Hanging by a Moment (From this Moment Book 1) (15 page)

I try to turn around, but he grips me harder keeping me on my side, squeezing my breast with one hand and pulling my head back with the other, as his tongue works its way down my throat. The pain of wanting him inside of me is unbearable, I cannot think straight as I reach fever pitch. My insides have all melted and my body is screaming in need of wanting him inside me right now.

“Luke. I need you. Now.” I grate out.

The hand on my head moves down, under my arm to grip my other breast as he slides his hot hard length into me... driving into me. I scream out as he fills me, going in much deeper in this position.

“Scream for me, baby.”

I scream out his name with every plunge into me, my throat hoarse. My body moves up the couch as he pounds into me, so deep, I know he is hitting my womb with every powerful thrust. All the while his fingers twist and tease my aching breasts.

My hand wrap around his strong thigh and my hips push back into him matching his thrusts.

I bite down on my lower lip and it doesn’t take long before I find myself floating towards the clouds, feeling the heat build up inside of me.

“Luke!” I cry out unable to take it any longer, exploding over him, panting heavily as I climax.

He keeps going on, each thrust stronger and harder than the last as he pounds furiously into me. He pulls out and I cry out again. I need him back inside. He flips me over onto my front, driving back into me like a machine... over and over, until I am certain I am going to lose my mind.

My limbs are on fire and that all consuming heat is building up between my thighs... again. I did not even think I could come again and so soon. I moan out loudly when I do but he doesn’t stop.

Holding me firmly at my hips, he pulls me up until I am kneeling on the coach and he pounds into me from behind. His hands move to my clit, rubbing and spreading my wetness over me. He releases one hand from my clit, only to shove his fingers into my mouth. I lick his fingers, tasting myself. His fingers start a slow plunge in and out of my mouth and I suck hungrily on them. This turns him on even further and his body starts to move with such force that I can feel myself lifting off the couch each time he slams into me. Another build up and two more thrusts before everything blow up around us. My entire body shakes as I come again.

We collapse together on the couch, his wet chest stuck on my back. He kisses me on my shoulder and we are totally lost in each other as we come down from our high.

Slowly he turns me around, holding me tightly above him with my breasts crushed against his chest. We lay like this for what seems like a couple of hours, drenched in sweat and sex and stuck to each other.

His warm smooth fingers move in lazy circles over my wet back, making patterns. And then they start to move making weird patterns. It takes me a few seconds to realise he is writing out letters on my damp back. I carefully concentrate on the movements of his fingers as it slides on my skin and then I start to make out the letters he is writing. I freeze.

He confirms my thoughts when he says out loud each completed word as he writes it on my back.

“I.”

“Love.”

“You.”

I suck in a breath as every cell in my body springs to life leaving me warm and I can feel tears prick the back of my eyes. My subconscious runs to her closet and pulls out her white veil. I shift myself so I am looking down into his eyes.

He smiles that super sexy boyish grin at me. Looking deep into my eyes, he speaks in a soft tender voice. “I love you, princess.”

I blink back tears.
I love you too... so much.
And I want to tell him. Desperately. But for some reason the words are stuck in my throat and I can’t get them out. Lowering my lips to his, I kiss him full on the mouth hoping to express my feelings through my actions.

He sighs contently when I stop and I hope he understands the meaning behind my kiss. His fingers gently tuck a lock of damp hair behind my ear. “I will wait for you.” His voice is full of promise and I now know for certain that he received the message as conveyed by my kiss. “Sleep.” He orders me, tucking me back close to his chest.

Chapter Fourteen

I wake up to find the bright sun shining right in my face. Luke is still asleep wrapped around me tightly spooning me from behind. I try to slowly move my hand towards the coffee table to grab his Rolex to check the time.

Eight thirty.

Shit!

I jump up startling him in the process.

“What’s wrong?” His voice is groggy as he looks at me his blue eyes dazed.

“Shit Luke! Its eight thirty!” I scream. “I’m going to be late for class.” My first class starts at nine and I need to leave right now if I want to make it on time.

His hand snakes around my waist, pulling me back beside him not in the least bit concerned that I will be late.

“No!” I yell. “I’ve got a paper I need to hand in. It forms part of my grade.” I twist and turn struggling to get free of his hold.

He groans his dissatisfaction and very reluctantly lets me go as I scramble around gathering my clothes that are lying in a crumpled heap on the floor.

We quickly dress and sprint out of the cottage down the lawn to my dorm where he kisses me chastely on my lips.

“Later, baby.” He whispers before dashing off to his dorm.

****

After classes, Brit and I head off to our room. I need to make an appointment for a manicure and pedicure at a local spa for the two of us. Something we have always done together. I let out a sigh of relief when I am able to confirm a last minute booking after our last class tomorrow. On a Friday we have only two classes so it works out perfectly giving us enough time to drive out to the spa.

Luke and Travis are at practice but we will meet up with them later tonight for our double date. I’m excited as Brit as we throw on various articles of clothing while making faces at our reflection in the mirror. It feels like has been to long since we all did something together. And I have missed hanging out with my best friend and playing catch up.

As I pull out a short light blue skirt and a white fitted T-shirt, I casually turn to face Brit who is still making clown faces at her clothes.

“Brit, I’ve got something to ask you and I want you to be a hundred percent honest with me. None of that I-don’t-want-to-hurt-you shit.”

She turns to me scrunching her beautiful face at another shirt in her delicate hands. “What is it,
princess
?” She says grinning as she looks at me.

I smile at her when she uses Luke’s nickname on me. It seems that the name has caught on by most of our friends who now refer to me as ‘princess.’

“The other day when Trav and Luke visited us, Trav referred to Luke as a ladies’ man. What did he mean by that?” I notice her blue eyes pop out of their sockets before she quickly spins around looking straight inside her closet avoiding me.

“Come on, Brit? You heard it here in this room.” I chide her.

She slowly turns around to face me with a slight frown on her stunning face. “Uh... um... uh. Maybe this is something you should ask Luke about. You know what Trav is like. Buddies bond thing. That shit about bros before hoes.” She rolls her eyes. “Anyway I’m sure Trav was just teasing Luke.” She babbles.

But she is letting on more than she knows. Her slim fingers are curling a strand of her straight blonde hair... her tell tale sign that she is lying. That one gesture alone that I caught on early in our friendship always gave her away. But the good friend that I am, I never let on to anybody else.

My hands fly to my hips as I look her straight in the eye. “Brit, you are doing that thing with your hair again.” I remind her. “If you don’t spill what you know there will be no hair left on your head to curl your way through your lies. Whatever happened to chicks before dicks?”

“Urgh!” She stamps her Converse clad feet. Clearly frustrated with herself, she shoves her hands into her jeans pockets. “Damn fingers of mine always let me down.” She moves over to her bed, kicking off her shoes. Sitting down with her feet tucked beneath her legs, she taps the pink quilt beckoning me over. Her frown line is a little deeper than before. “Okay, fine. But you still need to talk to Luke about this. Promise me?” Her voice is quiet and her eyebrows are raised.

“I promise.” I move over to her bed and sit down next to her leaving my feet dangling over the edge of her bed. “Every time I ask him about himself, he changes the topic or starts to kiss me and my brain turns to mush.”

She smiles and grabs a hold of my hand soothing her fingers over my palm. “Luke is... I mean was. Well I hope its past tense. And Travis said that he has changed so-”

I cut her off too nervous about what she is trying to say. My subconscious reminds me it can’t be all that bad – my best friend would never have allowed me to date a guy that is seriously up to no good. “Just say it already.” I squeak out nervously.

Her blue eyes narrow as she speaks. “Back home Luke had quite the reputation... you know.”

No I don’t,
I think to myself. I know nothing about his life in Manhattan.

She goes on. “He was quite the player.” She chews her bottom lip as she looks at me waiting for my response.

Luke a player?
Dear sweet kind Luke who has a too sensitive side – that Luke? How? I’ve never seen him flirting with any other females here at campus – he has eyes only for me. How could this be? I mean players remain just that.

As my mind tries to scramble the words to make proper sense, she blurts out. “Trav said he’ll kick Luke’s ass if he hurts you.”

And I wonder if Travis’s threat was good enough to make him change.

As her words sink in, I realise something. My subconscious is screaming her head off to not think these thoughts. But I remember the way Luke made love to me. It was clear that he is much more experienced than me. And his kisses - I shudder to think of how much experience he had. But I still need to hear her confirm what I’m thinking. “Player? What exactly do you mean?”

Her small hand gently caresses my back. “He never dates anyone. Nor does he sleep with the same girl twice. Em, I’m so sorry.” She pauses. “But he is so different with you.”

True. He is dating me and that is a first for him. He even admitted that to me. And he has slept with me more than once. But he never mentioned anything about his past. And then my mind goes to another person who has been bothering me lately. My subconscious puts on her boxing gloves as she circles the ring. I need to know if Luke said anything to Trav. “Did Trav mention anything about a Miss Jameson?”

Brit looks at me confused. “No. Why? Who is she?” Brit’s fingers are far away from her blonde locks so I know she is not lying.

I bite down on my lower lip. “Well, I did an internet search on him and found out that he was engaged to her a couple of months ago.” I confess.

This time Brit’s big eyes roll out of her head as her hand flies to her mouth. “What the fuck? That two timing asshole!” She screams. “Wait till I tell Trav. He’ll kick Luke’s royal ass all the way back to Manhattan. Damn cheating shit!” She is fuming and I don’t doubt that is exactly what will happen. She jumps off her bed like a cheetah racing to catch its prey reaching for her mobile on her nightstand.

“No wait!” I yell. I swiftly jump off the bed and grab her arm. “
Was
engaged, Brit.” I emphasise the word was.

She looks at me with her blue slits and her brow is creased. Her index finger is waving in front of as she speaks. “So they are no longer together?”

“No.” I shake my head.

“You found out about this through the internet.”

I nod.

“Luke never thought to mention it to you?”

“No.”

“So what are we waiting for? Let us see this bitch.” She wastes no time as she moves to her small wooden desk and fires up her laptop. Her fingers hit the keyboard furiously as she types. Within seconds the search engine comes up with the many articles of Luke Greyson including the one we are interested in. I point at the article.

Brit screws up her face as she glares at the image before her – that of a certain perfect Miss Jameson.  She makes a sound of disgust. “Glad to see his tastes have improved.” She wraps her arms around my shoulders. “She looks like a fucking tart.”

I roll my eyes at her comment. “Oh, stop it.” I playfully smack her arm. Even I have to admit Miss Jameson is very good looking. My subconscious gives Brit the thumbs up and whacks me over my head with her wooden spoon.

Brit turns her frosty glare to me. “Emma, will you stop doing that. You are way prettier than her. Stop selling yourself short and get it through that wooden skull of yours that you are a total babe.” Scratching her head as she looks at me, I can hear the cogs of her brain spring into action. “Does Luke have any idea that you know about
Miss Bitch
?”

I shake my head as I laugh. “Hell no! I have tried to indirectly bring it up but nothing. He just changes the topic.” And boy have I tried. I figure I may as well just blurt it out the next time.

“What has he got to hide? If they are done then-” she stops short of completing her sentence. And I know what she is thinking. So I complete it for her.

“Then why is he hiding it from me.” I shrug.

She folds her arms across her chest.  “Yes. I’m going to ask Trav.”

“No. Don’t tell him. Please.” I beg.

“Okay. But if Luke is playing you along, Trav will make sure he pays for it. You know how much he cares about you.”

“Brit, you make your boyfriend sound like a real bad ass.”

“You ain’t seen nothing chickie.” She giggles.

****

The four of us end up at the Hot Dog Shack over on the north pier just across from campus. I am a little worried. Ever since Luke and I got here, Brit has been giving my boyfriend if-looks-could-kill glares. I think she is ready to scratch his pretty blue eyes out.

And she makes sure he notices her attitude towards him.

“What’s up, Brit?” Luke casually asks her clearly confused why she is watching him like a hawk.

I turn to look at her, finding her eyes pinned on Luke’s. I know she is still pissed about our earlier conversation. But I made her promise me that she will not bring up the topic of Miss Jameson during dinner. But Brit always gets her way, the sly fox that she is.

She focuses her large blue eyes directly on Luke as she speaks, turning on her deadly charm. “I was wondering how come a good looking guy like you does not have a girl back home. Why is that?” Not wasting a minute, going straight for the jugular. This is typical I-got-no-fucking-time-to-waste Britney Lane Cooper.

My eyes widen.
Oh shit! What the hell, Brit?

Unlucky for Brit, she is seated right opposite me on one of the brown wooden benches. I kick her under the table to get her attention.

She turns her frosty eyes on me with a what-the-fuck look. I shake my head at her. I want her to drop it.

Luke also a typical I-got-no-fucking-time-to-waste responds as cool as a cucumber, fixing Brit with his beautiful blue eyes. “Because the girl I want is here, in Midland Falls.” Turning his head to look at me, he lavishes me with his handsome smile before dropping his lips to mine, kissing me softly.

He slides his lips over to just below my ear to place another kiss and I quickly steal a glance at Brit. “No,” I mouth at her. She shrugs at me. Thankfully she drops with her inquisition.

****

After a pleasant dinner, we head off in different directions. Brit spends the night with Travis in his room so I don’t get a chance to shit her out about her stupid little question.

Luke is a little too quiet as he drives me back to my dorm room where we plan on spending the night together.

After we enter the room, I turn to him. “Is something wrong?”

He shakes his head. “Just a little tired. Coach put us through a rather gruelling practice session earlier.” Moving closer to me, his eyes darken. “I know what will make me feel better.”

I smile warmly at him.

“I need you close to me. I want to hold you and just cuddle tonight.”

I melt. My moody sensitive frustrating guy wants to cuddle. Who am I to refuse such a request?

He strips down to his boxers and he gets into bed with me, spooning me from behind so my back is flush against his warm smooth chest. He positions his one leg over mine, making sure I’m snug against him and we fall off to sleep wrapped up in each other.

****

During my early morning run with Brit, we stop at our favourite place for breakfast. I check my email while enjoying my usual skinny vanilla latte with an extra shot of coffee no sugar and a vanilla bean scone at Starbucks.

Brit is busy doing the same thing on her mobile.

An email from my parents catches my eye, shocking me. I heard from them last week. They normally email on average once every two weeks. So this is odd. I wonder what they have to tell me.

As I read their message I find out that they will be flying into New York City next week. The last time I saw my parents was eight months ago. They usually fly into New York when they have a break between filming. And this arrangement suits me just fine. I continue to read the email. Shock hits me like a lightning bolt between the eyes. They want to have dinner with me and...
holy fucking shit
... Ethan.