From Air (Wildfire, #1)

by Jewel E. Ann

“You’re generous. Distractingly mesmerizing. Quirky in a brilliant way. And ineffably beautiful.”

“You kissed me, Fitz. Twice. Why did you kiss me?” “Because not kissing you became too exhausting.”

A woman’s heart is woven from equal parts strength and vulnerability. Its love knows no boundaries. But it demands accountability. I’ll never ask Fitz why he broke my heart. I’ll simply insist upon him acknowledging that he did it.

“Jaymes, you’re my favorite kind of wrong. And I want to watch you come again.”

“I’m human.” She messes with my hair. “And you’re my person. I instinctually want to know everything about you.” Her neck stretches, and she presses her lips to my forehead, depositing a kiss. And another. And another. “And when you’re inside me, I want to burrow my way under your skin, squeeze between your ribs, and hug that beating organ in your chest.” Her lips brush along my scruffy jaw. “I want to feel your pain. And I want to take it away.”

Jaymes Andrews is the best mistake I’ve ever made. And if I had it to do over, I wouldn’t change a thing.

I don’t want to kiss this woman. I need to kiss her. It’s my biggest weakness.

“I will have a life, and it will be phenomenal. I will find him, and he will be mine. And to do that, I have to let you go.” My gaze climbs up his chest to his face—his oh-so-heartbreaking face. “But I’m okay with you never letting me go. I hope you think back to this moment when your life feels lonely. And if you only remember one thing, let it be this. On a random Wednesday, the world’s most fascinating woman stopped by your work and offered you sex. But you turned her down.”

A woman’s heart isn’t merely complicated; it’s the reason humanity still exists. We are the nurturers, the peacemakers. We know when silence is more profound than any spoken word. And we know that pain is not love’s enemy; it’s the existential foundation that keeps humanity rooted in this world. It’s the sole motivation to do better, get better, and be better.

“Yet here I am. Fumbling my words and wallowing around outside my comfort zone because I made you my person, and you don’t fit in my life, but my life no longer fits me without you.”

That’s the thing with love; it’s untimely, unannounced, and underestimated. It’s not a choice. It’s a state of being.

“Calvin Fitzgerald?” I yell, wiping my tears before they escape. He stops, but he doesn’t turn. “If you were normal and didn’t have an awful past, do you think you could love me?” My fierce heart always trumps my controlled thoughts. I’m not sure he heard me. But then he continues toward the exit. “Jaymes, if I were normal, I’d love you enough. The problem is, I’m not normal, so I’d love you too much.”

“I chose you.” The words grind out of my chest. I’m breathless and so damn miserable. “I had my mother’s ring and the two most important people with me for Thanksgiving. I told Maren and Will that I chose you. This huge weight was lifted off my shoulders because I knew that you would say yes. And you would consume my whole fucking body and soul, and nothing and no one would ever matter as much as you.”

And I know this because it’s been six months, and Will stole my shoes to get us in the same room. That’s not fate. It’s manipulation.”

“I will love you like a hero. Jump without looking back. I will fight for you. I will save us.”