Chapter 6 - Archer
She smells of sunscreen and safety. Along with her soothing voice, some of my panic subsides.I’ve never been a people person, always used to keep to myself whenever I could, liking my privacy.
However, after I got back from my short stint in the military, it got much worse; it wasn’t about enjoying spending time by myself.
It was about knowing full well how unpredictable a person could be, how some places that gather crowds are more dangerous than I ever thought possible.
Somehow my brain registers crowds as unsafe, and despite thinking I’d get over it after a couple of years, I never did.
It’s now been over ten years that I’ve been back after a leg injury, and I still can’t be around so many people and not be terrified.
I’ve improved in comparison to before: I’m able to exit quickly if I need to.
Before I couldn’t, I would just freeze, like I was back there, searching for threats, making sure we could survive.
Today it feels so much better, though. With Trish, it only takes me a couple of minutes to return from the sticky fear that’s like superglue. She’s the solvent that keeps me grounded.
Would it be selfish to hold on to her like this forever? Probably.
Am I struggling to remind myself of that? Yes.
She looks so good wrapped around my body, soft curves and warm skin. And just like that, the teenage boys outside are the last thing on my mind. Taming this rush of feelings and hard-on takes all of me.
The rational part of me knows all the reasons why I should keep my distance: she clearly is too young for a forty-year-old like myself; the fact a smile like hers shouldn’t be locked in for someone like me.
And yet, I always manage to tease her more than I plan to. My whole body knows she is mine, so my mouth says words it shouldn’t, my eyes wander to places they shouldn’t, needing more of her, squirreling away every reaction of hers.
I’ve never been good at doing what I should do.
But I’m good at doing what I want to do.
I withdraw a few inches just so I can see her. Trish interprets this as a need for space, pulling away until her back hits the wall.
“No,” I tell her, grabbing her forearm and pulling her towards me again.
This time I’m the one holding her close, just enough space between us that I can look at her gorgeous face, dark short hair that perfectly frames her face, her eyes just as dark, the perfect contrast to the buoyant colors she enjoys wearing.
“Thank you,” I rasp, I feel terribly inexperienced right now, nervous even.
She blushes under my scrutiny all the way to her cleavage.
“You look beautiful, Trish.”
She blushes even more. Gosh, she really is perfect.
I place my index finger against her cheek.
“Why are you blushing, princess?”
“I... I think you’re handsome too,” she whispers back.
Trailing my finger slowly down her face, she lets out a small exhale.
“I shouldn’t do this,” I say, hesitating.
What kind of man am I ? She’s so young. Ever since I saw her at the lake, I told myself I’d keep my distance.
Last night as I headed home until I fell asleep, I told myself I’d rein in whatever feelings I had.
It’s not like every other decision I made that steers me from the expected path, this has consequences for someone other than me.
“Why?”
I stop my finger right on the edge of her chin, right before I go lower than a rational man should.
“There are better men out there than me. Men who are not scared of people, who are not twice your age.”
“You’re not twice my age! I wouldn’t have pegged you for someone who cares about stereotypes like that. I want you to touch me.”
She grabs my finger and shoves it right below her neck.
All the arguments I’ve carefully built in my head crumble to the ground when I feel her soft skin on my fingertip. Fuck. I really am a selfish bastard. I’m perfectly composed on the outside, but a greedy animal inside.
So I continue trailing. My finger moves slowly all the way until I reach right on top of the plush part of her chest. Trish lets out the softest whimper.
Despite the commotion outside, we’re in another world right now, I only hear her.
She angles slightly towards me, giving me a better view of her big breasts, if that’s even possible.
I want to sink my head in there until I die from asphyxiation.
She tilts her head, her dark eyes demanding. She leans in my direction, whispering a soft ‘please’.
So I do what my princess tells me to do.
I don’t pull back as her lips touch mine, and one second later, I’m pushing her against the wall, taking in her moans as we kiss desperately, my mouth taking and taking, my tongue coaxing her mouth to open.
Trish responding to every single touch like I’m worthy of something, and most terrifying: worthy of her.
Her soft hands graze my neck, keeping me in.
It’s not like I didn’t know kissing her would change my life forever, but the confirmation still comes as a surprise.
I pull back slightly, wanting to make sure she’s okay, her cheeks rosy, her mouth darker, it’s the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.
I kiss her again, revealing something she isn’t supposed to know: she’s mine.
I hold her waist tight as she answers with more force too, I like that Trish is demanding more of me. I want to give her everything she wants, I want her to take everything.
The sound of a curtain opening makes us jerk back. A teenage boy on the other side, gaping at us.
“Look what I—”
He looks at us, dumbfounded.
“I’m sorry, I thought there was someone else here,” he giggles, not missing for a single second what was happening here. He closes the curtain. Trish and I look at each other like two adults who’ve literally been caught red-handed doing something they shouldn’t.
Her laughter sounds nervous at first, but then it turns free.
“Talk about being responsible adults.”
“Right,” I say, smiling too.
The chatter outside quiets down in an absolute confirmation that he shared the news with his friends and clearly waiting to hear something.
“Fucking horny teenagers,” I mutter.
Trish keeps laughing as we leave.
There’s no way I’m going to let another human being hear a single aroused sound coming from Trish. They’re all mine. Every single whimper, every single moan coming from her is mine.