Kickoff for Love

by Amelia Whitmore

  Moments later, the sharp pain at my core was replaced by an intense pleasure that I'd never felt before. Not even from what Andy had just done for me moments earlier. "You okay?" He whispered. I nodded and pulled his mouth to mine again. He slowly started moving inside of me and whispered sweet nothings into my ear, making my experience so much more perfect. In stories and movies, they tell you about how the characters made love for hours on end. Well it wasn't true. I wasn't sure if I wanted it to be true. The whole thing probably lasted about half an hour or so. It was incredible. Nothing had ever made me feel like that.

  Afterward, he held me in his arms, rubbing my hair and back until I fell asleep. In the morning, we had a repeat of the night before, but even better because the pain wasn't there. I cried out that I loved him and he repeated it almost immediately. During the drive back home, I found myself wondering how the heck I ended up with somebody as perfect as Andy. What did I to deserve his love? Even though I'd never been the type of girl who thought about weddings, I started picturing what it would be like to walk down the aisle with my father and saying my 'I do's' to Andy. The picture was perfect.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Ashley’s POV

  I never thought having sex would change me, but I guess it did. Being able to express my love for Andy in such an intimate way was simply amazing. I felt we had moved from kids playing love games to two full grownups loving each other and showing that love the best way possible.

  The next Sunday, was a very sunny hot day. So when Andy suggested a picnic day I didn’t even consider saying no. I put on some shorts and a sleeveless top, with my bikini underneath it, and a pair of hiking boots, complying with Andy's suggestion.

  For lunch, Angela had given me a walnuts cake and a few sandwiches and Andy had brought chicken, potato salad, juices and coke. We put it all in a backpack, and put it to Andy's car, along with a couple of towels.

  "Where are you going to take me?" I asked him curiously.

  "Can't it be a surprise?" He poked me, knowing how I felt about surprises.

  "Really, are you going to do this to me again?" I grumbled, punching his arm.

  "Yes, I just love to see you getting all impatient and moody."

  "Andy…" I warned him. Tell me, where are we going?" I insisted.

  Andy drove in silence for a couple of miles until I punched him hard on his arm.

  "Alright, alright, I'll tell you. Since it's so hot, I thought we could go hiking to the Sturtevant Falls. What you think about it?" He finally confessed and I was thrilled.

  I had never been to any of the falls around Los Angeles so the idea was very appealing to me. "Oh, yes… I love the idea."

  "You always love my surprises." He said with a self-confident tone that made me punch him once more.

  "Don’t be so obnoxious."

  "I'm not. Since we're in December, we won't find many people around the place we'll be able to have some privacy." He added with a naughty smile.

  "Uhm, that sounds even better."

  We reached the furthest point we could get with the car, and grabbing the backpack we headed to the trail that would lead us to the falls.

  The hike was great, I didn’t even feel the time going by as we hiked up to the falls, amongst jokes and teases. Like Andy had predicted, we didn’t find other people going or coming from the falls. Two hours later we reached the waterfalls and I was amazed. The sixty foot high waterfall was surrounded by a lush cottage lined canyon, which gave the place an awesome look.

  I dropped my backpack and walked straight to the water line, leaning over to touch it. "Wow, this is cold!" I protested with a smile.

  "Come on, it's just cool, not cold." Andy teased me, as he dropped his backpack next to mine. He started to take off his clothes revealing the swimming suit he was wearing underneath.

  "You're going to swim in it?" I asked, looking at him as if he had lost his mind.

  "Yes, and so are you." He said with determination.

  "Oh, no way, that water is way too cold for me."

  Andy pursed his lips and said nothing. Confident I had convinced him, I removed one of the towels from the backpack and laid it in a place where I could sunbathe, before I took off my clothes and shoes.

  I looked at Andy and watched him changing his shoes into ones appropriate to swim in. The next thing I knew, he was walking towards the water and under the waterfall I watched the cold water fall over his sturdy body.

  From my advantageous position, I saw him relish the water, obviously enjoying the sensation of it falling over him. I smiled pleased. I really love to see him happy and relaxed.

  With a broad smile, he came out of the water and I smiled back at him. But then, something in his eyes told me he had nefarious plans. I tried to get up and escape, but I had no time. Soon he was over me, picking me in his powerful arms, ignoring my cries as he walked us right into the waterfall.

  "Andy, don’t you dare!" I yelled at him. "I'll kill you if you get me close to that freezing water." My threats fell on deaf ears, and soon the cold water was falling down on us.

  The coldness of the water stole my breath away for a couple of seconds. All I could do was stand there, paralyzed. But when I recovered from the initial surprise, I yelled and kicked him. "You're so dead…"

  He silenced my protests with his mouth, kissing me deep and passionately. I forget everything: the cold water, my rage, his prank… everything. All that mattered was his lips over mine, his hands wrapped around me; and my legs wrapped around him.

  "I love you so much, baby." He said, interspersing every word with a sweet kiss.

  "I love you too."

  He kissed me once more, while his hands caressed my back and my breasts, enhancing my pleasure with his touch. We stayed there a few minutes, kissing and enjoying the water. I could feel his shaft hard and ready, against my own body.

  With a groan, he carried me back to the towel and laid me down. Then he lowered his shorts and grabbed protection from the backpack to roll down on his aroused member.

  "What if someone comes?" I asked, panting.

  "No one will come." He assured me with a naughty smile.

  As eager as him, I undid the ties of my bikini and prepared myself for him.

  "God, baby, you look so beautiful, so amazing." He said with a sigh, making me spread my legs as he lay on top of me. I wanted him so much I had trouble breathing.

  "You don’t look bad yourself." I teased him and he chuckled.

  He didn’t make me wait long. Soon he was buried deep inside me, moving in and out, making me trail up to paradise like he always did and soon the waves of pleasure and bliss were washing over us as our bodies shuddered under the power of our orgasm.

  Giggling and joking we washed ourselves under the waterfall and after putting our clothes on, we enjoyed the feast we had carried there.

  "Who baked this cake?" Andy asked.

  "Angela, she is a very good cook and she has been trying to teach me, but I'll never be as good as she is. She was born to cook." I explained with a sigh of pleasure.

  "You're good at other things." He said with a naughty smile. I laughed, feeling happier than I had in a long time.

  The hike back to the car was a bit more silent but still very pleasant. A new complicity existed between us, that wasn’t there before. I loved the way it felt.

  On the ride home, I rested my head on Andy's shoulder. All the excitement of the day made me fall asleep.

  The next few weeks went by quickly. I enrolled back into school and started up the same routine as before. Christmas would be here in three days. I was packing my bag to leave for Andy's the next morning when he walked in looking flustered. He flopped down on my bed and released something between a chuckle and a laugh. "What's up?" I asked, sitting next to him.

  He grabbed my hand and turned to look at me. His face looked shocked. "Notre Dame just offered me a full scholarship if I play football for them.” His eyes widened in excitement and disbelief as he spoke.<
br />
  I blinked a few times. "When," was the only thing that would come out of my mouth?

  "They want me to take over after Christmas break.”

  "This Christmas break, as in the one that ends in a month?" I asked slowly, processing everything.

  "Yeah.” He still sounded amazed.

  "What did my Dad say? I mean, you are the captain of his team,” I asked.

  "Coach said to do what I need to do,” he said.

  I bit my lip before asking. “What do you need to do?"

  He looked at me like I should already know the answer. "I need to go.” He said slowly.

  "Oh,” I didn't know what else to say.

  "Oh, what?" He asked, sounding almost offended.

  "Oh, Notre Dame is on the other side of the country 'OH'!” I snapped.

  "I don't se. . . - Oh,” he trailed off, finally seeing why I wasn't jumping for joy. "I can't believe I didn't think of that.” He looked crestfallen. "Don't get me wrong. I thought of you, but you were right by my side in my mind.” I nodded sympathetically.

  He seemed to brighten up suddenly. "But that's okay. You can finish school here and enroll there in the fall.” He sounded like he'd found the answer to all of our problems.

  "My grades aren't good enough to get into Notre Dame, Andy. It would take a miracle for me to be accepted.”

  "There are other schools around there.” He offered, desperately trying for a solution.

  "I get free tuition here.” I felt like crying. Andy wrapped his arms around me and held my body tightly. "We'll figure this out. I promise. How about we each think about it while we're at my Aunt and Uncles’? When we get back, we'll talk about it and settle on a solution that works for both of us.”

  I nodded, suddenly not so thrilled about my Christmas vacation.

  ***

  The next day, we woke up insanely early and arrived at the airport without any problems. I slept on the plane. Andy played games on my iTouch the entire time. He gently nudged me awake. "We're here.” He whispered and pointed out the window.

  "Snow!" I exclaimed. It felt like forever since I'd seen snow. Andy chuckled and grabbed our carry-ons.

  After getting our luggage, we headed to where he'd told his family we'd meet them. Just as Andy pointed to a group of four people, one of them screamed out "Andy!" and ran for us. Before she got to him, Andy managed to tell me "That's Katy. She's the dramatic one.” I blushed, remembering my reaction to when he compared me to her.

  Katy had strawberry blonde hair that reached her shoulders, bright green eyes, and cherry red lips. She was small and had a girlish voice. The only word I could really use to describe her was adorable.

  As we got closer to the actual group, I looked at Khloe. She had the same hair as Andy, only much longer. It flowed down to her hips. Her eyes were the same as Katy's and her lips were a soft pink cupid’s bow. She was taller than her sister by about three inches and had curves women killed for and men died for.

  "Hey, Toka,” her voice was soft and calm as she reached up for a hug. The nickname she used for him was adorable.

  "Hey, honey,” he hugged her close.

  His aunt had flaming red hair and uncontrollable curls. Freckles covered her pale skin and crystal clear blue eyes stood out on her face.

  His uncle had blonde hair and blue eyes. His smile was warm and kind. He was a little pudgy, but it just made him appear soft.

  After hugging everybody, he introduced me. "Guys, this is my girlfriend Ashley. Ash, these are Katy, Khloe, my Uncle Peter and Aunt Sonya.”

  "Nice to meet you all,” I said shyly. Sonya immediately walked up and hugged me. "Welcome to the family dear.” Her voice had a surprisingly strong Irish accent to it.

  "Oh, thank you.” I said, feeling a mixture of surprise and relief. Katy grabbed my hand as we started walking out of the airport. "So, you're in our grade, right?" She asked.

  "Are you guy’s seniors?" I asked, double checking.

  "Yep. In the fall, I'm off to New York for fashion, and Khloe's going to Notre Dame for Literature.” She stuck her tongue out then she said Literature. I felt a knot in the pit of my stomach when she mentioned Notre Dame, but I couldn't say anything.

  I smiled. "She must be excited to go to such a great school. Not that where you're going won't be great. But my grades are suffering at the moment and I'm babbling now,” I blushed.

  She laughed. "It's fine. Actually, I like having somebody else to talk to. Khloe keeps to herself most of the time, which is fine. I know she likes it. Sometimes I feel like I'm a life force, sucking the energy out of everybody around me with how much I talk.” I laughed and listened to her chatter on about nothing until we reached a huge black suburban. "Wow,”

  Andy laughed and pulled me into the far back seat with him. The twins sat on the middle bench. I leaned against Andy; his arm was around my shoulders. "I like your family.” I whispered to him.

  He smiled and kissed me lightly. For the rest of the trip, we whispered back and forth until we reached the entrance of a well-to-do suburb area. Their house was made out of cobblestone and was absolutely huge. "This is such a beautiful home,” I said happily.

  "Thank you, dearie.” Sonya said as we all jumped out of the car.

  Inside, Sonya and Peter were about to show me to the guest room when Andy stopped them. "Guys, we sleep in the same bed almost every night.” He told them and I blushed like a tomato. They shared a concerned look before I quickly said, "that's fine, though, I don't mind sleeping in the guest room.” The last thing I wanted was to cause an issue.

  Andy stepped beside me and wrapped his arm around my back. "I want her in my bed.” He said firmly. I elbowed his side and he just ignored it.

  "If she sleeps in your bed, you both have to agree not to do anything sexual,” Sonya said. I blushed even harder when Andy refused. "I'm not saying that we plan to have sex, but I'm an adult and so is she. Ashley's father knows that we've been physical.” That reminded me of the day Angie had walked in on us. We weren't actually having sex, but we were close. My father had taken it rather well actually. He remained calm and spoke to us like adults, making sure we were careful. He told us that since we were both adults, and as long as we remained safe, that he had no say in the matter. I was shocked, to say the least.

  "Andy, shut up.” I told him.

  "No, it's quite alright dearie. Actually, it’s probably better that you’re honest and upfront about the whole thing instead of sneaking off to each other's rooms in the wee hours of the night.” Andy showed me to his room and closed the door behind us.

  "I can't believe you just did that.” I said, irritated.

  He smirked. "If you want the door open, it doesn't have to be closed.” I smacked his arm. "You know damn well what I mean.” I forced him to look into my eyes.

  "I'm sorry. Is it too much to ask that I wake up in the same bed as my girlfriend on Christmas and not worry about being in trouble?" He asked. I bit my lip, not knowing how to argue with that.

  "Well no, not necessarily. I just want to make a good impression on your family. Now they all know we sleep together.” I crossed my arms. "Way too many people know about my sex life.” I informed him, to which he chuckled and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me to him.

  "I love you, Ashley.” He whispered before kissing me lightly. I wrapped my arms around his neck grumbling. "I guess I love you too.” He raised an eyebrow and I laughed, before kissing his soft lips again.

  ***

  After dinner that night, we all sat in the family room talking. I loved feeling like a part of the family. It was great. "So, how long have you two been dating?" Katy asked.

  I thought about it for a moment. "A few months now, I guess.” I told her.

  She looked amused. "You mean you don't know the date you guys started going out on?" She asked.

  I shrugged my shoulders before replying. "I'm not really the kind of person who remembers things like that.” Andy looked offended, but I could see
in his eyes that he was teasing. "Yet you remember the dates and scores of every Super Bowl you've ever watched.” I laughed. "It's the level of interest really.” I winked at him. He rolled his eyes and leaned forward, lightly biting my shoulder. I laughed.

  "You two are too cute,” Sonya exclaimed.

  Andy grinned and pulled me tighter. "I know, right?" I scoffed.

  "You're such a girl!" I told him.

  He raised his eyebrows at me before saying "One of us has to be.” My jaw dropped and I gave his leg a good pinch. "Ow!” He exclaimed, jumping a bit.

  "Serves you right, jerk.” I told him, folding my arms.

  He kissed the top of my head and we turned to listen to the conversations going on around us.

  A few hours later, everybody went off to separate bedrooms. I climbed in with Andy and leaned against his side, with my head resting in the crook of his shoulder. "Khloe's going to Notre Dame.” I told him.

  He sighed. "I thought we weren't going to talk about this until we got back.” He said.

  I bit my cheek. "I think we should talk about it now, not to make a decision. But keeping our thoughts about it inside will probably drive us both crazy,” I explained.

  He took a deep breath before saying, "Alright. I already know that Khloe is going there.” He said.

  "It'd be cool if you got to go to the same school as your sister.” I said.

  "It'd be cool if I got to go to the same school as you.” He revised.

  "I think so too, but this is a once in a lifetime chance. I mean, not only would you finally be back home. Khloe would see you more often, and you'd be closer to your family.” I listed off a few reasons he should go.

  "Yeah, but every mile that I get closer to my family, I'm farther away from you. I don't want that.” He said.

  "Maybe it shouldn't be about what you want. Maybe you should think about what you need.” I suggested, hating the words as they left my mouth.