by J. Daniels
And it’s crispy bacon. Son of a bitch.
“Mmm. This is really good. Why don’t you stop being stubborn and get your sweet ass over here and join me?”
I snap my head around and glare at him. “And why don’t you stop being a creeper and eat breakfast at your own house. You can’t honestly tell me that you’re here just to raid your mom’s refrigerator.”
His lips curl up into a half smile. That cockiness pouring out of him that I want to not find attractive. “No, I can’t. And you can’t honestly tell me that you aren’t at least a little happy to see me. Especially since I cooked your favorite food.” He takes another bite of his bacon strip, smiling arrogantly. “Remember how mad you used to get when I’d steal pieces off your plate?”
I throw the remote down and stalk over toward the island, seeing him lean back in his chair at my irritated expression.
He wants to talk memories? Let’s talk memories.
“No, I don’t remember that. What I do remember is you calling me a cannibal, since I liked to eat my own kind.”
His confidence quickly vanishes from his face, and he seems regretful now. Although, I’m not sure if he is regretting walking down memory lane or coming over here in the first place.
“It was kind of hard to enjoy my favorite food when assholes like you didn’t let me forget how heavy I was. I went a couple days without eating one time because of shit you said to me. Did you know that?”
He drops his gaze from my face to the floor. “No, I didn’t know that.” He looks up again, begging me with his eyes. For forgiveness? For a pass on everything he’s ever said to me? Fat chance. “I had no idea I got to you like that. I was a kid, Mia. I didn’t really care about hurting your feelings back then. But Christ, it’s been nine years. I’m not that guy anymore.” He reaches out to stroke my arm but I back away before he can touch me.
I don’t want his hands on me. I know exactly how much I’ll like it.
His eyes shift and that mischievous glare of his that I am becoming familiar with, hits me. “You seemed to enjoy the guy I am now the other night. If I remember correctly, you enjoyed me five times.”
“Wow. You just totally proved my point.” I grab a handful of bacon and meet his confused gaze.
“What point is that?”
I glower at him before turning on my heel and walking back toward my bedroom. “That you’re still an asshole,” I yell over my shoulder.
Upon hearing the sound of the stool scraping again, I slam my door and lock it, backing away as the footsteps in the hallway grow louder.
They stop right outside my room and the doorknob rattles.
“Mia, come on. Just sit and eat some breakfast with me.”
I sit on the edge of my bed and begin crunching on a piece of bacon. “Can you not take a hint? I’m not interested in eating or doing anything with you.” I take another bite and hear some movement on the other side of the door.
He needs to leave. I really don’t want to spend the entire day cooped up in my bedroom. And there is no chance in hell that I am slipping into my bikini in front of him again. Not after the lustful way he looked at me in it yesterday. I can’t handle him looking at me like that again. Like he wants to eat me alive. Like he knows exactly what is underneath my bikini and exactly what to do with it.
“I’m persistent.”
I look up at the door, imagining him standing on the other side. “What?”
The sound of a throat clearing comes before he speaks. “I’m a persistent guy. If you ask me to leave, I’ll leave, but that’s not going to stop me from trying to be around you.”
Neither of us speaks for what feels like hours.
I don’t want to like the idea of being pursued by Ben. My brain wants to hit him with some sort of stalker charge while my vagina wants to put him on lockdown for the summer.
“So, do you want me to leave?” he asks, and I can hear the anxiety in his voice. As if he already knows the answer to his question but is praying, by some miracle, he’s way off.
“Yes,” I quickly reply, without any indecision. I know if I allow myself time to think it over, my desire for a Ben-style orgasm will overpower any and all rational thought.
He doesn’t say anything else before the sound of his footsteps fade into the distance.
After I hear the sliding glass door close, I fall back onto my bed.
Tessa had assured me that I wouldn’t have to see much of her brother when I planned this trip, but that guarantee seems to be a distant memory now. I could be waking up every morning to the smell of Ben cooking breakfast if he decided to show me just how persistent he could be. I’m afraid to admit that a part of me doesn’t hate the possibility of that type of wake up call.
And it has nothing to do with the bacon.
I’VE NEVER JERKED off this much in my life.
If my dick doesn’t fall off soon due to the rough treatment it’s been getting, I’ll be shocked. I can’t get her out of my head. Her lips. Her ass. Her fucking breasts. Every time I think I’m making progress, an image pops into my head or the memory of her noises fill my ears. Those fucking noises she made when I was inside her. When I licked her pussy. When I pulled her hair. I need to hear them again and I need to hear them soon. But she wants nothing to do with me. She hates me, and I can’t say I blame her. I was a complete shit to her when we were younger. I made fun of her a lot. All the time, actually. But all guys are dickheads at that age. She has to know that. I’m not that same guy anymore, and she’s definitely not that same girl.
And we fucking shared something, God damn it. She had to have felt it.
I had to see her yesterday, if only for a few minutes. I couldn’t sleep anyway, so I figured I’d make us both some breakfast. Mia used to eat breakfast with us all the time, so I knew what she liked. I thought I could at least enjoy her company for an hour while she sat and ate next to me, but no. Apparently, I was a bigger asshole to her than I remembered. The thought of her starving herself over some dumbass comment I made, infuriated me. She is holding on to a deeper hatred toward me than I realized. But her pushing me away isn’t going to stop me. I’m drawn to her, and not just because I want to be buried deep inside her at all times. It feels right being around her. Just fucking right. I want her. All of her. And I can be one relentless bastard when it comes to getting what I want. At least now, she is aware of that.
My phone beeps on my nightstand and I grab it with my free hand, taking the other off my dick. It’s a good thing, actually. I’m about to rub myself raw if I don’t get a fucking grip. Other than the one I’ve had for the last hour.
Luke: Everyone’s going down to Rocky Point today. You in?
Luke is my best friend and has been since we met in the Academy. I’d usually be all for going to Rocky Point for the day with him. But I’m exhausted from another sleepless night of sexual activity, this time self-inflicted.
Me: Pass. I’m fucking exhausted.
Luke: Are you sure? I hear there’s some hot piece of ass staying with your sister and they’ll both be there. You know anything about that?
Fuck sleep.
Me: I’ll meet you there. And don’t call her that again.
Well, now my mind is made up. It really didn’t take much persuasion on Luke’s part. Or any at all. Where Mia goes, I’m going.
I hop out of bed and begin rummaging through my drawers for my swim trunks. I don’t care that she most likely won’t want me there. I am fucking going.
My phone beeps again as I’m walking out the door to my truck.
Tessa: I must be delusional for giving you this information, or maybe I just have a soft spot for my big brother. We’re headed to Rocky Point today, and I think you should be there. I don’t think she’ll hate you forever, Ben. But if you make her cry, I’ll feed your dick to the gators.
Me: I’m already on my way. Don’t tell her I’m coming.
Tessa: Do you think I have a death wish?
She can’t hate me fo
rever. I’ll spend the rest of my life proving myself to her if I have to. I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I’ve done things that I regret. But what Mia and I shared two nights ago, wasn’t one of them.
I just need to somehow make her see that for herself.
I don’t see Tessa or Mia’s car when I park in the grass at Rocky Point. And I’m happy about that. I want to beat them here, that way Mia doesn’t get to do anything without me. Even though I probably don’t deserve it, I want all of her time. I am a greedy bastard when it comes to her and I’m not ashamed of it. I want everything.
Every smile, every orgasm, every fucking noise that comes out of that pretty mouth. And I’ll need as much time as she’ll give me if I’m going to make up for being such a shit to her when we were younger. She isn’t going to easily let go of all the hate she has stored up for me. That hate runs deep.
Luke is seated at a picnic table with Reed, a friend of Tessa’s. I walk over to them, throwing my stuff down on the bench and keeping my eyes out for a familiar vehicle.
“Why do you have two towels, man?” Luke asks as he searches through my stuff. “Oh wait, does this have anything to do with that hot piece of ass?”
I pick up my towels and move them out of his reach. “What the fuck did I say about calling her that? Her name’s Mia, and that’s what you’ll call her. Nothing else. Got it?”
He holds his hand up, leaning away from me. “Sorry. Jesus.”
I take a deep breath and let it out slowly.
I need to calm the hell down. I’ve never felt this anxious about seeing someone before. And for fuck’s sake, I just saw her yesterday.
I scan the line of cars that head down the dirt path. No sign of them yet.
“This is the girl that used to live here, right?” Reed asks, moving off the bench to stand.
“Yeah,” I reply, not prying my eyes from the vehicles. “She moved to Georgia a while back and is here for the summer.”
I still can’t believe it myself. This is the same girl that used to have sleepovers every weekend at my house with Tessa. I’d fucking kill for a sleepover with her now.
A red Jeep comes up over the small hill, and I suddenly find it difficult to take in a deep breath.
“I’ll be right back,” I choke out with a shaky voice. Get it the fuck together, Kelly.
“Fuck that. I’m coming with you,” Luke states, getting to his feet.
We both walk toward the Jeep as it pulls in between two other cars. As soon as Mia locks on to me through the windshield, her jaw drops open and those chocolate brown eyes widen. I can see her hands tightening on the wheel as she leans over, saying something to Tessa with a tight jaw.
“She looks thrilled to see you.” Luke laughs before walking over to Tessa’s door.
I ignore him and the look Mia is giving me and open her door for her. “Hey. I’m really glad you came.”
I feel calmer now, but my heart is still beating like I’ve just taken a shot of adrenaline. She is in a tank top, her bikini straps poking out, and tiny white shorts that barely cover the legs I want to be buried between. I pry my eyes off her lap to give her a smile.
“Someone failed to mention that you’d be here.” She ignores the hand I hold out for her and steps out of her Jeep, pulling the seat back to get her bag.
I close the door and move to walk next to her. “I warned you of my persistence. This just proves that I’m a man of my word. If I find out you’re going to be somewhere, there’s a pretty damn good possibility that I’m going to show up.”
She tries to ignore my comment, but I don’t miss the way her cheeks flush at my vow. That has to mean something. Her mind, and its memories of the guy I used to be, might hate me, but her body doesn’t seem to.
I take the duffle bag off her shoulder without a fight, slipping it on my arm. “I brought you a towel in case you needed one.”
She stops in her tracks, causing me to double back. “I don’t need you to do things for me, Ben. I don’t need you bringing me towels and carrying my bags.” She reaches for her bag but I step back.
Fuck that. I’m carrying her bag.
“Fine. Whatever. But just know that this nice act doesn’t wipe out all the shitty things you’ve done to me.” She steps closer, brushing her body against mine.
I freeze, completely unprepared for this type of contact from her.
She tilts her head up and looks into my eyes while I use every ounce of strength in me to keep myself from getting hard. “That shit is still very raw. And no amount of bag carrying is going to make me forget it.”
I watch her ass as she walks away, realizing now that I’m going to need to step up my game to knock down the walls she’s building up around her. Which is fine. I’m all for a challenge. Especially one where getting close to Mia is the reward.
By the time I reach the rest of the group, Mia is talking to Reed while Luke and Tessa dive into the reservoir.
I place her bag on the bench, bunching up the beach towel I brought for her and stuffing it into her duffle. I walk up to the two of them, drifting in on their conversation and not giving a shit if I’m interrupting anything.
“You wanna get in the water with me, Mia?” I ask, pulling off my T-shirt and tossing it onto the bench.
I don’t miss the way her eyes run down my body, and mine do the same to hers once she pulls off her top and slides down her shorts.
Christ, she is breathtaking. I can’t get enough of her long, dark hair and the way it frames the delicate features of her face. That face—I can’t get it out of my head. Deep brown eyes and full lips that’ll form a knock-you-on-your-ass smile if you’re lucky to see it. Then there’s the curve of her breasts. Her tiny waist that leads to those hips that sway with each step she takes. Her perky ass and those never ending toned legs I want wrapped around me at all times. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in my life.
She glances from Reed to me, not taking nearly as long to look at Reed as he shrugs off his shirt. “I want to get in the water,” she replies curtly. She leaves off the “with you” part, but that’s fine. I watch as she dives into the reservoir and I don’t take long to jump in after her.
The water is warm as it always is, but too cloudy to see her swimming ahead of me. Luke and Tessa have climbed up onto one of the floating piers and are talking closely, but Mia doesn’t seem to be headed for the pier. She’s headed for the cliffs. I know for a fact that she was always too scared to jump off of them when she was younger. I did it a lot, and it scared the shit out of me every time.
It’s high, really high, and I’m not about to let her do it alone.
I swim faster, pushing myself to get up next to her, and within a few strokes, I succeed. We both reach the rock ledge at the same time, and she looks at me once she wipes her eyes. I smile at her and I swear I see the slightest twitch in those perfect lips of hers, but I can’t be sure. She struggles to pull herself up onto the rock, slipping every time and falling back into the water.
My girl needs my help and I’m going to give it to her.
I quickly climb up onto the rock, staring down at her and offering my hands. “Come on, pretty girl. Let me help you up.”
“I don’t need your help.” She continues struggling, each attempt making her more exhausted. “There should be a freaking ladder here or something,” she scoffs under her breath, and I have to resist the smile that’s tugging at my mouth.
“Do you want to jump off the cliffs or not?” She looks up at me and shrugs once. “Give me your hands. I promise I won’t bite.” I smirk at her and she catches it, rolling her eyes. “Unless you want me to.”
“Funny.” She grabs my one hand and I motion for her to grab my other. She does, not before giving me an annoyed look, and I easily lift her out of the water and stand her up next to me. “Thank you.” Her hands leave mine instantly and she looks up into my eyes. And fuck, I want to kiss her, right here. And I would if I didn’t think she’d cut my nuts off if I tried.
“You’re welcome.” I place my hand on her lower back, moving her toward the rocks ahead. We have a ways to climb to get to the top and she will definitely be making that trek in front of me. “Go on. I’ll be right behind you.”
“Try not to stare at my ass too much.”
Damn. Is she flirting with me?
I catch the smile she is trying to hide from me and I decide to give her one better. “Oh, I don’t need to stare, baby. I memorized every inch of your body the other night.”
She flicks her head back and spots my grin, her hands braced on the rocks above her. “Where’s my birthmark?” she asks, challenging me. There’s zero playfulness to her tone. She’s testing my knowledge of her body, and by the look on her face right now, she thinks she’s got me beat. But I fucking own that body and know it better than she does.
“On the inside of your right thigh. It sort of looks like a peanut.”
She opens her mouth to speak, but closes it before turning back around. “Lucky guess.”
I laugh and nudge her with a hand on her calf. She begins to move faster. “Luck has nothing to do with it. Fate, maybe. Putting us both in that bar the other night was more than some coincidence. But knowing that you like to watch me eat your pussy, or that you have to be digging your nails into something when you’re coming, has absolutely nothing to do with luck.” She glances over her shoulder at me with a staggered look. “I pay attention to every little thing about you.”
She doesn’t linger on my face, nor does she give me a response. But I think I may have impressed her. Maybe. Mia’s difficult to read lately. She’s definitely not sending me clear signals like she did the other night at the bar.
She turns her attention back to the rocks above her and makes her way up the side of the cliff.
I’m close behind her, keeping an eye on her footing in case she slips and I have to catch her.
We make it to the top and she moves to the edge, apprehensively glancing down. “Holy shit.” Her wide eyes blink rapidly and she turns them on me. “This is really high. It didn’t look that high from down there.”