Loving Lies

by Linda Kage

  Holding her steady, he began to feast. He’d only intended to touch a little tonight. Get her used to the feel of him. This should probably stop here and now, because he was only going to want more when she finished. He knew she was inexperienced; he shouldn’t rush too much in one night, but damn…He didn’t want it to end. And now that he’d had a taste, no way was he stopping until she was falling apart under his tongue.

  Besides, he could tell she wanted him to keep going from the way she writhed in his arms, begging him with her gasps and the grip she had on his hair. Which only made it that much more impossible for him to keep himself under control.

  When her breathing told him how close she was, he pushed a finger inside her and almost wept from the snug, wet fit.

  Her body went rigid, and he knew this was it. Throaty cries filled his ears as she came against his mouth. Concentrating on nothing but her, he stroked her through her completion, overcome by how perfect she was. When her thighs loosened from around his head and began to tremble while she petted his hair with shaking fingers, he slid his fingers free and looked up.

  “That was…that was…” She paused to lick her lips.

  He slid up her body to snuggle with her. “Are you okay?” Hugging her, he grinned as she burrowed close against him, quaking as if cold.

  “No, I’m…not okay. Okay is so tame for what I am. God. Amazing is too tame for what I feel right now.”

  Hearty male satisfaction filled him. “Good,” he said and kissed her hair. Then her cheek. Her neck. “That’s all I needed to hear.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  TESS HAD TO BE FLOATING at least a foot off the ground. She wiggled into Jonah’s T-shirt and wasn’t at all surprised to find the hem fell nearly to her knees. He paused to grin at her after he slipped on a pair of track pants.

  “God, you’re adorable,” he murmured, shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe such an adorable woman was in his apartment with him.

  But what was more, he made her feel adorable. She loved that about him, just as she loved pretty much everything else about him. He was just so…Jonah.

  Needing to escape the intensity of everything he did to her, she took his hand and dragged him toward the kitchen, because both of their stomachs had been growling for the past ten minutes.

  She’d assumed they’d graze on whatever snack they could find, but Jonah wanted to cook her his cheeseburger specialty since she hadn’t gotten to taste it at the diner. Tess protested, not wanting him on his feet for longer than he should be. He did too much without his cane, hopping around on one foot as it was. Sometimes, he even stepped down, putting his weight on his bad leg. She sucked in a breath and cringed every time he did that. But he didn’t seem to be in much pain, so she tried to calm herself.

  Still, she insisted on helping him, to speed up the process, so they could sit and eat.

  Jonah did the smiley face on her hamburger again, and grinned bashfully when he handed her the plate. “Since I know it’s actually coming to you this time,” he said.

  She rolled her eyes as if the gesture was silly, though, honestly, it touched her deeply. Over supper, he told her how he’d spent his last few months, and she told him about all the changes that had happened around campus.

  “After the suicide—” She started, breaking off with wide eyes. “I mean, did you know…?”

  “Yeah.” He laughed softly, lowering his gaze. “I was there when they brought the body out of Grammar Hall. I can’t believe Roadrunner would do that. But I guess if he was feeling as guilty as I was…” He shrugged and looked up to catch her expression.

  She reached across the table and took his hand. “I worried about any guilt you might feel.”

  Jonah nodded, squeezing her fingers. “Yeah.” He blew out a breath. “I always wondered if people thought I should’ve done what he did, since I was—”

  “What?” Tess surged to her feet to gape down at him with her hands on her hips. “You absolutely shouldn’t have done what he did. No way. No how.”

  Jonah bit his lip a let out a breath he’d been holding. “I kind of felt like a coward because I couldn’t even consider the idea.”

  “Oh, my God.” Her anger drained away instantly, and she slid into his lap to sit on his good leg. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she cuddled her face into his neck. “I’m so glad you couldn’t. Because I don’t know what I’d do without you, Jonah Abbott. Do you understand that? You cannot leave me.”

  He buried his face in her hair. “I kept holding on to life, even though I was sure the world would be a better place if I wasn’t in it. I kept holding on because I had this piece of hope stuck in my head that maybe, one day, I could be with you again, like we are right now. Even after I saw you with Logan, I just…I couldn’t give up.”

  She shuddered and clutched him tight, overwhelmed by the thought that she’d given anyone a reason to fight for their own life. “The world would not be a better place without you, Jonah. It would be dark and gloomy, and I don’t know if I’d ever smile again if you left it.”

  Their supper officially over, he picked her up and carried her back to the couch. She didn’t complain about his bum leg this time because he seemed determined to carry her everywhere despite how much she objected. And besides, it made her feel as tiny as he said she was.

  Back on the couch, they held each other, and eventually turned on the television to watch a sitcom as they lay wrapped together.

  At some point, Tess fell asleep, only to wake up to a voice screeching, “Oh, sweet holy hosanna, you have a naked woman in bed with you.”

  “She’s not naked.” Jonah slurred out the half-awake argument as he yawned and shifted under her.

  Tess lifted her face from his chest to see the silhouette of a guy from the open doorway of the apartment. When the silhouette stepped inside and shut the door, she decided he must be Aubrey.

  He pointed to her pants and shirt wadded on the floor by the couch. “Not naked, huh? God, Jonah. I can’t believe you brought home a woman. You are such a whore. You’re supposed to still be hung up on—” As he swaggered closer, he took in Tess and halted in his tracks. “Well, glory be. Curly red hair, big blue eyes, innocent face. You must be Tess.”

  Tickled he knew her name just by looking at her, she twisted to sit up and grin at Jonah as he settled beside her. “You talked about me?” And enough to warrant Aubrey’s recognition of her at first sight, too. How amazing.

  Jonah rolled his eyes with a moody harrumph. “He forces me to talk. It’s a pain in the ass.”

  “Oh, whatever.” Aubrey gave a tickled squeal and rushed forward. “You love me. Now scoot.” He plopped down between the two of them, forcibly wedging them apart so he could sit in the middle.

  Tess scrambled to smooth the hem of Jonah’s T-shirt down her thighs, because it wasn’t uncomfortable at all for a complete stranger to sit by her and throw his arm around her while she was wearing nothing but a huge shirt and panties. Yeah, not uncomfortable at all.

  But Aubrey didn’t seem to notice. He grinned and touched her face with fingers that were stained with what looked like every color of spray paint. “You have such a clear complexion. I love this skin. It’s like alabaster. Jonah, don’t you just love her skin?”

  “I doubt she’d be sitting here in nothing but my shirt if I didn’t.”

  Aubrey rolled his eyes and snorted as if that answer was simply too male. Then he turned back to Tess. “Sweetie Pie over here has gushed about you so much I feel like we’re already sisters.”

  Tess glowed. She loved hearing how he’d gushed. “I don’t have any sisters,” she admitted. “But I’ve always wanted one.”

  “Then you’re adopted.” Aubrey gave her arm a squeeze. “We’re going to have to go shopping together now and rent lots of movies with Channing Tatum in them and eat popcorn while staring at nothing but his perfect little tush and glorious abs for a solid two hours.”

  While Jonah groaned and rolled his head onto
the back of the couch, Tess laughed. “Sold. It’s a date.”

  “Great. You bring the popcorn. And I’ll whip up some margaritas and—”

  “Hey,” Jonah cut in, shoving his roommate off the couch. “If you’ll excuse us, you’re interrupting what is technically our first date.”

  “Oh!” Eyes going wide, Aubrey slapped his hand over his forehead, highlighting the fact he had a touch of blue paint on his jaw. “You’re right. I’m so sorry, honey. You two continue. I’ll just adjourn to my room, plug in the iPod, and stay there for the rest of the night. Enjoy him, sweetie.” He tapped Tess’s knee and winked at her. “He’s a good man.”

  “Yes, he is,” she said softly. She waited until he was gone and heard the soft click of his bedroom door before she turned to Jonah. “I like your roommate.”

  He snorted. “I’ve had worse.”

  When they both realized how much worse of a roommate he’d had, Tess shivered. He pulled her close and tucked her head up under his chin. “How’ve you been holding up with all that lately? If you’ve decided to come back next semester, I’m guessing you’re not so scared of campus anymore.”

  “No,” she admitted. “Not as scared, anyway. There are still moments I feel like I’m tramping over someone’s grave, like whenever I’m in the food district, but I’ve worked through a lot of it.”

  He kissed her hair and smoothed his hand up her arm. “Good. I knew you’d pull through.”

  She spent a second just listening to his heartbeat before pulling away and looking up. “I should probably get back. Bailey will worry.”

  That was meant to be a joke, but Jonah said, “Or you could just call her. Tell her I’ll get you back in the morning in time for your first class.”

  He wanted her to stay the night? Tess almost leapt to her feet to dance around the living room in excitement. But she bit her lip, holding back.

  Nudging her shoulder, he winked. “We’ve already proven we can sleep together in a small space.”

  The hope in his brown eyes tipped her decision over the edge. After texting Bailey, she turned off her phone and settled down on the couch with Jonah.

  “Wakey, wakey.” An unfamiliar voice dragged Tess from pleasant dreams.

  Under her, a warm, solid Jonah stirred, grumbling something about shutting up and leaving him alone.

  “But it’s time to rise and shine, you two love birds. You’ve got work. She’s got school. So…up and at ’em, kiddos.” When Aubrey clapped his hands with way too much enthusiasm, both Tess and Jonah groaned.

  Thank God Jonah obviously wasn’t a morning person either. That might’ve actually been a deal breaker.

  She lifted her head, strands of red hair falling into her face. Instantly worried how she must look first thing in the morning, she scrambled off the couch.

  “I’m just going to…visit the bathroom real quick.” She deserted the two guys, scooping up handfuls of her clothes and hurrying down the hall until she was locked inside the lavatory.

  Though she dreaded looking into a mirror, it was the first thing she did. A groan later, she began to finger-comb her wild locks. If Jonah decided to stay with her after this, it was definitely true love.

  By the time she exited the bathroom, she was a quivering mess inside. Hands trembling, she folded the shirt she’d slept in and gingerly stepped forward to hand it to him where he was still sitting shirtless on the couch talking to Aubrey.

  “Thanks,” he said, his smile warm. But when his gaze drifted over her hair, he frowned slightly. “Oh, man. You combed it. I liked it all sleepy and wild.”

  After he struggled to his feet with his cane, he limped to her and paused with a long, chaste morning kiss. He tasted like orange juice, telling her he’d already been up and in the kitchen.

  She melted into a gooey ball of adoration as he stepped back and smiled at her. “My turn,” he murmured. He hobbled around her and headed down the hall to the bathroom.

  She gnawed on her lip as she stared after him. Was he limping worse now than he was yesterday? Dang it, she knew she shouldn’t have let him carry her last night.

  “His limp is always worse first thing in the morning,” Aubrey said from beside her as if reading her mind. Or, crap, maybe she’d said that aloud. “I think it just takes a bit for him to stretch and warm his muscles back up for the day.”

  “Thank God.” Tess turned to him with a relieved smile. “You really don’t think I made it worse somehow?”

  “Nah. And I doubt he’d care if you did. He looks happier and better rested than I’ve ever seen him. And with that, I need you to come with me, girlfriend.”

  When he held out his hand with a mischievous wink, she reached for it, curious as to what he wanted to do. He bound their fingers together and dragged her down the hall until he reached a door, which he shoved open and pulled her through.

  Not sure what was going on, she initially resisted when she realized they were in an immaculately clean bedroom.

  “So, Sean was a great organizer,” Aubrey started as if he didn’t notice any of her apprehensions while he tugged her to a calendar tacked to the closet door. “He wrote everything on this damn thing. And this…is what he had penciled in for today.”

  Stabbing his finger at the date, he turned to scrutinize her with an arched, so-what-are-you-going-to-do-about-this stare. Tess shrank back from the expectant look, but he didn’t care. He continued to watch her. Clearing her throat quietly, she leaned in and took her eyes off him to look at the date in question. When she saw the words Jonah B-Day written in, she caught her breath.

  “His birthday’s today,” she breathed out in wonder.

  “Exactly,” Aubrey said. “And he has no idea I know, so I was going to come home early from rehearsal to surprise him with a cake or something. But now that you’re here…there are two of us to plan. So, we need something big and splashy and—”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Tess lifted her hands to stop him. “I’d be all for that. I don’t even care what it would take to get it planned and ready by this evening. But…are you sure Jonah wants something big? Or splashy?”

  Aubrey’s expression crumpled. “But he deserves big and splashy. I’m telling you, that man has been here for me to help me through this. If it hadn’t been for him, I would’ve fallen to pieces by now. He’s my rock. My friend. And I don’t have the luxury of making a lot of real, true, honest-to-God friends. He should have…He needs…”

  When he blinked rapidly, his eyes glistening with tears, Tess made a sound of sympathy and pulled him in for a warm hug.

  “I know. He deserves the best. And we should do that. But his way. Small, intimate, meaningful.”

  After staring at her with wide eyes for a good ten seconds, Aubrey smiled. “That’s perfect,” he whispered. “You know, after he talked about you, I was worried you might be—” He wrinkled his nose, making a face as if he’d just tasted a tart lemon. “But you’re nothing but heart and soul. And you actually know my boy and care about how he feels. I am so relieved you’re back in his life.” He hugged her and then let out a giddy squeal as he pulled away.

  “So, you’re going to arrange something for tonight, right? Small, intimate, and meaningful. We can have it here. Just the three of us, you think?”

  “Actually…” Tess tapped her chin thoughtfully. “What would you think about six or seven of us? I know of a few more that might make the evening perfect.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  JONAH DROVE TESS BACK to campus, rubbing his sore thigh as he turned down the street that led to Grammar Hall. He hadn’t been back here since the day he’d seen Tess hugging another man.

  It felt different. And he was more nervous now than he’d been that day. That day he had still been in so much pain, too lost to care much about everyone else’s opinions, and utterly overwhelmed by the turn his life had taken. This morning all he could wonder was how many people might notice him. Would they say anything to him if they did? Would they say anything to Tes
s?

  Shit. He hadn’t thought of that. She would not suffer from being associated with him. He didn’t care what he had to do; no one was allowed to hurt his girl.

  Tugging his ball cap lower on his head after he parked in a visitor’s parking space, he glanced around, feeling a measure of security from his beard and longer hair.

  “You ready for this?” he asked, blowing out a bracing breath as he killed the engine and opened the door.

  But Tess caught his arm before he could get out. He glanced at her, and she sent him a sympathetic smile. “You don’t have to walk me up. Aubrey told me your leg bothers you more in the mornings. And stairs can’t be any fun with a cane. I’ll be fine.”

  Double shit. Now he felt like a total tool for not walking his girl to her door after spending the night with her.

  “It’s okay,” he said. “I want to see you to your door.”

  She opened her mouth, no doubt to argue, but she must’ve seen the determination on his face because she stopped whatever she was going to say and drew in a breath.

  “I’d like that,” she said brightly. “Thank you.”

  He felt royally exposed as he limped slowly toward the entrance of her dorm building. People glanced over, but they were so busy looking at his cane, they probably didn’t even notice his face. But he stayed braced for the moment when someone yelled out an insult and called him a murderer, a bully, a bigot, or a coward. They’d lost interest and stopped calling him that on national television, but he doubted the local crowd would forget so quickly.

  Leaning down toward Tess, he murmured confidentially in her ear. “If anyone gives you any flak about being seen with me, you’d tell me, right?”

  She abruptly stopped walking and glanced up at him with a sharp, irritated frown. “If anyone gives me any trouble, I’ll call them an idiot.”

  He wanted to smile and dance and cheer that she was so fervently willing to defend him, but the point of the matter remained. “I’m serious, Tess. I know how people around here can pick on someone. I’ve been right there in the thick of it, remember. If someone gives you a hard time, I want to know about it.”