Love, Autumn

by Bloom, Nikki

  By the free weights, I checked my phone to find another text from Leo. “When does your shift end? I’ll pick you up and bring you back to my place.”

  “What is this about?” I doubted whether I would get an answer but it was worth a shot.

  “Sara.”

  My heart dropped. “Has something happened to her?”

  “It’s better if I tell you in person.”

  I bombarded him for answers but my phone went suddenly silent. There was nothing I could do but wait.

  * * *

  Finally, my shift came to an end. I hastened to the locker room and grabbed my stuff but before I could make my getaway, Tim appeared out of thin air as he always did. “I wanted to talk to you about next week’s schedule. I have a few more people looking for a personal trainer. Do you think you have time to take them on? Of course, I’ll be willing to pay you overtime.”

  Tim held out a spreadsheet.

  “I took the liberties to make this. You change things around based on a client’s availability but if you’re okay with this, we can get the ball rolling and get them into the system.” He was looking at me like I was some great big bag of money. I knew that I only got paid a fraction of what my clients paid him to come to the gym but right now, I hardly cared.

  “Yeah, yeah, that’s fine,” I said as I handed back the sheet. “Tell them I’m willing.”

  “Fantastic.” He clapped his hands together. “I knew you wouldn’t let me down.”

  “Sure, boss.” I glanced at my watch for emphasis. “I don’t mean to be rude or anything but I really should get going. I have a dinner reservation and if I don’t get going, I’m going to be late.”

  “Oh, certainly.” He smiled. “Thanks again, Autumn. You’re a life saver.”

  I nodded once before slipping past the oversize man and through the doorway.

  Outside, Leo was already waiting for me inside his sportscar. As soon as he spotted me, he got out and opened the passenger side door.

  “What is this all about?” I demanded.

  “Not here.”

  “Leo.” My voice left no room for argument. “I’m not doing this. Tell me.”

  “It’s better if I tell you at my place. You’ll be more comfortable there.” He cupped my cheek. “This isn’t easy news and I want you to be as comfortable as possible when I tell you.” He spoke with the utmost concern and it just made my anxiety even worse.

  “Why can’t we do it here?” I asked.

  “Because I don’t want Sara to walk in while we talk about it,” he explained. “This isn’t a trick or anything to get you to my place. I promise.” Gently, he eased me into the car and kissed the top of my head.

  A second later, he was behind the wheel. He kept his eyes on the road and never said a single word.

  I couldn’t stand the silence. It was killing me.

  So, without his permission, I turned on the radio. I didn’t really care what we listened to as long as it masked the silence.

  Even with it on, the tension in the air was incredibly thick. I felt like I could choke on it.

  I ran my tongue along my lips in hopes of wetting them, but my mouth was so dry that it was like using a couple of sheets of sandpaper. It wasn’t the most pleasant feeling in the world.

  Why isn’t he saying anything? Why couldn’t he just tell me what he had to say back at my place? Why did he have to bring me all the way out here? These questions circled my head like a swarm of gnats. I wanted to demand him for answers but my voice evaded me.

  And if I kept thinking about these questions, I would surely lose my mind in the process.

  In order to busy myself, I grabbed my purse and rested it on my lap. I started pulling out random junk. Most of it was just protein wrappers that I stuffed in there when I was too lazy to find an actual trash can.

  “What are you doing?” Leo asked as he looked over at me.

  “Cleaning out my purse.”

  “Now?”

  “Yes, now. Do you have a problem with that?” The situation wasn’t helping my attitude. I was much crabbier than usual. “I haven’t cleaned it out in a while. It’s long overdue.”

  “By the looks of it… you probably have a tiny living room in there.” He shook his head. “Why would you even let it get to that state?”

  “Life happens and you just stuff it into your purse half the time. I’m not the only girl with a messy purse, you know.” I started gathering all of my trash into his cupholders because where else was I supposed to put it?

  “Hey, what are you doing? I just got this car detailed!” he huffed. “You’re making a mess of it.”

  “Well, maybe you should have thought about this before you invited me back to your place. Whatever you have to say, you could have said it back at the apartment.”

  I could tell he was grinding his teeth together. Good. Maybe this would teach him that it was a bad idea to keep me in the dark. After all, I can be a rather impatient woman.

  “I already told you that it was a bad idea,” he countered. “Just trust me on this, will you?”

  “Oh, sure, sure, I’ll trust you,” I said as I piled a hoard of makeup between my legs. The funny thing was, I barely wore makeup – only on special occasions, really. And yet, my purse was a makeup magnet. I blame the beauty stores. They really know how to sucker you in with unnecessary products.

  “Jeez, how many lipsticks do you own?” Leo commented as he turned into one of the affluent neighborhoods.

  “A lot, apparently. I don’t even know where half of these came from…” I reached into my bag and at the bottom, I found a slip of paper. I pulled it out and grinned. “Hey, would you look at that. It’s a paycheck. I was looking all over the place for this thing.” In my excitement, I accidentally hit the window button with my elbow.

  I was going to close it but the nighttime breeze felt good against my cheek. It certainly helped with the anxiety. For the first time since Leo’s text, I could breathe properly again.

  “You lost a paycheck in there?” Leo scratched the side of his head. “Wait, so you’re telling me you go to the bank to deposit your checks? You don’t just do direct deposit.”

  “I never got around to doing it,” I admitted. “Trust me, Sara has hounded me about it too especially when rent is due and I’m scrambling in search of my paychecks.”

  “Why don’t you just do it, then?”

  “I already told you, I haven’t gotten around to doing it yet.” As I spoke, I straightened out the creases. “I bet this is nothing compared to your paycheck. It must be nice being a surgeon.”

  “It’s a mixed bag,” Leo said, his tone unusually dark.

  “Oh?” I cocked my head to the side in question. “Do you not like it?”

  “Oh no, I do,” he answered. It was then that I realized we were just cruising along the shore. Along my left was the ocean. It shimmered against the moonlight like it was covered by a blanket of diamonds.

  “It’s beautiful…”

  “It is…” Leo said as he looked my way. “That’s why I took the long way home. It feels like a crime to avoid such a lovely view, you know?”

  “If I lived over here, I’d be on that beach all the time.” I sighed. “So, tell me, why did you go from physical therapy to surgeon?”

  He shrugged. “Honestly, I just kept going. I didn’t know what direction to go in. All I knew was that I was good in school, so I kept taking classes and before I knew it, I was graduating from medical school.”

  “Only you,” I mused.

  Just then, a gust of wind blew through the car. With it came the saltiness of the sea. I smiled at the smell. There really wasn’t anything quite like it.

  That smile vanished as soon as the wind ripped my paycheck out of my hand and onto the road. The speed of Leo’s car created another gust of wind that pulled the piece of paper back into the air where it spun around and vanished.

  “Stop the car!” I shouted.

  Leo jacked on the brakes and
if it weren’t for our seatbelts, we both would have flown through the windshield. “What is it?”

  “My paycheck. It just flew out the window!” Before Leo could ask some dumb follow-up question, I got out of the car and started my search. But honestly, I didn’t know where to start. “Damnit. Why do bad things happen to good people?” I grumbled under my breath.

  Leo eased his car onto the side of the road. “This is why you need to sign up for direct deposit.”

  “Now is not the time for a lecture,” I snapped. “Just help me find my paycheck or I’m out four-hundred dollars and I don’t have that kind of money to spare.”

  “Alright, alright. I’ll help you just try not to bite my head off, okay?”

  Whoever said that two was better than one was clearly delusional because Leo wasn’t helpful at all. He just kept following me all over the place instead of looking somewhere else so we could cover more ground.

  “There it is!” I pointed. Quickly, I rushed forward only to slip on a patch of mud.

  I felt Leo reach out and grab my arm but it was already too late. We both lost our footing and landed head-first into the filth.

  “Yuck!” I exclaimed as I tried to spit out a mouthful of dirt.

  Leo blinked and I swear he looked like some kind of swamp monster.

  For a moment, it was eerily silent. But then, he burst into terrible laughter. “Oh, god, you look hysterical!”

  “You don’t look so handsome yourself.” I shot back. In my anger, I tried to get up only to fall a second time. And to my luck, I landed right in his lap.

  He wrapped his muddy arms around me and chuckled. “Falling for me, are you?”

  “Oh, shut up, you idiot. Now is not the time to try and seduce me.”

  “I think now is the perfect time.” He leaned in like he had every intention of kissing me.

  I shoved him back and fell into the mud but not before taking me down with him. “Let go!” I protested. “This is disgusting!”

  He laughed. “Is it really that horrible to be stuck in the mud with me?”

  “Yes.” I pouted. “Now let me go.”

  Finally, he relented and by some miracle, I managed to get up on my feet. I steadied myself before making the trek onto the street.

  “Here,” he said, handing over my mud-soaked paycheck. “I found it for you. You’re going to have a fun time bringing it to the bank but hopefully, they’ll still accept it.”

  I snatched it out of his hand and shoved it into my pocket. “Thanks,” I grumbled. I was about to grab the door handle when he stopped me. “You aren’t going in my car covered in mud.”

  “What do you want me to do? Strip down and ride naked?”

  “Now that’s a thought.” He smirked. “But no, I won’t make you do that.” He rounded the car and popped the trunk. There, he pulled out a couple of towels. “At least wrap this around yourself. I wouldn’t want to get my baby reupholstered.

  I rolled my eyes. “You’re such a guy.”

  “Says the girl who just pulled out a million lipsticks from her purse. I don’t think you’re in any position to talk.”

  Damn, he had me there. “Fine,” I said as I wrapped the towel around my shoulders like a shawl. Only then did I get into the passenger seat. “Open up the windows, please. It smells awful in here.” And so, I had to keep from gagging the whole way home.

  8

  Leo

  “Please tell me that you have a working shower in this place.” Autumn was tracking in mud straight onto the living room carpet. The cleaning crew would have a fit when they saw the mess we were making. I would have to pay them extra for their efforts.

  “Of course,” I said. “I have a couple but you can use the one in my bedroom. It’s the best one in the house.”

  “What? Is it one of those steam ones or something?”

  “Actually, yes.” I flashed a grin in her direction. “It’s amazing.”

  “I bet you spend a lot of time in there.”

  “I do.” My grin deepened. “If you know what I mean.”

  She shook her head and started up the stairs. I followed after her and showed her to my room. The second she stepped into my bathroom, I swear, her jaw nearly hit the ground. “Jeez… could you be any more over the top?”

  “What? I like nice things,” I whispered against her ear. “You included.”

  “Don’t push your luck,” she hissed as she pushed me aside. “Now get lost. I plan to enjoy myself in here.”

  “Oh, do you now?” I ran my eyes along her body, my thoughts wandering again. “Thanks for giving me something to think about during my own shower.”

  “Okay, there’s no need to be such a creep about it.” Despite her tone, a smile snuck onto her face. As much as she hated to admit it, she was enjoying her time with me. “But, fine, I’ll leave. If you need me, I’ll be in the guest bath just down the hall. When you're done, feel free to make yourself at home.” I was just about to leave before I backtracked. “And use whatever you’d like. Towels. Shampoo. You name it.”

  “I get it. Thanks. You can leave now.” She slowly started to close the door.

  “Are you sure you don’t want me to stay? I can make your shower a lot more interesting…”

  “I think I’ve had enough excitement for one day.” And with that, she slammed the door. I was left there, staring at the door. All I could do was imagine Autumn taking off all her clothes on the other side. Oh, it was torture.

  With a sigh, I turned on my heels and headed for the guest bath but before I could make it more than a few steps, the door behind me swung open. “On second thought…”

  When I looked over my shoulder, Autumn was wearing nothing but a towel.

  “Hmm?” The sight of her was enough to turn my brain to mush. Oh, how I wanted to have my way with her – to make her scream through the night.

  “I don’t think it’s fair.”

  I furrowed my brows together, confused by her words. “Huh?”

  “I mean, I get to use the fancy shower and you have to use the guest shower. Why don’t we just compromise and use this shower at the same time?” Her cheeks were turning a soft shade of pink.

  “Are you implying what I think you’re implying?” I asked as I advanced towards her. I couldn’t hold back any longer. With my hands on her hips, I hoisted her onto the sink. Our lips collided together like a couple of magnets.

  She wrapped her legs around me and pulled me even closer. It appeared she no longer minded the mud.

  Before the kiss could reach its peak, she broke away. “Now, I don’t want you getting any ideas or anything. We are only taking a shower together. That’s it.”

  “Are you sure about that?” I asked.

  “Yes. I’m sure. No funny business, do you hear me?”

  “Loud and clear,” I said as I stepped back and started to take off my clothes. Despite her words, I felt her gaze resting on my body. From the looks of things, she was enjoying the view. So, I took my time so I could tease her a bit. First my shirt and then my belt.

  “Um… I’ll meet you in there then…” she said as she stepped into the shower but not a second before my pants hit the ground.

  Oh, I could see it in her eyes. She liked what she saw.

  I followed close behind and nuzzled against her body, lips brushing against the side of her neck.

  “Leo…” she moaned.

  It was such a delicious sound that my member throbbed with newfound hardness. That hardness found its way between her legs, poking the inside of her thigh.

  She jumped but I pulled her back. “You’re so jumpy,” I teased. “You’d think you were taking a shower with a killer clown or something.”

  “It’s just…been a while,” she admitted as her face shifted to the color of a tomato.

  “Since what?” I asked as I pushed her against the wall. “You can tell me. I won’t judge.”

  “Quit it.” She tried to push me away but I held her firm.

  “I do
n’t think you really want me to do that,” I purred in a seductive tone as I took her breast against my hand and started to knead it between my fingers.

  “Mmm,” she moaned as I rolled her nipple back and forth.

  “You like that, don’t you?”

  Autumn only bit her bottom lip in response. Maybe I was moving a little too quickly, so I decided to change my tactics a bit. I turned her around and grabbed a nearby sponge. Before she could say a word, I had it lathered with soap. Gently, I rubbed small circles into her back, getting rid of all the caked-on mud.

  “Just relax. All I want to do is take good care of you.” With my free hand, I traced the endless curves of her body. She truly was perfect in every way and I would never let her forget it.

  As I got closer and closer to her ass, I slowed my motions and really took my time. It ended up being more of a massage than a rubdown.

  “That feels so good…” she whispered ever so softly, almost as if she didn’t want me to hear those words.

  I worked my way back up to her neck, making sure it was nice and clean. Only then did I start on her hair. I worked the product right into her scalp.

  “Ooo…”

  I took the shower head and rinsed off the soap, making sure none of it got into her eyes.

  When I was done, she smiled at me. “Thanks.” Her hands rested on my chest. “I never expected that from you.”

  “I told you, I’m a different man now. I’m not the same jerk you remember from college.”

  She looked into my eyes. “How am I supposed to believe that when no one ever really changes?”

  I took her cheek in my hand and pulled her in for a kiss. Our lips lingered together like we were too scared to pull away. My hand snaked around her waist, pulling her a little closer.

  Her tongue brushed against mine. She was hesitant, but, at the same time, I could tell that she wanted it and she wanted it bad.

  I shoved her against the wall, my body pressed against hers. Our hearts were beating faster than ever but still, I did not stop – I could not stop.