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Yet I couldn’t help questioning it.
Not that I told Gracie or anyone else about it.Amy had already lost her job, and Deborah was in trouble for administering the injection.I didn’t want to cause more trouble than I already had by throwing out hypotheticals that seemed ridiculous if I really took the time to analyze them, moment by moment.The guilt I felt was stupid, especially since I didn’t even know why I felt guilty.
Feeling Jack’s lips on my hand, I nearly sighed in contentment.
He was back.
I wanted to pull him down onto the bed beside me and just curl around him.I wanted to hear his heartbeat under my ear, feel his chest rise and fall as he breathed, have his heat push away the chill that had invaded my body the moment he’d left the day before.
There was no use in pretending that what I felt for him was anything but what it was.Obsession.Maybe it was hero worship, or maybe I was just sick in the head because of all the shit that had happened to me, but my mind, heart, and even my body were stuck on him and only him.
When he started to pull back, I touched the dark-blond scruff on his chin.My eyes ate up the sight of him, and it was impossible to miss how tired he appeared.“You need sleep.”
“I need to reassure myself that you’re okay,” he countered.“Tell me how you’re really feeling, little fairy.”
“I missed you,” I answered, knowing it wasn’t what he was really asking, but it was all I could voice right then.“Will you have to leave again?”
His green eyes glittered at me.“Fuck, I missed you too.”He bent his head over my hand, kissing my fingertips this time.
I felt the caress of his lips all the way up my arm, causing goose bumps to rise along my entire body and heat to settle low in my tummy.It was a new sensation for me, and given what the shadows had done to me, I’d imagined I would never feel anything close to it.But I should have known better.Where Jack was concerned, not even those fucking shadows could ruin what I felt for him.
“And I don’t know yet,” he murmured, answering my question.“I don’t want to make a promise that I won’t have to, then something comes up out of the blue that requires my attention.But I can promise I won’t leave you again unless it’s absolutely necessary.Deal?”
“Deal.”
“I need a shower, a shave, and fresh clothes,” he said but didn’t straighten.If anything, his fingers tightened around mine more.“My dad and I need to talk, and my mom is going to make me eat.”
“Okay.”When he still didn’t move, I turned my hand over in his, and he was careful to avoid touching the IV.“Go.You look like you could use the food.Didn’t you eat while you were gone?”
“I was more concerned about getting the job done and getting back to you.”He kissed my palm, causing my fingers to flex.Without realizing it, I stroked them through his scruff, enjoying the stubble against my skin.He leaned into my touch, his surprisingly long lashes lowering to half-mast.“Mm,” he sighed.“Feels good.”
His gaze caught mine, and I felt my heart begin to beat faster.My lips ached for me to lick them—or for him to kiss me.
I’d never been kissed before.I’d had no time for boys between school and work, but even if I had, I wouldn’t have trusted any of them.They thought of my mom as the crack whore on the corner, and that opinion rolled over to include me.If they had any interest in me, it was because they thought I was easy, so I avoided anything to do with the opposite sex.Or anyone else.
It had been just me and only me for so long.
All the things Jack caused me to feel were new territory for me, but I wasn’t afraid.I wanted his touch.His kiss.Maybe even more.But there was no way he could—
Could he?
His groan was low, bordering on agonized, as his gaze dropped to my lips.“If I kissed you right now, little fairy, with how hungry I am, it would cause you pain.When that jaw is unwired, I’ll give you what we both ache for.And if you’re not ready, I’ll wait.Forever if I have to.But one day, I hope I get to taste you.”
Unconsciously, I touched his mouth with my thumb.He kissed it, and I pressed the padded flesh to my lips.I wished I could lick it, taste him fully, but I had to make do with licking the backs of my teeth in search of even a little.His eyes began to glitter with a new kind of fire, and his nostrils flared.That warmth low in my tummy bloomed, spreading outward to the rest of my body.
“Nishia,” he growled, and the heat only spiked higher.“Give it back.”
Confused, I didn’t move, so he grasped my wrist and pulled my hand back to his lips.Sucking my thumb into his mouth, he closed his eyes.“Shit,” he rasped.“I’m already addicted.”
“Same,” I breathed.
A tap on the apartment door had him carefully placing my hand back on the bed and standing.“Yeah?”he called out in a hard tone.
Someone I didn’t recognize stepped inside, holding a glass with a straw.“Hey, Jack,” she greeted as she crossed into my room.My eyes drifted over the newcomer.Her long, dark hair was pulled into a low ponytail, and I noticed white disks on either side of her head.She was without makeup, dressed in faded jeans and an overly large T-shirt, but she was so pretty, it was hard to look away from her.
“Delaney,” he said with a nod.“I’m sure Max will be over soon.”
“Oh, he’s already here,” she said with a smile before turning her attention to me.“Hi.I’m Delaney.Raven and Gracie are busy, so I offered to bring your shake.”She winked.“Mostly because I was curious about Jack’s fairy and haven’t had a good enough excuse to invade your privacy until now.”
