Justin doesn’t meet my eyes. His shoulders have tensed up. This is not a topic he wants to discuss. “I thought… I was young and it seemed like a cool field to go into. I was wrong.”
That wasn’t the full story but I’m not going to push him. “So, tell me about these apartments.”
His eyes light up and fuck, if I don’t want to keep that look there. “Like I said, it’s all about greener living. LED lighting and solar panels, things like that. The small superficial changes are phase one.”
“You think installing solar panels is small and superficial?”
He smiles. “It has minimal impact on the tenants. They’ll have to put up with some noise and interference but it’s relatively painless compared to the other changes I’ll be making.”
I listen as he rubs the soles of my feet. He tells me about how he wants to renovate the interiors of each apartment to make good use of sunlight and airways, redoing the plumbing. His ideas are not only innovative but they’re probably going to cost a fortune.
“I thought you said this was cost effective. This sounds like you’ll be shelling out all the cost and the tenants reap the benefits.” I don’t want to imply that he doesn’t know what he’s doing but surely he won’t be making a profit.
Again, he doesn’t meet my eyes. “I will make a decent living. The return will be less and slower. But I will make a profit.”
He’s not being completely truthful. I don’t like that he thinks he needs to keep things from me, but I don’t push him. “I look forward to seeing you pull it off.”
He smiles. “What about you? Do you think you’ll find something you enjoy as much as cheer and dance?” His hands slide from my feet to my lower calves. “You think you’ll find the same passion doing something else?”
“Honestly? No.” I have actually given this thought. “Nothing will fulfill me like dance does. And I will still do it for fun. But I’m not looking for passion, I’m looking for something new. Something that will challenge me.”
I tell him about my interest in marketing or maybe public relations. And he listens. Like, really listens. Not that thing that guys do where they pretend to listen so they can look like they’re interested in more than just getting into your pants. Not that Justin’s not interested. The way his rough fingertips brush over my calves has to be intentional. But I suspect that once we hit the bedroom there won’t be much talking. And I really like talking and listening to him. He overthinks everything but he’s not what I expected.
He pulls me closer. My thighs are resting on his. “I wish I had seen more of your performances. I’ll try and make each one this week.”
“They’re all on YouTube,” I say. “The team.”
He gets up off the couch and retrieves his phone and hands it to me. “Show me your favorite.”
I load up one my team does regularly for exhibitions. Justin sits next to me and pulls me closer. I’m very aware of him. The way my shoulder fits under his arm and the way my head automatically rests on his chest.
“Do you mind?”
I shake my head. As much as I want to jump into bed with him, I’m also intrigued. For some reason I want him to see this part of my life. Besides, we still have all night. And the rest of the week.
Justin
I don’t know what it says about me that I have a beautiful woman laying on top me, fast asleep and not because I fucked her into exhaustion. That was the plan. Still is, actually. She’d showed me a few videos of her routines which led to a discussion about us going home. That inevitably led us to a discussion about our families. Her over-protective mother wanted all her babies home. My grandfather was being stubborn about coming to live with me.
Thinking back, it was fascinating how easy we were with each other. Instead of having to look for conversation to fill the awkward air before we got to the sex, I experienced something else. We spoke so much, that we were not in any hurry to get to the next part of the evening. As if we had all the time in the world.
She listened to me and was interested in me. She didn’t care about the bottom line or image. Even though she asked about profitability, it was about me. Outside of my family, and her two older brothers, I’d never had that from another person. Someone always wanted something. She doesn’t.
It’s obvious that she’s smart and kind, not to mention beautiful, and sexy as fuck. And currently her body is sprawled over me. I’m acutely aware that she’s not wearing any underwear and that the hem of her dress has ridden up to just below her ass. Her skin is soft beneath my fingers as I stroke along her upper spine.
I’m hard, almost painfully so. And as soon as she wakes up, she’ll feel it prodding into her belly. I’m not ready to wake her though. Having her here like this feels good, comfortable. We’ll eventually get to the bedroom. Right now, I’m just enjoying being with her.
I must have drifted off because the next thing my alarm is bleeding from my phone next to me. I turn it off just as Angela raises her head. Her hair’s in a nest on her head. Her eyes are sleepy and there’s a dent on her cheek where the crease of my T-shirt pressed into her skin. I don’t think I’ve seen anything more beautiful. Waking up with her…
This week only. I repeat the mantra in my head before smiling. “Good morning.”
She glares at me and grunts. So, she’s not a morning person. Well, that won’t do. If we’re going to be spending time together, morning sex will be part of it. I’ll just have
