Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
A aron
We arrive to the buggy place just as a group is returning their buggies.
“Holy crap, I’m not getting myself covered in mud.” Sofia winces.
“Aw, come on, nothing wrong with getting a little dirty,” Nolan answers, waggling his brows.
A guy walks up to us and introduces himself as our tour guide. My cell rings and when I check my phone, I see it’s Mom.
“I’ll be a sec,” I say to Briar. I walk away from the group to answer the call. “Hi, Mom.”
“Hi, darling. How is Punta Cana?” she asks.
“It’s beautiful. It’s been a fun trip,” I say to her.
“I hope you aren’t saying that on my account,” she counters.
“I’m not. It’s been fun,” I assure. Every time I talk to Mom now I try to take in the details of her voice. I try to revel in the fact she is still with us, but another part of me feels the impending doom of her death hanging over me like a gray cloud all the time.
“I feel bad we aren’t together over Christmas,” she says again for the umpteenth time.
“I don’t want you feeling bad. I’m really having a great time. We’re about to go on an off-road buggy ride and later we’re all going to have dinner together,” I say.
“Are there any pretty girls on the trip?” She giggles. I know she would have liked me to meet someone. She hasn’t been quiet about her wishes but I was never in the right headspace, and I never met anyone who held my attention for more than one night. Except for Briar. I seem to be interested in multiple rounds with her.
“Uh, there’s always pretty girls around,” I say with nonchalance. I don’t want to give Mom false hope when Briar and I have an expiration date.
“I heard some hesitation,” she says because who knows me better than my own mom.
“There may be someone I’m into but it’s nothing serious. I don’t want you reading into anything,” I caution. Before Mom got sick, I was the hookup guy. I felt like I had all the time in the world, but when Mom started mentioning not being at my wedding, it got me thinking of my future, but it’s not like I could just make myself fall in love with someone. It wasn’t that easy and after having my parents as such good examples it was a hard act to follow.
“Okay.” She blows out a breath. “I’ll keep praying my son finds the perfect girl and falls hopelessly in love.”
“Like his father,” I hear Dad say in the background and my heart twists. I don’t know what he’s going to do without her. I don’t know what I’m going to do but I’m not going to worry about that now. The doctors said we could have anywhere from three-to-five years, and maybe by then there will be a new medicine on the market.
“Merry Christmas, Aaron. I love you and hope to see you soon. Dad and I will be spending the night in Rome.”
“Enjoy, Merry Christmas,” I say to Mom.
“Here’s your dad.” She passes him the phone.
“Hi, Son. I hope you aren’t getting into too much trouble there.” He chuckles.
“Nah, just the usual stuff,” I assure.
Dad barks out a laugh but beneath it I hear the strain in his voice. He’s putting up a strong front for Mom, but his insides are being torn apart. I know because mine are too. The only reprieve I’ve had lately are the moments spent with Briar. That girl manages to put a smile on my face. “Love you, Son. Have a Merry Christmas and don’t get into too much trouble.”
“Same goes for you, Dad,” I say, and he laughs again.
I end the call and walk back to the group. The tour guide is handing out bandannas we are supposed to use to cover our faces because we are headed down a river and it can get very muddy.
The buggies are two seaters. Briar and I take one together because everyone has already branched off into pairs.
“Everything okay?” she asks.
“As okay as it can be,” I reply, sounding cryptic.
Briar frowns.
“We’re having fun. No frowning now,” I urge. I know Mom wants me to be happy. She doesn’t want me walking around sad all the time. It’s taking a strong effort, but I’m determined not to let her down.
“You aren’t a crazy driver, are you?” Briar asks as we buckle in. The thing is covered in a thick coat of mud so I don’t understand what we’ve signed up for.
“I’ll keep you safe, Buttercup.” I wink. “But I can’t promise things won’t get dirty.”
Glenn comes around to make sure we are wearing seat belts, and then he gets into the front buggy because he’s going to be leading us through the trail.
Briar and I are the last buggy. Everyone takes off through the off-road trail. I hit the gas and we take off. The road is bumpy and wet. We are both wearing bandanas over our mouths, which is good because mud is flying all over us. Briar is hanging on for dear life as I floor it and we take off after the group. We drive through some crazy river.
Briar is laughing her head off and so am I. It’s an adrenaline rush to be driving through the trail, but it’s the sound of her sweet laughter that makes something inside me feel light and airy.
We head up a hill and we can see at the bottom there is a huge mud puddle.
“Drive around it,” Briar warns.
I don’t relent on the peddle and we get soaked as we drive through it. Briar is screaming but she’s laughing her head off.
By the time we get back to our starting point, it’s been a good hour and every inch of us is covered in mud.
Glenn tells us to rinse off in the showers. He guides us toward a water cave.
“I made a reservation for all of us at 7:00 p.m. in the main restaurant,” Lennon announces. “They’re serving all the Christmas fixings.”
With all the fun we are having I keep forgetting about the holiday.
We head toward the water cave, all of us soaking wet. The place offers us towels and the girls strip down to their bikinis. Briar is back in that black string bikini of hers. My eyes roam over every inch of her body.
Levi jumps in the water first. “Guys, it’s warm. Fuck, I was so worried my cock would snap off,” he announces to everyone.
We all laugh, but it is a relief the water is warm. We are given snorkels and we all head into the water and check out the little fish swimming beneath us.
Taylor lets out a loud scream and we all freak out, but then we realize it was Hawk who grabbed hold of her foot under water. There are different tunnels to venture through and I motion for Briar to follow me away from the group. I notice Hawk did the same thing with Taylor on the last turnoff, and I wouldn’t mind some alone time with her.
“I hope we don’t get lost,” she says as we make our way through the dark cave. The water is crystal clear and warm, and her blue eyes match the color.
“You’re safe with me,” I assure her.
“I’m in trouble with you,” she states. Her words ring true for me too.
“Nothing wrong with a little trouble, Buttercup.” I loop my arm around her waist and pull her into me. My gaze narrows on her plump lips. “Have you ever had sex in a water cave?”
“No,” she giggles. “Have you?”
“Nope. There’s a first time for everything,” I reply.
Our lips smash together. In the water it’s easy for her to wrap her legs around my waist and hold on.
“What if someone comes this way?” she asks, breaking the kiss.
“Then we give them quite a show,” I say, locking lips with her again. From there everything happens in a blur of lust. Her hands running over my shoulders and chest. Her need to press her center against my cock. I lower my shorts enough to take my cock out. I’m not taking them off in fear of losing them. I move her bikini to the side and guide myself inside her. That initial feeling of sliding inside her feels like heaven. Everything gets intense from here. Our need to come, the hungry way we kiss. I place my hands on her ass and help her ride my cock fast and hard. I grunt and she moans. We get so loud we hear an echo and that scares her and her eyes shoot open.
“It’s fine,” I say sucking on her lower lip. That seems to appease her and we go back to grabbing at each other, using our bodies to grind harder against one another. The fire blazes between us as we both fall over the edge until we are breathless. Our ragged breaths sound loud in the silence of the cave. In the distance we hear our friends talking. I look into her eyes, confused about her and what’s happening between us. I’ve had plenty of sex in my life but it was about getting off. This with Briar is different. Being inside her feels right. It’s a feeling I’ve never had before.
“You good?” I ask her. Going bareback has been like a dream come true.
“Yes, but we keep on having unprotected sex. You aren’t with anyone else, are you?” she asks. I see the vulnerability written all over her face. She doesn’t trust easily. I’m guessing because of how her parents have treated her.
“I wouldn’t do that to you. I’m not a cheater or a liar,” I assure her. “Besides, I’m kind of addicted to your pussy right now.”
She laughs and smacks my shoulder. She moves off me.
“We should get back to the group if we can figure a way out of here.”
We head back to the group. Everyone is laughing and just having a good time. When we get to the end of the cave, we all get out of the water and dry off. We cab back to the hotel and take showers in our rooms before dinner.
I’ve got a towel around my waist when I leave the bathroom. Levi is waiting to get into the bathroom to shower.
“So you and Briar are hot and heavy,” he says, and he waits for my reaction.
“Nah, it’s chill, bro.” I smack his shoulder.
“Dude, we all heard you guys in the cave,” he informs.
“Shit.” I don’t have something better. “She’s a cool girl.” I shrug.
“She isn’t the type of girl to get around. She’s guarded and careful.” I get that he’s being a good friend to her. He’s been working with her for years.
“We spoke about what’s happening between us, and we agreed that it’s a vacation fling,” I explain to him.
Still, he looks worried. “Okay, bro. I’ve never seen you this invested in a girl before.”
He isn’t wrong but I thought he was worried about Briar, not me.
“That’s true. I like her. What’s the problem with that?” I ask him.
“There isn’t one,” he says, and he walks past me into the bathroom. His words take a moment to sink in. I realize what he’s getting at. If I’m this invested in her now, how am I walking away the day after tomorrow? The truth is, I don’t know but I can’t go back on our deal. We said this was a fling and that’s what it needs to stay. Briar’s life is complicated and so is mine. So whatever this is will end when we return home as planned. For now, I plan to milk every moment with her.