10. Anderson
10
ANDERSON
I had wondered how long we had until turn-down showed up. I wipe my mouth as clean as I’m willing to and turn on the lights while I will away my hard-on.
June’s face is red, her dress is hitched up at her hip, and she’s glistening. But the most notable thing is the horrified look on her pretty face. She quietly spits, “You cannot?—"
But I tug her dress into place and open the door, grinning. She needs this. She’s been too stressed out. A little silliness will help her unwind.
Or she’ll kill me for fucking around like this. Whatever makes her happy.
A bright Englishman walks in, his uniform as crisp and pressed as if he’s walked off the page of Butler’s Monthly. “I am Reginald, here for your turn down service. Are there any scents you prefer? Allergies I should know of?” He doesn’t give a lick of notice to our disheveled state. I’m not sure if it’s because he’s unobservant or if he’s so accustomed to such things that it no longer fazes him.
“No allergies and I am fond of lavender. That’s best for sleep, right?” I ask as if we’re having a normal conversation. As if June isn’t dying of embarrassment right this moment.
“Yes, sir. Many a pleasant night is had with lavender. Shall I perfume the sheets and the towels, or only the sheets?”
I smile and raise my brows to June, waiting for an answer.
But it seems her embarrassment has given way to amusement. The saucy minx says, “Everywhere. I’d like it everywhere, Reginald.”
That earns a bob of his Adam’s apple. “As you wish.” Then he flits off for the bedroom. On his way there, he slides on her black silk panties, but the man is a pro and doesn’t lose his footing or even so much as his pace.
It is all I can do not to snort a laugh, but I’m also too impressed with that move to do it. June, on the other hand, is not. She snorts a laugh and turns to collect herself, knowing that if we look at each other, we die of laughter. I know this because I’m thinking the same thing.
Only moments later, Reginald reemerges from the bedroom. This time, he manages to avoid using her panties as a skateboard. “Your service is complete. There is a full complement of our in-house spa products in your bathroom, as well as a selection of chocolates in the bedroom. If there is anything else I can do to be of assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out. You can pick up the phone and give the operator my name, and I will be here promptly. Anything else I may do for you?”
“I believe that is all. Thank you, Reginald.”
“Of course. Have a pleasant evening.” He leaves.
The moment the door closes, we lose it. I laugh so hard I can’t breathe, and June might actually pass out if she doesn’t catch a breath soon. But after we collect ourselves, I tour her around the suite, showing some of the features like the fireplace and the antique telescope. “On a clear night, you can see into that apartment there?—"
She swats my shoulder playfully. “Naughty boy.”
I grin and kiss her, so happy to have my girl back. Even if it’s just for the night. I have missed the hell out of this woman. The past day and a half has been grueling, but having her here now is exactly what I needed.
But what does she need?
“Tell me what would make your night complete.”
She bites her lower lip. “I think we were heading that direction before … ”
“I like where your mind is at.” Leading her to the bedroom, I ask something else on my mind as I sit on the big bed. “Tell me what you thought of the anal play.”
There go those pink cheeks again. She looks down as I pull her onto my lap. “I don’t know.”
I’ve been around the block. I know that is girl speak for, “I liked it, but I am uncomfortable admitting to it.” But we are getting married, and I want to be able to talk about this stuff with my wife. So, I wrap my arms around her waist and ask her, “Did it feel good or bad?”
Her voice is dry. “Good.”
“There is no shameful pleasure between us. If it felt good, then it’s something we should talk about so we can do it even better next time.”
“Well … ” she hesitates. “What did you think of it?”
“I loved it. I love any time I can find a new way to make you lose your mind.”
She laughs and holds onto my neck. “You’re really good at that, you know.”
“Given the reception at the door, I would hope so.” I rearrange her until she’s straddling me. “See, I recently got engaged to this incredibly hot, sexy, wild woman, and I want to give her the best orgasms of her life. Any tips?”
She leans back and yanks her dress over her head, leaving her in her bra, garter belt, stockings, and heels. She unpins her hair, shaking it out right in front of me. If there is a better sight in the world, I don’t want it. I can die happily right here, right now. She smirks and says, “I think the stuff by the door was a good start.”
“Just a start, huh?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“I’ll have to?—"
Her phone goes off in the other room, and my head falls forward in disappointment. Except I can’t be too disappointed. My head fell into her cleavage.
“Sorry,” she says as she climbs off my lap. “I forgot to turn it to silent.” She dashes out the door, and as unpleasant as it is for her to be off of my lap, it did afford me the view of her ass in that get-up, and damn. Just … damn. But when she returns, the mood is dead. I can tell. Her face has that hardness she only gets when work is important.
Fuck.
“Fuck.”
I frown. “That’s my line.”
She sighs and sits on the bed. “It’s Eddie, one of the paralegals from the office. He’s asking about tomorrow’s Kerwin presentation, and that is making me remember that I didn’t finish the slides. It’s first thing in the morning, baby. I’m sorry, I?—"
“I don’t want to sound like a dick, but can’t someone else handle this for you? Isn’t that why you have paralegals?”
“Not for this. This is a big project Andre only trusts me to handle. Baby, I’m sorry?—"
“Say no more. Let’s um … ” Shit. I don’t want to make her feel worse about this, but this is not how tonight was supposed to go, and disappointed does not begin to cover how I’m feeling right now. But I fix my smile into place so she doesn’t feel bad. “Let’s go home so you can work on your presentation.”
She doesn’t jump right on the offer, and she’s doing that lip-chewing thing she does when she’s nervous.
Great. There’s more to this. “What is it?”
“Don’t be mad?—"
“Every great conversation starts that way, right?”
June huffs. “I didn’t expect to be able to sleep tonight, so I brought my laptop so I could do work after you fell asleep.”
“I’m not sure what it says about my prowess that you thought you wouldn’t sleep tonight?—"
“You know how stressed out I am, Anderson. You know I don’t sleep when I’m like this.”
“I have never seen you like this before, baby.”
Her eyes go big, and then she tries to pretend that didn’t happen. “Right. Well, I’m going to?—"
“Wait—when did I see you this stressed out before?”
June sighs. “I forgot that you didn’t, actually.”
“I don’t understand.”
Again, she stares down. “When you first came home … after you were shot … I stayed up the first three nights watching you sleep.”
“What?”
“I couldn’t fall asleep, knowing you might not wake up. But if I watched you sleep, then I knew you’d be alive in the morning.” My heart breaks on those words. She huffs at herself. “I know that’s not how it works. The doctors worked miracles, and you?—"
I kiss her. I can’t believe she did that. This whole time … I’d thought she was Super Woman, taking care of me. But I never knew how bad it affected her. She kept that from me. I break the kiss. “Never again, June.”
“What? I mean, I hope you’re never shot again?—"
“Not that. When you’re stressed out like this, you fucking tell me. We talk. We get it out in the open. We don’t hide how deeply affected we are. Not from each other. You can depend on me. I need you to know that, and I need you to act like it, okay? Show me that you trust me enough to be there for you.”
She leans against my shoulder. “I hear what you’re saying, and under normal circumstances, sure. But baby, you were so doped out of your mind those first few days, even if I had told you, I doubt you’d remember.”
I chuckle, shaking my head. She’s right about that. “Okay, fine. Maybe not right then, but it’s been over two months. You could have said something between now and then. Let me be here for you. Please.”
“Okay.” She takes a breath. “Right now, I won’t be able to enjoy any of this until I get the Kerwin presentation done.”
I nod. “Alright then. You put on some clothes, or I can’t promise I’ll let you work, and I will get comfortable and watch you work.”
She kisses me, stealing my breath like a thief. “Thank you for understanding, baby.”
“You got it.”