Jake pushed a lock of hair away from her face, cupping her cheek. The butterflies kicked up again, moving around in her stomach with such a force that Janelle got goosebumps.
“That I wanted to know you better. That every time I saw you, your resilience and bravery knocked me over. Knowing you dealt with those visions your entire life and what they must put you through…I couldn’t help how I was feeling. That it kept growing every time I saw you.”
The moment hung between them. Janelle wanted to act first but was terrified of it going wrong. No visions prepared her for this moment. When it came to Jake, what she saw was scattered, going from a muted silence to visions rolling in only when they grew closer.
“I love you.” He said without preamble.
Janelle could only stare in shock. She wanted to say it back, to say what she had known deep in her heart for ages but seemed unable to. But it was unbelieving that Jake had said those words to her.
As if nervous, Jake spoke, “I isolated myself from you because I was afraid of being in love with you. I’ve never felt this strongly about anyone before. But I do with you. I want to be with you, Janelle. I don’t care what your visions show you. I will change any of them. I don’t know if you can see things about me now because I opened my heart to you. I don’t really care how the specifications work. But I have a feeling that the visions won’t be how they normally are. And that’s good, isn’t it? I have a feeling your old relationships crumbled because of your visions. But they won’t ruin what we have.”
He was right. Janelle knew very well how relationships were ruined by her visions. But they were random with Jake, proving that werewolves affected her abilities differently. She saw his past, saw when he was in danger but nothing else.
There was a future with Jake. She knew it from the start. That was why she was interested in him from the beginning. As soon as Janelle couldn’t sense him, she wanted more of him.
And now he was in front of her, wanting her too.
“I’m sorry for pushing you away, Janelle. For being afraid. But I’m not anymore. Meeting you has shown me what I need to do. I want to do something with the land I bought, make a sanctuary for the pack here and other werewolves who need it. Open a museum with the artifacts that belong to my people. Now that I retired from the company, I need to make amends to the people my grandfather hurt.”
“What was up with that, anyway?” Janelle asked, momentarily distracted, “Tate and what he said…”
“My grandfather spent all the company money. Not for the reasons Tate believed. He made people believe he was buying yachts and buying up shitty land. In reality, he was looking for a cure. He didn’t want to be a werewolf. But you can’t cure this. It’s in our blood. He blew the company fortune and had to shutter a lot of departments. The company took a big hit. My dad was the one that got it back on track. He’s why our billions remained intact. I never once thought about the people my grandfather fucked over. Like Tate. His actions ruined other werewolves.”
“But you can’t blame yourself for that.”
“You’re right. But I can still try to fix things. I have all this money and for what, Janelle? I don’t need all this money.”
“So, we will figure it out. We’ll work together and get things in order to make things right. To help the pack and St. Neuri and anything else you want to put money into.”
He looked at her then. “You said ‘we’.”
She blushed. “I guess I did.”
“Janelle…” His tone was soft, probing, tinged with anxiety.
“Jake,” She took a deep breath, “I love you.”
He broke out into a smile then. Even in the dim light, it was brilliant and made her heart sing. He leaned down and kissed her. This time, there was no hurry. They didn’t need to run away from Tate and his thugs.
The kiss started off soft but deepened quickly. It struck Janelle just how long she wanted this. Her driving force was always protecting Jake. She wanted him safe, needed him to be okay, drove herself crazy trying to figure him out.
But he was here now, wanting her as much as she wanted him. His tongue slipped in her mouth, and she pressed herself against him. In one fluid motion, Jake gently grabbed her around the waist and pulled her on top of him. The kiss didn’t break.
His arms were still around her. The kiss was the most intense one that Janelle ever had. She could feel his heart thrumming under her fingertips as she ran her hands along his chest. He was here – and safe. The bumpy road that led to their connection was now over. They could be together now, as one.
Janelle knew she had hidden the depth of her feelings from herself. But her actions, her drive to know Jake, understand him, protect him, made sense.
She didn’t stop him when he removed her shirt, tossing it to the floor. Wearing just her bra now, Jake’s hands traveled up along her sides before cupping her breasts, the kiss breaking. They were both breathing heavily. Janelle could feel how hard he was through his sweatpants, pressing against her thigh.
He pulled down her bra, exposing her breasts. Leaning down, Jake flicked his tongue across her nipples, making Janelle shiver. She closed her eyes. It had been such a long time since she had been with a man. The visions made everything difficult. Yet things with Jake were so simple. It was a new feeling.
They undressed each other with an urgency that at any moment all of this could end – a group of werewolves could storm the room, a blizzard could ruin St. Neuri, any number of crazy things could tarnish this moment forever. Since they met, both were chased by what most people would consider impossible.
But even as Janelle explored his body, touching Jake all over, marveling at how fit he was, how amazing he looked, she knew deep down nothing could ruin this. They had simply worked too hard for it.
Jake rolled on top of her, kissing down across her breasts and stomach. Each kiss made her feel alive, each nerve screaming for him. She wanted him now, no preamble, no more waiting – and she told him so.
“Jake, please…” She whispered.
He understood instantly what she needed. His lips met hers, the stubble grazing her cheek, as her legs snaked around his waist. Janelle’s heart pounded in her chest, she pressed herself against him, wanting to be as close as possible. There was no need to say anything else to Jake – they both felt it. Both needed it.
When he entered her, Janelle let out a small gasp, well aware that people were in the house, could easily hear them. It made it more exciting to know that they were having this reunion where they shouldn’t. The fact that she had come over to see if Jake was alright, only to find him fully healed and able to do this to her, made it all the more sweeter.
Jake filled her, fitting her perfectly, as if they had done this a thousand times before. Her fingernails dug into his back as she held onto him. He began to thrust, slowly at first, taking his time, dragging out her pleasure. Janelle whimpered, her head rolling back as Jake moved faster. The bed squeaked slightly but she couldn’t bring herself to care. Let everyone know what they were doing – they deserved this, they deserved each other.
“Jake…” She whispered as she moved her hips to meet his thrusts.
“Janelle, I love you.” He said hoarsely, his voice taunt.
“I love you.”
Jake’s body was so warm that they were sweating now, their bodies pressed together as they moved with a faster urgency. She had never been with a man like this – a man who seemed to know exactly how to move to give her the greatest pleasure. Every movement was heightened, overwhelming.
To her surprise, she could feel her climax growing. That was something else new with Jake. Normally, men couldn’t get her to where she needed to go. But Jake could. He was going to make her finish.
“Jake, I’m going to –” She whispered, her voice pitching up a bit near the end before he silenced her with a kiss.
They moved in sync, the pleasure growing, coming to a peak before it became too much. Janelle moaned, her toes curling in ple
asure, clinging to Jake as she came. Jake buried his face in her neck, letting out a muffled groan as he also climaxed.
They held onto each other as they came, their bodies shivering, their breathing labored. When it was finished, he rolled off her, catching his breath. Janelle’s head felt light although her limbs felt heavy and weighed down.
“Janelle,” He whispered, “I want to be with you. You’ll be mine, won’t you?”
“Of course I will be yours, and you will be mine.” She answered honestly.
It was some time before they left the guest room together. Janelle had shrugged her clothes back on but they felt awkward and heavy. Jake tossed a shirt on but he was still the ultimate distraction. She wanted him to touch her again, make her feel things even more intense.
But now wasn’t the time. Jake wanted to talk to Liam about Tate, his grandfather and his plans to help the pack. Although when they stepped into the kitchen, Millie hid a smirk, causing Janelle to realize that they hadn’t been as quiet as hoped.
There were a couple of other people in the kitchen that Janelle didn’t know. Millie introduced the woman, Sarah, a bright, cheerful looking woman with a full face and body, and the man, Logan, who looked as built and tough as Jake, making her guess that he had to be a werewolf too.
“After what Tate did, Logan came by to make sure everything was okay.” Millie explained. “Sarah is his wife. They’ve been married for a few years now.”
“Is she…?”
“No, just a regular girl like us.” Millie replied quietly as Sarah talked to Jake in the corner.
The words hit Janelle. She wasn’t quite as regular as Millie would believe. But she wasn’t about to sit down and spill her guts out to everyone. Her visions were personal, something that only Jake needed to know.
“Is it difficult to navigate this life as someone not of the pack?” Janelle asked curiously.
Millie looked thoughtful. “Some of the pack bristles if there is too much input from someone who isn’t a wolf. But Liam tries to balance the pack as best as possible.”
“Must be hard. If people like Tate can go after Jake.”
Millie’s face darkened as if a memory swept over her. “Something similar happened to Logan as well. But in the end, everyone is okay. The pack keeps moving along. More and more wolves come to St. Neuri. There is a culture forming here, gradually over the years, that is soon going to make it the headquarters of the wolves on this coast.”
“That’s crazy. I never had any idea.” Janelle said, thinking about how she can’t sense them.
“It’s difficult to notice. They keep to themselves.” Millie turned to look at her. “Janelle, love will get you through the hardest moments of being with a werewolf. The pack will stiffen at an outsider but over time, they will accept you.”
“It isn’t me that I am worried about. Tate harbored a serious grudge against Jake and something his grandfather did. What if someone else wants to go after Jake for defending himself against Tate? It’ll be a cycle.”
Millie shook her head. “Cycles have tried to start before and we have always stopped them. A few years ago, a man named Jin broke from the pack and threw everything into chaos. It created a ripple effect. But things are back on track now, for the most part, and this won’t start a new cycle.”
Janelle looked at Jake, admiring his profile, knowing that he was now hers. She had protected him before and she would again. Nothing would hurt him. She would stand by his side.
“I know.” She said quietly.
Jake looked over at her and smiled.
Epilogue
Janelle double checked herself in the mirror. She was nervous. Her hair, normally down around her shoulders, was swept up in a neat bun. Her clothes were much more professional than she ever wore before. She felt out of place, an imposter about to go stand next to Jake at this fancy event and pretend she had a place there.
There was a knock on the door and then it opened. Cheryl peeked in, looking relaxed. “Hey. We’re about to leave.”
“Already?” Janelle wished she had more time.
Cheryl gave her a knowing smile. Not for the first time, Janelle marveled at the fact she was still here, living in St. Neuri instead of running off to the city. With everything packed, Cheryl seemed ready.
That was until Jake purchased the newspaper. Yet instead of it being a bad omen, he kept it going untouched, telling Eliza to stay on and keep it running. He put her in charge of it all, allowing her to allocate funds as needed, hiring new staff, expanding the newspaper and putting the once dying business back in order.
Cheryl, at first suspecting some secret plot, turned down moving to keep an eye on Jake. “I might be moving away but this is still my hometown. I’m protective of it, that’s all. If he has something planned for the paper, I want to be here to make sure he isn’t up to no good.” Cheryl kept repeating when anyone questioned why she cancelled her move.
Janelle was grateful that her friend hadn’t moved. No matter how many changes went on in her life, she wanted Cheryl here.
But Cheryl quickly discovered she was dating Jake and all hell broke loose. That ended with a vision of Cheryl storming out only to end up in a car crash in the downtown district. Janelle had stopped her, taking her keys and hiding them somewhere in the office, giving her a ride home instead.
During the drive home, Janelle explained as honestly as she could, without revealing their special connection, why they were together. She launched into the reasons Jake bought the paper, how he wanted to help St. Neuri, and that they could help it together.
Hesitant, Cheryl decided to help. Before long, Jake and Cheryl were working together on how to help St. Neuri. It wasn’t long until he offered her an official position at the new company he was creating, with a massive charity subdivision.
And now, it was time for the opening of their new community center in St. Neuri. Containing two acres of land, it offered secret outreach programs to the werewolves who might need the help, as well as regular community classes and other events for all of St. Neuri. It was a beautiful structure, replacing the old, run down one that stood for years, barely used.
The construction had taken up most of the past three years, with Liam consulting with Jake on the werewolf side of things, while Cheryl worked on the human side. Janelle found herself working longer hours at the paper, which she hadn’t quit unlike Cheryl, only to end up editor in chief after Eliza retired.
With the paper under her reigns, Janelle got to keep doing what she loved. Cheryl progressed naturally past the paper to work with Jake although she liked to check in. The past three years had flown by, a flurry of activity that involved dealing with so many werewolves, the visions were blocked from throwing her off track.
“Earth to Janelle?” Cheryl prompted, cleanly slicing through her memories.
“Sorry. Just can’t believe this day is here already.” Janelle admitted.
“It is pretty crazy, isn’t it?” She leaned against the door frame. “But this is great for St. Neuri. This is a new chapter. Just the start of what we are going to do here. This place won’t be the same in a few years.”
“You sound like you’re practicing your speech on me.” Janelle replied, turning away from the mirror.
“Maybe just a little.” She admitted before looking around the room. “Still cannot believe you live here.”
Janelle knew living in Jake’s mansion was a serious step up from where she was before. But she hadn’t agreed to move in with him four months ago just because she wanted a nice house. She spent so much time with Jake, and things were blissful with him. It felt like the natural next step.
“Yeah, I guess it is pretty crazy.” She admitted.
“The place is massive. How do you not feel like you’re going to get lost in here?”
“I do. Believe me, it takes some getting used to. I really don’t think we need all this room.”
“Well, you’re dating a billionaire now. That means doing well for the c
ommunity and living in a mega mansion. That’s just how it works.”
“Yeah, I guess so.” Janelle said, grabbing her purse. “Come on. Let’s get out of here. We don’t want to be late.”
Jake sent a limo for them, yet something else Janelle wasn’t used to. It was odd being in love with someone who had more money than 99 percent of everyone else. She wondered if it would ever feel normal to her.
“The last meeting I had with Jake was about low income housing and regular housing. We think that the community center and our next project is going to start bringing in more people to St. Neuri.”
That didn’t surprise Janelle. She knew that Jake wanted this place to be somewhere werewolves could come for help. Since most ended up struggling, dropping out of school, or jumping from job to job while they figured out their new life, Jake’s ultimate goal was to turn St. Neuri into a safe place to land.
“Sounds like this place is going to start changing for real. No longer some quiet mountain town.” Janelle replied.
“That will be strange, won’t it?”
The limo took them down into St. Neuri, weaving through the back streets to avoid the traffic that had begun to pick up due to the community center. After about thirty minutes, they arrived, going to a back entrance.
Jake waited for them inside, busy putting the finishing details on everything. He looked incredibly well put together. His suit was perfectly tailored, his hair slicked back, but still his bright green eyes and cheekbones were fully on display. Even now, Janelle got weak in the knees looking at him.
“You’re here.” He said, coming over to them, nodding his head at Cheryl before leaning down and kissing Janelle. “Everything all set?”
“Yes. What about for you?”
“We will open in a few minutes. I’ll do the first speech, then Cheryl. Cut the ribbon and welcome everyone inside.”
Cheryl bustled off, already seeing things she needed to do. Janelle watched her go with a small shake of her head. “Always busy.”
The Billionaire Werewolf (Werewolves of St. Neuri Book 3) Page 9
