Ripped (Divided, #2)

by A. M. Wallace

  Erica and I hadn’t spent a lot of time together lately. I felt guilty for ignoring the text, but we’d get time together soon enough. We’d promised to get back to our normal routine after this weekend. She didn’t say as much, but I was pretty sure she had some big plans with David, the guy she met from Marcus’ Halloween party. I’d actually been meaning to ask about David and kept forgetting.

  My stomach rumbled loudly. I was never this hungry early in the morning. It took me a moment to realize it wasn’t hunger pains. I shot out of bed and just barely made it to the toilet before throwing up all of the contents of my stomach. There wasn’t much so there was a lot of dry heaving. I felt absolutely awful all of the sudden.

  I laid my head on the cool toilet seat, hoping it was over. It seemed to be. My stomach felt better already. I stood and flushed the toilet before going over to the sink and washing my face. It was the right time of year for the flu. I had a few moments in the last couple of days where I felt sick, but this was the first time I’d gotten sick. I hated throwing up. I brushed my teeth and made my way back to bed.

  I wanted to blame Erica. Had she not texted me and woke me up, maybe I wouldn’t have actually gotten sick. Yeah, right.

  My head hit the pillow, and the exhaustion from all of my exertions caught up to me. My stomach finally settled, I fell back to sleep quickly.

  I knew it was still early when I woke up again because Marcus was still asleep beside me. I turned over to watch him sleep. I couldn’t contain my grin. I still couldn’t believe this was my life. It may seem silly to others to feel this way about something as simple as sleeping next to someone, but it meant so much to me. Here we were. Together. Finally.

  All thoughts of my earlier upset stomach forgotten, I gently ran my fingers down his cheek. His nose twitching made me giggle, but he didn’t wake. His face was so relaxed, no tension at all. He wasn’t a tense person, but lately, he seemed a little on edge. Maybe it was about everything that’d happened or something at work, but other than a few moments where he’d get lost in his thoughts, he acted fine so I let it go.

  My fingers continued their path down his cheek, moving to his bare shoulder and then his back. When I got to where the sheet covered him, just below his lower back, I started coming back up. Marcus sighed in his sleep and started to stir. I moved my hand away, ready to play innocent when he rolled over to his back, raising his arms above his head. I waited to make sure he was still fully asleep before running my hand over his chest.

  I raised myself up on my elbow, leaning closer to him. I couldn’t fight my smirk as an idea popped in my head.

  I carefully pulled the sheet from his body and kneeled between his legs. He moved his head to the side but didn’t wake. He’d slept in just his boxers last night. I loved the way they hung on his hips, showing off his muscles while leaving you desperately wanting to see more. I took advantage of the fact that Marcus seemed to be asleep yet and gently tugged his boxers down. He stirred a little, but the second he stilled again, I managed to get them down to where I wanted them at his knees.

  His semi-erect cock lay on his stomach, and I licked my lips in anticipation. I wasn’t a huge fan of giving head, but Marcus loved it. What better way to wake him up, right?

  I leaned forward, pressing my lips against his abs, keeping my eyes on his face to gauge his reaction. If he felt what I was doing, he didn’t show it. I trailed my lips down his stomach past his belly button, purposefully neglecting where his erection lay. My heart stopped, and I didn’t move any farther when I felt his stomach rumbling underneath my lips. I didn’t realize I’d stopped watching his face.

  I looked up to see him smirk down at me sleepily, raising his head a little with his hands behind his head. My face went blood red. So maybe I was a little embarrassed with him yet.

  “Molesting me in my sleep? Shame on you,” he said with a chuckle.

  I turned away from him, unable to believe I’d been caught. I’d really wanted to surprise him, to try and be sexy. Too bad I couldn’t pull it off.

  “I never said you had to stop.”

  I jumped when I felt his breath on my ear. I hadn’t even realized he moved.

  “You still want me to?” I asked, not facing him, still fighting my embarrassment.

  “Do you want to?”

  I didn’t really trust my voice, so I nodded. I wanted to please him. I needed to show him what he meant to me.

  “Come here.”

  He cupped my cheek and turned my head so I was looking at him. I didn’t have to worry about my red cheeks for long. He pulled my face to his and pressed his lips to mine, and all the embarrassment was forgotten. His kiss was like a drug I couldn’t shake. I could get lost in his kiss forever.

  He backed up a little, I didn’t want to break the kiss so I eagerly followed him. Before I knew it, he was lying back in bed, and I was on top of him, my legs straddling his hips. I’d slept in a t-shirt and a pair of panties. His boxers were still pulled down from earlier.

  Without breaking any contact with my lower body, I moved from his lips to his neck, rewarding myself with his groan. His hands were in my hair, giving me gentle nudges to go lower. I knew he wouldn’t push me if it weren’t something I wanted to do, but he knew I wanted to and wanted to let me know that he did too.

  I’d learned a lot about Marcus in the last week, more than I thought possible considering how long we’d known each other. I’d have never guessed the way Marcus performed in the bedroom. Sure, I assumed he’d perform just fine. I’d seen the bulge of his cock through his pants more times than I care to admit so I could imagine what he had to work with. The slight dominance he held, though, was surprising.

  Marcus had always been a nice guy, a great guy. I’d never guess he would have a bit of a dominant streak. It was hot as hell. He made the decisions in the bedroom, and I was more than happy to let him. We both always ended up very satisfied.

  My chin grazed the head of his cock when my lips kissed over his stomach again. He was fully erect now and more than ready. The desire in his eyes made me want to please him that much more.

  I ran my tongue along the tip, just barely, watching his mouth part slightly as his breathing picked up. I loved having that effect on him. I wrapped my mouth around him, and he closed his eyes, biting his lip. I smirked, taking him farther into my mouth. His grip on my hair tightened, and he was clearly trying hard not to push me farther down on him.

  I wanted to give him that control. I’d never done anything like that before, but I wanted to with him. I stopped where I was, and it took a few seconds for him to open his eyes. He groaned and narrowed his eyes at me. He thought I was messing with him. In a way, I was, I suppose.

  “Hannah, that’s fucking mean,” he breathed, letting his head fall back on the pillow.

  I smirked again, running my tongue around his head, still not moving farther down. He lifted his head again, and I raised my eyebrows in challenge. The mischievous gleam returned to his eyes as he let go of my hair and placed his hand gently on the back of my head.

  “Is that what you want?” he asked in a husky voice, all the frustration gone. When I moaned my answer, he sucked in a breath from the vibrations. “Shit.”

  He pressed on the back of my head, and I resisted only for a second, wanting to make him work a little harder for it. I could sense his smirk as I closed my eyes, finally giving him what he wanted and letting him push me farther down. I moaned around him to his groan when he hit the back of my throat.

  I pulled back just a little bit before he pushed me back down, gripping my hair again to completely take over the movements. He pulled me back only to push me right back down. I gagged a little, but it didn’t stop me. He would let me stop if that was what I wanted, but I didn’t. He was enjoying this, which made me enjoy it too.

  His hips moved slightly underneath me, and I opened my eyes. His eyes were closed, his brows furrowed. His cock twitched in my mouth, and I knew he was getting close. I hollowed my cheeks,
sucking hard as I went back down on him, and he groaned again.

  His grip on my hair tightened to where it was almost painful, but that only added to the excitement of what I was doing, what he was doing to me. Each time he pulled me up, I swirled my tongue around his tip before sucking as he pushed me back down. It seemed like we had only just gotten started when his hips stopped. His cock jerked, and he groaned. Warmth hit the back of my throat, the salty taste of him making me moan.

  I couldn’t believe how completely turned on I was at the idea of him coming in my mouth. I’d never been one to enjoy giving head anyway, let alone letting someone finish in my mouth, but everything was different with Marcus.

  He continued to groan until his release was over. I waited until I felt him start to soften in my mouth before pulling off of him. It was only then that he let go of my hair.

  I freed him with a pop, smirking up at the satisfied look on his face. Closing his eyes again, he gently ran his hand through my hair. I leaned down and gathered his cock in my mouth. He jumped, still sensitive, and tried to push me off, but first I cleaned him up with my mouth. When I was finished, he chuckled lightly.

  “You’re trying to kill me, woman.” He laid his head back down on the pillows and covered his eyes with his arm.

  I sat on my feet as I kneeled in front of him. I casually pulled his boxers back up like it was something I did all the time, and he moved his arm to smirk at me. I smirked back and licked my lips.

  He laughed. “Jesus, Hannah.”

  With that, he grabbed my hand and pulled me down on top of him.

  the next day, i woke up to an empty bed. Marcus didn’t usually sleep in too late, but it was still early. Ignoring the sick feeling I was getting again as I got out of bed, I dressed and walked through the house to look for him. He was in the living room, asleep in the recliner.

  I frowned a little and went to sit gently on his lap, moving to cuddle his chest. He started awake and pushed me away at arm’s length.

  “Shit, Hannah! You scared the hell out of me.” He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

  “I know.” He sighed. “What time is it?”

  I looked around at the clock on the mantel. “Almost eight. Did you sleep out here all night?” I tried to hide the hurt in my voice, but I wasn’t sure I succeeded.

  “Not on purpose.” He yawned. I tried not to let the fact that he didn’t wrap his arms around me hurt my feelings. He did just wake up, after all. “I couldn’t sleep, and I didn’t want to wake you so I came in here to watch T.V.”

  “Oh.” I chewed on the inside of my cheek.

  He eyed me warily. “Hannah, we’ve barely been apart since we got together.” His smile seemed forced. “Did it bother you that I wasn’t in bed this morning?”

  I frowned. It didn’t really bother me too much until he’d made the comment that we hadn’t been apart the entire time we’d been together. Now, I was worried he was trying to get away from me. We weren’t really together the entire time, were we?

  “No, it was just different,” I said.

  He nodded and poked my sides, making me giggle. “It’ll be okay. We’ll find a balance.”

  This time when he smiled, I could tell it was real. Maybe I was overwhelming him a little.

  “Now get up,” he said sternly. “I have to pee.”

  I laughed and hopped off of his lap. He went to walk to the bathroom but surprised me by coming back. He stood beside where I was sitting for a moment and leaned forward to kiss me softly on the lips.

  “We’ll get there,” he said with a smile and then walked to the bathroom.

  He seemed sure, but I wasn’t. I had to watch my actions from now on. The last thing I wanted to do was smother him.

  He just became mine. I couldn’t compromise that.

  sleeping in the recliner last night had not been the plan, and my body was paying for it now. After using the restroom, I jumped in the shower. As I washed, I was kind of hoping Hannah would try to join me, but she hadn’t yet. I knew what I said had hurt her a little, but that wasn’t my intention. I’d said it without thinking, but it was true.

  Amy didn’t stay with me every night we were together. She even told me no when I’d ask sometimes. I didn’t pout or plead. She had her reasons. We didn’t need to be together twenty four-seven even though we were still learning more about each other every day.

  But with Hannah, I knew everything about that girl. How could I not after twenty years of friendship? At first, her sleeping over didn’t feel like a big deal. Staying with each other like this was just the next step, right? Even though we just got together.

  But I needed my space. She’d eventually need hers too.

  The Hannah I knew wasn’t needy. From what I’d seen in her past relationships, she was a little less independent than I’d have liked, but I wouldn’t say she was clingy. Not until we got together. It was almost like she was afraid if we weren’t spending every single free minute together, I’d disappear. I needed to reassure her.

  The sound of the bathroom door opening drew me from my thoughts, and my body stilled. Maybe she was hoping to join me after all.

  “Marcus?”

  I rolled my eyes. Who else would it be in here?

  “I was just seeing where you were. I called from the living room, but you didn’t answer.”

  I sighed quietly. She was upset, though I wasn’t sure if it was from what I’d said before or something else.

  “I just wanted to grab a quick shower,” I said.

  “Okay.”

  I could see her form leaving the bathroom through the hazy glass of the shower door. She sounded defeated. I didn’t know how to deal with her mood changes lately, but I didn’t want to see her upset.

  “Hey, I was going to the gym when I got out to finish some paperwork. Wanna come?” I asked.

  She stopped and turned back to the shower. “Yeah. Sounds fun.” Happiness was returning to her voice now.

  “Okay. Be out in a few.”

  By the way she floated out of the door, I didn’t think that dismissal sounded as obvious as it did in my head. I laid my forehead against the tile under the showerhead and sighed. I had planned on going to the gym for a little time to myself. Work wasn’t getting done during the week, and it was a good enough of an excuse to get out of the house and away from Hannah. But I was a sucker, apparently.

  I never wanted to hurt Hannah. I wanted her to be happy, but at what sacrifice from me?

  tuesday night, i sat on Chad’s couch, a cold beer in my hand while he mindlessly flipped through the T.V. channels. I was back to being a coward. Yes, Chad and I needed some guy time lately, but that wasn’t the only reason I was here. Luckily, Chad knew the extent of it and was willing to let me hide out.

  Things with Hannah had…hit a stand still. I still loved her, and I loved being around her, but the change between us caused more strain that I could have imagined. She was always at the house, always planning the next fun thing for us to do. Before we were officially together, we didn’t even hang out this much. She’d spent every single night at my house since the day we got together.

  Plus, I had a feeling she was using sex to keep my mind off the fact that she completely invaded my life. No, scratch that. I knew she was doing that. It hadn’t even been two weeks. Sure, the sex was pretty fantastic, and I hated to complain about it, but it was almost every time we were together. I can only remember one night we didn’t have sex, and she woke me up the next morning with a blow job.

  I seriously had no idea Hannah was that insatiable.

  It should have been a turn on. Hell, it was at first. But the clingier she seemed to get, the more sex we had. I swear I was going to start chafing soon.

  “Has Hannah texted you yet?” Chad asked.

  I looked at my phone to see since I’d turned it on silent and snorted uncomfortably.

  “Only about five times,” I groaned, tossing m
y phone beside me on the couch without reading any of the texts. “How big of an asshole am I?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know, but you need to tell her. Otherwise, you’re a bigger asshole than you thought.”

  “I don’t want to hurt her,” I said truthfully. As annoying as she may be right now, I wasn’t about to bring her down.

  “Does this have anything to do with Amy?” He looked at me.

  I frowned in confusion. “How would this have anything to do with Amy?”

  “Maybe you’re being critical of Hannah’s behavior because deep down, you’d rather be with Amy.”

  I took a pull of my beer. I’d been trying so hard to overlook Hannah and her need to be around me all the time, hoping she would eventually realize that I wasn’t just going to vanish into thin air, and then I wouldn’t feel as overwhelmed. Now that I thought about it, she’d always been like this really. I had just been too blind to see it.

  “No.” I sighed, shaking my head. “What’s bad is I know she isn’t really acting any different than before.”

  “Then what’s the problem?” he asked.

  “Me, I guess.” I shrugged and leaned forwards, resting my elbows on my knees as I set my beer on the table.

  What Chad had said while we were at the amusement park a couple months ago stuck out in my mind. Kind of cute? I think you mean since it's Hannah being annoying and excited about coming to an amusement park she's been to a million and one times it's cute. Otherwise, it would just be annoying, right?

  Had I really always been that blind?

  Fuck. I guessed I had.

  “Dammit,” I groaned and leaned back. “How could I not have noticed this before?”

  Chad laughed, and I glared at him. “Because you were in love. You are in love. No one said it would be easy,” he repeated his words from the other day.

  “Who the fuck are you and what did you do with Chad?” I laughed. “You’ve been giving out some pretty insightful advice lately.”

  He laughed again.