Freefall (Santa Cruz Skydivers Book 1)

by Joanne Efendi

  I smiled at him and finished my breakfast. “She was very beautiful,” I told him honestly. “You know, my last name is LaRosa. Italian, for the rose.”

  His head snapped up. “No, I didn’t know that. What a coincidence. Before my mother died, she told me that whenever I saw a rose, I would know that she was nearby.”

  I didn’t believe in coincidences, but didn’t want to tell him that. Instead, I agreed with him. “Yes, very strange, isn’t it? So have you ever gotten any signs that she is around you? I’ve read loads of books on afterlife. I find it very fascinating.”

  “Once or twice I’ve had the feeling, but never any signs. I know she’s watching over me, though.”

  He failed miserably attempting to smile at me, as memories of his mother flicked across his face. He reminded me of sad, lost little boy in a department store. I couldn’t stand to see him hurting. I jumped down from the bench and wrapped my arms around his waist. He reciprocated and held me tight against him. We didn’t talk, but just stood there. I had the feeling he hadn’t ever really grieved for her loss. Not truly grieved. He brushed the back of my hair and kissed the top of my head.

  I waited until he was ready.

  “Thanks,” he said finally, and kissed me tenderly again.

  “You’re welcome. Just so you know, if you ever need to talk about her, I’m always here.”

  He tipped his chin at me, silently acknowledging my offer. This wasn’t good. I loved this side of him. I hadn’t foreseen such a soft, tender side to him. The more time I spent with him, the harder I was falling, and the harder it was going to be for me to let go. Before I had time to contemplate how I was going to deal with letting him go, he slapped me on the ass again and squeezed it a little while giving me a cheeky smile.

  “Come on, sexy ass,” he said, effectively ending our tender moment. “I’ve actually changed my mind. I think you should get some clothes on before I take you again right here in the kitchen.”

  My body tingled, picturing a thousand ways I would love for him to take me.

  “I’m going to shower. I have a spare jacket that should fit you for the ride. It’ll keep you warm and protected. If you don’t mind wearing your jeans from last night, you can wear that shirt. Saves us from going to your place first so you don’t have to get changed.”

  I nodded at him. “Fine by me. I do have to be home by five, though. I have a family dinner tonight and will need to get changed. I can’t exactly turn up looking like this.”

  “I think you look rather sexy in my shirt. But I will have you home by five.” He gave me a quick kiss on my lips. “As much as I am enjoying seeing you like that, get dressed and finish your coffee. I’ll be right back.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Andi

  There is a dirty joke I heard once—that for a girl riding on a motorbike, it is the safest thing she’ll ever have between her legs. When that joke popped into my head as we rode along the highway on his bike, I couldn’t help but think of the alternative. That alternative being the guy I had my arms wrapped around.

  Tightening my grip around his waist, I rested my helmet against his back and smiled contently, safely knowing my face was obscured from view from the closed visor of the full-faced helmet I was wearing. It had been almost an hour after my amazing orgasm session, and my body still ached in a good way. At this point, I had to agree with the dirty joke—the bike was definitely safer than Levi. The only thing I wanted between my legs right now was him. Naked and hard. I was dangerously addicted to him. Levi was right, he had created a monster. I couldn’t stop thinking about our bathroom sex, and I tingled every time I remembered his tongue on me.

  I shut my eyes and held on, thinking back to this morning at his apartment. While he showered, I had located my top and jeans in his living room. Seeing my discarded clothing thrown about the room had triggered memory flashes of me practically throwing myself at him in bed last night. Most horrifically, the memory of me asking him to kiss me brought on all types of embarrassment. Not to mention when I put my hands down his briefs.

  I shuddered internally at the memory. Ugh. Once they had been unlocked, there was nothing I could do to block the memories as my brain had recalled the events that the alcohol had tried to keep buried from my psyche. I had truly wanted to curl into a ball and disappear in humiliation, even though he had seen me naked and licked, sucked and fucked intimate parts of my body. I was thankful he hadn’t mentioned it. Some things are just more embarrassing than others.

  With my body fully covered in my clothes, and wearing his t-shirt over Lili’s low-cut top. Without a bra, I needed some form of chest support. I had sat waiting in the sitting room, drinking my lukewarm coffee whilst trying to stave off a hangover headache. Levi had soon emerged from his bedroom, jacket in hand, dressed in his black hip-hugger jeans and tight black t-shirt that clung to all the right places. And to top it all off, he hadn’t shaved, leaving him with a sexy morning beard. He looked rough and ready, making me want to rip his clothes off, and at his own suggestion, take him right on the kitchen floor. But sadly, despite our sex-filled morning, I was still a woman of fantasy, not reality. So, I had merely crossed my legs, squeezed my thighs tightly, and told him how refreshed he looked after his shower. And then I drained my coffee.

  “Here’s the jacket for the ride.”

  “Thanks.” It was a little too small, but at least I had some protection to wear on the ride. “Whose is it? They won’t mind me borrowing it, will they?”

  He shook his head. “It’s fine. It was a friend’s girlfriend’s that was left at my place in LA ages ago. I don’t even know why I kept it. You may as well keep it.”

  I smiled. “It’s okay, it’s a little tight. Besides, I don’t have any use for a jacket like this, so maybe not.” It’s not like we would be doing this again after today.

  He shrugged his shoulders. “Whatever. It’s yours if you like.”

  I frowned. “Is everything okay?” He seemed a bit distant.

  “I’m more than fine.” He took me in his arms, kissing me. “You ready to go?”

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

  Once we were in the underground parking, he had given me a multi-colored helmet to wear, which according to him, was road bike specific. Apparently, there was a difference to motorbike helmets. The one I was wearing was the helmet he wore when he rode his other bike, that he had aptly named “the crotch rocket.” The man had some serious adrenaline addictions.

  Even though the helmet on my head looked like a rainbow had thrown up on it, I almost felt like a full-fledged biker chick dressed in my black jeans and the leather jacket. Now I just needed a couple of hot tattoos and some leather of my own and I’d be a perfect biker chick to match his “rebel without a cause.”

  He was certainly having an effect on me in more ways than one. The first and foremost being the fact that I was trying new things. New and exciting things. Who would have thought that, two days ago, I would jump from a plane, then the very next day be riding on the beach road on a Harley Davidson, sitting two up behind the hottest guy in Santa Cruz—quite possibly California—after just having had the best sex of my life? And to top it all off, he still wanted to see me—even if it was only as a friend...with benefits.

  “Hold on tight,” he yelled at me, his voice barely audible over the deep, guttural rumble of the Harley motor and the wind whistling in my helmet.

  Briefly, he took his left hand off the handlebars to rub my tightly-clenched hands wrapped around his waist. I was pretty sure I was already holding him as tight as I could, but regardless, I scooted forward a bit more on the seat and pressed my body up snug against him. He reached down and rubbed his hand tenderly over the outside of my thigh before he grabbed both handlebars again and then pulled down on the throttle, increasing our speed, and leaned us into the corners of the road’s twists and turns. A little thrill ran through my body. I wasn’t sure if that was from his touch or the adrenaline from acceleration. Maybe a bi
t of both.

  The Santa Cruz coastline rushed past us in a blur as we made our way along E Cliff Drive to the aptly named Pleasure Point. It was a perfect early fall day for Santa Cruz. Not a cloud in the sky and just a gentle warm breeze blowing off the ocean.

  My butt cheeks were starting to ache from the hard seat that was wrapped over the bike’s rear wheel guard. He had apologized for the hard seat before we left, telling me he only ever rode solo, and the double seat was really for looks only. At much as he suited the skydiving look, he also looked at home on the bike. It was a perfect fit for him, explaining to me it was a custom sportster, whatever that meant, designed by him, right down to the matte black paint job and chrome trimmings.

  I’d never been someone attracted to the thrill of speed. I still couldn’t believe I was here with him. It felt dreamlike. That at any moment, I would wake up in my bed and have to get up and go to my boring ass job and boring ass life.

  Levi soon slowed and pulled the bike to a stop in a loose gravel parking lot that overlooked the point break. “Let’s jump off here for a bit.” He said turned off the engine, balancing the bike with both feet on the ground.

  Placing my hands on the top of his shoulders, I threw my right leg over the back of the bike, putting all my weight on the left foot peg as I dismounted. Levi kicked the kickstand out and positioned the front wheel so the bike wouldn’t tip and, like me, threw his back leg over as he stood up. I flicked up the helmet visor now that we weren’t riding and fumbled with the chinstrap, trying unsuccessfully to unclip it.

  Levi laughed at me as he took his helmet off and ran a hand through his hair. “Here, let me help you with that.” He unclipped it first go with a little squeeze on the clasp. Didn’t I feel like a complete idiot?

  I pulled the tight-fitting helmet off and fluffed my hair with one hand while I handed the helmet to him to put onto the bike before we walked over to a small lookout. We stood side by side at a railing looking down the cliff at the many surfers catching waves on the reef break. He wrapped his arm casually around my waist and pulled me into him. I leaned into him and inhaled his scent.

  “How’s your ass?” he asked, smirking, and took a hold of a butt cheek, giving it a good squeeze.

  “Sore.”

  He laughed softly and kissed the top of my head, wrapping his arm back around my waist. “Have you ever been surfing before?”

  I shook my head. “No. It’s not something I was ever really allowed to do. I had a very sheltered childhood. If I ever got the slightest sniffle, I was at the doctor’s in a flash, my mom making sure I walked out with antibiotics in case I was coming down with pneumonia or something.”

  “I can’t believe you have grown up living next to this awesome break and have never been surfing. Looks like it’s something else I need to show you how to do then,” he said, tickling me.

  Asshole, he knew how ticklish I was. I wiggled under his hand, but he pulled me in tighter to him so I couldn’t get away.

  “Stop,” I laugh-cried. I managed to grab his hand, squeezed his fingers hard to stop, and glared at him, but he made it impossible to stay angry with him.

  He was smirking, playing a game, giving me a teasing look. This was the Levi I knew.

  I punched his arm playfully. “Don’t get all cocky just because you won the drinking competition...”

  “I wasn’t talking about the drinking competition.”

  My face flushed hot thinking about us this morning.

  He laughed. “I’m sorry, Andi, I couldn’t help myself. You just look so cute when you’re embarrassed.”

  My face remained hot, refusing to cool down, especially after his cute comment.

  “Do you surf a lot?” I asked, keeping the topic on subject. To be honest, I was keen to just keep talking about anything other than us. The more I thought about him naked, the more I ached knowing I couldn’t have him the way I wanted. Friends with benefits. That was all.

  “Yeah, I grew up in Sydney. We have some of the best beaches in the world there. I’ll have to take you there someday.”

  “Sure, that sounds like fun.” I wasn’t delusional. I knew he was just being polite.

  “Are you thirsty? There’s a cafe on the beach not far from here that make the best fresh juices.”

  “I could go a juice.” I glanced at my watch. The afternoon was flying by. I was trying to prolong our time together, make the best of our last moments. I had to be home in a few hours, and I knew that when it came time to say goodbye, it would be forever.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Levi

  As I ordered drinks and food for us, I watched Andi sitting by the window. She was absentmindedly playing with a straw wrapper, looking out at the view of the beach, her profile highlighted by the sun’s afternoon rays reflecting off the water. She was beautiful. Oblivious to the comings and goings in the cafe, her thoughts a thousand miles away.

  Instinctively, she must have known I was watching her and she turned her gaze away, her blue eyes meeting mine. She smiled warmly at me, putting her lightly grazed elbow on the table and resting her face in her open hand. I’d been busted staring, but unabashedly, I couldn’t tear my eyes away from her. Raising her eyebrows, she mouthed the word “What?” at me. I shrugged my shoulders, non-committal. I didn’t have a comeback. Like her, I had merely been enjoying the view.

  Unexpectedly, she poked her tongue out at me. I laughed. For the first time since my mom had died, I felt carefree and loved life. Being in a freefall couldn’t even compare to how I felt right now. I didn’t want this day to end. As long as I was with her, I could do this every day. Cruising with her behind me on my Harley, her arms wrapped around my waist and her knees pressed into my thighs. I hadn’t felt this comfortable with anyone in a long time. I trusted her, and based on my past relationships, that was a big deal for me.

  She wasn’t only changing me emotionally. There was also the major effect she was having on my cock. All day it had been in a near state of semi-hard-on, like my dick had memory retention. It throbbed for her every time she squeezed herself into me when I took a tight turn on the bike. Plus, it didn’t help that my back was stinging like a bitch from her nails after I gave her a bit of hand action. I needed to be buried inside of her, sooner rather than later. Flashes of me taking her from behind, with her bent forward over the front of my bike, clouded my vision. My cock crowed, and strained against the front of my jeans. You’ve got to be kidding me? I adjusted my jeans discreetly. How the fuck could I get a boner just thinking about sex with her? I had to convince her to stay with me again tonight.

  “Can I help you?” the waitress asked, breaking through my thought process, regretfully making me turn my back on Andi. And even though I couldn’t see her, I was hyper aware of her presence. It was at that exact moment, like something from a cheesy Nicholas Sparks novel, I knew she was a part of me. I had fallen for her. Every part of my body now belonged to her, not just Mr. Happy, who was more than eager to reacquaint himself with certain parts of her body.

  “Sure can, thanks,” I said to the girl, and attempted to be normal while Andi continued to invade my thoughts. I couldn’t think straight. Fuck, I was so tuned into her I could taste her on my tongue.

  The waitress looked at me expectantly. She slid the laminated menu to me. “Do you need more time?” I knew what I wanted, and it wasn’t on this menu. What I really wanted would have to wait.

  The girl pursed her lips impatiently. I pointed at the drinks and ordered. “Two of your fresh liver detox juices and a bowl of fries.”

  The girl rung up the order and gave me a check to pay at the cashier before we left. She handed me a table number and I walked back to Andi, deciding that before we left this cafe today, I would man up and tell her how I felt. I couldn’t go on pretending to be friends any longer. She had to be mine.

  Chapter Twenty

  Andi

  Levi had a strange look on his face after he ordered our drinks and food. He sat down on the chair o
pposite me and playfully flicked at the straw wrapper I had been nervously twirling. I got the feeling that something had been building up inside of him since he took his shower. It was the look on his face that sealed my fate. This was it. The great let-down. Sure, we’d had an amazing twenty-four hours together, but like all good things that came into my life, it eventually had to end.

  I looked everywhere around the cafe but at him. Families enjoying a leisurely Sunday afternoon get-together, groups of friends hanging out and showing each other photos on their cell phones, chilling out, laughing. Everywhere, there seemed to be people surrounding us that were loving life. Except us. There was nothing but an awkward silence between us.

  “Andi...” he started.

  “What did you order?” I wasn’t ready to hear the truth just yet. I wanted to live in my little fantasy world a bit longer. The one where he felt the same way I did. The one where he was falling in love with me. The one where we went back to his place and made love and talked, and then repeated it all over again. I was sitting here even wondering what he tasted like. Imagining taking him in my mouth. Something I hadn’t ever thought I could do. I ignored the spreading wet patch in my panties. Obviously, my vagina and heart were of the same mind on this one.

  He frowned at me, and opened and closed his mouth, like he wanted to tell me something more important than what he ordered us to drink. Instead, he just smiled politely and answered me.

  “Just some fries and a couple of detox juices. They are really great for hangovers.”

  I forced a laugh. “That’s great, let’s flush the kidneys ready for some grease. How’s your eye feeling?” If I kept up with the questions, he might forget to cut me loose.

  He pressed gently around the cut under his eye. He had removed the plaster after his shower. The cut had closed neatly and the swelling had started to subside, but the bruise was still developing, turning his eye a nice shade of purple and blue.