Stay With Me: A Best Friend’s Brother Small Town Romance (Sugarland Creek Book 2)
Stay With Me (Sugarland Creek Book 2): Chapter 19

“You’re gonna get us in trouble.” Magnolia pants between her words, and I love the sound of her losing control around me.

“You’re the boss,” I remind her, thrusting my fingers deeper toward her G-spot. “Who do you think is gonna catch us?” She’s already done for the day, so the counter window and door are closed and locked.

“I-I dunno. The health inspector because this most definitely violates a few codes.”

Considering her ass is perched up on the counter and her thighs are spread wide for me, I can’t disagree. But it’s been three days since I’ve seen her in person, and I was desperate for a taste before we go on our date tonight. With Noah away on her honeymoon, the rest of us are picking up her slack with the boarding horses and making sure they get exercised, which has meant working later and less time to see Magnolia.

After we rode around looking for Rocky, I found him up the mountain grazing and the little bastard ran as soon as he saw Franklin. It took a little sweet talking to convince him to trust me and not take off. Once I was able to swing the rope around his neck, I led him back to the breeding operations barn and put him in a stall. The pasture he was in has a broken fence post, and I stayed busy helping Landen to fix it for the past couple evenings.

Magnolia and I text each day and stay in contact, but it’s not the same as getting to touch and kiss her. She even gave me a little striptease over FaceTime as she was undressing before she got in the bath. So as soon as I was able to come to the retreat after her shift today, I was ready to devour her.

“Shit, I’m so close.” She digs her nails into my hair as I kneel in front of her and hike one of her legs over my shoulder.

My tongue flattens along her slit before I capture her clit between my lips and suck until she goes breathless. I drive my fingers faster into her sweet cunt and when she nearly screams through her orgasm, she squirts all over my hand.

And I lick every last bit.

“Fuck, Sunny. You had some pent-up tension to release.” I shoot her a wink and she blushes.

“You’ve been teasin’ me all week.”

Between the daily sexting, FaceTime calls that eventually turn sexual, and being insanely obsessive over her, I don’t blame her. My palm’s gone raw over abusing my cock each night.

Grabbing her leggings off the floor, I stand and grab her foot so I can slide them back on.

“Forgettin’ something?” She arches a brow when I pull them up.

“No.”

“So you’re just gonna pretend you didn’t steal my panties and shove ’em in your pocket?”

Her taunting voice has me smirking as I avoid her gaze, concentrating hard on making sure I get her clothes situated properly.

“That’d be correct.”

“Then I get something of yours,” she says once I lift her off the counter and onto her feet.

I tease the tip of my tongue along my lower lip as I stare into her beautiful brown eyes. “Okay, whaddya want?”

“A T-shirt.”

My brows pinch together in confusion because I was expecting something a lot more scandalous.

“Just any shirt?” I ask.

“One that smells like you. That night I stole one from your room, you made me give it back. And I’d like one to keep for when I’m alone in my bed and missing you.”

The vulnerable sadness on her face has me cupping her cheeks and stepping closer until I capture her mouth. My tongue slides between her lips and she opens hers to let me in. This kiss isn’t rushed or filled with desperation but rather sweet and tender. Her arms wrap around my waist, pulling me tighter until we’re gasping for air.

“I’m sorry I took it from you.” I rest my forehead against hers. “You can have my entire closet, Sunny. It’s yours.”

She chuckles, tilting up to meet my gaze. “This one will do for now.”

“You got it.” I pull back and yank it over my head. I left my jacket in my truck, but I don’t mind the cold because as soon as her eyes land on my chest, fire burns in her eyes.

“Is that—” She squints, leaning in closer. “A sunflower tattoo?”

She brushes a finger underneath Billy’s inked name and confusion covers her face.

“I don’t remember seeing that before.”

“The birth and death dates written underneath his name had the wrong years, but I didn’t realize it until after it healed. So instead of trying to get it fixed and risk it turnin’ out worse, I decided to just cover it up with something better.”

“With a sunflower…” Her baffled expression is adorable. She really has no idea how long I’ve liked her. “When did you get it?”

I brush a finger down her cheek. “About two years ago, after you told me that Sunny was your favorite nickname from me.”

She swallows hard as she continues examining the design. A bouquet of sunflowers lies below Billy’s name like a decorative signature.

“I liked what you said about sunflowers and how they were a sign of positivity, happiness, and hope. Figured I could use some of that in my life.” I shrug.

She finally meets my eyes. “You never told me.”

“I didn’t tell anyone.”

“Not even Landen?”

“Nope.”

“I can’t wrap my head around this, Tripp. Why would you get my favorite flower tattooed on your skin? And two years ago? I still thought you could hardly stand being around me or only put up with me because I was Noah’s best friend.”

“That was me tryin’ to keep my distance because you were on and off with Travis, and I knew Landen liked you, so you were off-limits. I thought if I stayed guarded and put you in the friend zone, you’d stop flirtin’ with me, and I’d stop liking you.” I smirk, plucking her bottom lip between my thumb and finger. “My feelings never faded, though.”

Something passes in her eyes, almost like a flinch, but she quickly recovers, so I don’t question it.

“Even after you thought we’d never have a chance, you still did it?” she asks.

I hold her face in my hands and smile down at her. “Yeah, Sunny. No matter what did or didn’t happen between us, I liked the thought of having you close to me.”

“Tripp Hollis.” The corners of her eyes well with tears, and I quickly brush my thumb across her cheeks before they can fall. “That is the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard. And now I kinda hate you for it because how am I ever gonna compete with that?”

With a grin, I dip down and capture her pouty lips. “You could get a tattoo of my handprint on your ass cheek.”

“I won’t be able to show anyone if it’s there.”

I cock a brow. “Exactly.”

“Please tell me you aren’t takin’ me to some archery place. Because I really think axe-throwing was my limit on arm strength.”

I glance over at her in the passenger seat and chuckle. “No, don’t worry. That’s more of a fifth date kinda thing.”

“Oh good, remind me to be sick that day.”

Leaning over, I squeeze her thigh. “You’re such a brat.”

“I thought you liked that specific trait of mine,” she muses with a cheeky grin.

I cup her chin while keeping one eye on the road. “Only if I’m allowed to give out punishments for said trait.”

“Hmm…well, how else would I get your handprint on my ass for that tattoo?”

My eyes darken at the thought of someone else seeing her there. “Yeah, I change my mind. No one sees your bare ass except me.”

“Tattoo artists are professionals. They pierce dicks and vaginas all day long. I’m sure my one little ass cheek wouldn’t even faze ’em.”

I snort. “Is that so?”

“Well, I dunno, but I’m sure they’ve seen it all. They’re practically doctors and are immune to that stuff.”

“Right…” I drawl out, still not convinced.

“So I’m guessing if I tell you I’ve been thinkin’ of gettin’ my clit pierced you’d be against it?”

My cock jerks beneath my jeans, and I have to adjust myself before it rubs uncomfortably along my zipper. She catches me and grins wide.

“No talkin’ about your pussy while I’m drivin’.”

“Okay, what about nipples? I could pierce those.”

“Sunny…” I warn. “Unless you want me to pull over and take you right here, I suggest you stop talkin’ about all your body parts I wanna devour.”

“Not sure that’s as much of a threat as you think it is.”

I shoot her a side-glare as I continue fighting with my erection.

“Ya know, I could help you out with that…” She nods toward my groin.

“That’s dangerous while I’m behind the wheel.”

“More than finger-fucking me while teachin’ me to drive?” she counters. The gloating smirk that covers her stunning face tells me she knows she’s got me there.

Before I can argue, she flips off the chest strap of her buckle and crawls toward me on the bench seat. I pop the steering wheel up so she doesn’t smack her head and widen my legs.

“This is a bad idea,” I say as she undoes my button and zipper.

“You just focus on the road, cowboy. Leave me to it down here.”

I scoff, death-gripping the wheel with one hand as she pulls out my hard length. “Yeah, sure.”

My eyes are laser focused on the traffic in front of me. All it’d take is one nosy trucker to glance over and see Magnolia with my cock in her mouth.

The moment her hot tongue swirls around the tip, I’m fucking gone. She bobs up and down on my shaft like it’s a goddamn Popsicle and when she makes gagging noises, it brings me closer to exploding down her throat.

“Sunny, I’m gonna come,” I warn her, barely able to breathe. Not touching her the way I want to is torture, but I fist her hair so I can control her head if I need to. I wouldn’t think twice about moving her over if there was a threat of an accident happening.

As if she can feel my entire body tense, she hollows her cheeks and sucks harder until my spine tingles and vibrations rock through my balls.

“Holy fuck,” I breathe out as she swallows me down.

Her tongue slides up and down, cleaning every ounce of me, but I need her to stop before I get hard again.

“You gotta stop now, baby.”

She sits up and proudly wipes her mouth with the back of her hand, and I shove myself back in my boxers and rebutton my jeans.

“That was fuckin’ impressive, Sunny.” She’s close enough to kiss, so I drag her mouth to mine for a quick one. “Now, please, sit and put your buckle back in place.”

She mocks me with a salute.

My truck’s never seen so much action, but I’m starting to like these bench seats more and more.

Ten minutes later, we arrive at our date location and as soon as she realizes what we’re doing, her face lights up like a kid’s on Christmas Day.

“We’re seeing a movie?” Her mouth opens. “I haven’t been to the theater in years.”

Not surprising since her asshole ex wouldn’t go with her and everyone streams at home now.

“It’s why I wanted to take you. Thought it’d be fun to veg out on popcorn and snacks and enjoy their heated recliners for a couple of hours.”

She tilts her head in confusion. “Whaddya mean? How’d you know that?”

“You might not remember because you were high on Molly, but you mentioned it that night.”

“Oh my God. Either you have the memory of an elephant or you’re utterly obsessed with me.” Her tone is teasing, but she’s not wrong. I have been for longer than I’d like to admit.

Instead of telling her that, I casually shrug. “I do have a good memory.”

The corner of her lips hikes up with a smug grin. “Mm-hmm. I’m sure that’s it.”

“C’mon, let’s go. The movie’s gonna start soon.” I open my door and she reaches for hers, but I grab her arm. “Wait.”

Slamming mine shut, I sprint around my truck to her side. Then I pull her handle and hold out my hand so she can take it.

“Aren’t you such a gentleman.”

Once she steps down, I pull her flush against my chest and kiss the tip of her nose. “Oh, I have secret motivations.”

“Hm…care to elaborate?”

“Nope. You’ll replace out.” I wink, then lock my truck and lead us to the theater.

I already bought the tickets, so once we’re inside, we hit the food stand. We order a large popcorn with extra butter, two bags of gummy worms, one red and one blue slushie to share, and then a box of M&M’s to sprinkle on top of the popcorn.

“Anything else, Sunny, or is this enough of a sugar high for ya?” I tease before I give the girl behind the counter my card.

“I think this’ll do until we get back to town.”

She chuckles when I shake my head. I’m not a huge sweets person, but I could easily devour one of Gramma Grace’s Butter Pecan pies.

“So what movie are we gonna see?” she finally asks, and honestly, I’m surprised it took her until now to ask.

While we wait to go in, I point at a banner of Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore behind her. Every month, they reserve a theater for a specific theme and when I saw they were doing the ’90s and featuring a movie of his, I knew she’d enjoy it.

“Ghost?” She looks back at me in confusion with her lips parted.

“It’s no Dirty Dancing, but it has your favorite actor.”

Her mouth is still half-open in surprise. “I’ve never seen that one.”

“Good. Then you’ll actually pay attention to it and won’t spend the whole time tryin’ to tempt me.”

“Except there’s a loophole in your well-crafted plan.”

I look down at her devious grin and furrow my brows. “And what’s that?”

She licks her lips. “I’m a master multitasker. Years of working in customer service help me focus on more than one thing at a time.”

Instead of giving in to her devious attempts to seduce me in yet another place we could get caught, I bring my mouth to her ear. “Sweetheart, I deal with rowdy thousand-pound horses, overly needy guests, and unruly siblings on a daily basis. So if you think I can’t handle your loopholes, think again. Because if I need to, I’ll pin you down in that recliner with my fingers shoved in your wet pussy and edge you for a solid two hours before lettin’ you come.”

When I pull back, she’s biting the inside of her cheek as her nostrils flare.

Probably to stop herself from giving me a verbal lashing.

A smug smile forms across my face as she tries to stay mad at me.

“Ready to go in?” I ask once I hand our tickets to the attendant.

She continues to shoot me death glares when we walk inside the first auditorium and climb up the stairs to replace the best seats.

“What section do you want?” I ask over my shoulder. “The very top or is the middle okay?”

“You sit wherever you want, cowboy. I’ll sit down here so I don’t tempt you.” Then she parks her ass in the front row of the second level.

I chuckle to myself, put our drinks in the holders and the bag of popcorn in the seat next to mine, and march back down the stairs. When I stand in front of her, she purposely shifts her body to look at the blank screen behind me. The previews haven’t even started.

“Excuse me, you’re blockin’ my view and everyone else’s who’ll sit behind me.”

I make a show of glancing around the bare room. “Hmm…I think it’s just yours, sweetheart.”

“Well, you better go away so I can focus on Patrick Swayze’s good looks and only his.”

I have a suspicion she has no clue what this movie’s about.

“You can focus on only his next to me up there.”

Without giving her a chance to respond, I pick her up and throw her over my shoulder like dozens of other times.

And she pounds her fists on my ass like she’s always done. “Tripp! Put me down, you caveman!”

“Gladly. In the seat next to mine. Where you belong.”

When I reach our chairs, I gently set her down and then sit beside her.

“That was unnecessary.”

Reaching over to grab our popcorn, I hold it out for her with a grin. “Want some?”

She snatches it from me and shoves a mouthful in. “I’m not allowed to tempt you because there’ll be other people around, but you can carry me like I’m a drunk sorority girl inside a movie theater?”

“It was that or shoutin’ across the auditorium to ask if you wanted any snacks.”

As if she can’t feign being angry anymore, she laughs and flicks a piece of popcorn at my face. “You’re insane.”

“All for you, baby.” I wink and she rolls her eyes.

When the lights dim and the previews start, she looks around and notices no one else is in here.

“Is it normal for these themed nights to be empty?”

I lean over with a smirk. “I figured we’d want our privacy, so I bought every single ticket for this showing.”

Her mouth drops open. “You sneaky shit. This whole time…”

“Don’t get any ideas, Sunny. We’re watchin’ the movie.”

She rips open the M&M’s box and dumps it on top of the popcorn. “Then there better be some man ass in it to keep me entertained.”

Fuck. She hasn’t a single clue what she’s about to experience.