Swing and a Mishap

by Tara Sivec

  “Oh, this is gonna be a piece of cake,” Emily muses. “A very hot and dirty piece of cake.”

  “Still not following,” I remind her, raising my hand and waving it in the air.

  “Wren, you’re wearing his last name on your back. Big and bold, the word OLIVER is splashed across your shoulders,” she tells me as I look down at the fitted white T-shirt with the Hawks mascot on the front. “If you’re turned around when he walks in there, he’ll be a goner for sure. Probably won’t even be able to control himself. I’m getting hot just thinking about it.”

  It’s the same shirt I was wearing the day I saw him again when he snuck up on me in the back of the Dip and Twist. Thinking back to that moment, I push aside all the hurt and anger from that day and just focus on my memory of what Shepherd looked like when I turned around and saw him standing there in front of me. He was panting, his hands were clenched into fists, there was a muscle ticking in his jaw, and I guess I just thought he was annoyed when I called him human garbage. But now that I really concentrate on that memory, replay it in my head slower, his features and his entire demeanor actually softened once he was no longer looking at my back, and he laughed when I called him human garbage. He only looked like that as soon as I first turned around.

  And he looked like that the night I came to his cottage, when he flung the door open and saw it was me standing there on his porch instead of his mom.

  And he looked like that when we scrambled away from each other on the beach when Bodhi interrupted us.

  And even though it was a surprise to hear all the things my mom and Emily said about the way Shepherd has looked at me when I wasn’t paying attention since then, I caught that look about him a few times myself these last few weeks when I’ve glanced back over my shoulder at him. I’ve just never had anyone look at me like that, and I didn’t know what I was actually seeing. Shepherd really does want me. He just doesn’t think he should for some ridiculous reason.

  “In conclusion, you wearing his name on your back is basically like a dude pissing all over his woman,” Emily finishes, making me grimace at that visual. “You’re claiming that man as yours in bold, all caps, and bright purple. It was different when he first got here, because you weren’t his yet and he had to control himself. He doesn’t have to control himself anymore; he just needs to be reminded of that.”

  Emily gets closer to the screen and lowers her voice.

  “Honey, you better have something in that back room to hold on tight to this time.”

  I shiver at her words, so many visuals flashing through my mind I should be ashamed of myself, since my freaking mother is sitting right next to me, but it’s no use now that Emily has put the thoughts in there. I’m so anxious to get this plan in motion I kind of want to scream about why we’re still just sitting around here doing nothing.

  I’ve been careful not to wear any of my shirts with Shepherd’s name on them since he got here, because I just had a feeling he’d never stop teasing me. But that’s clearly been my problem. Maybe I should have been the one teasing him.

  “Come closer, little one,” Emily encourages through the screen, crooking her finger at me with an evil smile. “We don’t have much time as soon as that text is sent, and I have much to teach you. Laura, I’m putting you in charge of Wren’s phone, because I don’t trust her to follow through.”

  “Heeey,” I complain. “I can send one little text.”

  “Right, but what if he replies?” Emily asks. “You’re going to feel guilty and come clean, and then all this will be for naught. You get to bat first, but your mom gets to play cleanup if needed.”

  With a sigh, I reluctantly agree, since they have more experience with this than me, hoping all this shit pays off.

  Wren: I’m so sorry to bother you! I know you’re busy with your parents. When you get this, could you come to the Dip and Twist? No rush or anything! It’s just… I sort of dropped something on my foot, and no one else is answering their phones. I’m fine! I’m not like that old lady from the commercial, “Help! I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up!” I’m quite comfortable in a chair actually; I just don’t think I can drive my golf cart home.

  Shepherd “Hottest Man I’ve Ever Kissed” Oliver: I’m on my way. DON’T MOVE.

  Wren: I just noticed you changed your name in my phone. And thank you for coming!

  Wren: Scratch that. Don’t tell me what to do. If I want to move, I’ll move. I just crossed my legs. What are you gonna do about it, Oliver? Spank me?

  Wren: I didn’t mean to say that last thing.

  Wren: Yes, I did. Ignore that text. Spank me, big daddy.

  Wren: etyufv­98tiwljr;kfd;’af­l6789

  Shepherd “Hottest Man I’ve Ever Kissed” Oliver: Did you hit your head too??? DON’T MOVE.

  By the time I hear a golf cart skidding through the gravel of the Dip and Twist parking lot outside and come to a stop, I’ve remembered each and every old Lamaze breathing technique and have been using them to keep me calm while I waited. I needed to pull out every trick in the book to remain calm after the wrestling match for my phone I had with my mother during that stupid text exchange until she finally left me alone to go home.

  Now, I’m standing here facing the chest freezer, my palms resting on top and my eyes closed after following Emily’s strict instructions, hee-hee’ing and hoo-hoo’ing my breaths when I hear the back door fly open so hard it probably smacks against the outside bricks, and a momentary flash of guilt flies through me.

  “Wren?!” Shepherd shouts, my breathing technique coming to a halt when I hear his panicked voice and forget how to breathe.

  This man thinks I have a head wound, and now I’m probably going to confirm it. Also, why in the hell do we keep it so cold in here? I should be wearing more clothing.

  “Wren! Where are—Fuucking Jesus Christ.”

  I know exactly when Shepherd gets around the corner and sees me when his voice immediately goes from panicked to WTF. I make sure not to fidget nervously with my back to him, even though I really, really want to. Following Emily’s strict instructions, my T-shirt with Shepherd’s name across the back is now pulled up and tied into a knot right under my boobs with my torso on full display. And since I’ve clearly lost my mind this evening and I’m so desperate I’ll do whatever anyone tells me, my jean shorts are now neatly folded on a shelf, and I’m just here in a pair of black cotton, cheeky hipsters with my back to Shepherd, pretending to be casually standing in front of the freezer with my goddamn pants off in my place of business—what in the holy sweet shit am I doing!

  “I… I’m…. Whaaat is happening right now?”

  Taking pity on how absolutely freaked out Shepherd sounds, I press my nervous, sweaty palms harder on top of the freezer, take a deep breath, and look back over my shoulder at him.

  And quickly realize Emily is a goddamn genius.

  Shepherd’s not freaked out at all. Not in a WTF way, at least. His hands are clenched into fists down by his sides, a muscle is ticking in his jaw, he’s panting, and he doesn’t even know I’m looking at him, because his eyes keep flickering back and forth between his name splashed across the back of my shoulders and down to my ass.

  Oh God, oh God, oh God, what do I do next? What did Emily say I should do next? Something with chocolate sauce, right?

  Swallowing thickly, that possessive look in Shepherd’s eyes does something to me that immediately makes these cheeky hipsters flood with wetness between my thighs. But he’s still standing there trying to control himself, and now I remember I’m annoyed with him. Whirling around to face him, I almost laugh when I hear a little whimper come out of Shepherd when my ass cheeks and his last name disappear from sight. But I don’t laugh. I just cross my arms in front of me.

  I’m standing here half naked, and he’s standing there looking good as hell in my favorite black Nike shorts and fitted blue long-sleeved shirt, and yep, my eyes dart down and widen a little when I see a very obvious bulge in his shorts. And that
just pisses me right the hell off even more, because hello! Standing right here half naked with several places you could put that bulge!

  Everything else Emily instructed me to do flies right out of my brain. I have a tendency to word vomit around this man, so I might as well stick to tradition. Once my mouth opens, there is absolutely no stopping it, just like that day by home plate when I ripped my heart wide open for him.

  “Listen, buddy, I’m a mom. And I will be a mom until the end of time, and there is nothing I can or want to change about that. But I’m not just someone’s mother. I love that you think I need all this control and respect from you, and I appreciate it; I really do. But I’m a fucking thirty-four-year-old woman who has only had boring sex in the goddamn missionary position a sad amount of times, and I’ve never had a man look at me like you look at me, or make my toes curl when he kisses me like you do, or almost dry hump me to a screaming orgasm in record time like you do, or make me literally kill my favorite vibrator with overuse like you do. Now I feel ridiculous standing here with my ass hanging out when you’re all the way over there, and I’m supposed to lie to you again about how I had to take my shorts off because I spilled chocolate on them. But I just took them off because I hoped you would finally fucking do something about it! I have waited my entire life to feel like this and to want someone like this, and this is some straight-up bullshit that I finally have you and you’re still making me fucking wait! Fuck!” I shout in annoyance, finally taking a breath to throw my hands up in the air while Shepherd continues to stand there staring at me with his mouth open.

  All of a sudden, his mouth snaps shut, he turns around, and he stalks away from me. It doesn’t even occur to me what’s happening until he’s disappeared around the corner, and I hear the slam of the back door again, and I’m standing here alone again.

  “You have got to be shitting me” is all I can mutter in a shocked voice, skipping right over the hurt that I poured my heart out to him again, and he screwed it up again.

  Except Shepherd is coming back around the corner and stopping to stand ten feet away from me again before I can even properly build up any anger. His hands are still tightly held into fists down by his sides, arm muscles tense and bulging, while he pants like he just ran the bases and stares at me with a big smile on his face this time.

  “Sorry, just had to lock the door…” He trails off and the smile immediately drops from his face as his eyes slowly move over my body from my head down to my bare feet. My heart beat wildly in my chest when his tongue slides across his lips before he speaks again in a low, growly voice. “No one needs to walk in here and see what I’m about to do to you.”

  An excited gasp flies out of my mouth followed quickly by a squeaky, “Oh my God, yay!” and I even channel Emily by clapping my hands together in cheer.

  It’s a good thing I took in that initial gasp of air, because before I can blink, Shepherd has stalked across the room to me, his body slamming into mine along with his mouth, cutting off my air supply.

  CHAPTER 16

  Wren

  “He just slammed it out of the park!”

  “Turn around.”

  Shepherd’s voice is quiet and serious when he finally rips his mouth away from mine. Now I’m the one panting as I look up at him when he unwraps his arms from their tight hold around me to set his hands down on top of the freezer on either side of me. His hard body is caging me in, pressed up against my soft spots in all the right places from my thighs to my chest. Letting go of the tight grip I had on the front of his shirt when he kissed me, I drag my palms down over his chest as I drop them, hearing Shepherd take in a choked breath when I slowly turn around in his arms. Since he doesn’t back up or give me any room to move, my body rubs against his as I go, which means that bulge I saw from across the room is now thick and hard as it slides against my hip and the cheeks of my ass until I’m finally facing the freezer again. My hands flatten on top right next to Shepherd’s, my heart thumping loud and rapidly in my chest when I watch one of his hands leave its spot next to mine.

  I hear myself purr like a kitten when I feel his big, warm hand slowly skim its way down my spine, adding just a little pressure as it goes until my hands slip forward a few inches on top of the freezer.

  “Do you have any idea what it does to me to see my fucking name on your back?”

  Shepherd doesn’t give me time to answer, and I wouldn’t be able to even if he did. I forget how to breathe and speak when he grinds his hips a little, that glorious, hard bulge pressing right between the cheeks of my ass through his shorts and my underwear, letting me know exactly what it does to him.

  I’m wet and pulsing with so much need I almost want to scream. Shepherd’s hand leaves my spine and grips tightly to my hip as he leans forward, his front pressing into my back until my stomach is pushed into the front of the freezer, and his lips are hovering right by my ear. The feel of his warm breath against the shell makes me jerk my hips back against him, wanting more, needing more. Shepherd’s fingers dig into the side of my hip, and he mutters a few curses into my ear, and God does that make me even wetter, knowing I did something to drive him crazy.

  The heat from his body and his smell surround me as he holds me trapped against the freezer. I can feel the rapid beat of his heart through his chest pressed against my back, and just remembering the words he said to me before he stalked across the room about how no one needs to see what he’s about to do to me make my entire body feel like it’s on pins and needles, and every hair on my arms and on the back of my neck stands on end with anticipation.

  Shepherd’s lips attach to the side of my neck, and I shiver when I feel his tongue skate out and taste me, my knees almost giving out when his hand leaves my hip, sliding around the front of my body until his palm is pressed flat against my lower stomach and his fingertips have found their way just under the waistband of my hipsters.

  “You need to tell me if this is too much, Wren,” Shepherd says in a raspy, whispered voice right by my ear again. His hips jerk forward just enough to remind me how much he wants me while his fingers dip just a little bit lower into my underwear. “You are a goddamn dream come true, and I want this to be good for you.”

  “It’s already good,” I quickly reassure him, twisting my head around over my shoulder until his lips are hovering right over mine as I pant against them. “Please, Shepherd….”

  I don’t even know what I’m begging for I’m such a mindless ball of need; I just know I need him to do something before I die. Everything is hot, and tight, and pulsing, and I need some relief. I barely have time to take another breath before Shepherd is answering my plea. He cuts off my pants of need with his mouth, his lips fusing to mine at the same time he finally drops his hand the rest of the way down into my hipsters.

  My mouth parts with a gasp when I finally feel him where I want him, Shepherd’s tongue swirling around mine as the tips of his fingers slide through my wetness and then circle my clit. I see stars, and my knees buckle as he just circles and circles his fingers and kisses me breathless until I have to rip my mouth away from his to take a heaving breath.

  “Goddamn, you’re so wet for me, baby,” he growls against my mouth, making me whimper and lighting my body on fire with his words and the way he expertly swirls his fingertips around my pulsing bundle of need.

  My head turns away from him and drops forward, and my eyes squeeze closed as Shepherd’s body crowds me even harder against the front of the freezer to keep me upright, like he knows my legs are just about done holding me up, while his hand between my thighs builds my need into something I didn’t even know was possible. My palms smack down on top of the freezer, and gibberish flies out of my mouth when Shepherd’s lips attach to the side of my neck right as he plunges two fingers inside me.

  “Holy… shiii-uuuht,” I mutter in a dragged-out curse as he holds his long, thick fingers deep inside my body and starts rubbing the heel of his palm against that pulsing ache until I’m jerking my hips
forward against his hand.

  “Jesus, you feel so good,” Shepherd mutters against the shell of my ear, dragging his fingers slowly out of me. He makes my entire body shudder as he pulls his fingers up to circle my clit a few times before quickly dipping back down to plunge them back inside me. “So hot and tight around my fingers.”

  He stresses this by thrusting them deeply in and out of me until I’m whimpering and moaning, and my hips are jerking forward for more, more, more of what he’s doing to me.

  “Don’t stop,” I pant as Shepherd’s thumb starts torturing my clit while his digits pump in and out of me. “Oh God, this is so hot. Can we do it this way? I’ve read about it in books, and it sounds so dirty.”

  “Jesus, you’re so fucking sweet it’s killing me,” Shepherd mutters against the side of my neck, grinding his hard cock against my ass while he tortures me with his fingers, but it’s not enough. I need more. I need all of him.

  “You’re killing me too,” I pant, moaning loudly when he thrusts his fingers deep. “My pants are off; just fuck me already!”

  The words are out of my mouth before I can stop them, and I curse Emily a thousand different ways in my head. My hips halt in their thrusting, Shepherd’s hand pauses between my legs with his fingers still inside me, and neither one of us breathes or moves for a few seconds until Shepherd finally breaks the silence with his mouth right by my ear.

  “Did… Did you really mean to say that?”

  When I can actually feel myself clench around his fingers, I forget about how unlike me that was and just go with it. I’ve waited long enough, and I deserve this.

  “Yes. Yes, I did. You gonna stand there all day, or finish what you started?”

  Good God, who am I right now?

  All of a sudden, Shepherd is yanking his hand from my body and my underwear without any warning. Before I can complain, his hands are gripping the hips of my underwear from behind me and then yanking them roughly down my legs. I don’t even bother looking back when I kick them off my ankles and somewhere across the room, because holy shit, this is really happening! I’m actually bouncing up and down on my toes when I hear him rustling with his shorts behind me and pulling them down, until I feel his hands gripping tightly to both my hips and his mouth is right by my ear again, panting while I do my part to finish ripping away that last thread of control still keeping him in place.