by Regina Wade
The tension in the room is abrupt and electric. The next thing I know Nicole is on her back on the countertop, backs of her calves on my shoulders as I slide my cock into her dripping wet pussy.
It takes us half the morning, but we do eventually make it to the shower.
In an effort to avoid pulling a muscle or dying of dehydration, I get us out of the house. Every Friday there’s a luau, and although I don’t often attend, everyone still welcomes us with open arms.
“Everyone here is so friendly. I wish everywhere could be this nice.” Nicole says after we’ve been greeted by what seems like half the island. “I’ve been at the same college in the same state for nearly four years now, and I don’t think anybody has ever greeted me by name twice in a row.”
“It’s the connection of family. All of these people would give you the shirt off their back because they know I’d do the same for them. See them over there?” I point out a table. A single mother with three boys, ranging in ages from ten to twelve. “Alana was struggling, the boys selling fruit on the road. I started a surf program, and the oldest, Kai, was my first student. Now all three of them help teach the younger students.”
Nicole waves back at three cheerful faces.
“Noe and Kana helped me reroof the place last year.” I point to another table. “That’s Leilani. I get her and her sister to cater any big surfing tournaments or events I do, and I was the first person they called when their bathroom sprung a leak on Memorial Day weekend. We all pitch in around here. It’s the way things ought to be, you know?”
Nicole gives my hand a squeeze.
“I couldn’t think of a better place to raise a family, Nash. I don’t know what the future holds, but I do know that I want to stay here. With you.”
“That’s funny, because you’re leaving here with me tonight, Nic.”
I turn at the sound of the voice from behind us. It’s a voice I’d recognize anywhere. The voice of my best friend, Nicole’s brother Alex. Before I can do more than stand, he speaks again.
“Nash, what the hell are you doing with my baby sister?!”
There’s a shuffling of chairs as the men around us start to get to their feet to back me up, but I wave them all down. I look my best friend right in the eye and answer his question.
“Alex, Nicole and I are together. I didn’t pursue her five years ago out of respect for our relationship. Because there’s things you just don’t do as a man. I left everything behind, went as far as I could. To the ends of the earth. But she found me anyway, and now I know why. This is fate. We’re meant to be together, and I’m not going to fight it anymore.”
Chapter 10
Nicole
Splashing through the sand bar. Talking by the camp fire. It’s the simple things in life like when and where. — Kid Rock, ‘All Summer Long’
Seeing my brother is a shock. Seeing my brother mad is a bigger shock. Alex and Nash are alike in that they’re both cool and calm under pressure. They’re bedrock, the very foundations of the earth, unshakable.
So seeing not one but both pillars of my life being so rocky? It’s the biggest shock of them all.
Nash’s speech makes my eyes prickle with tears. I had no idea, never dreamed that such an amazing man could even exist, let alone be interested in me. I pined for Nash for so long, built him up so much in my head, that finding that reality is actually better than I could ever have hoped for me has me rocking back on my heels.
The still waters always run deep.
“Nicole, come on. I’m taking you home.” Alex barks out the words at me. I snap my head around to him, feeling anger rise in my chest. I stand up, ready to shout at him, but Nash lays a hand on my arm.
“Nicole isn’t going anywhere. She’s a grown woman Alex. Yes, she’s your little sister, but she can make her own decisions.”
“Clearly she can’t.” Alex sneers, his face twisting. It hurts my heart so much to see him like this, to see these two friends strained by me. I step around from behind Nash, standing up to my full height. Alex dwarfs me just like Nash does, but I’ve gotten used to looking my tall guys in the eye.
“Alex. You’re my brother and you’re sweet, but this is my life. My choice. I’ve chosen Nash, and shouldn’t you be happy about that? He’s your best friend for a reason.”
Alex snorts, but some of the anger melts out of him.
“It’s different. You don’t understand. It’s about things you just don’t do, and one of them is to hook up with your best friend’s sister.”
Nash is quicker than I am to respond.
“Alex, we didn’t just hook up. This isn’t a fling. This is the real deal. I love your sister. I’m not playing a game here. I mean to marry her, have kids with her, all of it.”
Nash’s words fill me up with so many feelings I feel a balloon swollen past it’s size, about to burst at any moment.
Alex seems stunned by Nash’s words, unable to answer them, so he turns to me instead. My brother has always been great at debating because he can switch tactics at a moment’s notice.
“What about school, Nic? You haven’t even graduated yet, and you’re talking about settling down with a guy who’s a dozen years older than you.”
Despite having never come out on top in any argument with Alex ever, a sense of calm envelops me. I can feel Nash’s strength flowing through me, his calm surety. While normally Alex would get to me, send me into a fiery rage that would end in tears, his words wash over me like waves over the rocky shore.
“Alex, I’ll figure it out. School, being a wife, a mother. Before even just school seemed impossible. Now anything seems possible. I don’t know how to explain it, except that I really, truly love Nash. I always have. I tried to tell myself it would never work, but now I know I was just lying to myself. If you look deep inside, I think you always knew this day would come.”
Nash’s hand resting on my shoulder gives me a squeeze, and I reach up to take it in mine and bring it up to my lips.
“Fine. But don’t think I’m going to pay for any of this, Nic. You want to be on your own, you can be on your own.”
“Alex, she isn’t on her own. She has me. You know that means cutting her off from your money is an empty threat. Besides, you’re better than that.”
Alex rakes his fingers down his face, still agitated.
“No, Nash, I thought you were better than this. Fuck, man, you could have any girl in the world.”
“I don’t want any girl, though. I want what’s mine.” Nash growls. For the first time, I can detect a note of anger in his voice. Alex is close to crossing the line, and we all know it.
“Fine. If you won’t listen to reason, I’ll just have to do things the hard way. Come on, Nicole. We’re leaving. Now.” Alex glares at me, but I shake my head.
“No, Alex. I’m staying where I belong. With Nash.” I say.
Alex lunges forward, grabbing at my arm, but in a blink Nash is in front of me, shoving me behind him, intercepting Alex’s hand with his own.
“That’s enough, Alex. I think you better get out of here and cool off.” Nash grunts, holding him. My brother is a big guy, he hits the gym every day, but Nash doesn’t even seem to strain as he holds him in place.
“Fine. I’ll kick your ass and then I’ll take my sister home.” Alex pulls away, getting free of Nash’s’ hold on him. Everyone around us surges forward to grab him, but Nash waves them off.
“Everyone clear out. This has been a long time coming.” Nash pulls his shirt off as the tables around us are pulled back, making space for the fight.
“Nash.” I grab his arm before he can walk into the circle.
“Don’t worry, I won’t hurt him.” Nash smiles at me. He’s sweet, but for once, he hasn’t read me right.
I shake my head.
“Nah. Kick his ass, for both of us.” I lean in and give him a kiss, then shove him towards the circle.
Chapter 11
Nash
Under the boardwalk. Do
wn by the sea. On a blanket with my baby is where I’ll be. — The Drifters, ‘Under the Boardwalk’
The sand is awash in the light of the torches around us, making the shadows dance in the light of the setting sun. The people around us clap and cheer, not knowing the details, just wanting to see a spectacle.
They’re about to get one hell of a show.
Alex doesn’t waste any time, throwing himself at me from across the sand. I meet him head-on, and soon we’re wrestling each other, clenched in tight. Through grit teeth, Alex grunts at me.
“You had no right, Nash.” Even through the strain of trying to overpower me, Alex’s words are heartfelt. I know exactly what he means. His sister should have been out of bounds.
I get a good grip on him, shift my weight, and slam Alex into the sand. There’s an audible wince from the crowd as I stand up, stretching my neck until it cracks.
“Come on then, didn’t you say you were going to kick my ass, Alex?” I taunt him with his own words. With a roar, Alex launches himself back to his feet and throws himself at me again. This time I just move to the side, letting him tackle nothing but air and leaving him eating sand.
The next time he throws himself at me, I meet him with a quick punch to the gut. Then we’re brawling, trading heavy blows back and forth. We’ve sparred before, in a ring with pads on. But this is different. Neither of us are really trying to avoid each other, just trying to maximize the punishment.
Nicole gasps and her voice cuts through the noise of the crowd and the roar of the blood in my ears. I turn to her and catch Alex’s next blow in one hand, holding him fast.
“Don’t worry, baby girl. I’m just letting him wear himself out.” I grin at her, and I can see the instant relief in her eyes.
“Fuck you, Nash,” Alex growls. He hits me with his other hand, but it’s weak, and I just stare at him.
“Come on, Alex. The ocean hits me harder than that every damn day. Your heart really isn’t in this and we both know it. Back down.” I tighten my grip on his fist, giving his knuckles a bit of a painful squeeze to encourage him to give up.
Alex collapses to his knees, panting, bleeding from his nose where I clocked him. He sighs, defeated.
“I couldn’t let her go without a fight.” He says. His voice is small, quiet for the first time since he’s gotten here.
I sit down on the sand next to him, clapping him on the shoulder with one hand. He looks up at me, and I smile at him.
“You’re a good man, Alex. You did the right thing. She just isn’t yours to fight for anymore. She’s mine.”
Alex shakes his head, but there’s a small smile on his face.
“When did you get so wise, Winston?” He asks as he rubs at his jaw where there’s already a lump forming.
I shrug, spreading my arms wide to indicate the entirety of the island.
“Being here is good for the soul, Alex. It’s why I wanted you to come out here in the first place. You’ve spent too long in the rat race. You’ve forgotten what really matters.” I clap him on the shoulder, and he winces. “Also, you’ve become a bit of a pussy.”
Alex rolls his eyes. “I was pulling my punches, man.”
I shrug. “So was I.”
“Boys!” Nicole stands over us, a strange reversal of how things normally are. She leans down, which makes it incredibly hard for my eyes not to dart down and sneak a peek at her cleavage. Her hands are on her hips, her tone mocking and scolding at the same time.
“If you’re done beating each other up, I’d like to get back to the luau. I was enjoying the fire dancing.”
Alex and I both mirror each other, raising our hands up placatingly, palms out. It’s so eerily similar that we can’t help but laugh.
“Yes ma’am. Let me get my buddy patched up, and then we can spend all night relaxing and watching the festivities. That sound good?”
Nicole nods, a smile growing on her face as she leans down to kiss my cheek.
“Not all night though. After seeing you defend my honor, literally fighting for me, I’ve got some plans for after the luau. They involve me, a grass skirt, and nothing else.”
I grin back at my woman, pulling her in for a bit more than just a simple kiss.
“That’s going to take some getting used to” Alex comments from beside us.
“Well, get used to it man. Nothing is ever going to come between us. That’s a fact.”
“Oh yeah? You just got together and you’re already talking about the future?” Alex asks. Rather than his confrontational tone from earlier, now he just seems genuinely curious.
I nod, and I feel Nicole mirror the movement.
“Absolutely. This is the real thing, Alex. It’s what we were trying to tell you. This is that kind of love you only think exists in stories.”
He smiles back at me. I stand up and brush the sand off myself, then offer him a hand up.
“Come on. Let’s go get you a beer.”
Chapter 12
Nicole
But I can see you, your brown skin shining in the sun. You got your hair combed back and your sunglasses on, baby. — Don Henley, ‘The Boys of Summer’
The luau is pure magic.
I’ve never been one for big parties, but this one seems so much more fun than any I’ve ever been too before. There’s a sense of camaraderie and family throughout the whole thing. Random people come up to us and embrace us all night long, clapping Nash on the shoulder or giving me a hug.
It’s sweet and disconcerting, to be the center of attention of so many nice people. It’s like I’ve suddenly inherited an entire family, and I say as much to Nash.
He shrugs, smiling at me sweetly.
“That’s what really being together means out here, babe. They saw me fight for you. They know if I’m willing to go that far that it means something.” He rubs his thumb over mine where our hands are clasped.
I smile at him and turn back to some of the roasted meat in front of me.
“If we eat like this often, I’m going to gain so much weight here.” I moan around another savory mouthful. I’ve never tasted any food so good in my entire life. Everything is cooked to perfection, or in the case of the poke, prepared flawlessly.
“Don’t worry. I can think of a few ways to burn some calories.” Nash murmurs in my ear. I grin, pushing at him, then point at the dancers currently showing off their skills.
“I can too. Think I can learn to dance like that?” I ask. The girl in the grass skirt and coconut bra is swaying her hips faster than I can do anything with my body. It’s hypnotizing, and part of me swears right then and there that I’ll learn to move like that for Nash.
“Only if you promise to only do it for me.” Nash growls. He’s so sweetly protective, even more so than Alex.
Thinking of my brother makes me realize I haven’t seen him in a while.
“Where did my brother get off to?”
“Oh, he’s nursing his pride and a drink at the bar. Don’t worry, there was more than one girl who was ready to nurse him back to his feet.”
I narrow my eyes. “I’m sure there were. They always flock around him.”
“Ha! You’re a lot alike, huh? Both of you think there’s no one good enough for the other.”
“Yeah, but in my case I’m right and he was very wrong.” I grin, giving Nash’s hand a squeeze again. “Besides, what are the odds that he finds someone like we found each other?”
“Stranger things have happened babe. Love is all around us, after all. Sometimes it sneaks up on us unaware. Sometimes it’s hiding in plain sight. But I do believe in it. Love finds a way.”
“Why Nash, I had no idea you were such a big softie. My teenage crush on your bad boy self is so let down.”
“Is that so? Well, let me show you just how soft I can be, woman.”
Without another word, Nash stands up and the next thing I know I’m in the air. I only have time for one shriek of laughter before I’m tossed over his shoulder like a bag of pota
toes.
“Nash, put me down!”
“Nope. I’ve got a fantasy to fulfill. You look me in the eye and tell me you didn’t think about me carrying you off just like this, and I’ll put you down.”
“Nash, I can’t look you in the eye like this.” I say, my head dangling somewhere near his lower back.
“Good point. Guess I’m carrying you off then.”
I squirm and struggle, but that just makes Nash hold on to me tighter. I don’t stop laughing throughout the entire ridiculous affair, but somewhere halfway back to his house, I realize that the laughter has melted into a distinct tingle in my pussy.
“Nash, you can put me down now. You made your point.” I say, but he doesn't relent.
“Nope. I’m not putting you down until we get back to the bed.” His voice is so calm, so matter-of-fact, and it combined with being literally manhandled is reigniting my need for him in a furious way.
Not to mention I watched him getting into a fight on my behalf. A very brutal fight at that. There’s something primal about it that made me ache for him even more than I normally do.
Nash is true to his word. He doesn't set me down until we’re back in his bedroom.
“Alright, you’ve got me here. Now what are you going to do with me?” I ask breathlessly.
“Remember when you asked what the difference is? Between fucking and making love?”
I nod back at him around a suddenly dry mouth.
“Well, you’re about to experience the difference baby.” Nash’s hands find my body, moving me exactly where he wants me. In a blink I’m on my hands and knees, face pressed firmly into the mattress, ass high in the air. I can feel his eyes burning into me, his gaze sweeping over my butt.
I give it a wiggle, and he answers me with the clap of one hand on my cheek. I squeal, but more in surprise than pain, and arch my back to present him with a better target.
