Page 14

I’ve given my sample to the officials, and I’m changed and lining up, ready to walk out to receive my medal. I’ve never done this before, but this rush is exhilarating.

Standing in the middle of Katie and Marta is awesome. The fact that I beat them both to win the gold, not just for me but for my country, is something I will never lose sight of.

I hope my family is watching.

Then I can prove to them once and for all how worthy I am.

I’m lining up to walk out and just as we step off, Marta shoves me. I trip. Luckily, catching myself. Turning, I glare at Marta and she smirks.

“You know why bullies pick on people like me?”

She offers a faint shoulder lift. “Oh, this should be peachy.”

“Because you wish you were me. You’re so down about your own sad, fucked-up life that you belittle those around you. It might work on Anna, but you have your work cut out for you with me, you conceited bitch. I can handle anything you throw at me!”

She grins mischievously and straightens her posture. “I can’t wait till you see what I’ve thrown at you!”

Furrowing my brows, I open my mouth to ask what that means, but the officials start leading us out. We make our way to the dais and stand behind it as the music plays. You can’t wipe the smile from my face. Katie has the same reaction. I turn to Marta, and she’s frowning beyond belief, so I try to hold in my giggle— it sucks to be her.

They announce all the formalities, and I’m not paying attention as the butterflies flutter about in my tummy.

“The bronze medal, representing England… Marta Botwright,” they announce over the microphone. The crowd cheers as Marta steps up onto the dais and half waves to the crowd. She isn’t showing much enthusiasm at all. I glance at Katie and she smirks as the official places the bronze medal around her neck, shakes her hand, and hands her the stuffed echidna mascot.

She stands back up straight, half waves again, and I glance back at Katie and smile brightly at her.

“The silver medal, representing Australia… Katie Reynolds.”

I cheer as she steps up onto her dais and waves to the roar of the home crowd. I’m so proud of how far she’s come, as a swimmer and as a person. It’s awesome when people see the light.

I wish Marta would step down from her high horse as she practically turns her back to Katie. Shaking my head slightly, I turn my attention back to Katie. The official places the silver medal around her neck, shakes her hand, and hands her the stuffed mascot.

My muscles tense. I take in a deep breath and try to control my erratically beating heart.

This is it! The moment it all becomes a reality.

“The gold medal, representing Australia… Lacy LaBelle.” The announcement is called.

I run out of air.

Even though I knew I had won, I’d had forty-five minutes to process the win. And even with that much time, it hadn’t truly hit me till this second.

My eyes water.

I can’t breathe.

Katie glances back at me and smiles.

And that’s just the push I need to help me up the step.

Standing atop the dais, the crowd erupts into a loud roar of jubilation as the tears free flow down my cheeks. I scan the mass of people to see Tuck, and he’s wiping tears from his face as he smiles at me so widely his smile is all I can see on his face. I bow my head to him, and he waves to me. Then I blow him a kiss, and he places his hand over his heart. Sniffing, I spot Caro, East, and the Hughes all cheering and jumping up and down. For me. The excitement in their eyes overwhelms me to the point of tears. Then I see Coby—he’s gazing at me and smiling as he blows me a kiss. I chew my bottom lip and gesture in understanding. Then I bend down while the official places my gold medal around my neck.

“Congratulations, Miss LaBelle.”

“Thank you,” I reply and shake his hand as he passes me the stuffed echidna. I stand back up straight and thrust my arms into the air in celebration, and the crowd roars to life once more. I take it all in—the flashing lights of the cameras, the music filling the stadium, the atmosphere surrounding me.

This is my first Olympic gold medal!

The Australian National Anthem starts to play, and an overwhelming sense of pride washes over me. I now understand what an achievement this is for not only me but for my country. I’ve done not only Tuck, my friends, and family proud, but Australia as well. That makes me pretty damn proud of myself.

I’m on cloud fucking nine!

The Anthem ends.

I glance down to Katie as the cheering starts again. I grab her arm, pulling her up onto the dais with me. She laughs as we hug, and the photographers take photographs of us together, biting our medals. They’re hard and don’t taste very good, but the aftertaste of gold is sweet.

Marta storms off on her own.

After showing off our medals and taking pictures for the Australian papers, Katie and I head back to the athletes’ area.

***

After going through all the formalities, I’m pretty wiped. I honestly just want to return to my unit and chill for a while.

I make my way back toward the athletes’ village, thinking everyone will know where to find me. Plus, the walk alone will give me time to reflect and take in what’s just happened. I stroll to the edge of the Village, and Coby steps out in front of me, breaking me from my inner thoughts. I jump slightly as he gives me a wide smile. He doesn’t say anything just grabs my hand and pulls me along with him.

I giggle. “Cobes?”

He smirks. “Shhh… I found a nook,” he whispers.

I furrow my brows. “A nook?”

He nods. “Yeah… look.” He drags me around a corner to where two walls intersect, creating a kind of hidden area. It’s not big, just enough for a couple of people to go into and hide away from the world—like a little sanctuary to conceal us.

And laying perfectly on the ground, as we walk in toward the back, where it’s dark and no one can see us, is a small bouquet of daisies. I turn back to face him, a bright smile on my face. “You continue to surprise me, sir.”

He smirks, backing me up against the brick wall and moving in front of me in the sexiest damn way. “Is that a good thing?” he asks, placing a hand on either side of my head, just like that time in the services lounge by the bathroom.

Chewing my bottom lip as those pesky butterflies dance in my stomach all over again, I smile and shrug.

“I mean, I guess,” I reply nonchalantly.

He chuckles at my sarcasm. “We can leave if you want?” he teases, moving to exit, but I wrap my arms around his waist, pulling him back to me.

“How did you find this place anyway, you creeper?”

“I went searching for a nook I could take you. Somewhere where we could be away from prying eyes. I think I’ve found it.” He leans in, rubbing his nose into my neck. My breathing hitches. His body is close to mine but not quite yet pressing against it.

“I think you might have, you sneak.”

He chuckles, running his nose up my neck and trails a light kiss on my jaw. My lips part. “We’ve both done so well and don’t have to swim now for another five days. What will we do to fill the time?” he asks suggestively.

Laughing, I run my hands up his back, sneaking under his shirt, fingering his taut muscles. My insides quiver as he trails featherlight kisses along my jaw. “We need to watch East and Caro.”

“Yes… but what about the rest of the time?”

“I’m sure we can find something to occupy our time.” I dig into his skin slightly, and he groans.

“Now you’re talking.” His kisses move closer to my mouth as my breathing increases faster and faster. My knickers are now soaking wet from him teasing me.

“But if we get caught, we could get in a shit load of trouble.”

“Then we don’t get caught.” He presses his lips to mine. Every one of his muscles clenches and moves in a perfect rhythm as he grinds against me. He fondles my cheek and grabs my hair. I dig my nails into his back, pulling him closer to me. Our tongues dance passionately and frantically. Kissing Coby is a high that I have grown to love. I could kiss him every day for the rest of my life.

My leg instinctively moves up around him, wrapping around his waist so he can move in closer. His erection presses right into my pussy as I moan slightly at the friction.

I understand we’re on the outskirts of the Village, but Coby is turning me on, and right now, I want nothing more than him. I pull his shorts down.

He pushes back from me and raises an eyebrow. “Here?”

“This is our place. It’s only right to christen it.”

He chuckles. “What happened to all that… what if we get caught crap?”

I shrug. “The nook is safe. I deem it so.”

“Well, if Lady Butterfly deems it so, who am I to argue? Just try to keep it quiet.”

Giggling, I nod and lean back in, kissing him as I shuffle out of my pants and knickers, stepping out of them as his shorts fall to his ankles. He moves in, placing his hands on my arse, and then he hoists me up against the wall. My shirt rides up as his rock-hard cock moves into place. We kiss frantically, my hands rummaging through his hair when he quickly pulls back.

“Shit, I’m not wearing a condom.” The disappointment in his voice breaks through as I smile and shake my head.

“It’s fine. I’m on the pill,” I inform him.

He grins and smiles. “You sure?” He pants, and I shift my hips forward, taking the tip of his cock inside me slightly.

Coby chuckles and presses his lips to mine, leaning me back against the wall and thrusting forward inside of me. I moan quietly, and his fingers dig into my arse cheeks, which only turns me on more if that’s possible. He thrusts into me, back and forth at a steady tempo. This isn’t soft lovemaking, this is quick and dirty fucking. To be honest, I’ve missed being with Coby, so I will take him any way I can get him.

We move in harmony, fucking against the wall. Hard. Fast. One hand in his hair, the other reaches up above me, holding on to the rail. Our passionate kisses block our breaths. So much frantic skin-on-skin contact. We’re both trying to keep our moans and groans to a minimum, as anyone walking past might hear. So we stay quiet, even though it’s incredibly hard.

Coby thrusts inside of me, rotating his hips slightly on the entrance, hitting just the right spot. He works me up so well. He’s a master, and I’ve missed being intimate with him.

He pushes up inside me again, and everything starts to shatter around me. My body trembles, breaking out in a fine mist of sweat. My breathing hitches, my eyes clench tightly as goose bumps litter my skin and a wave of undeniable heat washes over me. I shudder as my muscles clench.

With one more thrust, I lose myself, exploding around him.

He grips onto me tighter, pushing me back into the wall and thrusting up into me only to release himself as he groans into my mouth quietly. He explodes inside me as he pumps out his load. We break our kiss to get some much-needed air, and I rest my head in the nook of his neck as he sags against me.

As we both catch our breath, I check if anyone’s around. There’s no one, so I sag back into Coby, and he gently lowers me to the ground, pulling out of me. I rest back against the wall, and he smiles, shifting some hair carefully behind my ear.

“I’ve been waiting a long time for that.”

With a smile, I reply, “I have, too.”

He shakes his head. “God, you’re beautiful.”

I shake my head, reaching down for my knickers and shorts. He leans down, pulling his pants back into position as I turn and sit on the ground. Coby grins and sits next to me, placing his arm around my shoulders, and we cuddle.

“Marta said something strange, almost ominous. Like she’s going to throw shit my way.”

Coby cuddles into me further and rests his head against mine. “I wouldn’t worry. She’s all talk, and you’re done swimming now, bar the relay, so there’s not much she can do.”

“Yeah, you’re right.” I snuggle back into him, loving our little nook.

I think we’ll be visiting this place a lot more often.