The Carrero Heart_The Journey_Arrick and Sophie

by L. T. Marshall

  ‘I love you… Crazily love you. Like, so much that I feel like I may have to retire from the fight scene, just so I can never leave you again…. And I miss you more. Miss you so much that I am calling you, instead of taking the elevator; I am using the stairs to my next interview so that I can, and hoping they don’t care that I am pretty late.’ He does sound like he’s walking, I can hear the echo of his voice as though he is now in a stairwell and smile.

  ‘Keep talking, I might hate you a little bit less.’ I smile to myself, some satisfaction that Arry always knows how to grovel so well. I can picture those perfect hazel eyes looking calm and clear and the smooth square jaw with his half smile and cool calm mannerisms. It makes me feel all warm inside.

  ‘As soon as I get home, I am going to come find you, strip you naked and do things to you that will make sure you never doubt how much I love you again. Better clear your schedule for a few days, I have a lot of love to show you baby. A week is far too long to not be able to touch you.’ I can picture that half smile growing wider, dimples on show and wicked little twinkle in his eyes.

  ‘Hmmmmm…. It’s maybe working.’ I whisper softly, rolling onto my other side and cuddling up to a cushion to picture him against me. Body peeking interest at his slow subtle seduction.

  ‘Don’t doubt that you’re in my head every second, I am taking frequent cold showers, pretty much every time I hear your voice. I seriously think we should start having phone sex before I self-implode, or maybe you just listen, and I will detail everything I want to do to you.’ I hear the soft breathy chuckle and then the noise of people around him as either he enters somewhere, or people arrive where he is.

  ‘If it ends up the same way sexting you did, then I’m out.’ I point out a little sassily but my whole tone has turned to soft and mushy.

  ‘Maybe I’ll call you when I get back to my room later and we shall see.‘ He says huskily and I can’t help the little naughty thought that crosses my mind, knowing he’s about to either leave the stairwell or start an interview. He has my body glowing, temperature rising and my knees most definitely pressing together, all with the power of a few loaded words.

  ‘Maybe my hands are already warming me up while you tell me how much you want me.’ I make sure to sigh a little as I say it, a deep husky, breathless teasing tone. Smiling to myself as I hear him groan, not in a good way. Thanking Christian in a roundabout way for the insight into my one and only semi dirty attempt.

  ‘Jesus Sophie; that is not the visual I need right now when I’m about to walk into an interview. Fuck…. I have a little something I need to take care of now, thanks to you. I’ll call you back later. Love you beautiful.’ Arrick hangs up the phone fast and I burst into instant giggles. Payback for being an asshole and laughing at my sexts, I clearly do a lot better with calls than texts.

  I hold up my phone to look at the sexy sleeping picture of him I took before he left, and now use as his contact picture; sexy and peaceful, looking every bit poster boy for a dream guy magazine. I sigh to myself then giggle as a text pops on screen from him.

  ‘Naughty girl. Might have to spank you when I get back. X A’

  Spanking sounds…. Interesting, not that I can imagine he ever would lay hands on me that way, yet a part of me wonders what it would be like if he did. A tiny inkling of maybe a kinkier side to me that I didn’t know existed. I am open to trying out something more than straightforward sex when it comes to him, I really think I could trust him to do anything to me now.

  I smile wider and then sigh and feel deflated again, all at the same time. Two more days, it feels like it has dragged so far, no matter how much he texts and calls and how many times he sends me weird selfies of what he’s doing. I just need him to come home.

  Chapter 21

  I throw the pasta and salad in my refrigerator, bending in to move over the vast amount of junk food and movie snacks that I went a bit overboard with, and pushing Arry’s favourite bottle of dressing in the door. I am counting down the hours to him getting home. The last thing he text was he would call when he got to the airport, and I haven’t heard from him since. I know the day after a big fight is usually hectic for him with reporters, paparazzi and media vying for his attention, especially after a big win, and I just hate this wall of silence. I have no clue when he’s even getting here. I lean in further to fish out a bottle of water and straighten up to close the door.

  ‘Miss me?’

  The voice startles me, spinning to see him casually closing my door behind him and cannot control the squeal that erupts from me. Charging across the floor and launching myself into his arms, lassoing him around the neck and hitting him with a weeks’ worth of pent up passion. I have been waiting a full seven days to give him this kiss and I go all in. Arrick smiles, mid kiss, lifts my butt up so he can nestle my legs around his waist and kisses me even harder, completely moulded and tongues caressing shamelessly. I break away, showering his face with kisses and nuzzles, being hugged tight and kissed back with equal fervour.

  ‘God, I missed you so much baby, this has been all I could think about the whole time I was gone.’ Arry lifts one hand to catch my face and pulls me to kiss me properly, parting lips, tongues caressing some more as he moves a frantic happy kiss into a sensual ‘I want you badly’ kiss.

  I am more than happy to comply, letting my legs loose and sliding down in his embrace, every inch of me in a short dress skimming his button down and jeans, he just feels so good. His mouth never leaves mine, hands entangling in my hair and I just get lost in him. His smell, his taste, his body, it really feels like the empty ache I have had all week has just been filled in one brief touch. He breaks away and rests his forehead on mine, gazing at me adoringly and rubs his nose against mine with a gentle smile, moving in to kiss me again and grinning. Clearly overjoyed to be back with me too.

  ‘What happened to stripping me naked and proving how much you missed me.’ I poke at his chest boldly, smiling back when he only grins harder. His eyes roaming my face as though he just needs to take in every single inch of me.

  ‘You don’t want your gifts first? You know, jumping straight in without a massive welcome home kiss isn’t really my style… But if you insist.’ Arrick slides his hands under my dress so he cups my butt in a lacy thong, lifts me up to him and starts carrying me to the couch, kissing me again as I cling around his neck and angle to get more from him, pushing my mouth against his so he can devour me with that delectable tongue, making my toes curl. I keep my eyes closed to his every sensation, only aware that he’s lowering me to the couch when I feel it underneath me and then he is on top of me, pushing up my dress as his crotch connects with mine. His mouth is all over me, mouth to mouth, jaw, neck, cleavage as he pulls my neckline down. Hands roaming me crazily as I return the favour.

  Heat and need overtake me in searing levels, I suck on his exposed neck, pull his shirt open a little and then roam my hands down to start unbuttoning his jeans. We’re grinding against one another, heavy breathing, lost in a lust fuelled craze to just have sex immediately and I can almost feel my body gearing up to react quickly. I am crazily hot for him and almost throbbing myself inside out with need.

  Arry helps push his jeans down a little, his hands tracing my panties and me, so I moan and gasp at his touch before he tugs them aside, giving him access and starts delivering teasing circles and subtle probing fingers that make me arch under him. I am more than ready for him and his hard bulge pushing through the gap in his jeans, shielded by boxers tells me he’s more than ready to give. He comes back to my mouth, his fingers slide into me slowly, kissing me as I moan out and comes back to teasing me with his tongue.

  The buzzer makes us both jump guiltily, arching my back to look towards my front door in upside down confusion, Arry looks up in the same direction, still very much joined to me and breathing hard.

  ‘You expecting someone?’ He smiles, scoops down to kiss my jawline and teases me into submission, my eyes closing at his touch as I tr
y to think who the hell it could be.

  ‘Hmmmmm. No.’ I moan out, getting lost in what he’s doing to me. Groaning as his hand moves inside me and makes me fall to pieces. That far too expert touch of his.

  Like a kick in the head a sudden thought flies through my brain at superhuman speed, my eyes snapping open and I react in complete shock.

  ‘Shit!’ I shove Arrick off me so hard, so impulsively, he has no way to counteract, flailing and falling off with a massive thump onto the floor on his back, arms out and elbow hitting the coffee table with a massive thud that sends everything rattling. He groans on the floor as I dash up in panic and somehow manage to stand on his abdomen.

  ‘Jesus Sophie.’ He groans through the ‘offft’ noise as I recoil my legs.

  ‘It’s my parents… I forgot they said they would drop by when they were done in the city, I’m sorry.’ I pant, face heating in complete panic, pulling my clothes back to rights as Arrick gets up into a sitting posture and rubs his elbow and then his abdomen with a wounded look on his face. I haven’t got time to feel guilty right now, I’m just panicking.

  ‘Calm down. Stop freaking out.’ He groans again, back to rubbing his arm and gets up, casually fixing his trousers and throwing me that cool look that is supposed to get me back in line, that has never worked as long as I have ever known him. I just widen my eyes right back at him.

  ‘Oh my god, oh my god.’ I ramble, flustered and on my feet, pacing in a tiny circle and thinking of all the possible bad outcomes from being caught on the verge of sex with your best friend.

  ‘Go to the bathroom and get yourself together, I’ll let them in.’ He smiles confidently, guiding me past the couch, but I start pushing him towards my room by those crazily solid abs, knocking him backwards so he catches my upper arms to steady himself, panic overwhelming me.

  ‘No, no, no. You have to hide, they don’t know about us…Oh my god …What if they can tell what we were doing?’ I look at him with sheer devastation and see him laughing at me. Stopping the progression of my pushing as the buzzer goes again impatiently and I start to feel like I am freaking out for real. Nerves churning my stomach up into my throat and hands getting crazily clammy.

  ‘Sophie, for the love of god. They won’t think anything of me being here, and they really won’t know what we have been doing if you just calm down and go wash your face. You’re looking a little sexily flushed.’ He leans in kissing my cheek and turns me, so instead of pushing him to my room, he’s guiding me there instead.

  I look at him in sheer bewilderment over my shoulder, not sure what the hell to do, but he’s forcing me to the bedroom now, and smoothing my hair out from the back. He leans in and kisses me on the side of the face, pushes me the last inch into my room and pulls the door closed behind me so I am left standing staring at my door with him on the other side. I seem to shake myself, turn and head for my bathroom, trying not to have some sort of meltdown while in the process of trying to trust him to not give the game away.

  I really can’t face my parents like this, he just had his hand inside of me, we were about to have sex…Literally, probably seconds away from it. I feel my face heat with even the thought of it and look at myself in the reflection and blanche.

  If this is how I look when he gets me turned on then no wonder he likes it, I look wild. Flushed, pupils dilated crazily, and my blue eyes are so much more tropical. My hair Is a little flyaway, but my lips look crazily kiss swollen. I have never seen myself looking this way, I just look sexual and wanton, and I immediately get to work patting cold water on the rosy glow that’s over half my face.

  I hear the murmur of voices and try to calm down. Arrick knows my parents well, they adore him, and they will just assume he’s here to see me or take me out somewhere. He’s right, they won’t think anything of his being with me. I’m being stupid and panicking because I feel guilty. They won’t connect the dots and I am not sure if I am ready for them too.

  I mean, it’s only been just over a month and still finding our way with each other, still trying to get used to being able to trust him again. I also don’t know how they will react. All his fears and reasons from before really do make sense to me now, they might see this as wrong because of what Arry was to me, the age gap and the fact they always trusted him to take care of me like a brother. I stare at myself and think through all the different things they may object too about this and see myself pale.

  I really had never considered what my family disapproving of us would mean, what it would feel like and I am suddenly terrified. I feel my heart drop and my stomach turn over in complete heartbreak. Knowing I can never give him up and go back to before, knowing it would destroy me. I swallow hard, take a deep breath and fluff out my appearance a little. Smoothing, primping and preening until I feel like I look as close to normal as I can while my insides are wrenching themselves into an ulcer.

  I take one last steadying breath and walk through to the door that leads me to my parents. They are all walking to the couch, obviously having had pleasantries in the foyer and my mother smiles widely at me and then turns and squints at Arrick.

  ‘Interesting shade of lipstick you’re wearing.’ I glance at her, wondering why she would think my coral lipstick was odd as she bought it for me, and then realise she’s rubbing a thumb on Arricks neck and feel myself die a little. Heart stopping mid beat. He’s wiped my mess from his mouth, but there is a clear trail of smudges down under his collar and I see him falter. His perfect poker face only betrayed by a tiny flicker of the brow and he refrains from looking my way.

  ‘You know us? Carry on and act weird sometimes. Smothering her is kind of my thing.’ He laughs in a joking manner and I feel my dad’s eyes on me questioningly.

  I hate it, I hate that he’s trying to cover for me, lying to them, when he never lies. Hate that they’re now both looking at me with a hint of dubious and probably wondering why I never am just open with them. Why still, after all these years I still never tell them anything of importance or share myself with them the way I do with him. My mother’s eyes flicker to me hovering in the door and I break.

  ‘We’re dating… Please don’t be mad.’ I sound like a feeble child, blurting it out impulsively when caught like a deer in the headlights; small and scared and my eyes fill with moisture. So scared about the back lash I am about to get and terrified they may make him leave. My dad frowns at me and then Arrick, then steps forward and pats him on the shoulder with a smile.

  ‘About time… Only took you six years to finally see sense.’ My dad grins and Arrick breaks into a smile too, he seems to visibly exhale with relief. My mother’s eyes are still trained on me, giving nothing else away as to what she is thinking, and I begin to tremble under her scrutiny, the relief from my dad’s response cannot stop the fear I am feeling waiting on hers.

  She slowly walks to me, runs a gentle hand over my cheek and tucks hair behind my ear.

  ‘We gave up hope when he got with Natasha…… Sophie, why would we be mad?’ She smiles at me gently, her soft face crinkling pleasantly. I swallow hard, emotion choking me as a tear runs down my cheek.

  ‘The age gap…. It’s Arry? I don’t know…Maybe you would have thought it was weird or wrong.’ My voice trembles and I feel Arrick looking at me, his calm hazel eyes on mine with a supportive smile, my dad pats him on the shoulder again, all manly like and then pulls him into a hug that knocks him off balance. I stare into my mom’s eyes and inhale fast when I see the hint of a tear filling her eye.

  ‘We have hoped for so long that you two would move past from a sort of sibling bond to more. We have always known he was exactly what you needed.’ Her voice is strained with genuine emotion and happiness.

  I let myself cry a little, her nurturing fingers brush away my tears and then I throw myself around her in a tight hug. Completely overwhelmed and just needing this.

  ‘I love you mom.’ I gush at her and revel in the tight hug she gives me back, squeezing me tight and then pushes my fac
e back so she can kiss my cheek. She looks at me as though I have just given her the best Christmas ever and I am aware how very little I do shower her with hugs.

  ‘I love you too my little Sweet pea, you will always be my baby. My little wild child.’ She grins at me, unconcealed joy.

  ‘I second that.’ My dad chimes in and it’s now I see he is beside us, pushing my mom away gently so he can lean in and kiss me on the head. Arrick is standing back, giving them space and seems at a loss as to what to do with himself. I can see the utter relief on his face that they are really okay with this, despite saying it didn’t matter to him anymore, I know it does.

  ‘Guess we should go and let you two get back to…..Your evening.’ My mum smiles gently, a little awkwardly and my dad chuckles.

  ‘Mmmm Hmmmm.’ My dad winks knowingly, and I inwardly cringe, wishing the ground would open and swallow me whole. It’s clear that they know we were not just playing scrabble or something equally innocent before they arrived.

  ‘Does your mother know?’ My mom turns to Arrick and blinks with raised brows.

  ‘No. Not yet, we were giving ourselves time to adjust… Guess I should now, huh?’ Arrick gives my mom his Hollywood smile, the one reserved for special occasions when he wants to completely charm the pants off someone and I eyeroll.

  He’s such a schmoozer sometimes.

  ‘I think so…. Dare say she will be happy to get out for a new hat. She’s been praying for this day as long as I have.’ My mom is beaming, a little too smugly so and I wonder if them knowing so soon is a good thing after all.

  ‘Pressure much.’ I grumble, realising my parents are probably about to marry us off and set up a new home beside them to fill with grandchildren.

  I think not.

  Arrick slides past them and comes to stand beside me, sliding his arm around my waist which I instantly push off awkwardly. It’s one thing to tell them we are dating, but a hell of a difference to letting him touch me in front of them. I am so not there yet, I hear him chuckle under his breath at my reaction and elbow him in the abs to warn him to keep his hands off.