Page 44 of Fighting Jacob

I leap from my bed as fast as he did seconds ago. “You promised you wouldn’t tell anyone.”

“I’m not telling anyone; he already knows what he fucking did!”

His roar has me recoiling, but not enough to stop me from saying, “I don’t need you to defend me; I handled it. It was once, then I fled and never returned. Today was the first time I’ve seen him in months.”

My knees wobble when I move to stand in front of him. He’ll never hurt me. Just like I know I can convince him I’m not a damsel in need of saving. “Stay with me.”

I cup his cheeks like he always does mine before seeking his gaze. When I get his sad, tormented eyes, I wordlessly beg him to stay with me, to comfort me, to choose me above anything else. Above anger, above jealousy, above revenge. I want him to stay.

My pleas seem to be getting through to him when he whispers, “I can’t let him get away with this.”

He seems torn, like he wants to comfort me, but he feels wrong doing it. I try to settle his uneasiness. “Stay with me, Jacob. I need you.”

After balancing on my tippy toes, I seal my lips over his. His lips remain hard-lined for barely a second before he parts them to accept my kiss. Warmth blooms across my chest when our tongues duel in a loving embrace. We've never kissed with such open hearts before. It's a kiss unlike any I've ever had, leaving me to wonder just how deeply he’s embedded himself under my skin.

With my heart now racing more from excitement than fear, I’m disappointed when Jacob inches back. It’s not all bad. The torment his eyes held before we kissed has softened, replaced with the gentle eyes I’m growing to adore more every day.

As he stares down at me in admiration, he removes the blobs of moisture our kiss didn’t dry.

The sincerity in his eyes has me acting carelessly. “Stay with me.”

I curl my hand around his before taking a step back, allowing my actions to speak on my behalf. I want him. Now... and possibly forever.

I’m relieved when he fills the gap I’d placed between us. He doesn’t need to speak for me to know his decision. His eyes reveal everything. He’s choosing me over everything and everyone. He’s staying.

When he drags his index finger down my cheek and along my jaw, my head lolls to the side. I love when he touches me like this, gently and slowly like he's savoring every inch of me.

Fisting his shirt, I tug him in the final inch. I need him more than my lungs need oxygen. I want him so bad, I’m not ashamed to admit it. “Please...” I stop myself before I beg. I’m desperate for him, but I’ll never let him know that.

Mercifully, he doesn’t need to hear my pleas to know of their existence. As his lips follow the journey his finger took, moans purr from my throat like a kitty. He bites and nibbles on my jaw before dragging his stubble down my neck.

My opposite ear is close to touching my shoulder when he suddenly jackknifes back. “What the fuck?”

His deep exhale blasts my cheeks with air when he pulls my hair away from my neck. When his eyes return to my face, my throat works hard to swallow. The fury settled behind them is unnerving.

“He’s fucking dead,” he growls through gritted teeth. “I’m going to kill him!”

Nothing but the smell of his aftershave is left in his wake when he darts out of my room. I stand in silence for several moments, my mind a jumbled mess of confusion. He went from staring at me lovingly to storming out of my room in under thirty seconds.

My neck—he was staring at something on my neck.

With my heart in my throat, I rush to the full-length mirror in my room. I gasp out a sharp breath when I pull my hair back like Jacob did mere seconds ago. My springy locks were concealing the bruises Callum’s fingers made when he choked me. They’re purple and angry—as violent as Jacob’s eyes when he made his threat.

On quivering legs, I run out of my house to catch up to him. By the time I make it outside, he’s climbing in the passenger seat of Noah’s truck.

“Jacob, don’t do this. He isn’t worth it!”

When his gaze shifts to me, my attempt to change his mind is abandoned. He’s too far gone. The loving eyes I was staring at mere minutes ago have been replaced with a pair I no longer recognize.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Jacob

As Noah reverses out of Lola's driveway, I peer into her light brown eyes, praying they'll quell the anger tearing me up inside. I want to stay and offer her comfort, but what kind of man would I be if I stood by and watched the woman I've fallen in love with be attacked and not do anything about it? Callum can't get away with this. I refuse to let him put his hands on my girl and not do anything. He needs to be taught a lesson, and I'm the perfect man to teach him one.

No longer capable of harboring my anger, I throw my fists into Noah’s dashboard. She doesn’t deserve my beat down, but I need to hit something, and it’s the closest thing, so it will do—for now.

“What do you want to do, Jake?”

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