JAMES

I coast to a stop at the curb in the pickup circle and spot Beth talking with the middle school’s counselor. The cherry trees lining the row of classrooms are in bloom, the tiny petals like pink snow on the gray concrete. A bright blue sky with those big, puffy clouds has made the spring day warm but still fresh. It’s the perfect day for my plan.

Beth says goodbye to her mentor and dashes my way, her long brown hair tucked behind her ears. She was up early this morning to get in her workout then arrive at her internship on time, so I haven’t seen her since our quick goodbye kiss in bed. I almost didn’t let her leave, but I know better. And I also would never put my needs before hers—she comes first. Always and in every way.

My cock twitches when I remember last night, when I made her come in the shower, and then again with my mouth before finding my own release.

I meet her at her side of the car grab her in a quick embrace.

“How was your day?” I ask.

“Amazing,” she says with a happy sigh.

I open her door and slip her bag from her shoulder. Beth lowers into her seat and I stow her bag in the back and climb behind the wheel. Once we’re finally alone, I lean over to kiss her.

Her lips are petal soft and she smells like cherry blossoms and the floral mist she wears. I caress the side of her face and deepen the kiss, tugging on her lip and swirling my tongue against hers. She sighs and kisses me back.

“I missed you,” she says, and places her hand on my thigh, so close to where I’m pulsing and hungry for her touch.

We kiss longer this time, and though I’m tempted to pull her into my lap, I’m also aware that we’re sitting in her school’s turnaround. School has long ended, but still.

Reluctantly, I break away and start the engine.

“Where are we going?” she asks, buckling her seatbelt.

I shift into gear and cruise to the street. Within a month of relocating here two years ago, it became apparent that an electric car was the right choice. Fortunately, I don’t have to do a lot of city driving—the public transit system in San Francisco is quite good and more reliable than many other cities I’ve visited—but when I do I’m not also stressed about carbon emissions.

“I thought we’d start at the beach,” I say, and head for the coast.

“Yay!” Beth says, and sits back.

“Then I thought we’d go to dinner at Chez Jacques.”

Her eyes brighten. “Wow, really?”

I laugh and reach for her hand. “Yes, really.”

She squints and twitches her lip. “What’s up? Did you get a new investor today? Or did your chemists make another breakthrough? Oh, I know! You swim a PR this afternoon!”

I laugh again. And stroke over her fingertips. “Nope. I just feel like celebrating.”

She’s still thinking, trying to find out what I’m up to. “We already celebrated our anniversary,” she says, tapping her chin. “And my birthday and your birthday.”

“Why do I need an excuse to spoil you?” I say.

A look of discomfort flits through her eyes. “James.”

I give her a stern glance in reply.

The result is immediate. Her eyes widen, she licks her lips, and squirms in her seat.

Over the past two years, we’ve explored so much together. I cherish her trust in me, and have delighted to see her grow into the person she’s meant to be without her family’s influence. She’s brave and funny and determined and I love her more each day.

But she still doubts herself sometimes, a mindset I’ve been very firm about breaking. As a bonus, this dominant, bossy side of me makes her hot.

I pull up to the parking area for Ocean Beach. Ahead of us is the slate-blue ocean, scuffed by a breeze. The sandy beach is populated with people walking and surfers entering the water or coming in from their session.

“Looks a little rough for us today,” she teases.

Beth and I took a series of surf lessons last summer, but Ocean Beach is still too powerful for us. We usually go up north to Bolinas.

“Just how you like it,” I say, and raise an eyebrow.

She covers her giggle. “Oh, my, you did miss me, huh?”

I lean over and brush the hair from her face, then kiss her slowly, my tongue flicking softly with hers.

“More than you know.”

A car pulls in next to us, a reminder of the limits of our environment.

“Let’s walk, James,” she says, smiling.

We step from the car and Beth tucks into her coat, freeing her long hair from beneath the collar with a practiced sweep of her hand. I can’t help but watch, already anticipating the way I’ll comb through her long locks the minute we get home.

She glances at me. “What?”

“You’re just so beautiful,” I say, and step close.

“I love you, James,” she says, and tucks into my arms.

I kiss her, my lips and tongue tugging and teasing. Our bodies warm despite the breeze at my back and the crisp spring air. She presses her hips closer, wanting contact where she needs me. My cock thickens, eager to comply.

Before things get any more heated, I lean back and smile at her.

Her eyes flutter open, and she blushes. “Maybe we should have stopped at the house first.”

I lift her chin. “Have you been thinking dirty thoughts all day?”

She bites her lip. “If I admit it, will you make me tell you what they are?”

I give her a warning look. “You really think you can hold out on me?”

A rueful smile brightens her face. “Maybe I want you to torture me until I talk.”

My dick pulses with an ache and my spine tingles. “You’re playing with fire, princess.”

She laughs. “Good thing I like getting burned.”

“Good for both of us,” I reply, raising an eyebrow.

She grabs my hand and tugs me down the sandy path to the beach. The roar of the surf and the steady ruffling of the breeze fills my ears as I wait for her to slip off her flats and roll up her jeans. I kick off my flip flops and leave them next to her shoes.

The cold sand pricks my feet and the fresh, salt air tickles my lungs. Beth races down to the water, her hair swishing behind her. I take a moment to soak all of it in, a surge of gratitude pressing up, up, up until my chest feels so tight I’m sure it’s going to burst.

Beth turns back from the water’s edge, her smile so bright. “Come on, James!” she cries, laughing and her eyes so full of joy.

I had planned to wait until the end of our walk, or at dinner, or even when we’re home in between when we’re getting ready, but I realize I don’t want to wait any longer.

I walk over to her, my core tightening and my heart pulsing with emotion.

She must see the serious look on my face because she frowns. A pulse of water washes up the sand, then retreats. I take a knee and reach for her hand.

She claps her other hand over her mouth and her eyes widen.

“Beth, I love you so much.” I gaze into her pretty brown eyes. “I want us to make a life together. To explore and dream and support each other. I want to wake up every day by your side and go to sleep with you in my arms. I want to take care of you and kiss you and pleasure you. I can’t get enough of you, nor do I want to. You make me a better person, and I want you in my life, as my partner. Forever.”

“You are so sweet, James…you say the sweetest things to me. I love you too. So much.” Tears glisten in her eyes. “When I’m with you, I feel free. I feel whole. Like you see the real me, that you trust me. James, I don’t ever want to be without you.”

I slip the box from my pocket and open it.

Beth presses her lips together, her hand fluttering to her chest. “Oh, James,” she says, as a single tear tracks down her pretty cheek. “It’s beautiful.”

“Beth,” I say, forcing the warble out of my voice. “Will you marry me?”

“Yes! Oh James, of course I will!”

A shock wave of elation bursts inside me as I slip the ring on her finger. The ring sparkles in the sunshine and catches all the colors—the blue sky, the pale sand, the teal-green ocean, the pink of her lips.

She breaks from the ring and gazes deep into my eyes. “I love you so much, James.”

I stand and cradle her face with my hands. Her eyes flutter closed as I lean in to kiss her. The heat between us explodes. My tongue swirls with hers and our lips lock and release, each kiss hungrier, more desperate.

I slip my hands into the back pockets of her jeans and pull her closer. My hard cock grinds against her hip. She whimpers into my mouth.

“Take me home,” she says. “Please.”

“What about our walk?” I say, knowing the threat of making her wait will be enough to drive her crazy.

She slides one hand along my thigh. Not quite touching me—she knows better—but enough to make me rethink my plan to stall.

“I’m perfectly capable of waiting.”

“Liar,” she whispers in my ear.

I raise an eyebrow, then nuzzle her nose with mine. “You’re playing with fire again.”

She closes her eyes. “I know,” she whispers, and kisses me.

The drive back to my house—our house as of last October when I begged her to move in—seems to take forever but it’s only ten minutes from the beach. Thankfully there’s little traffic on the quiet streets. Almost as if the universe wants us to get home as fast as possible. My need to feel her body against mine rises hard and hot and fast inside me. I used to try to control it, to resist the way it made me feel because I was afraid of it being too much. That I would fall too hard for this girl. But she’s taught me that there’s no limit to love. That the more I let go, the stronger we become.

Once inside the garage on the bottom floor, we kiss again. She reaches for my shirt and tugs it up, then caresses my stomach. Her touch sends a pulse of heat over my skin. We kiss again as she careses and strokes me, our tongues dancing and our breaths growing louder in the cramped space.

She surprises me by unbuckling my belt. “I want you in my mouth,” she says.

I comb my fingers into her hair and kiss her again. “Is that what you were thinking about today?”

“While I was waiting for you, yeah,” she says, and slides her fingers beneath the waistband of my briefs, where my cock is pulsing and so hard.

I groan. “Where were we in this fantasy of yours? Here?”

“Yes,” she says, wrapping her fingers around me.

Sweet heaven, it feels good. “I want to make you come first,” I say, kissing along her jawline while she strokes me.

“Please, James,” she pleads. “Let me take care of you.”

Well, fuck, when she puts it that way. “Only because you asked so nicely. But it just means there’s more in store for you later.”

She gives me a little grin. “Promise?”

I kiss her back, my lips crashing against hers. “Promise.”

She unzips my fly the rest of the way and tugs my briefs lower, exposing my thick shaft. I sit back as she folds over the console. My crown is thick and crimson with need.

Beth licks the slick drop of precome then wraps her lips around me. She glides down while stroking me with her hand. I groan. Just this and I’m already so close. I weave my fingers through her hair, brushing it back and out of her way, and watch her lips stretch as she lowers down.

“Fuck that feels good,” I say, my voice tight with need.

She closes her eyes, a soft groan escaping her lips. I keep my fingers in her hair and rock my hips with her pace to urge her on. What begins as slow and sensual starts to make every nerve ending buzz. I pulse faster and she complies, moving up and down with me as my need for release takes over. It’s always this way with Beth. The more I have the more I want.

She takes me deeper, her mouth tight and hot and her lips wet as they glide up and down, the sensation delicious and so fucking sexy. Since our beginning when she was shy and inexperienced, she’s learned just how to please me. It’s smoking hot and sensual all at once. Knowing she’s been fantasizing about this all afternoon pushes me right to the edge in minutes.

“Oh baby,” I say with a groan, tightening my grip in her hair. My climax rises with every stroke of her mouth, every glide of her tongue. “You ready for me?”

She makes a low hum that vibrates through me.

“Deeper, princess,” I say, my voice like a growl. “Show me how bad you want it.”

With another moan she takes me that final inch. I arch with her, slow and firm, the pressure almost unbearable in that moment before it all breaks free. “Fuck,” I say as I come, pulsing hard into her mouth. I thrust again and again as Beth sucks and swallows, her mouth eager and her lips so tight, until I’m spent.

Slowly, Beth slides off and rests her cheek on my thigh. We’re both breathing hard. I stroke her hair back from her cheek, then caress her jawline.

She glances up at me, and smiles. It’s a warm smile, soft but genuine. “Thank you.”

I laugh. “You liked that, huh?”

She gives my already thickening erection a deliciously slow caress with the pad of her index finger. “More than you know.”

“Just wait till I get you upstairs,” I say as she rises, “so I can fully show my appreciation.”

“Mmm,” she says, and eyes me with a wicked glance as she reaches for the door. In a flash she’s racing from the car and disappearing inside.

I get my pants hitched and zipped enough that I can move and hurry after her. Inside the house, I hear her flats tapping the stairs above me, meaning she’s heading for the top floor. In a burst of speed, I get to her just as she’s clearing the landing, and wrap my arms around her.

She tries to struggle but I hold her fast, our breaths heaving. I kiss her behind her neck, tasing the salt from the ocean air and drinking in her floral scent.

Her body releases a quick shiver. She tilts her head, giving me better access, and grips my forearms

“You like running from me, don’t you?” I say.

“Maybe a little,” she says, still breathing fast though we’re both so fit that I know it’s not from the sprint up the stairs.

I kiss the back of her ear, using the edge of my teeth. “But I have you now, don’t I?”

“Yes,” she says with a groan, arching her ass into my stiffening cock.

I shuffle her to the back of the couch. It faces a big window with a view of the Golden Gate and the restless waterway beneath it. The lights are low enough in the room that we can see our reflection. It’s perfect and we’ve used this couch more than once so Beth can watch, though tonight we’ll try something new, something I know she’ll like.

I pull off her shirt and kiss her neck while caressing down her arms, then back up to her perfect tits, her nipples hardening to my touch. She gives a soft groan when I circle her peaks over the fabric with my fingertips.

I tug off my shirt and unhook her bra, then come up behind her so our bodies can connect, her strong, slender back against my chest. The feel of her warm, smooth skin against mine is like a drug I never want to quit. She leans back into me as I stroke her breasts, tugging on each with just the right amount of pressure to make her shiver.

“James, you make me feel so good,” she says, and with one hand reaches back and grabs my thigh, pulling me closer.

“It’s about to get even better,” I say, and guide her hand from my thigh to the back of the couch. It’s her right hand, the one with a shiny, pretty ring on her perfect finger. A ring that tells the world she’s mine. That she’ll wear forever as a symbol of my unbreakable and unstoppable love for her. I place my hand next to hers, imagining the day I’ll wear my own version of a ring, and how they’ll look side by side. My heart swells with the thought of it.

I take her other hand and place it on the back of the couch too, which forces her to bend slightly at the waist. I fold with her, one hand braced next to hers and the other cupping and caressing her breast. Taking my time, I kiss down her spine, the sound of her fast breaths filling the quiet room. I give a quick glance at the reflection and like what I see: Beth back is slightly arched to my touch and her eyes are dark pools of need.

“Touch me,” she says, her voice a desperate whisper. “Please, James.”

I move lower, to the waistband of her jeans. In one swift tug, I pull them to her thighs.

She gasps, her body releasing another shiver, though I know she’s not cold.

Sweet fuck, she’s wet, her panties damp and her pussy fragrant with desire. I slide her panties down and glide two fingers against her soft, plus folds while I kiss lower, giving her backdoor a tender kiss, letting her know that I love every part of her, even this forbidden, dirty place.

“Oh God, yes,” she says, arching to me. I place a gentle hand on her lower back, urging her down even more. She complies, which exposes her plush, plump folds.

With my fingers slick with her arousal, I glide two fingers inside her. Her pussy is so soft and tight, so welcoming. Beth closes her eyes and groans, submitting to her desires. I watch my fingers thrust slowly in and out of her, marveling at how good it feels to touch her.

I give the tip of my cock a firm stroke while I finger her. Beth watches our reflection, a look of intense desire on her face.

I withdraw from her and lick my fingers, savoring her rich, salty taste, then tug off my pants and briefs. Lowering to my knees, I grasp her thighs under her the crease of her ass and open her like the gift she is. The first taste of her sweet pussy ignites my already molten core. I glide my tongue inside her, then use my fingers and mouth to caress every part of her, delighting in her taste, her fast, desperate breaths, and the way her body quivers. She bends fully forward, resting her forearms on the back of the couch and letting her head fall between her arms. I plunge deeper, rocking her back and forth in a sensual, deliberate rhythm. Her body tenses and her thighs lock. Everything is warm and plush and needy. I plunge faster, deeper, my grip on her thighs firm until she releases a garbled cry.

I keep going as her climax erupts in a series of breathy gasps that fill the room. When her thighs quiver and her body bucks away, I kiss slowly up her spine, giving her a little time to recover. I gently slide her jeans the rest of the way off, caressing down each of her slender, perfect calf as I do. Then I fold over her, my arms wrapping around her waist.

I kiss the back of her neck. She arches back so her wet folds connect with the underside of my pulsing, hungry shaft.

I groan and reach down to finger her clit. Her eyes close and her mouth opens in a startled gasp.

“You ready for my cock, princess?”

She moans. “Please.”

I grasp my dick and slide between her thighs. Fuck, I could come just from just the way her warm folds wrap around me and her tender ass presses against my thighs. But it wouldn’t feel nearly as good as what I’m about to do to her, so I save that idea for later, when we both have more patience.

With a slow, firm thrust, I sink inside her.

“Oh, baby,” I groan, my hands caressing up to her hips.

“James,” she says, her voice needy, frantic.

I can feel her ribs expand and contract with her breaths as she works to let me deeper inside. I’m big for her, but she can take it if we go slow.

I thrust deeper, her walls stretching around me. One more thrust and I’m firmly and completely inside her. I pause to savor the exquisite sense of connection. Her love has healed me. Nurtured me. Made me whole.

Her body gives a little pulse, my signal that she’s ready. I start thrusting slowly, my rhythm sensual and firm. She takes me, her body quivering with need and her sides heaving with her fast, needy breaths. She arches her back and folds her fingers over the couch for support. I bring her hips back as I drive, making our bodies lock perfectly, like we were made for each other.

I fold over her, pausing to kiss the place at the back of her neck while I stroke her breasts, tugging just enough on her hard nipples that she moans and arches to my touch.

“I want to hear you come, Beth,” I say into her ear, rocking my hips so I’m touching the deepest part of her.

“James,” she groans. In the reflection, our eyes connect. She watches me kiss down her spine until I’m standing behind her, my cock buried to the hilt. I take her hips in my hands again and thrust, this time harder, faster. Her face tightens in pleasure. Her hands brace against the couch as I drive deep, our thighs hitting with a tight smack as our bodies connect.

“Yes, oh God,” Beth says, bracing firmly against the couch as I grip her harder, drive harder. I move faster, my cock so thick and hard inside her tight heat. I arch hard and deep while she squeezes me so tight, our bodies in perfect synch. It’s primal and wickedly sensual. I both want it to last and want the end.

Beth starts to come, her cries erupting from her sweet mouth. I hold her firm and fuck her harder, unable to hold back my desire. Her eyes shut tight and her mouth opens in bliss to scream my name.

I grip her shoulder as everything breaks free and I’m coming along with her, my release exploding in a burst of joy and a bright, white expanse of freedom and light. I thrust one last time with a hard grunt, filling her completely. I erupt inside her, pulsing hard as my breaths heave and my thighs tremble. When I’m spent, I fold over her, savoring the last of the magic carpet ride. Her thighs start to quiver as her breaths slow.

Gently, I pull out of her and scoop her into my arms. She wraps her arms around me and nuzzles my neck. “Where are you taking me now?”

I stride into our bedroom, past our bed adorned with the turquoise seashell pattern she picked out and the puffy down pillows she loves to the shower.

“To clean you up so I can do that all over again,” I say, setting her on her feet and kissing her tenderly.

“You think I can handle you like that a second time?” she says, caressing my face, her eyes like sparks.

“You’ll take what I give you, princess,” I say, my voice thick.

Her eyelashes flutter and she bites her lip. “You know I will, and beg for more.”

“That’s my girl,” I say, and help her into the shower. The warm water cascades over us both as I pull her to me and hold her tight.

“I love you, James,” she says, her arms wrapping gently around me. “I don’t want this night to end.”

I caress her face. Her lips are beaded with water and her eyes are so serene and joyful. “It doesn’t have to,” I say.

“What about dinner?”

“Are you hungry?”

She blushes. “Not for food.”

“Then I think we have our answer.”

She grins. “I guess we do.”

I kiss her slowly and caress down to cup her ass. The memory of her bent over the couch while she watched me thrust deep inside her flashes through my mind. A tingle shoots over my skin, and I groan.

She breaks away, her eyes wide. Between us, my cock is hard again.

“Make love to me again, James,” she says. “Slowly, so I can savor every inch of you.”

With a groan, I lift her up and press her into the wall.

She wraps her legs around me and tilts her hips, eager for me again.

“Marry me, Beth,” I say as I thrust inside her.

Her eyes fill with lust. “You already asked me.”

“What did you say? I’m not sure I remember.”

“Yes,” she says on an inhale as I drive deeper. “I said yes.”

“Say it again,” I say and suck on the tender slope of her neck. I glide against her slowly, inch by steady inch.

“Yes,” she says, her head falling back against the tiles. “Yes, James, a million times, yes.”

Our pace stays steady and firm. Her core coils tight, tighter. Her breaths turn to needy pants and her fingers entwine in my hair.

“I love hearing you come,” I say in her ear.

Her core tightens and her hips rock against me. “James!” she cries as her body spasms around me.

I drive again and again, milking her release, until she collapses in my arms. I let everything go—my fears and inhibitions, my doubts and worries—squeezing her tight as my climax ripples through me.

I hold her there as the warm water soothes us and our thundering hearts slow. When she’s ready, I lower her to her feet and wrap my arms around her. For as long as I live, I will never get tired of holding her, kissing her, pleasuring her. Of hearing her laugh and seeing her smile. Of sharing my life with her.

Yes, she said. I sigh with satisfaction and gratitude. Hell yes to forever.

***

Thanks for reading! If you haven’t picked up a copy of James and Beth’s story, Falling for My Coach, grab it here.

If you haven’t started the Falling Hard series, set in the heart of the Rockies, get started with Caleb and Lori’s sexy first-time summer of love story (free download) here.

Find all the Penny Creek love stories in the Falling Hard romance series HERE.