Page 31 of My Little Secret

Chapter 13

HAWK

The holidays made me nostalgic—Icouldn’t deny it. I’d grown up on the east coast, so I knew about actual snow and sub-zero winter, unlike most of my LA friends. And every Christmas I sorta wished for the cold, wanted it in a way that snaked down into my heart.

But this year, the nostalgia was worse. Because of Sadie. Because I knew she was an entire country away from me. And I wanted her so bad I couldn’t think straight some days. Talking to her each night was a salve, but it didn’t last long. I needed frequent reapplications. Sometimes we talked hourly.

The trip idea started brewing the second I knew she’d left Denver. I worried her family might cause a stink about the visit, but then again, I wasn’t visiting them. The whole way to the airport, I tried to play it cool on the phone with her, hanging up just before I got to the airport and she overheard the plane announcements or something. The plan was to stay a full week with her, until the very last day before training started. Ring in the New Year with her and get this shit on lockdown.

Because the past five weeks had only solidified that sneaky thought I’d had on day one: this woman was mine.

I whistled as I wheeled my bag to the check-in counter. I’d told Sadie I was going to a film festival so I’d be out of touch for several hours. Just enough time to make it to JFK non-stop. Once my bag was checked, I breezed through security, making it to my gate with plenty of time.

I couldn’t stop imagining how the visit might go. How the sex would be. I even got myself hard thinking about it, imagining the curves of her body, way she’d gasped as I’d eased into her the first—and only—time. We had a week to ourselves—I’d make her body sing. We’d fuck until sunrise. Until she couldn’t walk. Until exhaustion claimed both of us.

My leg bounced the entire flight to New York. When the plane landed, I felt like I took my first real breath in hours. I was there—finally. Which meant Sadie was less than an hour away.

As soon as I turned my phone on, I texted Sadie to let her know the movie was over. She wrote quickly. “How was it?”

“So-so.”I told her I’d seen a couple action movies. “Typical typecast characters doing gutsy, unbelievable things.”

The plane dinged and everyone started rustling around, getting their bags out of the overhead bins. I stood, gnawing on my lip as I typed out another text. “What are you up to?”

“Alone at home. Fantasizing about you.”

My heart skipped a beat. Too good to be true. “Don’t get off yet. I want to make you come when I call later.”

“I can wait. Only for you.”

I looked at the line of people in front of me, wilting with desperation to get off the plane. They couldn’t move fast enough. Even if I teleported, it wouldn’t be quick enough.

The intolerable shuffle toward the jetway seemed to last an hour. When I finally made it through the terminal I breezed through baggage claim. I’d planned ahead—no need to waste time on waiting for luggage when I packed only a carry-on. Besides, I didn’t bring much. We’d be naked half the visit anyway.

I bolted to the taxi line, checking my phone. The whole process had taken just over a half hour. Not bad by JFK standards. But still too long for me. I gave the driver Sadie’s address and leaned against the seat, trying to calm my breathing.

My stomach was in knots when we pulled up to her apartment building in Brooklyn. I knew the address because I’d asked for it weeks ago to send her a card. She lived on the third floor. I peered up at the building, looking at the windows there, trying to tell which one was hers. Maybe she’d look out the window at just that moment and see me there, blowing my cover. I paid the driver and hurried up to the building, stepping carefully around patches of packed snow.

I took the elevator up to the third floor, my pulse streaking. I approached her door on wobbly legs. Took a deep breath. And then I knocked.

I heard some rustling behind the door. A pause. And then a gasp.

The door yanked open. Sadie gaped me at me, her strawberry blonde hair pulled back into a messy bun. She wore a form-fitting tank top and Christmas pants. Giraffe slippers completed the look. She covered her mouth with a hand and took a few steps back, screaming into her palm.

I laughed, grabbing her at the waist. “Come here, you.”

She melted into my embrace. Her scent washed over me, making my vision go blurry at the edges. Fuck, I’d missed her more than I realized. We stayed like that for a long while, her arms around my neck, laughter blending into sweet murmurs in my ear.

And then the kissing began. Our lips connected over and over again—desperate, juicy, sloppy kisses that made my cock stiffen immediately. I hadn’t even made it inside the door, and Sadie was tugging at my coat, trying to get it off of me.

I laughed through a kiss. “Damn, girl.”

“Get your ass in here.” She pulled me inside, kicking the door shut behind me. “And don’t you tell me you’re celibate again. In fact, I don’t care if you are or not. I’m just going to have my way with you.”

She pushed at my shoulders, sending me back onto her couch. I bounced gently on the cushion, smiling up at her. Gray daylight filled the studio, highlighting everything with that garish winter midday hue. Her place was simple and neat and smelled like her. She clambered on top of me, kisses finding my neck.

“I thought you’d call me from the airport,” she murmured, slipping her hands under my shirt. “Or, like, before you left LA.”

“Nope.” I watched as her hands wandered over my exposed chest, then dropped down to my belt buckle. “I’m here, babe. And all yours.”

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