Burning Attraction

by Ashley Beale

"Fuck Cassie," he breathes, "that was amazing." He is panting just as hard as me. We lay together as our breath slows back down. We're silent but it isn't uncomfortable, it's perfect. No words need to be said right now.

  Chapter 3: Underground

  Saturday evening I'm dreading getting ready for my dad's banquet. My mom says it's going to be simple and small, which means over a hundred people are attending. That is what my parents consider small and it annoys me. I think this is part of the reason I hate dressing up so much, I like my jeans and tee-shirts, because I come from family that has too many events that call for being dressed formally. And when I get there, I have to meet and greet with everyone, smiling pretty, telling them how college is going, the whole sha-bang. The only thing I'm excited about is the surprise my mom mentioned.

  I decide to wear my favorite black cocktail dress with my sequenced black heels. I put on a small pink necklace and matching bracelet, and do a French bun on top of my head. Since my hair is slicked back, I decide to give my side bangs a little curl, causing me to look a few years older. Aubrey has to help me apply my makeup because I've never been good at this, and when I'm done, I'm very happy with the results. It's too bad that Carson doesn't see me like this. Maybe in the next month or two I can get him to attend one of the many parties my family throws.

  I've been trying all day to get Aubrey to attend with me, but she refuses. I honestly don't blame her, if this wasn't so important to my dad I wouldn't be there either. She hit it off good with the frat guy last night, and since he is very handsome, I'm happy for her. She has short blonde hair with light blue eyes, and he has dark brown hair with brown eyes. They're exact opposites but look perfect next to one another. Aubrey mentioned that he was going out to some pizza joint and invited her to come along, so she has an excuse to not come with me now.

  I show up at my parent's house fifteen minutes early, hoping I can get my surprise early. When I see my mom I give her a hug and small kiss to the cheek. "Hi mom," I look around, "where's dad? I want to congratulate him."

  "Oh, he is with your surprise," she smiles bright with mischief. "Come, here, I'll show you." She pulls on my arm and drags me down the hall into my dad's office. The Manning's are there, Avery's parents. He hadn't mentioned that they were coming into town at all, so it really is a surprise, but I'm not sure why it matters as much to me as it would my parents. I know my mom really missed Mrs. Manning when she left, but they hardly kept in touch in the most recent years.

  I smile at the two of them. "Hi Mr. and Mrs. Manning, nice to see you two again."

  Mrs. Manning answers first, "oh Cassandra, please, you're an adult now, call me Trish. Dear girl, you've grown right up into a beautiful young lady. Come here." I walk over to her and she wraps her arms around my shoulders, giving me a tiny hug. "We've all missed you," she whispers softly as I pull back away.

  "I've missed you all as well," I say back before looking to Mr. Manning who says hello. I walk over to my dad and give him a hug. "Congrats on your merger dad, that is awesome news!"

  "Well, it's in large parts to Teddy here, it's his company we merged with. Both he and Trish have decided to move down here so everything can run smoothly. Thank you though Cassie, I'm glad you could make it." Holy crap, so they've moved down here for good. Did they follow Avery or did he follow them? Did he lie about his promise and his parents being upset, or were they really upset and decided to chase after? I guess either way it doesn't matter, all that matters is that my parents have reunited with old friends, and so I have I with Avery.

  My mom suggests we all make our way back into the dining room, since more guests should be arriving shortly. Right before we walk in, she gets close to my ear, whispering, "that wasn't your surprise." I'm about to ask what my surprise was, but as we round the corner I see Avery standing in our dining room, dressed in a black button down dress shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He looks so incredibly handsome that I'm frozen in place. He smiles large at me, showing all his pearly white teeth, and I can't help but smile my largest smile back at him. My mom giggles, elbowing me, "surprise." Then she walks off, leaving the two of us to catch up once more.

  I haven't had a conversation with Avery since we ate lunch together. I've wanted to, just haven't found the time for it. Not only that, I'd feel awkward calling him out of the blue just to catch up. He hasn't called me either. After last night with Carson, I shouldn't be feeling my insides twist and turn, but it's hard not to. Old feelings come rushing in every time his green eyes sink into my hazel ones, and then of course there are new feelings that flood my insides too. Those ones are newer, ones that make me wet myself. I want to feel his five o'clock shadow between my thighs more than anything.

  I can feel myself blush at Avery's first words. "Every time I see you, you look more perfect."

  I don't mind checking him out tonight. "Yeah, you too." Although the word perfect is clearly an understatement.

  We have small talk with each other while guests arrive, but as the house fills up more and more, the less we get to see each other. I'm in the middle of talking with a friend of my mom's when I can feel Avery's eyes on me. I turn quickly to see him coming towards me, just watching as I talk about how college is going so far, answering the same questions that everyone else has asked me. It feels awkward as he takes in every single word that I say, without saying anything himself. Finally I excuse myself so I can talk with Avery once more. "Oh my God, I hate these stupid things," I say with an eye roll.

  He chuckles softly, "oh don't I know it. Come." He holds out his hand and I take it. I don't even bother to ask where we are going, following him up the stairs and into my old bedroom. I've only been out of the house a couple months, yet it almost feels like years. I have only been here three times since moving out back in June. I still have a lot of things in here, including my old bed. There are random nick-knacks placed about, pictures line the walls, and some clothes I have yet to grab. The second we walk into the room, Avery looks at all the different things I left behind, concentrating mostly on things from my childhood.

  I simply just sit on my bed, and focus all my undivided attention to Avery. His muscles flexing with each movement, his ass looking too perfect for words, and his tattoos starring back at me, asking me touch them. "What are you doing?" I ask after a couple minutes.

  He takes a peek over his shoulder for a quick second, before looking back at some pictures. I couldn't help but be mesmerized by his toothy smile. "You got a lot of pictures of us, I like it."

  "Yeah, well, we had a lot of fun when we were younger."

  Avery looks back over his shoulder again. "We could have more fun."

  I raise my eyebrows at him. "Oh yeah? Like what?"

  The expression starring back at me says it all. "Oh, I could think of a few things." He winks at me, causing my insides to twist and turn all about.

  Unsure of how to respond, I just laugh at him and shake my head no. He laughs as well and turns back, looking at more things. There is a slight gasp that comes from his mouth. "Angel..."

  "Yeah?"

  "You still have it." The sound in his voice making me know he is shocked, and I instantly have a feeling of just what he is talking about. He turns around to look at me, the angel pendent necklace hanging from his hand. The same one he gave me the day he left six years ago. I wore that necklace every single day for years before finally 'growing up' from it. I really loved it so much, it's beautiful, and more than that, it meant everything to me. More than anything anyone has ever given to me.

  "Of course I do. That thing meant the world to me. Still does actually." I bite down on my lip, unsure of how that sounded. I hope he doesn't think I have feelings for him, because he said it himself, he doesn't do the relationship thing. Plus, I'm sort of seeing Carson now, and after last night, I have a feeling things may be advancing faster than expected.

  Avery walks over to me, striding with a sexy confidence. When he is right in front of my knees, I dare myself to look up into his gorge
ous green eyes, and I'm nearly drooling at his gaze. I swallow the dry lump in my throat, while he just looks down at me with an admiration of sorts. He leans his face down towards mine, his lips so close to my own that if I just puckered mine I'd be kissing him. But I don't, I just stare, confused and turned on. He whispers so lightly that our lips graze one another, "you meant the world to me."

  Chills go spiraling down my spine at the sensation of our lips touching so softly as he says those sweet words. My eyes start fluttering, so I close them, waiting for him to push into me. Missing that tingle I felt six years ago. I just want him on me right now. I'm about to grab the back of his neck to pull him close, but before I even get the chance his phone starts vibrating in his pocket. Avery pulls away from me, like nothing happened at all, and answers his phone. "Hey man ... Shit, yeah, when? ... Danielson? ... Fuck yeah! ... Kay, see you then."

  I'm still in a trans from what just happened that I have to blink myself back to reality once I notice that Avery is off the phone. He smiles at me, "what are you doing after this?"

  I shrug. "No plans. Go home, sleep, I don't know. Why?" I fail to mention that I'm probably going to devour a pint of ice cream while wallowing in self-pity.

  His smile just gets even bigger, melting me to the bed. "You got jeans and a sweatshirt here?"

  "Um, yeah?"

  "Get dressed, I'll see you outside the room in a couple minutes. Oh, and find sneakers or something too." I want to ask him what for, but he walks out of my room, closing the door behind him. I don't even hesitate as I jump off the bed and run for my dresser. I took most of my good clothes with me, but I find a pair of jeans, a tee-shirt, sweatshirt and even a pair of old sneakers.

  I open the door once I'm dressed, and Avery is standing there, texting on his phone. He glances up at me and does a double take. "You look better like that anyways," he states, before texting again.

  "Where are we going?" I ask.

  He winks before walking away from me, then waves his hand for me to follow. I obey him of course, I could never say no to Avery. We make our way back downstairs, and I don't even think twice about him not answering my question. When I see my parents, he walks over and whispers something to my mom, who then turns and looks me over before nodding yes to Avery. He then walks over to his mom and whispers to her, giving her a hug. I follow after him again once I see that he is heading for the door.

  When I get outside I look around at all the fancy cars. I wonder which one is his. I can picture him driving a black sports car or something muscular. What I wasn't picturing at all was the midnight blue motorcycle, but now that I see him standing next to it, I'm breathless. It just adds to the sexiness of this man. "What are you waiting for?" he asks as he climbs onto the death trap.

  "I'm not riding on that thing," I say, pointing to his bike.

  Of course he laughs at me, clearly amused by my doubts. "Yes you are, come on." I walk slowly towards him, like you would to a stranger’s dog or something. I'm terrified, I've never been on a bike of any sorts before. Well, not one that is motorized. "Here," he says, handing me a helmet.

  "Um," I say while looking at the helmet, "how do I put it on?"

  Avery chuckles again, "seriously? I'll help." He puts it over my head and buckles a strap under my chin, adjusting it until it fits snug. My head feels pounds heavier, but I also feel a hundred times safer. That is, until I straddle the back of him. The only thing that is causing me any amount of joy is the proximity of Avery and myself. I squeeze my thighs close to him, put my arms around his waist and hold on tight.

  The bike moves slowly backward, before it zips off out of my parents’ driveway and down the open road. I don't even look, I just keep my head as close as I can get it to Avery's back, while closing my eyes tight. What seems like hours later, but probably only twenty minutes, we pull into a parking lot. I finally open my eyes and take a look around. The place has maybe ten vacant cars in the lot, all scattered in different places, and the building looks like an old warehouse that no one has entered in ages.

  When Avery stops, I climb off the back and manage to pull the helmet off without any help. "What are we doing here?" I ask him. It's creepy and isolated, I feel like I am in a horror movie.

  He laughs once more, and I'm realizing every time he does this, I fall a little harder for him. He acts like a little happy boy, yet is a grown up, sexy man. A deadly combination. "You ask too many questions. You'll find out in a few minutes."

  We walk over to the building together and go out in the back. A tall, heavy set guy is standing near an opened window. He eyes me before Avery, then nods his head towards me in question. I feel like I'm going to throw up, this is all a little too creepy and weird for me. I don't understand what is going on, and why I'm not getting answers. Avery on the other hand is acting like this is all amusing, which annoys me so bad! "This is Cassandra. Cassie, this is Porkchop."

  I raise an eyebrow. "Uhhhh, hi, Porkchop?" I say it more as a question, because I'm unsure as if that is really his name and if I'm really supposed to call him that. It feels awkward leaving my mouth.

  The Porkchop guy just grins slightly, "she gonna cause trouble?" He looks me over before looking back at Avery.

  "Fuck no man, I wouldn't just bring any girl here. Cassie is special." His words cause me to get both nauseous and butterflies. I either want to know what is going on or get the hell out of here.

  "Good," Porkchop states. He moves out of the way from the window.

  Avery gives me a slight nudge with his elbow. "You first Angel. I'll climb in after, you'll need my boost to get in."

  I'm honestly not sure why, but I listen. This could be some sex slave shop or something, yet, I trust Avery and walk towards the window. He helps me through it and comes climbing in after. The room I land in is just like an old office, with some chairs that have been there a long time, lined with three inches of dust on each one. Nothing else.

  Avery walks towards the door in the room, so I follow after, making sure to stay extra close. We walk down three hallways before I start to hear people talking down the set of stairs in front of me. I stop and look at Avery. "You need to tell me what this shit is now. I'm not taking another step, I'm really freaked out right now."

  He looks a little sheepish at my outburst. "Sorry Cassie, I didn't mean to scare you. I just didn't want you to back out, but I guess it's too late now anyways. I'm involved in underground fighting. I was champ in Port Angeles and in all the surrounding communities for the past two years, so it was easy to get set up down around here. Tonight I'm fighting a guy named Pierce Danielson, and if I win, I get a shit ton of money. He is champion in this area, and has been wanting to fight me since I entered town. It's going to get crazy down there, just a warning, so I want you to stick with my bud Mason, okay?"

  "Oh," I state, "yeah, of course. Can I watch though?"

  He smiles ear to ear, "I'd love that. You sure you want to?"

  I nod, "absolutely! I knew you looked like a fighter, and quite honestly, it's-" I bite down on my lip and blush rapidly. The words came out before I could stop myself from saying them. I didn't finish my sentence but with the look of question on Avery's face, I have a feeling I'm going to have to. Damnit.

  "It's?"

  I look down to the ground. "Sexy," I mumble.

  He chuckles softly as he places his finger under my chin, causing me to look up at him. He leans in and brushes his lips against mine. "I'm glad you're here." He grabs my hand without so much as a blink of the eye and pulls me with him. I'm in shock and don't even know how to process anything. Does he like me? Or does he naturally flirt? What is going on right now? Maybe it's just all in my head.

  I meet a lot of different people before the fight, including Avery's friend Mason. I've seen him around campus a few times, because trust me, it'd be hard to miss him. He is just shy of six feet, has naturally tanned skin, muscles, blue eyes and brown hair. The best part of him though, is his very southern drawl, making him sound like a sexy co
wboy. I've actually mentioned him to Aubrey a few times, telling her she should go for a guy like him. She always says she wishes but hasn't made a move on him. Now I'm going to play cupid without either of them knowing and try to set something up. He is being extra sweet to me, and is treating me like a little sister already, so it's easy to get along with him.

  Mason and I are standing in a crowd of probably 150 people in the basement of the warehouse. My adrenaline is pumping like crazy as we surround the makeshift fighting ring on the floor. An enormous guy they call Mouse is standing on a soapbox, with his pockets full of money. He must be the lug that runs things, because he takes the megaphone and starts telling us to shut the fuck up. Most everyone listens.

  "Tonight is going to be a fuckin' crazy night, so all you better fuckin' listen close!" Mouse's voice rings loud and clear, as we all stare at him, waiting for the fighters to be announced. "Tonight is the night to figure out who the fuck the real champion is. It's going to get ugly and rowdy. Got weak stomachs? Get the fuck out! This fight is for the men in the ring, anyone else starts a fight outside the ring, you’re out of here! I call it all, so when I throw down my towel, that's when the winner is announced. Bets are all placed already, so if you haven't placed a bet, you don't get to. I find out you place a bet behind my back, your legs will be broke, I promise that. Now, everyone should know the rest of the rules, so let’s get this shit started. Who's with me?"

  The crowd goes wild, me included. I'm jumping up and down yelling "yeah!" alongside everyone else, and I can feel all sorts of nerves flaring through me. I'm scared a little, but I'm so excited in ways I never knew I could be.

  Mouse continues when the roaring calms, "ladies and gentlemen, for the fourth time this year, let’s welcome Avvvvvverrryyyy "Kill Switch" Mannnninnnggg!" As Avery comes running out, I feel chills run up and down my spine. Never have I see him look better. He's in running shorts and a tight beater, making all his tattooed muscles bulge. The look on his face is fierce, but it turns me on in ways I can't explain. I'm screaming and cheering him on, and he looks me right in the eye and winks. Yum. "And now, our returning champion. Gentlemen, be jealous, ladies, get ready for your panties to dampen. Here comes Piiiiierce "Skull Crusher" Daniellllsoonnnn!"