We drove for miles chatting intermittently, happy for the bouts of silence as well. There was no awkwardness or need to speak, just comfortable pauses.
Stopping a couple of times along the way, we drove into Salt Lake City around three in the afternoon. Being a Friday, it was busy, but we managed to find our way back to the motel without too much hassle. Knowing we were nearly halfway home was comforting. I longed for my own bed and familiar surroundings.
Jagger would need to visit a doctor next week to have his stitches removed. His shoulder was healing nicely, most of the bruising and redness having gone. His ability to move it without wincing in pain had improved too. It was now only if he made sudden movements or went to lift anything too heavy.
We left most of our clothes in the car, only taking in what we needed, to make it easier when we left.
“You looking forward to work on Monday?” Jagger asked once we were in our room.
“I guess.”
“Having second thoughts?”
“No. It’s going to be weird without you there, that’s all.”
“I’m sure Dwayne and Jay will be happy to have you back.” He pulled off his boots and stretched out on the sofa, his head against one armrest, long legs hanging over the other.
“Maybe. I heard the guy taking over my spot is pretty nice. They may not want me back.”
Jagger snorted. “Yeah. Right. Like they’d trade a luscious, sexy as fuck teacher for a dude.”
Grabbing a glass from a cupboard and pouring some water in to it, I walked toward him, taking a long sip. He had his arms held out for me. Smirking at him as I placed my glass down on the side table, I answered, “Sexy as fuck, huh?” Perching on the edge of the couch, he pulled me closer, my breasts grazing his leather jacket.
Jagger hissed in a breath between clenched teeth, “God, Rose. You never cuss. It’s such a turn on. Say it again.” Large fingers came to rest on the inside of my woolen jacket where the buttons of my shirt finished, just below my breast bone.
It wasn’t that I was a prude. I just didn’t like to sound like gutter trash. Garnering my hesitance, he rubbed over one of my nipples. “Say it.”
He had the ability to make me do whatever he asked. “Sexy as fuck.” It came out as a quiet moan under his deft touch.
“Mmm. My foul-mouthed teacher. I want to hear you talk like that more often.” Thrusting his hips upward, he ground into me.
“If that’s all I had to do to get you naked, I would have tried it long ago,” I teased.
His pupils expanded. “You only need to be in the same room as me to get me naked. You don’t even need to open that pouty mouth of yours.”
Since we had some time to kill, I shucked my jacket off, watching the slow, lazy grin appear on his face, his eyes lowering to my nipples. I could feel them standing at attention already.
“Strip for me, sweetheart. Nice and slow.”
“Only if you take off your jacket and shirt.”
He sat up and peeled off his clothes, dropping them in a heap on the floor. Once he had lain back down, I began. I made sure to exaggerate every movement, turning even the removal of my sneakers into something sensual. Placing one foot on his chest, I crooned, “You take this one off.”
Tracing a delicate circle around my ankle with his knuckles, I let the shiver take hold as he unlaced my shoe and removed it and my remaining sock in one go. When I moved to drop my foot to the floor, he grabbed it and lifted his mouth to my big toe, taking it in and sucking on it.
Momentarily, I panicked, hoping to God I didn’t suffer from foot odor. They’d been enclosed all day. It had been hours since I’d showered. If my toe stunk, he didn’t let on. Still, I wasn’t comfortable with the action, no matter how good it felt.
Dragging my foot away, I kept peeling all my clothes off, wiggling my hips in the process. He was letting go some husky murmurs with each layer I dropped to the floor, until there was nothing left. I straddled him and went to town on his solid chest, grazing every inch of it with my fingers while watching him intently. His thick lashes fluttered when I scraped his nipples. They were already firm shoots.
“Your hands feel so amazing, touching me like that.”
Keeping my eyes drawn to his, I lowered my face and began placing soft kisses on his corrugated abdomen, smiling when he drew in a long breath.
His skin was slightly salty and still held soft notes of soap from his morning shower. Kissing my way upwards, I met his scar and hovered. He held my gaze firm, waiting to see what I would do. Because the stitches were still there, I simply ran my tongue around the wound. He flinched only slightly, his hands coming to rest on my back where they drew lazy circles up and down my spine.
“I thought I’d kiss it all better for you,” I breathed out.
“Mmm. My mouth’s hurting too. Can you kiss it better?”
Liking his way of thinking, I ran a path with my tongue from his shoulder up to his waiting lips. He was open and ready for me, so I took greedily, the sensation shooting rivulets of pleasure all the way to my toes.
He opened his legs, letting me stretch out and sink between them. He cocooned me into him, bracing both forearms up my back while his succulent flesh drugged me. Soft. Hard. Desperate. They were all there making the kiss something extraordinary. His rapid heartbeat synched with my own, my chest writhing against him.
“If I could pull you inside of me I would, Rose. Jesus. I can’t get fucking close enough. I’m in pain with craving you. It’s not just now either. It’s every Goddamn minute I’m awake. You’re becoming my obsession, sweetheart.”
He was rigid beneath me. We were fused together but his jeans were an irritation, I wanted rid of.
“Lift those muscly thighs for me.” I ordered, feeling like a goddess. Watching his muscles contract as he lifted up, I unwrapped my gift, delighted with the contents. He had the goods to back up his sometimes arrogance, although the more time I spent with him, the greater I realized it was all for show. Beneath the layers sat a beautiful soul, needing someone to love without conditions. Without expectations. To see the real man beneath the hurt. He’d let me in to see that part of him. The vulnerability. The fear. It made me love him even more.
Wrapped up in him was my ultimate place to be. The room quickly filled with sounds of panting and moaning. Mingled with that was the light squeaking of the couch. There wasn’t a whole lot of room, but it simply meant we had to meld together more.
Jagger’s touch was sensual and gentle…a side of him he didn’t show often. My hair was brushed back softly, caresses trailing from my head down my shoulders and back, ending at my butt and then working back up again. Unhurried. Loving.
For a split second, I wondered if what he was showering me with had come from his heart. Did he love me? Could he? The way he worshipped my body spoke volumes and gave me more than just sex.
Time was forgotten as we caressed and kissed, writhing in a heated mess of limbs. I barely felt Jagger slide inside of me. It was merely an extension of what we’d been doing. We rocked slightly with our pelvises, the most movement being with our hands and mouths. Needing the added connection of his intense stare, I dragged my lips back to fall into his bottomless windows. Pure adoration poured from him as he softly traced the outline of my face, nose, and eyebrows with just a forefinger.
“It’s like you’re coursing through my veins. Pumping my blood. Expanding my lungs. Breathing life into me. I feel you everywhere.” His hips had stilled, his face serious. “I’m lost, Rose. Lost in you.”
Salty tears welled. He was not only physically naked but emotionally as well. He was stripped bare. I could see deep into him and he into me. The connection was profound. A stillness came over us both. A clarity. Home. I had found the meaning of life. This. This moment. A blip in time. Completion.
We both inhaled sharply. I could see the moment of realization in Jagger’s eyes. He felt it too.
“Rose…I…fuck!” Gripping my head, he began planting open-mout
hed kisses all up and down my jaw and neck, nearly crushing me with his embrace. Our hips automatically began moving again, needing to culminate this thing overpowering us.
Everything was heightened. Touches. Kisses. Whispers. We’d rolled onto our sides but I could tell Jagger was getting frustrated with our small space.
“Bed. Now,” he uttered into my ear.
Rising, I immediately hated being parted. It was like the breaking of a spell. We walked side by side in silence, Jagger’s arm around my waist. Not bothering to shut the bedroom door, he laced his fingers through mine and pulled me down onto the bed so I was on top of him again.
Our bodies came together all on their own. Two magnets being drawn together by a force beyond either of us.
I sighed once we were attached again, the open space of the bed allowing us to roll and sprawl as much as we wanted.
Surely, Heaven couldn’t be so good. I didn’t need anything other than this moment to keep going on and on.
I’d never been brought to the brink of orgasm so intoxicatingly slow before. It was a dance that was going to end in the mother of all releases. Jagger was feeding on each breast as if starved, rolling them while nipping with his teeth. I’d lost count of the number of hickeys he’d colored my skin with. Tomorrow I would be a sight. I repaid him by indenting his skin with my nails, the half-moons clustering in places as he took me to unfathomable depths.
A blaze of wildfire that had been simmering now roared into an out of control storm, as if doused in petrol. Jagger hit just the right spot to ignite me from the inside out. My body stiffened as I torpedoed into the blissful depths of ecstasy, my voice a hoarse attempt at setting free some of the pleasure. It was too much. My cries became far off as I submerged into nothing and everything all at once.
My name rang out, an adoring chant that soon became lost as I broke apart again. The sensation of warm, flooding liquid pouring into me with jerky, hard bursts.
“Rose! Rose!” It was said over and over until my name dragged me from my catatonic state.
Opening my eyes, I found Jagger’s head thrown back, slick sweat covering his face, neck, and shoulders. Veins in his neck popped, his eyes were squeezed tightly shut, his mouth wide as he kept shuddering inside me, his hands a vise on my hips. With a final groan he pressed my head into his chest and kissed the top of my head numerous times.
“Don’t ever leave me.”
I was taken aback at the unexpected comment. “What?”
“Promise me you’ll stick around. If you left, it would destroy me.”
Lifting my chin so I could see him, I spoke quietly. “I’m not going anywhere. You couldn’t get rid of me if you tried.”
There was real fear on his face and for a second I wondered where it had come from, until I remembered his mother’s passing. He must be still hung up on it. The one person besides Dallas he had truly loved. She had died. He was making it very clear, I was important to him and he didn’t want to lose me.
“Angel. You have no idea how much I need you beside me. In my bed every night. Waking up to you every morning. I. Love. You.”
That got my attention right away. My eyes were as round as two full moons, my heart singing a sweet chorus. “You love me?
“God. I love you fierce. This.” He pointed between us. “You and me. We’re so good together. What we just shared was like nothing I’ve experienced. I’ve known it for a while but was too scared to say it. But now, I can’t keep it inside.”
Sliding up so my mouth was in line with his, I planted one on him good and hard. “I love you too. All of you. With everything I have.”
His face split into an almighty grin, eyes crinkled. Letting out a whoop, he laughed fully before drilling me with his familiar intensity. “I won’t let you down, Rose. You have my word. Once we get home, I’m going to get a job, repay you everything with interest, and take care of you and Dallas. The two of you are my world. I vow to be the man worthy of your heart.”
Sweet didn’t begin to cover it. The man I was folded into didn’t give himself enough credit. “Don’t you see? You already are that man. It’s been clear to me too for a while but I didn’t want to push you to reciprocate my feelings.”
“Please. I’ve had the hots for you since day one. I never thought I was worthy of your love. After flying to the stars with you just now, I don’t give a damn. I’ll stand outside and shout my feelings to the whole of Salt Lake City.”
Happy tears flooded the corners of my eyes and I let them fall. Jagger caught each one with his thumb. No one had ever wiped my tears. I felt cherished by this man.
“Now, let’s get dressed and eat. I’m starved,” he said, kissing my forehead before climbing out of bed to walk into the bathroom in all his naked glory like the god he was.
Chapter Sixteen
Jagger
I’d officially lost my balls to Rose. I’d handed them to her on a platter and I couldn’t have been happier. Elated even.
We had made the grueling journey home and had just pulled into her driveway. I’d rested the last three hours. Rose was adamant she drive. It had been nice to sit and take in the surroundings, listening to her voice while she described funny things that had happened in her childhood. Mine were few and far between, so it had been nice to immerse myself in someone else’s sweet memories.
“Ugh, it’s good to be home. It feels like we’ve been gone for weeks.” Rose opened her door and got out, putting the garage door down. “The unpacking can wait. I just want to get inside and open the house up.”
Agreeing, I followed her in just as my cell rang. Looking at the number, I was happy to see it was Agent Crowther. Good news, I hoped. I put it on speakerphone so Rose could hear.
“Agent Crowther.”
“Mr. Reed. Good to talk to you again.”
“You too.”
“We’ve located your brother, Dallas Reed. My men moved in earlier this afternoon after a tip off from one of Marcy Dewhurst’s coworkers. Ms. Dewhurst was taken into custody and your brother is with a social worker.”
My heart pitched and spluttered. Had I heard correct? My brother was safe? Everything had come to a head. Fuck! Dallas was coming home! Glancing at Rose, I could see the elation on her face.
“Is he okay? When’s he coming home?” I reined in my excitement in an attempt to appear calm. I was anything but.
“We’ll get him on a flight in the morning and have a car pick him up and drop him at the address I have on record. Buckeye, correct?”
“Yes, hang on a sec.” I wasn’t sure of the exact address, so I asked Rose. “What is your street address?”
She rattled it off and I repeated it to Agent Crowther, listening as he scribbled it down.
“I owe you everything. I appreciate all you have done to get my brother back in such a short space of time. Thank you.” Words couldn’t begin to express my gratitude.
“Just happy he’s safe. I’ve got a bit to tie up here, but I’ll see you tomorrow morning. Expect us around eleven o’clock.”
“Yes, sir!”
Ending the call, I let out a roar of relief and jubilance. Rose was beaming. I strode over to her and picked her up, not caring about the strain on my healing wound or the burn it created. I swung her around and around before placing her on her feet and planting a hard kiss on her mouth.
“You heard all that. He’s coming home, Rose. Finally, I get to be with my brother.”
She laughed as she gripped onto my biceps. “This calls for a celebration. I have a bottle of wine in the fridge. It’s nearly eight o’clock. I’ll order Chinese.”
“I’d be happy with anything you gave me at the moment. I’m busting!” Following her into the kitchen, I couldn’t wipe the shit-eating grin from my face. All the anxiety I’d been carrying with me for over eighteen months was gone with that one phone call. Everything was suddenly right again.
The astounding woman reaching up to a cupboard and pulling two glasses down was truly the one I needed t
o thank. She made this happen. She gave me my life back. I’d never known anyone so selfless. Nothing I could do would ever be enough to repay her.
“Rose.”
She turned, her eyes alight with the same joy I expected mine exuded. “Mmm?”
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done for me? God.” Moving closer, I waited for her to place the glasses on the counter before dragging her against me, needing the contact. “I would still be rotting in prison if it weren’t for you. I’d be going through the motions, getting into fights, and convincing myself that what I was doing was the right thing. Taking the rap for Dallas.”
She went to say something but I put a thumb on her mouth, silencing her. “I need to say this. You took a gamble. Put everything on the line when you really didn’t even know me. Normal people don’t do that. Then you drive halfway across the damn country on a whim, not even caring that it might all be for nothing. You did it for me. You did it for Dallas. You’re the most selfless, giving person I’ve ever come across and I don’t know how I got so lucky, but I’m just so fucking glad I did. Rose McAllister, I love you furiously, sweetheart. I give you my heart, my soul, my life. Each breath I take is for you and my brother. Only you two.”
It was hard to watch the tears fall and stain her cheeks, even if they were happy ones. Her stunning eyes burned into me with so many darn emotions, I felt my own building.
Brushing my hair back with her fingers, her lip quivered as she spoke. “I’m no one special. Honestly. Please don’t place me on a pedestal. There was something about you and your circumstances that struck a chord. You had no one to help you. No one to make you see that going to prison for your brother wasn’t the solution. I hated seeing you in there, knowing you weren’t a criminal. It was almost like you were punishing yourself for what Dallas had to endure while living in that house. It wasn’t your fault. It was your father’s.”
Stealing Dallas (Search & Seek Book 2) Page 15
