Page 117 of What About Us
“Yeah, me too,” I say, pulling her closer still. But it’s not close enough. “Come here.” I give her a tug and she lifts her bottom up and over my thigh to sit between my outstretched legs.
She leans back into me and lets out a sigh. I take the opportunity to bury my nose in her hair and inhale her sweet scent before pressing a kiss to the side of her head. I pull the blanket around us, wrapping my arms around her middle.
“I think the boys had fun with Paige today, don’t you?” she asks.
I nod and hum my agreement near her ear. Paige really took to Jordan, since he sort of matched her energy. Tate was more reserved, but once he warmed up to her, all three of them were inseparable for the rest of the evening. They played round after round of Uno after we ate dinner, and then swam in the lake again. Hutch had all three of them rolling in laughter with one of his scary campfire stories turned ridiculous anecdote.
We sit together in silence, listening to the crickets and the breeze through the trees. It feels so nice having her against me, so right. When she turns her head to look at me, I feel her gaze on every part of my body. I let my eyes roam over her face as she watches me.
“What is it?” I ask her, knowing she has something on her mind. She gets a tiny crease between her eyes when she is thinking too hard about something.
“Are you really gonna build a house?” she asks quietly.
After dinner, Hutch asked if I’d had a chance to look over the plans he’d sent me. I’ve actually narrowed it down to two that I like, and with a few adjustments, it could be pretty great.
As much as I love living with Finnley, Paige is eventually going to need a bigger room and a yard to run around in. Plus, she’s still on my back for that puppy she wants all of a sudden. And there’s the whole problem of Finn not actually being my wife, which means, at some point, this friends with benefits thing will end, and I’ll need a place of my own to make it through that.
The thought makes me sick to my stomach. Hopefully we’ll find a way to make our friendship work. In just a couple of weeks, this new normal has become so comfortable, and I’ll hate to see it end. It’s like it was always supposed to be this way between us.
“I think so,” I say, brushing her hair off her shoulder.
“Soon?” she asks, and her voice is laced with sadness.
“It’ll take a while to build, but yeah. I think they’ll get started as soon as I decide on a location.”
I can tell she wants to say something else, but I sense her hesitancy in the way she stiffens the slightest bit.
“Will you take me with you, to look at them?” She turns her head to meet my eyes and there is definitely sadness in them. “I know it’s your house, and your decision. I know I don’t have any say in what you build or where, but I’d like to go along. If that’s ok?”
Something warm blooms in my chest when she mentions not having a say in it. Does she want that? If this thing between us was real, if we were really married and in a relationship, she would most definitely have a say.
I’m tempted to ask her, but she’s never expressed wanting more than what we have, and I’m not sure I should bring it up. I don’t want to ruin our friendship, but if I’m honest with myself, I’m not sure I see anything else at this point than just being with her, truly having her as my wife.
“Of course, you can,” I say. Even though it won’t be her house, having her input means a lot. She’s always understood me and she sees things that I don’t. I’ve always been her voice of reason and she’s always been the one to show me things from a different angle or perspective. I tell myself that’s all this is, but deep down, I wish she were moving into a new house with us.
She smiles softly and nods. “Ok, thanks.”
I take her hand and thread my fingers through hers, resting them on her thigh. Goosebumps break out across her skin.
“Are you cold?” I ask, running my other hand up her other thigh.
She shakes her head and guides my hand further up her leg, so my fingers brush just under the material of her cutoffs. “Did everyone go to bed?” she whispers, looking out over the water.
“I think so,” I say close to her ear, continuing the slow circles on the soft skin of her inner thigh.
She shivers again and turns her head, taking my face in her hand to capture my mouth in a tender kiss. Her tongue slips past my lips and I let out a groan. She tastes so good; I’ll never get over it. And she feels so good between my legs, I never want this to end.
“Put your hands on me, Huddy,” she whispers against my lips.
“Here?” I ask, before she slides her tongue against mine again.
“Right here,” she breathes with a nod, unsnapping the button on her shorts and dragging down her zipper.
Bringing her lips back to mine with one hand, I work the other into the front of her shorts and swimsuit bottoms, finding her slick heat. She moans into my mouth and drops her knees open. When I dip my fingers down to the wetness already gathered at her entrance and drag them up to her clit, she sighs and leans back into me.
“Take off your top,” I say between kisses, still working her over with my hand in her pants.
She sits up a some and quickly unties the laces of her bikini top from around her neck, then lifts the back of the zippered hoodie she’s wearing so I can untie the ones around her ribs. Once I’ve got it free, I toss the emerald-green fabric to the side and grab a handful of her chest, moaning when I feel her nipple peak against the skin of my palm.
