CHAPTER 3

Jenna's POV.

The restroom door slams open, sending me jolting and almost tripping on the tiled floor. I spin around just as I catch his reflection in the mirror.

“What the fuck, Jace?!” I whisper-shout, hands braced on the cool porcelain sink behind me, heart pounding against my rib.

He closes the door behind him, locking it without breaking eye contact with me. “That’s exactly what I was going to ask you.”

His voice is low, breathless, as if he just ran after me, which he probably did. His eyes – those wild, stormy, maddening eyes – burn into mine like he's barely holding himself together.

I open my mouth, then close it again. My brain is still buffering.

“What the hell is going on, J? Why were you sitting there?” he demands, stepping closer. “At the same table. With my fucking father.”

My throat tightens. He calls me ‘J.’ when he's angry, and calls me ‘Jae’ when he’s soft. And right now?

I’m J.

“Answer me,” he growls, now only a foot away, heat radiating off his body like a furnace I’m too close to. “Why the fuck were you sitting at the table with my father like you’re one of them? Like you belong to him.”

“I didn’t know,” I breathe, my voice cracking. “I didn’t fucking know, Jace.”

“You expect me to believe that?” He laughs bitterly, running a hand through his dark messy hair. “You’re telling me this entire time you didn’t know I was your mom's boyfriend’s son?”

“Well, excuse me for not stalking your family tree!” I snap, finally finding my voice. “You never talked about your dad! You hate him!”

“I do!” he yells, his voice cracking. “But you loved your mom. Shouldn't you have found out about her boyfriend? Shouldn't you be protecting her?!”

“Did you give me a freaking time to breathe?!” I scream back. “You were all over me and couldn't think! You think I would’ve picked him out of a damn crowd? You never even told me his name!” I throw my hands up, voice shaking with frustration and disbelief. “You think I planned this? That I knew and just what—wore a pretty dress to dinner and decided to keep it a secret? You’re insane.”

Jace laughs again, but there’s no humor in it. It’s sharp and angry, laced with betrayal. “So, now what?”

Heat rises to my cheeks as I already know the outcome of my decision. “For my mom. She’s finally happy, Jace. For once, she's with someone who treats her like she matters.”

“And what about us?” he snarls, stepping even closer until his chest nearly brushes mine. “What about what we had? Or does Mommy’s fairytale come at the cost of our three fucking years together?”

I can’t breathe. Not with him this close. Not with his scent clouding my head and the fury rolling off his body like a tidal wave.

“I’ll break up with you,” I whisper, and it feels like I’ve just sliced open my own chest. “If that’s what it takes to protect her happiness... I’ll walk away.”

Jace stills. For a second, I swear the entire room freezes. Then his jaw clenches, and his eyes flash dark.

“Say that again,” he says quietly, but there’s nothing calm in his tone. “Say that shit one more time.”

“I will break up with—”

“No, the fuck you won’t,” he cuts me off, voice rising, eyes burning. “You walk away from me, Jae, and I swear to God I’ll burn it all down. Your mom’s happiness. My dad’s engagement. Your pretty little peace.”

“Jace—”

“Don't fucking test me!” he roars, and then suddenly, he grabs my waist, drags me into him, and crashes his mouth onto mine.

I gasp, fists hitting his chest, but he’s already kissing me like he’s starved, like he needs this to breathe. His mouth is angry and bruising, and mine opens for him, because I can’t resist him. I can't hate him, I love him, I want him, I hate this—but I can’t stop.

He growls against my lips, one hand gripping my hip tightly while the other fists into my hair as he kisses me harder, rougher, with years of obsession and heartbreak behind it. When he lifts my dress and presses me against the sink, he's hasty, desperate, and anxious and my mind short-circuits.

But then, I see my reflection in the mirror.

Tears in my eyes. Lip swollen. Heart wrecked, looking miserable.

“Stop,” I whisper, trembling, but he doesn’t hear me.

“Jace, stop!” I shove him hard in the chest, gasping, eyes wide. “We can't do this anymore.”

He freezes, breathing heavily. His eyes flicker, something snapping back into focus, but just when I think he'll back away, he slams me to the wall, back to him.

I gasp, my heart drumming against my chest with excitement and anticipation.

“No, this is wrong, please stop,” I tell him but don't fight it. Deep down, I want it. Deep down, I don't want him to stop.

His breath is hot against the back of my neck. My palms press against the cold tiles, trembling.

“You don’t get to say no now,” Jace growls into my ear, voice low and cracking. “Not after all this. Not after what we’ve been through. You’re not walking away, Jenna Pratt. I won’t let you.”

“Jace—” My voice is barely a whisper, shaking like my knees. “Please. Don’t make this harder.”

He grips my wrist and spins me back to face him. His eyes are bloodshot, jaw flexing like he’s in pain. “It’s already hard. You made it hard the second you walked into that fucking restaurant like you weren’t mine.”

“You’re mine, J. You’ve always been mine,” he growls, “Three fucking years. Three years of sneaking into your hostel room, holding you when you cried, fucking you senseless until you forgot your name, and now you're ready to throw that away because our parents are idiots?”

“Don't you dare call my mom an idiot!” I snapped.

“Sorry,” he kissed my face. “I'm sorry.”

I open my mouth, “Jace, we can’t do this anymore… It’s wrong. It’s messed up.” My heart is pounding so hard it might burst.

“I don't give a damn if it’s wrong.” His voice is a low, violent tremble now, like a storm seconds from breaking. “I’d rather be your dirty little secret than live a single fucking day without you. So go ahead, tell me you’re leaving. Tell me to stop.”

He leans in, so close our foreheads touch.

“Tell me you don’t want me.”

I hate him. I hate that I can't say it.

“I can't,” I breathe.

Jace closes his eyes like the words physically shatter him. His lips find mine again, slower this time, broken, like he’s apologizing with every touch. His hand cups my jaw, thumb brushing my cheek, and I feel the tremble in his fingers.

“I’ll ruin everything for you,” he whispers, forehead still resting against mine. “I’ll ruin your mom’s perfect little dream, I’ll fight my father to hell and back. Just say the word, Jae. I’ll do it all, just don’t ask me to let you go.”

I stare at him, tears finally spilling.

“I don’t want to lose you,” I admit, and it rips me open.

“Then don’t,” he says hoarsely, pressing a kiss to the corner of my mouth. “Fuck what’s right. I love you, and I don’t care who it pisses off.”

My heart aches. It shouldn't feel like this — it shouldn’t feel like war and worship at the same time. But it does. It always has with Jace.

My voice trembles as I say, “Then we lie.”

At least, for today. We'll come up with a better alternative later, even though I don't know what that is.

He blinks. “What?”

“We lie,” I repeat, stronger now. “We smile at the table, and we pretend we don’t know each other beyond polite hellos. We keep this secret, Jace. We protect them. We protect us.”

His face hardens. “You really think I can sit across a dinner table from you, knowing what your mouth tastes like? Knowing how you sound when you beg for me?”

His hand drops to my waist again.

“You really think I’ll survive that, Jae?”

“You’ll have to,” I whisper. “Because if my mom gets hurt, you lose me.”

His jaw clenches. His eyes blaze. And then he nods, once. “Fine. We will protect your mom, just for today.”