Chapter 13
Nora
Dennis
Everything okay, Nora? Let me know!
Nora
Everything’s fine, really, don’t worry!
I send an equally unflattering selfie as last night, this time with the shelf of tomato sauces in the supermarket.
Dennis
LOL! Call me if you need me, okay?!
Nora
I will! Love you!
Dennis
You too!
Luckily, Dennis doesn’t ask difficult questions. That’ll be different with Anna, but I need to call her and update her on this new episode of the soap opera that is currently my life. I’ll call her as soon as I’m home and have unloaded all the groceries. In this weather, that’s a real workout.
“Hi Anna, it’s me, everything okay with you and the baby?”
“Yeah, all good, still stuck in bed, but secretly it’s kind of nice to be waited on. The baby’s doing great, at least.”
Melvin is undoubtedly spoiling her without limits.
“Oh, good to hear, that’s the most important thing!”
“How are you? How was yesterday? Dennis texted me that my plan worked, but that was still pretty early in the evening. Beyond that, I don’t know anything.”
“Your plan did indeed work, it was a… special evening,” I say with intrigue.
“A special evening? If you're going to say that, you'd better finish the story, Nora! My life currently consists of eating and sleeping, you really have to tell me about your night,” she pleads desperately.
“I know, that’s why I’m calling. Andreas was there,” I say, a bit more seriously this time.
“Oh, really? Unbelievable. What a coincidence!” Not such a coincidence. “Was it a good thing that he was there? How did he react? Don’t tell me he ran off again or something, huh?!”
“No, he didn’t run off. He came for me.”
“Oh,” is all Anna can say.
“It’s a long story, Anna, but he took me back home. We sort of talked it out, I think.”
“Sort of talked it out, you think?” she echoes. “That doesn’t sound very convincing. What was his excuse for leaving you hanging like that?”
“It’s hard to explain everything, but I gave him the benefit of the doubt,” I try to summarize the whole situation. Besides, Anna doesn’t need to know everything, especially since I don’t even fully understand it myself.
“I just don’t want him to hurt you, because I still feel guilty for giving you that terrible advice.”
“Maybe it wasn’t so bad after all,” I say, though I don't know.
“Oh my God, you slept with him again, didn’t you?” Pretty much, I think.
“How was it?” she almost shrieks.
“It was… phenomenal. I didn’t know it could be like that, honestly,” I say dreamily.
“You’ve really got it bad, I think. I hope he stayed?”
“Yep, including breakfast.”
I deliberately don’t mention the car ride, the lingerie sets, and the abrupt end to our day, and, although I wish her no harm, I’m secretly glad she can’t come over here to interrogate me in person.
I don’t know if I could keep quiet face-to-face, and I kind of want what’s happening between Andreas and me to stay just between us.
“Okay, we’ll call that progress.” She laughs, but then it suddenly goes quiet on the other end of the line.
“Nora, I really want you to be careful, okay? He seems like heartbreak material, and I really don’t want you to get hurt again like with David.
You deserve a good guy, and you shouldn’t settle for less, don’t forget that. ”
“Yes, Mom.” She really mothers me more than my own mom ever did.
“I mean it, Nora!” she says sternly.
“I know, I’m doing my best. I’m trying to stay realistic.” Mostly not hoping for anything.
“So, you’re not a couple now, I assume.”
“No, we’re taking it day by day.”
“Sounds very noncommittal,” she sniffs disapprovingly.
“I know, but it’s better than nothing.”
I think so, anyway.
“Just don’t forget what I said, okay?” she reminds me again.
“No, I know.”
“I’ll talk to you later, if anything happens, call me!”
“I will, and you take care.”
I’m tired and decide to turn in early after an evening of watching TV.
I feel like I haven’t slept much the past few nights, and if I want to survive the coming week, I need to be sensible now.
I brush my teeth, change into my pajamas, and wrap myself in my soft bedding.
I should wash it after this morning, but it smells so much like Andreas that I can’t possibly throw it in the washing machine.
His abandoned boxers are in my nightstand, and they might never be washed again.
I assume I’m normal for doing things like this.
His masculine scent in the sheets calms me and gently lulls me into a deep sleep filled with even more delicious dreams.
I dream of his hands on my body, gently caressing me everywhere, of his soft, full lips on my neck, and of his unmistakable arousal against my thigh.
I arch my back, and an uncontrolled moan escapes my mouth.
Even for an erotic dream, the effect on my body feels incredibly real.
My eyes slowly open, and I see that it’s pitch black outside, and the clock says it’s two in the morning.
I know I’m awake and having conscious thoughts, but the sensation from my dream doesn’t seem to stop.
I’m startled out of my wits when I realize that the exploring hands and wet lips from my dream are real.
I turn around in a flash and stare into two dark, hungry eyes.
“Andreas, what the hell are you doing here? You scared me to death!”
I try to regain a regular breathing rhythm, but it’s not easy. The fact that his hands are exploring the inside of my thighs doesn’t help.
“How did you get in here?”
I grab his hands and look at him.
“I haven’t gotten in yet, but I plan to,” he says seductively. Joker.
This should be a little scary. I’ve only known Andreas for a week or two, and he’s breaking into my house in the middle of the night to get into my bed.
How did he manage that? Eric? Still, I have to admit that there’s nothing I want more than to have him here in my bed.
His unexpected visit is incredibly arousing.
I allow his hands to go anywhere they want and fear that I’ve officially lost my mind.
“I had to have you tonight, I want to be inside you,” he continues. His voice sounds hoarse and serious.
Oh, God.
I kiss him and immediately feel him taking over, devouring me desperately.
I see an animalistic desire in his eyes and have never felt as desired as I do in this moment.
His hands are possessive, rough, and everywhere.
This time, I’m still dressed, and he’s already completely naked, but the imbalance is short-lived.
I lift my hips as he pulls my pajama shorts down and lets them disappear off the bed.
My top meets the same fate. Immediately, he finds my mouth again to consume me once more.
Our bodies feel so soft, skin against skin, in stark contrast to the hardness in his eyes and the desperation in his touch.
I want to ask him if something’s wrong, but I know the chances are slim that he’ll answer me now, and I don’t want this to stop.
His body is speaking, and I’m here to listen. For now, that’s enough.
“Are you wet for me, baby?”
I moan impatiently, grab his hair, and look at him.
I can’t possibly keep up with his explicit talk, but I push my intimate spot against his hand as an answer.
His fingers find my opening and push inside.
“You’re ready for me,” he says almost matter-of-factly.
I shamelessly push my pelvis further up.
“Always,” I reply.
He has the remote control to my body in his hands.
With his fingers inside me and his thumb on my clitoris, he has control over every nerve pathway that branches out from there.
His touch makes me float, my back arches, and my fingers grip the sheets.
He stretches me further inside while rubbing harder.
Hitting the exact spot only he could ever find, driving me utterly crazy, and I feel like I can’t hold it in much longer.
I don’t even understand how he does it every time.
I used to think I was the problem. Now I realize David was just a loser.
“Oh, God,” I gasp desperately.
“I know, baby. Look at me when you come. I need to see you, Nora.”
Once again, it’s his words, along with his skilled handiwork, that push me over the edge.
I scream out, barely catching his gaze—a mix of determination and relief—before I squeeze my eyes shut and throw my head back.
My body goes completely limp, and I could easily drift off again, exhausted and satisfied, but I know he’s not done with me yet.
I hear the condom wrapper tear and an anticipatory electric shock shoots through my core again.
I open my eyes once more, catch his fierce gaze, and know he’ll be merciless.
“I’m going to take you hard and make you come again, Nora.” Andreas doesn’t make empty promises.
“Andreas, please,” I beg.
He growls, clenches his jaw, and thrusts into me all at once.
I have to adjust to his size again, but an initial sting quickly gives way to a deeper pleasure, exactly where only he can reach.
He thrusts mercilessly, and I’m completely lost to the world.
My breathing is so fast, shallow, and short.
It’s too fast, too overwhelming, just minutes ago, I was asleep.
I gasp for air and feel tears welling up behind my eyes, not from sadness or pain, but from pleasure and disbelief. He grabs my face and looks at me.
“You take me so well, Nora. Look at me, stay with me,” he says, followed by even more intense thrusts as he stares at me intently.
“I’m with you,” I pant.