--Briar's Penthouse

@Jared The only reason her eyes were on him with such intensity was because honestly, she had expected him to want to leave after her subtle rejection of his actions. She was grateful he didn't. "You're fine, Jared." It was slightly amusing and brought a small smile to her pink lips.

Once in the bed, Briar scooted over to him and lay down. Her red hair splayed out across his chest as she situated against him. She rests a tentative hand to his abdomen, pressing a soft kiss to the underside of his jaw. Then, she rolled over, her back to him.

@Briar Jared heaved a heavy sigh. Of course. She wouldn't let him just drown out his thoughts. He gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek before letting her go. He walked around to the other side of the bed, taking off his pants so he was just in his boxers when he crawled under the covers.

"Those pants aren't exactly comfortable to sleep in," he said by way of explanation.

@Jared So he was choosing to just ignore the conversation and continue to have his way with her in bed. Is that what she wanted? This endless cycle of arguing and ? She had always thought that none of her relationships had ever worked out because she was a douche magnet. But maybe, just maybe it was because of this endless cycle.

She kissed him back, light and soft. But she pulled away. Hesitating, she looked up at Jared. "I'm a little tired." She said, giving him a smile she managed to muster. Things had just gotten too heavy for this.

@Briar They were approaching unfamiliar waters, and Briarleigh was eerily quiet behind him. He jumped at the sudden touch on his back and turned to face her. She was looking at him uncertainly, and he wanted to wipe that look from her face. He grabbed her hand before she could pull back too far and rubbed his thumb over the top, feeling the warm, soft, smooth skin gently giving way.

He thought about his options. She was just being so quiet. He knelt between her knees and pulled her face down to take her lips with his own. He might as well go with the familiar, something he didn't have to feel conflicted about.

@Jared She watched him, his back to her. She knew those strong shoulder blades and taut skin all too well. Would he push her away now? Things were getting complicated, she knew they had been for awhile. Maybe. Maybe Jared was finally done with her? That thought made her want to puke. She couldn't imagine it.

She was at a loss for words, something that rarely happened. She sat up slowly scooting to the edge of the bed. Hesitantly, she reached out and pressed her pale hand to the warm skin of Jared's back, right between his shoulder blades. She felt the desperate need to know what he was thinking and hated herself for it.

@Briar "That's not what you meant? Jesus Christ," he exclaimed. He got off his stiffening legs and stood next to the bed. "Well, now what do we do?" He was honestly perplexed and conflicted. He was usually careful with his words. He ignored the little voice that told him that was a lie. But now he said something that completely threw a wrench into their relationship. "."

@Jared If she hadn't felt such an overwhelming swell of loneliness between being away and what happened with Dade, she would've sent him away. Fought tooth and nail until he was out the door and out of her hair. But it wasn't even the fact that she felt alone, it was the fact that she had missed Jared. Not the dickhead Jared that he was, but the Jared that he could be when he wanted to.

She looked at him wearily as he struggled to soothe the wound. Her eyes didn't soften but her heart did, her jaw unclenched. If there was one thing she could take pride in was that at least some times Jared actually /tried/. But his sudden question made the softness get all jumbled. She looked away again, stumbling for wards. "That's not- I didn't say-" Did she want to dare Jared? It wasn't the dating thing, honestly. That was dumb. So would she like to be with Jared? The only guy who'd ever kept coming back to her. Jared erupted emotions from her that no one else ever had. Maybe she did. But would it last?

@Briar Jared raggedly ran his fingers through his hair. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and counted to ten. This wasn't the time for a fight, and this time he had really made her angry. Her face flushed, refusing to look at him, he hadn't seen her this angry in a long time. Looking back, he realized whenever she did get this mad, it was because of something stupid he had done.

"You're right, that was low," he grudgingly admitted, looking away himself. He took a deep breath again. "It was more a comment on him than you--" Something she said finally processed. "Wait, do you want to date me?" He'd never really thought about their relationship before. All he really knew was that he could rely on her being there, and that she looked damn good in lingerie.

@Jared She opened , then looked away. She narrowed her eyes, sitting up abruptly and pushing up on his hard chest. "Well, we aren't. And that's why! That was a low blow Jared." She growled, looking away, fuming.

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@Briar "It's awful to say you missed me, Briarleigh?" Jared asked, insulted. "You're not allowed to miss me?" His pride and vanity were getting the better of him, but he wasn't going to stop them. "At least I wouldn't cheat on you if we were together."

@Jared "Why else would I say something so god awful to you?" The redhead muttered, glancing away as she did so.

"Ow," Jared pretended to flinch away from the pain. "Did you really miss me, though?" He ran his fingers through her mass of fiery red curls.

She rolled her eyes, pinching his arm. But really, Jared's defined biceps hardly felt it. She looked away, only to look back and find Jared's expression. "What?" The redhead raised a a perfectly arched eyebrow.

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@Briar "Of course you did," Jared joked. He leaned on his forearms, taking her in. Something on her face made him quirk an eyebrow though.

@Jared "Of course you did." She purred. Briar closed her eyes at the all too familiar kiss. Jared's lips were large, engulfing hers, and the slight stubble that rubbed against her face was something she found comforting. She pressed a long hand to Jared's warm chest, her fingers running down over the slight ripple of muscle. She pulled back from the kiss defiantly. "I issued you, you know?" She said, her voice hoarse from admittance.

@Briar "I might be enjoying it," Jared answered with a chuckle. He ed his shirt as he walked over. "And I haven't really had a chance to get you anything new. You were gone, I was busy...." Setting his shirt aside, Jared crawled over her. "And I definitely enjoy the view." He leaned in and trapped her silky lips.

@Jared "I've learned over the years that with a man who cares little for clothing of value, it's best to wear the cheap stuff. You still owe me from the last set you tore up." She growled the last part to herself, turning around to face the male. She raised her eyebrows, smirking. She now stood in a cream lace set and a silk robe. "Enjoy the view?" She teased, falling back onto her bed.

@Briar "Why do you always change, Briarleigh?" Jared stood outside Briarleigh's room, watching her change her clothes, arms folded and lips quirked into a smirk. "I'm just going to take it off anyway." He couldn't keep the predatory smile from his face. Leaning in the doorway, he watched as Briarleigh's hair swept across the smooth, pale skin of her bare back.

@Jared Briar hummed. "That's a plausible excuse. And my car is at your office, so I'll need a ride in the morning." Her lips tipped up in a playfully smile, her fingers ghosting up Jared's chest. Finally, she slipped out around him, going to her room to change.

@Briar Jared slowly looked up Briarleigh, taking her all in. From her now bare feet, up her legs he knew were silky smooth, the pink skirt hugging her hips, the undershirt, her face, and finally her wild, red hair. Yeah, he would have to say he wanted to stay.

He cocked his eyebrow and smiled crookedly. "Well, I already had a couple drinks. Not at all fit for driving. Guess I'm staying then."

@Jared Briar leaned back against the counter. "I want you to do what you want to do, Jared." If he stayed, she wanted him to stay on his own accord. And boy did she want him to stay.

@Briar He smiled delightedly at her description. "I'll get over it, I'm sure," he accepted the apology lightly. Releasing her chin, he took a step back. "Do you want me to stay? Do you want me to leave?"

@Jared That threw her off guard. Actually, no it didn't. Hadn't this been what she wanted? Yes. But not really. Her eyes met Jared's and she sighed, shoulders slumping. "Probably. Buck teeth and what not. Fake s." She scrunched up her nose and smiled slightly. Not really though, from what her friend told her she knew whom he had been with, and she was an all around beauty while Briar had a more...acquired taste. She closed her eyes, letting out a dele breath through her nose. "I'm sorry, for lying to you." It was a soft admittance.

@Briar "You still didn't have to lie about it." Just like everyone else. He had hoped there would be someone who was honest with him. He supposed that was too much to ask for after all these years. He mentally kicked himself for such naive thinking. He wasn't a child. He knew better, but he had also hoped.

Briarleigh was staring straight up at him, that stubborn stance was something he was familiar with. She used to get that look when she worked for his father, working on cases to keep his sorry out of jail for something stupid he had done. He imagined she would have that look when she was pitching a story for the magazine, or when someone couldn't accept her criticism. The only thing wrong was she refused to look him in the eye. Frowning, he gently grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him.

"I'm sorry he cheated on you. She was probably ugly and couldn't compare to you. The man really has no taste sometimes."

@Jared Had she wanted to make Jared jealous? Most likely. Pitiful. Pathetic. She wished she was as strong as Jared made her out to be. Her was head tilted down, chewing on the inside of her jaw as Jared went on, angry. Great. This was going to turn out beautiful. She hadn't meant to make him angry. She just wanted to be honest. To feel that she could share things with Jared and he would understand. Damn, she needed friends. Girlfriends. That's what she needed.

"I guess I didn't have one. I was upset, and didn't feel like putting up with your ." She swallowed, pivoting around. She looked up at Jared, defiant, chin lifted. But she looked just over his shoulder, not into his eyes. She turned back around, grabbing a glass. Pouring some in the glass, she attempted to move around the wall that was Jared. Yeah. Not much luck there.

@Briar "Yeah, well, I also don't feel like you're a dainty little flower who has to be coddled and taken care of by a big strong man. You've proven that several times," Jared said angrily. He stalked up behind her and reached around her body, feeling the warmth radiating from her, and poured himself a shot. He drank it with a well practiced snap of his head. "And what I don't get, is if it made you feel so pathetic, if it made you feel so embarrassed, why did you even bring it up to begin with? Were you trying to make me feel jealous or something? 'I don't want you and I don't need you,'" he mimicked. "What was the point?" He poured himself another shot. He had a feeling he might need this tonight.

@Jared "I was embarrassed. Pathetic. I didn't want to talk about it so I said we were fine." The redhead sit down on the couch, running slim fingers through her hair. "Jared, you know you're an . And you know that I put up with it. Don't deny. But even so, as -whole-ish as you can be, your right. You're good to me most of the time. Not that it makes me feel any better." She shrugged a slim shoulder, teasing slightly as she looked up at him. "Anyways, I just wanted you to know the truth. Drink?" She asked suddenly, padding to the kitchen and pulling out a bottle of tequila.

@Briar The uncertainty on her face bothered him. She was never uncertain. "I can't believe I have to remind you of this. I'm a gentleman, and gentlemen don't hurt their ladies," Jared answered with a flippant bow. "If he hurt you so much, why did you feel like you had to tell me you were dating him? And," he added indignantly, "I'm /the meanest/ person to you? What the hell does that mean, Briarleigh?"