And The Beat Goes On (16 page)

I felt the warmth spread through my body at her words. I suspected she loved me but I was never sure. But now I knew. And it felt wonderful. She was hesitant about being with me when she knew the truth of my ways, but she never left. She stood beside me despite my sickness. She really did love me if she could look past that. Any other girl would have taken off.

She kissed my forehead again then unbuckled my pants. During my emotion, my erection disappeared. But it sprang to life as soon as she reached for me. That’s how hot I was for her. She pulled them down but left the boxers on. Since I was wearing briefs, I couldn’t hide my excitement from her.

Athena pulled back the covers then slipped inside. She grabbed my arm and pulled me beside her. Her legs hooked around my waist, and my arm moved around her hips. We lay like we had a hundred times. I stared at her and she stared at me. The moisture was still in her eyes and it reflected my own.

The silence stretched on. Her eyes never left mine and I didn’t
want them to. It was the most emotional and intimate moment of my life. I had nothing to hide from her because she knew everything about me. And she loved me.

For the first time in my life, I felt safe with someone else, that I could be everything I truly was. She saw me for the man I wanted to be. She believed in me, trusted me, and made me feel like someone worthy of love.

I hardly slept because I couldn’t stop looking at her, the love of my life. I never thought I’d find someone who made me feel this way. But I had. And I knew she felt the same way.

Chapter Eighteen

♬

Athena Riley

Everything made sense.

Jeremy didn’t think he was worthy of love from anyone, so he stayed away from it and minimized his human interactions as much as possible. What was the point of connecting with someone when they didn’t really love you, and if they did, it was because they got something out of him?

Even though the idea of him being with so many other women made me sick, I understood his behavior and accepted it. That was just a sliver of who he was, and I think he can change his ways.

With my help.

If it didn’t work out, it would break my heart, but Jeremy was worth every risk. I’d never loved anyone the way I loved him. The connection between us was powerful and unbreakable. I knew we could get through this and see the other side. If we didn’t, I’d still cherish the journey.

I had class the next morning and Jeremy had to work. I hated saying goodbye to him and I knew he felt the same. We stayed in the car a little longer than usual, just holding each other.

His lips kissed my forehead and made me feel warm. I could lay with him all day and do absolutely nothing. That was my happy place.

“Come over tonight,” he whispered.

“Okay.”

He kissed me again. “I’ll see you then.”

I left the car then headed to my classes. I had a hard time paying attention
to any of lectures because I thought about Jeremy exclusively. Even my art classes weren’t interesting enough to capture my attention.

When
I was leaving campus and heading back to my apartment, I ran into Jasper. Last time we spoke, he was pissed. I rejected him for someone else and he didn’t handle that well.

He walked beside me and stared me down. “Having fun with the professor?”

I wasn’t in the mood to argue. I wanted to get home and get ready to see Jeremy. “He’s only my professor for a few more classes. Then, he’ll just be a regular person.”

“Still pretty unethical,” he snapped.

I stopped walking and stared him down. “I’m in love with him. I don’t care what you think.”

His eyes narrowed. “He’s a STD infest
ed playboy. You won’t go out with me but you’ll go out with him?”

“He isn’t like that with me,” I said firmly.

He rolled his eyes. “You’re a stupid girl.”

“You’re just mad you can’t get what you want.” I pushed him harshly, making him step back. “I don’t like you, I’m not interested, now leave me the hell alone.”

“Or what? Your boyfriend is gonna kick my ass?” he said sarcastically.

“No. I’m
gonna kick your ass.” I gave him another glare before I continued on the path.

“You’re probably horrible in bed anyway,” he shouted o
ver my shoulder.

“Why don’t you ask Mr. Clearwater? He’ll tell you.” I knew it was low but I wanted to piss him off. I knew the idea of me having sex w
ith Jeremy would anger him.

Good.

Jasper was such a jackass. I can’t believe I ever liked him at one point.

When I got home, my brother was sitting on the couch. Resumes and job postings were on the coffee table.

“Find anything?” I said in an angry voice.

Ken eyed me. “You okay?”

“Sorry.” I knew I carried my anger on my shoulders. “I just had an argument with a jackass.”

“Do you need me to take care of it?”

My brother was never protective of me when we were younger. It was weird to see him that way now. “No. I handled it.” I sat beside him and looked at all the ads. “Any luck?”

“No,” he said with a sigh. “Maybe I should work for Dad.”

“No,” I said immediately. “Don’t resort to that. You’ll get stuck. You have a degree and a certain set of skills. You’ll find something, Ken.”

“Who knew computer programmers weren’t necessary anymore,” he said with a light laugh.

“They are,” I said firmly. “Just keep looking.”

A knock on the door made us both flinch.
We lookedat each other for a second before I reached for the door. When I looked through the peephole, I saw my dad on the other side.

Alarm flooded my body. “Dad’s here,” I mouthed to Ken.

Both his eyebrows shot up. “What do we do?” he whispered.

I shrugged my shoulders.

My father knocked again. “I can hear you, Athena.”

I sighed.
Should I open it? Was he here to apologize?
Maybe. I hoped for the best and opened the door.

He stared me down but didn’t say hello.

I didn’t say it either.

We both battled for the other person to speak first.

Finally, he crossed his arms over his chest. “I want the money I invested in your tuition. If you aren’t going to use the degree I paid for, I want my money back.”

What? Did I hear him right?
“Are you serious?”

He glared at me. “Since you’re so ungrateful, I should teach you a lesson. I want it back. If not, I’ll resort to legal matters.”

Ken jumped off the chair and joined me at the door. “You can’t be serious?” he snapped. “What the hell is wrong with you? You’re going to coerce us into doing what you want? That’s how you want to maintain this family? Mom is rolling around in her grave right now.”

Ken’s words were harsh but I was too upset to care.

Surprise covered my father’s face. “Ken, what are you doing here?”

“Spending time with my sister,” he snapped. “You should try it sometime.”

He eyed both of us. “I see how it is…fine.”

Fine what?

“I want my money by the end of this month.”

“You aren’t going to get it,”
I said firmly. “I don’t have that kind of money.”

“Maybe your brother could help you out,” he said with disdain. He shook his head then walked away.

Ken looked pissed. “You call yourself a father? Just because Mom died doesn’t give you the right to act like this. Pull yourself together and be a man. Shit happens but life goes on.”

My dad’s face was stoic. The words washed right over him.

“And by the way, I’m gay. I don’t give a shit what you think.”

His eyes widened and anger moved into his limbs.

Ken slammed the door then locked it. “Fuck him.”

I felt guilty for ganging up on my dad and saying so many hurtful things, but it needed to be done. Perhaps if he lost his son and daughter, he’d realize the error of his ways.
But probably not.

We both sat on the couch and tried to calm down. The TV played but neither one of us watched it.

“At least we have each other,” I said.

Ken shrugged. “It’s better than nothing.”

Perhaps I shouldn’t leave my brother tonight. I wanted to be with Jeremy more than anything, but Ken was my family. If he needed me, I should stay.

“What are you
r plans tonight?” Ken asked.

“Nothing.” I’d text Jeremy and tell him the bad news. After we had our monumental moment last night, I just wanted to be in his arms. It’s where I belonged. “You?”

“I have a date.”

“You do?”

“I was applying for jobs at a coffee shop and we started talking. I told him I was unemployed but he still wanted to go out. And he’s really cute.”

“That sounds like fun.” I was glad my brother was getting out of the house. Plus, I didn’t have to feel guilty about being with Jeremy. “I’ll probably go to Jeremy’s tonight so you’ll have the house to yourself…”

He smiled. “You’ll let me have sex with some guy on your couch?”

“Just sanitize everything when you’re done.”

“You know, just because I’m staying here doesn’t mean you can’t have Jeremy over. I don’t want to intrude on your life.”

“No, we usually got to his place anyway. It’s bigger and nicer.”

He nodded. “Is this guy the one?”

I nodded. “I think so.”

“I should get to know him, then.”

“I’d like that.”

“Me too,” he said.

I left the couch and headed to my room. “I’m going to get ready. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

♫

When I arrived at Jeremy’s house, he pulled me into his arms and held me close. The intensity of his embrace told me he missed me all day. His hands moved up and down my back and made me feel loved.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he whispered.

“Me too.” I pressed my face close to his.

“Are you hungry?”

“No.”

“You want to go to a movie?

“No.”

“Then what do you want to do?” he asked.

“Go to bed.”

He smiled. “Me too.”

We walked upstairs and entered his bedroom. His bedding was made like a hotel. I was surprised there was no chocolate on the pillow. Jeremy didn’t remove his clothes. He was extremely cautious around me, never doing anything to make me uncomfortable.

I wasn’t scared about being physical with him. In fact, I craved it.

I grabbed his tie and pulled his lips to mine. He smiled for a moment while our lips pressed together. Then he caressed mine with his, tasting me. My hands reached for his clothes and started to strip him. When his chest was bear, I felt it with my fingertips. He was solid and hard. The muscles covered his body and made me excited. He was so chiseled, he looked unreal. I touched his happy trail then moved up to his stomach.

His back was equally strong. Muscles lined each other and formed sharp curves. His skin was hot with scorching heat. I loved touching him everywhere. I was eager to be with him, and not just in a lustful way. It felt
right with him. I never felt that way with Chad. I just had sex with him because I thought I was supposed to.

I unbuttoned his slacks and got them off. When he stood in his briefs, I wanted to look down and see the goodies. I didn’t look last time because he was emotional. It simply wasn’t the right time. But when I pressed against him, I felt it against my stomach.

Holy Gamoly, it was big.

Jeremy didn’t undress me so I grabbed
his hands and made them grip my shirt. He took a deep breath while he kissed me, trying to control himself. I knew not having sex for several months weighed down on him. After getting it every day, he quit cold turkey. I was impressed with his ability to still be a gentleman. I knew every day was a battle.

When my shirt was off, he broke our kiss and stared at my body. His hands moved down my arms then across my stomach. Then he moved his hands up my back and unclasped my bra. When it fell, his eyes lit up in desire.

He guided me to the bed then laid me down. My feet still touched the floor while I lay back. He leaned over me then kissed my neck. He hadn’t done it before and it felt good when he did it now.  The sexual side of him started to emerge. I could feel it coil in his muscles.

His large hands gripped my hips while his tongue danced across my skin. The sound of his mout
h was loud in my ears. The noise made me more turned on. He moved down then licked the valley between my breasts. Watching him was the best porn I’d ever seen.

He sucked each of my nipples like before, making me dig my fingers into his hair. His hips pressed against me,
but my jeans separated us. I wanted to kick them off.

He pulled away then his large hands gripped my breasts. He squeezed gently, making me moan. I loved seeing the desire in his eyes. I felt wanted and beautiful. Jeremy unbuttoned my jeans then pulled them off. I made sure I wore my highest quality thong. It was bright pink, going well against my skin tone.

A deep moan escaped his lips when he saw it. I glanced at the bulge in his briefs and saw the spots of liquid on the front. It twitched while he fingered the lace. He looked up and saw me staring at him. I wanted him to lower his briefs.

Like he could read my mind, he pulled them down, letting his cock spring out. It was thick and long, slightly curved to the right. It was beautiful. There was no better d
escription for it. I bit my lip and moaned when I saw it.

His eyes darkened when he listened to me. Both hands grasped the lace of my thong, and slowly, he pulled it down. When it
was off, he stared down at the apex of my thighs. The greed and heat entered his eyes. I knew he was pleased by the sight.

He pushed me further up the bed then pulled my legs over his shoulders. I didn’t know what he had planned but I was eager to find out. He leaned down and pressed his mouth against my sensitive area. As soon as his tongue touched my clitoris, I released a quiet howl. No man had ever gone down on me before. And it felt so good.

Jeremy circled my clitoris then moved his tongue up in one slow motion. Every time he moved, a moan escaped my lips. I couldn’t hide how good it felt. It was obvious I hadn’t had an intimate relationship in a long time and I was slightly embarrassed about it.