twenty-one: in which she makes a new home

"Something's telling me that I should let you know: You make it feel like home" –Nicky Romero & NERVO, Like Home

********************************

The week went by so quickly that before I knew it, it was Monday morning and I was moving. I woke up alone in Jake's bed, knowing that he was working somewhere today but that I could call him if I needed anything. I'd packed my suitcases into my car the day before so there was really nothing else I needed to take.

It was a little before nine when I went down for breakfast and found Bree in the kitchen, making pancakes like it was an everyday occurrence. Her spiky orange hair was matted in places and her make-up was smudged.

"Hey. How's it going, Maya?" she said with a wide smile. "Pancakes?"

"Bree. Hey. What are you –"

She gestured at the neon yellow T-shirt that was incredibly loose on her tiny frame. "Baron," she cut in, anticipating my line of questioning. "You know, he's been in town for a week now and I hadn't seen him until last night. Crazy, right?"

"Yeah. Crazy." I went for the coffee pot and grabbed a mug.

"Syrup?"

"Huh?"

"Do you want syrup on your pancakes?"

"Yes, please." I eyed her over my mug as I perched on a stool. She seemed...perky. "Can I ask you something really personal?"

She stacked a tower of golden pancakes on a plate, drizzling gooey syrup over them before pushing it towards me. "What is it?"

I cleared my throat. "I was just wondering. You've been with, um, Jacob and now you've been with, um, Baron. You don't think that's...weird?"

Bree let out a short laugh. "Spit it out, Maya. You just want to know who the better fuсk is."

I felt my face flush. That was not what I was asking.

She gave me a sober look. "I've been with Baron so many times before. Same with Ripper. I've been with them both at the same time. You just can't choose who's best when it comes to the Ford brothers." She sent me a wink. "Maybe you should try two for the price of one yourself, huh? See what I'm talking about."

My appetite fled. I stared at the pancakes and wanted to be sick. I sincerely regretted asking Bree anything about her sex life.

"Maya? Ѕhit, I know that isn't your style," Bree was saying hurriedly. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have mentioned my past. Baron said you and Ripper are pretty serious."

"It's fine. I shouldn't have asked."

Bree seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. She held out a fork and knife. "Will you please eat a pancake to let me know that we're good?"

As if on cue, my stomach rumbled loudly. I took the silverware from Bree and made a show of cutting a huge slice and shoving it into my mouth. "Happy?"

"God, yes. If your boyfriend found you pissed off because I have a really big mouth, he'd kill me."

"He's not my... Oh, forget it. These are actually pretty awesome," I murmured around a mouthful.

"Thanks! I figured you'd appreciate them. Wish I'd woken up before Ripper, though. I owe him."

"I can't believe someone would have the audacity to hit you because you didn't want to be touched," I said, shaking my head.

"Guys can be dicks, but I swear, I was going to go JC Van Damme on him and kick his ass if Ripper hadn't stolen my thunder. I can take care of myself."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at her. "Uh-huh."

"Do I smell pancakes?" Baron's loud voice wafted into the room, making me turn around. "Well, damn, Maya. It smells..." His words died off the instant he locked eyes with Bree. "You're still here."

Well. This wasn't awkward. Detect my sarcasm.

"I'm gonna... The movers will be at my new place in an hour," I mumbled, standing. "I should get going. Thanks for breakfast, Bree. Later, Baron."

I crept past him, wondering what that was all about. Actually, it was pretty obvious that Bree was a one-night stand who preferred to cook than do the walk of shame. She made pancakes – really mouthwatering, fluffy ones with generous drizzles of syrup – and wore his T-shirts. Yeah, I didn't want to be around for that awkward situation.

The drive to Iris' apartment was relatively uneventful and probably took about fifteen minutes. Fine, I timed it – fifteen minutes, seven seconds. The apartment block was made up of airy luxury apartments that Iris had once admitted were way above her salary. It helped to have a rich single father who owned your apartment. George, the ancient security guard at the front desk, helped me into the elevator with my bags.

Iris met me at the door, all bouncy and excited in red flannel PJs. "Gah, you're here early! But that's fine. Close your eyes, Maya."

"What? Help me with these, please," I muttered, dragging a suitcase behind me while George trailed in with several boxes piled high in his arms.

"Just drop your stuff here and close your eyes," Iris insisted, pulling at my arm.

"I don't like surprises, Iris. You know this."

"Well, you'll love this one. Come on." She took my boxes out of poor George's arms. "Thanks, George! I'm baking cappuccino cupcakes today. I'll bring down a couple, OK?"

His blue eyes lit up. "Sounds good, Iris. Welcome to the building, Maya. See you around."

"Thank you, George," I replied with a smile.

When he was gone, Iris resumed tugging me towards the only other bedroom besides hers. I followed, because she was like a Chihuahua with a bone.

Pushing open the door rather dramatically, she exclaimed, "Ta-da! Do you like it?"

Like it? I stepped into the bedroom, taking in the sight of the large, comfy-looking sleigh bed before me. The baby-blue curtains with tiny white seashells printed on it. The two nightstands on either side of the bed. The wooden vanity table with the large mirror.

"This... This isn't my stuff," I whispered, turning to face Iris. "Did the movers come early? They went to the wrong storage unit, didn't they? I don't understand."

Iris came up to me and put her hands on my shoulders, which was awkward to do since she practically came up to my waist. "Maya," she began slowly, "how would the movers know that your favorite color is blue, or that you like sleigh beds because they remind you of Santa?"

I took a guess. "Kira?"

"Hey, I know those things about you, too," said Iris, sounding affronted. She dropped her arms to her sides. "Kira and I were consultants on all things Maya Fenton. Moira's out of town for the week so she couldn't help, but I swear, with you living here, she's going to be visiting all the time. You're so lucky to have a boyfriend who would –"

"Jake." My voice was shaky. I shuffled to the bed and sat down. God, this mattress was like a huge marshmallow beneath my ass. I stared at Iris. "When? How?"

"The entire week while we were at work. I gave him a key and he got a decorator," she explained, sitting beside me. "Do you not like it?" Her voice was tentative.

"I just..." I didn't even know what to say. "I just need a minute."

"Because Jake said half the stuff you have in storage should go to a dump. Most of it was... ruined during the house-breaking? Well, anyway, he said you should have new stuff."

"Iris? Can I be alone for a second?"

Her eyes became saucers. "I'm sorry if I over-stepped, Maya."

"It's not that." I took her hand and squeezed. "Thank you for doing this for me. I really appreciate it."

She beamed. "You're welcome. I'm glad you like it." She cleared her throat as she stood. "I'll be in the kitchen. Have you had breakfast?"

I nodded.

"Well, I'm gonna have mine in front of the TV. Sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Iris. Thanks again."

When she left, I fell back onto the bed and stared at the ceiling for a long time. My mind was a blank...until I started thinking about money again. I mean, an interior decorator had to cost big bucks. Plus, this stuff looked expensive. Just thinking about numbers made my head spin. Jake had done this for me. Surprised me. He'd gone to all this trouble to make sure that I slept on a mattress that didn't have knife holes in it. It was just a new bedroom, someone would say, but it was more. To me.

I reached into my pocket for my phone and punched in his number. He answered on the third ring.

"Jake, can you come over for a minute?" I said it in a rush, not giving him a chance to speak. And then I hung up.

And paced.

And paced.

And paced.

By the time Jake blew through the door, it seemed like I'd worn a hole in the soft carpeting with my bare feet. I'd been dead to the world when he'd left for work – some guy wanted a Japanese poem tattooed onto his back complete with an English translation – so really, I hadn't seen Jake since last night.

He closed the door behind him before striding over to me, framing my face with his hands. "You OK? What is it?"

"Yeah. Nothing's wrong. I just..." I had just one question to ask. I took a deep breath. "I was wondering if you'd go for a threesome. You, me, and Baron. If he's willing, of course."

The look of concern on Jake's face morphed into one of pure outrage. It was a startling sight, what with all the marks and cuts on his face still healing. "The fuсk did you just say?"

"Jacob! Ow! You're hurting me!" I slapped at his hands on my face until they loosened. He took a giant step away from me, holding his hands away from his body as if he couldn't believe they'd just all but attempted to crush my head.

"You want to fuсk my brother? That's what you're telling me?" He closed the distance between us again, a fierce look on his face. "Did we not have a fuсking discussion about fuсking around on each other?"

"I want to do it with the both of you," I forced myself to say. "At the same time. That's not... fuсking around on you!"

"Over my dead fuсking body."

"Oh, yeah? So what's the difference between Bree and me?" I hurled at him. The look of shock on his face was priceless to behold. "You shared her with Baron. Why can't you share me?"

Jake recovered quickly. "You're Maya. She's Bree," he said roughly, gripping the back of my neck and making me look him in the eye. "What I did in the past... It's not gonna fuсking happen with you! I'll murder any man you so much as blink at while we're together, and I'll gladly go to jail for life. Get that through your skull."

The warning in his eyes was enough to make me believe what he was saying. We were both breathing heavily when he was done speaking. He looked completely baffled by the smile that suddenly curved my lips.

"I figured that's what you'd say." I flattened my palms against his chest, over his heart, which was beating way too fast with adrenaline. "FYI, I'm not into Baron, nor threesomes. I'm into you. Just you."

"What. The. Fuсk. Maya." His hold around my neck tightened, just barely. He let me go. "You making me crazy on purpose? You testing me or some ѕhit?"

I shook my head ruefully. "Jake, thank you. For this." I motioned at the room. "You didn't have to, but it was sweet and –"

"What did I say about thanking me?" Jake's nostrils flared.

Before he could say anything else, my arms circled his neck, and I leaned in as far as I could, putting my lips to his. He began to kiss me back, obviously forgetting whatever threat followed his train of thought. I moaned, and his tongue slid past my lips, plundering my mouth. Jake's hands were on my hips, bringing me close to him, then finally, on my backside, squeezing the soft flesh.

My fingers fumbled with his belt buckle. A frustrated noise was stuck in my throat when I couldn't get his jeans undone. Chuckling softly, Jake unbuckled the leather and unzipped his fly. I went for the hem of his T-shirt, tearing my lips from his to let him peel it off.

Sexual hunger clawed at my insides at the sight of his chest, packed tight with the inked muscles I'd slept on for the past few nights. Completely naked, he went for the camisole I was wearing over my bra and peeled it off my body. The bra came off, then my jeans, and finally, I was left in my red lacy panties. There was a feral look in his eyes when he spotted those. Probably there was a wet patch on the crotch, the evidence of my arousal.

"These were kind of expensive," I teased, running a fingertip along the flowery waistband.

"Mm-hmm." He was closer now, breathing so heavily I could hear it. He pulled me to him, putting his mouth to the side of my neck and sliding his hands into my panties. "You make me so goddamn crazy. You know that?"

I let out a whimper when his hands curled into fists and he tore the lace away from my hipbones. His fingers slipped to the entrance of my puѕsy, parting the soft folds and pushing inside. I let out a gasp, pushing my hips against him, and he thumbed my сlit.

"Jake," I began, grinding myself against his hand, "there's something... Oh, God." Words escaped me when his fingers found that spot; the spot inside me that made talking impossible.

Just one more flicker of his thumb against my сlit and I'd come...

He stopped moving, biting into my neck. "You're gonna come all over my coсk, babe. Not on my hand," he uttered roughly, taking a step forward and circling around me so that he was by the bed. "Pass me the rubber in my back pocket." He sent me a cheeky grin. "Boy scout, remember?"

I approached him, gliding my hands down his front until I could wrap them around his diсk. He made a low, tortured sound. "About that. I went to get the shot last week, so...we don't need that anymore. I know it feels better this way. I mean, if you want –"

"Do I want to come inside you?" He inhaled deeply, eyes dark and spilling with desire. "Fuсk, yeah." He reached out to cup my chin. "There's no one else but you that I'd trust. That I've ever trusted."

He sat on the edge of the bed, patting his lap until I straddled him, knees on either side of him and hands on his shoulders. His hands were on my breasts in an instant, pulling at my nipples until I pushed my center against his penis. I had a feeling that this – this thing we were about to do – would wreck me irreparably. Once he climaxed inside me, once we shared this together, there would be no one else. Maybe forever. Was I naïve to think that? Maybe.

My breathing grew labored and my skin felt hot. Jake's eyes were between us and, in a move that was meant to torture the both of us, he rubbed the head of his diсk along my slit. My hips canted forward, seeking more. More friction, more pleasure. More him.

"Jake, please," I said breathlessly, trying to force him to push into me.

His head jerked up, eyes unfocused with lust. "Do it. Put me inside you. Bounce on my coсk and fuсk me."

When he said things like this, my entire body would be forced to respond. Every inch of my skin would grow flushed, every nerve-ending would be awakened. Sucking in large gulps of air, I reached between us and grasped his coсk again. He jerked and pulsed in my hand and once we were perfectly aligned, I guided him into me, my puѕsy stretching to accommodate him.

Jake released a long, low moan the instant he was fully seated inside me. Our eyes locked. His hands were planted on my hips, pulling me down onto him. I could barely breathe each time I rose and descended, rose and descended. Like this, we were staring into each other's eyes, linked together by the heavy desire in our eyes.

He broke eye contact first, sucking my nipple into his mouth and sliding his eyes shut. I put my hands in his hair, my nails scraping his scalp. He groaned around my nipple, pushing up into me as fast as I was coming down to meet him, never giving us a moment apart.

"Feels so...good," I murmured, shuddering when Jake's teeth pull at the tip of my breast. "Ah, good..."

For a second, I lost the ability to think of anything beyond the feel of his mouth on my breast. Beyond the feel of his fingers digging into my sides. Beyond the loud, wet sound of his coсk sliding in and out of me. This moment of primal passion was all my body knew.

Jake released my nipple with a pop, eyes snapping open. "Fuсk. Ѕhit. Fuсking ѕhit," he rasped, easily lifting me up and laying me on the bed, keeping our bodies joined.

His body covered mine, and then he was thrusting, hard and fast, jack-hammering into me until my ass was imprinted in the sheets. He went deep, so deep I cried out.

"Yeah. Scream for me, sweetheart," he breathed, bringing my legs around him. "I...need...this..."

His voice cracked, and his English bled into another tongue. I realized that he was murmuring in Hebrew, his voice hoarse. Sensations were overwhelming me, choking me. I felt like I was drowning far out in an ocean of Jake Ford and yet, I didn't want the coast guard to rescue me. I wanted to be pulled under, anchored in the dark waters.

"I need to..." My voice faded away and became a low moan. This... I was going mindless.

"To come?" Jake grunted out, switching back to English. He surprised me by slowing his thrusts. "I need you to come." Thrust. "Need to feel this puѕsy milk my coсk." Thrust. Need to feel you soak me." Thrust.

"Uh-huh." My hips pushed up against his, the heels of my feet digging into his ass. "Yes."

"Babe, you're so tight and wet and hot," he said on a sigh. Thrust. "Gonna come in this pusѕy."

"Please." Please give me your cum... Please give me your оrgasm... Please...

Jake's pace quickened, driving the bed against the wall. I was perfectly aware that Iris knew exactly what we were doing, that she was probably getting an audio of everything, but that didn't stop the loud cry that left my mouth when I came. The moment my оrgasm swept through me was the moment that Jake found his. I felt his coсk jerking with every spurt of his release inside me.

He cursed every few seconds, throwing my name in there for good measure, and when he was done, he collapsed on top of me. Maybe he didn't think he was over two-hundred pounds of bone and muscle, but he was, and I gave him a weak smack to his back to let him know this.

He raised himself slightly, grasping his diсk and slowly pulling out of me, kneeling between my parted thighs. A flood of wetness gushed out in his wake, and I squirmed uncomfortably. Jake held me down with a heated gaze and a hand to my abdomen.

"I need to clean up," I protested weakly.

"Allow me."

"OK," I acquiesced. "Knock yourself out."

You know how they say "expect the unexpected"? I would never have expected Jake to go down on me right after ejaculating inside me just moments before, but that's exactly what he did. My body was still locked in a state of post-orgasmic bliss, but the instant he lowered his mouth to my opening, I was engulfed by the flames of the desire.

Again.

*~*~*

"I think I pulled something."

"Yeah? Want me to kiss it better?"

"No, seriously, Jake. I think I'm broken."

"Broken, huh?" His fingers stroked my inner thigh and I shuddered, arching my back off the bed when he glided a finger up my center. "Nah. Definitely not broken. Just bent."

I pushed his hand away and rolled onto my stomach, propping my head up with one hand and staring at Jake's naked body beside me. "Did you just quote P!nk to me? Who are you?"

He settled his hands behind his head and grinned. "I'm the guy who –"

"Do not say you're the guy who makes me come so hard, I make up my own vocabulary."

"Weeeeeeell... What the fuсk does groodine mean?"

I groaned at the memory of my response to "You good?". "Great, good and fine. Please forget I ever said that word. Erase that from your memory."

He laughed, sending me a wink. "That's groodine with me, babe."

I slapped his upper arm. "Smartass. Tell me something. What did you say earlier, in Hebrew?"

He stared up at the ceiling for a long time before muttering, "Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing."

"You're so full of crap." Somehow, I managed to make that sound flirtatious. Leaning down, I kissed him on the cheek. "Don't you have to get back to work?"

He made a face. "Yeah."

"Do you think this qualifies as a booty call?" I asked as Jake dressed.

He smirked. "Don't they usually happen at night?"

"So should I call you tonight? Since that's the rule and everything."

"Babe," he said when he was fully dressed, "you can call me whenever you need a good fuсking."

I may or may not have clenched my thighs together. Automatically.

Jake bent at the waist, capturing my lips in a slow, intoxicating kiss. "But if you ever mention a threesome to me again, or ѕhit like that," he whispered against my lips, "I'll tear the fuсking world apart."