Page 42 of Dirty Money
“I love you, Aulora Greene.”
“I love you, Weston Calloway.”
“You can never run again.”
She giggled and blushed.
“I might not even be able to walk after that!”
He laughed and kissed her. “Good. I’ll keep you hobbled like this for a while. You won’t be able to get mad at me and take off.”
“Try not to make me mad, West. At least for a little while. Be on your best behavior.” She pulled him back down and kissed him.
“And you too, okay?”
She nodded in agreement. She could do that. She had tons to do anyway. School, work, paint.
Running wasn’t a thing she was thinking about doing at all. His body pinned hers to the soft mattress and his weight felt amazing to her. There was no need to over analyze anything.
He rolled to one side of her, leaving her feeling empty but he quickly pulled her in for a snuggle. A kiss on top of her head, made her feel loved and safe and she fell asleep without any problem at all.
When the morning sun rose, waking them up, she was happy to find his arms still around her. She was still, so she wouldn’t wake him but it seemed he was already awake.
“There she is, my little peach,” he cooed at her. “And how did we sleep?”
“Like a baby,” she said as she moved around to face him. “And you?”
“Holding an angel in my arms proved to be magical. I slept solidly through the entire night. A thing I haven’t done since I was just out of high school. Now you’re really stuck with me, Aulora. You’re my sleep-aid.”
She giggled and kissed his cheek. “I’m usually a night owl. It seems your lovemaking is better than a warm cup of milk.”
“Speaking of warm milk. We should get over to your place and let Bruce out and get him something to eat. We only stopped by there once yesterday to see to him. Then we can have some brunch.”
“You are amazing. Did anyone ever tell you that, West?” she kissed his cheek again. The slight roughness of his unshaven face felt good on her lips. She could see waking up with him many more mornings.
“Amazing? Maybe not that exact word, no.” He gave her a squeeze. “Shower first then we’ll take off.”
“Would you like to hang out at my place until I have to go to work tonight?” she asked him as he was getting up then he stopped and turned around to take her in his arms again.
“That job isn’t a thing you need to do any longer, peach. You’re making it as an artist now.”
“Um, no,” she said as she looked at him. “I mean, I made enough to cover my bills and then some from what you bought but I need a steady income.”
The way he looked at her let her know he was going to make an argument for quitting her job. His jaw set, then he said, “Aulora, you’ll have school and painting that will take up most of your time. If you keep that job, then we won’t have many evenings together. And I want to spend every evening I can with you.”
“I think you’re getting ahead of yourself. I have to keep the job until I find out if my paintings will make enough money to pay my bills. If that happens, then I’ll quit. But I wouldn’t just up and quit, anyway. I’d give my two weeks’ notice first.”
“How many other people that you’ve worked with there have given their two weeks’ notice, Aulora? My guess is none. And if your employment was terminated then they’d not give you two weeks, either. The fact is you have two walls to fill with artwork and you’ll need time to do that. I got you that so you could get going on the journey you wanted to go on. The damn bar isn’t a stone on that path.”
She blinked as she looked at him and it all started to sink in. She and he were a couple. And couples did things like change jobs to get to be around each other more. They did things to help the other person get on the career path they wanted. She knew all of this but it still made her feel uneasy.
“I don’t want you to buy any more of my art, West. I will give it a month. If my art sells to people, other than yourself, and it makes enough money to meet my bills then I will quit the bar. Not before then, though.”
“You won’t have bills if you move in with me,” he said. “You and Bruce can come live with me.”
“Too fast, Weston! Way too fast!”
“Why do you say that? Don’t you want to be with me?”
