by C. A. Harms
“You’re starting to attract attention.” I didn’t look away but simply flared my nostrils and kept my eyes forward as Clayton took the seat at my side. The fact that he found this shit humorous only irritated me more. Had he been in my position, I’m pretty sure he’d be fighting to stay calm too.
“So how are things going?”
“Great, Clay,” I looked to my left. “They’re going fucking great. How about you?”
He chuckled, then quickly covered his mouth to hide his smirk a second too late. “I don’t mean with Palmer and Mr. Suave over there.” Again I shot him a glare, making him lean back in his chair and smile wider. “I mean with everything, Corb?”
I knew exactly what he was referring to, and to be honest I’d thought very little about it. When I did let my mind roam over the upcoming events, my anxiety kicked in and those old feelings attempted to return.
“The benefit is for his daughter,” Clayton added, and I took in a deep breath. “I know the guys plan on going up this next weekend to offer help setting everything up. The less expense the better too, ya know.”
“I’ll be there.” Even saying the words made my heart race. “It’ll be hard, I know, but I’ll be there, for it all.”
Silence settled over us and I knew Clay was just giving me a few minutes to regain some control. Everyone had been great, amazing really. They talked to me, shared memories of Brent, and when they saw I’d had enough, they didn’t push. Each day it seemed to get better. I knew, though, the moment I saw his family, that would all change.
Instead of focusing on the upcoming events I still wasn’t sure how I would handle, I focused on those taking place before me. Those that were making my blood boil and my hands shake.
“Is it me or is he being real fucking handsy?”
For the third time in the last fifteen minutes I watched as some dill weed in khaki pants placed his hand on my girl’s lower back. Let’s not ignore the way he leaned in to talk every time he had something to say to her, which really grated on my nerves.
“Did that fucker just look over here to assure I was witnessing this shit?”
“Corb,” Clayton said in warning as stood from my place at the table. I’d had just about enough of that asshole. “You need to remember we are in the presence of her parents and a lot of other witnesses.” Clayton hurried after me, but at that point I could only see one fucking thing.
Palmer.
As if she could sense my presence, she looked in my direction and I noticed the flare in her eyes. That was nervous energy that I was positive was the reason she walked away from whatever the hell the douche’s name was and moved quickly toward me.
The instant she stepped before me I reached out and placed my hands on her hips, pulling her body close to mine. “Be nice.” It was her turn to warn me and coming from her, it had a completely different effect than coming from Clay. “He’s harmless.”
“Kittens are harmless. He’s a fucking rat and he’s pushing my limits,” I added.
“Which is exactly what he wants to do.” Palmer reached up to cup my jaw and on instinct I leaned into her touch. “But I can guarantee you that you have nothing to worry about. You’re all I want.”
Her lips grazed my jaw, but I still watched the guy over her shoulder. It was my turn to make sure he was watching.
And he was.
Slowly I slid my arm around Palmer, placing my palm against the lower part of her back. My other hand still rested on her hip. As I began to sway with her from side to side, a calm slowly took over the irritation. “I think you should know that my patience with your old friend is growing quite thin.” I still looked at the man who was now watching our every move with the same irritation I felt moments ago. “Him touching you makes me feel slightly murderous.”
Palmer laughed as she buried her face in the crook of my neck. Suddenly I heard her take in a deep breath and I couldn’t keep from smiling. “Did you seriously just sniff me?”
“You smell good,” Palmer said with a shrug. “Should I lie and tell you that you being jealous does absolutely nothing for me?” I finally looked away from the guy who couldn’t seem to focus on anything other than me and her. Palmer’s head was tilted back as she looked up at me with a smirk. “Or should I just be truthful and make you aware of the fact that it kind of turns me on?”
“How much?”
“Enough that if you dragged me off right now to a dark and quiet place, I might just allow you to have your wicked way with me.” I wasn’t sure if she was teasing me or if she meant what she said.
“So, you’re saying if I find the nearest quiet place, away from all these guests,” I moved my lips closer to her ear to assure she was the only one to hear my next words, “that you’d allow me to gather up this skirt of yours and pull those panties of yours to the side.”
She nodded.
“Would I find you wet?”
“Yes.” She sounded breathy.
“For me, or for him?”
“You.” There was no amount of hesitation. “Always you.”
I moved my lips toward her jaw and pressed a line of kisses that led to her lips. Her breathing had picked up, becoming ragged. “I think I’ll make you wait.”
When her eyes widened and she leaned back to get a better view of my face, I almost laughed.
“Oh, really?”
“Considering your father is on his way over here with your mother in tow…” She looked back over her shoulder. “Don’t move baby, I’d hate for them to see the effect their daughter has on me.” I flexed my hips forward and she giggled when my erection pushed into her stomach.
***
I sat in the passenger seat of the Explorer, staring out as the familiar areas passed by. The sounds of Xavier and Jay going back and forth in the back seat over some stupid ass topic were occasionally drowned out by the radio. But the thumping in my head and the racing beats of my heart weren’t. They were intense and the closer we got, the louder they became.
My hands began to shake, my throat felt like it was beginning to close as I gripped the door hard at my side.
My phone chimed with an incoming message and my hand shook as I reached around and grabbed it out of my back pocket.
Palmer: I know this day is hard for you. I know that most likely you’re feeling that overwhelming sensation that you get whenever you think of him. But know this, you are a great guy, you are strong and kind. Seeing you will be good for them. You all need to heal and baby, this is just one of those steps you need to take to do so.
I stared at the message for a while, reading it over and over. I never expected Palmer would be the person to make me feel grounded. Yes, there was that attraction, the need to conquer, but I wasn’t prepared for the woman she is. The way she makes me feel, almost like I would be okay through anything as long as she was by my side.
Me: I wish you were with me.
Palmer: Me too, but you can do this. Call me whenever it gets to be too much because you will reach that point. I’m here to talk you through it, I’m always here.
Fuck, right there, things like that confirmed that Palmer was all I need. She was perfect, a mixture of everything great.
I held my phone, reading her messages again and again as we continued our trip. Pulling into the familiar driveway at Brent’s parents’, I squeezed my phone a little tighter and took one deep breath after another. There were people moving about, carrying tables and chairs from trucks around to the side of the house.
“You ready for this?” Clay asked from my side and I glanced back down at the message thread from Palmer once more. I’m always here.
“Yeah,” I reached out and placed my hand on the door handle, “I’m ready.”
The four of us walked toward the house as Isaac, Elijah, and a few other guys met us near the garage. I was fully aware each was glancing at me often, like they were waiting for me to break. I’ll be honest, I felt it lingering in the back of my mind, but I fought it. Palmer’s words continuo
usly reminded me of what this all meant, not only for me but for Brent’s family too.
A loud squeal followed by an extended giggle brought tears to my eyes. Swiveling around I was just in time to see Leah round the back of the house with Brent’s mother trailing close behind.
Everything played out in slow motion it seemed. The second that each of them noticed me standing there, my knees felt weak.
“Corbin,” Brent’s mother gasped my name, and she moved toward me with purpose. There was no introduction period, no “how have you been” or “it’s good to see you again.” She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and buried her face in my chest. Instantly I was choked up.
I felt a tug on my pants and looked to my left to see Leah smiling up at me. “Hello, Princess Leah.” I gently grazed my finger over her cheek. “Where’s your crown?”
Brent’s mother released her hold on me and I kissed her cheek before kneeling in front of Leah. “I brought you something.” I reached around my back and pulled out the Disney movie Beauty and the Beast. “Have you watched this one?”
Leah took the DVD from me and held it out in front of her, turning it from side to side scanning over the front and the back. Then she shifted her gaze back to me and shook her head. “No.” The way she said it was almost like she was in awe.
“I thought maybe you and I could watch it together.”
Much like her grandmother, Leah practically threw herself into my arms and squeezed my neck tightly. It was the only answer I needed.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Palmer
I snuck up to Corbin’s room after Xavier let me in. It was just after ten in the morning and I’d already been up, done laundry, and taken it all home. Plus I showered, shaved and fixed my hair. I’d say he was lazy and he needed to get up, but the reason behind his exhaustion was just entirely too sweet for me to not be overtaken by it.
When I turned his handle and pushed it forward to find no resistance, I was a little surprised. The whole “never fall asleep unless you were completely secured behind a locked and blocked door” rule had apparently been forgotten. But this mistake was to my benefit.
With his blackout curtains it was difficult to see him clearly, but as the light from the hallway cast over him while I closed the door behind me, I was given a glimpse. Shirtless, and possibly bottomless too. The sheet pooling at his waist obstructed that view.
I walked across his room and began to crawl up toward him from the end of the bed. Positioning my body over his, with one leg on either side, I lowered myself and leaned my upper body forward. When I started kissing along his jaw he began to stir.
“Good morning.” His deep, gruff, sleep-filled voice engulfed me. The tone itself reminded me of all the mornings we shared in Kentucky, when he’d wake me up and we’d talk for what felt like hours. I could listen to him endlessly. His voice no longer annoyed me but soothed me instead. Okay…it never annoyed me before. It intrigued me and made me want things I didn’t want to want. That was the annoying part.
“I missed you last night.” I kissed the corner of his mouth. “How was your date night?”
“We watched three Disney movies, played tea party, and shared a box of Teddy Grahams.” His mouth lifted into one of the sweetest smiles. “Best date ever.”
“What you’re doing,” I kissed him once more before leaning up to look him directly in his eyes, “has got to be one of the sweetest, kindest things I’ve ever witnessed.” Grazing my thumb over his lower lip, I passed it along his jaw. “I can almost imagine Brent looking down, thanking you himself,” Corbin closed his eyes tightly as I continued, “for making his little girl smile and laugh.”
“He should be here doing it.” His pained whisper made my chest ache.
“Yes, he should be. But since he can’t, I think he’d be happy knowing that you’ve found a place for his little girl in your heart.” I watched as he swallowed hard. His throat bobbed and he still held his eyes closed tightly. “You have a beautiful soul, Corbin Powell.”
He reached upward, cupped the back of my head with his palm, and pulled me close, my forehead pressed tightly to his. “I don’t think I would have reached this point without you.”
“You just got lost for a little bit.”
“And you found me,” he finished, causing me to smile just as he pressed his lips to mine. “I did things,” he continued, “acted in ways that I’m not proud of.”
“You were hurting.” I never really knew the details of that time, I just knew they were dark.
“It was there, ya know,” he said in a hoarse whisper as I allowed my body to settle in beside him. “She knew a guy.” I didn’t have to ask who she was; I already knew, and I hated her. “I know I’ve disappointed my parents, my brother, everyone really but staying in the blackness, completely lost to everything around me, was the only thing that made the ache go away.”
I slid my hand over his chest and brought it to rest over his heart. Feeling the gentle thump beneath somehow calmed me enough so that I could allow him to continue.
“I don’t ever want to go back to a time like that.”
His confession pulled hard on my heart and I twisted enough so that I could look up at him. The look on his face was one of such peace as he cupped my jaw. My own heart raced, feeling an overwhelming rush of emotions flow through me.
“The way I feel when I’m with you is the feeling I want to always keep. I know now how lucky I am, and I don’t want to take any of that for granted, Palmer.”
Every day with Corbin was better than the last. My feelings for him were growing to heights that I hadn’t ever expected them to. That unbelievable desire to be close to someone. That deep pull you feel that has you saying and doing an array of things you never thought possible.
Suddenly his lips were on mine and I accepted his kiss without a moment of hesitation. No one had ever kissed me the way Corbin did. It was almost as if every single emotion flowing through him was reflected in his kiss. He had mastered the art of owning someone with his lips alone. A kiss from him left my entire body humming, striving for more.
“You make everything better,” he whispered against my lips as he rolled me to my back and placed his body over mine. My earlier curiosity was confirmed when his body pressed to mine: Corbin was naked below those sheets.
His hands glided over my side, one circling around to cup my ass as he shifted his hips forward. A moan fell from my lips and I arched my back, pressing my breasts upward. His lips skimmed over my jaw and along the side of my neck before pausing on my chest.
I could have done that all day every day. Getting lost in one another, forgetting the outside world and enjoying us, just us.
Corbin explored my body with his hands and his mouth. Slowly undressing me, but not without leaving a trail of gentle kisses over my body, making me feel as though my skin was on fire. I trembled with each glide of his palm, moaned with every single swipe of his tongue.
“You are fucking perfect, Palmer.” He was the perfect one, only I couldn’t form the words. They were lost the very second he lowered his lips to my clit and offered just the right amount of suction. My head was spinning, my body writhing. “Taste so sweet.” The vibration of his words triggered a sensation in my clit that had me gripping his head like a demanding whore.
Corbin continued to work me over, his tongue tasting me again and again. When he parted me and slid a finger inside, curling it to the point where he hit the deep, almost unreachable spot inside me, my back arched. “Oh yes,” I gasped, “right there.”
My body shook, my legs tensed, and I’m not really sure what I screamed out, but I felt like my body was going to ignite. His deep groans filled with my cries of “yes” and “more” ricocheted off the walls of his room and I had no shame. I didn’t care who heard me.
When my head began to clear from my post-orgasmic state, I found Corbin hovering above me, one hand on each side of my body, his muscle flexed from the strain. He watched me closely with a
deep penetrating stare.
“Have I ever told you how hot it is when you come?” I instantly felt my cheeks redden from his words but I didn’t have time to be embarrassed.
Grabbing the back of his neck I pulled his lips down to mine and kissed him. Sucking on his lower lips, his tongue, tasting myself on his lips was all very erotic.
His cock glided over my wetness as he shifted his hips against my own.
When I reached between us to stroke him, I found myself wondering when he put on a condom. Then I realize that after he rocked my world with his talented tongue, anything could have taken place and I would have been oblivious to it.
“I need to be inside you.” His words were so demanding and his tone so deep.
“Yes, please.” I was in desperate need of the connection too. Corbin began to tease me, gliding the head of his cock over my sensitive clit and my hips began to buck against him. “Please.” I was not too proud to beg.
“Is this what you want?” he asked as he pushed inside me, but only an inch before pulling back.
“Yes.” I hooked my leg over his hip and dug my heel into his ass cheek. Using the strength in my legs I tried to pull him back in and he smirked.
“So greedy.”
Had I been of sound mind I would have so knocked him down a few notches on his arrogance ladder, but I was about to go out of my mind with need.
“Corb, please.” I tried again to use my leg to pull him close. “I need you.”
He paused, hovering above, his eyes locked on mine. The soft loving look in his eyes triggered that burning sensation in my chest. “I need you too, baby.” And with that he sunk inside me with one very slow and tantalizing shift of his hips.
Chapter Thirty
Corbin
“Are you sure it’s Eli?” I whispered as I trailed behind Clay toward the bathroom. It was well after midnight and Eli had just gotten in from a late game.
