Breakaway: A friends to lovers romance

by Heather M. Orgeron

  “Sold!” I said, touching a finger to his lips. His mouth opened and he bit down gently, eliciting a moan from my lips.

  Colt popped up to his knees, leaning in and pressing a chaste kiss to my lips. “Well then, pack a bag and let’s get movin’.”

  “Colton,” I screeched, squeezing his thigh as the Uber pulled up to a fucking beachfront mansion. I was having trouble catching my breath. “Is this a joke?” It had to be a joke. The house was on Santa Monica beach...like I could see the freaking Ferris wheel spinning from here.

  My best friend grinned ear to ear, looking quite satisfied with himself. “Pays to be the star of the basketball team, Al.” He shrugged, climbing out of the car. How did I not know my best friend was living the life of a damn rock star?

  I was still sitting there gawking at the floor to ceiling windows and multi-level balconies when I heard his voice.

  “You planning to get out today?” he chuckled, reaching inside to help me out. “I take it you approve?” He couldn’t seem to wipe the amusement from his face at my reaction.

  At a complete loss for words, I simply nodded my head and continued to stare at what was to be our home for the next few days while Colton tipped our driver and retrieved our bags.

  “Come on, Al. I wanna show you the inside.”

  We stepped into an elaborate foyer, complete with marble floors and a chandelier fit for a palace. Colt dropped our bags at the door, taking my hand and tugging me through to the living room. Two of the walls were nothing but glass with the ocean as far as the eye could see. He gave me the tour going room to room. By the way, there were six bedrooms. Six.

  “It’s enormous,” I said, regarding the pool sized Jacuzzi tub in the master bath.

  “That’s what she said,” he teased.

  “Whose house is this?”

  Colt shrugged. “A family member of one of the coaches. I mentioned yesterday that I was thinking of taking you out here sometime before you went back to Texas, and by the end of practice he had this all lined up.” The mention of my departure gave me a sick feeling. I never wanted to leave.

  “You talk about me with your coaches?” I don’t know why that made me all warm and gooey inside, but there I was, turning to mush.

  His hand cupped the back of my neck, pulling me toward him. “They’re practically family, babe. Besides, I talk about you to everyone.”

  “Do you?” I asked, my voice low and gravelly as I lifted to my toes, lacing my fingers behind his neck.

  “Mhmm,” he moaned his agreement against my lips before molding his mouth to mine and kissing me long and slow. By the time he pulled away, we were both panting, and my panties were soaked.

  Colt rubbed a hand over his swollen lips. “Where to first?”

  “Is bed an acceptable answer?” I asked with a sideways smile.

  His brows shot up. “A little foreplay first, hussy,” he teased, grabbing two fists full of my ass.

  Ohhh, foreplay. I liked the sound of that. “What’d you have in mind?” I asked, fluttering my lashes. I was pulling out all the stops.

  His lips puckered in thought. “The pier is just down the road...Why don’t we start there?”

  “I didn’t realize you were into exhibitionism...”

  Colt tsked, rolling his eyes. “I didn’t bring you here to have sex, Alex. We could have done that back at the apartment.”

  Oh, we were having sex all right. In every room and on every surface of this bajillion dollar house if I had anything to say about it. “Not in glass rooms and swimming pool sized tubs,” I argued.

  With both hands still on my ass, he pulled me tighter to his body. Whisper-soft kisses brushed my forehead, my nose, my lips, my chin...His lips traced a path from my mouth to my ear. “I have plans for you later,” he growled, nibbling my lobe.

  Tingles everywhere. “Now,” I mewled, going limp in his arms.

  Colt bit down on my ear. “No.”

  He was getting a little too comfortable with that two-letter-word for my liking.

  “You’re mean.”

  “The worst,” he agreed. “Now go get your purse.”

  The sun was hot on our necks as we carried our shoes in our hands, walking right along the water’s edge to the pier. The wet sand was much more forgiving on our calves. I loved the way it felt, washing between my toes.

  “Good Lord, there are a lot of people on this beach.” The closer we got to the pier, the denser the crowd became. They were literally packed like sardines. I didn’t understand how any of those parents were able to keep track of their children. It was giving me anxiety.

  “Yeah,” Colt agreed. “It’s a lot different from Pensacola.” His hand squeezed mine affectionately, and my heart did a flip. We had so many great memories at that beach house.

  “I miss it,” I whispered, squeezing his back. “Why’d we ever stop going?” I shielded my eyes with my hand so I could look at his face.

  “You had Dean...” His lips pressed into a flat line. “And I had ball.”

  After the summer Dean and I got together, we just stopped going. Colt had taken off to California, and I didn’t feel right going without him. Our parents still made their annual trip and begged us to come along. I’m so happy that I didn’t taint the memories of that place by going with Dean. It wouldn’t have been the same.

  “Colton,” I hissed, digging my nails into his forearm as I planted my feet to the ground.

  “Ouch, Alex. What the he—” He stopped walking, staring in the direction I was looking while struck momentarily speechless. It was a lucky thing for those freaks too.

  “Is he doing what I think he’s—”

  “Yeah,” Colt answered, cutting me off. He tugged my arm in the direction of the pier, hurriedly getting us out of earshot before I could make a scene. That boy always could anticipate my next move.

  “There are kids all over this beach,” I shrieked, my hands flailing around in the air.

  Colt could not stop laughing at my mini tantrum. “It’s California, baby,” is all he said in response. Like that was all the explanation I needed. I didn’t care if it was fucking Mars. It was disgusting.

  “He was milking her, Colton. Milking her tit like it was a fucking udder!” The couple walking past us to get to the stairs were looking at me like I was insane. I felt close. I could not believe I just watched a grown ass man pull a woman’s tit out of her bathing suit and suck it in broad daylight on a beach filled with children.

  “I know, Al.” He put his hand on the small of my back, ushering me up the wood steps. “Watch your step. It’s wet.”

  “Like a dairy cow,” I muttered under my breath, unable to shake the sight from my head. My nipples were sore just thinking about it.

  We were on our way to the booth to buy bracelets for the rides when we came upon a young woman with a guitar singing a beautiful rendition of “I Never Told You” by Colbie Callait. For years that song had reminded me of him, of us, of what we could have been. “I never told you what I should have said...I just held it in.” If ever there were lyrics that encompassed the regret I had where Colt and I were concerned, this was it.

  “She’s good,” Colt noted, dropping a couple of dollars into her tips bucket, clueless to the way that song had twisted me up in knots for years over the feelings I harbored where he was concerned.

  “Yeah,” I agreed with a strained smile.

  He came back to stand behind me, bending to rest his head on my shoulder. We swayed side to side to the music. His hands were around my waist and mine resting on his. The heaviness the song had brought to my chest started to dissipate. I didn’t need to feel sad any longer. We were here together, and we were figuring this thing out. We were going to be okay.

  From there we got our bracelets and went for a whirl on the world-famous waterfront Ferris wheel. The view over the ocean was just breathtaking. “Wow,” I breathed out. My heartbeat quickened.

  Colton’s hand came to rest on my thigh and a lump lodged in
my throat. He moved a little higher and my body tensed. What was he doing? “Colt,” I rasped as my breath quickened and my head rolled back. “It, umm...” His hand went higher still, slipping beneath my skirt. Oh, dear God, yes. “Wh-what are you doing?” My head was swirling. I could hardly think straight.

  “Foreplay,” he rasped, brushing the tip of a finger along the fabric of my bikini bottom. Could he feel how wet I was? Colt began to hum to the tune of “Wild Horses.” Reese Witherspoon’s infamous rollercoaster scene from Fear played on a loop in my mind. He was trying to be funny. Watching that movie together was one of the most awkward preteen memories I had. But, it was really turning me on right now.

  “Colt,” I moaned as the video surveillance sign near the entrance came to mind.

  “Mhmm?” His finger moved to the elastic at my bikini line, teasing, and I nearly came on contact. The rush of the ride, the thrill of his touch. I was a live wire ready to burst into flames.

  “We’re on v-video,” I gasped as his finger dipped inside, grazing over my lips.

  My purse landed on my lap. “There.” A chill rippled through me as his tongue traced the shell of my ear. “All better.”

  The fact that whoever was watching these videos would have absolutely zero question as to what was going down in this car did cross my mind briefly, but in my pre-orgasmic state, his solution felt adequate—genius even.

  “Do you want me to stop?” his raspy voice threatened, causing my anxiety to spike.

  I slipped a hand beneath my skirt, curling my fingers around his wrist in a death grip. “Don’t you fucking dare.”

  There was a chuckle, then my world faded to black when Colton slid two fingers into my sex and leisurely began pumping them in and out. My body quaked with need as the pad of his thumb began to circle my swollen clit. Each stroke was measured, deliberate. This wasn’t some inexperienced boy. Colton was a skilled lover. He knew exactly what he was doing to me.

  “Oh, God,” I moaned, my ass lifting off the seat. The pressure building inside of me was too much. Air. I needed air.

  I felt the bite of his teeth on my earlobe, followed by the flick of his tongue. Thrashing in my seat, his mouth covered mine and he swallowed my screams. His other arm went around my waist, stilling my frantic movement and quite possibly saving my life. I was so far gone, there was no room for thought of trivial things like safety. Nothing else mattered but chasing that feeling.

  Just as the car made its final descent, Colton pulled his lips away and his forehead came to rest on mine. Our eyes locked, the heat in his stare scorching my skin.

  “The control booth is gonna thank you for that little performance.” He smirked. “So fucking hot.”

  Shoot me.

  My skin was on fire as we departed the ride, and it didn’t have a thing to do with the sun.

  Did that really just happen?

  We walked for a minute or two in silence before I’d finally worked up the nerve to glance in his direction. Colt stared down at me with a cocky grin. I had an urge to smack him, but in all honesty, he had every right to be proud. If I could spend the rest of my life with his hand in my panties, there would be no hesitation.

  “Can we go to bed now?” I whined, teasing-ish.

  “How ’bout some lunch?” He rubbed his washboard abs, and as if on cue, it growled. They had a special relationship, those two. I felt my eyes roll.

  “Fine,” I grumbled, pouting as I trailed a step behind.

  Colt led us over to Marisol, a Mexican restaurant at the edge of the pier. We were seated right away at an outdoor table with a great view of the ocean.

  “Mmm,” I moaned, breathing in the fresh, salty scent that hung in the air.

  Colt bit his lower lip. “Still thinking about it?” he teased, pressing his first two fingers together while arching them back and forth. His other hand shot up in an attempt to block the chip I threw at his face, and he let out a deep belly laugh.

  The sound of his hearty laughter gave me life. I felt the warmth deep in my chest and couldn’t help the big grin that split my face as I stared at my beautiful boy, wondering if I’d ever become used to this. To the giddy elation at finally having his attention lavished on me. To the empty pit in my stomach that was a constant reminder that this could all be gone in the blink of an eye. And if that were to happen...a lifelong friendship would go right along with it.

  Gah, I couldn’t think of that right now.

  “Maybe just a little,” I teased back, caressing the side of his calf with my foot beneath the table.

  Colton popped another chip into his mouth, chewed, and then swallowed. I was mesmerized.

  When did swallowing become a sex move? Well, for straight men anyway.

  His eyes grew serious. “I can’t stop thinking about it either.” Colton winked, giving me his signature lopsided grin, and the butterflies started up again. It was going to be a long fucking day.

  After lunch, we went on to tour the little aquarium. We strolled up and down the boardwalk for hours, listening to various street musicians. Amid crowds of people, we danced and goofed off like teenagers without a care for what anyone thought of us. We were just two crazy kids who may have always loved each other but were finally allowing ourselves the chance to fall.

  As we walked the last few paces to the beach house, my body began trembling with nerves. This was it. Tonight was the night, but in the back of my mind was a nagging fear: What if I didn’t live up to his expectations?

  “What’s the matter, Al?” Colt asked, pulling me from my thoughts. He was standing in the open doorway, and apparently, I had stalled a good five feet back to stare off into space.

  Smiling through my nerves, I shook it off and moved to join him. “Nothin’. I just got distracted, I guess,” I answered, lacing my arm through his. I hoped he couldn’t feel it shaking.

  “It happens,” Colt agreed, but his eyes told me he knew better. “Come on. Dinner should be ready.” Colton’s face glowed with excitement as he pulled me inside, shutting and locking the door behind us.

  “I thought we were here alone...” Please, please, please tell me we are alone.

  He looked back at me over his shoulder with a shit-eating grin. He knew exactly where my thoughts were. “We are alone. I had dinner delivered and set up while we were out.”

  “Well, look at you,” I mused, locking my hands around his neck from behind and jumping up onto his back. “All grown up and adulting.”

  “I have my moments...Don’t tell anyone.”

  Colt brought me up to a staircase on the third floor that led to a rooftop terrace that he’d neglected to show me earlier. “Holy shit.” My eyes about bugged out of my head. It was...everything. I was having a hard time absorbing it all. Next to the pool. Yes, pool, was a table with fancy covered dishes. On the other end was a cabana with a bed, draped in layers of sheer white curtains. It was picturesque. “Can we, uh, skip dinner and do that?” I asked, gawking and pointing.

  Colton choked on a laugh. “No worries, Allie. We’ll get there...eventually.” My heart sped up at the gravel in his voice. His warm hand cupped my cheek as Colton lowered his lips to mine. The kiss that followed was soft and slow. All lips and breath and toe-curling wonderful.

  “Let’s eat before our food gets cold.” I started to tell him that I couldn’t care less about the damn food, but Colton had worked so hard to make this day perfect. I at least owed it to him to see it play out the way he’d imagined it in his head.

  “Oh, thank God,” I said when he began removing the silver dome lids.

  Colt gave me a hefty dose of side eye. “Two minutes ago, you wanted to skip dinner altogether, and now you’re thanking the man upstairs?” He laughed. “Clearly I’m missing something here.”

  “I’m just relieved that it’s normal food.” I waved my hand over the spread of filet, potatoes, and green beans.

  “Mmhmm,” he agreed with a nod of his head. “Did you expect play food?”

  I spat out
a laugh. “No. I did half expect caviar and octopus,” I teased.

  What I didn’t expect was his face to fall. “Is this too much?” Doubt furrowed his brow.

  Shit. “No. I was just teasing, Colt. Everything is perfect...This has been the best day of my life.” I felt awful. Colt was always so upbeat and playful that I hadn’t even considered that I may have hurt his feelings with my remark.

  He perked up a little at that. “Seriously?” he asked, looking all boyish once again. I nodded my head, and I knew that he could see it in my eyes that I meant it. Colton blew out a sigh of relief. “Mine too.”

  The food was delicious and we both stuffed ourselves.

  “Wanna go try out that cabana now?” Colton teased, waggling his brows as I moaned in discomfort.

  “Sure, I could use a nap,” I fired back, frowning.

  We ended up in the pool. The sun was just beginning to set, casting an orange glow over the horizon, and I was in the arms of the sexiest man alive. Life was feeling pretty damn good. So were his hands, which were cupping my breasts, and his lips that were kissing my neck.

  Reaching between us, I slipped my hand into his trunks, palming the erection that had been poking my belly. An audible gasp slipped from between my lips when I felt how hard he was.

  His hips jerked back at my touch. “Allie, you don’t have to—”

  “Colton Fowler,” I growled, “if you deny me one more time, I will go straight up Lorena Bobbitt on your ass and feed this thing to the sharks.”

  His hands shot up, palms out. “Well then, by all means, have your way with me.”

  My heart raced as I slipped my thumbs into the band of his shorts, pushing them down until his hard cock jutted out into the water. Colton sucked in a sharp breath as I resumed stroking him in a slow and steady motion.

  His eyes grew bedroom heavy as his cock began to throb in my palm. “Allie,” he rasped, pulling my hand away and placing it on his chest. “Not like this,” he growled, covering my mouth with his. Colton’s hand dove into my bikini bottom, cupping my sex. With the butt of his palm, he applied pressure to my throbbing clit while sliding a finger along my opening. Then he pushed two fingers inside, pumping in and out while circling my nub with his thumb.