A Girl by Any Other Name (25 page)

slipping it on without any argument. “Do you ever paint for pleasure?”

“Sometimes.”

“May I see those?”

“I have never shown anyone.”

“I don’t think I’m anyone.”

“My personal work is behind the sheet in the corner,” she said, pointing in the direction.

I walked over slowly, kneeling to the floor. She stood beside me, her legs shaking. I placed my

hand on her ankle, gently rubbing away the tension. I smiled at her reassuringly before lifting the

sheet. I viewed each of the canvases, feeling my heartbeat quicken at what she’d created. Some were

in charcoal, some done in oil, some with water paints, but they all had one thing in common. They

were all portraits of me, in some form or fashion. Me on the football field, throwing a pass. Me at the

lake fishing. Me with Momma and Mandy in our living room. There was even one of me and my

father.

I wasn’t sure what to say. “You made me look very handsome.”

“Yeah, I took some artistic license with that.”

I laughed at her joke, but it was difficult with the large lump in my throat. I knew she’d never

forgotten us, but the fact that she had so painstakingly recreated all of these images made it clear that I

was in her heart as much as she was in mine. I pushed the canvases back against the wall and draped

the sheet over them.

I straightened up and turned to her, hugging her waist in my kneeling position. She stroked my

hair. “Are you all right, Tex?”

“I’ve never been better, Sylvie.” I lifted her shirt and pressed kisses to her flat stomach. I rolled

down the waistband of my sweatpants she was wearing, loving the way my boxers fell right off her.

“Lift your legs.” She lifted each one and I pulled the material away from her. “Take off my shirt.” She

complied, revealing her perfect bare breasts. She was naked before me and I was kneeling in front of

her, prepared to worship every inch of her. “Put your hands on my shoulders.”

“You are very bossy,” she said, but complied.

“It’s for your pleasure. Would you like me to stop?”

“Don’t stop,” she replied without hesitation.

“I didn’t think so.” I moved my head inside that space and licked her opening. Her legs began to

tremble against my touch. I moved a finger inside her as I sucked on her clit, eliciting moans of

pleasure from her. She tugged at my T-shirt and I withdrew my finger, lifting my arms, so she could

pull it off. As soon as it was off me, I returned to my mission, enjoying the way her legs twitched with

every flick of my tongue. It didn’t take long for her to come. I stood up, punctuating my movements

with small, precise kisses marking my path.

Her hands went to the buttons of my jeans. She undid them with her deft fingers and unzipped me.

She crouched down removing them. “Lift.”

“Look who’s bossy now.”

“Lift your feet already.”

I obliged. Once she had them off, I walked backward to the wall, leaning against it. I knew what

she was thinking and I thought I would need something to stand against. She crawled to me on all

fours, making my dick harden with each small advance as I watched the raw sexual desire in those

gorgeous brown eyes. She took my full length in her mouth, gagging slightly.

“You don’t have to do this, baby. Don’t hurt yourself.” I moved her hair away so I could watch

her face for any signs of unease.

She ignored me and kept going, with a look a sheer determination in her eyes. Yeah, my girl was

stubborn like that. I was a lucky man. She moaned as she worked me over, causing the vibration to

make my knees weaken. She caressed my sack and I almost lost it. I moved inside her, marveling how

well her expert tongue saturated my dick. Her mouth suctioned against me. Her hands kneaded my ass.

I sucked in some air, watching my dick disappear inside her pretty mouth.

“Stop or I’m going to come.”

“Do it then.” The words vibrated against my stiff cock.

A choked cheer escaped me. “Baby, don’t talk with your mouth full.”

I grabbed a fistful of hair, guiding her movements, until my release came hard and swift.

Fuck.

Her eyes grew wide, and I dislodged myself, waiting for her face to contort in distaste and the

disgusted shriek that would follow. Instead, she looked up at me. Then I heard the most sexually

arousing sound of my life….her gulp.

She stood up, a dribble at the corner of her mouth. As if I couldn’t be more turned on, she

gathered it with her finger, bringing it to her tongue.

Fuck.

“Did that really just fucking happen?”

“What?”

“Baby, you sucked my dick and blew my mind at the same time.”

She smiled with great pride. “So, you liked it?”

“That’s an understatement. Where did you put the condoms?”

Her jaw dropped. “You’re kidding, right?”

I shrugged. “Nope. I feel it would be a crying shame not to use some of the stuff we bought.” I

pulled her against my chest, caressing her back, kissing her neck. “I need to be inside you. I want to

feel you again.”

“’Kay.”

I laughed. “Tell me if you’re tired. I’ll respect that.”

She looked up at me. “Think I can’t keep up with you?”

“Girl, I always knew you were as much of a sex freak as me.”

“Correction, more than you.” My sly grin widened. “You continue to blow my mind even when

you’re not sucking on my dick.”

She giggled, and walked toward the small table in the entry. I came up behind her and took the

foil wrapper from her. I moved her hair aside so I could kiss her shoulder before I picked her up and

carried her to bed. My desire was too great not to touch her.

I sat on the edge of her bed with her in my lap. I kissed her jaw and nibbled gently on her

earlobe. I never wanted to draw pain from her. I never wanted to trigger a negative memory so I was

very careful to leave her body unmarked by my touch. She put her arms around my neck and our lips

searched each other out.

“Let me put this on before I lose the nerve,” I whispered, holding up the condom.

She nodded and shifted off me. She lay down on her back. I made quick work of getting outfitted.

And then I jumped on top of her, careful to brace my weight against my hands. “You have to tell me if

I hurt you. Do you promise to do that?” She looked at me curiously, and I knew she was wondering

what I was planning. I didn’t think I could keep being gentle. I needed to propel rather than thrust. To

drive into her with all the lust that was coursing through me.

“You wouldn’t hurt me—”

I kissed her, murmuring the words against her open lips. “When I’m with you like this, I have

very little control, and I need your help.” I trailed my hand down her breasts, past her belly button and

into the moist folds of her pussy. She wrapped her arms around my neck, burying her head in my

chest. “Look at me, Sylvie. I need to talk to you.”

“I can’t talk,” she whimpered. “Not when you’re doing this.”

“Then just listen for a minute.” I plunged my fingers in and out of her, manipulating her vagina

until she was so slick we both heard the audible sounds of my fingers’ penetration. “I crave you like

an addict with his drug of choice. And I need a fix really bad.” I added a finger, moving more

forcefully. Her lips parted, inviting me in for a kiss, but I wasn’t ready yet. “So promise me right now

that while I’m fucking you, you’ll be conscious of the line between pleasure and pain, because I might

not be.” She widened her eyes, and nodded, running her fingers along my lips. My slow smile grew

wider. I drew her finger in, sucking on it slowly. “Not good enough. I love the gesture, but I demand

the words.”

“I promise.”

I retreated my fingers, tracing her soft lips with them. She parted her mouth and licked the area.

My dick twitched in response. I growled in some garbled ancient language people only spoke in

intimate, passionate moments. I moved down the bed, clasping her ankles and pulling her lower. I

lifted her legs, kissing them, paying special attention to the ominous bird. I lifted her ass off the bed,

bending each leg over my shoulder. My hand gripped on the scroll metal bars of her headboard,

offering me the leverage I needed. I pushed into her, pulling out almost completely before diving back

in again.

She screamed with each thrust, clutching the bed sheets until her knuckles turned white. “Oh…

God, Tex,” she said breathlessly.

“Pinch your nipples,” I commanded. She complied. “Get them wet.” She licked her fingers

generously before swiping them across her nipples. I took my free hand and manipulated her clit. Her

eyes searched mine, begging for release. I shook my head and withdrew. Then I slammed back into

her with my full length. “Not yet.”

The contours of her beautiful face contorted as the waves of pleasure built in her until her

release. I closed my eyes and followed soon after.

I dislodged each leg carefully, rubbing her ankles. I watched her as we both regained our breath.

I roamed my hands over the soft, warm, freshly slick planes of her flesh. She was as lovely as a lily,

sweet as honey and sexy as sin. My finger traveled in the hollow space between her breasts, gliding

down her body before bringing it to my tongue. Her mouth dropped open in surprise, but I decided

that was an invitation to explore it. I kissed her slowly, relishing the decadent taste of her, holding her

face against mine. Then I lay down next to her, flopping my leg over her. She rested her head on my

chest and rubbed my shoulder.

“I didn’t think about my bed. It’s so small and you’re so…big,” she said after a while.

I laughed, pulling her close to me. “You’ll have to sleep on top of me. It’s the only way.”

“That’s going to be so uncomfortable for you.”

“I think it’s going to be the best sleep I’ll ever have.” She giggled against me. We remained quiet

for a while. I threaded my fingers through her hair, and she nuzzled against my chest, the sounds of our

combined breathing permeating the air.

“I don’t have much experience, but I didn’t think that sex could be this good.”

“Sex is the physical response to emotional need. It feels natural because it’s us.”

“Easy as breathing.”

“I haven’t slept well in almost ten years,” I admitted, while playing with the soft curls of hair.

“Me neither.”

“Well, I’m glad we’re finally getting some sleep then. Let’s play hooky tomorrow,” I suggested.

“I can’t. I have a class to teach. I can’t bail on those kids.”

“What time do you work?”

“Not until four. I close tomorrow.”

“I don’t have a class tomorrow. I just grade papers with Jessica, so we can hang all day.”

“Oh, okay.” There was something off about the way she said it.

“What’s wrong, Sylvie?”

“Is there something going on between you two?” I wasn’t expecting that question.

“No, our relationship has always been professional. Why do you ask?”

“I was just wondering because of the way she looks at you sometimes. Of course, a lot of girls

look at you that way.”

“You never did.”

“I did. I’m just better at hiding it. I had to be. Tex, when you read that unsent letter to me, I

almost had a breakdown in there.”

“I guess my plan worked then. I wanted to draw you out without sounding crazy in case I was

wrong.”

“I lied in class,” she said, with an impish smile.

“About what?”

“I like Thomas Hardy, but that wasn’t my favorite novel.” She moved away from me, reaching

into her nightstand drawer. I immediately felt the loss of her body, and wanted to pull her back. She

held up a hardcover book. I blinked, staring at the tattered, well-worn copy of
Raven Girl
by Caleb

James Tanner. “This is my favorite book. I’ve read it a million times.”

“I can tell,” I replied, taking it from her. “So you were the one person who bought my book.”

“Stop, it was a great book.”

“I was doing a public service. I provided the critics an abundance of fodder for their craft. I

think one of them compared me to Forrest Gump without the excuse of a mental impairment.”

She was quiet for a minute. I lifted her chin, smiling at her, but she didn’t smile back. “I think it

was criticized so much because the story felt unfinished.”

“Perhaps it deserves a sequel?”

“I think so, Tex.”

I moved the book back to the nightstand, not wanting to talk about my failed attempt as an author.

I kissed her neck and pulled her close to me. It was a while until either of us spoke again, comfortable

with the silence as we always were. “By the way, I’m withdrawing from your class. I don’t want you

to get in trouble.”

“That’s probably a good idea since I was going to fail you anyway.”

“What?” she replied, smacking my chest. I pressed my lips to her temple to hide my grin.

“Just kidding, but I am curious, were you comparing me to Ahab when you were talking about

Moby Dick
?”

She laughed, cupping my chin. “No, that would mean that I was referring to myself as a whale…

or calling myself a dick, and I’m not that self-deprecating.”

“Very funny, smartass. Don’t drop out. Ask to change your status so you’re auditing the class.