Page 26 of The Weight of Your Wishes

We follow the dirt path into some woods. My eyes catch on what looks to be claw marks in the bark on one of the trees to the right of us. “What’s that about?” I ask, pointing at them.

“From a black bear. They mark the trees, city boy,” Jack says, and Lucy giggles next to me.

Well, isn’t that just lovely? Partying with black bears and panthers. A shiver snakes down my spine, but I decide to try not to think about it. None of them seem to care.

Music echoes in the distance, drowning out chirping insects as we get closer. The path opens up into a grassy clearing. People are standing around, laughing with each other, beers in hand. Some are sprawled out on blankets; others are sitting on a downed tree. Everyone seems to know the crew I’m with as we approach. Jack introduces me to people quickly, and I’m sure it goes in one ear and out the other. They’re all pretty drunk as far as I can tell. I tip my beer back, downing the rest before reaching into the pack for another one.

“Come on,” Lucy says as she grabs my hand. She leads me toward the back of the clearing. “Check it out.” She spreads her arms wide, a big grin on her face. As far as the eye can see is marshy wetlands, tall sawgrass, and little islands of land broken apart by slow-moving water. The moon shines brightly in the sky, reflecting off it. It really is breathtaking.

“It’s like a whole different world out here,” I say into the wide-open nothingness.

She hums in agreement, and when I turn to look at her, she pushes up on her toes and presses her lips to mine. It catches me off guard, but I quickly get my mind in gear and kiss her back. Our lips fit together easily, and her soft breasts rub against my chest. Heat rises in my core as I walk her back, pressing her up against a tree—our lips never parting. Energy builds inside of me, turning me ravenous as I lick into her mouth. Our teeth click together as she palms my dick through my skin-tight jeans, and I groan into her mouth. I have to remind myself to be gentler with her. It’s always an adjustment going from being with a man to with a woman, and I love it both ways for different reasons.

My hand snakes its way under the skirt of her dress, trailing up her thigh. When it reaches her lace panties, she moans, and I look into her glazed-over eyes. She nods, urging me on. Even with the slight cast of moonlight, I can see the way her cheeks flame pink. I slip my fingers behind the thin piece of fabric. Her pussy is drenched, and it fills me with satisfaction to know that I got her this wet. Her hips circle, grinding her core against my hand. My fingers slip into her tight channel easily, and she moans against my neck.

With two fingers buried deep inside of her, I rub my thumb in a circular motion around her clit. Her breath stutters by my ear before her soft lips latch onto my neck. She sucks on my bared throat and rocks herself against my hand.

Fuck,she’s amazing.My dick is throbbing behind my zipper—aching to be held by a big, calloused hand. Shit. No. I open my eyes and look at her heaving breasts. Grant doesn’t want me, and he never will. I need to get the fuck over it and stop pining after him.

Lucy’s moans grow higher in pitch, so I stroke her clit more intently, watching her slackened face. Her walls clench tightly around my fingers, and she gasps. Her hips still and twitch away from my thumb.

I pull my fingers from her and suck them into my mouth, groaning at the taste. My eyes fall shut, and my forehead falls to the tree beside her head.

“God,” she pants, “I knew you’d be good.”

I laugh and turn my head to place a kiss on her cheek. She undoes the button on my jeans and pulls my pulsing dick from my briefs. I sigh in relief as she wraps her soft hand around my shaft and gives an experimental tug. “Harder, babe,” I breathe into her silky hair. She squeezes harder, stroking me with confidence, twisting at the head. I almost tell her to do it even harder, but I don’t want her to feel bad. She’ll never be the idea of Grant I have in my head. She’s Lucy, and she’s great just the way she is.

I clear my mind of him and his spicy cologne and let myself go. It’s not long before I’m gritting my teeth and exploding into her palm. I grab her wrist, bring her hand to my mouth, and lick my release from her soft skin. Her body shakes. “That’s so fucking hot,” she whispers.

I kiss her one last time, sucking on her bottom lip as I pull away. I button up my jeans, and she adjusts her dress and underwear. She smiles at me brightly, and I grab her hand. As we walk back to the clearing, she says, “It’s a shame you’re only here for the summer.”

I frown, thinking about the day that Grant will inevitably drop me off at my mom’s house. I open my mouth to respond, but the words die in my throat because there he is—just a few feet in front of us. There he is with his backward baseball cap and a beer in hand, standing with Jack and the other guys. He’s looking directly at me, a murderous glare in his eyes. A lead weight sinks into my gut as every decision I made tonight comes back to bite me in the ass.

Grant’s cold eyes drop to my hand clasped in Lucy’s.

“Grant,” I say, at a total loss for words. How did he even know to find me here?

“Hendrix,” he grunts, and tips his beer back.

“Oh, there you are, man. Grant’s been waiting here for ya,” Jack says with a dopey smile on his face. My heart races beneath my ribs.

You know what, why do I even care so much? I’m already here to learn a damn lesson or whatever my mom said. What’s the worst thing he can do? I look at him again, the hard set of his brows, the way he’s white-knuckling that beer bottle.

He turns on the heels of his boots and starts walking towards the woods. Shit. I turn to Lucy. “I’m sorry to leave so soon, but Grant’s on a warpath, I think.”

Her eyes soften sympathetically. “Well, good luck with that.” I give her hand one last squeeze and slap Jack’s back as I walk past him.

I consider asking Grant to slow down but decide against it. Instead, I jog a bit to catch up. He doesn’t even look at me. He keeps his eyes straight ahead, following the path with the ease of someone who’s been down it a million times, and that’s when it dawns on me that he probably has.

I run my fingers through my hair, tugging at it anxiously. His silence is worrying me. I don’t know if I can stomach him giving me the cold shoulder for much longer.

What if he decides to pack me up and send me home because of this?

Hell, maybe it’d be for the best—for both of us.

We finally reach the clearing where everyone’s trucks are parked, including Grant’s. He digs the keys from his pocket as we approach and gets right in. I swing my door open and get in, too.

The light turns on, and it makes me realize how drunk I am. My vision has gone blurry around the edges, and my ears ring in the charged silence.

---