“You have an awesome group of friends,” I tell her.
Soft cheeks plump up with her smile. “I really do,” she says with a sigh.
Amelia tugs at my hand and leads me towards an errant log on its side in the sand. She sits down in the sand, her back against the log. Our hands separate as I drop down next to her. Just as I go to take hers into mine again, she uses it to toy with her bottom lip. I can’t tell if she’s nervous, pensive, or what. So I just rest my arm around her shoulders on the back of the log, not pulling her in, letting her have her space.
Amelia stares out into the dark waters. “I used to spend every single summer here. I can’t believe it’s been four years since I’ve been back.”
While I’ve heard mention of the accident, she has yet to talk to me about her parents. No one’s actually come out and said it, but I’ve deduced they’re no longer with us. And if she’s not ready to talk about, there’s no reason for me to push. That’s not what we are to each other. That’s not why we’re here. Yet…for whatever reason, I want to know. So, even though part of my brain is screaming for me to let it go, I don’t.
“Why is that, Amelia? Why’d you stay away?”
Her head turns from the lake to me so swiftly that I nearly falter at the expression on her face. Wide, wistful eyes gaze up at mine, and for the first time this summer, there’s a sadness in them. I hate myself for having asked the question. The moment is so brief that I’m hit with whiplash when she straddles me and rests her palms on my cheeks.
Warm lips descend to take mine in a feverish kiss. I wrap my arms around her, my hands sliding beneath her shirt to feel soft, bare skin.
I know what Amelia’s doing. Whatever brought the pain to her eyes, she wants to erase it. Whatever’s haunting her from four summers ago, she wants to bury it. And she’s using me to do it.
Do I mind?
Not one fucking bit. So I let her. To a point.
Once her hips rock twice, pushing her sweet, tragically covered pussy along the length of my hard cock, I withdraw my tongue from her mouth, nearly chuckling at the sound of her whimper. My hands lock in firmly around both sides of her waist. Then I use my strength to push off the sand, her legs encircling my abdomen as I stand.
“God, you’re strong,” she whispers, her eyes glossy.
This time, I do chuckle. “Come on, babe. Let’s get you home.”
The moonlight illuminates the pout on her face, and I know what’s she’s thinking. Her disappointment is evident when she glides down my body, moves away from me, and wraps one hand around her arm as if she’s cold. I could pull her close to me, drape an arm around her, try to warm her up. I don’t. Instead, I just fall into step beside her. We walk towards her house in deafening silence.
I can practically feel the wheels turning in her head, see the steam rising from her ears. I don’t know what it is about her, but I love getting a rise out of her. It makes me wonder if she’s just as demonstrative in the bedroom.
A guy can only hope.
She’s a few steps ahead of me, already inserting the key into her lock and pushing the door open when I reach the bottom of the steps. I’m about to follow Amelia up the stairs to her porch when she tosses her purse inside then whirls around to face me. She places her hands on her hips and sets her chin, half glaring at me. Her expression stops me in my tracks, cock rendered half-erect just from her glower. My hands grip the bottom of the rails in an effort to keep hold of my patience. Because from the looks of her, she’s about to let me have it. Whatever it is.
“Look, I don’t know what’s going on with you. And I don’t want to seem like some sex-crazed fiend or anything, but Knox, you’re driving me absolutely insane.” She tips her head back and rakes both hands down her face.
It’s adorable, though I’m pretty sure that’s not what she’s going for.
A slow grin spreads across my face. I can only imagine how this moment looks from the outside. Amelia’s standing at the top of the steps, her hip jutted out, annoyance etched across her features, while I’m at the bottom, gazing up at her, my fingers clenched tightly around the iron railings. It’s gotta be apparent that I’m barely holding on to my control with the way my forearms flex with my tightening grip around the iron. Amelia, however, doesn’t notice. I’m about to tell her take a good look and tell me what she sees if she truly looks at me, but she’s too impatient with my momentary silence.
“I’m not a virgin if that’s what you’re worried about. I’m not an innocent.” She points her finger down at me. “You told me to tell you if you’re going too fast. Christ Almighty, if this is what you consider fast, I’d hate to see how you do slow!”
“Babe—”
Her rant continues as if I hadn’t uttered a word. She flails hers arms out wide, her T-shirt tightening across her breasts. “I mean, Jesus, Knox. I’m wearing a shirt with a guy’s tongue hanging out. How much more obvious do I have to be?”
I can’t help the smirk that crosses my lips. “Amelia, if you think Gene Simmons is an indication that you want my tongue between your legs… Well, that was lost on me.”
Her pretty head falls back and she curses up to the sky before her flashing eyes come back to me. “Fine, whatever. My mistake.” She sighs, placing a hand on her hip. “I’m tired of taking this slow. I’m tired of falling asleep with an ache you won’t satisfy. I know what I want, and what I want is you. I’m sure you know that, so what I want to know is why the hell you haven’t done anything other than kiss me senseless and graze my boobs from time to time?”
This girl sure knows how to make a guy rock hard with just a few words.
A lazy grin spreads across my face. I fold my arms, raking my gaze down her delectable body before meeting her narrowed eyes. She huffs. Fucking huffs. And instead of being annoyed, I like it.
Don’t get me wrong. I want in her bed. But right now, I’ll take every word I can get before making that happen.
Hey, there’s nothing wrong with getting your ego stroked by an overheated sex kitten. And seeing as how she’s prone to interruption, I wait a couple of beats before I decide I’m allowed to get a word in. I’d rather she be purring than sinking those claws into me.
“I thought you liked me kissin’ you senseless. And the way you shivered every time my fingers skimmed your boobs had me thinkin’ you liked that, too.”
Amelia blows out a breath so hard that her bangs fly up out of her face. “I do. I so do, but I’ve been waiting for you to make the first move in progressing this thing”—she waves her hands between us—“and you haven’t done anything. I’ve been about as obvious as I can without saying the words. So here I am, saying it. I want your tongue between my legs. Your cock, too.”
Yeah. Rock fucking hard.
“It’s 1980, sweetheart. Women are allowed to make the first move, ya know?” I shouldn’t egg her on, but it’s too damn hard not to.
A cute little grin spreads across her face, and she treats me to an exaggerated eyeroll. “Noted. And I’ll remember that for the next guy.”
Yeah, not a fan of that. Not fucking at all.