Though I was tempted to blow it on Rodeo Drive, the five hundred dollars I’d gotten from Knox went straight into the bank. I had a nice savings, but who knew how frugally I’d have to live until I found a way to make decent money from my writing? I had enough to live on for about a year if I didn’t earn anything at all, so that gave me a goal. I had to get something going within a year.

I was going to do it.

I hadn’t heard from Jett, and I was still a little worried that he hadn’t shown up for Zane’s party the prior evening. As much as I loved him, though, I hated the fact that he was somehow bound to Alicia Hopkins.

I made myself a grilled ham and cheese sandwich for dinner, poured a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, and set up my laptop on the kitchen table to start my research on freelance writing. I was willing to do anything.

By nine o’clock, I had some good ideas percolating, and I set up a blog called Heather’s Haven. Kind of cheesy, but what the heck? No one would be reading it for a while anyway. I had a friend down the hall who was a tech geek, so I’d get her to help me with search optimization and all the other stuff I didn’t understand. I shot her a quick email and then rose to refill my wine glass.

A knock on the door startled me. It was a weeknight, and I rarely got visitors when Susie wasn’t home. I hoped it wasn’t Janet or Lindy trying to invite me to another wild party. As much as I honestly liked the two of them as people, that just was not my scene.

Nope. Now I was a writer. A true “I write for a living” writer. I had a career to work on. I was ready to spend every spare minute making this work. No more parties. No more dead-end jobs.

I opened the door—

“Oh!”

Jett stood there, wearing casual black Dockers and a tan cotton shirt, the top few buttons undone, his chest hair peeking out. His dark hair was pulled back in a messy Brock O’Hurn-style man bun.

And he was smiling.

“Hi, J—”

He crushed his lips to mine. I opened for him without thinking. God, his kiss. How had I ever thought I could live without those kisses? We kissed deeply for a few timeless moments until he broke it with a loud smack of suction. His eyes were dark and filled with lust.

He walked into my apartment and pushed the door shut, trapping me against the wall. He slammed his lips down onto mine once more while he slid one hand up my side to cup my breast. My nipple hardened instantly, and he thumbed it gently through my camisole.

I strained forward, wanting to touch every part of me to every part of him.

His torture of my nipple became more urgent as he twisted it through the silky fabric. I moaned into his mouth, pushing myself against his hardness. I slid a hand from around his neck to the band holding his man bun in place. I tugged, releasing his hair and threading my fingers through the softness.

The need to feel his muscles, his skin, soared through me, and I unbuttoned his shirt quickly and brushed it over his shoulders. My breath caught at his beauty. I fingered the majestic lion on his left upper arm, his skin warm beneath my fingertips.

I slid my other hand down his hard chest to his black pants. I unbuckled his belt and unzipped his fly, releasing his glorious cock.

He groaned when I fisted him, pulling my hand toward his head and then swirling my finger through the drop of fluid and around his cockhead.

He broke our kiss and pushed me to my knees. “Suck my cock, Heather.”

Gladly. I licked the precome from his glistening head, savoring the saltiness. Then I plunged onto him, letting his head nudge the back of my throat.

“Oh, God, baby,” he rasped. “Can’t take it. Need you.” He pulled me toward him. “Take off your shorts. Quickly.”

I obeyed, and he lifted me in his strong arms and set me on his hard cock. My back was braced against the wall as he thrust into me. My nipples strained through my camisole, aching for his touch, abrading against the silky fabric.

And he thrust.

And he thrust.

And he thrust.

“Heather”—thrust—“Heather”—thrust—“Fuck. Heather.”

He filled every part of me, even the emptiest most inner parts of my soul.

My orgasm crept up quickly, and I exploded around him, crying out in loud moans.

“That’s right, baby. Come all over me. That’s ri— Fuck!” He thrust into me, my shoulder hitting a nail in the wall and nicking me, but I didn’t care. It all added to the profuse pleasure skyrocketing through me as the man I loved fucked me into oblivion.

The man I loved…

He had come to me.

Come back for me.

He leaned against me, his breath loud and heavy in my ear for a few moments before he spoke.

“Heather,” he said huskily, “I have to know. Did you hear me the other night? The last time we were together?”

My body thrummed with desire. What was he talking about? “What?” I choked out.

“I said something to you. Something serious. You didn’t respond.”

“I’m…sorry, Jett. I don’t remember anything unusual.”

“Jeremy, damn it. Call me Jeremy.”

“Okay. Jeremy.”

“I said I loved you, Heather. I fucking said I loved you, and you didn’t respond.”

My knees wobbled, and he grabbed my arm to steady me.

“You l-love me?” I whispered.

“I thought I felt something from you too. Thought I saw it in your eyes, but when you didn’t respond—”

“Oh my God. I love you too. I love you so much!” I hurled myself back into his arms.

How had I missed a declaration of love?

“Thank God,” he said against my hair. “I was so afraid—”

I pulled away. “I’m so sorry I didn’t hear it. I never thought…in a million years… You seemed so unattainable. You’ve had so many women. You could have whomever you want.”

“I want you, Heather. Only you.”

“Oh my God.” I sighed.

“I haven’t led the most virtuous life. I know that. But is there any way you might be able to—”

I pressed my fingertips to his lips. “I love you. I had to push it aside because I didn’t think you could possibly… How could anyone not love you?”

He smiled slightly. “No one has ever loved me, other than my mother and my brother. Not the way I want to be loved.”

“You know that’s not true. Your fans love you.”

“They love Jett. I want to be loved as Jeremy.”

“Well, I love you both. Jett is part of Jeremy, and you’re both wonderful. You did something amazing for me.”

“Oh?” He waggled his eyebrows.

“Something other than that. When I met you, I had decided to quit writing, to give up on my dream. You convinced me not to.”

“I did?”

“You did. Your love of music and your drive to succeed however you could… It really moved me. I quit the diner, and I’ve been working on ways to make my writing pay. I may not be writing for the big screen now, but I can write other things. I can still pursue my love. That’s because of you.”

“I think that’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me, Heather. God, I love you.”

“And I love you. With my whole heart, my whole soul.”

He smiled. “And with that beautiful body of yours?”

“Whenever you want. But what about Alicia? She told me to stay away from you.”

“Screw Alicia,” he said. “Alicia doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Works for me.” I fingered his tattoo. “I’ve always wondered about this. It’s beautiful work.”

“I got it before I left for LA. My brother got the same one. It was… This might sound corny to you.”

“No it won’t. I think it’s wonderful that you and your brother are close.”

“We are. But the tattoo means more. There’s a lot I need to tell you about that. And you may change your mind about me.”

“I won’t,” I said. “I know about Alicia.”

“You know she helped me. What you don’t know is that—”

“You fucked her a few days ago.” The words popped out of my mouth. “She told me.”

“She’s a known liar, but I have fucked her many times. It meant nothing to me. As for a few days ago, she only thinks I fucked her. I actually blindfolded her and used a dildo. I couldn’t get hard for her, Heather. I despise her. But even without the despising, I’m not sure I can ever get hard for another woman again. You’re all I want.”

His words warmed me, and I cupped his crotch.

Granite met my palm.

“Exhibit A,” he said. “I just had you, and you’ve got me hard again.”

I couldn’t help a sly smile.

But he pushed my hand away and buttoned his pants. “I have to tell you some stuff first. News is going to come out about me and my family. My career might take a hit, though I’ve already got my publicity team on it.”

“What kind of news?”

He cleared his throat. “I’m just going to come right out with it. I gave my brother an alibi seven years ago when he inadvertently killed a man.”

I clamped my hand to my mouth.

“It was an accident, and there were extenuating circumstances. But Alicia found out about it and has been blackmailing me for the last several years to keep me under her thumb.”

“She’s even more of a bitch than I thought,” I said.

“She’s a miserable human being,” he said. “But she’s irrelevant now. My brother went to the DA and he cut a deal. I’m not in any trouble, and I owe my brother everything.”

“Sounds like maybe you owe each other everything.”

He smiled, running his fingers lightly over the lion on his upper arm. “You’re wonderful. Do you know that?”

“No more wonderful than you are, especially to save your brother the way you did.”

“It’s a long story,” he said, “but we have all night. You want another glass of wine?”

I smiled. “Later. Like you said, we have all night. Right now I want you to take me to bed. I want to make love with the man I’m hopelessly in love with.”

“I want that too, baby. For the rest of our lives.” He swooped me into his arms, and we headed into my bedroom.