Chapter 36
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
EVE
I ’m in an excellent mood leaving the art building. Professor Alday just praised my redo of his assignment as “raw” and “haunting.”
I painted the same scene as before. The background was still my mom’s old apartment. But it was dusk, the end of the day. The shadows took me forever, but the final effect was worth it. And I flipped the man and his daughter, so you could see the vacancy in his expression and the disappointment in hers.
Painting it was oddly cathartic, and I’m fairly certain it’ll earn me an A.
I also have a text from Hunter, asking if he can come over, so I have sex with my boyfriend to look forward to when I get home.
We snuck upstairs from Robby’s birthday party last weekend for a long conversation and some fooling around, and I left the hockey house as a girlfriend.
Hunter Morgan is my boyfriend .
Sometimes, I just say that sentence to myself. As some reminder that life works in mysterious ways. And to experience the giddiness all over again.
There’s a group of guys with a video camera off to the left of the path, so I skirt toward the right on my way to the student center. I’m meeting Mary for lunch before heading home.
“Hey, Eve.”
I do a double take at the guy wearing a Sea Dogs cap. “Ben. Hi. I didn’t realize…” I glance at the other guys, recognizing David too. He gives me a small wave. The other guys are friends of Ben’s I’ve met before but don’t know very well, so I just smile at them. “Film project?”
“Yep.” Ben shoves his baseball hat higher to scratch at his forehead. “Final one, actually. Hard to believe.”
I nod in agreement. “I’m sure it’ll be great.”
“Thanks, Eve. You’re…good?”
I nod. “I’m good. You?”
“Yeah, all right. I, uh, rented a place in Portland. Not a bad commute to my folks’, and I’ll have my own space.”
“That’s great, Ben. Congrats.”
He kicks a pebble on the path. “Thanks.”
I glance at the other guys. They’re all fiddling with the equipment, acting busy, but they’re definitely within earshot. “Could I, uh, could I talk to you for a minute? Alone?”
“Yeah, of course.” Ben nods toward a bench ahead. “There?”
“Sure,” I say, and we start walking together.
I breathe deeply, pulling in a lungful of fresh air. It’s a beautiful day, clear and warm and the dictionary definition of spring.
“Everything okay?” Ben asks as soon as we’re a little ways from his friends. “Did something happen with your mom? Your dad?”
“No. I mean, my mom’s worried about me moving and my dad isn’t coming to graduation, but…I’ll be fine.”
“You’ll be more than fine. You’ll thrive in New York, Eve,” Ben tells me. “I never doubted that.”
It feels like he did, but I appreciate the endorsement now. “Thank you.”
“And your dad is an asshole.”
I laugh. Ben doesn’t swear very often, so it’s always entertaining when he does. “Yeah. He is.”
“All he wanted to talk about was sports. Typical jock.”
I run my tongue along the backs of my teeth, tempted to grimace. Not the best intro to telling my ex I’m dating an athlete.
I clear my throat. “What I wanted to talk to you about doesn’t have to do with my parents. I wanted to let you know that I’m, um, seeing someone.”
No reaction this time.
Ben’s expression appears purposefully blank. I’m not even sure if he’s blinking.
“Oh,” he finally states.
I gnaw on the inside of my cheek. “I wasn’t sure if you would want to know. But it’s a small campus and I know you might see us together or hear something, and so I just—I wanted you to hear it from me.”
Ben nods once. “Who is he?”
“Hunter Morgan.”
“I don’t know him.”
“Yeah, I figured. He’s, um, he’s friends with Conor. He’s on the hockey team.”
“Oh.” Now Ben’s expression is purposefully blank. “Is it serious?”
“Yes.”
He glances down briefly, then makes eye contact again. “Okay. Thanks for telling me.”
“Yeah, of course. I… I should go. I’m getting lunch with Mary.”
He nods again. “Have fun.”
I smile before turning, but only make it a couple of steps before Ben says my name.
I swallow, then spin back around to face him.
Ben’s staring at the ground, but he glances up when I say, “Yeah?”
“Hunter’s a good guy? He treats you well?”
I swallow again, this time to clear the lump in my throat. “Yes—yeah. He’s…really good.”
Ben nods. “Good.”
“You—you talk to Rowan lately?” I ask tentatively.
He shakes his head. “No. Not since…”
“You should call her,” I suggest softly.
“Yeah. Maybe. See you, Eve.”
“Bye, Ben.”
When I walk away from him this time, it feels like closure.
Hunter’s bicep bunches as he runs a hand through his hair. “I need a haircut.”
“I can do it,” I offer. “My mom taught me the basics.”
“Nah, it’s fine. There’s a barber in Loughton I’ve gone to before. Just haven’t been that way recently.”
“A barber?” I scoff. “Do you not trust me?”
“Of course I trust you. I’m also pretty comfortable, so…”
I sit up. My muscles still feel like jelly from the multiple orgasms, but I’m excited by the idea of getting to do something for him for once. “Get dressed. I won’t be able to focus if you’re naked.”
Hunter grins as I climb out of bed and pull on some clothes and go in search of supplies.
When I return to my room with a comb, towel, and the sharpest pair of scissors I could find, Hunter is dressed and seated in the chair at my desk.
I smile approvingly before laying the towel on his shoulders and tucking it into the collar of his T-shirt. I’ll have to vacuum the floor later, but that should keep most of the hair contained.
“You wanted a mohawk, right?”
Hunter laughs, but there’s a hint of nerves in the sound. “Eve…”
“Relax. I know what I’m doing.”
He’s got the big dinner celebrating the championship this weekend. No matter how funny fucking with his hair could be, I wouldn’t do that to him.
“Just a trim, yeah?” I check.
“Yeah. It keeps falling into my eyes.”
I noticed. And I’ll miss watching his arm muscles flex when he runs his hand through his hair constantly.
It’s hair. It’ll grow back. But…I’m not sure I’ll get to see it.
I comb a section and start cutting.
Hunter’s quiet and still—the perfect client.
So of course my mind starts racing.
“I, uh, ran into Ben earlier.”
“Oh” is the extent of Hunter’s response. His only reaction is to stay completely still.
I wish I’d mentioned this when I could look at his face, at least.
I chew on the inside of my cheek as I trim another section. “I told him about us. I wasn’t sure if I should or not, but I happened to see him and it seemed—I don’t know? Respectful.”
“What did he say?”
“Not much. It wasn’t really about what he said, more for me. Part of moving on.”
Hunter hesitates before asking, “Have you moved on?”
“From Ben? Of course. I’m dating you, remember?”
“You were with him for a long time, Eve.”
I finish the final section in the back and then round the chair to face him. “I know. And part of the reason we were together for so long was because I thought it was supposed to feel like that. Always looking ahead, not really enjoying the present.”
Hunter’s expression is serious, brows knit together the same way they do when he’s reading or concentrating hard on something.
“It’s different with you,” I tell him.
Hunter runs his fingers through the longer section of hair I haven’t reached yet. “So you’re not using me as a rebound to get over Ben before you meet a sculptor in New York?”
I bite my bottom lip to hide my smile. “A sculptor?”
There’s a slight ruddiness to Hunter’s cheeks. “You know, a guy who’s more your type.”
I shove away from the desk I was leaning against and take a seat on his lap. Hunter’s hands fall to my hips automatically as I straddle him. “ You’re my type, Hunter. I don’t remember the night we met in some vague sense. I remember it well, because I’ve thought about it a lot. Because I’ve always been attracted to you. Because I’ve never thought of you as a rebound. Ben was basically my rebound from you . If, you know, ten-minute conversations counted as relationships.”
One corner of his mouth kicks up an inch. I poke the dimple that appears in his cheek, and it deepens.
“Sean called me that night. That’s why I left—why it took me so long to come back. By the time I did, you were gone.”
“I should have waited longer.”
“I should have tracked you down. The first few weeks of school were crazy, and the next time I saw you you were holding hands with Ben. I thought I’d missed my shot.”
“You didn’t,” I whisper.
Relief is obvious in Hunter’s expression, but there’s still some worry lingering. He exhales. “I’m planning to pick Penn, Eve. I had a long talk with my parents last night, and…as much as I wish the world didn’t work this way, I’ll have a lot more opportunities if I choose a more prestigious school than UW. I wish I could do something for Sean, but I can’t, and it’s selfish, but I can’t sit around and wait for him to relapse again.”
I smooth the crease on his forehead with one finger. “I think Penn is a great choice, Hunter. It’s a great school. Philadelphia is supposed to be really nice.”
“It’s not New York.”
“Well, nowhere else can be.”
Beneath my palms, Hunter’s chest heaves with a heavy exhale. “You would consider long distance?”
“Yeah. Short distance seems to be going well.”
He smiles briefly. “I’m serious, Eve.”
“So am I. I want you, Hunter. I want you when you’re right in front of me and I’ll want you just as much when we’re in different states.” I circle my hips on his lap. “Maybe even more, because I’ll be missing this too.”
One corner of his mouth curves up again, creasing a comma in his cheek. “Good to know you mostly want me for my dick.”
The dick that’s rapidly growing, right between my spread thighs, putting pressure on the perfect spot.
“It was love at first sight in the motel bathroom,” I admit.
Hunter laughs as his hands roam higher. I moan when he reaches my tits, rubbing my nipples into aching points in seconds. We had sex less than an hour ago, but I’m desperate for more.
“We should take another road trip,” he tells me. “Stop at a hotel with a big shower and no pillow wall.”
“That sounds perfect,” I murmur.
My arms wind around his neck—dislodging the towel, which falls to the floor—as I grind harder against his erection, but it isn’t just torture for him.
I pull back far enough so that I can run a hand down the firm muscles of his stomach and into the waistband of his joggers. Hunter grunts when I fist the base and tug his cock free from the confines of the fabric, the elastic waistband easily giving way.
He’s fully hard, the fat tip already leaking pre-cum.
Hunter grins. “I guess getting dressed was a waste of time.”
I almost fall as I stand, the sudden rush of lust making my limbs heavy and my reflexes sluggish. I catch myself with one hand on the desk, toppling my yellow sketchpad. I’m too impatient to pick it up, my fumbling fingers busy trying to find my waistband.
Hunter is stroking himself, gaze hooded and heavy with lust as he watches me attempt to undress. He looks so sexy, fully dressed with the evidence of his desire on display.
A few wriggles later, my pants are a pool of cotton around my ankles. I jerk my underwear down, not bothering with my shirt, and then return to Hunter’s lap.
We both groan at how much better it feels skin to skin.
Hunter’s hands land on my waist, moving me back a couple of inches. At first, I think he’s trying to take his pants all the way off. Then, I realize he’s reaching into his pocket.
I stare at the foil packet in his hand.
“Don’t put it on.”
He stills. “What?”
“Don’t wear one.”
“It’s not a big deal to me, Eve. Now, or ever.”
“It is a big deal to me,” I tell him. “It felt like I couldn’t be too careful, because of my mom.”
Hunter nods. “I get it, Eve. And I’d never?—”
I press a finger to his lips. “That’s not what I mean. I’ve never had sex without one before. And I don’t want you to wear one. I want to feel you. There are other, um, protections in place. So we could, if you want to.”
“Eve.” His voice is soft and achingly intimate. My room has never felt so tiny. “You don’t have to prove anything to me.”
“That’s not what this is. I promise. I want to…I want you .”
Hunter holds my gaze like he’s trying to read the truth there. Then he drops the condom and reaches for me, pulling me right on top of his cock.
“Go slowly, or else there’s no way I’m going to last… fuck .” The last word is strangled, his grip on my hips tightening more with every inch I take between my thighs.
“It feels different?” I ask.
His Adam’s apple bobs with a swallow. “Yeah,” he replies hoarsely.
“Have you done it like this…before?”
An involuntary question I regret asking as soon as I catch the subtle grimace on his face.
“Never mind,” I add quickly.
That will teach me to bring up the past during sex. And considering I dated someone else for years while we attended the same school, I have no right to be upset that he’s been with other people.
But emotions are rarely rational.
“It was high school, Eve,” he tells me. “I barely knew what I was doing.”
“You don’t have to explain,” I say, but I do feel better knowing that it was a while ago.
“I will. If you want to know something, ask me.”
I can feel his balls beneath my ass. He’s fully seated, and I’m pretty sure I can feel that thick vein pulsing inside of me. I clench my inner muscles, and the cords of his neck flex.
“Not that fucking slow, Eve.”
“You should have been more specific,” I tease, running a finger down the bridge of his nose.
“You’re so fucking tight. And wet. I can feel it dripping out of you.”
My inner muscles spasm again, this time unintentionally.
“Fuck. You fit me perfectly.”
He’s playing dirty. And the pressure is too much. I need the delicious friction of his cock moving inside of me. Need it more than air.
I lift up until only the tip is lodged inside of me. Then rise even higher, so I’m entirely empty.
Hunter wasn’t kidding. His dick is soaked with the evidence of my desire.
I grab the base and watch, transfixed, as it slides back inside of me. When I glance at Hunter, he’s watching too. That makes it even hotter, somehow, both of us staring as my body spreads to take him.
This angle is different. He feels huge , and he hits some deep spot that has white dancing across my vision. I’m so full it feels like he’s invaded my entire body. Turned me entirely into his.
I repeat the up and down motion over and over again. I’m barely hanging on, so close to coming but wanting this to last forever.
I love when Hunter takes control, but I feel powerful in this position. This big, strong man is focused on nothing except each thrust of my hips.
Hunter says my name through gritted teeth.
I hear the warning in it. He’s giving me one final chance to change my mind.
But it’s already made up. I brace my right hand against his rigid abdomen, bearing down as hard as I can.
I see his release appear. But I also feel it. His cock thickens and jerks, and then there’s a seeping of warmth that I somehow distinguish from the other heat.
I reach between our bodies, feeling the stretch of my body and the stickiness trickling out, before moving higher and rubbing some of Hunter’s cum around my clit.
He releases a rough groan when he realizes what I’m doing, and that sound sends me flying over the edge.
I’m coming so hard I can feel the convulsions ripping through my body.
Hunter can feel them too. He grips my hips, taking over thrusting, and draws out my orgasm even longer.
When I collapse against his chest, he’s still inside of me. We’re as connected as two people can be.
“Best haircut ever,” he whispers into my neck.
And I almost whisper three different words back to him.