My core clenches, and I'm not entirely sure I'm going to survive until we're in the truck, let alone somewhere private. But I nod anyway, my breath shaking on my lips.
Jasper kisses me again, a hard press of his lips to mine this time, then wrenches open the passenger door. I gasp as my feet leave the ground, my hands tightening on his shoulders.
Jesus. He's strong. His biceps flex as he lifts me into the truck without seeming to exert any effort at all. I probably shouldn't be surprised, considering the man has spent his life as a Navy SEAL, doing the kind of heroic shit I've only ever read about, but I'm a little surprised anyway.
"What's that look?" he asks, tucking me into the passenger seat.
"W-what look?"
"That one." His fingers brush my cheek.
"Nothing. There's no look."
He goes still, like every bit of attention he has is focused on me. There's something commanding in the way he looks at me, and something so unholy hot, I have to bite my tongue to keep from whimpering out loud.
"Don't hide from me, baby girl," he growls. "Tell me what that look was."
"It was nothing," I say. "I just…I thought it'd be harder for someone to pick me up, that's all." My cheeks burn, so I try to slide my gaze from his, but he isn't having that.
He cups my cheek, keeping me trapped. "Look at me, Sarah."
I focus on the bump on his nose, where it's been broken before. He notices, and a tiny smile flickers at his lips. "I don't remember you being this stubborn, baby." He leans forward until his lips are against my ear. "I'll fuck it out of you later."
I gasp, my entire body clenching when his teeth sink into the shell of my ear, delivering a stinging little bite I feel all the way to my clit.
"Jasper," I gasp, my gaze flying to his.
"That's more like it." He grins at me, satisfied with himself. "You look at me, Sarah. Don't hide those pretty eyes when you're telling me your secrets."
"I…I wasn't telling you a secret," I protest, the only thing I can think to say.
"Yeah, you were." He tips my chin back. "It turns you on that I can pick you up, doesn't it?"
"I…yes," I breathe.
"You thought you were too big?"
My gaze tries to slide from his before I remember that he really doesn't like that. I snap it back to him, earning another of those tiny smiles, like he's proud of me. I don't say anything, but I don't think I need to say it. I'm sure he can see it written all over my face.
I've been a big girl my whole life. Eventually, you just get used to the way the world treats you when you don't look the way they think you should. Maybe that's the saddest part about living in our world—not that people are cruel, but that we condition ourselves to accept the cruelty in order to survive it.
Jasper has never been cruel. He's always looked at me like the number on the scale and the size of my waistline are the least important things about me.
He releases my chin, laying his palm flat against my chest, right between my breasts. I arch up toward him when he slides it downward, his gaze still tangled with mine. Somehow, he touches me everywhere, like he's branding every inch of me, conquering and laying claim to it. I feel his brand like an electric pulse through my dress, burning me up.
"There ain't a goddamn thing about you that's too big, baby girl," he murmurs, his breath ragged as his hand settles between my legs, cupping my pussy like he owns it. "I've been fantasizing about this pretty little body and the things I want to do to it for a lot longer than I should have."
"H-how long?" I gasp, my legs parting slightly.
He grinds his thumb against the seam of my panties, and I know he can feel how wet they are. I see that knowledge flame in his eyes like a solar flare exploding. "Since the day I met you."
I gasp his name, shock running through me in a current. He's wanted me for that long? Really?
He doesn't give me a chance to ask before he grinds his thumb against me again. The pressure hits my clit just right, and I detonate with a startled gasp, my entire body going boneless.
"Jesus," he growls, his eyes locked on my face. "Did you just come for me, baby girl?"
"I…yes," I moan, still shivering through the aftershocks.
