by S. K. Lessly
Hmmm… shit, sorry. I’m at it again.
To sum up everything, Paul and I couldn't be happier. In fact, I think we could actually be happier if…
I opened up my eyes and focused on the man in question, who happened to be in the bathroom. He was getting ready for work looking delicious in his standard fireman uniform, navy polo shirt with his lieutenant pins on his lapels and navy blue khakis. His shirt fit snugly against his muscled chest and biceps, and the khakis showed off his sexy firm ass too. I licked my lips, sat up, and got a good view of my man. His hair was in his usual short style, but he kept up the beard, which added to his hotness. It was trimmed close to his face and sexy as hell, giving him that rugged, manly I’m a beast, look.
A thought popped into my mind, well two thoughts actually, but one of them caused me to get out of bed and head in his direction. It was almost summer, and a change in the seasons was on the horizon. Why not make some changes in my life as well?
I looked down at my attire and grinned. Over the months, I had gained the weight I had lost back, which was a good thing. The thin tank top I wore showed off the girls quite nicely, and boy shorts style panties aided in what I had planned.
My hair was all over the place, but I didn’t care. A few finger combs to get my hair to cooperate would be good enough. I leaned forward a bit, reached inside my tank and pulled up my boobs so they would be more enticing through my shirt.
I was now ready for operation seduction. I made it to the bathroom doorway and saw that Paul had just finished brushing his teeth. He grabbed a brush and began brushing his hair, taking in his reflection as he groomed himself. I smiled at his reflection in the mirror, slid between him and the counter, reached up on my tippy-toes and started kissing his neck.
He moved back from me shaking his head.
“Come on, Lauren, I have to go to work.”
I sat on the counter, pulled at his shirt to pull him closer to me and slid my hands underneath the offensive material to caress his back. His skin was smooth and warm to the touch. I could feel the hard-coiled muscles along his back and I moaned softly. I loved the way he felt. The power he exuded was such a turn on. I wrapped my legs around his waist to put him right where I wanted him. Damn, he was hard already.
“Lauren,” he chastised in a low growl. He reached behind himself and unwrapped my legs from his waist. “Stop trying to seduce me.”
He tried to give me a serious look, but I could see the battle ensuing in his eyes. He was close to caving, I could feel it. I just needed a bit more encouraging.
I folded my arms in front of me to accentuate my girls and poked my bottom lip out. Paul looked down at my boobs, and I could have sworn his eyes darkened. However, he didn’t go for the bait. Much to my chagrin, he just shook his head, stepped aside so he could see his reflection in the mirror, and began tucking his shirt into his pants.
I watched for a few minutes before the main reason why I came in here popped back into my mind.
“Move in with me?” I asked on an exhaled breath.
Paul stopped moving and looked at me. “What?”
“You heard me. Move in with me?”
Again, he didn’t move nor did he speak. He instead gave me this look that scared the shit out of me, like he was thinking of a way to turn me down. I couldn’t have that. I started talking fast.
“Listen, I know this is a surprise, but I think it’s time for us to move to the next step in our relationship. We spend most of our time together, anyway. Either you’re here with me, or I’m over at your place. Why not move in together?”
He sighed and gave me a sympathetic look.
“Lauren, I—” he began, but I quickly spoke over him, fear gripping my chest tight.
“Okay, I know what you’re gonna say, but it’s not too soon. Yes, it’s also a big step, but I think we’re ready, no, I know we're ready. Things won’t get weird between us I promise. I won’t crowd you. Whenever you need space, you got it. And I won’t question where you are or when you’re coming home… mostly…” I said that last part softly. “And I won’t nag you too much, either, scouts honor. I just really want you here with me every second of every day that I can have you. I love you. There’s no other man I want to be with than you. I just want to put my money where my mouth is, you know?”
I searched his eyes for something, anything that would give me an indication he was thinking about it. Regrettably, all I saw was hesitation and uncertainty.
When, after a few seconds had passed and he still didn’t speak, I blew out a defeated breath and I felt the tears welling in my eyes. I hopped down from the counter biting back the feeling of rejection.
I mumbled over my shoulder, before I left the room, “Just think about it, okay?”
I was about to do a face plant on the bed to hide the tears that were threatening to fall, when Paul reached for my arm. He spun me around to face him, placed his hands along my face, and kissed the hell out of me. All I could do was grip his shirt to keep my balance. Paul deepened the kiss, his tongue doing magical things to my body, my heart, and my pussy.
He walked me backwards until the back of my legs hit the bed, and we fell together on the mattress, our lips never losing their fierce lock. He pinned my hands above my head with one hand while the other roamed my body, more importantly, my boobs. Yesss!
Paul dropped his delectable lips to my neck, kissing and licking me until I was squirming underneath him. I wrapped my legs around his waist, encouraging him to do more, to take more.
In between kissing me, he whispered against my neck, “I can’t be late for work this time.”
I nodded knowing I had him right where I wanted him, in between my thighs. Score one for the girls.
Ignoring the unanswered question hanging over us, I quickly made work of undoing his belt and pants. I pulled down both offending articles of clothing, his pants, and underwear, just over his ass. It was just enough for his hard-as-steel dick to spring into action. I grinned up at him, and he chuckled and shook his head.
“You are so bad.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. His fingers slid my boy shorts aside, and I felt the head of his dick just at my entrance. He teased my clit a little with the tip, coating himself with my desires right before he slammed into me with one hard delicious thrust. I cried in pleasure and arched into him.
It didn’t matter how many times we made love. I would never get used to his size. He stayed still and looked down at me, waiting, all the while torturing me, owning me. I squirmed underneath him, wanting him to move, needing to feel him claim me as only he could. He leaned down and took my lips in a sweet kiss before he proceeded to pound my ass into my mattress.
Yeah so, needless to say, he was late for work. However, it really wasn’t my fault this time, honest.
* * *
Later that day, I got a call from my boy scout that made everything worth it.
“Lauren, can you do me a favor?”
“Of course,” I replied cheerily. I had been grading the last of the term papers for this semester when he called me. I needed the break. After a whole year spent with me grilling the basics of writing a good paper, these freshmen still sucked at writing.
“Can you stop by The Container store or UPS today and get me some boxes?”
A wide grin started to spread along my face, from ear to ear. I tried not to sound hopeful, but I knew I had failed miserably when my voice squeaked excitedly.
“You want boxes?”
Paul laughed. See? Failed miserably.
“Yes, I think I need them if I’m going to move.”
I squealed on the phone, and he laughed again.
“So, does this mean you’ll move in with me?” I prodded because hell, I wanted him to say the words. I didn’t want to assume.
“If you’re sure about this…” he started, but I was so excited I didn’t let him finish.
“Yes, I’m sure, of course, I am.”
I chuckled again. “Then
let’s do it.”
Yessss!
* * *
It took about three weeks to get Paul moved in and settled. He didn’t bring much with him. I already had furniture for the living and dining rooms, and he already gave me his leather sectional and TV when he remodeled the basement. I helped him pack the rest of his belongings and unpacked him while he was working; it was the least I could do. The remaining furniture he used to stage his house to sell. If the new owners didn’t want anything, he said he'd donate them to charity or something.
After a few weeks of running back and forth, I had him right where I wanted him. We settled into our new lives together with ease. He even began working on creating the master suite oasis I wanted, which included upgrading the bathroom and creating our walk-in closet.
Did I tell you how much I loved this man?
Not only did we spend time working on our relationship, but we also worked on the relationships outside of our home, namely our families. Throughout the three months that we’ve been together, Paul and I had made a few trips to Philly to visit my family. My parents loved him for many reasons, but the main reason was that he brought me home to see them. Hell, they hadn’t seen me this much since I lived under their roof.
We also made trips to Whippany, NJ, which was about an hour from us, to visit his family. Although those excursions weren’t as fun as heading to Philly. The Logans as a whole were great. His two sisters, Mary and Corinne were very cool and downright beautiful with long, thick blonde hair, and piercing light blue eyes. Paul’s brother, Kenneth, shared Paul’s build and blue eyes, but where Paul’s hair was dark, Kenneth’s hair was light just like his sisters and mom.
The siblings were fun to be around, silly, and kind-hearted just like their brother. Even their spouses were cool. Their parents, however, were a different story. Don’t get me wrong. They didn’t treat me like the help. His mom and dad were nice enough. However, it took them a while to get used to Paul and me being together. In fact, Paul didn’t give them a choice in the matter. He laid down the law the first night we visited, telling them we were in love, and it wasn’t up for debate.
I hadn’t heard him “lay down the law”; he told me about it on the way home that night. He had been in a funk, and I had to practically use promises of blowjobs to get him to open up. Apparently, when I stepped away from the dinner table, they went in on him. Asking him why he chose me over Sabrina. They even asked if I tricked him for his money blah, blah, blah.
After that day, they seemed to tolerate me. His mom did look at me sideways sometimes, but I ignored her, for Paul’s sake. However, if she ever said something crazy to me, she and I would have some unpleasant words. Paul said he was okay with checking his mom, although he believed she would never say anything to hurt me directly to me.
I took his word, but I kept my guard up anyway, just in case. His dad was cordial towards me as well, but again, there was something in his eyes that had me uneasy, as if he was plotting my demise in his head or something.
I shouldn’t be too pissed off or weirded out by his parent's disapproving stares. They weren't the only people that gave us disapproving glances. As you could imagine, we've gotten strange looks when we were out together, especially by white women and black men.
The white women gawked at him when he wasn’t by me, but the moment I’d appear next to him and he showed affection towards me, they’d frown. It didn’t bother me too much. None of the females were brazen enough to approach me or say something crazy to me. I hadn’t had to beat some ass, but I was on alert, trust me.
The only reason why I didn’t address the looks was because of Paul. He wasn’t going all caveman, stepping up to black guys when they gritted on him or gave them death stares and I knew for a fact he got them all the time. He had been cool, calm and collected about it, however I knew he had his head on a swivel nonetheless. I was the same way. We never put anything past anyone. If someone started some shit, we were prepared to deal. If we had to get dirty, then we'd do that too. No one was threatening what we have, no one.
22
Lauren
It was Memorial Day weekend and Paul and I were invited to a cookout at Samson’s house. At first, I didn’t want to go. I knew for a fact our exes would be there, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to see Sebastian after the way he behaved, and I definitively didn’t want to see Sabrina.
Even though Paul and I hadn’t seen our exes in months, it didn’t mean that Samson, Melissa, Tonya, and Tyler hadn't seen them. In fact, they saw them at least once a month.
I didn’t have much to say to Sabrina. I wasn’t sure if she thought I had stolen Paul from her, or what. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t let it get to me. Sebastian could kiss my ass. He was a lying cheating asshole who still hadn’t apologized for cheating on me, for lying to me, and for blaming me for burning his house down.
Paul had told me some time ago that the cause of the fire was faulty wiring. Apparently, Sebastian had a stage with a stripper pole built in his bedroom, and the lighting that was installed hadn't been done correctly.
A stripper pole, really?
Anyway, I was head set on not going, but Paul to talk me into it.
“There is nothing for you to worry about,” he'd said. “It’s been ages since we’ve seen them. A lot has changed, namely us. I don’t care about seeing Sabrina. She and I are done. I definitely couldn’t give two fucks about Sebastian. Fuck them both actually. Let’s go hang out with our friends and ignore the rest.”
It wasn’t the greatest pep talk, but it worked well enough.
We drove in silence to Samson’s place. I wasn’t sure what Paul was thinking about, but I was nervous as shit, despite what he said about being over the past. It still felt weird that we were going to be hanging out with our exes and potentially the people they cheated on us with.
Paul pulled up to a two-story, white cottage-style home, and put his car in park. He looked over at me, and I met his eyes.
“You can come with me while I find a parking space, or you can go in without me. It’s up to you.”
I turned to stare out my window at Samson's home. I wasn’t a punk. I just needed a minute to get my head right. I had promised Tonya and Melissa I'd be on my best behavior, so no cussing out Sebastian or kicking Amy in her teeth.
“Lauren, you good?”
I jumped slightly startled out of my thoughts and turned to look and Paul. I could see the worry in his eyes, and I smiled.
“I’m good. I’ll meet you inside.”
“You sure?”
I nodded. “Yes, I’m sure.” I leaned over to give him a reassuring kiss before I opened the door and got out.
I stood there on the sidewalk and stared up at the house with a beautifully manicured lawn and a white wrought iron fence circling the home. I wiped my sweaty hands down my long yellow maxi dress and took a deep breath.
You can do this. If they look at you funny, don’t react. Violence never solves anything.
I smirked at that bold faced lie I just told myself before I started for the house.
I could hear music and loud talking coming from the back of the house. I moved in that direction, unlatching then latching the fence before walking along the path leading to the back of the house. As I got closer to the music and ruckus, I raised my safety guard. I needed to be on my best behavior and not turn into an angry black woman.
When I stepped onto Samson's back patio, all eyes fell on me. I stopped walking and met everyone's questioning and weary looks. I knew I looked good so there wasn’t a question in that department. My maxi dress accentuated my curves. My hair lay along my shoulders straight with lots of body. I didn’t bother with any makeup, just gloss, and I wore a pair of tan and yellow wedges.
Some of the looks thrown my way were from Tonya. She was pissed because I was late. The other looks I caught were curiosity and ah… desire? I blinked my eyes at that thought and forced my stomach not to empty all its contents before I had a chance to fill it. I manag
ed to get myself together, take a deep breath, and placed a bright smile on my face. The smile was full of fakeness, of course, but I didn’t let them see me sweat. The hello and subsequent wave that followed was just as fake.
Things went on fine after that initial tense moment. Sebastian managed to school his I want-to-fuck-you-look as I approached. He was sitting next to Amy and had his arm around her. Upon seeing me, she seemed to cuddle closer to him. I fought back a laugh as I approached and spoke to them both. In my head, I said to Amy; there is no way I want him back sister, you can have him. Outwardly, I just smiled at the endearment.
Things had gone the same way when I spoke to Sabrina and her new beau, minus the forced PDA. Sabrina's new man was pretty good looking. Apparently, she had great taste in men. The guy seemed tall. He was sitting down, so I couldn't gauge just how tall he was, and had muscles coming out of his eyeballs. He had blonde hair cut short and sparkling blue eyes. His eyes weren't as magnificent as Paul’s, but they were nice enough. Admittedly, he was nice to look at.
Sabrina eyed me like she knew some secret about me but refused to tell me what it was. I knew she knew about Paul and me. I was sure Melissa told here, they were best friends after all. However, despite the rumors that floated around behind my back, which I’ll get to in a minute, she seemed to have no problems with me. I guess I was worried about nothing.
Surviving the exes, I blew out a breath and went right up to Tonya and Melissa, passing the fellas, Samson and Tyler, and giving them the finger as I walked. Smirky bastards. Tonya gave me an approving look as I came closer and I stuck my tongue out at her too. I shifted my attention to my goddaughter in Tonya’s arms.
“Hey beautiful, how’s my angel?” I said in that overly sweet voice adults use when speaking to babies. I pulled Taylor from her mother and kissed her cheeks. The baby was ten weeks old, and she was already trying to lift her head.
