by Amber Burns
Three thrusts later she wails her release, taking me with her not too long after. Shooting through the sky with delirious pleasure and then falling down into the yawning depth of reality and sex-induced slumber.
When I wake from the knockout, I’m spooning Astra, my cock still embedded in her, my girl’s even breathing letting me know she hasn’t resurfaced yet.
I sit up, careful to jostle her with my arm under her body, our sexes connected. Her face is relaxed, lips parted for her soft breaths and brown-red lashes fanning over her flushed cheeks.
She’s the most beautiful thing I’ve seen; the prime reason I’m actually enjoying my stay here in OC. I can’t help but touch my lips to her cheek. It’s an odd angle, but I’m able to do it without waking her.
It’s another ten minutes before she stirs from la petite mort.
Yawning, she tilts her head up and smiles. “Did I fall asleep? I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be, we both did,” I roll my hips and thrust gently, loving Astra’s sleepy eyes widen.
“Are you?” she breathes, letting my nod finish her line of questioning. Her eyes roll back in her head, lids fluttering close when I push forward again, my hips rocking both of us to the side.
This build-up to a climax is slower. In the end I pull out and roll her over onto her back, my dick separating her pink lips and riding us both through several more straining pushes to orgasm.
Or just me.
Astra’s panting and bright eyes tell me she hasn’t come. Damn.
Not to be dejected, I apply my fingers and the heel of my palm to her clit. I rub her off, still thrusting to prolong her eventual release.
I drop beside her and wait to speak until my breath evens. Astra is thinking the same, and she beats me to it. Her growling stomach does anyways.
“We should probably go eat,” I grin over at her.
We shower together, with minimal distraction, and Astra can thank her hunger for that or else I wouldn’t miss the opportunity for a Round Two in her shower.
“How does Chinese sound?” she looks up from four pamphlets of restaurants in town that have delivered to her before.
I give her thumbs up and she pulls out her cell to dial the restaurant of choice.
Astra does the ordering while I point out the combos on the pamphlet. Hanging up, we wait around the kitchen over our coffee. I’m finishing Astra’s foot rub when the doorbell rings twenty minutes later.
I jump up readily, answering the door and facing the young woman holding out two bags of our order. I give her the bills plus a healthy tip and nearly run into Astra hovering behind me.
“That was a lot of money,” she notes once I close the door, her tone unrevealing. Was she upset that I over-tipped? Or pissed that I paid for lunch in her home?
I shrug. “She looked to be in college or finishing up high school. I remember when I was about her age looking to scrounge up any change and how tips could make that much of a difference.”
Astra and her swaying ass are leading me and the takeout upstairs to her room.
“That’s sweet of you.” I study her expression as she quickly makes the bed for our makeshift indoor picnic. In the noon light washing through the room, brightening the beige walls and the white of her bedsheets, I don’t see a double meaning in her face.
Loosening the tension riding my shoulders, I smile. “Yeah. That’s me. Nice guy.”
“I like nice guys,” she meets me, easing one of the bags from my grasp. “Thank you for paying for lunch.”
Since one of my hands free, I haul her back by her waist and swoop a kiss over her lips. Astra softens in my grasp from the shock. She prolongs the kiss and I’m the one breaking us up.
“Now that’s a thank-you.”
She blushes at my comment, smacking my shoulder lightly and spiriting away as soon as I drop my hold about her middle.
Placing the takeout bag on the bed, I draw off my tee shirt. “I can’t eat until I get comfortable.” I answer Astra’s questioning look, though she isn’t complaining.
And she isn’t complaining when I draw her between my legs, our food spread out around us.
I don’t realize how hungry I am, too, until Astra opens the first box and the sour-and-sweet sauce wafts up to tickle my nose and punch my gut. We’re polishing through lunch, sharing the combos we ordered, and even feeding each other when a knock separates me from Astra’s end of her chopsticks.
Chewing through the spring roll, I swallow hard and ask, “Were you expecting company?”
Astra shakes her head, drinking her sparkling water and then saying, “No. Holly did call earlier. It might be her.”
None of the apprehension I thought she might feel exudes in her expression.
The second and third ring come back-to-back, and our visitors’ voices carry up to the second floor.
“I’ll go investigate then. Unless you want to?”
“No, that’s fine. I’d appreciate it, I mean,” she smiles then, her eyes narrowing with mirth. “But maybe you should wear a shirt.”
“One more bite and I will,” I say, opening my mouth for effect. She laughs but does as I ask. I grip her hand over the chopsticks and lead the last spring roll to my mouth. “Mhm, delicious.” I drag a tongue over my lips to catch any missed sauce.
“Whoever it is, they’re loud,” I say on my way out of Astra’s bedroom down the hall and stairs to the front door. The peephole reveals Holly, Dan and Jesse.
This is a surprise – jury’s out on whether it’s pleasant or not.
I head upstairs without answering to get the mistress of the house’s opinion.
“Let’s clean up first,” Astra springs to action. She’s got one of the takeout plastic bags open for our emptied cartons.
I stop her. “You should head downstairs. But change first,” I drag my eyes over her bathrobe and the skimpy tank and shorts it covers. “I thought I’d return the advice.”
With a quick smile she heads to her closet and I’m only slightly distracted by her changing. Once she’s got her ass covered by her flowing, floor-length skirt, she helps by grabbing the plastic bag of garbage and dips out to answer her guests...our guests – I’m not sure what’s going on yet.
Dan’s boisterous greeting carries up to the room. I get a sense he’s throwing himself all over Astra, but I have to control the temptation to go downstairs without cleaning up.
After I sweep the bed of evidence from our lunch and sex, I grab my leather jacket and pause by the bathroom and check that I’m decent. No odd hair standing on end from Astra’s fingers running through, or a hickey anywhere to scream we’d done the deed. The nasty.
God. What am I, seventeen again?
How am I any different than Liam and his futile crush on Lola?
No, I am different. Once Astra’s had enough of me and I’ve had my share, too, we’ll part on go our separate ways.
Whenever that happens.
They should know I’m here. My car is on her curb. That doesn’t exactly spell I slept with her.
Which is why I go with, “I dropped by,” when Dan opens with his interrogation.
Cool as a cucumber, Jesse fist bumps me and Holly shakes my hand after an awkward smile.
“So? Let’s drink,” Dan does the leading to Astra’s den. Holly’s lifting the bottle of champagne she’s been holding at Dan’s whooping. As usual his enthusiasm is oddly contagious.
Despite the interruption of the lunch that would surely lead to burning off the calories with sex, I’m grinning at Dan’s hamming it up when Holly passes the champagne over to him.
Astra’s sparse, lonely den is brightened up at the snap of a finger.
“Weren’t you in the city?” I ask Jesse, Dan’s busy getting the cork off the bottle and making shambles out of the process.
Astra dips out to get glasses.
“We were. We just called it in early when Holly messaged to thank us. Apparently Tzatza has common sense.”
“She gave her
the job?” I’m smiling, watching Dan giving up and passing the champagne over. It’s Holly to the rescue.
“Yeah,” Jesse’s smile is in his voice. “We drove out early and grabbed the celebratory drink on the way out.” The cork sails on cheers and Astra returns on time with the glasses – four to be precise.
“Sorry about the tall glasses. I don’t really have flutes or coupes,” she says.
“No worries. We’re going to enjoy this anyway.” Dan does the pouring, making a mess of it over the coffee table. When he comes up short a glass, he looks up at Astra.
“I’m not going to have any.” She explains, dropping her gaze like she’s confessed we had sex, over and over.
Dan shakes his head. “You have to.” He looks to Holly for support who shrugs as if she’s not willing to intervene.
“I’m going to grab some snacks,” she backs into the kitchen...scurrying is more like it.
I follow her to the kitchen, breaking with Jesse who may have given me a knowing look.
“Sorry about Dan,” I start, careful to tread with my own curiosity. A week ago she’d passed on the wine during dinner with Tzatza too, but she’d been sick then. Sick people shouldn't be drinking.
What’s her excuse now?
“It’s fine.” Astra draws out a bottle of sparkling water and a glass and presumably pours herself a cup.
I beat her to the fridge and pull it open for her. She murmurs her gratitude, grabbing a bag of red grapes. From the snack cupboard above the counter she hauls down a box of crackers.
“I think he’s just shocked someone in this day and age might not equate celebration with drinking.”
She draws up her shoulders, letting me know she’s listening with a hum. Clearly this conversation isn’t one she wants to be having.
I feel my own shoulders draw up with annoyance and...hurt. I try not to delve in that last emotion.
Fine.
If she doesn’t want to talk, there’s other ways I can find to be around her. I reach for the crackers while she divvies up the grapes and washes them.
We work beside each other quietly, the silence loaded with our unspoken words. Our fingers brush a couple times over the snack plate. Each time I succumb to a zing from the contact. My nerve endings are sharpened, acute where Astra’s concerned.
A fleet of questions zips through my head: Does she feel it too? Why her? And what is she doing to me?
“About time,” Dan raises his glass. “We’ve been waiting on this toast forever. Were you two having sex in there?”
Holly splutters and Jesse heaves a sigh at Dan’s tactlessness.
Astra, strong woman she is, ignores the comment and sets down the plate. I pass her the glass of sparkling water and she smiles apologetically at the room.
“Sorry. Snacks with the wine.”
“Holly, you gotta do the honors.” Dan tilts his glass her way. She’s flustered, her eyes going about the room before she jumps into a quick speech including a profusion of ‘thanks’ to me.
I poke a finger at my chest and everyone, except Astra, laughs. She’s out of the loop until Holly explains, “Ryker helped get me a job with the Lopezes. I’m planning their daughter Lolinda’s birthday.”
“That’s wonderful, Holls,” Astra tilts her head, “I think?”
“I felt the same when Tzatza called.” Holly grins. “By the way, her name is pronounced ‘Za-Za’.”
“Where did that come from?” Jesse asks, his wide smile dimpling his cheeks.
“What?” she blinks, luring Astra in. “You know how long we’ve been trying to figure it out. How long has it been, Astra? We joined the council, what, four, five months now – well, since then. So a long time.”
Jesse and Dan chuckle at her anecdote.
“I didn’t really do that much.”
“Except name-drop you, he means,” Dan grins and lifts his shoulders at me. “How did you find out though?” I ask, bringing the conversation back to the topic of her new hire.
“Two little birds told me,” she says.
“Hey, I’m not little.” Dan’s exclamation makes us all laugh this time.
With that, we clink glasses and settle down for a mid-day snack. Astra and I pick at the food, catching Jesse’s attention first. “What’s up?”
“Not really hungry. I had a big breakfast at the B&B.” I say. I feel Astra shifting beside me, reaching for another cracker she can slowly nibble on.
“I’m starving.” Dan gives me a break from Jesse.
“We ate burgers on the way in,” Jesse rolls his eyes. “How could you be starving?”
I smile, faking the ease. It wouldn’t be horrible if the guys found out about Astra and I, but I wouldn’t exactly feel great either.
I’m still unclear as to where we stand. I like her. Even now I’m enjoying the occasional brush of her knee on mine as she stretches for the snack platter.
Long distance could be a thing. I’d have to bring it up, and let Astra decide if she’s cool with exploring it. But that doesn’t exactly promise forever either.
“Where are you going?” Holly’s asking Dan who's shrugging on his coat and heading for the door. He wipes his hands down his jeans and promises to return, leaving before anyone could get out another question.
Jesse’s staring after him like he knows what’s up.
The suspense doesn’t last long.
Dan is back and he isn’t empty-handed. He’s got two bottles of premium vodka in each hand.
“Come on,” he says as Jesse sighs loudly. “I picked these up, in case. And I feel like this is the perfect case.”
“It isn’t even evening yet.” Holly says, her grin countering it.
He smirks. “You’re not saying ‘no’ though,” and he’s twisting the bottle cap off the vodka, pouring glasses for himself, Holly and Jesse.
I hold up my glass of champagne.
“Bubbly for me,” I’m passing on the vodka. I can’t stand the burning and I’m not a quiet drunk, exactly. At least I don’t like the taste of champagne and I’ll ration my glass for as long as Astra’s entertaining. Although she the quietest hostess I’ve seen.
Our eyes meet and I nudge her leg with mine, passing it off as a slip of the leg. I hope she knows I’m commiserating with her. I’ve been trying to think of anything and everything else except for her naked body spread out over her sheets.
“Wait, wait,” Dan brings me back to the den. He’s gesturing for Jesse to lower the hand holding his glass. “You’re going to ruin the fun.”
“I thought this was the fun?” Holly asks.
“It’s only part of the fun. The other part is, we’re going to play a game.”
“A drinking game? Really?” I don’t bother to hide my incredulity. Jesse laughs lightly.
“Just for that poor attitude, you should drink.” Dan says. He holds out his glass. “None of that sissy stuff either.”
I stiffen. “I’ll pass.”
He shakes the glass, and filled as it is quarter way, it doesn’t splash over Astra’s rug and the den’s floorboards. “Drink.”
“No.”
“One glass won’t hurt you,” Dan demands, his earnest chipping away at my resolve, and even Jesse is eventually leaning on our bassist’s side.
“Do it and get it over with.” Jesse nods at the glass.
I take the glass from him and down the vodka. Covering the stinging in my nose, I hand the glass back and happily accept the cracker from Astra.
“That wasn’t so hard,” he’s saying and I growl to a fresh wave of laughter.
“So,” Dan refills his glass, “here’s what the game is all about. Have you heard of two truths, one lie? It’s that with a twist. For every time you lose, you down a shot.”
“Only one person can guess, and there’s only one guess per round. Oh, yeah, you can get an extra guess, but you have to drink for it. Game?”
“Sounds like fun,” Holly straightens up in her seat, her blue eyes sparkling. “Who
gets to go first?”
“I think it’s only fair if the guest of honor goes first.” Dan toasts her. She giggles.
Jesse’s in, probably because of Holly, and I’m in because of Astra.
“You can be the referee.” Dan offers. “Keep these two savages in line.” He says, ignoring Jesse and my dubious expressions.
“I’ll do my best.”
