Longing For The Beach Billionaire Daddy
Chapter 75

*Shelby*

At the last second, I pulled away.

“Thanks again for a nice night, Jerrick,” I said before heading up the stairs alone.

My heart wrenched with guilt.

I pulled the front door shut behind me as quietly as I possibly could. The apartment was dark, and all the lights were off. I was slightly relieved that Lin wasn’t waiting up for me. I didn’t turn on any of the lights, not wanting to wake Lin and have to explain that I’d just had an amazing date with Jerrick but left him as soon as he tried to k**s me.

It really had been an amazing date; we had a great connection, and for the most part, the conversation was easy. Jerrick was the perfect gentleman and extremely attractive. He laughed at all the right things. If I’d been in a different place, I would have been over the moon that an attractive man in law school was taking notice of me.

I stood there in our dark kitchen and imagined that version of Shelby rushing into Lin’s room and reliving every detail of the night. Her lips would’ve been puffy and slightly pink from the k****s she’d shared with Jerrick before saying goodnight. Maybe that Shelby would’ve even asked for a second date. She surely would’ve said yes to the suggestion of seeing him again.

However, this Shelby was too broken. I hated that I felt guilty for going on a date. I hated that I couldn’t help but wonder what it would’ve felt like to let Jerrick k**s me. The worst part of all was that the only man I wanted to be with told me that I was better off without him. The only thing I was without him was a wreck.

I tiptoed across the hallway to the bathroom and immediately stripped down, twisting the facet to start the shower. As soon as the hot water hit my back, a sob escaped my lips. I didn’t try to stop the tears from falling; all I could do was hope Lin didn’t hear me crying over the sound of the shower.

I slid to the floor, the tile cold on my naked body, and let the water wash over me as I broke down. I cupped my face in my hands, trying to muffle the sounds of my cries, and they came away black from my melting mascara.

The tears kept falling as I slathered myself with a lemony soap, trying my best to wash away the smell of the bar and my own guilt. Guilt for going out with another man, even though the only man I wanted to be with had ended things.

I stood in the shower for so long that the water went from scalding to lukewarm and finally to cold. Turning it off, I pushed back the curtain, the cold air of the bathroom hitting me, and my teeth chattered in response.

I towel dried as quickly as possible, then wrapped my wet hair up to keep it from dripping cold streams down my back. I bundled myself in my robe and took long strides across the hallway to my room and slid under the safety of my comforter.

I laid my head down on my pillow, feeling emotionally drained and exhausted from all the crying. The thought of getting out of bed to get dressed in pajamas felt entirely too difficult. I closed my eyes, for what I promised myself would only be a moment.

It wasn’t long before sleep overcame me, still dressed in only a robe and my hair wrapped tightly in a towel.

***

“I’ve missed you,” Michael said, his warm breath tickling my ear.

“I’ve missed you too,” I whispered back, savoring the feeling of his weight pressed against me.

The warmth from his naked body seeped into my skin, making me feel safe.

“You are so beautiful, Shelby,” Michael whispered and softly kissed my mouth, then my jawline. He trailed k****s down my neck and the length of my torso.

I quivered in response to the touch of his lips on my bare skin, and he continued trailing his lips down the length of my body toward the warmth between my legs. I longed to slide upward, to help him reach me faster, but he held me firmly in place, making me weak in anticipation.

He’d always loved to tease me. I felt his lips turn to a smile against my stomach as he kissed it softly. I knew he felt my protests against his agonizingly slow pace.

As soon as his mouth touched my cl*t, I gasped in relief, my back arching, begging for more. He teased me slowly with his tongue. I gripped the sheets on either side of me as I got closer and closer to my peak, my legs stiff, waiting for the release.

With a final flick of his tongue, I found it, and a m**n escaped my lips before Michael covered my mouth with his, slipping seamlessly inside of me. I quivered at the connection with him as he filled my every need. My body melted into his as he moved against me. I gripped his back with the need to draw him closer to me, to never let him go again.

“I love you,” his words came as a gasp between each of his thrusts.

“I love you too, Michael.”

He stared into my eyes with the longing that I adored. The look that made me feel like I was the only one in the world. The look that made me know I was the only one in his world. My hands entwined in his hair, bringing his mouth back to mine.

***

“Shelby!” Lin called through my closed bedroom door.

I jumped with a start at the interruption. Everything slowly came into focus, and I looked around my room in confusion, sliding my hands across my sheets, searching for him. The only thing I found was the discarded towel that must have fallen out of my hair during the night.

“No,” I whispered to myself.

The realization that it was all a dream hit me with such a force that I thought I might be sick. The memories of the night before came rushing back. I’d gone out drinking with Jerrick. The sick feeling was definitely a hangover.

My eyes felt puffy, probably from the crying I’d done the night before. The ache in my heart grew as I realized Michael wasn’t really there. That the whole thing was a dream.

A sharp knock sounded on my door, followed by Lin’s panicked voice.

“Shelby, please tell me you are in there.”

“Lin? Yeah, I’m just waking up. s**t, I overslept, didn’t I? Go ahead and go to class without me. I don’t want to make you late too. Never let me go out drinking on a weeknight, ever again,” I said, rubbing my hand across my temple.

“You already slept through class, Shelb. I knocked on your door for like ten minutes before I had to leave. I came to check on you.”

I picked up my phone to check the time, and sure enough, I’d slept through class, which was a first for me.

“Did you tell the professor why I wasn’t there?” I asked, worried about how missing class so early in the semester would reflect in my final grade.

I hated waking up this disoriented. I slipped my feet out of bed, placing them on the floor but not daring to stand up until I got my bearings. I needed a cup of coffee so badly.

“Don’t worry; I covered for you. I just told them that you were sick, but really that isn’t important right now. Can you just come out, please?” Lin asked, still sounding worried.

“Lin, what is going on?” I asked, getting shakily to my feet.

“There is someone here for you. I need you to come out right now,” she said, urgency flooding her tone.

My heart leaped at the possibility that Michael had come to make things right between us. Was he standing in my living room because he had been trying to call me? He didn’t know that my phone was lost in the accident and I’d gotten a new number. What if he’d been trying to mend things between us this entire time?

I was ready to throw myself into his arms, to go back to how everything was before, and forget that our breakup had ever happened.

I crossed my room faster than I was ready, but I didn’t care; I put my arms out to balance myself. I threw open the door, leaving Lin standing alone in the hallway as I rushed passed her. I was so ready to get to Michael that I missed the anxious look on her face. As I rounded the corner to our living room, all the excitement faded out of me and was replaced with confusion and fear.

I wrapped my robe tight around my body, realizing I should have taken the extra few minutes to put real clothes on. I felt vulnerable just wrapped in the thin cotton, as I came face to face with two men sitting on our couch, waiting for me. I didn’t recognize either of them.

Each was dressed in a black uniform with FBI badges decorating their shoulders.

“What’s going on?” I asked, wrapping my arms in front of myself, to hide my chest.

“Miss Shelby Hatton?” one of the agents asked, getting to his feet.

“Yes, that’s me,” I answered, stepping back slightly.

The agent flipped open his badge showing it to me.

“I am Agent Gatlin with the FBI. I’m going to need you to come with us.”