Always have always will, p.21
Always Have, Always Will, page 21
“If they come back or things escalate, please call me, Connor, or Jacob. He’s here for Kelly for the next two weeks.” William hands me Jacob’s card.
“Thank you. I will. Auggie gave me his number before I left.”
Auggie. I twist my wrist and check the time. He’s already at breakfast with Margaux. I can’t call him now.
“Deciding whether to call your boyfriend?” Billie nudges my shoulder, a huge grin on her face.
“I can’t yet. He’s meeting with Margaux in the city.”
“Why on earth would he do that?” Billie sounds shocked.
“For me. I thought he looped all of you in.”
Noelle and Savannah are nodding.
“I knew Margaux was following Auggie and Caroline, as well as quashing his real estate searches,” Noelle shares.
“You forgot the eviction of 1459 Fifth,” Savannah adds.
“I knew all that. What does it have to do with you?” Billie asks.
“She is having me followed and working with Phyllis to arrange a marriage between Magnus and myself, which would effectively, in Margaux’s twisted mind, sever my friendship with Auggie, thus freeing him up to marry someone more suitable than me.”
“That’s dumb. Magnus isn’t ready to get married after Rosalind crushed his heart.”
“I’m aware of his breakup. His mother doesn’t care. Even though Brant and Della are happy, she insists Magnus needs to move on and soon. Hence, she wants Magnus to marry me. I have nothing against him, but he isn’t Auggie.”
“It’s so cute how you say his name differently now you’re a couple. All breathy and needy,” Noelle teases.
“I do not!” My face heats up instantly.
“Yes, you do.” Billie smirks. “It’s endearing.”
I have nothing to say. They could be right.
“I should get back. Cash needs to go to Pemberton this afternoon. I’ll see you tomorrow night, right?” Noelle says.
“Yes, I’ll be there.”
“Me too. If you need Connor, call.”
“Thanks, Kelly.”
Connor nods and follows Kelly out the door.
“Me too,” Savannah chimes in. “Both needing to leave and seeing you tomorrow. We need details.”
“No, we don’t,” Billie mumbles.
I laugh along with Noelle and Savannah. “I’ll share some Billie-approved details.”
“Deal.” Savannah and Noelle rise from the booth, lean down to hug me, and walk out the door.
“Are you going to be okay?” Billie asks.
“Yeah, I’m going back to the condo to work on my book proposal. Auggie said he would call me when he finishes with Margaux. I’ll fill him in then about my parents’ unwelcome visit.”
“If you change your mind, I’ll be at the store for the rest of the day.”
“Thanks, Billie.”
“Anytime.” She hugs me again, and I follow her out the door. Billie turns right toward the shop, and I cross the street to cut through the parking lot to the condo. Once inside, I luxuriate in the shower and change into shorts and a tee. I spread my work on the tufted ottoman and bury my nose in the paperwork.
Chapter Forty Two
August
In my head, I know how long this drive should take, but in my heart, it isn’t fast enough. The only thing I can hope for is my short meeting with my mother was enough for her to leave us alone. Truly, I only care about her leaving Caroline alone. The farther away from the city I travel, the more my heart rate decreases until I hit the exit for York Beach.
As I round the corner and Short Sands beach rises along my right, a strange calm comes over me. I park in the lot across the street, grab the items of hers I packed, and dial her phone.
“Hi.” Her voice sounds stressed.
“Hi. Can you do me a favor?”
“Anything.”
“Open the door.”
I hear a shriek shortly before the door flies open. She yanks me into the condo by my shirt and kicks the door shut with her foot. I drop the items to the floor, slide my hands around her face, and plaster my mouth to hers. Most of the tension melts from my body with her warm, soft lips on mine. I explore the depths of her mouth while backing her against the door.
“I missed you so much,” I murmur against her mouth.
“Me too.”
I decrease the pace of my kisses and walk her to one of the chairs. I lower myself to sitting with her in my lap.
“I can’t believe you’re here!” She kisses along my neck and jaw in between words.
“I needed to hold you.”
“It was that bad?”
“My need to have you in my arms is not necessarily indictive of the tenor of the conservation with my mother. Plus, a little birdie texted me. You had some unwanted visitors this morning as well, although I was already on my way here when I got the message.”
“I assured Billie I would tell you when you called. I have to admit, the Morgan women, if you will, showing up for me this morning was really comforting.”
“I’m glad Grant called Billie when your parents arrived. Do you want to talk about it?”
“No, the only thing you need to know is I told them both again I won’t marry Magnus. Once my father learned the betrothal to Magnus was our mothers working in concert to increase their status and not something I want, he gave me his blessing to be with you. I would bet he isn’t speaking with my mother at this moment. Phyllis walked out without a word.”
“Is that what you want?”
She raises an eyebrow. “Are you seriously asking me if I want you?”
“Maybe.”
“Yes, I want you. Only you. We need to get to where we’re together every day.”
“That sounds perfect.”
She leans forward and grazes her lips across mine. “Are you going to share or leave me in the dark?”
I lower my lips to the curve of her neck and watch goose bumps erupt on her flawless skin. I can’t fathom how many times I missed telltale signs of her feelings for the last few years.
“I laid out everything for her from the lease to my resignation and finding a location for my restaurant. I indicated I knew she was behind the eviction threat and damaging my reputation by getting the realtors to cancel my showings. Most importantly, I told her I won’t tolerate her disrespect or actions toward you. She walked out, leaving me with the tab. Either way, I don’t plan on seeing her ever again.”
“I’m with you there. How much time do we have?”
“I need to be back for dinner service tomorrow.”
She nods before setting her mouth to my skin.
“Do you have something in mind?”
“I’m going to need food. More importantly, I would really like to strip off your clothes, climb into bed, and never leave. However, there isn’t delivery, so I don’t want to go to bed until after we eat. What about you?”
“Your plans are perfect, with one small tweak. I will get the food after having my way with you at least once before dressing to pick up dinner and then rejoining you naked to eat in bed.”
“Your plan is much better.” She resets her lips to my jaw and travels over my chin and down my neck.
Gripping her hips, I turn her to straddle me and lift her shirt over her head. My purposeful ignorance to how perfect Caroline’s curves are causes me to mentally slap myself. Her full breasts are wrapped in black lace leaving nothing to my imagination. I drag the flat of my tongue along the scalloped edge before biting her nipple through the fabric. A moan of approval echoes around me. Her hands, have drifted down to my rib cage, dig into my skin. Noted, my love. I follow the same path on the other side to the same reaction. Securing her against me, I rise from the chair. Her ankles hook together behind my back. Before we get to the bedroom, her bra is unclasped and on the floor.
My expression must have indicated amusement.
“What?”
“Nothing. You saved me some time.” After setting her on her feet, I lower my mouth to her taut nipple while she pushes my pants and boxer briefs to the floor, then her own. She gathers my shirt in her hands and waits for me to release her breast from my teeth. The look on her face isn’t what I would expect.
I draw her into my arms and ignore the press of her curves against me. “What’s going on in your head?”
She tries to speak and fails a few times.
“Whatever it is, we can handle it.”
“It isn’t bad. I’m nervous, I guess.” She pushes out a deep breath. “I have been doing research.”
“I know, for your book. You’re thinking about that now?”
She shakes her head and buries it into my chest. After placing a few kisses to my chest, she lifts her eyes to mine. “No, pertinent research for right now.”
My curiosity is piqued. “What exactly were you researching?”
Caroline is… I’m not even sure. Embarrassed, maybe? I know her well enough to know she’s garnering courage to say what she needs to say.
“Sexual positions. Do you have any idea how many there are?”
I smirk. “No, how many are there?” She may have been my first, but I’ve heard stories, especially during senior year.
“I stopped counting after seventy.”
“What do you have in mind?” We are in uncharted territory right now. Normally, I can predict how a conversation with Caroline will go. This one, I have no idea.
She rises on her toes and whispers in my ear, “I want you to take me from behind.” When she lowers back to the floor, she looks up at me.
I lean down near the shell of her ear. “The new sexually active guy in me is screaming ‘hell yes!’ The inexperienced part of me is nervous but is willing to try anything you want.”
Her head drops ever so slightly as I kiss along her shoulder and slide my hand over her abdomen. She widens her stance, inviting me to touch her. I slide my fingers along the outer edge of her folds.
“Did you get this wet while you were researching?”
“Maybe.”
The exasperation in her voice tells me she did indeed get aroused while she was researching. “I want to be beside you when you research the next time.”
Without another word, I spear her with my fingers. Moving in and out, I feel her body tense. She’s close already. I increase my speed, and her thighs start to shake. Her grip tightens around my shaft at the same time as her inner walls pulse. Her strokes are in rhythm with my fingers moving inside her. As her orgasm subsides, I withdraw and turn her away from me. When she looks over her shoulder, I set my lips to the middle of her back in reassurance. More confident, she climbs into the middle of the duvet-covered bed and stays on all fours. I would consider myself a breasts guy. However, from where I’m kneeling right now, I may change my mind. The sight of her vulnerable and bared to me is hard to handle.
When I set my hands on her hips, Caroline jumps slightly.
“Cuore mio.”
She turns to look back at me before nodding.
“Words, please.”
“I need you to fill me.”
Holy hell! If I thought for one moment she was having doubts, she obliterated them. I move closer, the tip of my shaft against her soaked core. I inhale before aligning myself with her. With measured precision, I push forward. She feels tighter than even the first time. Once I’m fully seated, I savor the feeling of her surrounding me. I withdraw fully. Her reaction mirrors mine. Bereft, we feel bereft. With steady, sensual strokes, I bury myself into her over and over. The friction is impossible to ignore, and I feel her rippling around me.
She shifts onto one elbow, and her hand slithers toward her nub.
“What did I tell you?”
“This is so much more. I need to ease the ache.” Her words are soft, but on point.
“Let me.” I cover her fingers with mine. Instead of moving her hand, we tease her swollen clit together. The closer she gets to her release, the tighter her muscles clench around me. She pushes against me as the swirling sensation of her release gets closer. Her entire body starts to quake after she bucks against me again. It’s all it takes; I follow her over the edge.
We collapse onto the bed and regain our breath. We’re on our sides facing one another. There’s a slight ocean breeze coming through the French doors I didn’t notice were open.
“No more research without me, deal?”
She nods but doesn’t open her eyes.
“Baby, look at me please.”
Her eyes open slowly. Reading Caroline my girlfriend takes a little more effort than her as my best friend. Then again I failed at reading my best friend for a while. More accurately, she hid her true feelings with terrifying precision. Now, all I see is unfiltered, pure love.
She answers my question without me having to ask it. “I’m fine. I’m better than fine. That was… I don’t have sufficient words.”
“I don’t think I can articulate what happened either.” I wonder if it keeps getting better. I decide to keep the thought to myself for now. I draw her closer, and my eyelids drift downward. A few hours later, I wake in the same spot.
I glance at the clock and note I should order dinner before the restaurants close. I kiss Caroline on the top of her head. She doesn’t stir. I wiggle out of bed and into my clothes.
I find the stash of menus in the kitchen, place an order, scribble a note and set it beside Caroline. I locate her keys and step onto the sidewalk minutes later.
The ocean air is calming, not that I need it right now. I didn’t realize it until very recently, but Caroline balances me out; she always has. She has been the serenity in my life since I was ten years old. I need to make sure she never doubts it again.
Chapter Forty Three
Caroline
When I wake, I’m alone. For a moment I consider I may be dreaming. The soreness between my thighs and the finger marks on my hips quickly dispel that notion. When I roll over, I hear the crinkle of paper. I read the note from Auggie and pull myself off the bed. I don’t know how long he’s been gone, but I should have dishes out when he returns.
I pull my shirt and panties on before moving into the living room. First, I gather my paperwork and laptop, setting it aside. Then, I find plates and silverware, only because I don’t know which local restaurant Auggie selected. A short while later, he steps inside with a pizza and a bag of something else.
“Do you want to eat outside or inside?” I ask.
“Your choice.” He sets the food on the counter.
“What’s in the bag?”
“Antipasto salad.”
I smile. He used his best friend knowledge to his advantage again. Can’t say I’m upset about it though. I pour drinks, plate the pizza, and set it up on the ottoman. He follows with the salad and joins me.
“Thank you for going out.”
“You’re welcome. I will admit you were right though. Truly didn’t want to get out of bed even for food.” Auggie takes a huge bite of his first slice. “This is really good.”
He isn’t easy to please when it comes to pizza. This is off-the-charts amazing. It takes a lot to get a good review out of him. I take a bite, and I have to agree, it’s delicious. I share my salad, and we polish off the entire pizza.
We clean up and snuggle in bed to watch a movie. Sometime later, I shift and find Auggie’s side of the bed empty. Wrapping the blanket over my shoulders, I find him on the balcony near the railing. I curl my arms around him from behind, resting my head against his back.
“Couldn’t sleep?”
“No.” He turns in my embrace, sliding his hands to my back, drawing me against him.
“Margaux?”
He nods. “I still don’t trust her.”
“I don’t trust either of our mothers. Is there anything we can do to protect us more?”
He adds a sliver of space between us to look into my eyes. If he caught my word choice, he doesn’t correct me. He sets his lips to my forehead. “I don’t think so. Let’s go back to bed.” Intertwining his fingers with mine, he leads me back inside.
Near seven, I wake to the most delicious smells. I slip out of bed and use the bathroom.
“Get back into bed. I’m almost finished,” Auggie calls from the kitchen.
He doesn’t have to tell me twice. I’m not one to turn down a chef-prepared breakfast… ever. I giggle, reset the pillows for both of us, and climb beneath the sheets.
“Morning, gorgeous.” He hands me a cup of coffee and kisses me. I could certainly get used to mornings like this with him.
“Thank you.”
He chuckles. “Welcome. I’ll be right back.”
As promised, he returns soon thereafter with a tray heaping with food. It shouldn’t surprise me he made my favorite breakfast, a ham and cheese omelet with toast and bacon. He carefully climbs in beside me. I try to stifle my moans of culinary delight but fail.
“This is so good. What did you do differently?”
“I love that you can tell. The ham and cheese are different varieties.”
“It’s good.” We finish our breakfast. I snuggle deeper into the sheets and rest my head on his chest while he polishes off his coffee.
“I don’t want you to leave,” I mumble against his skin.
He sighs, sets his cup on the night table, and burrows down beside me. “I don’t want to leave either, but I have to for a little longer. We can make it a little over a week.”
“Even though we can doesn’t mean I want to.” I feign dejection.
“I know.” He kisses my head, my temple, and along my jaw.
My slow exhale pushes him to continue a downward path with his lips. He gathers my T-shirt, and I lift it over my head. He doesn’t miss any of the exposed skin as he moves lower. He pauses near my hips, lightening the pressure of his kisses.
“I’m sorry.”
“No reason to be sorry. It doesn’t hurt. Come back up here.” As soon as I can, I slide my hand into his boxer briefs.
“You might be insatiable,” he teases as I continue to stroke him with increasing speed.
