She couldn’t help the large grin of satisfaction that spread across her face, as he said, “I need to be inside you.”
She felt him reach for the condom and heard the packet crinkle as he tore it open.
She pulled her knees up anticipating the feel of him inside her.
He slid in slowly, making her breath catch. Her eyes closed as she let the pleasure of this intimate joining overcome her.
When he was fully inside of her, he momentarily stilled, and looked into her eyes. Emotion washed over her. She lifted up to kiss him long and hard. She pulled her knees up further and wrapped her legs around him, lifting her pelvis up off of the bed and bringing him further inside of her.
His control snapped. He started pumping in and out of her, and she held onto his shoulders for support. She rocked her hips up, causing him to rub roughly against her. She felt the orgasm begin to spread through her limbs once more. When she knew she was about to cum, she suckled on his earlobe, then bit it.
“Oh, God. Yes, Now.”
Her throaty words caused him to intensify his thrusts, and they both came with moans and shouts of satisfaction.
Briana lay there, stroking Colin’s back and wondering at how he had just made her feel. He had brought things out of her that had never happened before.
She couldn’t help but smile, as she closed her eyes and kissed the side of his neck.
“I think I just died and went to heaven,” he muttered, his face in the pillow.
She giggled.
“If that’s what death is like, I’m ready to die. Repeatedly.”
Colin chuckled, then lifted his head up to look down at her. “You’re amazing.” He kissed one corner of her mouth, then the other, before kissing her fully on the lips.
“I think you’re amazing too.” she admitted, gazing up at him with happiness and hope in her eyes.
He smiled down at her, then cocked his head to the side and said, “What the hell is that beeping?”
“Oh, no.” She tried to move him off of her so she could get up. “My chicken. Has it been going off long?”
“I’m not sure,” he admitted, letting her up. “Let’s go check on it.”
They got up and ran to the kitchen to try and salvage their lunch.
Chapter Fifteen
After Briana left to get ready for work, Colin got on the computer and continued researching coaching at the college level. He was really excited about an opening at the University of Texas in Austin. He called his former coaches and asked if they would give him letters of reference, which they agreed to do. He looked at all of the requirements for the application and was excited at the prospect.
When he opened his email, he noticed another message from Shawn. All it said was “Call me, 911.” He really didn’t think there was anything left to say to her. He had no interest in getting involved with her again, or hearing about her latest conquest, so he deleted it.
While he was taking a shower before work, he couldn’t help but think back to his afternoon with Briana.
Damn, she was hot.
He figured years of pent-up sexual tension probably hadn’t hurt in making their first time together amazing. Lord knew he’d wanted her in high school. Bad. She hadn’t been ready then and he’d respected her and her wishes, but it had been difficult.
She was better than he’d ever imagined in his fantasies, and there had been plenty of those throughout the years. He turned the temperature of the water down and tried to cool himself off.
Once he was dressed and ready, he headed to the store to meet his dad for inventory. When he pulled up, his dad’s car was already there, so he went inside to meet him. He found him in the back storeroom.
“Hey, Pop,” he greeted his father. “You been here long?”
His dad looked up from his inventory sheet and gave him a broad grin. “Hey, Colin. Not too long. Your mother made sure I sat down for dinner before she let me leave the house. She’s worried that I’m not eating healthy enough. She made me eat steamed vegetables,” he said with a grimace.
Colin chuckled. His dad hated eating healthy. He was a meat and potatoes kind of guy.
“Where do you want me to start?” he asked.
His dad turned to him, dropping the clipboard to his side and looking seriously at his son. “Your mother and I had a long talk about you over supper,” he said.
Colin blinked over the unexpected turn in the conversation. The mirror image of his own, and felt his heart ache at the sadness in them.
“What about?”
His father put his hand on Colin’s shoulder and squeezed. “Look, Colin, we know how much getting injured has affected the plans you had for your life. We’re so sorry that things turned out this way. Initially I thought that when you came back here, things would fall in to place… that you’d learn about the store and eventually take over. But it’s obvious that you’re not happy. I know that you love me and your mother, and that you want to help us and make us happy. But son, you settling for less than your dreams won’t make us happy. Would I have been happy if your dream had been to run the store and pass it along to your children? Heck yeah. But that’s my dream, not yours.”
Colin throat tightened. He looked down and tried to get a handle on his emotions.
“Thanks, Pop. That means a lot to me. I don’t want to disappoint you, and I know you’re ready to retire. I want that for you. You work so hard. It’s time for you to enjoy your life with Mom.”
His father’s face burst with pride. “You’re a wonderful son, Colin, more so than your mother and I ever could have imagined. We don’t want you to put our wants ahead of your own. There are other people in our family who can run the store. Your cousin Steve has always expressed an interest. Maybe I’ll give him a call,” his dad said. “We want you to do something that is going to give you a full and happy life.”
Colin pulled his dad in for a hug, holding on a little longer than normal. He cleared his throat before he spoke, “Actually, they’re hiring assistant coaches at UT. I was thinking about applying.”
His father grinned again. “That sounds perfect. Now, we’d better get to work. These items aren’t going to count themselves.”
Colin was in dry storage when Rich came shuffling in through the door.
“What’re you doing here, man?” Colin asked him.
“There’s nothing going on tonight, This town is dead, so I thought you might be able to use an extra set of hands for inventory,” Rich answered with a shrug.
“Sounds good.” Colin pulled a page out and handed it to Rich. “There are pens and another clipboard on the desk. Thanks.”
While they worked, Colin asked Rich how things had gone after he’d left the evening before.
“Nothin’ much happened,” Rich replied. “I made sure that Pete and Kara were okay. She sobered up pretty quickly. She was fawning over Pete, amazed that he’d stood up for her and taken a punch like that. Shit, I was pretty amazed myself. Who knew Pete had it in him. Anyway, Pete said he would make sure Kara got home safely, and they left. Kent was hanging out in the corner, drinking himself into a stupor, and growling at any chick who tried to talk to him. I think Bree messed him up pretty badly.”
“Yeah, she said that she told him that she didn’t want to see him anymore. But she said they only dated casually, I don’t know why he was so upset.”
“I guess he was more into her than she was into him,” Rich speculated. “He’ll be okay. There was no shortage of girls willing to help him get over Bree, that’s for sure.”
“As long as he stays away from Bree, I don’t care what he does,” Colin said mildly.
“Are you guys back on then?”
“I hope so. I think she is beginning to trust me again.”
“That’s great, man. I hope it works out. You two were always great together.”
“Thanks,” Colin said with a smile. “What about you? Any prospects on the horizon?”
“Well, I know it’s probabl
y playing with fire, but I can’t stop thinking about Roni.”
“Kent’s sister?” Colin asked with a shake of his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Bro.”
“I know, I know. And to be honest, she doesn’t seem the least bit interested,” Rich stated with a wounded look on his face. “I talked to her for a bit yesterday, just to get to know her a little, and, man, she wasn’t giving me the time of day. It was like pulling teeth trying to get her to open up about herself. Usually girls like to spill everything, but not this girl. Maybe that’s what I like about her.”
“Just be careful, man. Kent already tried to warn you off. I know you’re always up for a challenge, but you may want to let this one go.”
Rich shrugged, then gave Colin a cocky grin. “Look who’s passing out dating advice. One night with Bree and you’re an expert.”
Colin chuckled and punched him good-naturedly on the arm. “Get to work.”
Chapter Sixteen
Briana hadn’t had an opportunity to speak with Kara since the party at Rich’s house. She was dying to know what had happened between her and Pete. But Kara wasn’t home, so Briana went into work early, hoping to catch her before their shift started.
When she walked into the back room, she stopped dead in her tracks.
Kara and Pete sat at the break room table. Kara was sitting in his lap and they were kissing each other heatedly.
Briana cleared her throat, which caused them to jump apart. Kara caught herself before she fell to the floor, giggling. Pete’s fair skin colored instantly.
“What’s going on?” Briana asked.
“Shh.” Kara responded, holding a finger to her lips. “I don’t want Pam coming back here.”
“Why not? What’s going on?”
Pete stood up and headed towards the door. “I’ll leave you two alone so you can talk.”
He winked at Kara and walked out. Briana started out after him, then turned to Kara, who was smiling wider than she’d ever seen.
“Did I just enter the Twilight Zone?” Briana quipped, which caused Kara to giggle again.
“OMG, Bree things are totally crazy.”
Briana had never seen Kara look or act this way, like a lovesick girl.
“Are you guys, like, together now?”
Kara sobered a bit and tried to look more serious, but she was so happy that even without the smile, she glowed.
“I’m so sorry about what happened the other day, Bree. I never should have started drinking, I knew we had to work, but one drink led to another and the next thing I knew, that asshole started looking pretty good. I should have listened when you came over and tried to get me to leave with you. I feel so bad about the way he treated you, and the way he treated Pete.” She got a dreamy look on her face. “God, Pete. Can you believe the way he stood up for me? I mean, I always knew that he was a great guy and that he was crushing on me, but I’ve never had anyone do that for me before.”
“What happened after I left, Kara?” Briana asked, taking a seat as she spoke, baffled by the look on Kara’s face.
“Well, Pete took me back home. I was sorry that he’d gotten hit, but I was pretty pissed that he’d butted in. At least, at the time I was. I yelled at him and told him to mind his own business, that I wasn’t his problem. He just watched me with that calm way he has, and let me rant. When I was done, he told me that I was a wonderful person, and that I deserved better than some drunken asshole pawing all over me at a party. That set me off again and I started yelling at him. When I was done he told me that he loved me, that he’s loved me for the past year, and that he wants to spend the rest of his life proving to me how amazing I am.” Her eyes began to fill as she spoke, and Briana started to get choked up.
“Then what happened?”
“I stopped yelling and started talking. I told him about my father leaving when I was a baby, and my mom blaming me for it. I told him how she’d lock me in a closet so she could go out and hook up with guys. I told him how she told me every day that I was worthless. I laid it all out for him and then explained that I wasn’t good enough for him. He’s a great guy and he deserves better than me.” Kara smiled through her tears. “He got mad and told me that if he ever heard me talk about myself like that again, he’d bend me over his knee. Ha. Then he said that I was exactly who he wanted and needed and that if he needed to, he would remind of that every day. Can you believe it?”
Briana smiled back at her, through tears of her own. “Yes, I believe it. You’re wonderful and Pete is the most amazing guy alive. You both deserve each other and you deserve to be happy.”
They hugged each other and cried softly in each other’s arms. When they pulled back Briana looked at the clock and said, “We’d better get cleaned up and get to work.”
She passed Pam’s office as she walked towards the kitchen, and noticed Pam talking to Nicole.
“Bree,” Pam called out to her.
Briana poked her head into the office. “Hi, Pam. What’s up?”
“Nicole is going to start serving next week. I was wondering if you knew anyone who might be good for the hostess position, before I post it in the paper.”
Briana looked at Nicole and smiled. “Congrats.” Then she turned back to Pam. “I might. I think I saw her in the dining room when I walked in, let me go check and see if she’s still here.”
Walking into the dining room, Briana spotted Roni sitting at the bar eating a salad and headed over to her.
“Hey, Roni, how’s it going?”
Roni looked up from her salad, but when she noticed it was Briana calling her, her face closed up.
“Hi.”
Briana grabbed the stool next to her and said, “Look, I know things between me and Kent are weird right now, but honestly, all we have ever been is friends. I know he’s upset now, but I also know that we’ll work it out, and I don’t want things to be strained between you and me in the meantime. I know we just met and all, but I’d like to think that we’re becoming friends.”
Roni considered this as she looked down at her salad, then looked Briana in the eyes.
“Yeah, he told me that you guys had an understanding and that you were never his girlfriend. But you hurt him. I’ve never seen him this upset over a girl before.”
Briana looked at Roni with regret.
“I’m sad to hear that. I hate to think that Kent is hurt, and that I’m the cause, but I don’t feel that way about him. I just don’t, and I think it would’ve hurt him more in the long run if I hadn’t let him go.” Briana paused for a moment as her words registered. She had to admit, at least to herself, that she finally understood Colin’s reasons for breaking it off with her before he left for college.
Roni nodded. “I get it, and sure, we’re cool. I just have to stick up for my brother, ya know.”
“Of course,” Briana assured her. “Listen, I know you’re here temporarily, but I was wondering if you were interested in getting a job while you’re here.”
“Actually, I’m going to be staying longer than I originally thought, and I’ve been looking for a job and maybe an apartment. I love Kent, but I can’t live with him anymore.”
“We have a hostess position opening up here and Pam, the boss, asked if I knew anyone who would be a good fit. It’s not the best pay, but it’s a job and it’s a good place to start. Kara and Nicole both started as hostesses here. I can take you back to talk to her if you’re interested.”
Roni smiled, her dimple flashing, and Briana had to blink at the brilliance of it. Roni’s beauty would have been intimidating if she wasn’t such a cool girl.
“That sounds great. Are you sure she would want to see me now? Do I look okay?” Roni smoothed her fitted top and pretty grey skirt.
“You look amazing I’ll go back and ask Pam if she’s ready to talk to you now. Oh, and I think Nicole is looking for a roommate, so if you’re looking for a place, you should talk to her.”
“Thanks, I will.” Roni smiled and looked excit
ed about the new developments in her life. Briana couldn’t help but feel happy that she had a part in that.
Chapter Seventeen
Briana received a text from Colin, asking her to come over after work, so she cleaned the kitchen as quickly as she could and texted Colin that she was on her way.
She decided to walk, since it was just down the street, and left her car parked behind the restaurant. When she got about halfway down the street, she noticed Colin waiting in front of the store. He spotted her and started down the street at a jog in her direction.
“Hey,” he said when he got close enough. “I would have come to get you if I’d known you were walking.”
She ran into his arms and laughed when he swung her around. The streets were dark and still, and she heard the strained sounds of her coworkers closing up and leaving for the night.
“It’s such a nice night, I thought I’d enjoy the walk,” she replied. “I appreciate you waiting for me.”
She snuggled her nose into the crook of his neck, then gave him a little nibble.
“Careful,” he joked, “Don’t start something you can’t finish.”
She pulled back and looked at him. “Oh, I plan to finish it.”
He grinned. “Big talk.”
She ran her hands over him, pausing at the denim that strained against her hand. She felt brave in the cover of darkness and stroked him seductively.
His breath caught and he closed his eyes, seeming to enjoy the contrast of the cool wind against his enflamed skin. He groaned softly. Her breathing grew shallow and her body went pliant in his arms. She was getting turned on by giving him pleasure and sensed that he knew it.
“We should go inside,” he whispered in her ear, as he tried to move his body away from her eager hands.
She stepped forward, not willing to let him go that easily. Placing her hands on his hips to hold him in place, she rubbed her body against his as she kissed his bare chest.
“I don’t want to go inside,” she murmured, moving her hands up to stoke his hard nipples.
He shook his head, as though trying to clear it. He grabbed her hands by the wrists and kept them still.