Keeping Score

by Cathryn Fox

  “Babe, you were so needy.”

  “I know, that’s what you do to me.”

  He grins and slides up my body. “I like that, you know. I also love the taste of you. I’m going to fuck you right now, but I’m definitely getting my mouth on your sweet cunt again.”

  “You like the taste of me?”

  “Fucking love it.”

  His lips glisten, and I put my hands around his head to draw his mouth to mine. I kiss him deeply, tasting my release on his tongue. I moan, and his body vibrates. He presses into me, his cock hard against my thigh. I crave the taste of him, am about to ask if I can have him in my mouth again, when he inches back. I pull him back to me, needing the physical contact, needing skin on skin.

  “Condom. Pants.”

  He scrambles to pull a condom from his pants and I grin. “What makes me think you had this planned all along?”

  “When it comes to you, Reagan, I’m not taking a chance that I’m not prepared. When you want sex, you get sex.”

  “You want it too, right?” It’s a silly question. His erection tells me everything. But I want to hear him say it.

  “I’ve wanted you for a long time, Sunshine.”

  His words give me pause as he rips into the condom, and as he rushes to sheathe himself, I’m pretty sure he’s not aware of what he just admitted to me.

  He’s wanted me for a long time.

  I want to ask how long. The first night he showed up at my place? Or our freshman year when he’d follow me home to ensure I was safe? My heart beats a little faster, and I close my eyes, warm and needy sensations fluttering in my stomach.

  He’s back on top of me, and I open my eyes to see his face. The second I do, I know I could be in big trouble here. I’m falling for him. I’m falling for bad boy Rocco Gianni and there isn’t a goddamn thing I can do about it. Honestly, even if I could, I’m not sure I want to do anything about it. It’s insane, really. Up until yesterday, I had a future planned with another guy.

  Rocco lays over me and in one swift motion, rolls me until I’m on top of him. “Ooh, I like this,” I murmur, my nipples brushing his chest.

  “I want you to fuck me, Reagan.”

  With zero effort, he picks me up and poises me over his thick cock. Controlling the pace, he pulls me down and I can’t breathe, can’t think, as his crown pushes me wide open. “Rocco,” I cry out, a roller coaster of emotions tearing through me.

  “Look at me, Sunshine.”

  I open my eyes, and his are locked on mine as he allows one inch and then another to slowly enter until he fills me completely. My body opens for him, takes everything he’s offering, and once he’s thoroughly seated within me, my pussy stretched tight around him, he lets my waist go and puts his hands on my tits.

  I sit up a little straighter and close my hands over his, rubbing with him, and reveling in the soft moans of want spilling from his lips. I shift, move my hips a little, and his moans grow louder.

  “Like that, do you?” I ask.

  “Uh huh.”

  I move, and lift myself slightly, only to fall back down again, and his face twists in total agony. It’s fun discovering his likes too.

  “Babe,” he murmurs. “Babe, fuck.”

  Hands back on my hips, he holds me down hard and lifts his hips like he’s trying to get in deeper. I love it. He lifts me high, until he’s almost out, and powers into me. I gasp, but no sound escapes my lips as he hits my cervix, nearly giving me a full body orgasm, something I’ve only ever read about, and would really, really like to experience.

  “Again,” I cry out, and he repeats the motions until I’m delirious and unable to form a coherent thought. Every time he pulls me down, my clit smashes against his body, and deep in my core, an orgasm builds, grows, expands, until I’m panting and begging, blinking tears from my eyes. “More.”

  He continues to drive into me, hard blunt strokes meant for pleasure only. I cup my breasts, and pinch my nipples, sending shockwaves to my sex. “Rocco,” I call out, my body letting go. I tumble into an orgasm, the world around me disappearing as I sink into bliss, nothing existing but this guy, and all the wonderment coursing through my body.

  “I love…watching you come,” he groans.

  The breaking in his voice is a good indication that he’s not as together as he’s trying to portray. His jaw is clenched tight. He’s giving it his best effort to hold off until I’ve ridden out the waves of pleasure.

  “Fill me with your cum,” I say and his fingers dig into my hips as he goes still high inside me. I concentrate on each hard pulse as he depletes into his condom. I really wish we didn’t have the barrier. I wish I could feel the heat of his release in my body.

  With his cock still inside me, I fall over him, find his mouth. His hands go around me, one on my back, and one on my head as he kisses me, his mouth practically devouring me like a man starved. The kiss ends and I lay my head on his chest. We stay like that a long time, holding one another, basking in our post-orgasmic bliss as he grows flaccid inside me.

  He breaks the quiet. “I need to get rid of the condom.”

  I chuckle. “Are you saying I have to move?”

  “Sorry babe, we can’t take a chance on it slipping off.”

  I groan in protest but lift myself off, and a quiver goes through me as he slides from my body. I reach for my shirt and tug it on, then gather up the rest of our clothes as I follow him inside. He makes a fast trip to the bathroom, and he’s gloriously naked and beautiful when he steps out.

  As I take him in, his grin, the playfulness in his eyes, his big hands that touched me so gently, worry worms through me. How am I ever going to go back to being the good daughter, Reagan Ellison, after Rocco?

  17

  Rocco

  I love being here with her, in her world, experiencing life as she knows it. I’m pretty sure I’ve never been so content in my entire life. I glance at her sitting on the dock beside me, her hair tied back, her face free of makeup, fishing rod in hand as our feet dangle over the water.

  “Did you fish a lot when you were a kid?”

  She turns and smiles at me. My heart beats faster. She’s so goddamn beautiful and every now and then I pinch myself to see if I’m really here with her or if this is just some dream. If it is, I’m not ready to wake up.

  “Yeah. Dad always enjoyed it. It was our time together, actually.” She gives me a wink. “I think he might have wanted a son.”

  “That’s really nice, Reagan. I’m so glad you have such good memories.”

  She reels her line in, and casts it out again, the shiny red lure banging against the bobber before sinking below the surface.

  “Do you have any good memories from your childhood?” she asks, her voice low, almost hesitant.

  “I don’t really remember my mom. I can’t recall her face, you know. There are times though, when I catch this specific floral scent…” I stop speaking for a second as emotions clog my throat.

  Reagan’s hand on mine soothes the demons inside me, gives me the courage to continue. “That scent, and I have no idea what it was…it fills me up.” I laugh. “I’m not saying that right, I know. I’ve never been great with words.”

  “You’re great with words. Don’t underestimate yourself.”

  I grin. “I think those were happy times for me. There’s a sense of peace that comes over me. I felt loved.”

  “That’s nice, Rocco.”

  “Yeah. I’m wrong, though. If she loved me, why would she leave me?”

  “I don’t know. I wish I could answer that. I guess your dad never told you why.”

  “Oh yeah, he did. From the time I could talk, he said it was because of me that she left.”

  She winces. “What a horrible thing to say to a boy. You know that can’t be true.”

  “I don’t know what’s true, and I’m not even sure I care anymore.”

  She goes quiet. We both know I still care. “Postpartum can be very hard on women. Did she have pa
rents to go to?”

  “I don’t know that either. She left, and we never heard from her again. My father never talked about me having grandparents. I just assumed I didn’t.” I stare at my bobber, and it disappears into the water. Reagan shrieks and shimmies closer.

  “You got one. Give a quick tug and reel it in.” I do as she says, and she watches excitedly as I reel the fish in. “It’s a gorgeous walleye.” She nudges me. “Look at you, and all the beginner’s luck.”

  “Not luck, Sunshine. This kid got talent.”

  “Yeah, you do,” she agrees playfully, and leans to kiss me on the cheek as I set the squirming trout on the dock.

  “Now we take the hook out, and I can teach you to clean it.”

  I’m a tough-ass football player, yet as I sit here and look at the fish, the thoughts of killing, and cleaning it, turns my stomach.

  “Reagan…”

  I lift my head, and find her eyes. I frown. “Maybe we can just take something out of the freezer for dinner.” She stares at me long and hard, so long and hard, I’m sure she’s going to ask me to hand over my man card, and rightfully so. What she does next takes me by surprise, and tests the strength of my heart as it swells inside my chest.

  She throws her arms around me, and holds me to her, her grip tight, like she’s never going to let go, never going to go back to the life she was meant to live. I can’t think that way though. She’s not mine. She never will be. Deep inside, I know I’m not good enough for her.

  “Can I tell you a secret?” she whispers into my ear.

  “Yeah.”

  “I never liked killing and cleaning them, either.” She settles on my lap, unhooks the fish and gently puts it back in the lake. She turns back to me and slides her arms around my neck. “I love that you don’t want to do it, either.”

  I swear to God, I never felt as close to anyone as I do to Reagan right now. She lightly runs her lips over mine, and her sweet scent fills my senses. “We can see what’s in the freezer, and I can drive to the grocery store down the road to get us some fresh veggies for a salad.”

  “I’ll come with you.” I hug her to me. “Actually, I’ll go. You stay here and get to work on your stats assignment, and if you have trouble, I’ll help when I get back.”

  She pouts at me and it’s so goddam adorable, it almost makes me take her again, right here on the dock. “You don’t want me to go?”

  “You know I do, but you have to get at your stats assignment. You’re not going to fail because of me.”

  She groans. “I hate stats.”

  “Someday it will come in handy.”

  She rolls her eyes at me. “Sure, Dad.” I kiss her and laugh. “Do you even know where to find the store?”

  “I can figure it out. Just make a list of what you need.”

  I push to my feet and help her up and she goes up on her toes and kisses me. “Fine, but don’t be long.”

  “You going to miss me, Sunshine?”

  “There are wild animals in these woods, Rocco.”

  “The only thing wild you have to worry about around here is me.”

  She laughs at that. “You might be right.”

  We take our rods and head back up to the cottage. Inside, I pull her to me as a strange uneasy feeling mushrooms inside me. I have great gut instincts. I had to in order to survive. Something is off here. Something isn’t right. I just can’t quite put my finger on it.

  “You’re okay here alone, right? You were kidding about the wild animals?”

  “I’m not afraid.” Her face twists. “Not much, anyway. But I’ll stay inside until you get back. I’ll work on my assignment.”

  I hesitate for a second and she puts her hands on my chest. “Let me make that list for you.”

  I pick up my phone from the kitchen table. We haven’t used them since we’ve been here. Reception sucks big time. I want mine with me though, in case she needs me for something. She jots a few things down on a piece of paper and reaches for her purse.

  “I got this,” I tell her, and for a second she looks like she’s about to protest. Instead she nods and heads to the freezer.

  “Steak sound good?”

  “Perfect.”

  I head out to her car and come to a complete stop. What the hell happened here? “Reagan,” I call out. “Can you come here?”

  She comes through the front door, and I point at her flat tire, and that uneasy feeling curls through me again.

  “Oh great.” She comes bounding over and groans, her hands on her hips, like she’s in deep thought. “Let me grab my phone, I’ll call our car service.”

  I grin at her. “No, I got this.”

  She blinks at me. “You can fix a flat?”

  I bend down, and run my hand over the tire, until I find the nail. I tug it out. “We picked up a nail.”

  She nods, not at all surprised. “Happened to Dad this summer, too. There was some construction on one of the cottages.”

  The tightness in my chest loosens. At least someone hadn’t done it on purpose. I shake my head. My mind always goes to the worst-case scenario.

  “Dad put a repair kit in my car in case it happened to me, and I couldn’t get cell service.” She snorts. “Not that I’d know how to repair it myself.” I open the back of her car and I’m relieved to see all the equipment I need to repair it.

  “It’s time you learned.”

  At first, I think she’s going to protest. She doesn’t. Instead she nods, and says, “You’re right. I should know these things.”

  That’s my girl.

  I nod and keep my smile to myself. This girl is tougher than she even realizes. “You taught me to kayak and fish, now I’m going to teach you some life skills.”

  She sidles up to me like a damn sex-kitten, puts her arms around me, and presses her hand to my cock. “That’s not all you’ve taught me.”

  My dick swells.

  Easy, boy.

  I growl to let her know just how much I want her. She always seems to like that. “I plan to teach you more of that, but first this, food, and studying.”

  “Killer of fun.”

  I laugh at her playfulness. “You’ll be eating those words later, Sunshine.”

  “Okay, teach me.”

  I grab the jack from the back of the car and show her how to position it and lift the vehicle. Once that’s done, I use the lug wrench to remove the lug nuts.

  “That’s not so hard.”

  I nod in agreement. “You’re right, it’s not.”

  “Are you going to put the spare on?”

  “At first I was.” I pull out a plugging tool. “Until I found this.” I grab the plugging tool, and position the plug on the end. “This will plug it, and you’ll be able to ride on it until it’s convenient for you to get a new one. This could hold forever though.”

  “Oh, nice.”

  “This is a rasp,” I tell her, and shove it into the nail hole to make it round. I push it in and out, until it’s smooth and round. “Now we plug it.” I shove the plug in fast, and when I pull the tool out, the plug stays.

  “I’m impressed.”

  “You should be,” I tease. “Now see, this is an electric air pump. We hook it up to the auxiliary power source in the dash, and pump up the tire.”

  “You’re a man of many talents, my friend.”

  I wink at her. “Maybe I’ll teach you to pick a lock someday.”

  “You know how?”

  “With my eyes closed.” She laughs and I add, “It’s not really something to be proud of.”

  “Maybe not, but not many people in my world have the life skills you do. Cochrane...” She winces, and I frown. For a guy we’re not supposed to talk about, she sure brings him up a lot. It shouldn’t leave a sour taste in my mouth. I’m not normally a betting man, but if I was, I’d lay down money on her going back to him after our month. I’m not really privy to parental pressure. Most foster parents didn’t give a fuck what I did, as long as I left them alone so they
could collect their check. I won’t judge her choices. I just think she could do better, and I would love to see her take charge of her own life.

  I show her where to find the auxiliary power, and she watches as I pump up the tire and check it for leaks. Once done, I pack all the equipment and put it away. I turn to find her smiling at me.

  “That’s probably way more important to learn than stats!”

  I put my arm around her, drag her in for a kiss. “Nah, you have a car service, remember?”

  She waves her hands around. “Not out here.”

  “I guess you were lucky you brought me with you, then.”

  “Yeah, lucky is the word.” She gives me a sexy grin, and I get exactly what she’s referring to.

  I slap her ass. “Get in there and study and I’ll be back soon.”

  She pouts and drags her feet as she walks away. I get in the car and start it, waving to her as I head out the long gravel road. I check my phone and drive to the nearest grocery store. I stock up, grabbing real milk for coffee, eggs for breakfast, and once again, that uneasy feeling is back in my stomach as I walk to her car. I check my phone, not that I expect a message from Reagan, not with the shit cell service.

  I go a little faster on the way back, wavering around the speed limit. My muscles are tight and ready, and I don’t like the fight or flight reaction I’m having. I drive fast down the gravel road, dust kicking up behind her car, and I slam the brakes on the second I see a very familiar Mustang in her driveway.

  “Motherfucker.’

  I slam the car into park, and jump from the seat. The driveway is full of dust, a good indication that they just got here. Three guys exit the Mustang, and with arms folded, form a wall—a shaky wall. I recognize them from the rowing team.

  “Get out of my way,” I seethe through clenched teeth. One guy shakes a bit, and I’m pretty sure he just pissed his pants. A bang sounds from inside the cottage and I charge, pushing through the guys. “Reagan,” I call out.

  Cochrane steps out from the cottage, a cocky grin on his face.

  Keep it together, Rocco. Today is not a good day to kill someone.