discomfort.
“Your secret’s safe with me, Zee. Don’t worry about it,” Jax said without looking over his shoulder.
***
After two more knocks, Jax heard Cade’s tired voice on the other side of the door. A shadow appeared through the slit at the bottom, and he could almost feel her through the wood. He leaned his body forward, gripping the doorframe with his hands.
“Jax, is that you?” she asked before unlocking the door. “What are you doing here?”
There were bags under her eyes, and her hair was a pile of mess on her head. She wore a tattered shirt, which hung off one shoulder, and shorts, which displayed her toned legs. She was the most beautiful woman Jax had ever seen.
“I came here to keep my promise,” he answered.
“What promise?” Cade stepped back as Jax crossed the threshold and caught her in a predatory stare.
With a quick push of his foot, Jax closed the door behind him and wrapped Cade in his arms, pulling her legs up and around his hips. Cade had to hold on before she fell, but Jax wouldn’t dare let her. “Don’t you remember?” he said between swift kisses on her lips. “I told you once we’re back we’ll finish what we started.”
Jax ran one hand up her shirt and pressed her against a wall, while the other hand cupped her bottom. He ground his hips against hers, garnering a moan from Cade. He swallowed that moan, and slipped his tongue between her lips. She tasted sweet, just as he remembered.
“Bedroom?” he
asked against the softness of her lips.
With her eyes closed, Cade pointed to her left, and that was where Jax took her.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Her place was a disaster, but Cade thought she was on cloud nine.
When Jax carried her to the bedroom, he tripped four times, but it made the experience of being with him for the first time even more special.
It took Cade three times to climb the stairs up and down, chucking out bags and bags of soiled and soaked items from her apartment. She had managed to save a few of her clothes from the damage. Sleeping in the sad, soggy apartment wasn’t ideal, but she’d conked out from fatigue. Whatever else she needed to do could wait until the next day.
Then the knock came on her door.
Was she ever surprised to see Jax standing there in all his rock god sexiness! Cade had no idea what she looked like, but she knew she wasn’t the prettiest at that moment. Jax did not care, not by the way he lunged at her even before the door closed shut.
What came after was beyond amazing.
After the third go, her energy had depleted and she had to wave a white flag. Not a moment later, she was asleep with him as the big spoon.
The light from the sun’s rays played between the blinds. Staccato kisses spread goose bumps on her back and shoulders and sent electricity along her spine.
Jax was ready for round four.
“Good morning,” his gravelly voice melted her inside and heat pooled between her thighs.
His hands wandered but his touches were delicate, like his fingers wanted to explore and remember every inch of her body. Jax gathered her hair in one hand and twisted it at the nape of her neck. This gave his lips and teeth and tongue more freedom to taste and nibble.
Cadence reached up and behind her, bringing his head closer to the curve of her neck, close to the pulse beating wildly, then she moved her hand down, grazing her fingers over his tattooed sides, and stopping to grip his buttocks. She squeezed harder, and it made Jax push his hips forward.
“I want you,” he rasped. Explosions of hot, searing lust spread all over her body, from the tips of her naked breasts to her toes curling in delight.
She couldn’t wait. She wanted him too.
“Have me,” she offered.
***
As far as she was concerned, mornings should always be spent that way.
The clouds had sent gloom over the city. The humidity in the room spiked, and Cade panted beside Jax, both their bodies slicked with sweat. She looked over at him, staring at the ceiling, and like her, trying to regulate his breathing.
When her stomach grumbled, she was reminded of her promise to Harley. Cade flipped over on her back, then to sitting.
“We have to go,” Cade said, pulling on her shirt that had been thrown down on the floor. “I promised Harley that I’d be back before breakfast.” She reached for her cellphone and cursed at the time. “We’re late.”
“We don’t have to rush.”
Cade ruffled through her clean clothes for a bra and underwear. She wished she could shower, but the bathroom had suffered the most damage. After a quick brush through her hair, she piled it on top of her head into a knot. Jax had seen her at her worst. If he was going to flee because of her looks, he would have done it hours before. She picked a pair of tattered, yet comfortable jeans to wear before heading to her kitchen where she could brush her teeth over the sink.
When she returned to the bedroom, Jax hadn’t moved.
“Are you going to stay here?” she asked, standing by the door, arms crossed over her chest.
Jax yawned and stretched on the bed, before turning to her. “I called Harley and asked her to start breakfast without us.”
“You did what?” Cade’s voice rose.
“She said she didn’t mind.”
Was she hearing him right?
“You told Harley that you’re with me?” Cade stepped forward, feeling incredulous. Harley had been through quite an ordeal the past few days. She didn’t want the little girl to have to worry about the situation between her and Jax.
Jax cocked his head to one side, a smirk appeared on his lips, entertained at her outburst. “Harley told me where you were last night. She practically asked me to come and see you here.”
Cade’s mouth popped open. “She did not!”
Jax waved her over, bending an arm to prop his head on. “Come here. This bed is too cold without you.”
“Jax, be serious now,” she implored.
“Cade, I am serious.” He pushed up to sitting then proceeded to walk over to where Cade was fuming.
It was the first time she was able to inspect all his naked glory in the light. Her imagination before had done him injustice. The tattoos, the rippling abs, the muscular thighs, and what was in between those thighs. It had been inside her, had brought her to orgasm more than she’d ever had since that first time with Bailey Connor in the back of his dad’s Buick. Suddenly, Cade didn’t know what to do with herself. Her cheeks heated. Her stomach knotted. The temperature in the room went up, as it did in her center.
Jax rested his hands along the base of her skull, threading his fingers through her hair, which made her head tilt up. He hovered kisses over one ear, across one cheek, on the corners and center of her lips, across the other cheek, and ending with a sigh on her other ear. His hooded eyes pierced through hers, locking her in a trance.
“Jax,” was all but a whisper through her quivering lips.
“Yes, Cadence?”
Cade blinked. “Get dressed so we can have breakfast with your daughter.” The trance was over, but Cade didn’t move. She didn’t trust that her jelly legs would carry her forward.
With a deep rumble in his chest, Jax laughed, and planted another kiss on her lips. “You are so bossy.” Then he followed Cade’s request.
“I’ll call a cab.”
“No need,” he said, pulling his jeans over his boxers. “Zee will be here soon to pick us up.”
“You called Zee too?”
Plucking his shirt off the floor to put it on, Jax smiled at her question. “I didn’t. He was there with Harley and Juliette. Who do you think drove me here?”
“I…” Cade hadn’t even thought of it. All she could think of was Jax appearing at her doorstep and taking over every clear sense she had in her head. “Oh, and Juliette. Now I have to make sure he doesn’t tell her about us.”
“He won’t. If their secret is safe with me, then our secret will remain safe with them.”
“Who’s them?”
“Zee and Juliette.” When clearly Cade had no idea what he was talking about, Jax continued, “They’re together.” He bent down to put on his shoes.
“They’re what? Juliette isn’t with Zee, are you tripping?” Cade laughed. What ridiculous nonsense. She couldn’t think of a more mismatched pair. Juliette was exuberant and lively, and Zee was a robot of some sort.
Jax peered at her through his lashes, working on the laces of his other shoe. “Ah, yeah, babe, they are. Juliette didn’t tell you?”
It struck Cade that Jax was serious, but how could that be? No, Juliette had never mentioned she was with Zee. She had never mentioned being with anyone other than a sweet, loving softie. She couldn’t have meant Zee, did she?
A cellphone bleeped. Jax pulled his out of his back pocket, and then jumped to standing. “He’s here. Are we taking all of your bags now or do you want to come back for the rest later?”
“I’m not taking anything.”
“Babe, you can’t stay here.” Jax waved his hands around. “It’s not habitable.”
“Well I’m not taking my stuff to your place.”
“Why not?”
“Are you crazy?” It wasn’t the best retort, but it was all she could come up with.
It was Jax’s turn to cross his arms over his chest. “Call me crazy one more time and I’ll give you a spanking.” The corner of his lips turned up, and a smile danced in his eyes.
Cade shook her head. “I’m not moving my stuff to your—”
“Cade,” Jax cleared the distance between them in two wide steps and scooped her up into his arms. “There’s enough space in the penthouse for all of us. Harley would love for you to be there. I would love for you to be there. And besides, I’ll be travelling with the band for a few months, it would be easier if you stayed at home with Harley.”
When he put it that way, it was hard to argue. “Fine, but this doesn’t mean I’m moving in. I’ll find a more suitable apartment when you return. I’ll need a new address anyway to find a new job.”
“A new job?”
“Yes, Jax. I need a job. I can’t stay in this country without work.”
“You don’t need work. I’ll take care of you.”
“No, you won’t.” She jabbed a finger on his chest.
Jax caught it and lifted her hand to his lips. “Yes, I will, whether you want me to or not.”
“That’s not going to happen, Jax. I’ll watch over Harley. I might even talk to Mac about taking me back for a while until I find something else. I’m here on a work visa and I need to work so I can stay. You aren’t paying me if we’re going to keep sleeping together. Or don’t sleep with me and make me your employee.”
“I don’t want you to be my employee, Cade. I want you to be mine.”
There was pure honesty in his eyes. She relaxed in his arms and leaned her head on his chest. “Jax, I don’t know what to say.” She was aware of how it could look in other people’s eyes. She cared not what the tabloid would say about her, but she didn’t want Jax and especially Harley implicated. She could take a guess what the paparazzi would make of it if it surfaced.
They stood there for several quiet beats. Jax kissed her hair, and then leaned down to kiss her lips. She was dizzy once he released her.
“There is another way you can stay here with us. I have dual citizenship, as you probably know.”
“Yeah, and?”
Harley (West Coast Rock Star #1) Page 14
