ALEXIS

“YOU’RE UP EARLY.” MY mom quirked her brow, giving me a knowing smile. “You and Colt have a good time last night?”

Heat flooded my cheeks. “Mmmhmm,” I nodded, walking over to join her and my father at the breakfast table.

“Were you safe?” she continued, making this awkward situation even more uncomfortable than it already was. She did this shit on purpose.

Dad’s fork landed hard on his plate as he began to choke on his scrambled eggs.

“I’ve been having sex for years, Mother. I’m pretty sure I know how babies are made by now...and how to avoid them.”

“Enough!” Dad grumbled when he stopped coughing long enough to speak. “Jesus, woman,” he added, glaring at my mother, who simply rolled her eyes, resuming her interrogation.

“So, you two are...?”

Here we go...“Actually, that’s why I’m up so early. I have some news,” I announced, biting my lip nervously.

Mom rested her chin in her hand that was already propped on the table, leaning in with eager anticipation. Dad, on the other hand, froze mid-chew. I’m not even sure he was breathing.

“We’re moving in together.”

And the choking resumed as Dad beat a fist into his chest. His eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. Poor Dad.

“You’re moving in—umm, where exactly?” All playfulness vanished from her demeanor.

“I’m going back to California with Colton...today.”

“Today? What about school?” Mom asked, looking like she was about to hyperventilate as she tugged at the neck of her tee.

Taking a deep breath, I shifted in my seat. “I’m going to drop my classes and transfer my credits to UCLA. I’ll start this semester over in January. I’m failing everything anyway,” I answered, looking over to my father to gage his reaction. His stone face gave nothing away as he listened intently.

“What are you going to do for money, Alex? You’ve never lived on your own...You—you’ll lose your scholarships.”

“She’ll get a job, honey, like everyone else does. Or she can take out bigger loans,” Dad chimed in, finally seeming to find his voice. “She’s not the first twenty-year-old to move out on her own...and she’ll be with Colt.” As he added that last bit, Dad looked to me and winked.

My mom’s bottom lip started to quiver, her eyes filling with tears. “But, she’s our baby. How can you be so calm about this?”

My heart sank. I’d known she’d be upset. The longest I’d ever been away from home was last summer when I’d visited Colton, and she’d had a hard time with that. Still, expecting it didn’t make it any easier. Along with Colton, she was my best friend. Pathetic, but true.

My dad’s hand reached out to hold hers across the table. “She’s in love, Momma. Would you rather Allie be miserable, the way she’s been these past few months?” The concerned looks they shared made me feel awful for worrying them so much, but it had brought dad and me closer than ever. I couldn’t be upset about that.

“No,” Mom whispered, sniveling into her napkin, her head shaking and her eyes locked on mine. “But I’m going to miss you so much.”

“I’ll miss you too, Mom.” I got out of my seat, walking over to wrap her in a hug, emotion thick in my throat. “I’ll visit, and you can come check out LA. It’s going to be great, you’ll see.”

I’d made it onto the plane and into my seat without much event, but when we started taxiing, all bets were off. It felt like I’d taken a shot of adrenaline straight to the heart. We were going to die. Colton had finally asked me to be his everything, and we were going to blow up in this fucking plane and never get our happily ever after. Oh God. I couldn’t breathe.

“You okay?” Colt asked, dipping his head to whisper into my ear as he used the hand that wasn’t currently being squeezed to death to rub my arm.

“Mmm mmm.” I shook my head.

Colt did a shit job of trying not to laugh. “You’re a pro at this now, babe. It’s your third flight.”

Shit. I was going to throw up. My eyes started watering. “Get...get my purse, Colt,” I begged, fanning myself with the flight travel pamphlet from the seat pocket in front of me.

“We have to keep all items stored ri—”

My grip on his forearm tightened. “Just get it,” I gritted out, focusing on my breathing. I did not want to spend the rest of this flight covered in vomit. I was sure he didn’t either.

“Hurry up,” he said, depositing the bag in my lap. Probably the only thing good to come out of losing my mind for the past few months was the bottle of Xanax I just pulled from my purse.

“What is that?” Colt asked with a look of concern as I dropped one into my palm before slipping it beneath my tongue.

“Crazy pills...you want one?” I teased, capping the bottle and shoving it back into the bag, which he quickly returned to its rightful position.

A loud gasp slipped through my lips as the wheels drew up and we began our ascent. I laid my head back with my eyes shut tight and held on to Colt’s arm for dear life as the medicine dissolved in my mouth. Sometime between then and the time our plane had leveled out that little miracle drug had kicked in and my fucks had left the building.

“Feeling better?” Colt asked with a lazy smile as my hand slid down his arm, moving to his thigh. There were only the two of us in our row, and I was suddenly feeling bored, and Colt was looking like fun. It wasn’t even fair how gorgeous he was. I’d had to spend my whole life controlling myself around him, but I didn’t have to anymore, and I was going to take full advantage of my new freedom.

His body jerked as I stretched my pinky out to the side, running it gently over the bulge in his mesh shorts. “Much better,” I answered, turning a little in my seat, using my body to block anyone’s view from the aisle.

“Fuck, Alex,” he hissed under his breath as I slipped my hand up the leg of his shorts and began stroking him.

The harder he got, the wetter I became. Jesus, the way he looked with his head thrown back, his face puckered, and neck corded with tension as he tried to hide his pleasure had me clenching my legs together.

Colt’s hand reached forward, and the tray fell over his lap, hiding my hand from view. Good thinking.

“Can I get you two a beverage or a snack?” Oh fuck.

I kept my head turned down, resting on Colton’s shoulder as he answered for us. “Nah, we’re uh...we’re good. Thanks.”

“No problem,” the stewardess replied. “Enjoy your flight.”

“Oh, we intend to.”

When I heard the cart roll away, I squeezed his dick, causing him to jump. “Why didn’t you warn me?”

Colton laughed. “Cuz you’d stop.”

“Well, yeah.”

He bit down on his lower lip, his Adam’s apple bobbing on a swallow. “Don’t stop.”

I resumed stroking his cock until it was at full mast. My blood was hot with desire, and I was in desperate need to take advantage of my hard work.

“I’m going to the bathroom,” I whispered, slipping my hand out of his shorts. “The one on the right side.”

Confusion furrowed his brow as he stared at me, panting. “I mean, really?” he said, looking down at his lap. “You couldn’t hold it for like thirty more seconds?”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m telling you so you can follow me, idiot.”

“Really?” Colt looked around to be sure that no one was paying us any mind.

“Unless you’re scared,” I said as I stepped into the aisle and headed for the restroom without waiting for his reply.

Closing myself in the closet sized restroom, I sized it up, trying to formulate a plan of action. If we were going to join the mile-high club, we had to be quick about it. And smart. We basically had two options. I could ride him, reverse cowgirl on the toilet seat...ew. Or, I could sit on the edge of the sink, and by the looks of it, be at the perfect height...Yeah, that was definitely the way to go.

When the door started to push open, I had a moment of panic, hoping that I wouldn’t have to explain to some stranger why I was propped up on the lavatory, because, well...I had absolutely no possible explanation other than the obvious. But that panic was short lived when I saw his mop of golden brown hair squeeze through the crack in the door.

“Are you sure—” I shut him up with a finger on his lips, shushing him.

Gripping a hand full of curls, I pulled his face to mine, pressing my lips right to his ear. “No noise,” I hissed, barely above a whisper. “Get in, get out.”

He nodded, biting his lip with a smile and a shake of his head.

Every part of my body prickled with desire as he slid his shorts just low enough for his erection to spring free. Colton wrenched my legs apart, pulled my panties to the side, and positioned himself right at my entrance. Heart racing, I gripped the edge of the counter as he looked to me for permission. With a slight nod of my head, Colt gripped my hips and thrust forward, and, my God, I saw fucking stars as he pulled out, slamming into me over and over. Just as I felt him spasming inside, just as I was on the cusp of what I knew to be the best fucking orgasm of my life, there was banging on the outside of the door.

“I’m going to need you to open this door. Only one person is allowed in the restroom at a time.”

“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” I mouthed to Colt as he pulled his shorts up and righted my underwear, helping me to stand on wobbly legs. I got a glimpse of myself in the mirror as Colton unlocked the door before quickly turning away. Every person on this plane would have zero confusion as to what we were just doing.

“I’m sorry,” he said, sounding completely unaffected by our current case of blue genitals, as he pulled the door open. “She isn’t feeling well.”

“Colton?” The blond flight attendant’s hand went to her chest. A slow smile spread across her face. “It’s been a while.”

Colt’s eyes darted to the side to look at me as he answered. “Yeah, it has...How’ve you been, Jill?”

“I’m good. Looks like you’re, umm...doing okay yourself,” she mused, eyeing me.

He cleared his throat. “Yeah, this is Allie, my girlfriend. Allie, this is Jill.”

I nodded, trying to force a smile and keep my lunch down at the same time.

“So, it’s so good seeing you again, but you’ll have to go back to your seats.” Her cheeks flushed as she batted her lashes at Colt like I wasn’t standing right here.

“Sure, no problem,” he said, starting for our seats before turning back. “Hey, Jill. You think we could get our wings?” he winked. “We earned ’em.” I hated him.

When we returned to our chairs, I was humiliated, horny, and fuming. “Really, Colton?” I asked, shaking my head when he looked at me with his shit-eating grin.

“It was a long time a—”

“Don’t,” I said, cutting him off. “I can’t even deal with you right now.”

Colt’s lips pressed into a flat line, his body shaking with suppressed laughter as he rested his head against the window and left me to stew by his side.

“Welcome home, Lexi!” Finley met us at the door to the apartment with a grin that spread clear from one ear to the other. My heart was racing with nerves. I knew that Colt had said they were fully onboard with my moving in, but it’s not like he’d have told me if they weren’t. After slapping Colton on the back, he reached for my arm, pulling me into his chest and squeezing the breath from my lungs. “I’m so happy you’re back,” he said, rocking us from side to side. “It’s been so much less sexy around here without you!”

I snorted out a laugh, my jitters already beginning to dissipate. “Missed you too, Finley.”

“Should I be worried about the two of you?” Colton teased, lugging the suitcases in from the porch, his eyes bouncing between us.

“Duh,” came Finn’s response as he waved his hands over his body. “What girl wouldn’t want this?” He was joking. But with that blond hair, those crystal blue eyes, and a body like his, he’d be hard-pressed to find one. Finley was going to make some girl very happy someday.

“It’ll be hard to refuse,” I answered, unable to wipe the smile from my face, and I didn’t want to.

“So, don’t fight it, sexy.” He winked, bursting into laughter when Colt shoved his chest, knocking him off balance.

“Pistols at dawn, motherfucker.” Colt made one hand into the shape of a gun, aiming it at his friend and cocking it with his other.

“Hey, new roomy,” Blex called, walking in from the kitchen, dismissing the other two idiots in the room with a shake of his head as he passed them by. “Don’t you ever disappear like that on us again, young lady...You caused quite a commotion around here,” he said, enveloping me in his arms as he placed a kiss on the side of my face.

“Right?” Finley agreed, jumping in on our conversation. “Had Colton here so fucked in the head, he was licking on man titties and shit.”

“Oh my God!” I busted out laughing. “I forgot all about that message.”

Colton’s face blanched. “Guys, seriously, that’s enough.”

“Don’t listen to him...Tell me everything.”

Every so often while Colt and I were unpacking my things, I’d burst into hysterics, picturing his run-in with the cross dresser. Let’s just say Colton was highly unamused. It was quite possible he was already regretting his decision to invite me to move in.

“Colt?”

“Yeah?” he called from the dresser, where he was busily arranging all of my underwear and bras by color.

“If I ask you something, do you promise to be honest with me?”

He stopped what he was doing, looking back at me with a nervous frown. My heart skipped beats at the sight of my man with his mussed hair, furrowed brow, and his fingers draped in satin and lace thongs. “Sure, what’s up?”

“Whose tits are better?”

Next thing I knew, I was flat on my back on the floor beside the bed, Colt’s hard body towering over mine. Shrieking with laughter, I slapped at his chest. “What’re you doing, maniac?”

“Shutting you up,” he growled against my lips before thrusting his tongue into my mouth, ripping our clothes off, and fucking me senseless.

The very next morning, ball practice resumed, and a few days later, classes. With the start of school came added afternoon practices and games. Colton hadn’t been exaggerating how little downtime he had. His life was hectic, to say the least, and I lived for the nights when he would fall into bed and show me he’d been missing me just as much as I had him. Those moments more than made it all worth it.

Nonetheless, my days were long. I’d dropped all of my classes at Texas State and enrolled for the spring semester at UCLA, but until then, I had nothing to occupy my time. A girl could only sleep so much, and since our time was already so limited, neither of us was too keen on the idea of me getting a job. But I needed something to do when I wasn’t following him to games or popping in to watch him practice, which I did regularly. Colton Fowler always was a sight to behold on that court. I hadn’t realized just how much I’d missed watching him play.

Finley of all people suggested I find a place to volunteer, and that’s when I found Saint Anthony’s homeless shelter. It was only a few miles away from the apartment, and I was able to pop in to help out as little or as often as I could. I became fast friends with the other volunteers. There was always plenty to be done, from serving meals to handing out clothes and toys to children.

My new life in California was busy, but it fulfilled me in ways I never imagined possible. And for the first time in a very long time, I was truly happy.