33. Clubs + Cocoa

By Friday morning, I've had the best week of my life in a long-ass time.

Jayce is an absolutely incredible boyfriend. He's sweet, sexy, hilarious, caring and a really good listener. Not to mention a relentless flirt, which I love.

I carefully pour myself a mug of coffee, being sure not to splash it on my white top.

I wrap my fingers around the ceramic cup, close my eyes and take a long sip, savoring the scent and warmth of my favorite beverage.

I hear Haven's heavy footfalls coming down the stairs and when I open my eyes, they meet his intense green ones. With lines between his brows and his mouth set in a straight line, he looks upset.

"Morning," I offer, trying to gauge how angry he is. "Want some coffee?"

"That'd be great, thanks," he replies flatly, opening the fridge and sifting through its contents.

I grab a mug and pour him a cup, handing it to him warily as he sucks down some gross protein shake thing.

"So," I start, after several moments of silence. "Are we gonna talk about it?"

"Talk about what?"

I give him a pointed look, refusing to believe he's being serious, and honestly a little annoyed that he'd be content with just not talking about the elephant in the room.

"Fine," he sighs, leaning his hip against the counter and crossing his arms over his broad chest. "I'm sorry I've been a jerk, I just need to get used to the fact that one of my bros is banging my little sister."

"Jayce and I haven't even had sex," I defend, wishing that was a lie.

"Right," he scoffs and rolls his eyes, clearly not believing me. "It's Jayce, Fallon. I know him. I'm not an idiot."

"Maybe you don't know him as well as you think you do," I challenge, feeling myself getting angry but fighting to keep my voice level. "Besides, you have zero say in who I choose to be with."

"Fal," Haven says gently. "How would you feel if me and Presley were making out all the time?"

I inadvertently cringe at the thought. "Well," I counter, "how would you feel if you saw me moments from fucking a married person against the side of someone's house?"

"What part of 'her husband knew' do you not understand, Fallon?"

"How come you can throw a fit and give me the cold shoulder because I'm dating your friend, but I have to be 'understanding' when you literally sleep with a married person? Then cuddle on the couch with Celia the night after?"

"I just don't want to see you get hurt," he says carefully.

"I can take care of myself," I grumble, leaning back against the counter. "I appreciate that you care enough about me to be protective, but I'd honestly just rather have your support."

Haven's eyes fall to the ground, his face suddenly looking defeated. After several seconds he asks, "Does he make you happy?"

"Very."

"Does he treat you well?"

"Extremely."

Haven sighs. "I was afraid of that."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I growl as my jaw clenches.

"It means," he says with a small smile, seeming to give in, "that I now have no grounds for not liking that he's dating you."

I exhale a sigh of relief and feel a grin form on my face. "So, you'll be happy for us?"

"I'll give it my best," he sighs dramatically.

"Thank you," I breathe. "Now, let's talk about your love life, you little man whore."

"Man whore?"

"You heard me," I confirm, nodding my head solemnly. "How many girls are you currently seeing?"

"What?" He scoffs.

"Tamara, Celia... how many are there?"

"I'm not seeing Celia," Haven says quickly, the tips of his ears turning the slightest bit red.

"So, you're romantically involved with only one woman?" I ask, just to be sure.

"Yes."

"...One married woman."

Haven rolls his eyes. "Yes."

"Why are you even with her?" I ask, genuinely curious. "Like, honestly... what the hell do you see in her?"

He shrugs and responds with, "She's hot. And she doesn't need a fuck ton of attention. She just wants sex."

"Wow," I deadpan, unimpressed. "Do you even like her? Like, as a person?"

"She's cool, I guess," he shrugs again, indifferent.

"You're disgusting."

"As if you're any better," he chuckles, his eyes glistening with laughter. "I know all about the little friends you've had."

"Whatever," I say, turning to wash out my mug. "I'm just glad you're not a cheater and that you're okay with me and Jayce together."

"As long as you're happy and being treated good, that's all that really matters to me," Haven says earnestly.

I smile at him, grateful for his understanding, right as the front door opens and Jayce strolls through the front door. He looks fucking scrumptious in his backwards cap, black t-shirt, leather jacket and dark jeans. I find it incredibly attractive that it's taken him less than a week to get comfortable enough to just walk right into the house. I can't with his confidence. So hot.

"Hey there, beautiful," Jayce says with an adorable half-smile as he strides right up to me, wraps his arms around me and kisses me.

Haven makes a retching sound before skedaddling out the front door, closing it in his wake.

Jayce pulls away and I look up into his warm brown eyes, his familiar scent engulfing me as he lifts his cap and runs his fingers through his hair. "If we leave now," he tells me quickly. "We'll have time to pick up donuts and smoothies on the way to school."

I swear, I'll never get tired of this.

~

Somehow, I got myself roped into this.

I still don't really know how it happened.

All I know is that it's 11pm on Friday night and I am currently on the top floor of a three story club in Santa Elelita.

Two days ago, a girl from the cheer team, Melody, had asked me and Jayce to go out with the rest of the girls and their boyfriends tonight. I'd said no. But when Presley begged me to come so that she wouldn't "be alone with a herd of psychotic Barbie dolls," I'd eventually crumbled. She also mentioned that she wanted my help finding a rebound/distraction from Cole, and figured tonight would be the perfect time.

Luckily for me, Jayce had agreed to come, even though he laughed when I first mentioned it because he thought I was joking.

Pres had dressed me in a black crop top and high-waisted black pants made of the same material.

Walking into the massive club with Jayce, I quickly realized that there were at least five different DJs, all playing different genres for different areas of the club. I recognized House, EDM, Latin, Hip Hop and Top-40. The club itself was completely decked out - pulsing lights of every color, lasers shining through billows of machine-made smoke, and even several floors that appeared to be made of screens, which displayed trippy shapes and colors that seemed to never repeat. Pushing our way through hundreds of people, we made it to the top floor and immediately scored a corner booth.

"Thank you guys so much for coming," Presley praises, sliding into the booth and looking relieved. She eyes some of the girls from the squad, who are taking pouting selfies by the edge of the dance floor.

"I'm just here for my queen," Jayce says loudly, draping his arm over my shoulder.

"And I'm just here to help you find someone so you can get over Cole," I remind Presley, who is already scanning the crowd, no doubt looking for a target.

"What about him?" She points to a guy leaning against the bar. He's tall with dark hair, extremely pale skin and big, electric blue eyes. "He's cute in a might-be-a-vampire kind of way."

"He's just off to the side, staring at everyone," I scold.

"Yeah, well, so am I right now," Presley flips her hair off her shoulder, still looking at bar-guy like a lioness would look at its prey.

"You need someone who's already in the middle of the party," I correct, knowing she needs someone social and fun, not someone who leans against the bar and looks at the fun. She needs a Peter Kavinsky, not an Edward Cullen. "Come on," I grab her wrist and stand up, dragging her with me. "We're going to dance."

"I'll save our table and order some grub," Jayce nods, checking me out and biting on his lower lip as hunger flashes in his eyes. "Don't wander too far off."

Presley and I wiggle between some couples and make our way onto the dance floor, shaking and moving what we've got as Nicki Minaj's 2010 summer anthem "Super Bass" blasts through the packed room.

We rap the first verse, dancing back to back and not caring what we look like. Presley pulls out her phone and makes several Instagram stories of us belting out the chorus and moving into the next verse.

Spinning around on my heel, I open my eyes to see a guy coming up behind Presley. And he's gorgeous. Like Michael B. Jordan crossed with Jesse Williams. They exchange a few words and extremely flirty looks. Presley glances at me with a smile before taking Michael-Jesse's hand and moving deeper into the dance floor.

Satisfied, I start heading back to the table Jayce is saving, when suddenly, a short, stocky figure catches my attention. My blood runs cold and my heart drops into my stomach.

Mr. Tom Jeffers.

In his off-the-clock clothes, he looks slightly less intimidating. Slightly. But seeing him, drink in hand and laughing with who I'm sure are his colleagues while eyeing pretty much any girl who walks past... I feel more mad than scared.

My gut told me from the day we met him that he isn't to be trusted. He's shady. And way too good with words. He's got to be more involved with all this bullshit with the Duende contracts then he lets on. He makes it sound like he simply rewrote them and moved on with his life... but I'm not convinced. Just the sight of him makes my skin crawl.

Anger is already coursing through my veins by the time I finally spot our booth. There's a blonde squeezed into the seat next to Jayce while Melody and another sit across from him. They're leaning over the table, their boobs spilling out of their barely-there dresses. Classy.

I swear, it had taken me all of three minutes to help Presley and those girls had already descended upon him, all fighting for his attention like horny little bitches.

"Did you know I've actually taken pole dancing classes?" I hear Layla's drunken voice ask as I approach, followed by a flirty giggle. She's the one sitting next to Jayce, effectively blocking him into the booth. I can't see her face, but I can imagine her batting her long eyelashes at him. I feel my jaw set and my hands curl into fists. I've already beaten her up once this year, and I'm in the mood for another round.

"Did you know that I don't give a shit?" Jayce replies, looking thoroughly unimpressed.

"And I'm, like, really flexible," she tries again, scooting closer to him.

"Can you not sit so close to me?" Jayce recoils instantly, his nose curling. "You smell like desperation and used condoms."

Damn.

I forgot how humiliating it is to be on the receiving end of his burns.

Arriving at the table and trying not to punch Layla's face, I place my palms flat on the shiny surface and give Jayce a huge smile.

"Tom Jeffers is here," I announce as Jayce's jaw goes slack. "And I'm about to fight him. Or her," my eyes float down to Layla, who, to my satisfaction, looks a bit afraid. Good.

"Move, peasants!" Jayce jumps up, knocking the table which, in turn, hits Melody and the other girl back into the booth. His force almost sends Layla to the floor. "I need to take care of this queen."

He quite literally climbs over Layla, who does not seem very happy, and takes my hand in his, pulling me close to his chest.

"Let's get you out of here, baby," he mumbles sweetly, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "No one upsets my girl."

I beam up at him, my heart fluttering as he leads us toward the stairs.

"Jayce!" Layla calls from behind us. "When you get bored of her, you know I'll do anything you want."

"Layla, I want your crusty ass to never speak to me or my girlfriend again," Jayce hollers back, his voice is mocking, almost sing-song. Several heads turn to look at us, but he just chuckles and pulls me forward, tucking me safely under his arm.

"Well, that's gotta be the quickest night out I've ever experienced," I giggle as we walk out the front door of the club.

"The night's not ov–" Jayce stops speaking mid-sentence, our walk also coming to a jolting halt.

I glance up at him with my eyebrows furrowed, wondering what caused the interruption. I follow Jayce's stare to the entrance of an alley along the side of the club. There's a man standing there, dressed in a black suit. I nearly missed him as he's barely visible in the shadows of the alleyway.

"I... I'll be right back," Jayce says, not removing his eyes from the man. "Go wait in the car, Fallon. Please," he hands me his keys before stalking off toward the mystery man.

I stand glued to the spot for several moments, watching as Jayce reaches the man and they shake hands before engaging in a very intense-looking conversation. An uneasy feeling creeps over me and I shiver, bolting to the car and locking it once inside.

Peeking out the windshield, I see Jayce's conversation come to an end. Jayce spins around, walking toward the car at a quickened pace, an angry expression on his chiseled features.

"Who was that?" I ask, my heart pounding as Jayce climbs into the driver's seat of his Mustang.

"A friend of my parents'," he says too casually. "He was just giving me an update on some business-related stuff."

"Right..." I say slowly, studying him. He obviously doesn't want me to know something. "Well, is everything okay?"

He's silent as he backs the car up. "It better be soon," his voice is almost a growl, and it sends another round of shivers down my spine.

The car ride back to town is quiet, almost uncomfortably so. Jayce's face is set in a scowl, and he seems entirely lost in his thoughts. I turn some music on, hoping that it'll help cut the tension, but it doesn't work.

"Jayce," I finally say as we take the exit for Goldcrest. "Talk to me. What's going on? Who was that man?"

My words seem to pull him back to reality and his expression softens immediately. "I know that was probably really strange," he looks over at me, his eyes sweeping over my frame. He takes my hand in his. "I'll tell you soon. But not right now."

"When is soon?"

"I'm not sure."

I let out a frustrated sigh, not satisfied with that answer. "Why can't you tell me?"

"I just..." He repositions in his seat. "Please trust me, Tink. I swear I'll tell you. Now just isn't the time."

"You're maddening," I grumble, removing my hand from his and crossing my arms across my chest, sinking into the passenger's seat.

"And you're sexy," he chuckles. "If I tell you what I was talking to the guy about, do you think you can wait on getting all the details?"

"Totally," I reply quickly, desperate for my curiosity to be quenched.

"I was talking to him about Tom Jeffers," Jayce says, running his fingers through his curls. "I haven't given up on figuring out what happened between our dads. That's all I want to say right now."

"C'mon, Jayce," I whine, grabbing at his muscular bicep. "I'm part of this, too. You can't just keep me in the dark."

"Fallon," he looks at me pointedly. "There's no point in you worrying about it. I don't have a lot of new information."

"But, I can help!"

"When I'm with you, I'd rather just forget that there's any mystery at all," Jayce says, pulling through the gates of his family's estate. "I don't want our time together to become about figuring out a bunch of stuff that happened between our friggin parents. I want us to look forward, not keep getting caught up in the past."

"I don't know if I can do that," I tell him honestly. "I have to know what happened."

"And so do I," he nods, parking in the garage and killing the engine. "But we don't have to be the ones to do it. There are people you can hire for that. I want to know what happened just as much as you do, but I also don't want our relationship to become only about that."

"So, that guy was a private investigator?" I ask, my eyes wide. Of course Jayce would have the money and means to hire a PI.

"Can we just pretend there's no mystery?" Jayce turns to face me, looking at me with pleading, adorable puppy dog eyes. "And can you just trust that when something of significance arises, I'll tell you the moment I find out? I don't want to constantly be worrying about whatever bullshit happened way back when. I just want to focus on you and on our future. Not our parents' past."

My heart turns into goo at his wise words. If I'm being truthful, I've been wanting the same thing, but the guilt of feeling like I was giving up on my dad had kept me from speaking up. "That sounds perfect," I breathe, giving him a peck on the lips before we climb out of the Mustang and head into the empty house. "Do you ever get lonely, with your parents gone so much?"

He shrugs as we head into the kitchen. "Sometimes. But, now I have you," he smiles over his shoulder, his brown eyes glistening as he pulls a gallon of milk from the fridge.

"What are you doing?" I ask as he disappears into the pantry, returning with sugar and cocoa powder.

"Making hot chocolate," he replies, setting the ingredients on the counter before yanking off his shirt. "Don't want that to get dirty," he winks as he tosses it aside, but I'm too busy staring at his washboard abs.

He turns on the stove (and me) and pulls out a pot, mixing in the milk, sugar and cocoa. It's so fucking hot to see him being all domestic and shit. And while looking like a damn super model. Fuck.

"So, what are we going to do when the hot chocolate is done?" I ask, moving closer to him.

"I figured we could watch movies and eat junk," he shrugs, peering into the pot.

Good lord.

This man knows the way to my heart.

I wiggle my way between him and the stove and lightly trace my fingers over his abs. He smirks down at me, his eyes darting over my features as he lowers his lips to mine. My mouth moves against his in a flurry of need. I run my hands over his hot skin and nibble at his bottom lip, tugging it between my teeth.

"Getting a little rough, huh?" He chuckles darkly as his curls tickle my eyelashes.

"Mhmm," I reply, breathing in his scent as I press myself against him.

"God, you're so fucking cute," he growls and picks me up under my thighs, placing me on the counter next to the stove.

The back of my head hits against the cabinets and I wrap my legs and arms around him, clinging to him as we frantically make out. One of his hands makes its way up my waist, coming up to squeeze my breasts. I let out a little moan as I tangle my fingers in his silky hair, savoring the feeling of his skin against mine.

He kisses me with hunger and passion, his soft lips leaving me breathless. He breaks our kiss and I gasp to regain my breath. He trails white-hot kisses down my neck and I tip my head back, begging for more. He kisses the tops of my boobs and I tighten my legs around his waist.

"I need to stir the hot cocoa," he says teasingly, removing his lips from my body.

I let out a frustrated groan, wishing he'd actually finish me off for once. But then again, he had never finished, either.

He stirs the boiling beverage and pulls out two mugs from the cabinet by my head. He fills them both with the homemade hot chocolate, then goes back into the pantry and emerges with a bottle of peppermint schnapps and a bag of mini-marshmallows. He fills the mugs the rest of the way with alcohol and tops each drink with a handful of marshmallows.

"M'lady," he says with a smirk, handing me the piping hot drink.

"Why, thank you," I reply, taking the mug and breathing in the yummy aroma.

"How about you take these down the to basement and figure out what you want to watch, and I'll meet you down there with a fuck-ton of fattening snacks?" He asks, his white teeth sparkling against his skin. "We can Netflix and chill," he says with a wink, biting his lower lip and unleashing butterflies in my stomach.

I take the mugs downstairs and curl onto the couch, flipping through Netflix while taking large sips of the spiked peppermint hot cocoa, which is amazing. I let out a yawn and realize that it's probably close to 1am.

By the time Jayce comes down, he's changed into his grey sweatpants, which makes me want to drool, and is carrying an array of chips, candy and other treats, which also makes me want to drool. He places everything on the coffee table in front of us, then settles onto the couch, right next to me.

"What are we watching?" He asks as he lays himself out, stretching his legs over my lap.

"Sherlock," I reply, pressing play on episode one and stifling another yawn.

"Gonna fall asleep on me, Tink?" He teases with a grin.

I shake my head and he chuckles, which brings a smile to my face. I love seeing him happy.

As the show progresses, I realize that I haven't had much to eat today and am already experiencing the effects of the peppermint schnapps. I can feel my eyelids drooping, but refuse to fall asleep.

Jayce and I end up spooning and despite me pressing my ass against his crotch and him grabbing my boobs, it's not long before I hear deep, rhythmic breathing coming from the man behind me.

I let out a small giggle and cuddle into him, unable to keep the smile off my face. He lets out a happy sigh in his sleep and wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him.

I can barely keep my eyes open, but I force myself to capture this moment so that I'll remember it forever. Because, laying here with Jayce's arm around me, listening to his even breathing and both of us totally at peace... this has got to be the happiest I've ever been. Ever.

~~~

Did you guys see that last week we hit #1 in the High School Experience tag??? Ahhh!!

I'm so blown away by y'all! ❤️

Also, @nanzthepumpin (sorry chicka idk why it's not letting me tag you!) showed me this song called "No Place" by the Backstreet Boys because she said it makes her think of Jayce and Fallon, so I listened to it and OMGEEE. It's so perfect. So thanks for sharing that with me, boo ! 😘

Last, many of y'all seem to like Haven a lot, so shout out to him for making up with Fal in this chapter, and ALSO... I realized I've done several J appreciations at the end of chapters, but here is a Haven appreciationnn. So enjoy it, and read on.xx