Page 74 of Kiss Marry Kill
“No.” He was wide awake now, even more so as he took the steps to close the distance. He slid two fingers down the elastic of her panties and pulled her to him, his lips crashing against hers. Without words, he lifted her up, her legs wrapping around his waist, and pushed her against the wall. Her hands fisted in his hair, his beard rubbing against her face, nails digging into skin. It was a frenzied need to be near her, close to her—inside of her. Using one hand she pushed his gym shorts down just enough to free his cock, and he pushed her panties to the side. “Need in,” he grunted into her neck.
“Hurry,” she gasped as he hoisted her higher, holding her by the ass with one hand, guiding himself in with the other. Using the wall as leverage, he pumped into her as she held on tightly and he feverishly took what he needed.
“Don’t stop!” she yelled, her head tucked into his neck, nails pulling on his hair, sweat gathering on their torsos. “Oh God . . .” Her pussy tightened like a vise around his cock, the two of them coming together in an intense orgasm that left them breathless.
Every moment he spent with her was the best moment. Even with the shit happening around them, he wanted her near him. She was a balm to his ever-present anxiety.
“Well, that was unexpected,” she said as she unwrapped her legs from around him and slid down his body. He missed the contact immediately. For so long, he’d been alone: as an only child, as a Marine, then as a man who’d lost so many in his life. He’d never thought himself lonely, he had friends and family, but he’d never had a connection like he had with Megan. Like his parents shared. Like he always wanted. Now, having that connection with someone, he wanted to grip it tight and never let go—keep her safe, keep her happy, just keep her.
But there was that underlying fear that he would fail in keeping her safe precisely because of their connection—because by having his heart on the line, his focus would falter. And that’s why he couldn’t sleep. That’s why he couldn’t keep still. He needed to catch Ryan and end their constant worry. Only then could he fully commit his heart.
* * *
“Please try to relax,” Megan said as she placed her hand over his, which was bobbing restlessly on the armrest of his seat while they drove to the restaurant where they were meeting the Fionas and Taylor. It had been almost three weeks since Ryan had broken into her house, and they still had nothing. Megan had received two more breathy hang-ups that week, which they’d traced to burner phones, so even those had been dead ends.
Jax was growing more and more anxious and she was growing more and more scared. It felt as if they were constantly looking over their shoulders. It had gotten so bad, that even with Jax’s assurance the house was protected, Megan stayed inside, not even stepping onto her balcony. On top of everything, he was feeling like a failure, not having caught the sonofabitch terrorizing his woman.
“My job is to be vigilant and on my A game, not to relax,” he said.
“Are you here as my date or my bodyguard?”
“Megan, there’s a crazy man on the loose, sending you dead fucking rodents and prank calling you every few days. You leave in a week on tour, which is going to be mayhem. I need to be both your date and your bodyguard. Just accept it. We should have caught him already.”
She blew out a frustrated breath.
“Please. I want you to have fun, but I also need you to be safe. For me. I need you to be safe.”
She leaned over and kissed him on the lips. “Fine. I understand. You ready for the paps?” They’d chosen a pretty secluded restaurant that was as low-key as possible. Still, the paparazzi buzzed nearby. Not a ton, but enough to be wary.
“I’ve detailed celebrities and politicians. The paps don’t scare me, but stay close.”
He went around and opened the door for her before the valet could arrive and held her close as they made their way into the restaurant. Once inside, he looked around, clocking everything and everyone.
“Come on, they’re in the back,” she said, walking in front of him.
Despite the strain of the last week, Megan looked stunning. Her hair was in a braid that started on one side of her head and finished at the other, falling down one shoulder. She wore a white dress that was loose but short, and very high heels. Suddenly, Jax realized that despite promising her he’d be both, so far he’d just been her bodyguard and it was time to step up as her date. Taking hold of her delicate wrist, he stopped her before they reached their party. “If I didn’t say it earlier, you look beautiful, Meg. Me being on edge is just something I can’t control. It makes me crazy to know you’re scared. But I’ll try to be on my best behavior, okay?”
She smiled brightly at him, leaned in, and kissed him on the lips before weaving through the tables to their party.
They were the last to arrive, and while quick introductions were made, Jax studied the people at their table. He knew Nell and Taylor, and Elle and Ro—the Fionas—were obviously close friends of Megan’s, but what about their manager, Glen, and the rest of the band? Joey had run a basic background check on everyone attending, but sometimes the people closest to you had the deepest secrets. Megan was convinced her stalker was Ryan, but Jax wasn’t leaving anything to chance.
While the five friends chatted and caught up on music industry gossip and touring stories, Jax tried to loosen up. It was hard, though; his eyes kept drifting to the other guests in the restaurant and the servers. Megan squeezed his hand. “Relax,” she whispered, and he slung his arm over her chair and kissed her temple. He had two men working, one by the back door and one by the front. Everything was safe.
He cleared his throat and tried to calm the feeling of impending doom that had befallen him. “So, how’d you all meet?” he asked.
“At a music festival in Oregon about three years ago. It was our first big concert,” Taylor said.
“Ours too,” Elle added.
“We were all so nervous and afterwards we went out for drinks. Been friends ever since,” Ro said.
“Yes, and we heard all about you.” Elle pointed at Jax. “Mostly when she was sappy and drunk.”
He looked down at Megan, who scowled playfully at Elle.
“You talked about me, babe?” he whispered into her ear.
“Shut it, Jackson.” She narrowed her eyes up at him and kissed his cheek. “Anyway, we try to catch a show whenever they’re playing where we are. They do the same.”
