by J. Nathan
His dimples dug in before he opened his mouth. I lifted the spout, enjoying him anticipating my next move too much to actually do it. “Come on,” he laughed.
I moved the spout a couple inches to the right and squirted a dollop onto his dimple, licking it away as he snickered. I moved to the left side and did the same. “I love your dimples.”
“Oh yeah?”
I nodded. “I’m a sucker for dimples. Now open.”
He did and I shot the whipped cream onto his tongue, leaning down and licking away at the inside of his mouth, relishing in the ease of being in Trace’s arms.
He grabbed hold of me and rolled me onto my back, pulling the bottle from my hand.
“I wasn’t finished yet,” I demanded.
“Neither was I.” He pointed the bottle at the side of my neck and squirted a path down to my collarbone. The cold cream on my warm skin sent goosebumps scrambling up my arms and legs. He leaned down and, with a slow tortuous drag of his tongue, he licked his way from my collarbone to my ear, ridding my skin of the cream.
My body trembled. The anticipation of what the rest of our night would be like was overpowering.
I reached for the bottle, but Trace shook his head. “Uh, uh.” He moved the bottle to the other side of my neck, squirting a similar path down to my collarbone. Again, he leaned down and dragged his tongue slowly over my skin, collecting it all before returning to my mouth and kissing me hard.
I was drowning in the feel of him. In the feelings his kiss elicited. In the way he made me want to live.
The bottle rolled loose from his hand and landed with a thump on the carpet. He brought his hands up and tunneled them through my hair. “I need you naked.”
“I need you naked.”
He laughed, and when he laughed like that, all husky and real, it hit me deep. “Then we’re in agreement.”
I watched his eyes as they stayed on mine, just staring into them as if he could somehow hear my thoughts. Feel my emotions.
“And I need to feel you beneath me.”
I swallowed hard as he yanked off his shirt. I would never get sick of looking at him. I lifted my hand and brushed my fingertips lightly over the smooth sculpted surface.
“You like?” he asked.
“God, yes.”
He chuckled and reached for my top, peeling it off and discarding it on the floor with his.
“You like?” I teased, having removed my bra before I fell asleep earlier.
He smirked, before leaning down and taking my nipple between his lips.
Holy hell. My thighs quivered as my back arched, my head digging into my pillow. His cold mouth brought on sensations I wasn’t expecting. I reached down and pushed at my shorts, needing to be rid of them and closer to him.
Trace smiled against my breast. “Don’t worry. I’ve got you.” He reached down and shoved my shorts and panties down my legs. I kicked them off the rest of the way. Trace reached for his own shorts and within seconds, they were gone and he’d tossed a condom beside my head. “Now where was I?”
His mouth returned to my breast. The need within me intensified now that our naked bodies were nearly one. I lifted my hips, seeking comfort, but he ignored my pleas, continuing his delicious torture.
Knowing I wouldn’t be able to take much more, I reached between us and grabbed hold of him. He stilled, his eyes pinching shut as my hand moved in a slow rhythm up and down. He gritted his teeth, his breathing becoming ragged as I continued my pursuit. I loved the feel of him in my hand. Loved the smooth skin and the solidity beneath it. Loved how powerful and in charge I felt.
Trace’s hand shot out, grabbing the condom and tearing the wrapper with his teeth. “No way it’s happening like this,” he growled. I released him as he reached down and rolled it on. Then his mouth was on mine, devouring me as his erection ran along my slick skin. “I’m not gonna be able to be gentle,” he said against my lips. “I’ve been thinking about you all fucking—”
My mouth cut him off, swallowing his words. He wasn’t kidding. He braced his elbows beside my head and with one hard thrust pushed inside me. My back arched off the bed as my head slammed against my pillow. Je-sus. His weight on top of me this time made it all the more intense. Intimate. Real. He pulled away from my lips, his eyes dazed as his hips moved harder than I was used to. But I liked it. I liked everything he did.
My hands ran down his back, moving slowly over the hardened ridges of his muscles before landing on his ass. I dug my fingertips in as he moved in and out of me. I loved feeling him thrusting. Loved his grunts. Loved the way he leaned down and kissed me with sloppy wet kisses. I lifted my legs and linked them around his lower back. He moved faster. The throbbing between my legs slowly began to spiral. It was a matter of seconds before I’d uncoil. “Trace,” I said breathless.
“I’m with you, Marin.” He buried his face in the crook of my neck as he slammed into me.
And just like that, my body let go and powerful tremors shot down to my toes. Trace followed me over the edge, stilling above me as he dragged in long deep breaths that fanned onto my neck as he exhaled.
Slowly, he lowered himself down on top of me. “You’re going to kill me, woman.”
I laughed as his weight pressed me into the mattress. “That’s called good sex.”
He smiled against my skin as he wrapped his arms around me and rolled onto his side, with my sweaty body clinging to his. “I’ve had good sex. This is something else.”
Oh, boy.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Marin
“Go out with me tonight,” Trace said, his fingers trailing lightly up and down my arm draped over his chest.
“Where?” I asked, noticing the melted containers of ice cream on my nightstand.
“I have no fucking clue. I just want to spend time with you outside this house.”
“Why?”
“Why the hell not?” He laughed. “I want to show you off.”
I smiled at the honesty in his words.
My phone vibrated on the night stand. Trace grabbed it and didn’t even look at the screen before handing it to me. Charles would’ve checked and decided if I could talk to whomever it was or not. CJ’s name lit up the screen. I sprang up, answering it immediately. “Hey, sweetie. Is everything okay?”
“I’m okay,” CJ said, though nothing about his solemn tone convinced me.
Trace sat up, linking his hand with my free hand. “He okay?” he whispered.
I shrugged. “Where’s Dad?”
“Don’t know. Probably downstairs on the phone again.”
“What’d you guys do yesterday?”
“He brought me to Grammy and Pop’s.”
“Were you with them all day?” I asked, even though I was fairly certain Charles ditched CJ with his parents.
“Yeah,” CJ said, his voice soft and heartbreaking.
I was trying so hard to sound as if I didn’t want to kill his father for not caring about him as much as I did. For not wanting to be with him all the time. For not being as amazing as Trace. “Well, I bet you had fun.”
“It was okay,” he said, but again I didn’t believe him.
“What are you and Dad doing today?” I asked, trying to sound upbeat and excited for him.
“Not sure.”
“Is there something you’d like to do? I can call him and suggest it.”
“Well...I told him how me and Trace play basketball and football and asked if he wanted to, but he got kinda mad and said no.”
Tears pricked my eyes. I wanted my little boy home and I wanted my ex to stay out of our lives for good. But how could I do that? How could I make it a reality? Charles was a lawyer for Christ’s sake. If he didn’t want me to have physical custody, I wouldn’t.
“Can I talk to him?” Trace whispered.
I nodded, needing a minute to reign in my anger. “Oh honey,” I said, trying to sound surprised. “Guess who just stopped by.”
“Who?” CJ asked.
I handed the phone to Trace and he put it on speaker. “Hey, buddy.”
CJ gasped. “Trace!”
“I miss you, buddy. I’ve got no one to play with.”
“Mom can play with you.”
Trace glanced to me with bouncing brows. “Tell you what. As soon as you get home, we’re gonna do whatever you want to do. Basketball, football, baseball. You name it, we’ll do it. How’s that sound?”
“Really?” CJ asked, so hopeful and excited.
“You bet.”
“How about fishing?”
“Absolutely.”
“Thanks Trace. I love you.”
My body froze. Tears no longer pricked my eyes but trailed down my cheeks. Rarely had I ever heard CJ tell Charles he loved him, but I could hear in his voice that he really meant it.
Trace glanced to me sadly. “I love you too, buddy.”
“I better go before Dad catches me on the phone,” CJ said.
“Okay,” Trace and I said at the same time.
“Love you, CJ,” I said.
“Love you more than the universe, Mom.”
I disconnected the call. And before I could fall back onto the bed and lose myself in tears, Trace wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into him.
“He’s gonna be fine, Marin. The douchebag’s showing his true colors and CJ misses you like crazy.”
I cried into his shoulder. “I just wish I could do something to make it better.”
“You being strong for him is all you can do.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
“You don’t need to thank me, Marin. I want him home, too.”
Trace
I stared across the candlelit table at Marin. No one ever would’ve believed she’d been brought to tears by her insensitive prick of an ex earlier that day. She’d been smiling and laughing, thoroughly enjoying my company all night. And don’t even get me started on her sexy black dress.
“So, I’m going back to school,” she said between bites of cheesecake.
“Yeah? That’s great.”
She nodded. “I signed up for two classes at The University of Mobile. I decided I want to get my Master’s in Marriage and Family Counseling. I need ten more classes, two practicums, and an internship.”
“You can get those done in two semesters,” I assured her.
“I’m not going full time. It’ll take me longer, with CJ and all. If I take two classes a semester and one or two during the summer, I should be able to have it done in two years. Maybe three.”
It sucked that her ex asked her to stop going to school. Who does that? She would’ve already had her Master’s.
“What are you thinking?” she asked, noticing my attention had drifted.
“I’m thinking you can do whatever you set your mind to.”
She rested her chin in her palm and stared across the table at me. “Why do I get the feeling that was meant to be dirty?”
I laughed. “Probably because it took everything in me not to follow it up with ‘or you could just do me and all would be right in the world.’”
She shook her head in amusement as her eyes shifted around the quiet restaurant. “I knew it had to be something like that.”
I reached across the table and linked my hand with hers. Hers was so delicate and soft. The exact opposite of my massive hands made to catch fifty-yard bombs from my QB Caden. “I like that you know me. I don’t let many people get close to me.”
She tilted her head, her eyes focused on mine. “Why’s that?”
I shrugged. “Just not something I do.”
“Is that what all your one liners are about?”
I laughed. “No, those are because I’m funny and can pull off charming like no one’s business.”
“My psych degree would argue it’s your way of keeping people from digging deeper.”
I couldn’t hide the amusement in my eyes. “Oh, so you think I’m trying to distract people with my charm?”
“Just saying.”
I sipped the remains of my water wondering if she was on to something.
“Well, I appreciate you letting me in,” Marin said.
My voice lowered. “It’s you who let me in.”
She rolled her eyes. “I left that one wide open for you, huh?”
“Yep.” I laughed, loving our easy banter. “I was serious, you know?”
“About what?”
“When I said you’ve surpassed my wildest expectations,” I explained.
“You’re already getting laid tonight. You don’t need to work so hard.”
I laughed which broadened her smile. Man, I could see a future looking at that smile.
Fuuuuuck.
I was in deep shit if I didn’t get my head on straight. Football was just around the corner and there I sat thinking about a future with a woman. Had I gone and lost my mind? My professional dreams had never taken a backseat to anything or anyone. What the hell was she doing to me?
“Where’d you grow up?” I asked, trying to focus on the here and now and not the fact that I didn’t know what the hell I was doing.
“Mobile. Why?”
I brushed my thumb over the back of her hand. “I just wanna know more about you.”
She cocked her head. “More than what I sound like and taste like?”
“Everything,” I assured her.
She snickered. “There’s not much to know.”
“I don’t think that’s true. What makes you so strong?”
She grimaced. “Strong? I’m barely keeping it together most days.”
“You’re allowed to feel, Marin. You’ve been hurt. It’s not weak to cry. It’s what you do after the tears. And you...” I fixed her with my eyes. “You always do what you need to do.”
“Thanks,” she said. “Now tell me something about you.”
“You mean other than what I sound like and taste like?” I teased.
She stuck out her tongue and instead of being childish, it was one of the hottest things I’d ever seen.
“I’m supposed to go top five in the draft.”
Her eyes lit up with excitement. “Top five? That’s amazing.”
I nodded, feeling a little embarrassed to be tooting my own horn. But I’d found out recently and wanted to tell someone. Being with Marin made me eager to tell her and see her reaction. Eager to see her pride in me.
“You must be really good.”
I tilted my head. The look I gave her should’ve been answer enough, but I couldn’t resist. “Look at me. Of course I am.”
She rolled her eyes as she shook her head. “When’s the draft?”
“April.”
She squeezed my hand gently. “Well, I hope it happens for you.”
“Thanks.”
“Okay. So tell me something else.”
I considered what to tell her. “Well...you know I skipped a grade. Do you know why?”
Her lips tipped up in the corners. “You’re super smart?”
“I knew enough to pursue you, didn’t I?”
“Wow,” she laughed. “The lines just keep on coming.”
I tossed back my head in laughter, loving how everything with Marin was so easy.
“Come on. Spill it.”
“Apparently, my IQ was off the charts for an eight-year-old, so my mother demanded I skip the next grade. Forget the fact that my scores were far superior to other kids my age, you don’t argue with Janine Forester. If she wants her son to skip a grade, her son skips a grade.”
“How was it growing up with her?” The wondrous look in Marin’s eyes told me she seriously wanted to know.
“Probably as you’d expect. A lot of eye rolling behind her back and making myself scarce when she put her foot in her mouth.” I laughed to myself, realizing I’d never put into words my feelings about either of my parents before. “Obviously my parents are polar opposites. My father is caring but quiet, while my mother can’t keep quiet to save her life. I think the reason t
hey stayed married for so long is because he travels so much for work. He doesn’t see it on a daily basis.”
“That would make it easier.”
“Yeah. But don’t get me wrong. It sucks having a big mouth for a mother. I can only tolerate it because she is my mother. And she’s always loved me fiercely and completely. I assure you, no one would hurt her son and live to tell about it.”
“Did you add that part for my benefit?”
I shook my head. “You’d never hurt me.”
She tightened her grip on my hand, confirming what I already knew.
“I’ve got another question for you,” I said, knowing there was something that had been on my mind.
“Shoot.”
“Was CJ planned?”
Marin’s head shot back. “What?”
“Did you and the douchebag discuss having kids or did it just happen?”
She pulled in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Wow. Going right for the deep stuff, huh?”
“Sorry. Is that not all right to ask?”
She did one of those shrug-nods. “It’s fine...” Her gaze wandered toward the waiter who passed by our table. “I remember taking the test and finding out I was pregnant. I was so excited, but the thought of telling Charles scared me. For some reason I didn’t think he’d be as happy as I was.”
“Was he?”
She shrugged as her eyes slid back to mine. “He never said he wasn’t. But he also didn’t get all excited like I did. I assumed that was a guy’s reaction, but now I realize there’s only one reaction.”
“Unless you’re a douchebag.”
A dry laugh escaped her. “Hindsight.”
“I’ve got another question,” I said.
“Should I brace myself?”
“Nah. I just wanna know what it’ll take to be part of your universe.”
I watched nervousness fill her eyes. “What?”
“I want to be part of what you and CJ have, Marin.”
She tilted her head thoughtfully. “You already are.”
I shook my head. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Trace,” she sighed. “You’re leaving.”
“Fuck that. I’ll be three hours away.”
Her mouth twisted, her eyes searching the room for who knows what. “We’re just having fun.”
