Already Designed (The South Haven Crew Book 1)
Page 10
We clap along with the drag queen when asked. Sing along when encouraged. Praise profusely when the performance comes to a close. If I wasn’t about to reach a new low of humiliation for the woman I lack the ability to back down from, I would probably insist on buying a round of drinks for everyone in the place.
“Next up we have Tristian McAdams coming to the stage!”
Another knot of nervousness expands in the pit of my stomach, yet I pretend I don’t notice. “Nice. You used my character’s name from the show.”
Kady tosses me devious glare. “I did.”
“For just an extra fuck you?”
She promptly nods.
On a deep breath I stand, cross to the stage, and offer the crowd a wide smile. “I um…I haven’t sang in front of a crowd in like a decade, so I hope I don’t disappoint.”
“Just shake those hips honey!” The man in drag calls from where he’s sitting at the bar.
There are waves of drunken laughter that solidify my fear of this being the worst idea I’ve had in a long time.
In a really long time. Much much worse than tossing a fish around. Why am I doing this again? Is she really worth it?
My eyes glance to Kady’s excited face and all doubt is erased.
Absolutely….
“D.J.,” I speak into the microphone to let him know I’m ready.
The beginning to Rock Lobster by the B-52’s unapologetically invades my ears. A mixture of disbelief and displeasure roll around my expression, but there is no time to let it settle. My mouth is open and stating the words on cue.
This means war….
Rather than run any risk of her not keeping up her end of the deal by claiming I didn’t do my part, I yank the microphone off the stand and begin moving around the stage. I use my free hand to do classic 70’s and 80’s dance moves in between playing the air guitar. The crowd bops their heads along, eventually singing the parts they do know. At some point, I’m pulling people onto their feet to dance with me, and even give the man in drag a good shimmy, which earns me loud cheers. Every word falls off my tongue from memory and every ounce of energy I have goes into proving to Kadence I can handle her silly tests.
I can handle the unexpected.
I can handle her.
By the end of the set, the audience is clapping and asking for an encore. I take a quick bow and hustle back over to the table to see Kady still laughing hysterically.
“Was that good enough for you?
She can barely gain enough composure to nod.
I pull out two twenties and toss them on the table. “Good. Now, can we please get the hell out of here?”
“But what about your new friend?” Her giggles increase as she waves at the drag queen. “Pretty sure she wants to buy you a drink.”
My face leans down to hers. “Drinks with a drag queen may momentarily postpone your punishment but will not prevent it from coming.”
Kady’s laughter finally fades.
“Personally, I’d rather be completely sober during our first time in the water together.”
“Only time.”
It’s my turn to slyly smirk. “We’ll see….”
After a quick drive across town to my house, we part ways to put on our swimwear. At first I linger around the guest bathroom nearest the patio doors expecting her to change as quickly as I did. However, the moment I realize she’s probably giving herself some sort of pep talk, I announce she can meet me on the side of the deck whenever she’s ready.
The highly under used hot tub is on the opposite end of the outdoor kitchen area. Despite the fact, I rarely use it, I still have it routinely cleaned and maintained on the off chance surfing causes an injury that needs to be soothed by hot water.
Or in case my other best friend, Marlz, is in town crashing at my place. He prefers to bang chicks in this rather than in my guest bedroom. What’s even more fucked up is, he’s probably slept with more women in my beach house than I have. It’s a rarity I bring them back to my place. What can I say? As far as I’m concerned my home is sacred to me and reserved for people I consider worthy like family or best friends. And Kady….
I remove the cover, fiddle with the jets, and slink myself onto the bench directly across from the stairs. My arms extend along the back and my attention flows over to the beautiful ocean.
You know, the only thing that can compare to the beauty of the water at night is the beauty of it when the sun first hits it. I mean, just look at it! Look at the way the water bumps into those rocks, like it’s trying to court them into joining it permanently. Look at the way the entire thing seems to glow underneath the moonlight. The way it appears to be vast and never ending. It’s naturally spectacular. Naturally calming. How anyone could be afraid as opposed to intrigued is still something I don’t fucking understand.
All of a sudden, the sound of feet crossing the deck steals my attention.
Seeing Kady in her swimsuit for the second time does to me exactly what it did the first. Thankfully, my cock gets the cue to bow out almost immediately. The vision of her paralyzed in fear several steps away from the hot tub is heartbreaking.
“Come on over, babe,” I softly call out.
Her bottom lip trembles.
A distinct pain pumps harshly throughout my chest.
Fuck, I’m an asshole for this, aren’t I? Too far. I’ve gone too far.
I rise to my feet and slowly stroll across the tub to her, not quite convinced I’m ready to let her fear win. “It’s gonna be okay, Kady.” When I reach the top stair, I extend my hand out for her to take. “I promise.”
She gradually inches over until her hand is in mine. Carefully, she descends the three steps, but the shaking never ceases. The look of dread never subsides.
Protectively, my arms wind around her, caging her body to mine. The ache in my chest deepens as I whisper, “Babe, you really are terrified, aren’t you?”
Kady’s swallow is deafening.
Torn between the decision to get out and take all of her agony away or stay in and help her work through it, I tighten my hold. “I swear I’ll save your life before my own. I’ll totally Titanic this shit if necessary.”
A very light laugh greets my ears. “They could’ve both fit on the board.”
“Yeah, I saw that Myth Busters too.”
Another small chuckles escapes, and I let out a slow exhale.
She needs this. She needs to know that water isn’t always the enemy. That I’m not the enemy. I want her to see I can do more than just make her smile. I can be her lifesaver if she needs me to.
I carefully ease the two of us down into a sitting position. However, the minute more of her body is submerged in water, her trembling escalates tremendously, and her breathing becomes choppy. Unable to even move my face because hers is buried at the base of it, I do the only thing I can think of. I hold her closer and begin to softly sing the first song that comes to mind.
It takes a few moments for the panicking to disperse, but the moment it does, her eyes meet mine exposing the humor in them. “Did you really just serenade me with ‘Kiss the Girl’ from The Little Mermaid?”
No-huh. No judging!
My hands slide down to anchor themselves onto her hips. “It was my favorite movie as a kid.”
“Because you wanted to be a pretty little redhead in a barely there seashell bra?”
Glad to have her snarky attitude back, I give her a crooked grin. “Because of the ocean, smart ass.”
She smiles softly.
“I’ve always been in love with the ocean. Always. I think it’s because my mom went into labor with me on a boat.”
“What!?”
“Totally unexpected. See, my dad got this brilliant idea to take her on a romantic lunch date a couple weeks before I was supposed to be born. He thought it would be a good idea for them to have one last spontaneous baby free date. He booked it out on South Haven Island, so they took the ferry and about ten minutes in, her water broke.”
“Absolutely. She likes to joke if it were up to me, they would’ve never made it to the hospital. That I anxiously went from swimming inside of her to wanting to swim in the ocean.” We chuckle together. “Apparently, her water broke, and then it was just like BAM! I was ready to come out. She had no ‘labor might be soon’ signs. Even during her last doctor’s visit they had discussed the probability of having to induce her.”
Kadence shakes her head, still smiling. “That’s wild.”
“I was probably a Merman in my last life. It’s the only logical explanation I can conjure up.” We exchange another laugh and I confidently inform, “You have now successfully experienced sitting in a hot tub.” Her body starts to tense and I rush to add, “I’m not gonna let you go, Kady. I just wanted you to know you did it. That it’s okay to take risks every once in a while. That you can make room for a few fun activities on your five-year plan.”
She gives the bubbling water a long hard stare.
Silence arises yet I don’t feel the need to shoo it away. My thumbs give her wet skin a comforting stroke, and I continue to enjoy the cool night creating a comfortable contrast to the heat.
Unexpectedly, Kady quietly questions, “Why me?”
My confusion is instant. “What do you mean?”
Our gazes drifts back together. “I mean, be honest with me, Levi. Completely honest. You don’t have to chase women; they fall at your feet. You don’t have to put in this much work with almost any other woman on the planet. You don’t have to be pushed and challenged. You can be pleased and worshiped. You were just getting a blow job from a super model like three weeks ago! A super model who I bet has called you at least three times or sent you some very sexy, probably over filtered pornographic photos. So why me? Why the book nerd with the b-class body who makes it a sport to give you blue balls?”
I fucking knew it!
“Why chase a woman who makes your life so damn difficult?”
“Because you’re so much fucking fun,” I effortlessly reply. “It’s exciting to go through this shit with you. It’s nice to not wonder if you’re interested in me because of a character you’ve seen or a person you think I can introduce you to or what you can score out of me during our time together. You make me feel good, Kady. Genuinely good. And since you asked for complete honesty, I’ll tell you, I get a high from being around you that I only thought I could get on my board. You bring chaos and serenity in the same breath. Why wouldn't I wanna try to capture that?”
Kady’s lips part yet she’s seems speechless.
Ha. There’s a first!
Deciding to drag the conversation away from reaching even deeper depths, I sigh, “There is one huge problem I have with you.”
Her eyebrows dart down. “What’s that?”
“You look even sexier wet. Like a perfect eleven because ten just isn’t enough.”
She offers me a pleased smirk and I smile wide at the sight of her face flushing.
“Alright, babe. Our five minutes are up. Ready to head in?”
The answer that falls out startles me. “Not yet.”
I start to question her reply when her fingers wrap firmly around my hard cock.
My head falls backward on a heated groan.
Kady seductively teases, “You look pretty sexy when you’re wet too.” She gives me another squeeze and I dig my teeth into my bottom lip. “Does your cock?”
Another groan is grabbed as I meet her steamy stare. “Why don’t you find out?”
There’s no time wasted in taking the next steps. Her fingers hook around the waist band of my shorts and tug. In a thoughtful yet acrobatic like maneuver I cradle her close with one hand while using the other to ditch our barrier.
The moment our lower halves are back in the water, her hand curls around my dick and instantly starts a slow stroke.
My eyes fall shut at the same time I rock my body into her touch. “Holy shit, babe….”
Kadence hums her approval of my lackluster choice of words.
What the hell do you want from me? I’ve got a sexy fucking chick beginning to give me a hand job. I don’t exactly have a clever line to just spout when this shit happens. Fuck, I honestly don’t remember the last time I even had one of these. The blow job I got a few weeks by….a slew of letters that are impossible to remember was decent. Damn sure didn’t feel this good. Damn sure didn’t have me this….um….I….excuse me.
Despite my desperation to have her move faster, Kadence maintains a strong, steady pace. Her grasp toys with my sanity by gripping harshly then randomly pulsing, like I imagine her pussy will when I’m deep inside.
I grumble again this time drilling my fingers unforgivingly into her sides.
Bruising her would be bad. I know it would be bad. Extremely bad. You don’t have to tell me that….But um…any chance it would be good? Any chance it would act like a cock block on her skin to scare away all other men interested? If there’s even a smidgen of that being a possibility I’m gonna fucking doing it. This woman belongs to no one else. She’s mine.
The barbaric declaration has me moaning her name, “Kady....”
She increases the pressure, but maintains the long, tantalizing strokes. Each one spans from my leaking tip to the base. Every time she brushes against my balls they tighten in anticipation of joining the fun or at the very least being momentarily acknowledged.
Barely capable of lifting my heavy lids, I beg, “Grab my balls too.”
Her lack of hesitation to follow commands damn near makes me come on the spot. Kady proceeds with her agonizingly slowly jerks and the addition of my nuts being rolled around in between soft tugs has my entire body reaching its boiling point.
I ignore the nagging voice telling me to hold in my confession. “Babe, I’m not gonna last much longer.”
She smirks proudly and begins to roll her body into every rub.
The visual melds with the staggering sensation of the hot water and her hotter touch. My dick surrenders blazing burst after burst, burning everything in its path. A sweet whimper seeps free from her, and my mouth rushes to collect it. Our tongues crash feverishly against one another, yet her hand doesn’t abandon my cock. She continues the carnal caressing as if eager to claim me the same way I’ve already claimed her.
When Kady finally relinquishes her grip, her lips follow suit. “Now I’m ready to get out.”
A small chuckle springs from my chest. “Yeah? Um…I’m gonna need a minute. Or five.”
She snickers and runs her fingers up my chest. “You ready to take me home?”
Never.
“Wanna watch Police Academy first?”
“Oooo…Steve Guttenberg was a hottie back in the day.”
“Really? You’re gonna call another man hot while sitting that close to my bare dick?”
Kadence’s bright smirk stays though her wet fingers run through the back of my hair. “Sexy when wet and jealous. Impressive.”
I helplessly smile.
Insane. She is going to drive me in-fucking-sane. I have no doubt it’ll be worth the high therapy bills if this relationship doesn’t work out. Huh. Can you call three dates a relationship without sounding like you’re rushing shit? Fuck. I am completely falling face first towards the floor of love, aren’t I? At least I’m doing better than Calen and the helicopter thing!
“Do you mind letting me borrow another shirt until time to go? Squeezing back into my romper while I’m still damp is gonna be more of a challenge than I wanna deal with.”
“What if you don’t change back into it until the morning?”
Kadence’s body becomes completely still.
“What if you sleep in my shirt instead?” My expression remains hopeful. “What if you wear it to breakfast after spending the night in my arms?”
Her tone takes an accusatory twist. “Are you suggesting we sleep together after three dates?”
Don’t bother mentioning that is t
he national average in this country or the fact most women don’t even require this much effort because it doesn’t matter. Kadence is not the average anything, and I love it.
“Yes. I’m suggesting you sleep with me in my bed after three dates.”
As soon as she realizes there is no sexual implication, no pressure to take shit any faster than we are, she purses her lips briefly together. “What’s for breakfast?”