Twenty-two

Twenty-two

JACE

One accident, one possible diagnosis, and one letter demolished a relationship I spent four years building. Hannah was my first attempt to trust someone after my mother bailed. It turned out I opened myself up to be betrayed again. I took those shattered pieces of my life and picked them up one by one with my bare hands and buried them. When I piled the dirt on top, I made sure to pack it down tight. It was a barren space; nothing would ever grow there. It was dead. Or so I thought.

Two words.

One woman.

And my past has risen from the dead.

Hannah looks the same. Her long blond hair rests around her face like a golden halo. The blue of her eyes is still captivating, like tropical waters on a sunny day. And that tiny beauty mark just off the side of her mouth tries to tempt me to kiss it. But I don't want to kiss her, I don't want to touch her, or talk to her, or see her. I wish she'd disappear like she did when I needed her the most.

"How are you?" Hannah is saying, but it's the feel of Desi's fingers wrapping around mine that brings me back to earth.

I look down at our hands and then up at her, our gazes locking. The green in her eyes is blazing, and I can practically feel the heat of her anger from here. I swear she's trying to send me a message telepathically, and I'm pretty sure I know what she's saying.

Show her what she's missing.

I don't know how good I'll be at this—acting like I'm not on the verge of a panic attack, like I'm not still angrier than hell at this woman who wrecked me when I was already destroyed, but I'll try. I have to.

"Good. I'm doing really good. I'm about to lock down an investor for my business. Now I'm just taking my girl out after an afternoon at Dulton Ranch."

Hannah glances down at Desi for the first time, her eyelids lowering as she takes her in. "I used to love when we went to Dulton Ranch." It's a lie. Hannah hated going there. She thought it was childish and preferred upscale ski resorts. I don't get a chance to correct her. "I don't think we've met. I'm Hannah. Jace and I—"

"Were engaged to be married until you left him to recover alone in a hospital bed after a traumatic car accident. I know who you are." Desi doesn't hold back, letting her voice seep with venom. It's all I can do to not utter an Oooh, sick burn, under my breath.

Instead, I place my index finger over my mouth, hiding my amused grin. "Hannah, this is Desi, my girlfriend."

Desi flashes Hannah a saccharine sweet grin and props her elbow on the table, resting her chin in her palm, but never letting go of my hand. Whoever started the rumor that demons are evil might have been onto something. Desi shows no qualms about sticking it to my ex.

Hannah blinks, her wide eyes shifting from Desi to me before saying, "I—nice to meet you?"

"I don't think I can say the same," Desi replies, matching Hannah's chipper tone.

"Babe," I say, lifting my brow. At the rate Desi is going I'm going to have to spring for an attorney to represent her in Hannah's murder trial.

"I'm sorry," she says to me without even acknowledging Hannah's presence, and when she leans over the table and wraps her hand around the back of my neck, I feel every nerve ending in my body crackle to life. Her mouth brushes against my ear and the rest of her words slip past her lips for only me to hear. "I'm sorry you have to be subjected to her presence, Jace. Let me protect you."

I chuckle at that, like I can stop her. I'm sure Hannah thinks my girlfriend is whispering dirty promises. If only she knew that the stunning creature across from me was the future queen of Sloth offering to be my emotional bodyguard.

Hannah shifts from one foot to the other. "Well, I just wanted to check on you." She points behind her. "I'm actually here with my boyfriend, and he's waiting on me to order."

The guy across the restaurant looks familiar—good looking, blond, built . . . with his finger in his ear. He studies his menu and only stops when he sniffs whatever lingers on his fingertip. I scrunch my face in disgust and make a choking sound when it dawns on me.

"Is that Stoner Zack from college? The one from your biology study group who left you hanging with all the labs?" I ask.

"Yeah. Science isn't Zack's thing. He's learning his dad's business and is set to take over in the next few years. We just moved in together. It isn't as nice as our house was, but we'll get there."

Uh-oh. Desi's fingers tighten on mine, and I brace myself for whatever she's about to say. I don't even bother to try to stop her, because if I've learned anything by now, you can't stop a hurricane.

"Your house?" Desi says, incredulity creeping into her tone. "Oh, honey, I don't think you have a right to ever claim ownership of that house or anything related to Jace. You gave that up the minute you left your ring on the counter and ran like a coward while he was in a coma." She scoffs, the derision seeping from her tongue. "Our house. As if."

I tuck my lips between my teeth and bite down, fighting to regain my composure. I almost feel bad for Hannah. Almost.

"Desi is protective about the things we share. Naturally, she's left her mark on the home she and I have created." I brush my thumb over Desi's knuckles. We may be putting on a show, but that's true. My house is different because of her.

"I better get back to Zack. It was good to see you, Jace," Hannah says, pointedly ignoring Desi.

"You as well, Hannah. Tell Stoner Zack that he should get the situation with his ears checked out."

"Yeah," Hannah says, turning on her heel.

Desi snorts a laugh before turning in her chair and calling, "Nice to meet you too, Hannah!"

I sink into my seat and release a long, audible breath. "Shit."

Desi lets go of my hand to cover her face with her palms, and I immediately miss the feel of her skin against mine.

No. That's not—she was just a comforting presence in a time of high stress. That's all.

"I'm sorry if I was too harsh. You don't grow up with six brothers who are the embodiments of the other deadly sins, a father who is Chaos personified, and a mother who might be the most dramatic creature who ever existed without retaining a little piece of each of them," she says, her voice muffled behind her hands.

"You have nothing to apologize for. If I was as brave as you, I would have said all the things I was thinking. You held me together through that."

She spreads two fingers and looks at me through the space between. "You thought I was brave?"

"I think you are many things. All of them are good. I've grown to have an appreciation for even those flaws I listed earlier. But I admire your bravery the most."

She drops her hands and tilts her head to the side, studying me.

"You were amazing," she whispers, taking my hand and bringing my knuckles to her mouth and kissing them, casting a quick glance over her shoulder to see if Hannah is still looking—which she is. "She didn't even deserve one word from you, and you were so put together and mature."

"Thank you, Desideria."

"You're welcome."

"Do you mind if we ask for to-go containers and get out of here? Stoner Zack doesn't have the best table etiquette, and I'm ready to be alone with you again."

Desi doesn't answer me. She just waves at the server and tells them we're ready for our check. After a slight argument over who'll pay the bill, I win and we're walking hand in hand out the door. I don't miss the way Desi wiggles her fingers at Hannah as we pass, making a show of us leaving. Desi wasn't kidding about inheriting dramatics from her mother.

The ride home is quiet, with only music playing in the background, and my thoughts linger on Hannah for a short time before wandering to Desi. She stares out the window with her hand resting on the console between us. She wiggles her fingers every once in a while, like she's tempted to touch something. I'm tempted for her to touch something too. I miss how soft and warm her hand was inside of mine.

With a mental pep talk and several false starts, I find the courage to overcome something that terrifies me. I take Desi's hand and place it in the center of my thigh. She watches me with wide eyes as I press her hand down, wordlessly telling her not to move it before I grip the steering wheel again.

"Is this okay?" I ask.

"Yes," she whispers, palming my thigh and running her fingers along the seam of my joggers. "It's more than okay."

Keeping my eyes on the road, I shake my head and smile. "Behave yourself, Desideria. I'm driving and I tend to get turned on by the smallest things you do. Don't make me regret this."

She laughs and says, "All right, but this is the second time I've been stopped from turning you on today. Am I going to get a chance to try again when we get home or . . ." I'm not even looking at her, and I can see the little smirk that's crossing her lips right now.

"Don't worry. Your drawer of toys is on hiatus until further notice."