Page 20 of Never Really Mine
Coming together is so fucking cliché , like something out of a romance novel or movie, and yet, it happened, and I feel whole. I feel content for the moment. Beau places kisses up and down my cheek, my neck, my chest, over and over, giving us a moment to catch our breaths.
Like clockwork, the gut churning anxiety creeps in. What now? Do I ask him to leave? Is he going to leave? Do I want him to? I shake slightly under Beau’s touch, and he slides his cock out of me, quickly taking off the condom and throwing it into the nearby trash. He reaches out a hand to me, and I take it.
He squeezes my hand three times. I calm instantly.
Beau leads us into the bathroom, turning on the faucet, and grabbing a washcloth from the rack. “Let me clean you up a bit, and then you can go to the bathroom,” he murmurs, squeezingthe excess water from the rag. He kisses me quickly before bending down.
I stand awkwardly, as Beau cleans between my thighs with a delicate hand. He’s done only moments later, rinsing out the rag and hanging it over the towel rack. “Are you okay?”
I nod, because that’s really all I can do right now. He tips his chin, leaving me alone in the bathroom. I take my time using the restroom, washing my hands, and then wiping the makeup off my face. With each passing minute, the lump in my throat grows, the knot in my chest tightening.
I glance around the bathroom, cursing myself for not grabbing clothes, or something to put on so I don’t have to walk out there naked again. I’m just about to do the walk of shame back to the bed, when there’s a soft knock on the door.
“Mar, I have some pajamas for you. I hope you don’t mind that I grabbed them.”
I sigh with relief. Beau always knows what I need before I need it.
I crack open the door, taking the clothes from his outstretched hand. A few minutes later, I’m in an old t-shirt, and cotton sleep shorts. Beau sits on the edge of the bed in his boxers. His hair is tousled, and there’s marks on his skin from my nails, and mouth. I didn’t even realize I’d scratched him so bad, but the proof is there.
“Sorry,” I mutter, gesturing to his chest.
Beau absentmindedly reaches up, feeling at his skin. When he notices the tenderness, he chuckles. “I had no idea. Trust me, I don’t mind.”
My cheeks heat. I don’t know what to do now, but thankfully, I don’t have to say anything. “Get in bed, I’ll be back in a moment.” Beau points to where he’s pulled down the sheets, and plugged in my phone. He heads into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
I do as he says, cuddling under the blankets as I wait. My thoughts run with every moment of the last hour, from dancing, to kissing, to… oh my god.
I just had sex with my best friend.
I curl tighter within myself, shutting every door I let open in the last hour. I lost control, lost sight of what is best for us, for our friendship, and I gave into my feelings. I wasn’t strong enough, and I gave in. Now, he’s going to toss me aside like he did every other girl before me. Ican’tbe that girl. I need to get away before he can do it.
Beau exits the bathroom, climbing into the bed behind me. He pulls me in close, wrapping his arms around my hips. He’s the big spoon. I’m spooning with my best friend after I had sex with him.
“Stop thinking, Marley,” Beau says, his voice low and rumbling against my neck. One hand slides up my body to my chin, turning so he can press one more gentle kiss to my lips. It’s chaste, as if we’ve been doing it for years. Familiar.
Beau’s held me before, and hell, we’ve cuddled before, but never like this. Never so intimately.
“I can’t,” I whisper back.
“Give in to tonight,” he replies. “Tomorrow is a fresh start.”
A fresh start. A fresh start… without him. This is just a one night thing. It has to be.
I’ve fought so long to keep him, I can’t let one night ruin it all.
11
MARLEY
My head pounds, the sunlight streaming through the open curtains of the hotel room. Arms are banded around me, holding me close and warm. Memories of the previous night flood my brain, and I remember all the realizations I had as Beau held me as we fell asleep.
I’ve never been one for confrontation. As a kid, I had my older brothers to do it all for me, and as time went on, Beau, and the rest of the Cunningham boys were the ones to help me fight my battles. Now, I have to be the one to do the confronting, in what may possibly be the most awkward moment of my life.
So, I do the only thing I know how to do in a situation like this, I run.
12
BEAU
