by Claire Raye
“I like this side of you,” Sienna suddenly says, brushing her fingers over my cheek.
I smile. “What side of me?”
She returns the smile, her eyes searching my face as she says, “Happy.”
I slide my hand up her back to the back of her neck, pulling her toward me. “I am happy,” I tell her, brushing my lips against hers. “Very fucking happy.”
She smiles against my lips before kissing me. “Did you ever think we’d get here?”
I chuckle. “No,” I admit. “Hoped maybe, but yeah, didn’t think it would actually ever happen.”
“It certainly feels like a long time coming,” she says, her fingers brushing through my hair. “Especially considering I’ve had a crush on you since I was thirteen.”
My eyes widen in surprise. “Oh, you have, huh?”
Sienna blushes and she ducks her head onto my shoulder. “Hmm mmm.”
Laughing, I turn my head so my lips brush against hers again. “I can’t even remember a time when I didn’t want you,” I confess.
Now it’s Sienna’s turn to look surprised. “Really?”
“Yep,” I say nodding. “I mean I know you were always Caleb’s sister and it was always the three of us hanging out together, but I legit cannot remember a time when a part of me didn’t wish that he wasn’t around so that I could have you all to myself.”
Sienna’s eyes soften as she leans in to kiss me again. “I wish we could’ve had this conversation two years ago,” she whispers.
“I know, me too,” I confess. “But we’re here now and that’s what matters.”
“What do you think Caleb is going to say?”
I chuckle, twisting strands of her hair around my finger. “Honestly, I have no idea. My guess is he might kick my ass a little and then be okay with it. Why? What do you think he’ll say?”
Sienna shrugs, putting her drink down as she wraps both arms around my neck. “I don’t know,” she admits. “I think he’ll be cool. I mean you are his best friend.”
“Yeah,” I say shrugging, hoping she’s right.
“Promise me something,” she says, her tone serious now.
I meet her gaze, untwisting my finger and tucking the hair behind her ear as I say, “Anything.”
Sienna licks her lips. “Promise me that no matter what happens when we get back home, it doesn’t break us, doesn’t break this thing that’s happening between us.”
I smile, cupping her cheek. “I told you, we’re so much more than just a thing, Sie,” I whisper. “But yes, I absolutely promise you that nothing will break us.”
“Good,” she says, before closing the distance and kissing me.
After our cruise, we head back to our hotel to shower and change, momentarily getting sidetracked by other things the second we both get naked. By the time we are back downstairs and heading out to dinner it’s past eight o’clock.
“You hungry?” I ask, pulling her close.
Sienna giggles. “I am now.”
“Good,” I tell her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Because we are about to hit up the best steakhouse in Chicago. And, it’s got a shit load of mob history, too,” I add.
Sienna laughs, pinching my side. “Seriously, Reid, if your pro football career doesn’t pan out, you should seriously consider a career in tourism,” she says, teasing me. “You certainly know how to sell a place.”
“Ha ha smart ass,” I reply, smacking her on the butt. “Maybe I just have a captive audience right now, completely besotted with me and hypnotized by everything I tell her.”
Sienna smirks at me, her hand slipping into the back pocket of my jeans as she now squeezes my ass. “Maybe you do.”
Inside the restaurant, we are given a cozy table in the back corner. The place is busy, but not so much that it’s loud and we can’t hear each other talk. After we’ve placed our orders and our drinks have arrived, I take Sienna’s hands in mine.
“Tell me one of your best memories?” I ask her. She looks at me as if to ask what’s this about? I just laugh. “Humor me.”
“Okay,” she says, her eyes looking up as though she’s mentally running through her options. “I mean obviously when the three of us hung out as kids, there were loads of fun times. I mean we got up to some seriously sketchy shit, but it was fun.”
I chuckle. “Yeah, it certainly was. You remember that time we stole your dad’s car and went joyriding one night, only to be pulled over by the cops?”
“Oh my god,” Sienna says, her head falling as she laughs. “I thought we’d get in so much trouble.”
“Ahh, we kinda did, Sie,” I say, squeezing her hand in mine. “We were just lucky your dad and my mom were drunk enough that they forgot it even happened,” I remind her, remembering how the three of us escaped a certain death sentence in punishment when our parents couldn’t even remember the cops bringing us home.
“Ahh, the joys of having deadbeat parents,” she says jokingly.
“Indeed,” I say, pausing as our starters are dropped off. “But seriously, what’s something good? Something you will always remember for the rest of your life?”
Sienna narrows her eyes at me. “Seriously, Reid, what is this about?”
I wave my fork in the air, deflecting as I say, “One thing. Come on.”
Sienna spears a piece of calamari. “Okay,” she says, meeting my gaze. “This road trip.”
“Yeah?” I ask, my heart skipping a beat.
“Yes,” she says softly. “This is definitely something I will remember for the rest of my life.”
I lean over and kiss her. “Good answer, Sie.”
After we’ve finished our dinner, I take her hand and lead her outside, turning in the opposite direction of our hotel.
“We’re going somewhere else?” she asks, glancing up at me.
“We are, although we don’t have to do it if you change your mind when we get there.”
Sienna stops, her hand still in mine and forcing me to stop too. “What, what are you talking about.”
I turn to face her, pulling her to me. “You still want that tattoo?” I ask.
Sienna’s eyes widen, even as a smile pulls at her mouth. “Yes,” she says excitedly.
I chuckle. “Okay, then that’s where we’re going.”
“Wait, you know of a tattoo place?” she asks as we start walking.
“Sort of,” I tell her. “My guy in Cali told me about him, says he’s really good. You know that was part of the deal for you getting one, right?”
Sienna rolls her eyes even as she leans over and kisses my neck. “And you think Caleb is protective,” she murmurs.
When we reach the tattoo shop, the place is maybe half full. Inside, it’s clean with a small waiting area next to a counter, the walls lined with designs and photos. As I head over to the counter to talk to the guy, grateful I set this up in advance, Sienna lingers, her eyes wandering over the designs.
“What am I going to get?” she murmurs, taking them all in.
I walk back to her, standing behind her as I slip my arms around her waist and pull her back against me. “Well,” I say, leaning down to press a kiss to her neck, “you could always get this.” I pull a napkin from my back pocket, the design something I quickly scrawled when she was in the restroom back at the restaurant.
“What’s this?” she asks, taking the napkin.
“It’s a good memory,” I tell her, my mouth at her ear.
Her fingers brush over the four tiny black symbols I drew. “This is our road trip,” she whispers, looking up at me.
“Yep,” I say, smiling. “It’s just a thought though, you don’t have to…”
“It’s perfect, Reid,” she says, pushing up on her toes and kissing me hard. “Perfect.”
After the tattoo artist gets things sorted for Sienna’s design, she gets on the table, pulling up her top while he puts the tracing paper across her right rib cage, just
below her breast.
I sit on the other side, holding her hand. “Try not to move,” I whisper, giving her a quick kiss before he starts.
She flinches the second the needle hits her skin, but the guy’s expecting it. I feel her hand grip mine as she squeezes her eyes closed. I chuckle, brushing my thumb over her knuckles. “You kinda picked the worst spot to get it, Sie,” I tease. “You should’ve gone for somewhere with some more padding.”
One of her eyes opens and she stares at me, her brows narrowing a little as she says, “I was not getting it on my ass.”
I burst out laughing. “No, I think I like your ass just as it is,” I tell her, laughing again when she rolls her eyes at me.
After she’s done, the guy smoothes on some cream before covering it with a bandage. Sienna sits up before hopping off the bench. I guide her to the chair I was just in, urging her to sit down as I pull my t-shirt over my head and hop on the bench.
“Are you getting one too?” she asks, surprised.
“Yep.”
“What?” she asks, her eyes raking over the ink I already have.
I roll onto my side to face her, lifting my arm so the guy can lay the design over the right side of my rib cage. Smiling, I flick my eyes in his direction, watching as Sienna stands and peers over to get a look at what I’m having done.
“The same thing?” she whispers, sitting back down.
“Uh huh,” I tell her. “Is that okay?”
Now it’s her leaning in to kiss me. “Absolutely.”
When we are both done, I pay the artist, thanking him for his work before grabbing Sienna’s hand and taking her back to the hotel. As soon as we’re in the elevator, I pull her toward me, wrapping my arms around her as I press a kiss to her lips.
“Thank you for an amazing day,” she whispers, her hands in my back pockets.
I pull back, grinning at her. “It’s not over yet,” I say, leaning in to kiss her again, unable to keep my hands off her.
We stumble back to our room, both of us all over each other, Sienna sucking on my neck as I try to jam the card in the slot in the door. Inside the room, I close the door behind us, the card falling to the floor as I back her up against it.
Lifting her top off, I brush my lips over her collarbone, my fingers lightly dancing over the bandage on her ribs. “How does it feel?” I ask.
“Okay. Yours?”
I chuckle. “All good. No regrets getting it done?” I murmur.
“No,” she says, lifting my shirt up and over my head. “I love it.”
I want to tell her that I love her, but I don’t. Instead, I hook my fingers into the top of her pants, easing them down her hips and legs until they pool at her feet. She steps out of them, kicking them away as I run a fingertip along the edge of her panties. “I like the look of it on you,” I whisper, my lips against hers.
She smiles against my mouth. “I thought you didn’t want me to get one.”
I gently bite her bottom lip before tracing it with my tongue. “I didn’t,” I admit. “But,” I add, my fingers disappearing inside her panties, teasing her as I slip one between her legs, loving the gasp she lets out. “There’s something so insanely fucking hot about seeing my design on your skin,” I whisper before kissing her.
Sienna groans into my mouth, deepening the kiss as her arms wrap around me. Our mouths crash together, teeth and tongues colliding as I slide my finger slowly in and out of her.
“Fuck, you are wet,” I murmur into her mouth.
“Yes,” she moans, her head falling back against the door as I slowly pump my finger, kissing my way along her jaw and down her neck.
My other hand snakes around her back, undoing her bra and pulling it off just as I reach her breast. I suck a nipple into my mouth, pulling and biting and making her moan again.
“Reid,” she whimpers, her hands sliding into my hair, griping me hard as my mouth ghosts over the bandage on her ribs, pressing a gentle kiss to it before I fall to my knees in front of her.
“I think I need another taste of you,” I tell her, slowly sliding her panties down her legs so she stands naked in front of me. “Fuck, you are so beautiful, Sie,” I say, before putting my mouth against her as I slide a second finger inside her.
“Oh god,” she groans, her fingers tightening. “God, yes.”
I pump my fingers in long slow strokes, all while my tongue licks and sucks her, pushing her closer and closer to the edge. My dick is as hard as a rock inside my jeans and I’m desperate to bury myself inside her, but not before I make her come first.
“Do you like that?” I whisper, pulling back a little.
Sienna’s hand moves to the back of my head, pulling my mouth back to her as she gasps, “Yes.”
I can’t help the smile as I up the tempo, sucking on her as she grinds herself against my face, riding my fingers. I don’t let up this time, working her harder and harder until her legs start to tremble, and I feel her tighten around me, her hips pushing against me as she moans my name and comes hard.
I slowly pull my fingers out, grabbing her hips to keep her steady as I kiss my way back up her body to her mouth. “God, I love doing that to you,” I whisper against her mouth, teasing her with kisses.
“So, so good,” she says, breathless.
Slipping my hands to her ass, I pick her up, her legs wrapping around my hips as I turn and walk her into the bedroom. “Baby, it’s about to get even better.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Sienna
After checking out of the hotel in Chicago, we’re back on the road again and with each mile that passes, the closer we draw to Providence, the closer we come to things feeling very different. I know we’ve both said it won’t change, that we won’t let anything come between us, but something feels stressful, almost pressing.
Or maybe it’s just the idea of being back in Providence that has me feeling anxious. I swore I would never go back, that I wouldn’t let the toxicity of my past ruin what I created all on my own.
We’ve dragged out this trip back far longer than it ever should have been and with only fourteen hours to go, it’s edging even closer. I’ve been in touch with Caleb on and off since we started, but I haven’t given him much information on why it’s taking longer than the three to four days we told him it would take. He hasn’t pressed for information, but he’s also been slow to answer and at one point, he even told me to just turn around. Something feels a little off.
“Hey, have you talked to Caleb recently?” I ask Reid as he merges onto the highway, heading east. The city of Chicago disappears behind us, but we aren’t leaving the memories we’ve made.
“Just a few texts here and there,” he says, listening as the GPS gives its commands for where we are headed next.
“Has he been weird?” I ask, now prying just a little to see if Reid told him about us. “Did you tell him about…us?”
Reid laughs, melodic and comforting and it echoes in the car, making me smile. The heavy weight of my anxiety lessening just a little.
“You worried about your brother finding out?” Reid questions, slipping his hand onto my thigh and squeezing. “Because I’m all for doing the whole sneaking around thing. Meeting up with you at seedy hotels and fucking you. It’s hot.” He looks over and winks at me, then waggles his eyebrows.
“Reid, you’re an idiot,” I reply back, smacking his arm and shaking my head. “And no, I’m not worried about Caleb finding out. Okay, maybe I am a little,” I admit.
“What worries you?”
Reid’s hand strokes the top of my thigh, his fingers brushing gently in a way that is so foreign to the way I’ve watched him behave with other girls. He’s kind and caring, his actions are purposeful and everything he does is for me and me only.
“I don’t know, honestly. I guess I don’t want him to think we were doing something behind his back,” I tell him, letting out a hard breath. “I have a lot of guilt about going awa
y to school without him. I always worry he’s missing out. Like our lives, yours and mine, are continuing on without him and now we’re creating a life together…” I stop, the guilt eating at me, churning in my stomach. “He gave up so much for me…and in return I stole his best friend. I stole the life he was supposed to have.”
“Is that really how you feel? You think you stole his best friend?” Reid asks. “Because my friendship with Caleb is a hell of a lot different than what I have with you. You wanna watch football at the bar with me? You want me to call you when I’m trying to wrap my head around a football play and need to bounce the idea off someone?” Reid turns, looking at me quickly as if to let his words sink in. Almost like he’s telling me I’m being ridiculous without actually saying it. He knows better than that. “Caleb and I will always be friends, no matter what.”
“What about us?” I ask, sounding far too needy for my own good. I have no idea why I even say it. Reid runs from clingy girls and I know this. I’m not one of them. I have never been one of them, but I’d be lying if his reputation didn’t concern me just a little.
“You’ll always be my girl no matter what,” he replies back with finality, shooting me his perfect smile.
“Do you ever feel guilty about Caleb being back in Providence?” I ask, knowing it was supposed to be the three of us. It was our dream and the reason Caleb worked as hard as he did all through high school. We were all leaving that damn town, our broken families and our dysfunctional lives. We were starting over together.
“All the fucking time,” Reid says, shaking his head. “Every game I play in, every party I go to, every girl I…” He trails off, turning and smirking at me. “Well, disregard that last part, but yeah. He was supposed to be there with me. We were all supposed to be together, but life has other plans, Sie. Caleb has a life in Providence now and we have our lives in California. It is what it is, but that doesn’t mean he’s not a part of it somehow.”
“Do you think he met someone? Maybe that’s why he’s being a little weird.” I throw it out there even though he’s made no mention of it. I’m not even sure there’s anyone for him to meet with all the time he spends working at the bar. It is close to campus though so maybe he met some cute college girl like Ruby. Oh, how I would love that.
