One More Time_A Second Chance Romance

by Rye Hart

  “But you don’t?” Ana asked.

  “No. That first night on the ship, Rhett told me that even though he didn’t remember anything, he had just figured that his subconscious took over. He said he had always known he wasn’t good enough for me, so he just figured he’d screwed everything up so he wouldn’t hold me back.”

  “Damn, that’s kind of sad,” Ana said, shaking her head.

  “It is, and he’s carried that around for ten years. He’s thought of himself as unworthy for ten fucking years because of that bitch and whoever paid her to set him up.”

  “I guess I owe him an apology. I’ve been hating his guts for years for hurting you,” Ana said.

  I laid back on my pillows and scrubbed my hands over my face. I couldn’t believe everything that had happened today. First Luke and now this. I thought back over the past few years and it made me angry all over again.

  “What if it had never happened, Ana? What if Rhett and I had stayed together? Would we be married now? Have kids? Would we have been happy for the last ten years?” I asked her.

  Ana thought for a moment before answering. “Honestly, Chanel, I don’t think so. I think you both needed to go and do your own thing. You needed to go to Cornell, to intern at the New York Times, and start your professional career off how and when you did. And even though it must have been a hard several years, I think Rhett needed to join the Navy. He was never that great in school and really didn’t have much planned for after graduation. If nothing had happened and he had stayed in town, he’d have probably ended up in the factory like his dad. And he’d be miserable, beaten down, and probably a raging alcoholic. Like his dad. I know it sounds shitty to say, but maybe Evelyn did you both a favor that night.”

  I looked at her with shock on my face, but quickly realized she was right. “Fuck,” was all I could say.

  “Yeah. Fuck. But hey, now you get a clean slate. Now that you know he didn’t betray you, maybe you can finally let your guard down and see where things between you could go.”

  The thought of that both terrified and exhilarated me.

  “Now, I say we go to this stupid re-prom and dazzle the shit out of all of those bitches who were jealous of you in high school. Make them jealous all over again. I packed you the perfect dress,” Ana said, jumping up to rummage through my bag.

  She was right. I’d already had too much of my fun taken away on this trip by Luke and his psychotic break. I wasn’t going to let anyone else ruin the rest of my good time. Plus, I really wanted to check on Rhett and see how he was doing.

  “I secretly think Connie’s trying to get prom queen. Did you see how her name was on the ballot? She wasn’t nominated when we were in high school.”

  “Ten bucks said the old couple wins, and Connie cries,” she said.

  “You’re on.”

  “So that means you’ll suck up your shit, move on, and enjoy the rest of this cruise?”

  I sighed as I lay down in bed, thinking about the dress Ana was holding up for me to wear. She was right, it was a stunner.

  “Yeah, sure. I guess if it’s my only option.”

  “Good. Because I’m over this drama shit. We left that in high school for a reason,” she said.

  I giggled as the two of us drifted off for a nap. She was right. I needed to leave the past behind me. I couldn't allow it to rule me more than it already had. I had allowed my past with Rhett to compromise my present for far too long. Even before this cruise, I had been allowing those memories to control me, keep me from growing close to people, and keep me from enjoying things women usually enjoyed. I had allowed it to shape me and mold me far more than any experience should have.

  So, I made myself a promise. I was going to wake up, get myself dressed, and go dance the night away with Rhett. Because when I peeled back all the layers and dug through all the bullshit, I found out a truth that was now easier to admit.

  After all this time, I still loved him.

  CHAPTER 28

  RHETT

  “Ugh. Is she really crying?” Chanel asked.

  “What? Who’s crying?” Tommy asked.

  “Connie Thomas. She didn’t win prom queen. I told you she wouldn’t. Now pay up,” Ana said.

  “Pay up?” I asked. “You guys bet on whether or not Connie would cry?”

  “We had a running bet going as to who would win prom king and queen tonight. Ana thought our original ones would win, but she also bet that Connie would cry over it,” Chanel said.

  “Ten bucks, bitch!” Ana said.

  I watched Chanel take a ten-dollar bill from her cleavage as she handed it to Ana. She looked beautiful tonight. She was in a dress that highlighted her figure and skin tone perfectly and was wearing her flip-flops. She had on a hint of makeup, tasteful and neutral. It accented her sea-blue eyes, and her honey-blond hair seemed to shine like the setting sun. Even though we’d had a rough afternoon, Chanel was in higher spirits for prom. We were dancing and singing to songs we grew up with in high school. She even let me pull her close and thread my arms around her for the slower numbers.

  It felt good, having her in my arms, especially when I thought I wasn’t going to tonight.

  I had spent the afternoon replaying the bombshell Evelyn had dropped on us. I hadn’t cheated on Chanel that night. The thought of it had elated me but had also made angrier than I’d been in years. To know that my life’s course had been altered by someone else’s stupid decision made me see red. Worse than that, I never did find out who had set it up. Connie had come and dragged her little minion away before she could tell me.

  Tommy pointed out that it didn’t really matter. It was all in the past and I should just move on. It was a tough pill to swallow, but I knew he was right. I couldn’t dwell on it any longer, it had already been ten goddamn years. Right now, I just wanted to focus on Chanel and what this could possibly mean for our future.

  If she could ever see one with me.

  I was shocked at how close Chanel allowed me to get. Her hands were wrapped around my neck, her fingertips playing along my skin. My hands were caressing her back and running up and down her sides. During the faster numbers, my knee was between her legs. I could feel her grinding against my thigh as she swirled her hips. She was completely different from the Chanel I had seen this afternoon, and I loved every moment of it. She was freer. Less stressed. Her body fit mine, just like it had in high school.

  And Evelyn was nowhere to be seen.

  The songs began to slow down again as the old-slash-new prom king and queen took their places in the middle of the floor. They began swaying and gazing into one another’s eyes, just like they had back then. Tommy and Ana were all over one another in a corner, not paying attention at all to what was going on.

  I looked down at Chanel and gave her a smile before she took my hand.

  Without a word spoken between us, she pulled me out of the ballroom. We were wandering around the empty ship, listening to the music pumping from the dance hall. Our fingers were intertwined, and our steps fell in sync. Chanel was clinging to me like she had that night, with our hands threaded together and her other arm clutching onto my bicep. We walked around silently, until we stumbled into a dark, empty auditorium.

  “Should we be in here?” Chanel asked.

  “If we shouldn’t be, they should lock the doors next time,” I said.

  “Or at least close them. Come on. Let’s go teach them a lesson.”

  Chanel tugged on the doors, closing them behind us as I took out my phone. The electronic flashlight illuminated our way as we ran toward the stage. We jumped up, giggles falling from her lips as we sat back and took in the shadowed props and lights above it. It was dark and completely silent. Not a sound could be heard except for Chanel’s breathless panting.

  “I’m glad you came out tonight,” I said. “I wasn’t sure if you would.”

  “Ana has a way of talking sense into me, and what she said made sense,” Chanel said.

  “What did she
say?” I asked.

  “She told me to stop dwelling on the past because it couldn’t be changed. She said I had allowed that night to take up too much of my time over the years and that it was time to finally put it to rest.”

  “Hmmm, that’s pretty much what Tommy told me,” I said.

  “They really are perfect for one another,” Chanel remarked.

  “You think the two of them will continue this thing they’ve got going on after we get back to the real world?” I asked.

  “I don’t know. Part of me hopes they do. Ana deserves something like this, she actually seems happy.”

  “So does Tommy. I also know he hates commitment, though. It’s hard to believe in something like that when you come from his family.”

  “What happened with his family?” she asked.

  “Eh, I don’t really know all the dirty details, but basically his father didn’t treat his mom with the respect she deserved, so Tommy stepped up to be the man of the house.”

  “That’s pathetic,” she said. “What’s wrong with men?”

  “Tell me about it. They’re such assholes,” I said.

  Chanel started laughing again, the sound filling the auditorium. It was music to my ears, tugging a smile across my cheeks. I looked over at her as my phone filled our small space with light. Her features were soft and supple, radiating with energy as her face filled with the happiness of the moment. These were the kinds of things she deserved. Beauty and mystery. Simplistic desires and laughter. I sat there and watched her as her laughter died down, and then her eyes found mine as she turned her body toward me.

  “What?” Chanel asked.

  “Nothing,” I said. “Just looking.”

  “Uh-huh. You like what you see?” she asked.

  “I always have.”

  Our eyes connected, and the air in the room became electric. Our lips gravitated toward one another as our hands began to explore. I rolled her over onto her back, feeling her legs part for me as our tongues met in the middle. She was sweet, like the wine she had been drinking at the dance. Her skin was soft and sun-kissed, still heated from our pool adventures but cool enough to send shivers along my spine. Her hand wrapped around me, pulling me as close as she could get me as her hips rolled against my body.

  My cock sprang to life as I bunched up the fabric of her dress. Her hands reached for my pants, undoing the belt and fumbling with the zipper. She pulled my cock out, her hand wrapping around it as she pumped me. Pre-cum was leaking from the tip as I shuddered at her touch.

  “I need you inside of me,” Chanel said. “Remember, you owe me. You lost the bet”

  She tugged my cock toward her as my tip breached her folds. She was juicy for me, wet and ready as her walls swallowed me whole. I sank deep into her, watching her eyes roll back as her legs shook. I sat up on my knees, watching our connection as her juices slathered along my cock. I grabbed her legs and guided them over my shoulders, feeling her hands curl into my thighs.

  “Oh, shit. Oh, yes. I love this. Oh.”

  I folded her in half, my body resting on the backs of her thighs. She was pinned beneath me as her hands clawed at my skin. I thrust into her, my balls breaking free as they slapped against her jiggling ass. Her lips puckered, and her nipples grew hard underneath the flimsy fabric of her dress. I wrapped my mouth around their clothed tips as Chanel’s moans filled the auditorium.

  She was dripping for me. Her juices were pouring from her as my cock throbbed against her walls. I could feel the tip of her clit rubbing against my body every time I sank to her hips. Her smell was intoxicating, and her sounds were perfection. Her thighs contracted, and her toes curled, and I could see the pleasure wash over her as her pussy vibrated around me.

  Without a second’s hesitation, her legs slid off my shoulders. I pulled myself away from her and flipped her over, holding her hips up into the air. I slammed my cock back into her juicy pussy, hearing my skin slapping against hers. Chanel was still shaking with her orgasm as I pumped into her, my balls smacking her clit as she rode to her high again.

  “Fuck, Rhett. I can’t, I gotta … mm. Oh, fuck, this feels good. Harder. Fuck me harder. Please.”

  Her words choked me with their desire as I drove into her again and again. My hands ran up her back as my fingertips played with the tendrils of her hair. I pulled her head back, listening to her groan as her pussy began to pull me closer. Deeper. Tighter than I had ever felt before.

  I slammed into her until she was bracing herself against the edge of the stage. I held tightly onto her hips as she bucked back into me. Her perfect ass was jiggling as my fingertips sank into the muscles of her thighs. Her juices were dripping down my balls as they hung low with the need to release.

  I heard Chanel’s telltale whimper as she bit into her arm, and then her body released as she cried out into the room.

  “Rhett! Yes. Holy shit. How the fuck?”

  I grinned deviously as I pulled away from her again. I stood to my feet, kicking my jeans off my legs. I gathered her in my arms, walked her over to one of the props on stage, and then pinned her against it with my body. I pinned her hands above her head and effortlessly slid my cock back in. Our lips connected in a passionate dance as our hips rocked together as one.

  Her legs locked around me, and her tits pressed into my chest. I tugged on her dress, freeing them for my tongue as I caught one between my teeth. Chanel’s lewd sounds filled the auditorium, strung with obscenities that pulled goosebumps along my skin. Her tits tasted like sunshine and caramel. I pounded into her, moving her higher and higher up the stage prop as I released her hands.

  She wrapped them around my neck, our tongues tangling together in a luscious dance as I felt my hips stuttering.

  “Please come. Come inside me, Rhett. Fill me up. Let me feel you. Please.”

  Our lips disconnected, and I leaned my forehead against hers. I knew this time, with everything that had been said and done between us this week, I would be done. I would be hers forever, whether she wanted me or not. I opened my eyes and gazed into hers, taking in her hazy look of lust. Her legs tightened around me as she rolled onto my cock, her pussy fluttering around me, begging me for my seed. I captured her lips lovingly, allowing my tongue to lazily dance over hers.

  Then, I reared back and slammed into her.

  “Oh, shit,” Chanel said.

  I slammed into her again as my legs pulled taut.

  “Holy fuck. Don’t stop,” she said.

  Again and again, I thrust up into her body that caused my head to swirl. I was deep inside her, sunk completely to my hilt, and she was warmer than I could’ve ever imagined. I could hear my cock slipping inside of her as she groaned, our bodies moving as one. Her hands gripped my shoulders and rushed down my back. They massaged my chest and ran underneath my shirt. I could feel myself getting closer as my legs began to shake. I pressed deeper into her, thrusting shallowly as her body began to quiver.

  “Come with me,” I said. “Let me hear you say my name.”

  “Rhett,” she said. “Rhett. Please, don’t stop. Right there. Right there. So good. You’re so good.”

  She clung to me as my body leaped over the edge, my cock throbbing against her walls. I slathered her walls with my cum, pumping thread after thread into her body. She shook against me, her legs jumping and her nails digging into me. I could feel her pussy catching me in its grasp, as our arousal dripped down her thighs.

  I sank us to the floor, panting into her neck as I held her tightly against me.

  I had come so hard that stars were bursting in my vision and the auditorium was spinning. I laid us down while her lips danced along my neck. I pulled myself from between her legs as we lay engulfed by the sex-tainted air around us. Chanel was a dream come true, and I was the man who got to hold her.

  “Come back with me,” Chanel said.

  “Huh?” I asked.

  “To my room. Come back with me. Don’t make me sleep alone tonight.”

  I pul
led her close and kissed the top of her head. The fact that she wanted me there gave me hope. It sparked a small flame deep in my gut that provided me with the hope that maybe this would work out.

  But I didn’t want to get ahead of myself. So instead of telling her how I felt, I simply kissed her on the cheek.

  CHAPTER 29

  CHANEL

  Despite having the most incredible set of orgasms I had ever experienced in my life, I slept terribly. I woke up Sunday morning with tears of exhaustion in my eyes, the nightmares still rolling around in my head. I was worried about what would happen when we all got back to Miami. I was worried about how Rhett and I would handle things. Not only that, but I was worried about Luke and what the next steps with him would be.

  Luke had a great deal of money, and there was no evidence other than Rhett’s word that he had assaulted me in that bathroom. If Luke could buy himself off these charges, he could come after me. There was nowhere I would be able to run or hide that would ever keep me safe. I would have to stop writing. I would have to stop giving him ways to track me down.

  It sickened me to think that I would have to alter my life because of his obsession.

  I rolled over in bed, watching as Rhett shifted. He looked so peaceful, which was unlike how I felt. His naked body was stretched out for me, his muscles at rest. His chest moved up and down languidly with his breaths as his skin puckered underneath my touch. I could still smell our scent in the air as my eyes scanned him, my heart fluttering with each groan he made.

  He was slowly waking up, and he looked perfect to me, the shining image of what a man should be. He was strong and handsome, chiseled and rippling, decent and charming. He was a true gentleman, despite the years of dangerous and horrific things he’d seen and done in the military. I wanted to continue things with him after this cruise. I wanted to see if we could make it work, but I didn’t know if I was just riding the high of the escape from reality. How would it work when real life settled back in?

  Many things could’ve been pushing me into his arms and clouding my vision. His offer to protect me from Luke, the primal nature of the man he had grown into, my need for closure in my past, the romantic feel of the islands and the sea. So many factors could be contributing to how I felt right now, and I wasn’t sure how to define them. I wasn’t sure how to be unbiased and make a rational decision about this with so many other factors in play.