Текст книги "Gold"

Автор книги: K. A. Linde

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Текущая страница: 21 (всего у книги 26 страниц)

Eric raised his eyebrows. “I figured as much.”

“I’ve never been jealous or guilty or regretful. It’s all because of you.”

“Oh, good. I bring out the worst in you.”

“God, that’s not what I meant.” She ground her teeth together to try to keep herself from biting back at him. “I ran. I was scared. Yep, I did it. What I felt for you…feel for you, I didn’t want to feel. I tried to escape it, but I couldn’t.”

“What do you feel? You still haven’t said exactly.”

“I’ve never done this before.”

“Tell me, or walk, Bri.”

Every time he pushed, she’d dig her feet in. She should just tell him, but for some reason, she couldn’t get the words out. They were there on the tip of her tongue, but they were just out of reach.

“Stop being so pushy! I’m here! That’s what you wanted, right?”

“I wanted honesty.” He gave her a demanding look.

“I want to be with you,” she said in a rush.

“Why? Two weeks ago, you claimed you didn’t want to be near me. Why now? What changed?”

“Because even when I’m not with you, I want to be. Seeing you brightens my day. Hearing you call me Hollywood or Bri feels right. I miss margarita Sundays and having lunch with you on Wednesdays. I miss seeing you at parties and being myself around you. I even miss our arguments. I don’t have to dig or be a good girl with you. I can just be myself. No matter what, it always comes back to you. It’s because I don’t want anyone else. I just want you.”

He smiled smugly. “That’s more like it.”

“Cocky asshole.”

“Pretty much, but you just said you liked that.”

“It wasn’t expressly listed,” she said.

“I added it to the list.”

Bryna looked at her feet and debated where to take it from here. There was still so much that needed to be said and that they needed to work out.

“I don’t care if we have to take things slow,” she told him. “We weren’t dating before. I know I have some making up to do.”

“Hmm…” he said, taking a step toward her. “Slow might work as long as I get to use all that make-up time.”

“A solid month of making up,” she offered.

“A month? Please! You walked out last semester.”

“You were sleeping with someone else!” she reminded him.

“So were you.”

“This isn’t helping,” she said. “You’re arguing with me about last semester when I’m over here, telling you that I’m in love with you.”

SHE LOVED HIM.

Bryna’s hand flew to cover her mouth at the same time his dropped wide open. She hadn’t known she was going to say that. She hadn’t even officially realized that was what she was feeling. But now that it was out, she couldn’t take it back. She didn’t want to take it back.

Love was something she had never wanted to feel again. But with Eric, she couldn’t help it. He drove her crazy, and he put her in her place, but he cared for her. He wasn’t purposely malicious, and even when she wouldn’t fight for herself, he was there fighting for them. He had known what she needed long before she did. She had taken a while to get there.

“You love me?” Eric asked in surprise. He walked over to her, and she met his gaze.

“Yeah, I do. I guess I’ve known for a while. I didn’t want it to be true with my past, but I can’t fight it. I love you.”

“You have a weird way of showing it.”

Bryna smacked his arm. “Ass.”

He grabbed her arm and then hauled her against him. In an instant, his lips were on hers.

It was like diving into a swimming pool on a hot summer day. The world silenced all around her.

His lips were soft, sensual, and all-consuming. There was nothing else in that moment, other than the feel of him against her. Her body pressed into his, and his arms wrapped around her waist. She brought hers around his neck. She was clinging to him breathlessly.

It felt like coming home.

She had been denying this for so long. Now, she had no reason to. She shouldn’t have waited. She had been stubborn and idiotic to push him away. She had never felt this complete release with no expectations and no complications.

Just Eric.

His tongue caressed her bottom lip, and she shivered all over.

He smiled against her mouth. “You love me,” he whispered.

“Yes.”

“I love you, too.”

She met his gaze, and all the pieces fell into place. This was where she was meant to be. Not with someone who valued her for her looks or her body. Not with someone who bought her happiness with gifts or someone who only liked her because of who he thought she was.

Just Eric, who loved her for exactly who she was.

Suddenly, the temperature skyrocketed. All the pent-up energy from their time apart hit a crescendo. There were no barriers. Nothing kept them from one another, and they both realized it at the same moment.

Eric pushed them backward, crashing into the bed. His hands went up into her hair and brought their lips together harder, more desperate. Her fingers worked at the hem of his shorts, and she was aching to claw them off of him.

“I need you out of these clothes,” he said.

Fuck!

They were on the same page.

“Yes,” she agreed. “Now.”

He grabbed the bottom of her shirt and yanked it over her head. She hastily removed her shorts while he ripped his own clothes off his body. She ran her hands down his toned chest. He had a rocking body, and she wanted to investigate every inch of it.

He groaned at the feel of her touching his skin and kissed her again. “Get on that bed,” he commanded.

She scrambled backward, not caring in the slightest how sexy she looked. He was staring at her as if he had never wanted anything else more in his life. And in that moment, she felt sexier than she ever had before. It was through his eyes that her body came alive.

Eric followed her onto the bed, and the feverish pitch that their desire hit sent sparks through every nerve in her body. He traced his lips across her shoulders, down the sides of her stomach, over the curves of her hips, and lingered on her thighs. His lips worked their way back up. He kissed her knee once, slowly and tenderly, as if he wanted to remember the way her body felt, treasure the memory, and ingrain it in his mind.

She trembled as he worked his way back up her thigh, stopping when he hit her thong. His breath was hot against her skin, and she imagined all the things he would do with that mouth. It only made her body awaken more to his touch.

As she angled her hips nearer to his mouth, he chuckled lightly against her skin. “Let me savor you,” he said.

Bryna groaned, but she wasn’t really complaining.

Eric kissed up her flat stomach and to her breasts barely hidden beneath a thin layer of sheer material. He opened the hook and eye and tossed the bra to the floor.

“That’s better,” he groaned.

Her breasts were on full display, and he seemed to revel in every last inch she was showing.

“You’ve seen them before,” she teased.

“Don’t remind me.”

He pushed his growing erection against her core at the thought. Her head dipped back, and she squeezed her legs around him.

Fuck! I want him.

“That day was like torture,” he said. His hands began massaging her tits. “You stepped out of that dress, soaking wet, and all I could think about was what I wanted to do to keep you soaking wet.”

“Fuck,” she cried.

She greedily rubbed herself against him. His words were doing the trick well enough on their own.

His tongue flicked her nipple, and her whole body spasmed.

“Oh God!”

“I had to go upstairs to try to calm down. I was rock hard,” he said, shoving against her again, “and terrified you would notice. I wasn’t supposed to have that kind of reaction to you. But fuck, your body.”

He brought her nipple into his mouth and sucked on it, long and hard. As he moved to the other one, his hand pinched the bud tight, causing her to jump. His tongue swirled and energetically stroked her into a frenzy.

“Fuck me, Eric. Just fuck me,” she begged. “Oh my God, I need you inside me.”

He looked up at her with that beautiful smile. “I’m just getting started.”

He pinched her nipple, and she trembled.

“So, you like that. Good. I want to know everything you like. Every time I touch your body, I want you to think about me doing this.” He brushed his finger against her erect nipple. “And this.” He dragged it through his teeth. “And this.”

Eric moved his mouth lower and lower until he was kissing the line of her panties. He dragged them off of her body, letting his fingers glide the length of her legs. Then, he grabbed her hips, pulled her flat on the bed, and spread her legs before him. He buried his face between her legs, and there was nothing but the touch of his tongue, the eagerness of his mouth, and the waves of pleasure coursing through her body.

She was holding on by a thread. He brushed her clit with his tongue, and her whole body shook with her lack of restraint. She was not going to be able to keep this up. Her body was already turning to putty.

His fingers skimmed up her leg and then down the length of her lips. She was already so wet and easily coated him.

“Fuck,” he said against her skin.

She was a goner.

He slid his fingers in and out of her, and he had to use his other arm to hold her body down. She felt herself coming undone. She couldn’t hold out any longer. It was as if he already knew exactly how to work her. He knew her body like he knew her mind.

She came hard at the insistence of his fingertips and the tip of his tongue. She honestly wasn’t sure if she had ever come this hard. She was swimming in a sea of euphoria. Her body was coated in the stars. Her mind was basking in the glow of the sun. She was away—far, far away—where nothing could reach her as she rocketed through the sky.

She must have cried out because suddenly Eric’s mouth was on hers. He tasted of her, but she didn’t pull away. She felt blissfully alive, endorphins hitting her body with the force of a bulldozer.

“You’re amazing,” he said.

“Me? You’re the one who made me orgasm,” she muttered.

He laughed. “I like you like this.”

“You can make me like this…anytime.”

“I plan to.”

Eric stripped out of his boxers and settled himself between her legs.

She put her hand out to stop him. “Wait…don’t you want me to make you feel good?”

“This is going to make me feel very good,” he said as he slid inside her without protest.

He buried himself deep until she was completely full. Her body contracted all around him.

“Next time,” she whispered. Then, she lost her train of thought.

“Next time, I will fuck you, too. And the next time and the next time.”

“Okay,” she agreed.

He laughed into her neck. “You agree so easily. I could get used to this.”

“You’d better.”

He lovingly kissed her neck once and then started up a slow pace, testing her. She gripped his muscular back, digging her fingernails in. He felt incredible. This was a thousand times better than when he had taken her in the locker room, and that had been mind-blowing. But this time…he was hers.

It blew her away that Eric Wilkins was hers. She had idolized him as a football player, thought he was gay, hated him, become friends with him, and then fallen in love with him. It all felt…surreal. Here she was, not just fucking Eric, but making love with him. This was terrifying in the finality of it, but she wanted it. She wanted him.

Sensing her emotions, Eric picked up the pace. He slammed into her relentlessly. As she felt him getting closer, he wrapped his arms around her back and hauled her up into a sitting position. Then, he worked her hips, so she was bouncing up and down on top of him. He pushed into her so deep that she didn’t think she could hold out any longer.

“Oh, fuck,” she cried.

“Come for me, Bri,” he demanded.

“Come with me.”

And they did. Her whole world tilted, and suddenly, as if it had always been that way, it started to revolve around this wonderful man. He held her in his arms as they both came down from their climaxes and lightly kissed her all over. First, on her hair, then her forehead, cheeks, chin, nose, and finally, her lips. Featherlight kisses that promised so much.

He pulled back to stare into her eyes and then smiled. “I love you,” he reminded her.

“I love you, too.”

He looked relieved.

She nudged him. “I’m not going to change my mind.”

“Well, certainly not after that,” he joked.

She sighed and lay back on the bed. “I feel amazing.”

“I feel like I’m going to need another shower.”

She looked up at him with mischief in her eyes. “I could help with that.”

They spent the rest of the night locked in each other’s arms, making up for lost time. They knew that not everything would be fixed between them so easily, but this was the first step.

Bryna woke up the next morning to light filtering in through the window. Her body was pleasantly sore but utterly content. She opened her eyes to find herself in Eric’s bed. A smile touched her lips, and she relaxed back into the pillow.

Memories of last night washed over her, and her body heated at what had happened. The clearest thing of all was her confession. She loved him. She had told him she loved him. Even when she had thought she felt that for Jude, she had never told him. Now that she was looking back on it, she wasn’t sure she had even loved Jude. She had loved the idea of Jude. How could I have loved someone I knew nothing about?

Eric was different. She knew him completely. He was the person she always wanted to run to when times got tough. He made her feel safe, whole, happy.

His arm was wrapped around her waist, and he tugged her tighter against him as if refusing to let her go. She didn’t fear that when he woke up things would be different or that he would push her away after the haze of the night was gone. This just felt right.

She slightly shifted her weight, and he groaned.

His lips touched her shoulder, and he squeezed her once more. “Morning.”

“Hey.” She entwined their fingers together.

“You feel nice in the morning. I’m going to stay in bed and have you for breakfast.”

“I think I could allow that.”

He kissed her again. “I’m glad you’re still here.”

She turned around to face him. “Where would I go?”

“Dunno. I was worried last night was a dream,” he said with a cocky smile, “and I’d wake up to find I’d imagined you here.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“It would have been one hell of a vivid dream.”

“How vivid?” she purred in his ear.

“Let me show you.”

Eric gripped her hips and pulled her effortlessly on top of him. She realized he was already hard for her. They had slept in the buff, which made this really easy. He eased back inside her. She was tender from all their activity last night, but the pain soon disappeared as pleasure took over.

When she finished, she fell against him, panting.

He kissed her forehead. “I could get used to this,” he whispered.

“Me, too.”

After they both cleaned up, they crawled back into bed and lay in each other’s arms.

Bryna was struck with how completely normal it was. There was no awkwardness. There was no wondering whether they would go out for breakfast or if she should just hurry out. There hadn’t even been a question of whether or not they would make love again in the morning. It had just happened. Just like them.

“So, where do we go from here?” she asked him, her head resting against his shoulder.

He ran his hands through her hair contentedly. “Let’s take it one day at a time. I don’t want us to rush out and tell everyone what’s going on yet. I’m going to keep you all to myself for a little bit longer.”

“You want to hide me?” She was mostly joking, but the fear pricked at her regardless.

Eric laughed, reading her question for what it really was. “No. But I want us to get to know each other again as a couple without the public scrutiny of the entire football team and cheer squad.”

Bryna nodded. “That’s true.”

“As long as you’re mine and there’s no more running away, then it honestly doesn’t matter to me what we do.”

“No more running away,” she agreed.

“Good. Then, we’ll figure it out.”

“Unfortunately, I still have to get to class today,” she told him.

“Skip it.” He held her in place against him.

She giggled and kissed him. “I wish I could, but I can’t.”

“Okay. Then, come over right after class before practice.”

“I will,” she promised.

She reluctantly disentangled herself from Eric’s arms, put her clothes back on, and headed home to change before she had to be on campus. Stacia and Trihn were both in the living room when she arrived.

Both of their eyes widened in surprise.

Trihn arched an eyebrow. “That must have been one hell of a study session with Cam last night.”

Stacia giggled. “I want to hear all the details.”

“We broke up,” Bryna told them.

It felt great saying it out loud. That felt like a lifetime ago compared to what had happened with Eric last night.

Stacia gasped.

But Trihn smiled. “About time.”

“Yeah, it was,” Bryna agreed. She walked over to the couch and plopped down. “Cam found out that I used to sleep around or dig or whatever, and he tried to take advantage of me.”

“What? Did you knock him out?” Trihn asked.

“What a douche bag!” Stacia cried.

“I know. I couldn’t believe it, honestly. He seemed like such a nice guy, and he didn’t know my reputation. But then as soon as he did, all went down the drain. So, I dumped him.”

“Good. He deserved much worse than that,” Trihn said.

“Yeah, like a swift kick to the nuts,” Stacia agreed.

Bryna laughed and nodded.

“Where were you all night then?” Trihn asked.

“So…afterward, I went over to Eric’s.”

“Yes!” Stacia cried.

They both looked at Stacia questioningly.

“What? A football player or an artsy guy? It’s not even a choice.”

Trihn narrowed her eyes. “Thanks!”

“Hey! I’m just saying.”

“Tell us about Eric,” Trihn encouraged, ignoring Stacia’s barb.

A smile came to Bryna’s face, unbidden. Eric had that effect on her.

“We’re kind of keeping it on the down-low right now, so you can’t say anything to anyone, but I think we’re together. We got into a big argument about everything that had happened between us. After I explained that I wanted to be with him, he came around to the idea. I told him I loved him,” she confessed.

“Aw,” Stacia crooned.

Trihn smiled brightly. “Finally! It’s about time.”

Bryna giggled. “You’re so right. It’s about damn time.”

WHEN BRYNA WAS WITH ERIC, time seemed to fly. All the best things in the world were tucked into the hours she spent at his house, lost in his arms. And just as good was the fact that she had her friend back. When they weren’t lying around in bed in a state of ecstasy, they would hang out by the pool, have margaritas, grill burgers, and generally enjoy each other’s company. There were still some lingering problems from their separation, but they were working through it one day at a time.

Without even realizing it, the away game against Colorado was upon them, and the entire team would be flying into Denver. Since the team still didn’t know about their relationship, she and Eric had agreed to drive to the airport separately. She was sure some people had suspected by the way they acted around each other, but their relationship was in its infancy, and they didn’t want the scrutiny.

Stacia and Bryna arrived at the airport in Stacia’s SUV. They grabbed their bags out of the trunk, and then Stacia locked up. As they walked inside, Stacia had a bounce to her step.

“I cannot wait to fuck Pace in the hotel room,” she said.

Bryna cringed. “That’s disgusting. I can’t hear you talk about him like that.”

“Come on, B. He’s not your real brother! And you’re going to do the same with Eric anyway.”

“Shh!” she chided. “People don’t know yet.”

“Sorry. Sorry. But you are, right?”

“I don’t know. We’ll see.”

“That’s a yes,” Stacia said.

They checked in with the cheer coach, and then they were ushered on the plane, which had already been open for seating. Stacia walked on first, eager to get to her seat next to Pace. Bryna didn’t know where her seat was, nor did she care. She had every intention of sitting next to Eric. This was their first away game together since last year, and there was no way she was going to sit next to anyone else even if it made people more curious.

As she walked down the aisle, she noticed someone was seated next to Eric. It was Bethany, the freshman girl who had been talking to him after practice that one day. Whatever she had said, he seemed to find funny because he laughed at her, and she giggled. Bryna’s temper went from zero to sixty faster than a Bugatti.

She took a deep breath and reminded herself that Eric loved her and that she had no reason to be pissed off. But she was. It was just the fact that this girl thought she could flirt with him. Bryna had never felt such intense jealousy. Even though they weren’t out as a couple, he was hers now.

“Ahem,” Bryna said. She crossed her arms and stared down at Bethany with the best bitchy Queen Bee look she could muster.

Bethany’s eyes widened. Clearly, she knew to be afraid. “Hey, B,” she said.

“You’re in my seat,” Bryna pointed out.

“Oh.” Bethany looked down at her ticket. “It says I sit here.”

Bryna took the ticket out of her hand and then passed the one she had been holding back to Bethany. “Now, it doesn’t. Scoot along.”

“Um…” Bethany looked at Eric, hoping he would say something so that she could stay sitting next to him, but his eyes were locked on Bryna. He looked amused. “Eric?”

He turned his attention back to her and shrugged. “Bryna normally sits here.”

“I’ve sat here the last two games.”

“Yeah. She sat here every game before that.”

Bethany scrunched her eyebrows together as if she didn’t get it.

“You’re new,” Bryna said. “You’ll figure it out.”

“Okay. Well, I’ll see you later,” she said to Eric with a big smile before disappearing down the aisle with Bryna’s ticket.

Bryna sank down into the seat and turned to look at him. “So…you were going to sit there and flirt with her?”

“I wasn’t flirting with her. We were talking.”

He gave her a serious look, and she wanted to bite her tongue, but she wasn’t one to let things go.

“You were laughing at whatever she was saying, and she was trying to stay seated next to you. Flirting.”

“I was laughing because she’s a little slow. I have no interest.” He lowered his voice and leaned forward toward her. “You’re really cute when you’re jealous.”

Bryna wrinkled her nose. “Cute?”

He laughed and reached down for his headphones. “I know you love that word.”

“You use it on purpose.”

“I’m going to do a lot of things later on purpose, too.”

Their eyes met, and her stomach flipped.

“I like where this is going.”

“You’ll like it more later when I sneak you into my hotel room.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Last time I was in your hotel room, I didn’t have to sneak in there.”

“Coach is trying to crack down on pregame fun, and you’re my fun. So, we’ll have to be more careful,” he told her.

“Sneaky. I like it.”

She leaned toward him, eager for a kiss, but he gave her a look.

Later.

They weren’t officially out to everyone yet, and she had completely forgotten while trapped in his gaze. She covered by reaching for her own headphones.

“Ugh!” Eric said.

Her head snapped up. “What?”

“Your fucking stepbrother.”

“Pace?” She glanced around and saw that he and Stacia were only a couple of rows behind them. “What about him? I mean, besides everything.”

“I can’t stand the sight of him, knowing his part in what happened with Cam,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “Did you ever confront him about what he did?”

She shook her head and turned away from Pace. She wasn’t happy about the fact that he had manipulated Cam into thinking she was a slut he could use. She didn’t know what exactly Pace had said. Even though she always thought the worst of him, she didn’t want to believe he had actually convinced Cam to hurt her…to try to sexually assault her.

“No,” she said softly. “Just let it go. He’s not worth it. Plus, Stacia is happy. We made amends about her and Pace this summer. I don’t want to start anything and risk my friendship. She is more important to me than Pace.”

“He got you attacked!” Eric growled.

Her eyes widened. “Keep it down.”

“Sorry. It infuriates me.”

“I don’t think he knew it would lead to that. Trust me. I don’t want to defend Pace, but I don’t want to get into it with him.”

Eric nodded and tore his attention from Pace, but he didn’t look happy about it. She could see he had murder on his mind. She didn’t know how to quell it or even if she really wanted to. Pace had it coming to him, for more than what had happened with Cam. He was a little shit, and his actions had far-reaching consequences.

The flight was easy enough, and soon, they were transported a couple of miles from campus to the hotel where they would stay for the night. They were all instructed to stay in their rooms and not make a disturbance. A special announcement was made about anyone getting in serious trouble if found in a room with a member of the opposite sex.

Bryna shrugged it off, as did everyone else. Most of the girls were dating someone or at least sleeping with someone on the team. She didn’t understand what the big deal was.

“Big plans tonight?” Stacia whispered amidst the group of students congregated in the lobby waiting to be dismissed.

Bryna shrugged. “You?”

“I was wondering if we could use our room…if you’re going to see E?”

She bit her lip. “You haven’t told Pace that Eric and I are together, have you?”

Stacia bounced lightly from one foot to the other. “I’m sorry!” She covered her face and shook her head. “I’m so bad with secrets. I only told him, and I made him swear not to say anything to anyone, not even you! He hasn’t said anything. I promise. I’d kick his ass if he told anyone.”

Bryna sighed heavily. “Great. Just great, S.”

“I know. I’m horrible. I tried, but I’m so bad, and he’s so good at figuring it all out anyway.”

“I guess you can use our room, but if it somehow slips that I’m with Eric and I get in trouble, you know I’m blaming him for this, right?”

“No way, B. He would never do that.”

Bryna rolled her eyes. Why is Stacia so naive when it comes to Pace? Is it just that he is a quarterback or is it something more? She didn’t get it. He was pretty evil, all things considered.

She hadn’t told Stacia about Pace’s part in what had happened with Cam, and she really wanted to do it in the moment. But somehow, she didn’t think Stacia would believe her. Stacia hadn’t listened any other time Bryna had told her about Pace’s deceit.

Her eyes found Pace’s in the crowd. As if sensing her eyes on him, he turned to look at her.

A smug smirk crossed his face, and he raised his eyebrows in question. Yes?

She pursed her lips and flipped him off across the room. He tilted his head back and laughed. Great.

“Tell him that if he rats me out about Eric, I will tell the coach that he’s in our room,” she told Stacia honestly.

“You would rat me out?” she gasped.

“I think it’s a strong incentive for nothing to go wrong tonight.”

“You really think he would do that?”

“Positive.”

“Okay. I really don’t,” she said. “But be careful if you’re that worried.”

Be careful. But she made no suggestion to stay in instead.

The girls brought their bags up to their room, and Bryna waited for her signal from Eric to sneak into his room. She hadn’t even done this in high school. No one had cared enough for her to have to sneak around. But she wanted to spend the night with Eric.

A knock at the door jolted her, and Stacia rushed over to open it. Pace strode in like he owned the place. He seemed surprised to see Bryna.

“No late-night rendezvous with the new flavor of the week?” he asked.

Stacia smacked him. “Be nice.”

Pace kissed Stacia hard on the lips, but he never agreed to be nice. Bryna knew he wouldn’t be nice to her. They had too much animosity between them. Not to mention, she was pretty sure he still wanted to sleep with her…Stacia be damned.

Her phone dinged.

Ready.

Eric. Finally. Time to get away from her fucking stepbrother.

“Just remember,” she said, stepping up to Pace and poking him hard in the chest, “I don’t trust you. So, if you do anything to fuck this up, you’re hurting Stacia, not just me or you.”

“I don’t have any plans, Bri.”

She glared at his use of her nickname. “You always have plans.”

“Oh, we’re so much alike, sis.”

“Stop antagonizing her, Pace,” Stacia said. “Go on. Pace isn’t going to do anything.”

“Good.”

Bryna left the room and headed up a couple of floors. She knocked on Eric’s door. Her stomach was knotted, knowing there would be consequences if they were caught, but she was also excited. The danger made it enticing.

Eric opened the door and pulled her inside by the middle. He slammed the door shut, swept her off her feet, and carried her to the king-sized bed in the middle of the room.

“I missed you,” he said into her hair.

She turned her face and kissed him with a sigh. “I missed you, too.”

Their bodies melded together, and she forgot all about her argument with Pace. As she got lost in Eric, all the warnings left her mind. This was how it was supposed to be.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Bryna blearily opened her eyes and looked over at the clock. 6:00 a.m.

“Fuck!” Eric cried.

She was still in his room. She had passed out. “Shit! Who is at the door?”

“I don’t know. Throw some clothes on, and go into the bathroom or something. I’ll go find out what’s going on.”

Bryna hastily changed and rushed into the bathroom. How old am I? She was a fucking adult. She didn’t need rules about what she could do at night.

Eric cracked open the door, and she heard him speaking to the person on the other side. “What’s up? It’s six in the morning.”

“Sorry, Eric. Coach wanted us up and at a morning meeting in half an hour. He wanted me to let you know.”

Eric wiped his eyes and nodded. “All right. I’ll be there. Thanks, Coach Morris.”

Phew. Just one of the assistant coaches.

“Sure thing.”

Eric closed the door with a sigh. “Jesus, that freaked me the fuck out.”

“Yeah, these new regulations are insane,” Bryna said, coming out of the bathroom. “For a second, I thought that Pace had given us away, and we were in some big trouble. I actually had the weirdest dream that I snuck out of the room while Coach was investigating. I ran downstairs and turned Pace in for his deceit. It ended before I found out what happened to him though.”

Eric laughed. “You have an active imagination.”

“You’re right.”