Unrequited(47)

We slammed against each other, gasping out rough promises, until our bodies gave out. I collapsed on top of her and allowed myself to wallow in her for a couple of seconds before rolling off.

I pressed a kiss into her sweaty forehead and pulled her small body against mine. She allowed herself to be cuddled for a few minutes before sighing heavily in regret and pushing away.

"Already?" I winced at the whiny little boy tone that had crept in.

She looked over her shoulder and brushed her hair away from her face. "Yeah. It's close to ten."

"All right, I'll drive you. Give me a second." I swung my legs over the edge of the bed. Behind me I heard a gasp.

"Oh God, did I do that to you?" she exclaimed. I felt her fingers skim over my shoulder blades. I peered over my shoulder.

"What? The scratches?"

She sucked in the side of her lip. "Sorry."

"You'll have to make it up to me," I said and strode to my dresser, where I found a pair of sweatpants. I don't bother with underwear.

"Yeah, and how will I do that?" she asked, voice suspicious.

I threw on a T-shirt and came over to help her with her clothes, which consisted of skinny jeans and a loose fitting T-shirt. No bra. I noticed she rarely wore one, which I loved. I just needed her to wear skirts more often. "By putting the marks where people can see them." I leaned down and sucked lightly on her neck, not hard or long enough to leave a visible bruise but to give her an idea what I was talking about. "That way you can scare all the other girls away."

"You're supposed to do that for me, especially when I'm not around."

"I do. When I'm not with you, I don't shower or shave. I scratch my balls and fart." I tickled her. "Is that scary enough?"

"Terrifying," she agreed and smiled.

My heart flipped.

Her braless state wasn't the only thing I loved about her.





16





WINTER


"How about I come up with you? Just to see if you two need anything," Finn offered when he drove into the parking lot.

Uncertainly, I looked up at the apartment Ivy and I shared. If Finn and I were going to be something then I had to have the two most important people in my life be in the same room at the same time. And if he was going to fall back in love with Ivy, better I knew it now—like ripping off the bandage instead of toying with the ends while the wound underneath festered and got infected.

"Sure."

"I'll leave if there’s any tension. No questions."

I had to give him props. He was trying hard. I reached over the console and kissed him softly on the cheek, his stubble slightly abrasive on my lips. I tingled from the contact, and it must have shown on my face because he made a low, rough sound—one that I was beginning to associate with activities that involved very little clothes and a lot of sweat.

"We should go inside," I suggested and drew away before I took him up on his very obvious invitation.

He merely smiled and hopped out. I waited for him to open the door for me. The first time I’d tried to open my own door, he’d flipped out. It was something he enjoyed doing, and honestly I loved the gesture so I sat in the seat and watched him lope around the front of the truck and then come to my side. I had my seatbelt off with the door open so he could reach inside and help me out.

"If you drove a car, I would be able to get out of the vehicle myself."

"Sure, but where would the fun be in that?" He winked and held me tightly against him as he slowly lowered me to the ground. There was no mistaking the hard steel that I slid against.

"I don't know whether to be impressed by your quick recovery time or worried I didn't satisfy you."

"How about chuffed because you can always make me hard?" He planted a soft kiss on the crown of my head but made no attempt to move away.

At this rate, we'd never get into the apartment. I firmed up my spine and took his hand. "That's a good alternative."

I led the way up the stairs and let us in.

Ivy heard the door open. "Is that you, Winter?" she called from the bedroom. Her voice was faint and weak.

"Yes. Do you need something?" I quickly ditched my purse. "Stay here," I murmured quietly. Finn obliged and walked over to the sofa while I hurried to the bedroom.

Her bedroom was dim. She had pulled the shades, and the streetlight peeking around the sides of the too-small window covering was the only illumination.

"Jimmy let me go." Ivy was lying on her back with a book covering her chest. What to Expect When You're Expecting. It was last year's edition. She noticed me looking at the cover. "I'm only in the third chapter, and already I know we're screwed."