A/N
I'm getting quicker! Thank you all so much for all of the love. Here is the next installment......
"Oh, thank God!" Ashten let out an enormous sigh of relief as she sat on edge of the bed and finally unzipped the torture devices she called boots. Her aching feet cried out in gratitude.
"Emph, k." Stella slurred, her face buried in her pillow and under a pile of thick red hair.
"Yeah I feel the same way." Ashten chuckled and used a hair tie to pull the ginger tresses up into a high bun and away from her comatose friend's face.
The guys left the bar not too long after her encounter with Nikki and then Stella took it upon herself to be the evening's designated drunk. Almost out of nowhere the multiple cocktails seemed to hit her all at once which put an abrupt end to any and all festivities. After their driver dropped Jozie off he deposited the other two girls at Tommy's where Ashten walked her wobbly chum inside. She put her to bed and left some aspirin and a bottle of water on the night stand before closing the bedroom door.
Ashten made her way down the staircase and eventually out the patio door. Once outside she felt the breeze of the slight December in California chill kiss her face. The gentle air also brought the aroma of a lit and expensive cigar.
She followed her nose over to the pool and to where Nikki stood with his camera looking out over the skyline. As she approached, she placed the boots she'd been carrying on one of the patio chairs, the slight noise causing him to look fondly in her direction.
"Hey."
"Hey." Ashten smiled warmly. "Aren't you supposed to be packing?"
"Yeah, but couldn't help myself." He held up his camera and shrugged then reached for the ashtray that held his cigar.
"I can see why," she replied, her eyes scanning the horizon and taking in the amazing site of all the LA lights in the distance as she stepped closer. The stars sparkled brightly against the dark blue night sky. The beauty of it nearly took her breath away. "God, sometimes I forget how gorgeous it is up here."
"Yeah," Nikki nodded in agreement, a cheeky grin spreading over his face. "Second best view I've seen tonight."
Ashten felt heat rush to her cheeks and gave him a shy smile.
"You're home early." Nikki looked down at his phone noting the time was just past eleven.
"Yeah, well thanks to a sloppy drunk my dream of pajamas and shitty TV is getting ready to become a reality." She watched Nikki focus his lens and take a few shots.
"How was your evening?" The side of his mouth curled up slightly while he continued to look the view finder. "Any creepy old guys hit on you?"
"He wasn't creepy," She pursed her lips in amusement and gave him a side glance.
"Funny."
"Wanna know what's really funny?"
"What?" He paused his photography and plucked his cigar from the ashtray to take a drag.
"Thanks to you now Tommy thinks I'm into a guy named Warren."
Nikki blew out the sweet smelling smoke through a laugh. "I can see Warren's appeal. He did give you a wet pussy and all."
She raised both eyebrows before huffing out an awkward laugh. "That's true."
Very true. More then he knew.
"Well, then. Mission accomplished." He smirked in that sexy way that drove her crazy. "Did you set Tommy straight?"
"Are you kidding?" She pulled a face that turned slightly devious. "Messing with Tommy is my new favorite hobby."
Nikki regarded her as she shifted to sit sideways on the thick stone railing of the wall dividing Tommy's property from the rest of the world. Her torso faced him, her left leg folded in front of her while her right one anchored her to the ground. Her hands rested on her calf as she sat up straight with her head turned toward the city lights.
Her profile looked almost angelic and Nikki couldn't help but take a few shots of her.
After the third or fourth click of the shutter release she turned her head towards him and he got one or two more shots before she held her hand up to block him.
"Sto-op" Ashten whined slightly and she ducked her head shyly.
"Why?"
"I hate pictures of myself."
"Why?" She shrugged and Nikki looked down at the LCD screen to examine the photos he'd taken. "Come here, look at this."
Ashten grimaced and walked over to him, taking the camera when he offered.
"You really don't know, do you?" He asked in near disbelief.
"Know what?" She looked down at the screen to see the photo he'd just taken of her.
"How beautiful you are." He stood behind her peering over her shoulder.
The soft timber of his voice made her shiver. She could feel her cheeks redden and goosebumps shot down her arms at the feel of his breath on the back of her neck.
"Well, I don't think I'm ugly. But I think the beauty of this photo has more to do with your skills than it does with me."
The shot was her profile as she looked towards the city, her face lit only by the glow of the lighting of the patio and from inside the pool. Her eyes gleamed from the illumination of the distance and she looked almost ethereal.
"Agree to disagree." Nikki's heart was in his throat when Ashten turned around to hand him the camera.
She flinched slightly when she realized they were only inches apart. Taking a deep breath, she kept her eyes down, not looking up even though she could feel his gaze trained on her. Burning into her while the tension between them stirred.
It was the closest they'd been in what felt like forever, and Nikki knew it was probably too close, but he couldn't help himself. He needed it, the near proximity to her.
So instead of pulling away, he found himself lingering, completely transfixed by her familiar scent. The spun sugar scent of her perfume mixed with her citrusy shampoo. It was a heady combination that instantaneously took him back to all of the nights they'd spent together.
Without even thinking about it, he had snaked an arm around her waist, breathing her in.
Ashten looked at him, her eyes wide with confusion.
"Nikki...what are you doing?"
Nikki closed his eyes and rested his forehead against hers, his arms still locked around her, keeping her a willing prisoner.
"I don't know, Ashten...I just need to hold you again...even if it's just for a few more seconds..." He almost whispered, swallowing a few times. "Because part of me feels like I'll never get to do it again."
Ashten's heart skipped a beat and her arms seemed to move of their own volition when they wrapped around his waist. Fuck, she had missed him. She had missed his scent, his presence and even his arrogance.
Still, she couldn't shake the horrible feelings of hurt and pain, and her overwrought and emotional brain kept offering her up his words at awful and unwelcomed times, pulling her in two different directions.
She was still angry and still hurt, but she missed him.
"You will." She finally breathed out quietly after a few beats.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah." Ashten pulled away a little and leaned her forehead back against his. "Maybe not tonight but you will." She hesitated and briefly ran her lower lip between her teeth to calm herself. "I'm going to forgive you, Nikki. I know I am. I'm just...."
"Not there yet." Nikki finished for her. There was a slight hint of dejection in his tone. Enough to make her feel a bit panicked and think he may have been ready to give up on her.
The thought caused her to talk at almost warp speed.
"I'm close, though." Her eyes widened while she tried her best at reassurance. Almost pleading for him to hang on. "I know I'm almost there and I don't even know if we can fix what's happened but..."
"Ashten."
".....maybe by the time you get back...."
"Ashten." He cut her off again, gripping her biceps almost shaking her out of her haze. "It's ok."
"Yeah?" She asked quietly.
"Yeah." A smile flitted across his lips and he placed a kiss on her forehead that spread a warmth through her. "Do what you've gotta do. I'll wait. I'm not going anywhere."
"Except Idaho." She pouted slightly, flicking her eyes up to meet his.
"Except Idaho. But I'm coming back. I'll be back in time for Christmas."
"That's good."
"Why? You gonna miss me, Ashten?" His tone filled with amusement.
"I miss you every day, Nikki." She sighed quietly, resting her head in his shoulder.
"Back at ya, kid." He worked hard to keep his throat from closing up. "Is that why you're still letting me hold you?"
"No." She shrugged and rationalized the fact that she didn't want to escape the feel of his arms around her. "You just said you wanted to and it's kind of your birthday weekend and everyone should get what they want for their birthday."
"Hmm....well, if thats the rule." Nikki seemed to ponder it for a moment before he smirked devilishly as his hands moved with lightening speed down to the hem of her dress.
"Hey," Ashten's eyes widened and she wiggled a little bit in his firm hold and looked up at him when he flipped the dress up to her waist, exposing black tanga panties. "Hey!"
And before she knew it he grabbed two hand fulls of exposed ass with a loud smack.
"Hey!" She yelped, swatting at his chest as he pulled her closer.
And there it was. That infamous half-cocked evil smirk that sent her heart fluttering and her stomach flipping.
"What?" He asked innocently through a chuckle. "You said I could have what I wanted—OW! OWW, FUCK!"
Nikki bellowed in pain through laughter when Ashten reached out to pinch his right nipple through his shirt. He yelled even louder when she gave it a rough twist and didn't let go.
"Hey! Unhand me, woman!"
"Unhand you? You have a death grip on my butt cheeks and you're asking me to unhand you?" Ashten laughed out a response.
"Let go!"
"You first!"
"Fine. You let go. I let go. On three." Nikki conceded and they counted off together, both keeping their word.
"What are you doing?" Ashten pulled her skirt back down and watched Nikki look down own shirt.
"Just making sure it's still there." He winced when and rubbed his pec. "That's gonna leave a bruise."
"It will not you big baby."
"Really? Want me to do yours?" He challenged and watched her cross her arms over her chest in defense until she knew he wouldn't make good on his not so empty threat.
He watched her straighten her clothing around her hourglass figure. It made something warm bloom in his chest as he admired the way the dress hugged her. How she wore it like she was doing it a favor.
"I love that dress." He moved to stand next to her, both of them leaning against the stone wall.
"Well, I can lend it to you sometime if you want. Consider it a belated birthday gift." Ashten teased him cleverly, face deadpanned and head angling as she eyed his lips.
"I don't think I have the legs for it," Nikki responded, not missing a beat. It felt nice, their banter. Almost like things were approaching normal. "I can tell you what I really want."
"Pretty sure I already know the answer to that," she murmured through pursed lips.
Nikki tilted his head in amusement and bumped her shoulder with his. "Not that. Get your mind out of the gutter."
Ashten responded with only a look of intrigue.
"What I want is to eat some of my leftover birthday cake that you think I don't know you made...."
Ashten's mouth fell agape as she defended herself. "I did not. Storm made it, I just....monitored."
"Ashten, dear sweet Asthen," Nikki huffed out a laugh. "I love my daughter more than anything but I've seen that girl fuck up Jello. There is no way she pulled off a chocolate raspberry cake." He gave her a knowing look and she shrugged, not bothering to deny it any further.
"Anyway," he continued, "I want cake and I want to watch shitty TV and I want you to join me."
She breathed in and contemplated the invitation. She couldn't really deny him his only birthday wish. " I do love cake. And shitty TV is life."
Ten minutes later, and after Ashten changed into a t-shirt and sweats stolen from Nikki, they were sitting at Tommy's island both with a slice of cake and glass of cold milk. By their second bite she told Nikki she hadn't really been sleeping and went on to tell him abut her most recent nightmare involving him returning to Donna.
After choking on his milk he started chuckling which then quickly turned into an almost maniacal laugh. Once recovered, he assured her he would "rather take a cheese grater to the face than spend another second with that woman."
Cake then turned into what should have been TV in Tommy's den but when Ashten discovered a Hitchcock marathon on, "shitty" TV became a screening of the original Psycho.
The combination of Tommy's big cozy couch and Nikki playing with her hair as it splayed out on a pillow placed next to his leg made Ashten doze off in less than ten minutes. Sleeping deeply for the first time in weeks.
And dreaming of Nikki fucking her senseless in the Bates Motel.
***************
A/N
Looks like they may be getting somewhere. Comments are my life. 😘