Beyond Eighteen (37 page)

I watched as she adjusted and turned over. I
grabbed her panties and pulled them down, her ass so round, so
perfect. I leaned down and kissed her at the base of her spine then
I pressed my hands against her waist before I raked them down to
her ass. She couldn’t see me, but I saw everything about her. The
way her spine shifted as she moved, the goose bumps that formed
across her flesh as my fingers massaged down between her legs. I
pushed my lips to where her ass met her thigh.

“
Push up on your knees,” I
growled. No, I didn’t ask.

I looked at her face, covered with random
curls across her red cheeks, as she shifted her hair away from her
eyes and adjusted her body comfortably. Her lips pulled into a
slight smile; I could tell she wanted whatever I was willing to
give. I slid my hands across the backs of her thighs before
brushing my fingers up along the insides of her legs, where her
warmth waited for me. Her hips rocked toward my fingers, begging
for just a touch, a gentle stroke of magic for both of us.

I pushed my fingers against her. I felt the
damp desire to be fulfilled grow as I rubbed and played her into
pants and huffs.

I rolled over on my back. Her hips still
thrusting at the vacancy of my fingers, I slid up under her and
grabbed around her ass. Her legs spread. I pulled her down against
my mouth. She swayed and rocked. Her growls and moans drove me to
the edge. Almost there, her body vibrating on the thin line of
exploding, she pulled away.

“
This isn’t fair,” she
sighed as she turned around. Kneeling on the bed, she reached for
me. I was rock hard before she even began to stroke. I pushed my
head back into the bed and brought my hands to her thighs, my
fingers tickling and brushing inside her. I wanted to make her
moan. Her hand tight against me, I felt her mouth push down around
me. Every cell in my body was electrified. She made something click
inside as she ran her tongue across my length. I pulled her by the
waist and pushed my tongue up between her legs. We were taking each
other to the edge of never coming back…at the same time. She pushed
down against me, I nibbled her with my teeth, she whimpered while
pleasing me, I moaned as she took me, she thrust and pulled as I
nudged and pulsed my tongue against her folds. I could feel by the
way her body moved she was about to explode.

My hips thrust deep, her hips pushed hard;
intense, wet, speeding, humming, heat. My body shook. Not pulling
away, she consumed me. My eyes rolled back in my head and every
moment that meant anything melted away when I came with Wilson. My
muscles tensed as her body convulsed on top of mine, her hips
splayed wide across my face, her muscles thick against mine. I kept
nudging between her wet, warm legs, caressing the folds of her raw
nerves, knowing there was another wave waiting to break against me.
It wasn’t but minutes later that she detonated again, feral against
my body.

“
Oh, my God, holy shit,
Max,” she kept moaning as her body shook uncontrollably across my
chest. I knew where she was. It was an ecstasy she’d only
experienced with me. An understanding passed between us, an
unspoken reflection of what we’d just shared. Ragged breaths echoed
through the quiet space around us until my voice broke the wordless
moment.

“
I bet you’re surprised I
showed up,” I remarked as she aligned with me. She looked
over—crescent eyes, worn expression, and breathing hard—words
weren’t necessary. I knew I’d sent her out of this
world…twice.

“
Mmmm, you showed up in a
big way. I can’t tell you how happy I am that you’re here with me,”
she said as she laid her head against my chest, her hair splayed
across my neck.

“
You had a pretty rough
couple of days?”

“
Yeah,” I said.

“
You want to talk about
it?” I asked. I wanted her to know I was willing to
listen.

“
Maybe later. Right now I
just want to lay here with you, in your arms,” she answered against
my chest.

“
I like that idea,” I said
as I refreshed my hold on her. “I like that a lot.”

~ Wilson ~

It was fantastic to have Max with me.
Everything that seemed so heavy and so painful cleared up in his
touch. It was if everything I could taste, smell, and feel became
brilliant and magnified—the heat from the fireplace as it rolled
across my skin, the aroma of Aspen saturating Max’s clothes, even
the flavor of Joanie’s minestrone soup was magnificent.

We entered the kitchen hand in hand. The
honey-colored knotty pine cabinets still held the same warm
memories of my grandma’s cooking. Joanie was leaning against the
farm style sink, absorbed in a conversation—obviously with Nick. It
didn’t take more than the first few words I overheard to know who
she was talking to. She was glowing like a little kid who’d just
gotten everything she wanted for Christmas. Her eyes held an eager
glimmer while her pale lips pulled tight across her brilliant,
white teeth. I think I actually heard her breath hitch as she
spoke. She looked up and saw us, then nodded her head and gave us a
thumbs-up, indicating that she had a lot to tell us.

“Nick, I just can’t believe it!” she said,
louder and more exaggerated than necessary.

I tried to enter into a silent, ‘tell your
best friend what the hell is going on’ conversation while she
talked to Nick. I swung my arms and pointed to the floor a couple
of times as I pressed my hands to my heart and mouthed whatever
thoughts came to my head. Finally she cleared her throat and told
him that she’d call him back. They said their ‘talk to you laters’
and ‘can’t wait to see yous’ as I felt a rush of relief that I was
finally going to be let in on her plans.

J dropped her iPhone onto the rose-colored
tile counter. Sighing, she ran her hands through her hair, pulling
it back off her face. She only did that when she had choices to
make regarding events that tend to let me down. Her face told me
everything…I didn’t even have to ask. But I did.

“He talked you into going back to Aspen,
didn’t he?” I said. My arms became heavier than they would have
with any attempt to talk best friend sign language with her
again.

“Well, not really. He’s down at the Sea Rock
Inn on the other side of town and he wants me to meet him.”

“So he wasn’t kidding when he told you he
was coming out?” I asked. I could feel the shift in her intention
as she answered me.

“I never thought in a million years he would
fly out here knowing there’s a huge possibility I wasn’t going to
see him,” Joanie said as she picked up her phone and pushed it into
her pocket.

I felt Max’s hands slide across my stomach
before he tightened his grip around my waist and pushed up against
my backside. He let out a slight laugh, only loud enough for me, as
he rested his chin on my shoulder. I half expected Max to lecture J
about Nick, but he didn’t. Instead, he kissed my neck and left us
alone to talk. I heard the TV click on in the other room. It was
his way of giving J and me the moment we needed to talk.

“I won’t go if you need me here,” Joanie
said. Her body posture slumped slightly. I knew that stance, that
silent language that told me she was willing to sacrifice for
me.

“No, absolutely not,” I said sternly.

“I know you’ve been through a lot and well,
now that Max is here—”

“J, I want you to go. I’m tired of being the
needy best friend. You deserve to be happy, and I can see you light
up every time you talk to him,” I said before pulling her into a
hug. “I want you to be happy,” I whispered against her ear.

“Thanks, Wil. I love you.”

“I love you too. Now go, have fun…just call
me. And be careful,” I said.

I wouldn’t be human if I didn’t feel a
little jealous that Nick was going to spend New Year’s with my best
friend. But it wouldn’t be fair to her if I had Max and she didn’t
have Nick. I knew we couldn’t spend this New Year’s together…but
with time, maybe wounds would be healed and lives would change.

“Are you sure?” Joanie asked.

“Yes, now get your stuff and get the heck
out of here. Hurry, before I regret it,” I teased.

Joanie squealed, like a kid who’d just
gotten the okay to stay out late. She squeezed me tight around the
neck before she bounded upstairs. I turned and watched as she
pulled out her phone.

I served up two bowls of minestrone soup and
carried them out to Max. We cuddled up on the couch, slurping our
soup, and watched Ohio State Buckeyes play the Oregon Ducks in the
Rose Bowl.

“Okay, you two, be good and Happy New Year,”
Joanie said. She collected her suitcase, rolling behind her. She
had changed into a cute scoop-neck, loose-knit gray sweater and
black pants.

“Are you coming back in a couple of days?” I
asked quickly.

“I…ah...I’ll call you.
He
wants to
see the coast a little before heading back to the Bay Area.”

“Okay, well come here,” I said as I set my
soup on the coffee table and hugged her.

“Avoid the construction up on Highway 1,”
Max said.

“Thanks, Max, take care of our girl here,”
Joanie answered as she tapped him on the chest.

“Here, I’ll take this for you.” Max grabbed
her suitcase and carried it out to her SUV. He shoved it in the
back before meeting me back on the porch.

I stood wrapped in his arms as we watched
Joanie drive off to meet Nick. The cold ocean breeze swirled around
my neck, causing me to shiver. Max noticed and pushed his lips to
my neck.

“Well, it’s just you and me now…wonder what
kind of trouble we can get into?” Max said as he pulled me back
against his chest. I stumbled and he slipped his hands down around
my waist.

“All kinds of trouble,” I said as I pushed
back against him before slipping out of his arms and pulling him
back into the house.

“I like the sound of that,” he growled as he
pushed his body against my backside. “Maybe we’ll just stay in the
entire time and make love wherever we feel like it. Like here,” he
said as he pushed me against the wall at the foot of the stairs,
kissing me, hungry to have me again.

I pushed back hard and shoved him back
against the arm of the couch. The soup still on the coffee table,
the Buckeyes still beating the Ducks, I pushed him down on the
couch and straddled him.

“I don’t know if this is such a good idea…J
just left, what if she forgot something and comes back in?” I asked
as I pulled his shirt off over his head.

His smile mesmerized me, his eyes pierced my
soul, his hands clung to the edges of my face, and I melted into
his lap.

“She can’t…I locked the front door.” He
smiled before pushing his mouth hard against mine. His lips were
hot, wet, and tasty as his tongue tangled with mine. His hands slid
firmly across my back as he pulled me closer.

“You ready to make love to me right here?” I
asked as he dropped his mouth to my neck.

“God knows I’m ready,” he answered as his
hands slipped under my shirt. His fingers dragged along the edge of
my bra, his thumbs separating my straps from my skin. Goose bumps
raged where his fingers explored my flesh. His palms dragged along
my breasts, my nipples hard against his fingers, my lips owning
his. I needed his kiss and craved his touch.

I pulled at his shirt, trying to free it
from his chest. I wanted to feel his skin with my hands, drag my
fingers along his shapely six-pack, and I longed to get lost in his
touch.

“Hold on, babe…there’s something I want to
show you,” he said as he leaned back, attempting to stop me from
groping him. I pushed my hands into his hair, but he reached up to
grab my wrists and kept me from trying to kiss him.

“What do you want to show me?” I sighed as I
played with him a little more.

“Really, babe, it won’t take but a minute. I
found it when I got here. I want to show it to you,” Max held my
wrists and stared into my eyes.
God, he gets whatever he wants
from me when he gives me those sultry, puppy dog eyes …and he knows
it.

“Okay, where are we going?” I asked as he
helped me off his lap.

“Just wait and see.”

I was never really good at ‘wait and see.’ I
was more of the ‘just give it to me now’ type of girl. I didn’t
want to be surprised by something I had no control over. Max
learned that when he got me into that death trap up in the sky.

“We already did that with the
helicopter…remember? That didn’t go over too well. Besides, what if
I refuse?” I countered.

“I promise you, I will not take you in any
moving vehicles or machinery that takes you off the ground. Just
give me one second,” Max stopped talking for a moment, hustled to
his suitcase, and began to rummage through it.

“What are you looking for? Do you need me to
help?” I asked, noticing his arm buried up to his bicep.

“No, I need my jacket. Wait, here, it is.
Get yours, too.” He pulled out a light windbreaker, too thin for
north coast weather in December. I collected my grandpa’s flannel
jacket off the old, gnarly, driftwood coat rack by the front door.
I could still smell his Old Spice cologne in its fibers.

“Alright, let’s go,” Max said as he gave me
a quick kiss on the lips and pulled open the door.

We walked across the front yard out the
sea-weathered picket fence and down the narrow sandy trail toward
the ocean cliffs behind the house. The long, thin, wispy foxtails
swayed in the breeze, trouncing against our jeans as we meandered
our way to the ocean’s edge. The winter sun attempted to warm our
faces while the chill of the gentle wind betrayed all its efforts.
Targeted by the salty ocean air, blustery against my skin, I
reminisced about spending hours down at the beach when I was
younger.