by Kaci Rose
Students start exiting the classroom and I watch for her as I lean against the wall across from the door. When she sees me, her eyes light up.
I push off the wall and wrap her in a hug.
“Hey, baby.” I kiss her forehead and hand her the coffee.
“Oh, perfect timing, I need this.”
Once we are outside, I ask, “There’s a football welcome back party tonight. Do you want to go? No crazy theme, just an excuse for a party.”
She shrugs. “Sure, let’s ask Kelsey, I’m sure she’ll want to go too.”
I hang out in their living room checking my social media while they get ready, then the three of us walk over together.
“Later, love birds.” Kelsey waves and she disappears into the crowd, making Avery laugh.
I put my hand on her waist and guide her through the crowd toward the back room where I know the guys are hanging out. Halfway there, we get stopped.
“A-ver-E with a Y, not an E.” Some drunk guy stops her, and she laughs. I might have tensed because she looks and me and smiles.
“This is Tom from my reading class. Tom, this is my boyfriend, Denver.”
“Ahh, the reason she broke my heart. Nice to meet you, man.” He tries to shake my hand, but I don’t move my hands-off Avery.
“I don’t know if I can say nice to meet you to a guy who just admitted to hitting on my girlfriend.”
“Ah, she shot me right down, though.” I fight a smile.
“Tom, how drunk are you?” Avery asks.
“Yeah, I’ve been here a while.”
“Maybe it’s best you go find a single girl tonight, don’t waste your charms on me. There was a blond by the front door that looked lonely.”
He mock salutes. “On it!”
“Well, he’s fun,” I say in her ear.
“He’s harmless. I watched him hit on every girl until one gave into him the first day of class.”
The whole team goes silent when they see me walk in with my arm around Avery, then almost in unison they look over at Kyle at the other end of the room. I raise my chin and Avery raises an eyebrow at him and they stare each other down.
Kyle sighs and smiles then looks at the guys. “What? Avery can date whoever she wants.”
Avery nods but everyone still looks wary and I know they are worried what tension this could cause within the team.
“We already talked to coach, both of us. This issue is closed,” I say with a stern voice, and within a minute everyone is talking again like nothing happened.
“What anything to eat, baby?” I ask Avery.
“No, not yet, I was snacking during class.”
“What to dance?” I try to shift gears.
“You? Dance?”
I laugh. “Yeah, my mom taught me how to dance.” I nuzzle my nose to her ear. “Lead the way.”
As we get close to the dance floor, Sasha comes up and rubs her chest on my arm—a classic Jersey Chaser move. She gives Avery a dismissive look and then pouts at me.
“Bolt, baby, won’t you dance with me? You promised me a dance at the last party but then you disappeared.”
I step away from her grasp and pull Avery closer to me, because dammit, this is the last thing I need with Avery already keeping me at arm’s length.
“No, I blew you off at the last party. Don’t call me baby, I’m not yours, never have been. I’m not interested in you or any of your pack. The only girl allowed to touch me or who I will be dancing with is my Avery. I’ve made that clear to you before.” I’m being so loud that everyone around us has stopped what they’re doing to watch.
“But you don’t date.” She eyes up Avery trying to gauge the competition.
“No, I didn’t date because I was waiting on Avery. Even if she comes to her senses and dumps my ass tomorrow, I would never be interested in the likes of you, so stop wasting your time and leave me the fuck alone.” I growl the last part out.
Avery wraps her arms around my waist and rests her head on my chest, which soothes my building anger. At that moment I don’t care Sasha is there in tears and causing a scene.
“Come on, baby, I promised you a dance,” I say, and lead Avery back to the dance floor.
Once we are on the dance floor, I lean into ear so she can hear me.
“I’m sorry about that.”
“You handled it perfectly. It won’t be the last time we deal with someone like her.”
“I will make sure the word is spread so it is.”
She smiles but turns and places her back to my chest and starts moving to the beat. Feeling her body move against mine is almost more than I can take. I take a deep breath, wrap my arms around her waist and start moving with her.
With Avery’s ass moving against my cock to the beat of the music and her so close, I’m harder than I can remember being in a long time. I know she can feel me with every sway of her hips.
I lean my head down next to her just to take her in, her scent surrounding me causes everyone else around us to disappear. She leans her head back on my shoulder and closes her eyes with a smile on her face.
I kiss her neck, focusing on the soft spot below her ear and she reaches up to stroke my neck with her fingertips. I slowly trail my hands up her sides and cup her breasts.
I don’t want to push her too far but the more she grinds against me the less I can keep my hands off her. I rub my thumbs over the peaks of her nipples, and she gasps in my ear, the sound alone is enough to cause me to groan.
She turns around and her eyes meet mine. I pull her hips to me and she wraps her arms around my neck, pressing her breasts to my chest. I wedge one of my thighs between hers and we keep dancing even as the song changes, but in this position, I know she is getting as worked up as I am.
I can see it in her eyes. I can tell by the way she is moving, and by how her breathing picks up. I rest my forehead on hers and close my eyes to just feel. I tighten the grip I have on her hips and move her a bit faster but when she gasps my name in my ear, I lose it and have to stop and take a step back.
“Want to go up to my room?” I ask her and she nods, breathing as heavy as I am.
I lead her to the stairs and up to the third floor where my room is. The one thing the football team did right is making the room like our own apartments. I barely get my key in the lock and the door open before she is pulling me in, and her lips are back on mine.
I kick the door shut behind us and spin her around and pin her to it in one move. Before all rational thought leaves me, I get the door locked.
Then I drop my keys and don’t even bother with the light. I grab her ass and lift her so she can wrap her legs around my waist, but I don’t move from the door. I know if I take her to my bed, I’m not going to be able to stop and she has been holding me at an arms distance until tonight, I don’t want to push my luck.
A moment later her hands are on my chest and pulling my shirt off. Tit for tat, baby, I think as I remove her shirt and claim her lips again. Her hands are in my hair, pulling me close. I undo her bra and it joins the pile of clothes on the floor.
For the first time in a week I can feel her skin to skin, and it goes a long way in calming my soul. I reach around and play with her breasts and pinch her nipples.
“Denver,” she moans. “I want you so bad.”
She reaches for the button on my jeans, but I grab her hands and hold them above her head, continuing to kiss her before I pull back and look in her eyes.
“Denver?” she whispers.
“Baby, I always want you, you will never have to wonder about that, but I need to know you’ve forgiven me. I know you’ve been keeping me at an arm’s length, and I know I deserved it because I messed up, but I need to know we are okay before we fall into bed again.”
She leans in and her lips ghost mine. “We’re good, Denver. I didn’t realize I was keeping you at arm’s length until today. Seeing how loyal you were to me downstairs even through all this showed me what an idiot I’ve been. But we are
n’t going to fall into bed.”
She senses my disappointment but quickly puts my mind at ease.
“You are going to take me right here against this door, do you understand?”
Holy shit! I almost come in my pants before I get a hold on myself. I set her down long enough to get both our pants and underwear off but the second I start to move toward my nightstand to get the new box of condoms I just bought, she stops me.
“Where are you going?”
“Condom,” is I all I manage to get out, but her grip still pulls me back.
“I’m on the pill and I was checked after everything back before Thanksgiving. I’m clean.”
She is talking about her breakup with Kyle. My heart races.
“I haven’t been with anyone in almost three years before you, and I get checked every year in my physical, I’m clean too. This is a big step, Avery.”
“I know and I’ve never done this, but I want it, with you.”
Taking my girl bareback. My heart is racing, and I can hear it beating in my ears. Even though she is on the pill I still need her to know.
“You know if anything happens, we are in this together, okay? You and me. I will always take care of you. I know you’re on the pill, but I need you to know that,” I tell her as I grab her ass and lift her up again.
I place my cock at her wet opening and almost lose it.
“I’m not even in you yet and it feels so good, baby, I’m not going to last.”
“Denver,” she moans, as she digs her heels into me, pulling me closer.
I thrust into her in one move causing her to cry out. I bury my head in her neck, trying to take it all in. How hot, soft, and wet she is wrapped around me. How tight she is and when she starts moving her hips, I move one hand down and stroke her clit because I need her there with me.
I thrust in and out of her, moaning with each stroke because it feels so damn good.
“God, baby, you feel like heaven.” When I whisper in her ear, her pussy grips my cock and I groan.
“Just like that, grip me tight so you feel every inch of me.”
“I feel you,” she gasps. “Oh God! Don’t stop!”
She throws her head back and I know she’s close. I pick up the pace and pinch her clit, causing her to cry out and clamp down on my cock as she starts to come.
“Just like that, sweet girl,” I moan, before I start coming too, releasing hot spurts of my come inside her. The thought of marking her makes me come so hard I see stars.
We are both trying to catch our breath, but since she still has her legs wrapped around me, I walk us to the bathroom and clean us both up before we crawl into bed. For the first time in a week, I get a good night’s sleep.
Chapter 23
Avery
The last month has been busy. Kelsey has been dating a great guy, but that means she is never home, and over the last week Denver has canceled three out of four of our dates with not much of an explanation. But when he was over yesterday, he seemed tired and worn out. All he wanted to do was lie in bed watch TV and hold me.
Not complaining here, being in his arms in my favorite place to be, but my insecurities are starting to rear their ugly head. He isn’t texting as much, even his good morning texts have stopped. Before, I’d text him and unless he was at practice or with the team, he’d text me back almost right away. Sometimes now my texts go unanswered until the next day.
When I ask, he says he’s been helping his mom with something but won’t ever expand on what, saying he doesn’t want to get me involved, or it’s not his story to tell.
So, for these reasons, I’m pulling the emergency girls’ night card with Kelsey. We don’t do it often, but it means drop everything.
Me: SOS Emergency girls’ night tonight.
Kelsey: I’ll be there, what is going on?
Me: Something is going on with Denver, and I’m losing my mind, Kels.
Kelsey: I’ll stop at the bakery. Class gets out in about thirty minutes, then I’m yours.
I’m already home in my Pjs and on the couch with a glass of wine, and like the clingy girlfriend I am usually not, I give Denver one last ditch effort.
Me: I don’t know what is going on with you, but I hate that you are shutting me out.
I set my phone down figuring like always he won’t reply, and I go to fill up my wine glass. As I’m sitting back down my phone pings.
Denver: Baby, I just have somethings going on with my mom. I’m taking care of it then I’ll be all yours again and I will make it up to you. Please wait for me.
I stare at my phone, wondering what the heck he means. Why doesn’t he trust me enough to tell me what is going on? Is it something illegal? Would Denver do that? Would he cheat on me and try to cover it?
I must stare at my phone longer then I realize because he texts me again.
Denver: Avery, please, I’m asking for you to trust me. Please tell me you trust me, and you will wait for me.
Me: I’ll try, Denver, but my heart hurts right now and I can’t make you any promises.
Kelsey bursts through the door just then, pulling me away from the downward spiral I was in.
“Okay, I have cupcakes and wine. I told Ollie you pulled the SOS girls’ night card when I canceled and he wanted to help, so he’s bringing food over in a little bit and promised to drop and run, he wants to make sure you eat.”
I wipe a few stray tears from my eyes. “Thank you.”
“Give me five minutes.” She runs to her room and changes into her Pjs too, mandatory girl’s night rules. Then she pours a glass of wine, grabs the cupcakes, and meets me on the couch.
“Okay, girl, spill it!”
“Everything was going great after the football party, then I thought it was in my head that he started to pull away, so I ignored it because he isn’t Kyle, ya know? But the good morning texts stopped, then my texts go unanswered until the next day and he canceled the last three of our four dates with no explanation whatsoever. The one he did show up for he was tired, dark circles under his eyes and we just watched TV while he held me. He’s saying he’s helping his mom with something but…”
I then show her the text messages she reads them and hands me back my phone.
“I try to tell myself he isn’t Kyle, but it’s starting to feel like that. Only, it didn’t hurt with Kyle because I didn’t care anymore. I didn’t love him.”
“Whoa, you guys dropped the L bomb?”
“Nooo!” I burst into tears and she climbs across the couch and wraps me in a hug.
“Your feelings are totally justified, babe, I say give him a bit more time. I don’t know how much, only you know your limit. In the meantime, I promise to be around more. Ollie can cook, I’ll make him our own personal chef. Tell me about your relationship before all this. Start when you got home from Christmas break.”
So, I tell her about Denver’s meeting with the coach, what happened after Denver bribed her out of the house for the night and the week following. I tell her about the football party and how loving he was after that. How he pampered me, and I hadn’t ever felt so special and so loved but neither of us had said the L word. Then I go into how he started to pull away leading up to tonight’s texts.
“What I don’t get is that he says he waited so long for you, which is crazy romantic by the way, but now he doesn’t trust you with what’s going on? Any idea what it could be?”
“No, I talked to his mom last week and nothing came up. I couldn’t bring myself to pry and worry her.”
“When is the next time you are supposed to see him?” She hands me another cupcake and I dig in.
“Valentine’s Day, he says he has something planned and I’m to wear a dress.”
“Well, it could be that he has a huge surprise and he’s working on it.”
“I don’t get that vibe, why ignore my texts? I know it sounds crazy but that’s the one thing that always comforted me because it was consistent.”
“It calmed your tru
st issues Kyle gave you. I get it. Well, how about this. Ollie and I had planned to do a Valentine’s Day in, you know I don’t like the hoopla behind it all. So, we’ll plan it here at the house and make sure there is enough food for you, that way if anything happens you are here and it will be a friend-entine day, okay?”
I nod. “I know you two need your space, but it hurts too much to be alone. Though with how loud you are I’ll take alone time hands down.”
She bursts out laughing. “I’m not loud!”
“Come on, I’m still traumatized from your bar hook-up, sophomore year. Every time I hear, ‘Spank me, daddy,’ I have flashbacks. It was so loud I heard him spanking you.”
We both erupt into laughter. That was the night we’d learned how thin the walls in the house are and had to make some new ground rules.
We spend the rest of the girls’ night binging on sweets and wine until Ollie shows up. As promised, he drops off food, gives me a hug, kisses Kelsey on the cheek, and is back out the door.
“That man’s a keeper,” I say as I pull out our burgers, fries, fried chicken, biscuits, and pecan pie.
✽✽✽
It’s Valentine’s Day and to say I’m nervous doesn’t cover how I feel. Denver walked me to class this morning with coffee and a long-stemmed red rose. We were a bit early and our goodbye kiss turned into a bit of make out session before my professor walked by clearing his throat.
He was outside with lunch for me to walk me to my next class and laughed when I tried to guess what our plans are for tonight. He is acting normal, but he still has some dark circles under his eyes like he isn’t sleeping. I wanted to ask, I wanted to push, but I didn’t want to ruin today either, so I dropped it. He seemed relieved when I didn’t bring it up too.