‘The Red.’”
“Good choice on the name.” John squeezed my side and my whole body felt like it was on fire just from his touch. Or it could have been because I took a few big gulps of my drink.
“Thanks.” Short Stack nodded his big head of hair. “Um, but is it cool if I get back to playing Madden?” He rubbed the back of his neck.
John slapped him on the back again, letting out a deep belly laugh. “Do whatever you want. You don’t need to stand here.”
“Okay. Nice meeting you, Red.” He didn’t even look at me before he turned around and ran back to his spot on the couch.
John shook his head. “He’s a nice kid, but dude has got to get better with the opposite sex.”
Me and him both.
“So, you want to watch the guys play some Madden or go downstairs and play some pool?” He squeezed my side and I looked up to see the hint of his eyes underneath his cap. God he was sexy.
“Um.” My hands shook, fiddling with the straps on my purse before I opened it and pulled out his t-shirt. “I brought this back, so I don’t know if you want to put it up in your room first, so I don’t forget it again.”
An all out grin crossed his face. “Keep it. It looks way better on you.”
“Yeah, but it’s yours.” My hands shook, holding his t-shirt between my fingers. Hopefully he didn’t notice.
He leaned over, his lips vibrating on my earlobe. “I think you’re just looking for an excuse to go to my room. You don’t need one.” His tongue traced my earlobe and my legs turned to jelly.
I couldn’t even form any words. Instead my bottom lip quivered and something that sounded like a whimper came from my lips. His breathy laugh fell on my ear. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He lifted his head, turning me toward the staircase.
Each step was like pushing through wet cement. I was really doing this. I was really about to take the stairs up to John’s bedroom. My phone vibrated in my purse and it stopped John in the middle of the stairwell. “Do you need to get that?”
Dammit. Who would be calling me right now? No one ever called me. I usually got a few texts from Monica and my mom and sister rarely called. It had to be some sort of telemarketer. “No, it’s cool.” I tugged on the soft fabric of his shirt and we continued up the stairs.
When we got to the second floor landing there was a couple making out, practically having sex, but that was it for people. They didn’t even acknowledge us. If only my phone would do the same thing. It started vibrating again the moment we got to John’s door.
“Are you sure you don’t need to get that?” He tilted his head, his hand on the doorknob.
“No, no. It’s fine. It’s probably just some really persistent telemarketer.” A cock blocking telemarketer.
“That works for me then.”
He opened his bedroom door and turned on the light. It looked the same as it did the night of the party and had the same smell of stale liquor and sweaty socks. Maybe I should have invited him back to my place instead. The smell alone might have killed me, let alone trying to avoid the land mines of dirty clothes and food wrappers he had on the floor. I took another big gulp of my drink; maybe that would make the room smell better and give me the courage to actually go through with hooking up with the hot bad boy.
“Sorry, I should have cleaned up.” He let go of my waist and bent down, picking up stacks of clothes and tossing them into a pile to clear a path.
“No, seriously it’s fine.” I took another big gulp of my drink and inched down to sit on his futon.
“DON’T SIT THERE!” He yelled and I sprang up like my ass was on fire. I looked back down at the futon and didn’t see anything precious that I could have been sitting on or anything extremely gross.
He dropped the clothes in his hands and then ushered me toward his bed, motioning for me to sit. “You don’t want to know what’s gone on, on that futon. I think Short Stack may have even lost his virginity there.”
I wrinkled my nose. Was that supposed to make me feel better that other people were using his futon for sexual things? I wondered how many girls he had on there himself. Though, it did make me feel a little better that maybe he didn’t just think of me as some sexual tryst. Then again, I also hoped that didn’t mean he didn’t want anything to do with touching me.
Surprisingly, his mattress was very soft, like it was memory foam or something and it molded around my body. His sheets and comforter felt like they had been recently washed and were silky smooth underneath my fingertips.
John threw another pile of clothes and fast food wrappers aside before he took my drink and put it on the night stand and then crouched down in front of me. “Sorry for yelling at you. I just thought you might want to sit somewhere more...comfortable.” His fingers ran down the length of my arm until he interlocked them with mine.
I moved my free hand up to his hat, turning the brim around to the back and locking my eyes with his. “No need to apologize.” The alcohol in my system was making me braver and my libido was turning into full overdrive.
He dipped his head down, leaning in closer until I felt the stubble of his chin on my cheek. know how to control myself around you. “A guy should always apologize, even if he’s done nothing wrong. But I’ve done a lot wrong. I shouldn’t have ignored you. I didn’t want this to be a one time thing because you’re too damn hard to stay away from.”
I giggled. Short Stack really made the drink strong. My nervousness already felt like it was melting away. “So are you. Hard to ignore I mean.”
“I’m glad you feel that way.” His breath tickled my jaw line before he ran his tongue along it. “But I’m sorry about your back.”
“What about my back?” I murmured, lost in the trance of where his tongue was going to go next.
He shoved my back against the mattress, pulling my arms above my head before he crawled on top of me, straddling my hips. “I’m sorry that it might be sore in the morning.”
John leaned over, crushing his lips against mine, not in an apology, but with an urgent fervor. His grip stayed on my wrists, keeping them above my head while his tongue teased mine. I closed my eyes and a soft moan escaped my lips. I wriggled my wrists, wanting to move them along the curves of his body pressed against me.
He moved his lips to my ear, whispering, “I’m sorry, Red, you’re not going to move those hands. Let John Boy do the work.”
His mouth trailed down my jawline, leaving feather light kisses in its wake, until his lips where at my neck. His tongue flicked against my skin, sending a shiver below my belly button. I bucked my hips up to meet his and could feel the bulge forming underneath his jeans. No more awkward moments this time. He wanted me just as bad as I wanted him.
But then of course my phone had to vibrate, loudly, from where my purse lay beside me. John popped his head up and I opened my eyes slowly. “Red, are you sure you don’t need to get that?”
I shook my head feverishly. “No, it’s fine.”
“Are you sure? It’s been ringing a lot.”
I wrapped my legs around his waist, pulling him closer. “I’m positive.”
An all out grin spread across his face and then quickly disappeared into my lips. He tasted like peppermint with a hint of alcohol. He either mouth washed before I got there or was just downing peppermint schnapps. Either way, I wasn’t complaining. His teeth nibbled at my bottom lip before he ran his tongue across it. Each tantalizing move made my body quiver. His lips teased mine, bringing me to the brink of eruption.
Then my phone vibrated again. Dammit. He released the kiss, pulling back like a suction cup. I opened my eyes to be met with his, staring widely at me. “I think you should probably get that.”
He released my wrists and I groaned, turning to the side and pulling my phone out of my purse where it fell beside me. I had quite a few missed calls from a number I didn’t recognize and the same one was calling again. I unlocked my phone and slid it up to my ear. “Hello?” I couldn’t hide the annoyance in my voice.
John sat up, moving his legs until he sat beside me. I slowly leaned up as well, resting my back against the headboard.
“Hello, is this Melanie Wilder?”
