23. RJ
RJ
“ I ’ve been meaning to ask you. Do I get to know what RJ stands for now? You would never tell me when we were younger.” Summer snuggles into my side, her hand resting inches from my hard-on.
“This isn’t what I had in mind when I asked you how you wanted to be woken up every morning.”
She props her arm on my chest, leaning on it as she peers down at me. “If this is going to work, there shouldn’t be any secrets between us. And I want to know everything about you.”
My heart warms at the thought of her considering a relationship with me beyond this summer holiday. “Okay. But you have to promise not to laugh.”
“Is it that bad?”
“There’s a reason I go by my initials.”
She blinks several times waiting for me to continue before I sigh and scrub a hand over my morning stubble. “The R is for Robin.”
A huge grin lights up her face. “I love that. Wait! Robin and Raven. Are you named after birds?”
“I wish. That would be a whole lot less embarrassing.”
She tilts her head and lifts an eyebrow in question.
“We were named after D.C. characters.”
“Oh my God! You’re Robin, like Batman’s Robin?”
I nod as she breaks out into a fit of giggles. “You promised you wouldn’t laugh.”
“I did no such thing. Check the transcripts,” she wheezes between laughs.
“The worst part was around my mid-twenties when the Teen Titans show came out with Robin and Raven in it. If the crew at the station ever found out, they’d never let me live it down.”
“What does the J stand for?”
“Jefferson, after the president. Couldn’t really go by that option either.”
She perks up. “And Raven’s is Madison.”
I nod. “Yup. She got the better end of the deal on both names.”
Summer’s phone vibrates on the nightstand, and she rolls over to grab it. My hands roam down the slope of her back and grab a handful of her ass as she scoots back against me, and I rest my chin on her shoulder, peering at her phone.
“It’s Raven. She wants the name of the inspector.”
“Here.” I extend my hand, and she hands me the phone.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m giving her a fake name.” I tap out a quick text and hit send, then toss the phone on the bed behind me.
“RJ!”
“She’ll keep asking. I told her you found someone and that you’d pay for the inspection since she let us stay here. That’ll satisfy her.”
“That’s not a bad idea. We could knock out a bunch of items on my checklist today.”
“Not exactly how I wanted to spend the day with you.” I lean in to kiss her neck, but she jumps off the bed and pulls on a pair of shorts.
I fall back onto the mattress. As much as I want to roll around in this bed with her all day, getting her list done will make her feel better. And I need to show her that I’m someone she can count on.
After a quick breakfast, we’re sitting at the kitchen island as we form a plan. Summer scribbles quickly in a notebook as I clean up our dishes.
“Okay, I have a list of repairs that need to be done. We could probably get most of these completed in the next couple days, quicker if we have Tony help.” She looks down at her notebook as if she’s finalizing her plans.
“Want me to text him for supplies?”
“Sure. Once we get an actual inspector out here, there will most likely be more that needs to be done, but we’ll probably have to hire a professional if it’s something major. When did you tell Raven the inspector was coming?”
“Today.”
She winces as she paces the length of the kitchen island. “Okay. This could work.”
“What could work?”
“If we pretend the inspector is here today, then we could start on the list of repairs tomorrow. Then it’ll look like we’re doing things the inspector told us to.”
“Good thinking. Do we need the plans for the house?”
“Like blueprints?”
“Yeah.”
“No, not unless we’re doing new construction or a renovation.” She keeps pacing for several minutes and then stops and turns to me. “I feel awful about lying to her. What if she knows something is up? I usually tell her everything.”
I move around the counter and put my arms around her. “We can tell her now if you want.”
“No. I want to do it in person. This just seems like a lot of work to keep up this ruse all so we could stay here an extra week.”
“I’ll support you either way.” I run a hand up and down her spine.
She nods against my chest. “Thanks. Besides, this stuff will have to be done before she sells the house, so it’s not like everything is a total lie.
I don’t like keeping this from her, but I’m also not ready to tell her yet.
” She leans back and looks up at me. “I don’t want to leave this little bubble just yet. ”
I pull her into a kiss knowing exactly how she feels. I could stay in this house, in paradise with her forever.
When I lean back, she looks at ease and I tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “What do you need my help with today?”
She looks down at her list. “Most of this will require a professional. There are a few outlets upstairs that aren’t GFCI protected, so I’ll need to get an electrician.
But we can clear the walkway and make sure all the pavers are even so there’s no tripping hazards.
I’d like to get some dehumidifiers in here—I worry about mold in the bathrooms. And the AC unit could use a cleaning so it runs more efficiently.
There are a couple loose boards on the deck that need securing too. That should be it.”
“No problem, I can finish most of that today.”
She breathes out a sigh of relief. “Thank you. Overall, the house is in pretty good shape.”
“If you could make any changes to it, what would you do?”
“Oh, I don’t typically recommend making changes before you sell. You could wind up spending thousands of dollars and then the new owners could tear things out or paint over all your hard work.”
“No, I mean if this were your house and you weren’t selling it. What would you do if money was no object?”
She takes a second to think, looking around the space as if envisioning her ideas. “I would take out the sliding door?—”
“But we had so much fun against that door,” I interject.
She blushes. “True. But I would tear it out and the wall next to it and replace it with one of those glass walls that open up completely so you could move between the porch and the kitchen freely. What would you do?”
“First, I would get rid of that ridiculous collection of loveseats.” I gesture over to the living room. “And I would get the biggest, deepest, plushest couch I could find so we could lie on it and watch movies all night.”
Her eyes glaze over as she stares at the love seats. “Is that all we would do on the couch?”
I come up behind her, wrapping my arms around her as I press my erection into her ass. “I think you know the answer to that.”