Arlo

7.

He's only been gone for a few weeks but it feels as though he's been gone for years. As I stand at arrivals, waiting to see him walking out, my nerves are bouncing around my stomach and brain. What if he changed his mind while he was gone? What if he thinks that he made a mistake? As soon as I see him, all my doubts fly out the window. When his eyes land on me, I can feel his eyes trail up my body, leaving a heat behind, like trailing fingertips. Everything else falls away; no one else exists but the two of us as I make my way through the throng of people to throw my arms around his neck and wrap my legs around his waist. "Hey there, neighbor." He chuckles into my neck. "Hi." I mutter back with my lips against his cheek. "Are you going to let me go so we can walk to the car?" he teases. I shake my head, chuckling. "Nope, you just have to learn to live with me attached to you, sorry not sorry." I respond, pulling a laugh from deep within his chest. He nods his acquiescence, continuing his trek out of the airport with me wrapped around him. When we get back to my apartment, he sits on the couch but makes no move to get me off of his lap, instead resting his hands on my hips and staring into my eyes as though I were the best thing to grace the planet. "Tell me what I've missed in the last couple of days that we haven't spoken." He states. "Well, I sort of have something to tell you that I know that you won't like." I mumble. "Okay." "I've been spending a lot of time with Adonis." I spit out. His fingers dig into my hips as the words leave my lips. "Is that right?" he says through clenched teeth. "Yeah, just friends, remember?" I clarify. He takes a deep breath through his nose, leaning up to capture my lips in a bruising kiss. "My Alita." He growls as he kisses down my jaw. "Always, lovey." I sigh, tangling my fingers into the hair at the back of his head. "Good, now tell me what you've been talking to him about." He instructs, leaning back against the couch to look up at me. I run my hands down the length of his chest, humming, distractedly. Eventually, I get around to telling him everything, chuckling at his jealousy. "I'm going to have lunch with him tomorrow and he was going to come over for dinner, if you're okay with that." I inform; he takes a deep breath, closing his eyes before looking back at me. "To dinner, fine. I'm stealing you away for lunch, however, so that would be a no."

The next morning, I'm almost late for work on account of Arlo wanting to get lost in the sea between my legs. I scold him but he ignores me because of the smile that is fighting to creep across my lips. "Better get going or you'll be late." He teases. He meets me for lunch, bathing himself in my water on the couch in my office before he leaves with a smug smile on his face. After work, I head home, bag of groceries in hand as I shoulder my way in. "Lovey?" I call out, my heart lodging in my throat when he appears in the kitchen with a smile in place. "Hey, baby." He greets, kissing my neck as I pull the groceries out of the bag. "I talked to Adonis while I was shopping, he'll be here soon." I tell him, turning in his hold to place a kiss to his lips. "Hm, alright." He hums, mouthing deliciously at my neck. "I've got to get on dinner." I whisper, shakily. "No, I think you should get on me." He cheeks, sucking harshly on my neck. I cackle, shoving him away from me, "not with lines like that, lovey." I shake my head, turning back to dinner. "Rude. My ego is bruised." He jokes. "Well, that's a good thing; your ego can handle a little bruising." I shake my head, a smile on my face as he disappears from view. Upon Adonis's arrival, the atmosphere turns tense. "I'll go grab the wine, my baby." Arlo announces, placing a soft kiss to my mouth. By the end of the night, I am thinking that we will have to gather more or I need to keep them away from each other if this is to work.

"So, that could've gone better." I sigh out as I peel myself out of my clothes, Arlo's eyes on my every move. "I think that it could've been much worse. Come here." He hums, reaching for me. I move to pull one of his shirts over my head, but he tuts at me, shaking his head with a mischievous smirk on his lips. "Leave the shirt." He orders, the green of his eyes dominated by the black of his pupil. I crawl over to him, slowly, an excited jump in my lower abdomen at the hunger in his eyes. He pats the space beside himself, his tongue darting out to moisten his lips. "Lie back here, beautiful." He rasps out, looking the very image of sex as he commands my attention. I do as he says, thanking myself when he dives between my legs and tastes my water.