by S A Clayton
“I know. I just have no idea how to bring this up. We’ve only been seeing each other a few months, maybe even less than that, and I don’t want him to see me differently because of this. I mean, this could ruin his career. Maybe I should break it off. Cut the head off this thing before it gets out of control.” Bile rises in my throat at the thought of saying goodbye to Josh, but at this point, I don’t know how else to fix this.
“No,” Mel mutters, placing her hand on my knee. “Don’t do that. That is the last thing you should do. Do not let this deranged fucker take away the one thing I’ve seen make you smile in the last three years. I won’t allow it.”
I lean my head on her shoulder and sigh in defeat.
“Thanks.” I wrap my hand around hers as she gets up and takes me with her. She wraps me in her arms, and I know this is exactly what I needed.
Her.
We head back inside, and I stop at my office to check my email when I notice the envelope with the pictures sitting open on my desk. I quickly look around, Mel’s eyes growing large when she sees the pictures strewn everywhere.
“Why would you leave them like this?” she asks, confused. So am I.
“I didn’t. They were locked in my desk when I came upstairs.” I narrow my eyes and try and figure out who could have gotten to them when I hear a knock at the door.
“Sunshine?” Josh calls from the open door. “Can you and Mel come upstairs for a second?” Mel nods and leaves us alone before I can stop her and then Josh’s eyes drift to the papers in my hand. Thank God they’re facing my chest or he would see exactly what I’m holding.
“What are those?” he asks, holding out his hand to grab them when I flinch backward, placing them back in my desk drawer as I try and disguise the panic in my voice.
“Nothing! Just contracts from Henry that he wants me to sign.” Josh tilts his head, studying me.
“They look like pictures.” Shit.
“Uh…yeah, Henry is thinking about hiring some models to advertise and these are just the headshots.” His eyes soften and that smirk returns. He motions for me to follow him and I breathe a sigh of relief before I place the photos back in my desk and follow.
We make our way upstairs where I can hear a lot of grunting and cracking noises. When we make it through the door, I gasp. The progress they’ve made in the last ten minutes is insane. They’ve managed to knock down every wall except for one. I raise an eyebrow to Will, motion to the wall as he chuckles to himself.
“It’s a load-bearing wall, so we either have to keep it or install a beam which will cost a pretty penny.”
“How do you know about all of this stuff?” I ask, not really realizing that they pretty much took out walls without having a license for construction.
“My dad is a contractor and has built houses his whole life. When I wasn’t on a baseball diamond, I was working with him. Learned a few things along the way.” He winks as he looks back toward Mel.
Worried, I look over as well, hoping she doesn’t freak out, but she’s just smiling, walking around the room as the boys congregate in the corner.
“What are you thinking?” I ask as she continues to look around. I know she’s already come up with a plan because that’s just who she is.
“Well, this room is bigger than that one, right?” she asks Will and I swear I see a glint of desire in his gaze, but it’s gone in a flash. Will nods as Mel continues to walk around, biting her nails. “This is more than enough space for the dance studio. Maybe we can build an office on the other side?” She points to the only remaining wall. “That way there’s a separate space for dancing and I can do my office work here instead of at home in my bed.”
“That sounds perfect to me.” I glance at Josh who looks just as happy with the idea. He agrees, coming over to me and putting his arm around my middle. “Urgh! You’re all sweaty, get off!” I joke, ducking under his arm, and just as I’m about to walk away, he catches my wrist and spins me so we’re chest to chest.
“Don’t run from me woman, I would follow you anywhere,” he whispers and I can’t help but melt. I realize that I would rather him hate me forever because of these photos than leave him.
“Promise?” I whisper with more seriousness than I intended. A flicker of unease crosses his eyes but it’s gone just as fast, replaced by the smirk I love.
“I promise.” Just as he leans down to kiss me, I hear a camera go off in the distance and my whole body locks as my head spins, trying desperately to figure out where the sound came from. The second I notice Mel with her phone in her hands, taking pictures of the space, my body starts to relax.
“What was that?” Josh asks, his eyes searching my face as I put on my best neutral expression.
“Nothing,” I lie, hoping it’s enough.
His eyes question mine for a split second then he smiles right before his lips lightly touch mine. His tongue demands entrance as everything around me goes blurry. I link my fingers around his neck, bringing him closer while moaning into his mouth as he kisses me with so much passion that I almost fall over.
“Hey, porn stars!” Mel yells from across the room. “If you’re going to continue, then please do it elsewhere! I don’t need to see you doing it for real!”
I spin my head around and give her a piercing look. I glance back at Josh, hoping he didn’t catch the slip, but he just tightens his grip around my waist, letting his hands rest on my ass.
“Sorry, Mel,” Josh says, “I can’t help it. When I see her, all I want to do is…”
I smack his arm to stop his train of thought.
“Maybe we should try that out?” Will asks Mel as she stares blankly in his direction, then gives him a once-over.
“Aww, that’s so sweet, but honey, you will never be able to handle this,” Mel admits straight-facedly. “Plus, I don’t date athletes.” This is also true, we both made that pact in college after Mel’s disastrous relationship with Carson.
“That’s what Harper said too, but Josh wore her down…” Will says, getting closer, stroking her shoulder gently.
She moves away but I see just a flicker of interest appear in her eyes. It’s gone just as fast and if I didn’t know her as well as I do, I might have missed it.
“But Harper is a pushover.”
“Hey!” I yell back at her.
“Sorry honey, but it’s true. And as for you, big boy,” she grinds out, pointing at Will. “You can try all you want but that mouth of yours will not get you inside my pants. No matter what.”
“We’ll just have to see about that,” he mutters with a wink, and I realize I might have just witnessed the beginning of something between these two.
If I know my best friend, Will has a lot of work to do before she backs down, but I know if he works hard enough, she’ll cave. She just doesn’t know it yet.
I sense Josh behind me once more and I lean back, feeling his warmth seep into my skin. “You think these two will get together?” he asks quietly as we watch Mel walk Will around the room, explaining her ideas in great detail. I turn my head, leaning into the crook of his neck and relax as his scent washes over me.
“If he’s a persistent as you, then I think he has a chance. He just needs to be prepared for a tough fight. She’s usually a one and done kind of girl.” I don’t tell him I think Will has a better than normal shot since Mel decided to stop her one-night stand lifestyle.
Josh lightly kisses my neck, expelling a low groan from my throat. “You wanna let these two get to know each other and get out of here?”
“And what would you like to do?” I ask teasingly.
“I have a few ideas, and they all mostly involve you…” He kisses my neck again, this time a little harder. “Naked…” His teeth grazing my skin as I shudder. “And under me…” He sucks on my skin as I let out another groan, because that is exactly what I want. All of it.
“And…” I swallow the lump in my throat. “What if I want to be on top?”
“Harper, you can
be on top, below or sideways,” he whispers. “Just as long as I get to feel that tight pussy squeezing my cock dry.”
With that, I say a mumbled goodbye and head straight to my apartment where we end up in bed with me on top, below, and sideways.
And it was as good as he promised.
16
Josh
My eyes open to darkness and I take a glance at the clock and see it’s still too early for Harper to get up for work. I don’t have to be at the stadium until midmorning so I’m hoping to get some sleep before practice.
“Josh…” Harper moans, pulling me closer and the second my morning wood touches her luscious ass, it goes from fifty to one hundred.
My arm wraps around her middle, pulling her as close as I can as I bury my face in her hair, loving the smell of strawberries that always seems to follow her everywhere. The small whimpers cause my pulse to jump as my hand glides along the flat plane of her stomach. I tilt my head only to realize she’s actually asleep. I smirk, loving the fact that she’s dreaming of me, when all I can think about is her.
No matter where I am.
I lean over and grab a condom from the nightstand, knowing exactly how this morning will end, and I quickly wrap myself, stroking my cock once, letting out a groan.
My fingers are itching to touch her, and when I lightly stroke the skin between her tank top and sleep shorts, she whimpers, sending a groan rumbling through my chest. The feel of her beneath my fingers is so fucking amazing that I know I would chase this girl to the ends of the earth if I could feel like this every morning for the rest of my days.
She grinds back against my cock as I slip my fingers past her shorts, smirking at the fact that she’s not wearing panties.
Good girl.
The closer I get to her pussy, the heavier her breathing becomes until they’re at the apex, not touching her where I know she desperately needs me.
“Josh… please…” she begs, as I groan loudly, knowing she’s awake now. Her hand grabs mine, pushing it where she wants me, and I shake my head against her shoulder.
“Nuh-uh. You know the rules, Sunshine,” I whisper in her ear, making her moan into the pillow beside her.
Her hand lets go as I kiss the column of her throat, loving the vibrations that cascade through her the more I tease.
“You want my hands on you?” I ask, knowing the answer but wanting to hear the words come from her lips.
“Yes, baby. Please… I need to feel you.”
“I know you do, sweetness,” I say as my hand retreats and before she can complain, I pull her shorts down past her hips, leaving them tangled around her knees. Her ass is on full display and nestled right up against my cock. I was never one to sleep naked, but with Harper? I can’t tell you why it wouldn’t be a great idea, especially if I can wake up like this on the regular.
My fingers find their way back to her heat and the second they find her wet folds, I bite her shoulder, stifling the groan in my throat. “Always so fucking ready for me,” I mutter, letting my fingers do what they do best.
Harper melting against me as my fingers delve into her is something I never knew I needed in my life, but I’m addicted to it. The soft mewling sounds that leave her mouth as my thumb strums her clit, leaving her breathless, are sounds I will never get tired of hearing.
“That’s it, sweetheart. You love my fingers in you, don’t you?”
All she can do is nod as her walls clench and I know from experience that she won’t last much longer.
“Open those pretty legs for me, Sunshine. I know you want my cock.”
She does as I ask, lifting one leg just enough for my cock to brush against her pussy. My fingers retreat, circling her clit faster and faster, waiting. The moment her body tightens against mine, I plunge my cock so hard into her that she has no choice but to scream out her release. My fingers never let up their ministrations, loving the feel as she milks me from every angle.
“Fuck… Harper…” I groan as I slowly grind in and out of her from behind. I can feel her pushing back against me, wanting me to go faster, but I lick up her throat and kiss that spot behind her ear she loves so much. “No rush, baby… we have time,” I say, slowing down, fucking her slow and driving us both insane. The slower I fuck her, the more turned on she gets, and the more I want to come so deep inside her that we both lose our minds. But I don’t want that just yet.
“Fuck, Josh… this is…” she mumbles as her hand travels down between her legs and her fingers graze where we’re joined. The second that happens, my whole body tightens.
“For fuck’s sake, Sunshine. You’re driving me insane,” I say as I flip her, never breaking our contact, and I begin to piston in and out of her, needing to get as close to her as possible.
Our eyes lock and the smirk that she gives me tells me she knows exactly what she was doing with those fingers of hers.
“Josh I…”
I see the words in her eyes, and I know she’s not ready to say them. So I kiss her, making love to her so she can feel that I feel the same even though we haven’t said the words. I’m gentler than I have ever been, and she arches her back, her second orgasm cresting just as my own takes over. I groan into her neck, loving that her scent surrounds me as I come harder than I have in a long time.
Just as we both come back to earth, Harper’s alarm goes off as she laughs, kissing me lightly.
“Guess that means no round two?” she says as I grin against her, lifting my eyes to meet hers.
“Not if you want it to be like that…” I tease.
Harper left a few hours ago, leaving me to make my own breakfast. As I’m taking the eggs out of the fridge, a knock sounds at my door and I know who it is before I even open the door.
“Hey, man,” Will says, coming in and shutting the door behind him. I wave at him as I head back toward the kitchen. He drops his bag on the floor next to the island, watching.
“What are you doing up so early?” I ask, knowing my boy loves to sleep in on night-game days.
“I couldn’t sleep.” He sits down at the island and watches as I scramble eggs and pour them into the heated pan. “This series is a must win for us. You know that.” We all know that. “Just keep thinking about ways everything can go wrong.”
“Trust me, I of all people know about the pressure,” I mumble as I cook the eggs and put some toast in the toaster. Once the eggs are cooked and the toast is ready, I plate them, pouring the eggs on top. I hand one plate to Will as I sit next to him.
“What did Coach say when he took you aside? I know it wasn’t pretty from the look on his face.”
I grin because he’s not wrong. Coach has never been able to hide when he’s disappointed in us. I always found that comforting when it was directed at others, but when it was me? Not so much.
“He wasn’t happy. He just told me that if I don’t get my act together there would be consequences.”
Will chokes on his breakfast and just stares at me.
“Seriously? Are they that worried?” I know he means well, and it’s nice to have someone in your corner, when it seems like they shouldn’t be.
“Harris, have you watched my play lately? If I was management, I’d be worried too. I’ve been looking like a rookie out there, it’s pitiful.”
“But you’ve been getting better.”
He’s not wrong. I’ve done everything in my power to get back to top form and I’ve spent so much time at the field with Will trying to make sure I don’t repeat these last few games… ever.
“I have been. But they still want to give T.J. a shot… so I have no choice.” I was never one to look too much into what people in this business say, because most of the time it’s bullshit, but there was something about the way the coach talked to me that makes me panic.
“I feel like you’re just being paranoid, I mean, you were fucking MVP last year. The team would be idiots to fuck you over now.”
I laugh because it does sound ridiculous, but it’s happ
ened before, and I remind him of that.
“True, but I still think you’re overthinking this. You just need to concentrate on your game and let the rest go.”
He’s right. I know that.
“So, how’s Harper? I was half expecting her to be here.” He’s teasing me but I know he likes her, it’s hard not to.
“She’s good. She had to go into work early today.”
He wags his eyebrows and I throw a piece of toast at him that he catches in his mouth and chews while grinning. Bastard.
“So things are going good?”
I roll my eyes. This guy is worse than a chick when it comes to gossip. I swear.
“What do you want me to say. That the sex is off the charts? That she’s funny, smart and sexy as fuck and I can’t stop thinking about her?” I take our empty plates and place them in the sink.
Will chuckles behind me as I turn to see a shit-eating grin on his face. “That’s exactly what I wanted to hear,” he says, rounding the island and clapping me on the shoulder. “I’m happy for you, man.”
“Thanks,” I mutter, pushing away from him and going into my room and getting my bag to take to the stadium. When I come back out, Will is waiting by the door. “So what’s up between you and Mel?” I ask, knowing I’m not going to get an answer but wanting to push his buttons anyway.
“What about her?” He acts all coy, but I can see the hint of a smile on his lips when I mention her name.
I shrug. “Nothing, really. I just saw you guys getting cozy. I thought there was something there.”
He shakes his head, picking up his own bag off the floor that he dropped.
“Nah. We were just goofing around. Plus, we’re just helping with her studio. Which is gonna look sick when it’s done, by the way.”
I know he’s right. We head out to my truck and get in.
“So you asking her out means that you don’t like her?” I tease, knowing I’m pushing my luck. He gives me a look that tells me to shut the fuck up. A laugh escapes as I pull out of the parking lot. “Okay, fine. I’ll just assume you’re in love with her,” I joke as he groans.