If you think about it, we’ve essentially been dating for the last several months, just without the physical benefits.
Aiden stirs, pressing a sleepy kiss to my shoulder.
“Baby, I can feel you thinking,” he mumbles. “How long have you been awake?”
Turning over to face him, I brush a sweet kiss across his lips.
“Not long. Just thinking about last night.”
“I can still feel you,” he groans, wincing slightly. “My ass is sore.”
I grin. “I’m sorry, Snoochums. Want me to kiss it and make it feel better?”
“Oh my God, you’re ridiculous,” he laughs, tickling my ribs until I squeal.
Tickling turns into kissing, and kissing turns heated. And just like that, our bodies are tangled in an exhilarating sixty-nine until we’re coming down each other’s throats.
“Nothing like a protein shake for breakfast,” Aiden teases, swatting my ass as he wipes the remnants of my cum from his lips.
“Now who’s being ridiculous?” I fire back, hauling myself out of bed.
I need to take a quick shower and put on some clothes so I can be at work in an hour and look functional.
Aiden’s driving back to Astoria this morning, determined to get everything ready in the apartment for my move this weekend.
Plus, he doesn’t want to leave Maisy and Daisy alone in a new place. The coffee shop manager is checking in on them, but they’re known for wreaking havoc when left to their own devices for too long.
He’ll come back tomorrow afternoon to help me finish packing. He’s already booked a small moving van for Saturday morning, not wasting any time making sure I’m with him.
When it’s time for him to go, it doesn’t sting like it did on Sunday morning. Knowing our separation is only temporary fills me with a calm certainty.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he says, brushing hair from my forehead and leaning in for a kiss.
As the kiss deepens, I wrap my arms around his neck, pressing my entire body against his.
Pulling away, his piercing eyes, flecked with gold, melt me.
“I love you, baby.”
I smile, grounded in knowing how he feels about me.
“I love you, too.”
Driving to work, I’m a hundred pounds lighter than I was yesterday. Arriving at the office early, I let my boss know of my plans. He’s fine with it as long as I can still come in once or twice a month. That’s not an issue. I can stay overnight with my mom if needed, or I can drive back to Astoria since it’s not too far. My day is packed with team meetings, and it goes by quickly.
Returning home feels so different from last night’s slump through the door. I had come in exhausted, sad, missing Aiden so much that I ached, and counting down the hours until the weekend. Then he surprised me, and everything changed.
When he asked me to move in with him, I could barely contain my excitement. It was adorable listening to him share all the reasons I should move in with him, like I needed any convincing.
Tonight, I’ve got work to do. Fortunately, I never really settled into this place.
The second bedroom still has stacks of boxes I haven’t unpacked, and a good chunk of my stuff is in storage. It won’t take much for me to get ready to move. I’m only bringing a few piecesof furniture; the rest I’ll sell or donate. Aiden has much nicer furniture than I do, anyway.
Now comes the fun part of telling my mom and Heather. My mom will be excited for me, but you never know with my sister.
Heather’s been worried about me in the wake of everything with Ray, and she might see this as too hasty a decision. But I’ve rehearsed my arguments, knowing she can tear them apart if I’m not prepared.
I invited them over to help me pack. They knew I’d be moving out of this apartment, eventually. They just didn’t expect it to be Astoria.
