Chapter 23 #2
“I know it’s not an exciting major,” I said. She was hiking behind me, so I couldn’t see her. However, I could hear and feel her. “I’m not going to be a doctor or a guy working in an office.” If she wanted the life her parents had provided her, I wasn’t the guy to give it to her.
“No,” she replied. “I can’t imagine you doing either of those things.”
We continued in silence for a few minutes, both of us probably lost in thoughts of our families and expectations.
I could hear something to the right. I smelled, realizing it was just a deer. Nothing to be concerned about.
“Hey,” Laney said. “Do we need to worry about bears? Do you have bear spray in your bag?”
I glanced over my shoulder at her. “We don’t need bear spray. I’ll protect you.” With my sense of smell, I wasn’t worried about encountering a bear. I could steer us clear of any dangers.
“You just jinxed us,” she said. “Now we’re gonna run into a bear. I’m going to have to sacrifice you so I can get away.”
I laughed. She never stopped surprising me. I enjoyed spending time with her. The fact that she was sexy as hell only amplified my attraction to her.
Around midday, we found a nice spot to eat near a river that the trail had come up next to. I’d made us roast beef sandwiches for lunch.
“You thought of everything,” Laney said as she ate her sandwich. “I’m impressed.”
“I hike a lot.” It really wasn’t a big deal. I just wanted us to have a nice time together.
“You didn’t have to do any of this. Thank you.”
I swear her eyes looked glassy, like she was going to cry. I had no idea what to do with that.
Laney glanced away, taking another bite of her sandwich.
We finished eating, then started back up again.
“How about I carry your bag for a while to give you a break?” Laney offered.
I burst out laughing.
“What? Why is that so funny? I can carry the bag.”
“I’m sure you can.” It wasn’t that heavy.
“Then why are you laughing?”
I glanced over my shoulder at her. “I’m the guy.”
Her eyes widened. “Are you implying that because I’m a girl, I can’t carry the bag?” Her voice had gotten higher-pitched as she spoke.
I’d offended her. I tried not to laugh again. “No, it’s because you’re a girl. I’m trying to prove myself. I should be the one to carry the bag.” I hoped that made sense.
“Hmm,” she said, considering my words. “Fine.”
Crisis averted. Thankfully, she wasn’t complaining about the hike and didn’t seem winded. So far, this day was going well.
We continued along the trail that wound next to the river.
When we neared the spot I wanted to bring Laney, I stepped off the trail.
I let her go ahead of me so she could take in the sight without me blocking the view.
It was early afternoon, so I figured we had about an hour to hang here until we had to make the trek back to the truck.
She came to an abrupt stop. “Oh my. This is unbelievable.” She peered over her shoulder at me. “Thank you for bringing me here.” She reached for my hand, lacing her fingers with mine and squeezing.
I moved to stand beside her. This was one of my favorite spots.
The trees opened to a circular lake fed by a waterfall spilling over dark stone.
Trees lined the lake, their branches leaning inward, as if they wanted to swim.
Sunlight shone through the canopy in scattered beams turning the water to gold.
The lake was fairly shallow and perfect for swimming.
A decent bank sat on this end of it, probably from people using it through the years.
No one was here today since not many hiked this trail during this time of year.
I set my backpack down and started gathering sticks and stones.
“What are you doing?” Laney asked.
“Making a fire.”
“You’re cold?”
“Nope.”
“Then what do we need a fire for?”
“You’ll see.” I smiled wickedly at her. Once I had enough wood, I stacked it, then put the rocks around it. I gathered a few dry leaves and stuck those at the bottom of the wood. Pulling out my lighter, I lit the leaves on fire. They quickly caught and spread to the sticks and branches.
“I’m impressed,” Laney said. “My man knows how to make a fire. That’s so hot.”
I chuckled and started taking my shoes and socks off.
“Now what are you doing?” Laney asked.
“I’m going for a swim.” A skinny dip was more like it. “Care to join me?” I took off my shirt, tossing it on the ground.
She knelt and touched the water. “It’s pretty cold.”
“I’ll warm you up.” I removed my pants.
She raised her brows and stood. “What if someone comes?”
There was no one around for miles. “If you’re afraid of someone seeing you, just stay under the water.”
She chewed on her bottom lip. “Fine.” She kicked off her shoes.
A thrill shot through me that she’d agreed so readily. I thought for sure I’d have to coax her into it. She seemed to say yes to a lot of my ideas. I liked that about her.
Her pants came off next, then her shirt. “I’m keeping my bra and panties on.”
“Panties?”
“Underwear,” she amended.
“I like panties better. But I’d recommend against it. The hike back is a bitch in wet underwear. And if you have a wet bra, your shirt will get wet and be see-through.
She narrowed her eyes at me. “This was your ploy all along. To get me naked.” She folded her arms, but I knew she was only joking and not really mad at me.
“Guilty.”
“I like the way you think,” she said, sliding her bra off. “Now hurry up. Remove your boxers. I can’t be the only one naked.” She took off her underwear.
I slid my boxers down and ran for the lake, jumping in and swimming to the middle where it was the deepest. Turning, I spotted Laney still on the bank, only her feet in. “Hurry up!”
“It’s cold,” she whined. “Like my feet actually hurt cold.”
“Then hurry and get over here so I can warm you up.”
Closing her eyes, she took two deep breaths, then opened her eyes and ran into the water, screaming. When the water reached her stomach, she dove, going under and swimming toward me. Her head popped above the water a few feet away.
“I didn’t expect that,” I said, moving closer to her. Her hair was slicked back, making her look different.
“I figured it would be easier to just take the plunge.” She was treading water. “How are you standing?”
I grabbed her waist, pulling her naked body against mine. Her legs automatically wrapped around me.
“I’m taller than you,” I pointed out.
“You’re taller than most everyone.” She put her hands on my shoulders. “Most guys your age aren’t built like you.” Her cheeks flushed pink, which made her look even more beautiful.
“You think I’m built?”
She rolled her eyes. “You know you are. I’m just thankful I’m the recipient of such muscled goodness.”
I barked out a laugh. “You crack me up.” I kissed her nose.
She looked into my eyes. “Good job on the date today.”
“It’s not over,” I reminded her.
“What else could you possibly have planned?”
My lips pressed against hers, and my tongue slid into her mouth. My hands roamed down until they came to her firm ass. Granted, I hadn’t planned on fooling around right now, but I wasn’t stupid. Seize the moment and all that shit. I mean, she was naked in my arms, and I was not a dumb man.
Even though the water was rather cold, having Laney pressed against me made me hard.
She kissed me as eagerly as I kissed her, into this just as much as I was.
Like we were both starved and needed each other.
I stood there, holding her as we kissed.
I was about to slide my hand toward her entrance when she shifted and positioned herself over me.
I wanted to thrust into her, but I couldn’t. “It kills me to say this, but my condoms are in my backpack.”
She growled in frustration, making me even fucking harder. “I’m disappointed, Ward,” she said between kisses. “You had me believing you were prepared for every scenario.”
I chuckled as I carried her toward the shoreline where our stuff was next to the fire I’d made. While I’d much prefer to fuck her in the water, the condom wouldn’t be nearly as effective, and neither of us could risk a pregnancy right now. Which was why I’d left them in my backpack.
Thank fuck I brought a blanket. I set her on the ground, grabbed the blanket, and unrolled it next to the warm fire. Then I reached into my backpack and found a condom.
Laney sat on the blanket. “The fire,” she said. “Smooth. Maybe you do plan for everything.”
I was about to rip the condom open when Laney took it out of my hands and set it aside.
She reached for my hand, pulling me down onto the blanket next to her.
With her other hand on my chest, she pushed my body until I was lying on my back.
Instead of climbing on me as I’d anticipated, she raked her eyes over my body, sending a jolt of need through me.
Then she leaned forward and licked my chest. Her tongue trailed down along my stomach until she reached my dick.
Her mouth opened wider, and she closed her lips around me.
It felt as if I were lit on fire. I twitched, wanting more of her.
She moved her mouth up and down, sucking me.
It was such a fucking turn on. When I was about to come, I stopped her, pulling her body on top of mine.
I needed to be inside her. I flipped us over so she was beneath me, the urge to be in control strong.
I reached for the condom, rolling it on, then lined myself up.
She pawed at me, practically begging. In one powerful thrust, I pushed inside her and moaned. She hooked her legs around me, taking me deeper. I wasn’t going to last, so I started pumping, my release building.
I felt her tighten around me as she gasped my name. I thrust one last time as I came. Panting, I lay there, not wanting to move. It felt as if she had a rope tied around her, and I’d taken the end of it, wrapping it around me, knotting us together.
“That’s something that wasn’t on my bucket list but should have been,” Laney said, kissing my cheek.
“Laney,” I said, my voice gruff as understanding took hold.
“Yes?”
“I’m falling in love with you,” I admitted. I’d never felt like this with anyone.
She stared into my eyes, searching for something. “I’m falling in love with you, too.”
“Does that scare you?”
“No,” she said. “It feels right.”
I happened to agree.
When Laney and I got to the truck, we climbed in, and I started it up.
I took my dead phone out of my bag and plugged it in to charge.
I noticed I had a few missed calls from my dad along with several texts.
I glanced at them and saw Laney’s name. The most recent one said to call ASAP, or my dad was coming to see me.
The first call was at ten in the morning.
It was now seven in the evening. My dad was probably already at my house. Fuck.
I pulled out of the parking lot. “I bet you want a nice, hot shower,” I said, trying to figure out how to handle this situation without hurting Laney’s feelings or pissing my dad off anymore than he already was.
“Are you offering?” she asked. “Because getting all lathered up with you sounds like the perfect end to this date.”
I gripped the steering wheel as images of a naked Laney all soapy in my shower bombarded me.
She’d be all slippery, and the sex would be fantastic.
Wait. I couldn’t go there right now. I had a mini crisis to deal with.
“I’m going to be honest with you.” My mom always said honesty was the best policy.
“My dad might be at my place. If he is, he is gonna want to talk to me. Alone.”
“Oh.” As I drove, she kept her focus on me. “Is everything okay?”
“I don’t know.”
“Is he going to talk to you about us dating?”
How she’d managed to guess that was beyond me. “I think so.” I couldn’t imagine what else it’d be.
She sighed. “Not even your dad is okay with us being together.” She’d said it so softly, I don’t think she intended for me to hear. But I had excellent hearing.
We drove in silence for several minutes.
“Laney.”
“Yeah?” Her voice sounded defeated, gutting me.
“I meant what I said back there. I’m falling in love with you. I don’t want others to come between us.” The thought of not being with her scared me shitless.
Reaching over, she took hold of my hand. “We’re young,” she said. “We have our entire lives ahead of us. We’re only just starting to date.”
My heart pounded at what she was trying to say.
If she didn’t want to be with me because of my dad and packmates, I’d fucking lose it.
“I want to see where this can go,” I admitted, trying not to tear the steering wheel off its shaft.
My temper and desire to protect Laney were on the verge of overriding all common sense.
“So do I,” she said, immediately calming me down. “All I’m saying is that I just want to try to understand their concerns so we can convince them otherwise.”
I glanced over at her. “That…sounds smart.”
She smiled at me, melting my heart. “Once they see we have each other’s best interest at heart, they’ll come around.
And, honestly, we are only just dating. We could decide we don’t like each other in a couple of weeks and break up.
Then all of this will have been for nothing.
They all need to back off and let us figure this out. ”
“You’re right.” I’d have to remember that reasoning and use it on my father. If he thought this was just a fling, maybe he’d give me some space to figure out this thing between me and Laney.
I pulled up outside her dorm.
“My stuff is still at your place,” she said as she opened the door. “Can you have Adan bring it by so you can deal with your dad? I have a lot of studying I can do while I wait for you.”
I didn’t want Adan anywhere near her. Not after that stunt he pulled last night coming into my bedroom where Laney was in bed. Naked. “I’ll make sure you get it.”
She leaned toward me, and I kissed her.
“I hate to see you go,” I said, not wanting to be away from her.
“Then deal with your father quickly so you can come over.” She got out of the truck. “Thanks for the perfect day.” She closed the door.
I lowered the window. “It’s the first of many.”
She waved as she headed toward her dorm. “See you later, Ward. By the way, I’m keeping your hat.”
I watched until she was inside. Then I opened my phone and read through my dad’s texts.
Not only had he threatened to show up, he also said he’d go to Laney’s mom and tell her exactly who her daughter was seeing.
He was pretty sure Laney’s mother would force Laney to end things between us if I wasn’t smart enough to do it myself. It was an ultimatum.
I sent a quick text to Danny asking if my dad was at the house.
He wasn’t.
Thank fuck. I started to drive toward my place. The need to shift and run through the forest inundated me. I had to let loose in order to calm down before calling my dad and dealing with him.