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navybrat817 · 2 years

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Make Yourself at Home

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female Reader Summary: You find a familiar face in your home after a long day. Word Count: Over 2.1k Warnings: Pining, fluff, feels, swearing, sass, a bit of humor, mentions of blood and trauma, Bucky Barnes (he’s a warning, okay?) A/N: Hey, lovelies! I began this in June of 2021. That's right! I'm slowly, but surely, trying to make my way through WIPs and this felt good to complete. Shockingly no smut for Sinday. Beta read by the beautiful @buckyownsmylife, but any and all mistakes are my own. Moodboard by the wonderful @sweeterthanthis. Please follow @navybrat817-sideblog for new fics and notifications. Please reblog or comment as it means the world!

To say that you had a rough work day was an understatement. Between spilling your drink all over yourself on your way to your desk, being unprepared for a last minute meeting (which your boss called you out on), and your system crashing right before your report was finished, you were done. All you wanted to do was curl up on the couch with a stiff drink. Anything to forget that you had to stay at that place to get a paycheck.

I can't even fuck out my frustrations since I'm painfully single. I really need to buy a new toy.

The moment you walked in your front door, you knew it wouldn't be a relaxing evening. The glow from the living room gave it away. Sighing, you tossed your bag and keys down before heading into the room. You weren’t shocked when you saw Bucky Barnes slumped against your couch, but you weren't exactly happy either.

The dark tactical gear clashed with the soft throw pillows surrounding the soldier. He often looked larger than his 6'3" height since he took up space, but he somehow looked like he belonged there. He cut his long locks some time ago, his short, dark hair urging you to run your fingers through it. Maybe you could pull it if he gave you the chance.

I would have a crush on a man who may have a death wish.

“Hey, doll,” he smirked when he acknowledged your presence. “We really need to stop meeting like this.”

“Well, maybe we would if you would STOP BREAKING INTO MY FUCKING HOUSE!”

He seemed to wince more at your tone than the wound on his right arm. “What can I say? You and your place are comforting.”

You tried to ignore the way your heart raced faster at his sincerity. “You’re bleeding on my couch!”

“Sorry. I’ll get it cleaned or replaced. I promise,” he swore as he sat up more, smiling a bit when you rushed over to help.

“That’s what you said about my rug,” you muttered as you sat down. How does someone bleeding smell so good? He already had your first aid kit, water and towels on the coffee table. He knew by heart where you kept everything. "What happened this time? Who did this to you?"

Bucky’s smile widened as he shifted to give you more room. “Why? Will you take him out for me?”

“I just might,” you said. Truthfully, your heart stopped whenever you saw him in a state like this, even though he bounced back quickly. And you wanted to hurt anyone who hurt him.

I’ve got it bad. Why am I like this?

"I’m flattered, but I handled him and you don’t need to worry about it. Fucker had a knife up his sleeve though. Not as nice as mine," he told you as you opened the kit, taking a moment to figure out what you needed to clean the wound with.

"Better not let Steve catch you swearing. He might chastise you."

"Don't let that punk fool you. He swears like a sailor and he's still kicking himself for saying 'language' to his team. Wish I could've been there to hear that."

The fondness made you smile a little. You were glad Bucky had a good friend by his side. You were also flattered that Bucky trusted you enough to tell you stories. "Super soldier reflexes certainly don't stop you from getting hurt, do they?"

"Nope. Still human."

"You know, sometimes I think you fake these just so you have an excuse to visit me."

"You caught me," he half joked, something soft in his eyes as he looked at you.

"Bucky, how many times have you broken in?"

"More than enough," he acknowledged.

The first time Bucky broke into your place, to hide out from someone whose name you can’t even remember, you almost took a swing at him because you thought he was a burglar. You, luckily, recognized the former Winter Soldier and he promised he wouldn’t hide out long. But after the day you had today, you were reconsidering grabbing the nearest object and throwing it at his head. If only for making you worry.

I doubt it would knock any sense into him. And I shouldn't be mad at him. He didn't do anything. Except break in. Again.

Every few weeks, Bucky let himself into your place when he got injured or needed a quiet place to relax. Some nights he talked to you and others he hardly said a word. He even left you "thank you" gifts following his visits. Admittedly, you looked forward to them, even on your bad days, because you simply got to see him. You just wish you knew why he kept coming back.

"Seriously. Why don't you see a doctor or a nurse?" you questioned, carefully dabbing at the cut. "They're much more qualified than I am."

"I told you, doll. You and your place are more comforting."

"Stop calling me doll!"

"Sure thing, sassy," he smirked, making you groan when your cheeks felt hot.

"Grumpy," you grumbled back at him.

If I use one of his own knives on him, can I consider it self defense?

"I'm not grumpy. I'm an old man," he argued.

"You don't look like an old man. My new boyfriend might be jealous."

Your eyes flickered up just in time to catch the tiny tick in his jaw. "You're seeing someone?"

"No," you scoffed, not bothering to continue with the joke. "Still single, like every other time you've shown up."

Bucky slowly exhaled, relaxing against the cushions again. "That's good," he whispered.

Your teeth ground together as you cleaned him up. Maybe it was good to him, but it wasn't to you. It was lonely.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Fine," you lied, avoiding his gaze.

He gently caught your wrist before you pulled away, the metal cool against your skin. "I really am sorry about the couch. I know the last thing you want is to deal with me."

Guilt crept in when you saw hurt in his icy blue eyes. “It isn’t ‘dealing’ with you, Bucky, and I’m sorry for snapping. Work was shit, but that's no excuse to take it out on you."

“I'm sorry you had a bad day," he swore and you wished the ground would swallow you up. The man was hurt and he felt bad for you. "And I don’t blame you. I did kind of invade your space again.”

“It's okay," you said, glancing at your wrist. He was still holding it, his grip softer than you expected. "Why do you come here? Is it really comforting?”

He sighed as he rested his head against the cushion. “It’s hard to explain.”

“Well, I’m not going anywhere since it’s my place,” you teased, making him chuckle. You did pride yourself on making the often stoic man laugh. “So, try me.”

"You're not afraid of me," he stated, his thumb moving in slow circles over your pulse. You weren't sure if he was aware that he was doing it, but it had your heart racing faster. "Most people are."

"I have no reason to be afraid of you. As many times as you've managed to break in, you would've hurt me long ago if you wanted to," you said, shaking your head. "And I don't think you'll do that."

"I've hurt and killed people," he swallowed as he looked at the ceiling.

You weren't sure if he wanted you to listen or respond, but you chose the latter. "I know," you acknowledged, shifting so you could face him as he lifted his head. "But from what I've heard and what you've told me, it wasn't you, Bucky. You didn't have a choice."

"It doesn't make what happened go away," he said, blinking rapidly at the wetness that filled his eyes.

Seeing him on the verge of tears made you blink a few times, too. You wanted to hug him, but refused to initiate that kind of touch without his permission. "No, it doesn't, but you aren't who they tried to force you to be."

"Then who am I?" his voice cracked as his grip tightened on your wrist.

It doesn't hurt. You won't hurt me.

"You're Bucky," you stated, like it was the simplest thing in the world. "You're a hero and good man. You're also a pain in my ass who keeps ruining my furniture."

Bucky chuckled, his nose scrunching like you told a hilarious joke. The sound soothed the cracks his tears formed in your heart. The pain hadn't left his eyes, but it began to fade. "That easy to answer, huh?"

"I wouldn't say that. I think it's just easier for us to see the best in others because we tend to see the worst in ourselves."

"Is that what you do? See the worst in yourself?"

"I try not to," you admitted, but you were human. It was easy to hyperfocus on your flaws.

"I don't want you doing that," he said, frowning as his hand moved from your wrist to your fingers.

The delicate touch had your thighs pressing together. You hoped his super soldier senses didn't detect arousal. Though you pretty much were turned on at some point during each visit, this was a heart-to-heart moment and no time to want him.

"You don't have to worry about me."

"But I do. I worry about you when I'm not around," he said, sitting up a bit as you moved closer. "It's one of the reasons I don't use your front door. I don't want your neighbors to recognize me and be afraid."

"Yes, because breaking and entering is safer. Great logic, grumpy."

Bucky laughed, his eyes warm again. "Can I admit something and you can throw me out, sassy?"

"I won't throw you out, but I'm listening."

He cleared his throat, toying with your fingers. "I don't have nightmares after I see you."

His words hit you in your chest. You didn't know what to say. "You don't?"

"No," a heartbeat passed before he spoke again. "Most nights I wake up in a cold sweat, remembering the screams and fear. I remember everything."

"Bucky, I'm so sorry," you spoke, wishing you could take that pain away.

"The days I see you before I go home, I think of your smile, your scent, even your sass. A woman who showed me kindness time and time again, even on tiring and long days," he smiled sadly as you hung on his every word. "I eventually fall asleep and wake up peacefully. Nothing else I do works."

It was one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to you. "I had no idea."

"It's why I'm glad you don't have a boyfriend because I know he wouldn't tolerate me being around. Among other reasons."

You almost threw yourself at him, but had to maintain your dignity as you carefully leaned in. You weren't sure if the temperature rose in the room, but the sudden tension had you breathing faster. "What other reasons?"

"I think you know," he whispered, his gaze dropping to your lips.

Oh, shit.

"For the record, no boyfriend of mine will tell me who I can and can't be friends with."

"I don't doubt that," he said, placing a hand on your cheek.

"He needs to clean up his messes," you teased. "Like bleeding on my couch."

"That's a given," he smiled, his massive thighs opening so you could move in closer.

"I would also like it if he took me out on a date once in awhile," you added.

"I can take you out," he offered as you pressed closer, your heart pounding faster. You were practically in his lap and he wasn't stopping you. "Wherever you want to go."

"Yeah? You want to be my boyfriend?" you asked, smiling at how silly the question sounded. "You've already bought me gifts."

"If you'll let me," he answered, his lips a fraction away from yours. "I'll even use the front door."

"I'd like that," you sighed, closing your eyes as his nose touched yours.

Finally. He's finally going to kiss me.

"Buck!" Steve said from the window, climbing inside as the two of you broke apart. Bucky caught you before you fell backwards. The former captain's boots didn't make a sound as they touched the floor, brushing his gloved hands on his thighs. "Why didn't you answer your- Oh. I'm sorry. Am I interrupting?"

Are. You. Fucking. Kidding. Me?!

Bucky ran his hand over his face with a sigh and handed you one of the pillows. "Hey, Steve?"

"Yeah?"

"Duck."

*****

Love and thanks for reading! ❤️

#navybrat writes #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes imagine #grumpy and sassy #sebastian stan x reader #sebastian stan x female reader #sebastian stan x you

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tinysharkzz · 3 months

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hiii !! i’m really dorry if m typings not good cuz i’m small rn

but ih it’s oks i would love to see a little! peter paker moodbored or a little! bhcky barnes bored please !!!

-🤠

hi!! i wasn’t sure which peter parker you wanted (tom, andrew, tobey) so i ended up doing tom’s, but if you’d like me to do another with a different one then i am happy to do that! and i’ll add bucky to my list too cuz i actually do wanna do a bucky one as well hehe ^^ thank you for the request!

little!peter parker moodboard:

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮

╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯

taglist:

@wilmaslittleflower @koithelittle (if anyone wants to be added, feel free to let me know! <3)

#agere #agere moodboard #age regression #fandom agere #moodboard #sfw agere #agere blog #marvel agere #spiderman #spiderman agere #peter parker #little!peter

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janaispunk · 6 months

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masterlist

300 followers celebration! ✨

This is absolutely wild to me. When I posted my first fic two months ago, I didn’t think that anyone would be interested to read it, but the love that I’ve received on here has been overwhelming in the very best way!! I’m so grateful for each and every one of you.

I’m doing a little celebration, that’s basically just asking you to flood my inbox with everything you want hehe <3

• 🪐 send me everything fun; this or that, fmk, would you rather, have you ever, anything you can think of really!

• ☁️ send me a prompt for a little moodboard. could be for a fic of yours, just a vibe you like, or -if we’re mutuals- the vibe i’m getting from you. again, anything you can think of!

• ✨ send me your favorite taylor swift song/lyric/favorite iconic moment/favorite anything about taylor. blondie has inspired all my fic titles and i’m deep in my friendship bracelet era, so i’ll make a bracelet based on whatever you send in to trade it with you 🫶🏻 (probably unnecessary disclaimer, but still: i’m gonna send you a photo, i won’t start shipping out bracelets irl. i’m going to a taylor party in december and to her show in july, i promise that they will be traded with other lovely swifties <3)

Send as many things as you want, but in separate asks please. Thank you and I love you 🫶🏻

#janas 300 follower celebration #follower celebration

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darkbluekies · 1 year

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List of characters!

CHARACTER MOODBOARDS

WHAT THE CHARACTERS LOOK LIKE

Facts

Disclaimer: my character's occupations have nothing to do with people who have them in real life! This is just for entertainment and to create innteresting stories! <3

Silas

Mob boss, condescending, belittling, taunting half-gentle half-violent yandere. [Male]

"The reason I put you down here, Y/N, is because you're my family, someone I care very much about. I have to teach you a lesson to make sure that you don’t do anything dumb. You’re a danger to yourself. You need me to take care of you, to teach you what is right and wrong. If only you didn’t do such stupid things I wouldn’t have to do these hurtful things. You know I love you. Say it back, Y/N. Say that you love me. Good girl/boy' — Silas "in the basement"

Dr Kry

Doctor, manipulative, violent, cold, stoic, modest, kind of conservative. Gets what he wants and does what he likes. [Male]

"Deep down, I know you're scared of me. You can pretend as much as you want, but you forget that I'm a doctor. I can read your body language better than anyone else. And do you know what I can read? That you're absolutely terrified of me" — Dr Kry "deja vu / welcome home"

King Edmund

King of a fantasy kingdom, lovesick, ruthless, selfish and entitled. He will burn down this world to get what he wants — you. [Male] (platonic with males)

"Keep your eyes on me. There's only you and me in this world — in our own world — no one else. The guards, they’re looking at you. Gawking even. Wishing that they had what’s mine. Pretty pathetic, don’t you think? To be jealous of me? As if they could ever be on my level. You must have hit your head or something with all the absurd questions you’re asking today. No one is on my level — of course — but you’re far, far better than any of the other people in this kingdom. Don’t try to insult yourself by saying that you’re like them ever again, Y/N. I don’t like that. I’m so fucking obsessed with you, Y/N. You make me crazy. I can never let you go. You’re so perfect" — Edmund "in our own world"

Jerry

Mafia right hand (wo)man, flirty, sexual, dirty minded, sarcastic, ruthless, tsundere. [Female]

“My stupid, little boy/girl. You don’t know anything, do you? You need me to think for you, hm? Don’t worry, baby, I will make sure you never dare to do any of these stupid stuff again. I’ll break you until there’s not a single thought in your head” — Jerry "Break you"

Hedwig

Lovestruck, stalker, delusional, manipulative, clingy, rich girl, typical yandere [Female]

“Y-You think I’m wasting my time with you? Please don’t say that! I really love you, Y/N … a lot. Much, much more than you could ever imagine. I-I’d bring down the moon for you! I’d give you every diamond in the world! I’d … I’d kill for you! Please don’t leave me. I-I don’t care what other people say! I’ve never been happier than when I met you! I want you. I don’t want anyone else. Please … please don’t let this end. You love me too, don’t you? We don’t need other people’s approval. We only need each other, right?” — Hedwig "I'd kill for you!"

#yandere #yandere drabbles #yandere imagines #yandere talks #female yandere #yandere x reader #yandere x oc #yandere x you #yandere fics #mafia yandere #yandere mafia #yandere drabble #yandere thoughts #yandere stories

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rhoorl · 5 months

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Delta Landscaping Chapter 11: Right on Target

Series Summary: In this AU, the boys of Delta Force start a new business post-Colombia.

Series Masterlist | Chapter 11 A03 Link

Rating: Explicit (18+) No smut in this one, just some angst.

Word Count: 6.8k

Previously on As the Mule Falls: We got a heavy dose of Frankie, learning a bit about his backstory as well as the relationship between his sister, sister-in-law, niece and nephew. Valeria is a detective, literally. Did you catch who her partner was? 😉 Benny signed up for a fight a little sooner than he’d like, but thanks to Will and Connor, he’s going to start training. The Neighborhood Watch learned a bit about Cousin Joel thanks to Melissa’s research.

On this Episode: Frankie is still in Dallas, being the best uncle. We get a scene with the Pikes. Will and Katie get in their own heads. Benny and Santiago go to Melissa’s for a consultation. Connor helps scout some of Omar’s fights. There’s a Target run, literally. Will and Katie go to Target on the hunt for birthday gifts for Olivia’s boys. Will and Katie open up. (I made a little moodboard for this episode).

Chapter Warning: Difficult parent relationships. Unsupportive partners. Domestic Marcus Pike comes with his own warning.

If you ever have questions about any of the content, please reach out. The last thing I want is for someone to have a negative reaction. Overall this is a happy, silly series but it is grounded in some reality.

*Cue the theme music and roll opening credits*

TUESDAY

“Hey Hermano, how’s it going? How’re the kids?”

“Oh they’re great, they’re already so big, Pope” Frankie chuckled. Santiago called to tell him that the cleaning lady needed to reschedule for later in the week. Frankie had a few moments to himself while Valeria and Alyssa got the kids ready for bed so he was happy to catch up with his friend. “Leia is so beautiful man, and Antonio is a lot of fun. Took him to his first Rangers game today.”

“Nice! He like it?”

“Loved it, especially once V told him I used to play. I bought him a baseball and we found an old glove of mine Pops kept. We’re gonna toss the ball around when he gets home from school tomorrow.”

“I’m glad you’re having a great time man, I really am.”

“Thanks, me too,” Frankie smiled to himself. “How’re things there? You behaving?”

“Funny,” Santiago rolled his eyes. “Yes. I’ve been busy, had a date last night, and may have another one tonight.”

“Nice. You been over to Benny and Will’s?”

“No, haven’t been that way at all since you left. But I will tomorrow, Benny and I are headed over to Melissa’s.” Frankie gave a sarcastic grunt, prompting Santiago to fill in the gaps. “I texted him earlier today, by the way. We’re all good. Did you know he signed up for a fight?”

Frankie sighed, “Will told me. I wish Benny would have said something before he called Herb. That guy’s going to feed him to the damn wolves.”

“You think it’s going to be bad, huh?”

“Not if we can help it. The guy was a boxer, so not the most ideal match-up for Benny’s style, but we’ll figure it out. When I get back we have to make sure he’s sticking to his training. Hoping this compressed timeframe makes him focus.”

“Yeah, he doesn’t have a lot of time to prep, huh?”

“No, but if anyone could do it, it’s Ben. Oh shit, I gotta go. I have to read the kids their stories.”

“Tio Francisco to the rescue!” Santiago laughed. “Ok man, hey I’ll see you in a few days. Can you text me your flight stuff Thursday night? I’ll set an alarm for myself for Friday so I don’t forget.”

“Sounds good man.”

WEDNESDAY

Will shuffled into the kitchen, surprised Benny wasn’t already up making himself an egg white omelet and coffee. Another difficult night of sleep made Will extra groggy, so he grabbed one of the larger coffee mugs and brewed two K-cup pods in succession. This morning he had an early volunteer shift at the VA after switching shifts with someone the day prior. He wanted to have time to come home and get ready for whatever the evening may hold with Katie.

Although they were on a mission to buy birthday presents for Olivia’s twins, Will hoped they would have some time to hang out afterward too. He was enjoying getting to know Katie. She was funny, smart, and had a calming presence, which he didn’t realize how much he needed. It was nice to have someone other than the guys to talk to.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of heavy steps coming from down the hallway. Benny turned the corner, his red and black basketball shorts slung low on his hips. His silver pendant rested in the patch of hair on his chest, glimmering as the sunlight caught it. Will assumed Benny had a shitty night too based on the state of his brother’s hair, which was sticking up in various directions.

“Hey man,” Benny yawned as he walked towards the coffee maker.

“‘Sup Ben.”

“You’re up early.”

“Can say the same for you,” Will leaned against the kitchen island watching as his brother grabbed some coffee creamer from the refrigerator.

“Hmpf,” Benny scoffed.

“Shitty night?”

“Yea. You?”

“I’ve had better,” the corner of Will’s mouth slightly went up. “What’s the plan for today?”

“Welp, I’m gonna go to the gym here soon, or go for a run, I haven’t decided, maybe both. Pope’s coming over around lunch and we’re going to Melissa’s.”

“That will be interesting,” Will chucked.

“Yeah, no shit. Anyway, we’ll see how that goes. But I was thinking of having Connor over later. Gonna start to go over some film of this Omar guy. The kid found some of this guy’s fights on YouTube.”

“Oh really? Nice, that’s good.”

“Yeah, figured we could order some pizzas or something if you want in on that.”

“Oh ah,” Will rubbed the back of his neck. “I have plans tonight.”

Benny perked right up at the sound of this, the corners of his mouth going up slowly before he was full-on grinning. “Oooo, what plans do we have tonight?” He waggled his eyebrows.

“Nothing like that,” Will rolled his eyes. “We,” he pointed to Benny and then back to himself, “need to get a gift for the twins. Party’s on Saturday and I don’t want to scramble at the last minute. I mentioned it to Katie and she said she’d help me out.”

“Oh, I’m sure she’s going to help you out in more ways than ow-” Benny feigned an injury, even though all Will did was push him in the chest. “You can’t injure me, I need to be in fighting shape,” Benny could barely get that out without busting into a fit of laughter.

Will tried to keep a neutral face, but he cracked a smile. “Don’t be dramatic. And I’m not trying to put any pressure on it man, she’s nice. I’ve … I dunno, I’ve liked having a friend.”

“I’m your friend,” Benny offered, giving some puppy eyes coupled with a dramatic pout.

“You are Bean, but with her, it’s…different.”

“How different are we talking?” His eyes narrowed over his coffee cup as he took a sip.

“I’m,” Will sighed. “I’m trying to figure that out. There’s clearly something there, but I don’t know what that something is right now. I...I don’t want to mess shit up.”

“I get it, she’s special to you, I can see that,” Benny smiled. “She’s cool as shit and for what it’s worth she seems to really dig you too. She’s always all smiles when you’re around.”

Will got a distant look in his eyes, which Benny knew well. His brother was processing, trying to sort out his thoughts.

“Look, don’t try and figure it all out on your own,” he clapped his brother’s shoulder. “Have fun. Enjoy time with your …um…friend. See what happens…”

“Yeah, we’ll see.”

__________________________

“Vic? Vic, where are you?” Marcus called out as finished buttoning up the cuffs of his dress shirt. He and his family were living in a short-term apartment the local FBI office set up as part of his relocation package. It was…cozy…to say the least and his wife, Victoria, was chomping at the bit to close on their dream home and finally move in.

He came around the corner to their kitchenette, where Victoria was busy cutting up some strawberries to top Nicolas’ stack of pancakes. The boy quietly sat at the coffee table in the living room doodling in a coloring book, while his little sister Mariella happily sat in her highchair smearing some yogurt around. Victoria looked up as she heard Marcus’ footsteps, her eyes softening at the sight of her husband.

“It’s not a big place, Marc, I can’t go far,” she laughed as Marcus came up behind her, kissing her neck. “Mmm, I like this suit. Que guapo,” she turned around in his arms, straightening his tie before resting her hands on his chest.

“You know you’re as beautiful now as when I first saw you?” He wrapped his arms around her waist, making her giggle as he kissed her.

“Ewwww no kissies!” Nicolas called over, prompting Marcus and Victoria to pull away from each other with a smirk.

“Hey! I just love your mom, Nico,” Marcus smiled over to his son. “Besides, I have some good news.” His eyebrows shot up and he was trying to suppress a big smile.

Victoria tilted her head to the side, observing her husband. He was usually chipper, especially in the mornings, but something seemed different. “Ok, shoot, what is it?”

“Ah, I thought you’d never ask!” He put his arms on her shoulders, squaring her up to look at him. “What if I were to tell you, we’d be able to cook breakfast in our own kitchen by next week?”

There was a pause as Victoria took in what Marcus said before glee danced across her face. “Oh my gosh, are you serious?” She squeaked, throwing her arms around his neck as he lifted her off the ground.

“Just got a text from Ethan. Everything went through, the sellers are going to virtually sign. We could close as early as Monday, but since you start work next week I wanted you to tell me what you want to do.”

“Shit…I mean shoot,” her eyes cut over to Nicolas, who was in his own little world coloring a dog with a green marker. “Well, let me talk to the school and see what we can do. Vanessa is moving down this weekend, so she can at least help with the kids. I can’t believe we’re so close!”

Marcus smiled back at her, the corners of his eyes crinkling. “Whenever you want to do it, he said he could make it happen.”

“Ooo, actually, I wonder if we can make Monday work! Tuesday is the 4th so I’ll be off and daycare is closed, we can start to move some stuff that day.”

“I think that’s a great idea, I’ll text Ethan later,” he kissed her forehead.

“Mariella!” Victoria turned around to see her baby, smearing yogurt around her high chair. Just as she was about to reach into her hair, Marcus intervened.

“Slow down there pumpkin,” he cooed. “You eat the yogurt, see,” he pantomimed eating the yogurt, which prompted a fit of giggles from Mariella.

The ring of his phone alarm snapped Marcus back to reality. “Ugh, shoot, I have to get going.” Victoria gave him an exaggerated pout, which turned into a smile as he kissed her. “Have a good day. I love you.”

“Te amo,” she kissed him back.

____________________________

Today’s workout was a tough one for Benny evidenced by the way his shirt drenched with sweat clung to him. His muscles felt heavy, no doubt due to the quick ramp-up in activity thanks to his upcoming fight. He decided today called for some cardio and weight lifting.

As he walked through the front door, he figured he had just enough time for a quick shower and a power nap before Santiago showed up. It was times like this he was thankful his friend was always late to everything. He decided to take a quick detour to the couch, sprawling out to stretch his muscles a bit. As he scrolled through Instagram his eyes got heavier and heavier and eventually, he closed them for just a moment.

Pounding at his front door combined with his phone vibrating on the coffee table woke him with a bit of a startle. As if by instinct, he immediately shot up and took in his surroundings, on the defensive in case any threats were around. Realizing he was in his own home, and not in a jungle with a rifle in his hands, he blinked and slowed down his breathing. He heard his name being called and once he registered it was Santiago’s voice, he let out a breath and opened the door.

“Hey Pope,” he gave a half smile, ushering Santiago inside.

“You look like shit, you just wake up?”

“Fuck you….maybe.” He ran his fingers through his hair and his eyes narrowed. “The fuck is that?” He pointed at Santiago’s neck. “Someone give that to you or d’you get so desperate you used the vacuum cleaner, ow!”

Santiago smacked him upside the head with one hand while the other covered his neck. “First of all, fuck off. Second of all, yes someone gave it to me.”

Benny tilted his head. He couldn't help the accusatory look that swept across his face.

“I went on a date last night, nice girl I found on an app…and before you make a smartass comment, it was a real dating app.”

Benny threw his hands in surrender, “I didn't say anything. You planning on seeing her again?”

“I dunno we'll see.”

“Well…she certainly um…left her mark,” Benny was ready this time, blocking Santiago's arm and the two play fought for a second.

________________________

The day was dragging on painfully slow for Katie. The start of a new month meant lots of planning meetings where people droned on and on about goals while offering the most bullshit rah-rah speeches for motivation.

She'd been texting with Megan off and on all day about random things, their usual daily stream of consciousness coupled with funny memes and gifs.

Megan: So Wine Wednesday? 🍷

Katie: Can't. I have some errands to run tonight.

Megan: Oh what's on tap? An exciting run to Target?

Katie: Damn, actually yes. Am I that predictable? I'm going to get a gift for the twins.

Megan: Wait, I thought you already got them those Lego sets?

Damn, she doesn't miss anything.

Katie took a deep breath before composing the next text, knowing what the response was going to be.

Katie: I did, I'm helping Will.

She waited, no immediate quippy response. Instead, she saw the chat bubbles start and stop before she finally got a response.

Megan: Nice! What else do you have planned 👀😏

Katie: Not sure, I told him I'd help him wrap it. Figured we'd pick up dinner. Idk I haven't planned it too much.

Megan: Yes, please help him wrap it. 😆

Katie: What's that supposed to mean?

Megan: Make sure he wraps his 🍆

Katie: I'm sorry, did David steal your phone? Where is Megan and what have you done with her?

________________

“So you have any idea what she may want us to do?” Benny readjusted his baseball cap, flipping it backward as he and Santiago walked over to Melissa's.

“Just vaguely, some stuff in the backyard, I don't know the specifics.”

“Hmpf.”

“What?” Santiago countered with a pointed tone.

“Just, you're not one to jump at the chance to get your hands dirty. It's one thing to help us because we force you, but it's something else for you to do it willingly.”

“I'm trying to be nice. Besides, who knows? Could be fun…I had a lot of fun fixing up your place. It was nice for us all to…I don't know, be together again. Working on something and seeing it come together.”

This admission made Benny stop in his tracks. “Damn, Pope…that's…really nice, man. It's nice to hear you say that,” his face softened, one of the corners of his mouth curling up as he reached for Santiago's shoulder.

Santiago gave a forced smile before clearing his throat, “ok, enough with the sappy shit. Let's go.”

Santiago rang the doorbell and the door flew open a few seconds later. Melissa was all smiles, although Benny noticed her head slightly cock to the side at one point when Santiago turned his neck and his hickey was visible.

It was a rather quick consultation. She had a blank canvas to work with in her backyard. Benny brought his notebook and quickly started to sketch a few ideas down which she loved. They went back and forth a bit, Benny drawing and erasing several times since she was a bit indecisive as to the placement of a few things. They finally landed on a couple of flower beds, some rockwork, and a few palm trees. Nothing too elaborate. They reasoned it would take a couple of weekends to do at most.

“Can I keep this Benny? I'll show Danny when he gets home this weekend and then we can start. Maybe next week?”

“Yeah, of course, wanna take a picture of it on your phone? May be easier to have a digital copy.”

“Oh yeah, sure.” She snapped a couple of photos of the pages in his notebook. “Well, thank you boys again. I'll uh…see you around.” And with that, she politely ushered them out, closing the door a bit forcefully.

Benny waited until they were well down the block before he broke the silence. “Damn, she's maaad at you.”

“Huh?”

“Dude, she barely looked at you. It's the most she and I have ever talked. Your little friend there seemed to rattle her,” he gestured towards Santiago's neck.

Santiago shook it off, “Nah. I think you're reading into it.” Wanting to change the subject, he quickly transitioned to asking what Benny and Will were up to this evening.

“Will's hanging with Katie and Connor is coming over to watch some fights with me. Wanna help?’

“Sure. Yeah, sounds good.”

___________________

When Will arrived back from his shift, Benny and Santiago were on the couch playing a video game. Well, Benny was playing, Santiago was cursing up a storm, annoyed that he couldn’t beat Benny. Will was a little surprised to see Santiago still there, but the two seemed to be having fun, despite Santiago’s frustration. Laughing to himself, Will went down the hall to his bedroom, deciding to check in on Frankie before he got ready.

Will: How's uncle life treating you?

Frankie sent a couple of photos. One of him and Antonio all smiles at a Rangers game wearing matching shirts and the other of him lying on the ground of Valeria’s living room with Leia crawling all over him with the biggest smile across his face.

Frankie: So fun. They're great, you'd love them.

Frankie: How's Ben?

Will: Eh, he's ok. He's been training and tonight he's going to watch some of the guy's fights

Frankie: Benny? Watching film? Holy shit, if Coach Montoya could see him now.

Will: No shit right?

Will: Well, hey, I don't want to keep you. I'm glad you're having fun. Give the kids a kiss and tell Vale and Lys I said hi.

Once he was showered and dressed, Will walked back into the living room, a soccer game now on the TV.

“Ok, ah…don't wait up for me,” Will smirked as he grabbed the keys off the hook and checked to make sure he had his wallet and phone.

“Oh don't worry we won't, you kids have fun tonight,” Santiago winked.

Will tried to quickly, but nonchalantly leave before his brother could make a smartass comment. Unfortunately for him, Benny was too quick and managed to make a joke about not being a fool and wrapping his tool. Will rolled his eyes and walked out the door, hand raised in the air giving his brother the finger as he closed the door.

Truth be told, it has been a while since Will had sex. He was confident in his abilities, thanks to years of practice, but Katie was different. She wasn’t some random hookup, she was someone he could see a relationship with – the problem was he wasn’t quite sure what type of relationship that would be. He pushed aside that thought and got in his Jeep for the quick drive down the block.

When he parked, Katie was already walking out the door, ready to hop in and go. She looked effortlessly beautiful, her hair up in a ponytail with a baseball cap on. Will recognized her leggings, it seemed she had a lot of the same style just in different colors. Practical, he reasoned. She paired them with an oversized Star Wars-themed T-shirt. It was from the newer stuff Will wasn't as familiar with.

“Hey, thanks for picking me up,” she said as she climbed into the Jeep, reaching over to give him a quick hug, which he reciprocated. She breathed in his scent, which smelled like Irish Spring soap.

“Course. You're the one helping me after all,” he pulled back slightly and smiled, his hand lingering on her back just a beat before he let go and returned to face forward to put the car in reverse. “You have a good day?” He turned around looking out the rear window, one hand on the back of her headrest as he reversed out of the driveway.

“Not bad, halfway through the week so that's exciting. How about you?”

“Good, easy. Had an early volunteer shift this morning.”

“Ooo how was CVS? Pick up anything exciting?”

He laughed. “No, Mr. Andrews switched it up today and wanted to go to Walgreens.”

Katie exaggeratedly gasped, “Whaaat? No way! Look at him coming out of his shell.” She smiled as they continued their small talk on the short drive over to Target.

As they walked up to the store Will slightly turned and pointed at her shirt, “I gotta ask, who's on your shirt.”

She stopped walking. “Wait. Are you serious? I thought you were a Star Wars fan.”

Will smirked. “I am, of the original stuff. I haven't really paid attention to anything recent.”

“You don't…you haven't watched The Mandalorian? Isn't Boba Fett your favorite?” She pointed to the tattoo on Will’s forearm.

“Mandalorian…that's the one with baby Yoda right?”

Katie dramatically clutched both hands to her chest. “His name…is Grogu.”

Will laughed as he grabbed a cart, leading the way to the toy section.

“The Mandalorian is seriously so cool, you'd love it,” she knocked her shoulder into his. “We should watch it!” She offered with a hopeful smile.

“Yeah ok, I'm willing to give it a shot since it comes so highly recommended. I trust you,” he smirked.

She gave him a quick smile and returned her gaze ahead, but he could still see her smiling out of the corner of his eye. When they reached the toy aisle, Katie went through a bunch of different options. Will was adamant about finding something different for each of the boys, figuring they each had their own distinct personalities and interests.

Katie knew one of the boys was really into card tricks, so Will picked out a magic set. The other was obsessed with Fortnite, something Will knew absolutely nothing about. Luckily, Katie's best friend at work had a son about the same age who was equally as obsessed with it, so she knew enough to navigate the selection. She also texted Olivia to make sure the boys didn’t already have what they picked out. Will was thankful for her due diligence since they were able to make a quick swap. Apparently, David and Ty had already bought one of the items Will picked out.

The pair was efficient, a little too efficient. Will didn’t want their trip to end. He was having fun just walking up the aisles, so he suggested a loop through the store. It was surprising to him to see all the random stuff that ended up finding its way into the cart. He reasoned it had something to do with the fluorescent lights or some subliminal messaging in the soft rock playing through the store’s speakers. It gave him flashbacks to his fiance who could not be trusted inside a Target by herself for fear she'd buy the whole damn store.

It was amusing to see how excited Katie got over the most mundane things. She smelled nearly every new scent of hand soaps and she went absolutely giddy over these fabric bird figurines donned in various themed outfits. But what Will enjoyed most was seeing her smile. Based on the limited knowledge he had about her recent past, it sounded like she hadn’t had much to smile about.

When they reached the checkout, Katie emptied the cart putting all of her stuff down followed by the birthday gifts. She slid a divider between the two sets of items.

“What’re doing?” He furrowed his brows, reaching for the divider and putting it back.

“It's so the cashier knows whose stuff is whose silly. You really don't do a lot of shopping huh?”

Will rolled his eyes, “I know what that thing means, but no I'm taking care of it.” He started to reach for his wallet.

“What? No I…”

“I insist,” he cut her off. “This…has been a lot of fun and you saved my ass by texting Liv. Please? I want to.”

She sighed, resigned to the fact that she wasn't going to convince him. “Fine. Under two conditions.”

“Shoot,” he smirked, leaning forward onto the cart’s handles. He was amused at how quickly she folded.

“One. I get dinner. You keep that in your pants,” she motioned towards the wallet in his pocket. There were a couple of teenagers in line behind them who started giggling since all they could see was Katie pointing to Will’s pants. “Fuck,” she brought her palm to her forehead. “You know what I mean.”

“I do,” he laughed, putting his hands in his pockets. “Ok, go on, what's the second condition.”

“I get to name him Will,” she picked up one of the fabric bird figurines and held it to Will. The bird was decked out in the stars and stripes, fitting for the upcoming Fourth of July holiday.

He rolled his eyes and chuckled, “Sure, Kat.”

___________________

“Is pepperoni ok?” Benny looked between Santiago and Connor to confirm before placing his delivery order.

“Yeah that works for me,” Santiago nodded.

“Thanks, Benny,” Connor chimed in.

“‘Course. Thanks for helping me scout the competition,” he winked.

After placing the order Benny went to the kitchen to grab a few cans of soda. He placed the assortment on the coffee table and Santiago quickly grabbed coasters for them all, knowing how annoyed Will would be by rings on his coffee table. Benny was about to sit down when he realized he had forgotten something and ran back to his room. He emerged a few moments later with his trusty notebook in his hand and a pencil.

“Ok, I'm ready now!” He plopped down on the couch.

“You're taking notes?” Santiago looked over a bit confused.

“Yeah…you used to take notes when we'd get briefed on missions, what's so different?” Benny countered.

“You're right Benny, sorry. So…where's this guy from?”

“Well, I looked him up and he's from Queens.” Connor offered as he queued up the first video.

At the mention, Santiago perked up, “The guy's from New York?” Connor nodded, looking at Benny confused. “What's his name again?”

“Uh, Omar Assarian.”

Benny side-eyed Santiago, “What, you know this guy?”

“No, I don't, but I may know people who do. I mean, I did grow up in New York so, I dunno let me see.” Santiago started typing away at his phone as Benny nodded to Connor to start the video.

They intently watched the fight and then another and then another. Benny would ask Connor to pause the video every now and again so he could take some notes. He keyed Connor into some of Omar's strengths and weaknesses along the way, noting that the man had great footwork, which made sense given his boxing background.

“You think you can beat him Benny?” Santiago cut in.

“I think so. As long as I can get him to the ground and off his feet. Not really looking to get punched in the face by a boxer if I can help it.”

“I guess I never asked, do you have like a specialty or something?” Connor asked, taking a bite of his pizza.

“I'm good at a lot of things,” Benny laughed to himself. “Uh, I started off as a wrestler, it was one of the sports I did in high school. So I'm good at submissions I guess, and grappling. I also learned Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu which helps with the submissions. MMA to me is like…a game of chess. I know you see all of these kicks and punches and shit, and I can do that too, but there's something about finding that…weakness in an opponent and just exploiting it. That’s what I like the most.”

________________

“There, all set,” Katie smiled as she finished curling the ribbon of the last gift she wrapped. She looked over to Will, who was sitting cross-legged next to her on the floor of her craft room.

His eyes softened when they met hers, the corners of his mouth perking up. “Perfect. Thank you, I uh…couldn't have done it without you.” She looked down and brushed his compliment aside, starting to pick up the scraps of wrapping paper and ribbon. “Besides, if I'd gone with Ben, we'd probably still be in the toy section,” he laughed. “We would have come home with a bunch of shit. I didn't realize there were so many different kinds of Nerf guns. Lil Bean would have lost his damn mind if he had that many options as a kid.” He chuckled, relieved to see her laughing.

“Wait…Lil Bean?” She furrowed her eyebrows, clearly wanting Will to fill her in on the apparent nickname.

“Ha, yea that's what we called him growing up. Joel really is the only one who still calls him that consistently, I guess because he's the one who came up with it,” he chuckled, clearly reminiscing on some fond memories. “Benny has always been tall and lanky, like a string bean.”

“Aww…poor Benny!” She stuck out her bottom lip.

“Ha it's ok, he ended up kinda liking the name. I think if I came up with it, it wouldn't have gone over so well.” He got up offering her his hand to stand up. “But since it was Joel’s idea he ended up coming around.”

“So, you're close with your cousins then?” She asked, her hand lingering in his just a beat longer than she intended before dropping it to quickly gather up the presents.

“Uh yeah, Joel and Tommy are basically our brothers too. And then once Frankie moved down the street we were a starting five,” he laughed, following her out of the room and back to the living room.

“Where does Santiago fall in?”

“Pope? Oh, I met him during basic training. He was my battle buddy,” she gave him a confused look, “we couldn't go anywhere on base alone, we had to travel in pairs. The two of us got assigned to each other and I guess I've been stuck with him since,” he laughed.

Katie observed Will’s demeanor. He was so much more relaxed and at ease when he talked about the guys. His bright blue eyes seemed to shimmer. It was clear to her that he cherished those he held close.

“Aw that's cute, you two make a nice pair,” she winked, sitting down on the couch. She turned on the TV and started to click buttons on the remote.

“Oh please don't tell him that,” Will groaned.

“It's so sweet that you guys have each other.” She looked over and smiled.

Will noticed her smile didn't quite reach her eyes, it was a bit guarded, a brief wave of sadness washing over her before she pushed it away. He recognized the behavior since it was something he did too. He didn’t say anything right away, letting her navigate the menu on her screen, queuing up the show.

He cleared his throat, “You have people too, right? Megan? The rest of the neighbors?”

She looked over at him with a tight smile, “Yeah. Yeah, they’ve been great. Honestly, if I didn’t have Megan…” she trailed off, shaking her head and taking a deep breath before she looked over at him. She was met with a warmth in his eyes, something she’d grown to seek. It made her feel seen. “And at work, I have Miranda. She was my first real friend when I moved down here, you’d like her she’s awesome.”

He tentatively reached his hand to her thigh, keeping an eye on her reaction, before giving her a reassuring squeeze. “Well, you have me too…ahem, and the guys. You need anything, we’re here, y’know that right?”

She put her hand on top of his, returning the squeeze. “Yeah. Thanks, Will. I appreciate that, hasn’t always been the case.”

“Look, ah, I…if you don’t want to talk about it that’s cool, but I’m here if you do.” He rubbed the back of his neck, hoping she picked up on the subject he was referring to.

“Thanks. I won’t bore you with the story, it’s not really that exciting,” she said with a tight smile.

“It’s your…reality. I don’t find that boring.”

She turned towards him, one knee tucked up on the couch. She took a deep breath. “Things started off well. Seb was charming and swept me off my feet,” she started to fidget looking down at her hands. “But as time went on, I felt like my interests mattered less and less. It was small comments here or there, but it eventually became more frequent…like, I don’t know…like I was annoying him with the things I got excited about…So eventually I just either stopped doing those things or I’d do them in secret.”

“You sound a lot like Benny,” he gave a small smile once her eyes met his. “His ex was like that. It was like living with our dad again. She really wore him down.”

“Can I ask how?”

Will cleared his throat, turning to face Katie, their knees touching as he rested his arm on the back of the couch. “Benny’s a good man. He’s a talented kid in so many ways. Good at everything, it’s actually kind of annoying sometimes,” he chuckled. “He just…finds something and suddenly he’s great at it. Happened with baseball…wrestling…the army. He was one of the most elite snipers in the whole force. He could do all of these crazy calculations in his head in seconds and was super accurate. It’s one of the reasons his call sign was Ace.”

“Wow, I didn’t realize all of that.”

“Yeah, he doesn’t like to talk about it. Don’t ever call him Ace,” he cautioned before continuing. “We’ve ah…we’ve had to do some pretty bad stuff, stuff we aren’t always the most proud of. It’s weighed on him over the years, on all of us really…” Will trailed off, realizing he had already said more than he should have. The guys all tried to be as vague as they could when it came to their military service.

“Hey, you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to but if you do I’m here,” Katie squeezed his hand.

“Thanks, Kat,” he smiled, before continuing. “For as talented as he is athletically, he’s just as talented with creative stuff. Hell, he may be even more talented when it comes to that. In his heart, he’s an artist. He draws, sings, plays guitar. He had this dream when we were younger of being a comic book artist. He’d draw these little cartoons for me, all of these elaborate stories that somehow were all connected, I don’t know how he did it,” Will laughed. “But one day our dad found his notebook and lost his shit.”

Katie tilted her head, her forehead creasing, “why?”

Will took a deep breath, “Oh, it’s complicated. But I think at the core, our dad had this vision for Ben. Pro scouts were coming to watch him play baseball before he got to high school. Basically, our dad saw anything that wasn’t revolved around sports as a waste of time. Our dad is, uh, competitive. And he took a lot of pride in the fact that his boy was a prodigy.”

“How’d that make you feel?”

“Me?” Will was caught off guard. He’d never had anyone ask him that before. “Um, I guess…I think I felt a lot of things. A little jealous, I guess. I had to work my ass off to be halfway decent at anything and Ben didn’t even have to try it seemed. But I also wanted to protect him. I saw how excited he got when it came to stuff like drawing and music, it made him happy. Like really happy. Our mom supported him as much as she could. They had a little hiding spot where she’d stash some notebooks and colored pencils and stuff for him. But my dad found it one day and threw it all in the trash. Shit, he all but set it on fire before I stepped in. Stuff at home got kinda bad after that which is why I left the second I could. I always felt a little guilty I guess, leaving Benny there by himself.”

“Is that why he enlisted? To get out of a bad situation too?”

“I think it was kind of a fuck you to our dad. He turned down a full-ride scholarship to play baseball at Texas and a contract to play in the minors. Our dad didn’t talk to him for months. Benny would call home, and if Dad answered he’d immediately give the phone to Mom. But, eventually, Benny did what Benny does and he excelled. Once he got handpicked for Delta Force, our dad started to change his tune.”

“Damn.”

“Yeah…took years for their relationship to get to a halfway decent place. I think that’s why Benny has always had a soft spot for Joel. In many ways, Joel was more like a dad to him than ours was.”

“How about you and your dad?”

“Eh, it’s…complicated. The way he treated us…our mom, it’s…not how I’d do things, I’ll say that much.”

“Well, you are your own person,” she offered her hand again to him, rubbing circles on the back of his hand. “I can see how much you love your brother and your friends. They’re lucky to have you. You’re a good man too, Will.”

Will sat quietly for a moment, his eyes sought Katie’s. He felt a warmth cascade over him. Even though he was sharing a lot about Benny, his own past was wrapped up in so much of it. Opening up like this took months with his VA therapist, but Katie listened without judgment, and with genuine curiosity.

“Sorry, I kind of unloaded all of that,” he chuckled. “I guess it’s not really something I think about a lot.”

“I hear you on that,” her eyebrows shot up, a sarcastic grin on her face.

“So what were the things you kept from your ex?”

Katie was a bit caught off guard that Will turned the conversation back to her, she hoped that he’d get distracted by his own story and forget. She should have known better, Will was too considerate of a guy to dominate a conversation.

“Oh ah...I guess a lot of the little projects I came up with. I’ve always really loved interior design. That’s what I thought I wanted to go into when I was younger. I wanted to design houses that would end up in magazines, y’know?”

“What changed your mind?”

“I have the misfortune of being good at math,” her sarcastic tone made Will laugh. “When it came time to look at colleges, my parents really wanted me to pursue a business degree. I think my dad got a kick out of me potentially following in his footsteps. I know they didn’t mean it, but they kind of always made my design stuff seem like my little side hobby rather than something I could really do. Hell, I helped my mom redesign parts of our house when I was in high school.”

“What happened when you got to college?”

“I kept collecting photos and notes of design ideas. My college dorm room looked so nice, I had people coming to me to help them with theirs. I had like an unofficial side business,” she laughed. “Then when I graduated and I was off on my own I finally had a place to make how I wanted. And then I met Seb…” she trailed off, clearing her throat. “I eventually moved into his place. He was…particular about his space so I didn’t really feel like it was mine. I felt like a visitor. Which is why I was so excited when we finally started looking at houses. He told me I could do whatever I wanted.”

“So did you?”

“Ah, yes and no. I wanted him to feel comfortable in the space, so I’d ask questions here and there to gauge what he liked and didn’t like. He’d make…I don’t know, little comments about how something looked stupid or was a waste of time. He also wasn’t handy at all so I had to do it all myself. I guess I eventually stopped caring.” She looked down, fidgeting again with her hands.

“But you have this place, right?” He gave her a small smile, motioning to the space around them. “You can make this into whatever you want.”

“Yeah. It’s an overwhelming thought, but … I don’t know, exciting too.” She looked around.

“Hey, how about instead of watching this,” he motioned to the television, which had moved to a screensaver due to the lack of activity, “we talk about your ideas for the kitchen? We can come up with a plan for the projects you have in mind.”

A big smile came across Katie’s face, excited that Will was genuinely interested in hearing what grand plans she had for the space and that he was willing to help.

Next Time on As the Mule Falls: We pick up where we left off with Will and Katie. Frankie returns home to Tampa (for real this time, I need to get him back to Florida for…reasons). The Neighborhood Watch descends upon the local skating rink for a party that’s sure to be the best in the galaxy.

A/N: Hello! Apologies for the delay in getting this chapter out! How do we feel about Katie and Will? Melissa was a bit salty about Santiago – do you think they’ll talk about it or avoid each other?

Thank you so much for reading and supporting this story. Some of these storylines are starting to come together and I’m excited about where we’re going!

Taglist: @goodwithcheese / @gemmahale / @trulybetty / @patti7dc / @periodtsparadox / @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin / @maggiemayhemnj / @mysterious-moonstruck-musings / @avastrasposts / @meveispunk / @chaoticfestninja / @beboldbebravethings / @casa-boiardi / @katw474 / @linzels-blog / @laughing-in-th3-purple-rain / @pimosworld / @lynnchun / @anoverwhelmingdin /@lilmizmoz / @pedrit0-pascalit0 / @titlee78 / @noisynightmarepoetry / @inept-the-magnificent / @perennialdoll247 / @for-a-longlongtime / @readingiskeepingmegoing / @harriedandharassed / @musings-of-a-rose / @anavatazes / @sherala007 / @midnightraain / @partyofone3414 / @inthedarkestnight / @millennial-teenybopper / @csarab615 / @darkheartgatita / @southernboyfan / @weho2kcmo / @itspdameronthings

#delta landscaping #triple frontier fanfic #triple frontier fanfiction #triple frontier #triple frontier fic

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amamotaweek · 9 months

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amamota week 2023!

hello danganronpa community!! it’s about that time again! amamota week (a week celebrating the ship between kaito momota and rantaro amami) will be running from november 1st through november 7th 2023!

here is our graphic made as always by the amazing @nebulaleaf and the prompts will be transcribed below!

day one / november 1st: royalty au / loyalty / determination

day two / november 2nd: dawn / acknowledgement / friendship

day three / november 3rd: travel / long-distance / yearning

day four / november 4th: meet cute / blind date / curiosity

day five / november 5th: greeting / farewell / embrace

day six / november 6th: bouquet / promise / dream

day seven / november 7th: first kiss / free space

if you’re participating, please do me a favour and @ mention this blog so i can see and boost your entries. also be sure to tag all entries with [ # amamota week 2023 ] and [ # amamota week ] as i will be checking those tags in case tumblr glitches and doesn’t notify me.

rules and guidelines will be under the cut! if you have any questions feel free to message or send an ask to this blog, or contact me on my main @toxicpineapple if you need any help. cheers and happy amamoting!

1. this will be an entirely sfw event! i won’t police what’s going on on the blog you choose to participate with (so using a blog that contains nsfw is fine) but please do not use my prompts to create nsfw content.

2. all plagiarism will be strictly forbidden for the purposes of this event. heavily referencing art or fanfic and the unauthorised use of anybody’s fanart for a video edit, moodboard, etc will not be prompted for this event. please do not use anyone’s art without both PERMISSION and CREDIT. there is never an acceptable circumstance to do this.

3. please respect all other entries! if i find out about anyone trolling or leaving hate comments they will be banned from participating in the event.

4. “problematic” content such as incest, age gap, shota/lolli is absolutely banned and not supported for this event. ya nasties.

5. poly ship content (featuring kaito and rantaro in a relationship with other characters) will be allowed and encouraged! however do make sure that kaito and rantaro are dating EACH OTHER, not just existing as metamours or something.

6. cis genderbends will not be allowed for this event. however, all trans headcanons including trans genderbends will be allowed and boosted.

7. late entries will be accepted indefinitely! please feel free to use the prompts whenever you can however you can and i will boost your work so long as you tag me. :)

8. you are free to take loose inspiration from the prompts or even not use the prompts at all if it suits you. if you drop a piece and label it for amamota week (and it follows my guidelines) i will boost it. heh.

9. aus and crossovers will be accepted!

10. this ship event is focusing on the ROMANTIC relationship between kaito and rantaro, and as such content featuring them in a friendship will not be promoted. however queerplatonic amamota content will be boosted.

that’s all i’ve got! keep an eye on this blog because i’ll be reblogging the promo and posting countdowns as the dates draw closer. thanks for your attention as always and i’m looking forward to november!

#amamota #kaito momota #rantaro amami #amami rantaro #momota kaito #amami rantarou #rantarou amami #amamota week 2023 #amamota week #amami rantaro x momota kaito #momota kaito x amami rantaro #kaito momota x rantaro amami #rantaro amami x kaito momota #kaito x rantaro #rantaro x kaito #amami x momota #momota x amami

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musings-of-a-rose · 6 months

Text

Falling Slowly - Chapter 3

Pairing: Tommy Miller x f!reader

Word Count: 2600+

Rating: Mature - 18+ ONLY!

Warnings: Just like ao3, “creator chooses not to use warnings.” If you click Keep Reading, that means you agree that you’re the age to handle mature themes. Also by clicking Keep Reading, you understand warnings may not be complete in order to avoid spoilers for the story.

Notes: This is the chapter where the start of my initial thought happens. Literally wanted to write one thing, but Tommy had other plans for me. If you want to know, it’s actually been in the fic moodboard since the beginning, but also check out this moodboard too.

**If you want to be added to the taglist, join here or let me know!

❤If you enjoy the fic, please consider giving me a warm beverage! (It is not required in any way!)

**Divider made by @benkeibear

**Reader is not described

Main Masterlist

Falling Slowly Masterlist

Tommy Miller Masterlist

<<;Chapter 2<<

“Mornin’ sunshine!” Tommy greets his grumpy brother as he walks into his kitchen, immediately raiding the refrigerator for some food.

Joel grunts at him, taking another sip of his coffee as he watches his brother move about the room. He hadn’t seen him outside of work for a few weeks, but Joel’s truck needed a minor repair, and he’d needed a ride to work.

“...and I really think I can close that contract. Mrs. Jones loves me, and I could probably get her to agree to those upgra-”

“You got laid.”

“-upgrades. What? Why would you say that?”

Joel narrows his eyes. “Because you’re extra…chipper…When did you have time to find someone who would let you fuck them?”

“I get around.”

Joel puts down his mug and crosses his arms, watching Tommy flit about the kitchen, resuming his conversation about Mrs. Jones and moving into one about Daisy.

“Aren’t you gonna take that girl on a date yet?” Joel blurts out, cutting Tommy off mid-sentence.

“Who? Oh, Daisy? Nah, we’re just friends.”

Joel looks at him. “Yeah, friends who keep the condom companies in business.”

Tommy’s eyes snap to his brothers. “I never said we were fuckin-”

“Oh come on Tommy. Your entire body does this..shifty thing when you talk about her. Your eyes light up like she’s all that matters. And now? You have the “I fucked her” look on your face when you talk about her so don’t give me that crap.”

“I’m not supposed to tell anyone.”

“You didn’t tell me. I figured it out. But do me a favor and just ask that girl out already?”

Tommy shrugs. “I don’t know. But if it makes you happy, I’ll think about it.”

It’s been several months and our arrangement is going very well. I swear we’ve fucked on every surface of each of our homes, sometimes not even making it past a few steps in the door before we’re on the floor or up against a wall. When I asked him if he would attend a work party with me, he enthusiastically agreed, pushing me in the bathroom and bending me over the bathroom sink as I watched his face while he fucked me, those curls I love falling onto his forehead, some of them sticking to the sweat beading across his gorgeous skin. So things were going great. There was just one problem, a small one really.

I love him.

I’ll never tell him. I don’t want to risk losing him in any capacity, and if I’m being totally honest with myself, it would be really hard to go back to being just normal friends. I can’t get enough of him, his smile, his laugh, the jokes he cracks when we’re hanging out or when he’s buried deep inside of me, the touch of his skin on mine, the way his curls sometimes fall onto his face. He’s ruined me for other men and I’m totally ok with that.

But sometimes it makes me want to scream “What are you doing, Daisy?”

I do take solace in the fact that he hasn’t found someone either, whether from choice or not I don’t know. And that’s not something I want to ask myself. Not yet.

Shaking my head, I pull into the site lot where the project he’s working on is, walking up to the trailer and knocking, lunch bag in my hand.

“Come in.”

I open the door and he glances up, a smile spreading across his face when he sees me.

“Hey Daisy! I wasn’t expectin’ you.”

I hold up the bag from his favorite place. “I knew you’d be working late tonight and miss burger night so,” I shake the bag, walking up to his desk and placing it down on an unoccupied spot.

Tommy looks at me, his eyes soft when they meet mine. What is that look? Love? Nah, I’m probably projecting.

“Thank you, Daisy. That was really sweet. I didn’t expect this.”

“I brought something else.”

“Oh?”

I walk around the desk and Tommy pushes his chair back, turning it towards me as he looks up expectantly. When I drop to my knees between his legs, his eyes grow dark.

I spend the next several minutes pulling as many sounds as I can from this man, wiping my mouth when I stand.

“Hope you enjoy lunch.”

“Is it ok if I invite Daisy to Sarah’s birthday party?”

Joel looks over at his brother from his side of the truck. “I don’t think so.”

Tommy furrows his brow. “Why? She’s been around a few times. Her and Sarah get along. "

“You take her on a proper date yet?”

“Who are you? Mom?”

Joel shakes his head. “I don’t want you bringing strange women around my daughter.”

“She’s not a strange woman. She’s my friend.”

“Any woman you’re fuckin’ but refuse to have an actual conversation with to define your relationship is being disrespected by you. And I’m not letting you set the example to my daughter that that’s ok to be treated that way.”

Tommy’s mouth falls open. “Hey, fuck you man. We are definied. Friends with benefits.”

Joel gives his brother a look. “You know there’s more to it than that. Any idiot can see it. Except you two, apparently.”

I had to go a couple of time zones away for work, hating the time I have to spend away from Tommy. Maybe it's a good thing? We are nearly always together and we aren't even together. Officially.

The jet lag hits me hard when I get back and swear all I've done the last 2 days is sleep. On the third day, I manage to force myself from bed to take a shower and start to unpack. I have a bad habit of waiting to do that, usually from being sad the trip was over. This time, I was happy to be back so I could see Tommy, and while he did pick me up from the airport and bring me back home, he ended up leaving, demanding I get sleep and feel better. He'd dropped by a few times and brought me food, but he ended up leaving, saying he could see I was trying to stay awake when he was around and he just wanted me to rest.

I grab my toiletry bag and head into the bathroom, pulling things out of the bag and putting them away. I have a small basket under the sink where I keep my travel items. I open the door and grab it out, putting everything away. When I go to put it back, something is blocking the basket, annoying the shit out of me. I bend down to see what could possibly be blocking me from just putting my crap away. A small box of tampons had fallen from the top of the drawer set I have down there to organize other things. Rolling my eyes, I grab the box of tampons and angrily shove them where they go, pushing the basket into it’s proper spot. I close the door and stand up, stretching. Heading back into my closet, I dump the clothes from my suitcase into my laundry hamper. Even if I didn’t wear them, I’m still washing them. Shoving the suitcase in it’s storage place at the back of the closet, I close the door and sigh, glad that that was finally over.

I head to my kitchen and make a little lunch. Nothing major as I still haven’t regulated back from my trip. I’m about 7 spoonfuls into my vegetable soup when I realize something, like a puzzle piece I’d been staring at for hours that finally jumps out to slide into it’s place.

The tampons.

I shove myself back from the table and walk with purpose to my bathroom, yanking open the cabinet door and feeling around for the box of tampons. I grab it and pull it out, peering inside. Only a couple were missing, as I’d just needed a couple near the end of my last period. Which was…when exactly?

I grab my phone off it’s charger and flip to my calendar, counting back days and realize…I’m late. I’m never late. I can set my watch to my period it’s always so precise. But…I’m not even feeling sick? Aren’t you supposed to feel nauseous?

I know it’s just jet lag, but I should grab a test to officially rule it out. Just to calm my now racing mind. I mean, Tommy and I doubled up, he with condoms and me with birth control. These things are supposed to prevent this kind of….problem.

I pull on some sneakers, not even bothering to change out of the athleisure outfit I had on, and go to the closest store that would sell what I need with the least chance of me running into someone I know. I stand in the isle, staring down what feels like a hundred rows of tests, all advertising the same thing in different ways. In the end, I decide to buy 2 in case I fuck one up. I go with something called a “pink dye test” and another that just reads it out to you in plain English.

By the time I’m done reading the directions, my hands are shaking so bad. I don’t know why, as there’s no way I’m pregnant. The directions say it’s best to test first thing in the morning with your first pee of the day, but there’s no way I’m waiting for that. Somehow I manage to not pee all over the place, setting the sticks upside down in the wrappers and turning on the timer for 3 minutes. The longest 3 minutes of my life. I take the time to putter around my bathroom, absentmindedly cleaning off random things until the timer goes off. Ok, so when these say negative, I’ll give myself a few days to not be exhausted and, if I still am, I’ll make an appointment with my doctor. No big deal. Just ruling this out. I grab the one that just reads it to you, thinking this would be easier than trying to figure out of I was seeing 2 lines or 1. I take a deep breath and exhale, flipping the test over, my eyes focusing on the tiny box that would read out my fate.

PREGNANT

I laugh. I actually laugh out loud. And not quietly, more like a full body laugh, my head tipping back with the force of it. Which is probably not the most mature response, but this test is faulty. I would get the one faulty test in their lineup. I mean, it even says it’s not 100% on the box. I reach for the pink dye test, flipping it over, feeling the smile that was on my face start to falter as I look down.

Two lines. That…wait that can’t be right. I snatch the directions off the counter, eyes scanning for the part about reading the results. It says 2 lines means pregnant. It says some other things but I suddenly can’t focus, my eyes snapping back to the 2 little tests on the counter, 2 little sticks that are changing the entire course of my life. Assuming I want it. Do I want it? I don’t not want it. What am I saying? Do I really want to have a kid? Now? If I was going to have a kid with anyone, I’d want it to be Tommy. Fuck, what the hell am I going to tell Tommy?

He texts me a couple hours later to check on me and I tell him I’m feeling better but still tired and need a couple more days. He doesn’t question this and why should he? He says he’ll see me Friday, our weekly Netflix and chill night and I can’t say no. If I do, he’ll suspect something.

“She’s alive!”

Tommy smiles at me, that ear to ear grin that I find so damned endearing as he pulls me in for a tight hug, kissing the side of my head.

“I missed you, Daisy. You feelin’ better?”

“Eh. I’m not sure.”

“Still?” He crooks his finger and tilts my jaw up, his eyes roaming over my face and I almost crack then.

“Your eyes do look…odd. You need to go to the hospital or somethin’? I can drive-”

“No. No, I’ll be ok.”

He doesn’t look convinced as I pull myself from his grip, every inch of me begging to be closer. We get the food set up and I manage to eat some, nerves killing my appetite. We settle onto the couch and he pulls me up next to him, resting his head on mine. As much as I don’t want to move, I have to tell him. It’s eating me alive and I can’t…I need him on this. I need to talk to him, my best friend.

“Hey, Tommy?”

“Mmm?”

“I need to tell you something.”

He lifts his head and pauses the movie, turning his head to give me his full attention. My eyes meet his, soft and warm, and I almost choke. It’s killing me to break this happy buzz he has going on.

“I…I don’t really know how to tell you this-”

“You found someone else?” He chuckles, but it’s nervous, like he isn’t quite sure, his eyes bouncing between mine.

“What? No, never.”

“Phew! Well then, darlin’, anythin’ else you have to say can’t be bad.”

“It’s big.”

“So am I.” He waggles his eyebrows and I punch his arm.

“I’m trying to be serious, Tommy.”

“Alright, alright. I’m sorry.” He pretends to lock his lips and hand me the key, his big eyes settling on mine.

I take a deep breath. It’s now or never.

“I’m p-pregnant.”

Tommy laughs, his body shaking with it, his head tilting back with it, very similar to my initial response and I can’t help the soft smile that appears on my face for a second or two at this parallel.

“Ok, ok, Daisy. Pregnancy isn’t something to joke about.”

“You’re right. It isn’t.”

His laughter starts to fade, his eyes still meeting mine as I will him to finally realize what I’m saying. The moment it does, I can see it - the smile dropping, his eyes growing wide, and he starts nervously stammering.

“I-I…uh wh-what…uh…when….why-”

“I’ve been feeling exhausted since my trip, realized I hadn’t had my period, took a few tests to rule it out, and…” I gesture to my stomach. His eyes flick down to where I gestured, somehow growing wider, as if he could already see a belly. Which is crazy because I’m too early. Right?

I need to read a book.

“P-pregnant? But that makes no sense! I suited up and you - you said you were on birth control.”

“I am. Well, was. When I found out I was pregnant, I stopped taking the pill. And no, I never missed a dose. Always took it on time.”

“Then h-how?”

“Sometimes these things just…fail. I guess. I mean, it does say like 99% effective.”

His breathing has picked up, his chest starting to heave with the weight of it all. He starts glancing around the room, looking for any indication that I was joking. When he finds none, he stands abruptly.

“I-I can’t be here. I gotta..I gotta go.”

“Tommy-”

But he doesn’t stop, tripping over his feet and yanking open the door after fiddling with the lock, slamming it behind him as he all but runs towards where he must have parked his truck.

I don’t know what I expected. I guess maybe more…anger? That wasn’t like him. Talking? Maybe. Nervous support at least? Something. But Tommy storming out like I’ve told him he has 5 seconds before I'm dunking him in a tank full of piranhas? I didn’t expect that. The man was in Desert Storm - I thought he couldn’t get freaked out. When he gets back, I’ll have to ask him about that.

He will come back, right?

>>Chapter 4>>

General Taglist:

@frankie-catfish-morales @chaoticgeminate @janebby @astoryisaloveaffair @balekanemohafe @greeneyedblondie44 @hoeforthefictional @marvelousmermaid @hauntedmama @giuliarogers @icanbeyourjedi @wretchedmo @sunnshineeexoxo @livingmydreams13 @adventures-of-a-noodle @sara-alonso @theewokingdead @punkerthanpascal @giggly-otter @f0rever15elf @phandoz @dirtytissuebox @gallowsjoker @lovesbiggerthanpride @sarahmilesbendrix @booksarekindaneat @mrsudontknowme @swol-bear @charlispersonallyhell @xoxabs88xox @amneris21 @gooddaykate @alindeluce @avengers-fixation @paintballkid711 @harriedandharassed @ladykatakuri @marrianena @practicalghost @withakindheartx @batdarkladyvampir @justanotherkpopstanlol @mermaidxatxheart @alexxavicry @ichigodjarin @justreblogginfics @sullyosully @kmc1989 @veryprairieberry

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vulpes-fennec · 10 months

Text

Rita’s Shenanigans 🪩

Summary: Hoping to break the ice with her mate, Elain enlists her family’s help in setting up a night out at Rita’s. A post-ACOSF, Modern AU (with Fae lore).

A contribution to @elucienweekofficial and dedicated to @velidewrites who inspired this with her Rita’s moodboard!

Read on AO3

It wasn’t Elain’s first time at Rita’s, but it certainly felt different from all the other times she’d gamely tagged along with the Inner Circle, not wanting to be left out.

Her mate, Lucien Vanserra, was here. He trailed behind her, the tension between them as taut as the golden thread of fate that connected them. Lucien was close enough to touch, yet figuratively, he could not be farther away.

It had been difficult trying to start fresh with Lucien when she had a history of ignoring him. So Elain confided in Nesta that she needed help interacting with Lucien, which then led to Cassian inviting Lucien to join them for a night out at Rita’s. It was the perfect venue for a night of drinking, dancing, and chatting…plenty of opportunities to grow closer with him.

Elain just couldn’t believe her normally observant mate was not getting the message.

“I like your shoes,” she tried to tell him over the pounding music. They were following Mor, Nesta, and Cassian as the trio made their rounds on the ground floor, greeting the friends they so often saw when they visited Rita’s.

“Thanks,” Lucien replied shortly. He held Elain’s gaze for a full second, looked like he was going to say something, and then thought better of it. The attempt at conversation ended permanently when he looked away awkwardly.

“What kind of drink do you like?” Elain attempted five minutes later.

“I’ll drink just about anything.” Lucien didn’t bother leaning in, which was precisely what Elain had wanted him to do in the loud club. “...you?”

“I like fruit-based drinks.” But Lucien didn’t offer to buy her another drink. Didn’t ask if she wanted to try his non-fruity drink for a change. He simply nodded and went back to talking to Cassian.

Whatever happened to the natural progression of social interactions? Elain huffed internally.

It ground Elain’s gears when Lucien joined Mor in chatting avidly with strangers. Strangers that included other females. Elain told herself that Lucien wasn’t doing anything wrong. He was sociable without being flirtatious. He never put a hand on anyone. Yet Elain’s blood boiled hot when she caught him chuckling at something another female said, or when a female would lean in to hear what he was saying. Too close, she’d thought, clutching her drink so hard it could’ve shattered. Too close…step away from him please!

Perhaps Lucien was trying to give her a taste of her own medicine; payback for all the times she’d duly ignored him at Night Court functions.

Elain debated on chatting up a male or two, just to see if Lucien would be affected. There were certainly a few eyeing her with interest, but the thought of forcing out bland small talk with any of them had Elain grimacing. No. Her goal tonight was to get to know Lucien better, and she was not one to stray from what her mind decided.

When Mor, Cassian, and Nesta had finished saying hello to their friends, the group ascended to the second floor, where the Inner Circle’s regular booth overlooked the massive dance floor. “I’ll sit next to Cassian, Mor will sit next to me, which means you will sit next to Lucien,” Nesta had reviewed with Elain earlier. But when the time came, Lucien chose to squeeze in next to Cassian, which put him opposite of Elain instead of next to her.

Nesta shot Elain an apologetic grimace that bordered on pity. Elain only took a long, long sip of her strawberry daiquiri, head bowed in frustration. She checked her phone. It was only 11:14. I shouldn’t worry, she told herself, there are plenty more opportunities if the night is still young…

***Approximately one hour prior***

“Wait!” Feyre came running down the hall of the River House. “Here’s a touch of shimmer, for luck.” Elain held still as her younger sister, the High Lady, carefully dabbled ultra-glittery eyeshadow over her eyelids and cheekbones.

“How do I look?” Elain asked nervously.

“Absolutely stunning,” Mor said cheerfully as she breezed by. The blonde-haired female was just as stunning herself, with her glossy tresses and sharply-lined brown eyes. She wore a tight black corset that deeply contrasted the flowing ruffles of her classic red skirt. Mor tossed her hair behind her shoulder with flair. “Lucien won’t be able to resist you at all. And Cassian’s already waiting for us, so let’s go!”

Nesta and Elain took Mor’s outstretched hand in the River House foyer, a light breeze of caramel and sweet grapes enveloping them as Mor winnowed. The quiet of the River House was replaced by the vibrant hustle and bustle of Velaris.

They had arrived. Sure enough, Cassian was standing by Rita’s vibrant entrance, his membranous bat wings glowing amber in the faelight. Cassian’s face lit up when Nesta strode towards him in her thigh-high boots, swishing her hips in her slinky silver dress as she walked. The general swept Nesta into a deep kiss, a proud display of affection that passers-by hardly batted an eye at.

“You look gorgeous, Nes,” Elain could hear him rumble appreciatively as she tottered after Mor like a wobbling fawn, unused to the purple heels she’d borrowed from Feyre. Although Rhys had magicked them to fit her shoe size, the extra height had Elain feeling off-balance.

She’d worn the purple heels specifically to match her muted lavender dress. The garment’s semi-sweetheart neckline and spaghetti straps accented Elain’s smaller breasts and sun-kissed shoulders, and the soft fabric hugged her waist and hips before flaring out into a delicate skirt. As pretty as the dress was, Elain fought the urge to cross her arms across her chest, compensating for the lack of coverage. And she tugged at the dress’s hem every few seconds, making sure it hadn’t ridden up her butt.

“Damn it, we should have taken pictures before we left,” Mor sighed, pulling out her phone. She snapped several selfies, cycling through multiple photo-ready expressions in a matter of seconds. “The lighting is so shit in the dark.”

“Can you take a pic of us, Elain?” Cassian asked. “Just use flash.” Cassian and Nesta posed in front of Rita’s manicured hedges, both beaming widely. Nesta’s hand rested on Cassian’s broad chest, while Cassian’s hand wandered dangerously close to her ass. Elain’s cheeks were heating at their intimacy, but she dutifully took some pictures for the couple.

“Lucien!” Nesta suddenly called out, waving to someone behind them.

Oh fuck, Lucien is here. Elain’s heart rate accelerated, every hair on her body prickling with anticipation. She tried to appear blase as she turned around, but Mor still snickered at Elain’s doe eyes growing wider at the sight of Lucien.

He looks good. Elain blinked, trying to comprehend how a male could be so attractive. Oh, he looks really good.

Lucien was striding towards them, his full mouth quirked upwards in a wry grin at Nesta’s greeting and his shoulder-length red hair fluttering perfectly in the breeze. Though his shoulders and back were rolled back with impeccable posture, he still exuded a casual air by hooking a thumb through a belt loop and swinging his other hand lazily.

Lucien’s crisp white shirt had been tucked into a pair of straight brown slacks. And—dear gods—the first three buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing a triangle of warm brown skin. Elain knew her face was burning up even as she averted her gaze, before she could be caught ogling at Lucien’s chest.

“Good to see you, Nesta,” Lucien replied, his voice low and delicious to Elain’s ears. Unable to look him in the eye, Elain stared at Lucien’s feet. He was wearing mossy green sneakers—did he buy them recently? She hadn’t seen him wear those before, and had been meticulously observing him during all his visits to Velaris. “Thanks for the invite, Cassian. I don’t usually come to Rita’s.”

Cassian’s grin was completely natural, despite the artificial nature of their outing.

“Happy to have you here,” he replied, clapping Lucien on the back. “It’s on me tonight, so drink up!” He led the way into Rita’s, everybody else following suit. Elain lingered back a half step, wondering how she would proceed.

“Hey, Lucien,” Mor said as she passed him. “How’s it going?”

“It’s alright,” Lucien shrugged his broad shoulders. “Busy putting out fires, as usual.”

“Well, that’s your specialty, isn’t it?” Mor laughed.”Come on, let’s go inside.” Mor gave the bouncer a nod in greeting, her face easily recognizable having been Rita’s patron for hundreds of years. She slipped through the door quickly, leaving Elain and Lucien still standing outside.

What the hell am I supposed to say? Elain clutched the strap of her purse, feeling overwhelmed at the aroma of crisp leaves, apples, and sun-warmed skin. Lucien’s scent.

“Hi,” was all she could muster. Elain waved her hand shyly. Lucien inclined his head, a neutral expression on his face. This was not at all what she’d imagined when she was getting dolled up for the night. Elain’s heart sank. She had been hoping for an appreciative up-down glance, or even a spark of interest in his eyes.

“After you,” Lucien responded, holding open the door. He held himself stiffly, so unlike the casual grace from before.

“Thanks,” Elain mumbled, ducking her head and rushing through. She clutched her purse to her chest, feeling like such a fool. Of all the things I should’ve said, why the hell did I start off with a hi, she fretted internally. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

She barely had time to dwell on her mishap, though, for the pleasure hall immediately bombarded her senses with flashing red and magenta lights, and booming music. Friday night at Rita’s was well underway.

Tonight’s theme was pink, apparently, judging from the cotton candy glow that illuminated Rita’s cavernous interior. It smelled pink, too, like strawberry taffy and peonies, with a hint of citrus. And while groups of Fae were already dancing to the buoyant pop music, Elain made a beeline for the bar. She needed a drink—desperately.

***Just before midnight***

Cassian said something to Lucien, the music too loud for Elain’s Fae hearing to pick up. Her mate’s grin the corners of his eyes. Lucien leaned into Cassian as he said something back, his shoulder brushing Cassian’s and his mouth inches away from the general’s ear. Elain shifted restlessly in her seat, squeezing her thighs together. The thought didn’t normally cross her mind, but…gods. She wanted to be Cassian more than anything at that moment.

Elain was three drinks deep—she’d counted a strawberry daiquiri, a sangria, and a rum soda—hoping to muster the courage to make a move on Lucien. But instead of feeling brave, Elain was frustratingly horny.

It didn’t help that Lucien was strikingly beautiful. No male could ever look like him, with the jagged scars running down the left side of his face and the golden mechanical eye that mesmerized Elain with its whorls and etched runes. Lord of Foxes, Rhys had nicknamed him. Fitting, since Lucien’s countenance was sharp and pensive, as if he was always thinking. What’s passing through your mind, Elain wondered. What do you think of me?

Lucien himself had downed six drinks, most of them from a drinking game with Cassian. Since the games were based on wit, not luck, Elain half-wondered if Lucien was losing on purpose to get free drinks. She also wondered if the alcohol was going to his head.

Because after his fourth drink, Elain had sensed him watching her throat move as she tipped her head back, swallowing the last of her cocktail. After his fifth drink, Lucien had made eye contact with her multiple times over the fan of cards in his hand, his eyes burning with molten intensity.

If the alcohol was encouraging Lucien to send sizzling looks her way, it still wasn’t pulling enough weight when it came to initiating conversation.

Lucien brought his sixth drink—a mint mojito—to his lips. The slant of his mouth against the rim of the cocktail glass made Elain’s own lips tingle, for it was impossible not to imagine him doing the same to her mouth. The tilt of his sharp jaw and the half-lidded close of Lucien’s eyes had Elain holding her breath. This is the last time I’m going to stare at Lucien for the next five minutes, she promised herself, for she didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of her attention. He probably already knew she had checked him out multiple times in the past hour. The last time—

As if he could sense her thoughts, Lucien’s russet eye—the one facing Elain—opened mid-sip. Lucien’s eye narrowed into a sly smirk, his lips still on his drink, sending Elain reeling from the heady sizzle of heat that seared through their bond.

But Elain maintained steady eye contact with Lucien as he set his glass down. If he thought she was a trembling fawn, she would show him otherwise tonight. Mates are equals, are they not? I should be able to match Lucien’s wily stare, no problem.

“Wait, I need to use the bathroom,” Mor said, getting up, breaking the tension between Elain and Lucien.

Mor had just left when a young waiter, likely a University of Velaris student, came by with a tray of shots. “Five shots for Cassian?” he asked, checking the tablet with the orders.

“That’s me, thanks,” Cassian took the small platter from him. He turned back to the table with a broad grin. “A shot for you, a shot for you—oh don’t look at me like that Elain, you’re getting one too—a shot for you…oh, and I guess I’ll take Mor’s.” Cassian doled out small glasses of clear liquid to Nesta, Elain, and Lucien.

“Cheers!” Nesta whooped, raising her shot glass. She and Cassian looped arms, taking their shots at the same time. Elain sniffed the glass and blanched. It smelled like liquid death, strong enough to make her eyes water. She looked towards her sister for help, but Nesta was now busy pouring a bit of sugary cocktail down Cassian’s open mouth.

“Cheers,” she said coolly to Lucien, clinking his glass.

“Cheers,” he repeated, his brows raised in faint amusement. Elain swallowed down three-fourths of the glass quickly, but coughed and sputtered at the last bit. The burning bitterness of the alcohol was too much. “You alright?” Lucien asked, his gold eye fixated on her, whirring and clicking.

Damn, was that all it took for him to say something? I should’ve gotten Cassian to start shots earlier.

“Yeah,” Elain replied, wiping the edge of her mouth, still cringing at the disgusting residue on her tongue.

“Aw, come on, I can’t believe you guys did shots without me!” Mor pouted, having returned. “But don’t worry, I just got us another round.” She pulled a little platter out from behind her back with a wink. There was also a small bowl of lime wedges and salt on the tray, to her confusion.

Lucien chuckled slightly at Elain’s pained expression.

“You want to lick the salt, take the shot, and then suck on the lime,” Lucien advised Elain, leaning across the table to sprinkle some onto the back of her hand. “It’ll help with the taste.”

Elain blushed at the words “lick” and “suck” coming from Lucien’s mouth, so she only nodded furiously. After a resounding “cheers!” and a bracing of her gag reflex, the alcohol ended up going down more smoothly, thanks to the numbing salt and tangy sour of the lime.

“Fuck yeah, Elain’s taking it like a champ!” Nesta shouted, as Elain slammed the glass down, looking directly at Lucien. Elain blushed extra hard, for her mouth puckered around the lime in the most undignified manner when Lucien glanced at her.

“Forget the card game, let’s dance!” Mor suggested, capitalizing on the moment. Elain got up first, resisting the urge to glance at her mate. “Everyone, including you, Lucien!”

Rita’s consisted of three levels: a dance floor, a second level of booths and tables for parties and cards, and a third level of private rooms. The upper two levels overlooked the first, giving patrons a view of the writhing bodies below. The group descended to the first level, where thin streams of faelight extended from the ceiling to the floor, creating an illusion of falling water.

Fae were congregated in little dance circles, bobbing their heads and throwing hands up in the air. Pink-tinged faelight pulsated in sync with the chest-vibrating beats, drinks flowed freely on the sidelines as Fae of all backgrounds mingled gregariously.

It was a particularly festive night at Rita’s. After years of turmoil—first Amarantha, then Hybern, then the Asteri and Koschei—peace was finally here. Instead of partying recklessly like the world was ending, the Fae smiled and laughed as they danced and chatted. Tonight, Rita’s atmosphere was marked relief and hope for Prythian’s new era.

Mor worked her way into the center of the dance floor, the rest of the group following close behind. Her joints and limbs were a bit awkward, but Elain gamely moved with the beat, buoyed by the room’s vibrant energy. Next to her, Cassian tucked in his wings, making use of the little room they had to expertly spin Nesta. Elain smiled. The general had been practicing his dance moves, it seemed.

Mor had taken to dancing on her own, rolling her body and side-stepping in her heels to song after song. She knew all the words, and was not above singing loudly when a personal favorite came on.

Lucien, who had put Mor between himself and Elain, was seemingly lost in the music. The gold earring on the tip of his pointed ear twinkled in the pink light and the pale scar cutting down his face was stark as he tilted his head up. His eyes were closed, chin nodding with the music.

Elain took full liberty to stare at Lucien’s sculpted chest and his strong, brown forearms—revealed thanks to his rolled-up sleeves. Desire, itching for an outlet, burned in her throat like residual alcohol.

She had been shyly bouncing on her toes for the first few songs, which was how Elain knew the drinks from earlier kicked in. Her movements suddenly became fluid like butter, more frivolous. She didn’t care if anyone was watching now, not even Lucien. All Elain’s body wanted to do was dance the night away.

Left leg, right leg, and a gyrate of the hips. Left leg, right leg, a flick of her honey-brown hair and shimmy of her shoulders. Hop, hop, hop to the beat. Left leg, right leg, swing to the side. Was this what Nesta and Mor felt when they commanded the ballroom floor during the Hewn City Solstice? This melting of notes, this frenzy of accelerating beats, this arcing melody that guided her body along the river of song?

Mist pumped onto the dance floor, muting the flashing lights in a dream-like haze. Elain threw her hands up and cheered with the rest of the crowd when the beat dropped, the floor vibrating as everybody jumped with frenzy. Being tipsy smoothed over any pain points in her feet and made her forget how clunky her heels were.

Elain wasn’t sure how much time had passed. She had made sure to stay within the confines of their little circle earlier, but now Elain could care less about the strangers’ bodies that kept bumping into hers. If Rita’s got more crowded during the last few minutes, she didn’t mind at all. The more people, the more fun to be had.

The circle of constellations on Rita’s high ceiling, with its painted animals and mythological Fae, swam in Elain’s vision. Her lips parted in breathless admiration: she was weightless in a sea of stars and pink, her body so dizzyingly spinning as if she would ascend to those heights any moment now. Elain’s ankle buckled when she landed a tad too hard.

“Steady there.” A voice Elain knew all too well murmured lowly by her ear. That voice was accompanied by a calloused hand she was less familiar with, the warm palm steadying her bare shoulder. Lucien. An electric shiver ran down Elain’s spine at her mate’s touch. He must’ve been with me this whole time, Elain realized.

“Hello.” She half-turned, suddenly aware of how close Lucien was. His scent, of sweet apples and sunlight, wreathed around her, drawing Elain in like a moth to a flame.

“Hey.” By the Cauldron, how could such a beautiful male be her mate? Elain was tempted to run her hands through that silky long hair. She longed to caress the high cheekbones and brutal scarred rivulets of skin, to memorize the shape of his face with her hand. She wanted to pull him down by the collar of his shirt, until she knew what those lips tasted like. She must have been staring open-mouthed at him like a fish, for Lucien’s handsome brow furrowed with concern. “Do you need to get back to the others?”

She could barely hear him, but Elain shook her head fervently. “No, I still want to dance.” Lucien’s eyes flickered, scanning her to make sure she was as alright as she claimed. “Will you stay here? With me?” Elain blurted out.

Gods, the alcohol…it certainly made her more expressive and less preoccupied with what others—including Lucien—might think. Her mate was so tall that the bobbing of his throat was at eye level when Lucien swallowed. Elain fixated on the little groove at the base of his neck, wondering what it would be like to kiss it. To mark it, with a juvenile hickey, so that the other females would know he was hers. Her instincts sharpened into something territorial, ready to snap at anyone who dared lay hands—or eyes—on her mate. Lucien was hers tonight.

“Yes, of course.”

Fuck, yes. Elain turned back around, unable to hide the victorious smile on her face. Did she know what she would do next? No, but it didn’t matter if Lucien was beside her. His simple presence was more than enough to light her up, renewing her energy to dance.

The song was faster now, crowd around them surging back and forth like the choppy sea, pushing her up against Lucien every few beats. Elain savored it every time it happened, leaning more into her mate and even wiggling her hips against him as a sign of encouragement.

Would Lucien take it?

Elain’s breath hitched with excitement when she felt broad hands rest lightly on her waist. Elain’s nerves sparked delightfully in response. “It’s just me,” Lucien reminded her, his breath tickling her ear.”

If she turned and tilted her head just so slightly, she would be kissing him. But even in her heady buzz, Elain held herself back. She leaned against Lucien instead and moved as the song demanded of her. Lucien kept his hands placed on her waist, but the thin fabric of her dress made it obvious whenever his fingers shifted against her hips.

A feeling of security settled deep in her bones as she swayed against Lucien. Her mate had a strong sense of rhythm, for he matched her steps and mirrored every roll and gyrate of her lithe body. They were well-matched on the dance floor, utterly perceptive to the changes each song elicited from each other.

“You’ve been such a tease,” Lucien hummed in her ear, his voice low and sultry. “I was wondering when you were going to drop your good girl act.”

Elain’s response was to bend forward slightly and grind her ass against Lucien. She didn’t really know what she was doing—she hadn’t done this before—but Lucien’s grip tightened on her hips. Pulling her flush against him.

Fuck…the growing erection she felt against her ass only made Elain’s head buzz even more. Her core clenched at the thought of Lucien’s cock sliding along her ass, between her thighs, through her—

“Shit, Elain,” Lucien groaned as she straightened back up. His russet eye was dark with blatant desire when she glanced back.

“What, didn’t think I had it in me?” she shouted over the loud music. Lucien’s grin was positively wicked as he pulled her hips towards him again.

“I always knew you had it in you. Like I said, I’ve just been waiting for you to show me.” Lucien splayed his palm against her lower belly, running it up her abdomen. More, more, I need more. Elain heaved a shaky breath when Lucien’s hand traveled up between the valley of her breasts to play with the gold necklace she was wearing, her mind wandering to all the things he could do with those dexterous fingers.

“Want me to show you again?” Elain asked slyly.

“Fuck, yes, Elain. What do you mean, want me to show you again?” Lucien’s tone was teasingly indignant. Elain was slightly more practiced this time, relishing the way Lucien’s body moved in sync with her hips. The air was musky with the scent of Lucien’s arousal, twining around Elain’s instincts and driving her urges up, up, up.

She turned to face Lucien fully when DJ transitioned from techno pop into one of her guilty-pleasure songs, making Elain even more giddy. The two bounced up and down, half-shouting half-singing the raunchy lyrics to each other. Somehow, Lucien knowing all the words made Elain want him even more. When Lucien tipped his head back and laughed, the look of pure, unfettered joy on his face induced a twinge in Elain’s heart.

Lucien’s hands returned to her body, gently stroking her waist and cradling her close with a hand on her back. Now that she was facing his chest, Elain couldn’t fight the urge to trace the edges of his open shirt, marveling at the hard lines and gleaming bronze of his skin.

“When I first saw you tonight,” Lucien said in her ear, leaning down. “I wondered if you had any idea just how beautiful you were.”

“Says the male who had no reaction when he saw me,” Elain replied, slightly indignant. Lucien’s hand grazed the small of her back, drifting closer to the curve of her ass. It was difficult decide whether she wanted to lean into his broad chest, or lean back until her ass filled his hand.

“An emissary always knows how to keep a poker face.” Lucien chuckled lowly, nipping the tip of her pointed ear delicately. Elain shivered from the bite of pressure, the pleasing sensation traveling down her spine. “I initially caught sight of you when Mor winnowed in, so I had a couple minutes to collect myself, actually.”

Elain blushed.

“If we’re going to reveal our tricks to each other…I actually asked Nesta and Cassian to help with setting something up between us,” she confessed.

“I know.” Lucien’s grin was teasing. “Cassian was being quite obvious.”

“Oh, Cauldron!” Elain cried, mortification rising. She buried her face against Lucien’s chest, inhaling his natural, crisp scent as well as his arousal.

“There’s a reason why he’s a general, not an emissary,” Lucien joked. He took one of Elain’s hands into his, spinning her around to break her embarrassment, and brought her back against him with ease. “Even then, I thought it was too good to be true. Elain Archeron, finally going out of her way to interact with little Lucien.”

Elain wrapped her arms around Lucien’s neck, pressing every available inch of herself against his body. There was nothing little about Lucien—especially if they were going to acknowledge the hardened length she felt against her stomach.

“Is that why you’ve been so standoffish?” Elain demanded.

“Partly,” Lucien admitted, still keeping them in sync with the beat by taking little steps forward, backwards, and side-to-side. Elain followed his lead, savoring Lucien’s fluid motions and his warm hands on her body. “I was waiting for you to take the lead.”

“Hmph,” Elain pouted, turning her doe brown eyes up. The glittery eyeshadow Feyre had dusted over her lids shimmered under the pink light, making her look particularly ethereal. “I wouldn’t have taken you for a passive male.”

“Oh, I’m not.” Lucien winked, a mischievous gesture that had Elain’s heart stuttering. “But this…our mating bond…I wanted to treat it with more care.” His large hand had migrated downwards, caressing the shape of her ass.

“Oh? And this is what you’re doing? Treating me with care?” Elain replied coyly, still obsessed with tracing Lucien’s chest through his open shirt. Lucien inhaled sharply at her feather-light touch, his russet eye darkening.

“I’m appreciating your ass,” he clarified, articulating the word ‘appreciating’ with an edge of sarcasm. “A respectable male like me would never deign to grab it—or smack it.”

Elain stretched up until her mouth was near her mate’s ear.

“But what if I want you to smack it?” Lucien threw his head back and laughed, a throaty, genuine sound.

“That’s the alcohol speaking for you, Elain. Let’s save the ass-slapping for later.” Later, he had said, Elain’s chest tightening with giddy anticipation. There’s going to be a later. At least Lucien’s hand inched further down, cupping her ass and kneading the soft flesh. Not quite a slap, but still offering some of the attention Elain was desperate for.

“Mmmm,” she hummed against his chest, eyes closed in bliss. Lucien kept his hand possessively on her rump, pressing her snugly against him. Elain sang her heart out, grabbing Lucien’s other hand and hoisting it into the air whenever the chorus played. She’d sobered up now, but Rita’s was still a sensory overload: loud music drowning out her everyday stresses, Lucien’s cloying scent and arousal, his devilishly perfect face and mismatched eyes being all she could see, the heat emanating from his body, and his hands all over her.

Lucien whistled loudly when Elain decided to shimmy down, running her hands along his body as she got low on bent knees.

“That’s my girl,” he praised, using two fingers to tilt her chin sensually as she came back up. Lucien’s expression of approval and hunger boosted Elain’s confidence through Rita’s lofty ceiling, her inner vixen purring at Lucien’s words.

She wasn’t sure how many more songs passed. Maybe it was because each one was more “danceable” than the last. Or maybe it was because she was with Lucien. Her mate’s energy was boundless: his feet were nimble, his shoulders were sharp, his claps were perfectly on beat.

He matched her moves perfectly. When Elain body-rolled against him, his hand was always on her lower back to steady her. When she leaned in, Lucien’s lips were poised at the tips of her ear or along her jaw, in a ghost of a kiss he would not bring to completion. When Elain sashayed forward, Lucien took the appropriate steps back, before returning the gesture with artful steps of his feet.

She may have hooked her fingers through his belt loops a couple times, yanking him closer whenever she felt he was getting a little too far away. There were moments when Lucien dipped his head low, heightening the delicious, stomach-tightening tension between them. Electricity practically crackled as Lucien’s golden eye shimmered and whirred, savoring the presence of his mate.

But at some point, Elain’s feet began to ache. And it dawned just then how dry her mouth was, before spiraling into a realization of how sweaty it was in the middle of the dance floor.

“I need to get a drink,” she shouted into Lucien’s ear. He nodded, and protectively led her out of the dancing masses. Elain squeezed her way back to the table upstairs, where Nesa, Cassian, and Mor had apparently been hanging out the entire time.

“Welcome back!” Cassian grinned smugly, holding out a hand for Lucien to clap as Mor scooted down the horseshoe-shaped booth, making room. Lucien sat down besides Elain and poured her a cup of crisp, icy water. It was absolutely delicious.

“How are you feeling?” Mor asked. The female’s brown eyes regarded Elain briefly, before shifting into a sly I-saw-you type of expression. Elain blushed vividly. Mor’s gift of truth likely meant she saw just how close and personal Elain got with Lucien—if she wasn’t already watching them from above.

“Sober,” Elain replied. Lucien, still talking to Nesta, distractedly moved Elain’s wavy hair behind her shoulder, smoothing the frizz down by running his fingers gently through it. The completely natural air of his gesture, made Elain melt a little at her mate’s attentiveness and care. “I’m a bit tired, though.”

“Oh, come on, Elain! We just started this card game!” whined Nesta. “We can’t leave yet!” Cassian flashed Elain a wink when Lucien was preoccupied with the chips and dip on the table.

Elain blinked.

“Oh….oh!” She flusteredly understood Cassian’s message.”I-I wouldn’t want to interrupt…perhaps Lucien can escort me home?”

Lucien nodded, taking one last swig of water. “Sure,” he replied, getting up from the table and offering his arm. Elain’s hand tingled when she placed it on his forearm. It was nice and solid, warm and safe. She hoped the pink faelight hid her blush when she recalled how that same forearm was previously wrapped around her stomach, pulling her back flush against his muscled body…

She clung more tightly to him once they stepped out into the chilly night air. Elain figured Lucien could have just winnowed them back to the River House, so she appreciated the fact that he was willing to walk. The main thoroughfares of Velaris were still well-lit, with night owls bustling and chatting. Stars twinkled in the velvet black sky, the moon glowed in its shapely crescent.

“Where are you going after?” Elain asked, hoping to prolong the time they could spend together.

“My apartment in Velaris,” Lucien replied, glancing down with a small smile. “It’s too late to winnow back to the human lands.”

Elain didn’t know how to respond to that. Did dancing sensually together bring them close enough for her to invite herself over? Still, the question ‘can I come over’ felt too forward to her. And saying ‘I’d like to see your place someday’ sounded awkward, since Lucien was hardly ever in Velaris. Part of her wished they were going home together, wherever “home” could be.

“Let’s give your feet a rest,” Lucien noted, steering them to a gurgling fountain in a small square. They had escaped the hubbub of central Velaris into a residential area, though a couple Fae were spotted walking their dogs on the street. Elain sat down on the fountain’s cool stone edge, the night air wicking away the remainder of her sweat. She was about to take off her shoes, when Lucien said, “allow me.”

He sat down beside her on the fountain, propping her leg onto his muscled thigh. Ever so gently, Lucien undid the strap of Elain’s chunky purple heel, massaging the reddened skin with firm fingers after he slipped the shoe off. That feels nice, Elain thought, resisting the urge to make satisfied noises that would sound too much like moans. I haven’t had someone take care of me like this in a while.

Lucien did the same to her other shoe, his focused expression making Elain soft. He seems witty and sarcastic all the time, but he’s kind and gentle underneath. He’s confident in his looks, but never overly cocky like other Fae males. I hate that I waited this long before trying to know him better, Elain thought, though she knew perfectly well that she had not been in the right headspace to consider a mate when she had been freshly Made Fae.

She swung her legs off his lap when Lucien finished. Her mate started to get up.

“Wait,” Elain said suddenly, gripping his wrist. She gulped nervously, heart beating faster than a rabbit’s at Lucien’s concerned expression. She’d grabbed him in a spur-of-the-moment impulse, and was suddenly left without any words to say. I don’t want the night to end, Elain thought. Please…stay with me a bit longer.

Elain’s earnest, doe-brown eyes glimmered and blinked up at her mate in the moonlight. They skimmed his exposed chest through his shirt and traveled up the strong column of his throat. They lingered on Lucien’s full lips and brushed over his high cheekbones, before settling on his eyes. She wanted him so badly, it almost hurt to breathe.

“Elain, are you alright—” Lucien tried to say, but Elain was already leaning in.

Her soft berry-colored lips grazed his, promptly shutting Lucien up.

Elain had severely misjudged her incoming angle, for she ended up kissing only half of Lucien’s mouth. Elain’s cheeks flaming as she pulled away. Holy shit, I’m probably worst kisser Lucien has ever had and I am his MATE. Embarrassment crowded out all other thoughts, including the very important thoughts that should have remembered how her first kiss with Lucien felt.

But Lucien had gone utterly still, his chiseled face a deep red. Even his golden eye had stopped whirring.

“I’m sorry,” Elain nearly whispered, her voice small. “I should’ve asked if…if you wanted a kiss.” Lucien shook himself out of his daze, blinking. Composing himself quickly, Lucien looked down at Elain with a sly smirk.

“Oh, come on, Elain. Give me a proper kiss, won’t you?”

“Wh-what?” Elain stuttered, not sure if she heard him right.

“Like this, silly.” Lucien leaned down, broad hand cupping the underside of Elain’s jaw as he slanted his mouth over hers. Warmth blossomed within Elain’s chest as the golden thread within her glowed with the light of the sun. Lucien’s kiss…it was so magical, so full, so sweet…it was simply perfect. Just the right amount of pressure, the perfect fit of his full lips against her rosebud lips.

They broke apart after several moments, though Elain petulantly felt it was altogether too short. Now that she kissed Lucien once, all she wanted to do was kiss him again. It looked like her mate was feeling the same way, for Lucien’s chest was heaving slightly, the warring disbelief and desire in his eyes a contrast to his suave demeanor.

“Again, please.” Elain hadn’t realized she’d uttered those words until Lucien kissed her again, more deeply this time.

So this is what kissing is supposed to feel like, Elain thought, just before she let the reins of self-control go. She didn’t care that they were making out in a public space. Didn’t stress if she was a bad kisser. She simply leaned into the moment, letting her body respond to the cues from his, savoring every kiss he bestowed upon her.

Elain stopped kissing Lucien to catch her breath, her cheeks flushed and brown eyes half-lidded with yearning under the moonlight. Lucien looked similarly disheveled, with the collar of his shirt askew and swollen mouth parted slightly.

His hand was still caressing her cheek, his touch stirring Elain’s instincts. She was burning with desire, too ready to jump out of her own skin and continue down the path of where they left off. But a public fountain was no place to be engaging in such lascivious activities.

“Would…would you like to come over?” Lucien asked, as if he was reading her thoughts.

“Fuck, yes, Lucien. What do you mean, would you like to come over?” Elain grinned as she invoked the same teasing indignation from earlier.

#elucien #elain archeron #lucien vanserra #elucienweek2023

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