Be Mine, Sweetheart (Something Borrowed)

by Codi Gary

  “What’s up, man? It’s been a while. Although, I prefer this to your circus prom dream. That was just freaky.”

  Chris froze, shaking his head. “Are you real?.”

  Ray got up and came around to him. He was wearing the Raiders jacket Chris had bought him for his seventeenth birthday, even though Chris was a diehard 49ers fan. Ray gave him a one-armed hug, pounding him on the back and it felt so real, so good.

  “Does this feel real?”

  Chris tightened his hold on him. “Yeah.”

  Ray tried to end the hug, but Chris held on. “Whoa, what’s up with you?” Ray pulled away, eyeing him with confusion. “You act like I’m gonna die or something.”

  “You are, man. You’re dead.”

  Ray grinned. “I know. Just fucking with you.”

  “Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be in heaven or something?”

  “Yeah, but you obviously needed me, or I wouldn’t be here.”

  Chris glanced around the high school classroom. “This is a dream though, right? You’re just a figment of my overactive brain.”

  “It’s definitely a dream, but that doesn’t mean I’m not actually here. Pretty sure I’m your guardian angel.”

  Chris laughed and shook his head. “Come on. We watched A Christmas Carol when we were kids and you said that was stupid.”

  “True, but when the man upstairs tells you that your best friend needs some guidance, you hop off that cloud. It’s all about perspective, my friend.”

  Chris shifted his feet, uneasiness shrouding his joy. “So, you’ve been looking down on me?”

  “Not just you.”

  The tone in Ray’s voice was darker and Chris cleared his throat. “I’m sorry, man.”

  “Thanks for that. I mean, I understand. It’s been a bit and you’re both adults.”

  “But?” Chris asked.

  “How is this going to work, with me between you guys? If I had never been in the picture, would you have come back when she asked you to? Would you have dated in high school, had a terrible break up and never seen each other again? Did you ever think that maybe I was in the picture, because I kept you two from doing something stupid, like hooking up?”

  Anger ripped through Chris. “This wasn’t just hooking up.”

  “No, it was almost twenty years of repressed hormones that exploded in a moment of weakness.”

  Chris assumed Ray was belittling Kelly and his connection because he was pissed and ran his hands over his head. “Look, I’m sorry. We didn’t mean for this to happen.”

  Ray laughed. “Are you kidding me, man? I’m dead! Nothing I can do about it, and besides, I want Kelly to be happy. It’s killed me watching her cut herself off…pun intended.”

  Chris groaned. “Your jokes were always terrible.”

  “For real, man, I just want to make sure you know what you’re doing. Because if you screw this up and break her heart, I will haunt your ass forever.”

  Chris sat straight up in Kelly’s bed, dripping with sweat. His heart pounded in his chest and his whole body shook.

  “You okay?” Kelly asked, sleepily.

  He turned to her and watched her lay there, her eyes closed and the moonlight from the window casting shadows across her pale skin.

  “Yeah, I just got to get home and check on Fungi.”

  “Okay.”

  He climbed out of the bed and went downstairs to dress, still shaken from his dream, Ray’s words replaying in his mind.

  Make sure you know what you’re doing.

  He had no fucking clue.

  Chapter 20

  Kelly woke up and stretched, her arms going out alongside her. When her skin pulled on her injured wrist, she winced, suddenly wide awake. She sat up, wiping at her sleep-filled eyes and sighed. Pepper, who was sleeping at the end of the bed, got up and arched his back, yawning. He padded toward her slowly, his purr loud and rumbling in his chest.

  “Hey, my love. How are you?” she asked, her irritation with him from the night before forgotten as she stroked his soft, short fur.

  Pepper rubbed against her, his tail shaking straight in the air.

  “Yeah, me too.” She felt amazing this morning, relaxed and happy. All thanks to Chris…

  She frowned. Chris had gone to sleep with her. Where was he? Downstairs?

  “Chris?” she called.

  There was no answer, so she climbed out of bed and walked down the stairs. There were no cooking noises from the kitchen, the bathroom door was open, and he wasn’t in the living room. She looked out the window and saw his car was gone.

  He’d left without saying goodbye to her. Snuck out like a thief in the night.

  That son of a bitch!

  Kelly ran upstairs to get clothes on, furiously pulling on her jeans over a pair of bikini panties. She couldn’t believe that Chris, of all people, would bail after sex.

  She slipped a tank top on over her sports bra and went to get her keys from the counter downstairs. He was going to get a piece of her mind, and then some. Hitting and quitting your best friend was all kinds of wrong.

  Kelly pushed the speed limit on her way out of Sweetheart and when she parked in front of Chris’s house in Somerset, she was beyond reason. She marched up his porch and tried the knob, but it was locked.

  So, she did what any woman would in her situation. She pounded on his door at six in the morning.

  “Christian Thomas Ryan, you get your ass down here and open this door!”

  Bang! Bang! Bang! She slammed her fist against the wood until it creaked under the weight. She was ready to pound some more, but she heard a rush of footsteps inside and Chris threw the door open, wearing nothing but a scowl and a towel.

  “What in the fuck are you yelling about?”

  “You left me!”

  “What?”

  She pushed him back into the house and closed the door behind her. “You made love to me and then left after. You literally hit it and quit it with me.”

  Kelly saw his mouth twitch and she pointed her finger at him. “If you laugh at me, you can kiss your balls good-bye.”

  Chris wiped all humor from his face and grabbed her other hand, which was still pressed against his chest. “I didn’t ditch you. I woke you up an hour ago to tell you I was coming home to check on Fungi.”

  Kelly froze. “You did?”

  “Yeah, and you said, ‘okay.’ I figured I’d get cleaned up and bring you back some breakfast. Then, change your bandage before you headed into work.”

  Kelly wracked her brain, but none of this was ringing any bells. “I don’t remember that.”

  “Well, I did,” he said, frowning down at her. “I can’t believe you thought I would take off on you.”

  Her face burned with shame. “I’m sorry, I don’t remember. I was just surprised when I woke up alone and there was no note. I thought…that maybe your regretted it and took off so you didn’t have to deal with me.”

  “Geez, what the hell, Kelly?” He cupped her face in his hands and stroked her cheeks with his thumbs. “I swear, I said I was coming home. No matter what is going on with us, I would never hurt you. I thought you knew that.”

  Kelly did, at least, she thought she did. But this was her first time since Ray and she’d waited five years with him. They’d had a future planned. There was no plan with Chris. They’d slept together, and he’d said they would see where things went. It left her uneasy.

  “I’m sorry. Of course, I believe you. This is just a first for me, and I don’t know how to handle it.”

  “I told you, no matter what, we’re still Chris and Kelly. We are still the same people we were before last night. No matter what happens, we need to remember that.”

  But what are we together?

  She didn’t ask though, mostly because she was scared tha
t she didn’t know what answer she wanted him to give. Everything was just getting more complicated, and she didn’t like it.

  “How’s your wrist?”

  “It’s sore.”

  “I bet. Hang on, I’ll grab you some Motrin.” He kissed her forehead and pulled away. She watched him walk toward the kitchen, holding his towel up with one hand on his hip. She followed behind, some of the tension and worry disintegrating when she noticed the top of his ass was showing above the towel.

  She almost tripped as Fungi ran under her feet after his master, meowing loudly. The little fiend glanced over his shoulder at her, giving her a snooty look as if to say, “What are you doing here?”

  Chris grabbed a can of food from the cupboard and set it on the counter. “What’s up, dude? You hungry again?”

  “You wash your hands after you handle him, right?” she asked, thinking about his hands on her face and having a giant, red circle of ringworm show up there

  “Of course, I do. His spots are already looking better, anyway. Been doing the cream four times a day, like the vet told me.” He tossed her a pill bottle he’d pulled from the cupboard to her. “Get two and I’ll pour you some water.”

  She sat down, watching Chris walk around the kitchen, taking care of her like he always did. But as much as she tried to pretend that they were the same old Chris and Kelly from yesterday, there was a major change she couldn’t ignore.

  Kelly now knew what Chris had going for him under that towel.

  He set her glass down on the table in front of her. “There you go. I’m going to feed Fungi first, and then I’ll head on up and put on some clothes.”

  Or not.

  To her surprise, he squatted down in front of her just as she put the pills in her mouth. She took a sip…

  “Or we could go back into my bedroom and have makeup sex.”

  She almost choked on the water in her mouth. Luckily, the pills went down, and she spluttered with water.

  “What?”

  “I was just thinking, we’ve had fights in the past as friends, but sex has never been on the table afterwards.” He leaned close, his mouth right next to her ear. “Which means this should be really, really good.”

  His words sent shockwaves right to her core.

  “What do you say, Kel?” His lips lightly trailed over the skin of her neck and she was lost.

  Chapter 21

  Chris had every intention of telling her today that they shouldn’t have had sex last night. That they should go back to being friends and not overly complicate things.

  But that was before she’d come through the door, her eyes blazing with fury and hurt. Before her hands had touched his skin, and her gaze had traveled over him as though she couldn’t look long enough.

  All his good intentions had flown right out the window, and now here he was, carrying her into his bedroom, his towel in a wad on the kitchen floor.

  “I should shower before we…” she whispered against his mouth.

  “I don’t care.”

  “I do. I feel gross.”

  “Not what a guy likes to hear when you’re in his arms.” He stopped at the edge of his bed, and let her slide down his body. “What about your arm?”

  “The doctor said I could wash it, I just have to pat it dry.”

  “Okay.”

  He went into the bathroom and turned on the hot water, feeling her eyes on his ass as he waited for it to warm up.

  Chris adjusted the temperature until it was this side of warm, and faced her, crooking his finger. “How’s this?”

  She stuck her good hand in, bringing her chest flush against his body. “It’s perfect.”

  “Good.” He stepped inside, and winked at her. “Care to join me?”

  He watched Kelly pull off her tank top and bra in record time, and then kick off her flip flops. In her bare feet and chest, she shimmied out of her jeans and he couldn’t help but stare at the way her tits jiggled with the motion.

  Finally, naked, she unwrapped her arm and stepped in. He took her hand in his, turning it over so he could see the damage and he clucked his tongue. “Is the water too hot?”

  “No, it’s fine,” she said seconds before she stood on her tiptoes and plastered her body to his. He caught the back of her head in his hands, kissing her deeply, turning her so her back was in the middle, the two streams raining down on them from either side.

  Chris lifted her leg up and placed it on the step, giving him access between her legs. He poured some of his body wash in his hands and spread it over her collarbone, her shoulders. He avoided her arms, and moved onto her breasts, the bubbly suds leaving a trail as he swept his hands down her body. He rubbed over the short hair on her mound, and along the inside of her thighs.

  The soap was gone by now and he slipped his finger into her slit, sliding one into her hot channel. Then two. She leaned her head back against the shower wall with a sigh and he kissed the side of her neck. Her shoulder. All the while he pushed three fingers in and out of her.

  Chris used his thumb to press the button of flesh hidden in her folds and took her cry into his mouth as he kissed her. Warm water rained down on his back and head, sliding down his cheeks, and rivets trailed down over her breasts and belly. Chris quickened his motions, noting the tremble of her body as she drew close.

  Without warning, he pulled his hand out and cradled her thighs in his hands, lifting her up and pressing her into the wall.

  “I want you to come around my dick.”

  She laughed, throwing him for a moment until she breathlessly responded. “You’re usually so polite. It’s weird to hear you talk so dirty.”

  He pressed at her entrance. “Are you telling me to stop?”

  She shook her head. “No. No, I love it. I love hearing you lose control.”

  Chris kissed her as he thrust inside, her muscles squeezing him tight.

  “Mmmm,” she murmured.

  “Fuck, you feel better every time.”

  Her good arm went around his shoulder and he held her in place as he rocked against her, loving her hard nipples pressing into his chest. Her mouth under his, open and responsive, thrusting her little tongue against his as he slid in and out of her, feeling her muscles squeeze and quiver.

  She let out a high-pitched moan in his mouth and tore her lips from his, screaming, “I’m there. I’m there. Fuck, yes!”

  Chris sped up, long, hard thrusts as fast as he could move, catching up until he exploded inside her, shouting his joy and catching a stream of water in his mouth as he threw his head back.

  “Jesus, Kelly, you’re killing me.”

  Kelly’s laugh was husky. “Hey, you’re the one who wanted to shower with me. You could have just been patient.”

  “I’ve waited eighteen years to kiss you. I think I’ve been patient as hell.”

  He realized what he’d said aloud, and Kelly’s eyes went wide.

  “What?”

  “Nothing, I’m just saying we’ve been friends and…”

  “And you wanted to kiss me?” She stared at him with wide, earnest eyes. “Why didn’t you ever say anything?”

  He had a hard time meeting her gaze, especially since he was still hard inside her. He’d never talked about the times over the years where he’d been tempted to admit he wanted more from Kelly than friendship. First, it had been a betrayal to his best friend on every level. And then, there was the fact that taking that step with Kelly could potentially mean he’d lose her.

  “Because every time I felt it, life got in the way.”

  Her hand stroked over his cheek and chin. “What about now? Why is it different?”

  “I don’t know,” he said, honestly. “I think you telling me that you wanted to start dating pushed me to realize what I wanted. It was like a switch was flipped and I couldn’t stand to think
of losing you.”

  She frowned at him. “Losing me, how?”

  “Eventually, you were going to meet someone, and they’d take up all your time. They’d resent our friendship and I’d slowly be reduced to just your lawyer, and then your husband wouldn’t like even that, so he’d ask you to fire me, and then…hey, what’s wrong?”

  She was pushing him away frantically and he slipped reluctantly from her body, puzzled by the sudden change. Kelly reached over to turn the water off and left the shower, grabbing a towel from the linen closet.

  “Hey, where are you going?” he asked, pulling his own towel from over the bar.

  Kelly wrapped the towel around her body and turned around to face him, her features an angry mask. “You slept with me, so I wouldn’t date anyone else?”

  “What? No. That’s not what happened. We got caught up in the moment and I”—her expression darkened and he realized he was only making things worse—“I don’t mean that either.”

  “So, not only did you accidentally have sex with me, but you did it because you thought you would lose me?”

  “No, Kelly, I wanted you. I still want you.”

  She jerked back when he tried to reach for her again. “Do you? I mean, what do you want from me? You’ve had years to tell me that. But you wait until now, until another man is interested in me?”

  The mention of Hank Townsend pissed him off. “This has nothing to do with him. I was afraid to go here with you because I didn’t want to risk what we have for something that won’t last.”

  “Then why didn’t you just tell me that the other night? Instead, you made me think…hope, that there was something more between us.”

  “There is, obviously! How can you deny it after the way we were together?”

  Tears were pouring down Kelly’s cheeks now and he wanted to hold her, to erase the pain he’d caused but she wouldn’t let him near her. “I’m not talking about sex, Chris! I am talking about a future. You just admitted you weren’t sure if there was one here and you were scared to take the risk.”