41. Ariel Cambridge
Chapter forty-one
Ariel Cambridge
“And then Dominic threw him to the ground before stalking off with Bethanne,” I finish, wrapping up the story of Houston Vonclout’s downfall.
We’re all sitting around my new firepit.
Right when I was about to tell our story to the group, the delivery guy showed up.
All of the guys went outside to help Brock put it together.
And by help, I mean watch and make fun of him when he did something wrong.
Meanwhile, I told Sutton all of the details–minus the making out, of course–about how Brock and I came to be.
It felt so good to finally be able to tell her everything.
Brock took a lot longer than necessary to assemble the firepit.
I think he wanted to give us time to be alone, and also reconnect with the guys again.
He continued that trend by leaving Sutton and I to go back to his place and play video games for a few hours with the guys.
They came back smiling and laughing, and even Emmett wore a small grin.
It made me beyond happy to see Brock relaxed and having fun.
We ate pizza, then huddled around the firepit to make s’mores as the sun set. Sutton said the guys would like my story about Houston, so I’ve been regaling them with a dramatic rendition complete with a reenactment with the help of Brock that had us doubled over in laughter.
“That’s so romantic,” Sutton says with a dreamy sigh.
Shaw nudges her. “When I was fighting Mason on the ice for you, you didn’t see it that way.”
“That was because I didn’t know why you were doing it.”
“He was a jerk to you, that’s reason enough,” Brock says, earning a fist bump from Shaw.
“You know what I meant,” Sutton says and rolls her eyes.
“I agree with Brock,” I say, earning a glare from my best friend, but a grin from Brock.
“You’re not allowed to take his side! How are we going to win at anything?”
I laugh. “You take whatever side gets you the win. You’ve teamed up against me plenty of times.”
She wears a faux-innocent smile. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Mhmm, sure.” I grab my cup to take a sip of water and notice it’s empty. “I need some more water. Anybody want anything?” I stand up from where I was sharing a blanket with Brock.
A chorus of no thanks and I’m good echoes out. Except for Brock, who says, “I’m running low. I’ll come with you.”
“Let me see your cup,” Miles says with a wicked grin and reaches over. Brock holds it away from him.
“What do you want with my cup?”
“I want to confirm that it’s full and you’re just going inside to make out with Ariel.”
Brock laughs and continues to fend him off. I see Jason looking like he’s about to join, so I reach down and snag the cup. It’s so full, it almost sloshes out onto my hand when I grab it.
I bite back a grin.
“That only makes you more suspicious,” Miles says as he pulls back from wrestling with Brock.
I shrug. “Think what you want. We’re going to get water.”
Brock hops up and takes his drink with a smirk. “Might take us a little bit though. Ariel’s ice maker is finicky.”
I giggle at how obvious he’s being.
Sutton makes a queasy face. “Is this what you feel like around Shaw and I?”
“Yes,” everyone answers in unison, then laughs.
Brock drapes an arm over my shoulder. “We’ll be back.”
“Don’t take too long,” Miles calls out as we walk away. “We’re only here for the night.”
Because of how crazy all of their schedules are, they only managed to squeeze in one day. That’s why they didn’t bring their wives. That, and because they figured Brock might be even more overwhelmed if they did. This group is big enough without adding spouses into the mix.
The house is dark inside, with only a lamp lighting a dim path to the kitchen. Neither of us turns on the light. As soon as we reach the kitchen, Brock picks me up and sets me on the island. I drape my arms over his shoulders with a smile.
“How are you feeling?” he asks while his thumbs rub soft circles above my hips.
“I’m good. I think I got to rest plenty today. What about you?” I run my hands over his shoulders, down to his biceps, then back up again.
“I feel…lighter, I think. It was weird to talk after keeping it all in for so long. But I’m glad I was able to get everything out in the open.”
I lean in and give him a gentle kiss. “I’m proud of you. I know this is a lot of change and it’s not easy.”
His gaze is soft and open as he regards me. “I couldn’t have done any of this without you. You changed my life for the better when you walked into my office.”
Tears spring to my eyes. I let out a soft laugh and use the sleeve of my sweatshirt to dab beneath my eyes. “You can’t say things like that. I’m sensitive right now.”
He smiles and kisses the corner of my mouth. “I’m okay not talking for a little while.”
Heat that rivals the fire outside swirls in my abdomen.
We lean in almost at the same time and melt into each other.
Our movements are unhurried, in spite of our circumstances.
I let my hands roam over his muscles, sliding them beneath the collar of his t-shirt.
Brock hums and tightens his hold on my hips.
He deepens the kiss, and we share the sweet taste of marshmallow.
The desire for more of him overwhelms me, and yet I don’t want to rush even a second. I savor each brush of his lips, each taste of him. I memorize the way his muscles ripple beneath my touch. The weight of his hands on my hips.
I pull back and trail kisses up his jaw. His skin is smooth and warm beneath my lips. He smells like smoke and citrus.
“I have a confession,” he rasps.
“Hm?” I press a kiss below his ear.
“When you first came out in this outfit, you looked so good I almost forgot how much I hate Duke.”
I let out a surprised laugh and pull back to look at him. His brown eyes are almost black in the dim light, but the heat in his gaze is unmistakable.
“I’m in sweats,” I say, and his eyes rove over me with evident desire.
“Do you really not know how gorgeous you are? I don’t buy that.”
I blush and dip my chin. “I wasn’t saying I’m ugly, just that I don’t get the appeal of me in this moment.”
“I don’t think you understand the power you hold over me.” He lifts my chin and brushes his lips over mine. “It’s dangerous.”
Tingles shoot all the way down to my toes. I’ve never felt this way before. It’s everything I used to lay in bed at night dreaming about. No, it’s better.
“What if I bought you a Duke sweatshirt and asked you to wear it?” I tease.
He gives me a wry smile. “I’d wear it. It might chip off a piece of my soul, but for you, I’d do it.”
I laugh. “I’d never make you do that.” I toy with the hair at the nape of his neck. “You know, I still have that UNC hoodie you gave me at graduation.”
He gave Sutton a bunch of UNC gear as a joke, and gifted me a hoodie as well. I rolled my eyes at the time and told him he was obnoxious, but the memory of that day was so happy I couldn’t get rid of it.
“Yeah?” He runs his hands up the curve of my waist to my rib cage, then back down. “Would you wear it if I asked?”
“I don’t know. I get this treatment when I wear my favorite colors, what would I get if I wore yours?”
“Probably a ring.”
I gape at him and smack his shoulder. “You can’t joke about things like that!”
“Who said I was joking?”
“If you aren’t, then you need to fill me in. I think we missed a few steps.”
The main one being a love confession.
“Maybe we aren’t there yet.” He runs his thumb over my cheek. “But I think we’re on our way.”
I think so too.