Chapter 14

"Like a force to be reckoned with, a mighty ocean or a gentle kiss. I will love you with every single thing I have." -Two by Sleeping at Last

*Chapter rated M for explicit sex*

Jughead paced the apartment, waiting for Betty to come back up. He'd eavesdropped as long as he could, long enough to hear the agents' warning about Beauty & the Beast until, with a sickness in his gut, he slinked away. Back to her home, where he was 'safe', for now, but at least he had an aerial view of the agents putting the contract killers into the back seat of their unmarked car.

He was all but humming with anxiety, could feel it right down to his bones at the thought that the Cleaner knew where they were, knew his hair was blonde, and so did the other two. He was sure the woman had recognized him in that moment in the woods where she'd finally taken a good look at him. It was true, they were safely in custody, but for how long? And who was to say they wouldn't pass the word around somehow?

This hiding spot that had been perfect a couple weeks ago was now compromised, made obvious by the three murderers that, just an hour ago, had been lying in wait beyond the parking lot, hidden in the trees. He was no longer safe here, in this tiny one-bedroom apartment that had become home in such a short amount of time he thought he must have been desperate for that feeling. He'd grabbed onto this place with both hands…

No, not just this place. Her.

Hurried footsteps down the hall brought him out of his thoughts as a key sounded in the door and she flung it open, the hallway light shining behind her like a halo. He stopped in his pacing to gaze at her, everything falling away around them until nothing but her face filled his vision. Her blonde hair looking softer than silk, her cupid bow lips and those soulful green eyes staring at him with first panic, then relief, and ending with exhaustion and resignation over the obvious fact that shit had finally hit the fan.

It was a punch to the gut to realize he loved her. In this shitty, messed up world of his he'd managed to find love and now…

Now, she was no longer safe. His heart stuttered a bit as he remembered the Cleaner sizing them up in the woods. That spark of knowing in those eyes, the knowledge that Jughead had a weakness and it was the blonde tucked half-behind him. The Cleaner didn't threaten her and Jughead had never heard rumors of the man going after families of his victims, but it was a real enough fear to steal the breath from his lungs at the very concept.

He should have never dragged her into this. First the man at Pop's attacked her and now the Cleaner knew Jughead cared more about her safety than his own. "Betty, we can't stay here." He finally said, watching as she shut the door behind her and dropped to the couch, a worn look on her face.

"I called Kevin on my way up here and left a message." She murmured, soothingly, as if they hadn't just found three people who wanted him dead in the woods behind her apartment.

"What did the FBI say?" He asked, finally, sitting beside her as his fingers itched to comfort her. She looked so tired from confronting his father this morning, to laying plans out with her dad, and now after this mess…

Her intelligent green eyes turned to concentrate on him and he was hit again with how perfect she was. How easy it would be to trust her with the parts of himself he'd locked down a long time ago, the soft parts that he protected fiercely because they were the only bits of goodness he hadn't lost yet to a world out to kill him.

She reached out and cupped his chin, her hands so soft that he found himself leaning into her touch, hungry for any affection that had been denied him over his solitary years, "That couple…they were contract killers, Juggie." Betty didn't need to say, 'they were here for you', he could hear the unspoken words.

"I know, I heard that." He searched her eyes as she gazed openly and steadily into his own.

Betty Cooper's eyes fell to his lips before rising back to meet his, "And now the Cleaner knows where we are." She was stating the obvious, they both knew this, but she didn't seem to know what else to say.

The room sizzled with a sudden electricity as she moved her hand from his cheek to brush back through his hair, nails scraping his scalp in a way that was soothing and at the same time erotic.

The small gesture sent every wall inside him crumbling down as he wondered if he'd be dead soon. Finally, he'd be free of being hunted; his family and Betty would be safe, at last. Jellybean could finish school, go on to college like she'd always talked about, and Betty would graduate and open her own mechanic shop. She'd settle down with a man who was safe-unbroken-and have the children she'd always wanted while fixing cars and being loved like she should be. Like she deserved.

But, before all that could happen…he wanted to be selfish. A wave of various emotions crashed over him, drowning him in recklessness, desire, and hopelessness. Everything culminating into one truth; this might be his last night alive and he wanted to spend it with her.

He reached forward, his movement causing her hand to pause in his hair as she watched his own rise to cup her jaw gently and then he was pulling her to him, his lips on hers before she could even inquire about his intentions. Hungrily, he claimed her mouth, his shoulders relaxing the moment she melted into him and responded, rather than pulling away and crying like the last disastrous kiss they shared.

"Juggie." She sighed against his lips, and it was that soft whisper of a nickname that he associated with her alone that undid any of his restraint.

He deepened the kiss, his tongue sliding along her lip and once she opened to him, they were both lost. Suddenly, they were clawing at each other's clothes, desperate to feel each other. When he removed her undershirt to reveal the smooth, creamy skin underneath, he groaned as his hands splayed out to touch every centimeter of her. She shivered beneath his touch, her own hands slipping beneath his t-shirt and skimming upwards to shed him of it.

Despite going to school to be a mechanic, Betty's hands were soft and nimble as she hastily slid them south to undo his belt. He shuddered beneath her touch before reaching for her hands to stop her, "The bedroom?" He asked, gruffly.

"The bedroom." She nodded her head, her green eyes clearing just a bit from the hazy lust as she grabbed his hand and pulled him from the couch.

He breathed a sigh of relief when she shut the door behind them, feeling safe now that they weren't in the open, that at least in this small, windowless bedroom he could let his guard down enough to show her how much he wanted her. How much she meant to him.

But, Betty had other plans. Smiling, she stood in front of him, angling them so his back was to the bed before she pressed her palms onto his bare chest and slowly pushed him back until the back of his knees hit the mattress and buckled so that he was going down, a gorgeous blonde straddled on top of him in nothing but her black bra and jeans.

It was the most wickedly sexy move and he savored the feel of her as he trailed his hands down her spine before cupping her ass, only pausing when he felt the hardness of her phone in her back, left pocket. She grunted in dissatisfaction as she pulled her phone out and tossed it onto the nightstand before quickly returning her lips to his. He groaned as she rocked her hips against him, pressing closer to the hardness that was taut against his jeans, and he could feel the heat of her wanting. Jughead found his breath leave him as their kiss broke and she began to trail her lips along his jaw and down his neck.

It was jarring to realize she wanted him as much as he wanted her. Her, the clever, beautiful and perfect Cooper daughter that stayed in Riverdale, gave up a bright future, to be close to her father after her parents' divorce.

Elizabeth Cooper wanted him. Damaged Goods Jones, the broken, hunted child of alcoholic FP Jones; the snitch who sold out Clifford Blossom for murdering his own son.

Never had Jughead felt more bewildered, or more humbled.

Gently, he slid his hands up her back, deftly unhooking her bra so he could give her a taste of the physical pleasure just being around her gave him. She sat back to let the straps fall down her shoulders, the black lace of the bra sliding off her to reveal her smooth, pert breasts. He nearly groaned as she tossed the bra across the room and they swayed, her pink nipples hardening at the cool air as he reached to cup one perfect breast in his hand.

Betty's breath sucked in sharply at the contact and she arched at his touch, eyes hooding as she gazed down at him with want and lust. "Juggie." She murmured, arching her back so her breast was more fully in his grasp. The small act making his cock twitch and ache even more, especially as she began to subtly rock her hips.

"Jesus, you're beautiful, Betts." Jughead's sincere declaration pulled Betty from the pleasure and she took in his face as best that she could in the darkness of the room as her whole body thrummed and ached with want for him.

She smiled at the compliment and stroked his cheek, "I want you, Juggie." The words came out shyly, despite the fact that she was straddled on top of him and half-naked.

He groaned and then suddenly he was on top, smoothly flipping her and pinning her beneath him before hungrily going for her lips once more. His desperation matched her own and she found her hands immediately reaching for his pants, to relieve him of all articles of clothes, and she grinned against his lips as he reached for the last of her own clothes.

She was mesmerized by how far they'd come-how far he'd come-from that flinching, beat-up man in the booth at Pop's to this sexy man atop her.

It was a mess of tugging and pulling as they shed all barriers between them, but it was worth it the moment every inch of his heated skin met hers. His body toned and hard from years of fighting to stay alive, yet his skin felt soft beneath her palms as she let her hands wander. When she found the part of him that was all male, she grinned as his breath hitched at her touch. Hardness and silkiness in the palm of her hand…

"Betty," Jughead whispered, "Are you sure this is what you want?"

The uncertainty even as she lay wet and ready beneath him, melted her heart, "Yes, Juggie." She replied.

"Uh, do you have…a condom?" He asked, hesitating, wondering if this was an appropriate time to bring up protection.

She chuckled lightly, "I've been on the pill since I was sixteen. Ya know, since Polly got knocked up."

Jug let out a soft laugh, feeling relieved that Betty was always prepared for everything, before he smoothed his hands down her sides, sliding them along her figure and when he reached just behind her knees, he teased one hand back up along her inner thigh. Betty sighed at the caresses, her legs falling apart at the tingles left in the wake of his stroking until his hand found her center and slowly brushed against the part of her that ached the most for him.

She licked her lips, "Juggie," His name came out more of a moan as he flicked her small bundle of nerves, "Jug, maybe we could save the foreplay for later. I need you."

His hand didn't stop, but his breath turned ragged as he slid his fingers to her entrance, feeling that her words were true and that she was more than ready for him. He moved to brace a hand on either side of her head, sucking in a sharp breath when he felt her reach her own hand between them and position him where she wanted him. "God, Betty." He muttered harshly in her ear, "Don't ever stop doing that."

Betty grinned, surprising him further by wrapping her long legs around him and taking him deep inside her, causing him to shudder as she took control of him even though she was beneath him.

He hadn't told her but being on the run since he was sixteen meant he didn't have the safe place or even a relationship to lose his virginity. He'd made out with Toni once while staying with her and her uncle, but she'd made it clear she wasn't looking for more. Everything they were doing he had almost no experience with. Just what he'd gathered from reading and the internet. He was hoping he didn't blow this whole thing.

Her soft, long moan brought him back to this moment and he wondered how his mind had even wandered away from it. He blamed the overload of pleasure, his mind trying not to let his body come too soon, and he held still inside her as he gathered his self-control. "Give me a second." He whispered thickly to her because she kept moaning and moving beneath him.

"Fuck, Jug." She cursed, surprising him, "You feel so good."

Sucking in a few more ragged breaths, he began to slowly pull out of her, gritting his teeth as she clenched around him, the pleasure of this moment making him wonder if he was dreaming. But, no. He couldn't be. No dream could be as good as this.

Betty gasped as he pressed back in and he swallowed it with his mouth, lips tangling as they fell into a rhythm together. It was poetry, the way their bodies met and parted, only to meet again in an endless stream of eroticism. Jughead had never felt this vulnerable or this powerful all at once as he picked up the pace, her moans and curses at how thick he was, how good he felt echoing in his ears, spurring him on.

He clenched his jaw as he kept going, feeling close to the edge but wanting her to finish first. It was sublimely torturous, sinfully so, as he moved a hand down to grip her hip before moving between them. He searched for her clit for a split second before he swirled his finger around it, once, twice…

Betty gasped as Jug touched her where she hadn't been aware she needed it most, but it was enough. She found herself coming swiftly as he flicked it the third time, her scream of pleasure ripping from her throat as her eyes rolled back and stars burst behind her eyelids. The orgasm seemed to last, gaining a second wave as Jughead toppled over the edge with her, groaning her name as he came.

"Oh my…" Betty said, breathlessly, as he rolled off her, pulling her against him as he laid back and tried to catch his breath.

He chuckled, "Please tell me you're feeling satisfied?"

Betty turned to look up at him from beneath her lashes, smiling sweetly up at him as she replied, "Of course. Completely and utterly."

Jughead returned her smile, feeling contentment and happiness wash through him for the first time in…well, probably the first time ever.

A/N: Chapter 15 will be up later today I PROMISE! Much love and thanks for everyone who's commented and stuck through with me this long! The Bughead fandom is the best!