Chapter 97

Wearing the sexy bikini, I stepped out of the changing room.

For one brief moment, Asher’s eyes grew impossibly wide. His gaze was a heavy, welcome weight on every inch of skin I bared.

Then, as quickly, he pounced from his chair, and backed me bodily into the changing room, slamming closed the changing room door behind us.

He urged me back until I pressed flat against the full-length mirror on the far side of the small changing room. His hands slapped onto the mirror at either side of my head, as he caged me in with his body.

His mouth dropped to my shoulder. He attacked my bare skin with sloppy kisses, sucks, and bites. I clung to his shoulders, my body weak and desperate.

“Asher,” I half-whispered, half-moaned.

“Cyn,” came his answering growl, as he licked a long strip along the length of my collarbone.

This lovely ravaging was the best kind of torture. I felt totally engulfed by him, about to be devoured. His alluring scent of pine and leather assaulted my senses.

His touch, his warmth, his scent… All of it drove me absolutely wild.

Soon, I was reduced to whimpering putty, wedged between the mirror and his hard body.

“Asher… oh…”

He trailed his kisses down to the swell of my breast. I inhaled sharply. His mouth had been in that same spot before, but not without the barrier of clothes between us.

It would be so easy for him to push that tiny triangle of fabric to the side and lap at my nipple.

He seemed to have the same thought, moving his hand toward my chest. He hooked his thumb under the strap of the top and began to tug.

Suddenly, though, he stopped. Then, slowly, he moved his hand away and straightened his back, pulling away from me.

“Asher?” I said, blinking up at him.

Fire burned in his eyes, but he looked away. “Sorry. I lost myself for a minute.”

In a rush, I remembered that we were only fake-dating, not together for real. And that we were currently in a changing room at the clothing store, not in the safety of either of our dorm rooms.

Heat flushed through my cheeks. Anyone could have heard us!

Embarrassment cooled my lingering lust. Suddenly, I felt very naked.

“Under no circumstances can you wear this bikini anywhere in public,” Asher said, voice rough.

Not waiting for me to say anything, Asher turned from me and slunk out of the changing room. He held the door closed from the outside, since it only locked from the inside. Like a bodyguard, he secured my door.

I changed back into my regular clothes, then knocked to let Asher know I was ready.

Outside of the changing room, he continued to avoid looking at me. “You should buy that one piece for your cheerleading practice.”

“Okay,” I agreed. I already had it in draped over my arm as a keeper. Almost all the rest, I returned to where I’d found them. The sexy bikini, though, I didn’t return. Hiding it under the one-piece, I decided to buy it too.

I’d never wear it in public, but if just a glimpse of it made Asher act so feral in this store, I could only imagine what would happen if I wore it when we were well and truly alone.

I knew I was playing with fire, but I didn’t care.

Anything to get Asher to look at me again like he had in that changing room, like he wanted to unravel me, lay me bare, and claim me as his own.

“I’ll wait for you outside,” Asher said and slowly walked outside.

When time came for cheerleading practice, I went to the locker room to change into my swimsuit with the rest of the girls. The other girls all wore bikinis with frills or bows. I was the only one with a modest one-piece.

None of the girls were happy about what was happening.

“What do we need swimsuits for? We aren’t a synchronized swimming team.”

“Maybe Coach thinks we’ll be more flexible without clothes in the way.”

“Don’t be an idiot. He just wants to see us nearly naked.”

“So? You going to tell him no?”

“And risk getting kicked off the team? I can’t!”

“I hate this,” Nicole said to me. Her bikini covered more than most, a tube top with boy shorts. Little skulls dotted the black fabric.

“Me, too,” I agreed.

All the girls waited until the last of us finished changing, then we left the locker room together in a rare show of solidarity.

Coach was already in the center of the gymnasium, waiting for us. In his hands, he held a camera.

My stomach dropped.

“Good. Very good,” he said, checking out each one of us. “Nice.” When he got to me, his leering smile slipped. “Cynthia, what the hell are you wearing?”

“A swimsuit,” I said.

“You look like a nun, and not in a hot way. Go change into something else.”

Since I had come straight to practice after returning from the clothing store, I had my new sexy bikini tucked away in my locker. But Asher had insisted I not wear that in public, and I agreed with him full-stop.

So I lied to Coach, “This is the only swimsuit I have.”

Coach sighed. “I figured one of you would disappoint me. Check the bag hanging on my office door handle. I brought a spare just in case.”

When I hesitated, he raised his voice, “Now, Cynthia.”

“Yes, Coach,” I grumbled and shuffled to the office door.

Behind me, I heard him bark, “Call me ‘sir.’”

I grabbed the plastic bag and rushed into the locker room.

As I lifted the two-piece bikini out of the bag, my jaw dropped. It was nothing but strings!

Only a G-string made up the bottoms. The halter top had two narrow bands of fabric to hide the nipples, but if I so much as leaned over, my breasts would slip fully out.

I absolutely could not wear this. I might as well walk out there naked.

But Coach had insisted I wear something other than my one-piece.

I only had one other option.

“Sorry, Asher,” I whispered. He would understand, right? He certainly wouldn’t want me to wear… whatever this monstrosity was.

I threw the string bikini back into the bag, and reached into my locker for the sexy bikini I had intended only for Asher’s eyes. At least, it covered most everything.

Dressed, I returned to the gymnasium.

“That’s not the swimsuit I sent you in there with,” Coach said with some annoyance. Still, his greedy gaze consumed my body.

I said, “I remembered I had packed a second one, after all.”

“It’s adequate, I suppose. Not as good as the one I’d given you…” Voice trailing, he openly leered at my breasts. “Your Alpha boy had some fun, I see.”

Glancing down, I noticed a trail of soft love bites along my clavicle.

“God damn Alphas. Animals, the lot of them. He’ll have to learn to control himself, got it? Keep him in line. Most guys don’t want used goods. Although…”

He pursed his lips. “With tits like those, they might overlook it.”

Mortified, I crossed my arms, trying to cover my breasts and Asher’s marks, but that left my stomach exposed. Coach immediately zeroed in on it.

His animalistic gaze twisted into one of disgust.

“What the hell?” he cursed. “I knew you might be pudgy, but I didn’t think you’d be fat!”