She nodded. “And I’ll always be yours.”
They embraced each other tightly, kissing tenderly as they lay on the bed. As their bodies touched and their arms and legs entwined, they reflected on the fact that it was almost a year to the day that they first met. A year since their world was turned upside down. A year since they opened each other’s hearts to love. A year since they found the lost pieces to their souls. They cherished that memory, knowing that in the dry heat of the desert, they had found peace and comfort and love. Enough to last a lifetime.
24 Home Sweet Home
Madison would never tire of waking up in his arms. The way he always held her as if she might vanish into thin air. Feeling her move slightly, he squeezed her closer to him as he moaned softly against her shoulder. She felt him shift behind her and smiled. She released a contented sigh as she felt him enter her. They moved so effortlessly with one another, a perfect fit.
“You feel so good,” he mumbled as his mouth touched her skin.
“Go faster, Helios.”
She felt his smile against her shoulder blade as he picked up speed. His arm that generally lay underneath her shifted slightly so that his hand could cover her mouth. She moaned into it, letting his hand capture her sounds of pleasure. They both glanced up when they heard the door to the bathroom close.
“Baby, better make it quick,” she grinned at him over her shoulder.
The vein on his forehead pulsed as he pushed into her, harder and harder, faster and faster. She dropped her head as he moved his hand from her mouth and down her body. If she wanted it quick he would give her that. Her body stiffened as she buried her head in her pillow. A satisfied smile crossed his face as he continued to push in and out of her until he too finally found his release.
“Oh God! Helios, we really need to find our own place.”
He chuckled against her, which caused their bodies to course with pleasure. Madison had been home for nearly a month. While they loved her grans, they desired their own place again. They had loved their apartment in New York and the privacy it allotted them.
“We better get up,” he said reluctantly as he pulled away from her.
She rolled on her back and smiled. “I suppose.”
He pecked her nose and then crawled over her. He pulled on a pair of boxers and slipped on the jeans at the top of the laundry basket. She didn’t know why he insisted on wearing the same pair of jeans two days in row but she learned not to question it. She figured it had something to do with being on the streets or just the fact that he was a man. She had never lived with any aside from Andrew so it could be perfectly normal male behavior. She watched him flitter about the room. She was always amazed at the sight of him. He dropped down on the bed next to her as he slipped his t-shirt over his head.
“Are you getting up?”
“I want to stay in bed all day,” she said, reaching for him.
He settled between her legs and kissed her gently on the lips. “That would be amazing but you know that grans isn’t gonna like that.”
She nodded and brought her hand into his hair, pulling him down for another kiss. And that was how they stayed until they heard footsteps pass their door and then the television set turn on. Madison growled slightly, which elicited a chuckle from Andrew.
“Come on, baby, why don’t we go into town today.”
She nodded as he got off of her once more. This time she followed him, throwing on a pair of form fitting jeans and a tank top. She fluffed up her hair a tad and slipped passed him to enter the bathroom first. She glanced over her shoulder and stuck her tongue out as she closed the door. He laughed as he walked into the kitchen to start a pot of coffee.
“Good morning, Grans.”
“Mornin’ Andrew. Did she beat you to the bathroom again?”
“Always,” he grinned.
Grans laughed as she turned back to her program. When Madison came out of the bathroom and entered the kitchen, she swatted Andrew on the rear. He glanced at her and gave her a curious arch of his brown. She winked and motioned towards the bathroom. He rolled his eyes and headed that way.
“Anything particular you’d like for breakfast, Grans?”
“Maddie, you know you don’t need to cook for me.”
“I know, but I like too. Plus, it’s the least I can do considering your letting us crash here.”
“Oh, that reminds me. I was talking to Sophia at Bridge the other day and she said that she and her husband were moving.”
Madison glanced at her. “Do I know Sophia?”
“I don’t think so but Sophia lives about four streets over. Her husband is some kind of contractor. I don’t really know him that well, but maybe you guys would like their house.”
“You booting us out, Grans,” Maddison grinned, although secretly she was ecstatic at the prospect.
“Oh, stop it. You told me you wanted to live nearby and they are nearby.”
“What kind of house do they have?” she asked curiously.
Grans shrugged. “Never been there.”
“Hmmm, thanks for the heads up, maybe we’ll take a look today.”
“What are we looking at?” Andrew asked coming back into the room.
“Grans has a line on a possible house.”
Andrew nodded and smiled at her. They were both thinking the same thing. Getting their own place was an absolute must. After they finished breakfast and had cleaned up, they headed out. Being that Madison didn’t want to be very far from her grans or from Andrew’s aunt and uncle, she had reluctantly conceded to living in the trailer park. While the prospect of telling her mom she was gonna buy a house there did not thrill her in the least. She was certain that she would be disappointed and blame it on Andrew.
“Oh thank God!” she said as she saw the for sale sign.
Andrew looked at her confused. “What?”
“I was worried it was going to be a trailer, you know, like my grans,” she said sheepishly.
Andrew grinned and nodded his head. “It looks like my aunt’s house.”
They pulled up out front. “We’ll just get one of the brochures and then set up an appointment, okay?”
Andrew nodded. He didn’t know how these types of things were handled. So far they had not really been looking, just sort of making up for the time apart. They both stepped out of the car and walked to the realtor sign, each grabbing a brochure. It was a three bedroom, which was a little bigger than what they needed but Madison didn’t care. And the price was reasonable.
“Can we help you?”
Madison and Andrew both looked up. A man and woman were standing before them with two little children running around them. They were a lot younger than Madison had expected. She stepped forward a little bit and reached her hand out. They both shook it immediately.
“My name’s Madison Ellis. My grans said you folks were moving. We,” she motioned between her and Andrew, “just thought we would take a peek at it.”
“Oh, you must be Grandma Downing’s granddaughter.”
Madison nodded. “Yep, that’s me.”
“My name's John, and this is my wife, Sophia. Why don’t you let us show you the place?” the husband responded.
“Really? We can totally make an appointment. We don’t want to put you out or anything,” Madison quickly replied.
“Nonsense,” Sophia smiled. “Come on.”
Andrew shoved the brochure in his back pocket and followed alongside Madison. John smiled at him and shook his hand as they got to the door. Andrew smiled when they stepped inside and surveyed the room. The home was very nice and well-kept. As they walked through various rooms, Andrew tried to imagine living there. How would it look with Madison’s touches all over versus the clearly family oriented theme that the current occupants had.
“Do you mind if I ask why you’re moving?” Maddison inquired.
“My company closed down and we just found out that there is an opening in an affiliate company in Phoenix. We have some family out there and f
igured that was our cue to leave.”
“We will be out of here next week,” Sophia added.
“Wow, that’s a really fast move.”
“Unfortunately, it is, but they are only securing my position for two weeks before they offer it to someone else.”
“Andrew and I will talk about it and let you know as soon as possible. Is umm, is this price negotiable?” She asked, knowing that her mom always told her that all prices were negotiable.
“It is, within reason.”
Madison nodded. “Thank you for showing us around.”
“What do you think?” she asked Andrew as they got in the car.
“It’s nice. Do you like it?”
“I do. They really took care of it and it’s super close to grans as well as Aaron and Olivia.”
He smiled. “I noticed that too.”
“And that smaller bedroom would be perfect as a little studio for you to paint in.” He turned to her in shock. “I can totally see you having easels all over the place in there,” she finished with a laugh.
“Is it something you think you can afford?”
“We, Helios, we can afford.”
“Baby, it’s not really a ‘we’ if I don’t have a job.”
She rolled her eyes and started the car. “We’ll go to the bank on Monday. I know I just started at Liam’s office, but it should be enough for the financing.” She turned when he didn’t respond. “Helios, stop whatever it is you’re thinking.”
“Okay,” he replied with a sigh.
She grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly. “It’s gonna work out, Helios. I have a really good feeling about this.”
“I trust you, Madison.”
“Good, because you know I’m right. My gut feelings are never wrong.” When he arched his brow slightly she grinned. “Okay, well, maybe sometimes they are wrong but, ya know, Helios, that happens so rarely that it shouldn’t even count as being wrong,” she finished with a shrug as if she were making the most logical argument.
He laughed and brought her hand to his mouth, kissing it lightly. “Well, then I guess it will be okay.”
“See, now you’re talking,” she said with a wide grin.
~*~
It had worked out as Madison had planned and three weeks later they were about to move into their new home. Since Sophia and John needed to move out of state rather quickly there was no haggling over the price. They had happily accepted the offer Andrew and Madison had made. Once the offer was made, Madison took Andrew to the bank with her and made sure that his name was on the mortgage. It was something he had not expected her to do.
“Helios, come on. We need to go to the bank.”
“Why am I going? You put all the money down,” he said with a half laugh that did not come out as funny.
She stopped him at the coffee pot and spun him around. He turned startled.
“We are in this together. Which means,” she smirked at him, “that if I’m going in debt then so are you.”
“Well, they can’t get something from nothing.”
“Stop it,” she tugged on his hands. “Let’s go put our names on this mortgage.”
“Are you positive about this?”
“One hundred percent sure, baby!”
“Helios, you ready?” Madison asked, drawing him out of his thoughts.
He smiled and nodded. “Yep. I think we got everything.”
Madison nodded, but before she could respond, they heard a horn blare.
“You guys coming, or are Callie and I laying claim to this U-Haul full of furniture?”
Madison laughed and flipped Jayden off as he laughed riotously. Apparently, he thought he was funny. He revved his engine as Madison and Andrew got into her car. The drive from the storage facility was short and uneventful. While Madison was ecstatic about the move, Andrew was still a little fearful. Not of living with her, because he would never tire of spending every day with her. No, he was concerned about whether he could actually contribute to their place. He knew she didn’t understand why that bothered him so much so he kept those thoughts to himself.
“This is it, Helios,” she smiled as they pulled into the driveway.
He nodded and kissed her. It was a kiss that had potential but was quickly broken up by Jayden knocking on the window and tapping his nonexistent watch. Once again, Madison flipped him the bird and could hear his laughter as she pulled away from Andrew.
“Let’s move into our new home,” he whispered against her lips.
She breathed in deeply as her forehead gently touched his. “We can do this.”
He nodded in return and brought his lips to hers once more. The kiss was gentle and full of love. Andrew knew that he couldn’t let his fears prevent him from something wonderful. He had let his insecurities get in the way before and nearly lost the most important person in the world to him. He wouldn’t do it again.
“Come on, let’s go before Jayden starts rocking the car or something,” he said with a laugh.
“He totally would do that too. I wish Callie was here.”
“Yeah, he said she wasn’t feeling good. I think she didn’t want to get her hands dirty.”
Madison slapped his arm playfully. “Excuse me?”
“Just kidding,” he grinned as he opened his car door.
Madison met him around the car and took his hand as they walked to their new home. Andrew pulled out the key and breathed in deeply as he turned the lock. Stepping inside as a homeowner was a surreal experience for him. He never thought in his life that he would have his own home, but here he was, stepping through the doors of the one place he would never be forced to leave. It was something that no one could take away from him. He couldn’t really adequately describe how he was feeling, but he knew that it was beyond happiness.
“This place is awesome,” Jayden stated as he walked in behind his friends.
“It’s gonna be fantastic,” Madison replied, squeezing Andrew’s hand.
The three friends made quick work of getting things moved into its proper place. Madison, being the stickler for order, directed them with precision. Soon they were sitting on Madison’s New York City couch, sipping iced teas that she had in a cooler.
“So you guys gonna have a house warming party? Break this place in right?” Jayden asked as he took a long gulp of his drink.
Andrew looked at Madison and shrugged. They hadn’t talked about doing something like that at all but it sounded like it would be fun. They could invite their friends and family. Madison could cook one of her fabulous meals and they could hang out together. She grinned at him and nodded slightly.
“Well, it sounds like a house warming party is on.”
“Awesome,” Jayden replied as he set his empty bottle down and stood up. “I better head out. You guys need me for anything else?”
“Nah, we got it,” Andrew said, rising as well and taking his friends hand. “Thanks for everything, Jay.”
“Any time, man.”
Madison rose and gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek. “Give Callie my love. Tell her to call me when she’s feeling better.”
He nodded. “I will.”
They walked their friend out and then Madison immediately went into the kitchen to unpack some of the boxes. She had saved everything from her apartment in New York, figuring it was all fairly new anyway, so why should she get rid of things they would actually need. She knew that she and Andrew would be starting off with little to no income at first, so why spend money unnecessarily. She continued to unpack items, moving an empty box to the side with her bare foot. She wanted to get as much done as she possibly could today. Feeling Andrew’s eyes on her, she smiled before glancing over her shoulders to indeed find Andrew leaning against the doorway, watching her every move.
“So, are you gonna help, Helios, or you just gonna stand their looking all sexy?” she asked casually.
He grinned mischievously and stalked over to her. She turned all the way around, facing him, wa
tching him approach her. Once he reached her, he immediately picked her up and started walking her out of the kitchen and towards their bedroom. Madison started to protest but then thought what would be the point of that. He placed her on the bed and settled between her legs.
“I’m going to make love to you,” he said with a quick kiss on her lips.
She breathed out heavily. “Let me put on the sheets first.”
He laughed; it was a motion that felt good against her already aroused body. He abruptly moved and stepped aside while she frantically darted over to the boxes in the bedroom. She moved a few boxes and found the one that was marked ‘Bedroom: Linens’. She quickly pulled out the sheets and tossed them over her shoulder to Andrew.
“This is so domestic,” she snickered as they made the bed together.
“Of course, we’re going to mess these sheets up, you know that right?” he said with a playful wink, before palming the bulge in his jeans.
“Oh, Helios, we are totally going to do that!” She plopped on the bed, posing as sexily as she could. “Do with me as you like,” she said, throwing her head back dramatically.
He climbed above her and pushed her shirt up in one swift move. “Do as I please, huh?” he questioned as he removed her bra.
Her breath hitched as she nodded. “Anything,” she whispered as her voice came out unsteady.
He smiled as his shirt came off and he unsnapped his jeans, releasing himself to her. He was bound and determined to make tonight memorable. It was their first night together in their new home, a home they purchased together; a place where they were free. No one could ever tell him to leave, or worse yet, tell her that she had to leave because of him.
“I love you so much, Madison.”
Her eyes opened as she reached up to him. He came to her willing as their bodies became one. They moved against each other, never tiring of their connection. The way his skin felt against hers, the ragged nature of his breath making her want him even more, and the way he always made sure she was satiated before he sought his own release. She knew that she would never be treated as well with anyone else, never be cherished as much as he cherished her. He would always be home to her.
Helios Exposed (The Helios Chronicles #2) Page 24
