Jace didn’t wait for permission a second time.

He closed the distance in two steps, one hand sliding into my hair, the other settling low on my hip like he’d already decided it belonged there. His mouth found mine—hot, deliberate, nothing like the hurried kisses Marcus and I had been trading for months. I made a small sound against his tongue and felt him smile into it.

Marcus stayed by the door. I could feel his eyes on us the entire time.

Jace walked me backward until my shoulders hit the wall. He broke the kiss only long enough to look down at the black lace, the garter straps, the...