Chapter 7
CHAPTER 7
Presley
T oday, Coach tells us that we’ll be completing the second half of our physical assessment test, and that it’s boys’ pick for partners. And by no surprise, Kyler gets to pick first. I avoided making eye contact with him, but could feel the heat of his stare from the moment I entered the gym. “Presley,” he chooses, and I have no choice but to finally look up.
As soon as our eyes connect, my stomach flutters. The pull between us is even stronger today. And it certainly doesn’t help that he looks so sexy in his tight black T-shirt which is hugging his muscles perfectly, giving me a glimpse of his thick biceps. My eyes drop lower, seeing how his gray jogging pants are molded to his hard thighs. They’re also molded to his package, which is beginning to grow more pronounced under my stare. I look up, realizing my mistake, cringing when I see the smirk on his face. Now, he knows exactly what’s running through my mind.
Begrudgingly, I walk over to stand by my partner. He shifts and strategically places me in front of his body. It’s obvious he doesn’t want the rest of the class to see the bulge that’s now tenting the front of his pants. I don’t want them to, either, honestly. The possessive feeling sinking in rattles me. And there go the warning bells sounding. I turn my attention to my partner from yesterday, needing the distraction.
It’s John’s turn to make his selection. He doesn’t even take a second to linger over his choice. He states a girl’s name with so much confidence that it has me smiling. Yesterday, he was cowering in the corner, too afraid to make eye contact with his peers. And today, he’s holding his shoulders up high and looking ready to take on the world. The girl he’s chosen gives him a shy smile as she steps to his side. Aw, that’s cute .
John must sense me staring because his eyes shift in my direction, giving me a friendly smile as he tips his head at me. It’s amazing how little it takes to help someone feel good about themselves. It’s what my grandmother always used to say: “A little bit of kindness goes a long way.” I give him a discreet thumbs-up and a wink, feeling like I’ve made another friend.
Suddenly, Kyler’s hands are braced on my hips, and I’m yanked back against his body. There’s possession in his hold, but there’s no way he could be jealous of John.
“You’re a damn sweetheart, babe. You know that? So damn beautiful inside and out.”
Kyler’s whisper slides over me, wrapping its way around my willpower and trying to rip my resistance to shreds. I can feel his hard bulge pressing into my lower back and it’s a battle to keep myself from rubbing against it. But I intend to stay strong today. What happened between us yesterday won’t be happening again.
“So, you’re still trying to avoid me?”
His grumbly voice takes another strike at my defenses, sending a shiver through my shoulders. I shake my head, pulling out of his grip, thankful the coach has just told us to move to our first stations. “No,” I state, making my way toward the dumbbell rack. “I just got to school early and went to class.” The lie rolls off my tongue and is a little too believable for my own ears.
“Well, good. Now, I know where to find you then.” Kyler’s hands reach for me again, but I sidestep him before he can get ahold of me.
“So, what have you been up to since I moved away, Kye?” I’m determined to keep all of our conversation strictly platonic.
“Mostly football.” He shrugs. “Got a scholarship to State next year.”
Shit. That’s where I’m going. I wanted to stay close to my dad so I decided to stay in state. But that means I’ll now be in school with Kyler. At least the campus is huge, so maybe I won’t even run into him. Though, I’d be lying if I said the excitement of knowing we’ll be at the same school wasn’t creeping in. I force the thought away and force my smile.
“Congrats! A scholarship? Wow, you must be really good.” Kyler always said he wanted to play football when we were kids, but we moved before I ever got the chance to see him play.
He shifts in closer, removing the safe little bubble I had made for myself, suffocating my nerves with the intensity that’s rolling off him. “I’m more than good, Pres. I’m incredible.” The low rumble of his voice hits me low in the stomach. I know exactly what he’s insinuating, and I don’t doubt his skills. I already had a small taste yesterday and he blew my world apart.
Those dark eyes of his are swimming with so much heat that my pussy gets caught in the undertow, dousing me with lust. That static charge is in the air again, sparking over my entire body. If I don’t put space between us, I’m liable to press him down on the weight bench and find out exactly how incredible his dick feels. I channel my strength and step over to the weight rack, grabbing two ten-pound dumbbells. “Too bad the season is over,” I say, beginning to do my bicep curls. “I won’t get to see how incredible you play. So, what else have you been up to other than football…and girls?”
The last part slipped out, but I needed a jolt of reality to put out the flames. Judging by his low growl, I don’t think he liked me giving him the reminder about his player ways. There’s no judgement on my part. At least he’s owned it and hasn’t dragged girls’ hearts through the mud, pretending he wants more when he doesn’t. That I can actually respect. But for some irrational reason, jealousy is breathing down my neck. I return the dumbbells back to the rack, and start to reach for heavier weights to pump the aching feeling out of my system.
“Don’t punish me for my past, Pres.” I feel his chest pressed against my back, his hot words right at my ear. “It should have always been you, but you were gone. It’s clear to me now why I never wanted to waste my time on any of them. Because the real thing is so goddamn incredible, nothing would’ve ever compared.”
I’m thankful the dumbbells are still safely in place, or they would’ve slipped from my sweaty palms. He’s all in. And that…is terrifying. How am I supposed to keep things platonic when he says things like that? How am I supposed to protect my heart?
“Now, what about you and your past?” he says, taking a step back, placing me in the hot seat while he does his exercises. “How long did you date the jerk who did a damn good job of constructing that wall of yours for me?” There’s a teasing quality to his tone, but it does nothing to ease the anger boiling to the surface. Just thinking of Maddock puts me on edge. And knowing there’s some truth in Kyler’s comment has me lashing out.
“One year. But, please, don’t give Maddock too much credit. ‘The wall’ is because I’m smart. But if you really want to know about the asshole, I’d be happy to share.” There’s no stopping me now; the pain is flooding in and Kyler is going to bear the brunt of it.
“What do you want to know, Kye? That the asshole who cheated on me is now dating someone who I thought was a friend? Would you like to know how I caught him? Oh, that’s a fun story.” The disdain is dripping from every word, but Kyler doesn’t seem rattled.
“I was at a party,” I continue, slipping into the sinkhole of the shitty memory. “We’d all been drinking, so we decided to crash in our friend’s basement for the night. At some point, I woke up needing to pee, and that’s when I saw a girl I considered a good friend straddling Maddock’s waist and riding his cock.”
Kyler’s jaw clenches, and I’m pretty sure the dumbbell in his hand is being tortured under his white-knuckled grip.
“They were practically fucking each other right next to me. And do you want to know what excuse he used to get himself off the hook for that shit?” God, just thinking about it has me wanting to rage. “He told me he was asleep and thought he was dreaming, and that it was all Sophie’s fault. Then do you know what the shithead did after that?”
I swallow hard, struggling to get the next part out. The pain is almost too much to bear. The guilt weighing heavier than all the weights on that rack. “The jackass iced her out and made every day a living hell for her at school. He was the one who lured her in and convinced her to sleep with him, and then he punished her for his mistake. He bullied her so much that she begged her parents to send her away to a boarding school. And thankfully, her parents listened and set her free from Maddock’s torture.”
“Fuck! I want to kill the bastard!”
Kyler’s roar has me snapping back from the horrible tunnel of truth that was threatening to cause me to break. His shoulders are locked and loaded with tension. The pulse in his neck ticking fast. And I’m pretty sure he’s wishing the weights in his hands were Maddock’s neck.
“Yeah, well, get in line,” I say dryly, turning to start our next exercise. Honestly, I think I was more broken hearted over what happened to Sophie and less about what Maddock did to me. I just never imagined he’d be so cruel. And I never imagined I’d be the type of person to sit back and let it happen. I was so angry with Sophie over betraying me, so hurt that she’d slept with him knowing he was my boyfriend and that I was in love with him, that I never stuck up for her. I let my pain blind me, and I let the girl get bullied. And that’s the part that broke me.
“If he calls you again, baby, I want you to put me on the fucking line.”
“He won’t.” I shake my head. “I blocked him.”
“Good.” He steps into my space, taking my chin within his grip, giving me no choice but to meet his dark eyes. The softness lurking in their depths is exactly what I was trying to avoid. “Baby, you know I’d never do anything like that, right? That guy is fucking scum. He didn’t deserve you.” His thumbs rub across my cheeks, and the warmth starts to soothe the anger. “I’m sorry for what you’ve been through, Pres.” My heart thumps in my chest, trying to bury itself within the hope that Kyler could be different.
“Please don’t punish me for what that asshole did. Give me a chance, babe.”
The wall of safety I’ve erected around my heart starts crumbling away. Kyler’s always been good. One of the best people I’ve ever known. I know he’d never intentionally betray me. But the undeniable truth is—he’s only eighteen. Kyler’s got his entire life ahead of him. One that’s going to be filled with football, and fame, and lots and lots of girls that will be dying to have a taste of him. And whether he intends for it to happen or not, the temptation to want to explore things will hit. Like every other college kid, he’ll want to have fun. To play the field. He’ll want to “sow his wild oats.” And when that day comes, I’ll be broken. My heart will never be able to recover from losing the only true friend I’ve ever had in my life. So, the answer is simple: I choose self-preservation.
“You two gonna stand around and talk all day? Or move onto your next station?”
The coach’s voice startles me. I hadn’t even noticed his approach.
“Yep, sorry, Coach. Just getting acquainted with the new girl,” Kyler says.
Coach rolls his eyes. “Yeah, I bet you were, Jacobs. Now save it for the parking lot like you usually do, and get back to work.” The teacher’s comment proves my point. Kyler is a player, and getting involved with him is a mistake.
I turn on my heel and walk straight over to our next station. Thankfully, it’s an arm hang and doesn’t require much thought, because right now I can’t focus on anything but the disappointment rushing through me. As soon as Kyler steps up to my side, I hand him the stopwatch. “Ready,” I say, jumping up and grabbing ahold of the bar before he has a chance to say anything else that will only make this harder on me.
He starts the timer and I close my eyes. There’s no way I can stare at Kyler’s reflection while I’m trying to carry the weight of my shoulders, along with everything else that’s bearing down on them right now. Eventually, my arms grow tired and I release my grip, letting myself drop to the floor. I barely find my footing before Kyler’s arm snakes around my waist and his lips press to my ear. “We aren’t done, Pres. Not by a long shot.”
He releases his hold and steps up to the bar, and now my arms are not the only part of my body that’s shaking. As soon as he jumps up, I start the stopwatch. My heart is ticking faster than the seconds on the screen. And when I see Kyler’s eyes boring into the mirror, focused right on my reflection, I have to say something. Anything to break the intensity of the moment.
“So, what else has been going on since I left, Kyler?”
“There’s not much to say…” He shifts his grip, his shoulders looking nowhere near the point of exhaustion. “We moved to a new house not long after you left. Chase filled in the gap after my best friend was gone. Football consumed me and took up all my free time. And high school was boring up until yesterday.”
The tears sting my eyes. I’m envious of how simple and stable his life has been. I would’ve given anything to be bored. Boredom is easy. What I endured was not.
“Hey, Pres, no.” Kyler drops to the floor and pulls me straight into his arms. “Chase didn’t replace you, baby. No one ever could do that. I still missed you so damn much.”
It’s not Chase bringing the tears to my eyes. God, I wish it were. Kyler has no idea how much I missed him too. How much I wished day in and day out to be back here. To see his kind face. To have someone who I could share my deepest secrets with. To have someone to distract me from the pain.
His arms wrap tighter. His head nuzzling right into the side of my neck. Just like he did yesterday. Right before the fireworks went off. I can feel his smooth lips running up to the spot below my ear, as if he already knows exactly what it will do to me. And when his lips begin suckling over my skin, a blaze of tingles flood my core and everything plaguing my mind fades away. The darkness is replaced with need, and l lean into it, crave more of it. I want to be drowned in pleasure and forget. The pain hurts, but this… this feels so good.
The coach blows his whistle, announcing that it’s time to move onto the next station, and both of us pull apart, not wanting to get into trouble again, but the sexual tension is thick in the air and surrounding us like an ever-pressing heat. I follow Kyler to our next spot, the sit-up station, which turns out to be in the far back corner of the room. Almost hidden from everyone’s view. And the heat that’s causing my nerves to sweat, grows more intense.
Kyler gestures for me to go first. But as soon as I lie down on the mat and get into sit-up position, I know exactly why he wanted me to start. And when Kyler kneels before me, ready to brace my feet in place, a raw hunger burning in his eyes, I know I’m in trouble.
He glances over his shoulder, checking to make sure the coast is clear, and the air rushes from my lungs. Even if I wanted to put a stop to this, I’m not strong enough. I want him to consume my every thought. There’s an emptiness deep within that’s gnawing at my soul and I need him to make it go away. Even for just a little bit.
His heads snaps back around and the fierce determination is seared into every feature. He nudges my legs apart and makes no apologies as he zeroes in on the spot between my thighs. The one I’m sure is revealing the effect he has on me. His tongue wets his lip, and his head starts lowering. It’s as if he’s completely forgotten where we are.
“Kyler, no,” I gasp, finding the words impossible to push past my lips. I want it so bad, but he can’t. If anyone catches us, we’ll both be suspended. And if my dad hears exactly how I got into trouble, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to look him in the eye again.
He shakes his head as if snapping out of a trance. “Goddamn, baby. Fuck. The things I’d do to you if we weren’t in this room.”
The ache becomes too great for me to bear. I squeeze my thighs together, trying to get some friction. I need to take the edge off before I explode. Kyler catches my movement, and with an intense force, shoves my legs apart and wedges himself between my knees, blocking me from doing it again. “This pussy is mine, baby. If you need a release, I’m the one you’ll get it from.” Oh God .
His fingers brush over my shorts, but his teasing touch can barely be felt. I begin to squirm, trying to get more pressure, but he shakes his head. “This sweet little girl is going to learn some patience.”
He can’t be serious. I’m dying. And at any moment the coach or a classmate could walk over and put a stop to us. Time is of the essence, and my pussy is desperate to be relieved of the ache that’s now building in my gut. Thankfully, when he glances over his shoulder, I think he comes to the same realization. And the moment his thumb presses against my clit, rubbing it up and down, my back arches off the mat, pleasure coiling within my core.
“Shh…baby…you have to be quiet and relax so I can give this to you. Otherwise, Coach will come over.”
Oh God. I hadn’t realized I’d made any noise. I was already in the quicksand, being swallowed up by the lust. And as his two strong fingers slide lower between my legs, gliding over the soaked cotton down to that empty, aching place, I have to shove my fist in my mouth, bite down to keep the moan from slipping past my lips. His fingers slide under the material, making direct contact with my swollen lips, and I fail miserably at holding it back.
My eyes snap open as the wild sound slips from my throat. I’m worried I’ve just drawn attention to us. Kyler’s head snaps over his shoulder, no doubt trying to make sure we haven’t been heard. When he turns back around, the look in his eyes has me ready to moan again. The desire is so heavy, it looks like he’s going to lose control.
“I’m only giving you this warning for your own good, babe, but if you keep that up, I’ll be tearing these little shorts off and fucking you raw. I don’t give a shit who hears or sees. But I know you do. So, unless you want coach to see me drilling this slick cunt right on this mat, you better hold it in. Or at least make it sound like you’re grunting from doing sit-ups.”
I’m pretty sure after what he just said, I’d let him fuck me right on the coach’s desk. But since I never want my dad to look at me with anything less than pride in his eyes, I’ll keep my mouth shut.
He looks over his shoulder one more time before his fingers dive right back under my shorts. They begin their skillful torment, and I know it won’t be long before I’m plummeting.
“You feel so fucking good, Presley. So swollen. Damn, I need to see you.”
My shorts are suddenly yanked to the side with so much force I hear the seam start to rip.
“Fuck. You’re perfect. So plump and ready.” His fingers rub over my swollen lips and I struggle to fight back the moan. “So tight and slick.” Two thick digits press inside my entrance and my back comes flying off the mat. I take myself all the way to a sitting position, trying to mask the sounds like he suggested. But when his fingers start fucking my core relentlessly, I give up on the pretenses.
My hips begin to rock forward, meeting his every thrust. I look down between us and watch as his fingers disappear inside my channel. His palm hitting my clit with every pass. The sight of it drives me straight into my orgasm. I bite down on my lip, trying to keep quiet, but as he pulls me under, the whimpers come slipping out.
“That’s it, baby. Fuck my hand. Fuck my fingers like you’ll fuck my cock.”
His rough grunts hit me with another surge and a gush comes flooding out. I flop back onto the mat, no longer able to hold myself up. My body is convulsing as he draws every drop of pleasure out. If the coach came over now, he’d probably think I’m having a seizure. But what I’m having is the most incredible orgasm of my entire life.
A low groan has me opening my eyes. Kyler’s still staring between my legs. The hunger I see has blood pumping right back into the spot he’s still rubbing. When his fingers finally retreat, I almost grab his hand and hold him in place. But as I see him take them into his mouth and suck them straight between his lips, I decide that watching is just as heady as his touch. I’m ready to go again, but unfortunately, the whistle blows and our time is now up.