Cure for Insomnia

by Laina Villeneuve

  “With Lego?” I asked.

  “Yes. It has been a while since he has chosen The Lego Movie to watch, the first one,” she clarified for me. “More often he wants to watch The Lego Batman Movie. That one explores family dynamics, but The Lego Movie is about dating.”

  “I love how you talk about movies. It’s not a fluffy kids movie to you.”

  “No, it is significantly more than that. And the first one has more romance than I remembered. It made me think that maybe he comprehends more than I give him credit for.”

  “You think he is trying to figure out why you want to spend time with me?”

  “I do. He was very intent when the music slowed down and Wyldstyle swung her hair around.”

  “Everything pauses and Emmet is mesmerized. That is so me when I see you. I’m the dorky nerd wondering why it didn’t work out between you and Batman.”

  “Batman has issues. That is most likely why Neil fixates on The Lego Batman Movie. He’s got issues.”

  My blood froze. Was she calling to tell me that trying to date was too much? “You told me before,” I said. It felt like she was quiet for minutes.

  “Tonight, we didn’t watch the Batman one. We watched the romantic one, and I do not think it was a coincidence. I bet he will choose it again next week. Would you want to join us?”

  Her invitation was so unexpected tears sprang to my eyes. It felt huge after I’d so badly mangled the movie theater. “Yesterday didn’t go so well.”

  “I don’t know. Getting a nickname could be good, Popcorn.”

  “I’m in. Thank you for inviting me. I was so worried that you were calling to say I blew it.”

  “My brother is complicated. Life is complicated. Where would we be if people didn’t try again when something went poorly? Isn’t that how science goes, Popcorn?”

  “You said Neil called me Popcorn. I don’t know if I want you to call me Popcorn, too.”

  “Fair enough.”

  “You sure it’ll be okay?” I asked.

  “I am sure about one thing only.”

  “What’s that?” I asked. I swung my feet up on the wall.

  “That I want to sit next to you and hold your hand.”

  “Then it’s a date. All that time my family spent plotting out what we could do next, and you had it figured out already.”

  “What’s this?”

  I closed my eyes and recounted all their memorable dates my family recalled at dinner.

  “That is the sweetest thing I have ever heard. I am sorry I was not there to hear it in person.”

  I agreed and lay there on my back, nothing more to say. More and more I found myself wishing Remi was with me. Remi was equally quiet, and I searched for words, something that wasn’t “Come over. Please come over right now and stay with me.”

  “What was that?” Remi asked.

  I held my breath. Had I said that out loud? What did I say now? “I know it’s late and you have a long work week ahead.” I took a deep breath. “But I really wish you were here.”

  “If you had a genie, would you use that as one of your wishes?”

  “Yes, absolutely, and I wouldn’t even need the other two wishes.”

  “You are sure?”

  “What more would I wish for?” I laughed.

  “No, I meant about wishing I was there. Were you serious about wanting me to come over?”

  It was late. I was headed to bed, and Remi knew that. If I said yes, I was actually inviting Remi to bed and so far we had not tried collecting any data on how I slept next to her without having sex first. My body thrummed just thinking about Remi in my bed. “Yes. I was serious about wanting you here.”

  “Oh good.”

  There was a knock at my door.

  “Shit!” I said, leaping to my feet, my heart pounding. “Shit, shit, shit. Someone’s at my door.”

  “You sound very surprised for someone issuing invitations.”

  “What?” I froze, trying to understand what Remi was saying.

  “You said you wished I was here.”

  My feet caught on faster than my brain and carried me to the front door. I peeked out the window. Remi waved. “You’re here,” I said into the phone.

  “Not quite.” Remi pointed to the door.

  “Sorry!” I unlocked the door to let Remi in. “I guess I can hang up now.”

  Remi tucked her phone in her purse and set it on the couch. Her eyes scanned my body. “Nice pajamas,” she said. Her stretch pants and tee were not such a leap from the tank and boxers I slept in.

  “I didn’t know you would be here. If I had…” I swallowed hard thinking about how much fun Remi and I could have with lingerie. Strangely, I felt utterly exposed in my close-fitting tank. I was certain my nipples were pushing at the fabric and fought the temptation to fold my arms across my chest. “How are you here?”

  “I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” She ran her fingers up my arm. “When I left my brother’s, somehow the car pointed toward your place. I was trying to figure out how I could invite myself when you said you wished I was here. So…here I am.”

  “Just like that?”

  “Just like that.”

  I wrapped my arms around her. She felt so good nestled there, and I felt how deeply it would have hurt if she decided that dating me was too stressful. I held on tighter.

  “Hey.” She squeezed me back. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m so relieved you weren’t calling to tell me this isn’t worth the trouble I’m causing.”

  She took my hand. “Let me show you how worth the trouble this is.”

  I followed her to the bedroom and let her show me to her heart’s content.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “This is awesome! Are you sure you can’t use them?”

  “It’s a family four-pack. I thought you and your lady could come with me and Giselle.”

  I leaned back in my chair, easily picturing me and Remi at the San Diego Padres game Thursday night. Me and my brother and our ladies in front and center top deck seats sipping beers and eating dogs. It would be a perfect date and taking Remi to hang out with Luis and Giselle sounded fantastic.

  But Remi had dinner with Neil on Thursdays. “I have to pass, bro.”

  “What? Ma said you’re not working as late. Come hang with me and Giselle.”

  “I’d like to, but I’m pretty sure it’ll be a no-go. Remi has plans with her brother every Thursday. She doesn’t mess with his schedule.”

  “Aw man, if you don’t come, that means Giselle will bring her sister and you know that she and her guy will be talking shit about the Padres all night.”

  “The Dodgers are having a great run,” I agreed.

  “It’s going to be a killer game, sis. You don’t think you could convince Remi?”

  “I’ve asked Remi to mess with Neil’s schedule before. It’s important that I do stuff with them. I’m sorry.”

  There was a long pause before Luis said, “You can have all four. Then her brother can go, too. You said before it would be a good date.”

  For a second, I thought about calling Remi to invite her and Neil, but only a second. After that one brief moment of wishing we could, I knew how awful that experience would be for Neil. If the sound of popcorn bothered him, there was no way he was going to get through the experience of pushing through the crowds and sitting in a baseball stadium filled with fans yelling their heads off. “It would be such a good date, but I’ll get tickets another time when Remi and I can go. You’re stuck with Giselle and her Dodger-loving sister.”

  He grumbled but accepted my answer and signed off.

  I was right about Neil, wasn’t I? Or had I spoken too swiftly? I sent a quick text to Remi.

  My brother scored tx to the Padres game Thurs. 4 tx. He said I could have them.

  I hit send and immediately added Bad idea, right? Was I right to say I’d pass?

  As I hit send again, her reply to my first message came in. You want to go?<
br />
  Tempting, I typed. But I can’t see Neil at Petco Park.

  No. He’d be miserable.

  That’s what I thought. But I wanted to check.

  Tnx. She fired back. You could go without us.

  Would rather catch The Lego Movie if I’m still invited.

  A thumbs-up and then Give you a lift?

  Will have to leave from work. Text me Neil’s address. Meet you there. Six?

  Her reply took more time, and I could easily hear her worrying about whether I would be late. When the address and Yes, six came through, I sighed in relief that I had said the right thing about the tickets and had a chance to prove that I could make it to Neil’s on time.

  * * *

  I took precautions to make sure I left work at five on Thursday, my plan to beat Remi to Neil’s place. I arrived a good fifteen minutes early and still ended up parking next to Remi’s beautiful Ferrari.

  “Are you here early to check up on me?” I asked, leaning on the doorframe of her open passenger-side window.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You were worried about me being here on time.”

  “I was hoping you would be here early, so we could have a few minutes before we went in.” She leaned over to open the door. I slid into the luxurious leather seat and leaned across the console for a hug.

  “It had nothing to do with wanting to know whether I gave myself time to spare?”

  A smile played at her lips. “I am glad you are here, but I do not understand why you are so interested in talking when we could be kissing.”

  In total agreement, I brought my lips to hers. Melting into the silken softness of her lips, I was so glad that I had turned down the tickets and so glad that I had left time for a sensual hello. It felt so much better than the movie-theater episode.

  When Remi pulled away, she ran her fingers through my hair. “It means a lot to me that you chose to be here with me and Neil.”

  “There will be other games,” I said.

  She squeezed my hand, and we headed in for the show.

  “Hey, Neil!” she said after knocking on his door. “Anything exciting happen today?”

  Neil looked up, but before he answered, his gaze jumped to me. He shrugged and went back to flipping through a massive book. “You brought Popcorn.”

  “I told you Karla wanted to watch The Lego Movie with us this week.”

  Neil set down the book, and I caught from the title that it contained thousands of things you could build out of Lego. It made me think of all the insane things I’d seen on the Lego Masters show. “Have you guys ever watched Lego Masters?” I asked.

  Neil looked to Remi. “We haven’t tried it,” she answered.

  “She doesn’t want to watch The Lego Movie,” Neil said.

  “I do,” I quickly countered. “Your book reminded me of a show I’ve seen with my nephew is all.”

  Remi caught my eye and lifted her eyebrows a smidge. Somehow, I knew that meant it was better if I followed along. I could do that.

  A loud bottle cap sound came from my pocket. I quickly extracted my phone to silence it. “Sorry,” I said to both Remi and Neil.

  “I told you Popcorn is too loud. She’s going to ruin this movie, too.”

  “It’s on silent now,” Remi assured him.

  I nodded, but neither sibling was looking at me. Remi moved to the TV to cue up the movie, and I stayed by the door. Since I’d swiped into my phone to silence it, I checked the text.

  Grand Slam first inning Baby! Padres are going to kill tonight! I shoved my phone in my back pocket and put the game out of my head. It was important to be with Remi and Neil, and I was not going to mess up again.

  Later, when I had followed Remi back to her place, I remembered my phone and pulled it out to see no fewer than twenty texts from Luis that captured every exciting play of the high-scoring game. I was distracted thumbing through his increasingly excited texts when Remi slipped her arms around my waist and raised herself on her toes to see over my shoulder. I held up my phone. “They were on the Kiss Cam.”

  “It sounded like an exciting game,” Remi whispered, sending all sorts of wonderful shivers down my spine.

  I set my phone on her table and turned in her arms. “How do you know?”

  “I listened to some recap on the drive over. The Padres won in extra innings. Are you upset that you did not go?”

  I pressed my lips to hers and then added my hips and breasts. Her lips were supple under mine, and she readily parted them and pulled me deeper into a kiss that did not stop until we both needed to come up for air. Between breaths, I said, “I was exactly where I wanted to be.”

  “What was that? I think I got it. But just in case…tell me the whole thing again, I wasn’t listening.”

  I recognized the line from the movie. I hadn’t fully appreciated how clever the dialogue was when I’d seen it with my young nieces and nephews. Watching it with Neil and Remi, I recognized many of the lines as things Neil used in his communication. Interspersing my words with kisses, I said again, “I was exactly where I wanted to be.”

  She took my hand, and it was easy to see how right my decision to turn down my brother and spend time with hers had been. “Come with me,” she said, leading me toward her bedroom.

  I could not resist adding, “…if you want to not die.”

  Her laughter sweetened our next kiss, but when she pulled away, her eyes were so serious. She reached out and traced my jaw with her fingertips. “It means the world to me that you were with us tonight. It helps him understand what you mean to me.”

  “You mean so much to me. You are everything I have ever wanted in a partner. You’re so smart and so sexy.” I had more to say but putting it into words was taking too long. I added my hands to the conversation, tucking them underneath her shirt to run up her back. Her shirt rode with them, and she pulled it the rest of the way over her shoulders. Her breasts lifted with her quickening breaths. Pulling her close, I lavished kisses above the fabric of her bra.

  Then she was unbuttoning my shirt and rolling it off my shoulders. I stepped to her, feeling heat radiate between our bodies. She took a step back, and I moved with her. She placed her hand on my chest. “I want you in my bed.” She turned, carrying both our shirts to her room where she draped them over a chair in the corner. Her eyes never leaving mine, she added her bra to the pile before slipping out of her skirt and underwear. She was unhurried but her desire was plainly visible.

  I added my clothes to the pile while she turned back the covers. Each action felt significant despite its mundanity. The way Remi’s eyes roamed my body silenced the whisper in the back of my mind about why Remi would choose to spend her time with me. “When you look at me like that…” I was having trouble putting my feelings into words and crossed the room to sit on the edge of the bed.

  Remi raised herself on her elbow and reached out to trace my thigh with her fingertips. “When I look at you…?”

  “I don’t know. It’s like you bump me up a notch when you look at me like that. I feel like a better me, definitely a sexier me. You make me feel like this is where I belong.”

  She leaned to me and kissed me deeply, somehow pulling me with her as she lay back down, wrapping her legs around me to bring our bodies into full contact. “This is where you belong.” I wound one arm around her shoulders and another around her waist, fusing our bodies as our kisses grew hotter. Remi’s mouth was mine, or mine was hers, parrying our tongues though not to win anything, simply to appreciate the other’s great skill. I could not get close enough.

  I tore myself away from her kisses, gently nipping my way down her body.

  “I liked you there,” Remi said, trying to hold me.

  “I have to taste you. I have to feel all of you.” I could not linger on her beautiful breasts or tease her with hints of a touch or a hot breath nearing her center. I found her clit with the first swipe of my tongue and reveled in the gasp that followed. I plunged again and felt
her push against me, inviting me deeper just as she had when we kissed. Tonight, the tilt of her hips invited me further than she ever had before. My lips sealed to hers, and I lost myself in her heat, in her ragged breathing, in the way she rocked beneath me.

  I had to have more and slipped inside her. I’d never felt her so ready and pushed deep inside, my lips sealed around her clit, tongue flitting across it. I teased her opening with a second finger, and she opened wide to me, pulling me deeper and deeper. I ran out of breath and replaced my mouth with my thumb, pulling myself up to capture one of her perfect nipples in my mouth.

  “More,” Remi breathed.

  “Here?” I asked, pulling on her nipple more forcefully.

  Remi shuddered beneath me. “Deeper.”

  I obliged, wrapping my free arm around her shoulders, fusing our bodies again. When I ground my own center on her thigh, Remi groaned. I slowed my fingers and matched the rhythm of my hand to my own hips.

  “Don’t stop! Oh, don’t stop,” she said.

  I wasn’t stopping, but I was going to pull as much pleasure out of her as I possibly could. I circled her clit with my thumb again and again, forcing myself to go slowly, to read every one of Remi’s breaths and undulations.

  I watched emotions play on her face, concentration mixed with pleasure. Eyes still closed, she looked as if she could see her orgasm approaching. Closer and closer until it was upon her and she was quaking beneath me. Her eyes fluttered open, locking on mine.

  “You…turn me inside out,” she whispered.

  Her words tipped me over into my own release. I hadn’t realized how close I was, and the orgasm caught me quick and strong. I cried out and buried my head between her breasts enjoying my own pleasure with hers.

  Out of breath, every muscle jelly, my sweaty skin stuck to hers, I attempted to pull away, but Remi grabbed my ass. “Not yet.”

  My eyes met hers again. I felt utterly satisfied. “Well, I’d call that a grand slam,” I said.

  “So you were thinking about baseball all night!”

  I eased out of her and nestled myself in her arms. “Only you, Remi. Only you.”