Chapter 4 #2
My orgasm was barely over when Richie pulled me upright and yanked the dress off. I was still uncoordinated and fuzzy as I climbed onto his lap, but with unerring accuracy, I found my target.
We both moaned as I took him in, pausing to relish the sense of fullness.
“Take this off,” I ordered, yanking at his shirt.
As soon as it was off, my mouth went to his shoulder, the taste of his skin like an aphrodisiac as I began to move.
His hand gripped my hips like a vise, both of us fighting for supremacy as I tried to speed up and he tried to slow me down.
In our relationship, Richie gave up control a lot.
He was naturally a really easy-going person, but he also knew that I needed to be in control of things, and he gave me that.
But sex was different. When we were having sex, Richie was in control, and for a small amount of time, I was able to let everything go. He fit me perfectly.
“Slow,” he murmured in my ear, one of his hands coming up to grip my hair.
I ignored him as I lavished his shoulder and neck with wet kisses. I was going exactly the speed I wanted.
“Aoife,” he growled, firmly pulling my head away until I was staring into his eyes. “Slow down.”
“Don’t want to.”
“Now,” he ordered, his hands tightening both in my hair and on my hip.
I scowled at him for only a second before the sound of skin hitting skin pierced the clearing. Less than a second later, I registered the sting on my ass, and I froze, my eyes widening in surprise.
“You like that,” he said, his eyes darkening.
“Did you just—” My words cut off with a gasp when he slapped my ass again.
“Fuck me,” he groaned, surprise in his voice. “You like it.”
Taking a shuddering breath, I let him guide my hips, taking it slow the way he wanted. And, like always, it was exactly what I hadn’t realized I needed. His hands roamed over me, gently taking off my bra so he could run his lips all over my breasts, our rhythm never changing.
“So beautiful,” he murmured against my collarbone.
I came slow and long, the orgasm going on and on as he followed me over the edge. By the time we were done, it felt like I’d run a marathon. My entire body felt wrung out.
When we were done, Richie cleaned me up and gently helped me dress before pulling me against his side. I curled into him, lying in the back of his truck, and I wondered if life got any better than it was in that exact moment. I couldn’t even imagine it.
“I’m thinking in a year or two, we’ll start searching for a house,” Richie said quietly, his fingers running lightly up and down my back. “I’ll be getting paid pretty well, and since I’m still living at home, I should be able to put away enough for a down payment.”
“Don’t you want to get an apartment or something first?” I asked dreamily, imagining having an actual bed to spend time in, behind a door that locked.
“Why bother?” Richie replied with a shrug. “We know we need at least three bedrooms, right? A three-bedroom apartment would cost a grip. If we just save up, we can get a place that we actually own with a yard and shit.”
“Smart,” I agreed, feeling warm and content. He wanted all of us. Not just me. And it didn’t feel like it was a concession. It felt like a choice happily made.
“If we can swing it, I think we should try to find something on a little bit of property,” he continued. “What do you think?”
“Property is expensive,” I reminded him. “I might be able to save a little, too, though.”
“No way.”
“What do you mean, no way?”
“I mean, you’re not saving for the house.”
“Is it my house, too?” I asked, getting angry. I leaned up to look at him.
“Obviously.”
“Then I’ll obviously be contributing.”
“Do you have to argue with everything?”
“This is important!”
“Yeah, it is,” he replied, frustration bleeding into his voice.
“But you’re already paying for groceries and clothes and all the other shit five people need.
You know what I pay for? Our dates and anything to do with my truck.
That’s it. My shampoo gets low, my mom buys more.
I want something from the grocery store?
She picks it up when she goes shopping. You see the difference? ”
“You should be buying your own shampoo,” I spat dumbly, laying back down with a huff.
Richie scoffed, but his hand found my back again and continued its trail up and down my spine.
“Property,” he said firmly after a few moments. “Room for a couple of apple trees or something.”
“What if she won’t let them go?” I asked quietly, the thought of it making me a little sick. “What if she says they have to stay?”
“We’ll ignore her,” Richie replied firmly. “What’s she gonna do? Stay sober enough to try and force them back?”
“Good point,” I mumbled.
“You worry too much.” He gently yanked a piece of my hair. “It’ll all work out. You’ll see.”
I nodded against his shoulder, but to say I was skeptical that things would all work out was a massive understatement.
Richie had grown up with two normal parents and a couple of older brothers who gave him shit but clearly loved him.
He had no idea what it was like to wake up every morning wondering what the next disaster would be.
For him, things did work out. They always had.
I loved that for him. I loved that he was always full of so much optimism.
Sometimes, I thought we worked so well because he was my complete opposite.
When I was cautious, he was full speed ahead.
When I only saw the downside of things, he always found the silver lining.
I was panicked and he was calm, and on good days, I felt like we evened each other out.
My pragmatism kept him from flying too close to the sun, and his positivity kept me from seeing catastrophe in every situation.
“Cian told me today that he always wears a condom,” I said after we’d been quiet for a while.
The comment earlier had made me really fucking nervous.
My baby brother was going into his freshman year of high school.
He wasn’t only way too young to be having sex, but if he got someone pregnant, I was pretty sure I would never get out of bed again.
Richie laughed.
“It’s not funny,” I snapped.
“Baby, he’s not having sex.”
“How the hell would you know?”
“You can tell when a guy’s had sex.”
“Bullshit.”
“Not kidding,” he said seriously. “I’m sure Cian’s fooled around with girls—”
“Fucking gross,” I groaned.
“But he definitely hasn’t had sex with anyone but himself.”
“Richard Anthony Lewis, shut up right now!” I shuddered in disgust.
His chest shook with mirth. “You want me to give him the condom talk?”
“I want you to give him the abstinence talk.”
“Yeah, I’m sure that’ll work.”
“I’ll talk to him,” I muttered.
“Can I be there?” he asked jokingly. “That’s something I’d like to see.”
“I just don’t want him to be a manwhore,” I sighed. “We both knew those guys in high school, racking up the notches on their bedposts and leaving a line of heartbroken girls in their wake. They were all assholes. Every one of them.”
“I can’t see Cian acting like that.”
“I don’t know,” I argued. “That kid has more charm than he knows what to do with and very little self-preservation.”
“He’s also got three sisters that he’d die for,” Richie said quietly. “I think that will inform his decisions, don’t you?”
“Maybe.”
We lay there in the bed of his truck for a long time, talking about anything and everything.
It was one of the parts of our relationship that I loved so much.
I saw Richie almost every day, but we never ran out of things to discuss.
It was so easy being with him, and listening to him rattle off about something he’d seen online or some old high school friend he’d run into at the gym was like a balm.
He quieted the constant stream of worries and lists in my head.
As the sun was finally setting, we packed up and climbed back into the cab to head home.
“You think Mandy will be there when we get back?” he asked, reaching out to lace his fingers with mine.
“Who knows,” I replied. “She started drinking pretty early so she might have already passed out.”
“One could hope,” he murmured.
“I’m going to start working longer hours at the store starting on Wednesday,” I reminded him. “Do you think you could check in on the kids once in a while? I know you’ll be working too, but you could just text Cian or something.”
“Cian got a phone?”
“I told him he could get one for high school.” I nodded. “I brought home one of those prepaid ones from the store. He practically shit himself, he was so excited.”
“I bet.”
“I told him I’m only putting more minutes and data and shit on it once a month, so hopefully he’ll ration it until then, but I’m not holding my breath. But with me working so much more and all of the kids out of school, I wanted them to have a way to reach me if they needed to.”
“Good thinking.”
“He deserves it.” I yawned. The vibration of the truck was so relaxing.
I’d spent the week barely sleeping, and I was beat.
“He tries to act like he’s a little delinquent, but he keeps a close eye on things when I’m not there.
Saoirse does too, but her nose is usually pressed so tightly into a book, a bomb could go off, and she wouldn’t even notice. ”
At some point I must’ve fallen asleep because I woke with a start when Richie turned off the engine.
“Home, baby,” he murmured, running his fingers through my hair. I was laid out across the seat, my head resting on his thigh.
“How the hell did I end up here?” I asked in confusion, pushing myself up.
“You were falling over, so I pulled over and got you situated.”
“Sorry.” I grimaced. “It’s been a crazy week.”
“No worries.”
“Are you coming in?”
“Nah, I gotta get home. I’ve barely been there lately, and I gotta keep my mom happy if I’m going to keep mooching off them while we save up for a house.” He grinned.
“Damn.”
“I’ll come by tomorrow.”
“Alright, sounds good.” I leaned up to kiss him. “Thank you for dinner.”
“Thanks for dessert,” he replied against my mouth.
I burst out laughing when I realized what he meant. When I pulled away, his hand found my thigh and clamped down, holding me in place.
“Just a sec,” he murmured, reaching for the glove compartment. He rummaged around for a moment before pulling something out of it and then slamming it shut. When he pulled his hand back, I could see a little black box in his palm, and I froze.
“Jesus Christ.” My mouth fell open.
Richie laughed. “It’s not that. Five years, remember?”
“I think I just had a heart attack,” I breathed as he handed me the box.
I opened it up to find a delicate gold chain with a little A pendant hanging from it.
“Graduation present,” he said quietly.
“Richie—” I stared at the necklace. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“You didn’t go to graduation—” He lifted a hand to quiet me when I opened my mouth to speak. “That shit about the cap and gown was bullshit. You know I’ve got my old one in a closet somewhere. My mom keeps everything.”
“Don’t tell the kids,” I ordered quickly.
“I won’t.” He smiled. “You didn’t do the whole graduation thing, but I thought you should have something to commemorate it. You spent high school raising four kids, working, and still got good grades and finished. That deserves some recognition.”
“Thank you,” I whispered, my nose stinging with tears.
“You’re welcome,” he replied gently.
“Well, fuck, now I really want you to come inside,” I grumbled.
Richie laughed. “I’ll text you later, and I’ll come over in the morning.”
“Sounds good,” I said, my tone clearly indicating that I wasn’t satisfied with that answer. “I love you.”
“Love you, too, baby.”
After one last kiss, I hopped out of the truck and hurried toward my front door, the necklace clenched tightly in my fist.
If I’d known what I was walking into, I would’ve hidden it safely in my pocket.