Chapter Twelve #2
My body began to rock as the water lapped against the pool wall, and, startled, I turned to find the source of the motion: a fully clothed Ocean striding through the water toward me.
“Ocean! Your suit!”
“Fuck this suit,” he said with a slight growl. “What’s the matter?”
“Nothing,” I rushed to say.
Ocean looked far from convinced as he pulled me into him. “You were crying, Coby. What happened? My cousins do something?”
“No, of course not,” I said with a sniffle. “I had a great time.”
Ocean exhaled and rubbed a hand down my back. The feel of him was so strong and soothing that I couldn’t help but close my eyes. “Why won’t you tell me why you were crying?”
“Just homesick. That’s all.” Unconsciously, I rubbed my snotty nose on his tie before realizing what I’d done and cringing as I peered up at him. “Sorry.”
Ocean’s only response was to dip his head expectantly. I eagerly rose onto my toes and let him kiss me until all feelings of hopelessness faded. “Come on,” he said, pulling away when I started to rub myself against him.
It was only then that I noticed we weren’t alone. Abel stood sentry by the door with his gaze locked straight ahead. I looked to the right and the left of him, as well as behind, but there was no one else in the pool room.
“Where’s Hunter?” I asked after Ocean climbed out of the pool and then helped me out. “Did you find her?”
“Actually, she found me,” he answered cryptically.
I frowned at that even as my heart sped up. “Is she here?”
“No. She escaped before I could reach her.”
“Oh.” A confusing mix of relief and disappointment rushed me at once. I wanted to see Hunter, but I didn’t want her forced into anything. Ocean didn’t seem too hellbent on asking permission.
“I’m sorry, mo aingeal.”
Waving him off, I grabbed my towel from one of the loungers and wrapped it around myself. “How was your day?”
He rocked his head. “Could have gone better, but it’s ending with you, so I won’t complain,” he said as he lifted my hand and kissed it.
We went to the second floor to his room to shower, and after we climbed out, I steered the conversation back to Hunter. “So how did she sound?”
“Who?” he asked distractedly as he trimmed his beard.
“Hunter. Did she sound okay?”
Ocean’s gaze flicked to mine in the mirror before he returned to his grooming. “I don’t know her, Coby, so it’s not for me to say, but she sounded fine.” He shrugged.
“Hmm,” I hummed. “What did she say?”
“She wanted to know where you were.”
“And what did you say?”
This time, when his gaze found mine in the mirror, he held it. “I told her that you were being well taken care of.”
“And?”
“She threatened to kill me.”
I felt a smile tugging at my lips and fought to hide it. “Yeah, that’s Hunter.”
“Let me ask you something,” Ocean said as he turned the clippers off. My stomach sank at the tone of his voice. He didn’t sound angry. He sounded suspicious.
“Okay…” I feigned nonchalance by shrugging.
“You think she could?”
“What?”
Ocean’s gaze narrowed in the mirror. “Do you think she’d be able to kill me, Coby? It’s a simple question.”
“I think…I think she’d give it everything she had, but I truly don’t know if she’d succeed or not.”
He continued to stare at me. “Would you want her to?”
“What? No, of course not!”
“I’m just asking. If your friend gives me no choice, it may come down to her life or mine, so I’m wondering which life you’d prefer.”
“Both.”
“That may not be an option, Coby.”
“You’re wrong,” I said firmly as I snatched up my wide-tooth comb and started roughly working it through my short natural curls. “It’s the only option. You won’t hurt her. I won’t let her hurt you.”
After detangling my hair, I ran some product through my freshly washed hair to reset the curls, then yanked on my new pink satin bonnet.
Ocean must have noticed that I was becoming increasingly agitated because he pulled me into him and wrapped his arms around my chest as he stared at our reflection over my shoulder. “I’m sorry, sweetheart.” I blushed when he kissed the side of my neck. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“Ocean, you can probably buy me the world if you choose to, but just know that the greatest gift you can ever give me is Hunter. She’s more than just my best friend. She’s my sister. Hunter’s my heart. Only you have the key, but she’s it. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
“I think I do,” he said with another kiss pressed to my shoulder this time. “I promise I will never let any harm come to your heart.”
“Thank you,” I said earnestly. “Are you hungry? Your chef cooked.”
“Our chef cooked and yes. I’m starving, baby. You gon’ feed me?”
“Okay,” I agreed breathlessly.
Ocean and I went downstairs to the kitchen, where I made his plate, then sat on his lap at the dining table while he ate.
He asked me about my day, so I filled him in on my time with his cousins, and he listened attentively until he was done eating.
I took the empty plate to the kitchen, washed it, and stored it while he went into the living room with a single drink to watch a recording of tonight’s game.
“Ocean?”
Eyes still on the game, he said, “What’s up?” He was really into it, leaning forward with his forearms resting on his knees while he shouted at the TV.
“I have to tell you something.”
Ocean must have heard something in my tone because he reluctantly tore his gaze away from the TV to see me standing well out of reach and wringing my hands. “All right, what’s up? What do you need to tell me?”
“I may have overdone it when I went shopping with Chi and ‘nem today.”
Ocean licked his sexy ass lips as he studied me. “Overdone it? What does that mean?”
“I spent a lot of money today.”
Intrigued, he paused the game and leaned back on the couch. “How much is a lot?”
“Half a million dollars.”
“What?” His brows snapped down. “Run that back. You spent how much?”
The anger in his eyes made it obvious that the question was rhetorical, so I gulped and shook my head. “I am so sorry. Of course, we can take all of the stuff back.”
“Take it back? Nah, you won’t be taking shit back. Why are you crying, mo aingeal?”
“B-because…I spent all your money!” I sobbed with my hands covering my eyes.
Ocean suddenly tipped back his head and started laughing his ass off. He laughed so hard, he started clutching his stomach and talking about how he can’t breathe.
“It’s not funny!” I said, fighting off a laugh of my own. “Why are you laughing?”
“Because you funny, girl. Come here.”
Needing comfort—even if it came from that asshole—I shuffled over to him and let him pull me into his lap.
He wrapped his muscular arms around me, and I immediately felt better.
“Stop crying, baby. If anything, you underdid it. I specifically told my hard-of-hearing cousins not to bring you back until you spent at least twice that.”
“What?” I turned my head to look at him over my shoulder. “Why?”
He thumbed away a new tear before saying, “Why not?”
“It’s too much. I don’t need all of that stuff, Ocean.
I just need you.” And Hunter. “The library was more than enough.” I haven’t even slept in my room since that first night, making it a waste, but I loved my library.
I couldn’t bring myself to regret the trouble he went through to make it for me.
“I disagree. You deserve the world, and I don’t care if I have to search our entire galaxy to find the perfect one. I’m going to do all that I can.” Not knowing what to say to that, I gnawed on my lip, and his gaze dipped before he pulled it free from my teeth. “Okay?”
I nodded. “Okay.” Whew, Lord. I felt so much better. Enough to say, “Ocean?”
“What’s up?”
I nervously twirled the ribbon tied around my wrist today.
“There was a necklace I saw today that made me think of Hunter. She doesn’t have anything that nice, and she should.
Hunter’s the best person I know.” Staring down at my lap, I said.
“I know she’d really like it.” Too nervous to ask the question, I took the coward’s way out and fell silent before I could.
Ever able to read my mind, Ocean said, “And you want to buy it for her?”
I nodded and held back tears that were welling. “Would that be okay?”
Lifting my hand, Ocean kissed my knuckles.
“Of course. I think it’s dope how you look out for your friend.
” Frowning at the way he said friend, I watched him carefully for a clue at what he meant, but he was too preoccupied staring at my lips to notice my confusion (or maybe he just didn’t care), and when he spoke again, his voice was deeper and thickened with lust. “Now say thank you,” he commanded.
“Th-thank you.”
“No,” he said firmly. “Not like that, Coby..”
Oh. Catching on to his meaning, I held his gaze as I slid off his lap and onto my knees between his legs.
Ocean’s dick was already a hard ridge trapped under his sweatpants when I ran my palm over it reverently.
He bucked his hips in response, and I tugged on the waistline of his sweats.
Ocean lifted his hips to help me, and I lowered them just enough to free him.
“Take off your shirt,” he ordered as he stroked his dick. “Let me see you.” I wasn’t wearing a bra underneath my camisole, so when I pulled it over my head, my breasts were bared to him. “Beautiful.”
He let go of his dick, giving me permission to take over. I was salivating for it.
I expected Ocean to go back to watching the game, but he was laser-focused on me as I wrapped my hand around him.
Ocean was so hot and hard in my hand that I couldn’t resist giving his dick a soothing stroke as I held his gaze.
I continued holding it as I lowered my head and licked the tip, loving the way his nostrils flared slightly, so I repeated the action a second time.
Ocean pushed my hand away from him with one hand and roughly fisted my short curls in the other before tipping my head back.