by Elle Thorpe
Her gaze was burning the entire left side of my body. I was sure I was blushing.
“Apparently you and Rafe were making out in the parking lot.”
Well, shit. News certainly traveled fast, didn’t it? I twisted to face her, letting out a long sigh. “Are you mad?”
She raised one eyebrow. “Why would I be mad?”
“Because he’s your ex? Most girls would be mad. I probably would be.”
“Nuh. Not me. Not when it’s Rafe. And you. I love you both. And don’t forget, I broke up with him. I just want him to be happy. But, I want you to be happy, too. Do you know what you’re getting in for with him?”
I shrugged. “I’m not really in anything. We aren’t a couple.”
“Then what are you?”
A guy and a girl with an incredible attraction? Friends who go down on each other? Hell, I couldn’t say that. “I don’t know,” I said truthfully. “Casual. I guess.”
“You sleep with him?”
“No.”
“But you want to?”
There was no point lying about it. “Yes.”
She nodded. “Okay then.”
“That’s it?”
“We can compare notes afterward, if you want?”
I dissolved into giggles. “Maybe not.”
“Didn’t think so. Oh, look, second half is starting. Go Saints!”
I echoed her war cries until the end-of-game buzzer sounded, and all the Saints crew jumped to their feet, clapping and stamping as our guys ran from the field. Banjo and Rafe both pulled their helmets off, fist pumping the air with the other guys. Seemingly in unison, they both looked to me. I ducked my head before Jagger could catch on. I liked Jagger a lot. And I trusted her. But I didn’t know how to explain what was going on with Banjo, Rafe, and me. So until I did have a label for it, until one became more serious than the other, it seemed like a good idea to keep the entire thing on the downlow. We tramped down from the bleachers, shoulder to shoulder with hundreds of other fans. It was cold tonight, and I was glad I’d brought a jacket and scarf. The wind was picking up, and I was grateful to have the extra layers.
Jagger and I stood by the players’ entrance with a smaller crowd of people who waited for the them to get changed. Aaron, the guy Jagger had been dancing with at the party, was the first one out. He trotted straight over to us, his gaze plastered to my friend.
She squealed and threw her arms around him. “You were so good! One win down!”
“Many more to go. Hey, Lacey.” He smiled warmly at me.
I waved back. I liked the two of them together. Jagger hadn’t said much about him but judging from the way she snuggled into his side, his thick arm resting around her shoulders, they’d been hanging out. Pure happiness radiated from her.
“You need a lift home?” she asked.
I gave her a hug. “No, I’ll let you two be alone. See you at the beach party tomorrow?”
“Yes! Can’t wait!”
“Me neither.”
I watched the two of them walk across the parking lot to Aaron’s car and waved as they joined the swarm leaving the fields.
“Bye, Lacey,” a deep voice said in my ear.
Rafe. He was freshly showered, his hair still wet and slicked back. Banjo stood just behind him. There was a promise and anticipation in his eyes, a raw hunger that curled my toes.
I dragged my gaze back to Rafe’s. A tiny bit of me was disappointed he wasn’t coming back to the hotel with us. But like he’d said earlier, our time would come. And I couldn’t wait.
“Bye,” I said. I stepped in and wrapped my arms around him in what was supposed to be a goodbye hug. But somehow it went on for an indecently long time and ended with him groaning as he pulled away.
He tossed a look back over his shoulder at Banjo. “Be good to our girl.”
My heart thumped. Our girl. Was that what I was? Warmth kindled inside me when Banjo nodded.
Banjo and I walked toward Augie’s car, anticipation thick between us. I glanced into the back seat as I got in, remembering what we’d done last time we were on it.
We closed the doors, letting the electricity build around us in the silence. My heart raced.
“Damn, I want to pounce on you so bad right now. I’m so tempted to say screw the hotel and just throw you into that back seat.” He grinned over at me. “But I want to do this right. And there’s something I need to talk to you about first.”
A tendril of worry curled around my heart as his expression went serious.
“Okay.” I pulled my bag onto my lap. It was really just an oversized purse, but it had been big enough to shove in some extra clothes, my phone charger, and, of course, the little packet of condoms I was suddenly unsure I needed. “Is everything okay?” Had Rafe told him what I’d done on the drive there? Did that mean Banjo had changed his mind about the two of us? I would be crushed if it did.
He reached over and put his warm hand to the back of my neck. “Between you and me? Yeah, babe. We’re great. But after what you told us last night about your uncle and the fire, I did some digging.”
My fingers strangled the straps of my purse. “And you found something?”
“I checked out the last four guys on your list. Three easily told me where they were that night. Marco was visiting his grandmother at a nursing home, and I called and asked for the sign-in record. He checks out.
“Perry and Lucian were away together dirt biking for the weekend. Their families are old friends, and his sister confirmed it when I asked her at school today.”
I frowned. “The only other person on the list was Aaron. But there’s no way it could have been him.”
“What makes you say that?” Banjo slowed for a traffic light. “He’s a big guy. He could easily have lifted you off that floor and got you out.”
That was true. But… “He’s with Jagger.”
Banjo made a noncommittal sound in the back of his throat. The light went green, and he put his foot down on the gas.
“You don’t seriously think it could have been him?”
Banjo shrugged. “I’m not going to rule him out because he’s dating your friend.”
I sighed. “I really kind of wish I hadn’t started any of this, you know?” I let my head drop back against the headrest. “It’s draining. And a constant source of anxiety.”
Banjo’s fingers rubbed into the tight muscles of my neck. “Did you tell your aunt about the photos?”
“God, no. She’d be devastated. She couldn’t take something like that.”
Banjo bit his lip like he wanted to say more.
“What?” I asked.
“The things that were written on those photos…”
Liar. Cheat. Rapist.
“Were blatant lies,” I snapped.
“Are you sure?”
My mouth dropped open, and I shifted away from his touch. “Of course I’m sure. My uncle was a good man. He took me in when my parents disappeared. He was well respected. Well liked. You didn’t know him, Banjo! He was the kind of guy who would give a homeless person his shoes.”
Banjo pulled the car up in front of the hotel, shut off the engine, then twisted in his seat. He grabbed my hand, and reluctantly, I let him. This was not how I’d envisioned this night going. We were supposed to be making out right now. Falling all over each other on the way up to our room.
“Please, Lacey. Listen to me. I believe you. I really do. I didn’t know your uncle at all. But I do know something about people not always being what they seem. Everyone has secrets. Some darker than others. And most of the time, the people who love them most are the last to know.”
He looked away, staring out through the windshield. A muscled ticked in his jaw.
“Are we still talking about my uncle?” I asked quietly.
He forced his gaze back to mine. “Just food for thought.” He leaned in and kissed me softly. “Is this really what we want to be talking about tonight?”
It was a blatant att
empt to change the subject, but I let him. If he hadn’t, I would have. I didn’t want to consider that my uncle, a man I’d loved, who’d always been there for me, could be anything other than what he seemed on the outside.
So instead of questioning Banjo about what he was hiding, I kissed him back. And then I followed him into a hotel.
The inside was nothing fancy. The bored receptionist thrust a key into Banjo’s hand, pointing toward a set of stairs that led to the second floor. The walls were an ugly salmon pink, though the paint was fresh, and occasional potted ferns spruced up the otherwise dull hallway. There were no electronic locks on the doors like every other hotel I’d ever stayed in. This one still used a traditional brass key that only turned after Banjo jiggled it around. He opened the door, and we wandered in, taking in the small room.
“I know it’s not what you’re used to—”
I shushed him. “I don’t need a fancy room. Just you.”
He placed one finger beneath my chin and tilted it up. “You’ve got me.”
Something in his gaze made me think he meant it for longer than just one night. My heart squeezed. The butterflies in my belly disappeared. When he laid his lips on mine any worry I might have been holding on to—about my uncle, about the secrets Banjo kept, about Rafe, or Jagger, or my aunt—they all flew out of my head. All that mattered was Banjo and the way I felt when I was around him.
I dropped my bag to the floor and kissed him back; soft, slow, and sweet.
“Want to take a bath? This room is supposed to have a huge one.”
“Really?” I walked away from him, pushing open the only other door in the room. “Oh wow.” The en suite wasn’t huge, but it had obviously been renovated recently, because it didn’t match the rest of the room at all. The white tiles were clean and new, and a corner spa bath took up half the space. Banjo squeezed in behind me, leaning across to turn the faucet on.
“How hot do you like it?” He grinned, cranking up the hot water. “If last night was anything to go by, you like it steamy.”
I nudged him playfully. “I know you just had a shower, but you’re getting in with me, right?”
His gaze caught mine, and it was as hot as the steam rising from the water. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
I crossed the space between us and gripped the hem of his long-sleeved T-shirt. He lifted his arms as I hoisted it up his torso, exposing the muscles of his stomach one by one, followed by his pecs. I trailed my fingers over him as he reciprocated, taking my jacket from my shoulders and pulling my shirt over my head. I shimmied out of my jeans and enjoyed his sudden intake of breath when he caught sight of me in my underwear.
“Thank you, Victoria’s Secret,” Banjo murmured.
The black lace bra pushed my breasts high, giving me cleavage for days. The panties were little more than a scrap of fabric, barely covering me.
“I almost don’t want to take those off you,” he said without looking me in the eye.
“I kind of feel the same about those sweatpants.” They sat low on his hips, showing off the V of muscle that ran either side. “Girls have a thing for gray sweatpants, you know.”
He cut the flow of water to the nearly full bath. “So we’re just going to stand here and admire each other only half naked? That somehow seems like a good thing and a letdown all at once.”
I giggled. “Nope. There’s other things I want to do more.” I rubbed my hand suggestively over his semi-hard cock before tugging the drawstring on his sweatpants.
“Tell me.” His voice dropped an octave, hitting me right between my thighs.
“You remember that first day we met? At my house? I wanted to sleep with you then. It drove me mental, thinking about it, wondering what it would have been like with you. What it would have been like to lose my virginity to a one-night stand.” I shoved his sweatpants over his hips and ass. “I’m glad we never got to do it.”
The sweatpants dropped to the floor, and he stepped out of them, crowding in on me. “What’s changed since then? Got feelings for me, princess?” he husked out, watching me intently.
Breath stalled in my lungs. My initial instinct was to play it cool. Laugh it off. Say I just liked the anticipation. But the words that came out were anything but. “I like you,” I whispered, suddenly realizing how deep my emotions ran. “A lot. So yeah, Banjo. Yeah. I’ve got feelings for you. A lot of them.”
His mouth crashed down on mine, hot and hard. I lifted up onto my toes, wrapped my arms around his broad shoulders, and kissed him back just as hard, putting every single one of my feelings into the kiss, making sure he felt them all. His fingers gripped my hips, and then I was hoisted into his arms. My legs acted on autopilot, circling his narrow waist, his erection pressing to the lace of my underwear.
Without breaking the kiss, he stepped over the edge of the bath and sank down into the deep, warm water, submerging us both to mid-chest height.
“My bra,” I gasped out on a laugh. It was completely soaked through, as were my panties.
“You won’t be needing it for the rest of the night anyway,” he said, lips against my neck. He undid the clasp, and slid it off, dumping it over the side of the bathtub in a wet pile on the floor. He leaned back, taking my tits in his hands and squeezing them gently. “So perfect,” he whispered. His fingers found my nipples, and for a maddeningly long time, he teased me. Tweaking them, rolling them, lifting me out of the water so he could suck them. He licked the water droplets from my cleavage, his tongue swirling patterns across my damp flesh. “Stand up,” he whispered.
I did as I was told, expecting to feel a chill over my wet skin, but then he sat forward, onto his knees, and pulled the soaking wet lace from around my hips. His eyes were level with my pussy, and suddenly, I was anything but chilled. I was so hot I was ready to self-combust.
“Sit back on the edge,” he encouraged.
I did, and then with a wicked grin, he said, “Now open your legs.”
A moan escaped me.
He moved through the water, fitting himself between my thighs that had no problem obeying his commands. They’d fallen right apart, as if this was an everyday occurrence.
A thrill raced through me. If I made this thing with Banjo official, this could happen every day. All our nights could be like this. Filled with his hands on my body, mine on his.
His tongue found my center, and it only took him moments to work me into a frenzy. I leaned back on the wall, my legs trembling with the power of an orgasm barreling down on me.
“Banjo,” I panted.
He suddenly stood, water pouring down his long, lean, tight body in tiny rivers.
I whimpered in need, needing him to get over the edge.
“Not yet,” he said, stepping from the bath.
His words were full of promise, and I followed him without another thought. He picked up a towel, drying me off, walking me backward into the bedroom until my calves hit the bed and I fell back. He opened his overnight bag, taking a row of condoms from the top. He ripped one off and threw the rest onto the bed.
I tracked his movements with an eagle eye. My breath hitched as he ripped the top off the silver foil package, pulling out the condom. His fingers wrapped around his cock, and I trembled all over at the sight of him pumping himself.
God, that was hot.
He rolled the condom over his length in seconds, like he’d done it a million times before. And maybe he had. But I didn’t care. He was here with me right now, and that was all that mattered. He was all that mattered. Him and me, and what we were about to do. I wanted it. I wanted him.
My heart clenched with an emotion I didn’t want to name. I was falling for him. There was no doubt about it. I didn’t want to get my heart broken, but Banjo had always made me feel like I was the one in the driver’s seat. I was the one who called the shots. With Banjo, I could have it all. Him. Rafe. Whatever the hell I wanted.
And if I couldn’t get it by myself, he’d have my back.
“
Kiss me,” I whispered, my throat clogging with emotion.
He crawled over me, fitting his cock at my entrance and resting his weight on his forearms. His gaze burned mine, and instead of blurting out my feelings, I strained up to kiss him.
His lips stole my whimpers as he notched at my entrance. “You okay?” he whispered.
I nodded. And I was. I was a nervous ball of excitement and anticipation, but I was ready. I’d never been more ready in my life. “I want to do this,” I whispered, running my hand down the side of his face. “With you.”
Emotion flickered in his eyes, and then he pushed inside me, filling the ache deep within that cried out for him. My hips lifted. There was no pain. The sensation was foreign, but I wanted him so much, it wasn’t unpleasant. He stilled, letting me adjust to his size, groaning into my mouth.
“Fuck, princess. You’re so tight. This is going to kill me slowly.”
Him and me both. I pressed up against him, encouraging him to move. He did. He slid in and out, rocking his body in a slow, sensual rhythm that had me aching for more. On instinct, I moved with him, running my fingers down his back, dropping kisses on his lips, his cheeks, his neck, his chest. Every inch of him I could reach. Our hips rolled in time, me meeting his thrusts, each one building me back to the edge I’d found in the bathroom.
“Banjo,” I moaned.
He reached between us, finding my nub and working it slowly, in time with his dick. I couldn’t stop looking at him. Drinking him in. This beautiful boy who had made this moment everything I could have ever wanted it to be.
This boy I could fall in love with.
Our gazes locked, and sensation roared through me. It spiraled from between my legs, arcing its way through my torso, across my chest, down my arms. I cried out my pleasure, sparks dancing behind my eyes as my orgasm overtook me.
Banjo shuddered above me. His hips pumped faster, taking us both higher until he put his lips to my neck and let out a groan of pleasure, finding his own release.
With Banjo murmuring nonsense words in my ear, I fell back down to earth. He was heavy on top of me, both of us sweaty and sated, but instead of pushing him away, I wrapped my legs around him, holding him close.