30. Kieran
30
KIERAN
“ F uck,” I grunt, falling back to the bed after untying Effie.
Slipping my arm beneath her back, I pull her into me.
Her entire body trembles, and I can’t help but smile.
She was so fucking awesome.
She stopped counting at eight, but she had a few more. She’s just lost the ability to talk after that.
“Good girl,” I praise, gently rubbing her back as her breathing begins to slow down. “You’re so beautiful when you come, Luck. Could watch you all day.”
Her warm breath tickles over my chest, and despite only just filling her pussy full of cum, my dick jerks.
It can’t get enough.
I’m just hoping that after another three days of this, she’ll be ready to move on so I can keep my promise to her.
But before I get too comfortable, and before she succumbs to her exhaustion, I need to take care of her.
Slipping from beneath her, I pad naked to the bathroom to get a washcloth to clean her up with before heading to the kitchen for a bottle of water and one of my expertly made cinnamon buns.
She’s quiet as she accepts both, her eyelids heavy and her muscles relaxed.
Crawling back into bed with her, I accept her embrace once she’s finished, and in only seconds, she’s asleep.
If the only thing that comes out of all of this is that she finally gets some rest, then I can live with that. Rest and food, then she’ll be able to start healing. Hopefully.
I lie there with her sleeping in my arms for the longest time, but eventually, I need to move.
Slipping from beneath her, I make sure she’s still out before pulling on my sweats and silently leaving the room.
I clean up and then head for the kitchen. I’m washing our plates from earlier when my cell buzzes in my pocket.
Assuming it’s either King—because he’ll have been told the latest by now, no doubt—or Kian, I pull it free.
But to my surprise, it isn’t my brothers.
Instead, it’s my teammate.
Drying my hands, I swipe the screen and then walk out to the backyard to ensure I don’t wake Effie.
“Hey, man. How’s it going?” I greet.
“Yeah, good. The usual,” Brax hedges.
I like it here in St. Louis. It’s quiet and peaceful. But it’s not home.
It’s not Chicago.
Brax was just finishing up his rookie year as a Chief when I was drafted. We hit it off immediately, and he was more than willing to hand out advice when he thought I needed it.
He’s a good guy. Effie likes him too.
There was a moment when they first met when I wondered if there could be something there. But clearly, I was wrong. As far as I know, he never asked her out, and there has never been anything between them.
I couldn’t have stopped them if they did. I had—have—no claim on Effie. She’s my best friend, and up until yesterday, nothing further had ever happened between us.
I’ve always wanted her to meet someone.
Did I want it to be one of my teammates? No, not really.
My stomach sloshes with something unpleasant at the thought.
“How are things there?”
I let out a heavy sigh, which I’m sure is enough to answer his question.
Slipping through the bushes, I lower my ass to the swing seat where I found her earlier.
“Yeah, you know.” I scrub my hand down my face, trying to decide how much I want to divulge.
“The media is still full of stories,” he warns.
My stomach knots at the reminder that I’ve still got to deal with all the false news that’s spread through the country like a disease.
I’ve been running over things to say to put an end to it all, but it all sounds ridiculous.
I can’t say that my best friend lied. I refuse to throw her under the bus like that.
She did it for a good reason. But I’m not sure the rest of the country—the jersey chasers—will be as understanding as I was.
So, if I can’t tell them the truth, do I tell them we split up? But then, that’ll cause another truckload of drama to surround both of us.
“Brilliant,” I mutter.
“I was right, wasn’t I? This isn’t real?”
Brax has sent me a few messages since the news broke, but I haven’t been very forthcoming with answers. I’ve been too focused on Effie. But he saw through it the instant the news hit the headlines.
“No,” I confess. “It’s not. Effie’s grandmother’s dying wish was for us to get married. So Effie?—”
“Made her dream come true. That’s cute.”
“Yeah,” I agree; the concept is really fucking cute. But the reality is a bitter pill to swallow. “It made Grams very happy. But the goddamn nurse leaked the story, and here we are.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Well, I’m not about to walk down the aisle, that’s for sure.”
Brax laughs. “You could do a lot worse than Effie, man.”
Don’t I fucking know it.
My eyes lift to the house, or more specifically to where the bedroom hides behind the bushes. She’s lying there naked with my cum running out of her.
Yeah, she’s even more perfect than even I was aware of.
“Maybe so, but I couldn’t commit to her for life.”
“Understandable. You can barely look after yourself most days, let alone someone else.”
“Speak for yourself,” I laugh before falling quiet.
“You still there?” he asks after a couple of seconds.
“Yeah.”
“You gonna be back here for the photoshoot Tuesday?” he asks, clearly having had the same reminder that I did earlier.
“Yeah, I’ll be there.”
“And Effie?”
“I’m hoping she’ll come back with me. She’s been here too long. Her life is waiting for her.”
“Kat has been trying to get hold of you,” he suddenly says, making me groan.
It’s not news. I’ve seen and ignored her missed calls, voicemails, messages, and emails.
I just…don’t want to deal with her or this, or anything, right now.
“You’re gonna have to deal with it. Especially if you leave her there. That’ll invite even more questions.”
I drop my head into my hands. “I know.”
“Speak to Kat. She might have the answer.”
“She’ll want me to throw Effie under the bus to make me look better.”
His pause doesn’t fill me with joy.
“I get that, Kieran. I really do. But at the end of the day, she lied. She might just have to face the consequences. She?—”
“The fuck, Brax?” I bark, shooting to my feet.
“I know you want to protect her. I’d be exactly the same. But you can’t do that all the time. Effie is a smart woman. She knew what she was risking when she tied herself to you like this. Have you spoken to her about how she might want to deal with it?”
“No,” I confess, the adrenaline ebbing away.
“That might be the best place to start, don’t you think?”
He’s right. I know he is. But every time I mention the future and having to return to her life, shadows of pain flicker across her eyes. I hate hurting her. Brax is right; I do want to protect her. But maybe this just isn’t a time where I’m able to do that.
She’s going to need to stand up and rip the band-aid off if she stands a chance of moving on.
Which she has to do. I refuse to let her wallow here forever.
We spend a little longer chatting, our conversation thankfully drifting away from my current situation to Tuesday’s photoshoot and other plans we have for the rest of summer. Or at least, plans he has. Other than some helping out at some of our summer camps, and appearances and endorsements, I don’t have much. With Grams’ health declining, I knew my summer would be spent with Effie.
My mind drifts to vacations. The temptation to whisk Effie away from all of this is strong. But it would be irresponsible of me to convince her to go back to Chicago and then drag her away again.
She needs to find stability in her life, to return to her routine and not be pulled away again just as she gets settled.
Forgetting the idea of a week or two on a white beach, I consider shorter options.
I think about the cities we’ve always talked about visiting.
But will us jetting off together blur the lines again?
I’m going to have to tell the media that we’re not a couple; how would us taking trips together look?
When we eventually hang up, my head is spinning even more than before I answered.
So much is up in the air right now. Coming here, I thought it was only my professional life that was in tatters after that tragic loss. I never would have thought that my private life would become headline news, or that I’d find myself engaged.
Leaning forward, I rest my elbows on my knees and let my cell hang between them. I close my eyes and try to make sense of my thoughts.
It doesn’t take long to discover that it’s completely impossible, and eventually, I give up trying and head back to the house to continue tidying up.
In my quest to ignore my thoughts, I pull the refrigerator open and attempt to come up with something for dinner.
It’s already getting late, but I’m hoping Effie wakes up hungry.
Hell knows I already am.
By the time the sound of light footsteps moves toward the kitchen, it’s dark outside.
Closing my emails and lower my cell, I look up as she steps into the doorway.
She’s breathtaking.
Her hair is wild, her lips are still swollen from my kiss, and she’s once again wearing nothing but my t-shirt. Her nipples harden the longer she stands there under my attention, and she begins to shift her weight from one leg to the other.
I smirk, loving how I can still affect her even after what we did a few hours ago.
“How are you feeling?” I ask, pushing to my feet and walking over to the fridge to get her a bottle of water.
“Good. Sore. Tired,” she states as she takes the bottle from me but makes no move to lift it to her lips.
“Drink,” I demand.
She stares at me for a moment before remembering how this is currently working between us.
As she lifts her hand, the red marks on her wrist from my belt catch my eye, and my cock swells.
She looked so fucking perfect tied up there for me.
I can’t help but wonder if vanilla sex with random women is going to satisfy me when this comes to an end.
It won’t , a little voice says in the back of my head, but I shove it down.
I’ll worry about that when the time comes.
If the worst happens, there are clubs in Chicago that discreetly cater to such tastes. I’m sure I’ll be able to get my kicks there while staying under the radar.
“I made pizza,” I explain as I pull the tray from the fridge.
She blinks a few times.
“F-from scratch?” she asks, sounding impressed.
“Yes, from scratch,” I state proudly. “You’re going to eat, then I’m going to run you a bath, and then we’re going to find something to watch.”
Her eyes narrow on me.
“What?” I ask, a little too amused by her attempt to figure me out now that she’s learned all these new things.
“You’re not going to tie me up again and?—”
“Oh, I will,” I say, dropping the tone of my voice. “But not until you’ve recovered.” Abandoning the pizza on the counter, I step up to her, tilting her chin back so she has no choice but to look up at me. “As much as I enjoy making you fall apart, I love putting you back together again just as much.”
Her eyes study mine as her teeth sink into her bottom lip.
“Words, Effie.”
“Will you…will you join me? In the tub, I mean.”