Road to Grace

by Piper Davenport

  “Baby, she knows Flick.”

  “Shut up, she does not.”

  “Yeah, she does,” he argued. “They went to high school together.”

  I gasped. “What?”

  He chuckled. “Yep. He came with Finch and they figured it out while he was hangin’ out. She was good with him staying. Plus, he’s takin’ care of Darien’s dog for a couple of days, so Barney’s here too.”

  “Grams can’t resist dogs.”

  “Exactly what she said.”

  “I wish you’d told me, I would have grabbed Flick food.”

  “I grabbed extra.”

  I let out a dramatic sigh. “Okay, good, because you ordered a shit-ton of food and I was beginning to worry.”

  Flea dropped his head back and laughed, then kissed me quickly. “Come on, baby, let’s go say hi.”

  I grabbed the food, he grabbed my bag and the drinks, and we headed inside.

  “Grams, it’s me,” I called out, and heard a dog growl.

  “Shh,” Flick hissed, greeting us in the foyer. “She’s asleep.”

  Barney was on his heels and sniffed my legs, then Flea’s.

  “Hey, puppy,” I crooned, leaning down to stroke his head. He licked my hand and then sat at Flick’s feet. “How’s Grams?”

  “She’s good, babe,” Flick said. “I see food. You bring me food?”

  “Yeah, brother, we brought you food,” Flea said, and headed to the kitchen.

  We unpacked the bags as quietly as we could, but Grams still stirred from her place in the recliner. I made my way to her and smiled down at her. “Hey, Grams. Did you enjoy your reunion?”

  She smiled. “Sure did.”

  “Are you hungry. We got burgers.”

  “Yeah, sweetpea. Starving.”

  “Okay, I’ll bring you everything. Are you due for meds?”

  “Probably.”

  “Okay. Stay put.”

  I grabbed a tray and set her food on it, laying it across her lap, then I joined Flea and Flick in the kitchen. Once Flick inhaled his food, he decided it was time to go, so he scooped up Barney and headed out.

  Grams insisted Flea stay if he wanted to, bidding us a goodnight and using her walker to head to her bedroom. I followed a few minutes later and made sure she was comfortable before joining Flea in the family room. “I’m gonna go shower. Are you staying?”

  “You want me to stay?”

  I rolled my eyes. “I will treat that as a rhetorical question.”

  He grinned and followed me back to my room. “Want some help washin’ your back?”

  I raised an eyebrow. “No… but I could use some help washing my front.”

  He rushed me, kissing me deeply as he closed the bedroom door.

  “Hold on,” I panted out. “I need to turn on the monitor.”

  I’d set up a baby monitor, so Grams could just ‘yell’ for me if she needed me, so I turned it on, then grabbed Flea’s cut. “You gonna get naked now?” I challenged.

  “Not sure how I feel about fuckin’ you in your Grams’ house.”

  “But heavy petting was okay?”

  “She wasn’t here then, baby.”

  I smiled and did my best Elmer Fudd impersonation, whispering, “We’ll be vewy, vewy quiet.”

  He grinned, kissing me again before tearing my clothes off. Once he was naked, he backed me into the bathroom and stalled. “Shit.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Forgot about the tiny shower.” His eyes swept the space. “We’re gonna have to get creative.”

  “I like creative.”

  I was looking forward to tonight. It would be the first time without condoms, which would be a surprise to him. I’d gotten on the pill almost immediately and I was officially past the danger point.

  “Let me grab a condom.”

  I grabbed his arm. “You don’t need it.”

  “No shit?”

  “No shit.” I kissed his chest. “According to the doctor, D-day was yesterday… we’re safe.”

  “Fuck,” he rasped, kissing me deeply.

  Keeping his arm around me, he started the shower and lifted me inside. I shivered when the tepid water hit my skin, but then his mouth was on mine again and my shiver turned into something much, much nicer.

  I reached for a washcloth and soaped it up, running my tongue over one of his nipples as I gently wrapped the cloth up and down the bottom-side of his cock.

  I knew I hit pay-dirt when Flea hissed, lifting my chin to kiss me again. I continued to work his shaft, dropping the washcloth, I wrapped my fingers around his girth. He cupped my breasts and sucked one nipple, then the other, before sliding his hand between my legs. Having just gotten waxed, I was a little tender, and it added to the sensation.

  “You sore?” he asked.

  “No. Just sensitive.”

  “Need me to move on?”

  I grabbed his wrist and held it steady. “No.”

  He grinned, slipping a finger inside of me while his thumb went to my clit. I gripped his shoulders and moved against his hand.

  “Brace yourself, baby.” He lifted one of my legs to his hip and guided his cock to my entrance. “Ready?”

  “So ready.”

  He slid slowly into me and I arched my hips to pull him deeper. “Oh, god,” I rasped.

  “Fuck,” he breathed out at the same time.

  “That feels… incredible.”

  “Yeah, baby, it does.”

  He moved, slowly at first, then sped up the pace, and I gripped his shoulders as my climax began to build. “Honey…”

  “Wait, Grace.”

  I squeaked. “I don’t know if I can.”

  This fact was driven home when he rolled my nipple between his fingertips… hard. I exploded, biting his shoulder to keep from crying out. Flea gave one more thrust and I felt him pulse inside of me as he let out a quiet grunt.

  Kissing me gently, he pulled out of me and lowered my shaky leg. I continued to grip his shoulders as my body basked in the afterglow of my orgasm. I dropped my head to his chest and kissed his pec gently. “I love you,” I whispered.

  He cupped my face and raised my head. “What was that?”

  I licked my lips. “I love you.”

  His eyes got soft and he smiled. “Yeah?”

  I nodded.

  “Love you too, honey.”

  I smiled. “I know.”

  “You do, huh?”

  “Yes.”

  “How?”

  “The way you look at me. The way you make sure I’m safe. The way you make me feel when we’re naked.” I looped my arms around his neck. “And the way you make sure my grandmother feels safe and secure.”

  “That’s all on you, honey.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Don’t try to tell me you had nothing to do with the Flick thing. I know you.”

  “I had Finch bring him by the other day. Your brother said they didn’t stop talking.”

  I stroked his neck. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” He kissed me again, then guided me under the water. “Gonna get us clean so I can dirty you up in bed.”

  I giggled. “Have at it.”

  Grace

  SUNDAY AFTERNOON, I pulled on my fourth shirt and stared at myself in the mirror before tearing it off and trying another one. Flea was picking me up in an hour to take me to his sister’s for dinner. I was a mess. Not because it was at Katie’s… I’d met Katie hundreds of times… but because I would be meeting their mother for the first time. I didn’t do well in first meetings. I was awkward and tongue-tied and kind of a goob.

  Grams was currently napping, Finch was watching a game on television, and I was pacing my room, wishing I had time to run to the mall. My phone buzzed on the nightstand and I answered without looking at the caller ID. “Hello?”

  “Hey, baby. You okay?”

  “No.”

  Flea’s voice got serious. “What’s wrong?”

  “I have nothing to w
ear.”

  He snorted, and I let out a frustrated groan. “This is not funny.”

  “Grace, it’s my sister and mom. You could come in a potato sack. They won’t give a shit.”

  “She’s your mom,” I countered.

  “Yeah, I get it, honey, but she won’t care.”

  “Fleabio, your mother will care. She’ll care about everything.”

  “I’m almost there. Why don’t you show me what you’ve got, and we’ll go from there?”

  I sighed. “Fine.”

  He arrived about five minutes later, and since Grams was still asleep, he headed straight to my room.

  “I don’t have everything here,” I complained. “So, I’m limited.”

  “You’re forgettin’ something, Grace.”

  I settled my hands on my hips. “What?”

  His hand slid to my neck and he tugged me forward to kiss me. I relaxed against him, slipping my arms around his waist.

  “Better?” he asked, running his nose against mine.

  “No.”

  He chuckled. “Okay, baby. Show me what you’ve got.”

  In the end, I wore the first thing I’d tried on. Jeans, knee-high boots, and a soft, long-sleeved T-shirt. Since Flea was wearing his typical motorcycle club gear, I didn’t feel underdressed, but still worried my shirt as too low or my jeans were too tight.

  “Can we take my car?”

  He frowned. “Why?”

  “Because I just got my hair to behave. Smashing it in a helmet will ruin all of that work.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Grace―”

  “Please, honey. Let me have this.”

  He reached out and stroked my cheek. “Okay, baby, you can have this.”

  “Thanks.” I handed him my keys and overnight bag, said goodbye to my brother (Grams was still asleep), then followed Flea out to my car.

  Flea’s sister lived in a little condo next to the Pearl. It was in an historical house that had been converted into four condos, and although the place was small, the layout was comfortable.

  As we stood on the little porch, I gripped Flea’s hand like a talisman, and leaned into him. He held the dessert and bottle of wine I’d insisted we buy, along with a bouquet of flowers for his mom.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  “No,” I whispered. “We should have a code word.”

  “For what?”

  “For if… no, when, I’m being a total moron, you need to warn me.”

  “What the fuck?”

  I huffed. “The confident, vivacious, ass-kicking wonderment of female glory standing before you, is all merely a façade. You may as well know it now. I’m a phony and a fraud.”

  “Aren’t those the same things?”

  “Don’t interrupt me… but that brings up a good point. I’m also ignorant.”

  “Baby, if you weren’t smart, pretty sure you wouldn’t use words like ignorant and vivacious.”

  “You don’t know, vivacious could have been today’s word on my word of the day calendar.”

  “Do you have a word of the day calendar?”

  “No.” I cocked my head. “See? That’s another flaw, I’m also a compulsive liar.”

  “Honey, you’re spiraling.”

  “Of course I am… that’s what emotionally unstable people do.”

  He dropped his head back and laughed just as Katie pulled open the door. “Why are you standing out here? Come in.”

  Shit. We didn’t get a chance to come up with a code word.

  Flea laid his hand on my back and gently pushed me forward.

  “Mashed potatoes,” I hissed.

  “What?”

  “Code word,” I ground out under my breath.

  He chuckled again and patted my butt as I followed Katie into the kitchen. I scowled at him over my shoulder. I didn’t want his mom to think I was a total whore, allowing her son to grope me in public.

  Flea and Katie’s mom looked like a woman trying to hold onto her youth. Flea was thirty-four, so she had to be mid-fifties, but she looked much older. She had short, spikey, platinum blonde hair that was reminiscent of the “I’d like to speak to your manager” style, but she smiled, and it softened her features a little.

  I hung back while Flea hugged her, trying to figure out what to do with my hands. If I put them in my pockets, I’d seem disengaged but if I crossed my arms, I’d look closed off, so I grasped them behind my back and tried not to fidget.

  “And this is Grace,” Katie said, grabbing my arm and tugging me forward.

  I held my hand out and their mother gave me a limp handshake. You know, the kind where they grasp the end of your fingertips? I forced myself not to shudder. So creepy.

  “Nice to meet you.”

  “You too, Mrs. Jameson,” I said.

  “Oh my god, Gracie,” Katie said with a chuckle. “Call her Jan.”

  Jan glanced at Flea and then smiled at me, but the smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Yes. Call me Jan.”

  Flea wrapped an arm around my waist, but I moved away from him and waved my hand toward the kitchen. “Can I help with anything?”

  “No, we’re just about ready,” Katie said.

  “You could pour some wine,” Jan countered.

  “I’d be happy to.”

  “Got beer?” Flea asked.

  “In the fridge,” Katie provided, but their mother waved him to the table.

  “I’ll get it for you, baby.”

  Katie rolled her eyes as Jan opened the fridge.

  “He’s the favorite,” she mouthed, and I tried not crack a smile.

  Merrick was always my mom’s favorite, too.

  Katie pulled three wine glasses out of the top cabinet and handed me the corkscrew. I opened the wine and poured, then put the corkscrew back in the drawer Katie had taken it from.

  I handed a glass to Jan, and Flea reached his hand to me, but I shook my head. He raised an eyebrow in challenge, but I took a sip of wine, keeping my distance.

  He rose to his feet and I widened my eyes in warning. He either didn’t understand, or didn’t care, and closed the distance between us, wrapping his arm around me and kissing my temple.

  Jan glanced at us, and I felt heat creep up my cheeks, but Flea held me a little tighter. I felt like he was making some kind of point and I wasn’t sure if it was for the benefit of his mother… or me.

  “Dinner’s ready,” Katie announced, and we helped her carry food to her immaculately set table.

  “Everything looks amazing, Katie,” I said.

  “Thanks. I love dinner parties.”

  “I didn’t know this about you,” Flea deadpanned.

  “Suck it, Billy,” Katie said, good-naturedly.

  “Children,” Jan warned, and Katie and Flea chuckled.

  Katie waved to a place by the window and I took a seat while Flea sat beside me. He linked his fingers with mine under the table and gave my hand a gentle squeeze.

  Dinner was actually pleasant, and I began to relax as conversation turned to jobs, and another bottle of wine was opened.

  “Did Billy tell you Grace is a ballerina?” Katie asked her mother.

  “Oh?” Jan mused.

  “She’s starting at PBC tomorrow,” Flea provided.

  “What a great opportunity. Are you a principal?” Jan asked.

  “No. An apprentice,” I said. “I hope that’ll change soon, though.”

  “Yes, I would, too.” Jan sipped her wine. “Katie, honey, I was wondering if you would like to catch a movie with me next weekend.”

  “Let me check my work schedule, but that sounds fun.”

  “Do you like movies?” I asked. “I love movies. Like Close Encounters of the Third Kind.”

  “I don’t think I’ve seen that one,” Jan said.

  “It’s one about a guy who’s all alone when confronted by possible hostile aliens and his wife refuses to listen to him, so he flips out and builds a mountain out of mashed potatoes.”

  Flea ch
oked on his beer, as he started to laugh.

  Serves him right.

  “I’m going to step outside,” Jan said.

  “Mom,” Katie admonished. “You need to give that up.”

  Jan ignored her and grabbed a pack of cigarettes and lighter, walking onto the little patio.

  Katie rose to her feet and started to clear the table. I followed suit, but Flea pulled me back down to my seat. “You okay?”

  “Other than your mom hating me, yep, I’m great.”

  He smiled. “Pretty sure you’re off-base.”

  “Pretty sure I’m not.” I smiled, leaning over to kiss him quickly. “It’s all good. Come help with dishes, okay? I’m in a chocolate mood, so I’m ready for dessert.”

  We worked in tandem to rinse dishes and load the dishwasher while Katie served up the pie. Jan had been outside a while, so I offered to get her, walking onto the patio just as she said, “I know. But I can’t tell Billy who to date, honey. He’ll just dig in harder. I have to finesse him out of his current obsession.”

  I didn’t want to hear anymore and rushed back inside, down the hallway and into the bathroom. Taking several deep breaths, I calmed my emotions and shoved them deep down inside. It wasn’t hard, I’d had years of experience doing it, then I left the bathroom and headed back to the kitchen.

  By now, Jan had returned and smiled as I approached.

  I glanced at Flea, then Katie and waved my cell phone. “I need to get back to my grandmother’s.”

  “Is everything okay?” Katie asked.

  “Yes. I just need to go. I’m so sorry to cut this short.” I grabbed my purse and jacket and hugged Katie. “Everything was perfect.”

  “Let me grab my jacket,” Flea said, but I shook my head.

  “You stay. I’ll have Merrick swing by and pick you up later.”

  “What the fuck?” he growled.

  “Billy!” Jan exclaimed. “Language.”

  “I really have to go,” I said, and headed toward the front door.

  Unfortunately, I didn’t beat Flea to my car and found myself spun to face him, his eyes searching mine. “What happened?”

  “Nothing. It’s fine. I just need to get home.”

  “Goddammit, Grace, tell me.”

  I shook my head.

  “Is your Grams okay?”

  “Flea―”

  “You’re not gettin’ in your fuckin’ car until you tell me what the hell is goin’ on.”