Imaginary Grace (16 page)

At first he didn’t kiss me back, and I fought the urge to run out of there, never to return to Tanner’s apartment, or school, for that matter. But then he gently grabbed my hips and pulled me closer, and I realized I had just caught him off guard.

He slowly slipped his hands under my shirt and put them around my bare waist, making my skin tingle. Dying to touch that rock hard chest, I let my right hand slide from around his neck and make its way down to the edge of his t-shirt. At first I was tentative, not sure how far to go, but when I heard him sigh I slipped my hand underneath, slowly running it over his tight abs.
It doesn’t get any better than this,
I thought as I moved up to the smooth skin of his chest, but then it did.

Still moving slowly, he let his hands fall from my waist and slid them down inside the back of my jeans. A little surprised by his uncharacteristic boldness, I pulled back ever so slightly. He didn’t seem to notice my reaction, and seconds later I had regained my momentum, kissing him even harder. I drew my left arm from around his neck and began running my fingers through his hair, grabbing a fistful.

His fingers dug into my flesh, pulling me closer, and the next thing I knew he grabbed my hips and flipped me onto my back. I breathed in that delicious scent of him that I could never seem to get enough of. I loved the feel of the weight of him on top of me and the way his hands felt as they ran over my skin.

Suddenly I heard him mumble in my ear, “I think I hear Scott’s truck in the driveway.”

In that moment, I might have actually hated Scott. Tanner sat up and pulled me up next to him.

Less than a minute later, Scott came walking in, a pizza box and a six-pack in his hands. “Pizza anyone?” he said, cheerfully oblivious to the fact that he had ruined the best make-out session of my life.

“Food!” Tanner exclaimed and got up and went into the kitchen.

“You hungry, Grace?” Scott called to me.

I sat there for a moment, unable to answer.
Wow, that was amazing…

I realized he and Tanner were staring at me. “Sure,” I said as I stood from the couch. “I could go for a slice.” My legs felt all rubbery as I walked over to the counter and sat down next to them. Scott handed me a slice, then placed a beer next to me.

He also did most of the talking. Apparently he had encountered a girl that he knew at the pizza place, and he repeated a story he had heard about her and the owner in excruciating detail. I didn’t mind, though, because it gave me something to concentrate on other than Tanner. Would it be weird between us now? I still couldn’t believe I had made the first move. Mostly I just wondered what would have happened if Scott hadn’t come in.

After we finished eating, Tanner said he would drive me back to the dorm, so after thanking Scott for the pizza, I slipped on my sneakers and followed him out the door. The drive over was a little awkward; he had the radio on kind of loud, which I took to mean that he didn’t want to talk. Maybe he was driving me home out of obligation, maybe he couldn’t wait to get rid of me.

“I’ll walk you over,” he said, jolting me from my thoughts. I realized he had already parked the car.

“Oh, okay,” I mumbled, thinking that this night was just full of pleasant surprises.

We walked around to the front of the building, stopping in front of the entrance. Tanner looked down at me, and in that moment I would have done anything to know what he was thinking.

“Okay, I’ll guess I’ll see you in about a month.”

“Yeah, okay,” I said, and then he bent down and kissed me. Just when my legs started to feel rubbery again, he pulled back and started to walk away. I was about to do the same when he turned back. “Oh, I forgot to tell you the plans for the wedding. Like I said, it’s on the Saturday we come back, so I’ll pick you up Friday night and we’ll stay at my parents. I figured we can hitch a ride with them to the wedding and just stay there again on Saturday night so we don’t have to worry about drinking and driving. Does that sound okay?”

My head was spinning.
We’re staying at his parents’? For two nights?

“Oh, yeah, sure, that sounds great,” I said, trying not to sound shocked.

“Cool,” he said, his face spreading into a smile. “I’ll talk to you later.” And then he turned and walked off.

Holy shit!
I thought to myself,
HOLY SHIT!
To say it was going to take me weeks to prepare for this fiasco was definitely putting it mildly. Torn between excitement and anxiety, my hand was shaking as I put my key in the lock and dashed up the stairs. By now Beth was used to my post-Tanner talk-a-thons so when I burst into our room, she pulled herself from whatever she was watching on TV and gave me her knowing look. Before I could say anything, she said, “Here we go again. What relationship milestone have you reached this time?”

“Very funny,” I said. “Well, aside from the official total make-out session at his place, which was once again interrupted by Scott, I just found out that when we go to that wedding we’re staying at his parent’s house for
two nights!
Can you believe that one?”

“Wow,” she said. “That
is
big news! Knowing you, you better start preparing now.”

I plopped down on the bed. “I know, I know, but first I have to get a dress. What am I going to wear?”

“That’s easy,” she said, “You can’t go wrong with a simple little black dress. Add a pair of black fuck-me pumps and you’re all set.”

“Well, I don’t have either of those items, so I guess when I get home I’ll have to do some shopping.”

“Yeah,” she suggested, as usual growing more excited at the prospect of shopping. “Maybe take your sister or your mom with you. It’ll be fun. You can make a whole day of it.”

I started to pack away the last of my things when I heard her say, “Hey, you can pack later. I want to hear all about the ‘official total make-out session’.”

I laughed. “Oh, okay.” I put down the shirt I was folding, then sat Indian-style on the bed across from her.

“Well, for a while we were just sitting there, watching T.V., so I decided I was going to make the first move…”

I paused for effect, enjoying the way Beth’s eyes widened in surprise.

Chapter 22

Tanner

I
pulled the car into the driveway and sat there for a moment, contemplating what had happened earlier. I didn’t know what had come over me. That was
not
supposed to happen. I hadn’t had sex in so long it was clouding my judgment – yeah, that was it, but it all was going to change now that Grace was going home for nearly six weeks.

So Scott had been right all along. He’d known something was up from the first time Grace “popped in” with Beth. I thought he was nuts, but when she did it again a few days later I realized he was onto something. Grace had been checking up on me! I had to give the skinny bitch credit—hell, I even respected her for it. I’m not sure who planted that seed in her head, but my guess would be one of three people – Gary, Beth or Beth’s boyfriend –
Tom, was it?---
because she wouldn’t have thought that up on her own. It didn’t matter, anyway. She was gone, and by the time she got back it would be time for the wedding and I’d be that much closer to getting that money from my parents.

I got out of my car and started walking across the small patch of grass that served as our front lawn. Other than a few extra shifts at the gas station and Hudson-Nash gigs on weekends, I didn’t have much in the way of plans for the next few weeks.

Cole had said something about fitting in a few rehearsals, which was cool. Not that I thought we needed it, but I loved playing, and besides, it would give me plenty of opportunities to meet the groupies that always seemed to be hanging around.

When I got inside, Scott was finishing up a phone call. After he hung up he said, “Hey, man, sorry it took me so long with the pizza. I went as soon as I got your text, but the place was packed. What was the big rush anyway?”

I didn’t feel like explaining to him what the big rush was, because he never seemed to get it. I didn’t want to be alone with Grace for any length of time. I knew that if we were alone that she’d expect me to try something, and if I didn’t I knew that she would. Sure enough, she had proven me right, although I had been a bit surprised by her enthusiasm.

I smiled to myself and then shook the thought from my head. “The big rush was that I was hungry.”

“Hungry!” he said. “Bullshit. You’re just afraid to be alone with Grace, and you know it.”

“Yeah, right, you guessed it, I’m afraid to be alone with Grace,” I answered sarcastically, then quickly changed the subject. “What’s on the agenda for the weekend?”

Scott grabbed a piece of cold pizza from the box and took a bite. “I just talked to Dean. The guys wanna hit J.D.’s tomorrow night. The band’s not playing so we can get totally trashed.” He gestured to the last slice, but I shook my head.

“J.D.’s sounds good. I think this is the only weekend we’re not playing somewhere.”

Stifling a yawn, I said goodnight to Scott and headed to my room. I told myself I was turning in early because I had to be at work by seven o’clock the next morning, but the truth was, I didn’t want to deal with any more of his questions about Grace.

The next day was crazy busy at the gas station, and I didn’t get off work until almost six o’clock. When I got home, I slept for a few hours and woke up primed and ready to party. After a quick shower, I got dressed and popped open my first beer of the night. Scott joined me a few minutes later, wearing new jeans and the smile he always had before a night on the prowl.

I was going to try a little experiment tonight. Depending on who I brought home, I was thinking about maybe breaking my rule and letting her spend the night. I’d slept so good when Grace spent the night and I wanted to see whether it was just a fluke or I really did sleep better when someone else was there.

At around ten o’clock, our posse showed up, which was unusual since lately it had just been Scott and I hitting the campus parties and the clubs. But tonight it seemed that everyone was around and ready to party. We stayed at the apartment just long enough to pound back a few drinks, then headed out. My buddy Dean had taken his truck, so Scott and I scammed a ride with him. When we got to J.D.’s the line was down the block, but since I was ‘with the band’ we got to go in the side entrance and didn’t have to pay the cover.

We took our usual spot at the bar and immediately ordered a round of shots. I recognized some of the regulars, but there were a lot of new faces too. More locals always came during school breaks-- they didn’t like to bother with the college crowd. Didn’t seem to affect me, though; within an hour a bunch of different girls had approached me. Some of them recognized me from the band, which was pretty cool. As the night wore on, more and more girls were hanging around our group.

We were all trashed, and by last call there were at least half a dozen girls who wanted to leave with me. At some point I noticed Scott at the end of the bar sucking face with Kristen (from the tag-team of Amber and Kristen), and before too long he was at my side with that pleading look on his face.

“T,” he whispered, “you gotta do me a favor. Kristen said she’ll go home with me, but she can’t leave without Amber, ’cause they came together. Can you come home with us, hang with Amber tonight? You owe me, buddy.” He actually winked as he added, “She said she wanted to show me a few tricks she knew.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. Yep, I knew all about those tricks, and they were definitely worth seeing. And I did owe him big-time for helping me out with Grace. “Sure, anything you want, buddy. Where is Amber, anyway?”

He pointed to the end of the bar, where I saw her talking to some dude.

I downed another shot, then sauntered over, “Hey there, Amber,” I said with one of my most charming smiles. “Long time no see.” Then I glanced briefly at the guy she was with and said, “Who’s your friend?”

“Oh, hi, Tanner,” she slurred, clearly bombed out of her skull. This guy had been plying her with liquor all night.
Thanks, buddy!
“This is Danny. Danny, this is my friend, Tanner.”

He shook my hand and I could tell he recognized me, most likely from the band. I knew it wouldn’t take long to get this guy out of the picture, and I was right. By closing time, Amber was in my lap and “Danny Boy” was nowhere to be found.

Kristen had her car so the four of us piled in for the short drive to our apartment. She parked on the street since there was no room in the driveway, then we all half-walked, half-staggered to the front door. Scott was whispering something to Kristen, and I could have sworn I heard him trying to guess what “tricks” she was going to show him. Judging from her laughter, he wasn’t even close. When we got inside, he practically dragged her into his room and slammed the door shut.

I grabbed myself a bottle of water from the fridge, and when I turned around Amber was nowhere to be found. I looked in my room and found her stretched out on my bed, already stripped down to her trademark matching bra and thong.
Here we go
, I thought as I closed the door behind me. I took a long sip from my bottle of water, then placed it on the nightstand and began removing my work boots. Amber silently watched as I slipped off my shirt, unzipped my jeans, and walked over to the edge of the bed. One thing’s for sure—no one could ever accuse her of playing hard to get.

“What are you waiting for?” she asked in a sexy, slurred voice. I thought about her simple question and decided I really didn’t know
what
I was waiting for. Still, I couldn’t seem to move, so after a another moment, she did it for me, getting up on all fours and making her way over to edge of the bed. She looked up at me again, then put her head back down and started lightly kissing my stomach.

I still couldn’t move. My feet felt like they were glued to the floor, even as she slowly began to kiss lower. She pulled at my jeans until they fell to the floor and then slipped her fingers into the waistband of my boxers, pulling them slightly lower, all the while continuing to kiss my bare skin. She reached inside with her other hand, pulling me free as she kissed still lower and then slowly began to run her tongue along the length of me.

I closed my eyes and found myself grabbing the back of her hair tightly in my fist. She seemed to like the fact that I had her by the hair, so I grabbed it tighter and then guided her head until she was right in front of me. Before I knew it, she had me practically balls-deep in her mouth –which, not to brag, was quite an impressive feat.
Oh, yeah, Amber could definitely give Tara a run for the money in the talented tongue department. I had to stop her or this was going to be over way too fast, so I pulled her head back, then pushed her backwards onto the bed.

I kicked my jeans and boxers, which were still around my ankles, to the side and climbed onto the bed. I made short work of her purple bra and thong and then grabbed a condom from the nightstand drawer.

“Can I do it?” she asked, reaching for the condom. I handed it to her and she tore open the wrapper with her teeth and expertly slid it on.

As I hovered above her, I whispered, “Stay with me tonight.” I knew it was the alcohol talking and that she would think it meant more than it really did, but I didn’t care. I wanted to see if having her here would help me sleep better.

“Oh, Tanner,” she said, putting her hands on either side of my face. “Of course I’ll stay with you tonight.”

Oh, brother
.

I had no doubt I would live to regret the invitation, but right now I really didn’t care. I grabbed her hips and rocked into her full force, keeping at it until I thought she’d wake the neighbors. Finally, I gave it one last thrust, then collapsed on top of her.

“That was great, Tanner,” she murmured, eyes closed, smiling dreamily.

I grunted in agreement, then rolled off her onto my back, removed the condom and closed my eyes. I was ready for sleep.

Within seconds Amber was wrapped around me like an octopus. I tried to settle into her embrace, but I couldn’t get comfortable. Maybe a shower would help.

“I’ll be right back,” I said as I slid out of her arms, slipped back into my boxers and headed to the bathroom. After a quick shower, I was heading back to my room with my towel around my waist when I ran into Kristen. She was coming out of Scott’s room wearing only underwear and a thin tank top.

“Hi,” I mumbled and kept walking, but she grabbed my arm and pushed my back up against the wall. “Next time,” she whispered as she reached under my towel, “I want to take on the both of you.”

Before I could even react, she had gone into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. It took a second for the shock to wear off, then I shook my head and laughed to myself. A three-way with her and Scott--now that was something I definitely was
not
into. Wait until I told Scott that one!

Not wanting to wake Amber, I was quiet as I opened the door to my room and grabbed a pair of sweats from my drawer. Then I tossed my towel to the floor, pulled on the sweats and got into bed. Before my head even hit the pillow, the octopus was all over me again. I tried to settle into it and give it some time, but it just wasn’t working. I peeled her off me, turned her onto her side and pulled her back into me the way I had done with Grace. I lay there for a while, but it
still
just wasn’t working. Her hair smelled weird and was all sticky, like she had a lot of that styling gel crap in it, and her skin smelled all perfumey, which of course I hadn’t noticed when I was fucking her.

As hard as I tried, I just couldn’t fall asleep. I finally had to push her away from me to the other side of the bed, which she did
not
appreciate. I turned, facing away from her, but sleep still didn’t come for me, although she was soon out like a light.

Before long, I decided I hated having her in my bed, and wound up grabbing my pillow and heading for the couch. I put the TV on, turning the volume way down so it was almost at mute, and flipped through the stations, finally settling on a rerun of a basketball game from the previous afternoon.

I watched for a while without really watching, then I looked at the clock. 5:33. It would be daylight soon, so I went back to my room to try again. I lay down and finally, just as the sun was creeping over the horizon, I fell asleep.

I woke a few hours later with Amber’s lips wrapped around my dick.
Sleepover bonus!

As much as I was enjoying it, I wanted her out of there, so I did what I could to speed things along, grasping the sides of her head with both hands and sliding deeper. She didn’t try to pull away—damn, this girl was talented!—so I released my grasp, folded my arms behind my head, and enjoyed the ride.

Just before I was about to finish, I grabbed the back of her head again and pushed even deeper, then let loose against the back of her throat. Like a pro, she didn’t even flinch. I let go of her and relaxed back against the pillow as she brought her head up and smiled. “Good morning, sweetie!” she said in a sugary sweet voice that literally made me sick. “Are you going to take me to breakfast?”

Think fast!

“Well, as much as I’d love to, I can’t,” I replied, trying to sound disappointed. “I promised my parents I’d help them with some yard work and I have to get going early.”

“Oh, okay, maybe next time,” she said.

Next time?!

I half-smiled as I got up and threw my sweats on, then headed for the shower. As I scrubbed her off of me, I thought maybe I would actually take a ride to my parents’; I hadn’t seen them in a while, and I could go for a decent meal. When I got back to my room Amber was dressed but still lounging on my bed like she didn’t plan on leaving any time soon. I didn’t want to leave her there, and who knew when Scott and Kristen would emerge, so I offered to drive her home.

It wasn’t a long drive, but it seemed endless because she chattered non-stop the whole way.
This was a mistake; I never should have asked her to stay. Now I’m never going to get rid of her.
When we got to her place I practically pushed her out of the car.

“Sorry I can’t come up,” I said, “but I really have to get going.”