Then Summer Came (14 page)

I hugged his head to my chest, my elbows resting on his shoulders, as he tongue teased and bit me.  He hummed and moaned into my neck, driving me crazy, and bringing me back to that point.  I dug my fingers into his flesh as a rapid tingling surged through me.  I came again, and he came with me, every muscle in his body tensing.  I could feel him pulsing inside of me. 

"
Fuck
, Lissa," he groaned into my ear, and we went from tense and fisted to a relaxed sort of lounge.  We stayed like that, my arms around his head, his around my waist, naked and linked together like we'd been so close we weren't sure if we'd be able to part. 

His lips were hot against my shoulder, and the water was just as hot.  He had floated us back against the steps of the pool, and he was sitting on one, me still straddling him, his hardness—slightly less hard, now—still inside me.  He looked up into my eyes, and our heads touched when he leaned in, again, and pressed his lips to mine.  His tongue flicked playfully at my lips and teeth and he sucked at my bottom lip, and I thought of Derek and kissed him gently, missing what had already ended. 

"Lissa!" Emily shouted. 

Her voice startled me, and I scrambled to get my suit tied back around my neck.  "Shit," I said fiddling with the straps.  He shifted and pulled out of me, and I gasped at the feeling. 

  "Lissa, are you out here?"  I heard Emily's heels clicking toward the pool area.  Of course it would be her that decided to appear at the pool.  No residents had been down—or if they had we were too involved to notice—but Emily, who basically didn’t even live there, was sure to show up.

I pushed at Beck to get out.  He casually smiled, like it wouldn’t bother him a bit to be caught, but started to back out of the pool, giving me a close view of his well-sculpted hips and groin, and I sighed.  He smiled knowing full well what he was doing. 

He sauntered back across the concrete, clearly in no hurry, and grabbed his clothes up.  He wadded them and positioned them over his manhood, just in time for Emily to round the corner and open the gate. 

"There you are, Lis," she said, spotting me submerging from the water, my swimsuit back in place.  "Oh," she said looking over at Beck, covering her mouth with her hands, hiding a smile.  "Sorry, Derek, I had no idea." She giggled and averted her stare but didn't shield her eyes—what self-respecting woman would? 

Beck cleared his throat and smiled, unembarrassed, then sauntered off.  I saw Emily sneak a not-so-subtle peek at his ass, and I laughed.  She shouldn’t have been looking at “my fiancé” that way, but it was Em. 

"I didn't mean to interrupt.  I didn't think Derek would be here."

I shook my head and went to grab my towel.  “It’s fine, Em.  What’s up?”

“I just wanted to see how you felt today…after yesterday…”

I gave her a reassuring, I’m-perfectly-fine smile.   “I’m better, thanks.”

              Emily only stayed for a few minutes—just to make sure I was alright—then she hugged me bye, with talk of no plans for the night, which meant she was going home to concoct a party.



A few hours later, I was working on some designs at the dining-room table, when Derek came in.  I only looked up at him long enough to realize it was him, and then I went back to my sketch.  I was glad to see him, since it was a rarity, and I was excited that he had actually come by, but I wasn’t sure if I could talk to him.   I was so angry with him for missing my grandmother’s funeral, and then I’d gone and slept with Beck…
again
.  I didn’t feel very good.

”Hey,” I said flatly. 

              “How do you feel today?” He asked and pulled out a chair next to me.

“I’m alright, I guess.”

“Lis, I’m sorry I missed the funeral, but I was hoping you would accompany me tonight.”

“Tonight?” I repeated, remembering my plans with Beck. 

“Yeah, it’s the investors’ dinner we have every year.  It’ll be at the Blinn house.”  He was talking about his home in Blinn, the subdivision down in Oceanside.  It was a little too far from his office, and the only people that ever stayed there was his Dad, occasionally, and some of the office people.  He mostly used it for company parties and dinners. 

I chose not to say anything.  I really didn’t know what to say.  I was really happy to see him, but it sucked that he wanted to see me at a work event.  When would there be time for just us?  I laid my pencil down onto the paper and turned to him.  I tried to gather my feelings so that I could tell him everything I was feeling, but nothing came out.  Besides, he already knew how much I hated his job, and what more was there to say?

“What’s wrong?” he asked sweetly. 

“You mean other than the fact that my fiancé says his assistant has his schedule full for the next week and can’t make time to plan our wedding, but he can make time for ‘investor dinners’?”

“Lis, this was one of the things on my schedule.” 

My sigh was ripe with exasperation, and I tried to keep the eye rolling to a minimum. 

“Well, do you have plans?” he asked in my silence. 

“Kind of,” I sighed.  “It’s not a big deal.  Beck and I were gonna watch a movie, but we can reschedule.”  I smiled and climbed into his lap, kissing him excitedly on every handsome feature of his face.  I was just suddenly so happy to see him that I forgot how mad I’d been.

I’d
thought
Beck’s lips felt like Derek’s, but kissing Derek for the first time in days, I noticed his lips didn’t feel like Beck’s at all.  Truthfully, I could suddenly feel a lot of differences that I‘d thought felt the same before:  the way he touched me, his body pressed into mine, my hands in his hair, it was all different from the way it felt with Beck.  I’d missed him so much.

              Derek left for a few hours to get some things together for the dinner.  He came back right after dark and handed me a familiar gown bag.  I unzipped it, revealing a gorgeous, layered, off-white gown. 

“You know my mother would want me to wear one of her dresses?”

“Well, I wanted to buy that for you.  I think it’ll look amazing on you,” he countered, and I suddenly felt like an asshole. 

I eyed the cream-colored gown, with its long, feathery, cascades and form-fitting bodice.  It was gorgeous.  I smiled at him and crushed myself into him, hugging him tightly.  It felt good to have him there to just hug whenever I pleased.

He began pulling on his tux, one piece at a time.  I slid the gown on, and he helped zip it.  We finished getting ready, and headed for Blinn shortly after. 

              I felt bad canceling plans with Beck, but I knew he’d understand.  He blew it off like it was nothing, telling me not to worry about it, but he looked a little disappointed in his eyes.  He assured me it wasn’t a big deal and that I shouldn’t feel bad.  He’d even decided to go to Derek’s company party, too.

Chapter Thirteen

I strolled around the party on Derek’s arm for way too long.  My shoes were pinching my feet, and I was tired of forcing smiles for people I didn’t know or care about.  And the worst part was that they were the people that kept my fiancé away from me all day, every day. 

              I finally saw Emily, elegantly dressed in a white, tea-length dress.  She was chatting up a group of men, touching the rim of her champagne glass to her lips in a flirty manner. 

She smiled when she saw me, and I slipped away from Derek, who barely even noticed and just kept kissing the asses of his invertors. 

Em kissed my cheek and whispered a slight at how little there was to drink there.  “Is that what you’ve been living with for the past two months?” she whispered in my ear, and I followed her stare to the other side of the room.  Beck was staring at me—dead in my eyes—and I felt my throat tighten.  “I know you said it’d be weird, but at least introduce me.  Jesus!”  She fanned herself in that exaggerated, Emily way. 

I crooked my finger at him, eyeing him to come over.  He looked like he was hesitant, but he finally smiled and nodded and began to walk toward us. 

I cleared my throat and gave him a sharp stare, reminding him that was the
first time
they’d ever met.  “Beck, this is my best friend, Emily Marks.”  Her lips twisted into a wicked, sly smile as she shook his hand, holding it a few seconds too long.  She was staring at his face as if she was studying it, and then her smile widened.

“It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Marks,” Beck said politely.  “You look stunning.” 

His additional comment made Emily giddy, but it annoyed me.  She did look stunning—she always did—but he needed to keep it in his pants, for once.  There was no way I was letting him anywhere near her. 

“Oh, it’s so good to finally meet you!”  Emily’s tone was strange. 

Just as I was getting annoyed at their flirtatious eyes scanning one another, his gaze fell on me.  He eyed me up and down and then met my gaze, again.  “You look great, too, by the way.”  His voice caressed me, quiet and heavy, and I realized he’d never seen me dressed up that way—in a gown. 

“You’re…sort of dressed up,” I said, tugging the lapel of his unbuttoned coat.  He was decked out in black and a leather coat.  It looked really good on him.  It was hardly a tux, but he looked nice.  I’d only ever seen him in a suit once, that night at the club, and when he’d turned around, I realized it wasn’t really very much of a suit then either.  I wasn’t even sure of how I’d mistaken him for Derek.

He laughed, straightening his jacket back up, and Derek approached my side.  “Lis.”  He grabbed my arm and pulled me away, not giving me any time to excuse myself or talk to Em. 

He dragged me up the stairs, and I tried to keep up with how quickly he was pulling—
almost dragging
—me. 

“Derek,” I hissed.  “What are you doing?”

He didn’t answer; he just kept pulling me until we reached his ridiculously-huge bedroom. He locked the door behind us, and I adjusted my ruffled gown, awaiting his explanation.  He sighed and leaned back against the vanity, crossing his arms over his chest.  I strolled over and sat down on the bed, eyeing him, and crossed my arms to add to my look of irritation.  He looked peeved, and I knew I was, but I couldn’t help but focus on the fact that we were alone together for the first time in weeks. 

“Look, Lis,” he said, rubbing his jawline. “I know I’ve been kind of shitty…”  I stared at his rare loss for words with an I’m-listening sort of stare.  “I just…I don’t want you to get too caught up in Beck.”

I felt my mouth drop a little as I tried to find my breath.  “Beck…?”

“Yeah, Beck.”  He just stared at me.  “
I know
, Lis.  I’m not an idiot.  I’m never around and he always is.  I get it.  But you should know he’s always around because he hasn’t done anything with his life.”

I felt a strange urge to defend Beck.  He had plans; he was just
living
, unlike some of the rest of us.  I wanted to blurt it out and tell Derek, but I held my tongue. 

“Lis.”  He came over and took my face in his hands and bent down until his eyes were level with mine. His pale blue eyes were dark, pleading.  “I don’t know…what you’ve done with my brother.  I don’t know if you’ve kissed him…or slept with him, and frankly, I don’t give a flying fuck.  I know you have needs, and I know they’re strong ones, and I know I’m
extremely horrible
at tending to them, but you’re
my
fiancé, and I want to remind you why.”

He yanked me into his arms, pulled my gown up, and tugged my legs around his waist.  He gripped my hair and sank his lips into mine.  His tongue slid against mine, and his hands slid under my dress, pulling at the thin strings of my panties.  I kissed him back, remembering how much I’d missed him and throwing that emotion into our embrace with the force of a wrecking ball. 

He carried me into the bath room and sat me on the counter, beside the sink, his lips still moving violently against mine.  He gripped the sequined bodice and ripped it down the center, kissing me where it opened. 

He pulled me close to him, his lips and tongue dancing across my breasts.  His warm body against my chilled, bare breasts drove me wild.  He ran his tongue all over my chest, stopping to tease my nipples with his teeth. 

He pulled his shirt off, exposing all of the hard work he put in at the gym that he hid under a suit all day.  He unbuttoned his slacks and they hung at his hips.  He picked me back up, and his finger nails raked across my legs as I wrapped them around him tightly.  I clung to him, my hands in his hair, my thighs locked around his hips.  He carried me over to the shower and stepped in. I reveled in his kiss as he sat me on the seat in the corner, his lips never leaving mine.  He pushed against my chin, flinging my head back, and he bit and sucked on my neck aggressively and returned to my lips.  I moaned into his mouth, and I felt his response under me.

The cold water sprinkled over us as he flicked the water on, and it slowly warmed.  He slid his hands under the fluffy cascades of my gown, which was only hanging on by the bottom half now.  His fingers dug into me, and he pulled my legs until I slammed against him, feeling him hard against me. 

“Let’s wash Beck off you,” he said in a harsh, throaty voice.  That was all it took:  Beck’s face wouldn’t leave my head.  His touch, the way he kissed my jawline and the skin over my collarbone, the way he held me, the way he looked at me with those clear brown eyes, all of it was flooding my mind. 

Damn it! 
Why
?  Why was I thinking of Beck when I was with the man I wanted?  I thought of Derek every time I was with Beck, but now I was actually with Derek and Beck’s eyes, body, and lips were all I could think about.  Derek’s hands became Beck’s.  Derek’s mouth became Beck’s.  With every touch, kiss, lick, and bite, I saw Beck’s face and Beck’s body, and I wanted him so badly.  I craved him like the most addictive form of morphine.