by Quell T Fox
“It’s… it’s perfect!” She claps her hands together once before standing and running around the table. She throws her arms around my neck, practically sitting in my lap. I hug her back, this time more easily than the last. She pulls back, but not before planting a kiss on my lips. It’s not sexual in any way, but her lips pressed very firmly to mine does something to me. Something that I can’t explain. My body fills with heat, my lips feel as if they’ve been burned with the flame of her own. She tries to pull away, but my hand goes to the back of her head and I keep her planted to me. She moans as my tongue slides across the seam of her lips and she opens, allowing me in. The feel of her tongue brush against mine instantly causes my dick to harden again. Or maybe it’s been that way since I sat down. I can’t keep track anymore.
“Trying to eat here!” It’s Maddox. Of course, it’s Maddox. Any time someone else is getting attention he has to ruin it. Neither of us try to pull away. Neither of us care. But when he clears his throat loudly, I lift my hand and give him the finger. Friday, feeling my movements opens her eyes and sees what I’ve done. She laughs into my mouth and in that very moment, I know that I’ll be hers forever.
CHAPTER 25
Friday
-TUESDAY-
“Wake up, Sweetheart. You have to get ready for your first day of work,” Callan whispers in my ear. He slept with me last night, but he’s been up for a while, I see. Seems the guys will be taking turns in bed with me, which I am totally okay with. I do think that we should buy one giant bed and all sleep together. That would be my dream. The guys are nowhere near that level, nor do I know if they ever will be. Oh, they will be. I’ll make sure of it. Because this is happening. I think to myself as I move to my back, stretch and let out a very unattractive yawn.
“Five more minutes,” I swat my hand to feel for him, and cup his face when I reach it, giving him a small squeeze and shake. He breathes out a laugh.
“Five minutes,” he says through a squished face. The bed shifts as Callan stands and heads into the bathroom. I opted to shower at night because it takes me too long to dry my hair in the morning. I’d rather have the extra sleep. Mm, sleep…
“All right, sleepy head. It’s been much longer than five minutes.” The honey-sweet voice says to me. I open my eyes to the perfect view of Callan, in a pair of fitted boxer briefs that are decorated with little calculators. Of course they are. I giggle at the sight and he frowns.
“Calculators? Really?” He shrugs in response and continues to dry his hair with the towel. He disappears into the bathroom and a moment later the blow dryer is turned on. I’m sure that if I had showered this morning, I could have asked him to do my hair for me. I bet he would have, he seems like the sweet type that would sit there and do his girlfriend’s hair.
Heart eyes.
I get up, unenthusiastically and groaning. My feet hit the floor and I’m already missing the comfort and warmth of the bed. I stand in front of my suitcases, hip popped and finger on my chin, trying to decide what to wear. It is a garage, so I don’t want to wear anything too fancy. Not that I’ll be in there (I don’t think), but I can bet on getting dirty, because those places are always dirty. It lives in the air. I decide on a pair of black skinny-jeans and a short-sleeved maroon blouse. I shove on my black booties to match and call it a day. I need to find a place to keep my clothes, it would be so much easier to not have to live out of suitcases. But with us continuing to move around, what’s the point?
I wish… I wish that we could all move into one house. We could get a house big enough that everyone would have their own space. That way we won’t have to keep packing up and moving, trying to figure out where we are staying and making sure to be fair.
One day, I tell myself.
Am I being crazy? How long has it been? And I’m talking about us buying a house together. I don’t feel crazy though, this is the real thing. I know it. I feel it in my heart and soul. This is my forever.
I head into the now empty bathroom. I run my fingers through my hair to tame it, dampening it with cool water from the sink, but not too much to kill my natural waves. My eyes look extra bright today, so I throw on some dark eye liner and mascara to make them pop even more. I wink at myself, and then pull out my toothbrush and the toothpaste. I brush my teeth quickly, grab my phone and head downstairs.
“Yummy, waffles!” I do a little happy dance and make my way to the food that’s spread out on the counter.
“Serious question, though.” Lenny says, looking extra cute with his messy hair and Transformers pajama pants. Yes, I know he’s an adult, but who doesn’t like the Transformers? Come on now. “Syrup or whipped cream.” I chew on my bottom lip for a few seconds, making it seem like I need to think about this. I know the answer, obviously. Who doesn’t know the answer to that question? But, the anticipation is killing him. He stares at me, eyebrow raised and a smirk across his perfect lips.
“Whipped cream.”
“Noooooo. No, no, no.” Lenny shouts, running his hands down his face, like this is the worst news ever.
“Yes, yes.” I point my finger at him and scrunch my nose up. He walks up to me and pulls me into a hug, whispering into my ear. “It’s okay, Cupcake. I still love you.” I squeeze him a little harder and rest my head on his firm chest. Lenny makes me feel like I belong. He always has, and I have a feeling that he always will.
“Good morning.” I smile up at him and he smiles back, a hint of mischief in his eyes. He kisses my head once more before letting go and taking one of the plates from the counter. “For you, my sweet Cupcake.” He gets down on one knee and holds the plate up above his bowed head. “I’ll get the whipped cream.” I shake my head and take the plate from him. “Thank you, kind sir.” I curtsy and walk to the table with a smile on my face. I sit beside Alec – who is rolling his eyes, undoubtedly at our antics – an empty plate in front of him.
“When do we have to leave?” He shrugs and leans back in his chair, interlacing his fingers and resting them behind his head.
“The perks of owning a business is making your own rules.” Maddox says matter-of-factly as he walks into the dining room, straight to the waffles.
“Some of us like to lead by example, not use our power to make our employees feel like they are less than us.” Alec turns to me. “We need to leave in fifteen if we’re going to be on time.”
“Got it. And good morning to you, Grumpy Pants, what crawled up your ass and died this morning?” I smile sweetly and bat my lashes at him. Lenny comes over with the can of whipped cream. He pulls the cap off, shakes it a few times and sprays a large amount onto my waffle. “Perfect!” I keep an eye on Maddox who ignores my comment.
“I know I am, thanks though.” Lenny winks. I catch Alec out of the corner of my eye, a look that could be construed as disgusted is on his face. It disappears almost instantly, and I think I must have imagined it. My eyes drop to his perfectly, pink lips. They probably taste like syrup and everything sweet. The thought of last night’s kiss runs through my brain and sends warmth to my core. He notices that I’m staring and turns away. He drinks the rest of his juice and brings his dishes to the sink, rinsing them and putting them into the dishwasher. Lenny didn’t put the whipped cream on right, but I didn’t tell him that, not wanting to hurt his feelings. It’s not his fault that I’m weird as shit when it comes to my food. I take my knife and cut the waffle on the creases, pushing the cream onto each of the four pieces. I pick up a slice with my fingers and take a bite. Yeah, this is what I do. Don’t judge me.
“We’ll get coffee on our way,” Alec says before entering into the living room.
“Do I look that tired?”
“No. I just know that you like coffee in the morning.” His voice deep and rugged, and dripping with sex. My ovaries are actively trying to jump out of my body to find his cock. With a comment like that, I can’t blame them. Okay, so maybe I just thought there was sex in his
voice… wishful thinking? Perhaps.
I give Lenny and Maddox a quick kiss before heading out the door. Callan left a little while ago, and I was sure to kiss him, too. Not at all embarrassed about kissing them all, one after another. Alec grabs our lunch bags before we head out the door. I made him two sandwiches and extra snacks after his comment last night. I climb into his truck (why am I not surprised?) and we start the drive towards his work. Our work. We stop at a coffee shop a few blocks from Callan’s house, as promised.
“This place has the best coffee around.” He pulls into the small parking lot.
“No drive-thru?” He smiles, causing his eyes to crinkle in the corners. Shaking his head as he gets out of the car. “What? I’m a city girl!” I call after him while getting out and hurrying to reach his side.
The building sits on the corner of a main street, in what looks like an older part of town. None of the other shops look open right now, but I spot a boutique, candy store and a veterinarian clinic – now that is a job that I’d like to have. The cream-colored coffee shop stands out next the rest of the dark brick buildings. The front is covered in large windows that are decorated with dancing coffee cups. Alec opens the door, sweeping his arm out in front of him, gesturing for me to go in first. The scent of vanilla and cinnamon hits my nose, and my mouth starts to water.
The inside is decorated in everything that is coffee, in a vintage type of way. It’s kind of cheesy, but also kind of cute. The large clock on the wall is in the shape of a coffee cup. There is artwork made from coffee beans, and colorful flowers made of coffee filters. Photos of happy people sipping from steaming mugs line another wall. There are shelves filled with mugs of different sizes and styles by the door. Small tables for two sit here and there, and in one corner are a few brightly colored bean bags.
We get in line behind two people that were here before us. I browse the large chalk board menu behind the counter as we wait. My eyes wander to the glass case full of goodies. Donuts, muffins, bagels, danishes, croissants… things that I can’t name.
It’s finally our turn and we walk to the counter. At this point, I may actually be drooling.
“Good morning, what can I get for you?” The young blonde barista asks. She looks friendly, in the right kind of way. Not the I’m-only-nice-because-I-want-something type.
“Two large hot, one black and the other cream only.” I’m impressed. “Anything else?” Alec looks to me for an answer.
I wait a moment before asking, “Chocolate croissant?” Alec nods his head to the cashier. “Make that two, please.” He says. He pays for our order and we head back to the car. I take the bag from the counter, but Alec carries the coffees. Good thing, I’m not sure how I would have climbed into the truck with the coffees in hand. That’s an awkward moment that we can save for another day. He hops into the truck, so smoothly that he deserves an award. Not a drop of coffee spilled. He places them into the cup holders before buckling his seatbelt. I pull out my croissant as he backs out of the spot and turns onto the street. I pull out the other one and hand it to him. I take a bit of mine and a moan accidentally comes out.
Alec raises an eyebrow. “Sorry.” I say innocently, my mouth full of chocolatey goodness. “This is so good. Like, really fucking good.”
“You don’t get out much, do you?” He chuckles.
I shake my head. “Not really. I’ve lived in the same few places most of my life. The last guy I was with was a dick, obviously, but he also didn’t like me going anywhere, really. We frequented the same places all the time. No adventure. It sucked. He sucked.” I shrug and continue eating this small piece of heaven. Alec nods and finishes his food in only a few bites.
“I’d like to change that.” His words, as simple as they are, make me melt. Seriously fucking melt.
“Okay.” The word comes out broken, due to my sudden case of dry mouth. That’s so not Alec… or maybe it is? I take a sip of my coffee. I don’t know about the best coffee, but it is good. That chocolate croissant though, I’d come here every morning just for that alone. Either way the coffee is much needed and appreciated.
CHAPTER 26
Friday
I rest my head against the head rest, sipping my coffee every now and then. Alec, unlike Maddox, enjoys the music on the radio. It’s classic rock, and it’s loud and I love it. I enjoy the scenery as we drive. Everything here is beautiful. Once we left the coffee shop, there was some city but then everything else was land and trees. Farms everywhere. That’s it, just farms. Not what I am used to, and it was amazing to see. I’ve only ever lived in the city, and never the good ones. We reach another area that is filled with buildings and houses, and Alec takes the next exit. We pull off and head down a main road. Alec takes a few turns and then parks in a dirt lot not too far from a dark grey building. It’s long, with three car bays. There are cars parked off to the side in a parking lot by the large garage doors.
I’ve been looking forward to this since Alec broke the news last night, but suddenly I’m feeling nervous. It’s been so long since I’ve had a job. Besides that, I’m spending the entire day with Alec. I look down at my phone and decide to send the guys a quick text, letting them know that I miss them. Yes, already. I send them all separate texts because I don’t want to disturb Callan at work when the others respond… if they respond, that is. I know Maddox and Lenny planned on stopping at the bar today, but they said they wouldn’t be there for long – driving will take the longest. Well, Ubering. I asked why he didn’t bring his car back when he left his house. He told me that him and Alec thought it best to ride together and talk… I choked on my water.
We walk in through the front door that leads to the waiting area. Seems we are late after all, because someone is already here. I suddenly feel guilty, thinking that it was probably me that made him late.
“Jazz is here. He’s always here early. He used to wait outside for me until finally I gave him a key.”
“Jazz?” I ask skeptically, looking around the very white room. Everything looks so… clean. Not what I was expecting for a garage. The walls and ceiling are almost too white, the chairs and countertop are black, the floor is a light grey with black and white speckles. The only actual color in here comes from the few car posters that are on the walls.
“He’s a Rock Star.” He says it with a bit of pizazz, that is so out of character for him that it throws me off guard. He mustn’t have noticed that I noticed because he doesn’t react.
“Ahh, that explains it, then.” I go along with it, not wanting him to feel weird about something that isn’t weird at all. Maybe this is Alec. I don’t know.
“The other guys will be here soon. I’ll give you the rundown on the program we use for cashing people out. It’s most of what you’ll do today, until I can sort through things in the back office.”
“Sounds good to me.” I follow Alec around the counter, and he points to a chair by the computer screen and I take a seat. He gives me a run down on the program and it seems simple enough. Similar to what I used when I worked at the clothing shop.
“You enter the customer’s name here at the top. Then click on their name when the list populates. If there is only one person with that name, their profile will automatically pull up. The profile page has the basic information on it. You should ask if their info is up to date, and if it isn’t, all you have to do is click in the box here to change it.” He points to the grey boxes on the screen. “Just make sure to hit the save button at the bottom if you change anything. Next, click over here for an overview of what we did. Again, go over it with them to make sure it’s all correct. If they have any questions, come get one of us and we can deal with any information to do with the cars. Hit the cash out button down here, click the payment type. Credit cards get swiped over here, cash is self-explanatory. Hit the enter button and it’ll bring you to a screen for the receipt, ask them their choice of email or print, or both.” I realize that I�
��m gaping at him, like a little girl with a high school crush. I’ve never heard him say so many words, and his voice. Oh my, his voice. I’m mesmerized. My stomach is in the middle of doing somersaults, as the front door opens. I get excited, thinking that it’s the first customer, but that goes away quickly when I see the blue coveralls.
“Morning, boss.”
“Morning, Frank. Friday, this is Frank. Frank, Friday.” He doesn’t look away from the computer as he introduces us. He has the mouse in his hand and he’s navigating through the program.
“Well, hello there.” Frank tips his head towards me.
“Hi, nice to meet you.” I say shyly.
“Friday will be filling in for Geneviere while she’s out.” He gives another nod of his head and says “lookin’ forward to working with you.” He’s an older guy, definitely older than Alec and maybe even old enough to be my dad. His hair is salt and pepper with a short beard to match. He’s tall, kind of lanky, but he seems nice, sweet even. Probably has a wife at home that is currently baking pies and chatting with neighbors.
“Same,” I say, as he comes around the counter and disappears through the glass door that leads to the garage. Alec stays on the side of me, one hand in his pocket and the other still controlling the mouse.
“Are these guys… you know?”
Alec raises an eyebrow at me, “Paranormals? No.”
“How does that work?”
“How does what work?” He lets go of the mouse and turns towards me fully.
“Humans and Paranormals. Are they aware of each other, is it a secret?”
“It’s not a secret, but it’s not something that we go around blabbing about, either. Not us respectable people, anyway. They know I’m a Paranormal, they’re fine with it. Not everyone is, which is why it isn’t broadcasted. I do find it odd that you have no idea about any of this. I’m pretty sure most humans know of our existence. You really must have grown up in a bubble.”
