It's a Kiss

Chapter 17

Jace

While I was at school, I was looking out for Clary but did not see her. She is doing her best to avoid me. I met up with her friends, Izzy and Maia, and decided to ask them if they know where Clary is.

"Hey, girls. You are Clary's friends right, Izzy and Maia."

"Yes, we are. You must be Jace."

"Yes, Uhm, do you know where Clary is? I have not seen her all day."
"She was at school, but as soon as the bell rang, she left. She is meeting Simon at her dad's restaurant. She decided to give Simon her answer to his marriage proposal."

As soon as Izzy said that Clary had an answer for Simon, I ran out of the school without them finishing their sentence. The car was not moving fast enough for me with the school traffic. No way that I am going to let her get engaged to that rat.

Clary

Here I am at the restaurant, standing outside wondering if I should just forget the whole thing and go home. I walked in and there were no customers. This is a slow time before the dinner rush starts. Most of the servers were getting the restaurant ready for dinner. I walked to the back where the office was and found Simon going over the paperwork. When he heard me walk in, he stood up and came to hug me. My body tensed at his touch and I know he noticed even though he did not say anything about it.

"Did you come to give me your answer?"

"Yes, I did. Simon, I know you love me and will be a good husband, but I still need some time before I can give you an answer."

"Clary, why is it so hard to give me an answer? Herondale is marrying someone else, and I do not see him hesitating about the marriage. I have not seen him at school running after you."

"Simon, stop. You do not know or understand Jace or our situation. My wanting a few more days to think about my future has nothing to do with Jace."

"I am sorry I am being so impatient. This is something that I have been waiting for a long time."

The next thing I know, he pulled me into his arms and crushed his lips on mine. He tried to put his tongue in my mouth and that is when I pushed him away. He grabbed me and pushed me against the wall to kiss me again, so I screamed for Jace.

"Why are you calling him when you are here with me? I asked you to be my wife and all I want is to kiss you the right way, but you will not let me. You only want him."

"I am so sorry, Simon, I really thought I can go through this, but I can not. My heart belongs to Jace and I will never stop loving him. If my destiny is to be alone, so be it."

I ran out of the restaurant and stood outside in the rain. It had started raining really hard. I started to walk towards home when I saw a man walking with an umbrella and he looked like Jace, but I know that it is only wishful thinking. Then the man was closer and I realize that it was Jace. I stood in front of him with water dripping down my face and almost soak to the bone, but all I wanted to do was to look into his eyes.

"Jace, what are you doing here?"

"Did you say yes?"

"Yes to what?"

"Did you tell Simon that you will marry him?"

"Jace, it is none of your business."

"Yes, it is. You are mine and I will not allow you to be with another man, kiss another man, love another man, because I love you. Clary, I cannot stand someone kissing your lips or touching your body, but most of all, you telling  another man that you love him."

This is when he dropped the umbrella, pulled me into his arms, and crushed his lips to mine. It was different from the other kisses he has given me because this one was deep and passionate. I put my arms around his neck and grabbed his hair, pulling him closer to me. Then he pulled away as fast as he had kissed me, leaving me confused. He was looking into my eyes like he was debating himself about something. Then he said the most unexpected words.

"Clary, marry me. I do not want you to ever love another man. Your love belongs to me, all of it. You belong to me. Marry me."

"Yes, Jace, yes. I will marry you. I do not want you to belong to anyone but me. Your love belongs to me and I do not want you to kiss another woman like you just kissed me."

"Let us go home. I need to talk to your dad and my parents right away."

We walked to the car and drove home. When we arrived our parents and my brother were all sitting in the living room. Mom got up and went to the guest bathroom and got us some towels for us to dry ourselves. They saw us holding hands when we walked in and had puzzled looks. I took Clary's hand again and walked into the middle of the room.

"Uncle Val, I am in love with Clary and she is in love with me. I just asked her to marry me and she said yes. I want to ask for your blessing on our engagement."

"Jace, of course, you have my blessing. My daughter could not have picked a better man."

"Dad, mom, I am so sorry to have you worried about me. I was trying to do what was right, but when Clary's friends told me that she was going to give Simon her answer, I realized that I could not live without her. She is the woman that I want beside me. The reason that I was marrying the Robinson girl was to try to save your company, not because I was not in love with Clary."

"Son, my company is my responsibility, not yours. I should have not forced you to go to Wharton to get a business degree and take over my company. This is your time, your life, and you should be able to make your own decision without any interference from me. All I want is for you to be happy."

"Thanks, Dad, for everything you have done for me."

"Jace, how about Diane, are you going to tell her what you have decided?"

"Yes, I am going to call her to meet with me for lunch and I will tell her that I cannot go through with the wedding. Nothing has been finalized so I do not see a problem with it."

"I had a fight with Simon, but I will meet with him and tell him the truth. He deserves that much."

"Dad, if you do not mind waiting a few more years, I will take over the company. I love the business and that is why I go to your office every chance I get. In a matter of fact, I have a few ideas on how to get the company financially stable." Max said unexpectedly.

"Thanks, bro. This means a lot to dad that one of us is taking over."

"Jace, you are my older brother and I love you. Clary is your future and you deserve to be happy."

Aunt Celine came with a tray of glasses and some champagne to celebrate our engagement. Later that night as I came out of the shower, I ran into Jace in the hallway. He took me into his room and asked me to stay in his room.

"Clary, sleep with me tonight."

"You do not want to wait until our wedding night?

"Yes, I do. Right now I just want you to sleep with me so that I can hold you in my arms all night."

"Our parents, what do you think they will say?"

"We are both eighteen, engaged, and about to graduate from high school. We are going to be attending the same college so we will be together anyway. I promise that I will not force you to do anything you do not want to."

"Alright then, let us get some sleep. It has been a very long sleep."

We laid in bed together and he had his arms wrapped around me as I laid my head on his bare chest. His skin was golden and smooth. He had some solid abs that I loved running my fingers through. He lifted my chin so that I can meet his lips and kissed me so gently and I deepened the kiss, pushing myself closer to his body. Then we fell asleep in each other'