Unbreakable

by Jennifer Lazaris

  “It should’ve been first on the list,” she says saucily.

  I fish a fifty out of my wallet, but she pushes it away. “No. It’s on me. That’s the least I can do after destroying your kitchen.”

  She plucks the list and keys from my hand. “I’ll be back in a bit,” she says, standing on her tiptoes to brush a kiss against my lips.

  I haul her against me for a real kiss, and I’m rewarded with the taste of mint and fresh cherries.

  When I release her, she blinks up at me, and that dreamy look is back on her face. Yeah, I plan on putting that look on her face a few more times tonight.

  “Hurry back, Sunshine.”

  “I will,” she promises.

  After she leaves, I go into the living room and sink down on the sofa.

  When Sully and the rest of our friends get here, I’ll need to work harder than ever to keep my feelings for Emmy hidden away. Especially now that she and I are doing… whatever this is we’re doing.

  I’ve always done an excellent job at keeping my feelings hidden, but after spending the next few days alone with her, I’m worried they’re going to be written all over my face.

  Chapter Fourteen

  WILL

  Emmy comes through the front door just as I finish packing the knapsack.

  She pulls a box of condoms and a container of orange juice from one of the bags. “Got the provisions.”

  I grin. “Priorities, right?”

  “Exactly.”

  She places everything on the counter and points at the knapsack. “What’s this?”

  “I thought we could go for a hike. I packed us each a lunch. There’re snacks and drinks in there, too.”

  “Oh, awesome!” She hesitates and glances back down at the knapsack. “Um, just how far are we going to hike? I’m hungry now. I kind of destroyed brunch, so…”

  I toss her an apple. “Not far, I promise. I have a particular destination in mind,” I say, winking at her.

  She walks behind the counter and wraps her arms around me. “You’re the best, Will. You’re just everything that—” she stops abruptly. “You just think of everything.”

  I hug her back. “C’mon, time to go. Go get ready.”

  “‘Kay. Let me go change into my running shoes, and I’ll be right down.”

  “How much longer?” Emmy asks. This sentence is punctuated by a loud growl from her stomach, and she grins. “Told you I was hungry.”

  “Don’t worry, we’re almost there.”

  We follow a well-traveled trail through the woods, but once we approach a rusty wire fence, I steer her toward another path that’s a bit overgrown.

  “Are you sure you know where we’re going?” she asks doubtfully, glancing around.

  “You’ll just have to trust me, Sunshine.” I squeeze her hand.

  God, it feels so good to hold her hand like this. Like we’re a real couple. I’m going to enjoy it for as long as I can, even if it comes with a side of guilt. I’m trying to train myself to ignore that ugly emotion, but it’s not easy.

  I lift a branch, and she walks under it. “Any minute now.”

  “The suspense is killing me,” she groans. “You know I’ve never been any good at waiting.”

  “I know. You always found every one of your birthday presents before they were even wrapped.”

  “Except your presents,” she complains. “You were always so sneaky.”

  “I had to be,” I counter. “You were like a bloodhound, sniffing around everywhere. I had to be stealthy.” I tug her forward. “Okay, we’re here.”

  Emmy gives me a confused look. “Um… where exactly is ‘here?’”

  I pull aside a large tree branch blocking the way. “Go forward a few steps, then turn left.”

  She does so then stops abruptly. “Will!” she shrieks. “The treehouse! Our treehouse!”

  The treehouse is actually an old, tiny, abandoned cabin. It was one of the places we escaped to as kids during these vacations. Sully and I discovered it one day while Emmy was swimming in the lake with her friends.

  We used to load up a knapsack full of chips, ham and cheese sandwiches with mayo on Wonder Bread, and chocolate bars. Then we’d hike up here and spend hours playing games, reading comics, and pigging out.

  Our visits to the treehouse stopped when our parents found out and busted us for straying too far from the cottage. Once the secret was discovered, the place lost its appeal for us.

  I came up here and cleaned the cabin the morning Emmy went swimming with Crew Cut and his friends.

  “I’d completely forgotten about this place. It’s been what, eleven years? Honestly, I can’t even believe it’s still standing!” she exclaims. She pulls out her phone and takes a few photos. “Is it safe?”

  “Yep. I cleaned it out and checked it over.”

  I follow her over to the little one-room cabin and open the door. It’s still run down as all hell, but it’s spotless inside.

  “Oh, wow! The old metal table is still here.”

  I set the knapsack on the floor and pull out a tablecloth. “Yep. Pretty beat up and rusty, though. Someone brought in wooden folding chairs. Guess the metal ones were in rough shape.”

  She’s staring around the little cabin in awe. “Was it gross in here when you first came in?”

  “Nah. A few beer cans. Some empty food wrappers. Nothing too terrible.”

  I’m in the middle of placing the sandwiches on paper plates when she tackle-hugs me.

  “Will, no one’s ever gone to such trouble to make me happy.” She pauses and looks up at me, tears in her eyes. “The things you’ve done the past few days, and now this?”

  “I thought you’d like to see it again,” I say simply. “We had a lot of fun here when we were kids.”

  Emmy turns away, but not before I see the tears slipping down her face.

  “Aww, Em.” I wrap my arms around her. “Please don’t cry. I thought it would be fun. Did I ruin this?”

  “No,” she says softly, turning around and shaking her head. “This is perfect, Will. I mean it.”

  She looks up at me with those beautiful, big, green eyes and there’s such tenderness there. Such gratitude. If she keeps it up, I’m going to end up backing her against that wall for a kiss, and I’m not sure either of us will want to stop.

  Instead, I reach out and push a lock of hair away from her eyes. “Come on. Come sit down, okay? Let’s eat this throwback lunch I prepared.”

  “Okay.”

  I pull more stuff out of the knapsack, and she wipes the tears from her face and smiles. “Oh my God. Will, where did you get this?” She holds up a package of Pixy Stix.

  “I have my connections,” I say, grinning. Emmy used to inhale those things when we were kids. They were always her favorite candy.

  “Peanut butter and jelly! And ham and cheese with mayo on Wonder bread!” She shakes her head and holds up two chocolate bars. “All of our favorites!”

  I unpack two beers and two cans of cola. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted a grown-up beverage or not.”

  She reaches over and snags a cola before taking a huge bite out of the PB&J. “I’m so tempted to dump my Pixy Stix on my sandwich.”

  I make a face. “Why?”

  She grins and darts her tongue to the corner of her mouth and licks off a glob of grape jelly. “You’re the king of old eighties movies, and you don’t know this bit of trivia? Remember when Allison did that in The Breakfast Club? I forget what else was on her sandwich, though.”

  “If you put Pixy Stix on your sandwich, I’m leaving.” I pop open the beer can and grab a ham and cheese sandwich. “No clean eating this week, but it’s worth it.”

  We eat and talk for a half an hour before Emmy finally digs into her Pixy Stix. She rips open the top of a straw and downs the entire thing in one go. Her eyes close, and a look of pure bliss spreads across her face.

  I grin. “Still good, eh?”

  Emmy sighs happily. “Better than good.
Amazing. I’m saving the rest of them for later. Cherry is still the best flavor.”

  “I’ll take your word for it.”

  Her phone buzzes with an alert. “Uh-oh,” she says, glancing down. “We have a weather warning. Severe storms on the way.” She shows me the radar on her phone, and it’s a wall of reds and purples heading right for our area.

  “Shit. We should pack up. Looks like they’ll be here soon, and we still have to walk back. Don’t want to be stuck in this rickety shack in a bad storm.”

  Emmy sighs and slips her phone into her pocket. “Damn. I was having such fun.”

  I reach over and cover her hand with mine. “We still have a few days left.” I rub my thumb back and forth across her smooth skin. “Lots of time for fun, Sunshine.”

  “I’m holding you to that, Mav,” she says, smiling.

  We clean up our mess and go back outside into the forest. Emmy stops to take another photo of the little cabin.

  I stand a few feet away, watching her. The sun streams down through the trees, and as her dark hair catches the rays, it shimmers with gold highlights. She’s breathtaking.

  I wonder if there’s ever going to be a time when she doesn’t take my breath away. Somehow, I doubt it.

  Emmy turns around and slowly walks toward me.

  “You’re staring at me,” she whispers.

  “That’s because you’re so damn beautiful.”

  A pink blush stains her cheeks, and that’s it—I’m done. I drop the knapsack on the forest floor and haul her into my arms. I press my lips to hers, and she lets out a soft sigh.

  She tastes sweet, like cherries and sugar. I back her up against a big tree trunk and claim her mouth over and over again.

  “So fucking sweet,” I say between kisses. “God, honey. I can’t get enough of you.”

  Her eyelids flutter closed when I place my lips against the hollow of her throat. “Mmm. Will.”

  In my fantasies, I’d always wondered how my name would sound on her lips when we were intimate. Soft? Breathy? Sexy? Real life is so much better, because it’s a combination of all three. Hearing her say it drives me a little crazy. I drop my hands down to her ass and pull her closer. I’m hard as hell right now, and I groan when she grinds her pelvis against mine.

  “Please, Will. I want you. I want you so much.” She looks up at me with hooded eyes full of desire. “I don’t want to wait anymore. I put a condom in my pocket just in case we needed it.”

  If Emmy were any other girl, I’d take her right against this tree. Right here, right now. But Emmy isn’t just a quick fuck. I don’t want our first time to be out here in the woods. I have big plans, and none of them involve tree bark burns on her sweet little ass while we fuck. I want to take my time.

  “I want you, too, honey,” I whisper, kissing her neck. “I want you so fucking much I can barely think. But we have to get back to the cottage.”

  She whimpers, and my resolve slips a little. But then the sun fades behind a cloud, and it’s suddenly a lot darker in the forest than it should be at this time of day.

  “Storms are coming, remember?” I kiss her temple. “We don’t want to be stuck out here in the middle of that.”

  Emmy lets out a little laugh. “Why not? It’s kind of becoming a thing with us.”

  I take her hand and lead her through the forest as the first sound of thunder rumbles in the distance. “Not if I can help it. C’mon Sunshine, move those feet. We gotta go.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  EMMY

  Will stands in the kitchen, pulling various items out of the fridge.

  “Em, I’m going to prep some stuff to grill for dinner. I thought I’d make chicken and veggie kabobs.”

  When he bends over to pull something from the lower shelf, I get a great view of his sexy hockey ass. Yes, hockey ass is a real thing. You could bounce a quarter off of that butt.

  Yummy.

  “Um, sure. That sounds great.” Lucky for me, it looks even better.

  He glances over and catches me watching him. “Are you staring at my ass?”

  “It’s kind of glorious,” I admit.

  He snickers. “Thank you. But it’s not nearly as perfect as yours.”

  “Doubtful.” I sigh and take a drink from my water bottle.

  We arrived back at the cottage just as the storm started, but thankfully it only lasted twenty minutes. The picnic table is already dry from the hot sun, which is good since we’re eating dinner outside.

  Will and I spent the past two hours making out on the couch. My lips are still numb and a little swollen from kissing. Will’s an amazing kisser. I’m still fighting off butterflies from the sexy things he whispered in my ear.

  I was practically panting with desire; I was so lost in him. I thought that we’d finally have sex right on the couch. But like the other night, his hands only skimmed over the places I needed him to touch the most. I almost resorted to begging, but there’s something incredibly sweet about how gentle and slow he’s going.

  Eventually, we were interrupted by a loud growl from Will’s stomach, and that got us both laughing.

  “The sandwich and beer didn’t fill me up. I better start dinner. Besides, I need to keep up my strength for later tonight.”

  The way he’d said it, all low and sexy, made me all shivery. I don’t remember being so affected by his voice before this trip. It’s always been deep and gravelly, but now I’m pretty sure it’s the sexiest voice that’s ever whispered in my ear.

  I’m so touched by what he did for me today. It just makes me sad when I realize that someday, another girl is going to get that part of him exclusively—the sweetness and thoughtfulness that I’m sure will make him a wonderful boyfriend.

  I already hate this girl, and she isn’t even real. At least, she isn’t yet.

  He’s brought back so many good memories for me over the past few days. Is it so wrong for me to want the chance to make new memories with him?

  I have to derail this train of thought, or I’m going to get depressed.

  “Will, is there anything I can do to help that won’t burn the house down?”

  He grins, showing a dimple in his left cheek. “Can you chop up some of these veggies for the kabobs?”

  “Sure.”

  He slides peppers and other assorted vegetables over to me on a chopping board, and I get to work while he preps and seasons the chicken.

  My cell phone begins to ring, and I cringe when my dad’s name pops up on the screen.

  “Sorry,” I mutter. “It’s my dad. I have to take this.”

  He nods as I pick up the phone.

  “Hey, Dad.” I walk to the backyard and sit down at the picnic table. “What’s up?”

  “Emmeline. How are you?”

  My father is so formal sometimes. He’s the only one who ever uses my full name.

  “I’m good, Dad. I’m home. Well, I’m in Ontario, anyway.”

  He makes a tsk sound. “I thought you were spending your time wisely by taking a summer class in New York?”

  “I did. The class is over, Dad. I’m up at the cottage. I just needed to get away from the city. I’m a little burned out.”

  I hope he’ll take the hint, but as usual, he doesn’t.

  “Better get used to the work, Emmeline. This is nothing—wait until you get into law school.” He pauses. “So, how was the class? It was an advanced math course, wasn’t it?”

  I bite down on my lower lip and watch Will as he comes outside with the kabobs and freshly shucked corn.

  “Yeah. Very advanced.”

  “And how did you do?”

  Oh God, this isn’t going to go over well. “My final grade was a C.”

  “Is that what I’m paying for, Emmeline? For you to make Cs?”

  “Dad, I tried. I did, but—”

  “But what? You couldn’t hack it?” Disgust laces his tone. “Bullshit, Emmy. You’re distracted because it’s summer and you don’t want to work. You want to play.�
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  “That’s not true,” I say hotly. “I worked really hard in that class.”

  I had, too. Even though I’m fairly decent at math, I struggled with the course content.

  “The truth is, I’m struggling with a lot of my courses,” I tell him. “That’s why I had a tutor for most of my classes last semester.”

  “You just need to work smarter,” he says dismissively. “You aren’t applying yourself the way I know you can. You’re a natural fit for law school. You’ve always done well while working summers at my firm.”

  “I was filing and answering the phones at your office, Dad. That isn’t the same as helping you prepare for a case.”

  Will glances up from the grill, a sympathetic look on his face.

  “You have what it takes to do this,” my father snaps. “When you get back to the city, you just fucking work harder. Understand me?”

  “Maybe you need to accept that being a lawyer isn’t a good fit for me.” I fight to keep my voice even. “I’m miserable, Daddy.”

  “Don’t you ‘Daddy’ me! I’m not falling for this shit. You’re a Sullinger, and Sullingers do whatever it takes to succeed. I don’t want to hear this wimpy bullshit from you. You sound like your mother with all of this whining.”

  I keep silent, but I can feel the tears threatening.

  “I have to go, Emmeline. I’m prepping for court. The next time you talk to your mother, tell her I’ll cut up her damn credit cards if she runs up another massive bill like she did last month. That selfish bitch is going to make me broke.”

  “Tell her yourself!” I snap. I toss my phone down on the table and draw in a ragged breath.

  Will kneels down in front of me and rubs his hands along my thighs. “Hey. What’s going on?”

  “He won’t listen to anything I say. I’ve told him so many times that I’m struggling, but he always says the same thing. ‘Work harder. Study more. Apply yourself. You’re not a quitter.’”

  “Is your Dad like this with Sully?” he asks.

  “Are you kidding? Sully’s the golden child. He can do no wrong. Me? I’m nothing but a total disappointment.”