Jasper

I left the bar even later than I’d expected, having to wait while the cops booked two guys for assault. I’d gotten in the middle and eventually broken it up, but not without some damage of my own. My nose had been bloodied, and while I didn’t think I’d have a shiner, I did have some swelling. I hated the idea of showing up to Mina’s looking like I’d been the one in the bar brawl, but I wasn’t going to stand her up, either.

I was really looking forward to having breakfast with her.

She’d definitely gotten under my skin, and I couldn’t stop thinking about her. She was on my mind all night, on the way home on my bike, and as I walked into the café to grab our breakfast. I could already imagine resting my hands on her hips as she leaned into me and kissed me like she hadn’t seen me in years. It was everything I needed, better than the fresh air I breathed outside the prison walls.

But I also worried. I was terrified that one of the guys – Jake especially – would catch wind of who I was seeing and would come after her. I didn’t care about me. I could handle them, and I’d take a bullet for her. But guys like Jake didn’t do physical damage to someone who pissed them off the way I had. They went for the heart, tried to break them by hurting the people you cared about. And I only had one person in this world that meant anything to me anymore.

I’d told Sam I was done, but I needed to rethink that. If I could take a bullet for Mina, couldn’t I take other risks to make sure she was safe? If I just helped plan out this heist they wanted, I could be off the hook. I would finish the job and walk away, neither of us hurt and both of us ready to move on with our lives. It wouldn’t matter. I wouldn’t participate beyond the planning, and if things went wrong, I could skip town, take Mina with me if I had to. We could travel. Or she could be my alibi, keep me out of trouble. Whenever it went down, I’d be sure to be with her.

I scowled, an acrid taste in my mouth at the idea of using her to save myself. But I wanted to be with her anyway, so it wasn’t like I was just trying to save myself.

Halfway to her house, I realized it was a stupid idea. I couldn’t go through with it, at all. I needed to tell her what was going on and get her out of there. She had money. She could rent a house on the Jersey shore for a few weeks, until I could find a way out of this that didn’t involve her getting hurt. I’d promised to be honest with her, and that’s what I’d do. We would sit down to breakfast, and I’d tell her exactly what I feared would happen and what I needed her to do to prevent it.

I felt a sense of relief, until I glanced behind me and realized the same headlights had been behind me for far too long. I frowned, trying to see if I could make out the driver of the pickup through my rearview mirrors, but the headlights were too bright and the night too dark. The windows were tinted, too. It was six in the morning, and I didn’t think it was likely anyone would be coming down surface streets in this particular direction at this hour, not for this long.

Was I being followed?

I took the next right, heading over to the freeway, and I watched to see if the truck followed me. It took the right, so I made another right on the freeway, doubling back toward home. This time, the truck didn’t follow, and I felt a sense of relief, even though I wasn’t convinced it was a coincidence. It seemed more like they’d realized I spotted them, and they wanted to get out before I figured out who it was. I didn’t recognize the truck as belonging to any of my MC brothers, but that didn’t mean anything. Who knew where they could borrow a vehicle?

I went three exits and got off the highway, taking a different road down toward Mina’s place. I weaved through the streets, and I knew I was going to be late, but I didn’t really care. It was worth the extra fifteen minutes to make sure I didn’t have a tail. When I finally decided I was safe and had nearly gotten lost myself, I wound around to the back side of her property and came around.

She must have been watching for me because the gate opened as I rode up, and I was more than grateful that they closed quickly behind me while the street was empty of other traffic. I parked in front of the enormous, elegant façade, feeling a little awkward. The last time I’d been here, I wasn’t welcome. I wasn’t a guest, and I sure as hell hadn’t parked a motorcycle dead in front of the heavy oak door.

I told myself to stop thinking so hard about it and just get off the bike and go. I carried the bags of food to the door, and it opened as I raised my hand to knock. I let my fist drop, my heart thumping at the radiant smile Mina wore. Even with her eyebrow quirked at me as if she was irritated, she was the most gorgeous woman I’d ever seen. “You’re late.”

I swallowed hard and kissed her forehead. “I’m sorry. I’ll explain after we eat. I’m starving.”

She stepped back to let me in, and I was surprised at how normal that felt. I could also smell the coffee brewing, and it was such a nice contrast to the stale beer I’d been smelling all night. She started looking in the bag, and I watched her eyes light up. “Well, I thought I was angry with you, but this makes me want to forgive you.” She peered up at me as she went to pour coffee in two of the most expensive coffee mugs I’d ever seen. “I’ll reserve full judgment until I hear your story, though.”

“How kind of you,” I chuckled, settling on the barstool at the island where she’d placed everything. I hadn’t been in the kitchen before. In fact, I hadn’t been through most of the house, and I marveled at the size and modern design. All clean lines with bright whites and stainless steel. A double fridge and double oven, which seemed like overkill even for two people but especially just for Mina.

“I try,” she smirked. “How was work?” She frowned, tilting her head as she studied my face. “What happened to you?”

I realized it was the first time she’d looked at me fully since we’d gotten into bright enough light to notice any damage to my face. “Yeah, I broke up a fight. Is it bruised yet?” I asked, touching my nose and not wincing at the discomfort because I didn’t want to worry her.

She walked over and touched her index fingers to either side of the bridge of my nose. I held still, and her frown deepened, but she shook her head. “No, it’s swollen, but there’s no bruising. Tell me the other guys look worse.”

She was teasing me, and I had to laugh. “Well, they were bloody. And I think anyone looks worse in handcuffs, so sure.” Her eyebrows met her hairline, and I laughed harder. “They both got arrested. It was a pretty bad fight, so I think I got off pretty easy this time.”

“I don’t like it,” she said as she sat next to me. She pursed her lips and rested her chin on her hand. “I don’t like you getting hurt. There’s got to be something else you can do. Something that doesn’t involve your nose getting used as a punching bag. I happen to like your face the way it is.”

“Yeah?” I asked, liking the compliment. Unfortunately, as a felon – and recently released on parole, no less – I didn’t have that many options if I wanted an honest income. Sure, I could live on my investments, but I didn’t want to turn into a lazy slob, either.

“Yes, I do.” She sighed. “Couldn’t you start a business or something? Anything that would keep you out of the way of misplaced fists?”

I brushed my knuckles over her cheek, appreciating the concern. “I’ll think about it.”

Mina

I’d wondered what it would feel like to share a meal with Jasper in my kitchen. Now, I knew it was a priceless experience. I loved chatting and teasing with him while we nibbled on all the nice little breakfast treats with the sun rising outside the window and casting beams on his face. I didn’t much care for his injuries. They worried me. But he was still absolutely gorgeous. And at least for now, he was mine.

I knew he had something to tell me. I could see the apprehension in his eyes. But I also knew it had nothing to do with what we shared between us, so I knew it could wait. I had other things in mind.

So, when we’d sipped through a third cup of coffee and Jasper’s eyes were still heavy with the need to sleep, I stood and took his hand, pulling him to his feet. I left the mess on the counter for later and leaned into him, tilting my head back for a kiss. When our lips met, I prodded at his with my tongue, letting the passion in my chest pour out. I ran my hands up his arms and around the back of his neck, and I was rewarded with a groan and the first twitches of his cock as it came to life.

“Damn, Mina, I’m so tired, but you’re irresistible,” he mumbled against the corner of my mouth.

I gave a sultry laugh. “That’s the idea,” I rasped. I pulled back out of his grasp, and he grunted, but I didn’t want him collapsing in my kitchen floor. I tugged on his hand, pulling him along with me through the living room and to my bedroom suite upstairs. Jasper eyed the house with wonder, and I didn’t even consider the possibility that he was casing the joint. That wasn’t who he was anymore. He didn’t have a reason for it. He wasn’t desperate, and he wasn’t going to be pressured into anything.

I pushed him back on the bed, straddling him as I reached for the fly of his jeans. He was rock hard, and his shaft thrust out at me as I released it from the denim prison. I curled my fist around his base and stroked upward, running my thumb over his head, and then back down. Jasper shivered, his eyes closing. I wasn’t about to let him fall asleep yet, so I bent and took his head in my mouth. He tasted like salt and musk and soap, clean and hungry for me. I licked a circle around his head and drew my tongue over his length, up and down, before I took him back into me, swallowing him deeper.

He thrust his hips up in response, shoving his cock into my throat, and I opened wider, breathing through my nose so I wouldn’t gag on his size. I moved up and down on him, letting him push deeper when he wanted, enveloping his length in the warm wetness of my mouth. I could taste the first drop of precum just before he grabbed me by the shoulders and pushed me away. I glanced at his face, finding it red with his teeth clenched. “If you don’t stop, I’m going to fuck your mouth till I come down your throat.”

It was the rawest, dirtiest thing he’d ever said to me, and it made me pour. I was suddenly glad I hadn’t bothered to put on nice clothes, since the yoga pants I wore were drenched now. “Is there something wrong with that?”

“Yes,” he groused, shoving my sweater over my head and toying with my nipples. I hissed as he pinched and twisted, my insides molten and wanting to leak out. “The problem is, I’m exhausted, and I want to bury my cock in your tight, wet pussy. I don’t have enough energy for two rounds without getting some sleep.”

I moaned at his words and didn’t protest as he smacked my ass and yanked my pants down to my ankles with one tug. His fingers were immediately buried inside me, exploring the wetness of my swollen folds, running along my slit from back to front before circling my clit. I could barely breathe, the sensation was so incredible. I gasped for air, panted, and could hardly hold myself up as the building wave of passion nearly consumed me. “Slow down,” I groaned, but I wasn’t even sure I meant it. Two fingers snaked inside and curled against that spot that drove me wild, and I found myself riding his hand shamelessly. We hadn’t even undressed fully. My pants were still around my ankles, and his were up around his thighs. I didn’t care; it would take too long to get everything off. I needed him right here, right now.

“You’re so wet,” he breathed, sitting up and closing his lips around one nipple. He drew it in deeply, nibbling and flicking his tongue against it until I couldn’t take anymore. I came with the force of a hurricane, and flooded him like the shoreline. I was still in the middle of the orgasm when he pulled his fingers away and drew me down hard onto his cock, filling me completely.

I screamed, the impact bringing a second wave of ecstasy crashing into the first in an explosive crash. I shivered and shook, but still, I rode him with a vengeance, his shaft pulsating inside me as he leveraged his hands on my hips, slamming me against him over and over again, his cock seeming to swell larger with each thrust. My head fell back, and I felt his kisses on my throat, the valley between my breasts. And I knew as his stubble pressed against my ribs that he was close, couldn’t focus on anything but the growing urge to spill into me.

His release was a monumental event, and I came with him, our bodies melding together into one, sweaty, writhing mass, our screams echoing around us and the scent of mutual bliss surrounding us. He fell back, and I fell on top of him, my bones and muscles having turned to jelly. I lay there with his cock buried inside me until I could find enough strength to roll over onto my side next to him.

Through hooded eyes, I watched him, his chest heaving under his shirt and his eyes almost closed. I marveled at the fact that I had Jasper Cunningham, the man who had broken into this house once before, in my bed. That he’d been in my body after sharing a meal in my kitchen. For a moment, I turned to stare at the ceiling, wondering if the universe would strike me down for this. But then again, maybe it was fate that brought him here the first time. Maybe it had all been part of some larger plan from the beginning, and we were always meant to be here, in my house, in my bed, tangled together with the musk of our release filling the room.

“I love you.” The words were a groan on his lips, which barely moved, but they were crystal clear to me. I wanted to cry with joy, but I held back. I was overwhelmed with happiness. I had never realized what three little words could do, how easily and immediately they could fill your heart to bursting.

I rested my hand on his chest, palm splayed over his heart, and as it steadied, mine found the same rhythm so they beat in time together. It was like magic, and it lulled me back toward that dark place full of dreams and fantasies. “I love you, too,” I whispered while I still have a shred of consciousness. I didn’t know if he heard me, but then, his arm curled around me and pulled me into him. I’d never been more at home in my entire life.