Текст книги "Tempting"
Автор книги: Alex Lucian
сообщить о нарушении
Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 15 страниц)
My body warmed, my muscles fluid with each thrust, and I knew I would come again. I felt the quake in my arms as he pushed into me, over and over, with a rhythm that was almost punishing in its increasing speed. I alternated between succumbing to the climb and focusing on helping him get there, but in the end I did both by running my nails down his chest, over his nipples and abs. Fuck, watching his stomach clench with his thrusts was enough to push me completely off the ledge.
His hand came between us, flicking my clit. “Ahhh,” I moaned, my head falling back, but still supported by his hand.
He leaned forward and licked up the curve of my breast, his fingers pressing into my scalp. He didn’t ask me if I was close, but he seemed to sense it as he closed his lips around my nipple, tonguing my piercing, before biting down hard enough to send a shockwave throughout my entire body.
It was the shove I needed to throw me over the edge and into a mind-numbing orgasm; an avalanche of ecstasy carried me from the high, my body limp and my breaths quick. He clutched me to him as he grunted his release, fingers digging into my skin—keeping me from floating away completely.
Sex with Nathan was more than just a romp in the proverbial sheets; it obliterated the senses. He was a generous lover, giving and taking in equal measure, aware and in control even as his body lost it. His ability to be restrained, to keep himself in check made me both admire him and want to spin that dominance right out of his hands.
But, as I was freshly fucked and rubber-limbed, I just laid in his arms as our breathing slowed and our skin cooled. The orgasm had rocked me so solidly that I felt myself shiver as I calmed in his arms.
“Are you cold?” he asked, not letting me go.
“A little.” But I didn’t want him to let me go just yet.
He kicked off his pants and wrapped an arm around my upper back and one under my ass as he carried me into my bedroom.
I worried for a moment that he would tuck me in and go about as his way—a repeat of our first night together—but instead he climbed in behind me, tugging my back against his front. I was soothed by his desire to hold me so soon after sex. The near-emotional breakdown from class earlier followed by the two perfect orgasms he’d given me had turned me into warm goo, and I found myself melting into sleep with his arm wrapped around my waist.
Chapter Eighteen
I woke up to Nathan’s breath in my ear, his words whispering along my skin. “I need to get going.”
After opening my eyes, I looked to the clock. “It’s seven?”
“At night,” he confirmed. He shifted behind me before sliding off the bed and padding out of my bedroom. I watched his magnificent ass from bed until he disappeared into the kitchen, presumably to gather his clothes.
Standing up, I debated whether or not to throw on a t-shirt but decided against it, walking out into the living area and stretching my relaxed limbs. I caught him staring as I arched my back and smiled seductively. “Do you really have to go?” I felt a sudden, baffling sadness at the thought of him leaving, but pushed it back.
“Unfortunately, yes.” He started to button up his shirt before he realized there were buttons missing from when I’d ripped it open.
“Oops,” I said with a shrug. I walked into the kitchen, completely naked, and pulled two safety pins out of the drawer. “Here.” I pushed his hands away and began securing the openings of his shirt with my pins. “Sorry.” I gave him a sheepish grin.
Smiling, he held my face in his hands. “Me too.” He put his lips on my forehead for a second and pulled away. He tucked the ends of his shirt into his pants and then we stared at each other, as if he didn’t know how to end this. Was it an end? Or just a pause?
“So…” I began, not finishing my sentence.
“Let me give you my personal email address.”
I was stupidly giddy, even as the voice in my head muttered, Not his phone number?
He scribbled it down on the paper I’d pushed at him and I took the moment to admire his long, thick fingers as they moved across the page. I had a very vivid thought of those fingers inside of me and wanted a repeat.
“Here.” He handed me the paper. “Alice Carroll can email me here.”
Alice Carroll, my fake email account. I knew he was telling me not to use my school account, much like I shouldn’t send to his work account.
“I’ll let her know,” I said, standing still. When he didn’t make a move to leave and just stood there staring, I blurted out, “Are you sure you don’t want to stay? I can order a pizza?” I couldn’t really afford to order a pizza, but if it meant I’d get a couple more hours with him, I was going to go for it.
“I wish I could. I have papers to grade from one of my other classes.” Even though he was shooting me down, he sounded sincere in his desire to stay, so I let it go, walking him to the door.
“Are you going to put on clothes?” he asked at the door.
I shrugged. “Are you going to stay?” I said it teasingly.
He smiled, that one small act transforming his face from sexy intense to stupidly beautiful. “No.”
I leaned against the wall next to the door. “I guess Alice Carroll will have to let you know later on, if clothes happen or not.”
I took delight in the way his throat moved in response to what I’d said. “I hope she does,” he said, his voice hushed.
Leaning in, he kissed me, running his fingers over my ribs. And then he left.
I tried to distract myself with a book, with cleaning, but barely an hour after he left, I booted up my computer and logged into my Alice Carroll account.
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:29 PM
Subject: Hungry
To: Nathaniel Easton
I’m hungry.
• • •
I laughed at myself for the brief message. His reply came shortly.
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:32 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Alice Carroll
I heard you say something about pizza. Order some.
• • •
I wasn’t surprised by his reply, but it didn’t go exactly the direction I’d intended.
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:34 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Nathaniel Easton
I was thinking I was hungry for dick. What happened to you coming in my mouth?
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:37 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Alice Carroll
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think you coming against my hand and then around the dick you’re after is what happened.
There’s always next time.
• • •
Next time! We hadn’t discussed anything before he’d left my apartment, but I’d hoped this wasn’t a one-time deal. So, to have him suggest it set my worries at ease.
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:40 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Nathaniel Easton
I forgot about that. Perhaps you should refresh my memory sometime soon?
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:45 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Alice Carroll
You wound me. I’d like to do just that, but this week is busy for me. Next week, perhaps?
• • •
I couldn’t help the disappointment that wormed its way into my head. But he wasn’t blowing me off at least.
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:49 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Nathaniel Easton
I’ll try to fit you into my schedule.
• • •
I’d hoped he’d find the humor in my response, and I wasn’t disappointed with his reply.
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:53 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Alice Carroll
If you don’t fit me into your schedule, I’ll have to punish you.
• • •
As if it knew I was thinking about it, my ass settled more comfortably in my desk chair.
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:55 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Nathaniel Easton
In that case, maybe I won’t fit you in.
I like a good spanking.
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 08:59 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Alice Carroll
I recall.
I feel like I would be remiss in forgetting to mention that we must keep this—whatever this is—between us. And be as discreet as possible.
Furthermore, as unpleasant as it is for me to say this, I feel compelled to let you know that our trysts will not influence your grade in my class.
• • •
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 09:05 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Nathaniel Easton
Are you telling me I won’t get extra credit for giving you a blow job? Bummer.
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 09:08 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Alice Carroll
I think you should know my stance on extra credit by now. But no, a blow job will get you five gold stars.
• • •
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 09:11 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Nathaniel Easton
And what does five gold stars get me?
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 09:14 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Alice Carroll
Nothing. Bragging rights? Except you can’t brag about this, so you’ll have to settle for my enthusiastic appreciation.
• • •
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 09:15 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Nathaniel Easton
I can settle for that. Goodnight, Nathaniel.
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Monday, October 12, 2015 09:19 PM
Subject: Re: Hungry
To: Alice Carroll
Adele. I hope you sleep well.
I still smell you on my skin. I’m not showering tonight.
• • •
The rest of the week was more emails. They were always more sexual immediately after class, as I’d spent the entire hour wound up tight, struggling to look at him as my teacher and not the man who’d just given me two outstanding orgasms.
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Wednesday, October 14, 2015 02:15 PM
Subject: Hard
To: Nathaniel Easton
Do you know how hard it is to listen to you talk for an hour and not let my mind wander to what I’d rather employ your lips to do?
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Wednesday, October 14, 2015 02:19 PM
Subject: Re: Hard
To: Alice Carroll
I have a feeling it’s similar in difficulty to avoiding your eye contact all throughout class.
I smelled your perfume when I came into class.
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Friday, October 16, 2015 10:19 PM
Subject: Today
To: Alice Carroll
Did you have to wear those fucking shoes to class?
• • •
Smiling, I stripped down to nothing but my thong and the red high-heels. Standing with my back to my full-length mirror, I looked over my shoulder at my reflection and took a photo. It was a full back shot, from the heels he was cursing up to my long blonde locks hanging down my back. I attached it to my email and sent it along.
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Friday, October 16, 2015 10:25 PM
Subject: Re: Today
To: Nathaniel Easton
I did. Maybe I can wear them while you fuck me.
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Friday, October 16, 2015 10:31 PM
Subject: Re: Today
To: Alice Carroll
Jesus. Do you even know how beautiful you are?
• • •
The comment caught me off guard, but warmed me up inside of my cold apartment. I’d ignored Leo’s call earlier that day, choosing instead to delay the inevitable. And I was so very impatient to see Nathaniel again, outside of class.
The thought made me compose my next email.
From: Alice Carroll
Date: Friday, October 16, 2015 10:35 PM
Subject: Re: Today
To: Nathaniel Easton
You know, when I sent that first email to you a month ago, when I’d asked about extra credit? The first draft of the email had said this:
Please bend me over your desk and fuck me until it hurts.
• • •
From: Nathaniel Easton
Date: Friday, October 16, 2015 10:36 PM
Subject: Re: Today
To: Alice Carroll
My answer is yes.
• • •
At the bottom of the email he’d included his cell number and a “Call me.”
Gnawing on my lip, I dialed his number.
“Adele.”
God, his voice warmed me through the freaking receiver. “Nathan.”
“I’m sorry we didn’t get to talk today. You seemed to want to chat with me at the end of class.”
After class, I’d taken longer than necessary to pack up my things, hoping that my delay would mean some one-on-one time with Nathan. But my plan had been thwarted by the nitwit Ashley, the girl who had taken up spending more and more time at Nathan’s desk at the end of class. She’d brought up her graded monologue, telling Nathan she didn’t understand his criticisms of her work.
Nathan had glanced up upon seeing me, an apology in his eyes, before turning back to repeat what I’d known he’d already written on her assignment.
“Chatting wasn’t exactly what I had in mind,” I told him. For some reason, talking on the phone with him made me anxious. Hearing his voice instead of reading his words was more intimate and, incredibly, more arousing.
“Ah. Well, maybe another time. By the way, you should bring your coat to class. We’re supposed to get snow over the weekend.”
I looked down at the comforter I’d wrapped around myself. “I don’t have a coat yet.” I hadn’t had a chance to buy one, nor the funds for it. But I was too proud to tell him that, so I just said, “But thanks for the tip, mom. I’ll work on it.”
“Hey,” he chided. “I’m just looking out for your legs. You wore a skirt to class today—not exactly winter weather appropriate.”
“I’m glad you noticed.”
He huffed a breath through the phone. “Of course I noticed. The heels, remember?”
I smiled. “They’re great heels.”
“Hey, I have to go. But text me from now on. It’ll be easy.”
“Roger that.”
“Get a coat.”
“Maybe.” I liked bossy Nathan. But my spine was steel and even if I liked being told what to do, it was in my nature to be contrary.
Chapter Nineteen
Walking out into the darkening parking lot, I waved goodbye to one of my colleagues who was making the same quick escape that I was after that boring as hell faculty meeting. Even though Daylight Savings hadn’t kicked in yet, the sun was setting markedly earlier, no longer keeping the already bare trees covered in light much past seven-thirty.
Since the fall colors had peaked early and disappeared with the same quickness, dusk held an eerie glow with the way it wrapped around the skeletal trees. It made everything feel colder too, when the trees lost their vibrant clothing. Letting out one shiver, I shoved my hands into the pockets of my leather jacket.
The warm reprieve to my fingers was sobering, bringing back the memory of Adele wrapping herself in that threadbare, obviously fake jacket. She’d been embarrassed when I’d brought it up, brushing off her clear financial burden. The simple, worn furnishings definitely hadn’t gone unnoticed either time I was at her place. Okay, they had the first time, I had to admit. I hadn’t been paying attention to a damn thing except her that night.
Still, a week after my giving in to her, I felt like I was living in a tunnel. I couldn’t see, hear, feel, or smell anything but her. The sex was so, so good that I walked around in a constant state of improvident arousal, high off of what she was making me feel. I greedily inhaled her emails and fought every instinct to show up at her place in the middle of the night, just so I could touch and taste and devour and claim.
So this new feeling, this desire to help her, make her simple life a little easier, was disquieting. I pushed it down though, not feeling equipped to break down and label every single thing I was doing with her. Instead I pulled my phone out and tapped out a text message to her, something I rarely did.
Me: Be outside the back entrance to your building in fifteen min.
Adele: Oooh, mysterious. And you text now?
Me: Apparently. Time is of the essence. Don’t make me wait.
Adele: Someday, I’ll need a shrink to tell me why you being a dick is so fucking sexy.
I grinned when I saw her last reply, turning the key in my car’s ignition. Instead of replying, like I’m sure she was waiting for me to do, I simply slipped my phone back in my pocket and took off toward her apartment, now very grateful for the impending darkness.
“What’s with the cloak and dagger?” Adele asked as she slid into the passenger seat of my running car. I hadn’t gotten out to get her or opened the door like I’d been trained to do my whole life. But that was date behavior, and nothing Adele and I had ever done would approach the same polite courtesies that could qualify as that.
“We have an errand to run,” I said, giving her a brief glance and shaking my head at the fact that she wasn’t wearing her jacket at all. “Aren’t you cold?”
She shrugged, running a hand over the dashboard of my car. “I’m kind of used to it by now. Umm, this car is sexy. You realize that, right?”
Of course I did. I was a guy, and I drove a black 2015 BMW M6 Gran Coupe. It was what would happen if the greatest car in the world got knocked up by the mother of all orgasms and then gave birth. Instead I just smiled and watched her run her thin, graceful fingers over every surface she could touch. I thought she might look out of place in my car, but with her leggings, ratty denim skirt, banged-up cowboy boots, Rolling Stones t-shirt, messy ponytail and fresh face, she looked shockingly at ease against the leather seats.
“God,” she moaned and sank into the bucket seat, “I should do you just for letting me ride in this beauty.”
“Yes, but then we might mess up the seats.” I looked over at her. “That’s not allowed.”
Adele rolled her eyes, and turned to the window, looking at our surroundings. “Seriously, where are you taking me?”
I didn’t answer, just reached across the console and gripped the top of her thigh, loving the way that I could feel the heat of her skin clear through the soft material of her leggings. She shifted so she was angled toward me and I dug my fingers harder into her toned flesh. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re incredibly impatient?”
“A time or two,” she said on a sigh.
We drove the rest of the way in contented silence, and I never felt the need to remove my hand, just let it settle on her. For some reason, the fact that she didn’t try to hold my hand back or seduce me during the drive made me happy. It was possible for us to just be in the same space together.
When I swung the car into the parking lot, she gave me a curious look that I could see clearly in my peripheral thanks to the cuts of light that came through the window.
Toward the back of the lot, where there weren’t any bright lights illuminating the empty row of spots, I pulled my car and threw it in park.
“Is this the part where we do it?”
I sighed and leaned up, extracting my wallet from the back pocket of my pants. When I’d pulled the cash from my wallet, I held it up between us, relishing the way her brows folded in toward each other, over her narrowed eyes.
“You have two choices—”
“I pick the sex,” she said instantly.
“—you can go in yourself and find a coat that you like, or you can wait here while I pick something out for you.”
Her mouth dropped open, her forehead smoothing instantly.
“But just know, I’ll probably get your size wrong and will pick the biggest, puffiest coat that will cover you from the bottom of your chin to your knees.”
“You’re buying me a coat,” she said slowly, eyes moving rapidly between mine.
I nodded. “You have ten seconds before I go in there and find one. Puffy. To the knee.”
Adele reached for the money tentatively, eyes taking on a vulnerable wideness that I’d never seen on her before. I smiled when she finally grabbed it and shoved it into the front pocket of her skirt. Before she left the car, she looked back and gave me a shy smile.
“Thank you.”
“Go, before I change my mind.”
I chuckled at how quickly the door slammed shut and once she was out of the car, I took a deep breath. A lingering smell remained after she’d left, and I shamelessly inhaled it. It wasn’t flowery, wasn’t even all that feminine. It was spicy, almost like sandalwood, something you’d typically find in cologne. But there was the slightest sweet edge to it. Vanilla, maybe. Sandalwood and vanilla.
Honestly, it just smelled like sex to me, probably because sex with Adele had redefined what the word meant. Perfect. Thinking the word sex in the same sentence with Adele was making me hard. While I sat there, thinking about Shakespeare and conjugating verbs and dead kittens, anything to take my mind off se—that word I wasn’t going to think about tonight, the passenger door was yanked open.
“That didn’t take long.”
“No,” she said, tossing the bag into the back seat. I raised my eyebrows. Then they kept going up when she stripped her shirt off over her head, leaving her in just a hot pink satin bra, her breasts pushed up over the cups. “But this is going to.”
Then she slid over the console and straddled my lap. I held up my hands, frantically looking out the windows into the yawning darkness. “Adele, what the fuck are you doing?”
She swiveled her hips, grinding on my instantly hard cock. Fucking traitor. Then she dipped in and kissed me. I mean, she kissed the hell out of me, sucking my tongue into her mouth and biting at my lips like she was starving. I slid my hands up her thighs, belatedly noticing that her leggings had disappeared during her trip into the store. So I did what any red-blooded, heterosexual male would do when a half-naked woman wearing cowboy boots straddled his lap and started fucking his mouth. I fucked it right back, making lewd motions with my tongue against hers. After a few minutes, she pulled back and just breathed heavily.
“You bought me a coat,” she whispered, voice shaky and eyes bright with moisture.
“Hey,” I said, cupping the side of her face, “please don’t cry. I couldn’t take it.”
Using the pad of her thumb, Adele followed the bottom curve of my lip all the way around to the top, watching it the whole time. When she rested it in the middle of my mouth, pressing down so that it was like I was kissing her finger, she finally met my eyes.
Without a word, Adele shifted backward on my lap so she could reach her hands down and undo the buckle of my belt, pulling down the zipper and reaching in to pull my cock out with a tight fist, making slow twisting motions from root to tip. The lack of light around us made every movement of her hands, every touch of her body against mine heightened. We kissed, slow and deep, tilting our heads so we could explore.
I ran my hand up her stomach and only stopped when I reached the satin edge of her bra. Tugging it down, I used my thumb to rim circles around her nipple. The cold metal of her piercing grazed the edge of my thumb, but I didn’t move away from the edge of her areola. The tight, rippled flesh against my skin made my mouth water, because I knew how good it would taste, but I didn’t move to bite at it, because everything in the moment felt slow and steady. Like someone had plunged us underwater, muffling the sounds and sights around us.
We laughed into each other’s mouths while she struggled to fit her legs on either side of my hips until I finally reached down to slide my seat back so we could actually fit.
When she settled and rose up over me again, we stopped laughing. Our mouths met in long, lingering kisses. Adele canted her hips in small back and forth motions, positioning my cock so that the hot, wet flesh of her pussy slid across it. She’d stop when her clit hit the head of my dick and make these tiny mewling sounds. Sounds that I swallowed with my mouth, not wanting to lose them into the empty spaces of my car.
It had gotten so dark out, I could barely make out her facial features. I ran my hands up her back and twisted them into her hair, not gripping and pulling like I normally would have, just luxuriating in the smooth feel of the strands. We both shifted at the same time and my cock almost slipped in. Adele froze at the exact moment I did, our gazes locked.
“There’s a condom in the center console,” I whispered against her lips. I couldn’t tell what her reaction was, whether she was disappointed that I wasn’t ready for that step, that I didn’t trust her enough to slide bare into her hot, drenched pussy. I was clean, that wasn’t the issue. I was clean as a fucking monk, but I wasn’t about to risk any baby Adeles at this point.
While she leaned over to open the compartment, she kept poised right where we’d almost slipped. She was so scalding hot, so wet that it would take nothing, just a deep breath, and I’d slide right in and probably want to die at how good it would feel. But I used my hands and coasted them up her thighs again, pushing her skirt up around her waist, coming around to dig my hands into the firm globes of her ass. Using her teeth to rip open the foil package, Adele dragged a free hand down to cup her breast, lifting it up toward my mouth like an offering.
I closed my mouth around the nipple, drawing her deeper into my mouth, flicking the piercing with my tongue in short, quick movements that had her cursing and undulating over me again.
I released her tit with a loud pop, glaring up at her because I wanted to fuck her so badly I thought my skin might combust. “Get the damn condom on, Adele.”
With quick, practiced movements, she pinched the top of the condom and rolled it efficiently down my hard length. I couldn’t even give a flying fuck that she’d obviously done it a few times, I just needed in. Once she took her hands off me and gripped the back of my head again, I fisted the base of my cock, lifted her up slightly with my other hand and notched the head into her pussy. Our eyes met and held while she sank down oh so slowly, until our thighs met, until I was completely wrapped up in her warmth, the walls of her pussy clamping down once like she’d squeezed.
“Ohhhhhh shit,” she groaned, staying still for a moment while she adjusted to my size. Then she started to move. Just small movements, up and down and up and down, like she was reticent to rush us through to orgasm. Moving my hands from where I’d been gripping her hips, I wrapped my arms around her waist and dropped my forehead to her throat.
My heart beat like a bass drum in my chest and I actively tried not to crush her ribs, I was holding her so tightly. Those tiny rocking motions of her hips went straight from my cock into my veins, the sensations so overwhelming, chasing and rolling after each other until I couldn’t decipher their origin.
“You feel so good, Adele. So fucking good.” I started tilting my hips up every time she rocked down and it triggered the telltale tingle at the base of my spine. I held it off, not wanting this to end. Ever.
“It’s you, Nathan. It’s only this good with you.” Adele dropped her head back and started moving faster and harder, her tits bouncing and shaking with every downward motion.
That quietly spoken admission made me want to beat my chest and howl out into the world. I was making her feel this way. I was taking this untamed, savage being, this woman who could bring any man to his knees, and I was making her shudder and scream with pleasure.
I lifted up harder, pistoning my hips with as much force as I could in the limited space. The white heat shifted and grew, barreling down my spine, making my balls tighten up. So I dropped my head when she lifted up again, latched my mouth onto the side of her throat and bit down, sucking the sensitive skin hard.
We came at the same time, her pussy clenching on me in tight pulls, me moaning into the firm flesh of her throat, knowing I'd just marked her. I think she said my name, but I couldn’t be sure. I’d been so busy trying not to stop breathing from the force of the orgasm that I may have blacked out.
Sitting in the dark car, wrapped around each other and breathing heavily, I had a hard time remembering the last time I’d felt so good. So content.
“Thank you for my coat.”
I smiled and pressed a soft kiss onto her shoulder. “I’ll buy you a hundred coats if that’s what I get in return.”
The delighted laugh that I got in response made my previous feeling of contentment increase a thousandfold.
It didn’t actually hit me right away when I got home. It wasn’t until my phone lit up with a message that I noticed how few lights were on around me. I hadn’t immediately flooded the room with brightness, like I normally did.
It felt good. Not needing light bulbs to artificially banish my loneliness. And when I saw that the message was from Adele, who I could still smell on my skin, an easy smile covered my face.
So long, it had been so long since I’d felt anything close to this. And then I laughed, shaking my head when I read her words.
Adele: You bought me a coat, so I left a gift for you in your car. If you can find it, we’ll be even.
For a few seconds, I pretended like I was actually capable of not going directly to my car and searching it. About five, to be exact. I didn’t even take the time to respond, grinning while I contemplated what she might have left for me. I was in the car with her the entire time so she’d been sneaky. After opening the door and looking in the console, under my seat, and in the glovebox, finding nothing, I sank into my seat and sighed.
It felt like I’d regressed back to high school days, playing silly games that you already know you’ll outgrow as soon as people expect more from you. It was a lightness blanketing my soul that I hadn’t felt in years. Of curiosity and expectations, that feeling where even though you had no idea what would happen when you opened your eyes the next morning, you just knew it would be good.
Adele was making me feel that way; in one short week, I was excited to open my eyes in the morning. That’s when I saw the edge of pink lace sticking out from behind my visor.
“How the hell did you manage that?” I snatched the delicate corner and pulled it out. As soon as my eyes caught on the underwear in its entirety, on the row of black ribbons that wove through the edge along the top, my breath whooshed from my lungs. Bright, white spots danced in front of my eyes when I flung it away from me, the memory of one of my last nights with Diana flooding my brain.
“Are you sure you have to leave right now?” Diana asked, poking her head out from around the corner of our walk-in closet. I could see her bare shoulder from where I sat on the bed tying my shoes.
I grinned, knowing exactly where she was going with this, but still wanting to play. “Why?”
She shrugged lightly, dark brown eyes tripping down my body. “I got something new, thought maybe you could stay home with me tonight. Help me break them in.”
