“I would only need your help tonight.”
One night. More than I ever hoped. More than I deserve.
“Just tonight.” The words are a promise to her and a warning to myself.
Do not try for more.
Whether or not Isla continues to pursue Owen doesn’t matter because she’s not mine.
“I’ll stay the night,” she says.
Exhilaration pulses through my muscles. I want to scoop her up and sprint to the house, find the closest bedroom and worship her until the sun rises. But Isla makes no move to get up, so I stay still beside her, all quivering tension and need.
“Let me know when you’re ready for bed.”
5
ISLA
When I stepout of the bathroom in my borrowed sleep clothes, Finn is waiting for me in the hall. He’s out of his swim trunks, dressed in athletic shorts and a T-shirt. Covering up his farmer’s tan.
Disappointment trickles through me at finding him so thoroughly dressed. Which is an illogical reaction. It’s not as though he needs to take any of his clothes off for what we’re about to do.
“I won’t just use my fingers.”
What that simple sentence did to me should be a crime. All my functions and thoughts were sent into a flailing mess, just like when I tipped him from his inner tube.
I need to reestablish control over the situation. This is one night. A service between friends. There can’t be anything more. Proven by my parents’ response when I texted to let them know they shouldn’t expect me home tonight.
Mom:Be careful. We’ve heard the MacNamaras invite humans to their parties. If you feel unsafe, call us, and we’ll come pick you up.
If only they knew whatI’veinvited a human to do. But there’s no reason to share that piece of information.
As I approach Finn now, he watches me with those blue-gray eyes. But that’s not new.
I pass by him, reaching for the door to the bedroom I was assigned. Pushing it open, I turn to face a still-waiting Finn.
“Ready?”
“Are you?” he asks back, falling into his habit of answering me with questions.
And I fall into mine of answering with the truth. “Yes.”
In fact, I’ve been ready for years.
Just because I know that being intimate with Finn could never lead to anything permanent doesn’t mean I’ve never thought about it. When I touch myself before bed each night, he is the most common partner I picture myself with. Fantasies of slowly peeling off that damp red shirt he wore in the line to get coffee three years ago. Having him bite me instead of the bear claw he ordered. The two of us disappearing into Coffee & Claws’s single-user restroom, where he would press me up against a wall and drive into me.
Outside of my head, I would never approve of a public restroom as a sexual environment, but in my dreams, every surface is as sanitary as I need it to be.
All this to say, yes, I am ready for the real thing.
The true question is, will I be ready tomorrow morning to never let this happen again?
He precedes me through the door, which I close and lock behind me. Finn halts in the middle of the room, staring at the bed.
“Who’s in charge here?” he asks.
The possibilities cycle through my mind. “You, but I maintain veto rights. And we’re agreed that the goal is two orgasms.”
