Chapter 28

"You taste so sweet; I could die right here and be a happy man."

My toes curl and I fist the sheets, practically tearing them right off the bed as Jon repeatedly drives his tongue inside me. The scruff of his jawline brushes the inside of my thighs as he continues to eat my pussy. He kisses, licks, and devours me like a starved animal. Pulling on the strands of his thick dark hair, my legs begin to shake as an explosion like no other threatens to rip through my body. "I'm going to come."

"Not until I say, Angel. I'm not finished with you."

I cry out in desperation. He's been edging me for the last thirty minutes, which was when I woke up and found him kissing his way up my inner thighs, and I can definitely recommend being woken up this way. I love it, the way he knows what I need. When he reached my apex, he simply shifted my sleep shorts to the side with one hand and began going down on me.

His hands grip the tops of my thighs, holding me down as I writhe beneath him. "I can't hold out, I-I, I can't."

He lifts his head looking me straight in the eyes, his chin dripping with my arousal. "Yes. You can. Just hold on, okay?"

I nod, unsure of what he means, but I trust him completely. Shifting his hands under my ass he flips me over. "On all fours, Angel, but don't bury that beautiful face in the comforter. Turn your head and watch me. Eyes on me, always."

On shaky legs, I do as he commands, loving this feeling of being dominated by the only man I've ever trusted. "Can I taste all of you?"

"Yes."

That's all the permission he needs. Kneeling behind me, he passes his tongue over my pussy once again but this time it continues to travel until he begins circling over my ass. I cry out, having never been touched there before. It feels dirty in all the right ways.

"Relax for me, baby. I've got you; don't worry."

I let my shoulders drop and exhale a steady breath. "You're such a good girl for me. Are you ready for my fingers?"

I cry out so loud I'm pretty sure everyone in his apartment complex can hear what he's doing to me, the pleasure that's rippling through every nerve ending in my body.

Jon slowly replaces his circling tongue with a finger, lightly placing pressure on my entrance. "Are you there, Angel?"

I move my head, attempting to nod but every bone in my body has turned to jelly. "Right there."

"Then come for me. I want you to squirt on my tongue." Jon's finger dips gently into my ass as his mouth finds my pussy. His strokes mirror each other, and within seconds I fall over the edge, his name leaving my lips over and over again until everything goes black.

I'm not sure how much time passes when I hear Jon's voice, "Let's get you cleaned up." He rises from the bed and holds a hand for me to take.

"I'm ready." I've never been so certain of anything in my life. "I want you. I care about you so much. I want to go all the way with you."

His face softens as he climbs back onto the bed. Turning me on my back, he hovers over me, my head bracketed by his thick corded arms. He kisses my nose, cheeks, and then the corner of my mouth before looking at me, an intense meaning behind his irises."I want you so badly, Felicity. I have for so long. Since the moment I met you." He drops his face to the crook of my neck and exhales a deep breath like this is truly killing him. "But the first time I take you, it will be as I make love to you. I want to savor your body. I want to worship you all night and then once we're done, I'll fuck you. Hard. I'll make you cry out my name so the whole world knows who makes you feel this way. I want our first time to be special because that will be a first time for me too, to make love, to share an emotional connection with the woman I care so deeply for. This morning isn't the right time. I need to be out for an appointment with my agent in an hour and I told you, there's no way I'm sleeping with you to then leave straight after."

Initially, I want to argue, but as I soak in his words and the genuine meaning behind them, I get it. When we finally have sex, I know Jon wants it to be like no other time he's spent with a woman.

"I understand," I reply simply as I stroke the hair at the nape of his neck, his chin is resting on my chest as he looks into my eyes.

"I don't want to wait long though, Felicity. I can't hold out much longer."

"Well, I head back to Oxford in four days, so…" I shrug my shoulder playfully but immediatelyregret raising the subject.

Jon lifts his head, his eyebrows knitting together as he stares down at me. "You fly out on Thursday?"

I nod, feeling sure I'd told him I leave for the UK on Christmas Eve.

Lifting from the bed, he thrusts a hand through his messy bed hair. He looks agitated and worried as he starts pacing the bedroom. "I don't like this. I know that you want to see your family, and I totally get that, but I don't trust him. He's a self-entitled prick and will take any opportunity to cut you down."

I bring my knees up under my chin and look down as I stroke the soft blankets. "I thought we'd already discussed this. I have to go, and I have to stay with my family. Darcy wants us to be together over Christmas, and I must put her first. He won't try anything."

Jon scoffs, his annoyance clearly bubbling, "Yeah, like hell he will. I'll break his fucking neck if he comes anywhere near my girl."

"Look," I say calmly, but I understand why he's concerned. Elliott has given Jon no reason to trust him. "I'm gone until New Year's Eve. It's a few days and then I'll be back. We can have a late Christmas and exchange gifts then; I want to see you open what I got you."

Jon's face softens and he comes back to sit next to me, pulling a shirt over his head as he does. "I hope you get where I'm coming from." He strokes my arm with the back of his hand. "He's an unpredictable asshole who thinks he can treat you badly and say what he wants. It's my job to protect you."

"I know, and I don't want to argue. I just don't have any choice."

Shaking his head, he replies, "You always have a choice, Felicity. Just know this isn't about me; this is about me trying to look out for you. I've got a really bad feeling about this and when you're five thousand miles away, it scares the shit out of me. I'm just asking you to rethink things. I'll pay for a room for you. Hell, I'll buy the fucking hotel if I know it'll keep you safe."

He stands from the bed and pulls on some jeans. "I need to head out, but I'll call you later, okay?"

As he finishes getting dressed and leans down to place a kiss against my lips, I can tell his mind is awash with swirling thoughts and fears about Elliott and me staying in his house. It's clear Jon needs space to cool off and process and so do I. I know he's trying to understand it from my point of view but there's no doubt he's struggling to accept that Elliott will always be a feature in my life, and the facts remain that I have to put my children first.

I gather my things and get dressed, intending to take a shower back at my apartment before I head to the office. I leave Jon a note explaining I've gone to work and pray everything between us will be okay.

"What time do you fly?"Kate comes to stand next to me as we wait for the elevator.

"Tomorrow evening," I reply. My tone is as flat as my mood. It's the day before Christmas Eve, and since I left Jon's apartment on Monday morning, we've barely had a chance to see each other. Between my work and his training and PR obligations, we've been like ships that barely cross in the night. We've exchanged a few messages and the odd call, but everything feels awkward between us. Like there's an elephant in the room that neither of us wants to address. He had a home game last night, but I didn't go. Not because I didn't want to see him, but Mark was snowed under in the pre-Christmas rush, so I had no choice but to work overtime.

"Just call him," Kate says as we both step into the elevator and she punches the button to take us down to the lobby.

"Call him and say what, exactly? Because I've no idea what to say. I have to go back to Oxford to see my daughter and she wants me there. They've been through enough with the divorce, which was driven by me."

Kate raises a hand as she backs out into the lobby. "I'm going to stop you there. You left him because he's a selfish bastard and for the record, he's a narcissist who plays manipulative games. So don't you ever think that you're to blame for the demise of your marriage. That's on him and his toxic ways."

We make our way outside, and I can't help but recall the day Jon was standing propped against his car and waiting to take me back to "the finest restaurant in town." My chest deflates. I miss him so much.

"Just call me when you land, okay babe?"

I pull Kate into a hug and rest my head on her shoulder. "I will, just don't worry about me."

She quirks a brow. "For what it's worth, I think Jon has good reason to be concerned about Elliott. He's an asshole, and I don't trust him. Never have, never will."

What Jon or Kate think of my ex-husband is irrelevant. "There's nothing I can do about it. It"ll be fine. It'll maybe be a little awkward at times, but I'll be back in Seattle in a few days."

With one final embrace, we part ways, and I make my way back to my apartment to pack my suitcase and pray this trip will be plain sailing.

Jon

Be safe, and call me when you land, okay?

Me

I will. Are you out with the boys tonight?

Nah, the bars will be packed and next to impossible to have a quiet drink, so they're coming to my place for a few beers.

Give your mum, dad, and Adam a hug from me tomorrow.

Apparently Adam keeps asking when you'll be back over.

When I get back, I promise.

Do I have competition?

Definitely ;)

Can't say as I blame him.

Just take care, Angel x

I switchmy phone to airplane mode and begin flipping through the in-flight entertainment system. Things between us are still tricky, but last night he turned up with a pizza, complete with black olives, and we cuddled, made out, and watched Sex and the City, so I feel like we're at least some way to being on track.

"I still can't believe you're dating Jon Morgan," Jack says as he positions his headphones over his ears, ready to get comfortable for the eleven-hour flight. Jon insisted on paying for us to fly first class. I tried to put up a fight, but looking at how little legroom Jack has even in these seats, I can see why he said Jack would need it. He's grown so much in the last two years and hasn't been on a plane since we arrived in Seattle all that time ago.

I've barely spoken to Jack or Darcy about us, but they're aware we're dating and seem cool with it, especially Jack funnily enough. I shrug. "It's just like any other relationship."

He wags his fingers and shakes his head. "I beg to differ. He's one of the greatest hockey players to walk the earth, and I'm not complaining. I'm benefitting from this deal just fine." He smiles with pride.

"I'm confused," I say, turning to face him fully. "How exactly are you benefitting from this deal?"

Jack's eyebrows pinch together like I should know exactly what he's alluding to. "With all the technical pointers he's been giving me, stick handling, checking. He's even helped me up my speed across the ice."

I hold up a hand and shake my head. "What?"

He chuckles. "You mean you didn't know?"

I continue to shake my head and blow out a semi-exasperated breath. "Know what?"

"For the last few weeks, he's been coming to help the team with some coaching. After all, we are the local division one side. He's been paying special attention to my training needs though, walking me through plays, etc." Jack stares off in awe. "Playing with him is something else; it's like the stick is an extension of his arm or something."

"That's, um, that's really good of him," I squeak out, totally dumbfounded by what I've just heard.

Jon has been traveling to Seattle University to help my son improve his game and pursue his dream. My mind travels back to that evening at his apartment, when I was sitting at his kitchen counter as he made me a Cosmo, something he'd gone out and got the ingredients especially for. He listened to me talk about Jack's hockey career and how his stickhandling was behind his skating and footwork. He listened, took it all in, and then he acted on it, taking it upon himself to help. He wasn't looking for praise or recognition; he just went about helping Jack be the best player he can be.

Emotion threatens to overwhelm me, and I turn to stare out of the window as we take off and head into the night sky. All I want to do is get off this plane, race to Jon's apartment, and tell him how incredible he really is, even if I know he'll never believe it.