It's been said that after a hike, everything has twice its usual value. I'm inclined to believe it given the immense peace it gave me to see the light on in our bedroom when I returned home after one. It meant Samantha was waiting for me in our bed. Probably reading a manuscript from an up and coming author she wanted to sign, wearing glasses she'd recently gotten when she realized her eyesight wasn't what it once was. She thought the glasses made her look smarter, impossible in my book. I thought they made her look sexy as hell.
I parked my dark green Range Rover in the garage next to her black Audi. The sun had already gone down, a slight chill in the air causing my sweat soaked body to shiver. I felt my phone buzz. I fished it out of my pocket as I slid out of my truck to see a text from Joel, Mia's boyfriend. Considering we'd just left each other at the trailhead I was a little shocked to see it was from him.
Saw they opened up Grey's Trailhead again.
I raised my eyebrows. Grey's had been closed down after a hiker slipped and fell to her death. Known for being treacherous due to the rough terrain and remote location, it had always been a trail Joel and I wanted to try out.
We should plan a visit
Already researching brother
I shoved my phone back into my pocket and I turned to lock the door behind me. I tossed my jacket on the couch as I walked through the front room towards the kitchen. I grabbed a water bottle and gulped almost half down. There was a plate of food with a handwritten note sitting on the counter next to the refrigerator.
Samantha's handwriting.
I tried chicken parm. I know how you love it. Lemme know how it tastes. Love You.
Once again, my love read my mind before I actually thought the thought. I was starving. I popped the plate into the microwave, thumbing through my phone while I waited and then I devoured the entire thing in two minutes flat. A new record.
I snapped the lights off in the kitchen and I walked to our bedroom. Just as I expected she was reading...with her glasses on. I smiled, still the most beautiful thing I'd seen all day. I kissed the top of her head on the way to the bathroom,
"It was delicious."
She nodded,
"Ok." She replied.
Her distracted tone told me what I needed to know. The author was going to get a huge advance.
I shook my head with a soft chuckle. I pulled my shirt off and shimmied out of my shorts. I turned the shower on, stripping down to nothing while I waited for the water to warm up. Once the temperature was decent I stepped in. Samantha never minded my pungence but I didn't want to stain our new very expensive sheets. I braced my hands against the shower wall and I dropped my head as I let the drops wash over me.
Samantha and I had been together five years now. I'd starred in two movies and gone on tour in that time. Samantha had risen to Director of Acquisitions at HarperCollins, meaning she was in charge of every new author at the company. I don't think I could have been any prouder of her.
Our relationship had hit a comfortable stride that I enjoyed probably more than I'd enjoyed our "honeymoon" period. The stability she afforded me, just knowing she was always there...it was invaluable. I was writing the best music of my life and it was not lost on me that her quiet confidence in me was a major factor.
And the heat between us had not dissipated. She sent me naughty texts despite my warning her of the dangers if someone were to hack my phone. I was also lucky enough to open quite a few heated zoom calls that resulted in the best long distance sex I'd ever had. She seemed to delight in catching me off guard and I couldn't say I didn't love it. The danger that we might get caught only seemed to fuel her.
As if on cue, I felt a pair of warm hands run along my naked back. I couldn't help the smile from popping up on my face. She pushed herself against my back. She was naked too.
I lifted my head, glancing at her over my shoulder,
"I thought you were reading."
She coyly held my gaze for a few moments before she smiled and pressed her lips to the back of my shoulder,
"Just had to get to a stopping point." She wound her arms around my waist as I turned to face her, "How was the hike?"
I rested my hands on her shoulders,
"Long."
She slid her hands up to rest on my chest just over the tattooed swallows,
"You didn't have to shower."
I chuckled,
"Ohhhh yes I did." I couldn't hold back from pressing my mouth to hers any longer.
Her mouth opened immediately, as per usual, allowing our tongues to tangle together. I felt her hands twist into the hair on the back of my head, pushing me to take the kiss just a bit further. My hands wound around to hold her against me as the kiss intensified.
When our lips finally parted she was breathless. I pushed my forehead against hers,
"Well...seems you had something in mind when you joined me."
She took a few deep breaths,
"Don't tease..." She breathed as her mouth took mine again.
I turned her to push her back against the wall, the water barely hitting us now but the steam had warmed up the shower enough. I slid down her body, pressing wet kisses to her skin as I went. She lifted her leg to rest over my shoulder, causing me to smile up at her,
"First meal was delicious." I commented as I looked down at the slit between her legs, "Second one should be heavenly." I whispered as I swiped my tongue up her center.
She gasped my name. A move she knew would drive me mad. Within seconds her hands were twisted into my hair, pulling gently as I pushed her closer and closer to the edge. She spasmed against my mouth, a shout of my name this time, as she came.
I pressed kisses up the center of her body until I reached her mouth. She lazily kissed me back, her arms winding around my neck to help keep her upright considering I was quite positive her knees were shaking.
I pulled back,
"Quicker than usual."
She quirked her eyebrows,
"Haven't had you for a few hours...I was due."
I laughed as I leaned forward to nudge her with my nose while her hand slid down between our bodies. I felt her fingers wrap around my shaft as she pumped me slowly. My eyes fell shut, tingles exploded over my skin,
"Mmmm...Nava..." I hummed while my hands slid down over her ass.
I pulled her up off her feet. She squeezed me gently before guiding my cock to her center. I basked in how it felt to slide into her warmth, her body stretching around mine just like it always did.
She tipped her head back while my mouth traveled over her neck. I pumped into her gently. Taking Samantha up against a wall had become a favorite but it always felt new. We'd become pretty good at making sure our sex life never went stale.
I felt her hips tip up towards mine, a sign that she was close to release. A few more thrusts and she tensed up around me. I followed her over the edge right after.
I gently lowered her down to put her feet back on the floor, my mouth overtaking hers in a deep kiss.
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As usual, Samantha's stamina was non-existent. Due to long hours at the office and near constant reading, she was passed out in our bed before I ever made it out of the bathroom. I had to smile. There wasn't a thing about her that didn't intrigue me. Everything she did was adorable.
However, my nights performing on stage had thrown my sleep schedule off. I was wide awake. I glanced at the clock to see it was a little after midnight. Perfect time to head down to the studio and write a little.
But I definitely needed a beverage first. I stopped in the kitchen on my way to the basement. Sure, I'd been home for a week but the stack of mail Samantha had left for me was still sitting there. I knew it was mostly fan mail from the occasional overzealous fan and junk mail. I would get to it eventually.
On top of the stack, though, she'd left a more important piece. Something she knew I'd want to see. The invitation to the Annual Picnic celebrating the recipients of Gwen, my late fiancee's, organs. The single postcard always gave me just a slight twinge of anxiety. It wasn't that I didn't want to go. I did. It was just a reminder of the asshole I was when I didn't go. I'd lost Gwen six years ago and some days it still felt like yesterday. Thankfully, the universe sent me Samantha who relentlessly pushed me out of the dark hole I'd buried myself in and challenged me every day to turn away from it.
I grabbed a sharpie from Samantha's stash she always kept in one of the kitchen drawers. I wrote "Harry Styles RSVP's +1" on it and I set it where she'd see it first thing in the morning.
I grabbed my tea and went down to the basement. Time for some writing.
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I woke up the next morning to lips pressing to my cheek and a sing song voice I knew well imploring me to wake up. These moments, this feeling...this is what I missed the most when I was on tour. I lifted my head off the pillow, trying my best to be grumpy. I had a reputation to protect.
I let out an annoyed sigh,
"It's not even nine." I complained.
She smiled, her nose pressing into my cheek. Samantha liked my smell. I told her it was weird, especially in the morning when I was sure I smelled like sweat. But she insisted on inhaling my scent as often as possible,
"It's ten." She whispered in my ear.
I looked at her over my shoulder,
"Weird."
She shook her head as she pressed her nose into my cheek again,
"You smell good." She lightly protested. I heard her inhale again, "Did you get any writing done?"
I snuggled back into my pillow. I would never let her know just how comforting it was to hear her breathe me in,
"Not much." I let her continue her assault for a bit longer before I rolled onto my back with a groan. It hit me then, confusion coloring my face as I furrowed my brow, "Shouldn't you be at work?"
She giggled,
"It's Saturday."
"Oh." My eyes widened and then relaxed, "Tour fucked me up a little more than I thought." I abruptly grabbed her arms and pulled her onto the bed. She yelped as I landed on top of her, my lips instantly attaching to her neck, "Then there's no reason in the world we need to leave this bed today."
She smiled, her fingers coming up to thread into my hair. She grabbed a hold slightly,
"We have a barbecue to go to. Remember?"
I groaned. Mia and Joel were getting married in six weeks. Instead of a big fancy engagement party, they decided to have a barbecue. The last thing I wanted to do is hang out with people all day when I could easily keep Samantha in bed, but as the best friend and maid of honor, she had us on a technicality.
Still, I had to put up a bit of a fight. I dramatically threw my arms over my eyes,
"Do we have to?" I whined.
She squeezed my arm before I felt her weight remove from the bed,
"Yes. We have to."
I let my arms drop to the bed with a thud,
"Navaaaaaaa..."
A pillow came flying at my head,
"Get up." She commanded.
I let out a deep sigh.
And then I did as she asked.