Page 20 of Unsaid Things

Chapter Nine

Abby finished stuffing her things back in her suitcase, leaving out clothes for tomorrow and her toiletries for the morning. Lance sat on the bed propped against the headboard with a pillow behind his back. His iPad sat in his hands, but his eyes followed her. She cast one last glance around, crossing her arms over herself, unsure what to do about the tension in the room. He wouldn’t say it, but she knew that Lance was hurt by her insistence that he stay with his family. But she couldn’t disrupt Christmas anymore than she already had. It killed her to be so far from home right now with things so up in the air. And it killed her to leave Lance like this.

She finally met his eyes. “Um, I put everyone’s presents under the tree earlier, so you guys can still open them on Christmas morning. I hope they like them.” Lance had given her some ideas on what to get his family, but she’d been the one to pick everything out. He’d tried to get her to just sign her name to the stuff he got, but she couldn’t do that. Or let him pay for the presents. No, they were gifts for his family from her. She needed to pay for them. He said he understood her need to pay for things, but he didn’t really seem to. Or maybe she just didn’t understand why it bothered him so much.

“Okay.” He climbed off the bed, reaching for a slim, wrapped box on his nightstand. “Since you’re leaving tomorrow, I wanted to give you your present tonight.”

“I can wait until you get home. We don’t—“

He kissed her, cutting off her protest. “I know. But I want you to have it before you fly home. Open your present, Abby, and quit arguing with me about everything, okay?”

A small smile came unbidden to her lips. He was right. She was fighting him on everything right now. It was reflexive, the need to maintain her sense of self, her sense of independence. And when she got in this mode, she argued with him about everything. He’d gotten better at stopping her gently before things spiraled into a shouting match. Their first few months living together and hashing out how to split the bills resulted in more than one of those. But they’d managed to come to an agreement. It still didn’t make Lance happy that she insisted on paying for half the rent and utilities, and she still got annoyed when he’d go to the grocery store without her and buy a ton of food and not let her pay him back. He always told her that if she felt that strongly about it, she could repay him with sexual favors, a wicked glint in his eye and his mouth curved in his most devastating smile. And then he’d chase her around the apartment and give her multiple orgasms, which didn’t seem like she was paying him back at all. But it distracted her from her frustration. Until the next time they got low on groceries, and she made sure to go shopping before he had the chance. That way she could keep things balanced and fair.

She took the box from his hands, ripping off the shiny green and gold paper, her eyes meeting his in disbelief. “Lance. You didn’t.”

He smile played over his lips. “Open the box.”

Sitting on the bed, she pulled the lid off the white rectangular box with the image of an iPad mini on it. Sure enough, the contents matched the packaging. She looked up at him, the lid dangling from her fingers. “I told you my Kindle was fine.”

He sat next to her, his long, calloused fingers lifting the iPad out of the box. “I know. But I want you to have the best, not just fine. You wouldn’t let me buy you one just because. So now you get one for Christmas.”

She stared up at him, at a loss for what to say. It had been hard for her to tell him no when he’d tried to buy her one before, but it had been so soon after they’d moved in together, and he’d already bought a bunch of new stuff for their apartment and wouldn’t let her pay for anything. Not that she could afford the electronics and new dishes that he’d insisted on. And they weren’t thrift store dishes or something cheap from the dollar store either. No, he’d taken her to Bed, Bath, & Beyond and outfitted their whole kitchen in one trip with new dishes, cookware, bakeware, and towels. It had cost as much as Abby made in a month. She’d tried to talk him out of it, but every time she protested, he’d interrupt her with a kiss and drag her to the next aisle to pick out something else. So she’d stood firm on her insistence that her Kindle Fire, which she’d just gotten at the beginning of the summer, was just fine. She didn’t need an iPad. Even if she’d really wanted one.

He’d obviously seen through her front. Blinking back a tear, overwhelmed by the torrent of emotions that had been flooding her since Megan’s phone call and now Lance’s unfailing sweetness in the face of her intransigence, she lifted her face to his, kissing him softly. “Thank you. I love it.”

He smiled. “That’s more like the response I was hoping for.” She let out a quick laugh, and he slid the box out of her lap. “I’ll get this set up for you so you can use it tomorrow.” He took out the charger and walked over to the small desk in his room to plug it in.

Abby stood and followed him, her hand reaching around to cover his. “Leave it for later.”

He set it down and turned to face her, and she let her hands run up his chest over the soft fabric of his T-shirt, his muscles firm and hard beneath.

He let out a breath. “Okay.” Then he tugged her closer, one hand wrapping around her waist, the other tipping her face up to kiss him, his tongue sliding along her lips before entering her mouth. He took his time, his hands traveling over her body, cupping, gripping, caressing. She mimicked his actions, her hands sliding under his shirt, over his abs and around to his back, feeling the indent of his spine surrounded by thick columns of muscle, the way his shoulders rippled and flexed as his hands moved over her body, reaching down to grip her ass with both hands and grind her against him.

Breaking the kiss and taking a step back, he stripped off his own shirt, and she did the same. Before she could do more, he had his arms around her again, his hands now caressing her bare skin, his fingers rougher today after working on cars all afternoon. She arched against him, annoyed that her bra was still in the way, but not wanting to break their connection long enough to take it off.

Lance solved that problem for her, his head dropping to trail kisses down her neck and over her shoulders, while his hands undid the clasp of her bra. He backed them up until he could sit on the bed, pulling off her bra as he did so, his hands going to her breasts as soon as he was at eye level with them. His rough fingers pinched and circled her nipples, bringing them to attention so his tongue could worship them one at a time.

She clutched at his dark hair, holding his head in place. God, she loved when he took his time like this, paying attention to all his favorite places, which had become her favorite places too. She’d always thought her breasts were too big, especially in relation to her petite frame. But Lance loved them, and now she did too. Loved the way he devoured them with his eyes when she wore a low-cut top, with his mouth when she was topless. The way his tongue flicked her nipples, his lips and teeth tugging on them made her knees go weak.

“Lance.” His name came out a gasp, and she felt him smile against her skin, but he didn’t let up. Instead, his hands moved to the button of her jeans, which he undid before she registered what he was doing. He tugged her pants down along with her panties, his hands now going to her ass, his fingers reaching between her thighs, teasing and stroking, but not where she wanted. She tried to widen her stance, but her jeans around her knees wouldn’t let her, and she whimpered her distress.

The low chuckle that came from Lance’s throat told her he knew exactly what he was doing. But he didn’t torture her for much longer. Wrapping his arms around her, he lay back, taking her with him onto the bed, rolling them so he was propped over her, kissing her mouth again, his hands caressing every inch of naked skin he could reach.

Abby kicked off her jeans, spreading her legs for him, sighing in relief when he rubbed her there at last, dipping inside her and spreading her wetness around her clit in lazy circles. Sometimes things started out slow and languid, but by the time they got naked, it turned into fierce, driving hunger. Not tonight. This was about connection and love, reassurance that they were still okay in spite of all the outside forces currently conspiring against them. One shining moment that Abby knew she would hold inside her to keep her grounded when things with her family got overwhelming. And they would. Soon.

She pushed that thought away, focusing on Lance, the pleasure building inside her, and the pleasure she wanted for him. Reaching for his belt, she undid it without breaking their kiss, her hand reaching inside to stroke him. In response, his fingers speared inside her, rubbing against her favorite spot of all, his thumb still circling her clit, her arousal ratcheting higher until she thought she’d come on his hand in a matter of seconds. But that wasn’t what she wanted. She needed him over her, inside her, around her, his body blocking out everything else. “Lance. I need you. Now.”

His hand slowed but didn’t stop, and he pulled back to look at her, his dark eyes full of love and lust examining her face. He nodded once, letting go for long enough to get rid of the rest of his clothes, climbing over her, his knees nudging her thighs further apart, spreading her wide to make room for him. He rubbed the head of his cock all over her, teasing her with it, then he leaned over her and kissed her deeply as he thrust inside her in one stroke.

Her breath hitched at the sudden intrusion, her legs wrapping around his hips to hold him tightly to her. He moved slow, so slow, his forearms planted on either side of her head, surrounding her and giving her the feeling of safety and protection she longed for.

She clung to him, her hands in his hair, her legs around him, never wanting to let go. He kept up his pace, each withdrawal a slow glide, each thrust hard and punishing, hitting her just right until all she could do was moan into his mouth. “More. Oh God, more.”

He nipped at her lips, his hips moving faster, more sinuous, and he reached one hand down between them, his thumb circling over her clit. She gasped at the contact, and he moved more, harder, faster, the withdrawal still slow, but driving home with more force.

Arching underneath him, her muscles grew tighter, her fingers now clawing at his shoulders, her thighs squeezing him as tight as she could. His hand moved faster, and his mouth sealed over hers as she cried out, swallowing her sounds, his rhythm never faltering, wringing her orgasm out of her until she lay limp beneath him. His hands went under her, lifting her up as he sat back on his heels, pulling her upright and onto his lap, her legs still wrapped around his waist, his hands under her ass moving her as he drove into her faster and harder and deeper, until he pulled her down frantically, losing the rhythm, burying his face in her neck, stifling his groan of ecstasy as he shuddered beneath her.

They stayed that way while they both caught their breath, maintaining their connection for as long as possible.

Tomorrow would be their first night apart since he’d come back to Spokane in August. Abby wasn’t looking forward to it, and she knew Lance wouldn’t be either. So she pushed away thoughts of tomorrow and what waited for her at home, choosing to stay in the moment with him while she could.

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