by Rye Hart
I had a massive case of blue balls, but in my heart, I knew I'd done the right thing. As much as it pained me to admit.
CHAPTER TEN
EMMA
I laid in bed that night, trying to sleep, but all I kept thinking about was how close I came to having sex with Marcus Pratt. We came so close I felt his cock pressing up against me. It was so large and hard, the memory of it almost brought me to orgasm on its own. He had wanted me, and his body had told me that.
I was giddy with excitement, and felt a fire burning inside of me as I thought ahead to next weekend. The fact that we might actually make this happen, that I might finally get to sleep with the man of my dreams, had me excited beyond belief. My heart was beating hard in my chest and adrenaline still coursed through my body as I thought about it. As I imagined what it might be like to finally fuck him, I began to touch myself. Circling my clit with my fingertips, I imagined his tongue against me, kissing and licking my most intimate parts. I reached for my dildo, which was tucked away in my bedside table, something my parents would be appalled to know I had, and slipped it against me.
As I imagined Marcus on top of me, his hard body pressing down on mine and feeling him inside of me, I slid the dildo in my pussy slowly, gasping with both pain and pleasure as it entered me.
I'd need to get used to this, I thought. If I wanted to be with a man like Marcus, I'd need to get used to having a large cock inside of me. Slowly, I moved it in and out of me with one hand, quivering with pleasure as I circled my clit with the other.
“Yes, Marcus,” I muttered, thrashing my head side-to-side. “Yes, yes, Oh God, yes!”
My orgasm came on quickly, sending me into spasms of pleasure. The thought of how close we'd come to sealing the deal sent ripples of intense sensation through me. And as I came, I imagined wrapping my legs around his waist and coming hard, calling out his name as an electrical energy moved through every muscle of my body.
One week. One week until the real thing.
It was going to be one long week, that was for sure. Marcus better not change his mind, or else I was going to be one sad girl. I was looking forward to this more than anything I'd ever looked forward to in my entire life.
My body starting to come down off the orgasm high. I slipped the dildo out of me and cleaned it off, a smile on my face.
I didn't care what my father thought of Marcus, I thought he was perfect. His past was his past, but that didn't define who he was today. He was a good man, an honorable man.
And we were finally going to be together.
ooo000ooo
“Emma, we need to talk,” my dad said as I walked upstairs the next morning.
He was sitting in the kitchen at the table with his cup of coffee, pretending to look at the newspaper. It seemed pretty clear that he'd been waiting for me.
“Right now?” I said, opening the fridge to find something for breakfast. “I just woke up.”
“Yeah, right now,” he said, putting the newspaper down.
I closed the fridge and grabbed a banana off the counter instead. Sitting down across from my father, I waited for the lecture to start. I steeled myself for it, reminding myself to not roll my eyes or sigh dramatically – to just listen and endure.
Instead of a lecture though, I got a question I wasn't expecting.
“Are you sleeping with Marcus Pratt?”
I nearly dropped my banana and stared at him open-mouthed. “What? Why would you think that?”
Had he spied on us last night? I thought back, trying to remember if the curtains in the kitchen had been open or closed and couldn't recall. Usually, they were kept closed as Marcus was someone who appreciated his privacy.
“Because you two were together late last night,” my dad said after a few moments of staring me down. “And because of how defensive you were when we spoke yesterday.”
“Doesn't mean I'm sleeping with him,” I said.
In my head, I added “yet” to the end of that sentence, but there was no way in hell I was going to say that to him. I tried my best to not look guilty about lying to my father and wasn't quite sure that I'd pulled it off. I'd never gotten anywhere near as good or comfortable as Riley when it came to lying. I always felt bad and most of the time, it showed in my face.
But technically, it wasn't a lie. We hadn't slept together. Not yet at least. He didn't ask me if I was going to sleep with him, he just asked if we had.
“Dad, seriously, stop being paranoid,” I said. “Not that it's any of your business, but I'm still very much a virgin. Unlike my sister.”
“Hey now,” Riley said, walking in just at that moment. “I'm not sleeping with anyone.”
“Sure, you're not,” I said sarcastically. “But either way, I haven't had sex with anyone. Period. Marcus or otherwise. I just think you need to loosen up and let me make my own choices. I'm an adult now, if I wanted to sleep with Marcus – ”
Riley turned around and stared at me, wide eyed, her mouth hanging open. “You're sleeping with our neighbor?” she said. “Eww. He's old.”
“Did you miss the part where I said I'm not sleeping with him, Riley?”
“But you want to, right?”
“Argh,” I put my head down on the table. No one was listening to me. “Honestly, my sex life is no one's business. No one's but my own.”
My mom's voice piped up as she entered the kitchen, “You're having sex? With who?”
“Can I go now?” I asked, looking at my dad with an exasperated look on my face. “Before the entire neighborhood deems it necessary to join in on this conversation.”
“Sure, you're excused, Emma,” my dad said softly. “But please, be careful around Marcus. He has a reputation with women.”
This again? I was no longer in the mood to argue. I grabbed another banana from the counter and hurried back downstairs, slamming the door behind me. I heard my dad telling my mom what we'd been discussing, and how I was not having sex. Not with Marcus. Not with anyone.
When would they all realize my sex life was none of their business?
CHAPTER ELEVEN
MARCUS
The next morning, when my alarm went off, I stared at the ceiling and wondered what in the hell I had done last night. Had I agreed to take Emma's virginity? Had I really almost slept with her? My head was hurting from having too much wine and not sleeping very well. Not the best way to start a morning, but I was grateful I had a few hours to myself, although, it would be devoted mainly to work, before the kids got home from my mother's.
It was rare that they weren't home with me, and as I climbed out of bed, I caught myself still listening for their little feet in the halls and their giggles filling the house. The silence was strange, even though I had to admit that it was nice to be able to spend a few extra minutes in the shower without worrying about them making a mess or getting into some sort of mischief.
I decided to work outside again this morning. I thought a little sunshine and fresh air would help clear my head and get me thinking straight again. It was a luxury of living in Southern California; the weather was almost always perfect for being outside. I took my laptop and some coffee out back, set up shop on the picnic table I'd shared with Emma the night before, and booted everything up.
Someone was in the backyard of the Taylor home, and part of me was afraid it would be Emma. Running into her again, so soon, would be a bit awkward. Especially since I wasn't so sure what to make of the little agreement we'd made. But, it wasn't Emma, it was her dad, Dan.
“Good morning,” I said, waving at him.
He was working on the garden near our shared fence, so I was reasonably sure he'd heard me, but he didn't say anything at first. I let it go, assuming he was distracted as he pulled at the weeds, cursing under his breath.
Dan never cursed, he was always so serious, so reserved, and definitely not prone to cursing out loud. So, to hear him cussing up a storm meant something was wrong. I wondered if there had been some sort of drama in his famil
y and decided that it wasn’t any of my business, so I focused my energy on my work. We had a proposal coming due this week and I needed to finish analyzing some of the financials, which had just made it to my inbox that morning. I wasn't the only one working on the weekend at least.
Finally, Dan stood up and wiped the sweat from his brow. His gaze was zeroed in on me, and I glanced over, smiled, and waved, only for him to scowl at me in return.
“Everything okay?” I asked him.
“Just stay away from my daughter, you hear me?” he said, the ferocity of his tone taking me by surprise. “You stay the hell away from her.”
“What?” I asked. “I don't know what – ”
“I see the way you look at her,” he said, shaking his head. “The way you stare at her. I know that look in a man's eyes. She's too young for you, Marcus. Find someone your own age and leave my daughter alone.”
“There's nothing going on between us,” I stammered. “She watches my kids, but that's it.”
“And the surfing lessons?” he added.
“I forgot about those, but yes, she's teaching them how to surf,” I said. “But it's purely professional, I promise you. I didn't even know she was going to be our instructor until we showed up the other day.”
Okay, it was purely professional except for what had happened the night before. And the agreement I'd made to take her virginity next weekend. That wasn't very professional. Not at all. I hated lying to the man, but he was my neighbor and there was no easy way to tell him I'd made an agreement to sleep with his daughter.
“Keep it that way,” he said. “I'm warning you.”
Never in all the years I lived next door had Dan Taylor been anything but pleasant toward me. I knew he was protective of his daughters, but this was a new one for me. He was downright angry with me. He went back inside and left me to my work.
But as I sat at the table, totally stunned by his behavior, all I could think about was how badly I wanted Emma.
ooo000ooo
“When do we get to surf with Emma again?” Zoey asked mid-week.
She was already counting down the days until our next lesson. Knowing her, she was probably already counting down the hours. While I, on the other hand, was actively avoiding Emma as much as possible. The closer we got the weekend, the more nervous I became. I would have to tell her the agreement was off. I couldn't sleep with her. As much as I wanted to, we couldn't be together like that. I needed to remain in good terms with my neighbors, needed to avoid as much drama and stress as possible.
Sleeping with my neighbor's daughter, somebody I considered a friend, wasn't the best way of going about doing that.
“Just a few more days, sweetheart,” I said.
“Can Emma come over and play with us tonight?”
Normally, I'd say it was up to Emma, but I froze. Zoey turned to me and repeated her question, “Can we see if Emma wants to – ”
“Emma has a job now, sweetie,” I said. “I don't want to bother her all the time.”
But as luck would have it, my rotten luck anyway, there was a knock on the door a little while later, and it was everyone's favorite babysitter.
“I made cupcakes,” she said with a sweet smile, holding out a plate with three cupcakes on it. “Thought maybe you and the kids would like some?”
“Emma!” Zoey said, running into the foyer at top speed.
She wrapped her arms around Emma's waist, nearly toppling the girl over. Emma just laughed and hugged her back, barely managing to avoid dropping the plate of cupcakes.
“I come bearing gifts,” she said, but then looked up at me. “That is, if your dad says it's okay.”
Zoey's eyed grew wide as soon as she saw the cupcakes which were chocolate with pink and blue sprinkles on top. “Please, daddy? Please?”
“Since it's after dinner, sure,” I said.
Zoey reached up and grabbed the cupcake. Zack came into the room and his eyes grew as wide as his sister's had been.
“And give one to your brother.”
Zoey did as she was told, passing off the second cupcake to Zack. I ushered the kids into the kitchen, trying to avoid crumbs from getting all over the floor, and Emma followed behind. She handed me the last cupcake once we were in the kitchen.
“And one for you, of course,” she said.
“What about you?” I asked.
“Me? I already had three,” she laughed. “It's why I needed to get them out of the house.”
“You had three?” Zoey asked incredulously, her face covered with chocolate. “I'm jealous. I wish I could have three, they're so yummy!”
“My stomach hates me right about now,” Emma said with a laugh. “So, don't be jealous.”
There was something about a girl who could eat cupcakes without guilt that was so damn attractive. I couldn't put my finger on it, but the fact that she never once mentioned needing to watch her weight, or be careful about what she ate, that I admired. She was healthy without obsessing over it or sacrificing the things she enjoyed for the sake of conforming to societal views of attractiveness.
And I loved that she could be that positive influence on my daughter.
“Thanks for the cupcake,” I said, sitting it on the counter. “I'll enjoy it later, I'm sure.”
She shot me a smile and a wink, as if she was hinting at something more. I wasn't an idiot, I knew what she was getting at and it caused me to look away, to focus on my kids instead. If I was going to refuse her, I couldn’t damn well sit there and stare into those gorgeous blue eyes of hers.
“Wipe your faces and wash your hands,” I said. Giggling like maniacs, Zoey and Zack ran down to the bathroom to clean themselves off, which meant Emma and I were alone for a second.
She slid up next to me, standing a bit too close, and whispered, “I can't wait for this weekend.”
“Yeah, about that – ” I started to say, but she kissed me really quickly, pressing her sweet lips to mine, and by the time she pulled away, my kid's footsteps were coming too close for me continue what I was saying.
“Emma, wanna play a game with us?” Zoey asked.
“Sure! I'd love to,” Emma said, smiling brightly. “What do you want to play?”
I heard the kids discussing Candy Land versus Chutes and Ladders as they walked into the living room. I stayed in the kitchen, my lips tingling from that kiss. I had to talk to Emma, to tell her we couldn't be together. There wasn't any easy way to say it and I hoped she wouldn't take it hard, but sleeping with her, taking her virginity, it just wasn't right. It had the potential to do a lot of damage to the both of us.
I had to talk to her and make her understand. I just had no idea what the fuck I was going to say.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Saturday came before I knew it and I'd had no time to talk to Emma in private. My kids were always around. There were no more secret kisses, no more flirtations, but I saw the way she looked at me and I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that she was not changing her mind about our little agreement. That meant I had to change her mind for her.
I took the kids to the beach for their lesson, ready to sit on the sidelines and watch again, lost in my thoughts, when Emma pulled on my arm.
“You said you'd join in this time,” she reminded me.
“I changed my mind,” I said. “I don't feel like it.”
She cocked her head to the side and shot me an incredulous look. “No, you promised the kids, and I'm not going to let you get out of it this time.”
“You promised, daddy,” Zack piped in.
“Yeah, you promised,” Zoey added.
Geez. All three of them were ganging up on me, all pulling on me to join them.
“Fine,” I said. “Let me change.”
The kids cheered as Emma smiled, obviously pleased with herself. She could be convincing, that was for sure. The idea of wearing a wetsuit around her made me nervous, as did my potential failings at surfing. But I'd promised my kids, and there was no way they were goin
g to let me wiggle my way out of it again.
I changed and came out of the bathroom, dragging my feet the entire time. Emma was smiling wide as she looked me up and down, a look of raw hunger in her eyes. She obviously approved.
“Alright,” she said, clapping her hands together. “Let's get started. Last week, we did some body boarding in the water, just to get a feel for the waves. Today, we're going to practice standing up on your board.”
I suddenly felt very nervous. Emma put the surfboard down on the ground and instructed us to all do the same thing. Then, she laid down and we followed suit.
“Now, we are going to practice here on land first,” she said. “Let's get the hang of this before we go out on the water, okay? Watch me.”
She placed her hands on either side of her, with her fingers curling over the side of the board. Then in one quick movement, she pushed her body up with her arms, almost in a yoga pose, and then tucked her feet. She moved her body in one swift movement and was on her feet in a flash. She made it look all too easy, which I knew was a lie. And it wouldn't be easy on the water, for sure.
Why did I think this was a good idea again?
“You may find it easier to get on your knees first,” she said. “Then from there, bring one foot up at a time until you're standing. Now let's try it.”
She went over to Zoey first and they worked on technique one-on-one.
“Good job, Zoey,” she said after spending a little time with her. “Now here's how you stand, with your feet like this. Keep practicing while I help Zack.”
She looked over at me and smiled. “Why aren't you practicing, Marcus?”
She sounded like a teacher with that tone in her voice.
“I'm watching the kids,” I said.
“You need to practice too,” she said. “Because we're going to get you out on the water.”
I groaned, but did as she instructed, feeling like I nailed it on the first try. She finished showing Zack and came over to me.
