Someone Like You (Someone To Love Series) (23 page)

“Hot damn, girl,” I say, pulling her in by the waist.

“Your turn.” She plucks my shirt off and runs her hands over my chest in a series of achingly slow circles.

“You’re pretty good at that,” I say, picking up her hand and kissing each of her fingertips.

“Stripping?” Her eyes widen as if a slap is next on the agenda.

“No.” I push out a little laugh. “Taking
my
clothes off.” I gently pull her in by the face and give a playful bite to her bottom lip. “I’m going to have to keep you around, Ally.” Shit. Did I just go there again? Is there any way to get through this afternoon and not depress the hell out of us by bringing up the not-so-distant future? I mean, it’s obvious Ally and I have a future, right? What the hell am I saying? Of course we do, a brilliantly long one—paved with happiness and hot sex right through to our golden years and beyond.

“Are you going to keep me around?” Her features soften as if she had started it out as a smart-ass remark, then it became a general-interest question that directly affects her well-being.

“Hell, yes.” My lungs pump out some serious steam as if I ran all the way here from Cruise’s cabin. “You’re all I’ve ever wanted.”

“And, you’re”—a smile twitches on her lips—“
it!
” she screams, slapping me on the chest and taking off toward the waterline.

“
Hey
”—I shout, taking off after her—“that hurt, Ally. You’re going to have to kiss it to make it feel better.”

Laughter bubbles from her as she streaks across the sand. Her ponytail whips around her shoulders like a white flame.

“You’ll have to catch me first!” she shouts as she races down the waterline.

“Sweetie, if I catch you, you’re going to have to kiss a few other body parts as well.” I come up on her in less than five seconds, dive for her ankle, and miss.

“Morgan.” The smile melts from her face as she looks over my shoulder.

A wall of water collapses over me like an avalanche before yanking me back, trying to drag my sorry ass right into the Atlantic with it.

“Well played, Monroe.” I roll onto my back and feel the sun warming my skin.

“It’s going to happen again if you’re not careful.” She strolls forward, and I pretend not to notice.

“Careful is my middle name.”

“Yeah, right.” Her foot swoops just shy of my hip and this time I snatch it, pulling her down to the damp sand right along with me.

Ally falls to her knees in a fit of laughter.

“Let go! A wave is going to come and—”

“And what?” I reel her in until she’s lying next to me.

“You’re getting me wet.”

“Now who’s the one with a dirty mouth?” I slip my hand down over her bottom and circle around to the front.

“Morgan!” She laughs, squirming and biting down over my ear.

I run my finger along the lips of her bathing suit bottom before dipping my hand in. I can feel her warm slick, wet just like she promised in a roundabout way. Ally bites down over that bright pink lip approvingly as I slip my finger deep inside her. Sure enough, Ally Monroe is warmer and wetter than the big blue sea.

A wave starts to crest in the distance, and I wrap my arms around her.

“It looks like we’re going under, babe.”

Ally turns to look just as the powerful blast detonates over us. The water retracts, and I shake my hair out.

“Morgan!” she screams, staggering to her feet.

“That’s the second time you shouted my name, and I’m still not getting any action.” Any sane man in her presence would be begging by now.

She kicks the damp sand over my stomach and takes off for the shade.

“Was that an invitation?” I scramble up and give chase until I land next to her on the warm blanket.

“Everything’s an invitation to you.” She reaches over and scratches at my chest, so I catch her hand and kiss it. “You’re a perv.”

“Yeah, well, you’re a tease.”

The sunlight hits her just right, lighting her up from the back like an angel. The water beads over her skin and glows like a thousand fallen stars.

Her features grow serious. She reaches forward and plays with a loose strand from the blanket as if trying to deflect her thoughts.

Shit. She’s feeling it. Thinking it. All that talk about back home—
fall
—it sunk into her bones and now I’ve dragged her into the funk I’ve been trapped in all week.

“Come here.” It slips from me sadly, far too quietly to match the light banter we’ve volleyed back and forth for the better part of an hour. Ally conforms to my chest, and I press a kiss into the back of her hair. The dark cloud of uncertainty has squatted over us, already pissing on our parade whether we like it or not. The fall semester has become the nine-hundred-pound gorilla looming over us with a sickle. Long-distance relationships suck and we both know it. The first mile I’m away from her I’m going to want to turn back. I’ll probably cry like a pussy as soon as I hit the state line.

Ally reaches down and dips her hand into my shorts, her cool fingers finding me and my seaside shrinkage.

A dry laugh rumbles from me as I pull her over me and indulge in a deep-throated kiss. The heat of her mouth pushes me out of sanity’s bounds while her tongue strokes me into a rush of excitement. I pluck off my shorts and Ally glides over me, kissing my stomach, my happy trail, all the way down south. She wraps her lips around me and encourages me to grow in her mouth.

A heated breath rips from me. I reach over and fumble for the condom I packed with a seed of hope and tear into the package.

I pull her toward me and slip it on.

“Looks like you’re ready this time.” She smiles but it looks sad, lonely.

“I may not be the brightest, but I learn from my mistakes.” Mostly.

I dip back over her with a kiss wetter and hotter than the sea and the sun. I don’t want to think of the past. And I’m pretty sure the future has the capability to kill my hard-on just as fast.

I pluck at Ally’s string bikini like I’ve been dying to do ever since we arrived. I give a slow, methodical pull until both her top and bottom come apart in pieces.

“I dressed for the occasion,” she whispers, running her tongue over my neck.

“Honey, you are the occasion.” I lay her back and roll on top of her. Her legs rise over my ribcage and I hike them back before plunging deep inside her. “Fuck, Ally.” I give a heated whisper right in her ear. “You’re going to be the death of me.”

This is the moment I want to remember. This is the moment I want to relive over and over again. Right here at Pine Tree Cove, buried in the only girl I have ever wanted to spend my life with.

“I love you,” I whisper, rocking in and out of her as achingly slow as possible.

“Morgan.” She lets out a series of soft groans, and I’m about to lose it. “I love you forever.”

“Forever,” I whisper.

10

SCARE TACTICS

Ally

T
hursday morning, K
endall and I decide to run out and pick up flowers for the rehearsal dinner.

“I’ll drive,” I offer as we head out into the overbright day. The sweet scent of pines perfumes the air as the heat expels their oils into the air. I soak it in because it just so happens to be one of those last, magical days of summer.

We step over to the Honda and a scream gets locked in my throat as I take in a bloodied mess sitting on the hood. Kendall shrieks to high heaven, sending both Cruise and Morgan flooding out the door.

“What the hell happened?” Cruise hooks an arm around Kendall’s waist, trying to calm her.

“Shit.” Morgan steps over and peers at the carcass lying over my car. “It’s just a rat.” He picks a stick off the ground and flicks it off. “Looks like a bird lost its breakfast. Either that or a stray cat has one mean crush on you.” His dimples wink in and out. “Go shopping.” He touches his lips over mine with a cool, minty kiss. “Drama’s over. You okay?” Morgan wraps his arms around my waist and offers a gentle smile.

“Mmm-hmm,” I whisper as Kendall says good-bye to Cruise and gets in the passenger’s seat. I glance back over at the rat with half its body bashed in. “Do you really think it was from a bird?”

“Yes. You’re safe.” He leans in and his lips find a home just over my ear. “I’ll always keep you safe, Ally. I promise.”

Lauren meets up with us at the flower market, and we walk up and down the multicolored aisles perfumed with an abundance of all the things that make my allergies sing.

I shuffle from the poppies, red as a blood let, to the black-eyed Susans. A smattering of stargazer lilies catches my attention and I linger. I sit mesmerized by their long purple tongues, freckled and soft as velvet—their pollen-coated tips, delicate and powdery as cinnamon.

I wish Morgan were here. But more importantly, I’m dying over the fact Morgan is just a hair away from packing his suitcase and driving right out of Carrington for a good long while. I thought for sure he would have brought it up by now—that he would have mentioned it in some small way—but it’s like it doesn’t even matter. It’s as if he can just as easily lure me to his bed as he can kiss me good-bye. Or maybe, like me—he’s afraid to go there. I mean, he said he loved me, and that’s got to count for something. Tess once said that boys only say “I love you” if they think a blow job is on the horizon, and at the time I believed her. But a lot of things have changed since then, and now I’m not so sure.

“Hey, girl.” Lauren speeds over and wraps an arm around my shoulder. Her strong, musky perfume envelops me like a cloud—all business
,
no sweetness, much like Lauren herself. “Who the hell shit on your rose parade?”

I shake my head, blinking back tears.

“Hey!” Kendall swoops in from behind and sucks in a breath. “It’s my brother, isn’t it? Did he do something stupid? I’m so going to kill him if he did something stupid.”

“No.” I shake my head. I’m deathly afraid to confess anything to Kendall because it will undoubtedly get back to Morgan. “I swear it’s not him. Really it’s not. It’s me. I’m the one who’s paranoid about things I can’t control. Morgan is far more mellow.” Too mellow, but I keep the commentary to myself. “You know, he goes with the flow. I bet he doesn’t even think about
tomorrow
, let alone next week. I’m just overreacting.” I pluck a dahlia from the bucket and press my nose deep into its cushioned leaves. No scent, just beauty. I squeeze my eyes tight to stop the tears from flowing.

“Maybe Morgan didn’t
do
anything”—Lauren rattles my shoulder until I glance up at her—“but does this have anything to do with him?”

A tiny squeal escapes my throat. I never could lie to Lauren.

“Knew it.” Kendall looks pissed to hell and ready to rip his balls off. “Is this because he slept with Molly?”

“Holy shit!” Lauren screams so loud that ten different cashiers run in our direction.

“It’s okay.” I’m quick to wave them off, and then tip my head toward Lauren. “She doesn’t get out much. The flowers are beautiful.” I make crazy eyes at Lauren until she settles back into her skin.

“He
slept
with Molly?” she says, looking like she’s ready to eviscerate him with her teeth. She’s a good friend in that respect. Lauren wouldn’t hesitate with a homicide if the need arose.

“He did
not
sleep with Molly.” I over enunciate in an effort to drill home the carnal correction. “Well, technically he did, but that’s not the point. He didn’t have his way with her.” He kept his penis tucked safely in its holster. That’s one weapon he’s only allowed to use with me.

“And did Molly have
her
way with
him
?” Kendall asks, careful and slow, as if I might not have considered this option yet.

“
No
. Thank God nothing happened that night. And, by the way, Molly is a piranha. I don’t care how close the two of you are to being related. She’s cutthroat when it comes to getting what she wants. I’m just glad Morgan escaped with his man parts intact.” I open my mouth to continue my tramp-inspired tirade but Lauren accosts Kendall with her purse before I can get a word out.

“You
pushed
Ally and Morgan together.” Lauren finishes off by smacking her in the arm.

Kendall tries to respond, flustered, and nothing but air comes out. Lauren seems to have that effect on a lot of people.

“Stop it, both of you.” I toss the flower back into the bucket. “Kendall didn’t push us together. In fact, if you want to get technical, it was all some weird coincidence concocted by the universe.” I flail my hand through the air, at a loss for down-to-earth descriptives. “Do you remember me telling you about that one-night stand that left me high and dry at the beginning of summer?” I stare at them, half afraid to offer up any more info—like the fact sixteen US dollars were exchanged. Or rather, left behind. Nevertheless, a few lattes came from the bonus.

Kendall jumps in horror and presses her hand to her chest. Lauren spends another ten seconds paying tribute to dumbasses everywhere before she, too, lets out a harrowing moan.

“
No!
” Kendall seems shocked at the prospect of her brother treading into manwhore territory so soon on his visit, and with me of all people.

“Yes,” I assure her. “Most definitely, yes. I was shocked to hell the next day when you brought him over to help me move. Anyway, it’s ancient history.” I chew on my nails for a second. Then without warning I open my mouth and vomit out the entire story—how he caught me when I fell off the stage at Pretty Girls, how infatuated I was with this amazing creature who was like no other man I had ever seen, and then the sixteen dollars he mistakenly left on the table and what I thought it meant.

“Get
out!
” Lauren shouts. She’s laughing so damn hard she has to cross her legs to keep her bladder from joining in on the funfest. Lauren has a history of pissing her pants on my behalf and for far less humiliating infractions.

“Morgan?” Kendall’s face pales at the thought of our chance encounter. “What the hell possessed you to do that?”

Both she and Lauren stare at me expectantly as they await the dirty deets.

“As soon as I saw all those tats I knew he’d fuck me like a boss.” I avert my eyes at the thought. Okay, so maybe there’s a little truth to that.

They gasp in turn—Lauren far more amused than Kendall.

“Relax. That’s not how it went.” I give a long blink. “Besides, he’s a god, Kendall. A million different women would give their right boob to bed him for a lot less than sixteen dollars.”

“She’s right.” Lauren shakes her head before reverting back to me “He’s a fine specimen and certainly no one is going to fault you for dragging him to the nearest mattress. One-night stands work out all the time.” She gives a circular nod into her lunacy, and it takes a minute for me to deduce that she’s mocking me.

Kendall bites down on her lip. “Well, I
almost
had a one-night stand with Cruise.”

“And…” Lauren waves her hand in the air as if searching for words. Swear to God if she says she had a one-night stand with Cal I’ll run up and down the aisles and start overturning these happy little flower buckets. I know for a fact she cast one of her dry spells on that poor baldheaded tribute to steroids for a good six months after they met. “I almost had a one-night stand with Cruise,” she teases.

I decide to leave out the part about nearly throwing my own hat into the Elton mattress ring, but that was long before Kendall and well after Blair. “All right”—I link arms with Kendall and Lauren—“so you both almost had a one-night stand with Cruise.” I dab the tears from my eyes. “Anyway, one-night stand or not, I know what Morgan and I have is going to last.” God, I hope it lasts.

“Of course it will.” Lauren forces her brows together as if she’s trying to convince herself. She plucks a stargazer the size of her palm from the bucket, and holds it up as if she were making a toast. “To Morgan and Ally.”

Kendall is quick to do the same and hands me one as well.

“To my big brother and Ally,” she sings.

Lauren presses her lips together and holds back tears as if she were really happy for me. “Though they be few, may you enjoy every moment you have together.”

And there’s that.

She knows our days are numbered, and in my heart, so do I.

My phone vibrates in my jeans and I take a few steps away to see who it is. It’s probably Morgan, and he’s going to make me feel tons better by saying the right thing because that seems to be his gift.

It’s a text from a blocked number.

You better watch your back bitch.

What the hell? I stare at it in disbelief for a minute.

I slip the phone back in my purse and don’t say a word to Lauren or Kendall.