37. Avery
THIRTY-SEVEN
AVERY
Reid
You haven’t talked about running since the day you called me to pick you up.
I hate exercising, but I’d run with you if it made you feel more comfortable.
Me
You’re sweet. It’s been too cold to run the last week and a half, so I’ve been on the treadmill in my apartment’s gym. I did buy a whistle I’m going to carry with me when I get back outside, and I permanently shared my location with Maven.
And you.
Reid
You did?
Oh. I see it now.
Thank you for trusting me enough to do that.
Me
Thank you for being trustworthy. I’m on my way over.
Reid
Can’t wait to see you, beauty queen.
Reid opens the door to his apartment before I can knock. I’m greeted with a shirtless chest and gray joggers that sit low on his hips. I look him up and down, and an appreciative sound works its way out of me at the sight of bare skin and lean muscles.
“Festive,” I say. “I see the resemblance between you and Santa. Can I sit on your lap?”
“Obviously.” Reid closes the door behind me. “Is it cold out there?”
I shrug off my coat and hang it on the hook on the wall. “It’s fucking freezing. It took me forever to get here because of Metro delays. It’s our third snow of the season and people still don’t know how to act.”
“That explains the snowflakes in your hair.” He tugs off my beanie and touches the long strands I straightened before coming over. “We’re driving to Dallas and Maven’s, so you won’t be stuck underground again today.”
“Thank goodness. I was starting to feel claustrophobic down there.” I unzip my boots and kick them off. “Merry Christmas, Reid.”
“Merry Christmas, Ave,” he says, dropping a kiss to my forehead like it’s the most normal thing in the world.
He’s been more affectionate lately, I’ve noticed. We used to only kiss when we were having sex. Now, he sneaks one in from time to time.
When I’m falling asleep. When he gets to my apartment late, caught up in a meeting and behind schedule. After he picks up our dinner plates and puts them in the dishwasher.
It’s almost second nature at this point, and I’ve come to crave the physical contact.
The graze of his pinky when we’re at Maverick’s for team dinner. The way his knee presses into my thigh when we’re out with our friends and squished together around a table. His palm on the small of my back when he passes me in the hallway. There’s plenty of room to sneak by without touching, but he touches me anyway.
It’s always small, subtle gestures, but they make my heart skip a beat.
He’s whispered filthy things in my ear. Sent pictures of his hand wrapped around himself and using my underwear to get off. Fucked me in every position imaginable, yet the brush of his hand has me grinning like a girl with a crush.
“Is it present time?” I ask.
“Someone’s eager. Let’s go to the living room. That’s where your gifts are.”
I follow him through his apartment and spot an envelope on the coffee table. It’s next to a small package with a red bow, and I wonder if Reid wrapped it himself. I sit on the couch and look up at him.
“You first,” I say, smiling as I hand over the box I’ve been guarding with my life.
It’s been hiding in my closet since it arrived last month, buried under a stack of coats and old pairs of jeans. He’s never snooped through my stuff, but on the off chance he decided to rummage through my things, I didn’t want him to find it.
Reid takes the present and peels back the tape. He’s slow with his unwrapping, careful to not rip the paper. I wait with bated breath, suddenly nervous about what his reaction might be.
With all of the paper off, he stares at the large box. His mouth pops up, and he holds up the gift, as if I haven’t been staring at it for weeks.
“Is this—” He stares at the present and shakes his head. “Avery. How the fuck did you—I can’t—where?—”
“Malcolm is a huge LEGO fan too,” I say. “When I did my interview with him, he spent fifteen minutes talking about some of his favorite creations. I mentioned I had a friend who was equally obsessed, and he asked about your dream set. He pulled some strings and was able to snag two Millennium Falcons for me before they went live to the public. I might owe him my first born child and a kidney, but it was worth it.”
“I—I waited in the queue online, but I was too late,” Reid whispers. He traces over letters on the box and clutches it to his chest. He lifts his chin, and his eyes meet mine. “I checked resale sites, and they were five times the cost of the original purchase price. I couldn’t bring myself to splurge on one. You’re telling me you have two ?”
“I do, and they’re both for you. I figured you could put one together for your display case and keep the other in the box. I’m not a collector, but that has to be worth something one day, right? Maybe not. I don’t know, but?—”
“Avery.” His voice trembles when he cuts me off, and he blinks back tears. “How did you remember?”
“Oh. Um, you mentioned it the first time I came to your apartment. Before the smoke alarm went off,” I say. “You lit up when you told me about it, but you shrugged it off like it was no big deal. Like you were embarrassed to show me your excitement. I could tell it was important to you, though. I told myself I was going to find a way to get you that set if it was the last thing I did. Everyone deserves things that make us happy, Reid, and I like to see you happy.”
He carefully sets the box down and pulls me toward him. I tumble into his lap and he cups my cheeks with both hands. His touch is warm on my skin, and he traces along the curve of my jaw. I sigh, relaxing into him, content and happy.
“You’re the most magnificent woman,” he says. He rests his forehead against mine, and a single tear hangs on his eyelashes. I wipe it away and he huffs out a laugh. “This is stupid. I’m thirty-four and emotional over a fucking LEGO box.”
“Do you like it?”
“Like it?” His hands move to my hips and he holds me there. His fingers press into the waistband of my skirt and I straddle him. “I love it. I love it so much.” He pauses like he wants to add something else, and I’d give anything to know what he’s thinking. “Thank you will never be good enough, Avery, but I’m going to say it anyway. Thank you. Thank you, baby. Thank you so much.”
He's never called me that outside of the bedroom, but it feels right.
Inevitable, almost, like we’ve been treading this way for a long, long time.
I lean forward and kiss him, because I think I might die if I don’t. I put everything I have behind the press of my lips, and when he kisses me back, he leaves me breathless.
“You’re so welcome,” I say. I dip my chin to kiss his neck and he blows out a breath, his grip on me tightening. “My selfless boy deserves nice things.”
“You deserve nice things too,” he murmurs, husky and low. His hands move to my sweater and slip under the hem, splaying out over my ribs. “Why is your heart beating so fast?”
“Because I was nervous about your present. Because I like being here with you.” I swallow, my next words shaky. “Because seeing you happy makes me happy.”
Because I like you more than I should .
Because I’m breaking our rules, Reid .
Because I think I might be falling in love with you, and it’s terrifying .
“Seeing you happy makes me happy too.” Reid reaches around me and hands me my first gift. “I want you to open these before we go to Maven and Dallas’s. Maverick can’t keep his mouth shut, and he’ll ruin the surprise.”
I climb off his lap and settle against the cushions. I pull off the bow and stick it to his cheek, laughing when he plucks it off and puts it in my hair. I rip the wrapping paper and gasp.
It’s a book.
A special edition of my favorite romance novel of all time, with an alternate cover and illustrated pages. Only three hundred were printed, and it sold out within seconds.
I’ve been searching groups on the internet, desperate to find someone selling their copy for an affordable price, but I’ve come up short for months.
Until now.
“How—” I turn the book on its side, examining the stenciled letters embossed on the spine. “I haven’t told you how much I like this book. How much I love this book.”
“Not directly, no. I’ve had to do some deductive reasoning and study my spreadsheets,” he says.
“And what did you find?”
“Lots of evidence that supports my hypothesis. Your copy has been on your nightstand for months. Other books have come and gone, but this one is always there—and that doesn’t include the two other versions you have on your bookshelf. When I asked for book club recommendations, this was your suggestion. Last year, when it was announced a production company was turning the book into a movie, you shared the post to the Thunderhawks’ Instagram story for two minutes before realizing you weren’t on your personal account.”
“Last year? But that was before we even?—”
“I know.” He blushes and stares at the floor. “I can’t get you out of my head, Avery, and I guess you could say I’ve been paying attention to you for a while now.”
“This is the most beautiful gift I’ve ever received.” My eyes prick with tears. “Thank you so much, Reid. I can’t wait to show it off.”
“We’re not finished.” He hands me the envelope. “This is your next gift.”
“Is it your resignation letter? An admittance of defeat that I have the better social media account?” I ask.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
“It would make my whole day.” I tear open the envelope and burst out laughing. “Okay, hotshot. Fake tickets to the Ella Wright concert? Very funny.”
“They aren’t fake,” he says. “They’re real.”
I whip my neck up to stare at him. “Holy shit. How?—”
“Dallas,” he says. “He and Theo Asher are friendly. Theo asked if he wanted a suite for the concert in DC. Dallas said yes, knowing Maven would probably divorce him if he turned down the offer. It comes with twelve tickets, and since you also like her music, I figured you’d want to go.”
I launch myself at him and hug him tight. Reid laughs into my neck and hugs me back. “This is incredible.”
“Is that a yes that you want to go?”
“Of course it’s a yes. Reid . You got me VIP tickets to see my favorite artist with my friends. This makes the Millennium Falcon seem very underwhelming.”
“Far from underwhelming,” he says. “Exactly even, I’d say, because they’re both things that are important to us.”
“Are you going to come to the concert?” I ask.
“Are you going to wear a short skirt and dance to her music?”
“Obviously. Maybe I’ll wear a sparkly dress. Some knee-high boots.”
“You have my attention. Can I pull you into a dark corner and make out with you? Maybe feel you up when our friends aren’t looking?
“Only if it’s during one of my least favorite songs.”
“You’ve got yourself a deal, Sinclair,” he says, and I think my heart is dangerously close to falling out of my chest.
“When do we have to leave for Dallas and Maven’s?” I ask. “Please tell me we have some time.”
“We have to be there in half an hour, but we could probably push it to forty-five minutes. Maverick said something about Nerf guns, and the thought of him with any sort of weapon is fucking terrifying. Why? Did you have something in mind?”
“Yeah. A second present for you.” I guide his hand to my leg and the top of my stockings. “They have bows. That’s festive enough to count as another gift, right?”
“Are these—” He lifts up my skirt and groans. “Thigh highs? God. You’re going to kill me. We’re never going to make it to see our friends, and I don’t care. Forget Christmas. Fucking you is going to be a new tradition.”
“I think I’ve been good this year, right?” I ask, standing. I work the zipper of my skirt down slowly, and Reid watches me like his life depends on it.
“Yes,” he rasps.
My skirt falls to the floor, and I kick it away with my toes. “Does that mean I can sit on your lap?”
“Take everything off but the thigh highs.”
“Yes sir,” I say, and his hand disappears in his joggers. I strip until I’m left in only the white stockings, and I watch him stroke himself. “Now what?”
“Come here,” he says, yanking his pants down to his ankles. “Let me show you how good you’ve been, Avery.”
“This might be my favorite part of Christmas. Ho, ho, ho, am I right?”
“Shut up and fuck me, baby,” he says, and I do.
I groan when I sink onto him. I say his name when he presses his thumb into my clit. I lose my breath when he tips me over the edge, one orgasm than a second, and I don’t give a damn we’re almost an hour late to see our friends.