Chapter 17

Forrester

Forrester woke with a start. The hotel room door had just been shut. He’d half heard it, half dreamed it, but he knew it was true.

“Elle,” he called out, softly. “Elle, are you there?”

No answer. He smiled to himself.

Gone already.

That was a first. Forrester had snuck out of girls’ bedrooms at dawn many a time, but this was the first time a girl had pulled the same thing on him. She wasn’t as easy prey as he’d thought. He would have sworn she’d be eating out of the palm of his hand after the night of sex they’d just had. There’s no way on earth she’d ever orgasmed as hard, or as often, ever before. He didn’t care who she’d been with, he knew he had a rare gift when it came to pleasuring women’s bodies, and they always came back for more.

Maybe he’d met his match.

There was a cup of coffee at the machine and he got out of bed to get it. It was hot. She must have just made it. Had she been intending to drink it herself? Had she thought better of being in a hotel room with a guy like him? He looked down at his naked body and despite the muscle and tattoos, all he saw were the cigarette burns and scars.

Forrester had confidence, but he wasn’t beyond self-doubt. He knew exactly what it felt like to be rejected. Had he just been rejected by Elle? He had a sneaking suspicion he had.

Was she protecting herself from him, so that he wouldn’t be able to reject her?

Maybe.

One thing was sure. She was in his head now and he wouldn’t be able to forget her. He didn’t think a girl had ever gotten under his skin the way Elle had. He pictured the look on her face when she’d orgasmed the night before, the way she’d bitten her lip and moaned his name. His dick got hard just thinking about her.

If she’d stuck around, he’d have had his way with her again for breakfast.

He thought of her soft, supple breasts, the taste of her nipples under his tongue. He though of the soft lips of her pussy, and the way she’d been hungry for his cock. Her mouth was like a piece of heaven. He’d come so hard inside her, but he wanted more. He thirsted for more.

And the room felt so empty without her now. He saw that the chair had been pulled out. That’s where she must have been sitting while she made the coffee. What had she thought while she sat there? Had she worried about what he’d thought of her? Forrester hoped so, he hoped that was the reason she’d taken off.

He felt suddenly lonely. He ran his fingers over the chair, where her butt had been.

“Elle,” he whispered.

He picked up the phone on the desk. He didn’t have a number he could reach her at, so he did the next best thing and dialed Lacey’s number. Lacey was the one person in the world who’d always been there for him. He could always turn to her. She was like a big sister.

“Forrester, how are you, baby? How did the funeral go?”

“It went fine, Lacey. As good as can be expected, anyhow.”

“Did anyone show up? Any family members?”

“Nope, just me and the priest.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Forrester.”

“It’s all right. I don’t think I could have handled meeting any relatives. It’s better the way it was.”

“You sound a little down. Are you upset about it?”

“No, not at all.”

“What is it then?”

“It’s nothing.”

“Forrester.”

“All right, all right. It’s a girl. I met a girl here.”

“A girl? And you’re down. That doesn’t sound like you.”

“I know, right.”

“You’re usually the one doing the heart breaking.”

“Well, now I’m getting my karma, Lacey. Because this girl could really break my heart.”

“Oh, come on. You’re just feeling emotional from the funeral. You can’t have fallen that hard. You only just left a few days ago.”

“I know, I know. Maybe it is the funeral and all, but this girl, she’s different, Lacey.”

“Sure she is.”

Forrester laughed. “You wouldn’t understand.”

“I get it. You’re smitten. Enjoy it. It’s a beautiful feeling, if you can handle the agony of it.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Anyway, I can’t imagine there’s any girl up there in the mountains that wouldn’t return your feelings. Unless she’s already taken. She’s not in a relationship is she?”

“No, not at all. At least not as far as I can tell.”

“And she turned you down?”

“Well, not exactly. She came back to my room last night.”

“Oh, Forrester, that sounds like things are going right according to plan.”

“Yeah, except for the fact that she was gone when I woke up.”

It was Lacey’s turn to laugh.

“It’s not funny,” he protested.

“Well,” Lacey said, “now you know what it’s like for girls. You guys pull that shit all the time.”

“I guess we do.”

“Yes, you do.”

Forrester cleared his throat. “Why would she have left? Because the sex wasn’t good?”

“Calm down, casanova. Don’t start doubting yourself just yet. You really are clueless about girls, aren’t you?”

“Of course I am. I’m a guy.”

Forrester could hear in Lacey’s voice how much she was enjoying the conversation. “Well, let me set you straight, sweetie. Girls don’t slip out in the morning because the sex wasn’t good. We slip out because we’re afraid you’re not going to want to see us there in the morning.”

“Why on earth wouldn’t I want to see her? I’m falling for her, Lacey. Plus, I woke up with a hard on for her like crazy.”

“You don’t have to give me every detail.”

“Sorry.”

“Anyway, if you want my advice, you have to get her guard down. Girls aren’t stupid. They just don’t want to get hurt, Forrester. Especially by a guy like you.”

“A guy like me?”

“Yes, believe it or not, you’re not exactly the average dude that asks a girl for her number. You’re different. You’re more intense. And if this girl is anything like me, she’ll be afraid that you’re just having a fling with her, and that you’re not going to get invested in the relationship. The last thing she’ll want, is to feel like an idiot. She’s not going to put herself in the position where it looks like she’s trying to cling on to you and you don’t want her. Believe me, that’s the way I’d feel if I was in her position.”

“So, you’re saying that if she realizes how much I’m into her, she’ll jump right back into my bed.”

He could tell from her voice that Lacey was shaking her head.

“It might not be as simple as all that, Forrester, but I’d bet once she knows how you feel about her, she’ll be able to get over her own fear of rejection a lot easier.”

“All right, thanks for the pep talk.”

“Anytime, bro. Anyway, when are you coming home?”

“Not until I can get a plan together with this girl.”

“Bring her here. We’ll look after her.”

“I know. Maybe I will, if I can convince her. I also have to take care of my father’s estate, so that will probably take a few days too.”

“Okay. Well, call me if you need anything. And be nice to the girl. Remember, the most important thing a man can be to a woman, is kind. If you’re kind to her, the rest will fall into place.”