Reaching the bottom first, he grabbed my heels and hooked the straps on his fingers, leaving them dangling at his side. “Want to put them on?” He asked as my foot hit the grass and I was on the ground.
“Na. I’ll go bare foot for a while longer.” He looked at my shoes then nodded his head in understanding, before linking our fingers and walking the distance to where his motorcycle was parked. Reaching his motorcycle, he was quiet as he shoved our stuff into his saddlebag, making it obvious that something was weighing on him.
“What’s the matter, Beck?” He didn’t answer me, only continued to pretend to be preoccupied trying to fit my shoes in without damaging our masks.
When he was done, his hand came to my waist, pulling my body close to his, sharing his warmth. I leaned into him, sure he needed comfort, willing to give him some. Before I got my head fully rested on his shoulder, he lifted me up and sat me on his bike, forcing my thighs to spread to make room for his body to squeeze into my space. My dress was bunched up, the side with the slit pushed up enough to expose my hip and the scrap of blue lace that clung to me like a second skin. But he wasn’t looking, he didn’t notice a damn thing because he was too busy looking past me, over my shoulder.
I turned my head, straining to catch sight of what he was looking at but I didn’t see it, I couldn’t see a damn thing but the field behind us and the stars above. I was so lost and confused over what had him so infatuated. I heard a straining noise deep from his throat and I turned back to look at him, wanting to ask him what was wrong. Or to maybe figure out what it was he was seeing, but I never got a chance.
The moment my head turned back toward him, his lips caught mine and began a painfully slow assault. His hands where on my hip, pulling my body flush with his, and as much and I loved to feel his hands on my bare skin, snaking under my dress, the contact wasn’t nearly enough to satisfy me. When his lips touched mine, I seemed to lose all my control and coherent thoughts, leaving me powerless against him.
My legs wound around him, crossing behind his back, anchoring his hips to mine while my arms laced around his neck, deepening the kiss. I was lost, we were lost, and although we had kissed before, this was nothing like the first time. His tongue stroked mine leisurely as his fingers traced my panty line, teasing my mind with possibilities but never fulfilling them.
I was soaked, so fucking turned on, I wasn’t sure if I could last much longer without feeling him inside me, against me, with me. Every nerve in my body was on fire with sensations, but he was set on taking it slow, in no hurry to speed up the kiss or take it to the next level. Which would have been fine if we were completely naked and I could feel his skin under my palm, but he was fully clothed and I wanted nothing more than to run my hand down the ridge of abs I had only gotten faint glimpses of, to feel the velvet of his skin under my fingertips.
I leaned back on his bike a little bit, his body following mine, one hand moving to support me behind my back as his other continued his exploration of my hip. Letting go of his neck, one of my hands snaked between us rubbing the thick bulge in his pants through the fabric of his slacks. Jesus. He was big. I suspected it from the times I felt him rub against me, but nothing prepared me for actually holding him in my palm and feeling the weight of him.
I went for his buckle, determined to get the actual warmth of his skin under my own, but his hand shot out and stopped me. Slowly, he broke the kiss and buried his head into my shoulder, his breathing heavy. My fingers played with the hair at the base of his neck while I, too, fought for composure.
“What was that for?” I finally asked when both our breathing had begun to regulate.
He lifted his head, placing his forehead against mine. “You and I, Blue Eyes, we can’t do this. We can’t mess around together, it’s not right. You’re my best friend’s little sister, and I’ve known you since you were a kid.”
“So why did you kiss me then?” I asked him, more than annoyed that he set my body on fire just so he could slowly douse it.
“When you kissed me earlier, you kissed me to prove a point in front of all who were watching. But out here, it’s just us. And when I look back and think of this night, I don’t want to remember a kiss that wasn’t ours. I want to remember what it felt like when Lotus Bishop wanted me, because sometimes I look at you knowing you’re everything I can’t have, but that never stops me from wanting just a taste.”
With his words, my heart skipped a beat because he wanted … no, he desired me. Then, as if my heart knew my joy was unobtainable, I felt the pain of a crack because his desire wasn't enough to make him mine.
Chapter 12
BECKETT
I wasn't going to dwell on what I had done. Kissing Lotus one last time before distancing ourselves, was going to go down as one of the very few life events where I had not a single regret. It was also, quite possibly, pushed to the front of my spank bank material for at least the next year because . . . shit. I couldn’t ever remember a kiss hotter than the one we shared while she was propped on my motorcycle, withering beneath my fingertips.
Any lingering lust we had, though, was quickly doused the moment we opened the apartment door to Myra and Ben waiting on the couch like two scowling parents. If there was any possible chance of sharing Lotus’ bed, it was masterfully detoured by Ben’s ultimate cock block.
I knew he meant well, Lotus is his sister after all . . . but fuck. Shouldn’t he have a little trust in us, just a tad? I mean, come on, we hadn't fucked yet and I’d been sleeping on her motherfucking lumpy ass couch for over a month. Only two more weeks of that awful couch left, I reminded myself, not that it was much comfort.
“Did you have a nice time?” Ben questioned us, making sure to look us both in the eye.
We nodded in unison because this parental themed visit was completely bizarre to both of us.
“What happened to your hair? It’s a disaster.” Ben observed.
“The helmet, we rode the bike.” She answered without hesitation, while Myra stood behind Ben with a goofy grin on her face, wagging her eyebrows, obviously not buying that load of bullshit.
“Seriously? You let her ride the motorcycle in that dress? Fucking classy, man.” Ben stated as he shoved my shoulder.
“He wanted to take my car but I insisted on the bike. Is there a reason you both are in my apartment at...” She glanced over at her clock, “Three-eleven in the morning?”
“Well,” Myra quipped up, “I was hoping for some juicy party details and Officer Killjoy over here was aiming to man-terrupt any possible action you two darlings had planned for tonight. Kind of counteracts my plans, if you ask me, but . . . I decided to stay anyway.”
“That’s sweet of you both, really, but we had no plans unless you count the incredibly long slumber I was hoping to partake in on that couch over there.” I informed them both.
“Do you always carry your friend’s shoes? And purse?” Ben asked while he looked down at my hand clutching her tiny bag and her shoes dangling from my fingers.
“Do you always hang around your sister’s place in the middle of the night, like a creep?”
“Do you make a habit of wearing red lipstick on the collar of your shirts, Beckett?” His eyes narrowed at me and motherfucker, I was caught.
“Do you always meddle in everyone’s life?” I countered. Really, I knew I had nothing.
“Only if the life concerns me.” He answered while he took a step closer.
“Jesus, if you must know, he was carrying in my stuff because he’s a damn gentleman, my feet were killing me so I took my heels off and I didn’t feel like putting them back on for a twenty foot walk to the apartment. As for his collar, seriously big brother? We did a lot of dancing and that place was so loud, I had to practically shout into his ear for him to hear me, it probably rubbed off on accident.” Which I know was a lie. I pinpointed the exact moment her lipstick transferred to my collar. It was the moment she buried her head in my neck to catch her breath at the masquerade. “Now, please, can we stop t
he pissing contest and save it for another day because I am exhausted and I do work tomorrow.”
Ben eyed me with suspicion and he had every right to do so. “Fine. I’m glad you both got home safely.” He added, walking toward the door, scowling at me the whole way.
Myra happily pranced behind him. “That was just getting fun!” she announced and she grabbed her jacket, “See you at work, Lotus baby!”
Then she was gone. He was gone. And we were left with the aftermath of a strange encounter that neither of us had the mental capacity to deal with at that moment. Lotus started pulling pins from her hair before announcing, “I’m heading to bed. See you in the morning?”
“I’ll be here!” I told her because for the next two weeks, there was no other lumpy couch I would rather be on.
It had been a week since our kiss, the kiss, and really . . . nothing changed too much. We weren’t avoiding each other, we weren’t awkward, we just were. Whatever that even was, but I think we were both okay with it.
Ruins on the other hand . . . wasn’t okay with it. It was like he knew that we were moving on and he didn’t approve of it. When Lotus was around, he clung to her, soaking up all the ear rubs and treats she gave him, practically worshipping the ground she walked on. At some point, he even decided that he no longer liked sleeping in the living room with me and had taken a spot on the end of her bed. I wanted to be annoyed, call him a traitor, give him the stank eye . . . but I couldn’t. I couldn’t fucking blame him for being obsessed with her, because even with all the attitude she threw my way and all the resistance she put up, she still weakened my resolve, too.
I didn’t let myself think much about how this was going to be the last Saturday of us hanging out and watching random Halloween themed movies on daytime television. But in truth, this was our last Saturday as roommates. I still hadn't brought myself to tell her, or let myself face reality that my moving out might possible make her happy. I selfishly just wanted to hang on to this, whatever this was for just a little longer.
So, when she suggested we hang out and have a movie marathon before she had to leave for work, I wasn’t going to say no; it’s not like I had much else going on anyway. I wanted the Halloween classics, you know, like; It, Friday the 13th, Halloween . . . one through five, but if we had time I wasn’t going to discount the later additions like H20 or The Curse of Michael Myers. Her idea of classics slightly differed from mine, however.
We watched Casper. Followed by Hocus Pocus and The Night Before Christmas. She had just hit play on Monster House when there was a knock at the door. I didn’t know if I should be disappointed or joyous at the interruption. I’ve never watched so much TV in my life without anyone dying, or at least losing a hefty amount of blood, but she was so excited about watching the damn kid stuff, I just went with it. I could always watch my movies when she was at work.
Her bare feet padded against the tile in the entry way, before she stopped to look out the door peek. She made a disgusted face before whispering, “It’s your girlfriend.”
What? “What?”
“Stephanie.” Oh. I threw my pillow at her, missing her completely and hitting the wall off to the side of the door. The thunk of the impact seemingly exaggerated in the silence of the apartment.
“Please don’t call her my girlfriend! She might hear you and think it’s true!” I whispered, which was probably louder than a normal whisper but definitely not an actual yell.
Lotus walked toward me again, a little bit of a sly smile on her face. “So what do you want to do?”
“Get rid of her.” Obviously.
“Well, have fun with that.” She turned on her heels and began to walk toward her room.
“No! Stop! Please, Blue Eyes, help.” I gave her my best pouty puppy dog eyes and it seemed to work because I saw her melt into a puddle right before my eyes. Girls are such suckers.
There was another knock, slightly more impatient and definitely louder than the first. “You sure you want my help?” She asked me, that devilish gleam back in her eyes.
“Yes.” I answered her slowly, definitely more unsure than I originally was.
She shrugged and stopped in front of me. “Okay.”
Next thing I knew, her hands were on me, taking off my shirt, ruffling my hair, unbuttoning my jeans, and I had no clue what was going on. I might have tried to stop her. I might have not. I can’t even remember if there were any verbal objections or if I let it play out as one of my top fantasies coming to life. Then, she stopped and I just stood there dazed and completely fucking confused as she took off her yoga pants and bra, removed her pony tail holder and then tipped her head over to tease her hair into a nest of untamed curls.
It wasn’t until she stood there in her fucking cute as hell Halloween underwear and a spaghetti strapped tank top looking like she just woke up that I finally found words. “What are you doing? Are you fucking crazy? Are those bats?”
She looked down at her underwear and just gave me a little nod before meeting my eyes. “You want to get rid of her?”
“Yes.”
“You want a memorable statement made?”
“Yeah, I guess so. Yes.”
“Then follow my lead.” She walked away, leaving me staring at the perfect form of her ass. I followed, who in their right mind wouldn’t?
Placing her hand on the door knob, she whispered, “Just follow my lead, and wait for my cue, okay?”
“Got it.” I hardly got it. From this angle, I could see down her tank top and I was finding it impossible not to trace the curve of her breast with my eyes.
She pulled open the door and stuck her head out, only opening it enough that Stephanie couldn’t see inside.
“Hi, may I help you?” Lotus politely asked.
“Um. Yeah. Sorry. Hi. You probably don’t remember me, but I’m. . .”
“Desperate.” Lotus cut her off.
“Excuse me?” Stephanie’s voice pitched up a little in offense.
“I said you’re desperate.” Lotus’ voice stayed neutral like this had no effect on her at all.
“Look, I don’t know who you are, I honestly don’t care. I came here in a completely professional capacity and I need to talk to Beck.”
“Completely professional?” Lotus scoffed. “Who shows up at a coworker’s apartment, on a Saturday, without calling first?”
I could tell Stephanie was losing her patience because her voice became shrill. “I figured he would be home.”
“Yes, with his girlfriend, in our home. So why wear the trench coat? Isn’t that a little cliché, even for you? What do you got under there? Lace? Silk? I bet you have on the matching garter too, don’t ya? I have to hand it to you though, those are some nice heels.”
There was silence on the other side of the door and I saw Lotus’ finger crook my direction, urging me forward and naturally, I followed. Her hand let go of the knob and reached out, pulling me closer by the belt loop of my jeans.
“Hey baby, your friend just dropped by to discuss something regarding work.” She told me, like I didn’t already know, moments before she let the door fall open, exposing my half naked state to Stephanie. Stephanie took me in, drinking in my body with her eyes before she roamed back to Lotus like she got the first real look of her. Her eyes widened a little.
“Hey, what can I help you with?” I asked Stephanie as I leaned in and kissed Lotus’ head. Her hair smelled like roses, just like always and I was so fucking floored how she continuously managed it.
“I didn’t mean to interrupt anything; I should have called.”
“But you did, because you didn’t.” Lotus said under her breath, intentionally loud enough for Stephanie to hear. She then proceeded to wrap her arms around my waist, resting her palm right where my pants lay unbuttoned . . . and then it hit me. The reason for the shedding clothes, tousled hair, and the illusion of sweetness Lotus was displaying toward me.
Sex. She just made it seem like we had spent our morning fucking, instea
d of a nice, sweet marathon of G rated movies. Why the fuck did her devious streak turn me on so much? It was like she knew the exact second the realization hit me, too, because the little minx had the nerve to slip her fingers a little lower, rubbing the lower part of the Adonis Belt I worked so fucking hard to get.
Stephanie gawked as Lotus’ fingers leisurely grazed my lower abdomen, and with the stifling silence surrounding all of us, I suddenly felt like a fine cut of beef on display. I was torn between preening with pride and feeling self-conscious at the admiration. Lotus’ nail intentionally scraped against my pelvic bone, meant as a warning for me to suck it up and put the nail in the coffin with Steph. Instead, the sting her nail left behind had my cock jolting, practically searching for her fingers.
I might have hissed. I’m sure I did. It couldn’t be helped when her hands were literally down my pants in some sort of twisted game of ownership. Yeah, she owned me. Ever since we were fucking kids this damn girl . . . woman . . . had had the power to manipulate me to her will, and up until this second I never realized how much control she had always fucking had.
I didn't fucking regret it, any of it. But, if she didn't take her hand out of my jeans, and soon, I absolutely couldn't be held accountable for the outcome. “What did you need, Stephanie?” I gritted out, probably way harsher than I needed.
Stephanie looked between us, seemingly concluding something, before she said, “You know what, let’s just talk about it Monday, shall we? No one wants to work on the weekends.”
Lotus gave my abdomen one last rake before she patted my stomach affectionately and moved aside, leaving me alone in the door while she snuck back into the apartment, assuming her job was done. Which, I mean, it pretty much was. Stephanie was leaving which was focus number one.
“Alright, if you’re sure it’s not important.” I told her, already beginning to close the door.
“Beck?” Stephanie stopped me, looking a little unsure.
“Yeah?”
Obscured Love Page 10
