She shrugs as she puts on some red lipstick. “I guess… but is it that blonde one? Because she doesn’t really look like she’ll be too happy hanging with us lowlifes.”

I open the door. “She just looks stuck-up, but she’s cool.”

When I walk back out into the club, Ella and Lila are at the bar. Ella’s drinking a beer, with her endless legs crossed, and Lila’s sipping on some girlie fruit drink. They’re talking about something and Ella’s got a huge smile on her face.

Interrupting the conversation, I squeeze between them and press my lips to hers, giving her a deep kiss. When I draw back, her eyes are big and glassy and I love that I’m the one who put the look on her face.

“Oh great, now the clothes are coming off.” Lila crosses her legs and laughs, exchanging a look with Ella.

“What’s up?” Dragging a finger across her collarbone, I step up behind Ella and circle my arms around her waist.

“It’s nothing.” Ella rests her head against my chest. “She’s just making an inside joke.”

“Speaking of inside.” I take her hand and pull her to her feet. “We need to go.”

She hauls me back toward the bar as I try to pull her through the crowd toward the exit. “What about Lila? We can’t just leave her here.”

Lila finishes her drink and slides the empty glass onto the counter. “I can hang out in the car or something.”

I shake my head. “That’s not a good idea. Not in this kind of neighborhood. But Naomi said you can hang out with her and the band.”

Lila glances at Ella unsurely and when Ella nods, she sighs. “Alright, I’ll hang out with her… I guess. But where are they going?”

“Just to dinner, I think,” I tell her as Naomi exits from backstage and makes her way across the room toward us.

“Ready to go?” Naomi asks Lila in a formal tone and gives Ella a tight smile. “Hi, Ella, how are you?”

“Great,” Ella replies nonchalantly and her jaw spasms.

There’s an awkward silence that only girls can create.

“Okay then, I guess we should get going.” Naomi raises her eyebrows and motions for Lila to come with her as she leaves for the back.

“Please hurry,” Lila says pressingly and trudges after Naomi toward the back area.

I tug Ella eagerly toward the front door, shoving people out of my way. When we step outside, I grab her arm, whirl her around, and pick her up.

“Where’s your car?” I ask as she hitches her legs around my waist and my dick instantly gets hard.

She loops her arms around the back of my neck and her green eyes sparkle underneath the streetlights. “It’s parked out back.”

I stumble blindly down the dark alley as I kiss her fiercely and tangle my fingers in her long, auburn hair that smells sweetly of vanilla. I trip over the curb at the end, but regain my balance without breaking the kiss. My hand cups her ass and the other one explores the soft skin of her thigh.

“Did you wear this skirt just for me, so I’d have easy access?” I murmur against her lips as my fingers inch up her leg.

Laughing against my mouth, she pinches my ass. “You at least have to get us in the car before you start doing stuff to me.”

“Yeah right.” I caress her tongue with mine, savoring her, before moving away. “I’m planning on throwing you down on the hood right here, right now.”

She restrains a smile. “No way. There are people everywhere.”

My eyes skim the dark parking lot and a few perverts sitting on a dropped tailgate of a truck are watching us. “Fine, point taken… Where’s Lila’s car?”

A guilty look crosses her face like she’s done something wrong. “I guess I forgot to tell you, but Lila’s dad towed her car away a little while ago, so we had to borrow a car.”

I glance around again. “Which one is it?”

She points over her shoulder at a car parked toward the back. “The red Mustang right there.”

I eye her over suspiciously. “Where did you two find someone who would let you borrow their Mustang?”

“Someone I know from school.” She shrugs coolly. “It’s not that big of a deal.”

“Was this person a guy?”

“Um… yeah… it’s Blake’s, but it doesn’t mean anything. In fact, we dropped him off in Riverside at his girlfriend’s house.”

My arms start to loosen around her as I decide whether to put her down on the ground or keep her close. “So not only did he let you drive his car, but he drove with you?”

“Micha, stop it.” She constricts her legs around my waist, refusing to let me go. “You’re on the road all the time with Naomi and I let it be. Besides, you’re always telling me to trust you, and you need to do the same.”

Fuck. She has a point, but I’m still jealous. It is a first for me and I’m not a fan of it.

Shaking it off, I walk for the car again, resolving to keep hold of her. Gripping onto my shoulder with one hand, she gets the keys from her skirt pocket and unlocks the car. Without putting her down, I maneuver the driver’s-side door open and set her into the seat.

I rest my hand on the top of the door and stare down at her. “And for the record, I do trust you. It’s guys I don’t trust. They think with their dicks.” She sighs and I slam the door, pretending like it’s not annoying as shit that I’m climbing into some other guy’s car.

She drives the car really slowly to the hotel. When I ask her why she’s driving like an old lady, she blows out a frustrated breath and tells me she promised Blake she’d behave while she drove it. This makes me feel a little better.

“So he’s a pussy,” I say, not even trying to hold my smile back.

She parks the car in front of the trashy two-story motel littered with beer bottles and cigarette butts, and some rough-looking people are hanging out on the stairway and balcony.

“Micha, what’s your problem? Why is this bugging you so much?” She aims to sound upset, but a hint of laughter escapes in her voice.

I get out of the car and lower my head back into the cab. “I don’t like that this guy gets to hang out with you and lend you his car when it should be me.”

When she climbs out, she accidentally drops her keys on the ground. Bending over to pick them up, I get a glimpse of her black, lacy panties. “I know it’s hard, isn’t it?”

I can’t help myself. “Oh yeah, it’s very, very hard.” My tone insinuates my dirty thoughts and I slide over the hood of the car. Snagging her by the hips, I yank her against me. “Alright, I’m done talking about Blake for a while,” I say and kiss her.

Without another word, I slip my hand into hers and lead her up the stairs, past the vending machine and the two women who are yelling at each other on the balcony. By the time I have the door open to the room, I’m already unbuttoning her shirt. My lips seal against hers as I kick the door shut, continuing to unfasten the buttons.

My knuckles graze across the soft skin of her stomach and I groan, drawing my lips away from her briefly so I can tug her shirt off. I toss it onto the floor and crash my mouth into hers again. Spreading my fingers along her lower back, I request more of her. I can’t get enough.

Her hand runs down my chest until her fingers find the bottom of my shirt and then she pulls it over my head and chucks it onto the floor. With our tongues entwined, I back us toward the bed.

She fiddles with the button on my jeans and a groan escapes my throat as we collapse onto the mattress. “God, I’ve fucking missed this,” I mutter.

She leans away, with a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. “Is that the only reason you’ve missed me? Because you needed to get laid?”

I brush strands of her auburn hair out her face. “No, I miss everything. Your laugh, your smile, the way you pretend to be mad at me when really you think I’m funny.” I kiss her cheek softly. “I miss the way you taste.” I press my lips to her jawline and her neck arches. “The way you smell.” I suck on her neck, rolling my tongue along her skin as my hand glides up her thigh and to the edge of her panties. “The way you feel.” I slip my fingers inside her and a moan falters her lips as her body bows up.

“Micha…” Her eyes get lost as I feel her the way I’ve wanted to for the last month.

“Yeah, I miss that too,” I say and reconnect my lips with hers.

Ella

I didn’t realize how much I missed him until now. His fingers continue to feel me as his tongue strokes the inside of my mouth. I breathe out his name, moaning as I lose control of my body and mind, with my fingertips digging into his shoulder blades.

After I regain myself, I peel off my skirt and lie back on the bed, ready for more. He gets out of his jeans and boxers and reaches for his wallet to get a condom.

I grasp his hand, halting him, and rub my finger along the infinity tattoo on his arm. “You don’t need one.”

He cocks an eyebrow, looking at me like I’m crazy. “Yeah, Ella… I don’t think—”

I cover his mouth with my hand. “No. Not because of that. You don’t need one because I’m on the Pill.”

When I lower my hand from his lips, he doesn’t look happy, which I didn’t expect.

“Why did you go on the Pill?” he wonders. “We barely see each other.”

I pinch his nipple and he flinches, laughing. “Thanks for the accusation, but I think it’s pretty self-explanatory, since the last time we had sex, things got a little too heavy and you almost forgot to put one on.”

“Yeah, good point.” He conceals his body over mine, thinking about something that seems to entertain him.

“Why do you have that look on your face?” I sketch my fingers up and down his back.

He sucks his lip ring between his teeth and then a smile breaks through. “It’s nothing.”

“It’s something. You have this goofy grin on your face, so just tell me.”