Chapter 0285

A tiny groan escapes Jackson’s lips as he pulls me tighter, moving his mouth slowly over mine,

cupping my face in his wide palm as he kisses me breathless. Things move fast, as they always do

with us, and it feels like hardly a moment has passed before my hand wraps in the fabric of his t-

shirt, pulling him closer so that his body is leveraged over mine.

Jackson complies, bending me backwards in his arms as he’s done before, kissing me deeply and

taking control, dominating me in a way that feels natural, instinctual to us. Immediately I cede him

power, wanting him to be in charge. Jackson moves his hand away from my face, sliding it over my

shoulders and down my back until he takes a firm grip on my ass, using his leverage there to press

me closer against him.

When I feel the hard length of him pressing, ready, into my hip, I lose control a bit – lose my mind, if

I’m being frank. A moan slips from me as I kiss Jackson harder, more fervently, tightening my arms

around his neck and using my weight to pull him further on top of me.

Because right now, I want to be laid out on my back, and I want Jackson’s weight on me, and I want

to slip my hand down between us and feel him in my palm – I want –

“Oooookay,” my mom’s voice says, tired but not without humor, from the direction of the door. I

freeze, my eyes flying open to see Jackson staring down at me, shocked.

Slowly, we both turn towards her voice.

“I mean,” mom says, leaning against the open door frame and grinning at both of us like the sneaky

cat she is, “I’m very pleased to see that my daughter has in fact inherited some of my passionate

tendencies and is doing me proud here –“

“Mommmmm,” I groan, covering my blushing face with my hands, completely mortified and letting

my entire weight rest in Jackson’s hands. Jackson just laughs, sitting up as best he can and pulling

me up with him.

“But!” mom continues, and I slip my hands down from my face to see that she’s grinning even more

now. “It’s time for bed, chickens. Clean all this up, and then let’s go. We have a busy day tomorrow.”

I sigh, still embarrassed, but I just shake my head in disappointment because…well, because it was

just getting good, isn’t it? But Jackson and I pull ourselves together, and quickly clean up the

blankets and the pillows. I’m about to dump our mostly undrunk wine down the sink when mom

protests, hurrying over to tuck it into the fridge for later, scolding me for being wasteful.

I just smile at her, reaching out and wrapping her in a hug as Jackson tucks the last of the blankets

away in the shed, I think going deliberately slow so that he has a moment to…pull himself together,

as it were.

“Are you mad at me?” I whisper, holding her tight.

“No, baby,” mom replies, laughing a little. “You’re a young woman who just found her mate – I’d

worry something was wrong with your relationship, honestly, if you weren’t sneaking off to steal a

few hours with him. But,” she pulls back a little to look me in the eye. “Tomorrow we’re going to have

a serious chat about birth control, okay?”

I blush bright pink at this, looking down and biting my lip, but mom just laughs cheerfully and I

glance back up at her. And then I smile back, because I know she understands, and that she isn’t

trying to make me feel shameful about it. It’s just practical, yes?

Because I have a very, very difficult time controlling myself around Jackson, and had mom not

shown up at the door tonight…well, some things might have happened. Things with some very

natural consequences for which I am very sure I am not ready.

So, it’s a chat that I think I need and very much want to have.

My mom gives me a wink as Jackson comes to stand with us. “I’m sorry, your Highness,” he says,

his face very serious. “I don’t want you to think I was…rude, or disobedient, or breaking your rules.”

Mom just laughs, a little delighted, and steps forward to pat Jackson’s cheek. “It’s fine, Jackson,

you’re young and sleep seems very unimportant when you’re young. But please – I’ll only be mad if

you keep calling me Highness. It’s Ella.”

“Ella,” he says, smiling at both of us as he tries out the name. He nods once, I think deciding that he

likes it.

“All right, now go,” mom says, giving me a little shove and gesturing towards the door. “Because I

need to sleep, even if you don’t, and I’m not going to get any if I keep having to herd my children

back to their beds.”