“We are gonna figure this out, alright?” He holds me so close, my head against his pounding heart. “There’s gotta be some way to heal.”
I think maybe he’s right.
Out of the shower, we don’t bother getting dressed. We snuggle in the bed, my skin on his. I am so comfortable, feel so peaceful.
“I’ve had a really nice time with you tonight.” He scratches my head, plays with my hair.
“I guess I’ve experienced one of the infamous Bobby hookups.” I lift my head up to get a look at his face while I tease him.
“Nah, that wasn’t a hookup.” He smiles so big I get a glimpse of his dimple. “With you, it’s so much more.”
“It’s so much more?” My heart beats faster, craving his touch.
“Baby, I’m yours.” He draws a heart on my shoulder with his finger. “Nothin’ about tonight was casual. Not to me.” He rubs my shoulders. “Was it casual for you?”
“Not even a little bit.” I prop my chin against his chest. “Can we keep goin’?” I already want him again. Our first moments make me hungry to experience more. He’s right, I don’t need to feel bad about what happened with Cody. This is about me and Bobby now, a time for us. The way he held me and spoke so lovingly to me in the shower. The way our skin feels against each other. The way there is nowhere else I’d like to be.
“Please? I want you.”
He gives me that I’m touched you want that, baby smile. I lather kisses all over his skin.
This is the beginning of something incredible.
I can feel it.
The weekend is amazing. We spend all morning tangled in his sheets. I’ve never had this much sex, ever. Like, I didn’t know what I was missing out on, because this is glorious. I’m getting really sore from my muscles moving in new ways.
Around noon, I throw on his workout shorts and t-shirt and we go to eat at a little diner in town. I’m starving because I’ve been working my body like crazy, so I order a huge breakfast with pancakes, eggs, sausage, home fries and hot chocolate.
Bobby orders black coffee and scrambled eggs. He eats them straight without ketchup; low carb, low sugar. This is funny to me, because most athletes I know eat tons to keep up with their metabolism. I don’t know why he doesn’t, but he looks real good, whatever he is doing, and I’m not about to be his mom about his choice of food. I offer to share mine, though.
“You can have as much as you want.” I hold my fork out and tease him with a bite of pancakes dripping with maple syrup.
“Oh, baby, I’ve been havin’ as much as I want.” His tongue flicks the t sound in the word want with dreamy eyes, and I melt in them like they are an ocean. My pulse beats faster as his finger draws the shape of a heart on my wrist. Breath hangs in my lungs. How is he so fucking sexy?
He gives cash to the waitress after I’ve about licked the plate clean.
“What do we need to do today?” I ask to take my mind off of how amazing he is before I come on this public diner bench.
I’m so sore, yet all I want is to pound him again.
For a while, I wondered if I liked sex. It’s abundantly clear now that it depends on the partner. Because with Bobby, I fucking love every second of it.
“Laundry.” He shrugs and my heart patters in my chest because I’m falling so fast and hard that I love the way he talks about simple chores. I love everything he talks about.
Are we really together? Really? Together. Oh, I like the way those thoughts light up my insides. I like the way he lights up my insides. I want every bit of him inside of me right now. It’s an urge I need to satisfy. And we’ve only just started.
“Yeah, let’s go to my place and wash everythin’.”
“Laundromat is fine.” The corner of his lips raise. God, his smile. He looks really happy. Really, truly happy. Am I able to make him happy? A burning comes into my throat because I cannot handle how utterly perfect we are together. Who would have thought?
“Don’t be silly.” I shake my head. “We are not usin’ any more of your quarters so long as I’m your girlfriend.”
His eyes flicker in the light, a smile blooming on his rosing cheeks. I put my fingers on my lips. “I mean, if you want me to be your girlfriend.” I hiccup and a little squeak comes out of my lips.
“Do you think I’d want anythin’ else in this world?” His voice is so deep, so sincere, like I’ve triggered his emotions with my question. Those incredible blue eyes go straight into my soul as he brings my hand to his lips and kisses each knuckle. “I. Want. You. To. Be.” He says each word, between each kiss, from my pinky knuckle to my thumb. Flipping my hand over, he kisses my wrist long and slow. “Mine.” He looks up with the most wanting I’ve ever seen in those eyes.
I jump up from the booth and slide in beside him, because I cannot bear to be across the table. It’s too far when I need to be with him. My body craves that oneness. I’m not whole when we’re apart.
I smush onto his lap, laying a long wet kiss on his lips, not caring who can see. Cheers come from across the restaurant of people watching us.
An incandescence spreads through my lungs as I breathe in his scent. Laundry soap and Hollister cologne.
“Let’s get outta here,” he whispers, biting my earlobe.
“Please.”
He carries me to the car on piggy back, and I giggle the whole way. “Did you get enough breakfast, baby?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, good. You’re gonna need your strength.” He winks, setting me in the front seat of his truck.
I giggle more and think I haven’t ever laughed as much as I do when we are together. God, he makes me smile. Please, God, Jesus, Universe, let us keep bein’ good to each other. Because it feels so good to have someone in my life who takes care of me.
“When you gonna tell me how long you’ve had a crush on me?” I ask as his Tacoma heads to the apartment.
“I already told you.” He taps the steering wheel.
“No, you didn’t.”
“I said it’d been a while.” He smiles all cute. “I’ve liked you for a real long time, baby.”
He kisses my hand, and I drop the subject because damn, all I can do is look at that adorable face of his and drown again. Please, never throw me a lifejacket–I always wanna drown in these eyes.
“You hopin’ to go anywhere specific after graduation?” I know he’s got his last courses scheduled for spring semester.
“Anywhere they’ll take me.” There’s an insecurity in his voice I don’t think I’ve ever heard before.
“Wait, wait, wait. You worried about the draft?”
“Hell, yeah.” One hand grips the wheel and the other pulls on his long brown locks. He hasn’t cut it since I’ve been back, and man it's the perfect length of just a little bit longer than shaggy style. He’s not wearing a cap right now, but when he does, those adorable waves come out the bottom and it’s about the hottest look I’ve ever seen on a baseball player.
“Coach Conners is pretty confident from how he talked last night.” I put my hand on Bobby’s thigh. “I’m sure they’ll want you.”
“There’s no guarantee.”
Wow, he really doesn’t believe he’s gonna get drafted. I think for a while about what I can say. He’s one of the best players on the team. That he’s so worried isn’t what I expected. I just assumed he would be sure of himself. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
“There's always tryouts if you don’t make the draft, right?”
“Right,” he shakes his head. “It’s stupid. But, I always hoped I wouldda been drafted junior year. I played a good, strong season. Just wasn’t enough.”
“I’m glad you weren’t drafted last year.” I look at him, and when the light turns red, he turns to me. “Do you believe everythin’ happens for a reason?”
“No.”
“Well, I do. And I’m sure glad that you’re drivin’ me around Suncastle instead of livin’ your dream just yet.”
He scrunc
hes up his lips, and I can tell that he’s taking my words to heart.
“I’m glad we get to be here this weekend. Not sayin’ we never woulda been. But here we are, and I intend to make the most of it.” I lean my head toward him.
“We already are,” he says it so matter-of-fact.
And he’s right, because in his embrace I feel more love than I ever have.
And this is the beginning.
We gather up all the laundry from his place, and I smile, realizing that half of the clothes in his hamper are things I’ve worn. I get his sheets and towels, and we take a bit to clean up the apartment.
“Does Mickey even live here anymore?”
“Not hardly.”
“Is he stayin’ on the team? I’m more than upset with how little he talks to me. It’s been months since I’ve been back, and we’ve barely seen him. I’ve been stayin’ at his apartment for Christ’s sake.”
“Dunno. Think he is stayin’ on the team ‘cause I heard he switched programs.” Bobby throws the hamper in the bed of his truck, tucking a towel on top to keep the clothes from flying out while we drive. “He and I have never been tense, and he won’t tell me what the hell is goin’ on. So, I just kinda dropped it.”
“He’ll come around one of these days and finally tell us what’s up.” I shake my head, acknowledging that I wouldn't know how to handle this if I was Mickey’s roommate. “Good thinking.” I point to the towel. “Wouldn’t want to go chasing your lace panties all over Suncastle.”
“My lace panties?” He gives me a confused look.
“Well they’d be flying from your truck.” I hop into the driver’s seat.
He laughs. “Guess so.” He raises his eyebrows. “You’re drivin,’ then?”
“Buckle up.”
“I’m gonna need to.” He chuckles. “Probably need to go get a helmet. Or a neck brace for all the curbs you’re gonna climb.”
I start laughing because I find everything he says adorably funny. I thought Cody was hilarious, but it turns out Bobby was really the funny one the whole time. I can see that now. Cody played off him to enhance his jokes, like accent colors on a painting bringing out what was already there and making it shine. I remember them carrying on so much when we all hung out. It was the sound of happiness incarnate.
“You’re not so bad at this.” He’s talking about the way I drive his truck.
“Is that a complement?”
His eyes tease me, begging me to make some quip. When I don’t, he starts playing around with my chest. At the stoplight, he squeezes tight, pinching my nipple.
“Ow!” I move his hand off my boob with a playful screech. “Say you’re sorry.”
“Nah, I’m not gonna.” He giggles.
“You hurt me,” I tease, eyes alight with happiness. “Say you’re sorry, now!”
“Uh uh.” His smile is wide. I kiss him, and he shoves his tongue in my mouth. I bite it, and he jerks away. “Hey!”
“I wouldda bit harder, but you’re gonna need that tongue later.”
“Oh am I, huh? And what am I gonna need my tongue for?”
“To apologize.”
He laughs–really, truly laughs, and the sound is music to my ears.
We pull into my driveway but before I can open the truck door, he takes my hand.
“I’m sorry.” He kisses me like he means the apology. “I know I’m gonna hurt you.” His kisses fill my mouth with wanting. “But I’m never gonna mean to. And I’ll always be right here beggin’ for your forgiveness. Workin’ hard as I can to not make the same mistake twice.” The last kiss takes all my breath, feeling dizzy from the way he steals my air. I stare into those blue eyes for so long that goosebumps wiggle up my forearms, and I shiver.
“Let’s go, my li’l peach.” He hasn’t called me that before, but I do know that peaches are–in fact–his favorite thing on this earth. It feels really endearing that he referred to me that way.
The beach house is stuffy, so I leave open the front door with only the screen so we can get some fresh air.
“Did you think about what you’re gonna do with the office yet?” Bobby hangs from the doorframe like he’s gonna do a pullup.
“Yeah, I want to make it my art studio.”
“That’s a great idea, Lex!” His face lights up so bright I see the shimmer against his irises from the entryway chandelier.
“Can I help you move stuff around? Get it ready? All your canvas ’n such?” He steps into the empty room, apart from the furniture sitting there. “Where are they? It’s gotta be heavy, right? Lemme help you.”
“I would love help, actually. That would be great.” I follow him in. “I want to put this desk on the other wall. Move those shelves into the other room. Have space for a few easels to always be set up so I can paint whenever I like without havin’ to worry about all the setup.” I wave my hands in the air, showing where everything is going to go. Passion burns at my heart as he wraps his hands around my waist from behind, bringing his lips against my neck.
“I’ll help you with anythin’ you want, baby.”
“I know you will.” I’m breathless, he bends with me over the desk, his cock pressing against my ass in the sweetest depth of desire.
“Do you have the easels here?” He nibbles at my earlobe.
“No, they are still at my parents’ house.”
“Oh, let’s go get ’em.” He pulls back like we have to go this instant.
“You wanna drop everythin’ to drive over to Willardson right now?”
“Couldn’t think of anythin’ more worthwhile if I tried.” As much as he teases all the time, he’s dead serious.
“We don’t need to,” I whisper. “We will be there for the holidays. Can bring some back then.” Spinning around, I face him. “Will you come home for Christmas with me?” I didn’t know I was worried about it until the words left my tongue, spiraling in the air with all my uneasiness. “I mean, if you’d like–”
His lips take mine in long, deep kisses as he gently lifts me onto the desk. “I would love to go home, with my girlfriend, for Christmas.” The smile on his face is one I haven’t seen before.
I’ve seen his excited smile. His teasing smile. But this one, this one is different. It’s a smile that tells me it means the world to him that I asked.
It means the world to me that he wants to come.
We watch Arrested Development while the laundry washes, then go to switch the last load into the dryer. He leans casually against the washing machine. “I oughta take you to an arcade and spend all those quarters we just saved.”
“I know a better game we can play.” I can’t handle that he’s standing here fully clothed when I’m this hungry for him. I take his hands and lead him over to the dryer, warm kisses melting into his lips again and again.
I unbutton his jeans and bend down to lick the length of his cock. He gets so hard for me, so fast. God above, we’ve had so much sex in the last twenty-four hours.
I lick him for a while, his face pure delight when I glance upward. He pulls me to stand and slides down my panties and his workout shorts I’m wearing. Then he puts me on the dryer, my bare ass against the warm metal. Positioning inside of me he thrusts, my body vibrating with the shifts of the drying clothes.
“Oh,” I gasp, because this feels so fucking good. He’s everything I want, everything I need.
“I never knew you’d be this amazin’.” I can’t breathe, my hips working into his motions in a sweet symphony. Heat rushes through me and I come, spilling all over the dryer.
He smiles. “That’s it baby, just like that.” His face is loveable satisfaction, rocking his hips as I come again, in time with him. I’ve never felt this close to another human before. All I feel is him. The way he rocks, the way my body hugs him, trembling in aftershocks.
Please, can we keep doing this for the rest of our lives?
23
BOBBY
We just finished the best weekend of my entire life
. Everything was perfect. All about us. I didn’t even check my phone.
With Monday comes all the stress of life again. My mind is racing because today is my appointment with Dr. Rogers. He happened to be out of town the week Mindy learned about my eating disorder. I got his first available appointment. And that’s soon. Too soon. I am so fucking far from being ready for this.
“Told my mom you’re stayin’ over for the holidays.” Lexie sits on the bed, refreshing Suncastle College’s webpage a dozen times to see if her exam scores are posted yet. “Goddammit could they just post the scores so I can stop stressin’ over them?”
“I’m pretty sure you aced them all.” I offer her a smile.
“Not Clinical Eval.” She shakes her head. “Dr. Riche has been hard on us all semester. I just have to come out with a B.” She crosses her fingers.
“I would be surprised if you came out below that.” I throw some clothes into my duffel bag and go into the kitchen for my protein powder.
Gazing at my phone lock screen, I realize it’s time.
“I gotta go, baby.” I lean down and kiss her.
“Where ya goin’?”
Oh, shit. I haven’t told her. “I have a therapy appointment.”
Her eyes go wide and her mouth drops open. She shakes it off, like she’s trying to recover from the shock. “Oh, okay, I’ll see you in like an hour then?”
“Um, probably. I’m not sure.” I let out a deep breath, worried she will catch on to the why for this appointment. Don’t know what the hell I’m going to do if she does. Lying to her isn’t an option. “It’s my first time. Wish me luck.” I stuff my phone in my pocket, doing my best to act normal.
A Game Like Ours: Suncastle College Book One Page 17
