by Ali Parker
I closed my eyes and gave in to the sensations spiraling around my body like a mini-tornado. I let myself get lost in the moment, completely wrapped up in the essence of him. Only his cock anchored inside me grounded me. I was his to command.
His fingers dug into my flesh. I felt him stiffen and heard him gasp for breath. He was there with me. He was feeling that pull of ecstasy that was so powerful it was almost frightening. It was all-consuming, swallowing every drop of air.
He jerked inside me, releasing himself deep inside my body as we got lost in the tornado together. I could envision us clinging together, our naked bodies intertwined as a wild storm raged around us.
I dropped my head low, tossing it back and forth as I let the orgasm consume all my senses. He stroked a hand down my spine before cupping my ass. I opened my eyes when the spasms slowed. He pulled out of me, sliding up to the head of the bed and sitting up. He watched me as I crawled up to him before collapsing against him.
“Damn, woman,” he muttered. “I think you might just kill me.”
I laughed. “I think it’s the other way around. I feel like my head exploded.”
He reached over and grabbed one of my thick thighs, hiking my leg over his lap. “It wasn’t your head that exploded.”
I nervously laughed. “I was rather aroused.”
“Aroused? You soaked me and it felt amazing.”
I wasn’t embarrassed. At least, I didn’t feel embarrassed. It was a little strange to be talking like that with him, but if not with him, then who? He had seen me naked, seen me at my most vulnerable. He was a man I could tell anything.
“Are you sure you’re okay with me staying over?” I asked.
“Yes.”
“Do you think I’ll meet your son anytime soon?”
I felt him stiffen under me. I had hit a nerve. “Things are a little tense with him. I’d like to wait before I tell him about you.”
I wasn’t going to deny it stung a little. “I see.”
His hand rubbed over my thigh. “It’s not that I’m ashamed of you. It’s just, well, it’s going to be a conversation that is going to be a little uncomfortable. To be perfectly honest, I’m a little nervous about it.”
“You don’t have to tell him,” I said.
“I do. I don’t like sneaking around.”
“Is that what we’re doing?” I asked.
“No, not really, but I don’t think he’s ready to have a family dinner with you.”
“I guess we’re secret lovers,” I whispered.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, no one at school can know and your son can’t know. That means it’s a secret. We’re on the down-low.”
He was quiet for a while, his hand gently stroking up and down my leg. “That’s not very adult-like, is it?”
I shrugged, leaning back to look at him. “I think it’s very adult-like. We’re protecting my job and your son. It would be easy to be open about what we’re doing. It’s much harder to keep it a secret. Adults have to generally choose the hard way.”
“I don’t think I like being an adult all the time.”
I giggled softly. “No kidding. If only they would have warned us there were bills and stress and life-altering decisions. But there is something else.”
“What would that be?”
I pulled myself up and then straddled him. “This. I like being an adult and getting to do this.”
“This?” he asked, his brows arching. “What is this?”
“This is me riding you. This is me making us both feel really good.”
He leaned forward and kissed me. “Fine, you’ve convinced me. Adult me all you want. I’m your very willing victim.”
“Ah, I thought you might change your mind about adulting.”
“Leila?” he whispered.
“Hmm?” I murmured, dropping my mouth to his neck and suckling the skin just below his beard.
“Adult me, hard and fast. Make me scream.”
I shuddered; my body immediately ready for him all over again. I rose up, finding his hard length and slowly sliding down. “I better hear some screaming or I’m going to have to keep doing this over and over.”
He groaned, his eyes closing as I rolled my hips forward. “Over and over,” he repeated.
I closed my own eyes and enjoyed the ride. We had all night. I was going to show him just how good it could be to be an adult.
Chapter 40
Christopher
I woke up with a start when I heard a door close. It had not closed—it had been slammed. I lifted my head from the pillow. Leila was still asleep. I took a second to admire how beautiful she looked while she slept. I noticed a bit of whisker burn on her cheek and couldn’t help but smile. I had a feeling her inner thighs would also be sporting the same redness. Any chance of having a little morning action was stolen away with the slamming of the front door.
I could hear stuff being slammed and tossed around and knew there was no way I was going to being able to ignore it. I quickly extracted my arm from under Leila and quietly got out of bed without jostling her. I pulled on some sweats and walked out of the room, quietly closing the door behind me. I didn’t want Olin to find Leila in my bed. That was not the way I envisioned their first meeting.
I headed downstairs, pausing about halfway down. I assumed it was Olin, but I couldn’t say for sure. I hoped a burglar would be smart enough not to slam doors and wake up the sleeping occupants. I was probably the one man in Texas that was unarmed. I thought about going into the hall closet and grabbing Olin’s baseball bat to arm myself.
Then I heard him curse. I smirked. That was my kid. I was really going to have to talk to him about his mouth. I tried to control my own cursing around him, but I knew I slipped from time to time. I walked into the kitchen and found Olin glowering at the toaster. His hair was messed up and he was wearing the same clothes he had been wearing when he left the day before.
“Did the toaster piss you off?” I joked.
His glare turned on me. “No,” he snapped.
“Was it the waffles?” I said, prodding him a little more. Usually, he didn’t mind a little teasing. Usually, he gave as good as he got. I should have noticed there was nothing usual about him in that moment.
“No, Dad!” he shouted. “It isn’t funny. You’re not funny!”
I could see the waves of anger coming off him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you woke up on the wrong side of the bed, assuming you even went to bed.”
He spun around and looked at me, giving me a glimpse of eyes that were clear but sporting some dark circles. “I’m not in the mood. Just leave me alone.”
“What’s going on?” I asked. “I don’t want to leave you alone. Talk to me.”
“Nothing is going on,” he groaned. “Just leave me alone. Please.”
I grabbed the juice from the fridge and poured two glasses. I waited, giving him a couple of minutes to work through whatever it was that had upset him. He gnashed at the frozen waffle, nearly shredding it. I sat down on one of the stools, letting him know I wasn’t going anywhere. I had learned the quiet support was often better than me spouting off words of wisdom.
“Want something more than waffles?” I offered. “I can whip up some scrambled eggs.”
“No. Waffles are fine.”
“You’re home early,” I stated. “I thought you were spending the day at the batting cages.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t feel like going. Like I said, I’m not in the mood.”
“Swinging a bat and slamming it into a ball is a great way to get out some frustration and anger.”
“I don’t want to do batting practice,” he mumbled.
“Were you with Ben or Dan or I forgot what his name was?” I said, knowing damn well it was Ben, but I wanted to sound casual.
“I was with Ben.”
I nodded. “What did you guys do last night?”
“We went to a party.”
I cringed but
did my best to hide my irritation that he’d gone to another party. “Are you in trouble?” I asked in a serious voice. I would hire an attorney. I was already thinking about the punishment I was going to dole out. I supposed I should probably find out what the crime was before I decided on the punishment.
“I’m not in trouble. Shit. Why do you always assume the worst?”
“I’m sorry. I jumped to conclusions. What happened? You’re clearly upset.”
“She was there.”
I nodded. “Who was there?”
“Jen,” he said with obvious exasperation.
I tried to remember he was upset, and I was there to comfort him. I couldn’t have possibly known who she was, but I wouldn’t let him see my frustration. “Did you two have a fight?” I asked.
He sneered. “Not exactly.”
“Exactly what then?”
“She was with another guy. I walked in and she was sitting on his lap, her tongue halfway down his throat.”
I instinctively cringed and drew back. “Ouch.”
“No kidding,” he snapped. “She’s been seeing both of us.”
“I’m sorry. Did you talk to her?”
He made a face. “About what? There’s nothing to talk about.”
“I thought you said the two of you weren’t boyfriend and girlfriend?” I questioned.
He slammed down the empty glass. “We aren’t but that doesn’t mean she goes off with another guy.”
“Does she know that?” I asked gently.
He scowled. “Obviously.”
“It isn’t so obvious, at least it wasn’t to me,” I said. “Maybe—”
“Good morning,” Leila said, coming into the kitchen wearing the clothes from the night before.
I looked at Olin, judging his reaction. It wasn’t good. He shot me one of the dirtiest looks he’d ever given me. It wasn’t just anger. I saw hurt. My heart physically hurt when he looked at me. I could see the pain and disappointment.
He walked out of the room, saying nothing to Leila. I blew out a breath and slid off my stool. “Sorry,” I muttered.
“I walked in on something,” she said.
I nodded. “He had a bad night.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” I said, knowing it wasn’t okay.
She went up on her toes and gave me a quick kiss. “I should probably go. You’ve got some stuff to handle.”
“I’m sorry,” I said again. “I really am.”
“It’s okay, I’ll go.”
“It’s probably for the best,” I admitted. “I need to talk to him. I guess this is my fault. I should have told him. This kind of compounded things.”
She nodded. “It’s really okay. I get it. Take your time. Give me a call later if you can. If not, don’t worry about it.”
“Thank you. I’ll walk you out.”
I walked her outside, standing barefooted on the front stoop and watching her leave. Then I walked back in the house, knowing I was about to have a very bad day. I couldn’t envision any scenario where Olin would come downstairs and tell me everything was great.
I reminded myself he had encouraged me to see women. He had told me he didn’t want me alone. I had a feeling I was damned if I did and damned if I didn’t. There was no right way to navigate these tricky waters.
I walked back into the kitchen to start some coffee. I was going to need a lot of coffee for the day. I took my coffee and sat outside. I mulled over what to do next. I needed to talk to him about Leila. I wanted his blessing. I had to decide whether I could continue to see her if he really didn’t like it. Could I risk alienating him to make myself happy?
I heard a noise in the kitchen. Olin was back. I had to take the one chance I had to talk to him before he ran off and locked himself in his room again. I went into the kitchen, feeling guilty. I shouldn’t feel guilty, but I did.
“Can we talk for a minute?” I asked.
“No.”
“Olin, I want to talk to you about Leila,” I said.
He scoffed. “Leila? That’s her name? Where’d you pick her up? The local bar? Is that who you spent New Year’s with?”
“You’re not being fair,” I told him.
“Life isn’t fair,” he snapped. “Isn’t that what you always told me?”
I sighed. “You’re right. Life isn’t fair, but you can be fair. You told me to go out, to date. Are you mad at me or are you mad because of what Jen did?”
“Both,” he mumbled refusing to look at me.
“Jen betrayed you. I’m sorry about that. I’ll tell you it probably won’t be the last time. Dating sucks. Women won’t always treat you right. You might be cheated on again. I hope you don’t, but you can’t let it ruin your day. You can move on. You’re a good-looking kid with a bright future.”
“There are other fish in the sea, right?” he quipped.
I shrugged. “In a nutshell, yes.”
He looked at me, his face twisted into an ugly sneer. “I guess you would know.”
“As in?”
“As in you’re out there trying to sleep with all the fish. You’ll pick up any girl that comes by. You’ll be sleeping with the whole damn town in no time. I guess it didn’t take you long to get back into the saddle.”
I said nothing. He stared at me with open animosity. He smirked and walked away. Instead of going back to his room, he headed for the front door. I heard it slam. It was one of the reasons I didn’t want him to have a car. It gave him way too much independence.
I headed upstairs, going to my room. My eyes moved over the messy bed. I walked into the bathroom, staring at my reflection in the mirror. I didn’t know what I was doing. I felt like I was living in two different worlds.
There was the world where I got to move on with my life with a woman I cared about and there was the world where I focused on being a dad and didn’t worry about the loneliness I felt. Olin was my priority. I knew that I wanted to make him happy and I wanted to give him all he needed to be a healthy, happy kid. However, to do that, I would be sacrificing my own happiness.
How good of a parent would I be if I was miserable?
I turned on the shower, needing to start the day over again. I let the water sluice over my body, my face hammered by the spray. I got out of the shower and dressed for the day before stripping the bed and carrying the sheets to the laundry room.
I was sure Olin would be back soon. I’d take him out for lunch and talk with him. I was hoping his reaction had been a little overdramatic because of what had happened with his girlfriend. His nerves were already raw and seeing Leila had just exacerbated his own pain and suffering.
It would all be okay. He’d cool off and I would explain to him who Leila was. I’d make sure he understood I wasn’t sleeping with the whole town. Leila was the first woman I had been with since his mother died, and I needed him to know that. I needed him to know Carlie wasn’t easy to forget. Hell, I would never forget her, but I had to move on.
I couldn’t live in the past. I had to make Olin understand that I could be a good father and have someone special. All I could do was wait for him to come back. And then hope like hell he’d give me a chance to talk.
Chapter 41
Leila
I had gotten a rather vague text from Christopher last night and nothing more. I felt horrible for crashing into the kitchen and interrupting the father-son thing. I should have stayed put. I had woken up and found Christopher missing from bed. I assumed he was in the kitchen making coffee like he had before. I had gotten up and headed downstairs.
I walked right into the middle of something between Christopher and his son. I had sensed it the moment it happened, but I was too late. There was no turning back. The kid had seen me, and he was not happy about it.
I walked into my office, dropping my briefcase on the desk and taking my seat. I looked at the picture on the wall and smiled. I would always remember the students in that class. Not because they had impressed me, but
because Christopher had. I had looked at the picture about a million times. They had used a selfie-stick and taken the picture in the classroom. It was goofy. Half of them were looking at the wall or each other.
There was a knock on the door. I silently groaned, assuming it was a student stopping by, even though it was not my scheduled office hours. I got up, smoothed down the blazer I was wearing, and opened the door.
“Christopher!” I exclaimed.
“Hi.”
“Hi,” I said, looking around him to make sure there was no one around. “What brings you by? Is everything okay?” I had tried to prepare myself for him dumping me. Last night I had spent way too much time thinking about the father and son situation. If the son didn’t like me, the father would dump me. He would have to in order to keep the peace with his kid.
He looked a little rough around the edges. That usual suaveness I had come to expect from him was missing. “Can I come in? I know it isn’t your scheduled hours, but I was hoping we could talk for a minute.”
“Sure,” I said, pulling open the door and gesturing for him to take a seat. “How are you doing?” I asked with genuine concern.
He sat down and let out a sigh. “I’m fine. I wanted to apologize for yesterday. I feel horrible about what happened.”
“Don’t feel bad,” I told him, sitting on the edge of my desk. “He wasn’t expecting to see a woman in his kitchen.”
“No, but he usually has better manners than that. I wasn’t expecting him to be quite so rude.”
“It’s not a big deal,” I assured him. “Did you guys get a chance to talk after I left?”
He groaned. “Not really. I tried but he’s not exactly the kind of kid who talks a lot in general.”
“I don’t think many teens are. At least, not with their parents. They’ll talk, or text, all day with their buddies, but not with the parents. It isn’t all that different from the students in my class. They don’t talk to teachers either. It isn’t anything strange.”
He sighed. “I don’t have a great relationship with him. I should. I’m his only parent. I’m his only family. I should have a better relationship with him.”
