Tangled Hearts: Friends to lovers

by Jennifer Hartley

  Adam paced in the bathroom, willing himself to relax. He couldn’t believe how nervous he was. He had never been this nervous before. He tried to take a few relaxing breaths which did little to relieve his anxiety.

  “Adam?” came Kimberly’s voice as she knocked.

  “Coming,” he managed, in a strangled voice.

  Kimberly tried the door, worried. It was unlocked, and she sighed as she saw Adam leaning against the sink as he tried to relax.

  “Adam?” she asked softly.

  “Hey…sorry,” said Adam, unable to explain further at that moment.

  Kimberly went up to him, placing her arms around him.

  “Breathe,” she said simply.

  He closed his eyes, relaxing against her. Kimberly said nothing. She merely held him as they synchronized their breathing.

  “I’m so sorry, Kim. I got so nervous. I’m better now,” he said as they parted.

  “It’s just me,” said Kimberly helpfully.

  “Just you – just the gorgeous woman who makes me love her more every day. Yes, just you,” said Adam, kissing her forehead softly.

  “You’re so adorable when you’re nervous,” smiled Kimberly.

  “Are you a hundred, a thousand, a million percent sure about this, Kim? We can’t take it back, I don’t want you to regret anything,” said Adam.

  “I have never been surer that I want this,” said Kimberly. “I couldn’t regret anything with you.”

  “Would you regret it?” she asked, worried.

  “No, never,” said Adam, touching her cheek gently.

  Kimberly nodded. “So, are you going to kiss me?” she asked.

  “That would help,” agreed Adam, laughing.

  He captured her lips with his and Kimberly wrapped her arms around him. Soon her legs were wrapped around him too as he picked her up without breaking the kiss and took her back into the bedroom.

  Chapter 8

  Gently placing her on the bed, he settled next to her, still not breaking the kiss.

  Kimberly pulled away briefly to make quick work of the buttons on his shirt, and he allowed her to take it off, helping her as she pushed it back over his shoulders. He took it off, not caring where it fell.

  Kimberly then busied herself covering the skin she’d exposed with kisses. Adam let her take that control. She knew he’d have trouble and she was helping the situation by taking the lead.

  “You can touch me,” she said quietly, taking his hand and placing it against her breast.

  He put his head down against her chest, managing a chuckle.

  “I’m sorry to be so nervous,” he murmured, looking up at her.

  “You’re adorable,” smiled Kimberly, stroking his hair.

  “I’m ruining this for you, though, being too nervous,” said Adam softly.

  “No, you’re not,” said Kimberly immediately.

  She moved her hand to his cheek, lightly tracing the outline of his jaw, tracing his lips and letting her hand trail down to his neck and chest. He swallowed, his body reacting to her touch.

  He kissed her, their tongues tangling, both taking the time to explore the other’s body. Kimberly sighed against his lips as he let his hands start exploring, cupping her breast and squeezing gently. He soon had her out of her dress, and he looked at her adoringly.

  “You’re so beautiful,” he said, his eyes taking in every inch of smooth skin.

  Kimberly smiled, a little shy now, but she reached down to remove his pants, watching Adam’s face as he realized what she was doing. The offending item of clothing removed, she took him in.

  Running her hands along his abs, she watched his reaction as her fingertips brushed against his skin.

  “You’re gorgeous,” she said quietly, nuzzling his neck.

  Adam merely kissed her in response, and he didn’t know where the courage came from, but at some point, he’d removed what remained of both their clothing. Somehow, he still needed to ask Kimberly again for her permission before letting himself freely caress and kiss her, and she nodded, amused and turned on at once.

  That’s when he finally relaxed; he knew this is what Kimberly wanted. As she reacted to his kisses and caresses and freely touched him, exploring his body, he let his guard down to enjoy the experience. And once they’d experienced it, it was hard to stop.

  In the morning, Kimberly woke up. She didn’t know when they’d actually fallen asleep. She just knew that it had been only a few short hours ago. At some point, they’d showered together and fallen into bed again, extremely satisfied and exhausted.

  It was with a feeling of dread that she realized she was in bed alone. She sat up, anxiously scanning the room. The bathroom door was open. She wasn’t wearing anything, and Adam hadn’t been either. She saw that his clothes that had been thrown haphazardly on the floor the night before were gone. She checked her phone, seeing no messages. Her stomach was in knots, but she tried to relax and think about getting ready for practice that day. She was about to get up when the door opened, and Adam entered carrying coffees and a few paper bags.

  “Adam,” she breathed, a sigh of relief escaping her.

  Adam took one look at her worried expression and quickly put down the items he held.

  “Hey beautiful,” he said, sitting down on the bed beside her.

  Kimberly didn’t have time to laugh at that new nickname before he pulled her into a hug, kissing her bare shoulder softly.

  “I thought I’d be back before you woke up, sorry,” he said quietly. “I got us some breakfast. The pastries may or may not be green tea flavored. I’m not sure,” he added with a chuckle.

  “Thank you,” smiled Kimberly, her worries completely diminished now by his presence.

  “No, I know that worried expression. What did you think?” said Adam, gently stroking her cheek.

  “I didn’t know where you were. I worried you’d gone,” said Kimberly quietly.

  “Is that possible you think?” asked Adam, kissing her cheek and then that spot on her neck that he loved so much.

  “No,” managed Kimberly, completely distracted by him again.

  “I’ll leave you a note next time, so you don’t worry,” said Adam, kissing her lips lightly.

  Kimberly grinned. “You’re the best; thank you for getting breakfast.”

  “I love looking after you,” said Adam with a smile.

  “I’ll just go put something on,” she said.

  Adam grinned, and she swatted his arm lightly.

  “Look away,” she said.

  “That’s like asking me not to look at the most gorgeous sight ever,” grumbled Adam.

  Kimberly was a vision, her hair tousled from sleep, her body not entirely hidden by the sheet and she didn’t pay too much heed when it slipped down as she moved.

  Kimberly blushed and fixed him with what she hoped was a stern look as she got out of bed, grabbed some clothes from her suitcase, and went into the bathroom.

  Adam had looked, she’d seen the appreciative look he’d given her, and her cheeks were burning a little as she freshened up, putting on leggings and a t-shirt for practice.

  Exiting the bathroom, she saw Adam had set out the pastries on plates from the room’s kitchenette on the small table. He pulled out a chair for her, and she smiled, sitting down. Dropping a kiss onto her hair, he sat down beside her.

  “How are you this morning?” he asked her, a little nervous.

  “I’m fantastic….and sleepy,” smiled Kimberly.

  “We’re both going to be sleepy today,” said Adam with a wry grin.

  “No regrets?” he asked, his eyes on hers.

  “None at all,” said Kimberly, kissing him. “You?” she asked as she pulled away slightly to look at him.

  “No regrets,” said Adam. “Last night was…special.”

  “It was very special,” agreed Kimberly, blushing.

  “I love you,” said Adam.

  “I love you too,” said Kimberly with a smile.

&n
bsp; Adam grinned, kissing her tenderly and she wrapped her arms around him, enjoying the moment.

  “I’m going to need you to keep me in line,” joked Adam softly as they briefly parted.

  “Mmm, why?” asked Kimberly, gently nibbling on his lower lip.

  “Because I won’t be able to stop,” said Adam.

  “I won’t be able to either,” laughed Kimberly.

  “One of us is going to have to be the responsible one,” murmured Adam, kissing her again, both hands on her cheeks.

  “Can we take turns being responsible?” breathed Kimberly.

  “Damn….so it has to be me right now?” asked Adam, kissing her once more longingly.

  “Uh-huh,” said Kimberly, wondering how important practice really was.

  Adam groaned. “You are not making being responsible easy.”

  “I’m not,” agreed Kimberly.

  She made an effort to behave, pulling back and fixing him with a grin.

  Adam grinned back, kissing her cheek and handing her one of the coffees.

  They started on breakfast, talking and laughing.

  “Ah, good coffee,” said Kimberly, taking a long sip. “You found the good stuff.”

  “It’s pretty good,” agreed Adam.

  They shared the pastries, and as Kimberly bit into one with a green filling, she laughed.

  “This one really is green tea flavored,” she said.

  She held out the pastry to Adam, daring him to take a bite. Adam bit into it, chewing and swallowing thoughtfully. “Not bad actually.”

  “Yes, it’s nice,” said Kimberly.

  Kimberly’s alarm went off, and she quickly got up to silence it. She always set the alarm for practice; she was not a morning person at all so was always prepared.

  “Damn,” said Adam. “I need to go change,” he said.

  Kimberly sat back down beside him, affectionately ruffling his hair.

  “We have 15 minutes,” she said.

  He got up, leaning down to kiss her.

  “I’ll change and be back in a few minutes,” he said.

  “Alright,” said Kimberly, squeezing his hand.

  Kimberly put away the remains of breakfast, now taking a moment to think back to last night’s activities. She blushed; it had certainly been worth the wait. Every kiss, every touch, every sigh and whispered ‘I love you’ played over in her mind. They’d explored each other over and over again. It was like the floodgates had opened. It had been everything she’d dreamed of and so much more.

  Adam re-entered the room using the key card she’d given him, ready for practice.

  Kimberly stopped daydreaming, trying to look innocent though her cheeks flushed as Adam stepped over to her.

  “What were you thinking?” he asked, kissing her shoulder.

  “Last night, how special it was,” said Kimberly quietly, her cheeks burning.

  Adam grinned, kissing her cheek. “It was very special,” he agreed.

  Kimberly was still blushing, and he touched her burning cheek.

  “That makes you even more beautiful,” he said.

  “What, blushing?” asked Kimberly with a chuckle.

  “Uh-huh,” said Adam, kissing her lightly.

  “I am so sleepy,” murmured Kimberly, hiding a yawn behind her hand as they sat down on the bus.

  Adam nodded, leaning his head against hers for a moment.

  “You can try to sleep for a few minutes,” he said.

  “Hey lovebirds…how was the date?” asked Brianna, boarding the bus and grinning as she settled into a seat across the aisle with Henrique.

  “Bria!” exclaimed Kimberly. “Later.”

  “Now,” said Brianna.

  She got up and motioned to Adam to move over to sit with Henrique.

  “You are so bossy when you want the gossip, Brianna,” he grumbled.

  “Better believe it,” said Brianna with a smile.

  Adam moved as Henrique threw him an amused look and Brianna settled beside Kimberly.

  “Spill,” she began.

  Kimberly laughed.

  “No stopping you, I see,” she said.

  “No, I’ve waited forever. I deserve all the details,” said Brianna.

  “We had a really great time,” said Kimberly.

  “Is that all?” asked Brianna.

  Kimberly sighed, lowering her voice to a whisper and giving Brianna a rundown of the evening up to the dinner and boat cruise.

  “How much heavy petting was there?” asked Brianna, satisfied up to that point.

  “Bria…a lot,” muttered Kimberly.

  “Alright,” said Brianna with a grin.

  “I love you, but I’m going to kill you,” laughed Kimberly.

  Brianna laughed, getting up.

  “Better disappear then before you do,” she said.

  She pushed Adam back into the seat next to Kimberly, and he sighed dramatically.

  “Girl talk is exhausting,” he said.

  Kimberly laughed, snuggling against his side. He wrapped his arm around her, and soon they were getting off the bus at the arena.

  “I am so sleepy,” said Kimberly.

  “Early night tonight I think,” agreed Adam.

  “Early or more of the same?” said Kimberly with a smirk.

  Adam stared at her for a moment, raising an eyebrow.

  “I am so easily distracted right now; help me keep my mind innocent please,” he murmured.

  “I’ll try,” smiled Kimberly.

  Adam pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her waist and dropping a kiss onto her shoulder.

  “More of the same,” he murmured into her ear.

  With that, he winked and got up, heading towards the court, leaving Kimberly to blush as she ensured her shoes were secure and making her way onto the court too.

  Kimberly went along to group practice, trying not to yawn.

  Brianna jabbed her in the ribs.

  “You two awake today?”

  “Brianna, ouch,” muttered Kimberly.

  Sandrine came over too, smirking. “Gosh, Kimberly, someone could think you were awake…all night,” she teased. “Same with Neilson over there.”

  “I’m allowed a tired day once in a while,” muttered Kimberly.

  She could see Adam was under no such grilling as he rested against the nets chatting to Henrique and Evan.

  “You’re not usually this tired,” said Brianna, grinning wickedly.

  Sandrine giggled. Kimberly fixed them both with a stern look, her cheeks flushing.

  Adam suddenly appeared, stopping by her side.

  “Hey, want to grab some lunch?” he asked.

  “Sure,” said Kimberly, glad for the distraction.

  Sandrine and Brianna both giggled again, and Kimberly rolled her eyes.

  “I love our teammates, but today they’re actually annoying,” said Kimberly as they sat down with sandwiches.

  “Don’t tell me Brianna is still at it from this morning?” asked Adam.

  “Yes, and Sandrine’s joined in,” said Kimberly.

  “Must be a girl thing. Evan and Henrique asked nothing other than if we had a good time out,” said Adam.

  “Oh, it’s a Brianna thing; she’s determined,” said Kimberly, shaking her head with a laugh.

  Adam took her hand, giving it a squeeze and she smiled, squeezing back gently.

  Back from training, Kimberly and Adam wanted nothing more than to sleep, but their teammates wanted to go out for the evening and have some dinner. They found themselves tiredly joining them, perking up enough with some food to enjoy the time with their friends and each other as they strolled through the streets being tourists.

  “Is it time to sleep yet?” mumbled Kimberly into his shoulder as they returned to the hotel. She was tucked under his arm, her arm around his waist as they walked.

  “Almost,” said Adam.

  She fell asleep almost immediately when they got to her room, and he smiled, putting the cover
s around her and tucking her in. Kimberly had taken off her make-up, changed into pajamas, and fallen asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. He changed also and got into bed beside her. Kimberly snuggled closer, her arm moving across his chest.

  “Love you,” she murmured.

  Adam glanced down at her, having thought she was asleep.

  He pulled her closer. “I love you,” he said quietly, kissing her forehead. "I want to do that part," he said with a wink.

  "You want to undress me?" smiled Kimberly.

  "Oh yes," he said with a grin.

  Chapter 9

  Brianna held back a laugh with difficulty as she spotted Kimberly and Adam at a table having breakfast together in the morning. Kimberly had just hidden a yawn behind her hand as she stirred her coffee. Adam was more of a morning person, but even he looked tired.

  She could guess why they were tired and struggled to contain her laughter as she took a plate and grabbed a few items from the hotel’s breakfast buffet.

  “Hey sleepyheads,” she said, stopping by their table. They’d chosen a quiet corner rather than a larger table with their teammates.

  “Morning Brianna,” said Kimberly, taking a gulp of her coffee.

  “Morning,” said Adam brightly.

  “Weren’t you exhausted yesterday? Still tired? Jet lag hitting hard?” said Brianna, looking at Kimberly.

  “I slept as soon as we got back, but I woke up later on and couldn’t sleep,” said Kimberly innocently.

  “Game tonight, you better rest before it,” said Brianna.

  “I will,” said Kimberly.

  Brianna walked away to a different table, and Kimberly quickly pulled out her compact, studying her face. Adam looked confused for a moment.

  “Do I look that tired? Do I look terrible, and you haven’t told me?” asked Kimberly.

  Adam laughed. “You look perfect.”

  Kimberly still worriedly glanced at her reflection.

  “Does something about me say I couldn’t keep my hands off you and missed out on sleep again?” she asked, lowering her voice and laughing.