I shut the door behind me and see a not so happy looking Bethany standing in the kitchen with her arms crossed. Great!! I take in the scene and realize Judd’s shoes are kicked off by the front door, his keys and wallet are lying on the counter, an empty pizza box is abandoned on the coffee table and I am very sure that I look like I have been rolling around in bed; which I have and I think she knows that.
Her eyes fill with tears and my heart drops into my stomach.
“Bethany, we need to talk.” I raise my hand out in front of me as if I’m dealing with a wild animal that is hell bent on attacking me.
She throws her hands up on her hips and snarls at me. “You’re damn right you need to explain. How could you do this to me? Why?” Teardrops spill from her eyes as she folds her arms across her chest.
“First off, I need to explain wh. . . . .”
Before I can get a full sentence in, Bethany’s shrill voice cuts me off, “I thought you were my friend! How could you?!”
“If you would calm down and let me explain I would tell you,” I counter, still maintaining a calm and steady voice.
“Explain, yeah, you need to explain, now! Tell me why I come home Thursday night and swear I see my best friend in front of the apartment making out with the guy I like? So, then I decide to go back to Fairview for the weekend and I drive by your house and see his truck. I figured you would come back here and I had to see for myself.”
Her expression deepens to a defiant look, with her eyebrows drawn up and her lips in a straight line. Wait . . . she knew this entire weekend about me and Judd. So why the text saying she was coming home Tuesday night. Unless . . .
“So you deliberately told me you were coming home Tuesday, hoping you would catch us together? That seems a little manipulative.” I’m a little taken aback by her method of finding out what was going on between Judd and me. Why wouldn’t she have just asked me?
“You’re damn right I did! I had to since you were so determined to sneak around behind my back, knowing the whole time that I liked him. So that’s why I kept catching you two in conversations with each other. Wow, Alyssa . . . you sure had me fooled!” Her pissed off tone gives way to sadness.
“Bethany, just sit down for a minute and let me explain. First off, I wasn’t sneaking around and I would have never . . . never gotten involved with someone you like.” She laughs and glares at me as if I have hit a nerve. “Just sit, please. I need to tell you some things I should have told you this summer.”
Finally, Bethany calms down enough to sit and I instantly get busy telling her all about my two weeks with Judd and how we already knew each other prior to her newfound crush. I try to rationalize why I didn’t tell her any of this, but I feel there is just no way to clear that up. Yes, she is my best friend and usually best friends share everything, but those two weeks were special to me and when it came to an end, I just wanted to remember it as this beautiful thing without anyone demeaning it.
She watches me and listens the whole time, keeping a defensive stance.
“Is he in the bedroom right now?” she asks, visibly hurt by the whole ordeal.
“Yes,” I mumble, feeling guilty for hurting her, but then on the other hand, happy that it is all out at last. “I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you any of this, Bethany. After everything with Kyle, I just didn’t want to feel like a naïve fool for trusting another guy and then, the other night when we figured it all out . . . well, it just happened so fast and I wanted to tell you in person and well . . .”
Bethany sighs and holds her hand up to stop me from talking. “It’s fine! I’m fine!” Yet, the animosity in her tone says the opposite of her words.
She gets up and walks into the kitchen and opens the fridge door, never looking me in the eye. I know she is upset, hurt and pissed off!
“It’s stupid for him to hide in there! Just tell him to come out,” she says in an icy tone, with a hateful look in my direction.
“He’s not hiding. I told him to wait till . . .”
She cuts me off again, casting me another unpleasant glare.
“You should have told me, but just don’t flaunt it in my face!”
I open my mouth to defend myself, but stop when I hear Judd walk into the room. He doesn’t look happy as he walks up, pulling me close to his side. I think this is what she meant by not flaunting it.
I grit my teeth as Judd speaks, defending me, “Bethany, I was always straight forward with you. I told you I was not over my ex and Alyssa was who I was talking about. I just didn’t want to discuss anything with anyone until I understood myself, what had happened between us.”
Bethany stiffens, glancing down at Judd’s arm that is protectively clasped around my waist and then turns her malice on him, but then her voice softens when she speaks.
“Be honest, did you use me to get close to her?”
I look at him with guilt clamping down on my conscience for him being in this position, but Judd’s demeanor never waivers. He keeps a firm look in his eyes and confidence in his voice when he answers her.
“No, because I told you from that very first day that I was only interested in being friends with you and I never gave you any indication that that would change. You were the one that was always texting and calling me to come over, not the other way around. The only thing either of us is guilty of is not being honest about knowing each other, but I am in no way sorry for being with her now.”
I stare over at Bethany, afraid of what her reaction will be. Surprisingly, instead of lashing out, she relaxes her posture and seems to cool down.
“Ok, well then, that is that and now we all know. I will just forgive and forget and move on. I can do that.” She nods her head and keeps her eyes on Judd.
He smiles with a shrug of his shoulders and then looks over to me. I’m a little confused by how easily she gave in after Judd’s speech, but I’m not going to push the issue any further.
“If it would make you more comfortable, I can go to his apartment tonight if you don’t want me around.”
Bethany gives me a half-hearted smile, “For now, that might be a good idea,” she says while looking directly at Judd. “I would prefer to just try and process this all by myself.” She looks over to me and continues, “I heard everything you said and I know I have no right to be upset, but I can’t help but feel a little betrayed.”
I open my mouth to reiterate the details of how Judd was actually my boyfriend, but yet I had the pleasure of walking in and seeing him in bed with her. Instead, I stop when his hand slides into mine.
Clearing my throat, I decide to close the subject and humor her wishes. I grab a few things and we head out to his truck to go to his apartment.
The next day, I decide to explain it all to Kyle as well. Considering he was part of the misunderstanding and now that I have all the information, I should be furious with him, but for some strange reason, I’m not. I have no room in my heart for anger right now. If my father’s situation has taught me anything, it is to live life with no regrets and to be grateful for each day regardless of the circumstances.
After talking to him between classes, I get it all out in the open. He quickly apologizes then confesses that he still loves me, which makes me feel relieved that Judd did not accompany me. Understanding that he felt threatened and determined to get me back, I accept his apologies; we hug and part ways. All in all, breaking the news to them both went differently than I expected, but I am so glad it is behind me.
IT TAKES NO TIME AT all for Bethany to become her normal feisty, happy go lucky self again. Within a week, we are all comfortable enough to hang out and according to her, she even has her eye on a new guy.
Even though Bethany is over Judd and the tension between me and her has vanished, I still sense a little friction on his end. He’s always on edge when she is around and absolutely uncomfortable if he is faced with even a minute alone with her, but I continue to reassure him that I am not bothered by them being friends.
It�
��s a week from Halloween so Bethany had the idea to throw a small costume party at the community center on Saturday however, that ended up being booked. Plus, Kyle’s fraternity is having some kind of senior meeting tomorrow night and since Bethany wants to hit downtown the following weekend on the actual holiday, all dressed up, we ended up planning the get together at our apartment. Luckily, our place will not hold that many bodies, so when she says a small party, this time I trust it.
Since the party is tomorrow night, Judd, Bethany and I plan a shopping trip to get costumes. Judd isn’t excited about tagging along, but he agrees to for the sake of watching me try on naughty outfits. What he doesn’t know, is that I’m more of a plush-bunny-costume kind of girl rather than a French maid or a slutty nurse.
Wow! I could handle seeing him in one of these hunky gladiator costumes though, I think as I stand in the costume shop filing through aisle after aisle. My heart kicks up a notch as I envision Judd’s face and body in place of the model on the package in my hands.
Bethany and I both have an armful to tote into the dressing room, so I casually slip one of the gladiator costumes into my pile along with a women’s Roman Empress costume when Judd isn’t looking. I slide into the dressing room while he takes a seat on the chase lounge outside my room. Bethany giggles in the room beside me and I know she must have one of her outfits on already.
After throwing on my first one, I fling the curtain aside and step out for Judd’s approval. Casually shifting my hip to one side, I slap my hand to my waist and strike my sexiest pose to show off my fuzzy kitten costume complete with fluffy ears and a long tail.
Judd bends at the waist and busts up laughing. “You’re kidding, right?”
Biting my lip, I keep a straight face, trying not to laugh, but end up cracking up.
After a quick run over to Bethany’s room to give her a thumbs-up on her Biker Chick get up, I race back into my dressing room to put on my next ensemble. I slip on my last details and then jump out in front of Judd with a huge smile plastered on my face.
Judd’s head falls back and he groans. Looking back up to me with a smirk on his face, he blinks his eyes several times to focus on my outfit. No doubt the huge polka dots on these bright blue bell bottom pants and this tight rainbow striped shirt that I’m wearing with thick red suspenders, is giving him double vision. I squeeze the big, red nose I have plastered on my face to make a honking noise and chuckle along with him.
“Definitely not,” he says, holding his stomach from laughing so hard.
I check in on Bethany a couple more times before she decides on an extremely short Vampire Vixen costume.
Judd’s laughter dies down the more I try on. When I step out in the 20’s flapper dress with a tight headband and feather holding back my long wavy hair, he raises his eyebrows in surprise. It’s not as short as the empress costume that I will try on last, but it is getting close to his liking.
With a shake and shimmy of my hips as I back my way into the dressing room, the tassels swing around and Judd flashes me a wide smile.
After two more costumes, I step out in my short Empress costume with my roman sandals laced up to my knees, a cream colored sling top pushing my boobs up to my chin and a gold fabric belt attached right under my breasts. I add thick gold arm bands, a delicate gold crown and a low hanging medallion necklace last. Throwing one arm up on the frame of the door, I thrust my opposite hip out for effect. Judd’s face lights up and he lets out a whistle.
“That’s the one,” he winks.
Pulling my other hand out from behind my back, I giggle with the men’s costume casually dangling from my finger.
As he looks down, his expression changes to panic.
“No way, I am not wearing that unless it is late at night and we are doing role play or some shit like that.”
I close my eyes tightly and laugh out loud. Seductively swaying my body as I inch back into the room, I bat my eyelashes and crook my finger for him to follow. He happily accepts my challenge, nearly knocking the chaise to the ground as he bolts up.
He ends up trying it on and “Wow,” is all I can say. He refuses to wear it to the costume party but I end up buying it anyway since it matches the one I chose. I’m always up for the role play idea.
After dinner, we head back to my apartment so I can get some clothes for the next two days. Dad seems to be getting weaker and weaker as the days go by and so we thought it would be best if either both, or at least one of us, stay sober the night of the party. We also plan on coming back to his apartment afterward rather than crashing with a house full of passed out drunks. Evan’s father is apparently back in town and he is spending the weekend at the lake with him and his brother, so that leaves Judd’s apartment completely private and free from anyone walking in on us like Evan always manages to do. At first, I thought maybe Evan might be a bit of a pervert, but then I just figured out that he gets a massive kick out of messing with his best friend.
As soon as we return from our shopping adventure, I rush into my room and throw a couple outfits in my bag and then run into the bathroom to throw together the makeup I will need for my Halloween getup. I toss a couple extra toiletries that I can keep at his place into my bag and then step out into the living room.
Judd flies up off the couch where Bethany is sitting and darts to my side in only a few steps. He has a disturbed look on his face and holds his hand over his mouth. Looking at me, he grabs the bag quickly.
“You ready?”
His reaction and jumpiness has me puzzled. I look past him to Bethany sitting lazily on the couch. She waves her hand with a wide smile.
“You guys have fun. See you tomorrow night.”
I wave bye and without a word, Judd pulls me out the door, no doubt in a hurry to be alone.
An uncomfortable silence falls over us on the drive to his place.
“Is everything ok?” I ask, feeling a surge of confusion on what could be bothering him after such a fun day.
“Mmhum,” he answers back; more like reacts.
His answer is so instantaneous to my question and so vague that I can’t help but feel as though there is something he is not telling me. Maybe he is just tired or maybe his shoulder is bothering him. Could Bethany have said something that aggravated him? I know he is not that crazy about her. He’s never hidden that fact. I toss around ideas the whole drive until we finally pull into his parking lot.
He shuts off the engine and leans over to give me a long, seductive kiss. We linger there for a while until we are both panting and ready to be in his bed. He tosses the door to his truck open, hops out onto the pavement and then turns to throw me over his shoulder.
I scream and giggle uncontrollably all the way up the stairs to his door.
Once inside, he sprints into his bedroom and flips me onto the bed in front of him. My back sinks into his soft navy blue comforter as he slowly slides on top of me. Gliding my hand down his back and inside the back of his shirt to feel the warmth of his skin, I look into his eyes that sparkle with excitement. His hand softly grazes my cheek as he reaches up and brushes away strands of hair from my forehead.
“I love you so much, Alyssa,” he says right before crushing his lips to mine.
I gasp out, “I love you . . .” and pull him closer, melting into his arms. We hastily rip our clothes off of one another until we are both bare and eager for more.
Judd’s mouth moves down my silhouette, pressing wet kisses down the inside of my thigh while making me tremble with gentle strokes of his fingers.
“Judd . . .” I call out, licking my lips with a need to taste his skin and kiss his lips.
I gently tug at his hair, letting him know how badly I need him closer, as close as we can be.
He slides his body back up over me and rolls us so that I am straddling him. With his hands firmly, yet gently holding my hips, he helps to lift and guide me down, slowly. At last, we join as one and the electricity that instantly pulsates through me has my mind spinning.
My hands pinch and squeeze into fists against his chest as tingling sensations rise up into the pit of my stomach.
His hands grasp my waist as he lets out deep moans, opening his mouth to suck in breath after breath.
I throw my head back, climbing higher and higher as he moves at a slow, steady pace.
Running the length of my torso, his hands smooth over the skin of my rib cage and up to cup my breasts. When his thumb delicately brushes across my nipple, I flip my head forward and call out his name as over powering currents race through my body.
Flipping me onto my back without missing a beat, he moves against me until he is out of breath and collapsing onto me.
As the pulses of pleasure begin to slow, I run my fingers through the back of Judd’s hair and smile; I smile one of those silly-OMG-completely-satisfied-and-I-so-want-to-do-that-again-smiles. Then I breath out the most content breathe I’ve ever felt in my life.
Judd looks at me like he just ran a marathon but shows off the same smile I have plastered on my face.
“Wow,” I giggle and consider saying it again for emphasis.
He smiles wider as I rub my finger against his dimple; never able to get enough of seeing his smile.
“You’re obsessed with that,” he teases and I nod.
“I am, and I am absolutely, undeniably obsessed with you.”
This makes his smile grow and he presses a strong kiss to my lips that leaves us both winded. We lay there for a while, basking in each other’s presence before either of us is able to form words.
“So are you sure something wasn’t wrong earlier? You were quiet on the drive home. I thought maybe you were mad at me or something,” I say hesitantly, not wanting to ruin this perfect moment.
Take My Breath Away Page 24
