Summer in our bones ✓

33 | mister possessive

I'm on my way to the address of the studio Nico sent me. I enter through the back door as instructed by his message, and a girl who works there as some kind of assistant approaches me as soon as she sees me looking around confused.

"Hola, I'm here to see Nico Silva, I should be on the list, my name is... "

"I know who you are," she says not even checking the clipboard in front of her. "Everyone knows about you after scoring that goal and taking Real Madrid into the semifinals of the Champions league."

Right. I forgot about that and the fact that the celebration of that goal was plastered all over the front pages of newspapers the next morning. "He is in studio 4. Almost finished."

She points in the direction of the studio and I have a feeling she is a supporter of Atletico Madrid— the biggest rival of my team. I put on a friendly enough smile and don't linger too much to find out.

As soon as I enter the large space, I sense his presence. It's like a magnet that says look at me, making me lose my usual composure.

He's in the centre of the room, with every camera and studio light pointing at him. I can't help but indulge for a brief moment, lingering at certain spots. My eyes trace his build, his immaculate clothes, his elegant but masculine neck. His dark hair has grown a bit longer so the strands brush his eyelashes when he looks down. It makes him even sexier.

Nico's first day of filming his own cooking show looks like a success, with his skilful hands handling the food and his unabashed casual confidence in front of the camera. I'm soaring with pride seeing him like this. He's art and I need to look away but at that moment his eyes find mine, and he's full-on smiling that mesmerising smile.

And the world seems to still. Chatter and voices are echoing throughout the studio but our eyes never detach. Whenever I'm around him I only want him to be closer. But now I'm thinking about only one thing— how not to look in love with the guy in the white apron who's approaching me at this very moment.

His face softens when he comes near. "Sorry for waiting."

This is where we'd hug or kiss or something other than what I'm about to do. Avert my eyes. Step back. Make a gap between my body and his. I want to take his hand, intertwine our fingers and pull him close to me. But I pull against that natural impulse.

We don't kiss in public. Or hold hands. It's fun being out and about but while we keep our relationship on the down low it's sometimes torture. And if anyone could just observe us, for more than five minutes straight, well, they would realize that there is nothing straight about us. The lingering looks, the constant innocent touches, the smiles... God, the smiles he's giving me. They're intense like now.

"You looked good over there," I say quietly and his eyes fall to my lips. I clear my throat. Please baby, don't look lower, don't look at my lips, my body, at any forbidden place that'd cause a disaster.

He grins because he knows me inside out. "Thanks. How was training?"

I open my mouth but I realize all of a sudden that I can't talk about everything that happened with a bunch of random people running around the studio.

"Everything ok?" He asks quietly when I don't reply.

"Um... " I look past Nico's shoulder with a quick glance where a group of few tech-guys are sorting out the cameras, then zone in on Nico. "I'll tell you later."

He sees that I'm worried about something and he waves me on to start walking towards elevators. We can't help but squeeze closer together as we walk ahead. Our arms brush, our hands skim and I almost feel him reach for my fingers. But he retracts fast as soon as a person appears in front of us. My heartbeat rises to my throat. We keep glancing at each other and the inability to talk or touch is adding unnecessary strain.

In the underground car park as soon as both of the car doors are closed he clutches the back of my neck and I cup his jaw and lean forward. Our breaths are ragged. My mouth slowly skims his, and his chest expands in a wanting breath and finally our lips meet.

His tongue parts my mouth, and I open for him, hungry and enthusiastic, a sound that's part moan part whimper is released from my chest. Sometimes I act like we don't go to the same bed every night but making out with Nico is like strapping into a carnival ride and whirling at high speed. Dizzying, adrenaline fuelled. I thread my fingers through his hair and deepen a teasing, playful kiss, my grin against his mouth, his smile against mine. My hand wanders lower down his back and squeezes his ass, he groans roughly when our lips break his forehead pressing against mine.

"Hey..." He swallows thickly.

"Hey love..."

"I was dying to kiss you." He's smiling brighter, his hand rises into my hair. I nod but glance down. His smile falters, more uncertain. Probably because I'm not saying a thing.

"There's a rumour going on online that Sofia and I are together. They have pictures of us from that day in Valencia."

His bright lively eyes dim a little and I can feel the muscles under his skin tense. An unsettling feeling bubbles in my stomach and lingers there.

"It's not... a big deal," I hear him say finally, moving forward, pressing his forehead onto my shoulder, inhaling the clean scent of my hoodie. "We know it's not true."

"Yeah. Nico, I..." The word dies on my tongue when he presses a tender kiss to my neck. As soon as I feel his teeth, a shiver runs through me and I revel in the feeling of him sucking on the side of my throat, followed by his wet breath and hot tongue tracing the blooming bruise. He cups my chin tilting it so he can press his open-mouthed kisses easier. My chest tightness as I realize that Nico marking me like this says more than the word mine.

"Fuck... you've got to stop, sunshine," I say on a breathy exhale. If he continues I don't think I'll be able to stop myself from pulling him into my lap, making him ride me right here in this very public underground parking.

"Sorry, fuck, I didn't mean to..."

My hand threads in Nico's hair, tugging his head back just hard enough to make his breath hitch and his eyes look at mine.

"I like this side of you," I whisper, my fingers digging into his scull. "You can continue if you want, I don't care anymore, that's not why I stopped you..."

He shakes his head as if to clear his mind. "I don't know what's gotten into me all of a sudden..."

"I think I'm going to tell the team about you. I talked to Fernandez today, told him I have a boyfriend and he was really cool about it."

Nico's mouth falls open. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. It felt good. He gave me the courage. It might not be that bad."

"Yeah, yeah," he seems relieved, like he'd released a breath he'd been holding since I appeared in his life again. "Whatever plan you have and think is the best, we'll do it."

"Well..." I press my lips to his jaw, his neck, and against his ear I whisper, "The only plan I have right now is to take you home and fuck you so good you won't be able to walk for days."

Nico bites his lip, his breath coming in heavy pants like my words are already touching his naked skin. "Mhm, that is a good plan."

"Do you know how amazing you looked in that kitchen? I'm so fucking proud of you," I murmur strongly and we're about to bring our lips together again, when a phone rings in my pocket. I curse and take it out. It's Sonya. She tried to FaceTime today but I was either busy or just avoiding. I decline the call, quickly typing I'll call later. But before I can go back to explain to Nico with my kiss how needy I am after that love bite on my neck, Sonya messages.

I fumble with my phone in my lap right where Nico can see it too. I open the message. There's a screenshot of my fan account on Twitter, all those photos of me and Sofia in Valencia after the game. And then a few of us walking towards the pier, in the morning before Nico showed up.

What is all this about, Jordan? Tell me it's not true. Tell me you're not dating my husband's sister.

Fuck. It's worse. I'm dating his brother.