Ain't No Sunshine

Chapter Five

Cory

Firstdateattemptnumber two. Despite Nate wanting a “do over”, I actually had an amazing time on our first date. It may have been a mess, but it was still time spent getting to know each other, and I will never forget that. Ever since officially meeting at the Ball House, we’ve been almost inseparable, sneaking time in between Nate’s football training and our classes, but an actual date has been a couple of weeks in the making. Until now…

The evening breeze hits my cheeks, and I shiver, leaning further into Nate’s chest. We’re walking down the main street of town after a fantastic dinner and seeing the latest superhero movie, Nate’s choice, not mine. He’s still raving about some fight scene that I don’t even remember. Which is totally his fault, by the way. Because his touch tonight felt different. Possessive. And it was freaking hot…

“Whatcha thinking about?” he asks, giving my shoulder a squeeze.

I feel myself flush pink at the direction my thoughts are heading. “Just about that jerk asking me out while you were getting tickets.” And the way you possessively gripped my waist and crushed your lips to mine when you saw him.

“That fucker is lucky I didn’t punch him. What was he thinking, groping you like that before you’d even answered him?”

I smile shyly as my heart races. Nate may not have turned to violence, but he definitely made it clear I was off limits, both then and through the entire movie. Want to know why I have no idea what happened during the film? It’s because Nate’s hand was locked on my thigh, on bare skin, just below the hem of my skirt, the skirt that had ridden up rather high when I sat down. Basically, he was inches from my panties. Who the hell can concentrate with that going on? I mean it, who?

Nate chuckles beside me, and I freeze momentarily. Did I say that out loud? When I look up at him, he’s watching me with curious eyes. He’s about to say something when a car horn blares, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“I get another do over,” he says suddenly, stopping me in my tracks.

“What? Why?” I can’t help but laugh at his ridiculously high date expectations.

“For one, I almost punched a guy, and two, I’m pretty sure you hated the movie.”

“Ah… No, I didn’t… I—”

“Do over.” He smirks. “Anyway, here’s the truck. Are you ready to go or…?”

When I spot Nate’s truck, I want to frown but manage to keep the disappointment off my face. With a quick nod, I walk to the passenger door. I know Nate has some ridiculously early mornings, but I still hate saying goodbye every time I see him.

The drive home is quiet but comfortable, and by the time we pull up out the front of my apartment complex, I’m feeling pretty sleepy.

Nate walks around and opens my door, holding out his hand for me. I let him pull me out and then wrap my arms around his neck before pressing my lips to his.

The kiss is gentle at first but turns frantic pretty quickly. We’ve been here, in this exact moment, many times before but have never taken it further.

The thought of Nate palming my thigh comes back to me, and I moan into his mouth. Something snaps inside him at the sound, and I’m suddenly lifted into the air and pressed against the truck. I wrap my legs around his waist, clenching my thighs in response.

“Fuck, Cory. You’re so goddamn perfect,” he says as he curls a hand up into my hair and crushes his lips back to mine.

I moan, rolling my hips to get friction, not even really aware that I’m doing it as Nate groans out loud. I only have to roll my hips three more times before Nate’s restraint seems to give, and he grinds up into me, eliciting a groan from us both.

If there was ever a moment to invite him upstairs, this was it. In fact, I’m surprised he hasn’t just carried me to the door and demanded I let him in. These aren’t the actions of a girl who’s scared to take the next step, and yet, that’s exactly who I am.

As soon as the negative thoughts hit my brain, I can’t unthink them. There are no take backs where this is concerned. The guy groping me in the theater didn’t help either. It’s like I attract the wrong type of guys. Like I’m a beacon for assholes. Is Nate going to be one of them? My body stills, and I grip his shoulders, too far inside my head to keep going. He stops immediately and drops my feet to the ground, leaning his forehead to mine.

We both breathe heavily in silence, trying to control ourselves. He may not even realize he’s doing it, but Nate’s hands are clenched into fists, like he’s physically stopping himself from touching me.

“I’m sorry, I—” I pause, hating that my past relationships are ruining my new one, but not entirely sure what to tell Nate.

His hands relax before moving to my face, and his thumb brushes over my check as he stares into my eyes. “Do not be sorry for wanting to take things slowly. Ever.”

“Thank you, but I’m still sorry. I kind of lost control.”

Nate smiles, but it’s tight. “It happens. It doesn’t mean you have to take it further.”

“It doesn’t happen to you. You don’t lose control,” I say, hoping he can fill me in on how he was able to stop so quickly. If roles were reversed, and it wasn’t my fear getting in the way, I’m not sure I could have done the same.

Nate huffs out a small laugh and shakes his head. “That’s not by accident. Trust me.”