Butterflies in Honey (Growing Pains #3) Read online

  But honestly, no cream and sugar? How was she supposed to feel better about tricking Donald into punching himself in the face last night without cream and sugar? And who hadn’t learned that trick when they were freaking ten-years-old?

  Finally, Bob gave in and went over how he would work with Sean. Georgie then chimed in on how he would best work with their combined weight. Donald chipped in. Krista didn’t need to—they were wasting time. Too many men working on a problem—it always took forever.

  She waited patiently until they needed her. When they were ready, they all looked over.

  “Geek Girl, you’re up,” Sean said lightly. He knew she was right, but he still didn’t approve of her attitude. She didn’t care.

  “I need to go vertical, right?” she asked Sean.

  “As close as you can,” he replied looking at the rope.

  “Okay, I’ll wrap my legs around your middle and you need to hold my hips or stomach so I can reach out. Then they need to lean you in so we can reach.”

  “How long can you stay vertical?” Sean asked.

  “No idea. Probably not all that long. Let’s give it a go and see. Don’t drop me.” She warned with a finger in his face. He winked. She scowled.

  She was the third from the end of the board, Sean was first, and Donald was between them. Without asking permission—poor Donald—she hugged him and stepped around. He was so startled at the contact, he nearly fell backward.

  “Easy fella,” she said as she let go. “No need to get awkward.”

  She continued on to Sean, who grabbed her around the middle and helped her around him. Neither of them were put out by it. It’s not like they hadn’t been that close before. Recently.

  “Okay,” Sean said, reaching his arms around her. She leaned back into him for just a minute, liking his hard body against her back. Remembering.

  She smiled at his quick intake of breath then leaned away.

  “No need to get awkward,” she said again. “Grab on. Don’t let go. Not even if I throw up.”

  “Why did you drink so much?” Sean whined.

  “I needed a new challenge. I am going to get down like a wheel barrel. You grab my legs and wrap them around, okay?”

  Krista put her palms on the board and felt his strong hands grab her feet. She backpedaled as he got her legs spread and positioned around him as best he could.

  Oh man she felt like crap. All the blood rushing to her head was-not-helping!

  “Alright, how is this going to work?” Sean asked.

  “Uh, lift my hips up to your hips. Don’t get a hard on—that’ll be distracting.”

  “I think I can manage,” Sean replied dryly.

  Dean laughed despite himself and Georgie snorted.

  Sean put one large hand on either side of her hip bones. She felt pressure as he lifted her weight. She felt his body quiver with the strain of it and felt an answering stir in her groin. Suddenly she wanted to try this sexual position. Uncomfortable, but she wondered which places it would hit inside her. She wanted all his power at max as he slid his girth into the right places.

  “Krista, what are you waiting for?” Sean asked with his teeth clenched.

  Oh yeah.

  She strained up so her body was going straight out from where their groins joined. All the strength exercises she had done all her life made it easy. All the alcohol she drank last night, however, made it horrendous.

  “Down,” she said, relaxing her body.

  Sean lowered her so she had her palms on the board, but did not unwrap her legs. She felt a hardness pushing up against her pelvic bone. Apparently he couldn’t manage all that well after all. She knew how he felt.

  “Okay,” Sean said, strain in his voice, and not from physical exertion. “I am going to walk you forward, Krista. When you get to the edge, lift up. I will take two more steps to the end of the platform. Then, Bob, lower me out. We need to do this quick so Krista and I don’t give up halfway through and fall.”

  Somehow, Sean did as he said, his hardness more pronounced, pumping Krista’s arousal to match. The rubbing was having an effect on both of them. Krista was positive the sexual position would be fantastic! It was all she could think about. Sean, too. Even when it was “go” time and Krista lifted up, they both focused on that pressure, that rubbing. After Krista grabbed the rope and Sean pulled her back in, they lost focus on reality, and thought only of the other. Of the contact. Of the need so long overdue finally being expressed.

  Krista heard instructions about hanging on to the rope, but all she could think of was the waves of pleasure heating her up from Sean’s hardness against her groin. All she could do with any certainty was gyrate her hips, rubbing her right spot on his.

  He answered by clutching her hips with his hands, rubbing his thumbs along her hip bones, pulling, straining his hips into her, keeping still with every ounce of control he possessed so as not to let on what they were doing, but still allowing her to move against him, pushing him on; his cock screaming, his balls constricting. Krista moving faster. A muffled moan escaping, then…an explosion.

  “Sean?” Donald’s voice.

  “What’s that?” Sean asked in a sweat—and not from lifting.

  Krista shuddered under his fingertips.

  “Pass the rope back and put Krista down.”

  “Got it,” Sean said, allowing Krista to arch to pass back the rope, squeezing out one more jolt of pleasure.

  “I’m going to lower your legs, Krista,” Sean said in a husky voice.

  “It’s your rodeo,” Krista answered in a relaxed sort of way.

  “Great job you guys!” Dean said from behind. “Who swings across first?”

  “Well, Sean, Krista, and Bob should stay in case we lose the rope again,” Donald said.

  “Then I’ll go.” Dean inched up.

  Dean made it to the front. Sean, who was bending over at the waist a bit more than normal, helped him around Krista. She stopped herself from smirking. It was erotic what they did in front of a bunch of co-workers without them knowing. Not as good as in an office, but still good. She wanted more.

  Dean swung across without effort and was about to swing the rope back when Donald said, “Wait, let Sean catch it. He’s got the longest arms.”

  Sean’s hands were on Krista again. This time they slid around her butt and moved her to face him so he could get by. As he moved across, his hands crushed her into him, forcing her to grab his arms. He wasn’t balanced, though, he was leaning too far in. They both nearly lost their balance and pitched over the edge of the board.

  “Sean!” She yelled, looking behind in case she fell.

  They felt a moment of teetering before Bob grabbed Sean and steadied them. It wasn’t the place for foreplay. Krista pinched Sean to get that across.

  His almond shaped eyes bored into hers, intense, but also playful. He smiled briefly before he was headed for the rope.

  One by one they all swung over. They were careful to always catch the rope, and had a scare when Bob came barreling at them, a giant wrecking ball against a few bowling pins. Thankfully, he was strong enough to hang on, but with that much mass traveling directly for you at high speeds, Krista would later freely admit she hid behind Sean. So would Donald.

  After Bob made it across and was stopped by a brave Sean and Georgie, and after Krista laughed so hard she nearly wet herself (everyone else was trying to keep from laughing, except Bob who was really mad), they moved off to the next challenge.

  As they walked, Georgie and Donald were Krista’s shadows. It wasn’t friendly. Something was a bit off; they acted more like bodyguards. She got the distinct impression there was a faction in the small group, and Krista was the cause of it.

  Luckily, Krista didn’t much care at that moment. She had bigger issues. Like her returning headache.

  “Okay,” the ref said, stopping in front of a vertical, disarrayed spider web. There were two erect posts. Between those posts were strands of rope. There was no deco
ration or pattern, just a criss-cross of ropes strung between two wooden poles.

  “The goal of this is similar to the last. Get from one side to the other.”

  Easy. Climb the rope strands, go over the top, drop down. No brainer.

  “The rules to this one are simple,” the ref continued. “You can only go through each hole once, and you can’t touch the rope.”

  Krista looked harder. There were big gaps in the ropes at the bottom. One at ground level, one a little higher up. The holes got smaller as they went in the air. The top hole was about seven feet up, and guess who would be crawling through that one?…

  Krista suddenly decided she didn’t need that $500 all that much.

  “Alright, suggestions?” Sean asked as he looked around.

  “I’m a good anchor. I’ll go through the bottom one.” Bob spoke up immediately.

  “Sean, you should probably go through the next biggest one,” Dean said.

  That started everyone picking holes. When they were all done deciding, Sean telling Krista she got the top one, of course, they got into position. That was when she decided to throw a stick in their spokes.

  “Sean should go through the second highest one, like Donald said.” Krista crossed her arms. Her power position was ruined when she then leaned against the nearest tree.

  “We already decided,” Bob retorted.

  “That you were going through the biggest hole, I know. You get going while the grown-ups talk,” Krista muttered.

  “You aren’t acting like a grown up, Krista,” Sean returned quietly.

  “I am P.M.S.’ing, then. Or I have women’s disease of a small brain. Regardless, I agree with what Donald has been saying. Sean is the strongest of us. But he is not the heaviest. Besides me, he is probably the only one who can torque his body enough to get to that top one. And he surfs—he’s got excellent balance.”

  “I didn’t know he surfed. That does help my cause.” Donald stepped a fraction closer to Krista.

  “I’m not convinced,” Sean said. “Dean is smaller and lighter. He’d be easier to get up there.” Sean scanned the holes at the top.

  “Okay, how about this,” Krista said, looking at that daunting top hole, “Sean, you stay on this side. Bob, on that side. Those are two big bases. Let’s get Georgie through. I’ll go and we can see how hard it will be to get me through. Then we’ll have an idea of the fitness and strength required. If Dean has it, awesome. If not, Sean goes. That work?”

  “What makes you think you have the strength?” Bob spat.

  “Robert, did you not notice me holding my body straight with my stomach muscles? Well, my whole body is that strong. Plus, no one else is small enough, so I have no choice.”

  Bob muttered as he got in position to get through his hole. The hole was plenty big, but he was a big ox of a man. He breathed heavy as he crawled through, his butt in the air and his legs doing a poor job of supporting his weight. When he was finally on the other side, they got Georgie through next. He got a smaller hole about three feet up to the side and made it through easily. He had a few extra pounds, but he was an athlete once, which was obvious.

  Krista’s turn.

  Sean made sure everyone was in position. He judged the height, and then the man-power. It was a dangerous stunt with the people they had to execute it. Sean didn’t want any accidents. Everyone waited for him to say go—except Krista who was waiting to throw up.

  “Okay,” Sean said, motioning Krista over.

  Krista walked toward the ropes, not really worried—she was too poisoned. Sean and Donald filed in next to her, ready to figure out how to go about the obstacle. Donald was wary about touching her.

  “I would like to make an announcement,” Krista said suddenly, Donald’s nervousness infiltrating her brain. “If anyone touches me inappropriately,” she looked hard at Bob, “then I reserve the right to sucker punch you in your ball sack.”

  “Yikes…” Georgie said with a smile. He thought Krista was nothing but funny these days. She seemed like a serious bitch when you first met her, but if you spent any time with her, you realized everything was coated with a thin layer of irony. Underlying everything that didn’t directly have to do with the job, there was a joke waiting to blossom.

  “I might need to grab your butt,” Sean said while he eyed the top hole. When it came to Krista, he was picking which comments to scowl at and which to ignore. That one landed in the “I didn’t hear anything” bucket. He didn’t want anyone “accidentally” grabbing a boob, either.

  “Hands to yourself, McAdams,” Krista said, stepping closer to the rope as she looked up at her gap.

  Georgie snorted.

  “No, seriously. I might need to grab your butt ice skater style.” Sean looked at her, his eyes like a beautiful, still green pond.

  “Well…okay, but you only. Not Donald. No offense, Donald.”

  “My wife would divorce me,” Donald said seriously. Georgie and Dean both laughed.

  Sean bent down to Krista and navigated her onto his shoulders. He went into a squat as Dean and Donald helped her get to a kneeling position. When she was firm, Sean straightened up slowly, holding her hands to brace her.

  “Krista, you need to go on a diet,” Sean said as his legs labored to get out of the squat.

  “I think you need to do more squats,” she replied. She was breathing heavy already and she hadn’t even gotten to the hard part yet.

  “Krista, I can smell the alcohol,” Dean said with a smile.

  “Yeah, it’s coming out of my pores.”

  They shakily moved closer to the ropes. It was a slow, worrying procession—for the ref included. Krista ardently wished she hadn’t drank so much last night!

  “Okay,” Sean said, with his hands firmly on Krista’s thighs. The ref moved in another step, apparently intending to catch her when she plummeted to her death. Little did he know it would be a welcome relief from the pain in her head.

  “Krista, you are going to have to stand up on my shoulders. Can you do that while leaning down to grab Don and Dean’s hands?”

  “Yeah. Slowly.” Sean braced himself and she stood up into a sorta crouch. “Is this a good time to mention I don’t love heights?”

  “No,” Donald and Dean said together.

  “Okay, then I won’t mention it.”

  Krista had a kinda-crouch going, shakily, while Sean reached up her leg to grab the tops of her thighs where they attached to her hip. There was nothing sexual about this. If she fell it would be head first.

  “Okay Krista, we are going to walk you closer. When you get there, we’ll have to walk you through it. When you get fatigued, let us know,” Sean instructed.

  “I’m fatigued.”

  “When you are about to pass-out, then.”

  “Oh. Damn.”

  Everyone was on point for the dangerous stunt. Krista got right up next to the hole and nearly put her head through when she sounded the alarm.

  “This isn’t going to work.” She grunted more than spoke.

  “What’s up?” Sean grunted back. They were like two cavemen.

  “I need to get my hands through first. Donald, can you reach through without touching the ropes? Georgie, you’ll need to grab my other one from that side. Bob, get ready to grab my shoulders as they come through and down. Please don’t drop me.”

  There were yeses and grunts. They continued with their slow progress. Nearly too slow. Krista and Sean only had so much strength. Krista put her hands through the hole, balancing, grasping offered hands, legs shaking with the strain. She was walked closer, her body going through slowly.

  “Where the hell did that white rabbit go?” Krista grunted.

  Georgie snorted again. “Don’t make me laugh right now, this is serious.”

  “See, Sean? I’m hilarious.”

  “And heavy. Hurry up.”

  “You’re going to give…me…a complex. Loosen your grip, Sean, I need to straighten out!”

  Krista’s
forehead was beading in sweat. Her underarms and back were, too. Sean was no better off, articulating her weight with only his arms to navigate it. The rest of the guys had gone a step beyond, not exercising much over the years, and were outright panting.

  Except Bob who was a lazy sack of poop and not helping at all.

  Sean put his hands lower on Krista’s legs. Krista’s hands were being held, as were her upper-calves, but the rest of her was a bridge; nothing but air, a worried ref talking on his walkie-talkie about backup, and ropes. Usually a person would use a knee to brace themselves and hold their body up, but that wasn’t possible. All Krista’s muscles were taut. If she hadn’t been doing yoga regularly, she probably wouldn’t have been able to stick it. As it was, she looked like she had cerebral palsy.

  “Do I need to hold you by the crotch? Can you support your body?” Sean asked seriously.

  Krista laughed, she couldn’t help it, making her whole body sway. “Romantic gesture, but no. Just…let’s get a move on.”

  Sean crept forward and Krista straightened, getting more of her body through the ropes. Now the lion’s share of her weight was being supported on her hands. The guys on the winning side were starting to have a hard time holding her.

  “Okay, Bob.” Krista’s voice was as strained as her body. “I am going to dip my head down. Come grab my shoulders. Sean, can you lift my feet and put them through when I have most of my weight on Bob?”

  Krista felt Sean’s hands slide down to her ankles and grab tightly.

  “Ready?” Sean called. Apparently that was a yes.

  “Yup.”

  Krista bent her head and saw Bob reach for her shoulders in distaste. At least he did it. Her legs lifted as Sean started to pass her through.

  “Wait!” Krista yelled.

  Sean froze, his arms shaking as bad as Krista’s whole body.

  “How does this end? I am not going to climb down Bob.”

  “I’ll grab your legs as they come through,” Georgie grunted.

  “Then what? Drop me?”

  “Krista, gotta do something, you’re looking a little fragile,” Sean said.

  “So are you, Mable. Okay, go with it. If I fall, hopefully it won’t be on my head.”