Cruise Control (Watchers Crew) by Ines Johnson Page A

thighs around his waist and entered me slowly. His rhythm was anything but rushed. His lips never left my mouth or my skin.
    We coasted in this cocoon of pleasure for what seemed like hours. Until finally, his movements sped up. His thrusts became frantic. His lips lost their connection with mine. And then, his body stiffened.
    Owl opened his eyes, staring down at me, hiding nothing, letting me see every emotion cross over his face. He jerked once, twice, and after the third thrust his face contorted in ecstasy. He groaned deep in his chest. Then he collapsed onto me, into me.
    I held onto him. He was the only thing solid in my life at this moment. My legs were jelly, my heart was putty, and my head was clouded over.
    “You satisfied, Kira?”
    I hadn’t come, but every bone in my body thrummed with joy. I wrapped myself around him and prepared to never let go.
    I must’ve fallen asleep because I dreamed up a life with the two of us. Me working in a firm that allowed flex time for our two children. Owl owned a garage down the street where our kids would go after school. Our son, who had his eyes and my skin coloring, would help his father fix old, antique cars. At night, Owl would tie me up to the bed and fuck me senseless on into the morning.
    “Kira?”
    When I opened my eyes next, it was to Owl lightly kissing my eyelids. I stretched like a cat and then rolled deeper into his embrace.
    “It’s time to go home, baby.”
    I frowned. “Go? Home? Why can’t I stay?”
    He ran his fingers gently over my brow. “I told you, I don’t do sleep overs.”
    I sat up, the sheets falling away from my bare breasts. “Why not?”
    He shrugged. “I always sleep alone. It’s nothing personal. I’ll come get you tomorrow night. We’ll go out on a proper date, like normal people. And then I’ll take you back to your place and fuck you into the middle of the night.”
    “And then you’ll leave in the middle of the night?”
    “Yeah. What’s the problem?” He took my chin between his fingers and turned me to face him. “You still think I’m going to go out and fuck another girl? I thought we got passed this,” he sighed.
    “No. No, I believe you.” After he’d made love to me, how could I not believe him?
    “Then what is it?”
    He was right. I had daddy issues. But I didn’t want to bring them into this relationship, because believe it or not, I was starting to think this was the healthiest relationship I’d ever been in in my entire life. And that included my relationship with my parents.
    “It’s fine,” I said. “I can respect your boundaries.”
    Owl grinned at me, eyes prideful like he was a doctor who’d just witnessed a breakthrough in his patient.
    He helped me get dressed and then we went back upstairs. The house was mostly clear of people. A few girls were getting their coats on, preparing to head out the door. Hawk rose from his throne with Ellie in his arms.
    “Hey man, I’m about to take Kira home. You want me to take her too?” Owl indicated the naked Ellie lying happily in Hawk’s massive arms.
    “No, I got her,” said Hawk. “She can sleep it off and drive herself home in the morning.”
    I caught Ellie’s eyes as she went up the stairs in the arms of Hawk, a man who had passed her around to his friends. A man who had been fucking another girl when we came into the house. A man who’d looked at her with the same intensity that the man who called himself my boyfriend had bestowed upon me. But I was the one walking out the front door while she was being carried upstairs and into a warm bed where she wouldn’t have to sleep alone tonight.
    “You ready, baby?”
    I plastered on a fake smile and took Owl’s hand. I followed him out into the cool night air.

Chapter Fifteen

    I sat on the couch in Owl’s living room after my morning classes. He’d invited me over for lunch. I’d been hoping for some afternoon delight between the two of us. Owl sat next to me with an arm around my