I can see the steel in her watery gaze, which is zeroed in on me. I give in. "I'll follow you."She nods and climbs out of the Rover. I wait for her truck to pull in front of me then keep her in my sights all the way out to my place.My house isn't exactly close. I grab my phone from the middle console while driving, find Jeff's number, and dial. I don't let him finish saying the name of his law office. "Danny won't be in for the rest of the day. She's not feeling well. She'll be in early tomorrow to do whatever it is she needs to work on.""Okay, Van, but do not hurt that girl.""Got it." I end the call and drive. Finally, my house comes into view. I drive up to the front porch and climb out. Danny, who's already parked, does the same. I walk around her truck and take her hand, leading her up the steps. I don't know why I suddenly need all this hand-to-hand contact with her. I'm not a hand-holder. For some reason, I'm just afraid she'll slip through my fingers if I don't hold onto
DANNY'S FINGERS SQUEEZE AROUND my biceps. Mine leave her breasts and glide down past her waist, so I can run my hands beneath her T-shirt and glide my palms over her skin. I can't get enough of the feel of her. I pull her closer so my erection hits her belly. She moans into my mouth and I growl back into hers.Her hands move up until her fingers tangle in my hair. She pulls her lips away as she pulls me back by the hair. "The sofa," she whispers. Our lips are almost touching, her breathe punching me with need.My mouth quirks. "So you can yell at me again?" I say between just as heavy breathing.Her eyes have gone so dark they're almost black. "Probably."I groan and thrust just a little bit harder into her belly. "My rocket can't take much more."She shoves me back with a husky laugh and I love the sound. "Come on, lover boy." She takes my hand and heads to the sofa. It's the formal one that my mother loved. It's where Joel and I got most of our mom lectures. It's as uncomfortabl
THREE DAYS GO BY and I don't hear a word from Danny, but then she doesn't hear from me either. I've replayed each second of what happened over and over. My brain knew something wasn't right, but my cock didn't care. Spending the night with women got easier as they learned my rules. It's always been a one-time thing, and Danny gave that back to me in spades.I got my rocks off, but I feel completely unsatisfied. I can only wonder how many women felt the same way after a night with the great Van Stelson. I'm not so great anymore. Hell, I probably never was. Part of me is angry, even knowing I don't have a right to be. I care about Danny. I've never felt this before. And now she's fucked me and dumped me. I keep staring at her name on my phone and think about calling her.I'm sure that's exactly how some of the women I've slept with felt. Now I've learned another lesson the hard way and I don't like it. I've never left a woman needy; well, at least not since the first few times I had se
CAMI SITS DOWN WITH a cup of hot tea in front of her. I have a cold beer in front of me.She doesn't waste time, and looks me straight in the eyes as she starts talking. "What embarrasses me most about that night is that I was warned, and I still walked up those stairs with you. For a long time, I looked back and kicked myself again and again. Then I realized that Joel came out of the deal. I needed to tell you that. It was stupid on my part, but I got Joel, so I refuse to take anything back."I've thought about that night repeatedly, too. We were at my house and I grilled steaks. I refilled her wine glass one too many times. I wanted in her pants and I thought only with my dick. It was one night of many that I had with women. Kept having until a few months ago. No excuses. I'm a shitbag.I can't say all this, though. "I hear what you're saying and I know I've apologized before, Cami, and I know it's not enough. I have no excuse." I give her a side grin. "Well, you're hot. It doesn'
IT'S NOT UNTIL MONDAY that I can put plan B in motion. It also sucks that it's a short week because of Thanksgiving. Danny will fly out to her parents' house on Wednesday afternoon. I need to make the most of the time I have.I call Jeff's cell in the afternoon."Did she toss them in the trash?" I ask. These are the first words of the conversation."Give me a minute," Jeff says and, about two minutes later, he's back. "What's going on, Van? I told you not to hurt her."Jeff's a nice guy and I've never heard his current tone before. "I'm trying to fix things. Did she keep the flowers?"Jeff sighs into the phone. "They're next to her desk. She read the note and excused herself for a few minutes. Look, Van, she cried. She tried to hide it, but I've seen the signs a million times in my wife. Danny also asked me to drive her to the airport on Wednesday.""I'm taking her to the airport," I snap."She told me that was the original plan, but now it would be better if I did it."Danny i
THE NEXT MORNING, I work out for two hours before showering and heading to the tavern at eleven. The first thing I notice is the transformation the place has gone through. Christmas decorations are everywhere. An enormous decorated tree stands in an alcove by the fireplace. It depresses me. Christmas always depresses me.The first Christmas after my mom died was hard. Joel and I made frozen pizza and watched games on television. No tree or decorations. My mom loved Christmas, and spoiled us no matter how old we were. Losing her in a car accident took the holiday spirit right out of us, and pizza and ball games became the norm. Joel and I kept up the "do nothing" tradition until two years ago, when Cami came into his life. I stayed in my room and let them have their holiday together, only coming down for the dinner Cami prepared. I ignored the minimal decorations that Cami insisted on, and went back up to my room as soon as I could. Last year, they invited me to their house, but I didn
DICK-FACE DECIDED NOT TO press charges, so there was no bail. My brother and sister-in-law are on a list of people who are not speaking to me, Danny being at the top of that list.I work out Saturday morning and run into several teammates. They can barely control themselves, and laughter breaks out every few minutes. I'm not laughing. I have no idea what came over me the night before. I barely remember my fist connecting with Dick-face's face. I do remember Danny yelling at me.How many times can one guy fuck up?I'm betting on a million, so I have a long way to go.I head home and swim laps in the indoor pool. My brother and I loved this house, or at least we did until my mother died. The love for the place returned slowly for me, but, by that time, I was an adult and the only running around I did was on a rugby field.Thinking about my mother doesn't help my current state. A twenty-seven-year-old man who seriously misses his mommy is pathetic. Punching a guy in the face is pathe
I DON'T HEAR FROM Danny the whole the weekend. When I arrive at work on Monday morning, I'm in good spirits. An hour after I open our headquarters, I walk out of my office in time to see Cami carrying Lilly in one hand and a large bag in the other. Joel, holding a fake Christmas tree, is right behind her. I recognize the tree. I'd given the two of them some of Mom's decorations when Joel moved out. The tree was the one that went in the pool house, for the winter swim party we always had when we were boys. I'm guessing it's now the team's tree.I walk over and hold the door wider for Joel."Thanks," he says after he's inside. He rests the tree on the floor. "Where should it go?" he asks Cami."Here, by the window," she tells him, and places the bag on the counter. She unbundles Lilly from her pink coat and hands her off to me. I remain silent as I take my niece and give her a kiss on the cheek.Joel hefts the tree again and moves it to Cami's designated spot. Cami opens the bag that