Fight For It

by Jessie Harper

  "Good morning." Zach pauses. "Is it not cool for me to be using your kitchen? I thought you might wake up hungry." He smirks. "For food, I mean. Breakfast. Do you like pancakes?"

  He's making me pancakes in his underwear.

  33

  Zach

  Fridays are back to being my favorite day of the week and this month has had five of them. Julia's back at the studio for our self-defense lessons with the one difference being that instead of just thinking about kissing her once I have her pinned to the mat, now I can do it. Some of the time at least. When she doesn't take advantage of the situation and punch me in the face. Maybe I've trained her too well.

  "Don't stop."

  I trace my fingertips down the length of Julia's back, fully aware of the softness of her skin against the roughness of my hands. She relaxes into my touch, sighing a little as she searches for my fingers.

  "I'm not scratching you?"

  "No." She wiggles closer to me until her back is almost pressed to my front. I keep my fingers moving, letting them hit the swell of her hip. "Just don't let me fall asleep; I've still got to meet the boys at the bus stop at three fifteen."

  We're tangled in my bedsheets at two o'clock in the afternoon which I'm happy to admit has become our new Friday thing. Once I had her committed to being my Friday date to get sweaty at the gym it wasn't that much of a stretch to get her back to my house. People need to shower, right? And sharing one saves water so I argued the conservation angle. Julia didn't take much convincing. We even started meeting earlier to ensure we have plenty of time to fit in all the wrestling we need to do both at the gym and at home.

  Her hair's still wet from earlier when I lathered her up with the shampoo that now lives in my bathroom for when she's here. I know that when she leaves my bed will smell like her skin—vanilla and sunshine—which is the only way I can let her go. I'll spend tonight inhaling her scent off the sheets and dreaming about the things I'd like to do to her. She rolls on her back and stretches her arms above her head. "What time is it anyway?" she asks me.

  "It's already two." I lazily pull one of her nipples into my mouth. She arches her back and I lean into her, teasing it with my teeth.

  "Plenty of time then." Julia wraps her arms around my neck.

  "Never enough time." I mean it. I would keep her here forever if I could, just exploring her body. But I can't tell her that, not without sounding like a fool. It's only been a few weeks, but already I can tell I'm not capable of controlling my feelings for her. Already I want more than I have a right to ask for, more than she's going to be able to give me this soon.

  Julia smiles, rolling me onto my back. I go willingly, enjoying the feeling of her body pressed against mine, warm and familiar. She's my drug of choice at this point and I let her surround me—wet hair and silky skin, her breath against my neck. She presses a kiss to my lips and I fist a handful of her hair to angle her the way I want her. I go slow, melting into her, feeling the breeze from my open bedroom window and trying to make the moment last. Later, when she's not here with me, I'll be able to conjure up the softness of her lips, her heart beating against mine.

  She pulls back and I release the hold I have on her. She's close enough for me to see the gold flecks in her eyes and the tiny freckles that dot the bridge of her nose. When she nuzzles the side of my face, I let the rumble I've been holding in my chest out and I can feel her smile against me. She moves down my neck and nips at my collarbone, leaving a trail of hot flutters everywhere her lips touch. When she finds my nipple, I tense. Her warm breath is barely a warning and before I can fully prepare myself she's got it between her teeth. My hips lift from the bed and Julia's laugh fills the room.

  "Every single time," she tells me against my chest.

  "I know. I can't control it," I moan.

  "I think it's funny that you even try." Julia's moving again. "Let's see where else that trick might work."

  "You enjoy torturing me."

  "Poor baby."

  She knows I'm not really complaining.

  Feather light kisses pepper my chest as she makes her way to her next destination. Her teeth on my other nipple provokes the same reaction. The more she touches me, the more ticklish I get, and, the more my cock begs for attention. I know Julia can feel more than just my hips responding to her touch. Her wet hair glides over my skin as she moves lower and I break out in a flurry of goosebumps trying to keep still.

  "What about here?" Julia asks as she nibbles her way down my stomach.

  "You know that now it doesn't matter where you are." I lose my voice as her lips brush the swollen head of my cock. I'm at full mast now, my breath coming out in hard, fast pants. I've gone from ticklish to engulfed in flames in the span of two seconds. Julia tilts her head to look at me and I'm drowning in those brown eyes, silently pleading with her to take me into her mouth, even just for a minute. I don't speak; my desperation would be impossible to hide from her.

  "And here?" Her question hangs between us. "Should I try that here?" She bares her teeth to me but even that threat doesn't make me less interested in her offer. Her hand wraps around my length, her mouth close enough for me to feel each tiny puff of air that escapes her lips. I'm holding my breath and trying my damnedest to keep from squirming. I cant my hips and wordlessly beg her to go on.

  When her mouth closes around me, warm and wet, I'm sure my eyes are going to roll back in my head. She's working me with her mouth and her hand, her damp hair falling over her face like a curtain. The sheet falls away from her hips as she rises over me and the sight of her ass in the air has me wishing I could touch more of her. Her skin's stretched out in front of me, but I resist moving to get my hands on her, instead I let her do what she wants to me, surrendering to her touch. I lie back and squeeze my eyes shut, controlling my breathing in an attempt to make this last. I twist the sheets in my fingers as Julia makes the sexiest sounds, sounds that have my hips rising to pump more forcefully into her mouth. I grab a handful of her hair and she hums, the vibration going straight to my balls.

  "Julia." I can barely talk, but I know I should let her know I'm about to come. "Jules, I'm..."

  She tilts her face toward me, her brown eyes full of lust, and I lose all control. My whole body shakes as I come, guttural moans escaping my lips. Julia stays with me, the soft suction of her lips working me until I'm loose-limbed. I'm melted to the sheets when Julia comes sliding up my body to rest her head on my chest.

  "I didn't mean to... I didn't plan on..." I'm a babbling idiot as I try to apologize for coming in her mouth without giving her enough warning. I've broken the rules of basic blowjob 101 and I would hate for that to keep me from enjoying further sessions.

  She wiggles higher up and her lips land on my neck. I lean into the warmth of her body and pull her tighter against me. "I wanted you to," she says. "I wouldn't have done it if I hadn't wanted to."

  I relax. Already I'm in too deep here. I'm basically purring as she wraps herself around me, tangling her legs with mine.

  "I should get up. Do you want another shower or is letting you get in with me going to make me late to the bus stop?"

  "Late. Most definitely." If I get back in the shower with her I'll keep her in there with me far beyond what would be considered reasonable.

  Julia slides out of bed and gathers her discarded clothes from the floor. Immediately I miss her warmth and reach to pull her back under the covers with me. She wiggles free of my grasp and moves toward the bathroom. Soon she'll be dressed and walking out the front door. Even being separated from her for a few hours makes my chest tight, the thought of her leaving my bedroom has me reaching for any excuse to keep her here.

  "Do you want to come to family dinner on Sunday?" I speak before my brain can catch up to my mouth. What am I doing? It's too soon to introduce Julia to my family. Too soon to have my parents fawning over her and her children. Too soon to have my sisters on red alert. But as she turns back to face me I find myself hopeful she's going to say
yes. I'm almost desperate to have her there even if I should wait.

  "Dinner with your family? Is that a good idea?" She's frozen in the doorway, both hands clutching her T-shirt from earlier.

  "If you think it's a bad idea we can wait, I just..." Again I'm stumbling for the right words to make her see how I feel, to see if she feels the same way. "I really want you to come. And Charlie and Noah too."

  Julia thinks for a minute, twisting the shirt in her hands. "Sure."

  "Sure?" I'm shocked by the excitement bubbling up inside me.

  Julia smiles back at me. "We'll have to explain to Charlie and Noah that we're more than friends. How do you feel about that?"

  "Do you want to tell them tonight? We can do it together." Again the fear I thought would be paralyzing me right now doesn't come. In its place there's only anticipation. I'm basically bouncing to the end of the bed and rushing over to Julia like she's told me I've won the lottery.

  She's smiling wide now and I hug her so tight I knock the breath out of her. "We'll talk to them tonight but you have to let me go or I'm going to be late picking them up."

  I kiss the top of her head and release her, hoping that I'm one step closer to never letting her go.

  34

  Zach

  Driving toward my parents' house with Julia and her boys tucked in my truck feels like something out of a dream. When I'd come to pick them up, I kept waiting for her to break things off, to tell me we were moving way too fast. Bringing her to Sunday dinner might be asking for trouble. I know it’s too soon to unleash my family on her. I've warned everyone to be on their best behavior, but for my sisters that won't mean much. They'll still be all over Julia with their inappropriate questions. They'll claim they're doing it for my own good—that they're only trying to protect me—and I try to appreciate their concern, but when it comes to Julia, I don't want protection. I want to dive in even if the water's cold.

  Helping Charlie and Noah into the truck, I could see what this could be like if Julia and I keep moving forward. I know it's not fair to get attached to her boys, to create an instant family in my imagination, but I can't seem to stop myself. The four of us instead of me solo sounds pretty good to my heart and I can't convince my brain to tell me otherwise. The boys are wearing golf shirts and khaki pants and have made an effort to tame some of the unruliness from their hair. Julia's beautiful as always with her hair down in loose waves and her legs showing just enough under the flare of her skirt to make it difficult for me to drive. My fingers twitch with the need to feel the skin above her knee for just a second, but even though Julia talked to the boys about our relationship, I'm not sure what they think "special friends" really means. I keep my hands to myself. Still, they know something's up. I catch their knowing glances in the rearview mirror as I drive.

  "How many sisters do you have?" Charlie asks from behind me.

  "Two. Amy and Kat. They're twins."

  "You're the little brother?" Noah asks, clearly interested in the pecking order.

  "Yep. But now I'm bigger so I'm not the littlest anymore." I give him a wink in the mirror.

  "Just like I'm going to be next year, right? Bigger than Charlie." This earns him a poke from his still bigger-for-now brother.

  Julia jumps in to referee as we turn into the driveway. "Calm down, you two. We're using our best manners tonight, right? We don't want Zach's family to think you're a bunch of monkeys."

  I make a few monkey sounds as I help Noah unbuckle his seat belt and lift him down out of the truck. I know he could climb down by himself, but every time he's ridden with me he waits for me to pick him up. I can't refuse those little outstretched arms so I don't hesitate to hoist him out and help him to the ground.

  "Don't let Mom hear you doing that," he whispers. "You'll be in trouble."

  "I can handle her," I whisper back, not entirely confident that this is the truth. His look tells me he's not convinced either, but Julia gives me a wink when she catches my eye. "Alright guys, here goes nothing." I take a deep breath, grab Julia's hand, and herd my little fantasy family toward the front door.

  When I turn the handle I can hear scurrying on the other side. They've all been waiting, probably watching us from the front window. All I can do is shake my head as my sisters pretend to be hanging out in the living room for no apparent reason. At the very least they could have faked a game of Scrabble or something. My parents have had the good sense to move farther back into the house, but it takes my mother approximately two seconds to rush from the kitchen to the front hall, yelling for my father the whole way.

  "Frank! Frank, they're here!"

  My father comes in from the den where I can hear the football game blaring from the television and we all stand uncomfortably in the hall. Charlie and Noah press themselves against Julia's legs as the rest of us stare at each other.

  "Oh, where are my manners?" my mother exclaims before extending her hand to Julia. "I'm Lila." Julia takes her hand as everyone else continues to gawk. "And this is Frank." My mother motions to my father who at least recovers enough to move to shake Julia's hand. The fact that it's been a long, long time since I brought a woman to family dinner is becoming more and more obvious. There's no way Julia was expecting to be treated like an animal at the zoo.

  "And those are my sisters." I gesture to Amy and Kat who've joined us in the hallway so that we're now all shoulder to shoulder. "This is Julia and these two handsome guys are Charlie and Noah." There's more handshaking and introductions. Julia's brought my mother flowers which she hands over. My mother fusses over the bouquet but doesn't make a move to leave the hallway.

  "Coach Z? Can we go inside or not?" Charlie whispers. This seems to break my family out of their trance.

  "Of course!" my mother nearly yells. "I need to put these lovely flowers in some water and get back to the kitchen." She moves away from us, dragging my father with her. "Maybe Julia would like a drink," she shouts to no one in particular.

  "I'd like a drink," Amy chimes in.

  "I think we'd all appreciate a drink," I add, giving Julia the most apologetic look I can manage without getting myself in hot water with my siblings.

  "Mom's got wine. Red and white. And beer. There's soda for the kids. Are they allowed to have that? I think we have juice." Kat doesn't take a breath until she's given us all our options. "Or Julia could have soda or juice, I guess. Or water. We've got water, obviously."

  "I'd love a glass of wine, unless it's too early for that." Julia looks at me, expecting me to clear things up.

  "Around here it's never too early for wine," I concede. "I'll get you a glass."

  As I make my way to the kitchen Amy reaches out to touch my sleeve. "Are there buttons on this shirt?" She arches an eyebrow at me. "Fancy."

  I scowl and give her the finger, careful to position my hand in front of my chest to keep Charlie and Noah from seeing.

  "Testy, testy. Maybe no alcohol for you," Amy teases, following me into the kitchen.

  Once everyone is settled with their drinks, I work on anticipating possible problems. After Abbey I've learned one valuable lesson: don't just expect everything to go according to plan. Yes, I'd love for my family to fall in love with Julia and her kids, but that won't happen unless I make sure nothing goes off the rails. And, flip side, I don't want them to fall too head-over-heels because if Julia and I implode I don't want anyone else's heart to be broken. My own feelings will be hard enough to manage without dealing with my mother's too.

  But once I find Julia in the kitchen chopping vegetables alongside my mother, I know I'm too late. As Julia makes short work of a bell pepper, my mother catches my eye and gives me a thumbs up. She's only got her working on the salad, but apparently that's enough to sell Lila Winston on Julia. They're chatting and laughing and my mother shoos me out of the room before I have a chance to interrupt.

  Charlie and Noah are parked on the couch with my father watching the football game. Of course they love football, and my dad has them organ
ized with their sodas and snacks as they watch the home team tear into this week's opponent. When the cameras zoom in on the sidelines, there's Graham. I'm not even sure what he does now since his playing days are over. He looks like one of the coaches with his clipboard and team shirt. The kids cheer and chant, "Graham, Graham, Graham!" all the same just like he's still taking the field and winning championships. I grimace. There's no way to compete with that.

  "That's my mom's friend," Charlie informs my father like it's nothing.

  "She broke his heart two times!" Noah adds which has my father turning to look at me behind the couch. There's nothing I can say to that so I just shrug. Charlie and Noah know more on that front than I do and there's no way we're all having that conversation tonight. I know more than I'd like to about how much of a claim Graham has on Julia and her boys. My fantasy family is his as well and he's not likely to forget that just because I've made some headway.

  "Who told you that story?" my father asks, trying to appear less interested than I know he is.

  "My grandpa. He was talking to my grandma. But now Mom likes Coach Z," Charlie assures him in a voice that borders on conspiratorial. I have to smirk a little. Take that, pro football.

  "She chose you over that?" Amy interjects, pointing her drink-free hand at Graham's stern TV profile. "I'm not sure if we should be worried for her or for you."

  "Thank you for the vote of confidence," I tell her before deciding the kitchen is probably a safer place to be. I should be protecting Julia from my mother and her prying questions. And I'm pretty sure Kat's joined them in there by now, which means Julia's outnumbered. I shudder at the thought of my sister pulling out baby pictures or my mother telling potty training stories.

  Of course, Julia's holding her own. She's a pro in the kitchen which I know my mother appreciates. Kat's sitting on the counter with her wine glass, swinging her legs as Julia helps my mother with dessert. Julia looks up from her work and smiles at me and my heart cracks in two. I can feel the warmth of that smile spread across my chest and I answer her with a smile of my own. I'm so obviously dead. She's killed me.