by Christi Snow
At that thought, Jake walked out of the bedroom. He was fully dressed, but his hair was still wet from his shower. “I need to go take my shower before we head out, but I forgot to ask, how many days are you home for? Do I get to enjoy having you as a roomie for longer than the weekend?”
Jake gave her a slow, lazy smile and drawled. “Darling, you have me for the whole month. My leave doesn’t end until January 3rd.”
Cassie couldn’t help the smile which spread from ear to ear and suddenly she threw herself into his arms. “Yes, that’s the absolute best Christmas present you could ever get me. A whole month?” Jake nodded. “Yes!”
Jake continued to hold her in a light hug, simply enjoying the feeling of her in his arms. “So go get that cute little ass washed,” he patted her on her butt, “because there’s something noticeably absent from your house. Darling, today we’re getting this house decked out for Christmas.”
Cassie’s joy was complete and overwhelming. She kissed him on the cheek and took off down the hall, singing, “Deck the halls with boughs of holly…fa, la, la, la, la….”
Chapter 17
After a quick run to the tree lot, Jake and Cassie came home with a gorgeous blue spruce taking up most of the bed space in the back of his truck.
Cassie’s house was a little bungalow that had been built in the Park Terrace neighborhood of Lubbock during the 1950’s. Colton, Chris, and Cassie had all come here to live with their grandfather when their parents died suddenly in a plane crash. At the time, Colton was ten and the twins were six. It had been a shock for all of them, including their single grandfather. Their grandfather from their mother’s side of the family had been their only living relative willing to take in all three kids. He filled their lives with all the love he could and they quickly learned to love their modified lives in this quaint little house. He’d died when Cassie and Chris were in college and had left the three of them the house. Because Cassie was the only one still living in Lubbock, she had taken over ownership of it and had spent years renovating it to the serene beauty it was now. In the back, was a detached garage she used for storage, Jake and she headed there now to retrieve her Christmas decorations.
As they headed through the doorway, Jake was taken up short by the object that was placed front and center in the garage…Chris’ truck. That truck had been his baby. It was a black GMC 2500 4WD. Chris had spent hours customizing and accessorizing it and Jake had been right there with him for much of the work. The shock of seeing it and the memories it invoked was like a blow to his gut. God, he missed Chris. That thought was followed quickly by an onslaught of guilt over the many ways he had failed Chris starting with the crash. This was never going to get any easier, this missing Chris, and the emotions were swamping him.
He glanced over at Cassie, but she had never even looked at the truck and didn’t seem to notice his reaction to the shock of seeing it here. She was rooting through the boxes in the corner of the garage. Why did she still have Chris’ truck? Why hadn’t she sold it?
Cassie had her own vehicles that she treated like her babies. She drove a fully restored 1979 Toyota FJ Cruiser. It was red with a khaki soft top. Chris and Jake had done tons of work on her vehicle too and she loved it. It suited her personality, along with the yellow BMW GS motorcycle that she rode when she needed to let go. Jake could see the GS over in the opposite corner of the garage and he knew the FJ was in her carport. Why was she storing Chris’ truck, that honestly she should have sold by now, in here while subjecting her FJ to the harsh West Texas elements? He needed to confront her about it, but right now she was caught up in the excitement of decorating and he didn’t want to ruin her good humor. He went over to give her a hand with the boxes.
As Jake opened what felt like the fiftieth box full of Christmas décor, he wondered if he’d really thought through this plan to decorate with her. He’d assumed decorating would entail getting a tree and decorating it, an hour tops, right? So completely wrong. Already he’d spent a good hour finding the boxes with her and moving them into the house, but one glance at Cassie’s smiling face, made the sacrifice worth it.
Christmas music played over her stereo system with the holiday sounds of Bing Crosby and Doris Day. They built a fire while they worked and the entire feel was cozy and comforting. They finally got to the point of the actual decorating and he watched Cassie as she lovingly unwrapped the fragile glass ornaments that had been her grandmother’s. She loved this season so much; he couldn’t believe she’d even considered not decorating for it. That alone said a great deal about the state of her mind these days. He knew he was to blame for a lot of that fact, but he was determined that by the time he headed back to Arizona, all would once again be calm in her life. She deserved that.
As they worked, he watched her move around. Her long legs were encased in fitted jeans which were worn in all the right places and hugged the gentle flare of her hips. As she reached up into the tree, her oatmeal colored sweater lifted and showed off her fit physique. It clung to her full breasts and slender waistline in all the right places. It was a sweater for God’s sake, but as he watched her move, she may as well have worn lingerie. His cock was at full attention. She was tall and slender but she still had the curves that showed her absolute femininity.
He groaned inwardly. Her long auburn hair was loose today and as she moved about the room, it shimmered with the reflection from the fire with flecks of gold, orange, and red. Her makeup was practically translucent. He could see the sprinkling of freckles across the bridge of her nose and her lips glimmered with the sheen of her lip gloss allowing their natural red to shine through.
Looking at those lips he had once kissed with passion, he felt a twisting in his gut. He clenched his fists. He hadn’t had sex with anyone else since he’d been with Cassie in May. He had opportunities, but just couldn’t find the interest. Looking at her now though, he felt every single one of those weeks of abstinence and the need clawed at his gut…the need for her. He would love to sink into her lips once again, to nestle into her soft body, but he couldn’t allow that to happen ever again. The one time had almost ruined their friendship. He wasn’t going to take that risk again. Besides, he’d promised Chris he never would. He wasn’t going to break that promise again.
He thought back to that day with Chris. It was Chris and Cassie’s senior year in high school and Cassie’s idiot of a boyfriend dumped her a week before the prom and shattered her heart. Watching her cry had broken his.
Ten Years Ago
Chris tossed the basketball towards the net. “She can’t miss the prom. It’s our senior year. I can’t believe that jerk dumped her like this.”
Jake could hear the frustration and anger in Chris’ voice and it echoed his own feelings completely. The three of them were so close…an affront to one, was an affront to all. “So how do we fix this, besides killing Will which would mean you’d never graduate?” Although that idea most definitely had merit. He may just have to make a late-night visit to see Will.
While he’d been thinking about the retribution he could deliver on Cassie’s behalf, he lost track of the conversation.
“…call Jeremy.”
Jake looked up in question, “What?”
“Pay attention.” Chris tossed the ball hard at Jake’s chest. “I said I’ll set Cassie up with Jeremy. He wasn’t planning on going to the prom, but he owes me for getting him through calculus this year.”
“Wait, Jeremy?” He hesitated in his dribbling. “This isn’t the same Jeremy who was with you at that party last weekend is it?”
Chris nodded.
“Nuh uh, no way. Didn’t you see him in the corner with the blonde? He was all over her. No way can you set Cassie up with an octopus like that.” The idea of another guy touching Cassie like that made Jake feel sick.
“Damn.” Chris stopped moving on the court and ran his hand through his hair. “No, I didn’t see that. So who do we set her up with? Almost everyone is already going.”
“I’ll take her.” Jake tried to ignore the zing that slammed through his system at the idea of going on a date with Cassie.
Chris eyed him suspiciously. “What do you mean, you’ll take her? You’re twenty. You’re in college and you hang out with gorgeous babes every weekend. Why would you want to go to a high school dance when you could be at a college party getting laid?”
Jake rolled his eyes. “This is for Cassie. Like you said, it’s your senior year. She needs to have a good memory and we have fun together.” He shrugged like it was no big deal, but the more he thought about it, the more he really wanted to be a part of her special night. There was only one senior prom and he wanted Cassie to have that memory with him.
Chris narrowed his eyes at Jake, all semblance of their basketball game gone. “She’s not one of your college playthings. I don’t care who you are. You break her heart, I will never forgive you. She deserves better than that. Promise me you’ll keep your hands off her.”
At those words a visual rolled through Jake’s imagination which was hard to ignore, but this was Cassie. He couldn’t do anything like that with her because it would hurt all of them. Their friendship was worth more than that. Jake gritted his teeth, but nodded. “I promise.”
Her blue eyes were sparkling as she looked up at him and realized he was watching her. She obviously had no idea of the licentious thoughts which had been going through his mind. “Hey, no daydreaming on the job, or we’ll never get this finished. You have a job to do, buddy…get to hanging those ornaments.” She gestured to the box sitting at his side.
“Yes, ma’am.” Jake saluted her and started hanging the glass balls, Santas, and snowmen, listening to her hum off-key to the Christmas music. Shaking his mental brain, he tried to refocus himself. He wasn’t here to daydream about things that couldn’t be. He needed to keep his eye on the issues at hand…rebuilding his friendship with Cassie and making sure she stayed safe from her stalker.
As he worked, he thought about the jerk making Cassie’s life a living hell. He was worried about what this guy planned to do next. Regardless, he was going to do everything in his power to make sure the guy was caught and Cassie was prepared to defend herself. Tomorrow, he would see about getting her a handgun. He knew her grandfather’s shotguns were still here, but he’d feel better if she had something closer at hand if the need for such a thing arose. He also wanted to get her out to the shooting range for some target practice. Hopefully, by the end of this week, he’d be rid of this troublesome cast and could also work with her on some self-defense moves. He knew she’d taken a class, but felt some refreshing was probably in order.
They worked in silence for a while, and finally, Cassie stepped back to cast an appraising eye upon the tree. “I think we’re just about done. Let me grab the star for the top and a chair.”
As she climbed the chair and reached to place the star at the top, Jake groaned internally. Her luscious ass was front and center and looking absolutely delectable. Luckily, it didn’t take long to get the star up, but unfortunately, that wasn’t the only thing getting up. He needed to get his libido under control and soon. A cold shower may just be the order for the afternoon.
“Are you ready to see the unveiling?” Cassie turned to him and asked with a gentle smile on her face. Cassie hopped down off the chair and went over to flip all the lights off in the room. She plugged in the Christmas lights and their soft glow illuminated the room. As the dulcet sounds of Silver Bells played through the stereo system, she turned to Jake and gave him a hug. “Thank you for making me decorate. I already feel better about everything. I’m so glad you’re here, Jake.”
Jake was careful to keep his lower body away from hers as they hugged. The presence of his erection might just curb those feelings of friendly affection she was having towards him. He needed some space. This was just too cozy and comfortable for his mental well-being. He needed to get some perspective again and that could only be done with some physical separation between them for a bit.
Jake abruptly pulled back. “Cass, I need to head over to mom’s house for a bit. Will you be okay for an hour or so?”
At her puzzled nod, “Sure,” he grabbed his keys off the counter and took off out of the house.
That was odd, Cassie mused. She felt like things had been going better between the two of them, but he left like she had scalded him. If Cassie didn’t know any better, she would have thought he could read her mind and the sexual fantasies she’d been having as she watched his muscles flex and strain as they moved around the Christmas tree. She hated he was on crutches, but it did her female heart good to watch his biceps flex every time he took a step or shifted. There had been lots of those movements as they decorated the tree and Cassie had watched every single one of them through the veil of her eyelashes.
She knew she should stop fantasizing about him, but their combustible passion through that single night had kept her warm for the many lonely nights since. He was her friend and had made it clear many times over the years that was all he wanted, so she tried to keep that thought foremost in her mind. It had been that way ever since they met.
When he moved in next door, they were all years away from hormones, but even then, she’d felt the unmistakable draw to him. It was innocent, but even as a boy he’d been cute with his charming smile and her little girl self hadn’t been immune to it. She’d observed him through her bedroom window as he watched the unpacking of the moving truck. He’d seemed so sad and alone. She wanted to reach out to him, but then she didn’t see him again until he fell out of the tree at the park three days later when Chris and she were playing war games. From that moment on, all three of them had been inseparable friends.
As they grew up, her infatuation with him grew too. She’d made a fool of herself many times throughout their teenage years….enough to make her cringe even now. Unfortunately for her, he’d never considered her as anything besides a friend.
Ten Years Ago
She had suffered through watching him date and have relationships all through their high school years. She dated too, trying to get over the fact he could never be hers. Her senior year, she’d been dating William Gunter. Will was a jock like her. They dated for a couple of months…two jocks, they had a lot in common and he asked her to the prom. One week before the prom, Cassie was so excited. She had her dress. They had plans to attend with a whole group of friends, but then Abby Greenhill got in the way. Abby was a cheerleader with all that entailed. She was petite. She was cute. She was feminine. She was everything Cassie was not and Will dropped Cassie the minute Abby looked his way. All of a sudden, Cassie’s prom and her senior year were ruined.
Jake was twenty at the time and attending Texas Tech. He swooped in and saved the day by offering to take her to the prom. Suddenly, Cassie knew this was fate. She gathered up her battered ego and decided this would be so much better. She was taking a college guy, who just happened to be the guy of her dreams, to her senior prom. This was her chance to show him she was not just the tomboy he’d always hung around and done guy things with. She could be feminine and attractive. This was her chance to show that to Jake and maybe prove something to herself too. The prom was going to turn their relationship into what she’d always dreamed it would be. It would just take a little ingenuity on her part to get him right where she wanted him…in her bed where he could take her virginity.
She planned every moment for her night of seduction. Cassie had worn a black sheath gown that emphasized her lean height and her flaming red hair that she’d worn up with tendrils cascading down her bare back. An extremely expensive push-up corset she wore under the dress assured every single feminine inch she had was shown off to its maximum potential. From the darkening of Jake’s eyes when he first laid eyes on her, every single penny she spent on the outfit was worth it.
They went to dinner with Chris and his girlfriend. Every minute, the butterflies in her stomach let her know what she had planned for the end of the night, but she never let
on. They were all best friends so there was a relaxed atmosphere between the four of them. They attended the prom and danced the night away. Finally Chris slipped away with his date, as Cassie knew they would. This was where her bit of subterfuge came into play. Jake and Cassie danced for another thirty minutes. Frustratingly, Jake maintained his distance from her the entire night, but she knew she hadn’t imagined his reaction when he first saw her. He just needed a little push and she was ready to give it to him.
She looked at him and twisted his watch around so she could look at it. “Do you think we’ve given Chris and Gwen enough time?” She looked at him, like he should know what she was talking about.
Jake looked at her puzzled. “What? Enough time for what?”
Cassie gave an exasperated look she had practiced for hours in her bathroom mirror. “Chris forgot to tell you didn’t he? I should’ve known he’d forget. He was so excited for tonight.” She shook her head like this was just typical of Chris. “We got a hotel room for tonight so we could have some fun and relax after the prom…just us friends. We don’t get to see you as much since you’re the big time college student, so we thought it’d be fun to hang out especially since we don’t have a curfew for tonight.” That was a lie, but Cassie figured losing her virginity was worth the wrath of her Grandfather and the grounding that would come.
Cassie mentally crossed her fingers hoping Jake was buying all this bullshit. He seemed to be. “We’re already checked in. We’re just supposed to meet Gwen and Chris over there after they had about thirty minutes of private time. They’ve had that long haven’t they?”