LOVE AND HATE (A Billionaire Romance) (51 page)

He pulled me towards him with a grin, and I let him pull me into his embrace. "I want you to swim with me," he murmured.

"But it's cold!" I interjected, whining.

"Then let me warm you up," he whispered sensually before pressing his lips to mine.

He backed me up to the edge of the pool, pressing me into the wall as he closed the distance between our bodies. I wrapped my legs around him, and he pressed against my loins. He massaged my breasts as he ground against me, his mouth moist and warm against my ice cold lips. I pushed my hips harder against him as he sucked lightly on my bottom lip. We were lost in each other for a long time, our mouths and hands continuously touching and exploring.

When Blake finally pulled away, he said, "I remember my first day here, when I saw you in that little bikini." He smiled as he remembered and pressed emphatically against me as he said, "God, I wanted you so badly
."

I stared into his eyes, dark and tempting, and I knew there was no going back. I leaned into him and whispered, “Take me inside.”

He nodded and scooped me up out of the water. We walked into the house separately, and I noticed how cold and empty my body was without his. “I’m going to go get a towel,” I called over my shoulder.

In the bathroom, I peeled off my water-soaked pants, heavy from our swim. I slid my panties off, too. I was toweling my naked body when I noticed a shadow in the doorway. Blake watched me intently, his gaze glued to my body, roaming. I dropped the towel and stood before him, letting him take in my full nude form.

Blake stepped into the bathroom. “You are so beautiful.”

I blushed and said nothing, looking shyly down. I opened myself to the vulnerable feeling as I let Blake in. He stepped into my embrace and held me. He leaned in for a kiss, pushing my mouth open with his lips and holding me there for a moment.

Ending the kiss, I pulled away enough to look him in the eyes. He smiled gently at me as I cupped his face, tracing his cheekbone with my thumb. I let myself get lost in his eyes. “I thought if this ever happened, it would feel like a mistake,” I told him, my voice confused but accepting. “But in this moment, everything feels so right.”

Blake smiled my favorite smile and said, “That’s because we belong together.”

I said nothing. I stood on my tiptoes to kiss him. I told him everything I wanted to say with my body. I was yielding and grateful, my kiss sweet and strong. I kissed him tenderly with all of my passion, with all of my emotions.

Blake picked me up, and I wrapped my legs around him, so involved in our kiss I barely noticed that his pants were still ice cold from the pool. We walked into his bedroom, and he set me gently on the edge of his bed, detangling our bodies carefully. I watched him hungrily as he unbuttoned his pants and slid them off. He met my gaze as he slid off his boxers, revealing his naked body to me.

My heart raced, and every single nerve in my body tingled. I wanted him so badly. I stood up and took his hands in mine. With his left hand, he gently played with my hair and kissed my forehead. I looked up, nervous and unsure.

“This is the end,” he whispered against my forehead before pulling away.

I looked up at him, confused. “The end of what?” I asked softly.

“Of everything as we know it.” He breathed out, pressing a firm kiss on my lips.

I let the world wash away as we walked back towards his bed. I sat down on the edge, climbing backwards, and laid down. I was propped up on my elbows, my dark brown hair cascading around my face. Blake took one last look before he climbed in beside me, towering over me. He began to kiss me, and all of my nervousness and fears vanished.

He held me, and for the first time, I felt his naked body pressed against my completely naked one. We were intertwined, our bodies a tangled mess. Blake kissed me sensually, but it built fast, hot and needy. He grabbed a condom off his dresser. Quickly tearing the plastic open with his teeth, he slid it on and positioned himself between my legs.

“Are you ready?” he asked, his voice patient and kind.

I nodded. “I’ve never been surer of anything in my life.” With a gentle look, he leaned down and kissed me again. His hands held my hips down as he slid into me. “Oh, my God,” I moaned, the pleasure of finally having him inside me overwhelming.

Blake rocked back and forth, moving slowly at first, letting me feel every inch of him as he thrust. I wrapped my arms around him, clinging to him desperately. I kissed every inch of his skin I could reach. Selfishly, I took in all of him, the ecstasy building like a hot pool of lava in my stomach. My hands gripped his shoulders as tightly as possible as he picked up the pace, pushing into me harder and harder. I rocked my hips back, angling them so he could press as deeply into me as possible. I felt so much pleasure, waves of it crashing down on me, over and over again, each more intense than the last.

“Blake,” I breathed into his skin, calling for him, drowning in the touch of him and all that he was. I wrapped my legs firmly around his waist, and he let out a low moan and pushed even faster and harder than I thought possible. I held onto him as I felt the final wave of pleasure hit me, and I let out a final soft moan, my thighs quivering and my breathing labored. Just a second later, Blake’s body shuddered against mine as he came.

We detangled our bodies carefully, and he collapsed on the bed next to me. I took a moment to breathe, letting the reality of what had happened hit me. There was no remorse or regret. The only thing that existed inside me was gratitude. Gratitude that I finally got to have Blake, had finally felt his body against mine and felt our spirits connect in a way I hadn’t thought possible.

I looked at Blake. He glanced at me, and his eyes were glazed as if he were in a faraway place and had just descended back to Earth. He rolled onto his side, draped his arm over me, and pulled me close to him. I rolled onto my side so we were face to face.

“That was incredible,” I breathed, glowing in the aftermath of our lovemaking.

“You were incredible,” he said, letting out a small laugh as we stared into each other’s eyes.

We lay in each other’s arms for a long time, our bodies against each other. A comfortable silence surrounded us, and I soaked up every second of this time, knowing the window we had was short.

Blake broke the silence first, and he let out a soft sigh and kissed my forehead lightly before saying, “I want to tell you something.” I stared into his shining green eyes and waited as he took a timid breath. “I love you,” he whispered finally, looking at me like I was the most important thing in the world to him.

I was not silent or hesitant because I knew the truth. “I love you, too.” My heart flowed with happiness.

A sloppy smile filled his face, and he kissed me once, gently on the mouth, before holding me again. “Now what?” he asked.

I pulled away, propping myself up on my elbow so I could look at him. “We’ve got two weeks,” I said carefully, a plan forming in my head.

“Two weeks?” he asked, confused.

I nodded. “Two weeks to be together, to be in love, and to do everything we want. But when our parents get back, we have to go back to normal.”

Blake nodded slowly, considering it. “Okay,” he said. “Like get it all out of our system.”

“Exactly!” I exclaimed.

“There’s only one problem with that.” He cupped my face gently.

“What’s that?” I asked, turning my head into the palm of his hand and kissing it.

Blake looked at me with intense eyes and whispered, “I’m not going to want to let you go.”

***

Two weeks whizzed by in a flash. Two crazy, hectic, lazy, glorious weeks. Blake and I spent every moment together. We ate together, slept together, and even showered together, which most of the time just led to something else. Now it was the last day, and reality was spinning toward us like a fiery comet charging at the earth.

We lay in his bed, naked and holding each other tightly. Blake kissed me softly and pleaded for the hundredth time, “I don’t want this to end.”

I nodded, my heart heavy with aching for someone already in my arms. “I know. But Blake, we don’t have a choice.”

He stood up quickly, throwing on his boxers and pacing madly around the room. “But we do, Alyssa. You’re just making the wrong one.”

My head ached, and I rubbed my temples vigorously. “I don’t want to spend our last day fighting,” I begged him.

“That’s the thing, Alyssa. It doesn’t have to be our last day,” he cried, hurt clear on his face.

I frowned and said, “It does, Blake. You know that.”

He sat on the edge of the bed, his heads in his hands. “I know,” he said finally with a sigh, defeat heavy in his voice.

I crawled over to him and wrapped my arms around him from behind. I kneeled on the bed, kissing his back once before laying my head against his warm, familiar skin. Every part of me ached, knowing this would be my last chance to touch him, to hold him. Blake was all I wanted. He was my very own forbidden apple, and I had to face the knowledge of what it was like to have him and then lose him.

I heard our parents’ car pull in the driveway, and I said nothing as Blake slipped out of my arms. I heard him get dressed, but I couldn’t move, the emptiness weighing me down. I watched Blake leave, but before he left, he said one last thing, not even bothering to turn and look at me.

“Maybe it’s best we not say goodbye,” he whispered.

Blake

My alarm buzzed loudly, waking me with its sharp, annoying cries. I turned it off with a sigh and climbed out of bed. It was the first day of spring semester, and I was not ready to face the day. I forced myself to get up, however, looking groggily around my dorm room. My body was tired from unpacking late into the night.

Alyssa and our parents all thought it would be easier for both of us to concentrate on school if we lived on campus. I knew my mother was worried after I barely passed my finals.
At least I did well enough to stay on the team
, I thought positively.

I let out a sigh and began to dress. I headed to class, feeling unlike myself. I was depressed after everything that had happened between Alyssa and me. I had a hard time sleeping at night and barely ate. I floated through my classes that day, a mix of exhaustion and sadness weighing me down.

I sat down for my last class, ready for the day to be over. I looked up as a familiar voice greeted me. “Hey.”

Alyssa’s shining baby-blue eyes stared at me as she sat at the table next to me. “What are you doing here?” I asked, my voice unnecessarily angry and cold.

She frowned and said, “This is my class. I guess we have it together.”

“Whatever,” I muttered, not bothering to look at her because it would be too painful.

“What is your problem?” she asked, her voice hot and angry.

I gave her a hard look and said, “Look, we ended things, so just leave me alone.”

She sat up stiffly. “Well, I didn’t realize we couldn’t be friends.”

I didn’t answer and turned away from her. I watched the rest of the class file in. Matt, one of my teammates, walked in. He waved and I waved back, and he walked over, sitting in front of Alyssa and me. “Hey.” He greeted Alyssa with a smile, and I immediately felt my anger boil.

I sat in silence as the two chatted quietly together, waiting for the professor to arrive. I was grateful when the teacher walked in and class began. I was that much closer to getting out of this hellhole. I sat on the edge of my seat all class, and when he finally dismissed us, I jumped up quickly before Matt or Alyssa could speak to me. I walked back to the dorms, bitter and angry.
It is going to be a long semester
, I thought.

For the next two weeks, I kept to myself, working extra hard at practice and studying long into the night. I threw myself into my schoolwork and football, trying to lose all of the pain left behind by Alyssa.

At home one evening, she was sitting in front of me on my bed, looking curiously around my room, threatening to bring everything I worked toward crashing to the ground.

“So, what do you want?” I asked. My voice was cool, but my body was tense. I was careful to keep my distance from her.

“I just wanted to talk,” she said simply, standing up from the bed and walking towards my desk.

“I told you I don’t want to talk to you,” I snapped bitterly.

She ignored me and asked, “How is your semester going? I see you studying a lot in the library.”

I bit my tongue and said nothing because I didn’t want to break down in front of her. I wanted more than anything to grab her and shake sense into her. Didn’t she see that we belonged together?

“Blake,” she said, addressing my silence. “I want to talk about us.”

I perked up and looked at her hotly, waiting for her to continue. “You know I loved our time together…” she began, a distant, sad look in her eyes as she spoke.

“I did, too.” Those two weeks were engraved into my soul.

“But I have had such a hard time getting over you.” She looked at the floor. “I think it’s time we start seeing other people.”

“Matt,” I spat at her, and she looked up, surprised.