Always Series Box Set

by Becs, Lindsay

  “Are you going to stay in Vegas when we get back?” she asks me. And that’s the real question.

  “I enjoyed this race season and the experience, but I don’t think I want to do it again,” I admit truthfully to my sister.

  She takes my hand in hers. “Penny, that’s alright.”

  “You aren’t mad?”

  “No. Not even a little bit. That’s a lie. I’ll miss you, so yes, a little bit.”

  That makes me laugh. “Do you think Jesse will think it’s because I don’t want to be where he is?”

  “Not if you’re honest with him.”

  “You’re right. OK. Thanks, Tate.”

  “Welcome. Of course, I’m right.” She stands then. “You good? Can I go bang my hot husband now?”

  I roll my eyes and flick my hand for her to leave. “Go.”

  “Love you, Pen.”

  “Love you more.”

  * * *

  I fly back to Vegas with Tatum and her family. She said I could stay with them for as long as I need to before I go home to Graves.

  Even though I haven’t talked to Jesse, he has emailed me his new address and where he works on the air base. He’s sharing a place with another guy so he can have Bear with him. Nervously, I drive to the address he gave me.

  I park on the curb and stare at the apartment building in front of me. It’s hard to imagine Jesse happy here. He’s always loved being outside and hated the city. But I guess he didn’t have much of a choice.

  My hand is shaking with nerves when I ring the doorbell. I instantly hear Bear’s gruff bark, making me smile. I’ve missed that furball.

  A guy answers the door in gym shorts and nothing else, and I instantly feel my cheeks flame. He smirks at me like he knows me.

  “Is, uh, Jesse Jones here?” I ask.

  “Penny, right?” he asks back, and I’m not sure at this point if it’s good or bad that he knows who I am.

  I nod my head. “Yeah.” I barely answer when Bear comes running toward me. Bending down, I let him push me to my butt as he kisses me. “Hey, buddy. You been a good boy?” I ask Bear, hugging him tight.

  “Alvie, who’s at the door?” I hear Jesse ask from inside the apartment.

  He reaches the door, and the guy I’m assuming is Alvie smiles wider. “Surprise, fucker.”

  Jesse looks down at me. He’s only got a towel wrapped around his waist, like he just got out of the shower. My eyes run over his body as he stands there. His hair is shorter, but what I really notice is the tattoo on his chest. It’s a jar of lightning bugs. My heart almost explodes in my chest taking that in.

  “Hi,” I finally manage to say, standing up. My hands smooth over my clothes, brushing off whatever sand and dirt is on me from sitting on the ground.

  “Hi.” He grins. “Come in. I’ll go change,” he says slowly, looking as uncomfortable as I feel.

  When I walk inside, he tells me to have a seat. I sit on the worn-looking couch and glance around, taking everything in. None of it is like his house in Graves. It feels cold and empty. Nothing is in the living room other than a couch with a TV and a gaming system set up on a small wooden table.

  “What are you doing here?” Jesse startles me when he walks in the room to join me. He flops down on the other end of the couch from me, appearing relaxed. The total opposite of me.

  Finally, I let out a big puff of air. “This is stupid. I don’t know why I’m so nervous,” I laugh.

  “Do I make you nervous, Nugget?” he teases.

  “Not usually but you do now,” I admit.

  “It’s just me.”

  “I’m not staying in Vegas. I’m done with the circuit. It was fun and an incredible experience, but it was enough. My place is with my dad at Pretty Girl,” I tell him, hoping he understands.

  “So, you won’t be here?”

  I shake my head. “We just flew back yesterday. I wanted to tell you in person so you wouldn’t think it was because of you.”

  His brows crinkle. “Why would I think it was because of me?”

  Well, crap. “Because I’m an assuming ass,” I say while falling back onto the couch cushions.

  “You owe me a dollar,” he says with a smile.

  “I don’t owe you shit, Jesse Jones,” I say defiantly. He quirks his brow at me in surprise. I think that’s the most I’ve ever sworn in my whole life.

  “Well, fuck me,” he says playfully.

  “Not yet,” I challenge before laughter bubbles out of me, and it feels good to laugh with my friend again.

  “Damn, I missed you, Nugget.”

  “I missed you, too.” I smile.

  “How long until you go back home?”

  I shrug. “Not really sure. Couple days maybe.”

  “You want to take Bear with you?” he asks.

  “Maybe later. He seems happy here for now.”

  “You came here on a good day. I’m off for a few days. We’ve been working twelve-hour shifts, four on, three off. Good timing.”

  “Good. Then I guess I’m not going back home for three days.”

  Our eyes lock as we sit staring at each other, so many questions and feelings swirling around us. Neither of us ready to break through them.

  “Hey, dickhead, you want to go out tonight?” his friend asks as he walks into the room, breaking the tie between us.

  Jesse clears his throat before answering. “No, man, I’m gonna hang with Pen.” His eyes go back to me in question. I give him a small nod, agreeing to stay.

  “Sure? You know who—”

  “I said no,” Jesse cuts him off.

  Alvie watches us for a second. “Alright, man,” he says, backing out of the room.

  “You can go if you want to or we could both go,” I offer.

  “You go to parties?”

  “Not really,” I laugh. “But bars sometimes after a good win.”

  “Really?” he asks, surprised by my answer.

  “Yes, really.”

  “Swearing and drinking. Who is this girl in front of me?” he teases.

  “I’m still your best friend. Just a little more grown up.”

  “I can see that.”

  Chapter Ten

  Jesse

  To say I was surprised to see Penny literally sitting on my doorstep this afternoon is a huge fucking understatement. I haven’t heard from her in months. Not since I called to ask her about Bear before I moved out here.

  I needed some space and time to attempt to not think about her. Turns out, it doesn’t take much for her to consume me again.

  When Alvie asked about the party tonight and almost said the name of the chick I occasionally fuck, I was about to stab him in his left nut. I don’t need Penny asking questions about where my dick’s been since I left Graves. Definitely not a conversation I’m ready to have with her yet. Or ever.

  However, my dick had no trouble waving at her when I saw her. I had to go get some clothes on or I knew she’d notice it looking straight at her, ready to party.

  Damn, she looks good, though. I’ve always thought she was attractive, but after not seeing her for months, she’s hot as hell. She’s wearing tight ripped jeans and a V-neck tee with the RK logo on it. Simple, but every inch of fabric hugs all her curves just right. The V in her shirt shows the sexiest amount of cleavage, too. I’m so fucked right now.

  We’re in my truck now, headed out to get some dinner. There’s a little Mexican restaurant not far from the base that has the best tacos. They make all their food from scratch and even have a little window where you can watch them make their homemade tortillas.

  While we eat, the conversation has stayed pretty safe: work, family, places we’ve been. I want to ask her about the asshole she was supposedly not dating. I want to know if she’s dated or is dating anyone. I want to ask her to never leave. But I don’t do any of that.

  “Jess? Did you hear what I said?”

  “Huh? I’m sorry. I spaced for a second, Nugget.”

  “It’s
alright. I guess I have been talking your ear off all day.”

  “I’m used to it,” I chuckle. She’s always been a talker. Ever since the day I finally acknowledged that she wasn’t going to leave me alone until she made me her friend.

  Best decision I ever made.

  “You ready to get out of here?” she asks.

  “Yeah. Let’s go.” I pay our bill, and we get back into my truck. I drive to a place that reminds me of her every time I’m there. We pull up to the large outdoor store, and she gives me a questioning look. “Just come on.”

  She follows me in, and when we stop in front of the huge cylinder fish tank, her eyes light up. “This is huge! Look at all the fish and coral. It’s beautiful.”

  I look at the sign she’s missed next to the tank and see that we have five minutes before it starts. I watch as she walks in a circle around the tank, taking in all the underwater life.

  Then, as scheduled, the mermaids drop in. I hear her gasp and smile at the sound. The three mermaid women swim around with the fish. They flip and swim in circles as they kick their fins around in the water.

  Penny’s eyes haven’t left them for a second. She looks like the young, wide-eyed girl I first met. The one who was obsessed with The Little Mermaid.

  I step a little closer to her, her back to my front, and wrap my arms around her shoulders. “This always makes me think of you,” I whisper into her ear.

  “It’s so beautiful. They’re so beautiful,” she says, her voice full of wonder and amazement.

  “You’re beautiful,” I whisper into her ear again. This time I don’t miss the shiver that runs through her body.

  We stand like that and watch the rest of the short show. When it ends, she turns in my arms and presses a kiss to my lips. It’s too short, but here isn’t the place to kiss her like I want.

  We get back into my truck without a word, and I drive out to one of the places the guys and I usually go shooting for fun. Open and empty land. But the sun is going down, and I’m ready to sit and watch the sunset with my Nugget beside me. I’ve missed her.

  We both exit the truck, like a synchronized team knowing exactly what we’re doing. I grab a blanket from the backseat and then hop up into the bed where she’s already sitting.

  “It’s still pretty warm out, but if you want it or want a cushion to sit on,” I say, handing her the blanket.

  She smiles up at me. “Thanks.”

  Once I sit next to her, she leans her head against my shoulder and it feels like home. We might be in a desert instead of a country field, but with us like this, it’s where we both belong. I belong to her and no one else. I only hope she feels the same way.

  “Penny?” I croak out her name.

  “Yeah?”

  I shift my body a little and turn her face to look at me. But I don’t get any words out. Instead, my lips find hers, and it’s sweet, perfect harmony when she kisses me back. Our lips slide against each other, my tongue massaging hers, getting to know her mouth with mine.

  “Jesse…” she sighs into my mouth.

  “You’re my home, Nugget. No matter where we are. You’re the only place I want to be.”

  Our kiss intensifies, our bodies seeking more from each other as she moves to straddle my lap. I devour her mouth, kissing her with everything I feel for her, holding nothing back. What I can’t say in words I want to show her in a way that I can.

  But not here. Not like this.

  Slowing our kiss, I pull away from her and smooth her hair down. Staring into her bright blue eyes, I know that I’m in love with her. I have been my whole life.

  “Come on, let’s go back to the house,” I say, tapping her thigh with my hand, which is itching to touch more of her.

  She shyly smiles and moves from my lap. Once we’re back inside the cab of my truck, I reach for her hand, my thumb rubbing against her soft skin.

  Neither of us says a word as we drive back to the house. When we arrive, we both exit and I take her hand again, leading her upstairs to my room. I close and lock the door, with her pressed against it. Then, when I meet her eyes, I see them swimming with all the same things I want, too. They’re filled with lust and want and need and love.

  My fingers tangle into her red hair as I take her lips in my again, nibbling at her pouty lower lip. I turn us and walk her backward to the bed. She sits and scoots back, lying down, and I follow her, my body covering hers. It feels like nothing I’ve had before.

  We roll to our sides, facing one another, our lips still connected. Fisting the back of my shirt, I pull it over my head, tossing it somewhere in the room. She pulls back a little then, her eyes scanning down my body. At first, I think I’ve gone too far, but then she sits up and puts her hand over the tattoo I got a few months ago. It’s a jar of lightning bugs. Seventeen to be exact, for our combined ages when we met. And at the bottom of the jar is a single penny.

  She bends and presses her lips to it. It feels so intimate and pure. But everything with her does. She’s my opposite, the calm to my storm, the soft to my hard.

  She moves to straddle me and I sit up a little more, taking her with me. Looking me in the eyes, she raises her arms over her head telling me to remove her shirt. Not moving my eyes from hers, I slide my hands up her sides, leaving goosebumps in their wake as I remove her shirt.

  She reaches behind her to unclasp her bra, and when it falls, I keep my eyes on hers for a beat longer before I let them travel down her body. My mouth waters looking at her perfect set of tits right in front of me.

  Slowly, my hands, which were resting on her thighs, run back up her sides. When I reach her chest, I slide my thumbs over her hardened nipples. It visibly affects her, but she’s holding back. Probably uncomfortable. I move my hands up more until I’m cupping her face, then I kiss her. “Relax,” I whisper across her lips.

  “I don’t know how.”

  I nod my head against hers. “Yes, you do. Just feel. Be here with me.”

  “I’m with you, Jesse.”

  “We can stop if you want.”

  “No. You’re my home, too. I want this. I want you.”

  I smile into her neck, kissing her there and trailing more kisses down her neck to her chest. She gasps when I suck her nipple into my mouth. It makes me smile again. I like learning what she likes and hearing those gasps of unexpected pleasure.

  I do it again, kissing, sucking and laving her nipple in my mouth. Then I move and do the same with the other one. By this time, her hips are beginning to move. She’s grinding up and down, and I know it’s because she can feel my hard cock in my shorts rubbing between her legs.

  Rolling her to her back, I lean over her and kiss her mouth again. I’m already addicted to her. Cupping the side of her face, I pull back to look at her. She meets my eyes again, her cheeks flushed and lips swollen and bruised from kissing me. She’s so beautiful.

  She unbuttons and unzips her jeans, pulling them off and tossing them onto the floor, leaving her in only a thong. Never pictured her as a thong girl. Looks like I’m learning all kinds of things tonight. If it’s possible, she blushes more as she lies back again. A smile twitches at the corner of my mouth as I look into her beautiful face, full of innocence.

  But she surprises me when she bites her lip and takes my hand, guiding it down between her legs. She still looks nervous, but she also has an air of confidence about her, too. When my fingers slide into her thong, brushing past her what seem like neatly trimmed hairs, I feel like I’m about to jizz in my pants and I haven’t even felt how wet she is for me yet.

  She pushes my hand farther down, spreading her legs and giving me a slight nod. I audibly swallow my own nerves before I let out a groan when my finger slides through her slit, feeling what I do to her.

  “I hope that’s a good groan,” she says with a smile playing on her lips.

  “Fuck, Penny, that’s an I’m-trying-to-be-a-saint-right-now groan.”

  “Good. You may continue,” she sasses, pulling her hand awa
y from mine. She puts her arms above her head, stretching herself out for me like a fucking buffet that I don’t know where I want to start.

  I begin to lightly run my finger up and down through her slit. She closes her eyes, and her breathing has already begun to pick up. Fuck me. I push a finger into her, making her arch her back and let out a soft moan. I slowly work her up, adding a second finger. I kiss her lips, causing her to moan into my mouth. When I add my thumb to her clit and take her pert nipple into my mouth at the same time, she lets out the sexiest sound I’ve ever heard. I continue to bring her closer and closer, and when I feel her pussy begin to grip my fingers, I drag her orgasm out as long as I can.

  Once she’s come down from her high with a sated smile on her face, she turns her head into my chest, hiding like she’s embarrassed, and begins to giggle. The familiar sound makes me smile.

  “You OK down there?” I chuckle into her hair, kissing her on the head.

  “I didn’t know it could feel like that!”

  Her words make me laugh harder, hugging her to me tighter. “Imagine how it’ll feel when we’re both naked.”

  She shifts slightly to lie half on top of me. “You know I’ve never done anything like that with anyone else, right?” I nod. “I’ve only kissed one other guy, but that was it.”

  “I don’t really want to hear about some other dude’s mouth on you right now, Nugget,” I say, gritting my teeth.

  She smiles, cupping my jaw. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I only said that because you were my first kiss. And now the first to, you know.” She blushes again, and it’s so fucking cute. “I want you to be all my firsts, Jess.”

  I’m sure she can feel my heart beating harder in my chest from her words. “Right now?”

  She doesn’t look at me and shrugs her shoulders.

  “No, Pen. It’s not something you can answer with a shrug,” I say, pulling her chin up to make her look at me. “I’d love nothing more than to be your firsts and lasts, but I’m not in a hurry and I’m not going anywhere.”

  “You promise you don’t mind waiting?”