“Seriously with that name.”
“It’s staying. You’re stuck with it for life.”
Matt
Whenshetoldmethat I was stuck with my new, God awful nickname for life, I wondered if that meant I’d get to keep her for life. Because that’s what I wanted. Her. Forever. I wanted to tell her. To be honest about just how much I loved her. But our mammoth sex session left me exhausted and unable to form a sentence, so I wrapped her in my arms and let the light rain hammering on the windows lull me to sleep.
I slept like a stone and woke from a dreamless night to an empty bed. Glancing over at my phone, I saw it was after 10 am and then I noticed the date, which hit me like a hammer to the chest. It wasn’t like I didn’t know it was coming, but being here with Frankie, we’d lost track of the days, never mind the date. Seeing it there, in black and white, stole the air from the room.
Pulling on my joggers from last night, I went in search of Frankie. I noticed the smell first, then I found her. Dressed in herPower Rangerpajamas, her hair tied up, she had flour on her cheek and the kitchen looked like a bomb had exploded.
“Rogue?”
“Morning. I was just going to wake you. Sit.” She pointed at the dining room table and handed me a mug of coffee. “I have made you breakfast today. Pancakes, bacon, and I even chopped up fruit for us. I also made a cake. I hope you don’t mind. I hope it wasn’t too much.”
“Cake?” I asked, confused.
“For Alfie’s birthday. It’s today isn’t it? He would have been ten? I wanted to do something to mark the occasion. Was I wrong? I’ve been trying to decide all morning, but you can’t have a birthday without cake.”
I couldn’t help the big fat tear that rolled down my cheek. “You made him a cake? You remembered today was his birthday? You did all this for me?” Biting down on her bottom lip, she nodded. “Thank you. It’s perfect.”
She moved to sit on my knee and wrapped her arms around my neck. “I can’t even pretend to know what you’re going through, Bear, so whatever you need to do today, we can do. I’m here for as much or as little as you need me. I just want you to know you’re not alone, but you also don’t have to forget them or pretend you didn’t have them in your life in order to be with me. I want you. All of you. Your past is a massive part of that.”
I held her tight while I tried to steady the emotions in my chest until I felt her palms hitting me. “Can’t breathe, Bear.”
“Sorry, it’s just you… this… I never thought I deserved to be happy or that I’d ever find anyone who understood my past, but you, Frankie Hill, are something else. I’ve never met anyone like you.”
“What do you need today? Anything.”
“You. Cake. Stories about Alfie and movies.”
“Then that’s what we’ll do. Let’s eat and shower, and then you can tell me more about Alfie and Emma. Do you have photos? Can you show me?”
“I don’t know what I did to deserve you, Rogue, but fuck, I love you.”
The rain fell so hard outside that you could barely see the lake anymore. The dark clouds hung heavy and somewhere in the distance, the thunder rolled. We’d eaten Frankie’s delicious chocolate cake, and she’d listened to hours of stories about Alfie and Emma, while I’d shown her photos and videos on my phone and she’d not complained once. She’d paid attention, asked questions, laughed when I laughed and cried when I cried. I didn’t think it was possible, but I fell even more in love with her as the day wore on.
We were lying on the sofa, the only light coming from the fire as the weather raged outside. I’d been running my fingers over Frankie’s skin all day, pulling and stretching her top until she complained about me ruining it and took it off. My hands skimmed the tattoo on her lower back while her fingers raked over my head.
“Can I ask you a question, Bear?” Neither of us had spoken for a while, so her voice caught me by surprise.
“You know you don’t have to ask me that… you can ask me anything, always.”
“Why do you love me sayingyes, sir?”
My cock twitched from her words, making her laugh. “Honestly, I have no idea. You said it as a joke in the car that time and it made me hard as hell. You’re one of the most famous women in the world and you sayyes, sir,to me when we fuck. It makes my balls ache just thinking about it.”
“I forget how famous I am around you. You’ve never treated me like I am, and that’s pretty special. But I’d be happy to call you sir forevermore.”
“Okay, same question. Why is it you like the rough, bossy sex?”
“I never wanted it that way until you. But I spend my life with people saying yes to me. I like that you tell me what to do. I don’t have to think. There are instructions and I do what I’m told.Thatmakes me hot as hell.”
Rolling onto her back, she exposed her breasts to me, and I couldn’t help but twist her nipple absentmindedly between my thumb and finger while I leaned my head on my other hand, so I could look down at her.
She looked like herself again. Her smile was back, she had stopped having nightmares and panic attacks, her scar was still red and angry but she didn’t seem to hate it as much and her body looked healthy, strong, and stunning.
“I have another question,” I told her.