by Anthology
“Just means that we will have to get a lot of Skype and FaceTime in,” I tried to counter.
“Is that what you think?” He asked looking over his shoulder at me.
“Well, we could talk on the phone and write emails too.”
“That’s not what I meant, Lil.”
I swallowed hard.
“You’ve been my best friend from as far back as I can remember. We have spent nearly our entire lives growing up with each other. We’ve done the same things, went on family and individual vacations together. You have pretty much been the first voice, other than the shrill of my mother waking me up in the morning, that I have heard every day. You’re also the last voice I heard every night. You were the one who encouraged me to apply for the job in Denver and told me that I would get it because they would be stupid to turn me down. That is how it has been for us our whole lives. So no, Lilly. I won’t forget you. I could never forget you. You are the most important person in my life.”
He turned completely to me, his hand coming up to graze the skin on my check. Involuntarily, my eyes closed and I leant into his touch. I knew exactly everything he was feeling and the thought of not having that anymore scared the crap out of me.
“You’re the most important person to me too,” I whispered and then opened my eyes. What I saw in his, damn near gutted me. His pupils were dilated even though the sun was shining bright through the window. His green eyes turning from a soft green into the darker more mysterious color of a tree in the forest. We stared at each other, studied each other as if we were trying to memorize each other’s facial expressions. It wouldn’t have helped me any. I committed all of his to my memory a long time ago. His hand fell away from my face and I instantly missed his warmth, until he opened his arms and invited me into his embrace. Without thinking, I relented, wrapping my arms around his waist and pressing my cheek to his chest, feeling the frantic rhythm of his heart against my ear.
“Can we just go to the beach and enjoy these next few weeks? Maybe we’ll be so sick of each other at the end of fourteen days, that we won’t be able to wait to get away from one another.”
He squeezed me tighter and then pressed a soft kiss to the top of my head that sent tiny tingles racing all the way to my toes. My body has never had this reaction to his affections before and I didn’t know why it was happening all of a sudden.
“Yeah. We can do that. Though, you’re kinda getting on my nerves already,” he teased just before he wrapped an arm around my neck and gave me a noogie.
Chapter Four
Jason
“COME ON, KRISTA, we are only going to Virginia Beach for two weeks, not the Caribbean for an entire year. You should have been packed by now,” I said, scolding her as Lilly sat on Krista’s bed watching and laughing at her.
“He’s got a point, Kris,” Lilly agreed.
“It doesn’t matter. You have to factor in weather, occasion, comfort, you know…the basics.”
“Noooo, the only things you need are a bathing suit that covers your tits and ass, because, quite frankly, I don’t want to have to deal with Corey’s moody ass when he has to beat the guys away from you, and something to sleep in.”
“I heard that!” Corey yelled as he came walking into the room.
“But he’s right, Kris. My. Eyes. Only.” He stressed as he gave her a smack on the ass, causing her to jump and yelp.
“Help me out here, Lilly?” Krista asked looking at Lilly with puppy dog eyes.
“Nope, you’re on your own. I packed all my stuff last night. I knew Jason and Corey would be in bitch mode if I didn’t, so I planned ahead.”
“Well, aren’t you proficient,” she teased, and laughed at Lilly.
“I’ll be ready in five minutes. You boys finish loading up the car and by the time you’re done, I will be too.”
Krista went back to her task of sorting through her closet and tossing various outfits on the bed as Corey and I walked out, leaving the two girls in Krista’s room.
***
Lilly
THE THREE-HOUR DRIVE from Charlottesville to Virginia Beach was mostly spent laughing and reminiscing about our years in college at UVA. Including the time that Corey streaked through The Lawn and was nearly arrested, and the time he lost a bet at the Frat house and had to dress in drag for an entire day.
When we finally arrived at the beach house, I was in awe of how crisp and clean it was. It was simple, tastefully decorated, but nothing over the top. Creamy white couches faced a huge flat screen TV that the boys nearly had an orgasm over. Classic modern lines with a beachy ambiance gave it a peaceful serenity that told me that these next two weeks were going to be amazing.
“Wow, remind me to send a thanks to our parents,” Jason said as he walked up next to me and deposited the luggage on the ground next to him.
“Yeah, they really went all out,” I agreed taking everything in.
“Party for two weeks bitches!” Corey yelled, throwing a fist pump in the air and dancing around the living room like an adolescent teenager who was just allowed freedom at a sleep over.
“I can’t wait to throw my bikini on and head to the beach,” Krista said as she tossed her purse onto one of the small chairs in the corner of the room.
“That makes two of us. Boys, you don’t mind bringing in the rest of the stuff do you?”
“What? No freaking way, Lilly. Your ass is helping us. That goes ditto for you Kris,” Corey chastised as he ran up to Krista and began tickling her.
I couldn’t help but smile as I looked at three very important people in my life. I was going to miss our camaraderie and good times we have shared together over the years.
“We’ll bring the rest of the stuff in if you girls cook dinner tonight,” Jason said arching a brow at me and showing a smug smile on the corner of his mouth. It was really hard to say no to him when he gave me that cute expression.
“Deal,” Krista and I both said in unison. Corey looked at Jason and threw his hands up in the air in frustration.
“Dude, you know those girls can cook their asses off. Besides, Lilly is going to make coconut cream pie.
“I’m, what?” I protested. “You said dinner. Not anywhere in the deal was dessert negotiated.”
I thrust out my hip and placed my hands on them.
“Please?” Jason said as he dropped to his knees in front of me and held his hands out in front of him in prayer.
“Ugh, fine. But you have to help with dishes.”
“You got it, babe,” he replied with a huge smile and slung his arms around my legs and hugged me to him. I stiffened as his fingers caressed the back of my thighs. I didn’t know if he was aware he was doing it, but I was completely aware he was doing it. My skin began to tingle and I felt a rush of heat begin to climb up my body.
“Go get your suit, girl! Let’s go get some sun,” Krista exclaimed as she grabbed one of her suitcases and began running up the stairs.
Jason let go of me but his eyes didn’t meet mine as he pushed away.
“It better be one hell of a pie, Lilly,” Corey warned. “Jason got off easy. His girl didn’t bring her whole fucking closet with her. I’m going to need nourishment after having to lug all of these up those stairs,” he said, pointing at the suitcases on the floor and then up to the stairs.
Jason and I both laughed at him, yet I couldn’t help but hear Corey’s words echo over and over in my mind. He was calling me Jason’s girl. I’ve always been Jason’s girl, but for some reason my sick, sardonic and twisted mind wished that it could be true.
***
KRISTA AND I SETTLED into the rental chairs just above the water’s edge and I leaned back allowing the sound of the waves to caress my ears and try to remove all the crazy thoughts in my head.
“So what’s up with you and J?” Krista asked before she took a pull from the tall, pink drink she had ordered from one of the bars on the boardwalk.
I peeked an eye open at her, shielding the glaring sun awa
y from my face.
“What do you mean?”
She shrugged.
“I don’t know. You both have been acting…different since graduation.”
I sighed. So much for not thinking about Jason.
“I guess we are both just delaying the inevitable,” I said reaching for my pina colada and taking a drink.
“What, you mean admitting to each other that you have feelings?”
I coughed loudly, choking on my drink, feeling it burn as it went down my windpipe.
“No—no, I mea—meant the fact that we are moving away from one another,” I managed to stutter out as I clutched my chest, willing the burn in my lungs to ease.
“Right.” She turned on her side and held her head in her hand as she propped herself up on her elbow to look at me.
“You two have been closer than anyone I’ve ever met. How can you tell me you haven’t thought about what it would be like to be with him? He is gorgeous. I love Corey with my whole heart, but damn, Jason is just…yummy. Plus he is an awesome guy. Have you ever thought about the possibility of being in a relationship with him?”
Of course I’ve thought about it. More lately than ever before. I’ve thought about how it would make me feel to have his hands on me in more than just a friendly hug. How would I react to the sensations of his skin on mine as his hands caressed my curves and I explored the hard planes of his chest and stomach. I’ve thought about what it would be like to taste his mouth and feel the wetness pool between my legs from that kiss lone.
Then I would chastise myself, because you weren’t supposed to have illicit thoughts like that about your best friend. You weren’t supposed to picture yourself beneath them as they were buried deep within you to the point your body exploded from the pleasure.
“Lilly?” Krista said as she snapped her fingers in front of my face. I looked at her, heat burning my cheeks, like she could read my thoughts.
“Where’d you go just now?” She asked as she smiled and cocked one of her perfectly manicured brows at me.
“You were thinking about it weren’t you? I knew it! You like Jason.”
“Of course I like him, Kris. He’s my best friend.”
“No, you like him like him.”
“I, what? No.”
“You’re so busted. Don’t lie to me girl.”
I looked over to the left of us and saw four guys playing volleyball with a net they had placed in the sand. They looked about our age and really, really cute.
“As a matter of fact, I was admiring the view over there,” I nodded to the guys. Krista turned over her shoulder and looked in the direction I nodded.
“Wow,” she said, pulling her glasses from her face as if she needed to remove them to get a better look.
Good. Subject averted.
“We should totally go over there and ask if we could play,” she said wiggling her eyebrows ate me.
“Right, so that Corey will kill all of them once they start flirting with you.”
“Oh, come on. It will be fun. It’s just volleyball.”
My thoughts went to the other night when Jason was dancing with Wendy and how his hands were all over her as she whispered things in his ear. I shuddered, a chill of disgust running through me as a sour taste filled my mouth.
“Okay. Why the hell not?”
“That’s my girl,” Krista said as she jumped up from her lounge chair and started off in the direction of the volleyball guys.
I smiled to myself.
This should be interesting.
***
Jason
“WERE DID THE GIRLS GO?” Corey asked as he looked out of the sliding glass doors that faced the ocean.
“What do you mean?” I asked walking up to join him, glancing out to see the lawn chairs the girls were in, now vacated.
“They aren’t on the beach, dude,” Corey replied scanning his eyes up and down the beach.
When I finally spotted the girls, the blood in my veins began to boil and my temperature rose to astronomical temperatures. I could feel the heat creeping up my neck and sweat bead on my brow just standing there.
Some muscle head jackasses were surrounding them at a volleyball net. One of them had his arms wrapped all the way around Lilly as if trying to show her how to hit the ball. Her back was pressed firmly against his chest, but the part that made me want to spit nails was the flirty look in both of their eyes. Lilly tossed her head back, laughing at something the walking jock strap whispered in her ear and my fists clenched at my sides.
“Dude, you look murderous,” Corey said and I didn’t look at him. I lifted my hand and pointed in the direction to where not only was the guy all over Lilly, but his blond counterpart was trying to put the moves on Krista too.
“What the fuck?” Corey spat out when he finally noticed what I was looking at.
“Oh, hell no.”
Corey was passed me and down the steps of the porch in a matter of seconds, stomping his way through the sand toward the girls. I bounded down the stairs after him, my anger growing with each step. I saw the wide-eyed look on Krista’s face as we approached, but Lilly couldn’t see us since her back was turned to us.
“What’s going on here?” Corey asked as he approached.
“Playing some volleyball, man. Go get your own minge and carry on,” the guy who was quickly slipping his arm around Krista said in a thick foreign accent.
I stood with my hands on my hips, to keep from reaching out to the guy who now had his arms securely around Lilly, so that I didn’t punch him in his pretty boy face.
“Ha ha,” Corey laughed sardonically, “Well, the minge you are trying to not so slyly pick up is my girlfriend and if you don’t remove your hands from her right now, I’m going to bash all those pretty teeth of yours in.”
“Well, obviously she was lacking and decided to come look for a real man.”
Corey charged towards the mouthy fucker and I had to stop him.
“Woah, Corey. It’s okay. We were just playing volleyball,” Krista said removing herself from the man’s arm and walking over to put a hand on Corey’s chest.
I turned to look at Lilly who was still being held by the tall musclebound idiot, who was two point five seconds away from being laid out in the sand.
“This your girl?” The asshole said winking at me.
Fucking winking at me.
“Lil,” I warned looking at her.
“We were playing a game,” she huffed back, feigning innocence.
“Yeah a game of how long can this creep keep his hands on you and not make it look obvious he’s just trying to fuck you.”
“Jason—”
“Let’s go, Lil.”
“No.”
“Excuse me?” I arched my brow at her. She walked out of the Adonis’s arm and toward me, jamming her finger in my chest.
“What is wrong with you? It’s my vacation. We were having fun. Then you and Corey come over here and wanted to have a testosterone competition. Pierre and Fillepe were only showing us how to play. Why are you acting like a jackass?”
I watched a bead of sweat roll down her chest and come to rest in between the swell of her breasts. I closed my eyes tightly, not wanting my thoughts to go in the direction they were headed.
“These douchebags had their hands all over you, and you’re okay with that?”
“We. Were. Just. Having. Fun.” She bit out enunciating each word.
“Maybe you should back off—” the guy behind her said. Pierre, Fillepe, whatever the fuck his name was.
“Dude, I strongly suggest you not finish that sentence. Anyways, you wouldn’t have gotten far with this one. She hasn’t finished up using the medicine she was taking for her severe case of crabs, so in all reality, I’m just helping you out.”
Lilly’s mouth dropped open at the same time the douchebag’s did. His friend burst out laughing and Corey was quickly grabbing Krista and leading her away from the assholes, arguing the whole way back to t
he house.
“You’re a jerk, Jason,” Lilly said punching me in the gut and nearly knocking the wind out of me, before she stormed off toward the beach house.
“Dude, really? She had the crabs?”
“Yeah, pretty severe case too. I just saved your ass.”
The look of disgust on his face was all worth it. He ran a tanned hand through his hair and then swallowed audibly.
“Um, thanks, man.” He then picked up the volleyball and walked away with his equally douchey friend.
Turning around I slowly made my way back to the house, reluctant to get there and knowing that I had a shit storm to clean up once I got there.
I wish I felt bad for leading those guys away from her, but instead, I felt no remorse about it. The thought of his arms around Lilly was enough to make my blood heat again.
What the fuck is going on with me?
Chapter Five
Lilly
I’VE NEVER BEEN SO mad in my entire life. How dare he say I had crabs in front of Pierre? My cheeks flushed with embarrassment. For all I knew, Pierre was running up and down the pier announcing to everyone that I had a crotch infestation, and that no one should come near me.
What the fuck was Jason’s problem?
I paced in my room, wearing out the boards on the floor as I chewed on my lip and contemplated how I was going to get him back. In all the years I’ve known him, he’s always teased me in front of guys, but he has never deliberately embarrassed the hell out of me like he did out on the beach. Anger vibrated through me as I tried to tune out the sound of Corey and Krista’s voices as they argued through the walls. Great. Day one of our vacation and the guys had to go and ruin it.
A few minutes passed by and Corey and Krista’s voices faded a few moments before there was a knock on the door.
“Come in,” I spat out bitterly, fully prepared to turn around and apologize to Krista, but instead I stopped in my tracks. Jason came walking into the room slowly as if he were going to be attacked by a thousand tigers that hadn’t eaten in days.
