Staying on Course (4 page)

I’m proud but scared.

I’m nervous but excited.

All these thoughts run through my mind as I hold him tight. The only thing to bring me out of his arms is the sound of my brother coughing softly. I step back and turn to him, pulling him close.

“Dev, what the fuck?”

“I promise, after tonight, no more tears until I leave. But do you know how much I love you?” I say into his shoulder, and he holds me tighter.

“Yeah, I think so.” His own emotions clog his throat.

I allow his hold to calm me and then step back, swiping my eyes and grabbing a napkin to wipe my face. “No more. I’m fine.” I square my shoulders. “Let’s finish this kitchen and then order an early dinner. I think it may even be time to crack open a beer.”

Bryce takes no time in handing Nate and me a beer and opening one for himself. He moves me next to him and kisses my temple.

“For the rest of our lives,” is all he says, and I smile widely.

*****

I know the minute Nate leaves for the night because Bryce barges into the bathroom, strips without a word, and joins me in the shower. He smiles seductively as his eyes rake up and down my soapy body. I turn into the spray to rinse off, yelping when he tugs me into him. The second his fingers touch my hardened nipples, I throw my head back into the crook of his neck. He nibbles on my earlobe as I snake my hand between us and run my thumb lightly over the head of his hardened cock. Bryce growls lowly and moves one hand lower until his finger slides easily into me.

I practically purr when he glides another inside me and slides them in and out. My hand wraps all the way around him, earning a rough hiss.

“Come for me, babe. You’re so fucking wet. My dick is begging to be inside you, but I need you to come first.”

His fingers increase their pace, and my release builds. My body is on fire with the warmth of his embrace and the heat from the shower spray. He squeezes my entire breast, eliciting a moan.

“Fuck it. I can’t wait.” Bryce stops, rips his hands away, and spins me toward him. He bends and lifts me so that my legs wrap around his waist easily. Once he has me backed into the tile wall, he lowers me onto him, his hard cock gliding into my slickness slowly. His eyes burn with desire, and I’m trapped. This is another moment I’m committing to memory, the desire and hunger lingering in the air between us.

My nails skim up the back of his neck as I crush my mouth to his. The kiss is hard and deep, and he swivels his hips several times before rapidly driving into me. I tighten my core muscles, trying to not only push him closer to the edge but also hold myself back. If I let go, I’ll explode, but I want him with me. He pulls away from the kiss and lays his forehead against mine, breathing heavy.

“Baby, let go.”

“Not without you.”

“Devon, I’m right there. You’re so fucking tight, so wet.”

There’s nothing I can do to stop the pressure building. My breathing shallows, and Bryce grins slyly. He rotates his hips once and moves himself against the sensitive skin of my clit.

“Bryce!” I scream as the orgasm hits me with monstrous force, threatening to split me open. Spots cloud my vision as he pumps into me twice more before yelling through his own release. I try my best to focus, but when his hands squeeze my ass, I come again from the sensations alone.

His body stills against mine, and we both pant loudly, holding on to one another.

“I’m pretty sure it was a good thing I hadn’t ever felt your body around mine when I made my life plan.” His voice is raspy.

“Why do you say that?”

“If I’d have known how fucking terrific you feel and the things you do to me when I signed up for the Navy, I may have rethought my decision. Now, being away from this for any amount of time is its own form of torture.”

I giggle and kiss his collarbone casually. He moves us easily out of the spray and turns off the water. Stepping out of the shower, he grabs a towel and rubs it up and down my back. I take the towel from him and try my best to dry his own back, staying wrapped around him.

When he lays me on his bed, I let go and shuffle under the sheets. He crawls next to me and tugs my hair out of the bun. His skin is still warm and damp as I curl into him.

“Wake me up in an hour, so we can do that again.” I yawn and feel his chest vibrate under my cheek.

“Those vaccinations really did a number on you, huh?”

“Yes, paired with the fact that I had an emotional afternoon and then incredible sex.”

“Sleep, baby.” His fingers rub lightly up and down my arm.

“Seriously, wake me up in an hour.”

He chuckles softly and links our hands together, draping them across his chest. “I love you, sweet girl.”

That’s the last thing I hear until the pounding on the front door startles us both awake. Bryce starts cussing and slides from under me, switching on the bedside lamp.

“Sorry, but I need to find something to put on,” he rumbles.

“What time is it?”

“Actually, it’s a little after eight.”

“We slept almost nine hours?”

“Seems so, and we’re going to sleep a few more after I take care of whoever’s at the door.”

The pounding starts up again as he pulls on a pair of athletic shorts.

“Who the hell visits this early?”

“No idea, but I’ll be back.” He kisses my forehead and walks out, leaving the door cracked.

I lean back into his pillow, but my eyes pop open when he yells, “
What the hell?”

I scramble to his bathroom to get the pajamas I left on the counter last night. Once I have them on and my hair is in a ponytail, I rush toward the living room.

Nate is in his doorway, and he puts one finger to his lips. I join him and strain to hear what’s happening.

“This is going to be really good,” Nate whispers.

“Who’s here?”

Before he can answer, Holli’s annoying voice fills the other room.

“Aren’t you going to let me in?”

“Fuck no. Now, I’ll ask you again. What the hell are you doing here?”

“I couldn’t let you leave without talking to you.”

“About what?”

“Please let me in,” she tries again.

“What don’t you understand about fuck no? I thought it was made perfectly clear when I saw you at the bar last month that you fucking needed to get over whatever bullshit you had in your head about us. You ambushed my girlfriend at MY apartment pool, while she was alone, to spout your delusional shit about us.”

Bryce’s angry vibes fill the whole apartment. I try to go to him, but Nate grips my wrist.

“Let him do this, Dev. It’s a long time coming. He’s been angry since she pulled her stunt with you years ago. He needs to get it out. You know he won’t hurt her, but he’s finally going to leave no room for misinterpretation.”

I nod and then inch forward to peek around the corner. It’s obvious she put some work into her visit. She’s dressed to the nines, and her three-inch wedge sandals showcase her long, slender legs. Her hair is straightened, hanging long, and her face is completely made up.

No one looks that good this early in the morning unless they have an agenda.

“Holli, for Christ’s sake, what the fuck are you doing banging on my door this early?”

“I saw Nate out last night and overheard him say y’all were moving and heading to Rhode Island. I couldn’t let you leave without clearing the air between us. We were in love once. We were going to have a baby. Can we start over? Maybe I can visit wherever you’re stationed after OCS?”

I whip my head to see Nate’s eyes grow wide and then a smile break out across his face. “Just wait,” he mouths.

I turn back to watch as Bryce crosses his arms across his naked chest and looks at the ceiling, blowing out a loud breath. His eyes slice to the side, and he gives me a small chin jerk in acknowledgement. She remains oblivious to my presence.

“Holli, I’m pretty sure you saw the ring on Devon’s hand at my graduation and know I proposed. If you didn’t, let me go ahead and officially announce, I’m engaged.”

She shakes her head back and forth in disbelief. “I saw it but couldn’t believe you’d ever link yourself to a girl. That’s what she is, Bryce—a girl. Isn’t she still in her teens? There’s no way she can give you what you need. How did this even happen?”

A growl escapes his throat, and when he speaks, the tone of his voice makes the hair on my arms stand. “Let me get this straight. You hear I’m back in town to pack up and move, and you get a wild hair. Then you fancy yourself up, bang on my door at eight in the morning, and haul my ass out of bed—with my fiancée—so you can
‘clear the air’
?”

Her eyes widen and do a quick scan of the room at the mention of me. She opens her mouth, but Bryce cuts her off.

“I’m going to answer your questions, and then I’m closing this door. Thought I made that clear before, but I was too nice. No more nice.

“I’ve been in love with Devon Harris since the day I laid eyes on her. She’s the most beautiful thing in my world, probably always has been. You call her a girl, and that’s fine because she’s
my girl.
But she’s also all woman, and I am lucky to be linked to her. If there’s anything I need, it will come from her because she’s my everything.”

He takes another deep breath, and her lips start to quiver.

“As for how this happened? She graciously gave me another chance after I begged. The stunt you pulled the night of her high school graduation will always be imbedded in her brain, no matter how many times I try to erase it. Making her think you were my fiancée was low. You knew our relationship wasn’t serious. I never loved you.” His voice grows soft with kindness, but he continues to speak.

“That may seem cruel, but you know it’s true. You manipulated me with threats and then heartache. If fate was different and we’d had a child, I’d be the best damn dad ever, but I’d be doing it with her by my side. I thought I wasn’t good enough for her after you got pregnant, but she still consumed my mind.”

A tear falls down her cheek, and she puts her hand to her mouth. After all this time and the endless conversations Bryce had with her, she finally realizes he was never hers. His kindness after the miscarriage gave her a hope she’s been clinging to. Even with me in the picture, she thought she had a chance to win him back.

“Looks like you may understand now. The only reason I’m standing here at all is because I’m waiting to hear that you want to apologize to Devon for your classless behavior the last time you saw her.”

Tears flow freely down her face, and a small piece of me feels sympathy. Then she straightens her shoulders, and anger flashes across her face. “Is that what she told you? She is a liar—”

“Holli, stop. At this point, you’re embarrassing yourself. I’ll be out of this city in a few days, and I can only hope our paths don’t cross again. But if they do, don’t fuck with us, or you’ll regret it.”

He steps back, shuts the door, and turns to the room. I run to him, jumping into his arms.

“If that girl doesn’t get the hint after that, she needs help,” I say softly.

He grunts into my neck.

“With that being said, I think
my fiancé
needs to know how much of a turn on that was.”

Bryce leans back and gives me a smug smirk. Both of us turn our heads when Nate grumbles. He’s changed into shorts and has his running shoes on.

“I’m going for a run. Be back in an hour.” He emphasizes the hour and walks out the door.

I giggle, and Bryce kisses me quickly. “You have an hour, babe. I’m all yours.”

“You bet you are.”

Bryce’s parents have a bungalow on the back of their property, only having used it as an office for Sheila in the past. They offered for the guys to store their stuff indefinitely. We all know it could be a long time before they actually get another place of their own, so this saves them from having to pay for a storage unit for years.

When the last box is unloaded from the U-Haul, I fall onto the sofa and moan. My eyes sting from exhaustion. Quinn falls next to me and exhales dramatically.

“This moving shit is tough.”

“I don’t even want to hear it from you. You’ve only been around for three hours. Imagine three days.”

Dean drove up from Atlanta to see Quinn for the weekend, and they agreed to help us unload. When this is all over, I’m going to owe her huge. While I’ve been away the last few days, she has taken care of everything for our upcoming trip.

The program requires we all fly into Rio as a group. Our international flight leaves out of Miami, so we were responsible for getting to the Miami airport with adequate time to meet with Professor Grant two hours before departure.

She worked with the university travel coordinator for the both of us. After reviewing the flights and knowing the importance of being there, we decided to fly in a day early and stay at an airport motel. This disappointed Bryce, but he didn’t say too much.

Quinn also got us a flight into Charlottesville for a short trip to pack what we need and meet with Roxy, the girl watching our apartment and my car while we are gone. She’s a friend who cheers with us and actually needed a place to stay for a few weeks to attend a summer workshop. It worked out well, and we agreed. If we weren’t accepted to the Summer Expo, our plan B was to come back to UVA for second summer semester, but things fell into place once we heard about the program.

So while I’ve been away the last few days, my best friend has organized our lives effortlessly. Yep, I owe her huge.

“Why are you so tired? Was there some wild excitement you haven’t told me about yet?” She raises her eyebrows and pinches my side lightly.

“No other excitement. We packed all day and then went out with some of their friends last night. Somehow, our low-key night turned into me going to bed at four am. Bryce didn’t crawl in until six. Then we were up at ten to load the truck. Even though I didn’t have to, I scoured the apartment the best I could to make sure they got their security deposit back.

“I didn’t sleep on the drive because we stopped halfway to switch drivers, and I rode with Nate the rest of the way home.”

“How’s he feeling about everything coming up?”