by Lizzie James
“You okay, sweet girl?” Joy asked. She had a small smile on her face.
“I don’t think I was this nervous when I’d told my father that I wanted to move away to go to college.”
The doorbell rang, making me squeak in surprise.
“I wonder who that could be,” Joy said, giving me a cheeky smile.
I rolled my eyes at her sarcasm. She knew exactly who it was, and I wouldn’t have been surprised to find out she had organized all of this through a love spell or some crap. I had learned quickly that Joy was an old romantic, and me hooking up with her favorite guy would probably make her head explode. She went to the door, leaving me in the kitchen.
Looking down at myself, I had a moment of cockiness. I was dressed in my ‘I am Groot’ t-shirt, themed from the film Guardians of the Galaxy, and a pair of black jeans with worn away patches on the knees. Slipping my Ugg boots on, I was happy with my choice of clothes for the evening. This was me at the end of the day, and if Johnny couldn’t handle that, then that said a lot about whether we could work.
Walking into the lounge, I laughed when I saw he was dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a white t-shirt with the words ‘Return of the Chewbacca’ on it. He grinned in response, his eyes doing a quick flick down to my chest and back up.
Joy rolled her eyes and held my coat out to me. “It’s cold out and you’ll need it,” she said with a cocked eyebrow.
I took the coat, slipped it on and wrapped my butterfly scarf around my neck.
“Any rules?” Johnny asked, directing the question to Joy. He was joking obviously, but Joy took it completely seriously.
“Home by eleven.” She said it so seriously it made Johnny and I laugh, but she cocked an eyebrow, obviously not joking.
Johnny cleared his throat, looking serious. “She'll be back here by then.” He gave Joy one of his charming smiles, disarming her on the spot and then holding his hand out and making me stare for a moment too long.
Joy fidgeted, softly clearing her throat and I rolled my eyes in response, stepping forward and taking his hand before we headed out of the house and made our way up the street toward campus.
“So,” I replied, my fingers giving his a gentle squeeze. “Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise.” He grinned down at me, giving me a cheeky wink. “If I told you, I’d have to kiss you.”
I laughed at his unique spin on the overused line. Had to give him points for that.
He began leading me into a part of town I hadn’t visited yet, making me wonder where the hell he was planning to take me.
“Are you lost?” I asked, worried that he was.
“What’s with you and all the questions?” He laughed, looking down at me. “I’ve lived here for over a year. Don’t you think I’d know my way around by now?”
I shrugged my shoulders, remaining silent. Obviously, he should’ve known where he was going, but the further we walked, the further away from people we seemed to get. The streets were getting quieter and every shop we seemed to pass now had their shutters down.
We turned a corner at the end of the block and I realized we were entering an industrial estate with workshops. Most were closed, but one up ahead was still open. It had all its lights still on and as Johnny led me around the side through to the back, I gasped when I realized where he had brought me.
We stopped walking and he positioned me in front of him, so I could see all the lights and equipment. I read the signs with my mouth dropping into one of the biggest grins ever: Rick’s Paint Shack; an outdoor paintball range.
“So,” he whispered in my ear, his lips licking the shell of my ear. “You ready to get all wet with me?”
I laughed at his completely filthy, sexual innuendo and turning to face him, I automatically threw my arms around his neck, hugging myself to him. “Absolutely.” Taking his hand in mine, I began pulling him with me, excited to get started.
As we picked our team colors at the counter, I bounced on the spot.
“Excited?” He grinned down at me, his eyes twinkling with excitement.
I took my overalls from the lady at the counter, skipping off to the changing rooms. “Get ready to lose, Baker!”
Dressed in pink overalls that were now covered in splotches of blue paint, my pink goggles firmly attached to my head, I hid behind a stack of hay, peeking over the top trying to find him. A few strands had come loose from my bun, which were also stained with paint, and I blew them off my face. Hearing movement to the side of me, I turned my head quickly, but before I could move, I was hit several times with more blue paint balls. I giggled, jumping to my feet and attempting to make a run for it when I was tackled from the side. I landed on my back with Johnny hovering over me.
“Give in yet?” He grinned down at me, knowing full well he had won this game.
I nodded, secretly loving the way he was looking at me—the way all girls wanted someone to look at them: like she was the only girl in the world.
“I really want to kiss you,” he whispered, leaning his weight on his hands on either side of my head. “May I?”
I gasped, wanting him to do just that but too afraid to say. I slowly nodded, tilting my face a little toward his. He leaned down, pressing his lips softly to mine. They were so soft and gentle, which surprised me. Tilting his head to the side, he moved away, rubbing the tip of his nose against mine before pulling me to my feet.
We separated to remove our overalls and handed them back in. Johnny insisted on paying for the both of us, and moments later, we were making our way home. He held his hand out to me and I shyly accepted, entwining my fingers with his. We walked in silence, just our hands touching and my head resting against his upper arm—I wasn’t tall enough to reach his shoulder comfortably. As we walked up our street, I sighed. The night had been perfect.
He walked me up the garden path, still not letting go of my hand.
“Thank you for tonight, Johnny.” I smiled up at him, loving the way his grin stretched at my words.
“So, you had a good time, then?” he asked cockily.
“The best time.” I blushed, looking down at our feet and groaned inwardly, frustrated with myself. Why couldn’t I just be normal and look at him? He must have thought I was a complete freak.
He tucked his fingers beneath my chin, lifting my face to his.
“Will I see you tomorrow?” he asked, keeping my face tilted.
“I have classes tomorrow,” I said, nodding. “I can meet you for lunch?”
He nodded, his lips slowly descending on mine, making my knees weak.
“Until tomorrow.” He grinned, leaving me on my doorstep and making his way across the street.
I headed inside, where I was met by a waiting Joy who looked more excited than I did. I then spent the next hour washing all the paint out of my hair, excited for tomorrow to come.
6
Johnny
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
I was repeatedly tapping my pencil against the table, not focusing on my accountancy essay in front of me. Every time that damn door would open, I’d get this stupid thrill of warmth shoot through me that it could be her.
I groaned in frustration, looking across the table. Logan sat there, leaning back in his chair, smirking his ass off at me.
“What?” I snapped, wanting to know what his problem was.
“Nothing.” He chuckled. “Just wondering when Mr. Big Man on Campus turned into a girl.”
Chunk laughed at his words, making me roll my eyes. If only they knew.
He frowned at me, fluffing the hair at the back of my head. “You’ve still got paint in your hair, man.”
I shrugged him off. “Shut your trap, Charlie.” I emphasized his name, knowing how much he hated it. The paint was the least of my problems, even if it was bright pink. My eyes wandered back to the door again.
Where the hell was she? Had she changed her mind? Did she regret last night?
Maybe I shouldn’t have kissed her. Fuck.
I shouldn’t have kissed her.
Looking back at the door, I saw there was a girl holding the door open, helping her friend carry some boxes. The door was just wide enough for me to see the large crowd forming outside. I quickly scanned the room, looking for Sammy.
Fuck, he wasn’t there.
I shot up out of my seat, running to the door, hearing Chunk and Logan call my name.
He’d better not be in another fight.
Running out the door, I saw that the crowd was probably double the size of the last one. Pushing my way through, the space in front cleared in front of me, people turning to either gawk at me or whisper at me.
I got to the front, just in time to see Tillie push herself in between Sammy and the douche that wanted to rearrange his face. I kept calm long enough to see Tillie push him, looking up at him, attempting to look fierce. Instead she just looked like a scared kitten.
Before I could blink, the guy tried to push her out of the way. She retaliated by slapping him across the face. Damn, my girl could be fierce! The guy grabbed her, putting his hands on her hips. Which of course made me snap.
I marched forward, grabbing him by the scruff of his shirt, throwing him backwards. “Hands off!” I looked her over, making sure she wasn’t hurt. “You okay?”
She nodded, turning to Sammy. She lifted her hand, assessing the damage on his lips before he shrugged her off and stormed past me.
“Hey! Sammy! Get back here!” I yelled after him.
Logan jogged after him, waving me off.
“I’m sorry about that,” I apologized, picking Sammy’s bag up off the floor. “He’s not usually like that.”
“That’s okay.” She reached over, stroking her fingers along the back of my hand.
I flipped it over, pulling her hand to my lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “Thank you for sticking up for him.”
“Don’t worry about it.” She leaned up on her tiptoes, pulling her hand from mine and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. “Do you think we should go and check on him?”
I shook my head negatively, resigned to let Logan deal with Sammy. He and I would be having words soon though.
“Sammy’s been a little…” I shrugged my shoulders resigned. “Different. Since moving here.” I shook my head, not liking the worry that came over her face.
“Then we should definitely go and check on him.” She took my hand, leading me toward the path that Logan and Sammy disappeared down.
Walking home, I kept her hand in mine, liking the feel of it. The mood couldn’t be ruined until she had to utter those words—the words I never really liked to hear coming from the female mouth, usually because they led to awkward conversations.
“So, after, can we talk?” she asked hesitantly, avoiding looking at me.
I tightened my hand on hers, swinging our arms between us slowly. “Sure.” I looked down at her, trying to figure out what she was thinking.
Walking into the house, I let her hand go, jogging up the stairs to check if Sammy was there.
Nothing.
His quilt was still messy and there was no sign of him.
Going back down, I took a seat next to Tillie, not ready for this talk. “So, what did you want to talk about?” I reached for her hand, but she moved it away, tucking it beneath her leg.
“I... uh... I just wanted to say...” She swallowed, looking down at her lap. “That if you wanted to... you know... if you wanted to...”
I sighed, leaned over her and pulled her over to me. Sitting her so that she was straddling me, her eyes widened at the sudden change of position.
“That's better. Now...” I leaned back against the sofa, relaxing my back. “What were you trying to say?”
She placed her hand on my shoulders, supporting her weight so that she wasn’t sitting on me.
“I don’t think I can share you,” she whispered, avoiding my eyes once again and staring at my chest.
I trailed my fingers up her sides before moving to her arms. Taking her face in my palms, I pulled her head down to mine, our foreheads pressing together. “What makes you think I want anyone else?” I tilted my face, needing to feel her lips on mine. “If I’m with you, I’m with only you. Okay?”
She nodded, closing her eyes. That was the only signal I needed.
I pulled her head down to mine, our lips meeting softly.
Tillie was going to be the death of me.
Since moving here, I had basically had women on tap whenever I wanted. I had never had to go slow with one before. However, I knew every touch and memory with Tillie would be worth it.
I softly licked the seal of her lips, wanting her to open for me but not sure if she would. She tightened her fingers in the back of my hair causing my hips to unconsciously buck up against her.
She gasped as my hardness rubbed against her, but she didn’t pull away, instead only held herself tighter to me.
I slowly slid my tongue in to press against hers, groaning at the sensation.
Fuck, she was amazing.
She wrapped her arms tighter around my shoulders, crushing her chest to mine. I fisted my hand in the back of her hair, loving how she felt in my arms. Pressing my tongue against hers, I tried to remember that this was probably a little fast for her, but I couldn’t stop when I had her sexy body on mine.
She pulled her lips from mine, pulling her head away.
A beautiful blush stained her cheeks, traveling down to the column of her neck.
Fuck, did she blush all over when she was turned on?
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. She gasped, her chest heaving right in front of me. “I shouldn’t have done that.” She shook her head, her palms resting on my shoulders. “I’m not ready for that.”
I rubbed my hands up and down her sides, trying to comfort her. “It’s okay,” I whispered, trying to control the raging lust running through me.
She had no clue just how sexy she was. She quickly moved, choosing to sit next to me instead.
Watching her remove her jacket, I had to leave her for a few minutes.
Walking into the bathroom, I leaned my ass against the sink, trying to calm things down. Doing the two times table, I tried thinking of things to get rid of my problem. I couldn’t sit next to her fully erect. She wasn’t ready for my ‘horny asshole’ routine and to be with me intimately.
To be honest, I don’t think I was even ready.
I had never had someone in my life that I wanted around for more than one night. She was perfect for me. Perfect to me. I didn’t want to mess that up.
Walking back in the room, I saw she already had her pencil out and had begun twirling it in her hand. Taking my seat back beside her, I held my hand out, trying to show her that it was okay and hoping she would take it.
She smiled, entwining her hand with mine and resting her shoulder on mine. Leaning my head against hers, I sighed happily.
Whoever thought I would be so soft with a girl?
She cuddled into me, heaving out a blissful sigh, content. Just like I was, hopefully.
My eyes shot open when a loud bang echoed from the doorway.
“Wake up, love birds,” Chunk yelled, joining us on the sofa. He grinned down at Tillie, holding his hand out to her.
She gave him a shy smile, slipping her hand into his to shake it.
“Where’s Sammy?” I asked, looking over Tillie’s head.
Right then, the front door opened, and Sammy and Logan came in.
“Sit,” I ordered, pointing to the chair opposite us. “Explain.”
He sat, heaving out a deep breath. He looked at Tillie, giving her a small smile before his eyes settled on me. He looked exhausted and it made me want to smack him. This shit was not needed just a few weeks before the first game of the season.
“I may have laid some bets down on the other teams in my last year of high school.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I yelled, directing my anger at Sammy. Tillie squeaked in surprise at my outburst.
“Sorry,” I apologized, hating that I was losing my shit in front of her. My eyes flickered to Logan stood behind him. “Did you know about this”
“He’s not a child, dude,” Logan defended.
“Obviously he is!” I paced in between them. This shit should not be happening. “You would be thrown off the team if the coach found out about this.” My eyes shot to Chunk and I could see the look of disappointment on his face. I shook my head negatively. If Chunk weren’t my best friend, Sammy would be completely screwed. “What does that have to do with you getting your ass kicked all the time?” I stared at him, waiting for a response.
I still didn’t get an answer. He remained staring at the floor.
Before I could lose my last bit of patience, Tillie placed her hand on my arm, moving past me. She leaned down on her knees, right in front of Sammy. “Sammy,” she whispered, rubbing his knee. “I know you and I don’t know each other well, but I’d like to change that. Please talk to us. What happened?”
I smiled at her, trying to reach out to Sammy.
She was right, she didn’t know him, but she wasn’t letting that stop her. His eyes flicked up to hers, assessing her.
“We can’t help you if we don’t know what’s going on,” she said quietly, trying to make him comfortable and giving him another knee rub. “Come on, Sammy.”
I loved her use of the word ‘we’.
He held his hands out for hers and she immediately took them. This was going to be bad, especially if he needed to hold her hand.
“Just before graduation, Mom’s health insurance increased.” He was talking to me although his eyes remained fixed on Tillie. “It wasn’t a problem, really, thanks to Dad’s life insurance payments, but there was a cockup at the pharmacy. They said it would take thirty days before the insurance update reached them.” His eyes flicked to mine and away in a few seconds. “She needed the pain killers.” His eyes filled up, making me frustrated. “So, I took a bet from a few guys and I never paid them the money.”
“Why didn’t you come to me?” I snapped, frustrated at not only him but my mother as well. Before leaving, I had told her several times that if there were any problems to let me know and to not let Sammy get involved.