Waiting to Breathe: Book One of the Waiting Duet

by Alyson Reynolds

  “When did you,” she trailed off.

  “Things are bad back home. Really bad. Instead of pushing you away I should have let you help me.” I took a step towards her. “I’m a stubborn asshole and I should have just told you what was going on. I’ve always been the one to deal with my mom’s drama and it’s hard for me to give up control. Olivia, I didn’t want to burden you with my issues. There’s a plethora of them and you might run away screaming once you find out everything.”

  Olivia tugged me towards Cora’s bed and I sat down next to her.

  “Nate, you aren’t dumb, so you know part of being in a relationship is opening up and letting the other person help when you need it. Did you ever stop to consider that maybe I wanted to help you?”

  I threaded her fingers through mine and lifted them to my lips.

  “I’m learning.”

  Olivia pushed me back and straddled my hips. I looked at her with raised eyebrows and she giggled. Her fingers slipped under my shirt and up my abs. My hands gripped her ass through her jeans and I groaned as she rocked against me.

  “I want you to tell me everything, but right now I want you to make me stop thinking.”

  Oh cupcake, anything you want.

  I tugged my shirt up over my head. Her lips met mine and she immediately opened her mouth to tangle our tongues together. My fingers trailed up her ribs. Olivia lifted her arms for me to take her shirt off. I kissed her skin as each inch was exposed.

  I nipped at her breast through the soft lace of her bra and was rewarded with a soft whimper. Her fingers unbuttoned my pants and she pushed, anxious to get them down my hips. I fought back a smile when she dropped her head to my chest and grumbled in frustration.

  “Need help, cupcake?” She bit my chest lightly and I laughed. “Stand up, Olivia.”

  She slid off of my lap and I stepped out of my shoes and pulled my pants off. Her crystal eyes blazed as she watched my fingers rest in the band of my boxer briefs.

  “You first, cupcake.”

  Olivia unfastened the snap to her jeans and stared into my eyes as she slid them down her long legs. Her gaze burned into mine and I felt her touching places I thought had died a long time ago. She reached behind her and unfastened her bra. I watched intently as it slid down her arms and fell to the ground.

  She took a step towards me and slid her hands into my boxers slowly. My cock pulsed in her hand as she slowly slid up and down its length.

  “Fuck, Olivia.”

  She grinned and sank down to her knees in front of me. Her eyes were full of mischief as she pushed my boxers down my legs. As she took me in her mouth I thought I was going to die of pleasure. My fingers tangled in her hair and I held back a moan.

  Her fingers dug into my ass as she took me down her throat. Her tongue circled the head of my cock and I thought I was going to explode.

  “Enough torture.”

  She grinned and licked her way up my length and I shivered as she placed a kiss on the tip. She stood up kissing and licking a path from my cock up to my neck.

  Her fingers traced the cross tattoo on my left pec and I pulled her up against me. My mouth met hers and it took everything in me not to lose control. I laid her down on the bed and reached back to grab a condom out of my wallet.

  I slid the condom on and teased Olivia, rubbing my cock against her entrance. We both moaned as I pushed inside her. She reached out both hands and threaded her fingers with mine. Our hands rested on her hips. I stretched out my thumb so I could rub it against her clit while I thrust inside her and she arched off the bed.

  “Kiss me, Nate.”

  I climbed on the bed next to Olivia and she wrapped her arms and legs around me. It was deeper and rougher this way. Olivia dug her fingers into my back. Her nails would probably leave long scratch marks down my back, but it was worth it. My hands travelled up and down her body, exploring every inch I could reach.

  Olivia moaned her release into my mouth and I felt her pussy clamp around me. Her teeth cut into my bottom lip and the metallic, coppery taste of blood filled my mouth. I thrust into her once more before my orgasm hit me.

  I wrapped my arms around her and I pressed my forehead to hers. She grinned and I felt the familiar tug at my heart when I was able to put that look on her face.

  We kissed slowly as we caught our breath. Her hands rested on my neck and I played with the ends of her hair.

  “Cupcake, I think you’re trying to kill me.”

  “Best makeup sex ever.”

  “Shit, I forgot I brought you chocolate too.”

  Her husky laugh filled the room.

  “Maybe we should leave it for Cora. We did just defile her bed.”

  “Maybe we just don’t tell her that part,” I said laughing.

  ____

  Olivia and I walked into the Student Union, hand in hand. A few of our friends were waiting, but we weren’t in any hurry to get there. They would give me plenty of shit for us being late, but after the smoking session I’d just had with my girl, I didn’t care. It seemed like every time we had sex it got better, maybe we were just learning what the other one liked, or maybe she was opening up more, but I couldn’t get enough of her.

  Olivia sat down next to Finn, and I leaned down to kiss her head. “I’m getting something to drink. Want anything?”

  “I’ll take a water,” Finn chimed in.

  I scowled at him and Olivia laughed. “No I’m fine. Thank you though.”

  Cora leaned in towards Olivia. “So friend, tell the group why you were late.”

  Olivia blushed and Finn groaned. “I do not want to hear about my sister’s sex life.”

  “There’s this one position I’m dying to try and I wanted to see what you thought—”

  “Nope. Not going there right now. I’ll talk to you about it later,” Olivia said, winking at Cora. “I’m with Finn; I don’t want him to hear about my sex life. He did get a nice view of Nate’s ass, but he’s learned to knock since then. At least I hope he has, otherwise he will walk into some really awkward situations.”

  “You had to go there didn’t you?” Finn said, running his hand down his face. “I thought I was going to have to cut out my eyeballs.”

  “Yep,” Olivia said with a grin.

  I laughed and walked over to one of the restaurants to get my drink. Olivia had said she didn’t want anything, but I knew that she would end up drinking most of whatever I bought. Smiling to myself, I chose a peach tea because I knew she would like it. The smile on my face dropped as soon as I turned back towards the group.

  Christian stood in front of Finn and I could see things were getting heated pretty quickly. Things hadn’t been going well between them at the frat house and I could see the writing on the wall. One of them wouldn’t be there by the end of the semester; maybe by the end of the day if I didn’t get my ass over there right now.

  Walking quickly I made it before one of them could throw a punch. I handed Olivia the drink and gently pulled her back from Finn’s side. She hesitated for a second, but finally moved to stand next to Cora.

  “Christian, I don’t know what’s going on, but I do know that things got out of hand in the two minutes I was gone. Erick is already pissed off about the other night, so let’s all just back up and take a breath.”

  “Seriously Nate, stay the fuck out of this,” he growled at me.

  “Christian, back up.” My tone left no room for argument.

  He scowled, but took a step back. I wasn’t about to let him punch Finn in front of Olivia. I also knew Finn would regret it if he beat the shit out of Christian in front of her.

  “I know you’re fucking pussy whipped now, but seriously, man up Nate. Her pussy might be good, but it’s not magic.”

  My hands fisted at my sides, but I didn’t take the bait. Finn practically vibrated beside me. I narrowed my eyes. “It’s time for you to leave Christian. Leave Olivia alone or I will make sure you don’t talk again because your jaw will be wired shut.”
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  Christian took a step towards me, but because I was three inches taller than him, he had to look up at me. He realized his mistake quickly and stepped back.

  “Don’t threaten me, Ford.”

  “It’s not a threat, but I’d suggest you leave her the fuck alone if you want to keep your pretty face intact.”

  Finn stepped next to me, blocking Olivia completely from his view. The message was clear and Christian wasn’t stupid. He’d also been friends with Finn a long time, so he knew that Finn would protect Olivia any way he needed to. Christian turned away and grabbed his bag, storming out of the Union.

  I grabbed Liv into a hug and kissed her forehead.

  “Are you okay, cupcake?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine. Everything he said was more aimed at Finn than me until you came back. I don’t know why he can’t just let this go.”

  “I don’t know, but I’m going to kick his ass,” Finn said from behind me.

  “Don’t. He’s not worth it,” Olivia said softly. “Maybe he’s grieving in his own way.”

  The group broke up quickly after that and everyone gave Olivia some comforting words about how Christian was an ass before they left. It made me feel a little better that even though they didn’t know the whole story, they were willing to take Olivia’s side. Instead of looking shaken like I thought she would, Olivia looked strong. She looked like she needed a run, but I learned early on that was her way of dealing with things. My cupcake had a spine of steel and it impressed the hell out of me that she was still fighting after everything Christian had put her through. Olivia Crawford was the best damn fighter that I had ever met.

  The week following our fight was good. Nate was trying hard not to upset me and open up more about his issues with his family. I was amazed that he had been handling things as well as he had been. No wonder he had freaked out. He talked on the phone with his brother several times a day and between the two, they came up with a good plan for how to handle the next few weeks until Nate could get home for Thanksgiving break.

  The semester was winding down quickly and I didn’t know if that was good thing or not. Nate was going to go home to his family and even though I offered to go with him, he wanted me to go home to mine. I think he understood there were things I needed to deal with over the holiday.

  I raised my hands over my head as I tried to catch my breath after my run. After our fight I had added on an additional mile to my route to help keep me centered. Finn had talked me into joining him and Nate at the gym once a week and for some stupid reason I had agreed. Walking to the front door of the school gym, affectionately called the Huff by students everywhere, I swiped my ID and walked inside.

  Everywhere I looked there were hot buff guys. If Cora knew this, she would have been down here pretending to work out every day. I chuckled to myself as I walked around trying to spot my boys. My eyes landed on Nate’s muscled back and I almost tripped. The scratch marks I put there earlier stood out on his tan skin and I smirked. I totally creepy stared at my amazingly hot boyfriend as he easily bench pressed three hundred pounds like it was nothing. No wonder he threw me around in the bedroom like I was a feather.

  My mind slipped back to earlier that day in between classes where we had snuck off to have some alone time. He had held me up and pounded into me in the middle of the room. We eventually landed against the door, but he had no problem holding me up even without it there bracing my back. A shiver ran up my spine as I watched him. Finn must have caught me staring because he shook his head and came over to get me.

  “That’s not the reason I asked you to come work out.”

  “I’m not complaining. In fact, can you ask everyone else to leave? I need to talk to Nate right now. Alone, very alone.”

  “You’re fucking obsessed, even more than he is and that’s saying something. Come on, I’m going to teach you how to kick box.”

  I shook my head to clear it.

  “Huh? Why?”

  “I want you to be able to protect yourself if you need it.”

  “I know how to punch. You taught me in the fourth grade. Remember?” I said punching him in the arm.

  “Oww, damn it, Olivia.”

  He winced and I grinned. My screech filled the gym as he picked me up over his shoulder and carried me to a heavy bag set up in the corner of the room. My aim was off as I tried to hit him in the kidneys. He was smart enough to keep bouncing me around to make sure I couldn’t get a good shot in. When my feet hit the floor I caught sight of Nate grinning at me.

  “Punch this, not me,” Finn said laughing.

  “I would rather kick you,” I pouted.

  “Fine, I’ll teach you how to kick.”

  I perked up at this, “You will?”

  “Yes, now move over to the mat if that’s what you want. We’re going to start easy. Okay, watch me first.”

  “Hold on, you stand there and walk me through it. I learn better by doing.”

  “Fine, first you—“

  I kicked into his hand before he even got into his stance. He shook out his hand and I goaded him on. As he turned I kicked him lightly in the side. He stared at me, and I jabbed into his stomach, laughing as he huffed out a breath.

  “When in the hell did you learn that?”

  “I had to get rid of the baby weight somehow didn’t I?”

  “You took kickboxing?”

  “There was a class at my gym in New York, so after I ran in the mornings I would stick around. It was a thirty minute class, and I thought it might be fun to try. I’m pretty good at it actually. Want to spar?”

  “Fuck that, if I spar with you I’ll end up peeing blood.”

  Nate walked over and Finn narrowed his eyes at him, “Did you know she could box?”

  “No, but that was fun to watch her kick your ass without even trying. Cupcake, if you really want to spar, I’ll spar with you.”

  I smiled at him, “I appreciate it, but I would much rather watch you. Just how much can you actually lift?”

  His eyes flashed as he watched me eye him up and down like a piece of meat.

  “You guys are disgusting. I’m going back to the house to take a shower.” Finn grabbed his shirt from one of the machines.

  “A shower sounds good,” Nate said eying me. I flushed and tried not to lunge for him.

  “Stop before I punch you. Still my fucking sister, dude. I don’t want to hear it.”

  “It’s okay, we can use my shower,” I chimed in. “Plus now we’re even for every time you made me listen to you talk about Chelsea Powers in high school. Stupid bitch couldn’t find her way out of a paper bag, but you insisted she was amazing in bed. Four words: Payback is a bitch.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” he grumbled, blushing.

  ____

  As much as I wanted to jump Nate, it didn’t happen. He had a study group that he had to get to, so I kissed him goodbye and walked back to the dorms. Cora was supposed to be back soon for our weekly girls night, but I hadn’t heard from her. I pulled my phone out in the elevator and started a text to her. My attention was on my phone as I pushed open my door. As I reached to shut the door behind me, Christian rushed into my room and shut the door behind him. I backed across the room to get away from him and put some distance between us.

  “What do you want Chris?”

  “I want to talk to you,” he said, calmly. There was poorly hidden desperation behind his eyes that was terrifying me. I instinctively knew he wasn’t far from losing it. Desperate people did desperate things, but I wasn’t going to let him push me around anymore.

  “Talk. Then get the fuck out of here.”

  He sighed and again I saw the wild look in his eyes. “We need to get Ellie back. She’s ours and we should be raising her, not some people that you don’t even know.”

  “Christian, you said you didn’t want to raise her if I wouldn’t take you back. You cheated on me, several times in fact. Why would I—”

  “That doesn’t matter, Olivia,” he yelled. H
e took another deep breath and I took another step back. “It doesn’t matter what I did. We were supposed to get married.”

  “I could never be with you again. Noah and Abby are taking good care of Ellie. She is exactly where she should be.”

  I winced as his hands slammed down on my desk. Christian had never been this…unhinged before either.

  “Christian, it mattered to me that you cheated. It killed me that you could treat me like you did. You always did what you wanted. I was an afterthought at some point and it wasn’t okay.”

  “But I promised you I would never do it again.”

  “You also said that you hoped I died. Or did you conveniently forget that little fact?”

  “I didn’t mean it. I was just upset. Baby, you have to believe me,” he said, walking towards me with his hands out. Did he honestly believe that I would go running into his arms?

  “Stop, Christian. Don’t get any closer.”

  His eyes flashed angrily. “Why? You think you’re too good for me now? You used to love what I would do to you. I could make you scream my name over and over again. Maybe you just need to remember.”

  I backed against the wall and Christian moved forward, bracing his hands on each side of my face. I turned my head to the side as he moved in to kiss me. I shivered when his mouth skimmed my neck. His hand moved to my neck and squeezed lightly, then followed the slope of my breast.

  I waited for the perfect opportunity and kneed him in the balls. My aim was slightly off and I only brushed him instead of completely immobilizing like I wanted, but it was effective. He dropped to the ground, cursing me loudly.

  I pushed him out of the way so I could run towards the door. Before I could reach it Nate came into the room. He took in my disheveled look and his mouth dropped open to ask me what happened.

  He saw Christian hunched over in the floor. Nate crossed the room in two steps. I watched in horrified shock as he picked Christian up, pinned him against the bed and punched him in the face twice. The sound of crunching bone filled the air and I felt sick to my stomach. Blood poured from Chris’s nose.