10. Erissa
“I don’t regret it, Kira, but it was a mistake.”
“Chile, if it felt as good as you said, nothing about it was a mistake, and I’m confused as to why you think so.”
I’d held off on calling Shakira for as long as I could this morning, but I had to tell someone about my night, and she was the only person I talked to.
“Because it was a one-time thing, and now every time I look at him, I’ll have visions of the way he looked up at me the third time he ate my pussy, or the way he looked down at me when his dick readjusted my insides.”
“Oh, damn. Y’all first time was like that? Okay, friend, I think I understand your dilemma, but what makes you think it was a one-time thing?”
“Because based on what he’s told me and the research I’ve done, River Westmore is not a one-woman man. I’m pretty sure he has hos in every area code, and I can’t imagine how many he has in Black Elm. As mind-blowing as the sex was, I want no parts of him and his entourage of women.”
“I get it, and since you are aware of his . . . friendly dick, maybe if you go into this with no expectations and don’t involve your feelings, you can have a little fun while making a lot of money. Think of his dick as one of your fringe benefits.”
“Now you know damn well I suck at keeping my feelings out of relationships. That’s why I kept taking Jeremiah’s raggedy ass back.”
“True. I’m not sure what to tell you, Rissa. After the night it sounds like you had, it’ll be mighty hard to resist him.”
“Tell me about it, but at least I’ll have a few days to get my mind right. I’m pretty sure he won’t try anything with his mom and sister here.”
“Good luck with that. I need to get back to work. I’ll see you later.”
“Okay. Thanks for listening. Bye.”
Our call ended, and I looked at Rivvy, who was in her stroller. She had one of her toys in her mouth and was as content as she could be.
“You ready to go for a walk?” I asked her.
She kicked her legs and cooed and yelped with excitement.
“I need to get my weight vest from my trunk, so as soon as I find my keys, we can go. I’ll be right back.”
I’d already looked in my purse, so the only other logical place was Riverlynn’s diaper bag. I didn’t think I needed her bag for our walk, so it was upstairs in the nursery.
I attempted to run up the stairs, but my body quickly reminded me that it had been turned every which way but loose less than twelve hours ago. I eased up the stairs instead and was annoyed when I didn’t find my keys in the diaper bag.
“Where the heck did I put them?” I whispered, confused.
I went back downstairs, peeked at Riverlynn, then went to the kitchen and was surprised to see my keys on the counter. I was baffled, to say the least, because I definitely didn’t recall bringing them to the kitchen.
I picked them up, and they felt a little light, so I looked at them and noticed the keys to my house and car were missing.
“What the fuck?”
I was now utterly confused because where the hell were my keys? My first thought was to call River, but he was at practice and would likely not answer my call.
Riverlynn and I went out for walks a few times a week, and today, I remembered the weight vest I kept in the trunk of my car for those times when Shakira and I met up to walk.
“Well, baby girl. I guess I don’t need my weight vest after all. Let’s go.”
I grabbed the handle of her stroller and headed for the front door. As I opened it, I heard a deep voice behind me, scaring the shit out of me.
“Where are you going?”
“Shit! River! You scared me. What are you doing here?” I asked with my hand over my heart.
“I live here.”
I smacked my lips. “Duh. Why are you home from practice already?”
“The storm last night caused a power outage in that area, so practice was canceled. I went to Jaxon’s house to lift weights, and now I’m home. Where are you going?”
“For a walk. Hey, do you know where my car and house keys are?”
I held up my keyring, which now only had the keys to his house and his SUV.
“Yeah. Can I walk with y’all, or is this just for the girls?”
“Where are my keys?”
“I took them off the ring in case you decided to drive that beat-up car or go back to your house without me. Are we walking or not?”
“I said I wouldn’t do either.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t believe you.”
I sighed as I thought about whether I wanted to argue with him. After a few seconds, I decided it wasn’t worth it.
“Let’s go.”
I turned and pushed the stroller out of the house and continued walking down the long driveway as he locked up. He caught up with us with his long strides and grabbed my arm.
“Hold up. I didn’t give a proper greeting.”
I assumed he was referring to greeting Riverlynn, so imagine my surprise when he grabbed the front of my neck and leaned down to kiss me. I was so taken aback, I didn’t have a chance to kiss him back before he released me.
While he greeted his daughter, I took a moment to process what he’d done, and I was still in my head when he continued walking down the driveway.
“Come on,” he urged, pulling me out of my daze.
I caught up with him, and we walked in silence for a few minutes after we made it to the sidewalk.
“So, do you take her out for walks often?”
“A few times a week, and today I wanted to use my weight vest, but I didn’t have my keys to get it from the trunk of my car."
“My bad, baby. I’ll get it for you when we get back.”
“Or you can just give me back my shit.”
“Nah. If you don’t like the SUV, I’ll buy you something else, but as far as I’m concerned, you’re never driving that car again.”
“Oh my God, River. My car isn’t even in that bad of condition.”
“Maybe not, but why would I let you drive that shit when I can provide you something better?”
Again, I chose not to argue, so I shook my head.
“What about my house keys?”
“If you promise not to go there without me, you can have them back.”
“I told you I wouldn’t.”
“But you didn’t promise me.”
“You’re ridiculous. I promise not to go back to my house without you, unless it’s an emergency.”
“Bet. So what else do you do during the day?”
“When we get back, I’ll read a few books to her. After I feed her, she’ll take a nap, and that’s usually when I shower.”
“Then what?”
It was cute how intrigued he was about what Riverlynn and I did all day. Besides Sundays, he’d never been home during the day, so he had no idea what our routine was.
“Sometimes I make lunch or start dinner. As you know, I like to read. We hang in the backyard if it’s not too hot.”
We walked in silence for a while, neither of us speaking until we rounded the corner of the block his house was on.
“This is the first time I’ve walked around this neighborhood,” he said.
“Really? That’s crazy because it’s beautiful and very quiet. I assume everyone is working at this time of day.”
“Yeah. I purposely didn’t buy a house in a neighborhood with other athletes and celebrities.”
“Why?”
“The houses were too damn big for a single man with no children, and it didn’t make any sense. My house is very modest compared to my teammates.”
“Your house is huge, so I can only imagine how big theirs are.”
“Yeah. I don’t need a tennis court, a bowling alley, or a movie theater that seats twenty people. If I can shoot around on my basketball rim, go for a swim whenever I feel like it, my neighbors aren’t all in my business, and I have plenty of room for my family to stay when they visit, I’m good.”
“Do you worry about fans finding out where you live and being so accessible?”
He shrugged. “So far, it hasn’t been a problem.
If I played for another team and lived in another city, I would probably take more precautions.
California is full of people who are rich and famous, and people who are just rich.
The only people who care about celebrities and athletes, especially in Black Elm, are women looking for a come up. ”
“You have a point. I had no idea who you were when I saw you. My best friend told me.”
He chuckled. “I kinda figured you didn’t because you didn’t react like most women do when they see me.”
We made it back to the house, and he took the handle of the stroller and pushed it up the driveway. He stopped at the front door to remove Riverlynn, and she was so excited when he picked her up. The way she held onto the sides of his face when he kissed her cheek was adorable.
“It looks like she missed Daddy today,” I said.
“Did you miss daddy too?”
His eyes landed on mine, and all I could do was blush before pushing past him and unlocking the door. I went straight to the family room to pick out a couple of books to read to Riverlynn.
“Why don’t you find something else to do and I’ll take care of Rivvy?” he suggested.
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. I’ll read these books, change her diaper, feed her, and put her down for her nap.”
“Okay. I’m about to do a grocery order for everything I need for dinner. Do you need anything?”
“Nah. I’m good.”
“Do your mom or sister have any allergies?”
“No, and they’re both greedy as hell and not shy about it, so make a lot of whatever you’re making. Oh, and we may have a few extra guests if my teammates come over.”
“Duly noted.”
I went to the kitchen to see what ingredients we already had. After making my list, I sat at the table with my phone, opened the grocery store app, and added what I needed to the cart, making sure I included a Plan B. The whole process took about forty-five minutes.
When I finished, River and Riverlynn weren’t in the family room anymore. I went upstairs and found them in the nursery. He was sitting in the rocking chair with her cradled in his arms. They looked adorable, and before he noticed me, I was able to sneak a picture of them.
“It looks like you got her handled, so I’m about to shower,” I whispered.
He looked up at the sound of my voice and nodded. A few minutes later, I stepped into the shower and released a deep, relaxing breath. After last night, I probably should’ve soaked in a hot bath with Epsom salt, but this would have to do for now.
I stood under the stream of water for a few minutes, sorting through my thoughts about the line that River and I had crossed. Things between us didn’t seem any different, but I couldn’t help but wonder if last night was more than a convenient fuck for him.
Before I could get too deep in my thoughts, I felt a cool breeze on my back. I gasped as I turned around, but I didn’t have a chance to object because River pressed my back against the cold shower wall and covered my mouth with his.
I relaxed into his kiss, closing my eyes and enjoying the way his tongue felt brushing against mine. He was a great kisser, and the longer we kissed, the wetter my pussy became.
The water sprayed down on us, filling the bathroom with steam. I’d never taken a shower with someone else, let alone had sex in one. It felt like I was living one of the scenes in the romance books I read.
He cupped the bottom of my ass, lifting me, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. His erection pressed against my stomach, reminding me of the orgasms he provided less than twenty-four hours ago.
The passion behind our kiss increased with every second that our mouths were connected. Last night, he said that if he kissed me, that meant I was his. I wondered if he was caught up in the moment or if he meant it.
He reached between us, guiding his long, thick dick into my awaiting hole. He entered slowly, stretching me with each inch before filling me to the brim and causing me to moan into his mouth.
After the very first time we kissed, he couldn’t keep his mouth off mine. I’d always felt that kissing that included tongues and the exchange of bodily fluids was an intimate act, but kissing during sex increased the level of intimacy a hundred times over.
The feelings the act evoked while he stroked me slowly and deeply were unmatched, and I needed to get a handle on them before this man had me completely gone. I pulled my mouth away from his, pressing the side of my face against the cool wall, refusing to look at him.
He grabbed the front of my neck and pressed his thumb against the side of my cheek, forcing me to face him. He looked angry, but not in a scary way, and I had no idea what I’d done to offend him.
“You don’t like kissing me?”
“No—Yes—I—We—”
With his hand still gently holding my neck, he kissed me, hard for a moment before it softened but intensified, if that was possible. I couldn’t stifle my moans as his dick stretched me wide and deep.
“That’s a good girl. Open up for me,” he mumbled against my lips, then slipped his tongue back into my mouth.
My orgasm was nearing, so I wrapped my arms around his neck to brace myself for what I knew was to come. As my pussy throbbed around his dick, his dick pulsed against my walls.
“I feel you, baby. Let that shit go,” he urged with his lips against mine.
“Oh God!” I cried when my body trembled.
“Don’t call God, baby. Say my name while you wet my dick and I fill you with my seeds.”
“River!”
He pounded into me as his name bolted from my mouth, and the dam broke. My screams echoed through the bathroom, and his grunts almost matched them. Thank God I bought that Plan B.