Part 6 (1/2)

Something did flash in his eyes that time. Anger? Frustration? Liz wasn't really sure.

”You'd give up being a reporter after working on the paper all this time?”

Oh. That.

”No. I wasn't planning to.”

”I just . . . well, I wouldn't want to put in all of this time preparing you to be editor after I graduate if you're going to drop out of the paper after I leave.”

After he leaves. She hadn't really thought about him leaving in a while. It didn't sit well with her. She didn't want him to leave.

”I have no intention of going to grad school if I can get a job as a reporter,” she consoled him. ”I just thought it was a nice compliment on my work.”

”It is,” he agreed.

She reached out and took his hand, stroking it gently with her thumb. ”Don't talk about you leaving.”

”What?” he asked, staring down at her pressed into his bed. She saw his eyes take in the position of her body in a sweeping motion, and then he adjusted the way he was sitting.

”I like you here,” she told him. She had never really said anything like that to him before, but as soon as it was out of her mouth she knew it was true. She certainly wasn't ready for Hayden to get a job and move away.

”Well, I'm here right now,” he said, leaning into the bed and letting their lips meet again.

She groaned deep in her throat as need took her where she hadn't been before. Hayden's weight s.h.i.+fted, and his body pressed down on top of her. Liz's hips swayed side to side enticingly. Her hands found his belt and tugged on it to bring him closer to her.

Her breathing grew ragged as their bodies moved in time together. Between her circle eights and his thrusts up toward her, Liz felt like her clothes were going to melt off with the heat they built between them. His body kept up the rhythm in a way that made her eyes roll back at the thought of what he could do to her without the clothes on.

And in the dim lighting he seemed to be exploring her everywhere at once. His lips urged her to continue and his tongue made her body tighten in all the right places. His hand jerked in her hair and she felt her legs spread open to accommodate him further. She could feel his thickness pus.h.i.+ng against her. His other hand had found the seam of her sweater and was pus.h.i.+ng it out of the way. He unclasped her bra and immediately grabbed her breast, kneading it and then pinching her already hard nipples.

f.u.c.k. She was fully clothed and so f.u.c.king turned on.

He released her for just a moment before stripping the sweater over her head. The tank top came next, and she didn't even let him bother with the bra; she just tossed it onto the ground. His head dropped down and he sucked on her nipples.

Liz felt her body coming undone at the seams. How had she ever thought she didn't want this? She had been building everything up in her mind for weeks and weeks: How could she give her body completely to someone she hadn't given everything else to? How could she move on?

But as her heart thudded in her heaving chest and her body arched toward Hayden's lips, her nipples demanding his attention, she couldn't imagine not wanting this with him. She was denying herself for what?

She couldn't comprehend the reasoning as waves crashed over her body.

She didn't want to think about anything but Hayden's lips moving farther south. The sound of a zipper made her clench involuntarily. She wanted him to touch her so badly. Her body was practically demanding it, aching for him. He dragged her jeans down her lean legs and pushed her thong aside as his thumb rubbed against her already sensitive c.l.i.t.

Her body bucked under him, but he took the moan that left her lips as encouragement and licked against her slick folds.

”Oh f.u.c.k,” Liz cried, her body already pulsing.

He slid a finger into her experimentally, and then another when she allowed it. She tightened all around him, imagining how good it would be in that moment to have his c.o.c.k fill her. G.o.d, she was going to come already.

He started to move in and out of her while he licked and bit and sucked her c.l.i.t until she was visibly shaking underneath him. She couldn't hold on. She was seeing spots in her vision. Her toes were curling and she was going from the tingly feeling to utter numbness as her whole body tried to take in the enormity of the o.r.g.a.s.m pressing in on her on all sides.

Hayden forced her legs open wider with one hand as he continued to work. Gasps left her mouth in between the moans. Oh G.o.d, she couldn't hold on any longer. Whatever he was doing right there. Just like that. With his tongue.

Liz's head snapped back and her body pulsed wonderfully as a climax shot through her. Her body moved against his fingers, trying to keep them inside of her even as he slid out. And she just lay there breathing, exhausted and satisfied.

With a deep breath, Hayden rolled off of her before lying back down next to her. He kissed her forehead and pulled her into his bare chest. When had he lost his s.h.i.+rt? She didn't even care right then; she just wanted to curl up against him and pa.s.s out.

”Lizzie,” he groaned, his breathing still uneven. ”I don't want to push you . . .”

He was so used to her saying no that even though she had looked and acted completely willing to move forward, he was hesitant. He didn't want to push her away by pus.h.i.+ng too hard. But he wanted her. It was all over his face.

And yet as dirty as she felt thinking about Brady in that moment, it all came back to her: the reason she hadn't moved forward. Brady. She was still hung up on Brady. She couldn't get him out of her head. She ducked into Hayden's chest and tried not to think about Brady, but the image of him only came to her stronger.

She wasn't ready.

Chapter 6.

TRUST FOSTERS TRUST.

Hey, gorgeous, are you out of cla.s.s yet?

The text from Hayden flashed on her phone just as Liz was packing up. She shouldered her backpack and turned to leave. She was glad that she only had early cla.s.ses on Friday.

Just got out.

Lunch? I'm starving, and I miss you.

Liz's smile quirked on her face. Ever since that night when she had lost herself in him, she had found something in her changing. Even though they had been dating for nearly four months now, she felt what she could only a.s.sociate with honeymoon b.u.t.terflies: when in that initial stage of a relations.h.i.+p, all you wanted to do was spend all your time with the other person, and the mere thought of them made you break into a smile . . . yeah, that was where she was at.

If Hayden noticed the subtle changes in her behavior, he didn't say anything, but he sure responded well to it. They still hadn't had s.e.x, but she didn't have the same reluctance anymore. Now she had waited long enough that she just wanted the moment to be right. She didn't want to walk into his bedroom and be like, f.u.c.k me. Though she couldn't see Hayden complaining about that either.

Yes. I need food. Where do you want to go?

Home . . .

Liz cracked a smile. Geez. She was giggly. She needed to work on that, but she knew she couldn't control it.

As she was typing out a response, another message came in, this one from Justin.

Hey, I just got into town. Sorry I'm late. Are we still meeting up today?

She had totally forgotten that Justin was coming in today. She had even forgotten to tell Hayden. She should probably call him to let him know.

Yeah. Top O?

Definitely.

Liz found Hayden's number in her phone and clicked Send. He answered immediately, ”Hey. I'm just leaving the paper now. Where should I meet you?”