Burning on the Edge

Frisky Business had reached an all time high. Since the block party a few weeks ago, revenue and customers had increased by over 50%, and that percentage was still steadily rising. Not only were the locals impressed and intrigued by what the shop had to offer, but a lot of the business deals that Bug had been making in the back end were helping as well. He’d gotten more advertisements, sponsorships, and investors, making the business thrive.

Because of this, Charlie’s work shifts became busier than what she was used to. There were no lulls, no opportunity to dilly dally, or take her time with boring tasks, like restocking. She was constantly moving around. If there wasn’t work to be done behind the scenes, there was always at least one customer to take care of. In a way, it was exhausting because she went home tired and barely able to do anything other than go straight to bed. On the other hand, it helped her avoid Niall, who was still very much present in her life despite the fact that she claimed she was done with him the night of the block party.

This was the side of hooking up with her co-worker that she didn’t think about. In her head, while she fantasized about being with him, she somehow forgot to think about the consequences of it not working out. So, on Monday, when she showed up to work after her morning classes and Niall was sitting there, textbooks out as usual, it was unbearably awkward. Neither made much eye contact and when they did, they looked away like they got burned. What helped was that they were kept busy soon after.

So Charlie stuck with that. She didn’t have to acknowledge him and it wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be. Did she still have feelings for him? Kind of, but Charlie was good at ignoring them, and that was exactly what she was going to do.

 

As Charlie finished up her shift one night, she stood by the door, checking her slew of text messages, which she hadn’t been able to respond to while working. Niall was still behind the counter and Bug was somewhere in the back, looking over stock. Charlie heard Niall clear his throat but didn’t allow herself look up to see if he was trying to get her attention. He was going to have to do better than that. She heard him clear his throat again, and then again.

In the end when he saw she wasn’t going to budge, he spoke up. “Hey Charlie.”

Reluctantly, she met his clear, blue eyes with her own. “Yes?”

“Um, I was, uh, wondering if you, uh, wanted to, uh, talk?” he asked, fumbling through his words.

Charlie raised an unimpressed brow before shaking her head. “I can’t. I’ve got tons to do at home and we’re all getting together for dinner, so.” He started to nod in understanding and because Charlie was a ruthless, petty bitch, she added, “Besides. I’m sure you have coursework to do, anyway. Have fun.”

With a wave, she exited the shop, walking toward the tube. The warm air met her skin, making her smile. She felt quite proud of herself for being able to do that and stand up for herself. There were times when she doubted it all and felt bad for being so harsh on Niall when his reasons were legitimate. But then she remembered all the hot and cold, up and down moments, and she knew that it was justified.

By the time she got home, all her friends were already there at the apartment, Zayn included. The night after the block party, Charlie had cried to her friends about what went down with Niall. They were sympathetic, of course, even offering to cut Zayn and Niall out of their lives. But Charlie told them that wouldn’t be necessary. It didn’t have to be that dramatic, and plus she liked Zayn. His easy going demeanor was nice to be around.

He was sitting between Louis and Liam on the couch with a third video game controller in his hands. They all smiled and greeted her while pausing the game. Charlie said hello back and then went into the kitchen where she found Gwen finishing up making dinner while Harry got drinks ready. Charlie jumped in to help, setting up plates and mats at the table so that Harry and Gwen could bring the food out.

“How was work?” Harry asked, the two of them lingering in the space between the kitchen and the living room.

“Work was fine,” Charlie sighed. “Busy as usual. Niall finally spoke to me today.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, he wanted to talk, or whatever,” Charlie said, shrugging. “I think he just feels bad, but I don’t want his sympathy, you know? I just want to forget everything.”

“Forget what?” Gwen asked, appearing beside them.

“Niall wanted to talk to Charlie today, but she wants to forget everything,” Harry filled her in.

Gwen hummed, nodding her head in response. “It wouldn’t hurt to hear him out, you know? It’s been a few weeks, maybe he’s sort of understood where he went wrong.”

“I disagree,” Harry chimed in. “I think all men are trash and he doesn’t deserve your time.”

“Harry…” Gwen snickered. “You’re a man.”

“I am, and I’ve come to the conclusion that we’re all disgusting,” he said.

Charlie giggled, pushing past the two and walking toward the living room, gathering the boys and leading them to the dining room. Before sitting down at her spot, Charlie noticed Louis and Harry lingering in the hallway alone, whispering something to each other. Louis must have pissed Harry off because he was scowling, but Louis looked charmed. That was still going on, but no word about it from either. Charlie didn’t ask them about it, though. She understood what it was like being stuck on labels and unable to decide on them.

 

“Come on in, Aiden,” Bug said as he opened the front door to Frisky Business and moved aside to let another guy through. Both Charlie and Niall glanced up from their posts behind the counter. Niall had just finished helping and ringing up a customer and Charlie was getting ready to fix up some shelves that the morning crowd had messed up.

The guy who walked in with Bug looked to be around their age. He was tall, shaggy brown hair with and a smile that was nearly blinding. He grinned over at the two and waved. “Hey, I’m Aiden,” he said, reaching over to shake their hands. He was also American, Charlie noted from his accent, as she and Niall introduced themselves.

“I’m interviewing him today,” Bug announced. “Put up a post for a new employee to help you guys out.”

“Oh,” Charlie said. “You didn’t mention it to us.”

“Just put up the ad last night and Aiden was amongst the first ten applicants,” Bug explained before turning to Aiden. “You ready to go to my office?”

Aiden nodded. “Yeah, I am.” He looked to Charlie and Niall again. “See you guys around.”

“Good luck,” Niall said, goodnaturedly. Charlie watched them walk to Bug’s office. Aiden was rather confident. It wasn’t like this job was hard, but he oozed this sort of cocky personality that was either very annoying, or really charming. Charlie needed to talk to him more to figure out which category he fell under.

Thirty minutes later, the pair emerged from Bug’s office. By then, Charlie was done arranging the shelves and was ringing up a few customers that Niall had helped out on the floor. He was moving back to his post, head down as he tapped away on his phone. Charlie leaned against the counter, eyeing Aiden, who had an easy grin on his face. “How’d it go?” Charlie asked.

“Hired him on the spot,” Bug answered for him. “He’s going to be starting next week. Charlie, will you show him around the store a bit?”

“Sure,” Charlie responded. Bug headed to the stock room and Aiden lingered in front of Charlie. She plastered on a smile for him. “Right, so congrats and welcome to the team. I’ll, um, show you around, but everything’s pretty standard around here.”

“Cool,” Aiden said.

As Charlie walked around the counter, she was acutely aware of Niall watching them curiously. Ignoring him, she led Aiden over to their main floor where they kept all their products. She started by giving him a general run down of the stuff they carried, where it came from, and how often they reshelved and restocked everything.

“Is this your first retail job?” Charlie asked, midtour.

“No, I worked in an apparel store once. Not exactly this, though, as I’m sure it’s lot more interesting around here,” Aiden answered.

“It is and it isn’t. I’m not really all that phased by the products we sell, so selling them isn’t interesting, but it’s not boring either. It always makes for an entertaining day because we get some interesting customers in here.”

“Any fun stories for me?” Aiden grinned, leaning against the end of a shelf.

Charlie thought for a moment, running through some of the highlights of her career at Frisky Business. “Once, I had a customer come in who had never gotten a sex toy before and she couldn’t decide on which vibrator she wanted, so she’d ask me to show her, like, the pressures and powers for each. And then, when she still couldn’t decide, she asked me to try them out and let her know.”

“What?” Aiden blinked, an amused laugh slipping past his lips. “As in, try it right then and report back to her?”

“Yup,” Charlie nodded, laughing. “I had to explain to her that I couldn’t try products like that, only show them.”

“Incredible. I’m learning that there are tons of characters out here in England.”

“I guess. Where exactly are you from?” Charlie couldn’t help but ask.

“Wisconsin, so you can understand how much of a culture shock it’s been for me to come here from midwest America.”

Charlie really couldn’t understand, but she nodded, nonetheless. “Are you here for school, or?”

“Nah, I just like traveling and I wanted to come down here for a few years and get out of my hometown for a bit. I graduated from college last December and was doing nothing for a while. Then I realized since I have a little saved up, I should try and do something worthwhile with it.”

“That’s cool,” Charlie commended. “Are you liking it so far?”

“Yeah, totally. I mean, I was a bit lost at first, but I’ve gotten a hang of the area. Having this job will help, too. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that the girls are really cute out here.”

Charlie refrained from reacting, simply stared at Aiden, who was smirking at her. While he was cute, she didn’t really have a response because he had caught her off guard. Plus, her heart was still healing from the whole Niall thing. Speaking of, it had been too quiet from his corner of the shop, so Charlie glanced over at him. Niall had a book in front of him, but she could see his eyes trained on her and Aiden above the brim. Upon getting caught, he quickly looked down, coughing into his fist and trying to look natural.

When she faced Aiden again, he was observing some of the magazines. “Do you want to go check out the rest of the place?” she asked.

“Yeah, sure,” he nodded, following her. Charlie finished up the tour by showing him where the stockroom was, and where he could place his things and check in when he came in for his shifts. Once the tour was done, Aiden headed over to Bug’s office to fill out some paperwork. Charlie made her way back to the counter as a customer walked in.

“I’ll get it,” Niall said, walking around to sort them out. As he helped them find what they were looking for and started ringing them up, Aiden walked out, approaching Charlie.

She smiled at him. “Everything go okay?”

“As okay as can be. We just signed some documents and I’m getting my schedule soon,” he replied. “Are you excited to have me as your co-worker?”

“Of course. You could bring the American charm to our English shop.”

“I’ll do my best. Now, tell me, are there any rules against dating coworkers?” he asked. It was at that moment that the customer left the shop and Aiden seemed louder than he probably intended. Niall stood at his post, not even being subtle as he watched the two of them, eyebrows raised at Aiden.

Charlie ran a hand through her hair, wishing she could vanish from this awkward spot.

Aiden somewhat picked up on the vibe as he studied her. “I can be very straightforward, I’m sorry,” he said, putting a hand over his chest to show his earnestness. “But I think you’re cute and have a nice personality so I’d love to get to know you a little better. Are you free Friday night, by any chance?”

“She’s working,” Niall interrupted, giving Aiden a pointed look.

Charlie nearly choked.

“Oh,” Aiden mumbled.

“Excuse me,” Charlie quickly butted in. “But why are you intervening here?”

“I’m only stating facts,” Niall said, raising his hands up in surrender.

“I can take off if I want to,” she shot back before turning to Aiden. It was pissing her off that Niall was behaving this way. It was so like him to be that fucking guy that treats a girl wrong and the minute someone else gives her attention, he’s all jealous. Charlie wasn’t going to let that stand. She smiled brightly. “I’ll go on a date with you, Aiden. Friday night works fine.”

Aiden glanced from Niall to Charlie a few times before smiling at her. “Perfect. Give me your number and I’ll text you.”

After exchanging numbers, Aiden left, giving them both a wave. As soon as he was out, Niall huffed, stalking over to the far end of the counter where he slammed his book open and got to work. Charlie scoffed loudly, moving to the other end and away from the bloody brat across from her.

 

“Tell us again why you’re going on a date with this random guy,” Harry asked, shoveling a handful of popcorn into his mouth.

“Don’t drop any on my bed,” Charlie warned him before turning back to her dresser to continue getting ready.

“I second his question,” Gwen said from beside Harry. They were both on her bed, holding some form of snack or beverage, and it was making Charlie paranoid that they were going to spill on her new sheets.

“Aiden’s not random. He works with me,” Charlie answered.

“What’s it with you and dating all your coworkers? Is that a thing?” Harry snickered before gasping and clutching his chest dramatically. “Is Bug next? What about Sidney?”

“It’s not a thing,” Charlie snapped. “I don’t know what it is. I’m not even into him like that. He’s kind of cocky and he’s got this confident air about him that sort of says that he thinks he can say whatever he wants and it’ll sound charming just because of the way he said it. Does that make sense?”

“A little,” Gwen nodded. “Sounds like he’s a tool.”

“He’s not a tool. Or at least I don’t think he is. He asked me out after I gave him a tour of the place and Niall butted in, acting like he was my personal bodyguard and could tell people when I am or am not available, so I accepted the date offer just to spite him.”

“Me thinks Niall’s jealous,” Harry grinned.

“Me thinks you are right,” Charlie added.

“Stop talking like that,” Gwen shook her head. “Anyway, I don’t think you should go out with him just because you want to piss Niall off.”

At that exact moment, the front door bell rang. Charlie grimaced, “Too late for that. But it’s fine. I’ll see you guys later.” She walked out of her room, waving bye to the Liam, Louis and Zayn as she went to the front door. When she opened it, she was met with the sight of Aiden holding a bouquet of flowers in front of his face to hide himself. Tilting to the side, he revealed himself.

“Hey,” he greeted.

“Hi,” Charlie smiled.”Are these for me?”

“Yes, they are,” Aiden grinned, handing them over. “Pretty flowers for the pretty lady.”

“Thank you,” Charlie said, taking them from his hand. “Give me a moment to put these in a vase. I have to see if we even have one. You can come in while I look. My friends are in the living room.”

Aiden nodded, walking inside and going into the living room, where Charlie heard a chorus of hellos. She went to the kitchen, looking through cabinets until she found a vase all the way in the back of one of their pantries. After putting some water in it, she put the flowers inside, taking the vase to her room. Harry and Gwen had cleared out of there, so after placing the vase on her dresser, she walked back to the living room.

Immediately, she stopped in her tracks upon seeing Niall sitting there amongst her friends. She didn’t even know he’d come over! When did he manage to slip past her? Charlie frowned, approaching everyone. Aiden glanced up at her, flashing her a bright smile, which meant her friends were nice to him.

“Ready to go?” Aiden asked.

“Yeah, I’m all set.”

Everyone said goodbye to them, but not before Charlie flashed Niall another confused look. He seemed casual, arms draped around Zayn and Louis while they focused on whatever was playing on the telly. It wasn’t an issue that he’d come over since their friends were still on good terms, but something still felt off. When she and Aiden got to his car, he unlocked it, opening the passenger door for her. As she got in, she noticed him looking at the car tire on her side and frowning, moving away to inspect it.

“Everything okay?” Charlie asked.

“No, actually. My tire’s ran out of air,” he explained, bending down to his knees and taking a closer look. “I just got this the other day, too.”

Charlie got out of the car, standing beside him to inspect herself. The tire was losing air steadily. “Fuck,” Charlie muttered. “You should take care of this. I could call someone for you.”

“Nah, it’s okay,” Aiden stood up. “I’ve got a spare in the back.”

For the next thirty minutes, Charlie stood on the side while Aiden changed out his tire. They made small talk during it. While Charlie wanted to poke around for more info on their date, Aiden was mostly mum about it, wanting everything to be a surprise. They spoke about his move, how he’d gotten this car from a used car dealership within a month of coming in because he was so used to driving everywhere. After he was finished replacing the tire, he threw the old one in the trunk, opened the car door for her again, and they were off.

They arrived to a Japanese restaurant not too far from where Charlie lived. The hostess checked for Aiden’s name, but then smiled apologetically. “I’m sorry, Mr. Gallo, but since you were late for your reservation, we gave your table to someone else.”

“Shit,” Aiden breathed out, looking frustrated.

“Hey,” Charlie said, reaching for his arm. “Don’t worry about it. We can wait.”

“You sure?” Aiden asked. “We can go to another restaurant.”

“It’s fine. I love Japanese.”

He smiled, taking her hand in his, and requested another table. The wait was another thirty minutes, but they got a complimentary glass of wine while they sat in the waiting room. “Sorry everything’s going wrong tonight,” Aiden said, lips pouty.

“Eh, shit happens, right? I know you didn’t do any of this on purpose.”

“Thanks for being so understanding. Are all British girls like you?”

Charlie furrowed her brows, trying to understand his question more clearly. “I’m not sure, but what I am sure of is that all girls are great. British, American, whoever they may be.”

“I don’t know. My last ex was kind of crazy,” he admitted, smiling sheepishly.

“Why do you say that?”

“Constantly mad about something I did, never wanted to listen. The list goes on,” he replied, waving his hand about.

“Ah, well maybe you did mess up and that’s why she was mad and didn’t want to listen?” Charlie suggested. She wasn’t feeling his misogynistic tone or commentary, but she’d give him a pass until the end of dinner unless he got out of hand. Then she had no problem in giving him a lecture on trying to find fault in women.

Aiden shrugged, smiling brightly at her. “Maybe. Anyway, what about you? Any crazy ex stories?”

“Not really, no,” Charlie responded.

“When was the last time you were with someone?”

Charlie thought for a moment, her mind drifting to Niall. Did that count? She really wanted it to count because her feelings were legitimate and she did have sex with him. Thankfully, before she could respond, the hostess called them up to seat them. After settling down in their booth, the two perused the menu, picking out sushi rolls to share together and an entree each for after. Upon placing their order, Aiden continued to question Charlie on everything and anything.

He wanted to know about her childhood, her embarrassing moments, who her best friends were, how she ended up choosing Communications as her major, and everything in between. It was what every first date should be and Charlie was enjoying herself, forgetting the mess that she left behind at home. After dinner, the waiter arrived with their bill and Aiden swiftly took it. He reached into his pockets, but his hands came out empty. A frown formed on Aiden’s face as he continued to rifle through his coat and pant pockets.

“Oh God,” he mumbled, standing up, shaking his clothes as though it would make his wallet appear.

“Everything alright?” Charlie asked, though, she had an inkling about what was going on.

“Can’t seem to find my wallet,” Aiden admitted. “Just give me a moment to look for it.”

Charlie nodded and Aiden quickly left the restaurant, most likely to go search in his car. When he got back, his expression was dejected and embarrassed, cheeks flushed and eyes downcast.

“I couldn’t find it,” he said. “I might have left my wallet at home, or something. Would it be okay to ask you to pay for the meal and I’ll venmo you the money right now to pay for it?”

“Yeah, sure,” Charlie assured him. She took out her wallet, handing over her card to the waiter. It wasn’t that she really minded having to pay for a meal. She wasn’t backwards enough to think that the guy always had to pay, or that she wasn’t capable financially to pay for a date. She was just suspicious. Too many things were going wrong tonight. The weight of that was visible on Aiden’s expression and he looked like he was beating himself up for it. Charlie stood up and placed a hand on his arm. “Hey, don’t worry about it. I’m having a lot of fun.”

Hearing that got a smile out of him and Aiden tangled their fingers together, leading her out of the restaurant. As Charlie passed by other patrons at the restaurant, her eyes glazed over someone with a familiar head of blond hair, and her head swiveled in the direction. The person lifting up the menu over their face, trying to cover themselves, but Charlie was sure it was Niall.

 

Aiden apologized approximately twelve times on the ride home, promising that their next date would be tons better if she gave him another chance. Charlie agreed and even gave him a kiss on the cheek as goodbye once he stopped in front of her building. The flat was fairly quiet when she got in. The lights were dimmed and Charlie went straight to her room without fully stepping into the living room to see if any of her friends stayed back. She wanted to change and get ready for bed first. It’d been a long night.  

Once she was done, she tiptoed out of her room to investigate. Charlie found Zayn, Harry, and Louis all passed out in the living room. Liam and Gwen were most likely in Gwen’s bedroom. And of course, there was no sign of Niall. What a coincidence.

Letting her mind wander through the possibilities of what went down tonight, Charlie went to the kitchen for a glass of water as well as a piece of chocolate from the fridge. As she did that, footsteps reached the doorway. Charlie didn’t even need to look up to know it was Niall. At this point, he was some sort of ninja spy coming in and out of places without her noticing and she was giving up being surprised. When her eyes did glance up, he looked guilty, mouth in a line and eyes refusing to meet hers.

“I can’t believe you,” she eventually said to him.

“Well…” he trailed off, shrugging as he shoved his hands in his jeans pockets.

“What you did tonight was not okay! Do you think I’m stupid? That I wouldn’t figure out you were the one trying to sabotage my date?”

Niall shrugged again, frustratingly so, and leaned against the door frame. The light lit up from the hallway cast him in a dewy, golden glow and Charlie hated how good he looked. How at ease and stupidly perfect he looked after the fucked up shit he did tonight. She put down the glass of water she’d gotten for herself and marched right up to him so he could see how angry she was at him.

“You’re so unfair, you know that?” she said to him. “I told you how I felt about you. I took my feelings and put them out on my sleeve for you. And you didn’t want me, not like that. You told me that you were slipping up and making mistakes. You made me feel like shit, Niall. You strung me along and confused me and I hate that. No one does that to me. Not some stupid, fucking boy who can’t make up his mind. And I’m trying to move on, but you interfere with your messed up macho pride and fucked up mixed signals. You want to build me up again, fill me with feelings that I’m not asking for, and then what? Is that going to be another slip up? You going to reject me again?”

When he didn’t answer, she scoffed in his face.

“I’m done,” she whispered.

Turning around, Charlie grabbed her piece of chocolate she’d gotten from the fridge as well as her glass of water. The second she started to walk away toward her room, Niall broke his silence.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I fucked up, I know. I’m not just saying that because some guy was giving you attention. Yeah, it definitely upset me and I was a jealous dick. But I started realizing long before he got here that you’re still in my heart, no matter what I say to you or want to do. Forget school, forget distractions -- you’re still there. I can’t seem to stop thinking about you. It’s been so exhausting fighting myself about this.”

“You don’t mean that,” Charlie shook her head, turning to look at him again.

“I do,” he swore. “I mean every word, Charlie. I like you, point blank. I want to be with you. No games, no slip ups. This is all real. I think about you so often, you have no idea. It’s been driving me crazy. I just needed you to be a little patient with me and not fall for someone new.”

“You don’t get to decide that.”

“I’m not. I’m asking you to, and even that’s unfair after everything I’ve done. But I’ll be here tomorrow with the same feelings I have today.” Niall took a soft breath. “Charlie Holland, you’re the best girl I know. And I’m so sorry for not recognizing that sooner.”

“And you, Niall Horan, are the most frustrating boy,” she exclaimed, putting her things down on the counter and closing the space between them. “You’re awful, really, and I should turn around and go back to my room and live my life. I should be going on that second date with Aiden.”

Niall’s eyes were hopeful, the blue sparkling despite the dimness of the flat. “But… you’re not…?”

“No, because you’re still in my heart, too. I can’t stop thinking about you,” she admitted.

Maybe Niall didn’t deserve this second chance, but Charlie wanted to give to him. She’d always been rather reckless, giving into her every temptation and heart’s desire. It was the way she lived life and that wasn’t going to change. As long as they both knew where they stood and where they messed up, it should be fine.

Niall reached for her hands, holding them tight in his. “I’m in this if you still are,” he said. “Sorry it took me so long to catch up.”

“You should be,” was all she could say. She was running out of words, still conflicted about whether or not she should give in. Her arms stayed limp by her side, but Niall still tugged her forward by her hands until her body was flush against him. Her hands came up to his shoulders, watching as Niall smirked at her, letting his arms snake around her waist. He thought he was being so slick.

Then, he tilted his head to the side, leaned forward, and placed a soft kiss to her collarbone. Charlie tried not to let herself react. She remained stone cold. But Niall continued, his lips sponging kiss after kiss across her chest and neck before settling over a sensitive spot and sucking a bite there. Charlie didn’t know when, but her body had started to arch into Niall’s, eyes fluttering shut and letting him do all the work to make her feel good.

It hit her then.

Niall was seducing her.

The bastard. She frowned, eyes still closed, as she smacked lightly at his back. “You’re seducing me,” she accused.

She could feel him chuckling against her neck, breath warm. “Just using your tricks against you,” he said. “Now you know how I felt whenever you flaunted yourself around me, taking your clothes off, like it was nothing.”

Well, he had her there.

His face appeared, inches away from hers, and he sighed softly. “Can we go to your room?” he asked.

“How do you know I want you in there?”

“Because you like me, and I like you, and I want you so bad.”

His words were sincere, Charlie could tell, and she missed him so much. She missed his touch and his kisses. She also missed his dumb jokes and charming personality. Plus, work was getting so boring without talking to him. Her heartstrings were tugging already, dragging her to the edge, and finally giving in. Slowly, she led Niall to her room, past all their friends in their sleeping form.

Niall’s lips were on Charlie’s the moment the door closed behind him. He pulled her flush against him with her back to the wall. He tasted sweet, like the chocolate she left back in the kitchen. He was eager, tongue pushing past her lips and sliding with hers, while his hands roamed over her body.

“I’ve missed you so much,” Niall murmured, slipping his fingers under her t-shirt.

“Missed you, too.”

Their kisses became slow and languid, like molasses, and their bodies molded together, each of them aching to be as close as possible. Niall took it upon himself to lift up her t-shirt over her head, placing it over the door knob. When he slipped her pants and shorts off, Niall dropped to his knees and placed kisses over Charlie’s stomach. She leaned her upper body against the wall, hip jutted out to allow Niall access. Her fingers gripped onto his hair to hold herself steady, running through his strands.

As his lips traveled south, he lifted one of her legs up and over his shoulder before he gave that first lick. Charlie shuddered in pleasure, head tilting back against the wall in response. She tried to remain quiet as Niall continued, slow and teasing, but her breathing got louder and she couldn’t help but let a few loud moans out. Niall seemed content to be where he was, head buried in her with no intention of stopping.

But Charlie wanted to be closer. She wanted Niall all over her, to cover the lines between them until they disappeared. Tugging at his hair, she motioned for him to look at her.  His mouth was wet, and Charlie swore the room got ten times hotter with how feverish she felt to have him. She pulled him up to his feet, dragging him to her bed where she laid down first and pulled him on top of her. Niall kissed her hungrily, hands coming around to cup her bum and squeeze her flesh.

She reached for his shirt, urging him to take it off, so Niall shifted to his knees and pulled it over his head. He reached for his wallet and picked out a condom from one of the folds before taking his pants off as well. Charlie watched leisurely from where she was before giggling as a thought made its way into her head.

“What’s funny?” Niall asked while taking his socks off.

“Just thinking about the shit you pulled today,” she said. “Where did you even put Aiden’s wallet?”

Niall smiled sheepishly, shrugging as he got on the bed and pulled her legs apart. “Don’t worry about it,” he said, kissing her soundly as he settled between her legs. “Why are you even thinking about him when we’re about to have sex?”

“He’s a good guy, Niall.”

“I don’t know. I get this weird, cocky, American vibe from him,” Niall said, trailing kisses to her neck.

Charlie couldn’t say she didn’t agree, so she stayed quiet, letting Niall have his way with her. She could feel him hard against her stomach, his dick sliding slippery over her skin, and just the thought of getting him this turned on was turning her on. She nudged him to roll over and got on top of him. Taking the condom from his hand, Charlie slipped it over his shaft before shifting up and positioning herself over him. Slowly, she sunk down over him, and Charlie let out a soft sigh, closing her eyes and letting herself work up a rhythm.

All thoughts that weren’t Niall and only Niall flew out of her head. She was consumed by him and how good it felt with him. Niall’s hands traced over her skin, loving and soft, his hips met hers with every thrust, intense and rough, and she knew this time after they came it would be different.

 

Summer was exactly two weeks away.

With the weather change came many other changes. Frisky Business was slowly becoming a local favorite, even getting a little shout out on the newspaper. All the employees at the shop got a raise from the new increasing revenue, which meant a party where Bug took them all out for drinks one weekend. During the outing, Aiden got to witness the real reason why Charlie called things off with him.

Her and Niall weren’t exactly official yet, but they were exclusive and nauseating to everyone around them. The pair never stopped kissing or touching each other. Their friends made sure to tell them that it was gross and they needed to relax, but Charlie couldn’t find it in herself to care. She was so taken by Niall that all she could see was him. During the party, they were spotted snogging at the bar by Aiden, but he was a good sport about it. Charlie was glad about that and even took the time to explain to Aiden what had happened. Things were complicated with Niall and still sort of were, but they were working through it.

After the night they got together, Niall promised that the minute he got his diploma, he was going to ask Charlie on a date and woo her all summer. She was very much looking forward to that and being able to call Niall her boyfriend. For now, Charlie was happy with what she had, like watching Niall unabashedly as he helped customers at the shop. Currently, he was showing a customer the porn films they had in stock, and not looking the least bit embarrassed like he used to. He had come a long way.

When the customer decided that they weren’t really interested, they left, and Niall strode over to where Charlie was behind the counter. He came up behind her, hugging her around the waist and kissing her cheek, soft and delicate.

“What was that for?” Charlie asked, smiling up at him.

“No reason,” he shrugged casually. “Now that I know I can kiss you whenever I can, I plan to kiss you every chance I get.”

With that, he leaned in and kissed her once more on the lips.