Starlee's Heart (The Wayward Sons 1)

I shrug. “There’s not one of you that means more to me than the other.”

“It’s a little unconventional,” Charlie says.

“I’m a little unconventional. And I think you are too.”

Jake’s sitting next to me and his hand covers mine. “I’m game.”

“I bet,” Dexter mumbles. His hands are on his hips and he looks like he may take a swing at Jake.

“Look, we’re all in or we don’t do it.” As I say it, everything in my mind and body clicks. I know this is the right thing to do. The best thing. It’s weird and yeah, totally unconventional, but why not? What do I have to lose? I can’t pick just one, so I pick them all.

“I’m in,” George says.

“Same,” Charlie agrees.

Jake looks at Dexter expectantly and he mutters something under his breath and says, “Fine. But you have to be blindfolded.”

“I like that,” I say, not wanting to know who was the first of the first anyway. “Anyone have a bandana?”

“I do,” George says, and wades over to rummage through his backpack. He pulls out a blue and white bandana. He hands it to Jake, who folds it carefully and holds it up to my head.

“You sure?” he asks.

“Positive.” My stomach is full of butterflies but they’re good ones, not the evil mind-bullies that normally take over. This is what it feels like to make decisions.

I can’t describe why I trust these boys, but I do. They’ve each earned it in their own way, helping me or allowing me to help them. They’ve been selfless. Sweet. Funny. When Jake lowers the blindfold over my eyes and I’m left with nothing but my other senses, I don’t feel afraid. I feel free.

“I don’t want to know who’s who,” I tell them. “So no talking.”

“Just kissing—got it.” George laughs.

“Go stand over there and come across the water one at a time.” I hear the splash of water and a few whispered words. I sit on the rock with my legs hanging over the side. The water below isn’t deep and when they approach me, they should be at eye level.

“You ready?” Jake calls.

“Yep.”

I focus on the sounds of the forest. The rushing water of the falls. I hear the swish of the pool and a hand touches my knee. I lick my lips and feel the warmth of breath. I don’t wait long until my lips are met with the gentleness of another’s. Soft and supple, and my heart hammers so, so fast. I kiss him back, it’s instinctive, and there’s a low hum coming from my partner that ends the kiss abruptly.

My lips feel weird and I touch them, wondering who it may have been.

“Uh, wow,” I say, feeling a little dizzy. “Who’s next?”

I hear the splash of someone entering the water and my stomach clenches when my chin is tilted up. I wonder if it’s Jake, too tall for me to meet face-to-face, but I stop questioning when I taste cherry on his tongue (!) and his hand splays behind my neck, pulling me close. His mouth moves leisurely like he has all the time in the world, and the blood that rushes to my ears is echoed by the water rolling off the falls and I’m consumed, utterly consumed by whoever this is and why they’re so amazingly good at it.

When they pull away I’m left wanting more, my entire body burning with flames. I cough, and nod, hoping the next one will come over.

The next draws things out slowly at first, kissing my neck and just below my ear. A shiver runs down my spine and by the time they meet my lips, I’m craving more. My unspoken wish comes true as the gentleness of the first kisses falls away into something deeper, more intense, and the unmistakable hunger is something I’ve never experienced in my life. He moves between my knees and I wrap my legs around his hips, only thinking about how close I can get to him. There’s a cough from across the water—a nudge for restraint--and as quickly as it starts, it stops.

My chest is heaving—heaving—I feel it and am hyper-aware. I don’t care though. I just want the final kiss. This one comes slower, his strides through the pool intentional. My hands clench the edge of the rock for support and I wonder how this one will surpass the last.

Fingertips skim my knees, then my collarbone near the ties of my bikini. There’s a sweet kiss on my jaw. Slow and seductive. Another at my temple and one more on my forehead. Goosebumps run up and down my arms and I lick my lips in anticipation. I feel his mouth near mine, our breath mingling, my heart thumping.

Thump-thump. Thump-thump.

His fingers toy with the tie around my neck and the knot in my belly twists tighter—lower.

“Kiss me,” I whisper.