Dare Me Forever (10 page)

“I don’t know why
you couldn’t both be right,” I said. They looked at me in
surprise. “Remember the fight between developers and the community
a few hours north of here last year? They hired a specialist and were
able to compromise by building a little bit inland and made plans
that included shoring up the seashore. It’s a team that has that
new ecological certification, what’s that called, um, something
with environmental design. Oh yeah, LEED architecture.”

Congressman Richards
rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “You know, I do remember that
project. I’d forgotten all about it. Hold on to this one, Ryan, you
don’t deserve her,” he said while gripping the back of my chair.

Ryan laughed
good-naturedly. So unlike any guy I’d ever dated. In fact so
different from any guy I’d ever known. I loved that he could let
things role off his back.

When the Congressman
had stepped away, Ryan whispered in my ear a sexy promise: “I might
not deserve you, but I’m definitely going to hold on to you.” I
felt my insides tremble, and felt desire radiating down from in my
belly.

I turned my face slowly
towards his, not caring who saw. Just inches from his lips, I looked
into his eyes. He stared into mine with a hunger and want that at
once made me feel like the only person in the world, but also scared
me with its intensity. It was exactly how I felt about him and the
charge from seeing his need, identical to my own, astounded me. I had
to look away. It was such a private, beautiful thing, and I couldn’t
continue to have this moment in public.

Ryan seemed to
understand, and as soon as we could leave without it appearing rude
or hasty, we made our escape.

Amy

When we pulled up to
the front of my house, Ryan parked, and took my hand helping me out
of the car. Holding it tight, he pulled me close.

“I can’t wait to
get inside your house and do all the things I’ve been waiting to do
to you all night.”

I could feel my whole
body ready in anticipation of what was about to happen. The
fundraiser had been so hot and I craved his body, his skin, rubbing
against mine. Ever since seeing his sculpted chest, glistening with
sweat, on the hike, I’d fantasized about feeling it against my own.

I unlocked the door,
and Ryan shut it firmly behind us. He turned me towards him, and
grabbed my face between his hands.

“Kiss me.” He
didn’t have to ask twice. His tongue played with my own and as he
moved his hands down the sides of my body, I moaned. His kiss was
fierce and filled with desire. His smell, a mix of mint, citrus, and
his own scent, was intoxicating.

I smiled up at him, and
gently pulling on his tie, leading him to my bedroom. He picked me up
and threw me up against the wall. I kicked off my shoes as he began
hungrily kissing my neck. I could feel his cock hard against me and I
wrapped my legs tighter around him. He rubbed himself against me.

“Amy, I can’t wait
to be inside you.”

Carrying me to my
bedroom, he threw me on the bed. Grabbing my legs back towards him,
he started at my ankles, slowly made his way, up my leg, kissing the
inside of my calf, the back of my knee, trailing his lips all the way
up to my sex. Burying his face in my panties, he took a deep breath,
nudging my clit with his nose. I felt totally adored, almost as if he
was worshipping me.

He pulled my panties
down and off my legs, and then worked his way up my other leg, again
kissing, sucking, and licking my skin. Right before he got to my
center, he stopped. Looking at me with those bright green eyes, he
sat me up and unzipped the back of the dress. I helped him get it
over my head, and as he unsnapped my bra, his breath caught in his
throat.

“Amy you are so
gorgeous. I could stare at your body for a thousand years, and never
get tired of what I see.” No one had ever said anything like that
to me. I covered my face with my hands.

“Take your hands off
your face. Don’t be embarrassed. You’re beautiful.”

I lowered them and
stared back at him, into those incredible emerald eyes. His look said
it all—the sweet twinkle was replaced by an animalistic desire. He
wanted me, and I could see my own tremendous desire reflected back.

I tore at his tie, and
helped him unbutton his shirt. I breathed in a sigh of pure longing.
Running my hands up his chest, I couldn’t wait any longer. He had
to be inside me.

“You are incredible.”

Swiftly taking off his
belt and pants, he leaned over me, crushing his chest into my own. My
nipples hardened at the touch of his skin against mine. He cupped my
breast in his hand and began teasing the nipple with his tongue.
Taking it into his mouth, he sucked it hard. It was a delicious pain.
He moved to the other breast, and again worked his magic. I was so
aroused, my skin was burning.

I grabbed his cock in
my hand and began stroking it. It was hard, and throbbing, and the
skin of it felt incredible against the palm of my hand.

“Ryan, please,” I
murmured.

Tilting my hips up,
holding my ass in his hands, he entered me. His cock filled me, and I
began to squeeze him in deeper. He pulled me to him, sliding all the
way in, and then pulling almost all the way out. He thrust in again
and again.

I gasped. It felt so
good, it was almost too much.

He pulled me up so that
we were sitting, my legs around his hips, slowly rocking back and
forth. He kissed me, his tongue hard and demanding. Taking one hand
off my ass, he used his thumb to massage my clit as I rode him back
and forth. I felt my thighs tensing, and shocks of pleasure spiraling
through my body. I was so near a release.

He pushed me back down,
and slowed his thrusts, until I nearly screamed with anticipation and
want.

“Does that feel
good?” he asked teasingly. I could feel the emptiness when he’d
pull out and all I wanted was him, deep inside me.

Grabbing him to me, I
panted. “Harder.”

He could no longer
restrain himself. Pulsing into me, over and over, I could see he was
about to come. With one final thrust, he exploded inside of me,
groaning with satisfaction. I loved that I’d made him feel like
that.

“You need to come.”
He slowly pulled out and put his fingers inside of me as he sucked my
clit. I was already so close, but the incredible pressure put me over
the edge. As he licked me, and finger fucked me, I came, trembling.

He held me close as I
shuddered around him.

The anticipation in no
way compared to the real thing. I’d never been with someone who
could make me come so powerfully, or made me filled with a want this
potent.

“Want to do it
again?” I asked boldly.

He grinned at me. “I
thought you’d never ask.”

Amy

I realized I was
humming Katy Perry’s “Firework” to myself the next morning. I
was making myself a little sick with all this cheesiness—who knew a
hot night would make me so corny. A bit of fresh air would do me some
good and because my store was only a thirty minute walk away, I
decided to leave my car at home. It was a gorgeous day and I didn’t
need to be there until 10:30 to open at 11 am.

I got dressed in a
sweet floral dress I hadn’t worn since last spring, and cute ankle
boots that Jaime had convinced me were a “must buy.” I looked in
the mirror and for the first time in a long time, I looked really
happy. My cheeks were flushed and my long brown hair hung in loose
waves, just above my chest, my bangs shaggy rockstar long, framing my
almond shaped eyes. Even my hair looked better today. A little nooky
and look at me now. I smoothed on a little light pink lip gloss.

I left the house,
locking the door behind me. I detoured a few blocks so that I could
walk along the road that ran parallel to the ocean. I could walk
almost the whole way to Ocean Avenue, smelling the salty sweet sea
air. I put in the earbuds so I could rock out while I walked. I was
really into Demi Lovato these days.

The waves were pretty
small at low tide, and I could see avid beach goers already setting
up their stations. What was with it with the overly tan old men in
their tiny speedos? Gross, but funny in a TMI sort of way. Walking
along the path, I thought I heard my name. I stopped “Heart Attack”
right in the middle of the part where she sings
Never put my love
out on the line, Never said yes to the right guy, Never had trouble
getting what I want
… and turned around.

Hunter was running up
behind me, shirtless, his body lean and tight. “Amy, I’ve been
calling your name for like five minutes,” he said breathing hard.
Seeing him looking this good, I was suddenly glad I’d dressed up
for work, but then was immediately embarrassed that I even cared. I
didn’t need to impress Hunter.

“I’m on my way to
the store. How long is your run?” I asked.

“It’s over now,”
he said smiling. “I’ll walk with you.” Hunter hadn’t paid
this much attention to me since we first started dating at the end of
junior year of high school—well that is if you didn’t count the
barbeque and then coming into the store opening day. I was flattered
but also confused.
What did he want?

He put his hand on my
shoulder and massaged it gently. “Ames, you got even hotter since
high school, hell you’ve gotten hotter since the barbeque.” I
pushed him gently in a joking way. Feeling his hard chest, I blushed.
I remembered lying in his bed senior year, his face above mine, our
bodies pressed against each other. The rhythmic thrusting, the
grabbing, the kissing. It was a pretty great image. I shook my head,
trying to push my thoughts away from the X-rated.

Hunter didn’t seem to
notice. He cleared his throat. “I’ve been meaning to call, just
been so busy at work. Thanks again for holding my parent’s present.
The office is killing me. We’ve been negotiating this big deal, and
there is this new person who makes everything difficult.” Hunter
narrowed his eyes, as his body tensed up, but then he visibly relaxed
again. “What are you doing tomorrow night? We should go out--for
old times’ sake”

I squinted my eyes. I
knew I should ask him about Jennifer again, because after all if she
wasn’t his girlfriend, she did a fine job pretending to be at his
parents’ party. I wanted to believe that Hunter was telling the
truth, but since he started dating someone else a day after dumping
me or more likely even before our breakup, it wasn’t that easy to
put my trust in him. He’d been a cheater—he liked toying with
peoples’ affections like a cat playing with its prey.

But then again, he had
already shown me how much he had changed since high school. Prom was
a long time ago, and I knew I wasn’t the same person as I was
then—it wasn’t totally fair not to extend the benefit of the
doubt to him.

I took a breath. Luke
was at school and I had my new business. This was the start of
something new. I didn’t want to be the misanthropic ex-girlfriend.
I wanted to be the kind of person who trusted people. If Hunter said
he and Jennifer were over, then I’d try to believe him. I also felt
a swooping sensation of guilt as I thought about Ryan and the amazing
night we’d spent together. But I quickly suppressed it. Hunter
wasn’t even asking me out on a date. More like a get together, a
catch-up. In fact, if it wasn’t just that, I wasn’t interested in
going.

Even as I thought that,
I knew I might be fooling myself. But I was tired of over thinking
things, of being so good, and cautious. Plus plenty of people went on
platonic dates with their ex’s, reminiscing, finding out what was
happening in both their lives now.

“You know that
Italian place in Del Mar?” Hunter asked. “Let’s go there. I’ll
pick you up at 8.”

“That sounds great,”
I agreed. Hunter’s phone buzzed. He looked down, frowned, but
didn’t answer.

I was determined not to
think about this get together. I’d go to dinner and have a good
time and that would be that. But I couldn’t wait to see Jamie’s
face when I told her about Hunter’s invitation. She wasn’t going
to believe this. I guess it’s true what they say, when it rains it
pours.

It had to be a friend
date, because I couldn’t stop thinking of Ryan, his hands on my
body, our connection, and the promise of more.

Amy

After a busy day at the
store, the very last person I wanted to talk to was my mother. But
just as I was settling in to start my Say Yes to the Dress marathon,
my phone rang. If I didn’t pick it up, she’d just call and call
just like she had a week ago. Plus there really was never a time that
I’d actually want to talk, so I might as well deal with the
inevitable, I thought, picking up the phone. She’d been calling so
much more often lately.

“
Dahling
,”
my mother cooed. She’d recently been in England and seemed to have
picked up a bit of an affectation. “I’m going to be in Solana
Beach next week and I’d love to take you out to dinner, just us
girls.” There was never a question whether or not I’d join her.
She was like a bulldozer--better just step out of the way, or she’d
run you over. My Mother knew how to ask for what she wanted and she
was used to always getting her way.

“Sure,” I agreed,
trying to put a smile in my voice. Miranda was so much easier to deal
with if I just played along. “Although I’m sure Luke would want
to come,” I added. Luke didn’t like our mom, but he also didn’t
harbor as much anger towards her as I did. I’d protected him from
the most terrible things she’d done. He had also been so young when
our happy family had shattered apart—maybe he just couldn’t
remember what he had missed out on. Or maybe he was just a more
forgiving person than me.

We agreed to have
dinner, and after she told me about her latest party, complained
about “the help,” (I really had to bite my tongue there), and
lamented the state of something that I was too bored to process, she
finally let me go.