Miles for Love Series Box Set, page 68
When I get in the door, the lights are all off. Christopher is asleep on the couch with the television on. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen him sleeping soundly. He’s so peaceful and innocent-looking, I can’t help but stare at him. Kneeling, I have to stop myself from raking a hand through his soft-looking hair. There is so much room on the couch, I’m half considering climbing up there with him. It looks so comfortable. And he’s completely out of it. So out of it, he probably wouldn’t even notice if I snuggled in there with him. But I don’t. Watching him sleep, I wonder if I should wake him, so he goes up to bed, and then I wonder what the best way is to do that.
Looking at his lips, I suddenly feel curious as to what it would feel like to kiss them. They’re so soft and full, and slightly parted in slumber. If I leaned in just a little more, I could kiss him so easily. He takes in a cleansing breath and licks his lips, making me feel even more inclined to plant one on him. Instead, I rub his shoulder. His broad, beefy shoulder. When his eyes slowly flutter open, I tilt my head so he can see my face.
“Hey,” he says sleepily. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah. I just thought I would wake you, so you won’t sleep on the couch all night.”
He lifts his head, looking for the remote. When he finds it, inches from his head, he turns the television off. “What time is it?” he says in the darkness. The hallway light is offering some illumination, but only a small amount, making his face glow.
“It’s really late. It’s after two. I feel asleep at the dorm.”
“We both have to get up for school.” He says, rising. “We should head off.”
“Yeah. How did it go over at Daniel and Kayla’s?”
“Good. I hope you don’t mind that I told them the truth about why you didn’t come over.”
“No, not at all.” I wave.
“How’s Darlene?”
“Very freaked out. She cried half a dozen times tonight. I didn’t want to leave her.”
We reach the top of the stairs. “You’re a good friend. She’s gonna need you like crazy.”
“Yeah, I know.” I say, heading to my room. “Goodnight.”
“Hey,” he says. I turn around. He takes a step towards me and wraps his arms around me. “Thanks for being a good friend to me, too.”
His body is so warm and inviting, I can’t help but melt into him. My arms snake around his neck, as he nestles his head into my neck. He rubs my back, taking a deep breath, swaying slightly, soothingly. We stand there for a minute, enjoying the closeness, and then he pulls back. The look in his eyes is hard to read. I can’t tell if he wants to say something to me, kiss me, or invite me to sleep in his bed again. But he remains silent, and just kisses me on the forehead. “Goodnight.”
***
Darlene sits in the lab chair, getting blood taken, and I can see her visibly shaking. “And you’re going to be a lab technician.” I point out facetiously. She’s studying to be in research, working towards her Bachelor’s degree.
“I’m not shaking because of the needle, stupid.” She says. “My nerves are shot. Did I tell you I ran into Will in the hallway at school?”
“Um…no.” I scoff.
“The asshole tried to talk to me, but I wanted to puke, so I ran the other way.”
“Good. But you two will need to talk at some point.” I say, as the technician places the viles on a tray and removes the elastic tubing from Darlene’s arm. She affixes a tiny band-aid over a piece of cotton, and pushes her arm in, so her elbow is bent.
“You think I should tell him?”
“It’s your choice. But I think he has a right to know.” I say earnestly.
***
Christopher made this awesome stir fry for dinner tonight. I tell him about Darlene’s doctor’s appointment, and the ultrasound we went to, where she found out that she is, in fact, seven weeks pregnant.
“How is she doing?” Christopher asks.
“Okay, considering.” I admit, taking the last bite of stir fry. “She hasn’t decided if she’s going to tell Will or not, or just go through with the abortion.”
“So she’s decided to have one?”
“I’m pretty sure, yeah. She’s really adamant on focusing on her education. I think she’s learned a pretty hard lesson.” I change the subject. “You’ve been sleeping really well, I noticed.”
“Yeah. Since my talk with Daniel on Sunday, I’ve slept through three nights in a row.” He admits. “Not saying that that’s never happened before, but it sure is nice.”
“You look better.” I say, looking at his face. “Younger.”
He chuckles. “Are you saying that I looked older before?”
“No…well…yeah…a little.”
He winks at me as he places the dishes in the sink.
“Hey, do you have anyone special in mind who you want at your birthday party?”
He looks over his shoulder at me. “Grant and Tyler are looking after the guest list I’m sure.”
“Ah,” I nod. “Is there anyone who you don’t want to show up there? Any girls you once slept with that you don’t care to see again?”
“My brothers know who to invite and who not to invite. Don’t sweat it. Just plan on being my designated driver. That’s your only job.”
“And who gets to clean up the puke afterward?” I tease.
“I don’t puke.” His face scrunches up and his tone is teasing, as I bring him my plate. I’m standing next to him and he butts my hip with his. “What do you think I am, a lightweight?”
“Well, I am.” I’m matter-of-fact.
“Then I’ll be the DD and you can get smashed. That’ll be much more interesting.”
I scoff. “Then you’ll be the one cleaning up the puke.”
***
“Well, I’m off.” I say, my nerves are showing.
“You want me to come with you?” Christopher offers.
“No, that’s okay. I’m a big girl. I might as well start acting like it.”
“Pratt’s a good guy. He’ll take good care of you and your money.” Christopher says, folding his laundry after school. “How’s Darlene doing?”
“She’s okay. She’s going to talk to Will tonight about everything.”
He gives me a sideways glance. “Bet you wish you were a fly on the wall for that conversation.”
“Shut up.” I scoff. He throws a balled-up sock at me. His bed is covered in clean clothes. The pile of folded stuff that he’s been working on is within my reach. I shove my hand in the pile, toppling it all over.
He grabs my arm, forcing me over onto the bed. I squeal in surprise as he climbs on top of me, taking a sock, placing it over my mouth. “Apologize.” He demands. “Or I’ll tickle you until you puke.”
I shake my head, grabbing his belly, tickling it. He gives up and falls over onto his back. His bed is surprisingly springy. He bounces as he lands, and I grab a pair of his underwear. With my knees on either side of his waist, I place the underwear over his mouth. “Apologize, or these are going to be your dinner.”
His voice is muffled under the garment. “You do know that those ones are still dirty.”
“Liar!” I yell, like we’re in the middle of a heated court hearing. “Say you’re sorry.”
He shakes his head. His eyes are dancing with delight. “Admit it. You live for drama. Especially when it’s not yours.” He says teasingly. “I mean, you brought out these horrible nightmares in me, made your best friend get pregnant, and forced yourself into my house…all for the drama.” He’s such a terrible liar, he can barely make the stuff up without giggling.
“Oh, you are so gonna pay for that!” I snuffle a laugh, ticking his belly. He arches back, and puts his hands on my waist, trying so hard not to crack up. My pelvis slides down as his torso leans up, and our groins meet. I freeze. He stops. An inadvertent pulse courses through my lower bathing suit area, and it feels so pleasurable, I almost gasp. I can feel his bulge, plain as day, right on the spot that counts. Trying to recover, he pushes his pelvis upward, so I fall forward, and it gives me another wave of pleasure. My eyes close instinctively.
When they open, his eyes are searching mine. “You okay?” he asks. His voice is so low and seductive, or at least, it only sounds that way because I’m suddenly turned on.
“Yeah,” I whisper. My eyes are on his lips, and I realize it a moment too late. I look away as I see his eyes on my lips. “I should go.”
“Yeah.” He says, but his hands are still on my hips. The heat from his touch is turning me on further. I’m sure he can feel my wetness through his pants. Getting up, I remove myself from his grasp. I can’t look at him. It’s taking everything in me not to kiss him or do a million other things to him that my body is telling me to do. But I can’t. Making love to Christopher would be too risky. He has no interest in me that way, aside from a little afternoon delight, and that would totally mess up what we have.
Before I can walk away from him, he rises and grasps my hand. “Hey,”
I can’t look at him, so he pulls my chin up to meet his gaze with his thumb and forefinger. I’m half terrified that he’s going to kiss me, and half thrilled at the thought of his lips touching mine. “Don’t.” I say.
“Hey, hey,” he says, almost chiding me. I finally look up at him. “It was an accident.” His eyes search mine. “I would never do anything to make you feel uncomfortable.”
“I know.” I whisper. Part of me feels bad for making such a big deal out of what just happened, and part of me wants him to do more…so much more. “I just…I would never want to have something happen between us…and it would be over.”
He nods once. “I know. Look, just forget about it. It was an accident. We were playing around. It happens. I’m sorry.”
This is making me so uncomfortable I want to cry. Time to change the subject. “Darlene asked if I wanted to move back into the dorm with her.”
“And…what did you say?”
“I told her I would think about it.”
“If she’s uncomfortable there alone, why doesn’t she move in here, too?” Christopher suggests.
I bark out a laugh. “Yeah, because that wouldn’t be at all awkward! A pregnant ex-lover living under your roof!” Another laugh. “Why don’t you just invite Will to live here, too, and then we can all be one big, happy family!”
He smiles, and it’s so adorable. “Maybe you’re right.”
“I think…I think maybe I should move back into the dorm. I mean, Darlene and I are fine, and you…well, I feel like I’m cramping your style.”
His interest is piqued. “Cramping my style, how?”
“Well, to my knowledge, you haven’t been on a date since I moved in.”
“It’s been like…a week?” he points out, showing how weak my argument is. “Jesus, how much do you think I sleep around?”
I give him a look. “You do have a pretty decent track record.”
His smile slips a notch and my heart sinks. “Look, I don’t know what kind of rumors are floating around that school…” he trails off.
I say nothing. I feel bad.
“This isn’t because of…this, is it?” he gestures to the bed, full of clothes. It’s pretty obvious that they’ve been messed around on.
“No.” I look at him. He rakes a hand through his hair. I want to hug him so bad, but I’m so afraid that my hormones will take over. His chest is heaving slightly. I can tell that his mind is racing. “Tell me…what you’re thinking.”
He looks at me and his eyes are shaped like dinner plates. It’s like he’s telepathically trying to communicate something to me. Taking a step towards me, his hands go to my sides. He kisses my temple. “You should go, Ash. You’re going to be late.”
Chapter 16
Christopher
I’m just finishing my homework, expecting Ashley home any time, when I hear the door open and Tyler’s voice calling me. “Hey, almost birthday shit!”
“You’re such a loser.” I say as he walks in the door. I’m not impressed with my new title. As I tidy my textbooks, he starts routing through my fridge for leftovers, something he always does. “I haven’t started dinner yet. Ashley should be home soon.”
He gives me a look. “So, am I wasting my time getting you set up for a good lay on Saturday night, or what?”
“What do you mean?” I smirk.
“Well, you’re living with Ashley, man.” He points out. “You’ve never lived with a girl before. You haven’t been calling me up, bragging about chicks you’ve banged, in a while. Since she moved in, anyway. Should I expect to hear about wedding bells soon, or what?”
“It’s not like that.” I say. “We’re just…good friends.”
“Right.” He says, like he’s not buying it. “You aren’t screwing her?”
My eyes dart to his. My tone is poignant, firm and cutting. “Fuck off.”
He raises his hands. “Fine. You’re not fucking her.” He shakes his head. “Are you working towards it? Is she like…a unicorn or something? Someone you’ve been trying to bag for a while?” Her sweater is hanging off the patio door. He slides his hand down it. “She is pretty fucking hot. I think she’s got the hots for me or something…the way she was eying me up and down when I fixed her car.”
It takes half a second for me to step towards him. I raise my arm and my fist swings towards his mouth. When it makes contact, with the force, his face swings to the side, as a spot of blood spurts into the air, landing on the glass doors.
“What the…fuck!” he shouts, grabbing his mouth.
“Don’t you EVER…talk about her that way!” My chest is heaving up and down.
The look on his face is utter shock. His hand is on his mouth. “Okay…what the fuck! I get it!” he says, walking to the freezer. He takes the tea towel hanging from the oven door and fills it with ice from the freezer. Placing it on his mouth, he takes a seat at the dining room table. I follow him and sit across from him. My head rests in my hands as I slide my fingers through my hair.
“This chick has messed you up bad, man.” He observes, icing his bleeding lip.
“I know.” I admit, pulling at the hair at the sides of my head. “I…I think I’m in love with her, man.”
He lifts the ice from his lip and gives me a ‘no fucking kidding’ look. “Ya think?” He barks.
“I’m so fucking frustrated.”
“Why? Is she like…teasing you? Flaunting her tits at you or something?”
I look at him like I’m going to hit him again. He raises his hand. “Okay.”
Sighing, I grasp my hands in my hair again. “She’s like…so fucking beautiful, so caring, and she’s made me see so many things that I never saw before, like…it’s unbelievable.” I lick my lips. “I slept with her…in my bed…but I didn’t touch her.” I look up at the ceiling, as if what I’ve said is so incredibly unbelievable. “I couldn’t touch her. I’m so afraid of fucking up what we have, but it’s killing me.”
“Why is it killing you? Do you get major wood around her?”
“It’s not that, I mean, yeah, I’d love nothing more than to take her in bed and make love to her night and day, man, but, I’m not sure if crossing that road is going to mess up everything else.”
Tyler is silent for a beat. Then he gives me a look like I just told him a joke and he’s trying not to laugh. “Make…love?”
I glare at him. “You want a lump on the other side to match?” I sigh. “Why am I even talking to you about this? Get out of here before she gets home and I have to explain why my brother’s got a fat lip.”
“And blood on your patio door, man. Don’t forget about that.” Tyler says as he makes his way to the door. “There’s only one way to find out if making a move is right or wrong, man. That’s to go for it.”
“Yeah, great advice.” I’m facetious as I wipe the patio door down with a piece of paper towel.
“Hey, I invited that chick Hayley out tomorrow night. You’ve been wanting to bang her for like a month.”
I say nothing. The thought of being with another woman does nothing for me right now. And it scares the shit out of me. If Ashley is the one that I want and she doesn’t want me, then where does that leave me? “You better get out of here, man. Seriously. She’s going to be back any minute.”
“Alright, man. See you tomorrow night.”
“Yeah. See ya.” I close the door behind him.
***
Why Tyler is trying to set this up like it’s a surprise birthday party is beyond me. Ashley didn’t even come to the house after school. She texted me, saying that she was going to the dorm after school. No mention was made about going to Buz’s. I’m so afraid that I’ve already screwed things up with her after yesterday. She stayed at the dorm last night, too. I know that she’s going to move back there. And it’s all my fault. I’ll really miss her. I already miss her. I saw her in class today, but she just smiled at me and otherwise pretended that I didn’t exist. I know that she has a lot on her mind, and I wish that there was something I could do to help.
Sitting back, watching television, waiting for Tyler’s cue to come to the bar, I hear a knock at the door, and then I hear Daniel’s voice. “Hey, is there a birthday boy in the house?”
“In here.” I say, rising. I’ve got dress pants and a linen shirt on. I was going to spring for a tie, but I figure I’ll get my chops busted for that.
“Hey, happy birthday.” Daniel says. He’s dressed in black jeans and a white golf shirt.
“Thanks. Are you here on official chaperone duty?”
“Yeah, Ty said you needed a DD, so I’m it.”
“Yeah,” I say, remembering how Ashley was supposed to be my DD, but now I’m not even sure if she’s coming tonight.
He gives me a look. “What’s with the puss?”
“Na…nothing. Birthdays bum me out.” I lie. Birthdays are usually the best day of the year for me. Since I turned sixteen, they’ve always been a free pass for getting drunk and laid all in the same night.
