Love Surfaced Read online

  “You always thought we would have sex?” I pick up my head, resting my chin on my hand.

  I wonder if, while lying in his bed at night, he’s wondered what I might be doing two floors down. Did he dream of his lips on mine and his hands on my body as often as I did?

  His body shifts under me, and his eyebrows crease. “Yeah. Didn’t you?”

  “I hoped, but I just thought I was stuck in the best friend’s-sister category.”

  He shakes his head and his thumb brushes against my cheek. “Hell, Piper, I think I’ve wanted you since you grew tits.”

  I playfully smack his bare chest, and he chuckles, grabbing my hand and wrapping it around his stomach.

  “In all seriousness, I’ve thought about this many times, and I’m ashamed because I feel like I cheated you tonight.”

  “You didn’t, but you can always make it up to me if you’re ridden with guilt.” I wiggle my eyebrows a few times.

  Bending down, he kisses the top of my head. “I plan to . . . a lot.”

  six

  A WEEK HAS PASSED SINCE my first date with Tanner. It’s been a blur of tossed clothing, naked body parts, and pure pleasure. We can’t seem to keep our hands to ourselves—in his Jeep, the restroom in the library, and even the pool during one early morning swim.

  I guess I was wrong in thinking that Tanner preferred truth in the game of Truth or Dare. During a friendly competition, the dares he’s come up with have made me blush. Not that I’ve turned them down because who would?

  Although, I did act annoyed when he kept swimming into my lane to grab at my body, his fingers venturing under my bathing suit. Secretly, I loved it. Who wouldn’t? I was floating in more ways than one when his lips landed on mine, and we slowly rose up to the surface, our bodies entwined together. It was like a damn movie scene.

  The problem now is, if I thought I was infatuated with Tanner McCain before, I’m completely and fully head over heels in love now. My heart is already cracking in two for when it ends. I say when, not if, because there’s no choice for it not to. He’ll leave for Colorado Springs after graduation, and I’ll be off to find myself. We haven’t discussed anything in regard to our future, and I wish my overly dramatic imagination would slow down a touch. A week of hot sex and a few I like yous mean nothing.

  The newest obstacle in our hidden love affair is a birthday celebration Brad planned for Taylor tonight. Well, planned is a loose term for texting all his friends and having them meet at a bar. I wasn’t going to go, but Tanner asked really nicely while kissing my neck with lingering hands. Somewhere between the rush of my sexual impatience, I agreed, much to his satisfaction.

  Now, here I sit, closest to the wall in a booth, with Tanner across from me and Bea on my left. He continues to give me those flirtatious eyes while his legs lock on either side of mine. Bea’s curious looks shift our way on more than one occasion, but she’s kept her lips shut. Which is very unlike her. Brad is oblivious to anything other than Taylor, which is a nice change for him. They’ve been mingling around as though it’s their engagement party. He’s usually only with his buddies, Tanner mostly, so I’m thrilled to have Tanner across from me.

  Then, the whole scenario deteriorates when Sara Brunswick slides down next to him. With a snap of her fingers, our contact breaks, and mine veer down to Sara’s finger steadily moving along his forearm. Looking back up to Tanner, he studies me. He used to date Sara for about four months last year. They were hot and heavy, but I’m not sure about the seriousness of their relationship. Since freshman year, it was the first time I separated myself from hanging out with Tanner and Brad. My emotions were high, and I was jealous that Sara could grab his attention like I always did.

  Tanner and I have steered clear through the years. Before, we snuck in one hidden kiss or a prolonged stare and even a few tingled brushes of arms. But the line between friendship and romance was drawn a long time ago. We both dated people, but it was never more than a casual thing—a few dates, prom, or drunken nights. The two of us never officially got involved in any serious boyfriend-girlfriend relationships. I assumed we were waiting for Brad to notice the intensity between us when we were together and for him to accept it.

  Then, Sara strolled in one night at their apartment when we returned from a bar, and I watched Tanner take her to his bedroom. My heart sank to the pit of my stomach. I can’t lie. I was happy when they didn’t work out, but Tanner had hurt me. I stayed away from them until swim practice started back up, and we were thrown together. Soon, his comedic personality beat the anger out of me, and we were back to where we’ve always been—flirtatious friends.

  “Tanner, I called you last night.” Sara’s sweet voice nauseates my stomach.

  She peers at Bea and me, releases a huff, and then she casts her glance back on Tanner.

  “Sara, you know Piper and Bea.” He nods his head our way.

  When I begin to shift my weight, he locks my knee tighter between his legs.

  “How could I forget?” She barely raises her hand off Tanner’s to give us a small recollection.

  “Well, they do say hair dye—”

  I elbow Bea, pursing my lips together to keep from smiling.

  “What?” Bea turns to me. “It’s been researched.”

  Noticing my stern appearance, she lets it fade away. She gives Sara a fake smile before turning around to peruse the bar.

  I’m aggravated that it takes Tanner two minutes to remove her hand. The heat from the rage boiling in my veins makes me hot. I’m torn. Do I leave and act like a bratty two-year-old? Or stay and take the chance of my knee unlocking between Tanner’s legs to shoot right up to kick him square in his crotch?

  Disregarding Bea and me, Sara leans across the table, face mere inches from Tanner’s

  Um . . . hello? Someone should tell her that we are in a booth. Unless she somehow slides onto Tanner’s lap, positioning herself between Tanner and the table. She can’t shield our view.

  Maybe Bea has a point about the hair dye.

  “Tanner,” she whines.

  I shake my head, nudging Bea to move out of the booth.

  She cocks her head back at me and mouths, No.

  Turning her attention to Tanner, he snickers. He knows, between the two of them, I’m locked in place.

  Crossing my arms over my chest, I let out a huff, and Tanner full-out laughs.

  “What do you want, Sara?”

  When his eyes don’t falter from mine, I want to reach across the table and smack a kiss to his lips.

  “Can we talk?” she half-whispers, not aware that Bea and I can hear her plain as day.

  Tanner’s sights never veer, remaining pinned on me.

  “No,” he answers.

  He winks at me, which earns me a pinch from Bea. The weight of her glowering stare into the side of my head doesn’t cease. Plus, Tanner’s lips are moving into a smirk because he sees it, too.

  “Come on.” Sara scoots closer to him, and she takes a sip of her drink in a lame form of seduction, except it slips from her hands and dumps into Tanner’s lap.

  “Fucking Christ!” Tanner screams. The table pushes forward, locking Bea and me in. “Shit!” He grabs the edge of the table, pulling it off of us.

  “I’m so sorry, Tanner. Let me . . .” She grabs the napkins on the table.

  At this point, I’m done. She’s already got one hand on my man’s crotch, blotting it and her other grabbing more napkins.

  Tanner attempts to push her hand away, peering up at me and then back down, but the girl will not relent.

  Somehow, my body begins to react. Before I can stop myself, I push the table back, and my hand is on her wrist, yanking it off. Tanner chuckles, and Sara cocks her head back at me. My teeth nail down my lip, and between Tanner and Bea’s hysterical laughter, I come back to the moment. Tanner and I are not publically out as a couple. Sara files out of the booth to clean it up and Tanner follows.

  “What the hell, Piper?” Sara places her hands
on her hips.

  My teeth bite harder. “I’m sure Tanner can manage.” I quickly sit back down, looking anywhere but at her.

  “Oh, man. Party foul.” Brad decides to make his entrance now. “Piper, don’t stop Tanner from getting felt up.” He laughs, almost spitting out his beer.

  He’s clearly had too much to drink.

  “I know she’s always had a thing for you, but come on,” Sara talks only to Tanner.

  He stands up straighter now, the amusement faded. She leans over, brushing her chest against his arm, and this odd adrenaline shoots through my veins. It’s the same breathlessness I have when I’m standing on the board, waiting for the shot of the pistol.

  “Just get out of my way.” Tanner elbows her to push her out of the booth.

  Sara relents, and Tanner escapes without a look my way, walking in the direction of the restroom.

  “You.” Sara points her manicured nail my way.

  Bea sits up straighter, her back flat as a board, ready to protect me. “Just leave, Sara,” Bea warns her.

  “No. So, what? Are you guys finally together or something? You’ve finally stopped fucking with other people’s emotions in the stupid game of I Like You or I Don’t Like You?” She places one hand on her hip and juts it to the side.

  Bea slides out, and Taylor walks over, obviously aware of the escalating situation.

  “What are you talking about, Sara? You’re the one who ended it with Tanner.” Brad tries to play referee.

  I’m surprised he isn’t thrown back the slightest by Sara’s words.

  “I only broke up with him because I’d never live up to what he really wants.” Sara tosses her hand in my direction.

  I slide out of the booth, leaving all of us in a narrow opening, as we become the entertainment for the crowded bar. “Don’t blame me for that,” I hammer back at her.

  Sara shakes her head, tossing it back, while giving out a hollow laugh. “You were always hanging around.”

  She leans forward, and Brad intervenes by stepping between us.

  “She’s my sister. Of course she’s always around.”

  I’m mildly amused by Brad at this moment because he’s so naive as to what Sara is saying.

  “Trust me, Brad. She’s not hanging around your apartment for some sibling bonding.” She swivels around on her heeled boot, her bleach-blonde hair smacking Brad in the face.

  He looks at me, and then Taylor cozies up to him.

  “She’s ruining my party,” she whines. Leaning close, she softly says, “Look at everyone staring. Come on, Brad. Dance with me.”

  “All right, baby.” He wraps his arm around her waist.

  When they are a few tables down, Taylor turns around and winks at me.

  Man, I pinned her wrong.

  “Are you ready to tell me what the hell is going on? I’m your best friend, and it appears that little Miss Peppy over there knows, so cough it out,” Bea says from behind me.

  When I face her, I see her raised eyebrows, and her lips are turned up into a smirk.

  “Do I really have to say it? You know, Bea. You’ve always known.”

  I go to sit back down on the bench, but Bea grips my wrist to keep me in place.

  “Say it,” she eggs on, wiggling her eyebrows. She’s got me cornered, and she knows it.

  “Really?” I try to move, but her nails dig into the flesh of my wrist.

  “Fine.” I inch forward. “We’re sleeping together,” I whisper.

  Her head falls back as she lets out a bellow laugh. She points her finger at me. “That’s not all. There’s more involved,” she confirms her correct intuition.

  “Let it rest, Bea.” I’m lucky the bar is at its usual loudness. Otherwise, everyone within twenty feet would have overheard her.

  “All right,” she sulks. “You don’t let me have any fun.”

  “Sorry.” I half-ass mean it, finally sitting down on the bench.

  “Oh, no, you don’t.” Bea yanks me up by the arm into a standing position. She checks the dance floor and then turns back to me. “You are going to go in the back, into the men’s restroom, and pin your very fine boyfriend against the wall of a stall. Then—”

  “You don’t need to finish that thought.” I smile, biting my lip. Do I have the ability to push my inhibitions to the side? “He’s not my boyfriend.” Arguing with Bea will surely give Tanner enough time to return, getting me out of this predicament.

  “Wrong. He just gave you all his attention while a very available and willing girl tried to hook him.” She twists me around, facing the back of the bar. “Go!” She pushes me forward.

  My feet step one at a time until the dark hallway is in front of me.

  Inhaling a deep breath, I’m about to weave between the girls gossiping and couples making out when Tanner’s tall form exits the restroom. Our eyes find each other, and without asking a question, he grabs my hand and escorts me out the back door, propping a rock into the frame so that it won’t shut behind us.

  My heart races as I wait to discover his next move. In all the years I’ve known him, I didn’t know how spontaneous he was.

  “Come on.” He leads me to a dark spot in the alley where two buildings meet.

  He unleashes his hand from mine and places both on my hips before gently propping me against the brick wall. It scratches my back, but I’m not about to complain when his scent wafts under my nostrils. His arousing and alluring manly smell crowds my brain with memories of my time with him—not just this past week, but years gone by, too. I stare at his lips only millimeters away, and I lick my own, preparing them for his taste. But he doesn’t close the gap. Instead, he stays steady, allowing his body to encase mine in the dark alleyway.

  “Don’t doubt me, Piper.”

  His stern voice shocks me, and my head tips back, brushing against the rough bricks. The dim light next to the door shines on his piercing green irises, and doubt fills me if I am enough for him.

  Maybe he felt my insecurity in the booth, and I hate myself for it as much as he does. Just when I find my voice and I’m about to argue the truth, his thumbs stroke along the flesh of each side of my hips, goose bumps instantly spreading from his touch. My body sinks in his hands, and I notice the smirk on his lips as the qualm in myself vanishes.

  “I don’t want to hide anymore.” His head bobs down, and his soft lips flutter against my neckline. “I want you to occupy the space next to me . . .”

  With another kiss to my jaw, my head tilts the side, anticipating his travel up to my lips.

  “Telling every girl that I’m yours.”

  I’m putty in his arms, and he doesn’t relent as his breath tickles my lips.

  “Okay?”

  Not having the willpower to argue, I nod, and he finally gives me what I’ve been waiting for. He slides his tongue along my seam, parting my lips, and I attempt to hold out, purposely not seeming too eager. After a few strokes of his tongue along mine, I give up the fight inside of me and join him. When my tongue twirls with his, his hands tighten around my hips, and he juts his body into mine, pushing his arousal against my stomach. Our mouths turn frantic, and my hands grab fists of his hair as my right leg wraps around him. His hands rise up my rib cage, and I breathe heavily, barely handling the lust rushing through me. He lifts me, and my ankles are almost locked around his waist when the back door slams shut.

  I pull my lips off, and my legs fall to his sides, but Tanner holds still. His hands are on my ass, his lips on my neck. Smacking my hand against his muscled back does nothing to stop him, and panic takes over as I wait to spot the person emerging into my vision.

  “Tan,” I whisper.

  He shakes his head in the crook of my neck. His lips make my heart races, and my skin tingle. If it’s Brad, we’re screwed. When I hit Tanner again, he finally stops, and my feet fall to the ground.

  Laughter echoes throughout the small bypass between the buildings, and when I sidestep out of the darkness, I spot a few guys jok
ing around before they turn the corner to the main road. Meanwhile, Tanner’s palms are pressed against the brick wall with his head fallen in defeat.

  Walking up to him, I place my hand on his shoulder blade, testing his reaction first. Tanner’s never been anything but respectful to me—well, except once, back in middle school. I really hope I didn’t ruin our chance for children when I kneed him between the legs as payback for him throwing his gum into my hair. But I shouldn’t get ahead of myself by thinking about our kids. We need to handle this first.

  “Tan,” I softly say in case anyone is around, but no one is.

  He stays in place, not one muscle twitching. “Just don’t.”

  “It could have been Brad,” I argue, remaining a step away from him.

  He flips around, and this time, the light catches his intense vision lasered directly at me. I gasp from the sheer anger pouring out of them.

  “What if it was, Piper? I told you, I’m done with this can’t-catch-us shit.” His fingers thread through his wavy brown hair.

  I step forward, and my hands inch up the thin fabric of his shirt, and my fingers graze his skin. Sucking in, his stomach indents, signaling he might be fighting my touch even though he enjoys it all the same.

  “Please, give this more time.” My finger flicks between the two of us while I inch closer, trusting my nearness will sway him.

  “Give me a damn reason?”

  As much as I want to turn away, I don’t. I can’t allow him to see how scared I am. I’m scared this might not work out, that he’ll hurt me, that in the end, I’ll ruin a lifelong friendship between Tanner and Brad. I stay firm and match his strength of intensity.

  “We’ve only been together a week, Tanner.” I’ll admit, it’s a weak excuse, but it’s all I come up with right now.

  How can I say, I’m petrified that I won’t live up to what Sara said ten minutes ago? If Tanner’s wanted me for years, like he’s said, and Sara thought she couldn’t touch the pedestal he’s placed me on, then I’m afraid we’re doomed before we begin. As badly as our end would hurt me, it would destroy Brad. Brad wouldn’t be able to ever forgive Tanner. So, time will help me. Time will allow me to trust Tanner and trust that he won’t hurt me. Won’t it?