I heard a crash and woke with a start. My head was pounding as I got out of bed. I really shouldn't have taken that extra shot of tequila last night. It was still dark outside, so it couldn't have been later than two in the morning. I walked into the kitchen to see a shirtless form with golden hair making scrambled eggs.

Jace.

I snuck up behind him, wrapped my arms around his waist and buried my face between his shoulder blades.

"Hey, how are you feeling," he asked with the slightest tinge of worry in his voice. To this she just replied with a groan that vibrated through her chest. "Go sit down and I'll make you some eggs."

All these years he had been making me eggs and I still hadn't told him I don't like them. I just choked them down because he made them and always felt so proud of it. I sat down at the counter and watched as he made my eggs and got me water and aspirin. He set my food and drink on the counter and kissed me on the forehead. Sitting down next to me, he rubbed my back as I scarfed down the eggs.

"What happened last night," I finally got up the nerve to ask. He looked at me with sad golden eyes.

"Sebastian was there," he began, "and he kept trying to talk to you and I wouldn't let him. Somehow he got to you when you went to go get us drinks. I don't know what he said or did, but the next thing I knew I was up and yelling at him ready to fight. He said you were a bitch, that would never love me and I lost it. I hit him so hard I thought he was never going to wake up. I got us out of there, but when we got home you took out the bottle of tequila and started doing shots. After a few, you passed out on the couch and I took you up to bed and here we are."

Why did he still have such an affect on me? Every time I saw him, I seemed to get drunk and pass out with Jace having to take care of me. He never complained, but I knew it worried him. It had been three years since I broke up with Sebastian to be with Jace.

"What do you mean you're breaking up with me," Sebastian yelled across the room. "After everything we've been through, you're going to be with him? He doesn't even know how to love another person and take care of them."

I just sat and listened to him yell. There was no point in arguing with him unless I wanted the vase that was so close to his hand hurled at my head. Jace was waiting for me downstairs to take me to his house. I just had to get out of here. At first, it had been the kind of relationship I wanted. I met Sebastian in high school where he was the captain of the football team and I was just an artist who wanted to be noticed. He noticed me in Biology class and I almost didn't believe him when he asked me out for Friday night.

Without a warning, I fell head over heels in love with Sebastian. For the first year or so, he was the perfect boyfriend. Then his father died and everything went south. We got home from the funeral and I tried to console him, but all I got was a punch in the face and a black eye. Then, it would only happen every once in a while, but over time anything I said or did would set him off and I had to be accustomed to covering my bruises and cuts.

One day, November 4, 2010, to be exact, I met Jace. He was sweet and caring and I could feel myself falling for him. We would meet at the park to just sit and talk, but one day my face was too bruised to cover up, so I told him I couldn't meet him. He ended up coming to my house to see me with a bloody and fat lip, two black eyes and a possible broken rib. He didn't say anything, he just pulled me into his arms and took me to his house.

"Why do you stay with him," he finally asked as I sipped the tea he had made me.

"I don't know, we've been together for so long and it really was good in the beginning. Maybe I was just hoping that he would change," I started crying against my better judgment, "I'm going to end it. I can't take it anymore. I shouldn't be afraid for my life in my own home."

"You can stay with me. I don't want you to have to deal with him ever again."

And that was that. As soon as I could get out of here I was going to be with Jace and I would never have to fear for my life again.

"Sebastian, you are incapable of love. You never loved me and I can't do this anymore. I'm not leaving you for him, I'm just leaving you." With that I walked out of the room and heard something crash against the wall just to the side of my head. I turned to see Sebastian fuming and ready to pounce. Out of nowhere, Jace appeared and held him back. He told me to run so I did. I ran down the stairs and into his car. I don't know what happened up in that house while I was in the car and I never asked, but Jace came down a few minutes later and silently got in the car and drove away.

It wasn't like we fell into bed the second we got home. Jace gave me time to get over my relationship and after a few months, he kissed me in the kitchen one morning and that was it. I fell for him so fast, it was like my relationship with Sebastian never happened.

"I'm sorry," I said and I could feel tears threaten to make an appearance. Like the day he found me hurting, he didn't say anything and just pulled me into his warm embrace.

"I will never let anyone hurt you, do you know that? I love you and I will always love you. You don't have to worry about him anymore." He picked me up and carried me upstairs to bed. He set me down and crawled in beside me. With my head on his chest and his arms around me, I had never felt safer. I drifted off to sleep listening to the beat of his heart and feeling the rise and fall of his chest.


Where were we going from here? As I watched Jace sleep, wrapped in his arms in the morning, I couldn't help but wonder why our relationship was moving so slow. We had been together for three years and, sure, we lived together, but I wanted to spend the rest of my life with Jace. I wanted a family and he was the one person in the world I could imagine having one with. It had been months since we had even brought up the thought of marriage, but I couldn't shake the suspicious feeling that it might never happen.

Jace stirred and pulled me closer to him. I would never get used to the feeling his touch gave me. It felt like fire was rushing up and down my skin every time he brushed against me. I nuzzled my face into his chest and his eyes opened.

"Good morning, baby," he said as he lowered his lips to meet mine. I just smiled against his mouth in response. "Do you want to go to dinner tonight?"

I nodded. "Where do you want to go," he asked.

"Someplace nice," I said, "someplace special that can be all our own."

We laid there for a while until he decided he needed to get up and go to work. He got out of bed and headed into the bathroom. I heard the shower turn on and through the crack in the door I could Jace's clothes on the floor. I had the slight feeling that tonight was going to be a special night, but I couldn't wait until tonight to make the day special. I walked over to the bathroom and slipped out of the oversized t-shirt of his Jace had put me in last night. I stepped into the shower and wrapped my arms around him. He looked me up and down and the corners of his mouth twitched up into a smile.

"What are you doing," he asked through his giddy smile.

I didn't answer. I just kissed him deeply and waited for him to make the next move. The next thing I knew, my legs were wrapped around his waist and my back was pushed up against the cool wall of the shower. He kissed down my neck and I let out a moan that I knew would drive him crazy. I could fell him shudder and run his hands along my legs.

"I love you," he said, moving his mouth from my neck back to my lips.

"I love you too," I said, "You know that."

He pulled away to look me in the eyes and said, "You don't understand. You are the one. You are my soul mate. I can't even imagine not waking up next to you every morning and when I think about our lives together, it makes me so happy it scares me."

"What are you saying, Jace?"

"I'm saying marry me. Marry me and make me the happiest man in the world. Marry me and be the mother of my children. Marry me and wake up next to me every day for the rest of your life. Be my wife."

I couldn't stop the tears that were running down my face. He reached up to wipe them off my cheek.

"Yes. Yes, I'll marry you!" I kissed him so passionately as we got out of the shower. He released me then so I could wrap a towel around me. I took his hand and walked him over to the bed and told him to sit down. I held tight to his hand as I looked in his eyes. There was no malice or pain. There was only love and passion. I loved him so much, but what I had to do next had been plaguing me for the past few days. I took a deep breath and gathered the strength to tell him.

"Jace, I have to tell you something," I paused, "I am pregnant."

All of the sudden, his face was in my stomach with his arms wrapped around my waist. I couldn't help but laugh. He kissed my stomach and started whispering to it so I couldn't hear.


He had decided to skip work today. Being your own boss gave you some room to breath every now and then. He laid on his stomach with his hands under his pillow. I rested my head on my hand as I traced patterns into his back with my finger. What I wouldn't give to have my sketchpad and pencil right now. The lines of his face and back begged to be immortalized. I bent down and placed my lips to his ear.

"Wake up," I whispered and heard him groan.

"Five more minutes," he said with his voice full of sleep.

"Nope, we've already wasted the day lying in bed and you promised me dinner." He laughed and rolled over.

"For you, anything." I bent down once more to place a kiss on his waiting lips. He pulled me into a tight embrace and kissed the top of my head.

"I'm serious Jace. Let's go!" His grip tightened.

"You can't blame me for wanted to spend all day in bed with you. I love you and you shouldn't exert yourself anyways."

"I'm pregnant, Jace, not crippled." He chuckled and I could feel his breath in my hair. The doorbell brought us back from our blissed out state. I rolled out of bed and put on one of his shirts that were so big, it was like a dress.

"You can't answer the door like that," he said with a smile, "Whoever it is will want to take you for themselves."

"I'm not going to answer. I'm just going to see who it is, but if you're so worried about me, maybe you should come with me."

He groaned and said, "I'm not that worried. No one would be able to take you away from me. You are mine, always."

With a smile on my face, I walked to the front door and looked through the peep-hole. There was no one there, but an envelope was shoved through the mail slot. I pulled the manila envelope out of the slot and looked to see who it was from. It read "Clary Fray" with no return address.

I opened the envelope to find countless pictures of Jace and I. There was one of us kissing at a table at our favorite coffee shop, Java Jones. One of us walking through the park. One of me walking into Jace's office building and finally one of us sleeping in our bed upstairs. I stifled a gasp as I dropped the envelope and pictures on the floor. Someone was watching us. What did they want? Who were they? An endless stream of questions ran through my head as I realized Jace was waiting for me upstairs. Without thinking, I threw the pictures into a drawer in a table by the door.

I went back upstairs to find him sitting up in bed with the blankets pulled up to his waist reading A Tale of Two Cities.

"Who was at the door," he asked when he felt me enter the room.

"No one," I said, "it must have been one of the kids down the street trying to be funny." I knelt over him and pressed a kiss to his lips. "I'm going to get ready for dinner. Please don't spend this whole time reading and actually get ready. I'd like to be home at a decent hour. You can't skip work two days in a row."

He laughed and said, "I can when I'm my own boss. Besides, tomorrow is Sunday so I don't have to work anyway. I'm all yours."

I shook my head and walked toward the bathroom to start the shower. I let the warm water run over me and wash the fear away. Why hadn't I told Jace? He deserved to know if someone was watching us, but I knew how he would react and the envelope was addressed to me. Whoever it was, they wanted nothing to do with Jace and I intended to keep it that way.


A/N: Thanks for reading! I have slight idea where I'm going with this, but would love some input. Anyways, I'm not sure how often I will be able to update because of my school schedule and the other story I'm working on but will try to update at least once a week until my other story is finished and I can work on this one full-time.

This story is set in an AU and all characters are human. The rating will be mostly for language in later chapters, but I don't think it will get too out of control.

Please tell me what you think so I can decide whether or not to continue this story!