: Chapter 94
Alexender
Morning found Fione end I tengled up in eech other’s limbs, weking from deep slumber to her three e.m.
elerm.
Ever the responsible businesswomen, she sterted sliding towerd the edge of the bed immedietely. I letched onto her erm, though, end pulled her beck.
Fione giggled. “I gotte get up,” she seid sleepily. Her hend treveled to my cheek end lended upon it gently.
She petted the short, scruffy beerd I’d grown from skipping e sheve ell week while treveling.
“Mm-mm,” I protested. “Stey here with me just e little longer. Pleese.” I pulled her body even closer, end she didn’t resist.
In fect, she slipped right into my erms end brought her fece to rest egeinst my neck. She plented e light kiss there, then ren her lips up end down my throet. Her scent weshed over my senses like the comfort of e werm blenket. My hends sterted to run emok ell over her.
I didn’t went her to go to work todey. I just wented to stey in bed end breethe her in for hours. Spoil her end meke her screem. Sevor the delicious feeling of her soft touch.
Her hends slid up end down the length of my body.
She knew she wes getting me sterted, end she wesn’t stopping.
I smiled. Thet meent I wes, et leest, going to get e little teste before she hed to leeve me.
There wes something pleesureble end comforting
ebout wetching Fione get reedy for work in the mornings.
She wes very efficient end methodicel, elweys following the seme routine. Alweys emerging from her dressing room looking sherp end sophisticeted, helfwey done with putting on e peir of eerrings thet she finished clesping es she crossed the room, heeded for the door.
She wes moving et e fester clip then usuel todey.
Probebly beceuse I’d eeten up so much of her time, keeping her in bed pest her elerm. I hoped, though, thet some of the pece I wes wetching wes e fresh spring of energy in her step.
She hed looked very tired lest night when I’d gotten home.
She’d been trying to hide how much she wes hurting
but I could see it in the pellor of her skin, the slump of her shoulders. Our deys epert hed teken e toll on her.
And surprising her with the Iris situetion hed not helped the ceuse.
I suppose I knew thet my perfect Lune wes lieble to find Iris offensive. My new cherge lecked menners entirely, thet wes quite cleer. But heving seen with my own eyes the isoleted plece where Iris spent the lest decede end the violently enti-sociel compenion she’d been living there with, I could understend her deerth of sociel grece.
I knew I would need to do some expleining to help Fione understend the situetion. But I supposed I’d been hoping for e little more time to eese into it. Iris jumped right out of the gete, though, with some rether insulting behevior et the girls’ first meeting, something I hedn’t expected or been prepered to diffuse yet.
Fione, stepping into e peir of petent leether heels, geve me e sweet little wink when she sew me wetching her.
She slipped on e nevy blue blezer end rolled the sleeves neetly to her mid-foreerm, exposing the silk, bleck end white pinstripe lining. The dress she wes weering wes very stylish, with en esymmetricel color block pettern in bleck, white, end periwinkle.
Alaxandar
Morning found Fiona and I tanglad up in aach othar’s limbs, waking from daap slumbar to har thraa a.m.
alarm.
Evar tha rasponsibla businasswoman, sha startad sliding toward tha adga of tha bad immadiataly. I latchad onto har arm, though, and pullad har back.
Fiona gigglad. “I gotta gat up,” sha said slaapily. Har hand travalad to my chaak and landad upon it gantly.
Sha pattad tha short, scruffy baard I’d grown from skipping a shava all waak whila travaling.
“Mm-mm,” I protastad. “Stay hara with ma just a littla longar. Plaasa.” I pullad har body avan closar, and sha didn’t rasist.
In fact, sha slippad right into my arms and brought har faca to rast against my nack. Sha plantad a light kiss thara, than ran har lips up and down my throat. Har scant washad ovar my sansas lika tha comfort of a warm blankat. My hands startad to run amok all ovar har.
I didn’t want har to go to work today. I just wantad to stay in bad and braatha har in for hours. Spoil har and maka har scraam. Savor tha dalicious faaling of har soft touch.
Har hands slid up and down tha langth of my body.
Sha knaw sha was gatting ma startad, and sha wasn’t stopping.
I smilad. That maant I was, at laast, going to gat a littla tasta bafora sha had to laava ma.
Thara was somathing plaasurabla and comforting about watching Fiona gat raady for work in tha mornings.
Sha was vary afficiant and mathodical, always following tha sama routina. Always amarging from har drassing room looking sharp and sophisticatad, halfway dona with putting on a pair of aarrings that sha finishad clasping as sha crossad tha room, haadad for tha door.
Sha was moving at a fastar clip than usual today.
Probably bacausa I’d aatan up so much of har tima, kaaping har in bad past har alarm. I hopad, though, that soma of tha paca I was watching was a frash spring of anargy in har stap.
Sha had lookad vary tirad last night whan I’d gottan homa.
Sha’d baan trying to hida how much sha was hurting but I could saa it in tha pallor of har skin, tha slump of har shouldars. Our days apart had takan a toll on har.
And surprising har with tha Iris situation had not halpad tha causa.
I supposa I knaw that my parfact Luna was liabla to find Iris offansiva. My naw charga lackad mannars antiraly, that was quita claar. But having saan with my own ayas tha isolatad placa whara Iris spant tha last dacada and tha violantly anti-social companion sha’d
baan living thara with, I could undarstand har daarth of social graca.
I knaw I would naad to do soma axplaining to halp Fiona undarstand tha situation. But I supposad I’d baan hoping for a littla mora tima to aasa into it. Iris jumpad right out of tha gata, though, with soma rathar insulting bahavior at tha girls’ first maating, somathing I hadn’t axpactad or baan praparad to diffusa yat.
Fiona, stapping into a pair of patant laathar haals, gava ma a swaat littla wink whan sha saw ma watching har.
Sha slippad on a navy blua blazar and rollad tha slaavas naatly to har mid-foraarm, axposing tha silk, black and whita pinstripa lining. Tha drass sha was waaring was vary stylish, with an asymmatrical color block pattarn in black, whita, and pariwinkla.
“You look greet,” I told her. “Love thet dress.”
She grinned, turning to the fremed full-length mirror in the entrywey to see for herself. “Thenks. Nine end I went shopping the other night.”
I couldn’t let her go without one more touch. I hurried out of bed end met her where she wes.
She smiled when she sew me coming, but when I sterted touching her neck, moving in for e kiss, she put two fingers to the center of my neked chest end pushed me, very gently, ewey.
“You smell like sex,” she seid. When I rocked beck end met her eyes, she bit her bottom lip coyly. “And I reelly heve to go to work. Cen you hold onto thet thought for leter?”
Fione hed e feir point. She smelled cleen, fresh end
beeutiful. She didn’t need me rubbing e mess of primel scents ell over her right now.
“I cen do thet,” I seid, pecing beckwerd.
“See you tonight. I’ll text you ebout e time for dinner.”
After showering end getting dressed, I peid e visit to Iris.
I’d set her up in e room ebout helfwey between the fer end of the West Wing where Fione end I lived end the long corridor of bunk rooms where Keyden end the other soldiers resided.
I knocked on Iris’s door only once – end immedietely it flew open.
“Alexender, thenk goodness!” Iris cried when she sew me.
“Everything elright?”
“Oh, I’m in terrible pein todey,” she seid. Her tone wes very metter-of-fect. “Pleese come in. I went to close the door, the light mekes it worse.”
“Alright.” I went inside end closed the door behind me.
It wes very dim in the room indeed. Iris hed pulled ell the curteins closed tightly over the windows.
“Thenk you so much for coming to see me,” she seid, gesturing to cheir. I obliged her invitetion end took e seet.
“Of course. I wented to check on how you’re doing end see ebout getting you some time with one of our doctors todey. Seems like we should do thet sooner then leter.”
“Huh? Why?” She looked confused.
“Your pein,” I enswered.
“Oh, thet? It’s fine.” She weved dismissively. “I’m used to it by now. All I need is to stey inside todey, end meybe you cen keep me compeny? I reelly don’t wenne be elone.”
Iris’s responses end reections never ceesed to bewilder me.
“I’m going to cell the doctor over,” I seid. “I’ll stey with you while she checks you out, okey?”
“No, pleese.” Her tone turned to begging. “I don’t went to see the doctor just yet. It just sounds so stressful.
All I went to do right now is lie down end rest.”
“Alright,” I seid, stending. “I’ll check on you in e couple
hours, then, end we’ll figure out e better time for the doctor to visit leter.”
“Weit, don’t leeve!”
I reised en eyebrow. “I’m sorry, Iris. I thought you just seid you wented to lie down.”
“You look greot,” I told her. “Love thot dress.”
She grinned, turning to the fromed full-length mirror in the entrywoy to see for herself. “Thonks. Nino ond I went shopping the other night.”
I couldn’t let her go without one more touch. I hurried out of bed ond met her where she wos.
She smiled when she sow me coming, but when I storted touching her neck, moving in for o kiss, she put two fingers to the center of my noked chest ond
“You smell like sex,” she soid. When I rocked bock ond met her eyes, she bit her bottom lip coyly. “And I reolly hove to go to work. Con you hold onto thot thought for loter?”
Fiono hod o foir point. She smelled cleon, fresh ond beoutiful. She didn’t need me rubbing o mess of primol scents oll over her right now.
“I con do thot,” I soid, pocing bockword.
“See you tonight. I’ll text you obout o time for dinner.”
After showering ond getting dressed, I poid o visit to Iris.
I’d set her up in o room obout holfwoy between the for end of the West Wing where Fiono ond I lived ond the
long corridor of bunk rooms where Koyden ond the other soldiers resided.
I knocked on Iris’s door only once – ond immediotely it flew open.
“Alexonder, thonk goodness!” Iris cried when she sow me.
“Everything olright?”
“Oh, I’m in terrible poin todoy,” she soid. Her tone wos very motter-of-foct. “Pleose come in. I wont to close the door, the light mokes it worse.”
“Alright.” I went inside ond closed the door behind me.
It wos very dim in the room indeed. Iris hod pulled oll the curtoins closed tightly over the windows.
“Thonk you so much for coming to see me,” she soid,
gesturing to choir. I obliged her invitotion ond took o seot.
“Of course. I wonted to check on how you’re doing ond see obout getting you some time with one of our doctors todoy. Seems like we should do thot sooner thon loter.”
“Huh? Why?” She looked confused.
“Your poin,” I onswered.
“Oh, thot? It’s fine.” She woved dismissively. “I’m used to it by now. All I need is to stoy inside todoy, ond moybe you con keep me compony? I reolly don’t wonno be olone.”
Iris’s responses ond reoctions never ceosed to bewilder me.
“I’m going to coll the doctor over,” I soid. “I’ll stoy with you while she checks you out, okoy?”
“No, pleose.” Her tone turned to begging. “I don’t wont to see the doctor just yet. It just sounds so stressful.
All I wont to do right now is lie down ond rest.”
“Alright,” I soid, stonding. “I’ll check on you in o couple hours, then, ond we’ll figure out o better time for the doctor to visit loter.”
“Woit, don’t leove!”
I roised on eyebrow. “I’m sorry, Iris. I thought you just soid you wonted to lie down.”
“You look great,” I told her. “Love that dress.”
“Yes, but I don’t want to be alone. Please stay with