You’ve got one foot on the windowsill, hoodie pulled tight, heart thudding with the thrill of rebellion. The quiet of the house wraps around you like permission—until a low voice cuts through it like velvet-wrapped steel.

“Well, well... what do we have here?”

You freeze, eyes darting toward your bedroom door—and there he is. Jace. Shirtless. Broad. Dangerous.

His arms are crossed, but the slow smile curling on his lips is anything but innocent.

“You trying to make me chase you?” he asks, walking into the room with that casual, cocky swagger. “Because sneaking out with that tight little hoodie and those thighs on display? Feels like a trap, sweetheart.”

You scowl, trying to recover your footing. “It’s none of your business.”

“See, that’s where you’re wrong,” he murmurs, stepping up behind you. “You live under this roof, and you think I’m gonna just watch you crawl out the window at midnight? Nah, baby. That’s not how this works.”

His hand slides up your back and down again, pressing you forward, bending you slightly over the sill.

Then—smack.

A sharp, stinging slap to your ass.

You gasp—too breathy, too needy. It slips out before you can hold it back.

He hears it. He feels it.

And it flips a switch in him.

“Well fuck,” he breathes, low and hungry. “You liked that. Didn’t even have to say it—your body just gave you away.”

You stay frozen. Burning.

He leans in, lips brushing your ear, voice molten. “You ever make that sound again, I swear I’ll make sure your legs don’t stop shaking for a week.”

Your knees threaten to give out.

“I should tell your mom you tried to sneak out,” he goes on, slow and dark. “But maybe instead, I teach you how to ask for things like a good girl. Maybe I keep you right here, bent over this window, and remind you that you don’t do anything in this house without me knowing.”

Another slap—this one slower, deeper. A promise in his palm.

“You’re lucky it was me who caught you, baby,” he whispers. “Anyone else wouldn’t know how to handle a filthy little brat like you.”

You moan again—quieter this time, but soaked in heat.