Where the Heart is (Interracial with Baby) (BWWM) Page 4

  "You don't know? They got a divorce. My mom started throwing around accusations and trying to get me on her side against my dad, and it all turned into this huge mess, and I just... shut them out."

  That was news to her. She'd known that Simon's parents were separated, but since they had lost interest in Jamie and her mother, she'd never really stopped to find out why. It wasn't hard to imagine how difficult that must have been for Simon, but her sympathy only went so far.

  "And so what? The rest of us had to be punished because your parents were being crazy? You couldn't have talked to me about it? But no. You probably made a new, smarter best friend while you were off at doctor school learning how to look down your nose at people who've been there for you for most of your life.

  "It's not like that, Jamie. You know I could never replace you."

  She finished her cigarette and contemplated lighting another one, but ultimately decided against it. As it was, she could stop smoking whenever she liked, and she wanted to keep it that way, irritating ex-best friend or not.

  "I don't know anything anymore," she said, and her weariness shone through. "Least of all what I mean to you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to work. Some of us still have to slum it for a living."

  As she turned to head back in, she heard Simon sigh. "You're still beautiful."

  And that was it. That was the last straw. Her composure was gone, and she couldn't do this. Jamie whirled around, eyes blazing.

  "Shut up! Just shut up right now. You think you can just show up here and tell me I'm beautiful and that I'll just melt into your arms even though you treated me like dirt for seven years?"

  "Jamie, I-"

  "No. No, Simon. I can understand that you needed some time and even that you didn't know how to balance school and keeping in touch or whatever, but you completely forgot about me. After you promised you wouldn't. You promised nothing was going to change, and I was an idiot for believing you."

  To her horror, she was crying again. Hadn't she spent enough time going to tears about this whole thing. The truth was that no matter how many times the two of them had decided they were better off as friends who sometimes fooled around than anything else, Jamie had always loved Simon. She'd loved him ever since he'd handed her a flower when she was having a bad day back in middle school, and it hadn't changed a bit.

  Seeing him now just made her heart stutter and her stomach churn, and she was so mad at herself for not being able to get over him like she should have.

  Her mother hadn't wasted any time pining when her father had up and left. No, she'd gotten another job and taken care of her family because that's what you did when you only had yourself to depend on.

  But Jamie couldn't lie and say that she hadn't been hoping that Simon would come back one day. The only issue was that now that he had come back, she didn't even know what to do or say to him. Part of her wanted to fling herself at him, hug him close and beg him not to leave her again.

  A much bigger part wanted to slap him in the face and then make-up with hugging. But the fact of the matter was that she was cold and tired and woefully unprepared for any of this.

  Her break was over, and she let her hand go to the door handle. "I have to go," she said, voice no more than a whisper. "I have to work."

  Simon nodded. "Okay. I... Look, I'm going to be here for a while, okay? Two weeks at the very least while I help Dad pack up the house and all that. If maybe... If maybe you want to talk or something before then, you could give me a call? My number's the same."

  Jamie snorted. "Because that's worked out so well for me in the past?" she muttered. "I'll think about it."

  "I can't ask for more than that," he replied.

  She just shook her head and let herself back into the diner.

  Sal was conspicuously quieter for the rest of her shift, and Jamie didn't comment. She made her way back out onto the floor and started working again, cleaning up dishes and taking the money Simon had left on his table to cover his meal. And of course, of course he'd left an outlandish tip because apparently that's what he did now that he was well off and better than everyone else.

  Jamie just gritted her teeth and stuck the money in her apron pocket, sighing as she kept working. If she kept working then she wouldn't have to think about how much she wanted to call him.

  Because she shouldn't have wanted to. Not after he'd put her through years of wondering if he even still remembered she existed. But apparently saying no to Simon Blake wasn't a skill she had learned yet, even though she had been so sure that she had seven years of practice. All it took was him showing up and wanting to talk to her for her to want to fall right back in his orbit, even though she'd just told him that she wasn't going to do that.

  "Truly, I am an idiot," she said to herself at the end of her shift.

  She had planned to do some shopping once she was done with work, but all she wanted to do now was go home and curl up in bed, so that was exactly what she was going to do.

  The rest of the world could wait until morning when she'd gotten some sleep and was better prepared to deal with it.

  Chapter 5: Seeing You

  "Well, that could have gone better," Simon muttered to himself as he sat on top of his car. It had been years since he'd been up here, but the view was mostly the same. A town like theirs wasn't likely to change too much in seven years. Sure a few businesses had probably changed hands, some new things had popped up, but it all looked the same from way up there.

  He pulled his coat tighter around himself, shivering in the brisk air. Winters back at home (and it was weird to think of the city as home when he was sitting on a car in the place he grew up) had been colder than this, but for some reason, he just couldn't get warm.

  Jaime.

  It was definitely not the way he'd planned on seeing her again after all the time they had spent apart. Simon had entertained notions of having some speech prepared, something that would make her see that it had never been her that he'd run away from, but everything else. She'd just been...

  "Collateral damage," he said, breath fogging in the crisp air. "Which hardly sounds any better."

  It maybe actually sounded worse. But he didn't know what else he was supposed to say. He'd missed her, of course he had, but things had just been easier if he let it all go. Now, after seeing her again, he was wondering about the wisdom of that.

  Because there was no denying that Jaime had grown up well. Despite the fact that she'd been wearing an apron and smoking a cigarette, she was his Jaime through and through, although adulthood was definitely agreeing with her.

  Her hips had filled out, giving the gentle curves she'd had when they were teenagers more definition. Her face was still lovely, all sharp collar bones and a perfect heart shape, and he'd instantly remembered kissing those lips and how warm and soft they always were. It had been seven years, and apparently he was never going to be able to get her out of his system. And sometimes he didn't even think he wanted to.

  But maybe he was going to have to. The anger and hurt on her face had been so startling, so painful to see. Especially since he knew he was the one who had put it there.

  Simon was considering just getting back in his car and heading to his dad's house (because he was sure he'd never think of it as home again), when the glare of head light shone from behind him, along with the sound of gravel crunching under tires. Someone was coming.

  Of course it made sense that some other teenagers had found this spot and decided to claim it as theirs, but Simon felt a burst of territorial possessiveness for the hill, and turned around, shading his eyes to see who it was.

  He recognized the car instantly.

  And clearly Jamie had no trouble being able to ell it was him because she swore under her breath as she got out of the car. "What are you doing up here?" she asked.

  "I couldn't sleep. So I thought I'd come up here and see if everything was the same."

  "Of course it's the same," she snapped. "What'd you think w
as going to change? My mom told me that this spot looked the same when she was a little girl."

  Simon had forgotten that Jamie's mother had grown up here, too. He knew that she'd wanted more for her than this, but with her being so sick... "I'm sorry," he said. "About. About what happened earlier."

  "That's what you're sorry for?"

  "Well, no, but I tried to apologize for the rest of it before, and you nearly took my head off." Jamie snorted, and Simon looked over to see her climbing into her car. "I'm sorry we met again like that," he continued. "I should have... I don't know. Told you I was coming. Gave you some preparation or something."

  "Oh, right, because that would have been better. 'Hey, Jamie, I know we haven't spoken in years, but I'm coming into town for the holidays'. I would have told you where to shove it."

  Simon winced. "Fair enough. I just... I don't know what I'm doing, Jamie. I never... I never thought about how I would make it right between us. I didn't know how, and I didn't even think that I was going to be coming back here. Ever. I... This place isn't my home anymore, and I just don't know how to be comfortable here."

  Jamie sighed and glanced over at him. "That's fair, I guess. I mean, I still don't know the whole story with what happened with your parents, but I can see how that would make this place feel awkward now."

  It wasn't an 'I forgive you, Simon', but it was something.

  "Yeah. I got into town this morning and went to the house, and I just... I couldn't be there for too long. It felt too weird. So that's why I went to The Pit. You know that place was always like our second home."

  "Yeah," she nodded, and a little smile flickered over her face. "It's one of the reasons why I started working there. Sal was looking for new waitresses, and I figured if I was going to be there all the time anyway, I might as well get paid for it, right?"

  "Makes sense."

  Jamie snorted. "You think I could do better."

  Simon chose his words carefully. "I think that you always wanted more than that."

  "Yeah, well, I wanted a lot of thing, Simon. Not many of them are things I can have anymore."

  She looked at him, and even in the darkness he could see the sadness in her eyes. She had lost a lot, and was going to lose even more when her mother finally...

  "Hey, come here," he said, patting the hood of his car. "We'll conserve body heat better this way. Has it always been so cold in the winter here?"

  Jamie eyed him for a moment and then slid off of her car, coming over to sit beside him on his. Simon felt a little flare of triumph. It was a start, after all. "No, it's colder this year than it's been in a while. At least according to Hattie."

  He laughed. "Hattie would know. She's been here since the town was founded or whatever." The old woman who ran the flower shop in town was full of stories and character, and Simon made a mental note to go see her in his time here.

  "How long are you staying?" Jamie wanted to know.

  "Just until the New Year. I took some time off work."

  "You're a doctor, then?"

  "Just about."

  She sighed. "Sounds like you got all the things you wanted."

  He looked at her seriously. "Not all the things, Jamie. Not even close." And then he was kissing her. He couldn't help it. She was so close, and she still smelled the same as she had all those years ago when they'd been sitting up here on his light night before his life changed. Simon pulled her closer, pressed his lips to hers and hoped she wouldn't push him away, even though she had every reason to.

  She was stiff under him for a moment, but then she was releasing a ragged noise against his lips and her gloved hands were coming up to fist in the front of his coat, pulling him closer.

  It was the same as it had been years ago, and also not the same at all. They both had more experience now, clearly, and when Jamie parted her lips, Simon pressed in, wanting to claim her for himself all over again.

  That was impractical, though. He'd already proven that he was terrible at being a long distance friend, let alone a long distance... anything else. The best thing to do would be to try and see if they could salvage their friendship or just make a clean break.

  But it was hard to think about being practical when she even tasted the same, stirring up all those old feelings inside of him.

  "I missed you," he panted against her lips when they broke their kiss to breathe. "I missed you so much. I know you think I didn't and that I'm just saying that to get in your pants, but I did. No one knows me like you, Jamie. Even now."

  She shivered, and he pulled her closer instinctively. "I should hate you," she whispered harshly. "But I don't. I can't. I..." Jamie let out a shuddering breath. "Do you want to go back to your dad's tonight?"

  It was already closing in on eleven, and the last thing Simon wanted was to go back to that quiet house and deal with his father. He shook his head.

  "Then come home with me."

  Part 2: Putting the Pieces Together Chapter 6: Paths Cross

  "Jesus, Jamie."

  Jamie smirked and rolled her hips again. It had been seven years since the last time they'd been together like this, but she still knew what he liked. She still knew how Simon loved her on top, how his hands felt at her hips, tracing up her sides, on her breasts. He still made that same face, too. The one where he looked at her like she was some kind of goddess made flesh come down to ride his dick.

  It never stopped being flattering, and now it was downright ego stroking, considering it had been a while since she'd slept with anyone at all.

  They'd gone back to her place once the cold had driven them from the hill, and hadn't even bothered to turn on the lights. Instead they'd been almost magnetized to each other, lips seeking out the warmth of the others as they kissed in the living room, shedding clothes and inhibitions as they went.

  Jamie had dropped to her knees on the threshold between the living room and the bedroom, her hands smoothing down over Simon's sides and the backs of his thighs as she'd taken him into her mouth.

  She remembered how he liked that, too, and his eyes had been large and bright even in the darkness of the apartment.

  It hadn't been her intention to make him come right then and there, but his hips had started moving, pressing his cock further into her mouth until the head of it hit the back of her throat, and she was lost. She had to taste him, had to see if things were still the same.

  Jamie was no longer that shy sixteen year old girl who had awkwardly licked and sucked him to orgasm in the back of his car that one time. Now she had experience and skill working to aid her, and she took him all the way into her throat like a pro, holding for just a second to savor the fervent swearing that Simon was doing.

  His fingers were tight in her hair by the time he had come down her throat, and she swallowed all of it and then licked him clean before getting to her feet and leading him into her room.

  The windows were letting in light from the moon and the streetlamp outside, and it was just enough for them to see by.

  Simon flopped onto her bed, still panting hard from his orgasm, and Jamie had climbed on top of him, wet and needy. She had always been content to follow his lead when they were just starting out, but now she wanted something, and she didn't intend to rest until she had it.

  She had worked her hips, gliding her slick wetness along the soft length of his cock, kissing his neck and chest while she waited for him to get hard again.

  It hadn't taken long, and soon enough he was pulling her down onto his dick, stretching her open and holding her hips while they both got used to the sensation.

  Jamie had to take a few deep breaths because she was overwhelmed by being here again. Simon had always felt so good, so right inside of her, and this was proof that the feeling was still the same. And it was mutual if the look on his face was anything to go by.

  When she moved her hips that first time, he'd moaned for her, and that was all it had taken to have her riding him with all the desire that she felt.

  "You're s
o beautiful," Simon panted, hands cupping her breasts, playing with her nipples.

  Little shocks of pleasure went through her from the stimulation, and she couldn't help the gasp that spilled out. "You say that like you're... mmm... like you're surprised," she replied, gyrating in a slow circle.

  "Not surprised," Simon groaned, his hips bucking up. "Just remembering. You've always been beautiful."

  Jamie was glad for her darker complexion and the lack of light in the room since they hid her blush well. She wasn't ready to admit that his opinion still meant the world to her, so she just grinned and kept moving, riding him faster and harder and taking in the sounds of their skin slapping together as they really got into it.

  There was no more breath for talking after that, just harsh panting and moans, fingers digging into flesh and leaving marks behind.

  It was clear that they both wanted something they would feel the next day, and Jamie refused to let herself wonder if this was going to be a one time thing. It might have been smarter to figure that out before she brought him back to her apartment and started undressing him, but in the moment it didn't matter.

  She was focusing on how good it felt right then and there, how each time they met thrust for thrust, she shivered with pleasure, and she could feel that white hot flare of sensation building inside of her.

  When it tightened and then broke, washing over her in a wave, she cried out, going tight around Simon and getting a low moan of pleasure out of him. Jamie bit her lip as her orgasm rocked her,

  and then she was spent, flopping on top of Simon as he worked his hips and found his own pleasure.

  They lay there together for long minutes, sweat cooling on their bodies as they caught their breath, neither of them saying anything.

  Simon put his arms around her, and she pressed her face into the crook of his neck, kissing his skin lightly while he stroked her back.

  It was reminiscent of their very first time together years ago, and Jamie blinked away tears as she remembered how he had held her close then, too and whispered things into her hair. She'd ended up falling asleep against him and then calling her mother to apologize for being late.