by James, Marie
“I like her a lot. You already know that. I’m not manipulating her. She should probably stay a million miles away from me because of all of the shit I’ve pulled over the years, but for some reason, she’s giving me a chance.” Peyton shifts her weight on her feet. “She’s giving me a chance, and I’m not going to do anything to mess that up. You don’t have to worry about her, Peyton. She’s safe with me. I promise.”
“You talk a good talk,” she huffs, and I know she’s not one hundred percent convinced even though just last week she was the one urging me to go talk to Piper after I confessed my feelings to her.
“Then step back and watch me walk the walk, too.” I wink at her and decide when she laughs a little that she doesn’t completely hate me after all.
I mix the cocoa powder in the pan and stir it until all the lumps are gone before pouring it into the mugs. I’m on my way to the fridge, hand under the ice dispenser when Peyton pipes up.
“You’ll need two cubes of—”
The machine whirs, dropping two cubes of ice into my hand before she can finish her thought.
“Preston will complain it’s too hot if I don’t put two cubes in his,” I say with my eyebrows raised.
“How did you know that?”
“I don’t know.”
“But seriously. You were never around before. How would you know something like that?”
“I don’t know,” I repeat, but I don’t have time to stand in the kitchen and ponder all the weird shit that’s going on. My girl is in the other room, waiting for a steaming cup of hot chocolate.
Just like I predicted, Piper doesn’t drink the hot chocolate, offering her mug to Preston when he finishes his own, but she does lean back into me and lets me wrap my arm around her shoulder so we can watch the third Harry Potter movie, so I call it a win.
My parents get home, both pissed off and snapping at each other because their client was found guilty with only two hours of deliberation from the jury. Piper excused herself shortly after, no doubt unable to handle the shrill sound of Mom’s voice when she tore into Dad for his lack of rebuttal on some comment from the state's attorney.
I kiss her on the lips with the promise to call her later before heading up to my own room for the night. This is the first time I can remember them actually raising their voices at each other, but from the way Peyton rolled her eyes when they got home, it’s more than a regular occurrence.
I plug headphones into my ears, letting my music blare until enough time has passed to call Piper.
I call three times over the course of two hours.
She never answers.
Chapter 34
Piper
“What happened last night?”
These are the words Dalton greets me with when I knock on his door shortly after his parents drive off for the day.
“Happened?” I tilt my head in confusion.
“You didn’t answer your phone. I called like a million times.”
I roll my eyes, stepping past him into his house. “You called me three times.”
He’s glaring at me when I turn back in his direction.
“I went home, took some nighttime headache medicine and passed out.”
His eyes soften with my admission, and I know he’s been worried about me.
“And I woke up this morning feeling like a million bucks.”
“I thought something bad happened. I was worried.”
“I’m fine.” I raise on the tips of my toes and press my lips to his.
“Are you here to tutor? I thought Peyton was done.”
“I’m here to see you.”
“It’s early.”
My smile falters, now realizing that his hair is a mess, and he’s only wearing a pair of low-riding basketball shorts. My mouth waters at the sight of the muscles laced together down his torso.
“Did I wake you?”
“The doorbell did,” he grumbles.
“Then come on.” I grab his hand and tug. “Let’s go back to bed.”
I squeal like a lunatic when he scoops me up in his arms and runs up the stairs with me. Thankfully, neither Peyton nor Preston’s door swings open. We’d have to end this really quick if his little brother comes out wondering what we’re doing.
“Mmm,” I moan when he tosses me on the bed that’s still warm from his body.
His sheets are a mix of his cologne and body wash, and the combination makes my skin tingle.
“Don’t make sex noises in my bed, Piper.” Dalton shuts the door, making a point to flip the lock before turning back to me.
“Where else would I make sex noises then, Dalton?”
His eyes narrow as my hands roam over the top of his blankets.
“You’re frisky this morning,” he says with a smile as he stalks toward the bed.
“I had an amazing night of sleep,” I remind him.
“But we came back up here to go back to bed.”
“You can go back to bed if you want.” I sit up on his bed and snap my tank top over my head, tossing it to the floor with a grin when his jaw hangs open.
“Where’s your bra?” he asks after swallowing twice.
His feet are planted halfway across the room, but I’m no longer worried about whether he wants me or not. The erection forming in his shorts answers that question.
I’m also no longer concerned whether he’s really into me or if he’s playing some long, drawn-out prank. I married him in my dreams last night, and when I woke up this morning to the sun shining and the birds singing outside, I didn’t roll my eyes at the ridiculous thought. I dressed quickly and ran over here, finally ready to begin working on our happily ever after.
Thoughts of joining him at the same school, living in the same apartment while in college no longer worries me. I felt the sincerity in his words the other day. He believes every word that came out of his mouth. It wasn’t a ploy to get into my pants or a practiced speech just because he thinks I wanted to hear it. He said those things because he meant them.
And Lord, help me, I want everything he offered. I want it all. I want it today, tomorrow, and every other day thereafter.
“It’s at home,” I tell him with a wicked grin. “Probably tossed on my closet floor. Do you want me to go get it?”
I twirl a lock of my hair, and I know he’s watching it go around my finger, brushing against the side of my breast with every rotation.
“Am I being too presumptuous?” I bite my lip, knowing he loves when I do that. “Do you want me to get dressed and leave?”
“N-no. It’s just…” His hand skates over the top of his head, and I can tell he’s trying to get his breathing under control. “I didn’t think this was going to happen. What is actually happening right now?”
His eyes lock on mine, and I should give him credit where it’s due. I know it must be extremely hard for him to look away from my tight-tipped breasts to focus on my face, but somehow, he manages it. It only makes this decision that much easier for me because I know it’s the right one.
“I want you to make love to me.” He swallows again. “Do you want that, too?”
“Yes,” he responds immediately. “I want that.”
“Yet, you’re glued to that spot.” I point to his feet for impact. “If you want to wait, we can. I’m not trying to pressure you.”
“I n-need to brush my teeth.” He’s scrambling across the room and snapping the bathroom door closed behind him in the next second.
Rolling my teeth between my lips to keep from laughing, I strip out of my shorts and toss those to the side with my tank before crawling between his sheets.
The water in the sink turns on, but a grunt and groan, having nothing to do with brushing teeth, comes from the bathroom. I’m still staring at the door five minutes later when he reemerges.
“What just happened in there?” I ask the question, but I already know the answer.
The erection that was tenting his shorts before he left the room is smaller. He
isn’t soft by any means, but he’s not a raging bull any longer either.
“Did you just jack off in the bathroom?”
His cheeks pink. “Please don’t be mad. I would’ve nutted in like ten seconds, and I don’t want to ruin our first time.”
“How do you know?” I ask as I toss back the blankets so he can join me on the bed.
His eyes widen to a comical size when he sees me under them with nothing but a pair of lace panties on.
“H-how did I know what?” he stammers, once again frozen to the floor rather than climbing under the blankets to join me.
I think I may have fried this poor boy’s brains.
“How did you know you would come in ten seconds?”
“Please don’t say come,” he begs. “Jesus, look at you, Piper. I’ve never seen a more beautiful girl before in my life.”
“Does that mean you want to join me, or do you just want to stand there and stare?”
“Both,” he answers without missing a beat. “I want to watch you. I want to devour you. I want to make you come on my fingers, my tongue, and my cock.”
“You can’t do any of that from over there,” I tease. “Come here, and we can start with a kiss.”
“Hell yeah,” he snaps, springing into action and climbing onto the bed. “No blankets. I want to see you.”
My bravado falters with him this close. I needed the blankets as a shield. I want him. That part isn’t a lie, but I have secrets that I want to stay hidden. I know it won’t last. He’ll see them eventually, but I wanted our first time to be magical, not tainted by the pain of my past.
“So perfect,” he praises as he crooks a finger and runs the back over my nipple. It tightens to the extreme, and I whimper with the need to be touched. I want his mouth on me like it was in my car, days ago. With the headache that wouldn’t go away, that seems like a lifetime ago, and I’m desperate for him right now.
“Kiss me,” I plead, and for once, he doesn’t freeze. He lowers his mouth to mine, his hand still toying with the tips of my breasts.
He urges me back, covering my nearly naked body with his, and the warmth of his skin against me is nothing short of divine. His lips tangle with mine as he lifts my leg, hiking it over his hips as he presses into me. Even blocked by my panties and his shorts, the ridge of his penis settles on me exactly where I need him, and I can’t help but moan into his mouth when he pushes against me, the perfect roll of his hips igniting a fire that’s been simmering for weeks.
“Wait,” he pants against my lips before he pulls back.
I miss the heat of his body immediately, but the fire in his eyes lights me up once again as he peers down at me.
“Are you sure?”
“Only if you keep your promise.” I lick my lips, smiling when he looks confused. “Fingers. Tongue. Cock.”
I see the second realization hits him, and he’s like a man possessed.
“Promise,” he vows, crouching down between my legs before I can stop him.
“Dalton, don’t.”
I wasn’t even thinking when I toyed with him just a second ago.
“Piper?” Tears burn my eyes when his fingers trace the numerous scars on my inner thighs. “What is this? Is this from the accident?”
I don’t answer him, but it doesn’t take long for him to put two and two together.
“My God,” he gasps, his voice filled with pain and regret. “I did this. This is because of me, because of what I did to you.”
I manage the courage to look down at him, and I shatter even further at the sight of tears pooling in his eyes.
“That’s in the past,” I assure him, but he pulls out of my grasp when I reach for him. “Dalton, look at me.”
I let my own tears fall at the sight of his losing the battle to hold back. My eyes follow his tears as they trace down the curves of his handsome face.
“Please,” I beg. Vulnerable to his eyes as they refocus on my thighs, I begin to tremble.
He’s no longer looking at me with lust and unfiltered desire. He’s broken and dealing with something I boxed away and put up on a shelf weeks ago. The desire to cut was like a switch he flipped off when he kissed me the first time in his backyard, and it had been a while since I’d done it even before then.
“Look at me!” I roar.
He jolts with the yell, but his eyes are slow to look up at me. When they find mine, I can already tell it’s going to be a long road to get back to where we were only moments ago.
My throat clogs with emotion as that tiny hint of a headache begins to renew, a low throbbing pulse at the base of my neck. I know it only gets worse from here.
I want to tell him I forgive him. I want to shout the words for everyone to hear, the very words I refused to even entertain until I woke up this morning. I knew they were coming, but they don’t hold the power at this moment as they deserve, so I keep my mouth shut.
The headache intensifies.
My pulse pounds in my ears, and my skin grows oddly cold.
“I sh-should go.” I try to stand from the bed, but my legs don’t want to work.
I’m too upset to function right now. Lost in his own mind and remorse, Dalton stares at a spot on the bed that only he can see.
“I’m going to—” I tip over, and my world goes black.
Chapter 35
Dalton
“Piper!” Her eyes roll back as she collapses.
By some miracle, I’m able to catch her before her head slams against my bedside table.
“Please, baby. Please wake up.” Holding her in my lap, I press my palms to her flushed cheeks.
Her breathing is ragged, but it’s like she isn’t even there. Her full weight is in my lap, and an eerie sense of foreboding washes over me.
“Peyton!” I scream, the sound echoing around my room. “Peyton!”
I don’t have a clue what to do. Did she pass out? Does this have something to do with the headaches she’s been having since the snow cone stand? I feel helpless, impotent with my inability to do anything. I can’t reach my phone and releasing her to go get help doesn’t even occur to me.
“Dalton!” Peyton screams from the other side of the door. “What the hell is going on?”
The sound of the door rattling snaps me back into a reality I’m not sure I can face, but it motivates me to cautiously lay her on my floor and unlock my bedroom door.
“What the hell did you do?” Peyton screeches when she sees Piper laid out in nothing but her panties.
“Sh-she just passed out. I can’t wake her up.” I rush back to Piper’s side, but there’s no change. “Grab something to cover her up with. We need to get her to the hospital.”
Peyton disappears, returning an eternity later with a robe, and I don’t even bother to put her arms in the sleeves. I wrap it around her and scoop her up into my arms.
“We need to call an ambulance,” Peyton says.
“It’ll take too long,” I argue as I carry her out of my room.
“You don’t have a car!” Peyton yells at my back. “Call for help.”
“Her keys,” I snap. “Get her keys from my room.”
There’s no way I can sit idle and wait for medical help. I can get her to the hospital before help even leaves the station.
“Please, Piper. Please be okay,” I whisper as I carry her out the front door to the car in her own driveway.
Peyton tosses the keys in the front seat while I situate Piper as best I can in the back seat.
“I’m going with you,” my sister says, but my head is already shaking with rejection.
“Someone has to stay with Preston.”
“I’ll call her parents and have them meet you there. What is going on with her?”
“I don’t know.”
I honestly don’t. She was fine before. She was playful and ready for us to take things to the next level. Although she was sad at my discovery, she was trying to comfort me.
I shake my head, ridding it of the t
hings I made this beautiful girl do to her own body because of the way I treated her.
“I have to go,” I mumble to myself.
Peyton is standing in the yard, arms crossed over her stomach as I drive away. The hospital is only a couple of miles away, but the drive seems like an eternity. I manage to hit every red light, and my foot bounces with uncontrolled anger as I wait. The last light is already yellow when I pull up, but I rush through it with a prayer that we don’t get sideswiped.
The wreck.
This has to have something to do with the accident.
My fingers are drumming on the steering wheel as I pull into the parking lot of the hospital, and I lay on the horn when some idiot with three kids, they can’t seem to control, take their sweet ass time crossing the crosswalk.
“Get out of my fucking way!” I yell when the mom gives me a snide look, making no effort to move faster.
Finally, with the speed of a sloth, they move, and I’m able to pull up right outside of the ER doors. I don’t bother turning off the car. I just swing my door open and pull Piper back into my arms. Her breathing is different, but I can’t tell if it’s more even or slowed because she’s dying.
Tears streak down my face as I carry her inside.
“Help! Someone, please help!”
It’s nothing like the movies. A swarm of people doesn’t rush to my aid, pulling a gurney.
One nurse stares in shock on the other side of a glass wall for a long moment before she actually moves into action.
I’m near collapsing on the floor with Piper in my arms when the heavy wooden doors swing open, and two people in scrubs rush toward me.
“Carry her inside,” the taller woman advises. I follow her past the doors to a small bay with a curtain pulled back. “On this table, hurry.”
“What happened?” the other medical person asks.
“She passed out.”
“How long ago?” I don’t even see the person who asks, but they pull the robe back, revealing her naked flesh to the entire room, and I seethe with anger. She deserves more modesty and respect than what they’re giving her.