Sliding (The Stone Series)

by Kitty Berry

  “So are your lips red and puffy like mine?” Tate teases.

  They are red and puffy and they have never looked or felt better in my whole life!

  “I believe they are, yes” I respond.

  I hear Tate laugh and feel his smile through the phone.

  “Good, I want to make them red and puffy again very soon, you in?” he asks playfully.

  “Oh, I’m in alright” I giggle.

  The last words I hear before I drift off to sleep with Tate on the phone are, “I love you, Brooklynn, more than you’ll ever know.”

  On our last night in the city my hotel phone rings, its Bobby and Tate saying that they thought maybe for our last night Bobby could go to our room and hang with Asia and I could go to their room and stay with Tate. We agree and Bobby says he’ll be to our room at midnight and then I can head to Tate’s.

  When I walk into Tate’s room he’s sitting in a chair listening to his boom box, “Hello” by Lionel Richie is playing. Tate looks so “Tate” in his gray sweatpants pushed up at the bottom revealing the beginning of calf muscles. He is wearing his I love New York t-shirt he bought today that matches the one I have on.

  “Come here, sit on my lap and listen to music with me. I won’t bite too hard I swear” he smirks.

  I don’t know why but it makes me weak in the knees. I walk toward him and he reaches out for me and I fall as gracefully as I can into his lap.

  “Your lips don’t look red and puffy any more. Want me to fix that?” he asks while licking his lips.

  Without answering him I look up and the look in his eyes says it all. I want his lips on mine again so I close my eyes and softly his lips meet mine. Once again our tongues touch and a fire is ignited between us. The sparks that I feel surging through my body are real but I can’t put words to them. These feelings are all new; we’re in uncharted waters together every step of the way. I feel Tate pull back from me and I look up, Tate smiles and starts to kiss my neck and my ear running his tongue down my throat. He gently nips my earlobe with his teeth and sucks on my neck. I am jelly in his arms, putty in his hands.

  I am semiconscious of the song changing to “When Doves Cry” then to “Footloose” but I am unaware of time as it is passing, so caught up in his touch, in the feel of being in Tate’s lap, in his arms, being kissed by him that I lose myself. It’s like I am floating in air looking down watching.

  I don’t know how long we make out on that chair but when Bobby comes in with his curly hair all wild Tate gives me one last kiss and I try to get up to leave but he tells me to stay for a minute. When he finally lets me get up he walks me to the door and tells me to call him after I get into bed and turn my radio on. I can’t be sure but I think I skip, dance or do flips down the hall to my room. I maybe even do all three.

  I call Tate with “Let’s Hear it for the Boy” playing and he answers on the first ring.

  “Hey Brook, are you mad at me?” he asks.

  What’s this, I was just sucking face with this kid for hours why would he think I am mad at him?

  “What? Mad at you why?” I ask.

  “Um, did you look in the mirror when you got back to your room; I think I maybe gave you a hickie or two” he responds.

  Oh my God I drop the phone and fly into the bathroom as Asia looks at me like I’m nuts. I scream when I see the bruises on my neck. Holy crap, what am I going to do about these? My mom is going to kill me; my dad is going to kill Tate. What is wrong with him? Is he out of his freaking mind? There are five not a hickie or two and they are all noticeable, spread out all over my throat. How did this happen? I never even felt him doing that.

  When I get back on the phone I hear him snoring on the other end. I’m so glad he’s not worried and able to sleep!

  We go on a class trip to New York City and Bobby and I plan to put the moves on the girls. This quick pecking has to stop; I want to kiss Brook for real. I want to do so much more too but I know I can’t push it, one step at a time, slow and steady wins the race.

  We have the girls come to our room one night. Bobby and Asia are getting it on under the covers of his bed while Brook and I lay on mine. I push a strand of hair behind Brook’s ear and ask her how she got so pretty. She is beautiful but I’m glad she doesn’t see it. If she did she’d realize she could have any guy she wants. This feeling in the pit of my stomach takes over. I start to feel my dick twitch, it’s been doing that a lot lately and it starts to get hard. I make my move before she knows what’s about to happen. I take my hands and grab her face like they do in the movies and kiss her on the mouth. When she doesn’t push me away I use my tongue to gently ease her lips open and search for hers. When her tongue meets with mine we simultaneously moan quietly into each other’s mouths and I almost lose it. I pounce on her, my lips are swallowing her, my right hand is on her face and my left hand is around her back pulling her close to me.

  On the last day in New York we walk around the city holding hands. I cannot believe the amount of guys that turn to look at her. She doesn’t seem to notice any of them but that could be because she’s with me. I wonder what she does when this hit happens and she’s alone or with her friends. I remember the conversation I had with Bobby’s older brother, Eric. Eric told me about some college guy that saw Brook cheering at a game and asked who she was. He told Eric she was hot and asked if she had a boyfriend. I decide to do something to mark my territory, show these other guys what’s mine and mine only.

  She comes to my room our last night on the trip and we spend time alone. She sits on my lap and we start making out. Softly her lips meet mine and once again our tongues touch and a fire is ignited in my pants. I can feel my pants getting tight in the crotch and I wonder if she feels it too, she must but she doesn’t say anything. I kiss her neck and her ear running my tongue down her throat. I want to bite her earlobe hard with my teeth but instead I just give it a little nibble then I suck her neck. She is going to be pissed when she sees the hickies I’m going to leave on her neck but she’ll get over it and it’ll send the message to every guy that looks at her that she’s taken. She’s all mine.

  ************

  I am startled awake by the flight attendant telling me we will be landing in a few minutes so could I please adjust my seat and prepare for the landing. I grab my neck to hide it like the hickies are still there, I laugh at myself with a small chuckle. When the plane is sitting on the runway waiting for our turn to disembark I power up my iPhone again to see what I have missed during my flight.

  I have an email from Tate:

  From: Tate Taylor

  Subject: I know everything about you…

  Date: March 16, 2011 2:19pm

  To: Brooklynn Taylor

  I always have and I always will! I have people watching over you, yes but that’s so I know you r safe & sound. I promised to protect u always, remember?

  Dominick will be waiting 4 u @ baggage claim

  We will resolve both r issues of pain when u arrive

  Sliding & Waiting 2 c u

  Your Tater Tot and CEO, Taylor Studios, Inc.

  From: Brooklynn Taylor

  Subject: I know everything about you 2…

  Date: March 16, 2011 2:35pm

  To: Tate Taylor

  U can try 2 act like its all 4 me but we both know better, Tate. I was just thinking about the time you marked up my neck…remember?

  C u shortly

  Sliding out…

  Brooklynn Taylor

  Taylor Studios, Inc.

  From: Tate Taylor

  Subject: Yes I do

  Date: March 16, 2011 2:39pm

  To: Brooklynn Taylor

  And if i remember right i had fun doing it 2!

  Tate Taylor

  CEO, Taylor Studios, Inc.

  Dominick is waiting for me in baggage claim just like Tate said he would be. He already has my bags ready to go by the time I see him. We smile politely and say hello but I have never really warmed up to him the way I have to Mac
. He is young and strong and a very intimidating presence. He is so good looking it hurts to look at him and he knows it, seems like the kind of guy that uses it to get any girl he wants into any position he wants. I tell him I need to stop in the ladies room and freshen up. There is music being piped into the ladies room, “Let the Music Play”. I check and fix my makeup and hair. I check over my shoulder to be sure I am alone then I do a few of the dance moves from the old days to the song. I check the mirror once again and I’m pleased with what I see. I have learned to control and love my curls. I have kept my hair dark but now I have a red glaze over it, hiding the beginnings of gray at the roots. It took me until college to make the discovery that I am attractive and can use my looks to my advantage. I have been confident every since when approaching a mirror to check my reflection and today is no different. I know I will be facing expertly applied makeup, salon looking hair, manicured nails and a body to die for. I work hard enough for it. All this and wearing expensive designer clothes…what more can a girl ask for? Well…lots. The comfort of money is reassuring but it’s not enough to ease my mind when it comes to my marriage. I turn and leave the bathroom knowing I will soon need to face the problems of my marriage and face Tate.

  I find Dominick leaning against the wall and he quickly jumps to attention when he sees me. He’s not a bad guy but I sometimes get the feeling that he’s hiding things from me.

  “Mrs. Taylor, time to go. The car is right out front” he announces in his deep voice that I’m sure has made more than one pair of panties drop.

  I walk out of Los Angeles National Airport and I get into the back of the car, Dominick reminds me to put on my iPod for the ride to the hotel.

  “Somebody’s Watching Me” assaults my ears and reminds me of Tate’s spy on the plane, who turned out to be the flight attendant. She told me that she had let “Mr. Taylor” know that we landed safely…bitch!

  “Against All Odds” is next up on the playlist and I am transported to the end of freshman year and the tears that fell. When you’re a teenager the friends you have are the best ones you will ever know. You will try to replicate that relationship for the rest of your life. You might get lucky and come close but it’ll never be the same. The friends you grow up with know you better than you know yourself. You think those times will never come to an end but they do. People change; people grow up, people move on.

  ************

  Missy’s family moved out of state after freshman year to be closer to her oldest brother and his family. We said we’d all stay in touch and be friends forever, we said we’d see each other on school vacations and in the summer, we said we would talk on the phone every night and write letters. We did all of those things for a few months but it was never the same again and after a few months we all fell out of touch with her. Tate was never happier in his life. I knew her leaving would keep Tate’s jealousy under control even though I didn’t want to lose Missy I knew it would make things easier with Tate. Annie also left after ninth grade; she went to a boarding school for girls. She tried to fight her parents on this but lost miserably. They had caught her with one too many boys sneaking in or out of her house in the middle of the night. Once she left she didn’t even come home over the breaks or the summer.

  During the summer Tate and I spend every sunny day we can together at the beach with a bunch of kids. Tate goes to a week of basketball and football camp so I’m not able to see or talk to him for three weeks with the exception of the weekends when he’s home. I also go to camp those weeks for cheerleading and dance so we write letters and I cry myself to sleep every night because I miss him so much.

  We hang out at the beach and it is all I can do not to sport wood looking at Brook in those bikinis of hers. At night I ride my bike to her house or sometimes she comes over to mine. It is so frustrating that we are never alone long enough for anything to happen except a fast kiss. I can’t wait to get my hands on her and for her hands to be on me.

  One day I’m at Bobby’s house and we decide to go looking through his brother, Eric’s room in search of his porn. We find the mother loud! He has magazines, videos and condoms. We are sitting on his bed looking at the magazines when he walks in and find us.

  “What the fuck are you doing in here with my porn? You do know it’s kind of creepy to be sitting here together looking at that with wood, right?”

  Bobby tells him we were just looking to get some ideas and Eric asks us if we have a clue about girls and sex. Of course we tell him we do but he knows that we probably don’t so he offers to answer our questions and tell us everything there is to know before we make complete fools out of ourselves.

  He tells us what each base is and I can’t imagine Brook letting me get to second let alone third base anytime soon. Bobby claims that Asia will let him no problem but I think he’s full of shit. Eric even lets us watch one of the pornos with him. Bobby and I watch with our mouths wide open, I can’t believe I’m watching people have sex. The girls aren’t nearly as hot as Brook but they are naked and that’s all it takes to make me hard.

  Eric tells us that we should try to put our hands up the girl’s shirts and see if they’ll go for that.

  “Well, later dudes, I’ll be in the bathroom jerking off. Enjoy the porn; we’ll do another lesson after you pussies get to second base” Eric promises.

  ************

  My phone chimes with an incoming text from Tate: have to do something 4 work will c u shortly. go to ballroom will meet u there with surprise 4 u

  I respond: k c u soon…interesting songs on the playlist…really got me to thinking

  I put my ear buds back in and “Cruel Summer” is on. That summer going into tenth grade feels like yesterday to me. I was so in love with Tate I could barely contain myself. He was starting to develop quite a physic and my resistance was getting weaker. We spent the days we could as a group at the beach but at night Tate would ride his bike to my house or I’d have my mom bring me to his. We were never really alone long enough for anything to happen except more kissing, lots more kissing. We made sure to play it smooth in front of our parents, or at least we thought we did.

  ************

  Then one night a group of us went to the movies and we sat all the way in the back so no one could see what we were getting up to. Tate and I sat next to each other holding hands and only saw parts of the movie because we spent more time making out then we did watching the movie. His lips are just so soft I can’t keep mine off of them.

  “Sit on my lap, Brooklynn” Tate whispers to me during the movie and without a second thought or even a glance at my friends I climb into his lap. It’s been getting more and more like this with us. Whatever Tate asks me to do I find myself on autopilot complying without giving it a second thought.

  Tate kisses my neck then starts to nibble at my earlobe. The sensations go up and down my spine. The way he touches me makes me lose all control.

  “You drive me wild, Brook. I don’t know if I can control myself around you much longer.”

  I look into his blue eyes, the eyes I have been looking into for almost a year now and I respond from my heart and soul instead of my head, “Well, don’t then” I say.

  Tate smiles shyly at me and starts to kiss me on the lips. My lips met his and before I can even gather a thought his tongue is in my mouth seeking mine out. My tongue finds his and he lets out a soft moan. His right hand goes to my face while his left hand rests on my exposed hipbone. His left hand doesn’t stay there like it usually does but instead he starts to move it under my shirt at my narrow waist. When he moves it an inch or so higher I break away from our kiss, my eyes flinging open and meeting his.

  “Shhh, baby, it’s alright no one’s watching us.”

  And with just those few words from him I am pacified. We resume our kissing and Tate’s left hand continues to climb up my shirt.

  As the credits start to roll Tate kisses me one last time and he whispers into my ear, “I love you, baby.”

  I
love him in a way I can’t articulate. I want to be swallowed up by him, I want him to wrap himself around me and make us one. “I love you always and forever” I reply.

  We hold hands and walk out of the movie theater together only breaking apart when we see our rides pulling up; leaving him that night actually causes an ache in my heart.

  When I get home my phone rings, it’s Tate asking me if I have my radio on. I always have my radio on at night when I’m in bed waiting for his call. Thank God I have my own phone line or my parents would have put a stop to these late night calls before they even started.

  Tate is really into music, I’m sure he’s going to be in a band or something when he grows up. He laughs at me when I tell him that because he can’t play an instrument or sing to save his life. He’s so bad; he’s kind of good if that’s possible. The only thing he likes more than music are music videos. He says he loves the way the videos tell a story about the song. I agree because I love the way the choreography does the same.