It was hard to tell if she was shivering from the cold or the memory of how she got the bruise on her arm.
“They're not coming inside, Elle,” Brad said, standing in our way. “They may as well just get out of here.”
“Like hell we're not,” I said, towering over him again.
“Brad, please, don't be difficult,” Elise said softly. “It's a freaking blizzard out there, and I'm freezing to death.”
“This is my cabin,” he said.
“Your cabin?” I scoffed. “Because you fucking rented it?”
“No, because I fucking own it, dipshit,” he said.
Ahh, right. Made sense why they were the only ones there when it was closed now. Still, he wasn't about to keep me from talking to Elise. There was no way in hell I was going to let him force us out before making sure she was okay. Judging by that bruise on her arm though, I thought she was pretty fucking far from okay.
“We're not leaving until we talk to Elise,” I said. “Either you can let us in, or we'll force our way in.”
I wasn't one to turn to threats typically, but when it came to Elise, I certainly wasn't above it. Brad and I stared each other down for a second before he lowered his eyes, unable to meet my challenge. He sighed and stepped back.
He knew he couldn't win. Not with four of us standing there, ready to kick his ass. It wasn't like he could call the cops on us either. How the hell would they get up there in this weather? He was on his own, and he knew his options were limited.
“Smart man,” I said, pushing my way past him.
The others followed me in, and Sean closed the door behind us.
The cabin was much larger than it appeared from the outside. The fireplace took up a large section of one wall, and had a fire burning brightly in it, casting a cozy warmth throughout the whole place. The spiral staircase led upstairs to a loft that looked down upon the main floor. It was a bedroom with a king-sized bed and giant picture windows overlooking the snow-covered landscape. The windows came all the way down to the first floor, and out back was a patio and a hot tub with steam rising from it and curling up into the frigid air.
There was a kitchen on the left of us, with a breakfast nook that had even more windows. A formal dining room was off to the side with a table that could easily fit six to eight people. A hallway on the right surely led to more bedrooms, and probably a bathroom. It could easily sleep six to eight people, and there was enough seating for all of us on big, oversized and plush sofas, situated directly in front of the fireplace.
“Nice place,” I said dryly.
“Thanks,” Brad said, his tone just as dry as mine.
“May we speak to Elise alone?” Nolan asked, once again proving to be the mediator.
Brad started to protest, but Elise put her hand up. “Please, Brad. Let's not fight anymore, okay?”
“It's my cabin,” he said again, which was still pissing me off – ownership of a cabin did not entitle you to put hands on a woman.
It just took one more withering look from me to silence that thought. Brad once again rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath, but he walked upstairs without a fight. Not the most private place for us to talk, but it would do. As long as Elise was comfortable with it, so was I.
When he was out of sight, I asked the question we'd all be dying to ask.
“Are you okay?”
“I'm fine,” she said.
She paced the room with her arms crossed in front of her tightly, her expression dark and conflicted.
“You're obviously not fine,” I said, walking over to her.
I grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to stop pacing, and turned her toward me so I could look her in the eye. She scowled, pulling away quickly.
“Don't touch me,” she said.
“I'm sorry, I –”
The look in her eyes made me pause. Elise and I had been close at one time. Very close. I knew she still hadn't forgiven me for what had happened. Hell, I still hadn't forgiven myself for it. I knew, in her mind, she didn't fully understand my reasons for dumping her, but part of her did. She knew Aaron wouldn't have been okay with me dating his precious, baby sister. She knew the drama and conflict it would have created within the group.
Nolan stepped up, and Elise turned away from me, choosing to focus on him instead. Her face softened when she looked at him, and my insides twisted in both jealousy and hurt. I pushed those feeling aside though, because it was my own fault. I fucked things up with Elise. There was no two ways about it. It was my fault, and I had to deal with the consequences.
The two of them talked in whispers, and I could only pick up on a word here or there. Sean stepped over to me, a curious look on his face.
“What was that about?” he asked.
“I don't know.”
I hated lying to one of my best friends. It physically hurt me to keep my mouth shut, and to prevent myself from telling everyone what happened between us. I valued honesty above most anything else in this world, which made me feel like a flaming hypocrite for keeping the secret. I had to do it though, for Elise's sake. She didn't want anyone to know, and it was probably for the best.
Nolan patted me on the shoulder. “So I guess her and Brad got into an argument,” Nolan said, keeping his voice low. “He didn't hit or her anything, but he did break her phone on accident.”
“On accident, my ass,” I muttered.
Nolan shrugged. He didn't buy it either.
“Still, with the weather as it is, and everything else going on, I think it might be best if we stayed here for the night. Just to keep an eye on things,” he said.
“I agree,” Chase said, speaking up from the corner.
“Think Brad will let welcome us with open arms?” Sean asked.
“What choice does he have?” I said. “There's four of us, only one of him.”
“He owns the place –”
“And you think the cops are going to come out here in that blizzard?” I asked. “Fuck him, he's not going to do anything.”
Elise had joined our little circle. She'd heard everything. Our eyes met briefly, and I got lost in the bottomless depths of them for a moment, but she quickly looked away and the moment passed.
She muttered, “There are a couple guest rooms down the hall.”
“Plus the couches,” I said.
She nodded but kept her focus on the floor instead of on me. She kept her arms wrapped tight against her, as if she was cold. The fire kept the place pretty toasty warm. A little too warm, if anything, not cool enough to warrant hugging yourself so tightly. There was definitely something going on that she wasn't willing to talk about.
“Brad isn't going to like this,” she said under her breath.
“Well, let me tell him,” I said.
She looked at me for only a split second. “No, I don't want trouble, Trevor.”
“He'd be the one causing trouble, not me,” I said.
She sighed and rolled her eyes. “Trouble seems to follow you wherever you go.”
She headed toward the stairwell, and as much as I didn't want her to go alone, the look on her face told me I would be unwelcomed up there with her. I turned to Chase.
“Go with her, man,” I said.
Chase nodded and followed along. She didn't fight his presence like she would have fought mine. As much as it killed me, I knew I had to let it go. She was still hurt after our little falling out, I couldn't blame her for not being happy around me.
I wasn't the only one picking up on the tension between us though. Sean leaned against the wall beside me, and Nolan came up on the other side.
Sean spoke first. “What's going on between you and Elise, man?”
“Nothing,” I said.
“Bullshit,” Sean said.
“I don't know what you're talking about.”
“Alright, lie to us, brother. That's cool,” Sean chuckled, running a hand over the stubble on his face. “But if it causes any problems here tonight –”<
br />
“Ain't no one but Brad going to be the problem tonight,” I muttered, shoving my hands in my pockets, my mood rapidly darkening. “I'm just going to keep to myself.”
Nolan smirked, side-eyeing me as Sean rolled his eyes. Neither guy believed I could do it, that I could keep from causing drama, but I'd show them. Once I knew where we were sleeping, I'd head in there, and keep to myself. If I took myself out of the equation, there should be no drama, right? Simple.
Chase came down first, Elise at his heels.
“How'd he take it?” I asked.
“About as well as you'd expect,” Chase answered. “But I think I made it clear to him that we're not going anywhere.”
“I'll grab some blankets for the couch,” Elise said quietly, scurrying past us.
I couldn't help but check out her ass as she walked by. So tight and firm. She was a small girl, but with just enough curves to leave a man thirsty for more. Her yoga pants hugged that tight little ass perfectly.
Nolan punched me in the arm.
“What?” I asked.
“Keep your eyes to yourself too,” he said, but there was a smile in his eyes.
Hell, we'd all checked her out. She was a gorgeous woman, how could we not? Yet, she was off-limits, that was the rule. That had always been the rule. It was supposed to be at least. I licked my lips, remembering the way she tasted. It hadn't been that long ago, but God, it felt like forever, and I was hungry for more. I was always hungry for more.
The guest room was nice. Hell, it was a lot nicer than my apartment back in Greenville, or anything I'd ever stayed in before. This Brad guy was loaded, clearly. Or at least his family was.
The bedroom itself was large and furnished with expensive looking furniture. It had a shared bathroom with a shower big enough for three people, maybe four. It was a shame it was going to waste. I cleaned myself up, and as I'd promised the guys, I kept to myself. They put me in the guest room at the far end of the house to keep me from getting into trouble.
Chase and Nolan took the couches. Sean said he'd take the floor of the living room, leaving me in the guest room all by myself. Elise, surprisingly, took the other guest room – just one door down from me. We shared the bathroom, but she kept her door shut. Probably locked too, for all I knew. She went in and closed herself off once everyone got settled.
It was a bit too early to sleep, at least for me. I showered, then plopped down on the Queen-sized bed, naked since that's how I always slept. A thick down comforter and hunter green duvet covered the bed and matched the wood walls and rustic decor perfectly. Modern rustic was more like it. I had a hard time believing this was a vacation house. If this is where they went to get away from it all, I couldn't imagine what Brad's regular house looked like. Probably over-the-top and garish, more than likely. Like all rich people, I imagine they had to show off that wealth.
No wonder Elise liked him.
Nah, scratch that, I gave myself a swift mental kick. She was smarter than that. She wasn't superficial or shallow like that. Elle wasn't a woman lured in by wealth. Her family was well-off enough on their own, and she had a good career. Money didn't interest Elise, not like it might others. So what was it about this asshole that appealed to her?
Maybe she has a thing for assholes, because I'm also an asshole. I smirked as the thought passed through my mind, though I knew it was all too true.
She could have had any man she wanted. And God knew, she had more than enough men vying for her attention. Yet, from all of them, she chose Brad. Though, she had also chosen me at one point in time. What did that mean? He was a completely different kind of asshole than I was. At least I admitted I could be a dick. Brad was just a pretentious pile of shit as far as I was concerned.
Maybe I was biased. Hell, I probably was. Elise was a damn fine woman, in a hundred different ways. Any man would be lucky to have her. Damn lucky.
I closed my eyes, trying to block out the thoughts that were rampaging through my head. All of the self-flagellating and self-loathing thoughts that sometimes plagued me. One thought though, rang out truer and more clearly than any other – You had her at one time, dipshit, and you let her go.
Licking my lips, I remembered the way she tasted back then. I remembered the way she felt. The way she smelled. It wasn't even a few months ago, I'd had her in my arms. I held her close, kissing those perfectly pink lips, my tongue exploring her mouth. As the memory came back to me, the blood immediately rushed down to my groin, and I grew long and hard. Without even realizing I was doing it, I reached down and started stroking my cock, remembering the way Elise's delicate little hands had felt wrapped around the thick shaft.
We'd only been together that one time, and actually, we didn't even go all the way. I'd come to my senses before it had gone too far, but from that day forward, I'd be lying if I said I hadn’t always wondered – what if? What if we hadn't stopped? What if we had gone all the way? Would we have formed a relationship based on that?
Nah, in fantasy, it's one thing. The reality of it would have been a hell of a lot different, I was sure. I'd have regretted it. She would have regretted it. In my mind, however, I regretted nothing as I pushed her down against the bed and ripped her sundress from her petite body. I'd never seen her completely naked – unfortunately, I'd only seen her in a bikini, but it was enough to get a sexy picture in my head. Her breasts were small and round, a nice handful. Nothing more was needed in my opinion. Her nipples were pink, and flushed against her pale skin, just begging to be sucked.
I groaned as I imagined her body wrapped around me, my mouth meeting her breast. In my mind, her breathing grew heavier, her voice sultry, and seductive as she whispered, “Please, Trevor... Don't stop now.” The same words she'd whispered that night before I stopped things from going any further than they already had.
This time though, there was no stopping me. I plunged myself into her depths, her body quickly tightening around me. Her sweet mouth opened wide with a scream as I stretched her open and filled her up with my cock. Her blue eyes grew wide in surprise as she felt me inside of her for the first time.
My grip tightened on my dick, imagining that it was her tight pussy wrapped around me instead. Just that thought was enough to get me close to the edge. She drove me absolutely crazy, was everything I'd ever wanted in a woman – but I could only have her in my fantasies.
I thrust myself inside of her, over and over again, kissing those sweet lips. Her body trembled around me, her back arched upward. She urged me on with her hands and her voice, begging me to keep fucking her.
“Come for me, Elise,” I groaned.
“I – I am,” she gasped in her breathy voice,
As I kept pumping my cock, I could hear it clear as day in my head. She screamed out my name as her pussy tightened around me, and that was all I needed.
With my hand firmly gripping my cock, I came, dreaming of filling her tight little pussy with my seed. We came together, and it was glorious until I opened my eyes and remembered where I was and that I was alone. My stomach was sticky with cum, and I'd made a mess. Time for another shower. I didn't get up right away, however. Instead, I laid there for a long time, clinging to the memory, as I stared up at the ceiling while the afterglow of my orgasm faded away.
I was alone. There was no Elise to curl up with afterward, and there never would be. That realization left a pit in my belly. It was always like this after masturbating to thoughts of her. During the act, I was happy and content, and the world was perfect. It only highlighted the truth in my heart though – that we'd never be together. I'd never get the girl of my dreams. She was the standard I measured all others by.
I'd never know what it felt like to hold her in the afterglow of making love, and the only memory that even comes close is one I ruined with my own fears, doubts, and insecurities.
I wasn't a particularly emotional or sentimental man by nature, not by a long shot – but, fuck, that hurt.
3
Elise
Tears welled in my eyes, and there was a stabbing pain in my heart, as I stared at the vaulted ceiling of the guest room. My relationship was falling apart before my very eyes, but that wasn't the reason my emotions were so scattered and all over the place right now. My head was spinning, and I felt like I was on the verge of hyperventilating. As if dealing with the fallout of Brad wasn't horrible enough, now I had to deal with the heavy emotions that came with having my brother's best friends here.
My friends too, I guessed. Though, if I were being honest with myself, I'd admit that they were more than that to me. They were almost like brothers, but they weren't exactly that either. I loved them. I loved them all so much. After Aaron died, they were my everything. They were my world. They took care of my family and me, and there they were again – there for me when Aaron couldn't be.
None of them asked why I chose to sleep in the second guest room. Though, it was probably clear, huh? It didn't take a genius to see that Brad and I were not together anymore. I'd ended things right before they’d arrived. In fact, it had been only moments before they’d knocked on the door. I wasn't sure if it had even registered with Brad before the boys arrived. The look on his face didn't give much away. Then, his face was always a blank mask of indifference, and he hid his emotions well.
I was exhausted. Spent. I wanted to sleep, but every time I closed my eyes, I pictured the fight that had erupted between us. During the fight, he grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me, asking why I'd called my parents. Screaming it, actually. He was irrational, asking me why I'd made him break my phone. It was all my fault, or so he said. Bullshit. I knew better. I wasn't one of his trophy girlfriends, who cowered before him, or bent to his will. I had a brain, and a spine, and I didn't appreciate his bullshit. I grew up with a big brother who made damn sure I didn't take shit from anyone, that I knew my worth as a woman. Maybe his exes weren't so lucky, or maybe they didn't care because of his money. But, I wasn't one of those girls.
That wasn't me. Never was, and never would be. The moment he broke my phone, all hell broke loose. When he put his hands on me, it was over. I knew there was no way of getting out of there tonight, not with the storm bearing down on us, or I would have left in the blink of an eye. The guys showing up helped a lot. I felt safer with the four of them there. Brad wouldn't mess with me as long as they were here. He was an asshole, but he wasn't that stupid.
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