36

They were standing in the open air of the backyard and yet Mara felt trapped. It was no different than the closet she used to hide in as a child when her father’s temper grew. It was no different than the pinch of space beneath her childhood bed. The phone in her hand was ringing but she couldn’t hear the sound. After the first time it went straight to voicemail, everything muted.

Her mother’s phone. Her brother’s. Her sister’s. No one answered.

“So far your stalker has posed as paparazzi, a Gala guest, a delivery driver, and your personal chef…” Colton mused from the backyard as the crew of Jackson’s men affixed security measures to every door, window, and corner in the house. Mara watched in a strange sense of shock as she dialed her mother’s number again.

“Who are you calling?” Althea asked. “I can contact whoever it is instead, Mara. I know you’ve been through a shock.”

Mara swallowed, looking down at the only proof she had of her family in months. Months. They had been estranged for a while, yes, but they at least used to answer… now, though, they were icing her out completely.

“No one,” she said, ending the call and handing her assistant the phone.

“You think they’ll have cameras in your room?” Aaron asked, “I don’t want our privacy invaded babe. Who knows what kind of people this Jackson guy has working for him? Probably sell our pics and videos to the paps.”

“Aaron?” Mara’s voice didn’t sound like her own.

“Hm?”

“Shut the fuck up or leave.”

“Mara, what the hell—”

Colton whistled, “Alright love why don’t we take a walk?”

“Oh she’s taking a walk,” Jackson insisted, appearing out of thin air. Within one breath and the next, Mara was over his bulky shoulder. “She’s not sleeping here.”

“What?” Mara gasped. “Put me down! And what was the point of all of this if I’m not sleeping here?” She motioned to all the cameras. Jackson only shrugged, heaving her higher up. “No, no way. And Althea needs—”

“You can't leave me here alone,” Aaron piped in. "Aleeza can..."

"Althea!" Colton and Mara snapped at the same time.

“She’s staying at my home,” the Fae said icily, shooting Althea an intense look.

“Althea’s not doing a damn thing she doesn’t want to. In fact, neither am I, now, PUT ME DOWN JACKSON CROFT!” Mara yelled.

He ignored her, swinging Mara around to face Althea instead. Her assistant was watching Colt with a pensive expression. “I don’t know… I’m sure I could find somewhere…”

“Don’t worry,” Colton soothed with his hands up. “You don’t know me, I get it. But my home is large enough and there are several others in residence as well. That’s got to be safer than staying her alone.”

“She wouldn’t be—” Aaron started.

“And you,” Mara snapped, pointing a finger at her costar– “Are not staying in my house without me. The best I can do is the pool house and that’s final.”

He opened his mouth in shock. “Wait, you’re really not staying here with me, Mara baby? Come on, I thought that we had real chemistry during the last mov—”

Jackson snarled so roughly that he didn’t sound human. Shit. Shit. Shit. That was Mara’s sign to get this situation wrapped up as quickly as possible and deal with the fallout once she was settled in.

“Alright, Jax, let’s go wherever the hell we're going and Althea, if you’re good, then text me when you’re settled.”

Everyone nodded but there wasn’t time to negotiate anything further because Jackson stomped over to the nearest SUV and slid them both into the backseat.

“What the hell was that about? He may be an asshole but we can't just leave Aaron in my stalker's crossfire, Jax.”

“I could ask you the same question. Why the hell does your shitty costar think you’re going to play house?”

“First of all, how the hell should I know what weird thoughts delusional men get into their heads? And second of all, why does it matter what my moderately talented costar wants to do? I was never game for another fling, so…” Mara shrugged, her words trailing off as she scooted over to the window.

“Another?” Jackson growled, his voice so low it raised the hairs on her head. Then he slammed a fist into the roof of the car. “Drive.”

"You still can't just leave him there alone."

"He won't be. I already have a handful of my wolves ready to guard the woods and the cameras will catch anything at the house." Jackson turned to glare at her. "Like it or not, the shitty costar will be proof that you're still in residence. Hopefully, it'll throw the stalker off his game enough to make a mistake."

She couldn't refute that logic so she only rolled her eyes. When they made it to the main road, Mara spied Jackson pulling out a pack of cigarettes.

"What's wrong?" he growled, watching her from the corner of his eye.

"What?"

"Your heart is beating faster..."

"I didn't know you smoked," she blurted.

"You don't like it? I can put it out," he replied. His answers were so hard to read. They were distant and professional, but his gaze was not. It was too confusing. One minute, they were bodyguard and client, and the next, he was hefting her over his shoulder like a caveman.

She shifted uncomfortably. "No. Smoking isn't a big deal. I like hookah, myself."

He only grunted. The breadth of his shoulders nearly touched her and combined with the heat from the cigarette, she felt more flushed than usual.

Jax tamped out his cigarette in the ashtray and absentmindedly ran a tongue over his lip. "It's fine, I just needed something to settle my nerves. We'll be there in the next few minutes."

"We'll be where exactly? You weren't super clear when you threw me into the car like you have no home training."

His jaw pinched and he exhaled. "We're going to... my packhouse."

"Ha, ha," Mara deadpanned. "Funny. Now where are we really going?"

Jackson sighed. "We're really going to my packlands, Amara. Funny enough, you and I share the lake."

Nothing about his tone implied it was funny at all.

"That's ridiculous. I've never seen anyone else at the lake."

"We're careful around humans and you're scent would give us at least ten minutes to clear out. You bought your house from the only humans allowed there since I became Alpha..."

"You're fucking with me..."

His blazing green eyes locked on hers. "I'm definitely not fucking with you." His eyes seemed to say he wished he was. "It's insanely bad luck that we're neighbors."

"Why?"

"You really never make it easy on me, do you?" Mara felt his hand on the back of her neck before she even saw him move. It was that fast. One minute they were staring at each other, the next, his mouth was on hers. His lips were so soft and warm as they worked against her own and he slid into the empty space between them. "Fuck, Mara, you weren't supposed to taste this good," he groaned against her lips, "I just needed a taste..."

His fingers weaved through her hair to palm the back of her head. His confession did something to her, leaving Mara totally at his mercy. She ran her hands up his shoulders, opening her mouth for him. The second his free hand slid up the shirt she wore, she let out a breathy sound. Her mind kept going back to the dreams and how much better he felt in real life.

His hand found her nipple and massaged it with his thumb, a low growl forming in his throat. And then she was lifted up and her legs wrapped around his waist. She could feel his erection digging into her core, and with each grind, the hunger inside of her grew.

Her hand trailed down his abs, leaving a gentle shudder everywhere she touched until she reached the band of his pants.

He hissed and moved his kiss down from her mouth, planting slow, deep sucks and licks down the slope of her neck. He continued his attention down her collarbone, over her chest until he reached one of her breasts. Rolling his tongue around the nipple then blowing, he elicited a deep, needy sound from her throat.

She gripped him firmly over his pants. "You're going to make me cum," he moaned. She wasn't sure if it was meant to be a question, a warning or a plea but it was impossible for her to stop stroking now, too high on the feeling.

His eyes glowed like emeralds when their eyes met. "I want this," she moaned, arching her core closer to him.

He made a strangled noise. "You want me, mate?"

"I want you," she panted, so lost to her senses she couldn't think about anything other than releasing all the tension in her body. He was somehow an expert in her body, and in her pleasure. When his hand slipped into her pants and found her wet for him, it was like he could read the most microscopic movements she made and give her exactly what she wanted.

Her mind was completely gone. So lost to the perfect sensation between her legs and as he slipped two fingers inside, her legs began to shake. What the hell she was actually doing didn't even matter. All that mattered was that she was doing it. Because she needed to. She bit her lip hard, trying to stifle the moan but Jax pulled at her mouth, "I want to hear it, baby," he kissed her deeply, "Cum for me."

And Mara did. She came hard and loud, quivering with the force of it and Jax groaned desperately, looking at her in a daze. The sound of her orgasm and the grip she had on his dick must've sent him over the edge because suddenly she felt his length kicking in her hand. The sounds... the sexy deep rumbles he made when he came made her dizzy with want.

But suddenly, Jax jerked back, his eyes now back to their normal color, wide with confusion and clarity.

He shoved her into the seat and hunched himself as far away as he could get. Clearing his throat, Jax said, "We're here."