Give Me Butterflies

Chapter 20

Erin

“Igot you something,” Jacob said, tossing his napkin onto the table next to the now empty plates and the glass of wine he’d just drained. He reached into his pocket, and my mind started to spin.

I swallowed, reaching for my own empty wineglass and taking a sip of the liquid that wasn’t there. “What is it?”

“This.” He pulled out a keyring, swinging it from his finger. A single key hung from the ring, and I tilted my head. “I had it made for you.”

I thought about the key sitting on my counter at home that I knew wouldn’t open the door but I had kept anyway. “You made me a key?” I asked, reaching forward when he extended his hand to me. I took the small metal ring from him, my fingers lingering against his. He watched me stare at it, turning the key over in my hand.

Jacob nodded. “I did. I got it made when I changed the locks.” Had he been carrying it with him this whole time?

“Are you sure?” The key felt heavier than it was—like it came with an unspoken message I was allowed in his home any time I wanted to be, as if I hadn’t let myself into his house in the past.

He took my other hand, running his thumb over my knuckles. “I’m positive.” He lifted my hand to his lips and planted a quick peck on the back. “I don’t want to come home and find out you broke a window to get to me.”

I rolled my eyes so hard my whole head followed, scoffing theatrically. “I would never break a window!” Jacob tilted his head like he didn’t believe me, and I stifled a laugh. “I’m classier than that, Jacob. I know how to pick the locks.”

“Do you now?” he asked, raising both brows in shock. He waved a finger at the waiter, signaling he wanted our check, but he never took his eyes off me. “Tell me how you learned this skill.”

I shrugged. “When I was younger, the shows on TV made it look like something I’d need to know as an adult. I taught myself, thinking I’d use it a lot more often than I do.” I giggled when Jacob stared, agape. He looked like he was amused and surprised at the same time, likely with a hint of disbelief. “It’s gotten me out of a couple locked-my-keys-in-my-apartment situations in the past.”

When I brushed my hand over my shoulder, wiping invisible dirt from them, Jacob bellowed. “You’re something, you know that?” He signed his name on the receipt, tucking his wallet back in his pocket.

“I know.” I winked, pulling my jacket over my shoulders and standing up from the seat. I tried to hold a straight face, failing and throwing my head back with a laugh. “Where are we going now?” I asked him when he put his arm around my waist, heading for the exit of the restaurant. I leaned against him slightly while we walked, sinking into the comforting, clean smell of his skin and the warmth of his body.

Jacob looked down at me, his gaze lingering on the low-cut red top I had picked out of my closet. It was too cold for the open back and the lack of sleeves, and I pulled the coat closed over my chest before we stepped outside.

“I thought we’d go grab a drink.” He turned away from the direction we had parked in, walking down the streetlight-lit sidewalk. It was mostly quiet on the street we were on, and the heels I wore clicked against the concrete half as fast as my heart raced. “I know a place up here. How do you feel about pool?”

“That depends,” I said when we reached the end of the block. “How do you feel about losing?”

“That’s bold, red,” Jacob said, leading me around the corner.

When I looked up, I saw Demetri and his wife walking out of an upscale restaurant. I gasped, ducking out of Jacob’s arm and into the shadow beside the building. He turned to look at me, grunting when I yanked his arm and tugged him into the shadow with me. “Come here! Quiet!” I put my finger over his lips.

“What are you doing?” He spoke around my finger, confusion on his face.

I peeked around the corner carefully. “That was my boss,” I said, bursting into a fit of giggles. “He and his wife just walked into a client meeting he wanted me to go to. I told him I wasn’t feeling well.”

Jacob offered me an amused smirk. “And then you came out with me.” He pulled me against him. “Don’t worry, red. I don’t think he saw us.”

When he traced his finger over my jaw to my lips, I shivered, and he wrapped his arms around me. I nuzzled my nose against his neck, inhaling. “Demetri Carlisle sees everything.” I started to giggle, and Jacob paused before joining me.

“If you say so.” He looked around the corner, keeping his hold on me and confirming the coast was clear with a quick nod. I felt like a kid playing hide-and-seek, and the butterflies in my stomach went rampant. “Should we go get that drink?”

I nodded, letting Jacob take my hand and lead me out of the shadows. He stopped before we got to the restaurant I’d watched Demetri walk into, and Jacob looked at me. “Are you ready to run? Make sure you duck.”

My heart stuttered when he tightened his hold on my hand, using his other hand to point out our path. Then he took off, squatting down and running between the small group of people and the edge of the sidewalk. I trailed behind him, gripping his hand and giggling like we were getting away with the greatest scheme of the year.

On the other side of the restaurant, we stood upright. “Why was that so exhilarating?” I asked, turning towards him and stopping when his hazel eyes darkened, boring into mine. “Why are you looking at me that way?”

Jacob pulled me against him, curling his finger under my chin. “What way?”

“Like you are going to kiss me or kidnap me, or maybe both.” I released a breathy giggle at what I thought was a poor attempt at a joke.

He didn’t crack a smile. “Because I’m going to kiss you.”

When he did, I hummed, savoring the taste of vanilla and the wine we’d had with dinner. I ran my tongue over his lips, and when he parted them, I forgot about the people that surrounded us. I forgot about my boss on the other side of the thin glass window we had just walked past. I didn’t care about anything but Jacob’s mouth on mine.

For a moment, I forgot about the drinks. I just wanted to be as close to Jacob as possible. Then he pulled away from me, and he reached for the heavy wood door behind me. I stood there while he opened it, wishing he was still kissing me. I didn’t move.

“Are you coming?” he asked, the word decorated with a chuckle.

I blinked quickly and nodded. “Yeah,” I said. “I could suddenly go for a drink.”

Jacob’s laugh was loud when he stepped into the bar. It was dark, and when the door closed behind us, it was even darker. Music played loudly over the mangled murmur of the bar patrons, and Jacob scanned the crowd. When he saw what he was looking for, he pointed, grabbing my hand and leading me behind him.

We weaved between people towards the bar that glowed beneath neon signs advertising different kinds of beer. He squeezed between a couple of people, planting his hands on the bar on either side of me and framing me between them. I leaned back against him, mirroring the placement of his hands on the sticky counter.

“What do you want to drink?” he asked in my ear.

I thought for a moment. “Whiskey neat,” I said, leaning back against him to be heard. Jacob’s eyes widened and he smirked.

When he leaned forward to order our drinks, someone clapped him on the shoulder. I recognized the friend that had interrupted us in his office. “Oh, look who it is!” the friend shouted, using his thumb to point at Jacob and elbowing another friend.

“And he brought a date?” The other friend eyed me, looking half amused and half like he had called the situation. “I’m Darren.” He offered me his hand.

“Erin,” I said, shaking it.

“And this is Blake,” Jacob said, pointing over his shoulder. “You’ve already kind of met him.”

Blake rounded him, taking my hand and kissing the back. “The pleasure is all mine,” he said, laughing loudly when Jacob snarled at him. “Calm down, wolf man. I’m not going after your girl.”

“Don’t make me regret this.” Jacob’s half an eye roll suggested he possibly already was. “Should we play some pool?”

“We already have a table.” Darren looked towards a pool table that wasn’t surrounded by people. “Doubles?”

Jacob nodded, and Blake’s face lit up. “Dibs on partnering with Erin! She’s probably better than both of you fools.” Blake threw his arm over my shoulder, and Jacob glared.

I stepped forward out of his grasp, grabbed the drink Jacob had ordered me from his hand, and stepped towards him, wiggling my brow. “Don’t worry, wolf man. I’m definitely going to be your partner.”

“Probably a good thing too,” Darren chimed in, the laughter barely contained in his tone. “We all know you’re going to need her help.”

Jacob let out a loud, mocking laugh, but he winked at me. When he threw his arm around me and led me to the pool table, my stomach flipped, and I took a long drink of whiskey in hopes it’d calm the sudden nerves. All it did was warm my throat, and the warmth traveled into my cheeks.

“So tell me,” Darren shouted over the music while he racked colorful balls in the middle of the felt table. “Are you actually Liz’s real sister?”

“Yeah, unfortunately.” When both of their eyes widened, I bit my cheek. Maybe they didn’t know that. Had they ever met Liz? Surely they had.

Blake’s face showed the shock more apparently than Darren, and he practically skipped forward with a pool cue in both hands. “There’s no way! You have to be stepsisters.” He gave me a quick once-over before he looked back at Jacob and gave him an approving nod. “I never would’ve guessed. You’re so much hotter.”

Darren grabbed a cue from the holder on the wall, turning to Blake with a scowl. “Dude, that’s her sister. Don’t be a dick.”

“It’s okay.” I shrugged, feeling a small rush of flattery go through me. “We’re not close. And I am hotter.”

I took the extra cue from Blake, using the small cube of blue chalk to coat the tip. “Who’s breaking?”

“You are, red.” Jacob winked at me, stepping away from the neatly packed triangle of balls. “You said you’ve played, right?” Was he doubting me?

I stepped up to the table, bending over and wiggling my hips while I positioned the stick over the small notch I made with my finger and thumb. Before I hit the white ball, I looked over my shoulder to where Jacob and his friends watched me. While Darren and Blake looked entertained, Jacob looked invested. His eyes darkened, and I turned my attention back to the game, sticking my ass out farther. I swore I heard him groan.

When I pulled my hand back and sent it forward, driving the tip of the cue into the ball and sending it across the table, it was like the bar was silent. I didn’t hear the loud music or the drunken hum of other people. All I heard was my pulse roaring in my ears.

The crack of the balls against each other broke me out of my stupor, drawing my attention to the impressed shouts of the men behind me. “Damn,” Blake said when they were done cheering. “She’s smart, pretty, and better at pool than you are. Why is she with you?” He playfully punched him in the arm, but Jacob never took his eyes off me.

“I have no clue,” he finally said, closing the distance between us. “I’m not going to start questioning it, though.”

Jacob put his arms around me, pulling me against him. I put the hand that didn’t hold my pool cue around his neck and stretched onto my toes to press my lips to his for a quick kiss. “I told you I was good.”

“I guess good thing we’re on the same team.” He took the stick from me, squeezing me against his body before letting go. “Blake is awful at this, so I should get ready to shoot.”

Blake grumbled at him, flipping him off before he folded over the table. When he missed the shot, he pursed his lips and glared. “Don’t even get started. Just take your damn turn.”

Jacob shrugged, stepping forward. “Watch and learn.”

While he hit one ball in after the next, I finished my drink. I scanned the bar, looking for the most likely neon sign that would lead me to the ladies’ room. When I found it, I pointed, hoping it was enough to get Jacob’s attention without interrupting his turn.

I slipped away, weaving through the crowd. People were dancing and grinding against each other on the bar-area-turned-temporary-dance-floor, and I breathed a slight sigh of relief when I made it to the other side. I was used to crowds like that in my twenties and early thirties, but at forty-one, it had been a long time since I had been in a bar this packed.

I spotted the restroom door and made a beeline in that direction. Before I reached the door, a strong hand closed around my wrist, and I gasped. In a blur, I was swept into the women’s restroom, and the door was locked behind me. The panic that filled me made me dizzy. I prepared to scream before I recognized the sweet vanilla scent on his breath, and the sudden fear faded when I realized it was Jacob. Still, my heart continued racing. He smiled, his dimples showing and putting a smile on my own lips.

“What are you doing in here?” I asked him, remembering we were standing in the restroom. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“Don’t worry. It’s empty,” he said, tugging at his belt. “I have to have you.”

Jacob kissed me when his belt was unfastened, and I wrapped both of my arms around his neck. “So have me,” I said.

I tugged his jeans down just enough that his hard cock bobbed free, and I reached for it, closing my hand around his shaft. He groaned, grabbing hold of my wrist and moving my hand to his shoulder. Jacob furiously unbuttoned my jeans, pulling them down to my knees.

He lifted me, smirking when he folded me and pressed my back against the wall. My legs were bound by my jeans, and he placed them over his shoulder, lining himself up at my entrance. Jacob’s grip on my hips was rough while he held me in place.

“Careful not to scream too loud, red. You don’t want everyone to hear you,” he warned before he slammed into me. I cried out, clamping my mouth shut and covering it with my hand. “Or maybe you do.”

Jacob used his hold on my hips to lift and drop me onto his cock, thrusting his hips forward to meet me, and I grabbed his shoulders. I held onto him, digging my nails into the fabric of his sweater while he fucked me. The sound of his skin clapping against mine and the moans I half attempted to stifle by biting down on my lip drowned out the sound of the music on the other side of the door.

“Fuck!” I cried when he arched his hips and hit a different spot inside of me, and I dropped my head back against the tile bathroom wall. I was too overwhelmed by the feeling of Jacob’s cock stretching me to think about the fact that my head was against a bar wall that probably hadn’t been washed since the place opened. All I could think about was the way each thrust made the swirling tension in my core grow more intense.

“I love the way you feel when you lose yourself with me,” Jacob growled, burying himself deeper inside me. “So. Fucking. Tight,” he said between thrusts.

My legs started to shake, and my breath came in smaller bursts. “I’m so close. I’m going to come,” I cried, trying to keep my voice quiet even though I knew nobody could hear me over the bar noise outside the door.

“Do it. Come. Just for me.” His voice coaxed me closer to my peak, the pressure building.

When there was a knock on the door, I gasped, but Jacob didn’t stop. He continued to slam into me, forcing me over the edge. “Just a minute!” he barked. “Come now,” he growled, forcing himself as deep into me as he could.

The spring in me snapped, and waves of release washed over me. My muscles tensed and relaxed, and I gripped Jacob’s shoulders tighter while he continued to fuck me through it. When he pounded into me and stopped, filling me with his load, he grunted, resting his head against my shoulder and pinning my legs between us.

Jacob sat me down, putting my hands around his neck and pulling my jeans up for me. He buttoned them and put his hands on my hips, steadying me before he let go and fixed his own zipper. I watched his hands work on his buckle, and I licked my lips. Did we have to finish the game?

My stomach sank when there was another knock at the door, and when I looked over Jacob’s shoulder into the mirror, my cheeks were dark red. “How are you going to get out of here without everyone seeing you?” I asked him, dropping my voice to a nervous half-whisper.

Jacob winked, running his hand through his hair, and butterflies raced into my throat. Then he unlocked the door. “Watch and learn.”

When I woke up and rolled over, the bed was cold, and my stomach sank before I instantly started to crave cinnamon rolls. I sat up, looking around my bedroom and feeling relieved when I saw his shoes on the ground by the closet door and his jacket draped over the chair. The butterflies in my stomach woke up quicker than I did, pulling me out of the blankets.

My feet met the cold wood, and I quickly stood up. A sudden flood of dizziness overcame me, and I put my hands out at my sides to balance myself, closing my eyes. The head rush only lasted a moment before it was gone and replaced with a throbbing headache that hadn’t been there when I was still laying down.

Oh, it’s one more shot. What could it hurt?

“Me. It could hurt me,” I grumbled, pressing my fingers into my temple. I shouldn’t have suggested the shots. They shouldn’t have enthusiastically given in.

Loser buys the next round. How many games had we played? I only lost one, but we took a lot more than one or two shots. I groaned.

When I smelled the coffee wafting in from the other room, I followed it. The lights in the living room were dim, but the blinds and curtains were all open, flooding the living room with morning light I’d normally try to block out. I squinted, allowing my eyes to adjust before I walked into the well-lit kitchen.

Jacob had turned on all of the lights, and he was sitting at the table, humming. He had a cup of coffee in one hand, and his phone in the other. He set both of them down when I walked into the room, leaning back in his chair and grinning at me.

“Good morning, sunshine. How are you feeling?” He lifted a brow, and I realized I should’ve looked in the mirror before I walked out. I could only imagine the state of my hair and the makeup I had undoubtedly fallen asleep in. There was no doubt in my mind my mascara was smudged under my eyes and my hair could be better described as a bird’s nest in a hurricane.

“Like I’ve been hit by a bus full of drunk college kids. I can’t drink like that anymore. What was I thinking?” I looked at the mug on the table, following the steam with my stare. “Please tell me there’s more of that?”

Jacob looked in his mug before he reached out and grabbed my hand, pulling me into his lap. I fell against him, releasing a blunt exhale. “Of course. Have some.” He passed me his mug, running his nose along my shoulder to my neck. “For what it’s worth, I had a great time with you last night.”

“Mm-hmm, I had a great time with you too,” I said, my cheeks warming. I closed my eyes and took a gulp of the coffee.

It was too sweet, the thick creamer coating my tongue and the granules of sugar that hadn’t dissolved feeling like sand between my teeth. I wrinkled my nose and pursed my lips. “That’s so sweet. How do you drink that?” I looked around for something to chase the taste out of my mouth, landing on the half-full coffeepot.

“What? You don’t like cream and sugar in your coffee?” He took a long swig of coffee and hummed.

I gagged a little, but I couldn’t stop watching him lick his lips. Would the coffee taste better off of them? “I drink my coffee black.”

“That surprises me.” Jacob wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him. I wiggled my hips, adjusting in his lap until he growled in my ear. “You have such a sweet tooth,” he said through gritted teeth.

I giggled and shrugged. “I love sweets, but I like my coffee bitter.” When I tried to stand up to go get my own mug, Jacob squeezed me tighter. I harrumphed, rolling my head back and looking at him from the side of my eye. “I need coffee, wolf man. I’m too tired for this right now.”

Jacob laughed the kind of laugh that filled the room—the kind that made me want to laugh with him, even at my own expense. He let go of me, watching me carefully as I crossed the kitchen and rounded the counter to the coffeepot. I grabbed a mug, peeking over my shoulder to make sure he was still watching before I poured myself a cup. He was, and I popped my hip to the side.

When I got back to the table with my own steaming cup, I settled back in his lap, throwing my arm around his shoulder. Jacob wrapped his around my waist, looking up at me.

It felt comfortable in his lap, like I could belong there, and I studied his face, memorizing every line as if I’d never see it again. “What are you staring at?” Jacob asked, pushing his mug away and closing his second arm around me.

“You have an eyelash.” I pinched the lash that rested on his cheek between my fingers, holding it up for him to see. “Make a wish.”

When I held my finger out with the lash balancing on the tip, Jacob closed his eyes. He sat there for a moment, and then he blew. I swore his eyes sparkled when he opened them again, his gaze meeting mine. His chest heaved slightly, and the muscles in his back flexed beneath my fingers.

“What did you wish for?” I whispered, resting my head against his.

Jacob shrugged. “Nothing.” He chuckled when I gasped.

“Why not? You’re supposed to make a wish! It’s good luck!” I didn’t know why you were supposed to make a wish. My grandmother had told me that once when I was younger, and I had heard other people say it over the years. It was probably an old wives’ tale—or a bunch of bullshit. I liked it though.

He tightened his hold on me, and when he blinked, his lashes brushed against my cheek. “I thought about it, but I don’t have anything to wish for.”

I leaned back, tracing his cheek with my hand. “Surely there’s something you want?”

He nodded. “Of course there is.” When he smirked, my stomach fluttered. “But I already have you.” Then he kissed me, and the world sat still and spun out of control at the same time. Jacob held on to me, and when he kissed me, I breathed him in.

I already have you.