Page 66 of Beautiful Beginning

Our fingers wrapped together. My chipped nails, his needing a little TLC. But we connected. For an entire week, I missed his touch. I missed him more than I wanted anything else, I wanted him.

“If that’s not what you want, then no.”

Defending what I wanted was difficult. Even with our fingers interlocked, with the throbbing in my chest at the thought of losing him. I couldn’t tell him staying in Hill Mount was something I wanted. I did want him. But not the city.

“How about we get through graduation, then we see what happens.”

My lips puckered. “Graduation doesn’t sound as exciting knowing we could be living in different cities.” I omitted the more obvious fact. The one that mattered more than the distance that would separate us.Could we survive long distance?

He stood from the bed, edged me down onto my back. “Four years. Eight semesters. Countless exams, projects, and extracurriculars.” He kissed my forehead. “It’s worth celebrating. Can’t let anything overshadow it.” He kissed my cheek. “Not even this.” He hovered near my face. “Okay?”

He had a point. Regardless of what happened to us. I accomplished something major. He did the damn thing. We would go into the world and do amazing things.

As his lips nibbled on my collar bone, I prayed we’d do it together.

“Those bikini pictures you sent me.” He tugged on my shirt, “Were too much of a tease. A reminder of what other men saw.” He growled. “Nobody tried anything did they?” His hand dipped between my thighs. “I couldn’t blame them if they made an attempt.”

My body couldn’t care less about the guys on spring break. Or the questions Chaz had. It didn’t care about the future, or the past. It only wanted the moment to deliver on the promise of his tease. The stroke of his fingers over my panties alone were about to drive me wild.

I pulled his head into my neck. Kissed along his jawline and caressed his back. “No attempt,” I managed to say between moans. “Now give me what I’ve been missing all week.”

“Oh, I can do that.” He swiped my shorts and panties down my legs. Stuffed his face between my thighs, and unraveled my body as his tongue went to work.

The moisture of his mouth, the warmth of his breath, the strokes of his fingers between licks. It was the reason every night of spring break was torturous. I could only think of him and those licks. And after a week of not having a single touch, every one of them had my senses heightened. With a hand on my foot, he pulled my legs further apart, then dug his tongue deeper inside.

Somewhere between the cloud I found myself on again, and his guttural groans, I released. My body caved, but my mind wanted more. So much more. “I want you,” I whispered when he resurfaced.

A devilish grin remained after he licked his lips. “And I want you.” His pants dropped and the memory of his dick had nothing on reality. He slid on a condom and hovered between my thighs. Tempted me with his longing stare.

I fidgeted waiting on the reminder of how good he felt inside me. As he inched in, my body eased. It was better than the feeling of that first shot going down my throat. Of having no cares, no worries. Nothing to turn in, or nowhere to be. As he went in and out, our connection made for a better sensation than a week poolside.

But hearing, “I love you,” in my ear on repeat sounded like waves crashing the beach—calm and excitement fighting for attention.

“I love you,” I said back and felt the beat of my heart get a little faster. Thump a little harder. Then I caved, my entire body tensed, all the way down to my toes.

His stroke didn’t slow, not until I felt his body tense too.

After we laid on his bed, neither of us able to move. A small distance between us. Loud breathing was the only sound until he said, “If distance brings us together like that, then…”

“But imagine having it whenever you wanted it.” I would have had it all five days of spring break.

He twisted his lips and uttered, “True.”

ChapterThirty

Chaz

The sixty-day countdown to graduation felt like six. Four years felt like forever as the days passed, but sitting at the end it wasn’t long at all. Not long enough for me to meet all the people in the row beside me. Not enough time for me to have a class with all the faculty or staff standing guard beside us.

And the last year, not long enough to appreciate meeting Journey in the end. If I would have met her freshman year, it still wouldn’t be long enough. Long enough to know everything about her.

It didn’t matter as we sat listening to the commencement speaker.But what was her favorite food?I knew her favorite color was yellow. And as chipper as she was on most days, that made sense. She was like sunshine on a cloudy day, enough to chase away the darkest blues. And her fragrance, the one I loved to smell, I could have used more days to take that in too.

But no. We were sitting at the end of it all. The end of our collegiate career. The place where we sent worry to hide until we were ready to face it.

So, for that reason alone, I could have gone back to freshman year and started my matriculation all over again. To give me more time to avoid it.

I looked over my shoulder, to the back of the crowd. Somewhere back there the business majors sat. Amongst them, a familiar face, if I could find it. I couldn’t. And for that, I’d take a few more days too. To stare at her beauty. The sultriness in her eyes, the way her lips perked up when she was in deep thought. The softness in her brows when she was at ease. The crinkle in her nose before she buckled over in laughter. A few more days to commit each of her expressions to memory.

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