41. Piper #2
Fuck. I wished I could tell him how much that nearly sent me over the edge, but words escaped me as I was lost in him. Everything built up faster than it ever had before, and the heat shattered and spread through every inch of my body all at once.
“See what going slow can do?”
I huffed out a breath and glared.
Words still wouldn’t come out of my mouth.
I moved once more, wincing at how sensitive my clit was from what we had just done. I was tempted to move to another position when the head of his cock caught at my pussy ever so slightly.
Theo’s eyes slid shut and his jaw tensed. I gasped at the slight burn.
“Remember, there’s no rush.” Theo’s voice was tight in a way it hadn’t been only moments ago. “You don’t need to rush for my sake.”
“Your sake?” I tilted my head to the side, sarcasm in my voice. “What? Do you like this?”
“The woman I love just came on my cock and I’m feeling just how wet and tight she is. Yes, I want this. But not if it hurts you.”
He slid another inch into me, and both of us tightened.
“Piper,” he reminded. “You—”
The sting faded, and I already wanted more.
“Love,” I said, the word feeling more natural than it ever had before. “I like this.”
One of his eyebrows tilted upward, as if he didn’t expect me to say that.
But he didn’t question it.
It was another thing I loved about him.
Inch by inch, I took more of him in. I could see how doing more may have made this easier, but this felt better than I could describe. I did the same thing in the comfort of my own room, my impatience hitting me when I made myself feel good.
Theo’s head leaned back into the couch, and I had a feeling he was trying to keep himself from thrusting upward and surging all the way inside of me.
Where he was at now already felt deeper than last time, and I couldn’t get enough.
Eventually, there was nothing left for me to take, and he was fully seated inside of me. My pussy clenched around him, and I knew I was at my limit.
The burn had taken me back up the hill. Theo was just now inside of me, and my breath was already nearly heaving.
“Piper, you okay?”
I whined and nodded, grinding against him.
“Oh, you’re very okay.”
Thank God he caught on quickly because I didn’t think I would forgive him if I lost this feeling I had.
Theo’s hips jerked upward and I gasped. I didn’t think I could take him any deeper, but he found a way to achieve the impossible.
I half expected him to have something else to say, but one glance told me he was as lost to pleasure as I was.
His thrusts moved my entire body, and all I could do was ride every wave of what he gave me.
My orgasm came fast and out of nowhere. My hands dug into his shoulders as I came, and his thrusts inside of me only made it feel even more intense.
Theo was still moving as mine ebbed, and I was finally able to match his movements.
“Fuck,” he said into my skin as his own release hit him.
For a while, all we could do was sit in the aftermath of what we’d done. But eventually, he winced.
“You know, the couch was a bad idea.”
“Old man,” I teased.
“There was a bed right there.”
“But the couch was hotter!”
“Give your knees ten more years. Then we’ll talk.”
Girls’ Night had become something of a habit. Every Thursday, we would all get together to do something either at the library or at someone’s house. They all did such a good job of keeping me involved in their chats that I looked forward to it every week.
I thought I’d been the first to arrive at Grace’s house, but when I walked in, I heard hushed voices in the living room.
“You don’t have to pretend to be fine,” Grace’s soft voice said.
“I have to. It’s been over a decade and I’m tired of randomly feeling like this. I don’t want what happened to still affect me. I just don’t.”
“You loved him.”
“Yeah. Loved, past tense. So, I shouldn’t be miserable. It’s just that everyone else is so happy, and I’m happy for you all, but it’s hard when I’m alone.”
My eyes went wide. I wasn’t sure what they were talking about, but I had a feeling I shouldn’t be listening. I backed up, planning to go out to my car to give them privacy.
Instead, I ran right into a wall.
Grace came around the corner first. “Piper! Hi! Come on in.”
I actually wanted to melt into the floor. “Uh, if you guys need a minute, I can wait.”
“No need.” Jade came around the corner. “I don’t really wanna wallow in my shit anymore.”
I opened my mouth to ask if she was okay, but it was obvious that she wasn’t. Her smile didn’t reach her dull eyes. Even her hair, a bright green shade, looked like it was faded.
“Seriously,” Jade said, shaking her head. “Distract me.”
“Okay, well . . .” I thought about it. Avoiding anything romantic was probably a good idea. “I may or may not have insight on what’s coming next from Freya.”
Jade perked up. “Now that’s a good distraction.”
I laughed and followed the two women into the living room where we chatted about what Theo was bringing in. Freya was on a lemon-themed baking spree. She’d already had Theo and me taste test it, and I knew the town would love it once it was ready.
Wren and Mollie arrived just after, and we busied ourselves with playing games up until the sun set.
I was content losing at every card game I played, but eventually, Mollie put down her deck and looked at me.
“So, I hear things are going well with Theo.”
My eyes cut to Jade before I answered. “Oh, I suppose, but—”
“Piper, don’t hold back for my sake.” Jade’s voice was flat. “I’m happy for you.”
“Wait, is something wrong?” Mollie asked.
“No,” Jade answered at the same time Grace said “Yes.”
Both women glared at each other.
“Wait,” Wren said. “Is there drama? Are you two fighting?”
“No.” This time Grace said it. “It’s not with me.”
“And it’s nothing new.” Jade crossed her arms. “Seriously, guys. Don’t worry about me.”
“Yeah, not happening,” Mollie said with a shake of her head. “If you don’t want to talk about it, then fine. But if something’s wrong, at least tell us.”
That made Jade’s shoulders slump. “Wow, call me out, why don’t you? And it’s seriously just the same old same old. It’s Gabe again.”
“Did he do something?” Wren asked. “Because we can fight him for you. Or murder him. I usually like the second option, but Henry’s worried about me getting arrested.”
Jade laughed at that. “Thanks for offering, but no. Nothing’s happened.”
“And that’s half the problem,” Grace added.
My confusion was more than likely showing on my face because Jade looked at me and then spoke again. “I have this guy. His name is Gabriel.”
“Yeah, him.” Mollie rolled her eyes. “The shitty ex who left.”
“Right. I guess that’s what he is.” Her shoulders sank again. “But once upon a time, he was way more than that. We were best friends. We were each other’s firsts.”
“What happened?” I asked slowly.
“He had dreams of getting out of this town. I didn’t. Nothing was gonna stop him from leaving.” She shrugged. “He’s happy wherever he is, that’s for sure. He’s made it a mission to never come back, which I guess is my fault.”
“It’s not your fault,” Grace said.
“No, it is. I told him not to come back. I can be a little . . . fiery when angry. I blew up, and he left. I haven’t seen or heard from him since.
I doubt he even thinks about me, which doesn’t make sense considering our whole childhoods were .
. .” She trailed off and shook her head. Her eyes glistened.
God, I couldn’t imagine. I’d written books with a second chance in them, but I’d never seen the pain that could cause firsthand. Jade was always so full of life and bright. Even when I saw her on the street, it seemed like nothing could stop her.
I was the one who had known her for the least amount of time, and even I knew this was weighing heavily on her.
And I hated it.
Grace was the first to pull Jade into a hug. “I am so sorry, Jade. But I’m proud of you for finally talking about it.”
Mollie followed. “Me too.”
Wren did the same, and they were all a pile on Jade. For the first time in my life, I wanted to join. My body locked up when I thought of it, but there was one thing I could do.
I took a shaky breath. Every muscle in my body tried to tense. They tried to tell me that I was in danger and I would get hurt.
But I knew the truth. I trusted everyone in this room.
I fought against it, pushing past it every time I tried to stop.
Eventually, I touched Jade’s hand.
All of the women noticed.
“Holy shit.” Jade blinked her tears away. “You’re touching me.”
“Yeah, I am. I don’t want you to be alone.”
She stared at me, and she finally crumbled.
And we all held her through it in the ways we could.