Chapter Forty-Four
The red tide has officially washed away, and with it, my immense horniness has returned. Free at last!
I grab my phone from the edge of my dresser and whip my top off over my head. Squeezing my elbows inward, I angle my phone over my tits, snapping a few pictures, and sending the best one to Rafael, waiting impatiently for his response.
Good thing that man doesn’t know how to make me wait, even if he wanted to.
Sunny D
Jesus Christ, woman! I nearly crashed my bloody car.
Your tits are fucking phenomenal.
Absolutely worth the collision and subsequent casualties I may have faced had my reflexes not been lightning fast.
WHY ARE YOU TEXTING AND DRIVING?!?!?!
That’s not something I tolerate. Not ever. It’s selfish and unnecessary. Even if my tits are phenomenal. Which they most certainly are.
A photo loads on the screen, and when it comes through, it’s of his face as he rolls his eyes at me.
Sunny D
I’m NOT!
I had my phone up for the GPS when the pic came through. I pulled over. I am STILL pulled over.
My heart rate slows, and I let out a relieved breath.
Sunny D
I’d never knowingly put people’s lives at risk like that, baby. Not again. I promise.
The way he says “not again” is like a punch to the gut, but we’re still working on him forgiving himself and recognising what happened to Carlos wasn’t his fault. And I’m not sure when he started calling me “baby” outside of sex, but I think I like it.
No. I know I like it.
Good, now come pick me up. Park a couple of houses down, and I’ll meet you there.
Sunny D
Dick pic incoming…
While you’re on the road!?
Sure enough, a photo loads of his monster cock. He’s gripping it by the base, and there’s a drop of precum already spilling out the top.
I think I might be in love…
Sunny D
Don’t tease me, mi vida.
God, I love it when he calls me that too. It’s a very new addition to the constantly growing list of nicknames he has for me, but after googling what it meant, too afraid to ask Letty’s perceptive arse, it became my favourite.
Now, I just hope he means it.
Shut up and get over here so I can lick it like an ice cream cone. Please, and thanks.
Sunny D
Run red lights. Got it
Twenty minutes later, he's parked two houses away. I make my way down the side of the street, sprinting through the overgrown grass, with my backpack smacking against my ass as I run.
I yank the door of his sleek black Porsche Panamera open and toss myself inside, the backs of my thighs sticking to the deep-burgundy leather seats.
He shakes his head, a low chuckle rumbling past those perfect, dark-pink lips of his. His onyx eyes, that once looked so dark and void of life, are now anything but. They’re bright and devilish as he takes me in, cupping my cheeks in his palms.
The line he shaves into his right eyebrow is sharper today than it was yesterday, and his face is practically glowing as he presses his lips to mine.
I melt into his embrace, and he pinches my chin between his thumb and forefinger.
“How tired are you?” he asks, gazing into my eyes.
“Not at all. It’s still really early, and I’ve got a lot on my mind to be excited for,” I say, winking before shifting my gaze to his lap, wagging my brows suggestively.
He laughs, leaning over to tug my seatbelt across my chest before clicking it in place. He straightens in his seat, and the engine roars to life as he pulls out onto the small side street.
“Then we’re going on a drive.”
We only make it ten minutes down the road before I realise I’d already forgotten something I promised Chelsea I’d do this morning.
“Can we take a small detour?” I ask.
“Sure. Navigate us there, and I’ll take you anywhere you want to go, peligrosa. ”
I’m not sure want is the right word. I dread this appointment, but I have to go.
We arrive outside of the small phlebotomy clinic a few minutes later, the tiny white building taunting me as we pull into a parking space, the lot so packed with cars we almost don’t find a spot.
“You need blood work?” he asks, his voice curious but not judgemental.
“Yeah. I have to check my thyroid every few months because of the lithium, and I’m overdue. I promised Chels I’d get it done today. It shouldn’t take too long,” I tell him, unclipping my seatbelt. My fingers are on the door handle before he stops me with a hand on my bicep.
“Can I come in with you?”
Warmth tangles in my chest, and I meet his eyes with a small smile. “That’d be really nice. Thank you.”
The appointment takes longer than I’d hoped, waiting in the stuffy lobby for the twenty or more people ahead of me to get jabbed.
The nurse who drew my blood was quick and efficient, so we finished in just a couple of minutes from the time I’d sat down, and this time, I didn’t faint. Small blessings.
On our way out, Rafael stops at a small jar, grabbing something out. He holds the door open for me, leading us to the car.
The engine rumbles to life, and he turns to face me, a glint of mischief swirling in his eyes. “Close your eyes, Elise,” he tells me, and I obey, despite my instincts. “Stick out your hand.”
Again, I listen, and the sound of crinkling plastic tickles my ears in a way I hate.
I feel the rough edges as he presses something into my palm. “Open your eyes.”
Blinking my vision clear, I inspect the item, and in my palm sits a blue razzberry lolly.
“You were such a good girl, I figured you deserved a sweet.” He smirks and I roll my eyes, sinking into the seat and tearing the clear plastic off the top, popping the lolly in my mouth.
“You suck that so nice. I can’t wait for you to do the same to me later,” he mutters, his deep baritone hoarse.
I wrap my lips around the lolly, hollowing my cheeks, holding his eyes with mine. He groans when I pluck it from my mouth with a lurid pop.
“We’re leaving before I can defile you in the parking lot of a blood clinic.”
The next half hour passes with my restlessness growing by the second. “Okay, seriously, where are we going?” I ask for probably the tenth time. He’s driven us so far out of Embershire we’re on a scenic route, passing farms with silos, barns, and cows grazing the lush green land.
It’s beautiful, but I’m confused because this is vastly different from the skyscrapers and bustling city streets of Embershire.
“We aren’t going anywhere if you keep asking that,” he grumbles, and even from the side, I can tell he’s rolling his eyes at me.
Damn, this man has the nicest side profile. A straight nose, full lips, and the lightest dusting of scruff along his chiselled jaw that I’m convinced is capable of cutting through glass.
I love the rare occasions when he doesn’t have a game or practice to attend, like today, because I catch a glimpse of his nose ring and the small gold hoops he wears in either earlobe.
“Someone’s grumpy,” I joke, crossing my arms over my chest.
He just shakes his head, turning the music down. His gaze flickers to mine for a moment before returning to the road ahead.
“So, your plans are to join the Olympic team?” he asks, and the question seems strange, out of place.
“Uh, yeah, why?”
“I’m just wondering. I want to know everything there is to know about you, Elise.”
I relax into his leather seats. “That’s always been my goal, with a World Cup under my belt first, obviously. I know I’m good, good enough to win, not just good enough to be there. But it’s a team sport, so I also want to be on a team that’s the best.”
“You will be,” he says, his voice oozing with a refined confidence that makes me believe it even more than I already had.
“Thanks,” I say, pressing a kiss to his shoulder. “What about you? Do you have plans for after you retire from the league?”
He quirks a brow at me and gives me a lopsided smirk. “You trying to get rid of me already?” he jokes.
“Not yet,” I say, laughing loudly when he purses his lips, clearly unhappy with the suggestion.
“I want your dad’s job. That’s how this all started. He asked me to take over for Coach Lyon and said he already planned for me to take over for him as head coach when he retires in two years, but this would be a big help to him.”
“Hmm, never one for an ultimatum, but he somehow knows just the right thing to say to endear you to him,” I remark, laughing.
“He sure does,” Rafael grumbles. “But I’m glad he did it.
” He peers over to me, his soft eyes meeting mine for just a beat before returning to the winding road ahead.
“He seems to know what’s best for most people, even if we don’t ourselves.
I thought coaching football would break me, but it hasn’t.
It’s brought back some of the joy I’d lost.”
He rests his hand on my thigh and squeezes gently, goosebumps erupting over my skin, partly from the cool air pumping into the car from the air-con.
A few minutes later, we pull up to a little red barn surrounded by wooden fences containing cattle, a hillside boasting bright wildflowers, and a massive wooden cutout sign of a white cow covered in rainbow sprinkles. He parks in the dirt-lined driveway and shuts the engine off.
“Where the hell are we?” I ask, unable to put the pieces together now that we’re here . Wherever “here” is.
He doesn’t bother answering me, climbing out of the car and jogging around to my side to open my door, holding his hand out for me to take.
“Such a gentleman,” I joke.
He clutches his chest. “No one has ever accused me of such a thing. How dare you, Elise?” he asks, feigning hurt.
“You’re ridiculous,” I say, smacking his chest as he pulls me from the car. He winds his arms around my waist, tugging me against him and pressing his forehead onto mine.
“I think I’m ridiculously in like with you,” he says, his voice small.
I want to laugh, but I don’t because I know that in the same way that I’m not usually someone who allows myself to be vulnerable around others, Rafael isn’t either. There’s a huge difference between speaking my mind and feeling safe to be truly emotionally transparent with someone.
“I think I might be too,” I finally say, bringing my lips to his. The kiss is quick, but it still manages to make my head spin.
“Alright, come on, the ice cream’s gonna melt,” he jokes, smacking my ass to propel me forward.
“Ice cream?!”
“Yes, ice cream,” he says, dragging me into the barn, which isn’t really a barn at all. It’s got a bakery to the left and an ice cream counter to the right, and I can’t wait to have my fill.