Dirty Deeds by Stella Rhys

6

EMMETT

I was workingout on the deck when Ozzy leapt from his spot in the sun and bolted straight into the house. My heart was already beating fast from my set but now it was racing because I knew his sudden dash inside meant that Aly was home.

With the back of my forearm, I wiped the sweat off my brow and trailed Ozzy into the kitchen, my blood rushing faster when I heard the sound of Aly being caught so sweetly off-guard.

“Oh my God, hi. Hi! Where’d you come from?” I heard her greeting Ozzy a second before I laid my eyes on her in the foyer.

And when I did, I had to hold my breath for a second, because Christ, she was beautiful.

My heart damn near stopped as I hung back in the kitchen, happy to let Aly play with Ozzy while I quietly ran my eyes all over her. She was just in her work clothes, but she looked fucking incredible. Her hair was pulled back in a low knot, and she had two locks of blonde hanging down to frame her face. Her tan pencil skirt hugged the living hell out of those hips, and her blue button-down fit just tight enough to trigger memories of exactly how perfect and sexy she was underneath.

The fact that she looked this good while laughing with my dog made me want to get down on one knee and propose right there.

But then Ozzy gave one short bark to alert her to my presence.

“Oh. Hi.” The joy vanished from Aly’s voice the second she spotted me. I tried not to take it personally.

“Hey,” I said, doing my best to keep it together as she stood up again. I wanted to touch her. I wanted to put my hands all over her. It felt like every nerve ending in my body was on high alert just waiting to feel her skin on mine. But I could tell from the way she stood stiffly that she wanted none of that.

So despite the fucking tornado of need ricocheting in my chest, I wrangled every one of my urges and controlled myself.

“Aly…”

“Wait, Emmett. Let me start first.” Aly tore her eyes off the sweaty crew neck clinging to my chest. “About last night…”

For some reason, I held out for the miracle of her saying she didn’t regret it.

“It was a big mistake.”

Yeah. Fuck.

“What makes you say that?” I asked tersely. Panic flashed in her eyes as I took a step forward.

“Wait. Just… stay there for a second,” she said fast. “Because before you say anything else, I just need to say this: I know I’m the one who’s in a bad situation right now, and I’m the one who needs the favor of crashing here, so I’m really in no place to make demands about how you live in your own house. Beggars can’t be choosers, and I know that… but I also know I can’t survive under the same roof as you unless we agree to be strictly platonic and pretend like last night didn’t happen at all. It’s just too weird and irresponsible, and I’d probably move out the second something inappropriate happened again, so I might as well just tell you this now. If you’re for some reason okay with us being friends, I’m going to officially ask you if I can stay here for the summer, because Lord knows I need it. But if you don’t think that’s possible, I’ll pack my bags now and I promise you won’t have to hear from me again. Okay?”

She finished so breathlessly she didn’t have the air to stop me when I walked closer to her. All she did was stand there, her eyes wild and flitting all over my face and my chest.

“Did you… process all that?” she exhaled anxiously. “Emmett. Please say something.”

I struggled to. Unlike last night, she was in flats and standing this close to her made me remember how small she was next to me. It made me fantasize about a million new positions I could fuck her tight, tiny little body in, so the last thing I felt capable of doing right now was telling her that I was fine with being just friends.

But I didn’t have a choice.

“It’s all good, Aly. We can keep it platonic.”

Her eyebrows shot up as my insides screamed what the fuck on repeat.

I didn’t believe myself. At all. But I had no other move here. Just hearing Aly talk about her bags was enough to remind me that I wasn’t letting her go again. I’d already told myself at breakfast that I’d do everything in my power to make her stay, and if agreeing to being platonic was one of those things, then I was in – even if I knew every second of it was going to be torture.

“Really?” Aly asked, her voice small and her lashes fluttering at me. God, she was so fucking cute. All I wanted was to say no, I want you right now on this fucking floor, but I held back.

“Yeah,” I said simply. “Really.”

“That won’t… be hard for you?”

It’ll be hard as a fuckin’ rock, I thought. But on the outside, I gave a shrug.

“Shouldn’t be. I’m pretty famous for having a short memory,” I said, laughing only because it was one of the many asshole things Julian liked to say about me. “Something pisses you off and a second later, you’re fine again. It’s like a magic trick,” he still remarked every so often.

And in his defense, that ability was a hundred percent real in high school. Life was easy then, and everything rolled off my back. But by college, the short-term memory became a thing of the past. I didn’t have the luxury of forgetting things when I had the weight of the fucking world on my shoulders.

That said I liked that people assumed I was still easy breezy Emmett.

It made it so that nobody looked past the surface. No one suspected me of having any secrets. They all thought that what they saw was what they got, and that was never anything but an advantage for me.

Especially now.

“I… wow. I can’t believe you’re being so cool about this,” Aly said, stunned. But she quickly corrected herself. “I mean – I didn’t mean it like that. I’m just… I’m a little surprised. But extremely grateful. Okay. Wow.” She had her hands on her head as she let out a laugh that was a mix between shock and relief. “I can’t even begin to describe how much you’re saving my ass, Emmett. So thank you. A million times, thank you,” she said, looking sheepish when her eyes flickered to my damp T-shirt again. “I would give you a hug but you’re… all sweaty.”

I smirked as I watched her. She was still panting as she came down from her shock, and her short little breaths had those big tits straining tight against her shirt like they were ready to pop right out. One look and I was picturing them naked the way I had them last night. In my hands. In my mouth.

Fuck.

I was already losing it on the inside but I kept a straight face for Aly.

“No worries. I’ll take a rain check,” I said.

“Ha-ha!” Aly offered a laugh so unnatural I would’ve snorted at her if I weren’t feeling wound so completely tight. I cleared my throat.

“Anyway, I should shower now.”

“Oh yeah – sorry! Go do your thing!” Aly said eagerly.

And before I fucked up our friendship pact on day one, I went upstairs, jumped in the shower and jacked my dick like a fucking animal.