“Thank you so much. It’s absolutely gorgeous. I’ve never had anything this nice before,” I admit as I hurry toward her and give her another hug.
Loretta asks me about my day and my classes, and I happily tell her about it all. I omit the beginning where I found myself passing out in the middle of the sidewalk, only to wake slumped against the side of a house.
I also don’t tell her the part of my day where Trent stared daggers at me in class. Then my phone buzzes, and I excuse myself to answer it, seeing as it’s Ines. I haven’t heard from her in a while.
“Hey,” I murmur into the phone.
“I’m engaged,” she screams.
I blink before I smile. “Yeah? Congratulations. I’m so happy for you,” I state.
“We’re getting married in fifty days. The day after his divorce is final,” she sighs, as though she’s the happiest person in the world.
I can’t deny that all I see are red flags flashing at what’s happened with her. They met, had an affair, he left his wife, and now they’re going to get married immediately. Something doesn’t sound right, but she wouldn’t believe me if I mentioned it. So, maybe it’s the wrong thing to do, but I decide to support her as any friend would.
“Tell me when and where and I’ll be there,” I state.
“Its just at the courthouse, but I’ll let you know. I just had to tell you. I knew you’d be happy for me,” she says.
“Is someone not happy for you?” I ask curiously.
She sighs. “My mom. She’s pissed. She thinks I’m rushing, and she refuses to accept it or acknowledge the wedding, or Thomas.”
“She’ll come around,” I murmur. She says she has to go but she’ll let me know when she has a date and time. I tell her congratulations again before I end the call.
Turning to a very curious looking Loretta, I tell her the dilemma. “You’re a good friend, Jessa, but I can understand why you’re concerned. It seems fishy,” she states.
We don’t get to continue the conversation as Caitlyn and Marshall both walk into the living room. Caitlyn’s eyes scan me before she lifts her chin slightly and turns her body away from mine. Loretta takes my hand and gives it a squeeze.
The doorbell rings as we gather downstairs and Cole’s feet stumble on the last couple of stairs. “Do not fucking answer that,” he practically shouts as he rushes past us.
I watch as he opens the front door and then I gasp in horror. She’s back. My mother is back and she’s standing right there in front of Cole’s entire family. I feel light headed after what happened earlier this morning. I press my chest against Cole’s back, and wrap my hand around his waist, for stability.
“You aren’t here,” Cole growls.
She blinks and runs her fingers through her greasy hair. “I’m here. That little whore needs to come with me. There’s someone just itching to take his frustrations out on her. The game is over. This morning was a warning, but I’m done fucking around now,” she sneers.
“Call the police, now,” Marshall father grunts to Loretta.
My head snaps to her, and I watch as she brings her phone to her ear and walks away as she talks to someone.
“You need to leave my property, immediately. Jessa isn’t going with you. She’s an eighteen-year-old woman,” Cole states.
Stephanie snorts. “She doesn’t know what she wants. She owes them all, and Trent owes me. I tried to warn her but she didn’t listen. She never listens. It’s time,” she says as she looks behind her, then back at Cole.
“What’s he promised you?” Cole asks.
She straightens her spine. “Five hundred dollars.”
Cole’s father bursts out into laughter. “Five… Five… Hundred dollars,” he says between his laughter. I watch as he wipes a tear away from the corner of his eye. “This fucking bitch,” he chuckles.
My mother takes a step toward us and Cole stiffens even more. “It’s time, Jessa. Give up and just come with me,” she says her eyes wide and dancing around. She looks high. “You don’t come with me, they’ll hurt me,” she whispers.
“I didn’t make a deal with the devil, you did,” I state peeking my head out from around Cole’s strong frame.
I wait for my mother to say something else, but her voice is cut off by the two police cars that pull up to the curb. Cole and I both fill out a police report, a complaint about her stalking and harassing me.
They advise that I go down to the station tomorrow to complete the report against her. I watch as they wrap handcuffs around her wrists and lower her into a police car, driving away with her in the back. I think that I should feel guilty for allowing her to be taken away in cuffs, and taken to jail. I don’t though. I feel relieved.
“Now I’m beyond hungry,” Marshall grumbles.
“Well, by all means, lets get you fed,” Loretta murmurs, rolling her eyes.
I stay behind, as does Cole. “You okay?” he asks.
“All of that just happened in front of your parents, didn’t it?” I whisper.
Cole wraps his hand around the side of my neck and presses his forehead to mine. “It did, and now she’s gone.”
“Do you think it’s over?” I breathe.
He presses his lips to the tip of my nose. “For tonight. Now let’s go eat.” He tugs on my hand, but I don’t move. I’m frozen to my spot, humiliated and worried about what his family must think. “Baby, if you give that woman any more headspace, they’ve won. My family doesn’t care about her. They know she’s crazy. Now, lets go.”
We take Marshall’s pickup truck, since it isn’t lifted as high as Cole’s. I’m grateful that I don’t have to try and climb inside of that massive thing in this short dress.
Unfortunately, I have to sit in the middle of the backseat between Caitlyn and Cole. She’s like complete ice next to me. I wonder if she’ll ever even attempt to get to know me, or if we’ll end up sister-in-law’s one day, and she’ll still hate me.
JESSA
WALKING INTO THE steakhouse, I can understand why Marshall would hold off eating lunch before coming here, just based off of the smell alone. My mouth waters as soon as we open the front doors. Cole tells the hostess that there will be five of us, and she seats us immediately.
Before I’m even fully seated, Cole’s father orders two appetizers—something called The Stack and an order of cornbread. Cole laughs beside me as they order drinks, and when I’m asked what I would like from the bar, I shake my head and only order water.
“Do you drink anything aside from water?” Caitlyn asks on a sneer.
“Cut the shit, Caity. You don’t talk unless you have something that isn’t bitchy to say,” Cole states.
I widen my eyes as I look to his parents. Loretta bites her bottom lip and Marshall lifts his chin to his son.
“Let’s order and then we have some stuff to talk about, as a family,” Cole announces as he picks up his menu.
I do the same, holding my menu up and looking at the options. My eyes widen when I see the prices.
“Order whatever you want, baby,” Cole whispers against the side of my neck.
“How’d you know?” I ask.
He chuckles, his voice low and a little raspy. “I know my girl,” he grunts. “Ever have a filet before? They make a great one here. Caitlyn always orders it,” he murmurs.
My eyes widen, and I turn to him. “No way, Cole, no way,” I whisper. The filet is forty dollars. No way could I order that.
Cole shakes his head and plucks the menu from my hand. “You’re having it, baby. I’ll order for you,” he chuckles.
The waiter arrives, and when it’s my turn, Cole cuts me off as soon as I open my mouth. He orders me a Filet, medium rare, a Caesar salad, steamed vegetables and an order of mashed potatoes. When the waiter leaves, I turn to him, but he completely ignores me and starts to speak about his day.
“The head coach for University of Oregon called me first,” he states. I gasp at his words. “He told me I was swinging my dick out in
the wind on this. That I could get fired. He also said I could possibly become blackballed. That other colleges would refuse to hire me, being a whistleblower and all,” he announces.
My hand grabs his thigh under the table, and I squeeze it. He covers my hand with his warm, strong one, and gives me a gentle squeeze of his own.
“What now?” Loretta asks.
Cole shakes his head. “The media will find out soon, but the head coach and the athletic department in Oregon have already filed an inquiry and are demanding testing of the entire team before game day. Shit will probably blow up tomorrow; and when I say that, expect ESPN camera crews surrounding the school and possibly my house,” Cole states.
“You did the right thing, no matter what happens,” Loretta states with a nod.
Our food arrives a few minutes later. Though it smells divine, I’m not sure my nervous stomach can handle it.
“Jessa,” Cole whispers. I turn my head to look into his eyes, and I shake.
“This is all my fault, all of it,” I say as tears well up in my eyes.
Pushing away from my chair, I run to the bathroom, not looking back and ignoring Cole’s voice behind me. I make my way into the bathroom, and I’m lucky there’s a lounge with a sofa. Collapsing on the soft material, I bury my face in my hands.
“Jessa,” a voice whispers next to me. I lift my eyes to see Caitlyn sitting next to me. I expect to see her eyes narrowed, but they’re open and almost sad as they take me in. “You really love him and you’re truly worried, aren’t you?” she asks.
I want to scream duh in her face, but I don’t. I just nod and try to wipe the tears from my cheeks.
“You think this is all your fault because why? Because you dated one of the players in question?” she asks, tilting her head to the side.
I shrug, not sure what to say. When she puts it like that, it sounds stupid to blame myself. “Did you give your ex the dope? Did you make the staff at the university ignore the fact that their players were not only breaking the rules, but also the law?” she asks.
“No,” I whisper, shaking my head.
She grins. “You can’t blame yourself for people doing the wrong thing. You have no control over other humans, only yourself. I see it now, how much you love my brother and how much he loves you. I don’t want to believe that he could fall for some eighteen-year-old. It has nothing to do with you, and everything to do with me. If my brother, who is almost forty, is dating an eighteen-year-old, who does that leave for me to date?”
“Are you serious?” I ask, widening my eyes. She just smirks at me and gives me a small nod. “You’re beautiful, Caitlyn; especially when you remove your scowl,” I blurt out. Instantly, I cover my mouth.
She throws back her head laughing before she shakes her head once. “Thanks. Now let’s go back out there. My favorite part of visiting my brother is the filet they make here, and it’s getting cold,” she grins.
We stand together, and she takes my hand in hers, giving it a squeeze. “We’re cool, right?” she admits.
I smile and turn my head to her. “Yeah, we’re cool,” I murmur. She smiles as well. We walk toward the table, and I watch as Cole, Loretta, and Marshall look at us, all slack jawed. Then they all slowly smile. Nothing else is mentioned as we sit down to eat.
“You okay, baby?” Cole whispers against my ear.
“I am. It’s just this whole situation is scary,” I admit. “I’ve had a pretty crazy day.”
Cole wraps his hand around the top of my thigh and he gives me a squeeze. “I know, Jessa. I got you, though. Don’t worry about a fucking thing,” he practically growls.
We spend the rest of the evening talking about a million different things, none of which is what will happen once the media finds out, or if Cole will keep or lose his job. Though, looking at his family, I come to the conclusion that they don’t care.
Cole did the right thing, and that’s all that matters. They seem like the kind of people who take one day and one situation at a time. I’m glad that nobody brings up my mother, though. I just want to forget that entire insane scenario even happened.
If Cole loses his job, then he’ll figure out what he’s going to do next. He’s not going to stress about it too much right now. I like that. It makes me feel as though he has everything under control, and maybe he has a plan in place that I don’t know about yet. Even if he doesn’t, I trust him. I believe him when he says he’ll take care of me and protect me.
COLE
ROLLING AGAINST JESSA’S side, I let my fingers trail down her bare back until I reach the crack of her gorgeous ass. Slipping my fingers through the center, I find her sweet back entrance and gently massage her there. She responds by lifting her hips and pushing against my hand.
I can smell her arousal, and there’s nothing more I want than to taste her. Without hesitation, I slide down her back, my lips skimming her skin the entire way down.
When I reach my destination, I wrap my hands around her hips and tug her gently toward my mouth before I bury my face in her sweet cunt. She’s warm from sleep, and her body is lethargic. On the third flick of her clit with my tongue, I know she fully wakes up. Her hips rear back and she lets out a long moan.
“Cole,” she whimpers.
I grab her ass and spread her apart as I completely devour her. I eat her like the starving man that I am; and when she comes on my tongue, her entire body vibrates against me. She’s still whimpering when I pull my mouth away, kissing the inside of her thigh before I lift to my knees.
Jessa tries to climb to her elbows and knees, but I don’t allow her. With one hand on her hip, and the other on her back, I push her back down, my thighs straddling hers. Then I align my cock with her pussy and slowly slide in.
“Close your legs tighter, baby,” I gently instruct, one of my hands slipping up her spine until it’s buried in her hair.
She’s wrapped around my dick so fucking tight that I groan. Her pussy is still pulsing from her release, which makes me want to come instantly. Holding off, I murmur for her to slip her hand between her legs and touch her already sensitive clit.
“I can’t, Cole. It’s too much,” she whimpers as she does exactly what I ask.
Chuckling, I slowly fuck her. She moans with each stroke of my cock, and I watch the muscles move in her arm as she touches herself.
Tugging her head back, I turn her neck and look into her eyes. They’re half-mast, and her mouth is parted slightly. She looks like absolute perfection.
“You’re mine, Jessa. No matter what happens in the next few weeks, that will never change,” I grunt breathlessly.
“Honey,” she exhales, before she starts to pant. “I’m so close.”
“Come all over me, sweet baby,” I grin.
With a gasp, I feel her pussy contract around me, and that’s when I rear back and fuck her hard. It doesn’t take much, just a few thrusts until I feel my balls draw up and that familiar tingle in my lower back.
I drop my head, my fingers still tight in Jessa’s hair, and with my eyes focused on hers, I come. It’s long and hard. Her mouth drops open a little further, an invitation I can’t resist. Lowering my head and chest, I press my mouth against hers and slip my tongue into her warmth, tasting her with a long, wet kiss.
“Honey,” she whispers when I lift my head.
I stay planted inside of her, shifting so that I’m lying against her back, probably smashing her. Right now, I need to feel her close to me, her back moving up and down with her breath. “Today, shit will hit the fan,” I announce.
“I know,” she whispers. “And I’ll be right at your side. I’m all caught up in my classes, and they’re just study sessions for mid-terms,” she murmurs. She lifts her free arm to wrap around the back of my neck.
My nose skims up the sides of her neck before I pull out of her and roll to the side. Without skipping a beat, I pull her against my body, wrapping my arms around her and pressing my lips to her forehead.
“It’s proba
bly for the best, baby. It very well could be a shit storm of epic proportions today. But how about you stay here with my parents? I’d like to keep you away from whatever circus is waiting for me.”
“Okay,” she breathes as she lifts her chin and skims my jaw with her soft lips.
Without another word, I stand up and pull her along with me. We shower together. I don’t fuck her again, but I do make her come on my fingers, and I watch in fascination as she does. When her hand wraps around my cock, I gently tug her off and shake my head.
“When I come home tonight, after whatever happens happens, I want your sweet lips wrapped around my cock. I want to come down your hot throat. Can you do that for me, baby?”
I feel her body shiver slightly, and then she looks up at me, looks up at me as though I’m some kind of hero, and she nods. “I can do that for you, Cole,” she whispers as she presses her wet lips against mine.
I dress in a pair of dark wash jeans and a school logo polo shirt, combing my wet hair back before I brush my teeth. Jessa disappears into the closet, and when I’m finished and ready, she appears again, wearing a pair of tight leggings and one of my old Huskers t-shirts. Her hair is wet and combed down her back, her face bare of makeup, and it hits me like a fucking freight train.
She’s mine.
I’ve been saying the words to her and to myself, maybe as a way to convince myself that it was all true. But right now, standing in my shirt, in my house—our house—it’s a reality. She’s all mine, one hundred percent, and I fucking love her.
Pressing my lips to her nose, I ask her to see me out the back, and she does without protest. It’s early, so the rest of the house is asleep, save for maybe my father, who is probably out for a run. Once we reach the backdoor, I cup Jessa’s cheek and I skim my nose down the side of hers.
“Stay safe today, baby. If anything happens, if anything bothers you, call me, yeah?”
“Yeah,” she whispers with a nod. I press my lips to hers in a gentle kiss before I walk out of the kitchen and toward my truck.
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