A/N: Wow. I know I said I'd post last Wednesday, but my old computer broke. And then the idiot UPS people tried to deliver my new laptop to the wrong house and it ended up getting sent to a city way far away from where I live. I got it back eventually, but it took forever for my inspiration to return after that fiasco. *Sigh* :(

Anyways, to get on with the story, this chapter is really long and yes Jace and Clary do kiss, but remember that they are sort of "rediscovering" each other, so there won't be any major fluffy stuff like in Delicate until later chapters.

Well, here's chapter four. I hope you like it. :)

"Your brother called," Jace whispered into her hair.

"What?" Clary whispered, stunned.

Jace could feel how her muscles tensed up, how she was barely breathing; waiting for his answer.

"He wants to talk to you," Jace ran his hand through Clary's fiery curls, wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her body closer to his. He wished he hadn't told her, but at the same time he was relieved that he didn't have to hide it from her. "You don't have to, Clary. You don't have to see him ever again. He doesn't deserve your attention."

Clary let out a slow breath, her arms falling limp at her sides. "I… I… I don't want to talk to him," she whispered, so softly Jace thought he might have imagined it. "Please, Jace, I don't – "

"I know," Jace leaned away from her so that he could see her green eyes, which were brimming with tears. "You don't have to."

Clary gave him a small smile and wiped at her eyes. "Thank you," she threw her arms around him, and Jace had to take a step back to keep from falling over.

"Did Jonathan say what he wanted?" Clary's words were muffled in the fabric of Jace's t-shirt.

"No, he didn't tell me."

"Oh." Clary tightened her grip around his waist. Jace leaned over and kissed the top of her head reassuringly.

"How about we go find Isabelle and get you some new clothes?" Jace wanted to change the subject before Clary ended up crying again. Jace hated when she cried.

"Okay." But instead of moving to the door, Clary tilted her head back and, in one swift movement, she stood up on her tip-toes and kissed him.

Her lips were soft, barely moving, testing the waters. Jace laced his fingers into her red curls, feeling as the electricity between their bodies intensified. He could feel everything she was felt through their kiss, and in that moment only the two of them existed. Only the fact that Jace loved her remained. Clary's hands stayed resting on his back, but now her lips moved against his with more force. And Jace felt that she loved him. He felt how much she needed him; how much she missed him. He knew right at that moment that she wouldn't leave him again. Whatever she had been afraid of in the past, she wasn't afraid anymore.

Clary pulled away first, and leaned her head against Jace's shoulder.

"I love you," Jace instantly craved her touch; the vitality he felt only when they were connected. But he wouldn't pressure her into giving him more than she was willing to give right now.

"I love you too." Clary's fingers traced small circles over his back, and Jace had to struggle not to shiver under her touch. "How about we go find Isabelle now?"

Isabelle's room was just as much of a catastrophe as usual. Clothes lay scattered over her bed, and all across the floor. Empty C.D. cases sat where they had been tossed haphazardly on her desk. Make-up cases lay in untidy stacks on top of the vanity on one corner, and more clothes, mostly dresses, spilled out from the walk-in closet.

"Izzy?" Clary leaned into the disastrous room. "Are you in here?" Clary could see everything imaginable piled across Isabelle's room, but the only thing missing was Isabelle herself.

"No." Both Clary and Jace spun around to see the dark-haired girl standing behind them. "I was in the bathroom. You really shouldn't have let me drink so much last night, Clary." Isabelle pushed them out of her way as she entered her bedroom and flopped onto her pink bed with a pained groan.

Jace raised an eyebrow and glanced down at Clary, who rolled her eyes and mumbled a barely audible, "Sorry."

"Iz?" Jace pulled Clary into the room and sat on the bed next to his sister. "Can Clary borrow something of yours to wear?"

"None of it will fit," Isabelle's voice was muffled by her neon-pink pillow. "Or, no – I have something!" Isabelle jumped off of the bed, nearly knocking Jace over in her excitement. She rummaged through her over-flowing closet and pulled out what looked like a skin-tight green shirt.

"Don't I get pants?" Clary asked, eyeing the green thing with obvious disgust. Clary didn't enjoy it when Isabelle used her as a life-sized Barbie doll while they were shopping, and this green shirt-thing that was the "only" piece of clothing that might be the right size was just as bad.

"Nope," Isabelle thrust the green fabric at Clary and pushed Jace out of the room.

"Izzy," Clary glared at the green shirt, "Are you sure this is the only thing you have that I could wear?"

"Yes. Now, put it on."

"Aren't you supposed to be hung over?"

"I was, until you mentioned clothes. And then it went away. Here, put these shoes on."

"Great. I'm not a Barbie doll, you know. Couldn't you have just given me a t-shirt and sweat pants or something?"

"Do I look like the kind of girls who owns t-shirts and sweat pants?"

"No."

"See? You look amazing. And Jace will think you look sexy. You should borrow my clothes more often."

"Really?" Clary looked in Isabelle's floor-length mirror and saw that she did look nice in the skin-tight green dress that Isabelle had given her. It had seemed like a shirt at first, but the fabric actually stretched all the way down to her knees. "Jace… why do I care what Jace thinks I look like?"

"Because you're in love with him. And he loves you too. How many times must I remind you of that fact?" Isabelle patted the place on the bed next to her. "When's the last time you kissed him?" She asked in an I-told-you-so tone.

Clary blushed, remembering. "This morning, before we came to see you."

"Ah-ha!" Isabelle grinned, "And…?"

"And I don't even know how it happened. It just felt… right, I guess. But I haven't talked to him in over three months. I seriously don't think it meant anything to him." Clary remembered the last night, and falling asleep in Jace's arms. He loves you.

"Yes, it means more to him that you think." Isabelle looked up at her, her dark eyes serious. "I know you guys haven't been on speaking terms for a while, but he still really loves you." Clary remembered the first few months she had been avoiding Jace. It was hard on Isabelle, who was Jace's sister and Clary's best friend. On several occations, Isabelle had pushed Clary into speaking to Jace, just to ease up the tension that always ended up smothering the entire house when Clary slept over. Of course, when they had fought, things had only gotten worse. Clary winced internally at some of the things all three of them had said to each other.

"He told me he loved me. Last night, and again this morning." And I thought that maybe he hated me now, after all of the times I've blown him off, and the nights I yelled at him while I was drunk. How can he still love me? Clary realized now how fast things had gone between her and Jace since he had picked her and Isabelle up from Sebastian's party. And I love him too. She couldn't really wrap her mind around the fact that she had slept in the same bed as him for the first time in three months, and she had told him she loved him, and then kissed him. "I'm still a little dazed." Maybe he was too? Maybe he wished things hadn't gone so fast, and that he hadn't kissed her or told her he loved her?

"He wasn't lying." Isabelle frowned, staring at the floor, all of her regular confidence gone. "He hasn't been himself at all lately. All of the time you two spent apart, it hurt him."

"It hurt me too." Her voice was quieter and shakier than she had meant for it to be. Clary stared down at the floor, regretting ever pushing Jace away. She loved him, and knowing that her fear had hurt him only made the realization more painful.

Isabelle reached over and squeezed Clary's hand. "He's waiting for you," she nodded towards the bedroom door.

Clary gave her best friend a small smile and stood up to leave. Right before she opened the door she turned back to Isabelle. "Thank you." Clary swallowed and opened the door. She was ready for more than just admitting to Jace that she still meant everything she had said that morning.

Jace had been waiting in the hallway outside of Isabelle's room for what seemed like forever. He couldn't hear much of what the girls were saying, not that he was listening in. What he did hear of their conversation floated through the barrier of the door in shouts, mostly from Clary, and mostly complaints about Isabelle's lack of "Clary-style" clothing. Clary herself would never call it that, but the fact that Clary was that girl who could look beautiful in only sweatpants and a t-shirt, with no make-up and her hair left natural, was one of the things Jace loved most about her.

"When's the last time you kissed him?" Isabelle's voice cut through Jace's thoughts.

"This morning, before we came to see you." Clary sounded unsure. But she had been the one who kissed him.

"Ah-ha! And…?"

Jace strained to hear Clary's reply.

"And I don't even know how it happened. It just felt… right, I guess. But I haven't talked to him in over three months. I seriously don't think it meant anything to him."

How could she say that? Jace loved her. He had always loved her. How could she think she meant nothing to him?

"I'm still a little dazed."

Jace's chest contracted at those words. Dazed? What was that supposed to mean? Did she not feel the same way anymore? Was she having second thoughts about everything she had told him? Maybe she thought they had gone too fast after months of avoiding each other.

Jace was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't hear the rest of the girls' conversation, and he didn't noticed that Isabelle's bedroom door had opened and closed until he felt Clary's presence beside him.

Her red curls were tamer than usual, and her green eyes were full of determination. And oh, god what was she wearing? The little skin-tight green dress that Isabelle had given her was tight everywhere Jace wanted to see. The dress had thin straps and a v-neck, and the back was cut in a low U shape. The asymmetrical hem was cut so that most of Clary's right thigh was visible. God, why did Isabelle have to pick that?

"Hey," she smiled softly, her green eyes meeting his gold ones.

Jace had to clear his throat before he could speak, "Hey." He gave her the best casual grin he could muster. "Nice dress."

Clary blushed, her pale pink cheeks heating to a light red. "Blame Izzy. I'm just thankful she hasn't made me wear something like this to a party." Clary looked up at him, and Jace saw a momentary flash of uncertainty in her eyes before she leaned forwards and hugged him.

Jace was a little surprised at the gesture, but he wrapped his arms around her thin waist, careful not to let his hands brush over her bare skin.

"Jace, I - " Clary's voice shook. She frowned and stared down at the floor. Then she sighed and leaned into his chest, "I love you."

"I love you too." Jace knew from the way she was staring out into nowhere that she was thinking hard and that that wasn't what she had originally been going to say. But he wouldn't pressure her into telling him what was on her mind. She would tell him when she was ready.

"Jace," she started again, "I… I want to… I'm ready to go see Jonathan now."

Jace froze. She what? She couldn't want to see her brother now. Jace's arms tightened around her body, "Are you sure? Clary you don't have to –"

"Jace, I'm sure. He's my brother, and I can deal with him." She paused and looked up at him, and Jace could see the trust reflected in the emerald orbs that saw right through his heart. "I have you, don't I? How bad could it be?"

Jace couldn't stop the incredulous laugh that escaped his lips. "And what brought on this realization?" Jace ran a hand through her red curls, "Was it the dress?"

Clary laughed and shook her head, and brought her own hands up to his face. Jace could see in her eyes that she was ready, and she was no longer afraid of her brother.

"Alright," Jace internally winced when his voice came out as barely above a whisper, "I'll drive you back to your house." He sighed and leaned forwards to kiss her forehead. Jace couldn't believe she had found the courage to confront her brother. "And I do like the dress, by the way," Jace grinned down at her, letting his hand slide across her back to where the back of the dress didn't cover. Clary smiled and trailed her fingers across his jaw and around the back of his neck, until they raked through his honey curls. Jace couldn't stop himself from leaning in to meet her lips as she tugged at his hair.

"Love you," he managed to whisper before their lips crashed together. Jace could feel the electricity that passed between them, and he wanted to stay there with her forever. He forgot all about Jonathan the moment, and it was only Clary that he saw right then. Only her soft lips that he felt. Her hands tugging at his hair and the way her tongue flicked across his lips kept his heart pounding. He loved her, wanted her, needed her so badly it hurt.

Clary pulled away first and rested her head on his shoulder. Jace wanted to continue kissing her, but he only allowed himself to trace slow circles over her bare skin.

"We should go now," Clary spoke, and her warm breath fanned across Jace's neck.

"Yeah," Jace was reluctant to let her go. He didn't want her to have to deal with Jonathan. Not ever. Jace had meant it when he told Clary that her brother didn't deserve her attention. After what Jonathan had done, he didn't deserve to be within a mile of Clary.

But Clary slipped out of his embrace and took his hand. "Do you have your car keys?"

"Yes," Jace had slipped them, along with his wallet and cell phone, into the pockets of the jeans he had put on before they came to find Isabelle.

"Good," Clary dragged him out the front door of the Lightwood's house to his waiting Camaro.

The drive to Clary's house was silent. Uncomfortable and on edge, Jace couldn't force himself to calm down. As much as he wanted to retain his sarcastic air around Jonathan, his fear that Clary couldn't really handle this was overriding any walls he tried to throw up. Jace was torn between playing the overprotective boyfriend or the pissed-off tough guy, when all he really wanted was to pull Clary into his arms and beg her not to be anywhere near her brother. Jace couldn't stop her from going. He would do anything she asked without question, but he didn't like this. He didn't know what Jonathan wanted, and he didn't know what the consequences of Clary's visit would be. Normally the mention of Jonathan's name brought her to tears, but since last night things had changed. Jace felt the change, but he didn't know what it meant. Clary trusted him now, more than she ever had before. Jace just didn't know what had triggered her willingness to trust him.

"Jace?" Clary glanced at him and bit her lip, and then looked back out the window. She had been thinking for most of the car-ride, but Jace didn't know what about.

"Yeah?" Jace wanted to be careful how he spoke to her. The air between them held something different than it had last night, and different from what he had felt this morning. Clary sounded nervous, like she didn't really want to tell him whatever she was about to say. Jace wished she would look at him. He needed to see her eyes.

"You remember…" she took a deep breath, and angled her head away from him, so that her face was obscured behind a curtain of red curls. "What Sebastian said… yesterday, before you took me to your place?"

Jace nodded, and then realized she couldn't see him, "Yes, I remember." Sebastian was a jerk. Jace wondered if Clary thought what Sebastian had said had changed his opinion of her. He hoped she didn't think that, because it didn't. Everything Sebastian had said was just meant to hurt Clary.

"He was right." Jace could practically hear the tears in her voice. His hands gripped the steering wheel in front of him so tightly his knuckles turned white. How could she think that? "I – I have been… he wasn't lying when… he said…"

"Clary," Jace reached over and took her hand, his eyes leaving the road for a moment as he looked at her. She refused to turn away from the window. "It doesn't matter what Sebastian said. I don't care what he thinks, and neither should you."

"I know," Clary whispered, "I know I shouldn't care, and I don't, it's just that – " she took another shaky breath and squeezed his hand, "You should know what I was like back when… after Jonathan…" She stopped, and Jace knew she was fighting back tears.

Jace had only heard bits and pieces of what was going on in Clary's life during the months after what had happened with Jonathan. He hadn't paid much attention to Isabelle's ranting and raving about how amazing a party had been, or how fun a shopping trip had been. He knew that Clary and Isabelle spent a lot of time together, but he had tried to avoid ever mentioning or hearing about Clary.

Jace had hated to admit to himself back then, but Clary had broken his heart when she left him. Now, Jace wasn't afraid to say that he had been broken. He had Clary back, and he still loved her, even after all that.

And now that she was back, Jace realized that he hardly knew what had gone on in Clary's life during the time they were apart.

"I was horrible," Clary spoke so quietly Jace thought he might be imagining it. "All the parties, and then Sebastian… I don't know what I was thinking," she looked down.

"What happened with Sebastian?" Jace's mind was racing. Why would Clary have had anything to do with that asshole? She couldn't have… done anything with him, could she? She wouldn't have… not the Clary Jace remembered. But she hadn't been herself then. Losing Jonathan and Simon had screwed her up, and Jace been avoiding talking about her.

"It was only a night," Clary's voice sounded frantic now. Jace wished she would turn so he could see her face. "I was drunk… Jace, I'm so sorry."

A night. She had spent a night with Sebastian. Drunk, at one of his weekend parties. In a closet, maybe? Or had he had enough class to take her to his room?

That must have been why Sebastian had sounded so bitter yesterday. Yes, he hated Jace for reasons Jace couldn't fathom, but now Jace understood why Sebastian hated Clary too. Sebastian was the type of man to be irked when a girl denied being with him.

"Say something," Clary's voice shook. "Jace, say something."

"Clary," Jace tried to phrase his words so that he wouldn't sound like he was mad at her. He wasn't. She had been confused and lost, and Jace wasn't angry with her for what she had done. If anything, this news only made him loathe Jonathan more for what he had put Clary through. "I'm not mad at you."

And finally she turned to him. Tears glistened in her green eyes. Jace wanted to lean over and brush them away. She was always crying, and he hated it. "You're not… disgusted?" She sounded utterly surprised.

Jace shook his head. "Why would I be? Do you remember the day I told you about my father?" Clary nodded. "What did you tell me then?" Jace had been adopted by the Lightwoods when he was ten years old. His mother had died when he was born, and his father had been abusive. Jace didn't like to think about that, but he kept the name Wayland. Clary had asked about it, months before what had happened with Jonathan, and he had told her everything he remembered. It wasn't something he spoke about often, but he had trusted her enough not to make something up like he usually did.

"I told you that… It didn't matter. It was the past, and… I still… love you," Clary stared back down at the dashboard. When Jace had first told her, he had thought she would be disgusted with his past, and the memories he still carried. He had thought she would take one look at his scars and head for the door. But she had surprised him.

"And that's exactly what I'm going to tell you now," Jace squeezed her hand. "Whatever happened between you and Sebastian doesn't matter. It's in the past, and I'm not holding it against you. I love you, Clary, and I always will."

Clary looked back up at him, the surprise still evident in her eyes. "Thank you," she bit her lip, "I… I love you too, Jace."

Jace grinned at her, wishing he could lean over and hug her, maybe kiss her, but he couldn't while he was driving. He half wondered why she would bring this up now, but it didn't really matter. Not if he got another chance to tell her he loved her. Those words were something he would never get tired of, and hearing her say it back… It was something he wasn't used to. From the Lightwoods, yes. But not from… not from his father. Michael Wayland had never said that to him.

But it didn't matter now. Jace had Clary, and even though she had every means to break his heart again, Jace didn't care. Because he loved her.

And he would take her to the ends of the world if she wanted. Jace almost wished she asked for a vacation to Paris, rather than a car-ride to go see her brother.

"Jace?" Her voice cut through his thoughts.

"Yeah?"

"What do you think Jonathan wants?" She didn't sound afraid.

"I don't know." All he had said over the phone was that he needed to talk to Clary. Jace didn't know what about.

"Oh. How far away are we?" Now she sounded a little anxious.

Jace gave her hand another reassuring squeeze, "Not very. About a mile." He hadn't really been paying attention to what roads he took, but he knew the way to her house by heart, and Alec had once said that Jace could drive there with his eyes closed if he needed to.

"Okay."

They were silent for a while. Jace wanted to say something, but he didn't know what he could say to lighten the tension in the air surrounding them.

"Jace?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

Jace smiled. "I love you too, Clary."

He could feel her smile lighting up the car. "Promise me something?" She turned to him, her features suddenly serious.

"Anything."

"Promise you won't do anything… stupid." She reached over and set her free hand on his shoulder. "You know… you know Jonathan acts so different now. He'll say things… I know you'll be mad at him. Please, promise me you won't do anything – "

"I promise." Jace understood what she meant. He knew from talking to Jonathan in the past, and on the phone that morning, that the boy was eventually going to say something to Clary that Jace wouldn't – couldn't – let him get away with. But as much as Jace hated the situation she was putting them in, he would promise her anything.

Jace didn't miss her relieved sigh. And he was a little shocked when she leaned over and laid her head on his shoulder. But having her red curls splayed carelessly against his neck and her delicate fingers laced with is made the drive, and the prospect of what they were about to face, just that much more bearable.

A/N: Good? Haha, please note that I wrote most of this at four in the morning. ;) Also, I was planning on including their visit with Jonathan in this chapter, but when I started typing that scene it just felt like too much for one chapter. This whole chapter is over 4,700 words by itself. O.o

But can anyone guess what might happen when you put Jace and Jonathan in the same room? *Waggles eyebrows* ;D

You got a little of Jace's past here and what I hope is a decent explanation of why he lives with the Lightwoods but Sebastian reffered to him as Wayland in the first chapter. I think that's all I'm going to include about Jace's past though. There's not really much I could incorporate in this about Jace's family (not the Lightwoods), but tell me what you think.

Reviews are love, so please tell me any questions you have, and anything else about what you are thinking so far of this story. :)

xoxo,

Jace's Angel