Evelyn Vine Be Mine (39 page)

He obeyed, finally applying pressure where I needed it and sending my hips bucking off the bed. Strong hands of steel banded them down, keeping me pinned to the bed as his shoulders pressed my thighs wider and he slid his tongue inside. I heard him release a small moan against me as he increased his efforts, the pressure building inside me with such intensity that I forgot all inhibitions and grasped my breasts. I rolled my nipples between my thumbs and forefingers, experimenting with small pinches and gentle twists until it all became too much and I had to grasp the headboard for support as I came with a silent scream.

My hands slowly released their tight hold of the board as the ripples faded and Stone’s mouth left me. My eyes fluttered open and I stared down at him, still perched between my thighs. The expression on his face was dark and intense - not smug - just incredibly hot and focused. Focused entirely on me. My heart pounded as, eyes not leaving mine, he leaned forward and licked the last Smartie from my belly button.

That quickly, I wanted him again.

TWENTY-FOUR

Stone wasn’t in my bed when I woke the next morning, but he appeared at my door at 0600, dressed to join me on my morning run. I presumed he hadn’t been able to sleep again last night and had gone for a walk in the early hours of the morning. He often left the bed before I woke, but sometimes he slept much later than me – usually because he’d finally become tired enough to sleep mere hours before. Briar and I had once discussed it, but she hadn’t known the cause of his sleeping problems. I suspected it was merely from too much sugar before bedtime.

I grudgingly left the bed and pulled on some gym clothes, blushing a little as I changed in front of him. He leaned back against the door and watched me with hooded eyes. I was torn between trying to dress more slowly, more sexily…and pulling my clothes on as fast I could. In the end, I settled for trying to appear normal and unfazed as I tugged the last of my work out gear into place and bent to tie my shoes.

Stone stumbled back a little as the door behind him opened, nearly falling on little Candy. He turned and glared at her and I saw the confident woman tremble a little as she hurried past him into the room, whispering a low apology. I shook my head. Stone intimidated everyone it seemed.

“What are you doing up so early?” I asked her with a frown. It was still break week and Candy never rose before 1100 unless she had to.

She blushed and looked down at the floor. I started to worry. Candy never blushed and she rarely held back anything she wanted to say. I glanced at Stone, wondering if it was his presence that made her silent. He gave me a small nod and left, closing the door behind him. I hadn’t exactly asked him to leave, but I appreciated it all the same.

“Candy?” I asked softly, sitting nervously on her bed. She sat down beside me and rested her head on my shoulder. Her shiny, bright red locks spilled over my shoulder and I ran a hand through some of the soft strands as I waited for her to talk. I usually felt uncomfortable prying into other people’s business, so I didn’t. Even my family members I tended to leave alone if they didn’t want to share something. Candy was different though. She had been my friend months before Briar and the others had welcomed me into their group. She’d taken me under her wing the very first day I arrived at the university, nearly eight months ago. Now it was her time of need, so I was going to have to swallow my discomfort and help her out.

“Mase and I had a fight,” she said with a sigh, picking at a loose thread on her sheets.

“Oh,” I said in surprise. Candy and Mason never seemed to really fight. They were always happy and smiling. Always either partying or…getting it on. When they did fight, it was fiery and passionate – usually caused by Mason thinking Candy was being too flirty with other men, or by Mason cancelling on something he’d promised Candy. They always made up quickly though, and I was careful to make sure I was never around when that happened.

This didn’t seem like an angry-hot sort of fight though. Candy was quiet and solemn. This fight looked to be a big one – a potential break-up fight. It was hard for me to imagine Candy without Mason. She’d met him very soon after we’d arrived at the beginning of the year. She’d gone to a toga party at the uni club during Orientation Week celebrations and Jamie had introduced them. Mason hadn’t gone to the boarding school Candy, Briar, the band, and most of the other students had attended, so he was one of the few guys at the university Candy hadn’t known prior to starting. They’d hit it off straight away and I hadn’t seen her this dejected even once in that entire time.

She hadn’t said anything else, so I tentatively asked, “What happened?”

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, “I told him I loved him and wanted him to come meet my family in the Christmas holidays.”

My eyes widened. I’d assumed the L word would have been said months ago. They’d always seemed like a committed couple to me.

“He didn’t want to meet your family?” I guessed.

She shook her head and sobbed a little, “No, but that’s not a big deal.”

“What’s wrong then?” I asked in confusion.

She broke down, wrapping her arms around me and crying softly. “He doesn’t love me,” she gasped, her shoulders shaking as her body trembled.

“Of course he does!” I protested, “Maybe he just didn’t feel comfortable saying the words…some men don’t. Or maybe he was distracted about the whole meeting the family thing and forgot to say it back.”

She shook her head, “He said – He said….He said that he thought we weren’t anything serious. That we were just having a good time. That he doesn’t want to be tied down so early in his life!”

I bristled. What an asshole! No girl liked to hear that. But…I’d really thought Mase had loved her. He missed her when she was away, he went to most of her Netball games, he was always willing to lend her a hand with anything she needed, he was possessive of her, and there were moments that I’d seen him smile so softly at her that it had made me shiver with happiness for them.

“It’s not as if I was asking him to marry me!” she said angrily, wiping her tears, “I just wanted to know he loved me! That he cared about me!”

“I’m sure he does,” I told her, “I know he cares about you. He’s just a stupid man. Give him some time to swallow his pride and he’ll come crawling back, begging for your forgiveness. That’s what my brothers do.”

She shook her head.

“We’re over,” she said softly, before she got up and walked to the bathroom, shutting the door quietly behind her.

I flopped down on her bed.

Fuck.

***

Stone was waiting for me at the gym when I finally made my way there. We worked out in silence as usual and then returned to our separate rooms to shower and dress. He sent me a text telling me he had to pick up Donny and Alec from the bus, and I sent him one back, explaining that I was going to spend the day with Candy.

Candy and I spent the day watching movies on her laptop, eating chocolate and talking about everything but Mason. I told her all about our trip to Darwin and my interfering family. She laughed and gushed at all the appropriate moments and tried to pry more information than I was willing to give about sex with Stone.

Stone didn’t come to my room that night and so Candy and I stayed up until the early hours talking.

***

Briar didn’t return to campus until the night before classes resumed. She came straight to my room, kicked Stone out and then demanded to know everything about our trip away. I shyly demanded she do the same and learned that she had started trying to put Donny behind her. She’d confided that she was planning to find someone else to lust after. I’d felt like shaking her and getting out my camera to show her the pictures of her and Alec I’d taken.

Clueless I tell you!

Stone had returned before I’d had a chance to think of a way to shove her at Alec. He had managed to get Briar to leave with the mere twitch of his lips…and then he’d backed me toward the bed, pulling his clothes off as he went.

***

By the time I’d walked into my afternoon class the next day – Digital Media – everyone was talking about Stone and Chloe. I’d noticed the number of people staring at me steadily increase over the course of the day, and now, as I hesitantly walked into my last class, everyone fell silent.

Great.

All day I’d been fielding questions about Stone and his fight with Chloe’s boyfriend. Well, ex-boyfriend. Apparently Chloe and her friends had spread word that Stone wanted her back. That he’d been overcome with jealousy at seeing her in the arms of another man and had been nearly impossible to stop. Usually, people didn’t ask me questions, too nervous about inciting Stone’s anger. Now that it looked like he was loosing interest in me…the gloves were off.

I shuffled to my usual seat with a blush, keeping my eyes fixed to the floor.

“Hey,” the girl I always sat next to greeted. I blinked. She’d never spoken to me before. She didn’t talk to anyone. That’s why I always sat next to her…to stay invisible.

“Hi,” I whispered.

“You’re Evie Vine, right?”

I feigned interest in the loading sign on my computer and nodded absently.

“I’m Xena,” the overly-pierced blonde beside me said, snapping her gum obnoxiously as she stared at me.

“Hi,” I whispered again.

She snorted and her eyes narrowed speculatively. “Rumour has it that you’re the big man’s latest piece of ass,” she said with a grin. It looked completely foreign on her usually sour face.

I scowled at my screen. I was not some piece of ass!!!

“So, are you?” she demanded.

“Am I what?” I asked quietly, starting this lesson’s tasks.

She rolled her eyes. “Stone’s girlfriend.”

“No,” I said shortly and her brow scrunched in confusion.

“Damn,” she said with a sigh, “Does that mean he really has gone back to banging Chloe?”

“No!” I growled, glaring at her. Her lips kicked up in an amused smile.

I shrugged and pulled a face. “We’re exclusive,” I muttered, “But we’re not a couple.”

Yes, the explanation didn’t sound right to me either.

She simply rolled her eyes and tapped at her keyboard absently.

“Good,” she said eventually, “Because my room is next to Chloe’s and it was hell when they were going out.”

My eyes widened and I swivelled in my chair to gape at her. She snorted with laughter and ruffled my hair. She made a face.

“She was loud,” she explained, “It was fucking annoying. You should have heard some of the dirty shit she used to say too.”

I paled and screwed my eyes shut.

“You’re quiet,” the girl continued, “…but you must be one of those shy girls who turn into wild tigresses in bed. I can’t see why that big, bossy asshole would be interested in you otherwise.”

I bristled at the insult to Stone, even as part of me shrivelled – worried that I wasn’t wild enough for him.

“Stone is very sweet,” I told her with a glare, “And our sex life is none of your business.”

“Sorry, sorry,” she said with another grin, before turning to her screen and getting to work.

I, however, sat back in my seat and stared at the ceiling, trying not to picture Stone and Chloe together and wondering just how crazy he liked his sex.

Could I satisfy the big man?

I no longer knew.

***

I’d expected dinner that night to be awkward. Candy and Mason had been avoiding each other and I didn’t know which of them would be sitting at our table. Donny had been livid when he’d discovered Fredi had stayed on at Jenny’s and she’d only returned early this morning. Briar had been snubbing Donny and trolling the uni club for suitable men, and Alec had taken to spending extra long hours at the gym to burn off his obvious frustration.

Surprisingly, dinner was much better than I’d expected. It was just the band members and I for the meal and Fredi and Donny didn’t fight at all. In fact, they acted totally indifferent to each other. No, the real problems didn’t start until after dinner…when others decided to crash our dessert.

Briar was the first person to join our table, pulling along some guy behind her. She sat directly in his lap and grinned at the table as she introduced him as Dean. I felt Alec stiffen on the other side of me, before letting out a resigned sigh.