by Rion, Paige
“Everything.”
* * *
Callie gasps as Brian’s mouth moves to her neck. He presses her into the door, raising her arms above her head. She’s breathing hard, unable to catch her breath, and her hands shake as she manages to unlock the door and kick it open behind her.
Feel. Don’t think…don’t think…
Pushing her inside, Brian returns to her mouth, kissing her lightly, slowly. She leads him to the couch, where he crouches over her and moves his hands to her waist. His touch is confident and strong, just like him. Panting, she tries to focus on his mouth, which has replaced the hands at her abdomen, trailing kisses around her belly button. He slowly works his way up.
Callie fists her hands in his hair. The fog of the wine is making her head spin, scattering her thoughts. She tries to focus on what he’s doing to her now, how it feels.
It must feel good. It should.
But instead of her stomach fluttering or her pulse pounding, a wave of nausea hits her, the image of Maya standing in front of her and Dean at the restaurant as they kissed. The way Dean pressed his head to hers, clasped her hands, then opened his eyes before he saw her. The way he seemed so shocked to see Maya and the breathless way he said her name.
Maya. Maya. Maya. The name echoes through her like a persistent nightmare, a grenade to her heart.
So she needs to forget. And she needs Brian to help her.
Brian leans up and removes his tie. He’s wearing a pink fucking tie, for God’s sake. Dean’s voice shakes her thoughts.
“I like pink ties,” Callie growls, and begins furiously unbuttoning Brian’s shirt.
He chuckles and lowers his lips to hers again before sitting up to remove the shirt entirely. His green eyes are dark in the dim light of the apartment, and a wave of his cologne hits her. The scent is all wrong. Because it’s not the citrus and spice of Dean. It’s not like standing in the middle of the forest and taking in a fresh breath of air. It’s too musky. Too potent, and not subtle at all. Brian’s touch is all wrong, too. It feels good, but it’s not making her blood soar or sending her heart tripping into convulsions. But she can imagine how Dean’s touch would feel. She can remember with perfect clarity the way she shivers as his stubble scrapes her neck, the way his hands feel at her waist, stroking her jaw, tangling in her hair.
And that’s the problem.
Panting, she moves her hands down Brian’s chest as his lips graze her neck, feeling the contours of muscle, and all she can think about is how Dean would compare.
“Shit,” she whispers, just as Brian begins to nudge her shirt up. “I can’t,” she says, her voice thick with emotion. Then, pushing lightly on his shoulders, she says again, “I can’t do this.”
Lifting his head, Brian’s green eyes meet hers, catlike in the dark. He seems to be searching her face for a moment, before coming to some foregone conclusion and pulling away. “It’s too soon. Isn’t it? You’re not over him.”
“That’s the thing…,” Callie says, with tears in her eyes. “I was never really under him.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
DEAN
He’s not much of a drinker, but God, he could go for a fifth of something right now. Something strong. Whiskey. Some Jim Beam, Jack, anything…
Dean drags a hand over his face, trying to forget, trying to erase what he just witnessed. But there’s no use. The image of Callie, all over Mr. Suit-and-Tie, as they stumbled their way to her apartment is permanently seared into his brain. It’s been cauterized to his frontal lobe like some high tech torture device for all of time, where he will relive it over and over.
He’d been waiting outside of her apartment complex. Because what else could he do upon leaving the restaurant? He had to come here, to wait for her, so that he could set the record straight and clear up this mess he’s made. It was time he told her he loved her. If it meant losing her because she didn’t feel the same way, so be it. At least he would’ve done everything in his power. At least she’d finally know.
But he was unprepared for what he saw. Boy, was I unprepared.
It replays in his mind, and he lets it, because there’s no use trying to stop it.
Suit-and-Tie’s car approached. When he brought the gleaming Mercedes to a halt, Dean readied himself for a possible goodnight kiss or maybe just an awkward hug. He wasn’t sure what to expect and he squinted in the moonlight, half glancing away, not wanting to witness even the smallest of embraces. But instead, they both got out of the car like a shot. It surprised him, so when Callie pounced on the man, pushing him back into his car, kissing him as if she were suffocating and he held all the oxygen in the world, he saw it all. He saw the way she pressed her body into his, the way his hands cupped her ass. They stumbled their way into the building much the same way, leaving Dean’s heart lying on the concrete. Any hopes he had for redeeming the evening smashed to bits there on the sidewalk.
Dean kicks a rock. It careens toward the Mercedes, missing it by a hair. Even the thought of putting a dent in the shiny silver paint doesn’t crack a smile.
He’s halfway to his car, ready to drown himself in self-pity, when a voice breaks the silence. “Do you even have any idea how lucky you are?”
Turning, Dean comes face-to-face with Suit-and-Tie. Dean snarls as his gaze moves down the length of him. His hair is a mess and the pink tie is slung around his neck, his shirt slightly agape. A million murderous thoughts consume him, until he realizes what he just said. Until he realizes that he’s out here and Callie’s inside.
“Lucky?” Dean repeats.
The man nods. “For her sake, I hope you care as much as she does. But here’s the thing…” He gives a little chuckle and murmurs, “I don’t even know your name.”
“Dean.”
“Dean,” Suit-and-Tie says, the name a snarl on his lips. “The thing is… You’re a boy and I’m a man.” He steps closer. “And women like Callie get sick of boys like you real fast. Soon enough, she’s going to wake up and realize that she’s been playing in minor leagues, when what she really wants, what she really deserves, is someone from the majors. And when that day comes, I’ll be waiting to swoop in.”
Dean draws in a long breath, trying to quell the bile rising in the back of his throat. When Suit-and-Tie steps closer and pats him on the back once before turning to leave, it’s all he can do not to grab his hand and break it. But instead, he watches him go, then runs up the flight of stairs to Callie’s apartment.
He knocks, having no idea what he’ll say to her. Seeing the girl of your dreams all over another man has a way of sucking all the words from your brain. She answers after only one knock.
“Jinny—” She stops when she sees him. Her hair is a tangled mess and though the thought of another man’s hands knotting in her hair nearly kills him, this is his Callie. His beautiful, breakable Callie. And he’s the one standing in front of her door now.
“Oh,” she breathes, as her eyes meet his. “What are you doing here?”
Where else would I be? The question hits him, and suddenly he knows what to say, where to start. It’s where he should’ve started all along.
He reaches out and places his hands on either side of her head, smoothing the blonde tangles with his hands. “I love you, Callie. I love you.”
Her face twists in confusion. “But—”
“I don’t care about Maya.” He shakes his head. “You’re the one I want. You’re the only one I want. I should’ve told you sooner, but I was scared, and… You silly, beautiful, brilliant girl, how could I want anything else? How could you not know?”
He hears her sharp intake of breath over the pulse pounding in his ears, and he closes his eyes, waiting for her to say something. Anything.
Please say something…
“Why didn’t you say so earlier?” she says, and when he opens his eyes, she’s grinning at him, the blue of her eyes sparkling. Standing on her toes, she reaches up, curls a hand around his neck, and presses her mouth to his.
“Are you sure you don’t want Pink Tie?”
Chuckling, she kisses him again and pulls him inside. “I want you. Only you.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CALLIE
“So let me get this straight. He finally told you that he loves you?” Jinny asks, and Callie nods.
“Yep.” She can’t seem to erase the smile on her face as she answers, but something tells her this piece of information isn’t news to Jinny.
“And?”
“And I told him that I wanted him, too. He came in, we kissed and held each other, and talked most of the night. It was…incredible.” Callie smiles at the recollection, hoping Jinny doesn’t pick up on the fact that she didn’t use the L-word with Dean.
“So…you two are what? An official couple now?”
“I mean, we didn’t put a label on it last night or define it, but it’s pretty clear.” Even if a part of me is holding back.
“And you didn’t…” Jinny wiggles her eyebrows.
With a snort, Callie shakes her head. “Uh, no.” Standing, she moves to the kitchen counter, where she pours herself a cup of coffee.
“Not that I want to hear the details or anything,” Jinny adds, holding up her hands, shuddering. “I’m just trying to get a basis for where you stand.”
“Where who stands?” Dean asks, flinging open the door to the apartment. His demeanor is easy as he saunters toward them.
He’s carrying a basketball, which makes Callie smile, and when she takes in the rest of him, her stomach does a little flip. He’s still scruffy, his five o’clock shadow left unshaved after their late night, and he’s dressed in a pair of jeans and a Pitt T-shirt, which—Callie notes—clings to his chest and biceps quite nicely.
Taking a sip of her coffee, she continues to eye him over her mug as his long stride brings him into the kitchen. She expects him to stop as he gets closer, but he doesn’t. She watches, half dazed, as he continues moving toward her, a dangerous gleam in his eyes. He forces her to step back until her back presses into the counter. When he dips his head to kiss her, she breathes in the scent of shampoo from his freshly-washed hair, the soap on his skin. It all seems a little surreal. Hard to wrap her head around. Dean Michaels is officially hers and he’s in her kitchen at this very moment, kissing her.
The mug nearly slips from her hands as he tilts her head, brushing his tongue against hers, fingers playing at her waist. Grabbing the mug, he places it on the counter behind her as they continue to kiss.
Jinny clears her throat, but Dean doesn’t stop and neither does she. When Jinny clears it for the second time and Dean still doesn’t let her go, she groans and says, “Okay, if your goal is to make me upchuck my oatmeal, then you’ve succeeded. Can we please cease with the tonsil-hockey for a moment here?”
Laughing, Callie presses a hand against Dean’s chest and he pulls away. Sighing, he turns to Jinny and says, “Don’t you have class this morning?”
“Don’t you have a business to run?” Jinny quips, then continues. “Callie here was just telling me about last night and how you finally took my advice and told her the truth.”
Dean nods, shoving his hands in his pocket, and Callie notices the way he avoids directly meeting Jinny’s gaze. “Yep,” he says, as he turns around and grabs an apple from the fruit basket. He tosses it from hand to hand a couple times before taking a huge bite.
“So what’s the first thing on your to-do list as an official couple?”
Dean raises his brows. “Um. You sure you really wanna know?” He winks, and Callie playfully elbows him in the ribs.
“Oh, gross.” Jinny rolls her eyes. “Seriously, though…”
“I don’t know. That’s a good question,” Callie says, turning to Dean. “What do you think? It’s weird because I almost feel like we need an official announcement that we’re together, but I guess we kind of already did that with the whole mock girlfriend thing.”
And it dawns on her. No more pretending for Mrs. Michaels. They really are together now. The thought makes her smile.
“This week’s going to be pretty busy for me at Buzz.” Dean sighs. “Figures. Just when things start getting good, I have to work my ass off.” He reaches out and grabs Callie’s hand, trailing his thumb across her knuckles. “I have to take a bunch of extra shifts, but I think that we should go out somewhere in public for sure. Like you said, we’ve been doing that these last few weeks, but this time it will be the real deal. This time it is different, and I want people to see us together without the pretense. I want everyone to know that you’re mine. For real this time,” he says, his tone soft.
“Okay. Yeah, I like that.”
“Awww. Look, a bona fide couple,” Jinny says in a baby voice. Then, perking up, her eyes go wide. “Hey, isn’t there some party the team is throwing on Friday night? That would be perfect. Free food and booze sounds good to me. Can Todd and I come?” Jinny chimes in.
“Uh.” Dean hesitates. “Yeah. I think there might be. But you guys don’t want to do that.” He wrinkles his nose, taking another bite of his apple.
“Why not? It might be fun.” Callie turns to him. “I can hang out with your friends. I kind of like that idea.”
Dean shifts on his feet. “Jason’s throwing it. I wasn’t even going to go. I hate that asshole.”
“Oh.” Callie bites her lip, giving this some thought. Maybe she’d like that jerk to see her with Dean, to rub it in his face that his article hadn’t hurt her in the least. Releasing her lip, she turns to Dean. “That’s even better. I want him to see us together. Let him see that his article did nothing to hurt me. Let him see that we’re better than ever.”
“Yeah. I kinda like it,” Jinny says. “Rub your couple status in that asshole’s face.”
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Dean says, rubbing the back of his neck.
Why is he hesitating so much?
“Why wouldn’t you want me at a party with your friends?” Callie asks.
Sighing, Dean chews on the inside of his cheek. “Jason and Maya have been hanging out a lot,” he mumbles.
This fact makes him nervous. She can tell. But why?
“So? Why would that matter? You said you don’t have feelings for her. Right?” The question almost catches in her throat.
“Of course not.” He runs a hand through his hair, ruffling it, as if deciding how to choose his words. “It’s just that last night at the restaurant…her being there was a total cosmic coincidence. Either that or I’ve done something wrong in another life, and her showing up at that exact moment was just one of many ways to punish me. But she told me she knows that we’ve been trying to make her jealous. I don’t know how, but Jason found out about our plan, and she knows about it.”
Jinny crosses her arms over her chest. The muscle in her jaw is working and Callie’s not entirely sure what has set her off, but she figures she had better intervene before it gets ugly. Turning this new information over in her head, Callie says, “Okay…I get it, so she thinks that you still want her back. She doesn’t realize that you’ve fallen for me.”
“Exactly.”
Callie frowns, her brow knitting as she thinks. She shrugs. “It’s not like we can hide from her. I say let’s go to the party. If she approaches you, tell her the truth. And let her see us together, for real this time. Who cares what she thinks after that.”
Callie turns his hand over, absentmindedly tracing the calluses on his palm.
“I still think—”
“No, Dean,” Jinny says, with a smile so tight it’s a wonder her face doesn’t break. “Callie’s right. Let’s go to the party and when she comes up to you, you can tell her the truth. You know, that thing where you don’t lie.”
Callie frowns, but she’s not up for deciphering Jinny’s mood. “You’re worrying about it too much. We’ll go and it’ll be fine. You’ll see.”
Then, taking a step away from him, she tugs on his arm, pulling him along with her. “Come on. I have
an hour before class. Let’s go make out and you can come help me pick out an outfit for the party.”
“Awesome.” Dean says through his smile.
“Ugh.” Jinny shudders. “If I even hear any funny stuff going on in there, I’m going to die. Fall over, pass out on the floor, puke my guts out, have a hernia, an aneurysm, whatever. Die. Got it?”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Callie calls out behind her. “We’re not there. Yet. Although, if he’s lucky, maybe he can help me try on a couple things.”
“Ew, ew, ew, ew,” Jinny chants as she holds her ears.
Closing the door to her bedroom, Callie turns to Dean and whispers, “Come here, you.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
DEAN
One dizzying hour later, Dean exits Callie’s bedroom. He picks his way through the living room, thinking about how damned lucky he is. How in the span of a just a few weeks his life has changed so drastically. He prides himself for being a man that doesn’t ask for much in life, doesn’t need a lot to make him happy. But the one and only thing he ever really wanted, he figured he would never have. Until now.
Glancing up, he stops dead in his tracks, as Jinny stares him down.
“I’m just going to pretend that you have a shirt on,” she says, glaring at Dean’s bare chest. “Because I have other things that need to be addressed.”
Smirking, Dean shrugs and shoves his hands in his pockets, because he’s too happy to care otherwise. “What’s up?”
“What’s up?” Jinny’s eyes widen. “I’ll tell you what’s up. You didn’t tell her everything. Did you?” she hisses.
Shit. She’s going to flip. How can he put this so that she’ll understand?
“The only thing she doesn’t know…” He glances behind him to make sure Callie’s still in her room getting ready for class and continues, making sure to keep his voice down. “Is that I never wanted Maya at all. That all along my plan was to win her over instead. Or at least try.” He raises one shoulder. “Hell, I hoped, but I never really thought it’d work.”