Tragic (Cherry Grove Book 1)

by Cole Lepley

  He steps between my legs, his breathing already labored. “Do you want me, Elle?”

  My response is automatic. “Yes.”

  He smiles, slipping the fabric to the side and inserting a finger slowly. I moan when he slips his finger all the way inside, dragging it slowly in and out as he watches my face. My breathing is reduced to short pants when he adds a second.

  He leans in closer to my face, his fingers still working inside of me. “Tell me.”

  The words I’ve been so desperate to say are out of my mouth before I can think twice about it. “I want you.” My voice breaks despite my best attempts to keep it steady. He’s driving me crazy, and he’s barely even touched me.

  He pulls his fingers away and I hear the distinct sound of a foil packet. His hand grips my hip, and he positions himself directly in front of me. “Tell me again.”

  “I want you, Hunter.”

  There’s something feral in his eyes when I say his name. For as many times as I thought about being with him in this way, I never envisioned it being like this. He kisses me like he’s starving and I’m the only thing in the world that could possibly satiate him. I’m clawing at his shirt, grabbing at his arms—anything to bring him closer to me faster.

  He tilts his head to the side so he has a full view as he presses inside of me. I hold my breath and then release it in a quick burst. He keeps one hand on my hip and the other tangles in my hair as he rocks into me.

  “Fuck,” he grits out.

  My nails dig into his sides, earning me another strangled grunt. He kisses me again, his mouth rough over mine.

  “You feel so fucking incredible,” he whispers over my lips.

  I can’t say anything back because I’m trying so hard not to be loud. If I opened my mouth right now, I’d surely get us caught.

  The rhythm he maintains is slow and measured. Thrusting gently inside of me and pulling slowly back out. He’s trying to draw out the pleasure, but I find myself getting lost in him. The soft grunts he’s making, the heat from his body being connected to mine—it’s all too much.

  I allow myself to surrender to this feeling and almost lose it altogether. I’m so close to the edge already, I bite down on his shoulder to keep from screaming. He groans and it vibrates directly into my chest. He starts to move faster and the tightening in my core intensifies. Unable to hold back any longer, I come hard and his hand cups over my mouth to muffle my cries.

  I’m blinded by the waves crashing over me and he shudders his way through his own release. When I catch his gaze again, he’s watching me. The intensity in his eyes makes my entire body shiver.

  He kisses me softly once before pulling away. I lean back on my elbows and continue to breathe like I just ran a marathon. I watch him fasten his pants and tuck his shirt back in before sitting up on the edge of the table. For some reason I’m afraid to speak.

  Slowly I slide myself to the floor and pull my dress back into place. He opens his mouth to speak, but I lift my hand to stop him. “Please, don’t give me some speech about how we can’t be together.” With a fluff of my hair, I grab my clutch from the table. “I really can’t handle that right now.”

  He nods once before turning for the door. My heart beats out of my chest when I realize he won’t say anything at all. He pauses with his hand on the doorknob. “I know that’s what I should say, but I’m not sure if I can.” His eyes meet mine before he continues. “You better get back out there before anyone notices you’re gone.”

  I don’t get a chance to respond before the sound of the door slamming behind him startles me. He seems angry and that makes me think he already regrets it. After barely finding the strength to collect myself, I exit the room in just enough time to be crowned.

  My heels click loudly on the pavement as I walk up the driveway after Judah dropped me off. I convinced him I wasn’t feeling well and that he should go to the after party without me. He reluctantly agreed when I promised to call him later. That was a lie. How could I possibly think about being with Judah again when literally all I think about is Hunter?

  I almost walk directly to the guest house, but something stops me. It’s not a game to me anymore, and to be honest, I’m not sure it ever was. What’s been happening between me and Hunter always felt so much more than that. The worst part is—I don’t know how to handle those feelings. I’ve never had them before.

  After changing out of my dress, I’ve been staring out of my window down to his. The lights are still on, and I’ve been home for almost two hours now. It’s like I can’t move even though I want to. When my phone buzzes with an incoming text, I jump. My heart pounds in my chest as I swipe the screen to unlock it.

  Hunter: You don’t even cuddle afterwards? Savage.

  A laugh escapes me so forceful I cover my mouth with my hand. The tears that follow aren’t from sadness. He knows this is hard for me, and despite how frustrating I know I’m being, he’s still trying to make me feel better.

  I don’t sit and wallow in my doubt any longer. I barely glance in the mirror on my way to the stairs. I make it through the house as quietly as I can and practically jog across the patio to the guest house. The lights that were on before are now off except for the small lamp in the hallway.

  The pounding in my chest resumes when I enter his bedroom and see him lying on his back in the darkness. He removes one of his hands from resting on his chest and pulls the covers down by his side.

  When I hesitate again, he smirks at me. “Don’t make me beg, Elle.”

  My legs suddenly feel weak, but I will them to move forward and crawl under the covers next to him. He turns and pulls me to his chest and then kisses the side of my head. I relax against him, instantly feeling calmer.

  We don’t say anything for the longest time. He runs his hand through the back of my hair, and I cling to him, desperately searching for the words I want to tell him. They’re on the tip of my tongue when he speaks first.

  “I hated leaving you like that, but that’s not what I planned on happening when I pushed you into that room.”

  My heart constricts in my chest. He regrets it. The last thing I want is his pity, so I decide to let him off the hook.

  “It’s fine. I know it didn’t mean anything.”

  His hand freezes in my hair and he cranes his neck back. “Elliot, look at me.”

  I press my face into his chest for a moment before picking my head up and catching the shock on his. “What?” I whisper.

  His brows furrow and then he leans down and cups the side of my face with his hand. “How could you think being with you like that didn’t mean anything?”

  I shake my head and try to pull away from him, but he holds me so I can’t. “Don’t do that,” he says softly. “Stay with me in this moment. Tell me what you’re thinking—please.”

  My eyes squeeze closed, unable to face him. “I don’t want to be a casual fling to you. I want more than that.”

  I’m still too afraid to open my eyes, and I feel his lips on my cheek. They move to my lips, and I release a strangled sigh into his mouth. He kisses me once more and then runs his thumb across my bottom lip.

  “Look at me, baby.”

  The softness of his words makes my eyes flutter open. He smiles and continues to caress the pad of his thumb along the side of my face. “Elliot, you literally mean everything to me. How could you not know that?”

  I take a shaky breath. “You never told me.”

  “I know my actions may seem confusing to you, but this is a first for me.” He stares directly into my eyes as he speaks, and it paralyzes me. “I’ve tried to stay away from you, but I don’t think I can anymore.”

  Panic creeps its way inside of me again, and my hands grip his waist to keep him close to me. “I don’t want you to. I don’t want anyone else but you.”

  He smiles, but there’s still sadness behind it. He brushes the hair from my forehead and continues to study my face. I don’t know what he’s looking for, but I’ve never bee
n more honest in my life.

  He swallows roughly. “I don’t want you to be with anyone else.” His hand slides down my side and hooks my leg, drawing it over his. He leans down and presses his forehead to mine. “I want you here with me. Just me.”

  “That’s all I’m asking for,” I whisper over his lips.

  With our bodies tangled together like this it’s easy to forget about all of the things we still need to talk about. I still have no idea what he thinks he’s saving me from by not being with me. The talk I had with Ollie on the bleachers flashes in my mind, and as quickly as it comes, I push it away. I don’t want to think about all of the reasons we shouldn’t do this. All I want is to feel as good as I feel right now. It’s a risk I’m willing to take.

  17

  Landing in The Bunker

  Elliot’s hand is creeping slowly down my stomach. My eyes remain closed, and I pretend not to notice. When she reaches the waistband of my boxers, she laughs. “I know you’re awake, Hunter.”

  “I was waiting to see where you were going with that,” I say with a smirk and then roll her brusquely to her back. She lets out a squeal in response, and my heart skips a beat. These are the kind of games I’d rather play with her.

  Her lips find mine, and I start to get lost in her all over again. One thing I can be sure of is the harder we fight, the harder we make up. When her hands begin to travel south once more, I have to stop her.

  “As much as I would like to hold you hostage here all day, I have plans with Oliver to play golf at the resort this morning.”

  She squeezes her hand around me in response. “Oh really? You’d rather shoot balls with my brother today?”

  I let out a deep groan, and thankfully, she loosens her grasp. “You know that’s not true.”

  Elliot gives me a knowing smile before planting a chaste kiss to my lips. “Let’s hope so.”

  She gets up from the bed and starts to pull on her jeans. “Speaking of Ollie, we should probably think about finding a way to tell him.”

  “You’re right.” I let out a sigh and run my hand down my face. “I hate keeping things from him. He’s bound to get suspicious with the amount of time we’ve been spending together.”

  Elliot laughs from inside the hoodie she’s still pulling over her head. “I don’t know if you noticed or not but Ollie’s not the most observant person.” She fluffs her hair and glances in the mirror behind my door. “I love him and all, but he’s pretty self-involved. If it doesn’t somehow directly affect him, it won’t enter his radar.”

  “Elle, this most definitely directly affects him. You’re his sister, and I’m supposed to be his best friend.” I stand up and grab a T-shirt off the chair. “He’s going to lose his shit.”

  Her eyes drift to the floor then back to me. “It may not be for the reason you think.” The unease in her voice confuses me a little.

  I finish pulling on a pair of jeans and go to her. “What do you mean by that?”

  She shakes her head and gets a look of sadness on her face, borderline shameful even. “Ollie’s not as much concerned about you destroying this than he is me doing it.”

  I smooth the line that forms across her forehead with my fingers and kiss her gently. “Why would you think that?”

  Her eyes cast down again. “Because it’s true.”

  “Hey, look at me.” I wait until her eyes meet mine again before I continue. “Whatever happened before doesn’t matter. You and me are something different.”

  “I feel like all of my relationships up until this point were shallow. I’ve never really wanted something to work out as much as I want it to with you. What if I mess this up, or I hurt you?”

  Something in the tone of her voice makes me wonder if Oliver told her more about my past than I would like. It’s not really a conversation I want to get into right now, so I decide to brush it off. “You won’t, I promise.”

  Elliot sneaks back over to the house twenty minutes later, and I wait another five before walking over to meet Oliver. He’s standing in the driveway dressed like the posterchild for sports endorsements. His dark, brown hair is gelled to perfection and there are crisp lines in his shirt and pants. He goes all in no matter what he does, I’ll give him that.

  “Hey, man,” I say as I approach.

  A grin spreads across his face and then he shoves his golf bag in the back of his truck. “You ready to learn a thing or two about the art of golf?”

  I scoff. “I play golf pretty well thank you very much.”

  He pops the collar on his polo shirt. “Okay, but I’ve been told by more than one person that I remind them of a young Tiger Woods.”

  I give him a questioning look. “It might not be for the reason you think.”

  He laughs and gives a shrug. “Hey, either way, I’ll take it.”

  I’m about to reply with an excellent comeback when a familiar truck pulls in the driveway. Judah hops out with a smile on his face carrying a brown paper bag. Even though my eye begins to twitch, I try not to jump to conclusions.

  “What’s up?” he asks, swaggering over like he owns the place.

  “Oh, me and Hunter are about to tear up the golf course at the lodge. What are you doing here? I half expected Elle to just be stumbling in after she clenched the crown two years in a row.”

  Judah laughs, and I shove my hands in my pockets so I don’t punch him. “Nah, she’s not feeling well.” He reaches into the bag and pulls out a container. “I got her this disgusting soup she likes from the Chinese restaurant and her favorite candy from that store downtown.”

  Oliver raises an eyebrow. “Geez, you’re really laying it on thick.”

  Judah shrugs. “I have to. I really messed up when I left. I didn’t realize how much I love her, and now I can’t stop thinking about it.” He pauses for a moment and grips the back of his neck. “I’m thinking about transferring next semester. I can’t be that far away from her anymore.”

  “Dude, that’s something you should probably discuss with her first,” Oliver remarks patting him on the back. “That kind of thing will most likely scare the shit out of her.”

  He nods slowly. “Yeah, I know. I have to hope that what we had still means something to her. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to convince her I’ve changed, that I want to be better for her.”

  I’m scared to see what my face looks like right now. The blinding rage surging through me is almost impossible to control at this point. I close my eyes for a moment to regain my composure until Elliot’s voice makes them snap back open.

  “Judah, what are you doing here?” She crosses her arms when she comes to a stop right beside me. I fight with everything I have not to grab her and show Judah who she belongs to now.

  He smiles a little, clearly nervous. It’s really strange actually. I almost believe him at this point. I’ve never seen him be this sincere about anything. “I brought you some things to make you feel better. I was worried—you never called me back last night.”

  I release a breath at the fact that she didn’t call him to come over. It’s shitty for me to automatically go to a place of doubt with her, but considering how their relationship was up until this point, it’s kind of hard not to.

  “I fell asleep.”

  “That’s okay, babe,” Judah says as he places a hand on her arm. “I’m here to take care of you.”

  Oliver tugs on my sleeve, but I can barely tear my eyes away to look at him. “Let’s hit the road. These balls aren’t going to drive themselves.” He smirks again and nods toward the truck.

  I steal a glance back at Elliot, and she shoots me an apologetic look. I can’t be sure how I will my feet to move away from them, but the sight of her and Judah walking back to the house is something I carry with me.

  Oliver is currently knelt beside me as I line up my putt. To say that the first nine holes were a disaster would be an understatement. I tighten my grip on the club and try to clear my mind for a moment.

  “Okay, Hunter. This
is a distance putt, but you can make it. Open your stance a little and stand up straight.”

  I grit my teeth but do as he says.

  He stands up from beside me. “Now, just give it solid consistent contact—but not too hard,” he adds.

  My eyes focus on the ball, and I line up my shot.

  “Remember, you are the ball,” Oliver whispers before taking a step back. It’s a good thing too, because now I kind of want to hit him instead.

  I take in a breath and attempt to tap the ball, but instead I send it soaring straight off the green. “Fuck!” I can feel my face becoming redder, and I give the putter a forceful toss toward the hole.

  Oliver’s hand clasps my shoulder. “That wasn’t too bad. You lacked control, but aside from that, good form.”

  I shrug him off. “Alright, Ollie. I fucking get it.”

  He laughs. “I’m sorry, man. You’re so serious all the time.” I watch him walk over to his marker and set his ball, inches from the hole. “You know what your problem is?” he asks over his shoulder.

  I cross my arms over my chest. “No, but I bet you’re going to tell me.”

  He flashes me a crooked smile before effortlessly sinking his putt. “You always let your emotions control your mood. There’s obviously something bothering you.” He turns back to me and gives a shrug. “You could tell me what it is, and maybe I can help.”

  Oliver walks to the hole, retrieves his ball, and then starts walking back to me. His concern for me is nice and all, but I’m still not at the point where I can be honest with him. I hate the fact that I’m keeping something this huge from him. I have no idea what to expect when he does finally know the truth. He’s kind of unpredictable sometimes.

  He stands beside me and clasps my shoulder again. “Come on, tell me. I’m sure it’s an easy fix.”