Disclaimer: I do not own mortal instruments, the character names are owned by Cassandra Clare. The original content, ideas and intellectual property of this story are owned by lily fierce, 2011-2012. Please do not copy, reproduce, or translate without express written permission.

Thank you guys so much for all you're reviews and all the other good stuff. You're all AMAZING. So without further ado here is ch 4. I know it took me some time but well here it is, I hope you like it:)

4. Tricks of Nature

Kiss...

A trick of nature to stop speech

when words become superfluous.

~Author unknown, quoted by Evan Esar in Esar's Comic Dictionary, 1943

Three weeks. Just three weeks since he had entered her life and Clary just couldn't believe the emotions coursing through her the moment Jace caught her eye.

She now sat in the conference room after being forced to attend a very long tedious meeting. Usually Clary wasn't concerned with such things, she had, after all, grown up in a world of corporations and extensive conferences, but with Jace sitting mere inches away everything was suddenly increasingly difficult. His eyes were glued to hers and Clary was having such a hard time keeping hers focused on the large screen attached to the wall. Her father, Luke, was discussing some new products and selling tactics they planned on commencing in the fall. But god, she just could not manage to keep her eyes or mind on the inane subject being discussed; those were simply too busy focusing on Jace, since the day at the coffee shop he was all her thoughts seemed to concentrate on.

In the meantime, his hand, which everyone assumed rested peacefully on his thigh, was engaged on hers; tracing small circles much like the first time they had been in this conference room together. She reached for it withdrawing it from her leg and he allowed her to, not placing it there again. His eyes however, were a completely different story. Those she couldn't remove. They focused on Clary's and once they did she was stuck with no hope of escaping. Golden she thought how absolutely delicious.

Stop Clary. She scolded herself for that stupid, stupid thought. She was getting married. To a man she didn't know, couldn't care less about, and most importantly, didn't love. But she was getting married nonetheless and having her mind on Jace's eyes was most definitely not going to make anything easier. So removing her gaze from his, Clary turned her eyes back to the screen, nevertheless her head was still whirling with some much unwarranted thoughts.

Her father had spoken to her earlier in the week about the engagement. She would be marrying a man named Raphael. He was multicultural and would be an "excellent" addition to the company. Whatever, not like it mattered anyway. Clary had spent so many nights crying herself to sleep and wishing beyond hope that things would be different. That maybe, just maybe, she could marry someone she loved. But that was impossible at this point and there was no use in hoping for the unattainable.

Her attention finally went back to what her father was discussing as he finished with the last slide and the lights of the dim room flicked back on. Clary picked up her files and grabbing her bag headed for her office.

She had excessively procrastinated in the past week and papers were beginning to pile up on her desk as files waited on her computer for printing.

With a sigh she headed to the large printer in the side of the room, figuring she needed to start somewhere, and checked for paper.

"Crap." Clary muttered under her breath. The tray was empty, not a sheet of paper in sight and now she'd have to head to the copy room for more.

The only one that held the printing paper was just in front of the conference room and was mostly empty. So she started to the small room and once there checked the storage closet in the corner going through boxes and boxes of flyers, old copies, and scrap paper but finding none with printing paper. Leaning further into the miniature closet, she barely heard the door open and most definitely did not hear someone entering the room.

"Ahem" a voice came from behind her and she burst upright.

Glancing back, Clary caught the golden eyes, blonde hair and signature smirk of none other than Jace. Of course, why wouldn't it be him?

"Oh, please don't stop on my account. I was quite enjoying the view." He winked at her.

"Must you always be such an asshat?" Clary tried to put as much annoyance as she could into her voice and narrowed her eyes in hopes of emphasizing her point.

"A what?" his smirk widened. "What the hells an asshat?"

"You know, an asshole, a bastard, a manwhore. Do you understand those?"

Jace chuckled and stepped closer to her. "No, asshat's fine. It's very creative actually," He walked closer still forcing her to move back a step. "And has anyone ever told you that men love creative women. That talent comes in handy often."

He was standing so close, somehow managing to back her up against the wall of the small closet.

"You're little act doesn't work on me Jace." Liar! She thought. You are such a liar. "So you can move away now and let me leave."

He looked at Clary, obviously noticing the flush in her cheeks and the way her voice wavered as the words whooshed out of her lips in one breath.

"Um hmmm" he hummed into Clary's neck, trailing small kisses down the length of her shoulder blades and back up to her ear. "You smell so good." His whispered voice sent a thrill up her spine.

How she managed to have that reaction to his lips on her skin when he was only spreading small insignificant kisses on her flesh was beyond her. She had never felt this way before, had never wanted anyone like she wanted him.

"Jace-" Clary's voice was small and her protests were feeble, but she had to try regardless. "Jace… anyone can just- oh god- walk in and… and find us doing" her voice was cut off when he pulled her earlobe between his lips and gently pulled it with his teeth.

"Doing what?" his voice was low and his tone slightly mocking.

"Doing this!" Clary stage whispered and felt rather than heard a chuckle from Jace.

She was about to say something else in hopes of making him stop his assault on her neck but all too quickly his lips descended on hers effectively eliminating every other thought from her head that wasn't related in some way, shape or form to kissing him in that very spot, even if they were in a much cluttered copy room closet.

The kiss was not at all gentle. His lips crashed on hers and his tongue trailed her lower lip asking for entrance and she willingly obliged as their tongues met and small wildfires roared throughout her body. She couldn't think and by then had lost all ability to process those thoughts.

Jace's arms wrapped easily around Clary's waist pulling her body flush with his as her fingers wound through the loops of his pants and she ground her hips against his, looking for some alleviation from the heat coursing through her, and was very pleased to hear a low moan come from Jace's lips. His hands released their hold on her waist only to move down to her thighs which he grasped and pulled her up to his hips. Clary circled her legs around his waist tightening her hold and plunging her hands into his hair. The feeling was indescribable. The taste, feel, smell of him all combined to make Clary nearly loose her mind.

Jace's hands were everywhere. They trailed the length of her thigh slipping under her skirt and digging his fingers into the skin on her waist. Clary gasped and tugged on his hair hard, eliciting the sexiest groan - moan, god, she didn't know what the heck she would call it but she wanted to hear it again… and again.

She pulled once more on the silky strands at the nape of his neck and this time Jace spun them around pushing Clary against the opposite wall giving him more room to hold her up. His lips pressed harder against hers and his tongue slipped deeper into her mouth playing with her own. Caught up in their frenzy of pulling, kissing and biting, Clary barely heard the door to the copy room slide open. It wasn't until Jace's lips stilled on hers that she noticed the footsteps nearing the small closet.

Her eyes opened and she noticed Jace's flushed face and wide eyes. Faster than she could process he had loosened his hold on her thighs, dropping her legs and grabbing her hand he rushed her to a space behind some boxes that were piled high in the corner. The small crevice was barely big enough for her but somehow he managed to move his body in whatever space was left.

Jace held a finger to his lips indicating for Clary to keep her voice low as the door opened and her father stepped in. Clary buried her face in his chest to muffle her shallow breathing and Jace lowered his face to her neck attempting to do the same.

After her father picked up a small box he stepped out of the room leaving Jace and Clary alone in the small space. Abruptly, Clary pushed away from his chest squeezing through the space they had gone through in the first place.

Grabbing her skirt she tugged it down to its designated place just above her knees and fixed her shirt. "That" she said, pointing to the place Jace had pinned her to just moments before "cannot happen again."

He moved out of the space too and smirked at her. "Why? I could've sworn by noises you were making that you were quite enjoying it."

"Because I'm engaged!" Clary nearly shouted "I can't be making out with random people in storage closets."

Jace raised his hands to his chest and placed a fake expression of hurt on his face. "Me, random, how you wound me Clary." He stepped closer to her once more. "I'd think after our last two weeks together I wouldn't be such a stranger anymore."

She scowled and moved away from him before he had the chance to pin her against the wall once more. "I can't believe I just… ugh."

"You just what?" he asked, but his voice suggested that he already had a pretty good idea what the answer to that question would be. "Liked it?"

"No, I mean I…I" she stuttered and Jace raised a brow at her obvious lack of eloquent speech "ugh… I have to go." Clary rushed out of the room before Jace had a chance to stop her and ran to her office burying her face in her hands.

What had she done?

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After work, Clary had gotten home as fast as humanely possible, feeling like the coward she was. After the make out with Jace, the rest of her day had been dedicated to avoiding him and staying away from her father. She was an awful liar and feared that her face would betray her emotions so she waited patiently, not daring to leave the safe confines of her office, until it was time to go home.

Now Clary lay in her bedroom with tears rolling down her face. This was the one thing she hated most. She detested the fact that she was so incredibly enraged at herself for kissing Jace that she couldn't seem to stop the tears that fell down her cheeks and onto the pillow below her head.

The worst part of the matter wasn't even the fact that she had kissed him, it was what had she had felt after the kiss itself. Those feelings she hadn't expected and now her eyes burned with tears and even after two Advils her head still ached with the confusion she couldn't shake off.

A knock at her door pulled her out of her own musings bringing her back to earth.

"Who is it?" she called to the door.

"It's me cupcake… Aline called me" Magnus' voice came from the door and Clary breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing she needed was her father catching her in her current state, besides she really wanted someone to talk to.

"Come in Mags" the door opened and a very sparkly Asian man walked in, a frown on his face that spread to his overly glittered eyes.

"Oh honey, what happened?" Magnus' voice was flooded with concern as he reached Clary's bed and laid down next to her.

Magnus had been her best friend for as long as she could remember. They had gone to high school together and Clary had always stuck to his side, even when he decided to come out, she had always been there just like he was for her. He was her rock and she knew that at any time, especially moments such as this one, that she could count on him.

Pushing her flame red hair away from her eyes he asked once more, seeing as Clary hadn't answered his last question, "Are you ok Clare?"

Clary shook her head "I promised myself from the beginning that I wasn't going to feel this way." She turned her gaze back to the sparkly man on her bed. "And I'm so stupid for letting him get to me."

"Oh," he said, his eyes conveying that he finally understood her dilemma "you mean the super sexy blonde that's always staring at you back at the office."

Clary scowled although it was pretty hard to deny the thrill that shot through her when Magnus said that he stared at her. She had noticed once or twice but figured it was just her head, or her heart, playing tricks on her. "He does not stare at me Mags."

"Oh, of course not."

"He doesn't!"

"Please girl. His eyes do not leave you as long as you're in the room and every time you're not he doesn't even check out the hobags giving him the eye."

"Magnus why are you telling me this." She closed her eyes and lowered her head. It hurt to think the mere thought, but it was the truth and she'd have to face it eventually. "I'm getting married remember. I need to stop fantasizing already before I dig myself any deeper into the hole I'm already in."

"Well baby-cakes, you're not getting married just yet." He turned to her, a mischievous glint in his cat-like eyes. "In the meantime might as well have some fun."

Clary giggled. Yes, Magnus was right; she could still have a little fun.

That wouldn't hurt anyone. Right...?

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