by T. Torrest
A rush of memories flooded my brain and filled my entire being. I immediately felt my father out there with me, saw visions of him teaching me how to skate when I was little, cheering me on as a teenager.
By the time I came back to Avery, I was smiling. “You ready?”
She responded with a hesitant grin and a nod of her head. I held my arms out for her and she took them as I helped her down the steps. Once on the ice, she seized my jacket in a death-grip as I skated backwards, letting her get the feel of it. She almost wiped out a couple times, but I always caught her.
Her ankles kept turning in and I tried not to laugh. “Easy, Drunky,” I busted.
It took a while, but once she seemed a bit more surefooted, I said, “I’m going to let go, okay? I’ll stay right here, so if you feel like you’re going to fall, just grab hold.”
Very tentatively, I released my grip on her, keeping my arms stretched out toward her just in case. She was unsteady at first, but holy hell, she was getting it! A rush of pride washed through me as I thought, I did this. I taught her how to skate. I was more than a little proud of myself.
And her.
“Holy shit, Ave! You’re doing it! Look at you!”
She started to pick up a little speed, and I was about to tell her not to get so cocky when…
“Race ya!” she called out, leaving me standing there staring at thin air, at the spot she just occupied.
I watched her take off down the lake, her little skirt flying around her legs, her sweater-tights a receding gray blur.
“Oh you lying, faking phony!”
I chased after her; she had one hell of a head start but she was no match for me. I gave her scarf a tug as I zoomed by, and once I was on open ground, picked up even more speed.
My legs moved on their own as I kicked off and pushed myself to go as fast as my aching knee would allow. The chill was slashing against my face, my nose was leaking, my eyes were tearing up from the cold… and I felt fucking phenomenal.
How could I have denied myself this part of me for all those years? Because that’s what this was: A part of me. The air, the ice. The skates at my feet were an extension of my body, two limbs I’d cut off years ago.
Once I neared the bridge, I skidded out, kicking up a spray of mist against the moonlight. I watched it settle as I tried to catch my breath. The cold filled my lungs in a soothing chill only to be exhaled in a cloudy haze. It was quiet, and the calm allowed me to realize I was at peace.
I wasn’t a very spiritual guy, but for the first time in my life, I was suddenly one with everything around me. The fog rising off the lake, the smell of the winter crisp in the air, the distant sound of animals in the trees, the scrape of blades against the ice…
Avery skating in my direction.
She slowed her pace and did a full circle around me, eyeing me up cautiously, seemingly tuned in to my epiphany. Her breath came out in a smoky cloud as she smiled and said, “You’re happy.”
She’d said that to me once before, five years ago on this very night. And I was happy. I was then, and I was now. How did she always know?
“Yes. I’m happy. Happier than I’ve ever been in my life.”
Happy? I was practically manic. My goddamn heart was practically beating out of my chest to see her standing there smiling, proud that she was able to share this moment with me.
The look in her eyes was almost as elated as mine, and in my euphoria, I found my blades sliding closer toward her. I let my vision drop to her lips, clearly offering an invitation, even though I wasn’t exactly sure she’d accept.
She hadn’t come to me over all these past months, why would she do it now? Would the fact that her divorce was finally official change that? Would a signed piece of paper make any difference between us?
I sure as hell hoped so.
I mean, Christ. She’d essentially been “single” since the spring. And yet, I gave her the space to let her figure everything out on her own. Gave her the time to decide not only to come to me, but come to me for more than just a distraction from her troubles.
And here I was, still waiting.
Our eyes were locked together as our heated breaths fogged the space between us, caught in a standoff, each waiting for the other to come to some sort of resolve. But as much as I was dying to get my lips on her at that second, I didn’t move in for the kill.
The decision was still hers to make.
She took a deep breath as her eyelids lowered to my mouth, and then before I could register what was happening… she was gone.
Apparently, her decision was to skate back toward the bar.
* * *
After we’d shaken off the cold and stripped down to a single layer of clothing, we pulled a couch over to the fire and tried to thaw out. I loaned her a pair of my slippers which looked like cinderblocks on her tiny feet, and I watched in amusement as she wiggled them from the ends of her toes, her feet stretched out toward the flames.
“That was fun,” she let out on a sigh.
“Of course it was. You and I always have fun on New Year’s Eve.” Her mouth dipped open as I shot her a wicked smirk.
That’s right. I went there.
“I thought it was Christmas Eve,” she said, trying to sound unaffected.
“It was New Year’s. Trust me.”
She stared into the fire, saying, “I’m surprised you remember.”
“I’m surprised you don’t.”
Her eyes dropped to her hands as she picked at a fingernail and said softly, “I did. I do. Of course I do.”
There was an awkward silence between us as our one night rolled around in our minds. I started to think that that’s all we would ever have. Isn’t there some sort of point of no return? Can two people be friends for so long that they simply skip over their window of opportunity? Does another one ever open?
Avery’s voice broke my train of thought. “It’s kind of dangerous for me to be here alone with you.”
I shifted my focus away from the fireplace and asked, “Why’s that?” even though I already knew the answer. I was trying to psych myself up for the Big Letdown, the speech where she told me what a great friend I was, but that I really needed to back the hell off.
But she didn’t elaborate. Instead, she took a deep breath and changed the subject.
“Cute shoes,” she busted, nodding at my slippered feet. I gave a chuckle and wiggled my toes at her comment. Her eyes met mine as her lips curled into a mischievous grin. “Wanna fuck?”
Chapter Twenty-Four
We tore at each other on our way up the stairs, never breaking contact with our lips as we ripped off our clothes. A scarf here, a sock there; leaving a trail of debauchery all the way up to my apartment.
Once we reached the landing, I almost tripped on a stack of boxes in my blinders-on focus on Avery’s body, her lips. I guided her over a pile of papers before sweeping my apartment door open and backing her into my living room.
The bed was about twenty feet too far away, so I drew us both down to lie on the couch, Avery’s body under mine. I pulled off her sweater, she unbuttoned my jeans. Our mouths were a sloppy tangle of tongue, teeth, lips, gasping breaths, and… giggles? Holy shit. We were both laughing. Both of us reveling in the pure joy that we were giving one another. I didn’t think there was ever a time when I laughed during sex before.
Avery wriggled out from underneath me, and I sat up on the couch, feeling a physical ache from the loss of her body under my hands. She stood facing me with a sly smile, and I swear, looking at her standing there wearing just a bra, mini skirt, and that dirty grin, I almost came. She was so gorgeous, so playful and sexy, she pretty much broke my heart.
She feathered a hand down her chest to her stomach and back up to her neck again, her eyes never leaving mine until she turned her back to me. She reached up to undo her bra… then held it out to her side before casually dropping it to the floor. Fuck.
She shot me a sly look over her shoulder, and my
mouth went dry. That devilish grin was still playing at her lips when she suggested, “You should really be more naked right now.”
She didn’t need to ask me twice. I stripped off my T-shirt as she unzipped her skirt, but then my body became paralyzed in the act of pulling off my jeans, my hands frozen at my waist as I watched her slide that little skirt and her knit tights down her legs. Slowly.
Holy shit, she was trying to kill me. The luscious round curves of her ass came into view, her little white thong taunting me. I ran a tongue over my lips in anticipation, dying to get my mouth on her once again.
Avery turned toward me just then, and goddammit, hooked her thumbs into the strings at her hips, lowering her panties to the floor.
A lot of girls are self-conscious about their bodies, and most of the time, they really don’t need to be. Men love women’s bodies, especially when they’re naked. We’re just so grateful that you’re letting us see you without any clothes on that we don’t think to analyze all those imperfections you’ve convinced yourself you have. To us, you’re beautiful. And the most attractive thing about a woman is when she knows she’s beautiful, too.
So, I didn’t know if the booze was having a calming effect on Avery or if she’d just grown confident in recent years, but she stood there for an extra minute to let me get a good look at her. My eyes ran down the length of her body then back up again, taking in every inch of her creamy skin, the pink tips of her perfect-handful breasts, the landing strip between her legs.
She was so fucking beautiful. Her body, yes, of course. But her mind, her heart. And even though every inch of her delectable flesh was within my grasp, I found myself mesmerized most of all by those topaz eyes staring into my soul.
She let me have my fill before kneeling on the floor between my legs, running a hand up my chest and pulling at my neck, lowering my face closer to hers. For all her sexy display, the kiss was soft, sweet, unhurried, and I marveled at how with a beautiful naked woman on her knees before me, the most prevalent emotion I was feeling wasn’t lust, but… Nope. Not going there.
“You’re so beautiful,” I said before becoming conscious I was even speaking at all.
She raised an eyebrow and shot back, “I bet you say that to every girl that gets naked in your apartment.”
“Well, I figure it’s only common courtesy.”
She laughed and gave my chest a smack. “Jerk. And why are your pants still on?”
I remedied that issue in about one-point-five seconds.
Avery’s hand slipped down my front before she followed her touch with her eyes. It was strange and disconcerting to give up my usual control, sitting there sprawled across the couch at her mercy. My brain was hesitant, but another body part wasn’t feeling quite so apprehensive. Either that, or it was scared stiff. She ran her palm over its length, then shot me another one of those evil grins.
Fuck.
She flicked out her tongue to taste just the very tip of me, and holy shit, I almost exploded right then and there. I stretched my arms along the back of the couch and let her explore me with her mouth, trying not to lose it from the feel of her wet lips wrapping around me. She licked and she sucked and she drove me insane, my breath coming out in an unsteady exhale, my hands clenched in fists on the sofa cushion.
Holy hell did it feel good.
She swirled her tongue around me and closed her lips over my head, sliding her mouth down until I hit the back of her throat, then sucked me hard on the way back up. Then she did it again. And again. And—oh fuck. It was all I could do not to grab the back of her hair and fuck her sweet mouth. But I kept my iron-clad hold on the couch, my fingers in a white-knuckle grip against the fabric as it twisted in my fists. “You’re killing me.”
I flinched a little when her teeth scraped lightly along my head, the sensation so enticing, I felt myself tightening way too soon. I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer, but I talked myself down. There was no way I was coming anywhere else than between those gorgeous legs.
I put a hand at her jaw and gave a nudge, with the intention of pulling her face up to mine for a kiss. Avery took the cue and slid her mouth off me, but instead of meeting my lips, her teeth bit into my inner thigh.
“Shit!” I yelped through a laugh.
She was playing me, her eyes meeting mine in a teasing grin as she peppered my skin with wet kisses, up my leg, across my stomach, my chest…
“God, Zac. It’s like I can’t get enough of you.”
Smirking, I shot back, “I haven’t gotten anything of you yet.”
I finally grabbed her arms and pulled her to me, slamming her mouth to mine, tasting myself on her lips. Avery straddled her knees on either side of my hips and kissed me back. She pressed herself against me; I could feel the wet warmth of her against my bare cock, and oh Jesus. I didn’t know how much longer I could do this. I was already out of my mind, but by some miracle, I managed to hold it together.
I grasped her breasts in my hands and flicked my tongue against one, hearing her gasp as she arched her back, offering herself to me. I took the invitation and wrapped my lips around one sweet, pink tip, sucking at it until it hardened against my tongue. Avery rested her head on top of mine and her hair fell across my face, her breasts smashed against my mouth, the palm of my free hand sliding across her luscious ass. I massaged the flesh at my fingertips, pushing her toward me and thrusting my hips upward, letting her feel just how badly I wanted her.
She let out a groan and pushed back, her thighs grasping my hips, her ass tightening against my palm. Jesus, I was going to die before this was over.
I hardened beyond belief, my hands gripping her ass and my mouth and tongue against her tits, her wetness rubbing against my hard cock… Ah fuck. I need to be inside.
“You ready for me?” I asked.
“Yes.”
“I’m going to fuck you so fucking hard.”
“Yes.”
“I’m going to ram my cock in you so deep. You want it?”
“Yes.”
“Ask me. Tell me you want it.”
“Fuck me, Zac,” she said on a gasping exhale. “Please fuck me.”
Her words shot a jolt of electricity right through me, hearing her dirty mouth begging for me. I reluctantly released my hold on her to grab a condom out of the side table drawer, when…
“Fuck me, Zac!”
Jesus. Not now.
“Fuck me, Zac!”
“Shut the fuck up, Magnum!”
“Fuck up, Magnum!”
I tore my lips away from Avery’s skin, planted her naked ass on the couch, and growled, “Hang on.”
In the most obscene three-legged race in history, I shuffled a few steps with my pants around my ankles until I could kick them off and walk like a man. I pulled the room divider across the doorway and threw on the radio, blasting The White Stripes to drown out my stupid bird.
That oughtta do it.
When I turned around, I found Avery lying gorgeously across my couch. Damn, my furniture never looked so good. She was aiming that playful smile at me as she purred, “I always said McAllister’s got the best ass in the business. Wow. It’s even better without the hockey shorts.”
I grinned back as I covered her body with my own. She was just the right fit under me, skin to skin, every inch molding perfectly to mine. I brushed my lips against hers as my hand ran up her side, touching every part of her incredible body that had been taunting me from under her clothes for much, much too long.
I settled myself between her legs and gave a slight push, and she wrapped those luscious gams around me as I sat up on the couch, situating her on my lap. Our mouths were still joined as I slid a hand between us, swiping my thumb across her sensitive skin.
She let out with an exhale as she broke our kiss, tipping her head back toward the ceiling. “Oh God, Zac. You’ve always been way too good at this.”
Her words made me chuckle, but not enough to stop what I was doing.
I grabbed the abandoned condom with my free hand and tore it open with my teeth. “You ready to try this again?” I asked.
Without another word between us, she raised her hips while I rolled it on, and the second I was done, Avery slid herself down on top of me.
I hissed an involuntary curse as she lowered her sweet, giving body down my length. I felt every inch sliding into her, her body stretching to take all of me. She closed her eyes and let out with a contented gasp as she sank down fully, my cock buried to the hilt.
And then, God help me, she started to move.
She rose and fell as I thrust upward and back, and before long, our movements synched. I had her ass in my palms as I devoured her perfect lips, the taste so unbearably sweet, the scent of cinnamon filling my senses. The beautiful vixen rocked herself against me, and I was more than content to let her take the reins, leaning back to enjoy the ride. And the view.
Her head was thrown back, her beautiful tits bouncing in my face… Even without the fact that I was buried to the balls inside her, I’d have been sent over the edge just from seeing that. But the fact was, I was inside her, and I was so close to losing it that I had to slow us down before I did.
I maneuvered us to lie down on the couch, my body covering hers. I wrapped my arms around her and slid myself inside again, hearing her moan, feeling myself coming apart. I went to lower my lips to hers again when the look on her face stopped me.
Her eyes were staring into mine, her hands were running in a slow caress against my back. Here was this beautiful girl giving herself to me completely, and for the first time in my life… I didn’t want to simply take it.
It suddenly felt wrong somehow, just fucking. I’d been hoping for this for months, hell, for years. I needed to have sex with this woman. But until this moment, I never realized how empty that was. Because unexpectedly, with Avery, it didn’t feel so empty anymore.
It was then that it happened. All at once, everything changed.