Smart Tass

  He must’ve noticed the freaked look on my face because he throws out, “If you want to stay here, that is. If not, there’s another room right down the hallway.”

  I don’t know what to say, so I run my hands over my hair and whoosh out a breath. Okay. Okay. This is happening.

  Hunter’s offering to take my virginity tonight. For real.

  The look on his face is as serious as it is carnal. I can see the hunger in his eyes.

  I suddenly think about him naked, on top of me, right there in that big bed I’m now eying cautiously.

  “Okay.” He holds up his hands in the I-surrender position. “I’m sorry I said anything. I’ll show you that other room.”

  He moves toward the open doorway.

  “Wait. Just…” I wince, trying to clear my head. “Just wait.”

  “What?” He sounds angry.

  “We have got to talk.”

  “I think you just made yourself pretty clear.”

  Huh? “About what?” Because I haven’t said a damned word yet.

  “It’s always been like this with you, Tassie. I don’t know why I expected it to change.”

  “What are you talking about?” I ask, because I’m genuinely lost.

  “This…thing with you, it’s…” He shakes his head toward his feet and places his hands on his sides. “It’s fucked up.”

  I blink, trying to process. “I don’t understand. What have I ever done to deserve that awesome comment?”

  “I’ll make it clear for you: You’re a stuck-up little snot-nosed snob.”

  “Snob?” I whisper.

  “Yes, you’ve always looked down your nose at everyone. Including me. You’re like this little carbon print of your parents.”

  “Whoa. I don’t think that I’m better than everyone else,” I say, but it’s a lie. I know it is.

  “Really?”

  “Okay, maybe I used to. Maybe I tried to focus on my strengths, but how else was I going to survive all those years of your abuse?”

  Hunter’s eyes fill with rage. He turns toward the door, and I think he’s going to leave, but no. He slams it shut and turns around, preparing to tear me a new one—finger pointed accusatorily, face red, veins popping from his neck.

  Jesus. I instinctively step back.

  “You,” he growls in a low voice, “you deserved every bit of public humiliation.”

  “Ohmygod. Are you out of your mind? You threw food at me. You had the entire school picking on me, making fun of my virginity and the fact I wasn’t pretty. You were cruel, Hunter. Fucking cruel to the bone.”

  “Wrong. I defended you. Repeatedly. Only to be slapped in the face. Then I gave you everything you deserved, Tassie. Because you dished it out twice as bad back to me.”

  He’s out of his thick skull! “What did I do to you?” I bite back.

  “Geez, Tass. I don’t know,” he says like a giant smartass. “You try hearing you’re a stupid pea-brained dumb jock from the smartest person in school. And then you try going home and hearing the same bullshit from your father. I had him at night and you during the day. It’s a fucking miracle I didn’t jump off a goddamned bridge.”

  Oh. I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut. Or that he’s pierced my heart with something cold. The pain is immediate, and I can only assume because he’s telling me something I know is true.

  Was I the aggressor?

  That can’t be right. I turn, walk over to the bed, and sit on the edge. All these years, I told him he was stupid, worthless. I never imagined he’d been listening.

  But he was.

  My brain does some acrobatics, pulling together the pieces. I’m starting to think that his lashing out at me was never about me. It was about his father—the guy he couldn’t lash out at. But did I really deserve all that?

  I swallow. “It doesn’t excuse what you put me through, Hunter.”

  He blows out a breath and drags his hand over his short messy hair. “I know that now, Tass. I know I was a dick and taking out my frustrations on you. And I know that I crossed the lines sometimes, but you always laughed me off. As hard as I pushed or messed with you, you just smiled and told me to fuck off. Or you called me stupid and walked away. I had no idea you ever gave a shit about what I said or did to you. Not until the other day when you told me.”

  I try to pull it all in and digest, but mostly I’m thinking about how stupid we both were. It would’ve taken so little to change things. I could’ve told him how he was affecting me, but I was too proud. I’m now guessing he was in the same boat.

  “Well,” I look down at my palms, “I’m sorry. Because you’re not stupid. I am. I should’ve known better.” I did, after all, live next door to Hunter. I heard the things his father said.

  Hunter sits next to me on the bed but doesn’t speak for a long moment. “I’m sorry, too.”

  With hesitation, I glance at him. We made each other so miserable that it’s almost comical. Almost. Regardless, I start to laugh.

  “What?” he says with a smile.

  “You really pushed my buttons. I mean the pranks and the whole ‘you’re my nerd’ thing. You’re the king of psychological warfare.”

  “Well, I’m not going to lie. I did enjoy it. Just a little.”

  “I think I did, too. I mean, you know—seeing you try so hard to get to me, and then there’d be that whole disappointed look on your face when you didn’t get anything.”

  He bobbed his head. “I think that’s why I always liked you so much. Everything just slid right off—nothing bothered you. Everything bothered me.”

  He was very good at hiding it. “So you wanted to be like me, is that it?”

  “That’s pushing it.” He grins. “I think I was more interested in dating you—the one girl I couldn’t have.”

  His words shock the hell out of me, and my smile fades.

  “Don’t look so surprised, Tassie. I hinted at it enough times.”

  No. No, he didn’t. Or, at least, he wasn’t speaking my geeky language. “I always thought you were joking.”

  “Would you have acted differently if you’d known I was serious?” he asks.

  “I don’t know,” I answer honestly. It all feels so long ago, and I feel so different.

  “And now?”

  It takes me a long moment to work up the courage to answer him. I turn my head and look him in the eyes. “Now I can’t see wanting anyone but you.”

  “I feel the same way, Girl Back Home.” The corner of his lip curls into a sinful, cocky little smile. “Can I kiss you now?”

  So it was me. All along. “Oh God, yes.”

  His mouth is on mine fast. His kiss is rough and raw, packed with emotion. I place my hand on the side of his face, drinking in the male texture of his short stubble. I open up to him, allowing his tongue to slide over mine and tangle and lap. He tastes like I imagined he would, sweet and delicious. It’s my first real kiss, and I realize that had it been with anyone else, it would not have been this good.

  His lips push and slide over my mouth, and the energy and emotion pour out of me. I can’t ever remember wanting something so bad.

  His strong arms snake around my back and pull me closer. His tongue goes deeper. The heat floods between my legs, and all I can think about is how much I want him to use that powerful, masculine body of his to relieve the pressure.

  “I want to fuck you,” he pants in between searing hot kisses. “Right now.”

  I surmise he’s asking permission. He’s got it.

  I pull back from his sensual lips and whip my T-shirt off. He looks at me for a moment—at my eyes, neck, and chest. “You’re so fucking beautiful.”

  I smile. It feels better than I ever imagined to hear him say that.

  He reaches out and slides the strap of my bra down my shoulder and then the other, exposing my bare breasts. “Really sexy.”

  He pushes me back on the bed and stands.

  The shirt comes off, and I want to moan. The endless ripple
s of rock-hard abs and those rails of muscle running along the inside of his hips are unreal. He’s more ripped than I remember.

  “Unbutton your pants,” he says.

  I slowly slide my hands down and do as he asks.

  “And the zipper,” he adds, so I do that, too.

  He grabs hold of the legs of my jeans and pulls down, leaving me in just my panties.

  He stares hungrily at the apex between my legs, and suddenly I wonder what I’ve got on.

  I look down. Shit. Saturday Hello Kitty? Really, Tass. Couldn’t even manage some plain old respectable bikini briefs?

  “Wow. Now those are sexy,” he says with a smirk.

  I laugh. “Glad you like them. I’ve got the whole week. Play your cards right and I’ll let you see them.”

  He laughs and then reaches for the front of those jeans. From the first pop of a button, I can see the dark, coarse hair inside. Another pop and the base of his cock.

  I am transfixed by the raw maleness of his body and the immediate sexual need it provokes.

  He slides down his pants, not showing any shyness over standing naked in front of me. I can’t look away. His cock is thick and long and perfectly pink. It has much more girth than I’d imagined.

  “Oh-okay…?” I swallow down a dry lump in my throat, feeling excruciatingly aroused by the thought of him being inside me.

  He climbs onto the bed, straddling one knee between my legs, and then dips his head. He places a lingering kiss right over my panties on top of my throbbing c-spot. “You smell so sweet.” He kisses me again. “I wanted to taste you so badly the other day in the library, I had to jerk off right after that.”

  His face had been pretty damn close to everything down there, but who knew he’d been having dirty little fantasies about it?

  The thought turns me on so much that my nipples harden to tight little pebbles. I’m too shy to ask him to suck on them and relieve the tension.

  Hunter slowly peels down my underwear and then sucks in a breath. “Fucking hell. I think I’m going to come just looking at you.” He takes his fingers and gently spreads me. I don’t know if this is what guys like to do, but if just looking at his abs and cock and balls turns me on, I’m guessing it’s the same for a guy. They just want to see it all.

  He bends his head once again and places a soft kiss right over my clit. I gasp and grab fistfuls of the comforter. I’ve never felt anything better. I can’t stop panting. I think I might explode or die of a heart attack if he doesn’t make me orgasm in the next ten seconds.

  “Just do it. Get it over with,” I pant.

  He looks up from my groin with a mischievous smile. “Ohellno. I’ve waited fucking years for this.”

  He slides partly off the bed so he’s kneeling down there and removes my panties along the way. “Come here.” He grabs hold of my calves and drags me down so my valley is fully exposed and in his face. “That’s better.”

  He pushes his mouth between my legs and starts kissing and licking. The warmth and pressure are too much, and the tension inside my core shoots through the roof. I can even feel my skin tighten around my bones.

  I reach for his head and grind into him, pushing my hips rhythmically, in sync with his tongue. “Fuck, fuck. Oh God. I’m going to…” My voice fades into nothing and my body snaps and releases. Everything lights up with sinful waves of hard, hot euphoric contractions. Just as I’m coming, groaning hard, he slides a finger inside me. It stings. I just don’t care. I want him deep. I want more. I never want this to stop.

  He milks my climax with his skillful tongue and penetration. All I can do is pant his name.

  After several long moments, I feel my body relaxing and floating back down to earth. He pulls his hand away and places one last kiss right over my now hypersensitive bud.

  I wince, but it still feels good.

  “You need a minute?” he says in that deep husky voice.

  I look down at him halfway off the bed, kneeling between my knees. “I don’t know. I can’t think.”

  “Neither can I. You’re so sexy, Tass. I’ve never wanted anyone like I want you.”

  I blink at him. It’s a sweet thing to say. “Are we going to…have sex now?” I ask.

  “Yes.”

  I draw a breath. I know what he just did down there was to prepare me, make it less painful. But it’s still a little harrowing. He’s not a small guy.

  “Okay. I’m ready.” I scoot back on the bed and grab my T-shirt, putting it underneath me. I feel weird doing that, but I’d feel worse explaining to Henry why I’ve ruined his comforter.

  Hunter stands up, grabs his jeans, and fumbles with something. His back is to me, so I can’t see what he’s doing. But I do see his perfect ass and him chucking the black and gold wrapper on the floor.

  I knew it! Magnums.

  He climbs back up onto the bed and lays himself between my legs. His body is heavy and hot. I love how his soft skin and hard muscles feel against mine.

  “Are you ready?” he asks.

  “Does a koala have fingerprints?”

  “Huh?” He frowns.

  “Yes. Yes. I’m ready.”

  He bows his back and places the tip of his cock at my entrance. “Just relax.”

  I do. I lay my head back, wanting to remember this moment, the sensation of his skin, the sound of his breath.

  He thrusts, and I gasp. It hurts worse than I expected, but it also feels so much better too. I let out a soft moan.

  “You good?” he asks.

  “Yeah, just give me a minute.”

  He pulls out slowly and then slides back in at a torturously slow pace. My body just wants him deeper. The need to have him move and push is animalistic. It’s like no other.

  Our mouths press together in wild, hot searing kisses, tongues dancing. His body works over mine—strong shoulders, back, hips—driving his cock deep inside me. His hands are on my breasts, his balls are slamming into my base, his breath is mixing with mine.

  I reach under his arms and press my fingertips into his back, pulling him deeper and wrapping my legs around him. I claw at him to get everything.

  The erotic sensation builds again, but this time there’s more. It’s starting from the center of my womb and spreading out through my back and hips and legs. He thrusts hard, and then I’m coming.

  “Hunter. Oh God.” I pant. “Don’t stop.”

  He doesn’t. He uses that strong body to fuck me into the next hemisphere. I claw at his muscled back and then feel his body tighten. He opens his eyes and looks at me for a moment, like a hesitation. But then he can’t stop himself. He’s watching me come. He’s watching me crumble into a million pieces beneath him.

  He pumps again—harder, more savage this time—and comes with me. I feel his cock twitch inside as he jets his cum. The sensation drags another orgasm right out of me. The thought of him ejaculating is nothing shy of erotic. Mindless, carnal, and erotic.

  I move my hips into him, unable to stop the addictive bliss from feeling our two bodies joined.

  He thrusts one final time and then lets out a deep guttural sound. I widen my legs and take him deep, flexing around him, milking him. I love him inside me and how he fills me.

  Without pulling out and still panting, he dips his head and places a slow kiss on my mouth. “Please tell me you liked that,” he whispers.

  I don’t have a clue how to process what just happened. It’s a lot. It’s a lot. Hunter just fucked me. My first time. It was great. He’d done everything right and made me feel sexy and beautiful and wanted. I don’t think I can ever want anyone else like I want him, and it’s terrifying.

  “Tass?”

  I realize he’s still inside me with his elbows propping him up.

  “Yeah?”

  “Was it okay?” he asks again.

  “Completely.”

  “Good.” He kisses me lazily. “Because I think I’d like to do that again.”

  He can’t be ready already, I think. “So
soon?”

  “It’s a first for me. But maybe my body wants to make up for lost time.”

  I smile at him and brush my fingers over his brow. I still have so much to say and process about us, but right now I simply want to be with him. He and I are finally on the same team, and I suddenly wonder if we weren’t all along.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  The rest of the evening is a complete blur. Hunter and I have sex once more in the bed—slow and soft. Then we take a shower together. I’ve obviously never bathed with a guy before, but I quickly come to realize how sensual it is. I love sliding my soapy hands over the hard curves of his ass and arms. I love feeling his naked chest against my bare breasts. I will never shower alone again as long as he’s around.

  After the shower we talk a little. Mostly he’s just apologizing for hurting me. I do the same. Then I feel like this enormous weight has been lifted from my body and soul.

  Then, slowly, his eyes start to close. “You feel good in my arms, Tass,” he mumbles right before dozing off.

  I smile and snuggle into his smooth warm chest. “Ditto.” He’s left me raw, thoroughly worked over, and one hundred percent feeling like I’d been saving myself for this. With anyone else, it would’ve been sex. But with him, it was…intense. He made me feel like no one else mattered.

  We fall asleep, but it doesn’t take long for my body to call. I need to pee. I need water. I need food. In that order.

  With Hunter sound asleep, his Adonis-like frame under the covers, I take care of business and then head to the kitchen in my pajamas in search of hydration and nourishment.

  Every ounce of my being glows. He’s brought me into a mental state where I clearly see what I want and who I’m meant to be. Not a girl looking for approval, but a young woman taking her place in life.

  I am almost to the kitchen when I hear my name spoken, then Hunter’s.

  “Dude, seriously? I wouldn’t bang that for a Super Bowl ring,” says a deep voice.

  “Mike, you’re a dick,” says a girl I don’t recognize.

  “Yeah,” says another girl. “You’re being a pig.”

  “Hey, I’m not the one fucking a geek for points,” the voice says.

  For a moment, I’m thinking they’re talking about Elle and Henry. But then…