Jagger stays quiet, then sits up, dragging me with him as if I’m his own personal rag doll until I’m straddling him again. Once I’m situated, he asks, “Are you jealous?”
Jealous? Is that what I’m feeling? The realization catches me off guard.
Avoiding his gaze, and feeling way too vulnerable for my own good, I stare at his broad chest, and lie, “No?”
“You sure?”
“I mean, you talk about this girl like she hung the moon or something?—”
Amusement rolls through his chest, and I tear my focus from his right pectoral to look him in the eye. “You think this is funny?”
“Seeing you jealous?” He tucks my hair behind my ear. “Not funny. Hot as hell.”
“Then why did you laugh?” I ask.
His hand cups my cheek. “I was laughing at the idea of crossing a line with Raine and pissing off her husband.” He laughs even harder. “I know I have a death wish, but I’m not that stupid.”
“What do you mean?”
“Raine, the artist,” he clarifies, “has been married to a guy from the NHL for years. She’s constantly posting them together, and if I had goals of what I’d want a relationship to look like, it would be hers.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.” His smile softens as he stares up at me. His head propped on the pillow. He looks so…carefree. So…notJagger. Or at least, not the one I first met.
“What else would you want in a relationship?” I ask. I can’t help it. I’m curious.
“I dunno. Someone to just…be with, I guess. No drama. No work?—”
I snort. “Well, then I guess I’ll be going.”
I start to climb off him, but Jagger tugs me against him again. “It’s not work with you.”
The man can’t be serious. No work? No drama? Since the moment I snuck into his house and asked for my money back, our lives have been filled to the brim with drama. And work. So much so, I might as well see myself to the door right here, right now. “So this is easy?” I challenge.
“What I feel for you?” He shrugs. “Yeah. It feels as easy as breathing. It’s the other shit that gets hard.” Gripping the back of my neck, he tugs me into him and kisses the crown of my head. “But here’s the thing, Little Thief. When you’re around, you make the other shit feel easier, too, not harder.”
You make the other shit feel easier, too, not harder.
Is that what I’m feeling with this man? Ease? I’ve been fighting my whole life. For food. Clothing. School. Then, in walked my dark knight, sweeping me off my feet after being kneed in the balls despite my best effort to keep my distance. It’s a scary thought. Letting someone in. Trusting someone enough to let them in. To let them see the real you. The tension in mymuscles oozes into contentment, albeit a little forced. But hey, I’m a work in progress.
“Thank you,” I whisper. “I don’t know what else to say, but…thank you.”
His arms tighten around me. “Anytime, Vi.” He kisses me again.
39
JAGGER
We’ve fallen into a routine. I never thought I liked them. Routines. They felt too predictable. Too boring. Too…safe, maybe. The realization hits out of nowhere as Violet tucks herself into my side. She’s been sleeping over more and more. I want to hate it. To draw some boundaries under the guise of keeping things casual, but I can’t help myself. When she isn’t here, I miss her. Hell, even when she is here, I miss her.
A sleeping Violet sighs, her full lips parted, and her hand on my chest. If this is heaven, I’m not afraid of dying. I close my eyes and fall back to sleep.
I’m not sure how much time passes when a buzzing wakes me. It could be hours. Or maybe it’s minutes. Honestly, I’m not sure. Lifting my heavy lids, I reach for my phone on my nightstand, careful not to jostle my Little Thief still passed out on top of me.
Who the hell is calling?
As I read the name, dread coats my insides.
