Loving You (Love Wanted in Texas) (32 page)

When the car pulled up to the front of the hotel, my stomach was rolling and my breathing had sped up. I was both nervous and excited to see him.

The valet opened the door and helped Whitley and then me out of the car.

Layton walked around and gave me a reassuring smile. “Are you okay, sweetheart?”

I couldn’t find my voice so I nodded. “Would you rather go to our room and wait or just wait in the lobby?”

My eyes drifted over to the bar. “I think I’m going to get a drink to calm my nerves down. I’ll be at the bar, so you can just text me.”

Whitley walked up and kissed me on the cheek. “I know your chomping at the bit to see him. We’ll make it quick.”

“O-okay,” I stuttered.

Layton took my hand and squeezed it before kissing my forehead and heading straight to the elevator. I was praying they wouldn’t check into their hotel room. Just knowing that Jase was in the same building was driving me insane.

“What was I thinking saying they could go up first and alone?” I mumbled under my breath as I made my way over to the bar.

“What can I get you, pretty little lady?”

I smiled at the older bartender and said, “Something strong to calm my nerves.”

“I’ve got just the thing.”

He turned around and opened up the small refrigerator. When I saw him pull out a small container of milk, I chuckled.

Pouring a small glass, he put it in front of me. “Trust me . . . booze doesn’t help at all.”

With a wide grin, I took the milk and said, “Thank you.”

“That there will do the trick. You in town for work?”

“No. It’s more of a reunion type thing.”

He lifted his eyebrows. “Well, I hope it goes well for you.”

Finishing off the milk, I set it down and replied. “I have a feeling it’s going to go very well.”

We talked small talk for the next few minutes until another customer came in. I was glad to have had his company though to take my mind off of everything.

Glancing at my phone, it had been almost fifteen minutes since Layton and Whitley headed up to Jase’s room.

Closing my eyes, I took in a calming breath before looking over my shoulder at the elevator.

My phone buzzed causing me to jump. Reaching for it, my hands shook while I opened up Layton’s text.

Layton: We just left. He’s anxious to see you.

Me: I’m on my way.

I pulled out some money and left it on the bar. Lifting my hand, I said, “Thank you so much for the milk!”

With a chuckle, the bartender smiled. “Good luck!”

Stepping onto the elevator, I hit the button for the seventh floor. My mouth was dry and my pulse was racing. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do first. Kiss him, or look over his entire body and make sure he was okay.

The doors opened and I stepped out of the elevator as my pulse sped up. Glancing up to the room numbers, I turned to the left and quickly made my way to Jase’s room. Scared what I might find when I saw him, I was also beyond excited. My mind raced with the same question . . . was he really okay? I planned on checking out every inch of his body.

Stopping at the door, I covered my mouth and got my emotions in check. This was it. Finally, I was going to be in his arms again. I wasn’t sure what my hesitation was for. The moment I saw him I knew I was going to cry as the flood of different emotions I had experienced the last week was released. It was as if I could feel his presence right in front of me.

My hand lifted to knock when the door opened and he stood before me looking as handsome as ever.

“Thank you, God,” I whispered as I threw myself into his body.

Sobs racked over my body while he wrapped his arms around me and held me close to him. The feeling of being lost was completely washed away by the sound of his voice.

“Oh, Taylor. Baby, I missed you so much.”

I buried my face into his body. “I was so scared.”

He set me down and cupped my face with his hands. Those beautiful blue eyes of his searched my face while his thumbs wiped my tears away. “I was too, sweetness. But I never gave up hope and I knew I would see you again.”

My lips trembled and I prayed like hell this wasn’t a dream. “Kiss me,” I pleaded.

When his lips touched mine, my body exploded.
It is real and he is here
. We were finally together.

Relief, passion, love, all of it raced through my veins as our kiss deepened. I’d never felt so at peace or so safe in my entire life. This is where I belonged. In the arms of the man I loved more than life itself. Slowly getting lost in a way I had dreamed of for over a week.

Jase moaned into my mouth, causing a warmth to flow slowly through my entire body. Reaching down, he lifted me in his arms and carried me over to the bed, gently placing my feet on the ground.

His lips moved across my neck as my body trembled with anticipation.

“Taylor,” he whispered while he ever so slowly undressed me. It was like he was taking in every motion he did. Every brush of his fingers against my body built up the pool in my lower stomach.

He took a step back and undressed himself while I took in his perfect body. My eyes quickly scanned everywhere until they landed on his forehead while my heart dropped.

“It doesn’t hurt, sweetness. I promise.”

Tears flooded my eyes.

“No . . . don’t cry. Please don’t cry.”

Cupping my face with his hands, he lightly brushed his lips across mine. “I thought about your smile every second of the day. The feel of your lips against mine and the way you crinkle up your nose when you’re about to laugh.”

My lips pressed together while I stared up into his eyes.

“Jase,” was all I could manage to get off my lips.

Moving his body closer to me, I bumped into the bed. No words needed to be spoken as I lay down.

I was soon looking into those bright blue eyes that were filled with nothing but love as Jase gently pushed into me while whispering my name.

His lips moved ever so slowly up my neck and to the base of my ear. “Taylor, I love you.”

My body trembled as I held onto him tighter. “I love you . . . I love you so much.”

I trailed my finger lazily around his chest as we laid next to each other in the bed.

“Every time I tried to sleep I saw your beautiful face and dreamed you were in my arms,” Jase softly said. I could hear how tired he was in his voice.

Lifting my head, I looked deeply into his eyes. “I’m in your arms now and that’s all that matters.”

His lips brushed over mine, causing the butterfly effect again. Would it ever get old? God I hoped not.

“I don’t want to waste another second being without you, Taylor. I want to give you all my love every single day and night. I want to make all of your dreams come true. Every breath I breathe is for you and only you. I want to be the reason behind your smile.”

I sat up and looked down at him. “Do you have any idea how happy you make me?”

His face curved into a smile that took my breath away.

“I think you should show me. In the shower.”

I secretly wished Layton and Whitley weren’t here so we could spend the rest of the day and night locked away in the hotel room.

After the shower, we got dressed and sat on the sofa in the hotel room and talked. He told me about how William had landed the plane and how they finally got the emergency beacon to work.

“Nate broke his femur? That really sucks that he had to go so long like that.”

Jase chuckled. “Yeah, he was grumpy at times and poor Tess took the brunt of most of his asshole-ness.”

“Oh no. Poor girl.”

He rolled his eyes. “Trust me. She took it, but she was also good at dishing it out.”

“And she broke her wrist?”

“Yeah when we hit turbulence she got tossed up and slammed into the roof of the plane. It was terrible. Luckily William only had a really bad sprained ankle.”

My finger drew circles on his chest as I blew out a breath. “Thank God y’all are all okay. I can’t even begin to tell you how devastated I was.”

Jase kissed the top of my head. “I’m so sorry I got on that plane.”

Resting my chin on his chest, I looked up at him. “It doesn’t matter. All that matters is we’re together now.”

“How’s Bella?”

Chuckling, I smiled. “Well, Lauren and Mireya have both fallen in love with our puppy. I thought Lauren was going to break down in tears when I asked Libby if they wanted to watch her.”

His laughter rumbled through his chest. It was a sound I would forever cherish and never take for granted again.

“Did Lauren watch Bella a lot?”

“Yeah. I um . . . I kind of got lost in myself for a few days. I spent most of the time in your room. Colt and Lauren picked up Bella and I kind of forgot about her for a couple of days. ”

His face softened while he ran his finger down the side of my face. “Mom told me. She said you were dressed in my clothes.”

“Well in my defense, I didn’t have any clothes with me at first.”

“Uh-huh. I kind of like the idea of you in my clothes.”

Pushing myself up, I crawled on top of him and rubbed against him. “That can be arranged.”

It didn’t take long before we were completely and utterly lost within one another. I couldn’t even tell where I ended and he began.

Perfect way to end the worst week of my life.

Jase

Sitting across the table from my parents, I tried to focus on what the conversation was. My mind kept going back to the smell of Taylor’s hair hanging in my face as she made love to me.

Her hand rested on my leg and I couldn’t help but notice how she had not stopped touching me since we left the hotel room. It was as if she was afraid I would disappear on her.

“Jase, are you tired, sweetheart?”

My eyes turned to my mother. “I’m ready to get home, to be honest.”

“First thing tomorrow morning you’ll be on a plane and headed back home.”

The thought of being on another plane had my stomach in knots. Taylor squeezed my hand and gave me the sweetest grin ever.

“Did Nate make it to Montana okay?” my father asked.

“Yeah, he sent me a text a few hours ago. He was glad to be home and planned on staying there for a few weeks. His family was relieved, as I’m sure you can relate.”

My mother picked up her glass of wine and said, “Well, I don’t blame him one bit for wanting to spend some time with his family. It had to have been terrifying for all of you.”

With a nod, I forced a grin. “William’s wife is expecting their first child in about a month.”

With a gasp, Mom said, “That poor girl. She must have been so scared. I can’t even imagine.”

Taylor’s eyes looked so sad. “Are they both okay? I would be so worried news like that would throw her into labor.”

“That’s all William worried about, but luckily they are both okay.”

Clearing his throat, my father stood and looked down at my mother. “I know I’m exhausted. How about we let Jase and Taylor finish the wine and you and I call it a night.”

His hand went out for hers as she stood and took it. Making her way over to me, she kissed me on the cheek and whispered, “I love you, Jase. I’m so glad you’re back with us.”

“Me too, Mom. More than you know.”

She kissed Taylor and gave us both a gentle smile. “Good night you two. Try to get some sleep, Jase.”

Taylor’s face blushed as she looked away. We had been late getting to dinner when our second shower took longer than expected. “I’m pretty sure once my head hits the pillow I’ll be fast asleep.”

My father nodded as he said, “We’ll all meet in the lobby at six then head to the airport.”

“Sounds good,” I said as I laced my fingers with Taylor’s.

“Night y’all.”

“Good night, Dad. Night, Mom.”

We watched as they both headed out of the restaurant. “They were so worried about you.”

Turning to look at her, I couldn’t believe how damn lucky I was to have someone like Taylor.

“It was really nice of you to let my parents see me first.”

She focused back on me and grinned. “Well, don’t think I’m that great of a person because the whole time I was wishing we didn’t have to have dinner with them.”

I chuckled and shook my head.