Chapter 12
Lorelai - One Week Later
“OWWWWW!” Knox yelled.
“Make sure you stretch while you’re gone,” I said, working to loosen his hip flexor.
“Oh god, that hurts,” he said, holding his breath. “Anyone ever tell you how torturous you are?”
I looked down at him and couldn’t help but giggle. His face was red, and he looked like I was indeed torturing him.
“Would you breathe?” I giggled. “It’s not that bad, but if you breathe through it, it will help.”
“Would if I could. It hurts like hell, and you digging around into that spot isn’t helping. It’s painful as hell.”
“I know. I’m sorry, but that’s because you haven’t been doing what I’ve told you to do. It’s all tight again.”
“I have, I swear. Heat, ice, and muscle rub, which stinks by the way. Do you want to get into bed every night with a smelly man?”
“Nice try, buddy. I can tell you haven’t been doing these things. Besides, repetitive injuries are the worst. It won’t heal overnight, and just because you think it’s better because it doesn’t hurt doesn’t mean you can ignore my treatment plan. It’s a plan for a reason.”
I massaged his hip and glute once I’d straightened his leg and smiled down at him. “There you go,” I said, patting his chest and winking. “Torture is over for now.”
Knox sat up and stretched, while I went over to the cabinet and pulled out another tube of muscle cream. Going back over, I placed it into his hand as he wrapped his arm around me. I met his eyes.
“Not at work,” I whispered, in case someone was outside my office door. “Now, make sure you use this.”
He didn’t stop. Instead, he pulled me into him.
“You know, I was thinking, I won’t heal if someone doesn’t stop begging me to fuck her,” he whispered.
I felt my cheeks heat at his comment.
“News flash, I don’t beg.” I winked, giving him a quick kiss before pulling away. “Make sure you’re stretching. Stacey is going on this set of games with you guys, so I’ll tell her what we’ve been doing for treatment. Perhaps a massage or two before each game as well will help,” I said, going to my desk and making my notes.
“I’d rather it be you that’s going,” he said, pulling me backward until he had his legs wrapped around mine.
“That would be trouble.” I giggled as he kissed the side of my neck before letting me go. I went back over to my desk and grabbed his file, adding a few more notes.
“What are you guys going to be doing while we are gone?” Knox asked, sliding off the table and grabbing his sweatshirt.
“Girl’s night,” I answered, closing his file. “Why?”
“No reason.”
“Knox?” I questioned, after seeing the look on his face.
“What? I was only wondering. I’m curious like that.”
“No, you are worried that what happened last weekend is going to happen again.”
“Not at all,” he said, leaning against my desk.”
I slipped between his legs and placed my hands against his chest, glancing up at the clock.
“We’ve gone over this already. I know you are worried, otherwise you would have let me come up for air this week. I promise you; everything is going to be fine.”
Knox hadn’t left my side the entire week. Ever since the night of the attack at the game, he’d picked me up after his morning practices and brought me in to work. He’d driven me home every night and had spent the nights at my place. This was the first time that we would be apart for a few nights, and while I knew he was worried, I needed my space as well. I didn’t want him to spend every waking second worried about me.
“I can’t help it. I feel responsible for what happened.” He shrugged, brushing the loose strand of hair from my face.
“You aren’t. We’ve talked about that. Now, stop being silly. I don’t want you to be late, and if you don’t get going, that’s what will happen. Coach Thompkins won’t like it either. The man hates to wait,” I said, pressing a kiss to his lips.
“What time will you be in?”
“Not sure, ten maybe?” I shrugged.
“Okay, I’ll call you around ten thirty.”
I frowned as I studied his eyes. This wasn’t the confident, secure Knox I was used to.
“Are you worried about something?” I questioned.
“No.”
“This isn’t like you.”
He looked away from me for a moment and then met my eyes again.
“Just talk to me,” I said, trying to figure out if he was worried about something else or if it was the events last weekend that were spurring this on. Only he said nothing. Instead, he hopped off the table and gave me a soft smile.
“Sorry, I should give you space,” he said, getting up and making his way to the door.
“Knox, that isn’t what I’m saying,” I said, going to take a step forward just as Dylan appeared.
“Hey, Lorelai. Knox, are you just about ready to head down to get our gear? Coach is on a rampage. He demanded everyone be ready to head out in thirty minutes.”
“Yep, we were just finishing up here. Got my muscle rub,” he said, holding up the tube of cream, looking me directly in the eyes before he turned toward the door.
Without so much as a goodbye glance, Knox left my office. I walked over and called his name, but he didn’t respond. Instead, I watched them walk down the hall, tears filling my eyes until they were nothing but two blurry figures heading away from me.
* * *
Aurora and I sat on the floor of the living room in our pajamas. A pizza box containing a double pepperoni and mushroom pizza sat open in between us as we watched an episode of Big Bang Theory .
“Can you pass me a napkin?” I asked as my phone vibrated.
I glanced down as Aurora handed me a napkin and saw Knox’s name on my screen. This was the fifth time he’d called since ten thirty, not to mention the slew of texts he’d sent before the game. I frowned and flipped the phone over and took the napkin from Aurora.
“If you want to answer it, go ahead.” Aurora shrugged, playing the next episode.
“It’s girl’s night. We never get to do this anymore.” I shrugged.
“That is true. So, things are going okay between you and Knox?”
When I didn’t answer right away, Aurora looked over at me and frowned. “What’s going on? Everything is okay between the two of you? Right? I know last weekend really caused things to act up.”
“Yep, fine,” I said, picking up my phone and shutting it off just as it vibrated again.
Aurora paused the show and rolled onto her side, holding her head up with her hand, and stared at me.
“What?”
“Don’t what me, what’s going on?” she questioned. “He’s been calling, and you are ignoring him.”
I shrugged, feeling as if I could break down in tears for the way Knox and I had left things. It certainly wasn’t how I’d hoped to leave them. I’d hoped he’d speak to me, talk to me about how he was feeling, but he’d stormed off.
“Is this what it’s like dating them?” I questioned, wiping my eyes to stop the burning.
“What do you mean?”
“The crazy fans?”
“No, most of the time, people respect your space when you’re out together. You were just the one caught in a weird incident. Sort of what happened to me in that club. Only the girl who attacked me had a reason. She didn’t. She didn’t even know him.”
“Yeah, a weird incident that I got my best friend involved in,” I said, tears once again welling in my eyes.
“It’s fine. No crazy bitch is going to attack you while I’m around. Everything is fine with me. All those silly charges were dropped. Psycho bitch is the only one being charged.”
“I know.” I’d been so happy to find out that the lawyers that Knox and Dylan called had quickly and quietly gotten things taken care of for her.
Aurora looked at me, questions in her eyes. I’d seen this look before. It was the same look she’d given me when I’d come to her about Hugo but didn’t know how to say the words. We’d had a long talk, and she’d pried it out of me.
“Are you happy?” she asked.
“Am I happy?” I frowned.
“Yes. Are you happy? Does being with Knox make you happy?”
I didn’t even need to think about that answer.
“I’d love to tell you no, but he does. Every morning since Hawaii, I wake up and pinch myself to see if I’m dreaming. I’m always afraid that one time I’ll open my eyes and he won’t be there. That it will all have been a dream.”
“I see. Is it the sex thing again?”
I shrugged, not sure I wanted to tell her the truth and figured this might be the easiest way to continue the conversation, making it fun instead of so serious.
“It’s okay, right? I mean, he makes you come and all, right.”
I felt my cheeks heat at her question but nodded my head.
“Always first? Dylan will hold off until I come first every single time.”
“Yes, always,” I said, remembering the handful of times we’d done it so far.
“Does he cuddle afterward?”
“Yes.”
“Now, for an embarrassing one, does he go down on you? I’ll tell you, it’s my most favorite thing with Dylan. Never liked it with Greg, but man, I’ll say Dylan knows exactly what he is doing.”
I remembered our very first time. The feel of his tongue on me was so vivid in my memory I could almost feel it now.
“Can I tell you a secret?”
Aurora nodded.
“I can still feel his tongue.”
Aurora grabbed me, shaking me as we both screamed and then laughed.
“God, it’s almost too much information we share with one another, isn’t it?”
“Yes. I agree. Knox would probably kill me,” I said, taking another mouthful of pizza and washing it down with some cola. I glanced at my phone, turning it on. Once it loaded, I noticed I had voicemails and let out a sigh as I flipped it back face down.
“Okay, so it’s not the sex. So, tell me what is it? What’s bothering you?”
I glanced up and looked at my best friend. “How do you know that something is bothering me? We were just laughing and giggling like two schoolgirls.”
“I know you well. I think you were using my suggestion as somewhat of a deterrent to what you really wanted to talk about. So, spill it.”
Whatever the reason, this entire situation was paralyzing me. All I could think about was the look Knox had given me as he walked out of my office. I had enough problems opening up about things, but opening up to Knox was especially hard, given our history. It seemed perhaps he was the same.
“Today, during my treatment session with Knox, he asked me when we’d be home tonight.”
“So.” Aurora shrugged.
“So, he wasn’t asking because he wanted to know.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Just a feeling I was getting.”
“Why do you think he was asking?”
“So he could call me and check up on me.”
“What do you mean?” Aurora frowned.
“It felt like he wasn’t trusting me.”
“Lorelai, I don’t think that’s it.”
“You didn’t see it. He wouldn’t talk to me. Then Dylan showed up. He never said goodbye. I tried to get his attention, but he ignored me and left.” I shrugged.
“He didn’t seem angry to me when I went down to see them off.”
“Did he say anything about me?” I questioned.
Aurora looked at me and shook her head while she took another slice of pizza, picking off the pepperoni once it was on her plate and shoving the slices into her mouth. Ever since I’d known her, this was how she’d eaten pepperoni pizza. She said it tasted better if she removed it first.
“Did you hear me? He never said goodbye.”
“I heard you.”
I waited for her to say something else, but she didn’t. She sat there picking off the pepperoni, shoving it into her mouth until her pizza was pepperoni-less while she watched TV.
“Well?” I asked impatiently.
“Well, what?” she questioned, finally tearing her eyes away from the screen.
“What should I do?”
“You should finish your pizza, then you should pick up your phone, head down to your room, shut the door, and call your man. Then I think tomorrow we are going to go out, get massages, and go shopping.”
“What are we going to go shopping for?” I frowned.
“We are going to go to a sex shop, and we are going to buy you a vibrator, so tomorrow night you can give Knox a show he won’t forget. Now go on, go down to that bedroom of yours and call your man.”
* * *
I’d tried calling Knox after we’d gone to bed but his phone kept going to voicemail. I’d finally given up just shortly after midnight. Now I stood in the vibrator aisle of Intimate Treasures while Aurora handed me all the different vibrators.
“Are you girls doing okay? Do you have any questions?” the store clerk asked, making me want to die.
“Yep, we are fine,” I said, holding up one box and waving it in the air.
The clerk smiled, then turned and walked away.
“Okay, so this is what Dylan got me,” she said, handing me a box that contained two pieces.”
“What is it?” I questioned, looking at it with confusion, then switching to another box.
“It’s a panty vibrator. It has an app that he can use,” she said, raising her eyebrows.
“Seriously?”
“Yep.” She smiled.
“Does it work?” I questioned, looking at the tiny thing inside.”
“Zero to sixty, my dear. I sometimes wear it when I’m in my room at night, then I message him before he’s back in the hotel room to let him know I’m wearing it. He surprises me by giving me a little buzz here and there when he is on his way back to his room to get me worked up.”
“Oh, my god,” I said, feeling my cheeks heat when the realization of what she’d said came to me. “Are you telling me that wasn’t a spider in your room the other night?”
Blush rose to her cheeks, and then she giggled.
“Oh, my god…seriously!”
“Yeah, you need this one,” Aurora said, grabbing the box from me and shoving it under her arm. “Now, for the other one.”
“The other one?”
“Yes, the other one. Let’s see what we have.”
I seriously wanted to die as she pulled the boxes from my hand, looking at each one of them, reading the boxes, as if we were making the most important purchase we’d ever made.
“This one!” she said, thrusting a box into my hand.
I looked down at it. “What the hell is a thrusting vibrator?” I questioned, looking at the box.
“I have this one too. I love it. Dylan can control it as well.”
“What the hell goes on in your room?” I frowned, looking at her.
Aurora giggled. “Come on.”
“How much are these things?” I said, following her as she pried the other box from my hand and headed to the register.
* * *
“Now, text him,” Aurora said, sitting behind me on the couch, looking at my screen.
“What am I supposed to say?” I said, my hands shaking as I held the phone.
“Ask him if he is in the mood for a little fun tonight.”
I shook as I typed; I had never talked to a boyfriend like this before and I’d never dreamed I’d start with Knox. Once I had finished typing the words, I waited before hitting send.
“What are you waiting for?”
“What if he comes back and says he isn’t. What if he comes back and says that we are over? He’s never not answered his phone before.”
“Maybe he was tired last night. Dylan said he was beat after the game, and he told me that Knox turned in early.”
“Yeah, to call me, which I completely ignored. He probably doesn’t even want to hear from me.”
Aurora giggled. “You are being silly. I don’t think you need to worry about anything. I think he is going to love this. I know Dylan does. Hit send,” she urged, hitting my arm.
I did as she said and then I waited. When he didn’t immediately respond, I worried that perhaps he didn’t like semi-forward Lorelai.
“He isn’t responding,” I cried.
Aurora looked at me and nodded to my phone where I saw three little dots bouncing around.
Knox: Absolutely!
I stared at the screen, not knowing what to write back.
“What did he say?” Aurora questioned.
I was sure the look on my face was one of shock that he’d responded with that answer.
Knox: See you tonight when I get home.
“Oh my god,” I said, glancing to Aurora.
“What?”
“They are coming home tonight. I knew this would blow up in my face.”
“Nonsense. Girl, you are going to rock this, and he is going to love it.”