by J. H. Croix
Yet, this was what she didn’t want. This lingering wish he’d be here for the holiday. This fuzzy, vague hope for a future with him. She didn’t think Travis would turn into someone like Randy, but she didn’t know if he was falling for her the way she was for him. It was hard to imagine he was. He was too together to get this ridiculous. With a shake, Janie started moving the rolling pin again. She’d find a way to get her wits about her. Whatever happened, she didn’t want to make a fool of herself over any man.
Travis drove along the highway, heading south from Anchorage to Diamond Creek. Thanksgiving had been fine, yet he’d missed Janie the whole time. He usually spent the holiday with his parents and a few other relatives in Anchorage. It was always a relaxing, comfortable gathering. Yet, Janie’s absence had rung like a bell for him. The only factor holding him back from returning a day early had been a nasty storm through the mountain pass. The Kenai Peninsula, where Diamond Creek was situated roughly halfway down, was south of Anchorage with a mountain range between Anchorage and the peninsula. Travis was generally unbothered by driving through snowstorms, as most Alaskans had to be to get anything done in the winter, however he wasn’t stupid. Trying to get through the pass in the snowstorm yesterday evening would’ve been risky and plain dumb, so he’d stuck to his original plan to return to Diamond Creek the day after Thanksgiving.
As such, he was now damn impatient to get there. He’d texted Janie about stopping by this evening and had yet to hear back. He crested a hill south of Kenai and picked up his speed slightly. The highway that wound its way south on the Kenai Peninsula, Sterling Highway, offered nothing but spectacular views. Cook Inlet, the inlet fed by the Pacific Ocean, was visible almost the entire drive south. Gorgeous vistas of the ocean waters set against the backdrop of the mountains on the far side peeked in and out of view. By the time Travis crested the hill into Diamond Creek, the sun was setting. In Alaska in late November, that meant it was only late afternoon. Diamond Creek came into view where it was nestled into the foothills of the mountains against a blaze of color in the sky—a swirl of pink, red and lavender.
Travis swung by his apartment to drop off his bag, checking his phone once he was in the kitchen. Janie had finally replied to his text, saying it was ‘fine’ for him to stop by. He raced through a shower to wash the drive off of him and headed over to her house. Stella answered the kitchen door with a wide smile.
“Hey Travis! Come on in. Mom’s upstairs changing. She just taught me how to change a flat tire,” Stella offered by way of greeting.
Travis returned her grin and followed her inside. Stella was in her usual attire, which landed somewhere between goth and outdoorsy. At the moment, she wore black leggings with a denim skirt over them and a large flannel button-down thrown over a t-shirt. A pair of beat up black leather boots completed her ensemble. As he reached the counter, he suddenly realized her cast was off. “Hey, no cast!”
Stella spun around, another smile splitting her face. “I know! This morning Mom took me in for the first follow up check. Dr. Marshall said I’m all set. I’m supposed to be careful for the next six weeks. No sledding or anything like that. I’m just so happy I won’t have to clunk around in my cast for recitals.”
Travis snagged a stool by the counter across from Stella. “When is your first recital?”
“Tomorrow. Are you coming?”
“As long as it’s okay with your mom.”
“As long as what’s okay?” Janie asked.
The mere sound of her voice sent a jolt of lust and longing through him. Holy hell. Two days away from her, and he felt like he was lost in the desert, parched for thirst. She was the water he needed. With a mental shake and the clear awareness that Stella was sitting right there as their witness, he spun on his stool to look in Janie’s direction. His heart gave a hard thump at the sight of her. Her dark hair, so often tied up and out of the way, fell in damp waves around her shoulders. Her porcelain skin was slightly flushed and her eyes were bright. Lust lashed him like a whip. She elicited an intense combination of feelings—raw lust mixed with an emotional need he’d never experienced. He forced himself to stay where he was. He had to recall what she’d just said. Oh right, Janie’s recital.
“Stella wants to know if I’m coming to her recital tomorrow.” His voice came out huskier than he intended. He forced himself to breathe slowly in a weak effort to get his body under control.
Janie had paused at the bottom of the stairs. She caught his eyes, and he lost his breath again. The air between them came alive, and she was all the way across the room. For a flash, he sensed a guardedness to her, but the feeling disappeared as quickly as it came. She nodded, a smile curling the corners of her mouth—her delectable, eminently kissable mouth. “Of course! I go to all of them. There’s one every week between now and Christmas.”
“And two during Christmas week. I think you should come to all of them and bring us pizza after,” Stella added with a sly grin.
Travis chuckled in return. He was unaccountably pleased Stella was comfortable enough to joke with him. If he meant to be a part of Janie’s life, that included Stella, so he could only hope she’d accept his involvement. Joking around over pizza didn’t mean much, but it was something.
Janie walked across the kitchen and opened the oven. As she pulled out a casserole pan of something that smelled amazing, she replied. “You can come to as many as you’d like, but don’t let Stella guilt you into buying pizza for them.”
Travis glanced to Stella who looked unabashed. “It can’t hurt to suggest, right?”
He shook his head with a laugh. “Definitely not. Anyway, I’ll be there tomorrow night, and I might get pizza for afterwards.”
Janie removed the foil from the casserole pan and got plates out of the cabinet above. “Tonight it’s lasagna. Grab a plate,” she said with a wave for them to come over.
A few hours later, Travis leaned his head back on the couch with a sigh. He was getting rather comfortable with evenings here. He hadn’t spent tons of time around teenagers, yet he found Stella pretty easy to be around. He had enough sense to realize she was likely on her better behavior around him, but she was sly and funny and also content to do her own thing, usually finishing her homework before heading off to her room to play video games and text with friends. Janie had checked on her a few minutes earlier to make sure lights were out.
The television news rumbled in the background and the fire was slowly dying out in the fireplace. Janie was sorting through spelling homework at the moment. Her hair fell forward, catching glints of light from the fire. Without thinking, he let his arm slide off the back of the couch to sift through her hair, brushing it away from her neck and stroking his thumb along the soft skin there.
Her breath hitched and she glanced sideways at him. The air sizzled to life between them. Her eyes locked with his as she slowly angled toward him. The papers in her hand fell to her lap and slipped to the floor in a rustle. She spun to face him, straddling his lap and instantly sending the low hum of need inside into an inferno. He was rock-hard and burning for her the moment she settled her hips down. He’d come to love the way she was—a mix of hesitant and bold. Once any initial shyness wore off, she was abandoned in every kiss and every touch. In a flash, her lips were against his, her hands gripping his hair. He poured himself into their kiss, delving deeply into her hot, sweet mouth while his hands traced her curves. She rocked her hips against him, sending surge upon surge of need scoring through him.
She suddenly tore her lips free. “Upstairs,” she said, the single word barely audible.
Travis had to forcefully shake his head to break through the fog of lust clouding his brain. “Why…?” he asked, curling his hands under her breasts to cup them and rolling her hard nipples between his fingers through the thin cotton of her shirt.
She shifted her hips restlessly, sending another hot jolt of need and hardening his cock even more. “Because…” A low moan escaped. “What if Stella comes downstai
rs? We can’t…”
“Right.” He finally got it. Only Janie could make him forget her daughter happened to be nearby. He adjusted Janie in his lap and stood with her in his arms. She gave a little squeak and gasp, but curled her legs around his hips. He moved swiftly, striding to the stairs and walking up. With every step, her hips shifted against him. He could feel the damp heat of her through their clothing. He shouldered through the door to her bedroom and had to force himself not to slam it shut, seeing as that could easily awaken Stella.
Without letting her go, he stepped to the bed and turned, sitting down with her in his lap, a bundle of lush curves. He started to kiss her again, but she put a palm on his chest and pushed him back. She reached down with one hand and lifted the hem of her shirt. With a whoosh, it flew over her head and fell to the floor in a rumple. His eyes dipped to see her nipples, taut and peaked, through the black lace of her bra. The dusky pink winked at him through the lace. He didn’t wait and leaned forward to swirl his tongue over the lace, growling against her skin when she cried out softly. He alternated between her breasts, drenching the lace with licks, kisses and soft bites. She interrupted him when she yanked at his shirt, tossing it aside where it fell in a heap by hers. The next few moments were a blur. In a tangle of limbs and in between kisses and rough touches, their clothes were torn off. He found himself stretching out beside her, tracing her curves again, this time savoring the feel of her silky skin. He coasted over the soft curve of her abdomen and dipped down between her thighs, almost groaning aloud when she sighed as he dragged a finger through her slick folds.
He rose up on an elbow and trailed his lips behind his touch, pausing to look up at her when he reached the juncture between her thighs. Her head was thrown back against the pillows, her hair a dark tangle around her face and her skin glistening in the dim light. He delved into her channel with one finger and then another. With her hips arching into his slow strokes, he brought his mouth to her. She tasted salty and sweet and nearly drove him mad with the restless roll of her hips and her breathy cries. He settled in to try to drive her as wild as she drove him. Licking, stroking, sucking and plunging his fingers into her drenched channel again and again, he didn’t stop until her body went rigid and her channel convulsed around him.
He mapped his way back up her body, leaving a trail of wet kisses across her belly and breasts. In the haze, he managed to remember to snag a condom out of his jeans, which had fallen to the floor, and roll it on. He eased his weight atop her, pausing with his cock resting right at her entrance. He could feel her wet heat against him and had to fight to force himself to slow down, hanging onto a thin thread of control.
“Janie.”
Her eyes opened, hazy with passion. He brushed her tangled hair off of her forehead. Her palm slid down his spine, and she curled her legs around his hips. “Travis. Now!” She flexed against him as she spoke, her words rough and demanding.
The thread of his restraint snapped, and he surged into her in one deep stroke, seating himself fully inside of her.
Janie heard her rough cry as Travis sank inside of her. She was so out of her mind with need, she barely recognized herself. Everything had been whittled down to this moment—nothing but sensation and this incandescent intimacy between them. His gaze was almost navy, darkened with passion. He held still for a long moment, and she felt her body relax around him. She tried to catch her breath, but she couldn’t. The moment he started to move, the echoes of her last climax began to spin, building and swirling into another knot of pleasure in her core.
He drove deeply, again and again. His hands curled over hers, and she held on with everything she had. With his hips pounding against hers, she flexed into every stroke as the pressure built inside again. She was losing control and barreled toward another release. His hands gripped hers tightly as tremors began to wrack her body. With a deep surge inside, the wave broke and sharp streaks of pleasure rippled through her. Her channel throbbed around his cock as he went taut as a bow and cried out roughly. She felt the crescendo rise and fall within him before he eased against her, immediately shifting his weight to one side.
The only sound in the room was their rough breathing, slowing in unison. After several long moments, she felt him push up on an elbow and somehow managed to drag her eyes open. When she met his gaze, the moment felt raw and bare, the intimacy so acute, it grabbed ahold of her heart and stole her breath.
Chapter 18
Janie stood in the audience, cheering along with everyone else as Stella played the final notes in the recital. A gorgeous live spruce tree decorated with lights and red bows provided the backdrop of the scene with lights and spruce wreaths hanging festively throughout the auditorium. Travis was standing at her side. In the years Stella had been playing the piano in school performances, Janie had become accustomed to the rush afterwards. Diamond Creek felt both small and large in these times. Many parents and locals crowded the auditorium, and the space felt enormous. Yet, many of the faces were familiar. It was strange to have someone outside of her family and friends here with her. The cheering gradually died down and people began to gather their jackets and file out of the rows of seats.
Janie’s mother stood on one side of her with Travis to the other. Leslie nudged Janie’s elbow. “Are we going backstage?”
Janie glanced to her. “Of course. Let’s give it a few minutes though. It’s a bit of a madhouse at first.” She plunked down in her seat, only to glance up at the sound of her name.
Tess and Nathan were weaving their way through the aisle. “Hey!” Tess said with a wave when she reached the end of their row.
“Hey, didn’t know you two would be here tonight,” Travis commented.
Nathan flashed a roguish grin. “Of course. With Tess’s business, you know we don’t miss a single one of these.”
Tess ran a fundraising and event coordinating business, which covered most of Southcentral Alaska. She was routinely responsible for helping coordinate various local events, including the run of holiday recitals for the high school. Tess elbowed him in the side with a roll of her eyes. “That’s not the only reason we come. I wanted to be here tonight to see the first performance,” she said with a smile at Janie. Her eyes flicked to Travis and back, a subtle gleam entering her gaze.
Janie’s mother smiled proudly. “Stella was amazing, as always. If you ask me, she’s the star of every performance.”
Tess grinned. “Of course she is!”
A family friend approached and the conversation expanded. A little while later, Janie was standing with a hip hitched on the back of one of the seats while Nathan and Travis talked fishing. Tess was at her side and leaned down. “In case you were wondering, Travis can hardly keep his eyes off of you,” she said in a low voice.
Janie glanced to her, a flush spreading up her neck and face. She shook her head the tiniest bit. “You can’t help but tease.”
Tess’s expression sobered. “You’re my friend, and it’s nice to see you happy. Even better, nice to see a guy drooling over you the way you should be drooled over.”
Janie blushed a little harder and rolled her eyes, disconcerted to think any man noticed her that way. “Okay, enough.”
A while later, the group slowly broke apart and Janie, Travis and her mother made their way backstage. When they entered the area, Janie saw a stack of pizza boxes on the table against the back wall. She looked up at Travis. “Did you…?”
He nodded. “Yup, had it delivered. Don’t worry, I won’t get them pizza after every recital, but since this was their first performance, I thought they deserved it.”
Her mother burst out laughing. “They’ll love it no matter what!” She squeezed his arm. “I like you, Travis.”
Janie’s heart did a little somersault and flutters twirled through her belly. She was starting to worry her feelings for Travis might be a lot more than like. His arm was draped over her shoulders, the heat of it comforting and distracting at once. With her pulse racing, she took a
breath and glanced around. In addition to the pizza, someone else had brought platters of holiday cookies and mulled cider, the scent filling the air and carrying the holiday feeling from the recital backstage. At that moment, Stella walked over to them, a piece of pizza in her hand. “Thanks Travis!” She bounced to his side and gave him a half-hug with her free arm.
A while later, they walked outside of the school into the cold night. The air was sharp, bordering on brutally cold. Stella was still chattering almost non-stop. She was always like this after a performance, high on adrenaline and buzzing with energy. They rode home in Travis’s truck. While Stella talked and Travis gamely humored her, Janie was quiet as she watched the nightly landscape. The moon was close to full, its light casting a glow across the bay and onto the snowy ground. The stars were bright against the velvety sky.
Janie fell asleep with Travis beside her after he sent her body and mind hurtling through intense pleasure. She woke early the following morning. Bright sun fell through the window across the bed. She was getting used to waking with him. She loved the feel of his muscled body beside hers and the heat he emanated. Even in sleep, he exuded pure masculinity. She traced the hard planes of his chest with her fingertip and wondered how to gain a foothold on her sanity again. Because what she wanted was starting to frighten her. She wanted all kinds of things she’d never let herself hope for—nights like last night every night, the comfort of knowing Travis would be here always. She couldn’t lose herself in this. She was no longer afraid Travis would suddenly show her a different side of himself. That she didn’t doubt. Yet, years of carefully guarding her heart and making sure she didn’t hope for anything had created a powerful narrative in her mind—one that didn’t include allowing herself to be vulnerable to any man. She’d thrived within the independent life she’d created for herself, a life where she felt fulfilled, enjoyed being able to rely on herself and nurtured her relationships with family and friends. It had never felt like less than anything, and still didn’t. Yet now, Travis took up so much space in her heart, body and mind that it worried her.