Trials and Tribulations of Online Dating Read online

  “Does he know...?”

  “No. Now that Jack and I are exclusive, Levi and I don’t do that anymore. So I didn’t think it was really necessary to tell him.”

  “Have you and Jack...?”

  “Not yet. Soon, though. Now that I’m not having sex with Levi, I miss it. And Jack’s really great; he’s an awesome kisser.”

  “How is it with Levi, now that you guys are platonic?”

  “Okay. A little weird. I hadn’t realized how intimate we were even when we weren’t having sex, until I needed to stop. Sometimes I reach out to touch him and have to stop myself. Once I’m having sex with Jack, it’ll probably get easier.

  “Anyway—” Sam sipped her coffee. “—I haven’t had a chance to hear how you went. Was speed dating any good? You’ve been to three parties now.”

  Leona rolled her eyes. “Yes and no. There were some nice people there. A lot of guys who were just there for a quick hookup. Nobody I really clicked with. Although I did make a new friend.”

  “Oh?”

  “The bartender. He loves watching speed dating, thinks it’s all pretty hilarious. Some of the stories he told me were funny. I think by now he’s seen it all.”

  “I’ll bet.” Sam stared at her cup.

  “Sammy?” Leona asked. “What’s wrong?”

  Sam shook her head and smiled. “Nothing. I’m just being silly.”

  “Silly how?” There was a note in Leona’s voice that made Sam look over at her. Her best friend was watching her with a guarded expression.

  “Just silly. You know how, when things change, it feels a little odd? Even when it’s a good change, it’s a bit… I don’t know, scary. Things are changing, and I’m being silly about it.”

  “I know the feeling,” Lee said quietly. She attempted to change the subject. “Have you bought your tickets for Monthly Movie Madness yet? I might come this month.” The regular all-night movie marathon hosted by a local cinema was at the end of the week, and Sam and Levi always went. It was the only time they actually watched movies, instead of talking or… other things.

  Sam burst into tears.

  “Sam?” Leona leaped up and rushed to Sam’s side. “What’s wrong? I don’t have to come.” Sam laughed through her tears.

  “Don’t be stupid; you’re always welcome,” she said, sniffling and wiping her eyes. “But I’m not going this month.”

  Leona sat on the coffee table. “What.”

  “I—” Sam’s lip began to tremble, and she took a deep breath. “I’m not going. Jack wants to spend the time with me, so….”

  “Why doesn’t Jack go with you? I’ll come too, and we can all meet for dinner first. Get to know each other. You’ve been doing this every month for nearly two years; it seems weird that he doesn’t want you to go.” Leona’s suggestion was so reasonable that Sam felt the tears rising again.

  “I haven’t mentioned it to Jack. Levi didn’t say anything about it when I spoke to him the other day, and we normally flip a coin to see who gets the tickets. So I guess we’re not going.”

  “So call Jack, tell him you always go to MMM and that this month you want him to come too and meet your friends. Then call Levi and flip the damn coin.” A hint of exasperation was sneaking into Leona’s tone. Sam focused on the floor. “Sam?”

  “I don’t think I can,” she whispered.

  “Why not?” The exasperation was gone, replaced by caution.

  “Because it hurts.”

  Suddenly, Leona’s hands were holding hers. “What hurts?”

  “Levi.” The word was almost soundless, so she tried again. “Levi. It hurts to hang out with him now that things are… different.”

  Silence.

  “Sammy,” Leona finally said, her tone very careful. “I know you really like Jack. I know he made your heart beat faster when you met him. And he sounds like a really great guy. But are you sure he’s the guy for you?”

  Sam stared fixedly at her hands, joined with her best friend’s.

  “No. Because if he’s the guy for me, I can’t be with Levi.”

  Leona let out an explosive breath. “Then why are you doing this? Why don’t you break up with Jack and go get Levi?”

  Pulling her hands free, Sam slumped back on the sofa. “Because Jack’s a great guy. I really like him. And if I go after Levi and somehow fuck things up, I lose him forever. At least this way, he’s still there. He’s still my friend and my neighbor and I get to see him and spend time with him.”

  “But you’re not! You’re not spending time with him because it hurts to be with him and not be intimate, to not treat him like he’s yours. Do you remember what I said to you when you and Levi started having sex? I said it was a bad idea, because it would ruin your friendship. I was wrong, Sam. It didn’t ruin your friendship; it took it to the next level. You guys spend more time together than half the couples I know. You keep his favorite foods in your house—”

  “He does the same for me!” Sam said defensively.

  “Exactly!” Leona cried. “You live next door to each other, for God’s sake. It’s not like you couldn’t run home and get what you wanted if you needed to.” She paused and took a deep breath. “Sammy, you and Levi are practically a couple already. The only thing missing is the label. There’s no way in hell you can fuck this up.”

  Chapter Nine

  Levi opened the front door at a little after eleven, surprised and concerned to see Sam standing there, face pale. “Sam? What’s the matter?”

  “I’m sorry it’s so late,” she said, lifting her phone and then letting her hand drop to her side. “I had to go see Jack, and it took longer than I thought.” Her gaze drifted away from his. “Can I come in?”

  “Of course.” He moved out of her way, worry a heavy stone in his stomach as she stepped past him and he closed the door. “Sammy, what happened?”

  She shook her head and wandered into the living room. He followed, wondering if he needed to take her to the Emergency Room. She was acting really weird.

  “I broke up with Jack,” she said abruptly, and his whole body sagged with relief. He reached out and braced himself against the sofa.

  “You did?” He tried to keep the pleasure out of his voice, feeling like a dick for being happy that his best friend had ended a relationship with a guy she liked. “I thought things were going well.” A thought struck, and he straightened. “He didn’t hurt you?”

  “No.” She shook her head again. “No, he didn’t hurt me. If anything, it was the other way around. Things were going well. He was really surprised when I ended it.”

  She walked in an aimless circle around the coffee table, ending up right where she’d started. Levi swallowed hard. She was still acting weird, but she wasn’t hurt. She was safe, and now she was free again.

  “So why did you end it?” he asked, wondering why he wasn’t just leaping on her, why he was asking about stupid Jack.

  “Because being with him meant our friendship changed. It meant I couldn’t be with you.”

  Triumph surged in Levi. He took two big steps forward and kissed her. She moaned and turned pliant in his arms. He backed her up until her knees hit the couch, and then lowered her to it, returning his mouth to hers to capture those wonderful little moans. In his pants, his dick throbbed, hard as an iron spike.

  Her hand trailed up his arm and then down his chest, and he knew exactly what she was thinking. And as much as he loved having her mouth on him, he caught her hand. Tonight, he wanted it to be about her. He wanted her so dizzy with pleasure that she’d do whatever he wanted, and never even think of leaving him again.

  She moaned as he captured her other hand and held them both above her head with one of his. Briefly, he considered tying her up, something they both enjoyed, but he didn’t want to give her time to reconsider.

  He trapped her earlo
be between his teeth and tugged, then licked his way down her throat to her collarbone. One handed, he opened her blouse and tugged her bra out of the way. She was squirming against him, thrusting against his pelvis, and his dick loved it, the pleasure-pain making him gasp.

  She yelped when he grazed his teeth over her nipple. He laved her with his tongue and settled in to suckle strongly. He loved her nipples, pink and firm and always happy to see him. He loved the taste of her skin, the way she moaned when he touched her. He let go of her hands, and she fisted them in his hair. The pull was just short of pain. He groaned as he switched breasts, nipping her with his teeth again.

  “Again.” Her voice was thick with pleasure, and he caught her nipple between his teeth obligingly, tugging gently. She went wild beneath him, hips thrusting as her legs wrapped around his waist. He cried out at the incredible pressure on his cock, and she yanked his hair again, bringing his attention back to her breasts.

  He licked each swollen nub one more time, then broke away from her breasts and ran his hands down her sides, over her hips, removing her legs from his body. She shrieked and yanked his hair in protest, but stopped when he slid down her body.

  He grinned. She knew what he was going to do. He lifted her skirt and pulled her panties off as she pumped her hips. He licked his lips as cream slid from her pussy.

  Take it slow.

  Levi grasped her hips and licked his way down her stomach, pausing to delve his tongue into her navel, causing her stomach muscles to spasm wildly. He laid kisses across her abdomen, and she shivered when he blew across her skin. He paused.

  “Levi!”

  He loved making her scream.

  He opened her legs and lifted them onto his shoulders, giving himself the best angle. Her cunt was flushed dark pink and swollen, her clit throbbing with need in time with the throbbing in his pants.

  Her first.

  He lowered his head and laid his mouth over her clit, sucking deeply, holding her writhing hips firmly. His tongue laved up her slit, and the hands in his hair shoved, pushing him harder against her as he lapped. A keening sound burst from her lips.

  Her hips bucked uncontrollably in his grasp. Shifting, he laid one arm across her pelvis, pinning her to the couch and freeing the other hand. He licked a path up her pussy, and this time his fingers followed, teasing their way toward her cunt and then sliding smoothly inside. Her inner muscles clamped down on his fingers, almost painfully, and he rasped his teeth gently over where she was most sensitive.

  She came apart, screaming her pleasure, writhing, cunt spasming around his fingers.

  # # #

  Sam was still coming down from orgasm when Levi slid his cock into her. She was so slick that he was able to enter her easily. Still, her sensitized nerve endings twanged and her inner walls constricted around him.

  “Ummm.”

  The rumbling sound thrilled her, and she deliberately tightened her muscles. This time his moan was strangled, and he surged up into her, balancing his weight on his forearms.

  His gaze met hers, eyes hot and wild.

  “I can’t be gentle.” His voice was hoarse, and in response her pussy contracted again. His eyes rolled back and he thrust, hard.

  She gasped, tilting her pelvis to give him better access. She lifted her legs and wrapped them around his waist. He rocked forward, the powerful movement of his hips driving his dick hard, abrading swollen tissue. Her inner muscles forgot their fatigue as her clit began to throb again. The hair on his chest rasped over her over-responsive breasts. Her cunt pulsed, clenched, throbbed, and she screamed as he pumped into her, over and over, until she went over the edge again.

  Chapter Ten

  Sam woke in Levi’s arms, and all was right with the world. Sometime during the night they must have stumbled to his bedroom, although she had no memory of it, because they were snuggled in his bed. Carefully, she lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at his face. He slept peacefully, a faint smile tipping his lips. She slid out of the bed and made her way to the bathroom to take care of business. Her reflection as she was washing her hands told her that her inner joy was shining through.

  “Sam?” Levi called.

  “I’m coming,” she called back, and then with a final smile at herself in the mirror, she exited the bathroom. “Hey,” she said as she wandered back over to the bed. Climbing in, she leaned over and kissed him.

  “Hey,” he muttered, his eyes searching her face. His expression relaxed. “You look happy.”

  “I am happy,” she told him, then took a deep breath. “And in the interests of staying that way, I need to tell you something.”

  He sat up, the covers falling to his lap and exposing his beautiful chest. “What is it?”

  Sam swallowed. “I love you.”

  Levi blinked. “I love you, too.”

  She shook her head. “No, I mean I’m in love with you. I love you. Forever love. Want to marry you and make your dad a granddad love.”

  Levi was quiet, staring at her. He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, something was different. He opened his mouth, hesitated, closed it again, and then he laughed.

  Sam had never imagined that when she told the love of her life that she loved him, he would laugh, but the unrestrained joy in the sound warmed her heart, even as she wondered if it was really a good thing.

  He captured her hand and lifted it to his lips. Her heart melted. And then he spoke.

  “From the day we met, I’ve always felt like you belong in my life. You’re my best friend. When we started fucking, I was scared that was going to be wrecked, but it wasn’t. It just got better. I’ve loved you for years; it just was. You’re my friend and I love you. When you started dating Jack, it felt… wrong to me. I hated it. And I hated myself for that, because you’re my friend and I love you and I’m supposed to want you to be happy. But I’m a dumb fuck, because I never realized why I hated it so much. I thought I was being petty and selfish, not wanting things to change. What you just said, that you’re in love with me… something inside me clicked, and it was like those overcast days, where you don’t realize how dark it really is until you turn on the light and suddenly you can see clearly.”

  He kissed her hand again. “Everything is clear now. I don’t just love you, I’m in love with you. I never want to be without you. I want to one day be a grandparent with you.”

  A tear trickled down Sam’s cheek, and she wiped it away with an impatient laugh. “I can’t believe we were both so dumb,” she said.

  Levi grinned. “Just goes to show we deserve each other.” He leaned down to kiss her.

  And her heart beat faster.

  Did you love Trials and Tribulations of Online Dating? Then you should read Catch a Shooting Star by Louisa Masters and Olivia Ventura!

  A cleaner, a football player, and a drug scandal… who said wishes don't come true?

  Social misfit Jessamy James pays the bills with a cleaning job so she can do what she really loves—tell stories to children. When she meets NFL superstar Nathan Powell while scrubbing unknown substances from his kitchen floor, Jess is as wary as she is confused. Never has she met a man with so much trust in the world, and he's never met anyone he couldn't charm. Outwardly, they're complete opposites, but Nathan is intrigued by Jess's reclusive attitude, and she's drawn to his open personality. The attraction between them is inevitable.

  When Nathan is dragged into a drug scandal, Jess is caught up in the media storm and finds her own vocation slipping through her fingers. As they struggle to clear his name and rescue both their careers, Jess and Nathan discover that sometimes all you can do is wish upon a shooting star.

  Also by Louisa Masters

  Catch a Shooting Star (Coming Soon)

  Miss Fix-It (Coming Soon)

  Trials and Tribulations of Online Dating (Coming Soon)

  Watch f
or more at Louisa Masters’s site.

  About the Author

  Louisa Masters started reading romance much earlier than her mother thought she should. While other teenagers were sneaking out of the house, Louisa was sneaking romance novels in and working out how to read them without being discovered. She’s spent most of her life feeling sorry for people who don’t read, convinced that books are the solution to every problem.

  As an adult, she feeds her addiction in every spare second, only occasionally tearing herself away to do things like answer the phone and pay bills. She spent years trying to build a “sensible” career, working in bookstores, recruitment, resource management, administration, and as a travel agent, before finally conceding defeat and devoting herself to the world of romance novels.

  Louisa has a long list of places first discovered in books that she wants to visit, and every so often she overcomes her loathing of jet lag and takes a trip that charges her imagination. She lives in Melbourne, Australia, where she whines about the weather for most of the year while secretly admitting she’ll probably never move.

  Read more at Louisa Masters’s site.