Faithless

by Amanda Bennett

  I rarely saw London outside and I was thankful for that, only because I wasn't exactly sure what to say or even how to act towards him. He had the luxury of seeing the one girl I had only ever truly loved every day, and I had to wait around patiently waiting for my turn. It was completely infuriating and if I wasn't trying to win her back, I would've knocked him out a week ago.

  My sister and I had been hanging around the house all day, doing absolutely nothing and being bored out of our minds.

  "This is getting so lame, Tristan."

  "I know, Grace but what do you want to do?"

  We were both sitting on the couch with our feet kicked up, aimlessly staring at the boring television show that had been on for the last forty-five minutes. I reached for my phone to check the time, and was severely disappointed when it showed that it was only five in the afternoon.

  "Let's go down to the beach. I need some sun and you look like you could use a distraction. So you go surfing and I'll just take a nap on the sand?"

  "Fine." I whined as I pulled my tired body from the couch. At least I didn't have to worry about staying in shape anymore. All this surfing was definitely giving me a workout. I pulled on my board shorts and headed out to the living room. My sister was waiting for me, towels and water bottle in hand. I grabbed my board from the porch and we took the back stairs down to the beach. There weren't too many people out this time of night, and given the fact that it was practically a private beach, we pretty much had the place to ourselves.

  "Alright, I'll be back in a bit. Enjoy your sun." I laughed as I ran out into the waves. I took a quick glance at Riley's place and nearly tripped over my own feet when I saw her standing by the water, her hand shielding her eyes form the sun, as she looked my way.

  As much as I wanted to wave or react in some way, I decided to let her feel what I had been feeling for the last week. I pushed my board down and dove under the first wave as I paddled out past the break. I didn't waste any time catching a wave and I could feel the adrenaline surge through me as I glanced over, noticing Riley watching me.

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  Riley

  God, he looked so amazing out there in the water. I caught a small glimpse of his sculpted body just before he had gone into the water. I couldn't take my eyes off him. Not only was he one of the best looking guys I had ever seen, but also the way he rode the waves, was mesmerizing. I sat down on the sand just far enough back so the water would lap up onto my feet, as I watched him catch wave after wave.

  I noticed he kept looking back at the beach in front of his condo, but I wasn't sure who or what he was looking at. I also didn't have a very good view from where I was sitting. I leaned back on my hands and watched as the sun glistened off of his wet, defined torso. My mind began going to places it probably shouldn't have, but I couldn't help myself. I couldn't help thinking back on the night he had made love to me so passionately, so gentle and so loving. My eyes began to gloss over as I could feel my excitement for him started to build. I wanted him more than I have ever wanted anybody or anything in my life. I imagined him running over to me, water dripping from every part of him and landing on my scorching skin. His hands reaching out for mine and slowly gliding over my bare shoulder, making its way up to the back of my neck as he captured my mouth with his. I could almost feel his warm salty lips against mine and my fingers flew up to my lips, wishing it would've been reality instead of a fantasy.

  "Hey, whatcha doin' out here?" London's voice shocked me, making me jump in my own skin.

  "Jesus, London. Make yourself known much?"

  "Sorry, didn't think I would scare you. Sorry."

  "It's okay. How's your jaw feeling today? You sore at all?"

  "No, it actually feels amazing to be able to open my mouth. I'm just relieved I didn't have to keep it wired shut any longer than I did." His relief was eminent in his tone and I started to feel guilty again.

  "I'm so sorry, London." I started playing with the sand below me, as I tried to not look in Tristan's direction.

  London's hand came up to my bare shoulder and I shuttered. "It's not your fault, Riley. How many times do I have to tell you that?"

  "I know. So, what do you want to do for dinner tonight?"

  "I was thinking maybe we should go out somewhere. You know, celebrate the fact that I can use my mouth again."

  I let out a small half-hearted laugh, "Okay, let's go out."

  "Are you sure?"

  "Yeah, but I don't want to go anywhere fancy. Let's save that for tomorrow night." London had his hand stretched out to help me up. I took his hand and stood, wiping the remnants of sand from the back of my shorts.

  "Let's go, beautiful."

  I glanced over my shoulder as we made our way back up to the house. Just as I had suspected, Tristan had watched our entire interaction. I could tell because he was quickly paddling back to shore. My heart ached for what he must be feeling as he watched London and I together, but I just wished he would understand that it was just me helping out a friend.

  "You okay?"

  I turned back towards London, shaking my head to rid all thoughts of Tristan. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's go."

  I ran up to my room and quickly changed into a long sundress, more suited for a restaurant. When I came down the stairs, London was waiting for me in the kitchen.

  "You ready?" He asked.

  "Yeah." I had London drive to the place we were going. My mind just wasn't in the right place to be driving right now. When we passed Tristan's complex, my heart skipped a beat when I noticed that his car was gone. I hated that we hadn't been talking that much, so I had no idea what or who he was doing.

  We pulled up to a small little bistro just up the street a few minutes later. There weren't too many people out right now, so it was nice to not have to deal with a crowd. We were seated in a back booth and I couldn't help but wonder if London had specifically asked for that to happen? It felt weird to be tucked away in the back corner with just him and me.

  I tried to relax and have a nice time, but something inside of me was raising the warning flag. Unfortunately, I didn't get the warning until too late. "Riley, I've been thinking a lot about us lately. Don't you think it's time we tried to take our "friendship" to the next level?"

  Holy hell, what was he thinking and why was he referring to our friendship like it was some sort of cover for my real feelings. "London, can we please not talk about this right now?"

  His smile faded as he took in my serious tone, "I guess so, but don't think you're getting off that easy. We'll come back to this, soon."

  God I hope not too soon. I silently chastised myself for making him feel as though he stood a chance. I never expected him to think that I felt like that for him. Now I was starting to feel really bad. Had I been leading him on? I had, but he also made it seem like we were just friends.

  Dinner seemed to drag on in a slow monotonous manner after that. I swear he was dragging it out on purpose, but all I could think about was getting home and curling up in my bed.

  A little over two hours later, London had finally finished his dinner and drinks and we were on our way back to my house. Of course I opted to drive, seems how he had taken the opportunity to celebrate, very literal. When we pulled into the garage, London could barely keep his eyes open and he was starting to slur his words.

  "London, maybe you should just go lay down."

  "I think you're right. All right pretty lady, I'm off to bed. If you get lonely, don't be afraid to come on in."

  I rolled my eyes at his directness and left him at the bottom of the stairs. I was going to go up to bed as well, but then I heard the crash of the waves out back and I couldn't help but feel pulled in their direction. I grabbed the light blanket off of the back of the couch and made my way down to the water where I had left a lounge chair earlier that morning. I wrapped the blanket around me and snuggled up into the chair. My head slowly fell back onto the part that was back and I took in the vast darkness that hovered above me. E
very star looked smaller tonight than they had the previous night. It was still amazing to me how magnificent the night sky looked without all of the city lights around.

  Part of the blanket fell from my shoulder and when I glanced back up at the sky after fixing it, a bright shooting star blazed across the sky, leaving a bright burning trail behind it. I quickly closed my eyes and wished with all my might. The last time I wished on a star, I was eleven years old and I wished to be free of Gavin and his home. My wish hadn't come true just then and I highly doubted it would come true now, but part of me still wanted to believe in the magic of it all. When I opened my eyes, I was face to face with the deepest blue I had ever seen. I shook my head, thinking it had to be a dream, but when I blinked and he was still there, I silently thanked god for making my wish come true.

  "What are you doing here?" I whispered.

  "I couldn't go another night without seeing you."

  My heart melted a little bit and I could feel the butterflies that had been laying dormant start to take flight. "I see."

  "Do you? I don't think you understand what it does to me, not being able to see you every day or night for that matter."

  "I think I have a good idea." He slowly took a seat by my feet at the end of the chair. I wasn't sure if he was waiting for permission, but he sat down regardless. "You looked great earlier. I mean, you and the waves, you looked great riding the waves. Oh just never mind." I sighed in surrender.

  "I knew what you meant." He laughed. "You looked great too."

  I could feel the blush rising up my cheeks as I let a smile form on my lips. "Thanks. Were you out there with someone? Oh god sorry, I guess that's really none of my business. It just looked like you were looking back at someone on the beach a few times."

  Tristan's hand went to my knee to calm my nerves, and man did it work. I was instantly a puddle of mush under his touch. "My sister was out there with me."

  "Oh! I didn't know you had a sister. You never said anything."

  "It's a long story." He seemed to get a little depressed.

  "I'd like to hear it one day." I whispered and he perked up a bit.

  "Really?"

  "Of course. Tristan just because I asked for some time to deal with things, doesn't mean I want absolutely nothing to do with you. I still lo...care for you, a lot."

  "Me too." His reply caught me off guard.

  I let my hand make its way over to his, and then I intertwined my fingers with his. I stared at our hands that were now combined as one, before my eyes sought out his. When our eyes met, something took over me and I was almost lunging at him as my lips closed in around his. Our mouths moved in unison before I slid my tongue along his bottom lip. He easily granted me access and the taste of mint and salt were more present than ever before. It was a calming taste and it almost felt like coming home. Despite what had gone on between us, Tristan's touch made me feel safe and comfortable, and that was all I wanted in this moment.

  His big hands aggressively made their way up my neck to my face, cupping it in both of his hands as he deepened our kiss. His eagerness to claim me was present in the way he kissed me, and at this point there wasn't anything that could make me say no to him.

  One of his hands moved down my neck, across my collarbone and finally came to rest on the top part of my strapless dress. His fingers nudging at my skin, made me privy to the fact that he wanted more. Without hesitation, I let one of my hands come up and guide his down the front of my dress and helped it make its way underneath my dress. I could feel my want for him between my legs. I was shaking in anticipation of feeling his skin against mine. His deft fingers started moving my thin lace panties to the side, and before I knew it, they were pushing deep inside of me.

  I gasped at the overwhelming pleasure of it all. His lips were still devouring mine, muffling the noise, but he still knew exactly what he was doing to me. His fingers began to move faster and deeper, and I quickly found myself on the verge of falling over the edge. I took in a deep breath as his thumb circled its way around my swollen nub just as his fingers thrust inside me. I yelled out as my orgasm took over my entire body.

  Before I had time to recover from the first one, Tristan was moving the top part of the chair down and gently pushing me back against it, as he nestled between my legs. I wrapped the blanket around his now bare backside as I wrapped my legs around his waist. He hiked up my dress around my hips and I could feel his need for me at my entrance.

  I was busy taking in the amazingly gorgeous sight in front of me when I heard his voice break through the night. "Are you okay with this, Riley?"

  My eyes flew up to his as I nodded my head. "I've never been more okay with anything in my life."

  He started to push into me slowly and gently, but I wasn't in the mood for slow and gentle. I wanted Tristan to take me. I wanted him to make me his, claim me as his own. I dug my heels into his backside, urging him to go deeper and as if he almost knew exactly what I was asking for, he slammed into me. I let out a yell of pleasure and pain as he pulled back and repeated the exact same motion. Every time his cock hit that amazingly pleasurable spot deep inside of me, I cried out. My hands flew up to his shoulder blades, allowing my nails to rake across his flesh. I could feel the blood trickling down his skin as I dug in deeper with every thrust. When I felt myself getting closer, I slid my hands down his back, grasping onto him for dear life. I was holding out for him to come with me this time, and when he was finally at the point I was, he whispered the most amazing sentence I had ever heard.

  "Let go with me Riley."

  I know it wasn't romantic or anything, but it had such meaning behind it when he said it. Seconds later, we came together. We both cried out each other's names as we took that jump hand in hand. Our breathing was erratic and loud as he collapsed on top of me. I let out a small laugh when his heavy body forced all of the air out of me. I pushed against his chest, trying to raise him up off of me, but he was putting all of his weight on me as he laughed. His melodic laughter echoed through the night sky and I could only imagine what it would feel like to be like this with him, every night. With one last push against him, he let out a loud laugh and sat up, pulling me onto his lap. I tucked my head under his chin, smiling against his dewy skin.

  "This is nice."

  "I agree. Riley, can I ask you a question?"

  "Of course." I could hear the worry in my voice.

  "Do you ever picture what you want your life to be like?"

  "Every second of every day." I choked back a sob, as I looked up at him from under hooded eyes.

  He wanted to ask something more, I could see it on his face, but instead he just replied, "me too."

  I sat in Tristan's arms for a lot longer than I thought would ever be comfortable, but it just felt so right. My eyes began to flutter shut as time ticked by, but I didn't want him to leave. I wanted him to stay, with me, forever. Unfortunately for me, I wasn't that lucky. The moon was high above us when he stood and placed me back on the chair without him next to me.

  "Are you okay?" I asked.

  "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just getting late is all. You should get some sleep."

  I caught sight of his back and the damage I had done when he turned to leave. "And you should probably get a bandage." I giggled.

  "That bad, huh?" He kept turning trying to look at it.

  "Go take care of those and I'll see you tomorrow."

  "Promise?" His voice was fading as he walked away.

  "I promise." I smiled.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Riley

  My eyes slowly blinked open just as the sun was beginning to rise over the ocean. I lay in bed just staring out the window at the amazingly beautiful shades of red and pink as memories of last night flashed through my mind. Being with Tristan again on such an intimate level, left me yearning for more. Every time I closed my eyes I could feel his hands touching me, his lips gliding across mine, and his salty skin pressed against me. A soft moan escaped between my lips
as I remembered each and every detail. My lips were still swollen from the roughness of our kissing and the ache between my legs reminded me of how he had taken all of me last night. There was no holding back on his behalf, and I loved the feeling of knowing he had been in me.

  There was a small knock at my door and I jumped not knowing who would be up this early. Although London was the only one here, he rarely woke up before ten. I tucked the sheets around my half naked body before I answered the door. I was in utter shock and disbelief when I came face to face with Nancy.

  "What the hell are you doing in my house?" I had gone from euphorically happy to extremely irritated in less than five seconds, just from seeing her face.

  "Well good morning to you too, Riley. I actually thought this was London's room. He sent me a text this morning asking me to come over. He told me where the spare key was, and I know how to disarm the alarm." Her condescending tone wasn't helping with the being irritated thing.

  "Well, sorry to disappoint, but London's room is down the hall."

  "My apologies, hun. Talk to you soon." She gave a wave as she made her way down the hall. When she got to London's door, she didn't knock.

  She had known damn good and well that this door was not his. What the hell was she up to? I quietly clicked my door into place, before throwing myself back onto the bed. I tugged the covers up over my head and tried to go back to sleep for a bit. I wasn't in the mood to deal with Nancy and her bitch ass this early, on very little sleep and no caffeine.

  When I woke up a little while later, I threw on my robe and made my way down to the kitchen. I noticed London's door was still closed as I exited the bathroom and I didn't know whether or not to take that as a good sign or a bad one.

  When I entered the kitchen, I got my answer. There Nancy stood in nothing but one of London's t-shirts, a t-shirt that barely covered her ass mind you, making coffee like she owned the place. I landed on the last stair as hard as I could to get her attention, and it worked. Coffee grounds and the coffee filter went flying to the ground.