Chapter 28
AFTER DARK, MY SWEET
I had no idea how I’d managed to get so wasted. I was doing alright during Quarters but then we started playing Asshole, and next thing I knew, I was seeing two Rymers.
One was more than enough.
We had Pink Floyd playing on the boombox on repeat. The girls wanted to hear Bon Jovi, but since it was Rymer’s radio, he called the shots.
He dealt the cards, suggesting strip poker as he did so, and that’s when Layla announced she was calling it a night.
Jesus, what time is it?
I slammed down a big glass of water in an attempt to dilute all the beer coursing through my body, then headed upstairs myself. The drinking games were still going strong so it was easy to slip away unnoticed. There was probably no reason to be so stealth about it, but I wasn’t sure if Layla wanted this thing between her and me to be public knowledge or not, and erred on the side of caution.
I bounced off a wall on my way up the stairwell and staggered into my bedroom. I knew she’d be there, but what I didn’t know was that she’d be there naked in my bed.
Holy shit.
“Hey, Chester,” she greeted timidly. I didn’t know where the wariness was coming from. It was almost like she was unsure whether or not it was okay for her to be there.
Trust me. It was more than okay.
Her clothes were in a pile on the floor and her body was concealed by a sheet pulled up to her neck, innocent and seductive all at the same time.
That was the thing about this girl. She was both of those things. And it drove me half out of my mind on a daily basis. How could I be expected to keep my hands off her?
“Hi there,” I drawled, stumbling over to the foot of the bed. Smooth.
I was anxious to see what was under that sheet. I grabbed it in my fist and pulled it down her body. Slowly. Inch by painstaking inch.
As it turned out, she wasn’t naked. She was wearing a black-and-white lace bra and matching panties.
Somehow, almost-naked was even better.
“Well, look at what we have here...” I slurred, taking in the incredible sight before me. All that exposed skin. From her flat stomach to her prominent hip bones to her long, thin legs. I had to get my mouth on her.
I pulled off my shirt before crawling onto the foot of the mattress, gripping my twelve fingers around three of her ankles, landing my lips on one of her four shins. I pushed her six knees apart with all intentions of kissing her on her pretty lace panties, but I couldn’t coordinate.
Why’d I have to go and drink so much? What feeds me destroys me.
I kissed her stomach instead, pinning her hips to the mattress, sliding my body on top of hers. I grabbed her wrists in my clutches and imprisoned her arms above her head. I was only working with a semi, and I couldn’t understand why with this beautiful girl underneath me, I wasn’t raging hard. I figured I could buy some time until my cock caught up to my eyes.
Whiskey dick is a thing, people.
I settled myself between her legs and rocked my hips against hers, hearing her soft moans, shredding me apart inside. I didn’t know if she wanted to have sex or just make out half-naked instead. I didn’t know what to do. My instincts were screaming at me to rip off the last scraps of her clothing and bury myself inside her, but my body wasn’t cooperating with my brain.
I still had her arms pinned above her head as I teased her, trying to buy some time. Lowering my lips to hers in an almost-kiss, then pulling back any time she tried to meet my mouth. I buried my face in her neck instead, licking and tasting her sweet skin. Moved my mouth down to her collarbone. Ran my tongue across her cleavage.
Layla’s unsteady breaths were driving me out of my mind. Her body was writhing underneath mine, begging for me to relieve this ache between us. I needed to feel her hands on me. I released her wrists and tangled my arms around her middle, burying my face against her hair, breathing in that summer scent that was so much a part of her. My mind replayed our day on the beach earlier, that goddamned green bikini, how I couldn’t wait to get her in bed... violate her ten ways to Sunday...
My eyes blinked open, confused to discover two things:
1. There was sunlight streaming through the window, and
2. I was alone.
What the hell? I knew Layla was in this bed a minute ago. It wasn’t just a dream. I had a raging piss boner and an even more excruciating headache going on, forcing me to realize that I must have fallen asleep right in the middle of our makeout session.
Christ.
I punched the empty pillow next to me in frustration. How the hell did I manage to fall asleep with a beautiful half-naked Layla in my bed?
I trudged out of my bedroom and crept into hers, watching her as she lay fast asleep on one of the bottom bunks. I climbed onto the mattress and poised over her body, dipping my head down to nuzzle her neck. A half-comatose groan escaped from her throat as she wrapped her legs around my waist, grabbed my ass, and pulled me tighter against her body. Holy shit!
I couldn’t help but snicker. “Wow, Lay. Didn’t realize what a sex fiend you could be in your sleep. Must’ve been a good dream.” She awoke with a chuckle when my lips nudged against her ear to whisper, “Good morning.”
“Mmm,” she answered sleepily. “Good morning.”
God, how the hell did I ever get lucky enough to land this girl? I stretched out next to her and gathered her in my arms as she draped a leg over my hip.
“I’m sorry I fell asleep last night,” I offered guiltily.
She opened her eyes at my apology, took one look at me, and immediately burst out laughing.
“What?” I asked.
“Umm. I’m gonna guess you haven’t seen a mirror yet this morning.”
My brows furrowed as I stared at her in confusion, hoping I didn’t have a big nasty zit or something. I rolled out of bed and sprinted to the bathroom to take a look. And there, on my forehead, was the word “DICKNOSE” written in black Sharpie marker.
Fucking Cooper. Payback’s a bitch.
I took a piss and brushed my teeth before attempting to scrub the marker off my forehead. I wasn’t having much luck, though. By the time Layla came in, I hadn’t succeeded in much beyond smearing the letters into a gray shadow. I threw the washcloth on the counter, taking notice of Layla’s red skin.
“Sun beat you up pretty bad yesterday, huh?”
She was leaning over the sink brushing her teeth as she tipped her shoulder toward her reflection. “Yeah. I don’t think I should go to the beach today.”
My lip curled as I said, “I could think of plenty of things we could do inside...”
She laughed as she rinsed, then skipped across the hall to my room and slumped across my bed. I flopped on top of her, prompting a yelp. “Ow!”
“Oh shit. Sorry. Sunburn?”
“Yes.” She gave a quick rub to the sore skin of her belly.
“I can lotion you up, if you want.” I waggled my eyebrows at her, noticing as her eyes focused on my forehead. I groaned and mumbled, “Remind me to kill Cooper.”
That had her laughing as she gingerly curled up into my arms. I didn’t think we’d be spending much of our day groping each other considering the state of her raw skin, but it didn’t matter. However I could get her near me, I’d take it.
“Hey,” I said, giving her hip a light squeeze. “How ‘bout some breakfast?” Lay nodded her head enthusiastically and started to get up, but I stopped her when I said, “Nope. Stay where you are. I’ve got this.”
I shot her a wink before hopping out of bed and heading downstairs. Pickford was already awake, but he didn’t offer much more than a grumbled, “Hey” before turning his attentions back toward the coffee maker.
“Hey,” I said back. “Don’t wait for Layla and me before you guys go up to the beach today.”
That woke him up. He turned toward me, crossed his arms, and leaned against the counter. “Staying in?”
I worked around him as I scavenged through the cabinets, finding some bowls, spoons, and a tray for my efforts. “Yes.”
“Just the two of you alone in this big empty house all day?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm. Interesting.”
I tried to muster up the appropriate outrage to shoot back, “She’s got sunburn, dillweed.”
Pick chuckled and put his hands up in defense. “Alright. Chill out.”
I filled the bowls with Froot Loops and poured a glass of milk when he nodded his head toward my busywork, a smarmy grin decorating his face. “Whatcha got going on there?”
I looked him right in the eye, daring him to offer commentary as I plucked a daisy from the vase on the windowsill and placed it along the tray. “Breakfast.”
Pick raised his eyebrows at me but didn’t bust my balls. As if he could. He knew that I knew all about the mushy love notes he’d left in Lisa’s locker, all the weekly flower deliveries, all the over-the-top gestures during the months of their breakup while he attempted to win her back.
I gave him an unapologetic shrug. “Gotta go with what works, am I right?”
“Sure... if you’re a pussy.”
“Takes one to know one,” I said as we high-fived.
I was still snickering as I hauled everything up the stairs. The mild ribbing from Pick was totally worth it once I rounded the corner to my room and saw Layla’s reaction, squealing and clapping her hands in pure delight. “Breakfast in bed? And Froot Loops? You’re the best!”
I couldn’t help but grin. “Told ya I know hospitality. What kind of place you think I’d be running here? My family is in hotels, remember?”
She curled her legs underneath her as I climbed onto the bed and placed the tray on the mattress between us before clinking spoons and diving in.
Through a mouthful of cereal, I said, “Oh, hey. I told Pick we weren’t going to join them on the beach today, right?”
“Yeah. There’s no way I can do it.” She bit her lip before asking tentatively, “Was Lisa downstairs, too?”
“No. Everyone else is still sleeping. Why?”
She gave a casual shrug and swirled her spoon around the bowl. “I’m just worried about her. They were fighting yesterday.”
“I wouldn’t sweat it. He seemed like he was in a decent mood. Besides, it’s Pick and Lisa, for godsakes. They’ll be fine.”
“Yeah. You’re probably right.”
Just then, we were graced with the sound of Rymer’s voice yelling from downstairs, “HUNGOVER!”
His declaration must have served as an alarm clock, because multiple cackles could be heard from downstairs as Lay and I laughed our asses off, too.