CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Journey
The moment I wrapped my arms around my sister, my world righted itself, and I mentally stepped off the rollercoaster I’d been zooming around on for the past three weeks.
And a part of me was sad. I’d miss having the extra time to be with Grant and Nash.
But I pushed that part away and focused on listening to every single detail of Jazzy’s trip. She was the most important person in the world to me, and it had to stay that way. I could never let her down. Never.
She was beaming, of course. Her sweet, wonderful self as she chatted about what she’d learned. Back at our apartment, she made me sit down on our new couch while she made a production of showing me each piece she created.
She was getting really good.
“And I made one for you.”
This one was wrapped in paper, and I very carefully tore it off. And gasped. It was of a painting of me and Jaz that was so beautiful tears sprang to my eyes.
“See there?” She pointed at a cloud.
And I did see it. An angel was shaded so lightly into the heavens that it was easy to miss if you weren’t looking. I looked closer. “Oh, Jazz. It’s Mee-maw.”
She beamed at me. “Good guess. I made it really hard to see her because that’s how it is now. She’s here but it’s hard to see.”
My eyes. I didn’t even try to hold the tears back. I hugged her close and continued to listen to her stories. When she started playing with my heart bracelet, I remembered. “Oh. I have something for you too.” I hopped up and found the bag of things I’d purchased at the art festival.
And that was how we spent our day, snuggling and sharing stories. The familiarity of my sister was like the warmest of blankets.
But each time my phone made a sound, my heart skipped a beat.
Without warning, Jaz sat straight up and bonked herself on the forehead. “I totally forgot to ask you about your dates!”
I groaned, hoping she would have forgotten. She did that sometimes. Like a child, she tended to focus on what was in front of her. It wasn’t that she forgot much. If Grant walked through the door, she would recognize him immediately and begin chatting away. But if he wasn’t here, he was tucked back into a mental corner so she could focus on what was at hand.
“They went well, actually.”
She gave me a tell me more twirl of her hand. Leaving out almost all the details, I told her about Wicked and flying on a plane. I showed her the blue dress and shoes Grant bought me and laughed when she tried to walk in them.
“What about you?” I wasn’t sure if I wanted to know. “How were things with Jesse and Kyle?”
She stuck out her tongue as if she’d tasted something bad. I wasn’t sure what that exactly meant, and a dozen mental images that would probably scar me for life flashed through my head.
Please oh please don’t let me learn that she had that threesome after all.
“Boys are stupid.”
Oh. I leaned back on the sofa. This I could handle.
“What stupid things did they do?”
She rolled her eyes. “They got into a fight over me and got kicked out of camp.”
I gaped at her. I’d talked to her on the phone a number of times and she never told me this.
“When?”
“The first week?”
I grabbed my chest. It actually physically hurt to have been left out of this information. But this wasn’t about me. “Are you okay?”
She huffed and crossed her arms over her middle. “Yeah. I just missed them. I had plans, you know?”
I grinned. “Kisses?”
She sighed. “Yes. So I just kissed David.”
Oh. Dear. God.
My voice squeaked. “Who’s David?”
She lifted a shoulder. “Just a fling. He’s gone now.”
Reaching for the floor, I snatched up my glass of water and took a long drink.
“Did you and David do more than kiss?”
She raised her eyebrows at me. “That’s per-son-al.” She singsonged the words.
My phone pinged, and I snatched it up. Jazzy snatched it from my hands. “Oh, it’s Grant.”
I snatched it back. “It’s per-son-al.”
She gave me a sour look. “I really do expect you to act better than me. That’s clearly not the case.”
I laughed and hugged her. “Clearly.”
Sneaking a look at my phone, I was warmed by Grant’s text message:
Grant: Jaz make it home okay?
Jasmine snatched at it again, but I held the phone over my head. “For your information, he’s asking about you. He wanted to know if you made it home okay.”
She grinned. “He’s nice. Tell him I did but don’t tell him that I kissed three boys.”
“Don’t worry.”
Wouldn’t want him to think all this kissing ran in the family. I thought of our mother and wrinkled my nose.
Me: She did and she’s wonderful. Look what she made me.
I snapped a picture of my painting and fired it off.
The reply was nearly instant.
Grant: That’s really good. Professional good. I know some studio owners in the city. I should connect Jaz with them, see what they say.
I gaped at Jaz and told her what he said, but instead of being excited, she ducked her chin to her chest. I frowned. “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t want people to see them.”
I pushed her hair behind her ear. “Why not?”
The chin went down even more. “Because people are mean. They say bad things about things you work on. I don’t want them to say bad things about my things.”
I melted against her and pulled her into the circle of my arm.
“Bad stuff hurts, doesn’t it?” She nodded. “But remember, we can’t ever let that stop us from trying. You know what they say about buttholes, right?”
She grinned, straightening up. “Yeah. Everybody’s got one. Do you know what they say about life?”
“What?”
“Life is like a dick. Sometimes it’s up. Sometimes it’s down. But it won’t be hard forever.”
I covered my face while she went into a fit of giggles for so long, she got the hiccups. “I…” hiccup, “learned that from…” hiccup, “camp.”
My phone pinged, and I realized I’d forgotten all about Grant.
Grant: Are you still coming over tomorrow?
My toes curled. Grant and Nash would both be there.
I glanced at Jaz. “Are you still going to the movies and stuff with Alexa tomorrow?”
How terrible was it that I wanted to get rid of my sister?
“Yes. We’re going to the movies and the mall and out to eat. Alexa’s mom said she’d pick me up at twelve and drop me off at six.”
Six hours with Grant and Nash. I texted him the news.
Grant: I’m looking forward to seeing you again.
I wanted to hug the phone to my chest.
Me: I’m looking forward to seeing you too.
*
Grant’s cock hit my gag reflex when the force of Nash’s thrust shot me forward.
Threesomes were fun. But they were also a lot of work. And at times could be semi-dangerous.
Grant smoothed my hair back from my face. “You okay?”
I just grinned. “If once you don’t succeed…”
He moaned as I took him back into my mouth and tried again.
I’d never known how heady it was — I’m so puny — to give head. The sheer power of having your teeth on a man’s most prized possession. The ability to drive him crazy with your tongue. The way he looked at you when you sucked his balls into your mouth.
A little lust. A little fear. Couldn’t ask for much more than that.
Nash’s hand moved around me, finding my clit.
Stroking Grant with my hand, my body clamped down around Nash, the beginning of a climax already rushing up to grip me in its tight, merciless fist.
Grant stroked my back with one hand while reaching under me to squeeze my breast.
“That’s right, Journey,” Grant crooned, his fingers rolling my nipple. “Let him make you come. I’ll be right here, watching, waiting until you’re done.”
Everything was a seduction. The touch. The words. The scents.
And I surrendered to it all, relished it when the orgasm broke over me, leaving me senseless.
I felt Grant move. I knew I was being turned over, but instead of lying on the bed, I was on Nash’s chest, my back to his front as he leaned onto the headboard.
“I want your ass,” he growled and began the process of taking me there. It still hurt some, especially with Nash’s wider girth, but I’d learned how to breathe through it, eager to get to the part that was pure bliss. “Damn, you’re so tight. Sometimes, I think you’re going to cut my dick off.” I clenched down, and he growled again. I was beginning to learn some tricks.
A hiss of a condom package tearing drew my attention to Grant.
Dark eyes blazing, he stroked himself, which always turned me on. I liked watching him. His focus and intensity could be spellbinding.
Crawling onto the bed, he hooked my knees over his arms, then looked down to where I was connected to Nash.
I should have been embarrassed but I’d grown more used to being examined so thoroughly.
“Does that feel good, baby?”
I nodded, unable to speak.
“Want me to fill you the rest of the way up?”
I nodded again, but he just grinned. “Tell me.”
A part of me wanted to make him wait for my response, knowing he was suffering as much as I. But the bigger part just wanted him inside me. Face to face like this, so he could also take my mouth.
“Fuck me, Grant.”
His nostrils flared, and his first thrust was an invasion that moved me up Nash’s cock.
I closed my eyes, relishing it all.
I smiled when his lips came down on mine, and I circled my arms around his shoulders, pulling him to me closer.
Hands moved to my breasts — Nash’s — and I was complete.
Opening my eyes, I gazed into the brown ones so close to mine. Emotion surged through me as I realized just how much I cared for him. Cared for them both.
Lifting my fingers to his scars, I covered them as he made love to me, his movement forcing me to make love to Nash.
We were a chain. A strong chain I was beginning to realize. And I was beginning to depend on the strength for my very breath.
As before, our orgasms were a chain reaction.
Me.
Nash.
Grant.
We were still a pile of tangled limbs when I fell asleep.
*
I opened my eyes with a start.
Jasmine!
Where was she? What time was it?
But when I found my phone and located the time, I slumped back onto the bed. Thank goodness, I wasn’t late. Then I noticed a message from Jaz: I’m early back home. Where are you?
Crap.
I sent her a text back: On my way.
I rolled off the bed, wondering where the guys were as I pulled on my clothes.
Unable to find my shoes, I remembered that I’d left them in the living room earlier, next to my bag. Snatching up my phone, I padded down the hallway, listening for any sounds.
Voices whispered their way to me, and I headed in the direction of Grant’s office.
I lifted my hand to knock but paused… froze… when I heard a deep grumble. “I’m serious, I can’t keep doing this.” It was Grant.
Nash laughed, but it was more of a snorting sound. “What? Do you want to pay her off too?”
Pay me off? Too?
I leaned against the wall beside the door that was cracked open a couple inches, my legs growing watery.
Grant made a scoffing sound. “Sure. What should I offer her?”
“You could do a hundred-grand like with Melissa.”
“Dammit. Her name was Michelle. But why stop at that? Maybe a cool million this time. Maybe two, since she did us both.”
“Hell, I’ll toss in two as well. It should keep her happy and quiet for a while.”
My heart had taken up residence in my eardrums, and it was all I could seem to hear. Nash said something else. At least I thought it was Nash.
The edges of my vision dimmed, and I knew I needed to get out of there. Still holding on to the wall, I moved away, staying on my tiptoes until I reached the penthouse entrance, scooping up my shoes and purse by the couch.
My trembling fingers almost wouldn’t open the door, and my movements seemed to be in slow motion as I shut it softly behind me. I watched my finger reach out to push the down button of the elevator. Heard the ding when it reached my floor. Felt myself step inside. Felt it begin its descent. Felt myself slide my feet into my shoes.
Grant. Nash.
A sound I’d never made before forced its way from my throat, and it accompanied me all the way to the lobby floor.
My phone pinged, and I ignored it, walking across the lobby and smiling at the employees as if this was just an ordinary day.
None of this made sense.
Why invite me over in the first place if they felt like this? One last fuck? Was that why Grant kissed me so much? It was a goodbye.
I always knew it was a possibility, but not this soon. Not like this.
My phone pinged again, and since I was now pretty much wandering aimlessly, I looked at the screen.
Jaz: I need you to come home.
Instead of texting a reply, I called her back. Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. Voice mail. I hit the green button again. It went straight to voice mail this time.
Walking faster, I texted back: What’s wrong? Answer the phone.
The reply was nearly instant. Jaz wasn’t able to type very fast and the speed in which my phone pinged shot a fresh dart of adrenaline through my system.
Jaz: I can’t. Where are you?
I frowned, puzzled even further. Jazzy knew she could find my every location on her phone through the app. Had she fallen and hit her head? Was she confused?
Me: I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.
Moving into a full-on sprint, I cursed the sandals I was wearing, knowing they were slowing me down. I stopped and pulled them off, assessing that the risk of stepping on glass was about the same of breaking my ankle in a fall.
Sweat was running down every inch of my skin by the time I rounded the corner. Glancing up at our windows, the new curtains fluttered on the far-right window. Jaz had been watching for me. But instead of standing there and waving as she often did, she… what?
Charlie Jr. was sweeping off the steps as I came flying up. His eyes bored into me, those red lips sagging open as I raced past him. “Hey, no running,” he said, but I ignored him, feeling his eyes on my ass.
One more week. Just one more week and he’d be gone, I thought as I flew to the door. I stopped, taking in three long deep breaths and swiped the sweat away from my forehead with my arm. I needed to calm down. I needed to be rational. Whatever I found on the other side of this door wouldn’t be helped by my hysteria.
My hands trembled as I turned the knob and pushed the door open. In the middle of the living room, Jasmine stood, tears running in slow tracks down her face.
“Jaz. What’s wrong.” I stepped farther into the room, feeling like I was approaching a frightened deer. “Are you hurt?”
Her face collapsed, and she began to cry harder. “I—”
The door closed behind me with a soft click.
Then a woman’s voice said, “Hi, Ticket.”