Are You Bored Yet? // Wallows

Holly

I put the finishing touches on my side braid while trying to avoid looking my reflection in the eye because I can't stand my pink cheeks anymore. I've been blushing for almost a solid week anytime I think of Jackson.

The way his hands slid to the back of my head.

The way he leaned closer as my heart raced.

The look in his eye right before he moved the final inch.

The moment his lips pressed against mine.

If the kiss by the lake was a ten out of ten, the kiss at my doorstep was a twenty. And it went on much longer than the first one. My fingers fisted his shirt as his mouth moved over mine. His hands gripped me, cupping my head then moving to caress my jaw. Tingles and sparks erupted on my skin, everywhere.

My panties had never been so soaked. Ruined.

I fan myself after securing the braid, something I've done more times than I can count as my mind replays the moment that I've come to know as my branding. I'll never be the same now that Jackson has kissed me like that.

But it's what he said afterwards, as I held onto the doorknob for dear life, that has stuck with me the most. Given me a high I had no idea I could experience.

I'm yours now, Holly. No way to deny it anymore.

He didn't say I was his, which would have been hot, I admit. He didn't claim me even though his words were a claim in and of themselves. He devoted himself to me, instead. Somehow, that's hotter than a possessive claim. It says something more.

Not that belonging to him would be a hardship. No, I don't think that for a second. I want to belong to him. But for him to give himself to me so assuredly, so completely and without question...I've never felt like that in my life. Not with anyone.

There hasn't been a day where I didn't feel like someone owned a piece of me. My duty, my time, my obedience. It's like Jackson knew instinctively that being claimed would have felt expected. I've never spoken a thing about my reality to him, other than my slip that first night we went to the mud creek. But he understands more deeply than I could imagine.

Unless it was blind luck that he didn't voice the typical growly alpha male mantra 'you're mine' after that epic kiss.

No. He knows me better than that. I feel it to my very core. He senses my needs before I even understand them myself.

I take a deep breath and return to the present moment, blinking away my emotions to put the finishing touches on my soft makeup. I chance a look into my eyes in the mirror and find brightness reflected back to me. I don't have much to look forward to in my day to day life, until now. And the light sparkling in my eyes is a direct result.

I exit the bathroom, waiting for the ominous knock by my date. Jackson made it very clear last time that he wanted to come to the door and say hi to my mom. Thank goodness my dad is still out of town and I can agree to his request. I've already prepped Mom to keep things light and simple, let Jackson say hello and not try to rope him in with small talk.

As I'm folding a knitted throw blanket for the couch, the long-awaited knock comes, startling me into awareness.

"Coming!" I almost trip over my own feet scurrying to the door. When I swing it open to see a devastatingly handsome Jackson waiting on the other side, all the oxygen in my lungs whooshes right out.

"Hi," he says softly, a hungry look in his eye as he gazes at me, taking in my light blue sleeveless top and skinny jeans. I felt good before he saw me, but the look he's giving me now makes me feel like a sex kitten. That's new.

I tug on the tail of my braid. "Hi." Jackson is mouth-watering in a fitted black t-shirt and jeans. I can't see his ass from this angle, but I can imagine how good it looks giftwrapped in denim. It's not even my birthday but suddenly I want to tear at that wrapping and open up my present.

I choke on my own saliva at the thought, causing Jackson to take a step forward and pat me on the back. Perfect. I can't even ogle the man without injuring myself.

"Are you okay? What happened?"

I cough. "Nothing." My voice sounds strained. "I'm fine. Do you want to say hi to my mom?"

I never thought pulling Jackson into the house to see her would be a relief, an anecdote to my mortification, but here we are. I rush to lead him to her bedroom doorway where she's been all afternoon watching some show about bears.

"Mom, Jackson's here."

Jackson waves as my mom beams.

"Hi there. Been too long. Glad you came back around to see my Holly girl."

Jackson clears his throat before glancing at me then back at my mom.

"I'm glad as well. How have you been?"

My nerves amp up as he asks, such a common phrase people ask each other every day in passing. But in this house, that's one hell of a loaded question.

"Oh, I've been doing fine. And yourself? What's keeping you occupied these days?"

Jackson smiles at me. "Your daughter first and foremost, but I pay the bills as an accountant."

"My, my, that's fancy. Good for-" Mom gets cut off by a coughing fit. I rush to her side and hand her a glass of water. I sense Jackson hovering, probably wanting to help but not knowing what to do.

"I'm fine," Mom says as she puts the water back on the side table and waves me off. "You two should get going before you end up nursing over me all night. Wouldn't want that."

I know she's not trying to stir up my guilt, but that comment succeeds anyhow. I wring my hands and look at Jackson, feeling concerned now about leaving her alone for a few hours. She already spends most of her day by herself, even when Dad is in town. But today I've noticed an increase in her coughing spells.

"Mom, do you want some medicine to calm those spasms?"

"Just leave the bottle by the bed. And some fresh water if you can, honey."

I nod before grabbing her glass and taking it to the kitchen for a refill and to grab the cough meds. Jackson is behind me when I turn back with the supplies. I almost crash right into him.

"Oof!" I exclaim as I pull to a quick stop.

"Sorry." His hands shoot out to steady me. "Here, let me take the glass."

I hand him the water and look up at the man opposite of me. I don't want him to read the concern in my eyes, but he's done so anyway.

"We can stay here tonight, if that makes you feel better."

"Are you sure?"

His molten eyes hypnotize me. Jackson puts the glass of water on the counter next to him, grabbing the cough medicine from my hands to do the same. Then he pulls me to him by my waist and leans his forehead against mine.

"I've very sure. Your mom is having a tough time. It's important to you that she's comfortable and cared for which makes it important to me, also."

His offer is concise, without a hint of double meaning. He really would be fine to stay here to care for my mom if that's what I wanted. He wouldn't end up frustrated with me if I took him up on the offer. I don't know that I've ever met such a selfless man.

I wrap my arms around his shoulders and press my cheek against his. "I'm so sorry if I'm ruining your plans."

He shakes his head slightly, just enough for me to notice.

"My only plan is to spend time with you, and that hasn't been ruined. Why don't you make sure your mom is comfortable while I order us some food. I'll get enough for all of us and we can watch a movie together or something."

I look him in the eyes, searching for any sign that he's disappointed, but see nothing of the sort.

"Okay, that sounds good. Thank you." I lean in to kiss him quickly, but Jackson doesn't let me go, giving me another version of our late night, porch kiss. This one is equally branding, equally heated. Only it's the start of our night, rather than the end. A night to be spent on the couch...with my mom.

I groan internally, realizing what we just gave up.

***

Jackson

Holly and I sit close together on the couch as the movie plays, one she and her mom picked. A sappy romcom. It's not my usual pick but a few scenes had Holly snuggling into me so I'm not complaining. Her mom continued to cough deeply, even with medicine. This should be awkward as hell. I should be itching to get the fuck out of here, sitting with my date's mom as we all watch kissing scenes together. But I'm not. It isn't strange at all.

In fact, it's comfortable. Relaxing, even. I could do this again.

Which is a mind fuck in and of itself. I have never done a meet the parents with a girl I've dated. And I use the term dating very loosely. I've been a casual guy which I never thought much about until Holly. Even though I don't have a track record of committed boyfriend material, I'm not a bit worried about how committed I am to Holly. I've already told her in no uncertain terms, I'm hers. She may not be fully mine yet—I can tell she's cautious, hesitant to be that for me—I have every confidence that she will be, soon. Call it fate, or call it stupidity, I don't care.

One thing that putting my girl, Polly, down did for me was bring a hyper awareness to how fucking alone I've always been. It's been me and the dog since I was six. She was the only companion I could count on to love me no matter what. She never asked anything of me other than attention and I gave that in buckets. I missed the hell out of that dog even before she passed, watching how she deteriorated with old age. Losing her was a walking sore spot.

Until Holly.

Seeing her again felt like a new chance. Like Polly held me together just long enough for me to find Holly again.

And fuck if I'm going to blow it with this girl. Nah. Not happening.

My arm already wrapped around her shoulder, I pull Holly closer as the movie comes to an end. Tears glisten in her eyes as she watches the two main characters literally ride off into the sunset.

"Oh, that was so sweet," she whispers as I kiss her temple. "Mom, did you like it?"

We both look over to Holly's mom to find her sound asleep in the recliner.

"Oh, I guess I should help her to bed." Holly gets up to tend to her mom.

"Let me help you," I say as I move to the opposite side of the chair.

"That's okay. I'm used to doing it alone. I can manage."

"Holly, you don't have to manage if I'm helping. It will be less jarring on your mom."

That gets her to agree. She rouses her mom just enough for us to get her to her feet and shuffle to the bed. Once she's settled and her door is closed, the two of us return to the living room.

"Um, I can walk you to your truck," she says hesitantly.

But I'm not ready to leave.

"Or we can sit on the couch and make out."

Holly looks at me with sparkle in her eyes. "Yeah, let's do that."

She giggles as I lead her to sit down. "I've always wondered what a make out session on the couch would be like."

I lean in close to her, push the tendrils of hair away from her face, cup her jaw and whisper, "Now you can find out."

My lips find hers, angling just enough to pluck at her top lip before running my tongue along the seam. She opens up to me and I take the opportunity to dive in. We go from sweet one moment, to hot and heavy the next.

I pull her legs onto my lap, dragging her closer. Her arms are around my waist, hands teasing under the hem of my shirt, exploring my skin and sending chills along my spine.

Mine move from her jaw to her shoulders to her back, no true direction. Trying to take in as much of her as I can. Before I even realize what I'm doing, I've got Holly sprawled out on the couch beneath me, her legs practically wrapped around my waist. It's my hands exploring under her shirt now, her soft skin, thumbs rubbing circles on her waistline.

"Jackson," Holly mumbles into my mouth as I reach around one of her thighs, yanking it up higher and thrusting between her legs. Like an animal I'm moving on instinct not thought.

"Jackson." This time she says it with her palms pushing flat against my chest. "Stop."

That gets my attention. I let go of her leg and lift off of her immediately.

"Fuck, I'm sorry." I run a hand through my hair, trying to catch my breath.

"No, I'm sorry. It's just that my mom..." Her words trail off as she glances back to her mom's bedroom door.

I nod. "Yeah, I understand. It's okay. You just..." I'm not sure I should finish that statement.

"I just what?" Holly crosses her arms, eyes sharp and mouth tight.

I pull her into a hug. "You drive me crazy. I can't get close enough to you."

Holly melts into me. "If we were alone..."

"I know. Same." I hug her tight. "But we're not." And I'm not sure how to make that happen since she lives with her parents and I sleep on a couch in a tattoo parlor. In the past this would be a deal breaker because I was all about the hook up. But Holly is everything to me. Not having privacy to screw is not going to drive me away. It will happen when it happens. I'm happy to spend all of the time I can with her.

I kiss her goodnight and wait on the porch until I hear all of the locks engage. Not taking any chances in this neighborhood. Then I jump in my truck and drive home. To the dusty couch I call a bed. Alone.

A realization hits me like a fuck ton of bricks as I settle in for the night a half hour later, music pumping in the shop as the artists continue working on clients. This isn't sustainable. I can't stay here forever. I'm the guy who leaves. But I don't know what that will mean for Holly and me.

Because for the first time in my life, one thing is absolutely certain: there is no way I'm leaving this girl.

Things got just a touch spicy on the couch, am I right?? I'm thinking that this story might be a little more like Grinder's story in that aspect. But who knows. I sure don't!! Isn't that half the fun?

Did you see that inevitable is now a paid story? So many were reading and rereading right up to Thursday when the paywalls went up. (And the new cover got uploaded-thoughts? Cause I've got some big ones-that's all I'm saying).  Let me know if you see it pop up on your recommended stories or lists. I haven't seen it yet so I'm not sure how readers are finding it.❤️❤️❤️

This song by Wallows is kind of an awkward date song, Are You Bored Yet? And I'm thinking this is Holly's mindset as she realizes they are spending date night with her mom. As you can see, Jackson was anything but bored.

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

LOVE YOU GUYS!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!❤️❤️