Real Girl: Aston Creek High (Book 4)

by Sheridan Anne

  I bring my lips down on his and our connection is like a burning light growing within my soul. Nothing could possibly be better than this. I feel the love so deep that I’m torn between seeing this moment through and turning into an emotional wreck and sobbing in his arms while telling him over and over again just how much I love him.

  Slade’s fingers weave through mine as I kiss him deeply.

  Needing.

  Wanting.

  Craving.

  I squeeze his hands and as if needing to take control, he pulls free from my grasp and curls his hand around my waist. He throws me down, rolling us so he hovers above me, not taking his lips from mine for even a second.

  My hand curls around the back of his neck and I hold him to me needing his touch all over my body. His lips trail down my neck and I groan as the sensitive skin tickles with his touch.

  It’s too fucking perfect, I can’t handle it. I want to scream, I want to groan, I want to reach inside of my chest, tear out my heart and hand it to him on a silver platter because I know that from now until forever, it belongs to him, every little piece of me. My head, my heart, my soul.

  Slade slips his hand under my shirt, his fingers skimming over my skin and making me suck in a breath. It’s only been two weeks without him but there’s something so pure, so new that makes it feels like the first time.

  My shirt is pushed up over my head and within moments, he reaches around me to unclasp my bra. I pull it off my arms and the second my breasts are exposed, Slade drops his head, sucking a nipple into his mouth as he lightly pinches the other, rolling it between his fingers.

  My back arches up into him. I need more, so much more.

  Screw the foreplay, we have the rest of our lives to touch, tease, and torment each other. Right now, I need to feel him inside of me, I need him to take me until I pass out, I need him to destroy me until I can’t even remember my own name.

  I need him to take away the pain, the memories, and the bloodshed, and replace it with the love I know he has.

  I peel his shirt over his head and make quick work of his sweatpants and before I know it, my legs are wrapped around his hips. Slade’s lips come back to mine. “I love you so goddamn much,” he murmurs as he lines himself up with my entrance.

  My lips brush over his as my arms curl around his strong, sculptured back, feeling his muscles roll with every little movement. “I love you too,” I whisper, tightening my legs around him and drawing him in.

  Unable to wait a second longer, Slade pushes up into me, both of us groaning as the pleasure is almost too much to handle.

  His lips never leave mine and as he finally starts to move, the world dissolves around me and I forget it all. All that exists at this moment is me and Slade and the way he sets my body on fire, the way he loves me, and the way I can’t ever live without him.

  He makes love to me, refusing to stop until I’m screaming his name and coming around him, my nails digging into his back with my legs clenched tightly around his hips.

  Slade falls back to the bed beside me and instantly pulls me into his chest, his lips pressing against my forehead. We lay in content silence, filled with nothing but love as his fingers trail up and down my back until I’m falling into a deep, and much-needed sleep.

  Chapter 21

  A loud bang has my head snapping up off Slade’s chest and glancing around in panic as my heart threatens to beat right out of my chest. Apparently, loud noises are going to be my new downfall. Fucking perfect.

  Slade’s arm tightens around me, rubbing over my lower back. “It’s just Shay,” he murmurs. “You’re alright.

  I collapse back down onto him in relief as I let out a low breath and try to calm my racing heart. I wipe my hand over my eyes, noticing that Slade’s been watching the game with the TV turned down. “How long was I asleep?” I ask, feeling sorry for the poor guy. He must be bored out of his mind.

  He shrugs, glancing over at his phone and lighting up the screen to see the time. “Maybe five or six hours,” he tells me. “You were snoring. It was pretty fucking cute.”

  I nail him in the chest. “I don’t snore,” I tell him, pushing up onto my hand, trying to catch my bearings. I knew I was tired but I didn’t realize I was that tired, though the thought of being able to race out of my room and wrap my arms around Shay is too good. There’s no way I’ll be sleeping through that.

  I clamber off the bed, accidentally kneeing Slade in the junk, and as bad as I feel about it, it does the trick of getting him out of bed too.

  “Holy shit, Virago,” he groans through clenched teeth, trying to get to his feet.

  I press my lips into a tight line, desperately trying not to laugh at his expense. “I’m sorry,” I say, having to face away as my eyes start filling with tears of laughter.

  “Yeah, right,” he grumbles under his breath, breathing heavily and trying to right himself. “I swear, I just lost one of my balls up inside my body.”

  I turn, unable to resist him. “I really am sorry,” I tell him. “I promise, I’ll make up for it.”

  “You better.”

  I wink and turn away, too excited to see Shay. I start running for my bedroom door but don’t get far before Slade’s hand is smacking down on my ass, making the perfect sound while also stinging my backside in the best possible way.

  “Virago, put some fucking clothes on.”

  I glance down. “Shit.”

  Slade’s shirt is the first thing I see and I pull it over my head, grinning as it drops to below my knees. This’ll do.

  Grabbing hold of the door, I throw it open and race out of it, my heart pumping wildly in my chest. Excitement creeps up on me and as I run up the hallway, I can barely contain myself.

  I break out into the living room to see Shaylee hauling in bags upon bags of groceries in through the open doorway. I laugh, knowing she’d rather bruise her wrists from heavy grocery bags than make two separate trips.

  Hearing my laugher, Shay’s head whips in my direction. She comes to a startling stop as her mouth drops open. The grocery bags tumble to the ground, glasses breaking and eggs cracking but she couldn’t give a shit as she hauls herself over the groceries and runs at me.

  We collide in the middle, arms thrown around each other as she crushes her face into my neck. “Oh, my sweet girl. You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”

  “Believe me, I know,” I murmur holding her tight.

  My shoulder and neck start getting wet from her tears and I hold back a laugh, absolutely loving this bittersweet moment.

  There is nothing better than being home, safe in the comfort of the people I love with my demons now behind me. The only things in my future are going to be bright and exciting. Never again will there be darkness, only light, love, and peace.

  Shay eventually pulls back and wipes her eyes on the back of her sleeve. “Come on,” she says, taking my hands and dragging me toward the kitchen. “You must be hungry. Screw making dinner, I’ll order us a pizza.”

  Within fifteen minutes, the pizza delivery guy is knocking at the door and Slade gets up to go and get it while Shay has me repeat for the third time exactly how Maria shot her husband. Now, I was relieved when Lucien died, but the look on Shay’s face knowing he can’t fuck with me or Blake anymore is absolute joy. Don’t get me wrong, if this was anyone else who had lost their life, she’d be devastated. She doesn’t like hearing about death and pain, but when it’s Lucien, she welcomes it. She’s moments away from requesting a reenactment.

  Slade comes back with the pizza and we drop down onto the couch which I’m sure is exactly where we’ll stay until one of us is falling asleep. Shay tries to tell Slade that he should drop in at home for ten minutes just to let his mom know that he’s alive and that I’m okay, but she’s got to be kidding herself if she thinks Slade is about to walk out this door anytime soon. Shay settles for a phone call and within ten minutes, Daniella is dropping down on the couch beside me with Emma and Rain running around the hous
e, eating all the pizza.

  It’s perfect. I couldn’t ask for a better moment.

  This is the kind of shit I live for.

  It gets past 9 pm and the girls are falling asleep on the couch when Daniella decides it’s time to take them home to bed. They disappear out the door and while Shay gets up to clean up after them, Slade turns to me with a strange hesitation in his eyes.

  “What’s wrong?” I ask, on edge.

  He cringes, resting his palm against my thigh. “It’s not exactly a bad thing, it’s pretty fucking good actually, I just didn’t know when the right time to bring it up with you was, but the longer I wait, the more pissed you’ll be.”

  “Spit it out, Cruz.”

  He lets out a sigh and leans back into the couch, grabbing me and pulling me up onto his lap. “While you were gone, I heard from the coach of Lakeside University basketball team. He wanted to personally offer me a position on the team for next season.”

  My eyes bug out of my head. “That’s incredible,” I grin, practically jumping up and down on his lap. “That’s exactly what you’ve been working for.”

  “Yeah, it is,” he says, his eyes not exactly showing the level of enthusiasm that I would have expected.

  I grab his head and force his eyes back to mine. “What’s wrong? This is what you wanted.”

  His lips pull into a tight line before he lets out a gentle sigh. “Lakeside is an hour away, Sky. I won’t be living down the street or sleeping in your bed every night. We’ll be away from each other for four years.”

  I shake my head. “It’s an hour away. It’s not the end of the world. I don’t have to cross any borders to get to you, I don’t have to get on a plane or a train, I just have to drive for a little bit and catch up on my audiobooks. It’s going to be great. I’m going to come and watch all your games.”

  “Well…maybe.”

  My brows furrow, not liking his tone. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “I haven’t exactly accepted yet.”

  My eyes bug out of my head as I pull back to look at this moron properly. “Are you kidding me? What the hell, Cruz? Why not?”

  “I’ve sort of had some other things on my mind lately,” he says with a scoff.

  “You’re an idiot,” I say, throwing myself off his lap and grabbing his phone off the coffee table.

  “What are you doing?” he yells as I bound down the hallway to my bedroom and lock the door behind me. I start furiously scrolling through his contacts as I feel his heavy fist on the door behind me. “Skylah. Give me my phone. What are you doing?”

  I grin as my eyes scan over the name of the coach I’ve heard so much about when watching all the Lakeside games on ESPN with Slade. There’s no doubt in my mind that this is the right move for Slade. So many players from Lakeside get signed to the NBA and the one thing they all have in common is this coach.

  He has to do this.

  I press down on Coach Phillips’ number and hold the phone to my ear while grabbing the door handle. It rings three times before the coach's voice comes through the line. “Phillips.”

  I tear the door open and throw the phone at Slade. “It’s your new coach. Say hello.”

  Slade’s eyes bug out of his head as he grabs the phone and jams it against his ear. “Uh…hello,” he says. “Yeah, this is Slade Cruz.”

  Slade scrunches up his face and gives me a look that says the second he’s finished on this call, I better run, but all I can do is grin, especially as I hear Slade tell the coach that he accepts his offer and will be joining them at Lakeside.

  I squeal, jumping up and down and as he finishes his call, I throw myself up into his arms. He only just catches me as he tries to slip his phone back into his pocket to where it will be safe from me making calls on his behalf. The smile on his face blows me the fuck away.

  “You’re really sure about this?” I question, wrapping my legs around his waist as he walks back toward the couch. “You’re officially on a college team?”

  He nods, pressing his lips to mine for a brief second. “It’s too fucking late now,” he laughs. “I just told the best fucking coach in the league that I’m on his team. I’d be fucking stupid to go back on that.”

  I shake my head, unable to wipe the smile off my face. “I can’t believe you waited this long to accept.”

  “I had to know you were okay,” he murmurs. “How would I have played knowing you were there, married to that man with Lucien breathing down your back?”

  “You would have sucked it up because you know that’s what I would have wanted for you, but it doesn’t matter now. Everything worked out for the best. We’re all safe now and you’re free to go and be the NBA star you were always meant to be.”

  “But what about you?” he questions, pushing hair back off my face to see my eyes better. “What are you going to do? Don’t get me wrong, I love you and think you’re incredible, but I doubt the school is going to have much to say on your grades. You might only just scrape by. You missed a lot of exams.”

  I shake my head, smiling softly, realizing I still haven’t shared this with him. “You don’t have to worry about me,” I tell him. “I’ve been doing some thinking. I don’t want to go to college and even if I did, it’s too late for me…”

  “It’s not too late,” he says. “You could do your senior year again, bring your grades back up and go to college after that. Maybe you could apply to Lakeside and we could be together there.”

  “As tempting as that sounds, no. That’s not what I want to do.”

  Slade’s eyes narrow as I see Shay step into the kitchen entryway, leaning up against the wall, wanting to hear what I have to say. I give her a beaming smile, knowing that what I’m about to tell her is going to make her proud.

  I look back at Slade. “I’m not even going to pretend that I know how to make this happen or where to even begin, but I want to use the money that’s coming from Marcus and dedicate it to building women’s shelters and rescues all over the country. I don’t want anyone else to have to suffer through what I went through at the hands of a man and I want to offer them somewhere safe that they can go to start rebuilding their lives. I don’t know, maybe we can work together with the government and offer these women new identities, work with the police and give them intel on women who need to be rescued from dangerous situations. We can offer counseling, somewhere safe to move onto when they’re ready, protection…I don’t know. There’s so much I have to research, but that’s where I’m at. That’s what I want to do with my life.”

  Slade grins and before I can even suck in a breath, he crushes his lips against mine, kissing me deeply. “You’re so fucking incredible,” he murmurs. “Most people would break after all the shit you’ve been through, but you’ve come out so much stronger and ready to stick it to all the evil fuckers in the world.”

  “What good am I if I don’t at least try?” I question. “If I sit back and do nothing while letting other women suffer when there’s a way that I can help them, then that makes me just as bad as Lucien and Marcus. I want to be good; I want to do better.”

  “You are,” he murmurs, kissing me again. “And I’m going to be there the whole way, right by your side. Anything you need, I’ll make it happen.”

  I smile down at him as Shay comes up to the back of the couch, leaning over it to squeeze my shoulder. “I’m so proud of you, Sky,” she whispers. “Your parents would be so amazed by the woman you’ve become.” Tears spring from my eyes as she continues. “This is a huge thing you’re wanting to take on and I don’t doubt that at times it’s going to be incredibly hard, but if anyone can do it, it’s you.”

  “You really think?”

  “I know, sweetheart. Look how much you’ve already accomplished,” she boasts with a proud, momma-bear smile. “Just tell me when you’re ready to get started and I’ll help you set up some meetings and get this thing off the ground. You’re going to make an incredible name for yourself and this time, it’s not goin
g to be as Lucien Valentine’s adopted daughter or the socialite wife of Marcus Mahoney. You're Skylah Daniels, daughter of Rochelle and Jacob, a survivor and natural-born leader.”

  I beam up at her and launch myself off Slade’s lap and over the back of the couch, barreling into Shaylee’s arms. “Thank you,” I tell her. “I really needed to hear that.”

  “I know, sweetheart, and don’t you worry, I’ll say it over and over again until the words finally begin to sink in.” I laugh into her and she pulls back with a smug grin. “I can only imagine what Blake is going to say about all of this. He’s going to have you on a pedestal.”

  “As he should,” I tease. “That’s exactly where I belong.”

  Slade rolls his eyes and curls his arm around my waist before hauling me back over the couch and into his lap.

  “Alright,” Shaylee says, walking around the couch and dropping down beside us. She looks up at me, meeting my eyes. “While we’re all talking and being honest, there’s something I wanted to bring up with you.”

  My brows furrow at the hesitation in her tone. “What is it?”

  She lets out a shaky breath. “I’ve been doing some thinking…soul searching if you may, and with both you and Blake out of the house, I’ve realized how damn lonely it is.” She reaches out and takes my hands, giving them a gentle squeeze. “Honey, sixteen years ago, I stood in a church in front of my friends and family, in front of your parents and before God and I made vows to my husband. I know this might be hard for you, but I miss him. He’s the love of my life and my heart hurts every day without him.”

  Tears fall from her eyes and I see just how torn she is about this decision.

  “This is your home too,” she continues. “So, I would never do anything that would make you feel uncomfortable here, but I’d like to invite Ben back into my life. I’m still so mad and hurt by what he did, but apart from those things, he’s always been an incredible husband and soulmate. We could start off slow, maybe dating like we did back in high school to see if I can somehow move on from what he did…”