Elijah
“Are you paddling?” I could hear her talking, but I was entirely too focused to respond. “Hello, are you listening to me?”
I looked up just in time to catch Cat rolling her eyes when she looked over her shoulder, catching me checking out her ass. Hearing her mumble the words “dirty pervert” made me chuckle.
“You should have sat behind me,” I offered, still laughing. “Then I may have been able to focus on rowing instead of on your ass.”
“Had I sat behind you I’d be driving blind.” She shook her head and my gaze once again fell to the way her ass shifted with each pull of the oars. “Giant man in front of me, not that the view would be bad, but I’d see absolutely nothing else.”
Brent and Jay in the canoe near us were laughing with me as my woman continued to ramble. The best part was I thought she’d forgotten we weren’t out there alone, considering some of the things that were spilling out of her mouth so freely.
“As if your hands haven’t been on my ass more than enough over the last couple nights. Hell, I think you slept with your hand in my pants cupping my left cheek last night.” Jay was doing his best to hold back his laughter. “You barely let me get any sleep and here you are making me row your giant ass while you sit back there doing nothing.”
“Babe,” I tried to interrupt her but she was lost in her outburst.
“Would it kill you to put a little effort into it? Seriously, I’d be better off jumping overboard and swimming to the end. At least then it’s only my bodyweight I’m supporting.”
“Babe,” I said a little louder and she shot me a glare.
“What?”
I said nothing more, only nudged my head toward the guys. She twisted around and followed my movement, looking in the opposite direction.
I thought for sure she would apologize, or get embarrassed as she usually did, but she proved me wrong.
“Hey Jay, you wanna trade places? You can lug ass man around for a while.”
Apparently when Catherine was exhausted she got cranky.
“Dude, you need to let that woman sleep.” Brent gave me a serious look. “I think I seen her irises turn red.”
Cat didn’t much care for us laughing, but eventually she just flipped us off and turned back around. I tried for the rest of the trip to keep my focus on rowing instead of on her ass. But I couldn’t lie—there still was a time or two I got lost in the shift of her hips and had to remind myself that I had a job to do.
***
I leaned back in the seat, allowing Cat to rest her head in the crook of my neck. My arm stretched out behind her to support her body, but it didn’t matter if I was gonna pay for it later. I didn’t want her sleep to be interrupted. Apparently I had worn my girl out and I did feel bad about it.
Her light snore filled the space where we were tucked far in the back of the large van we’d rented to haul half of us. The others were in the second van behind us.
Closing my own eyes, I curled in closer, and when she purred, I swear it was like a tiny kitten, I felt my chest squeeze tight. I was falling for this girl more and more each day. I was doing what I had so far avoided throughout my college career. I was committing fully to one woman, one I believed could be “the one” for me.
There was this almost natural feeling with us, as if we knew one another more deeply then we should this soon. We’d shared a lot of things, and though I did know there was more to be told, I felt like we connected.
I wanted this with Cat. I wanted what X had with Morgan.
“She really cares about you, ya know.” I opened my eyes to find Marcus watching us from the row in front. “She talks about you all the time and when she does she gets that dreamy look in her eyes. You give her comfort.”
“I care about her too.”
Why I was telling him this I didn’t know, I was a private guy. If I was telling anyone about my feelings it should be her. But I’d admit, to myself and no one else, Marcus was easy to talk to. I also knew he was her friend, a close friend. Any friend of my girl was a friend of mine.
“I’ve been trying to get her to move in with Morgan and me.” This announcement surprised me. “She’s been talking about getting her own place and I guess her living alone doesn’t sit well with me.”
I squeezed her a little tighter. “Me either.” She had never once mentioned anything to me about moving out. Then again, she and I didn’t really talk much about her home life. Not for lack of trying on my part, she just shut down pretty quick when talking of her life outside of school, me, and Porter’s.
“Maybe you can convince her to consider it.”
“Maybe,” I said, still floored over the moving at all thing.
I could tell Marcus knew more than he was saying; the knowledge was written on his face. The idea that he knew my girl more than I did, didn’t sit well with me. I should have been happy that she confided in him but I wasn’t. I wanted to be the one she turned to. I wanted to be the one to fix all her wrongs and take care of anything she couldn’t.
For the rest of our ride home I held onto her just a little tighter. My head lay against hers, my nose pressed to her hair as I breathed her in.
When we pulled into the drive at the house and everyone began piling out of the van she began to stir in my arms. She smiled when she looked up at me and fuck if I didn’t feel that smile all the way to the deepest part of my gut.
“Stay with me tonight.” The question started out as just that but I was not above begging. I wanted her near me; I wasn’t ready to let her go yet.
“I just spent two nights with you.”
“Okay.” Lifting my hand, I pushed back a strand of hair that had fallen in her face. “But I want you to stay here in my bed with me tonight.”
“Will you let me sleep?” When she arched her brow I laughed at the way she was challenging me. “Because you, Jay, and Brent saw how I get when I don’t get the sleep I need.”
“Yes, we did,” I assured her, skimming the tip of my nose over hers, causing her eyes to flutter shut. “One more night before we go back to reality. I promise to let you sleep as long as you are doing it in my arms.”
I saw the hesitance in her eyes fade. “Very smooth and very sweet.” I was being honest. “Yes, I will stay with you tonight, but tomorrow I have to go home and I have to get back to work.”
“Fine,” I whispered, rolling my eyes teasingly. “But before we go to sleep, can you wash my back?” I ignored her questioning stare. “You just do it so much better than I do. I’ll wash yours in return.”
“I’m sure you will.” She laughed as she pushed back and began to slide out of the seat. For a few seconds I remained seated, watching her climb out and taking in the view. Then I joined her, taking her hand in mine and leading her toward the house. I’d get our things later; right then all I wanted was her.