Page 20 of Heavenleigh

“I called Yara.Luckily, Claude’s yacht has satellite services.There were no issues reaching her.”

Ven grimaced.“I’m going to be completely honest.I don’t remember much past eating cake after she got married.”

I lifted my head in surprise.“Define ‘much.’”

“Nothing past the cake part,” she whispered, chagrined.

“Good.”

Her brows jumped high.“Good?”

“Yes, good.”I took her keys from her and unlocked the door.Once it was open, I guided her inside.

“Why is that a good thing?”she demanded when I closed the door.

“You had a hangover for a reason, bunny.What do you think happened after eating so much sugar on top of all that alcohol?”Her cheeks pinkened.

“There was a very bad taste in my mouth when I woke up,” she mumbled, her pretty eyes filling with horror.“Oh gods.I must have made the worst mess.And you had to see me like that.Fuck.You still came to find me after that disaster?”

“Ah, little bunny, a little vomit isn’t going to scare me away.”Scooping her up, I carried her over to her couch.Her living space was colorful and warm, exactly how I expected it to be, yet surprising at the same time.That was one of the things I loved most about Ven.She kept me guessing, without making me sweat—without making me feel like a guest in my own damn life.From that first smile, I felt like I was home.

Once I was sitting, she cuddled into my arms like she’d been doing it all her life.“Thank you for coming.I missed you so much.”

“Missed you too, baby.”Cupping her face, I met her gaze.“Is everything okay with your family?All your text said was a family emergency.”

“My mom shattered her ankle and needed emergency surgery.Only, she didn’t know I was in Hawaii, and everyone was worried.I caused a minor international emergency.”She gave me a weak smile.“Kidding.Kinda.It wasn’t international and it only involved like three, maybe four states, so yeah, totally minor.”

“We need to clear up a few things.I didn’t realize it, but you’ve been very secretive with me.”

“I met you on Thursday, Jake.It’s barely Sunday.That’s not exactly a whole lot of time to get in-depth about ourselves.”I tilted my head, narrowing my eyes on her, and she sighed.“Okay, so I may have intentionally kept details about myself out of our conversations, but I told you all the important parts.Nothing I said was a lie.I wasn’t trying to pretend to be something or someone I’m not.”

“Ven, baby, I love everything about you that you have allowed me to see.”

“Jake,” she breathed.“You…”

“Love you.Yes.Is it too soon?Maybe.Do I care?No.Will I be patient until you love me too?I’ll try.But I’m not going anywhere, ever.So you need to get used to me really, really fast, bunny.”

Her hand covered my mouth.“I love you too, Jake.”

What I could only describe as joy exploded inside my chest.How I’d gone my entire life without feeling it until right at that moment, I’d never know and didn’t care.Pulling her hand away from my face, I kissed her, one hand fisting her hair.Without thinking, I rocked her against my already-straining erection.“You’re killing me,” I told her when I made myself break the kiss.“We need to talk before I’m inside you again.”

“Okay,” she agreed quietly.

“Tell me who your family is so I can understand the dynamic a little better.”She already knew about my family from Yara.I wished my sister had been more forthcoming about her college roommate over the years.Hindsight and all that bullshit.

“What’s your favorite music genre?”she asked, biting at the corner of her bottom lip.

“This isn’t twenty questions, Ven.”

“There’s a reason for my question, Jacob.”She enunciated my name slowly, her sass bleeding through.

“All right, I’ll bite.Music… I guess, classic rock.”

“What’s your favorite band?”She blinked at me, and I sat up a little straighter, realizing that the answer mattered.This was a test and there was definitely a wrong answer, but I didn’t have a clue what the right one was.

I went with the truth.“Of all time, probably Zeppelin.I enjoy the older OtherWorld stuff and most of…” I trailed off when I saw the glitter in her eyes.“Demon’s Wings has a lot of great albums, but they haven’t released anything in a while.I think the bass player is a big-time record producer or something, though.I don’t really follow music, Ven.Please, stop torturing me.”

“Shane Stevenson is the producer you’re thinking of,” she supplied with a mischievous smile.“He’s my uncle.My dad is?—”