Full Court Press

by Rose, Ashley

  “I’d like that too.”

  She smiled and dropped her forehead to his shoulder again. “I’m glad we agree, but I’m not letting us video tape our sex.”

  “Are you sure?” he asked, his hands lingering on her ass.

  “I’m sure.”

  “I think you could probably be persuaded to change your mind.”

  There was no point in denying it. “You’re probably right. You could get me to agree with it. But I would be very angry afterwards.” She kissed along until she found the right spot. “Very angry.” She sank her teeth into his shoulder and got the satisfaction of his body tensing under her. His muscles weren’t the only thing that responded.

  “What are you doing?” he asked, his hand now gripping her ass tightly.

  “Giving you a taste of your own medicine.” She licked and kissed the teeth marks she’d left.

  “God, do I look like a steak? When did I bite you?”

  She found another spot, closer to his neck. She kissed it softly before biting down roughly, getting another reaction from his body. This time it was accompanied with a moan.

  “It was a while ago, but I remember. Why? Do you have a problem with it?” She continued to kiss the bites.

  He took a moment and a couple steadying breaths to answer. “No problem. But if you get to mark me, I get to mark you.”

  “Have at it,” she offered, sliding down lower on his chest, kissing and sucking as she went.

  But he didn’t move to bite her. He kept perfectly still. “Since when do you have this much fun after sex?”

  “I told you we would since we skipped the foreplay.”

  “Oh yeah.”

  “Besides, I didn’t realize this was fun for you,” she teased. “Do you like a little pain with your pleasure?”

  He started to say something but had to pause when she ran the length of her tongue over his nipple. “I do, actually. But that doesn’t hurt. If you think those nice little puppy bites are gonna do something for me, you’re mistaken.”

  She frowned. “Are you saying I need to dial it up?”

  “I’m saying that I don’t think you’re capable of dialing it up.” His tone wasn’t teasing. He was serious. He didn’t think she could bring herself to do it. He was mistaken.

  She didn’t kiss before her next bite, just opened her mouth and bit down on the flesh around his nipple. Hard. Not as hard as she could have, but hard enough that his body arched toward her and his breath left his lungs in a surprised gasp.

  One hand tightened on her hip and the other used her hair to pull her head back from his skin. His lower half responded too. He pushed up off the bottom of the tub, pushing it against her stomach.

  She smiled and reached up to pull his hand from her hair, putting it down on her hip to mirror his other one.

  “What were you saying?” she asked.

  “Fuck,” he breathed.

  “Feel good?”

  “Hurts.”

  “In a good way?”

  “Fuck. Yes.”

  She kissed the nipple gently, soothing the reddening skin that surrounded it. Once she decided he had calmed down enough, she moved back up the other side of his neck. She repeated the process a few more times. A few more bite marks littered his shoulders and chest, and she was just going for the second nipple when the doorbell rang.

  He ignored it and urged her head down to the other nipple. She flicked it lightly with her tongue, enough to cause it to harden but then pulled away. “I think that’s enough for one night.”

  He frowned for a moment before nodding. “Fine.” He pulled her lips close for a quick kiss that didn’t end up being so quick.

  The doorbell rang again and they pulled apart.

  “I should get that,” he said. “Pizza’s here.”

  She slid off him and he hopped out of the tub. She couldn’t help but giggle when he went to wrap the towel around his waist, finding himself slightly impeded by his own excitement.

  He looked down at himself and frowned. “When did that happen?”

  She did her best to look innocent. He mercilessly wrapped the towel tightly around his hips, wincing slightly, before exiting the bathroom.

  They ate the pizza while watching a rerun of a Phoenix Suns’ game, last year’s championship. By the time it was done, it was midnight and they were both tired and ready to go to sleep. The king-size bed looked so inviting, too inviting. She stood over it, staring, as Beck finished up in the bathroom. She didn’t have time to think of the sleep situation before Beck walked in and flipped off the lights.

  “What are you waiting for?” he asked from behind her.

  “Nothing. It just looks so inviting.”

  “You look inviting,” he said, both hands cupped her ass while giving her a slight push.

  She let herself fall forward onto the bed and rolled over to look up at him. “You’re not hoping for another go, are you? ‘Cause I’m tired.”

  He shook his head. “No way. I just wanted to look at you for minute. You know, that outfit doesn’t cover a whole lot.” She’d put on one of the new lingerie sets he’d bought her when she’d gotten out of the bathtub, a pale blue baby doll set.

  “I wasn’t aware I had any reason to cover up my body.” She purposely let her legs fall to the side and open a bit.

  He grinned. “True.” He slid onto the bed with her, tossing half of the mountain of pillows onto the floor.

  She curled up on one side of the bed. It was warm enough in the room that she didn’t want to get under the covers, but she did snag a pillow and hug it to her chest. She had found herself cuddling pillows in her sleep. She wasn’t sure why, but it comforted her, and she couldn’t sleep without one now.

  Beck was on his back, one arm behind his head, also seeing no need to get under the covers.

  “Beck?”

  “Yeah?”

  “What’s the deal for tomorrow?”

  “We’re going, if that’s what you’re wondering. But I don’t really want to talk about it tonight.”

  “Right.” Stupid of her. They’d had a wonderful night and she’d brought up the saddest thing in his life. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

  “It’s all right. Just go to sleep.”

  She stayed silent for a moment but then scooted across the bed quickly to plant a kiss on his cheek. “Good night.”

  He closed his eyes for a moment while she returned to her side of the bed. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Carmondy woke in the morning with something prodding her lower back. She opened her eyes. She was lying on her side. Beck was behind her, not quite cuddling her. His hands held her hips in his sleep, and one knee split her thighs. His upper body wasn’t touching her though. She glanced over her shoulder and saw his head resting on the pillow behind her. He murmured in his sleep and pulled her hips against him.

  It was morning. He was a teenager. His erection was normal.

  She wasn’t really in the mood though. She was tired and just wanted to fall back asleep.

  Beck’s excitement prodding her back was making that impossible.

  The clock on the wall told her she had at least an hour before they needed to get up for the Sunday shoot-around.

  She tried to wiggle away without waking him up, but his hands tightened on her hips and kept her pinned.

  She twisted her torso she could look at him. “Beck?”

  He murmured again in his sleep, his leg pushing farther between hers.

  “Beck,” she said a little louder.

  His eyes blinked open slowly and he gazed at her. She could tell he was only half-awake. It took him a few more moments for his eyes to focus.

  “Carmondy?”

  She smiled at him.

  “Why are you awake?” He looked at the clock. “It’s early.”

  She glanced downwards, and he followed her gaze.

  “Fuck.” He released her and slid backwards. “Sorry. I didn’t mea
n to—”

  She rolled over to face him. “It’s okay. I don’t mind. I mean...I do mind. I’m not in the mood. But I know it’s natural. I just wanted to go back to sleep.”

  “Yeah.” He rolled onto his side so that his back was to her. “Go to sleep.”

  Suddenly she wasn’t tired anymore. He seemed in a bad mood all of a sudden. She scooted a little closer. “Beck?”

  “It’s early. Go back to sleep.”

  She touched his shoulder lightly. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to turn you down. Maybe later, when I’m more awake.”

  “It’s not that.”

  She propped herself up on her elbow, looking over his shoulder. “What is it then?”

  “Can you just drop it?”

  “No, I can’t. What’s wrong?”

  “Leave it alone, Carmondy.”

  “No.”

  Abruptly, he got out of bed and headed straight for the bathroom.

  “Beck? What are you doing?”

  “I won’t keep you awake. Just go to sleep.”

  She lay back and closed her eyes. She tried to go to sleep for a good minute and a half. Yeah, right. She got up and followed him into the bathroom. He had shut the door but not locked it, so she went in.

  He was in the shower stall. Steam had already filled the enclosed space and fogged up the glass door and walls.

  She could see enough of his body to see that he wasn’t showering. He just stood under the spray and didn’t move. Something was wrong. How could something be so wrong after the night before? She thought everything had been going great.

  She opened the door. “Can I join you?”

  He didn’t turn around, didn’t look at her. “What if I told you I needed some space?”

  “Then I’d respect that and leave you alone. But I’d still like to know what I did wrong.”

  “You did nothing wrong. I’m fine. I just need a second.”

  “Why? You were fine last night.”

  “Please, Carmondy.” His voice sounded pained. “I’m in a shitty mood. And when I’m in a bad mood, I’m an asshole.” He took a deep breath. “And I don’t like being mean to you.”

  She looked at his back for another moment before nodding. “Of course. Sorry. I’ll go back to sleep. But you know I’m always here to talk.”

  “Yeah. I know.”

  She shut the shower door and went back out into the main room. The bed looked too big and too empty to sleep in alone. She lay down anyway and stared at the ceiling, telling herself that Beck was actually being nice, even if it didn’t seem that way.

  * * *

  Once the shoot-around was finally over, Carmondy met Beck outside.

  She hadn’t spoken to him since that morning but he did seem to be in a better mood.

  “Hey.” She tried to sound cheerful but not too cheerful.

  He gave her a slight nod. “How long before you can be ready to leave?”

  Yes! He hadn’t forgotten. He was going to take her see his sister. “Umm, an hour? Less if I need to. I just need to shower and get some stuff ready.”

  “What stuff?” he asked suspiciously.

  “Some stuff that I wanted to show her doctor. Just books, a couple movies, stuff like that.”

  “You don’t need to take her anything. Besides, they have already tried those things.”

  “I know. But I have a theory I want to talk with her doctor about. I can tell you about it on the way up if you want.”

  He considered it for a moment before nodding. “Fine. One hour, I’ll meet you at your place.”

  “I can come to your house. I mean, we have to take my Jeep and your house is on the way...”

  He nodded. “That’s fine.”

  She smiled. “Okay, I’ll be by your place in an hour then. I’ll come sooner if I can.”

  After they parted ways, Carmondy went straight to her house and took a shower. She threw on jeans and a T-shirt. Normally, if she was going to be spending time with Beck, she would make the effort to put on something a little sexier, but this didn’t really count.

  She grabbed her backpack and emptied it of her school stuff. Luckily, her mother had brought down a bunch of her stuff from home, at least in the way of books and DVDs. She went to the back of her bookshelf and found a Young Adult series of five books that she used to like a lot and put them in the bag. She grabbed a couple other books she liked, including Pride and Prejudice. Next, she went to her DVD collection and picked out a few movies that she liked as a thirteen-year-old. She also picked out a couple of her favorite animated movies that were still cool for a teenager to watch, like Happy Feet and both Ice Ages. If Lily liked the book series that she was bringing, she could bring the movie to match next time. Hopefully there was going be a next time.

  She stowed her backpack in the backseat of her Jeep before heading toward Beck’s house. She prayed that this was going to be a success. Carmondy really felt for the girl, not just because of her condition, but because of the seemingly non-existent relationship she had with everyone in her family except for Beck. Beck didn’t even really count because as far as Car could tell, Lily didn’t grasp the meaning of family. No one should have to go through what she was going through alone.

  The moment she drove into Beck’s driveway, he stepped out of his house. She smiled at him when he climbed into the front seat of her Jeep.

  “You didn’t want to drive, did you?” she offered.

  “No, it’s fine.”

  She pulled out of the driveway and headed toward the mountain. “The stuff I’m bringing is in the backpack back there. You can look if you want.”

  He grabbed the bag from the backseat and opened it. He peered inside for a moment. “Teen angst and kid movies?”

  “Those aren’t kid movies. I watch those all the time. If the doctor approves them, I think she’ll really like them. There are a couple non-animated movies in there too.”

  He nodded and put the bag back.

  “I know it’s not ideal to have her watching a bunch of TV, but I didn’t know if she ever got outside, or into a gym or something.”

  Beck shook his head. “She never leaves that room unless she’s sedated. She can’t handle it.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said quietly.

  “I’m just glad that she hasn’t ever really known being outdoors. That way, she can’t miss it.”

  “Maybe someday, when she gets a little better, she can be outside like a normal teenager. Maybe she can even find a sport that she likes,” Carmondy suggested.

  “Maybe.”

  “I know I kind of conned you into this, but I really want to help your sister. I really do.”

  He shrugged. “You couldn’t con me into anything if you wanted to. I might not seem happy about it, but on some level, I know it’s a good thing. And her doctor agrees so who am I to argue?”

  “I think it’ll work out well, and if not, if Lily just doesn’t like me, I won’t push anything.”

  He nodded. “Good.”

  It took a little longer than it should have to reach their destination because of the road conditions. They sat for fifteen minutes in a line of cars while the Department of Transportation performed some controlled avalanches along the highway to prevent real avalanches. It was cool to watch. Carmondy had tried to engage Beck in conversation, but failed. He wasn’t so much in a bad mood as he was just being quiet. She couldn’t really blame him.

  They arrived before noon. She wasn’t sure how long Beck usually stayed.

  Before she could turn around, Beck grabbed her backpack for her and slid out of the car.

  She frowned and got out, hurrying to catch up. “I can carry that.”

  “I know,” he said, walking through the automatic doors.

  They went straight to the front desk, bypassing the waiting area that Carmondy had spent time in before. There was a man behind the desk this time. “Hello, Mr. Nicholson, here to see your sister?”

  “Yes, but I’d like to see Dr. Becke
tt first. Is he available?”

  The man checked the computer. “It looks like he’s not with a patient. Let me phone his room to make sure. One moment.”

  Once they got permission, they took the stairs to the third floor and Beck led them in the opposite direction of Lily’s room. The door to an office was open and Beck stepped inside. Carmondy followed and saw the same doctor she had seen Beck talk to the first time around.

  “Hello, Beck.” The older man smiled politely. “Have a seat.”

  “Hi, Dr. Beckett.” Beck sat down, motioning Carmondy into a chair. “This is Carmondy Hamilton, a friend.”

  Carmondy shook his hand before sitting down.

  “Not girlfriend?”

  “No. Just a friend,” Beck said. “Is that a problem?”

  “No, it’s a good thing. I would have asked you to refrain from showing any affection for each other while visiting with your sister. She could become confused or even jealous.”

  Beck nodded. “Right. I’ll keep that in mind.”

  “Good. Now, you wanted to speak to me about something?”

  Beck lifted the bag. “Carmondy brought some stuff she wanted to see if Lily would be interested in.”

  “Ahh, I see. May I?” He stood and reached for the bag.

  Carmondy nodded, and Beck handed him the bag. The doctor opened it and pulled out one of the books. “This is a popular teenage book series right now, correct?”

  “Yes, I know that you tried some other books with her.”

  The doctor nodded and looked at the other books. “She did not seem interested in reading. Some of the books even upset her.”

  “What kind of things did you try?”

  “We tried genres that have been successful with other patients. Classics, nothing horrific. Even children’s books.”

  “But...she’s thirteen.”

  “Yes, in most ways. Some concepts she understands as a thirteen-year-old would, others she doesn’t understand at all.”

  “Okay. Just, when I was thirteen, I didn’t read classics or children’s books. I mean, I’m not the professional here, this is totally just my opinion so tell me if I’m way out of line, but...it seems to me that all sorts of things can set her off, even boredom?”