No Bad Days

by J. Sterling

  “You feel amazing. You’re so perfect,” he mumbled against my neck, pressing his lips to my skin after each declaration.

  “You feel so good too. Don’t stop.” I moaned, my lips parting as his mouth neared. When his tongue entered my mouth, I squeezed my eyes shut at the touch, the taste, the sensation overload.

  His hips moved faster, pushing and pulling in and out of me, and I sensed he was close. I lifted my hips and rubbed against him as he moved, each thrust hitting that perfect spot in me.

  My own orgasm started to build, and I knew it wouldn’t be much longer for me either. Two more pumps and I arched my back, pleasure ripping through every part of me until I trembled with the aftermath, and realized that Nick had almost slowed to a stop. I opened my eyes to find him watching me, his mouth open slightly.

  “You’re so fucking gorgeous, Jess. Everything about you.”

  Nick leaned down and claimed my mouth with his, nibbling on my bottom lip. He kissed me like he owned me as he began moving inside me once more. It all felt so good, like he was made just for me.

  His body tensed and then quaked and jerked as he came inside me. Between my legs, I felt him pulse and throb as I continued to rock gently against him. He sucked in a breath and collapsed on top of me, the weight of his body almost too much, and I let out a quick oomph.

  “You okay?”

  “No,” I huffed out. “I’m dead.”

  He pushed up onto his elbows and pressed his lips to mine. “That was amazing.”

  I nodded in complete agreement.

  It was. It was so much more than amazing, but I couldn’t find another word.

  “I had planned on waiting until formal, but something about tonight just seemed right.” His breathing still erratic, he moved off of me and lay on his back, peeling the condom off and then disposing of it in a trash can next to the bed.

  “Tonight was perfect.” I lay my head on his chest and listened to the sound of his heartbeat as he ran his fingers through my hair.

  “You’re not mad we didn’t wait?” His body tensed as he pulled back to look at me.

  I tilted my head. “Yes. I’m really upset that you just gave me the best sex of my life. Horribly upset.”

  “The best sex of your life?”

  “I just want you to feel good about yourself,” I said with a laugh as I came down from my post-sex high.

  “I have you in my arms. I feel fucking great about me.”

  My heart grew two sizes bigger in that moment. Because . . . Nick Fisher. I knew that nothing would ever be the same again.

  Formal

  Jess

  Nick and I had definitely grown closer since having sex. As much as most people tried to claim that it didn’t change anything, I knew with complete certainty now that they were full of shit.

  Having sex changed everything.

  It made my feelings for Nick grow tenfold. There was something vulnerable about being completely naked with another person and letting them inside you. We had connected in the most intimate of ways that you could never take back. It was as if we had a secret bond, an invisible string that tethered us to each other, and only grew stronger.

  I knew I cared about Nick before having sex with him, but now it all felt like so much more. Sex with him made my emotions swell. And everyone seemed to know the minute it happened between us, like I’d sprouted a giant flashing neon sign on my forehead that read I Gave It up to Nick Fisher.

  Maybe it was the way he held me now . . . tighter.

  Or the way we stood when we were around each other . . . closer.

  Everything between us was simply . . . intensified.

  There was more affection, more touching, more intimacy in every interaction. We gave our own selves away without even trying.

  I was falling in love with him, even though I wasn’t sure that I should. My mind cautioned me to slow down whenever Nick came near, but my heart sped up at the sight of him. My mind flashed warning signals with his touch, but my heart grew wings and flapped like a wild bird begging for more. My mind sounded alarms anytime it thought I might be falling too fast, but my heart tumbled over the edge without question.

  That was the thing about falling in love—it couldn’t really be helped or stopped. It wasn’t like my mind could talk itself out of the things that my heart decided to beat for. And it had definitely started beating for Nick Fisher.

  I liked the way it felt. If my heart wanted to fall in love with him, I was going to let it, my mind be damned.

  The only formal affair I’d ever attended was my senior prom, and even though Rachel had filled me in, I still had no idea what to expect when it came to a fraternity formal. Thank God she was going to be there with Trevor; at least I’d know someone other than Nick at this event.

  Nick told me that most of the guys brought girls from sororities as their dates, so there wouldn’t be a lot of non-Greeks there. Remembering what Rachel had said, I hoped that the night wouldn’t be awkward or uncomfortable. It was hard enough being Nick’s girlfriend sometimes; I didn’t need the extra crap from girls I didn’t know at my first formal event on Nick’s arm.

  First? Wishful thinking, Jess.

  We arrived at the hotel and checked into our room. Nick had booked a suite for a group of us, so it was party central in our place. I didn’t mind, but I had thought that we’d get some alone time together. Now I wasn’t sure that was even a possibility with the current state of the place.

  “This place is awesome!” Rachel shouted from the full-sized bar in the corner of the room as she poured some shots.

  “So does everyone get ready in here?” I asked as I surveyed the number of people in our room.

  Nick leaned toward me, his lips close to my ear. “Yes, Miss Michaelson, but we have our own bathroom. You won’t have to share with anyone unless you want to.”

  I smiled at the way he seemed to think of the small details before I had even considered them. Nick’s thoughtfulness was something that made me feel special.

  “Except for me. You have to share with me.” He winked before wrapping a strong arm around me. “And after we get changed, we’ll take pictures and head out.”

  “Take pictures?” I asked, getting lost momentarily in the depths of his blue eyes.

  “Hell yeah. If you think I’m not documenting this evening, you’re crazy,” he said before planting a kiss on my forehead. “Go get ready.” He smacked my ass and sent me in the direction of our room.

  “Rachel, come get ready with me,” I yelled over the music that was now blaring from someone’s travel speaker.

  “Be there in a minute,” she shouted back, then downed another shot.

  Rachel and I took over the bedroom and hogged the bathroom, forcing Nick to change in another bedroom with Trevor. Rachel helped curl my hair into beach-like waves that fell loose over my shoulders, but her normally wavy long dark hair had been straightened.

  I had to smile at the sight of us in the bathroom mirror. Each of us had done the opposite of our normal styles. “Thanks so much for your help.”

  “Of course. Your hair looks pretty like this.” She reached for a few strands and ran her fingers through them, making the waves even looser.

  “My dress is in my room with Trevor. I’ll just change in there,” she said, and gave me a hug before walking away.

  Outside my room, I heard her tell Nick that he couldn’t go inside, that I wasn’t done yet and would come out when I was ready. I laughed to myself as I put the finishing touches on my makeup.

  The smoky eyeshadow made the blue in my eyes stand out even more, and the contouring I’d done on my face pronounced my usually undefined cheekbones. I finished the look with a practically nude lip and smiled at my reflection.

  Reaching for my dress hanging in the small closet, I pulled it off the hangar and stepped into the black-and-white fabric. The top was fitted, hugging every one of my curves until it reached my hips and flared out slightly, stopping short well above my knees.<
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  After one last spritz of hairspray, I headed toward the closed bedroom door and pulled it open. Nick happened to be standing right outside of it, and when he turned to face me, his jaw immediately fell open.

  “Jess.” He scanned me from head to toe. “You look beautiful.”

  My cheeks burned as I gave him a once-over, approving of his black-and-gray suit. “Thank you. You look gorgeous.” When my gaze settled on his dark hair, I said with a wink, “But I miss the hat.”

  “You do not. Do you really?”

  “Kinda.” I shrugged. Nick was hot as hell, but something about him in a baseball hat really worked for him.

  “Can I wear it? My hat?” He sounded almost timid, like I might yell at him for even suggesting such a thing.

  “I don’t care. Why not?”

  His face lit up like a little kid who’d just been told he could have a puppy.

  It was just a fraternity formal in college; it wasn’t like we were going to an event at the White House. Who cared if he wore a baseball hat or not? Certainly not me.

  “You’re the best damn girlfriend in the world,” he said before kissing my cheek and disappearing into our room. He walked back out a second later, wearing his black baseball hat turned backward.

  I smiled. “You look even hotter now.” And he did.

  “No other girl would ever let me wear a hat to formal. I fucking love you,” he said, and we both froze as his words sank in. “Y-you know what I mean.”

  I averted my eyes, pretending my heart hadn’t just soared out of my chest and was currently playing hopscotch in the clouds.

  “I know what you meant,” I said, biting my lip to keep the dopey smile off my face as I tried to rein my heart back down from the sky.

  Nick gathered our group and we headed downstairs. We took a ton of pictures in the courtyard of the hotel, surrounded by lush flowers and green shrubbery. I was secretly thrilled at the idea of having pictures like this with Nick. His arm was tight around my waist, pulling me close against him at all times.

  “Let’s eat,” Trevor announced in a loud voice, then reached for Rachel and tugged her toward the double doors.

  “Guess we’re done taking pictures,” Nick said with a laugh as he took my hand.

  The ballroom where the event was being held was decorated like for prom, but with less fanfare. A DJ was set up in one corner, spinning tunes in the background that were pretty low-key. The round tables were covered with dark blue cloths, with centerpieces of multiple ivory candles in various heights. The decor was elegant in its simplicity.

  Nick and I took our time wandering through. When we reached our table a few moments later, I was thankful to see Rachel and Trevor already seated, eating salads.

  “Guess he really was hungry,” I whispered to Nick, motioning toward Trevor.

  “Never stand between a man and his stomach.”

  “Good tip.”

  Nick pulled out a chair for me next to Rachel, and I smoothed the back of my dress as I sat down. “Thank you.”

  He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on the side of my head before sitting to my left and placing his napkin in his lap.

  Glancing around at the rest of our table, I might not have known anyone else by name, but I recognized the evil eye when I saw it. And boy, was I seeing it. The girl across the table kept staring at me through a narrowed gaze, her upper lip forming a snarl every so often. I would have bet money that I’d never seen her before now, but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a little unsettling.

  The last two empty seats at our table filled as my stomach instantly dropped. Carla Crawford, the girl Nick’s dad had asked him to take out, took the empty chair on the other side of Nick. I tried to control the pangs of jealousy that worked their way through me, but she was so striking that I couldn’t help but compare her long list of beautiful features to my much shorter one.

  Her naturally tanned arms enveloped Nick’s neck in a tight hug as her exotic almond-shaped eyes met mine over his shoulder. I tried to give her a small smile, but an evil grin appeared on her face before she touched the scruff on Nick’s jaw and leaned in toward him. Nick pulled away, removed her hand from his face, and then turned his back on her and his attention toward me.

  “I didn’t know she would be here. Sorry about that,” he said in a low voice.

  I softened, my jealousy flitting away as he leaned in to kiss my lips. My eyes closed at his touch, and everyone else in the room disappeared.

  “You okay?” Nick asked when he broke the kiss.

  I nodded. “I just think I might hate her,” I whispered, and he laughed.

  “No need,” he reassured me before forking a bite of Caesar salad and feeding it to me.

  “You two are gross,” Rachel said with a frown.

  I gave her the evil eye. “You’re gross,” I shot back like a five-year-old with no other response.

  She widened her eyes meaningfully and leaned toward me. “I’m not the one sitting here being fed by my boyfriend while the rest of the girls at the table plot my murder.”

  I choked on the anchovy dressing, or maybe it was Rachel’s words, but I reached for my water and gulped half of it down. “They are, right? It’s not just my imagination?”

  “Oh, they hate you. Since the moment you sat down,” she said with a nod.

  “Cool.”

  “I got your back.” She grabbed a butter knife and mimicked stabbing someone with it.

  I reached for the unsharpened knife and placed it on the table in front of her.

  “Let’s just leave that here,” I said as I patted the table.

  “I’m just saying. Don’t fuck with my girl is all.” Then she launched into a tirade of rapid Spanish.

  I assumed it was a tirade based on her tone of voice, but I had no idea what she was actually saying.

  Right after I ate the last bite of my grilled chicken, Nick hopped out of his chair like something bit him. He grabbed my hand so hard that it shocked me.

  “Dance with me,” he said before yanking me out onto the otherwise empty dance space.

  Whistles and hoots came from everyone before a few brave couples decided to join us, their bodies moving slowly with the music.

  “Are you okay? What was that?”

  “Carla grabbed my dick under the table,” he said against my ear.

  Enraged, I pulled back, my fists clenched. “She what?”

  I looked back, but her seat was empty. Scanning the rest of the space, I saw her at the opposite end of the ballroom and moved to head toward her, but Nick tugged at my hand, forcing me to a stop.

  “Don’t. She’s not worth it. And she’ll make your life hell. Trust me.”

  “That’s rude and disrespectful. Who does that?” I all but shouted at him, not wanting to create a scene, even though I was seething.

  “She’s just jealous.” Nick rolled his eyes and shrugged, downplaying it as if this sort of thing happened to him all the time.

  “Jealous? Of me?” I scoffed. “Does she own a mirror?”

  Nick’s hand cupped my cheek. “You’re a thousand times more beautiful than she is. In every way. Carla’s not a nice person, Jess, and she doesn’t like to lose. She’s not used to it.”

  His tone was so soothing, so calming, that I almost forgot the whole thing had just happened. Almost.

  “Don’t let another girl touch you like that. I don’t care who she is. Smack her hand. Do something.”

  “I did. I jumped up and reached for you,” he said, as if that was enough.

  Was it?

  Why did girls have to behave like this around my boyfriend? Why did girls behave like this at all?

  “This is so ridiculous,” I said, unable to hide my annoyance.

  He tilted my chin and leaned in, giving me a sweet, soft kiss. “Don’t let it ruin our night.”

  I melted with his touch and looked into his blue eyes. “I want to punch her in her stupid face.”

  He laughed. “I know you do.
And it’s adorable.”

  “It’s not adorable. It’s tough. And gangster. I’ll cut a bitch,” I said, trying to channel Rachel, but I sounded silly instead.

  Nick laughed again as he held me close, our bodies moving in perfect rhythm, not only to the music, but to each other. Even our breathing was perfectly timed. Nothing felt the same as it did when I was in Nick’s embrace.

  “I need a drink. You want something?” I asked, pulling out of his arms.

  He placed his hands on my shoulders to steady me. “I’ll get us drinks. You wait right here. What would you like?”

  I briefly considered a vodka with Red Bull, but cast that aside when I remembered Rachel once saying that everyone who drank that concoction ended up smelling like cedar chips from mouse cages. The last thing I wanted was to smell like a mouse cage for the rest of the night, so I opted for the next best thing.

  “I’ll just take a beer.” When Nick turned away, I called out, “A light beer!”

  “Such a girl,” he teased before walking away.

  “You’re just temporary, you know,” a shrill voice said, tearing a hole straight through my happy bubble.

  I turned to face Carla, who stood a few inches taller me and made sure I knew it by the way she looked down on me.

  “As opposed to what?” I shot back.

  She sneered. “As opposed to what I am.”

  I rolled my eyes, shifting my weight in an attempt to appear uninterested. “Which is?”

  “His future. Do you think for one second that his dad would let him end up with someone like you? A girl whose parents own a deli in the Valley?”

  She said the words deli and valley like they were laced with poison. I was fighting the urge to claw her fucking eyes out when it hit me that she’d done her research on me. Someone was obviously threatened, whether she acted like it or not.

  “Unlike you, I’m not trying to marry Nick.”

  She forced out a laugh. “It doesn’t matter, anyway. That would never happen. You won’t last, and you won’t be around for long. Nick will eventually get bored with a girl like you. If he’s not already.” She cast a glance in his direction. “And I’ll be right here waiting. I always get what I want, sweetheart,” she said with a small shrug and a smirk. “Always.”