Hate to Love Read online

  I pull close to the edge of the water and park.

  "You're right," Julie says. "I've never been here."

  "Now you have."

  We take our seatbelts off, and I reach over to tuck my arm around her.

  Julie nestles her head into my arm and I can feel her hand rest on my thigh. Slowly, she begins to run it up and down, moving ever farther up each time. My cock is already bulging at the seam of my jeans and I long for her touch. Julie pulls her face to mine and we kiss deeply. As we kiss, her hand moves up to my zipper and I can feel her moving the fabric away to give her access. I reach down and quickly unbutton my pants as she pulls on my length until it is freed and standing erect. She pulls away from the kiss and her eyes meet mine. A devious grin is on her lips and her eyes dance with desire as she slowly lowers her head into my lap. I lean back in my seat and close my eyes to concentrate on the feeling of her tongue running down the side of my cock. She slides her hand up and down it a few times as she swirls her tongue on the head and I moan loudly.

  Julie positions herself, her knees on the seat and her arms resting on my legs as she takes the entirety of me in her mouth. Achingly slowly, she slides down until I can feel the back of her throat and she gives a small cough but doesn't stop. Her dedication to my pleasure only drives me further into ecstasy, and I reach under to massage her breast. I want to feel as much of her as I can, and she obliges by reaching up and unclasping her bra. Her full breasts tumble out of her shirt and I lift it to give me greater access.

  She releases me from her mouth and begins to slide her tongue down the underside of my girth, until she can take the rest of me into her mouth, sucking on the soft flesh while she continues to milk me with her hand. A mixture of a moan and a growl escapes my lips as I slide into a feeling of pure pleasure.

  After a few moments, I can tell I am nearing climax as Julie slides her tongue back up to the head and takes it in her mouth. I can barely contain myself as the warm wetness of her tongue caresses me, and she takes the whole of me back into her again. Her pace quickens and her hand massages me underneath, and I know she wants proof of her increasingly exceptional skills. I want to oblige.

  I open my eyes to watch her, and the image is almost more than I can take. I feel my orgasm coming quickly, and I begin to buck into her mouth. She responds by increasing her speed, first bobbing faster on me, and then moving her mouth to the head and massaging me into her. The pressure is building to a tipping point, and I reach for a handful of her hair.

  "I'm going to come," I call out in a hoarse breath, and Julie responds by moaning and lowering her mouth further down onto me.

  The vibration of her mouth sends me barreling over the edge and I explode. She continues moaning as I pulse inside her mouth. She squeezes firmly, milking me until nothing is left, and I relax back into the seat, satiated.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Julie

  Three days later…

  I do my best to muffle my squeal of delight as I end the call and slip the phone into my pocket. It’s actually Shane's phone, but after it flung out from his pocket several times while running drills with the campers, I confiscated it. Hitting one of the children between the eyes with a cell phone would not be conducive to rebuilding his reputation. When it rang a few minutes ago, I intended to only take a quick message, then head back to supervise the camp. Hearing Frank Dunsworth's voice on the other line, however, made me pause.

  Shane's coach sounded eager to talk to him, but when I told him Shane was on the field with the campers, he couldn't hold himself back. I tried to absorb each and every word he said so I could relay them to Shane as accurately as possible. Now I can't wait to find him and tell him what I just heard. Running up to the field, I brace myself for the impending rush of campers. When they've managed to weave their way around me, I continue toward Shane.

  "Julie, what's wrong? Did something happen?"

  Shane reaches for my hands and I see Joe's eyes flicker to us, then look away.

  "No. Yes."

  "That was clear."

  "No, nothing's wrong. Yes, something happened."

  "What's going on?"

  "I just talked to your coach," I say.

  I see Shane's expression drop, and obvious worry in his eyes.

  "You did? About what? Why did he call you?"

  "He didn't call me," I say. "He called you, but I have your phone in my pocket, so I answered it. I asked if he had a message for you, and he did."

  "What's the message?"

  "He wanted you to know they traded Bobby Kilmer this afternoon."

  Shane blinks at me. I don't know if he's even processed what I just said.

  "They traded him?" he finally asks.

  His voice is low, nearly a whisper. It's not the exuberant response I thought he was going to have.

  "Yes," I say. "This afternoon. Apparently, it was quite the shock for good old Bobby."

  "Did he tell you why?"

  "Well," I say with a slight smirk. Even with his subdued response, I'm beyond excited. "He didn't say why they did it specifically. But he did say that the recording of Vanessa confessing was very intriguing, and that it obviously can't be used for any type of legal proceedings, but it was something they thought a lot about."

  That's enough to finally get me the excitement I want. Shane lets out an excited whoop and scoops me off my feet. He spins me around a few times before setting me down. A wave of dizziness washes over me, but the nausea is not enough for me to miss my brother's voice.

  "That's really good," Joe said. His voice is almost too low for it to be obvious he is speaking to us. "I was glad to hear when she admitted it."

  Shane turns to him.

  "Thank you," he says.

  Joe nods and turns to me.

  "I'll be out tonight," he says. "Are you going to be OK at home alone?"

  Touching bonding moment over.

  "I'll be fine, Joe. I'm in my twenties."

  My brother gives another nod.

  "I probably won't be home before you go to bed. I'll see you tomorrow."

  Joe starts off across the field, and I turn to Shane.

  "So," he says, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me closer to him. "We're going to have your house to ourselves tonight."

  "It seems that way."

  "What do you want to do?"

  "I think I have something in mind."

  ********

  I crawl over to where my favorite spot in the treehouse always was and lay down on my back, watching Shane struggle to fit through the small door and maintain his footing on the rope ladder. As he peeks his head inside the room, I can see he is looking around with a concerned look on his face.

  "It's fine," I say. "You aren't going to be doing any standing in here."

  A devilish grin crosses his face and he crawls through the door to where I am, hovering over me. He leans down to kiss me, and I pull myself up to him. I feel him starting to unbutton my shirt and the thrill of the moment fills my body with heat. I release his kiss and begin to unbutton his shirt as well. Soon they are both on the floor.

  "You said we were going to have my house all to ourselves tonight. Well, here we are. My house."

  Shane begins to slowly kiss my neck and move down to the swell of my breasts as I reach for a handful of his hair. He runs his tongue along the edges of the bra as he unclasps it and I shudder in anticipation. The bra falls off, and Shane immediately latches his mouth onto one of my now exposed nipples, his hand reaching for the other. He mimics the swirling of his tongue on one breast with his thumb on the other and then repeats the motion after switching.

  Sitting up on his knees, Shane unzips his pants and yanks them off as I do the same. His hard cock springs out at me and I salivate at the sight of it. I reach forward and take him into my mouth as I kick the pants off my feet, and I feel Shane's hand reach for my pussy. He moves my panties to the side and uses his thumb to gently open my folds and massage my clit.

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sp; Shane slips a finger inside me and I moan, sending the vibration of my pleasure straight to his cock, and I hear him return the sound. For a few moments, I continue to slide his length into my mouth while I feel him reach away from me for his pants. I release him as he opens a foil package. I tremble with desire and anticipation as he places the condom on his erection, and I slide my panties down my hips and onto the floor. Now we are both completely bare, and I long to feel him inside me.

  Shane maneuvers himself above me as I spread my legs to welcome him. He leans down and his cock brushes against my wet heat and a spasm of pleasure erupts through me. He smirks, and I can tell he enjoys the amount of control he has over me, and how easily his body sends mine into uncontrollable ecstasy. He slides his length along my folds, copying the movements of his fingers, before plunging deep into me.

  I cry out as he fills me, bringing me to the edge of pain and pleasure, as my walls stretch to accommodate him. He stays still for a moment, and I can tell he is enjoying the warmth and tightness of my pussy around him as he gives me a chance to adjust. Slowly my body relaxes, and he rocks backward slightly before pushing forward again. I whimper involuntarily and follow it with a low moan at the stretching sensation. He pulls back and thrusts again, going even deeper than before as a shockwave of bliss fills me.

  I reach up and curl my arms around his neck as he begins to pound into me faster and harder. I can feel the dizzying wave of an orgasm coming. I wrap my legs around his waist, giving him more access to my body and feel him growl above me. I lose myself in the moment and can feel my body tingling and heat rising as I head toward an explosive orgasm. I clench my walls around him and he slows down momentary, letting me ride the wave of my release.

  I shake underneath him as he sits up and grabs my legs, repositioning me. For a moment he stops and admires my body and I feel no shame, no shyness – only desire. I want him back inside me and I reach for his arm to pull him. He takes the hint and scoots forward again.

  In the new position, with my legs folded against his chest, I am even tighter than before. When Shane slides himself into me, I feel my body stretch to fit him, and the sensation fills me with such a strong sense of pleasure that I moan loudly. He begins to rock back and forth in a slow rhythm, and I feel one of his hands reach up to caress my breast, the other holding my right hip.

  I can feel yet another wave coming as his speed and movements begin to increase even more. I grab onto the walls of the small room and I raise my head to watch him, sweat dripping from his hardened muscles as he slams into me, harder and harder with each thrust. Soon I hear myself begin to whimper and moan in short breaths, and know that my orgasm is about to crash down around me at any second. Shane is growling above me as he frantically thrusts into me, dominating me with his body. I can feel him getting closer and I know he will reach his climax with me, so I let go. We both scream into the night, and I feel him tense up as his cock throbs inside me, my body responding by clenching tightly around him. Our mutual climaxes slow, and Shane lays himself down beside me and kisses the back of my neck.

  "I want to show you something," Shane murmurs against my hair.

  It had been silent in the treehouse for so long that I was nearly asleep, and unsure if I'd actually heard him or not.

  "Hmm?"

  I nestle in closer to him, seeking out the warmth that has cooled while we relaxed. Outside the treehouse, the night air smells sweet with flowers and fresh cut grass. I can hear cicadas singing in the distance, and tiny flickering fireflies periodically light up the darkness. It's perfect, and I don't want to move.

  "I said I want to show you something."

  I turn my head to look at him over my shoulder and kiss him.

  "I think you've already shown me quite a bit."

  He grins and kisses me.

  "And I still have plenty more where that came from. But this is something else."

  He sounds serious even through the smile, and I nod.

  "Alright," I say.

  We reluctantly disentangle from each other and dress. When we've pulled ourselves together, we climb down out of the treehouse and get back in his car. He doesn't say anything as we exit my neighborhood and weave our way across town. The next neighborhood we enter is older than the one we just left, with houses that harken back to the time when my grandparents had first gotten married and settled down. The few scattered lights along the worn sidewalks cast only a faint haze of light that barely touches the houses themselves. Most of them, though, have their own cheery little porch lights burning.

  It's the type of neighborhood that feels established and comfortable.

  "These are Thanksgiving houses," I say.

  "They're what?" Shane asks.

  "Thanksgiving houses. That's what I always think when I see houses like these. They look like the types of houses people go to and celebrate Thanksgiving. They look like they'd be warm and pretty during the holidays, and smell like turkey."

  Shane laughs.

  "I love how you look at things."

  I smile at him as we turn into a driveway. Looking out the window, I notice we're at the end of the street, parked next to a house that sits dark and quiet. The yard is overgrown with weeds and grass, and the curtain less windows look hollow and cold.

  "Who lives here?" I ask.

  "No one.”

  Shane releases his seatbelt and climbs out of the car. I follow, unsure of what we're doing here. We walk up a broken sidewalk that is barely visible through the tangle of grass, weeds, and who knows what else covering it.

  "No one?"

  "At least not anymore. This is where I grew up."

  The impact of that hits me, and the modest home suddenly has much greater significance.

  "Are you thinking about buying it?"

  "I already did."

  "You did?"

  My heart flutters in my chest as my lips curve up into a smile. I try to hide it. I don't want him to see the excitement I'm feeling. Was it possible the time we spent together has changed him so much he bought a house here? Since our first kiss, I’ve wondered what it all meant, but I've never said anything. Now it seems that a future for us exists in his mind, too. This home that held so much pain for him could have a new life and new memories. He takes my hand, and I squeeze it gently as he guides me up onto the porch.

  "Eight years ago."

  My heart sinks.

  "Eight years ago?"

  "It was the first thing I bought when I really started making money. I called the landlord and offered him cash for it. He didn't even ask why I wanted it."

  "Why did you want it?"

  His eyes slide over to me.

  "Control. This house represents everything I went through when I was a kid, and the control everyone and everything had over me. It was torment. I thought being able to live here alone when I was in school would take that feeling away, but it didn't. I still remembered everything and never could feel at peace. But having it sitting here after I left was just as bad. No one knew all that happened in it, and what it still meant. So as soon as I could, I bought it. Now it's a reminder of what I've accomplished."

  I don't know how to respond.

  Shane pulls me toward him and wraps his arms around my waist. He leans down to kiss me, and I rest into it. I can't let my emotions show. I can't let him know what I've been thinking. We'll only be here for two more weeks, and then I can put this, and Shane, all behind me.

  If only it was that easy.

  Two weeks later…

  "I can't believe we're already back."

  Shane puts the last of my suitcases on my bed.

  "I can," he said. "It's good to be back. Aren't you glad to see your apartment again?"

  I look at him and roll my eyes as he laughs.

  "It was really nice to be back home. I was proud of you, you know."

  "You were?"

  "You really did an incredible job there," I say. Shane steps up to me and reaches for me. I step away and walk arou
nd the bed to another of my suitcases. I see him roll his eyes, letting out an exasperated sigh as his phone rings. He fishes it out of his pocket and looks at the screen

  "Let me take this," he says. "You stay here. I'll be right back."

  He walks out of the bedroom into the living room. Feeling my chest tighten with the tension between us, I unzip my suitcase and start pulling out clothes, tossing them into piles based on whether they need to be washed or not. Shane had been so excited to leave after the last day of camp and get back to Pennsylvania that I hadn't bothered to do my last load of laundry. Now I wish I'd made him wait the extra couple of hours. I'm having trouble remembering which clothes were in the laundry basket, and which weren't. Finally, I dump out the entire suitcase and toss them all into the same pile. It won’t hurt them to get rewashed.

  "Yeah, I'm finally back."

  Shane's booming voice travels down the hallway and into the bedroom.

  "It wasn't as horrible as I thought it was going to be, but I'm really glad to be back."

  There's a pause as he listens to the person on the other line.

  "Sure, I'm down to go out tonight. I could use some fun after all that. What's going on?"

  Another pause, then he lets out a short laugh.

  "I don't know. Now that my image has been restored, do you really think the old bar can handle me showing up? I don't know if they can handle the adoring throngs." I pause as my stomach twists and I take a few steps closer to the door. I don't want to eavesdrop. I don't like the idea of invading his privacy, especially with how complicated things are between us at the moment. At the same time, I can't ignore what he's saying, or the haughty tone of his voice. It's like all the humility and tenderness I saw in him in Virginia was left behind when we came back.

  "No, the little kids were adorable. They don't know any better yet. It's cute when they can't run in the right direction or catch a ball. It kind of loses its appeal when they're teenagers. It's a good thing I was only there doing that to make myself look better. If I was actually volunteering, or getting paid, I'd be pissed."