Page 53 of Paths
I turn and leave her in the doorway. When I make it to her bed, I turn back to her and put my thumbs at my waist, pushing my sweats down. Her eyes get big, as they follow my pants until they hit the floor. When I kick them to the side standing in my boxers, I hold out my hand for her. “You coming or are we switching places for the night?”
I hear her quick exhale, but she doesn’t delay. She comes to me, taking my hand. Turning, I guide her into bed, and I follow so I can face her, lying on my good shoulder.
Having her this close, wanting to feel her against my bare skin, I wrap my arm around her waist and I pull her to me.
Finally.
After all this time—allowing this woman to consume my thoughts, her being the only reprieve from my fucked-up memories—I’m here. Close to her, in her bed, where she invited me to be.
I’ve had her in my arms enough to know she’s tense. I yank up the back of her thin tank, wishing I could rip it off to feel her tits against my chest, but I don’t. I’ll settle for the bare skin of her back and start to stroke her skin lightly. “Relax.”
She sighs, whispering, “I hope you sleep better here.”
It’s my turn to sigh and really fucking mean it when I say, “Me, too.”
“Grady?”
“Yeah?”
“You give good dates.”
I smile and I think she can feel it because her body relaxes a bit. “That’s good to know. Haven’t had a date in a long time.”
She pushes back to look at me through the darkness. “You haven’t?”
I can’t tell her there’s no way to have a constant anything when one is traveling the world as an assassin. Instead, I pull her to me and kiss her before settling us again. “No.”
A few moments go by and it’s not hard to sense she’s wide awake now, her being chatty is the first clue.
“And thank you for spending Christmas with me,” she goes on.
I start stroking her back again, feeling her words against my neck. “I thought you were spending Christmas with me, but if you insist.”
I feel her body laugh, which feels fucking good against mine.
“Do you want to come to the Whitetail company Christmas party with me? It’s Monday night in Addy’s Ordinary.”
I smile and roll until she’s on her back. Looking at Maya under me, her body covered by mine, it takes all my resolve not to grind into her. “Are you asking me out?”
She shrugs. “I guess I am.”
“Do you give good dates?” I give her a little more of my weight.
Her face softens. “There won’t be a food truck, but I’ll do my best.”
“Now you ask me out,” I complain. “After I let you strip me down to almost nothing, maneuver me into your bed, and practically get me to second base. Taking me to your Christmas party is the least you can do.”
Laughter bursts from her lips, but it feels even better than it sounds, her body moving under mine. I dip my face to take her mouth as she continues to laugh. Kissing her, pressing her into her bed—I can hardly take it.
I roll, taking us back to our sides before I rip her clothes off. When I pull away, we both catch our breath. As she presses her face into my neck, I say, “You’d better go to sleep. You’ll barely get a few hours before work.”
I feel her breathe against my skin again and she sighs. “I think I might need to run before work.”
Knowing exactly what she means, I couldn’t agree more.
*****
“Motherfucker.” He’s not fighting back anymore, but I don’t give a fuck.
