by C. A. Harms
Marcus began laughing as he walked away toward the kitchen, shaking his head. I didn’t let him get too far before I was scrambling off the couch, tripping over the blanket that got wrapped around my feet in the process.
“Marcus?”
He took a long sip of his coffee. “Damn, that’s good.”
“Marcus, what the hell aren’t you telling me?”
“He’s not telling you how you and Red were practically dry humping each other on the dance floor.” I spun around to find Morgan entering the kitchen. She brushed past me and opened the refrigerator. “Or that had it not been for Red, you would have hiked up your skirt and rode his Prince right on the hood of his car.”
“What?”
I looked between Morgan and Marcus repeatedly, hoping, wishing that one of them would tell me this was a joke. Only they didn’t, and I was mortified.
“You said had it not been for him.” I leaned back against the countertop no longer feeling fully rested from a night of sleeping on a couch made in heaven. They both just watched me, smiling like it was the greatest thing in the world. “What was it exactly that he did?”
“I can tell by the expression on your face you’re thinking he somehow denied you, but let me just assure you, he copped a feel or ten before he slowed things down.” Morgan took a seat at the table and placed her cup down in front of her. “Let’s just say the guy has some major control. There you were, practically begging him to take you home with him. You were all over him, and at one point I think he had you outside, pinned to the side of the club. Then he convinced you to walk with him and I’ll admit, I was surprised when he led you to Marcus’ car and placed you securely in the passenger seat.”
“Oh my god.” I hung my head in shame.
“It was hilarious to watch him struggle as he shut the car door and walked away. I think he paused a good four times, turning back only to stop and spin back around again.” Morgan looked thrilled.
“You know he went home and took a long cold shower.” Leave it to Marcus to add that little extra push of humiliation.
“I’m never looking him in the eyes again.”
“Good luck with that.” Morgan tucked her legs beneath her. “That boy is already on his way over to get you.”
“What, what?” The doorbell rang and I spun around looking at the door. “How, when did…” Oh god damn my life.
Marcus hurried off before I could stop him and I suddenly realized those two were loving my uncomfortable stage. They were eating it up.
“Hey Buttercup, you’ve got company,” Marcus announced as he entered the kitchen, followed by Elijah. I looked down, avoiding eye contact as I tugged on the hem of the t-shirt I was wearing.
“Cat.” I felt my cheeks heat with the embarrassing memories from last night. “Blake?”
Hearing him say my first name gained my full attention and I looked up at him to find him smiling that sweet smile of his. “There’s my girl.”
His girl?
“How you feeling today?”
“Good, fine.” I was well aware I was stuttering nervously. “I’m great, thanks.”
His grin only grew wider making me aware that he sensed my embarrassment.
A phone rang, and I jumped in surprise. Marcus laughed just as Morgan answered her phone. “Oh my hell, tell him to stop yelling.” I turned around just enough to see Morgan hold the phone out from her ear. “What is wrong with him? He sounds like he’s mumbling.”
The sound of Elijah’s deep chuckle has me looking back toward him.
“What did you do?”
All I got in return is a shrug.
“Vaseline,” Morgan says while laughing, “in his toothbrush?”
I listened to her while staring at Eli. He chuckled but I could tell he was attempting to hold back his laughter.
“Videotape it,” Morgan said through her laughter. “Are his lips sticking to his gums?” There was a pause. “Oh my god, seriously, Xavier record that. You know if the tables were turned Clayton would be holding his phone out documenting every second of your discomfort.”
“Payback?” I asked Eli and he nodded, still smiling and obviously very pleased with himself.
“Ever tried brushing your teeth with Vaseline?”
“That is awful.” I could almost imagine what that would feel like. Or just how difficult it would be to get the Vaseline off your teeth.
“Awful, yes.” He finally moved toward me. “But funny as fuck.”
When he was only a few feet away I tilted my head and looked up at him. “I think I want to be on your team.”
“Oh yeah?”
“You’re definitely more conniving when it comes to this trickery thing. That should scare me, but somehow it only makes me feel safe and excited.”
“Good choice.” Reaching out, he tilted my face up and leaned in to press a soft kiss to my lips. “Now about last night.”
Suddenly I felt overheated, and it had absolutely nothing to do with the kiss he’d just given me. I hung my head, attempting to hide my humiliation.
“It’s a little hazy, but,” he slouched enough to force me to look at him, “there is nothing to be embarrassed about.”
“Dry humping your leg on the dance floor or begging you to do me on a hood shouldn’t embarrass me?”
God damn brain to mouth filter.
I close my eyes tight to avoid the humorous look that now covered his lips. “You weren’t the only one dry humping, sweetheart.” My shoulders sagged. I just wanted to disappear right then and there. “But as for the begging, I think it was more you finally sharing your wants. It seems my girl is loose lipped when she drinks.”
“I’m so embarrassed,” I mumbled.
“Don’t be.” I opened my eyes and looked at him, raising my brows. “Seriously, it was extremely sexy.”
“You’re only making my embarrassment worse.”
“Okay.” He cupped my cheeks in his hands. “It’s forgotten.” I gave him that whatever look; I knew this was so not forgotten. “Okay fine, not forgotten just something I won’t mention.”
He may not mention it, but I know those who witnessed it wouldn’t let me live it down.
Chapter Fifteen
Elijah
“Where are we going?” she asked for the third time as I lead her down the path toward our destination. I may have had some help from Aunt Meg on this one but I had to agree, it was a perfect spot.
As we stepped into the clearing I hear her gasp and can’t help but smile.
“Wow, I’ve never seen water that shade of blue, like turquoise almost.” I stopped and allowed her to step closer to Ginnie Springs. Watching her from the side I was able to see the wonder in her eyes. “This is so beautiful.”
“I thought you might like it.”
“I’ve never even heard of this place and I’ve lived near it all my life.”
Me too. Had it not been for Meg I probably still wouldn’t know about it. Uncle Miles brought her here on their first anniversary and now it was a place they visited often. It held many memories for the two of them, and I’ll just leave it at that. My hell there are just some things a guy doesn’t ever need to know about his parents.
I shivered at the thought.
Cat looked out in awe at the water and I reached out to take her hand in mine. “Thought we could have a picnic here.”
She smiled knowingly and moved in closer. “This was your aunt, wasn’t it?”
I’d filled her in on Meg. Pushy, yet so very involved.
“She is just making sure I don’t fail with landing the girl.” I leaned in closer and kissed her cheek.
“Want me to let you in on a big secret?” I nodded, feeling so fucking relaxed it was crazy. “You are definitely not failing.”
I’d always imagined dating to be a hassle. A guy doing his very best to impress a girl. Making sure he said all the right things, went to all the right places. It was something I never wanted to mess with. It honestly just felt like too much trouble.
But with Cat it felt almost natural, effortless even. She was so easy to please, brought absolutely no drama with her, and the way the littlest things made her smile was such a reward.
“Are there strawberries and grapes inside that basket of yours?” It was adorable how she arched her brow in question. Her lips pursed in the sweetest way. It took great effort not to kiss those lips every second. My new favorite thing was feeling her lips pressed to mine.
“Strawberries, grapes, and blueberries,” I confessed and watch her face light up. “A bottle of wine.” Hated the fucking stuff but Aunt Meg said girls love the shit, so I would suffer through it. “There is also cheese, crackers, and some dessert that she tossed in too.”
“Sounds perfect.”
This shit wasn’t me, or it never had been…until now.
“Over there, maybe.” I pointed toward the small flat patch nearby. “Looks like a good space.” She nodded in agreement and we walked over, hand in hand.
After our blanket was placed on the ground and we were both seated, I opened the basket; we begin talking as if we’d been doing it forever.
“You better eat up,” I told her as I laid out the food. “We have a one o’clock tube off time.”
I watched out of the corner of my eye as she froze, a strawberry mere inches from her lips. “Tube off time?”
“Yep.” I popped a grape into my mouth and began chewing.
“What exactly is that?”
“Tubing down the Santa Fe River.”
I lifted another grape out of the container, this time tossing it into the air before catching it in my mouth.
“But I didn’t bring a suit.”
“There is one in that bag over there.” I pointed toward the bag sitting next to the picnic basket. “I asked Morgan to pick you one up. There is a towel too.”
“You’ve thought of everything.” By her voice alone I couldn’t decide if she was happy with the plans or irritated. But the moment I saw her face I knew she was excited. “Never been tubing before.”
“Glad I can be the one to take you on your first adventure.”
An hour and twelve minutes later we were entering the river at Devil’s Spring, each of us carrying a tube in our hands. I’ll admit all I was able to focus on was Cat in her tiny little bikini. I decided I needed to buy Morgan a thank you gift because I thought she picked out this skimpy little number just for me to enjoy. A few strings holding together a few tiny pieces of material. I was fucking lusting over the idea of what lay beneath. The problem was there were plenty of other guys around noticing the same thing.
I was thankful when we were finally lounging back in our tubes because at least the majority of her body was hidden.
“You hold this one, and I’ll hold on to yours.” I pointed toward the handles on the sides. “I don’t want you getting away from me.”
Side by side we floated down the river and laughed as we talked about the guys, the past pranks we’d played, and how many of them I was responsible for.
“See, I knew I picked the right team,” she said with a smile. And because I couldn’t help myself I spun the tube enough to bring myself closer and arched my neck, gaining a kiss I’d been craving since the moment she walked out of the changing room wearing that pink bikini.
I might have made the kiss a little extra long, staking my claim so the roaming eyes of the other men around us knew she was mine too.
Chapter Sixteen
Catherine
It was peaceful out there, just the laughter of those around us mixed with the sounds of the water flowing as we floated along. I’d never done anything like this before.
“What is your major?” I opened my eyes and looked to my left to find Eli watching me. “What exactly do you want to be when you grow up, Cat?”
“Broadcast journalist.” I saw the surprise in his eyes. “But I’m also almost minoring in creative writing. I love telling stories, whether it be through broadcast or by sitting down creating a world inside my own mind. Then taking that world and sharing it with others. I’ve played around in the writing field for as long as I can remember.”
My father was the only one to support that dream. He used to sit back when I was younger and listen to me read the stories I’d written in school. He would help me enhance them and create so much more depth. It was something else I shared with him that I would always hold dear. Those memories were my treasures.
Elijah wasn’t who I thought he was, that cocky guy from our first introduction at Porter’s. Okay, so I don’t know if cocky was the right word—overly confident maybe. At work I was nervous I would mess something up and be fired, forcing me to once again search for a job and send Carl on yet another rampage. In walked Mr. Smooth, or so I thought. He threw up line after line, flirted and watched me closely, which only enhanced that nervous feeling inside.
Now I had met a different version. Sweet and kind, and I realized those features were so much better. He still held that confidence, but it was tamed by the need to impress me.
He was. Impressing me I mean.
This was the perfect day.
“Tell me you actually have a back up plan, in case the football thing doesn’t work out.” He arched a brow at me making me laugh.
“Football thing?”
Suddenly I felt embarrassed referring to it as such.
“Football isn’t my life long goal, no. I’m actually interested in Sports Medicine.”
“I bet the coaches and scouts are highly disappointed to hear that.” Come on, the guy was huge and there was no way in hell I’d willingly step on a field with him knowing he could demolish me.
“They’d rather see me move forward with football, but understand that I’d rather be behind the scenes. Don’t get me wrong, I love football; it’s just not my life.”
A girl squealing followed by a round of laughter gained our attention and we watched up ahead as a couple tormented one another, their legs hooked together by each having their feet in the other’s tube. The guy continued to splash the water with his hand, throwing water up on the girl. She in turn kicked at him, trying to break free.
“That looks like fun.” I look over to find Elijah eyeing me with mischief in his eyes.
“Don’t you dare,” I warned as I was already looking for ways to break free and gain some distance. He chuckled at my frantic search for safety and pulled me in closer.
“The only way I won’t splash you is if you give me another one of those sweet kisses.”
I had to admit, they were pretty sweet, but it was definitely more him than me. I’ve never kissed a guy who put so much effort into making them memorable. Each kiss, even the quick ones, were toe curling.
“You drive a hard bargain, mister, but I’ll take the deal.”
Very rarely did I find myself in such a comfortable state. It was sad really, how I lived my life feeling always on guard, like waiting for the ball tow rope, or for the next round of hell to fall into my lap. But with Eli, even in the short time that I’d known him, everything felt so natural.
***
I stood with my back to the door, knowing that just outside, on the opposite side of the curtain, stood Eli waiting for me. Maybe it was too forward of me, but I called out his name, asking him for help.
“Is it okay to come in?” I found myself nodding even though he couldn’t hear me, and my pulse quickened. “Cat?”
“Yeah.” There was urgency in my voice. “It’s okay.”
I hear the metal hangers slide over the bar above. I took in a deep breath and remained in place until I heard the hangers slide once more, indicating the curtain closed.
“What can I help you with?” The husky tone of his voice made it even harder for me not to attack him. I didn’t understand what it was about him that made me feel crazed and hungry for intimacy, but he did.
“I think my suit is in a knot.” Yeah it was, because I just put it there. “Can you get it loose for me?”
He didn’t speak,
but I could hear his slow deep breaths. His finger trailed over my arm, along my shoulder, and ever so gently over my upper back. Closing my eyes, I fought the hormonal rush inside me, but I swore I could feel his touch in every fiber of my body.
“I’ve been in physical pain since you first walked out wearing this bikini.” I smiled when he whispered this near my ear. “And now you want me to touch you. I just gotta say, babe, this is torture.”
I pushed back against him and could feel how turned on he was.
Foregoing the task at hand, he wrapped his arm around my waist and rested his palm very low on my stomach. When he pulled me back harder against him, I tilted my head to the side, opening my neck to him. The moment I felt his warm breath fan out over me, my knees weakened and the space low in my stomach tightened. I bit on my lip to fight the moan bubbling inside of me, and closed my eyes just as his lips grazed my neck.
“You know exactly how much I’ve craved you, don’t you?”
I found myself nodding.
“What do you want, Cat?”
“You,” I pant, “I want you to touch me.”
I was acting so out of character but I couldn’t stop myself.
When his hand slipped beneath the waistband of my bikini bottoms that moan I was attempting to hide escaped just as his fingers skimmed over my clit. My legs parted, and he continued kissing my neck as he slowly and torturously began to massage me. When he slipped one finger inside me he moaned too.
“Wow,” he praised, “so fucking wet.”
My hips began to move with the motion of his hand, which in turn had my ass moving against his hardness. It was a chain reaction that in seconds had us both panting hard.
It all felt so good.
“Shh,” Eli directed as I again bit my lip to hold back my vocal reaction to his touch. I could feel myself building toward release and began chasing it, thrusting against his palm. “There you go, let me feel you come.”
So dirty, so unbelievably good.
Then my orgasm ignited and to muffle my sounds, he covered my mouth with his other hand as he panted the words so fucking good in my ear.