Chapter 169: 169 ~ Mira
~Back in LA~
The precision of his thrusts had me gasping for air as my body embraced the pleasure. I could feel all my senses tingling.
It was the first time we made love in over a month. With everything going on, there was no time for it, and to say I missed him was an understatement.
His lips took mine in a gentle kiss, making me cling tighter to him.
"God, I missed you," he groaned, voice rough against my mouth. I could tell he was close. I felt the tension in his muscles, the tremor in his breath, the way he said my name like it grounded him.
"I missed you more," I whispered, my voice barely steady.
I couldn’t scream for fear of Donna Carmela possibly overhearing us from the next room, but it was getting harder to keep quiet. The bed creaked under us. My fingers clutched at his shoulders as the pleasure built faster than I could contain.
Jace didn’t seem to care. His gaze stayed locked on mine — gray, fierce, burning. When his thumb pressed harder against my clit, I jerked helplessly, my breath hitching into a cry I couldn’t swallow.
"I want to hear you," he whispered in my ear, his tone dark and soft all at once. "Even if it’s just my name."
That was all it took.
The sound that tore out of me wasn’t just pleasure. It was everything I’d been holding in for weeks. The fear, the longing, the relief. All of it melted into one breaking point that left me trembling beneath him.
He came right after, shuddering against me with a low, guttural sound that sent a shiver through my chest. The warmth of him filled me, the weight of his body anchoring me back to the world.
Then silence.
Not the uneasy silence that haunted us for months, but the kind that comes after something beautiful. The kind that makes you breathe a little slower.
His head rested against my chest, and I ran my fingers through his damp hair. His heart was beating fast, mine too.
I felt relief flood my veins.
Jace was here. He was alive and I didn’t want to let him go. Not ever.
"I thought I lost you," I murmured, voice fragile in the quiet. My heart did little palpitations every time I thought about the bloody fight he had with Massimo. Anything could have happened then and there was nothing I could have done to save him if things went left.
He lifted his head, brushing his thumb over my bottom lip. "You won’t," he said softly. "Not in this lifetime."
I smiled faintly, even as my throat tightened. "You promise?"
He pressed his lips to my forehead. "I don’t make promises I can’t keep."
We stayed like that for a long time, just tangled together, breathing the same air, listening to the faint hum of the city below. The world outside didn’t exist for us anymore. It was just him and me and the soft rhythm of peace finally finding its way back into our lives.
When I drifted off to sleep, I was still in his arms.
And when morning came, he was still there.
The sunlight spilled across the sheets, turning everything gold. Jace was on his back beside me, his hair messy, his lips parted slightly in sleep. He looked younger, softer and nothing like the man who had spent months in the shadows of war.
I rolled onto my side, tracing my fingers gently down his chest, memorizing the quiet rise and fall. He stirred a little but didn’t wake, just tightened his arm around me, pulling me closer.
I smiled into his skin. For once, I didn’t care about anything else.
"Keep staring at me like that and I’ll start charging you for it," he said suddenly, voice thick with sleep.
I laughed. "You were supposed to be asleep."
"I was," he mumbled, turning his head toward me, "until you started poking my chest like you were trying to see if I was real."
"Can you blame me?" I teased. "You have a habit of vanishing."
He chuckled, rolling over until he hovered above me again. "Not anymore."
"Promise?"
He nodded and kissed me, slow and tender this time. There was no rush, no edge. Just us.
By the time we made it downstairs for breakfast, Donna Carmela was already waiting, pretending to read the paper. Her teacup was half full, and she didn’t look up when we walked in.
"Morning, Donna." I said, trying to sound casual.
She hummed, setting the paper down just enough to glance at us over the rim of her glasses. "You both look... well-rested."
I nearly choked on air. "We— uh—"
Jace smirked beside me, not the least bit embarrassed. "It was a long night," he said simply, pouring himself coffee.
I turned to Jace with my eyes as wide as saucers.
Donna arched a brow. "Yes. I noticed." She said dryly.
My entire face went red. "Donna!"
"What?" she said innocently. "I may be old, not deaf. Next time, at least turn on some music."’
"Let’s just say we forgot that we lived with other occupants. Mira and I are used to having our privacy." Jace teased even further. I wanted to melt into a puddle out of embarrassment.
Tomas, who had just walked in, groaned. "Oh, for the love of God. I’m not eating breakfast with this conversation happening."
Jace only chuckled, sipping his coffee. "You’re welcome to leave."
"Gladly," Tomas muttered, walking right back out while I buried my face in my hands.
Jace leaned closer and whispered in my ear, "You’re cute when you blush."
"Stop talking," I hissed, elbowing him lightly. But even as I tried to sound annoyed, I was smiling.
It was peaceful. The kind of peace that felt fragile but precious. Like something we could finally build a future from.
For the first time in forever, I let myself believe it might actually last.