CHAPTER 8: That Scared The Hell Out Of Me

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• Breaking The Ice Between Us    CHAPTER 118: I Snapped!

  I was still thinking about Ms. Beckett when I pulled into the underground parking. Her words had echoed the entire drive home—gentle, almost annoyingly wise. But comforting, in that way older adults people sometimes manage to be when you’re completely falling apart and pretending you’re not.I grabbed my groceries and took the elevator up to my floor.But the second the doors slid open, that fleeting peace was shattered.Because there he was—my father. Standing right in front of my apartment door like a fucking curse made flesh. His arms were crossed, face blank in that superior way that used to scare the shit out of me as a kid.Now, it just pissed me off.“What the fuck are you doing here?” I asked, stepping out, grocery bags still digging into my fingers.He turned his head slowly, like he’d been waiting for hours. His face was pale, but his eyes were clear, calculating. That was always the worst part. He never needed to raise his voice. His words alone did the bleeding.“She’s dea

• Breaking The Ice Between Us    CHAPTER 117: Fucking Lucky Charms

  I hadn’t planned on making a stop anywhere. The plan was to go straight home after eating with James, spend the rest of the day doing absolutely fucking nothing. But something about the half empty fridge made me turn the wheel instead of taking my usual exit.The parking lot was half full, but inside the store, it was crowded in that slow, suffocating way. People pushing carts like they had nowhere else to be. I grabbed a basket instead of a cart—because I had no intention of staying long—and headed down the first aisle.Tomatoes. Eggs. Bread. Maybe some bacon. My brain wasn’t in it. I kept walking past shelves and grabbing things on autopilot, barely looking at the labels. My thoughts were louder than the music humming through the ceiling speakers.Andrew hadn’t texted since that night.Not that I expected him to.Okay. Maybe I did.Maybe a tiny, desperate, idiotic part of me thought something shifted between us.I sighed and reached for a box of cereal—fucking Lucky Charms, of all t

• Breaking The Ice Between Us    CHAPTER 116: You Said Monday

  James was talking again. Something about a girl from psych class who wouldn’t stop texting him, or maybe it was the girl from the gym who accidentally sent him a shirtless pic. I didn’t know. I wasn’t really listening.I just sat there, fork scraping against my plate as I pushed my eggs around like I was six years old and couldn’t stomach vegetables. The diner was warm, loud with afternoon clatter, and the scent of burnt bacon hung around like an unwanted guest. I could barely taste my food, but I kept chewing anyway, pretending to be human.James, of course, didn’t notice. Or maybe he did and just didn’t say anything. He was on a roll—hand gestures, animated expressions, half-laughing at his own stories like he was auditioning for a talk show.I blinked at him, tuning in halfway through some tangent about packing cubes and TSA agents with superiority complexes.“—and anyway, I told the girl, if you’re gonna grope me at security, you better buy me dinner first, right?” James snorted,

• Breaking The Ice Between Us    CHAPTER 115: I’m Going To Fix This

  I woke up with a leg thrown over my thigh and a soft snore blowing warm air against my collarbone. For a second, I forgot where I was. The ceiling above me was unfamiliar—off-white, slightly stained in one corner, the fan slow and unbalanced. The bed beneath me creaked when I shifted, and the blanket was barely covering either of us. But the weight next to me—that grounding presence against my chest—felt more familiar than anything ever had. Andrew. He was still asleep. His face was turned toward me, half-buried in the crook of my arm, lashes brushing against my skin with every tiny exhale. His brows were relaxed, for once. His lips—pink, swollen, parted—looked too soft for how sharp his words usually were. I blinked slowly, trying to keep my breathing steady. He looked peaceful. And fuck if that didn’t twist something inside me. I didn’t move. Didn’t dare. Because I didn’t know what the hell came next. My hand hovered in the space between us, unsure whether to pull him clos

• Breaking The Ice Between Us    CHAPTER 114: I Wouldn’t Want It Any Other Way

  I nudged the crown of my cock against his tight, slick hole and slowly pressed in. Andrew jerked beneath me, his ass writhing, pushing back, desperate to take more—like his body was trying to swallow me whole. Goddamn it. I was losing my fucking mind. “Easy,” I groaned, though my voice broke halfway through the word. I thrust in deeper, then bottomed out with one steady, forceful push. He let out a guttural growl, his spine arching. “Fuck,” he hissed through clenched teeth, his voice raw, wrecked. He turned his head to the side, cheek pressed to the mattress, and his eyes—hooded, wet, burning with heat—met mine. I gripped his hips, grounding myself, and began thrusting shallowly, rolling my hips against him with tight, controlled motions. Then he moaned. God, that sound—half-pained, half-pleasure—sent lightning straight through me. I was shocked I didn’t lose it right there. “Harder, Captain,” he muttered, panting, grinding his cock against the bed, chasing friction. “Fuck me ha

• Breaking The Ice Between Us    CHAPTER 113: Say It Again

  I kissed Andrew back—deeper, more desperate, like I was trying to taste everything I’d missed. My hands slid beneath his hoodie, pushing it up and over his head, exposing the smooth, toned muscles of his torso, still faintly marked by the bruises and bites I’d left behind. I raked my gaze over him. “Fuck, Andrew,” I murmured, my voice raw. “I missed you.” He didn’t answer with words. Instead, he grabbed the hem of my hoodie and yanked it over my head, his fingers brushing against my chest, lingering over the ridges of my muscles like he was memorizing them. His touch sent a jolt straight through me. “I fucking hate you,” he growled, but his hands betrayed him, roaming my skin like they’d been starving for it. I gave a low hum and caught his bottom lip between my teeth, tugging on it before trailing kisses down to the zipper of his jeans. I dragged it down painfully slow, the metal teeth catching just slightly as I hovered my face near his hardness. Andrew groaned, his hand findin