Page 44 of Reckless (Adventures in Love 3)
“We’ll see,” Blake mutters.
“How about we focus on getting this shit done.” I take the trash bag from Tanner, and the two of us begin to clean up some of the debris from the floor, then put on gloves and start to rip out the wall on the opposite side. By the time we’re done clearing out the beams from the center and patching the holes where the wall was attached and along the ceiling, it’s getting dark out, and my stomach is rumbling.
“Oh my God,” I hear Cybil say and turn to find her, along with Jade, who’s holding Claire; Everly, who’s got Sam; and Margret with her daughter, Taylor, standing near the front door. “It looks so much bigger.” Cybil rushes to Tanner and hugs him while Margret walks to Mason, getting a kiss from him, and Everly goes to Blake.
I watch Jade and the way she watches her friends, and my fingers twitch with the urge to reach for her. Fuck, I’m so fucked—there is no way I will be able to do this for long. We are just a few hours in, and I already want to say fuck it, grab her around the waist, and kiss her in front of everyone.
“You guys got a lot done,” Jade says, walking Claire over to me when she babbles and holds out her hands in my direction.
“I got God knows what on me, baby, so you’re gonna have to keep hold of her,” I tell her quietly, and she licks her lips as her eyes drop to my mouth. Good to know I’m not the only one fighting against instinct.
“I’m sure you guys are starving. Do you want to head up to our place? We can stop and get a few pizzas on the way,” Cybil suggests to the group.
“That sounds good to me,” Blake says, and Mason agrees.
“Awesome,” Cybil says, then looks around. “Do you want us to help you clean up any of this stuff?”
“We’re going to leave it for now. Tomorrow I’ll pick up the paint while Mav and Blake patch up the holes in the walls; then we’ll lay down a couple coats.”
“That fast?” Jade asks.
“Paint is easy; building all the shelves you want is going to take time,” Tanner tells her, then comes over to kiss Claire on the cheek when she starts to babble “Dada” over and over again.
“Well, okay, I think us girls should go pick up food while you guys do whatever you’re doing. Then we’ll meet you up at the house,” Cybil says, and the girls all agree before saying their goodbyes and taking off.
“I feel like we need to make a bet,” Blake says as we’re heading out of the building a while later, and we all look at him. “I bet Mav cracks in a week and this whole keep-him-and-Jade-a-secret thing goes out the window.”
“Damn, you’re generous. I say it happens tonight,” Mason says, then looks at me. “No offense, man, but I could tell that you were working at keeping yourself in check when she came in.”
“I give it until Jade gives him the go-ahead, unless something happens and he’s forced to break cover,” Tanner says.
“Glad to know at least one person has faith in me,” I mutter, breaking off from the group when I reach my truck. Then I call out that I’ll see them at Tanner’s as they head to their vehicles.
I park in front of Jade’s place and get out of my truck, then head up to the door. She sent me a text while we were sitting around with everyone eating pizza and hanging out, asking if I wanted to come to her place to watch a movie. She didn’t even have to ask. Spending time with her without being able to touch her was a special kind of torture, so there was no way I was going home tonight without being able to get my hands on her.
I get to the door and knock, then wait for her to answer. It takes a minute to hear the door to her place open, and a second later she’s there. My gut tightens like it did last night at seeing her in her glasses with her hair in a messy bun and her face makeup-free. Fuck, she’s beautiful.
“Hey.” She smiles, and without thinking, I place my hand against her belly, walking her back into the house, then kick the door closed behind me before I take her mouth in a deep kiss. Like she’s done every time I’ve kissed her, her body melts against mine, and she holds on tight. Moving my hands from her waist to her ass, I slide them down to the back of her thighs and pick her up off the ground. Without losing her mouth, I walk her into her apartment and head for the bed. As soon as the backs of my knees meet the mattress, I fall back with her on top of me, the sound she makes causing my cock, which is already hard, to harden further.
