23. Effie
23
EFFIE
W arm water surrounds me, and I blow out a breath.
My arms are aching, and every muscle in my body is quivering.
I know what just happened, but at the same time, I’m struggling to get my head around it.
Kieran was…
Kieran was mind-blowing.
I still can’t quite believe we did that.
I fucked my best friend and it was the best sex I’ve ever had.
Things between us were so easy, so relaxed.
I guess that’s what you get from years of friendship.
Usually, I’m self-conscious about my body when I’m with guys. More often than not, it’s a lights-off, hide-under-the-sheets situation.
I have never, ever been as brazen as I was tonight.
I should probably be embarrassed about the way I threw my head back and begged for more of his dick. But I’m not.
Just like he wasn’t when he wrapped his hand around my throat.
Fuck, that was hot.
My body heats up just thinking about the possessive move.
And then there was his belt…
I had no idea that Kieran was kinky like that, but hell, I’m glad he was.
He opened up something inside me.
Something I want to explore.
A rush of hot water tickles down my back, and I crack my eyes open to find Kieran sitting on the edge of the tub, taking care of me.
“W-what are you doing?” I ask, my voice rough and my throat sore.
Jesus, how loud was I?
“Looking after you before I carry you to bed.”
A lump of emotion crawls up my throat as I stare up at him.
Tears fill my eyes before they spill over again.
I can only imagine how awful I must look right now. But it doesn’t seem to matter to him. He still gazes back at me just like he did in bed.
There’s awe in his eyes. I don’t understand why, but it’s there.
I shouldn’t complain. At least it’s not pity.
A sob erupts before I can catch it.
Dropping my face into my hands, I try to hide my reaction.
I might be crying, but they’re very different tears from the others I’ve cried this week.
Of course, the grief lingers, but it isn’t so all-consuming.
I just wish I could grasp why.
“Effie,” he breathes.
I sense him move, but I don’t look up to see what he’s doing.
I soon find out when his large, hard body slides behind mine, his toned legs encasing me.
Instinctively, I lean back into him.
His arms wrap around me and I snuggle into him, feeling safe and protected.
I wake feeling better than I have in a long time.
I slept. And not just for an hour or two—for the whole night.
But while I might be well rested, my limbs are heavy, as if I ran a marathon before crashing last night.
I lie there for another few seconds, enjoying the level of relaxation I haven’t felt in a very long time, but all too soon, there’s movement behind me and everything that happened last night comes back me.
My eyes pop open as filthy images from the night before flash through my mind like a porno.
Oh my god.
I slept with Kieran.
Multiple times.
And—
Something squeezes my breast, and my breath catches.
Aware I’m awake, he shifts his hips, and it reveals something even more surprising than his hand on my bare skin.
“K-Kieran?” I whisper as heat surges through my body.
“Morning, Lucky,” he groans as he thrusts his hips again.
I’m sore. Sorer than I think I’ve ever been before. But it’s not enough to mask the pleasure I get from him moving inside me.
Holy Christ; I’ve just woken up with my best friend inside me.
My heart races, and my hands begin to tremble.
My eyes close as warmth and contentment flow over me hearing him call me that.
It’s a nickname he’s called me for as long as I can remember, and I love it.
I love being his lucky charm.
I shiver when his warm breath rushes over my neck, making my skin erupt in goosebumps before his lips press against my shoulder.
“How are you feeling?”
My mouth opens and closes, but I can’t find any words.
But when he moves again, the moan that spills from my lips says it all.
“Do you have any idea how amazing you feel?” he groans.
“Kieran,” I gasp as he pushes deeper.
“Fuck, baby.”
My eyes fall closed as heat surges through me.
I’ve never felt like this with a man before, and something tells me I won’t feel it again with anyone but Kieran.
His hand moves from my breast and slides down my stomach in favor of my clit.
“Oh god,” I gasp.
“You squeeze me so goddam tight. I can’t get enough.”
The feeling is mutual.
He moves slowly, his thrusts so much gentler than anything I remember from last night.
He knows I’m sore; I don’t even need to say the words. He’s still taking care of me.
Reaching back, I find his ass and squeeze in encouragement.
No more words are said as we move together, the morning sun streaming through the open curtains.
My release builds, but he doesn’t allow me to get there in this position. Instead, he pulls out and rolls me onto my back.
He crawls over me, and the instant I see his beautiful face staring down at me, my cheeks burn red hot. And it only gets worse when he slides back inside me.
“K-Kieran,” I stutter, my emotions colliding and leaving me lying here a horny, hot mess.
Reaching out, he presses his fingers against my lips to stop me from saying anything.
“Let go, baby. Forget everything and just enjoy.”
I stare up at him in disbelief as he slowly fucks me.
Reaching up, I wrap my hand tenderly around his neck.
He lowers and rests his forehead against mine and stares into my eyes.
Tears threaten and as he makes me fall apart beneath him, they spill over.
The groan of pleasure as he comes is pure filth and sends little aftershocks from my release shooting around my body.
Pulling me into his arms, he drops to his side and tucks me into his body.
His lips descend for mine, and I’m powerless but to fall into the kiss.
My head spins and my heart races.
What are we doing?
He kisses me until both of us are ready to go again. But this time, he doesn’t make a move.
When my stomach rumbles, reminding me that I’ve barely eaten anything for days, he pulls back.
His eyes search mine for a beat before he kisses my nose and then rolls out of bed, announcing, “I’m going to make you breakfast.” Then he walks away with his firm butt on full display.
Unable to rip my eyes away from his body, I’m staring at him when he pauses at the doorway and turns around, making my view even better.
I always knew Kieran Callahan was a god, but seeing him in all his glory…well, I’m speechless.
“Take your time, Luck. I’m not going anywhere.”
My stomach knots at his words, but as soon as he walks away, I begin second-guessing everything.
Rolling onto my stomach, I press my face into the pillow Kieran slept in, and the moment I breathe in, I realize my mistake.
Last night when he kissed me, I was powerless but to dive headfirst into it.
I needed the escape, and oh boy, did he give me one.
He gave me so much more than the bottle of vodka I ordered ever could.
Sure, things hurt this morning, but it’s not anywhere close to being a hangover.
My thighs rub together as I vividly remember everything he did to me last night.
I know he promised me that he’d do anything he could to help, but I never in a million years thought he’d go to that extreme.
Sure, I got him off—accidently—yesterday morning.
I could barely look at him all day because of it.
How am I supposed to go out there and face him now?
He’s had his face between my thighs, for fuck’s sake.
Heat surges through me as one specific memory comes back to me.
“Anyone been here before, Luck?” he asked while teasing my ass.
Oh my god.
I scream into the pillow as my confusion over all of this gets to be too much.
I guess he has managed to achieve one thing—the pain I was feeling over losing Grams now isn’t my only concern.
She’s gone; there is nothing I can do about that. I just have to go through the motions of coming to terms with it.
But what happens next between us is anyone’s guess.
Kieran’s heavy footsteps move past my door as he makes his way to the kitchen, but as he slows to check on me, I can’t bring myself to look up at him.
The fear that we’ve made a huge mistake is crippling.
I might be able to survive losing Grams. But losing Kieran…
I give myself another five minutes of wallowing before I force myself to crawl out of bed.
As I stand, the evidence of what we did this morning begins to run down my thigh.
Gross.
Reaching for one of his T-shirts that I’ve stolen over the years, I drag it over my head and then race toward the bathroom to clean up.
The moment I step into the room, my eyes land on the bathtub, and the image of us sitting in it last night hits me hard.
I stumble toward the toilet, and the second I sit down, my head falls into my hands as my regrets grow.
Where the hell do we go from here?
I move in slow motion as I brush my teeth and shower. I even dry my hair in my need to put off walking into the kitchen and seeing him.
This morning, he didn’t show a single sign that he was regretting what he did. Hell, he was there doing it again. Something I am not complaining about. It was hot, just like everything he did last night.
But how hot it was or how connected we felt isn’t the issue.
Eventually, I can’t put off facing him any longer, and once I’m dressed, I reluctantly make my way to the kitchen.
The scent of his breakfast makes my stomach growl loudly. But despite feeling hungry for the first time this week, I’m not sure I’m going to be able to eat it.
“I thought I was going to have to come and drag you out here,” Kieran says the second I step into the room, as if everything is normal.
Risking a look up, I find him standing at the island, sipping on a cup of coffee as if he didn’t eat me out right there for dinner last night.
My cheeks blaze red hot and I avert my gaze fast.
“Take a seat; I’ve been keeping it warm for you.”
Unable to do anything but what I’m told, I move to the stool closest to me and hop up.
Reaching for my mug of coffee, I stare down into it while Kieran plates up our food.
A couple of minutes later, pancakes, bacon, and eggs appear before me.
My stomach turns over and I close my eyes.
“Effie,” Kieran warns.
“I…I don’t think I can do this,” I blurt before slamming the mug down and fleeing down the hallway like my ass is on fire.