18. Jace

EIGHTEEN

JACE

We left the pizza place and I took her back to my house. I needed to have her in my home, in my bed . It was great being at her house after the Christmas dance, but there was something about having my woman in my space that I needed to have happen.

"Do you want to watch a movie?" I ask her when we get back to my place. She wanders around looking at the pictures I have of my family on the mantle and the awards I received in the junior fire department.

"You were a fireman in high school?" she questions me.

"It's a junior program that the school offers. It gave us a chance to see the inner workings of a fire department and determine if we really wanted to put the work in."

"And you were all in, right?"

"You know I was." I plug in the Christmas tree so the lights glow in the room and turn down the overhead lighting. Then I sit on my couch, arms spread across the top while I admire her standing in front of me. Leggings and that Cakeology shirt show off her curves and have me itching to touch her.

Most outstanding

Rookie of the Yea r

Junior Fireman of the Year

"Wow, Jace." She spins to face me. "Looks like I've got a hero in my sights." She hums the tune to Holding out for a Hero by Bonnie Tyler and I chuckle. She looks inquisitive at me. "How do you know all these songs I sing? You're a champion at Name That Tune, too?" She walks closer, before straddling my lap and running her hands through my hair. My fists clench as I do my best to keep my arms on top of the couch.

"My parents are big on playing music in the house. We had everything from seventies disco to DMX playing while I was growing up."

"That sounds amazing. I can rap, too, just so you know." She snickers and grinds down on my lap and I choke out a moan. "Are you okay, Jace? Is there something you need?" she asks innocently, but she's the farthest thing from innocent right now.

"I need you ."

Her eyes that were trailing her fingers along my shoulders lock with mine. "I love hearing you say that." She leans in, kissing me softly and I finally relent and lay my hands on her, stroking her sides before gathering her shirt and slipping my hands under it to touch her skin.

"Mm." She moans against my lips as I run my hands over her ass squeezing as I go. "I love when you touch me."

"I love touching you."

She giggles at my simple explanation. "Don't let me stop you." She pulls her t-shirt over her head and drops it on the floor. My breath leaves me on a rush because she's just so damn gorgeous, and my hands automatically grab hold of her tits.

"I feel like this is a dream, that you're not really real."

"Oh, they're real," she snorts.

"Believe me, I know." I pinch her nipples at her sass and she sighs at my touch. "I just mean, you moving here, us meeting." I shrug. "I'm not sure how to explain it, but it's like we knew we needed each other from that first look."

She smiles and tangles her fingers with mine. "I know exactly what you mean." She begins to rock her hips, guiding herself over my cock which has been hard since I sat down. Her sly smile turns me on and I stand, still holding her in one swift move. She lets out a yelp at the sudden disruption but sighs when I place her back on the couch and I settle between her legs. I pull at her leggings, taking them and her panties off in one fell swoop.

I knead at her inner thighs and get in close, laying a kiss on her pussy. Her soft mewls begging for my touch grow louder as I edge my hands closer. With my thumb, I rub around her opening, dipping inside then spreading her wetness around her clit. Leaning in close, I replace my thumb with my tongue and flick her clit quickly before slowing my motion into slow circles.

"Jace! You're driving me crazy. I need more," she begs.

"You'll get it when I'm ready to give it to you."

She raises a brow. "I know you want to give it to me now."

"And how do you know that?" I suck her clit and reach for her breasts, pulling her bra down and flick her nipple in rhythm with my tongue.

"Because your cock was hard five minutes ago and your hands were clenched in fists when I sat on it."

"Hm. You'll sit on it again but first I need a taste." I dive into her pussy, spearing her with my tongue. She lets out a low moan and sinks further into the couch but not before unlatching her bra and tossing it. I reach up and grab hold of her breast while I continue working her into a frenzy. When her body gets rigid, I slow my movements. When I feel her relax again, I take her to that same height quickly, before stopping once again.

"Jace. I don't know how you know how to do that, but I'm warning you if you don't get me off this time, I'm going to play just as hard with you ."

I laugh at her ridiculous threat. "You act like I wouldn't enjoy you edging me." She pushes up on her elbows looking down at me with a raised brow while I rub small circles with my pointer finger around her clit again. "And I don't know what you think I know. All I know is what to do with you. I feel your body searching for something that only I can give. I just want to tease it a bit before I go all in." I give that sass she's been giving me all night long right back to her and her eyes flare.

She gives a playful smile before throwing her arms above her head and throwing herself back on the couch dramatically. "Give me what I need, Jace."

"With fucking pleasure," I growl out and latch onto her, sucking and nipping. She works her hips against my face and it only makes me burn hotter for her. I push my hips against the couch, trying to stay the orgasm that's building inside me. When I reach up and play with her nipple, she lets out a squeal and begins to convulse under me. "Yes, baby, come for me!" I lick her through her orgasm, never letting up until she's pushing me away from her. I chuckle as she pushes me one last time with her foot before dropping her leg and laying limp in front of me.

"We're not done yet, Poppy." I stand and her hooded eyes watch me undress for her. "You can lie there if you need to. I understand if your big talk about edging me can't happen now since I wore you out." Her lips twitch and she huffs a laugh.

"Lying here and letting you have your way with me actually sounds like a damn good idea," she replies snarkily but she tracks my movements around the room when I go in search for condoms.

When I come back with a new box that I bought yesterday morning, she gets up on her knees holding her hand out beckoning me closer. When I stand in front of her, she grabs the box from me, tearing it open and pulling one out before letting the box drop to the floor.

"Allow me?" She tears the wrapper with her teeth and grabs my cock with her hand. My eyes close at her soft touch while she rolls the condom on. She turns her back on me and leans against the back of the couch while looking at me over her shoulder. "I'm ready when you are." She shakes her ass and I smack it. The loud slap has her whimpering and when I slide inside her easily that whimper turns to a moan. She immediately grips the top of the couch and begins to push back on me with every thrust.

"Your ass is perfect, Poppy. You take me perfectly, I could watch this all night long." I drape myself over her back, holding onto her shoulder and driving myself into her harder. "Fuck, baby, you feel so good," I whisper into her ear and she shivers. "You're so tight. I want to do this every day with you."

Her head drops forward and I nibble the space between her shoulder and neck. Her cries of pleasure grow louder. I cup her breasts, caressing and squeezing as I get us both closer to the finish line. "I can't wait any more, come with me!" I massage her clit and she breaks. Her pussy begins to pulse and she takes me over the edge with her. I slowly rock into her, squeezing out every last tremor I can for both of us before collapsing onto the couch, cradling her into my side.

"You're fucking fantastic at that, Jace!" She's breathing heavily and I chuckle at her exuberance.

"I'm happy to be of service." I pull her closer against me. We lie quietly for a few moments and I feel more content than I have in a long time. "I'm really glad you're here, Poppy."

"Mm, me too." She wiggles against me and I give her a quick spank .

"I'm serious!" She giggles and turns over in my arms, facing me and I brush the hair from her beautiful face. "It feels really good to have found a woman who compliments me, yet keeps me on my toes. It's a relief to me that you respect my work and firefighting in general."

Her eyes take on a weird glimmer and she looks away from me. "I do respect it, Jace. And you. I think your compassion and selflessness make you a wonderful candidate. I know you're going to pass that test with flying colors. And you're going to be the best fireman Love Beach has ever seen."

I let her words wash over me and think about how lucky I am. "It's our first Christmas together. How should we celebrate?"

She kisses me quickly. "I love that you're so sentimental about things. It shows you care."

"Of course I care. This is important, you're important to me and I want you to know it." I don't want to say the "L" word because I don't want her to run but I need her to know I'm serious about us. "You caught me out of nowhere and took me by surprise but I can't wait to see what's next."

"Me too," she whispers. We lie close together and soon I feel her drift off to sleep. I quietly stand and carefully scoop her from the couch and walk us to my bedroom. I place her in my bed and slide in next to her, wanting her next to me each night now.

The next morning I wake early and go for a jog. I've never wanted to put a woman and firefighting in the same category but right now, they're my top two loves. I need to make sure I'm thinking clearly and I don't want her to feel she's a distraction but I also need to concentrate on my last ninety days in training.

When I return with two coffees, I find her still in bed. She's wrapped in a sheet, propped up with pillows behind her shaking a small bottle. The scene catches me off guard. She's stunning, natural and mine.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

I place the coffees on the side table and sit on the bed. "What are you doing?"

"I always carry nail polish with me. My toes are chipped and it's driving me crazy." She stops shaking the bottle and looks at me, covering her mouth. "Oh my god, I'm sorry. I'm sure the last thing you want is me doing this in your bed." She starts to scramble away but I hold her steady.

"Hey. Why are you running?"

"I'm acting like this is my place. I'm overstepping."

I cover her hand with mine, taking the bottle from her. "I want you to feel comfortable here and I'm glad that you do."

"Also, what twenty one year old has their own house?"

I snicker and move back down the bed to lay on my stomach. "This was my dad's love shack before he met my mom." She laughs out loud at me. "I'm serious. That's what he calls it. I think he means bachelor pad but he loves to annoy my mom by saying it."

"They sound like a great couple."

"They are. They have a great marriage. He's a joker and Mom's more serious. But it works for them." I shrug and twist off the cap. "I get my seriousness from her. I told you that she's big on manners so I was always taught the right way to do things by her." I pull her left foot close to me and balance the bottle in one hand.

"What are you doing?" She wiggles her toes.

"Hold still or we'll both be wearing this. "

"Are you seriously painting my toenails?" I tickle the bottom of her foot and she tries to pull away. "Jace!"

"Okay, okay, I know you're ticklish, I won't do that. But hold still and let me fix this for you."

She exhales. "You're a fixer, huh?"

"I told you. I want to do whatever I can to make life easier for others."

"You're a good man, Jace Sullivan."

We sit in comfortable silence while I slowly add the polish to her nails. The feeling in the room is intimate and I don't mind in the slightest that she's in my space. I want her in my space. This feels normal to me.

"So tell me what brought you here to Love Beach." Her body tenses at my question and I flick my eyes to her and back again to the job I'm doing.

"I had a little misunderstanding back home and it was just enough to push me into the change I needed. Plus when Marigold came here, I missed her like crazy. I needed to be close to her."

"What kind of misunderstanding?" I continue to paint her nails, hoping she'll let me in.

"Marigold's ex and I didn't see eye to eye."

"I heard about that guy. Such an asshole to cheat on a woman. Why didn't he just break up with her? The emotional damage is worse." I dip the brush into the bottle, swirling it around before adding more to her toes.

"I agree. I think because they were coined the town's favorite couple he felt stuck. Which is a shitty experience for anyone but he made it worse by doing what he did."

"So, him cheating on her made you want to leave, too?"

"Well, kind of. Once I came off of probation I realized I didn't belong there anymore." She says it in an offhand tone and my head rears back.

"Probation! What did you do?" I freeze with the little brush in my hand and look at her.

"You don't want to know." She waves her hands dismissively.

"No, I really do." I sit up now, capping the nail polish bottle and placing it on the bedside table.

"Like I said, just a little misunderstanding with the local department." She pulls the sheet tighter to herself.

"Which department?" I ask, hating where I think this is going.

"Um, the fire department."

"Poppy. Was this guy a fireman?"

"No, and it wasn't my fault!" she cries.

"Poppy," I repeat her name staring into her eyes.

"I'm serious. I was defending my cousin."

My eyes widen. "Tell me."

"When Marigold found out her ex was cheating I wanted to scare him. He always called me crazy so I wanted to show him what crazy really was. I set his front bushes on fire. It got a little out of control." She's looking everywhere but at me.

"Poppy! I can't believe you. Someone could have been hurt," I reply, outraged that this beautiful woman could do something so extreme.

"I know! I wasn't trying to hurt him. I just wanted him to see that he can't fuck with my cousin and get away with it." She sits up in bed, the sheet wrapped tight.

"Is this how you handle things? Do you always react without thinking?" I stand and walk around the room. This is where our differences come to the forefront.

"No!"

"You are a loose cannon."

"Don't call me that, Jace. I was upset for Marigold. It wasn't fair what he did to her. "

"You burned his house down! That's arson! I'm shocked you're even allowed out of the state," I yell at her. I don't want to, but I can't help it. Never in a million years would I think she would do something like this.

"Why are you yelling at me? It did not burn completely and arson is doing it intentionally. I didn't mean for it to get out of control."

"But that's you, isn't it? Always out of control."

"I was defending her," she says quietly.

"You could have killed someone. I knew you were wild but this is just insane." I stand in front of her, with my hands on my hips.

"I'm not crazy," she whispers.

"I didn't call you crazy, I said the act was." I pause when a new thought comes to mind. "Is dating me a joke to you?"

"Jace, no—" she cries out but I cut her off.

"It is, isn't it? Just another part to add to this story. What a headline! ‘Girl gets revenge on cousin's boyfriend by burning his house down, only to fall for a fireman!' How ironic! Does this get you off probation quicker? Am I your babysitter so you don't do it again?"

She scrambles from the bed taking the sheet with her and runs to the bathroom slamming the door. I walk out of the bedroom, my mind reeling and my adrenaline pumping. I'll be the laughingstock of the firehouse if this gets out. And what would it do for my test? Would they let me into the department if my girlfriend has a record?