The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden (28 page)

He takes the ball out of my hand and throws it over his shoulder toward the end of the field. “Let’s get rid of that stupid thing.”

“I thought that’s why you brought me here?” I say with an uneven voice, unable to take my eyes off his lips as he licks them. “To help you practice.”

His lips part, like he’s going to say something, but then he presses them together and rotates his hat backwards so the visor is behind his head. Inclining his body toward me, my back brushes the pole as his lips hover above mine. He deliberates, putting his hand on the pole next to my head, and then he kisses me.

It starts off soft, a light brush of our lips, but then his other hand grabs the pole and his body moves in until it presses against mine. Our legs tangle, our chests collide, and the tip of his tongue runs along my lips until I open my mouth and let him in.

A breathy noise escapes the back of my throat and at first I’m mortified, but it seems to encourage him. Desire and heat radiates through the entwining of our tongues. One of his hands grips my waist, just beneath the bottom of my shirt and my nerves jumble. His other hand travels down my side, his thumb tracing my ribs, before resting on my hip. Tightening his fingers around me, he lifts me up. Gasping, I hook my legs around his waist in a vice-grip.

My mind is flying about a million miles an hour. I’m afraid. Not of him, but everything connected to what he’s doing. Do I want this? Do I? The answer is yes. I want it. Badly.

I hope he doesn’t notice the anxious tremble of my body as his fingers slip underneath my shirt and he sketches his fingertips along my stomach. As he nips at my bottom lip, I let out an uncontrollable whimper.

He draws back, putting a sliver of space between our faces. His pupils are huge and shiny beneath the stadium lights and his untamed breath caresses against my cheek.

“Callie, I don’t want to…” He pauses, tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear. “I don’t want to push you.”

It’s like he can read my inexperience all over my face. I bite down on my lip, working to hide my embarrassment. “It’s fine.”

He wavers. “Are you… are you sure?”

I nod my head swiftly. “Yes.”

Without any more reluctance he crashes his lips against mine and a gasp falters from my throat at the heat his kiss brings to my body. His tongue enters my mouth again as his hands stay under my shirt, his palms touching my stomach. It’s the most frightening and most wonderful experience of my life. I don’t ever want to forget it.

Daringly, I slip my hands underneath his shirt as I breathe ravenously. He winces as my hands wander along his well-defined abs covered with the bumpy lines of his scars.

I worry he’s going to reach up and tug my hands out of his shirt, but instead his hand explores higher up to the edge of my bra. His lips leave mine and touch the corner of my mouth, trailing kisses down my cheek, along my jawline, to the side of my neck where my pulse is racing. My head falls to the side uncontrollably as his palm moves over my breast just outside of my bra. Sucking in a deep breath, I wait for it to catch up with me, but all I can think about is him exploring my body more. I want to find out what it’s like to be touched by someone I trust; by someone I give my permission to.

His fingers start to move below my bra and my insides quiver as he strokes his thumb across my nipple. Heat blazes through my body and I grab onto his sides, grasping onto him with everything in me; feeling his scars, while he feels mine.

He lets out a groan as he sucks on the bottom of my neck and my body curves into his. “Callie,” he whispers. “If you want me to stop, just tell me.”

I don’t want him to stop. At all. It feels too good. “I don’t—”

There’s a deafening click and within seconds, every light flips off and darkness smothers us. I freeze, grabbing onto Kayden, as he pulls his mouth away from my neck. I feel his chest heaving where my fingers hold onto him and for a moment, we’re silent.

Then, Kayden starts to laugh. “Well, this is fun.”

“Can you see anything?” I whisper, turning my head and squinting.

He shakes his head. “Hold on.”

He removes his hand from my breast and I think he’s going to put me down, but instead he wraps his arms around my lower back, interlocking his fingers to hold up my weight. He walks through the dark, carrying me, and I tighten my legs around him, wishing I could see his face, because I want to know what he’s thinking.

His shoes scuff the grass and then we move up onto concrete. Seconds later, we exit out of a tunnel and into the parking lot, which is mostly vacant except for a few cars along the back row, which is lit up by lampposts.

The brightness stings at my eyes. “Why did that happen?”

His emerald eyes sparkle as he shrugs his shoulders. “I wonder if that was by accident, or if it was done intentionally to get us off the field?”

I adjust my hands a little so my arms are looped around the back of his neck. “Were you not supposed to be playing there?”

“Technically, no.” His smile grows like he’s enjoying the moment. “But I’m extremely glad I did.”

I let my head fall forward into his shoulder, breathing in his scent. “Now what do we do?”

He’s quiet for a while and I finally lean back to look him in the eyes. He appears conflicted by something and then he sets me down on the ground, lacing his fingers through mine.

“Should we see where the wind takes us?” he asks.

#9 Dance in the Rain

#13 Live in the Moment

#17 Be Yourself

Kayden

I’ll admit it. I had the whole thing planned and it ended up going where I hoped it would go. Ever since I told Callie about my father, we’d been getting close as friends. Which was fine, except I’m extremely fucking attracted to her, a revelation that came to me during an intense moment in the library.

She’d been helping me study for an English exam and when she showed up, she’d had a jacket on. As she was reading me some of her notes, she took off the jacket. Underneath it, she had on a white t-shirt and I could see the outline of her bra through it and her nipples poking up through the fabric. She probably didn’t realize it because she is not the kind of girl that would do that on purpose. In fact, if I pointed it out to her, her cheeks would get red and she’d run off.

“Kayden?” she asked, looking at me perplexedly. “Are you listening? You kind of look like you’re spacing off.”

I was leaning back in the chair with my arm on the table and a pen in my mouth as I chewed on the end. “I kind of was.”

She let out an exhausted sigh. “Do you want me to read it again?”

I nodded my head, barely paying attention. “Sure.”

She started reading from the book and my mind went back to dirty thoughts of what it would be like to touch her all over and make her moan underneath me as I rocked into her. I wondered if she’d let me if I tried. The friend’s thing seemed to be working for us. She made me laugh and smile and I was enjoying myself. My dark thoughts and problems had been contained more than they had in a long time.

It seemed like I should just let things be, but the more I watched her lips read the words from the book, the more I wanted to bite on them.

Her eyes rose up from the book and she was trying to look angry. “You’re not listening to me, are you?”

I shook my head, unable to stop myself from grinning at her. “Not really. Sorry. I’m kind of distracted.”

“With what?” she asks with uncertainty. “Do you want to talk about it?”

It took a lot not to smile and whisper in her ear every single detail about the very vivid images running through my mind. “No, that’s okay. Trust me. You probably don’t want to hear about it.”

Her forehead wrinkled as she tried to figure out why I was so happy. “Do you need a break?”

“Nah, you can keep reading. I’m enjoying the sound of your voice.”

She sucked her bottom lip in to stifle a smile and that nearly threw me over the edge. I decided that I needed to be with her just a little bit more so I conjured up my lovely football plan.

After the lights shut off at the field, we end up back at my room. I’m surprised how willingly she went with me. I almost backed out a few times on our way there, when my emotions were getting a little too intense for me.

She walks around the small space in between the beds, glancing at my stuff, and picks up a DVD case, reading the back. “You recorded all your games?”

I pull a face as I take my hat off and toss it onto the bed. “No, my dad did. He liked to make me watch it afterward, so he could point out everything I did wrong.”

She sets down the case and turns to me. “I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m sorry,” I say, raking my fingers through my hair. “For talking about this stuff with you.”

Her eyes fix on me as she inches toward me. “I want you to talk to me about it. I would have never asked you questions if I didn’t want to hear the answers… I can’t just forget what I saw that night. I don’t think I ever will.”

I remember the night she was drunk and how she muttered about a guy doing something to her. “You can tell me stuff too, if you want. I’m a great listener.”

She turns her face toward the window, her chest rising and falling. “You know, I’m surprised at how much warmer it is here than back at home.”

She’s hiding something. I decrease the gap between us and her shoulders tense. I start to open my mouth to press her, but she tilts her head toward me with a strange look on her face, like she’s scared out of her mind. Before I can even register what she’s doing, she leans in and seals her lips to mine. Her body trembles as she grips at the bottom of my shirt, waiting for me to kiss her back.

I wasn’t planning on taking it any further tonight, but the feel of her lips is overwhelming. Without even thinking, my mouth opens and my tongue enters hers, devouring her.

“Oh, my God,” she moans as my hands slide around to her back and I pull her closer, moving my lips deliberately against hers. I’m savoring every inch, every spot, memorizing it.

Suddenly the intense kiss shifts to desperation. I spin us around and back us toward the bed, my feet getting entangled with hers. My hand snaps out to catch us as we fall onto the mattress. Rolling her onto her back, I hold up my weight with my arms, but allow enough closeness that her heat radiates into me and her breasts brush my chest every time she breathes.

I loosen up a little and start to explore her body with my hands, feeling the soft skin of her stomach, her ribs, the bottom of her breast. Before I know what I’m doing, I have my hand underneath her bra again. I stroke my finger across her nipple and she gasps as her legs constrict around my midsection. It feels good—way too good. I need to stop, otherwise it’s going to break apart on me.

I start to revolve to the side, but her body follows mine and her leg hitches around my hip, so my thigh is pressing between her legs. As my fingers dig into her waist, her body bows forward and she rubs herself along my thigh. Her head falls back as her glazed eyes open and she begins to quiver.

Fuck. I’ve never been so turned on before. I begin moving my leg against her and lean forward to grab her lip between my teeth, nipping it softly as I cup her breast with my hand. Clutching onto my shoulders, her entire body shakes with her nerves.

Should I stop? It’s pretty clear she’s never gone this far before and I don’t want to be the one responsible for pushing her where she’s not ready to go.

“Callie,” I say, but her fingers tighten around my shoulder blades, her nails piercing my skin through the fabric of my shirt as she lets out a moan and I know she’s close. I put my hand between her legs and rub her the rest of the way, her body bucking against my hand.

Moments later, she blinks her eyes as her body relaxes. I watch her in complete awe as she works to reclaim control of her thoughts. As she settles down, her whole face sinks and my chest tightens as she stares over my shoulder.