One True Thing (15 page)

“Oh my God,” she gasps, as I pull myself up alongside her. “That was amazing.”

“I’m glad,” I say. Even in the darkness I can see the flush of color on her cheeks. It feels as if her body is a white-hot star next to mine.

“Now it’s your turn.” Jenna presses my shoulders against the sleeping bag, pulling the sweats off my legs in one fluid motion, and I inhale as my hard-on is released to the night air. Naked, she straddles me, bending down to lick the head of my cock as it twitches in response to her touch. The heat from her breath and the sensation of her lips around me is almost unbearable as she takes me in her mouth. Just when I’m almost to the point where I can’t hold on any longer, I feel her pull away from me.

“Wait,” Jenna says, reaching over to grab her shorts. I hear the crinkling of the wrapper as she pulls a condom from her pocket, opens it and rolls it down onto me. “I want to feel you inside of me,” she says, kneeling over me and stroking my hardness with her finger.

I grab her hips with both hands as she hovers over me, almost losing it completely as I start to enter her. I want to feel her so badly, want to bury myself in as deep as I can go. She’s tight and I force myself not to push too fast as she settles on me, rocking a little in order to take in as much as she can. The sensation of her surrounding me is almost blinding, but I take one hand off her hip and place it where our bodies meet, my thumb on the ridge of her clit as she moans, telling me I hit the right spot. I can hear the wood of the platform creaking as we get into a rhythm, Jenna rocking above me, her hair loose in front, almost brushing my chest. Her breathing becomes sharp and short and I hold on as long as I can, rubbing her clit as she writhes above me, riding me over the edge, her head tilted back and a moan escaping as she comes with a full-body shudder. I follow her a few seconds later, holding her body still with both hands as the wave rolls through me and explodes inside of her.

My heart is pounding in my chest as she bends down and kisses me, wiping the sweat from around my hairline with her delicate fingers. I groan as she lifts herself off me and I slide out of her, aware of the night air on my body as I roll over and dispose of the condom. Jenna tucks her body under my arm, her head in the hollow of my chest and one leg between my thighs as if she was built the perfect size, just for me. I reach up and grab her hand, lacing her fingers through mine. I could stay here forever, the warm Texas air brushing our skin as our heartbeats slow and our eyes get heavy and we lie naked in her tree house under the star-filled sky.

Chapter
Fourteen (Jenna)

There’s a hint of grey in the sky overhead when I open my eyes. The air has cooled in the early morning and my hands are cold, in contrast to the warmth of my body where I’m still wrapped up in Ty’s arms. His fingers hold mine loosely in sleep, his strong beautiful hands relaxed and his body even more breathtaking in the light of dawn. Images from last night flash through my mind, but without the dread I felt the last time I woke up next to Ty. This feels right. We’re not going to end up like before. Right?

Ty must feel me watching him because his eyelashes flutter and then his green eyes focus on me. “Good morning,” he says with a smile, pulling me more tightly to him. I feel a rush of relief flood through my body, pushing out the tension that I didn’t even know I was carrying. No second thoughts, no rushing out. Ty’s glad to see me here in his arms.

“Morning,” is all I say.

“God you’re beautiful,” he says, brushing one hand lightly down my thigh. “I say that too much, don’t I?”

I shake my head. “Not like I’m going to get tired of hearing it.”

Ty stretches, his taught stomach arching up toward me. There’s no mistaking his hard-on, so I let my hand wander in that direction.

“You sure you want to do that?” he asks.

“Yes,” I say, kissing him deeply while running my hand up his thigh.

He closes his eyes and moans softly. “Did you bring more supplies?”

I glance over at the torn condom wrapper. “No. Just the one.”

“Not very optimistic were you?” He laughs. “That’s okay,” he says, grabbing my hand and kissing my palm. “We can continue this particular conversation another time.”

“We don’t have to,” I say slowly, not wanting to stop. Suddenly I want to feel him inside of me again, with no barriers. Skin to skin. “I’ve been on the pill since I was sixteen. And after Jake…let’s just say I got tested for everything possible.” It’s amazing how easy it is to talk to him about this.

I can see him considering. “I’m clean too,” he says. “My last girlfriend insisted on getting tested.” Ty leans his body close and presses his lips to mine. “It’s your call.”

Instead of answering, I reach for him and he’s already rock hard. Ty lets me stroke him for a few seconds before moving himself out of range, running his tongue down my stomach and kissing each of my inner thighs as my legs fall open. I’m so ready for him, but he takes it slowly, covering my body with kisses before focusing on my clit, parting my folds gently with his tongue, making slow circular motions that set my entire body on fire. He slides two fingers inside of me as his tongue works the outside and the pleasure builds so strongly that I pull away a little bit and he looks up at me, a question in his eyes. I want to come with him inside me, to feel his skin moving against mine. I reach down and guide him into me, watching as Ty’s strong arms hold himself above my body. His eyes lock on mine as he exhales and pushes himself into me, inch by inch until I’m full with him and wrap my legs around his as he begins to move, slowly at first and then faster and faster. I arch up to press myself against him, gasping as I hit just the right spot, the intensity building as we grind against each other. His green eyes are on mine, his nostrils flaring as he fights for control and as soon as he sees that I’m losing it, he lets go too and we come together, pressing our bodies as close as they can possibly get until the tremors subside. Ty collapses on top of me, but he doesn’t pull out, not for a few minutes, until he groans and rolls over next to me on the sleeping bag.

“Damn, girl,” he says in a fake Texas accent. He brushes the hair off my face. “I could do this every day.”

“Play your cards right and you can,” I say with a grin.

“I plan to,” he says, leaning over and covering my neck with kisses until I squeal. This whole night has felt so right, so perfect. It feels like we’ve known each other forever, that I can trust him with anything. Moment by moment I feel the lingering effects of Jake slipping away.

We lie there for a little while longer, feeling the morning heat up as the sun starts to rise in the sky. I explore every inch of his body with my fingertips in the growing light, amazed that all of this is mine, that I can touch him and hold him whenever I want. I run my fingers through his hair, still only about an inch or so, but longer than I’ve ever seen it. “You ever think of growing it out?” I ask.

“Nah,” he says. “It gives me hat-head when it’s any longer than this.”

I touch the end of a strand where it curls over my finger, lighter blond at the tip and darker at the ends. “It looks curly. Do you have curly hair?” It’s funny that we’ve spent the entire night naked together, but I don’t even know this about him.

“Yep. Crazy curly. I grew it long once when I was a little kid. Not so much long as big because it just stood out from my head. It was even lighter back then so I looked like a giant dandelion.”

I can almost imagine him with long curly blond hair. “I wish I could have seen that. Do you have any pictures of the white-boy afro?”

Ty looks away from me. “No. I didn’t bring much with me when I transferred here.”

“Maybe you can get your dad to send you some.” I wonder if it’s hard for him to look at photos with his mom gone.

“Maybe,” he says. His stomach growls loudly enough for me to hear.

“Breakfast?” I ask.

“I’d love some,” he says, kissing me lightly on the neck. “I seem to have worked up quite an appetite.”

We quickly throw our clothes on and pick our way back down the ladder. The house is still quiet when we creep into the kitchen and the clock says 7:35. I put on some coffee and get out the eggs while Ty sits at the table watching me until I get a little self-conscious.

“What?” I ask, cracking the eggs in a bowl.

“Nothing,” he says. “I just like watching you. Is that okay?”

“I guess so,” I say, turning away with a smile.

“I thought I smelled breakfast,” Mom says, walking into the kitchen in her robe and slippers. She yawns and pours herself a cup of coffee before leaning against the sink and turning to us. “You two are up awfully early. What’s the matter? Didn’t sleep well?”

“No ma’am,” Ty says, his eyes smiling, but his face serious. “I slept great. Just great”

I hide my grin under my hair as I stir the eggs in the pan.


                    
 

“Goodbye Gram,” I say, giving her a hug and inhaling her warm powdery smell.

“I can’t believe you’re off already,” she says. “Let me fix you up some chicken for the road. There’s plenty left.”

“Don’t go to any trouble,” Ty says, although I know he liked it because he must have had half a dozen pieces last night.

“No trouble at all,” Gram says, walking back into the kitchen.

“You have all your bags?” Mom says. “I put in a couple of books I read recently that I thought you’d like.”

“Thanks,” I say.

“Godammit!” Gramps yells as the screen door slams on the porch. “Jean…Kat, did you know anything about this?”

Mom roll
s her eyes at me but I feel a moment of panic. Did someone see us up in the tree house? I wouldn’t put it past the neighbors to call Gramps and rat us out. Gram walks in from the kitchen just as he stomps into the dining room waving his cell phone.

“For goodness sake
Jed,” Gram says. “What on earth has got you so riled up?”

Gramps slams his cowboy hat down on the table. “That damn Earl Ryan has really done us in this time,” he says. I relax a little. At least it has nothing to do with me. 

“I can’t believe that a fellow lodge member would do something so no-account—”

“What already?”
Mom breaks in. “What is so awful that you’re all up in here yelling loud enough to wake the dead?”

Gramps collapse
s into his recliner and fans himself with a magazine. “I knew I couldn’t trust him any farther than I could throw him. Always had that shifty look in his eye. Do you know what he up and did?”

“Oh for goodness sake…”
Mom says.

“Earl Ryan u
p and sold the Barnes place…to colored!” Gramps said.

“Oh
Jed,” Gram says, pressing her hand to her mouth like she’s just been witness to a tragedy. “Let me get you a nice cold beer. Help you think better.” She disappears into the kitchen.

“Do you have any idea what this means?” Gramps demands. “Property values dropping all over the place, who knows what-all going on right next-door at all hours of the night? All you need is one, then we’ll get their cousins moving in across the street and soon this whole side of town will be overrun with colored.”

“
I’ve told you a million times, no one has been called ‘colored’ since sometime in the 1950s,” Mom says. I can see her jaw clenching on the side of her cheek. “We elected an African American president for God’s sake. Let me introduce you to the new millennium Dad.”

“That boy is half-white,” Gramps argue
s, shifting in his chair. “And at least he had the sense not to go around acting colored.”

I
glance at Ty, but he’s staring at Gramps with a look on his face I can’t read. He’s been warned about Gramps, but it’s something else to see him in his glory and I worry about what he’s going to think about him. About all of us.

“I didn’t hear you talking about his white half while he was trying to get elected,” Mom sa
ys.

“You watch your tone young lady,” Gramps said. “Colored, Negro, Afro whatever-it-is.
They was colored when I was a boy, and last time I looked, they’s still colored. Biggest mistake I ever made was to let you go to that artsy-fartsy school back east. Filled your head with all sorts of ideas.”

“Right,” she sa
ys, shaking her head. “Grand Junction has always been a hotbed of liberalism and justice.” Gram brings Gramps a sweating glass mug full of cold beer. He nods thanks and drains half of it in one go. It seems to calm him some.

“Now you mark my words,” he sa
ys when he’s finished. “This is bad news for all of us.”

“That’s right,” Mom said, not ready to give up the argument. “This place is such a paradise, we wouldn’t want anyone else coming i
n to share it with us.”

“I d
idn’t see you complainin’ none when I kept a roof over your sorry head when you came crawling back here with a baby on your back and no husband in sight.” He turns to me. “No offense.”

“Now Jed,” Gram says. She sits on the arm of his chair. “I’m sure it will be fine. Earl wouldn’t sell the place to just anybody.”