17. Stacey
CHAPTER 17
STACEY
I said I’m good, so why am I not moving? Why am I just standing here, unable to put a coherent thought together? All I can think about is wanting Mitch’s very capable hands to take over.
I have to move. I cannot let him think that I want this, even if I absolutely do.
Just move , I tell myself. Anywhere.
I turn my head towards Mitch and suddenly my face is pressed into his neck, my lips just below his ear. He inhales and his hands tighten around my waist. Then, to my shock, my hands are reaching up towards his head. I dig my fingers into his hair, tugging down lightly in the way I now know he likes. His head falls to my shoulder as I feel him stiffen against my back.
Neither of us can seem to catch our breath, or our minds apparently, as his mouth runs down my neck until his teeth dig softly into the place my sweater has left bare and exposed. His mouth on me seems to alter my brain chemistry temporarily, because I find myself grinding up against him and reaching for his hands, pulling them further down my body.
His head lifts up just a bit and I turn mine back towards him. I pull his head closer and press my lips into his neck, just below his ear.
“Mitch,” I whisper into his ear. His body reacts just the way I want it to as he shudders against me.
“I don’t know what you want right now,” he says. “Tell me what you want, love. Whatever it is, I’ll give it to you.”
It has the exact same effect as it did last night. It’s such a turn on that I’m spinning around in his arms and pulling on his sweater, dragging us both up against a nearby tree.
“I want you to kiss me,” I say.
When my back reaches the trunk, Mitch takes both of my wrists in his and pulls my arms up above my head, bracing them against the tree with one sturdy, capable hand. He bends slightly, bringing his free hand to steady my waist against the tree and his lips to my bare shoulder. His tongue drags along my shoulder before he peppers my neck with strong, intentional kisses. When he reaches my ear, he digs his teeth into it lightly, but not too lightly. It’s like he instinctively knows exactly how to touch me, and it’s driving me insane. I squirm between him and the tree, my hips inadvertently grinding into him. That’s when his lips finally crash onto mine. The kiss is full of heat and the anticipation of what’s to come. It’s quick and deep and filled with temptation. His hand roams down my waist and wraps around my ass, giving it a strong squeeze. I breathe in quickly against his mouth and I feel a smile forming on his lips as they kiss mine again.
“What?” I ask finally.
“You really did like it,” he says, sounding somewhat bewildered as he lets go of my hands, letting his own wrap around my body .
“Wasn’t that obvious?” I ask with a little laugh.
He shrugs. “You never know,” he says, leaning forward to rest his head on my shoulder. “I thought maybe you regretted it.” He says it quietly and with a bit of shyness, like he’s worried.
“I don’t regret it,” I say.
He stands back up, keeping his hands on me, and looks at me. He’s examining my face as if he’s trying to figure me out. “You don’t?” he asks.
“I don’t,” I say. “I’m just not sure what we do now.”
“Well, I think we probably have to go back inside and finish meeting with Angela,” he says. “As much as I’d love to fuck you senseless against a tree.”
“I meant about us,” I say.
“Us?” he repeats back. “There’s an ‘us’ now?”
“Woah, woah, woah,” I start. “Don’t get ahead of yourself, buddy.”
He laughs and leans forward, placing a kiss on my forehead. “I know,” he says. It’s sweet and cute and very much not what I’d expect from Mitch Greggs. Not after the way he just kissed me. It’s worrisome. But I press forward.
“I’d like to propose something,” I say.
It’s probably a bad idea.
No, it’s definitely a horrible idea.
But I can’t help that I want Mitch. There’s no avoiding it, and there’s no avoiding him. We’re stuck in this group of friends and working together. I might as well get laid in the process.
“Enemies with benefits,” I say.
His eyes flash with a confusing mix of fire and annoyance.
“Friends,” he says.
“Huh?” I ask.
“I’ll give you what you want. I’ll fuck you however, whenever. But we’re calling it friends. Not enemies,” he says.
“Frenemies?” I propose .
He drops his hands from my body and pulls away. My heart plummets into the basement of my body, watching him turn from me.
“Okay! Okay! Fine. We’re friends,” I say. It feels like such a bizarre thing to say, but I can’t put my finger on why.
He turns back towards me, wraps an arm around my back, and pulls me in. “Alright, love. You have a deal.”
“However, whenever?” I ask.
He laughs and brings his lips inches from mine. “Yep,” he says, eyes filled with heat.
“Deal.”