Chapter 18

Ava

The chaos and noise of the arena fell behind us as the SUV pulled out of the arena parking lot. A swarm of people flashed pictures in Jude’s direction. He rolled up the window with an exhausted sigh.

“It never stops,” he said quietly. “The more you spiral out of control, the more you get hurt, the more people try to take pictures of you.”

I slid across the seat to gently twine an arm through his. “I know. I don’t understand why people have a fascination with celebrities when they are going through something painful.”

“It makes ordinary people feel okay with themselves. That’s why.”

“There’s nothing different about you,” I whispered, resting my head against his shoulder. “You’re perfectly normal, like every single person on this planet. Why do they care so much?”

“Who knows?”

Comfortable silence fell between us while I kept my eyes fixated on the front window. Darkness fell across the streets. I couldn’t shake the image of Jude falling helplessly to the ground and watching his wrist bend at an awkward angle. It was a damn miracle that he hadn’t broken it tonight or gotten crushed to death by his own bike. Inches. He had been inches away from what had happened to Andy years ago.

The hotel lobby was quiet when the driver pulled up to the curbside to let us out. I stood there while Jude left instructions for him to return to the hotel in the morning to pick us up for the flight to Vegas tomorrow. The thought of boarding a plane to go to another show to watch something happen again terrified me. There was no doubt that Jude shouldn’t have been on that bike. He had been a wreck earlier in the morning, still intoxicated. I didn’t even know what type of penalties there were for this sort of thing.

The second we entered the hotel room, Jude collapsed on the couch with a groan. He elevated his wrist up as he had been instructed. Dirt and blood were smeared across his pale face.

“Have you eaten anything today?” I asked, setting my purse down on the coffee table. “Or slept at all since this morning?”

“Do three energy drinks count as food?”

“No wonder you fucked up your stunt,” I said, aghast that Chuck hadn’t even thought to get Jude some food. Some manager he was turning out to be, pushing his client to the brink of death. “I’m ordering us some food. You need to eat before you take anything for your wrist.”

“I’m down for food,” Jude replied as he sat up on the couch to grab the remote control. “I want to see how bad this crash was. I’m sure they are playing it all over the television by now.”

I turned away from the screen when he clicked it over to ESPN. Taking ahold of the binder next to the hotel phone, I placed an order of two large pasta plates and garlic bread. No wine or alcohol. I turned to look back at the television as it cut to Jude’s team helping him out of the arena while fans looked on in horror.

“Near death experience,” Jude muttered, reading the headline. “I wouldn’t call that a near death experience. That was me being too fucked up to even think straight.”

“That’s why you shouldn’t have been drinking last night,” I said.

He sank back against the couch pillows with a sigh. “Yeah, no kidding. You think I don’t realize what a mistake that was?”

“I can’t tell what is going on in your head sometimes. You completely blow my mind most of the time.”

“I suppose that’s a good thing,” he said, winking at me. “Try not to smile, Ava. I can see that you’re trying to stay angry with me when you really want to come over here and give me a hug.”

I turned away to hide the smile that wanted to spread across my face because I was relieved to see him alive and back to normal. Not the cocky and drunk JJ who lived on the edge of danger. This was the man I liked to be around, the core man who never changed.

“Just come here,” Jude said. “Stop fighting it. I promise that I won’t tease you for giving in to me.”

“Yes, you will. I know you will.”

“Scouts honor, dear.”

I turned on my heel to look over at him. He settled back against the couch cushions with a grin. His hair was thick and wild and full of dirt. He’d never looked more handsome and sexy than he did right now. I settled in his lap with a relieved smile, and he wrapped his arms around me. I felt a deep sigh rumble through his chest. His lips pressed up against the side of my head while we sat there, tangled in each other’s arms.

“I’m glad that you’re okay,” I whispered, burying my head against his chest to listen to his steady heartbeat. “That crash. I just kept thinking about what happened with Andy.”

Jude tangled his fingers through my hair to brush away the knots gently. “I’m okay, Ava. Try not to worry too much about it, okay? Things like that happen in my sport more than you think.”

“It’s still not easy to watch someone you care about crash.”

“No, it’s not. You’re absolutely right about that.”

“Why did you go out there tonight?” I asked, pulling back to look at him. “You knew that you weren’t in any shape to get on that bike. I could see it in your eyes afterward that you were aware of that.”

“It’s difficult to pull away,” he said. “I didn’t want to let the fans down, either. A crash is better than no show.”

I shook my head at him. “Your life is worth more than that, Jude.”

“My paycheck says otherwise,” he said, scoffing. “Everyone watches this sport, expecting something to happen. It’s just the nature of extreme sports.”

The nature of it. I didn’t like the sound of that but I knew that Jude was right. The crowd had gone ballistic when Jude crashed. They were all on the edge of their seats to get a glimpse of him being escorted off with a mangled bike behind him.

Room service arrived a few minutes later with our food, and we ate in silence. Jude turned the television off when they started to replay the crash over and over again. I turned away from the screen with a sinking heart.

My head ached from the rush of adrenaline earlier. After we finished eating, I went into the bathroom to run a hot bubble bath. I hoped the hot water would ease the aches out of me.

The bathroom door opened. Stripping out of his shirt, Jude wordlessly lifted my own shirt up. He undid my bra next. I let my eyes fall closed while his fingers gently massaged my shoulders. Then he helped me get out of my pants and underwear.

“Get in,” he whispered, coaxing me into the water.

I didn’t argue. The hot water felt sinful against my legs as I slipped into the tub. The water parted behind me as Jude slipped in as well, mindful to keep the temporary brace above the water. I settled between his legs to rest up against his chest while we both washed away the entire evening with a bar of soap and a wash cloth. It wasn’t until I felt Jude’s hands brush up against my breasts sensually that the water felt even hotter suddenly. He pinched a nipple softly while his lips nibbled at the side of my neck. His hand went lower to cup me gently through the water.

I sucked in a harsh breath as I let my head fall back against his shoulder. Using his other hand, he pushed away the damp strands of my hair from my forehead as he continued to rub at the center of me. I grasped his thighs while the feeling grew in my stomach. The hot water. The gentle rubbing of his fingers as he parted me. It was too much. I couldn’t imagine any other man touching me the way he touched me.

My world exploded a moment later. I sagged against him in relief while I felt Jude’s hardened erection against my lower back. He nuzzled the side of my neck while he continued to rub me in all the right places.

“We should get out,” he murmured against my neck. “We need to get out before the water gets cold.”

“It doesn’t feel cold,” I breathed when he slid a finger inside of me. “It feels hot. Too hot.”

Jude chuckled against my throat. “That’s you, sweetheart. It has nothing to do with the water temperature.”

He released his hold on me. I managed to get out on wobbly legs to dry myself off, with Jude doing the same behind me. I almost lost him. The thought flashed through my head when I entered the dark bedroom. Desperation filled me, and I turned to gladly be swept up into his arms.

Our lips met in a series of fevered kisses that bruised my lips. We tumbled back onto the bed, scooting backward blindly in the darkness. I felt Jude’s hot and throbbing erection against the side of my knee. I reached down to brush my fingers along the tip, marveling at the smooth skin there.

Jude sucked in a ragged breath at my touch. He went still above me while I explored him. He was all hot skin and steel. That was all I could think while I stroked him confidently. The sound of his moans and his hips thrusting against me filled the room. Fingers on my wrist stopped me suddenly. I looked up in confusion, even though it was dark.

“What is it?” I asked. “Did I hurt you?”

“No,” he gritted out. “I’m just not going to come like that, is all.”

“It’s okay if you do,” I said shyly. “I’m a bit curious, to be honest, to see what it’s like since I’m always, you know…”

I trailed off nervously when Jude opened his eyes. I could see the outline of him as he gazed down at me, burning holes into my skin as I waited for him to give me an answer.

“You’re okay with it?” he asked.

I frowned at him as his fingers released my wrist. “Why wouldn’t I be okay with it?”

“Some women aren’t okay with it,” he said with a shrug. “Not that I’m going to complain. Your hand feels fucking amazing on me.”

“Tell me what to do if it doesn’t feel right.”

His hips thrusted forward when I started to stroke him up and down again.

“You really aren’t doing anything wrong,” he said, voice strained with pleasure. “Trust me on that one, Ava.”

I kept going while listening to a series of pants and groans escape Jude’s lips. It was erotic to hear the pleasure coming directly from Jude, without my own pleasure mixed in there. His entire body quivered against me while I continued to stroke him.

“Ava,” he rasped out, hips thrusting against my hand madly now. “I’m going to come all over you.”

I pumped harder in response. The heat radiating off Jude nearly burned me as he let out a guttural cry. His hot seed spilled over my hand and lower stomach. He sucked in harsh breaths while clutching at my knees, and he rode out the rest of his release. I marveled at the intensity of it as he forced his fingers to let up.

“Holy shit,” he groaned, releasing his hold on me. “Add that to your list of amazing skills.”

He helped clean me up before collapsing in the bed next to me. I didn’t even try to push away when he tucked in the blankets around the both of us, pulling me flush against him. I relished the sensation of his strong arms wrapped around me before sleep took the both of us.