“What a kind boy,” Auriela murmurs. “Such a kind boy. And still kind even after poor Claire.” She fusses with her bags at the door and pulls out her keys.
Reaching for her other bag, my mind buzzes with questions.
She climbed all those stairs with two shopping bags?
Or did she take the elevator and get off close to this floor?
It’s too rude of me to ask but my mind burns with curiosity as I watch her unlock the door.
“Here you go,” I say while placing both bags just inside her door. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“No, dear. That’s plenty, thank you so much.” Suddenly, her hand is in mine and when it leaves, a small, hard wrapped lemon drop rests in my palm. “Thank you, dear!” Then Auriela disappears into her apartment and closes the door.
The candy in my hand briefly catches the light and a sudden wave of hot emotion crawls up my throat.
Such a simple gesture and yet it immediately drags me back to being a child and sneaking candy from my nan.
She passed when I was still young but the sudden, unexpected weight in my chest settles as if she passed days ago.
Tears briefly warm behind my eyes, but I blink them away and pocket the candy, then I head back to Xander’s apartment.
What a lovely woman.
Not wanting to appear suspicious, I finally let myself into his apartment.
It feels different from the time I let myself in to make him dinner.
Back then, I took a key for myself. This time, he gave me a key.
A new one, too, judging by how it glints in the light before I slip it into my purse.
I’m greeted immediately by three meowing cats who weave and twist around my ankles, trying to trip me up.
Tiger stretches up my calf and briefly digs in his claws, then he darts away to the kitchen with a loud meow and trips over himself in his hurry.
Willow is much more elegant in her attempts to trip me up but she too wanders toward the kitchen with her tail swishing back and forth.
Rustle remains until she catches my trailing bag strap, then it becomes a game of her following me to the kitchen in lunges as she tries to catch the strap.
“Hungry?” I say to all three as they hop up onto the counter.
Petting each in turn, my mind goes blank with bliss while I fill each of their bowls and lavish them in attention.
Then I slip off to the bedroom and take a long shower.
Under the stream of hot water, I retrace Xander’s touches across my body.
Every place his mouth and teeth lingered, every place he gripped me hard and held me close, and then between my legs where my core still throbs from his incredible fucking.
How can such a quiet, tender man fuck so hard?
Never in my life have I experienced such an exhilarating thing, but it’s addictive.
And that trick with the snow? Exhilarating.
I want to feel him again.
I want that weight back inside me, his hands gripping my body like I’m the most precious thing to him, and his breath against my ear as I pull him closer and closer toward pleasure.
