Jade nodded, already heading down the hall.By the time she finished bathing Jane, drying her off, and settling her back into fresh clothes, the apartment was quiet again.The dishes were done and the kitchen was clean.
Jade put Jane in her cot, and placed some of her favorite toys with her.Jade then approached Wolf, who was wiping the counter.He looked up, seeing her.Jade unthinkingly pressed her mouth against his, pleased he kissed her back.When he thrust his tongue down her throat, she sucked down on it.
“I think I’ll take a quick shower,” she said after he pulled away.“Want to join me?”
For a second, Wolf didn’t speak.His gaze held hers, something dark and heated flickering there, the kind of look that made her pulse spike and her breath catch before she could steady it.
“I do,” he said, voice low and certain
The two words sent a ripple through her, anticipation curling tight and warm in her chest.Jade didn’t give herself time to second guess it.She turned, already heading toward the bathroom, keenly aware of him following behind her.
The space suddenly felt smaller and charged the moment they stepped inside together.Jade reached for the hem of her shirt, pulling it over her head, not looking at him at first, but feeling his heated gaze on her.
When she finally glanced up, she noticed he was watching her, taking her in, appreciation in his eyes.Jade swallowed, heat creeping up her neck, but she didn’t look away this time.She reached for the shower, turning the water on, steam beginning to curl into the air as the small space filled with warmth.
Behind her, she heard the quiet shift of fabric, and Wolf tugging his jeans off.The steam thickened, blurring the edges of everything.When Wolf stepped in behind her, the heat doubled.His hands found her waist first.
Jade leaned back into him instinctively, her breath catching as his chest pressed against her back, the contact sending a slow, electric shiver down her spine.
“So beautiful,” he murmured near her ear.
Jade turned her head slightly, just enough that her lips brushed his jaw.
“You don’t look half bad yourself,” she teased, making him laugh.The sound was music to her ears, but she didn’t think Wolf was the sort of man who laughed easily.
He tightened his hands on her waist, then slid them upwards, slowly and deliberately.It was as if Wolf was silently mapping her body, touching her like he had all the time in the world.
The water cascaded over them, warm and steady, but Jade barely noticed it.All she felt was him.The way his mouth found her shoulder, then her neck, pressing slow, heated kisses that made her grip the shower wall to steady herself.
She leaned in again, kissing him, slower this time, but just as deep, just as intentional.The world narrowed to the sound of water, the heat between them and the way everything else disappeared.
Much later, once they were toweling each other off, the doorbell outside her apartment door rang.Jade jerked back slightly, annoyed at the interruption.She could choose to ignore it, but the bell rang again.Jade frowned.
“You expecting someone?”Wolf asked her.
“I’ll check,” she said quickly, stepping back.“It could be Mrs.Rochford, needing something.”
Wolf’s fingers lingered on her arm for a second before he let go.
She dressed quickly.Her fingers fumbled slightly with the buttons of her shirt, but she managed to put on jeans as well.Then she quickly moved toward the door.
The bell rang again, and for some reason, unease crept down her spine.She opened the door, not bothering to check who it was.Jade was really expecting Mrs.Rochford.She froze, seeing it was Derek.What the hell was he doing back here?
Worse, he didn’t look like his cocky, laid-back self.Derek looked angry almost, and his eyes were wild in a way she hadn’t seen before.
“Jade, we need to talk,” he said.
Her stomach dropped instantly.
“Now’s not a good time,” she replied, already moving to close the door, but Derek shoved forward.
The door slammed open as he forced his way inside.
“Hey!”Jade stumbled back, shock flaring into anger just as fast.“Get out.”
Derek kicked the door shut behind him with a bang.The sound echoed through the apartment.Jane started crying immediately.A sharp, frightened wail.
“Shut her up,” Derek snapped.
