Beneath the Stands: An Enemies to Lovers, Best Friend's Brother Romance (Sugarlake Series, Book Two)

by Emily McIntire

  His fingers plunge deeper and I reach down, fumbling with the waistband of his shorts, desperate to feel him inside me. Clumsily, I push them off his hips, his thick erection bobbing against my heat. I stroke it once, from base to tip, relishing in the way his groan vibrates against my neck.

  His palm pushes against my clit, and then he removes his hand, gripping the base of his dick and sinking inside me to the hilt. Pleasure skitters along my insides, my pussy walls clamping around his length as he starts a fast pace, driving in and out until I’m delirious in my need to come around his cock.

  “This is gonna be fast, Rebecca. Come for me.” His teeth sink into my skin, hard. The bite of pain sends me catapulting off the edge, breaking apart from the fall and hoping he’ll pick up my shattered pieces. I’m vaguely aware of him spasming inside me, spurting so deep I’m not sure I’ll ever be clean of him again.

  His teeth stay lodged, tethering me to Earth until the fogginess subsides and my breathing regulates. He finally releases me, his lips kissing away the sting.

  “Hmm,” he hums.

  My breath hitches, my hand reaching for my neck. “What do you—”

  A voice filters through the door and my heart jumps into my throat. Hastily, I move to rearrange my skirt and put some space between Eli and me. We’re hidden along the side of the bleachers, but barely.

  Mr. Daniels, the principal, walks through the doors a moment later, his phone to his ear. I stare at Eli with wide eyes, urging him to back up a space or two. He smirks and reaches under my skirt, slipping his fingers between my folds, pushing the cum that’s dripping out of me deeper inside as he pumps his fingers twice.

  “Eli,” I moan quietly. My pussy is sensitive from my orgasm, but his touch makes every nerve ending light up, begging for another one. He moves, backing up a space and bringing his hand to his mouth, slowly licking the wetness from his fingers. Butterflies erupt low in my abdomen.

  “I understand that,” Mr. Daniels huffs, “but I’m not interested in havin’ someone come here, bond with these kids, only to leave after the year is up.”

  Eli leans in, palming my jaw and wiping his thumb across my lower lip, fixing my smudged lipstick.

  I let him finish, my heart squeezing in my chest at the show of affection, my mind slotting the jigsaw pieces together, trying to make sense of what the hell is happening with us.

  Mr. Daniels is going to have a fit over seeing me in here with someone, looking like I was rode hard and put away wet. My cheeks heat as I step around the side of the bleachers, determined to get this over with.

  Eli follows and Mr. Daniel’s eyes fly toward us, widening when they land on Eli. “Lemme call you back, Gene.” He hangs up the phone, tapping it against his thigh while he stares.

  “Mr. Daniels,” I blurt. “Look who I found.” My forced smile is splitting my face, and I pray to God he doesn’t see my muscles twitching under the strain, or Eli’s cum that I can feel dripping down the inside of my thighs.

  “Elliot Carson. My goodness, if you ain’t a sight for sore eyes, son.”

  Eli clears his throat. “Mr. Daniels.”

  When he speaks, I feel the rumble of his voice vibrating through my entire body. I rub my thighs together, trying to relieve the sudden tension.

  “Nice to see you’re still here keeping all the kids in line, sir.”

  Mr. Daniels chuckles, running a hand over his mouth. “Yeah, well, try as they might they just can’t get ridda me. I heard you were in town, didn’t expect to see you here, though.”

  “Didn’t expect to be here, sir. Just found myself in a moment of nostalgia, wanting to relive the glory days.” Eli’s arm waves around the room and my eyes follow, snagging on the high school jersey hanging on the wall, the number thirty-three and last name Carson shining like a beacon. He really was the town golden boy. I don’t blame him for not wanting to come home—to be slapped in the face with everything they wanted him to be.

  “Yeah,” I cut in. “I heard somethin’ and came to check it out, found him shootin’ hoops like he was still runnin’ up the Bobcat scoreboard.” I glance behind me, my eyes locking with Eli’s until everything else dims—the air so thick it pulses in time with the pound of my heart. “You know, ownin’ the paint.”

  Eli’s eyes flare. I turn back around, breathing deep through my nose, trying to tame the surge of electricity sparking through my middle.

  Mr. Daniels whistles. “About time someone did. No one’s been able to run this court quite like you in all the years I’ve been here.” His eyes stray toward the jersey on the wall then back to Eli. “I’ve watched your career flourish, Elliot. You make this town proud, son. We’re lucky to call ya our own.”

  “Th–Thank you, sir,” Eli stutters.

  “They’re even more lucky to have ya down at FCU,” Mr. Daniels continues.

  Eli sighs, palming the back of his neck. “Yeah, well… I loved it there, but I won’t be going back. Gonna stick around here for a while instead.”

  My heart stalls then kickstarts twice as fast until I’m sure I’ll pass out.

  “What?” I gasp, turning to face him fully.

  “Yeah.” The weight of his gaze pierces a hole in my chest, digging inside the cavity and making a home. “People who matter most need me here.”

  My throat swells like a sponge, siphoning moisture from my tongue until it sticks to the roof of my mouth. I hadn’t even thought about how he’s been doing being with Lee. With visiting his momma.

  With his old man.

  “Well, hot damn, son. You lookin’ for a gig?” Mr. Daniels’s voice is jumpy, the tone a pitch higher than it was when he first walked in.

  My heart stutters at his question. I spin back around, my forehead creasing.

  “Why, you got something for me, Mr. Daniels?” Eli grins.

  “That depends on how much of a pay cut you’re willin’ to take.” Mr. Daniels cringes. “I’ve found myself without a gym teacher. He up and left with his new wife and baby, barely givin’ me any damn notice.” Mr. Daniels shakes his head, dropping his gaze. “It’s probably not somethin’ you’re interested in but—” His eyes raise back up. “He also coached the basketball team.”

  The air stills. Everything in me is locked in place—my breath frozen in my lungs—waiting for his response.

  “I’ll take it.” Eli’s words are quick and sharp.

  My breath whooshes out as I twist to face him. His response surprises me. Eli’s always been very controlled, overthinking every decision until he can dissect the pros and cons. “You will?”

  He looks down at me, his eyes sparking with heat. “I will.”

  Eli focuses back on Mr. Daniel’s, a thousand-dollar smile lighting up his face. “There’s nothing that would make me happier than coaching these kids, sir. It’s where everything really began for me.” He pauses, his jaw ticking with the motion of his swallow. “I’d be honored to be part of where it begins for them too.”

  Shock surges through my veins.

  Eli is staying in Sugarlake.

  And so am I.

  I’m not in a place where I deserve him. I know this and I think deep down, so does he. I can’t be sure he’ll forgive me for my mistakes. And I can’t promise that I won’t get spooked—won’t run and hide from all the ways he makes me feel. But I’ll work like hell to overcome the roadblocks and clear the path back to him.

  He’s here.

  He’s staying.

  And one day soon, maybe…

  He’ll be mine.

  51

  Eli

  I’ve lived most of my life striving for the spotlight and thinking it’s what I needed to feel complete. Believing that one day, when I finally reached the top, the hole that drilled its way through my insides would close up and start to heal. That I’d finally get Pops’s approval and he’d know all his energy hadn’t been wasted on me over the years.

  But living for other people’s dreams is a bottomless pit. An emptiness that festers and
rots in the deepest parts of you while your soul cripples from neglect.

  It wasn’t until I started coaching that I realized my true calling in life is to stand on the sidelines and help others shine. That maybe my career-ending injury happened, not because of bad fortune, but because I needed a push in the right direction.

  My chest twinges when I think about my players at FCU. All the time and energy I’ve devoted to helping them achieve their greatness. I’ll miss it there. Giving up the years of work I’ve put in to become the next head coach smarts at my insides, and it’s hard to not pick up the phone and plead with them to take me back.

  But then I think about my family. About building a relationship with Lee. Supporting Pops through his repressed grief and addiction. I imagine what it will feel like to help foster love of the game for kids who are just beginning to recognize their potential. And when I do that, an excited, nervous energy fills up my bones and settles in deep because I just know this is where I’m supposed to be.

  Saying yes to Mr. Daniels just now may have been a rash decision, but it was the right one.

  My eyes trail to Becca, and my heart palpitates, making my breath quicken.

  The path I’m on now seems so clear, yet she’s still the one thing that confuses the hell out of me. I spend hours of my day convincing myself I’ve moved on. That all I need is closure. But then I see her and all of it goes to shit. My precious control that’s been fine-tuned over the years thrown to the wayside from less than twenty seconds in her presence.

  I’m not sure if soul mates exist, but if they do, I’m sure she’s mine. Not that it matters.

  Becca has always been a raging inferno, and I’ve always been the moth to her flame. But where my soul used to call out for hers, now it cowers in fear, knowing she has the power to turn me to ash.

  There’s not much left from when she burned me the first time.

  So I’m stuck in this limbo. One where I can’t be with her but I can’t be without her, and I don’t really know what to do with that. And I damn sure don’t know how to control myself when she’s around.

  Mr. Daniels’s phone rings, pulling me out of my thoughts. Becca’s cheeks are stained the most beautiful shade of pink. One I know for a fact goes all the way past her chest. My cock twitches, flaring back to life and I try to think of something, anything to keep the pathetic, lovesick fool inside me under control.

  “Sorry, y’all. I’ve gotta take this,” Mr. Daniels says. “Elliot, why don’t you stop by here tomorrow afternoon and we can work out some more details.”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  He shakes his head, lip curling up on one side. “Whew, boy. I must have an angel lookin’ out for me with the way you waltzed in here right when I needed ya.” He glances at his phone one more time and answers, nodding at Becca as he leaves.

  There’s a tap, tap, tap against the court floor from the toe of Becca’s heeled foot. Her arms are crossed and she’s watching me.

  Analyzing me.

  “What?” My brow arches.

  Her eyes narrow slightly. “I ain’t sure yet.”

  “You aren’t sure yet? About what?”

  “I just told you, I ain’t sure.”

  Annoyance pricks my chest. Christ, she’s difficult. “Well, when you figure it out, be sure to let me know.”

  “What are we doin’?” she spouts.

  My stomach twists. “What do you mean?”

  She sighs, tugging on a curl. “Are we… ya know… you keep askin’ me questions and then you go and fuck me stupid and I just don’t know what that means.”

  I cross my arms. “Well, Rebecca, I’m pretty sure it means I want to fuck you and I want some damn answers. I think it’s the least you can give me on both accounts.”

  Her eyes flare and it sparks a match low in my gut.

  She scoffs. “It’s not like you’ve been givin’ me a chance to talk with the way you accost me after every question.”

  I take a step forward, that goddamn mouth of hers making my blood heat and my cock hard. “If the cum on your thighs and the smell of your pussy on my fingers is any indication, you liked the way I accosted you just fine.”

  “I never said I didn’t.” She smirks.

  “So what’s the problem?”

  She shrugs. “You said I was yours. That I belonged to you.”

  My heart speeds up. She is mine, but I shouldn’t want her to be. “I say a lot of things in the heat of the moment.”

  Her eyes dim and her body sways slightly, like my words are a physical blow to the chest. I resist the urge to grimace at their impact. Anger flickers through my veins at the fact she’s making me feel guilty. “No, you don’t get to do that.”

  Her eyes widen. “Do what?”

  “Act like I’m hurting you. That’s not how this works.”

  Her shoulders stiffen, her jaw locking in place.

  My chest tightens with expectation. I expect to see what I’ve always seen—that wall of defense she builds up, one barb at a time until no one can break through to see the truth.

  But it never comes.

  Instead, she nods, biting on her lip. “Okay. I get that.”

  “Do you?” The surprise flowing through me shows itself in my question.

  “Yeah, I do. But I’m entitled to my feelin’s too, big head.” Her hand presses against her chest. “I told you I loved you, then you try and dick me down every time we talk... and now you’re actin’ like it’s no big deal.” She waves her hand between us. “It’s confusin’. You’re like one big walkin’ contradiction.”

  “Look.” I sigh, dropping my head. “Clearly I can’t control myself around you. I think that’s been obvious for a while.” I glance at her, our eyes locking. “But it has to stop. I can’t… I can’t do this with you, okay? I wish I could. Fuck, I wish more than anything that I had something capable of loving you again, but it’s not there.” I smack my chest. “You broke it, and it’s been useless ever since.”

  She flinches and my heart jumps into my throat, trying to stifle my speech.

  But I won’t let my heart control my head.

  Not again.

  Her lower lip trembles and she closes her eyes, blowing out a breath. “I’m not askin’ for anything.”

  Her words pack a punch, and I clench my fists to keep from taking her in my arms and telling her I didn’t mean it. That the charred pieces of my heart still beat for her. That we can try to make it work. That I’ll try to forgive and forget.

  But I already know what will happen if I do. I’ll lay down in her waves as they break on the shore and drown in her undertow.

  “I get that I hurt you and I’m so, so damn sorry for that,” she continues. “But we’re about to be workin’ at the same place. And now that I know what’s goin’ on with your old man, there’s not a chance in hell I’m leavin’ Lee to deal with you and him alone.”

  My stomach turns at the reminder of Pops.

  “We’re gonna be in each other’s orbit, Eli. There’s no way around it. So, I just want you to know that I’m gonna try.”

  “Try what?”

  “To be the woman you deserve.” She smiles and turns, walking away without another word.

  My heart beats out of my chest, trying to follow.

  “What the hell do you mean you’re staying there?”

  Connor’s voice is incredulous and I roll my eyes, sipping my water while I lay back on my bed.

  “Look, man. Pops is messed up. I gotta stay here and make sure my family is taken care of.”

  Connor scoffs. “You’ve never given a shit before.”

  Irritation slams into me. Maybe because it’s the truth, or maybe because it isn’t his fucking place to voice it even if it is. “Yeah, well I’m givin’ a shit now.”

  “Is that why you broke it off with Sarah? Because of your family?”

  I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. “No, man. I broke it off with Sarah because we weren’t right for each other. We were ju
st dragging each other down and that’s not something I want to do anymore.”

  “Mmhm.” He pauses. “I can’t say I’m surprised.”

  “Really?” My hand drops to my side.

  “Yeah. I wish you would have talked to me about it. Everything with Sarah, I mean. I’m here for you, ya know?”

  Guilt slinks up through my stomach and into my chest. I’ve been a shit friend. Since coming back to Sugarlake I haven’t even thought about Connor, let alone given him a call.

  “Sucks you won’t be around, though,” he says. “What am I supposed to do without my wingman?”

  I smirk. “Maybe you can take Annie.”

  He laughs. “Ah, hell. You were a shit one the past few years, anyway. You weren’t supposed to let me get married to my Monday chick.”

  I chuckle. “You know damn well Annie had you by the balls before I ever walked in the room.”

  “Yeah.” The line grows silent. “I’ll miss you, man. Won’t be the same down here without you.”

  My throat swells and I sit up, grabbing my water bottle to wash down the knot. I’ll miss him too. He’s been the closest thing to a brother I’ve ever had, and part of me worries that the distance will lessen the bond.

  We talk for a few more minutes, catching up on things I’ve missed, until Annie calls him away for dinner.

  I grab takeout for myself and plan to call it an early night when the urge to visit Ma hits me out of nowhere. Normally, the thought of going to her grave has nausea rolling through my gut, but after talking to Connor I feel anxious, and for some reason I feel like talking to Ma is what I need to calm the nerves.

  Still, when I make it to the cemetery my legs are dead weight. Sickness swirls in my stomach and an ache cracks open my chest at the thought of being near the dead, rotted corpse that used to be my ma.

  I force my heavy limbs to move, one step at a time. I physically count them as I walk to her marker.

  One.

  Two.

  Three.

  Four.

  I’m at fifty-seven when I finally look up. A halo of honey hair, so similar to my own, is bowed in front of Ma’s marble slab.