Out of My Element
Authors: Taryn Plendl
Tags: #Humor & Entertainment, #Humor, #Satire, #Literature & Fiction, #Humor & Satire, #Romance, #Contemporary, #New Adult & College, #Romantic Comedy, #Sports
Out Of My Element
Book 3 in the Philadelphia Series
By Taryn Plendl
Out of My Element
Taryn Plendl
All rights reserved
Text Copyright © 2013 by Taryn Plendl
This is a work of fiction. Any
similarities of characters to actual persons, living or dead are purely
coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work.
No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in retrieval system, copied in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise transmitted without
written permission from the publisher. You must not circulate this book in any
format with exception to Amazon Prime’s Kindle Owners Lending Library.
Trevor and Ava’s wedding
3 weeks prior
Chelsea
My heart felt like it was going to
jump right out of my chest as I pushed back into a small alcove, giving myself
a moment—trying to catch my breath.
It was honestly the most beautiful
wedding I’d been to. Ava and Trevor were an extraordinary couple and incredible
people. I was so honored when Ava asked me to be a part of her wedding.
I had known Ava for a couple of
years and Trevor more recently. We all worked at the advertising agency
together, and from the moment I’d seen them together, I knew there was
something there. The way Trevor looked at Ava brought waves of emotion over me.
He looked at her like she was the only woman in the room. I had watched their
relationship blossom from the beginning, and it was so exciting to see them
together. It gave me hope.
I had been on a long streak of
disastrous dates lately. I was half tempted to sign up for one of those
internet dating sites. Maybe a computer would have better luck setting me up. I
was obviously having a hard time finding anyone with whom I was compatible
these days.
As the night wore on, the party got
a bit more uninhibited. Most families and older guests had long since gone
home, and the crowd was now full of the twenty-somethings letting loose. I had
my fair share of drinks and had been carrying a warm buzz that seemed to give
me the bit of courage I needed to let myself go a little. This is how I ended
up in this alcove trying to catch my breath.
As part of the wedding party, I
knew I would be paired up with Trevor’s friend, Nick. He was the epitome of
tall, dark, and handsome, and boy could he dance! Each time we danced, his
hands seemed to roam a bit farther, and to be honest, I had a hard time
stopping it—not that I even wanted to.
The feel of his hard body pressed
against me had my insides in a frenzy. The music thumped as he rocked his hips
against my backside in a sensual rhythm. With one quick motion, he spun me
around so I was facing him. He pulled me snugly against the
hard muscles of his chest and wrapped his arm around
my waist, making me gasp and pull in a lung full of air. His face was so close
to mine that I could feel his breath, hot and moist, against my lips.
“God,
you smell amazing,” Nick groaned, as he leaned in and placed a moist kiss on my
neck. I felt a warmth flow through my body that traveled from my head to my
toes. I threw my head back as he trailed kisses across my neck, finally pausing
as he placed his hands on either side of my face. His mouth claimed mine in a
sensual dance of desire as he plunged his tongue into my mouth, savagely
searching as he licked and sucked me into the most intense kiss I’d ever
experienced.
I pulled
back, panting and weak in the knees. “Wow,” I whispered. The man kissed like a
god.
“Come
home with me,” he groaned. It wasn’t a question, and I wasn’t sure I would be
capable of saying no even if it had been. I nodded and then smiled at the
relief and desire I saw in his eyes.
“Give
me a minute, and I’ll be right back,” I begged.
He
placed another quick kiss on my lips. “Don’t keep me waiting too long.” He
winked at me as I turned and headed into the hallway.
“Holy
shit!” I moaned, trying to regulate my heart rate as I pressed my back against
the cold wall. Excitement rolled off of me like a child on Christmas morning.
In all of my past dates, I’d never been so attracted to a man before. My dates
teetered on the conservative side—nothing like Nick. Nick exuded sex, and it
seemed tonight, I was finally going to experience it. If it was anything like
the kiss we’d just shared, I was sure it would be everything I’d ever imagined.
I
took a deep breath and pushed off the wall, stopping to get my purse on the way
back. My cheeks felt flushed, and my lips still tingled from the kiss. I
rounded the corner and walked back into the dwindling reception. Ava and Trevor
were making their way out, and I had barely made it back in time to say
goodbye. After the doors shut behind them, I turned to find Nick. “Hey Talia,
have you seen Nick?” She and Tom were on their way out, and looked as if they
were in quite a hurry.
“Um,
I think I saw him on the side of the bar.” She pointed in the general direction
as they practically ran for the door.
“Thanks.”
I smiled nervously and headed that way, smoothing my dress and tucking my hair
behind my ear. There he was, standing at the bar. Wow, he looked just as good
from behind, with his nice tight butt and thick muscular thighs. My heart rate
picked up again in anticipation.
I
propelled myself forward. Twenty feet. Ten feet. As I got closer, he spun to
the side, in front of the bar stool, and I stopped dead in my tracks. I
watched, stunned, as he leaned down and kissed a voluptuous blonde sitting on
the bar stool, running his hands all over her in a public display of affection
that made me blush.
I
felt my stomach roll, and I knew I needed to get out of there before I
completely lost it. I ran to the door and pushed myself out into the serene
summer night. “Damn it, Chelsea! What the hell were you thinking?” I scolded
myself out loud. Had I really almost made the biggest mistake of my life?
I
could feel the warm tears slide down my cheeks as I walked over to a waiting
taxi. I climbed in and gave the driver my address before sinking back into the
seat and closing my eyes. I had always been a good judge of character, but I’d
gone against all of my gut feelings about Nick. You don’t get to age
twenty-three with your V-card fully intact by letting your guard down like I
just did.
“Wow
… just wow,” I mumbled.
Nick
When I played soccer, I felt
invincible—free and powerful. It was my one true escape where I could take
everything life threw at me—the good, bad, and ugly—and kick it back. I found
my first and only true love from the first moment I stepped out on the field.
I ran full force down the field,
dodging players, spinning, and moving. “Now!” I hollered, watching as the ball
went flying over the heads of my opposition. Positioning myself, I stopped the
ball with my chest before pivoting and sending it straight into the net with
one kick.
My teammates swarmed me as we
celebrated our win. “That was awesome, man.” I looked over and grinned at Tom.
“Thanks.” I wiped the sweat from my
face with my towel and picked up my things. Tom fell in step next to me, which
was impressive.
Tom had been in a serious accident
earlier this year. It was touch and go for a while, but he pulled through,
although not unscathed. Tom had lost the lower portion of his leg in the
accident, and it had undoubtedly taken a toll on him. He was over that now and
these days, he seemed to radiate confidence everywhere he went.
“When are you going to get one of
those blade prosthetics so you can get your ass back out on the field with me?”
He laughed, ignoring the fact that I was totally serious. Tom and I had played
soccer together in college. It was a passion we shared—a part of who we were.
Tom was still coaching high school
soccer, but he hadn’t played since the accident. He was also tied up these days
with Talia. She was great, so I could hardly blame him. Tom had almost lost her
during a bout of depression after the accident. He pushed her away, and during
that time, I was seriously worried about him. Fortunately, Talia was as
stubborn as they come and never gave up on him. He always said she was his
angel, and I guess I would have to agree, although I would never tell her that.
“I need to get going. I’m meeting
Talia in an hour, but I didn’t want to miss the game. It really was great to
see.” Tom smacked me on the back as he moved to the parking lot. I headed for
the showers. I was meeting Trevor and Ava for dinner tonight, and if I didn’t
get my ass in gear, I was going to be late.
***
I pulled into the parking garage
under the building that housed the advertising firm where both Trevor and Ava
worked. We were going to a little Italian restaurant within walking distance,
so I parked and made my way up to their floor.
The elevator doors swung open, and
I froze. Bent over in front of me was the perfect combination of legs and ass.
My mouth almost watered as I had a passing vision of grabbing those hips and
standing behind her. I watched, paralyzed, as the woman wiggled from side to
side, searching through a box of folders, before finally standing up when she
located what she had been looking for.
I cleared my throat and chuckled as
she jumped and turned around. “Shit, Chelsea, I didn’t even recognize you.” I’d
forgotten she worked with Trevor and Ava, and to tell the truth, she didn’t
look like I’d remembered.
She gave me a halfhearted smile.
“Oh hi, Nick.” She walked back around her desk and sat down, crossing her long
legs. “You can go on back.” She nodded her head toward the offices before
looking back to her task at hand.
I leaned up against her desk,
watching her as she flipped through the file in front of her. She and I had
been around each other a handful of times during the planning of Ava and
Trevor’s wedding, and at the wedding itself, but this was the first time I
remembered actually looking at her.
Her hair was long and a deep red
with loose curls that hung around her shoulders and back. Her eyes were
hazel-green, framed with long eyelashes that seemed to rest on her soft pink
cheeks as she looked down. Her skin was alabaster with a light sprinkling of
freckles across her nose, and her lips were pink and full with the lower one
slightly out of proportion, giving the illusion of a natural pout. Her body was
long and lean, almost athletic—like a runner or swimmer—with slight curves and
smaller breasts. Basically, she wasn’t my type at all, but for some reason I
couldn’t stop looking at her.
“Did you need something, Nick?”
Chelsea’s agitated voice brought me out of my current breakdown of her body. She
didn’t even look up as she spoke to me, and I almost wanted to do something
obnoxious so she would pay attention to me, just as I did when I was a kid ...
well, I still did shit like that.
“Um, no.” I stood there plagued by
indecision, not sure if I wanted to stay and try to talk to her or just head
back to Trevor and Ava’s office. I couldn’t think of anything to say to her, so
I just turned and walked down the hallway.
I walked into the little office
that Trevor and Ava shared. “Could you guys give it a rest?” I laughed as they
pulled apart, ending their kiss. “Shit Trevor, you already married her. You
don’t need to try to impress her anymore; she’s stuck with your sorry ass.”
“Hey, Nick.” Ava giggled as she
turned to collect her things.