ALEXIS
“YOU’RE UP EARLY.” MY mom quirked her brow, giving me a knowing smile. “You and Colt have a good time last night?”
Heat flooded my cheeks. “Mmmhmm,” I nodded, walking over to join her and my father at the breakfast table.
“Were you safe?” she continued, making this awkward situation even more uncomfortable than it already was. She did this shit on purpose.
Dad’s fork landed hard on his plate as he began to choke on his scrambled eggs.
“I’ve been having sex for years, Mother. I’m pretty sure I know how babies are made by now...and how to avoid them.”
“Enough!” Dad grumbled when he stopped coughing long enough to speak. “Jesus, woman,” he added, glaring at my mother, who simply rolled her eyes, resuming her interrogation.
“So, you two are...?”
Here we go...“Actually, that’s why I’m up so early. I have some news,” I announced, biting my lip nervously.
Mom rested her chin in her hand that was already propped on the table, leaning in with eager anticipation. Dad, on the other hand, froze mid-chew. I’m not even sure he was breathing.
“We’re moving in together.”
And the choking resumed as Dad beat a fist into his chest. His eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. Poor Dad.
“You’re moving in—umm, where exactly?” All playfulness vanished from her demeanor.
“I’m going back to California with Colton...today.”
“Today? What about school?” Mom asked, looking like she was about to hyperventilate as she tugged at the neck of her tee.
Taking a deep breath, I shifted in my seat. “I’m going to drop my classes and transfer my credits to UCLA. I’ll start this semester over in January. I’m failing everything anyway,” I answered, looking over to my father to gage his reaction. His stone face gave nothing away as he listened intently.
“What are you going to do for money, Alex? You’ve never lived on your own...You—you’ll lose your scholarships.”
“She’ll get a job, honey, like everyone else does. Or she can take out bigger loans,” Dad chimed in, finally seeming to find his voice. “She’s not the first twenty-year-old to move out on her own...and she’ll be with Colt.” As he added that last bit, Dad looked to me and winked.
My mom’s bottom lip started to quiver, her eyes filling with tears. “But, she’s our baby. How can you be so calm about this?”
My heart sank. I’d known she’d be upset. The longest I’d ever been away from home was last summer when I’d visited Colton, and she’d had a hard time with that. Still, expecting it didn’t make it any easier. Along with Colton, she was my best friend. Pathetic, but true.
My dad’s hand reached out to hold hers across the table. “She’s in love, Momma. Would you rather Allie be miserable, the way she’s been these past few months?” The concerned looks they shared made me feel awful for worrying them so much, but it had brought dad and me closer than ever. I couldn’t be upset about that.
“No,” Mom whispered, sniveling into her napkin, her head shaking and her eyes locked on mine. “But I’m going to miss you so much.”
“I’ll miss you too, Mom.” I got out of my seat, walking over to wrap her in a hug, emotion thick in my throat. “I’ll visit, and you can come check out LA. It’s going to be great, you’ll see.”
I’d made it onto the plane and into my seat without much event, but when we started taxiing, all bets were off. It felt like I’d taken a shot of adrenaline straight to the heart. We were going to die. Colton had finally asked me to be his everything, and we were going to blow up in this fucking plane and never get our happily ever after. Oh God. I couldn’t breathe.
“You okay?” Colt asked, dipping his head to whisper into my ear as he used the hand that wasn’t currently being squeezed to death to rub my arm.
“Mmm mmm.” I shook my head.
Colt did a shit job of trying not to laugh. “You’re a pro at this now, babe. It’s your third flight.”
Shit. I was going to throw up. My eyes started watering. “Get...get my purse, Colt,” I begged, fanning myself with the flight travel pamphlet from the seat pocket in front of me.
“We have to keep all items stored ri—”
My grip on his forearm tightened. “Just get it,” I gritted out, focusing on my breathing. I did not want to spend the rest of this flight covered in vomit. I was sure he didn’t either.
“Hurry up,” he said, depositing the bag in my lap. Probably the only thing good to come out of losing my mind for the past few months was the bottle of Xanax I just pulled from my purse.
“What is that?” Colt asked with a look of concern as I dropped one into my palm before slipping it beneath my tongue.
“Crazy pills...you want one?” I teased, capping the bottle and shoving it back into the bag, which he quickly returned to its rightful position.
A loud gasp slipped through my lips as the wheels drew up and we began our ascent. I laid my head back with my eyes shut tight and held on to Colt’s arm for dear life as the medicine dissolved in my mouth. Sometime between then and the time our plane had leveled out that little miracle drug had kicked in and my fucks had left the building.
“Feeling better?” Colt asked with a lazy smile as my hand slid down his arm, moving to his thigh. There were only the two of us in our row, and I was suddenly feeling bored, and Colt was looking like fun. It wasn’t even fair how gorgeous he was. I’d had to spend my whole life controlling myself around him, but I didn’t have to anymore, and I was going to take full advantage of my new freedom.
His body jerked as I stretched my pinky out to the side, running it gently over the bulge in his mesh shorts. “Much better,” I answered, turning a little in my seat, using my body to block anyone’s view from the aisle.
“Fuck, Alex,” he hissed under his breath as I slipped my hand up the leg of his shorts and began stroking him.
The harder he got, the wetter I became. Jesus, the way he looked with his head thrown back, his face puckered, and neck corded with tension as he tried to hide his pleasure had me clenching my legs together.
Colt’s hand reached forward, and the tray fell over his lap, hiding my hand from view. Good thinking.
“Can I get you two a beverage or a snack?” Oh fuck.
I kept my head turned down, resting on Colton’s shoulder as he answered for us. “Nah, we’re uh...we’re good. Thanks.”
“No problem,” the stewardess replied. “Enjoy your flight.”
“Oh, we intend to.”
When I heard the cart roll away, I squeezed his dick, causing him to jump. “Why didn’t you warn me?”
Colton laughed. “Cuz you’d stop.”
“Well, yeah.”
He bit down on his lower lip, his Adam’s apple bobbing on a swallow. “Don’t stop.”
I resumed stroking his cock until it was at full mast. My blood was hot with desire, and I was in desperate need to take advantage of my hard work.