by Tasha Black
He abandoned her mouth to nuzzle her neck as he carried her out of the water, laid her down on the mossy bank.
Addy sighed and looked up at the stars. They were dazzling tonight, twinkling as if they shared a secret joke with her.
Remington’s warm mouth traveled down to her breasts as he peeled her t-shirt over her head, and tugged at the string that held her bikini in place.
Addy felt the cool air on her breasts, followed by the warmth of Remington’s mouth.
Her head leaned back on the moss as her whole body sang with pleasure.
This wasn’t the first time she’d ever been touched. But it felt like something new, a yearning for more shot through her and she felt helpless in the face of so much need.
But Remington was already moving lower, peeling down her shorts and bikini bottoms.
Addy hadn’t skipped any meals this summer. She was tan and well-fed. The guys at Maxwell’s never had any complaints about her curvy, athletic body. But she found herself holding her breath, wondering what this man would make of a form that didn’t match the chiseled magazine model perfection of his own.
“Addy,” he groaned.
She opened her eyes and tried to memorize the expression on his face as he gazed at her body, seemingly overcome with desire.
Before she could respond, he had fallen on her. He covered her ribs with tender kisses, making her giggle as the rough stubble of his jaw grazed the sensitive skin.
He moved down to her belly, rubbing his face unabashedly against her, exploring her belly button with his inquisitive tongue until she laughed and begged him to stop.
Then he moved lower still.
Addy’s laughter was forgotten. She waited and the world seemed to float as Remington’s lips caressed the place where her thighs met her hips.
Then he lowered his face to her sex, lapped at her opening.
Addy whined at the sensations that shot through her, the pleasure so acute it was almost like pain.
He moaned against her and the vibration of his deep voice reverberated through her whole body.
Addy found herself tangling her hands in his hair, her hips quivering with the effort not to press herself up against his face.
He slid a hand up to open her to him, licking and sucking at her stiffening clitoris, as he pressed a single finger inside to explore and massage her in the most inquisitive way.
Desperately, Addy tried not to climax. She wanted the moment to go on forever, wanted to see what he would do next, this man who was new to being a man but who seemed to instinctively know everything about loving a woman.
But Remington made a sound of satisfaction in his throat that pushed her over the edge and a second later she was writhing, helpless against his mouth and hand in endless waves of pleasure.
At last he pressed a kiss to her inner thigh and crawled up to her.
His eyes were shining, though his jaw was set and tight with need.
She wrapped her arms around his neck.
“That was amazing,” they whispered at the same time.
She giggled and felt him smiling against her hair.
But this would not do. She had to return the favor.
Addy buried her face in Remington’s neck, nipped lightly and began to suck his warm flesh.
He sighed into her hair.
She slid a hand between them and found him so hard, so responsive.
“Addy,” he murmured. “Addy, you don’t have to…”
But she wanted to.
She pushed him onto his back and lifted his t-shirt to trail kisses down the wide planes of his chest and the ripple of his abs.
She tugged his swim trunks down slightly to reveal the swollen head of his rigid penis.
He wrapped a hand in her hair.
“Addy, no,” he whispered. “You shouldn’t do this.”
She yanked herself out of his hold and resting her cheek on his belly, she extended her tongue to caress him.
He let go of her hair and groaned.
Emboldened, she slid closer, licking the whole head into her mouth, swirling her tongue and collecting the drop of salty evidence of his need for her.
His hips lifted to her and she slid a hand into his pants to release him fully.
“Addy,” a voice called softly from the lawn.
She sat up quickly, pulled her t-shirt over her head.
“Addy,” the voice said again. “It’s Honey. I’m so sorry to interrupt if you guys are still talking, but you left your phone in the cabin and your mom just called for the third time in a row. We were starting to get worried about her.”
Shit.
“Okay,” Addy called back. “Thanks, Honey. I’ll be right there.”
Remington had righted his shirt and shorts and was sitting up.
Addy pulled on her shorts and shoved her bikini in her pocket.
“I’m so sorry,” she told him.
“It’s okay,” he said. “Make sure your mother is okay. We’ll see each other tomorrow.”
His voice was tight with restrained need, and she made a mental note to thank him properly for his understanding as soon as possible.
“You’re amazing,” she told him as she scrambled off the moss and up the rocks to the lawn.
Addy
Addy followed Honey back to the cabin, hoping she could avoid any awkward conversation about what she and Remington had been doing.
Her hopes were dashed before they even made it to the hillside.
“When did she start calling?” Addy asked.
“What were you guys up to?” Honey said instead of answering.
Addy’s mind raced.
She wasn’t ashamed of hooking up. In her mind, that’s what summers were for. She was torn about the relationship.
“You can’t do this, Addy.” Honey slowed her pace and looked back at her accusingly.
“I’m fine, Honey,” Addy said.
“I’m not talking about you,” Honey said. “I’m talking about him. You can’t let anything happen with him unless you really like him.”
“I really like him,” Addy said.
Honey’s face broke into a sunny smile. She hugged Addy tightly.
“I’m so glad,” Honey whispered into Addy’s ear.
Addy felt a pang of guilt at allowing her friend to think the relationship was more serious than it was.
Though she had to face the very real possibility that the relationship was serious. And she was only telling herself she could still back out.
“I’m not going too fast though,” she said out loud, as much for her own benefit as for Honey’s.
“Of course not,” Honey said. “But you’re open-minded to the possibility. And that’s a good beginning.”
They made the rest of their journey in silence.
It was hard not to panic when she allowed herself to think about her mother calling repeatedly. She had spoken to her earlier that morning, when her mom had called to wish her a happy birthday. She couldn’t imagine why she might be calling again so soon.
Losing her father had started with a phone call.
She pushed the thoughts aside.
“So Nikki and I were thinking,” Honey said brightly, as if to distract her friend. “We’ve got a sense of what ticket sales will be like and it’s not enough, but, what if we did an auction?”
“We talked about that,” Addy said. “But what can we auction off?”
“Us,” Honey said with a silly grin. “Well, you guys, maybe. I don’t think Kitt’s going to be okay with me being auctioned off for a date night.”
Addy laughed.
“You’re going to auction us off for date nights?”
“Well, us and any other female counselors who agree to it,” Honey said. “Wouldn’t that be fun?”
“I guess so,” Addy said dubiously. What would she do on a date with some weirdo that bought the right to take her out in an auction?
On the other hand, it would be a tidy way to wrap up the re
st of the funds they needed.
They reached the cabin at last and she dashed inside and grabbed her phone from Nikki.
“Do you want privacy?” Honey asked.
Addy shook her head, hopped onto her spot on the sectional sofa, and called her mom before checking her voicemail.
It rang once and then there was a click as someone picked up.
“Hi, Addy.” Her mom’s warm voice made her feel five years old again. It never failed.
“Hey, Mom,” Addy said. “Is everything okay?”
“Of course,” Mom said. “Oh, my, I tried you a couple of times, didn’t I?”
“Yeah,” Addy said. “I was worried.”
“I’m sorry, love,” her mom said. “I was just excited to talk to you.”
“That’s okay, Mom. What’s up?”
“Well, you know how Carol Emery always gets first pick on vacations?” Her mom’s voice took on the slightly flinty quality it always did when she discussed a problematic co-worker.
Carol Emery was just one year ahead of Sarah Barnes at the hospital, but it meant she was always in front of her in the pecking order. One more reason Mom wanted Addy out of the nursing pool.
“Yeah, Mom,” Addy said. “I know.”
“Well she just announced that she’s saving her days to drive her son to NYU, so I get to come see you.”
“Mom, that’s amazing,” Addy cried.
Across the room, Honey pretended to wipe imaginary sweat from her forehead and Nikki sank into her usual spot on the sofa, a look of relief on her face.
“So anyway, it’s not a lot of notice, honey,” Addy’s mom was saying. “That’s why I was so anxious to reach you. But I’m going to be there tomorrow.”
“Mom, that’s fantastic,” Addy said. “I can’t wait to see you.”
“I’ll call in the morning and book myself a room at the lodge,” her mom said. “I should be with you before dinnertime. Tell the girls I’m taking everyone out, if you all have time. We’ll have a late birthday party.”
“That sounds really good, Mom,” Addy said.
“Get some sleep then, love,” her mother told her. “And happy birthday again!”
“Thanks, Mama,” Addy said. “I love you.”
“Love you too, Doc,” her mother said, using Addy’s old nickname fondly.
Addy breathed a sigh of relief and wondered what her mother would think if she knew her daughter had just made out with an alien.
The feeling of relief turned out to be short-lived.
Remington
Remington paced the lawn behind the men’s staff cabin.
The thoughts came so fast and furious he had no time to catalogue them.
He had made a terrible mistake. He had been intimate with a woman who had not accepted his choosing.
He was happy beyond understanding, exhilarated that she had allowed him such intimacy.
He was terrified that his own body would explode with pent-up need.
He was angry that she would accept his touch and not his suit.
The grass beneath his feet and the trees overhead disappeared as Remington lost himself inside his own head.
He didn’t even notice when Indiana arrived.
“Brother,” Indiana said from the shadows.
Remington spun on his heel, startled.
“It’s me, brother,” Indiana said. “Are you well?”
Remington nodded, unable to speak.
“She was happy tonight,” Indiana said softly. “You made her very happy.”
“You don’t know the half of it,” Remington said, finding his tongue at last.
“Did you choose her?”
“Not exactly,” Remington said.
“But in your heart it’s done,” Indiana said.
Remington nodded.
“There’s a problem,” Indiana said.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.”
“No. I mean… Yes, that problem, but another one as well,” Indiana said.
“What problem?”
Indiana sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
“Honey mentioned it to Kitt on the walk back,” Indiana said. “You know how they love this place.”
“Yes, of course,” Remington said.
Addy’s barrage of funny stories revolved around her summers at Maxwell’s. He knew she was putting on a brave face, but underneath, she was terribly worried about the fate of the place she loved so much.
He thumbed the cool crystal of his necklace. He understood what it was like to feel an attachment to a special location.
“They looked at projected ticket sales and float entries and we’re still coming up short,” Indiana explained. “So they are going to do an auction.”
“Didn’t they say they didn’t have anything to sell?”
“It’s true,” Indiana said. “But they plan to auction off themselves.”
“What?”
The idea was so horrendous Remington almost couldn’t comprehend it.
“Not Addy,” he murmured.
“Yes,” Indiana said. “Addy and Nikki and several other unattached staff women as well.”
“Why would they do this?” Remington was beside himself.
“They think that they have to,” Indiana said. “They didn’t say so but it may come down to honor.”
Honor.
It was of importance on Aerie as well. All manner of horrible sacrifices might be made to gain or preserve honor.
The troubles that had him pacing before vanished.
Remington looked out into the vast emptiness of a life where Addy went home with another man.
“We can’t allow it,” Indiana said. Remington heard the note of pain in his brother’s voice.
Indiana was normally so light-hearted. But his feelings for Nikki had deepened, Remington saw it, they all did.
“We won’t allow it,” Remington said firmly. “Where is Kitt?”
“He’s inside, waiting for you,” Indiana said. “We’re going to make a plan.”
Addy
Addy straightened her dress and squared her shoulders.
“You look like you’re going to war,” Nikki teased.
“You have no idea,” Honey muttered.
“It’s fine,” Addy said. “Good posture is important.”
They crossed the plush carpet of the main lobby. She didn’t spend a lot of time in the more guest-friendly parts of Maxwell’s, so it felt a little odd.
Addy’s mom stood by the big staircase.
Sarah Barnes was barely five foot two, but she had always seemed to be much larger to Addy. Ensconced in a flowered wraparound dress, she held herself ramrod straight, feet shoulder-width apart as if she were about to fight the heavyweight champion or take a tumbling pass.
“Hi, Mom,” Addy said.
“Adelaide,” her mother said fondly, reaching out to tuck a lock of hair behind Addy’s ear. “Happy birthday.”
“Thanks,” Addy grinned.
“Presents later,” her mother teased.
“Hi, Mrs. Barnes,” Honey said.
“Hello, Honey,” Sarah replied. “And you must be Nikki.”
“Yes, hello,” Nikki said, suddenly shy.
Addy marveled at the tiny woman’s ability to have that effect on people.
“Are you ladies ready to go out?” Sarah asked. “I know you get spoiled here with restaurant privileges, so I thought maybe we’d go for burgers and shakes.”
“Mom, you’re the best,” Addy told her.
They headed out to the guest lot where her mom had parked the family car. It was a nondescript American thing, about seven years old. Sarah Barnes did not borrow money for cars and she didn’t fuss over extras. Everything she had went to Addy’s education.
But the car was washed and tidy inside. Just like the pretty flowered dress Sarah had worn on every special occasion Addy could remember.
Well-kept was a phrase that suited Sarah Barnes to a tee.
&n
bsp; “So, how’s the summer going?” Sarah peeked over the top of the steering wheel nervously as she piloted them over the one-lane bridge.
“Great, Mrs. Barnes,” Honey said from the backseat.
“Is my daughter letting her hair down a little?”
“Yes, she sure is,” Honey said.
Addy looked over the seat at Honey.
Honey gave her an enormous wink.
Addy gave Honey a look that she hoped said don’t-you-dare-talk-about-aliens. She’d been pretty explicit about not mentioning anything about the boys in front of her mom, but she still worried that Honey was so over-the-moon for Kitt that she might not be able to help herself.
Honey gave an innocent shrug.
“I’m glad to hear that,” Addy’s mom said. “She works very hard all year. It was important to her dad and me that she get a little break in the summers.”
The rest of the ride passed pleasantly. Addy told her mother all about the kids’ swimming lessons, the parties at the staff commons cabin, and everything she could think of that didn’t involve Remington.
She found herself surprised at how many stories she had to swallow down because they revolved around him for one reason or another. As much as she wanted to see her interest in the big man as purely physical, he had worked his way into her routine and her heart more than she’d realized.
Once they were settled in a cozy booth, burgers eaten, and milkshakes in front of them, Sarah opened her purse and made a big show of pulling something out.
“Well, birthday girl, it’s not exactly the most fun thing ever, but it’s a little splurge,” her mom said, handing her an envelope.
“Thanks, Mom,” Addy said, taking it with a smile.
Everyone leaned in and Addy slowly released the flap of the envelope and removed a card and a folded piece of paper.
She unfolded the paper first and read the writing on it.
Dr. Fleurs MCAT Prep Gift Certificate $500
“Mom, no way,” she breathed.
She saw Nikki glance at Honey as if to gauge her reaction to such a sensible present, but Addy didn’t care.