by Aurora, Lexi
As their lips met and re-met, he was the first to flow his tongue into hers. He suckled on her upper lip, then the lower. Her fingers raked through his hair. He traced her curves with his hands, just the way he’d been aching to for days.
She felt so... good. All of her was feeling all of him. Them. Feeling each other.
That mouth and that tongue. His hands claimed her face, and her body eased into his. Damn, if they weren’t on a goddamn balcony at Kyle’s wedding, no less, then he’d...
He pulled away.
“Jesus, Annie...”
Her gaze drooped. “Awkward, I know,” she admitted quietly. “It’s just that... I haven’t been with that many people.”
“That many people?”
Annie was looking out into the night as if she was just another star in her shining silver dress. She considered joining her twilight friends.
“Something happened, and...” she exhaled. “There’s been no one else.”
“No one else,” Grayson said the words hollowly, disbelievingly. Did no one else mean...
“But it doesn’t have to be weird, ok?” Annie’s voice was no longer a whisper; it was now shrilly furious. “I just want something with no-strings attached; to ease me into it. Something with no stress.”
Grayson could only gape at her. A virgin wanting something with no stress?
This time, when she swooped her lips for his, he stepped back instinctively. This, as badly as all of him was thrumming for it, couldn’t be right.
Annie’s face was now a mask of moonlit rage. “You’re kidding me.”
She stood there, waiting. Grayson waited too. For what, he wasn’t sure, since he had no idea himself what to do next.
He watched as she stormed to the doorway and paused, “You didn’t see Jermaine, did you?”
She turned away before he could answer.
Blood thrummed through Grayson’s veins. He couldn’t let her reach Jermaine and make whatever mistake she was actually considering.
He scowled. Anyway, they had just kissed. Did that not mean shit to her, or was he just part of this virginity-losing ploy of hers?
But following her, pulling her back here; it wouldn’t be right. Not when Grayson knew, with every tensed fibre of his being, what would follow next; what he couldn’t stop from following.
Grayson watched her disappear inside, as all of him strained to follow her.
Chapter 11: Annie
“Wait.”
His voice was like a hand on her waist; guilt mixed with embarrassment. He was about to scold her, like the inexperienced, immature child that she was. The thing that she’d said about Jermaine, she hadn’t meant it but had just made the jab instinctively.
“Annie,” Grayson said, and she turned.
He was one step away, with a look in his eyes that spooled her in at the same time that it made her wait. Wait for him to shut the balcony door, lock it. Pounce.
His lips slammed onto hers as his hands picked up where they left off. Seemed like every part of him was stroking every part of her. Like all of her was vibrating for what was coming next. This is really happening.
That tongue of his was really dancing with hers, exploring her mouth, while his hands were finger-painting strokes across her collarbone, dipping a pinky under the cup of the bra deeper down. It was in too deep, setting a trail of goosebumps on the upper swell of her breast.
Oh, he wasn’t... he was. As his hand strokes fell lower, his tongue strokes grew slower, as if he was tasting her.
This. All of this.
He was gentle, yet firm, as if sensing instinctively what she needed. Does he know that I’m afraid? She wondered for a while, before shoving her thoughts aside and letting sensation take over.
When his fingers brushed against her nipple, she trembled. When they closed around it, she gasped. Grayson kissed the sound right out of her lips.
Then, he pulled away, taking her lower lip with him. He dipped down and suctioned his lip onto her tingling nipple. And then, she felt it; pure explosions of spine-tingling sensation. Wet and warm and right, the sensations were fanning out like crop circles of pleasure across her breast and further.
Suckling the other nipple was just a reflection of the first, just more perfection incarnate.
His fingers made it to her lower thigh and squeezed it. More ripples of sensation went straight up to... there. His fingers played their way up, like her body was a song he knew all the right notes to. Rising, ever-rising strokes that extended further than her fingertips; they sent great fireworks of sensation right between her legs.
Whole feelings she’d forgotten were rising to the surface, while noises she never knew she could make were rolling from her lips.
After the incident, she’d only half-heartedly tried pleasuring herself half a dozen times or so. But this was the very definition of pleasure.
By the time he had reached her panties, she’d sunk into him fully, trembling over what was to come.
This is really happening.
“Annie,” his voice, in her ear, was urgent, and his finger paused. “We can only do this once, do you understand? I don’t do relationships, do you understand?”
All she understood, right then, was that she needed that finger on the other side of her panties.
Pulling away, he drew her dress back down.
She gaped at him dumbly. She was wet, and her need for him was like a heartbeat pulsing through her body.
Never had she felt more turned on, a craving deeper than hunger and closer to starvation.
“We can’t do this now,” Grayson’s voice was firm and tired. “I want you to have time to think about what I said.”
It took a few seconds for Annie to remember how to speak, to switch from pure physical desire back to normal life. It annoyed her, this comedown from such sensual heights.
“I meant what I said before,” Annie said, angrily. “About no-strings attached. Are you really so full of yourself that you think I won’t be able to handle it?”
Grayson looked at her, a shadow in his eyes. “Just think about it. I’m seeing you tomorrow, anyway.”
She made her way to the door and unlocked it. “Tomorrow then.”
Although even she wasn’t sure what that meant, she knew what she wanted it to mean.
Walking away, her wetness uncomfortably more noticeable with every additional step, she knew ‘want’ wasn’t even the word she’d use anymore. More like ‘need.’
ANNIE STUCK AROUND a bit after to chat with Kyla. She’d been busy talking to all the other guests during the rehearsal dinner. “Bridal duties, kill me now,” she’d said, with a weary smile, once Annie finally got her turn. After a few minutes, though, Annie left. Grayson was long gone too, thankfully.
To say that she needed time to process things was like saying that Egypt had a pyramid or two.
When she got home, it was past midnight. After all that had happened, Annie did not want to face the inquisition of questions her mom was sure to level at her. So, she opened the white oak front door in painstaking slowness, one micro-inch at a time. A bit more, then a bit more, then... bingo. She closed it behind her soundlessly.
Then, she tiptoed inside, sighed with relief, and groaned as Jiji raced up, barking at her jubilantly.
So much for sneaking in.
“Had a good time at the rehearsal dinner, honey?” It was her mom, ever the night owl, wearing a pale pink bathrobe, smiling.
“Yep,” Annie said. “There was delicious food, and even a dance floor.”
“Sounds like something,” her mom’s eyes lit up as she came over to squeeze Annie. “What about you? Did you break out the moves?”
“Actually, I did,” Annie smiled, feeling proud. Right now, too much had happened in too little time. She needed to go upstairs and be alone to figure out what she felt. But she knew she could feel proud about having braved the dance floor twice in this last week.
“Who did you dance with? Anyone I know?” her mom
asked.
Annie crouched down to ruffle the fur on Jiji’s groomed head, “No.”
And no one you probably ever will.
“Well,” her mom drew her into a hug. “You make sure to bring Kyla our gift tomorrow and wish her all the best.”
“Will do, Mom.”
Annie sighed with relief. Her mom must’ve been tired or something, if she willingly left it at just that. Annie could remember times after school dances when her mom had thirty-minutes’ worth of questions for her.
Upstairs, Jiji followed her into her room. After closing the door, Annie flopped onto her bed with her dress still on. Yup, I do not give the slightest of shits.
Heart beating and mind racing, her gaze landed on Jiji. The dog’s white, fluffy head was tilted at Annie, giving her a silent ‘what’s going on’?
Annie could only smile ruefully. “Your guess is as good as mine,” she said.
THE NEXT MORNING WAS a flurry of last-minute haphazard activities.
First, waking up at 5 am to zoom over to Kyla’s to get ready. There, a team of sullen hairdressers and chatty makeup artists got her and the other bridesmaids ready. Although Annie thought the glossy pull-back and brown smoky eye was a bit too much, Kyla swore she looked stunning.
“I’m super worried about Lop,” Kyla admitted, as the little Pomeranian trotted up to them. “Mary-Kate thinks I’m committing wedding suicide by letting him deliver the rings.”
Annie rolled her eyes and refrained from mentioning that Mary-Kate, herself, was the epitome of wedding suicide. “What’s the worst that could happen? Lop takes off and, as the audience laughs, someone has to catch him?”
Kyla smiled, “You’re right. It would be funny, that’s all.”
They all had a quick breakfast of the Tim Hortons raisin bran muffins Kyla’s mom had ordered. “Why they’ll never make peach, I’ll never know,” Kyla commented with a sigh.
Then, finally, it was time. In the limo, all the girls were chatting nervously.
As the other girls checked their makeup and admired the limo’s interior, gem-encrusted cup holders included, Kyla turned to Annie.
“What if something completely insane happens?” she asked. “Like Grayson made Kyle shave his head?”
“Grayson wouldn’t...” Annie said, then trailed off, smiling ruefully at the realization that he totally would. “We could buy him a wig?”
Kyla smiled grimly, “It’s fine. I’ll just marry a bald man.”
They giggled, and, impulsively, Kyla flung her arms around Annie. “You really have been an angel through this. Getting all those wedding details sorted out while I was gone, and when I came back too. And then being such a gem as far as Grayson is concerned...”
“About that...” Annie trailed off.
She paused, biting her lip. This was Kyla. She told her best friend everything. But this was her wedding day. It was supposed to be about her.
Although it did feel wrong to not tell her about their hook-up, it also seemed dangerous. She hadn’t fully made up her mind about the next part yet – whether they’d do it and more, again. So she didn’t want to make any promises to her friend that she couldn’t keep.
She sighed. So much for a good night of sleep. All it had done was remind her that she really could use a few more of them.
Anyway, as the limo doors opened, the cameras flashed, and ‘too late’ had been two minutes ago.
As everyone fluttered inside to get ready, Annie retired to an abandoned room to get some quiet time. Kyla was busy calming down her excitable mother, while the other bridesmaids were attacking each other with hairspray.
She sat on a chair, swinging her legs, wondering what today would bring. Would she be a new person by the end of it?
“What do we have here?”
And, there he was, the big question mark of the day, all spruced up with a tux and slicked back hair – Grayson.
He regarded her with a pained expression, leaning in so his hot breath could kiss her cheek. “Are you trying to make this even harder for me?”
Her lips responded for her, meeting his. This kiss picked up exactly where they’d left off – hungry and unforgiving.
He pulled away. “You can still back down, you know.”
She looked up at him, her gaze unwavering, “And you can kiss me again, you know.”
He paused, his lips easing from hers once more, ripping away at the last minute.
“Goodbye, Annie,” he said, as he hurried out the door.
“Goodbye, Grayson.”
She smiled. Now he knew her answer to his question. And now, she did, too.
Chapter 12: Grayson
If that little minx didn’t know just how to get under my skin.
There she was, omnipresent like a curse, her legs wide open, dangling right in front of his uncomfortably semi-hard dick.
From the start to finish of the marriage ceremony in the church, he couldn’t even try to concentrate despite of how he tried.
He tried concentrating as the wedding march went down in the church, trying to smile at the nameless blonde bridesmaid on his arm. Annie came in on Jermaine’s arm, her infuriating flip-off of a blithe smile shining through. She was naughtily aware and enjoying what the sight of her on another man’s arm was doing to him.
He’d tried concentrating later as the service rolled on and she sat one row behind, that taunting half-smile lingering on her face as they stood up and down when told. Her gaze only meet his once, just to torment him for the next hour. So, he casually turned, and twisted, and stared until his neck was sore.
He wanted her, and he could barely wait to have her.
Even this morning, as he, Kyle and the other groomsmen got ready, it had taken all of his concentration to just put on his blue and white pinstripe tie correctly.
The two of them stepped forward to sign the marriage certificate book while standing shoulder-to-shoulder. In front of everyone, although with turned backs, it was absolutely insane. He wanted nothing more than to sneak a kiss with her appealingly glossy lips.
What was most surprising, however, was how genuinely happy Grayson felt for Kyle as he watched him go through the ceremony with a woman who was clearly his match. He’d known his friend for years, and the happiest he’d seen the guy didn’t even come close to this.
With his hand in Kyla’s, Kyle looked, well, ecstatic. Kyla looked radiant and beautiful, and Grayson concluded that the two were good for each other, after all. From what he’d seen, in fact, he knew no other two people more suited. So, as they read out the vows, instead of feeling a dull ache in the pit of his stomach, like he had felt at some of his other friends’ and relatives’ weddings – the less well-suited couples (and divorces to be), he just felt genuinely glad that his friend had found someone who made him happy.
Thankfully, Grayson’s own parents hadn’t made it out, either. God knows what kind of scene could’ve erupted.
As the ceremony began, Grayson felt like he was in a dream. All he could concentrate on was Annie’s smiling, knowing face.
Everything else seemed to happen so fast.
There was Lop scampering up the aisle, the crowd emitting an “aww” as he deposited the rings and scampered off seamlessly.
There was the happy couple slipping on each other’s rings.
Then, there was the walk out of there, past the pews garlanded with those purple carnations (they’d gotten the right color with two days to spare, apparently).
Through the dinner that constituted some medium-rare steak and garlic-roasted potatoes with a dessert of peach-topped wedding cake and a painfully rich Crème brûlée, through his speech (“I shouldn’t be the best man, Kyle should be. He’s the best man I’ve ever known, and ever will know. A great friend, a funny comrade, a loyal supporter. And Kyla’s just what I would’ve wanted for him – a woman who doesn’t just complement him, but brings out the best in him”), and even through hers (“Kyla has always been there for me, through thick and thin. And
that’s the thing about this couple. Their relationship may not be as long as most others have had before they married, but they more than make up for it with the depth of their union. These two are the real deal”), all he could think about was Annie, Annie, Annie.
Asshole, you shitty, selfish, asshole friend, he told himself, as he gulped down extra wine and the wedding cake to take his mind off his guilt. You should be celebrating your friend, supporting him. And he was, but there was something even greater throbbing through him; the pure hot desire for Annie.
It only got worse when Kyla and Kyla took to the dance floor. Standing on the outskirts, he caught Annie’s eye. As other couples began to join them, Grayson’s ‘don’t’ thought was as flitting and pointless as a fruit fly.
“May I?” he asked Annie, when he approached, as if she hadn’t been waiting on the dance floor for him.
As if they didn’t know where this was leading. Having her in his arms was like coming home. Their bodies fused, glided around, had all of him thrumming with the closeness.
As one song became two and two became he-didn’t-know-how-many more, Grayson knew people were going to notice. They had to get out of there. He couldn’t stop himself from giving into his hunger for her much longer.
“Some air?” he asked her.
Her knowing smile, as she nodded at him, gave him aroused chills. Yes, air was the last thing they’d be getting if he had anything to say about it.
And so, out they went, all the way to his car’s parking spot. This one was a good five-minute walk from the next-closest car, and he’d chosen it for a just-in-case purpose.
“My car has air,” he said, opening the door.
She didn’t need to answer; her entering the car was her answer.
Grayson got in, too. Closing the car door sealed the outside world from them.
He looked at her and she looked at him.
And then, their lips connected.
‘Wow’ was all he could think about. Wow, wow, wow.
God, was she hot. And to think that her timid, classy self had this side to her, one that was pure sensual. It was carnal lust at its finest.