Sweet Hope (Sweet Home #4)(29)

A moment later, I heard the door quietly open and close.

Shutting my eyes, I fought back the sick feeling pulsing through my body. But all I saw was a pair of big brown eyes telling me they could see straight into my soul, that they felt me.

In thirty minutes, I was back in my studio, strong coffee brewing in the pot, pulling my shirt and jeans off as I jumped into the shower.

As the scalding hot water drummed on my head, steam billowing around the small room, all I could picture was Aliyana’s face smiling at me like she didn’t see all my sins. Speaking Spanish to me, her tongue rolling the words, the taste of her Nutella-flavored mouth on my tongue, and the feel of her hands trailing down to fist my cock.

Fuck! What was with this chick? Why was she getting to me like this?

Grabbing for the body wash, I squeezed the green gel out into my hand and ran the fresh-scented soap over my body. But the more I scrubbed the marble scum from my skin, the more images of Aliyana flashed through my head: her eyes, her mouth, her cute-as-f*ck dimples popping out on her cheeks as she smiled at me… her breathless voice as she told me she’d flown across the country just to see one of my sculptures up close… and those tits pressing against her shirt, her chest flushed red from looking at me, and the moans she spilled into my mouth from my kiss.

Without conscious thought, my hand wrapped around my stiff cock and I began stroking it up and down. Groaning out loud, picturing Aliyana’s long slim fingers gripping my dick instead of mine, my forehead dropped to lean on the damp tiles. Working my hand faster, my breath coming out in harsh pants, I pictured her naked beneath me, me pinning her down so she couldn’t move, and f*cking her hard… and I was gone. One thought of sinking into her wet * had cum spurting in waves over my hand, a long grunt echoing off the tiled shower cubicle.

Jerking my cock slower, I worked myself down, my legs still shaking from how damn good that felt… how much I came just imagining having her on her back, her slim legs wrapped around my waist.

But then reality hit and the demons of my past came thundering back into my chest, knocking the breath from my lungs, bringing the usual feelings of hate, sadness, and guilt to every cell…

Drying off, I slipped on a pair of sweats and returned, exhausted but unable to sleep, to my current work in progress and began chipping away at the little boy’s face… the young, torn face crying bullets… bullets that I’d made him fire when he didn’t want to… ruining his damn life.

As I pounded the hammer against the head of the pointed chisel, I pushed Aliyana’s smiling face and haunting eyes from my mind.

I had to forget what had happened between us. There was no way I would f*cking ruin her too.





Chapter Nine


Ally


Two weeks later…



So this is it? This is where he stays? I thought to myself, looking at the sculpting studio from my car. The address Vin had given me led me to the waterfront, not too far from Pike Market.

The night was dark and beside me on the seat of my rental was a box filled with the draft text boards and titles. I’d called Vin to ask him to sign off on them, but he’d insisted he was too busy on the East Coast and that I should take them to Elpi himself… at his studio… the studio overlooking the Puget Sound… after two weeks of hearing nothing from him.

As always, the skies were overcast, a slight breeze in the air, but the day was dry. Checking the address in my email from Vin again, I sighed. This was the right place…

I was procrastinating.

A large white square building stood before me. It looked like a small factory, the windows were large but blacked out on this side. It was tucked away down a small pathway, offering beautiful sea views. Vin had said this was his studio, the one he’d used for years, but he gifted it to Elpidio for this exhibition.

My heart beat faster as I watched the wooden double door for any signs of life. There was nothing, meaning I had to get out of the damn car and knock, show Elpi the text boards and get him to give me permission to use them.

Taking a fortifying breath, I opened the car door, shivering at the cold chill seeping through the thin material of my lilac maxi dress and short, fitted black leather biker jacket. My hair was straight and loose, the light breeze causing it to drift across my face.

Reaching across to the passenger seat, I pulled out the box housing the boards and, locking the car, slowly walked across the street to stand at the large wooden door.

Loud music was pumping from inside, and my stomach tightened with nerves. I wanted to see Elpi more than anything in the world, but I doubted he really wanted to see me. My knees shook as I lifted my hand and knocked on the door.

As I waited, I glanced round the small street, noting it was deathly quiet. It suited Elpi completely. A lonely studio on a lonely street for a loner sculptor.

The music continued to blare inside, and there was no sign of Elpi. Trying again, but knocking harder this time, I waited about five minutes before it sank in that he couldn’t hear me.

Feeling colder and colder by the minute, I glanced up the empty street again before shifting the box under one arm and tried the doorknob.

It turned.

The door creaked open, betraying the age of the studio, and revealed a long empty hallway leading in only one direction.

Taking the heavy box in both hands, I edged into the hallway, kicking the door shut with my foot, and called, “Hello?”