Page 38 of Chasing the Flame
Jettson reaches the treat toward me before pulling the second marshmallow out of the fire. After he creates his own sandwich, he grins and holds it out to me, saying, “Cheers.”
I laugh, and smack my sweet against his, “What are we celebrating?”
“Oh, I don’t know. How about the fact you survived my dad?”
A snicker escapes me, and I cough in a poor attempt to cover it up. “You leave that man alone, he’s an angel,” I say, taking a bite of the s’more and batting my eyelashes at him, feigning innocence.
Jettson snorts, “Of course you’d think that.” He shakes his head, then devours his s’more in two bites. After finishing, he leans back in his chair and gazes at the night sky.
I work on finishing mine, practically moaning when the last bite enters my mouth. “That was so good. I haven’t had one of those since I was a kid.”
“Me either,” he admits with a grin, his gaze dropping to my lips. Jettson gulps, “You have a little something…there.”
His thumb grazes the corner of my mouth, swiping at a little bit of chocolate. His touch sends an electric current racing through my body. I suck in a sharp breath, and I’m sure he can hear my heart as it gallops in my chest.
Jettson’s eyes darken, his grin sinfully wicked as he sucks the chocolate off his thumb. My pussy throbs, an intense ache centering directly in my core. I’m imagining how good it would feel to have his mouth on my nipples, his tongue circling the pink peaks. I squeeze my thighs together, trying to hide my growing arousal.
I can’t stop this pull and I don’t think Iwantto.
We’re so close I could reach out and thread my fingers in his hair. I’m dying to, burning with the need to touch him. The fire cracklingin the background has nothing on the tension that oozes into the air around us.
It’s electrifying…distracting…dangerous.
I feel like Icarus, flying too close to the sun. I know the moment I give in, my entire world will go up in flames. But I don’t fucking care. I don’t give myself a chance to second-guess it. I shift in my seat, moving to the edge, and lean toward him. Jettson stills, watching me in complete fascination as I close the gap between us.
My hand moves of its own accord, tenderly cupping his cheek. I slide my fingers into his hair, growing bolder with each passing second. He doesn’t stop me—it’s like he’s letting me call the shots.
We’re lost in one another, both of us soaking up every single second. A nervous energy swirls in my stomach, but it’s not enough to deter me. I lean in, closer and closer, my lips parted—
The sound of the imperial death march blaring from my phone shocks me so badly that I jump, accidentally headbutting Jettson. “Fuck!” I shriek, clutching my head, and he swears, groaning as he clamps his hand across his nose.
I give him a sheepish look and dig my phone out of my back pocket with my free hand. It’s Luke. My heart starts thumping wildly, but for an entirely different reason. Fear coats my tongue, and I swallow hard before answering the phone. “Hey!” My tone feels forced and has a false ring to it. I grimace, waiting for Luke’s voice to come across.
It never does.
Muffled music blares in my ear, and my heart plummets to my stomach. A woman’s shrill laughter rings in the background, followed by a groan that sounds like it came from my husband, and finally, sounds of movement.
“You…I’m…fuck, Amelia…that…so good…yes…” The garbled words are enough to send my pulse skyrocketing, and anger flares brightly in my chest, scorching everything in its path.
I end the call before I hear anything else. The snippet is enough. It must be written all over my face, because Jettson’s mood shifts instantly. He gets up, wiping a little blood from his lip, before tossing a bucket of water on the fire.
And just like that, our night is ending and I’m kicking myself for answering the damn call. Then, I look down, seeing the texts I missed while we were celebrating. There are several, one from my mother, one from Cora, and a text from Luke telling me he’ll be at a business dinner for the night. I snort and swipe away the pesky tears streaking down my cheeks. Tears I didn’t even realize were falling. Then, I swipe up, and the final one strikes a chord of panic within me, terror clawing its way into my heart and burrowing there with force.
Unknown:I’d like to chat. I think it’s time we met face to face.
There’s a picture attached, and I only hesitate a second before opening the full text. Pure rage swells in my chest, freezing everything in its wake. It’s a deadly kind of anger that feels so powerful and consuming, I know I’ll never return from it.
“That fuckingbastard…” I whisper, staring at the image like I can make it disappear with sheer willpower alone.
It looks like it’s been shot from a window, and white curtains blur the edges of the frame. Luke is fucking someone with blonde hair, but I can’t see her face. Her ass and body are pressed against the window, her legs wrapped around his waist.
My ears start ringing, muffling everything around me. It doesn’t register when the phone slides from my hand, nor when Jettson’s concerned expression fills my line of sight. Everything around meseems to stand still, and I can feel every single nerve ending in my body lighting up like a fucking Christmas tree.
Panic rears its ugly head, but it doesn’t matter. The fire coursing my veins doesn’t stop, burning everything in its way. It floods my bloodstream, my body igniting in response.
Searing white light explodes from within me, consuming every single fiber of my being. I vaguely hear Jettson in the background, his yelps of pain, the swearing…but it’s not enough to pull me back from the brink.
Darkness swarms the edges of my vision, settling in my brain like a hazy fog. I don’t fight it, I couldn’t if I tried. No, I sink into it, letting it devour me whole.
