Break Me (The Summer Series) (13 page)

“Yes.” She licked her lips, drawing his eyes.
“It’s just the last time, the
only
time I’ve done this, it was terrible.
If it was me . . . If I’m the one who sucks . . .” She looked down nervously. “Please,
just be patient.”

“Baby”—he smirked at her as he ran his hands up
and down her arms—“for us, it can’t be terrible. When you love each other as we
do, when you’re made for each other in every way, it’s always perfect. It’s
perfect because it’s about so much more than just sex.”

Nodding, she stepped closer to him and their
lips met. He deepened the kiss almost immediately, but there was nothing forced
about it. They were both taking their time and enjoying what they had been
waiting on for weeks. He let her lead, giving her time to make up her mind that
she was ready for the next step before he would let things progress. When she
reached out and stripped his shirt off of him, running her fingers down the
lean muscles of his chest and abdomen, she moaned while he ached to release the
same sound. He lifted her dress over her head and let his fingers roam over
her.

“Abe,” she said before she let out a tormented
sigh, “please.”

He eased her backwards toward the bed. When her
calves were resting against it, he leaned forward and pulled her forward,
connecting their mouths in a searing kiss.

Pushing him off of her, she stepped toward him,
causing their chests to mesh. “Abe, enough. I need you. No more of the
foreplay. Please.”

He nodded and helped her crawl back on the bed.
Suddenly, the same apprehension from before appeared. Abe, being Abe,
recognized her anxieties and he took his time, kissing and arousing her all
over again.

“Abe.” She panted. “It’s been a little while.
I’m sorry if—”

“Shhh.” He kissed her. “Gem, do you trust me?”

“Yes”—she nodded—“with my heart.” He got the
implied meaning. With her heart meant with everything that mattered the most to
her.

“Then shut up.” He smiled down at her and saw
her let go of that final insecurity she was holding on to.

As she lay there completely exposed to him, he
knew for a fact that she trusted him completely. He had been able to take her
fear of him and all other men away in such a short time. There was no doubt in
his mind that only loving him could have done that. When she leaned forward,
her lips met his in a passion so instant it physically burned and they both let
out a satisfied groan. He pulled back and studied her again, gauging her one last
time.

When she looked up at him with wide, clear
eyes, he knew she was finally in the moment completely. She understood what
this night, this connection, meant for them. This was the beginning of forever.
He would never be able to have this moment with anyone else. As they worked
with each other to find the climax they were both desperate for, he felt
himself falling deeper in love with her. He had experienced sex before—this
wasn’t a new thing for him—but something about sharing this with Gemma changed
everything.

As she climbed up, up and over the peak with
him, he held her in his arms, searching out her every need while fulfilling his
own. She wound tight and then unraveled in his hands, and he craved the
sensation of making her feel that way. He would do it every day of his life. He
would make her happy. Together, they would make each other complete.

“Oh my God.” Gemma panted. “That was . . . That
was . . . Oh my God. I have no words.”

He leaned back, lifting his head off her chest,
and looked down at her, smiling. “I told you it would be incredible. I knew it
would be, but that was just insane.”

“I love you.”

“Gem, you have no idea how much I love you.”

He rolled to the side then and put his boxers
on and handed her a T-shirt. “Abe.” She giggled. “I’m pretty sure I have a few
more clothes down there somewhere. Can you get me those too?”

“No.” He crawled up on the bed beside her and
stroked her cheek.

“Um, I kind of need them.” Gemma looked at him
as if he were crazy.

“No, you don’t. It would just be a waste of
time,” he said and then pulled her into his arms,

“Oh.” She looked at him with wide eyes.

“Yes, oh. You’re eighteen now, and more
important than that, you are
mine
. Forever. You may as well pack your
stuff tomorrow. You won’t be leaving.”

She smiled at him and then kissed his swollen
lips. “Deal.”

Sixteen

Rolling over, Gemma reached across
the bed for Abe and sat up when she found he wasn’t there. She honestly
couldn’t believe he was already up after their night together. He had woken
only an hour after their first time and professed his inability to get enough. Now
he was gone from their bed, she felt his absence everywhere. One night with him
and she knew she would never have enough. Gathering the sheet around her still-naked
body, she stood from the bed and started toward the bedroom door. As she was
about to pull it open, it came in at her and she jumped back to avoid being
hit.

“Oh, sorry, baby.” He walked in and pulled her
into a hug. “Morning.” Burrowing into his naked chest, she grumbled up at him. “What?”
He laughed.

“Good morning.” She smiled up at him.

“How do you feel today?” He tucked her hair
behind her ear and kissed her nose.

“Perfect.” She sighed. “In love. Happy.”

“Exactly what I was hoping for.”

She started to pull away from him so she could
go to the bathroom and brush her teeth when he tightened his arms around her.
“Hey.” She chuckled. “I need to brush my teeth. I smell.”

“It’s okay.” He kissed her with no less passion
than he had all night. “Totally worth it.” He whispered.

“Yeah.” She panted. “Never going to get enough
of that; you can count on it.”

“That’s the plan.” He smiled at her before
turning to lead her to the bathroom. “I think you need a shower. As a matter of
fact, we both do.”

“Oh, good Lord. Don’t you ever get tired?”

~~~

Gemma and Abe pulled up in front of
the beach house close to ten that morning, and instead of sneaking up the back
steps and through the window as usual, she kissed him goodbye in the driveway
and walked through the front door. She almost expected Kate to be standing
there with a smile on her face, but instead, Karen was sitting in the front
room, reading a book.

“Glad you made it home.” She stood and rubbed
her eyes, smiling at Gemma with no malice in her voice.

“Yeah.” Gemma ignored her other than that one
word in reply and started toward the stairs to her room. She was too blissed
out to deal with Karen and her mixed feelings about her family right then.

“I’ve never known your father to pace. He
usually either goes with the flow or takes control of things. He’s kind of an extremist,
you know?” She spoke, stopping Gemma after she had taken a couple of steps. “I
mean look at him when we’re here. Locked away without any breaks. It’s as if he
doesn’t know how to be in the middle. He’s always on high alert or just
floating along in his own little world.” Gemma never turned around, but her
lack of movement was the go-ahead for Karen. “Last night, when we didn’t hear
you sneak in by four as usual, he was up and pacing, trying to decide if he
should check the beach or that boy’s apartment for you.” She walked up and
Gemma could tell she was only a few steps away. “I told him I would sit here
and wait on you. I know he’s worn out this summer from the writing and now
having to keep track of the two of you girls, instead of just you.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Gemma
bit back a growl.

“Well,” Karen said softly, again with no anger
or bitterness in her voice, “let me tell you then. He’s worried about you every
day of his life. He knows how much you hate him and still desperately wishes
you didn’t. He only went to bed last night because I told him you were fine. I
lied and said Kate had a text on her phone saying you would be home soon. Be
careful, Gemma.” She climbed the steps and stood right next to Gemma though
neither looked at the other. “I want the two of you to figure this all out as
it seems you and the kids have. I know I’ll never get your love or respect, and
honestly, with the way things went down, I don’t deserve it. But please be
careful you don’t cast him aside before you at least give him a chance to
apologize.” And with that, she left Gemma on the third step while she climbed
the rest of the way up and disappeared.

Gemma wanted to be pissed. She wanted to yell
after Karen that she was wrong and had no idea what she was talking about. Who
cared if the man knew about her sneaking out and waited up for her? He still
wasn’t there. He still spent all their supposed time together shut in a loft. He
still hadn’t said more than twenty words to her all summer. What kind of man
claims to want to be a father but puts no more effort in than that? As far as
Gemma was concerned, she would be packing her bags today and headed to Abe’s
for the rest of the summer. After today, she was done with her father, Karen,
and, if her current level of communication continued, her mother as well.

Gemma stomped up the stairs like a child but
couldn’t seem to stop herself. She was owed a temper tantrum with these people,
and since she would be moving on soon, it seemed a good time to have it. Her
room was quiet, so she reached in the closet and pulled out her suitcase, getting
to work on packing all of her things. Abe had said they would come back here
after the party and load up whatever she needed. Since she only had two bags,
it wouldn’t be that difficult. Just as she was zipping the second suitcase
closed, Kate walked in with a mischievous grin. Gemma rolled her eyes and put
the bag by the door.

“Well, well, well, look what the sex-crazed cat
dragged in.”

“Who said we had sex?” Gemma hedged.

“It may be that content look on your face.”
Kate shrugged and walked a little further into the room. “Perhaps it’s the
slight hitch in your step. Congrats on that by the way. Oh, or maybe, it’s the
fact that I saw Abe dropping you off when I was heading home on my run, and you
are currently packing your bags.” She took a bite of the green apple she held
and dropped onto her bed. “Getting pretty serious, huh?”

Gemma tried not to notice the wistful look in
her eye. It was clear there was more to her relationship with Simon than Kate
was willing to admit. “I guess.” She grinned at her feet. “He said he doesn’t
want to be away from me ever again. He’s even thinking of getting a place a
little closer to Chapel Hill, just so he can see me more.”

“Gem”—Kate squealed and then jumped up to hug
Gemma—“that’s amazing. I see how you two are together. I’m happy for you guys.”

“And you don’t think this a little nutty?”

“Oh”—Kate’s eyes went wide—“it’s bat-crap crazy.
But it’s love and that’s how things work when you’re in love.”

Gemma couldn’t help herself; she laughed.
“You’re right.”

“Duh, about what?” Kate asked as her face lit
up.

“All of it. It was incredible. He is
incredible. I love him so much, and I just can’t care that we are doing
something crazy and stupid. I
know
it’s right for us, and therefore, it
isn’t crazy or stupid at all.”

~~~

Gemma wandered up to the kitchen a
little later in need of some lunch. Her stomach was in knots as she thought
about what her mother and father would say once they found out she was moving
in with Abe. Karen had been noticeably absent since their conversation that
morning, and Kate had gone with Gray to grab some hot dogs from Hank. She was
too nervous for that many processed chemicals and had opted to stay behind for
a turkey wrap and some veggie sticks. After getting her food together and
grabbing a glass of lemonade, she sat down at the bar and switched on the
television.

“That looks good.” Her father walked toward her
slowly.

“Yeah,” she responded, barely looking at him
before forcing her eyes to stay focused on the television. It was almost
painful to focus so hard on the screen when he was so clearly in her peripheral
vision.

He walked away awkwardly and poured himself a
drink, grabbing the bag of veggie straws from the counter. As he approached her
again, her stomach sank. This wasn’t them. He didn’t reach out after his
courtesy invitations on day one, and she avoided him practically before she
even showed up for the summer. Why was he changing the rules all of a sudden?
“So . . .” He cleared his throat.

She finally allowed herself to look over at
him. “Yeah?”

“About last night . . . I know you have a lot
of freedom here. I made sure we gave it to you. But, Gemma—”

“Wait, what?” She contorted her face in
confusion. “Are you giving me some kind of lecture here?”

He looked at her, surprised. “No, not a
lecture. I’m just letting you know that I was worried last night. I’m just
asking that you let me know when it’s going to be a late night. Well”—he
shrugged—“later than normal.”

She didn’t know what made her angrier, that he
would suddenly start acting like her father the day after she turned eighteen
or that he thought he had any right to act like one at all. “Listen. Let me
relieve you of a lot of nights without sleep. Abe and I are serious. He would
never let anything bad happen to me. He isn’t you.” She let that sink in and
felt both vindicated and mortified when she saw the look of pain cross his
face. She stood suddenly, hating the way her heart reacted in confusion and her
mouth responded with hate when this man was anywhere nearby. “I’m moving out.
Abe and I will be picking my things up tonight. You don’t have to worry
anymore.”

“Gemma, wait a minute. That isn’t what I want.”
Her father hurried to stand and started to step toward her.

“No, it’s what I want.” She backed away
quickly, hoping to avoid any more of this conversation. “See you later, Michael.”
She turned and walked away, not able to be there when it fully set in that this
conversation had been their last as father and daughter. She was done.

~~~

Later the girls were fighting for
room in front of the mirror. They both had reason to put in a little more
effort for this party and weren’t going to pretend they were better than a few
extra minutes in front of the mirror. Gemma’s phone rang, and she ignored it,
knowing that Abe was probably just calling to tell her he was waiting outside. “You
ready, Kate?”

“Ugh, sure. It’s as good as it’s going to get.”
She straightened her dress in the mirror before reaching down and grabbing her flip-flops.
Gemma grabbed hers and switched the bathroom light off.

Abe wasn’t waiting outside as she expected. After
both girls walked to the end of the driveway, she pulled her phone out to call
him back when she saw him round the corner. She put her phone away and waited
as he approached. He pulled up and ran around the car to open the door for the
girls, pulling Gemma into a searing kiss before helping her into her seat.
Gemma looked at him adoringly as he rounded the front of the car and kissed her
once again before pulling away from their rental house. Kate made gagging
noises in the back seat until they were almost to the beach.

Once at the party they made their way to the
waiting group. The flames were higher than usual. Apparently, it was a birthday
tradition around here to see how long the cops took to come tell them to tame
down the fire. It sounded like a stupid and dangerous tradition to Gemma, so
she decided to keep her distance from the fire pit. After everyone gathered
around for a group shot to celebrate Gemma’s birthday and she finished her
second one-to-grow-on shot, they all pretty much fell into smaller groups and
were casually talking.

Gemma and Abe were cuddling and talking as everyone
sat in a circle with Emily, Ryan, Kate, Simon, and Trey when Emily suddenly
tensed. Gemma turned over her shoulder to see what had gotten everyone else’s
attention when she saw Megan approaching. She instinctively leaned into Abe’s
side and placed her hand on his thigh. “What?” Abe asked, suddenly noticing the
shift in the mood.

“Hey, guys,” Megan said, and Abe tightened his
arm around Gemma at her voice. “Oh, Abe, I know how much you love New Castle,
so I grabbed you one.”

“No thanks, Megan. I already have a beer.” He
lifted his beer to show her and then turned his head, kissing Gemma’s temple.

“I know you have one right now, but you know
you’d like this one so much better. Remember when you used to have it all the
time? How amazing it was? You always used to tell me that there was nothing
better.”

Everyone, clearly catching on to the double
meaning, stared at her in shock, mouths agape at her forwardness. Kate, who was
unable to listen to things any longer, stood up and walked over so she stood
directly in front of Megan. “I’m not sure who gave you the idea you were
welcome to sit over here, but it’s time you moved along.”

Megan sneered at her. “What is it with you
Andrews’ girls taking my sloppy seconds?”

Kate flinched and turned to look at Simon, who
had the decency to look ashamed. She turned back to Megan, red-faced, and Gemma
stood to intercede. “Come on, Kate, let’s take a walk.” Gemma grabbed her hand
and pulled her down the beach and away from the crowd.

“Damn, Megan.” Simon stood. “You really are
trying to make everyone hate you.” He turned and followed where the girls had
disappeared into the night.

“Megan.” Abe stood. “This is it. I will not put
up with this crap anymore. Move on. I don’t want you. Simon doesn’t want you. It’s
time you found some other people who can stand you, because this group is done
trying.” He, too, took off down the beach, following the girls.