Chapter 8
Gemma
I took a deep breath as Talon led me to the entrance of the bar. He kissed my neck, making me shiver all the way down to my toes before I felt a smirk cross his cheeks. The thigh he slapped me on was still burning, and there would probably be a mark there in the morning when I got up. The mere thought of it burned a hole within my gut. A salacious hole that filled itself with happiness and a desperate need to see Talon again.
I was ecstatic that he wanted to see me again, because I wanted to see him, too.
I watched Talon drive off while I stood in the light of the neon signs that advertised the bar to be open. That man made me feel things I’d never experienced before. The way he commanded my body and how confident he was in his abilities, I would’ve never expected that from the scrawny little boy I’d had a crush on in high school.
He had many secrets I wanted to discover, and I hoped that some of his secrets were just as lewd as the ones he’d showed me in the shed.
I wondered what this meant for us and whether or not this was something we were going to keep secret. On the one hand, keeping it secret made it all the more exciting and electrifying. That meant we didn’t have to deal with Jace’s backlash or his want to kill Talon for merely touching me.
On the other hand, I wanted to show him off. I wanted everyone to know that he was mine. If that’s what he wanted. I wanted to be able to kiss him like Sydney could kiss Hawk. I wanted to be able to thread my arms around his waist and not feel like he was about to get killed for it.
Because I knew my brother would beat the shit out of him if he ever found out. Which is why I never ended up telling him about the hospital. Even though I knew I should.
I had no idea what this was going to lead to, but I was excited to travel down that road. I was ready to explore all the things Talon could apparently open my eyes to, and I was already missing him between my legs.
The night was heavy with darkness, and the stars were out in droves. There was a massive full moon tonight that added to the mystery and romance of it all, and I could still feel the ghostly imprint of Talon’s lips upon my neck as I heard someone step outside.
“I was wondering where you went off to.”
Jace’s voice froze me in my place, and suddenly I was painfully aware of Talon’s scent still on my body. I fluffed my hair out around my shoulders, trying to cover up marks just in case there were any left behind. Jace came and stood beside me, his arms crossed over his chest, and I knew the question was coming even before he opened his lips.
“Where’d you disappear off to?” he asked.
“It’s a bit crowded in there,” I said. “I just… started feeling claustrophobic.”
His eyes were heavy on the side of my face as I craned my eyes to take in the moon.
“You know, I loved full moons in college,” I said.
“Why?” he asked.
“I always thought that you might’ve been looking up at the same moon, too. It comforted me during the hard times.”
“I missed you, too, Gemma,” he said.
“Jace, I have to admit something to you, and I’m not sure how you’re gonna react,” I said.
“Did Talon touch you?” he asked darkly.
“Would you get off that train? I’m not a fifteen-year-old girl anymore. If a man wants to touch me, he can touch me. It’s not like I’m untouched.”
I could feel him seething beside as I slowly turned my gaze towards him. His jaw was clenched, and his eyes were on fire. His face was sinking, and his eyes were widening, and for a split second, I got the feeling he was going to hit the wall near us. His hands dropped to his sides and his fingers balled up into fists, and I drew a deep breath through my nose as I blurted it out.
“I was in a bad accident in college.”
Immediately, his entire face softened, and his fists unclenched.
“So you’re okay with me being in an accident, but not having sex,” I said.
“You deserve better than someone who just has sex with you,” he said.
“Remember that statement when I bring around someone I’ve fallen in love with,” I said.
“Gemma, what are you talking about? What accident?” he asked.
“You remember that fight we got into? I called you while I was drunk at a party and you were pissed that I was drinking anyway?”
“You were fucking hammered, Gemma. I couldn’t even understand what the fuck you were saying.”
“So that gave you permission to yell at me and call me irresponsible and a failure?” I asked.
“I didn’t call you a failure. I told you that behavior would flunk you out of college and that you were better than that,” he said.
“Whatever. The point is, that party got busted up,” I said. “The guy I was with-”
“With how?” he asked.
“You gonna slug me if I tell you?” I asked.
His gaze hardened on me and I shook my head in disbelief.
“Get over yourself,” I said.
“What the fuck’s gotten into you?” he asked.
“You, Jace. You walk around and puff your chest out and defend me and think you’re doing me a favor, but all you’re doing is being annoying. You wanna know why?” I asked.
“I’m just trying to protect you, Gemma. You’re a beautiful girl-”
“Woman,” I said.
“Whatever. And men wanna take advantage of that.”
“I know. Plenty of them did in college. I’ve had my experiences just like you’ve had yours, but I don’t need you to take care of me. The only person who did is dead and gone. Dad isn’t here anymore.”
I watched Jace’s face fall before he turned his gaze back out to the road.
“What happened to you at the party?” he asked flatly.
“The guy I was with grabbed my hand, and we ran. All the way back to campus, stumbling and drunk and afraid. We were running across the road just as someone came outta nowhere, and I got hit. He dropped my hand and leaped from the road and left me in the street to get hit.”
“He fucking what?” Jace growled.
“It was his gut reaction. To let go and leap. I didn’t have enough time to get out of the way, and the car shot me into the air.”
“Why the fuck didn’t you call me!?” Jace roared. Anger bubbled up in my chest. Then all of the pent up anger I had from that night came rushing out.
“I did! Twice! Once when the paramedics got me into the ambulance and once before I went into surgery! You ignored both my fucking phone calls!”
I was shrieking at him while my body shook in the light of the moon.
“I needed you! Your comfort and your sanity! I needed my brother like I’d never needed you before, and you ignored my calls! Shot me to voicemail like I was just one of your useless bitches.”
Jace’s eyes were wide as people began to poke their heads out of the bar.
“I’ve got screws that protrude underneath the skin of my scalp and a plate adhered to my skull where my brain was practically falling out of my head. They shaved all my hair off, and I wore bandages around my head while scarfing down pain pills like I was some junkie. I had to take winter and summer classes that year just to fucking catch up, but you couldn’t pick up the damn phone because you were pissed I was drunk!”
Jace moved to take me in his arms, but I stumbled backward away from his grasp.
“Gemma, I’m so sorry,” he said.
“Your sorries are useless now, just like your protection. You wanna beat and kill any man who even looks my way, but what you don’t realize is that it's fruitless. If I wanna be with someone, I will be. Even if that means isolating you. Because when I needed you, you ignored me because I wouldn’t listen to you. Because you couldn’t control me like you wanted to be able to control Dad. You exert your control over others because our family fell apart, Dad drank himself to death then Mom drank herself to death over Dad’s death. You’re pissed because your life didn’t turn out any better… that you had no control over my going to college and our parent’s pathetic excuses for a living. I don’t need your protection, Jace. I need your love. Your support. Your presence during the scariest of times.”
“Gemma, please just-”
“I was alone in that hospital for days,” I said as tears poured down my face. “And I was too scared to call you because I wasn’t ready for you to shoot me to voicemail again. I was scared to call my own fucking brother-- the only living family who gives a shit about me-- because he couldn’t get over a little fight.”
I stood there in the light of the bar as people blatantly stared at us, and the only thing I could think about was showing him.
Showing him the scars from that awful, horrid night.
I grabbed Jace’s hand and threaded his fingers through my hair. I grazed his hand along the back of my scalp until he felt it, and I saw his eyes widen. I dropped my hand from his wrist while he cupped the back of my head, his massive hand encompassing all the screws at once before he pulled me into his body.
He wrapped his free arm around me and held me close while I sobbed into his chest. As mad as I was at him before, it all seemed to melt away now.
“I was alone, Jace,” I said through my sobs. “I was alone.”
“I’m so sorry, Gemma,” he said into my hair. “But I promise you, you’ll never be alone again. Never, ever again.”