Page 27 of My Sweet Cherry
When we got to the bottom of the stairs, we came to a halt. Carter stood there, holding a boombox and a take-out container from Hank’s. “What are you doing here?”
“You said to stop calling,” he said. “But I can’t let you believe anything Benny said. Beth, you have to listen to me. I mean, for crying out loud, I’m here practically begging you. I broughtpie.”
“That’s kind of cute,” Isabella whispered, and I elbowed her in the side. She grunted and clamped her mouth shut.
I sighed, stepping forward. “How did he know you made me the tape and that you took me to your spot? He said you’ve done that with every girl just to get them in bed. How did he know all that if it’s not true?”
Carter gritted his teeth, and his fist tightened around the handle on the boombox before it relaxed again. “He saw me make you the tape, right before I told him where we were going. I didn’t know he would use it against me.” He held up his hands, showing me the pie and the boombox again. “I have never once groveled. If you were any other woman, I would’ve let you go. But, cherry, I can’t do that with you.”
“Why not?” What was stopping him from letting me do exactly that? “Why not me?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe because the first time I saw you blush, it changed something in me, or maybe because you smile and the entire room stops breathing. Or maybe it’s because I have craved nothing but cherry pie for the last three weeks, and you’re the only one I want to share it with.” When he closed the distance between us, I didn’t back away. “Please, believe me that there’s absolutely nothing about you that can be found with any other woman.”
“What about Benny?” I blinked back the tears that teetered on the edge of my eyelids.
“I’m done with Benny. I kicked his ass and told him to find somewhere else to live.” He handed me the pie again, smiling when I took the container from him. “I meant it when I said I can’t let you go.”
I looked at the pie, and my stomach grumbled. It sounded a lot more appetizing than any messy drinks. “Carter…” I couldn’t bite back the smile pulling at my lips or resist the rush of need that flooded me when I got a whiff of his cologne.
He set the boombox down on the sidewalk, hitting play. The familiar intro took me back to the front seat of his car the day we had gone for the drive. Carter started to sing. “And you want my love. Well that’s alright. Well it will be there for you, morning, noon, and night.” Butterflies I had missed started to race around my stomach. “Come on, don’t leave me hanging.”
“But you gotta be good. And do it right. Ain’t got no time for part-time lovin’ in my life,” we sang together, getting louder with each line until I forgot that there were people listening to us. I forgot that I had spent two days crying and convincing myself that I shouldn’t have gotten so attached. I forgot that I had been gullible enough to believe the lies.
Carter grabbed my free hand and tugged me against him. “Well you wanna be loved. Hey that’s okay.” Then he kissed me while the song continued. I melted against him, savoring the familiarity of the way his tongue danced over mine and the way he inhaled each of my breaths so eagerly. “What do you say, cherry? Think you can believe me?”
“Yes. Yeah.” I nodded, throwing my arms around his shoulders and kissing him again. I kissed him until I whimpered, and someone cleared their voice behind us. “What do you think? Think you can forgive me for believing Benny and not giving you the benefit of the doubt or letting you talk to me?” My stomach flipped when I said it out loud. I hated when people inthe movies didn’t talk it out, and I had been so fast to jump to conclusions myself.
“I’ve already forgiven you.” He kissed my forehead before resting his against it. “Now what do you say we go inside and have that pie?”
I giggled when my stomach grumbled again. Then I looked over my shoulder at my friends who had probably not so much as blinked during this whole thing. “I’m supposed to go to a party,” I said, nodding over my shoulder.
“What if we go to a party tomorrow night? I don’t think I want to share my girl with anyone tonight.” He wrapped his arm around me.My girl.I looked back at my friends, unsure if they would demand that I hold up my end of the bargain. When Isabella sniffled and Amy gave me a thumbs up, I figured they wouldn’t mind too much.
“I love pie.” I let him lead me toward the dorm while I cast a final look over my shoulder. “I’ll catch up with you two later.”
Chapter 25
Carter
“Do you want the last bite?” I watched Beth scoop the last bite of cherry pie onto the fork we shared, watching crumbs fall back into the container. She put her hand under it to stop them from falling on her mattress, completely unbothered when a drop of cherry filling landed on her middle finger.
“I want you,” I said, wiggling my brow and feeling satisfied when she blushed. She had only been ignoring me for a couple of days—how could I miss the sight so much so quickly?
Beth lifted the fork to my lips, and I opened my mouth, taking the bite. “You can have both,” she said. I had barelystarted chewing when her lips met mine, and her tongue on my bottom lip begged that I share the bite with her. She dipped her tongue into my mouth, stealing a taste before she hummed her approval. “Seriously, that’s so good.”
She brought her fingers to her mouth and licked the sticky, cherry filling that had dripped on them. While she did, her stare held mine, and I swallowed. When she must have decided her fingers were clean enough, she pulled them from her mouth with a quietpopand giggled. “So now what do you want to do?” I asked her, grabbing her by the hips and pulling her into my lap.
“That depends,” she said sheepishly, looking down and to the side. “What are my options?” Her hips rolled gently, like her body was trying to answer for her. It was okay—her eagerness matched mine.
“Well—” I grabbed her hips, holding her still while her breathing quickened with anticipation. “We can go to that party you were on your way to. Youdolook incredible in this dress.” I ran my finger over the side of her thigh and up to the hemline of her skirt that kept riding closer to her hips.
Her breath hitched when a trail of goosebumps grew under my touch. “What is option B?” The husky tone to her voice told me exactly what she wanted the second choice to be.So do I.
“We can stay here and see how many times I can get you to remind your neighbors of my name. It just sounds so much better when you scream it.” I kissed her neck when she gasped, as if she was surprised by the option. Her body leaned into mine, answering for her.
“I didn’t want to go to that party anyway,” she nearly moaned before she kissed me. Her fingers worked their way into my hair, and the eagerness in her kiss earlier grew to desperation and need. Beth’s hands shook when she tugged at the hem of my shirt, pulling it off over my head and tossing it on the floor. “And I haven’t stopped thinking about you in three days.”
I reached behind her, tugging the zipper on the back of her dress and tracing behind it with my fingertips. When it was at the bottom, the fabric fell loose from her shoulders, revealing the lack of bra she wore beneath it. Suddenly I wanted to know what else was under the dress. Was it the same simple cotton panties I had taken off her before?
