Beach Side Beds and Sandy Paths

by Becca Ann

  I slip a pair of shorts on and pull one of Ryan’s T-shirts over my head. It’s baggy enough I don’t have to put a bra on. I go to walk and…Okay so it’s not as bad as that time at the gyno, but it’s still a little…wet down there.

  I grab a tissue and wipe it up and tip toe over to the garbage and push my hand into it to hide the tissue. Not that there’s anything criminal on it, but still eww.

  My hand smacks something solid. Kind of soft and…I don’t even know. Curiosity gets the best of me, and I pull whatever it is out of the garbage. I have to push my mouth shut because I don’t think I have the ability to have it close on its own.

  The last thing I expected when I pulled my hand out of that garbage was a banana wearing a raincoat.

  After staring at it for what feels like a century, I drop it back in the garbage and cover it up, vowing to permanently forget that ever happened. Nail polish remover to the brain!

  The floor creaks as I take a step toward the door, and I freeze, but Ryan is still smiling, I could totally paint his nails right now, and he’d never wake up. As tempting as that is, I have too much energy to have a steady hand. Besides I need my bestie.

  I open the door then carefully close it. My first step, and I kick something hard. “What the…?”

  Kaylee sits up rubbing her head. “Ouch!” she yells, and I tackle her to the floor holding my hand over her mouth.

  Her big cartoon-like eyes widen in shock. I hold my finger up and shush her. Then point to the door and mouth, “Sleeping.”

  She nods then grabs my hand. My feet practically fall out from under me as she yanks me towards the kitchen. She pushes me into a stool, and I jump back up. “I’m starving.”

  “I’ll feed you. You talk,” she says with an über goober smile on her face.

  “How do you know there is anything to talk about?” I ask, playing it completely coy even though I want to spill my guts across the counter.

  “Oh come on. You disappear in the middle of the day and don’t resurface until the middle of the night. You had sex.”

  No beating around the bush with this one. I smile just as dorky as she is, and she starts jumping up and down like the hyped up cheerleader she should’ve been. I’m expecting pom poms to come out and her to start cheering S-E-X.

  A high pitch noise echoes through the kitchen, and I’m not sure if it came from her mouth or her nose. Then as if the over the top antics aren’t enough she starts clapping. Doesn’t she realize this isn’t a concert? Or the Olympics. No need to clap.

  “Tell me. Tell me. Tell me,” she finally says. “I’ve been waiting all night to get the details.”

  My mind drifts back to the hallway when I kicked her in the head. “Wait a minute! Were you waiting outside my door all night?”

  Kaylee’s eyes go wide again, and she shrugs. “Maybe.”

  “Oh my… Kaylee what if we were still… you know…?”

  “It was his first time, Lex. I bet my magazine collection that Ryan is passed out cold. Mother Nature could be PMS-ing right now and turn that ocean”—she point to the glass doors—“into a raging sea of death and swallow him whole, and he’d still be sleeping with a big ol’ smile on his face.”

  I laugh. How can I not? If it wasn’t for that sexy smile on his face, I would’ve thought he was dead.

  “Not your magazine collection,” I say in mock shock.

  “Talk,” she says and places a plate of crackers in front of me then walks to the fridge and gets a block of cheese and starts cutting it into small slices.

  My stomach growls just at the sight, and I toss a cracker in my mouth before my stomach takes it upon itself to reach out and grab it on its own.

  “What do you want to know?” From the minute I woke up from my sex induced coma, I wanted to find Kaylee and tell her everything, but now…I don’t know what to say.

  “Did it hurt?” she asks, placing a piece of cheese on a cracker and handing it to me.

  “At first. But he was so slow and gentle that it didn’t really bother me. He was saying all these adorable things and…” I let the words drift off as my mind recalls all the words.

  “Okay. You need to go back to the very beginning. No leaving out details. Well except for the really graphic stuff. I know how it all works.”

  I throw a cracker at her head, and she cocks a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at me. “I’m not Ryan. A food fight won’t distract me from the impending issue.”

  “Funny that you say that. It started with a food fight.”

  “I figured. You forgot to clean up. Lucky I got to the house first while the boys helped Nick build a bonfire. I took care of it before there were any questions.”

  “I owe you one,”

  “No you don’t.” She waves her hand at me. “Just talk.”

  I tell Kaylee about the whipped cream and pudding fight and how I never would have been able to plan that perfect of a moment.

  She puts the knife down and rests her elbow on the counter, her chin on the palm of her hand, and her eyes glue to me as she hangs on every word I say.

  “You know in the movies how they have all those shower scenes and they look so romantic and sexy.”

  She nods.

  “Well, what a crock that is. We started out in the shower and when he started kissing my neck, I got all lightheaded in the oh my God this is amazing kind of way, and my body relaxed and I kind of leaned back, but my foot slipped out from under me, and I went flying towards the wall. Ryan reached out to grab me, but then he smacked his hand on that rack with all our toiletries on it and a shampoo bottle fell out, landing right on his foot. You should see the bruise!”

  Kaylee bursts out laughing, her 34B’s bouncing with each intake of breath.

  “It’s so not funny.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “I’m not even done.”

  “Please continue,” she says, waving her hand at me.

  “The bottle hit his foot, so he pulled it up to him and started jumping up and down, but then he slipped, and I reached out to grab him, but that boy is solid and my hand slid off of him. I went to grab for anything and grabbed his…you know.”

  “His penis,” Kaylee says all smug.

  “Yes, his penis. It was harder than I expected, and I panicked. I yanked my hand away, but somehow it was all in slow mo. I had nothing left to reach for, and I was going down, so I clawed at the only thing I could find—the shower curtain. Needless to say we both fell and the shower rod landed on our heads.”

  Her face is bright red from laughing, and no matter how hard she tries to suppress her giggles, they keep coming. “Word of advice,” she says. “Leave the shower sex to the more experienced. Maybe in a few months try again because when done right?” She purses her lips and nods her head. “Amazing.”

  My stomach growls, again and Kaylee’s eyes narrow. “Sheesh bestie, you really are hungry. Why don’t I make you some of my famous banana nut pancakes?”Another growl from my stomach, and Kaylee jumped up. “That settles that.”

  She gets the ingredients out then her hands land on her hips. “Where in the world is that banana?”

  Oh crap. My eyes widen, but before she can see, I flatten them out. Kaylee can never know the truth about her banana. I don’t think she’d ever look at a banana the same way again. I know I won’t. I bite my tongue, hoping the pain will push down the laugh, barreling up my throat.

  Think. Think fast. “Regular pancakes will be fine. Bananas make me a little bloated and gassy and since Ryan and I finally did it, I don’t want my stomach making any funky noises.”

  She stops looking and snaps her finger at me. “Good thinking. Now keep talking.”

  I take another bite of a cracker.

  “Oh the good stuff now. Yay!” She claps and turns back to the eggs and cracks one into the bowl.

  “After the disaster that was the shower foreplay, he dried me off and wrapped a towel around me, tucking the edge in. He pulled me close, and we started up again. He
told me he loved me and we stumbled into our room. My towel fell, and I yanked his off.”

  “I always knew you had a little sex kitten in you,” Kaylee says.

  I ignore her comment and keep going. “All the awkwardness was out of the way because really, I think we took awkward to a whole new level in the bathroom, and it was just perfect. I kept thinking that I would feel different after. I don’t. I still feel like me. I guess now... I just feel content. Happy. So happy. That day I dragged Ryan out from under the Lincoln and confronted him—”

  “The day it all started.”

  “It started way before that, but that was the turning point. I just never thought I could possibly feel any happier. But I swear if I stand up right now rainbows will shoot out of my ass and unicorns will walk across the living room.”

  Kaylee pours batter onto the pan and turns back. “If rainbows came out of your butt I think I might take you to the doctor. Or maybe put you on stage with Nate because that would be one heck of a magic trick. I bet with that act he’d make it to Vegas.”

  “Rainbows coming out of my ass or not, Nate will make it. He’s the best damn magician I’ve ever met.”

  Kaylee rolls her big green eyes. “Because you’ve met so many.”

  “Maybe so, but Brett was impressed, and he lived in Vegas,” I say.

  “Next trip we should totally go. Maybe for graduation.” She gets that look on her face, the one that tells me no matter what me or anyone says, come summerwe’ll be there.

  “That’d be fun. Maybe even invite Brett along. Give him the chance to go back home.”

  “We are so doing it!” Kaylee bounces over to the stove and flips the pancakes.

  “So doing what?” I hear behind me, and I can’t keep the dorky grin off my face.

  “Vegas,” Kaylee sings, and I swivel in my chair.

  Ryan walks toward me, all sexy and manly and totally mine. “Vegas, huh?” he says and kisses the top of my head before we share a smile.”

  “Yup and it will be a blast,” Kaylee says.

  “I hope I’m not interrupting girl talk, but those pancakes smell amazing, and I’m starving,” Ryan says, but he doesn’t look at me. Instead he looks right at Kaylee, and he tips his head to her.

  She looks at him and smiles, and even though no words are exchanged between them, I feel like a lot is said.

  Unable to resist, I say, “Grab a plate. We’re having plain pancakes tonight. If only Kaylee’s banana didn’t go missing...”

  Chapter 23

  Ryan

  My internal clock is all jacked up. After eating at two in the morning, my body was fueled up, and I couldn’t get Lex to the bed fast enough. I tried to be cool and do the wall thing, but maybe I need to chill out and keep things to the mattress until we’ve gotten used to each other, since we ended up toppled and twisted just like the shower.

  Much like the first time, it left me feeling like goop, and I zonked out again. But now I’m wide awake and the sun hasn’t come up yet. Lex’s ass is perched right where I like it, and I start moving against her, kissing that spot behind her ear, hoping she’s not too sore for another go.

  Her mouth twitches, but she doesn’t make another move. How long has it been? Seems like I dozed off for hours, but when I twist to the clock, it’s only been an hour since we came back upstairs. And the heavy breathing that slides from Lex’s mouth tells me that there’s not a chance right now.

  She’s naked, and she’s next to me. I yell at my dick to move away from her rock hard ass. I think part of me gets it now, just like before when Lex and I started dating. No wonder Nate’s always packing rubber. I feel like there’s no purpose in even getting dressed today.

  I push my hips forward again, then quickly retreat, flying from the bed and pacing the room. Lex must be dead exhausted because she still hasn’t moved. Her face is pushed somewhat into the pillow, and now that I’m not in the bed the sheets are splayed across her body, her back exposed in the early morning light. I gulp at the long line that runs down her spine, the curve of her ass, the one smooth leg that’s hitched up under the blanket, and damn it. I have to get out of here if I’m ever gonna get rid of this woody.

  The bathroom floor is cold on my feet as I shut the door behind me. The shower curtain is still spread on the tile, and I smirk as I put it back in place. I don’t even reach for the hot water handle, cranking the shower on with just the cold. My nipples perk right up, but my junk starts to deflate.

  Damn, I feel like I’m living something that isn’t my life. It’s ten thousand times better than my life. If I could moonwalk I’d do it across the tub floor. My mouth is stuck in this stupid grin and before I know it, I’m singing who the hell knows what even though I’m the most tone deaf person in the universe.

  Lex is still asleep when I come out of the bathroom, and I think I’ve forgotten how to walk normally. I’m shaking my hips and doing shit I never thought I would as I get dressed and make my way downstairs. A wave of heat goes through my face when I see a girl in one of Nick’s shirts digging through the kitchen cupboards. But my feet won’t stop dancing for a second, even when she turns around stifles her laughter at my lack of rhythm. I pretend to tip a hat at her as I make my way to the door. Maybe a few minutes with my ass in the sand will calm me the hell down so what Lex and I did isn’t painted all over my face.

  The sun decides to make its first appearance when I take a step in the ocean. The water is ice against my toes. Even after that needed cold shower, my body is blazing with heat.

  “Life is damn good,” I say to the rising sun, and I mean it. For the first time in months I can say that and know it’s true. Right here, in the immediate present, I can’t think of a single thing that’s not worth smiling about. Even the thought of my brother isn’t pissing me off.

  I kick the water and cross my arms, thinking hard about anything but Lexie so I don’t end up having to take an ocean dip in my clothes. Visualizing the transmission I’ll have to put in the IROC when I get back seems to work, and my head starts going. Actually, Brett might be more helpful than Pop-pop in this case if he knows the inner workings of an IROC transmission. I don’t think Brett will just sit in the recliner and bark out orders.

  “You’re up early,” Nate says, kicking up the water as he wades in next to me.

  “You too.”

  “Yeah. I was gonna try this illusion with the curtains in mine and Kaylee’s room, and I needed to be up right as the sun came out.”

  “Did it work?”

  “Sort of. I’m still having a hard time getting the angle right.” He shrugs. “Guess I’ll have to try it back home. It won’t look as cool though with the smaller windows.”

  “Well, when you get it right I want to see it.”

  “Definitely. It should look like there’s a ghost moving the curtains. But at the moment it just looks like I’m crapping myself while staring at the sunrise.”

  I chuckle and shake my head at the sky. There are about six clouds among the orange and yellows, and I pull in a breath, taking all this romantic shit in before we gotta head back tomorrow.

  “So, uh…” Nate says, scratching the back of his head. “You gonna be around today?”

  I smirk at the water. “I don’t know. Why?”

  “Just thought I’d tell you in case I don’t get the chance… it takes a few days for stuff to disappear, and well, you’re seeing your grandma in three days.”

  My brows pull inward when I turn to look at him. “Stuff?”

  His body shakes with silent laughter, and he scratches his neck with eyebrows raised. I pull my hand up and rub the same spot on my own neck, but it’s not like the skin feels any different.

  “Oh, damn.” I laugh and he laughs too. “How bad is it?”

  “Looks like you’ve been hit with a purple paintball.”

  Shit. “Hopefully it yellows by Sunday.”

  “Yeah, or Grams is gonna cut off your balls and cook ‘em.”

  “I can’t belie
ve you remember she said that.”

  “It’s pretty much traumatized me.”

  I try to pull at my collar, but I’m wearing a T-shirt so all that does is earn me a good razzing from Nate.

  “Use some of Lex’s makeup,” he says.

  “Hell no.”

  “Don’t knock it. I’ve had some class A hickeys and no one’s known.”

  I slug him in the arm, and he punches me back, sending thunders of pain through my shoulder. “Damn,” I say, rotating my arm. He’s been working on his hook.

  The sun gets all the way up over the ocean, and I crank my neck back to the house. I wonder if Lex is up now. In fact, I see someone coming out the front door, but my stomach drops when I see it’s Kaylee.

  “I’m gonna…” I mumble, gesturing to the house.

  “Yeah, yeah.” Nate laughs and before I take a step, he holds his fist out for me and we pound. I don’t know why Kaylee and Lex needed three hours to talk about what happened. I pretty much summed it up with subtext.

  My feet get covered in sand as I jog past Kaylee and into the house. I head to the downstairs bathroom just to rinse off my toes, and a voice makes me stop in the hallway.

  “How many times are we gonna go through this shit?” Brett says, and I’m not sure who he’s talking to, but since I don’t hear a response, I’m guessing he’s on the phone.

  “He was a dealer, Kar. You can’t keep blaming me for—”

  My mouth drops open a little, and I scoot around the wall separating the living room from the bathroom. Brett’s running his hand over the back of his neck, ears up in flames, and his knees bounce as he talks into his cell.

  “Fine. I won’t stop on my way back to Colorado. It’s not a big deal anyway, right? Not like we meant shit to each other.”

  He pauses for a second, then he’s up to his feet so fast I jolt backward.

  “You were the one who didn’t want to be anything. Don’t think I didn’t love you just because I turned your dad in. That’s a bunch of shit and you know it. You know it.”

  There’s a voice that’s loud enough for me to hear even in the hallway, but I can’t tell what the person is saying. Brett paces the rug, his free hand tight in a fist at his side.