by J Marie
“You’re a good guy, Brooks. Even if you do snoop, what are you going to do? Go through my underwear drawer? Wear it on your head? You know the terms of jerking off. Just be warned if I see it, I’m joining in.”
“Don’t tempt me, woman.” I blink, confused about where that comment came from… She doesn’t say anything else but gives me a smile and a wink.
I’m glad that she trusts me with this. I feel like I’m making a huge deal out of this, but I’ve been into Mia since the first time she offered me a blowjob (not literally). Mia will be in my proximity all the time now. Well, not always her, but her stuff. I sound like a creep in my own mind, but I don’t really care.
“What’s that look for?” Her question pulls me from my dirty musings.
I cough to cover up the arousal clogging my throat. “Just thinking about later.” When I can jerk off in the privacy of the bathroom and think about you while I do it. Screw my bedroom only. I think to myself.
“Oh, big plans?”
The biggest.
“Apparently, I need to go shopping.”
The baby blue eyes sparkle with amusement. “Lucky you. I will try super hard not to be jealous that you’re out shopping for normal people stuff while I’m dealing with drunkards.”
“Well, if you want, I can wait until you can come with me. Ya know to make sure I get everything I need? Say sometime this next week between our shifts?” I want to erase the comment she had earlier about not being around most of the time. I want to be around her constantly.
She seems like she’s debating it, so I feel the need to put on the pressure. “Look, I am a grown-ass man who is just asking for some guidance, please.”
She still hasn’t agreed so I decided to pull out the big guns. “Pleassseeeee.” I stick out my bottom lip, imitating a child, but when her eyes glance to my mouth, her look is anything but childlike and sexy as hell. I don’t mind it one bit.
She rolls her eyes and then mumbles, “Okay, fine. I guess I’ll go shopping with you, weirdo. If you insist.”
Blood pumps through my veins and I want to dance with glee, but that wouldn’t be very manlike, so I shrug. “It’s a date then!”
Her jaw drops with a garbled exhale. “Yeah…no.”
I’m pretty sure this attraction isn’t one-sided by far. Unless I’m blind, Mia is giving me tiny hints and comments that show interest. They sure as hell make my dick twitch. I dig her naughty eye language and her inapproapriate conversations.
As if reading my dirty thoughts, she reaches up and runs her fingers through her long strands of rainbow-colored hair, the movement causing her shirt to rise up. I’m given a brief flash of a pink stoned belly button piercing, and I have to immediately adjust my semi. Shit, just a brief glimpse and I’m treated to a sexy little piercing that turns me on faster than I can swallow.
“It was a joke. Just a joke, geez.” I put my hands out in a non-offensive manner. Her reaction is a jab to my gut, so I look away. I don’t want her to see my face.
“Uh huh,” she says, eyeing me suspiciously.
“Alright, one adult helping another adult, that’s it.” I tell her honestly because I’ll take what I can get. I’m not entirely sure where the boundaries are with us. I’d like to know, but I’m also not sure if I want to know.
“This is a friend and roommate, possibly benefits thing…” She points between us, and even though it makes me sad I get it. Obviously, something caused this reaction in her and even though I want to get to the bottom of whatever that is, it won’t happen today.
“It’s all up to you, Mia. Your apartment, your rules,” I say, motioning around us.
She smiles. “Now that’s something I can work with, but it’s our place, not just mine anymore.” On that note, she does one more solitary glance at the clock. “Okay, I really gotta go this time. I’ll see you on the flip side.”
“Have a good night at work, roomie!” I holler after her as she runs out the door. Now to find something to do to occupy my time…
Holy sex god, Brooks is hot as fuck. The forgetting to wear a tee shirt. The grey sweatpants. The freaking dick print. Lord have mercy, you don’t even understand…
And don’t get me started on that sweet personality and charm. I almost can’t handle it. There must be something wrong with me because I’ve never been this attracted to someone that isn’t a glorified asshole.
I mean, look at any one of the flings I’ve had. My type is much more tattoos, drunk sex, and getting high. Sneaking out of bed before the other person wakes up in the morning. Not knowing the name of the person you slept with the night before. I’ve been drooling over Brooks since he stepped into Topsy Turvy a year ago. The shit thing is that I have no idea where we stand. We set boundaries and rules but haven’t actually talked about what happens if something goes down between us. What happens if we rock this boat, get a little freaky between the sheets?
My nether regions are begging me to turn this into more than just a roommate’s thing. No mercy full on begging. To va-va-voom him. I’ve given up the facade of turning away when he catches me looking. Yep, I’m not even trying to keep my eye ogling to a minimum. Every morning he glides past me, bare chested. Arm muscles, abs, and pecs on full display for my wandering eyes.
Man candy Monday has turned into an everyday occurrence. And, somehow, my mouth always speaks before my brain can function enough to tell me no. Nope, my lips open and just flap unconsciously about how sexy he is. I used to tell him to buy a camera and now it’s me questioning it. He just waggles his eyebrows and walks away. It’s really unfair how attractive his face is… It should have zits or something…
I want to know who’s playing a joke on me. Guys like Brooks just don’t exist in the real world, and if they do, I’ve never met one. Maybe he’s really an invisible friend and if that’s the case I should be really nervous about the state of my mind.
The broad arrows that point to the happy trail that lines his stomach and dips below his pants makes my mouth water and me light-headed.
Damn, I’m in so much trouble with this one. Like lock me up now because I’m yelling timber, it’s going down.
Brooks seems to be just as into me as I am into him, yet I wonder why he never seems to make a move. I haven’t exactly told him no to other things happening, but for some reason, when things get too intense, he always backs away first or breaks the silence. He’s told me he doesn’t have much experience with women, but that can’t be right because look at him.
Who wouldn’t want to ride him like a stallion? Or maybe, he’s a virgin and needs a little nudge with the suggestions.
Avoiding the lingering stares, he caresses my body with is very… hard. Yeah, there’s no hiding the effect I have on him. I secretly high five myself every time I see him adjust himself. He’s not a man of many words, but his actions tell all. Knowing he shares in these feelings makes me want to know why he holds back from me so much. Does he turn into a caveman? I bet he goes all Dom.
God, why does that make me want it even more?
I’m trying to focus on being unfazed by him and failing miserably. Brooks is calm and collected with this confidence that I’ve never seen before. Me? I’m a blubbering mess of an individual. It’s funny how our personalities change over time.
I used to think of myself as this badass, tattooed chick who smokes weed and paints on the side. Now, I find myself more like I have a crush and can’t hide my fangirling over him type. Which is a problem in itself. I’ve never let a man affect me this much. Maybe eventually, I’ll drive him bonkers and he’ll realize that moving on is better than sticking around with the basket case that is currently me.
But I can’t think about that right now while we’re strolling through Suzie’s Discount Mart. We should have gone a week ago, but time flies when you’re having fun.
It’s my favorite store in this town—filled with odds and ends. Everything from painting supplies and crafts to home goods. All the things any college student woul
d forget at home and have to buy. It’s my happy place. Brooks walks quietly beside me as I ooh and aah over tiny things along the way. A display of new oil paints stops me in my tracks. I never purchase anything other than black, but I like to look anyhow. Maybe one day, another color will speak to my soul, requesting to spice up my life just a tad.
“What color would you pick?” I ask, turning to Brooks.
He gives me a weird face. “I don’t paint.”
“I know. Just go with me here. If you were to pick any color off the rack, what would it be?”
“Blue.”
I lift my brow. “Why blue?” I’m not really surprised by this color choice, but I’m curious why he picked it out of the multiple color options available. The few tidbits of information I’ve gleaned from him include a talent for making drinks, being extremely tidy around the apartment, a lover of meatloaf, and always picking something I’m never expecting.
He keeps me guessing. I don’t know much about him, but the more time I spend with him, the more I want to know.
“Blue exhibits confidence, integrity, trust, and reliability. Things that I want you to see in me as we live together. Plus, it’s my favorite color, and since it’s a part of your hair color, I’m guessing it means something to you as well.”
SWOON.
I bite my lip, not entirely sure how to respond to that comment. I’ve never had someone be this nice to me without an end game.
“Would you like me to buy it for you?” he asks, his eyebrows lifted in a question. “I’m going to need a new painting to hang up in my room and nothing I’ve seen so far compares to what I’ve seen on your walls at home.”
The way he says home makes me wish it were true. A real home. Not just this one in which we play roommates forever.
No, Mia. Stop thinking like that. You’ve seen what happens when people fall under the influence of love. Love isn’t a thing, just a figment of a fairy tale lost long ago.
“We’re supposed to be shopping for you.”
“We are… I’m just asking you to paint me something. See, it’s still for me, but we’ll both get something out of it.”
My belly dips at the fact that he wants me to paint something just for him, using his favorite color. I’ve never painted anything for another person specifically, but how can I refuse that sweet request?
An image of him standing behind me, helping me paint in nothing but our underwear flashes through my head, and I mentally clear my throat. I tug at the collar of my shirt, suddenly feeling overheated like a woman in menopause. Is this shirt closing in on my throat? “Um… ah…sure.”
“Glad you’re saying yes.” The smile on his face makes my legs weak, and I take a deep breath to compose myself.
We move onto sheets, and he goes straight for the cheap ones. I’m shocked they legit have the right size for that massive ass bed. “Alright, I think these will work for me.”
“Brooks, you need a better sheet count than that. How are you supposed to talk a lady into staying with you overnight if you only have 150 thread count sheets?”
I watch him swallow a gulp and his face blushes slightly as he ponders my statement. I don’t really want to see him with another woman, but I have to be realistic about the fact that it may happen. “The sheets are for me… and I highly doubt I’ll ever have a lady spending the night with me. Other than you… on the other side of my wall.”
I roll my eyes and start to retort his comment, but then shut it. I’d like to spend the night with him. It’s obvious we’re both into each other. The sexual tension is killing me slowly. I can’t stop thinking about him.
Every time he’s in the shower, I wonder how the water looks skimming in and out of his ripped abs and muscular arms. I want to drool. I’ve seen him without a shirt on, and that’s enough to drive me crazy. Pretty soon, I’m going to have to issue a “full clothing at all times” ordinance at the apartment, or I’m going to jump him so hard.
I started watching him after he moved in. He’s a true gentleman. Brooks is one of those people that continually cares about everyone else first. The first to help someone out at the bar. The first to open the door for you. He doesn’t complain when he has to take a cold shower.
His eternal optimism about me is almost hard to deal with at times. He’s also forever the last to complain when life is too hard to handle. He sits for hours and watches me paint while I smoke a joint, but never once mentions it.
Little touches here and there. I can’t manage to figure him out. He seems like he’s never been on his own, but he’s lived in his own place for over a year.
I look away, fighting the urge to feel anything for him more than just roommates. I’ve seen what happens when two people fall in love. I’ve seen the worst love can do to people. I wouldn’t call it love. Love… it’s been misconstrued into a fairy tale for so long that people start to believe in it as much as they believe in Cinderella. But the truth is… fairy tales are for children because when real life sets in, you realize that it was all just a lie.
Macy, my best friend, used to talk about her parents and how her father worshipped the ground her mother walked on. That seemed like love.
Not the messed up household I grew up in. My father ruined the fantasy of love when he killed my mother’s spirit by cheating on her. The fighting between them was day in and day out. It seemed to always be the blame game. I wondered why one of them didn’t just leave. They didn’t seem to care what it did to me either. Do you think any child wants to grow up in a household like that? I sure as hell didn’t. Or maybe it was the guy my sophomore year of college that told me he loved me and then ripped my heart from my chest after taking my virginity.
Whenever I bring up Brooks’ past, he brushes it off. I get it. We all have our own skeletons to bear. He may be reluctant to share with me, and for now, I’ll allow it. Lord knows I don’t want him digging up my past either. Those graves should stay filled.
“Alright, well, we’ve successfully gotten everything on your list. Anything else you need? Toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, condoms…”
“Nope, I think I’m good.”
“You sure?”
He quirks an eyebrow at me. “Yes… is there anything you need while we’re here? Tampons, body wash, deodorant…”
I give him the side-eye. “Why did you list things off?”
A smirk graces his face. “I thought we were comparing notes on what men and women use as toiletries?”
“Touché, my friend. Touché.” Brooks has sass. Who would have thought?
I bounce on my toes, trying to not feel so awkward about the silence that follows. “So, what now? More shopping? Or something else?”
His eyes met mine and his smile grew even wider. “What are my options for something else?”
Cheeky bastard.
“Food? I’m starving actually.”
His dark chocolate eyes sparkle. “Whatever you want, Mia.”
We step outside into the sweltering heat that is mid-August. My shirt is sticking to me, and I can feel a bead of sweat tracing its way down my back. Popping my cherry red sunglasses on, I look over at Brooks.
His eyes find mine briefly before he chuckles and slides a pair of bright green sunglasses over his. “Hey, you okay over there?” I can’t handle not staring at him for a minute. I don’t get it. It’s like I’m in a man daze and I can’t shake myself out of it. A week later, and it seems like my confidence is slipping like it’s trying to run on marbles, and his confidence is building like he can walk on water. It’s driving me insane. Brooks touches the small of my back, and I realize I never responded.
“Yeah… um good.” I fan my face. “I’m just hot.”
“Every single part of you, darlin.’” It’s then he realizes my meaning. “Oh, the weather, it’s a warm one today for sure.” He swallows roughly and turns away. Not that I can see his eyes behind those shades anyhow.
I rise for my day with Mia on the brain and the dream I had about her la
st night. A shower will do me some good. Mia won’t be home yet, so I figure I’ll take the opportunity to go ahead and get my strokes in while she isn’t around. She told me early on to only jerk it in my room with the door closed, and I want to test those limits so badly. But… I’m not sure if she’d actually follow through with her threat or if I would just be the awkward one sitting with his dick out.
Stepping in the bathroom, I slowly start removing my clothes. My half semi is already tenting my pants just thinking about Mia. God, I’m in so much trouble. I should be ashamed, thinking half of the thoughts that I have about her. If I was still living at home, I’m sure I’d feel downright sinful thinking these thoughts, but if it’s about Mia, I’ll gladly be a sinner for the rest of my life, no repentance.
I turn the shower to hot, wanting to feel the burn. Hot ringlets of water drip down my body biting into my skin as my hand finds my dick. Soft flesh covers my pipe, and I need some relief. I stroke myself once and then again. Thoughts of Mia sucking me down her throat. Thoughts of touching Mia naked. Her screaming my name as I go down the apex between her thighs. The pressure’s building, and I can feel myself on the verge of coming early when the door to the bathroom flies open, and I hear Mia’s voice.
“Hey, Brooks. You okay?” Mortification pours off me as I realize I’ve been standing here thinking about the very person that has now interrupted my jerk session.
“Um… yeah. One sec.” I look down at my dick, willing it to go down. But it’s clearly not leaving the fully satisfied position it currently resides in. Not even thinking about my grandma is doing it for me this time. My brave thoughts about testing limits earlier are gone in the blink of an eye.
“Brooks, are you jerking it in there? I said, hey, like five times… Dude, what are you doing in here?”
The shower curtain flies open, and my hands jerk to cover the length of my dick. Her eyes go straight to my dick, and her eyebrows raise.
“Well, looks like I walked in on a fun time.” She winks at me. “Need a little help with your friend there, Brooks?”
