Fourteen

"Hadley!"

Pausing on the sidewalk, I look around, thinking someone called my name. When I don't hear it again, I keep walking.

"Hadley! Hey, hold up." Kyler runs up behind me, his hand resting on my shoulder. He smiles, slightly out of breath and I shift so his hand falls. "I haven't seen you in a while."

I nod, stepping out of the middle of the sidewalk and shifting my backpack on my shoulders. "Yea. I've been busy."

He moves with me, crossing his arms over his chest. "Are you working now or something?"

I shake my head. "I mean, no. I just do that arts-and-crafts class at the retirement home still."

"Then why are you busy?"

I frown at him, my lips pursing. "I just am. Did you have something in specific you wanted to say? Because I'm on my way home and don't really feel like catching up."

His arms drop to his sides as he nods. "Right. I was just going to say that Joshua saw you at that diner on Fifth Avenue the other day." I wait for him to elaborate, blinking at him until he does. "He said you seemed pretty angry about something."

I scoff, my hands finding the straps of my backpack. "I was there with Rhys, a... friend of mine. He went outside to smoke for a while then came back inside. As for being angry, you can mind your own business."

I start to walk around him, but he stops me, his hand touching my arm. "No, you're right. I'm sorry."

"Bye, Kyler." I shake off his arm and walk away. He doesn't follow me and I'm grateful for it. Despite how much he tries, we aren't close like that, and I have no plans to be.

I'm just coming up on my house when I spot a familiar face hiding in the dark. "There you are." It's said from the shadows, Rhys's familiar growl reaching out to blow in my ear as he stands from the tree he was leaning against. I don't look at him and I don't stop walking, but he doesn't care. "I thought you'd be home sooner."

"Thought wrong." I can already tell by his tone that he's not in the mood for my games, but I can't help it.

He grabs my backpack, yanking me backward by the handle on top. I'm spun to face him and his lips glide over mine, soft and sweet for all of three seconds. Biting into my lower lip, he tugs it back, letting it scrape through his teeth as he lets it go. "Run."

I blink up at him, confused by his quiet demand. "What?"

He releases me, the white blond of his hair reflecting off the moon at his back. "Run, Hadley."

It only takes me a second to react, my sneakers scraping on the sidewalk as I spin around and take off for my backyard. Stepping off the sidewalk, I cut through the grass, sprinting toward my open yard gate. I can hear Rhys's footfalls behind me, and my heart picking up has nothing to do with my running. I ditch my backpack at the gate, swinging it off my shoulders and tossing it toward the side of my house. Pumping my arms, I sprint across my back lawn, knowing I'm getting closer and closer to getting caught.

I feel his presence before his big hand knuckles the back of my hoodie, catching me off balance. I'm slammed to the ground, Rhys's body following mine as I'm rolled to lie on my back. Rhys's forearms lock on either side of my head, his hair hanging down as he looks at me, legs tangled with mine. Both of us are breathing heavily, our chests almost in tune as he braces above me.

"Your sex kinks are really weird."

His upper lip curls at my remark, his tongue reaching out to lick the seam of my upper lip. "You would know."

I laugh at that, the sound carrying through the trees. My house is the last on the cul-de-sac. You can't even see the other houses from my driveway, and it bumps up right onto the Rivercrest National Forest. We're completely secluded out here. It's cold though. My fingers and face feel tingly with the chill. "You caught me, now what?"

He sits up instead of answering, his hands pulling off my sneakers. I frown at him, watching his fingers find the button on my denim. He starts to tug them down and I try to grab them with no success. "I'm going to freeze out here!"

He shrugs, his piercings glinting in the moonlight. "You should have run into the house." He jerks my jeans over my feet, his eyes on my pussy as his hands slide up my thighs. "Take your hoodie off."

Already shivering, I do as he says, pulling it over my head and discarding it off to the side. My skin is pebbled with goosebumps, the cold air stinging my flesh. His big warm hands slide up my sides, pushing my shirt along with it. I raise my arms, letting him pull it up and over my head. He nods at my bra, and I silently slip it off. I'm shivering before him, my arms crossing over my chest to get warm.

He shakes his head and I drop them, knowing that fighting him gets me nowhere. He spreads my legs wide as he kneels before me, his hands running over my knees and down my thighs. His touch is different tonight, no less rough but somehow more gentle than usual. The way his fingers bump along my scars as he admires them makes my belly heat. The way his eyes soak up every inch of me like he's memorizing every blemish makes my heart thump. Using his thumbs, he spreads my pussy lips, groaning at the soft, wet sound that his fingers make. The noise curls my toes into the grass. His attention moves upward at a leisurely pace as he draws out his movements, his fingers plucking at the already hard peaks of my nipples until my fingers are digging into the grass beside me.

He leans over me, and I suck in his warmth, moaning into his mouth as he takes my lips in his, licking the taste of me from my tongue. His teeth lightly scrape my chin as he pulls away, wet kisses placed on my neck and collarbone that burn in the cold air. "Touch yourself."

I immediately respond to his low whispered command, my hand snaking between our bodies to stroke my cold fingers along my hot wet slit. I circle them around my clit, arching into Rhys's mouth as he sucks in a nipple, flicking his tongue until it's oversensitive and I'm wiggling beneath him. He gives the other breast equal treatment, his warm hands running along my goosebumps, overstimulating with my tight nipples and pumping fingers. He sits back and I watch as he unzips his denim, pushing it down far enough to free the long, hard length of his erection. He runs his hand down the length, his palm squeezing over the head as his eyes fix on my fingers sliding in and out of my slick pussy.

He's taking his time with me tonight, drawing out every movement. If I'm not careful, I might let it go to my head, let myself believe that this cruel man might actually care for me.

The hand wrapped around his dick matches my rhythm, continuing to fuck his hand as he watches me masturbate for him. A small bit of precum squirts out of the tip of his penis onto his fingers and I moan at the sight, my palm working my clit as I lift my hips off the ground for him. The sight of his fingers spreading the cum over his swollen head has my pussy clenching the air in search of his dick. I part my lower lips for his dark gaze, wordlessly inviting him to slip in, spreading them with the fingers of one hand while I thrum my clit with the other. My hips shift to fuck the air as I silently beg him to fill me up, my tits squished between my arms so they jiggle with each small move I make.

I almost cry when he moves forward, his eyes meeting mine as he grabs my hips and slides me to him. I can't keep my hips still as he lines his dick up with my soaking pussy, my hands ripping at the grass on either side of me as I wait for him to fill me up. I barely feel the cold anymore, all my attention and focus on the tip of his dick pushing between my lower lips. He presses a palm on my lower belly, fucking me with just the tip of his dick as I moan my frustrations into the trees.

"That's a good girl." He's biting his lip, a scowl in place as he watches the swollen head of his dick disappear between my wet lips. It's the first real praise he's ever given me, and I almost combust with the rush it gives me, my heart thrumming as he continues to tease me. I want all of him, but I know better than to ask. Even with his newfound kindness, I know he'll refuse just to spite me, even if it's something he also wants.

I'm on the cusp of my orgasm, the back of my spine warming, moving toward my gut as I thrust in the grass below Rhys. He chooses that moment to ram me full with the rest of his length and I instantly orgasm, my pussy clenching around him as he groans above me. I thrust through my release, his palms pressing down on my inner thighs to keep me spread for him as he jerks into me with an almost mindless rhythm. I can vaguely feel that my toes are frozen, but I don't even care anymore, watching Rhys's hair flop over his eye as he groans out his release between my thighs. His tongue runs over his bottom lip as he looks down at me, his hips pumping leisurely a few more times before he pulls out.

All we ever do is fuck and part of me hates that. But another part of me knows that's all I could ever get from Rhys. All anyone could ever get from him. And knowing that somehow makes it feel more special than it probably is.

I watch him as he tucks himself away, his eyes raking over my body like he's not finished for the night. He reaches over and grabs my hoodie, tossing it to me. "You should get dressed. Your lips are starting to turn blue." He smirks at that, standing as he watches me cover back up.

I pull my panties back on and my hoodie, but just grab the rest. As I stand, Rhys's eyes follow me and I start walking toward my house. Pushing open the sliding door, I walk in, leaving it open for him. He closes it behind him, leaning against the glass. Shivering, now that I'm not thoroughly distracted, I grab a blanket and sit on the couch. I have to rest my cheek on the cushioned headrest to see Rhys.

"You never talk about yourself."

His eyes narrow marginally, his big body moving off of the door to sit on the couch with me. He pushes my feet off his lap when I try to set them there and I bite back a smile. Rhys is definitely not a cuddly guy. "Why should I? You already know everything about me."

I scoff, watching as he grabs the remote from the coffee table to flick the television on. "That's not true."

He looks at me from the corner of his eye. "You know it is." His tone says the conversation is over, so I scoot lower onto the couch, resting my head on my arm as a pillow. My eyes are just starting to drift closed when I feel the soft swipe of Rhys's thumb on my ankle under the blanket. "Go to sleep, Hadley." Knowing he'll stop if I say anything, I just smile to myself and go to sleep.