Page 104 of Don't Leave
A fresh wave of humiliation crashes over me again, making me feel even worse.
Before I can get away from him, Cole tightens his arms around my wriggling body. They feel like steel bands holding mefirmly in place. Even as I continue to fight, I know the struggle is futile. I won’t be going anywhere until he decides to release me.
“Do you want to know what’s even more embarrassing than that?”
Lips smashes together, I refuse to respond.
When it becomes obvious that I’m not going to answer, he says, “Having your mom barge into your room when you’re balls deep in your girlfriend and seconds away from blowing your load. Trust me,that’s a lot worse. And because that experience wasn’t mentally scarring enough, I had to sit down with her and my stepfather to discuss the ramifications of what Jackie and I were doing with our bodies. It unfortunately ended in an overly graphic power point presentation regarding STI’s and pregnancy.” He shudders. “The only thing that would have made it worse is if she’d decided to give me a few pointers and tips before finally allowing me slink back to the scene of the crime.”
A smile trembles around the corners of my lips as laughter explodes from me.
His arms tighten around me as he grins. “Oh, so that’s funny, huh?”
When his dimples pop, my heart melts.
“I didn’t have sex for two months after that fiasco.” He shakes his head at the memory.
I’m dying as I imagine Dr. Thompson sitting down to have an in-depth sex talk with a teenage Cole.
After my giggling subsides, he says, “So, do I think it’s a catastrophe that my mother knows I’m having sex with someone I love and that we’re trying to be responsible about it?” He shakes his head. “No. Honestly? It doesn’t bother me at all.”
I shoot him a look from beneath the fringe of my lashes. “She knows about my past, Cole. She knowseverythingabout me.”
He shrugs. “Who cares? You’ve worked hard this semester to overcome everything and I’m proud of you for that, Cassidy. In the grand scheme of things, nothing else matters.”
His words ring throughout my head as I release a steady breath. “You’re right.” I press my lips to his. “I’m sorry if I made a big deal out of it. I just don’t want there to be any more secrets between us.”
His mouth ghosts over mine. “I don’t care about any of that.” His tongue slips inside my mouth as his hands slide under my T-shirt before settling on my breasts and stroking my nipples.
Just as my head lolls back, a deep voice says, “Breakfast and an X-rated show! Now that’s how you start off the morning.”
We swing around and find Alex wearing a huge smile. When Cole growls, he raises his hands in a gesture of surrender before backing out of the kitchen, leaving us alone again.
I duck my head and press my face against the curve of Cole’s neck before groaning.
“Maybe we should take this X-rated show back up to the bedroom.”
I lift my face to meet his gaze. My cheeks feel like they’re on fire. “Is this one of those embarrassing stories we now get to tell?”
“Sure, but it’ll probably take a couple of months before it seems funny.”
Before I can say anything else, he rises to his feet with me held securely in his arms and strolls out of the kitchen and back up to his bedroom. Once the door to Cole’s room is closed, I realize we’ve missed our nine o’clock class.
I guess we’ll have to borrow Sammy’s notes.
As Cole slides his thick erection inside me, the world around us falls away. It doesn’t take long before we’re both splintering apart.
Last year, when I got kicked off the hockey team and failed out of Dartmouth, I couldn’t imagine anything good ever coming out of it. But that’s exactly what happened. If my life hadn’t taken a detour, I wouldn’t have found Cole or fallen in love with him. And I wouldn’t have this opportunity to forge a new relationship with my mom and an even better one with my father. Brooklyn and I wouldn’t be roommates or best friends. And I wouldn’t be playing hockey on a team that I actually enjoy.
Even though last year was painful and it felt like I’d lost everything important to me, I actually ended up gaining more than I ever imagined possible.
Unable to help myself, I reach up and brush the hair out of Cole’s eyes. One side of his mouth hitches at the corner.
I honestly couldn’t love him more.
“What are you thinking about?” he asks as we lay spent in each other’s arms.
For a moment, my mind is filled with all the good that has found its way back into my life.
