Page 42 of Play For Keeps

“Ev…”

“Jake,” I interrupt him, returning to my senses. “I told you, this can’t happen.”

Jake’s dark eyes capture mine. “I know I agreed to friends. I’ve changed my mind.”

FOURTEEN

SEXY LINGERIE AND BATTERY OPERATED TOYS

Everly

Four days later and I still can’t get that kiss out of my mind.

It is seared so hard and deep into my heart that it has become one of the hottest moments of my life.

Apparently, I’m shit at hiding my obsessive thoughts about the way Jake tasted, the pillowy softness of his lips and how good it felt when he sucked on my tongue, because Franny picks up on the fact that my mind is definitely elsewhere. If she only knew the reason, I’d never hear the end of it.

“Earth to Everly!” she calls, laughing. “Everything okay?”

Thankfully, she is able to watch Birdie tonight while I’m at work. I already had to miss a shift this week when I took Birdie to a specialist appointment for her broken arm. The good news is the doctor said her arm looks like it’s healing well, and she should be out of the cast in three weeks. The bad news is I lost a day’s pay, which I really can’t afford—especially with Birdie’s birthday coming up soon.

Franny is looking at me now with a crease between her eyebrows. “Where did you just go, because you weren’t in the same room as me.”

“I’m just tired. Early morning with Birdie today.”

I hope that will satisfy her curiosity, because I’m not ready to open up about the real reason I’m so distracted. My mind wanders right back to Jake and to the memory of him and I on this couch, his knee touching mine, his tongue in my mouth. Heat flares over my skin, my thong soaked.

If kissing Jake has done this to me, what would it be like if we took things further? It’s been playing like a reel in my mind for weeks now, taking me down a rabbit hole of fantasies. I’ve pictured him on my couch, legs spread, cock hard while I ride him. I’ve imagined him in the shower, my legs wrapped around his waist, my back pressed up against the tile wall while he fucks into me. I’ve imagined what he looks like underneath his clothes. Where does the tattoo I saw on his bicep end? Are there more? Does he have chest hair, is he circumcised, does he have a happy trail I could follow like a treasure map to a long, thick cock? The fine, soft hair on a man’s pelvis is my weakness. The filthy scenarios I’ve dreamt up in my mind have been constant and dirty.

That one kiss with Jake has made me realize how much I was missing out on with Grant. I was inexperienced when I met him, and I was expecting sex to be one mind-shattering orgasm after another. I thought we would experiment with different positions, in every room of the house. But it turned out that not only was Grant a lacklustre boyfriend, but he was completely boring in bed too. He was a taker. He never took the time to get me off, and he wouldn’t have been able to find my G-spot with GPS and a flashlight. From beginning to end, sex with Grant lasted 10 minutes tops, and after he climaxed, he’d roll over and go to sleep.

I tried to spice things up with sexy lingerie and battery-operated toys, but he never seemed to care. Nothing ever changed. Like everything else about my relationship with Grant, our sex life left me feeling lonely and unwanted.

And then I found out he was cheating.

Well, my condolences to whatever women Grant is sleeping with now. I would never want to have mediocre sex with him again. I want a guy who will wrap his hand around my throat as he fucks me into the mattress, someone who will whisper filthy things in my ear about all the things he wants to do to me.

“What time are you off tonight?” Franny asks, interrupting my daydreams yet again. I turn my face, hoping to hide my flushed cheeks.

“Later than I’d like,” I tell her. “Around 11.”

“Well, we’ll save you some chili,” she says, walking towards the kitchen to stir the pot on the stove. “This smells really good, Ev. I don’t want you to miss out.”

She offers me a weak smile when she sees my face fall. She knows how much I hate missing nights with Birdie.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way. You know what I meant.”

“It’s fine, I know. I’m just feeling a little frustrated.” I sigh, standing up from the couch to grab my duffle. “I’ve never been away from Birdie this much and with her broken arm, I just feel guilty.”

Franny rounds the kitchen island to put her hands on my shoulders, her brown eyes scanning my face worriedly. She pulls me into a hug. “I know, hon. I wish there was something more I could do.”

“Jake offered me a job working for him,” I tell her. “It’s a 9 to 2, so I wouldn’t have to worry about working nights or weekends.” I hadn’t planned on telling Franny about a job offer I can’t accept, but I haven’t been able to get it out of my mind.

“Oh honey, then why are you still killing yourself at the restaurant?”

I wish it was that easy. The job sounds perfect but working with the man I’ve been fantasizing about day in, and day out feels like a terrible idea.

A smile plays on her lips. “You really like him, don’t you?”

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