Running to You

by M. A. Lee

  She ran past me again and this time, I sprinted out onto the track and began running next to her.

  She barely glanced my way when I began keeping up with her.

  “Didn’t you just do your laps?” she asked, barely out of breath as she spoke.

  Damn, that was sexy.

  “Yes, but you looked lonely out here,” I replied.

  Just as I said that, two more girls from the team ran by. We both knew I was full of shit. This track was packed with the team practicing.

  Smiling, Mallory just shook her head. “You realize the track is packed, right,” she asked.

  “Well, maybe I meant you just needed me out here with you,” I joked.

  Mallory took off running faster and I had to push myself to keep up with her.

  “You will never be able to catch me,” she laughed, sprinting harder.

  If it was a game she was playing, I was all in. Sooner or later, Mallory would have to give in to me. At first, all I wanted to do was piss her off and steal her spot. Now, I wanted her as mine and to be my running partner. Mallory and I would make an amazing team, both on the track and off. I just needed to prove to her I wasn’t the guy who she first thought I was.

  I was changing and even I knew it was for the best. For some reason, Mallory made me want to be better.

  Chapter 8

  Mallory

  With the sand beneath my feet, the waves echoing through my ears, and the sun shining down on my tan skin, I couldn’t have felt more at one with myself than I did at that moment. As I looked around at the beautiful sky and the crowded beach, I couldn’t believe how I had managed to escape my dull and bland small hometown and find myself in a picturesque setting like California.

  “Hey, not fair,” I teased, as I caught up to Jax. Our weekend runs on the beach were quickly becoming my favorite thing to do with Jax. I loved how the sand below between my toes as we ran together. The sand was the perfect trainer. It made us work harder but it was soft and comforting, too. The other day on the track at practice, Jax had given me hope that all of our flirting and fun games could lead to more. It was clear that we had intense chemistry.

  As we ran now, side by side, I watched the ocean. The waves were crashing against the shore, causing tiny splashes of the cool salt water to hit my ankles. The refreshing drops provided just the right amount of relief I needed from the sweltering hot sun. The sky was a perfect shade of blue and the beach was crowded with people as they enjoyed their Saturday afternoon. For Jax and I, weekends were not about relaxing and splurging on our favorite meals. No, for us, this was the extra time we had to train. To build our muscles and test our stamina.

  We had been running for over half an hour when I spotted Laney and her boyfriend Mark lounging on the beach. Surrounding them were her brother Elliott and his girlfriend Molly, Rain and her boyfriend, and Lydia. Her boyfriend was off on some teacher meeting. I had been unsure at first when Laney introduced me to her group of friends, but after meeting them and getting to know them, I instantly fell in love with their quirky and unique personalities.

  Waving, I asked Jax to go with me as I said hello to my friends.

  “Hey guys,” Laney beamed, as she spotted Jax and I jogging toward them. I was wearing a black Nike sports bra and my short purple spandex running shorts. Jax was sporting only a pair of running shorts. His toned and defined abs had made every head on the beach turn as he rushed past them.

  Slowing to a stop, Jax and I enjoyed the moment to catch our breath and allow our muscles the much needed time to relax. “Hi,” I waved to everyone.

  “What are you all doing?” I asked, as I sat down on a beach towel next to Laney. Her hair was pulled back in a tight bun and she wore a bright smile. Laney kindly scooted over and allowed me room to sit with her. She was wearing a cute but sexy red and white polka dot bikini that showed just the right amount of her curves. She was beautiful, but didn’t flaunt her beauty like most of the girls at Falls Creek did. I guess that is why I found her friendship with Molly and Lydia so hilarious. They were all opposites but somehow their friendships and relationships just seemed to work.

  “We are just enjoying the beach today,” Molly chimed in, as she took a sip of bottled water. Suddenly thirsty, I watched as she gulped down the beautiful liquid. Noticing my oncoming dehydration, Lydia reached into their cooler and handed Jax and I bottled waters. We both thanked her as we chugged our drinks.

  “What are you guys doing?” Rain asked from underneath her black, large brimmed hat. Rain was a true character. She only wore black, had pale skin, and seemed to hate anything with the sunshine, rainbows, and happiness. Yet, she was madly in love with her star basketball player boyfriend, Tanner and was friends with this crew of happy and peppy students. Again, I laughed to myself as I looked around at the mesh of people and saw how they all truly cared for one another.

  “We were running,” I said, as I sat my water bottle down. “Jax and I have been training in the sand. It is difficult to run in, but makes our strides longer and really helps us with speed.”

  “Plus, we look sexy running on the beach,” Jax chimed in as he winked at me.

  Rolling my eyes, I shook my head at his arrogance. The group laughed too as they agreed with him.

  “Shouldn’t you all be relaxing?” Lydia asked, as she opened a bag of chips. My mouth watered just watching her enjoy the salty and grease filled snack. I refused to allow myself to eat anything that wasn’t organic during the track season.

  “No, we have to train all season long,” I said, very matter of factly. Running to me was serious and everyone around me knew that too.

  “She is overdoing it a little,” Jax added. “I mean, we are both in incredible shape and we practice, hit the gym, and train twice a day during the week. We could relax a little, but… we wouldn’t be champions if we did.”

  I smiled watching him talk because he thought just like I did. Sure, I could take a day off, but I wouldn’t see the same results. My competition wasn’t taking days off so I couldn’t either.

  “Sounds like you care,” I said, trying to be playful.

  Jax reached out and grabbed me, stopping me from moving further. His face grew serious and it startled me. “I do care, more than you know,” he stated.

  He released his hold on me and began walking again. I just stood there frozen for a few minutes, unsure of what had just transpired between us. Soon, though, I managed to catch back up with everyone, but his words continued to replay in my mind.

  After talking and laughing with my friends for a while, I decided it was time for Jax and me to finish our run. I wanted to get a full eight miles this afternoon. Saying our goodbyes, Laney reminded me of our tutoring session Monday afternoon before Jax and I stood, stretched again, and then began a nice and steady jog.

  We stopped every so often and practiced timing one another on sprints. It was great to have a partner while training who didn’t see me as a competitor. After we sprinted to our last destination, the seaside pier, we both collapsed on the sand.

  Panting, we lay in the warm and soft sand as we caught our breath from our strenuous workout. “Damn, you are a great workout partner,” Jax beamed, as he turned his head to face me.

  “Thanks. You are not so bad yourself,” I replied.

  “You know, next time we work out together, I need you to put on a shirt,” Jax said, as he looked down at my breasts.

  Suddenly feeling self-conscious, I could feel my face growing red with embarrassment. “Oh, I’m sorry,” I said as I began to sit up. I wished that I could cover my body or just bury myself deep in the sand.

  Quickly sitting up too, Jax reached for my hand and stopped me from moving any further. “No, I didn’t mean to upset you,” he began with a laugh. “I just meant… This is really difficult for me to say. I have been with a lot of girls. I mean a lot,” he continued, emphasizing the amount. “As many of them as I found sexy, somehow they didn’t compare to you. Watching you run and smile is the sexies
t thing I have ever seen in my life. You work hard, train hard, and can still smile and laugh with your friends. Your body is amazing and it takes every ounce of energy and strength inside of me not to touch you every chance I see you.”

  He licked his lips as he stopped to gauge my reaction. His eyes were drinking me in and I saw lust and something else there drawing me in. I had watched Jax from the first day I had seen him. He annoyed me. He drove me crazy. He made me wild with need as I realized I craved to hear his voice and see his face every day. I never imagined he felt the same way about me, until now that is.

  “What are you saying?” I asked, my body growing heated from Jax and not the blazing sun.

  “I’m saying… I like you,” he said, his eyes never leaving mine. “Do you feel the same way about me?”

  Nodding my head yes, I was unsure of how to speak the words I was feeling. “Yes.”

  “Good,” Jax beamed. “I have been so afraid to say anything because you can be a little scary sometimes. I mean, you act like you hate me one minute, then the next your eyes look at me like you want to jump me.”

  Laughing, I couldn’t hold in my astonishment. “Well, both were true,” I stated.

  “Really?” Jax yelled. “Hell, if I had known that, we could have had some angry sex. I mean, I have thought about ripping your clothes off and pounding you from behind since the first time I saw your perfect ass in those running shorts you wear.”

  “Really?” I questioned with a smile. “Is that so? Well, I have to admit, I have had several fantasies involving you doing some pretty naughty things to me,” I admitted.

  “Hell yes,” Jax laughed. “Damn girl, I knew I liked you for a reason. You are not only sexy as hell but you are a little freaky too. Now that we know we like one another, I say we get to the touching and playing,” he said as he leaned in and placed a warm kiss on my neck.

  Tingles instantly shot down my spine and I had to close my eyes and bite my lip to remind myself that we were in a public setting.

  Hesitating, I paused and dreaded the words that were about to come pouring out of my mouth. What I really wanted to tell him was the fastest route to get back to my dorm so we could get to the touching and play, but instead, I stupidly decided to talk about something a little more serious. “I do like you, I really do. But, I don’t know much about you other than you are hot as hell and we both like to run.”

  “We both play sports at Falls Creek. We both are talented as hell,” Jax began in his cocky tone.

  “You know what I mean,” I said, trying to keep the conversation on the topic instead of jumping him like my brain was telling me to do. “I want to know you on a more personal level.”

  Looking away, Jax exhaled a deep breath before he turned back to face me. “Ok. Let me begin first by telling you I don’t share my personal life with other people, so you know I must like you a lot if I’m about to share myself with you.”

  “If we want to make sure we really like each other, I want to know you. I want you to know me too.”

  “I get it, but you have to be patient with me. I’m not good at the whole sharing your feelings thing,” Jax said, as he opened the door for our conversation to begin. “I grew up with a single mom. My dad took off when I was just a baby. She raised me by herself and had to work two jobs just to pay our rent. I didn’t have anything nice. Kids used to make fun of me because my clothes were outdated or too small for me. They used to piss me off so bad that I would get into fights just to shut them up. I even fought the older kids, and when their friends started showing up to help them, I had to run away. I got good at running. Running fast. Running far. Running away.”

  As I sat there listening to him tell his story, my heart dropped as I realized this smart, funny, and sexy guy had a difficult past that he hid from others because he was embarrassed. I wanted to know him, and now that I was getting my chance, I realized his past defined him in more ways than I had imagined.

  “I can’t believe you grew up like that,” I said ,as I began rubbing his arm for support. I was proud of him for sharing his life with me and I wanted him to know how much I appreciated that. “You were so brave to face those bullies and to find a positive outlet by finding running as your therapy.”

  “Huh, I never thought of it that way,” Jax said, shaking his head as he chuckled to himself. “I guess I just thought I got better at running because I had to do it so much. It just made sense to join the track team when I hit high school. It gave me something to do after school while my mom worked and my coach and teammates watched out for me. I never thought of running as my safety net.”

  “Well, either way, I’m glad you opened up to me.” I smiled as I leaned in closer to him. “I guess it is my turn now. I was a lot like you, except both of my parents were together, they just weren’t around much. The kids in my town hated me. I didn’t like them either so it didn’t really bother me, but running became my outlet and my ticket out of that miserable town.” I stopped talking and waited for Jax to catch on to what I was saying. I guess with my hard exterior it was difficult to see my vulnerable side at times.

  “’Wow, I didn’t know that about you.”

  Nodding my head, I smiled. I didn’t want him to pity me like I was some pathetic victim. My past defined me. It led me to be great at something. It was also what was motivating me to succeed. “Yes, I haven’t told anyone else that. I guess you and I both don’t share a lot about ourselves,” I admitted.

  “No, I guess we don’t,” Jax said. “I’m glad I opened up to you.”

  “I’m glad you did too,” I smiled at him.

  “Now, does that make you like me more?” Jax asked, the lust filled gazed returning back to his beautiful eyes.

  “Yes,” I breathed. “I think I like you a lot,” I said, returning his gaze.

  ****

  An hour later, we were undressing in Jax’s bedroom as our hands freely roamed the other's body. I knew that we were jumping into something with no way to stop and turn back, but neither of us seemed to care. In a matter of seconds, both of our clothes were off and littering the floor of Jax’s dorm room.

  Our lips crashed together as our body heat intensified to a magnitude that could cause a wildfire instantly. Picking me up, Jax began to walk us backward toward his bathroom. Giving him a strange gElliott, I wasn’t sure what he was doing. We had been so close to his bed, my legs had been locked against the sheets hanging off his bed frame as his rock hard cock grazed against my needy opening.

  Winking at me, Jax took one hand off my ass and turned on the water to his private shower. As the water began to pour down, I suddenly realized what his intentions were. Holy hell, this was going to be awesome.

  Stepping into the shower, Jax closed the glass door behind him. The warm water began to cascade down my back and the mix of steam from the shower and my growing need to have Jax inside me was spinning into a massive hurricane. Brushing his lips against the base of my neck, I allowed my head to fall back to allow him more access for his lips to roam my sensitive skin. The water poured over my head and I couldn’t help but laugh.

  “Damn, I didn’t think you could look sexier, but I was wrong,” Jax hissed, as his eyes drank me in.

  Allowing me down, I now stood on my tip toes and placed my hands around the base of Jax’s cock. “Yes, you were wrong,” I smiled as I leaned in and began to kiss him slowly as my hands strummed down his massive length.

  With a loud moan, Jax growled as he continued to grow and throb within my grasp. Without warning, Jax pushed me against the shower wall and thrust himself deep inside of me. I let out a yell as I took him fully inside me. Placing my hands on his shoulders, I dug my nails deep into his muscular shoulders as he thrust in and out of me with a pace that was driving me insane.

  After a few minutes, I could feel myself reaching my climax. Together, Jax and I sang out as we came together in one glorious and wet moment.

  Chapter 9

  Jax

  Mallory was li
ke a siren. Her mind, body, and soul called to me and there was nothing I could do to stop myself from falling for her.

  In a short period of time, she had broken down my defenses. When I first came to college, I was a cocky, arrogant, asshole with only one thing on my mind; winning. I didn’t care who I hurt in the process. Maybe it was my rough childhood, or my need to always be on top, but something in me had changed after meeting Mallory.

  I still wanted to win, only now, I needed her by my side. I would do anything to help her achieve all of her dreams, even if it meant I had to put some of my own dreams aside.

  However, it wasn’t until we both finally admitted our feelings for one another, that I knew I just didn’t care for Mallory, but I loved her, too.

  Having her in my bed and by my side in life was the best feeling in the world.

  Sitting in class, I was lost in thought and didn’t see Mallory slip in and sit beside me.

  I was in the large auditorium classroom for my art history class, bored to tears. Her scent enveloped me in a hug and a huge grin spread across my face.

  “Hey,” she whispered, leaning over.

  “Hey. What are you doing here?” I asked.

  My eyes roamed over her body and damn, she looked fine as hell in a short, yellow sundress. Her tan legs glowed next to me.

  “Thought you might be bored. I thought you could use some fun,” she said, winking.

  My dick sprang to life as she bit her lip, her eyes watching me carefully. I knew that hungry, lust filled look. Damn, she came here to hit on me.

  “You know, the only fun I want to have requires us to be alone,” I stated, my hand now rubbing her silky smooth legs.

  “That’s what I was hoping,” she said, the suggestive manner of her voice causing my pulse to quicken.

  “Let’s get out of here,” I said, slowly putting my books back in my backpack.