Love Thy Neighbor (7 page)

After lunch, the girls cornered me to ask
questions about tonight. Mimi starts with, “Who is this guy?”

I answer, “His name is Cole Lewis. He’s
thirty-two and a personal trainer. A total hottie.”

Lola smiles. “Nice! Where’s he taking
you?”

I shrug. “I’m not sure. He just asked for my
address so I’ll find out when he comes to get me.”

Tina claps her hands together and loudly
whispers, “He
was
a total hottie! Nik told me to stop
staring but I couldn’t. He’s just…Wow! I hope it goes well tonight,
hon.”

Mimi frowns as she clarifies, “You don’t
know where you’re going with someone you just met?” She shakes her
head vigorously. “No. Not happening. You text all of us where
you’re going as soon as you find out.”

I move over to Meems, put an arm around her
shoulder and try to soothe her doubts. “Hey, it’s okay. He doesn’t
seem like a jerk or anything. Just the opposite, in fact.”

Mimi shrugs my arm off her shoulder and
retorts, “Yeah, well we’re not taking any chances. Omarr didn’t
look like a psychopath either, but he had no problem kidnapping
Tina and putting matching bullets in her and Nik.” She looks me in
the eye and says sternly, “Did you forget they almost died?”

My stomach dips.

No. I hadn’t.

I still see Tina’s small, limp body in that
hospital bed. I find myself staring at the puckered scar under her
collarbone and wondering what would have happened if she hadn’t
made it.

A chill spreads through me.

It’s too horrific to imagine.

Tina places her hand on Mimi’s arm. I decide
now is not the time to argue and give in. “Okay, I’ll text you all
as soon as I find out where I’m going on my date.”

Mimi looks slightly mollified which pleases
me.

I’m trying to work Ghost into a
conversation. When I can’t find an in, I blurt out, “Ghost spent
the day with me yesterday.”

All the girls still and blink at me as if
I’d spoken another language.

Tina’s eyes widen. “No. Freakin’. Way.”

“And you’re just telling us now?” Mimi asks
incredulously.

Lola claps and cheers. “Hooray! We’re all
friends again!”

I breathe deep then explain what we spoke
about on Saturday night and Ghost’s attempted burglary of my milk
on Sunday morning. I tell them every small detail of our breakfast
together, the vibrator conversation (which they all burst out
laughing…some friends), the adventure to the grocery store and how
we spent the evening watching TV together. Then I explained we have
to watch TV at my place because he doesn’t have one and all three
of them gasp loudly and stare in disbelief.

I know, right? Thank you!

Not owning a TV is weird. I knew it wasn’t
just me that thought so.

Smiling, I play with a piece of paper on the
counter and find myself admitting, “I had a really great time with
him. He doesn’t talk without prompting, but I think I’m getting
somewhere with him. He’s opening up to me.” I dip my chin and say a
hushed, “I want to know him better.”

After a long silence, I lift my head to find
Tina, Lola and Mimi all smiling sweetly at me.

Feeling awkward and exposed, I put on a big
fake smile. “Can you guys help me find something to wear to my
date?”

Tina and Lola jump up and down excitedly and
Mimi’s face softens as she quietly responds, “Of course, doll.”

Phew. Quick save.

***

The girls did a great job with my outfit
considering we had no idea where Cole was taking me on our date.
They’ve dressed me in a black and white long, flowing maxi-dress, a
black cardigan and lace up ballet flats. I’ve applied minimal
makeup and wear my hair flowing down my back. I somehow manage to
look sweet in this outfit which is precisely what I need. Tonight
is not a sexy-look night.

Nervously tapping my foot, I check the time.
6:58pm.

He’ll be here any minute!

My stomach knots.

Could I have imagined how hot Cole is?

Ding Dong.

I mouth “Eeek!” to myself.

No time to think now, brain! Answer the damn
door!

I mentally count to three then open the
door. Okay, so I didn’t imagine how hot Cole is. Hot damn. He looks
fantastic.

He’s dressed in jeans, a long sleeved tee
and bright white sneakers. His black hair is in a spiked style and
his blue eyes pop. I think I may have swallowed my tongue.

“Wow. You look beautiful, Nat.” Then he
hands me a single pink rose.

Awww. He’s sweet!

Flashing him a brilliant smile, I lean in
and kiss his cheek. “You look very handsome, Cole.” I step back.
“I’ll just grab my purse then we can go.” I go to my room, check
myself one last time, then grab my purse and head back to the front
door. I stand in front of Cole and say, “We can go now. I’ll just
lock up.”

Cole stops me with a gentle hand on my arm.
He leans forward and gazes at me through hooded eyes then runs a
finger down my cheek. “I’ve been waiting two nights for this. I
don’t think I can wait a second longer.” His thumb passes slowly
over my bottom lip.

My eyes flutter closed, I breathe deeply,
and my middle tightens, causing me to flush.

I feel Cole’s nose lightly brush mine and he
whispers, “I want to kiss you, sunshine.”

Without a moment’s thought, I close the
short distance between us. I put my hand on his cheek and run my
parted lips gently along his.

My core moistens. I ache for his kiss.

So much for going slow.

He breathes me in, his arm coils around my
waist and he pulls me into him so we’re front to front.

We still haven’t kissed but this seems so
much more intense than making out.

We’re playing with each other.

This is a dangerous game and I don’t know
the rules.

I grab fistfuls of the front of his tee.
“Stop playing with me. Do it, Cole,” I beg hoarsely.

He smirks, and it’s so beautiful that I want
to lick him. He lowers his face and buries it into the side of my
neck.

God, that feels amazing.

I’m becoming desperate for some form of
connection. Any connection. And I make a very stupid decision. I
run my hand down his chest, scraping my fingernails roughly along
his ribs and stomach til I get to the zipper of his jeans. Before I
know what’s happening, Cole lifts me in one fell swoop, steps into
the apartment and kicks the door closed behind us.

No! This isn’t supposed to be happening!

Quiet, brain! We’re getting to the good
part!

He supports my booty with his forearms, and
I run my fingertips gently down his cheeks as we search one
another’s face. “Sofa,” I whisper.

He walks over to the sofa with me wrapped
around him. He sits carefully and I straddle him. I can feel his
hard length through his jeans and it aligns perfectly with my sweet
spot. My body moves of its own accord. I grind against him and
moan.

The friction is
amazing
.

Cole’s eyes roll back and he groans. He
grips my hips and mutters, “Baby. Mouth.”

I lean down and kiss his lips once softly.
Then I press harder against his lips, open my mouth a little and
gently caress them with my tongue. He growls against my lips and it
makes me even wetter. His muscular arms curl around my lower and
upper back and he holds me tight. He pulls away slightly and says,
“I’ve never connected with someone like this before.”

I answer honestly. “Me either.”

We’re magnetic together and it astounds
me.

He pulls me down so my forehead touches his.
“This is moving fast, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, it really is. We should stop. Like,
now.” I exhale and nod as I respond sullenly.

He chuckles and gently caresses my cheek.
“I’m glad you sound torn up about it, sunshine. I want to kiss that
pout away though.” He pushes a stray hair behind my ear and
suggests, “Why don’t we just order in?”

Taking a moment to think about it, I toy
with his collar and admit, “That does sound good.”

He smiles, pulls me down to him and kisses
me deeply.

I’m lost.

Cole’s kisses are addictive.

After a minute, I pull away and chuckle.
“I’d better get up or we’ll end up on here all night.”

He sighs, gets up and very obviously adjusts
his erection. I flush and giggle. He play frowns and murmurs,
“Laugh it up, sunshine. If you don’t quit tempting me, I might just
ravish you.”

Was that meant to be a threat or a
promise?

Smiling, I move to the kitchen and remove
all the takeout menus from the top of the fridge. We decide on
pizza. Cole orders and I text the girls my whereabouts, then we sit
back down on the sofa. It takes about thirty seconds before we’re
all over each other again. Cole has somehow managed to position
himself on top of me and the weight feels so good. I wrap my arms
around his neck. He holds himself up on his forearms so he isn’t
squishing me and places whisper-soft kisses on my lips. I can’t
help but smile against his lips. He’s so gentle for such a big
guy.

My stomach dips when he strokes his
fingertips along the side of my breast.

Yes! Do it!

I want more. Now.

My hand skims his neck, moves down his broad
chest and stomach til I reach the zipper of his jeans.

Ding Dong.

We both lift our heads and look to the
door.

Oh, you are freakin’ kidding me!

Cole groans then chuckles and buries his
face into my chest. Still chuckling, he says, “I think you better
get that. If I answer the door like this, I’m going to scare
someone.” This comes out muffled.

We both laugh and stand. Cole reaches into
his pocket, hands me a fifty and I glare at it.

Then I glare at him.

He states, “If we went out, I would’ve paid
for dinner anyway, so just pay the damn guy and get your sexy ass
back here so we can pick up where we left off.”

I blink.

That is totally acceptable reasoning.

I run to the door and Cole laughs. I open
the door, throw the money at the stunned teenage delivery boy,
snatch up the pizza then slam the door shut.

I hear a muffled, “Th- thank you!” from the
other side of the door. On a mission, I throw the pizza on the
kitchen counter, walk towards Cole and ask. “How do you feel about
cold pizza?”

“Love it.” Cole replies on a smirk.

I nod vigorously. “Me too.” I take his hand
and lead him to my bedroom.

I don’t plan on having sex with Cole tonight
but figure if we’re going to make out, we may as well be somewhere
comfortable. Once inside my room, I push him back onto my bed and
straddle him. His arms wrap around my lower back. I lower my face
to his and breathe him in.

“This is crazy,” he whispers.

I softly kiss his lips before I respond,
“Batshit crazy.”

He smirks and murmurs, “Insane in the
membrane.”

“Mad as a March hare.” I giggle.

He chuckles. “One flew over the cuckoo’s
nest.” We both burst into fits of laughter, so hard it shakes the
bed.

My heart swells.

This is exactly how Tina and I joke. We
can’t seem to stop. The both of us fight hilariously to get the
last word in and usually take a huge detour from what we started
talking about. I can’t seem to remove the idiotic smile on my face,
but am slightly appeased when I see Cole wearing an identical
idiotic smile.

God, we’re dorks!

Still smiling, I ask, “Where were we?”

Cole squints and looks up as if thinking,
then flips me fast as lightning onto my back. He lowers his face
and kisses me slowly and meaningfully. He lifts his face, his
expression serious. “I know sex is out of the question tonight. I
wouldn’t even ask for it, babe. But there is something I want to do
so badly that I think I might just die if you don’t let me.”

My stomach flips.

My serious expression matches his. “What
exactly would that be?” I ask cautiously.

He kisses me again. Against my lips he
murmurs, “I want to taste you.”

My stomach drops. Right out of my
vagina.

With wide eyes, I choke out, “Okay.”

What the fecking feck?

I mentally argue with myself.

Good me: I just agreed to let Cole do
that
? We don’t even know each other!

Horny me:
Oh, shut your pie hole! A super
hottie hot guy wants to give you some serious pleasure! What’s the
problem?

Good me: Hmmm. I’m not sure, brain. Hold on.
It’ll come to me. Nope. No problem!

Toot toot!

Horny me:
Hooray! We miss this!

Oh, we totally did. I haven’t been with
anyone since Ghost. That was an age ago. It led to me believing I
was pregnant with Ghost’s child, setting up a doctor’s appointment
and finding out I have PCOS which is the abbreviated term for
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. It basically means I have cysts on my
ovaries and uterus. My period was always irregular and I only went
on the pill two years ago to regulate it. Even after a year of
taking the pill my period didn’t normalize. I would only get
spotting once every five to six months. Which I thought was
awesome.

I mean, c’mon! Who likes getting their
period?

Not me!

The doctor ordered an ultrasound. I was
expecting to hear a heartbeat. Not
Umm’s
and
Ahh’s
.
When I saw the look on the doctor’s face, I knew it wasn’t good
news. He talked a bit about PCOS and then explained to me the
reason I wasn’t getting my periods was because I have cysts on top
on cysts on my ovaries. My ovaries are so badly damaged and covered
in scar tissue it’s very likely I won’t ever have my own children,
and on the off chance I got pregnant, there would be no guarantee
I’d carry full-term. The kind doctor took my hands in his, and as
gently as possible told me I am a candidate for a hysterectomy.
That was the point I broke down.