Free Jace by T.A. Grey Page A

decent deadbolt on it but your front
door doesn’t. That can be picked by someone who knows that they’re doing in
about three minutes.”
    “Someone who knows what they’re
doing like you?”
    “Or anyone who has Internet.
Nowadays, there’re all kinds of videos online showing people how to do
everything—even break into locks.”
    Wasn’t that a scary thought?
“Well now you’ve seen that my house is perfectly safe. Will you please leave?”
    “I think we should spend the
night at my place. It’s significantly safer.” He took one lingering look into
her bedroom and she wondered what he was thinking about. Too bad she couldn’t
ask him.
    “No way. Now get out, please.”
She held the front door open for him. She was probably letting in all sorts of
flies and mosquitoes but she didn’t care. So long as he left her house, that’s
all that mattered. Seeing his big form filling up her small home only made an
ache grow around her heart.
    He paused a few feet away.
“There’s something I should tell you.”
    Her eyes slid closed. “Please
just go. It’s been a very, very long day. I need to be alone.”
    It looked like he was about to
say more but he finally nodded. “I’ll be outside if you need anything at all.
Sleep well.”

Chapter
6
     
     
    Hours later, Mara growled in
frustration and threw the covers off her and stormed into the bathroom to put her
favorite vibrator away.
    “You suck today, Mr. Kinky. Ha.
Mr. Kinky, more like Mr. Sucky.” God, that was lame even for her. Mara blamed
it on her exhaustion.
    She just couldn’t get to sleep.
She’d tried everything she could think of. There was soft jazz playing on her
radio, a delicious apple cinnamon candle making her bedroom smell like pie, and
she’d bathed in the tub until her skin looked like a raisin. Still, sleep
eluded her.
    That’s when she’d turned to Mr.
Kinky. Four months back, she’d tested him at work and gave the product ten very
excellent stars. She also bought one as soon as they were available. Just like
all good pets, she’d named him. Mr. Kinky. Tonight, Mr. Kinky was not doing his
job. No matter what she thought of or how fast it vibrated. None of it made a
difference.
    She killed the music and
switched off the dim lamp by her bed, encasing her in darkness. Her body felt
energized, like she could run two miles backward without getting winded. She
couldn’t do it forward without getting winded. Mara had never been one to
prefer exercise. She’d much rather wear a nice dress, some pumps, and light
makeup.
    There was no struggle to figure
out why she couldn’t sleep. She knew that. Because of Jace. Yeah, she was
awful, she knew it. It wasn’t even the fact that Corey had been in her house
last night messing with her that kept her awake. Not at all. It all had to do
with the big bear of a man sitting in his car outside.
    It was terribly difficult, but
she managed to not peek out the front window to see what he was doing. As she
was lying in bed staring up at the shadows on her ceiling, she pictured herself
army-crawling to the front window then slowly pulling back the curtain to spy
on him. But knowing him, he’d see the little bit of movement and bust her. Then
he’d know she was unsure about where they stood.
    That kiss earlier today had
been magical. Mara wasn’t one to normally forget a kiss like that. In fact, she
knew she never would. There had been something different and special about it.
It was like their souls just lined up making the kiss taste even better.
    But no matter how badly she’d
like to be kissed by him again, she had to resist him. He was no good for her.
How long would it take for him to lose his temper and treat her how he did that
drunk man tonight?
    Mara wasn’t planning to find
out.
    Without the nightly orgasm that
Mr. Kinky usually provided, her body refused to wind down. Yet her eyes grew
weary from exhaustion, sitting at half-mast.
    Jace Mathews. She shouldn’t,
but she let her thoughts