Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
Henley
A good day for daydreams
Two Months Later
I sat on my porch with my journal, ready to write for an hour before I had to get ready for work.
As I stared at the blank page, it hit me.
I was twenty-six now and what did I have to show for it.
I’d bought a house all on my own, gotten myself out of a toxic relationship and was now making a new life for myself.
I did manage to pack on a few pounds over the years while I waited on Bill hand and foot.
There was nowhere to hide those pounds when you’re five feet tall.
While women were paying thousands of dollars for the J’Lo look, I’d earned my thick thighs and round ass with a few too many snacks.
Bill did give me one gift after that last phone call: motivation.
I started setting my alarm for six, crafting a new morning routine that included a mile run on the treadmill and a thirty-minute workout on the Peloton.
Despite my newfound efforts, I hadn’t been sleeping well lately, tossing and turning into the wee hours of the morning.
That was all due to the sexy, hot neighbor that moved in.
The same hot-as-fuck man that stood beside his Range Rover two months ago, fending off unwanted attention from that handsy realtor.
So, this morning, when I couldn’t force myself to fall back to sleep, I decided to brew a pot of coffee and get an early start.
I began writing my thoughts in the journal the same night Amanda and I had captured our initial impression of Mr. Hotness next door, although Amanda had gotten extra creative with her scribbles.
Some days my entries were a mix of doodles and words.
I’d also bought another journal that I used to catalogue Hulk’s antics or venting about things that bothered me at work.
Some days I wrote down the little, insidious ways Bill had hurt me, trying to purge the last dregs of them from my soul.
It was helping because Lord knows I’d spent too many years wondering where I went wrong.
Why I wasn’t good enough. Seeing it down on paper—how many times I’d beaten myself up over every time he made me feel worthless—was cathartic, its own version of therapy.
I started with a quick sketch of what the morning sun looked like as it rose from the east.
It was cool this morning. The dew kissed the ground; little droplets of water resting on the blades of grass.
It had rained most of the night, but no clouds were in the sky when I woke this morning.
I patiently waited, feeling the air chill as the sun’s glow crested the sky.
It always got cooler when the sun came up.
I pressed the top of the pen to my lips, contemplating how to best describe the chill on my skin, and that’s when I saw him.
The neighbor. I’d come to know his patterns.
He left every night around seven and returned at eight thirty.
His garage was packed with boxes and some furniture on one side from when he moved in, so his car remained in the driveway most of the time.
On Fridays, he always had company. Either the same two men with expensive sports cars came by or the same couples who drove new electric vehicles would visit.
The cars were parked out front for several hours and my curiosity always got the best of me, wondering what was going on inside.
On Sundays the same elderly woman visited for a few hours and then left.
Now there he was, wearing the same black sleeveless hoodie he wore every morning when he jogged.
The zipper, halfway down, showed his enticing, defined chest. And that chestnut hair of his bounced as if the air itself enjoyed touching it with every collide of his foot against the asphalt.
There was nothing special about what he wore, but it defined everything about him. Rugged. Unyielding. Motivated.
Before I knew it, I started a new paragraph, capturing every dirty thought.
I slid the zipper the rest of the way down, exposing a perfectly sculpted body.
I could taste the flavor of his skin as I drifted my tongue between his pecs, stopping to drive him mad with a flick of his nipple.
His body shuddered beneath my hands, as if I held all the power to bring this man to his knees.
It’s heady, this desire. His hands tugged my hair, guiding my mouth up to his.
He doesn’t need to tell me. His wants are clear as his fingers clenched harder into my scalp.
I smiled as a moan rumbled from his throat.
“Henley, I want you.”
I’d waited months to hear him utter those words.
To match this desire consuming us both. My fingers slid beneath his pants, feeling his length warm my palm.
Soft velvet wrapped around hard steel, begging me to take him in my mouth.
I didn’t hesitate to free him from his clothes, placing my warm mouth over his cock.
He hissed through his teeth as I ran my tongue around the head.
“Oh Fuck, Henley, that’s it. Fuuuuck.”
His breathy tone ordering not to stop made my nipples hard.
Goosebumps peppered my skin when his hands laced into my hair, guiding my mouth up and down his length.
I don’t know which one of us is punishing the other, but I know I hold all the power to strip him of all his senses and bring him to his knees.
I was so lost in the fantasy I hadn’t realized someone was standing before me until he cleared his throat.
“I’m sorry if I’m interrupting,” a deep voice rumbled, pulling me back into reality.
My eyes lifted to his and my breath caught at the sight of his slicked-back hair, soaked with sweat. “You’re not.” I quickly closed the journal, shoving it under my other journal so he couldn’t see what was written on the cover.
“Good. So, hi. I’m your neighbor, Maverick Cates, but friends call me Mav. I’ve been meaning to come by and introduce myself, but something always comes up.”
If you only knew what “just came up” a few moments ago.
I felt my cheeks redden as my mind traveled back to the lady porn I’d just jotted instead of the dump next door he was staring at.
I followed his gaze, noting part of his front porch was now held up with wood braces.
Some days it was hard to tell if pieces were being added or just falling off the poor thing.
He tossed his chin. “It’s a never-ending project.”
“What?”
“The dump,” he said with a smile.
I raised my hand to my mouth. “Shoot. I didn’t mean that. Dumpster. I meant the dumpster.” Embarrassed didn’t even cover it. I pointed at the steel box sitting in the yard which was piled with debris.
Mr. Hotness laughed. “Yeah. Sorry about that. I’m almost done tearing out the kitchen.
It is a bit of a dump, but it’s got solid bones.
She’ll be a thing of beauty once I’m done.
That’s why I wanted to stop by. I have to replace part of the foundation so there’ll be an excavator here digging.
Might be noisy for a few days. I thought I should apologize for any disruptions to my neighbors. ”
“It’s no problem. Thanks for the heads up,” I replied, only to realize his eyes were transfixed at something lower than my face.
I glanced down and noticed I’d been wearing my favorite pink cotton tank.
It was comfortable but paper-thin. I hadn’t changed when I woke up, opting for a workout instead.
I wasn’t a well-endowed woman, but my nipples were clearly paying attention to him.
I grabbed the journals, placing them over my chest. “By the way, my name’s Henley. ”
His eyes raised to mine. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”
“Of course you did. How could you not when I’ve put them on display. It’s natural, and it’s my fault.”
Maverick dragged his hand over his face. “Really, I’m not usually disrespectful. Their perfect, so perfect I couldn’t take my eyes off them. If it helps.”
“Yeah. That doesn’t help,” I said, standing, the journals still tight against my chest. “I think it’s time I go inside Maverick Cates.” I laughed.
“See you later Henley.”
* * *
A cool breeze mussed my hair as I sat on my porch later that evening. It was almost ten when Maverick came walking over cradling my little yapper. “Me again,” he smiled.
“Hi, yourself,” I stuttered. “Why do you have my dog?”
“Uhm, yeah,” Maverick raised a brow, “Guess he got under the fence again. I was crashed out on the couch. That was until some little furball jumped on me.”
I reached for my little escape artist. “How did he get in your house?”
“I had the back sliding doors open.”
So that was the trick to getting inside his place. Good to know. I’d love to run through the opening in his sliding door, jump in his lap, and rub my body all over him. Maverick’s fingers brushed my hand, sending a wave of desire through me.
“Where you a bad boy?” I asked, sounding like I was talking to an infant child.
“I think he was trying to escape to greener pastures?” Maverick laughed.
“How do you know my pastures aren’t green?”
Maverick’s eyes narrowed as he smirked. I was positive he had a response to my comment but wasn’t willing to share it. “Well, thank you again for bringing Hulk back to me. I’ll fix the hole he dug so he doesn’t bother you again.”
“No problem, but you might want to do it before the workers start. Wouldn’t want him getting lost.” Maverick smiled, turned, walked a few steps, and turned back to look at me. “I’ll see you around sometime.”