Chapter Two
Ashton
I tossed and turned for hours last night, unable to get the image of Sadie out of my head. I can still see her red hair fisted in my hands as she sucked me to oblivion. And the breathlessness of her voice as she rubbed herself to orgasm won’t stop haunting me. I can no longer deny that I’ve got it bad for her. Deep down, I’ve known it’s true for a long time. But Sadie never gave me any indication she might feel the same way, so I put her out of my mind and resorted to having meaningless fun with other women.
I’m good at compartmentalizing shit, and when it came to Sadie Sawyer, she had her own special compartment in my heart, locked down tight with an unbreakable padlock.
Until she crawled under that table and unlocked those dormant feelings by unzipping my fucking pants. It took me all night to figure it out, but I finally came to a decision.
I’m going to date her.
While she’s too busy focusing on learning all things related to sucking cock—and then some—I’m going to sneak in and get under her skin in a way she won’t be able to ignore. I’m going to risk our friendship for a shot at more, so much more, and the idea terrifies me, because I can’t stand the thought of losing her.
Glancing up at the sky, I mentally bargain with the clouds threatening on the horizon. They can spew rain all they want if they’ll just hold off for a few hours. Because I have a plan, and it involves Sadie on my bike, her hair rioting around us as she clings to my waist. It’s been years since she’s been on the back of my bike. She hasn’t come near it since her father screamed at me for ‘risking her life on that deathtrap’ during our senior year of high school.
If there’s one thing I know about Sadie, it’s that she never stands up to her parents. She possesses a strong urge to please people; the trait is inherent in the fiber of her being. Some might see her as a pushover, a doormat. A weakling.
I think she’s stronger than fuck—she’s strong enough to put other people before herself time and again. She might have a potty mouth and the sexiest rack you’ll ever see, but underneath the veneer, she’s pure sweetness.
And holy hell, do I want a taste.
Her apartment complex is dead quiet. It’s just past ten in the morning on a Sunday. Most people are either at church, or sleeping in. Mandy has already left for work, which is in my favor because that means Sadie is alone. We’ve never had to hide spending time together before, but I feel the need to do it now.
Agreeing to give Sadie the sexual experience she wants is akin to opening a can of worms, and I don’t need Mandy lecturing me on how I’m going to hurt her best friend in the process.
People in this town might know me as a heart breaker, but the last heart I want to shatter is Sadie’s.
I give a quick rap on her door. Several seconds pass, and I’m about to knock again when I hear footsteps. The deadbolt switches over, and she answers, rubbing sleep from her eyes as her hair frames her face in adorable dishevelment. Her skin is free of makeup, bringing out her freckles. I know she hates them, but I’ve always secretly loved those tiny spots dusting her porcelain skin. I’ll never forget the sight of them as she feasted on my cock last night.
“Get dressed,” I say, my tone leaving no room for argument.
Sadie blinks several times then raises her brows. “Aren’t you bossy this morning.”
“You’re gonna see my bossy side a lot more, so you might as well just accept it.”
She opens her door, gesturing for me to come inside, and I give her a teasing grin. “Besides, you know you love it, Sawyer.”
The truth in that statement flushes her cheeks. “The jury’s still out on that.” She heads into the kitchen and picks up the carafe of coffee I’m guessing Mandy made before she left, because Sadie obviously just fell out of bed.
“Want a cup?” she asks.
“No, thanks. I already had my daily dose.” More like three, considering I barely slept last night.
She pulls down a mug that says Redheads Do It Better. As she prepares her coffee, I lean against the counter and cross my arms, quietly watching her. Hell, I’ve watched her for years, but now it’s different.
Now I know what it’s like to have her lips wrapped around my cock. I know what her throaty moans sound like when she’s about to come. I’m getting hard just thinking about it.
Raising the mug to her lips, she trains her jade eyes on me and takes a cautious sip. “So, I’m guessing you’ve got something up your sleeve for today?”
“Thought we could go for a ride.”
“What?” Her eyes widen, and she lowers the mug. “Seriously? You brought your bike?”
“I did,” I say, biting back a smile at her excitement. “Think I can get you on the back of it without getting my ass chewed out this time?”
“Heck, yeah. What my dad doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”
I want to argue that point with her, since she’s a grown-ass woman living on her own, but I let it go. For now. If I ever get the chance to call her mine, that’s one thing that will have to change. She should have the freedom to make her own choices.
Outside the bedroom, anyway.
While she finishes her coffee and gets dressed, I scroll through social media, biding my time. Corinne messaged me, demanding an explanation for running out on her the other night. Eventually, I’ll have to deal with her, but today is not that day.
Today is all about Sadie.
Sometime later, she returns dressed in jeans and a black and white flannel shirt. Her wild hair is tamed in a ponytail.
Pocketing my phone, I cross the few feet separating us and pull the tie from her locks.
“Why’d you do that?” She reaches for the black band, but I slip it onto my wrist before she can steal it back.
“I love your hair.”
“It’s a disaster. I don’t want to know what it’ll look like after the wind whips the shit out of it.”
“Mmm, sexy as fuck,” I say, wrapping her thick mane around my fist. “That’s how it’ll look.” I think she’s going to fight my hold, but she doesn’t. Her startled gaze locks on mine, and her mouth parts, releasing a quick breath.
“Have you always thought of me like that?” Nerves shake the question off her tongue.
Tightening my grip on her hair, I lean closer until we’re breathing the same air. “I’ve had dirty thoughts about you long before you decided to get a taste of me.”
“Did these thoughts happen before or after you fucked every woman within a fifty mile radius?”
“Better watch it, Sawyer. That sounds a lot like jealousy.”
“Sounds like a question to me.” She jerks her head back, and I let her hair slip from my fist. “Are you taking me for a ride, or are we going to stand here all day flirting with disaster?”
A smile twitches at the corners of my mouth. She’s sassy today, that attitude a shield for the defenses hiding behind it. We’re barely two days into this arrangement, and already, I’m rattling her composure.
No kissing. No sex.
If she thinks those rules will protect us from changing the foundation of our friendship, she’s delusional. Things are already shifting—she set the inevitable into motion when she crawled under that table two nights ago and unzipped me.