Hard Love_ A Bad Boy Fighter Ro - Flowers, Kristen

Copyright © 2016 by, Kristen Flowers All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the author. Reviewers may quote brief passages in reviews. This is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or business establishments, events or locals is coincidental.

By Megan West & Kristen Flowers

Also by Kristen Flowers

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Table of Contents Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three

Chapter Four Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter six Bonus Stories by Megan West & Kristen Flowers

Chapter One Emma didn’t even notice the haze of the dust anymore. She didn’t notice it especially when she was watching the fist of her boyfriend’s opponent collide with his cheek. Blood splattered out of Nathan’s face for the first time that night and she cringed. She watched as he stumbled backward and blinked, as if he suddenly felt confused about where he was and what was going on. She didn’t even notice when she had grabbed a big lock of her flowing, natural red hair to twist it around her

hand the more anxious she grew. She winced as Nathan’s opponent took advantage of his confused state to deliver another punch. Then another and another, until he stumbled back against the ropes. The crowd around her exploded in screams and booed at Nathan, making her stomach clench even tighter. “Get it together!” a drunken man to her right screeched in near panic. “The fuck! Blast that fucker, Nathan! What is this shit?” another man, immediately behind her screamed in fury.

She knew he had bet a large sum of money for her boyfriend Nathan to win and it seemed now like he was going to lose. She also knew Nathan always heard these types of hoots and hollers from the crowd, and it affected him. She couldn’t imagine how it wouldn’t. Now she only hoped it spurred him on to beat his opponent and not overwhelm him instead. Emma gulped and closed her eyes when the opponent’s fist flung out at Nathan again. She didn’t want to watch it anymore, but she had to be ringside– for her boyfriend and for her job. It was loathsome. She opened her eyes again,

but looked off to the side. Past a small opening in the crowd she saw the bar area where the cocktail waitresses were gathered, waiting on the drink orders they needed to deliver to their customers. She heard some sort of crack in the ring and she winced. She didn’t want to turn around and look at whatever had caused such an awful sound, she only hoped it wasn’t a part of Nathan’s body. So she chose instead to focus on Elaine, who was delivering a drink to a man even though he clearly didn’t need any more alcohol. She was wearing a tiny, tight leather vest that pushed her cleavage far out and exposed her tight

abdomen paired with miniscule denim shorts from which the bottom of her ass cheeks peaked out. She had opted for flat boots that day, but she still looked fantastic and all the men loved her. It was the typical attire for the women who worked as cocktail waitresses at The Ring, the dusty old place owned by Nick for these underground fights. Emma shuddered. To think she once dated that millionaire who set up and run this place made her blood run cold, especially now that it was home to the man she truly loved. It seemed like an

entirely different life when she had been with Nick. Now she was working at this place, essentially working for him. It was strange the way things happened. She turned back to look at Nathan, who was still getting knocked around. She could see the dried blood on his chin and the cuts on his face. He was going to have some serious swelling and bruising in no time at all. She gulped and held back the tears that had been fighting to come out for a while now. “Let me place a bet on The Tank,” a hoarse and slightly slurred voice said into her ear.

Emma turned to see a man leaning over towards her, holding a big wad of cash. She cleared her throat, “Betting is closed the moment the bell rings in round one.” She looked at him with a stern look on her face. He was one of those jokers who waited to try cashing in on what looked like the obvious winner. Of course it bothered her that her boyfriend’s opponent was the one in the lead, but not as much as these men who tried to push her around, make a quick buck, and try to impress her with a big wad of cash she was sure hadn’t been earned by any honest means.

Mainly bored millionaires with low moral compasses populated this place and a lot of them weren’t honest men. Their wealth hadn’t been inherited or amassed in a legal way. And those who earned their money legally were still despicable men, in her opinion. The Ring attracted a certain kind of individual; the type of individual Emma found repulsive. But it was the world she was a part of and she couldn’t wait to escape it. The man eyed her with annoyance, shoving the big wad of cash into his pocket. “Fucking bullshit,” he barked at her. She could hear him muttering more

expletives as he stalked off into the crowd with a strut. “He would have lost his money anyway. They don’t call Nathan the Comeback Kid for nothing,” Emma’s coworker, Laura, said as she leaned into her ear. Emma smiled for the first time since she had set foot into The Ring that night. She turned and looked into Laura’s kind, brown eyes and sighed. It was likely her friend and co-worker was right about that, but waiting for Nathan to have his ‘comeback’ was always gut wrenching for her. She hated the whole process of

it. Every time she watched her boyfriend get hit it felt like getting hit herself. She felt the physical and emotional pain of every single punch and she wasn’t even in the ring. Her thoughts were broken by going into a fit of coughing, brought on by a man who had stepped up beside her and blown cigarette smoke practically right into her mouth. She had grown used to inhaling smoke second hand, the haze of it constantly hung in the air. But it was entirely different to have it blown into

her mouth. She saw the man look at her with a condescending smirk, but he made no motion to step away. Emma took a step back and looked over at Laura with annoyance. It wasn’t the time to get into some kind of pointless argument with the man. There were a lot of things to want to fight about in The Ring and cigarette smoke wasn’t one of them. She looked back at Nathan, but her vision was out of focus. She wanted this to end; not the fight, the lifestyle. Everything about the underground fighting lifestyle was something she very much wanted to leave behind– everything except Nathan that was. She looked at his strong body

despite the punches he had already taken and knew he would fare well in California alongside her. He was as strong in spirit as he was physically. Getting out of this underground fighting lifestyle and moving to California wasn’t a distant dream for her, even if it often felt like it. They were very real dreams she wanted. She needed them. She looked at Nathan and her heart started pounding. As much as she loved him she couldn’t continue on in this type of life. She couldn’t continue to watch him get beat time after time before he

turned around for the win. She hated every danger associated with The Ring. She was approaching the breaking point and she was approaching it fast. As her eyes followed Nathan’s clenched fist, colliding with The Tank’s already bruised cheekbone. As she watched Nathan land a solid punch her mind raced with a million emotions. It tore her heart of her chest to think she would have to leave him behind if he refused to get out of this fighting circuit and move to California with her. It wasn’t for lack of love and she knew it. She was confident in how much

Nathan loved her, just as much as she loved him. But he had his own goals and motivations. Not only did he want to be crowned the best fighter in the underground world, he wanted to go at it professionally. That thought alone was enough to twist her insides so much she felt nauseous. How could she even handle that? But at the same time, she could see the worry in his eyes if she mentioned him giving up fighting. It was all he had ever known, from the very first moment he decided to do something for money. It was his only skill and passion. At least that was his point of view on it and himself. Her only comfort was that, if he ever

did go pro, it was likely not like the underground scene. She knew she would never be okay watching him take a beating, but maybe it would be more bearable if it wasn’t in such a despicable place. Or maybe those were the things she told herself to be okay with him following her to California and continuing to pursue his dreams away from Nick and The Ring. She had no clue how any of it would work and it was something she tried not to think about in too much detail, only because it made no sense any way she framed it. She figured she was drowning herself in negativity and creating unwarranted confusion.

Nathan ducked and narrowly missed a powerful swing from The Tank. Nathan’s opponent stumbled against the ropes before quickly turning around and facing him again. Emma let out a sigh of relief after avoiding that one. The one punch seemed like it could have knocked him out entirely if he hadn’t ducked down in time. Every muscle in her body was tense as she watched the fight continue, the thundering of her pulse in her ears drowned out the drunken cheers around her. Right then a loud smack resonated from the ring just as the bell rung. Nathan had given the other man a swift

punch to the gut. Emma held her breath for a moment as she watched The Tank double over, clutching his stomach. The crowd went wild, jumping up and down with excitement when The Tank didn’t stand back up. It was a punishing uppercut that finished off Nathan’s opponent, declaring him the winner. Once again he had lived up to his title “The Comeback Kid”. He had turned around and came back with something to end the fight, even after such a bad beating at the start. The crowd went wild but Nathan only punched the air upward for them before immediately leaning against the cage and staring across the crowd, directly at

Emma. Emma felt her heart skip a beat. She smiled back at him, trying her best to ignore the cuts and dried up blood covering up his handsome face. Despite all that, his smile shined as bright as ever when he looked at her. She let out a sigh of relief. No matter how much she hated seeing him step into that ring and fight, watching him win was the best feeling in the world. It wasn’t because he was the winner of the fight that made her heart fluttered. It was because as soon as the other man hit the canvas, knocked out, it meant

Nathan was safe– at least for the time being. Nathan blew her a quick kiss with a wink. He gave a little wave and then ducked out of the ring, heading off to the locker room for a shower. Emma turned around and set to work on paying off the winning bets with Laura by her side helping her to finish up as quickly as possible, all the while making sure everything was accurate. She ignored the disgruntled curses from the men who were angry for having bet on The Tank. She even ignored those enthusiastically discussing the way “The Comeback Kid,” always managed such a surprising and spectacular ending.

She hated hearing them talk about it so easily, as if it were no big deal that the man she loved could come so close to being beaten to a pulp before finally delivering the wining blow. All these men cared about was being entertained and winning money, although they didn’t suffer for any lack of income. She hated the slithery men who eyed her with obvious hunger and spoke to her as if she were some easy piece of meat. They were the same men who tried to sneak a smack on the ass to the cocktail waitresses or assumed it was their job to provide afterhours entertainment if they requested it.

A lot of them thought she was just another woman they could try to coax into quick sex before dumping her off like it was no big deal. She hated those men. She disliked most of them really, they didn’t really treat her with any actual respect. But she knew that wasn’t unique to her– it was just their general attitude toward all women and any people who fell below their social status, no matter what they had done to get there in the first place. “Go ahead,” Laura whispered in her ear with a grin. Emma smiled and nodded, handing the rest of the cash and envelopes to Laura before heading off to

see Nathan.

Chapter Two Emma easily weaved through the thinning crowd of people and slipped unnoticed into the locker room. Just as she sat on one of the cold, wooden benches she heard footsteps. Looking up, she saw Nathan emerge from the shower area. There were a few drops of water still sliding down his tan skin here and there. He had nothing but a small towel wrapped around his waist, his perfect abs and all his muscles were on full display. Emma swallowed hard. He looked at

her and grinned, holding his arms open to beckon her over for an embrace. She stared at him for a moment longer. Even though she knew this might end and she was afraid of leaving him, there was no denying he was irresistible to her each and every time. Despite the cuts and bruises on his face, he was as handsome as ever. His body turned her on and knowing he knew how to push all her right buttons got her even more worked up. She stood up and walked up to him, leaning her face against his chest and enjoying the way his big, muscular arms wrapped around her smaller body. He smelled like the body wash she had given him. His skin was smooth

despite being slightly damp. She felt the cotton of his towel rub against her stomach that was exposed from her short tank top. “Another one under my belt,” he muttered into her hair before taking a long sniff. Emma shut her eyes. She wanted to congratulate him on another win and knew it would mean a lot to him to hear those words fall off her lips, but she just couldn’t bring herself to do it. Instead, she turned her head and pressed her lips against his chest. She looked up at him lovingly, but there was something else in

her eyes—desire. She knew he saw it too. His grin change into a knowing smirk. She kissed his chest again and then another before standing on the tips of her toes to press her pretty, bow-shaped lips against his. Without another word, he leaned into her and kissed her slowly. It wasn’t long before his heavy hand ran up her back and drew her body all the closer to his, her large breasts pressed up against his exposed, damp body. He placed his other hand on her waist. Emma opened her mouth to deepen the kiss, relishing in the moment when his tongue slipped into her mouth and she could taste him.

The metallic taste of blood still lingered despite him having brushed his teeth but she didn’t mind it. In fact, she was used to that taste by now. Almost every time he had a fight, that was the way the kiss tasted for a couple days afterward. It was almost like an acquired taste to her by that point. She melted in his arms, her own lying limply over his shoulders, as she continued to kiss him. He was warm and sturdy. Nathan pulled her in by the waist and Emma could feel his hardening bulge against her. She moaned softly into his mouth, immediately moving one of her hands from his shoulder. She ran it

slowly down his body, enjoying the way every crevice of his define muscles felt under her fingertips before her hand landed on the soft cotton towel. She tugged it open and let it fall to the floor before walking her fingers down his defined and sexy pelvic muscle until she could feel the warmth of his cock against the palm of her hand. His kissing slowed, as if he were waiting on bated breath for her to take hold of him. It was the same every time and it was honestly one of her favorite parts of the whole experience. There was something tender about the way he just waited for that first contact. And, as if right on cue, she loved the way he

broke the kiss to draw in a rattled breath the moment she closed her hand around his manhood. He wasn’t fully hard yet, but that wasn’t a problem; she quite enjoyed stroking him until he was fully erect. She liked the way he throbbed against her palm, the blood pumping through him until he was stiff. He groaned quietly with eyes shut as she jerked his now rock hard cock up and down. Emma looked at him with wanting eyes before leaning up again, on the tips of her toes, to capture his lips in a fiery kiss. Nathan reciprocated that energy, his

lips mashing against hers with passion. She moaned ever so slightly against his mouth to spur him on before finally letting go of his cock and placing her hand on his firm ass cheek. She gave it a squeeze and giggled into his mouth. Nathan smiled against her kiss as he slipped his hands under the hem of her shirt. He pulled away just enough to tear it clear over her head and fling it across the room. She heard it hit one of the lockers before falling on the floor. He turned her around and took off her bra before pressing his lips against nape of her neck. Both his hands ran up her smooth, flat stomach before cupping her large,

exposed breasts. She leaned her head back against his shoulder when his lips landed against the side of her neck and he started sucking gently, his hands busy massaging her breasts slowly. He always loved to play with her this way and it never failed to drive her wild. Emma’s eyes clenched shut as she enjoyed the feeling of his hot, wet mouth on her neck and his fingers running over her hard nipples, sometimes teasingly giving a little pinch. She started grinding her ass against his bare cock, chest heaving with every deep breath she took. She let out a little moan when she felt one of his hands wander from her breasts down her stomach and start to

unbutton her tight denim shorts. He unzipped them and in an instant she felt the tips of his thick fingers running down until he slipped his hand under the waistband of her thong. She drew in a loud breath before whimpering when his index finger started running up and down her slit, now already soaking wet. She had started getting turned on the moment she saw him step out of the shower, and now with the kissing and bit of foreplay she was more than good to go. Emma shuddered against him and bit back a loud moan when he pushed his

finger inside her, hooking it upward slightly. He started easing it in and out of her before adding a second finger and speeding up his pace. He knew just how much to hook his fingers to tease that sweet spot inside her. He did it just enough to rile her up, but not enough to bring her to orgasm right away– he loved building her up just enough so that she would explode when the time was right. He started to walk back slowly and she stumbled about, leaning back against him for balance. She felt him start to sink his knees and she knew he was sitting down on one of the benches. He stopped her from sitting in order to take off her

shorts and thong. She felt his lips kiss along the top of one of her ass cheeks before he guided her down onto his lap. She opened her legs so she was straddling him backward and he took charge from there. Grabbing hold of her waist, he moved her down slowly until she felt the tip of his hard cock rub against her soaking wet slit. Emma reached down on instinct and wrapped her hand around his shaft, giving it a quick little rub before lowering herself down. He eased inside her at once, forcing a breathy moan to escape her lips.

Immediately, he placed one of his hands over her mouth to stifle the sound. She started moving her body, easing herself up and down his long shaft. Although the first few thrusts were slow and built up the sexual excitement they both felt, it wasn’t long before she started bouncing away faster. She was hungry for his cock and she wanted the intense feeling of orgasm to run through her entire body as soon as possible. Nathan moved his other hand from the curve of her small waist up to play with her breasts, which were bouncing about with the rocking of her body. She moaned more into his hand and started riding his cock even faster. It only took a

couple minutes for her to feel the orgasm hit. Her muscles squeezed around his cock, contracting like crazy, as her whole body shook and trembled. Tiny tingles fluttered up the back of her neck as she drew a sharp breath in. When she finished and her body went slightly limp for a few moments, Nathan took advantage to guide her into a new position. He helped her stand up and get off his lap, turning her around so she bent over and rested her hands on the wooden bench. The spot he had just been sitting on was warm, but she had no time to think about it. She curled her fingers around the edge of the bench and held on tight just in time for him to ram his cock

into her from behind. He let out a loud grunt that echoed off the cement walls as he grabbed onto her hips and started fucking her, alternating between fast and slow. She felt his body against her back as he leaned over to play with her breasts. She clawed at the wooden bench as he gave one of her breasts a playful slap. The cool air of the locker room kissed her naked back as he stood back up and started pounding into her, his groans coming faster and faster. “Fuck,” he grunted just before smacking her ass. Emma moaned out, but

was careful not to be too loud. She didn’t want lurkers to overhear the two of them, much less come in to have a quick peek at the action. Nathan slowed down his thrusts for a bit and she could feel his body shifting positions before he entered her again, this time at the perfect angle to hit her sweet spot. She shut her eyes and pressed her lips tightly together because, soon enough, her moans would be uncontrollable. He thrust against her with long, slow strokes to space out when he hit that sweet spot. Once he picked up the pace, Emma

felt once of his hands move from her waist, down her stomach, until his thumb pressed against her swollen clit. She could have screamed right there from the intense pleasure that was coursing through her body. It was almost too much to handle, but he started pounding into her again and her body tensed up with her second orgasm, which was more intense than the first. Nathan had to hold up her trembling body so she didn’t collapse and he managed to do so while still pounding into her until he finally let out a shaky grunt. His thrusting stilled as he pushed deep inside her. She could feel his manhood pump and twitch inside her,

sending more tremors down her legs. He turned her around and gave her a quick peck on the lips before lying her down on the bench. He took the towel that had been around his waist and wiped her clean as she tried to catch her breath. Emma was just about to zip up and button her denim shorts when the locker room door swung open. Her heart sank in near panic. It was Nick and a few of his men.

Chapter Three She quickly did up her shorts and shot a glance over at Nathan, who still had his button-down shirt completely open. It was obvious what the two of them had just done. Nick glared at her, then Nathan, then back to her. Although it had been a long time since her relationship with Nick had ended, he still didn’t like to see her with other men. She suspected it had something to do with pride and disgusting, male chauvinistic reasons rather than him still being hung up on her. She hoped Nathan

wouldn’t catch on to the way Nick was looking at them or the fact most of his anger was focused on her. Nick cleared his throat and announced, “Well, we came in here to congratulate the winner.” He talked as if he were declaring some sort of major honor being bestowed on Nathan. “You’ve had a lot of great wins, but this one was spectacular.” He looked at Nathan with a smirk. Emma could tell he was purposely ignoring her. She stood in the same spot with her arms crossed and she tried her best to look as disinterested as possible.

The last thing she wanted was for Nick to think he actually got to her in any way. Nathan nodded, but then his grin broke out. Something about Nick walking in personally and using the word “spectacular” to describe his victory held a lot of weight. It either meant that he now really had his eye on Nathan or there was someone in the crowd that night of importance that had noticed him. Nick snapped his fingers and pointed at the exit for his men to walk out before him. “Have a good night,” he said as he turned on his heel. Emma felt relief wash

over her now that he was finally leaving but then he stopped and looked over his shoulder, directly at her. “I’d say go celebrate but it seems you already have.” He sneered. “You had a good time celebrating that victory with what used to be mine,” he muttered. “Now she’s just whoring around. Seems she’s ready to fuck pretty much anywhere now,” he said with venom on his tongue before finally striding out. Emma turned to see Nathan staring at the door in a mixture of anger and shock. “Nathan,” she said weakly.

He spun around on her immediately. “What the fuck was he talking about?” His voice was demanding and sharp. Emma shrunk down, taking a step back away from him. It was a sort of involuntary reaction even though she knew deep down that Nathan would never do anything to hurt her. He would never lay a hand on her. He pointed at the door and demanded, “The fuck is he doing calling you a whore?” She felt her face grow hot and her heart beat faster.

“He’s bitter,” she admitted. He glared at her and then raised an eyebrow. She knew it was his way of wordlessly demanding some sort of explanation. She could tell he was livid. Nick had just spoken about her that way, but it wasn’t prudent to seek out a fight with him. He wasn’t only the person responsible for Nathan’s career and livelihood; he was a dangerous man whose bad side should definitely be avoided. Being on Nick’s shit list could be, quite literally, fatal. Emma knew Nathan was angry about being so confused. He was completely in the dark about her past with Nick, at least he had been up until that point.

“Nathan,” she started with a shaky voice. She cleared her throat and continued, “I used to be with Nick.” “What?” His face was scrunched with shock and anger. She wasn’t entirely sure of everything he was feeling. She didn’t even want to think about whatever was passing through his mind. “It wasn’t anything serious,” she explained. She felt like she was desperately reaching for explanations and trying to hold onto anything to stop the situation from escalating. But it was

already too late; Nathan’s face told her everything she needed to know. He was angry and he was hurt. And everything he had held back from telling Nick when he called Emma a whore would, no doubt, feed into this discussion as well. It was going to be rough, but there was nothing she could do to brace herself for it. “I was just his arm candy! It really didn’t mean anything and it was–” Nathan held up his hand and shook his head. “You think that fucking matters? Come on, Emma! Wake up! Get it together! That fucker owns this place

and you know what that means? He practically owns me. How the fuck could you not tell me something like this?” “What difference would it have made?” she cried out. The hot tears were already threating to spill out from the corners of her eyes, but she wanted to hold them back as long as possible and stay strong. “Shit!” he slammed his open hand against one of the locker doors and it sprung open. Emma took another step back away from him.

“I can’t fucking believe this. here I am wanting to be the best fighter down here and little do I know,” he motioned toward her dismissively with his hand, “that you used to date the big boss. There goes everything I’ve fucking worked for.” “What? What?” she cried out, this time the tears sliding down her cheeks. His words hurt. All she had ever done was be supportive of his dreams even if she hated watching him in action. “I just want to get out of here and I want you by my side but, look, here I am every time you step into the ring. Why? Because I love you.”

“You think he fucking cares if you love me? You don’t think that’ll only boil the fucker’s blood even more?” His words were scathing. She knew he was seeing red, but she felt it was all so unfair. It wasn’t as if she could hop in a time machine to go back and never date Nick. None of her past could be erased and she didn’t want her future with Nathan to be in even more jeopardy than it already was. “God, Nathan. Is that all you care about? What he’ll think and how he’ll react? What about me?” There was a

brief moment of silence filled with tension before she cried out, “I’m reaching my fucking breaking point, but that’s not something you take into account!” “What the hell, Emma? You know fighting is my life,” he shot back, but quickly clamped his mouth shut. In the heat of the argument it came off as if fighting came before his relationship with Emma. “Right,” she spat back, turning her back on him and starting to pace in an effort to calm down even a tiny bit. She turned just in time to see him open his

mouth to speak, but she beat him to it. “And my wanting to get the hell out of this shit lifestyle and go to California isn’t important at all to me.” They stared at each other in silence for what felt like hours. “That’s not it,” Nathan defended, finally breaking the silence. “You have to admit not telling me about you fucking Nick in the past was a shitty call on your behalf.” “Is that what really bothers you, Nathan? The fact that I’ve fucked him?”

He slammed his closed fist on another locker door and it popped open with a dent. A few items from another fighter spilled out and clattered across the floor. “Don’t fucking play that card on me,” he warned. “He’s out here thinking he has the right to call you a whore and here I am, the fool who had no idea you two even knew each other.” “And do you think he has the right to call me a whore?” “Oh, come on, Emma! Don’t twist this into something else. You should’ve fucking told me he was your ex. You

should be smart enough to figure out how this could affect me down here in The Ring, especially when you damn well know I want to be the best. You know this, fighting, it’s all I’ve got. It’s all I’ve known.” “And, to you, that’s a perfectly valid reason to just throw everything else out, right? That’s why you can’t quit or come with me to California. Because it’s all about the fight and it always will be. Never mind how much I love you and you love me. The love of that title you’re after, that’s stronger in the end.” “Don’t be so fucking unfair. You

know it’s not like that.” “It doesn’t matter, Nathan.” Her voice had finally softened. She was no longer shouting or crying out, but her tears were flowing even more freely now. The words she hadn’t wanted to think, let alone utter out loud, were about to fall from her lips. Now was the moment. Everything she feared had reared its ugly head and there was no more avoiding it. She just wished it hadn’t been because of a stupid, insulting comment coming from Nick. “It doesn’t matter what the reasons if

the end result is the same. I want out and you, well, you want to stay and make it to the top.” Nathan stared at her and she could see the realization enter his mind. His expression was still harsh, but there was something else there—a softer side. She could tell he had a nasty feeling what she was about to say and he didn’t want to hear it. “At this rate,” she said in a hoarse voice. She swallowed hard and licked her lips, which now felt dry. The spit that traveled down her throat felt like sandpaper and her pulse was thundering in her ears. Her body started to shake.

“At this rate, Nathan, there is only one thing. There is only one way. We’re going to have to break up and go our separate ways.” Dead silence. The two of them stared at each other; each with their own thoughts. They looked into each other’s eyes and both of them knew what she had said was true. It didn’t matter how much either of them wanted it to be any different. After several minutes, Emma decided it was time to walk out. Nathan clearly had nothing left to say, at least not right at that moment and she had already said the

only thing she wanted to hold inside and avoid for as long as possible. She turned on her heel and walked out of the locker room, feeling completely unsure about what was going to become of their relationship. As she walked out the locker room door to the main area, she had no clue if her relationship with Nathan was even still on. She knew he was just as confused as her. He didn’t try to stop her from leaving and he didn’t go after her. He hadn’t even responded. As she slowly made her way past the fighting ring and past the nice chairs and

couches of the lounge area, which quite frankly seemed out of place in The Ring, she had no clue if she had actually just broken up with the man she loved or if they both needed some time to think. Whatever it was, it didn’t feel good.

Chapter Four By the following night, Emma had still not heard anything from Nathan and she certainly wasn’t ready to reach out to him first. She was laying back on her couch, one leg draped over the armrest, wondering how she even wound up as a bet taker in the underground fighting ring when her phone rang. She ignored it at first. It had all started when she met Nick, but the way she wound up with him was still a fuzzy memory. For the first time ever she wished that had never happened

because then she wouldn’t be sitting home alone wondering if she still had a boyfriend or not. She would have never met and fallen for Nathan and she certainly wouldn’t have been part of a lifestyle she now wanted to get out of more than anything else. It was with that thought that it dawned on her how unfair she had been with Nathan the previous night. She had thrown in his face that fighting was more important to him than she was, all the while she had feared the break up between them because she wanted to get out. She was already choosing her exit to California over her relationship with Nathan. She sat there thinking of what a

hypocrite she had been and lamenting how insensitive some of her accusations were during the fight when her phone rang again. This time, something in her perked awake and she lurched forward in the hopes that it was Nathan calling her. When she saw Nick’s name flashing across her screen her heart sank. In an instant she had a deep feeling of disappointment mixed with anxiety all at once. She inhaled and felt light headed from the overwhelming feelings. Reaching out with a slightly trembling hand, she answered the call.

“Hello,” she murmured into the phone. Nick was the last person she wanted to speak to, but she knew it wasn’t a good idea to ignore his call, especially not now that he knew she was with Nathan. Or maybe he just assumed she was screwing Nathan for fun. Either way, he knew there was something between them and she didn’t want the man she loved to pay the consequences of her having been mixed up with Nick. “Emma,” Nick’s voice came in, deep and sure as ever. “I’d say it’s a pleasure but we’d both know that’s a lie.” Emma cringed.

He was even more of an asshole now than when she had dated him, something she had thought was quite impossible. “You need to come into the office,” he instructed. Although she assumed he was talking about his office, the fancy office that kept up the image of his thriving business, she wasn’t entirely sure. Either way, the tone he took with her left a bad taste in her mouth. It was as if he thought he had some sort of ownership over her. He knew she wasn’t in a position to anger him, much less defy him, and she hated it.

“Now?” “Now,” he emphasized before promptly hanging up. Emma jerked her phone away from her face and looked at the screen with disgust. She couldn’t stand him, but she really thought she had no other choice but to go meet with him. She stood up and walked into her bedroom, opting for a lavender button down shirt and a pair of black jeans. Those were the first things her eyes fell on and she really had no interest in dressing to impress Nick.

She swung the leather strap of her purse over her shoulder and walked out the door to head down to the parking garage of the apartment building she lived in. She slid into the driver’s seat of her car and took a deep breath, head leaning back against the headrest. She had absolutely no clue what was to come of her meeting with Nick, but she was sure it was nothing good. Emma turned on her car and went down the familiar route to his office, trying to ignore the gross feeling that came over her at how well she knew the way to begin with. She didn’t want to think of the times and reasons she had gone to his office in the past. Once she

was parked, she sent him a message to let her in. His office was in a penthouse of a big city skyscraper and, as such, she needed to be buzzed in to go up. It took nearly ten minutes for her to finally step into his office. “Shut the door,” he instructed without so much as a sideways glance toward her. She did as she was told and stood with her back against the door, hand firmly holding the handle. He lifted his hand and motioned with two fingers for her to sit across from him. She took a

deep breath and walked over, trying to look as composed as possible. The truth was she was very worried about what he could possibly say, or even do. Nick continued writing on whatever paper he was scribbling on when she had first walked in, completely ignoring her presence. She found it dismissive, rude, and annoying. He was the one who had insisted she visit his office immediately. Tired of waiting, she cleared her throat and asked, “What did you need?” It was hard to keep her attitude to a

minimum. Whatever it was he wanted, she didn’t want to risk angering him. She saw him smirk before finally setting down his pen, which easily looked like it could cost more than a month’s rent for her one-bedroom apartment. He tugged at the cuffs of his suit and straightened his tie before standing up and walking around the desk to lean against it in front of where she sat. Emma looked straight ahead, trying to ignore the scent of his expensive cologne or how close he was to her. It was an intimidation method and she knew it.

“A very special guest is coming to your little boyfriend’s next fight,” he informed her. It was sickening the way the words ‘little boyfriend’ rolled off his tongue so patronizingly. “Or fuck buddy. Hookup. I don’t know what he is to you,” he added with a mocking chuckle. He was trying to get a rise out of her. It was working but, for the time being, she was managing to at least keep it all bottled up. Emma cleared her throat, but said nothing. She wasn’t about to dignify his insults with a response. He didn’t need or deserve any sort of clarification. It was enough she had to bite her tongue, especially for the sake of Nathan, but she

wouldn’t give in to the extent of playing along to his gross little game. “I’m sure you remember Alex Moretti?” This time it was a question and she easily picked up on the fact he wanted an answer from her. She knew it didn’t really matter to him whether or not she knew who he was, he just wanted to know she was at his mercy. Whatever he demanded from her, he would get– at least until he reached the line she had mentally drawn up. She nodded. Of course Emma knew who Alex Moretti was. He was a rich Italian mobster who

owned another fighting ring in Chicago. Although it was different than The Ring, that didn’t mean he was the unspoken rival of Nick. Nick leaned forward and sneered, “I asked you a question.” Emma looked up to make eye contact. It took everything not to jerk her head back upon finding how much he had actually leaned in. His gaze was dangerous; the sneer curling around his lips pronounced. But Emma held strong and responded with a simple, “Yes.” If she had to give in to him, it would

be at least somewhat on her terms. If it were up to her, he would have no clue that her heart was racing out of fear and discomfort at that moment. “Well, he’s coming to watch your little boyfriend’s next big fight and I have a job for you.” He stood up and leaned forward, placing his hands on either armrest to trap her in the chair. Emma held her breath and looked into his eyes, icy expression in place like always. “I think even you should manage this, at least if you know what’s good for you.” His voice was low and a cold shiver ran down her spine. Every word dripped with a threat she didn’t even want to begin to comprehend.

“What is it?” she asked, wishing her voice wasn’t at all shaky. But it was and it had given away how she was feeling inside, at least a little. She saw a little satisfaction flicker in his eyes at the sound of her wavering voice. “Alex Moretti’s bet needs to be on Nathan,” he warned her. It was unreasonable for him to expect her to make sure that happened, but she knew better than to argue or question it. He raised one of his hands up and placed his index finger under her chin. She

cringed and backed away, causing him to chuckle. “Aw come on, you used to love that.” He leaned even more in her face, “Hun.” Emma stared him down, but knew the disgust and even fear in her eyes were obvious. She wanted to tell him to screw off, walk out of the office, and disappear but knew damn well that was as far from a viable option as anything could get. “Here’s the catch,” he muttered, “That little boyfriend of yours? Well, he better throw the fight. He goes down in the third. And it’s on you,” he pressed the tip of his index finger into her

forehead, “to make sure that happens. Even you have to be good for that.” She saw his eyes flicker down to her breasts. She had tried to conceal every bit of cleavage, but with breasts as generous as hers and with him standing over her, it was impossible. Slowly, he ran his index finger down the side of her face, down her neck, until he was slightly pushing the top of her shirt open. She felt his finger right above her cleavage line, not touching her but close enough that she could still feel his heat. She gulped as Nick chuckled. “Yeah, I’m sure you can do that.” He

flicked the shirt open a bit and dropped his gaze to her breasts, now a bit exposed. There was no way to hide her shaking body, trapped in the chair by his body. She wanted to scream. She wanted to slap him and run out, but she was frozen. It was as if she had been glued to the chair in fear. She hated to think how much further he would take this. If his goal had been to intimidate and belittle her, he had far surpassed it. Right at that moment he stepped back and motioned toward his office door for her to leave. There was no room for

questions or complaints. She had received her instructions and she knew she had to make damn sure she completed the job or it meant more trouble than she could imagine for both herself and Nathan. She was starting to get in over her head. Never before had she wanted to leave so bad.

Chapter Three Emma sat in her car for some time debating on what move to make next. She knew she had to warn Nathan, but wasn’t sure when or how. Their fight could be placed on the back burner for this. She grabbed her phone from her purse and called him. “Hello.” “Are you home?” she asked, getting straight to the point.

She could tell that startled him, but he went with it anyway. “Yes,” he responded. “I’m heading over.” She ended the call and turned on her car, peeling out of the parking lot in the direction of Nathan’s apartment. She needed to tell him now and it had to be in person. This wasn’t a small thing and it was definitely not a conversation that could wait a second longer. As she drove, she hoped more than anything that he wouldn’t blame this on her. After their argument last night, she thought it was a very real possibility Nathan

would think it was her fault that Nick planned this. She pulled into a guest parking spot and ran up the stairs to his apartment. Even though she had a key, she knocked on his door. Despite the urgency of the matter, the weirdness between them wasn’t gone and she didn’t feel at the liberty to just stick her key in the lock and walk into his place. Nathan opened the door, looking perplexed. He was wearing only pajama pants and his hair was messy. He was either already in bed or lounging around on his couch. Had the matter not been so serious, she would have looked at his chiseled arms and six-pack abs in appreciation. Instead,

she pushed past him into the apartment and turned to look at him. Once she made sure he had locked the door behind him, she opened her mouth. “I just came from Nick’s office.” It was only then that she noticed the expression on his face. It had already been there when he opened the door. He looked frustrated and worried at the same time. She had a sinking feeling that he already had some idea of what was going, something that was only confirmed when he finally spoke.

“He talked to me,” Nathan told her. Emma starred at him silently, waiting for him to elaborate. He went on to tell her, with a lot of fury, the plan Nathan had proposed. Or, rather, instructed him to follow along with. “What did you say?” she asked. She had another sickening feeling he had done exactly what she would have expected him to, only it wouldn’t be a smart move on his part. “What else? Told him to go fuck himself. I’m not throwing a fight.”

He was glaring at her, but she knew it was because of the situation. Whatever anger he had toward her the previous night had disappeared completely to make room for this. “Nathan,” she said unsurely, taking a step toward him. She wanted to reach out and place her hands on him in an effort to calm him down, but she knew it would be in vain. Not only that, but things were still weird between them. She still didn’t even know if they were together or not. Even if that issue was on the back burner for the time being, that didn’t mean it had ceased to exist.

He looked over at her. “What?” he asked, a bit more hostile than she knew he meant. “I don’t think that was a good idea,” she told him. She cleared her throat and starting twisting her hands together. “I mean… I think you should just do it. I know it goes against what you believe, but Nick is a dangerous man. More than you know. He’s the type who won’t take no for an answer and if you dare defy him–” Nathan walked forward and pressed his index finger to her lips to silence her.

He looked deep into her eyes, “Everything will be okay.” He was strong and always the type of man to take charge. He never backed down. Emma knew these things about him and knew he was talking about the situation, but something about the way he was looking at her and the tone of his voice when he said it implied he meant something else, too. She felt as if he was trying to reassure her that everything would be okay between them as much as he was trying to promise her he would be okay when it came to Nick. She felt a fluttering in her chest and

her breath caught in her throat. He moved his finger from her lips in favor of cupping her cheek with his hand. “Nathan,” Emma whispered. He took a step forward and leaned in closer to her. She could feel his hot breath on her face. Without thinking about it, she placed her hands on his chest. Not once did they break eye contact until he leaned all the way in, bridging the gap between them and pressing his lips to hers. Although it had been just a day she already missed him so much, but she knew it was because of the uncertainty surrounding their relationship. And as she moved into the kiss the uncertainty didn’t leave.

Her questions were still in mind and everything that had come up during their argument was still valid, but it didn’t matter at that moment. Nothing mattered as much as the feel of his lips so perfectly molded to hers. She moved her hands up to rest them on his shoulders, marveling at how incredibly smooth his skin was and how firm his muscles felt. Nathan kissed the corner of her mouth and then her jaw before kissing her ear and whispering, “I love you.” A single tear escaped the corner of her eye and slid down her cheek as she

whispered, “I love you too.” She held her breath when his lips touched her neck and then moved down to her collarbone. This was inevitably leading to sex. She wanted it, not only because she found him irresistible, but also because she needed to feel him close now more than ever. He kissed down the middle of her chest until she felt his lips brush against the top of her cleavage. The same spot where Nick had violated her using his gaze and his words was now a feeling of desirable weakness. Nathan moved his hand down and

started unbuttoning her blouse, slowly, until it had fallen open. He leaned back and looked at her exposed bra and cleavage spilling out of it. Although it was just a plain, white bra the desire in his eyes was obvious. He made her feel sexy no matter what. He pushed her blouse off her shoulders and she shook it off her arms until it fell to the floor. He reached around her back and unclasped her bra, pulling the straps slowly down her arms. Goosebumps erupted on her skin as his fingertips trailed slowly down her arms. He pulled her bra straps off with a smile playing along the corners of his lips. Even the slightest touch of his made her

feel weak in the knees. It was unlike anything she had ever experienced. He placed his mouth close to her and drew in a breath as he ran his hands through her flowing natural red hair. His hands trailed down her face, over her shoulders and finally down her arms. He grabbed one of her hands and turned her around, pulling her in so that her back was pressed against his chest. Her breath stilled as he placed both hands on her stomach and moved them up until he cupped her breasts, slowly starting to massage them. As he placed his lips against the

side of her neck, one hand moved down to unzip her jeans. Once they were unbuttoned, he stepped back and turned her back around to face him. He knelt down in front of her and pulled down her jeans along with her panties in one, swift movement. Emma gave a little wiggle of the hips to help him tug them down her thighs before she stepped out of them. As soon as she kicked her jeans away Nathan tapped the insides of her thighs for her to open her legs. As soon as she did, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against her mound before moving down and running the very tip of his tongue along her slit. She trembled and sucked in a quick

breath. She was already wet and he was only going to get her soaking in no time. It was rare for Nathan to go down on her but, when he did, it was amazing. He lapped up her juices before sliding his tongue inside her and moving it in gentle circles. She had to grab onto the top of his head with one hand and his shoulder with the other to keep from falling, knees bent in a crouch. “Oh,” she moaned out slightly more high-pitched than usual. “Oh, Nathan.” He started easing his tongue in and out of her, every once in a while licking upward while inside to

drive her wild. Just when she felt her knees might buckle, he pulled his tongue out r and pressed a sloppy, wet kiss to one of her hipbones. He stood up and kissed her jaw again before taking her lips into a fiery kiss. She could still taste herself on his tongue when he slipped into her mouth, but she didn’t care. It only turned her on even more. He eased her legs, one at a time, around his hips so that he could carry her over to his bedroom. She loved that about him. He could carry her whenever he wanted. Nathan placed her down on the bed

and stood back to take off his pajama pants and boxers, his big cock springing free as he kicked his pants away. Emma couldn’t help but look at his manhood and lick her lips. Without a word, she got on all fours and crawled forward until her face was right in front of his cock. She licked her lips again as she looked up into his eyes before opening her mouth and taking the tip of him into her mouth. She gave a pert suck before slowly taking in his entire length into her mouth. Nathan groaned in pleasure as she looked up to see, with delight, that he had his eyes clenched shut. Her head rocked back and forth, working his cock in and out of her mouth

before picking up the pace. She felt his hand land on the back of her head and grab a lock of her hair, eventually directing how fast and deep she should take him. She closed her eyes and let out a muffled moan against him. Nathan groaned again and rocked her head faster before he started thrusting his hips. Eventually, he was holding her head steady with both hands as he thrust in and out of her mouth. That was another thing he did rarely, but when he did she was perfectly okay with it. She loved it when he took charge. Finally, he pulled his cock out of her entirely and moved her body around so that she was still on all fours, only now the head of

his cock was playfully brushing up and down her soaking wet slit. He shoved in all at once without warning, making her body collapse forward onto the bed. She struggled to get back up as he continued to thrust in and out of her at a rapid pace. The rhythmic slapping of his hips against her ass filled the room as she clutched at the bed covers. There was need in his thrusting, but she could also sense the pent up anger he had. All that energy was going into every one of his thrusts. She gripped the bed sheets tightly as he continued thrusting in

and out of her quickly, not going all that deep. He finally slowed down and pushed himself deep into her, almost hitting her sweet spot and driving her crazy with the teasing. He reached around and started rubbing her clit as he continued bucking against her. Emma didn’t even know how to handle the sensations and she eventually collapsed forward on the bed, hips still up in the air for him. “Fuck,” she cried out with a panting breath into the bed sheets. Nathan started rubbing one of her ass cheeks with his hand playfully pinching

her from time to time. She knew exactly what he was aching for and to say she didn’t want it was a lie. “Do it,” she cried out. Without another moment he reached back and gave her a sharp smack on her cheek. Emma hissed through her teeth as her skin flared red. There was nothing she loved more than the perfect blend of pain and pleasure. She let out a heavy moan against a pillow. He hadn’t let up on the way he was thrusting deep into her, almost hitting that sweet spot but purposely avoiding it. He shifted his body and

pushed his cock deep inside her, this time hitting her perfectly. She cried out in sheer pleasure as he swung his hand back for another punishing slap that bounced off the walls. She grabbed the pillow tighter and placed it under her face, her fingers curling around the edges so tightly her knuckles turned white. His hips smacked against her stinging skin as he drove his cock deeper. She cried out, making every effort to relax her muscles and give in to the pain and pleasure. He gripped her hips and jabbed deep inside, forcing a

pained whimper to escape her. Emma moaned loudly into the pillow, her body shaking. “Fuck!” she screamed out. He continued working his cock in and out of her, picking up the pace as the minutes ticked by. It felt so damn good, but the discomfort from her spanking couldn’t be ignored. Nathan took a few more long strokes until her shaking died down and the loud moans of pleasure took over. He held onto her hips and started thrusting in and out until he had her downright

screaming. That was when he reached around to rub her clit. At the moment her body tensed up, she choked out a breath as the orgasm slammed into her. Nathan was thrusting against her mercilessly now, but it didn’t last long. His hands clutched at her hips so tight it nearly hurt. He buried his cock as deep as he could. His body went stiff and his thrusting stopped as he came with her. “Oh fuck,” he grunted with the final pump of his orgasm. He fell onto the bed on his side,

opening his eyes to look at her. Emma was still collapsed forward with her ass in the air, trying to catch her breath and steady her body. Finally, she dropped down and curled onto her side to look into Nathan’s beautiful, deep blue eyes. He had just reached out to run his hand down her cheek when they heard a loud bang from the living room. Nathan hopped out of the bed at once. Emma curled up in the bed, covering her naked body with the

blankets. Nathan skidded to a halt as soon as the three men with guns came into view.

Chapter Four Emma didn’t even realize what was happening at first. Nathan jumped forward and threw a punch, forcing the man back into the wall and crumpling to the ground. The other two men jumped on him at the same time. Emma covered her naked body with the comforter. She knew they had to have seen her, but they were focusing on Nathan and there was nothing she could do. Her heart was pounding and he body shaking. This had to be Nick’s work, there was no other explanation for three

armed men busting into Nathan’s apartment. She wondered if Nick had even assumed she would go to Nathan right after and was getting twice the kick out of all this thinking she would get caught by his men as well. Nathan was struggling against the weight of the two men as she curled up against the headboard and peered out over the blanket. She saw Nathan pinned to the floor with a gun pressed against his head and it took everything in her not to scream out in terror. Then she froze. The other man walked in and sneered as soon as his eyes landed on her, his gun now pointing directly at her chest. She

couldn’t even breathe. There was no way she could see them getting out of this. It was sure death. Nathan’s little conversation with Nick had come to this. It was too late for her to get out of this alive. Her thoughts were interrupted when the man pointing the gun at her spoke up. “Nick is not to be fucked with.” He stepped over Nathan, who was still pressed into the ground by the other man’s gun, and walked forward to Emma. He pressed the gun to her chest and moved it downward to expose her breasts. She didn’t even dare cover her

body back up. He looked down at her and placed his free hand on the buckle of his belt, smacking his tongue against his teeth. “Tell ‘em,” he barked at the other man, his gaze not leaving Emma’s exposed breasts even for a second. The gun felt cold pressed into her stomach. “Now ya either do the deal Nick proposed or both you and Emma die,” he said, pressing his gun into the side of Nathan’s head. It didn’t take long for him to reluctantly agree to the deal, if only for the sake of staying alive and getting them out of his home.

“Can’t be a little fuck and be obvious about it either. You go down in the third round, you heard?” Nathan agreed to Nick’s demands sent over by armed messengers. The two of the men backed out of the room, guns still pointed at Emma and Nathan, pushing the third man out the door. As soon as it shut, Nathan ran over to secure it although the lock was broken. He immediately ran back into the room to find Emma, who was clearly shaken up, on the verge of tears. “Fuck,” Nathan said, fist curled up

and ready to be hurled at someone or something. Emma’s body shook and tears spilled out the corners of her eyes. This was the type of thing she hoped to avoid every day she was part of this lifestyle but, in the end, she hadn’t managed to escape it. “I can’t stand seeing you this way,” he muttered. He walked forward and pulled the blanket up to cover her exposed body. Although he wasn’t someone she wanted to hide her body from, it was comforting for him to do it. “No one fuckin’ treats my girl this way,” he muttered, his voice low and

dangerous. There was a little quiver in it that suggested just how furious he was. Emma wanted to plead with him not to make any rash decisions, but she knew it was pointless. Not only that, she was frankly thinking something needed to be done to put a stop to this. She had the sinking feeling Nick would never stop targeting them. Even if he didn’t want her, he wanted to make it impossible for her to be with anybody else. And he hated being outdone, something that Nathan threatened to do all on his own. “I’m not throwing that fight,” he declared. Emma looked up at him, heart

racing. After what had just happened, how could he actually say that? “I’m going to win that fight. I don’t care what Nick says or how the fuck he threatens me. This isn’t ending like this.” He paced up and down the bedroom, running his index finger on his upper lip.

Emma could tell he was thinking and coming up with a plan, but she didn’t like it one bit. She had already warned him Nick wasn’t the type to defy and the three armed men had proven her point. She couldn’t understand what was running through his mind.

Finally, he stopped pacing and turned to look at her. He saw the fear in her eyes and walked over to her, kneeling down beside the bed and placing his hand on her thigh. “There’s only one way about this. I’m going to Alex Moretti.” “You’re what?” Emma finally spoke. That seemed even worse of an idea than anything that had passed through her mind. “I’m gonna make a deal with the guy. If I win the big fight against ‘Tiger’ when

Moretti comes to watch, there’ll be a big payout.” He paused and looked into Emma’s eyes with hope. She wasn’t sure what he was getting at but the road seemed far too dangerous. Nathan hopped up onto the bed and gently placed a hand against her cheek. “Then we can use the money from that to leave Chicago and go to California.” Silence. They stared at each other, Nathan waiting for her response and Emma trying to find one in the mess of thoughts

running through her mind. It was awfully dangerous, but one of the most tempting things she had ever come across. She knew deep down that even if they did as Nick wanted now, it was only the start of his torture of them. One way or another they had to leave Chicago. If she felt it was too late to get out now, she could only imagine how it would be after more time had passed. After some thought she agreed; although somewhat reluctantly. “I’ll talk to Moretti before the fight,” Nathan told her.

Chapter Five The night of the fight finally arrived. It had been a tumultuous time leading up to it, mainly because Emma was incredibly nervous. She knew Nathan was too, but he didn’t show it. He was being strong for her and for the sake of appearance. As she watched him lock up the moving truck that was packed with all their belongings and ready to go, she realized her questions about the relationship had mostly been answered. Now there was a real chance for them to have a future together. They kept

the moving truck at a storage unit just outside of the city ready to go for their escape, so they hopped into his car and drove down the highway toward The Ring. The moment of truth was fast approaching, but Emma wasn’t as jittery as she thought she would be. All of it seemed so surreal. It was also Nathan’s confidence and strength that brought a comfort to her. Once they arrived, Nathan went directly to the locker room to get ready for arguably the most important fight of his life. The fight wasn’t just against his

opponent, ‘Tiger’, but also against Nick. She was more worried about the latter than the one he’d be going toe to toe with in the ring. Emma undid another button of her top to show off some cleavage and put on her poker face. If this was going to go off without a hitch, she had to play her own part in it. So she went to the betting booth and sat next to Laura, who was already taking bets for the big event. She made small talk, as usual, and leaned forward to show some enticing cleavage to the men recklessly betting away their cash. She was doing it on purpose because she knew Nick was keeping an eye on her and she could see him

scoffing at her actions. Now he certainly thought she was a whore, she thought with a little giggle. It was right then that Emma got a text from Nathan letting her know the deal had been officially made with Alex. Her stomach did a little flip. This was really happening. The plan was already in full action and there was no turning back now. It was only a couple minutes later when none other than Alex Moretti walked up to Emma’s window. There were three men with him, one on each side and the third behind him. It was

quite obvious they were his bodyguards. It alarmed her to figure out he knew who she was even though they had never officially met, but then she realized that was to be expected. He cleared his throat and leaned forward, placing his elbow on the little ledge sticking out the booth window. He quietly placed his bet on Nathan before loudly saying, “He is the best fighter in the city.” His gaze lingered on Emma for just a moment before he winked and turned around. Her throat felt scratchy as she nervously swallowed against dryness. She could tell he was subtly sending her a message —Nathan better win, or else.

As soon as Moretti walked away, the first bell of the fight rang. Emma and Laura closed up the booth windows and got organized to walk out for the fight. This was the part Emma always hated the most, but tonight she felt an even greater dread for it. The crowd was bigger and louder than usual. She noticed a lot were there cheering for Nathan, but Tiger had plenty of fans of his own. He was regarded as the second-best fighter in Chicago, after all, and this was no small event. In fact, this was pretty much the big time when it came to underground fights. She wanted to feel proud of Nathan, but the situation just didn’t allow her to do so in earnest.

The two men in the ring started moving back and forth, looking intensely at one another. She knew each was sizing the other up and thinking of when to throw the first punch. Tiger swung first, but Nathan expertly dodged out of the way, taking the opportunity to take his own swing. Tiger was too good for that and avoided it with equal skill. The crowd jeered. They wanted to see blood from the start. The two men continued to swing and miss until Nathan ducked for one second too long. That was all Tiger needed to finally get his fist to collide with Nathan’s cheek. The punch had a tremendous force to

it, forcing Nathan to stumble back. That allowed Tiger enough time to throw another and get him on the shoulder, sending Nathan’s arm swinging backward. The two men were already starting to sweat profusely under the hot lights of The Ring. Emma saw beads of sweat fly off Nathan’s arm where Tiger had caught him. Nathan stumbled forward, almost head-diving into the floor of the fighting ring, but it was just a way to finally get out of Tiger’s line of fire. He grabbed onto the ring ropes and pulled his body up straight before suddenly turning and successfully delivering a punch to Tiger’s stomach. It wasn’t very strong,

but it was enough of a warning shot to make Tiger step back. Nathan swung his arm forward for another punch but Tiger was quick– he threw out a forceful punch that grazed the side of Nathan’s chin. The force of it made Nathan fall to the floor and Emma cried out, her hand covering her mouth immediately. The crowd jeered even louder, some calling out Nathan for shoddy fighting and others cheering for Tiger’s knockdown. Nathan got up quickly and got back into his fighting stance. For the rest of the first round, nothing

more than a couple weak punches were thrown out by either fighter. The bell rang and they each retreated to their corners for water. Emma wanted to rush over to Nathan, but she held back. She didn’t usually do that and she figured it wasn’t a good idea to do something differently now that Nick was monitoring her so closely. The second round was even more intense than the first. There were a lot of narrow misses but as time went on, Tiger seemed to be getting the best of Nathan. Every little trick Nathan usually pulled off either failed or made him susceptible to a powerful blow from his opponent.

Near the end of the second round, Nathan’s left eye was nearly swollen shut and a tiny cut appeared along the bridge of his nose. Emma couldn’t remember the last time she had seen him limping around so much when a fight wasn’t over yet. The cut on his nose was starting to bleed more than she liked and her gut wrenched as a million thoughts raced through her head. She started to worry he might actually lose the fight– which would make Nick happy, but would set Alex Moretti and his men hot on their heels. Neither of the two were enemies she wanted to make. With Alex, however,

there was nobody to help them out or keep them safe. There was no getaway from him. Her stomach clenched and she started sweating. She watched, on edge, as Tiger landed another solid blow to Nathan’s face. His head cocked back and the crowd went silent as he crumpled to the ground. It was all she could do to push herself through the crowd of people and get as close to the ring as possible, tears in her eyes and body shaking with worry. She hated seeing the man she loved lying there as if he were lifeless. Then she caught something out of the corner of her eye.

She turned to her right and saw Alex Moretti standing on the side of the fighting ring. He was livid. He was glaring at the crumpled heap that was Nathan. He shifted his gaze to Emma. She couldn’t turn away from him. The crowd was going crazy and it was clear nobody thought Nathan would be getting back up. Nobody thought “The Comeback Kid” would pull off his spectacular last minute moves this time around. From the looks of it, Moretti was one of those people. His icy stare pierced through the crowd at Emma as the referee continued his counting.

“Four! Five!” Emma’s heart was pounding so hard she couldn’t hear a single thing over the thundering pulse in her ears. “Six!” Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. Her body was being shoved about by the chanting angry men around her, but she didn’t even notice. “Seven! Eight!”

She stood there, as if time had stopped, waiting to see if Nathan would get up. It seemed like the end and, as much as she hoped he would be healthy afterward, she didn’t know if it mattered. Moretti was ready to kill Nathan himself if the fight was lost. “Nine!” Just as the referee was about to slam his hand down on the canvas of the ring and call Tiger the winner, Nathan pushed his body up with trouble. The crowd went absolutely insane and Tiger looked like a cross between completely shocked and captivated to continue fighting

someone with Nathan’s spirit. Nathan gave the referee a reassuring nod as he wiped a bit of blood and sweat away from his eye. Moretti immediately focused his attention on the fight and that was when Emma saw Nick standing clear across her, on the other side of the fighting ring. He was watching the fight calmly, but she knew he was keeping an eye out for what he wanted. Nick glanced across the ring at her. That’s when she saw the realization in his eyes. He was starting to piece together what was happening. If Nathan didn’t stay down at that point in the fight, he wasn’t going to stay down at all.

It was during the third round that Nathan put his fists up and looked Tiger dead in the eye. Despite how beat up he was he didn’t back down one bit. He made a movement as if to throw a punch toward Tiger’s face, but switched it up last second and caught him in the stomach with a punishing blow. Tiger stumbled back into the ropes. Emma could hear him wheeze and pant with pain. Immediately, he lunged forward to get to Nathan, but he dodged out of the way at the very last second, sending the Tiger flying forward into the ropes on the other side. As soon as he turned around, Nathan delivered a

lightning fast punch square in the middle of Tiger’s face. He looked completely disoriented and Nathan took full advantage of it. His swollen eyes, the blood still running out from his mouth, none of it could stop him. He swung his arm up and caught Tiger right under the chin before finishing him off with another punch across the jaw. Tiger crumpled down to the floor. A wet slap echoed against the walls and over the loud cheering of the crowd when his body hit the canvas. The referee immediately ran over and started

counting. He didn’t get back up.

Chapter six After Nathan won, Emma didn’t have much relief. She watched as Moretti cheered, but across the ring from her, Nick was glaring at Nathan before turning his gaze toward her. She could see the fury in his eyes. And even if nobody there knew it except those involved, his pride had been hurt even further by it having happened publicly. That was when she saw Nick motion for his men to grab Nathan as he was scrambling to get out of the ring. Emma felt like she was about to be sick, not

knowing what to do or how to save him, but Nathan scrambled away from Nick’s side without noticing to climb through the ropes and out of the ring past Moretti. Emma immediately took off to follow him into the locker room, not noticing that two of Nick’s men went after her. All she heard over the cheers of the crowd was Laura creaming. “Hey! Where the hell are you going? We have to pay out the bets!” Emma wasn’t going to stop for the bets or for anything else. She had to escape with Nathan immediately.

Emma saw him fighting his way through a crowd of happy men who were congratulating him with slaps on the back. A handful even tried to take photos but Nathan was pushing past them. He had to get out of there and he had to do it fast. It was just as Emma successfully fought her way through the crowd to get closer to Nathan that she saw one of Nick’s men grab hold of him. Her heart stopped. She stopped walking. They were so close to being free… This couldn’t be happening. Once

again, she saw no escape from the situation. She knew Nick was capable of having Nathan killed right then and there if it really came down to it. All that mattered was Nick getting his way in the end. Much to her surprise she saw Nathan swing around and punch the man who had taken hold of him. That one punch alone was enough to lay the man out on the floor cold. The crowd around them cheered and laughed at what had just happened, making Emma happy to be surrounded by so many people for the first time ever. Nathan pumped his fist in the air to play the part, grinning and cheering right along with them.

She hated the way his swollen eye looked, but not as much as she hated the idea of how much pain he was in. She even wondered how much he could see by that point. Emma continued to push through the crowd toward Nathan. She looked back over her shoulder to see Nick glaring at them as they seemingly managed to escape. When Emma finally reached Nathan, he immediately grabbed her hand and tugged her close to him. They stormed straight past the locker room and slammed open a door that lead into a little hallway, out of sight from the crowd. Nathan took a quick glance

around to make sure nobody was tailing them and then kicked open a door that lead out to an alley instead of turning back around and heading into the locker room. Emma hoped the sound of the alley door banging open hadn’t attracted anybody, especially not one of Nick’s men. It was out there in the alley that she saw there was an escape motorcycle waiting for them. She had no clue whose idea it was or how it had gotten there, but it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that it was their way out of here to get to the moving truck and finally be in the clear. The two of them had taken just one step toward it when a man came out

of nowhere and grabbed Nathan by the arm. Emma quickly ducked for cover behind a dumpster, cursing when she nearly knocked over a broken 2x4 that would have instantly given away where she was. She was unsure if there were more men around them at that moment or if the one man had seen her duck behind the dumpster, but she knew it was best to keep a low profile as Nathan struggled against the man. But when another man ran past the dumpster behind which she was hiding and pointed a gun point-blank at Nathan,

she knew she had to do something to help or risk losing him forever. In an instant she grabbed the 2x4 and, without a second thought, swung it around with all the power she could muster. The wood smashed over the man’s head, forcing him to hit the ground unconscious. The man holding Nathan was so shocked by her sudden attack that he didn’t notice when Nathan clocked him across the face. Nathan looked up at Emma with a shocked smile. He stood up and reached out for her hand, pulling her into a tight embrace. They both knew they didn’t really have much time, but couldn’t resist a quick moment together.

The ordeal had been risky and frightening. He let her go and they both immediately jumped onto the motorcycle. Nathan wasted no time turning it on and driving off, the tires burning rubber and the motorcycle screeching into the night. Whether or not they were being followed by Nick’s men at that point, she didn’t know. She figured it would be a while before Nick’s other men found out the two of them had escaped and alerted their boss. By that time, the two of them would be out of the city in a vehicle that

wasn’t being searched for. Emma clutched tightly onto Nathan as she looked back in the direction of the warehouse; home to The Ring. The entire building was disappearing in the distance. For the first time in as long as she could remember, Emma felt a great sense of relief wash over her. The more physical distance they put between themselves and The Ring, the further away they got from that lifestyle. It was finally happening; she was finally leaving it behind. She tightened her grip on Nathan even more. He was still with her. She

hadn’t had to leave him behind along with the underground fighting life. She had been able to pull him out of that mess right along with her– only it seemed more like he had pulled her out by that point. Not once had he stopped protecting her or assuring everything would be okay. As she rested her head against his shoulder and the two of them drove toward their moving truck, she realized that maybe it was finally true. Maybe everything really would be okay now, if not better. It seemed they had successfully escaped Nick thanks to a deal with none other than Alex Moretti.

They had more than enough money to live comfortably for quite some time and they had everything they needed with them– most importantly each other. It was like a dream come true, only her dream would have never had the fight component to begin with. But, then again, who would Nathan be if not a fighter at heart? She shut her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the cool night air whipping at her face. It made her think of California and its ocean breeze.

Sooner rather than later she’d be enjoying it with the man she loved. The End

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bonus novellas. Thanks for reading!

Chapter One Kurt walked into the house he once called home and looked around. Not much had changed. It had been over a year since he even set foot in it and now he had two weeks to spend there. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other as the uncertainty of spending that amount of time in his parents’ house hit him. After looking around one more time he heaved the bag of his belongings over his shoulder and headed upstairs to his old bedroom. It had been a long time since he’d visited his parents’ house; longer since he had stayed there, and even longer since he lived there. At 27 years old his last memories as a 17-year-old still living with mom and dad in that house were

already starting to grow a bit fuzzy. He had moved out shortly before his eighteenth birthday with a buddy of his before finally branching out two years later and moving away from town. He wouldn’t return until almost four years later after earning his degree in Political Science. It wasn’t until about his 24th birthday that he decided to join the army. He had visited his parents for all of three days when he already felt a pull to get going. It wasn’t that he had a bad experience living there. He got along with his parents just fine. It was just that he always had more of a spirit of independence and he couldn’t stand the feeling of being cooped up. That was why he broke free from the nest at the first opportunity he had. His mother, with watery eyes, had hugged him tight and wished him the best of luck.

Now in his 27th year of life and a successful Corporal in the Army, he had taken his first big leave to visit his parents. His mother was overjoyed by the news and his father, a man of few words, offered a very short statement of happiness at seeing his son after many years. Kurt understood his father, John. John had never hurt Kurt or made him feel like his childhood or life lacked a father in any way. John just wasn’t exactly an emotionally charged man with much to say. Kurt had observed it from a young age and developed an admiration for his father that was quite unique. His mother, on the other hand, was quite vocal and obvious when it came to her feelings. Kurt had always found it funny how his mom and dad ended up together. They were the perfect example that opposites did indeed attract but, at their core, they shared important values and

found harmony that way. Kurt opened up his old bedroom door and was met with a shock. It was completely transformed. It was no longer the room from his teenage years. It didn’t have all his old posters on the wall or clothes lingering in the closet. None of his old trinkets were sitting atop the shelves. Even the carpet and color of the walls were different. He dropped the heavy bag to the floor and looked around. It was transformed into quite a lovely guest room. Just as he took his first step inside to look more closely, he heard the front door of the house open downstairs. “Kurt, honey?” It was his mother calling out to him, wondering if he had already arrived. He listened intently, but there were no sounds to indicate his father was with her. He stepped

out of the bedroom and walked to the top of the stairs. His mother’s eyes shined with pure joy and she immediately bounded up the stairs to pull him into a tight hug. “Oh, Kurt,” she mumbled into his shoulder. He chuckled as he wrapped his arms around his small mother. She was very short and had a small frame which made Kurt look gigantic beside her. “I’ve miss you so much,” she said as she pulled away from the hug. She reached up and cupped his cheeks. He could almost hear the cooing noise she wanted to make, but it never came. She finally let go and asked, “Did you see the bedroom yet?” “What is going on in there?” He asked in surprise.

It was obvious it had been completely remodeled, but he wanted all the details. He could only assume it had been his mother’s idea to update his old bedroom. She led him over to it and confirmed it was her idea. She said she wanted a more grown-up place for her son to stay now that he would be in her house for the first time in years. She had tried to do it with what he would like in mind. “Although,” she said rather quietly, “I can’t say I’m entirely sure I know what this son likes.” “What do you mean by this son, mom?” Kurt draped his arm over his mother’s frail shoulders and squeezed as his eyes looked over every detail of the room.

“You’re a mature young man now, Kurt. You’ve been gone for so long, too. I don’t know how your tastes have changed.” Something about what his mother said broke his heart. He knew she supported his every move and was happy to see him living his own life, but he rarely stopped to think about what that really entailed. It wasn’t as simple as being away from his old home and his parents; he was so far removed that they were also missing out on how he was changing over time. There were little things they didn’t know about him and he knew that made his mother sad. “I love it, mom.” His voice was soft in the way he only ever spoke to her. Nobody else got to hear him speak like that. It was only his mother who moved him enough to speak so softly.

Once Kurt was settled into his room and everything was unpacked he headed downstairs to find his mom had already made a delicious vegetable stew and some dinner rolls. She asked all about his life on the Army base and if he had made good friends out there. She, of course, asked if he had a girlfriend. He knew she meant no harm. She just wanted to know all about her son’s life. Once they were done eating he insisted on cleaning up the kitchen while she relaxed on the couch in the living room and watched television. It was right around the time he finished cleaning up that his father got home and greeted him. They all went to the living room and watched a short movie together before his dad went to bed.

That was when his mother turned to look at him with a look in her eye that meant something new was headed his way. It didn’t look like anything bad so he wasn’t nervous. “Kurt, honey,” she started off before scooting closer to him on the couch. “I prepared a little something for your arrival tomorrow night. Just a little party. Oh, honey, it’s just been so long since you’ve been here!”

Chapter Two Kurt ran his thumbs on the underside of the sport coat’s collar and looked at his reflection in the mirror. This was definitely not how he was used to dressing, but he saw nothing wrong in giving his mother the small joy of seeing her only son in the coat she had so kindly bought for him with the party in mind. After all, she was the only person in the world who would put so much thought and effort into welcoming him home. Kurt sighed. Maybe it was time to think about visiting her more often. He had his independence, but maybe it was too much to pull away from his mother so much.

After opting to keep the sports coat open, he walked out of the bedroom and went downstairs to find his mom. She was busy in the kitchen making sure everything was ready before setting it out on the long table with a solid hunter green table cloth. It was in the formal dining room; soon to be covered in finger foods and drinks. She turned to see Kurt leaning against the archway that led from the hall to the kitchen and she smiled, eyes shining. “Oh, Kurt honey,” she said softly as she took a step forward to survey him closer, “You look so handsome.” She looked at him with a lot of pride before turning to look at all the food and then instructed him to help her set it out. By the time they were done, the first couple of guests had arrived. They were two old friends from high

school, Jason and Tim, who had apparently remained best friends even until now. Jason filled Kurt in on how he had been the first of the two to marry. “But, you know, Tim with his competitive spirit didn’t take that lying down.” Then he chuckled and added, with a wink, “Or, rather he did and that’s why his wife got pregnant before mine!” The two men burst into laughter. Kurt felt rather like an oaf forcefully chuckling along to such an elementary and crude joke, but he didn’t want to be rude. Just then, the front door opened and a family piled in. Kurt side stepped the two men to greet whoever had just entered, but it wasn’t long until he recognized them. “Aunt Madge!” Kurt called out with a

boom. He held his arms wide open to hug her and then looked down at her with a smile. “I didn't expect to see you!” It was true. It had been countless years since he had spoken to his aunt Madge. She had moved out of the state during his final year of high school. That in combination with him leaving home and rarely returning meant it had been almost a whole decade since he had last seen her. This struck him even more when he saw her husband, his uncle Bob, holding the hand of a little girl that appeared to be about eight years old. Kurt crouched down to be closer to eye level with her. She looked just like his aunt Madge. “Hi there,” he said in a gentle voice, much like the one he used with his mother. “I'm Kurt,” he smiled. Much to his surprise the little girl broke

out into a grin and stuck out her hand. He took her hand and gave it a shake. “I'm Midge,” she barked out in a slightly high-pitched voice. “I know who you are! Mommy has shown me pictures. You're a soldier.” She looked at him with admiration and Kurt felt something he could only describe as his heart fluttering. Little Midge would be the closest he would get to having a niece and she already seemed like a delight. Plus, it was sweet to know his aunt Madge still held him in high enough esteem to dedicate time talking about him to her. Kurt stood up and rubbed his hand over her hair to give it a playful ruffle before reaching out to finally greet his uncle Bob with a handshake. Just as he was about to comment on how odd it was that they had a child about eight

years old that he was only meeting just now, the front door opened up once again. It was another aunt of his, one he wasn’t as close to and had seen much more recently. Nonetheless he greeted her warmly before going around to give the appearance he was mingling without actually doing so. His mother was a fan of these kinds of events. She was very much the type to think big celebrations with family and friends were the best and warmest things in life. Kurt, of course, was much more of a loner. As much as he liked to be in control and make his own choices, he generally chose to make his mother happy with these small gatherings because he loved seeing her filled with joy. Plus, it didn’t exactly hurt to see family and old friends from years back. As he reached for one of his favorite finger

foods, his mother’s specialty triangle-shaped ham sandwiches, the door opened yet again. Kurt stopped, hand hovering over the sandwich platter. There she was. She stood in front of the door with the sunlight gently falling around her like a glow. Her long, auburn hair fell in waves over her shoulder and ended just below her large, but perky breasts. She looked tall even though she was wearing flat shoes and her tan looked especially pretty around her shining, hazel eyes. It was Claradeene, who everyone always just called Claire. And she had actually come to his party. Kurt gulped. Never had he fallen for another woman the way he had fallen for Claire.

It all started senior year of high school when the two of them started to grow closer. The more they talked and spent time together, the harder he fell for her. But then she got with Tyler and completely extinguished any thoughts Kurt had of romance between them. Still, even after so many years, Kurt found himself mesmerized by the very sight of her. She was even more beautiful now. Quickly, he looked over her shoulder, but Tyler was nowhere in sight. “Claradeene,” he said as he walked up to her with a smile he was working to control. She grimaced. “Since when do you call me that, Kurt?” He chuckled and shrugged. “Didn't know if

you preferred the formal version of your name now.” She scoffed. “As if I'd ever choose being called Claradeene over Claire! Come one now, I know you know better than that. It doesn't matter how many years have passed.” “And how have they passed? Last I heard, you were engaged to Tyler.” His eyes instinctively flicked up to look over her shoulder again even though the front door had long since closed behind her. Even saying the words about her being engaged still made his stomach churn. He didn’t want to think of her actually married to the guy, but that was inevitable given how much time had elapsed since he had heard the news of their engagement.

He saw her face fall slightly, but she tried to play it off. “We were engaged,” she mumbled. Kurt could tell the past tense was because it had been broken off and not because it had turned into a marriage. He was eager to know more, but thought it would be tactless to pry further. Despite her sadness he couldn’t help but feel something akin to excitement inside. It was knowing she was no longer tied down to Tyler that made him feel it because, after all this time, he still felt a draw to her that he had never felt with another woman. Not even his exgirlfriend, the girl he had been in a relationship with for three years. Not even she ever elicited such a reaction from him. He had loved her, but was never in love and that was part of the reason he decided to end things.

“Oh,” he said somberly. He knew the standard was to say he was sorry to hear that, but that would have been a blatant lie. He was only sorry she was hurting from it. He wanted to reach out and pat her on the shoulder, but then figured that would probably end up being more awkward than comforting. He cleared his throat and asked, “Are you hungry?” Claire nodded. He made a sweeping motion with his hand toward the table covered out in drinks and finger foods, stepping in line to walk behind her as she made her way to it. Kurt watched as she reached for a paper plate and then looked at all the options in front of her. The first thing she reached for was one of the ham sandwiches.

“Excuse me,” he said sternly, “Those are mine.” Claire glared at him and snatched it up quickly. “They're here with all the other food so I think they're fair game.” She smirked and stuck her arm out as if she were going to reach for another ham sandwich triangle. Kurt frowned at her and narrowed his eyes, trying to look as seriously threatening as possible, but this only made her giggle. And her giggle made his stomach clench. It was a charming sound. It was even better than he remembered it being. What else about her had only become more charming and likeable with age? That was something he really wanted to find out. He reached out to grab a paper plate of his own and swiftly took up a couple of the

small ham sandwich triangles before looking over what else his mother had prepared. The two of them fixed their plates in silence and grabbed a drink, before turning to look at each other. It was somewhat awkward but there was a look in Claire’s eyes that was reeling him in and making him wonder what it meant. “Why are you being weird? It’s making this awkward,” she said suddenly. Her tone was light, but he knew she was being serious. Kurt gulped. This was unlike him. Despite the fact that he preferred smaller gatherings or even being alone, he was great at talking to people and entertaining. He never had trouble talking to women. But there was something about Claire that put a bit of a kink in that system and made him run like an old sputtering car.

“Just been a while,” he replied simply. He nodded toward the kitchen where he knew the breakfast table was unoccupied save for a small vase of flowers his mother had set in the middle in case someone went in there. “Want to eat at the table in the breakfast nook?” “Sure,” she said before turning around and heading straight toward it. Kurt watched her ample hips sway from side to side as she walked. She was wearing a simple thigh-length sundress that was loose fitting, but clung to her attractive curves. He admired her long, toned legs as she walked and the way she looked when she sat down. At first he thought it would be best if she didn’t catch him staring, but then he figured it might be okay.

He wanted to see her again after the party. He wanted to explore avenues with her he hadn’t been able to do back when he was in love with her. Setting aside, he had no clue how long ago she had actually broken up with Tyler or if she was even single. Not to mention, the fact remained that he lived far from this place now. Whatever happened between them would have to be a passing thing. As he sat across her and chewed on his ham sandwich triangle as she chatted about her job, he wondered how she would feel about it. And if he was honest with himself, a small part of him wanted to stay in his hometown, just so he could be with her.

Chapter Three “Oh, honey, why don’t you wear something a bit more dressy?” Kurt’s mother asked as he walked across the hall from his bedroom to the bathroom. He groaned. He knew his mom was going to say something about his outfit, but he saw absolutely nothing wrong with it. He was going somewhere casual, after all, and he didn’t want to seem like he was trying too hard to impress someone. His mother, on the other hand, knew exactly who he was going out with and why. That made her inclined to think he should look a bit more ‘fixed up’ for her no matter how much he pointed out he was only going out with Claire as old friends catching up.

“This is fine,” he told her casually as he ran his fingers through his hair and fixed a few strays before deciding he was ready to go pick her up. His stomach clenched at the thought of what she might be wearing and how she would look. He knew he would find her beautiful and attractive no matter what, but he was also aware of the fact that this would be the first time they would be hanging out as adults. Kurt turned to look at is mother and placed his hands on her shoulders, looking her right in the eyes. “Really.” His mother sighed and turned around to walk downstairs. He swiped his keys and wallet from the dresser in his bedroom and called out to his mom before walking out the front door. He climbed into his rental car, something

his father said was unnecessary, and pulled out of the driveway to drive over to Claire’s house. As he pulled up in front of it a mere ten minutes later he smiled. It looked just the way he remembered it. The little wooden swing still hung from the branches of the tree in front and the old swinging bench was still on the porch, only now it had been reupholstered and some more modern looking throw pillows rested at its corners. He remembered the times he had sat on that swing with her. His mind couldn’t help but ponder on the handful of times he had decided to make a move, only to be interrupted right at the moment. One of those interruptions had been by Tyler just days before he got with Claire. Kurt sighed. If only he had been as courageous back then as he was now, things might have gone

differently. But then he had to wonder how that would have affected his life. This was definitely not the place he wanted to stay long term, much less for the rest of his life. He called Claire and she was outside in less than a few minutes. As she approached the passenger door, Kurt was too caught up in admiring how stunning she looked to even think about stepping out to open the door for her. She was wearing a casual dress, only this one was much tighter than the one she had worn to the party. It was a soft pink color with thick straps and a square neckline that did a great job of showing a good amount cleavage. Her breasts, tanned like the rest of her, looked especially alluring against the soft pink fabric of the dress. It hugged the curves of her small waist

and ample hips. Being a bit shorter than the dress she had worn to his party, it revealed even more of her long, toned legs. It was a plain dress made of cotton, but damn did she look hot in it. And she had paired it with simple white wedge sandals. When Claire opened the door and leaned forward to place her purse in the space between the driver’s seat and passenger’s seat it took all Kurt’s self-control not to keep his eyes glued to her breasts, and her legs, and every other part of her. She gave him a wide smile before slipping in the passenger’s seat. “Nice ride,” she said with a giggle. His stomach churned. He started driving toward the town’s biggest square. He knew it was the best bet for

them to find something to do. Plus, he hadn’t been there in years so he figured it would be fun to take a stroll around the area with Claire. He parked the square’s central parking lot and met her at the front of the car. He looked into her eyes and chuckled somewhat nervously. “What’s up?” she asked. The smile hadn’t disappeared from her face since she had gotten in the car, but he still wasn’t that used to seeing it. She was absolutely stunning from head to toe and he kept recalling old times and how much fun they had together. It was no surprise he had fallen in love, really. “It’s just weird. It’s weird to be here with

you,” Kurt said, eyes quickly glancing down. “I hope only because it had been so many years?” Kurt nodded and ruffled the hair at the back of his head. She reached out and placed her hand on his forearm. “Just think of it like old times!” she said enthusiastically. His stomach tightened as soon as the soft skin of her fingers made contact with his arm. He chuckled and turned to start walking aimlessly, but his mind was stuck on the same spot. It wasn’t as easy for him to think of it like old times. He had been in love with her and that had made everything more difficult. Old times

together were much different from his perspective than they were from hers. “Kurt, why has it been so long?” “I don’t know,” it was an automatic response. It was almost as if he was running on autopilot when that sort of question came up, something that had happened more than a few times at his party. “I like where I live. I like what I do. I don’t know why, but I don’t much like coming back here,” he said. Then he turned to look at her, hair gleaming under the glow of the streetlamps. “At least I didn’t,” he added as his eyes remained fixed on her. Claire turned to look up at him and their eyes met. There was electricity between them for a brief second before she turned away and kept looking

forward. “I see,” she muttered. Kurt could tell she was wrapped up in her own thoughts. He wanted to ask what she was thinking, but decided against it. There were still other lingering questions he hadn’t asked her at the party. Maybe they weren’t the best questions to ask, but he couldn’t stop his curiosity enough to ignore them. “Claire,” he started. He could feel her turn to look at him as he stared at the ground. “Can I- I mean; would you mind if I ask you something?” “About Tyler?”

Kurt turned to look at her surprised. She gave a single laugh and shrugged. “First of all, you didn’t say or ask anything when you found out. Second of all, I can’t even begin to tell you how many times people have started off like that.” “Sorry,” he said, genuinely feeling like he should have waited or at least started in a better way. He couldn’t even imagine how tiring it must have been to answer an endless sea of questions after things ended with Tyler, especially since they were actually engaged. “It’s okay,” she said. “You can ask me pretty much anything.” He stopped walking for a second before quickly starting up again. He didn’t understand why she emphasized the word ‘you’ or what she

could even mean by doing so. He let it go. “When did it end?” “I’ll give you the basics,” she said, but then she stopped talking. She also stopped walking. Kurt turned around to face her with an eyebrow raised in question. Claire reached out and grabbed his hand to pull him in to a little park area with benches they had been walking by. There was nobody there. She pulled him onto a bench and he felt her knee knock against his before she moved away just a couple inches and turned to face him, one of her legs draped over the other. “You know we were together since senior year. Well, it was after five years of being together that he proposed. We had fights, of course, but nothing major. We loved each other

and that was the direction our relationship was heading. It all made sense.” She paused and looked at Kurt before neatly placing one of her hands over the other and resting them on her thigh. “But, I don’t know, after some time it started to make sense that was about all there was to it. And I wanted more out of life.” “What do you mean that was all there was to it?” “You know, like it was what made sense so we were doing it. We loved each other, but there was no intensity, no craving. It sometimes didn’t feel like I was in love, at least not after the first year. It just felt like we got used to each other, cared for one another, had really good sex… It was like two really close friends who had gone intimate and weren’t sure how to go back? So we just kept going. Neither of us

were unhappy, but I don’t think we were entirely happy either. We were just going through the motions.” “Oh,” Kurt said, trying to push the idea of her enjoying sex with Tyler as far out of his mind as possible. “Did he feel the same way?” “I think so,” she said, “Only he didn’t realize it until after the breakup so.” “So he was a bit more torn up about it when it happened?” Kurt felt excitement course through his veins. If they had been broken up for a while, she had ended things, and she had really felt the ways he was describing now then it was perhaps really okay for him to make a move. He got the feeling she was single. He wanted to ask, but since they were talking about Tyler, he figured that could wait.

“I mean, we were both torn up but yes, he took it a bit harder initially. That happened a little over a year ago, though, and we’re okay now. We still talk casually, but hang out rarely. I guess that’s just the way these things go.” Kurt cleared his throat and placed his hand on his knee. His finger twitched. He wanted to reach out and snatch up Claire’s hand to feel her slender hand swallowed by his. He looked into her eyes before his gaze drifted down to her pretty, pink lips which she applied a light coat of gloss too. He wanted to kiss her. He wanted to do things with her he had always dreamt of doing. But he doubted if she felt the same way, particularly given there was no way it could actually amount to anything. And that was

something that tugged on him a bit too. He had been so madly in love with her that he didn’t know if he could just have sex with her and skip town without some kind of lingering desire to explore an actual relationship with her. But as his gaze moved back up to look into her hazel eyes and he remembered the way her cleavage had looked as she started leaning forward in the car, he felt a slight stirring in his pants. He cleared his throat again and shifted in his seat. “Well, I’m glad it wasn’t anything terribly heart-wrenching. I know it hurt, but you know what I mean.” “What? Like Tyler cheating on me? I forgave him for that years ago,” she responded coolly. “What?” Kurt looked at her with wide eyes.

Claire giggled and scooted closer to him to bump her shoulder against his. “I’m kidding,” she told him. Then she stopped giggling and stared into his eyes. Kurt could feel his heart slowly thudding faster and faster, like a train picking up speed. His breathing slowed and suddenly everything around them went quiet. If ever there was a moment he felt was the perfect time to kiss her, it was right then. The way she was looking at him made it hard for him not to lean in, so he did, but only slightly. As soon as he did he realized what was happening and he turned to pretend he was scratching an itch on his shoulder on the opposite side. He shut his eyes and exhaled. As much as he wanted to kiss her he didn’t know if the moment for it was right after talking about her ex, that very one who had taken his chance from having a relationship

with her. Now that he had the courage the timing was off. But when he turned around to face her again he found that she hadn’t moved an inch and she was still staring him down in the same way. It was almost as if she were challenging him. He took the bait. He did what he had wanted to do all night, what he had wanted to do since she walked into the party at his house. In fact, it was what he had wanted to do from his teen years in his final year of high school.

He leaned forward and placed his hand on her cheek before gently pressing his lips against hers.

Chapter Four When she didn’t back away, Kurt placed his hand at the back of her head and started kissing her. She kissed him back deeper. He parted his lips slightly to run the tip of his tongue along her lower lip and she readily parted her lips so he could deepen the kiss. Claire shifted her body so she could kiss him more comfortably and Kurt responded by placing his other arm at the top of her back, slowly pushing her in toward him. They kissed for a while, slowly the entire time, before finally breaking to take in some air. Claire’s eyes were glittering even under the dull lights of the little park. Kurt’s heart was racing. He had spent years fantasizing what that would feel like and nothing he could have

thought up matched the reality of it. He moved his hand from her back to the curve of her waist and brushed a few strands of her hair off her face with his other hand. He wanted to tell her how long he had wanted to do that, but held off on it. He was going to go into this thing strong. He wasn’t going to make the mistakes the teenage version of himself made. He stared into her eyes for a couple minutes before suddenly moving in and kissing her again. This time he held her face between both hands and kissed more passionately. She leaned in to it after taking a couple seconds to catch up. Kurt thought of her revealing that there had been no intensity or craving in her relationship with Tyler. He wanted to show her what it was like to be with someone where those things existed in abundance. He craved every inch of her with an unmatched intensity and it wasn’t just about sex. It was about Claire;

it was entirely about all of her. As soon as he started to lament the fact he wouldn’t be able to explore all that, he kissed her harder. It was the only remedy he could think of in the moment.

Finally, he broke the kiss and drew in a deep breath, dropping his hands to rest on her shoulders. Claire was breathing harder than normal. He could see her breasts heaving slightly from the corner of his eye. He felt another stir in his pants and gulped. The last thing he wanted was to wind up with a situation out there at the park during his first hang out with Claire in years. Sure, they had kissed and it had been quite amazing, but that didn’t mean she wanted to see a bulge in his pants already. Kurt stood up and reached out. She looked at his hand and looked up at him. Biting her

lower lip and nodding, she stood up and slid her slender hand in his. They walked back out to the main street, hand in hand, something he could have only dreamed of as a teenager. But now it had come so much more easily to him. He had spent the party talking to her and, before she left, easily asked her to hang out. But still, even with the newfound confidence only adulthood could bring, all the feelings of his teenage years came rushing back. Now he had taken initiative and kissed her. It was almost too good to be true, at least for his younger self still lingering in his mind. If she were any other girl this would have been completely normal to him. But Claire wasn’t just any woman and he was very well aware of that. He had never forgotten just how much she meant to him. He still recalled the stinging pain when he found out she was with Tyler and how he hated the feeling in his gut when he heard

the news of her engagement. But now they were strolling about, almost as if they were an actual couple. It was almost exactly like old times as they walked around and looked through the windows of old shops that had been there for years, some in dire need of an update. They shared memories from their youth and talked about how they had grown and changed. “You’re certainly less timid,” Claire said suddenly as they rounded the corner after looking at the stonework of the local library’s architecture. “I mean, you weren’t exactly timid back then but you seem a lot bolder now.” Kurt turned to smirk at her. It was true. He had truly broken out of his shell when he left his hometown for good. He had always been a

little more timid and shy. That all changed when he went to college and only continued to change from there. Once he joined the Army he really came into his own as a leader and that helped him earn his way up to Corporal in as quick of time as possible. After he joined the Army he really felt like he had found his place and he couldn’t imagine doing anything else. He loved being a soldier and that was something he made sure to mention to Claire. “That’s really good,” she said as they walked down the street. The street beside the library was a bit darker than the others since they were now on the edge of the main square and there were no houses or apartments in the area. “I’ve always admired soldiers.” Kurt smiled with pride. He squeezed her hand, “What do you want to do now?” They had

been walking aimlessly for a very long time, completely lost in conversation. Kurt turned just in time to see her shrug. He pursed his lips together and started brainstorming ideas of what they could do when he heard her clear her throat. “Come visit my house?” “But your parents-” “I don’t live with my parents, silly. See what happens when you never come around?” Claire nudged his arm. “My parents moved to a house across town. I convinced them not to sell the old one and I kept it. In exchange, I pay half their current mortgage.” Claire grinned and he looked at how happy she looked. He felt his chest swell. That was a pretty sweet deal, but he couldn’t help but notice the difference between

them. He had left his house the first chance he got and Claire had instead convinced her parents to let her stay in the house she grew up in. She was never in a rush to leave, though. That was something he always knew about her. She had always been much more comfortable and happy in this place than he was. She had also had much more of an emotional attachment to the people she lived around and the town in and of itself. “So you’re going to give me the tour of your place? I think it should look quite different now that it’s all yours,” he told her trying to sound as casual as possible. The truth was the idea of going back to her house and being there alone with her was exciting. It was invigorating. Then his mind flashed back to the

pillows he had seen on the bench swing on the porch and it all made sense. They had definitely more her style. Claire turned around and pulled him in the direction of where they had parked, soon arriving at the car. They got in and he sped off toward her house, blasting some old tunes they liked from high school days as they went along. Kurt listened in amusement as she enthusiastically sang along to some of the lines and then burst into laughter. The wind flowed freely through the cars windows and the stars looked like little dots in the night sky. In his mind’s eye this looked like a dream scenario from when he was younger. He pulled into her driveway behind her car and the two of them stepped out. He watched her hips sway as she walked ahead of him on the walkway and then leapt daintily up the stairs to her front door.

Claire unlocked and opened the door before sticking her hand inside and switching on the entrance light. Then she turned to face him with a large grin. “Welcome to my humble abode!” She grabbed his hand and pulled him inside. She reached around to close and lock the door behind him, the side of one of her breasts grazed his arm momentarily and sent the stirring into his pants once again. Claire let go of his hand in favor of walking forward and flipping on the living room light. It was a somewhat small, but cozy space filled with lots of colors. She had decorated in a modern yet welcoming manner, all the mish mash of colors was actually pleasing to the eye. It was clear she had a knack for what looked good, right down to what looked good on her.

She kept walking forward and walked through an archway into the dining room. It was very simple and less colorful but the colors she had decorated with popped. Then they kept walking to get into the kitchen. Kurt noticed she had completely taken out the den and expanded the kitchen to make one worthy of a budding home chef. “I really love to cook,” she said almost sheepishly as she watched his eyes roam over all the high-end appliances and ample counter space equipped with butcher-block surfaces. It was definitely a lot sleeker than the rest of the house but somehow she still made it all flow. “Do you? Then you’ll have to cook me some dinner before I leave,” Kurt told her. He walked forward and ran his hand over the clean,

smooth surface of one of the counters. Then he felt her slide up next to him. “I’ll be happy to,” she said in a subtly, sultry voice. In an instant, Kurt had turned to face her and pulled her into a passionate kiss. He didn’t want to waste any of the time he spent with her. It was like he wanted to fit everything he had missed out on years ago in the span of the two weeks he would be visiting and, suddenly, that didn’t seem like a daunting amount of time to spend back in his hometown. He grabbed her waist and pulled her in toward him until her lean body pressed against his. He felt her breasts smash against his chest and he kissed her even more fervently. It wasn’t until he was running out of breath that he finally

loosened his grip on her and pulled away a bit. Claire looked up at him, starry eyed. “I want to taste,” he said in a low growl of a whisper as he leaned in close to her ear, “Your food.” He kissed her ear lightly and felt her body shudder against his. Then he let her go entirely and took a step back glad there wasn’t yet a tent forming in his pants. “Is that all?” “Of course not,” Claire responded rather breathlessly with her cheeks still flushed a cute shade of bright pink. “There is the upstairs,” she reminded him. “Oh right,” he said jokingly, “How could I forget?” He was curious to see what she had made

of her old bedroom. Her parents, nice as they were, had always been a bit more on the strict and old-fashioned side. That meant no boys were allowed in her room and that rule applied even to him, whom they had known for many years. It was only when they were out that she would let him go upstairs with her if they were stopping by to drop off or pick anything up before going to hang out somewhere in town. He doubted she had kept it the same even as she grew up so he thought it would be interesting to see what she had done with it now that the house was all hers. It was the first door to the right when they went up the stairs and it was open. She stepped inside and moved to the side so Kurt could follow. It was a home office, just as brightly decorated as the living room downstairs. She turned to look at him with a smile. On one side, opposite the door, was a large desk and where

her bed used to be was a loveseat nestled between two bookcases. It was quite nice and he imagined a great workspace. “This is my second favorite room in the house,” she confessed. “I can see why,” he told her as he walked in to look at some of the titles that found a home in one of her two bookcases. He ran his index finger over some of them as he recalled they were on their high school reading list. That was when it struck him that he didn’t even have the slightest clue as to what she did for a living. “Hey,” he told her as he turned back around to face her. She was watching him intently. “We’ve talked for hours today and you haven’t even told me exactly what you do. You’ve only mentioned stuff about your job.”

“Oh,” she said and then giggled. “Strange, right? Remember old Jerry’s deli that he opened up an actual restaurant for in the town over?” Kurt nodded. He remembered how much they had liked going to that deli on Fridays after school. He even remembered exactly what he ordered and wondered if it was still on the menu. In all his years he had never come across a sandwich quite like the one from Jerry’s. “Well, he opened a couple catering and banquet houses in a few towns over and it has been a real boom. I help organize the places and the events. So I’m old Jerry’s official organizer. Well, I was. Now his son took over.” “Did old Jerry-” “Oh, my gosh, no! He just retired,” Claire said as she placed her hand flat on her chest and

took a deep breath as if he had said something terrible. Which in retrospect, he kind of had, even if it was a legitimate question. “Anyway,” she said a moment later, “I really like it.” “That’s good,” he smiled as he remembered everything she had mentioned about her job. It was all good and she did seem genuinely happy with what she did. It was just strange to think that such a career had come out of a place like this and a local deli, of all things. He walked back up to her and Claire immediately turned to walk out and lead him to the bathroom. It was clean and modern with pops of color just like he had seen in the dining room. “Just a bathroom,” she said as she ran one of the decorative towels through her fingers.

She turned around to find Kurt blocking the doorway. His eyes were stuck to her like glue. Then he walked forward into the bathroom until her back was up against the wall and his hands were around her waist. His lips found hers again, just as passionately as they had in the kitchen. He was making out with her all over her house in ways he could have only dreamed of in his youth, only he would have never been so confident and dominant back in those days. Perhaps he had been too timid back then or even too in love, he wasn’t sure. Either way, it sure was great to do it now. He pulled away as Claire looked at him with surprise in her eyes, but he could tell it was a good kind of surprise. He smirked before turning on his heel and walking out of the bathroom.

“What’s next?” he asked casually even though his mind was now racing with thoughts. Eventually they would be in her bedroom and he would want to kiss her again when they were in there. He would want to do a lot more than just kiss her. And he certainly had the courage to go for it. If she didn’t want something to happen, he would completely respect that. But this was his chance to finally be with her in some kind of way and he didn’t want to drop the ball on it. Claire cleared her throat and straightened her dress before walking out of the bathroom and straight to the door at the end of the hallway upstairs. She opened the door to reveal a large and completely remodeled master bedroom. Kurt had only been in there once or twice before but it had looked absolutely nothing like it did now. This was sleek and

modern but still welcoming. It was lively with all the bright colors inside. Her bed was large and covered with a plush comforter and set of pillows. He turned to the right and saw she had redone the bathroom as well. It was even nicer than he bathroom in the hallway and, of course, larger. Everything looked so familiar, yet so different. It was like he was living in a dream world. He turned and walked into it, running his hand over the clean surface of the counter top. He glanced briefly at all the products she had neatly laid out before turning to see her leaning against the doorway. “Have a thing for bathrooms?” she asked cheekily. “Hm,” he responded as he started walking

toward her. “Not exactly,” he added in a much quieter voice. He closed in around her and pinned her back to the frame of the door before capturing her lips in yet another fiery kiss. Claire arched her back slightly and he felt her stomach press against his before she straightened up against the wall. He grabbed her hips and pulled them toward him. Now the stirring in his pants had gotten out of control and he knew she felt it push against her by the little squeal she let out. “Oh,” she said breathlessly.

Chapter Five Claire didn’t look upset or like she wanted him to stop. She looked surprised but absorbed in the moment. Kurt smirked again. “Oh?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. She bit her lower lip and gave a little nod, the pink returning to her cheeks. He squeezed her waist and pressed his lips against hers before letting go and walking into the bedroom. Claire walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his stomach. She pulled him in and her lips pressed against the bottom of his shoulder blade, over his shirt. So she hadn’t been offended. He hadn’t crossed over some boundary. It really was okay to pursue what he wanted. He turned to look at her, hands falling naturally on her lower back.

“Everything okay?” “Why wouldn’t it be?” She was staring straight into his eyes and speaking in the subtly sultry tone that had gotten a rise out of him the last time. That was all it took for Kurt to pull her in close again and initiate another fiery kiss. It was a kiss of a million emotions. It was a kiss driven by unfulfilled passions from years ago. It was a kiss that completely set Kurt over the edge for her. Now they were standing in the middle of her bedroom making out with full passion and Claire knew he was hard for her. It was almost unbelievable to him. He started kissing down her neck until he was laying a trail of soft,

closed-mouth kisses along the line of her collarbone. Claire grabbed at his shoulders and lifted one of her legs slightly so that her knee was placed at the bottom of his belt. He moved his hips forward on instinct and let out a groan when he felt his cock, still restricted in his boxers and pants, rub up against the crotch of her panties. The sound of her pleasantly surprised little moan made his cock twitch a bit. “Fuck,” he growled in her ear before kissing her again. He kissed back down her neck, but this time kept going until his face was nuzzled between her exposed cleavage spilling out of her dress. Claire’s breathing was heavy, just like his.

“Kurt,” she said between breaths as she wrapped her hand under his chin and pulled his head back up so she could look into his eyes. “Too much?” he asked. She shook her head and moved in to kiss him before turning around so her back was to him. “Unzip me,” she invited him. He grabbed her zipper and pulled it all the way down, at once admiring the exposed flesh that was so sexily tanned. He exhaled loudly when he realized she wasn’t wearing a bra. Eagerly, he pushed the straps of the dress down her arms and then ran his hands slowly back up her arms and over her shoulders. His hands made their way down the backs of her shoulders and under her arms until they found her breasts.

Her nipples grew hard and erect under the palms of his hands as he rubbed them between his fingers. Claire let her head drop back onto her shoulder as she made small noises of pleasure that were nearly drowned out by her heavy breathing. Her chest heaved with every breath she took; a sight Kurt was enjoying. He ran his hands down to her waist and turned her back around to face him, eyes raking down over every inch of her exposed body. Her stomach was tight and flat. His eyes landed on her miniscule, white lace thong and his hardness twitched in his pants again. “Fuck,” he said in something like a growl, “You’re hot.” Claire giggled and bit her lower lip before taking a large step to be closer to him. He grabbed her by the hips and pulled her in to

another fervent kiss, feeling one of her legs draw up to his hips again so that he pushed his cock forward against the crotch of her panties. She moaned louder this time. He did it again and again. “Oh fuck,” he said, “I-” He stopped talking in favor of jerking his hips forward against her a bit faster, but Claire seemed to have gotten the hang of what he had been trying to say. She pulled him toward the bed and climbed on, immediately rolling onto her back and spreading her legs. She ran a hand down her body and started rubbing her wetness over the white lace fabric of her tiny thong. Kurt watched her in awe and didn’t even noticed when he undid his pants to pull out his cock and start squeezing it with a tight grip, eyes still glued to her. Her eyes wandered down and she

looked at him jerking his cock. She slipped her hand under her panties and started rubbing herself as her eyes stayed glued to his cock. Before long she brought herself to orgasm. Her back arched off the bed and her body tensed up, hips thrust upward and legs shut together, as she moaned loudly before her body collapsed back onto the mattress. Her toes curled as she took a deep breath in, enjoying the feeling of fluttering tingles traveling down her legs. Claire sat up and made a ‘come hither’ motion with her finger. After quickly taking off his shirt and pulling off his pants and boxers, Kurt walked over and climbed onto the bed. As he got closer and closer to her, he couldn’t believe he was actually doing this. It was actually happening. His inner teenage self was practically squealing in excitement and triumph.

Claire pushed him onto his back and immediately swung a leg over to straddle him. She moved her body up so that she was straddling his manhood as she leaned forward to kiss him, breasts pushing into the bare skin of his chest. Slowly, she started to rub her hips to create friction against his bare cock. Although the fabric of her thong was a slightly rough against his sensitive skin it wasn’t enough to take away from how great it felt, especially since it was Claire doing it to him. She pulled away from the kiss and placed her hands flat on his chest to squirm her body downward a bit. Kurt felt a bit of disappointment run through him until he felt her hand wrap around the center of his shaft. He groaned as she started moving her hips in circles so that he felt the very wet fabric of her panties rubbing against him. She started slowly,

tantalizingly rubbing up and down his cock. It was the most incredibly sensual hand job he had ever gotten. She continued to stroke him, increasing her pace little by little until she was pumping it in her hand. She had started circling her hips a bit faster to match the pace. Claire slowed it down again before running her thumb over the head of his cock to sweep off a bit of wetness that had spilled out. She leaned down and spit on his shaft before jerking it in her hand again, now running her hand over the head of it every few pumps to increase the friction. She moved her hips up just enough so that her crotch was slightly rubbing against the lower half of his cock. Kurt clutched at the bed’s comforter as he tried to hold back an orgasm. But it was useless. It wasn’t long before he exploded all over her hand.

Chapter Six The two of them got dressed in slightly awkward silence after Claire had cleaned his juices off her hand and he had cleaned up himself. Once they were fully dressed they finally turned to look at each other and, quite unexpectedly, burst into laughter. “Well, that was something,” she said finally. She walked up to him and playfully punched his arm. It was something she would have done back when they were in high school and had somehow become close friends. But he found it a somewhat odd thing to do now especially given what they had just finished

doing. Kurt kissed her goodnight before leaving. Claire watched him drive away from her front door. As he drove back to his parents’ house he reflected on the night. It was amazing, their little sexual escapade at the end not included. If he did include that, well, it was all the better. Walking around town with Claire talking about so many things had been like reconnecting with an old friend in a way he had never experienced. As he pulled into the driveway and quietly made his way into his bedroom, he realized his young teenage self would have given anything to be with Claire like he just had. He cringed at the thought of how many times he had fantasized her hand around his cock instead of his own. He dropped down onto his bed, still fully clothed, and looked up at the ceiling with

a smile before drifting off to sleep. The following morning his mother, who had fixed him a delicious and full breakfast, asked how his “little date” went. Kurt would have rolled his eyes and corrected her, telling her it wasn’t a date, but the truth was that it had felt an awful lot like one even before they wound up on her bed. Of course that wasn’t something he wanted to tell his mother either, so he swallowed a mouthful of food and responded with, “Really good.” She glared at him. “Kurt, you should know by know your mother isn’t going to take such a simple answer!” She pulled a strip of bacon off his plate and took a sizeable bite before gingerly placing it back atop the pancake he was eating.

He sighed and took a sip of orange juice. “I know,” he groaned. So he told her they had just wandered around the town square. He told her they talked for hours and mentioned, as quickly as he could, she had given him a tour of her house when he dropped her off. His mother raised a suspicious eyebrow but he pointedly ignored it. “You still got feelings for her, don’t you?” she asked softly. Kurt nearly choked on his food. His mother always asked forward questions and had always been involved in his life to some degree or another, but he wouldn’t have expected her to ask that question. But as he smacked on his chest to suppress a fake cough and attempted to catch his breath, he realized there was no real

reason for him to have been taken by surprise by her question. It had been, after all, quite a normal question for her to ask considering she had been all too aware of how in love with Claire he was in high school. “I’ll take that as a yes,” she said smartly before getting up to fetch the pitcher of orange juice from the refrigerator and pour some more in his glass. She poured some in her glass too before putting the pitcher back into the refrigerator. When she took her seat again Kurt took it upon himself to clarify. “I’m not still in love with her, you know.” “Oh, Kurt honey, don’t be ridiculous. Of course I don’t think you’re still in love with her. That doesn’t mean that seeing her didn’t wake

any of the old feelings back in you,” she told him. She was absolutely right. It was that moment that it occurred to him she had invited Claire to his party not just because they had been close friends in high school. “Mom, did you know she had broken up with Tyler?” “Goodness, the whole town knew!” That was all the confirmation he needed. He knew his mom had some inkling he might end up spending time with Claire now that they were both adults and single. His mother was sneaky, but he had to hand it to her for her insight and technique. He finished up his breakfast and immediately went upstairs to change into exercise clothing. He was going to go for a run and then do some exercises out

back. Even though he was on leave he couldn’t let his workout regimen get too out of line or else he would feel it once he was back on base. It occurred to him then he hadn’t talked to any of his Army buddies since he took his leave. But, then again, he was only on his fourth day of leave. Kurt changed and went out for his run, enjoying the crisp country air hitting his face as he went along. As he thought about Claire and what they had gotten up to at her house, he ran faster and faster. By the end of it, he was soaked in sweat and out of breath. But that didn’t stop him from doing his exercises in the backyard before hopping in the shower and throwing on some jeans and a dark green tshirt. He went downstairs, taking two steps at a time, and plopped down on the couch beside his

mother. It was her day off so he decided he would spend all of it with her, even if they just stayed in and watched movies. It wasn’t as if they ever got that simple, little joy anymore. And that was exactly what they ended up doing. It wasn’t until 9pm when she started getting ready to go to bed that Kurt went upstairs to his bedroom and sent Claire a goodnight message. She instantly replied with a little kissing face. He chuckled and tapped the screen of his phone before sending her another message asking if she was free for lunch the next day. She told him she could work him into her busy schedule. He could practically hear her laughing. Then he sent messages to a couple of his Army buddies before sitting on the armchair in his room to read a couple chapters of the book he had packed before bed.

He ended up turning in rather early and rising early to get in a good run and workout before getting ready to meet with Claire for lunch. They met at old Jerry’s deli, which was still named “The J-wich”. That was something that made Kurt laugh as he walked in through the front door to be stared at by a young man behind the counter. “Welcome to The-J-wich, how may I help you?” He sounded pleasant enough, but also an awful lot like a prerecording. Just then Claire stepped out from the door behind the counter, which Kurt assumed led to an office. “He’s here to meet me. Can you bring the order to the break room when you’re done prepping it, Pete?”

The young man nodded and Kurt watched as Pete looked at Claire turn around and walk off. He chuckled silently. It came as no surprise to him at all that Pete would have a little crush on her. She was, after all, a knockout and had a great personality. She was exactly the type of “older woman,” the high school aged boys would fantasize about. Claire led Kurt to a break room that was decently sized and quite clean and nice. She had, no doubt, had a hand in fixing it up. The pops of color weren’t as bright and cheerful as they were in her house, but they were bold and appropriate for the office atmosphere while still bringing a special little something. He had been right to think she had a knack for that sort of thing and was impressed she had even managed to translate it into her work environment.

“Do you work here most days?” Kurt asked. “About two or three days a week actually,” Claire responded as she reached up to pull out some cups from one of the cabinets. She opened the refrigerator and pulled out a pitcher of what appeared to be sparkling grapefruit juice and poured some into each cup. She put the pitcher back into the refrigerator and then placed the two cups on the table. “Have a seat,” she said. She was dressed business casual, but still looked as hot as ever. Her hair was drawn up into a tight bun and some simple black earring hung from her ears. She wore minimal makeup. She was stunning all the time and he once again found himself thinking it was no wonder Pete had a little crush on her.

Just then, Pete walked in holding two plates with sandwiches on top. “Here you are, Ms. Collins. Is there anything else you need?” He definitely didn’t sound like a prerecording when he spoke to her and Kurt could tell the poor guy was fighting not to stare at her breasts. He chuckled and he caught Claire side-eyeing him. She smiled brightly up at Pete and said, “How many times do I have to tell you to just call me Claire, Pete? Ms. Collins is so stuffy and formal! Anyway, we’re all set. Thank you so much.” Pete smiled awkwardly and then walked out in a hurry. That was when she turned around on Kurt and scolded him for laughing at the guy.

“Anyway,” she said at the end of her scolding, “I took the liberty of assuming you wanted the usual?” “Oh, you actually remember?” Kurt pulled the plate toward him and looked at the sandwich hungrily. It looked just as delicious as he remembered it, if not more. He quickly picked it up and took a big bite, savoring every familiar flavor. “Even better than I remember,” he said after swallowing the first mouthful. “Of course,” Claire said as she picked up her own sandwich quite gingerly. “I had them source in some higher quality ingredients, you know.” She grinned and winked before taking a bite of her own sandwich and making a noise of delight. “I rarely eat these,” she told him before taking another bite. He assumed it was because she didn’t want to grow tired of them since she

worked for the place. They got to talking and Kurt found out she worked from her home office at least one day a week and then went to the restaurant’s office in the next town over every Thursday. That was where old Jerry’s son had set up his office because he had also decided to move out of his hometown. Old Jerry still lived in the same house now that he was retired and liked to pop in at the deli every now and then to check on things and say hello to Claire. “Every Thursday? So that means you’ll be out there this Thursday,” Kurt said. It was more of him voicing his thoughts out loud than actually telling Claire. But she answered anyway. “Right,” she told him. “But I typically end up getting home

earlier on those days than when I’m here at the deli.” “Would you mind if I go with you on Thursday? I’d like to stop by the town while you’re working.” “No problem!” Claire said with a grin. Kurt could see a plan forming in her mind as she put her sandwich down. She narrowed her eyes and looked at him a bit suggestively. “Then I can make you some dinner when we get back,” she told him in that same subtle, sultry voice that had driven him crazy the other night. Kurt gulped down the bite of sandwich he had been chewing and nodded. He couldn’t help it– when he thought of being over at her house again his mind immediately recalled what had happened between them the last time. It wasn’t

that he was assuming the same thing would happen again or even lead to more, but he also couldn’t ignore what had actually gone down between the two of them the last time she had invited him over. He remembered the way he had told her he wanted to taste her food and felt a stir in his pants again. He hastily picked up his sandwich and took another large bite to try distracting his mind from any more dirty thoughts. “Sounds good,” he finally told her.

Chapter Seven Thursday came quickly and Kurt had managed to get in touch with a couple old friends from the town over to meet for coffee while Claire was at work. So after they parked in front of the restaurant and unexpectedly kissed goodbye, he started strolling around the downtown area until it was time to meet with them at the local coffee shop that had been around for years. It had been a long time since he set foot in the place so he couldn’t be sure of what all had changed; all he knew was that it didn’t look exactly the same as he remembered it. He saw Charlie and Boyd sitting at a table waiting for him and the two immediately stood up when he walked in. They bounded up to him and thumped him

on the back as a greeting. Boyd went ahead and took his coffee order and then the three of them went back to the table to chat. They had a ton of questions about the Army, from why he had decided to join right down to what his daily life was like. They were seemingly fascinated by what Kurt did and it didn’t hurt he took great pride in it, so he told every detail with great enthusiasm. He found out Boyd was married to his high school sweetheart for three years now. Charlie was thinking about asking his girlfriend of five years to marry him some time soon. They were both in construction and worked together. It seemed they had their life pretty settled in the town and looked to be at least decently happy with it. They finished up and threw their cups in the

trash. “So what are you doing after this?” Boyd asked as they walked out of the coffee shop. They had to get back to work. “I’ll just be wandering around town a while and then heading back with Claire,” he said without much thought. It wasn’t until the two men made a little humming sound that he turned to look at them and then realized they might had thought something was up between them. They wouldn’t have been far off base to think that. “Claire, huh? Claire Collins?” Kurt nodded and Boyd hid a snicker behind his hand. “She’s a real looker, that one. Don’t blame you for hangin’ around her, old boy.” Kurt felt a twinge of annoyance over the way he was talking about Claire and he had to

wonder if that was the norm around these parts. Sure, she was a knockout, but there was so much more to her. Charlie punched Boyd on the arm and said, “They’re old friend from high school.” Kurt cleared his throat, “Right.” The men said their goodbyes and went their separate ways, Kurt making the mental note that Boyd was more of the oaf typical to these parts than he had been when they were younger. He had wanted to straighten him out, but Charlie saved the day. He continued his walk around the town until he reached the little pond that was right next to the town’s biggest park. He sat on a bench and watched the ducks either waddle around like crazy or just sit around lazily. It was

a relaxing environment and he found his eyes slowly shutting. Not wanting to actually fall asleep on a bench out in public, he pulled out his phone to send a buddy of his from the Army a message. It was actually a friend he made during his first couple years as a recruit but then the guy had been relocated and they hadn’t seen each other since. But even in those first two years they had formed a pretty solid friendship so they had kept in touch. He was, incidentally, the only one who knew about Claire. He knew her as “the pretty girl from high school that drove Kurt bonkers”. He figured it would be fun to catch Chuck up on the current events with Claire. It was finally time for him to head back to pick her up. When he pulled up to the restaurant

Claire was already waiting outside. He gazed at her for a moment, admiring how she looked before letting her know he was there. She was busy looking at something on her phone so he let his eyes wander over her from head to toe. Today she wore her hair in a high ponytail and a pair of simple silver stud earrings. She wore a tight black top layered with a fitted orange blazer, dark jeans that were tight and fit her legs well, and pair of black suede wedges. She looked damn good and he cleared his throat as he thought about the fact they were now going to head back to her house together. Kurt got out of the car and when the door slammed shut, she looked up from her phone. She looked a bit startled at first, but when her eyes landed on Kurt she smiled. She slipped her phone into her purse and walked up to him.

“How was your day?” she asked as she stretched up to give him a peck on the cheek. For a moment it felt like they were an actual couple and Kurt wasn’t about to question it. He liked it. She was sweet and fun and everything he had always imagined her to be. She was the same wonderful Claire he had known with a few more great characteristics thrown in now that she was a young woman rather than a teenage girl. He slid his palm down her arm to grab her hand and walk to the car together. He told her about hanging out with Boyd and Charlie, conveniently leaving out Boyd’s distasteful little comment, and then about how he had just wandered about town. They drove off back to town as she told him all about her day. Her job seemed interesting enough but, more than anything, he

just really enjoyed listening to her talk. “Do you need anything from the store?” he asked as they drove into the town’s square. “No,” she told him, “I’m totally prepared.” She turned to glare at him playfully as if he had morally offended her by implying she wasn’t completely prepared. She then reached out and placed her hand on his leg, right by his knee, and continued to talk like she had been before. His mind, meanwhile, was focusing a little too hard on the placement of her hand. The closer they got to her house, the higher up her hand crept. By the time he pulled into her driveway her hand was all the way up on his legs, resting dangerously close between his thighs. Lightly, she brushed over his bulge as she removed her hand to unbuckle her seat belt and gave him a little wink. Kurt stared at

her until she was already unlocking the front door and then shook out of his hypnotized gaze before getting out of the car. It was definitely on. After her little gesture in the car there was no doubt in his mind. What he had been foolish to think was that he would be able to wait until after dinner to get close to her. Claire took off her blazer and hung it on one of the hooks by the door before walking to the kitchen, hips swaying sexily. Kurt followed her and saw she had all the stuff she needed neatly laid out, save for anything that needed to be refrigerated. As she stood in front of the counter double-checking everything was in order. Kurt walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He kissed her neck. She leaned into it right away as he pulled her body

closer to his so her back was pressed up against his front and he started grinding his hips against her firm butt. Claire made a little ‘mmm’ sound and urged him on even more. Kurt slipped his hands under the hem of her shirt and grazed his fingertips over the smooth flesh of her stomach, his lips fixed to her neck. Slowly, he started moving his hands up until they were resting just below her breasts. He was still grinding his hips against her ass only now he knew she could feel his noticeable hardness pressing up against her as well. Claire pushed her ass back into him before he grabbed her by the shoulder and turned her around to kiss her passionately. He pushed her until she was pressed up against the counter, trapped between it and his body. Her breath stilled as he slipped one of his

hands under the hem of her shirt again and ran it right up until he was just below the cub of her bra. His thumb over the smooth fabric of her bra and kissed her even more intensely than he already was. Finally, they broke apart from the kiss and inhaled loudly, eyes locked onto each other. Her pupils were wide open and he chest was heaving. He could sense she had been aroused more quickly than last time, just like him. It was as if they both knew this was coming but, for some reason, neither of them had expected it to happen first thing when they got to her house. Claire was just too irresistible and Kurt never held back on going after what he wanted; at least he didn’t hold back anymore. He had learned from the past that not going after what you wants leads to disappointment and regret.

After she gave him clear signals she wanted to go further, he saw no reason to hold back. He took the opportunity to pull her shirt up and slip it off her body, dropping it on the kitchen’s floor. He saw her eyes dart down to the shirt, but he distracted her with a kiss. Then he pulled back and admired the way the black bra looked on her before reaching around for the clasp. It was just as he was about to pop open her bra that he looked deep into her eyes, “Claire.” She looked at him and he could tell she was aware he was about to say something serious. “You know I have to go back at the end of next week, right?” “Right,” she whispered. She leaned in a mere centimeter from his lips. “So let’s just make the most of the time we do have.”

That was all it took for Kurt to bridge the gap with a passionate kiss as he popped her bra open. He stopped only to shove it off her and immediately dipped his head down to kiss each of her breasts before tracing his tongue along her nipples. He kissed her again and ran his hand straight down her stomach to unbutton and unzip her jeans, not wasting even a second before slipping his hand under the waistband of her panties. Claire squealed in delight when he ran a finger along her slit. He smiled when he felt she was already wet for him. He eagerly pushed his finger inside and she broke the kiss with a moan. In no time at all, he had her panting and moaning against his shoulder as he pleasured her. When he pushed a second finger inside and started pressing his thumb against her clit, Claire started thrusting her hips against his hand until her body tensed up and she tumbled

over the edge. When she collapsed against him, he took the opportunity to sweep her up and carry her upstairs to the bed. There, he finished taking off her pants and underwear so she was left completely naked. He made quick work of taking off all his clothes, ready to finally be inside her. As he walked toward the bed he stopped before climbing on. There was something else he really wanted first. He reached out and grabbed her wrist to pull her forward. His action was a bit rough but she didn’t seem to mind. He gave her a moment to get settled and then placed his hand at the back of her head. “Blow me,” he told her in a low voice that demanded attention.

Claire looked up at him and then down at his hard cock, which was right in front of her face. She nodded and licked her lips before opening her mouth and taking his entire length down to the hilt. Her head eased back and forth and eventually he made use of her ponytail by grabbing onto it and controlling the pace. He could feel her tongue pressing up flat against his cock as he rocked it in and out of her mouth. He pulled it out completely, “Ready?” He asked. Claire quickly nodded. He finally pulled out of her mouth and pushed her onto her back. He climbed on the bed over top her and kissed her deeply. “You’re so fucking beautiful,” he whispered

in her ear before kissing her neck. He instinctively started pushing his hips forward and groaned when the head of his shaft rubbed against her wet slit. Her fingers clutched at his shoulders as she let out a heavy whimper. He continued to push the head of his cock against her and then moved it up to push against her clit until she was moaning with loud panting breath. “Fuck me,” she finally pleaded between her heavy breaths. Kurt didn’t need to be told twice. He grabbed the base of his shaft and pushed the entire length into her. Immediately, she arched her back and cried out in pure pleasure. He started thrusting at a moderate pace, holding onto her waist with one hand He placed his other hand flat on the bed for balance as he continued thrusting in and out, enjoying every

heavy moan that fell from her lips. He looked at her face, scrunched up in pleasure and covered with a light layer of sweat. He could hardly believe it. He was actually looking at Claire, Claradeene Collins, while having sex with her. It was actually happening. It was that very thought that forced him to thrust faster. He readjusted his body so that he was resting on his knees and holding onto her hips with both hands. He watched her breasts bounce as his hips smacked against her hard and fast. She was gripping the bed sheets, but he wanted her to grip them so hard her knuckles turned white. He lifted her ass onto his thighs and adjusted his angle so that when he pushed his whole length back into her, he went deep and hard. Claire cried out as he continued to thrust in deep. Her knuckles turned white as the bed sheets crumbled in her fist.

Kurt smiled with satisfaction. He let go of one of her hips in favor of freeing up his hand to pleasure with her clit. That was enough to get her writhing like an earthquake underneath him and it wasn’t long before her muscles tensed up again. He felt her body tighten around his cock as she reached her second orgasm. He didn’t hold back. He took the opportunity to hold onto her waist and start pounding her faster, harder. It only took another moment for him to topple over the edge with her. He clenched his eyes and everything was pure bliss. He felt his hips instinctively jerk forward as he orgasmed. When he was finally done, he opened his eyes to see Claire lying on the bed with her eyes open, chest heaving with short breathes. Claire was watching him as he came inside

her all while still struggling to catch her breath. He pulled out and rolled over to his side, looking up at the ceiling and panting. It was real. He had really just had sex with her. He had brought her to orgasm twice before finishing himself. This wasn’t one of his fantasies from his teen years, not that any of those had ever been this involved. No, this was real in every single way. After a few minutes they were both finally breathing normally again and coming down from their pleasure highs. Kurt turned to his side to face her and admired her beauty. He reached out and placed his hand flat on her tight stomach. Her skin was incredibly smooth. He leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss to one of her nipples before kissing her on the lips. It was a long, lazy kiss. They both wanted it but there wasn’t enough energy to commit. Finally, he pulled back and saw immense satisfaction in her eyes, something he

imagined she could see in his. “Wow,” Claire breathed out before shutting her eyes. “I think I need a little nap before I make you that dinner.” “Mhm,” he responded with his lips against her cheek. “Sounds good,” he said before rolling onto his back. The next feeling washed over him like nothing ever had before as he stared at Claire by his side. It was a pivotal moment that changed something deep inside of him. All his life he wanted to leave his hometown behind. He always strove to be independent and adventurous. And in many ways that helped him

become the man that he was. But there was something about Claire that made that life less appealing now. For a moment he thought the small hometown life wouldn’t be so bad; not if it meant he could be with her. As his mind raced with a million emotions his eyes traced over her face and a smile crept along his lips. Claire’s eyes lit up as she smiled back at him. He knew what he wanted in life; he wanted her. He had always wanted her.

Chapter One Alyssa’s long blond hair flowed freely in the wind as she pedaled her bike faster and faster. She wasn’t in a rush to get anywhere or trying to get away from someone; she was on her Saturday morning bike ride and her hair tie had just snapped. Luckily, she was pedaling downwind so her hair whipped about behind her rather than cutting across her face. She was nearing the end of her ride around the park’s bike track so she pedaled at her fastest before slowing

down gradually. A couple minutes later she casually rode out of the park toward the parking lot to secure her bike on the back of her mini-SUV. She hopped in her car and drove off toward her house to shower, have breakfast, and get ready for the day. She had made a long to-do list, but had shortened it in favor of having dinner and drinks with her friend Jessica. They had not actually hung out in a couple weeks due to insanely busy work schedules that were vastly different. But that was a rare occurrence. She usually saw Jessica at least a couple times a week.

After showering and drying her hair, Alyssa walked over to her closet to pick an outfit. They were going to one of their favorite restaurants, a French Bistro in the heart of the downtown, and then heading to a chill bar for a couple drinks before calling it a night. She wasn’t much interested in getting too done up since she hoped it would be more of a low key night out with her friend. So she opted for a pair of tight, black skinny jeans and a red silk tank paired with some basic black wedges. The silk tank clung to her round, pert breasts enticingly, but showed little cleavage. She looked at her reflection and was

pleased with her appearance so she applied some light makeup and threw on a few bracelets before walking to her living room to watch some television. Jessica would be by to pick her up soon and she wanted to relax before heading out. The night out was uneventful, but that didn’t make it any less enjoyable. Their dinner was delicious, as expected, and they caught up with a couple old bar buddies where they went to get drinks. “I can’t believe we used to be regulars here,” Alyssa told Jessica over the rim of her margarita. She wasn’t

looking to get wasted so she had ordered something delicious that wasn’t all that strong. Jessica laughed and swallowed the sip of martini in her mouth. “Really?” She scoffed and looked around as she took another sip. Alyssa knew just the thing she was going to say. “You used to be a lot more fun so I’m not surprised.” “Hey!” Alyssa blurted as she shoved Jessica on the arm.

It was true however, she had far outgrown her party phase but it had really been just that– a phase. At 27 years old, Alyssa was a relatively calm young woman who had always been that way, except from the ages of 23 to 25 when she had let loose and have fun. It was like she had wanted to explore a different side of her when she first moved to the city and was reunited with Jessica but, as enjoyable as it had been, she was past it. “It’s not like I’m a boring person, you know.”

Jessica laughed and drained her martini glass. She raised her arm to call the bartender for a refill before turning back to face Alyssa again. “I know. I’m just messing with you,” she laughed. The bartender came back with her new martini and Jessica immediately took a big gulp. Alyssa looked at her. It had been a long time since she had seen her friend drink like that. “Long week?” Alyssa asked. Alyssa believed her because she

knew what Jessica’s schedule was like and she knew how stressful her job could be. The expectations placed on her friend were rather extreme not to mention her direct supervisor was beyond rude and condescending. Jessica hated working for her and was just holding out until she could transfer to a different department or branch within the city. Alyssa nodded and then looked around. The crowd looked to have changed since she used to frequent the bar, but then she thought it was probably her who actually changed. Suddenly, she started to feel like she didn’t quite belong there, but then thought it was probably ridiculous. It

wasn’t as if she didn’t like going out at all any more, she just wasn’t a wild party animal by any measure. They both finished their drinks and decided to split a cab back to Alyssa’s place. “It’s closer so I can just come back for my car in the morning,” Jessica said. As soon as they got back Jessica almost immediately fell asleep on the couch with the television droning on. Alyssa laid awake in bed for quite a long time. She wondered about how it was possible for her life just a few years ago to have been so drastically different

from what it was now. More accurately, she wondered how it was possible she was so drastically different now from then. It had been a two-year fluke and it wasn’t until Jessica had set her thinking about it now that she realized just how insane it had been. She didn’t want to be a grumpy boring person and she doubted she was, but in comparison to age 23, she felt she was well on the way. “You’re being ridiculous,” Alyssa muttered to herself as she turned to her side and shut her eyes. She was intent on getting some sleep that night and she

needed to stop thinking about such trivial things. It would do her no good in the end anyway. The next morning, she walked into the living room to find Jessica already gone. It was a breezy Sunday morning so she opened up her balcony door and let the breeze flow freely into her apartment as she made pancakes from scratch and listened to French music. Jessica had always joked that was cheesy of her, but Alyssa didn’t mind it. There was no feeling in the world quite like listening to her favorite music and cooking as she enjoyed a gentle

breeze. And those types of days were rare so when they did come she took full advantage of them. It wasn’t until breakfast, which she had chosen to enjoy out on her patio as the sounds of the French music drifted out, that a realization hit her. And it was with that realization that panic ensued. “Jessica!” Alyssa was shouting into her phone’s receiver just moments later. “The gala is this week! How on earth could I forget?”

Jessica stayed dead quite for a moment before responding, “And you still haven’t even picked your dress, have you?” Alyssa shook her head as if her friend could see. “I’ll be over soon,” Jessica said before promptly hanging up. Alyssa stared down at her cell phone screen. She wondered what exactly Jessica was going to do to help her, but she would be finding out soon so she picked up her plate and mug to wash it before Jessica arrived. After finishing cleaning up the kitchen she went to her room to throw on some printed legging

and a grey sweater so she wouldn’t be slumming it in her pajamas when Jessica arrived, not that it really mattered. Shortly after that there was a knock on the door and Jessica walked in. “I’m here to save your ass,” Jessica told her with an air of importance as she walked straight past Alyssa to grab her laptop off the coffee table and open it up. “Excuse me?” Alyssa said. She walked over to drop down on the couch next to her. She didn’t really care that Jessica helped herself to her laptop. They were perfectly comfortable with

each other and Alyssa knew it was in her own best interest. Not just that, she knew she could actually trust Jessica. It was a couple minutes later when she pushed the laptop onto Alyssa’s lap. Alyssa looked on the screen to see a web page dedicated to dress rentals. Her jaw dropped as she turned to look at her friend. “Really?” Jessica nodded enthusiastically. Alyssa couldn’t believe a website like that even existed, but Jessica had been absolutely right– she saved her ass.

Chapter Two It was Wednesday afternoon, which meant Alyssa left work early so she could have plenty of time to get ready for the gala. She had hung the dress up on the hook placed on the back of her closet door and it remained there, untouched, until now. She pulled it out and took a look at it again before putting it on. It was splendid. It was floor length and made entirely of purple lace layered over the purple slip beneath. All the material was high quality and the design was amazing.

It had a square neckline that was flattering for her breasts without revealing so much cleavage to be inappropriate for what was, essentially, a work function. Alyssa particularly liked the small back detail where it opened up to reveal a smooth expanse of skin. It was the perfect combination of elegant and sexy and it suited her. She styled her hair up in an elegant twist and applied her makeup with great care before finally slipping on her stilettos. She looked in the mirror and was shocked, but in a good way. She had never been done up like that before, much less wearing a designer dress.

While Alyssa was certainly not poor or even close to it, she wasn’t really in a position to buy gowns that cost upwards of a thousand dollars. Besides, she never really attended events or went places where such a gown would be necessary. She snapped a photo of herself and sent it to Jessica. She was pleased with the positive and enthusiastic response her friend sent back. At precisely 7pm, Alyssa’s doorbell rang. She took hold of her clutch and walked to open it. As she suspected, it was the driver who was sent to pick her up and take her to the gala where she would meet her boss.

The ride was comfortable and smooth. She had been in luxury passenger cars before because of work, but it felt different now that she was being taken to such a special event in one. When she first moved to the city she could have never imagined attending such a prestigious event one day in the future. The sedan pulled up the driveway where the attendees were being dropped off by their drivers. Alyssa felt her stomach flutter as a man opened the door for her and escorted her straight up to the man holding a guest list. As soon as she was inside she went on the hunt for the

boss, even though she really wanted to look around and admire everything. But she knew it was best to find him first and then she could have a look around. It wasn’t long before she found him as he had been thoughtful enough to wait for her near the entrance. He was talking to a woman who looked to be about Alyssa’s age, only she seemed to be quite used to wearing the expensive gowns to prestigious galas. Alyssa walked over and her boss, Aiden, as he turned to greet her with a smile. “Amanda, darling, this is my associate. Her name is Alyssa

McConnell.” Alyssa stretched her hand out to shake hers. Amanda smiled brightly at her and Alyssa was struck with how beautiful and charming the woman was. She found it intriguing how a woman, or a person in general, could ooze with so much charm even from such a simple action. Amanda was a bit taller than Alyssa and gorgeous, but it didn’t make Alyssa feel any less confident in the way she looked. As she met more and more people who seemed perfectly at home in such clothing and the event however, she started feel a bit out of place.

Alyssa wondered why her boss had asked her to join when there were plenty of other people he could have asked. She started feeling like she had at the bar when she felt suddenly out of place. It was like she had been taken somewhere she couldn’t get a grasp of no matter what. She swallowed hard, as if she could swallow away the feeling, and then took a step in closer to her boss. As he walked with her toward their assigned seats he held out his arm for her to take. It was gentlemanly of him and she didn’t think there was anything strange or flirtatious about it.

Once they were seated, Aiden leaned over to her, “I’m glad you were able to join me tonight.” Alyssa turned to see a strange smile on his face she had never seen before and her stomach did a little flip. That was the first time she ever questioned one of his motives, but she smiled and nodded before turning to look toward the podium. She didn’t want to think too much on it or place any sort of emphasis on her sudden realization that, perhaps, Aiden had some sort of interest in her as a woman and not only as his co-worker. It wasn’t long before the host started

his speech. Alyssa was grateful for that. She wanted to be saved from another awkward moment with Aiden. Although she knew it was possible to have another one, or many more for that matter, once it was time to dine and mingle at least she was safe from it for a while. Once the speeches were over and the honors had been done, Alyssa found herself excited for the three course dinner that was sure to be top of the line. Just as dessert ended and the people were beginning to mingle, her eyes locked onto a handsome man approaching their table. Right at that moment Aiden excused himself to go speak to a business partner. Alyssa’s attention, however, was

focused on the man walking towards the table. At first she thought he knew Aiden, but when his eyes remained on her and he didn’t stop heading in her direction after Aiden left the table, she realized he was going to her. She felt her stomach twist and her cheeks run hot as gulped nervously. She had no idea why she suddenly felt so rattled, but when the man sat at the table only one chair away from her, she felt her heart beat a bit faster. “Good evening,” he said in a deep timbre that sent a shiver straight down her spine. He wasn’t smiling, but he didn’t look stern either.

“Good evening,” Alyssa said with a weak smile. Her mouth felt dry. Her eyes traced over his face rather intently as she took in every detail. He had a full head of silky smooth light brown hair, swept back in a natural looking manner. His skin was a lovely bronze that made his bright blue eyes pop even more. As he had walked over she noticed he was tall, but now that he was closer she noticed his strong broad shoulders. She tried to smile, but quickly stopped out of concern that it looked awkward and forced.

“I know you’re not her alone,” he said in a low voice so that even she could barely hear him. She suspected that was his intention and she found it partly attractive and partly irritating. “But are you alone?” he asked with a heavy, meaningful tone. Alyssa knew exactly what he meant. He wanted to know if she was with Aiden, together as a romantic couple. She wanted to answer truthfully, but she also didn’t know him or the reasons he was asking. As she continued to carefully look at his face, she had the distinct sensation she already knew him

even if they had never met. That doesn’t even make any sense, she thought. But no matter what she couldn’t shake the feeling. “I, uh, I’m not his girlfriend.” She looked at him, waiting for confirmation that she hadn’t misunderstood his question and potentially made an ass of herself. The man smiled in what looked like satisfaction. Her heart started to beat faster once again.

“Great.” He said pointedly as he held out his hand. “My name is Philip Walton. And to whom do I have the pleasure to be meeting at this moment?” Alyssa felt like she had just slammed into a wall. Philip Walton. Now she understood why he looked so familiar. She felt even more nervous than before and was truly terrified of doing or saying anything embarrassing. “Alyssa McConnell,” she said slowly. It was on purpose; she felt if she tried to speak quickly or even at a normal pace she would end up stuttering and saying something completely

nonsensical. She saw the man’s eyes flick to the side and he straightened up right away. “Alyssa,” he repeated in the same low tone as before. “I’d love to have dinner with you sometime,” he told her. Her breath caught in her throat almost sending her in a coughing fit. He handed her his business card and politely excused himself. She watched as he exited the ballroom and realized only then he was leaving the gala. Right at that moment she felt a heavy hand land on her shoulder.

“Sorry about that.” It was Aiden. His voice sounded almost grating in comparison to Philip’s. Alyssa was silently thankful he hadn’t been around to ruin her encounter with Philip Walton. She looked up at Aiden and gave him a fake, tight-lipped smile. She stood up and told him she had started feeling a bit unwell and wanted to go home. “I’m sorry. I’m just really not feeling up for this.” “I understand.” Aiden said as he held out his arm so he could walk her to the front where her driver would pick her up, only now it would be to take her

back home. Alyssa thanked Aiden and stepped into the car, leaning her head back and staring up at the ceiling. As the car sped down the highway and she neared her home, it felt as if the enchantment was ending.

Chapter Three “Just go on the date,” Jessica sighed. She turned back around to run her fingers through her shiny brown hair, now at cute shoulder length, before turning back to face Alyssa. She grinned. “Cute, right?” Jessica did a playful little flip of her hair before chuckling at her own silliness. She walked over to Alyssa and patted her hand. “Really though, that do you have to lose? Just go and have a good time!” “It just doesn't make sense,” Alyssa sighed. She was still hesitant in

accepting Philip’s invitation to dine with him. She thought it was odd that out of all the women at the gala he had set his sights on her. She had only been there because her boss was a special guest due to his latest project. She didn’t belong there and felt it more and more every minute she stayed there. More than that, she didn’t even know how she should dress for the date if she were to accept it. Even her gown for the gala had been a rental. Jessica sighed dramatically and made a show of rolling her eyes.

“You're always so full of doubt and then you complain your life is dull. Take some risks, Alyssa, and you'll see your life will be a lot more exciting. I'm not going to keep insisting. If you don't want to go, then shoot him down.” Jessica looked at Alyssa before turning on her heel and walking out of the bedroom. Alyssa exhaled and looked up at the ceiling as if she would find the perfect answer written up there, but it was just as white and plain as always. She hopped off the dresser to follow Jessica into the living room. Her friend was right. She needed to make a choice and move on. Talking about it endlessly wouldn’t change the fact that she either

had to say yes or no. She saw Jessica playing on her phone when she walked into the living room. Just as she was about to open up her mouth to bring up the Philip debate again she decided against it. Alyssa could already tell her friend was getting annoyed, so she thought it best to just let it go. She sat next to Jessica and pulled out her own phone but realized there wasn’t really anything she wanted to check. She sighed. “I have to go,” Jessica said suddenly as she stood up and snatched her bag from the coffee table. Alyssa peered at

her. “Okay,” she said sounding and looking confused. It was strange that Jessica had just suddenly decided to leave, but Alyssa wasn’t going to question her about it. She watched as Jessica walked out the door and then leaned her head back against the couch. “Philip,” she mumbled. She thought that if she was debating it so much maybe a part of her was at least curious to have dinner with him. After all, it wasn’t every day she had a social call

with an extremely wealthy and wellknown man. She was curious to know how he carried himself and to see how he was treated by others. She was certain few people went about life the way he did, but it wasn’t something she had every witnessed on a personal level. She wondered if they would talk enough over dinner for her to get to know the side of Philip that was never portrayed by newspaper and magazine interviews. He wasn’t exactly a celebrity, but his name was quite well known. She unlocked her cell phone and

stared at her screen before opening up her contacts. There was his number, stored but not labeled. She tapped on it and pressed the phone to her ear to hear the ringing until his deep voice came on the other end. “Hello?” Alyssa curled her fingers inward as she felt her heart race. Calling him was a lot more nerve wracking than she would have imagined. “Philip,” she said in an unsteady voice, “This is Alyssa. Alyssa McConnell, we met at-” “The gala. Yes, of course I

remember. I did ask you out to dinner so one would hope I would recall who you are.” Alyssa felt like she had been slapped in the face. He was so forward. She hadn’t expected him to bluntly state his proposition, if he brought it up at all. The way he said things came so easily that it threw her off. She had never spoken to anybody who spoke with such ease, no matter the subject. “Right,” she muttered with an awkward chuckle. “What can I do for you, Alyssa?”

She heard background noise that sounded as if he were standing outside or walking down a busy street. Something inside her resisted the urge to tell him, but she had made the call and so it was time to decided. She didn’t want to chicken out no matter how fast her pulse was at that moment. She was just glad to already be sitting down. “I was calling you to, uh, well,” she paused and took a deep breath. She felt so silly sputtering and stalling. “I would like to accept your dinner invitation.” Philip chuckled and Alyssa felt her

cheeks grow hot in embarrassment. Thank god she was on the phone. It had been hard enough for her to actually call him and accept without having him laugh at her. “You make it sound so formal, Alyssa. This isn’t a business dinner, you know.” She calmed down a bit and realized she had indeed made it sound like a business formal event when, in reality, he had essentially asked her out on a date. At least she had assumed it was a date. She felt panic well up inside her once again so she started to rush the

conversation. She forced a chuckle and responded, “Right. We can schedule it later, then?” “Why later if I have you on the phone right now?” Alyssa clamped her mouth shut and puffed out her cheeks. He had a point. She just wanted to hastily get off the phone since she was being nonsensical. “Right,” she said, but didn’t say anything more, not even giving an indication of when would be a good

night to get together for dinner. “Are you available Wednesday evening?” She could tell he was carefully prodding her in the right direction. It was as if he could sense how much trouble she was having just speaking to him and was finding a way to steer the conversation without being pushy. Gentle guidance in conversation was practically an art form and she catalogued it in her mind as something she liked about him. That was a good start. Then she thought about the actual question he had asked.

“Yes,” she said slowly. “Are you sure?” he asked quickly. Even from a one syllable word he noticed how unsure she felt. Most people didn’t pay that much attention, even if an entire speech was prepared. Alyssa wondered if he was always so perceptive or if it was just part of his game he played with woman. Because her suspicion had not died down and she knew it wouldn’t even after having dinner with him. She would be wondering for a while why he liked

her enough to actually ask her out to dinner. She started to feel the panic well up again, only this time she managed to fight it off a little. “Yes, I’m sure.” “Great,” he shot back. She could picture him smiling on the other end of the phone. She remembered the way his smile looked when they met at the gala and she was thankful, yet again, that she was already sitting, she was sure her knees would have felt quite wobbly if she hadn’t been.

They agreed on deciding a time and place closer to Wednesday and he bid her a good night before ending the call. Alyssa sat on her catch staring at her phone in the palm of her hand until the screen faded to black after a few minutes had passed. She had really just accepted a date with Philip Walton, a well-known billionaire belonging to the socioeconomic elite. That was when the panic hit her even harder than before. She hurriedly called Jessica only to have her call forwarded to voicemail. “No dammit!” she whined before calling her again. It wasn’t until the third call that Jessica actually answered.

“Is everything okay?” she asked. Alyssa could tell her friend had stepped out of wherever she was to take the call. She started to feel guilty about interrupting her when it wasn’t really a pressing or time sensitive matter. “Um,” Alyssa responded before letting out a long breath. “Yes, sorry. I shouldn’t have interrupted you like that.” “Well, you did, so now you tell me why you were calling like crazy,” Jessica told her bluntly. Alyssa knew her friend well enough to know she was probably a bit annoyed. “Did he ask you

on a date?” “Yea.” Jessica sighed. “This is really why you’re calling me?” She was definitely annoyed and Alyssa couldn’t blame her. “I accepted,” she said in a hurry so her friend wouldn’t think she was still debating back and forth like she had been earlier. She wanted Jessica to know she was now confused on what exactly she had agreed to. She wanted the panic that had bubbled up inside her to go away.

“You did?” Jessica sounded genuinely shocked. “Yes,” Alyssa replied. “But now I don't know if he asked me out on a date or just, I don't know, dinner.” Jessica laughed. It was a bit mocking, but it didn’t bother Alyssa. In fact, that was something she would have expected from her. “Of course he’s asking you on a date, woman. There's no doubt in my mind about that.” Alyssa wanted to ask how and why she was so sure. She wanted Jessica to

explain the logic to her and even give her evidence based off something Philip might have said or done, but she knew it was unreasonable. She had already taken away enough of Jessica’s time and had gotten her answer. She needed to let it go. Not everything needed to be answered, at least not right away.

“Okay,” she responded before ending the call with a sigh. She knew she shouldn’t need the constant reassurance from her friend, but the whole thing sent

her emotions whirling inside her. She was nervous, excited, and scared; all bundled up into one giant emotion. Whatever was to happen, she knew it would be interesting.

Chapter Four Alyssa walked into her bedroom and went straight for her closet. As she looked through her clothes she knew it was pointless. She wouldn’t find anything in there that she thought was good enough to go on a date with a billionaire. She found herself wishing they had already decided on a place so she could look it up and figure out what sort of outfit she needed to wear. As she closed her closet door and sat down at the edge of her bed she wondered briefly if she

was placing too much emphasis on what to wear. He had met her at the gala and might have assumed she was wealthy. Then again, she wondered if he would be the type to judge her for not being wealthy and owning the kind of clothing she wore at the gala. There was really nothing in her closet she wanted to or felt comfortable wearing for her first date with a man like him. She slumped down on her bed and pouted as she wished she could invite Jessica over. But she was also aware it would have been selfish and imprudent to call her friend, yet again. Then on top of that, to ask her to dump whatever she was doing to run to her aid would be

more than annoying to her friend. Maybe she was getting ahead of herself or placing too much emphasis on the clothing. Maybe it didn’t need to matter all that much. Alyssa flopped back on the bed and stared at her ceiling. It was as plain and as white as ever. Just like before. There was no perfect answer written across it. This was something she needed to figure it on her own. After all, the key was for her to treat this date like she would any other. But every time she

thought about who she was going on a date with, she found it impossible. It seemed unfathomable that she would be meeting with the Philip Walton, so how was she supposed to treat it like any other date? If she was nervous before any date how could she not be in a near panic for this one? Now that Jessica had indeed confirmed it was a date she was going on, Alyssa felt her stomach knot into a jumbled mess whenever she thought too much on the implications of that word. Date. It Monday afternoon when Alyssa felt her phone vibrate on her desk, but she was too busy to look at who was calling, much less was she able to

actually answer the call. It wasn’t until she was packing up and getting ready to leave the office that she saw a new voice message from none other than Philip. Her stomach squeezed and she felt the panic shoot straight up her throat. As Wednesday night approached she got more and more anxious. And now that he was calling her it all suddenly felt a bit too real despite how incredibly surreal it all was. Alyssa lifted her phone to her ear, her hand trembling slightly. She shut her eyes and took a few deep breaths. She

hated that she got that nervous about the date even just by thinking about it. She hated the effect this all had on her since it wasn’t in her nature to behave that way. “He’s not above me just because he has money,” she had told Jessica in the morning before leaving to work. She couldn’t stand the fact that she was behaving as if Philip were above her because of his status. Alyssa was a woman with a lot of self-worth and selfconfidence, but something about Philip shook all that up and rocked her at her core.

Alyssa listened to the voice mail. He was charming and friendly. Speaking came easily to him and he got straight to the point without coming off as being too blunt or rushed. She wondered how he managed all that and even showed it through something like a voice message. It made her a bit anxious to think she would be the awkward one at the table when they had dinner on Wednesday night. Since he had asked her to call him back and she very much wanted to know where they would be going in order to prepare for it, she called him back right away.

“Sorry I missed your call,” she blurted out as soon as he answered the phone. “I had a busy day at work.” “Not a problem, Alyssa.” He emphasized her name as if to point out to her she had failed to announce who she was before babbling her excuse. She felt like a helpless case of a woman with Philip and it only made the anger she felt about that bubble up to the surface. But she was prudent enough not to take it out on him. After all, it wasn’t his fault she was crumbling in his presence or even just the thought of his

presence. “Right,” she told him feeling the shame crawl over her body. If she was like this over the phone she didn’t want to think of how she would behave with him on their date. “How are you?” “Great,” he said and she could sense the words ‘now that I’m talking to you’ hanging off his lips, but he didn’t say them. She could imagine him smiling and she felt her knees wobble a little more. Holding on to the back of her desk chair

she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She needed to have better selfcontrol. She wanted to stop wondering why she could already picture his face as they spoke on the phone or ‘sense’ something he wanted to say. “How was your day? I hope not bad despite how busy it was.” “Not at all,” she responded as coolly as possible. She wanted to practice speaking to him now on the phone as preparation for their date. She cringed. “Why do I have to practice talking to him?” she wondered. It was all rather unrefined.

“Was there a specific reason you called, Philip? You didn’t say in your message.” “Oh, yes,” he responded. His tone had changed slightly and she suddenly fell into a panic. Had she been a bit too harsh? Did she make him feel like she was cutting him off or didn’t have much interest in speaking to him? She didn’t want him to think she was rude. She hadn’t meant to sound like she was pressed for time or ready to get the conversation out of the way. She was only curious about the reason for his

call. “I know this lovely place with a great view of the city. Are you particular about where you eat or what kind of food?” “No,” Alyssa told him honestly. She was open about to all kinds of food and had a wide variety of tastes. But not knowing meant she couldn’t look the place up online for a better idea of how to dress. She would have to go into it blind and she definitely didn’t want to do that.

“Excellent,” he answered with clear excitement in his voice. “I can have a driver by to pick you up at 7:15p, will that work for you?” Alyssa’s mouth went dry. Her tongue felt like sandpaper and she couldn’t say anything for a brief moment. A driver? It wasn’t as if it would be her first time being picked up and taken by a driver, but it was a rather odd feeling with it being from her date. She was unsure if she should readily agree or decline it. Either way could be perceived as rude. Her mind was a mess of thoughts and she couldn’t sort them

out. She wanted to take the driver so she decided to go for it since he offered. She needed to stop worrying so much about how she came off. “Um,” she said, “Sure.” “If not, I can set up-” “Oh,” she interrupted him. She cleared her throat being all too aware she had cut him off mid-sentence. “Oh, it’s not that. I just wasn’t expecting you to send a driver.” “I see,” he said. “Well, it would be

no problem at all. I’d be glad to send him and he knows exactly the location of the restaurant.” “Right,” she said slowly. “7:15pm will be a great time”. She wanted to sound enthusiastic without going over the top, but ended up a bit flat. The call ended and she shakily slid down to sit on her desk chair. She held onto the edge of her desk and looked at the wall across from her. Now it was real.

The time and place had been sent. He was even sending a driver to pick her up. And she still had no idea what to wear. “Jessica,” she muttered as she grabbed her phone off the surface of her desk and quickly typed out a text message. “Take me shopping,” she muttered.

Chapter Five It was finally Wednesday night. Alyssa was ready by 6:45pm and she spent the next 25 minutes anxiously alternating between sitting restlessly on her couch, pacing back and forth, or walking up to her door and then back again. She constantly checked her phone as if it would make time go faster. Finally, five minutes early, her doorbell rang. “Just a moment,” she called out

before darting into her bedroom to look over her reflection one last time. She had her hair up in a partial ponytail so that locks of her shiny, blond hair still flowed over her shoulders. Her bangs were swept off to the side framing her pretty face with light makeup, save for subtly smoky eyeliner and light red lips. Her hair flowed beautifully onto the slightly shimmery champagne colored dress that clung sensually to her breasts and wrapped around her slender frame, ending just above the knee to give a teasing peak of her toned thighs. She swiped the gold and black studded clutch from the table next to the front door and opened it.

“Good evening,” she greeted the driver with a smile. “Good evening, Miss McConnell,” he replied. He stood off to the side so she could walk out ahead of him. She walked at a slower pace being careful to master her graceful yet confidently sexy walk in her tall pumps that shimmered as the lights of the hallway hit them. She felt classy and attractive without being too over the top. Whether they went somewhere more casual or a bit more on the elegant side, she looked lovely and that was all thanks

to Jessica. Her friend also succeeded in calming Alyssa down, at least a little bit. Although she was definitely more nervous than usual when heading to a first date she felt a little more calm than she had before. If she was going to go out with Philip, even if it only ended up being the one time, she wanted to be herself. There was no point in creating a persona to mask who she truly was. Like Jessica had pointed out, there was absolutely nothing wrong with who Alyssa was so there was nothing to hide

anyway. The driver pulled open the back door on the passenger’s side and Alyssa slid in, buckling her seat belt as he walked around front. He put up the privacy partition. She heard smooth jazz pumping from the speakers as he drove her toward downtown. It wasn’t long before they arrived at the city’s main civic center, in the middle of which stood a tall building full of government offices. Alyssa felt confused when the driver pulled around to the front of it and stopped the car. He opened the door and she stepped out.

Just as she was about to ask if he was sure he’d gone to the correct place she saw Philip step out from the main lobby of the building. He was wearing a slate grey suit with a black shirt and tie. His hair was swept back, just as it was at the gala, and his smile made her knees feel wobbly. He walked straight up to her, smile still in place, “Good evening, Alyssa.” He turned and stood right beside her as he offered his arm. Cautiously, she placed her hand on it and tried to steady herself. She took slow, deep breaths and remembered the

words Jessica had used to help calm her down. They stared walking toward the doors of the building and Alyssa slowed down while turning to look at him. “Why are we going into an office building?” He chuckled. “I know, it does seem a bit odd, doesn’t it? But I promise you the restaurant at the top floor has delicious food and spectacular views.” As they continued to walk toward the elevators Alyssa didn’t want to mention she never even knew there was a

restaurant in the building. She wondered if that was common knowledge or if it was the sort of place that was only frequented by people of Philip’s status. The elevator took them straight up to the top floor and opened up to a small welcome room where a man stood at a podium, a closed book in front of him next to a pen. He peered up at them and his expression immediately turned to one that was over the top. He was practically fawning over Philip. Then Alyssa realized she had done something similar up until Jessica calmed her down a bit. Was it just a reaction he brought out in people or was it because of his name?

“Good evening, Mr. Walton. It is always a pleasure to see you,” the man said in a greasy voice that was begging for approval. He turned to Alyssa and she noticed a slight shift in his expression. He had judgment written all over his face. She could tell he was only going to be extremely cordial with her to look good in front of Philip. “Good evening, Miss.” He turned back to Philip and smiled before opening the book and checking for the reservation. “Excellent, I shall alert the

host you have arrived to escort you to the table.” He smiled again and bowed his head before disappearing behind a door right next to the podium. Alyssa held back a chuckle at the thought the man was basically a fancy bouncer. She wondered what it was like to stand there all day and be overly polite to the people who visited the restaurant. The man returned with a young woman trailing behind him. She was quite stunning and she looked at Philip as if they knew each other, which made Alyssa feel a little uncomfortable. It wasn’t that she was jealous or

already getting possessive of him, it was just awkward. She saw the way the young woman looked at Philip and she couldn’t help but wonder if anything had ever happened between them. She couldn’t blame the young woman for having an interest in a man like him and she couldn’t blame Philip for finding the her attractive. With her large and perfectly round breasts, tanned skin, sparkling blue eyes and flowing natural red hair she was a complete knockout. Alyssa tried to look at Philip’s eyes to see if he looked at her in any way other than friendliness, but she couldn’t without being obvious.

“Mr. Walton,” the young woman said in a sultry voice. It was the type of voice you could tell naturally sounded that way, even if she wasn’t trying to be sexy. She smiled at him, two little dimples forming near the corners of her full lips, as she walked up to them. She got a bit closer to Philip than Alyssa would have expected. Alyssa shifted her weight uncomfortably to her other leg, standing further away from them. Philip turned to look at Alyssa and she could have sworn she detected amusement in his eyes.

“Cassandra,” he said as he returned her smile and then took a step sideways to stand closer to Alyssa. “This is Alyssa, my date for the night.” Cassandra turned to look at Alyssa and smiled. It looked genuine, but Alyssa was too busy making up scenarios in which the young woman secretly hated her to fully realize it. She returned a tight-lipped smile and automatically stuck her hand out for a shake. Cassandra rather awkwardly took it and shook her hand before turning around and leading them to the best table in the place.

It was a table for two, slightly removed from the rest of the room and offered a stunning panoramic view of the city. As the sun had already set the lights were on, casting a glittery visage over everything. Cassandra excused herself, but not before gently pressing her hand to the table right near Philip. Alyssa caught it. It was the professional equivalent of her pressing her hand to his arm. She gulped and looked out the window some more as she tried to push away her negative thoughts and feelings. “You don’t much like Cassandra, do you?” Philip asked bluntly. His eyes locked onto her face as he studied her reaction.

Alyssa turned to look at him with wide eyes. She didn’t think many people would have gone straight for asking such a direct question and confronting her about it. Only it didn’t sound like a scathing accusation by any measure. He just sounded curious. It was clear he had simply made an observation and was now asking her about it. “I can’t say I dislike her,” Alyssa answered truthfully while trying to avoid the fact that she felt awkward. She was usually very laid-back and confident. But there was something about Philip that set off reactions in her she didn’t know what to make of. She was quickly

growing tired of it. Even with Jessica having calmed her down before she left, new worries kept arising and her mind. And the more she focused on needing to calm down, the more she nervous she got. Philip looked at her for a few moments as if he were trying to sum up her answer and catch something else through her facial expression. Just then, the waiter came and introduced himself. Philip ordered a bottle of wine. Alyssa couldn’t believe its cost when she saw the name on the wine list. When it arrived she sipped it politely and enjoyed the flavor, but still was at a loss. Yet again, she started to feel out of

place. It seemed to be a recurring theme in her life as of late. She let out a deep sigh as she stared out the window. “Everything alright?” Philip asked as he closed his menu and set it down on the table. Alyssa looked over the edge of her menu with a raised eyebrow and then softened her expression. She nodded before perusing the menu. As she glossed over the chicken selection she wondered what Philip must have been thinking of her. In an effort not to panic, she focused her attention entirely on the steak selection and ended up deciding

what to have. After she ordered her dinner she turned to see Philip looking at her with the expression of someone who was just pleasantly surprised. “What's that look for?” “You ordered a steak dinner,” he responded flatly. Alyssa stared at him, unsure why that was important. As it slowly started to dawn on her he said, “It's quite delicious, what you ordered.” “And unexpected because I'm a woman?”

“Well, considering the reputation of most women eating only a quarter salad on a first date,” he responded bluntly. He spoke as if it were obvious, but there was something else to his words and tone of voice. None of what he was saying was coming from a negative place. He looked pleasantly surprised, not affronted. He didn’t seem to believe that was how women should order, but was rather glad to be out with a woman who didn’t fall into that stereotype. Alyssa reached for the bottle of wine as her head started to spin a bit. Drinking more wine probably wouldn’t help, but she wanted more anyway.

Swiftly, he took the bottle from her and poured wine into her glass. He looked at her with a sly smile before pouring more into his own glass and setting the bottle back down. As they waited for their salad to be brought out, he told her a bit of trivia on the restaurant. Although he ended the speech claiming it was something a lot of people found boring, she told him she had found it quite interesting. It wasn’t until their salads had been brought out that he finally asked, “Why did you accept the date?”

He was staring straight at her with his bright blue eyes. Alyssa felt herself freeze. He had a penetrating stare that made her unsure of what to do or say. It threw her off each time he was so forward. Even though his forwardness was something she was starting to like about him she was still taken by surprise. It wasn’t exactly the sort of thing one got used to right away. It was especially interesting coming from him since he was so naturally charming and of such elevated status that one would have expected him to be a bit more reserved. Perhaps it was this type of charm that had given him such appeal with others. He had a sort of direct

attitude, something Alyssa was sure had helped him through life. “I don’t know,” she said in a hollow voice. No sooner had the words left her mouth than she felt incredibly stupid. “You don’t know why you agreed to have dinner with me?” Hearing him repeat it made her feel even stupider and it took every ounce of self-control not to set her fork down in favor of burying her face in her hands. She had never experienced the feeling of wanting the Earth to swallow her whole as much as she was feeling it at that

moment. In the interest of being honest and forward like him, she gave him a short explanation about how uncertain she had been, but then decided for it because she was intrigued by him and, like her friend said, she really didn’t have anything to lose. Philip looked happy and flattered when she mentioned he was intriguing. There was always an air of satisfaction to him as if everything she said and did was exactly what he wanted. Alyssa wasn’t sure how to feel about it. Part of her felt like she should find it crude or

offensive but, for some reason, she didn’t. As she sat across from Philip throughout dinner and got to know more about him, little by little she came to the conclusion he was the type of person who would always confuse her. Her usual feelings toward certain topics and reactions to certain statements were different with Philip. She wasn’t quite sure why or what it was about him, but it happened every time. She tired of analyzing everything he said. After she excused herself to the restroom, she stood in front of the

mirrors in the makeup room and stared at her reflection. She wasn’t really on a date with Philip. The entire evening she hadn’t been enjoying a date with a man she found attractive and intriguing. Instead she was seated at the same table as him and picking every single little thing apart in her mind. There was no room for enjoyment there. As she stood in front of the mirror in the makeup room she decided it needed to stop. If she was so knit picky he would throw her off course every time, she just needed take a deep breath and go with the flow.

“I want to enjoy this,” she said aloud to her own reflection. And something about actually saying it out loud while looking into her own eyes struck her. It made the sentiment behind the statement real. She walked back to the dinner table to find the entrées had been removed. “Dessert is on its way,” Philip told her. Alyssa looked at him. She didn’t recall ordering dessert. “I hope you don’t mind, but I took the liberty of ordering the dessert. It’s a specialty here and would really like you

to try it.” He brushed his thumb and index finger over his upper lip and she saw a small amount of concern in his eyes. “Of course, you’re free to let me know otherwise and order something else if you’d like.” “Oh no,” she responded quickly. “It’s okay.” She gave him a soft smile and, for the first time that evening, it felt genuine. It was Cassandra who brought their dessert over. Alyssa felt the awkwardness crawl back over her skin, but she tried to play it off by turning to look at Cassandra directly in the eye and

smiling widely. “Thank you!” Alyssa exclaimed before turning back to Philip, who was watching her rather closely. Cassandra excused herself and Alyssa looked down at her dessert quickly before meeting Philip’s gaze again. “This looks delicious.” “It tastes even more amazing than it looks,” he responded. Alyssa shuddered and inadvertently squeezed her thighs together. There had been something about the way he was looking at her and the way he spoke that turned her on.

She had the distinct feeling he had done it on purpose. Philip leaned forward and took his fork to pierce the velvety surface of the cake. His eyes were still fixed on Alyssa as he split a piece away from the tip of the cake slowly. There was a sparkle in his bright blue eyes that hadn’t been there before. Alyssa gulped. She wanted to take her own fork and taste the cake, but was transfixed. She couldn’t take her eyes off Philip’s. Finally, he finished cutting a piece and he picked it up carefully with his fork.

She watched the perfectly sliced piece move up toward his lips, but just as he was about to take the bite, he paused. Alyssa waited on baited breath. Never had watching someone cut and eat cake been so incredibly mesmerizing. Then she saw him move the fork slowly toward her. “I think you should have the first taste,” he said in a low, deep voice. It was dripping with sexual suggestion as she squeezed her thighs against each other again. She gulped and nodded, but didn’t open her mouth, not even as the fork got closer to her lips.

“Alyssa,” he practically whispered, “Open your mouth.” His voice oozed soft and sexy and the way he was staring into her eyes made her feel something she had not felt in a very, very long time. Only she couldn’t remember ever feeling it so intensely. Slowly, she opened her mouth as he slipped the cool fork into it, mouth closing around the cake with a smile. He drew the fork back as he smiled and licked his lips. She watched his tongue glide from one corner of his mouth to the other before remembering to chew. “This is amazing,” she said after

swallowing the bite. “Isn’t it just?” Philip asked rather intensely. She had the feeling he wasn’t exactly talking about the cake, but was playing along with her choice of words. Never had she experienced such a seduction technique. She felt her cheeks grow hot and was sure they were flushed red. When he leaned forward and reached out to brush his thumb over the top of her cheek she knew she must be fire engine red.

“Why are you blushing?” he teased. Alyssa felt her face grow hotter. He leaned in even closer, minding not to get cake on his coat, and whispered, “You look even prettier with your cheeks all red like that, did you know?” Alyssa’s breath caught in her throat. She felt like everything was suddenly going quiet and she could only hear the sound of her heart racing. Could he hear it too? He removed his hand and sat back on his chair, nodding toward her cake. “All yours,” he told her. Alyssa nodded slowly and came back down to

reality. Finally, she managed to pick up her fork and cut a piece of her own. He started to make conversation once again as she ate her slice of cake. Every question he asked was well thought out and interesting. He had the grace of being able to keep conversation flowing naturally and it made things easy for Alyssa. There wasn’t a single moment of awkwardness. What she didn’t notice was that he kept the conversation centered on her and had continued to use a subtly seductive tone of voice. It was

part of his seduction technique. Does it still count as falling for it if I know what he’s doing? I just like it, she thought. It didn’t matter what it counted as, what mattered was that it was working. She was more attracted to him than ever and by the time they had finished dessert, he was holding her hand as they walked out of the restaurant. She didn’t even pay attention to Cassandra as they walked past her out the door.

Chapter Six Philip’s mansion was a bit removed from the downtown area, but Alyssa could understand why. It was obvious he lived in the kind of gated community where only the cream of the crop lived. The exclusivity wasn’t to be missed and the peacefulness of the entire community was something that must have come at a premium. She found herself vaguely wondering how much it would cost to live there even in the smallest house. It was during the ride back that she wondered why she

was even going back home with him. It wasn’t that she didn’t understand the motive behind it; she didn’t understand why she had so easily agreed to it. But those thoughts withered away as the drive continued and Philip unbuckled her seat belt to pull her toward him. He reached over her body to buckle the seat belt, slowly and sensually running his hand over her stomach as he dragged the belt across it. When he touched her, Alyssa didn’t feel odd. It didn’t feel like it was too fast or shouldn’t be happening. It was never an accident. Every time he made

physical contact with her it was intentional. Every time it made her heart race and body feel a bit warmer. She liked the way his hands felt even from the minimal touching they had done. But she loved the way his bright blue eyes had a new sparkle in them, one that showed how attracted he was to her. Not to mention, the sound of his low deep voice sent chills down her neck. He used that soft tone to seduce her and it worked like magic. As they walked down the pathway leading to his front door he didn’t once remove his hand from her lower back.

She liked the feeling of his warm hand on her back and she knew perfectly well where this all was headed. She was surprised she was even going for it since it wasn’t entirely in her character, but she was incredibly intrigued. Not to mention she found Philip extremely attractive and it had nothing to do with the size of his bank account. The two of them walked on in silence and less than a minute later he was jiggling his keys in his pocket. He slid his key into the lock and turned until they heard a small ‘click’. Before he had a chance to open it, it was pulled from the other side and the two were greeted by a very friendly looking butler.

“Good evening, sir.” The butler said as he stepped aside so they could enter. Alyssa and the butler were introduced before Philip dismissed him and walked over to the couch with her. She leaned her head against his shoulder as soon as they sat down. There was something about being in his house and being close to him that made her rest her head on him so instinctively. He smells good, Alyssa thought as his scent wafted up to her nose. She heard some clicking of shoes

and that was when she lifted her head from his shoulder to check where it was coming from. She saw a housekeeper woman walk by holding a basket, but she quickly disappeared behind the wall without having even looked in their direction. Alyssa wondered how many people he had working in his mansion, but her thoughts were quickly distracted as she looked around the sitting room. All the furniture was remarkably ornate and high end without looking over the top. It didn’t look like the sitting room of someone with something to prove. It just looked like he had been careful in selecting what went in his house, or at least hiring someone who

was. Alyssa noticed the selected artworks and how even those matched the overall theme, color, and feeling of the couches, chairs, and drapes. The room was beautiful and perfectly put together. Philip continued talking to her for a bit before he stood up and took her hand, claiming he wanted to show her the main living room where he usually hosted company. As the two of them walked down the hallway to the main living room Alyssa felt his hand bump against hers more than just a couple of accidental times.

Then he took her hand and held it much more firmly than he had when they exited the restaurant. She barely had time to look around the main living room when she was already being pressed up against the wall. His lips landed on her so soft and skillfully she barely noticed it was happening before it was too late. The kiss was slightly rough, but it still came as a surprise to her since she would have never expected it from him. She jerked her head back a bit to look at him in surprise. He looked as if he wanted to ask her something, but was holding back.

Alyssa nodded. She wanted him to kiss her again, she wanted it to continue. She just hadn’t known what to expect. Perhaps she would be able to better prepare herself now. The idea that Philip Walton was going to be gentle completely went out the window with a kiss. He leaned forward so that his body pressed up against hers. Alyssa broke the kiss and turned her head to the left to catch her breath. “Oh my goodness,” she breathed out.

She was in utter disbelief. The deep breath she had taken woke her mind up a bit as she realized fully where she was, whom she was with, and what they were doing together. She knew where it was leading. She wanted it to happen; she wanted him badly, but it wasn’t lost on her that it was a pretty big deal. She still couldn’t believe that, of all the women he could have approached, it had been her. She actually accepted the date and now they were being all hot and heavy in his fancy living room.

Philip interrupted her thoughts by placing his hand on her cheek and leaning in to kiss her again, this time even a bit more rough than before. Alyssa had never been kissed that way before. She liked it. Not one man she had ever been with had pressed his lips roughly against hers in a way that made her weak in the knees. Then again, there were a lot of things about Philip that were different. He had been taking control from the moment they met, only she hadn’t quite realized it right off the bat. Even that was something she had never experienced before. No man she had ever been with had behaved this way

and, truth be told, she wasn’t opposed to it in the slightest. As he continued to kiss her, she completely let herself get lost in the moment. No more thoughts. No more questions. No more shock. This was far too good to not enjoy it fully. Tiny tingles attacked her skin as his hands slowly moved up until he was rubbing her breasts over her dress. The movement and pressure was unhurried and soft at first, but he slowly started getting more rough. Both types of touch felt equally good to her in completely different ways. Alyssa moaned softly

into his mouth. He responded to the moan by thrusting his hips forward. Her breath stilled as she felt his bulge push against her. The friction the movement created felt so good she broke the kiss with a louder moan. Despite that there was no direct skin on skin contact, she already felt pleasure starting to build inside her. She pushed her hips forward a bit to feel his hardness rub against her again and she moaned. Philip pushed the neckline of her dress down until the material moved over her breasts to expose her sexy lace bra. He didn’t waste any time,

immediately dipping his head down and nipping at her neck before running the tip of his tongue straight down along the line of her collarbone. Her knees wobbled as she clutched at his arms to remain standing. His tongue continued to tickle her until she felt his hot breath land on her cleavage. Philip tugged down the lace of one of the cups of her bra to fully expose one of her breasts and Alyssa soon felt his hot, warm mouth close around her hard nipple. She gasped out at the sensation and sharply inhaled when he sucked on it. He started off gently at first, but it wasn’t long before he was pinching her nipples with his teeth as he sucked.

He didn’t nibble on her nipple, but he did use his teeth to play with it as he sucked, alternating in pressure. Like everything else he was rough, but Alyssa liked it. She had never been touched like that before and everything about it made her heart race. Philip reached around her back to unclasp her bra before unzipping her dress slowly. He pulled his head away as she wiggled her body so the dress would slip off. She stepped out of it and kicked it away just before he pushed her back against the wall hard. Her back made a loud thud against the wall as he continued fondling her breasts,

alternating licking and sucking in the same way he had before. Alyssa let out a breathy whimper as one of his hands ran down along the slight curve of her waist, cupping her hip briefly before moving in and slipping under the waistband of her matching lace panties. She mouth locked open in a silent scream the moment she felt the tip of his finger make contact with her slit. Philip ran his finger up and down her wet slit. She thrust her chest towards him as he started to kiss up along her chest and neck until he took her lips and initiated

another deep, rough kiss. His body pinned her against the wall so much it nearly hurt, but she didn’t mind. She wanted to be as close to him as possible. It only heightened everything and turned her on even more. He pushed against her, applying more pressure to her wetness. She was getting even more turned on than she already was. As he continued kissing her Alyssa made muffled moans of pleasure in his mouth and her mind was lost in ecstasy. Suddenly, he stepped back and slid his hand out of her panties, making her whimper at the loss of pressure. She

watched as he unzipped his pants, hurriedly pushing them down along with his boxers and kicking them off to the side. Alyssa reached forward and pushed his suit jacket off his shoulders so that it landed on the floor in a heap. She grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it up before quickly undoing the buttons to reveal his toned bronzed skin. Philip’s skin looked so incredibly smooth and sexy that Alyssa couldn’t hold back from touching it. Her hands ran over his stomach, admiring how his toned abs felt underneath her fingertips. Without warning he grabbed her hand in a tight grip and moved it back to pin it to the wall.

He stepped in so that he was standing even closer to her and kissed her even more roughly than he had before. It was as if the more heated things got, the rougher he got. And she liked it. Philip groaned into her mouth when his hard dick rubbed up against the soaking wet crotch of her panties. Alyssa grinded her hips against him to create more friction as they both broke the kiss to moan in pleasure. Quickly, he gathered himself and pinned both her wrists to the wall above her head with

one hand, leaving his other hand free to press her hips back against the wall. He left a trail of wet, open-mouthed kisses down along her neck before nibbling softly at her skin. Then he’d stop to dart his tongue out and run it along the teeth marks left behind. His hips thrust forward once with a lot of force, making Alyssa gasp out loud at the quick and hard contact of his hardness against the wet crotch of her panties. Her knees started to wobble. She fidgeted with her arms, wanting to grip his shoulders for balance. This only made him tighten his grip and thrust his

hips forward against her a couple more times before finally letting go of her wrists and stepping back. Alyssa was breathing heavily, her breasts heaving with every bit of air she let in. His eyes slowly raked over every single inch of her body and Alyssa could see the lust building up in his eyes with each second that ticked by. He licked his lips hungrily and reached out to take her hand. He held her hand tightly as he led her down a long hallway until they reached the foot of a long, marble staircase. He pulled her by the hand and led her

upstairs and down another hallway until they reached what Alyssa assumed was his bedroom. It didn’t matter that he had staff living there, it hadn’t stopped him from littering the main living room with discarded clothing and dragging a mostly naked young woman across the house to his bedroom. Any one of the staff members could have seen them, but none of it mattered to either one of them. As soon as they were in the bedroom he pushed her onto the bed. She bounced up and down a couple times with a quick laugh and then placed her hands flat on the surface of the bed, marveling at how incredibly soft his comforter felt to the touch.

Philip looked at her for a moment before climbing over top of her and leaning in for a kiss. Though the kiss was still rough it was actually the softest kiss he had given her all night long, which caught her off guard, but she sunk right into it nonetheless. Breaking the kiss, he rolled over onto his back. He pushed his body further up the bed until he was able to lean back against his elbows and look down at her expectantly. His eyes flicked down to her lips and then his gaze shifted over to his large, hard dick before he glanced back to meet her gaze. Alyssa immediately knew exactly what

he wanted. She rolled over and swung one of her legs over his, taking the time to adjust her position between his thighs. She bowed her head down and gripped the base of his shaft. Her tongue stuck out and gave a quick flick to the underside of his shaft, right near the head. Philip stifled a small groan of pleasure and continued to stare down at her. Alyssa opened her mouth and, in one swift motion, took the entire length of him in her mouth down to the hilt. His hand eased its way through her hair as

her head bobbed up and down. Her tongue pressed flat and firm against his shaft while she continued sucking. Every once in a while she would pull back just enough to run the tip of her tongue in a circle around the head of his dick before easing her mouth back down. She pulled back enough to let him slip out of her mouth with a loud pop sound that filled the room before running the tip of her tongue from the base of his shaft right up to the head. Alyssa smiled as she felt his legs tremble a bit, his shaft twitching against her hand. She loved giving him so much pleasure. Her mouth closed around the head of his dick as she gave a quick but firm suck. Philip

reached toward her to cup her face with both of his hands and pulled her away from his hardness. Philip sat up and pushed her back until she had to grab onto his legs so she wouldn’t fall back off the bed. He leaned forward and kissed her hard and passionately as his hand plunged under the waistband of her panties again. This time he didn’t bother only teasing her with his fingertips. This time he immediately slipped his finger all the way into her wet passage. Alyssa broke away from the kiss and moaned out loud at the sensation of finally having

something inside her. Her moans grew louder when Philip pushed a second finger inside. He hooked his fingers up while still inside her, making her tremble against his body and moan even louder than before. Philip pulled his fingers out with a devilish smile, much to Alyssa’s disappointment, and then flipped her onto her back. The comforter puffed up around her face before she even noticed he had flipped her over like a ragdoll. She barely had a chance to comprehend what was going on as she felt him pulling her panties down her legs with lighting speed.

Once they were off, she saw them fly across the room before she felt his tongue licking up her thigh until it reached her soaking wet slit. She drew a sharp breath in the moment she felt his tongue run swiftly along the length of her slit. A breathy moan leapt from her mouth as she withered, wordlessly begging him to do it again. Alyssa felt the bed move as he inched closer behind her. Her heart raced as she felt him nestle up against her. One of his hands took hold of her waist in a forceful grip. She knew the other hand was likely wrapped around the base of his shaft when she felt the

head of his dick make contact with her soaking wet slit. She let out a quiet moan and instinctively pushed her hips back toward him. Philip ran the head of his dick up, down, and along her wet slit before she cried out in desperation. She wanted him inside her right away. Her hips lurched back as she tried desperately get him inside. Finally, he pushed just the tip inside. That was enough to make both of them groan out loud. The moment was too intense for him to hold back any longer. Alyssa felt him immediately shove his entire length into her. Her nails dug into

the comforter the moment she felt her wetness envelope his hard dick. Her back arched as she gripped the edge of the bed tight. Philip pulled out entirely and rubbed the head of his shaft over her clit before forcefully ramming his entire length into her once again, the smacking sound of their skin filling the room. A sharp and loud moan skipped from Alyssa’s mouth the moment his hips smacked against her. She arched her back even more and pushed back, making her ass press firmly against his body as he started to thrust his hips back

and forth. Philip started thrusting at a moderate pace, even though his movements and touch was still rough and commanding. He made sure to penetrate her deep with every thrust, something she found incredibly hot. Her breath was labored and there was a light sheen of sweat over her skin. It felt like every inch of her body was burning with intense pleasure. He adjusted his position behind her and she felt him angle his dick as he slid it back inside. This time he hit an extremely sensitive spot inside her that made her cry out in ecstasy. His thrusting went faster and faster, hitting that sweet spot every single time, as he held on to

her small waist with enough force Alyssa was sure she would end up with bruises by morning time. His thrusting went faster than before, sending Alyssa into a fit of endless moans and cries until she felt her body tense up with an impending orgasm. As soon as she felt his finger make contact with her clit, the orgasm slammed into her and she collapsed forward. Tiny prickles cascaded down the backs of her legs, curling her toes. Her upper body and arms dangled off the bed as he continued to thrust. Alyssa had just started coming down

from what was the most intense orgasm she had ever experienced when she felt his hips jerking forward erratically. He gripped her waist even tighter than he already had and pounded into her with short, rapid movements until he came. He let out a single, long groan of pleasure. Alyssa whimpered at the loss as he slowly pulled out. He pulled her a little closer and away from the edge of the bed, eyes completely unfocused as they both tried to catch their breath.

Chapter Seven The following morning, as soon as Alyssa walked through her front door, she pulled out her phone to call Jessica. “Hello,” Jessica said in a drowsy voice. Alyssa knew she had woken her but, she thought that it was worth it this time around. What happened last night during her date had been mind-blowing in more than one way. The best parts of her date had been completely unplanned and

unusual for her. She had definitely taken some risks like her friend had suggested and those risks had paid off. “I'm sorry to wake you, but it's important. I actually just got back.” There was dead silence on the other end and it went on long enough that Alyssa wondered if Jessica had fallen back asleep. Just as Alyssa was about to say something, Jessica’s voice came through. “You what?” Jessica was in utter disbelief.

“I just got back,” Alyssa repeated slowly and carefully. She knew her friend had heard her just fine, but couldn’t believe her ears. This launched a series of questions from a now very awake Jessica. They were questions Alyssa was only too happy to answer in as much detail as possible. It was only until they got down to the actual sex part of the story that Alyssa spared significantly more details, but Jessica demanded to know more. “He’s actually rough,” Alyssa admitted. That was something that still

baffled her. “Really? Wow, I would have never expected it,” Jessica said. “I know, it was good.” She bit her lower lip and felt her face get a bit warm, the warmth spreading over her entire body. As much as Jessica wanted more and more details, Alyssa still decided to withhold some of them. It felt a bit awkward to describe explicitly everything that had happened between Philip and her. “So, I take it you’re glad you went?”

“Oh hell yeah,” she responded with a little giggle. She started telling Jessica about all the thoughts she’d had during their date before she finally decided to let things go and actually enjoy being out with him. It was near the end of their conversation when Alyssa finally admitted something to herself. She said it out loud, to Jessica, as if doing that would really cement it. “I really like him,” she confessed. She had never been so attracted to someone in her life. She had never

started getting into a man as quickly as it had happened with Philip. There was something captivating about him and she knew that was the real reason she had been able to enjoy her dinner and give in fully to the sex, even though it was only their first date. After Alyssa hung up with Jessica was when the worry started setting in. What if Philip hadn’t felt the same way about her? She remembered his reputation as a playboy. Perhaps that had been part of the act or just something others said about him. They wanted to make him typical, but she had learned last night he was most likely anything but typical.

He knew how to get what he wanted in record time. That charm had worked on her like magic. She had ended up wanting him so bad she experienced desperation. Maybe he hadn’t ended up liking her the way she had liked him. As the panic started to set in she jumped up from her couch and paced back and forth. She needed to calm down. Panicking alone in her living room over something she had just done and enjoyed would do her no good. Then she stopped moving. She had truly enjoyed last night. So what if nothing ever came of it? She’d had the experience and it had been nothing short

of amazing and memorable. It was that knowledge that calmed her down immediately. As if right on cue, her phone buzzed with the alert of a new message. Alyssa swiped it off the surface of the couch beside her and unlocked it to see Philip’s name on the screen. Her heart thudded in her chest and she felt her stomach churning. It was out of nervousness and excitement and she quickly opened up the text message. She smiled the moment she read it. He wanted to see her again. He had enjoyed the previous night as well.

Maybe he did have some kind of interest in her aside from being just another conquest. Not that Alyssa had put up much of a fight, really. She bit her lower lip and wondered if she should wait a bit before responding. But she threw that out the window and decided to go for what she really wanted. She would take another risk. She texted back in a hurry. Philip replied to her message quickly. Then, much to her surprise, he called her. “I know it’s soon,” he told her in a sleepy voice, “But I really want to get to know you, Alyssa. I really took a liking

to you.” Alyssa felt her stomach twist again in happiness and excitement. It was a rather odd feeling, but she went with it. She cleared her throat, “I feel the same way, Philip.” They talked for a bit and agreed to meet again for dinner on Friday night. After she ended the call, Alyssa looked over at the clock hanging on her wall. It was time to start getting ready for work. She smiled as she glanced down at her phone and placed it back down on the couch. She walked over to her bathroom and undressed to get into the shower.

As the lukewarm water washed over her naked body and relaxed every muscle, she felt both sleepy and reinvigorated. It had been a wild night and had taken a lot of energy from her, but it was something she would do again any day of the week. She rinsed the conditioner out of her hair before stepping out and toweling herself dry. As her eyes landed on the dress lying on the floor, the one she had gotten just for her date, she broke out into a wide grin. She was very much looking forward

to her second date with Philip. And she was very much looking forward to taking more risks that ended up being incredibly satisfying. This was the start of something special. For all works by Megan West, visit theMegan West Author Page on Amazon

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