Chapter 29

Piper lay beside me, her breathing labored to the point I was worried she might actually pass out from lack of oxygen.

“You okay?” I glanced at her.

She let out a satisfied laugh, then pushed her sweaty hair away from her forehead. Sheet clutched to her naked body, she glanced at me with a smile I’d never forget—a smile so full of trust and ecstasy and utter contentment. And I’d been the one to put that smile on her face.

“It’s really not fair that you have never ending stamina,” she said, taking yet another deep breath.

I laughed. “One of the many perks of being a vampire.” I was on my back beside her, one hand tucked behind my head, the other resting lightly on my stomach.

“Hmm, well, you definitely have a lot of naughty little perks, don’t you?” She rolled over and rested her head on my chest.

“And I’ve been going easy on you.” I draped my arm around her.

She twisted to look up at me, expression a mix of disbelief and horror. “You call what we just did easy?”

“Sorry. I forgot you’re just a witch.” I winked, and her face flushed. Fresh desire stirred in my veins, and I trailed my fingertips down her bare arm. Now that she’d given me permission, I couldn’t seem to stop touching her.

“Just a witch?” Piper raised a brow. “With the right spell, I could outlast and outperform you, Mr. I-Don’t-Ever-Get-Tired.”

“Yeah?” My lips twitched with a grin. “Prove it. Do the spell and let’s see who crashes first.”

“Not tonight.” She patted my chest. “Wouldn’t want to hurt your ego.”

I let out a surprised laughed and hugged her tighter to my body at the same moment she wiggled closer. I pressed my lips to the top of her head and lingered, letting the scent of her seep into my pores and spread through me.

“Tonight has been incredible.” She drew lazy circles on my chest, and I hummed with gratification.

“Every second with you is incredible,” I said softly, the weight of my words hanging between us. “If only this could last forever.”

The instant those words left my mouth, I regretted them. Not because I didn’t mean it, but because I meant them with every last fiber of my being. I’d give anything to keep Piper with me, to spend every night with her in my arms, to wake up to her smiling face every morning. Crushing defeat sat heavy on my chest.

“I wish it could, too.” She buried her face against my chest, and I once again tightened my hold on her.

“Why can’t it?” My heart beat violently against my ribs, and I licked my suddenly dry lips. Would she answer me, or find yet another way to avoid my question?

She was silent for several moments, and I closed my eyes with disappointment. Her warm breath puffed across my bare chest, and then she sniffled.

“Now that the world knows we’re alive, we have to fulfill our responsibilities to the magical community. The covens are going to have questions. They’re going to want explanations about why we hid for so long, especially when things have been crumbling beyond repair.” She folded her hands on my chest and rested her chin on hands, peering up at me. Her expression was twisted with a myriad of emotions, and her normally sparkling green eyes were clouded with resignation.

“You can’t do all of that and be with me?” I raised a brow.

“I wish it were that easy.” She frowned. “One of us will have to ascend to the throne, and the process for that…” Piper huffed and shook her head. “Let’s just say it’s not as simple as it should be. Regardless of whatever consequences we’ll have to face for our actions, we’ll have to prove ourselves to the covens. Prove we’re worthy of leading them, prove we deserve their trust again.”

I nodded as she spoke. Everything she didn’t say was crystal clear to me. “And you can’t do that if you’re involved with a vampire.”

Her eyelids fluttered closed. “No, I can’t.” Her words were strained, painful almost. She shifted to once again lay beside me, her body curled against mine. “I’m sorry, Jax. You have no idea how badly I wish things were different.”

“It’s okay.” My throat burned with the threat of impending tears.

Piper had no control over her lineage or how that affected her future, just like I’d had no control over Sean’s actions and the curse that afflicted our family for so long. If she ended up taking the throne, then all hope of a future with her was lost for good. But if she didn’t, if one of her sisters became queen, then maybe we still had a chance. The odds weren’t exactly in my favor, but I’d gladly take a slim chance over no chance at all.

“Thank you for tonight, though,” she whispered. “I couldn’t have imagined anything more perfect.”

“You don’t have to thank me, Piper. I wanted this just as much as you did. Probably more, if we’re being honest.” I resumed to stroke her arm, and she shivered. I reached for the blanket that we’d kicked onto the floor and covered her with it.

“Oh, stop it. You don’t know how to be honest.” I could hear the smile in her tone.

“That mouth is going to get you in trouble one of these days, you know.”

“Speaking from experience?” She flattened her palm against my abs, then peered up at me.

Her cheeks weren’t quite as red as they had been a few moments ago, and her eyes were significantly brighter now. I’d quickly learned that when her eyes shone like that, she was happy and often that happened when she was teasing me, or we were harassing each other.

“Yes, actually, I am. Smartass,” I muttered.

“Stubborn ass.”

I shook my head. “So, now what? Do we go for round four? Or are you tapping out on me?”

She laughed. “We take a time out. Some of us need to recharge.” Once again settling beside me, she lowered her head to my chest.

I stroked my hand over her hair, smoothing the wild locks, then I rested my palm on the curve of her hip. She hitched her leg over mine and wiggled as close as she could get. If I had my way, I’d keep her here like this—with me—for the rest of our very long lives. I never wanted to be without her. I could always kidnap her, whisk her away somewhere secluded where it would just be her and I… Of course, she’d probably give me a magical ass-beating if I tried. The thought nearly made me smile.

“If you could go back in time to any moment in your life and redo one thing, what would it be?” she asked.

My brows shot up. We’d gone from intense sex to intense, personal questions. Then again, that was Piper—she didn’t hesitate to ask whatever was on her mind. Just one of the many reasons I was so head over in heels in love with her.

“There are a lot of moments I’d like to redo,” I said.

“But you can only choose one.”

I mulled over her question. The first answer that popped into my head was Hannah. If I could go back, I would’ve left her alone. I never would’ve spoken to her let alone fallen in love with her, and I certainly wouldn’t have pressured Trent to change her.

The second answer was Chloe—I wouldn’t have dragged her father back to Keene Valley and forced her to leave Trent. But then I followed the trail of events that led me to this very moment.

“Nothing,” I said. “I wouldn’t go back and change anything.”

Piper propped herself on her elbow. “Nothing?” She gave me a disbelieving look.

“Nope. Not a thing. Do I have a shit ton of regrets? Absolutely. But every choice I’ve made has led me to you, and I wouldn’t do anything to change that.”

She rolled her eyes, but her smile was unmistakable. “I guess that’ll suffice.”

I had no idea where she came up with these questions, or what she’d been thinking about leading up to asking, but she obviously had some pretty heavy thoughts on her mind. And I had to admit, I was curious what would come out of her mouth next.

“Are you happy you found me? I mean, not me specifically, but your soulmate. Did you want one?” she asked.

“Yes.” I rubbed my hand over my chest. “I wasn’t looking for my soulmate, but seeing how drastically Trent’s life changed when he found Chloe… He became this different person. A better person, and I wanted the same.” I eased up into a semi-sitting position and cradled the side of her face. “And despite how annoying and sarcastic you are, I’m glad it was you.”

She blushed and attempted to look away, but I held her so she couldn’t.

“Tell me what you want from life, Piper. What do you want to do now that Isach is gone, and Ivy is dead? If you could write your perfect future, what would it look like?”

“I honestly don’t know. I’ve been hiding for so long.” She sighed and sat up, hands in her lap. “Other than you, I have no idea what else there is.”

“I’m not enough?” I was only half kidding when I asked.

“You’re too much at times.” She playfully nudged me and grinned. “I guess I’d want everything I didn’t have while growing up. Love. Family. Trusted friends. Not having to constantly worry someone might find me and my sisters.”

“Kids?”

She shrugged. “As royalty in the magical community, everyone would expect me to marry and provide heirs, but I’m not sure I’d want to subject my children to that kind of life. Not that any of it matters. My future’s already written for me.” Easing beneath the covers to get comfortable, she yawned. “What about you?”

My heart splintered at the pain in her tone, at how she just accepted her lack of control in her own life. The Piper I’d gotten to know wasn’t a quitter. She didn’t roll over and play dead, so why was she now? Why wasn’t she fighting harder for what she wanted?

I lay beside her, then reached for her. Knowing what she felt like in my arms, I couldn’t stand not having her there. “Until recently, I’d accepted that kids would never be in my future, and I was okay with that. After all, I am incredibly selfish.”

“I don’t doubt that, but people change. If you were to have a child of your own, I know you’d always put them before anyone else, even yourself.”

I was silent for a moment. “How can you be so sure of that?”

She stared at me in the same way I’d seen Chloe stare at Trent before. My heart stopped, and everything around me stood still.

“Because you’ve shown me. You’ve made it very clear that you want to kiss me, but you haven’t. You’re putting my wishes ahead of your own. I know you’re frustrated about our situation, but you’re not pushing me because you’re putting my feelings ahead of yours.” She blinked, and only then did I notice the sheen of tears in her eyes. “I’ve seen you with your family. You always put them first, regardless of what you want. You’re the least selfish person I know, Jax.”

My throat burned with emotion, and I took a steadying breath. I wasn’t used to anyone speaking to me like that, to seeing the real me, the man I kept hidden beneath defensive humor and bad decisions. Then again, I didn’t usually let anyone get as close as I’d let Piper get.

“Considering I can’t have kids, I guess it doesn’t matter all that much, does it?” I asked.

“Trent couldn’t, either, but he found a way.”

“Yeah, thanks to a potion created by a witch who is now dead.” I tucked one hand behind my head and kept the other firmly on her back.

“A potion I could literally do in my sleep.” She rolled her eyes. “Honestly, when will you stop underestimating me?”

Laughing, I said, “Are you asking me to father your children?”

“You’re impossible.” Her smile was faint as she twisted back around to rest her head on my chest. “Are you sleeping on the couch again tonight?”

I sliced a look down, but all I managed to see was the top of her head, thanks to how she was currently draped half on me, half on the bed. “The only way I’m sleeping on that couch tonight is if you tell me I need to get the hell out of your bed.”

“I’d be a lot nicer about it than that. I’m not rude like you. I’ll say please and everything.”

“I swear to God…” I grumbled, and she giggled in response.

I playfully squeezed her side, then rolled her onto her back. She yelped with surprise, her face flushed that shade of pink that I was quickly coming to love. Taking both her hands and pinning them above her head, I laced our fingers and eased myself down on top of her. She parted her legs for me, and I settled comfortably between her thighs. The heat of her tempted me, but I held back. For now.

“So? Am I staying the night in here with you? Or are you going to politely ask me to leave?” I raised a brow and waited for what I was sure would be a snarky reply that would undoubtedly excite me.