by Vivian Wood
The night with Henry, it was beyond even the best she could have hoped for. It was pure perfection—until he pulled away. Pushing herself up, Ellie’s mind began to race. I may not know what I want to do with my life yet, but I do know Henry’s the one to take my virginity. All the way.
Clearly, this was proof that Henry, and only Henry, was the person who could turn her on. She hadn’t wanted to admit this, but a big part of her was scared about losing her virginity. She’d heard stories. Some girlfriends said that it hurt, and others said it hurt way past anything they had ever been through. But it wasn’t just that Henry was obviously skilled. He’s probably been with scores of girls before. That wasn’t a surprise. What was a surprise was just how hungry he was for her. It was like he couldn’t get enough.
Ellie had gotten herself off before, of course. But she’d never made herself come like this. What Henry did was on another level. She didn’t know it could be so delicious, or that the waves could last so long.
Obviously, Henry wanted her just as much as she wanted him. He just couldn’t let go of all those excuses he had. Whatever was holding him back, she was certain she could make him forget. Once he returned, that was. Where did he go, anyway? He'd knocked her out so solidly that she hadn’t even felt him get up. She heard nothing in the office, kitchen, and no shower running upstairs.
After a cursory look around the cabin and finding no signs of him, Ellie pulled a stack of papers out of her bag. In her hurry to get out of D.C. and away from Sean, she hadn’t even waited to say goodbye to her mom. Instead, she’d crammed a suitcase and messenger bag with essentials and random items. Poring over the papers, she found countless brochures for vet schools. There was the thick matte paper from UC Davis, so close to Sacramento. Was she cut out to be a Cali girl? She’d only ever been once, years ago as a child, when her parents had taken Eli, Ryan, and her to Universal Studios. She could barely remember the beaches, the piers, and what she was sure had to be actors walking around like regular people from shop to shop. Still, the promises made by Katy Perry and One Tree Hill were a strong temptation. Could life really be like that? Could changing coasts make all the difference? Driving with the top down, a collie as her passenger with both their hair flowing in the warm breeze without ever having to worry about getting snowbound or cold.
Eli would have an absolute fit were she to move across the country. Who cares? She had her own life to live and, she was seeing, it was just getting started. Ever since her dad had left when they were kids, Eli had taken on the paternal role in the family—at least toward her. The occasional birthday card or call from their father wasn’t enough, and her mom was way too private to ever bring around any boyfriends. In fact, having a real father was a distant memory, just like Los Angeles. In many ways, Eli was the only father she’d ever really known, and he was much more brotherly than fatherly.
The UC Davis Quick Application didn’t ask for much, and she already had her final, official GPA. She filled out the application just to see how it felt, and followed it up with a couple more. Doing so made her feel productive. In control. Just like how she felt in some ways with Henry last night. Except with Henry, it kept shifting. There were times she couldn’t tell which one of them was maestro of that symphony. Seriously, where are you, Henry?
She could smell her sex scent mixed with Henry’s musk all over her body. As much as she wanted to keep it, cradling it close like the best secret, she should probably change. Upstairs, as she stripped naked in her room, the lights fluttered to life. Thank God. Now I can shower with light.
Fresh from the shower, her hair wrapped in a towel, she pulled out her suitcase and started thumbing through it. Her bikini. Of course. What if, when Henry came back, she put on a little show for him? Nothing too sexy, nothing that would scare him off. Just… a little bikini action? A reminder of what he'd had last night, and the temptation of the hot tub on the deck?
Ellie pulled on the bikini and adjusted her breasts in the tiny triangle cups, making sure they popped. The string ties on either side of the bottom she purposefully single-knotted, making them easy to unwrap like a gift. Downstairs, a door shut. Perfect timing.
Draped in an open robe, she waltzed downstairs in that sensual way she sometimes practiced on the stair machine at the gym. The stairway to hell, she called it, but now she was grateful for how it had shaped her legs. Bags rustled in the kitchen.
“Henry,” she said, slinking into the kitchen. He turned from the stove, an empty pan in his hand. Henry’s eyes widened as the pan crashed to the floor. With her head lowered and gaze lifted toward him, she willed herself to walk purposefully forward. Don’t stop. You can do this.
Running her hand down his chest, she stuck out her lip. “Do you mind clearing the snow off the hot tub? I want to go for a soak.” She could see him struggling to not look at her chest. She could even feel it.
Scowling, he halted. It was a standoff. “Please, Henry,” she said, using the same voice that came out of her so naturally last night. She’d never heard herself sound like that before. Now, in the kitchen daylight, she found she could summon it up at will.
“Okay, okay,” he said. “Give it thirty minutes to heat up.” With heavy feet, he stomped through the living room and onto the porch.
“Thank you, Henry,” she purred to him as she leaned over the steaming water to test it. He stood by the doors, arms crossed with a permanent frown on his face.
“You sure you don’t want to come in with me? For protection?” she asked. “You never know when those big, bad internet terrorists are going to come after me.”
His look was grave, and she’d already braced herself for a refusal. To her delight, he wordlessly pulled his shirt over his head and his jeans down off his hips. Still silent, he got into the hot tub, donned only in his boxers. “Getting in?” he asked.
She worked every angle, took every advantage to show off her body. The long legs sliding into the bubbling water in tandem, the exaggerated leaning over to wrap her hair into a loose knot on top of her head so he could take a long view of her cleavage. She moved toward him, but he moved to the other side. She tried again—and again he slipped away.
With a growl of frustration, Ellie realized it was no time to play fair. She released her breasts from her top with a single pull of the string. Now she had him. His eyes were glued to her, and he didn’t move when she settled onto his lap, straddling him. His hardness was already pushing into her folds, even with the material between them.
He was hesitant at first, of course. Wouldn’t make the first move. Ellie leaned into him, a shroud of confidence blanketing her. As soon as her lips touched his, he came to life. Plunging his hand into her hair, he kissed her deeply. In seconds, the roles shifted and he was the dominant one. The frustration melted out of her. You can do anything you want to me.
Her nipples were aching, demanding attention. Between her legs, there was an insistent throbbing she’d only felt once before, last night. Gripping her hair, he yanked her head back, exposing her neck. Working down the hollow of her throat, his mouth engulfed her breasts. He knew this territory now, pulled and sucked like he owned her.
Tentatively, she reached down to his hip and let her fingers slowly work their way to his cock. Henry pulled her hand away with a frustrated sound. Ellie lowered herself, no longer making her nipples so readily available to his lips, but now their hips met and she was sliding along his length. He kept his fingers entwined in her hair, controlling her movement.
She could already tell by his touch, how their bodies fit together with ease, that the sex between them would be like nothing else. He slipped one skilled hand between them, below her bikini bottoms, desperate to finger her again. She felt two of his thick fingers slide into her, and she pushed into him greedily.
“Oh!” she said as a small touch of pain rushed through her. What? She’d been getting herself off for years. She thought she’d broken her hymen years ago. Apparently not completely.
Henry
looked at her quizzically, and she felt her face turn red. Henry withdrew his hand, picked her up in the water and set her aside. His face was stony, his body shaking with anger as he pulled himself out of the tub.
“Henry!” she managed to choke out.
“Forget it,” he said, pulling on his jeans, erection clearly gone. “It wasn’t meant to be, Ellie. At least you can still say you’re a virgin.” She watched him storm off, struggling to put on her bikini top and too embarrassed to leave the comfort of the water just yet.
17
Pounding up the stairs, Henry couldn’t tell if he was more angry or horny. What the fuck does it even matter? Shit. Why did Ellie have to be so damn hot? The way she looked at him with that dangerous combination of innocent and sinful drove him insane. Why was it that the only woman he couldn’t get out of his head also happened to be his best friend’s baby sister? The worst part was that he couldn’t even leave! He'd promised to stay and safeguard her. Where the hell is Eli? He’d tried numerous times to get through to the White House, but couldn’t connect with Eli.
It hadn’t always been like this. When they were getting ready to graduate high school, and Ellie was just a kid, they spent countless days at Eli’s family house, hiding away in the “rec room,” which was really just a semi-finished basement with an old foosball table.
“Come on,” Eli had told him as they rolled a weak and sloppy joint. “You gotta go to prom, man. Stephie will be expecting it.” Stephie. She was the only high school girlfriend who had stuck around with Henry for more than a date or two. The others—and there were plenty—were quick to pick up on how he’d gone from boy to man fast junior year. They were, as Eli put it, intrigued. That was, until they quickly sussed out there was something not quite right with him.
“Stephie,” Henry repeated. “Yeah, man, I don’t know. She just wants to dress up. I don’t really think she cares who she goes with.”
“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” Eli said, taking a big pull on the freshly lit joint before falling into his usual coughing fit.
“I’m not,” Henry protested, reaching for the roach clip. “It’s just not my thing. You know? You’re all set to be prom king and shit. You’ve got a reason to go. Besides, you like that kind of high school crap.”
“We are in high school,” Eli said. “It’s our last big shebang before the whole world changes. Come on, it’ll be fun. You guys can ride with us.”
“Thanks for the charity,” Henry said with a laugh, leaning back into the oversized bean bag chair. “Besides, you don’t even like Stephie.”
“I don’t have to like her,” Eli said. “But, c’mon. It’d be weird without you there.”
“What’s that smell?” They hadn’t even heard her come in.
“Ellie!” Eli said. “Go back upstairs. I told you, you have to knock before coming down here when the door’s closed.” Eli was frantically waving the thick smoke out of the slit of a basement window.
“I did knock,” Ellie said, her face screwed up. “You didn’t answer.”
“If I didn’t answer, that doesn’t mean come in!” Eli said, embarrassed to be caught by his kid sister.
“Hey, it’s okay,” Henry said. “What’s up, Ellie? How was school?”
“Good,” she said, giving him a shy smile.
“What are you in, now? Eighth grade? Tenth?”
“Kindergarten!” she said, laughing.
“Oh, wow,” he said.
“You’re funny,” she told him, turning around and going back upstairs. “But you both stink.”
Eli had been so flustered that day, but still so intent on making sure Henry enjoyed the last days of high school. How could he violate that kind of bond—and over Ellie? No. He couldn’t do that to Eli, or Ellie. He’d just have to get over it. Where the hell were those Secret Service agents Meredith promised?
Out his bedroom window, he could make out the snow-covered pathway down the mountain. Even with yesterday’s snowfall, the warmth of the day had softened the ice, making the roads nearly passable. This was it. This was his chance. Surely the agents would be there any minute.
Pulling on a sweater and socks, he stomped downstairs.
“Henry?” Ellie called to him from the living room. “Where are you going? Henry?”
With a slam of the back door, he silenced her voice. Climbing into the driver seat, he saw scenes from horror movies flash through his head. Please start. Please start. Please start. The SUV roared to life. Pushing the snowflake button on the gearbox, Henry whipped into reverse and started down the mountain. There was no way Ellie’s little sedan would make it. The SUV was barely holding on to the road well. He prayed she wouldn't try, wouldn't attempt to come after him.
It took him thirty minutes to reach the main road. On a dry day, it would take ten. Maneuvering down the narrow backroads, he passed through town, plowing past the grocer with the overly friendly clerks and the post office declaring that this really was a bona fide destination. At the far end of the two-light town, what seemed to be the only bar was lit up like a little neon drop of Las Vegas in a hillbilly hideaway. This’ll do.
Henry had always had a soft spot for dive bars. Planted at the bar, he took solace in the gruff bartender who fulfilled his role by painstakingly rubbing the wooden bar with a cloth whenever drinks weren’t being prepared. A man a couple seats down nodded at him before returning all attention to his own sad glass.
“Hey.” A young blonde snuck into his line of sight. “Y’all ain’t from ’round here,” she told him, as if he didn’t know. In another time, he would have found her drawl charming. Now, her blue eyes and tanned skin just highlighted how unlike Ellie she was.
“Sure ain’t,” he told her. She tilted her head, curious, and backed away.
Round three of Jim Beam’s Devil’s Cut. “I like a man who can drink.” This one was older than him, but she’d kept herself up nicely. Dark brown hair, olive skin, and glittering green eyes. She was trying too hard, her shirt cut too low and her skirt too tight.
“Must be heaven for you in here then,” he said. She stiffened, and he attempted to soften his words with a smile, but she’d already moved on. None of these women or girls could interest him. It was all Ellie, Ellie, Ellie.
Ellie. It was like the wind blew her in. All eyes in the bar turned to watch her walk through the doors like she owned the place, three agents in tow. Scowling at her, he turned back to his drink. At least she didn’t drive here herself.
“Damn. You see what just walked in?” The middle-aged man two seats down, who’d clearly seen some rough days, had barely said a word to him since he'd sat down. Now he was looking Ellie up and down, not giving a damn about the three very large men skirting her. He may as well have been fucking her with his eyes.
“I’ve seen it plenty,” Henry told the man, a darkness in his eyes. “You’re not gonna be seeing much from now on if you keep looking.”
“Shit, boy,” the man said, downing the last of his whiskey. “Just talkin’.”
Someone fed the hungry jukebox—the blonde from earlier. First it was a song from the Black Snake Moan soundtrack, Samuel L. Jackson’s distinct voice filling the room. Only in a hick town would such a soundtrack make it on the machine. The blonde grabbed a biker with an impressive handlebar mustache and pulled him up to dance with her.
Next was Tupac. There wasn’t going to be anything newer here—and that was being generous. “How Do U Want It” filled every inch of the room, commanding nearly everyone to the makeshift dance floor that occupied any open space. Ellie was drawn to the blonde, her hands in her own auburn hair and eyes closed. She can pretend to not see me all she wants.
When the blonde grasped Ellie’s hips, one of the agents made a move for her. Ellie brushed him away. The biker made his way behind the blonde, making a sandwich of her with Ellie. Again, an agent tried to intervene, and Ellie shook her head at him. Henry watched from the corner of his eye.
By the time Tupac gave way to a
n old school Foxy Brown song, a young, muscled guy Henry hadn’t noticed before was heading straight for Ellie. He caught her by surprise, gripping her waist from behind. Ellie’s eyes opened wide, but when she turned her head and saw who it was, she smiled.
He couldn’t handle much more of this. Of what? Was it jealousy? The boy lifted his hands slightly, but Ellie placed her hands over his and guided them back to her hips. To those sweet peaks of her pelvis, bending over and grinding herself into him. Henry made eye contact with an agent, who merely shrugged at him.
The look on the boy’s face said it all—he’d hit the jackpot. With one hand, Ellie reached up and draped her long hair to one side, tilting her head. Her invitation couldn’t have been clearer. The boy leaned down and started kissing her neck.
That did it. In a flash, Henry was across the dance floor. “Hey! You gonna settle up?” the bartender called. He grabbed Ellie’s wrist and started pulling her toward the door.
“Hey, dude!” the boy said. “That ain’t cool.” But he made no move to follow them.
Henry could feel the presence of the guards behind him, but sensed they weren’t going to intervene. “What the fuck, Henry?” Without a word, he shoved her into the passenger side, clicking the child safety locks as he slammed the door.
Getting in the driver seat, he could see the agents revving up their own rig, ready to follow them. “You’re a fucking asshole, you know that?” she spat at him. “Mind your own fucking business.”
“You are my business,” he told her, grabbing her by the back of the head and pulling her in for a kiss. It was long, hard, with an inevitability to it he was sure they both felt.
Ellie went silent when he pulled away, shocked. She ran a finger over her lips, already swollen and flushed.
He’d made his decision. Starting up the engine, Henry threw the SUV into drive just as the bartender emerged from the heavy wooden door, blinking into the fading light and waving a credit card.