by Mae Doyle
“Nora, I don’t give a shit.” Reaching out, I cup her cheek, turning her face up to look at me. I hated her when I first met her. She had the audacity to move into my house, ruin my ability to be on the football team, and drove me crazy, but she gave me what I needed then. After all of our times together in the woods, I knew that she had to be the person for me.
I just have to convince her of that. I have to convince her that this isn’t a game and that I’m taking it seriously.
There’s only one way that I know how to do that. Ignoring all of the things that I want to say, I lean down, kissing her again. Again, her mouth opens under mine, allowing me to taste her. She moans into my mouth, reaching up and grabbing a handful of my hair. I allow her to twist my head to the side, taking some control.
“Nora,” I say, pulling back a moment.
“Shut up, Teague.” Her lips are hungry on mine, her hands reaching for me. After a moment, I relax, leaning into it, letting her take what she needs from me.
Epilogue
Nora
“If you don’t hurry up, I will leave you here, Nora, because you are not making me late to this day!” Mrs. Ward’s voice carries up the stairs and down the hall to my room where I’m sitting on the edge of my bed, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down.
Honestly? I never thought that I’d make it this far. There were a couple close calls where I thought for sure that I was going to die, or drop out, or both. Now I have all of my things packed up in my suitcase and a backpack, ready for me to make a break for it as soon as this dumb ceremony is over.
And what Mrs. Ward doesn’t want to admit is that Teague is coming with me. She’s going to be pissed.
“I’m coming!” It’s a lie, and I’m sure that she knows it, but I just need a few more minutes of sitting still before I’m ready to tackle the day. Graduating from Kennedy Academy felt like a pipedream a few months ago, but my cap and gown are on the bed next to me, just waiting for me to put them on.
I just have to move and do it.
I’ve survived worse things.
“You’re going to give my mom a heart attack.” Teague leans in my door, already dressed in his stupid cap and gown. While mine is going to make me look like I’m wearing a garbage bag, somehow he looks great. “Want help getting changed?”
I sigh and stand up, wiping my hands on my skirt. “No, just let me throw it on really quick. Tell her to take a chill pill.”
He laughs and walks down the hall, calling back to me, “you know that she’s never chilled out one day in her entire life, Nora!”
I know that, and I grin, even though he can’t see me smile as he walks away. Getting through this school year has been hard, but with Teague by my side, I’m beginning to think that the two of us can handle anything.
Even his mother on the morning of graduation. Standing, I stretch, and then slip on my cap and gown, only taking a cursory look in the mirror before I head downstairs. Honestly, I don’t care what I look like. I made it, and that’s what matters.
***
“So, what’s the plan then?” Mrs. Ward is on her third glass of wine but still not slurring her words. She’s a case study in being able to hold her liquor, and I smile at Teague while I wait for him to answer.
“Well, we both got into college in Texas, so that’s where we’re going.” Teague’s been putting off telling his mother our plans because he knew that she would freak out, and she behaves as expected, slamming her wine glass down on the table so hard I’m afraid it’s going to shatter.
“Texas?” Her voice is high and tight, and her hand flutters at her throat as she takes a deep breath. “Texas? What in the world is there? Why go so far? You can’t just leave like that, Teague.”
I should feel bad for how upset she is, but Mrs. Ward has never been overly kind to me, so I wait with a smile plastered on my face while Teague responds.
“Well, Nora got into a great art program down there, so that’s what she’s going to study.” He pauses, and his mom cuts her eyes in my direction, glaring at me until Teague keeps speaking. “And I’m studying business.”
“What about football?” Her tone is icy. “You know that you worked so hard to get good on the field and you shouldn’t be punished for being kicked off of the team because of…her.” This time, she stares me down, her eyes locked on mine. I take a dramatic drink of my water and yawn.
“I’m tired,” I tell Teague, standing and resting a hand on his shoulder. “Tomorrow’s a busy day, right?”
“It is.” He rests his hand lightly on top of mine for a moment before I leave. “See you in the morning, Nora.”
I grin to myself as I leave the room and head up the stairs. Mrs. Ward’s voice carries, and I can hear her still trying to argue with her son. What she doesn’t know, and I had to figure out, is that once Teague knows what he wants, nothing is going to stop him from getting it.
Teague
We’ve been driving for almost an hour now, and I’m shocked that Nora isn’t pushing me to find out exactly where we’re going. Not like I’d tell her anyway, I want it to be a surprise.
I can’t wait to see the look on her face.
It took me a while to find the right cabin for us to rent for the weekend, but I knew it as soon as I saw it. It’s smaller than I would have normally chosen, but it’s perched at the top of a mountain and surrounded by thick woods. Slowly I steer the truck up the long driveway, trying not to grin when I see the happy look on Nora’s face.
“Are we almost there?” She sounds like a little kid, and I can’t help but laugh.
“Almost. You excited?”
“To get away for the weekend and not have to worry about college or homework or dealing with finding parking for my late class? Are you kidding? I’m thrilled.” She turns to me and smiles. “I just wish that I knew the special occasion.”
I find it a little hard to believe that after three years together, she still has trouble remembering the date when we first met, but I guess that that’s one thing that I can do for her. “You first came to Blacksburg this weekend a few years ago, remember?”
She frowns and I can see her trying to think back that far. To her credit, it feels like a lifetime ago. I’m not the same person who hunter her down and poured turpentine on her painting. Thinking about being that person fills me with dread, but there’s nothing that I can do about it now.
Except do everything I can to make it up to her, which is exactly what I’m doing now. The trees are so thick around us that it’s tricky to really see out the windows, but I slowly inch the truck up the driveway until it flattens out in front of the cabin.
“This is cute.” Nora grabs her backpack and jumps out of the truck before I even have a chance to kill the engine. She runs up to the porch and leans on the railing. “Not great views because of the trees, but there’s a hot tub!”
“Want to go for a walk?” I’m out of the truck but haven’t moved towards the porch. Nora frowns a little but comes down the stairs.
“You don’t want to see what the inside of this place looks like first?” Her face is a little flushed from excitement and, as I watch, she pulls a rubber band from her pocket and puts her hair up into a ponytail.
“Nope. Walking first, then we’ll check out the cabin.” I take her hand and slip my fingers into hers, pulling her with me. The listing for the rental said that there were plenty of walking trails around the house and through the woods, so we just have to find one.
A few moments later, we’re deep in the woods. The air is cooler here, and it’s so quiet that we can both hear the birds and animals scurrying around. Thick leaves carpet the floor, muffling our footsteps. Each time I open my mouth to speak, I snap it back shut.
For the first time in my life, I’m at a loss of what to say. I have everything that I want, but I don’t think that Nora understands exactly what she means to me. We left our little apartment for the weekend to get away, but she doesn’t know why.
With only
a little bit more of college to go, it’s time for the two of us to talk.
“Nora,” I say, spinning her around so that she faces me, “let’s talk about something.” Her cheeks are bright and her eyes are reflecting back the light filtering through the leaves. There are countless times since I’ve been with her that I’ve seen her as more beautiful than before, and this is one of those times.
She’s incredible.
“Everything okay?” A small crease appears between her eyebrows and I lean forward to kiss it, letting my lips linger for a moment as I work my way down her cheek to her mouth.
“Yes,” I whisper, my lips barely touching hers. “It’s perfect.”
She sighs as I pull back. “Then what’s up? I thought you wanted to get in a good hike before dinner and the hot tub.” She wiggles her eyebrows at me and I laugh.
“I do. I want to earn that hot tub, but first I wanted to make sure that you know how much I love you.”
She laughs, a loud sound that silences all of the birds in the trees. “You’re being ridiculous, Teague. Of course I know. We do have an apartment together, remember?” Leaning forward, she kisses me on the cheek. “Shall we walk?”
I let her take my hand and pull me down the trail. She’s walking with a purpose, and I know that it’s because she wants to get back to the cabin and relax. I can’t blame her, even though it does change my plans a little.
***
“That bikini should be illegal.” Nora grins at me as she slips into the hot tub across from me. There’s barely any fabric covering her, and already my hands itch to strip her out of it.
“It’s for your eyes only, Teague.” She does a little twirl and then settles down, leaning her head back and sighing as the bubbles foam up around her. “You know, this trip away was exactly what I needed.”
Tearing my eyes away from her, I reach out of the hot tub and grab the small box that I had in my pocket all afternoon. Nora was determined to hike through the woods as quickly as possible so that she could come here and relax, but the way that she’s dressed and what I have plan makes me think that we’re going to have something else to do, instead.
“Nora.” I scoot next to her and flip the box open when she looks up. “I love you. You and I got off to a rocky start, but there’s nobody in this world that I would rather be with than you. You’re everything to me and you make me a better man.” Opening the box, I keep my eyes locked on hers. She hasn’t looked away from me, not even when the light hits the diamond and sparkles. “Please, marry me.”
A slow grin spreads across her face. Her cheeks are already flushed from the heat of the hot tub, and she leans forward, gently placing her hand on the back of my neck. I can’t help but shiver as she lightly scrapes her nails across my skin.
“I want nothing more than to marry you, Teague. I want to be your wife, your partner…your friend.”
“My trophy.” I can’t help myself, but she laughs and finally looks over to the ring, reaching out and taking it from the box.
“Fine, your trophy.” She slips it on and holds it up, smiling as the light bounces around. “Are you sure?” The question is barely a breath, but I hear her perfectly.
“Are you kidding?” Leaning forward, I brush some hair behind her ear and then kiss her, the same familiar longing already rising in me. It seems impossible that Nora can make me feel this way, but there’s something about her that is practically addictive.
She kisses me back, her hand trailing down my arm and dipping into the water as she makes her way down my chest. Without thinking, I stand, scooping her into my arms, and step out of the hot tub, leaving wet footprints on the porch as we go.
The cabin is tiny, and the bed is right inside the front door. As soon as she’s on the bed, she stretches out, her tiny bikini pulling tantalizingly over her frame. My cock twitches as I look at her.
My fiancée.
“Well? Don’t you want to celebrate?” She props herself up on her elbows and I crawl on the bed to her. We kiss hard, then I trail a line of kisses down her neck, across her collarbone, between her breasts. She moans, her breathing breathy and shallow, as I kiss down her perfect stomach to her hips.
“You really are beautiful, you know that, Nora?” In response, she reaches down and wraps her hand in my hair, pulling so that I have to sit up and look at her. “I mean, Nora, for real.” I let my eyes slide down her body, my heart thudding in my chest.
“Show me.” Her voice is huskier than normal, and deep. She chews her lower lip, not taking her eyes from mine. “Show me how beautiful you think that I am, Teague.” With that, she lets me go and rests her hands on my shoulders, gently pushing me down. Her ring flashes and catches the light, but that’s not what I’m looking at. Even as I slide down her body, my fingers trailing on her thighs, I can’t take my eyes off of her.
Finally, though, I slip between her legs, gently tugging her bikini bottoms to one side. They’re tied on her hips, and I pull the strings, then rip them off of her before sinking my fingers in her. Immediately she arches her back, her hands gripping the blankets as I lean down to kiss her inner thighs.
Nora smells amazing, and I know that she tastes even better. Slowly I lick her, sucking on her swollen clit, feeling her rise around me.
She’s not going to last long. Sitting up, I strip, then settle between her legs. She looks up, locking eyes with me, and nods. Grabbing her hips, I push into her, slowly stretching and taking her.
She hasn’t been a virgin for years, but each time we have sex it’s like it’s the first time again. I swear, I could get lost in her. She moans, rocking under me as I thrust deeper into her, claiming her for my own.
“I love you, Teague,” she whispers, wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me down for a kiss. We’re connected, the two of us two parts of one whole.
“Does it feel okay?” I’m stretching her tight cunt as I slip in and out of her, and she nods, biting her lip again. Leaning down, I kiss her, feeling a surge of energy between us. I’m close, and from the way that she’s breathing, she’s close, too.
“Come for me, Nora,” I whisper, lightly swiping my lips across the edge of her ear. She shivers under me then shudders as she falls over the edge, clinging to me and taking me with her. I wouldn’t let her go on her own anyway, and I break too, falling apart around her.
“Teague!” She screams my name, like she always does, and I pull her tight, rocking in her as she comes down from her orgasm. “Teague, it just feels so good,” she whispers, looking deep into my eyes. “How do you do that every single time?”
I pull out of her and roll to the side, pulling her so that her head is resting on my chest. Our legs are intertwined, our bodies covered with a thin sheen of sweat that’s cool in the air.
“It’s because I love you, Nora. It’s because, even after all of the hell that we went through, you and I are meant to be together.” I kiss the top of her head and tighten my grip around her.
“Oh, is that all?” She looks up at me and grins, skating her fingers across me to tickle me. I laugh, flipping her back over and pinning her on the bed.
“Are you sure that you want to try to tickle me, Nora?” My voice is light, but I can’t tear my eyes away from her. Her wrists are so thin and fragile in my grasp, but she doesn’t try to pull away. “You know what happens when you try to tickle me.”
She laughs, a ringing sound that makes me smile, even as I try to look as serious as possible. “What are you going to do about it, Teague?” Her voice is teasing, but that’s because she knows what’s coming.
What I’m going to do to her.
Over and over.
“I’m going to make you come.” My lips are brushing her ear, and I nibble her lobe, making her squirm under me. “But first I’m going to bring you to the edge until you can’t handle it any longer and you beg me for release. You’re mine, Nora, and I’m never going to let you go.”
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