Ashton
Char has always been an open book to me since her expressions and gestures tend to give away her emotions. Unlike me, she's comfortable with people knowing what she feels, even when she's not ready to receive reactions from others.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not a mind reader. I don't always know what's going on inside her head, but it's not hard to tell when she's happy or sad or if something is bothering her. And she seems distraught lately.
Since our food truck surprise date a few days ago, she's been acting weird. She's more distracted and gets lost in her thoughts, even though she's engaged in a talk. I suspect it's because of the talk about my mother. The topic always bothers her, given how often she's thrown the idea of fixing my relationship with my mother, like a broken record she is. But I know my mother more than she does, and I know Danielle Knight is irreparable. Maybe it'll take Char a little longer to see it.
However, besides my girlfriend's mood shift, the date night has triggered another reaction from our daughter. Chloe hasn't been a happy camper since she heard about the food truck festival, and she makes sure I'm aware of it every single morning.
"I still can't believe you two got to visit the food truck festival without me. I was home and available and alone with my phone." Her teenage face scowls at me, not at Char, because she knows I was the one who initiated the surprise date.
"You weren't alone. The sitter was here. Who's her name again? Rudolf was also here," I say as I take a big gulp of my fresh orange juice. Char makes more homemade juice during this time of the year. She said it has something to do with the fruit availability and the level of sweetness during summer.
"Domina," Chloe replies. "And she didn't talk. She just sat there and read her book. Rudolf was in his room. So, I had no actual company."
Such a dramatic kid. I've known Chloe as a critical and smart kid since the day she entered my office for the first time. Char brought her to work because nobody could watch her. Lately, though, Chloe's become a complainer and is a little edgy sometimes. At least, according to the children's development book I read, it's a normal occurrence for a kiddo at her age.
"We were home pretty early. It wasn't even nine yet," I say.
So frowns at her cereal bowl. "So, why did I still get a sitter?"
I raise an eyebrow. "Because you're not yet eleven."
"And?"
"You still need an adult presence when your parents aren't around."
She gives me a deadpan look. "Rudolf was here."
"True, but that's different."
"How's that different?"
"His job isn't to monitor you, and he doesn't live in our main house." I point at the window, which overlooks the swimming pool and the sauna room. "Rudolf lives there."
Our butler has been with us since last spring, but instead of occupying the room next to the kitchen area, he prefers to take the garden house next to the sauna room. It's practically a room, but big enough to put extra furniture besides his bed and the wardrobe. It also has access to the sauna's bathroom. It reminds me that we need to install extra insulation for the cold days if he stays longer with us.
"Actually, we can install CCTV for every room if you want to monitor me. We don't need to hire a human camera for that. I'm not a baby," Chloe keeps pushing.
"Not saying you are. It's just for safety reasons."
"What Ashton means is," Char chips in as she places Chloe's lunch box on the breakfast counter, "if something happened, and Rudolf didn't find you in time, at least the sitter would know what to do because she's the adult. It's something the CCTV can't do. Plus, I'm not a fan of having CCTV all over the house."
Chloe exhales a dramatic sigh, as if her life is now ten times harder than when she woke up this morning. "Fine. Okay."
Char remains standing behind our daughter and brushes Chloe's bangs backward and tucks it behind her ear. "You're going to the festival with Peyton and Elaine tomorrow?"
"Yeah. And Peyton's new boyfriend, too."
"Right. What's his name again? Kyle!"
"No. His name is Cole. She broke up with Kyle two weeks ago."
"Oh." Char raises her eyebrows in surprise. "She started dating Kyle like, in February or something. Now they have broken up, and she has a new boyfriend. That's fast."
Chloe nods. "I know, right? Peyton likes a different boy every month. That's so weird."
I chuckle at Chloe's comments and the way she scrunches her nose. "That's what teenagers do, I guess."
"Not me. Boys are gross."
I laugh harder. "They are, indeed."
***
Since Peyton and Elaine picked up Chloe before lunch, now Char and I have the house for ourselves.
My previous plan was to bury myself in my study room while Char and our daughter were on their girly trip to their favorite salon. They do that every second Saturday of the month because it's the quietest weekend at the salon. But once I heard about our daughter's today's plan with Emily's kids, my plan shifted. Burying myself inside Char sounds so much better.
Despite her divided attention, Char doesn't have trouble reacting to my tease, my kiss, my stroke, and my lovemaking. Char's body is always reactive to my touch. Feeling her soft and bare skin against mine, watching her back arching as I pinch her nipples while I fuck her from behind, or listening to her moaning my name when she climaxes is delicious — it's addictive. She looks like a goddess when she comes apart, with her tousled brown hair covering her face and her gaping lips, welcoming every orgasmic spasm charging her body.
"That was..." She doesn't finish her line because I've started thrusting into her again to find my release, which is very close. "Oh, god..."
I want to give her some time to recover, but witnessing the erotic display before my eyes sends the sperm to my cock. My fingers dig into her hips, holding her against my hard pounding until I can't hold it anymore. My seed bursts into her canal to mark her. "Fuck," I groan and fall on her.
We lie down like that for a few moments in silence, our bodies slick against each other, moist with our sweat and juices. This is when I feel the deepest connection with her. This is when I don't care about the rest because in my world now, it's just me and Char.
"Thank you," I mumble as I push her hair to the side with a gentle stroke. "I needed that."
"You make it sound like you're the only one who benefits from it." She chuckles lazily. "It was...damn. You made me see stars."
"As you should." I nuzzle my head into her hair, inhaling her damped locks that smell so sexy at this point. "When will Chloe be home?"
"I'm not sure, but I don't think they will stay out that long. It's going to rain soon." She turns around and lies on her back. Her breathing is calmer now, causing my eyes to follow the steady movement of her breast; up and down. Her nipples are still protruding from the orgasm, while her eyes are closed.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah. Just relaxing."
"I'll give you a little break before I'm ready to go again."
"And make my legs feel like jelly for the rest of the day?"
"Sure. Why not? That way, you know how much I love you."
She chuckles again. The after-sex glow radiates from her face. Her cheeks flush and the content smile lingers on her pretty face. She's so beautiful. But when she opens her eyes and stares blankly at the ceiling, the little frown on her face is back.
"You've been spacing off a lot lately. Is our last talk still bothering you?"
As she turns to me, our gazes meet. I can see the slight shock that turns into doubt in her eyes. "Which talk?"
Her reaction confuses me a bit. She should know what I'm talking about, right? "About my mother, of course."
"Oh," she says, a little too hard. "Yeah, about that. It's been bothering me, but I have started to understand that I can't rush you into it. I guess it's not something that can be fixed in one sitting or two, you know."
"I really thought..." I'm completely lost now. Something has definitely happened, and I have to know what it is. "What is it, then? I know your mind has been somewhere else since the food truck night."
Char doesn't reply right away, but I can almost hear her brain changing gears. She gulps, causing her slender neck to bulge and flatten again — and it's sensual as fuck. Then she props her shoulders up, using one elbow to hold her weight. "That night, when you picked me up, Chadrick was kinda rude to you, remember?"
"Well, I wouldn't call it rude. He's being the old jackass Maxwell. But what about it?"
"On the next morning, his mood was worse. I made some mistakes in the report he asked for, but it was more about the formatting so it didn't affect the content that much. And he made it like it was a big deal, like it was the end of the world." She stops and her eyes follow my fingers, which are running around her smooth shoulder. "Anyway, long story short, he confessed."
My movement on her skin halts. "Confessed what?"
"That he was actually jealous of us." She runs her fingers over my bare chest, sending the surge of excitement straight to my groin. "You were right about him having a thing for me. Not that I didn't believe you. I thought it was just your observation. However, he said he knew we were exclusive, so he couldn't do more."
This is new. He never made a move on my woman without our prior agreement before. "And?" I ask. "What else did he say?"
"Nothing. He left for a business trip in South East Asia after that. We won't get to talk until he's back in two weeks. Or maybe" — she shrugs — "there's nothing to talk about."
I study her face, wondering if Chadrick's confession bothers her this much. "How do you feel about it?"
The last time I brought this up, Char straddled me and rubbed her crotch against my dick, slurring, "Too bad. He's shit out of luck." But this time, as she tears her eyes from my chest and looks me straight in the eye, a sliver of doubt flashes in her brown pupils.
"I don't know," she says.
Jealousy ripples through my body, but I won't let her see it. Turning into an ugly and insecure hot mess is not how I deal with my woman. I trust Char with all my heart, even if she wants to venture into a new lifestyle. I'm not going to be in her way. I will be right next to her and hold her hand through it because I'm not my father.