18. Jeremiah
Chapter 18
Jeremiah
I ’m kissing Amberlee Michaels.
This is all I’ve thought about for the last seven years. Now that the moment is here, I can say it really is everything I’ve dreamed it would be and more.
A throat clearing breaks our moment and we pull away from each other.
“Here are your drinks.” The waitress places the shots and drinks in front of us, turning her nose up at our new seating arrangements.
“What are we doing? Ryan—”
“Don’t worry about your brother. I’ll handle him. When we get home, I’ll come over and talk to him. Explain everything. He’ll understand. It’s going to be alright. Let’s just enjoy tonight.”
Picking up one of the shots, she swallows the contents quickly, no longer making the face she did with the first one.
“Okay, then we tell him. But not this weekend. I don’t want to ruin it.”
“As long as I get more kisses like that.” I reach out, letting my fingers glide across her hand. So smooth and mine. She’s mine now.
I pick up my own shot as she looks at me half-lidded. Yep, I affect my girl just as much as she does me. I pick up one of the nachos, making sure to scoop some meat up and take a bite. I need more food in my stomach to soak up some of this alcohol.
“These are delicious. Try one.”
I pick up another nacho, lifting it to her mouth, her lips already parting. She moans as she chews, and my cock stirs.
“You’ve got to stop making those noises, baby. You’re killing me.”
Over the next hour, we order more drinks as we talk about us. What we’ve done over the last seven years and getting to know each other better. I had a better advantage, so it is more me telling her about myself and what I’ve been up to. I’ve kept up with her whereabouts and whatnot, while she admitted to avoiding hearing or asking anything about me—that it hurt her too much. A part of me aches knowing I caused her pain.
She finishes her last drink, and I laugh. She’s barely holding it together, and I know I need to get her back to the hotel. At first, I was going to call an Uber to come get us, but I changed my mind. Walking the few blocks back will help sober her up. And it’ll help me as well, at least that's the plan.
“Okay, baby, let's go. It’s time to get you home. No more drinks for you.” I am stern in my voice, but I know I need to be with how drunk she is.
“But I’m having fun.” She giggles as she presses her empty glass to her lips. Yep, my girl is wasted, but it’s okay because I’m here to take care of her.
“I know… but Ryan’s going to kill me when he finds out you’re drunk.” Standing up, I throw some cash on the table for the tip. The last time the waitress came and brought us drinks, I handled the bill so we’d be good to leave when we wanted.
Amberlee stands up, shaky on her feet, as I slip my arm around her, my hand grazing along the bottom of her breast. Fuck, my cock twitches. All I can think about is them now. Are her nipples already hard for me? Are they pink or a tan color? Are her areolas large or small? How will they feel when I have them in my mouth, sucking them?
Needing to calm myself, I begin to think of cute, fluffy kittens that turn into ravenous flesh-eating zombies.
“Umm, you feel good.” She giggles before slipping her hand underneath the hem of my shirt, sliding it across my stomach. “You’ve got those hot muscles too. I couldn’t stop looking at them—the way they turned into a V and disappeared underneath your shorts.”
My chest puffs out, knowing she’s been looking and likes what she sees.
“Let me hear you say that later, when you’re sober,” I whisper, pulling her tighter against me.
We leave the bar, making our way down the sidewalk, which is still full of people out exploring and having fun for the night. A few times I have to angle our bodies to move around them, some of them being dicks and not stepping out of the way.
We’ve only made it a block when she begins to become putty in my arms.
“Why’s everything spinning?” she asks softly.
“Because you’re drunk.” I chuckle.
“Can we go back to your room and talk?”
Hell yeah. There's no way I’m turning that down.
“Only if you drink some water.” As we’re walking, I guide her inside a shop. I’m hoping they have some kind of cooler inside with drinks so I can go ahead and start pumping some liquid into her that’s not alcohol.
“Fine, ohhh look, unicorns,” she squeals before pulling away from me, rushing toward a table of snowglobes.
She’s picking each of them up and turning them around, her face glowing. It’s a look I haven’t seen on her since she moved here. Pure happiness.
I cut the distance between us, stepping up behind her. She instinctively leans back, resting against my body. My hands wrap around her waist, slip under her shirt, and rest against her soft center.
“You like unicorns, baby?”
“I do. When I was a kid, I dreamed about having one and that they were real. When I got older, I fell in love with the cartoon movie The Last Unicorn, but my DVD was damaged. It was my favorite movie. One day, I want to get a unicorn tattoo.”
Seeing her this excited about something so small is overwhelming.
“Pick the one you want. I’m getting it for you. When you’re ready for the tattoo, just say the word, and I’ll take you. I’ll even get a matching one.”
She spins in my arms, facing me. “You’d get a unicorn tattoo? For me? That doesn’t seem very manly.”
“Does it seem like I care?” I pause. “Who cares what anyone else thinks? You’re all that matters.”
Sure, unicorns aren’t manly, but if getting one shows Amberlee how much I care for her, then sign me up. That way, when she looks at me and sees the tattoo, I can get the same smile that’s on her face right now.
She just cocks her head to the side as she bites her lip with a thoughtful look on her face. After a few seconds, she raises up on her toes and kisses me lightly on the lips. “Thank you.”
The moment passes just as quickly as it came, and she goes back to looking at the snow globes.
“This is the one I want.” She holds it up with pride in her eyes, finally settling on one. To me, it’s just a trinket, but to her, it’s a valuable item. Just as precious to her as she is to me.
“Okay then, let’s pay for it, get some water, and head back.” We head to the register, which has a cooler with sodas and water beside it. I also grab some chips and candy. Just in case she’s hungry.
It only takes a moment for us to check out, and with our bag in one hand, I once again reclaim hers with my other.
“Thank you, Jeremiah. For the snowglobe and tonight.”
“Tonight’s just the beginning. I’m anxious to talk to your brother so I can officially scream to the world that you’re mine.”
She leans closer, resting her head on my arm as we continue to walk to the hotel, each step drawing us nearer to our destination.
When it finally comes into view, her hand pulls free from mine, and it’s as if we are just two people walking side by side now. As if our previous confession was just a figment of our imagination. I don’t like it.
Heading into the hotel, there’s no one in the lobby other than the desk attendant. We head straight for the elevator, and she pushes the button. I can see the change in her demeanor, and I know she’s getting ready to shut down and try to run away.
Only when we’re in the elevator does she speak. “Maybe I should go back to my room.”
She keeps her eyes on her feet.
“No.” There’s no hesitation, it just pops out before I can even blink.
“Excuse me?” She quickly glances up with her jaw dropped.
“I said no. You’re not pulling away from me now. Ryan isn’t around. He’s not in my room. We’re still going to talk. I’m honoring your wish and waiting until we get home to tell him how I feel about you, but I’m more than happy to get on that elevator and go one flight up and spill my guts to him. It’s your choice.”
She doesn’t move closer to me or take my hand again, but I still feel like this is a win. The elevator comes to a stop, and the doors slide open. I step off and look back to see Amberlee frozen in place. Placing my hand on the door, I hold it open.
“Amberlee, come on.” I sigh when she doesn’t budge. “Please,” I finally beg.
That one word must do the trick. She pushes off the wall and steps out into the hallway. I don’t give her a choice this time. Clasping her hand in mine, I head straight to my room. She’s not going to hers. Not if I can help it. If I have my way, she’ll be with me until the first ray of light in the morning.
Reaching into my back pocket, I pull out my wallet and take out the key, holding it up to the magnetic reader. As soon as the tiny light flashes green, I open the door and step to the side, allowing Amberlee to enter first. Thankfully, I left the bathroom light on, so she can see where she’s going.
She stops inside the room, right at the end of the bed, and looks around before sitting on the edge of it. Oddly, it’s the one I’ve been sleeping on, not Angel.
I make sure the door is locked, flipping the latch, then set the bag down on the dresser. I remove the bottle of water, twist the top off, and hand it to her. She’s more sober than she was at the bar, but I can still tell she’s feeling the effects of the alcohol. Amberlee drinks a few sips, then hands the bottle back to me, and I place it on the dresser.
“Are you sure we should do this?” she whispers as she slips off her flip-flops, rubbing her toes on the carpet as if it holds the answer she’s looking for.
“There’s nothing that can change my mind. I’ve wanted you for ten years, and now that I know you want me, that you feel the same even after all these years, I’m never letting you get away.”
I sit down beside her and take her hands in mine, pulling her towards me. She shifts, following along with the movement until we’re facing each other.
“Amberlee, whether you believe it or not, I’ve had ten years to pine over you. During that time, I’ve gotten bits and pieces of your life from Ryan and Maddy. When you achieved something, I knew about it, and I celebrated that accomplishment with you. I let you slip through my fingers once, but never again.”
With those words, I slide my fingers through her hair, cupping the back of her head, and crash my lips onto hers. She stiffens at first, but loosens up and returns the kiss, her resolve crumbling.
I want her. All of her.
I gently push until she’s lowering herself back to the bed. When she’s lying down, I release her lips. My fingertips trace tiny circles around her exposed belly button.
“Is this okay?”
She doesn’t speak, just nods.