Body Games (A Games Novel) (26 page)

Then, when it was on, he put a hand to the side of my head to still me, and pulled me in for a long, slow kiss that left me breathless and distracted.

I was so distracted that when he sank inside me with one push, it came as a surprise. I cried out, clinging to him, and my outburst was silenced by his quick kiss again. “Shhh,” he murmured. “You okay?”

I nodded, breathless. Oh God, he was so deep inside me, and he felt so good. I was totally filled by him, every inch of my body feeling stretched to deliciousness under Jendan. I’d needed this so badly.

He kissed me again, his mouth caressing mine. Then, he gazed down at me and began to slowly, rhythmically, move inside me. Pinned under his gaze, I arched with every thrust, wanting him to enjoy my body as much as I was enjoying his. I raised one knee up to increase the depth he was thrusting into me, and he hooked it with his arm and pulled it forward, even as he leaned in to kiss me again.

And then we were face to face, lip to lip, as he thrust deeper and harder inside me than I’d ever been fucked.

I was normally a fairly silent partner in sex, but I couldn’t resist the moan that escaped me. That felt incredible. My movements became more frantic, my nails digging into his shoulders as I clung to him. “Jendan,” I panted. “Oh, like that!”

“Annabelle,” he murmured, his strokes taking on a fierce edge. “You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. From the moment I met you, I wanted this moment. Wanted you in my arms, my cock deep inside you.”

I whimpered, clinging to him.

“Now you’re finally mine,” he told me softly, then claimed my mouth with a kiss, even as he thrust deeper. His next stroke bottomed out, taking me so deep that I could feel it all through my body.

I came with a fierce cry against his mouth, shuddering against him. Every muscle in my body seemed to take part in the orgasm, tightening deliciously and then slowly releasing. Above me, Jendan continued to murmur sweet words and slam into me, our bodies rocking the bed.

Then, he leaned down and buried his face against my neck, dragging in a rough breath. My hands went to his ass, clutching him against me, and I felt his buttocks tense, hard as rocks, as he came with a shudder of his own, and then collapsed on top of me, spent.

With a heavy, blissful sigh, I slid my hands over his back contentedly. “That was wonderful.”

Jendan moved off of me, rolling to the side. He got off the bed, quickly disposed of the condom and then returned, dragging me against him so we could continue to cuddle. “Wasn’t too fast for you?”

I shook my head, eyes closing as his arms wrapped around me. “Just perfect. That was exactly what I needed.”

He kissed my neck from behind me, mouth moving over my damp skin. “I aim to please.”

“You succeeded,” I said with a smile, snuggling close to him again. Then, I sighed, remembering what day it was. “I hate that we have to leave soon.”

“Soon? Who said anything about soon? My plane doesn’t leave until tonight.” He began to nibble on my ear, sending ticklish sensations through my body. “Way I look at it, we still have hours and hours of loving to get in before we part.”

I rolled over so I faced him, and couldn’t help but trace a finger down his tanned cheek, then down his equally tanned chest. “So what’s with all this talking, then? I thought you were a man of action.”

He wagged his eyebrows at me. “So you want action, do you?”

“I thought that’s what I signed up for. I—“ A yelp escaped me, then a helpless laugh as he tackled me on the bed, a gleam in his eye…and reached for another condom.

Chapter Twenty-Three

“I enjoyed my time on Endurance Island. Learned a lot about myself. I’m not an impulsive kind of guy, or a mean player. I guess being the nice guy is not the worst thing in the world. I could be Kip.” – Jendan Abercrombie, Jury Interview, Endurance Island: Power Players

At the airport, I kissed Jendan one last time and slipped my phone number into his hand. “You’ll call me, right?”

He smiled, those crinkles around his eyes making my heart melt. “Of course I will.”

~~ *** ~~

Four Days Later

When my phone rang, I dove over my couch and clutched it with both hands, heart frantically pounding as I looked at the screen.

Mom.

Oh. Darn it. Not Jendan. With a sigh, I clicked on the phone to take the call. “Hi, Mom.”

“You’re home,” my mother said excitedly. “How did it go? How come you didn’t call me sooner?”

“Oh. I was waiting for a phone call.” I blushed a little. “I was going to call you as soon as I connected with…that person.”

If my mom noticed my pause, she didn’t comment on it. “So how did it go? Are you skinny as a rail?”

“It went fine. We’re not supposed to discuss details, but I did really well. And I’m a little skinny, and really, really tanned.”

“I hope you wore sunblock. Cancer, you know.”

I rolled my eyes. “Mom, it was a survival game. They didn’t hand out sunblock.”

“Then you sue them later when you get cancer. They should have given you something for that.”

“Sure, Mom, sure. It’s fine, and I’m not going to get cancer, okay? I was very careful.” I flopped down on my couch, resigned to a long phone call with my mother to catch her up on the last two months. “Did I tell you that we were in Fiji? It was gorgeous. Lovely beaches, blue water, and tons of coconuts.”

“You sound so happy, Annabelle. You must have done well. Did you win the money?”

Didn’t my mom even watch the show? “They don’t award the money until the live finale, which won’t be scheduled for a few months yet.”

“But you don’t have an idea?”

Count on my mom to keep pressing the subject. “Well…don’t tell anyone, but I was in the top two. It’s either me or this other girl that won the whole thing. I’m trying not to think about it because I won’t know the results for a long time.”

She gave a squeal of delight. “Really? Oh, baby, I’m so excited for you!”

I smiled into the phone. “Thanks, Mom.”

“I’ve been worried sick the entire time you were gone. I was afraid it’d turn out like last time. They did you dirty with how they made you look on TV, you know. All my friends kept saying, ‘that’s not your Annabelle Tucker.’ And I’d always tell them, no, it’s not. They’re making her look like a tramp for ratings because she’s pretty –“

“Mom,” I protested. God, this was why I didn’t call her right away. She’d been so excited and proud when I’d made it on the last show…until it started showing. “The new show hasn’t even aired yet. They could make me out to be some sort of huge jerk this time. Let’s not get too excited just yet.”

“A huge jerk with a million dollars? No, they’ll make you look good if you’re the winner.”

She had a point.

“I just hope you learned your lesson from last time, that’s all,” my mother said, that disapproving ‘mom’ tone in her voice. “No hooking up with men on TV, no matter how pretty their hair is.”

I winced. “Gee, thanks, Mom. Did I mention Kip was on there again, too?”

She gasped. “Did you knee him in the family jewels?”

“No,” I said smugly. “Better than that, I got him voted out.”

“Well,” she said reluctantly. “That’s almost as good as a knee to the groin.”

“Mom, you’re so bloodthirsty.” I couldn’t help but smile, though. Good old mom.

“He did my baby wrong,” she grumped. “I hope you stayed away from the men this time.”

Again, I winced. Count on mom to hit the nail on the head. “Well…now that you mention it—“

“Oh, Annabelle, you
didn’t
. After last time?”

“We were just friends in game! Nothing more! I promise. It’s not like last time.” My face was a humiliating flush of heat. “And he’s nothing like the other guy.”

“Is that who you’re waiting on to call?”

I was silent. Okay, so it was.

“Oh,
Annabelle
,” my mom said again, clearly disappointed. “This isn’t different than last time. You’re still waiting for a man to call. Didn’t I tell you? Why buy the cow when you get the milk for free, honey?”

I groaned and rolled my eyes at the phone again, not that Mom could see it. “I’m an adult, Mom. I know what I’m doing.”

“But honey, you’re just so trusting,” she complained. “This is just like that time in high school—“

“Mom, enough,” I said, putting a firm note in my voice. “How’s Dad? How was his fishing trip? What about Kimmie and her boyfriend?”

With a distraction to gossip about, my mother launched into a recap of my family’s latest escapades while I pretended to listen and made appropriate noises.

Truth be told, I was a little worried. Jendan and I had parted at the airport amidst several last quick, stolen kisses. We’d exchanged phone numbers, and promised to call each other. I, sticking to the age old rules of womanhood, didn’t call him first. He needed to make the first move, because I’d been burned like that before.

Except it had been four days and he hadn’t called.

So I really wasn’t sure what to think. I thought about texting him, but would that seem desperate? Or just friendly? But I kept thinking about how Kip had treated me before and…I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t reach out to Jendan first. He had to come to me.

He
would
come to me, wouldn’t he?

The first day, I excused it. The second, I figured he was just busy.

But as the third and fourth days crept around and I hadn’t had so much as a smiley-face text? My heart began to ache again. Not just that I’d been used, but that it had been Jendan – funny, kind, good guy Jendan – who I’d trusted and had abused that trust all over again.

I’d never learn, would I? Tears pricked my eyes. The thought of Jendan using me just like Kip had hurt more than I could bear.

“Don’t you think so, honey? Annabelle?”

I blinked rapidly, swallowing hard to make my voice seem normal. “Hmm? Yep,” I replied, not even knowing what we were talking about. “Listen Mom, let me let you go, okay? I need to run some errands.”

“Okay, sweetie. Love you! Stay safe!”

“Love you too,” I said, and hung up. But I didn’t get up. Instead, I curled up on the couch and hugged one of my old, worn out throw pillows and let myself have a good cry.

I’d wanted Jendan to be different, damn it. Special. Turned out he was just like Kip – a user. I’d denied it for four days, but I had to accept the fact that he’d been interested only in an island hookup, and I’d fallen for the wrong man yet again.

Except this time, I’d fallen harder. I’d been wounded when Kip had used me and tossed me aside, but the real wound had come from how he’d humiliated me on television. That had been a small wound with salt rubbed in it.

The wound from Jendan was like the Grand Canyon. My heart felt shattered, as well as my trust. It’d be almost impossible to get over him, and in six months, I’d have to relive it all over again when the show started airing.

That just made me weep harder.

I cried for hours on the couch, for my broken heart and my dashed hopes, and for Jendan and the man I’d thought he was. Eventually, I fell asleep, clutching the pillow and wishing it were a certain stunt man.

A knock on the front door of my apartment woke me from my sleep. Groggy, I sat up on the couch and wiped at the strands of hair stuck to the sides of my face. My eyes felt swollen and scratchy from my crying, and I was pretty sure I looked like a ripe mess, dressed in sweatpants and an old t-shirt.

Then again, did it matter what I looked like? No one was around to see me except whoever was at the door, and it was probably UPS or the landlord. With a grumble, I dragged myself off the couch. “Coming.”

With a yawn, I kept the chain on the door and opened it a crack.

Familiar gray eyes crinkled and smiled back at me from the other side. “Hello, beautiful.”

My eyes widened.

He shifted on his feet, then glanced down the hallway. “Your neighbors are giving me the stink eye. Can I come in?”

The walls were thin – they’d probably heard me crying. At least someone was on my side. I frowned at Jendan. I didn’t know what to think of this. “No. What are you doing here? How did you know where I live?”

Most importantly, why the hell hadn’t he called?

He looked surprised at my refusal. The charming grin faded a little. “I missed you, Annabelle. I couldn’t stop thinking about you, so I contacted the casting department and got your information. I’ve been packing up my stuff in LA for the last few days. I’m taking a hiatus from the stunt man shit for a while. Let my MCL heal up fully. Thought I’d come and visit. See if you and I could…make something…of us.” His words got slower as he spoke, his face more solemn. “But maybe I was wrong…”

I was silent, processing the information. He was here to visit?

Jendan gestured at the hall. “You know what? I think I’ll just go. It was nice seeing you, Annabelle. You look…great.” A faint smile touched his mouth again. Then, he gave me an awkward wave and turned to leave.

“Wait,” I blurted.