Chapter 18 Strawberry Bubblegum
Strawberry Bubblegum
Eve
Even when Jamie was out of town, Eve enjoyed being at his cabin.
She hated him being gone, but she’d sit on his porch during the day with her laptop, trying to turn her teenage pregnancy into capital- T theater.
Jamie had a set of rocking chairs that sat at the east end of his second-story porch, and she felt at peace up there, eye level with the trees, the creek burbling beneath her.
That evening, she made herself a light salad for dinner, accompanied by some red wine.
She got settled with a blanket and a book to keep her mind off the fact that Jamie was at some wedding, flirting with God knows who, and maybe going home with them, because she was too stubborn and scared to take their relationship to the natural next level.
She tingled with delight when he sent her some silly text to alert her to these facts. Knowing she was on his mind meant more to her than she was prepared to admit.
Thirty minutes later, he sent another text to let her know he was heading back to Gatlinburg, and she could not stop smiling. She hated that, and she didn’t know what to do with her feelings about it, so she did what any girl in her position would do—she consulted her best friend.
Sun, Aug 17 12:52AM
Eve Ambroise: Remember MAGA?
Maya Baudin: Your lil’ neighbor who read you like a book when y’all met? Yeah
Eve Ambroise: So yeah. I think I like him.
Eve punctuated her sentence with the scrunched-face emoji, because that was precisely how she felt about it.
And seeing the words in text only made it that much more difficult to make sense of.
She was six weeks out of a five-year engagement; she had no business liking someone.
But fuck if she couldn’t wait until she heard that truck of his roar into his driveway.
Maya Baudin: No shit
Maya Baudin: I knew that when you told me you were goin to dinner by his house
Maya Baudin: You don’t be hanging out with just anybody
Eve Ambroise: No, I mean I *like* him like him.
Eve Ambroise: Like we’ve seen each other naked kinda like.
Eve was not at all surprised when her phone immediately vibrated, though the buzz did feel louder and more conspicuous than usual—perhaps because she knew she had so much explaining to do. She laughed as she answered, equally unsurprised when Maya’s salutation was “Bitch…”
Eve did her best to make sense of why she hadn’t updated Maya since she and Jamie started their semi-sexual relationship, but as she spoke, she realized it was because she liked keeping him to herself.
She’d found something, not precious, but close to it, and they existed in their own little world up here in the mountains and the trees.
And some part of her worried the bubble would burst if she dared share her secret with the world.
Telling Maya would start to make it real, and she was enjoying the fantasy.
The giddiness of liking someone, the magic of starting a new story.
She wanted to hold on to that. And it was why she hung up the phone as soon as humanly possible the moment she knew Jamie was home.
Eve unraveled herself from her blanket and headed down the steps to meet him, the nearly full moon casting a gentle white glow over their quiet neighborhood. They reunited at the edge of the driveway, and as Jamie came into view, Eve wasn’t sure that glow hadn’t blinded her.
She knew he’d been at a wedding but somehow hadn’t connected the dots to a haircut and shave.
Now, she wished she’d prepared herself for the sight of Jamie without a beard.
His long curls had been chopped to a more refined length, leaving waves instead of the fluffy tendrils that typically adorned his neck.
His facial hair was nonexistent, just a slight five-o’clock shadow left to show off his dimpled cheeks and the fullness of his lips.
A Disney prince come to life. Her very own Prince Eric.
She stared for much longer than appropriate, awed by the fact that he was even more attractive than she bargained for under all that hair.
“I…You look so different.” It was a silly thing to state—obviously, he knew that—but she had nothing of import to say in the moment.
His bone structure had rendered her speechless.
Jamie smiled back bashfully. “I thought it was best not to scare folks at the wedding.”
He was wearing a slim-fitting pair of blue trousers that emphasized just how bowlegged he was and a matching vest to accentuate his lean physique. She could only imagine how handsome he looked among all the other groomsmen, that crisp blue making his eyes sparkle in the midnight.
Eve approached him gingerly, wanting a closer look, but his gaze caught hers first, their eyes doing a flirtatious dance, leaving her pondering whether to kiss him.
She felt nervous about it, so she didn’t.
Instead, again, she replied with the first thing on her mind.
“Here I was looking forward to feeling that beard between my thighs.”
His eyebrows raised in surprise, followed by the acknowledgment of her simple outfit.
She also looked different from the way he most often saw her—leggings and a tank top, sometimes accompanied by a sweater.
Today, she’d slipped into a maxi dress for the occasion.
It was heather gray—a color that did her no justice, but it was the only thing she’d packed in the realm of sexy, as the fabric did its job of hugging her slight curves and showed just enough cleavage to hopefully whet his appetite.
“I didn’t realize you’d be waiting for me,” Jamie said as she led him up the stairs. As he removed his vest and tie, Eve made her way into the kitchen, where she poured herself a big glass of the wine she’d brought over, and he joined her. “I went over to your place first.”
Eve looked at him, amused, wanting to tell him she liked his place better than hers. But tonight, in particular, she’d stayed because she wanted to make it easier for him to find her. “I thought you’d come here first.”
“Not on the same page.”
“We were,” she said, taking a sip of her wine before offering him the glass. “We were so eager to see each other, we tried to plan ahead.”
He smiled, and she hoped it was because he appreciated her ceaseless efficiency. But as he drank from their glass, his cheeks reddened, leaving her to wonder what on earth was on his mind. If perhaps it was the same thing on hers.
“Can I touch it?” she asked, her voice thin, nervous to speak her desire out loud.
“What?” He chuckled, flashing dimples she didn’t know existed until today.
“Your face,” she said. She realized what an odd request it was, but he just looked so handsome, his skin so soft, her hands were tingling to feel it. Like electricity coursing through her, her attraction to him pushing through to her fingertips.
He nodded for her to do so, their eyes locking as she moved in close and pressed her warm hand to his face.
She caressed him, her lips curling into a demure smile as she studied his beardless visage.
She combed her fingers through his hair, examining the full length of it, as if for her approval.
Her gaze dropped to his mouth and her hand innately followed, her thumb tracing the line of his pink bottom lip.
Jamie set their wineglass back on the counter, pinning her against it in the process, and went in for a kiss.
Gentle but hungry, he sucked at her plump lips like they were his sustenance.
Her tongue met his within seconds, drawing an unexpected moan from both of them as they melted into one another.
His right hand snaked down her back until it reached her ass, giving it a soft squeeze as he pulled her in.
Eve’s tongue lashed against his, tasting the red wine, but feeling drunk from him, their bodies so close they were practically one.
When they pulled apart for air, her chest heaving against his, she gave him a small, knowing smile.
She reluctantly left Jamie’s embrace to go and sit on the bed like she owned the place, waiting for Jamie to catch up.
“Oh,” he said with surprise. He eyed the condom packets she’d placed on his nightstand, and then her. “You’re sure?” he asked.
“Don’t start this again,” she said, recalling their first attempt.
His need to make sure she was okay was part of why she realized she wasn’t.
And while that was something she should’ve been thankful for, she wanted to enjoy this without overthinking it.
“I’m sure that I trust you. And I wanna give it another try.
” She sat back so that she was squarely in the middle of the mattress. “So get over here.”
Without another word, Jamie crossed to the bed with a mischievous gleam in his eyes as he began to unbutton his shirt.
He climbed on top of her, between her legs and into her arms, and he kissed her again.
Harder, more passionately this time, his mouth forcing hers open and pulling all the air from her lungs.
He wasted no time, but still, he took what he needed, giving attention to every part of her, his lips brushing across her chin before moving down her neck.
He sucked at her skin like candy, giving it three little licks before taking a soft bite, making her moan his name.
He paused only briefly to pull off his shirt, then continued across her collarbone and down her chest, tugging at the straps of her dress to leave her shoulders bare.