“Nadia…? Oh, Pierce? Yeah, she’s over there.”
I whip around so fast to look where he’s pointing, nearly hitting the bumper and tumbling in the process but fuck me there she is.
God I love her.
Chapter four
Time stopped about five minutes ago, at least I think it did, hell maybe longer for all I know. I’ve been consumed tracking every damn move she’s made since I laid eyes on her. Music I once could lip sync word for word is now muted by the heavy thump of my heart.
I’ve waited for this day for weeks, no months, and now that it’s here I don’t know what the hell to do. Panic, that sounds like the most plausible thing really, just fall the hell over and hide in a shell—a human sized armadillo if you will. After years of knowing this woman, fawning over every fucking thing about her, having memorized her morning routine, to knowing how she prefers her coffee—suddenly I’m a deer in headlights.
The fuck is wrong with me? Love, stupid ass, you’re in love with her.
She isn’t new, this isn’t some newfound crush. We’d simply pick up where we left off if you think about it. As if zero time has passed between her breaking it off with me and today. At least that’s how it feels. I’ve kept myself busy, sliding through life, waiting for this very moment and now my damn feet won’tmove. Shit, maybe they’re buried in the ground and it’s the earth refusing to let me join her. Or, perhaps someone wound trailer straps around me when I was too gone to notice, then tied me to the front of the car. Maybe this is a cruel dream and I’m still in my dorm room playing with myself under the blankets.
Whatever it is, goddamn, I need it to let go.
From several yards away I can already feel the soft warmth of her sliding through my calloused grip. The thick, silk-like locks of her hair tangled between my fingers as I knot them in my hand and guide her head back. Then her mouth… fuck. Lush lips, painted with a simple chapstick to keep them from drying too much. Pink, and plump, and mouthwatering.
I’m going to combust right here.
The devil woman herself is decked out in black Converse, denim shorts, and her favorite Mötley Crüe shirt. The same one I’ve seen her wear for different occasions, even dressed down and curled up in bed. She’s worn it so many times the fibers are soft, fragile, and ready to rip with one hard yank. To see her fall out of that damn thing? Heaven. Slight curves, flawless pale skin, the faded summertime freckles sprinkled across her shoulders; she’s a dream to watch undress.
Her hair is up today, instead of falling in thick swaths, teasing glimpses of her face. As much as I like when she wears it down, seeing the way it frames every bend and curve of her features, giving me an inhibited view of her neck, kryptonite. I’ve raked my lips over her pulse as it jumped at the sides until they became raw and the sweet taste of her ingrained itself into my flesh. In the few moments where I lost all decency, I sank my teeth into her until she whined under me and turned different shades of red.
The style makes her look more her age versus how put together she looks when it’s down; waved to perfection and so shiny it looks like a halo at times—something I could thankIvy for I suppose. This is the only time I will ever give Ivy a compliment, so take it and run. Nadia appears less burdened this way; the tendrils of pain and hurt haven’t dragged her into the terrors yet. She’s a warrior in her own rite and she owns it.
Dumbfounded with the ground anchoring me in place, I lean against the front of the Civic and just watch. The fiberglass is cooler after being parked for an hour or so, I think, but the random soft tinks and clinks still ring under the car’s hood every once in a while. Easy to miss if you were wrapped up in the vibe beginning to pick up at this bonfire. Loud music, rambunctious talking, and the soft crackle of flames catching on old skids and branches someone gathered for this night alone.
I’m ready to sweep her off her feet, no joke. Should I be chivalrous about it, hold her up bridle style where I can look down into those chilly eyes before I devour her pillowy lips? Or I could, you know, throw her over my shoulder. Allow my roughened hands to knead her thighs and ass as I walk off into the woods with her. True caveman shit—I mean, I’m feral for her as much as I am obsessed, being a barbarian wouldn’t be too far off the reservation.
I can’t decide. Really. There’s only one way I can caveman myself into her life again and I want to make sure I do it the right way, that she can’t find the strength in herself to get rid of me again. That we are now, we are forever, and she wouldn’t dream of letting me go. Fuck, I’m disgusting. Daydreaming about both demolishing her and praising her violently.
Watching Nadia could be a new favorite pastime; high-definition visual of a walking wet dream. If there were a way for me to have tabs on her at all times, I’d make it happen. If she denies me, refuses to run away from here, and tie herself to me, I’d still creep on her. She wouldn’t be safe in that sense, my lurking eyes glued to the woman who’s laid silent claim to my very existence.
I’ll make my way over to her eventually, once I grow a pair of balls, but where I’m at right now? Observing her curvy frame hoist on the dropped tailgate of her truck, seeing her smile and toss her head back in laughter is becoming a highlight of my fucking night. Frankly, I don’t want to intrude or interrupt anything obviously bringing her joy. That’s until her sharp, silver gaze performs a head-to-head collision with mine and my world stops.
“Rey, yo man, this party is dank. Let’s get out of here.” Wes whines at my left. Nearly distracting me from the sight standing a couple yards away—nearly. Unsuccessful at best.
“Get turned down by every prospect so far?” Zap teases, Wes flying off the handle like he always does. And now they have my attention, pulling my focus from Nadia. Five seconds, can’t they get along for five damn seconds? I don’t want to deal with them, maybe if I ignore them they will go away.
“Man, fuck you. I’m putting itching powder on the couch when we get back to the house.”
“Itching powder? You twelve again? Rey, don’t pay him any mind. It’s a decent party, besides, we came for two reasons and one is staring you down. You going to do anything about that, or just let it simmer?”
“Hmm?” Trying damn hard to tune the two knuckleheads out and hold Nadia’s frigid gaze. I fear she’s doing a better job at ignoring Oliver who’s chattering away next to her and sipping from his red cup.
“Leave him be, Zap. He’s a goner. Princess at twelve o’clock.”
Nadia eases off the tailgate, finally breaking eye contact, then lifts and slams it shut. It’s her dad’s beat up piece of junk, but she sees freedom in it. I understand what it means to her, my first car had me running the roads. Let’s not forget about the pride I had earning and owning something of my own after hard work.Broke my heart when I traded in my old car for the new one, but things had to be done.
I’m about to push away from the Civic and go to her when Wes pops off and gets into another argument with Zap.
“Would you two knock it the fuck off already? Wes, I swear. You must be on your period or something, acting like a temperamental bitch. You’ve been going all damn day. Give it a break.”
Wes bristles next to me but I don’t care. He’s quickly ruining all of the good vibes we’ve hunted for since leaving campus. There’s no telling what his problem is, maybe those few months in county lockup have institutionalized him a bit and he’s itching to get back to the structure he doesn’t have out here.
Go into the military then, fucking titty baby, save us the headache of dealing with the tantrums. Somewhere along the line, his emotional maturity has evaporated and we’re the ones dealing with the fallout.
