Page 66 of She Used to Be Nice
Pete squeezed her shoulder. “Me too.” He fixed his attention on the television. “Damn, Raquel issucha good liar.”
Avery laughed. “You’re like those guys who pretend they hate ‘girly’ shows and end up becoming obsessed.”
Pete didn’t seem the least bit fazed. “No shame over here. I’m comfortable enough in my masculinity to admit it. This show is great.”
“It’s hot that you think that.”
In the kitchen, the microwave dinged. Avery padded over barefoot and pulled out a freshly popped bag of popcorn. Yellow steam rose from the bag, filling the apartment with the scent of butter and salt. She poured the contents into a plastic bowl and sat back down on the couch next to Pete. He slapped her ass as she lowered herself into the seat cushion.
“You know what else is hot?” he asked. “You, today.”
“Only today?” Avery teased. Her hair was in a loose bun on top of her head with strands framing her face, and she wore no bra and a thin pink tank top through which her nipples were visible.
Pete played with the strap of her shirt, let it fall and dangle against her skin. “You know what I mean.” He kissed her bare shoulder.
“Stop!” Avery whispered, hoping he’d actually keep going—forever. “We need to watch the show!”
Pete paused the TV and dove his face into Avery’s chest. “We’ll watch later.”
She arched her back into him and groaned as he slipped off her tank top. Warmth rushed between her legs. Her desire for Pete bloomed not from a frantic need for validation that she’d gotten used to with guys, but from a genuine longing for Pete and Pete alone. She welcomed the change, this feeling that she was allowing her happiness to depend on him so much. It was more vulnerable than she’d been in a long time, with anyone. But Pete treated her like a precious jewel, and continued to do so even as he found out more and more about who she really was. Where she saw a rock, he saw a diamond. It felt like a miracle.
“Should we go in my room?” she breathed.
Pete trailed kisses up her neck. “No. I need you now.”
He ripped off his jeans while she slid off her leggings and pressed his naked body between her thighs. He moved her underwear to the side and slipped inside her easily, then pumped for a few delicious seconds before tapping her hip.
“Flip onto your stomach,” he whispered.
Avery froze. She closed her eyes.
Noah’s face burned behind her eyelids.
She threw the blanket over their bodies and pointed to her roommate’s closed bedroom door. “Celeste is right there,” she murmured. “She’ll get so pissed if she walks out. Just keep it simple with missionary. So we can stay covered.”
“I’ll be quick, trust me, especially from behind. I’m gonna blow in ten seconds.”
Pete threw the blanket back onto the floor and tapped Avery’s side again. Her chest tightened. But she trusted him, didn’t she? This was what it meant to be vulnerable, wasn’t it? To do something that you were afraid of and hope for the best. To hope at all.
She turned over and held her breath. Pete leaned forward, pressing down on her back, and started to pump inside of her.
She froze again. She couldn’t do it, was catapulted right back to senior year, in that dark bedroom, under the whirr of that ceiling fan …
“Stop,” she mumbled.
But Pete kept going, pressing even harder on her back, like he didn’t hear her.
She winced and tried again. “Pete, stop.”
“I’m so close,” Pete moaned, his grip strong on Avery’s skin. He still didn’t hear her.
Or was he ignoring her like Noah had?
Nausea churned in her stomach. She couldn’t speak any louder. She felt paralyzed, exactly like she’d felt that night after putting up a fight. “Pete, please stop for a—”
Pete yanked out of her with one swift motion and finished on her back, covering her in hot viscous liquid that trickled over her ribs and dripped down the side of her body. She stared at it. Bile crept up her esophagus, built pressure in her chest and her throat. Then she sprinted to the bathroom and vomited into the toilet.
Pete hurried after her. He knelt on the white tile floor next to her shaking body. “What the hell?” His eyes darted all over. “Avery! Are you okay?”
