“You’re welcome, Nika,” he murmured before he kissed her lips, a gentle merging with his mouth. He loved heading home, knowing she’d be there when he arrived. He loved walking into the house with all the lights blazing, music on, and the fireplace crackling merrily. He loved coming home to her. She was the one he’d been waiting for. He was sure of that now.
She spun for him as he held her hand up and said, “I wonder what Travis will think of it.” Travis had been gone for five days on his business trip, since the previous Thursday morning, and Hank knew she missed him something fierce. Knowing that made his earlier thought, about her being the one, resurface. He wanted the best for his friend but he was beginning to hope that what was best for him was staying in Divine, with him and Veronica. But he’d let Travis make his own decisions.
“Maybe he’ll call soon and tell us he’s on his way home.” Hank felt for Travis. His flights had been delayed twice because of weather and Hank knew how much he detested living out of a suitcase.
To distract her from missing Travis, he said, “Why don’t you go see how pretty you look in the mirror.”
He followed her as she trotted down the hall and watched as she surveyed herself in the full-length mirror on the closet door. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered. Hank noted that her eyes told a different story and stopped her when she turned from the mirror.
He tilted her chin so she’d look at herself again. “You’re beautiful in it.”
When she didn’t agree, he kissed her throat, holding her in position from behind, and wrapped one arm under her breasts and the other across her hips. “I think you look absolutely gorgeous. What are you seeing that is different from what I’m seeing?”
“The horizontal pattern across my hips. I look so wide.”
“No, Nika. Voluptuous and sexy. The pattern teases my eyes with little hints of the dark red curls at your pussy. I love it. And I get little teasing glimpses of your nipples, too. You’re stunning and I wish you’d believe me.”
She turned to him. “Some habits are hard to unlearn. I look for the worst in my appearance and you see the best. It’s confusing when they’re one and the same.”
He kissed her there in front of the mirror as he fondled her breasts and eased the hem of the gown up so he could stroke her pussy until she was hot and slick for him. When he had her on a nice steady simmer, he released her lips and asked, “Did you eat any lunch after I called?”
She worried her lip with her teeth and he had his answer. “Well, let’s get you fed, Nika. I think since you’ve finished your book, a little celebration is in order. Get dressed while I cook supper and then I’m taking you out.”
“What if Travis calls?”
Hank shrugged. “We’ll invite him to join us.”
“Where are we going?”
“The Dancing Pony.” He smiled at her when her eyes flashed to his in the mirror’s reflection.
“Dancing? Or socializing?” Uncertainty filled her eyes. They hadn’t danced since that first night.
“Both. Do you trust me, Nika?”
“Yes, it’s just…”
“Just what?”
She let out a long breath and squared her shoulders. “Bad memories.”
He nodded. “We can deal with them. Trust me to take care of you. You’re not going to be alone.”
* * * *
“I’m sick of watching you pout, Brent. You’re going to have to get creative if you plan to get her back. Have you tried Googling her?” Phil asked, as Brent moped on the couch in the apartment he was supposed to be packing up and moving out of. He hadn’t even gone in search of cardboard boxes. Hadn’t found a place to live yet, either.
Gordon said, “I don’t understand why you want Veronica back. Look at it this way, you get all the pussy you want, without having to worry about getting caught, and you don’t have to pay your half of the rent or bills to her anymore. You can put that money into a bachelor pad with us or on your own and have it the way you want it without her up all night typing. Seems a reasonable trade to me.”
Brent scoffed but didn’t say anything. Neither of his friends knew that he didn’t pay rent, or bills, or much of anything else, except for his own entertainment. That was part of the reason he wanted her back. He liked the status quo, and she’d never complained about not having the help before. Hell, she had plenty of money from the sale of those stupid romance novels. She probably never even missed the money. He’d gotten used to spending what he made as a mechanic on himself and living with her. It was an arrangement he liked, and he’d thought she had, too.