Second Chance Summer (Chance Series, #1) (16 page)

“What?”

“I think the barbecue food is burning.”

“Shit!” He lets me go and flips over, grabbing the barbecue tools. He tries in vain to rescue the food from the hot coals, but when I look around him, all I see is charred burgers and pathetic looking chicken. Reese looks at the food, closes his eyes, and sighs helplessly.

I can’t help it. I snort and cover my mouth with my hand, looking at him. Cooking really, really isn’t his forte.

His eyelids snap open and he stares at me, a glint in his eyes. He smirks and dives toward me before I’ve fully comprehended the mischief in his expression.

My back hits the soft, hot sand, and he leans over me, his hands either side of my head. I look up at him as he slips one of his knees between my legs, essentially trapping me beneath him without even touching me.

“You do realize how long it’s going to take me to get this sand out of my hair, right?”

Reese grins. “I don’t care.”

“And I’m practically wasting away because I foolishly let you do the cooking… Again.”

“That’s not my fault,” he whispers, lowering his face to mine so his words cause air to cascade across my lips gently.

“You could learn to cook?” I suggest, half-breathless as he lowers his body on top of mine. His chest, rock hard from years of playing on school football teams, presses against mine, and our bodies mold together like they were made to be as one.

“Or you could cook. You’re a woman.”

“And that’s sexist.”

“Baby,” he mutters. “I fix cars. I’m not exactly the guy on board with the whole feminism thing. Besides, you’d look good in a kitchen.”

“I bet you think I’d look good on my hands and knees scrubbing a floor with a toothbrush, too.”

“I hadn’t thought of that, but you do have one hell of a nice ass, so now you mention it…”

“Now I mention it that toothbrush would look good stuck up
your
nice ass.”

He laughs and brushes his lips across mine. “You cook and I scrub floors?”

“Sounds good,” I mumble, snaking my hands up his arms to his shoulders. His lips touch mine again, softly, and I crane my neck to kiss him harder.

His fingers creep through the sand to cup the back of my neck and head, teasing my hair. My knee bends, my foot resting against his calf and my bare thigh rubbing against his shorts. Heat pools in my stomach as his tongue teases between my lips, meeting mine, and he slides his other hand down the length of my body and below the rising hem of my dress.

His hand holds my thigh against his, his palm rough against my softer skin, and he massages slowly with his fingertips, just brushing the bottom of my bum. My muscles clench with each ghost of his fingertips and my back arches into him.

Our kiss deepens into something more desperate, needier, and Reese suddenly pulls away. He takes two deep breaths before speaking.

“Inside.”

He rolls off of me, and I don’t need telling twice. I slide my hand into his, letting him pull me up and drag me in the direction of the beach house.

The door slams behind us at the same time Reese slams his lips back into mine. I gasp, shocked at the pressure behind his kiss, and he takes advantage of that. He sweeps his tongue into my mouth, the tip of it flicking into every corner. It glides along the length of mine, forcefully deepening the kiss, tasting me and claiming me simultaneously. I grip his hair, twining it around my fingers, and our feet move in the direction of the stairs. His hands cup my thighs, and he lifts me the way he did our first night together, wrapping my legs firmly around his waist.

He tugs my head to the side and takes his lips from mine. They blaze a raging, lust-filled trail of want across my jaw and down my neck. His breath is hot against my skin - so hot it makes the temperatures outside look arctic - and I know my breathing is just as rapid as heated as his. I know my grip on him is just as desperate and wanting and needing as his is on me.

I know my clawing as his clothes is just as frantic as his at mine.

My dress slides over my head seconds before I yank at his shirt. He drops over me on the bed, our lips crashing together again. I grip at his back, my toes finding his belt loops and tugging at them as if that will drop his shorts. Instead, my fingers trail around his sides and across his stomach to the button and deftly undo it.

He unties my bikini top at the same time his shorts drop. His tongue swirls downwards and around my breast, making my breath catch in my throat. It holds there for a second before leaving my mouth as a breathy moan, and his tongue flicks over the tip of my nipple, lighting my body on fire.

My hand slides into his boxers as he continues his assault on my chest, and I grasp at him, taking the hard length of him into my hand. I move my fingers along him, teasing him with varying degrees of pressure. He bucks his hips, pumping into my fist closed around him, and takes my hand away.

Reese’s fingers find the waistband of my bikini bottoms, and he removes them swiftly. His fingertips stroke along the wetness at my core, his thumb finding my sensitive clit and rubbing softly. He sweeps his tongue along my lips, and I push into him, slamming our chests together, and the only thing barring total contact of our bodies is his arm between us.

His fingers dip in and out of me, curving and curling against me, making me writhe and push into him desperately. It seems like a forever of harsh pants, incoherent moans and whimpered pleas before he finally tears open a condom packet. The rip is music to my ears.

Reese breathes out deeply as he lifts my legs and guides himself inside me. Heat spreads upwards through my body. My muscles tighten, and my fingers sink into the skin of his lower back as he moves us together.

With our bodies so close, touching every part of each other and connected in every possible way, I’ve never felt so at home.

CHAPTER 11

I tear my eyes away from Reese’s morning workout –
shirtless
morning workout - on the beach, and answer my ringing cell without looking at the screen.

“Hello?”

“Did you get trampled by a horse or something? I’ve been sitting here waiting for you to call since we last spoke.”

I smile. “You do realize not all of the South is ranches, right, Jay?”

“Whatever, babe, just tell me if you finally pulled your head out of your tight little ass and fucked your cowboy yet.”

“Do you know how tempted I am to ask if you’re gay right now?”

“Why the hell would you do that? You know; I woke up lying next to a pair of double d’s and an ass so peachy it’d shut down Walmart’s fruit section.”

My laughter bursts out of me. “TMI, Jay. Way, way too much info. But, yes. I pulled my head out of my “tight little ass.””

“Thank fucking God.” He exhales. “I worry about you down there in Cowboy County without me keeping you straight. You get down there, and you turn into a little second grader.”

My eyes stray back to where Reese is doing sit-ups. His eyes meet mine every time he sits up, and he smirks.

“No chance of that anymore,” I reassure him. “Nothing here is going to walk all over me anymore.”

“Kick ass chick. I knew it. Sure you-”

“I’m sure I’ll stick with my cowboy, thanks.”

“When are you coming back to school? Wait, you are coming back aren’t you?”

There’s a hint of wariness in his voice and I know that for all his money, the only person he completely trusts is me. I guess that’s what happens when your dad keeps remarrying girls young enough to be your sister… And since Jay’s dad is an actor, it’s all in the public eye, meaning he is too. Meaning there’s more to the asshole, alpha playboy than meets the eye.

“I’m comin’ back, promise.” I get up and rummage through the cupboards for a glass, resting my phone between my shoulder and my ear. “It’s college, Jay. I’m not flunking out for anythin’.”

The slow breath he lets out makes me wish I could hug him.

“Good, otherwise, you know, I’d have to come there and drag you the hell back to New York.”

“Talkin’ of that, have you got my room cleared out yet?”

“Uh… I… Uh…”

I smirk. “Good job I’m not expectin’ it, huh?”

“I started. Sorta. A little.”

“Opening the door and decidin’ you’ll do it tomorrow doesn’t count.”

“Fuck off.” He laughs. “Sure I can’t tempt you back earlier? I have to go to some fucked up dinner with my father next weekend, and I could really do with a date.”

“Because you’re
so
hard pressed for female attention.”

“But you’re the best date, Kia. You charm all those pompous, entitled fuckshits with that darlin’ smile of yours.”

“I wish I could, Jay, but I have stuff to do here.” And I realize I haven’t told him about Dad showing up. I launch into a shortened version of the story, and when I’m done, I know he’s pissed.

“Shit, Kia. I wish I was there with you.”

“I’m okay. I have Reese.”

“Yeah, well he better take fucking good care of my best girl.”

“He does.”

“Good. I gotta go – but you make sure you call me this week, okay? You know where I am if you need to talk about your Dad.”

“You’re the best.”

“Keep telling me that and-”

“There isn’t much room left for your head to grow.”

“Ha, funny shit. Love ya.”

“Love ya.” I hang up and put the phone down, turning round.

And come face to face with Reese.

“Who was that?” he asks, his eyebrow cocked.

“Jay. My best friend and soon to be roommate in New York.”

Reese’s face straightens out so it’s totally emotionless. “I sure hope Jay is gay. Or a masculine nickname for a girl.”

“Not exactly…” I mutter.

“So, you have a non-gay male best friend, who you happen to be moving in with, and say, “love ya” to?”

“I think that about sums it up.” I down the rest of my water, put the glass down, and move to walk around him. He steps to the side and looks down at me. His eyes are hard, and they cut right through me and rile me equally.

“And you never thought to mention him before?”

It’s my turn to raise an eyebrow. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t aware you required every detail of my college life. Oh wait, you don’t. You’re not my mom. You’re my…” He waits as I stare at him. I cock my head to the side. “What are you, exactly?”

“Boyfriend?” he offers.

“Okay. Then you’re my boyfriend.” Butterflies flit about in my stomach, and his lips twitch slightly.

“And you don’t think your boyfriend should be aware of your non-gay future roommate?” he questions.

“He is aware. Newly aware, albeit, but I’m sure that’s the whole point of this conversation.”

“Mhmm. And he isn’t amused.”

“What a surprise,” I murmur, looking at our feet.

“Hey.” Reese hooks his finger under my chin and tilts it up so I meet his eyes. “You can’t blame me for not likin’ the idea of my girl living with another guy.”

“Not liking?”

“Okay, fucking hating.”

That much better matches the ice in his tone.

“We’re friends. That’s all. He needs me as much as I need him,” I explain.

“And you can’t live in a dorm like you have been for the last year? You really need to live with another guy?”

I suck on my tongue for a second, trying not to snap. One of us is being slightly irrational here. The problem is; I don’t know which one of us it is… He has every right to be annoyed about me living with another guy, but considering the other guy is strictly in the friend-zone, he doesn’t have a right to demand I
don’t
.

“I promised him. Besides, Jay is too busy sleeping with anything with a pulse to worry about me. I made it clear the first time we met he wouldn’t have his way with me.”

Reese’s eyes darken several shades. I shouldn’t have said that. I really should
not
have said that.

“That doesn’t make me feel a whole lot better about this, y’know?” he says dryly.

I swallow as he steps closer, catching the glint in his eye.

Possessive. Protective. It’s a glint that says I’m his, no one else’s, and he’ll fight for me until everyone knows it. It tells me he’s not letting me go after everything we’ve been through, after how long we’ve been apart already.

And the shine of worry there… It tells me he’s still scared he’ll lose the fight, and I’ll leave again.

I cup his face, reaching up on my tip toes until the tips of our noses are touching. “I told Jay we’d never be more than friends because of
you
. Even in New York, thousands of miles away from the Grove, I couldn’t imagine being with anyone other than you. And he gets that. Jay knows how hung up I am on you. He’s the one who watched me fight with myself about being away from you, about not answering your calls. He’s the one who was there when I missed you so bad I could barely breathe through crying. But it was always you. You’re the constant. It didn’t matter how long we’d been apart or how many guys looked my way. It was always, always you.”

I touch my lips to his, knowing no words can really tell him everything. Knowing there’s not enough words to tell him everything.

How could there be? It’s inconceivable to think there’s enough words out there to describe the pain or the guilt I felt about leaving him, or that there’s enough to apologize.

And I know for a fact there’s no words to describe to him how I feel. How I’ve always felt. There’s no words to describe the burning love I have for him.

Reese wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me into him, and buries his face in my neck. My cheek is flat against his hot skin, and I press my body hard against his.

“It’s a damn good job I plan on coming to New York with you to keep an eye on this Jay guy,” he mumbles into my hair.

My lips twitch into a smile against his skin at his words, and I run my fingers through his hair. “I love you, Reese.”

His grip tightens on me, and his lips kiss the spot just below my ear tenderly. “And I love you, baby.”

~

Sunday passes too quickly – almost as quickly as the ice cream we got after lunch that melted before we could finish – and before I know it I’m back in Reese’s truck, and we’re pulling into my driveway.