In response, I press my ass against the bulge in his pants, which is slowly starting to strain against the fabric.
“Careful there, darlin’,” he murmurs, “Keep that up and David’s really gonna get a front row seat.”
“Not if we’re alone, he won’t,” I whisper in a teasing tone, swirling my hips at just the right angle to have him whispering“fuck”under his breath.
“Alright, everyone out,” Griffin says loudly, voice straining with the effort to sound positivelynothot and bothered.
“Bro, we just started a game!” David yells in protest.
“Hey, you can save your dignity instead of getting your ass kicked again,” Abby says, standing and dropping the controller onto the seat. “I think our current record is forty five to eight, right?”
“Forty five to nine,” he grumbles under his breath, throwing his own controller to the other end of the couch.“C’mon crybaby,” Jack says, grabbing David by the collar and pulling him toward the stairs. “We can go practice at my house so you can make it forty five to ten.”
“I swear she’s cheating somehow,” he whines, voice fading as stomps up the stairs, Abby and Aaron following closely behind.
The second the door slams shut, Griffin has me thrown over his shoulder, bolting upstairs to his bedroom.
“Griffin, you’re going to drop me,” I say, giggling, then letting out a yelp when he smacks my ass.
“Like hell I will,” he says gruffly. “At least not before we make it to bed.”
Kicking his door open, he keeps his word as he sets me on the mattress, immediately climbing over me to pin me down with his hips.
“I think you get off on teasing me more than anything else,” he says against my lips, claiming my mouth in a heated kiss.
“I can’t help that it’s so fun,” I say between kisses. “You get so worked up so fast.”
“Because you’re the most stunning Goddamn thing I’ve ever seen,” he says, drawing a moan out of me as he grinds his rock-hard erection against the needy spot between my legs. “And I still can’t believe you’re mine.”
Pulling back to look into his chocolate eyes, wide with desire, I stroke one thumb across his cheek.
“I’ve always been yours,” I say seriously. “Always will be.”
“I love you so much, Eleanor,” he says, voice shaky. “I know we’re young, and you have so much you want to do, but you’re it for me.Iwill always beyours.”
Something about that stops my breathing, a twinge of anxiety stabbing in my chest. I do have so many things I want to see and accomplish before I settle down. I don’t want to be one of those girls who gets married right out of high school and never leaves her hometown.
He’s not asking you to, Ellie. Just enjoy this.
I fist his hair, bringing his mouth back to mine, trying to show how much I love him rather than saying it back. There will be time to think about futures and logistics later–for now, I want to enjoy the beautiful boy holding me like I’m the most precious thing in the world.
I flip us over so that I’m straddling him with my hands on his chest, looking down at him and marveling as his eyes go from sweet to smoldering. He slides his hands up my ribs, silently asking permission to get rid of my tank top. I lift my arms over my head to let him, and he groans when he realizes I’m not wearing a bra underneath.
“Dirty girl,” he says with a dark chuckle. “If I’d known what you had going on under that top, I would have kicked everyone else out hours ago.”
Leaning forward, I brush his ear with my lips and whisper, “Wait til you see what I’ve got going on underneath these shorts.”
Quick as lightning, I’m underneath him again as he makes quick work of yanking my shorts down my legs andtossing them across the room. His eyes rake over my naked body, and he lets out a low, slow groan.
“Fuck Eleanor, I’ll never get tired of this view,” he says before removing his own shirt and jeans, leaving nothing between us but the thin material of his boxers. I lock my legs behind his back, hips rising up to meet him with every stroke of his hard cock against my slit.
“You’re so wet already,” he moans, kissing and biting at my neck. “Look at the mess you’re making on my boxers. The way you respond to me makes me go fucking feral.”
We’ve fooled around more times than I can count since that first night together, but we still haven’t taken that final step yet. He’s been so unbelievably patient with me–I can’t explain why, but every time we get close, my whole body tenses up and my heart starts racing, and not in a good way.
I think it’s lingering anxiety from the way Bennett weaponized physical intimacy–saying things like “Getting off is the only thing that helps me unwind after a long day,” and “I’m obviously going to be short with you if I’m stressed out and you won’t do anything to help me.” When I told Griffin about the way he would manipulate me, I had to hold him tight and reassure him that I’m okay now, that I feel safe with him, until finally he stopped shaking with rage.
I still get choked up when I think about how upset he was on my behalf. He was more than that–he seemed truly distraught that anyone would treat me that way. Every time I’ve pumped the brakes or asked to slow down, he’s stopped without hesitation, gently wrapping me in his arms and repeatedly telling me that he’d wait for me forever, that he’s not going anywhere.
