Take a Breath (Take #1) - Jaimie Roberts Page 0,77

again, and then stops. I’m about ready to explode from sheer agony.

“Because it was only you. It has always been you. Are you happy now?” I shout.

He pulls himself up to my ear and whispers, “Yes,” before carrying on his delicious brand of torture. This time, however, the intensity of his rubbing is tenfold, and I feel my climax building to new levels. Before I can even think straight, my mouth parts, and my back arches against him as I come apart, screaming his name as I do. My God, every time this man makes me come, I swear, it’s even more intense than the last.

Overcome, I rest my back on his chest and allow myself to simply feel the heavy rhythm of his beating heart as I try to calm down from my magnificent high.

I close my eyes on a contented sigh and lie there as my breathing calms. I snuggle up to him, and he starts to stroke my neck. All the troubles of the day, along with that dream, fade away. I can stay like this with Jake forever.

He is my forever.

“You know I won’t let anything happen to you, don’t you?”

I sigh, realizing I would give my life and soul to this man. “Yes, I know you won’t. I know.”

“And I will have a talk with Tom about what you said.”

All my calm disappears as my eyes shoot open, and I turn to face him. “No, you won’t. It doesn’t matter, does it? He certainly knows I’m not now. Besides, he’ll know that I told you, and I don’t want any bad air between us. I have to work with the guy.”

He looks deeply into my eyes. “I just don’t like that people are talking shit behind your back. I hate people like that. Tom sometimes needs to be reined in. I already had to do it once when he followed you in the mall a couple of weeks back.”

My eyes widen. “You didn’t!”

Jake nods with a frown. “Of course I did. I wasn’t going to let any asshole stalk you and talk to you like that.”

I lean over to kiss Jake lightly on the lips. “I’m a big girl, Jake. I can take care of myself. Don’t worry. Tom didn’t get off lightly when he blurted that little gem out about me being gay.”

“I should hope not,” he smiles. “I knew that you didn’t have anyone, not that I would have let you. It sounds selfish, I know, but I think I would beat the living shit out of anyone who touched you whether you were mine or not. For instance, that night you disappeared and didn’t come home, I was frantic. Your mother wondered why I was so worried about you, considering you’re a grown woman with the right to do whatever you want. ’Let her have her fun’, she’d said. I called a few people anyway, and someone eventually told me you’d left a bar with a guy. I almost crushed the phone in my hand.”

I gaze at him, startled. I knew he was pissed when I saw him the next day. I remember it well.

I had stumbled into the kitchen the following morning.

My mum and Jake were sitting at the island. Jake’s face was like thunder, but my mum was smiling from ear to ear.

“Have a good time, did we?” she asked, looking slightly amused.

I felt like shit. I was hungover and angry with myself for letting things go as far as they did. “I really can’t remember. I don’t feel very well,” I said.

Jake looked panicked. “Where were you all night? Are you hurt? Who were you with?”

My head was banging as I looked up at him. “I stayed at a friend’s house. No biggie.”

He straightened his stance. “Who? Which friend?” he asked, not willing to let it go.

My mum chose then to pipe in. “For goodness sake, Jake, leave the girl alone. She’s not sixteen. She can do whatever she wants.”

He stormed off at that point, and we never spoke of it again. Not exactly, anyway.

“I found him, you know. I found out who you were with. I paid a visit to this John guy. I told him that if he ever took advantage of you like that again, I would make sure his life wasn’t worth living.”

My jaw drops. I almost can’t believe he did that. John never said anything to me about it. He was a little strange with me after that incident, but I’d just attributed that