Patrick
“You have to be quiet,” I whispered in Lydia’s ear with my hand clamped over her mouth. “Otherwise we’ll be caught and it won’t be sexy.”
She nodded and I continued my assault on her nipples; using my free hand to tease each one until she was writhing against me in ecstasy. Sex in the first-class bathroom was easier, but it was still awkward as hell and right now my patience with that was limited.
I had her yoga pants pulled down to mid-thigh – effectively binding her legs together – and her shirt pulled up under her chin. I just needed the quickest of distractions, just something to pull me out of my misery; and she was the perfect vessel.
“I want to bring you back to Plaisir,” I continued, paying no mind to her little whimpers of need. “Ike wouldn’t mind seeing you again, maybe we could go down during Halloween for the party.”
Lydia in a cute little Halloween costume was an amazing image. I pulled her tighter to my body and kept my hand over her mouth, urging her to look up in the mirror and watch while I brought her closer to the edge. Her soft moans were being more high pitched and I noticed her grey eyes widen in the mirror as my other hand moved down to rub her clit.
“Are you going to come for me, sweetheart?” I whispered, my gaze not leaving hers in the reflection. “You’re just so close, aren’t you…” It wasn’t a question.
I felt her body tensing against me and I immediately jerked my hand away; Lydia cried out in agony against my palm, I chuckled and kissed her shoulder while I listened to her sniffle. I could see the tears welling in her eyes and I knew that I had to hold myself back; I wanted to have fun with her, I wanted to bring her back to Jon’s playroom or get one of our own, but now wasn’t the time and I had to remind myself we weren’t officially alone.
“Bend over,” I instructed. “Keep your hands on the wall.”
The positioning was awkward with the other wall behind me being so close, but it was no different than a small shower stall. Once I had her in a better stance, I loosened my belt and let my cock out. She was more than ready for me when I felt between her legs, spreading her wetness over my hand to smear over my length.
I grit my teeth as I eased into her pussy; the angle and the way I had her legs together made her tighter than I thought, it was perfect for finishing quickly. Lydia’s mouth opened and her eyes fell shut, her face contorted in pleasure when I had my cock in her entirely. Grabbing her hips, I pulled her back on me as I started to fuck her quickly.
Her warmth was heavenly, combined with the silky feeling and her soft moans, I was on cloud nine and already about to blow it. I needed her to finish first, after ruining her orgasm I couldn’t cum before she did. She was close, I could feel it in the way she tightened around me and almost gasped when I dug my fingers into her hips.
“Quietly,” I warned, jerking her back to me by her hair. “I know you can be quiet if you try.”
Lydia moaned and frantically grabbed at my hair; pulling me to her lips at the awkward angle and refusing to let me go. I slipped my free hand down her stomach to her clit again while my tongue found hers and we lost ourselves in each other. She tensed and I groaned, my eyes squeezed shut in bliss as she came and sent me over the edge
“Fuck,” I complained, rubbing my nose on her throat. “I’m sorry, I was going to have you swallow but I lost it…”
Lydia covered her mouth and started to laugh before regaining composure and pushing me away. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m not exactly disappointed about that.”
I rolled my eyes but kissed her shoulder anyway. “I’ll meet you back at our seat.”
“Wait!”
She grabbed my face between her hands and kissed me again, chastely this time. Warmth spread across my chest and it felt like my heart was beating faster by the time she pulled away.
“Alright, now you can go,” she said, pushing me to the door.
She knew how to leave a lasting impression, that was for sure. I left Lydia there to clean up and went back to my seat, trying and failing to keep the smug smile off my face the entire time. We had our seats near the back, close to the bathroom conveniently enough. I took my window seat and watched the sun coming through the clouds, the sky was a gorgeous series of pinks and oranges with the wisps of clouds cutting through each of the colours. Below us, the ocean made my stomach turn; Dia said the window seat made her nervous so I took it, but honestly it made me nervous too. I shut the blind and leaned back in my seat, watching the aisle and waiting for her to come join me.
A minute or so later and she made her way over and smiled shyly at me as she waved. My heart fluttered and I couldn’t stop smiling again. Lydia paused at her seat and gestured to the overhead bins.
“Did you bring your sweater?”
I nodded. “Yeah, it’s up there, do you want me to get it for you?”
She rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at me before reaching for my carry-on. “I’m not that short.”
Laughing, I pulled my tablet out and opened up my books. “Here I was trying to be chivalrous, I won’t make that mistake again.”
Lydia scoffed and I glanced at her from my peripheral; her shirt was riding up, her pants sliding down, and it showed off the most perfect strip of skin with the top half of her tattoo peeking out from behind the waistband of her thong, along with the dip of her belly button. She slipped my Oxford sweatshirt on and wiggled as she readjusted her clothes.
“Promise me you’ll never change your wardrobe,” I begged, trying not to drool.
She smirked and posed with one hand on her hip before tossing her hair dramatically over her shoulder. “You like my thrifty finds?”
Really? My eyebrows shot up while I assessed her clothes again. “Do you really shop at thrift stores?” I asked as she sank into the seat beside me.
“Yup,” she replied chipperly. “All the time; you never know what you’ll find. I used to be really good at finding designer stuff for practically nothing, I’d also go buy pieces from outlet stores for an eighty-percent mark down and resell it to rich people for the original price, same with some things at thrift stores too.”
I snorted and rubbed my forehead. “You’ve got to be kidding, who would buy that?”
“College kids with their parent’s money and who don’t know any better.” She was smirking and looking away.
“You’re a little con artist then,” I teased, poking her side lightly.
Lydia laughed, a sweet sound that made me smile and kiss her cheek. I didn’t want to talk about my father right now and she knew that, I was just thankful that she was here and could provide the distraction I needed.
“I’m not a con artist; I’m a successful business entrepreneur, I just so happened to make my rent money off other naïve college students.”
“Was this pay back for that joint Allie sold you?”
“Well, that’s where I got the idea.”
I shook my head and went back to my book while Lydia made herself a pillow out of my arm and we set in for another eight hours.
***
God, I hated flying. I spent the rest of the flight nauseous and waiting to be back on solid ground. The ride back to my apartment was easier and there was a special sort of relief that washed over me when I came to a stop in my foyer. It was dark inside; the only light coming from the windows down the hall and in the living room, casting a cold reflection from the moon and city-lights across the floors. Lydia quickly hit the light panel and the entry way lit up in a warm gold.
I dropped my bags and stretched, wandering around to the kitchen for something to eat. I knew the staff was upstairs, and they usually didn’t come out of their rooms unless they knew there was something to do, but I kind of wished that the apartment didn’t look so unused and that they had a more obvious presence. Maybe I just wanted it to be less eerie in the kitchen.
“I just texted Jon, he wants to know if you want him to bring over dinner.”
Really? I glanced over my shoulder to Lydia; she had jumped up onto the island counter while I was browsing the fridge. “Did he say what?”
“Chinese or sushi, whatever you want.”
My favourites, leave it to him to remember what I always ordered for lunch. “Alright, tell him to pick and I’ll let the doorman know.”
She nodded and tapped away at the screen of her phone, I watched her for a minute, watching her legs swing back and forth and the way she had the tip of her tongue trapped between her teeth in concentration. I moved slowly, coming to stand between her legs and running my hands up and down her thighs until she finally set the device aside and rested her arms on my shoulders.
“Do you want to talk to me about it? Because I can listen, even if you don’t want advice or anything.” Her voice was soft and reassuring, it broke my heart to hear the resigned pain in it.
“Dia,” I murmured, brushing her hair away from her ear. “I didn’t say that to be an asshole, and I do appreciate you wanting to be there for me.”
She nodded and kissed my cheek. “I get it, trust me.”
We stood there for a while, not moving or worrying about anything, just taking solace in each other’s company. I missed Aleksy, I barely knew him, but I missed him a lot and I was happy to be home and able to grieve on my own. A.J. and Bianka had kept me away from their mother, Magda throughout the funeral, making it difficult for me to corner her and even harder to tell them what In wanted to say. I was leaving the house to them, I didn’t want any of them to worry or feel resentful and I figured this was the best way to start mending bridges.
I didn’t know how I was going to do it, maybe I would go back to Poland alone and bring them the papers because I never got to say a proper goodbye to Celestyn, but I would figure it out. I could visit his grave, pay my respects… I’d talk to Jon about it later, he was good to just bounce ideas off of.
We had some time to kill before he was even close to the apartment, I went and changed into an old pair of pyjamas and took my time shaving; just generally trying to take some care of myself that I had neglected. I had to admit that I was more than a little lost; all the overtime I had put into the office was useless now, and worse, I hadn’t figured out what to fill all that empty time with. I couldn’t spend every minute of my day with Lydia or Jon, and god knows they wouldn’t want me to, but they had already found their own hobbies. Lydia focused all her free time on her blog and writings, Jon was constantly trying new fitness things that he wanted me to try too, and I was just kind of, well, lost. Poland was a great distraction, but it couldn’t hide me from myself anymore.
I had my laptop on my knees and was checking in on my old cases, trying to see what public updates were available when I heard Lydia screamed excitedly from the foyer. Setting my computer on the side table, I got up and followed the sounds of chatter. Jon was in the entryway, his arms were around Lydia’s waist with her lifted off the ground as she clung to him, both clearly ecstatic to see each other. I leaned against the doorjamb and watched, making a point to clear my throat loudly and check my watch just as they turned my way.
“You come to my apartment and you don’t even greet me first?” I teased, taking my time as I sauntered over.
“No, I had to greet the centre of attention first,” he replied, smirking at Lydia’s huff.
I chuckled and stuck my hands in my pockets. “Sweetheart, can you bring the food to the media room for us? I just want a minute with Jon.”
“Yeah, of course,” she answered, grabbing the bags from the floor. She pressed a quick kiss to my cheek and made her way up the stairs, I waited until I heard the door before turning my attention to Jon.
“He’s gone,” I said quietly, trying not to let my voice betray me. “I feel like it hasn’t hit me yet.”
Jon nodded; his gaze was intense as he looked me over, scrutinizing every inch of me. “It won’t hit you until something happens and you realize you can’t talk to him. It took me a few years to really come to terms with my parent’s death, but it still doesn’t feel like I’m over it. I don’t think that ever happens.”
Without saying anything else, I hugged him. He didn’t say anything or laugh or mock me for it, and I knew he understood that this was all I needed right now. Just closeness. Lydia had provided that every moment from the time we left Aleksy’s house, but I didn’t want to have to ask her for this constantly, that wouldn’t be fair.
“Do you want to go eat now or do you need another few minutes?” Jon asked after pulling away.
I shook my head and ran a hand through my hand through my hair. “No, we shouldn’t keep her waiting.”
He patted my shoulder and we made our way upstairs to the media room where Lydia had made herself comfortable. She’d pushed the ottoman into the sectional for all of us to sit around and eat while we watched some awful comedy. They sat on either side of me and took turns trying to goad me into a food fight. Lydia poked me with her chopsticks when I was distracted, making me jump and she giggled, trying to get the same result a second time.
I pinched her side, she yelped scooched down the couch defensively. “You were zoning out!” she defended. “I can’t believe you pinched me, jerk.”
“Oh, I’m the jerk. Not you for poking me, twice,” I retorted, tossing the fortune cookie at her.
She laughed and opened it up, pulling her feet under her as she read the fortune. “Be thankful, even if your life isn’t perfect,” she quoted. “That’s a bit on the nose.”
Jon snorted and sat back, leaving the empty container beside him. “Don’t buy into that stuff, it’s all mass printed.”
“Not the engagement ones,” she replied pointedly. “Those are made special, some of these have to be too.”
“Of course, you’re one of those people that believe in fortunes,” I interjected. “Why doesn’t that surprise me?”
She shrugged and continued to eat the cookie. “I believe in a lot of things, it’s not a secret or anything. Allie knows how to read tarot, she’d done a bunch of readings for me in the past.”
Jon eyed me and half-smiled, I caught his slight movement and my heart froze – he was tapping his ring finger. When I glanced back over at Lydia, she was watching the TV and paying no mind to us. I love you and I never thought you’d know that, let alone love me back. She’d stayed through everything, after I was an ass at Plaisir, despite the fact that the man that she’d pined for the entire time she worked at our office wanted her back, she stayed with me too. She even forgave us for the Bahamas and hiding the relationship. I didn’t know what else waited for us, how many other hurtles we had to overcome, maybe there would never be a perfect time.
I took a deep breath and excused myself, my eyes fixed on the bedroom door as I mentally pinpointed where I’d left the box.