Naomi took her seat.
I planted myself in the chair. I wanted to be closer to her, but I felt like the things left unsaid between us were like a physical barrier, one that needed to be addressed before we could enjoy being near each other again.
She removed the spacers from her toes and tightly screwed the lid back on the nail polish before giving me her full attention. “I’m sorry about yesterday,” she said.
No preamble or beating around the bush. She got right down to the point, and I appreciated it.
“I was having a shitty day already, and lashed out. I’m still not thrilled that Gavin was on the back of the motorcycle, but I know I could have handled it better.”
“What happened yesterday?” I asked, latching onto the fact that she was having a bad day already when we argued. “Are you okay?”
“It’s my car. The starter motor needs replaced.”
Damn. That wasn’t good news for her. Those could be expensive. “How much?” I asked.
“Too much. Almost five hundred dollars.”
I let out a low whistle. I was surprised by how quickly my resentment toward her dissolved at this news. I’d never been so willing to forgive and let things go before, but I was starting to see Naomi was special in that way.
“Yeah,” she continued, sounding bitter. “I don’t have it, so I’m not sure what I’m going to do. The guy is going to start charging me a daily storage fee if I don’t either pay him to fix it or get it out of his shop today. I keep racking my brain, hoping to come up with some kind of miracle, but I haven’t been able to do it. I wonder if he’ll just take the thing for parts?”
“Then you won’t have a car at all.”
“Yeah, I’m screwed.”
I hated the stress radiating off of her. Moving from my seat over to the couch, I sat beside her, taking her hands. I rubbed my thumbs across them and she seemed to relax a little. I felt my own mood completely soften and caring about Naomi took over, erasing all traces of anger from the fight. It all seemed petty in the face of the difficult time she was going through. I cared too much about her to let myself hold onto those negative feelings when she needed comfort.
“Will it make you feel better if I promise not to take Gavin out on the bike again, unless you agree to it first?” I asked, hoping to make her smile.
It worked.
“Actually, yes, it will.”
“Then consider it done.”
“Are we okay?” she asked, looking deep into my eyes.
“I’m starting to think we’re perfect.” I closed the small amount of space between us, taking her lips in a heated kiss.
Her hands went to my chest, her fingers spread wide as her palms pressed against my pecs. She trailed them down, tracing my ab muscles through my thin cotton T-shirt. Her touch was like fire, heating things up between us.
I left her mouth, my lips trailing along her jawline and down her neck, where I nuzzled her, my tongue licking the skin where her shoulder and neck met before I nipped it lightly.
Her moan sounded like music to my ears, and I wanted more of it. Slipping my hand into her shirt, I worked my way up slowly, giving her a chance to stop me, but she didn’t. I cupped her breast through her silky bra, while urging her to lay back on the couch. I hovered over her, kissing down her collarbone while I touched her.
She was so soft and responsive, and I spent a long time exploring that part of her, my mouth lavishing her chest. My hands were everywhere, and she didn’t hesitate to touch me anywhere she could reach either. Her soft hands left a trail of fire in their wake. Eventually, I made my way to her lips again, and when I kissed her, something was just so sweet about it, unhurried and satisfied.
I wanted things to go further, but I didn’t want it to be wild make-up sex. I wanted things to feel right. So, I kissed and touched, but I would wait to take it to the next level. It had been so long since that first night together, so when we had sex again, it would be like our first time. I could hardly wait.
It occurred to me that I was starting to think of Naomi as mine. I had long-since forgiven her for keeping Gavin from me, because as I’d gotten to know her. I’d come to realize she wasn’t the type of woman who would do anything malicious to me or anyone else. This had been a big part of the reason that I had developed such deep feelings for her. Now, I just needed to find a way to show her how I felt.