His lips brush over mine as my mind processes what he’s trying to say. My heart flutters and my stomach twists. No one’s said anything about love. There’s lust and desire and possessiveness, but that doesn’t equal love.
“I don’t think they can love me,” I whisper when he pulls away again.
“Maybe not the flowers and rainbows love or the princess waiting for her prince love. But I’m confident none of them wants to let you go and each of them would protect your heart with everything in them if you gave it to them.” His smile is warm. “We could love you, sweetheart. If you let us.”
“I don’t know what to say to that.” Honestly, I’ve never thought about loving them. Have I felt that I could? Yes.
“Don’t say anything.” Jack leans his forehead against mine. “Just don’t shut us out. Let us prove to you we deserve your love.”
A nervous laugh bursts out of me. “Luke?—”
“Luke has only been loved by us. Everyone else in his life uses him. His father uses him for his legacy. Sidney used him for sex and popularity.” Jack sighs. “That doesn’t mean he doesn’t love hard when he does. He just doesn’t recognize it as easily.”
Each of them have shown me a softer side and I know it wouldn’t take much to love them. Not really. Even Luke.
I rub my hand over my heart. “Jack?—”
He puts his hand over mine. “Not today, sweetheart. I just want you to open up to the possibility of falling. We’re not there yet. Though if the guys would pull their heads out of their asses, they’re closer than they think.”
“Why are you telling me this now?” I search his beautiful blue eyes.
“Because I don’t want to use you. I don’t want to just be a guy who owns you. I want you to own me and want me. I want to know at the end of the day this is what we all want. To be together. Not just this year. Not just through college. I want to choose you, Harper. And I want you to choose us.”
He pulls me onto his lap, so I’m straddling him. “I’m not telling you this to freak you out.”
“You’re doing a great job.” I rest my hands on his chest, feeling the beating of his heart.
He chuckles. “I just need you to know that you aren’t alone. That I know what love is. And I know when I see it. But the others might have a harder time coming to it. And that has nothing to do with you.”
I can see it. Luke’s abusive father. Caden’s absent parents. Eli’s feuding parents. Nico’s disconnect from his father. I know my boys are broken.
“What do you want, sweetheart?” Jack pushes his hand beneath my shirt, teasing my bare skin. “Because I have you to myself and want to fuck you at least twice in the time we have left.”
My skin heats. “How much time do we have left?”
He glances at his phone and smirks. “Three hours.”
“Three hours?” My words get lost as he rolls me onto my back and rests over me. My fingers slide into his silky dark hair.
“Worried you can’t keep up?” He arches an eyebrow and all the worry falls away from me. Because that’s it. He’s said his peace and now he wants to get a piece.
“You think I can’t get off twice in three hours?” I settle back against the bed and smile up at him.
His chuckle is dark. “Oh, sweetheart, you’re going to come so much you’ll be screaming my name so loud the neighbors might call in a noise complaint.”
My mind can’t seem to settle though. Could I love them? Yes, I could. But should I is the real question. Because if I give my heart to these broken boys, they may just tear it up and spit it out.
“Stop thinking for the next few hours.” Jack kisses me until it’s difficult to remember my own name.
CHAPTER 8
The Craving
Harper
This kiss feels endless like it could go on forever, and that would be fine. Jack doesn’t move on to other things. He just kisses me and keeps kissing me. Our tongues tangle as we both explore. His tongue chases mine and mine chases his.
When I suck on his tongue, he groans and grinds his hips into mine. But still we kiss as if we have all the time in the world. Everything inside me wants more, but at the same time, this kiss is enjoyable and tantalizing.
