by Ali Parker
She moved toward Matt and Erica, the two of them talking casually. She almost turned away, but Matt called her over, putting an arm around her.
“We were wondering where the hell you had slipped off to.” He gave her a warm side-hug and released her.
“I tried to sneak out when I realized you were sleeping.” Erica took a drink of something fruity looking, her glass matching Matthew’s.
“I just didn’t get much sleep last night. I’m in college and still not able to pull all-nighters without suffering.” She smirked and turned as a server moved toward her. She ordered whatever Matt and Erica had.
“I thought you didn’t drink fruity drinks.” Matt lifted an eyebrow.
“I don’t usually, but those look really good.”
“They are.” Erica took another drink and gave a soft snort. “There’s the DJ. Dance floor is ready and the buffet is almost set up. You guys ready for a long night of partying?”
“I don’t think we have a choice.” Bethany let out a short laugh and pointed as her mother and Aunt Patty pulled Kent out on the dance floor. Everyone joined them as the food was being uncovered. Bethany walked over to check out the goods, snagging a strip of grilled chicken and turning to find Damon walking toward her.
“Looks like dad pulled out the stops for this one.” He smirked and pulled her against him. “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?”
“I’m not sure, but I’m happy to hear it again.” She smiled and licked at her fingers.
“Watch it, vixen. Your little pink tongue makes my heart race.” He wagged his eyebrows. The man with too many burdens and an aggravated disposition was nowhere to be seen. She needed to get him away from the office more often. Hopefully she could be a part of alleviating some of his stress in the future.
He moved beside her and slipped his arm around her, his fingers brushing rhythmically over the top curve of her rear. She crossed her arms over her chest and followed Matt and Erica as the pretty blond pulled him onto the dance floor.
“You wanna go join everyone?” Damon leaned down and pressed a kiss just behind her ear, sending chills racing through her.
“Yeah. I do.” She intertwined her fingers with his and walked toward the dance floor, pausing only for a moment as he almost ran into her. “Wait. You don’t like to dance.”
“I don’t, but remember what I told you?”
“Oh yeah. Only at large events like weddings and when you want to seduce someone.” She winked and started toward the floor only to have him tug her back.
“The wedding is great, but I’m working hard to seduce this saucy little brunette who seems to have me under her thumb without much effort.”
“You should teach her who’s boss.” Bethany lifted her eyebrow.
“I think that’s a brilliant idea. I plan to put it into action after dinner tonight.”
She laughed as her mind raced through the possibilities. Turning on the floor, she reached for him and began to move with the salsa music. Damon tucked himself against her and moved across the floor, his skills far better than she imagined possible. The man fucked like a minx. There was no way that his ability to dance so well wasn’t linked directly to that.
Bethany held on and tried hard not to pant, but no one would believe she was that out of shape.
Dinner was incredible, the number of meats and variety of cheesy potatoes left her feeling full and almost uncomfortable. Having sex anywhere, especially on the beach, did not sound like fun. She glanced over at Damon, watching the way his face lit up when he and Matt were teasing each other. He might not have a solid foundation of what the word “love” meant, but she did. She would spend the rest of her life showing him.
Getting up, she bent down and kissed the top of his head. “I need to run to the restroom. I’ll be back in a minute.”
“Okay, baby. Just don’t slip away for another six-hour nap.” He winked and turned his attention back to Matt.
Bethany walked off before anyone else could question where she was headed. Tugging at her dress, she wished like hell she would have worn something a little more comfortable. Trying to impress Damon seemed silly, but she wasn’t sure she wouldn’t be striving to do that for the rest of their lives.
She turned the corner and stopped short, a tall woman almost plowing her down. A scowl formed on the other girl’s face, realization running over Bethany. It was Christa. The model, the ex, the perfect girl Damon didn’t seem to want anymore. The one he had professed his love to after a few days of being around her.
“Oh. Excuse me.” She took a step back, her eyes running down Bethany. “I’m Christa. Damon’s first girlfriend.”
“I’m Bethany. Damon’s current girlfriend.” Two people could play at this game.
Christa smirked and pursed her lips as if fixing her lipstick. “Good luck keeping him. He’s a player and a half. I was back in his bed a week or so ago. The sex is just so good. I swear I’m an angel until he’s around. He has this way of turning all of us into needy sluts. Odd really.”
Bethany moved around her, pushing into the bathroom and muttering ‘excuse me’ as the other girl laughed loudly. She was in Damon’s bed a week ago? That wasn’t possible.
Heat washed over her, forcing her to stop by the sink and catch her breath. A wave of nausea pulsed through her, the food from dinner threatening to make a violent exit. She splashed cold water on her face and patted it dry, trying hard not to mess up her make-up.
“Christa is a liar. Matt already told you that.” Bethany stared at herself in the mirror, a frown turning her mouth down. Christa was everything she wasn’t. Had Damon dropped her or was the situation reversed? Maybe she dropped him. Did he still want something with her?
“No. Fucking stop it.” She patted her face quickly and slipped out of the restroom, determined to forget all of it. It was nothing but a dark spot on their time together. She wasn’t going to let it ruin everything.
She rounded the corner and made her way over to the table to find Damon missing. She looked at Matt with question.
He rolled his eyes and pointed to the dance floor. “I told you that bitch was a wolf in sheep’s clothing.”
Surely not.
Bethany glanced to the floor, Damon in the middle of a large crowd of women. Christa waved at her, the smug look on her face causing Bethany to stiffen. Surely he wasn’t dancing with them. What would possess him to do that?
He glanced over at her and waved for her to join him. She wanted to react, but her family seemed to be watching closely. She smiled and shook her head as if none of it bothered her at all. Damon didn’t like dancing and he didn’t fall to peer pressure, so was he simply wrapped up in the activity of the big event happening around them, or working to seduce his old girlfriend that he was obviously still fucking on the side?
Bethany turned on her heel and walked out onto the beach, breathing in deeply and refusing to cry. She wouldn’t be the victim. She had been that for far too long.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The wind blew around her, tugging at her dress as if urging her to walk farther down the beach. She gave in to the motion and turned away from the party, moving languidly down the stretch of soft sand. She stopped only to remove her sandals, looping her fingers in the straps and letting everything go. Too much had happened too fast. She had a crazy load of shit waiting for her to figure out how to balance the minute she got home as well. A break was in order. She just hoped it wasn’t going to be her to shatter.
“Bethany,” Damon called for her, but she kept walking, never picking up her pace nor turning around. He moved up beside her, reaching over and pulling her to a stop.
“What?” She glanced up at him, her voice far more cold than she wanted it to be.
“I got pulled into the middle of that shit. Don’t be upset, baby.”
“You had a choice and you chose. I was in the bathroom for a minute after being accosted by your perfect ex.” Bethany shrugged, grateful that anger burned br
ight instead of sadness.
“What did she do, Beth? I told you she was a bitch.”
“A bitch that you snuggled up to in front of our family on the dance floor and are still dipping your cock into from what she says.” Beth shrugged and turned, walking down the beach again as if nothing mattered.
“Beth. That’s a crock of shit and you know it.” He walked up beside her, tugging her to stop again. “Stop moving and talk to me.”
“Actually, I don’t know anything. You have trust issues and I’ve been completely forward with you. You haven’t seen me sitting in anyone’s lap or texting Philip or some other dude, have you? No one’s walked out of my office with a dazed look and smeared lipstick.” She reached up and poked him in the chest. “And don’t tell me you love me if you don’t mean it. Grow the fuck up and come back when you’re ready to be serious. I don’t share.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her tightly against him. “She’s nothing to me. I haven’t had her in my bed in years. Stop listening to other people’s shit and focus on me. I weary from reminding you that I care about you and have chosen you. I’m right fucking here.”
“You’re going to get more weary then. You’re not the only one who had expectations of what love looked like only to have it ripped away. I’m waiting for the moment your father shows up, breaks my mother’s heart and takes everything from us once again. Do you know what it’s like to never date in high school because you’re so fucking scared someone will realize that you’re on food-stamps? Never let anyone touch you for fear of them asking why your ribs are so prominent? How do you answer? I’m starving to death?” She let out a shaky breath and pushed at his chest, needing a little bit of room to breathe. “Don’t pull the rug out from under me, Damon. Rip the Band-Aid off or shut the fuck up and expect to be weary. My past doesn’t lend me to be hopeful of the future.”
He pulled her close and slipped his hands into her hair, forcing her to look up at him. The tension in his fingers felt good, the strong tick of his jaw telling her that he was more than affected by her past situations. Good. He should be. She was heartbroken over his mother’s deception and his part in it. She would take every bit of it from him if she could. That was what love was all about. Never giving up. Never backing down.
“I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere and I love you more than I have ever loved anyone. Christa isn’t anything to me and I should have told them no. I didn’t want to look like the stiff-necked asshole that everyone seems to think I am. Forgive me. I’m not willing to spend the last few days of this trip fighting with you. I need you too badly.” He pressed his lips to hers - hard.
Bethany slid her arms around his neck, not wanting anything but him. They would work through the details later. Nothing was going to be straightforward or easy, but he was willing to communicate. She needed to process everything, but didn’t want to talk anymore for now.
She broke the kiss, brushing her lips over the strong line of his jaw as she whispered, “I don’t want to fight either.”
He bent down and slipped his arm under her legs, picking her up and walking down the beach farther. He leaned down and kissed her again, his soft groan undoing her from the inside.
“No more talk of anyone but us. This isn’t about them or our insecurities. It’s about us, Beth. It’s about us working toward forever. Tell me you want that and trust me when I say that I do.” He stopped as the hotel disappeared in the distance, a faint light all she could make out.
The moon sat full and heavy above them, the light blue glow of it spilling out over him, making him more beautiful, as if it were possible. She reached up and brushed her hands down the thick muscles of his neck, over his chest and around his waist.
“I want that.” She pressed her lips to the center of his chest as his hands moved firmly down her back, pressing in to massage her. She let out a soft moan and moved back, needing to get his shirt off of him. She wanted to taste his skin.
“It’s yours, baby. Stop running from it, from me.”
“Okay,” she whispered and pressed his shirt from his shoulders before pressing her mouth back to him.
“Fuck, that’s hot, Beth.” He undid the small ties at the top of her dress, pushing at it until it fell in the sand beneath her. “Let me get out of my slacks and let’s get into the water. I want to feel the wetness and warmth of your body in contrast to the chill of the waves.”
She nodded, her voice lost to the desire to dive in deep with him. Moving back toward the water, she turned and slipped off her tiny black panties. He groaned loudly, the sound needy and delicious. She walked into the water, wrapping her arms around herself and waiting for him once she was waist deep.
He joined her, taking her hand and pulling her farther into the surf. “Come here, baby. Let me take care of you the best way I know how.”
“I’m sorry for overreacting.” She moved to him as the sand beneath her dropped off. The water rose to her neck and she clung to the front of him, Damon holding on to her tightly.
“No sorries. I would have to give a million too. Just concentrate on right now. Let’s me and you stay in the moment together. We’ll work through all this shit from our past over a bottle of wine, nudity and a roaring fire at my place when we get home. Deal?” He slid his hands over her rear, tugging at the back of her legs.
She wrapped her legs around him, the thick brush of his erection against her center causing her to whimper softly. How he left her needy and undone was a mystery. Christa had one thing right. Being around Damon did make her feel like a starving hooker. Everything about him lent to the desire to fuck all night, unapologetically.
“Hold on to me tightly. I want to memorize your curves with my hands, Beth.” He pressed his face into the crook of her neck, sucking softly as his fingers ran up and down her back, over her hips to her breasts. “So damn hot. I swear I almost came just watching you dancing in your sexy little dress tonight.”
“I was hoping you’d like it.” She smirked and slid her fingers through his hair, rolling her hips a little to get the full effect of being molded to the front of him. A deep ticking sensation started in her core and grew until it pushed along her wrists and neck.
“I loved it.” He lifted his head, his eyes locked on to hers. “I love you. I will always love you.”
She shifted her hips and pressed down, his cock sliding into her tightness. She let out a groan, wondering how the hell she could be so tight again after their long night of love-making.
He slid his hands down to cup her butt as he began to work himself into her.
“I love you too. Just keep telling me. I’m a needy bitch.” She smiled and kissed him softly as they panted against each other’s mouths.
The conversation was over as he gripped her ass tightly, pulling it up and down, working himself with her body. Nothing could be sexier. She held on to him, her nails digging into his shoulders as a fire started from the friction. She arched her back, giving him more room to thrust into her as she let out a long cry.
“Mmmmm… scream for me.” He pressed his teeth against the top of her breasts, Beth letting out another scream from the pleasure of it. How he could bring her to come so fast was beyond her, but she worked herself against him, helping the moment to last as long as it could.
She relaxed against him, pressing her cheek to his chest as she hugged him.
He slowed his assault and pulled out of her. Jerking her head up, she pinned him with a questioning stare. “Did you come?”
“No, baby. I want to go back to the bedroom and spend the night buried inside of you again. I just needed to reassure you that every bit of this, including my heart, belongs to you. Let’s grab our clothes and go find a bed to ruin?”
She laughed and slid down the front of him as she nodded. “That’s a great idea. Do you think it’s a bad thing that sex seems to be our love language?”
“No clue what that is, but I’m not thinking it’s anything but good. Sex is almost everyone’s l
ove language in some sense. Love of self or another.” He took her hand and walked out of the water with her, bending over and handing her the pretty dress she left sitting on the sand.
She moved back, watching him closely as she pulled it up her legs and over her stomach and breasts.
He was magnificent, the moonlight accentuating the swell of his muscular frame. He turned and she reached for his cock, the thick member standing at attention, swollen and deliciously hard.
“How the hell did I end up so lucky?” She stroked him once, tugging him toward her with her hold on him.
He laughed and pulled her close. “I’m the lucky one. Let’s get dressed before that gaggle of girls comes running down the beach and I have to tuck myself away inside of the closest thing I can find.”
“Are you referring to me?” She scoffed and stroked him a few more times, petting his arousal and thinking of all of the things she wanted to do with it.
“I was.” He leaned in and nipped at her lips. “You’re the only place I want to be.”
“Then let’s go and I’ll open up for you.” She licked at his mouth, reaching around him to caress his ass.
“Oh yeah? You gonna let me devirginize you tonight?” He lifted an eyebrow and squeezed her hips, rolling his and pressing into her hand between them.
“Maybe.”
“Maybe’s good enough for me. I’m the chief negotiator for the firm. I think this maybe might just be the yes I was looking for.” He chuckled as she swatted his ass and moved back, tugging her dress back into place.
There wasn’t a part of her body she didn’t want him to touch. Tonight was just the beginning of her willingness to let him explore. It was about trust, which was starting to grow deep inside of her. Kent wasn’t like her father. Damon wasn’t either.
Time to give them the opportunity to just let each of them be who they were and not some bastardized version of who she expected them to be.