Her High School Crush Page 6

  Her gasp of breath tightened his abdominal muscles. It felt so good to slide into her unsheathed. Bare flesh against bare flesh. No rubber between them.

  “More,” she urged.

  He let her slide down as far as she could go, taking him in to the hilt. She let out a strangled moan of pleasure and began to move over him, her tight little box a vise around him. He felt his own muscles tighten, and helplessly, he began thrusting hard into her.

  “Trent, Trent, Trent,” she said his name like a chant.

  He could feel the orgasm building, bigger than the night before. He couldn’t tell where she began and he ended. They were just one. Writhing in ecstasy together. They clasped each other, their bodies covered in sweat.

  The rhythm took hold of him, primal. Destined. The two of them. Into each other so deep there was simply no getting out. Not that he wanted to get out. Bliss. Pure bliss.

  With a bulldozer of an orgasm pulsing through his cock.

  In one long, hot moment they hung suspended, staring into each other’s eyes so they saw nothing else, felt nothing else. Rising, converging, coming.

  The shudder shook his body. Wrapped around him hard and squeezed at the same time he felt her jerk and shiver.

  Their pants were airy gasps, barely breathing at all. Their skin was slicked. Their bodies melded.

  One.

  And then he remembered what he’d written on the water tower in neon-green paint.

  Trent loves Emma forever.

  * * *

  They dozed after that, neither one of them wanting to get up and break the spell. Both luxuriating in the memories they’d just created. Perfection.

  “I could live here forever,” Emma said as Trent peeled an orange and fed her tangy sweet slices.

  “You wouldn’t have said that a few days ago.”

  “A few days ago, I hadn’t found you again.”

  “Emma,” he said. “As soon as we get back to base camp, you and I need to do some talking.”

  “About what?” she asked, munching on the orange.

  “About what this means. You live in New York; I live in the Colorado wilderness. And we both love where we live and our careers.”

  Emma crinkled her nose. “Do we have to think about that right now?”

  “Not now,” he said, “but soon.”

  He was right, and she knew it. Long-distance relationships were difficult, and he loved this place just as much as she loved New York. She couldn’t imagine him living there. He was a wilderness man through and through. And she was a girly-girl who needed her creature comforts.

  You did pretty well without all that girly-girl stuff on this trip.

  Yes, but this had been a vacation. What was fine for a few days would quickly grow old for a lifetime.

  A lifetime.

  She looked at Trent, and her heart flipped. He was the one. She knew it in her heart. He’d always been the one.

  But she’d twisted herself around for men for so long, trying to be what they wanted her to be in order to make the relationships work, and because of that, the relationships hadn’t worked. She’d learned from Doug and Ryan that you couldn’t be something you weren’t. At least not for very long.

  “What are you thinking about?” Trent asked.

  “I’m thinking what a fabulous lover you are.” She hugged him.

  “Don’t be evasive with me. You were frowning, and I could see those little cogs in your brain whirling. Talk to me. What are you thinking?”

  “I’m thinking I don’t want this to end.”

  “Me, neither.”

  “So where do we go from here, Trent? Our lifestyles are as opposite as opposite can be.”

  “I know.”

  “I could try to change, but I used to do that in every relationship I was in. Twist myself into a pretzel until I didn’t recognize who I was anymore. The only time I didn’t do that was when we were together before.”

  “We’re together again, so why can’t you be yourself with me?”

  She swept her hand at the tent. “This isn’t the real me.”

  “Maybe you’re not giving yourself enough credit. I saw how you were out there on the river. You were magnificent, Emma. And you looked so happy. I take a lot of people out here, and I can tell when someone fits and when they don’t. You fit.”

  Did she? Maybe she was changing. But how would she know if that was the case or if she was just trying to be what Trent wanted her to be?

  “You’re right; let’s not talk about this now. Let’s just enjoy the rest of our time out here,” she said. “We’ll reevaluate when we’re back in civilization.”

  It had been a fun adventure, but as a lifestyle, she couldn’t see it. But was she going to let Trent get away simply because she wasn’t a wilderness woman at heart? She looked at him, and her stomach tugged. Surely, there had to be a way.

  “I used to work in the city,” he said. “Houston.”

  “Oh.”

  “I hated it with every fiber of my being. The noise, the crowds, the pollution. I spent three miserable years there before I finally wised up and moved back to Colorado.”

  “Why did you move to Houston in the first place?”

  “To be with a woman.”

  “There’s good things about the city.”

  “There are,” he agreed, “and I enjoyed those things. Just not enough.”

  They looked at each other.

  “Oh, Trent,” Emma said. “What are we going to do?” He never answered the question because David’s SUV came driving down the mountain trail, horn honking. They were rescued.

  * * *

  They arrived at base camp just before nightfall more exhausted than they’d ever been in their lives. Izzy and Angie and Myrtle came out to greet them and help them inside. Then Emma went off to the locker room to shower and change clothes, Izzy following at her heels. Emma took her purse from the locker and sent her $500 through Paypal. “Here you go, Izzy, you won the bet fair and square.”

  Izzy held up her palms and shook her head. “It wasn’t really fair. I put you in front of Trent, and I knew nature would take its course. You’ve loved him since you were seventeen. Then I stranded you in the woods. All dirty pool. Keep your money.”

  “How did you get Myrtle to go along with it?”

  “She’s like you, still a romantic at heart. She couldn’t resist helping me play cupid.”

  Emma met Izzy’s eyes. “How did you know I was still in love with Trent?”

  “Remember that night at the club?”

  “I remember. I haven’t had a hangover like that in years. It was right after Ryan dumped me.”

  “Well, it might have been right after Ryan dumped you, but all you could talk about was Trent. How you were afraid he was the love of your life and you’d lost him forever.”

  Emma wrinkled her nose. “I said all that?”

  “You did.”

  “I don’t remember that part.”

  “Well, I do, and I used it to my advantage.”

  “You were crafty enough to use it. More power to you. Please, take the money. You won the bet. You stayed celibate when we all lost it.”

  “Yeah,” Izzy said, “but you’ve all got great guys, and I’m all alone.”

  * * *

  Trent took Emma to the airport to catch her flight back to New York. Since the trip had gotten cut short because of Izzy’s maneuverings, Izzy had gone home early, and Emma and Trent had spent the remainder of her vacation in a quaint bed and breakfast in downtown Durango, making love for hours on end.

  It was killing Trent to have to let her go, but he knew she had to come back to him on her terms. She looked scared and sad and shaky. So, he just took her hand and held it as they sat in his SUV outside the terminal gate.

  She had to run from him. Just like she’d done ten years ago when her father had forbidden her to see him, and he’d pushed her away.

  But this was different. She was older now and could make her own deci
sions. She’d be back. He knew it in his heart of hearts, and yet it was difficult, letting her go, trusting that she would return.

  He got out, helped her with her luggage, walked her to the checkpoint, and kissed her cheek. “I'll be waiting,” he said.

  I’ll be waiting.

  Trent’s words echoed in her ears all the way to New York. This had all happened so fast and yet it felt so right. Why was she hesitant? What was she afraid of?

  Emma had the answer to that one. She was afraid she was romanticizing the relationship. That it wasn’t really as shiny and wonderful as she thought. That’s what she was afraid of.

  Trent.

  She couldn’t stop thinking about him, but she was determined to try. She had to be sure that what they had was real and not just some overblown fantasy. Her mother called and asked her to dinner, so she went, driving upstate to Tarrytown, driving past the high school. Remembering the places she and Trent used to go.

  “Mom, Dad,” she said at the dinner table after they’d eaten.

  “Yes?” her mother asked. “Have some more pot roast, honey.”

  “Do you remember my first boyfriend, Trent Colton?”

  “My, yes,” her mom said. “He was a very handsome boy.”

  “He got her in a lot of trouble,” her dad grumbled.

  “He’s got his own company now,” Emma said.

  Her father raised his head, surprise in his eyes. “No kidding?”

  “Where’d you hear that?” Her mother passed her a basket of yeast rolls.

  “He was my tour guide on my white-water rafting trip.” Her hands shook. Her stomach knotted.

  “Isn’t that something?”

  Emma stared at her father, feeling all the old pain anew “Why didn’t you like him, Daddy? He might have been a little rough around the edges when he was a teenager, but he’s a wonderful man. Why did you break us up?”

  Her dad met her gaze. Sadness and regret lingered in his eyes. “You want to know why I broke you up?”

  She laid down her fork and knife, suddenly short of breath, her chest tight with emotion. This was it. Everything finally out in the open. “Yes, I would.”

  “You were eighteen, much too young for feelings like that.” He paused. “I did what any responsible father would do and told him he wasn’t right for you, and that he should stay away if he knew what was good for him. And for you.”

  “Oh, Dad.”

  Her father cleared his throat. “I saw the way he looked at you. I read what he wrote about you on the water tower in neon-green letters. I hadn’t seen anyone that in love since I fell in love with your mother. It was too much, too fast. I was afraid you’d give up on Yale, on your future.”

  Emma couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You broke us up because he loved me?” Her hands trembled, and sorrow welled up inside her at what they’d lost.

  “Your mom and 1 got married too young. Neither one of us got to have any freedom before you and your sisters came along. I wanted you to have what we never got to have. Freedom and the opportunity to discover yourself.”

  “Honey,” her mother added. “You have to understand; we figured if it was meant to be, you’d find each other again.”

  She silently processed this as the kitchen clock ticked off the tense moments.

  She could hold on to her anger and blame her parents, or she could recognize the gift they’d tried to give her, even though she didn’t understand it.

  The past was gone. She couldn’t get it back. What mattered now was what she and Trent had found in the present. They’d both learned and grown from their mistakes. He’d gotten over his insecurities, and she could release her hurt and resentment.

  She smiled then, loving her parents, forgiving them, and letting go of their mistakes. And just like that, her mind was made up. “Then it’s really meant to be. The minute we laid eyes on each other again, it was as if ten years just fell away. Mom, Dad, I’m moving to Colorado to be with Trent.”

  * * *

  “You’ve brought me to the ends of the earth to live,” Emma said to Trent when she walked into the office of Wild West Adventure Tours.

  He pushed away from the desk and got to his feet. “That didn’t take you long.”

  “I went back to Tarrytown.”

  “Oh?”

  “And I saw my parents.”

  “Oh.” His tone flattened.

  “They like you.”

  “You told them about my company.”

  “Well, yeah, but it turns out they really liked you all along.”

  Trent frowned. “I find that hard to believe.”

  “It’s true. They were just scared we’d end up with their life. Married too young with too many kids too soon, so they warned you off. But I’m not them, and this is my decision.”

  Trent stalked across the floor, scooped her up in his arms, and hugged her tight. “You were my first and I...” He paused and swallowed. “I want you to be my last.”

  “Oh, Trent.” She didn’t mean to cry, but sweet tears of joy slid slowly down her cheeks.

  “Don’t leave me hanging here, sweetheart. Is that a yes?”

  In answer, she stood on tiptoes and cupped the sides of his dear face with both palms and kissed him with a fervency unlike any other.

  And they both knew in their heart of hearts it was truly meant to be.

  Epilogue

  One year later

  Who would have ever suspected a year ago that a chastity belt would change all of our lives?” Izzy asked.

  The friends were at Jackdaw’s again on a Thursday night, celebrating Emma and Trent’s wedding on Saturday.

  Bianca St. James Santos just smiled a sly smile and placed a hand on her rounded abdomen. Her baby, Thomaz Junior, was due at Christmas. Her husband, Thomaz, sat beside her, a protective arm around the back of her chair.

  Bianca was now working for Thomaz as his vice president and right-hand woman. They’d just flown in from their home in Rio and were staying at the Manhattan apartment they kept for when business brought them to New York.

  Jake and Madison were holding hands under the table. On Monday after Emma and Trent’s wedding, he and Madison were headed to Belize on an orchid hunting expedition. Jake had a ring in his pocket, and he was planning to propose to her in a field of orchids.

  Just the day before, his old friend Joe had called him from the Greek Isles where he was on an around-the-world cruise. Sounding happier than he had in years, Joe told him about the special woman he’d met on the trip. “Love,” Joe had said, “is the biggest adventure of them all.” And Jake knew he was right.

  Emma leaned against Trent, her head on his shoulder. He calmed her in the midst of the crowd and noise. She couldn’t believe how quickly she’d grown accustomed to the quiet wilderness of Colorado nor how deeply she’d fallen in love with the serenity of the mountains. Trent leaned over to kiss her forehead. “Do you miss New York?”

  “No,” she murmured, “not at all.”

  “Let’s have a toast.” Madison raised her glass. “To Thomaz—for designing the ultimate lingerie.”

  “I second that,” Jake added.

  “To Thomaz,” Emma echoed, her hand on Trent’s knee.

  “We owe you big-time.” Trent nodded and raised his glass.

  They toasted Thomaz, and then everyone cast a glance at Izzy.

  “Hey, don’t give me pitying looks, people. Your little chastity belt helped me most of all.” Izzy grinned.

  “How’s that?” Emma asked.

  “It’s taught me self-control, and with the money I made off you guys, I paid off my credit card debt.”

  “But you didn’t find anyone to love out of the deal.” Bianca made a sad face.

  “Oh, I wouldn’t say that.”

  “What do you mean?” Madison asked.

  A sly expression crossed Izzy’s face. “Hunter and I have been dating.”

  “Oh, Izzy,” they all exclaimed in unison.

  “So
how’s the sex?” Emma asked and giggled when Trent tickled her in the ribs.

  “I don’t know,” Izzy admitted.

  “What do you mean you don’t know?” Bianca blinked.

  “We’ve been seeing each other for three months, and tonight’s the night.” Izzy crossed her fingers. “Right now, as we speak, we’re playing Catch Me if You Can.”

  “And I caught you,” said a deep masculine voice.

  They all turned to see a handsome blond man stride over. He slid his arms around Izzy. “Honey, I’ve gotta tell you, that chastity belt is killing me.”

  “Amen!” Everybody at the table laughed.

  “I don’t suppose I can be Cherry Forever,” Izzy said, referring to her cartoon alter ego.

  “Izzy!” came the unanimous cry.

  With that, more toasts were made, more food was eaten, more hugs and kisses shared. Then one by one, the couples said good night and went home, each believing that they had, in their own way, won the bet and received the sweetest reward.

  * * *

  Dear Reader,

  Readers are an author’s life blood and the stories couldn’t happen without you. Thank you so much for reading. If you enjoyed Her High School Crush, I would so appreciate a review. You have no idea how much it means to me!

  Please turn the page for an excerpt for another sexy summer novel, The Billionaire’s Secret Summer.

  If you’d like to keep up with my latest releases, you can sign up for my newsletter @ https://loriwilde.com/subscribe/

  To check out my other books, you can visit me on the web @ www.loriwilde.com.

  Much love and light!

  —Lori

  Excerpt: The Billionaire’s Secret Summer

  At dawn on the first day of June, Wyatt DeSalme stood on the bow of the ferry watching the mist-shrouded island that lay just off the coast of Northern California slide into view.

  The churning engines vibrated up through the deck floor, and he tasted salty sea air. Seagulls chattered like gossiping biddies, and the excited voices of the young men and women surrounding him, nursing their gourmet coffees and noshing on free pastries, grew in tone and tempo as the mist parted.