***
Waking up next to her was the perfect way to start my day. She was still cradled in my arms the way she had been when we fell asleep. Neither one of us had moved all night. Maybe subconsciously we were afraid to and our bodies wouldn't allow the separation, even during sleep. Maybe it was because she just felt so good that my arms and heart refused to let her go.
“Good morning, sweetheart,” I whispered in her ear.
She stirred a bit and let out a slight moan. “Good morning, my love.”
My love ... that sounded so perfect. I loved it. I squeezed her tighter as I kissed her on top of the head.
“How did you sleep?” I asked.
“Amazingly,” she said as she rolled over to face me. “How about you?”
“I slept well with you in my arms. It was nice.” I kissed her gently. “So what would you like to do today?”
“You have rugby today, don't you?” she asked.
Shit, I’d hoped we could spend the day together. “Oh yeah, I had forgotten about it.”
“How about you go to practice and then you can come over this evening and we can order a pizza and maybe watch a movie.” Her soft hand was tracing my jawline, and I could feel my dick getting hard. I wanted her, but the time would come. With a fresh start, I wanted us to take things slowly.
“Sounds like a plan,” I agreed with a smile. “Eliza, one of the reasons I love you is that you don't ever want to go out and spend money, or try and meet celebrities or socialites. You seem to just want me for me.”
“I don't care who you know or how much money you have. None of that impresses me. What impresses me about another person is how kind they are to others, how loving and gentle they are. Those are the qualities I look for in human beings, not material things. I wouldn't care if you had nothing—I would still love you because you are the sweetest guy I've ever met, and you have treated me with the utmost respect.”
I felt terribly undeserving of her kind words. I wasn’t the sweet guy she had just described; I was a prick who had let my best friend dictate who I dated, I’d let my best friend hurt Eliza. It was something for which I might never forgive myself.
“I don't feel like I deserve all of that, but I like way you see me,” I said to her through guilt-laced words.
“But you do,” she said as she sat up. “And one day, you’ll see yourself just as I see you. I will see to it.”
A quick peck on the cheek and she was up and on her way to the bathroom. “I'm going to grab a shower; I'll be out in ten minutes,” she called out.
“Okay, but I'll be going soon after you get out.”
I stretched out on her bed and smiled as I looked at the ceiling. I was back where I belonged, and nothing or no one was going to ruin it for us. I heard my phone buzz as it vibrated on the nightstand. Picking it up, I noticed that it was Clayton calling. I declined the call and waited for the inevitable voicemail I knew he would leave. Twenty seconds later I saw the prompt on the screen. I pressed the button and listened to him as he asked where I was and if I was going to make it to practice.
I quickly shot him a text that I would be there in a few minutes.
I stood and walked to the bathroom door that was open. I could see Eliza's perfect figure through the glass shower door. The soapy lather as it ran over her large tits was enough to cause my cock to swell.
“Hey, that was Clayton calling and hurrying me up to practice. I think I'm gonna take off,” I said.
“Okay, hold on, let me give you a kiss.”
When she turned off the water and opened the door, leaving her naked body exposed to me, I thought I would come in my pants right there. She was gorgeous, especially wet and soapy. Her nipples were hard and standing erect just asking to be kissed. My dick was fighting to get out, but it wasn’t the time.
“Wow, you are amazing,” I said as I looked her up and down.
She smiled. “Thank you. You can touch if you like.”
She stepped out of the shower, her naked perfection standing so close I could smell the scent of her bodywash.
“Eliza, I want to, really I do. But if I take you this morning, I won’t be able to give you the attention you deserve.” I hated to deny her, but there was no sense in rushing. “I’ve got rugby practice, remember?”
She grinned and tiptoed to kiss me. Her firm breasts were pressing against my bare chest. “I do understand, but I thought I would offer,” she said as she turned around and grabbed a towel. Her round ass seemed to beg me to grab it, but it was all I could do to control myself. I wanted her, but for more than just the physical act of sex. I wanted all of her—heart, body, mind and soul. I was bound and determined to do things right from there on out.
“Call me after practice, before you come over,” she said as she bent over and dried her legs.
“I will,” I barely muttered. I feared that I was going to have to jack off before practice just to get my dick to go down.
“Drew,” she said as she stood and tossed the towel into the laundry basket. “I love you and I'm so happy that things have worked out for us.”
I smiled and gave her naked body one more look before leaving. “I love you too. And I'm happy as well.”
I put on my shirt, shoes and grabbed my keys and left. In the Rover, I exhaled a breath of relief. One dilemma was solved, now I had to set Clayton straight.
Chapter 20
Eliza
“Mum,” I said after my mum answered the phone.
“Eliza, dear, how are you today?” My mother's voice was sweet and full of love for me.
“Oh, Mum, I'm so happy!” I exclaimed. “Drew and I worked things out last night.
“Sweetie, I'm thrilled for you!” she said loudly.
“Please don't say anything too loudly. I'm afraid that Daddy will hear you.”
“It's okay, honey; he's at the office. He said that he had a lead on some big story, so he went in early today.”
I rolled my eyes at the thought of my father following yet another unsuspecting celebrity to get photos or dirt on them. But I didn't call Mum to talk about my father and his career. I had more important things to tell her.
“Mother, thank you for the advice you gave to me. It is because of you that I even called Drew again and that we talked. I love you more than you know.”
My words were sincere; my mother had always been my favorite between my two parents. My father's cheating had left me with a less than a favorable view of him. I thought him to be selfish and cowardly for lying to her for so long.
“Eliza, I can't tell you how happy that makes me. Honey, I'm so glad that you worked things out. You know that I want the best for you that life has to offer,” she said as her voice began to break.
She sounded as though she was on the verge of tears. My mother had always carried a special kind of love in her heart for me, one that was tender and understanding. She had been harder on my sister because there was such a big age gap between us, and by the time I came along, she was more patient as a parent. I felt bad at times because it was almost as if I was her favorite child.
“I can't wait for you to meet him, Mum. You'll love him as I do.”
I truly wanted her to get to know him as I did, and I knew that he wanted to know my family as well. But meeting my father wasn’t going to come anytime soon. That was something that would have to wait as long as possible, if it ever happened at all.
“Honey, I'm very happy for you. If this is really what you want in your life, then I wish you all the best with Drew.”
After exchanging goodbyes, we hung up. I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders just by being able to share it with my mother.
Chapter 21
Drew
After parking my car, I glanced over and saw Clayton had parked a few spaces down from me. I decided that it was best if I talked to him before we got inside the stadium. The less people that were around, the better it would be for everyone involved. I took a deep breath and le
t it out before I opened my door. It wasn't going to be easy, but it was time I stood up to the bloody bastard.
He walked toward me with an angry sneer on his face.
“Hey, man,” he said as he held his fist out to bump mine. “No need to thank me.”
I knew exactly what he was talking about. He had called several times over the last couple days, but I didn’t want to talk to him on the phone. I needed this face to face with him so he could see how angry I was with him.
I stood there, glowering at Clayton with contempt. Who was this guy who stood in front of me? I hardly recognized him anymore because he had taken on personality traits that didn't fit with him at all. He was behaving in ways that wasn’t in keeping with the Clayton I had always known and been close to.
“We need to talk, Clay,” I said as calmly as I could. The last thing I wanted to do was upset him and have him going off and causing a scene. I had hoped we could keep this as civil as possible.
“Oh? You have some juicy details you'd like to share with me?” he asked, and then laughed like the devil.
I was holding back my anger as best I could. “No,” I said as I shook my head. “No details.”
We started walking toward the stadium, and I stopped. “Clayton, I need for you to keep what happened with me and Poppy a secret.”
He grinned. “Of course, I'll keep it a secret, bro. What do you take me for?”
“I mean, if this got out and my mum found out, well, she would be upset. Edward was the playboy of the family, and she always thought of me as her golden boy, so this would really get her tied in knots, you know.”
I was fully aware that Clayton could spin the kiss anyway he wanted to and get Poppy to go along with it. The last thing I wanted or needed was for that lie to get out to the press.
“I got your back, bro. Don't worry.” He winked at me when he spoke as if we now shared something dirty. “She's good though, right?”
I shrugged and nodded. “I don't like to kiss and tell.”
“Come on, Drew, it's me.” He punched me lightly on the arm. “She can suck a dick like no one else can, I'll give her that.”
I couldn't believe that he was talking about her as if she was some kind of prostitute or someone who didn't have a heart or matter. “Clayton, it wasn't like that, okay. I mean, yeah, we kissed but nothing else happened.”
He looked at me and grinned. “Come on, Drew,” he said as he stepped closer to me. “Poppy told me everything.”
Nothing I said was going to cause him to believe me because he thought he knew the true story when he didn’t know shit. He wanted to believe that we now shared some dirty secret that he could use as ammunition against me in the future.
“I swear, Clayton, I’m telling you the truth!” I said, almost yelling.
His facial expression was nothing short of pure confusion. “What are you saying?”
“I'm saying that I didn't sleep with her.”
He shook his head in almost disgust. “You mean you had that hot piece of ass there in your bed and you didn't get any of it?”
“No, I’m saying she never even stepped foot in my condo. I put her ass out of the Rover when she kissed me because it didn’t feel right. She’s not Eliza.”
“Bro, what's wrong with you?”
His face changed from confusion to a sudden realization of why I didn't take advantage of the situation with Poppy.
“Oh no,” he said as he pointed at me. “No, don't tell me that you passed on Poppy's big ass because you are in love with that piece of trash Eliza?”
Now he was hitting below the belt. “I’m in love with Eliza. We may not have been talking at the time when Poppy kissed me, but it felt wrong, and I couldn’t risk losing Eliza just to get a piece of ass.”
“What do you want with that poor commoner? She’s nothing but a pauper, Drew! She’ll take you for everything you have.”
His words hit me like a bullet in my chest. The anger that rose up immediately couldn't be contained. “Clayton, shut the hell up!!!” I screamed.
He stepped closer to me. With a look of almost true pain on his face, he shook his head in disgust. “Why can’t you see it the way we all do?”
We? Who was we? How many others hated the woman I loved? I thought Clayton was the only one with a problem, but now he’s saying we. I didn’t have time nor the energy to even try to find out. I wanted Eliza in my life, and I was at the point of completely giving up my friendship with Clayton if he continued to berate her.
“Clayton, trust me, you don’t want to go there with me. I won’t allow you to degrade her or try to come between us anymore.”
We were toe to toe, nose to nose by that point. He let out a laugh that was evil and vile. “So, now you’re defending that piece of trash? And to me? ME?!”He shook his head and took a step back. “Date her, hell, marry her and have a few little pieces of shit trash babies while you’re at it.”
That was it! He’d gone too far. My blood was boiling in my veins, causing heat to rise from every inch of my body. Before I truly realized what I was doing, I lunged toward him, tackling him to the ground.
“Get off me, asshole!” he screamed as he tried to push me back.
“Stop talking about her like that, Clayton!” I yelled as I pinned him to the pavement.
“Drew, she's nothing!”
That was all it took; I'd had enough of him degrading Eliza. I pulled back my right fist and landed a hard punch to his nose as my left hand pinned him to the ground. Blood sprayed all over the both of us. Clayton wrapped his hands around my neck and began to choke me. The harder he squeezed, the more punches I threw. I was beating my best friend, my confidant, but at that point I didn't care. I was so angry that I honestly could have hurt him terribly, or worse, maybe even killed him.
“Stop it!!” I heard a voice scream loudly.
I looked back to see Riley running up behind me. He grabbed my jacket and pulled me from Clayton.
“What the hell is going on?” he said as he wrestled me to keep me from getting my hands on Clayton.
Clayton struggled to his feet and wiped his bleeding nose. “Just a little tussle, that's all. I can handle it from here.”
I was breathing hard, my heart beating as if it would burst at any moment. I wasn't done with Clayton yet but Riley was holding me tight.
“Let me go, Riley,” I said in a tone so angry that it scared me. I knew it was best if he kept his grip on me. I was afraid of what I might do to my friend if given another opportunity.
“Would one of you tell me what is so bad that you are at the point of killing each other?” Riley again questioned.
“Go ahead, Clayton, tell him what you've said.” I was trying to get my breath and steady my nerves. My body was wired, and I felt as if the adrenaline could cause me to run a hundred miles without stopping. I was high on anger and raw emotions.
“He’s pissed because I don’t like Eliza. I’m only looking out for my best friend. Eliza Noble is nothing more than a piece of trash that you scrape off the bottom of your shoe.”
My blood boiled hotter, and I managed to jerk loose from Riley's grip, lunging at Clayton and tackling him to the ground.
“You bastard!!” I said as I held him in a choke hold.
“Stop it,” Riley screamed out, trying to separate us. “Drew, let him go. You don’t want to do this,” he pleaded. The look in his eyes was one of sheer terror. He seemed truly afraid that I would kill Clayton. The worst part was that I probably could have if left to my own devices.
“Ughh, ughh.”
Clayton struggled to breathe as I tightened my grip around his throat.
His face was nearly purple, his eyes bulging and red. If I kept my grip around him, he’d pass out, or worse, I’d kill the bastard. I wouldn’t have his blood on my hand, so I let him go.
He rolled over onto his stomach and sounded as if he was throwing up.
“You’ll pay for this, Drew,” he said, his raspy voice barely above
a whisper. I had hurt him, and I felt badly about it, but the prick deserved it for thinking he could control my life.
“Are you okay,” Riley asked him as he bent down and touched his back.
“I'm alright,” Clayton said as he sat up.
“You guys need to work this out.”
I agreed with him. We did need to talk, but Clayton wasn't open to hearing anything good that I had to say about Eliza, and I wasn't willing to allow him to talk shit about her anymore. We seemed to be at an impasse.
“There's nothing to talk about. If he wants her, then he's giving up all of us,” Clayton said as he wiped the blood from his nose. “Isn't that right, Riley?”
“Man, don't drag me in on this,” he said.
Clayton looked up at him. “But you talked shit about her too.”
I wasn't really surprised by that piece of information. After all, Clayton was the ringleader of our group and whatever he said, everyone pretty much followed.
“I did, just being a bully asshole just like you, Clay. But I had no idea that Drew was this crazy about her, and it's clear that he's in love with her.”
At least Riley understood how I felt. “Thanks, bro,” I said as I looked up at him.
“I can't believe you fucking turned on me,” Clayton said. “I thought that we were all of the same mind on this one.”
Riley took a deep breath and let it out. “Clayton, have you ever been in love?”
He furrowed his brow and shook his head as he chuckled. “What? Why does that matter?”
“Because, if you had been then you'd know exactly how Drew is feeling right now and how important Eliza is to him. Why don't you just let him decide for himself who he loves and stop trying to run his life?”
I was thankful that Riley had come along and found us. Maybe he could get it through Clayton's closed mind how I felt about Eliza.
“You've lost your bloody mind too,” Clayton said as he stood to his feet. “I can't believe that you sided with him over that trash.”
“Clayton, I'm sorry you feel that way. I truly am. I love you like my own brother, but I have to do what's best for me and my life. I'm going to be with Eliza, whether you or anyone else likes it or not.”
Royal Academy Page 15
