Blossom 🌸

THIRTY SEVEN 🌸

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The Maines household never missed a single one of Jamie's games. They breathed and lived soccer. I purposely avoided the game but that meant I had the house to myself. I shut off the lights and lay back on my bed, sinking into the mattress with my eyes pressed closed.

I could see him in my mind as clear as day, the image never left my mind. His head tilted back and his lips parted with sexual sounds falling out of his mouth. Sounds I caused.

I felt him, his soft flesh moving beneath my hands, my fingers caressing over the ridges and veins that made up his manhood. I could taste him, a small tangy taste dripping onto my tongue like a salt chaser after a shot of tequila.

Since that night my lower regions had awoken. I could feel tingles in places I never knew I could get them. It was... frustrating. The thing pulsed like crazy, calling out for me to touch it. So I moved my hand down to the waistband on my sweats, dipping in and feeling the ridge of my panties.

I screwed my eyes tighter, in my warped mind, home alone in the dark, under the covers I still felt self-conscious that people could hear my thoughts. I still felt wrong for thinking them.

No.

I pulled my hand away and clenched my fingers. I couldn't allow myself to do that. I pushed the covers off me and showered my dirty thoughts away down the drain.

"Fearne we're home, they lost!" Olivia shouted from downstairs. I pulled back the blinds and looked outside at Arlo and Jamie kicking around a ball in the driveway.

Jamie wore his full soccer kit but Arlo wasn't wearing the jersey. He had a navy wife-beater on instead. It annoyed me, I only gave it back because he needed it. I quite enjoyed the collection of Arlos clothes I had accumulated over time, his jersey, his sweats, his hoodie.

"Fearne, we'll be leaving in fifteen minutes.  Will you be ready?" Olivia popped her head into my room and then frowned at the sight of me wrapped in a towel.

"We're going out?" I asked, rapidly moving myself away from the window so I didn't seem like a suspicious stalker.

"It's Bens birthday, we've got a table booked for eight. I mentioned it last week."

"Okay, I'll be ready." I lied.

Ben was Liams manager but also one of their oldest friends. Arlo was going to be there along with his parents and Lexi too. The whole thing felt like a giant foreshadow considering Liam and Jordan hated one another, Arlo and I hated one another and nobody actually really seemed to like Ben at all.

"Great, wear something fancy." Olivia gave a killer-watt smile, bright enough to out shine all the lights on Times Square. She backed away and it only took a couple of seconds before I could hear her prodding the others to hurry up and get dressed.

I slipped into a hunter green dress, it was short, fitted and velvet with spaghetti straps and a leg slit. If I was stepping out of my comfort zone by attending the dinner I may as well go all out. I didn't even recognise my own body right now anyway.

"Fearne, we're leaving." Olivia shouted.

I walked down the stairs, the guys all wore suits, even little Henry. Chloe wore a black cocktail dress and Olivia wore a red midi length one.

I felt like I was sweating everywhere but it wasn't even that hot. I didn't have butterflies in my stomach, I had a full blown zoo running rapid in there. I couldn't think straight through my nerves.

I sat quietly at the back of Liams car, just watching the dreary weather out of the window. Rainfall splashed down my window pane, it illuminated in fine mist sprinkles under the orange glow of the passing headlights.

Everyone around me seemed so calm, a simple melody played on the radio, disrupted by the occasional commercial and upbeat radio host. But I was as wet and miserable as the gloomy sky outside.

"Best behaviour tonight Liam." Olivia warned.

"I'm not a child Liv, I know how to be civilised." He pursed his lips and propped his elbow up on the window ledge.

Civilised. I could do that.

"You got him into a headlock two days ago and threw your wet finger down his ear because he wouldn't kill this stupid story that we all know he's not going to write anyway."

His grip tightened around the wheel. "It doesn't matter if he's going to write it, the media are sniffing around my business now. Speculating on what he'll write about. You know some fucking doctor went on record stating my mom was as sweet as pie? A fucking angel."

"Stop reading it." Her voice was calming.

"He's a dick." He spat out stubbornly.

"Yeah but we've known that since high school, nothing has changed." He pulled into the parking lot of a fancy restaurant and we all clambered out of the car.

Fuck, maybe I couldn't be civil.

Liam chucked his keys to the young, acne faced valet who seemed to turn into a little fanboy as soon as he recognised him. I stood awkwardly under a canopy as Liam created small-talk with him, posed for photos and signed autographs.

"Here's $500, hide a tuna sandwich under the seat of Jordan Peers car, it's the overly showy red SSC." The valet boy was all too happy to agree.

"So much for being a civilised adult." Liv whispered. "And you're hitting him where it hurts."

"He hit me where it hurts. Let's get this over and done with." Liam said as he pushed open the double doors and headed on inside.