Jase (41 page)

They finished making love, slow and sweet, their bodies moving together in comfortable patterns as they focused on each other. He was addicted to the feel of her and could never get enough of her against him, under his hands, her taste in his mouth.
His thumb brushed across the outer curve of her breast and he caught his breath at the softness of her skin. As his fingertips caressed her gently
,
desire was again coiling low in his belly, his cock twitching where it lay soft against the crease of his hip.
She tipped her head and he kissed her temple again, dragging his fingertips deliberately along her side so his thumb stroked her breast more firmly. He smiled as her hips flexed in response, and he felt more than heard her soft sigh.

“Round two, lover mine?” Using his chin, he nudged her head back, dipping to capture her lips in a soft kiss.

“Mmmmm,” she hummed against his lips. “I always want more of you. Always ready for you.”
She deepened the kiss, opening to him as he shifted them on the bed, easing her into a reclining position. He rose over her on an elbow, his cock growing hard and thick at her words, at the sight of her beside him in the bed.

He watched her face as he slid his hand down her belly, skirting her core except for the most glancing of touches, still enough to draw a low moan from her.
Hand on the inside of her knee, he tugged, pulling her left leg up and over his hip, canting her body at a slight angle, opening her legs wide to give him full access to her pussy.

Dusting soft kisses along the slope of her shoulder to the arch of her neck, he slipped his fingers between her folds, slowly stroking and tugging, circling the entrance to her pussy teasingly. Shifting his hips, he thrust, the head of his cock sliding between her pussy lips from behind, the crown bumping against and over her clit, and she let out another throaty moan.

Thrusting steadily, moving in her slippery wetness, every time he pulled back, he circled her clit with his callous-roughened fingertips, feeling that nub firm and engorge as she became more aroused. Her hand reached up, cupping the back of his neck, and she twisted her head around, lips seeking his. Complying with her wordless request, he slanted his mouth over hers, tongue questing and dipping inside, smiling against her lips to hear another purring moan.

She surprised him with a shift in position, and suddenly he was buried deeply inside, her inner walls contracting around him in rhythm to the working of their mouths. “Ah, fuck, DeeDee,” he ground out, thrusting faster as her heat and the tight feel of her pussy around him had control slipping from his grasp. “Too fucking good. You feel so good. Baby, are you close?” he asked, laying his head alongside hers, cheek-to-cheek, looking down her body at his hand still working her clit while her hips moved in time with him.

“Yes,” she breathed, and as her grip on his neck tightened, he watched as muscles slid and moved underneath her skin while she chased her orgasm. She whispered, “Nearly, Cap’n. Almost.”

“
Thank fuck,” he said, thrusting again, then again, and a third time before shoving himself deep inside her. His fingers were plucking and tugging at her clit, teeth nipping her earlobe, dragging her over the edge alongside him with that tiny bite of pain that drove her so crazy.
He stayed that way, buried
to
the root, intimately connected with her while riding out her climax as well as his own. He loved this,
feeling
her tighten down on his pulsing cock, listening to her gasp out his name, fingernails biting into his skin. He kissed down her neck, his chest plastered against her back, sweat covering both of them, their rapid breathing loud and raspy in the quiet of the room.

“Jesus Murphy,” he whispered minutes later, his softened cock still inside her. “Woman, you make me crazy for you. God, I love you, baby.” He laughed and they both groaned as he slid out. Kissing her cheek and then her raised, demanding lips, he
laughed
again, repeating, “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”
Her head dropped, resting on his bicep as he shifted them, arranging them side-by-side in the bed. His arm curled around her waist as he slid his hand up to cup her breast in his palm, relishing the weight and softness.

“Are you all packed?” As he knew it would, his question drew a sigh from her and she shifted uneasily next to him.

“I’m not sure this is a good idea.” She tucked her head into the crook of his elbow, screening her face from view. “Why don’t you get Sharon to go home with you instead?”

How could he make her understand what this meant to him without making her feel badly if she honestly didn’t want to go? If it
wasn’t
only fear holding her back?
You could talk to her, eh?
He snorted a laugh at his thoughts and then frowned when she reacted, pulling away from him. “Roll over,” he said, tugging on her hip. “I need to see you, baby.”

Propping himself up on one elbow, he looked down into her face with a soft smile. Gently tracing the edges of her jaw with the tip of his thumb, he dragged it across her bottom lip, then tapped the end of her nose.
“Neither
decision
will anger me. It’s up to you, baby. Come with me, or not, your choice. Sharon’s got her own stuff going on, so that’s a no-go. But,” he held up a finger when she would have spoken, placing it across her lips in a shushing motion, “please know how much I want you with me.

“I want to show you my hometown, introduce you to my family and friends, and have a chance to show you off to the world.” Leaning down, he kissed the corner of her mouth softly. “I want everyone to know how fucking lucky I am that you’ve let me keep you, that you are mine. I want people to see the love I have for you, the passion we share. I want you to know and meet other people in my life who are important to me. I want you to understand that everyone already approves of us…of you, crazy lady. My lady.

“If you decide to stay here—decide to not go, not come with me,” he breathed out softly, “then do it because you’re moving towards something, not because you’re avoiding something. Don’t
not
go because you’re worried about what people will think or say. Mason’s already spoken to the MC there in Red Deer and we have an open invitation, so
there aren’t any
club conflicts to hold you back. Hoss can manage Slinky’s for a week and you know it.

“Ruby will miss her babysitters, but even with that, she seems excited to hear about my family from you. And I have to go, for me it’s the right thing to do. I owe Ma and Da explanations in person why I’m calling my career at this point.” He leaned in and kissed across the freckles on her nose, then trailed his kisses down her cheek and nuzzled into the side of her neck before pulling back and looking at her. “Well, beautiful lady? What do you say?”

She was silent for a long minute, her gaze turned up at him, her focus shifting between his eyes to his mouth, back to his eyes. The muscles in her face tightened, her expression taking on a worried aspect, but still, she said nothing. He sighed and pressed his forehead into her shoulder to hide his disappointment. “I love you, baby. It’s okay, no stress. It’s okay. I didn’t mean to pressure you.”

Gathering her into his arms and holding her tightly against his chest, he kissed the top of her head. “I need a nap, woman. You wore me out,” he laughed, feigning a lightheartedness he didn’t feel. The condo was quiet, and he listened to the far-off sounds of traffic as he shifted restlessly beside her.
Damn
, he thought.
If I stay here, she’s going to realize I can’t relax
. “Gonna
go
clean up,” he said, kissing her temple and rolling to the edge of the bed.

The season had ended and, surprising everyone, most especially him since it seemed the stars had miraculously aligned, the Tridents had made it into the first round of playoffs. They lost to
Cincinnati,
but made the other team work for it, taking the series to the full seven games. Now, officially in the off-season, Jase planned to head home to explain to his parents that he was quitting hockey while he was still
young
and
healthy
enough to
prepare
for and enjoy another career. There were some folks he wanted to see while in Red Deer about a few different future plans, but without DeeDee there, those ideas would have to be put on hold.

In the bathroom, he turned on the shower and then leaned both hands on the countertop, looking at his reflection, he watched as it slowly faded from view, obscured. He smiled; in the condensation
on
the mirror, he could see the faintest outline of something DeeDee had drawn weeks ago, a heart with his initials
on
one side, and hers on the other. “She loves you,” he reminded his likeness, nodding and smiling
to
himself as he turned to climb into the shower.

***

“Hey, Ma.” He smiled at her as he stepped out of the car. She grinned broadly and looked
around
him expectantly, scanning the front seat, her face falling when she realized he was alone.

“Where’s DeeDee?” she asked, disappointment clear in her voice. Over the past week, she told him repeatedly how she was looking forward to meeting the woman who finally captured her rogue of a son’s heart.

“She wasn’t able to make the trip. We didn’t know until the last minute.” He wouldn’t lie to his mother if she asked outright, but he would sure skirt the issue if he could.

Looking at him, she tilted her head and nodded, sighing. “Nerves get the best of her, did they?”

“You gotta admit you’re kind of intimidating,” he joked, not really confirming her suspicions.

“Did she not care to meet us?” The look on his mother’s face held
a world
of hurt, and Jase shook his head, rushing to reassure her.

“No, Ma. It’s not that. She’s terrified you and Da won’t like her. She can get so focused on what she sees as issues that she can’t always get past them.” He reached out and pulled his mother in for a hug. “She cares
too
much.”

Resting her head against his chest for a moment, she took a deep breath and leaned back, pulling away. “Give me your phone.”

“Ma, no. Let’s go inside. I need to talk to you and Da.” He shook his head, trying to lead her up the drive towards the house.

Digging in her heels, she scowled up at him. “Give me your
farkin’
phone, Jason Wade Spencer.” She held out her hand and he sighed again.

“Ma—” he said, but she interrupted him.

“I want to tell her one thing. I won’t badger her, I promise. Just the one thing to ease her mind, eh?” Her scowl softened, not quite into a smile, but nearly. “Just the one thing.”

He handed over his phone, stepping back to the car and grabbing his bag out of the backseat as she found DeeDee’s number and dialed it, putting it on speaker. He smiled when she spoke, his heart quickening in his chest; even from thousands of miles away, she had that effect on him. “
Hey
there, you. Did you make it to your folks’ okay?”

“Baby, you’re on speaker,” he said, and his mother smiled up at him.

“Okay,” DeeDee said, confusion
evident
in her tone, and then she went quiet.

“DeeDee, this is Jase’s mom, Jacque.” She paused and then frowned when there was no response. “I wanted you to know something. Are you listening?’

“Yes.” He recognized this as the even tone she used with club members when she was afraid or worried about their response to something. This was her ‘I’m freaking
out,
but you’ll never know it’ voice.

“I already love you,” his mom said, warmth and affection
apparent
in her tone, and a quickly stifled gasp come through the phone. “I already love you, because you’ve made my son happy. I don’t care if you are black, white,
polka-dotted
, or striped. I don’t care. You matter to Jase, so you matter to my Kenny and me. We already love you, sweetie.”

Silence hung
in
the air like a weighted blanket, and then finally, DeeDee said, “You don’t know how much that means to me, Jacque.” She took a deep breath, audible over the phone. “Thank you.”

Jase took the phone from his mother’s hand and smiled at her, mouthing the words ‘Thank you’. He shifted the call off
speaker
and put the phone to his ear, walking away from his mother. “Baby,” he said softly, hearing her unsteady breathing. “Talk to me, eh?”

“Alberta boy,” she teased on an outrushing breath. “Was it your mom’s idea to call me?” She sounded much better, calmer. Her voice was evening
out,
but hadn’t shifted into that artificial calm he had so grown to dislike.

‘’Yeah, I didn’t even hardly get a hug; she looked around me a dozen ways from Sunday before she realized you weren’t in the car. Then she was all, ‘Give me your phone’. Wasn’t anything I could do, baby. I had to give it up.” He laughed at himself. “You don’t know Ma when she’s got something in her head. She’s like a terrier once she latches onto an idea.”

“Well, I’m kinda glad she did.” She laughed lightly.

“She had control, baby. There wasn’t anything I could do!” He paused and smiled. “Did she make it better?” Reaching into the front pocket of his pants, he fingered the small velvet box, teasing at the seam between the hinges with his calloused fingertips.

“Much better, Jase. I should have trusted you. I should have known you’d never put me in a situation that was uncomfortable. I’m sorry.” She sighed again, and he knew her gaze was unfocused, probably directed down at the toes of her shoes. “Tell her thank you again from me, okay? Come home safe. I love you.”

“I love you, too. See you soon, baby.” He hung up and turned to look at his mother, standing where he left her near the car. She pinned him with a sharp look and he shrugged at her. “She said to tell you thanks. You helped set her mind at ease.”

She nodded and pursed her lips, staring at him. “Did you take the shot, Jase?”

“Several of ‘em, Ma.” He laughed soundlessly, pulling the ring box out and showing her. “I have another shot I’m lining up, though.”