Ren
Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. What did I just do? He's coming —he's on his way.
I'm pacing the empty floor that is my living room. Fuck, Ren, you need to get dressed!
I run to the bathroom, blow-dry my hair, and style it into a messy bun because that's all I can muster right now. Then, I throw on some mascara and lip gloss before running to my bedroom. I slide the mirrored closet doors to the side. No, not that side! I fling them to the other side. Jeans, no, no, no. A dress, yes, it's my birthday after all. No, no, no. That's trying too hard. No, no.
I'm rifling through my newly and neatly arranged closet, making the shelves an absolute disaster—a pile of discarded clothes accumulating on the floor.
I need a dress that says I'm a gorgeous 30-year-old that's just chilling at home on her birthday... ummm. What does that even look like?
I'm spending far too long trying to figure out this outfit when I hear a knock at the door. Crap!
"Just a minute!"
Fuck he's here already! What was that—like ten minutes? I'm still naked in my bathrobe!
I grab some sexy underwear out of my drawer and fight my way into them, then I grab a tight black cotton summer dress and throw it on. It's not December appropriate, but what the hell, it's not fancy, and I know for a fact it looks great on me.
I throw it on and kick the mess into the closet, close the rolling mirror on the closet shut, and then go to answer the door.
Gio's standing there in tight dark jeans and a black Adidas hoodie. I hate to admit it, but I give him elevator eyes, and he looks a little amped up and hot as hell.
My throat is so dry, and my adrenaline has kicked into overdrive. "Hi," I say, lost for more words.
"Hi," he says back similarly, running his hand through the dark curls of his hair. "I didn't bring anything. I'm sorry. I should have got you a bottle of wine or something."
"No, it's a spur-of-the-moment thing," I say, my eyes darting back and forth between his. "I have a bottle of opened champagne, actually, plus you already got me chocolates. Thank you again for those." I end softly, my eyes growing big, finally taking in his fully.
"No problem. Happy birthday," he utters, holding my gaze. His green and gold eyes burn into me, and I feel his heat like flames licking up my body. Fuck.
We are still standing facing each other in the doorframe. The energy between us is electric, just waiting for the spark that will ignite it and explode. We stare at each other one smoldering moment more before I just grab him.
I roughly seize two handfuls of his fucking sexy sweatshirt and yank him to me.
He doesn't try to stop me as I grab his neck and pull up to kiss him hard on his mouth. He kisses me desperately right back, pushing me back against the door till it hits the wall with a bang.
My hands are in his hair, and his are grabbing my ass. He picks me up and moves me in, kicking the door shut with his foot behind us.
Our tongues ruthlessly and lustfully meet and part as we crash into my living room wall. His scent reaches and swirls around me, cloves and citrus, and the unique smell of him I'd know anywhere. I breathe it in, letting his pheromones make me drunk on him.
"You don't have any furniture?" he suddenly realizes, gasping for breath. It's only now that I register that he is still carrying me with my legs wrapped around his hips.
"My sofa's coming on Saturday," I explain, through heavy breathing, brushing a strand of hair out of my face and around my ear.
"Where were we going to sit to have a drink?" he questions me, raising an eyebrow. His eyes are locked with mine, and I'm still pinned up on the wall.
"I didn't think that far. There's a mattress on the floor in my room."
"Bad girl," he says salaciously, his eyes darkening, bringing his lips closer to mine again.
"Only for you," I respond low into his ear, and a low groan escapes from deep in his throat.
He squeezes my thighs hard as he pushes himself into me. I'm pressed forcefully against the wall, and he's as hard as hell. This time, a moan slips from my mouth, but he catches it with his and pushes himself even closer to where it counts.
He grinds hard into me and I'm so desperate for the feel of his bare skin on mine that I try to peel his shirt up his back. He gets what I'm after, so he spins me around and carries me into my bedroom. His knees hit the mattress first as he tumbles me onto my bed.
"Now you're the one with a mattress on the floor," his muffled voice comes between kisses on my neck, referencing the set up of his mattress in his teen bedroom years ago.
"I've got a frame. I just haven't erected it yet," I tease him.
"I don't know why you haven't. I'd say you've always been pretty good at erecting things," he jokes back, pressing his hard-on into my crotch through his jeans and then catching my lips with his.
Man. I miss our fun bedroom banter.
I pull his face closer and kiss him back harder, and with that, he pulls back to rip his shirt off over his head and is back fully on top of me in an instant, kissing me fervidly. I let my hands roam his chest.
Damn, he's built. I've felt all over his body before, but it was not like this at seventeen. Help me! His chest and abs, which are all tight and flexed, are hills and valleys to be explored now by my fingers. His skin is hot and smooth, and... damn, I'm so wet.
His hands are not lost on me. One is still around the back of my neck to keep my mouth to his, but the other is massaging my breast really roughly on the outside of my dress. I only take note of this briefly before he grabs the neckline near the strap and tugs it down hard. The cotton fabric and my bra easily give way, exposing my nipple, and his mouth hungrily takes it up.
I moan as he sucks on me, swirling his tongue around before moving to the other, pulling it gently with his teeth, sending a wash of pleasure and wetness through to my core. His left hand skims up my leg to my waist and back down, then moves right between my thighs. I've no doubt he notices I've soaked myself right through. His index finger pushes my underwear aside as his middle one slides easily across and past my opening, and he unlatches from my nipple for a moment.
"Oh God, Ren, you're so wet for me," he groans.
Before I can answer back, his mouth is over mine, his tongue desperate and deep inside. My greedy hand moves over his jeans to feel just how thick and hard he might be, and he's even better than I remember there, too. He hums into my mouth as he pushes his—
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
He's fingering me, and it's so good. I've got his zipper down, and I'm grasping him, and—I open my eyes to realize... the fire alarm is going off.
Noooo!
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
The sound is incessant and ear-piercing.
I smell the air, but no smoke. It's almost ten o'clock. I went out to dinner, so it's not like anything is in the oven. It's not in my apartment. It must be a building alarm. Ugh!
"Is that your smoke alarm?" he yells loudly, looking around, alert.
"Building alarm," I yell with my hand still in his pants.
"Shouldn't we go?"
"Probably a false alarm," I state, still trying to kiss on him. Apparently, all my rational thoughts leave my body when he is this close to me.
"No, we should go."
"Ugh! You're right." I groan. "Come on."
We get up, fix our clothes, and cover our ears. It's so loud that we are intent on getting out now. I slip on some shoes by the door, and we walk down the stairs. It's then that I notice all the other annoyed residents are already down by the pool area, watching us come down.
About fifty people are gathered around the tree-lined pool at night. We stand beside each other at the end of the pool. There is no moon, but the water is lit from below and casting blue and white ripple patterns over our faces. The effect is both surreal and beautiful, and this moment with him feels more like a dream than a reality.
It's only outside by the pool that I realize I didn't grab a sweater, and it's frigging December, and I'm in a summer dress. I start to shiver, and Gio puts his arm around me before he fully comprehends the situation as well.
"Jesus, Ren! You're gonna freeze out here." He pulls his hoodie off and pulls it over my head. He still has a long sleeve shirt under.
He wraps his arms around me, and we silently look out over the pool. I don't know how much of him holding me right now is just to keep us warm or if he's being romantic, but I'll take it either way. I rest my head against his chest, and he tucks his chin up on my head. I can feel his warmth surrounding me against the chilly December night air, and it feels... too good.
Too easy to be this close, this intimate already. To have it feel so natural, so safe, it's making me scared in a different way. I'm scared of wanting this too much now.
"Come on. You can come sleep at my place."
What! The inner me does a flip along with my stomach. I want to sooooo bad, but I realize this is already heating up so fast, just like I knew it would, and it scares me just as much as I want it.
What if he ghosts me after? Then how will I feel?
"No," I murmur almost to myself, still unsure of the words even as they are coming out of my mouth.
"No?" he questions, in shock. "Okaaay... you know, you're right. Forget I asked."
God. Am I a fool?
"Look, Gio..." Shit. How can I say this without it sounding...wrong? "I really want to, but just not tonight."
The effect of my words is almost immediate. I can see him shutting down.
"See me again!" I grab his hand. "Come to my birthday party—this Friday night at the Roxy."
He pulls his hand from mine, avoiding my eyes. "I don't think so."
I try again, closing the gap. "Please, Gio, for me?" Then I play my biggest card. "Come on—it's my birthday."
His eyes climb to meet mine. I can't get a read on him. But how can I explain how I'm feeling? That I don't want to rush this. Get it wrong.
He heaves a sigh. "Okay."
"Yes!"
Crap. I'm already feeling addicted to him again.
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