by L A Cotton
“Babe, let’s go,” Jason said, pulling her away. “Merry Christmas, Mya, Asher. We’ll see you guys in a couple of days.”
“Have a good one, man.” Ash fist bumped him, and then Cam, before burying his face in my hair.
“Ash?” I whispered. “What are you doing?”
“Smelling you. You smell so fucking good, I could eat you.”
“What are you waiting for then?”
He pulled back, his eyes hooded, nostrils flared. “You sure about this?”
“Do you want to unwrap your present or not?”
Asher tipped his head back and groaned, the sound reverberating deep in his chest. I chuckled softly, enjoying teasing him. The air crackled around us, charged with anticipation.
My hairs stood on end as he took my hand and led me to the door. “What if someone sees?”
“At this point, I honestly couldn’t give a fuck.”
The house was emptying now, the music mellowing. “It’s almost midnight,” I said, noting the time on the wall clock as we left the house and stepped into the cool December air.
Asher was quiet as we walked across his vast yard toward the lake. I’d only been out here a handful of times, but the Bennets’ yard never failed to take my breath away. It was the stuff of movies. A huge pool, sun loungers dotted around the edge, a huge canopied area for the summer. Beyond that, a neatly mowed lawn that ran all the way down to the small lake where they had their own jetty and, just as Jason had said, a boathouse.
“It looks... abandoned,” I said, noting the dark building hidden beyond some trees.
“It doesn’t get much use these days but when I was a kid I was always out here. My grandpa, my mom’s dad, loved to tinker on the boat. I’d spend hours watching him from the mezzanine.”
We reached the door and Asher paused, curving his hand around my neck and drawing me close. His lips found mine in an urgent kiss. “Thank you,” he breathed. “For being here tonight.”
“I’m glad I came. Your dad might be a complete ass, but your mom is sweet.”
He winced.
“Hey,” I said. “Just because she makes some decisions you don’t understand or agree with, doesn’t mean she doesn’t love you.”
“For as much as I want to confess all my deepest darkest secrets to you, I want to do this much more.” Asher kissed me again, pushing his tongue deep into my mouth, his body caging me against the door. I felt him hard at my stomach.
“Merry Christmas, Mya,” he whispered.
“Merry Christmas.” I pulled back to look at him. The moonlight reflected off his profile, making him seem ethereal. An angel caught somewhere between the light and the darkness.
Asher grinned, before pulling me inside and pushing me against the cladded wall. “I had this all planned out,” he said. “There are candles and a blanket upstairs, but I’m not sure I can wait. I need you, Mya. I need you so fucking much it hurts.”
I ran my finger across his brow, studying his face. Asher Bennet was gorgeous. From his piercing blue eyes to his playful smile and mussed up blond hair. On the face of it, he was perfect. But it wasn’t his perfect eyes or perfect smile or perfect teeth that drew me in, it was his imperfections. His maddening persistence. The darkness that sometimes shrouded his expression. The way he cared too much.
On paper we were complete opposites but when you stripped away our exteriors, you were left with two people betrayed by the people they were supposed to be able to trust. Two people who were completely wrong for one another.
But as I was quickly learning, sometimes wrong felt perfectly right.
Chapter Eighteen
Asher
I inched back from Mya, slowly unbuttoning my shirt. Her eyes tracked my movements, heavy-lidded with lust. We’d danced around one another all night. It had been the sweetest kind of torture, having her right there in plain sight but being unable to touch her the way I wanted.
The way I needed.
“See something you like, Hernandez?” I asked smugly, as I shuck out of my navy dress shirt. The material dropped to the floor as I began snapping my belt and unbuttoning my slacks. Mya swallowed, her hand gliding up the side of her neck. She was so fucking sexy.
“Come here.” I crooked my finger at her and Mya came willingly, falling into my arms. Her hands slid up my bare chest, her touch like kryptonite; making my heart race and my knees weak.
“Jesus,” I breathed, sucking in a harsh breath as she gently rolled one of my nipples between her fingers.
“You have too many clothes on.” My hand drifted up her spine, locating the delicate zipper hidden beneath the seam of her dress. It slid down with ease, and Mya let the silky material fall down her arms, revealing a lacy black bra.
“See something by you like, Hotshot?” Mya smirked, pushing the dress over her hips and down her body until she was standing before me in nothing but her underwear.
“I think I just died and went to heaven.” I didn’t know where to look first. The swell of her perfect tits, the curve of her waist and flare of her hips. Her perfect ass.
“Kiss me,” she whispered, staring up at me with anticipation.
“Kiss you?” I said, hooking an arm around her waist and erasing the space between us. Until we were skin on skin, racing heart against racing heart.
“I’m going to kiss every single inch of you, Mya. And when I’m done, I’m going to start all over again.”
She shivered at my words, inhaling a shaky breath as I swept my fingers across her collarbone.
“Tell me what you want.” I whispered against the corner of her mouth.
“You, Ash... I just want you.” Mya wriggled closer, grazing my rock-hard dick. We both groaned. I dropped my hands to my jeans ready to kick them off, but Mya beat me to it. Her greedy hands dipping inside, stroking me through my boxer briefs.
“Fuck,” I hissed.
I don’t know how it happened, but Mya took control. Backing me up against the far wall, she ran one of her hands up and down my abs, dipping her head to nip and suck my neck while her hand worked me through the thin material.
“Mya, wait...” But before I could stop her, she dropped to her knees, yanked down my jeans and boxers and sucked me into her mouth. “Holy fuck.” Sensation exploded up my spine as she ran her tongue up and down my length, pumping me with her hand. Slow torturous strokes that damn near blew my mind.
God, I never wanted her to stop but this wasn’t supposed to be about me. It was supposed to be about her. About me showing her how I felt.
“Mya, babe, stop.” I wound my hand into her curls and tugged gently. She looked up at me, eyes glazed with desire.
“Is something wrong?”
“Yeah, something’s wrong.” I pulled her to her feet, spinning us so her back was pressed against the wall. “This is about you, not me.” My hand glided down her flat stomach, dipping inside her lacy panties. “I want to watch you come.” Without warning I pushed a finger inside her.
Mya gasped, her eyes fluttering closed as her body arched into my touch.
“Eyes open, Mya.”
She pinned me with a heated stare as I worked her with my fingers. No more words passed between us, just the sounds of her quiet moans and my labored breaths. It was intense. We both felt it. The shift between us. The tether binding us together.
“Asher,” it was a shuddering breath but she might as well have reached into my chest and ripped out my heart.
It was hers now.
Whether she wanted it or not.
I didn’t give Mya chance to catch her breath. Sliding my hands under her legs, I scooped her up and carried her over to the old boat. It was covered in a dust sheet that crinkled and crunched as I laid her out before me.
“Shit,” I rasped, “Condom.”
“No,” she shook her head, biting her bottom lip. “I’m on birth control and I’m clean. I need to feel you, all of you.”
Thank fuck for small mercies.
Pushing my boxer
briefs off, I stroked myself a couple of times before leaning over her and covering her body with mine. Mya hitched her legs around my hips, steadying herself with a hand on my shoulder, as I teased her with the tip of my dick, letting it glide through her wetness.
“More,” she begged, her voice thick with need.
Slowly, inch by inch, I pressed into her. “Christ, Mya, you feel...” The words lodged in my throat as I went deeper, grinding against her in a way that had us both moaning in pleasure.
Pressing my hands flat against the sheet, I stared down at her. I watched as her eyes rolled back every time I ground into her; watched the way her tits jiggled behind their lacy confines. “You are so fucking perfect,” I rasped, thrusting harder, needing more. Needing to bury myself as deep as I could possibly get inside her.
But it wasn’t enough. I needed to consume her. To imprint myself on her the way she’d already imprinted herself on me.
I needed to mark her.
To make her mine in every sense of the word.
Running a hand up her stomach, I toyed with the lacy shell of her bra before yanking it down. I licked her hungrily, before drawing her nipple into my mouth, sucking gently.
“Oh god... Ash...”
I released the dusky bud with a pop, moving to the curve of her breast. This time I sucked harder until blood rushed to the surface, bruising her skin.
“Did you just bite me?” Mya asked breathlessly, beads of sweat forming on her smooth silky skin as I continued to rock into her.
“Are you complaining?” My brow arched, the familiar tingle at the bottom of my spine building.
“God, Asher,” she moaned my name. “Why does this feel so right?”
“Because it is right.” I lowered my head to hers, every inch of me pressed up against every inch of her. “You can’t tell me you don’t feel this.” Pulling one of Mya’s hands off my shoulder, I slid my fingers through hers, pinning it at the side of her head. I rocked slower... harder... deeper, pushing us both toward the edge.
“Fall with me, Mya. Fall with me.”
Her walls clenched around me, making us both cry out, as she came. Another thrust and I followed, jerking inside her.
“That was...” she tried to catch her breath.
“Epic… Earth shattering… The best you ever had,” I said around an arrogant smile.
Mya chuckled, brushing the damp hair out of my face. “I was going to say intense.”
“Not quite what I was going for, but we can practice.” I pecked her lips. “Lots and lots of practice.” My dick stirred to life again, but I ignored him, focusing on the girl beneath me.
My girl.
“I wish you could stay the night.”
“Asher...”
“I know, I know. But this, us, it means something to me, Mya.” It means everything. My thumb brushed over her lips as the unspoken words played on repeat in my head.
“It means something to me too.” Her eyes burned with possessiveness.
“So we’re really going to do this?”
She already knew I was in, but I needed to hear her say the words too.
“Yeah, we’re doing this.”
“You know I’m never going to let you go, right?”
“Asher...” Mya gazed up at me, letting out a resigned sigh. “It’s senior year. College is right around the corner...”
“So? We have time, babe.” I kissed her softly, letting my lips linger on hers. Mya didn’t say anything else on the matter and I didn’t want to taint what had been one of the best moments of my life.
Untangling myself from her, I held out my hand. Mya stared at it, confusion clouding her eyes. “The night isn’t over yet,” I said.
She slid her palm against mine and I led her further into the boathouse to where the stairs led to the mezzanine. “Watch your step.”
“You could have at least let me put on some clothes.”
“Wait here.” I left Mya at the top step and located the box of matches I had left out here earlier. Once I’d lit the candles, I beckoned her over to the makeshift bed.
“You did all this?”
“If you’re impressed by a few blankets and candles, I really need to up my game. Come lie with me?”
“Asher, if we fall asleep...”
“We won’t, I promise. I’m just not ready to say goodbye yet.”
I pulled the blanket over us and wrapped an arm around Mya’s waist, snuggling as close as possible. It was perfect; our legs tangled, our slick bodies meshed together like two pieces of a puzzle.
“You know,” Mya broke the silence, her voice barely a whisper. “When I first got to Rixon and learned how football obsessed the town was, I was dreading it. I’d left my home, my mom, my friends and...” she trailed off.
“It’s okay, you can say his name.” As much as I hated it, Jermaine was a part of her past. A part of what made her who she was in this moment. I didn’t ever want to imagine them together. Him loving her, hurting her. But I couldn’t pretend he didn’t exist either.
It helped knowing I was the one here with her now. Lying beside her, my kisses on her lips, my touch all over her skin.
“I felt like an outsider. Part of me still does. But right from first moment I met you, you made me feel a part of something.”
My chest tightened at her words, emotion clogging my throat. I was falling ass over elbow in love with her, but I didn’t want to say the three little words I knew would be too much for her to hear yet. So I swallowed them down, storing them away for another day.
“Will your parents wonder where you’ve gotten to?” Mya asked, changing the subject.
“Dad will be slumped over a glass of whisky by now, wondering where he went wrong in life to end up with me for his son, and Mom will be crying over the family albums.”
She turned in my arms to face me, her hands pressed against my chest as she gazed up at me. “I hate that you’ve carried this for so long.
“It is what it is.”
“You deserve more though, Asher. You deserve a father who loves you and sees you for what you are. Not for what he wants you to be.”
“Yeah, well, we can’t always get what we want.”
“Sometimes we do.” She smiled, pressing a kiss to my lips. “Sometimes we get given exactly what we need when we didn’t even know it.”
“Are you saying you need me, Hernandez?”
“Maybe, just a little.”
I tucked her against me, determined to make the most of every second we had together. But reality was a cruel bitch and all too soon, Mya was telling me to wake up.
“I really should go,” she said.
I hadn’t meant to fall asleep. But everything was so quiet with her. So peaceful.
Around Mya I could breathe. I could forget about all the other bullshit and imagine a future where I got to choose my own path.
Reluctantly, I got up, helping Mya to her feet. Dropping a kiss on the end of her nose I told her to wait while I went back downstairs and gathered up our clothes, yanking on my slacks before helping Mya back into her dress. When we were both dressed, I pulled her into my arms. “Best. Christmas. Ever.”
“I should probably go...”
“Wait, I have something for you.” I’d almost forgotten the small velvet pouch in my pocket. I dug it out and dropped it into her hand. “Merry Christmas, Mya.”
Eyeing me carefully, her brows pulled tight, she pulled open the pouch, tipping the contents into the palm of her hand.
“It’s a bracelet,” I added, nervous energy radiating through me.
“It’s beautiful.” Delicate leather strands weaved together loosely to create a braid that held in place an oval silver charm. “What does it say?” Mya lifted it to her face to get a better look at the tiny engraving.
“Forty-two.” We said in unison, our eyes colliding.
“It’s your number.”
“You didn’t like the idea of wearing my jersey, so I thought maybe this was a good co
mpromise.” When she didn’t say anything, my chest grew tight. I ran a hand down my face and added, “It was supposed to be an inside joke.”
“It’s…”
Fuck. It was too soon.
“Listen, forget it.” I went to snatch it back, but Mya closed her fingers around it.
“Asher, it’s perfect. It’s just… well, I feel bad now. I didn’t get you anything.”
Slipping my arms around her, I pulled her closer. “You gave me everything tonight.” I pecked the end of her nose. “Can I do the honors?” My eyes dropped to the bracelet and she nodded.
It fit her wrist to perfection. I held her hand, smoothing my thumb over the curve of her hand. “You know what this means, right?”
“That I owe you a present?”
“No.” I smiled. “It means you’re wearing my number, which means you’re mine now.”
“I guess I’d better not lose it then.” Mya brushed my jaw before kissing me softly. I wanted to deepen it, to push my tongue into her mouth and explore every deep dark place inside her.
I wanted to stay here forever.
Because once we walked out of here, our perfect bubble would burst and reality would come crashing down around us.
Chapter Nineteen
Mya
“I knew it.” Flick screeched down the line. “So how was it? I want details, all the glorious details. Was he hung? I always imagined he was—”
I cleared my throat. “Are you done discussing the size of my…” I hesitated.
“I think the word you’re looking for is boyfriend.” She smothered a laugh.
“My boyfriend… wow, that’s going to take some getting used to.”
“Yeah, yeah, but back to the size of his—”
“Felicity!”
“What?” I could imagine her pouting. “It’s girl talk. I tell you all about Jason’s skills in the bedroom.”
“I never ask though. You just dump that shit on me without warning.”
She chuckled at that. “It’s not like I can tell Hailee. She freaks out because he’s family. Anyway, I don’t want to talk about Jason right now. I want to talk about you and Asher. Was it magical? Did he make you see stars?”
