by A. K. Evans
No sooner did I step under the hot spray and close my eyes while lifting my hands to push my hair back off my face did I feel Zane’s hands wrapped around my sides and his mouth claim one of my nipples. The sensations he sent through my body with this simple act had my knees buckling. Zane held me upright firmly in his hands and continued to wreak havoc on my already overly-sensitive body.
I managed to regain my footing enough that if Zane had let me go I wouldn’t have collapsed on the floor. While he moved his mouth to my other breast I reached for the soap. I put some in my hand and then pushed him back against the wall. My hand wrapped around his cock and I began stroking him, my hand gliding easily back and forth. I wasn’t sure I had ever heard the grunts and groans coming from Zane in the intensity that they did right in that moment. It was extremely rewarding and encouraging for me. I looked up at him through hooded eyes and the intensity in his shining back at me was almost too much to bear. I tightened my grip slightly and continued stroking him at a steady pace while I reached up with my other hand to bring his mouth to mine. After several minutes, Zane lifted me up and put my back to the shower wall. I wrapped my legs around his waist.
“Damn it, Emme. How’d I get so fucking lucky?” he asked, the tip of his erection at my entrance.
“Baby,” I said, my voice breathy.
“Beautiful, Em. Everything about you is so fucking beautiful. Your mind, your body, your smile, your laugh — it all leaves me craving more. But your heart? Fuck…so fucking genuine it makes it hard to breathe.”
I gasped.
Then he pushed inside me. He pressed a kiss to the skin right over my heart before his eyes came to mine and focused on them as he moved in and out of me. As he had done many times before his movements started slow and controlled, building me up. He then alternated to quick, deep thrusts and would have me right on the edge before he’d slow his movements again pulling me back. I’d cry out in frustration, but I knew he’d get me there soon enough. He always did and when it happened, it was magical.
Sure enough, Zane didn’t make me wait much longer. He picked up his pace and relentlessly thrusted into me. Moments later, I was exploding around him, screaming his name while he did the same, finding his release and burying himself to the root of his cock inside me.
It was minutes later, when our breathing returned to a somewhat normal rate, when Zane pressed a kiss to my lips, pulled out of me, and carefully steadied me on my feet. We went about the business of finishing up in the shower and then I turned off the water. Zane got out and wrapped a towel around my body before getting one for himself. We stood there, drying off when he came up to stand right in front of me with another towel in his hand. He pulled all of my hair into one hand then wrapped the towel around it and squeezed out the excess water. The simple, but thoughtful gesture made my heart melt. Then, he pressed a kiss to my forehead and said, “Love you, Em.”
“I love you, too.”
“Going to run downstairs and grab some water. Do you want anything while I’m down there? Are you hungry?”
I shook my head and said, “No, I’m good, baby. Thanks.”
He nodded. “Ok. Dry your hair and then we’ll go to bed. Looking forward to waking up with you in my arms and no alarm tomorrow morning.”
“Me too.”
With that, Zane brushed his teeth and walked out of the bathroom. I got to work on putting on my lotion, brushing my teeth, and finally, drying my hair. Roughly fifteen minutes later, I walked out into the bedroom to find that Zane hadn’t returned from getting the water. I thought it was odd so I quickly threw on a pair of panties and a nightie and went in search of him.
As I opened the door and walked out of the bedroom I called out, “Zane?”
No answer.
I began walking down the hall and realized the bedroom door to the guest room where Zane kept his snowboards was open. I walked in and found him standing there, with his back to me, holding a board in his hands.
“Zane?” I called again, alerting him to the fact that I was in the room.
He turned around and looked at me with a look on his face I’d never seen before. He didn’t immediately say anything and I quickly grew concerned.
“Is everything ok?” I asked.
Zane looked around the room at all the boards and when his eyes came back to mine he asked, “Did you tune my boards?”
His face was impassive.
Suddenly, I was worried. I thought I was doing a nice thing by doing what he had showed me. Maybe I did something wrong and ruined them. My stomach was suddenly in knots, but I knew I needed to own up to what I had done. Of course, I couldn’t exactly look him in the eye and admit it so I turned my head to the side and said, “Yes.”
“Emme, look at me,” he demanded.
My head snapped to him.
“Why did you do this?” he pressed.
Tears filled my eyes as I cried, “I’m sorry if I ruined them, Zane. I was just trying to help. After having such a long week of training and everything else we’ve been dealing with I wanted to do something to help so that we’d be able to spend the day together tomorrow without you having to worry about doing this. I was just trying to help and save you some time. I’m very sorry. If I’ve damaged them I’ll pay to replace them.”
“Do you know how much a snowboard costs?” he asked.
I shook my head. I wasn’t sure, but I knew they weren’t cheap.
“On average, three to four hundred dollars. Some of these are limited edition or one-off boards, making them worth quite a bit more.”
I swallowed hard. Zane had hundreds of boards. I had ruined them. It didn’t bother me that I had to pay to replace them; it bothered me that I had destroyed them. Some of them had to be pretty meaningful. “Math wasn’t exactly my best subject, but I might need some time to pay you back for all of them. Oh God, I’m so sorry, Zane,” I rasped out as I brought my hand up to my mouth. “I think I’m going to be sick.”
“Emme, relax,” Zane said as he set the board down and walked over to me. “You didn’t ruin the boards, sweetheart.”
My brows pulled together and my head jerked back as I asked, “I didn’t?”
He shook his head. “They’re perfect.”
“They are?”
“Couldn’t have done them any better myself.”
I dropped my head to his chest, gripped his biceps in my hands, and let out a huge sigh. “I was so worried,” I admitted.
“It’s a lot of money you were preparing to pay me,” he said, his tone teasing.
“I wasn’t worried about the money. I mean, it is a lot and I would have needed some time to pay you for all of them, but I was more worried that I had ruined them.”
“What do you mean?” he asked.
I pulled my head back to look around the room before I looked to him and said, “This is your life, Zane. Your passion. I imagine many of these boards hold some sentimental value for you, especially if you won events with them. I know some of them have got to be pretty significant. I would have hated myself if I destroyed them and they were irreplaceable.”
He stared at me a moment before he said, “Most genuine fucking heart, Em.” He paused a moment letting that sink in before he continued, “Just so you know, even if you had trashed every single one of these boards I wouldn’t have taken a single penny from you. Told you before that this stuff is just that…stuff. It doesn’t mean anything without you, Emme. Fuck, this entire fucking house could burst into flames and I wouldn’t give a shit as long as you were safe outside of it, standing right next to me. I’ll tell you again — everything I have means nothing without you, sweetheart.”
“I love you so much, baby,” I said as I wrapped my arms around his waist and pressed my cheek to his chest.
Zane’s arms wrapped around me and squeezed me tight. “Come on, Em. Let’s go to bed.”
With that, Zane picked me up and carried me down the hall to the bedroom. Ten minutes later, we were asleep.
Chapter 27
Emme
“Do you really think it’ll be necessary to have the security detail out there?” I asked as I stood next to the suitcases by the door.
Zane and I were getting ready to leave for the airport so that we could head to Vail, Colorado for the U.S. Open. Other than the day I found out that Seth had set up cameras in the bedroom and bathroom of my condo, there had been no new findings. I knew the guys were hard at work attempting to track him down, but everything was leading to dead ends. Now, with Zane and I heading out to Vail I wasn’t sure we needed to continue to inconvenience Levi and his crew further by making them travel with us.
“Not taking any chances with you, Emme. I can’t be with you every minute we’re there and I’m not going to be able to focus if you are by yourself.”
“But we’re talking about thousands of people, Zane. I don’t think he’d be that stupid to do something in broad daylight with so many people around,” I argued.
“Em, he was stupid enough to think it was ok to put his hands on you. I think it’s safe to assume he’s a fucking idiot and might not make the best decision moving forward. I’m sorry, but I’m not going to risk having something happen to you.”
“Ugh, fine. I just feel bad about this.”
“I don’t. You’re too fucking important for me to feel bad about it,” he said. “Now, do you have everything you need?”
I nodded.
With that, Zane loaded everything into the Raptor and we took off to the airport. Just as he had done for our trip to Aspen for the X Games, Wes chartered a private jet for the flight to Vail for the U.S. Open for the Blackman Boards team. In this case, we had two additional people with us, since Zane insisted on having me covered while we were out in Vail. Wes also made sure he rented a house that would accommodate all of us. All of us consisted of Wes, Charley, Zane, Luke, Stone, Cruz, Lorenzo, and myself. The flight to Vail took just over three hours. When we arrived, there were three GMC Yukons waiting for us. Apparently, Wes sprung for two of them and Levi got the third.
We had a thirty-minute drive from the airport to the house, but Charley and I convinced the guys to make a quick stop at a grocery store so that we’d have food for the next few days covered. When we arrived at the house, I realized that in typical Wes fashion he spared no expense in setting us up in an exquisite mountain home during our stay. The moment we pulled into the driveway I was in awe at the beauty of the home. It had a contemporary design with a mix of bricks, stone, and timber on the exterior. Interestingly enough, there was a three-car garage attached to the home, so that was a perfect addition. After we parked, everyone climbed out and the guys went about unloading the suitcases. Charley and I weren’t allowed to help unload the bags when we went to Aspen, so we didn’t even attempt to offer after we arrived here. In fact, Wes pulled out a key to the house and handed it to Charley as soon as he helped her out of the car.
We walked to the front door, unlocked the door, and pushed inside. As we stepped inside we walked across the slate tile floored foyer into the hardwood floored open concept living space. Floor-to-ceiling windows, displaying the snowcapped mountains behind the home, with vaulted ceilings were on the entire back wall of the house off the family room and kitchen. To the left side of the family room was a floor-to-ceiling stacked stone wall. The bottom third of the wall had a huge fireplace while the top two-thirds were covered with the largest flat screen I’d ever seen. Across from the fireplace was a white microfiber sectional that separated the family room from the kitchen. On the back wall of the house where the windows were sat two oversized armchairs.
Just past the foyer to the right was the kitchen. It was a completely custom kitchen with white granite countertops covering the island and tops of the lower cabinets. All the cabinets were dark-stained solid wood with matching fixtures. Walking through the kitchen to the wall on the complete opposite side of the house from the family room was the dining room table with seating for ten flanked by another stacked stone wall with a much smaller built-in fireplace. Sliding glass doors were off the back wall of the house and led out to a beautiful partially-covered stone patio complete with a fire pit, Adirondack chairs, a small couch, a few arm chairs, a built-in barbecue, and a hot tub.
“Charley, sweets, ever since we’ve moved to Wyoming I keep finding myself in situations that make me think I’ve died and gone to heaven,” I said taking in the gorgeous mountain view.
“I know exactly what you mean, honey. This place is incredible.”
The guys all walked in a moment later carrying all the suitcases and bags. Luke, Stone, and Lorenzo took off to pull the Yukons into the garage for the night. It was still early in the day; it was past lunchtime, but not quite time for dinner. As Zane, Wes, and Cruz began carrying suitcases upstairs, Luke, Stone, and Lorenzo carried the grocery bags in from the garage. Charley and I unpacked and put them away while the rest of the suitcases were carried upstairs.
“Chicken and veggie fried rice for dinner?” I asked Charley.
“Yeah, I think that’d be good,” she answered.
Zane walked into the kitchen with Wes right behind him. “What would be good?” he asked.
“I’m thinking of chicken and veggie fried rice for dinner. You good with that?”
“Works for me.”
“Wes?” I asked.
“Whatever you want to make will be fine for everyone here, Em. Nobody is picky.”
I nodded.
“This home is beautiful, honey,” Charley said to Wes. “I love it almost as much as the one in Aspen.”
“Well I guess it’s a good thing that they moved the event here then,” Wes responded.
“What do you mean?” Charley asked.
“This event has only been happening out here in Vail for a couple years now. It used to be held in Vermont for thirty years, most of those years at the same mountain.”
“Oh man,” I began. “I would have loved it if they still held it there. I have never been on the east coast.”
“I’ll take you,” Zane said without a moment’s hesitation.
I looked to him. “You will?”
“You want to see the east coast?”
I nodded.
“Then I’ll take you. We can wait and take two weeks in the summer time if you want. There’s a lot to see and do out there, especially in the northeast.”
I was fighting not to cry. Zane knew it and asked, “Why are you upset?”
“We’re going to go on a vacation together?”
Zane grinned. “That’s what they call it, Em.”
“She’s never been on one,” Charley chimed in.
Zane’s eyes went to Charley and came back to me. Wes chimed in and confirmed, “You’ve never been on vacation? Like a real vacation?”
“Well my parents took me places when I was younger, but other than that…no.”
Zane stared at me a moment in stunned silence before he announced, “Changed my mind. We’re not going to go away for two weeks. I’m taking three weeks this summer and I’m giving you a real vacation.”
I loved this man. I stood there staring at him for a solid minute before I asked, “Did you take all of our suitcases and bags upstairs to a room?”
“Yeah.”
“I think we should go unpack now,” I said, not a trace of humor in my voice.
Zane immediately caught my drift and came over to pick me up. He pushed his shoulder into my belly and lifted me up in a fireman’s hold over his shoulder. I squealed with delight as he walked toward the staircase. When I glanced up I saw Charley and Wes grinning at me. They knew what we were going to do. Unfortunately, so did everyone else because on our way up the stairs Stone and Cruz were walking down. Stone called Zane a lucky bastard and Cruz shouted at us to have a good time. The shouting, of course, resulted in Lorenzo and Luke both stepping out of their rooms. Lorenzo took one look at us, saw me being carried over Zane’s shoulder, dropped his head to the ground, and chuckled.
Just as Zane
was about to step inside our bedroom Luke said, “Why did I have to get the room next to these two? Fucking hell. I’ll be downstairs.”
Once we entered the room, Zane closed the door, took a few steps, and bent over to gently set me down in the bed. He then bent down to take off his boots while I kicked my shoes off my feet. Seconds later, Zane had settled over me with his hips between my legs. Despite him being on top of me he allowed me to show him just how much I appreciated the fact that he wanted to give me my first real vacation.
*****
It was now the evening of day five of the U.S. Open. We just left the mountain following the slopestyle finals that Luke competed in and won. The halfpipe finals were scheduled for tomorrow so Zane and Stone still had to remain focused.
Over the course of the last couple of days they had been especially busy. The first day of the event was a day for registration and practice for all halfpipe and slopestyle competitors. The second day of the event was the same, less the registration. By day three we finally started getting into some competition. The slopestyle semi-finals were taking place, but half pipe was still in practice mode. On the fourth day, Zane and Stone were competing in half pipe, while Luke, and the rest of the slopestyle competitors that were still in the competition, were back in practice mode. Today put Zane and Stone back in practice since they both qualified for the finals while Luke competed in and won the slopestyle contest.
It had been an extraordinarily long couple of days out in the cold and the guys were typically wiped by the time the end of the day rolled around. I spent my days taking photos of our guys at the event. Since I was feeling so good at this event, especially when compared with the X Games, I even snapped quite a few shots of Charley, Wes, and my bodyguards. I had dubbed them with that nickname and both Cruz and Lorenzo didn’t seem to mind. I figured if this was going to be part of my life for the foreseeable future I needed to find ways to cope with it. Making jokes helped and nobody seemed to be bothered by it so I went with it.
We finally arrived back at the house and Luke, Stone, and Zane took off to shower. Charley and Wes went to change out of their layers of clothes. Cruz went off to find his laptop to get some work done and Lorenzo took a seat on the couch in the family room where he turned on a hockey game. I took the opportunity to get dinner started. I decided on some baked salmon with avocado salsa and sides of asparagus and roasted garlic and parmesan herb potatoes.
