Forever Baby (17 page)

Fingers entwined, I walk out into the night air with Andres. We walk for a block to a busier intersection to hail a cab. His hand squeezes hard around mine, and I start to protest when I sense his body stiffening. My attention focuses on his face, and he almost looks pained or scared. Confusion sets in. Andres shows no indication that he recognizes me standing here while I scrutinize his features. His stare is locked on something in the distance, and I attempt to follow it. He is peering across the street toward what seems to be another bar.

I don’t see anything out of the ordinary. At first glance, I think he’s looking at a rundown storefront until I notice the lit beer signs in the window. It appears to be a smaller dive bar. Nothing seems out of place for an entrance to a hole-in-the-wall bar at one in the morning. There are two women, who appear to be a good ten years older than me, waiting on the curb, presumably trying to catch a cab. A couple is leaning against one of the windows, kissing. I see an older man leaning against a lamppost, seeming to need it to stand. Then, he stumbles back before catching himself by securing his grip on the post. Andres’s body involuntarily recoils back, startling me.

“Andres? Andres?” I say his name twice before he seems to remember me standing here with him.

He says a hushed, “Let’s go.”

Pulling me to the curb, he throws out his arm, hailing a cab immediately. Once inside the vehicle, he slams the door with a little too much gusto, and in a tattered voice, he tells the driver his address. I release my hand from his stone grasp and flex my fingers, getting the blood circulating again. Andres’s stare flicks down to my extended fingers, and he throws his head back into the seat as he exhales an audible breath.

“Are you okay?”

“Fine,” he answers shortly.

“What happened back there?”

“It’s nothing, Olivia.”

Or nothing you want to talk about
, I think. “It was something.”

He lets out an exasperated sigh. “Listen, Olivia, I saw someone that I would rather not see. It is nothing for you to be worried about, and honestly, I don’t want to talk about it.”

I exhale, leaning my head into the back of the seat. “Okay.”

We sit in silence, deep in our own thoughts, as we take the ride to his place.

Once there, Andres grasps my hand carefully in his and leads me into his quiet, dark house. We head up to his bedroom, and he closes the door behind him. His mouth is immediately on mine. Impatient, hard kisses devour my mouth. He runs his fingers through my hair and pulls my head back. It’s rough enough to feel uncomfortable, but it’s not meant to really hurt. He starts kissing, sucking, and biting up and down my neck fervently.

He unsnaps my corset and lets it drop to the floor. He wastes no time as he tugs off his shirt, and then he places one hand on each of my breasts, pulling and twisting my nipples. He cups them in his hands and kneads them while rubbing me between my legs with his knee. Bending down, he sucks on one of my nipples as he unsnaps my shorts. Without releasing my nipple from its sweet torture, he slides out of his jeans and grabs my tummy with both hands, pressing his fingers firmly into my hips. He starts to pull his mouth off my nipple, but before he releases it, he gently bites down while stretching it. I scream in agonized ecstasy. I never knew pain could be so pleasurable. My whole body is tense with desire.

His stare burns into me with an intense, tortured expression. “I need to be inside you now, baby. I need to feel you,” he says as he picks me up, holding me by my ass cheeks.

I circle my legs around him as he leans me against the wall. Without hesitation, he slams into me, gloriously filling me to my center. I scream again, letting my head fall against the wall. Our eyes lock as he regards me with a passion that resonates to my core. He takes me with a fiery need that can only be quenched through this forceful, animalistic connection we have.

I groan and concentrate on the exquisite feeling of him driving into me and the sound of our skin slapping together in heated passion. He continues an onslaught of rough, passionate, and urgent thrusts, and before I know it, I am taken by a powerful orgasm.

“God, Andres!” I scream.

He continues to thrust inside me, and we find our releases together. He yells my name through his jagged, raw breaths, and then he slumps into me, pressing me firmly between him and the wall, not releasing his steady hold. His strong arms are wrapped around me, and I lean my face against his chest, panting. I can hear his heart pounding. I kiss his chest and rub my hands up and down his firm shoulders.

Still holding me, he walks over to his bed and lays me down. He lies next to me and runs his fingers through my hair, removing all the strands from my face. “You are so beautiful, Olivia.” He leans in and kisses me gently and lovingly.

We curl together, and he runs his hands up and down my back, caressing every inch of my exposed skin. I run my fingers across his lean, tight muscles and up into his hair. I know he’s not ready to hear it, so I express my love through gentle, passionate kisses. I want him to feel all the desire I have for him.

We kiss for a long time, and without releasing my lips from his, I swing my leg around him so that I’m straddling him. I guide him into me and slide down, taking in every inch, as I feel him moan into my mouth. With our tongues entangled in a staggering dance, I make love to him with all the passion I have. We find our releases together again. I groan as I fall around him.

I collapse against his chest with my legs wrapped around his sides. His hands caress my skin. We’re both breathing heavily. A tear rolls down my cheek as I’m overcome with emotion for this man. Luckily, I’m able to discreetly wipe my tear away before it falls onto his chest. I’m afraid I’ll scare him with the depth of my feelings.

I know there’s still so much he hasn’t shared with me, and I want to give him time. My heart is full with the knowledge that Andres Cruz, the sexiest man I’ve ever met, has changed my life forever. I don’t know exactly what the future holds, but I do know that I will never be the same.

We continue to lie chest-to-chest, still connected to one another, melded into one.

He breaks the silence. “I can’t even tell you how angry I was when that guy was trying to dance with you tonight. I guess you’d call that jealousy. It’s a new emotion for me.”

I prop my elbows on his chest, so I can capture his eyes. “Are you telling me you’ve never felt jealous before?”

“No, not about a girl. I guess I’ve never let myself care enough about a girl to feel jealous.”

I grin. “Well, I wasn’t going to dance with him. I was trying to let him down kindly though, and I have to say, it was kind of hard to focus when you were shooting daggers at us.”

“He’s lucky he took the hint when he did because I was about to jump off that stage and bash his face in.”

I laugh, shaking my head. “That would not have been necessary!” In complete seriousness, I add, “You don’t have to worry, Andres. I only want you.”

He leans up and gives me a chaste kiss on the lips. “Good, because I only want you, too.”

I smile and rest my head on his chest. He locks his arms around my waist and hugs me tightly.

“Livi, now that we’re talking about jealousy, I want to talk to you about Nolan.”

I glance up at him.
Oh no, not this again.

“I know you and Nolan have been friends for a long time, and I respect that. I understand that you don’t see him any other way.” He pauses and takes a deep breath. “But, babe, I see how he looks at you, and I know what emotions reside behind those eyes. I know because I look at you the same way. All I’m asking is that you tone down all the touchy-feely stuff. It makes me uncomfortable when his hands are on you. Can you please do that for me?”

I see the sincerity in his expression. “I’m sorry for making you feel that way. I don’t have romantic feelings toward Nolan, and he has never led me to believe that he does either.”

I think about Nolan and what Andres is saying. Nolan and I hug a lot, but I do that with everyone. It is who I am. I can let the holding-hands thing go. If I am honest, I wouldn’t be too thrilled if Andres held hands with his female best friend, regardless of the friend status. Other than that though, I’m not sure what else Andres wants me to give up. Looking at his lost expression, I can only agree. Whatever is going on in his head doesn’t need to be confounded with his perceived insecurities about my friendship with Nolan.

“But, of course, I’ll try. I don’t want you to worry.” I lean in and kiss his beautiful soft lips.

He pulls away and kisses me firmly on the forehead. “Thank you. Now, do you want me to take you back? Or do you want to stay here?”

“You know if I stay here, you are going to have to get up early and take me back for my stuff.”

“I don’t mind. It will be worth it to have your warm body wrapped around mine all night. I would actually sleep better if you stayed. So, you see, if you are worried about my quality of sleep, then you should stay.”

I hug him closer, giggling, “Well, when you put it that way, what choice do I have?”

“Exactly.”

“I’ll sleep better here with you, too.”

And I do.

The rest of the week goes by in a blur, studying with Nolan and spending most of the afternoons and evenings with Andres.

Friday afternoon, Nolan and I sit outside our classroom before class, discussing our plans for when Abby and Cara come to visit this weekend. We’re meeting them at the airport this evening. I’m keeping my hands busy, searching for my ChapStick in my backpack.

I’ve managed to keep from holding hands or walking arm in arm with Nolan all week by always keeping my hands busy—going through my backpack, flipping through my notes, fiddling with my hair, or fussing with my outfit. I’ve gotten really good at avoiding contact. Either Nolan knows what I’m doing, or he thinks I’ve recently developed a severe case of ADD. If he knows, he doesn’t address it, and I’m grateful. I should tell him, but apparently, I am a coward because I can’t. Avoiding has always been so much easier for me than confronting a situation.

We decide that we’re going to take them to our favorite clubs this weekend. We will discuss it with them when they get here, but for the next weekend, Nolan and I think that it will be fun to explore Spain by going away to another city.

I’m so excited to see Cara. I have so much to tell her, and I can’t wait for her to meet Andres.

I see Cara immediately as she exits the customs area. My chest tightens with emotion, and I realize how much I have missed her. I half run until I close the gap between us, and I beam at her while I bring her into a huge hug.

“I missed you!”

“You missed me? Seriously? While you are here, having the time of your life? I missed you! I have been stuck at home in a summer vacation without you! I’ve had to resort to recycling through some of my old Delta Sig standbys.”

Cara has a bad habit of turning to some of her ex-boyfriends, who all happen to be a part of the same fraternity, when she is bored or lonely. They all still worship her and drop everything when she calls. It is quite pathetic really. Cara always feels bad when she cuts them loose yet again, and she promises herself that she won’t stoop to such measures again. It has been a while since she called one of them to keep her company.

“No, you haven’t, Cara!” I throw my head back in laughter.

“Yes. Yes, I have,” Cara says with resignation. “So, who do you think misses whom more?”

I give her a reassuring grin. “I’m sorry.” I grab her hands and bounce with excitement. “But now, you are here, and we are going to enjoy every second!”

“I really can’t wait. My summer has been so dull.”

I giggle. “It isn’t even that far into summer. Stop being so dramatic.”

She waves her hand in a
whatever
motion, and we make our way to baggage claim.

“So, when am I going to meet Mr. Hotness who has your panties all in a wad?”

“Tonight, of course! And he usually just takes them off and drops them without wadding them up.” I giggle.

“Ha-ha,” Cara enunciates. “Well, I’m glad you are finally getting some. I still can’t believe you finally threw out your college V-card. I’m proud of you, Olivia!”

“I wouldn’t say I owned a V-card, considering I wasn’t a virgin,” I say dryly.

“Practically!” Cara snorts. “A few fumbling times in high school with your inexperienced boyfriend hardly counts! Speaking of awful, I had Brandon over a couple of days ago, and it was as horrible as always.”

“Not Brandon, Cara!”

Brandon is the most pitiful one of them all. He’s always following Cara around, ready to do her bidding. Every time she throws him a bone, it extends his stalking window.

“I know! It has been horrible without you!”

I can’t help but snicker. Between the two of us, I am usually the mess. My downer of a best friend is quite amusing.

“But Brandon?”

“I know, I know. Let’s drop it, okay? Hey, where is Nolan? Wasn’t he supposed to be here, too?”

“Yeah, but Abby’s plane was delayed, so he is going to pick her up later and meet us out at the club.”