Five Dates Only

by R. L. Kenderson

  When I didn’t think I could stand the torture of hanging on the precipice any longer, Caleb slipped his hand around to my front and pinched my clit between his fingers.

  I screamed as my orgasm flooded my body.

  Caleb quickly slapped a hand over my mouth, and I held on to his arm as my body shook.

  Caleb grunted. “You’re so tight; it’s hard to stay inside you.”

  I pulled on his hand to let him know I wouldn’t scream anymore, and he slid it down to my neck as his other hand dug into my hips before he started thrusting again.

  Normally, I didn’t like anything tight around my throat, but the way Caleb clutched me, my body against his as he stroked into me over and over, was incredibly sensual. It was like he couldn’t get enough of me, yet at the same time, he was so into what he was doing that he didn’t even notice how tightly he was holding me.

  I had just orgasmed, yet I could feel that telltale tingle deep inside me again.

  Caleb’s mouth was by my ear. “You’re getting tight on me again, baby. Are you going to come?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never come twice in a row before.” Like men, I needed a recovery period.

  The hand on my hip drifted down my lower abdomen until he was cupping my pussy. He pushed the heel of his hand down right over my pubic bone the same time he thrust into me.

  “Oh my God.”

  “Do you want me to stop?” he teased.

  “Don’t you fucking dare.” I put a hand over his lower one. “Again.”

  Caleb sucked on my neck as he rode me hard from behind. I knew he was close. I was okay with not coming again, but as he slammed into me one last time, he bit down on my neck, and I exploded once again.

  The next thing I was aware of was that the two of us were sitting on a chair positioned in the corner of the balcony. I was on Caleb’s lap, and he was still inside me. We were both breathing hard and not moving.

  “Holy crap, baby, that was—”

  We heard the sound of the front door opening, and voices carried upstairs.

  “Shit.” I quickly stood, pulling Caleb from my body.

  He hissed, but he quickly got up and went to the bathroom. The toilet flushed, and he came out two seconds later.

  “I can’t find my underwear,” I said in a panic. I had smoothed my dress down, and it almost went to my knees, but I would be mortified if the homeowners or other buyers found my panties lying somewhere.

  Caleb patted his shorts. “They’re in my pocket.”

  “Whew.” I flattened my hair down. “Do I look okay?”

  “You look like you’ve been fucked.”

  “Caleb.”

  He laughed. “You look fine, except …” He stepped forward and pulled one side of my hair to the front of my shoulder. “I left a little love bite on you.”

  I put my hand to my neck. “Thanks. I think we should get out of here.”

  “That sounds like a great idea.”

  Footsteps sounded on the steps as voices got louder, and soon, three people came into view. I recognized the other realtor, but I didn’t know her well. She had two women with her.

  “Hello,” she said.

  “Hi.” I put my hand on Caleb’s arm “Let’s go, shall we? Let them take a look.”

  “Right,” he said.

  The trio walked into the bedroom.

  We were right at the bedroom door when Caleb stopped and turned around. “Check out the balcony. It has an awesome view.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him and walked out the door.

  Caleb laughed and followed me.

  “You’re a turd,” I whispered.

  As soon as we were downstairs, he said, “Would you take back the turd comment if I told you I wanted to buy the house?”

  In all my excitement of putting a deal through for Caleb, I completely forgot to ask what had happened with Ted, and Caleb never brought it up.

  Twenty-Five

  Caleb

  The sound of a phone ringing woke me from my sleep, and Sloan shifted in my arms.

  “Turn it off,” she mumbled.

  “That’s your phone, babe.” I didn’t even know where mine was. I should probably find it first thing when I got up.

  “Ignore it then,” she said into her pillow.

  I lifted my head and looked at the clock. “Babe, it’s almost four in the morning on a Saturday. It’s probably important.”

  Sloan smacked her hand down on her nightstand to search for her phone. She held it up, and I could see that it was Melanie calling, even before Sloan said it out loud.

  “What the hell? It’s the middle of the night.”

  “It’s probably important.”

  Sloan swiped the screen and put the cell to her ear. “Hello?”

  “Hey, sorry to call so late, but is Caleb there?” Melanie asked.

  I could hear everything since Sloan and I were close together.

  “Um, yes. Hold on.” Sloan looked over her shoulder at me and held out her phone. “It’s for you.”

  She looked confused and curious, so I shrugged to let her know that I was as clueless as she was.

  “Hey. It’s Caleb.”

  “I’m sorry to ask you this, but could you come to my house and get your brother?”

  “What?” I pulled my arm out from under Sloan’s head and sat up.

  “Yeah. He showed up here, drunk, and won’t leave. I’d let him stay, but I’m worried that will send the wrong message.”

  “No, no. Don’t apologize. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  I heard Melanie sigh with relief. “Thank you.”

  I hung up Sloan’s phone and was ready to hand it to her when I realized she wasn’t in the room.

  I quickly pulled on my clothes from the day before and went in search of her.

  “Hey, can you let Bear in from outside while I get dressed?” she asked when I found her by the back door.

  I kissed her. “Yeah. Here’s your phone.”

  Sloan ran off to her bedroom, and since Bear was still sniffing around for the perfect place to go to the bathroom, I did a quick search of the kitchen and living room.

  My phone was halfway between two couch cushions, and I saw that I had several missed calls. The first one was over a half hour ago, and I cursed myself for not having my phone near me earlier.

  Bear pawed at the door the same time Sloan emerged from her room, dressed and ready to go.

  When we got to Melanie’s house, Sloan opened the door before I even shut off my car.

  “He’s in here,” Melanie said after Sloan and I exited my vehicle.

  As I walked past Melanie, I heard Sloan ask, “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah,” Melanie said in a less than convincing tone.

  I found Neil rummaging around in the kitchen.

  “Hey,” I said cautiously.

  My brother didn’t get drunk a lot. He drank with clients and at my parents’, but he usually stopped well before being drunk. I also hadn’t talked to him since I punched him in the face. He had avoided going to Mom and Dad’s the last time they asked us over for dinner. I’d assumed it was because his face hadn’t healed yet.

  He looked over at the sound of my voice and grinned. “Hey, Caleb.”

  Okay, so he wasn’t holding a grudge against me for hitting him. Or he was too intoxicated to care.

  “Hey. What are you doing?”

  “Looking for food. Melanie always keeps my favorite snacks at her house, but I can’t find any of them,” he whined.

  “Neil, you and Melanie aren’t dating anymore.”

  My brother opened another cupboard, ignoring me.

  “Neil.”

  He didn’t even bother to look at me.

  I had been hoping I wouldn’t have to get physical, so I’d been keeping my distance, but that wasn’t going to work. I stepped closer, grabbed my brother’s shoulders, and turned him around to face me.

  “Neil, she doesn’t have any of your food because the two
of you broke up. Remember?”

  Neil looked confused, and then, as realization kicked in, he went from puzzled to sad. “I fucked up.”

  “Yeah, ya did, buddy. You weren’t the best boyfriend. Why can’t you keep it in your pants?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know.”

  “Maybe you need to figure that out. Talk to someone about your habitual cheating. Have you ever been faithful to a girlfriend?”

  Neil’s brow furrowed as he looked off into the distance. We didn’t have time for his drunk brain to go through every woman he’d dated since high school.

  “You know what? Never mind.”

  Neil turned his eyes back to me. “I love her.”

  Ah, shit. Please don’t let him start crying.

  “I know you do, but you done fucked up. How would you feel if you found out Melanie had cheated on you?”

  His eyes blazed. “I would be furious.”

  “And hurt?”

  “Yes.”

  “So, how do you think Melanie felt when she found out about you cheating?”

  “Oh. I never thought of it like that.”

  Seriously? The guy was thirty years old and never thought about how the woman in the relationship felt. How did we come from the same parents?

  “I take back my maybe comment. You need to talk to someone. Like yesterday.”

  Neil nodded. “Yeah. Maybe I’ll do that.”

  I shook my head. “No maybe.” I started nodding. “You’re going to do that. Say it with me. I’m going to talk to someone.”

  “I’m going to talk to someone,” Neil parroted.

  “Good. Now, let’s go, so Melanie can go back to bed.”

  My brother sighed in defeat.

  I put my arm around him and led him out of the kitchen. “How did you get here? Please tell me you didn’t drive.”

  He shook his head. “Uber.”

  Thank God for that.

  Sloan and Melanie were standing close together in the living room.

  “Neil, I need you to tell Melanie that you’re sorry for coming here and scaring her.”

  My brother looked sheepish. “I’m sorry for showing up like I did.” He stepped forward. “But I—”

  I yanked him back by his collar. “No buts. Just apologize.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  I looked at Sloan. “Is it okay if we drop him off before going back to your place?” I glanced at Melanie. “Or did you want to stay here?”

  Melanie pushed Sloan away from her. “You go. I’ll be fine.”

  Sloan hesitated. “Are you sure? I can totally stay.”

  “No. I’m fine.” Melanie looked at Neil, who was now practically falling asleep on my shoulder. “He didn’t hurt me or anything. I just couldn’t get him to leave.”

  “If you’re sure?”

  Melanie smiled. “Yes. Go. I just want to go back to bed and sleep.”

  “Okay.” She turned to Neil and me. “Let’s get this jackass home,” she said.

  I chuckled.

  Neil lifted his head. “Jackass? Where?”

  I patted him on the chest. “In the mirror, buddy.”

  “Ha. Good one,” Neil said.

  It was time to get this jackass home.

  Twenty-Six

  Sloan

  I groaned in pleasure as the massage chair kneaded my muscles, and the woman at my feet took care of my toes.

  “Feel good?” Melanie asked.

  “Yes. Feels great. I needed a pedicure quite badly. You?”

  She grinned. “It feels wonderful. And, yeah, you can’t go to Hawaii with ugly toes.”

  I chuckled. “The horror,” I joked.

  “Are you ready for your trip?” she asked.

  “Yeah. I’m pretty much packed.” I looked at Mel. “I wish you could go with me. When was the last time we took a trip together?”

  “Hmm.” She laughed. “I can’t even remember.”

  “Me either. That’s bad. And this is why you should go to Hawaii with me.”

  “Nah. I don’t want to hear all the sex you and Caleb will be having from the room next to yours.”

  “You can get a room a few doors down from us.”

  Melanie barked out a laugh. “You didn’t even deny it.”

  I shrugged. Caleb was fantastic in bed. There was nothing to deny.

  “I would love to go, but this is going to be your romantic getaway.”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Caleb and I aren’t really a couple. We’re …” I had to stop and think about this one. “We’re partners with benefits. He scratches my back, and I scratch his.”

  Mel’s brow furrowed. “I get why you’re helping him, but what is he doing for you?”

  Abort. Abort. My brain panicked.

  She still didn’t know that Caleb had figured out that we had vandalized Neil’s car. Or that he had threatened to tell if I didn’t agree to his deal. And, now that I liked Caleb, I really didn’t want her to know and think badly of him.

  “Uh … he’s buying a house from me,” I said.

  She looked skeptical. “Yeah, but that’s your job. And he was going to buy a house anyway. From you or someone else. I don’t really think it’s a fair trade.”

  “It is, okay?” I blurted out.

  “Okay.” She shook her head. “You’re acting weird.”

  “I’m just nervous about the trip.” It wasn’t a total lie. I was excited, but I was anxious, too, about Ted and Mary being there.

  “Is that why you wanted me to come with?” She stuck out her lip in mock sadness. “Is someone afraid she likes someone else more than she should?”

  “No,” I denied.

  She snorted. “Yeah, right. Caleb is a great guy. Look how he came to the rescue last weekend when Neil showed up at my house. He didn’t even hesitate.” She wiggled her eyebrows at me. “If you weren’t sleeping with him, I would.”

  “You can’t get involved with your ex’s brother.”

  Melanie shrugged. “Says who? Is there a law I don’t know about?”

  “Well … no. But you just can’t.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe, when you and Caleb ‘break up,’” she said, using air quotes, “I can ask him out.”

  I didn’t know what to say. I was getting mad at my friend, and I didn’t want to. Caleb wasn’t really my boyfriend. I shouldn’t be getting upset.

  “You know she’s messing with you, right?” said the lady giving Melanie a pedicure.

  My eyes flew to Melanie’s, who was trying not to laugh.

  “Why?” I asked.

  “Because I want you to realize how much you like him. Duh.”

  I scowled at her. “I don’t like you right now.”

  “You love me. You just don’t like the fact that I’m right.” She put her hand on my arm. “You might have gotten involved with him for odd reasons, but it doesn’t change how you feel.” She removed her arm and sat back in her seat.

  “How do I know if he likes me?”

  She burst out laughing as if I’d told her a great joke. “You’re kidding, right?”

  I scoffed. “No.”

  “Trust me. He likes you.”

  “What are you, psychic?”

  “No, I just have two eyes and can see the way he looks at you.”

  I tried not to smile but didn’t really succeed.

  Two days later, we were flying into Honolulu. Now that Caleb, Mary, Ted, and I were finally here, I was really excited.

  August probably seemed like an odd month to go to Hawaii, but I wasn’t complaining since the tickets were free. I had looked up the weather before leaving, and the average wasn’t that much higher than back home in Minneapolis, but the humidity was lower.

  Some people thought it was cold all the time in Minnesota since we were one of the coldest states in the continental US, but it got hot there, too. And an average humidity of ninety percent was what we had to deal with in the summer.

  Hawaii was going to feel great. Especially
all those days at the beach or in the ocean. I might burn, but I still loved sitting at the beach.

  We picked up our rental car and headed to our hotel. As Caleb and I unpacked some of our stuff in our hotel room, I realized it was a good thing I had taken my mom’s advice and not shut Caleb out. It would have been a long and awkward trip.

  Instead, it was going to be fun, and as a bonus, I would get to have sex with Caleb every night.

  “What are you grinning about over there?” he said from our king-size bed.

  I looked over my shoulder. “We’re in Hawaii. How can you not be grinning?”

  He shook his head and tried to look sad. “And here I thought, you were happy because you got to be with me for five straight days.”

  I didn’t want to let him know how right he was.

  I snorted. “You wish.” I put the last of my clothes in a drawer to make it easier to keep them arranged, and then I turned around. “If anything, you should be happy that you get to spend five straight days with me.”

  “Who says I’m not?”

  “I don’t see a smile on your face,” I pointed out.

  “Maybe you need to come closer.”

  I sashayed closer to the bed. When my knees hit the mattress, I said, “I’m closer, and I still don’t see a smile.”

  Caleb grabbed my hand and yanked me down on the bed.

  I laughed and rolled over on my back to see Caleb grinning.

  “Now, I’m happy,” he said and kissed me.

  Twenty-Seven

  Caleb

  “When are you going to pop the question?” Ted asked me at breakfast on our third day in Hawaii after Sloan and Mary went to use the restroom. He rolled his eyes. “Mary keeps asking me about it.”

  “I don’t know,” I answered honestly because I really didn’t know. I was hoping never.

  I still hadn’t told Sloan about the ring. I had meant to talk to her, but after the amazing sex we’d had, I hadn’t wanted to ruin the rest of the evening.

  And, up until we’d left, I had secretly hoped Frank wouldn’t come through and get the ring finished, but he called me the day before we left. I considered pretending like I hadn’t gotten the voice mail, but Ted came out of his office minutes later with a smile on his face. Frank had called Ted, too, when I hadn’t answered my phone.