The Leaves 03 (Nico) (22 page)

Lark felt terrible for inconveniencing everyone, and no matter how many texts she received from Teensy, that didn’t change.

The doctor told us we could start trying again after her first period. Since she was close to forty, something they seemed to remind her about constantly, they stressed that time was of the essence. I thought they were all a bunch of unfeeling cocksuckers, personally, and asked my mom if she and Ramona could 377/510

please find a good doctor that I didn’t want to punch in the throat.

After a few days of being at home, Zack and Frodo covered the shop, and I finally took Lark to the cabin.

Chapter 17

My neighbor had opened the cabin to air it out and check the pipes and gas. He even cleaned the canoe and anchored it on the small bank for me. I think I packed anything and everything I could think of to keep Lark entertained and happy.

Her melancholy had sunk its teeth in and stayed. She just couldn’t seem to shake it, but I looked that up too and knew that all I could do was be there, be her constant and wait. I wasn’t trying to make her forget or distract her from her grief, because that’s what it was. I felt it, too. Something so small, I felt that loss. Not like she did; I never would. But I wanted to feel it with her. No matter what, I just wanted to be with her.

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Dee was due to arrive, but she postponed her trip until late September. She still called Lark every day, and they would talk for at least an hour. I had to listen while Lark cried during their conversation and it killed me that she wasn’t talking to me instead. But now Lark and I had some time alone. Mom and Pop and Hank and Ramona could not have been cooler. They didn’t sweep the miscarriage under the rug or tell her something lame like the doctor had, “Well, you just have to try again.” Asshole. No, they came over, brought food for a few days, gave Lark lots of love and told her, “It’s in God’s hands, honey.” That seemed to be the best anyone could do or say.

The weather was great, still hot, and even at night you only needed a hoodie. Lark was sitting in the canoe while it was tethered to the small dock, wearing a huge brimmed hat and a Kelley green sundress. Her toes were 380/510

painted a matching hue, propped up on the other seat.

“Mind if I join you?” I asked.

“Not at all,” she said and moved her legs to make room for me.

I balanced the canoe as I stepped in and set down a small lunch I’d made for us. I untied it and took the oar from the bottom of the boat.

“Swear to God, Nico. This is right out of a movie; you rowing the canoe, me in my big hat, picnic lunch of wine and cheese.”

“Well, you got everything except the wine and cheese part right. I brought lemonade, ham sandwiches, and Cheetos.” I grinned.

When we were out in the middle of the lake, I pulled in the oar.

I looked around at the beautiful pines, let the clean air fill my lungs, and told her, “This is where I wanted to propose. I had this big plan and something kept preventing me from getting us here. But now, I think it happened 381/510

this way for a reason.” I took the letter from Martin out of my pocket and handed it to her.

“What’s this?” she asked.

“Just read it.”

I listened as she read the letter aloud:

“Dear Nicolas…” I closed my eyes and let the words I had memorized move right through me, her voice choking out the last sentence when she reached the end. “Oh, Nico,” she cried and moved carefully into my arms. “I’m sorry, I just…”

“Why are you apologizing?” I asked as I held her arms to steady her.

“I don’t want to be sad anymore,” she sniffed.

“You can be whatever you want, babe. I brought you here because you’re my forever girl. Just like the letter asked. I have never brought another soul here, and I’ve had this place for years now.”

“Really?”

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“I wouldn’t lie to you, Lark, and I especially wouldn’t lie about this.” I hoped she could see I meant what I said.

“I’m ready to try again, Nico.”

“Are you sure?” I asked, because there wasn’t anything I wanted more than to be intimate with her. I just wanted to feel that closeness. It was like I was on the outside of everything. It was happening to her, but I couldn’t do a damn thing to help, and I fucking hated it.

“I have this hurry up and wait thing going on right now. It’s like my body is telling me,

‘You better get working on that; you know what they say about a woman your age.’” That stupid fuckin’ doctor.

“Whatever you want, I’m on board. You want to try now, we can try now; we can try a year from now. I just want to know you’re okay.”

“If I wasn’t with you, I probably wouldn’t be. But you never ask me how I am 383/510

constantly or try to get me to talk about my feelings. I’m feelinged out, Nico. You make everything okay because I know you’re here.

It’s like somehow… never mind.” She said and shook the thought away as she forcefully grabbed a sandwich. “I’m gonna need my strength,” she mused. “I plan on riding you hard and putting you away wet.” I chuckled at her joke. “What were you gonna say before.”

“It was nothing, I can’t even remember now.” She smiled and opened her mouth to take a huge bite.

“Liar,” I said and smiled.

“Seriously,” she said as lettuce fell from her mouth.

“Swallow,” I told her.

“So bossy. I love it when you tell me to swallow.” Her playful side had been absent for a while.

“It’s great to have you back, babe.” 384/510

She put down the sandwich. “It’s great to be back.”

We finished our lunch and went back to the cabin. We made dinner together, and I cleaned up while she read a book. Eventually, our mutual, nervous silence led me to bed and Lark to have a bath. Her hair was still damp as she climbed into the bed next to me. I opened my arms so I could feel her cheek against my chest.

Her lips kissed just above my ribs, and the tip of her tongue flicked my nipple. “How come you haven’t tattooed your chest?”

“I’m waiting,” I replied.

“For what?”

“I’ll know it when I see it.” I turned my head to meet the top of hers and laid a gentle kiss there. “You’re nervous, too.”

“It’s been a while,” she said. “But before you say something nice like ‘we can wait’ or whatever, I am ready. I think I…
we
… need this to move on.”

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She was right, and I felt the same way; I just hadn’t verbalized it. Instead, I showed her. With every touch of my lips to her skin, every brush of my fingers on her body, I made a trail from the curve of her neck, to her round breasts, and finally laid my hand over her belly. She lifted her head and kissed me deeply, and suddenly, the animal in my girl was unleashed. Lark straddled me, lifting one of my t-shirts over her head and tossing it across the room. Her hands grabbed the sides of my head to guide my mouth to her breasts. She rubbed her wetness up and down my erection before she grabbed my dick in her hand and guided herself slowly down.

“Feels so damn good, babe,” I groaned.

“God, it does,” she said on a breathy sigh as she moved up and down my shaft. She increased her speed and laced her fingers with mine. “Nico?”

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“Fuck… yeah babe?” I was so close to coming, I had to concentrate to hold myself back.

“Love me,” she requested.

I sat up, her knees tight against my hips.

One hand wrapped around her waist while the other held the back of her neck. I moved in a slow grind beneath her while she rode each rise and fall of our connection.

“I missed this, missed you…” I said into her neck as she rose up to kiss me.

“Me, too,” she said against my lips.

I wrapped my fingers around her hair and looked at her until she opened her eyes, keeping our gaze locked together until I felt her walls clenching me. I shuddered beneath her and came hard, her tears in the heat of the moment spilling over. I grunted out a final moan and held her deep, stretched around me, and lowered her down to the bed.

“Keep going,” she urged, crossing her ankles at my back. “But this time, don’t hold 387/510

back,” she said with dark eyes and pure fuckin’ sex on her tongue.

I grabbed her ass in my hands and slammed her against my dick as she gasped out, “Yes, Nico!”

“You can scream my name all you want out here, babe. Fuckin’ shout it from the mountain top,” I said on each broken breath while I pounded into her. I watched as she squeezed her breasts, her hands moving across her body. Her head tipped up, each thrust pushed a sexy fuckin’ moan from her lips until I knew she was close again. “Gonna do this ‘till I can’t, babe.”

“I… love… you…
ahh
!” she screamed out, not my name, but it didn’t matter one fuckin’

bit. My girl was back, in my arms, in our bed.

***

A few days later, most of which we spent naked, it was time to head back home. I had been downtown a week before we’d left, 388/510

trying to clear my head, when I walked past the shop where my journal had come from.

On the tiled floor, they had these garden stones on display. Some had Chinese symbols, some had little phrases, but one stood out above the rest. I looked at it through the window when the car that had been parked behind me left, shooting sunlight against the shop and casting that same bear paw right over that particular stone.

Now I stood next to Lark. “Babe?”

“Yeah, I just want to look around and make sure we didn’t forget anything.”

“I already did. I got something… I hope I didn’t do the wrong thing here, but… anyway…” I said, nervously handing her the plain brown box.

“What is this? It’s really heavy.” She opened it slowly and looked up at me for an explanation.

“Do you remember me telling you about my client, Angelica?” I took the box from her 389/510

hands and opened the thin tissue to reveal a stone in the shape of a heart. “She gets a heart for every day she carried her baby. I don’t want to forget this, Lark. I don’t want it to be like it never happened, so I got this to leave here. This place is for our family.” She slowly took the stone and held it against her chest, leaned up and kissed me.

“Nico…” She nodded, her tears spilling over.

“It’s perfect,” she said quietly and laid the stone prominently next to the bottom step.

***

“The parents have been here,” she said, walking in as I followed with our bags. Not only could you smell a mixture of pine and lemon, there was a huge basket filled with baked goods and fruit with a note that said ‘Welcome home.’

“Well,” I said, as I dropped the bags to the floor and pulled her into my arms, “at least 390/510

we don’t have to go shopping for a while.” I tucked her hair behind her ears. “You okay?”

“I’m okay. I just wish I could shake this feeling. It’s weird, Nico. I was fine at the cabin. Maybe it’s just the memory… since it happened here.”

I wish I hadn’t felt it, too. “We’re gonna make new memories here, and that’s just one in a ton of good ones. You wanna break out some of that ‘stemware’ and that cheese thing and ask Teensy and Zack over tonight?”

“We should play cards or something! And it’s fondue… the cheese thing. But you can use chocolate, too. Mmm, I can’t wait!” Her face had lit up beautifully.

“See? A new memory. A good one.” Hours later, after Zack closed the studio, he and Teensy walked in. I told him to bring the bank deposit so he wouldn’t have to worry about it. He deserved an entire day off.

Lark and Teensy talked about the wedding 391/510

which was only a few weeks away. “Are you having a bachelorette party or a shower?” Lark asked.

“Nah, Zack and I are having a joint party.

Didn’t Nico tell you?”

With everything else going on, I had actually completely forgotten about it.

I apologized. “I forgot, sorry.”

“Dude, how could you forget? Your two Fuckables are doing a show!” he said with dreamy eyes I wanted to rip from their sock-ets. “Ouch! Why’d you hit me?” he whined at Teensy.

“Seriously?” she asked.

“What?” he looked at her, then me, and I was sure my face said everything.

“Fuckables?” Lark enquired with both eyebrows raised.

Before Teensy could stop him, Zack went into full explanation mode. “Yeah, the night Nico was attacked, he had this threesome with these two chicks that look like twins.

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They’re not, but now they have this video series and they’re called, ‘The Adventures of The Fuckables’. It was wild man. I opened the bathroom door a little bit and Nico was—”

I smacked the back of his head. “What the fuck is wrong with you!” I yelled.

“What? That was before Lark, man. Teensy and I talk about all our previous fuck buddies.”

“That’s you guys, you asshole.” I looked over at Lark who was actually smiling.

“Babe?” I asked. My chest rose as I tried to control the urge to beat the shit out of my friend.

“Nico”, she said. “I could tell you this story about the time I went to Vegas, right after Shane and I broke up. I got a suite at the MGM Grand, met these three guys on Spring Break, and asked them if they wanted to have some fun. It was fun all right. I had one taking me—”

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“Stop. Fucking. Talking!” I shouted.

Lark was laughing her ass off, Teensy was trying to hold her grin behind a huge wine glass, and Zack was actually rolling around on the floor. I opened the front door and slammed it behind me. I was pissed at Zack for bringing my past to slap me in the face in front of Lark, I was pissed that I had to hear about Lark with another man or men, even if it did make me a huge hypocrite, and I was pissed that, even though we were engaged, something was off and I couldn’t put my finger on it.

I walked up and down the sidewalk in front of the studio, thinking that, one, I was a dickhead, and two, how nice it would be to smoke a fuckin’ cigarette right about now when I heard, “Nico?”

“What!” I shouted. Then I saw Dee, unexpected, standing on the sidewalk in front of me. “Dee?”

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“You know who I am,” she stated, not even trying to hide her sarcasm.

I couldn’t stand it anymore. “What the fuck is your problem with me, Dee?”