~Landon~
She’s not saying a fucking thing.
She’s staring at me with those incredible green eyes, unblinking. This can’t be coming from left field for her. Jesus, after all we’ve shared, she’s had to have felt it from me.
“Sweetheart, I need you to say something.”
She frowns, and that’s it. I’m positive that she’s going to say that she doesn’t feel the same way, but suddenly tears fill her eyes and she squeezes my hand as a smile spreads across her lips.
“I love you too,” she whispers, and my heart begins beating again. I lean in and rest my lips against hers.
“I couldn’t hear you.”
“Yes, you could.”
I simply wait, and after a moment, she says, “I love you too, Landon.”
“Thank God. For a second there, I thought I’d just made a huge ass of myself.”
“No, that was me today at the vet’s office,” she says, her lips still tickling mine. “Telling me how you feel isn’t being an ass.”
“I’ve loved you for a long time.”
She smiles and drags her fingertips down my face. “Ditto.”
I need her. Right now. I kiss her, taking it from sweet and soft to pure need. She reaches for my jeans, but I take her hand away and kiss her palm. “I’m not going to do this here, in the high school parking lot.”
“Why not?” She looks around, making me smile. “We’re the only ones here.”
“Because we’re not teenagers.” I sit back in the seat, put my belt on, and start the car. “But make no mistake, I’m taking you home right now. If I’m not inside you very soon, I’ll go crazy.”
She doesn’t put her seat belt on, but she sits back and crosses her arms. “But it’s so far away to your house! Why did you have to choose the house so far away?”
“Well, I didn’t anticipate telling you I love you at the high school and then need to make love to you.”
“You’re a bad planner,” she says, and makes me laugh. I glance over when I stop at a red light.
“You’re in a skirt.”
“I’m aware.”
“You don’t have to wait.” She raises a brow and hitches her skirt up around her hips.
And of course she’s not wearing any panties. Is it any wonder that I love her? She grips her legs in her hands and pulls up, from her knees to her hips, making me absolutely crazy.
My dick is so hard I’m surprised I don’t bust out of my jeans. When she tries to reach for my pants again, I shake my head.
“This is all about you, Cami.”
“Me?”
I nod and glance over. She’s not touching herself.
“Are you shy?”
“Kind of. I’ve never—”
“Are you saying you’ve never masturbated?”
“No, but not in front of someone.”
“I’ll help.” I lightly drag my fingertips up her thigh, then follow the crease of where her leg meets her center, and she gasps. “Your skin is so damn soft.”
She swallows hard as I gently run my fingers through her lips, up to her clit, then back down again. She’s already sopping wet, which only makes me that much harder.
I’m going to fuck her brainless.
My middle finger presses on her clit and her back arches.
“Damn, you’re good at that,” she says breathlessly, giving my ego one hell of a boost.
I simply love to touch her. “You’re so responsive,” I mutter.
“Of course I am.” She bites her lip and then exhales. “You’re touching me.”
My finger slips from her clit to her opening and slides inside. I shake my hand, pressing the pad of my thumb against her most sensitive spot, and grin when she simply explodes against my hand.
I pull into my driveway—finally—and before she can pull herself together, I help her out of the car, pull her skirt down far enough that I won’t have to kill someone if they happen to look outside, and rush her inside.
I slam the door closed and spin her around, her back against the door, and sink to my knees so I can bury my face in her.
“Holy fucking shit!” she exclaims, and fists her hands in my hair, not gently in the least. I pull one leg over my shoulder to give myself better access and eat her like she’s a buffet and I’ve been starved for years.
Because it feels like I have.
“Landon!”
I growl, but don’t stop. Her lips are in my mouth, my tongue is inside her, and she comes again, shuddering. I grip her ass, making sure she doesn’t fall, and when she’s done, I stand and hitch her up, her legs around my waist.
“I need you,” I say before devouring her mouth. I manage to unzip my pants and free my cock, then slide home.
“Oh God,” she moans against my mouth. “So good.”
“So good,” I agree, and begin to pound into her, praying my door doesn’t give.
Explaining that to the landlord would be interesting.
“Grab on,” I instruct her, and when she loops her arms around my neck, I carry her, still inside her, to the staircase.
But we don’t get far up before I lower her to the stairs. I can’t help it. I need to move.
“I love this, but the stairs aren’t comfy,” she says breathlessly.
I pull back, turn her over, slap her ass, and plunge back inside her. “Better?”
“Holy fuck,” she groans.
“I’ll take that as a yes.” Neither of us speaks for long minutes as I fuck her, hard, primal, not able to get enough of her. When I feel her come for the third time, I pull out and lead her the rest of the way up the stairs and to my bedroom.
I strip us of the rest of our clothes and tumble her onto my bed. I can’t help but stare at her. Jesus, have I ever seen anything more beautiful than Cami spread out on my bed, wearing only moonshine?
No. No, I haven’t.
“You’re so damn beautiful,” I say, panting, my hands in fists. I still want to fuck her, hard, but damn it, I want to be gentle with her too. I want to make love to her.
“Need you,” she says, holding her hand out for me. “Come here.”
I crawl onto the bed and kiss up her leg, kiss her center, and up her body until I’m covering her. I take both of her hands and hold them in one of mine above her head, then guide my cock inside her.
I stop, buried as deep as I can go, and stare down into her deep green eyes. She’s everything I ever wanted.
She’s everything I ever needed.
“Landon?” She circles her hips, trying to get me to move.
“Yes, my love?”
She stills and her eyes find mine. “I like that.”
“Which part?” I grin and pull out to the tip, then push back in. “This?”
“Yes.”
“This?” I lower my face and pull her nipple into my mouth, teasing it with my teeth.
“God, yes.”
“What else, my love?”
“That.” I rest on my elbows at either side of her head, let go of her hands, and grin when she immediately grabs on to my ass.
“Calling you my love?”
She nods.
“You are.” I kiss her nose and move my hips slowly. “My love.”
“You’re my love,” she says softly. She drags her foot up the back of my leg and hitches it over my hip, making my eyes cross with how deep I can go. “And I need you to move, babe.”
“I am moving.”
“Faster.”
“No.”
She cocks a brow. “Why?”
I don’t answer. I just kiss her, saying without words everything she needs to hear. Because I need to make this last. Because she’s amazing and I need to show her just how incredible she is.
Because while fucking her was and is some of the best damn sex I’ve ever had, it’s nothing compared to what it feels like to revel in her.
So I keep this slow, steady pace and make her feel things she never has before.
“TELL ME AGAIN why I have to go to your girls’ brunch.” I pull into a parking space outside of the popular breakfast joint in Northwest Portland on Sunday and look over at Cami, who looks soft and still a little sleepy.
“Because you’re taking me to the movies after this,” she says, her voice perfectly reasonable. “There’s no need for you to go do your own thing, just to meet up with me in two hours. Plus, you’re hungry.”
“I’m always hungry,” I reply as I take her hand in mine and lead her down the sidewalk and inside the restaurant. It’s not as busy as usual, but then, it’s almost noon.
The girls slept in this morning.
“They’re back here,” Cami says, pointing. She leads us to the far side of the restaurant, where Riley, Mia, Kat, and Addie are already munching on fresh fruit.
“Hi!” Riley says, smiling. “We haven’t ordered yet. Addie was just starving, so we had them bring some fruit.”
“I’m telling you,” Addie says after I kiss her cheek and sit between her and Cami. “This baby is going to be a football player. All I do is eat. He’s going to make me gain a hundred pounds.”
“Not if you eat the right things,” Riley says, and spears a strawberry.
“I don’t want celery, Ri,” Addie says.
“How are you, big brother?” Mia asks.
“Good.” I glance around and notice that all five pairs of eyes are on me. “What?”
“Glad you could join girls’ breakfast,” Kat says with a smirk.
“She made me come,” I insist, pointing at Cami. “Tell them.”
“I did,” she admits, and chews on a slice of melon. “We’re going to the movies later, so it seemed logical to bring him.”
“But I can leave,” I offer, and push my chair back, secretly hoping they’ll let me escape, but they just laugh.
“No, we’re just flipping you shit,” Kat says. “Just beware that there will be girl talk. We’re too comfortable with you to censor ourselves.”
“There’s no alcohol here,” I reply. “I think I’m safe.”
But my stomach clenches when they all snicker.
I’m in trouble.
“So, as I was saying,” Addie continues. “This baby is sucking the life out of me.”
“I think that’s a bit dramatic,” Cami says.
“No, it’s true. My boobs hurt so bad. Jake and I were having sex, and he had me bent over the bed, and he reached down to grab my tits and I almost kicked him in the balls.”
“And there it is,” Mia says with a laugh. “Welcome to girl talk, big brother.”
I simply shrug and study my menu. These women are a lot of fun, and maybe slightly crazy. I’d rather be anywhere but here, but if Cami wants me here, I’ll stay.
I’ll do just about anything that Cami wants me to, and I’m not ashamed to admit it.
The waitress comes to take our orders and refresh our drinks.
“So, we hear you dropped the L-bomb,” Riley says, and sips her orange juice.
“Riley!” Cami hisses, then hides her face in her napkin.
“What? Is it a secret?”
“It’s not a secret,” I reply, and laugh, rubbing Cami’s leg under the table.
“We tell each other everything,” Addie says, almost apologetically. “To be fair, she didn’t text us until yesterday.”
“Yeah, it’s not like she texted us while you were in the heat of the moment,” Kat says. “That would just take it too far.”
“Ew,” Mia says. “You know, talking about sex before was all well and good until you started banging my brother.”
“And boy, do we bang,” Cami says with a smug smile. “A lot. Like, over and over again.”
The other girls all laugh their asses off while Mia makes gagging sounds.
“Did you just shudder?” Riley asks Mia.
“Hell yes. I don’t want to ever have a reason to think of my brother naked.”
“He’s impressive naked,” Cami says.
“I can see that,” Kat says as her eyes travel up and down my torso. “You should take your shirt off, just to give us a sneak peek.”
“I’m not sharing him,” Cami replies, rolling her eyes. “You’ll just have to take my word for it.”
“Thank the baby Jesus,” Mia mutters just as my phone rings. I glance down and recognize the number.
“I’ve gotta take this.” I kiss Cami’s cheek and excuse myself. “Hello.”
“Hey, Palazzo,” my old Navy buddy Ringo says. “Sorry, I know it’s Sunday, but my day is jammed tomorrow, so I thought I’d get a head start.”
“No worries. What’s up?”
“I spoke with Lucas last week, and he mentioned that you might be interested in a flight instructor position.”
I take a deep breath and shove my hand through my hair. “I can’t fly.” My voice is flat, and the rage and sense of loss boils up the way it always does when I think about the fact that I’ll never pilot another plane.
“Not in the air,” he clarifies. “I’d like you to teach in the classroom, and oversee the program up there for me. You’d be the boss, which you’re good at.”
I frown. “You want me to stand in a classroom and bore the fuck out of people? If anything, I should be in the air.”
“But you can’t be,” Ringo says softly. “You got a shitty deal, man. I’m just thankful that you’re okay. And I could seriously use you. I’m expanding the private flight school from San Diego up to Portland. You wouldn’t have to travel at all.”
“That’s awesome, Ringo, but classroom work?”
“Sleep on it. Think it over and call me back this week. I’m not in a huge hurry for an answer, but the only answer I’ll accept is yes. You’d be excellent at keeping everything in order, and you’re a good speaker. You’re not going to bore the shit out of anyone.” I hear him sigh. “How are you, man?”
“Better,” I admit. “Physically, pretty much all healed up. I’ve been working for my dad and keeping busy. I have a girlfriend.”
“So you’re settling down.”
I stare blindly as a kid picks his nose in his stroller, his mom hurrying down the sidewalk. Am I settling down?
I guess I am.
“I suppose you could put it like that.”
“Perfect. Call me this week.”
And with that, he’s gone. The thought of working in a classroom doesn’t get my blood flowing, but I like that I wouldn’t be a peon. I’d be running the show, and God knows I have plenty of experience running shows.
Come to think of it, teaching people who are excited about flying doesn’t sound like a bad gig.
I’ll think about it later, but the truth is, I just can’t see myself working in construction forever. I like it fine, but it doesn’t excite me.
Everything about flying excites me.
I make my way back through the restaurant and am almost to the table when I hear Kat say, “This period is killing me. Like, instead of it raining men, it’s raining red.”
“That’s so gross,” Cami says, but she’s laughing as she takes a bite of her bacon. She glances up and sees me. “Hey, babe. Your food’s here.”
“Good. I’m hungry.”
“I’m telling you,” Kat continues without missing a beat. “I’m gonna have to invest in an industrial-sized box of tampons or something.”
“Oh my God! Do you remember when we went to that party our senior year with Cami?” Mia says, pointing to Addie.
“Aw, poor Cami,” Addie says, hiding a giggle behind her hand. “She wore white pants.”
“And didn’t expect Mother Nature to show up that night,” Cami adds, shaking her head. “It was so mortifying.”
“You recovered,” Riley says. “You’re wearing white pants today.”
“Do you know how long it took me to wear white pants again?” Cami demands. “I didn’t wear them until just a couple of years ago, and now with this reminder, I’m rethinking it all over again.”
“I hear you,” Kat says, nodding. “It’s like Subway.”
“Subway?” Mia asks with a frown.
“Yep, I ate at Subway and got food poisoning when I was like twelve, and I’ve been afraid to eat there ever since. Whenever I drive past there, my butt clenches.”
The girls all erupt in laughter, and I can’t help but join them.
“I’m so glad that my gastrointestinal issues make you laugh,” Kat says, her shoulders straight. She eats her eggs. “It was horrific.”
“I can imagine,” Mia replies, and frowns at her eggs. “Like these eggs. I ordered them over medium, and the yolks are runny. If these are over medium, I’m Selena Gomez.”
“You always order the most difficult thing in the world to cook,” Riley accuses her. “And I think you do it on purpose.”
“Of course I do,” Mia replies with a sniff. “What if that twit applies for a job with me? I need to know if they can actually cook. And if you know what you’re doing, it’s not the hardest thing in the world to cook. You just have to pay attention and not fuck it up.”
“Are you going to send them back?” Cami asks.
“No. I actually like the yolks runny.” Mia grins and takes a bite of one of them. “But now I know that the idiot in the kitchen doesn’t know how to cook eggs.”
“We don’t even have eggs on our menu,” Cami reminds her.
“That doesn’t matter,” Mia says. “If they can’t cook eggs the way I ask, how can they be expected to cook a steak the correct way?”
“Whatever you say,” Riley says, and rolls her eyes at me. “Has she always been this difficult?”
“She’s always been demanding. Mia knows what she wants, and she gets it. It’s as simple as that.”
“She’s a pain in the ass,” Kat says, but winks at Mia. “But we love her.”
“Yes, that’s pretty much always been the consensus.” I chuckle, looking at my sister fondly. “But, with that comes a woman who’s excellent at her job. Do you get many complaints about what comes out of the kitchen?”
“Hardly ever,” Addie says. “We don’t ever want you to change, Mia.”
“Good. Because I’m not going to.” Her lips twist. “I wasn’t willing to change for a man. There’s no way in hell I’m changing for you bitches.”
“Wait.” I lean forward, frowning. “A man wanted you to change?”
This is news to me.
“It was a very long time ago,” Mia replies, waving me off. “And it was never going to happen.” She shakes her head at me, telling me to kill the subject, but I don’t like this. I know that I was gone for a long time, and I missed a lot, but I’m just now realizing that I was gone for some very big moments in my sister’s life.
I should have been here to cut that dick’s balls off.
“I’m full,” Cami says, leaning back in her chair and rubbing her belly. “Take me to the movies now so I can gorge myself on popcorn.”
I grin down at her. “Anything you want, babe.”
“Ugh.” Mia rolls her eyes. “You guys are disgusting.”