Ignite (Explosive) (30 page)

Moving her under the spray so she can rinse her hair, I squirt her coconut body wash into my hands and press them together so I can lather up. I step behind her and begin on her shoulders, letting my hands run down the length of her arms before moving back up. My hands slide over her shoulders and move down her chest to spread the soap over her breasts. I instantly harden as I take in the way each one fits perfectly in my hands. My thumbs work her nipples over until they’re both hardening under my touch. Moving down her stomach, I don’t miss an inch. I want her whole body smelling of coconut by the time I’m done. I work my way down to her sweet spot, which I lightly graze over with the tips of my fingers, causing her to inhale sharply. I’m too tall in this shower to properly wash her legs, so I watch as the suds travel down her body as she rinses off.

I do a quick cleansing of my own body before rinsing off. She starts to get out of the shower when I catch her arm and yank her back in, pressing her back up against the cool tile.

“Where do you think you’re going?” I growl as I place my hands on the wall on both sides of her, boxing her in.

She gazes up at me with an innocent look on her face. “Oh, I’m sorry. I know how worn out you are, so I figured you’d want to get back to bed so you can get some rest.”

I press my body up against her so she can feel just how awake I am. She glances down as my erection presses against her wet skin. She smiles wickedly before sinking to her knees.

“Well, at least part of you has enough stamina. Let’s see if he can do a better job at keeping up.” She winks before her hands grip my ass as she takes in the entire length of me.

I’m so turned on by this sexy, confident woman, and I have to keep bracing the wall as she works my dick over with her soft tongue and sweet mouth. She moans slightly, and I feel the vibrations from her throat. It’s all I can do not to come right then. Not wanting for her to be able to prove her point, I pull myself out of her mouth and grab her hands to bring her to her feet.

My hand slips between her thighs and I can feel how wet she is already. I know I should give her the same treatment she just gave me, but I’m desperate to be inside of her right now. I lift her up in my arms, pressing her back against the wall. She wraps her legs around me, and I use my free hand to position myself at her entrance. Lifting my hips, I slowly push just the tip inside of her before pulling out again. I tease her with the head of my cock until she’s writhing beneath me.

“Jace, please…” she begs, and the sound makes me want to sink myself into her right now.

“What’s wrong, baby? Afraid you’ll be the one who won’t be able to go the distance this time?” I tease, earning a glare that does nothing except turn me on even more.

In a huff, she decides to take control as she wraps her arms around my neck and pulls her body up before she impales herself on me. She gasps as I push up to meet her, plunging as deep as I can inside of her, causing her to wrap her legs around me even tighter.

“You like that, baby?” I ask her as her hands grip my shoulders.

She leans her head back against the tile, her eyes closed. “God, I love it,” she moans, desperation in her voice.

With one hand holding her up under her ass and the other bracing my arm on the wall, I continue to slide myself up into her, desperate to fill every inch of her as I move in and out. Her hands grip my hair as I move my mouth across her skin, kissing all along her neck and jawline.

After a few minutes of our slow, rhythmic movements, I can feel the water start to cool on my back, so I decide to do my best to get her off before we’re both given a cold shower. Pressing her firmly against the tile, I ram myself up into her and she begins to move her hips in unison with mine. Pulling her back from the wall, I wrap both arms around her tightly and she begins to work my dick, sliding up and down on top of me. My hands move down to her ass as I assist her in speeding up her movements. I can feel her tightening around me, and she bites into my shoulder as the orgasm screams through her. The pleasure mixed with that little bit of pain sends me over the edge, and I slam into her one last time before my cock explodes inside of her.

Before letting her go, I bring my lips to her ear and she shivers as my hot breath brushes over her ear.

“I may have a little difficulty keeping up with you out on the streets, but I promised you a marathon. And I always deliver,” I remind her before pulling back to look at her.

Her eyes widen as she recalls my letter, and I let her go, enjoying the contact as she slides down my body. She does a quick rinse before getting out of the shower, and I follow right behind her. We dry off before falling back into bed, both worn out enough to get a little extra sleep. She wraps her body around mine, and we drift off just as the sun is starting to peek through the curtains.

Waking up
to an empty bed, I see that sunlight pours through the window. I stretch and immediately feel soreness in muscles that have been dormant for a while. I smile to myself, replaying last night and this morning’s shower scene over in my head. Burying my face into my pillow, I want to squeal with excitement. I’m giddy with happiness with what’s happened over the last fifteen hours, still in shock from Jace surprising me at the game.

Getting out of bed, I throw a t-shirt on as I go in search of him. Heading down the hallway, I hear voices, and I approach apprehensively. I’m about to enter the kitchen, where I see him sitting at the kitchen table, coloring with Ava. Stopping in the doorway, I watch him interact with her. They’re trying to choose the next color, and she keeps giggling at all of his off-the-wall suggestions. My heart aches at the sight. I always imagined having children playing there at my table with their daddy smiling at them the way Jace is beaming at her. Shaking the thought out of my head, I enter the kitchen. They both grin up at me, and Jace is up in a flash, greeting me with a soft kiss on the lips.

“Morning, Aunt Lexi. Jace said we had to be quiet until you woke up or else we wouldn’t get to go to the aquarium,” Ava informs me as she holds up her picture for me to see.

I praise her on her work as I turn to Jace. “I was supposed to babysit, wasn’t I?”

He nods and I groan as my hand hits my face in a facepalm that even Captain Picard would be proud of.

“It’s no big deal, Alexa. I’ve been having a hard time adjusting to a new sleep schedule, so when Sierra rang the doorbell, I went to answer it so you could keep sleeping.”

“Oh, Lord, I can only imagine her reaction when you opened the door,” I say, picturing her jumping up and down, squealing, ready to accept him as a member of the family.

“She was a little surprised, but it didn’t seem to faze her too much. She gave me instructions for Ava’s lunchtime and hightailed it out of here. But she did mention one thing…” He trails off hesitantly.

I can only imagine what she’s told him, so I’m apprehensive to even ask what it’s about. I take the seat opposite Ava as Jace relays the news.

“We have to drop Ava off with your parents, where we’re expected to stay for dinner.”

Oh crap. I groan, knowing this is not how I expected this day to go. “I am so sorry, Jace. I’m sure that’s the last thing you want to do this weekend. I can’t believe I forgot about babysitting. I can get us out of it. We’ll just drop her off and then we can leave,” I offer, knowing my mom and Sierra are probably already plotting out their attack tonight.

“I don’t mind, Alexa. Seriously. I’ve been missing your mom’s home cooking anyways,” he tells me, and I’m relieved but nervous at the thought of bringing him around my family. I know it’s silly, because they already know him, but I don’t want my mom getting the wrong idea, and I don’t want her or Sierra being pushy.

After finishing a bowl of cereal, I make my way back to the bedroom so I can get ready for the day. I’m stuck watching cartoons with Ava while Jace showers, but it’s not long before we lock up, heading to the Newport Aquarium where we can hopefully spend a few hours entertaining an energetic Ava.

Later that
evening, we’re in my parents’ driveway and Jace is lifting a sleeping Ava out of her booster seat. After she asked a million questions about the various marine life, which had me thankful for my smart phone, we ate lunch at Johnny Rockets, where she saw a poster for the two-week release of Finding Nemo. Grabbing ahold of Jace’s arm, she tugged on his t-shirt as she pointed it out to him. Claiming it was “their” movie, she gave him the sweetest smile she could muster up, telling him that they just had to go see it. Truthfully, the thought of sitting through that while trying to keep her quiet was not on my list of things to do, but I knew he was going to give in, so I just shrugged when he looked at me. Fortunately she was so engrossed in the movie that she didn’t chatter too much.

I sling her bag over my shoulder and we make our way to the front door. Jace holds Ava with one arm as he goes to knock, and I’m about to tell him that he can just walk in when my mom answers the door. She swings the door open wide, grinning like a lunatic as she ushers us inside. She gives Jace a weird side hug as not to disturb Ava, and she motions for him to follow her into the guest bedroom where he lays her down. Once his arms are empty, my mom pulls him in for a proper hug. Exiting the room, she begins to gush.

“Why, Jace McAllister, look at you! All those big muscles, and I swear you’ve gotten taller,” she raves, causing me to roll my eyes.

“Nice to see you, Ms. Vicky. Not taller, just a little thicker than I was back in the day,” he says and winks at her.

We follow her to the kitchen where Sierra’s making a salad. “Hey, you two. Where’s my kid?”

Jace leans in to give her a kiss on the cheek. “She’s down for the count. She was barely in the car for two seconds before her head starting nodding off.”

Sierra laughs as she responds. “Hell, I’m surprised you two are still on your feet. That girl can wear even the most energetic person out.”

I can see Dad and Jeremy outside working the grill. My mom hands Jace a plate of burgers and asks him to take them out to Dad. He’s barely out the door before my mom is leaning over the kitchen island, grinning at me.

“Lexi Leigh, that boy has definitely grown up. I always thought he was a cutie back then, but damn, girl, he’s got it going on,” she declares, sounding like a sixteen-year-old girl instead of a woman in her fifties. “Why didn’t you tell us he was coming so soon? According to Beth, he wasn’t even set to get home for a few more weeks.”

“Yeah, I have to say I was rather surprised when a half-naked Jace opened your door this morning,” Sierra pipes up, causing Mom’s face to redden a little at the thought.

Deciding to ignore the fact that my mom was checking him out, I quickly tell them about how he was able to come home early, and they both squeal when I tell them about him surprising me with the help of Brady.

“Oh, that is so romantic! Remind me to send you home with some of my peanut butter cookies to take to Brady. I know how much he loves them,” Mom tells me, apparently happy with Brady’s role in yesterday’s surprise.

Before I can respond, the men come inside with the burgers, and moments later we’re all settled around the dining room table, where Jace can barely eat as Jeremy and my mom bombard him with questions about the Army, his deployments, and what else he’s been up to since he graduated. Finally, my dad starts an argument with Jeremy over who’s going to win tomorrow’s Bengals game. Dad gives me a wink as I silently thank him, grateful for Jace to finally get a break.

After dinner, the guys are in the living room watching baseball and I offer to go check on Ava as Sierra helps Mom clean up. As I walk into the room, I spot her sitting on the floor, playing with a set of Star Wars Legos, and I can’t help the grin that spreads on my face. She’s struggling to connect some of the pieces in the right spot, so I suggest that she asks Jace for help. Nodding her head, she gathers up the toys and leaves the room.

Now that she’s up and going, I head down the hall to help with the dishes. I’m about to make my way in the kitchen when I hear them talking.

“Did you see the way he was looking at her? He could barely take his eyes off of her!” Sierra gushes, to which my mom agrees.

“I noticed it, and she kept stealing glances at him, too. And did you see how he kept touching her throughout dinner? I almost swooned when he tucked her hair behind her ear.”

“So did I! But seriously, doesn’t she look happy? I haven’t seen a light in her eyes in a long time, but now I swear, they’re shining,” Sierra states.

Before I let this conversation continue, I enter the kitchen and they both snap up, looking at me with guilt-ridden faces. My mom quickly starts putting food away as she begins talking about the new novel her book club is reading.

“Thanks for dinner, Mom. I think we’re gonna get out of here,” I inform her, knowing that I need to get out of this house before those two start scheming.

We make our way to the living room and Jace and I say our goodbyes, finally able to escape my crazy family.

As we
make our departure from her parents’ place, I’m relieved that she was ready to go. Don’t get me wrong, her family’s great, but the passing looks and whispers between her mom and sister didn’t escape my attention. I’m happy to know that they approve, but I don’t want them pushing her into anything.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted. I don’t think I’ve ever spent an entire day with a little kid. I don’t know how those two do it,” I say, breaking the silence.

“I’m guessing that they probably deserve it with the hell they raised when they were kids,” she laughs before she turns to look at me. “I’m sorry, Jace. I’m sure you weren’t planning on babysitting and being grilled by my family on your first full day here.”

I take her hand in mine and give it a little squeeze. “Alexa, I didn’t mind at all. It was nice to see them. Plus, it’s probably better that we got it out of the way sooner rather than later.”

She looks at me with disbelief. “Have you met my sister? She’s probably plotting with my mom on how many times they’ll have to accidentally stop by while you’re here.”

I laugh, knowing that she’s right. “Okay, I promise not to answer the door again, no matter who’s knocking.”

Before she can answer me, her phone vibrates and she quickly checks the text as we’re pulling into her driveway. She looks up at me with curious eyes.

“So, how tired are you?” she asks.

“I think I could probably catch my second wind here in a bit. It is only eight o’clock. Why do you ask?”

“Well, apparently everyone wants a piece of you today. That was Brady. He was seeing if we wanted to come over to play cards if we aren’t too busy.”

I wouldn’t mind getting to know the guy who helped me surprise her, so I nod in her direction. “I’m game if you are. It’d be nice to get to know your friends while I’m in town.”

She texts him back as she gives me directions to his house. He doesn’t live that far from her, something I like so he can watch out for her while I’m away. When we get to his place, he introduces me to his partner, Stephen, who greets Lexi with a kiss, obviously as taken with her as Brady is.

Settling in at a card table, Stephen deals a game of Phase Ten while Brady opens a bottle of wine, filling each of our glasses. We play a few hands and it’s clear early on who the competitive ones are. Brady and Alexa have already argued more than once over their hands, so Stephen and I actually get to spend a good amount of time talking. Turns out that he’s a Shakespeare buff, so we take turns discussing our favorite works.

“I never could get into Shakespeare,” Alexa cuts in, taking a break from trying to sneak a look at Brady’s cards.

“That’s because you’re too busy reading about all those hot alpha males you store on your Kindle. You just don’t appreciate the classics, my dear,” Brady says teasingly.

I groan, not surprised that she’s still obsessed with romance novels. “You should’ve seen her in high school. She was in Heaven when she realized the school library carried Nora Roberts’s books.”

“Hey, that’s not true! I read other stuff, too,” she protests.

I shoot her a look before replying. “Really, Alexa? Switching out for a Nicholas Sparks book from time to time does not count.”

She rolls her eyes at me, and Brady’s eyes flick back between the two of us as he takes a drink of his wine.

“So, Jace, I have a question,” Brady begins.

Alexa’s eyebrows draw together, seemingly nervous about what her best friend is going to ask.

I’m fingering the stem of my wine glass as I wait for him to continue.

“Our girl here once told me that you always call her Alexa, never Lexi like everyone else does. I’ve wondered why that is,” he asks, and I’m curious as to why he didn’t just ask her.

“She didn’t tell you?” I respond, apparently surprising them both.