“Hmm?”
“What do you want? What do you need?”
She remains taciturn, her voice vanishing after learning what she has this evening.
“Do you want me to get Izzy?”
Her soft waves move as she shakes her head back and forth.
“I want to help you, sweetheart. What can I do to help you?” I urge as I rest my hand on her cheek, hoping to soothe her with my touch. Her body relaxes slightly, but I can tell she’s still wound tight, and my own heart is breaking inside of my chest.
“Trevor?”
“Yes?”
“Take me back to your place.”
Chapter Fourteen
Quinn
I AM POSSESSED. A lost figure in the black abyss of life, and I have no real destination for solace. All I want, all I crave, is the feel of Trevor. Something warm, something solid, something real. And I need it more than my next breath.
When Trevor asked me what I needed, where I wanted to go, I could only think of one place where I felt secure—and that was with him. I didn’t hesitate when I told him to take me to his house. I want to be completely encapsulated by him, feel like a part of him.
The temptation he holds is overwhelming, and I know at this point my feelings are beginning to blossom, regardless of how many pep talks I’ve had with myself to keep things buried deep. The challenge now will be not letting Trevor figure out that I’m falling for him so much more than I did when I was younger. Our quick and easy sexcapade is getting muddled in a swamp of emotions that I don’t know how to navigate through.
Luckily as we pull into Trevor’s driveway, he takes the lead knowing I’m on the verge of some cataclysmic breakdown. Reaching over, he unclasps my seat belt and then exits the car, quickly coming around the other side to escort me out.
As he guides me into his house, the feeling in the room begins to shift as he takes my hand. I trail behind him as we move into his kitchen, where Trevor turns around and rests his hands on my hips. I almost think he’s going to bend down and kiss me as he stares into my eyes, but instead I find myself lifted into the air and plopped onto the counter.
He walks toward the sink, reaches into the cabinet to grab a glass, and then fills it with water.
“Drink,” he commands gently as he holds it out to me.
I take it with a shaky hand and drink the full glass in one sitting and hand it back to Trevor, who deposits it in the sink. Like a ghost, he floats toward me and scoops me into his arms, settling me tight against his chest before he takes the steps two at a time.
Trevor opens his bedroom door with a squeak, and as he stalks toward the massive bed, a shiver snakes down my spine.
“Cold?” he asks, but I shake my head.
I’m heated through to my core right now.
Gently Trevor sets me on the bed and tugs on my skirt, silently asking whether I want it removed or not. And I do, I want to rid myself of everything that reminds me of tonight. Seeming to know what I need, Trevor glides the dress from my body, lifting it over my head and tossing it aimlessly into the room. Reaching around, he unclasps my bra and it joins my dress on the floor.
I close my eyes as I anticipate his touch, but I’m surprised when I’m lifted into his arms again. Before I can figure out what’s going on, I’m lying on the bed and Trevor is wrapping the covers around me.
“What’s going on?”
“You need to rest, Quinn. You just learned some pretty big news.”
“But I… I need you more, Trevor,” I whisper as I hunker down under the warm soft duvet.
He contemplates my words and emotion as he takes me in, and I feel helpless in his gaze.
“How about I lie with you? I need to get you back home before my sister returns.”
“You could just say we’re practicing the script.”
As he moves to the other side of the bed and slides beneath the sheets, his frown tilts down farther.
“I’m not a fan of lying.”
“We’re lying every day when we hide whatever it is we’re doing from her,” I explain as I turn over and watch him.
“I know.”
A few minutes of quiet pass, neither of us doing much but breathing. I watch his chest rise and fall as he lies on his back. Taking a chance, I scoot closer to him and rest my cheek on his chest, loving the way I can hear his heart beat against my ear.
“Do you want to talk about it, Quinn?”
“I guess. It really explains why they treated me the way they did. I’m not even sure if I’m upset, I’m just… nothing. Hollow. Like I found out that this part of me I’d been trying to fit into a hole was a square peg all along.”
“Quinn, no one deserved to be treated the way you have, adopted or not.”
“Adopted.” My voice shakes as the realization finally hits. “I’m adopted, Trevor.”
The sobs break free and I become a shell of myself as I fall apart in Trevor’s arms. He doesn’t seem to mind my breakdown, not caring that I’m leaving a trail of tears down his chest. Instead, he holds me close and wraps me in his arms, soothing me with his embrace.
It takes a while but I find myself drying up, not enough tears left to shed over the news I received from my so-called parents. The parents who barely paid me any mind while I lived under their roof. It explains their treatment and why they didn’t seem too bothered when I left. Except now I have absolutely nothing tying me to Dale City.
As the fear begins to well deep inside, harnessing my insecurities, I close my eyes and relish in the moment of being in Trevor’s arms—for however long it lasts. His fingers trace up and down my bare back, following the path of my spine, and it calms my thoughts.
Before I know it I’m drifting away toward sleep, letting the blackness pull me in.
The slamming of the front door wakes me up and I quickly realize I’m no longer resting on Trevor’s chest but his sheets instead. Turning my head, I notice the remaining half of the bed is empty as well.
I can make out harsh whispers coming from the bottom of the stairs, and I recognize Izzy’s voice.
“What’s going on, Trevor?”
“Izzy, it’s not what it seems. I’m just lying here on the couch while she’s sleeping upstairs. There’s nothing going on. My God, Iz, she just had her world torn apart.”
“What happened? I got your message, but it just said Quinn learned some terrible news tonight,” Izzy whispers, but I can’t listen to Trevor’s reply. It makes it real then. If the words are in my head, I can push them away and pretend none of this happened.
I place the pillow over my head and tune them out, mentally reading the script for my latest movie to drown out my thoughts.
A knock on the door sounds a few minutes later, and Trevor enters the room with a sullen expression on his face. His typically dreamy eyes are heavy with sympathy and concern, and truthfully I don’t like it one bit.
“Izzy is probably going to want to spend the day with you tomorrow.”
“How’d she take it?”
“I figured you were awake. She took it okay. She’s worried about you. She’s afraid you’re going to push away all your feelings until it becomes too much.” Trevor walks closer to the bed, his bare chest highlighted by the low-slung gray sweatpants. With each step, I can make out his cock swinging freely between his legs, and heat builds in my center.
“Quinn?” he asks, but my train of thought was elsewhere so I hum, hoping he’ll repeat himself. “Quinn, are you going to be okay? Is it too much right now? I can back off. We can just do the friend thing for the rest of your time here.”
“Don’t you dare. The sex with you is about the only thing in my life that I know and have control of. I… I’m not sure I could handle anything else right now.”
Sighing, Trevor takes a seat on the bed and exhales. “Quinn, you will always have me and Izzy. You can count on us for anything, you know that, right?”
“I know.” I sit up in bed and wrap my arms around myself protectivel
y. “So what happens now?” I ask as I look over at him.
“Well, what do you say we watch a movie in bed? I have to be at work at six in the morning, but I told Izzy I was keeping you here since you were resting, and I was staying on the couch.”
“I don’t care what we watch, but I’d like to lie with you.”
Trevor grabs his remote and turns on the television mounted on the wall across from the bed, selecting a movie already playing on a station. A few cars move quickly across the screen as he saunters back toward the bed, tucking himself under the sheets.
He rolls me onto my side and he does the same, his chest to my back, and props his head on his bent arm to watch the movie over my shoulder. I last about twenty minutes before the feeling of his thick cock pressing against my bottom becomes too much. Being aroused when Trevor is around has been a daily occurrence since I’ve returned home, so my sex is already wet and aching for him.
Yearning to feel his closeness, I slowly guide my hand across my hips and behind my body. When I’m met with the soft waistband of his sweats, I snake my hand underneath the elastic and gently caress the head of his cock.
“What are you doing, sweetheart?” he asks as he presses a kiss to my shoulder, a growl sounding deep in his chest as I stroke his shaft from base to tip.
“I’m thanking you for taking care of me tonight.” I squeeze him just enough to trigger another growl, and I smile victoriously.
“You don’t need to thank me,” Trevor says through gritted teeth.
Instantly I stop my movements and peer at him from over my shoulder. “Do you want me to stop?”
“Fuck no, I just want you to know that I’m not expecting this. That I care about you too much to have sex with you tonight.”
Saucily I stroke his hardened shaft once more, loving the way the velvet skin feels against my palm, and admire the way his body shivers with the movement. Jokingly, I ask, “Are those feelings, Trevor?”
As if something inside him snaps, he tugs me over so I’m straddling his hips and rocks himself against my apex, coating his sweat pants in my heat.
“If you want me, Quinn, you take what you need.”
I tug down his pants and use my feet to push them down to his ankles, enthralled by the look of fascination on Trevor’s face. His arms rest behind his head in a relaxing manner, but I know it’s to keep himself from reaching out and taking control.
I guide him into my sheath and slip him in inch by inch until I’m completely seated and full. Trevor bites his lower lip as I rock against him, craving the sensation as he hits my sensitive spot.
The feeling is incredible and I try to hold back, try to savor it all, but the impulse to take everything becomes too great. As if he senses my desire, Trevor says, “Take it, Quinn.”
And with his permission, I lose control.
A small lamp automatically turns on in the corner, and I realize it must still be early since darkness looms out the window. From where I rest on my stomach, barely covered by a sheet, I watch as Trevor pulls on his standard-issue navy pants and a button-down shirt. He grabs his badge and gun from his dresser and straps them onto his person before turning in my direction.
“Good morning, beautiful.” He smiles as he leans down and kisses me tenderly.
“Hey, I guess I should get going too.” Sitting up, I yawn and stretch my arms only to find Trevor’s gaze homed in on my exposed breasts. Normally I’d have the urge to cover them up, but not with Trevor. The way he’s looking at me makes me feel irresistible.
“No, you stay put and catch a few more hours of sleep. Izzy knows where you are.”
Slinking back against the bed and tugging the covers over my body, I smile up at him.
“I wish I could stay in bed with you all day.” He gazes down at me, his eyes filled with sincerity and desire.
“Maybe one day soon?”
“Maybe,” he says as the alarm sounds on the phone in his pocket. “Whelp, I need to run. I’m on call for the next three days, but we can do some read-throughs at night if you’re open to it.”
“I don’t have any plans.”
“And Wednesday I’d like to take you out.”
My heart starts pounding in my chest at the thrill of his request.
“Like a date?”
Trevor falters and my hopes nose-dive as his expression changes.
“I mean, maybe? Yeah, it can be a date.”
“Trevor, you don’t have to do me any favors. I remember it’s just sex,” I lash out.
Unexpectedly, he places a knee on the bed and leans over, sealing his mouth against mine. “I’m taking you on a date because I want to, not because I have to. I just haven’t taken anyone on a date in a very long time.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, oh. Now get some rest, sweetheart. Hopefully I’ll see you tonight.”
I watch as his tight ass moves with each step toward his door.
“Hey, Trevor,” I shout to get his attention before he descends the staircase. “Thank you, for last night. I… I needed that.”
“I’m yours whenever you need me,” he replies before he disappears from my view.
As I sink farther down into the sheets, worry begins to build that soon I might need him more than ever.
Chapter Fifteen
Quinn
RIFLING THROUGH MY STASH of clothes, I anxiously pull out a pair of distressed jean shorts and a loose-fitted T-shirt. Yesterday when I asked Trevor where we were heading tonight, he said just to dress casually; I sure as hell hope this is what he means.
The front door closes and I assume it’s Izzy letting Vic into her place. After I woke from Trevor’s on Sunday and did a self-inflicted walk of shame back to Izzy’s house, we spent the day together on her back porch sipping mimosas. It was everything I had imagined our time together to be: a little bit of gossip and a whole lot of alcohol.
After we ordered pizza, she finally let on that she and Vic had been playing cat and mouse for the past few days and that she was thinking of giving him a real shot. The thing with Izzy is that she’s a commitment-phobe. She’s absolutely terrified to commit herself to someone, but apparently Vic broke through her barriers and she’s giving him a chance.
Having Izzy distracted with Vic leaves me free to spend time with Trevor without having to question everything around us and constantly look over my shoulder. Of course, part of the appeal with the sneaking around is the actual thrill of sneaking around. Obviously I’m wildly attracted to Trevor—I’m not sure how any red-blooded female couldn’t be—but am I still going to find our rendezvous as tempting when we can be out in public? Or even worse, what if I’m unable to keep my feelings for him and the sex separate? Because all it would take is one integral moment for me to fall head over heels in love with him. Truthfully I’m almost there already, and that scares the shit out of me because I’m leaving Dale City in a week and a half. I have to. My life and my dreams are in Hollywood.
“Hey, there you are,” Izzy jokes as she brings me back from the void I’d fallen into.
I take in her nervous expression and the way she rocks back and forth on her heels. Her anxiety fills the room and my instincts sprout forth.
“Hey, Izzy, you look outstanding in that dress. Please keep it.”
“Oh,” she says absentmindedly as she looks down at the red jersey dress she borrowed from me. It’s cinched at her waist and cascading down her thighs, ending at the knees. “Thanks. So, um, will you be okay tonight? “
“Of course. You go have fun with Vic. Actually, I think Trevor mentioned taking me somewhere tonight. So maybe I’ll do that,” I add nervously, but not surprisingly, Izzy misses the mention of Trevor and continues to gaze down at her dress. Standing from the bed, I walk over to my best friend and wrap her in my arms. “Hey, Iz. I can stay home with you if you want. You don’t have to go on a date with him. I can see him out.”
“I want to go out with him,” she says as she rests her head on my shoulder. “I like him
, a lot. More than I ever thought I could like someone.”
“Iz, are you still…?” By the way she doesn’t meet my eyes, I already have the answer. My best friend and femme fatale is still holding onto her innocence. She talked a lot of talk but never once let anyone past her barriers. “Hey, don’t worry. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. And I don’t know Vic well, but he seems like the kind of guy who would be patient with you. And hell, if he’s not, just tell your brother. I’m sure Trevor would love to try and kick his ass.”
Finally I small smile creaks across her lips as she leans back out of my arms. “Try. Vic would crush him.”
“True,” I add as I notice Vic turning into the hallway. “So go, have a good time. I expect you to tell me everything tonight.”
Izzy’s face changes as she turns and notices Vic, so I tack on “Or tomorrow. Have fun, you two.”
“Bye, Quinn,” Vic states as he rests his hand on Izzy’s lower back and escorts her from the house.
Just as I hear the door close, I dart for my cell phone resting on the nightstand and type out a message for Trevor.
Me: I’m ready
Trevor: Be there soon
*
THE WIND WHIPS THROUGH my hair as Trevor navigates the winding back roads toward Houston. When he arrived at the house half an hour ago, I was struck dumb by how sexy he looked in a pair of camo cargo shorts, a black T-shirt, and a black hat. So simple and casual, and so very Trevor. My knees actually grew weak when I let him through the door, and I had to hold onto the doorknob like a life vest in a sea of sexiness. When I turned back around to find him leaning against the opening to the living room, casually taking in my appearance, I actually had to wipe the drool from the corner of my mouth. His eyes were full of heat and promise, and I was drowning in them, hoping with all I have that he’d throw me a raft as I made my way over to him.
And I wasn’t disappointed.
Trevor snatched me when I was standing about a foot away from him and hauled me close, meshing our bodies into one. I had hoped he was going to kiss me, my eyes begging for it as I puckered my lips slightly. Instead, his fingers left a hot trail from the back of my thighs as they meandered upward toward the rough hem of my shorts. His touch scorched me as it followed the seam connecting my ass to my legs, and I gasped when he gripped the bottom of my shorts.
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