*** Warning: This Chapter Includes Steam ***

Chapter 20

There's a wild party outside this cozy bedroom.

Strangers feign to be more connected than they actually are. Trying to belong, laughing too loudly, bumping the music so high it vibrates through the walls.

Yet here, cocooned in a rustic bedroom with dim golden lights, specks of dust dance below the bedside lamp, the faint scent of sandalwood lingers in the air. 

There's him on the sheets, leaned on a headboard with my laptop on his lap. And there's me curled next to him, contently napping in the present moment.

"You're such a kitten..." I hear him murmur.

"Hm?" I rub my face into my tucked hands, pushing my feet against his thigh.

"You're like a little ball...how are you comfortable?"

"Because I'm not a giraffe like you." I lift the blanket over my head to hide from his unnecessary comments. "Mind your own business."

My stomach suddenly gets attacked by a violent hand, tickling me to death. I shriek under the covers and try to push his hand away.

Jake laughs on the other side, continuing his assault until I yank the blanket off, hair all over my flushed face.

"Stop!" I glare, but he just lifts his hand again, bringing it close to me. "No!"

He chuckles wickedly and grabs my belly, shaking me like I'm a fucking pet. And apparently I am, because I can't stop laughing.

"Enough!" I sit up with a warning look. His lips pull up in one corner as he stills for a moment, I bet planning to catch me off guard.

He flings his arm towards me and I catch it with my claws. He throws his head back and laughs wholeheartedly, holding onto his stomach.

"That's what kittens do..." He falls on his side, unable to open his eyes.

I giggle at his ridiculousness. "You know what—"

Someone knocks and my heart beats with panic. We haven't locked the door. 

The knob starts to turn and before my mind can properly think it over, I throw myself off the bed and go under.

"Oh shit..." I choke when my lungs fill with dust and my face gets greeted by questionable items I'm too scared to look at.

"There you are..." I hear Daniela. The black pointy heels click towards Jake. "What are you doing here all alone?"

"Uh... I'm... getting work done." He answers awkwardly. His feet lower on the ground right in front of my face as he sits up. "Do you need to use the bathroom or something?"

"No..." She chuckles. "I'm just tired of all the noise. Came here for a quick break, if you don't mind."

"Uh..." Jake hesitates. "No, it's alright."

Excuse me?

"Thank you." She says coyly and struts towards the bed. The slow pace of her heels are sultry and intimidating, meanwhile I'm consuming dust bunnies.

She takes a seat next to him and the added weight presses the mattress on my back. This is just going great.

"I'm so glad I met you tonight..." Even her voice drips like silken promises.

"Yeah, me too." His answer is quick, loud, and casual. "Thanks for giving me your business card. I'd definitely like us to work together in the future."

He's either really ignorant and naive, or he takes me for an idiot. Either way, I'm utterly turned off and frankly offended.

"Definitely..." Daniela chuckles, her laugh like a siren's call. "Although..."

I sharpen my ears, but all I hear is the rustle of the sheets before...

Before a faint noise of lips breaks the tense silence.

I stop breathing.

"I'll see you outside?" Daniela clears her throat and Jake quietly nods. "Bye Jake..." She stands up and leaves with the same grace she entered.

The door shuts, and conveniently, so do my feelings and the present moment. I army crawl out of the opposite side and go straight to my traveling bag to pick out a change of clothes.

"Mia, she kissed my cheek. It took me by surprise, I wasn't expecting it." Jake explains over my shoulder, voice rushed and concerned.

"I don't care." I feign nonchalance, rummaging through options. A red long sleeve that's off the shoulders? Yes. Why not.

I stand up and dash towards the bathroom, but he blocks my way.

"Talk to me." He says softly, studying my face.

"Get out." I respond with the same calm tone but with a blank expression.

"Why are you like this?"

"Like what?" I tilt my head.

"Pretending to be indifferent. I know you're upset but you're—"

"Don't make assumptions about me." I walk around him to go inside the bathroom and lock the door behind me.

I look at myself in the mirror and find my chest tightening at how sad my eyes look. I thought I had a perfect poker face on.

"Mia... we need to talk about this." Jake knocks on the door.

Anger takes over the sadness and I yank my black button-down off. I will not let myself be pathetic and vulnerable over a freaking kiss. Daniela has no power over me. Neither does Jake.

"Fuck..." I shut my eyes. I forgot to grab a pair of pants.

I snarl through gritted teeth and jerk the door open, dashing past him again to take a pair of black jeans from my bag. He stands in my way again, expression stern and impatient.

"Talk to me."

"Get out of my way."

"Talk to me."

"Get out of my freaking way, Jake."

"You're not dealing with this properly."

My heart flips at his confrontation. The weakness threatens to reveal itself. I will not let it.

"Fine." I snap and unbutton the jeans I have on. "Suit yourself."

I pull my zipper down and yank my pants down my legs, stepping out of them. I hope he's looking at my red lace panties and regretting his slow reflexes against Daniela's lips. Funny how they weren't so slow when he was tickling me two minutes ago.

"I told you she took me by surprise, it was a kiss on the cheek..." Jake mutters, his breath slightly heavier than before. It gives me a sliver of satisfaction.

Maybe if I didn't just give up an interview of a lifetime to help him out, I wouldn't feel so sensitive. But I'm not about to tell him that. I just need space to cool down.

"I get it, Jake." I put on the new pair of jeans, standing up to button them. "Don't sweat it."

He takes a step forward and tries to wrap his arm around my waist but I back away and look at him coldly.

"You should go network." I turn around and grab a joint with a lighter from the bedside table. I put the tip in my mouth and light the end, taking a drag. "I'm sure your dad would be very impressed."

"Don't do that..." He comes closer, jaw clenched with distaste. "Don't shut down on me."

I exhale the smoke, fogging the space between our faces.

"I'll see you later." I swallow the lump in my throat, defeat bubbling to the surface, then turn to walk out before he can notice.

~

I find Anna preparing for her turn at beer pong and go in for a hug.

"You okay?" She drops the ball on the ground and wraps her arms around me. "What happened, babe?"

"Nothing..." I mumble, closing my eyes. "Just keep me away from Jake."

"Oh no...."

I pull back and bring the joint back to my lips. She eyes it warily but doesn't say anything. A man I don't recognize with hair styled too perfectly approaches and smiles.

"Can I have a hit?"

"Sure..." I say awkwardly and hand him the joint.

Ramon appears between Anna and me, sliding his arms over our shoulders. "What's going on here?"

"Nothing." I drawl, noticing he's eyeing the guy with the joint. "Do you want a hit too?" Please say no. I don't want everyone's saliva on it.

"Nope." He says, not taking his eyes off the guy. "I'm just here to see if my brother's girl needs anything." He finally looks at me. "You good, Mia?"

I raise my eyebrows slowly. "Yes, caveman. I'm fine."

He chuckles and Anna giggles, as if I'm kidding. I step out from under his arm and escape to the kitchen where Zhoe is.

"Tequila shots?" She sways a bit left to right, eyes hooded.

"I don't think that's a good idea." I grimace.

~

"This was a great idea." I raise my finger... two fingers? Not sure. I narrow my eyes to make sure. It's one. It's one finger.

Zhoe has a lime slice in her mouth like a green smiley face. I don't think she wants to take it out. She seems content.

"Ever made jello shots with tequila?" I shudder. "I don't recommend it."

"I like my alcohol like I like my men." She does what appears to be a twerk move against the kitchen counter.

"Which is?" I try not to giggle at her twenty-eight-year-old awkwardness.

"The more, the better." She states with a serious face. We stare for a moment then double over with laughter. I hope no one's looking. Maybe I need water.

The front door opens at that moment and when I turn to see who it is, I'm stunned.

The song 'I like them big, I like them chunky' plays in my head as the new guest swaggers in.

My eyes rake over his tall and masculine form. He has chocolate smooth skin with side-swept dark brown hair and plump lips that smile with confidence.

I gasp when he turns his body sideways, revealing a perky butt.

Holy shit.

Mother of butts.

Why can't you grant us a butt like that?

"Excuse me!" I blurt, getting his attention. He raises his eyebrows into a smouldering look and approaches us. Those eyelashes!

"You talking to me, love?" He says with an accent and I almost faint.

"Uh... can you say that again?"

He chuckles. "I said, are you talking to me, love?"

I put the back of my hand over my forehead, closing my eyes. He laughs.

I feel like I'm in an episode of Vampire Diaries.
Where's Klaus? Elijah?

"Do you want a shot?" Zhoe asks him and he easily agrees. They make small conversation while I peek at his glorious glutes again.

"Excuse me." I get his attention back, biting my lip. "Do you do hip thrusts?"

His eyebrows knit together. "Yes! How did you know?"

"Because!" My mouth falls open and my eyes shine with delight. I throw my arms to gesture at his butt. "Your thighs are too thick for that butt to be injected!"

He slowly turns to completely face me and puts his hand over his chest in a flattered manner. "I love you."

I mirror his pose, face deadly serious.

"I love your butt."

"Do you hip thrust too?"

"Yeah..." I grimace and twist my lower half to look at it. "But not a lot of luck in the booty department."

"Girl, you're tripping!" He remarks, voice a pitch higher. "May I feel it?"

"Sure. But it's a pancake compared to yours."

"No, it's not. If I were into women I'd be all over it." He reaches his hand and pats my buttcheek. "I bet this perky peach is just a delight from a doggy."

A glass shatters somewhere on the other side of the room. We still our actions and look in the direction it came from only to see Jake marching right at us.

"Jake—" I get cut off as he grabs my wrist and drags me out of the kitchen. "What are you doing?" I shriek under my breath as people around us stare.

He doesn't say a word and I look down in humiliation, unable to pry my hand free from his firm grip. I stumble after his large strides, struggling to keep up until he pushes us back into the bedroom and locks the door behind him, face fuming.

"What the hell?" I whisper, eyes wide.

"Why is that guy touching your ass?" He growls through gritted teeth, making my eyebrows knit together.

"What?"

He steps closer, making me back up against the dresser and steady my hands on the surface. His eyes move around my face with silent sternness.

"You're drunk and high," he says, voice laced with disapproval.

I'm really not liking him today.

"Good job, you have eyes." I push my palms on his chest to push him away, but it doesn't even move him an inch. Kind of hot, not going to lie.

Jake cups my face, tilting my face up at him. "You drive me insane, you know that?"

"What's gotten into you?" I ask, my voice weirdly smaller than before. Maybe it's the intensity in his hazel eyes. Maybe it's the way he's holding me. Maybe it's Maybelline.

"Do you feel nauseous?" he asks, ignoring my question. His thumb brushes over my cheek.

"From you."

His eyes soften slightly. "Shut up."

I jerk my head out of his hold and push him away harder, making him stumble back.

"You basically exposed us, you know that?" My voice breaks as I look at him angrily. "I may be the one that's not sober, but I didn't do anything wrong." I cross my arms as guilt washes over his face. "You, on the other hand, made it so obvious that you're jealous it brought all the attention on us."

"It wasn't that bad..." He runs his hand through his hair.

"Yes, it was."

"You stormed out and got trashed when Daniela kissed my cheek!"

"Yeah and you broke a glass and made a scene when Adonis appreciated my efforts at the gym!"

"What?"

"You know how nice it feels to have one gym rat recognize another?" I can tell from the confused look on his face that he doesn't. "It's an honor."

"Fuck, you're trashed."

"You're just jealous." I say. He steps close to me again but I put up my hands. "No, Jake. We need to focus on fixing what happened outside."

"What are you talking about?"

I turn around, tearing a hand through my hair. "I need to fix this... I can't... I can't let people think that you're into me..."

I sit on the bed with my head down, trying to think of something.

"Tell me... just tell me what you need." Jake murmurs, his frown heavy with regret. I look at him as his throat bobs. "I just got jealous, because you were smiling at him like you found him attractive."

A lightbulb switches on over my head.

~

"So sorry about that, my friend Jake here had to take me away and demand to introduce you two." I grin at Jake's deadpan expression as I offer him to Adonis.

"I see." He eyes Jake from head to toe, feigning indifference. "Well, Jake, honey, it's not nice to manhandle people like that. Leave that stuff for private."

I giggle and peel myself off to reunite with tequila. "Anyone want a shot?"

"What do you want to drink, honey?" Adonis asks my slave.

"Whiskey."

"Ok, broody moody. Not making a great impression so far." He sighs and grabs the bottle.

"Yeah, Jake," I chastise under my lashes. "Weren't you just telling me you're going to be nice?"

He presses his lips into a tight smile and offers his hand. "Nice to meet you, I'm Jake."

"Vincent." Adonis smirks, tilting his shoulder in. "You have a pretty basic name for such unique, mediterranean features."

"Jake!" Daniela pops in, eyes wide on the prize. "I was just looking for you—"

"No, bitch. Back off." Adonis palms her face. "Nobody invited you here."

I grin ear to ear while Jake pales. Daniella stammers, blinking repeatedly.

"But... but I thought we were—"

"You thought wrong." My savior waves a dismissive hand. "Here, let me demonstrate."

Then he turns and lands the most unexpected, violent kiss on Jake's unsuspecting mouth. And I swear you see a part of his soul leave as he gets deflowered. His arms flap in the air, body bent to no avail, and then he's freed with a loud pop, hair wild, eyes staring into nothing.

"Go, Jake!" Anna cheers into the microphone — how did I not notice she was singing karaoke? — as she stands on the beer pong table. "Oh, yeah!"

Everyone starts applauding and cheering as they turn to Jake who's still lost in a trance while Vincent waves like the Queen of England.

~

Vincent leaves after an hour for another party and we exchange our Instagram names. It's past midnight and I'm ready to hit the bed, even though the crowd is only getting louder.

As the intoxication leaves my body, the stress of the day weighs with fatigue.

I go to my room and lock the door. Turn the bedside lamp on for a bit of light and strip down to my red bra and undies. I let out a sigh of relief as the warm air kisses my bare skin and mosey to the bathroom.

"Oh, fuck." I gasp when Jake opens the bathroom door in nothing but a towel.

He stands in a cloud of hot, humid steam. Chest sculpted and wet, hair wickedly damp, a towel too low on his hips, a trail of dark hair teasing beneath, veiny forearms resting by his sides.

"Mia." He greets, voice thicker and deeper.

I blush and stumble back as he paces towards me. "Um... this isn't your room."

The back of my knees hit the bed and I lose my balance, falling down on the mattress and steadying myself with my hands. He bends down and puts his hands by my sides, taking his time with predatory unhurriedness.

"And your point?" He asks slowly, lips so close to mine I can't breathe. His eyes are serious with darkness that stifles the air and heats my skin. I'm so caught off guard that I can't think.

"Uh... Daniela's not here." I gulp. "Neither is Vincent."

His eyes narrow as he studies me. "Are you still mad at me?"

"You think you can just strip naked and I'll forget everything?"

He dips his head below my face, scratching the slope of my neck with his bristled jaw. My neck arches against my will, eyes closing slightly and chest heaving.

He drags his lips across my skin with fragments of tongue, making my heart flutter from their sensual path. "I apologize..."

"Jake..." I breathe his name like a needy request.

"No one else can touch you." He warns with deceptive softness, eyes hooded and blown dark with specks of gold. His hands move to my thighs and I gasp when he grabs my ass in his calloused possessive palms. "You're mine. Do you understand?"

I snort under my breath and lean back on my elbows, looking at him under my lashes like he's not a big deal. He straightens up, raising a calm eyebrow.

"That's funny..." I slowly lift my foot and place it on his chest, telling him to stay away. "I don't think I remember giving you ownership over me."

"Really..." He murmurs dangerously and remains unmoving. My heart hammers in anticipation as his gaze lowers to my foot. When he looks back at me, the corner of his jaw twitches and something unknown takes over his eyes.

Something that hitches my breath and renders me still.

Before I can even blink, he jerks forward and grabs my hips, then flips me around and tosses me on my knees.

My palms slap on the mattress then I yelp as his hand buries in my hair and fists it, pulling my head back painfully.

Jake releases a rugged breath that vibrates in his chest as he lowers his lips to the shell of my ear, chaining his other arm around my waist.

"What were you saying?" He cooes, lowering his hand between my legs and making me whimper. "Hm? You don't remember giving me ownership?"

A moan escapes from my parted lips when he cups me over my panties, slowly stroking his fingers over me. My thighs clench in resistance and I jerk forward, but his arm tightens around my waist, keeping me still.

"Want to say that again?" He kisses below my ear, smug cockiness dripping on my goose-bumped flesh.

"You have a hearing problem or something?" I snap through shallow breaths.

He releases my hair, making my spine ease from the tension, but only for a second, before he lands a hard slap on my ass, making me choke on a gasp.

Burning desire spreads from the pain, coiling in molten waves down to the tips.

"Who do you belong to?" He asks, completely unfazed, utterly in control. I look over my shoulder at his calm face expression and glare.

"Not you."

His eyebrows lift up for a brief, unimpressed moment, then without a warning, quickly smacks me again.

"Fuck..." I whimper. A sensual haze fogs my mind. The pain moves through my body, slides along my nerves, up my spine, I can't believe what he's doing to me.

"Who do you belong to?" His low, commanding rumble melts me at his feet. Everything shakes, every last nerve, awake and desperate, for him, more of him.

He devours my neck in soft, sensual kisses, lips and tongue tasting the sensitive, burning flesh, clouding my head as I writhe and wither. I arch to comply, docile, needy as his drenched fingers circle and torment.

When I least expect it, his teeth grip the soft part where my neck connects to my shoulder. He bites. I cry out at the jolt of violent pleasure and shut my eyes tight.

"Shhh...I'm just getting started." He smirks.

"You're such a...c-cocky piece of shit." My final protest labored.

"Yeah?" He pushes my panties aside and slides his fingers across. "You sure you want to talk to me like that?"

I shove my face deeper on the bed and drown my moans, fisting the sheets. But he doesn't stop. He cages me beneath him with no room to escape, jerks down my bra to pull my nipple in between two fingers, twisting and pinching.

"Who do you belong to?" He cooes in my ear.

"Y-you..." I give in, voice small, defeated.

"Say it properly." He pinches harder.

"You, sir."

"Good girl."

~A/N~
If you want full smut, please read my other books. I fade to black in this one (it's my first book, okay. I was too shy xD) I promise my other ones don't hold back.