“Against these scrubs? They'd lose to our second-stringers, but yeah, it was fun," Duncan says, glancing back at the rapidly diminishing stands behind him. "Whew, that’s the best part, though, but it's always sad to see them go."
"What's that?" I ask, intrigued even though I don't want to be. "The crowd?"
He nods, then shrugs. His eyes kind of open wide, and I see something that I've never seen in him before. He's showing me something about himself, something that I doubt few people have ever seen. "There's something about being out there, knowing that today, there were eighty thousand people here, and there were times today when I could feel their eyes on me. They got to see me, who I am, making my name. It's a powerful feeling. I felt . . . complete."
"Is that why you do it?" I ask. “Just for the fame?”
Duncan stops, his eyes and face clouding over as he recovers his normal cocky bravado. Instead of answering, he smirks and takes my hand. "There's a party over at a house off campus," he says. "I was thinking, since you helped me so much over the summer and all, maybe I’d take you.”
"You're inviting me to a party?" I ask, and despite my misgivings, I'm flattered. But I won’t be a PAT. I have more self-respect than that. Somewhere, I find the resolve inside me to pull my hand from his. "Sorry, maybe another time, when I'm not some trophy to celebrate a win."
Duncan's face falls for a moment before he regains himself. He comes close, and I can't move. For some reason, my feet are frozen to the ground as he strokes a thumb down my cheek. He leans in, and his warm breath sends shivers down my spine as he whispers in my ear. "Oh no, Carrie. You're not just some trophy or a PAT. You’ll see.”
He takes my hand and kisses my knuckles, and I shiver again. Oh God, he's so sexy, and his words . . . is there any truth to them? "Have a good evening, Carrie. I'll see you Monday."
I'm in my dorm room, struggling to try to study after the game. I can't get Duncan's words out of my head, and finally, after rereading the introduction to The General Physical Properties of Organic Compounds four times, I slam my book shut, groaning in frustration.
"Seriously?" I mutter to myself. "One kiss, a touch, and a whispered promise, and he’s got you right where he wants you. Get your shit together, Carrie."
But there's nothing wrong with a little fantasy, a voice in my head whispers, and I know that voice. It's the same voice that came to life earlier today when his lips found mine, and his large, powerful hands pulled me closer to him.
"Argh!" I groan, leaning back and grinding the heels of my hands into my eye sockets. I look up at the ceiling, a half-smile coming to my face as I think of seeing him again.
He’s interested in you. Who cares if it's just a booty call? This booty needs to be called, and more often. Besides, if you take care of these needs now, you can get back to Organic Chemistry and not . . . organic chemistry.
I can't help it. I smile at my little joke to myself. My hands drift down over the tops of my breasts, circling and stroking them through my t-shirt. I'd ditched my bra—I was in my dorm room anyway—and the sensations shot through me, electric tingles that added to the warm wetness rolling around in the pit of my stomach.
"You're beautiful," Duncan says, his eyes sparkling and his lips writing hot trails on my neck. We're in a grand bedroom, a four-poster bed surrounded by lacy curtains, limiting my view of the rest of the world, but in the distance, I can hear the crash of waves and the call of tropical birds and smell the ocean on the breeze. We're together, alone in this paradise, and I'm happy to be here with this dream of a man.
My breasts are crushed against his chest, his arms pulling me against him, his hands kneading the flesh of my ass. We're rolling back and forth, teasing and running our hands over each other's body but still leaving our clothes at least somewhat on until we reach this plateau where there's no turning back, and I don't want to, anyway. I'm helpless against his strength, and I don't care. I want this man. He senses my desperate hunger and raises his lips from my neck to whisper in my ear, "Give yourself to me."
"I do," I whisper, reaching down and cupping the huge rock between his legs.
He pulls my shirt up so that he can taste the skin of my breasts. I'm lost, tossed and turned by the feeling of his tongue on my body, his lips wrapping around my nipple and teasing it.
He pushes my knees apart, and I can't resist him. My body needs him, and I push my shorts and panties down, exposing myself to him.
"Duncan . . ." I nearly sob, the feelings of his lips on my nipples and his hands on my now naked ass leaving me in overload. I throb for more of him, hungry for the dangerous pleasure that he can bring me.