Lucy

Lucy spent the rest of the morning in bed with Jaxon. She couldn’t seem to find the will to tear herself away from him after he’d shared his heartbreaking story with her. She just wanted to make it better and kiss him until every last trace of hurt was gone. So she did.

Jaxon was the most incredibly strong, giving and selfless person Lucy had ever met. She had no idea how he’d endured so much at only seventeen years old and still managed to find a way to have a positive outlook on life. It made her feel like a completely self-absorbed ingrate for complaining about her life.

She made a decision right then and there to stop pitying herself. Her parents weren’t in her life. And yes, it sucked. But things could be so much worse. Her father may or may not have been set up by Alex’s family, but at no point in time had Lucy ever truly been left to fend for herself. She hadn’t been expected to care for the people who were supposed to care for her. She’d lived in the lap of luxury, wanting for nothing. Her only complaint was that her boyfriend had gotten too famous and didn’t have time for her anymore. When Lucy compared her problems to Jaxon’s they were non-existent.

She propped herself up on her elbow and gazed down at him, his eyes were closed, his breathing steady. Lucy liked seeing him like that—peaceful. And it didn’t hurt that it gave her a chance to stare at him unabashed. He was so incredibly gorgeous—inside and out. His thick brown hair was messy and she couldn’t stop herself from running her fingers through it.

Jaxon’s dark eyelashes trembled, finally giving way to the slivers of deep sapphire they hid. Pure joy coursed through Lucy when he opened his eyes and grinned up at her with delicious affection.

Jaxon

Being woken up by Lucy was possibly Jaxon’s new favorite thing. The way she smiled down at him, a curtain of auburn waves falling around her bare shoulders—it sent shockwaves pulsing through his body, leaving parts of him aching with desire.

He pulled her on top of him and kissed her slow and deep. Good God, he wanted her. He knew he should wait. He knew this wasn’t the perfect, special moment their first time deserved, but the way she kissed him back made him not care. And those noises . . . the soft little moans she made when his hands roamed her body drove him wild. He could listen to her make that sound for the rest of his life. But another sound interrupted them.

It was the hungry growl of her stomach. Lucy stilled, looking mortified. Then her stomach growled again and Jaxon couldn’t contain his laughter. “Damn, Smalls. When was the last time you ate?”

“Lunch . . . yesterday?”

Jaxon sat up pulling Lucy with him. “Well that won’t do.” He kissed her wild hair. “I’ll be right back.”

“Where are you going?” she called when he pulled his clothes back on.

“To get you something to eat.”

“Wait, I’ll come with you.”

“Nope, I’m never letting you leave this bed again,” he said tackling her back onto the mattress playfully and peppering her with kisses until she was squealing with laughter. “You’re mine now,” he teased.

She grinned. “No arguments here.”

“Good. Now stay put while I bring my girl breakfast in bed, okay?”

“Okay.”

Lucy

Lucy sighed as she fell back against the fluffy pillows on Jaxon’s bed. She could get used to this. She stretched, trying to relieve some of the pent-up desire still tingling through her veins. That boy . . . he was like a drug, and she worried she’d always want more. It was a strange feeling. It had never been like that with Alex. They just sort of ended up together. There had never been this kind of connection and passion. She realized in that moment that she only thought she’d loved Alex. But Lucy was now positive she’d never been in love before—not like this.

Her heart had never stopped just because someone walked out of the room, or picked back up when they reentered. Her pulse had never thumped in her ears like a kick drum just from a look, a smile. And her body had certainly never swelled with heat so intense that she was sure she’d burst into flames just from a touch, a kiss.

Lucy wrapped her arms around herself trying to hold onto the feeling growing in her chest. This was love—and it was terrifyingly wonderful.

The bedroom door creaked open and Lucy sat up, excited to see what Jaxon had whipped up. But it wasn’t Jaxon’s grin that greeted her, but an eerily similar one.

Conner waltzed into Jaxon’s bedroom and Lucy shrieked pulling the covers up to her neck. Great, now Jaxon’s whole family had seen her almost naked.

“Hey, Smalls.” Conner beamed. “I didn’t know you were here.”

“Yep, I’m here,” she said trying to ignore the heat in her cheeks.

“Cool. Actually, I’ve got some news about the case for you.”

“Oh good, so you’re here on official police business then?”

If Conner caught her sarcasm he didn’t let on. Instead he sat down on the foot of the bed. “Where’s baby bro?”

“Downstairs. And, um . . . I’m sorta naked under here,” she said holding the sheet tighter around her. “So maybe give me a minute?”

Conner waved her off like it was no big deal.

Lucy scowled. “Does the LAPD normally conduct official police business in bedrooms?”

“Smalls, this is LA. All kinds of weird shit passes for official police business. This doesn’t even come close to making the list of the scandalous things I’ve seen.”

Just then Jaxon walked back into his bedroom. He smacked Conner on the head as he walked by carrying a plate of waffles.

Jaxon

Jaxon shot his brother a dirty look as he put the waffles down and settled on the bed behind Lucy. “Bro, there better be a good reason you’re harassing my half-naked girlfriend.”

It was the first time he’d officially called Lucy that. And goddamn it felt good. The way she leaned against him and smiled made him think she liked hearing it just as much as he liked saying it.

“I was just getting to that,” Conner said. “I’ve got news about the case.”

“Good news?” Jaxon asked linking his fingers through Lucy’s.

“Good and bad,” Conner said. “Which do you want first?”

“Good,” Jaxon and Lucy said in unison.

Jaxon smiled at her. They’d both had enough bad news to last a lifetime.

“I got a tip from a local body shop on a car matching your hit-and-run’s description.”

“That’s great! Right?” Lucy asked.

“Possibly,” Conner replied.

Jaxon frowned. “What’s the bad news?”

“We still haven’t gotten any hits in the databases matching the sketch composite. And I ran it through multiple times.”

Lucy chewed her bottom lip. “What does that mean?”

“It means that your guy doesn’t have any priors. Or at least none that stuck. If he had a record he would’ve lit up the database like a Christmas tree.”

“But we have the car,” Lucy added. “That’s good, right?”

“We don’t have it yet. It’s just a potential match. But we can’t subpoena the driver without concrete evidence. That means the damage has to match what was consistent to your vehicle’s damage.”

“Which is nearly impossible,” Jaxon grumbled. “Especially since that asshole slammed Lucy’s Jeep down the side of a mountain where it caught fire.”

Jaxon felt Lucy flinch in his arm and immediately regretted his word choice. He didn’t want to upset her by dredging up the accident. She’d been doing so well since she’d finally started talking to a therapist. Jaxon rubbed a hand up and down her arm and she relaxed a little bit.

“It’s not the ideal situation,” Conner admitted. “But, it’s not the end of the road either. Give me some time to explore the lead at the body shop. If there’s something there I’ll make sure my guys find it.”

“Thanks, Con,” Jaxon said giving his brother a nod of faith. There was no one Jaxon trusted more to follow this through. Conner knew how important this case was, and how much Jaxon and their whole family could use a win.

“Always, little bro.” Conner stood and looked at Lucy. “Keep your chin up, Smalls. Oh and say hi to that sexy roommate of yours for me.”

Lucy balked. And honestly so did Jaxon. Why the hell was Conner talking about Brooke?

Conner caught their reaction and laughed, rubbing his five o’clock shadow proudly. “She didn’t tell you about us, huh?”

“Why would she?” Lucy asked.

Conner smirked. He was loving this. “Oh, no reason. I just took her out a few times.”

Lucy’s jaw dropped. “You’re dating Brooke!”

“Whoa, Smalls, why ya gotta go puttin’ a label on it? We’ve just been having fun.”

Lucy

Lucy was flabbergasted. How had she missed this? Granted, her life had been a little insane lately, but she would know if her best friend was dating someone! Right?

Come to think of it though, Brooke had gotten dressed up on a few occasions recently. And she’d been mysterious about where she was going the few times she skipped out on dinner. Every time Lucy tried to ask Brooke where she was she’d laughed it off saying she was just doing some unicorn hunting.

Lucy honestly thought Brooke was just trying to give Lucy and Jaxon alone time to see if it would spark anything between them. She’d made it plainly obvious she was rooting for them. But suddenly, understanding washed over Lucy and she gasped. “Oh my God. You’re her unicorn!”

Conner snorted. “Say what now?”

“What is it with you two and that word?” Jaxon asked.

Lucy couldn’t stop smiling. Brooke, that sneaky bitch. She hadn’t been lying about going after a special breed of unicorn after all. “It’s an inside joke,” Lucy said.

“Well are ya gonna let us in on it?” Conner asked.

Lucy laughed. “Not yet.” She wanted to keep this for just her and Brooke for a while—or at least until she talked to her wily, minx of a roommate.