Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

S ophia and Jasmine stayed in the room Sophia had been given again. Jumper was in the apartment across the way, which Jasmine had discovered was his. She wasn't blind or oblivious to the type of women who came around the motorcycle club. As a town local, she was aware of who the Honeys were, as well as the fact that they weren't just housekeepers and cooks for the club. It brought her a bit of comfort knowing that Jumper's bedroom at the clubhouse was so rarely used that he had nothing personal in it.

Jasmine wasn't sure how the other women handled the knowledge of the Honeys' involvement with the club members. She certainly would have some opinions if Jumper had frequently slept with those women. Those type of women.

She tried not to judge others' lifestyles, but it was difficult to keep the scowl off of her face when she'd seen the Honeys in the clubhouse earlier. Jumper had informed Jasmine and Sophia that the club no longer held open parties—where the public partied with the club—at the clubhouse. He said that it was voted months ago that due to the increased number of children and families living on club property, that they didn't want those type of parties here. All of the parties were now held at Demon's .

Jumper had offered to take the puppies overnight, but Jasmine had said they could handle the feedings. Sophia grumbled each time they had to get up. Despite being in separate rooms, Jumper still came over during the two nightly feeds to help. Jasmine and he sat on the floor next to each other with three puppies between them and Sophia remained on the bed, half-asleep, cuddling her puppy. The female Sophia had was pretty attached to her, and Jasmine thought that perhaps Sophia might keep her. She didn't know what would happen with the other three puppies once they were older and healthier, but she knew she'd keep them all until she was sure they were living good lives with good families.

The next morning, Jasmine was packing up the puppies to take them to the clinic with her when her phone rang. She saw it was Carlos, and her stomach dropped.

"Hello?"

"Jazz, are you still at the clubhouse?"

That sinking feeling intensified. "Yes. Why, what happened?"

"I'm outside the clinic. It… I need access to your security cameras."

"We're on our way," she told him. Jasmine put her phone between her shoulder and ear to free up her second hand. "What happened?" she repeated as she got the last puppy in the carrier. Depending on what Carlos said, she was debating on leaving them behind, but she didn't have anyone to watch over them.

"Is Jumper or Bulldog there?"

Jasmine poked her head out of the bedroom to see an empty hallway. "I haven't seen Bulldog yet this morning. Jumper's outside with Aerial. Carlos, what's going on?"

Just then a door down the hall opened and Ghost stepped out. He was dressed in a pair of low riding gray sweatpants…and nothing else. Jasmine was pretty sure her eyes went wide as her cheeks blazed. The ginger man was ripped . He even had that defined V that went from his hips to his groin.

He gave her a coy smile as he approached, but his eyes were serious as he asked, "What's going on?"

"Is that Ghost?" Carlos asked over the phone.

Jasmine tried to find her tongue. She was very aware that she was in love with Jumper, but damn. She also wasn't blind.

Ghost took the phone from her hand and put it up to his ear. "This is Ghost." Whatever Carlos said to him made Ghost frown, all coyness leaving his face. She knew that, like Jumper, he was also a former SEAL. She could understand it now. At the bar, he was always such a flirt, seemingly carefree. The sudden hardness to him, she could understand why he'd been promoted to Enforcer.

He pulled his own phone out of his pocket. "We'll be right there." Ghost hung up her phone with one hand while texting on his own phone with the other. He handed her phone back to Jasmine. "Let's go."

She stared after him, still shocked. What just happened?

Jasmine rode on the back of Jumper's Indian while Aerial rode in her sidecar. The puppies were secure at the foot of the sidecar with a blanket over the carrier.

They did not ride alone. Ghost—now dressed—Bulldog, and Lucky rode with them. All of them wore their cuts, and none of them looked happy.

The clinic was scheduled to open at eight; Jasmine was usually the first one in at seven. Amanda had been out jogging for her predawn workout. When she went past the clinic, she found a horrific scene and called the police.

Though she thought she'd known what to expect, Jasmine felt her heart break at the sight of her clinic.

There were three police cruisers in her parking lot with their flashing lights on. Townspeople were gathered around in various states of dress, from pajamas and robes to rumpled day-old clothing to business casual. She saw two deputies, Bert Anderson and Scott Pan, keeping the bystanders back. They cleared a path so the motorcycles could pull slowly into the parking lot.

Amanda, in running clothes, was standing by the entrance with Sheriff Hannigan and Carlos. She looked as distraught as Jasmine felt.

As soon as Jumper parked, Jasmine hopped off. Removing her helmet, she rushed over to Amanda. The two women hugged, fighting back tears.

Behind them, the Mount Grove Veterinary Clinic stood damaged and vandalized. Every window and door was broken, littering the floor, sidewalk, and grass with glass. What looked like blood splattered what remained of the entryway. Based on the lingering scent of aerosol in the air, though, Jasmine guessed it was actually red spray paint.

Jumper caught her arm as she made to step forward. His eyes stressed caution. Jasmine gave him a sad smile before continuing onto the sidewalk outside where the glass doors stood.

The front counter was destroyed. Probably by a baseball bat or the like. The reception computer and printer were in pieces. The filing cabinets' locks had been broken into and patient files were strewn about. The items in the small store she kept with dog and cat toys, prescription food brands, leashes, and such were everywhere. The shelves themselves were smashed down the middle. Her community board with announcements and sales hung at an angle with all the papers ripped and torn on the floor below.

Worst of all, though, was the decapitated doe head left purposefully in the middle of the room on her welcome mat. Its dead eyes stared at her accusingly.

Strong arms circled around her from behind as Jasmine started to sink to the ground in despair.

Jumper kept a tight hold on Jasmine. After her breakdown at the sight of her clinic, Jumper brought her over to his Indian for her to sit. Someone handed her a bottle of water, for which she was grateful for.

Carlos had her phone and was standing off to the side going through her security footage. Danny stood next to Carlos taking notes.

Sheriff Hannigan stood before Jasmine and Jumper. The older man stood in uniform with his wide-brimmed hat on his head. He'd taken off his sunglasses, which now hung from his left pocket. His gun and badge hung on his right hip.

Jumper had mixed feelings regarding the sheriff. He tried to think about what he would have done in the sheriff's shoes if his son came to him with gambling debts and the man his son owed money to was threatening to enslave his wife, daughter, and daughter-in-law unless he complied.

In a moment of epiphany, Jumper realized that he couldn't compare himself to the sheriff, because he'd never be in the sheriff's shoes.

The sheriff had been alone, struck between a rock and a hard place as a train came barreling towards him. Jumper would never be in that position—not anymore, anyway. Not since he'd joined the VDMC. No matter what came his way in the future, Jumper would never be alone facing it.

Glancing down at Jasmine as she worked to wipe her tears away with tissues, Jumper realized something profound.

He wasn't alone. He wasn't an island of one as his mind had been trying to convince him of since he'd been buried alive under that building. He hadn't even been alone then either.

He wasn't alone now.

He was a founding member of the Via Daemonia Motorcycle Club, an Original, for six years. The VDMC was all about family and loyalty. They lived, breathed, and died brotherhood. Yet, Jumper hadn't felt it before this moment.

No matter what the future held—a future he desperately hoped included the beautiful, vibrant woman in his arms—he wouldn't face it alone. He could lean on them.

His eyes landed on Bulldog, Ghost, and Lucky, who were by the entrance of the clinic examining the damage. With the sheriff's permission, the deer head had already been removed.

In addition to Gus, Jumper had brothers who cared for him and had his back. If something happened to him, they would take care of Jasmine. Brotherhood. Family.

Dr. Rutenberg would be proud of him, if he could hear what was going through Jumper's mind just then. Might even go as far as to call it a breakthrough.

Though only seconds had passed, Jumper felt lighter than he had in a long time. He wasn't the sheriff and he could never guess how he would react in the sheriff's shoes because he would never be in the sheriff's shoes.

Though she was mid-sentence, explaining to the sheriff how she didn't have alarms on the exterior of the building and only on the back room where the drugs were kept, Jumper turned Jasmine's face towards him with a hand on her chin. He saw the confusion on her face before he dipped his head down to claim her lips.

Before the bystanders, town, and his brothers, Jumper claimed her . She'd be his ol' lady one day. Not today. He might have had a breakthrough, but he wasn't ready for that yet. But he knew she would be. That knowledge, that assuredness, empowered him in a way that Jumper hadn't felt in a very long time.

All because of this sexy, curvy blonde who stole his breath and heart. Jasmine was his—and now everyone else knew it too.

Even through her grief, Jasmine could sense something was different about Jumper. He seemed lighter, his shoulders not hunched so much. His public kiss had been out of character, but completely appreciated on her part.

She didn't know Sheriff Hannigan well. When he first came to town over a year ago, he'd stopped by her clinic to introduce himself. She'd gotten a weird feeling from that meeting, though. He was questioning her about the Via Daemonia , and not in a good way. Like he had been trying to get her to say something bad about the club. Even if she hadn't been secretly in love with Jumper, the VDMC had never done anything for her to need to lie to the sheriff to protect them. Still, the meeting had left her with an uncomfortable feeling regarding the sheriff.

Looking between the sheriff and Jumper now, as well as how Bulldog, Ghost, and Lucky interacted with him, she definitely picked up on some tension. Even Lucky, who was the man's son-in-law and the father of his new grandson. Jasmine wondered if perhaps the sheriff didn't like that his twenty-something daughter had married a forty-something man.

Jasmine knew that the VDMC had rescued the sheriff last August when a criminal had followed Sheriff Hannigan from Detroit. She remembered reading the news article, but honestly hadn't paid much attention to the details after she'd found out that Jumper had not been there, nor had he been harmed. The sheriff had spent several weeks in the hospital and then had been out on medical leave through the holidays. Jasmine knew other business owners like herself who had been relieved the man was all right, but also preferred the months when Carlos had been acting sheriff.

She personally had nothing against the sheriff—other than the fact that he wasn't local. Carlos was. He was born and bred in Mount Grove. There was very little that Carlos didn't know about this town or its people. She knew that she wasn't the only one who was hoping Carlos would be running against the sheriff at the upcoming election.

The surveillance footage proved that it was the McCrery brothers who had vandalized her clinic. Jumper was taking the decapitated doe's head as a threat against her life. They were either smart enough or lucky enough to not touch her backroom where all her security alarms were set up. The front room had cameras but no alarms. She always assumed if someone was going to break into her clinic that it would be drugs that they were after. Needing to keep her bill to the security company down, but also appease insurance, the room with the prescriptions and medical equipment was the only one with an active alarm.

Jasmine still had no answer for the VDMC or the sheriff when asked why the McCrery brothers were after her and Sophia. Bulldog had already sent two members to Sophia's parents' house to watch over her there too. Additionally, at the confrontation the McCrery brothers had with Jumper the day before, they had claimed Jasmine had taken something of theirs that they wanted back. While the VDMC knew about the puppies she'd taken, Jasmine did not believe they were what the McCrery brothers were referring to since they'd been about to kill the puppies.

It had something to do with that body—the one that Jasmine hadn't even known was there.

She wondered if they'd identified him yet. She felt sorry for him, whoever he was.

As she was finishing up with the sheriff, other members came rolling into the clinic's parking lot. Steel was in the front, along with Demo, Pirate, and Ranger. Steel, Demo, and Ranger went toward Bulldog, Lucky, and Ghost. Pirate headed towards Jasmine and Jumper.

He nodded once to the sheriff before clasping Jumper on the shoulder. He leaned over and placed a brotherly kiss on Jasmine's cheek. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart. Are you okay?"

Jasmine shrugged. "Cleanup is going to be a bitch."

Pirate chuckled. "No doubt, but you've got us to help."

"Do you mind taking Jasmine and Aerial back to the clubhouse?" Jumper asked his brother. "I'm going to stick around here and see what else can be done."

Both Jasmine and Pirate looked at Jumper in surprise. Pirate shook it off first, though. He nodded, "Of course." The brothers swapped keys. "Take care of my baby." She assumed Pirate was referring to his shiny black Harley-Davidson .

Jumper indicated towards Jasmine. "You too."

Jasmine spent the day on the phone with her security company, insurance, and other vets in the area. Amanda and Devin were escorted into the clubhouse by a prospect named Mitch, who was older than Jasmine had been picturing when Pirate had told her that a prospect was bringing them. She wondered what Mitch's story was, but was too busy trying to fix her livelihood to stop and ask.

Thankfully, Amanda had all of their passwords memorized and was able to access their appointment calendar, as well as their online patient files, from the laptop Keys provided for them. Jasmine called it a loan, but Keys called it a gift. Amanda and Devin worked together to notify their clients about the vandalism. Some patients agreed to a home visit from Jasmine while others were referred to the veterinary clinics within an hour's radius that had agreed to temporarily take on Jasmine's patients. Home visits would need to wait another couple of days to start, as Jasmine needed to get into the back room of her clinic to stock up on what she needed for those visits.

It warmed Jasmine's heart how sympathetic and sorrowful her fellow townspeople were. Very few blamed her and only one man was upset about his dog's neutering being delayed. Many asked how they could help and Mrs. Downing even offered to put together a fundraiser to help raise money for the reconstruction costs insurance didn't cover.

Keys came out to help them. Pirate offered to also assist, but ended up wasting twenty minutes flirting with Amanda, so Jasmine sent him on a coffee and donut run. She was aware she was stress eating and, frankly, didn't care.

The three prospects, Mitch, Sara, and Will, were assigned to the puppies. While Jasmine still kept an eye on them, it was a relief to not have to stop her work to feed or cleanup after them. She was sure Scotty and the other club kids would take over in the afternoon when they were out of school.

When her insurance company claimed that they couldn't do anything without a police report number, which Jasmine had forgotten to get from the sheriff, Keys had somehow gotten it within seconds and handed it over to her without Jasmine having to hang up and call her insurance company back. She could have kissed the man for that.

After they'd devoured the coffee and donuts, Pirate went out for pizza. Jasmine really wanted to ask him to bring some wine back too, but bit her tongue. Though Jumper had assured her that she could drink around him, Jasmine didn't want to make anything hard on him. Plus, it probably wasn't a good idea to start drinking at eleven-thirty in the morning.

Keys handed Jasmine a piece of paper. Her eyes were a bit cross-eyed at this point and it took her a second to focus on what the paper said. She looked up at Keys in confusion. "I don't understand."

"This is my proposal to you," he explained. Keys was young, early twenties, and he was probably the smartest person Jasmine had ever met. She was pretty sure the man had been Navy Intelligence, which was beyond impressive. "I run my own security company. It's not massive and I'm the only employee, but I've been thinking of expanding. Right now, if an alarm went off, the club would be there to investigate. If or when I expand, I might have some employees outside of the club. Regardless, I'd like to take over the security on your clinic."

Jasmine glanced down at the paper again. "This is very generous but I can't take advantage of?—"

"You're not," he insisted. "This would actually be helping me. Right now, the only businesses I can claim under my banner are owned or operated by club members. This would allow me to start to expand without cold calling businesses around town."

She got what he was saying, but still… "Keys, you're offering me a rate way under what I'm currently paying with double the security measures."

Keys gave her a wide smile. "Consider it a future ol' lady discount."

Jasmine felt her cheeks blush. She handed the piece of paper back to him. "I will only agree to this if you charge me the same as I'm paying now."

He scowled. "Jazz…"

"I'm serious," she said sternly. "I'm all for increasing security after this morning but not if it hurts your bottom line." She grabbed his hand. "Please."

Though he didn't look happy about it, Keys nodded. "Fine."

Jasmine squeezed his hand. "Thank you."

Pirate went back out after he'd dropped off the stack of pizzas. He said that the club had salvaged what paperwork they could and had boxes of unorganized patient files ready for her. Pirate was taking one of the VDMC SUVs to go pick the boxes up. About two hours later, a roar of motorcycles came down the road. Jasmine let out a sigh of relief. She desperately needed to feel Jumper's arms around her.

More members than she remembered seeing at the clinic came through the double doors of the clubhouse. Looking around her, she realized that Amanda, Devin, Keys, and she had basically taken over the main area and there weren't that many places to sit after her patient files had been delivered. Amanda and Devin were trying to put the files back together, as well as make notes for what was missing from each file.

She walked up to Steel, who was the first through the door. "I'm sorry for the mess."

Though she didn't know Steel all that well, he wrapped her into his arms and laid a fatherly kiss on her head. "It is no trouble at all, Jasmine. Whatever you need, the club is here for you."

Jasmine felt her eyes tear up again.

Steel passed her off to Jumper. She didn't have to open her eyes to know it was him. The scent of his aftershave and the feel of his arms around her told her without needing to. Her arms slid under his leather cut, pressing her face into his chest. He ran his hand through her blonde hair, which she'd long ago let down from the ponytail she'd been wearing that morning when she'd anticipated a normal work day. It felt good, though just being in his arms felt better.

"We cleaned up as best we could," he told her softly in her ear. "There's still a lot to be done. The club's construction company came over and boarded up the windows and doors. I'll have the prospects sit outside until everything's cleaned and fixed."

Jasmine nodded against his shirt.

He rubbed his hands up and down her back soothingly. "Are you up to talking with us?"

All Jasmine wanted to do was take a nap, preferably in Jumper's arms, but the club had helped her out a lot today. She squared her shoulders and stood up off of Jumper. "Yeah." When that didn't sound convincing, she cleared her throat and met his eyes. "I mean, yes."

He didn't look convinced. Jumper's eyes narrowed. "You don't have to right now if you're not up to it."

"I am," she insisted. "But I'm probably going to go lay down after this." She fingered the seam of his cut. "Maybe you could lay down with me?"

His gaze hardened. "We'll see." He seemed to strain over the words.

Jasmine was surprised by his indecision and chose not to comment on it. Jumper led her towards the stairs, but not up them. To the left were two large offices that Jasmine hadn't been in before. One door was locked with Treasurer written on the door with the Via Daemonia logo. The door that was open said President .

Inside was a large wooden desk with a filing cabinet. Steel sat in a gray office chair facing the door. Lucky and Bulldog were behind him, leaning up against the wall. Lucky had baby Conner strapped to his chest. If it wasn't for the baby, the three men would have looked quite intimidating. Jasmine wondered if Lucky had gotten Conner for that purpose.

Jumper led Jasmine to the two smaller chairs facing the desk. He closed the door behind them. Jasmine sat stiffly, feeling like she'd been called into the principal's office. This was different than when she'd walked into their Church meeting. Steel, Lucky, and Bulldog were the three highest ranking members. The club didn't do anything without their approval. While Jumper, Demo, Bear, and Ghost were also officers, they didn't have the authority that these three members did—unless it came to their specific job.

Jasmine beat Steel to the punch when he'd opened his mouth to speak. "Thank you," she rushed to say. "I'm sorry for being such an inconvenience to the club, but I truly do appreciate your help and allowing Sophia and me to stay here."

Sophia had opted to remain at her parents' house that day with the two members Bulldog had sent to guard her. She was trying to talk her dad out of hiring her a personal bodyguard or from moving her back into the main house. She and Jasmine had been texting on and off all day, with Sophia offering to come at a moment's notice if Jasmine needed her to.

Though Steel didn't look pleased to be interrupted, he covered it by assuring her, "You're important to Jumper, Jasmine, that means you're important to every patched member of this club. And you are not an inconvenience."

She knew he was lying because how could she not be at this point. "Please make sure I get a bill for the material Cage used and his employees' time. I can add it to my insurance claim," she added quickly when it looked like he was going to argue again.

Steel looked to Jumper. "Don't ever lose her."

Jumper gave his President a wide smile while taking Jasmine's hand. "Never."

Jasmine felt her cheeks heat again.

Steel placed his hands on the desk and laced his fingers together. "Jasmine, we're aware that you don't believe you took anything from?—"

"I didn't!"

He looked at her pointedly and Jasmine clamped her mouth shut like a scolded toddler. "I believe you. The issue is that the McCrery brothers clearly don't. There are a lot of places to hide in the mountains and farmlands of the area. Creating a manhunt for them isn't really feasible. Can you think of anything that would lead us to them or what they think you took?"

Jasmine shook her head. "I swear, I didn't even know the body was in the barn. I never looked in that last stall."

Steel looked to Jumper before back to her. He nodded. "I believe you," he repeated. "I suggest you remain here for the time being or stay at Jumper's apartment with him and Pirate."

"Sophia and I would rather stay here, if that's okay."

"It is."

"Has the body been identified yet?" she asked him. Maybe the identity of the victim could shed some light on the situation.

Steel shook his head. "Unfortunately, the body's features were distorted beyond recognition. They're waiting on DNA records now as well as dental."

"Distorted?" She didn't want to know, but also had to ask.

"The victim was beaten with enough force to change the bone structure of his face," Steel said calmly.

"And it's a he?" Steel nodded once. Jasmine felt sorry for him—whoever he was. "I'm sorry I can't be of more help."

"We'll get to the bottom of this," he promised her, "and keep you safe in the process."

Jasmine was expecting Jumper to lead her back to the room she'd been sharing with Sophia. Despite his noncommittal comment earlier, she had not gotten her hopes up. She did now. Her heart beat picked up as he brought her inside his club apartment, closing the door behind them.

She stared at the bed for a long second before she turned to face him. He didn't look worried or fearful. There was a heat in his gaze that made her entire body tingle.

Jumper raised a hand to cup her cheek. Jasmine turned her face into his palm, loving that he was the first to make a move. "I'm so sorry about your clinic." His voice was low and grumbly. It did funny things to her insides and dampened her panties. "I will protect you, Jazz. I swear it."

She turned her face slightly to press her lip against the pulse point in his wrist. "I never doubted that you would, Jumper."

The pad of his thumb ran across her cheekbone. "You're the most important person in my world, Jasmine Sharpe. More than my parents, my brother, and especially my ex. It's you. It'll always be you."

Jasmine felt like her heart was about to expand out of her ribcage. "I feel the same way." She blinked, and a tear fell from her eye.

"I want to make love to you."

She nodded desperately. "I want that too."

"I'm feeling…more confident about the results than I have in a long time."

She didn't want to dwell on his confession, but also wanted to acknowledge it. "Whatever happens is between us, Jumper. I don't want you to feel any pressure."

He nodded slowly. "My head feels clearer than it has in a long time." With the hand that wasn't cupping her face, he slipped a finger under her shirt and started playing with the hem. "Just in case, though, I left the door unlocked."

Jasmine bit her lip. She wasn't sure how she felt about anyone being able to walk in on them and wondered if it would be juvenile to put a sock on the door so the others knew not to disturb them. "How about a compromise? We lock the door but leave a key outside so anyone can get in if something happens."

Jumper took a moment to mull that over in his head. "I can do that." He bent down to press a gentle kiss to her lips. "Get comfortable. I'll be right back."

As soon as he left the room, Jasmine did a little happy dance. Not just for her and what they were about to do, but the fact that Jumper was admittedly feeling better. She knew she couldn't take all the credit for that—yet she hoped she had a big part in it.

Not wanting him to come back and her having not moved, Jasmine slipped her shoes and socks off. She pulled the covers down and then had a quick debate in her head about how undressed she should get. After a glance at the closed door, Jasmine shed all of her clothes, including her underwear and bra. She hurried under the sheets so she was covered when he opened the door to enter again.

Her hurried actions were followed by several nerve-wracking minutes of waiting. When he finally came in, Jumper paused upon seeing her in bed. Her bare shoulders told him that, at the very least, she wasn't wearing a shirt or bra anymore. His eyes dilated with desire.

Jumper closed and locked the door. He reached behind his head and tugged his shirt off in one swift motion. Jasmine's breath hitched at the way the motion made his muscles bulge. As he neared, she noticed his muscles weren't the only thing bulging.

He loosened and toed off his boots without breaking eye contact. Crawling onto the bed, he encased her between his hands and knees. She loved how much bigger than her he was.

Without saying a word, Jumper dropped his head. He nuzzled the crook of her neck, licking and nipping at her skin, as one of his hands gripped the blankets covering her and lowered them to her belly. The feel of his mouth on her was distracting enough to make her forget to be self-conscious. The only time they'd had sex, it had been fast and there hadn't been that much looking . She instinctively knew that this time would be much slower, more intimate. He claimed she was beautiful, but he also hadn't seen her completely unclothed before. Or at least, not long enough to study her body.

Jumper sat up slightly. His eyes traveled from her face to her uncovered breasts in open hunger. Jasmine had always had larger than average boobs. She was a DD with areolas the size of a half dollar coin.

He dipped his head, and Jasmine released the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. He took her right nipple into his mouth. Jasmine's back arched, her hands wrapping around his broad shoulders. Her nails pressed into his skin. A shiver of pleasure coursed through her at his tongue's ministrations.

Jasmine's fingers tangled into his hair. His right hand went to her other nipple, tweaking it so sharply that she let out a gasp of shock. Jumper was still wearing his jeans. As he swapped nipples between his hands and mouth, Jasmine's hand journeyed down the hard ridge of his back and under the loose band of his jeans. She squeezed his butt cheek.

Even with his jeans and the blankets between them, Jasmine could feel the hard curve of his erection against her. She hoped for his sake that he didn't get lost in his own head and lose it. She wanted this experience to be as good for him as he was making it for her.

Jumper's mouth released her nipple with a loud pop , but his lips and tongue never left her skin. He continued his journey south. He pushed the blankets the rest of the way down, and Jasmine could have sworn she heard a hitch in his breath as soon as he realized she was completely naked.

He looked up at her from his place by her bellybutton. "So wet for me." He shifted his weight to one side, taking the pointer finger of his other hand to run through the glistening curls covering her labia. "I didn't get to taste you the last time we did this." He pressed his lips to the skin of her soft belly. "Such a crime."

Jasmine's breath turned ragged.

Jumper moved her hips wider, fitting himself between her thick thighs. His hot breath touched her exposed center and Jasmine shivered. He turned his head to the left, nipping at her right thigh. Her hips raised up, as if begging for attention.

"Fucking beautiful," he uttered before pressing his mouth against her slit.

Jasmine yelped, her hips bucking off of the bed. "Oh!"

He sucked and licked. In an effort to get closer to her, Jumper lifted her right leg and placed it over his shoulder. Waves of ecstasy surged through her. Her hands fisted into the hair at the back of his head.

She groaned, her thighs tightening around his head.

"Look at me."

Jasmine's eyes flew open at his sharp command. She obeyed without question, her gaze traveling down her naked body to meet his eyes.

Holding her gaze, Jumper licked her clit, slow and deliberate. Jasmine felt her insides tighten around nothing. Her body was on fire. Without breaking her stare, Jumper inserted two fingers into her.

"Holy fuck!" she cried out. At no point did it occur to her that the clubhouse walls were not soundproofed. "Jumper!"

Her inner muscles clenched around his fingers as he fucked her with them. All the while, he placed his mouth over her clit and sucked. Hard.

Euphoria erupted within her—and Jasmine saw stars.

Jumper felt like a possessive, greedy caveman. His woman was completely blissed out beneath him, and he hadn't even gotten inside her yet. He loved how open and responsive she was to his touches.

He sat up. His cock was about to burst through his jeans, he was so hard for her. There was nothing sexy about feeling the teeth of his zipper pressing painfully against his hardness. The fact that he was staying erect was equally surprising and exhilarating for him.

As he stood to shed his jeans, he watched Jasmine slowly come down from her orgasm. Her breasts rose and fell with her heavy breathing. Taking himself in hand, Jumper stood at the foot of the bed, watching. She was utterly breathtaking in everyday life. Naked and spread out for him in his bed? Fuck. There were no words. She was spectacular.

Still rubbing his hand up and down his hard cock, Jumper spoke. "I'm going to marry you one day, Jasmine." Gasping, her eyes flew to his. "You heard me right," he told her. "I'm not asking you today or even tomorrow. Just know I plan on making you completely mine. Heart, body, and soul."

Jasmine swallowed audibly before saying in a low, sensuous voice, "I already am."

Jumper crawled onto the mattress. "Are you still comfortable making love without a condom?"

She nodded. "As long as you are."

Fuck yeah, he was. Jumper ducked to kiss her. She widened her legs as he centered his hips between the cradle of her thighs. The head of his dick lined up with her entrance and he felt her shudder below him.

She groaned out his name as he started to press forward. Fuck if that sound didn't make him nearly blow his load like a teenager.

He worked his hips, pushing inside her. He felt her tense below him, and he paused. "Jazz?"

She nodded frantically. "I'm okay. Keep going."

Jumper pressed a light kiss to her jawline. He withdrew nearly to the head of his cock before pressing in further. Her hands moved from his shoulders to his back. Wanting to increase her pleasure, he slid a hand between them. His fingers found her clit and started to rub against her.

Jasmine's hips bucked. "More," she pleaded. It was nearly a whine.

However, Jumper was in no hurry. He slowly withdrew and pressed in again. A shiver wracked her entire body. Jumper claimed her lips again. He loved her taste, sweet with a hint of the strawberry lemonade she'd been drinking earlier.

The feel of her hot flesh around his hardness was intoxicating. He wanted to stay buried inside of her for the rest of his life.

He maintained his unhurried pace until he was buried to the hilt inside her. Jasmine shuddered against him. Jumper released her lips, needing air, but unable to remain separated from her. He trailed kisses along her cheek, nuzzling her ear.

He mouthed the words, "I love you," but didn't add his voice.

As if she still heard him, Jasmine's fingers on his back tightened. He felt her nails scrape against his skin.

"Jumper, please," she begged. "I need…"

"I know what you need," he assured her. He rolled his hips and she moaned. "You're so fucking perfect."

He lifted himself up slightly, needing to remain close as well as needing room to move. He started a slow rhythm of thrusts before picking up his pace. She moved with him, encouraging and partaking. Needing to be as far inside her as he could, he hiked her right leg over his hip. Jumper ground his pelvis against her.

A cry escaped Jasmine's lips and he saw her eyes roll.

He didn't realize how much he'd missed sex. Making love to Jasmine was far different than it had been with Molly or the other women he'd had throughout his teens and early twenties. All in all, there was no comparison. Jasmine was so different, so much better. There was an emotional closeness during sex with Jasmine that he'd never experienced before, even with his ex-wife. He craved Jasmine as he'd once craved the oblivion alcohol mixed with prescriptions could bring him.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what the difference was. Jumper loved Jasmine, in a way he'd never loved Molly or his other past lovers. Jasmine was pure and sweet. There wasn't a manipulative bone in her body, and she couldn't lie to save her life. The deep connection he felt with Jasmine was fundamentally altering.

He could see it. The life he wanted with Jasmine. It was so clear, it was difficult to believe it wasn't a memory.

Jumper wanted it all. The house, the dogs… Maybe even kids. There was a lot he had to still work through. He wasn't cured by any means by his epiphany earlier.

As they both reached orgasm, shared pleasure coursing through them, Jumper felt at peace for the first time in over a decade.