More to This

by Tess Keeler

  “I promise not to embarrass you too much,” Mason teased, pushing her leg to try to get her attention.

  She cut her eyes over to him, glaring in the process. “You better behave, Mason William, I swear.”

  The knock made her jump; she must’ve been lost in her thoughts longer than she thought. She pulled herself from the warmth of the couch and blew out the breath she was holding.

  “Dun, dun, dun…” Mason mumbled into his drink as he took a sip.

  “Shh..” She hushed him quickly before pulling the door open.

  Henley stood in front of her, and she tried to subtly take in his attire. Black joggers hanging low on his hips, with a tight white tank top covering his torso. Her heart staggered in her chest at the sight. Not only had she not seen him since they had begun talking, but she hadn’t seen him in anything that showed off his physique like this had.

  “Took you long enough.” Everly’s smile pulled her lips up against her will. Even though he was a pain in her ass at times, she couldn’t help herself when it came to him. Their banter and tension was something she hadn’t ever experienced, and who was she to deny herself interaction if she enjoyed it?

  “You’re both lucky to have my presence tonight.” The smile that greeted her was definitely her favorites of the ones she had seen so far. The top row of his beautiful, white teeth was revealed as the slight indentions of his dimples accented the authenticity of his gesture.

  “Oh? Wow, why am I suddenly regretting extending the invite?” She pursed her lips playfully, stepping aside to let him in.

  He leaned close to her as he took a step inside. “You like it.”

  “Don’t make me regret this, Henley.” She took a deep breath, letting it slowly blow out through her nostrils. The scent of sage lingered around him, and she felt her eyelashes flutter at the familiarity. His jacket smelt like that.

  “I’m behaving.” He put his hands up in his defense.

  “I’ll believe it when I see it,” she whispered, locking the door and leading him into the living room where Mason was still sitting on the couch.

  Dark eyes looked up, and Mason’s big, toothy grin greeted Henley’s six-foot frame. “Aye, so you’re the infamous Henley. Pleasure to finally meet you.”

  They shook hands. “Mason, the pleasure is all mine.”

  “I like hearing that.” The expression on Mason’s face was slightly flirty, and Everly clenched her jaw. Was that burning in her stomach slight jealousy? No. No. Why would she be jealous? “So, you’ll entertain me if I jump right in and ask you a few questions. You know, so we can get to know each other?”

  Henley nodded, as he adjusted to sit on the floor in front of the couch. His long legs were outstretched in front of him, his weight was held up on his strong, lean arms. “Of course.”

  Mason shifted, lifting his bent knee onto the couch cushion next to him as he addressed Everly. “Everly, would you mind grabbing me a water?”

  “Sure, Mace.” She gave him a weird look, her eyebrow crawling up her forehead. “Henley, would you like anything?”

  “A water?” He shrugged, his translucent eyes meeting hers a moment. “Thank you.”

  She nodded and drifted into the kitchen. The silver refrigerator wasn’t far, and she could still hear the muffled sounds of their voices talking. Inadvertently, she heard her name and it made her still as her hand wrapped around the cool handle of the fridge.

  “I don’t know how much you know about me, or even Everly for that matter. But I want you to know she is like a little sister to me. We’ve been best mates since we were born, practically. And, as much as I understand you on a level that is unspoken, Everly is special. Very special. I need to know what your intentions are in regards to her.”

  Everly had only heard Mason get serious a few times that she could vividly remember. Her heart throbbed at the amount of concern Mason had when it came to her heart or anyone potentially hurting her. But she hadn’t admitted to liking Henley to even herself. Did Mason know something she didn’t?

  “I’m taking what she is willing to give, whether that is friendship or more. We’re getting to know each other right now. That’s all.”

  Henley’s voice was calm, composed. She wondered if anything rattled him.

  Mason’s voice had more emotion. “So, she isn’t a typical conquest for you?”

  Everly’s eyes got big, and she pulled the fridge open and quickly pulled out three bottles of water. This conversation was getting too intense and she needed to reappear to put an end to it.

  “I’m looking for more than a good night, if that’s what you’re asking.” Henley’s voice was still steady. He was taking Mason’s questions with ease and grace.

  “Alright. Then, what are you looking for exactly?”

  “I don’t know yet. It’s different than what I am used to.”

  Her presence caused both of them to look up at her. “Good to see you two getting along.” She offered them both a smile along with their drinks. “Are we done with the interrogation, Mace?”

  Mason pulled back his lips slowly, shrugging as he did. “I believe we are, yes.”

  Everly looked down at Henley, meeting his waiting eyes. His lips pulled in before a smile spread over his face. It made his dimples more visible, and his eyes almost disappeared from how heavily his eyelids hung over the even mix of blue-green staring back at her. When he smiled, he always looked amused, like he knew something no one else did.

  “Good,” she stated, sitting her drink down before pulling out a couple of games and sitting them on the floor next to Henley. “Are you ready to see just how nerdy I actually am?” she teased, flashing him a shy smile before Mason’s smooth accent broke their connection.

  “Everly, are you really going to try to make him play that bloody deck building game?” He laughed, but she knew he wasn’t entirely kidding.

  She shrugged. “I’m not going to make either one of you do anything. He gets to choose what we play since he’s the guest.”

  Mason closed his left eye, pretending to think. “I’m a guest, too, ya know.”

  She waved her hand at her best friend, then lowered herself onto her knees to be more level with Henley.

  The longer pieces of his dark hair hung into his eyes, and she attempted to not admire him too obviously, but gosh was he pretty.

  “What would you like to play?” she asked, offering him a smile that showed off her teeth.

  “Hmm,” Henley hummed, looking at his options. “Legendary,” he finally stated.

  The chorus to a popular Panic! at the Disco song, “Don’t Threaten Me With A Good Time”, made both Henley and Everly turn to look at Mason on the couch. His crossed leg fell to the side, and he grinned. When he spoke, it almost sounded like a purr, “That’s my cue.”

  Everly’s eyes widened when Mason stood up to leave. Her hand rested her best friend’s knee. “Mason Thomas, you better not ditch us for a piece of ass.”

  The sternness in her voice had a hint of defeat, because she knew that she would never win against the temporary object of Mason’s affections.

  “You’re in good hands, Everly.” Mason flashed her a wink, and she felt her jaw tighten as her best friend disappeared behind the front door without even so much of a look back. The cliché butterflies-in-her-stomach happened as she looked back at Henley.

  Everly looked down at the carpet, her fingers pulling at a longer strand of the material. “Did I mention my best friend is an absolute flake and cares more about getting laid then following through on our plans?” She knew, deep down, he was trying to give them alone time, with the extra benefit of getting laid, of course.

  “He’s giving you space.” The corner of Henley’s lips twitched, and Everly glared at him.

  “Whatever. Mason’s always been this way. I’m used to him and his shenanigans,” she breathed, pulling her lips to the side for a second before continuing. “I just wanted you two to get to know each other,” she admitted, the all familiar pi
nk tint rising to her cheeks.

  Her eyes admired the length of his body. The muscles that were evident under the tight white material. The curves of the muscles in his arms as they held up his lean frame. The dip of his hipbones leading underneath the black waistband.

  “I’ve never really been alone with a guy that wasn’t Mason, especially when my parents are both gone.” The admission was a big one, especially given the tension that was obviously between them.

  Would she be able to hold her ground if things happened to escalate?

  “I promise not to make you uncomfortable,” Henley said, sitting up a little more to read her expression. “I’m still interested in playing your nerdy game. Can two people play?” He looked at her from beneath his eyelashes before averting his attention to the room around him. “Or we could watch a movie. I’ve got all night.”

  There was something in Henley’s eyes that told her she could relax. She felt her muscles lose the rest of the tension they were holding onto. When he sat up more, the realization of just how close he was caused her stomach to turn. Her eyes drifted over his face, counting all of the beauty marks she could see before she could manage to respond— eleven.

  “Two people can play.” Her eyebrows lifted, almost impressed that he was willing to still participate. After pulling the box into her lap, she opened it to start setting the game up. “Here’s the instructions, so you can read them while I get it ready.” She handed him the small booklet before spreading the game board onto the floor between them, scooting slightly to have enough space. “I’ll explain more as we go.”

  After getting everything in place, and dealing the appropriate cards, she pulled her knees to her chest and held her hand out in front of her. “So, I have four attack and two recruit points. That means I can get this Spider-Man card with the two points. It goes into my discard pile, then you replace the empty spot in headquarters with another hero from this deck.” She drew a Deadpool and put it down. “Now with my four attack, I can take out the villain I had to put out at the beginning of my turn. That goes in a separate stack so I can calculate my victory points at the end of the game.”

  His green eyes were focused on her, and she hoped he didn’t think she was too much of a dork. Regardless, she loved this game, and loved when she got to introduce new people to it.

  After a few turns, she noticed him feeling a little more comfortable with it and she gave him a big smile. “Do you hate it? You can be honest.” Her cheeks rose as her eyebrows lowered, trying to ensure him he could tell her the truth. “I won’t be mad.”

  When he responded, he shook his head. “I really like it, actually.” He laughed to himself. “You’re really fucking good at it, too.”

  She smiled at him, and their eyes met. Their gaze lingered, and it made her heart flutter in her chest. She looked down, tucking her long hair behind her ear as her face began to heat up.

  “You’re so beautiful.” His voice brought her eyes back to him, and she felt her lips part with no intention of speaking. No words came. Not a snarky response, not a way to shut it down. Just pink cheeks and wide eyes. She was in trouble.

  1

  More to This

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Henley

  Henley had done the impossible. Everly was at a loss for words, her lips parted as she stared at him stunned. Her reaction to his words meant that something had changed between them. She was used to him buttering her up, and she always had a quick response to blow him off. Nothing came as he admired her pale legs folded beneath her kneeling body. Her Spiderman shorts were short, and they had floral clusters that were pink, scattered around with the superhero’s head. Her black tank top was showing off her smooth looking skin, and he wanted to know what it felt like beneath his touch. She was close to him, sitting to his right with the corner of the board separating them.

  “No one’s ever told me I was beautiful before,” Everly spoke quietly in his direction.

  Henley lowered his eyebrows in disbelief. She was gorgeous. Her hair always flowed down her shoulders in the right way, framing her oval-shaped face and up-turned brown eyes. Her nose was a cute bulb, and her full lips were wide and plump. He shook his head, lifting himself to his knees.

  “I find that hard to believe.”

  “Frustrating. Snobby. But never beautiful.” Her lips and eyes were attempting to pull downward as she shared with him. Her cheeks were still pink, and he didn’t know if it was an extension of his compliment or her embarrassment.

  He moved onto his palms, closing the distance between them. He tried his best not to mess up her board as he attempted to meet her downward gaze. He lifted a hand and placed his index finger beneath her jaw, gently urging her to look at him. “I admire your self-respect.”

  Henley’s breaths were becoming more shallow as his stomach rose into his chest. Their lips were near enough to brush, and he could smell the faint scent of lavender coming off of her. A kiss felt inevitable. He didn’t want to push her, but she was making him dizzy with the anticipation of her taste.

  “May I kiss you, Everly?”

  Her eyelashes fluttered rapidly before the force of her lips into his took him by surprise. His entire body tensed and let go as their bodies lifted together, chests meeting, hands grasping. Henley hummed as his lips parted enough to deepen the kiss. She moved fluidly with him, breathing each other in as Henley guided her backward, toward the carpet, her legs extending outward. His hands grasped her hips and smoothed their way toward her ribs as she allowed him to lay on top of her, her knees falling apart to allow him space to rest his knees.

  Her nails dug into the thin material of his back as they parted to gasp for breath. Their eyes met a second, his eyes studying her flushed face before instigating another heated kiss, his tongue smoothing between her lips to explore beyond the swollen flesh against his.

  A frenzy was moving through him at an unstoppable pace, and he was drowning in his need to devour her. He had thought about it so much in the past couple of weeks, and he hadn’t allowed the tension to grow as thick as it had between them with anyone else. He didn’t know how to handle it.

  He was losing control of his lungs, and therefore, it forced him to move on to exploring her jaw and warm neck. The lavender scent grew stronger as he buried himself in her hair, her fingers pulling at his shirt, making it rise. He wasn’t sure if she intended to, but he decided to rid himself of it anyways. He broke their connection to peel the material from his skin, tossing it behind him somewhere. Her eyes were hidden beneath her heavy eyelids as she slowly lifted her gaze, admiring his bare skin until she reached his face. He smiled at her, his eyes feeling as heavy as hers looked.

  She mirrored his smile before he played with the hem of her tank top, inching it up as he watched her reaction to him. His hands were so big on her lean stomach, and he watched as they covered so much of her exposed skin, her chest shaking as she breathed harder.

  “Is this okay?” he asked quietly.

  Chewing back her lip, she nodded. He sat back on his feet and kissed where his hands had been, his fingers bunching the material more and more as he continued his journey up her torso. Where her underwire should rest, he found nothing, and he stilled. The curve of her breasts met his fingertips, and he inhaled shakily against her bellybutton.

  “Oh my,” he whispered. She lifted her neck to look down at him, her pupils so large and dilated. She wanted him.

  She tangled her fingers in his hair and pulled him up her body, their lips colliding again. His hands painted over any part of her legs, hips, and sides. He inhaled through his nose as everything else disappeared. His entirety was throbbing for her, and he knew she had to feel how badly he wanted her.

  “What a bloody waste of time.” Henley was lucky he heard Mason over the heartbeat in his ears. The sound of the front door closing quickly followed and he tried to untangle himself from Everly, pulling her shirt down as he did so. “Well then, I didn’t mean to interrupt.” Henley couldn’t see hi
m yet, but he could hear the smile in his voice.

  Henley avoided Mason’s gaze, instead focusing on how exposed his upper body was. Where was his goddamn shirt? Everly looked over at Henley as his tank top flew into his lap. He averted his gaze to her best friend, who was sitting down on the couch. He was wearing a grin, entirely amused by the situation at hand.

  “You’re back really soon…” Everly said, and Henley following the sound to watch her pull her legs into her chest. She wet her lips before she finished speaking, “I take it your night didn’t go quite as planned?”

  Henley pulled his shirt over his head and yanked back on his hair. He probably looked like a disaster. Everly looked like a fucking angel, her hair slightly messy and her lips swollen.

  Mason shook his head, his long hair falling in small pieces over the shaved sections. “Not at all, no. It was a complete bust.” He flashed them a playful smile, before adding, “At least, for me.”

  Henley looked at his lap before reaching for his long forgotten water bottle as Everly and Mason shared a different type of banter—sibling-like. “We were playing Legendary,” she said, clearing her throat slightly.

  “Mhm,” Henley heard Mason hum, the sensation of the cool water lubricating his throat and refreshing his overstimulated frame. “Whatever you say, Everly.”

  Henley clapped his hands together, looking to both of them. “How about we watch a movie?”

  They settled on Amityville: The Awakening, a horror movie that released in October the year before. One that none of them had seen. The game was cleaned up and put away. They had finished their pizza, and with the lights out, he had enough courage to drape his arm over Everly’s shoulders. She leaned into him, and he took a deep breath in. The emotions he felt with her differed from everything he was used to. The more intense his feelings grew, the more fear he had. Was he ready for everything he wanted with Everly?