Jalen swallowed as she just stared at him wide-eyed. Shit, he’d spoken too soon, gotten lost in their kiss. But knowing each time he slept with her that more of his true nature would come out, he wanted her to know how serious he actually was about her. And he had no idea how long his control would hold out.
Since Neve had yet to respond, he said, “Say something.”
“I don’t know what to say,” she said slowly.
He decided to do a little backtracking. “At least, agree to stay here with me tonight. The last thing I want is for you to feel pressured into something you’re not comfortable with.”
She brushed her fingers against the stubble on his cheek. “Now that I can say yes to,” she said with a smile. “As for the rest, I need to think about it. I don’t want to give up my place with Kara and then have you turn around and decide we aren’t going to work out, because we rushed into something.”
He opened his mouth to tell her she wouldn’t have to worry about that happening, but she stopped him with a finger across his lips.
“Don’t say anything more.” Neve gave him a sexy grin as she dropped a hand to the front of his jeans and squeezed his semi-hard cock. “Now, I think we were in the middle of something before we got a little sidetracked.”
Jalen was about to pick up where they had left off when he suddenly remembered part of the reason why he’d come home was to shower and change his clothes. He gave Neve a quick kiss. “We did, but I have to put it on hold for a little bit longer.” He rubbed his whiskers with his hand. “I need a shower and a shave. Why don’t you make yourself comfortable in my bed while I take care of those things?”
She sighed dramatically. “I guess I can wait. Just make sure you hurry.” Neve stepped away and undid her jeans. They were down her legs and pooled at her ankles shortly thereafter. “Don’t keep me waiting too long, though.”
Jalen turned and was already undoing his shirt as he headed for the en suite. It would be the fastest shower and shave he’d ever had. With Neve waiting for him in his bed, he had all the incentive he needed to be quick.
Chapter Six
Neve took off her panties once Jalen disappeared inside the en suite bathroom. She then pulled back the covers of his large bed and got in. She turned to her side, buried her face in the pillow and took a deep breath. It smelled like Jalen. With an even deeper one, she pulled more of that male scent into her lungs.
She vaguely heard the sound of the shower as she brought up all that Jalen had said to her, to the forefront of her mind. He actually wanted her to move in with him. The Jalen from Soar wanted her, a nobody, to live with him in his huge, fancy mansion.
She rolled onto her back. If Kara were here, her friend would tell her to say yes, to not let this slip through her fingers. But Neve had to think this through. Just because Jalen was a rock star didn’t mean she couldn’t think about him in the say way she would any other guy she dated. He was still a man, albeit a famous one.
Her first gut instinct was to tell Jalen yes, but the warier side of her couldn’t make a decision of this magnitude that fast, or easily. As she’d told him, this was all so sudden. Even though he told her he was falling for her, she’d been reluctant to tell him how she felt. She had to make sure her feelings for him were genuine and not her wanting him only for who and what he was. Okay, he was good-looking and she was utterly in lust with him, but she wanted to like him as just plain Jalen, not Jalen the rock star.
Not that Neve thought that was the case. She enjoyed being with him. She found him easy to talk to. He wasn’t at all stuck up because of his famous status. He was a really nice guy. And her feelings were definitely heading toward the really like-like stage.
The shower turned off and a little while later, the water in the sink ran. Jalen had to be shaving. Neve pushed the thoughts of the past few minutes aside and smiled as she remembered how desperately he had kissed her before going for his shower. She’d felt just as badly for him. Being in his bedroom, seeing his bed, she’d had thoughts of them naked, using all the available space on the mattress. Arousal had shot through her, not letting her ignore it. This morning had been nice, but Neve wanted all of Jalen, his cock thrusting between her legs as he rode her to completion.
Her head turned in the direction of the bathroom when the door opened and Jalen stepped inside. Her gaze drifted over him as he walked toward the bed. His longish dark brown hair looked even darker, since it was still damp. No longer did stubble cover his cheeks and chin. Gazing lower, she reached the towel he had wrapped around his hips. It didn’t do much to hide the erection underneath it.
Licking her lips, Neve continued to follow Jalen with her gaze until he stood at the side of the bed. She sat up, letting the covers fall from her chest, exposing her breasts. His gaze became riveted on them.
Neve flipped back the covers and shifted over to give Jalen room. “Well, are you going to keep me waiting?”
He shook his head. “No. I think you’ve waited long enough.”
Jalen gave a tug on the towel and it fell to the floor. Neve ran her gaze up and down his body. As far as she was concerned, he was perfectly made. He was all defined muscles without an inch of fat on him anywhere. Landing on his cock, she licked her lips. It was thick and long and fully engorged.
His gaze lifted to meet hers as he climbed onto the mattress beside her. He straddled her thighs, bent slightly and cupped her face in his hands as he kissed her. At first it was a gentle exploration, but it soon turned into a passionate meeting of mouths. His tongue slipped between her lips, twining with hers, doing a mating dance of their own. Neve moaned, her pussy growing wet as she tasted Jalen.
He gently eased her onto her back, following her down. Breaking their kiss, he straightened and reached over to the nightstand next to the bed. He pulled open the drawer and took out a condom.
Jalen placed it in her hand. “Put it on me.”
Neve wasted no time sitting up again and tearing open the foil wrapper. She put the condom on the tip of his cock and rolled it down the rest of his shaft. Jalen’s gaze followed her movements.
Once she had it in place, she nuzzled his chest and reached around to squeeze his ass. “Make love to me, Jalen. I want you now.”
He put his hands around her waist and tugged her down so she lay flat on the bed. Jalen then placed one of his legs between hers and spread them farther apart as he settled into the cradle of her hips. The tip of his cock brushed up against her slick opening. Neve moaned and rubbed herself along him.
Hooking one of her legs over his arm, Jalen lifted it, opening her even more. With one thrust, he buried himself to the hilt inside her pussy. He set a fast pace as his cock speared in and out of her body. Neve tightened her inner walls around his hard shaft, glorying in the feel of him taking her.
Neve wrapped her other leg around Jalen’s back, digging her heel into his backside as it flexed with each of his thrusts. Her pussy tightened around his plunging cock as she inched closer to her climax.
“Come for me,” Jalen said in a strained voice.
“Close,” she panted, “so close.”
He ducked his head and sucked a nipple into his mouth. With each pull, she felt corresponding sensation deep inside her pussy. It was more than she needed to have her crying out with release. Jalen let go of her taut peak and lifted himself to pump faster, his body trembling as he strove for his own orgasm. Reaching it, Jalen stiffened, thrusting one last time into her as he threw back his head and moaned.
As he came, Neve felt his cock pulsing inside her pussy. Then a strange pulling sensation seemed to sweep through her. Along with it, it felt as if she couldn’t breathe deep enough to fill her lungs. She whimpered, clutching at Jalen’s biceps. What little air she could get rasped in and out of her.
Picking up on her distress, Jalen opened his eyes. Neve thought they appeared silver for a split second. With a curse, he flung himself off her and sat on the edge of the bed, putting some space between them. As soon as
he did that, she was finally able to take a deep breath and the pulling sensation disappeared.
Not sure exactly what had happened to her, she sat up and reached out to touch Jalen’s hunched shoulder. He jerked away before she made contact with his skin.
“Don’t, Neve,” he said. “Not yet.”
She pulled back her hand and dropped it to her lap. She silently watched as Jalen took deep breaths, and slowly by degrees, the visible tension in his body seemed to leave him. Once he sat straighter, he turned his head to look at her. His gaze searched her face as if he looked for something.
“Are you okay?” he asked, still not making any move to come closer.
“Yeah. I’m not sure what happened. I just couldn’t seem to catch my breath, but I’m fine now.”
Jalen scooted closer and cupped the back of her head as he gave her a soft kiss. A deep breath expanded his chest before he slowly released it. “I’m going to clean up in the bathroom. You can have it after me. I think I’ll introduce you to the others, then I have to tell you something.”
“All right. Tell me what?”
“Something about me.”
Without another word, Jalen stood and walked into the bathroom, leaving Neve to wonder what it could be he had to tell her. From the look on his face, it had to be something important.
* * *
After coming out of the bathroom and Neve went in, Jalen snatched up the cordless phone from the nightstand and dialed Gannon’s phone number. His friend answered after the third ring.
“Hey, Jalen. What’s up?”
“Do you know if the rest of the guys are around?”
“I think so. Why?”
Jalen blew out a breath. “I have someone over here who would like to meet all of you,” he paused, “like I told you before, I think I’ve found my mate. There is no question that I’m going through the same thing you did with Arwen.”
He was met with silence before Gannon asked, “Are sure?”
“Oh, I’m pretty damn sure.” Jalen looked at the closed bathroom door, then lowered his voice. “I just absorbed some of her life energy.”
“You were able to stop it, right?” Gannon asked with concern in his voice.
“Yes, just barely. I think I’m going to have to tell her the truth before I do something that can’t be taken back.”
“If you really think she’s your mate, don’t do what I did with Arwen and try to run away from it. You’ll only make yourself and her miserable.”
“Don’t worry. I don’t plan on doing anything like that. I’ve learned from your mistakes.” At that moment, Neve walked out of the bathroom. In a lighter tone, Jalen said, “So if you aren’t busy, how about you and Arwen come over in about twenty minutes. I’ll call the others and see if they can pop around as well.”
“She’s there now, isn’t she?” Gannon asked.
“Yes.”
“I see. Arwen and I will be there. I’m sure she will be happy to meet her, especially if she really is what you think she is to you. At least, my mate has been through it.”
“My thoughts exactly. Anyway, see you two in a bit.”
Jalen hung up and turned to face Neve. “That was Gannon. He said he and Arwen would come over. I’m just going to call my other band mates.”
She stopped at the side of the bed and picked up her panties, which she pulled on. “I’m looking forward to meeting everyone.”
He watched her pick up her bra. His cock jerked, showing interest in going another round, but that wasn’t going to happen. As he’d told Gannon, he’d actually absorbed some of Neve’s life energy the last time. It was also getting too hard to control. He was going to have to tell her the truth and show her what he was. After that, if she accepted him, he’d see what happened. Jalen was pretty sure he’d change Neve the same way Gannon had changed Arwen.
“I just have to call the others. All right?”
She smiled as she picked up the last of her clothes and put them on the bed. “Go ahead. Don’t let me stop you.”
Jalen made his phone calls, able to reach the rest of the band and invite them over. While he did that, he kept a close eye on her. She wandered around his bedroom, looking at the things on top of his dresser, then out of the bedroom window, to the backyard below. She didn’t seem to have had an adverse reaction from him absorbing some of her life energy. Granted it hadn’t been very much, before he’d pulled away from her completely and broken the connection between them.
Once he finished, Jalen led Neve downstairs to the living room. They sat on the black leather couch as they waited for his friends to arrive. He turned on the cushion so he faced her and picked up her hand. He stroked his thumb across the back of it.
“Everyone is going to like you,” he said, trying to end the silence that had fallen between them. He’d also caught her giving him a strange look from time to time. He had no idea what she thought about what had happened in his bedroom and he wasn’t ready to find out just yet. That could come afterward—once he’d faced the hard part of revealing his true nature.
Neve chuckled. “You sound so sure of that.”
He shrugged. “I do. I can’t see anyone not liking you. You’re one of the easiest people I know to get along with.”
She shook her head. “Thanks, but why the sudden compliments about my personality?”
Jalen reached across and stroked the fingers of his other hand down her cheek. “So I’m not allowed to compliment you?” He pulled back.
“I didn’t say that.” She lifted their joined hands and kissed his. It just seemed like an out of the blue kind of thing is all.”
“Well, get used to it, because I’m going to do this often.” The sound of the doorbell had him letting go of Neve’s hand. He gave her a quick kiss before he stood. “That must be our company. I’ll be right back.”
He hurried to the front door and opened to it see Gannon and Arwen standing on the other side. Jalen stepped back and waved them in. He gave Arwen a kiss on the cheek as she walked by. He also noticed her eyes were light hazel, the color before they’d changed after her mate had shared his life energy with her. With Gannon’s help, she’d learned to hide the silver of what her eyes were now, just as well as any of them.
After closing the door, Jalen followed Gannon and Arwen into the living room. He walked by them and went over to Neve. She stood and smiled at the newcomers, her gaze seeming to linger more on Gannon, staring at him in a starstruck kind of way as she’d done to him when they’d first met.
Making the introductions, Jalen said, “Neve, this is Gannon and Arwen.”
“Hi,” she said.
“I’m thrilled to meet you, Neve,” Arwen said. “It’s about time someone else from the band found a girlfriend. I’m sadly outnumbered.”
Jalen gestured for Gannon and Arwen to take a seat on the leather loveseat kitty-corner to the couch. He was sure the others would be along soon.
“I hear congratulations are in order,” Neve said. “When’s the big day, Arwen?”
Gannon’s mate smiled at him, then turned back to Neve. “In six months. I would have been happy with just a small wedding where it was only immediate family, but my mom insisted on something a bit bigger.”
“At least, she’s not inviting everyone she knows,” Gannon said as he put his arm around Arwen’s shoulders and pulled her tighter against her side.
The doorbell rang again. Jalen got up to answer it. This time it was Malik, Trae and Keiran.
“So who is this person you want us to meet?” Malik asked as they waited for Jalen to shut the door.
“Her name is Neve.”
All three men had been in midstride, heading in the living room’s direction when they came to a stop and turned to stare at him. They all wore the same surprised looks on their faces.
“What?” he asked.
“You’ve invited us over to meet a woman?” Keiran asked incredulously.
“Don’t act as if you’ve never seen me with one bef
ore,” Jalen said.
“It’s not that. It’s the point that you actually want us to get to know her. Usually you don’t keep a woman around long enough for us to even learn her name.”
Trae’s surprised look turned into a furrowing of his brows. “Is this what I think it means? Is this Neve to you what Arwen is to Gannon?”
“It looks that way,” Jalen said with a grin.
Malik and Keiran’s faces were almost comical to see, as they shot him an even more shocked look. Trae just nodded to himself, as if he’d had something he thought of proved correct. Trae being the more thoughtful member of the band, that didn’t surprise Jalen one bit. His friend probably figured Gannon wouldn’t be the only one to find his mate.
Unable to take his friends’ stares any longer, Jalen shook his head. “Enough already. Gannon and Arwen are already here.”
As Jalen went to walk past Trae, his band mate stopped him with a hand on his arm. “Before we meet her, you’re going to tell her about you and us being Alte, right?”
“Yes, but not now and not when you’re all here. I’m going to do it later tonight when we’re alone.”
“Good. If you are going through what Gannon did, we know what the final outcome will be. It’s best to get it all out in the open before that happens.”
“Don’t worry, Trae, those are my thoughts exactly.”
* * *
After Jalen had left to answer the door, Neve looked at Gannon and Arwen, not really knowing what to say to start a conversation. Her gaze coming to rest on Gannon had her inner fan girl wanting to squeal and jump up and down. Of course, she wouldn’t do any such thing. She wouldn’t embarrass Jalen in that way, nor have Gannon think she was a brainless idiot. Neve figured the band had to deal with that type of fan more times than they could count. They didn’t need that in the privacy of their own home.
Fiery Temptation Page 6
