“Savannah…fuck…” he growls. I continue to move over him, taking him to the back of my throat and back up to tease his tip before moving down again. His hips begin to buck up, moving in rhythm with my mouth, and I gently let my teeth graze him before my tongue runs up his length.
Parker’s muscles contract and I can feel he’s close to his release. Before I can suck harder to help him reach it, he lifts me by my shoulders and switches our position so he’s on top.
“As much as I was enjoying that…” his breathing is heavy, “I want to come with you while I’m inside you.” He reaches behind me and undoes my halter from the bathing suit and takes it off. His hand reaches between my legs and he smiles.
“Wet and ready.” I squirm and wait for his next move.
Reaching blindly around my nightstand for a condom, he finds what he is looking for and pulls one out. He hovers over me, his breath mingling with mine and leans down to kiss me.
Parker positions himself over me, his cock teasing my entrance before he thrusts inside me. His body moves in mine, his lips kiss my lips, then my cheek down to my jaw. They continue to move over my shoulder and down my chest, taking one of my breasts in his mouth as our hips meet in perfect unison, following our own unique rhythm.
My body begins to climb higher and higher as he hits all the perfect spots and his hand moves to my clit, rubbing and massaging sending sparks through my body. “Parker…Ooohhh…” I call out as waves of pleasure crash down on my body and my walls clench around him. He groans loudly, calling out my name, he thrusts one last time, finding his release with me.
Exhausted and thoroughly pleased, I catch my breath next to Parker and my eyes begin to close. I hear a faraway chuckle, shifting, and then Parker’s weight settling next to me. His arms hold me and I get lost in dreamland.
“I was thinking of going to my grandmother’s house for dinner tonight. Do you wanna come?”
“Ye-” Parker swallows his bite of pancakes and continues, “Yeah. Sorry. That sounds great.” He gives me his crooked smile and I melt.
“Okay. I’ll let her know you’re coming, too. It was her idea, you know? She kept asking if I was going to bring you along.”
“I told you I liked Caroline. She has good taste.” He winks, and I laugh and finish my coffee. There’s nothing more comforting than a delicious breakfast and bottomless coffee after a night of drinking and partying. Waking up this morning was rough, but having Parker next to me was extra motivation to open my eyes.
“Well, get ready for Caroline’s interrogation and sense of humor. She’s a spunky one.”
“You mean all the questions she asked at the party weren’t enough?” Parker teases me.
“Not even close,” I laugh.
“I’m joking. I don’t care what she asks. I got nothing to hide, and I’ll always be honest.”
“Good answer.” I lean over the table to kiss him.
We take a walk around a park in the city after breakfast. There are a few people jogging and others working out in the stations that the park has set up permanently all along the path. We see a group of parents and their children carving pumpkins under a pavilion, laughing as they create all different kinds of faces to fit their unique jack-o-lanterns. We continue to walk and cross over to the river walk, traveling down the path with the river on our right as we wander aimlessly throughout the city. It’s chillier today, the clouds overpowering the sun and creating a real fall day.
“I’m going to Athens for Thanksgiving to spend some time with my family. I want you to come with me and meet them. I know you have Caroline and the bakery, but I was thinking you could take a few days to make the trip with me.”
I stop in my tracks and gape at him silently. I’m not sure what to say. That’s a big step. Like…really big.
“You don’t have to…If you can’t, or don’t want to…yet.” Parker is babbling and I want to shut him up but words won’t form. Instead, I lean into him and kiss him. That should do it.
His hands hold on to my hips, steadying me, and his lips move with mine. I brush my tongue along his and let him take me away from this world to a world that is just ours.
“Is that a yes?” Parker breaks away and looks at me nervously.
“That’s a shut up and stop babbling. I would love to. Let me make sure Beth will be around to watch the bakery. Is your family like The Family Stone movie where the sister hates the girlfriend and they all think she’s some uptight bitch?”
“That would be impossible. You’re not an uptight bitch and you won’t end up with my brother either.” Parker smiles and I roll my eyes. “Don’t be nervous. They’ll love you. We’re really all laid back. Imagine just four more of me.”
“With your sense of humor as well?” I tease him.
“No, that’s unique to just me. Seriously though, you don’t need to be nervous.”
“Okay.” I pull him along the path, nerves conquering my body and warring with my emotions. Breathing in deeply, I tell the negative thoughts to go fuck off. Thoughts of what his family must be like from the few pictures I saw in his apartment swirl in my mind. They seem nice from the photos, but then again I’m an outsider coming into their family on a special holiday, and they weren’t fond of his ex-girlfriend.
“Are you sure–”
“Yes. I’ve thought about it and I want you to come with me.” Parker interrupts me and I stare at him. “Savannah, it’s been a very long time since I’ve felt what I feel towards you. A long time since I’ve imagined a relationship progressing the way I see ours. Not even with Becky did I imagine the kind of future I can envision with you. I feel like myself when I’m with you. I feel… I don’t even know what I feel, but it’s different.” I kiss him. I kiss him hard and long. I lose myself in him and give myself to him completely.
I may never have been in a serious relationship where I considered getting married, but Parker is the first person I can actually see an honest and true future with. He is someone I would actually put my career to the side for and find balance with. Someone, I want to prioritize my life with.
I don’t need to hide part of me or not express how important the bakery is to me. I can just be me and Parker takes it, my stubbornness and passion for my career because he’s just as stubborn and passionate. Together we’re a combination of desires and odd senses of humor, each of us a pain in the ass in our own way, but coming together in balance with each other.
Parker drops me off at home and says he will pick me up at five p.m. to go have supper with my grandma. I called her on the way home and she’s excited the two of us will be joining her. I know she spends a lot of time alone despite being involved in different organizations around the community and she loves it when I come over to visit her.
I lay down to take a nap after I shower to rest before dinner. The realization of how serious Parker and I are becoming in the short time we’ve known each other is hitting me and I can’t deny I have fallen for him. Everything about him fits my ideal guy. I really could see him being it for me, being not only my present but also my future. Someone, who makes me not give a damn about the past and instead be grateful it brought me down the road it did, so I could meet him.
“So tell me Parker, what else do you like to do besides baseball?”
“I love being outdoors. Hiking is something I really enjoy and lately I’ve grown a greater appreciation for it.” Parker looks at me and smiles.
We’ve been at my grandmother’s house for a little over an hour now and the interrogation is still going on. She started with the basics–his favorite color, his birthday, what he wanted to do before he decided he wanted to play baseball. All very valid questions since I didn’t know the answers to some of them and it helped me get more information about him.
His birthday is May 15th, just a couple months before mine. Literally, two months before mine. So weird, our birthdays are the same day, different month and year. Parker is three years older than me.
I think he was
joking, but he said he wanted to be a garbage man when he was younger so he could ride on the back of the trucks, but after he discovered baseball at the age of 10 he realized he had found his passion. After that, he did everything possible to make baseball his profession.
I look over at my grandma and she’s eating up every word, smiling and teasing him. Parker doesn’t back down and I’m impressed he’s put up with Caroline’s interrogation.
“You know, Savannah’s daddy loved baseball, too. I’m sure if he were here, he’d have a ball talking to you about the sport.” I look at my grandma and smile, breathing deeply to prevent my emotions from showing. I may have been young when I lost my parents and I don’t really remember them, but that doesn’t mean I don’t miss them. I miss having the chance to get to know them and for them to see me growing up.
“I would have loved that.” Parker looks at me and holds my hand.
“Anyway, are you going to keep interrogating him or can we relax?” It is my lame attempt at changing the subject.
Parker leans back in his chair, confident, and says, “I’m not bothered by the questions. Bring it on, grandma.”
“Oh no, you didn’t! Just when I was starting to like you, too.” They both tease each other and I laugh at their friendly banter. I enjoy the pecan pie my grandmother made while these two continue to tease each other, and I smile inwardly at how normal this seems. I love having Parker here with me and I wonder if that’s what he is feeling about me going to Athens with him for Thanksgiving.
I help my grandmother clear the table and put the dishes away after I wash them. She insists on leaving them put and she’ll deal with them tomorrow, but I refuse to leave until everything is put away. I kiss my grandmother goodbye and Parker hugs her. I think these two have become best friends already and I’m kind of scared of what trouble they could get into if you let them. Then again, I’m not one to shy away from trouble, so it would be fun to join them.
“Thank you,” I tell Parker once we’re in the car. His hand finds mine in the darkness of the car and he laces his fingers with mine.
“You’re welcome, but for what?”
“For being so amazing. For not getting put off by my grandmother’s humor or axing her.”
Parker laughs as he says, “I’m pretty sure she would ax me before I even got the chance. I had fun tonight. I loved learning more about your family. She said your dad would have liked me. That’s major approval on her end. I think you can keep me now.”
“I was planning on it anyway,” I laugh and squeeze his hand. He winks at me and turns his attention back to the road.
“Please consider coming with me to Athens. We’ll take Caroline if you want. My family will love her, too,” Parker says as he walks me to my door.
“I am considering it. I promise I will talk to Beth tomorrow. Grandma always volunteers at the shelter for Thanksgiving, but thank you for considering it.”
“I was serious.”
“I know you were. That’s why I’m thanking you.” I reach up to kiss him, wrapping my arms around his neck, and letting my mouth move along his in lazy strokes.
“Mmm…you can thank me like that whenever you want,” Parker says as we break away from each other, his arms still wrapped around my waist and mine around his neck.
“I will.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow. Get some rest so you can wake up on time. It’s been a hectic weekend and I don’t want to wait until the next one to see you again. You know I refuse to wait that long. I’ll be at the bakery for my morning coffee and to sneak in a kiss.”
“You better.” I give him a quick peck and walk into my house, watching from the doorway until he pulls out of my driveway. At this moment I know Parker has taken a place in my heart that will never be anyone else’s, a piece of my heart that belongs solely to him and that has never been given to anyone else before. A pure and raw corner of me that is guarded for him and consumed by the feelings I have for him.
Jeans… check. Tops…check.
Should I take a dress? Parker said his family is laidback, but how laidback are they? I’m sure they will not be wearing sweats on Thanksgiving.
Flat iron…check. Makeup bag…check.
What else do I need? Toiletries are already packed. Will we sleep in the same room or separate bedrooms?
Random thoughts have been popping into my head about how this weekend will go. I’m freaking out about meeting his family and freaking out about whether they will like me or not. He told me his mom is ecstatic about meeting me. Apparently he hasn’t dated much or had anyone he was really serious enough about to take home to meet his parents since his last relationship. And I’ve never traveled to another state to meet my boyfriend’s family. Talk about pressure.
Parker has reassured me that I’m stressing for no reason. They mostly eat and watch football on Thanksgiving. He said we could head back on Saturday and spend the day with Emily if I wanted to. I haven’t gone to visit her yet and it would be awesome to see where she lives and get a feel for her new life, even if she has been living there a year already. Horrible friend status.
Emily did freak when I told her I was going to Athens and begged for me to stop in Atlanta on the way there. That’s when Parker said we would leave early and stay with them before heading back to Alabama. I’m hoping to surprise her. Wes is in on it, so he’ll make sure she’s around on Saturday when we arrive.
I finish packing everything I think I’ll need for the weekend, and a little bit more than the necessary just in case. I jump at the music coming from my phone. I smile at the song that plays and listen to the lyrics a second before I answer. That song will always remind me of Parker, since the first time we danced to it together. We both must have been doing something right to cross each other’s path.
“Hey,” I answer, smiling even if he can’t see me.
“Hi,” I hear the smile in his voice. “Are you ready? Are you changing your mind and planning an escape? I’ll hunt you down and drag you with me regardless.”
I laugh and shake my head. “No, I’m not running away. I just finished packing. I think I packed every possible outfit for every occasion except a gala.”
Parker laughs and says he’s leaving his apartment to pick me up. I take a deep breath while I wait for him. Is it too early to have a drink? In the last few weeks Parker and I have become closer, our relationship more serious. My feelings for him are stronger than I ever imagined they could be and I still get butterflies when I see him. Some nights we’re lazy and spend the night watching movies on the couch, either in his apartment or my house. Other days we go out on dates and try new things.
Not that long ago, we drove to Birmingham just because it sounded like fun. Once we got there, we roamed the city looking for things to do. We went to Rickwood Field Park to visit the oldest baseball field in the country and I think Parker got a bit sentimental. I teased him about it. Then he shot back saying I would feel the same if I visited the oldest bakery in the nation. Hardly. We did, however, pop into a bakery to try their pastries. They were delicious and gave me some ideas for my own.
Last weekend we went to a college football game on campus. It was fun to tailgate and hang out with people I hadn’t seen in a long time, as well as Parker’s new friends and colleagues. Roll Tide fans are hardcore. I should know; I’m one of them. It was a blast and I’m living my life more now than I have in a long time.
After missing the last two Saturdays at work, Beth and I spoke and decided she would take care of the bakery on Saturdays. It would be an additional day off to do more of what I love. At first I felt guilty because she works so hard, but she chose another day throughout the week to take off and I’ll cover it. I also gave her a raise. She deserves it and works just as hard as I do.
The knock on the door brings me back from my thoughts and I take a deep breath before answering the door. Well, at least the image that is facing me is worth every gut wrenching emotion I have been feeling. His long sleeve tee shows
off his muscles and the backwards cap shows his carefree side. His eyes are a lighter shade of blue today and I know he’s happy I’m going with him to Athens.
“Hi,” I give Parker a peck on the lips before letting him in.
“Good mornin’, beautiful.” Parker isn’t satisfied with my kiss and pulls me in for a deeper one. “Relax.”
“Okay,” I nod.
“Savannah, I feel your heart racing.” He laughs and adds, “Is it really that terrible?”
“No! It’s not terrible. I’ve just never done this before and I want them to like me.”
“They will. Trust me. If I didn’t think they would, I wouldn’t take you.”
“Nor would you still be dating me.” Parker gives me a small shrug, but I catch it. “You see! Right there,” I point at him. “If they don’t like me, it would be over.” I spoke my fear out loud.
I understand it because I’m the same way. I wouldn’t be able to date someone who my family and close friends didn’t like or approve of. I say I will if I really like the person, but truth is that it is too important for me to have the person I’m with be a part of every aspect of my life and I know Parker feels the same.
“That won’t happen ‘cause you are perfect.”
“I’m not perfect.”
“Perfect for me,” he says and smiles. Stupid crooked grin gets me every time.
“Good one.”
I lead him into my bedroom and he spies my bag.
“Ummm…are you sure you packed everything?”
“I told you I went a little over board!”
“A little? The bag looks like it’s going to pop.” Parker laughs at me and I glare at him. “Okay, okay. Sorry.” He raises his hands in surrender.
We pack our bags in the car and begin our short road trip to Athens, Georgia, Parker’s home and a place where I will learn more about him. Once we’re in the car, I relax and listen to music. Florida Georgia Line sings to us as we speed down the highway and I look out the window at the view.
Parker’s fingers inch to mine on the seat and I feel his fingers brush against mine intimately. I look over at him and smile sweetly. He lifts my hand up to his lips and brushes kisses along my fingertips and the inside of my wrist. I take off my seat belt and scoot next to him on the bench of his truck. He looks at me seriously and I giggle.
Sweet on Wilde Page 15