by Lila Price
“Keep your eyes open,” he ordered, slowing just for a moment. “And you’re not going to come just yet, Sasha. You’re going to hold off until I say you can, understand?”
I nodded; Jacob responded by pressing his thumb up against my asshole. “Understand?” he asked again.
“I understand,” I panted in response, and he smiled, pressed his finger a bit farther. When I moaned in pleasure, he removed it, took my hips back in his hand, and went back to pounding me, fucking me in a way I knew would have destroyed me, had he done it like this the first time we had sex. The fact that it wasn’t destroying me now made me feel empowered— but that in turn made it more and more difficult for me to keep my orgasm at bay. I took slow breaths, but air was thrust from my lungs each time Jacob pushed deep into my pussy—
“I can’t stop it,” I begged. “I’m going to come.”
“Not yet,” he said.
“I’m trying, but you—“
Jacob pulled out of me, let my legs fall down to the blanket. The orgasm that had been moments from tearing through my body dissipated, but I barely had time to notice; Jacob grabbed me by the waist and turned me over, then lifted my ass into the air. He spanked me and I yelped in that blend of pleasure and pain—
“Again,” I begged.
“Look at you,” Jacob growled in response, then spanked my other cheek hungrily. He put a hand on my upper back to keep my chest pressed to the blanket, then pulled my hips toward his cock. He drove into me, eventually moving the hand from my back and reaching underneath me to rub my clit as he fucked me. There was no possibility of holding back an orgasm now; I tried to tell him this, but the words came out in a loud, hungry moan, louder than any sound I’d made during sex before— but I couldn’t keep it in.
“Go on, baby,” Jacob told me, and I could tell from the rasp in his voice why he’d made me wait— we were going to come together. Jacob groaned and fucked me faster, and I pushed my hips back against him as heat rushed to my pussy, my legs went limp, my eyes forced themselves shut. I was going to scream— no, I already was screaming, loud and desperate and wild. My pussy contracted around Jacob’s cock, and I felt him throb deep inside me before he came, hard, deep into, moaning and holding tight to my hips as he did so.
I finally took a long, gasping breath. My limbs felt rubbery; Jacob was panting hard behind me. He slowly withdrew himself, and I felt the rush of wetness drip from my entrance. My hips fell to the blanket, and Jacob collapsed beside me. He was sweating, hard, and when I reached over to lay an arm across him, he grinned at me.
“How’s your shoulder?” I asked teasingly.
“I think it’ll be just fine,” Jacob murmured. “But maybe we give it another try tonight just to make sure?”
“Separate rooms,” I reminded him.
“I’m sure we can figure something out,” Jacob said. “And speaking of, we should get dressed. They’re going to be here soon.” I scowled as he stood, then helped me up. “Don’t worry,” he said. “You’re growing on them. Clearly. Or you wouldn’t be here.”
“Wait, but why am I here?” a new voice asked— not Jacob’s parents, thankfully, but someone nearly as horror-inducing. Standing at the edge of the deck, overnight bag in hand, in the smartest, cutest navy blue dress I had ever seen, was Jenna.
19
“Jenna?” Jacob asked, stunned, as I dove for the screen porch, where all my clothes were.
“Relax,” Jenna said. “Sasha, seriously. I’m on a women’s soccer team. You have no idea how many naked ladies I’ve seen in my life.” Her words seemed to remind Jacob that he was also naked, and he grabbed for his pants— though with the speed of someone unconcerned with someone seeing what his body had to offer (or, in Jenna’s case, seeing it again). “Though your parents are right behind me on the drive, so yeah, you two should get dressed,” she added.
“What are you doing here?” Jacob asked, tugging his t-shirt on and snatching up the blanket he and I had just shared.
“Your parents invited me! I thought it was like, a group thing. Not a…um…” Jenna said, watching me desperately trying to untangle my panties and pull them back on.
“Jacob! Jenna? Where are you two?” a new voice called— Mimi Everett. My heart raced as I ran my fingers through my hair, keenly aware of the fact that I was still practically dripping from our sex and that one shoe was absolutely nowhere to be found. I kicked off the other rather than continue hunting— maybe it’d just look like I wanted to walk around barefoot in the grass? Or something? Maybe? I looked to Jacob, panicked, and saw his mouth was a grim line.
“There you are!” Ms. Everett said cheerfully, stepping around the side of the deck. “We picked up barbecue from that place by the Kroger for dinner— oh! Jacob, I didn’t know you were bringing Sasha along.”
I had been building up a smile, having to beat it through layers of nerves; Ms. Everett’s words sent it crashing into the pit of my stomach. I looked at Jacob. What the hell was going on?
“I didn’t know you…didn’t know that,” Jacob began, struggling for words. “You mentioned coming up here with my girlfriend—“
“Oh!” Ms. Everett said, rolling her eyes at herself. “Honey, I’m so sorry— I meant girl-who-is-a-friend. I guess I forgot to mention we’d asked Jenna. I just thought that since we were talking about how long it’s been since we’ve seen her, it’d be a nice trip. You two always used to like coming up here.”
My breath went cold. Jacob and Jenna used to love coming up here. Jacob and Jenna were invited. Jacob and Jenna were the pairing the Everett’s wanted, the pairing that everyone seemed to want. I looked to Jacob for some sort of comfort, relieved when he took my hand and squeezed it gently.
“Well, I hope you got enough barbecue for Sasha too, then,” Jacob said.
I was stunned. That was it? That was what he said in response to his parents inviting him and his ex-girlfriend, whom they clearly liked better, to their fancy mountain house? Jacob released my hand and went to hug his parents. When he hugged Jenna as well, I felt like I might crack apart and tumble down the mountain side. I watched, the weight of humiliation bearing down on me, as Jacob, Jenna, and his parents went to unload the vehicles, leaving me standing in the screened porch. Barefoot and forgotten—or, no. Not forgotten.
Unwanted. There was a very, very important difference in the two.
No, no, I was being stupid— well, not entirely stupid, since this was a total dick thing for Jacob’s parents to do— but stupid for thinking there was anything to Jacob hugging Jenna. He’d told me that they were just friends, and I had no reason not to believe him. Besides, it was ME he invited up here, so who gave a fuck who his parents invited? His parents could date Jenna if they were so into her. Jacob was dating me. I repeated this to myself— sometimes even out loud, in a whisper— as she grabbed her bag from the car and followed the others into the house.
The interior of the house was as immaculate as the exterior— sky-high ceilings with thick salvaged beams, the kind of kitchens you usually only saw on Pinterest, and a wall of Harton jerseys signed by legendary athletes. Mr. and Ms. Everett unpacked dinner into the fridge, chatting about the doctor who was driving up to see Jacob.
“He doesn’t usually make house calls, you know, but he’s a Harton alum, so he’s making an exception,” Ms. Everett said happily.
“How is your shoulder, anyway?” Jenna asked, leaning across the kitchen counter with a familiarity that made my stomach churn— especially since I was still standing in the doorway, more statue than human, unsure where to stand or go or breathe.
“It’s doing better. I think it’ll be great for Clemson.”
“Still giving you some trouble, then?” Mr. Everett asked, sneaking hushpuppies out of a massive to-go container. Ms. Everett noticed and playfully slapped his hand.
“Some,” Jacob lied. He glanced my way when he said this, which was a relief— for a moment, I thought perhaps he’d forgotten I was there at all. But yes, there
was this, this secret that only I knew— that his shoulder was most of the way better, or at least, appeared to be. He wasn’t telling his parents the whole truth because he wanted to guard their expectations should the Clemson game go wrong. But he’d told me. He’d been honest with me.
I nearly laughed at the fact that a secret about football was validating my relationship. MY, HOW MY LIFE HAS CHANGED, I thought, then exhaled.
“Can I help you with any of that, Ms. Everett?” I asked as cheerfully as possible.
Ms. Everett looked up from where I was trying to squirrel a few growlers into the already packed fridge. “Oh, I’m fine, Sasha. Feel free to go set your bag down!” There was only the tiniest edge to her words, so deniable that for a moment, I almost believed I’d misinterpreted absolutely everything about this trip— maybe his parents really WERE coming around to me. Maybe Jenna really was just here as a family friend. Maybe I was overthinking it, and Mimi Everett just had a really serious case of resting bitch face rather than a personal vendetta against me.
Ms. Everett slapped herself on the forehead and said, “Oh, though I’d planned on Jenna taking the gold bedroom! We’ve got another spare though, Sasha, don’t worry— up the stairs, second door on the right.”
“Sure,” I said, and started up the steps.
“I can carry that for you, Sasha,” Jacob offered, but I shook my head.
“It’s not heavy— stay and hang out with your parents,” I said, smiling at them. That had to get her some points, right? A little reminder that I wasn’t here to take their son from them? Jacob nodded and returned to a conversation about the upcoming doctor’s visit while I looked for my room.
I stumbled across what HAD to be the gold room— Jenna’s room— first. It was…gold. Very, very Harton gold. The furniture was all covered in and ostentatious gold leaf pattern, and the walls were pale green and gold paper with toile patterns of (what else?) rams and ewes frolicking in meadows. Ridiculous as it was, though, it was a gorgeous room, with a claw-foot bathtub and elegant vanity right across from the bed, and enormous windows that showed off a now neon pink and orange sunset.
SECOND DOOR TO THE RIGHT, I reminded myself, and left the gold room, eager to see what my quarters would look like. Nothing in this house was done halfway, so I could only imagine it would be lovely. I found the door and knocked it open with my toe—
“Oh my god,” I said aloud, heart sinking.
I was both entirely right and entirely wrong about…well…everything.
I was right that the room was lovely. It was done in a sort of outdoors theme, with leaf-printed wallpaper and reclaimed wood furniture. That furniture, however, included bunk beds, a drawing easel, and a window seat with stuffed animals— rams— all over it.
It was a kids’ room. And not Jacob’s old room— that might have been sweet— but a generic kids’ room, the place you park your rich friends’ progeny so they’ll be occupied while you drink in the hot tub. The bathroom had a typical tub with a striped curtain, and a little painted plaque by the hollow-log shaped soap dish said BRUSH THOSE CHOMPERS.
I dropped my bag down, hard, and fought back tears. Jenna was here, invited by Jacob’s parents, who had thought they left me off the invitation. They’d stuck me in the kids’ room and gave Jenna the princess suite. Jenna, who the school loved, who his parents loved, who Jacob used to love.
And he hadn’t said anything. Hadn’t done anything, other than get to the house first so he could have a quickie on the back deck. He hadn’t fought for me, hadn’t defended me— he had to have known what room I was being sent to, and he hadn’t so much as faltered.
Did he not know it was going to hurt me? Or did he not care? Either possibility was terrible— if he didn’t know, then he wasn’t paying attention, wasn’t listening, wasn’t thinking about me at all. And if he didn’t care…
I stepped into the bathroom, locked the door, and allowed my tears to fall— I’d learned long ago that trying to hold them in only made my face snottily red for hours. I sat on the edge of the bathtub and wept into one of the obnoxiously fluffy towels for at least twenty minutes, and was just hoisting myself out of my despair when I heard a small knock at the door.
“I’m just freshening up for dinner!” I said quickly— too quickly, and too loudly.
“It’s not Jacob. It’s me. Jenna, I mean,” Jenna said.
“Oh. Well, I’m just freshening—“
“It’s not Jacob, so there’s no way in hell I’m going to fall for that freshening up for dinner thing. Girls don’t ever actually freshen up. It’s what we say when we’re secret crying. Which is what you’re doing, right?” Jenna asked.
I stared at my own tear-stained face in the mirror and tried to work out what I was supposed to do with that statement. I didn’t get a chance to think on it too long, though, because Jenna opened the door and stepped inside.
“I locked that,” I said, surprised.
“And the little key thing is always above the door,” Jenna answered, holding up a tiny allen wrench. I sighed; Jenna motioned for me to slide over, then joined me on the bathtub’s edge.
“Look,” Jenna said quietly, “it is super, super shitty what his parents are doing to you. I want you to know that I seriously had no idea. I thought this was a group thing.”
“Yeah, well. It’s more of a Jacob-plus-Jenna-forever thing,” I said, avoiding Jenna’s eyes.
“No kidding. But I’m serious— I think it’s really shitty, and had I known this was the plan, I never ever would have come. I’ve got no interest in coming between you and Jacob, okay?”
I considered that, then smiled weakly at Jenna. “Thanks for saying that. But honestly, it’s not even you that’s the real problem. They want him to be with you. The school wants him to be with you. And…they’re not wrong. You fit with him way better than I do.”
“But I’m not interested in him. And he’s not interested in me. Which is usually a problem in a romantic relationship, unless you’re a Bachelor contestant or something.”
I exhaled. “Yeah, but my point is just: I do not seem suited for Jacob. Even I can’t believe we’re together— you know I’ve literally never been to a football game?”
“Jesus Christ, don’t you dare tell his parents that. They will skip the barbecue and just eat you for dinner,” Jenna said, looking genuinely scared for me.
“I know, I know. I’m just saying— Jacob was just typical womanizer Jacob when we first met. When we first hooked up, even. And then he got injured and everything changed. But now that he’s going to go back out there…”
“You’re afraid he’ll go back to the way he was. To being…well. Jacob Everett,” Jenna said, lifting her eyebrows. “Oh.”
“Valid concern?” I asked, unsure if I wanted a real answer.
Jenna considered this for a moment, squinting as she thought it over. “Valid concern,” she finally admitted. I felt tears welling up in my eyes again, and Jenna grabbed hold of my hand. “But, that’s just a concern. It doesn’t mean it’s a prophecy or anything.”
“I’m not interested in being just another fucktoy. I’ve never been,” I said shakily.
“Well, you’re not, no matter what happens. He’s in a legit relationship with you, Sasha. A serious relationship.”
“I guess.”
Jenna pursed her lips. “Okay, okay— it is pretty bullshit that he didn’t argue with his parents about parking you here in the playground. But obviously, you’re going to take the gold room.”
“No, it’s yours. They want you to sleep in it.”
“They want a lot of things they can’t have,” Jenna said. “Though also don’t tell them that, okay?”
“I won’t. But seriously, I don’t want to take your room.”
“Fine. Then we’ll share this one. In protest,” Jenna said smartly, rising. She pulled me along with her. “There’s bunk beds. It’ll be a sleepover. We’ll get some of those adult coloring books and everything.”
I laughed and sniffled. “Seriously?”
“Well, no, because I think those adult coloring books are on backorder forever. But we’ll bring those growlers up here and get drunk while Jacob has that stupid doctor’s appointment, okay?”
“Okay,” I said, wiping at my eyes with the bottom of my palm. “Thanks, Jenna.”
“No problem,” Jenna said. “Besides, you seem lonely.”
“I sort of am,” I said, shaking my head. “It’s sort of been all Jacob all the time. I hardly know anyone else at the school.”
“Well, you know me, which means you know the entire women’s soccer team. And we’re the best ones to know,” Jenna said proudly. “Come on. Put some makeup on to mask your crying eyes and then let’s go downstairs and eat our feelings via fried foods and barbecue, okay?”
I nodded. “That sounds great.”
20
I survived dinner— just knowing that Jenna was on my side did wonders, and thankfully, Jacob’s injury dominated the conversation.
“I just want to make sure I don’t push it too soon,” Jacob said, shaking his head.
“Definitely not, Jenna agreed. “Re-injure it and it’ll be worse. It’ll take even longer to heal, and it’ll be way weaker.”
Mr. Everett nodded. “But you’ll bounce back from it even if that happens, Jacob. You’ve always been devoted to your training.”
“Yeah, of course,” Jacob said. “It’s fine, mostly. I don’t have many problems with it anymore.”
“Don’t you worry, Jacob,” Ms. Everett said, helping herself to some more fried okra from the Styrofoam container. “You’ll get through it. You always do.”