“Fuck, baby. That feels good,” I groan, tilting her head back until her eyes meet mine.
Running my palm along her cheek, I grip my other hand around the base of my cock as I guide it into her mouth. Her tongue swipes the head as I tamp down a strangled groan.
“Mm,” she moans as her tongue darts out, licking the bead of precum before her lips suction around my head.
The action causes lights to flash before my eyes as my vision turns blurry with my impending release.
“Shit, I’m gonna come,” I grunt. “If you don’t want me to come in your—”
At the same moment the words leave my mouth and her lips tighten around my dick, I hear a thunderous pounding on my bedroom door. I’m too far gone to care.
With my fingers laced in her long blond hair, I feel my body shake as I erupt down her throat. Feeling the aftershocks of my release, I lie back on the side of the bed and run my hand over my face as I take a deep breath, forcing air into my lungs.
The quietness is once again interrupted with the loud thumping on the door.
“You left your phone in the living room, and it’s been ringing nonstop, man!” Graham shouts from the hallway.
I hear the annoyance laced in the deep baritone of his voice.
“Yeah, I heard you the first fucking time!” I yell. “I’ll call them back, just give me a minute.”
I run the tip of my finger along Sierra’s bottom lip as I shoot her a wink. Flashing me a quick grin, she pats me on my thigh as she stands. My eyes follow her as she pulls on her bra and slides her tank top over her head.
Sierra is a beautiful woman, and this isn’t the first time she’s visited my bed. I always make it clear with the women I’m with that it is what it is. Sierra is the only one I’ve ever made an exception for a repeat. It’s not because there is more there, in fact, it’s the exact opposite. She knows the score and is only looking for someone to repay her the orgasms she is good at delving out, and I do in spades.
“I’m sorry. I’ll call you later tonight,” I say, feeling sorry for the interruption.
“No, you won’t.” She laughs, leaning forward to pull her pants over her slender hips, never taking her eyes off mine.
As I said, she knows how things are. Although we’ve exchanged numbers, I’ve never called her. We work together and run with the same crowd. Usually, we happen to bump into each other and one thing leads to another. Before we know any better, here we are.
“Yeah. I guess you’re right,” I grunt, pulling up my pants from where they sit around my ankles.
She smiles at me with her doe eyes, making her look far more innocent than I know her to be. Sauntering over to my nightstand, she collects her phone and slides it into the back pocket of her jeans that fit her like a glove. Pulling my t-shirt over my head, I watch as she makes her way over to the door.
“Until next time, Mason.” She winks, turning the doorknob and sauntering down the hallway.
I hear Sierra’s laugh and Graham’s grunt, followed by our apartment door slamming shut. Running a hand over my chest, I ease the tension in my muscles as I meander to the living room.
“Sierra, huh?” Graham mumbles, crossing his arms over his chest.
“We ran into each other last night. She had a few too many drinks and I wanted to make sure she got home okay. Change of plans, she ended up stopping by.”
“Change of plans alright,” he says, shaking his head.
Graham is one of my best friends. We grew up together in Arbor Creek, Iowa. After graduation, we both decided to get out of the small town we call home, although our reasons for leaving were altogether different.
“Your phone rang ten times in the last hour. Someone named Mary Jo. I didn’t answer, but it must be important,” Graham says, tossing over my phone. The hangover I’m suffering delays my movement, as I fumble to catch it.
Clicking the call button, I don’t bother to listen to the voice mails.
“Mary Jo,” I say when she picks up, the words sounding more like a question. MJ has been my dad’s assistant at his law office for years. I’ve grown to know her quite well over the years. She is like a grandmother to me.
“Mason, son. I’m sorry to bother you.”
“It’s okay. What’s going on?”
I can’t help but feel the panic rise in my chest. Running my hand along the back of my neck, I work to ease the tension.
“Your father was arrested earlier this morning. I got the call a little over an hour ago.”
She doesn’t tell me what happened because I already know. My dad has struggled with alcohol addiction most of my life. His problem is what led to my parents divorcing when I was five years old.
“Again?” I sigh, running my hand through my hair. The strands are longer than I like to keep them.
“This time it was for drinking and driving. I don’t want you to worry, Mason,” she reassures. It’s hard not to though. “I’ll take care of everything. Can you call Callum?”
Tilting my head up, my eyes meet Graham’s, and I know he heard the other side of the conversation. With a single nod of his head, he stands and walks into the kitchen leaving me alone.
“Yeah, I’ll get a hold of him.”
The words are a lie. I know this is the last thing my brother would want to hear right now. In fact, this would serve to solidify the opinions he has of our father. I’ve grown up listening to Callum grunt and groan, calling him a deadbeat. Yeah, he’s made his share of mistakes, but I can’t bring myself to cut him off like Callum has. He’s still my dad.
I don’t have the patience to listen to his shit right now.
“Alright, I’ll let your dad know to call you when he’s released.”
We say our goodbyes, and I click end before taking a seat on the couch. With my elbows pressed against my knees, I clasp my hands over my head. Sometimes I feel like I resent my brother for the way he treats our father, leaving me to deal with this on my own.
I’m all he has now, and I can’t bring myself to give up on him the way Callum did.
The sound of the fridge door has me turning my attention toward Graham. I hear his question without him uttering a word. He knows all too well the relationship dynamics among my father, my brother, and me. I also know his feelings toward all the drinking, both my father’s and my own.
“I’m not even going to say it,” he cuts through my thoughts.
“Well, that’s a surprise.”
“How about we talk about last night instead? I got home from Velvet around two-thirty, and you were still nowhere in sight. How did you get home?”
“We called an Uber. What are you now, my babysitter?” I scoff, running my fingers along my forehead.
“No, I’m your friend, and as your friend, I think I’m justified in warning you when I see the path you’re headed. God, man, have you not learned from the people around you?”
Here we go.
“It’s not like that, and you fucking know it.”
“Yeah, isn’t that what your dad said a few months ago when you got the same call asking if you’d bail him out of jail? Sounds familiar.”
“What the fuck does that mean?” I spit, the words coming out with more force than I intended. I’m not sure if the anger laced in my tone is because I fear he’s right or because I know he is.
“It means I see where you’re headed. I’ve been down the same road. There’s nothing for you down there. How do you think Brea would feel if she knew?”
My body tenses even at the mere mention of her name, narrowing my eyes and gritting my teeth.
“This has nothing to do with her. Don’t you drag her into this,” I grunt, reading between the lines. Graham’s right though, and that’s the problem.
I think I fell in love with Brea the moment I first met her. She’s the only girl I’ve ever been friends with; I mean true friends. I’m not talking about the type of friendship I have with Sierra.
Brea isn’t the kind of girl you fuck and forget. No, she’s the kind of girl you marry. I’m the idiot who didn’t realize what was right in front of him until it was too late. Now she’s with someone else and she’s happy. He makes her happy. I see it on her face when she’s with him and when she talks about him.
Brea’s friendship and keeping her trust mean more to me than anything. So, I’ve focused my energy into doing my best to move on. There are nights where I crave her and the relationship we used to have. Those are the nights I turn to the brown bottle to bury the pang of loneliness I feel in my chest.
With nothing left to say, Graham stands and treks toward the front door. His stomping feet pound on the hardwood floor before he opens the door, slamming it behind him.
Without thinking, I lean forward and snag the phone from the coffee table.
“Mase.” The words float through the speaker. I’ve never liked nicknames, but something about the way she says it makes my heart beat faster. It’s hard to hear, her words muffled by the sound of the wind blowing and music blaring in the background.
I can’t help but smile as I picture Brea with her long hair whipping around her face, wearing her oversized sunglasses and a smile.
“Hey.” I chuckle. At that moment, the ache I feel in my chest lifts. “How’s the drive going?”
“Good, I’m about forty minutes or so out.”
I hear her sigh as I picture her running her hand through her hair, brushing it out of her face like she often does.
“How was the visit home?”
“As good as I expected it to be,” she mumbles.
“That good, huh?”
“Yeah. Is everything okay? You sound like you’re upset?”
I should have known she would sense something bothering me. As much as I thought hearing her voice would help, I guess I should’ve known better.
“I’m alright. You want to stop by when you get home?”
She takes a moment before she responds and I feel like I’m counting the seconds tick by.
“Uh, yeah, I can.” The hesitation in her voice has me regret asking.
“Never mind,” I start before she cuts me off.
“No, don’t. It’s okay. I just need to call Kaleb and let him know I’ll be by a little bit later. Okay? I’ll swing by as soon as I get in town.”
I want to feel guilty, especially since she has been out of the city for the past six days. I do for a second until I remind myself she’s dating that douche bag, and I can’t find it in me to care anymore.
“Alright,” I say, “I’ll see you in a bit.”
I feel somewhat relieved knowing she will be here soon. Even when I can’t make sense of my life, she’s always here to keep me focused on what’s important.