fact that I was sure Jace knew very well. To him, this was no big deal, just another day in the life of a rock god.
To me? Not so much. Still, I was going to give myself a pass this one time. Extenuating circumstances and all that.
No, for me, the real issue wasn’t that it had happened but that I’d foolishly allowed my feelings to come into play. If it were just sex, I could accept that I’d given in during a moment of weakness, just like I had during last night’s dinner binge.
The difference was, I was going to miss the way Jace made me feel a hell of a lot more than I was going to miss quesadillas or orange chicken.
At some point between waking up in his arms this morning and picking up my phone a few minutes ago, I’d allowed some of the shields around my heart to soften. I’d let him in, soaking up his attention like a dry sponge. And Jace, he’d managed to make it feel as if it were more than just sex. As if he really cared for me.
I thought he did too, in a way. Beneath all that sex appeal was a genuinely nice guy.
But it wasn’t love.
It was only temporary.
And I had to remember that, no matter how loudly my heart insisted otherwise.
Fool me twice, shame on me.
Yet, even with that daunting chant in my head, I couldn’t bring myself to call what we’d done a mistake. Jace had given me a precious gift. For the first time in a very long time, I’d felt truly wanted. Desired. Almost ... cherished. Not as a mother or as his promoter, but as a woman.
I forced myself out of bed and planted my feet firmly on the floor, determined to keep the proper perspective. He followed suit. I could feel his heat at my back. The gentle touch of his hand on my upper arm nearly did me in.
“Eva? Do you regret this?”
“No,” I answered honestly. I turned to look into his eyes, shocked to see the hurt there.
The idea that he felt something more too tried to take root, but I wouldn’t allow it. Been there, done that, acquired the rights and made a killing. Yes, I knew that Jace was not Ian, but he had the same fire and passion in his soul, and rock-and-roll was a jealous lover. When the road and the music and the fame called him back, he would heed the call because he couldn’t not.
That didn’t mean I wanted to hurt him. It didn’t mean I would lie.
“I’m sorry, Jace. I didn’t mean to imply that. What you’ve given me ... well, I can’t begin to tell you how much it means to me.” Unable to resist, I stepped into him and wrapped my arms around his waist, laying my head against his chest. His body was still, yet I could feel his heart pounding frantically beneath my cheek as if he’d just run a marathon. “But believe me when I tell you that Ross will not understand.”
“Are you trying to tell me that he doesn’t mix business and pleasure?” Jace rumbled, gently stroking along my back. It felt so good that I wanted to rub myself against him and purr. “He always has a beautiful woman on his arm, and I’ve never seen him with the same one twice.”
“What he does and what I do are two very different things. What’s good for the gander is not always good for the goose, you know.”
“Sounds like a double standard.”
I placed soft kisses on his chest before gently pushing away. “Oh, it goes way beyond a double standard. Ross is more than just my boss, Jace. He’s family.”
Jace walked toward the bathroom, gloriously naked, dispelling every other thought from my mind in that moment. “You’re related?”
I had to force my eyes away from that perfect male backside but not before feeling a sense of satisfaction that it still bore my marks. Over the course of the day, I’d discovered that he liked it when I dug my nails into him in the throes of passion. I was happy to oblige. In fact, I’d discovered there was little I wouldn’t do to whip Jace Logan into a lusty frenzy.
“Not directly related, no. But Ross is Brian and Tommy’s uncle. When things didn’t work out between Ian and me, Ross assumed responsibility for us. He took me in, gave me a job and a place to live.