“Who is she?” I narrowed my eyes at him as I stood there, one hand on my hip, the other on my door. I wasn’t ready to close it yet because my gut told me I should kick him out.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” His confused expression started to morph into annoyance.
“You smell like you’ve been on a date with someone. You know? Like you’ve been hugging or holding someone? Are we not exclusive? Are you like everyone said you’d be? A Sutter? Your brother had that reputation and lived up to it. I thought you were different.” I was getting angrier by the minute, and the more worked up I got, the more cutting my words became.
“Whoa.” Cayden looked like I’d just slapped him. “What is wrong with you right now?”
“Me?” I fired back. “What’s wrong with me?”
“Yes! I just had a meeting about Spring Formal and I was at the Omega house. I’m sure in the time I was there on their couch that I may have leaned against something that smelled like them. We are exclusive, but right now I’m not sure I wanna be.” The vein on the side of his neck was pulsing as his hands fisted at his side.
“I…” I opened and closed my mouth, hurt radiating through me. I was hearing him, but part of me didn’t believe him. I’d dated guys that used me before. I’d been ‘that’ girl. I trusted blindly, and was betrayed. I’d sworn that I’d never be her again. Cayden was the first one I let get close to me in a year, and now my past was invading my thoughts, making me see him in a different light.
“I don’t know what I just walked in on, but nothing’s going on with anyone but you. I’ve done everything I said I would I do.” He paced away from me before turning, and rushing in my direction. My hand dropped from where it was holding the door, as he slammed it shut. “You’re the only one I want. How can you not see that?” He leaned in. “I’ve searched for you for years, and when I finally found you, I pursued you with everything I had. I want you, Addison. No one else.” At this point he was practically in my face. I blinked up at him, and in a matter of seconds his mouth crashed into mine. When his tongue plunged in, all the anger in me dissipated as lust replaced it.
“I’m sorry,” I murmured around his kisses. “I’ve had a terrible day.”
“Let me make it better,” he whispered as he pulled back and rested his forehead against mine. Before I had a chance to respond, he lifted me in his arms and began striding toward the bathroom.
“What are you doing?” I laughed as he kicked the bathroom door closed and turned on the shower.
“You said I smelled.” He shrugged. “The only smell I want on me is yours, so I’m gonna remedy that right now, then I’m going to fix us something to eat while you finish whatever you were working on. Sound good?” He smirked as he ripped his shirt over his head.
“Sounds perfect.” I smiled as I too began to strip. “I’ll help you wash,” I flirted as I pulled back the curtain and stepped into the steamy spray.
Cayden
I wasn’t sure how this evening was going to go when I first showed up here, but I’m pleasantly surprised with the turn in events. Addison is curled up on the couch with books and papers spread out around her. Her hair is twisted up on her head and being held in place by a pencil, and a blanket is covering her bare legs. After we took our shower, she opted for an oversized t-shirt and nothing else. I thought that was probably a good choice since I wasn’t finished with her yet.
“Are you sure I can’t help you with something?” she called without looking up.
“What? You don’t trust me?” I laughed as I peered in the oven. I’d made us a homemade pizza and it was almost ready.
“No, I do. I just don’t know many guys that can cook,” she mused as she thumbed through a book.
I turned and leaned against the counter, crossing my arms over my chest. “My mom taught me. She wanted me to be able to take care of myself when I moved out on my own.”
“Smart mom,” Addison murmured. “What else can you do?”
I started to advance on her, but she failed to notice as she continued to stare at her books. “I can do laundry, wash dishes,” I paused in front of her and leaned down, “make you scream all night in pleasure.” I couldn’t help but groan as she shivered under my stare.
“I have to finish this,” she whispered breathily.
“I know.” I leaned in and kissed her neck. “Maybe I could help you.”
“Really?” She groaned as I trailed kissed up behind ear and let my hand brush over her breast. “How much do you know about continuous dynamical systems and invariant sets?”
I froze, abandoning my ministrations, and stepped back, dragging my hand down my face. “You sure that’s English you’re speaking?”
“Yep.” She tossed the book toward me so I could see the page she was staring at. “Care to take a stab at solving that?”
“Holy fuck, Addison.” I scrubbed my hands over my head and face. “I thought you were kidding for a minute.”
“’Fraid not.” She sighed. “I can take a break to eat though.” Just as the words left her lips, the timer on the stove beeped. “And it sounds like its perfect timing.”
“That it is.” I nodded as I jogged into the kitchen to take our pizza out. After cutting two slices and plating them, I grabbed waters for us from the fridge and came back to sit beside her.
“It looks delicious.” She sighed just as her stomach growled.
“It’s late now. When were you planning to eat tonight?” I stuffed a bite in my mouth and moaned. It did taste really good.
“I wasn’t. I’ve been cramming for this all week. I’ve been living off granola bars and energy drinks,” she mumbled around her slice. The look of pleasure on her face about did me in, but I fought it off. I knew that we needed to eat. She needed to study, and I’d promised her a foot rub, and that was what I planned to do.
When we finished, I placed our dishes in the sink and took a seat beside her. “When do you have to know all that by?” I nodded at the book in her lap. It was lying haphazardly across her thighs, but she wasn’t reading it.
“Friday,” she murmured as I pressed my thumb into the arch of her foot. I’d pulled her legs into my lap when I sat down and had been rubbing them ever since. She wasn’t protesting or asking me to leave yet, so I just kept at it. “That feels like heaven, but you need to stop. I can’t fall asleep yet.”
“I’ll wake you when I leave. You need a break,” I coaxed as I grabbed the other foot. After working her feet over for a while, I moved on to her calves. She was quite a vision the way she was lying on the couch. Head thrown back, hair sprawled around her, and a look of complete relaxation on her face. I think she drifted off for a little bit, but as promised I woke her before I left.
When I stepped outside to head toward my car, my phone buzzed with an incoming text.
Josh: Need a favor, and remember you owe me from last time.
Cayden: What?
Josh: Grace won’t go out with me unless Serena comes too. Be my wingman this Saturday.
My stomach dropped as I stared at the words. Hanging out at the house was one thing, but how was I going to go out on a date with another woman? I almost turned around right then to go tell her, but Josh’s next words stopped me in my tracks.
Josh: Be my wingman or I might have to tell Pres how you’ve been making eyes and getting all friendly with his sis.
How the hell did he know anything about us, and how was I going to explain it? The fact that I’d already taken up most of her evening kept me walking to my car. Addison needed to study, and I wasn’t going to be the reason that she couldn’t. I had two days to figure this out.
Cayden: Fine. No movies, and I get to pick where.
If I was going to have to spend the evening with Serena and pretend to be on a date, then the least I could do was pick somewhere loud and crowded. I didn’t need an intimate date, that was out of the question.
Chapter 13
Cayden
I don’t know
why I agreed to this date for Josh. I mean, I knew why and the thought of it made me sick. I should just man up and tell Will, then I wouldn’t be stuck in this predicament. Josh had let me choose, so I picked The Family Fun Park. It was a great place to get lost in the crowd, and there wouldn’t be a chance to snuggle up.
“Really, man?” Josh groaned as I pulled into a parking space. He and Grace were in the backseat while Serena and I were up front.
“What? You don’t like Go Karts?” I grinned. “This place is great!” I hopped out and jogged around to get Serena’s door before striding toward the ticket booth. I didn’t really want to be here, but it was still a date and I was a gentleman. “Two please.” I handed over my credit card before handing Serena one of the bracelets from the sales girl, and then stepped to the side to wait for Josh.
“I haven’t been here since I was like twelve.” He groaned as he bought his and Grace’s bracelets and joined us.
“It looks like fun.” Grace smiled as her eyes swung over to the Ferris wheel. I’d forgotten about that.
“Sure does.” Josh snickered. I guessed he was changing his tune now.
“What do you want to do first?” Serena glanced around. “Ten bucks says I can kick all your butts at mini-golf.”
“You’re on,” I challenged as I began to head toward the course. I grabbed a club for myself and a ball, and then stepped back. Serena looked kinda taken aback that I didn’t hand her one, but I didn’t want her to get the wrong idea. I wasn’t interested. This wasn’t a real date, and after the Spring Formal I was hoping to not run into her anymore.
“I’ll keep score.” Grace plucked the pencil Serena was holding out of her hand. “She likes to cheat.” She giggled as Serena pouted.
“I do not.” Serena scowled as she stepped up to the tee at the first hole. She positioned her ball, and then stood up to square up her hips.
“You can’t beat me on your own merit?” I teased as she pulled the club back and swung through very gracefully.
“Nah. I was gonna let you win, but now I’m not, Hot Shot.” She shrugged as she turned just in time to see her ball bounce off of one of the bumpers and roll into the cup. “That’s one.” She waltzed away swinging her hips before scooping up the ball and turning to watch us.
“Damn.” Josh whistled while I just stood there staring. If I wasn’t falling for Addison right now, I might actually like this girl.
“Let’s go!” Serena tapped her wrist like she was watching the time while I position my ball on the tee. I was pretty good, but not that good. I sunk the ball on my third stroke. We went back and forth like this until we reached the final hole. I had a one stroke lead, but it was a complete fluke. Serena had sneezed when she went to hit her ball on hole ten, causing her to hit it. She’d been doing so well that we made her count it.
“Just go already!” Josh grumbled from behind me. I’d squatted down to check the angle of the green. I wasn’t that good, but I want to waste time and mess with all their concentration.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” I rolled my eyes as I stood up. I squared my hips and tapped the ball, causing it to roll rather gracefully toward the cup. It ringed the edge before rolling an inch or so away. “Damn,” I muttered as I trudged toward the ball, tapping it in. I stepped back and waved toward the group. “I’m finished. Your turn.” I motioned to Josh.
“I bet you say that to all the girls.” He snickered as he placed his ball on the tee.
“How would you know?” I fired back. “You stand outside my door at night? I didn’t think you were into that sort of thing.”
“I’ve got better things to do than that.” He scoffed as he took his shot. “Right?” He grinned at Grace, causing her to giggle. Those two had been circling each other for a while. I was at the point that I wanted them to just screw each other and get it out of their systems.
When we finished the game, I ended up tying Serena. She got another hole in one, and I was ready to move on. “What’s next?” She placed her club in the window and shifted to look at us guys.
“I’m kinda hungry.” I rubbed my stomach. The smell of pizza was coming from the snack bar, and it was slowly killing me.
“You’re letting you stomach decide?” Josh shook his head. “I’ve got a better idea.” He wrapped his arm around Grace’s shoulders and began striding toward the Ferris wheel and Go Karts. When he stopped in front of the giant wheel, Grace clapped her hands giddily and bounced on the balls of her feet.
“We’ll wait here,” I called out as I started to walk toward a nearby bench.
“No, we won’t.” Serena grabbed my hand and tugged me in the same direction.
The ride operator snapped the safety bar across our laps, and off we went. “This was one of my favorites as a kid.” Serena smiled over at me as we rose to the top. “You can see the whole park from up here. Look!” She pointed out into the distance. “You can see the beach too.”
“Yeah, it’s great.” I sighed as I fidgeted in my seat. I was uncomfortable with this entire night, and I was trying my damndest to not let it show. It wasn’t Serena’s fault that I wasn’t interested, or that I had a girlfriend. It wasn’t her fault that I had to hide that, and it sure as shit wasn’t her fault that her friend wouldn’t go on a date without her. “I need to tell you something,” I rubbed my fingers over my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose.
“Ok.” She turned slightly so she could face me, and it gave me my first real look at her. Her brown hair was fluttering in the breeze as the Ferris wheel churned, her blue eyes sparkling in the lights flashing around us lighting up the night. The curve of her smile was almost teasing as she smiled at me with genuine interest. Dressed in a simple purple t-shirt and khaki shorts, she looked young.
“I have a girlfriend,” I blurted out and then shook my head. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have just thrown that at you.”
She smiled before admitting, “I already knew that.”
“Wait, what?” I was confused. Why did she agree to come on this disaster of a date if she knew there was no future?
“I’ve seen you around, Cayden. I know you’re a nice guy. You’re not like most of the other Alphas. You talk to me like I’m a real person, and you’re looking at my face right now instead of my boobs.” She laughed lightly as I chuckled.
“So why come?” I motioned in front of me.
“Honestly?” She shifted to face the front of the cart.
“Yeah. If you knew this wasn’t a real date, why come?” This time I shifted towards her.
“Grace really likes Josh.” She rolled her eyes. “I don’t know why. He’s a pig, but she likes him. She didn’t want to come out alone in case she needed a buffer of sorts. I knew you were too nice to say no, so I suggested a double date.” She shrugged as I scoffed. “It was kinda fun watching your torment too.” This resulted in a full-on laugh.
“So you set me up?” I leaned back and crossed my arms over my chest.
“I saved you,” she corrected. “I’ve heard Josh speculating about your secret girlfriend. I knew if you were hiding something this would help cover it. I’m smarter than I look.” She grinned as she crossed her arms, mirroring me.
“So you’ve been faking all along.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“Kind of. Honestly, you’re the type of guy I would date if you were single, but you’re not, so it doesn’t really matter.”
“Now I just feel like an asshole.” I shook my head.
“Let’s just say you owe me one, and I might cash in sooner rather than later.” She grinned as we reached the bottom, this time stopping to get off the ride.
I didn’t have time to think about what she said because Josh came rushing over and almost tackled me. Someone needed to teach him some manners. “I’m starving. Let’s get food now.” He slugged me. “Then we can go.”
“You’re ready to leave already?” I was shocked. It wasn’t that late, and he and Grace seemed to be having a good time.
The girls continued to walk to the snack bar as Josh halted me. “I’m not going home yet if you know what I mean.” His brows wagged as he made a pumping motion with his hips.
“This is your first date.” I shook my head. It may make me a pussy, but I was raised to believe that you waited longer than a first date to take your girl to bed.
“Un huh.” He grinned. “I’m surprised I’ve lasted this long. I’m normally on round two by now.” He snickered. “Now let’s get that pizza. Big Daddy needs energy for what lies ahead tonight.”
“I don’t want to know, dude, that is all you.” I shook my head as I picked up my pace to catch up with the girls.
After grabbing a pizza, we made our way over to one of the tables and sat down. It was a mild night with a slight breeze, but it wasn’t too cold. The girls chatted happily as we served ourselves and began to discuss the upcoming Spring Formal.
“It’s not really a formal.” Serena shrugged as she bit into her pizza. “We’re wearing swimsuits and drinking out of Solo cups.”
“I actually like this better.” Grace smiled. “I’d rather invest in a new bikini that I’ll actually wear again than a dress that’ll just hang in my closet and collect dust.”
“I like the way you think.” Josh grinned as he leaned closer to her shoulder. “Need any help picking out that new bikini?”
“Maybe.” She giggled. “You’d have to ask me to this beach thing first though.”
“So do you want to go with me?” Josh cleared his throat.
“I don’t know. Maybe. Who are you going with?” Grace turned her attention toward me.
“Me?” My head snapped back as Josh scowled. “I…”
“He’s going with me,” Serena looped her arms around my bicep and leaned in closer. “He asked me when we were on the Ferris wheel.” She leaned closer to my ear and whispered, “This is the favor I was talking about.”
“Really?” Josh too seemed surprised as he turned a satisfied smirk at Grace. “He’s taken,” he nodded, “so I guess you’re stuck with me.”
Teaching Cayden (The Sutter Family Book 4) Page 9