KICK IT | JENLISA

130

Jennie

In my ostrich-ass moments, I hadn't noticed how Lisa wasn't removing parts of Taehyung as I feared. She improved the truck instead of scrapping it like most mechanic shops would've recommended. The fact she hadn't known why it was so important proved her true character.

Lisa Manoban wasn't fronting herself as a good, and charitable person to impress me or anyone else. She just was.

Fuck, that was difficult to admit. She also had a damn good agent who eased Taehyung's mother's discomfort. We added a garden space in his honour, with a view of a small drainage lake. Patricia and Ed Kim kept a respectable distance, standing at the back of the crowd, but their mere presence was more than enough.

"Lisa, we're so proud of you." a short, thin woman with grey wisps over her forehead beamed and embraced her in a hug. "This is an amazing effort."

"Jennie." she said over her shoulder. "These are my parents."

The older versions of people I met on Lisa's draft night were as warm and open as I remembered. We couldn't meet before the ceremony because traffic clogged their drive from Dallas, but they were here.

I shifted my eyes between her, two inches shorter than Lisa. Her Mom's head was level with her bicep... with boots. "I'm five-two." She smiled up at me. "Gave Lisa her extra two inches."

"Dynamite comes in small packages."

"Don't I know it." An older version of Lisa with a grey goatee shook my hand. "This is such a wonderful and exciting project here."

Before I answered him, Lisa's mom's arms opened up and swallowed me. "Jennie, you deserve a hug for getting Lisa's shoulder back. How on Earth you got my stubborn-headed child to try yoga is beyond me."

"Pushing the right buttons." I patted her back. "It was easier once I dropped her on her head."

Kidding aside, loving Lisa was as easy as breathing once I allowed myself to do so. Forgiving myself to pursue the new relationship came easier on some days than others, and on other days I had no idea why Lisa was with me. Opening up took time and patience, and we made the most of both. Lisa was as open as a reverse harem romance novel, while I was a work in progress.

She made opening up effortless, listening with a quiet, patient ear and two equally in-shape shoulders to cry on. My fears of forgetting Taehyung eroded under the comforts that Lisa wanted me to remember him. Ironically, the more I opened up, the less I needed it.

After we set dinner plans with her parents and the last vehicle pulled off the property, Lisa's gaze skimmed heat over my skin. "Is it bad that I can't wait to get you home?"

Tipping my head back, my hands circled her trim waist, and our lips met across the gap. Warm, and soft skin moulding around mine reignited the fire between us. It burned with the same intensity a month later, sparked by our stubbornness and competitive nature. Except now we argued over who got to be on top. And it was my turn.

The longer we stood, Lisa's lumpy muscles weren't the only hardness pressing into me. "If it's bad, then me wanting to ride you on the front seat is worse."

With a flash of hands, I was hauled inside her truck and straddled her lap. Strong fingers tensed into my sides and Lisa's intentions seared heat in her eyes. Leaning closer, I wrapped my hands around her neck, loving the feeling of my body pressed into her sturdy chest. Our mouths connected in a smash of lips, teeth, and tongues, appreciation flowing through me as much as arousal.

"We will." I whispered. I reached between us and removed her from her pants. With a quick shuffling of my hips, I sank onto her with a gasp. The stretch lulled me to close my eyes. Her fingers threaded through my hair, a hundred pounds lighter. "I did mean to do this at home."

Today was also mine, and Indigo's, last day living under Jackson's roof. A new beginning and life with Lisa wasn't an ending to the memories of Taehyung, reflected by the fullness in my heart. With the sincere intentions the rehabilitation centre promised, I couldn't have asked for a brighter future and a more loving person to spend my forever with.