Needing Her

by Annabelle Love

  “Tha-a-ank y-o-ou…” Slurring heavily from a mix of breathlessness and tiredness, Hailey flopped her head back with a soft groan. Ignoring her for the moment, I came to the sudden realization that if I left her in the bath, she’d probably drown. Sitting on the toilet seat cover, I tapped my barefoot a few times before a sigh built in my throat.

  “Fuck it—” Grumbling to myself, I shuffled to sit Hailey down in my place, and I held her shoulder with one hand as I reached for the tub faucet with the other. Her bathroom wasn’t too big, thankfully, but the tub that doubled as a shower was long. I could easily lay down flat in the thing and be as comfortable as I’d expect with my face in ceramic.

  “Anthony…?” The hoarse whisper drew my gaze, and Hailey offered me a smile that slid off her face almost instantly, like she was a cartoon. “I rem-m-member- I said… I said it was bad… I said- that D was bad… but it’s not.”

  Chapter 17

  Hailey

  Stepping silently down the hallway, I held my breath for fear of making even the slightest sound. My heart thundered in my ears, and I slowly emerged into the kitchen to be enveloped in soft, yellow light that radiated from above the stove. Rolling my bottom lip between my teeth, goosebumps washed my skin from the cold tiles beneath my feet, and I crossed my arms over my midsection.

  Anthony snored lightly just beyond the threshold to the living room, and I passed under the archway to peek over the back of the sofa. The sight squeezed my heart, and my eyes locked onto his face as he frowned in his sleep. One arm propped up his head, and his ankles crossed over the armrest, but he didn’t look at all comfortable.

  Softly poking his cheek, I tensed when Anthony jerked immediately into consciousness, and my breath caught in my throat as he sat up stiffly.

  “What… Hailey… babe… what’s wrong? You? Antonya?” Raspy from sleep, Anthony’s tone gyrated against my eardrums. Shaking my head in surprised silence once his bleary gaze landed on me, I held my finger to my lips before gesturing him to follow.

  Sweat slicked my palms and trickled down between my shoulder blades while Anthony pushed himself up with a grunt. Grabbing his hand, I led him through the kitchen and down the hallway, and my heart beat harder, more erratically, the closer we came to my bedroom. Ambling heavily behind me, he didn’t resist even as he let go of my hand to rub his eyes with his fists, and nervousness tickled my abdomen.

  “What is it, Hailey? You slept until the asscrack of dawn.” Anthony’s tired question bounced around my bedroom, and I didn’t answer; I couldn’t think of anything to say that wouldn’t destroy the courage I’d spent the past 10 minutes building. Seating him at the end of my bed, I inhaled a slow, deep breath before forcing my anxiety-riddled muscles to move.

  Big, familiar hands held my waist as I straddled his lap, and Anthony tensed while my fingers threaded through his hair. Blood beat against my eardrums, and I held his face to my chest to press my cheek to his crown of messy, black hair. Only our breathing filled the room, and his palms reached around me to slide up my back and hold tight.

  “… I’m sorry, Anthony.” My soft, bare whisper was loud in the otherwise silent space, and Anthony’s lips grazed just above my breasts as he exhaled. “I’m sorry that you’ve been working so hard, and I didn’t appreciate it.”

  “I don’t expect you to drop everything you’ve done just because I’m around, Hailey.” Hot breath flowed down between my breasts, and Anthony squeezed my torso as my eyelids fluttered shut to block out the gloom of early morning struggling to seep through my curtains. “I never meant to come across as not wanting you.”

  “I thought… but—” My halting words were cut off by chapped, thin lips, and I automatically tightened my grip on Anthony’s scalp. His hands glided heavily up my arms to grip my wrists to free him, and he locked my loose fists behind my back.

  Arching into his chest, the fiery need I’d felt so long ago flared into an inferno in my abdomen, and a low moan burst from my throat. Shoving his tongue into my mouth, he dragged his free palm up my front to lock his fingers around my neck.

  “I owe you… for that night.” Mumbling deeply, Anthony’s words caused ripples across the pool of saliva that gathered under my tongue, and I rasped a moan when he squeezed my neck.

  Shuffling underneath me, he tugged and jostled before breaking our hot kiss, and I wheezed shallow pants. Excitement, longing, burned through my chest, and it only grew more intense as it swallowed up my heart.

  Scooting up to the middle of my king-sized mattress, Anthony pulled on my arms even as he fell back, and my lungs quivered under the weight of the atmosphere. His eyes glittered when they caught mine, and I gulped under his palm as my body responded at break-neck speed.

  My fresh pair of boy-shorts was drenched at the crotch as my core twisted and undulated, and he cocked a sexy smirk—as if he knew that his mere glance was enough to poise me at the edge.

  “Sit right on my face so I can slurp up all that tasty juice, babe.” Anthony’s voice reverberated up my thighs to converge on my apex, and I trembled with need when he tugged on my neck. Inching up his chest, whimpers and desperate sounds escaped from between his clenching fingers, and he didn’t so much as blink. Sitting just before his chin, my knees couldn’t even reach beyond his broad shoulders to support me, but he wasn’t at all uncomfortable. His shirt bunched up under my ass, and I ground against it shamelessly while he just watched, never loosening his hold on my wrists.

  “Have you always cum so easy?” Dragging his hand down my front, Anthony left a trail of magma in his wake, and my nipples tightened to the point of pain. Shaking my head furiously, I moaned at the pleased growl he let loose before his fingertips slipped under the hem of my shorts. “Say it.”

  “No- no- n- never- I nev- never…” Stuttering hoarsely, I arched sharply with a gasp when Anthony circled my throbbing, swollen clit with his forefinger. “Please-e…”

  “I don’t know… I don’t think I believe you, Hailey. That wasn’t very convincing.” Sputtering even as Anthony’s heavy tease slithered into my ears over the blood beating against them, I ground and wiggled in wanton abandon.

  Slipping between my drenched folds, his fingertips eased just beyond my entrance, and I held my breath as anticipation stiffened my muscles. “You’re so fucking wet…”

  “P- please- please- please- please, Anthony-e-e-ah-h-h!” Thick, callused digits parted my folds, and a half moan, half sob burst from my sore throat. Fat, hot tears burned my eyes when Anthony left me bereft of his touch, and he released my wrists to wrap his arms around me.

  The world spun as he rolled us across my bed, his lips finding mine sloppily, and he unfastened his belt to yank my hands taut above my head.

  “You’re so desperate for my cock, huh—beg for it. I won’t even eat you out first if I like it enough… I’ll be generous.” Tying my hands together tightly, Anthony’s harsh demands caused my eyes to boggle and roll in their sockets. Clenching my teeth hard, my jaw and face ached from the pressure between my brain and my skull.

  Choking a gasp, I arched into his chest even while my thighs clung to his waist. My orgasm ripped through me, and a sharp cramp twisted my abdomen before the waves of pleasure subsided.

  The cold air of my bedroom speared my burning core when Anthony peeled back my shorts, and he sucked in a sharp whistle of a breath. Falling limp against my floral pattern comforter, I struggled to breathe as he jerked off my thin piece of clothes to nosedive for my apex.

  Licking my slit from bottom to top, his groan turned my bones to jelly even as he grabbed my knees to throw my legs haphazardly over his shoulders.

  “Fucking delicious—” Shivers attacked my spine, and Anthony sucked on my fold firmly as I writhed and spasmed beneath him. Panting harshly as pleasure skittered just under my skin, I rolled my hips against his mouth. My moans and whimpers echoed in my ears, and I tightened my thighs around his head as he reached around my leg to rub my clit with his thumb.

  “I-
I’m g- gonn-n-n-a… gu- p-” Anthony shoved his tongue deep inside me as my high-pitched sputtering filled the room, and his groan was lost under my shriek of pleasure. Wiggling and scraping against my walls as I tightened around him, his thick tongue sent me spiraling into the abyss, and spasms and twitches assaulted my weak muscles.

  “Shit, shit…” Licking me clean with broad strokes, Anthony’s retreat didn’t do anything to lessen the battering waves of release that slammed into me. His fingers rubbed my clit raw, circling and gyrating roughly, and black spots appeared in the red beyond my tightly shuttered lids. “Harder- harder, babe- ah, fuck…”

  “Ch- cho- ha-a-a-h!” Anthony’s brutal assault didn’t falter even in the slightest as he grabbed the slender, straining column of my neck to squeeze down on my arteries. “Yes-s-s-s-s! Ye- yea-h…”

  The thin stubble along his chin scraped my inner folds as he replaced fingertips with teeth, and I let out a choking squeal when he jammed his fingers deep into my channel. Curling and twisting, scissoring against my tight, quivering walls, Anthony’s fingertips jabbed that spot relentlessly that most other men couldn’t find. Blunt teeth clamped down on my clit, and I came undone with violent spasms.

  “I’m gonna fuck you so good, babe.” Anthony’s feral snarl only fueled the fire in me, but before his breath even left my dribbling, throbbing center, the baby monitor crackled to life.

  Freezing, we both held our breath before Antonya’s little whines came faintly through the device. Slithering up my sweaty body, Anthony kissed my lips fiercely, and I mindlessly hugged him between my thighs. “—just not right now. Plus, you’re getting milk all over your bed.”

  The jolt Anthony’s declaration shot to my heart pulled me violently from the red, lustful haze that filled my bedroom, and I lifted my head to look down as he untied my hands. Horror filled my chest at the torrents of breastmilk that flowed down either side of my soaking wet bra. Sitting up quickly, I twisted as he sat on my knees while Antonya’s fussing began in earnest in the background.

  “Oh my God—” My torso was outlined by a thick line of darkened fabric where the comforter had gotten wet, and all of the fire I’d felt only moments ago surged to fill my face. Anthony’s laughter bounced off the walls and rang in my ears, and he shuffled off the bed to fasten his jean’s button.

  “You should wash up and get Antonya—I’ll stick this in the washing machine.” Grabbing Anthony’s hand when he reached for the edge of the comforter, my fingers trembled slightly before his eyes met mine.

  My question must’ve been written all over my face, because he leaned over to kiss my lips firmly, and I cupped his sharp cheek in my sweat-slicked palm. “She’ll go back to sleep in an hour. Just be patient, my cock-addicted baby momma.”

  Snorting an incredulous laugh, I choked on air as a huge, shit-eating smirk stretched Anthony’s mouth, and I pushed myself away to scoot off the side of the bed.

  “I’m not addicted to cock.” My hoarse grumble only earned me a disbelieving hum, and the woosh of Anthony pulling the drenched comforter off the bed sounded loudly in my ears as my heart rate returned to normal.

  “We’ll see about that.” His certainty was overwhelming, and my ears burned in embarrassment as I snatched my shorts from the floor. “By the time I’m done with you, you won't even remember what another guy feels like.”

  It’s a little late for that.

  Chapter 18

  Hailey

  “Hailey, I’m glad to see you’re feeling better.” Glancing up as George came waltzing into my cubical, I flashed him a smile even while my abdomen tightened against the edge of my desk. “I gotta say, though, I was relieved when you asked for the day off. I was starting to worry you were going to burn out… you know, working and being a mom and all that. It’s exhausting just thinking about it.”

  “Yeah, I feel much better. I think I was just tired.” George nodded firmly, understanding flittering across his face, but I knew he couldn’t. He didn’t have kids… unless I counted the fact that his girlfriend is 20 years younger than him.

  It was truly amazing what crazy stuff comes out after the first six months of working in a new office.

  “Good, good. I just came in to check on you and let you know that Casey is printing out all of the stuff for the training seminar today. Let me know when you get them. Also, I was wondering if when you had some time, if you could go over those promotional candidates from the Portland branch and let me know what you think.”

  Nodding as I wiggled my mouse around on its pad absently, pride wiggled into my chest when George beamed at me. He was a really good guy—very invested in his employees—and it was no wonder he was in charge of hiring and promotions. “Awesome. I’ll let you get to it, then, Hailey.”

  “Okay.” Slipping out of my little, allocated space, George didn’t glance back at me in favor of waving at an intern as they passed each other. There were definitely worse people to work for, and relief mixed with pride behind my ribs.

  George didn’t make a big deal about my leaving my workstation to pump, taking up space in the break room freezer, or if I took a longer lunch break. I always made sure not to take advantage of him, but that train of thought only brought Anthony’s image to my mind.

  Guilt crawled up my throat as my computer screen blinked to life in front of me, and I leaned back in my chair to sigh heavily. Friday had been eye-opening for me, and I tapped my foot absently against the linoleum. I’d never stopped to think of how uncomfortable it must’ve been to sleep on the couch. He put up with so much these past three weeks, and I’d never realized it until it was right in front of me.

  Sure, I worked a day job… but his whole mentality, his life, had been uprooted because of a simple decision to apologize to me about that night.

  When I’d woken him up, I didn’t consider anything sexual would happen; a cuddle and a rest was all I expected. Anthony had flirted with me often, but I thought he was just trying to get past the awkward stage for Antonya’s benefit.

  But, the truth was that there was no awkward phase, and this weekend had cemented his declaration that he wasn’t hanging around strictly for our daughter. He’d fucked me like it was our last weekend on this Earth—like there was nothing more important to him than getting me off. Even when he was rough, when the tears started flowing and my moans turned to hissing rasps, he spent every ounce of energy on me.

  This was just another display of how far he was willing to go to step up, and now, it was my turn.

  “Okay—” Clapping my palms on my cheeks, I shook my head clear of those thoughts with a huff. Flopping forward, I set my fingers against the keys and switched on my ‘work’ mode.

  “I’m at work. This is where work is done. No home at work, no work at home.”

  The hours passed by uneventfully until noon, and the little alarm clipped to the edge of my dividing partition trilled into life. Smiling at the spreadsheet that splayed across the screen, I wiggled around my mouse to lock my computer before slowly standing from my rolling chair. Stretching my arms over my head, a groan lodged in my throat, and I waved my hands absently.

  “Are you going to lunch with your sisters, Hailey?” Sally poked her head over the partition, and I shook my head at the curiosity in her eyes. “Want to come with me and this lady from accounting?”

  “Uh, no. I’m actually going with my… boyfriend…” Faltering slightly, I furrowed my brows even as Sally’s shot up in surprise. “It’s hard to explain. So, I’ll see you after lunch, Sally.”

  “Yeah… okay.” My ears twitched as I stepped out of my cubical, and my heels clicked to drown out the very noticeable disappointment in Sally’s tone. Pursing my lips together, regret instantly slithered around my heart even though I didn’t want to lie. It wasn’t a secret that I was a single mother, but I didn’t want to give anyone any more reason to gossip.

  After all, someone—somehow—found out that Mark had been in the delivery room but wasn’t Antonya’s father. The las
t thing I needed was some ‘lady from accounting’ telling her little squad about someone she’d never even met.

  Digging my phone out of my purse as I stepped into the elevator, I made the short journey down and my call to Anthony simultaneously. He answered on the fourth ring, and Antonya’s baby garbling created a backdrop for his deep voice.

  “Hey, I was just about to call you, babe. I’m just getting Antonya in the car now.” Heat crept up my neck at the pet name, and I reached to rake my hand through my hair as the line crackled. “How’s work?”

  “It’s fine… going by fast. How’s she doin’ so far?” The elevator pinged, and I fished for my car keys absently as I stepped out of the metal box. For a moment, Anthony didn’t answer, and I strode across the lobby and towards the glass front doors with a wiggle of affection burrowing in my chest.

  “Ah, she’s doing okay. She wouldn’t take a bottle about 20 minutes ago, so you’re gonna have to do your thing. She’s stubborn today.” A small laugh escaped me, and I emerged into the bright, warm day with a slight shake of my head. “I’ll see you in a minute, okay?”

  “Yeah, see you in a minute.” The conversation was quick, and we hung up while I weaved through the throng of people walking the sidewalks towards the employee parking lot.

  “Excuse me! Miss!” Pausing just at the security gate, I twisted to watch a man I didn’t recognize flag me down, and he slowed his jog to smile brightly. “Hey, sorry to bother you, I was just wondering if you could tell me where this restaurant is. I was in the area, and my friend Anthony texted me yesterday to meet up, but I can’t find it.”

  Alarm bells shrieked in my head, bouncing harshly off my skull, but the man either didn’t notice or didn’t care as he dug in his pockets. So many questions raced through my mind that I could barely keep track of them all, and I could only watch dumbly while he unfolded a small piece of paper.