Page 32 of Love Me

“Bear, I’m fine. I’ll call my parents, in fact, Ms. Gagnon probably already has. You can’t miss your game.”

“I can, and I will. I have stuff to change into in my dad’s truck, let’s get going.”

Liam picks up my backpack as I shift off the bed, slipping into my Converse. He grabs my arm like I’m an invalid, refusing to let me walk on my own in case I suddenly pass out again on him. Once we’re settled into the truck, he drives us to the grocery store where he tells me to stay put and jogs in, returning a few minutes later with deli subs and a bag of BBQ chips. He puts everything in my lap and drives to the outskirts of town, taking a familiar dirt road that leads to Grace Beach.

Liam parks with the bed of the truck facing the ocean and pulls a big blanket from the backseat, opening his door and climbing out.

“Move your ass, Han, get the food and get over here.”

Doing as he says, I set the food down and Liam hauls me into the bed of his huge truck, tossing my sandwich into my lap and snapping, “Eat.”

Opening the white wrapper, I check the contents of my suband do my best not to give him the satisfaction of my smile. It’s packed with a rainbow of veggies, with a thick layer of spicy, chipotle hummus. Any time I have a hypoglycemic episode, my parents try to force meat down my throat. I’ve been a pescatarian since freshman year of high school. I hate how most meat makes my body feel. I’ll eat fish in small doses but for some reason, land animals make my body feel sluggish and just downright awful.

“Don’t be too excited, there’s some tuna at the bottom.”

“I’m okay with that. Thank you, bear.”

We eat in silence, sitting in the bed of his truck with nothing but the ocean in front and the tall Sitka spruce trees and salty air surrounding us.

“Don’t need to thank me, Han, it’s you and me.”

“You and me.”

CHAPTER 11

liam

The next morning,I’m at Bean Haven right before opening. Knowing Hannah has her headphones on, I use my key to sneak in, hoping like hell she’s blaring that music like she typically does so that I can scare the piss out of her. I told her payback was coming and scaring each other is something we’ve done for as long as I can remember. Careful not to let the door connect with the bell, I squeeze my big-ass body through the space and with all the care I can muster, shut the door behind me. Sneaking through the shop, I stand still next to the open doorway that leads to the bakery kitchen and listen for her footsteps, hearing nothing but her clanking around and humming. The moment I hear the loud noise of her industrial mixer, I know she’s facing away from me, and the noise will work to my advantage. I slip the Ghostface mask down over my head and take a peek around the doorframe. Hannah sways her hips side to side while she adds pre-measured ingredients to the mixing bowl. I hesitate for a brief moment, lost to the shake of her plump ass in a pair of tight black leggings as she dances to music that only she can hear.

Fuck it. It’s now or never. Squatting down to my haunches, I shuffle around the corner, letting the butcher block counter in the center of the room block her view of me if she were to turn around. Once she’s in view, I sneak right up behind her. Standing to my full height—six foot two inches, to Hannah’s five foot five—I’m several inches taller, and nearly double her width. She continues to sway, completely out of touch with her surroundings.

Shooting my arms out, I quickly snake one around her waist, the other clasping my hand over her mouth. She lets out a muffled scream as I pull her back into me. Just as quickly as I’ve captured her does her non-restricted elbow connect with my rib cage. Hard. I immediately release her as she turns, ready to fight.

I put my hands up in defense and as she takes in the Ghostface mask, she doesn’t react how I thought she would. Her hand is placed over her heart, chest rapidly rising and falling. Her cheeks are pink, but her eyes? They’re heavily lidded and glassy as she sways slightly on her feet.

Hannah loves being scared, andScreamhas always been her favorite movie franchise. She even gave Charlotte the middle name Sidney. But this reaction is more than someone being scared. I watch as she squirms on her feet, her face flushed from a mix of fear and what I’m guessing is arousal. Holy fuck, did this turn her on?

Leaving the mask on, I prowl toward her, backing her against the stainless-steel counter between the mixer and sink. Hannah braces her hands on the edge, leaning back away from me. I squat down slightly, coming face-to-face with her and cocking my head to the side, as she struggles to maintain regular breathing. Yeah, she’s turned on. I don’t hesitate to run my hands slowly up the length of her arms and over her shouldersand neck until I’m clasping her face in my hands, goosebumps scattering behind my touch.

“This tracks, you know,” I whisper through my mask, enjoying seeing her like this.

“Probably not a normal reaction to an intruder.”

“Nah. But, I can’t say that I don’t like it.”

Her pretty eyes close as I move her head backward so that her neck is stretched and bared to me. She’s so goddamn pliable like this. So sexy. Goddamn, I want this woman.Mywoman. Her confession last night nearly broke me, but it cemented my need to give her everything she’s been missing, show her what this could be like.

“Han . . .” I breathe out on a rough exhale, my control rapidly slipping. My dick is rock hard behind my jeans, my breathing coming heavier now. I want to rip her pants off, lay her back on the table, and eat her pussy until she screams. Make her feel better than she ever has before. Fuck, I want to taste her so badly that my mouth is salivating at just the thought. This woman has me in a goddamn chokehold. She always has.

Just as my fingers touch the plastic of my mask to remove it, ready for my lips to kiss along the length of her neck, the baby monitor goes off with Charlotte’s little voice, breaking the spell between us.

Hannah’s hands move to my shoulders, pushing me back from her. I go willingly, removing the mask and setting it on the counter. Hannah looks at the monitor and sees that Charlie has in fact woken up for the day, earlier than she typically does. Disappointment doesn’t hit me as I look over her shoulder at Charlie sitting up in her bed.

“You finish up down here, beauty. I’ll go get the munchkin. She’s fun in the mornings.”

She turns to face me, a sweet look plastered on her face thatis starkly different from moments ago when she was hot and bothered.

“Thank you, bear. She’s much nicer to you in the morning than she is to me.”

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