Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Cooper
Arizona
L ight slants through the hotel room window, illuminating Penny’s hair. It shines no matter the lighting, but right now, it looks like a curtain of fire, the reds and golds sparkling. I reach over and brush a couple strands from her face. She scrunches her nose adorably, but doesn’t open her eyes.
I swear, a day in Arizona and she already has a dozen new freckles.
After two weeks spent traveling just the two of us, staying mostly in cheap motels or at campsites, the luxury of this gigantic bed, crammed with enough throw pillows to buoy the Titanic, led to some of the best sleep I’ve had in ages. The last time I slept this well, I’d just won the Frozen Four. The night after the game was a blur; we went out to celebrate with the guys, of course, and Penny couldn’t keep her hands off me for more than half a second. I’m convinced that Coach saw her trying to climb me like a tree, but if so, he’s chosen not to mention it, and I’m grateful, because my hands were absolutely somewhere a father would hate seeing.
The night ended, eventually, in a bed like this, and with us horizontal, and with tears in her eyes as she stroked my hair and pressed kisses to my face like I was her lucky charm instead of the other way around. We made the plans for this road trip then. To spend time alone, just the two of us—and to get her back to Arizona for the first time since she moved to New York. We left as soon as the semester ended, traveling slowly, taking in the sights, and playing games all the while, in and out of the bedroom.
Exploring the capital in the pouring rain. Running into a bear at the campsite in North Carolina. Spending extra time in Charleston, even though it was out of the way, because we loved it so much. Line dancing in Nashville. Getting handsy at the Gateway Arch. Having pie at two in the morning in Oklahoma at a diner that rivaled Bex’s old place. Right before coming here, we explored Dallas, and that led to our best game yet.
It took us a while to get here, but it was clearly the way to go, because by the time we crossed state lines, Penny was excited instead of anxious. Yesterday, we explored Flagstaff, and she fit in so well, bathed in sunshine and dry desert air, that I couldn’t stop smiling.
Last night we drove further north; we’re staying in a hotel near the Grand Canyon. That’s on the docket for today. She’s never been, and I haven’t either, and I think she wants some time to settle in before we head to Tempe to visit her mother’s grave.
When we get there, whatever she needs to say, whatever she needs to do—I’ll be there to support her. Three, nearly four years removed from what happened with Preston, and she hasn’t been back. Coach has, apparently, but Penny didn’t want to go with him, even to sit at her mother’s resting place for a while.
She snuggles closer, still asleep. I slip my arm around her waist underneath the covers. I slip my arm around her waist underneath the covers, making her open an eye.
Whoops.
She hides a yawn behind her hand. “What time is it?”
“The sun is up.”
“Of course,” she grumbles. “Did you already go for a run or something?”
“I figured I’d ask if you wanted to join.” I press our bodies together. We’re both naked from last night. As soon as we got back from dinner, she was tugging at our clothes. It’s hazy thanks to the bottle of wine we shared, but I’m pretty sure that she pushed me onto my back and climbed onto my dick. Now, my fingers trail down her spine. “Or we could exercise in a different way.”
She buries her face against my chest, so I feel, rather than see, her smile. “Interrobang?”
“Always.”
She wriggles away. “Incorrigible. I have to pee.”
While I wait for her to come back, I fist my cock, giving it a stroke that has me biting the inside of my cheek. In a moment, she’s here again, her slim fingers wrapping around mine, her newly minty breath brushing my cheek.
She winks at me. “Couldn’t wait?”
“I dreamt about you last night, Red.”
She palms her breast, smiling when I lick my lips. “Did I have clothes on?”
“No.”
She pinches her own nipple. “Was it like this?”
“We were in a field. Wildflowers and tall grass all around.”
“You’re such a romantic.”
I sit up and kiss her on the mouth, replacing her small hand with my much larger, rougher one. She moans as I run my tongue over hers. I pull back to say, “You had on a blue dress, to start, but then it was a blanket. No panties. That made me laugh. You planned it, you said, brought me out there because you wanted sunshine on your skin while we fucked. I must have gotten the panties thing from Dallas.”
She gives my cock a squeeze. “What did we do?”
I set my mouth against her ear and whisper, “I ate your cunt in the dirt, against all those flowers, while you sucked my cock.”
I smile with satisfaction as she freezes. She practically tackles me against the bed, her hands finding their way to my hair as she kisses me sloppily, our teeth grinding together. I bite her lip, and she gasps. My hands find her ass and squeeze.
“Right now,” she pants, her hips jerking forward. “Let’s do it right now.”
I run my finger down the crack of her bottom. “You think you can keep up with me?”
In answer, she turns around, shaking out that mane of red and orange and gold.