Xavier

I stood watching her like every other time but couldn’t stand back anymore. I knew from the moment I left Xtreme Ink what would happen. I felt like shit intruding on her quiet moment but I needed to get close to her again. I haven’t been able to get the feel of her soft skin out of my head for days. The minute her eyes connected with mine, I couldn’t resist the pull which hung in the air. It was so strong, I felt it clawing down my back.

As I took the steps down to the sand one at a time I could see the rise and fall of her chest and heard the hitch in her breath as I came to a stop in front of her. It’s the sound I have dreamt about for the past couple of nights. I have imagined what she would sound like once I’m buried to the fucking hilt.

It was like we were caught in the moment and something different settled around us.

I latched onto my lip with my teeth to stop a smirk curling my lips when I heard a hint of jealousy in her voice because she thought I had a girlfriend. It kind of pissed me off at the same time because she has no reason to be jealous. The only one I want, and can think about, is her. Now the lines are drawn and the gauntlet has been thrown down. I won’t stop till I smash her walls to smithereens. I will find some way to prove to her that this... whatever is going on, means something. I never back down from a challenge. When I want something, I go after it. Nothing stops me and this will be no different. I won’t stop until I have her under me, screaming my name to the heavens and she realises she is mine. 

“X-man you ready to go?” Justin’s voice breaks into my thoughts. I swing around in my chair to find him standing in the doorway with his wetsuit on and holding his surfboard.

“Yeah man, give me a minute to pack this shit up.” Nodding, he turns and heads towards the front of the shop.

Running my hands down my face, I blow out a deep breath and pack up my station. Once sorted, I push to my feet and stretch out my back. When I came back from lunch, Justin took one look at my troubled expression and told me we were going to hit the waves after work this arvo. I agreed, thinking a surf might take my mind away from all this shit which is going on. Truthfully, all I want to do is head home.  

Racing out to my truck, I grab my boardshorts and head back inside to get changed. After throwing a singlet shirt on, I head back out to the front of the shop where Justin is talking with Beau.

“You coming, mate?” I ask Beau.

“Not today. I have some shit I have to sort out.” He runs a hand through his hair, he looks frustrated.

I shrug. “Fair enough. Justin, let’s get going before it gets too dark, it looks like it’s gonna rain.” I push open the front door not bothering to look back and head towards the beach.

“Hey, wait up!”

Without stopping, I turn back and watch as Justin has to jog to catch up.

“What’s the fucking rush?” he grunts as he makes it to my side.

I don’t say anything, I just keep walking.

“Fuck man, do you want to talk about it?”

That gives me pause for a minute, it’s unlike Justin to want to talk about shit. He’s the most closed off fucker I have ever met. I know he had a shit childhood but I don’t know much more about him. He’s like a safe and never wants to talk about shit. Erica calls him a grumpy ass because for as long as we have all known each other, he never smiles. The only places he seems content and at peace is in the waves or when he’s working. Apart from those times, he’s a brooding asshole. Someone fucked this guy up pretty bad in the past, is my guess.

Erica tells him all the time that he needs to get laid and maybe that will cheer his ass up. That’s the weird thing though, the whole time I’ve known him, I have never seen him with a woman.

I shake my head to indicate I’m not interested in talking about it, I wouldn’t even know where to begin anyways.

“Fair enough,” he accepts.

We walk the rest of the way in silence.

Something draws my attention and the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end as I’m about to take the steps down to the beach. I turn to look back to the park across the road and watch my woman take a seat at a table. She has a coffee in her hand and is laughing with a woman I haven’t seen before. Something grips in my chest when a man walks over to where they are. Before I can think about what I’m doing, I sprint across the road. I have only one goal in mind....to get this fucker away from my woman.

Justin calls out from behind me but I ignore him. I zero in on the man as he reaches out to touch her, she recoils at his touch.

“Don’t fucking touch her, you piece of shit!” I snarl.

“X-man, what the fuck?” Justin yells out again.

“Give me a fucking minute,” I call to him.

At the sound of my voice, two piercing green eyes stare straight at me. They widen with recognition as I get closer. I notice the light flush hitting her cheeks as she takes me in from head to toe, it has the effect of settling some of the beast in me. The man looks at me curiously and decides to turn and walk away.  Smart man, I think.

“Who is that hunk of man meat?” her friend asks.

My lip curls up and a chuckle rises in my throat. I watch as Ally swallows hard before licking her lips. The action causes my cock to jerk in my shorts. Fuck, what would it feel like to have her mouth wrapped around me, her tongue lick every bit of cum from me. Growling low in my throat, I try to get rid of the image before I lose all control.

“Sweetness,” I breath out as I stop in front of her. Reaching out, I grab her hand, bring it to my mouth and brush my lips across her soft skin.

“X.. I mean, Xavier.”

I hear the tremor in her voice and smile, I know she felt what I do to her.

“What are you doing here?” She narrows her eyes.

“I was heading for a swim.” I nod over to the beach.

“Hi, I’m Cynthia.” Her friend holds her hand out to me.

I don’t want to let go of Ally but know it’s rude if I don’t shake her hand. I reach over and put my hand in hers, before I can say anything I hear Justin come up behind me.

“X-man, the sun...” he stops mid-sentence and after a few moments of silence, I look beside me.

“Fuck me,” he growls.

I watch as something passes over his face, it’s as if he’s looking at a ghost. I’m about ready to punch his bloody face in for staring at my woman, but then I realise his soul focus is on Cynthia. I look back and forth between the two of them and wonder what the fuck is going on. Cynthia sucks in a deep breath. I look back at Ally and raise an eyebrow, wondering if she knows what the fuck is happening. She shrugs and gives a small shake of her head, she’s obviously as confused as me. The silence is broken suddenly when a boy calls out “Mummy” from the playground.

“Shit,” Cynthia hisses. She gets to her feet and runs her hands down the black pencil skirt she is wearing before taking a few steps away.

“My Queen,” Justin murmurs.

I watch as Cynthia’s shoulders stiffen and she stops. Her shoulders rise and fall like she’s struggling to breathe before she turns around with a pissed off look on her face.

“Don’t you ever fucking call me that. The last time I let you call me by that name, I fell at your feet. I wanted nothing more than to be that special person in your life. It was a fucking lie back then, just like it is now. I’m not your fucking anything and I’m not wasting anymore fucking tears on you.”

With that said, she turns when a boy of about five or six years old runs to her and hugs her legs. She sweeps him into her arms and whispers something in his ear. He nods before Cynthia turns back to Ally and mouths, “I’m sorry I have to go.” I don’t miss how glassy her eyes are.

After a few moments of silence, Justin snaps out of his head and springs into action. He drops his board to the ground with a thud before racing over to the parking lot, screaming out her name. By the time he reaches where her car was parked, she is already pulling out of the car park.

“Fuck!” he yells.

I hear the pain in his voice. He watches her car turn the corner and runs both hands through his hair before turning back to where I stand with Ally. He grabs his board off the ground and heads towards the tattoo shop.

“Justin!” I call out but he doesn’t say shit, he just keeps on walking.

“Fuck!” I spit.

He looked like he was ready to kill someone and I wonder again what the fuck is going on. I should probably go and see if he’s okay, but knowing him, he won’t say shit until he’s ready. I would just be wasting my breath.

“I better get going,” Ally mumbles breaking into my train of thought.

The rain which has been threatening all day, begins falling lightly.

“Let me give you a lift,” I say.

“It’s okay, I don’t live far away. I’m good to walk.”

She leans over and grabs her bag off the seat, but I’m not taking no for an answer. I grab her hand and entwine her fingers with mine.

This time I tell her, “I’ll give you a lift.” Not waiting for an excuse, I head back towards the shop with her hand firmly gripped in mine.

“Xavier, where are you taking me?”

“My truck is back at the shop. We’ll grab it then, I’m taking you to dinner.”

“Um.. excuse me?” She tries to pull her hand free, but I’m not letting go.

“You need to eat,” I say simply, not giving an inch.

After a few seconds I feel her hand soften in mine. “Fine, but only because I’m hungry and I don’t feel like two-minute noodles.”

Laughing, I squeeze her hand, bring it to my lips and brushing a kiss over her knuckles. I love the feeling of having her close to me. When I look down, I don’t miss the smirk which kisses her lips before she turns her face away from me. I feel a slight tremor race through her hand.

We take our seats at The Dockyard along Honeysuckle. We decided to sit outside so we can take in the view. There is only one fucking view I need, but I’m getting the feeling, Ally likes to be outside. After placing our order and she huffed and puffed about the fact I wouldn’t let her pay, I made sure she was comfortable before taking my seat. I immediately realise, I don’t like the table distance between us so, getting to my feet I move to the same side as Ally and seat myself next to her.

“What was wrong with the other seat?” She squeals when I reach under her chair and pull it so it’s butted up to mine, there is now no room between us.

Satisfied I smile at her, not bothering to answer her question.

“How’s the tattoo?” I ask before taking a sip of my beer.

She looks at me for a moment, seeming lost in thought before she blushes and turns to look out at the harbour. The sun is low in the sky and I’m thankful for daylight savings as the sun bounces around her.

“It’s good. Don’t get me wrong, it hurt like a bitch but I love the outcome and I think it might be addictive.” I hear the smile in her voice as she speaks.

“I know exactly what you mean.” I chuckle and look over all my ink. “If you ever want any more, let me know. I enjoyed popping your cherry.” I finish speaking as she lifts her coke to her mouth and takes a mouthful.

She chokes on the liquid when I say cherry which has me chuckling. I pat her back to help her catch her breath and after a few minutes she gasps. “What?!” He eyes are wide and I have to bite back a smile as the blush I have come to know and love creeps up her neck.

“Ink babe. Your Ink cherry.”

“Right.” She nods but her attention is on her finger as she runs it across the wood grain on the table. Needing her eyes back on mine, I reach over with my free hand and run my fingertips under her chin before lowering them. I start to apologize but can’t get the words out. I’m lost in the depths of her green eyes and the gold hue which surrounds her irises making them sparkle.

Fuck, being this close to Ally and smelling her sweet apple scent is driving me fucking crazy. I lick my lips and watch her lips part. When I look back to her eyes, they seem brighter, hungrier. I look over the curve of her small nose and note the small smattering of freckles across it. The natural sight turns me on even more. When I return my gaze to her lips, I realise how much closer we are as we lean into each other.

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. A quiet moan leaves her and if we hadn’t been so close, I wouldn’t have heard it. She licks her lips again and my control is splintering by the second. Fuck it, I need a taste. As I begin to close the inch between us, the waitress comes over and places our meals on the table.

Ally jumps back like she just touched fire and got burnt. I can’t help the irritation I feel at the interruption.

“Fuck,” I growl low.

Looking towards the waitress, I nod and say a quick, thanks. I don’t miss the way she eyes me up and down. I hear Ally mumble something and she cuts her eyes to the chick who’s still standing and staring at me.

“Thanks,” I grunt again.

I hope the waitress gets the message. I’m dismissing the chick and finally, she seems to snap out of whatever fantasy she was living in long enough to nod before walking away.

“She was cute.” Ally mumbles as she picks up her knife and fork.

“Not interested. There is only one woman I want and she’s sitting right next to me.” I don’t mean to sound so gruff, but fuck, I’m hard as stone. Having her so close to me and not being able to touch her is pissing me right the fuck off.

“Xavier....”

I hold up my hand to stop her from speaking because I have a feeling I know what she is going to say.

“Sweetness, you could dangle one hundred women in front of me right out of the pages of Playboy and none of them would ever compare to you. You are going to test my patience and control, but I know in the end when I finally crack you open it will be worth it. And trust me when I say, you will be mine.”

I hold her eyes with mine, not letting her look away. I see the moment she hears the truth in my words and lets out a breath she must have been holding. I wink to break the tension which seems to have fallen around us. I pick up my burger and take a bite before I clear this whole fucking table and take a bite out of her. Eyeing her out of the corner of my eye I watch as she cuts a piece of her chicken schnitzel and takes a mouthful.

Throughout dinner, the conversation is more laid back. I learn she works at the library down the road from my shop and that’s where she met Cynthia. I tell her about the shop and explain, I don’t really do much else except for hitting the beach with Beau and Justin. I tell her about when my dad used to be a firefighter and how he gave it up when my mum got sick. I watch as she takes all my words onboard and how her eyes glass over when I talk about my mum. My heart does some flip flop shit again. When I ask her about her family, she seems to close down. I don’t push but fuck if I’ll let it go. This is only the first date in the million we are yet to share, I’ll find out sooner or later.

By the time we finish eating, it’s almost 8 o’clock. The sun has set and I probably should take her home. As if on cue, she places her hand across her mouth and yawns which makes me chuckle. Strands of her hair fall in front of her face with the action. Reaching over, I tuck it behind her ear. Not being able to stop myself, I run the tips of my fingers down the side of her face. My fingertips caress her soft cheek and she gasps. She looks up at me from beneath the veil of her thick lashes and as a shy smile curves her plump lips, I find myself wanting to bite them.

“We should go.” Her breathing is slightly erratic, almost as if she’s fighting her emotions. After a moment, she pulls back and my hand drops.

I blow out a deep breath and wait as she gets to her feet. I run my hands down my thighs, willing my cock to settle down. It’s no fucking use. Gritting my teeth, I push to my feet and adjust myself as discreetly as possible before wrapping my arm around her waist. I refuse to allow her to get too far away from me.

Her body tenses at my touch, but she softens and moulds against my side. I smile, lean over and inhale the sweet scent of her hair as I plant a light kiss to her scalp. I then lead her back to my truck