WOW! I am terrible. I'm so sorry that this took so long. With school and soccer, I was really busy but guess what?! My computer crashed about two months ago. And It took me forever to get a new one. I'm so sorry that this took forever and I hope all my readers will forgive me! Hopefully, this next chapter will make up for it.
And I wanted to say that we're coming close. Maybe another chapter or two and that'll be it. But I'm starting a new series soon! It'll be about a horse farm kind of style, with Clary and Jace again. If you like that kind of stuff, keep your eyes open the next few weeks. With my lack of writing lately, I've been in overdrive getting my ideas down. But here you go with this next chapter. Enjoy!
Tricks and games. That's what her mind had started doing to her. She was thinking things that she shouldn't be thinking, dreaming things that she shouldn't be dreaming, and comprehending things in the wrong way. Especially the last one.
"Are you ready?" Jace asked when Clary walked into the kitchen, taking a seat at the bar next to Emily.
The little girl nodded and opened her mouth wide. Jace was able to take a piece of bacon and toss it up, and Emily expertly caught it right in her mouth, a big smile on her face as she chewed.
"You're getting good at that," Clary pointed out.
"Not as good as you."
"You're up next," Jace smiled, holding a piece of bacon and pulling back like he was ready to toss. "Open."
She chuckled and was about to when his phone started to ring. Jace sighed and reached into his back pocket, pulling it out before giving her an apologetic shrug.
"Hello?"
"What did you want to do today?" Emily asked as she spun in her chair. "If Daddy has to go to practice, we can do whatever you want. He can't say no."
Jace turned and glared at his daughter, mouthing a 'no' just to make her giggle. Sometimes, Clary couldn't even comprehend how cute the two were together.
"I don't know," Clary said. "What haven't we done since I've been here? We've been to the beach and Disney Land and even took a road trip around Hollywood."
"We haven't been to Daddy's work," Emily pointed out.
Clary pondered the idea. Seeing Jace in a hot and sweaty uniform running around on the soccer field, kicking ass and taking names. No, that won't get her hot and heated or anything or all of the above, of course not.
"You can come if you want to," he said when he turned around, cutting the call he was just on. "My coach just pushed practice up to noon. You have time to get ready."
That look. She knew that look on his face. The smirk, the glint in his eyes, the casual stance and the way he winked at her was everything she needed and more to understand that this was a trick. Jace had made it clear when he kissed her that he wanted to be with her, but now, he was trying to make her fall for him all over again. And he knew just how to do it. Clary wanted to slap the smart look off his face. But there was something faltering in it as well, barely there but there… He seemed unsure, maybe? Insecure? It was hard to tell.
This is what her mind had been doing to her. These tricks and interpretations kept telling her that she wanted Jace the way he wanted her, but she didn't feel like it was the right time, was it? God, she hated this.
"Please?" Emily begged.
Clary sighed, hating the idea. Actually, she loved it, but she hated it all the same.
"You don't have to," Jace quickly mentioned, his entire demeanor changing when he sensed her hesitation. "I mean, if you want to you can, but you don't–"
Clary chuckled. "Do you not want me there?"
"No. I mean, not that I don't. I do," he said quickly. "But it's just-"
"He doesn't play well when he's nervous," Emily interjected with a sly smile on her face.
Jace scowled at her. "I wouldn't be nervous, and I would play just fine, thank you very much."
She shrugged and hopped off her seat. "Okay, Daddy." Then she gave Clary a small, devious looking smile before running off towards her room, probably to grab her crayons and pencils.
Clary turned back to find Jace leaning on the counter with his head in his hands. "Problem?"
He shook his head.
"Well, it looks like you're giving yourself a migraine," she pointed out. When he didn't answer, she reached forward and wrapped her small fingers around his wrists. "Jace?"
He let her pull his hands away but didn't look up at her. Instead, he leaned on his elbows with his head bowed.
She sighed. "She's only joking. You know that. Your daughter just likes teasing you."
"She only does it about you." He looked up and met her eyes with a fire in his own. "And you know why."
She did, and she let go of his hands once he mentioned it. But she didn't get three inches before Jace's reflexes took place and his hands gripped her own, holding onto them for life. It connected the two and Clary felt trapped but… there was something else.
Jace's eyes held her in place as he stared at her. "Clary, I–"
"I know," she interrupted quickly.
"And? What do you say?"
"It's hard to say." She let go of him and sat back in her seat.
"Can you just do me a favor?" he asked, standing straight. "Get up."
She did as he said and slid out of the seat, leaning back against the counter. Her hands clung behind her as Jace moved into her vision until he stood right in front of her, looking down.
"Close your eyes," he instructed.
With a racing and anxious heart, she did as he asked. And the seconds felt like hours. The tension in the room was pressing down on her chest and only increased when she felt his warm hands on her cheeks.
"How do you tell yourself not to give into this?" He asked quietly, staring down her. His eyes were like two suns burning holes into her. "I know you feel what I feel. I know that your heart is racing, your breathing is labored, you're gripping the counter like it's the only thing holding you back right now and I–"
"Daddy!" Emily called from upstairs. "I can't find my tennis shoes!"
He sighed and dropped his head. "They're in the laundry room from when you got mud on them yesterday."
"No, they're not there!" she yelled again. "Help me find them… please?" she added when he didn't respond.
He pulled away, distress and obvious frustration in his eyes. He gave Clary a stern look before backing away. "We're not done talking about this," he said before turning and running upstairs.
And Clary still gripped the counter for her life. "Holy shit," she breathed, wondering what the hell she was supposed to do about this feeling in her gut.
"And this is where Daddy changes before games. This is his locker!" Emily sprinted over the mess of clothes and shoes and socks on the floor of the locker room, pointing to the one that said Wayland across the top. "Look in it."
Clary chuckled and slowly walked over. "Why?"
"Just do it."
She sighed but instead of fighting the little girl, Clary did was Emily asked. Inside was simple enough: flip flops, socks, deoterant, extra shirts, his uniform, but on the back wall, taped up, was a picture of her.
"Oh," was all that Clary could say.
It was from their college days, right around when they first started to date. Jace was in his uniform, doing a throw in on the field. But Clary was in the front of the bleachers. The picture was taken from behind her, so the view was mainly of her back, but there was a small smile on her face towards the side that was barely visible. Clary wondered why out of all the pictures, he had that one taped up.
And then she wondered why he had a picture of her in the first place.
"He told me that he looks at that before every game and practice," Emily said with a smile.
"Really?"
Emily nodded and hopped back down, fixing her blonde pig-tails and grabbed Clary's hand. "Now come on! Daddy's practicing and I don't wanna miss him play."
"Actually, why don't you go ahead, sweetheart?" A voice said from behind them. "If you don't mind, I want to have a talk with Clarissa."
Clary slowly, very slowly, turned towards the mainly, deep, dangerous, demanding voice. It was a man of about fifty, with dark hair that has started to fade into grey. He was dressed in a black, very intimidating suit, with a pair of sunglasses pressing into his chest where they hung. There weren't many features that actually looked like Jace. He must have gotten a lot from his mother. The only thing that these two really had in common was the intimidation factor and the way they stood, like they owned the place.
Emily slowly let go of Clary's hand, nodding her head. "Okay," she said softly before running out of the locker room, but it was not longer for excitement. That almost looked like fear.
The man stepped up to Clary and held out his hand. "Michael Wayland. Jace has told me about you."
Clary swallowed and slowly took Michael's hand. It was cold and hard. "He has?"
They dropped hands and Clary instantly wrapped hers around her waist, wishing she had a jacket or something to stuff them into.
"He told me your name at least," Michael said. "That's all he would tell me."
Clary stepped back into the locker, as far away from the intimiadating man as possible. "He's a very closed off person."
"He is, but he's changed since he met you."
"Is that a bad thing?"
mIchael nodded instantly. "Yes."
She swallowed the worry in her throat. "Despite what you think of me, I'm not going to hurt Jace. I would never do that."
"You've left him before," Michael shot back. "He's just being stupid in letting you into his life again, even after everything I told him. You'll just leave him and destroy him once again, like all women do."
"Not all women hurt the men that they're with," she pointed out.
"But you have. You hurt him before and you're back for round two."
There was a silence in the air as they stared at each other. The tension in the air was different than what Clary was used to. She was used to intense and seductive, not intimidating and horrifying. But she wasn't about to back down.
If he wanted a war, he got one.
"Nothing you say is going to change anything that I do," Clary said with a stern voice. Even though she was over a foot shorter than this man, she stood tall and faced him off. "I'm here for Jace, but I'm also here for Emily. This isn't about my relationship with him. If it works out between us, it works out. If it doesn't, it doesn't, but you have no right to butt into our lives."
"I'm his father. I have every right."
"You think you do, but he's an adult. He's not a teenager anymore. He can live his own life without you making him hesitate on every decision he makes."
"I don't make him hesitate. I make him think."
She shook her head. "No, you make him question. You make him question friendships. You make him question his relationships. You make him question his morals. You make him question whether he's even a good father or not because he has a shitty one to compare to. So don't even try to think that you're what's best for him. You have no idea what is best for that man, because you don't know him at all. You've been too focused on the fact that you can't even keep your own wife around after running her off that–"
Michael's hand closed around Clary's throat, shoving her back against the locker braces. Her back stung at the impact, her eyes wide as Michael's blazing eyes stared down at her.
"Don't. Say. That. Again." He growled. "You know nothing about what happened to my family. And I want you to stay the hell away from my son. Or you'll regret it."
Then he let her go. She breathed deeply, reaching for her throat as he walked off, containing his anger before stepping out to where the boys were play. But Clary couldn't. She couldn't be around that man or around what just happened.
So with her hand on her throat, she walked the other way and left, not even knowing where she was going, but knowing that she needed to get out.
Practice for Jace wasn't too bad at least. Luckily for him, it was an easier one. They didn't do much conditioning and stuck mainly to the actual soccer related drills, so he flew right through them without a problem.
He really only wanted to know what Clary thought. Everyone was supposed to be up in the bleachers, but he was having trouble finding her. Luckily he was able to focus on the games and drills, but he would catch his eye drifting off to the bleachers every ten minutes or so before getting scolded by his coach.
But now that he was showered, dressed, and walking out with his bag on his shoulder, he had that nervous, gut feeling again. The same on he had this morning when he finally told Clary what was on his mind.
The only problem was the scene in front of him.
Rounding the corner outside of the wall where the parking lot was held, was Emily. No surprise there. But the cowered expression on her face as she stood next to Michael was something that was unexpected.
"What are you doing here?" He asked his father when Emily ran to him without a word. He scooped her up, cradling her to his chest to help her relax.
Michael shrugged. "I can't watch my son practice?"
"You don't come unless there's a money deal involved."
"So there was a money deal today."
"But there wasn't," Jace shot back. "Coach was at the field all day and you always tell me when there's money involved. You never drop in unexpectedly."
Michael crossed his arms and gave Jace a cold look. "I wouldn't question me, boy."
"He talked to Clary," Emily mumbled quickly before burying her head in Jace's neck.
"Shut up, Emily," Michael growled.
"Don't talk to her like that," Jace shot back, dropping Emily to the ground but keeping her behind him. If he was going to get information, he needed to be able to face his father. "Emily, go find Justin. He's on the field. Tell him you might be staying with him for a few hours."
She didn't without question, taking off. This has happened more than once in the past few months that Jace has played in L.A. So at least she knew the routine.
"Now," Jace said slowly and coldly. "What did you say to Clary? Where is she?"
"Hopefully on a plane back to Georgia."
"I'm serious," Jace said with a threatening step. "You have about ten seconds to tell me whatever happened before I put my fist in your face. And don't think I won't because you're my father. I don't give a shit about that anymore."
"You never really did."
Jace glared, his fists tightening at his sides. He was ready for a physical confrontation. In fact, he kind of wanted it. Beating his father's face in was something he'd craved for a while, but he shouldn't. The thing is, he was Jace's dad. But the urge was always there.
"I don't see why you're so attached to that little redhead," Michael continued, leaning back on the car behind him casually. "She's nothing special. She barely fought me."
Jace's throat tightening. "Fought? What did you do?"
"I might have gotten a little physical to make my point."
That was all Jace had to hear before his fist, finally, collided with his father's nose. Blood dripped down from his broken nose, but Jace didn't feel anything but hatred and anger. He was surprised his hand didn't even hurt. Satisfaction started to drip into his head at the look of the shocked and pained man before him.
"Just tell me where she is!" Jace demanded.
"I don't know," he said quickly. "I just talked to her a moment and then walked away. I don't know where she is, why she didn't stay, what she's doing. SO you can stop blaming your father for all your problems. I told you that if you would've just stayed away from her, you wouldn't even been feeling this right now."
"And I told you that if you hadn't been such a prick, we never would've had all these issues," Jace shot back, moving towards his convertible and throwing his bag in the back. He hopped in the front seat, ignoring everything that Michael was yelling and saying, and took off down the road.
He searched for about twenty minutes, not coming any closer to finding her. And she wouldn't answer her phone, which wasn't helping either. It was like she didn't want to be found.
Jace sighed after a while and pulled into a parking lot, dropping his head. Only one person would know where to really find her, so he called him.
"Hello?"
"Simon?" Jace said with distress. "I need your help."
Simon yawned and his voice sounded husky. "What's up?"
"I – Are you seriously asleep?"
"What the hell do you want, Jace?"
"If Clary ran off, where would she go? Especially in a place like L.A.?"
Simon was quiet before he finally asked, "What happened?"
"My father got a hold of her and probably said a lot of stuff to mess with her head. I just have to find her before what he said changes her mind about us."
"Well," he said slowly, "In a place like that, she'd probably go to higher ground."
"Higher ground?"
"Somewhere she can look out at the world and feel bigger and taller than she really is. It helps her think and focus on the problem at hand."
I sighed and glanced around. L.A. was flat. There wasn't really mountains or anything but there was one place that they visited that she didn't want to leave. "I know where she is."
"Good," Simon said. "Now go get her and leave me alone."
He hung up without a word and Jace took off back down the road, heading towards the big ass Hollywood sign that overlooked the city.
Luckily, Simon knew Clary like the back of his hand. Granted, it made Jace uncomfortable most of the time, but he wasn't mad about it at the moment. Because there she was, illegally on the other side of the fence and sitting by the sign, her hands behind her as she leaned back on them.
Jace hopped the fence and slowly approached her, not sure what he should do or say. If they were dating, he knew exactly what he would do. But they weren't. He didn't know what his dad said. He had no idea what was going on in her head about anything between them. He'd never felt so blind going into a talk, and it made him nervous.
"Clary?"
She tensed when she heard his voice but didn't turn towards him. Instead, she pulled herself up and wrapped her arms around her legs, looking out over the city.
He took the spot next to her, his heart racing at a thousand miles an hour. "What happened?"
She swallowed. "Well, I met your father."
"He's an ass. I'm sorry for anything he said. I didn't know he was going to be there, and if I did, I wouldn't have brought you–"
"Because you knew how I felt about it," she finished. "I know. I know. I just… I wish he wasn't like that. I mean, my parents love you and your father hates me."
"Does his opinion really matter?"
"If we're going to be together, then yes."
Jace's heart stopped. Was that an implication or was that purely hypothetical. Shit. He didn't know. And he didn't know what to say to that either.
She sighed and dropped her head to her arms, placing her chin on top. "Jace, I love you."
He froze. "Wha – what?"
"You know it, I know it, but I hadn't told you in so long. But today, when your father told me that I hurt you before, that I was only back for round two, I knew he was wrong. I never want to hurt you, not intentionally or accidentally, and it's because I love you. But the thing is I wonder if I'm even the right girl for you."
He immediately reached for her, turning her chin towards him. Their eyes met for the first time after the confession and there was a spark, a fire, a burning desire between them. Jace felt it more than he'd ever felt anything in his life.
"You are."
"How do you know someone better won't just come along one day and–"
He kissed her after that just to shut her up. He didn't want to hear the negativity or the doubt that was rolling around in her head. He didn't want her to hesitate or think that they were even a little wrong for each other. There wasn't anything wrong. IT was all right, one hundred percent right.
She kissed him back just as fiercely as he kissed her, something that hasn't happened for months. When he kissed her back in Georgia, it wasn't like this. That was him telling her that he still wanted her, but she never answered back. Now they were giving and taking, opening up for each other and telling them how they felt through their actions.
Jace slowly moved Clary to lie on her back, rolling on top of her gently. The heat that came off of her soaked through his clothes, and he could feel it burning him. It was the best feeling in the world. Nothing ever compared to having Clary near him like this. Nothing in the world.
Jace moved one hand from her cheek down her neck, tracing her arms before lacing his finger with hers, moving it above her head. He knew that she loved this for some reason, and got the proper response when she squeezed his hand. He smiled into their kiss.
He moved his lips from hers and only moved them down her neck, kissing and touching everything that he'd missed for so long. It wasn't so much a sexual feeling, but a reassurance kind of touching and loving. He wanted her to know that he loved her, not only that he wanted her.
"Jace," she breathed, lacing her free hand through his shorter hair and pulling his eyes back to hers. "You need to grow your hair back."
He chuckled. "Why?"
"I need more to hold onto," she smiled before crushing her lips back to his.
The door slammed behind them before Clary even had time to register what happened. The past thirty minutes had gone so quickly that she didn't even have time to think. One minute, she was alone by the sign, next Jace was there, then he was kissing here, then they were in the car, and now they were back home, and they'd barely let go of each other.
Jace pushed her back against the front door, picking her up by her thighs. She'd missed this feeling of being controlled but begin loved. He had a way of doing that in all aspects. And that's what she loved about him. That's why she loved him.
"Are you sure about this?" Jace asked against her lips.
She nodded and pulled back enough to reach down and yank his shirt off of his body. His muscles and abs were definitely more toned than they were over Christmas. She wasn't complaining at all either. IF they were perfect before, they were godly now.
"Hell yes I am," she gasped as he kissed at her neck, sucking at her sweet spot. Her hand roamed everything that she could touch, his muscles and skin contracting under her touch. She craved the effect that she had on him, wondering how he could even feel the same.
Their lips collided again as the door suddenly disappeared from her back. Jace moved them around the apartment, but Clary was too occupied with his lips and skin and body to even know where they were going. Instead, she focused on the sensations.
And before she knew it, she was thrown on a plush, soft bed, looking up with Jace hovering over her. His eyes were no longer golden, but darker with want and need. She's forgotten how captivating that look was, how endearing and daring he could be when he hovered above her.
His hands gripped her shirt and pulled, making her lift her arms up to get it off of her body. He then quickly discarded her jeans, sliding them down her legs expertly. But instead of coming right back up to her, he gently grabbed her right leg. His lips kissed at her ankle, up her leg, around her calf, all around her knee. He kissed and touched everywhere he could, making her squirm on the bed.
"Jace," she begged. "Just come back up here."
"Wait," he said with a seductive voice. "Just relax."
He kissed the inside other thigh, causing her to tense instantly.
He chuckled. "I said, relax."
"I can't relax with you so close to me."
Without an answer, he started to kiss closer and closer to her black, laced panties, his fingers gripping the sides. His lips danced along her hips and the lining of it, so close to where she wanted him but never actually getting there. She remembered the last time he did this to her, and it was enough for her to see stars. That was almost six months ago and she was as tight as a rubber band.
She was finally able to relax when he kissed up her stomach instead of going for the kill. Granted, she was still tensing under his touch, but it was a good anxiousness. And finally, he eyes were next to hers again after minutes of torturous touching and feeling.
He smirked at her. "You look beautiful when you're hot and bothered."
"You're an asshole."
"I'm your asshole," he pointed out with a small kiss to her lips. He pressed his forehead to hers, breathing her in as she tried and failed to calm down and catch her breath. "Clary?"
"Hmm?"
"I love you," he said with conviction. "And I'll love you until the day I die. And if there's a life after that, I'll love you then."
She couldn't stop the smile that broke out over her face. It was something that she couldn't control and she looked at the most perfect man above her. But instead of answering, she rolled them over until he was under her, their lips lining each other. He groaned when she moved, and that made her smile even more.
She moved back enough to find the button on his jeans. It popped open and she could feel how Jace had grown when she pulled them down. His boxers were stretching, a sight that she hadn't seen in so long. She was almost worried. What if she didn't know what to do or how to please him? What if she messed up? She hadn't exactly practiced much with Jem. That was mainly just a simple relationship, nothing too physical.
Jace must have sensed her hesitation because he sat up after kicking off his jeans and pulled Clary towards him. They just held each other. No words. No movement. Their arms just around themselves, the only thing separating the pair was their underwear. And Clary decided after a few minutes that that was too much.
So she reached behind her, popped the hold on her bra, and let it fall. Jace gently and slowly pulled it from her skin, his eyes on her eyes the whole time. But when they finally through the bra to the floor, he moved forward and kissed along the newly exposed skin, causing Clary to ache in a way she hasn't in a long time.
He kissed, licked, pulled, and played with her chest until she was a moaning mess above him. And just as she couldn't take the teasing anymore, she shoved him back, forcing him to fall back against the bed. Without a word, only looks and desires, she pulled his boxers down and off and revealed what she'd missed out on for so long.
Jace let out a deep breath when the air hit him, his eyes closing and his head falling back on the pillows. It was a sight to see, and Clary wished she could live in this moment forever. But she kissed up his chest, her hand wrapping around his situation and causing him to hiss. Even if that was a lovable moment before, there was another moment that she'd been begging for.
"Shit," Jace breathed as she pumped him. "God, I've missed you."
"You have no idea," she told him with her lips on his neck. But that didn't last long before Jace flipped her back over, holding her hands above her head against the pillows. He was breathing hard now, his eyes raging with desire.
"You keep that up," he said slowly, "And this'll end faster than it started."
"Then do what you need to do," she said with a smirk.
He gave her his signature, cocky look before dropping her hands and reaching for the last layer of clothing between them. After it was removed, he came back to her for the slowest, sweetest kiss they've shared. It was full of love and reassurance, but it didn't stay like that. It quickly turned heated and fast, and Jace reached for a golden package in his dresser before Clary could even register what was happening.
"I want to do it," she was finally able to say, reaching for his hand. He swallowed but nodded, pulling back. She fixed the condom and rolled it on him, causing his head to fall to her shoulder.
They lined up and their eyes met with everything they've held back for so long.
"Are you sure?" Jace asked one more time.
"I've never been more sure of anything. I love you, Jace."
"I love you more, Clary." He sealed it with a kiss before they were joined once again in the most intimate way possible. And Clary hoped that this time, it wouldn't be the last time.
And finally, that's the end of the next chapter that took ages to put up. Again, I'm so sorry! Hopefully, you guys will forgive me. But consider this a Christmas apology! And if I don't get the next chapter up within the next week, Merry Christmas!
Dont forget to let me know what you all think! Review or Message me! Love you guys!