Clean Sweep

by Evie Mitchell

  "Pizza," Erik said, entering the kitchen, a baby on each arm. "Already ordered. And yes—" he said before Ian or Liv could comment. "—I ordered no pineapple."

  They glanced at each other, then immediately looked away, both taking a long drink of their wine.

  "You want me to take one?" I asked Erik, holding out my arms for one of the babies. He handed me Leif then went to the fridge, snagging a beer. "Thanks for letting me sleep," he rubbed an arm over his face. "God, I needed that."

  I grinned, then looked down at Leif who pulled at my top, his hand firmly fixed. "Did you have a good sleep, little man? Hmm?"

  He blinked up at me, giving me a big smile.

  "Such a handsome boy," I cooed swaying around the kitchen. "You want some dinner?"

  Ian moved, placing his glass on the island and pulling the cupboard open, calling, "I'll get you some yummies. Let's see," he pulled a tin of formula, holding it up triumphantly. "Gourmet baby milk? Delicious!"

  He danced around the kitchen, surprisingly agile for a man of his size, humming Be our guest from Beauty and the Beast. Liv appeared unable to process Ian's antics, instead pouring her an overly generous second glass.

  After the babies were fed, we settled them in the lounge room, soft toys on their chests to distract them while we all devoured the pizza.

  The evening was enlightening. I learnt that Erik was an absolute sweetheart to everyone in his broader orbit – as evidenced by his and Ian's close relationship. Liv dropped the occasional embarrassing story, and he constantly checked in on his boys.

  Apart from being a bit of a mess, the guy is near perfect.

  "I got this," Liv muttered, getting off the sofa and clearing the remains of our dinner. "Besides, I better hit the road."

  "Big weekend?" I asked, perfectly content to continue tickling Ulf's feet, his chubby legs kicking out at me as he gurgled his delight.

  "Something like that," she muttered.

  "I better be getting on too," Ian said, stretching. "You pa asked me to help get the duplex sorted for the new apprentice."

  "This is the girl Gunnar recommended?" Erik asked from his position beside me on the floor. He was holding a set of dangling soft scarves for Leif to grab.

  "Yeah, gotta install the extra safeties tomorrow for her."

  "You need a hand?"

  "Nah, mate. Rune's gonna help but we should be good. Thanks," he leaned down, jiggling each babies leg gently. "Farewell boy-o's. You be good for your daddy-o."

  He stood, throwing me a smile. "Night, Laura. Thanks for helping out our main man."

  "Any time," I said, pushing to my feet.

  We waved Laura and Ian off, both of them bickering as they walked down the path to their cars.

  "Not sure how I feel about that," Erik muttered, watching them from the window in the sitting room.

  "That they're attracted to each other?"

  "Mm," he shook his head. "Wish they'd just sleep together and get it over with. I'm sick of the bickering."

  I chuckled, watching Leif start to yawn. "Your sister is great, except for the fact she's the most sexually repressed woman I've ever met."

  Erik made a gagging sound. "TMI, woman!"

  I rolled my eyes. "Why do brothers have such an issue with talking about sex?"

  "Uh-huh, nope. The only person's sex life I'm interested in is yours."

  We both froze.

  "I meant mine, sorry, mine." Erik corrected in a hurry, swearing under his breath. "Fuck, I mean, fuck, fudge, fu-ah, hell." He shut up.

  I tilted my head to one side, "Erik, have you been thinking about what sleeping with me would be like?" I tried not to grin as I teased the poor man.

  "Fuck it," Erik muttered. He threw back his shoulders, looking me straight in the eye. "Yeah, I have. How you feel about that?"

  Instead of answering I closed the distance between us, raised up on my tip-toe and kissed him. He allowed it for a beat, then took over.

  Holy shitstacks. Who the fuck let this guy kiss? He needs to come with a warning label.

  Erik didn't kiss, he devoured. He let my lips caress his for only a moment before he took over, plundering my mouth in a way that felt oh so good.

  His hands came to my waist, pulling me closer, one hand stayed there while the other trailed up my back, fisting into the hair at the back of my neck.

  Holy shit. Ho-ly sheeeeeeeiiiit.

  The words rolled around in my head on repeat as he kissed me, over and over and over again. His mouth trailed from my lips dipping to taste my neck.

  "Delicious," he muttered against me, his teeth grazing against the sensitive skin. "So soft."

  I pushed his mouth to my skin, groaning when he took the hint and began kissing and sucking. He felt amazing, my body coming alive under his hands, his mouth, his tongue.

  Erik backed me to the couch and I dropped onto it, my legs finally giving out. He followed, dropping to his knees before me.

  "Need to taste you," he grunted, his hands falling to my pants. "Get these off."

  Together we pushed and pulled them down my legs, my underwear coming along for the ride. He fell on my pussy, his lips tasting and teasing, his tongue stroking. There was no other word for it, the man worshipped me.

  A gurgled sound had us both freezing. Our heads whipped to the floor where Ulf and Leif were both sleepily settled on their little mat.

  "Crap," Erik whispered. "Do you think they saw?"

  A hysterical giggle burst from my lips, "I don't know. How far can a three-month-old see?"

  "God, I'm gonna have to take them to therapy."

  I lost it, my head tipping back as I roared with laughter. It took Erik a beat but he joined me, his head resting on the inside of my thigh.

  As we calmed, I found that I couldn't stop stroking my fingers through his hair.

  "Guess we better call it a night," Erik sighed.

  "Yeah," I agreed, the needy desire dissipating. Amusement and an aching sense of missed opportunity filled the void. "But just FYI, you can go down on me anytime."

  Erik winked, rising to his feet and hauling me off the couch. "Let me put the boys down then Netflix and actual chill?"

  I blew out an exaggerated sigh, "fine. I'll take your scraps."

  Erik pulled me into his side, dropping a kiss on my head as he laughed.

  "Queenie, my scraps are worthy of a gourmet meal."

  "Promises, promises."

  Chapter Seven

  Erik

  "I get it, I owe you." I handed over Ulf to Rune. "I'll be back tomorrow. There's formula and bottles in the cooler bag, their blankets in the –"

  "I got it," Rune rumbled, lifting Ulf a little higher. "Go."

  I hesitated. My brother had looked after my boys a few times but it didn't make leaving them any easier. I supected it would be like this no matter their ages, be they three months or thirty years.

  Rune shut the door in my face, and I sighed. My brother, for all his gruffness loved our family, and particularly his nephews, fiercely. I just wished he'd find a partner and settle down; god knew a little time between the sheets might improve his attitude a little.

  Speaking of…

  I made my way back to the car; Laura was on her phone with her agent. Something about an endorsement deal for an environmentally friendly product she loved.

  She saw me, flashing a bright smile and a wave as she continued to chat on the phone. I slid in the driver's side, setting us off as she wrapped up her call.

  "Thanks, Merry. Yeah, I'll have a read over the terms but if you think it's good then I'm sure it is." She paused then laughed. "No, but thanks for the vote of confidence. I'll chat to you later. Bye."

  She hung up, dropping the phone in her clutch. "Sorry about that. Turns out this was a bigger offer than we were expecting and Merry wanted to chat through the changes."

  "Endorsement deal, right?"

  "Yeah. It'll be my first major sponsorship. But part of the terms is that they give a percentage of sales
for a particular product to a clean water charity."

  "Clean water charity?"

  "Oh gosh yes," Laura nodded enthusiastically. "Did you know that one in ten people don't have access to clean water?" And then she was off, discussing the intricacies of the issue, passionately advocating for why this was a cause close to her heart, and describing all the ways she was working to make clean water a reality for every person.

  I pulled into the restaurant parking lot, finding a vacant spot near the entrance.

  "Sorry," Laura finally said with a self-conscious laugh I immediately detested. "I get carried away when I talk about something I'm passionate about."

  I unclipped my seat belt, and reached across to wrap my hand around the back of her neck and gently squeeze. "Queenie, don't ever apologize for something you're enthusiastic about. You obviously love what you do, and you're passionate about this charity. The fact you can do both is exciting." I squeezed again. "Let's go celebrate. You can tell me more over dinner. I'm proud of you."

  She blinked twice, a grin bursting across her pretty face, lighting her up.

  "Sounds great."

  The restaurant was a family run bistro down towards the main pier in town. I'd been going there since I was young enough to remember. The food was seasonal and always delicious, the service warm and genuine.

  And the view? Well, it had gotten me laid more than once.

  Laura's intake of breath as we entered and upon seeing the beauty of the water stretched out for miles before us, had my cock twitching.

  We're gonna get lucky tonight.

  I mentally slapped myself.

  Laura was dressed in a flattering black dress and wedge heels. Her hair was up in a little bun thing that had stray hairs dancing down her cheeks and neck. She looked soft and inviting. Until you looked at her chest and then it was pure siren.

  The neck of the dress had little crisscross straps above the curve of her breasts, in addition to a deep v that emphasized her abundance.

  Every time I looked at her, I wanted to lick the curves of her breasts. I wanted to free them and suck her nipples, I wanted to fuck her against a wall while her tits bounced free in time to the thrusting of my cock.

  I'd had a hard on since before we'd left the house, and no amount of thinking about things like taxes and baseball stats was budging it.

  We were seated at a table close to the windows, Laura sighing happily as she propped her face on her palm and gazed out.

  "You really love the water," I remarked, enjoying watching her across the table.

  "It's always been my dream to live close to it. I love the smell and the sounds and just… everything, you know?"

  I chuckled, "yeah."

  She sighed, pushing back and opening the menu. "Wow, this looks fantastic."

  "You really can't go wrong with anything here."

  We settled on a chef's sampler, six courses with three samples of dessert. The night stretched on, us sharing and remarking on the food, Laura sharing about her life, me sharing mine.

  This woman is incredible.

  I couldn't shake my attraction to her. Fact was, she was amazing, and the more I spoke to her the more I wanted her in my life, my kids lives, and my bed.

  You're a lost cause.

  Yep, and I didn't regret it for one moment. I suddenly understood how my brother could decide to move across the country, shack up with a woman, and decide to get married in less than six months.

  I'd known Laura less than two weeks and I already wanted her to be the mother of my kids and any future kids we had.

  Crazy? Probably.

  Taking on not only me but two kids would be asking a lot of anyone. But Laura didn't seem phased by the masters of mess.

  The bill arrived and I was more than ready to take this home. We'd been flirting outrageously all night, the awareness building between us as our fingers lingered, our eyes met and held, the smiles and innuendo becoming just that fraction more knowing.

  "Home?" I asked quietly.

  "Sounds perfect," Laura replied, rising from the table.

  We exited the restaurant, Laura tucked under my arm, one of her arms wrapped around my middle, the other pressed to my stomach, our bodies brushing as we moved, laughing and chatting on the way out to the car.

  "Erik?" A familiar voice threw an icy bucket of water over my mood.

  I froze, Laura stiffening as she registered my reaction.

  I turned us slowly, reluctantly, seeing Claire and her husband standing by their car. She smiled, looking over at Laura then back to me.

  "Erik, I thought that was you," she stepped away from her car, coming towards us, her arms out as if she were about to hug me. "it's so great to run into you."

  Laura disengaged, allowing Claire to wrap her arms around me. I remained frozen, like a stone, my emotions in lockdown as she squeezed.

  She still wears Chanel.

  Her perfume clung to me, overwhelming my senses.

  She stepped back, smiling brightly at Laura. "Hi, I'm Claire. I'm sure Erik has told you all about me."

  Laura took her hand, a fake smile pasted on her face. "Yes, of course," she lied.

  "We're in town for Connor's sister's wedding." Claire grinned at her husband. "Thought we'd take advantage of staying with family and get a night out and away from the baby."

  They have a baby.

  She looked back at me, her smile still on her face. "It's so lovely to see you, Erik. Have a good night."

  She turned, walking back to her car and sliding in. Laura slipped an arm back around my waist and we watched silently as they pulled out and drove away.

  "She's the one who broke your heart?" Laura asked quietly.

  My chest deconstructed, air suddenly rushing out as the ice in my veins melting at her straightforwardness. "Yeah."

  "Seems like a bitch."

  A startled laugh burst from my lips. "What?"

  Laura shrugged, "introduces herself but doesn't ask about me. Talks about herself, drops how happy they are with the baby thing, then leaves. Doesn't once ask how you are or what our relationship is."

  "Well… fuck." I muttered. "You got her number."

  Laura gestured at the pier. "Wanna talk about it?"

  I looked down at the beautiful woman beside me. "Actually, yeah."

  "Let me get my coat from the car and we can go for a walk."

  "Okay."

  Chapter Eight

  Laura

  I snuggled into my coat as we walked the length of the pier. It was a beautiful spring night, if not a little chilly. But the moon was high, the breeze soft, and the stars bright. The waves crashed comfortingly as we strolled. At the pier, there was a set of stairs which took you down to the beach.

  I led, kicking off my shoes at the bottom and sighing in pleasure as the sand wedged between my toes.

  We strolled in companionable silence, sitting down under the pier, sheltered from the breeze and curious eyes.

  "It's not a long story," Erik finally said, his hip and leg pressed against mine as we settled in the sand. "Just a sucky one."

  I glided fingers through the sand, head tilted his way, listening.

  "We'd been together for three years. I'd thought she was the one. She'd refused to move into the little apartment I owned above the shop and said she had no room for me in her one bedroom. So, I'd been looking for a new place. An agent had just finished showing me a two-bedroom condo when she'd walked out of the apartment across from the open for inspection. I got to see her make out with him while I just stood there. That was a fun experience."

  He looked at me, a wry smile on his lips. "Then she married him."

  "Damn," I muttered, pulling my legs up to my chin and resting my head on them. "That is sucky."

  "We broke up, obviously. But it fucked me up, you know? She said she hadn't seen a future with me, but she hadn't known how to break up with me either."

  "I'm sorry," I reached out a hand, giving him a squeeze.

  He l
ifted one shoulder. "You know, seeing her tonight, it was actually kind of cathartic, if you can believe it."

  "Mm?"

  Erik looked at the ocean for a long moment then turned to me. "Makes me realize we were never meant to be. I always thought I'd feel something if I ran into her. Like anger or regret maybe? Tonight, I was shocked, sure. But now I’ve seen her, and I've processed, honestly, I feel nothing but relief. It was shitty what she did, sure. But maybe it was right."

  "Right?" I asked softly, not following.

  "Mm, we weren't meant to be. But you and I?" He raised my hand pressing a kiss to my knuckles. "Tell me there's something here. Tell me I'm not the only one feeling this."

  I stared into his dark eyes, seeing the hunger and hope, knowing mine reflected the same.

  I opened my mouth to deny it but the words eluded me. "There's something," I admitted. "It's a hell of a big something."

  "But?"

  I swallowed, laying myself bare. "But I want this career I've started. I want to travel and help people. I want to be Laura Sweep, the Queen of Clean. I want to make a difference."

  "And you think you can't if we take this further?"

  "I don't know. You have kids. How would you feel about me travelling so much?"

  "Babe," Erik leaned in, his face serious. "I'd never ask you to give up your career or who you are. You can't love someone for who you want them to be. You love someone for who they are. You're Laura, Queen of Clean. You're genuine and open, and if you have to travel to do that, then fine. We'll make it work. That's what people do."

  That's what people do.

  Was it really this simple? Was it really as easy as saying yes to him?

  We haven't even slept together yet.

  My body and heart said it would be amazing, but my brain was crying out for some rational thought. There was no logic in how we were feeling, no explanation for how rapidly this relationship was progressing.

  Do it. Take a leap of faith.

  "Okay," I whispered, then repeated it louder and with more conviction. "Okay. Let's do this. Let's work out what this is between us, let's explore it and build it and… and…" I paused, overwhelmed. "Let's be us."