Chapter 26 Guilty As Sin
Guilty As Sin
Ali
Ali had just crawled into bed, Kindle still propped open on her lap, when her phone buzzed. Her heart did a little jump at the contact name.
Dylan
She debated letting it ring but answered after a beat, biting her lip to hide the smile in her voice.
“Hey.”
“Hey yourself,” he said, voice already low and smooth. “Did I wake you?”
“Nope. Just finished reading a chapter. And by chapter I mean a particularly spicy scene.”
“Oh yeah?” He chuckled. “Am I gonna have to start competing with fictional men now?”
She snorted. “Please. You already won that war back in college.”
There was a pause, followed by a grin in his tone. “That sounds dangerously close to a compliment, Presley.”
“Maybe I’m feeling generous.”
“Good,” he drawled. “Because I’ve been thinking about you all damn day.”
Heat flushed her cheeks. “You always this charming after a drive home?”
“Nah,” he said. “Just after I spend ten hours wishing I had your thighs draped across my lap again.”
“Dylan…”
“Mmm. There she goes. That little breathy voice you get when you’re embarrassed but turned on. Still my favorite.”
Ali rolled onto her side, pressing the phone closer. “You shouldn’t say things like that.”
“Why not?”
“Because you know I’m gonna start overthinking everything again.”
“Nah,” he said gently. “No spiraling tonight. Just you and me.”
She was quiet for a moment, her voice barely a whisper when she said, “What are you thinking about right now?”
“Honestly?” His voice dropped another octave. “I’m thinking about how soft you sounded the other night. When you whispered my name with your mouth full.”
Ali inhaled and buried her face in her pillow.
“Dylan.”
“Ali. Don’t go shy on me now,” he teased, voice honeyed heat. “I want you to think about it, too. About how good you made me feel. About how fucking proud I was of you.”
Her breath caught.
“I could hear it in your voice,” he continued. “You wanted to please me. And baby… you did.”
She didn’t know what possessed her to say it, but the words slipped out before she could stop them.
“I want to do it again.”
His sharp inhale crackled through the line. “Yeah?”
“Uh-huh.”
He groaned softly. “Then don’t make me wait too long. Because next time… I’m going to take my time.”
Ali squeezed her thighs together, biting her lip.
“Goodnight, Ali.”
“Goodnight, Dylan.”
“…Sweet dreams, baby.”
She hung up with a stupid grin still spread across her face.
She’d been staring at the same page for over an hour.
The book was good— great, even— but her brain wouldn’t settle. Not when every time she blinked, she could still hear his voice in her ear. The things he’d said. The way he’d said them. It was like her body was still tuned to the exact frequency of his voice.
She sighed, flipping the page even though she hadn’t absorbed a single word. The soft glow of her Kindle illuminated the room, casting faint shadows across her ceiling.
She should sleep. She had an early meeting. She’d already brushed her teeth and double-checked the alarm and fluffed her pillow five times. But her brain wasn’t cooperating.
Then her phone buzzed on the nightstand.
Her heart jumped.
You awake?
She bit her lip, pulse quickening. She reached for the phone.
Yeah. Still up. Can’t sleep.
Three dots appeared almost instantly.
Me neither. I tried. I even made tea like an eighty-year-old man.
She smiled in the dark.
Did it help?
Not even a little. Kept thinking about that call. And how I was semi-hard just hearing your voice.
She dropped the phone on her chest for a second, palms pressed to her burning cheeks. Gawd.
The screen dimmed and she scrambled to tap it back on. Her thumbs hovered over the keyboard, then—
You’re not supposed to say stuff like that when I’m trying to be good.
Oh, Al. You have no idea how bad I want to ruin that plan.
Her thighs clenched under the blanket.
She swallowed hard and set the phone beside her for a second, staring at the ceiling like it could help her breathe normally again.
But it was no use. The mental replay of his voice— low and rough, teasing and tender— was already running wild through her mind.
She grabbed the phone again, heart in her throat.
Dylan, Seriously. You CANNOT say things like that when I’m lying here in just a t-shirt and panties.
She hesitated after hitting send. Her whole face flushed. Gawd, did I just say that?
The three dots blinked. And blinked.
Then:
You’re really trying to kill me, huh?
Are you touching yourself right now, baby?
Her breath caught. She was warm all over. Squirming.
She bit her lip and typed slowly.
No… but I’ve been thinking about it since you said my voice turns you on.
There. Honest. Bold— for her.
That’s because it does.
You don’t even have to talk dirty. Just whisper my name like you used to and I’m done.
Her hand drifted down, the ache building now that her mind had permission to go there. Her pulse thundered in her ears as her fingertips grazed the hem of her old tee— slid under it.
She whimpered softly.
The phone buzzed again.
Tell me what you’re thinking about.
She pressed her thighs together again, curling onto her side.
You. Against that wall again.
How hard you kissed me. How your hands were everywhere.
How good you felt when you were inside me.
Three dots. Then a pause.
Fuck. Ali… call me now. Put the phone on speaker. I need to hear you.
Her breath hitched. Her whole body lit up.
She stared at the phone. Chewed her lip.
Her finger trembled as it hovered over the green button, heart pounding like a drum in her chest. But the way he asked, well told her— “Put the phone on speaker. I need to hear you.”—something about it made her feel brave.
She tapped Call and brought the phone close, switching to speaker and laying it on the pillow beside her.
It only had half a ring.
Then—
“Hey, baby,” Dylan said, voice low and warm, rough like gravel and sleep. Like she’d dragged him out of a dream where he had his mouth on her and didn’t want to let go.
Ali’s whole body shivered.
“Hi,” she whispered.
Silence settled for a moment— thick, intimate, crackling with want.
“You touching yourself, baby?” he asked.
Her thighs clenched. She shook her head instinctively, then realized how pointless it was.
“Not yet,” she breathed.
“Why the hell not?” His voice dipped, deeper now. Slower. That Southern rasp curling around every word like heat off pavement. “You just told me you were thinking about the wall again. Don’t you want to feel good?”
“I do…”
“Then let me show you how good you can make yourself feel.”
Ali exhaled shakily, her body already buzzing just from the sound of him.
“Take your shirt off,” he said. “Now.”
She obeyed, sliding her hands under the hem and tugging it over her head. Cool air kissed her skin. Her nipples were already tight, aching.
“It’s off,” she whispered.
He groaned softly. “God, I wish I could see you. Bet you’re so fucking pretty right now.”
Her cheeks flushed.
“Lie back,” he said. “Nice and slow. Get comfortable. I want you spread out for me.”
She leaned back into the pillows.
“Are you there?”
“I’m here,” she whispered.
“Good. Now I want you to pinch those nipples for me.”
Her fingers trembled as she obeyed. The jolt of sensation stole her breath.
“Gawd, Dylan…”
“There she is,” he murmured. “That feel good?”
She nodded. “Yeah.”
“Roll them a little. Gentle at first. Then harder.”
Ali gasped, hips twitching as the pull of pleasure spread between her thighs.
“Now,” he said, voice turning to velvet, “slide your other hand down. Nice and slow. Over your stomach, between your thighs.”
She moved without hesitation now— needy, breathless, desperate to feel what he was giving her.
“Inside your panties?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she whispered. “I’m already wet.”
“Fuck,” he groaned. “Push two fingers in. Let me hear what you sound like when you do it.”
She whimpered the moment she breached herself, the stretch of it almost too much after thinking about him all day.
“There you go,” he said, voice wrecked. “Nice and slow. In and out. You feel that?”
“Yes…”
“That’s all you, baby,” he said. “That’s how good you make yourself feel. For me. Just from my voice.”
Ali moaned, her fingers moving in a rhythm now, her other hand still teasing her nipple. Her body felt like fire under her skin.
“Rub your clit with your palm,” he instructed gently. “Don’t rush. Make it last.”
Her hips rocked. She bit her lip to keep from crying out.
“Are you close, baby?”
“Yeah,” she gasped. “Dylan, please…”
“You sound so fucking perfect,” he growled. “I wish I could see you. I’d hold your thighs open and watch every second. I’d kiss you right there. Taste you until you couldn’t take anymore. But right now, I want you to give it to me. Let go for me.”
She whimpered, fingers moving faster now, everything building, tightening.
“That’s it,” he whispered. “Come for me, Ali. Let me hear you.”
And she did.
With a cry that broke open in her chest, she came hard, her body shuddering, her voice tangled with his name.
The world spun, then stilled.
Her breath came in gasps. But Dylan didn’t speak right away.
He just stayed.
There. Steady. Warm. Silent in the softest, most loving way.
“Still think that kiss was just for good bye?” he teased, voice gentler now.
She laughed, still flushed and trembling. “That was so not a good bye kiss.”
“Damn right it wasn’t.”
She smiled, eyes fluttering closed. “I miss you already.”
He exhaled like her words had wrapped around his ribs.
“Then don’t go.” Dylan didn’t hesitate. “I’ll stay on the phone with you all night.”
Ali smiled at the ceiling, the sound of his breath on the line anchoring her in a way nothing else could. She curled onto her side, one arm tucked under the pillow, the other draped around her phone like it was a tether to him.
They talked about her book club— how Raleigh Ann hated the spicy fantasy they just finished but Abigail was obsessed. About work, too, and how her client’s idea of submitting “supporting documentation” was a handwritten sticky note and a Twix wrapper.
She rambled until her voice got slower. Sleepier. She couldn’t stop yawning.
“Still with me, babe?” Dylan’s voice came through, a low hum in her ear.
“Mhm. Just resting my eyes,” she mumbled.
“I’ll talk. You just listen, okay?”
She hummed again in agreement, letting his voice wash over her.
He told her about a rookie on the team last year who thought almond milk came from brown cows.
About Rocky’s kid accidentally setting off the sprinkler system at the stadium with a toy lightsaber.
She giggled softly, lips curving as she burrowed deeper under the blankets.
Then a beat passed. A shift in tone.
“Can I ask you something, babe?” Dylan asked, voice soft but steady through the phone.
Ali rolled to her back, blinking at the ceiling as her heart picked up speed. “Yeah?”
A pause.
“How long has it been for you?”
Her breath caught. “What do you mean?”
“You know what I mean.”
She exhaled, trying to laugh it off. “Why? Trying to calculate my stats like one of your game recaps?”
“Ali.”
She didn’t answer, fingers toying with the edge of the blanket.
When the silence stretched, she cleared her throat. “How long has it been for you?”
He didn’t hesitate. “Over a year.”
She blinked. “Seriously?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“I don’t know.” She tugged the blanket higher. “You’re a professional football player. It’s just… hard to believe.”
He snorted, not amused. “So that makes me a man-whore?”
Ali winced, the weight of her own words crashing into her. “No— I didn’t mean it like that. I’m sorry.”
He didn’t say anything right away.
She rushed to fill the space. “Can we just forget it? It doesn’t matter, right?”
“It matters to me,” he said gently but firmly. “Ali, I was inside you a few nights ago. You were so goddamn tight it nearly broke me. And then later, when you said you’d never given head before…”
Her cheeks flamed.
“I’m not trying to embarrass you,” he added quickly. “I just want to understand. I want you to trust me with the truth.”
Her eyes welled unexpectedly, her chest aching with pressure she couldn’t name.
“Ali?” he said again, quieter this time.
She let out a long breath. “I haven’t been with anyone since you.”
His breath hitched.
“I’ve kissed guys. Let them touch me. But I always pulled away before it went further. I just… I didn’t trust anyone like I trusted you. And I didn’t want anyone else to have that part of me.”
She paused, eyes fixed on the ceiling as a tear slid down her temple.
“You were too important. What we had was too big. I couldn’t take it and… and give it to someone else just to feel something again.”
Silence.
Then his voice, thick with something he wasn’t hiding: “Jesus, Ali.”
“I know it’s weird—”
“No. Baby, no. That’s not weird. That’s… fuck, that’s beautiful. And devastating. And I don’t deserve to be the only one you’ve ever trusted with that.”
She bit her lip, tears slipping freely now.
“But I am so goddamn honored that I was.”
Ali turned on her side, pressing the phone tighter to her ear, like maybe it could close the miles between them.
“I think part of me always believed… if I waited long enough, maybe we’d find our way back.”
“We did.”
And with that, she smiled— soft and sleepy and safe. “We did.”