Baby, It's You & No One Else

Standing in the kitchen dressed only in Eric's sweatshirt, I looked around the fridge for the pancake mix. The coffee was already on, while the bacon sizzled in the pan and the eggs began to cook. Eric still slept upstairs, exhausted from our eventful past couple weeks. I decided to make him breakfast knowing he would appreciate it but also because it was the least I could do for him. It was an apology breakfast of sorts.

I finally found the mix, tucked behind the orange juice. I pulled it out of it's hiding place and began to whip up a decent amount of the delicious cakes. I hummed along to the radio, the sound of Carrie Underwood's, Mama's Song, playing softly through the speakers.

"He is good, so good. And he treats your little girl like a real man should."

I danced across the kitchen, seeing Eric from my peripheral vision. My smile shined brightly at him as I leaped into his arms, kissing his lips softly. My hands fluttered over his back, massaging his muscles while he did the same to me. I rested my head against his shoulder, the steady sound of his heart beat matching my own.

"I hate waking up and you're not next to me," he murmured into the skin of my neck, tilting my head to the side so he would have unlimited amount of space to mark as his.

"I'm sorry, baby. I wanted to make you breakfast before class."

"I'm not going to class," he told me, his tongues dipping into the crook of my neck. I let out a breathy sigh, the feel of his lips and tongue like a glass of cool water in the summer.

"You should go to class," I tried to convince him, feeling myself lose the battle with him.

"I don't," he pulled me tighter into his body, my legs tightening around his waist. He pressed me against the wall softly and leaned away to look into my hungry eyes. His brown pools flashed with desire, showing me how bad he wanted to have his way with me. I shook my heat at him, the smell of burning food hitting my nostrils.

"Down." He set me on my feet, immediately trailing behind me to the stove like a puppy. His arms wrapped around my waist, his chin perched on my shoulder.

I finished making breakfast fairly quickly despite Eric's attempts to lead me back upstairs. We ate in the living room, the TV turned to ESPN just for Eric. He fed me bites of food, kissing my lips and licking off any syrup. I giggled and tried to push him away playfully, making him earn kisses. After we were done eating, we laid on the couch, wrapped up in each others arms.

"Eric'," I whispered to him, noting his even breath and figuring he was asleep.

"Hmm?"

"Can we go home? Like to my house?" I know my parents and brothers would like to see you."

"Yeah, I want to talk to Jake anyway." Eric told me, shifting so that he was sitting up and I was on his lap.

"They missed you," I murmured to him, running both of my hands through his hair and grasping the back of his neck.

"I know the feeling. But I missed this the most. The beautiful girl in my arms," he whispered, his eyes drifting shut as I pressed soft kisses on his face. "I thought I was going to lose you."

"Our time apart confirmed that I need you in my life like the need to breathe. You keep me going, Eric." I kissed the tip of his nose, watching his deep, brown eyes slid open softly.

"Good, because I'll never let you go."
***

"Mom, I'm home. And I brought a friend." I called into the house, petting Goldy as his tail smacked at my let. He ducked under my touch, diving for Eric like he too know it had been far too long.

My mom came from the kitchen, wiping her hands on the apron that wrapped around her waist. She took one look at me, smiling before briefly glancing towards Eric. I giggled as she did a double take, her eyes widening as she took in Eric's tall stature.

"Oh thank God!" She exclaimed, rushing over to us and wrapping Eric into a tight hug. "How are you dear?"

"I'm great, how are you?"

"Very happy." She smiled pulling me into her and squeezing me hard. "Come into the kitchen, I just finished making cookies," she ushered us past her, walking down the hall.

We entered the kitchen and were immediately greeted with the sight of all my brothers, stuffing cookies into their mouths. I smiled at Holly and gave Zoe a kiss on the head, chuckling as she squealed at Eric. He walked in behind me, greeted with the call of Decks and a "hell yeah" from Jake. I rolled my eyes at my brother as two of the people I loved the most hugged. I was next and I tried not to couch as he squished me against him.

"I'm proud of you, baby sis. It takes a lot of courage and love to do what you did."

"Thanks for the swift kick in the ass that I didn't want but definitely needed." Jake placed a soft kiss on my head before stepping aside.

"So you guys decided to have a family party and not invite me?" I asked, leaning against the counter. I glanced over to Eric who had Zoe in his arms, smiling at her, and tickling her stomach. She giggled and squirmed around in his arms. I bit my lip to hold back the awe of approval. He was so good with kids, our babies would have a wonderful dad.

"No, Jake said you didn't need to be here. You already knew the announcement." My mom explained, walking to the fridge and pulling out a bowl of fruit.

"Oh, that Holly's pregnant?" I wondered, getting a punch in the back from Jake. "Ow!" I yelled as Eric hit Jake back his fist connecting with the side of Jake's ribs.

"Decker! God, Riley, you have a huge mouth. I hadn't told them yet!" Jake exclaimed, holding his side where Eric hit him.

"Don't hit my girlfriend," Eric growled at Jake, his tone menacing and dead serious. I would be lying if I wasn't a tad bit turned on by the deep rumble of his voice. He was damn sexy when he was mad.

"She just stole my thunder!"

"I assumed they knew! Mom was grinning like she did!" I whined, defending my actions. I pushed my knuckles into my back, trying to ease the pain from Jake's fist. Eric set Zoe back on her feet and pulled me into him, massaging the tense and now sore muscles of my back. "Asshole." I muttered so only Eric could hear. He let out a small chuckle, kissing my cheek softly.

"Mother's always know," My mom mused, setting the bowl on the counter so she could pull Holly into a hug. "I'm over the moon for you. You'll both be great parents."

"Not Jake," David teased, smirking at him, daring him to start something.

"Fuck you, punk. I'll kick your ass when I can breathe." He scowled, watching as David backed down, the look in Jake's eyes anything but nice or joking.

"I'll get him for you," I offered.

"No, look what Decker did to Jake. I'd be dead if he got his hands on me. Ask when Decker's gone."

"I rolled my eyes at my youngest-older brother, "you're a pussy and a tool."

"Language!" My mother scolded, whirling around from where she was washing veggies for dinner.

"I love this family," Eric grinned, kissing me softly as my brothers groaned in obvious protest. It had never felt so good to be so surrounded by love.
***

Four days later, I ran up the stairs of the boys' house, desperate to get my bare legs away from the biting wind that nipped angrily at them. I tried the door knob, thankful that Eric had left it unlocked for me and stumbled in, quickly shutting the frigged air out.

"Fuck, it's cold," I mumbled as I walked past the laundry room.

"I know, right?" A female voice sounded. I practically jumped out of my skin as I whirled towards the door, looking at Kara as she folded a pair of Blake's boxers.

"Kara!" I exclaimed, holding my hand over my heart, "you scared the shit out of me." I laughed as Blake read the back of the detergent, trying to find how much he was supposed to put in the wash.

"Blake, 3," Kara rolled here eyes, pointing to the third line on the inside of the cap. "It's not that hard, boo." she told him, running one hand through the side of his hair. She turned back to me, shaking her head sadly. "When I said I'd help him with his laundry, I didn't think I would have to do it for him. He's so incapable of doing anything that involves cleaning his stuff."

"There is a reason women do this," he mumbled.

"Yeah, because men aren't smart enough," I smirked at his sour look.

"I am too smart enough. It's just that cleaning is a woman's job. I'm meant to play football and manly stuff like that."

"I'd hardly call punting a ball every other series counts as manly." I snorted at him, giggling as Kara laughed loudly much to Blake's dismay.

"Baby," he whined, sinking down to the ground and grabbing one of his shirts, trying to fold it as he watch Kara do it without any effort. He held the football shirt in front of his face, starting it down with deep concentration, biting the corner of his lip. He glanced at Kara, giving her a pout as he puckered his lips for her. She smiled and kissed him, nuzzling his nose before showing him how to fold it property. I shook my head and continued walked towards the stairs, chuckling softly as I heard Blake express how much he needed her in his life.

I slipped off my heels and ran up the stairs, my black dress swishing about my knees. I walked down the hall just as Adam came out of his room. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at him, trying to pass him without a confrontation.

"Can we talk for a second?" He asked, his hand grabbing a hold of my forearm. I knew I could say no or just keep walking since he would have no choice but to let me go. Btu I couldn't do that. Adam and I used to have a great relationship and after this whole thing, I understood that people made mistakes. Adam made a huge one but I shouldn't hold it against him forever. He was a valuable friend, plus if Katie was able to forgive him, I should be able to also. I nodded at Adam to continue, crossing my arms over my chest.

"I know what I did to Katie was completely unacceptable and I want you to know that I respect how you feel about the situation. It's how you should, you're her best friend. But you need to understand that what I feel right now, is worse than anything I've ever felt in the world and even though she's back in my arms, I hate myself for what I did to her. You can be mad at me and say all this crap about what an asshole I am, but none of it will amount to how much I'm beating myself over this." He stopped sighing loudly before he met my eyes instead of staring down at the floor boards.

"I'm sorry for all the crap I caused between you and Eric. You guys didn't deserve all of that pain and I take the blame for it."

"Stop Adam. What happened between Eric and I was my fault. I should have listened to him. You and Katie are a totally separate issue from us and I was so caught up in the drama that I forgot that. But I swear to God, if you hurt her again. I will kick your ass. I will make sure you never go near her again. And don't think I won't do it." I warned him, my voice as serious as the look on Adam's face. He nodded. "Good." I told him before turning towards Eric's door.

"Wait, Ry." He called out, gaining my attention once again. I glanced over my shoulder at him. "I also wanted to say that, I'm not just fessing up to this because I got caught because I didn't. Eric told me to tell Katie." This was news to me. I raised my eyebrows at Adam, taking in his serious look. I tugged on my bottom lip, nodding. "He's a teddy bear, ya know?" He laughed softly.

"Yeah, my teddy bear." I stuck my tongue out at Adam, walking towards him and wrapping him into a hug. "I'm glad everything is okay." I whispered, squeezing him tightly.

"Me too. Me too, Ry." He pulled away, placing a soft kiss on my forehead before walking down the hallway and into the entry way. "Holy shit! Do not have sex in the laundry room! Other people need to use that too!" He shouted as I heard Kara and Blake giggling. I laughed, rolling my eyes at their nympho mindset and pushed Eric's door open.

I found him snuggled into his blankets, his face covered as his body rose and fell with his steady breathing. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion as I looked him over, surprised that he was asleep. Tonight was out make-up Valentine's Day dinner and our reservations were at 7, but here he was, passed out under the covers. I tip toed over to him, resting my hand against his cheek. He was burning up and his cheek licked flames at my hand. I grabbed the covers from his body, yanking them back.

"Eric, wake up," I tapped his face lightly, getting him to come too quickly. "Are you sick, babe?" I asked him, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"No, I've just been sleeping for like four hours." He mumbled, stretching his arms above his head before wrapping them around my waist.

"No, honey, I think you have a fever." He shook his head at me, sitting up in bed and placing a kiss on my cheek.

"Nah, just let me change and we can head out." He shrugged off, standing up and sluggishly moving to his closet. I watched him carefully, looking for the usual signs that he wasn't feeling well. My eyes stayed on him as he walked from his room and into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. He came back out, dressed in a black dress shirt and pair of nice dark jeans.

"Ready?" He asked me, sniffling a bit.

"Eric, are you-"

"Riley, baby, I'm fine." He insisted. "Tonight's about us." He shook his head up and down. I nodded back to him, my green eyes staying locked on his dewy eyes. I knew he was lying to me, he didn't feel good at all but he was willing to ignore that and go on our date. He held his hand out to me, tugging me off the bed and softly kissing my cheek, another sign that he was sick.

Eric took me to my favorite Italian place, stuffing me full of pasta and dessert, making me thankful that I had worn a generally loose fitting dress, Then he took me to a play at the Guthrie theater, a take off of Romeo and Juliet but with a more modern twist. It was different in the sense that the two didn't die in the end. They got married, had babies, and lived happily ever after. How that represented Romeo and Juliet, I didn't know.

By the end of the night, Eric was miserable. He would have cough attacks and his fever kept spiking and then going back down, the medicine he took before he left doing nothing to help him. I sighed as the play ended, glancing at Eric to see his eyes shut as he slouched down in his seat. I didn't bother to wake him until the theater had mostly cleared out.

"Baby," I called to him, patting his cheek. His brown eyes squinted open and I gave him a small smile, kissing his forehead softly. "The play is over," I informed him. He sat up quickly, closing his eyes as an obvious wave of dizziness came over him.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep," he yawned, holding his head in his hands as his elbows rested gingerly on his knees. "God, I ache all over." He looked over at me, his thumbs pressing into his forehead.

"You have a fever and you're sick," I pointed out to him, motioning for him to stand up. "Come on cowboy, you gotta get home to bed." I grabbed his keys, hanging from the Minnesota Football lanyard.

"I can drive," he tired to protest. I snorted, rolling my eyes at him.

"Okay, wonder boy." I told him, pushing the door open and huddling into him as we moved across the parking lot.

"Ry, stop." He told me softly as we came to his truck. I turned towards him, having no time to react as he pushed me against his truck, his lips crashing down on mine in a hot kiss. The kiss completely took my breath away as his body pressed against mine, my dress riding up my thighs as his hands pushed the black material away. He lifted me into his arms, his tongue flicking against mine. My eyes rolled into the back of my head as one of his hands slid into my panties, gently rubbing against my slick folds. His fingers softly brushed over my most sensitive area, moving in a circular motion.

"Eric!" I gasped, so turned on by the thought of getting caught and the fact that his feverish body was like a hot furnace, edging me on. My head slammed against the window as his fingers slid into me, immediately thrusting back out and diving in once more. At that moment, I didn't care that there were multiple camera's around or that there was a high risk of getting caught. I couldn't focus on anything but the way Eric's thick fingers brushing against my already quivering walls. All the oxygen flew from my body as I rolled off the cliff into a sea of ecstasy and white, hot orgasm. Blue spots flashed behind my eyelids as my muscles uncoiled so I was mush in Eric's arms.

Eric didn't say anything after that, he just grabbed the keys from me, not having to fight me for them. He unlocked the door for me, sliding me into my seat as I still shook in my post-orgasm state. I fluttered my eyes, glancing at Eric as he climbed into the passenger seat. He finally turned to me as he pulled out of the empty parking lot, his fingers lacing with mine.

"Just so you know, I may be sick, but there is going to be plenty more of that tonight. I'm going to make you feel real good. So good, that you're not going to be able to function without my help," he nipped playfully at my ear lobe as my eyes fluttered shut at the mere though of another round of that. I turned to Eric, not caring that he was sick anymore, and giving him a bring it on look. Tonight was our night, a night to release all of our still pent up frustration. And there was no better way to do it than with a nice bought in the sheets.