Page 53 of Wasted Memories
Emerson laid her head on my shoulder and I leaned into her. “Thank you for this,” she said quietly.
“I’m sorry you’re going through so much right now, Emerson. It’s not fair to you, and it kills me seeing all of this piling on your shoulders and not being able to make it all go away.” She was acting like none of it weighed her down, as if every day she didn’t wake up with a hundred things on her mind.
“You have to go through hard things to appreciate the good.”
I looked down to find her staring up at me.
“You’re my good, Wesley.”
Her words warmed me, washing away any of the doubt I had about her feelings. My thumb stroked circles on her hand and the fair disappeared as I got lost in her. How could the world be so cruel to someone so pure and full of love? She didn’t deserve any of this.
“I wouldn’t want to be anything else.”
We stayed like that for the duration of the ride, studying each other and enjoying the night for what it was. We could deal with the rest tomorrow.
Our gondola arrived back at the bottom and I helped her climb out of the seat.
Before heading back to Stella and Easton, we played a few fair games. I won at the balloon popping booth and Emerson chose a pink teddy bear as our prize.
She hugged the fluffy bear to her chest as we made our way back over to where we left Stella and Easton, the two of them lighting up when they saw us.
I watched Emerson as she joined in on their conversation, smiling and laughing as Easton cracked jokes with Stella. The corners of her almond-shaped eyes creased with every grin, her chestnut hair cascading down her back in soft waves, the silky strands bouncing as she laughed and enjoyed herself.
In the short time I knew Emerson Foley, it was clear that she didn’t ever give half of herself. She always gave her all, no matter who she was talking to, or what situation she was in. She didn’t hold back any part of her personality. She unashamedly was herself in every aspect of the word. That could be attributed to her childhood or the way she’d been treated throughout her life, but somewhere along the way, she figured out that even if you hide the darkest parts of yourself, it won’t stop anyone from taking one look at you and already deciding who they think you are. It didn’t matter to me anymore how half this town saw her, it only mattered how I saw her. When she was hurt at a bar, or tired after a long shift at work, or smiling with her friends on the beach. She was wholly herself and I admired her for it.
I looked over her head at the crowd, then back down at her, and leaned close enough to her that my lips brushed her ear. “Do you want to get out of here?”
She looked up at me, the apples of her cheeks turning a slight shade of pink, the lights from the fair reflecting in her eyes. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Chapter Thirty
Emerson
AllIcouldthinkabout on the drive home was his lips brushing my ear, causing chills to travel down to my toes. As soon as he put the truck in park in his driveway, I unbuckled my seatbelt and opened my door, too impatient to wait for him to open it for me. I was halfway up the path to his front door when he finally got out of the truck.
He met me at the door, unlocking it so slowly and casually that I was almost convinced he didn’t insinuate we would have sex once we got here. Didn’t he? Isn’t that why he asked me to leave the fair with him?
I walked inside the house and as soon as he closed the door, I was swiveling on my heel to face him, taking his face in my hands and standing on my tiptoes to bring my lips to his. He had his back to the door, bringing his hands to my waist to push me back a bit to break the kiss.
“What? Is something wrong?” I asked, somehow already out of breath.
“We’ve got all the time in the world, Em. Don’t rush it.” I frowned and he used his thumb and forefinger to grab my chin, angling my head up to look at him. “You want me to take my time with you, don’t you?”
I swallowed hard, nodding my head.
“I knew you'd be a good girl.”
Holy. Fuck. I couldmelt.
I'd never been called that before, but I didn’t need to question if I liked it, because the moment those words passed his lips, I was instantly drenched.
He brought his thumb up to brush my lower lip, tugging it down slightly. As his thumb released my lip, his eyes stayed trained on my mouth. “The things I’ve been dreaming of doing to that mouth.”
On instinct, my tongue darted out across my lower lip, wishing he’d do all those things to me right now. I didn’t care if it took all damn night.
He lowered his mouth to mine, sliding his hand down the front of my neck to my collar bone. He then trailed his finger across my cleavage so slowly I thought I might combust with the need to have his hands touching me everywhere all at once. The tip of his finger grazed over the swell of my left breast, making its way to my right. Chills erupted over my skin from his touch as he slipped his tongue into my mouth.
I tangled my hands in his hair, tugging his mouth even closer to mine . His hands wandered down, gliding along my waist, making their way to my hips, where he pulled me closer. I could feel his cock through his jeans, aching to get out. I moved against him, causing friction where I wanted it most. A moan escaped my lips as he kept his mouth on mine, stifling any sound I made.
