Ok... I think this chapter is too long...and I got a bit out of hand with it... but here it is. I hope you all enjoy it. I'm really enjoying the reviews you guys leave. With my real life being a walking disaster it's nice to have people enjoy something I do. More to come in the next few days...because... I can't stop
Rose
"So who is this Kaelie? Her voice sounded like nails on a chalk board THROUGH the phone, I can't imagine how that voice sounds in real life."
"She's ... an ex, you might say." He said, it was hard to explain to anyone else what Kaelie was to him. Clary nodded, this time without a wince.
"She can't be as bad as my ex?" She said, her voice light and teasing. Jace tensed at the mention of Jordan.
"Stay with me tonight?" He asked. The words left his mouth in a rush and he quickly looked away. He could feel Clary shift beside him. Pulling him to look at her. She reached up and pressed her lips to his, for only a fraction of a second.
"Thank you Jace, I'd like that." She said before settling back into the bed. The nurse came in an within 30 minutes they were in the car Isabelle had left for them. Jace drove carefully. He was never a dangerous driver, but having Clary in the car, already injured, made him drive much more slowly than usual. Before he even realized it, they pulled up at his house. He blinked quickly as he realized that he wasn't at the bar. He had driven Clary to his real home, His weekday home. He never brought girls here. It was ostentatious and private. "Are you bringing me out here to murder me?" Clary asked from the passenger seat. Jace looked at her and wanted to retort but instead yawned.
"Too tired for murder tonight Clarissa, it's time to sleep. I'll murder you tomorrow." He said yawning again. Clary laughed as Jace exited the car, coming over to her door and opening it for her quickly. He grabbed her backpack and suitcase from the backseat and helped her to her feet, trying to ignore what she was wearing. Isabelle had given her a short sweater dress. They didn't match her converse, or even her personality, at all, but damn did it do things for her legs. Jace tried to shake the thought of Clary's legs from his head as he unlocked his door. Those thoughts were not for a night like tonight. He turned on the light and Clary gasped. The house was not huge, but it was sleek and modern. Everything was white, clean, with crisp edges. He grabbed her hand, leading her towards the bedroom. He opened the bedroom door and blinked back the thought that Clary would very shortly be in his bed. He rummaged through his drawers for a moment before grabbing a T-shirt and a pair of boxers for her to wear to sleep. He handed them to her and pointed to the bathroom. She wandered out a few moments later wearing the shirt but not the pants. "They just fall off." She said handing them back to him. There she stood in front of him, wearing nothing but one of his shirts. Her legs were not long and didn't have stiletto heels at the end, like most girls he brought back to his above-the-bar apartment, and yet he couldn't help but want to reach out and grab the beautiful girl in front of him. He led her over to the bed and she sat down, looking up at him, and yawned.
"Alright pretty girl, get some sleep. We can figure out the rest tomorrow." He said, turning around and heading towards the door.
"Wait... Jace... where are you going?" Her voice asked from behind him. He turned around,
"The couch?" He said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Jace, seriously, we are adults. I am in your home, you can sleep in your bed. If you're too uncomfortable to sleep next to me than I will take the couch, you've done enough already." Her voice sounded confident, but one look into her eyes told him that she was scared as hell. The arguments that started in his head against the idea lasted only a few moments. He shrugged, trying to seem like it wasn't a big deal. Motioning for her to scoot over. The king sized bed was plenty big enough for the two of them to not even touch. This wasn't a big deal. He laid down and shut off the lamp beside the bed, plunging them into darkness. Jace felt like there was static in the air, electricity racing between them. He stared into the darkness, focusing solely on keeping his breathing steady and even. A few minutes later he could feel the slight shaking of the bed. She was crying again. He closed his eyes, trying to still the urge to pull her to him and comfort her. After a few minutes the crying continued and his resolve wavered and them completely fell away as the quiet sniffles turned to full sobs. He rolled on to his side and reached across the space, Clary stilled for a moment before he reached her, pulling her into his chest. That was all it took for her to completely fall apart against him. The sobs wracked her entire body and he was surprised at the strength of them. She was so small and yet her body shook so hard he could almost not contain her. After what felt like an eternity of holding her, the sobs seemed to calm. He breathed a sigh of relief as the crying seemed to ebb away.
"I don't usually cry this much." She mumbled against his chest. Jace laughed,
"Clary, you've had a hell of a 36 hours, you're allowed to cry" he responded, his voice honest. She nodded against him and he pulled her tighter to himself, afraid she would fall apart again. To his surprise she started to laugh, a full laugh. "What...are you laughing?" He asked his voice incredulous.
"I was just thinking this is probably not the most exciting experience you've had with a girl in this bed." She said her voice full of amusement.
"This would be the only experiance I've had with a girl in this bed." He responded coolly. Clary snorted, obviously disbelief in her head. "I don't bring girls here. This is my home, my sanctuary." He said with a small shrug.
"Then why am I here?" She asked quietly. Jace struggled for a moment, trying to answer that question, as much for himself as for her.
"Because I needed to know you were safe." He said simply. "Now sleep Clarissa. Please." He asked hoping she would hear the pleading in his voice. She nodded against him and rolled over, facing away from him, and started to scoot away. He shook his head. And pulled her back to him, her back flush against his chest. "Please." He said again, for a moment fearing that he sounded desperate. She sighed and relaxed into him.
He awoke the next morning alone in the bed. He sat up quickly as he looked around the room. Clary's backpack and suitcase were both gone. Panic rose in his throat for a moment before he heard the click of his bathroom door. Clary came out, her hair in a towel, dressed in dark jeans and a simple black tank top.
"I hope you don't mind, I borrowed your shower, my hair was...crusty" she said with a shudder. Jace laughed and shook his head. He looked at Clary and was surprised how light the mood was. He tried to push the thoughts of Clary being in his shower out of his head, and was only slightly successful. He was suddenly very grateful to still be sitting under his thick comforter. His body reacted to her in ways he'd never reacted to anyone before.
"It's fine Clary." He said with a tight smile, before raking his hand through his hair. Clary turned her back to him and bent over to get something out of her backpack and he struggled to contain the groanthat manifested. These thoughts would get him in trouble. Clary wasn't ready... for...he shook his head. He couldn't think about her like that. It was unfair and kind of inappropriate to be honest. He waited for a moment, completely clearing his head before getting out of bed. Clary was pulling a brush through her hair as he started going through his drawers for something to wear. He pulled off his shirt, and heard a whoosh of air from behind him. He turned to see Clary appraising him. Her eyes slid over his body for a moment longer than necessary before she turned stiffly around. He bit back a laugh as he pulled a T-shirt over his head, and a new pair of jeans.
"Breakfast?" He asked before heading out of the room, leaving Clary to stare at the wall by herself. He could feel the pride well up in himself at the effect he seemed to have on her. It was a relief that he wasn't alone in his attraction. She followed him out of the room a few minutes later, mumbling under her breath something that sounded oddly like 'perfect'. Jace laughed out loud this time as he began to pull the ingredients out to make pancakes. He made breakfast and they ate in near silence. Until he heard a car in his driveway. A few minutes later Isabelle was letting herself in the front door.
"Honey I'm home!" She called as she approached the kitchen. She stopped mid step as she took in Clary, who was sitting on a barstool at the kitchen island while Jace cooked. She raised one eyebrow and a pointed glance with her brother before taking the stool next to the red head. Jace added more pancakes to the platter and handed his sister a plate. "Well, I came here to gossip, but since the topic of our discussion is still present, that will have to wait." She said as she took a sip of orange juice. Clary coughed and almost choked on her food and Jace stared his sister down, daring her to say more. Clary looked over at Isabelle and the conversation shifted quickly to the fact that Clary only had 3 sets of clothing for the foreseeable future. Going back to Jordan's wasn't prudent and those present knew that Jace simply wouldn't allow her to go back without him, and with him there would probably be police and murder charges involved. Isabelle was suddenly rambling about shopping and Clary smiled and agreed. Not that she knew what she was getting herself into. Jace stood to start clearly the plates and Clary stopped him,
"You cooked, I'll wash dishes." She said simply before grabbing all the dishes and turning towards the sink. Behind her back the siblings shared another look. Isabelle continued to ramble about the shopping trip that she was planning for the girls, and Jace was content to listen to the easy banter between the girls. Their words went above his head as he sat lost in thought. At the mention of Victoria's secret he tried to tune back in, but the conversation seemed to have already shifted again and he went back to his own thoughts. He would have to talk to Clary about her living situation. While he liked having her around, maybe more than he should, he wasn't sure how long she would be comfortable being a guest in his one bedroom home.
"Do you mind if Simon joins us for lunch?" Isabelle asked and Clary shrugged her shoulders. "I've been neglecting him the last few days." She added and Clary nodded.
"Sure, that's fine!" She said, Jace was sure with false enthusiasm. Isabelle nodded before turning to Jace.
"Hey, you wanna join us for lunch? We will be by the mall, so we will probably take a break around twelve or one for Taki's" Jace looked over his sister for a moment before rolling his eyes,
"Sure Iz. Sounds like fun." It wasn't that Jace didn't like Simon. Simon was the most stand up guy he had ever met. He had been dating Isabelle for almost 4 years and it almost made Jace sick how much the guy truly worshiped his sister. Jace stood and started gathering his things to leave. He needed to head to his mother's office, he wanted to get at least a head start on a case against Jordan. He knew it wasn't his business but he couldn't help but feel like it was going to get messy. "Isabelle." He called to his sister from the other room. She sauntered into the hallway by the door and looked at him, he pulled his credit card out of his wallet and handed it to her. "Have fun with my trust fund." He said with a shrug, "And ... keep her in your sights. I don't think that guy is gunna do anything stupid, but I wouldn't put it past him." Isabelle grinned wickedly at the black card in her hand, and nodded.
"Clary. Let's goooooo." She whined as she retreated back to the kitchen where Clary was finishing her cleaning. Jace stepped out the door into the cool March air. It wasn't cold enough for a jacket, but Jace was sure it was too cold for the tank top Clary was wearing. He shook his head at how ridiculous he was being over this girl. He got into his car and started it before looking back at his door where the girls were exiting. Isabelle in her skin tight skinny jeans and a jean jacket, a smile playing at her lips. She turned around and winked at Jace as Clary followed her out the door, Her jeans were much less revealing and her converse the exact opposite of his sisters high heeled point toed shoes. Jace's eyes trailed up Clary's body and his heart stuttered as he realized she was wearing his college letterman jacket. He shook his head at his own reaction, for what felt like the millionth time in the last few days. Clary turned to get into his sister's car and he couldn't help the fire that started in his chest as he saw his last name across her back. The feelings were cut short as he saw the glimmer of the diamond on her left hand. He had to cut out this nonsense. She still was struggling through feelings for someone else, she was only wearing his coat because it was too cold to go without. He started his car and drove on autopilot to his mother's office. He left his keys with the valet outside the high rise building and made his way to the elevator. Moments later he was inside the plush office of Maryse Lightwood. While he wasn't her biological son, she never treated him differently than her own children.
"Jace, what are you doing here?" Seelie, his mother's secretary asked.
"Is mom available?" He asked looking around the office. The office was all browns and comfort, so different from when he was younger and she shared the office with Robert. Seelie flipped through the little calendar on her desk before pressing a button to page Maryse and let her know her son was present. A few minutes later and Jace was in his mother's arms as she pulled him to her chest. When she was married, she had hardly shown any affection to the children, Robert had always been cold and she seemed to follow his traits. Once the divorce was finalized though, everything had changed. She called them for more than necessary information. She hugged them, and she went from demanding each of her children become lawyers like their parents, instead supporting them in their own ventures. Isabelle had always dreamed of modeling, but Robert had made it clear to her that that was practically prostitution in his eyes. His brother had dreamed of a career in photography, and his father had called that weak. Jace had never really had an ambition and was the only one of the kids who planned to become a lawyer. That all changed when his trust fund became available and the club down the street put a for sale sign on it's door. He had bought the club the next week, much to the anger of his adoptive father. Jace smiled down at his mother.
"Jace, sweetie, why are you here on a Monday morning?" She asked, holding him out at arms length. "Is everything okay?" She asked motioning to the dark circles under his eyes. He laughed shortly before motioning towards her office.
"I actually need your legal expertise." He started and her eyes widened a fraction, "Not for me mom, for a...friend." He said carefully. She squinted at him for a moment before nodding with a smile.
"A girl." She said, her voice more of a smile than her face. She slipped on her glasses and pulled out a legal notepad before looking up at her sone expectantly. Jace wiggled around in his chair for a moment before sighing and launching into the story. The full story. He told her about the night they met, about the creep in the bar, about taking Clary upstairs and putting her into his bed before retreating to the couch. He told her about their conversation the next day, and about the interaction with Jordan. He struggled through telling her about the seizure and the doctor. He pulled out the file on Clary and slid it across the desk. The doctor had handed it to him as he finished his shift the night Clary had spent in the hospital. Jace hadn't opened it though, afraid of his reactions. His mother nodded along, gasping at the appropriate moments, and he eyes flashed with the mama bear rage that she was so good at hiding. She opened up the file and her face fell at the picture sitting on the top. Clary's red hair was a mess, sticking in all directions, her shirt torn at one sleeve; but the part that brought forward such horror, were the bruises that littered her throat. Her eye was puffed closed, green and yellow bruising visible. That meant that those had been older when this picture was taken. The ones on her pale neck though, they were dark purple, almost black. They were obviously from someone choking her. His hand clenched and released at his side over and over as he fought the cave-man part of his brain. That part of himself told him to drive back over to Jordan's house and to destroy him completely.
"Jace, I think I'll look this over once you leave." His mother said quietly, pulling him out of his angry thoughts. He shook his head reaching for the file, he needed to see the rest. Maryse pulled it out of his hands and pulled it to her chest. "Jace, let her tell you about these herself, you shouldn't see this." She said softly, Jace was stiff in his chair. Moments later he was standing, his fist through the drywall of his mother's office. The pain in his hand bringing him back to reality. "Jonathan Christopher." His mother shook her head and stood walking towards him. "Jace, there is concrete behind this drywall you moronic boy." She said taking his hand into hers. His knuckles were split, bleeding.
"Seelie, can you bring in a dish towel please, and maybe a bag of ice." She stopped and took a deep breath, "Any a hammer and a nail, I guess I'll be moving the picture from the lobby into my office." She added. Jace looked down at his hand ashamed. She put her hand on his shoulder and led him over to sit in the chair. "I'll start getting a case together Jace, we can't press charges without her permission, however I will have everything read. All she will need to do is sign on the dotted line and we will make sure he is punished to the greatest extent of the law." Her voice was sure and steady now, her lawyer voice on. "I'm not the best at these cases, however Robert may be able to actually present this one. He is far better versed in assault law than I am, you know me Jace, I usually deal with divorce." Jace shuddered at the thought of speaking to his father, but he was sure he would suffer thought it for Clarissa. His phone rang and he looked down to see Isabelle calling. It was almost lunch time. After a few more words with his mother he ducked out of her office and headed to the restaurant. He pulled in to the little diner at the same time he saw Simon getting out of his car. The men acknowledged each other before Jace parked and caught up to Simon in the parking lot. They walked in and saw the girls at a table towards the back. Moments later Clary was flying towards them, confusion on Jace and Isabelle's face as she launched herself at Simon.
"Simon!" She exclaimed before throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. Simon picked up the small red head and spun them around laughing.
"Clare-bear! Is that you?" He asked his voice full of surprise and laughter. Isabelle stood, speechless by the table, her face tinged pink with anger, and jealously. Jace tried to control his face as Clary kissed both of Simon's cheeks and buried her face in his chest laughing.
"Um..." Isabelle started before motioning to the two of them, "I take it you guys know each other." She said, her voice cold and detached. Simon laughed,
"Isabelle, I've told you ALL about Clary. This is my little red-headed step child best friend." Isabelle softened slightly as the word friend came out of her boyfriend's mouth. "Clary and I went to high school together, well...and middle school...and elementary school. We even went to the same college!" He explained, he looked up and saw his girlfriend's face and blinked slowly before setting Clary down. He walked over to Isabelle placing a chaste kiss on her lips. "Friends Iz." He whispered as he pulled her into his arms. Jace stood to the side, watching everyone, feeling incredibly out of place. "Clary stopped talking to me right after college." Simon added, his voice hardening around the edges. Clary looked down, her face pink.
"Jordan did... didn't like me having a guy friend who was so close to me." She said quietly. She shrugged before making her way to the booth and shoving herself into the corner.
"Where is that jackass anyways?" Simon asked, looking around. Clary shook her head and Isabelle whispered something about explaining later to Simon. He nodded and sat in the booth across from Clary. Isabelle sat directly beside him leaving Jace no choice but to sit beside Clary. The waitress came over then and took their drink orders, leaving them to look at the menu. Clary looked over everything carefully and Jace couldn't help but look at the rock still sitting on her left hand. "Wait...is that a ring?" Simon asked and Jace looked over at Clary to see her face fall.
"Oh .. yeah.. I guess I can take this off now..." she said fidgeting with the ring. "It's not like he'd take me back now anyways..." she trailed off. Red hot rage filled Jace as he looked at her incredulously.
"Clary..." he started trying to calm the anger bubbling up beneath the surface of his calm demeanor. She shook her head and slipped off the ring, placing it in the pocket of Jace's jacket that she still wore. The waitress came over and took their order, and Jace frowned as Clary ordered a side salad and nothing more. He had noticed she only ate one pancake that morning, and with how tiny she was he was sure she needed to be eating more.
"A salad Clare?" Simon asked, his tone teasing, Jace was probably the only one who noticed the undercurrent of worrying. "What happened to the double cheeseburger and milkshake Clary?" He asked looking at the fragile looking girl across from him.
"Don't wanna get fat." She said with a small shrug before taking a sip of her water. Simon looked at her with disbelief and then excused himself from the table a moment later. They all looked over at him as he stalked out of the restaurant. Isabelle made a move to go after him and Jace stopped her by standing.
"I need a cigarette anyways." He said with a nod towards the door. He only smoked one every few days generally, and almost always as an excuse to escape. Isabelle nodded stiffly before looking across at Clary. Jace almost felt bad leaving the girls alone, since his sister looked more than a little offended at how well Clary knew her boyfriend.
"You okay man?" Jace asked as he lit the cigarette in his mouth and offered one to Simon. Simon shook his head,
"He hurt her didn't he?" He said more than asked. Jace nodded stiffly beside him. "She didn't used to be this quiet, this meek. She was so full of fire, and then she met him. The salads started then, I heard him say that he didn't want her metabolism to catch up to her. I thought he was joking. I saw a few bruises...but she always told me," He shuddered, "That they were from...consensual... things." He shook his head. "He ruined her." He added quietly. Jace shook his head,
"She just needs time Si, just needs people who care about her." Jace took a long drag of smoke, "We can't run away." He said, his voice firm.
"I have a spare bedroom at my place." Simon said quietly. And Jace nodded, he was sure that would be better for Clary than staying at his place. She would probably be more comfortable with Simon. "I have to talk to your sister though, I love Clary, she is my best friend, but I can't risk what I have with Isabelle for her." He said, his voice serious. Jace looked over at him surprised. Simon flicked his hand into his pocked and looked around before producing a ring box. Jace coughed for a moment, before looking back at the man beside him. "I already got Alec's blessing, and your mother. But I know I need yours too." He said before opening the box. Inside was a ring that Jace knew Isabelle would fawn over for a century. Unlike the Lightwoods, Simon wasn't from money. He worked hard at his IT job day in and day out to pay his bills. Jace knew he must have saved for months to afford the princess cut ring nestled into the box. Jace closed the box and put his hand on Simon's shoulder.
"Of course. The threat still stands, if you hurt her, I'll murder you. But, yeah, you should marry her." Jace said with a nod. Simon sighed in obvious relief and shoved the ring into his pocked. "We should get inside before they kill each other." Jace said and stamped out his cigarette. Simon nodded and they walked back inside. Clary and Isabelle were laughing, not the kind of soft cute laughter he expected from the girls, but a strong full bodied laugh. Isabelle was clutching her side and Clary was holding her head.
"Do I even want to know?" Simon asked, sitting down and putting his arm around his girlfriend.
"She was telling me about your first kiss." Isabelle said between peels of laughter. Simon looked over at Clary and looked purely offended.
"It wasn't that bad Fray." He said pulling his arm back and crossing his arms over his chest.
"I had saliva on my forehead Simon." Clary said, her laughter starting to slow. Jace looked around the table and realized a moment later that their first kiss had been together. He was surprised to see how relaxed Isabelle was with the fact that her boyfriend's ex was sitting across the table. Clary must have sensed Jace's discomfort, she put a small hand on his knee.
"We kissed once Jace. We were 13. We both decided after that we should only ever kiss other people, ever again." Her voice was still full of laughter and Jace softened up. Their food was delivered and Jace watched as Simon watched Clary eat exactly two bites of lettuce with no dressing before pushing the plate away. His eyes were full of so much concern that it almost drowned Jace.
"Clary... you need to eat." Simon said with finality. Clary looked up from the spot on the table she was inspecting with surprise in her eyes.
"I'm not hungry." She said quietly. Simon's hand was over hers on the table a moment later and she sighed, "I guess, since I don't have anyone to worry about staying thin for... I could probably eat... not like anyone would want me either way." She said, more to herself than anyone around her. Simon's face went slack, Isabelle's eyes widened and Jace forced himself to look at his own food to keep his expression neutral. Clary reached across the table and grabbed one of Simon's fries and shoved it in her mouth, chewing thoughtfully. "I forgot how good real people food tasted." She said before putting her face down on the table and laughing. Simon smiled slightly, worry etched so far into his features that Jace started to worry about the wedding pictures. Isabelle pushed her plate towards Clary.
"You can have my fries, I ate about seven too many pancakes this morning." She said sending Jace a pointed glance. Jace shrugged,
"Not my fault I make the best pancakes ever." He added before going back to eating his own burger, trying to not notice as Clary slowly ate her way through Isabelle's fries. The conversation turned to their shopping trip and Clary shuddered as she recalled the number of stores they had already visited. She made a comment about Isabelle spending way too much money before shaking her head and smiling. Isabelle winked over at Jace and nodded to the large pile of bags that took up almost a whole second table of the restaurant.
"You can take these home." She said to Jace and Clary looked at Isabelle confused.
"Why would Jace take your clothes to his house?" She asked, and Isabelle laughed again,
"Oh, those are all yours Clary." She said with a grin. Clary's mouth opened and then closed and then opened again.
"But... how? I mean... Is, I didn't pay for any of that... shit, I didn't even try any of it on." She looked confused and Jace had to fight the sudden urge to kiss her. Her mouth was open slightly, her eyes wide. Isabelle waved her hand dismissing Clary's words.
"Next is Victoria's Secret. You'll actually have to try those things on." Isabelle said, winking across the table at Jace. Clary shook her head, and Isabelle stopped her, "Nope, my treat. No use fighting. We also have to get us both dresses for family dinner tomorrow night." Jace looked over at Isabelle confused himself now.
"Mom invited all of us to family dinner tomorrow night, she even invited Simon, I'm sure Clary will be invited to." Jace looked over at Simon, who was suddenly very interested in the tomato on his plate and it dawned on him that this was all a part of Simon's plan. He would propose tomorrow night.
"Well, she definitely needs a new dress then." Jace said before finishing his food. "We going to mom's or out?" He asked his sister.
"Mom is cooking!" Isabelle said her voice excited. Jace nodded and then started to stand,
"I have to get to the bar and do some work, I'll see you ladies tonight, and you tomorrow Simon." They all exchanged goodbyes before heading in their different directions. Jace picked up the dozens of bags left by his sister, suddenly glad he had given her his card as he saw the bags full of soft fabrics and light colors. Clary deserved something good, and if all he could give her was a new wardrobe he would take it.