11. Edu

11

EDU

I pulled her flush against my body, gripping her hip hard as my other hand skimmed up her back, settling just around her neck. "What the fuck are you playing at?"

"Playing?" she asked, cocking her head at me. "Who says I'm playing?"

I hissed out a breath as I lifted the weights over my head, then settled them back on the rack. My arms fell to my sides, exhausted from how long I'd been working out. As soon as I came home, I went to my basement and started lifting instead of taking that shower I desperately needed. Now, glitter covered the surface of my bench and clung to the sweat on my arms.

But I needed to exercise to wipe the memory of her from my mind. It wasn't working. I could still feel her body pressed against mine at the bar last night. My cock was still hard from the feel of her soft curves in my hands.

"This is ridiculous." I cursed under my breath, sitting upright. Wiping the sweat from my brow, I glared at the glitter on my arm. I needed a fucking shower now before it ended up anywhere else.

I stomped up the steps of my ranch home and headed to the master bedroom. I purposely had the builders make my house smaller. I knew I wouldn't be getting married or having kids like the rest of the assholes I worked with. There was no need for anything bigger.

I stripped my clothes and tossed them in the laundry basket, then made my way into my bathroom, stepping into the shower. I slid the glass door closed and turned on the cold water. Only that would ease the ache in my balls. But even as the water hit my body, I knew it wouldn't be enough to relieve the need building inside me.

I was desperate to get laid, but there was only one woman on my mind. "Fuck," I muttered, gripping my cock. "Just one time." I closed my eyes and thought of her plump lips and gorgeous eyes. I'd lied to Fox when I said I hadn't noticed her. It was fucking impossible to look at her and not be mesmerized.

Her eyes were unlike anything I'd ever seen before. A purplish blue, they stood out against her porcelain skin, mixing beautifully with her blonde hair. And he was right about her nose. Cute as a fucking button.

Not that I would ever admit to that.

Hell, I was already fucking my hand at the thought of just looking at her again. I hissed in a breath when I felt myself ready to spill over. It was too soon. I was too wound up and I knew one orgasm wouldn't be enough to kill the desire building inside me. I pinched the head of my cock, hoping to relieve the pressure, but all it did was make me cry out as I came all over my fist.

And her face was the first thing I saw.

"Fuck!" I shouted, slamming my fist into the wall.

It hurt like hell, but I'd deal with the pain if it meant getting the image of her out of my head. I squirted some body wash into my hands and started lathering it over my skin. It didn't help at all. In fact, it only made me want to thrust my cock inside her sweet pussy even more. I didn't need to touch her cunt to know it would be like heaven. Hell, just the feel of her hips told me all I was missing out on.

Slamming off the water, I flung the door open, nearly sending it shattering against the other end in my haste and anger. I grabbed a towel off the rack and quickly wiped down, all too aware of my raging cock jutting out from my body. Walking over to the sink, I stared at my reflection in the mirror. I was still fucking covered in glitter. Was I producing it now?

"You will not fall for this woman," I muttered, determined to keep my head on straight and not let my cock take control.

I hastily scrubbed at the glitter on my neck, then over my chest. By the time I was done, my skin was raw and red, but it looked like I'd gotten all of it. After slamming around my room and dressing way too carefully for what I was about to do, I stomped down the hall and grabbed my keys, ignoring the nagging sensation in my gut as I got in my truck.

I wasn't infatuated with this woman. Not even close. I just wanted to fuck her. I knew I couldn't do that, though. Dreams already sparkled in her eyes. Sleeping with her would only exacerbate the problem.

But getting another peek at her wouldn't hurt. In fact, it might help me remind myself that a woman like her was not for me. That's what I told myself as I drove into town and parked at the grocery store. Clenching my jaw, I stared at the large sign above the entrance. IGA.

"She has no ambition. She works at the fucking grocery store," I muttered to myself as if that was some kind of reason why I wouldn't want to fuck her. "And she's practically stalking you."

I winced at the realization that I had gotten in my truck and driven down here to catch a glimpse of her. That wasn't technically stalking. I had any number of reasons for being here, and none of them included seeing her.

"I need milk."

I hadn't actually drank milk since I was a kid.

"And eggs. You can never have too many eggs."

"And cheese."

I nearly shouted in terror as the voice caught me unaware. Spinning to face my window, I glared at Fox, who was grinning at me like the idiot he was. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Ah, I think the real question is, what are you doing here?"

"I came for groceries."

"Yeah, I can see that. I heard you making up the fake list. What's wrong? Couldn't come up with a good reason to go to the grocery store? "

"I was reminding myself of what I needed," I snapped.

"Yes, and also working up the courage to go in and see your lady love."

"She's not my lady love."

"Me doth think the man protests too much," he grinned. I groaned as he sprung around the front of my truck and climbed in the passenger side.

"Is there a reason you're here?"

"Well, unlike you, I have every reason to be here." He turned to face me, spreading his shirt wide for me to see.

Save The Avocado Farmers!

"Are you fucking serious?"

"As a heart attack," he nodded. "People need to be aware of what's going on in the world. And if no one else is going to save the avocados, I will."

"I thought you wanted to save the farmers?" I questioned.

"Right, and the avocados by association. Now you know my reason for being here. What's yours?"

"It's like I said, I need groceries."

"Well, I hate to point this out, but you won't get them sitting in your truck."

I knew that, but I also knew walking through those doors was a dangerous thing. If I got out of the truck and actually went in there, I risked something worse than a hard cock. I just didn't want to admit it yet, but deep down, I knew.

"I have no problem getting my groceries. I just wanted to be sure I had my list before I went inside."

"Right, a list," he grinned. "Well, no time like the present, right?"

I winced. "Right."

I shoved my door open, sweat pouring down my back as I walked around the truck and headed inside with Fox beside me. Maybe she wasn't working today. Maybe I would get lucky and not be able to see her. But as I walked through the doors, I felt Fox practically beating my arm to get my attention.

"There she is."

Dread filled me as I turned and saw her smiling face. Yes, I wanted her. No, I did not want to feel a burning ache in my gut. "Whatever. I just need groceries."

He guffawed beside me as I grabbed a cart and started pushing it through the store. Avoiding the fact that I would actually have to see her, I loaded my cart with so many unnecessary items and prayed I survived the trip through the store without my cock bursting with need.

"How much corn on the cob are you getting?" Fox asked.

"What?"

He nodded to the cart and I followed his gaze. Rolling my eyes, I pulled out the twenty ears of corn and put them back on the table.

"What are you doing?" Fox said in disbelief, grabbing the corn and putting it back in. "This is good stuff. It'll go great with shawarma." His eyes widened and he smacked me with an ear of corn. "We can have a barbecue. You could invite your lady friend!"

"I am not inviting her anywhere."

"Sure you are. Tonight. With all this corn, you'll need someone to eat it."

I grabbed several ears and tossed them back. "I'm not getting it."

He snorted. "I beg to differ. Twas you that originally put it in the cart."

"It was a mistake."

"Yes, a happy mistake. This is gonna be good," he said, shoving me out of the way as he pushed the cart on. "I need to use those avocados anyway." He stopped and turned to me with a frown. "Do you think the town will think there's something wrong with us?"

"Why?"

"Because we've been in the grocery store a lot lately. People will start to talk."

"About our food consumption?" I asked, looking at him strangely.

"You're right. If anyone asks, we'll tell them we're opening a food pantry." He stopped and looked back at me. "We're not. Just so we're clear."

"Okay," I said mockingly. Not that he caught the sarcastic tone in my voice. I hurried behind him so I didn't look like an idiot, standing in the produce section, staring at another man walking away. "So, say we're having this barbecue?—"

"We are," he assured me.

"What else would we have there?"

"Shawarma."

"What else?" I asked irritatedly. "Not everyone likes shawarma."

When he stopped and turned to me questioningly, you would have thought I kicked his puppies and told him they were all ugly. "What do you mean?"

I opened my mouth to say something, but the words wouldn't come.

"Who doesn't like shawarma? It's delicious, nutritious, and the most amazing thing ever. Why would someone not like it?"

His voice was raised to levels that would draw attention from everyone in the store. "No one," I said hurriedly. "I was…I was just teasing."

I seriously thought he was going to start crying. How could one man be so upset over a few words? It was unbelievable.

A huff of laughter left his lips and his bright eyes dried. "Phew! You really had me going there for a minute."

As he hurried off, I found myself taking a deep breath, grateful I had sidestepped that landmine. Fox could be so sensitive sometimes. I just never figured whether or not someone liked shawarma would be a hot-button topic.

We wound our way through the store, quickly filling up our cart. I barely listened as Fox rambled on and on about the best ways to cook shawarma, even testing me at times about my love for it. In truth, I thought it was okay, but I wasn't in love with it like he was. Still, I didn't want any more panicked looks from him, so I gushed about it as much as he did.

But the whole time, my mind was on the vixen who had stolen my attention last night. I really needed to find someone at a bar and get laid. It was just so damn hard in such a small town. When we finally got in line— her line —I towered over everyone else, staring at my woman at the register.

My woman ?

I gritted my teeth, shaking my head. This was all wrong. She wasn't my woman and I wasn't going to start thinking of her as mine. This barbecue was the wrong thing to do, and I definitely wasn't inviting her. What the hell was I thinking?

"We're leaving," I said to Fox.

"Right, after we pay."

"No, now," I ordered, pushing the cart backward a few feet, but he stopped me.

"Uh…I don't know what savagery this is, but in civilized society, we pay for our food."

"We're not getting it. Just leave it."

His eyes widened in horror. "You mean, all those refrigerated goods…you just want to leave them in the cart?"

"Someone will put them away. Let's just leave."

He gripped the cart harder, refusing to budge. But the front of the line was closing in on us, and soon it would be our turn. I had to leave now.

"You're just getting cold feet."

"Over a fucking barbecue?"

"Watch your mouth, young man," he chastised me. "We're in public."

"You torture people for fun!" I hissed.

"In private!"

"That doesn't make it any better!"

"It does if no one else knows about it!"

He opened his mouth to argue, but was suddenly distracted. I wasn't sure why I turned around, but it proved to be the start of my downfall. I just didn't realize it at the time.