imagine moving in with jarren during the offseason.
heâs already hoisting a box heavier than you, muscles flexing in that cut-off tee that makes your chest tighten in ways that have nothing to do with exertion. sweat glistens along his shoulders and down his arms, veins standing out, and you canât stop staring.
âjesus, babe, are you seriously staring again?â he calls out, smirking, voice teasing, casual. âyouâre gonna give yourself whiplash if you keep doing that shit.â
you laugh, moving a candle into the perfect spot, feeling your pulse spike in a way that has nothing to do with lifting.
âiâm not staring,â you say, though your thighs are tight and your chest feels like it might explode. âiâm⊠decorating.â
âsure, decorating,â he says, grin tugging at his lips, kneeling to lift another box. âright, interior designer. donât faint or anything.â
you bite back a giggle, rolling your eyes.
he sets a box down and glances at you, eyebrows raised. âif staring at me was an olympic sport, youâd win gold, seriously. fucking champion.â
you flush, moving around the apartment. youâre not pretending, not faking anything. youâre living in this space, making it yours, and every time you catch him glancing your way, you can feel the tension coil tighter between your thighs.
every time you reach for something heavy, heâs there before you are. ânah, nah, nah, what the hell are you doing?â he asks, just a flicker of seriousness in his tone. âi got it."
you smirk, letting him handle the heavy stuff while you decorate, watching him with wide eyes as he bends, lifts, and shifts.
his back, his shoulders, his forearms â every vein, every flex is a trigger you canât control. and you know, every time he moves with that careful, effortless strength, itâs breaking you in the best possible way.
by the time the last piece of furniture is set, your pulse is still racing. he pulls on a shirt with sleeves, and there it is on his right armâan angel, your eyes inked into the designâand your stomach twists. hot and wet and buzzing in ways that make you bite back a moan.
dinner is mostly easygoing, laughter and jokes flowing, until a girl at the bar keeps leaning too close, flashing her smile, clearly trying to get his attention.
jarren notices but doesnât panic. he leans toward you slightly, voice low and calm, âignore her, babe. sheâs not important.â
she laughs, tilting her head. âoh, is this your girlfriend? sheâs cute, but sheâs nothing like me.â
thatâs all it takes. jarrenâs jaw tightens, calm slipping, and the playful smirk vanishes. he leans toward her, voice low, gruff, a dangerous edge underlined in every word.
âtrust me, youâre not worth my time. fuck off.â
the girl freezes, her smile faltering, stepping back immediately. your chest swells, heat pooling low, pulse hammering.
the ride home is quiet, but your thighs are still tight, your chest fluttering, your pulse fast.
the moment the door clicks behind you, it all snaps. you tackle him onto the new couch, fingers clutching his shirt, lips pressing against his neck, body pressing to his. he groans, low and amused, but doesnât pull away.
"do you have any fucking idea what you do to me, baby?" you whisper, voice shaky, breathless.
he laughs, low, rumbling, and finally presses back into you, letting the tension from the entire day, every glance, every flex, every careful movement and protective act, explode between you. his hands find your waist, holding you steady while your thighs tremble, pulse hammering, body betraying you completely.
and as he pins you to the couch, laughter and low groans mingling, you realize youâre ruined. completely, deliciously ruined, by a man who is strong, capable, protective, teasing, and wholly yours. every inch of you alive, every nerve lit, every thought consumed by the way he dominates your mind just by being himself.