16. Zach
16
ZACH
B lake’s hair was still wet in the morning. The long, damp strands woke me. I blinked, momentarily confused until the memories rushed back to me. I’d slept for so long, so solidly, that the sunlight streamed in through the curtains in her bedroom window.
Alarm hit me first. I slept with Blake, the one woman I’d spent so much of my life being forbidden from.
Confusion came next. I worried it was just another one of those racy, exotic wet dreams of her, wishing I could revisit the past.
Awe followed. I had slept with her. I felt the press of her head against my shoulder, those cooling wet strands of her raven locks. The smooth silkiness of her curvy body flush against mine and keeping me so warm and comfortable under the covers.
Holy shit. Amazement and wonder filled me that we’d actually done it.
Again.
I rested my head back against the pillows, careful not to wake her. But she stirred, roused just enough to shift back further down the bed. Holding my breath, I slid out from under her to face her. She lay on her right side, and I settled in on my left to watch her sleep.
I couldn’t believe that I’d done it. That we’d come together like that, in such a rush as though we had been foolish and suffering not to do a retake of the pleasure we'd shared years ago.
Stroking her hair back, I smiled and admired her like this. Relaxed. Peaceful. I’d only been here for a short week or so, but every time I’d spotted her, she'd seemed so tense and nervous.
Attraction could do that to a person. And she’d confirmed my theory that she was attracted to me.
This was how I wanted to see her, all those long, black waves loose and free on the pillow, not tied back so prim and proper as she worked. Her lips closed without any strain. That brow clear of worry lines.
I sighed, committing her to memory like this, feeling like a glutton to have something I shouldn’t.
If Kevin were alive, he’d want to kick my ass to the moon. Not once, but twice, I’d fallen into bed with his little sister he’d warned me away from. It wasn’t as though he’d singled me out. Blake was way too young for me to be attracted to when we were teens. He’d told me anyway, in a general don’t even think about my sister manner, the same as he’d warned off all the other players on the football team. Kevin had always been overprotective of Blake, and I figured it was an offshoot of his personality because of their parents. Mrs. Myer was always sick or recovering from ailments and then cancer. Mr. Myer was a verbally abusive asshole of a drunk. Without a solid set of parents or role models, Kevin had taken on a protector role over Blake.
Is that why she’s so quiet and meek now? I wouldn’t call Blake a pushover, because I knew she could be strong when she had to be. But it made me curious whether she'd adopted a more mild-mannered outlook on life because her big brother had always been around to look out for her.
Who does that now?
Last night, I stood up to Rory for her. She didn’t need me to. I had no doubt she would’ve slapped him or walked away if he continued to push for her attention. It simply felt too damn good to take care of her. To be her hero and her protector.
But who does that now?
My grandma was a big help. She had always considered the neighbor kids to be welcome in her home. The fact that Grandma Jenny hired Blake spoke to the strength of their friendship.
But…
I furrowed my brow, hating the thought of her being alone. Undefended. Vulnerable and stressed out.
The tiny, fleeting idea that I could look out for her sparked an instant streak of hope, of something a lot like excitement.
No. That’s ridiculous.
I couldn’t be so swayed from a long night of the best sex I’d had in a long, long time that I could picture myself as being hers.
She wouldn’t want that. What happened last night was just physical. Scratching an itch. Nothing personal.
What the fuck am I thinking?
It was personal. Blake and I had been as intimate as two people could be, so dismissing it as a fling was a mistake on my part. What caught me the most was that I was still here. Cuddling with her on this late weekend morning was exactly what I wanted to do. I couldn’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be, any other person I’d want to connect with like this. After Kevin’s funeral, I left as soon as she’d fallen asleep. This time, I detested the idea of giving her up or leaving at all.
She woke, blinking and stretching. Like watching a flower blossoming, she was roused enough that she peered up at me and recognized the same truth I had.
We’d fucked. Again. All night long. The mere thought of it brought an instant smile to my face.
Her cheeks turned pink, and I chuckled.
“You have no idea how fucking sexy that blush is,” I whispered.
The corner of her lips tipped up in a small, surprised smile. “I… I was wondering if it was a dream.”
I smoothed my hand over her face, feeling the warmth of her cheek. “No. Not a dream. Just a long night of making you come.”
Her breath hitched as she stared at me, revealing how instantly her desire grew.
“You’re turning rosy here…” I flipped the sheets and blanket down to expose her bare chest. “And here…” I dragged my hand down from her blushing cheek as I traced her neck. “And here.” I cupped her tit, thumbing her nipple.
“Oh, shit. Zach. I can’t keep up with you,” she whispered.
I leaned in close to kiss her hard. She didn’t slack, sucking hard on my tongue and spreading her legs apart.
“I can’t believe I found my way back here,” I told her as I lowered my hand to her pussy. Rubbing over her mound, I sought her slick entrance. “I thought you would’ve moved out of town. On to bigger dreams. But, goddamn…” I pushed a finger into her. She arched her back, gasping, so I moved my head down to suck at her breast. “Goddamn, am I happy you didn’t.”
She hummed, threading her hand through my hair, keeping my head where she wanted me. “I’m happy too. Surprised that we, um…”
“Fucked?” I finished for her, adding another finger into her sopping wet entrance. She’d be too sweet to curse that often.
“Uh-huh,” she replied, breathing faster as I licked around her nipple.
“I couldn’t believe it either when I woke up,” I admitted. “But?—”
“Hello!” The sing-song greeting came from outside her bedroom door. It hadn’t closed since our midnight attempt at cleaning up, when I’d fucked her against the tiled wall of her shower stall. Past that door that remained halfway open, the sounds of someone entering her house reached us.
I went still.
Blake sucked in a deep breath of alarm.
“That’s Sara,” she whispered.
“Mama?” George called out.
I inhaled a sharp breath. I was more than confident that there was no other man in Blake’s life, but I sure as hell didn’t want the kid to see me in his mom’s bed. There had to be ramifications for that, right? He had to be way too young to know what sex was, that a man and a woman could be in love and how the whole birds and bees and laws of attraction worked.
We panicked in unison. Fooling around wasn’t on the agenda—not at this moment.
“Hey!” Blake called out as she scrambled out of bed. “Morning, guys!”
I widened my eyes at her as I searched for my clothes. She sounded off, way too bright and enthusiastic and it’d be obvious she was faking her reply.
“Um, I’ll… I’ll be right out!” She yanked a robe off a hook on the wall.
“Oh!” Sara’s exclamation came in reply. “George, let’s go back in the car and see if we can find that drawing you made for your mom last night.”
“I thought you said I should leave the drawing at your house,” the boy replied.
“Nope. No. I think we brought it along. Come on. Hurry. Let’s, uh, go out and see if it’s in my car.”
“Huh?”
The sounds of Sara hurrying George back outside were a blessing. Because as I panicked and searched for any of my clothes, I realized that they were likely in the hallway out there, where Blake and I finally got around to taking off the rest of our garments on the way to the bathroom.
“Oh, crap,” Blake said as she ran out in her robe. “She must have seen the clothes!”
Keeping a pillow over my junk in case Sara or George could see inside the house, I hurried out with Blake to retrieve it all. She gathered most of it and shoved the armful at me.
Backpedaling to her bedroom, I let her shut the door so I could dress.
Then she opened it again. “I’ll keep them distracted in the front. Sneak out the back door and drive further to the path that goes to Jenny’s.”
I nodded, then opened and closed my mouth. I wasn’t sure what I would’ve said, what I could even think other than, shit, I need to get out of here .
But then she opened the door again, pulled my head low for a quick, hard kiss, and closed the door again.
I smiled, staring at the wood panel.
That kiss didn’t feel like goodbye as much as it seemed like see you later .
I wasn’t sure how to react to sleeping with her again. Running away to return to my troop was no longer an option. And if it was, I doubted I’d be strong enough to walk away from her so easily again.
I couldn’t wait for when I could see her next.
In bed or not.