15. fallon
FIFTEEN
fallon
S o, that happened last night. I might’ve longed for physical contact between us but didn’t anticipate more than a kiss last night. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t purposely extend our night by going into the grocery store. I had food at home I could’ve made. I wanted an excuse to invite him upstairs without looking like I was expecting too much. But I received much more than a kiss, and now I’m unsure how to behave around him. He greeted me this morning normally, with a simple good morning and a charming grin, and then he went straight to work. Anticipating shipments today, he showed up in gray sweatpants and a navy shirt that clings to his muscles, which hasn’t helped steady my heart rate at all.
Similar to him, and because I’m exhausted from our late night and working extra hard these last two days, I’m in black leggings and an oversized sweatshirt. I showered, at least, and brushed my hair so I currently don’t look completely unkempt. But me in sweats versus him? No contest. I’d choose him any day.
We’ve had so much foot traffic today that we haven’t had a chance to talk—not that I’m expecting a conversation about what happened last night. I’d rather not talk about it. I’d like a repeat, but I won’t pressure him. Oh god, what’s the protocol for things like this? I haven’t dated anyone since college. Is that what I’m doing with Fitz? I don’t know what to expect from a guy who fingered me after I made him a kickass sandwich. Do I invite him over again tonight?
Was it a one-time thing? How do I know?
He brushes past me to grab a bag for a customer, his hand holding my waist on the way by. I jump slightly, lost in the thought of him and what this could mean between us. Noticing my reaction, he raises an eyebrow at me with a slight smirk. “Something on your mind, Fallon?” he inquires.
“Shut up,” I mutter, ringing up another customer.
After he finishes bagging books, he stands behind me and places his arms on either side of the counter, caging me in. “Can you believe how she speaks to me?” he asks the customer I’m working with. “Awful conditions to work in.”
I roll my eyes as the lady I’m checking out laughs, taking her card to run it through. “I believe I’ve shown you the door once before, so you can go if you’re so unhappy.”
His body wash envelopes me. He always smells good, but today, he smells more rugged than usual.
He doesn’t move from behind me. Instead, he bags her purchases while keeping me in place. His arms are wrapped around me, even as he hands her the bag and asks if she’s okay with her receipt being texted.
I laugh. “Are you doing my job for me now?”
He moves my hair off my shoulder, leaning in to whisper in my ear, “Are you implying you’d be okay if I walked out?”
I know dozens of people are in my store right now, but I can only feel him. At this moment, as far as I’m concerned, he’s the only person with me. And with his chest against my back and his lips by my ear, it’s impossible to focus on anything else anyway. All I can think about is how good his hand felt last night and how much more of him I want to experience. “No,” I murmur, turning my head slightly into his. “But I believe you already know that.”
He threads his fingers through my hair and holds me close, keeping his lips near my ear. “Would you like to hear what I did last night, Fallon?”
I can’t nod because of how tight his grip is. “Please.”
He hums his approval. “I jerked off with the same hand you came on. I thought of the sounds you made. I thought of how you tasted. And I said your name when I came.”
Jesus fuck , where did this man come from? Men I’ve been intimate with have tried talking like this but failed miserably. It was cringy and unnecessary, but when Fitz does it? His voice alone causes my stomach to do flips.
I don’t realize my eyes have fallen closed until he removes himself from me completely and says with a hint of amusement in his voice, “You have customers.”
I whip my head around and blush, clearing my throat as I greet the first customer in the line of five at the register. Fitz stands next to me and beckons one forward, but not before winking at me. A sinister promise for later, I hope.
* * *
When later approaches, we are no longer alone. Tired of being cramped in his apartment with his sick boyfriend, Thomas has joined us to unload inventory. I’m trying to behave normally, but Fitz keeps finding reasons to touch me when Thomas isn’t looking. And when he isn’t touching me, he’s throwing me grins because he knows I can’t stop thinking about everything he said earlier. I’m dying to know what he sounds like when he says my name while coming. In fact, I purposely hit him on the stomach with a book earlier to see if he’d at least groan it.
That resulted in him chasing me around the storeroom until Thomas appeared, asking exactly what was happening. Since then, we’ve mostly kept our distance… for the most part.
Whatever is unraveling between us, the physical chemistry between us is evident. If anything, sharing an occasional orgasm with him could help ease the stress I feel from running the store. I’ve shoved feelings down before. If he doesn’t want anything more than being friend ly with benefits, I could convince myself to be okay with it. Just as long as, you know, he doesn’t benefit from anyone else.
I sigh aloud from my inner monologue. The idea of sharing him is already plaguing me, and I’ve only had one physical encounter with him. But judging by his reaction last night when I talked to Thomas about Ryan, it doesn’t seem like he’s keen on sharing me.
This could be beneficial for both of us.
“Fallon,” Thomas says, his eyebrow raised as he stares at me. “What’s on your mind?”
I duck my head as I move a pile of books from a box to one of the storage shelves. “Um, nothing. Why?”
“Right.” He stops what he’s doing and comes to lean against the shelf I’m working on. “In the year I’ve known you, you’ve never not thought of something .”
Subtlety, I glance over my shoulder. Fitz is unloading boxes from the truck just outside. I planned to eventually tell Thomas what happened anyway, and there’s no time like the present. “Something happened,” I whisper, shushing him when he asks me questions.
“Last night,” I continue hushedly, throwing continuous looks outside to ensure Fitz hasn’t walked in. “And then today, he… said things.”
Thomas wiggles his eyebrows. “Filthy things? He seems like the type.”
Upon hearing that, I begin braiding my hair, twisting the end into a knot. “What do you mean?”
Thomas retrieves the pile of books from my arms and begins organizing them for me, knowing my anxious habits too well. “Fallon, please. Look at him. He exudes BDE. He knows what he’s doing. I bet his count is… astronomical.”
My mind spirals as I gnaw on my bottom lip. Astronomical? I can count the men I’ve been with on one hand. It wouldn’t even take an entire hand. I focused on my studies in college. I wanted to graduate with honors. I could’ve fooled around more, but I just… wasn’t interested.
“Like… ten?” I squeak.
Thomas side-eyes me. “Oh, my sweet summer child.”
I wonder if Fitz senses my inexperience. Is that why he left so soon last night? Was he doubting my ability to please him? No, that can’t be it. He said he went home and thought of me.
“Slackers,” Fitz says behind me.
I whip around, face flushed, braid falling loose. He studies me intently, cocking his head to the side. I’m sure he realizes I’ve been talking about him, but Thomas steps in before I start rambling about something random. “It’s my fault. I was trying to coerce Fallon into going to eat dinner with me. If I have to eat one more bowl of chicken noodle soup, I’ll die.”
Goddamnit, Thomas. I hoped Fitz would ask me to dinner after we unloaded the boxes.
Fitz grabs a bottle of water from the package I keep on hand for delivery days and twists the cap off. “We can’t let that happen. Help a man out, Fallon. I have to meet Andrew and Jace for dinner this evening. Andrew just got in from Boston.”
Maybe I shouldn’t have expected to spend two nights with him in a row. We’ve been together practically nonstop for days. Of course, he’d rather spend time with his friends.
I decide to play it cool, though I’m pretty sure I’m experiencing my first hot flash. “Okay, but I get to choose this time.”
With a sigh, Thomas finishes the box we’re working on. “Fallon, we can’t continue eating at Wings amazing suggestion.” With a wink at Fitz and a middle finger for me, Thomas leaves us to toss the box and wait for me outside.
Leaving me alone with Fitz after what I just told him is a criminal act, especially given my disappointment for not seeing him tonight. And once Thomas returns to work, which I have a feeling will be tomorrow, Fitz won’t need to be here on days we don’t receive shipments.
I blow my bangs off my forehead. “I guess I’m having wings for dinner this evening.”
Fitz chuckles and tosses the empty water bottle into the small trash can behind me. “Sounds like it.” He produces his phone from his pocket, unlocks it, and offers it to me. “You have my number, but I don’t have yours.”
An obnoxiously big smile stretches across my face as I take the phone from his hand and program my information into his contacts. “Should I be expecting prank calls?”
“Nah.” He slides his phone into his pocket. “Just a lot of Apple Pay requests. Those tutoring lessons of mine add up.”
“Oh, brother.”