11. Coming Out Of His

11

COMING OUT OF HIS SHELL

" H i," Raine said, opening her door for Aster on Saturday around eleven in the morning. They'd had plans last night to get together, but he'd gotten held up doing something at work.

"Hey," he said. "Sorry about last night."

"No worries," she said. "Things happen. I know. I can't tell you how many times I think I'm going to get out of work on time and end up staying until the school is almost closed waiting for a parent and then go home and spend time on the phone too."

He leaned down to give her a kiss. "I don't know if any teacher ever called my parents that I can remember."

"Maybe you were a good kid," she said. "Although I do try to call parents in regards to that too. Every parent should know they can reach out to me."

"I don't know that I'd say I was a good kid. Not grade wise. I did my work most times but just didn't want to be there. It wasn't my thing."

"It doesn't need to be," she said. "You know that. I'd say you're pretty successful."

"In a roundabout way," he said quietly. She wasn't so sure why he mumbled that but figured if he wanted to expand on it, he would.

She learned one thing from Aster in the weeks they'd been dating, he was private about things, but he wouldn't lie if she asked. At least she hoped she was right in that assumption. It was just she wanted him to volunteer more than be questioned.

"How late did you work last night?" she asked.

"I got home around nine," he said.

"Sorry about that. Hopefully you got everything squared away," she said.

"I did. I went back this morning to make sure it was all set," he said.

"I'm sure Zane and Lily are thrilled to have you as part of the team. Zane would have had to do it or they would have had to call someone. I know Ivy told me it's great knowing that things can be fixed with the machinery faster now."

"Most times," he said. "At least faster than calling someone. Definitely cheaper. But that is why they are paying me, to save them the cost of someone outside to do it."

"And their time and frustration dealing with those things," she said. "Ivy has said things like that. Not like telling secrets, just how hard everyone works and that if a machine is down for a few hours it pushes everything back."

"It does," he said. "I'm not sure I ever saw myself doing work like this, but it's nice too. No dodging bullets and sirens going off."

"Only when there is a fire," she said. "Have you fought many since you've been here? The little one at the school doesn't count. The maintenance team had it out."

He snorted. "No, I haven't and hopefully I don't. I know what I'm doing as much as the next volunteer, but we aren't paid professionals with high-tech equipment. Not everyone can make it to a call either."

"No," she said. "Not in small towns like this."

"Not sure how we got talking about this," he said. "What activity do you have planned for today? Are we making sock puppets? Painting pottery? Don't ask me to do some Ghost moment with you, I might have to draw the line there."

"Are you joking with me?" she asked, punching his arm lightly. He was coming out of his shell more and more and she was thrilled.

"You can't tell?" he asked.

"Maybe if you cracked a grin with it or laughed I'd know more."

He forced one out and she giggled. But it reached his eyes and that was good enough for her.

"I have a different activity planned for today. Since you've been such a good sport with things, I thought this one might be more to your liking. It's not as if you give me any ideas."

"You know the area better than me," he said. "If I don't want to do something, I'll tell you."

"I figured as much. So we are going to a fun park. You know, to have fun."

He grinned and she wanted to laugh. "What kind of fun is there in a fun park?"

Now she realized it had more to do with her excitement than the idea of what they'd be doing.

"Go carts, mini golf, batting cages. All those guy things. They might have laser tag or target practice things. Stuff I'm not good at and maybe you can show me. If you want."

"Okay, now that does sound like fun," he said.

"Woohoo, I got one for you."

"You don't always have to try to entertain me, you know," he said.

"I know. But I want you to not just feel like it's all about work. However, if you want to sit around and relax we can do that. I thought we could do that tonight." With another activity too, but she wouldn't say that to him.

It'd been on her mind for a week and she was ready to take that next step. She'd let the day play out more and go from there. Not that she'd thought she'd change her mind, but it wasn't like her to just yank him into her room when he walked in the door before noon.

"Sounds like a good day to me," he said.

She grabbed her fleece. For early November it was a beautiful day reaching the high fifties. Might only top sixty and the sun was shining.

Aster just had on a flannel shirt open over a T-shirt and a pair of jeans with sneakers. She liked that he wasn't this fancy suit-wearing guy. Not that many wore suits, but the older she got the more she realized that wasn't the type of man she was attracted to.

Maybe it was a good thing she and Colton didn't work out. That was the first she'd actually thought that too, based on attraction.

There were other reasons she was glad they didn't work out, but never on a physical level.

Having dated Aster now for a few weeks, and the way her juices were flowing and her blood was pumping when he kissed her, she knew beyond a doubt the attraction was greater than she'd ever felt before.

It took them a little over thirty minutes to arrive and the place was pretty busy.

"Are you hungry?" she asked. "We can get some food first if you want?"

He tapped her on the nose and she could tell it was a playful move he was stunned he'd done. "You're so used to taking care of everyone. I can get food or speak up if I need to."

"Sorry," she said. "You're right. I'm used to being the one taking the leadership role and planning everything out. This day is yours. You tell me where you want to go and what you want to do and if I don't know how or need help, I'll ask."

"I'm sure there is a lot in life you don't need help with," he said.

"You'd be surprised," she said.

They spent the next few hours having a ball. Racing on the go-cart track, her beating him at mini golf, him showing her how to throw darts and hit the target and not just the wall. She didn't do so well there.

Lunch was hot dogs and chicken strips with fries. Amusement park food and she'd felt like a kid that finally got to let go too.

When they were driving back to her place, he said, "Why do I get the feeling this was more fun for you than me?"

"I'd like to think it was equal for us," she said. "But I will admit it was great. Normally when I want to do things like this, people think I'm being silly and spending too much time with kids. But what is wrong with being a kid now and again?"

"Nothing," he said. "I know there were a lot of teens there, but there were adults too."

"That's right. I don't want to come across as if I had no childhood, as that isn't the truth. Please don't think that. But we didn't have a lot of money growing up. If we did something like that as kids, it was an all-day adventure and we got our money's worth. We wouldn't go if there was anything one of us couldn't do. My parents were fair that way. But by the time I was old enough to drive the go-carts, River and Brooks had part-time jobs and were working weekends."

"And wouldn't have wanted to take the day off?" he asked.

"They did, but I know they would have liked the money too. You could say we did day things over the summer or in the fall on the weekends as vacations. We never went on a family vacation other than camping a few times. I can tell you now I don't like sleeping in a tent. I hope you don't ever suggest that. I'd go if we had an RV, maybe."

He turned to look at her as they were walking back to his truck. "I've spent enough of my life in a tent. I don't have any desire to do it again. Nor camp. You could say I'm getting spoiled by living in Zane's cabin on the water. It feels like a vacation daily to me."

"I'd feel the same way," she said.

They drove back to her place almost in silence. Just a few words here and there. "What's wrong?" he asked when they pulled into her parking lot.

"Nothing," she said. "Why?"

"You're quiet and normally aren't. I can't tell if something is going on or you're planning the next event."

"Activity," she said, grinning. "And I am. Another one you'll like."

"Really?" he asked.

"Yep," she said. "In my apartment."

He lifted his eyebrow at her.

"What is that?" he asked. "Dinner?"

"Too early for dinner," she said. "After."

"After what?" he asked.

She unlocked her apartment door and took her jacket off to hang it up and slipped her shoes off.

"After we go to my bedroom," she said quietly.

He lifted her chin with his finger. "Are you sure? You're not acting like you are. I don't want you to have this all planned out for me. Some things can't be planned and shouldn't be. Spontaneity is a thing for a reason."

She tried not to groan over the having all things planned out comment. Something she'd heard before.

"I'm sure," she said. "I've been sure for a week but didn't want to rush. I didn't want you to think ill of me."

He laughed. Actually a funny sound. "I could and never would think ill of you. Sometimes I think you're too good for me. Almost too pure."

She shook her head. "Don't do that to yourself. We are good for each other. I'm far from pure."

"You have no idea how people see you," he said quietly. "No idea how I do."

That was part of her problem. She always knew how people saw her before and what they'd say or assume about her career and how she should act now.

But she just wanted to be Raine Scarsdale.

A woman who was dating a hot sexy man who seemed to only have eyes for her.

"Why don't you show me," she said, reaching her arms up to put them around his neck.

He picked her up, cradling her like she'd never been carried before. She felt as if she weighed a feather and Aster easily brought her to her room.

He kissed her softly and she didn't want that. She didn't want slow and steady. She didn't want gentle and tender either.

Raine didn't want to be thought of as pure if that's what was in his mind.

She wanted to feel like a woman.

She nudged his mouth open with hers, her tongue sliding in and aggressively attacking his.

He let out a moan in his throat and then brought her to her bed and laid her down on it, his body covering hers but not putting much weight on her.

Her hips lifted up to grind against him and she realized she was a lot closer to coming than she thought.

"Slow down," he said.

"I don't think I can. It's been a while and I almost feel like I've got to get it over with."

He leaned up and looked into her eyes. "Huh?"

"Sorry," she said. "That came out so wrong. I need to get a release so I can focus on the rest. Right now I just want that and it's clouding everything else in my brain."

"You're not supposed to be thinking during this time," he said, pulling her shirt over her head and tossing it on the floor. She found it funny since he was a neat freak. At least he wasn't stopping to fold it and put it in the dresser.

She reached down and pulled his T-shirt off. He'd left his flannel shirt hung up with her jacket and his sneakers next to hers in her little foyer.

"Make me not think then," she said.

But the minute his shirt was over his head, she saw the scar on his chest. Right over his heart and her heart stopped a beat.

"Don't look at it," he said.

"I can't look away," she said. "You could have died."

"Yeah," he said. "But I didn't. And if you want to talk about it, we can after. I just said don't think so if that means you have to close your eyes, then do that."

He kissed her until her body relaxed and she sagged back on the bed, then he moved down her chest with his lips, his fingers pulling the straps of her bra down and sliding around to release it and pull it off.

When his mouth covered a hardened nipple, her hips lifted again.

"Aster. That is making it hard for me to relax and wanting you to hurry some more."

He didn't reply but moved down her ribs and her stomach, his fingers making fast work of her jeans and pulling everything off of her until she lay there naked.

She still had her eyes closed because she wanted to feel everything he was doing to her. The soft caress of his hands as they made their way up her legs and then hovered over her heat.

It wasn't his fingers that touched her wet heat though, it was his mouth.

And he wasn't gentle.

He wasn't tender.

He went in hard, his fingers invading her fast. His tongue flicked at her swollen bud.

She arched up, shouted out his name and came almost instantly.

Holy cow, that had never happened before.

He kept it up too. Just going and going while her orgasm didn't want to end.

But all wonderful things do come to an end and her hips sagged back on the mattress.

She felt the bed move and opened her eyes to see Aster undressing quickly and covering himself with a condom he'd pulled out of his wallet. She was going to tell him she had some too but didn't need to.

He gathered her back in his arms, his mouth going to hers, and they kissed like two teens in the movie theater that she'd joked about weeks ago.

She heard herself moaning again, her hips lifting to get closer to him too. She needed to feel him inside of her more than she needed anything else in her life.

He finally seemed to get the message and nudged his way between her legs, moving around her opening a little until he slid in smoothly.

Her back arched again, his hips held her in place while his fingers found hers and pushed them over her head.

It was a trapped feeling she'd never felt before. One of helplessness.

But she didn't feel that way with Aster.

She felt safe with him, as she'd never done in her life.

Their mouths went at it full force and their hips joined.

She was positive she'd never moved that fast before in bed, but Aster kept up the pace. Or maybe he set the pace and she kept up.

It didn't matter. Nothing did at this moment other than their two bodies searching for a release that she knew was going to suck her back into the mattress again.

When his breathing started to get choppy she lifted her legs to wrap around his hips and that slight movement sent him deeper releasing the trap door holding her second orgasm in place.

She started to come and come hard. Enough that if he wasn't kissing her, she was positive her neighbors would hear her screeching.

Then he started to grunt out a few noises until he collapsed on her and rolled quickly so she was on his chest.

"Now that is how you prove a woman isn't pure," she said, laughing, her hand running down his back. She felt some scar tissue there and bet it was an exit wound.

Her feeling of elation just went to sadness and she was going to question him because she needed to know. She was falling fast for him and the thought of what he might have gone through months ago was breaking her heart.

"You're still pure to me," he said, then leaned up to kiss her quickly and left the room to go to her bathroom.

She was positive he was going to clam up and she wasn't going to let that happen.