Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
brADY
I slept great last night. As soon as Hazel was in my arms, I felt content to drift off. It was everything leading up to that moment that had me confused. Hazel was acting so weird and was stiff when I held her in my arms.
At some point in the middle of the night, she'd curled onto her side facing away from me, and I followed her so that my arm banded over her waist. Now I didn't want to move because I was afraid of waking her.
It was nice waking up to Hazel in my bed. But her lingerie was driving me crazy. It was soft and silky to the touch, her nipples visible through the sheer top, and the bottom played peekaboo with her cheeks.
I wouldn't survive the next few weeks if she continued to wear these outfits. But at the same time, it was a sweet kind of torture I never wanted to end.
I don't think Hazel had any idea how sexy she was and how temping a package she made. That's what made her more attractive. She'd always viewed herself as a bit of a nerd, someone that men didn't notice. But she couldn't be more wrong.
I couldn't ignore her if I tried.
Just then, Hazel shifted, lifting my arm and sliding out from underneath to make her way to the bathroom. I rolled on my back, watching her smooth her hair, her ass swaying sensually. The door closed, and I let out the breath I'd been holding.
Having Hazel Havenwood in my bed was sweet torture, and I didn't want it to stop. My dick was hard from being pressed against her backside all night.
I thought about Mabel, my parents, anything to get it to stand down. By the time Hazel returned, I was presentable again.
"Did you sleep okay?" I asked her as she climbed into bed and covered up with the blankets.
"It was okay."
"Is my bed not comfortable?" I asked.
She stared up at the ceiling. "It wasn't that."
I rolled onto my elbow so that I could look at her face while she was talking. "You'll get used to sleeping in my bed."
She let out a breath. "It was just the first night. Things were bound to be awkward."
I almost thought my presence made her uncomfortable because she was attracted to me. It really could go either way though, so I had to tread carefully. I sat up, scratching my chest, her gaze drawn to the motion. "You want breakfast?"
She nodded slowly. "I'm starving."
"Let me jump in the shower, and then I'll feed you." I hope she didn’t say anything about the fact that I’d showered last night. I really needed to take care of this pent-up desire from being pressed against her all night.
She reached for my arm, making the hairs on my forearm stand up. "You don't have to feed me."
"I want to." I left it at that and lifted the blankets so I could slide out.
I didn't bother to pull on sweats. This was part of my plan.
Act like it was no big deal to walk around in my briefs.
If we were friends, it wouldn't matter. If she was attracted to me, then she'd suffer just like I did.
How far could I push her before she made a move?
I grabbed new briefs, sweats, and a T-shirt, heading into the bathroom to turn on the water. I ducked under the stream, my dick already hard again. I remembered how Hazel felt, her ass cradled against it all night.
I squeezed the base hard, and then stroked, my palm pressed against the cold tile.
I dropped my head, letting my mind wander how she looked in her lingerie: the hard nipples, the ass cheeks, and the outline of her hips.
My imagination was already running wild.
What would she look like underneath? Would her nipples be sensitive to my mouth? Would she beg for me to be inside her?
I groaned as the tingle in the base of my spine spread, and I spurted cum on the walls of the shower. I sprayed it off with water, scrubbing it with a washcloth. I shared a bedroom and a bathroom now. I'd have to be careful.
Had she touched herself while I was in the shower last night? Had she been thinking about me being naked in here?
The thought spurred me on. Maybe I did have a chance with her.
I quickly soaped up and washed my hair. I dried off before getting dressed and heading downstairs.
Hazel had probably taken Max for a walk.
As much as I wanted to join them, my stomach was rumbling.
I needed food and caffeine, not necessarily in that order.
I filled the coffee machine with beans and hit Start, letting the sound of the grinder fill the air.
In no time, the kitchen smelled like fresh-brewed coffee.
I grabbed eggs and veggies from the fridge.
I chopped veggies, cooking them in a pan, then whipped the eggs in a bowl. I made one omelet, plating it with sliced avocados and toast, before making a second. By the time the back slider opened, I was just sitting down to eat. "Breakfast is ready."
Hazel unclipped Max's leash, hanging it on a hook by the door. I'd installed that years ago for Hazel. Max's wet feet scrambled for purchase on the tile as he rushed to greet me. "Morning, boy. Your food is already in your dish."
"Thanks for taking care of him," Hazel said as she slipped onto the stool next to me and picked up her fork. "And me."
"It's not a problem." It was something I wanted to do for much longer than a day or a weekend.
She took a bite of her eggs topped with sliced avocado and gazed out the window. "This view is magnificent. It's like being on a permanent vacation, walking Max on the beach, and then eating here where we can see the waves and the beach."
"It is spectacular." I worked hard for years in Dad's construction business, and I'd saved to buy a piece of heaven for myself.
Ivy always knew when the best places were coming on the market and would let us know before anyone else.
It was the only way I'd gotten this place.
And I was glad I had it now. I had one thing Hazel wanted.
"I could get used to living here."
"You don't have to move out when our arrangement is over," I told her again. "I could use a roommate."
Hazel gave me a look. "Could you?"
I shrugged. "Dalton's moving out."
She raised a brow. "And you can't live here on one income?"
"I could." But I didn't want to.
"I'm sure you'll enjoy having the place all to yourself for a while. Assuming that Dalton moves in with his girlfriend for good."
I nodded. "I've never lived by myself though. Our house growing up was overflowing, and I always had roommates in college. Then Dalton and I moved in together as soon as I graduated."
"I hadn't thought about that."
I didn't want just any roommate. I wanted her.
We finished our meal in silence. At some point, Max trod off to the living room to jump on the couch to take his morning nap.
"I think Max is going to fall in love with this place. He probably won't want to move out when the time comes."
I grinned at her. "That's part of my evil plan."
She smiled. "You've always wanted my dog."
"I can't deny that." When we'd gone to the shelter to look for one, I had this weird feeling that we were picking out the perfect dog for us, but we weren't a couple. Just friends. So Max had gone to live with her, and I was relegated to a few walks and visits a week. It wasn't enough.
"What are your plans for the day?" Hazel asked me.
"I thought we could unpack and then film more shows."
"Will we need to go to the library to use the booth?" Hazel asked, sipping her coffee.
"I set up a booth here at the house."
Her brow furrowed. "Oh, I didn't realize."
"I like having one here, but I like being able to get out of the house too." Plus, Hazel was at the library. It gave me an excuse to see her more.
"I can fulfill my side of the bargain."
I wanted her to enjoy what she was doing, not feel like this was some kind of an obligation. "Only if you enjoy it."
"It was surprisingly fun. And it's cool that the viewers liked it too."
"We might have to answer some of their questions today. They want to know who you are and when we started dating." I figured our childhood history would be interesting to most of my viewers.
"Then let's do it. I want to give the viewers what they want."
We cleaned up after we were finished eating, and then Hazel excused herself to take a shower. I prepared the video I wanted to use for our filming.
"Are you ready to film?" Hazel appeared in the doorway, wearing frayed jean shorts and a graphic T that said Gamer. "Should I wear something nicer?"
"No. You're perfect." She was effortlessly cute, and the kids would love her shirt. I loved it for a different reason. It was tight in the chest and made her breasts look huge.
In the booth, I set up a second chair for her, each with our own cameras trained on us so I could toggle back and forth. "I thought we'd go live today so we could answer questions."
"Am I ready for that?" she asked nervously.
"Just answer as honestly as you can. I think it will be fine."
I posted everywhere that I was intending to go live and then turned everything on. Immediately, we got messages, saying how great it was that we were live, and then a few asked why Hazel wasn't sitting in my lap like last time.
"What do you say, fiancée? Want to sit on my lap?"
Hazel rose and sat on the thigh I'd patted. "I can do that."
I wrapped an arm around her, breathing in the scent of her shampoo and body wash. Had she lotioned up her legs and her pussy in the shower? I closed my eyes briefly to clear the vision in my head of her rubbing lotion over her tan skin.
The questions came rapid fire, so I answered one at a time.
"We met as kids. We live on an island and used to bike back and forth to each other's houses.
We spent a lot of time on the beach, hunting for clams and taking home seashells for our windowsills.
" It was the ideal childhood. I could escape for a few hours with Hazel, pretend that I didn't have six siblings all clamoring for attention and space.
"We've been friends for years," Hazel added.
When did you become more than friends?
I wanted Hazel to answer this one, so I squeezed her waist and waited for her to formulate an answer.
"I think we both harbored feelings for each other but were afraid to express them. Neither one of us wanted to ruin our friendship," Hazel said, not elaborating.
I was fairly sure they wanted specifics. "Let's get to some gaming, and we'll answer more of your questions another day."
We narrated the video on the screen. I knew the storyline, but Hazel didn't, which made her playacting more realistic. When she was scared, I held her tight, and at one point, she tucked her head into my chest. I was enjoying her proximity. I was doing what I loved, and she was right here with me.
At the end, we climbed to safety out of the ravine, and she wiped her forehead. "Whew. That was close. My heart is still racing. How are you guys holding up?"
Emojis flew by on the screen, and Hazel laughed. "I don't know about you, but I'm glad we're safe. I think we should just build a mushroom house. We don't need to check out the area and hunt for scary characters. Right?"
The responses varied from build something to let's explore . "We'll explore on the next episode. Thank you so much for hopping on live so we could talk to you in real time. We'll see you again soon."
I clicked off, and Hazel stayed in my lap.
"How was it?"
She rested her head on my shoulder. "That was tiring."
"Yeah, I imagine it's like teaching a room full of kids. You have to be on all the time, and it can be draining."
She lifted her head. "It was fun though."
"You want to go for a swim in the ocean?" I was going to take advantage of having her nearby.
"I wouldn’t mind spending some time on the beach." She slid off my lap and disappeared out the door of the booth.
I closed my eyes, wondering how I was going to survive one day with this woman in my house, much less weeks.
Every minute, I was seeing our future laid out in front of us.
Lazy Saturdays and busy weekdays, spending time with family and friends.
Maybe even starting a family together. How could she not see it?
I logged off the computer, knowing I'd need to look at a few administrative things later. I was used to spending most of my spare time working on my show, but now that Hazel was living with me, I didn't want to squander my time with her.
By the time I got to the bedroom, Hazel was coming out of the bathroom smelling like coconuts, wearing a tiny green-and-blue tropical flower bikini that highlighted her tan skin nicely. I tried to keep my gaze on her face, but it was a struggle. "It'll just take me a minute."
"I'll be downstairs," Hazel said, pulling a see-through filmy white cover-up over her bikini. She was effortlessly gorgeous.
When she was gone, I let out a breath, grabbing my trunks and getting dressed in the bathroom.
I hurried, trying not to think about how she looked in that bathing suit.
The way the material strained at the weight of her voluptuous breasts and the dangerous dip of her bottoms. Did she shave herself bare, or did she have a tantalizing strip of hair for me to explore?
I let my head fall back. I wasn't going to survive this. Why had I thought it would be a good idea to invite Hazel to move in with me? I was the only one struggling with the proximity. Hazel was seemingly cool and unaffected.