On my last morning in the human realm, I'm awakened by a gentle brush of fingertips over my forehead, pushing my hair out of my eyes. I open them to see Jace sitting on the edge of the bed, one arm over me, palm flat on the mattress, the other tangled in my curls.
"Good morning," I rasp, reaching up to run my knuckles over his stubbled jaw.
"Good morning, little hurricane," he says, leaning down to brush his lips against mine. His breath is fresh and minty, and I am have never been so glad for my lack of morning breath in my life.
"You're up early," I say, glancing at the clock to see 6:30 a.m. flashing on the screen. "Even for you."
"It's your last day, Desi. I didn't think you'd want to waste a minute."
I sit up quickly, nearly hitting my head on the headboard. "I don't. What did you have in mind?"
He reaches over to the bedside table and plucks a strawberry from the platter he must've brought from the kitchen. "First, breakfast in bed," he says with a grin, holding it to my mouth.
I part my lips and let him pop it in as he pulls the top off and tosses it into the trash. "Mmm, that's delicious." I lazily point toward the platter and wiggle my fingers until a piece of the red fruit lands in my palm. "Your turn," I murmur, sliding the fruit through his lips.
He takes a bite and nods. "It's a good strawberry, but I think having you feed it to me made it better."
Scooting into the bed beside me, Jace places the plate on his lap. He cuts into the eggs benedict and hands me the fork. "You and Meredith were up late. How many bottles of wine did the two of you kill?"
I laugh and take a bite before giving him one. "Two and a half. I'm gonna miss her. She's been a really good friend to me through all of this."
He hands me a slice of bacon and takes a bite out of the second strip. "And how much did you tell her about our trip?"
I chomp on the bacon and avoid his steely gaze. "I—uh—well, I didn't—I mean, you—"
"I'd never tell you that you shouldn't talk about what has gone on between you and me with someone else. I'm just wondering if she will be imagining me naked the next time she drops by a pan of brownies."
I nearly choke on the bacon and have to take a giant swig of orange juice to wash it down. "I—Well, I don't know how to break this to you, handsome, but she's been imagining you naked since you moved in," I say, my eyes roaming down his shirtless, grey-sweatpants-clad frame.
He takes a swig of orange juice and hands me the cup. "Well, I hope you told her it's all she ever fantasized about. I'd hate to think I've lost my oldest admirer."
It will take a miracle to make Meredith think Jace is anything short of godly. The angel spent a good portion of the night asking me questions about him and going on about what a shame it was that he wasn't ready to commit to a relationship. I had to hold myself in my chair at one point when she mentioned a long list of friends she thought would match well with him. At end of the night, I hugged her and told her I'd miss her, keeping my lingering feelings for Jace to myself.
"I told her you weren't all that just to make sure she knew it was paws off until a respectable amount of time passes," I deadpan. "Hardest lie I've ever told."
His jaw drops. "Meredith is going to make a move on me? Jeremy will be pounding down my door."
I grin and say, "Meredith is an angel. She would never do such a thing." I wiggle my eyebrows to see if he catches my drift.
At first, he just keeps eating, but then looks up at me with wide eyes. "Wait, what? Like, an angel angel?"
"Yep. I found out a couple weeks ago! Suspected for a while."
"Wow." He shakes his head. "That's—wait, you don't think she has anything to do with—"
"No. Absolutely not. The only thing she's guilty of is thinking about setting you up with her friends."
"I'll pass. None of them will compare to you."
My chest tightens at his words. On one hand, the thought of him with another woman makes me physically ill and incites a fury in me that makes me want to punch the nearest wall. But on the other, the thought of him never being made to feel good by someone else again in his life makes me sad.
"Jace—"
He presses his finger to my lips. "Nope. No serious talk today. We are spending all day together and doing nothing but enjoying each other's company. No tears either. We are going to, at the risk of sounding cheesy, cherish today. Okay?"
I nod and kiss his fingertip. "Okay. What's next, then? I've eaten quite enough bacon for now."
He hands me the plate. "Can you take care of this for me?"
With a wink and a twirl of my finger, the plate leaves the room and floats down to the kitchen sink. It always takes me a while to adjust to a new place, to remember where everything is so I can direct things to move the way I want. In the last ten weeks, I've memorized every step of this house and my magic works seamlessly. It's become my second home, a place I will miss dearly.
Jace stands and hold out his hand to me. "I've got another surprise for you."
I grin and hop to my feet, squeezing his hand as soon as our palms connect. "Yes! I love surprises. What is it?" I'm bouncing on the balls of my feet like a little kid, but I don't care. An entire day and night with Jace ahead of me is enough to thrill me beyond belief. Now we add a surprise? I'm on the verge of exploding from excitement.
He guides me to his room, and I smile at the bed. "Are you going to ravage me until lunchtime?"
With a chuckle, he says, "No. I think you might find this better."
"I doubt it."
We enter his bathroom, and he walks to the big garden tub. Sitting on the edge, he turns on the faucet and pours a small bottle of pink liquid into the water. The room fills with the scent of sweet peas and bubbles build on the water's surface. I smile while he struggles with a bag of pink and red rose petals and laugh when he bites through the plastic to free them. He sprinkles them on top and turns to face me with a proud grin.
"Would you like to use my bathtub?"
I place my hand over my collarbone and let out a melodramatic gasp. "What? Me? You're asking me if I want to use your tub? Even after the time I used it without your permission?"
He laughs. "Even after that."
I pull my nightshirt over my head, revealing nothing underneath. "Only if you'll get in with me."
He stands and lowers his joggers, making him equally naked. Even if we spent eternity together, I don't think I'd ever get used to seeing him like this. I can't help but stare at every defined muscle and the dusting of hair beneath his navel leading to one of my favorite parts of him. He sinks into the water and wiggles two fingers, gesturing me over.
I start to pull my hair into a bun as I walk over but he shakes his head. "Leave it down."
His voice has a slight demanding tone to it, and even in this relaxed setting, it does things to the lower half of my body. I step into the tub and lower myself between his spread legs, leaning back against his chest.
"God, this is one of the best ways I can think of to start a morning." I angle my head and lift one arm up around his neck, pulling him closer so I can press my lips to his skin.
He sweeps my hair over one shoulder and kisses the sensitive spot below my ear. "I'm regretting cutting you off from my bathroom now."
I smile against his neck and chuckle.
"What's so funny?"
"What would you say if I told you that day we fought wasn't the first...or the last time I'd used your bathtub?" I whisper, holding my breath, waiting for his reaction.
"I'd say I'm sorry I didn't walk in on you all those other times. I really missed out."
My shoulders sag in relief. "You aren't mad? I almost told you the day we were fighting just to get under your skin, but then you almost kissed me and didn't, so I decided it might not be the best time," I tease, squeezing his thigh under the water.
"You have a way of infuriating me in all the best ways. Besides, the punishment for sneaking around behind my back could be fun."
Jace's fingers glide down my shoulders and over my collarbone. His warm, wet hands cup my breasts and pinch my nipples. "I could always make it hurt in the best way."
I lean my head back against his chest and bow my back against the sting. "Don't threaten me with a good time." I slip my hand back around his neck and tangle my fingers in the hair at his nape and pull with equal strength to match his pinch.
"It's not a threat," his hand moves down my stomach and between my legs. He cups my sex and nips at my ear, "It's a promise."