Romance Rivals Read online

  I slid my hands down his bare back, feeling his pebbled muscles. Holy shit, Keith had grown into a man. A man I couldn’t keep my hands away from. I cupped his ass and pulled him into me, my pussy swallowing down his cock. It pressed against my walls as my back arched, and animalistic sounds poured from my lips.

  “Holy absolute fuck,” I moaned.

  He was easily the biggest I’d ever had. He expanded me and stretched me in ways I’d never experienced.

  I sure as hell wouldn’t tell him that, though.

  He reared back onto his haunches and released my hair. His large hands engulfed my hips, pulling me closer to him. I felt his cock press an inch farther into me, and my eyes bulged. Goose bumps cascaded across my entire body. My skin flushed quickly, and I felt light-headed as he slowly swiveled his hips.

  “Holy shit, Alison,” he growled.

  He pounded into me relentlessly. My tits jumped as my hands fisted the couch. My leg kicked out with an electric jolt, knocking against the table. I heard the game crashing to the ground. My jaw unhinged in silent pleasure as my pussy swallowed him whole, time and time again. My world swirled; my reality spiraled. And as his hand brought my leg back to his side, I locked my legs around him.

  I heard him chuckling, but there was nothing I could do to stop my rabid need for pleasure.

  My dress came up over my stomach, and I felt his commanding touch against me. I felt his fingertips curling into my naked skin, praising my excess. He gripped me with a ferocity that blinded me, and all I could do was feel—feel his invasion, the electricity he pushed through my body, the fire he stoked in my gut, the coil in my abdomen tightening.

  “Holy—oh—yes!”

  He slammed his hips into mine one last time and my pussy erupted. It throbbed around him and clamped down onto his cock as growls poured forth from his lips. He fell to me, crashing his face into my breasts. He kissed and sucked. He bit down and hung on as I bucked ravenously against him. I rode out my end against his body, feeling his cock pulse with each thread of come that bubbled up from its tip.

  The room spun around me from the force of the orgasm alone.

  He collapsed against me, and we panted against the couch. And as I stared up at the ceiling, pinned underneath the man I’d hated for years, I wondered how the hell I’d lost control of the situation. All I’d wanted was a distraction, something to take his attention away from the game long enough for me to win. But instead, we collapsed to the couch and mussed ourselves up, with the game in pieces on the ground.

  We’d spent all night trying to see who would win. And now, no one was the winner.

  Which defeated my entire purpose for showing up.

  Well, not the entire purpose.

  Keith was still a fierce competitor. And I liked someone who could keep me on my toes. I enjoyed someone who challenged me, and Keith had been that for me my entire life. A challenger. A worthy opponent. Someone who couldn’t get enough of my ass whoopings, which helped me hone my abilities.

  Keith leaned up and looked into my eyes with that same shocked expression I knew I had. I didn’t know what to say, and thankfully, I wouldn’t have to.

  Because his phone began vibrating on the floor.

  “Sorry,” he murmured.

  He quickly scrambled off my body, and I shoved my dress down. He fumbled to pick up his cell phone as he stumbled to get his pants back up his body. He peeked back at me as he answered the phone, then made his way quickly into the kitchen. And as he talked, I took the liberty of fixing myself up so I could get home.

  Then, maybe get a fucking shower.

  CHAPTER 9

  KEITH

  I stepped outside and took my garbage to the curb after getting ready for work. I rolled it along, feeling a pleasant ache settling into my joints. I sighed as I placed the can by the side of the road, then stretched my hands toward the sky.

  And when I heard another garbage can rolling down a driveway, I turned.

  I saw Alison walking down the length of her mother’s driveway, professionally dressed in a pencil skirt and a short jacket. Her blouse was a bright yellow, like the sun rising up high in the sky.

  The way that damn outfit hugged her made my mouth water.

  I hadn’t stopped thinking about last night. About our encounter. About how her thighs blanketed my fall and her soft pussy opened up to me. Alison was hotter than I ever thought possible. Her curves, rich with flavor. Her skin, soft as silk. And while I’d had my fair share of dates and women fall into my bed over the years, Alison was in a class of her own.

  At the top, where she always had been.

  She looked at me, and we stared at each other, unsure of what to do. I had no idea what to say. How to even begin to speak with her. So, when she turned to walk to her car, I did the same. We cranked our cars up at the same time and backed out, heading down the same path. Carving the same route to work.

  And the entire time, she was either right behind me, or right in front of me.

  She slipped quickly in front of me, pulling into the staff parking garage. I wondered what she was playing at. I followed her until she parked, then snagged the empty spot beside her. I climbed out of my car, scrambling while she stepped out with grace.

  Then, I quickly made my way for her.

  “You almost side-swiped my car,” I said.

  But all she did was shrug.

  “What are you doing here, anyway? Why are you following me?” I asked.

  She laughed. “Really? Is your ego that big?”

  “Look who’s talking.”

  “I work here. I’m the new mathematics professor.”

  She looked up at me as if I was about to challenge that statement. And when I didn’t, she flashed me a small grin.

  “Drive a little faster next time,” she said, giggling.

  I sucked air through my teeth as reality dawned on me. Holy shit, she worked at the same college I did. Great. Just fucking grand. Except, I didn’t completely hate the idea.

  Though, it seemed that despite our encounter, things hadn’t changed much on her end, if at all.

  I went on about my day. I got into my office and flopped into my seat. I started planning out practices and sending the head coach my ideas for how to get our team ready for the season. I’d been tasked with running the summer practice sessions by myself this year. Which was exciting, especially since the head of the sports department at the college was about to step down. I had my eye on that position. It was the only permanent sports job on campus that someone could be grounded into until they retired.

  And the head coach of the football team said he’d give me a shining recommendation once I went to apply for it.

  I saw Alison at lunch again, but she didn’t see me. And if she did, she didn’t acknowledge me at all. Instead, I found her sitting with another professor, a man with thick-framed glasses who always wore sweater vests. Professor Davidson, another mathematics teacher. The guy was a bit of a letch, too. Alison smiled and laughed. They talked back and forth, in their own little geeky world.

  If that was the kind of guy she wanted, she could have him.

  “Off campus, it is,” I murmured to myself.

  I texted Hutch and told him to meet me at a nearby sports bar. It was our go-to for our lunches out, which we did at least twice a week. And the more I talked, the more I found myself complaining about Alison. I mean, it spewed from my mouth like word vomit. I heard myself. I knew how crazy I sounded.

  But I couldn’t stop it.

  “You protest too much, you know that?” Hutch asked.

  I bit into my chicken wing. “She’s the one tramping around everywhere.”

  “Wow. Tramp. Nice one.”

  “I’m just saying, if she’s overtly flirting on her first day, that doesn’t set a good image for her career at the college.”

  “And you care why?”

  I shrugged. “She knows me. I’d like the people who proclaim on campus to know me to be good, decent people.”r />
  “Or maybe you should stop whining and ask her out already. Which reminds me, who ended up winning at game night?”

  I eyed Hutch with a glare before I sighed.

  “I don’t know,” I said.

  He paused. “You don’t know? Or you don’t want to admit it?”

  I put down my food and launched into the story. I told Hutch about our hookup. How she got so close to me and I just couldn’t stand it. I told him how I fucked her so damn good her leg kicked out, sending the damn game to the ground.

  And the entire time, Hutch held back his laughter.

  “What, asshole?” I asked.

  “Holy shit, I knew it. Heather owes me twenty bucks,” he said.

  “What?”

  “I knew you liked Alison. So, now you have no excuse to be a pussy any longer. Just ask the woman out, man. Seriously.”

  “I’m not doing that,” I said.

  “Well, at least you’re not denying that you got it bad for her,” he said, chuckling.

  Hutch’s words stuck with me all day. I was distracted at practice and kept losing my place in the plays we were running. Asking Alison out meant getting past our childhood spent as practical rivals. And it was clear that woman still hated my guts. Was it possible for us to get past all that shit? To be adults and see if this could work?

  I didn’t know if that was possible.

  But a small sliver of me hoped it was.

  CHAPTER 10

  ALISON

  My key card for the staff lounge wouldn’t work. Every time I swiped it, that damn yellow light popped up. I mean, at least give me a damn red. Let me know you really can’t do shit.

  “Piece of crap,” I murmured.

  I’d been frustrated all day, thanks to my asshole office neighbor yesterday. He came over and introduced himself on my first day. Professor Brent Davidson, another mathematics teacher. He ate lunch with me and invited me out to dinner after his last class. He said he wanted to show me the best place to eat on campus during late nights in the office.

  All it ended up being, though, was a constant fight to keep his octopus hands away from my damn body.

  I tossed and turned all night, then woke up late for my second day at the college. I hit traffic coming in and showed up to my first class ten minutes late. Not the best impression, especially since I’d pissed off the man who represented the entire mathematics department. Apparently.

  That was a fun tidbit to learn over coffee after my first class.

  A hand came up behind me and held out a key card. It swiped effortlessly and the flashing green light popped up. The door unlocked and I turned around, ready to thank the person behind me profusely.

  “Keith,” I said breathlessly.

  “Go get a new one. I had to my first week on campus,” he said.

  He held the door opened for me and then followed me inside.

  “Thank you. Really,” I said.

  “Not a problem. You looked like you could use some help, anyway,” he said.

  I crossed the room to grab a cup of coffee from the machine on the counter. Keith hit the fridge beside me, pulling out what looked like yogurt. I fixed myself a massive tumbler I’d brought from my mother’s place, one my father always used when I was growing up, that had been shoved into a corner. Guess he forgot it when he left.

  I fixed up my coffee and went to go sit on the couch. Keith was already sitting there, the sports section of the newspaper jammed into his face. I sat down and gathered up the other parts of the newspaper, and I found myself trying not to steal glances at him.

  An awkwardness settled between us, even worse than yesterday morning at the garbage cans. And every time I saw Keith on campus somewhere, my eyes scanned him, clocking his muscles and remembering exactly how good they felt moving against me. I found out this morning that his bathroom window was always kept open, which stared directly into the hallway window of the second story of my mother’s home.

  Keith didn’t like pulling the shower curtain over his glass shower.

  And holy hell, had that been a show this morning.

  Keith was sexy as fuck, and I couldn’t get enough of it. But our interaction in the parking lot yesterday drummed up that old animosity and proved to me that it was still there, at least for him. Which meant that as much as I enjoyed our encounter, Keith wasn’t a good fit for me.

  Even if my body said otherwise.

  I scanned the paper, and my eyes ran across a can-collecting competition. I read the details, soaking in what it was all about. Apparently, the campus was collecting canned foods for the local food shelter, and each department was participating in the venture. I smiled as I read about it. I immediately wanted to participate. I mean, it was for a good cause, and it was a great way to flex my competitive muscles in a teaching atmosphere.

  I went to the school’s website on my phone and signed myself up underneath the mathematics department, then immediately began figuring out how I could collect the most cans.

  And thoughts of Keith quickly fell away from my mind.

  CHAPTER 11

  KEITH

  Game night rolled around again, but it didn’t feel the same. Alison wasn’t there, and somehow the night had lost some of its luster. The usual crowd didn’t seem to notice, though. We all ended up divvying out the bet money from last week evenly. I simply told them we’d both grown tired and bowed out, declaring no one the winner.

  Though, I knew some of them didn’t buy the excuse.

  I missed her. Plain and simple. I wanted her at game night, and I missed her presence. Which made me wonder if I should reconsider writing her off so quickly. I mean, hell, I’d altered my entire travel route through campus just to pass by her damn department, in the hopes I’d catch a glimpse of her. I’d washed the Land Rover three damn times this week, conveniently timed to when she was outside gardening with her mother. Even I could admit how insane that sounded.

  I had it bad for Alison, and there was no denying it.

  Too bad she didn’t notice, though.

  Thoughts of Alison distracted me so much from the game night that I was the first to be eliminated, which earned me some looks from Hutch. I retreated into the kitchen to try and drown my memories with a beer. And possibly brood.

  But I wasn’t alone for long.

  “You good, man?” Hutch asked.

  I shrugged as I chugged down my beer.

  “Dude, you’re not good. What gives?” he asked.

  I sighed. “You’re right.”

  “What?”

  I rolled my eyes. “I got it bad for Alison.”

  “That’s old news. Gimme something new.”

  I chuckled. “She doesn’t give a shit about it?”

  “Wait, did you actually ask her out?”

  “No.”

  Hutch laughed. “Then, how the hell do you know that?”

  “Because I just do, okay?”

  He rolled his eyes. “You won’t know a damn thing until you ask her out, Keith. Stop being an idiot and just try. You’ve never had an issue with women before. Don’t start making it an issue now.”

  That was the thing, though. Alison wasn’t just any woman. She wasn’t just any hookup.

  She was different.

  The doorbell rang and I shoved my empty beer bottle into Hutch’s chest. He blew me a kiss, and it made me laugh, and then I made my way for the door. I swung it open without a second thought, figuring it was a last-minute straggler.

  And I was shocked to find Alison behind the door.

  “He—hey there,” I said.

  She rolled a box at my feet on some sort of a dolly, and I looked down. It was decorated in green signs, with stickers and glitter and all sorts of things on it. I furrowed my brow as I looked back up at her, seeing her smile politely at me.

  “What’s this?” I asked.

  “I’m going door-to-door to collect cans for the food pantry up the road. Got anything you can spare?” she asked.

  I smiled.
“Come on in. I’m sure there are some things in the cabinets I can let go of.”

  It felt nice, having her in my house again. She rolled the box into the kitchen, and I started going through my pantry. My cupboards. Hell, even my fridge. I filled half the damn box and she smiled at me. An effortless smile with nothing but grace behind it.

  Maybe things could turn around.

  “Thank you so much, Keith,” Alison said.

  “If you wanna come back later on next week, I’m sure I’ll have more stuff I picked up from the store that I’ll never use,” I said.

  “Then, it’s a date. I’ll come back in a few days.”

  “See ya then.”

  “You too, Keith.”

  I watched her leave my house, those thick hips swaying deep. They had me entranced, and I didn’t give a shit who saw. She closed the door behind her, and I sighed, reconfiguring my budget in my head to see how many canned goods I could get for her box at the store on Monday.

  Game night proceeded as planned, but I was in a haze.

  I doled out beers in a haze and cleaned up in a haze. I ushered everyone out in a haze and I couldn’t even remember saying goodbye to Hutch. I sat down at the kitchen table and picked up the rest of the campus newspaper, deciding to read the rest of it to wind me down for bed.

  And that was where I saw it.

  ‘Campus-Wide Canned Food Competition! Support Your Local Food Pantry!’

  “That scheming little—”

  I sighed heavily as I put the newspaper down. I knew her coming by was too good to be true. But knowing this information gave me an idea on how to test the waters with Alison.

  Time to do some planning of my own.

  CHAPTER 12

  ALISON

  I came down the steps of my mother’s church. I ended up convincing the pastor to set up a barrel for the canned food drive in the mathematics department’s honor, with my name as the sponsor. I had an entire church ready to donate for this thing, and it made me smile. I had cans already piled up in boxes in my garage, and victory smelled so sweet.

  Like freshly wrapped aluminum and canned corn.