Sweet Love

by Kayla, Mia

  “Just never wear underwear again.” He released me, only long enough so he could unzip and slip on a condom.

  Then, we were all wet, sloppy kisses again and hands everywhere.

  My need for him, to touch him, to feel him was undeniable, and when I reached for him and positioned him at my entrance, beads of sweat lined his brow. When he entered me, I moaned loudly at the fullness of him filling me. My head flew back at the ecstasy of him moving in and out of me.

  His half-hooded eyes watched where we were connected, his stare filling with a lust so strong.

  It didn’t take long for tingles to travel up my spine. “Connor … I’m … I’m—”

  “Connor? I didn’t see Claire in the front.”

  Casey?

  My eyes widened as I slapped at Connor’s hands and pushed him off of me.

  “Casey! Get out!” Connor yelled.

  Panic tore through me.

  “Oh my God! Oh my God!” Casey yelped.

  A second later, I stood.

  I hadn’t had time to straighten or for Connor to put his dick back in his pants before Casey stormed in.

  Immediately, I dropped to my knees, crawled under Connor’s desk, and hid, hugging my knees, shrinking into myself.

  “Wait,” she said, her voice firm.

  “Casey, get out!”

  “No. No. No. I know I’ve caught you in a compromising position, but that’s not Sienna …”

  Her feet were in my view, but Connor was blocking the desk.

  Then, she ducked.

  Her eyes went wide, and then she blinked. “Charlie?” Her voice was unbelieving.

  I tried to hide my face, but it was no use because she’d dropped to her knees too.

  “Charlie! Shit, Charlie. You’re banging the boss? That’s crazy.”

  I groaned.

  “Casey, get out.” Connor lifted her elbow, and Casey stood, shell-shocked into silence.

  “I just don’t understand. I mean … are you a thing?” Then, she ducked again and looked at me. “Do you like this guy?” A second later, she stood, and her voice turned hard. “Tell me you’re not banging Sienna too.”

  “No! Get out, Casey. Out.”

  “Fine, but you’d better be a good guy, Connor. You’d just better be a damn good guy.”

  He walked her out, and when I heard the door slam shut, I stood … mortified.

  My shaky hand flew to my forehead. Omigod. I can’t believe that just happened.

  “I hate my life.”

  “Don’t say that.” He pulled at my hand, bringing me into a full-on hug. “They’re on your side for this one. They won’t tell a soul. Did you hear Casey?”

  I had. I’d heard her loud and clear.

  And I knew there would be nonstop questions, and I would have to answer them soon.

  * * *

  Talk about an odd conversation I so didn’t want to be having.

  “You little wench. You were holding out on us all this time?” Casey said, her PB and J untouched.

  I kept stuffing my mouth with food because I wasn’t in the mood to divulge information. I swore I was about to choke.

  “How big is his dick?” Alyssa said. “Never mind. That’s kinda gross. I don’t want to know about Connor’s dick.”

  “I saw it. It was”—Casey blushed—“pretty impressive.”

  “Casey …” I didn’t want anyone talking about Connor’s impressive package.

  After I swallowed the last of my sandwich, I chugged my water and stood. “Tons of work to do.”

  Casey reached for my arm and pulled me to sit.

  Her face was menacing, lips pursed, eyebrows scrunched.

  It actually scared me, her out-of-character demeanor.

  “We’ve been a good friend to you, Charlie. You know things about me … about my past that only”—she lifted three fingers, and then she pointed to Alyssa, herself, and then me—“a few people know about and about a person who should not be named. And so, I’m a little offended over here. Do you not trust us or something? If not, why the hell not?”

  I sighed overly loud.

  Alyssa’s face was expectant. Casey … well, if I didn’t give up the goods, then I was sure we would no longer be buddies.

  This was what girlfriends did, right? They overshared.

  “It’s not that I don’t trust you guys. It’s just that this …” My gaze dropped to the table, and the inside of my chest stirred with uncertainty. “What’s going on with me and Connor … it was so unexpected. And it’s also very temporary, and we both know this.”

  “And …” Alyssa leaned in, getting in my line of sight.

  “And what? He’s leaving.”

  “So?” Alyssa prodded. As though him leaving shouldn’t change anything. “You’re in love with him,” Alyssa stated as a fact, as though she was so sure.

  I reeled back as though I’d been doused with a cup of water. “I’m not.” But there was no gusto behind my tone.

  “You are or else you wouldn’t be so heartbroken over it.”

  “I’m not heartbroken,” I said, knowing I was lying because if I were being honest with myself, I was. I didn’t want what we had to end, but it would.

  I rubbed at my temple, feeling an ongoing migraine coming on, and then I let it all out. I needed to get it out because it felt so much better to get it all out.

  “I am in love with him. I mean, there’s no way I couldn’t be.” My voice was so soft that I barely heard myself.

  I stared at my hands, wringing them together on the table, as my chest tightened.

  Moments later, warm hands wrapped around me. It was Casey.

  I peered up, and thankfully, no one else was in the break room.

  Her arms wrapped around me tighter. “He’ll stay for you. He has to.”

  I peered up at her, and my voice cracked, full of emotion. “He won’t.”

  I knew that much. So many times, Connor had indicated that his life, his job, his friends were in New York.

  “He’s a jackass,” Alyssa snapped. “Nice guy but always been a coward.”

  Casey piped up, “How so?”

  “All Connor’s ever done is run away from this place when this is where he needs to be. He’s a coward if he goes.” Her warm hand patted my back. “And you don’t deserve to be with a coward. No matter how big his dick is.”

  I laughed but then frowned the next second later. “We have one more film before we present to Mr. Colby. I just need to get through this, and I’ll be fine.”

  Because as long as Connor was still here, I knew there was impending heartbreak to follow. I couldn’t do it … I couldn’t move on with my life, and I needed to.

  Casey tipped up my chin. “Right now, no thinking of Connor. You have a big event that you need to think about. Your exhibit.”

  Yeah, but too bad filming had to happen before that.

  “And who cares about your mom or your stepdad? Because your favorite people will be there to support you.” Casey’s gaze flipped to Alyssa, grabbing her hand. “We’ll be there. Now, group hug.”

  Alyssa groaned. “Casey …”

  “Come on! I’m not taking no for an answer.”

  Both girls—ones who I’d only known for a short period of time—hugged me fiercely, and in that moment, I wanted to cry because I’d never had this before, this camaraderie.

  Chapter 24

  Connor

  We were filming the wedding scene today around the city of Chicago. The air was humid, but the sky was clear, and I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day to film.

  I was sitting in my car, watching the film crew set up on Monroe Harbor, in front of Lake Michigan.

  Many weeks ago, when Charlie and I had discussed a family feel to Colby Chocolates, she’d mentioned that in every occasion from dating to anniversaries, people celebrated with chocolate or candies. Students gave their teachers candies for Valentine’s Day or boyfriends brought flowers and chocolates on their first date and
also on their anniversaries. Chocolates and candies were universal gifts. It was Charlie’s idea to go with that theme, and she couldn’t have been more spot-on.

  According to her, the beginning of a couple’s life together into forever began with marriage. This would be the ending scene in our commercial, capturing the feel of the whole campaign and hopefully winning my father over.

  I turned to the knock on my window. It was Charlie.

  She slipped into the passenger seat, and my breath caught. She was in a form-fitting, elegant white dress that hugged her in all the right places. Her hair was pulled up with curls flowing endlessly down her back.

  I took her in and was caught speechless because she was breathtakingly beautiful.

  I swallowed. Hard.

  “It’s hot out there.” She pulled down the visor and fluffed out a few of her curls.

  “It’s hot in here,” I said, taking her in.

  She had makeup on—not a lot, but enough to make the green in her eyes pop. Her lips were a pinkish color that made me want to bite them to see if they could get any pinker.

  “You’re beautiful,” I said without a second thought.

  Her eyes met mine, and her cheeks reddened, making the color she’d put on even more prominent. She focused her attention to the mirror on the visor. “You think?” With her ring finger, she fixed some of her eye shadow.

  “I know.”

  “Do you think I look okay?”

  I pulled down her hand, forcing her to face me. “Stop. You’re perfect.”

  And she was, wasn’t she. Beautiful, smart, creative, caring, and the list went on forever.

  “I want to kiss you so bad right now.” My gaze flickered to her lips and back to meet her eyes. “But I’ll be good. We’re filming in ten minutes.”

  She lightly patted my cheek and smiled. “Thanks for being good.”

  I wiggled my eyebrows. “I’m not that good. I showed you how naughty I could be last night.”

  She attempted to slap my shoulder, but I caught her hand midair. I kissed her open palm and intertwined our fingers.

  “What are you doing this weekend?” I’d been thinking about this for a long time. I’d had this unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach until I came up with the most brilliant idea.

  “This weekend, meaning two days from now?” She blinked. “Finishing my paintings for my exhibit?” she answered my question with a question. “Given that this is the last portion of the presentation to your dad, I figured I really needed to prep and finish a few more paintings before next week’s exhibit.”

  “Can you finish that during the week because I want to take you somewhere?”

  She smiled. “Where?”

  “To New York.”

  And that gorgeous smile slipped. “Why?” She blinked up at me, doe-eyed and stunning.

  “To show you around. To show you New York because you’ve never been. Show you my place. Take you to a Broadway play. To thank you for all you’ve done for me and my family.”

  She chewed on her bottom lip, and her eyebrows scrunched together. “I … I’m not sure.”

  “You don’t think you can get away?”

  “That’s not it. But I just don’t know.”

  There was a long, pregnant pause after that.

  “But?” I prompted.

  “What’s the point? We agreed that we’ll both be miserable after you leave. What’s the point of me going to New York, seeing your life there, knowing you’re leaving your life here?” There was a tinge of bitterness in her tone.

  I got where she was coming from. I just wished she understood where I was coming from. “I just want to show you a good time, an all-expenses-paid trip to New York to show my gratitude for you helping me out.”

  She focused on the view of the Chicago skyline, the skyscrapers in the vicinity, the lake in front of us. Finally, after a long beat, she spoke, “I don’t want to see your life in New York and think about your life there, when you’re gone. I want to remember you with your life here, in Chicago, with me.”

  “Charlie …” I paused, thinking of how I could say this without scaring her away. Because the only way I knew I could survive this was if she came with me. I’d been dreading the time ticking away until the drop date of when I had to leave. Before her, I couldn’t wait to get back to my life in Manhattan, but after being with her, time had been going by so fast, and I needed it to stop. There was only one solution to my situation. “I want you to come with me, to move with me to New York.”

  Her eyes flipped to mine and then widened, but any hope of her coming with me got crushed at the look on her face. She huffed out a long breath, released me, and pushed the passenger door open. “You know I can’t do that. I don’t understand why you are making this more heartbreakingly difficult.”

  She stepped out the door and into the humid air, hugging her center.

  Immediately, I exited the car. I walked toward her and held her at her elbows to face me. “Why not?”

  “Because my life is here, with my mom, with my new friends.”

  “So?”

  “So!” she scoffed, her voice high-pitched. “You might not love your family. But I love mine, okay?” she snapped.

  “The family who won’t even go to your exhibit.” The instant those words left my mouth, I regretted it.

  She reeled back as though I’d slapped her.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.” I reached for her, but she crossed her arms over her chest. I tugged at the fabric by her waist, feeling the silk between my fingertips. “Charlie, I’m sorry. Really.”

  Her gaze lowered to the ground, her chin to her chest.

  “I shouldn’t have said that. I’m sorry, okay?” I hated how our interaction had turned sour in the matter of minutes.

  She nodded, but I knew she was lying. I pulled her into my arms, but she stiffened, distant and disconnected.

  I wrapped my arms fully around her so she couldn’t escape. “I’ll come visit. Nana is here. Kyle is here. You’re here.”

  Long distance. Could I do that? I’d tried that before, and that hadn’t ended well, but this was different. This was with Charlie. I knew I’d do everything in my power to make us work.

  “Yeah, maybe I’ll be with my new boyfriend by then.”

  My whole body went rigid, and I knew she felt the shift in tension because she added, “And you’ll be with your new girlfriend by then too. Then, we can all double date.”

  The thought of her with someone else, someone touching her, kissing her, made all of my muscles tense and had me wanting to punch something badly. I didn’t want to be with anyone else but her.

  “You’re just being mean now.” A weight settled in my gut, making me feel nauseous. “I don’t want you to be with anyone but me, but I know that’s not how the circumstances go.” I pulled back and cupped her face. “Just think about it, okay? Think about New York. If anything, it’ll be our last big hurrah before I’m scheduled to go back to my bank job.”

  She turned toward the lake, to the crew of people set up to film us. After she pulled away from me, her gaze dropped to the ground. “We should get started. You pay them by the hour. I’m sorry … I’m just not in the best mood.”

  She turned to leave, but I gripped her hand and locked eyes with her. I wouldn’t be able to handle her being with anyone else, so I had to try again.

  “Charlie … promise me you’ll think about it.”

  She smiled and nodded but didn’t say a word as she walked to the crew.

  Charlie

  The air brushed against my skin, my neck, my arms, and my bare back. The dress was beautiful with its alluring halter top, the way the neck scooped and revealed just the right amount of cleavage, and how the fabric hugged my hips and cascaded into a pool of fabric like ripples in a lake at my feet.

  “Charlie,” Wyatt, the director, called out. “Okay, run to Connor.”

  Why did I feel like I was on some sort of romantic cheesy film? This
was the fifth time I ran through the sand, barefoot, my dress flowing around me, my curls bouncing against the wind, before I jumped into his arms. Our backdrop was the Chicago skyline.

  It didn’t feel natural because it wasn’t. I was still uneasy about our conversation earlier, and there was this tension between us that was palpable.

  I couldn’t help it. I was bitter that he was leaving, but it didn’t make a lick of sense because I had known this. I had known this was going to happen. But what I could have never predicted was falling so deeply in love with him.

  Wyatt yelled to the crew of cameramen in front of him, “Okay … again.” Then he turned toward us. “Please. Let’s make this believable. Do we need a break?”

  Connor waved a hand. “Yeah, let’s take five.” He walked toward me, gripping my elbow, and pulled me to the side.

  For the life of me, I couldn’t look him in the eye. I needed to get over this and stat.

  He lifted my chin with the lightness of his fingertips. “I’m sorry, Charlie. For what I said earlier about your mom.”

  I gently pulled his hand down, and my focus landed at the lake, at the beautiful skyline of Michigan Avenue. “We’re okay, Connor. Promise.”

  “Then, why won’t you look at me?”

  When my stare made it back to his face, he closed his eyes, squeezing them tightly.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Closing my eyes.”

  The corner of my mouth ticked up for the first time in this whole session.

  “Because it hurts to look at you. You’re so damn beautiful,” he repeated my words from many weeks ago, in the closet, our first time together.

  My heart beat loudly in my chest—not just one beat, but two and three and four beats where there was a whole marching band in my chest.

  “You’re crazy …” I said, full of emotion.

  He opened his eyes, took my one hand in his, and went on bended knee. “I’m sorry, Charlie. Forgive me for wanting to spend every waking moment with you. Forgive me for wanting you to move with me.”

  My breath caught as I stared deeply into the sea of brown gazing back up at me.

  “But most of all, forgive me for falling in love with you when I wasn’t supposed to.”