Say Something...

by T. A. Roth

  Our tongues explore every inch of each other. She pulls away to catch her breath. “I’m close,” she whimpers.

  I kiss her neck and work my fingers in and out of her while my thumb continues to rub small circles on her clit. “Come for me, baby.” She lets out a soft moan, and her legs begin to tremble. My arm wraps around her waist to steady her.

  I’m aching for her. She spins in my arms and rakes her fingers through my hair crashing her lips to mine. Her hands quickly work on the buttons of my shirt.

  “Off now,” she says between kisses. I undo my belt and kick my pants aside. She unclasps her bra and tosses it into the small pile of clothes on the floor as I back her up to the bed. She lies back and I pull away remembering the condom in my pants pocket.

  “Wait.” She grabs my bicep before I can get off the bed. I turn back to look at her.

  “I’m on the pill. We’re okay now. If you don’t want to use one, I mean. I’m okay with it.” I pause for a beat. I’ve always used one. The thought of being inside her with no barrier sounds like heaven.

  “I’ve never wanted anything more.”

  I lay between her thighs; our underwear is the only thing that separates us. I want to take it slow tonight, savoring every moment. I thrust my hips against her, and she writhes beneath me. My mouth works its way down her neck, her shoulder, across her chest.

  She claws at the sheets as I run my tongue slowly around her nipple. I bring it into my mouth and she lets out a small hiss. I grin against her skin and slide my tongue across to the other. She thrusts her hips up desperate for friction.

  “Please, Ben. You’re driving me crazy.”

  “What do you need, baby. Tell me.” She slides her hands into the back of my boxers cupping my ass. She presses down firmly grinding her hips into me. Fuck.

  Just to make sure I get the message, she slides her hand between us and grips my rock hard cock.

  “This . . . I need this inside,” she whispers.

  We quickly remove the last scraps of material, and I slide into her slowly. We groan loudly. I still my hips for a moment allowing her to adjust to my intrusion.

  “Oh God, Ben . . . move please . . . please . . .” She doesn’t have to ask me twice.

  I slide out slowly then glide back in. I repeat the motion in and out. She feels like a velvet glove around my cock. I’m ruined. I’m so ready to come. I’m just trying to focus long enough to let her go first. I feel her walls begin to spasm around me, and she arches her back off the bed.

  “It’s so good . . . fuck . . . I’m so close,” she whimpers.

  “Me too, baby.” She slides her hand between us and uses her ring finger to rub her clit. It’s the hottest thing I’ve ever fucking seen.

  “Fuck, Ari.” I lean in to suck on her nipple, and she lets go and I immediately follow. I release for what seems like minutes. The small spasms around my cock feel incredible, and we both moan in pleasure. She wraps her arms around my neck, and I devour her mouth. She hums in pleasure against my lips then starts to giggle. I pull back to look at her.

  “Why are you laughing?”

  “The neighbors probably think I have dogs. We were so loud.” I laugh with her.

  “I don’t care what they think. That was fucking amazing, and I plan on doing it again.”

  ARI

  We lie wrapped in each other completely sated. I’m running my fingers slowly up and down his arm.

  “So, do you think your mom still hates me?”

  “I don’t care what she thinks. She’s never around anyway,” he says groggily.

  “How did she and your dad meet?” He yawns, and I start to backpedal.

  “I’m sorry, you’re tired, and I’m asking a million questions. Go to sleep.”

  He sits up on one elbow and places a kiss on the tip of my nose. “Don’t be sorry. You can ask me whatever you want.”

  I press my palm against his chest causing him to lie back. I make myself comfortable in my favorite spot and ask again. “Okay, so how did they meet?”

  He chuckles, and I can feel the vibration of his chest against my cheek. “She was going to school for business. She attended Cal State L.A. on scholarship. My dad came into one of her classes as a guest speaker. The way he described it, it was love at first sight. They married six months later.”

  “Did she get to finish school?”

  “No. My grandmother got sick, and she dropped out to help her. Soon after she passed, she got pregnant with me.”

  “Do you think that’s why she’s so insistent on you not staying back to help your nana?”

  “I never thought about it. She didn’t have to work; Dad always provided for us. I guess that’s why she was quick to marry after he died. She got used to someone taking care of her.”

  I nod my head. “Could be, or maybe she was scared of being alone.”

  “We could stay up all night trying to figure my mother out. I don’t think she’ll ever change,” he says with a yawn. I press a kiss to his chest.

  “It’s getting late and we have to be up early. Let’s try to get some sleep.”

  He kisses the top of my head.

  “Okay. Goodnight, babe.”

  “Goodnight,” I manage through a yawn.

  I sit straight up clutching my chest and my heart is racing.

  “Ari, are you okay?”

  It takes a few seconds to gather my bearings. I look around my room and it’s morning. Ben is sitting up next to me with concern on his face. I take a few deep breaths.

  “Yeah, I’m good.”

  “I tried to wake you up. You were mumbling something in your sleep. Do you remember what you were dreaming about?”

  Even though I don’t remember, if I’m waking up in a cold sweat, clutching my chest, it could only be one thing. The only thing that’s ever caused that reaction.

  “Was it about him?” He asks, and I look away embarrassed. We haven’t talked about it since the other night.

  “I know we never got a chance to finish our conversation with everything that’s been going on, but I’m worried. You should really think about talking to someone.”

  I slide out of bed and walk toward the bathroom.

  “Ari.”

  I stop at the sound of my name. “I don’t want to talk about it, okay. I’ll be fine.” I continue my way into the bathroom refusing to look at him. I know what I’ll see. Pity. I don’t need that from him or from anyone. It’s the very reason I’ve never said anything.

  I’m leaning over the sink brushing my teeth when I feel him behind me. He wraps a hand around my waist and I straighten up to meet his eyes in the mirror. His brows are furrowed.

  “I didn’t say that to piss you off.” I nod and try to pull away. “Look at me.” I look up, once again meeting his gaze. “I care for you and the thought of anyone hurting you kills me. If I could find the asshole that did that to you, I would fucking kill him. I know you don’t want to tell anybody and I promised you that I wouldn’t, but maybe talking it out with a professional will help you work through it.” He pulls me into his chest and kisses my shoulder.

  “Please . . . just think about it.” His voice is pleading.

  I swallow the lump in my throat and blink away the stinging in my eyes. “Okay.”

  He presses a kiss behind my ear. “Thank you.”

  He walks out of the bathroom, and I grip the sink for a minute staring at my reflection. He’s right, I know he is, but the thought of sharing it with yet another person scares me. It was hard enough doing it once.

  I take a hot shower, mulling over the idea. The stress of everything has increased the frequency of the nightmares. I’ve been dealing with this on my own for so long that I never thought about how it would affect the people close to me.

  Especially someone who is sharing my bed. I walk out into the hall and Ben is making his way toward me with a coffee mug.

  “Truce?” He hands me my favorite mug with a sexy smirk.

  I press a kiss to h
is full lips. “Truce.”

  His smirk spreads into a full grin. ”Good, I don’t like it when you’re mad at me.”

  “I wasn’t mad at you. You’re right, and I’m sorry.”

  “Good.” He presses a kiss to my lips and goes into the bathroom to shower.

  The sight of Ben in just a towel never gets old. I’m ironing my clothes when he comes into the bedroom.

  “So, what’s the plan for the day?” I ask him.

  “Well, Nana should be released sometime today. I’m going to the hospital from here. I’m supposed to meet her home nurse, too.” I quirk an eyebrow at him.

  “I hope you hired someone old with warts,” I blurt out.

  He chuckles loudly and slowly moves in behind me. I feel his hardness against my lower back. Hello.

  “You have absolutely nothing to worry about. I haven’t had eyes for anyone but you since the night at the party.” He kisses my neck, and I melt into him. He’s moving his hand over my hip when my darn cell phone starts to ring.

  “Seriously, we’re frickin’ cursed,” he huffs. I laugh and pull out of his arms to answer it. It’s the event planner and she’s frantic over the seating chart and guest list.

  “Yes, that’s fine. I’ll call Mr. Hamlin’s office today to confirm the name of his guest. Okay . . . okay . . . sure, no problem . . . okay . . . talk to you then. Bye.” I put the phone back on the nightstand and rush to get dressed after noticing the time.

  “Who was that?” Ben asks.

  “It was the party planner. She’s driving me crazy. I can’t wait for this damn party to be over.”

  “When is it?” I remember telling him about it, but I guess I never gave him a date.

  “It’s this Saturday. No worries, with everything that’s going on, I didn’t want to bug you about it. You don’t have to come. I’ll be busy hosting and helping the planner anyway.” I’m secretly bummed because just the thought of him in a suit makes me all tingly.

  “Of course, I’ll be there.” He stalks over to me and pulls me into his chest.

  “It’s an evening party, right?” he asks.

  I nod my head, feeling butterflies in my stomach.

  “Are you sure?” I ask. He kisses my nose then places a soft kiss on my lips.

  “Yeah, Nana should be settled by then, and we’ll have a nurse. It should be fine. I know how hard you’ve been working on this. I don’t want to miss it.” Cue the hearts.

  “Okay. It’s semi-formal so you’d have to wear a suit.”

  “Done. Any other rules?”

  “Nope, but if things change and you can’t make it, I won’t be mad, okay?” He kisses me again only this time it’s deeper. I hum into his mouth. This man could make you forget your name with his kisses. In my case, it’s the time. I pull back noticing the clock.

  “Dammit. I’m late.” He breaks his hold on me, and I run around my room like a crazy woman trying to finish getting dressed.

  “Sorry, babe.” He walks back into the bathroom. Damn him and his sexy self. My bosses are going to kill me. Not a good week to be late.

  I walk down the hall, and he meets me with a smile and my travel mug.

  “Another truce?” He’s flashing those damn dimples making it hard to be mad at him.

  “Yeah, we seem to need a few of those this morning.” He hands me my mug and opens the door.

  “Have a good day and drive safely, please.” He has his jeans on with no shirt and his hair is still wet from his shower. Gah! I want to call in sick. He notices my hungry gaze and grins back at me.

  “That look right there is the reason you’re running late. Go.” He smacks my ass and closes the door behind me.

  “Jerk,” I yell over my shoulder as he laughs from behind the door.

  BEN

  The doctor called after Ari left for work and said he would release Nana by lunchtime. I make my way to her room and can hear her voice carrying down the hall. I get to the door and see she’s talking to Karen. “There he is,” she yells out as I walk into the room. Karen gives me a small wave and quickly walks out of the room.

  “It’s your last day here; stop torturing that poor girl.”

  She starts to laugh. “I’m not doing anything. She was telling me about the date she had last night,” she whispers.

  “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah, it didn’t go too well. The guy didn’t even pay for dinner. He wanted to split the check.”

  “Ouch. Yeah, that’s not a good sign.”

  “See, mijo, we need to help her.”

  “Okay matchmaker, let’s worry about getting you out of here first,” I say shaking my head.

  Leave it to my grandmother to be worried about everyone else but herself right now.

  “Dr. Nguyen came in earlier and gave me his okay to go home. I’m just waiting for Dr. Bishop. They said he should be here this afternoon.” I nod.

  I contacted the number given to me by the hospital and set up 24-hour nursing care. She’s having a hard time with this fact, and I knew that when the time came she would. Besides a few stomach cramps and this fainting spell, she hasn’t felt sick. I don’t think everything the doctors have told her has sunk in yet. I know she doesn’t want anyone hovering over her. The fact that she will have strangers coming in and out of her house is going to drive her crazy. I settled on two nurses. They will rotate shifts to ensure that someone is always available. I packed up most of my stuff from the fraternity and moved into one of the guest rooms. The only things left at the frat house are my desk, some clothes, and my bed.

  “I can’t wait to eat some real food. If I wasn’t already sick, this food alone would kill me.” She says picking at her green beans.

  “I promise to pick something up before we get home.” She’s just about to open her Jell-O cup when Dr. Bishop finally arrives.

  “Is someone ready to go home?” She looks up, puts it back on her tray, and gives him a huge smile.

  “I’ll take that as a yes,” he says with a chuckle.

  “Your vitals look good, and they have informed me that you have 24-hour care set up at home. Is that correct?”

  “Yes. We have someone starting tonight,” I answer.

  “Perfect. You will need to follow up with Dr. Nguyen and Dr. Prescott this week. Other than that, you’re free to go. Give Karen a few minutes to come back and remove your IV.”

  I spend the next few days acting as referee between the nurses and my nana. I knew she wasn’t happy about having someone watching her around the clock, but I never expected her to instill fear in these poor women. It would be funny if she didn’t look so miserable. She finally agreed to stop being so hostile after I explained that they were only doing their jobs. Her complaint was that they were breathing down her neck all darn day, and she wanted a moment of peace to watch her telenovelas. She chucked the remote at her day nurse’s head. I had to beg her not to quit and spent my afternoon trying to calm them both down. They’ve finally come to an agreement. I decided to post the schedule of all her shows to ensure that neither nurse loses an eye.

  This whole situation is exhausting, and I miss Ari. We’ve only had a chance to talk through texts the last few days. I miss her voice, her smell, her touch. I get hard just thinking about her. The night nurse’s son is sick tonight, and I told her she could take off. I’m assuming that, since the last text I got from Ari was this morning, she’s working late again. The anniversary party is this weekend and I’m hoping when it’s done we can get back to having some time together. It’s been torture living only ten minutes away from her now and not being able to see her. I peek in on Nana to make sure she’s okay. Her nurse is handing her pills, and I take the opportunity to give Ari a call.

  ARI

  The last few days have blurred into each other. Ben is still getting his nana settled, and I’ve been finishing last-minute details for the party. We haven’t seen each other, and I’m going through major withdrawal.

  I miss him. I miss his smell. I miss cuddl
ing up to him. I just . . . Blah! Listen to me. I’ve turned into that girl. What the hell. I’m still in la la land when my phone rings. The pic I took of him sleeping flashes on my screen and a silly grin spreads across my face. Don’t judge me. I’m not a creep. He just looked so peaceful, I couldn’t help myself. His full lips begged to be kissed and those dark lashes fanned against his cheeks. I snap out of it and pick up before the last ring.

  “Hello.”

  “Hey stranger, remember me?” he asks.

  I giggle. Yes, like a teenage schoolgirl. Who does that? He. Makes. Me. Do. That.

  “I was just thinking about you.”

  “Hmmm . . . What were you thinking about? Was it about all the dirty things I’m going to do to you when I finally get my hands on you?” he says in a husky voice.

  I swear that sentence and the sexy timbre in his voice make everything tingle. My heart rate picks up.

  “I miss you,” I say breathlessly.

  “I miss you, too. This party better be fucking awesome because I can’t handle this schedule anymore. What time are you off tonight?” he says sounding frustrated.

  “I’ll be here at least another hour if not longer. I have a few more files to copy.”

  “The night nurse is off at ten tonight and by the time you get home, I’ll only have an hour with you. That is not nearly enough time for what I have planned for us.”

  I sigh in frustration. That tingle just turned into an ache. I want and need him to make good on that statement.

  “I guess we’ll just have to wait until tomorrow. I have to be there a few hours early to register guests and make sure the room is set up correctly. I don’t want you to have to wait around. I should have everything wrapped up about eight-thirty. Do you want to meet me then?”

  “Yeah, that’ll work. I hate that I have to go another whole day without seeing you though.”

  “I’ll make it up to you. I promise. After tomorrow, I should be back to a somewhat normal schedule.”

  “I’m holding you to that promise. Okay, babe, I’ll let you go so you can finish. Please don’t stay too late and text me when you get home.”