So much for not letting the emotions in. Scott could have died out there. I would have done anything to save him. To get back to him. Fuck anyone who said I did something wrong while saving him from Don Angelo and his henchmen.
"They got to him just in time. Miraculously, barring any complications in surgery, Joey is going to live. He may lose a leg and possibly a testicle, but he'll live," he said, softening with the mention of Scott. I breathed a sigh of relief. There was so much blood, I was sure Joey was a dead man. Scott wasn't forgetting the images of me standing over a near lifeless Joey anytime soon, but at least I didn't kill him. That was a start. I knew I read you right, Jeff. You may have fucked up, but you do care about Scott, don't you? "Even if I could make everything else go away, you and your father are high profile criminals. The DA will push to try you for first degree murder if Don Angelo doesn't makIt had been a week since Stacy and I got back from Chicago. We were crashing in the cottage since it seemed to give her peace of mind. She was under house arrest, so she couldn't exactly change her mind now anyway. She went straight back to hitting the books after we slept for a day, only waking up to eat and drink. Their deal was still in limbo as we waited for Don Angelo to wake up, but Jeff still accommodated Stacy taking her exams as part of their arrangement. He sent over an FBI escort to take her to campus and bring her home after as needed. Adjusting was hard. For the first few days, every time I touched her, all I saw was that gun in her hand while she stood over Joey's still body. I kissed her head and laid my hands on her shoulders when I took her meals anyway. She didn't touch me back, but I could tell she wanted my presence. Expected it. Or maybe that was just wishful thinking. Either way, she had to eat and she certainly wasn't feeding herself. I had to
I wanted to get us back on track, hopefully in time to propose in two days. That was probably wishful thinking, but I so desperately wanted her to be on the same page about us as I was. If she wasn't though, it would be okay. The proposal could wait. I just wanted my girlfriend back. Being so wrapped up in it all, I didn't even have the energy to see Kenny, despite having nothing but time. So when he called and said the engagement ring was ready, I was happy about seeing a friendly face. Even though we hardly spoke, I didn't like leaving her alone in the house for too long. Hanging out with Kenny and Marlene for an hour or two was probably okay though. I could always see Jeff tomorrow at lunch instead of meeting him for a drink tonight. I texted Stacy about where I was before I rang the doorbell. When the door swung open to reveal not just Kenny, but also Willow and my mom, I knew I was in for a bumpy evening. Willow and my mom hadn't called Stacy once
"Do you know why we even thought you were cheating in the first place? Because you fucking self sabotage, man. Every relationship you have ever been in—" Kenny mouthed off and I shut him down. "Don't you know why? I thought you of all people would understand why, Ken. I self sabotage for her. I let every other girl go for her. I met the love of my life eight years ago, only I was too stupid to see it. Despite how fucked up I was from everything with Jeff and my mom, from the moment she spoke to me for the first time, I loved her. I spent seven years trying not to need her, but nothing stops the yearning. I love her so much that no other woman could compete. When she went to Chicago for months at a time, I felt so fucking sick that I could barely function. How am I supposed to be without her forever, Ken?" I implored, trying to make him understand. "Scott, I love Stacy. I loved you guys for each other from the getgo. You know that, but this isn't healt
"Is that an engagement ring? She nearly gets you killed and you want to marry her?" Jeff's judgemental voice asked from behind me. Was I the only one who still thought she was my forever? "I just want her so damn much I don't know what to do with myself. I don't even know if she wants me anymore and everyone seems to think we should break up. It's all just—" I said, panicking about the night's events. "Easy, kiddo," he said, patting me on the back before he slid into the stool next to mine. He ordered us each a beer, waited for me to take my first swig, then asked, "Did they ambush you? Tell you to leave her?" "Jee dad, nothing gets past you. No wonder you're the director of the FBI," I said, cracking a smile. "Fucking smartass. I'll let that slide though since you did call me dad. This time without an agenda," he said, grinning back at me. "Look Scott,
I had mixed emotions when I got back to the house half an hour later. Choosing to focus on the positives, I stashed the ring and folder in a closet of one of the unfurnished bedrooms. Then I went looking for her in the study to share the news about Don Angelo being awake and her immunity deal. When I had searched the entire house and she was nowhere to be found, my mind spiraled and my heart dropped into my stomach. I couldn't do this shit again. The emotional turmoil alone nearly killed me last time. I stood before the bedroom door, trying to calm myself down. It was stupid to get so worked up without at least checking the bedroom. Even if she hadn't been next to me in bed in over a week. "Stace?" I called out, opening the door slowly. She didn't say anything, but she was indeed lying in the bed. I breathed a sigh of relief before I started stripping. Sliding in under the covers next to her, I could feel the delicious warmth of her bo
Talk to her the voice in my head said, but the thrill of having her touch me went straight to my head. "Fuck," I muttered with a little sigh. I turned around to face her, reaching out to cup her neck slowly. "Can I kiss you?" I asked her, like some teenage boy who had a girl in his room for the first time. "Kiss me," she said, her voice light and breathy. I touched my lips to hers lightly, not wanting to be too eager and get carried away. She didn't like that though, instantly deepening the kiss. Her hands trailed down my neck, onto my chest, down to my abs. I knew where she was going, but the interaction felt so fragile, I didn't want to scare her off. So I kept my hands where they were and continued kissing her, devoting all my attention to her mouth. "Don't you like the rest of me anymore?" she asked, taking one of my hands off her neck and placing it
After she got mad about not being invited to watch last time, I didn't touch myself when I was alone anymore. So my dick was due for some attention. I was going to enjoy every bit of it and let her know it. "Kiss me again," she said hungrily, just as needy as I was. I gave my lips over to hers, sitting up to be closer to her while we worked on getting each other off. Why couldn't I fuck her again? Something told me it had to come from her, at least the first time. After that, I'd fuck her senseless every chance I got again. This was our naughty loophole, just like in Prague. Her hand wasn't her pussy, but damn if it didn't feel good sliding up and down my dick. Whatever she was willing to give right now, I would greedily take. "Scott," she moaned, her pussy tightening around my fingers buried deep inside her. Her hand stilled on my dick as her body shook on mine. She moaned my name a few more times. I wa
"How will you stop me?" I asked her, sticking my fingers back into her pussy before trailing my other hand up her back as she started sucking me off. "You can't with dick in your mouth, baby. You love sucking it too much," I taunted her as she pleasured my dick with her mouth. My hand itched to be on her head, helping her efforts along, but I was on a mission. One fucking year and I still didn't know everything about her body. It was fucking bullshit. My hand trailed up her spine and she shook, her pussy clenching around my fingers. It lasted barely five seconds and she didn't tighten around my fingers as hard as after I fucked her, but she still moaned on my dick while it happened. Taking this as a declaration of war, she started sucking my dick aggressively hard and fast. "So competitive," I teased her, but her holes hadn't been on my dick for a while.
That last part was such a her thing to say. Was that really what she thought? It would explain how I apparently caught her off guard. "Please, for the love of God, let me sleep and shower first. There are dark circles under my eyes. And my make up—" What the fuck was she talking about? She was fucking flawless. Perfect in all her imperfections. "Shut up. I won the bet about Kenny and Marlene," I said, laying the phone down on the ground and starting the five minute timer. "So now Scott says shut up. You've said more than enough in the last few hours. Now just listen." She clasped her hands behind her back, swaying back and forth nervously, her eyes dropping to the timer. Words failed me. I had a whole speech and everything. Even if I didn't, I was me. I always knew what to say, except right that second I was tongue tied. "That photo's taunting me," I said, spitting out the thought in my he
By this point, she had me watching her from behind a lens. Flashes of the thousands of times she had me taking her photo went through my mind. Watching her was my favorite thing to do until she started letting me touch her. I loved every last one of them. Studied the thousands of photos frequently, especially this past week, like some junkie trying to get a fix. The sweet ones where she looked like an angel. The dirty ones where she looked like the perfect whore. The goofy ones that I made sure I was a part of. The everyday ones where she had a pencil in her hair while she read or picked something out at the grocery store. Every last photo I took of her and every memory attached to it flooded my brain. "Fucking stunning every time," I said, trying to calm my raging heart as the sun began to rise, the silhouette of her before it. Slightly trembling fingers took several photos, as the excitement of holding a camera surg
"Can't we do this another time? Surises come along every day and it's been such a long night," Stacy moped. Not this sunrise. Not this moment I wanted to give her. It was all she could do to hold onto the tripod towards the end, so I let her get on my back and gave her a piggyback ride the rest of the way up my mountain. "You knew this was coming. I warned you I'd be making you miserable by bringing you out here before the crack of dawn while we were in Fiji. Sacrifices have to be made to please your future husband, Stace," I said, enjoying the feel of her body pressed up against my back. The morning was chilly, contrasting with her body heat. Or was I sweating? Maybe she was right and this just wasn't our moment. It would come once though. The sunrise of our one year anniversary. I had this picture of how it was going to go down in my head and I just wasn't ready to give it up. "On our anniversary? We just spent two ho
"Is the world's greatest commitment phobe still proposing today after this shit storm?" Kenny asked me as I watched Stacy sit across from Jeff to read through her immunity deal. "You just get the champagne ready. Be on standby, Ken. Call in sick. You'll get the call soon," I said, sharing an excited smile with him before I opened the door to Jeff's office to sit down next to Stacy. "You can have your lawyer look it over before you sign. Take your time," said Jeff, waiting patiently on her. "She's her own lawyer. She's like two classes away from being one?" I boasted as I watched her brilliant mind go to work while she read. "Three," she corrected me, eyes still darting over the words on the page. "Besides, we trust you. Don't we, Scott?" That's what she said, but she carried on combing the document. In about two minutes, she'd have tons of questions for him. "Yes, we do," I said to my fath
"I will never let anyone hurt him, Ken. On my life, I will always keep him safe," she professed one more time. "I know you will, Stace. For the record, you were always my favorite best friend," he said, cautiously wrapping his arms around her as he started sobbing. "Same Ken," she said, returning his embrace readily, rubbing his back. Eyes still on me, she stuck her tongue out at me, making me chuckle as I got up to join them. "Un-fucking-believable. What am I, chopped liver?" I said, watching Kenny pull back as I shot him a nasty look. "You're okay. Tolerable. Second best. I keep you around because of her," he said, wiping away his tears with the back of his sleeves. "I can't believe you fucking told her you were proposing. What the fuck is wrong with you? How will you survive marriage?" His stupid remark had us chuckling between the three of us. We all wrapped an arm around the other an
There was that promise of forever she said I couldn't have until I asked her to marry me. It was as good as a yes to my proposal. My heart was doing flip flops in my chest. I knew it was for their benefit, maybe even just because she was nervous about talking to them instead of me, but her words were aimed directly at me. Sweeping me right off my feet. Claiming every bit of me as hers. Allowing me to let go of the tiny part of me that wondered if she really could have killed me in those woods. It wasn't just luck or the words I said to her that made her want to save me. I was happy if I gave her the strength to do what she needed to do, but I firmly believed she would have gotten there anyway. She had been doing it for eight years. From the moment we met, she had been protecting me. Even when she pushed me away. She chose me for eight years. Came back again and again, no matter how many times Don Angelo called her home, to make me fall dee
He pulled out a chair for himself, then one for me, urging me to sit next to him. With a resigned sigh, I sat down two chairs away from Kenny, as close to Stacy as I could. I gave Willow and my mom a pleading look so they would follow suite across the table. Stacy took her seat and folded her hands in front of her. Folding her hands was her tell for when she was nervous. They all looked away uncomfortably. No anger. No malice. Just sadness and fear. It was all I could do to stay seated. Not grab Stacy's hand and storm out. She asked me to let her do this though. All I could do was sit back and watch helplessly. "Marlene, you're right. We should have reached out and talked to you all about what happened. It sucked that she was the only one of you to come by and ask us what happened though. Instead of going off the news and wherever else you got your information from. Still, I'm sorry we didn't reach out either. We were trying to figure things out betwe
"No, you're not leaving," said Marlene, grabbing Kenny's arms and turning him towards Stacy and I. "Your best friends are getting engaged today. You've been brooding about this whole situation for over a week and I'm sick of it. Deal with your shit, Kenny," said Marlene, her arms folded and chin jutted out. Go Marlene. Marriage looked good on her. She surprised me more and more all the time. "Does everyone know I'm proposing today?" I asked, focusing on the wrong thing entirely. It got my nervous, half asleep girlfriend to smile though. I'd take that. "You weren't exactly trying very hard to hide it," said Stacy, momentarily caught up in my eyes. I wished I could have her look like that for the rest of the day. A light blush tainted her cheeks and her smile was enough to bring armies to their knees. The way she looked at me made me feel like we were the only two people alive. As much as I appreciated wha
"Soooo… Do you think there's more?" he asked in his most innocent voice. "I'll kill you if you try and find out today," I said, equally as breathless and sweaty as him. It took me a moment to realize I just threatened him without flinching or apologizing. I forced myself to let it go and enjoy the afterglow of the best sex of my life. The heat and sweat coming off our bodies should have been enough to get me off him, but it wasn't. Despite my threat to get off him, his arms wrapped around me gently. "No promises. I love you," he said, completely at ease as he started stroking my hair. "I expect to be told about all future… Locations and phrases." "I love you too. That's no fun. I'm not doing that," I said, out right refusing his request. "Is that right? We'll see," he said cheekily, kissing my temple. "Let me take you to lunch. I want you to enjoy your first day of freedom."