“Then tell me what to do. Tell me and I’ll do it,” he pleaded.
Any thoughts of being with Parker were long gone, and I knew it was because of my feelings for Travis. I thought about the different paths my life would take from that moment — trusting Travis with a leap of faith and risking the unknown, or pushing him away and knowing exactly where I would end up, which included a life without him — either decision terrified me.
“Can I borrow your phone?” I asked.
Travis pulled his brows together, confused. “Sure,” he said, pulling his phone from his pocket, handing it to me.
I dialed, and then closed my eyes as it rang in my ear.
“Travis? What the hell? Do you know what time it is?” Parker answered. His voice was deep and raspy, and I instantly felt my heart vibrating in my chest. It hadn’t occurred to me that he would know I had called from Travis’ phone.
My next words somehow found their way to my trembling lips. “I’m sorry for calling you so early, but this couldn’t wait. I…can’t go to dinner with you on Wednesday.”
“It’s almost four in the morning, Abby. What’s going on?”
“I can’t see you at all, actually.”
“Abs….”
“I’m…pretty sure I’m in love with Travis,” I said, bracing for his reaction.
After a few moments of shocked silence, he hung up in my ear.
My eyes still focused on the pavement, I handed Travis his phone, and then reluctantly peered up at his expression. A combination of confusion, shock, and adoration scrolled across his face.
“He hung up,” I grimaced.
He scanned my face with careful hope in his eyes. “You love me?”
“It’s the tattoos,” I shrugged.
A wide smile stretched across his face, making his dimple sink into his cheek. “Come home with me,” he said, enveloping me in his arms.
My eyebrows shot up. “You said all that to get me in bed? I must have made quite an impression.”
“The only thing I’m thinking about right now is holding you in my arms all night.”
“Let’s go,” I smiled.
Despite the excessive speed and the shortcuts, the ride to the apartment seemed endless. When we finally arrived, Travis carried me up the stairs. I giggled against his lips as he fumbled to unlock the door. When he set me on my feet and closed the door behind us, he let out a long, relieved sigh.
“It hasn’t seemed like home since you left,” he said, kissing my lips.
Toto scampered down the hall and wagged his tiny tail, pawing at my legs. I cooed at him as I lifted him off the floor.
Shepley’s bed squeaked, and then his feet stomped across the floor. His door flew open as he squinted from the light. “Fuck no, Trav, you’re not pulling this shit! You’re in love with Ab…,” his eyes focused and he recognized his mistake, “…by. Hey, Abby.”
“Hey, Shep,” I smiled, setting Toto on the floor.
Travis pulled me past his still-shocked cousin, and kicked the door shut behind us, pulling me into his arms and kissing me without a second thought, as if we had done it a million times before. I pulled his shirt over his head, and he slipped my jacket off my shoulders. I stopped kissing him long enough to remove my sweater and tank top, and then crashed into him again. We undressed each other, and within seconds he lowered me to his mattress. I reached above my head to pull open the drawer and plunged my hand inside, searching for anything that crackled.
“Shit,” he said, panting and frustrated. “I got rid of them.”
“
“I thought you didn’t…if I wasn’t with you, I wasn’t going to need them.”
“You’re kidding me!” I said, letting my head fall against the headboard.
His forehead fell against my chest. “Consider yourself the opposite of a foregone conclusion.”
I smiled, and kissed him. “You’ve never been with anyone without one?”
He shook his head. “Never.” I looked around for a moment, lost in thought. He laughed once at my expression. “What are you doing?
“Ssh, I’m counting.” Travis watched me for a moment, and then leaned down to kiss my neck. “I can’t concentrate while you’re doing tha…” I sighed, “the twenty-fifth and two days…,” I breathed.
Travis chuckled. “What the hell are you talkin’ about?”
“We’re good,” I said, sliding down so I was directly beneath him.
He pressed his chest against mine, and kissed me tenderly. “Are you sure?”
I let my hands glide from his shoulders to his backside and pulled him against me. He closed his eyes, and let out a long, deep groan.
“Oh my God, Abby,” he breathed. He rocked into me again, another hum emanating from his throat. “Holy shit, you feel amazing.”
“Is it different?”
He looked into my eyes. “It’s different with you, anyway, but,” he took in a deep breath and tensed again, closing his eyes for a moment, “I’m never going to be the same after this.”
His lips searched every inch of my neck, and when he found his way to my mouth, I sunk my fingertips into the muscles of his shoulders, losing myself in the intensity of the kiss.
Travis brought my hands above my head and intertwined his fingers with mine, squeezing my hands with each thrust. His movements became a bit rougher, and I dug my nails into his hands, my insides tensing with incredible force.
I cried out, biting my lip and clenching my eyes shut.
“Abby,” he whispered, sounding conflicted, “I need a…I need to…,”
“Don’t stop,” I begged.
He rocked into me again, groaning so loudly that I covered his mouth. After a few labored breaths, he looked into my eyes, and then kissed me over and over. His hands cupped each side of my face and then he kissed me again, slower, more tender. He touched his lips to mine, and then my cheeks, my forehead, my nose, and then finally returned to my lips.
I smiled and sighed, exhaustion setting in. Travis pulled me next to him, situating the covers over us. I rested my cheek against his chest, and he kissed my forehead once more, locking his fingers together behind me.
“Don’t leave this time, okay? I wanna wake up just like this in the morning.”
I kissed his chest, feeling guilty that he had to ask. “I’m not going anywhere.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
jealousy
I awoke on my stomach, naked and tangled in Travis Maddox’s sheets. I kept my eyes closed, feeling his fingers caressing my arm and back.
He exhaled with a deep, contented sigh, speaking in a hushed voice. “I love you, Abby. I’m going to make you happy, I swear it.”
The bed concaved as he shifted, and then his lips were on my back in slow, small kisses. I remained still, and just as he had made his way up to the skin just below my ear, he left me to walk across the room. His footsteps leisurely plodded down the hall, and the pipes whined with the water pressure of the shower.
I opened my eyes and sat up, stretching. Every muscle in my body ached, muscles that I never knew I had. I held the sheet to my chest, looking out the window, watching the yellow and red leaves spiral from their branches to the ground.
His cell phone vibrated somewhere on the floor, and after clumsily searching the crumpled clothes on the
