Ache With Me

“Lily?” Zina poked her head out of her office. “Can you come here for a minute?”

“Sure thing boss.” I saved what I had been working on and headed into her office. “What’s up?” I was pretty sure I knew what she was about to say to me.

“Zack told me about what happened with Hannah.” She shook her head. “I’m so sorry. I feel like I’m partly to blame for her outburst. I keep pestering you for details, it must annoy you and other people in the office.”

“Zina, don’t apologize.” I’d come to the decision over the weekend that I wasn’t going to let this get me down. My relationship was my own to be happy about and if I wanted to talk about it, she didn’t have to listen. “I’m not going to let Hannah bother me.”

“Oh good.” She let out a breath. “Well, I guess back to work you go then, or to lunch, your choice.” Right on cue, my phone started buzzing. I left her office and went to stand by the stairwell.

“Hey Max.” I couldn’t help but smile at his voice.

“I’m sorry love I’m not gonna make it to lunch, no one’s checked on Hunter for the past few days, I need to make sure he’s still alive.” I could hear sounds in the back like he was driving.

“It’s fine, go make sure he’s okay. And ask him about Eden, she won’t tell me anything.”

“Will do. See you after work?”

“Yeah, I’ll go over to your apartment after I get off.”

“Well hopefully you’ll get off in my apartment.”

“Max!”

“Bye Lily.” He hung up before I could say anything else. I went back to work, doing some preliminary research on a restaurant I was supposed to be checking out soon. Apparently the building had been there since the 1940s, but it’d been empty for almost twenty years before the new owners gutted it and converted it into a Thai-Chinese fusion joint. I couldn’t figure out if I wanted to take Max or Eden. A twinge of guilt passed through me as I thought of Eden. I’d been neglecting her since I started dating Max. The gig at The House of Gold and Bones was the first time I’d seen her since Christmas. I resolved to take Eden with me.

One might say I spent way too much time with Max, but it was good to come home from a long day at work and watch him paint, or sit and talk to him or just relax in front of the TV. We’d developed a wonderful routine in the five months we’d been together. I pulled up the sleeve of my sweater to look at the flowers he’d drawn on my forearm. They were lilies of the valley, drawn in silver sharpie. I’d done my best to keep it from wearing off.

Once five o’clock rolled around, I grabbed my purse and practically raced to the elevator. I needed a good cuddle and some wine. I hadn’t slept very well last night, having spent it alone. Max had a meeting this morning and needed to be up early, so he slept at his apartment and I was alone in my loft. I’d gotten so used to being able to roll over and bump into a warm body that it was strange not to. I even missed the little whistling noise he made sometimes when he slept on his back. If this is domesticity, sign me up.

I was halfway to his apartment on the bus when I was hit with sudden inspiration. I got off at the next stop to go to a grocery store and buy some supplies to make him dinner. He made me food all the time and pretended to be a little housewife for me while he did it. It was high time I did the same.

I let myself into the apartment and found it empty, save a large black cat that mewed at me pitifully when I came in. I suspected he was hungry. After dumping the groceries off in the kitchen, I filled Sylvester’s food bowl. He butted his head against my leg before he fell on his food ravenously. I put the chicken breasts into a bowl to marinate and then started checking his supplies, making sure he had the pans and things I would need. My phone buzzed, revealing a text from Max saying he’d be home in about a half hour.

I put on some music to keep me company while I ran around setting things up, going so far as to put candles on the table. I’d just started grilling the chicken when I felt a hand on my back. I let out a small screech of surprise and jumped away from the hand.

“You scared me!” I yelled, swatting at Max with the tongs when he started laughing at me.

“I’m sorry babe, I thought you heard me.” He leaned down to give me a peck on the lips. “You went fancy for dinner tonight.”

“Well I figured I might as well return the favor.” I winked at him. “Go sit down, it’ll be ready in a few minutes.” Max’s platters were too far up for me to reach, so I climbed up on the counter to get them out of the cabinet.

“Isn’t that dangerous to do in those heels?” He took the dishes as I handed them down.

“I’m an experienced high heel wearer.” I hopped down and started serving the food.

“I’m going to assume you’re staying the night.” He filled two wine glasses and put them on the table.

“You assume correctly.” I’d made a quick stop at my loft to pick up some clothes for tomorrow morning. I’d made the mistake once of wearing the same clothes two days in a row and no one in the office would let me live it down. He helped me carry the platters over and we dug into our meal happily. With our bellies full, we collapsed onto the couch to snuggle.

“So how was Hunter?” I asked, my fingers tracing slow circles on his stomach.

“He was locked up in his attic writing frantically. From what he told me, your friend Eden inspired him to work and he went crazy, hasn’t slept in three days. I made him take a shower and go lie down in his actual bed to sleep.” He caught my hand and lifted it to his lips to kiss it.

“Did he say anything else about Eden?” I really wanted Eden and Hunter to hit it off. They had a lot of common interests and they’d make a beautiful couple.

“Something about her having a soul full of flowers, whatever the hell that means. I think he likes her.”

“Good, we need to set them up. I think they’d be great together.”

“We can figure it out later.” He shut me up by kissing me, pulling me up so I was lying on top of him. With some effort, I pulled away from him, resting my forehead on his.

“Let’s go to bed.” I whispered.

“Are you tired already?” His eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

“Max, let’s go to bed.” He seemed to catch my meaning and swept me up into his arms, carrying me into his bedroom. He kicked the door shut with one booted foot, making sure Sylvester wouldn’t be coming to interrupt or watch. Setting me down on the bed, he leaned against his dresser to watch me remove my jewelry, stacking it on his nightstand. When I looked back up at Max, he’d already taken off his boots and shirt. I moved to start taking off my top but he stilled my hands.

“No, let me.” He whispered, curling his fingers under the hem of it. He tugged it off and tossed it away from us. I scooted back into the middle of the bed, pulling him with me. “Thank God for front clasps.” He murmured against my lips, flicking the clasp of my bra open.

“You know, it probably would have helped if we’d taken our jeans off first.” I giggled after he’d struggled to get my jeans down my legs. He made a noise of frustration and rolled off me, letting me pull them off myself while he took off his own. After a moment’s hesitation, I sent my underwear flying, Max’s boxers following swiftly behind.

We lay there looking at each other for a long time. It wasn’t the first time we’d seen each other this undressed, but it was the first time we’d be taking this next step in our relationship. In all the time we’d spent together, we’d never had sex. I just…wanted to wait a while. The anticipation made it all the better, in my opinion.

“You’re beautiful.” He ran one hand up my side, leaving goosebumps in its wake.

“Come over here.” I welcomed his familiar weight on me, tilting my head back to give him better access to my neck. He didn’t spend as much time on my neck as he usually did, probably distracted by all the bare flesh in front of him.

He pushed himself up to kneel in front of me on the bed, gazing down at me. “Now, where do I put my mouth first?” The question seemed more directed towards himself than me, but I answered anyway.

“I’ll tell you where to put it.” I knitted my fingers in his hair and pulled his head down gently, guiding him to exactly where I wanted him. He seemed to have absolutely no problem with my choice and happily put his mouth to work. I was usually pretty quiet when it came to the bedroom, but something about the feeling of Max’s tongue on me was changing that. I clapped my hand over my mouth after one particularly loud moan, only for him to stop.

“I want to hear you.” He pried my hand away, holding it down with one of his. Then his head dipped back between my thighs, this time joined by his free hand. The combination quickly turned me into a moaning, quivering mess.

“God dammit Max, get on with it.” I whined, tugging on his hair.

“Eager are we?” He laughed when he saw the look on my face. “Glad to know my girl is impatient for me.” He gave me a rough kiss before reaching over me to the nightstand. Deciding to be sneaky, I reached down and palmed his length, relishing the soft hiss he let out. He stopped digging in the drawer as I continued to stroke him.

“I thought you wanted me to get on with it.” He let out a long moan. “You’re killing me Lily.”

“Then get the fucking condom out of the drawer.” I let go of him so he could focus on his task. He ripped through the tin foil with his teeth, wasting no time in rolling it over himself and repositioning himself between my legs.

“Ready?” I nodded and in one swift motion he pushed into me. He set a slow, leisurely pace. I could tell he wanted to take his time and enjoy every minute of it. Lord knows I was. He’d already gotten me most of the way to orgasm, and even at a slow pace it wouldn’t take long for me to finish. I could feel the heat in the pit of my stomach growing hotter and hotter until I clenched around him suddenly, my whole body starting to shake with the force of it. One long moan ripped its way out of my throat, then I relaxed back into the bed.

“Fucking Christ Max,” I breathed, leaning up to kiss him. He sped up the movements of his hips slightly, the thrusts growing sloppier until they stopped all together. I could feel his body shuddering against mine as he rode out his orgasm. He slipped out of me, taking a few minutes to catch his breath before disposing of the condom.

“Worth the wait?” I asked when he crawled back on the bed with me.

“Definitely. You may want to put some clothes on though, I might ravish you again.”

“Believe me, any ravishing would be completely consensual.” I did get up, on wobbly legs, to find a shirt to sleep in. Then I took it and my panties into the bathroom to clean myself up a bit. I returned moments later, feeling fresh and a little drowsy, to find Max cuddled up under the covers.

“I figured I’d warm up the sheets for you.” He said, lifting them to let me in. He’d put his boxers back on. I knew he hated the feeling of sleeping naked and everything flapping around.

“You’re amazing. In more ways than one.” I kissed his nose.

“I know. Now if you’ll excuse me, it’s my turn to clean up.” He disappeared into the bathroom, leaving me to stare up at the ceiling and contemplate the amazing sex I’d just had. Hell, it was barely even sex. What we’d just done probably fell more under the category of love-making. I certainly felt loved and cared for.

I heard footsteps and looked up to see Max posed against the doorframe seductively. “Miss me?”

“Yes, definitely.” I giggled when he took a running jump to dive onto the bed. “Now get under here, it’s still cold.” He rolled under the blankets, wasting no time in pulling me into his arms.

“I absolutely adore you.” He murmured into my hair. “I don’t know how I got so lucky.”

“You were an asshole in a coffee shop, that’s how.”

“You know, that’s not actually the first place I ever saw you.” I lifted my head to look at him.

“Really?” I couldn’t remember ever seeing him.

“A few weeks before the interview, I was standing at a bus stop in the rain and you let me share your umbrella.” At his words, I suddenly remembered the attractive blond who’d been eyeing me.

“That was you!”

“Yeah, that was me. I didn’t put it together until after the interview.”

“I thought you were gorgeous even then.” I stroked his cheek gently. “As for your earlier statement, I absolutely adore you too.”

“Good.” He kissed the top of my head. “Now you’ve got work in the morning and I plan on ravishing you again before you leave, so we should get some sleep.” I laughed and agreed. He turned the lights off, rearranging us so we could sleep more comfortably. I fell asleep with a small smile on my face and a half naked English man next to me. Life was good.