Boys and Girls, Part IV: Why I Love to Hate You

A/N: Here goes...

Chapter 21 – Last Chance

“So you’re gonna move to Miami?” Stephanie asked sadly.

Delaney nodded slowly in response. “’Fraid so. But, we’ll still have a house in North Mission.”

“Ugh,” Lani grumbled in Jacy’s direction. “These two are gonna be filthy rich.”

“I never forget my roots,” Delaney protested. “I’m just a small town California girl.”

Jacy snorted. “Yeah. Who’s living in Miami with her stud of a fiancée/soon-to-be-husband, driving luxury sedans and Hummers and spending long days on the beach.”

Delaney began to sputter. “I would never drive a Hummer. It’s bad for the environment.”

“Oh brother,” Lani replied, slapping her forehead.

The girls giggled about their plans after college. They had just taken the last exams of their college career the week before. Delaney was obviously going to begin the rest of her life with Jason in Miami. Stephanie and Joe would be living together in North Mission, while he worked as an intern in his father-in-law’s law firm. Lani and Ryan would be moving to New York together toward the end of summer after spending a few months in Hawaii. And Jacy…

Well, she was glad that her friends were happy. It was over a month since she had last spoken to Tristan. He hadn’t called her, and Jacy supposed she should have respected that. After all, that’s what she had wanted, wasn’t it?

Except only a week ago, Jacy had learned that Krista Baxter had married Adam Vaughn, a fellow model. The news had stunned her. She didn’t that anything actually had existed between Tristan and Krista, but she didn’t think the girl had been seeing someone else all along, either. Now that Jacy knew Krista Baxter’s single status was out the window, she got back to missing Tristan.

Really missing him.

So much that it hurt. If she wasn’t such a self-masochist, Jacy would have called Tristan up and told him how much she missed him, but she truly believed that their separation was for the better in the long run. If not Krista, then some other hot model or actress would catch Tristan’s attention down the line. He was famous now, after all.

Still, the fact that Tristan hadn’t so much as sent an e-mail Jacy’s way after the draft bugged her. Obviously, he had forgotten her already. He was ready to make his millions in San Francisco without her. Even if she didn’t want Tristan chasing after her, Jacy truly hoped that Tristan was hurting inside as much as she was. She hoped this heartache lasted just as long in him as it would in her – whatever length of time that would be. She didn’t want Tristan’s heart to recover sooner than hers. Call her selfish, but that was just the way Jacy wanted things at that moment.

“I think a girl’s night in sounds great!” Stephanie exclaimed. “I haven’t spent a lot of time with you guys because of the ol’ ball and chain.”

“We should get some take-out from Thai Palace,” Lani suggested.

“I’m in,” Jacy answered.

“Me too,” Delaney added.

The group entered Lani and Jacy’s apartment building. Lani raced ahead of the group to grab her things to crash at Jacy’s apartment. As they approached the third floor, Jacy pulled her keys out of her purse.

Something was off.

“What’s wrong?” Delaney asked.

“I don’t know,” Jacy answered. “I feel weird.”

Stephanie appeared alarmed and exchanged glances with Delaney. “Do you need to sit down for a second?”

Jacy shook her head. “No.” Lani tip-tapped her way down to Jacy’s floor. She hurried over to the group just as Jacy opened her door.

“Hello, sweetheart.”

Jacy dropped her bag and sucked in a breath of air. It was an image out of her wildest dreams. Her apartment was packed with the people she knew and loved. Jason, Joe, and Ryan were off to one side of her living room. Their partners walked over to them with knowing smiles on their faces, but Jacy was too surprised to appear indignant at their secrecy. She turned to the opposite side of the room, where her mother and sisters were gathered. Her mother looked as if she had been crying.

And in the center of her living room was the man she loved. He was looking at Jacy as if she were the only other person in the whole wide world. His cell phone rang, and Tristan casually answered it.

“Yeah? Sure, she’s right here.”

Tristan handed the cell over to Jacy who regarded it questioningly.

“It’s for you, honey.”

Jacy accepted the cell phone with uncertainty. “H-hello?”

“Hi Jacy, honey. It’s your Dad.”

Jacy swallowed the large lump that had formed in his throat. “H-hey.”

“Congratulations, sweetheart.”

“On what?”

“You always manage to make me proud, Daughter,” her father responded before hanging up.

Jacy shut Tristan’s cell phone close and handed it back to him with a look of confusion crossing her features. “What’s going on Tristan?”

Just then, a tall, dark-haired, hazel-eyed man in his mid-forties appeared in the kitchen doorway. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the doorway. He regarded Jacy with love and adoration, and Jacy realized that she had just spoken to this man moments before.

That same mixture of emotions kept swirling around in Jacy’s head – shock and confusion among others. Her jaw dropped, but no words came out. Before she had a chance to eke any form of communication, Tristan gently grabbed her hand. He softly kissed her knuckles before falling to one knee.

“Do you remember the time I told you that I would never leave you?”

Jacy’s heart quickened. “Y-yes.”

“Well I meant it, Jacy.” He held onto her hand and used his free hand to pull out a ring box from his coat pocket. He flicked the box open and exposed the huge diamond he wanted to put on Jacy’s finger.

“They say that the lord works in mysterious ways, baby, and I never used to believe in that stuff, but…” – Tristan tried to suppress the fact that he was choking up – “now I know that it’s true because it isn’t just a stupid coincidence that we found each other.” He shifted slightly but never loosened his hold on Jacy’s hand. “This past month has been hell for me, Jacy. All I’ve thought about when you weren’t next to me was how much longer I’d have to wait to have you by my side again. I just don’t…I just don’t work without you, baby.”

Tears formed in Jacy’s eyes. She couldn’t hold them back any longer, and when she saw tears beginning to form in Tristan’s eyes, she was gone.

“I love you Jacinda Eloise Hewitt with all my heart, and I will work every day of the rest of my life to make sure you’re as happy as happy can be. Will you marry me?”

Jacy was a mess. She was crying and laughing at the same time. She tried to cover her mouth with her hand and managed to nod almost imperceptibly. It was enough though. A huge smile flashed across Tristan’s handsome features. He let go of Jacy’s hand momentarily to get the ring out of the case. He took Jacy’s hand in his again and slipped the ring onto her left hand. It was a perfect fit.

Tristan immediately rose to his feet. He cupped Jacy’s face in his hands. “I love you, baby,” he whispered. Jacy mouthed back the words, prompting Tristan to lower his head to kiss his fiancée. It was a hungry kiss. Neither party had seen the other in an entire month, and there was a lot to catch up on. In fact, their kiss probably lasted a lot longer than was proper, but neither really gave a shit.

“Awww,” the women all seemed to cry out in unison.

Jacy pulled back from the kiss and rolled her eyes. The guys all had smug grins on their faces – even Ryan. And her father…well, he was here, and that meant a whole lot to Jacy. Tristan placed another kiss on the tip of Jacy’s nose when Joe grabbed the champagne that had been chilling in a bucket on the coffee table. They popped the sucker open and celebrated.

Everyone drank and chatted. Paige and Roxanne appeared to get along very well with Jacy’s friends. They practically worshipped Stephanie and her Rodeo Drive wardrobe. It took a very long time, but eventually, her father finally found the strength to approach her mother. Their confrontation wasn’t hostile – not the way that Jacy had envisioned it might be. Instead, the pair seemed to have a grown-up talk. Jacy supposed that hugs and kisses were out of the question; she respected her mother too much to expect her to give in too easily after the way her father had left things. Still, at least they weren’t fighting. It was kind of nice…almost like her mother and father were meeting each other for the first time all over again.

Just then, a strong pair of arms circled around Jacy’s waist. She took a sip of her champagne.

“I decided I’m going to keep my name, Tristan.”

“The hell you are,” he grunted, kissing her on the side of her neck.

Jacy shook her head. “I can’t believe you convinced my father to come.”

“It wasn’t hard, Jacy. Despite all the shit he’s put you and your family through, the man still loves you like mad.”

Jacy tried to hold back her tears again. “I missed you so much, Tristan. You didn’t have to get my dad to do this. You know I would’ve said yes.”

“I didn’t do this for me, baby.” Tristan pulled Jacy into a tighter embrace. “I wanted you to see your dad again. I wanted to see how happy I could make you in just this one day.”

Jacy turned her head and kissed Tristan on his cheek. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Jacy.”

****

“Your mother is very excited.”

“Bet ya she’s already working on the grandchildren’s names,” Tristan said, unbuttoning his shirt and taking his socks off.

Jacy untied her robe and let the terrycloth fall off her shoulders to the floor. She was naked underneath. Tristan sucked in a loud breath and slowly made his way over to Jacy.

“Guess that means we should start working on those grandchildren.”

Jacy clucked her tongue. Tristan merely lifted an eyebrow and took his shirt off. He moved his hands to unbuckle his pants when Jacy stopped him and allowed her hands to do the work. She knelt down in front of him and gave him her most seductive smile. She slowly unzipped Tristan’s pants and pulled them down to his ankles. Tristan eagerly stepped out of them. Jacy’s hands moved over his black boxer briefs. She massaged him through the cloth and felt his excitement growing.

“It’s been too damn long,” Tristan breathed out. “Screw this, Jacy. I need you right now, baby. Let’s just skip the foreplay.”

“Are you sure?” Jacy asked in a seductive whisper, pulling on the waistband of Tristan’s boxer briefs. She pulled them down and Tristan’s thick, erect cock stared her in the face. She looked into his eyes and licked her lips.

Tristan groaned. “Jacy, baby, don’t –

Tristan’s plea was cut short when Jacy encircled his dick with her warm, moist lips. She allowed the warmth of her mouth to sink through Tristan’s skin. He shivered with ecstasy.

“Goddamn, baby,” he gasped.

Jacy moaned, sending vibrations along the length of Tristan’s shaft. He groaned with pleasure as Jacy began taking more of him into her mouth. She pulled back, and Tristan enjoyed the show of seeing his slick cock sliding out of Jacy’s mouth. She took him slowly in again before pulling back out just as slowly.

The pair established a rhythm, and Tristan groaned at the sight of his fiancée suppressing her gag reflex as she took to deep-throating him. The sounds should’ve made him feel sick, but instead, it turned him on. When he couldn’t take it any longer, Tristan gently cupped Jacy’s face in his hands and made her pull back. His dick was bobbing up and down, but he wasn’t going to let her get away without giving her some of the same treatment.

****

Jacy shrieked with delight as Tristan pushed her on the bed and urged her to fold her legs up. His head immediately fell to her slicked cunt. She threw her head back and moaned with pleasure as she felt Tristan’s warm tongue lapping her up. Her hands instinctively flew to Tristan’s brush of blonde hair, and she ran her fingers through. Tristan grunted with satisfaction.

She felt his deft tongue invade her moist entrance. He rolled his tongue inside and groaned almost as if he were in pain.

“God, you taste so good, baby.”

Jacy giggled, enjoying the feel of Tristan’s tongue running up and down her smooth folds of skin. When his tongue flicked against her swollen clit, Jacy gasped. She tried to pull Tristan’s head away, but he wouldn’t budge. He continued to massage her bud with his tongue, and Jacy’s breathing noticeably quickened.

“Oh, God,” she gasped out.

Within seconds, Tristan pulled away. His still fully erect cock stood at the ready for some action. He rubbed Jacy’s clit to keep her juices flowing before pushing himself into her.

Jacy cried out, and Tristan yelled. He supported himself on his hands over Jacy and began a steady rhythm of pushing in and out of her. Their eyes met even in the darkness of the bedroom, as Tristan continued to pump into her. Jacy’s arms immediately wrapped around Tristan’s neck. With a chuckle, Tristan lowered himself and kissed his fiancée on her lips.

“I love you, Jacy.”

“I love you too, Tristan…Benjamin Carter.”

Tristan snapped back in disbelief even as he continued to push into her. “Who told you?”

Jacy smiled coquettishly. “You’d be surprised by the lengths your mother will go to embarrass you.”

“Oh, that’s it!” Tristan declared. He abruptly pushed himself back and supported himself on his hands over Jacy. He increased the intensity and frequency of his pumps until he was invading Jacy’s body with aggressive thrusts.

Jacy gasped. “Shit!”

Beads of sweat dropped down Tristan’s forehead as he pounded into Jacy’s wet cunt. His blue eyes glowed with aggression and bewilderment. Jacy knew that Tristan was sex-starved – that explained his current behavior – but she didn’t care. She didn’t care because she knew that Tristan was sex-starved for her and only her. That very thought pushed Jacy over the edge, and she came tumbling back to earth…hard.

Less than two seconds after Jacy came, Tristan came inside of her with a deep roar. He collapsed on top of Jacy, and her fingers traveled to his hair, where she began to massage his scalp again. The two were breathing harsh, ragged breaths.

They remained wrapped in each other’s embraces for a few minutes where only the sounds of their hard breathing could be heard. As their panting ceased and their breathing grew quieter and slower, Tristan slowly reached for Jacy’s left hand. He pulled it up to his mouth and kissed the knuckle beneath the engagement ring that rested on Jacy’s finger.

“My heart.”

Jacy sighed. “Or right…you say that now, Tristan.”

Tristan shook his head with a smile and kissed Jacy’s cheek.

“But I’ll mean it forever.”

****

A/N: Tears...stay tuned for a very special epilogue!