Between The Sheets

by Julie Prestsater

  My hands mold to his jaw line and tug his face up toward mine. I can almost feel his heart thumping rapidly in his chest. His eyes melt into mine and if I’m not mistaken, they’re a little glassy. And not just from lust, but from the emotion flowing between us.

  “Tyler Gelson. I’ve loved you all my life.”

  Once again, I’m swooped up off the floor and I’m being carried a few steps to Ty’s bed. “We can get ready for bed later,” he says, as he lowers me onto his bedspread, his own body following until he’s horizontal on top of me, holding up his weight on his knees and elbows. “Right now, I’m going to take my time showing you just how much I love you.”

  I push on his shoulder till he’s resting back on his heels, and I’m sitting up. I push him down till he’s flat on his back and I’m straddling him with a knee on either side of his waist. “Well you better buckle up, Ty, because I have my own ideas,” I rock back and forth against his thick pulsing shaft and his eyes flutter closed, “of how I’d like to express my never ending love to you.”

  Chapter 8

  Shelly

  “I wonder what my brother and Mel are doing,” I say as I walk through the mall with my husband. You’d think I’d be tired of saying my husband over and over again by now. But I haven’t. The honeymoon is far from being over. If last night was any indication, we’ll be newlyweds for quite some time.

  It’s killing me that Mel is out of town right now. I’m dying to talk to her, but I know she’s busy. As much as I’d like to interrupt her little vacay with my bro, I know they need some time alone. I just wish he’d smarten up already and take the plunge. His dumb ass is going to end up down here eventually. Mel is just wasting her time, and gas, visiting him when I know he’s going to pack it up and come home. It may as well be sooner than later.

  I could kill him though. My mom and I have been trying to get him to move home for years. My dad even pleaded with him to stay before he left, but it takes all five feet of my petite best friend to get his butt to relocate. He hasn’t said he’s coming home yet. But it’s just a matter of time.

  “Maybe they’re going to Alcatraz today. Mel mentioned she wanted to do that.”

  Matty sighs. “Why don’t you just call her? I bet she wants to talk to you too.”

  “Babe, they’re making up for all their time apart right now. If you were my brother, would you want me calling and interrupting?”

  He chuckles. “Absolutely not.” He leans down and slaps a kiss on my cheek. “I kinda like having you to myself for a couple of weeks. I can walk around the house naked if I want and I don’t have to worry about Mel walking in.”

  “Like that would ever happen,” I say, swinging our hands back and forth as we walk toward the bookstore.

  He’s silent so I glance up at him, and his knowing look. “Hmm.”

  “Okay, so that was just one time. And she didn’t even see anything. You have quick hands. And big ones too, might I add.” I flash him an exaggerated wink, and he laughs.

  We make our way to the Starbucks counter before we start perusing the books. Matty orders a plain old black coffee while I get a Double Chocolaty Chip Frappuccino.

  I lean back against my husband while we wait for our drinks. He rests his chin on the top of my head while he combs his fingers through the ends of my hair. “I could fall asleep.”

  “We can go home and nap. I’m all for lying in bed naked with you all day. As a matter of fact, I think that’s what we should do all summer.”

  “Just lie there?” I tease.

  “Among other things.”

  A barista holds our drinks up.

  I pull myself from the comfort of Matty’s arms to get my chocolate concoction.

  After circling the store a few times, we finally find the aisle we came here for.

  “I’m surprised it’s not on a display somewhere. I thought it was like the bible for women.” Matty scans the titles when I glance up at him with a chuckle.

  “Here it is,” I pull a copy of What To Expect When You’re Expecting from the shelves.

  “Are you sure that’s what you want? We haven’t even gotten that far yet. Maybe there’s one along the lines of what to expect when you’re waiting to be expecting.”

  “You’re such a dork,” I tell him, slapping the book into his gut. “This is the one. There’s a lot of pre-pregnancy stuff in here too.”

  “I bet. It’s a pretty thick book.”

  “That’s okay. We’ll have plenty of time to read it. It’s not like I’m gonna get prego right away. I’ve been on the pill for years. With only two weeks off of it, I doubt my uterus is baby prone just yet.”

  “You never know. I’m a persistent guy. I could have Olympic swimmers who are committed to the task.”

  “Oh my god. My husband has the Michael Phelps of sperm. I could be pregnant right now with those kinds of suckers plunging to the finish line.”

  An older gentleman clears his throat. Matty tries to hide a smirk. The guy is ancient. I’m sure he’s heard the word sperm before. It’s not like I said Matty has magical jizz that can float through walls.

  Son of a biscuit. Some people are just so uptight.

  We’re in the car on our way home and I start thinking of my friend again. “I wonder what Ty and Mel are doing now.”

  Matty takes my phone out of the cup holder and passes it to me. “Call her.”

  “No, I don’t want to interrupt them.”

  “Do it. Or I’m going to.”

  I take the phone away from him. “Fi-ine.” A smile creeps across my face. “But only because you’re making me.”

  “Hey,” Mel sings into the phone. “Why haven’t you called me?”

  “I’ve been dying to but I didn’t want to be a cock block, playa.” I glance over at my husband and he’s shaking his head at me with a laugh. That always seems to be the theme. I say something cheeky, he shakes his head. “Why haven’t you called me?”

  “Because I didn’t want to be a cock block either. Didn’t want to mess with your game, dawg.” She drags out the words of her thug speak, and another round of chuckles burst out. “Okay, seriously. You’re newlyweds on vacation. I figured Matt would have you all twisted up like a pretzel. The quiet ones are the ones you have to watch out for. I bet he gets real freaky.”

  “Oh, Melly, you don’t even know. Let’s just say that Pilates class I’ve been taking has paid off. I can reach my ankles all the way to my ears.” The windshield of Matty’s car is sprayed with soda at that comment. He’s wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and chuckling at the same time. “You don’t know the meaning of deep until the front of your thighs are pressed flat against your chest.”

  “Honey, you gotta stop. You’re killing me,” his voice trembles with laughter.

  “Sorry, Mel. No more details. My husband’s about to hyperventilate he’s laughing so hard.”

  “I bet,” she says. “I’m snorting over here.”

  “When aren’t you?” I crack up because the girl is always snorting. She can’t let out just a little laugh. If she thinks something’s funny, she lets out a loud belly laugh until it crawls all the way up her nostrils and she sounds like a hog.

  “You have a point.”

  “So what are you up to? Where’s my brother? I’m surprised I haven’t heard him talking smack in the background.” My brother is incapable of keeping his mouth shut. Kinda like Mel. I wonder how they have conversations. I should buy them an egg timer as a wedding gift—because of course, they’re going to get married, they just don’t know it yet. They can each take turns talking until their time is up. Otherwise, I have no idea how they can communicate.

  “He’s in the shower.”

  “In the middle of the day?”

  “Well, yeah. We had a late night. And we were busy this morning. So we’re just relaxing today.”

  “Busy? What’d you guys do?”

  “You really want me to spell it out, Shel?” she asks through a laugh. “Because
I can give you all the sexy details. And believe me, there are plenty. And about the wild sex against the wall? Yeah, nothing uncomfortable about it over here …”

  “La la la,” I chant into the phone. “No more, no more. Tell me about your sightseeing. How’s that going? Tell me all about the boatloads of Ghirardelli chocolate you’ve eaten. I won’t be mad at you if you bring some back with you.”

  “I’ve eaten enough chocolate for both of us. And I can’t bring any back because I’m gonna need the extra space in my car to fit my lard ass after everything I’ve eaten on this trip. If I gain another pound, I’m never visiting your brother again. With all the sourdough bowls and chocolate fudge brownie sundaes I’ve consumed, I could fast for two months and still have enough fat stored on my body to feed a small country.”

  “Yay,” I squeal. “You’re having such a good time. I’m so happy for you.” Matty reaches over and squeezes my hand in his. “You’re happy, right?”

  “Definitely. I haven’t been this happy in a long time. It’s amazing to be with someone who cares so much about me. He puts me first, before anything. Before his own needs. I’ve never had that before.”

  “Nick was a dumb shit.”

  “Yes, he was. But I guess I didn’t know what I was missing till I found something better. In this case, the grass has definitely been greener on the other side.”

  “Aww.” I press my hand to my chest, feeling my heart beating rapidly.

  “Shel, can you just be my best friend for a minute and not Ty’s little sister?”

  “I can try.”

  “I can’t keep this in. Tyler is amazing. Stunning. Fabulous. The best lover I’ve ever had. When I say he puts my own needs before his own, I mean he puts my own needs first. My god, I can’t even describe it. When I was with Nick, I thought I was gonna have to go to the doctor’s to get treated for tennis elbow because that guy wanted me to jack him off every five seconds and then he’d have the nerve to kiss me goodnight and fall asleep.”

  “Oh my god, you did not just say tennis elbow.” I crack up laughing, trying hard not to slide off my seat into hysterics. Mel is snorting in the other end of the phone. “Tennis elbow?” I repeat and Matty’s looking at me like I’m crazy.

  Mel blows a big breath into the phone. “Well, my friend, I don’t have to worry about that with Ty. I might have to take Pilates with you though. And Zumba too. I don’t know if I can keep up with him. The man is like Forest Gump. He just keeps going and going.”

  I can’t take anymore. “Sounds like a personal problem to me. I’m done being just your best friend. I’m officially Ty’s little sister again. So no more about his endless endurance. Got it?”

  “Yes,” she says. I hear a voice in the background. “Your brother is out of the shower now. And I’m wondering how long he’s been standing here, ear hustling my conversation with you. That’s not nice, Ty.” Her tone is playful, and cute. My bestie is going to be my sister-n-law, I know it.

  “Tell him I said hi and to come home.”

  “Shelly says hello,” she tells him.

  “You forgot the other part,” I remind her.

  “No, I didn’t.”

  Hmm. “You don’t want him to come home?”

  “Of course I do.”

  “Then what?” She doesn’t say anything. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why. I totally get it. “You want him to come home on his own. Not because we ask him to.”

  “You got it, sister.”

  “Who are you calling now?” Matty asks.

  After waiting about fifteen minutes, I take out my phone again and start tapping on the screen. “I’m texting my brother. I want to talk to him, but I need to wait until the coast is clear.”

  “Of what?” he asks as he unlocks the door to our house. He holds it open for me, I go in first, and he follows.

  “Mel.” I toss my purse on the recliner and head into the kitchen. “Let’s have one last beer together before I jump on the wagon.”

  With his hands on my shoulders, we shuffle into the kitchen. Matty opens the fridge, pops the cap off a bottle, and passes me a brew. “Cheers. To making babies.” He holds out his bottle to mine and they clink together.

  “To having fun trying.” I narrow my gaze at him and flutter my brows. “Let’s finish this and get started.”

  “Sounds like a plan to me.” He takes a drink. “So why are you trying to steer clear of Mel? You were just on the phone with her.”

  “Because I want to talk to my brother about her. And I don’t want her to listen.”

  He leans against the counter and lowers his eyes at me. “You shouldn’t get in their business. You’re too close to both of them, babe.”

  “I know,” I admit, knowing full well that anything either one of them tells me, I can’t tell the other. Whatever they share is sacred information, and I’m really hoping I never have to keep any pressing secrets from either one of them. It’ll kill me.

  “Come here,” he says, opening his arms to me. He holds me tight against him and my body sinks into his touch. I close my eyes, soaking in the moment while his citrusy outdoors scent tickles my nose. I can feel his cold beer against my back through the material of my cotton shirt. With his free hand, he wanders under my shirt and presses his warm palm to my skin. His fingertips trail down my back and inside my jeans until he cups one of my cheeks in his hand.

  “I thought we were gonna drink our last beer together first.”

  He turns his head to the side and brings the bottle to his mouth. After a couple of long pulls, he sets the empty on the counter. “I’m done.”

  I peel myself away from him and tilt my own beer to my lips. I’m not as fast as my husband, but I guzzle the whole thing before I place it next to his. “Me too.”

  His fingers graze the side of my cheeks as he brushes my hair away from my face. “I love you, Mrs. Fuller.”

  “I love you too.” With my eyes closed, I wait for the first touch of his lips and sigh into his kiss. The soft press of his mouth on mine sets every part of my body on fire. I can feel the tingling all the way down to my toes and I squeeze my thighs together to stop me from coming undone right here. Gently, he teases me with kisses, his warm breath tracing over my skin as he …

  “Shit.”

  The Mission Impossible theme song sounds from my phone. “It’s my brother.”

  He places a tender kiss to my cheek and says, “Take it. I’ll go start us a bath.”

  I bite my lip. A bath? I hate my brother right now. “I’ll be right there.” Frantically, I reach for my phone and slide my index finger across the screen. “Hey.”

  “Hey, little sis. What’s happening?”

  “Well, I was about to try to make a baby and you just interrupted me.”

  “What?”

  Oh, son of a bitch. Did I really say that? So much for waiting to tell anyone about the baby. The plan was to try for a while without saying anything. I know I would’ve told Mel, but I didn’t plan on sharing it with my brother. What if he tells my mom? The last thing I need is the mother hen offering her opinion on everything I do until I get pregnant. It’s going to get even worse when I really do have a bun in the oven. She’s gonna hover like a lion ready to pounce. I just know it. “Don’t you dare tell mom or I’ll kill you.”

  “So are you really trying? You want to get prego?” His cheerful voice is music to my ears. He’ll be a great uncle. If he’s home.

  “Well, kinda. We want to have a baby, but we also know that it probably won’t happen right away. We’ll just try and keep our fingers crossed.”

  “Good for you. Congrats.” Mel’s voice is faint in the background. “It’s my sister. She wants to get pregnant.” I hear a squealing oh my god. “Can you believe that? I can’t imagine being a dad right now. Look at this place, it’s not exactly baby proofed. I don’t mind being an uncle though. I can always give the kid back.”

  “Ha ha,” I tell him. “You’ll make a great dad someday.”

/>   “Someday is the key word. Just not anytime soon,” he says.

  “Give me the phone,” I hear Mel say. “Stop. Give me the phone.” She laughs hysterically and there are some slapping sounds.

  “What are you doing?”

  “She’s abusing me, sister. She’s slapping me.”

  Mel calls out, “He’s tickling me, Shel. He may not live to see tomorrow.”

  “Foreplay,” I say, wondering if I’m talking to myself since they’re still playing around.

  “I gotta go, sis.”

  I guess I don’t need to wonder anymore.

  Chapter 9

  Melissa

  When Ty asks me if I want to see Alcatraz today, I jump at the chance. I’ve been to San Francisco many times but have never made the trip out to the island. The clouds and fog have always gotten in the way, keeping me from visiting the creepy tourist attraction. But today, the coast is clear, the sun is shining and I’m only here for a few more days, so why the hell not.

  The entire ride over on the boat, I can’t help thinking of Sean Connery and Nicholas Cage in The Rock. I know others must be imagining Al Capone or George “Machine Gun” Kelly locked up in the small cells on the island, but, not me. The entire film plays through my mind as we cruise through the choppy waters. The bay looks dark and scary and I wonder how in the hell any prisoner could possibly jump in that freezing water and think they could swim all the way to the shore. Maybe they did some serious training or weightlifting in the slammer and considered themselves the next to win the Iron Man triathlon or something. I doubt it though. The big lump of earth out there doesn’t look like it could’ve been geared toward keeping the inmates in the most tip top shape. Instead, it looks eerie, and damp.

  We take the guided audio tour, and pass through the prison with old school headphones covering our ears.

  “What the hell?” I tell Ty, after listening to interviews of raspy-voiced inmates as I scan every detail of the cement block otherwise known as a penitentiary. I rub my ear in irritation. I’m not some high school kid who wants to walk around like a DJ with these suckers plastered to my head. “What happened to the little old lady docents? What the heck kinda tour is this?”