The Lover’s Secret (No Exceptions #1)(18)
Author: J.C. Reed

I felt myself blushing even harder, probably turning a shade of crimson, as his hands pulled away the remaining fabric, exposing my body, naked from head to toe.

Under his green, burning gaze, my body behaved as though it belonged to him, as if my soul had been touched and marked, and I just had to react whenever he was near. His hands stroked my shoulder, the gentle touch raising the hairs on my arm in anticipation. Slowly, his mouth dipped onto my skin, and his hot lips began to send delicious currents down my back.

I leaned back, savoring his presence, until something cold brushed my neck. When I looked down, I noticed something sparkling. In his hand was the most beautiful necklace I had ever seen, a tiny stone dangling from a delicate chain. Even though the diamond was cut in a round shape, its mount was the form of a heart. I gasped in surprise, marveling at its beauty.

“I hope you like it,” he whispered. “I got it for you while you were asleep.” Jett clasped it around my neck, then brushed my long hair aside. “When I saw it, I had to get it. I knew it would look perfect on you.”

“Thank you.” My heart hammered hard as he pulled me in front of a mirror and stepped behind me. For a few moments, I gazed at the small gemstone, marveling at the way it seemed to enhance my collarbone. It was so small, so simple, yet it was so stunning that I could only stare. The more I looked at it, the more I was convinced that it had been expensive. Jett never went for the affordable stuff.

“I understand that you can’t make any promises,” Jett said. “I have to admit, I don’t like that, but I want you to know that, like this diamond, what we have is rare and there’s nothing I would change about you. Don’t ever forget that, Brooke.”

I touched the stone and slowly turned around, my voice failing me at the intensity in his green eyes.

“It’s beautiful,” I whispered at last.

“Not as beautiful as are you,” Jett said.

I smiled tenderly, my pulse racing at the various thoughts spinning inside my head. We had gone through so much in the short period we had been together, but I simply wasn’t ready for the kind of assurance he expected of me.

“You shouldn’t have, Jett. It’s lovely, but…I can’t accept this gift.” I lifted my arms to remove the necklace when Jett’s much stronger hand stopped me.

“You have to. It’s what I want.” He paused, his gaze broody and dark. “You are mine, Brooke, and I want you to have nice things.”

He kept looking at me with an intensity that made my heart flutter. I wanted to say so much more, to utter my thanks, my gratitude, anything to show him that I valued everything he’d done for me, when his fingertips brushed my lips and his mouth descended upon mine.

In that instant, I realized something meaningful: words were futile. It’s said people spend their entire life thinking about love, searching for it, thinking they have found it. But there is no word that can express the magnitude of feeling love, of having one’s heart bursting with it at a mere smile. It wasn’t just Jett’s presence or his kindness that reached surreal proportions, but the fact that he reciprocated my feelings and that he tried so hard to express the way he felt. He really tried, as if his spoken words were true, as if he truly meant them, and he wanted to see me happy.

Ever so slowly, his mouth descended upon mine in a tender kiss. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him on top of me, my legs parting to accommodate his weight. Jett didn’t seem to need a wordy invitation. His tongue brushed past my lips to explore the cave of my mouth.

Pinpoints of rapturous sensations traveled down my spine and gathered between my legs. I needed him down there more than I needed the air to breathe and I was ready to show him.

I could have lingered in his embrace, lips on lips, forever, were it not for the knock on the door that drew our attention back to the world, to reality. When he let go of me, I realized that moment was lost forever, like a dream.

Chapter 12

My heart was beating a million times a minute from our kiss, and my body was still aching for him as I caught Jett’s reaction. I tried to read the thoughts he kept so well hidden, but I failed for the umpteenth time.

“Who is it?” I asked, my voice low and thick with wariness. I hoped it was just someone knocking on the wrong door so we could get back to making out—anything that would distract Jett from his way-too-intense concentration.

“Probably just the butler. There’s one assigned to every penthouse. Let me check,” Jett said. He let out an impatient sigh, and then kissed the top of my head. “I’ll be back in a second.” Without waiting for my reply, he crossed the living room in a few long strides and closed the door behind him.

I turned to the mirror to stare at my reflection, unsure of what to do. I hated waiting, especially since the day had started out so perfectly, with Jett at my side, his strong arms on my thighs as we kissed on those silk sheets, and then his beautiful gift. The whole scene had been more than perfect, which is why I could forgive the small interruption—as long as he hurried to get back to me.

Wearing a goofy smile, I resumed my seat on the sofa. As I did, I noticed Jett’s cell phone peering out of his jacket pocket, its screen illuminated with an incoming call or text message.

For a moment, I considered pulling it out to answer it, in case it was important. The fact that Jett had switched off the sound only managed to fortify my idea of Jett as perfect boyfriend material. Obviously he didn’t want to know of any calls when he was with me.

How many other guys had done that for me?

None.

Precisely.

In today’s society, where phones were often regarded as essential for survival, Jett was in the minority. He wasn’t afraid to face total isolation with me, because he had no need for distraction. His attention was all mine. The thought of that made me warm all over.

Leaning back against the soft cushions, I tried to ignore the flashing, but as the screen continued to light up, worry slowly set it. What if it was one of the company board members, who was trying to get in touch with Jett, because the stock was crashing and no one could get a hold of us?

Jett happened to be the owner of a newly formed company called Townsend Properties, but as the son of one of the most prominent men in the United States, he also still acted as the CEO of Mayfield Realties, which in the last weeks had survived a series of scandals involving an international sex club. Against all odds, Jett had saved his father’s company from bankruptcy, all while focusing on his new company, killing two birds with one stone and making a name for himself. Some claimed the sex scandal was nothing but a marketing strategy to have the Mayfield name plastered across newspapers worldwide in order to attract attention to Jett’s new company, Townsend Properties. Others didn’t care. Only a few people, me included, knew the true secrets of what had really taken place in that sex club and the depravity of some of its famous members, who had chaired the Mayfield Realties board. I was the only one who knew how hard it had been for Jett to repair the mess and how difficult it had been to stop thinking about vengeance where he thought vengeance was due. After weeks of hard work to reform the old company and kick-start the new one, Jett wanted to focus more on our relationship, which was one of the reasons he insisted that we spent quality time together. Knowing he still had a job to do whilst on “vacation” with me, I couldn’t just ignore the real world.