Across the Ocean (14 page)

These days, she is all I can think about. I don
’t know why it isn’t easier to make a decision like this. I think in part, I feel guilty because I’m realizing that I probably never gave all of myself to Lára during this last year, because I was so in love with Brooke.

I
’m shocked stupid for a moment.
Am I in love with Brooke
? Is this more than just a crush, or infatuation? Part of me had mostly assumed that it was simply lust for what we’d teased each other with for so long.

I
’m at Gunnar’s place again. I had to see him before tonight happened. I know he’ll point me in a direction that I need to go. I don’t know what I’d do without him.

Rubbing my hand over my cheek and chin, I realize I have forgotten to shave this morning, and now am scruffy. I need to pull myself together so I don
’t screw this up. I think I remember Brooke telling me she liked guys with scruff, so I probably shouldn’t worry.

I
’m standing in front of a full length mirror in Gunnar’s entryway. He’s standing in the kitchen door frame, leaning against it on his shoulder while he watches me. Arms crossed over his chest, he ponders my choice in outfit.

“Yeah, I think she
’ll like this. You look good, man. Stop worrying.” He shakes his head, I hear him mumble something about an idiot, and turn around to go inside the kitchen.

Maybe I am being an idiot. I
’m not going on a date with her; I’m just spending some of my day with a good friend. There’s nothing else to it, no matter what my high levels of anxiety and anticipation says.

I have thirty minutes before I need to pick Brooke up. Walking into the living room, I sit in my usual place on the couch. I take a few deep breaths to settle down. I
’ll just focus on where I’d like to take Brooke. There are so many great places I can show her, it’s hard to narrow it down.

The fact that Lára has to work today seems like sheer luck. Normally all three of the girls work the same shifts, so it
’s a bit unusual for Emilia to have scheduled it differently. Even the fact that Lára has to baby-sit until late in the evening makes me happy.

I would figure that I should feel
guiltier for being happy that my current girlfriend has to be gone all night, so that I can have private time with another girl who I’m crazy about. I don’t, though. I am simply filled with pre-date jitters and excitement to spend another day with Brooke.

Things didn
’t end on the best note last time we had a moment alone, and I need to be able to be her friend even if I’m not available to date her. I still need her in my life. I am overjoyed that she’s even here. The sheer fact that she finally made it to see me, it overwhelms me.

If Brooke and I really click today, maybe it
’ll be a big sign to me that Lára isn’t the right girl for me. It’s one thing to be so close with the safety of a monitor and a keyboard, and maybe we don’t actually click in person. We haven’t given ourselves a chance, because we’ve been so damned scared of everyone else.

On the other hand, even if I decide that Brooke is the one for me, does that mean we would have to pursue a long distance relationship? I don
’t think I could suffer that, after having met her. Would she be willing to change her whole life just to date me?

How could she give up her whole life in the States just for me? She hardly knows the real me, right? I
’m only freaking myself out, so I stand up and head to the kitchen to see what Gunnar is doing.

“Uh oh. I can see that look in your eye. Do you need to sit down and put your head between your knees?” I
realize that my anxiety must be showing on my face, when Gunnar comes and pats me on the shoulder in sympathy.

“You
’ve got this, Ari. This girl is absolutely crazy about you. I can see it, everyone can see it. Just relax and be yourself. You two are just friends. There is no pressure to impress her. You aren’t going on a date. You are two people just hanging out, shooting the breeze.” I nod along with his words because he’s right.

“Thanks Gunnar. You
’re absolutely right.” I’m going to jump in with both feet and see what happens.

“I
’m going to head out, and pick her up. I’ll call you later?” I turn and grab my jacket off of the coat hanger, slide my shoes on, and head out the door.

Ari

I’m waiting for Brooke to buzz the door downstairs, so I can head up to Emilia’s apartment. My whole body is pumping adrenaline and my limbs feel a bit jerky.

Hearing the buzz, I push open the door and start heading up the two sets of stairs to their floor. I can see Brooke is standing in the doorway, waiting for me.

My breath catches in my throat when I see her. I slow down for the last few steps so I have an excuse to really look at her.
God, she’s beautiful.

Brooke
’s hair is half pulled back, showing off her beautiful face, while leaving the length to tumble down her back and shoulders. I just want to run my fingers through the gorgeous chocolate colored locks, they look so silky.

She
’s wearing a tan colored skirt that goes down to her knees, and is a bit floaty looking. Her light pink and white striped tank top with a low scoop neck is tucked into her skirt, and a honey colored belt completes the picture. Her breasts are really sexy in this top.

I don
’t think I’ve ever seen Brooke in a skirt before. I rather like it. Just imagine how quickly I could get between her legs and slide my fingers into
—No! I can’t do that! Focus, Ari!

Her face is lit up with a genuine, happy smile
and beautiful teeth. Her blue eyes sparkle down at me. She’s practically glowing and it’s because of
me
. She’s happy
to spend time with me
. This realization hits me in the chest like a brick.

I make it up the last few steps and she doesn
’t move out of the frame for a moment. Instead she just looks me over and darts her little pink tongue out to lick her lips. I can see a sheen of moisture that it leaves behind, and I just want to feast on her plump bottom lip.

Whoa
. I need to take a few deep breaths. I’ve only just seen her and already I want to take her to the floor and have my way with her. Spread those legs and…
Knock it off, Ari
.

Clearing my throat a bit, I put a cool smile on my face. Can
’t have her thinking I don’t have it all together.

“Hi.” Is all I can manage to breathe out.

“Hey.” She sounds breathless too, and it makes me feel better to know I’m not the only one affected in this moment.

“Can I come in for a bit, first? So we can figure out what our plans are for today?”

“Oh! Of course, come on inside.” She moves back to allow me in, and closes the door behind me. I start to slide my shoes off as Brooke starts trying to walk around me, causing us to almost knock each other over.

My hands instantly move up and grip her shoulders, to prevent us from toppling over. Her own little hands grasp the backs of my elbows for support. I instantly feel a sensory overload when my fingers make contact. Electricity
is flowing up my arms, into my chest, and straight down to my cock. I’m instantly hard.

By the way she
’s frozen, mouth slightly open with wide eyes, I can tell she’s feeling it too. We are stuck in a moment that is very precarious. If we fall over onto the wrong side, who knows what will happen. I’m not ready just yet to see.

I can feel Brooke trembling under my fingers
and it makes my heart squeeze. There is a pull between us, a magnetism that I don’t understand. I am definitely drawn to it.
Drawn to her
.

“Sorry
,” she whispers.

I blink my eyes a few times and let her go. I step back and take a deep breath to
clear my mind. Brooke’s eyes blink a bit too, until she scoots around me to head into the kitchen.

******

Brooke

I’m thoroughly shaken by my reaction to Ari. Watching him walk up those stairs toward me caused my stomach to explode with butterflies. My whole body is humming and jittery. He looked so handsome.

His hair is a bit messy
and I like it. It’s as though the wind had blown it to perfection. His cheeks are covered in dark stubble, and I just want to rub his face between my thighs.
Oops
.

His white v neck shirt is accompanied nicely by his black blazer jacket, and dark blue jeans. I can see a black leather belt in place under his shirt. His shirt is kind of
thin; I can definitely see some chest peeking through. I’m not complaining. My dark side was trying to check and see if his nipples were visible.

The thing I liked the most was that there were no lines of worry, anxiety, or anger around his eyes. They were crinkled with warmth. His lips were spread into one of my favorite smiles I remember from our old video chats. This is the smile that made me fall for him in the first place.

My hand rises to cover my speeding heart, as I stop against the counter in the kitchen. His hands on me felt as though I had stuck my finger in an electric socket. My hyper-awareness of him is going to give me a fucking heart attack.

“Would you like something to drink?” I call to Ari, who has moved to sit on the couch in the living room after taking his shoes and jacket off.

“That depends,” I hear him reply from the couch. “Are we leaving, where are we going, and can we take a taxi?” I chuckle in response as I grab two wine glasses from the cabinet above the sink. Setting them on the counter, I turn to the fridge and pull out a bottle of white wine I bought earlier.

“I vote for the taxi, and I don
’t care what we do. I just thought it’d be great for us to spend some time together that wasn’t terribly awkward.”

Pouring some wine into both glasses, I close the bottle and put it back into the fridge. Grabbing the glasses, I head into the living room. He leans forward to grab a glass from me, giving me a wry smile.

“I realize that it’s only a little after three. Since we are both on vacation, I think we are allowed a glass this early.” We both laugh a little and raise our glasses for a toast.

I sit down next to him on the couch, and turn the television on. Flipping until I get to a music video channel, I sip lightly on my wine. From my peripheral vision, I can see that Ari is watching me.
I return to the couch and take a moment to meet his stare.

The jolt that passes through my body when our eyes
meet makes me feel like I’m falling over, even though I’m not moving. Gazing into those blue depths is soul jarring. In turn I clear my throat and try to lighten the mood.

“I
’m so glad you agreed to hang out with me today. I was honestly pretty scared that we wouldn’t have a chance to hang out again before I leave.” I take a big gulp of wine. It’s really crisp and refreshing. I’m also hoping for my nerves to settle a bit because I don’t like thinking about leaving.

A little frown pinches Ari
’s brow as he watches me and takes a drink from his own glass.

“Are you really leaving so soon? You haven
’t been able to do nearly enough.” The sound of disappointment in his voice gives me hope.

“I just feel like I
’m overstaying my welcome with you guys at this point. This whole issue with Lára is causing me too much anxiety, and you all have routines that I’m interrupting. It just seems like the right thing to do. I’ve loved being here, though.” I don’t want him to think that the reason I’m leaving is because I hate this place.

The frown on his face deepens, and he looks to the television for a few moments, his fingertips rubbing against the outside of his glass in a delicate
pattern. I can feel a flood of blood rush to my cheeks as I imagine his fingers on my skin.

“Is there nothing that could change your mind?” His soft spoken question surprises me. Of course there is
, but I can’t tell him to ask me to stay. I can’t ask him to leave his girlfriend for me. So instead, I just shake my head a bit.

“I
’m sure there are ways I could be persuaded to stay, just don’t worry about that right now. Let’s just have a good time together. At least we’ll have today to remember, right?” My voice fades near the end, and my throat tightens. I have to swallow the lump that has formed there. I can’t stand the thought that this could be our last day together.

Taking another gulp of my wine, I pull my knee up on the couch so that I face Ari, facing him head on.
I rest my arm on the back of the couch and wait until he turns his eyes back to mine.

There is a pause between us, our eyes locked. He turns his body to face me, and puts his glass down on the table without breaking our eye contact. I can feel a buildup of energy and tension
between us. It’s crackling in the air, and my nipples harden in response.

There
’s a sudden flurry of motion from Ari, and before I can blink, his hand has grabbed me by the nape of my neck and his lips are on mine. My mouth opens in a gasp, and his tongue instantly slides inside to claim mine.

My dark side bursts through the surface, whooping and hollering
. I don’t have a chance to stop her before I find myself grabbing fiercely at his hair with my free hand and pulling his lips harder onto mine. His tongue is sliding along my lips before diving inside to mingle again with mine.

His other hand reaches around my waist and pulls me over onto his lap. Without ending our kiss, he releases my neck to grab my glass from me and place it on the table. Now that both of my hands are free, I bring them to his shoulders
and adjust my position so that I am straddling his lap.

Ari
’s hands instantly reach for my knees and slide under the hem of my skirt. Inching his fingertips up my thighs, his wrists push my skirt up along the way. I’ve never been so goddamned happy to wear a skirt in my entire life.

My body has begun to tremble with desire and I can feel that my panties are definitely wet. I don
’t think I am properly processing what is actually happening.

This is my dark side taking over. She doesn
’t care about consequences or what happens after. She knows what she wants and she’s taking it.
Fuck you, consequences!
My dark side is flipping them the bird.

I begin to suck and nibble on his lips, alternating from upper and bottom, to slide my tongue inside to tease his. His low moan, accompanied by his hard on pressing against my pussy causes more moisture to trickle between my legs.

Ari’s fingers have traced their way up to the apex of my thighs, and his thumbs have begun to tease under the edges of my panties. My dark side is chanting in my brain
touch me
, over and over. I hear him chuckle a bit, and realize that I’ve been whispering it out loud against his lips.
Well, fuck it
. I have no shame.

My breath catches and stalls in my throat as his fingertips finally scoot under the elastic to touch my smooth, hairless pussy. I can feel that I
’m absolutely soaking wet now. I can’t believe how strong my physical response to Ari is with only a few moments of kissing.

His right thumb slides between my folds and into the heat
in search of my clit. He finds it easily and begins to rub in a light, circular motion. He raises his left hand to grasp my by the base of my neck again, all the while still feasting hungrily on my mouth.

I don
’t think I’ve ever had a guy find my hot spot so quickly and so perfectly before. I remember something Emilia said quite a while back about Ari having “magic fingers.”
Oh god, show me your fucking magic fingers.
My hips grind forward against his hand in agreement.

His lips tear away from my mouth and begin to leave a hot, wet trail down my neck. I tilt my head to the side to give him better access. My fingers are
gripping his hair tightly.

Twisting his hand around, he pushes my panties farther to the side with his wrist,
and slides two fingers easily inside of me. I let out a long, broken moan. It feels so good that I am floating in bliss. My hips buck against his hand.

His thumb immediately finds my clit again, pressing against it while his fingers begin a slow, torturous pace. He is rubbing against the bundle of nerves under my clit as his fingers slide in and out. The pleasure is just flowing through my body in waves
and overwhelming my senses. No one before him has ever made me feel such intense pleasure. It’s as though his skin is the magic remedy that I didn’t know I needed.

My dark side is drunk with the pleasure. She
’s lying on her back, spread eagle, begging for more. His teeth are pulling at my earlobe and I can barely move. His fingers inside of me keep moving, as his other hand slides down to grab my ass under my skirt.

I can feel the tension building in my core, and I
’m panting with the need to come. My dark side whispers something to me about shooting the next person in the face who tries to stop me from coming.

My entire body is trembling with the
tension. Still his fingers keep his slow pace inside of me. My hands are desperately scratching down his back and up into his hair while my hips are moving shamelessly against his hand in search of release.