by Emelia Blair
Inviting him to crash at my place had been instinctive because we had both been tired, but now that I think about it, considering the fact that I haven’t known him for long, I should have been a bit more wary of letting him sleep on my couch.
So, why wasn’t I?
Jace is wickedly smart, he’s just the right amount of asshole for me to find funny and he’s sweet as well. It’s like he has a prickly hide, which I love getting under. He grumbles, complains, threatens, and in the end I still get my way.
When I initially met him, I had thought him handsome but not someone I would ever consider dating but now, slowly, every time I look at him, my heart beats a little faster. Whenever he leans against his desk, his sleeves rolled up, those ugly thick glasses on his face as he scowls at some document or the other, I have to press my legs together tightly. When he smirks at me, even while I know he is going to say something which will undoubtedly piss me off, that smirk of his, the wicked gleam in his eyes, a prelude to trouble, it makes my mouth dry.
I’ve told myself I wasn’t attracted to him, that these were all symptoms of Stockholm syndrome and I needed to get a hold of myself. Then despite all those well managed pep talks to myself in the mirror, when he taunted me yesterday, I had been unable to control myself, and had grabbed him to kiss him.
It had also been an attempt to reassure myself that while the man may be hot, he and I had no zing, so as to speak.
However, when I had touched him, my skin had burned where he touched me. And then he had made things worse by taking control of the kiss. The way he had used his mouth on me, the dominance, the sheer demand for obedience as he had held me to him, it had me a slave to his will.
If, in that moment, he had told me to strip, I think I might have.
My abdomen still tightens at the thought of the kiss, at the way he had touched my lips, looking at me through hooded eyes, ordered me to open my mouth.
Jace Hunter is a very dangerous man.
I stare at the breakfast he made.
It’s very simple: scrambled eggs with toast and black coffee.
“Eat.” He hands me a fork and sits down across from me.
I dig in and immediately choke at the first bite of the eggs.
Too much salt!
Swallowing the first bite by force, I push away the eggs and focus on the coffee.
“What’s wrong?” He looks at me, concerned.
I watch him, alarmed at how he’s shoveling the eggs in his mouth.
“I…?” I don’t know how to tell him that he’s a terrible cook. “Um, I just realized that—I mean I forgot that I just drink coffee in the morning.”
“But I made eggs.”
Is it just me or did his face just fall a little?
“And they’re great,” I lie, trying to smile, but the bitter taste of salt in my mouth is preventing me from getting my fake emotions across. “But I’m going to have them later. When I’m hungry.”
He looks suspicious but relents.
I sip at my coffee, which is the one thing he’s gotten right, and watch him eat.
“So, this Cameron,” Jace breaks the silence. “You’ve known him a long time?”
“Yeah.” I don’t smile because thinking of Cam brings back everything that has just happened. “He, Mia, and I, we grew up together. He’s dating Mia.”
“Oh, he’s that Cameron. You’ve mentioned him.”
It’s surprising how he pays attention to what I say. Usually, people just tune me out.
A knock on the door has me getting up.
Yawning, I open the front door.
Lana, Kendall, and Elise are standing there, looking miffed.
My eyes widen. “What—What are you guys doing here?”
“Halley, who is it?” Jace exits the kitchen, holding his coffee cup in his hands.
All three women freeze on seeing him.
Jace blinks at them. “Oh, hey.”
Kendall pushes past me. “What are you doing here?”
Jace doesn’t seem to be bothered but I suddenly feel there’s a misunderstanding about to start brewing. “Jace lives here!”
Everyone turns to look at me, this time their jaws about to drop on the floor.
“He lives here?” Kendall looks like she’s seconds away from having a stroke. “You two are living—?”
I start waving my hands frantically, instantly understanding her meaning. “No! Absolutely not! I meant…”
Jace is snickering behind me.
I growl over my shoulder, “Stop laughing like an idiot and fix this!”
He tucks his hands in his pockets, grinning. “Oh, but you’re handling it so well.”
I glare at him.
He just shrugs, looking amused. “It’s none of their business. Try telling them that. I don’t know why you care so much—Oomph!”
His words are cut off when Kendall flings the cushion at his face. “Say that again!”
“Don’t destroy her home.” Jace puts the cushion back in its place. “I forgot my key yesterday.”
“Yeah.” I nod, feeling relieved that he’s finally pitching in. “And since we live in the same building, I thought it would be easier if he just crashed on my couch rather than go back the whole way to the office.”
Lana is, meanwhile, peeking in the kitchen. “Well, this is cozy. You two are having breakfast together.”
“Who cooked?” Elise asked, immediately.
I stare at all three faces.
They’re not even trying to hide how nosy they’re being.
Jace decides to change the subject. “Lana, did you hear about Hashem?”
Everyone’s expressions turn grave and Lana tells him, “This morning. Some Detective David. He kept asking about you and he asked about Halley. He seemed very well informed about the relationship between you and Hashem and the incident between Hashem and Halley.”
“He’s going to be a pain in the neck,” Jace mutters. “The two were friends. He and this other detective showed up a while ago, wanting to question Halley. The moron implied that she somehow taught herself how to drive and then located his favorite bar and waited outside to run him over. Then she stashed the car and came back here only to be woken up by them.”
Kendall looks worried and turns her attention to me. “Do you have a lawyer or…?”
I shake my head. “They have video surveillance that tells them that both me and Jace left the office together and we arrived here before the accident. The detective with him, Felix, he seemed to be much nicer and together.”
I can feel Jace’s eyes on me at my last statement.
“That’s terrible.” Elise’s brow knits together and then she steps forward and links her arm with mine. “Come on. You’ve had an eventful day. Let’s get you dressed and then we’ll go shopping. We all agreed to meet at the Plaza but you never showed and then you wouldn’t answer your phone so we pull…” At Lana’s sharp look, Elise hastily changes her statement. “I mean, then we took a rough guess about where you lived and just magically arrived here.”
When I give her a suspicious look, she just smiles, innocently.
I glance at Jace who’s studying me with a strange look in his eyes. Not knowing what to make of this, I decide to just go and change. With everything going on, this might distract me from my overwhelming thoughts.
When I come back out, in a surprisingly demure pink T-shirt and mustard colored pants, I’m putting on my multicolored skull earrings, my makeup simple.
Jace is still standing there, drinking what I assume is the last cup of coffee.
Kendall is tapping her foot on the floor. “You could have come to our place and crashed.” She’s grinning at him while he’s studiously ignoring her.
“I’m ready.” I run my fingers through my hair.
Jace turns to look at me and his eyes rake over me in a way that reminds me of how he had sandwiched me between the table and his body last night… my cheeks turn red against my will. “W-What?” I narrow
my eyes at him.
He gets up and starts carrying the cup to the kitchen. “Nothing.” He brushes past me as he murmurs, “You just look really pretty.”
I don’t know how my face can get more red but it does, and I grind my teeth, embarrassed at myself for such a reaction.
I’ve had men tell me I’m pretty before!
But having it whispered by this man as he looks at me in such a hungry way, it makes my pussy clench and I stand there dumbfounded, not knowing how to react.
Fortunately, the silence is immediately filled with Lana’s voice, “Yeah, we definitely need to update your wardrobe.”
There is nothing harsh in her tone as she leans towards me and grins. “I like your earrings though. They give you flair.”
I flick it with a haughty smirk.
She laughs.
“So, you’re all going shopping?” Jace walks back in.
I try not to meet his gaze, suddenly feeling a little too self-conscious.
“Yeah. We’re updating Halley’s style.” Kendall is starting to look excited. “She’s getting a complete makeover.”
“What’s wrong with how she looks now?” Jace asks, exiting from the kitchen, his tone displeased.
“I wanted to make some changes.”
“And it’s none of your business.” Kendall hooks her arm around my neck, raising a brow.
“I never said it was.”
They glare at each other.
I chuckle. “Okay, let’s get going. I have dinner plans as well tonight. I don’t want to mess them up.”
Getting Jace out of the apartment takes minutes and I ready myself to be pestered with questions through the whole shopping trip.
But even as I exit the building, the events of the day still linger in my head, the identity of the driver eating at my subconscious.
7
Jace
The superintendent hadn’t been very pleased to hear my request, and after a brief argument, he had finally given me the spare key.
I immediately headed out to the gym.
Getting involved in any aspect of Halley’s life had always been a big no for me.
The girl is loud, talkative, stubborn, and she always manages to get the upper hand in an argument. So, while I don’t deny I’m attracted to her, it doesn’t excuse me constantly thinking about her.
As I run on the treadmill, trying to work out the desire to fuck that tight little body and trying to convince myself she’s too young for me, all I can recall is the way she felt under me and the helpless expression on her face.
Taking a sip of water, I lean against the bar handle of the machine, my eyes unfocused.
Didn’t I just talk myself out of pursuing her?
So, why is she all I can think about?
“She’s a pain in the ass,” I mutter loudly.
The woman using the weights to my left shoots me an indignant look.
I ignore it. Halley is so damn loud and all over the place, and she doesn’t listen to me—well, that’s not exactly true, she is really good at following instructions, but she doesn’t listen to me about general things.
Even my excuses are sounding so stupid, I grumble to myself.
She’s very young, I tell myself.
Four years younger than me.
Which isn’t exactly a massive age difference, my traitorous mind informs me.
She’s also my subordinate and what kind of message does that send?
However, wasn’t that how Kendall and Caleb got together? Although to be fair, my brother-in-law hired her for the exact purpose of getting her into his bed and his life.
I grab my things and head to the shower, all the while trying to remind myself I had given Halley a clear answer on my position that I wasn’t looking to get involved with a woman and she hadn’t seemed very interested in me either.
This thought makes me feel a little sour.
I wash my hair with vigor, my movements agitated.
It’s not like I have time in my life for a woman anyways. I stand by what I said to her. Even if she is hot and smart and I find myself wondering what she’s up to every time she’s out of my sight—
I curse when the shampoo slips into my eyes.
Pain in my ass, indeed.
I glance at the clock before turning on the TV.
Sure enough, Hashem’s death has made the news.
I can’t find it in myself to spare a shred of remorse over the death of the despicable man. He’s been responsible for ruining so many lives.
After Oliver cleaned house, he might have gotten rid of most of the men like Hashem but he could never find enough on my boss to stick. And while I had cooperated with Lana on exposing a lot of people when she had come to me, Hashem had been one of the most careful men I had come across.
My lips purse.
Run over by a car. He should have rotted in prison instead.
Ordering a pizza, I shoot another look at the clock and wonder if Halley is done with her shopping.
“So what if she dresses like a color explosion,” I mutter to myself. “It suits her. She doesn’t have to change.”
Feeling unsettled, I get up to make myself a cup of coffee. “Who’s she dressing up for anyway?”
My hands freeze on the coffee grinder at the thought.
Is Halley interested in someone at the office?
I don’t know why the idea makes me want to smash the coffee grinder against the wall but it takes a lot of effort to rein myself in.
What do I care who she likes or not?
Unhappy, I stir my coffee. “She shouldn’t have to change herself for anybody. That’s bullshit! She can have anyone she likes, and just because this guy doesn’t like the way she dresses…” I curse this imaginary guy in my head, already hating him.
As I open the door to the pizza delivery guy and pay, I mutter, “I bet he looks like a shriveled up penis.”
The delivery boy gives me a strange look.
I scowl at him. “What?”
He raises his hands in the air. “Nothing, man.”
I slam the door shut, angrily, and just as I reach the table, a knock on my door has me growling. “What is it?!” I glower as I open the door, freezing when I see a startled Halley standing there. She looks different, and I stare at her. “What did you do to your hair?”
It’s some sharp edged look that’s sexy and I hate it because I know every guy in the office will be looking at it.
She flicks her hair and grins, one hand on her hip. “What do you think? I look unbelievably hot!”
“You’re also unbelievably modest,” I tell her. “Where’s the rest of it?”
“Gone.” She grins, smugly, ignoring my little insult. “Kendall thought I needed an edge to my look. I love it!”
It’s then when I notice the shopping bags at her feet and stare at the sheer number of them. “What? Are you planning to leave all these here?”
She gives me a sheepish look. “Well, no. I kind of forgot my wallet in Kendall’s car and we didn’t eat and I was wondering if I could borrow ten dollars because…” She trails off when her stomach rumbles loudly enough to attract my attention.
“I ordered some pizza,” I tell her, suddenly pleased that she feels comfortable enough to come to me for something so trivial.
She shuffles her feet as if a little shy. “Well, I do like pizza.” Then, she follows that up by shooting me a suspicious look. “You didn’t add any pineapples to it, did you?”
When I don’t say anything, her eyes widen in horror. “Oh, dear God, you’re one of those!”
I grab her by the arm and tug her in, irritated. “Just because I like pineapples on a pizza, it doesn’t make me a monster.”
She lets me tug her in.
I pick up her bags and dump them beside the door, inside.
“I hate pineapples,” Halley bemoans.
I glare at her. “Just pick them out.”
She turns her nose up.
I have the urg
e to put her across my knee and spank the attitude out of her.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asks warily.
I toss out all my perverted thoughts out the window. “That was quite a short shopping trip,” I say, moving to the kitchen to take out two plates and pick up my neglected coffee.
When I turn around, she’s curled her legs up under her on my couch just like she does in my office and my lips twitch at the ease she finds herself at in my apartment.
Isn’t she worried that I’m a single man and I might make a pass at her, boss or no boss? It’s not like we’re at the office right now.
“Kendall shops to the point and Lana likes to spend hours in one shop.” Halley picks up a slice of pizza and stuffs it into her mouth. “Elise is more realistic. She was really helpful and everywhere she went, whenever she mentioned her name, the shop manager would come out and serve us themselves. It was so amazing!” She’s gesturing with her hands.
I watch her, feeling a tinge of amusement. “Her parents are very prominent members of society.”
Halley looks surprised. “Wow. But she was really helpful. Kendall and Lana kept trying to force their own styles on me but Elise wasn’t having any of it. She completely overruled every decision they made and helped me choose what she thought I might like. It was so much fun!” She sighs, happily.
I’m compelled to ask, curious, “You’re acting as if you only go shopping by yourself. Don’t you go with your friends, with May or Maylene or something?”
“Mia,” she corrects me. “Not really. Uncle Raymond was very overprotective where I was concerned. Mia used to come over a lot but we usually didn’t go out, and after Aunt Angela and Suzie passed away in that car accident, he became even more reserved. I was his only family left and he was scared of something happening to me.” She leans back on the couch, her expression distant. “When he accepted this job here, it was only because I pushed him. There were too many memories in our home and he needed a new start. I finally threatened to move out if he didn’t, which prompted him to agree.”
