Calm Like Home (8 page)

“I think you’ll like this,” he says, handing a red plastic cup to me.

I take a sip. The drink is perfect. He is perfect.

“I see bartending in your future, Mr. Westbrook.”

He laughs and kisses my temple. “Glad I learned at least one thing in college.”

He bends to retrieve two fresh beers from the refrigerator, cradling them in his left hand before taking my hand in his right. We pass by Damien so Adam can hand one off then he settles me onto his lap on the couch. I lean back against his chest and he trails his fingertips against mine. I can feel his breath tickling my shoulder, the occasional graze of his lips against my skin, burning through me. The others chat and laugh and joke but all I can think of is him. I can hardly follow the conversation with Adam seemingly bent on distracting me.

“Geez, Annabelle, why is it so effing hot in here?” Damien groans.

Here I’d been thinking it was just me burning up from Adam’s touch.

“Something must be wrong with my AC.” She rises to pull open the French doors to her balcony and flips the ceiling fan on. It does little to dissipate the heat and the group beings to thin.

Damien looks at the time and then over at Adam. “Shit, man. I gotta run. I’m on first thing tomorrow. Can you take me home?”

I silently curse him for riding here with Adam but move to the side so Adam can rise off the couch. He’s reaching for his keys on the coffee table when Annabelle springs up. “I’ll take you, Damien. You know, since your house probably isn’t on the way for Adam.” I know she’s BS-ing. She has no clue where Adam lives and neither do I.

Damien shrugs apathetically and claps hands with Adam, nods to me, then heads for the door. Annabelle follows close behind but makes sure to catch my eye before passing through the door, animatedly mouthing, “Have fun” as she pulls it shut.

The second we’re alone, Adam and I lurch for each other. In an instant I’m on top of him, one leg on either side of each of his. Warm fingers clutch my neck, skim over my chest, trace lines beneath my tank top. It’s all I can do to breathe. His tongue caresses mine, darting in and out my mouth, his lips slick against my own. We kiss deep and furious, like neither one of us could possibly take one more second without our mouths touching.

The heat in the apartment feels as though it’s increased tenfold since Annabelle left. Adam pulls his shirt up over his head, revealing tan skin that lightly glistens with sweat. I draw my fingers down his thick triceps and lean in to kiss along his collarbone, relishing the saltiness on my lips. I make my way up his neck and gently tug on his earlobe with my teeth. A low, guttural groan escapes his lips and I feel his hand slide up the back of my neck. He tugs my hair so my mouth finds his again and he massages his tongue against mine, pressing into me with urgency, his hands singing over my skin, lifting the hem of my tank top up. He carefully hauls it over my head and tosses it over the back of the couch, his eyes flicking over me, taking me in. He makes swift work of removing my bra, then bends to plant soft kisses over my exposed neck and chest, lips barely grazing over skin as he goes. I tip my head back, letting his touch completely take me away, feeling radiant, feeling bold, feeling completely intoxicated with everything he is.

Adam’s fingers are unfastening the button on my shorts when Annabelle begins fumbling noisily for her keys in the hallway outside the door. She’s practically yelling, “I wish I could find my keys,” as she jangles her purse around, clanging the metal clasps against the doorknob.

Adam swiftly pulls me down beside him on the couch and manages to tug a blanket over us before she walks in. Without a word, we both pretend to be asleep as she enters the apartment and heads back to her room. I doubt we fool her, especially with his shirt and my bra discarded on the back of the couch.

Adam’s muscular chest is pressed up against the bare skin of my back, his breath swirling around my neck, still coming in quick bursts. When her door clicks shut, his strong arms clench tighter around me and I shift into him so my head is resting on his chest. Smiling eyes look down at me and he brushes my forehead with his lips before nuzzling closer to me. Our breathing begins to steady and I find myself drifting towards sleep, ensconced in Adam’s arms and feeling more content than ever.

When my eyes blink open the sun is peaking over the horizon, sending the first rays of sunlight cascading into Annabelle’s living room. Adam still has me clutched against his chest and I can’t help but notice how peaceful he looks. His face has an expression of perfect calm, his dark lashes splayed out beneath his eyelids, his thick hair slightly rumpled.

“Hey,” I whisper and kiss his cheek tenderly.

“Mmmm,” he murmurs, nuzzling his lips against my temple.

“It’s almost morning, Adam. We should go.”

He mumbles into my ear, “Can I come with you? I don’t want to go back to my empty house.”

I can’t decide whether he’s telling the truth or using this as an excuse to come over, but don’t really care either way. The entire drive back to my apartment I steal glances in the rearview mirror, thrilled at the knowledge Adam is coming home with me. He parks beside me and sleepily drapes an arm around my waist as we traipse up the steps to my door. I can’t help but notice how natural it feels to be this close, our two bodies fitted together, like this is the way we were always supposed to be.

When I wake a few hours later, the first thing I see is Adam’s face propped on his outstretched arm, watching me. His lips rearrange into a slight smile. “Hey, blue eyes.”

Rolling onto my side, I mimic his pose. My eyes rove over him, relishing the sight of him wrapped in my bed sheets, of my pillow beneath his skin. When I think where we were a week ago, how excited I was by the surprise of seeing him at the pool, I’m astounded. It feels like for once in my life, I completely skipped the middle, slingshotting from just friends to so much more.

“Hey,” I reply softly.

Every ounce of elation I feel seeps into the delivery of that one simple word.

“I noticed something while you were sleeping.”

“What’s that?”

“Well you’re gorgeous,” he chuckles. “So maybe two things.”

He extends a hand to where my tank top has moved askew and lightly fingers a flat, brown mole on the center of my chest, a speck of darkened pigment right above my heart. He’s grinning now, a full-blown smile, his fingertips still grazing the spot on my chest, and that’s when I notice he has one in the exact same place. With how he’s laying in front me, they line up perfectly. I reach out, brushing my fingers over the small fleck nestled between his pecs.

“Huh,” I whisper, surprised by the odd congruence. I know it’s coincidence. It means nothing really. And yet it makes perfect sense that he would be marked for me. It makes perfect sense that our bodies were formed with one another in mind. His personality completely aligns with mine, why wouldn’t his body be the same?

“Huh,” he repeats, still grinning that wide, satisfied smile.

He closes the distance between us excruciatingly slowly, his lips finally finding mine. I let out a contented sigh and press my body closer to his, our matching moles aligning between us. His arms circle around me, folding me into his body. I feel so snug clutched in his arms, so safe, so sure.

In one smooth motion he rolls over me, bracing himself above me with his arms. I snake my hands up, winding my fingers into his hair. I’m reminded of the comment I made to Annabelle that first day he came back. Little did I know how amazing it would actually feel, how much more it would be than
just
pulling hair when it finally happened.

Despite him being spread out over every inch of me, I feel the ferocious need to be closer, to be as close to him as humanly possible. His hands glide over my body, removing the last remains of clothing until there’s nothing left between us. Only us.

His body works over mine, his scent and his sounds melding with my breath and my need. Every exhale of my name from his lips floats just above the pillowcases, swirling around my head, making me dizzy and weak. I feel him melting deep inside me, turning every last inch of me to silk, turning me to gold. And I swear he is perfect. I swear we were meant to be together. Just like this. Bodies perfectly aligned, skin brushing soft skin, chests inhaling and exhaling in complete harmony, until I’m floating, sinking, soaring all at once, with Adam’s voice in my ear and his taste in my mouth.

We relax against the multitude of pillows on my bed, sheets tucked haphazardly around us. I nuzzle my cheek against his shoulder, contentment washing over me as his fingertips draw faint lines up and down the length of my back.

“You have no idea how long I’ve thought of this,” he whispers.

“What’re you talking about?” I ask with astonishment.

“Don’t act so surprised. I’ve had it bad for you for a
very
long time.” He lets out a faint chuckle, but the look he’s giving me lets me know he’s completely serious.

I’m blown away by his admission. All this time. All this flirting. It was always real. I feel giddy with the knowledge, completely overcome. I poke his side, grinning. “Well it took you long enough."

‘Yes,” he concedes, amused. “I had to work up the nerve.”

“Work up the nerve? I pegged you as a seasoned veteran.” The thought that Adam Westbrook would have to work up the nerve to talk to anyone takes me by surprise. Never once has he given any indication he’s anything less than completely confident and sure of himself.

“This whole time?” I ask in disbelief, winding my fingers in his, loving that I can. “I always thought you were just being friendly.”

“Oh, it was friendly all right. I wanted to become very, very good friends with you.” He grins devilishly but pauses before going on, shaking his head slowly from side to side, looking astounded at whatever he’s about to tell me.

“You’ll love this. I used to look up ways to make girls laugh on the internet so I could try them out on you at work.”

“What?” I burst out laughing, shoving his shoulder playfully. “You mean this hasn’t been all-natural Adam?”

“Some,” he says, his voice taking on a serious tone. “But not all.”

“I feel so deceived.”

I’m joking, but suddenly he isn’t. His dark eyes lock on mine. They are penetrating yet vulnerable, deep with truth and reservation, but he doesn’t look away, just whispers softly, “Trust me when I say it was always with the best of intentions.”

He kisses my forehead tenderly and pulls his arm tighter around my shoulders. I wonder why his voice sounds so solemn, why he’s clutching me so tightly. His tone and his grasp and that look in his eyes make me think he’s telling me something more, if I only knew how to understand his meaning.

We both have the day off from work and we spend its entirety in bed together. It’s raining outside, a soft summer shower. The droplets gently patter against the window, adding a perfect soundtrack to our day. There’s nowhere else in the whole world I’d rather be. Seriously. Outside of a fluke apartment fire, I don’t think there’s a single thing that could get me out of this bed.

We’re laying together, heads pressed side by side on a single pillow, when Adam tilts his face to mine, inquisitive. “So has Annabelle been driving you nuts? She’s been a little, uh, eager.”

My insides clench and I wonder what all she’s told him without my knowing.

“You know Annabelle, when she gets an idea in her head she doesn’t let it go. There was this one summer in high school she was set on us making off with a Dick’s Sporting Goods sign from a build site because it said Dick’s Coming Soon.”

He howls with laughter. “She’s just as bad as Damien!”

I try my best to keep a straight face. “Adam, this was serious business. We scoped this thing out for weeks before we actually got the nerve to take it. We pulled up under cover of darkness and we thought we were so badass until a car would drive by, then we’d dive for cover. That’s how I got this.” I gesture to a scar on my right arm.

“You sucked it up, right? Took one for the greater good?”

“Not at all. I whined and cried about it the rest of the night. You can imagine Annabelle’s annoyance with her subpar criminal companion.”

He laughs. “Come on, Lex! I thought you were tougher than that. You’re spunky.”

“Not at all. I’m the biggest baby. When I had to have surgery for a deviated septum I literally cried for three days straight.”

He chuckles and shakes his head at me in disbelief.

“What’re you laughing at, tough guy?”

“I had to have the same thing. Twice actually.” He pauses to let the similarity sink in. “I thought I was going to die. Luckily my parents are both surgeons and assured me I was fine.”

This tiny commonality has me feeling like he was put here just for me, like no one else can quite appreciate all he is as well as I do. My mind yearns to know more, to unlock every last detail, to indiscriminately adore every little piece of who Adam Westbrook is. I gaze at him with a sappy smile, seeing the same tranquility I feel reflected in his eyes. As we lay, time stands still, as though I’ve ceased breathing, ceased thinking. I just feel calm and content and whole and I never want it to end.

It’s dark out when he finally heads for his parents’ house. My apartment instantly feels emptier without him in it.

And I know it then.

I know it as soon as the door clicks shut and the silence surrounds me. Those brown eyes have the power to completely wreck me. In just a few short days he has already made ruin of my middle ground. He has torn me open, pushed inside, made my heart and lungs swell with his presence, made my blood surge deep in my veins, screaming out his name.

That’s how I know it’s true.

No one has ever had the power to wreck me. No one.

Until now.

Chapter 10

One knock. Then two. His knuckles meeting my door. My body responds, knowing I will feel complete again the instant I turn the knob. My legs jerk to life, sputtering beneath me, feet gaining traction, fingers rubbing and brushing with anticipation, until finally, metal turns and hinges creak and I’m greeted with brown eyes and a radiant smile. My heart soars, elation washing over me like so much water, my head buzzing with his name. Sweet release. Ecstasy is at my door.