Yes, sir.
Until today, I hadn’t realized how much a guy taking charge turned me on. Too bad Jace McKinley was the first one to show me, and I’d never be able to see how far the whole I’m-in-charge-here thing could work on me.
I may have been coming around to the idea of a ceasefire with Jace, but I sure as hell wasn't about to let him into my pants anytime soon.
Chapter 11 – Cassie
Scratch that.
Chapter 12 – Jace
I’d been cutting strawberries for about two minutes before I noticed Cassie staring at me. She either didn’t realize how hard she was staring, or she didn’t care if I noticed, because she was still as a statue, looking directly at me.
Her gaze landed on my hands, then trailed up my arms, where she was currently staring, probably trying to decipher each of my tattoos. Seeing Cassie in her kitchen in jeans and a T-shirt, a version of her comfortable self most people never got to see, made me yearn for her even more.
Forcing her to go to the game wasn’t about wanting her to spend time with me. My real intention was to get her out of the house and get her mind off everything she’d been carrying on her shoulders. I wanted Cassie to have one night to herself. No coffee orders, no customers, no family drama—just fun.
I didn’t mean to fall asleep on her couch either. But here I was standing in her kitchen, helping her make breakfast, so my plan had gone straight to shit. The longer I stood here, the harder it was to keep my feelings to myself.
I would give Cassie the damn moon if she asked me for it. Why didn’t she see that?
As I stood there slicing fruit, I noticed the peaks of her nipples, hard and pressing against her shirt. My mind wandered to images of what they’d look like without a piece of white cotton fabric selfishly hiding them. The longer my thoughts ran wild, the more my patience wore thin.
Cassie finally stopped staring and walked toward me because she needed a fork that was hidden in the drawer I was standingin front of. As she moved closer and I moved away to give her space to open the drawer, our hips brushed. I was pretty sure fireworks had gone off in her house. Burning electricity shot through my body, and from the goosebumps on her arms, I could tell it had shot through Cassie’s too.
She stood in front of me with her ass just inches from my jeans that were getting tighter by the second. Now my mind flashed back to last night, filling with images of Cassie after she’d drunkenly taken her pants off in front of me.
Cassie stepped back, fork in hand, accidentally bumping into me. It would be impossible for her to miss how rock-hard I was for her right now. She quickly twisted around, my hands landing on each of her arms, pulling her body into mine before I could even think about what I was doing. I bent down, my lips brushing her ear.
“You know, Cass, if it were up to me, I would give you all this and more. Saturday morning breakfasts, Friday nights under the stars. I’d listen to you ramble on about every single dream you have and make them all come true, one by one.”
Skimming my lips from her ear to her neck, I placed one gentle kiss on her pale, freckled skin. She gripped my shirt, a soft whimper escaping her cherry-red lips, her body melting into mine as she pulled me closer—my silent invitation to keep going.
I traced my hand along her back to her neck, wrapping the strands of her hair around my fist, pulling gently. As she tilted her head back, her eyes locked with mine, fire blazing behind them as her breathing picked up.
In the next moment, I did the unthinkable.
I pressed my lips to hers, stealing the sharp breath she gasped the moment our mouths collided, my hand still firm against her neck, holding her in place. Her touch left a scorching path down my chest as her fingers slid lower, clutching at my belt—hovering at the edge of no return.
The longer I kissed her, the more her taste consumed me, each second pulling me deeper into a hunger I couldn’t tame. My hands framed her face, anchoring me—the only tether keeping me from being swept away entirely.
I grabbed her thighs, lifting her onto the marble countertop.
As I scattered soft kisses across her neck, she unbuttoned her jeans and slipped them off, leaving only a pink lace thong against her hips. My fingers wrapped around the fabric, my primal instincts taking over as I ripped it away.
She gasped.
“You take care of everyone, Cassie,” I said, licking the inside of each of her thighs. “Now it’s my turn to take care of you.”
Her head tilted back in pleasure.
I’d always imagined Cassie tasted like strawberries and vanilla, like a delicious strawberry shortcake. After today, I could die a happy man knowing I was right.
I could feel her hips push deeper into my grip, begging for more.
“Jace, don’t stop,” she moaned, running her hands through my already disheveled hair.
In my world, Cassie got whatever her heart desired and this moment was no exception.
