by A. M. Myers
“Baby, please.”
He chuckles. “Naw, you’re not ready yet.”
“I am,” I argue, nodding frantically and he shakes his head again as he pulls the string on one side of the bikini bottoms, untying the knot, before moving to the other side. When it’s free, he pulls the fabric away and I watch as it floats up to the surface behind him. His lips press to my neck and I close my eyes, moaning as his fingers find my clit and circle it gently, teasing me to the point of madness. Just when I think he might finally give me what I want, he pulls his hand away. I try to protest but before I can, he pulls the triangle of my bathing suit top to the side and sucks my nipple into his mouth.
“Wyatt,” I breathe out as goose bumps race across my flesh. I slide my fingers into his hair and he rumbles against my skin as he thrusts his hips against me. It’s still not enough. I need to feel him, all of him, against me with nothing between us. “Take your shorts off.”
Nodding, he releases my tit with a pop but refuses to let me go as he switches arms back and forth to wrestle his trunks off and when he’s finally free of them, I wrap my hand around his cock and slam my lips back to his as I stroke him. He groans, grabbing a chunk of my hair and the bite of pain only spurs me on as I press my free hand to his chest. His heart hammers against my palm and I don’t stop moving my hand. More than my own release, I want to watch him fall apart because of me. I want to know that no other girl in the ten years we’ve been apart has ever affected him the way that I do. For the first time in a really long time, I want to feel like his everything again.
I continue to stroke him as I kiss down his neck, nipping along the way and the closer he gets to his release, the tighter his hold on me becomes. He reaches up with his free hand and twists my nipple between his thumb and finger as he groans in my ear. I kiss back up his neck, making sure that I’m teasing him as much as I possibly can before pressing my lips to his again. He releases my hair and slips me down his body slightly, shoving his leg between mine and I moan into his kiss as I rub my pussy against his thigh.
“Wyatt,” I moan before sealing our lips together again and he abandons my nipple to slip his hand under the water, gripping my waist and guiding my hips against his leg. Pressure builds in my belly and I try to move faster but he stops me, prolonging my pleasure as he shudders with his impending orgasm. Ripping his lips from mine, he drops his head back and groans as he squeezes his eyes shut.
“Pip… you gotta stop…” he whispers in between frantic breaths and I shake my head. I won’t stop. I need this. His hands on my hips get more forceful, moving me faster and faster until I feel like I’m going to explode. “Stop, Piper. I’m gonna come.”
“No.” I shake my head and bite his neck, pulling another groan from his lips as he releases my hips and pulls me toward him, driving into me in one fluid thrust. I cry out, gripping his shoulders as he groans through gritted teeth and throw his head back.
“Aw, fuck,” he groans again. “I’m not gonna last. I’ve been thinking about getting inside you all goddamn day and it’s too fucking good.”
I press my lips to his neck, just under his ear and his grip on my ass tightens as he moves me back and forth, fucking me to the point of desperation. “I’m almost there. Besides, we’ve got all night, baby.”
“Fuck, Piper,” he growls, his muscles tightening as he slams into me again before he releases a breath and his shaft throbs inside me with his release. He grits his teeth and groans again, shuddering as the orgasm rolls through him. “Jesus Christ.”
“Mm,” I hum, kissing his neck again and he slips a hand into my hair and pulls, dragging a gasp from my lips as he opens his eyes and flashes me a grin.
“Now it’s your turn.”
“Have at it, baby,” I whisper as my heart kicks in my chest and my teeth sink into my bottom lip. He pins me to the wall of the pool again and thrusts into me, stealing the breath from my lungs as he claims my lips once more. It doesn’t take much - a few well placed drives, a scorching hot kiss, and his thumb brushing over my clit - and I’m falling apart. Dropping my head back, my body trembles and I moan as stars explode in my vision and pleasure consumes me. When I finally drift back to earth, I let out a sigh and open my eyes. Wyatt’s wide grin greets me and he turns, carrying me in his arms across the pool with one thing on his mind.
Shit…
This is going to be a very good night.
Chapter Eighteen
Wyatt
“Wyatt,” Piper moans, fisting her hands into her hair as she rides me, eyes closed as pleasure overwhelms her. I groan, gripping her hips as I thrust off the bed, so fucking close.
“Fuck, baby…”
She grins down at me and rolls her hips again. “Squawk!”
“What?” I ask, scowling up at her as she begins to fade away. She opens her mouth to respond but the only sound I hear is another squawk. Shaking my head, I try to reach for her but she disappears…
“Squawk!”
I groan as I rub the sleep from my eyes before peeling them open. The cottage’s white bead board ceiling stares back at me and I flick a glance to the open window where the seagulls like to sing us their daily morning song.
“Squawk!”
“Fucking useless birds,” I hiss. I turn, ready to pull Piper into my arms and catch a few more hours of sleep but the only thing waiting for me is cold sheets. Shooting up in bed, I listen for sounds of her moving around the house but silence greets me and my heart thuds in my chest as I throw the covers off of my legs and jump out of bed. Walking to the doorway, I try to push my fears down but they don’t want to go quietly.
“Pip?”
When I still don’t get an answer, I grab a pair of mesh shorts out of my bag and pull them on before wandering out into the kitchen.
Fuck.
Where is she?
Glancing over at the living room, I frown before I see the large lemon poppyseed muffin and steaming cup of coffee sitting on the island. I scoop the little note next to the food and run my hand through my hair as I read it.
I didn’t want to wake you so I ran
out and grabbed us some breakfast.
Come find me in the backyard when you’re ready to face the world.
She signed the note with a cute little heart and I smile as I set it down and pick up my muffin, slowly unwrapping it from the cling wrap surrounding it. Piper and I spent yesterday morning down at the beach, playing in the ocean like we were two kids again before coming back up to the house and spending damn near an hour in the shower together. We spent the rest of the day vegging out in front of the TV, eating junk food, and watching Netflix in practically nothing, which was perfect after the drive up here the day before and another long night of catching up but now, it’s time to talk. I feel like I’ve put this off for long enough and with us going home tomorrow, I want to ask all my questions now so we can truly have a fresh start.
With my muffin and coffee in hand, I walk out to the screened in porch and smile when I see her sitting on one of the chairs with her knees pulled up to her chest, watching the sunrise. Her red hair is pulled up into a messy bun but a few pieces are falling down, brushing against the strap of her tank top as she grabs a cup off of the table and brings it to her lips. She looks gorgeous down there, so damn peaceful and I hope she is feeling as good about things as I am.
There is only one way to find out, I suppose.
“Morning, baby,” I call as I step outside, the screen door creaking as it opens and she glances over her shoulder, flashing me a wide grin as her gaze trails down my naked chest.
Shit.
I wish she would have just stayed in bed so we could start this morning off right.
“Hey, you. I didn’t think you’d be up for a while.”
I nod as I walk across the grass and sink into the chair next to her. “Well, those damn birds felt like I needed to be awake now.”
“That just means you can watch the sunrise with me,” she says, laying her h
ead on my shoulder as I peel the paper off of my muffin and take a bite. “Isn’t it gorgeous?”
I turn and look at the sun peeking over the ocean, pastel pinks coloring the few clouds dotting the expansive sky before turning back to her. I can’t help but think she looks better than any damn sunrise I’ve ever seen and I smile as she peeks over at me, waiting for my answer. I nod.
“Yeah, you sure are.”
She rolls her eyes but she can’t hide the faint color staining her cheeks as she fights back a smile. “God, you’re so cheesy.”
Yeah, but you love me anyway…
As the thought flicks through my mind, I realize that we haven’t actually said those words to each other yet even though there is no doubt in my mind we both feel the same and it reminds me of the talk we need to have. Setting my muffin down, I grab her hand and look down at it, scowling when I see her bare ring finger. I rub my thumb over the spot where her rings used to be.
“Hey, do you still have your rings?”
Three months before we graduated from high school, I realized that I wanted to ask her to marry me so I started picking up more shifts at the garage where I worked part-time and putting away every cent that I could spare. I started telling Piper that we couldn’t go out as much because I was saving for college but I’m pretty sure she thought I was getting ready to end things with her. A week before graduation, I finally saved enough money to go to the jewelry store in the mall and buy her solitaire diamond ring with a braided gold band as well as the matching wedding band.
Smiling, I shake my head.
God, I was such a cocky little shit but it never even occurred to me that she might say no. We were Wyatt and Piper and everyone knew we were going to end up together. There was no other option.
“Yeah, they’re in my jewelry box at home,” she says, glancing down at my thumb as I stroke over her finger again and I nod.
“You gonna put it back on?” My stomach flips as the question leaves my lips and my heart pounds as I wait for her answer. She sighs and meets my eyes as her teeth sink into her bottom lip.
Oh, fuck…
“I don’t know, Wyatt. I don’t want to rush into this… or make the same mistakes that I did last time.”
Punching me in the gut would have been kinder and I struggle to swallow down the lump in my throat as I nod, my chest aching. It makes sense why she would want to be cautious after what happened the last time we were together but that doesn’t make the pain fade away.
“Right.”
“Please don’t be upset, baby,” she whispers, pulling her hand from my grasp and turning to me to cup my face between her hands. I meet her eyes and they beg me to understand and as much as my mind gets where she’s coming from, I can’t help but feel like I just got rejected. “The way I feel about you hasn’t changed, at all. I just don’t want to go back to that place where I can’t stand on my own two feet.”
“How do you feel about me? Because you haven’t said the words.”
Jesus Christ.
I sound like a goddamn girl right now.
She scowls and shakes her head, staring up at me like I’ve lost my mind. Then again, maybe I have.
“Well, you haven’t said it either.”
She’s got a point.
“Besides, you and I… it’s always been more than three little words could sum up. You know that but if you need to hear me say it, I will.”
I shake my head and blow out a breath as I drop my gaze to my lap. She’s right. Our connection has always been something special and if the fact that we’re back together again after ten years apart doesn’t tell me how she feels then I don’t know what will. She sighs and I lift my gaze to hers as she reaches down and grabs my hand, pressing it against her chest.
“You feel that?”
I nod.
“It’s always been yours, Wyatt. Always. Even when we were apart and trying to move on with our lives without each other, my heart still belonged to you.”
Slipping my other hand into her hair, I claim her lips, desperate to feel her and she moans as she climbs off of her chair and straddles my lap, never once breaking our connection and when she finally does pull away, she smiles down at me. The sun shines around her, illuminating her like an angel and I brush my thumb over her cheek, wondering how I got lucky enough to not only get her once but twice.
“I love you,” I tell her and her eyes shine as she leans down and steals another kiss, something between a sigh and a moan slipping between us and I wrap my arms around her body, pulling her closer. When she pulls away this time, her smile is brighter.
“I love you, too.” She cuddles into me, tucking her face into my neck and I take a deep breath as I stare out at the ocean and rub my hand down her back.
“You think we could talk about something else?”
She jerks up and meets my gaze again. “It’s about when I left, isn’t it?”
I nod and she chews on her bottom lip for a second before repeating the gesture. The last thing I want is to put that apprehensive look in her eyes and I understand why she hates talking about this stuff but we need to in order to move forward.
“Why did you write me that email?”
She deflates for a second before straightening her shoulders with a nod and that strength I’m quickly becoming very fond of flashes in her eyes. “Honestly… I don’t know. I remember thinking the man who killed my parents was after me and that I had to get away… Maybe I thought I was protecting you by making sure you didn’t follow me…” She shrugs. “Like I said, everything around that time is super fuzzy and I can’t tell you what was real and what wasn’t.”
“Okay,” I whisper with a nod. That makes sense, I suppose. If she thought she was trying to protect me, I don’t think there is any length Piper wouldn’t go to. I remember her saying she would see my dead body in the house and I scowl up at her. “Why would you need to protect me if you already thought I was dead?”
“Oh… no. The two delusions never existed together. I either saw him or I saw you but never saw both of you in the same room. I think at one point, I thought he had been the one to kill you and I felt this overwhelming hopelessness because he had taken my whole world from me again and I started thinking what was the point of even living anymore.”
My heart jumps into my throat as my eyes widen. “Please tell me you didn’t try to…”
“No,” she says, cutting me off. “Never. I might have briefly considered the idea but by the next morning, I was seeing him again and I thought you were alive. Or, at least, I think I did. My memories are not a good indicator of the truth.”
I nod, squeezing my eyes shut as I try to banish the thought from my mind. What the fuck would I do without her? My mind drifts back to the man I was just three weeks ago, before she walked back into my life and it feels like an entirely different person. I need her so I don’t even want to consider the possibility that she could have ended it all...
“Why didn’t you come back after you were better?” I ask, shifting gears and she chews on her bottom lip, staring down at her fingers as she twists them together.
“I did.”
“What?” I nudge under her chin with my finger and force her gaze to mine. Tears swim in her eyes and she sucks in a breath. It breaks my fucking heart.
“After I got out of the hospital, I got my own apartment and started the business with Eden. When I finally felt like I was secure and I was confident that I could handle everything, I wanted to find you. I looked you up on Facebook and saw that you had joined the Devils so I went to the clubhouse to find you. When I got there, you guys were having a barbecue and there was this woman sitting in your lap. You looked happy and I…”
The tears spill down her cheeks and she clamps her mouth shut as she drops her gaze to her lap again.
“What girl, baby?”
She shrugs. “I don’t know. She had blue hair and tattoos all over her body.”
“Cleo,” I whisper, closing my eyes and shak
ing my head. Jesus, what would have happened if she had talked to me that day? Where would we be now? Would I have even listened to her? I can’t believe she was so close and I never even knew because I was focused on Cleo. I knew that was a bad idea from the start.
Goddamn it.
“I thought about going to talk to you but I was already nervous and when I saw you with her… I thought you were moving on with your life and I should try and do the same.”
I nod, everything coming together in my head. “So you sent the divorce papers?”
“Yes.”
“Pip, baby,” I breathe as I grab her face and press a quick, demanding kiss to her lips before pulling back. “That girl was no one. We hooked up sometimes and she just started bartending for the club but she and I were never together. I was never able to move on from you.”
She nods. “I know that now but back then, I thought I was doing the right thing. I loved you and I wanted you to be happy after everything I had put you through. You know, that whole ‘if you love someone, set them free’ thing.”
“For the record,” I tell her, stealing another kiss. “Don’t set me free again. Ever.”
“Okay,” she whispers, a soft sob slipping out of her lips as the tears fall down her cheeks. I brush them away and pull her to me again, determined to kiss away the pain of our past. She melts into me, clinging to my shirt as she kisses me back with the same desperation I feel coursing through my veins. I want to wash it all away, make the past ten years disappear because the ache I feel thinking about everything we could have had if things had gone just a little bit differently makes my stomach turn.
I know I can’t do a damn thing about the past but I will do whatever it takes to make sure the rest of our lives together are so magical that when we tell the story of our love to our grandkids, the part about when we were apart won’t even matter.