Between Hearts: A Romance Anthology

by Alexander, Erica

  Gabe’s been unbelievable — not selfish, hurried, or immature like so many other guys — and I’m lucky the two of us hit it off quickly. He’s been a godsend in this not-so-small small town where everyone knows everything about one another. Not only are neither of us interested in bragging about how we’re hooking up, which is why only our closest friends know about our arrangement, but we can have sex without feeling beholden to each other.

  Declan runs his hand down my pussy, no doubt feeling how wet I am, and slides his fingers into a V outside my lips, putting delightful pressure on my most sensitive parts. He licks and caresses me before he slides one finger inside. My back arches involuntarily, and I gasp at the sudden feeling of fullness.

  Gabe continues his massage, stroking and adding more pressure. His free hand cups my breasts, massaging and pinching my tight nipples. He kisses my neck and shoulder, murmuring naughty encouragements and telling me how beautiful I look as Declan goes down on me, sucking and licking and making me even wetter. Declan pushes another finger into me, hooking both toward my pubic bone and slowly twirling them, hitting a spot that makes my eyes roll into the back of my head. My thighs clench, and a cry explodes from my lips. I tighten and swell beneath them.

  Declan ramps up his attention on my clit, tracing his tongue around the bundle of nerves until I can hardly take it. Between that, his fingers stimulating me from the inside, and Gabe’s finger suddenly breaching me, I explode.

  The orgasm rushes through me and steals my breath. For a moment, time stands still, and then I come on a choked scream. My body tightens as the release rushes from my center outward. My inner muscles contract, and the orgasm tingles from my fingertips to my toes as Declan and Gabe wring the pleasure from me.

  It takes a few minutes to come down from the high. As they pull their fingers from me, I shudder, hating the sudden loss.

  “How was that, Buttercup?” Gabe kisses my neck.

  I sigh contentedly in response. “Amazing.”

  “You gonna let us get off, too?” Gabe asks.

  “Of course!”

  “You want me to fuck you, or do you want Dec?”

  Declan’s handsome face looms between my legs, and he drops a lazy kiss on my inner thigh. The small motion makes my chest tighten, and I smile down at him, running my fingers through his wild blond hair and holding his hot gaze.

  My voice still noticeably absent, I enjoy this intimate moment. I’m surprised when Gabe answers his own question. “Declan.”

  Declan

  Gabe’s voice shocks me, and I break eye contact with Liv to stare upward at him. “What?”

  “She wants you.”

  His words hit me like a punch in the gut. I look back to Liv. Her head is thrown back, her eyes half-open, and she looks sated. Her legs are still propped on my shoulders. Her pussy glistens with evidence of her orgasm, and I feel a surge of pride.

  I kiss her inner thigh again, and her lashes flutter open.

  “Is this what you want?”

  It takes her a second to follow, and she nods. “Of course.”

  “Say it.” My voice is almost comically gruff. I clear my throat and repeat, “I want to hear you say it.”

  My heart thunders inside my chest, as if it’s going to run away if I don’t calm down, but I need to know this girl wants me like I want her. We’ve all had drinks — some more than others — but I think she and Gabe are both all right. But I need to be sure that we’re still on the same page.

  Her lips curl into a soft smile. “I want to feel you inside me.”

  My heart takes off again, and I can’t help my stupid grin. I want to kiss her, but I don’t. I’ve got other things to worry about before I can do that.

  “Protection?”

  Gabe points toward the grotto wall. I search it for a moment, and when I spot a small built-in shelf that holds multiple sheets of condoms, an incredulous laugh escapes me.

  Then I’m sobered by a sudden realization, and I shake my head. I wonder, once again, if this is all part of the initiation. “So this was all in the plans, huh?”

  “No,” Liv says as she slides her legs from my shoulders. She shifts into a sitting position on the bench beside me, and the water laps around her waist.

  “We like to be prepared.” Gabe winks and flashes some rendition of a scout hand signal. The salute causes a bark of laughter to explode from me, and he follows suit. I was certainly no scout. I can’t imagine Gabe was, either, based on what I know about the guy.

  “We figured someone, or multiple someones, would get horny,” Liv explains.

  “The house is stocked, too,” Gabe adds.

  I hate that I’m about to ask this, but I can’t stop the question that slips out. “And this isn’t the actual initiation, huh?”

  Liv’s lips fall open. Her eyes harden, and I realize my mistake. I shouldn’t have said anything, but how’s a guy supposed to know if this is real or a setup if all the initiations at our school revolve around nudity, sex, humiliation, or a combination of the three?

  Gabe raises one dark eyebrow. I can’t translate his look.

  “Absolutely not,” Liv denies.

  “You can’t blame him,” Gabe says gently, cupping her shoulder. “His brothers were on Parkview teams.”

  I nod dumbly, wondering if I’ve just ruined my chance with Liv. If nothing else, I made her come, and I won’t embarrass myself by blowing my load the moment I get inside her.

  She pins me with a hard look. “I’ll have you know, Declan McCoy, that a woman can do with her body whatever the hell she wants and with whomever the hell she wants to do it.”

  “I know,” I agree in earnest.

  “Good.”

  There’s a beat before Gabe pinches her nipple and asks, “You over your snit?”

  Liv squirms and snorts, and the tension is broken, the two of them laughing. She looks up at me with wide eyes and tilts her head toward the built-in shelf housing the condoms, saying what she wants without words.

  I take her gesture as my cue.

  We’re going to do this. I’m finally going to do this. And I’m going to do it with Liv.

  I shift off the seat and swim toward the built-in, snatching a sheet of condoms before swimming back.

  I sit next to Liv, handing her the package of condoms with a smile. Like I’m some kind of fucking retriever.

  I don’t wait to see her reaction, though.

  It’s now or never. I can’t chicken out, or worse, come before we get to the good stuff. That can’t happen. This has to happen.

  I gingerly pull down my swim trunks, lifting my hips upward to make the movement easier. I slide them over the bandage that covers my road burn, which still looks pretty gruesome. I’m surprised the bandage is still intact since I’ve been in the pool for a while. But this is the first time I’ve really thought about it since I jumped in, and thanks to my buzz, I can’t feel an iota of pain.

  Liv’s eyes flicker to the bandage, and her gaze softens, as if she’s just realizing that my injuries are still there.

  Her voice is breathy as she asks, “Should you even be in the water?”

  “I’ll be okay.”

  I shove my trunks down the rest of the way.

  I’ve never bared myself to two people like this, but there’s a first time for everything. My dick is throbbing. And judging by the lust that shines in both of their eyes, this is no initiation trick. This encounter is fueled by pure want.

  I could consider this interaction really fucking weird. Or I could view it as really fucking cool.

  I’m going with really fucking cool.

  How many guys lose their virginity like this?

  I rise to my knees on the bench and wrap a hand around my dick. I give myself a pump before reaching for a condom. Liv separates one from the pack, tossing the rest to the side of the pool, and hands the individual package to me.

  Now or never, McCoy.

  I successfully rip the foil open only to fumble the latex. Luc
kily, I catch it before it hits the water, but Gabe snickers and Liv shushes him.

  “You got this, man?”

  I don’t respond. Instead, I roll the condom onto my dick with a shaky hand, as if I’ve done this hundreds of times.

  “How are we going to do this?” I break the silence again, looking from Gabe to Liv.

  They communicate without words before Liv speaks.

  Gabe grins like an idiot as Liv suggests, “I thought you’d fuck me while I suck Gabe off.” She tilts her head upward with a smile. She looks so innocent, but the words that leave her mouth are so not.

  God. This girl.

  I nod, swallowing nervously. I can feel their eyes on me, as if they sense my inexperience.

  I can’t fuck this up. This is my chance.

  Gabe’s dark eyes finally leave me, and he maneuvers Liv from her seated position on the bench to her hands and knees. Her toned ass presses against me, and she faces Gabe. I idly run a hand up and down the back of her thighs and cup her ass cheeks.

  As I trace the lean muscles beneath Liv’s skin, Gabe rises to his knees and shoves down his briefs. I feel like a voyeur as Liv leans forward and takes Gabe’s cock into her mouth, but that’s all part of the experience, right? As her lips close around him, Gabe hisses.

  “No teasing, Liv,” I hear him tell her, his voice tight.

  “Not teasing, Gabe,” she mocks before she grasps him with her small hand.

  I watch the two of them and their easy companionship. The intimacy in their words and touches makes me feel like an interloper once again.

  Should I even be here? Do they even want me? If they do, and if I do this, how can I not make an ass of myself?

  Gabe moans again, his head falling backward as Liv takes him into her mouth.

  Before she gets too into it, though, she lets him go with a pop. Gabe growls at the loss. Liv stares over her shoulder and smiles.

  Her voice is hoarse as she admits, “I want you.”

  And that’s all the encouragement I need.

  Dear God, let me last longer than ten seconds.

  I wrap one hand around her hip and brush the small of her back with my other before gripping my cock.

  I slide between her pussy lips, letting my sheathed tip get good and wet. Then I push in.

  I count backward from ten in my head as I sink into her.

  She’s so wet, and her pussy is the tightest, warmest place my dick has ever been. The sensation of her gripping me is indescribable, and she somehow accommodates me. Her moan is low, and it’s the sexiest thing I’ve ever heard.

  My fingers grip her hips, and I grit my teeth as I slide deeper, unable to believe this is actually happening.

  I’m inside Liv Samuels.

  That thought alone sends a thrill through my body, but I hold it together. I still, then close my eyes and count down from three.

  Three, two, one.

  I stroke a hand up and down her spine, and she shivers in response.

  I wonder how else she’ll respond to me.

  Once I’m confident I won’t come immediately, I slowly pull out of her, loving her slickness against my hardness.

  I could get used to this.

  I slam into her, pushing her forward unexpectedly. Gabe’s dick must hit her throat, because I hear her gag and feel her body tense beneath me. I still and let her recover before moving again, and she looks over her shoulder, tears shining in her eyes, with an appreciative look and an encouraging wink before she goes back to sucking Gabe.

  “She’s amazing, huh?” I hear Gabe speak in a throaty voice, and my eyes snap up to meet his.

  “She is.”

  “She likes it when you play with her clit.” I take his word as gold. If he’s going to offer pointers as I fuck his fuck buddy, who am I to turn them down?

  I slowly pump in and out of her as I let go of her hip, and my hand follows the curve of her hipbone around to her front. It takes me a moment and a little fumbling, but I find her clit and circle it with my pointer finger. I touch her lightly at first, and add more pressure.

  She shudders, and I snap my eyes closed again, focusing on my breathing so I don’t lose it. Again.

  She tightens around me, and I tentatively brush her clit again. I’m rewarded with a sob, which is impressive since she’s currently swallowing Gabe’s cock.

  “She’s getting close,” Gabe says and twists a hand into her long hair so he can have a better view. “Fuck her, man. She likes it hard.”

  In any other situation, Gabe’s instructions would be strange.

  Right now? They’re really fucking helpful.

  The next time I push into Liv, her knees buckle against the movement. I lift her hips upward, then I stroke into her. Her pussy swells around me, drawing me deep.

  Gabe reaches beneath Liv and tweaks one of her nipples. She rears up in response, pressing her ass into the cradle of my hips.

  I go for broke.

  I rub her clit as I thrust into her, letting the warmth of her body envelope me before I pull out and do it all over again.

  She tightens to the point where it’s almost uncomfortable, then I feel it.

  She falls apart, her orgasm ripping through her body in a series of quivers and shakes. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever felt. I’ve made a few girls come, but there’s a difference between her coming around your fingers and coming around your dick. I love the idea of Liv continually coming around my dick.

  “Keep going,” Gabe barks. “She doesn’t need a break, man. Have your fill.”

  And so I do.

  The water slaps my thighs as I fuck her. I let out a low grunt and push into her one final time before I lose it. My balls pull up, and my orgasm tingles in the base of my spine before it shoots out of me. I pulse again, again, again, emptying myself into the condom.

  When I finally come to, rocking back and forth inside Liv, I feel Gabe’s eyes watching me. He smiles, like he’s proud of what I just did, then cups Liv’s chin. Making sure he has my attention, he fucks her mouth hard and fast.

  He’s brutal, but she takes him willingly, making encouraging noises as her pussy occasionally squeezes me still. And I stay put inside her, reveling in her tightness. I’m not ready for this to end, even though I’ve blown my load and probably won’t come again for a week. My orgasm rings in my ears, and I trail my fingers up and down the goosebumped skin of Liv’s back and ass.

  Gabe comes on a growl, and after a moment, he pulls out of her mouth. His come dribbles down Liv’s chin, and she wipes it off.

  Liv looks so at peace. Her eyes are closed, and I’m fairly positive her body would be lax if Gabe and I weren’t holding her in place.

  She looks over her shoulder and offers me a lazy grin. “Welcome to the team, Declan.”

  About the Author

  Romance writer. Life-long reader. Southerner. Enthusiastic eater. Lazy marathoner. Parker St. Rose is all these things and more. When she worked in journalism, a high-profile athlete once called the cops on her. She wasn't a paparazzo – she swears! These days, she enjoys writing her own happy endings. Tacos are her love language. And she is always down for homemade cookies. Parker and her family reside in Texas.

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  Promises Broken

  KA Stalter

  Edited by

  Dawn McIntyre Decker

  Chapter 1

  The Memory

  Some things in life are better forgotten, at least that's my excuse for the gaping holes in my memory. The shrink at my last group home called it a defense mechanism. I think it's because there isn't a whole lot of shit in my life worth recalling, and most of the stuff I can remember, I'd rather forget.

  So the fact my stomach just launched into free fall is fucking surprising and the memory, the damn good mem
ory that just took my breath away, twists me up in ways I've never experienced before. Good and bad, joy and sorrow, all mixed together and paralyzing me. Usually my memories, when they do come, clobber me over the head and send me into a tail spin. But this is different. This memory is a good one, though so damn bittersweet.

  I'm staring down at the cake Declan set in front of me and it looks nothing like the cake I'm remembering, the cake Paige decorated for my sixteenth birthday. Declan's cake has Happy 18th Briggs written across the top in the practiced handwriting of a professional. White frosting, blue lettering, the words carefully scribed across a music staff next to a large black treble clef. Nothing about it should remind me of the barely legible scrawl from that cake two years ago, but it does. Maybe because they're the only two times since my mom left that anyone in my life had cared enough to bother marking the occasion. God that cake Paige made was awful, but I fucking miss how she made me feel.

  Taking three deep, steadying breaths, I let my head fall forward, using my hair to shield my eyes from view. If I don't get it together Declan and his parents will give me that look again. I freaking hate that look. Pity, empathy and the tiniest bit of fear. They worry I'm going to lose my shit. I'm pretty sure they know by now I won't do anything crazy, they just hate feeling helpless. And I hate making them nervous. Hopefully they just think I'm making a wish right now. Not a chance of that happening though. I gave up wishing a long time ago, probably around the time I was nine.

  Life taught me a valuable lesson pretty early on: hope is more painful than the void created by its absence. Hope fucking hurts. But if I did wish, if I could hope, I know exactly what I'd wish for. I'd wish to go back to my last day with Paige so I could tell her goodbye. I'd wish for one last minute with her to make sure she knew what she meant to me, to tell her not to worry, not to be afraid for me and to ask her not to cry. Because I know she cried.