by Ava Walsh
Nick led me to the shower in the attached bathroom and started the hot water as I took in what had happened between us. He led me into the large glass stall and under the stream of water. “Other girls will do anything for you, won’t they?”
Chapter Three
“Jesus, Mel. That doesn’t mean a thing to me right now.” He washed me off, and I knew that my dark liner and mascara were running down my face as I let him. How would I explain that to anyone? I felt him behind me, and my body reminded me how much I wanted him. I bit my lip. “Stand under the water. I made a mess of you.”
I did, as he ran his hands over my nipples. “That was hot, Nick. I’d never swallowed before, and I was scared to, but it’s you.” I turned to face him and kissed him as he pulled me against him. We got lost in it all over again, and I felt him shut the water off. I looked forward to see him opening the shower and reaching for a towel that he used to dry me off with before swiping it over his own skin,
I knew that this was going to happen as he lifted me to the bed and spread my legs. I glanced down to see him hard, and he reached for something in a drawer. “I am careful, Mel. I am going to use this tonight, but I swear I always do. I get tested as well. I’m clean.”
“I trust you,” I said, as I scooted back against the pillows.
“I don’t want to hurt you. Tell me if you want me to stop at all.” Nick rolled the condom over himself and lowered himself to his knees. He told me to relax, and he kissed my thighs and then my stomach. I watched everything as I marveled that this was happening. Nick moved forward and kissed my lips. I felt him against me as I took in a deep breath and held it as he pushed forward. “You’re so tight, baby. You feel good. Doing okay?”
“Yes, Nick. More please.” He smiled as he claimed me again with his mouth and his body. He moved just a little deeper and took a raspy breath. “Fuck, Mel.”
I felt the sting as he slid deeper. Crying out, I slipped my legs around him before I started to rock against him. “Nick,” I panted, as he took my cue and drove himself deeper inside of me.
I told myself that this was just the one night and that he just needed comfort. Nick was moving in and out with deep thrusts as I moaned and moved with him, my body starting to edge towards another orgasm. I had never felt this way before and Nick sucked a nipple into his mouth as he moved harder and faster. “Mel, I’m going to come again. Come with me,” Nick begged me, as he rested against my damp chest and moved slow and hard.
I let myself relax and surprised both of us when we came together, and he dropped over me. “Wow,” I breathed, as I felt him pull out and rest next to me on the bed. “That was…everything I imagined it would be.”
“It was something,” Nick agreed, as he looked me over like he could go for round two in seconds.
“Do you feel better?” I asked, and he grinned and dropped onto his stomach.
“Your pussy felt amazing so yes, I feel better. I feel like I did this with someone that cares for me.” Nick took a deep breath and stroked my stomach with his fingertips. “You know that you were the only person back when Mom died that didn’t tell me how sorry you were? I heard every version of that and felt like I needed to be strong or something. You just comforted me.”
“It’s all I knew how to do. It was a mess upstairs, and I guess we just wanted some quiet.” I shrugged. “I was only twelve.”
“Wise beyond your years, Mel. You always were,” Nick assured me, as he leaned forward and kissed my shoulder.
“Should we go down to the party?” I asked after a few moments. He looked into my eyes and kissed me again. “Bonnie is going to be looking for me, more than likely.”
“She’s staying here. You both were already,” Nick said, as he slipped his hand between my legs. I moaned as he stroked me and felt his lips on my neck. “Stay in here.”
“Are you insane? They won’t just let me disappear for the night, never to be seen again.” I rocked against him as his finger slid inside of me and started to move with me. “Oh, God. How much comfort do you need?”
I found out as I was pushed to my knees and he took me again. It was different and wonderful, and I held onto the headboard as he drove into me over and over. My virginity seemed like something I had never had as I begged him for more and came just after him, though weaker than before. I was just amazed that I had done it that many times in a row.
I convinced him that we needed to make an appearance downstairs and went into the bathroom. I looked like a different person altogether, and I washed my face as best I could and pulled my hair up into a random tie that was on the counter. Nick laughed as he saw the look on my face and assured me that it was Bonnie’s. He told me that he used the pool room for sex, and no girls came in here. It was sacred space. “You brought me in here.”
“You’re a sacred person to me,” Nick walked into his room and put his clothes back on. I put mine back on and told him that the story was that I got sick outside, and we chilled in his room for a little while.
Nick was right about a few things. Our best friends were drunk and having a great time dancing. Once they knew that I was feeling better, they pulled me out onto the dance floor and made me stay out there, and even Nick joined us. His spirits seemed to have lifted, and he acted as goofy as Brandon as he moved to the songs. He even moved against me a few times and my body reacted as I tried to control myself. One night. There was no need for anybody to know about it,
The house finally emptied around four, and I asked the guys how much they had paid their neighbors not to be angry with them. “They were all here,” Nick told me. I met his eyes and blushed a little. Bonnie was ready for bed, and she said that she’d be in the guest room as she padded barefoot to the hallway that led to it. I helped the guys clean up a bit before Brandon headed to his room and I looked at Nick. “So this is good night, I guess.”
“Sleep in my room?” I laughed and shook my head.
“That won’t fly as much as everything else did tonight,” I promised him, as something that resembled sadness crossed his face. “Thank you.” I looked around at the space and lifted myself to my toes to kiss his cheek. Nick watched me walk away as I went to the room where Bonnie was already passed out and laid beside her on the king sized mattress, then stared at the ceiling.
I finally fell asleep, and we were the first ones up in search of water. Bonnie didn’t seem to remember the night before, as we grabbed some bottles of water from the fridge and I looked inside to see what to make for breakfast. “This place is a mess,” Bonnie told me. She glanced around as I laughed. “You’re a clean freak. It’s not driving you insane?”
“They’ll have someone come clean it,” I casually said, as I pulled out some eggs and bacon. “We could make breakfast. That always got Brandon up, at least before he lived in this castle.”
“It works with Nick, too.” We decided on bacon, eggs and waffles, since that was Bonnie’s specialty. “I’ll eat his share if he sleeps through it.”
We cooked and talked about school and the party, and Bonnie told me that she had got the hockey player’s phone number. He had a condo here and stayed in town sometimes during the offseason. She asked if I had met anyone and I shrugged and took a slow sip of my water. “No, not really. I just kind of looked but didn’t touch. Did you see some of the girls here?”
They had been beautiful, but I had been the one in Nick’s bed. I still couldn’t believe it.
“So what? Guys see past that, Mel. Unless they’re Nick, of course. I think that even Brandon has some standards,” Bonnie said, and I heard something in her voice. I looked at her as she poured the mix into the iron and frowned. “I am not size zero, but I’ve never heard any complaints.” Bonnie was curvy, and she always reminded me of a pin-up girl with her dark hair and big eyes. “You’re prettier than most of them, too. Those natural looks of yours? Guys love that.”
“I guess. They didn’t seem to last night,” I quipped, as I remembered Nick’s lips on my skin and shiver
ed. “Besides, you know that Bran wouldn’t want me dating any of the guys that he knows, which is an extensive list these days.”
“True.” Bonnie gave me a rueful smile and piled the waffles on the plates as she finished them. I had a large platter of bacon made and started on the scrambled eggs that I covered with cheese before setting the plate down and looking around. “Eggs are gross when they’re cold. I’ll knock on some doors and see how they feel. Make some coffee?”
I left the kitchen as she agreed and tapped on Brandon’s door on the north end of the house first before I told him that breakfast was ready downstairs. I heard his response then walked over to Nick’s room and slipped through the door to give him a more personal greeting. “Hey, you. Breakfast is ready downstairs.” He held out his hand from the bed and rolled onto his back as he pulled me over his body. I gasped when I felt him hard and ready, and he slid my underwear to the side slowly. “I missed you.”
I watched as he got another condom and nervously slid over him as he filled me. I was uncertain of what to do, but I started moving, and he guided me with his hands as I felt him go deeper. His hands cupped my breast over my shirt, and I moaned as I rocked harder against him. We both came within seconds of each other, and I jumped off him and fixed my clothes. “Nick, they’re waiting downstairs for me.”
He narrowed his eyes and looked at me as he stood to go to the bathroom. “I’ll be down in a minute, Mel.” I heard the tone in his voice and left the room and walked down the stairs to find Bonnie pouring coffee alone in the kitchen.
“They both know. We’ll see, I guess.” We made our plates and poured big cups of coffee before we sat down at the table in the kitchen, and I tried to focus on the food instead of the feeling between my legs.
Nick strolled in wearing some workout shorts that showed off his massive chest and tattoos. I paused mid-bite. Bonnie rolled her eyes and shook her head. “You could wear clothes, you know. You don’t need to impress us.” Nick looked at me as he picked up the coffee pot and poured some into a cup. “Did you hook up with anyone last night?”
Nick choked for a second as he sipped his coffee and shrugged. “Not particularly. It was a bit crazy last night.”
“It was. We’ll need to call the maid soon.” Brandon walked into the kitchen fully dressed and poured his coffee. “Dinner tomorrow at the folks and then it’s time to get serious. Coach is going to be riding our asses.”
“Fuck yes, he is. I think we can say bye to sleep or any free time.” Nick gave me a wistful look as he filled his plate with food to reheat it. Brandon followed suit and they joined us at the table to eat. Nick sat beside Brandon and we chatted while we ate.
The guys started calling their maid and Bonnie and I prepared to head back to the apartment and get settled for the night. We were all meeting at my folk’s house the next night for dinner. Bonnie walked to her car as I glanced behind me. I felt like so much was left unsaid, but I hurried after Bonnie to go home.
Chapter Four
As we walked into our apartment, my phone vibrated in my purse. I went to my room to check it and relax on my own bed when I saw Nick’s name. I opened the text to see him telling me to call him. I listened for Bonnie before I dialed his number. When he answered, I smiled. “What’s up?”
“I’ve been thinking over the last few hours, Mel. I thought about what happened and how it made me feel. I want to keep seeing you.” I let my mouth drop open as I stared out of my window. “I mean…I can’t give you a relationship. Not now, with the game coming up and all of the time I’ll be training. I just want to…see you.”
“You just want to sleep with me,” I finished, as he paused. “You could do that with anyone.”
“I don’t want anyone else. I won’t be with someone else, Mel. I just can’t give you much more than that. I am going to be slammed,” Nick explained, as I fell into silence. He was asking me to be a friend with benefits, and I was considering it. “Melissa?”
“Nick, I…I don’t know. I have always wanted what happened last night, and I’ll always appreciate it. I just don’t know if I can drop everything for you when you have free time.”
“Mel, it’s not like that. We enjoy each other’s company, and I’ll be the same I’ve always been with you. You’ll just be the only girl that I’m having sex with,” Nick explained. I pressed my lips together. “I know that you want to keep this between us for now.”
“I just can’t imagine telling them.” My voice was soft, and I waited for his answer.
“I want to ease into this. I just know how good it felt to be with someone that cares about me. All of the women before were just sex and not worth all the shit in the tabloids.” There had been so many stories, and I’d heard about love children and affairs. I’d heard that he’d got a DUI a few years ago and that he was an alcoholic. Deep in my heart I knew it wasn’t true, and I knew that Nick had a good heart, that he was just lost. I’d never asked him about any of it, but now I wondered if I’d have to. We were going to be closer. “I don’t want you exposed to all of that, Mel. I think you’re too good for it. I still want to be with you, though.” His voice was so sincere, and I melted a bit into my pillow. “Think about it. Tell me tomorrow at your parent’s house. I hope you want me as much as I want you.”
“I will, Nick. Have a good night. I’ll see you tomorrow.” We ended the call with that, and I dropped my phone onto my bed and closed my eyes.
It would be a hard balance sleeping with Nick and keeping my feelings at bay. But still, I remembered how he’d felt every time that we were together last night, and it was more than I could ever imagine. I wasn’t dating anybody else so I wouldn’t be hurting anybody. Would this work?
I got up and joined Bonnie in the living room for a movie and Thai food. We chatted about her hockey player. She was so excited for him to call her and I smiled at her enthusiasm. She’d freak if she knew that her brother was asking me to be his bed buddy. Bonnie would freak if she knew that I had already slept with him. I let her chatter as I listened and ate and thought about my life. Would I ever want more from Nick? Would I ever want to settle down with anyone? Marry and have a kid or two? If Nick wasn’t willing to do that, could I walk away and not look back?
I went to bed after a second movie and tossed and turned as I thought back to the way that Nick had felt last night. I knew that it wasn’t love, but it didn’t feel like casual sex to me, either. What did I know, though? It was my first time having sex at all, and it wasn’t the situation that I had planned on. I got up early after a restless sleep to work on my project in the quiet house before I showered and got ready for dinner.
We were the last to arrive and walked into the house where my boisterous family were going on and on about the big win. Nick and Brandon were on the couch telling my Dad all about the plays as his eyes lit up, and it made me smile. He loved football, and he loved his son playing even more. I saw my mother poking her blonde head into the room and smiling my way as she shook her head. “Hello, Mel and Bonnie.” Nick turned to look at me as I waved at everyone and his eyes made my skin heat up as I pushed my hair back. “I love the red, Melissa. It suits you.”
I thanked her and walked forward as Dad stood to hug me and mess my curls up with his hand as he kissed my cheek. “I heard you were at the big party last night, Mel. How was that? Your mom and I were in bed by ten.”
“It was so full of celebrities, daddy. Your son and Nick are stars.” I hugged my oldest brother Jimmy and then went to my Mom and held her tightly. We were closer than the others, and I adored her. I longed to tell her about Nick and my skin burned as I felt his eyes on me again. I’d picked my worn skinny jeans with him in mind and topped them off with a purple burnout t-shirt with a thin camisole underneath. “Hi, mama. How are you?”
“I am so proud right now.” She beamed with her bright smile. “My babies are doing so well, and we’re all together tonight. I couldn’t be any happier right now.” My brother Jimmy had been promoted to partner
at the law firm that he’d worked at for ten years, and he had finally decided to start a family with his wife of five years, since Riley could stay at home now comfortably with the new income.
“The boys are doing well. I am still in school,” I smiled at her, and she ran her hands through my hair as she shook her head.
“Don’t be silly. You’re talented, sweetheart. Your turn is next.” Mama hugged Bonnie as she approached and greeted her. “I am so proud of Nick, honey. Your mama would be too.” I squeezed Bonnie’s shoulder at the mention of her mother. She smiled.
“I know she would be. Nick is doing so well, and I’m beyond proud.” She was so good at looking at the bright side, and I wondered how she’d handle hearing about her brother and me. “Can I help with anything? It's sports talk central in there.” The two of us helped mama cut up vegetables and marinate them while the chicken was cooking on the grill. We also made a salad filled with fresh veggies and prepared a pot to boil some corn on the cob. Riley got in just as we were finishing with her delicious cheesecakes and we all hugged her before we put them into the fridge.
“I am so happy for Jimmy!” I told her, and she grinned and nodded.
“He’s worked so hard. I know that his hours might be awful sometimes, but I can deal with it and take care of him.” The cute brunette smiled, and her blue eyes twinkled as she looked at us. “I’ll be busy once he knocks me up.”
Mama clapped her hands together, and we all laughed at her as Riley went to get Jimmy. He was the man who grilled in the family, and I noticed that when Brandon and daddy joined him to walk out to the backyard, Nick remained seated. He met my gaze and I licked my lips as he clenched his hands. “Did you get that pig sty cleaned up?” Bonnie teased him, as she went to sit down on the couch next to him.
“We got her out there yesterday. It’s good as new,” Nick replied, as he messed up her straight, dark hair with his hand. “Good timing, too. Hell starts next week.”