Paying Her Dues

CHAPTER2

Mike

I’ve known her for her entire life, but not until this past year did I start seeing her the way I do right now.

And not until this moment did she make my dick rock hard.

This is not supposed to happen.

But the truth is, I fucking want her. With every cell in my goddamned body. Even though I know I shouldn’t. Even though I know we can’t.

It’s like my entire being knew I had to hold it together until today. The ethical and moral balancing act happening in the background of my consciousness has reached the finishing line and fuck, the things that have swept through my mind today nearly brought me to my knees.

I crack my neck side to side and open the passenger’s door of my pickup. Sam gracefully jumps in the back of the king cab. Jess, though, is a little more unsteady, and instinctively I grab her hand to steady her and guide her up into the passenger’s seat.

I wish I could give her something for her birthday. I thought about it for months. Wanted to send her a thousand orchids or roses or something but I had to hold back my obsession. She’s fucking eighteen and I’m twice her age plus a few years.

She looks up at me, wide and innocent. In the parking lot lights, I see her pretty cheeks flush. Her lips are shiny and full. She’s not a girl anymore. She’s a woman. And fuck, she is so goddamned beautiful.

She blinks a few times and squeezes my hand. The way she’s touching me, it’s different than it used to be. It’s softer. And sweeter. Like she’s trying to tell me something with every touch.

Fuck almighty. Is she flirting with me? With her fingers?

I can’t let my head go there. She’s tipsy and I know it. First and always, I want to look after her. “Thanks for coming to get us,” she slurs, her words a little sloppy but her eyes are crystal clear.

Seeing her tipsy and vulnerable, it triggers all my alpha protectiveness. I want to be her shelter from everything the world. In my periphery I see a group of guys watching her climb up into the passenger’s seat. One of them lets out a whistle, and I level him with a glare.

I raise one fist. Watch your fucking mouths, dickheads, I tell them, without a word.

It works. Fucking right it does. I’m an intimidating bastard when I want to be and I know it. One of them says, “Dude, sorry,” all sheepish, and they turn away.

I refocus on Jess. She’s not usually clumsy, but the wine-a-rita is making her adorably uncoordinated. She’s in the cab now. She’s got her violin case pinned between her knees and her flip-flops have come halfway off. She yanks on the seatbelt too hard, and it gets caught in its housing, so the buckle only goes about four inches.

Every time she yanks on it, it makes her tits jiggle, like fresh vanilla pudding.

She tries once, twice, three times, and lets out a frustrated growl.

“Stupid thing.” She says then growls again.

That growl. Fuck, the places that growl would take me in my head. If I let it.

I don’t let it. Not right now. I stay focused and protective. Sam snickers in the back seat and I give him a look. Be nice. He nods, looking brotherly at the back of her head.

I take the buckle from her hand and guide it across her body, letting my forearm brush against her tits, feeling the soft coolness of her long red curls kiss my skin. I haven’t been with a woman since Sam was born. Me and his mother had a thing but that’s all it was.

A thing. Then, she was pregnant and in college and her career was more important than being a mom but no way I was going to let her give up my son to another family so I took on the task of parenting him on my own for the most part.

His mom had visitation and was around for holidays but I did the grunt work. The heavy lifting and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. As well, once I held him for the first time, I knew I’d never be with another woman unless she was ‘the one’.

And fuck almighty if that turned out to be his best friend and my best friend’s daughter.

I’m so screwed.

“Thanks, Mike,” she says in a whisper. She does nothing more than that to encourage me. But touching her, it’s like an electric shock to my system. And fuck almighty she smells good.

I’m so hard for her that my balls actually ache.

I yank myself away, pissed at my inability to control even my thoughts. I close the door and turn away, walking it off and going to my side of the truck.