AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Nodding, she takes a few steps and sits in one of the Adirondack chairs beside Lacey. They start talking about the song that’s playing while I try to hide the hard-on that popped up at the way she looked at me.
The effects of the edible slowly wane, and she comes down. The next few hours are filled with music, laughter, and conversation. It’s the best birthday I can remember, and I can’t stop looking at the amazing woman who put it together.
Everyone is at my house and getting ready to leave when I find Calli in my kitchen, perusing the refrigerator. She doesn’t hear me come in, and I watch as she takes a cherry from the container before choosing a bottle of water.
Her body jolts when she turns to see me standing right behind her. “Jesus, Arlow, you scared the hell out of me!”
Chuckling, I pluck the cherry from her hand and wave it in front of her. “Still haven’t changed your fruit bandit tendencies.”
“You knew what you were getting yourself into.” She reaches for the cherry, and I hold it up above her head. Her smirk is adorable. I want to kiss it off her face. “Do you seriously think I’m going to jump for that?”
Before I reply, she jumps and tries to snatch it, cursing under her breath when I raise it just in time. “Not even close.”
She turns her back to me, reaching for the fridge handle, and I loop my arm around her middle, pulling her back to me as she laughs. “You’re supposed to share with your friends.”
Her back lands against my ribs as my hand splays over her stomach, holding her there. “Only if they say please.” The words come out huskier than I intend, and I feel her take a deep breath. The mood between us shifts from playful to something more in half a second.
Her body relaxes, and she tilts her head back a bit, resting it against my chest. “Please.”
Fuck, what that one word does to me. I want to hear her moan it with my face buried between her legs. The thought alone has my cock hardening, and she presses her ass against it as I bring the cherry to her mouth an inch at a time. My self-control flees as I watch it disappear between soft lips.
The slight shiver she exhibits when my mouth hovers under her ear is as satisfying as the way she tilts her head, giving me access to trace my lips down her graceful neck with light, brushing kisses.
Her eyes fall closed. Still firmly in my arms, she reaches up behind her to graze her fingers across my nape. “Arlow.” My name floats out on a breathy whisper. “What are you doing?”
Excellent fucking question.
With a sigh, I lean my head against hers. “Fuck if I know.”
Turning around, she gazes up at me while I bring my hands to her hips. She reaches to run her fingertips through my scruff, and my eyes briefly close at her soft touch. “You’re drunk.”
Ignoring my instinct to deny it, I nod, looking into her beautiful eyes that shine under the kitchen lights. Everything about her shines.
“I think it’s time to call it a night.” Raising onto her tiptoes, she drops a quick peck on my lips. “Happy Birthday, Arlow.”
“Good night, Peach.”
It takes me a few minutes to convince myself not to go after her. Fuck.Fuck. Let her go. Lee pauses when he walks in the kitchen. “You alright?”
“Yeah, I’m good.”
Wordlessly, he holds out a hundred dollar bill to me, continuing our tradition, and I accept it with a nod, tucking it into my pocket. The sight of faint blue smears on his chin makes me grin. “That’s one way to remove makeup.”
“Fuck off. We’re heading out. Happy Birthday.”
Silence settles thick over the house after everyone has left. It’s late, well past three a.m. when I climb into bed, but I can’t sleep. Every time I close my eyes, I think of how Calli softened under my touch, the hoarseness of her voice when she asked me what I was doing. Thank fuck she had the strength to walk away. I’m the one who told her we can’t be anything more than friends and here I am, losing control and leading her on when that hasn’t changed.
My last thought as I finally doze off is that I’ll apologize to her tomorrow because drunk or not, that wasn’t fair to her.
CHAPTER 14
CALLIOPE
Oh no.How did I get back here?
The pink roofed house looms in front of me as the taillights of my father’s car fade into the dark. My feet aren’t under my control as they carry me inside.
Time jumps forward and she’s right in front of me, my ears ringing from her screams. “Stop fucking crying! You like him so much? Huh? What the fuck does he do for you?” The back of her hand glances off my cheek, soundless and dulled. “He’s not the one paying the bills you ungrateful piece of shit.”
