Chapter 11 #3
Her body sways toward me. I doubt she’s aware of the motion. If she was, I’m almost certain she’d jerk away. Put distance between us.
The thought alone adds a sour taste in my mouth.
Before she has a chance to second guess herself, I respond in kind, leaning closer and making my interest clear.
I’ll get shit from my boys for this later.
Hell, I’ll give myself shit for this because it sure as fuck was not part of my plans.
I don’t really care, though. I’m curious to see where this goes.
One of my hands slides down to settle on her hip. My thumb pushes beneath the hem of her sweater, finding bare skin to stroke. She’s warm. Soft. I push her shirt up further, just enough for my palm to settle against her skin.
Cecilia sucks in a breath, but that's her only reaction. She doesn’t tell me to back off, or shove me away.
We’re still good here.
Pressing forward, I eliminate the scant few inches of space between us until her front is pressed right up against my chest.
A hitch in her breathing is followed by a hard swallow.
I’m playing with fire here. Platonic, I remind myself. I’m supposed to keep shit platonic. I remind myself why pursuing anything romantic with this girl is a bad idea. Problem is, none of the reasons I come up with sound good enough.
I want to see how far she’ll let this go.
I realize this is impulsive and short sighted.
But knowing that does nothing to stop me.
My heart lurches in my chest, free-falling as I flip our positions.
Keeping her against me with a firm hold on her waist, this new position has my back leaning on the Jeep and her standing, nestled between my legs.
My cock hardens against her stomach. There’s no way to hide it, but she doesn’t pull away, despite the fact I’ve made it that much easier for her to do so.
She’s as intrigued as I am.
Alarm bells blare inside my head. Dating during soccer season, even casually flirting, is something I generally avoided. And for good reason. So, what the hell am I doing right now?
It’s obvious Cecilia isn’t in a place to start anything with someone.
Least of all a guy like me. Not that I’m trying to start anything.
At least I don’t think I am. Having her this close makes it difficult to concentrate.
But, I know myself well. All I have to offer are a few great fucks.
Anything more often leads to feelings and complications.
Drama I don’t have the time or inclination to deal with.
But knowing that, repeating the words like a goddamn mantra in my head, doesn’t stop me from pulling her closer. From leaning in. The desire in her gaze begs me for a response. Who am I to deny her?
Kissing her might be a mistake. A big-ass complication neither of us needs. But right now, I don’t give a shit even though I should. I’ll deal with the consequences later.
Dipping my head, I give her every opportunity to tell me no or to turn away, but she doesn’t. Her lips part. Her tongue peeks out to moisten them, and her face tilts up to meet mine. A silent invitation. It’s all I need to know she wants this as much as I do.
Mouth dropping to hers, I press against her soft lips. Fuck, she’s soft. It takes every ounce of restraint in me not to devour her.
Cecilia sighs into the kiss, some of the tension in her body dissipating.
I hold myself in check, keeping the kiss light. I’m careful to move at her pace. I want to make sure I’m not misreading any signals here. She’s fragile. I need to remember that.
Her palms slide up my stomach, small hands clinging to the fabric of my shirt. My shoulders go rigid, expecting her to push me away and I brace myself for her rejection. But it never comes. Instead, she tugs me closer, her body straining against mine.
Yes.
I nip at her bottom lip, drawing a ragged breath from her mouth before my control snaps and I give in to my desire to deepen the kiss.
Pushing my tongue into her mouth, I cradle the back of her head and draw her impossibly close.
Her small body quakes but her tongue meets mine stroke for stroke. Tiny hands release my shirt to slide up over my chest, then over my shoulders, before settling around my neck. I groan and a strange, possessive urge to claim her slams into me.
I try and fail to reign myself in. To put a stop to this before it goes too far. But then she pushes up on tiptoe, silently begging for more, and I can’t help but grin against her lips. How could anyone refuse her?
Cecilia is shy at first, almost hesitant as she explores my mouth with her own. But she gets bolder with each minute that passes.
She tastes like the cherry cola I saw her drink earlier today, and I swear it might be my new favorite flavor.
I dip lower to better accommodate her small frame—she’s so damn tiny—and tilt her head just enough to achieve a better angle. Her tongue brushes against mine, fingers weaving into my hair. Fuck. Es un suena. She’s a dream.
There's a considerable height difference between us. She’s maybe five one to my six four. We’ll need to fix that, not that I can complain given she’s currently climbing me like a flagpole.
Praying she doesn’t freak out, I drop lower and wrap my hands around the backs of her thighs before lifting her in my arms.
She lets out a small squeak, but her legs obediently wrap around my waist and her lips stay locked on mine. Fucking perfect.
A satisfied grunt escapes me. Turning, I set her on the hood of her Jeep and nestle myself between her thighs.
Better.
My mouth wanders to trail kisses along her jawline. Down her neck.
She sighs and her head falls back on her shoulders, granting me unhindered access. I can’t help but smirk at the look of contentment on her face. I need to take advantage of this moment.
“You coming to practice with me?” I ask, peppering her with more kisses to keep her like this. Soft. Pliant.
Some of the fog lifts from her gaze, but she’s still floating in a heady space of desire when she nods her head. “Fine. I’ll go.”
Good.
I kiss her one last time. A hard and quick press of lips before forcing my feet to take a step back.
I want nothing more than to grind my dick into her jean clad pussy right here on the hood of her car, but even I know that’s taking things too far.
Just like I know if I don’t walk away right now, I’m going to do it anyway.
“You. Bleachers.” I tap her on the nose. “I’m gonna go change and when I come out, I better see your fine ass in the stands as I step out on the field.”
Her face is flushed as she rolls her eyes and gives me an annoyed smile. But it’s a smile nonetheless.
“Fine. Go.” She shoos me away. “I’ll be there. You still have my keys, remember?”
I pat my pocket to be sure she didn’t lift them off me while I was distracted.
Nope. Still good to go.
“Five minutes, woman.”
“Yeah, yeah. Go away already,” she says, and I can see some of that earlier shyness creeping in as she averts her gaze.
A stupid grin spreads across my face and I walk backwards toward the field, aiming for the locker room just off to the left. Her eyes stay trained on me and my smile widens into this goofy ass grin, but I don’t care. She returns my smile, throwing in a wave to rush me along.
“You’re going to be late,” she hollers, cupping her hands around her mouth.
I stop, getting an idea. To hell with it. I jog back to her, watching her eyes widen as I near, and before she can react, I slam my mouth against hers once more in a hard and fast kiss, stealing her breath away.
“Worth it,” I say, drawing back.
Her fingers jump up to touch her lips, so I kiss those too before making myself turn away, and this time, I go straight to the locker room.
Getting involved with Cecilia Russo is going to bite me in the ass. I can already feel it. But, I won’t waste time regretting that kiss. There’s not an ounce of remorse inside me. Not even when I catch sight of Holt loitering just outside the locker room door.
He frowns when he sees me, his eyes flicking over my shoulder to where I know Cecilia still is.
Right away, I know he saw us kissing, and judging by the look on his face, he isn’t happy about it. I try and fail to find it in me to care.
Don’t get me wrong, I like the guy. Sort of. But Holt’s problems are his. Not mine. Just because he had issues with Cecilia before, doesn't mean I will. I don’t make a habit of taking on other people’s petty drama so if this is going to be an issue for him, he’ll have to find a way to get over it.
Besides, the more and more I think about things, the more his story doesn’t add up.
I get the feeling he’s leaving something out, chasing me off her for his own reasons and not because of some bullshit story about looking out for a friend.
He made it clear he’s attracted to her. And I wouldn’t put it past him to lie.
Make up some bullshit story just to make sure I don’t get in his way.
I’m going to follow my gut here. If Cecilia is trouble, I’ll figure it out on my own. I grin. And, I will enjoy myself while doing it.