The Sex Surrogate(17)

Which was why my interest in Chase made no sense. Because what we had going on was temporary. It would be over as quickly as it started. He would become the man who changed my life. And I would be just another client in his records.

I fell asleep feeling such a strange, deep sadness that I felt tears of unknown origins slipping down my cheeks.





The slamming woke me up. Which was nothing new. I woke up to slamming at least four times a week. And that was on a slow week for Jake. I pulled my pillow over my head, letting out a groan. I was finally able to catch up on sleep and the fucker was messing with it.

Then I sat up, staring at our shared wall. And, yes, there was slamming coming from there. But that wasn't the only slamming. There was another sound, coming from the other end of the apartment. I got groggily out of bed, my heart beating a little too hard as I opened my bedroom door. And, sure enough, it was the front door. Someone was knocking. No, someone was pounding on the front door.

I looked at Jake's door, considering going to get him, but that would only lead to a pissed off confrontation, blaming me for cock blocking him. Or, worse yet, if it was yet another of his pissed off one-night stands coming by to scream at him, he would scream at me for not dealing with it myself. It was a lose-lose.

I inched my way to the door, going up on my tiptoes to look out the peephole.

What the actual hell?

I landed hard on my feet, going for the locks with suddenly clumsy fingers, then pulled the door quickly open. “Chase?”

“Jesus Christ, woman,” he growled, running a hand through his hair.

“Chase, what are you doing here?”

“You scared the fuck out of me.”

Wait... what?

“What?”

“I woke up alone,” he said, looking at me like I had gone dumb. “I woke up alone and there was no note or anything. And my front door was somehow locked.”

“I fiddled with it with one of my keys until it finally clicked,” I supplied, unsure why he was so worked up. I mean... we weren't dating. I didn't see why I would need to leave a note.

“I called your phone... I don't know... twenty-five times.”

“Oh,” I said, glancing where I had left it beside the door, the indicator light flashing bright blue into the dim apartment. “I didn't have it with me,” I said, shrugging. “Chase, why are you here?”

“I got up. You were gone. No note. You didn't answer your cell...”

“You were... worried about me?”

“Hell fucking yeah I was worried about you,” he said, shaking his head. “What did I say about walking around at night? Not just at night. It must have been like... two in the morning. That was taking an unnecessary risk. You should have woken me up so I could walk you.”

“Chase, I've been walking myself around this city alone, even at night, for years.”

“Taking stupid chances,” he said. “Looking like you do, you should have someone on you all the time.”

“It's... sweet of you to worry about me and I'm sorry I didn't leave a note or answer my phone. I just didn't want to wake you.”

“I can always get more sleep. I can't get another you.”

“What?” I asked, my heart starting to pound in my ears.

“Nothing,” he said, shaking his head and looking away, making me think I must have misheard him.

“What the hell is going on?” Jake's voice called, coming out of his room. “Ava who is at the door at this... oh,” he said, stopping short. “Dr. Hudson,” he said, inclining his head at Chase. Apparently, Jake was still feeling very much like a chastened boy around him.

“Get back in here and finish fucking m...” a pretty black-haired girl with a diamond pendant necklace, and nothing else on, said as she came out of Jake's room.

I felt my eyes go wide, my face snapping toward Chase who took in the random naked girl (who was completely unashamed of her nudity as she just kept standing there) with a vague sort of disinterest.

“Oh, well... hello,” the girl practically purred at Chase.

“Hi,” he barked, looking back at me with a furrowed brow. Silently screaming at me. Do something.

“Um, Jake,” I said, shaking my head and looking over at him.

“Yeah?” he asked, looking completely comfortable with the whole situation.

“I'm pretty sure we agreed to a no naked in the main area of the house rule,” I said, nodding my head toward his bed buddy.

“Yeah, sure,” he said, looking between me and Chase. “Get back in that room and get yourself started,” he instructed her and I felt a blush creep up on my face, ducking my head to look down at my feet. “You sure you guys are alright out here?” Jake asked.

“Yeah, Jake, fine,” I mumbled, head still bowed.

“Alright,” he said, moving next to me and whispering in my ear, “Damn girrrl.”

The silence hung until Jake's door slammed and we could hear moaning and slamming again. “This is an interesting place you live in,” Chase said, sounding amused. “Ava,” he said when I didn't look up. Then his hand went under my chin, pulling up until I looked at him. “What's going on in that little head of yours?” he wondered aloud. “You're blushing.”

“I think it's polite to not say that to someone who is, in fact, blushing.”

“Are you blushing because of that comment your roommate made?”

“What comment?” I asked.

“The one where he told her to get started without him, ah,” he said, smiling a little as my face got hotter, “I thought so.” His finger stroked over the apples of my cheeks, rubbing at the redness. “Are you embarrassed that I saw you touch yourself tonight?”

“Shh,” I said, wide-eyed, jerking my head away to check and make sure Jake's door was still closed.

Chase chuckled. “They sound like they're going to break through the wall, they can't hear us.”

I turned back to Chase, his eyes looked smaller, his brows lowered, like he was considering something. Feeling uncomfortable, I cleared my throat. “But, yeah, sorry again for making you worry...”

“It's alright,” he said, shaking his head slightly. “I'm gonna go,” he said, looking antsy. “Keep your phone by you. It's a safety thing. And lock your door.” He paused, “What?” he asked, watching my smile.

“You're bossy.”

He half-laughed, half-snorted. “Phone and lock, okay?”

“Okay.” I agreed.

“Tomorrow night,” he said, moving away from the door. “Seven.”

Then he was gone.

I watched his retreating form until it disappeared, shaking my head and closing the door. I slid all the locks into place, grabbed my phone, and went back to bed.

Well, that was weird.

Like... really weird.

I got it that he worried. It was a little careless of me to not leave a note. But still. I mean.. I was just a client. He'd actually freaked out enough to go through my record, get my address, and come over because I didn't answer my phone in the middle of the night?

Then there was how... odd he was acting at my door.

The man was an enigma.

I had just started to doze off when my phone started screeching, loud and insistent, from my nightstand. I picked it up, flipping it over, and seeing Chase's name pop up on my screen. I hit the green button and brought it up to my ear.

“Hello?”

“Take your clothes off.”

I shot up in bed, wide eyed, fully awake. “What?”

“Take your clothes off, baby.”

“Why?”

A low, chuckling sound. “How about you don't fight me on everything?”

“Why could you possibly want me to...”

“We are going to masturbate together again.”

“Oh,” the air rushed out of me. Over the phone? Why over the phone? That was, in a way, so much worse than with him next to me. At least near him, I felt the comfort that always overtook me around him. There would be none of that. And, oh god, what if Jake and his guest heard me? That would be humiliating.

“I can hear those gears turning. Just take off your clothes and lay back down, okay?”

“Is this part of the... program?” I found myself asking.

There was a short pause. “Yeah, baby.”

But I didn't quite believe him.

Still, I was slipping out of my clothes, flashing the light of my phone toward the door to make sure I had locked it, then laying back against my pillows.

“Are you naked?”

“Yes.”

“So am I,” he said, his voice deep and low.

So, yeah. We were really going to do it.

“Chase...”

“Run your hand down your body,” he instructed and I found myself immediately following instructions.

“Okay.”

“Are you wet baby?”

“Yes.”

“Mmm,” he murmured. “Touch yourself. And I am going to touch myself. Just relax, let me hear you.”

Oh, lordy.

Let him hear me.

I closed my eyes, straining to hear anything from his side of the phone. His breathing, anything. But soon, my body came alive under my hand even without anything to listen to. Because all I needed was to know he was there, and I was beside myself with need.

“Does that feel good?” he asked, his voice heavy.

A groan was my answer, louder than I had expected, but I was beyond caring.

“Fuck baby, you sound so sweet when you moan.”