How can the week pass me by so fast? But somehow, it does, and my producer’s text comes too soon informing me of a feature assignment that has my name on it.
Time frame? I text back.
Maybe 2 weeks, but I can’t promise. Could be longer.
I close my eyes, memories of the last job battering through my mental defenses. Didn’t I tell myself I wasn’t going to do this again? At least, no more going to conflict areas. Instead, I’d told myself it was time to do something different like documenting life off the grid, or if I stay here like Hudson’s been asking me to, relax and enjoy life on the beach for a while.
But as tempting as that last thought can be, I can’t pretend that what Hudson and I have will last forever. Surely my life can’t be filled with days spent at the beach playing volleyball with new friends and nights cooking dinner with Hudson after he comes home from work, followed by hours of making slow sweet love. It’s all we’ve done since the holiday weekend, and life couldn’t be more perfect.
But it doesn’t change the fact that this is a fling. When summer is over—really over—I still have to live my life.
“Penny for your thoughts,” Hudson asks, his voice thick with sleep. He should be getting ready to head to work, but he’s taken the day off, knowing our time together is running out.
“Based on current inflation rates, it costs about $2.50 per thought,” I say as I roll onto my back to face him. “You’re short by a lot.”
“Will you trade each thought with this instead?” He kisses me on the lips, a tender kiss that makes the butterflies in my belly come alive.
I chuckle. “I have to admit it’s not a bad trade.”
He nips my lower lip. “No, not at all.” He pulls away and studies my face. “You look like you’ve got a big decision to make.”
I glance at my phone, realizing my producer’s message is still on the screen. “Is it that obvious?”
Hudson traces my brow with his finger, ending with a playful tap on the tip of my nose. “A line shows up on your brow when you’re thinking hard. And it’s there right now.”
“I may have to leave for an assignment.”
He frowns. “Do you want to do it?”
I sigh. “That’s the problem. I don’t know if I do.”
“Then don’t.”
“Or I could simply have vacation on the brain.” I roll onto my side again, so he’s pressed behind me. Beyond the glass doors leading to his balcony, the view of the ocean is breathtaking, the sound of the surf peaceful. “That’s a killer view to wake up to.”
“It is,” Hudson murmurs against my ear, his arm around my waist tightening. “And it’s yours if you want it, Arden.”
“It’s a tempting offer.”
“I’m serious.” He kisses the skin behind my ear, and I shiver, my stomach clenching at the promises that lie behind each touch, each kiss. “Stay with me, Arden.”
I close my eyes. I know he’s not saying the words I think he’s saying—I love you—but he might as well be doing so. But he’s young. He doesn’t know how life really is, that what usually follows such declarations is betrayal.
“Isn’t this all happening too fast?”
He kisses my ear lobe, his stubble tickling me. “Says who?”
I shrug. “I don’t know. Everyone?”
“Do I look like I care what everyone says?” he murmurs. “I only care what you think, Arden. Everyone else can go to hell.”
It’s no secret his friends are annoyed with him, especially Taylor and Ruby, who think he’s lost his head over this little fling. And the same could be said for me, too. Hudson is all I can think of, and when he heads to work in DTLA, I find myself wearing his favorite shirts just to keep his scent nearby. I’ve even lost count of the many selfies we’ve taken. On the beach, in bed, on the couch, watching one of the movies I used to watch with him when he was eight. Scooby-Doo, Stuart Little 2, Ice Age. It’s juvenile. It’s silly. It’s so not me, but I can’t help it.
And maybe that’s why returning to work just might be what I need to get back to myself again.
But then, when did I ever lose myself when I’ve never felt so good about Hudson… albeit a bit guilty for feeling as good as I do?
Is it because I’ve never felt this happy before? In Hudson’s arms, I feel like the woman I long forgot. The one who laughed more, the one who never had to wall herself just to get the right story, the one who wasn’t afraid to love more… or allow herself to be loved right back.
But even if he’s never said the words, what does a kid like Hudson know about love? His life has been all about growing up on the beach and partying with his friends.
Or has it?
Or am I simply finding an excuse to stop feeling as giddy as I do right now as Hudson rolls me onto my back and dips his head lower, his lips capturing mine, his tongue sliding between my teeth to taste me, his hands stroking my body, slowly memorizing every inch of me? And when he slides ever lower down my body, settling his face between my thighs as he plants a warm kiss on my mons before his tongue strokes my slit before capturing my clit between his lips and sucking on it, am I simply looking for a way out of my feelings. That fluttering, clenching, tightening feeling in my chest and my belly, the same one that leaves me weak in the knees when I catch him watching me.
I moan, digging my fingers into Hudson’s shoulders as his mouth claims my pussy, his tongue lapping my juices as my release comes like a wave followed by another much bigger than the first leaving me gasping for breath, my heart racing, my hips bucking against his face.
When my breathing calms, he slides up, leaving a trail of kisses in his wake until he reaches my mouth, letting me taste myself on his tongue. And just as we do every morning for the last four days, he claims me, heart, body, and soul.
And I let him… for now.