I got off the phone with my parents after giving them my daily update and assuring them everything was fine here and walked into the kitchen to find my boyfriend cooking for me. Shirtless. 

I was a lucky girl. 

His shoulders were tense, his muscles tight, as he focused on whatever he was cooking. My hands itched to rub his shoulders and help him relax, maybe kiss him... and maybe take his pants off. He took a pan off the stove, and I watched his muscles shift as he moved. 

Jeez, I was acting like a creepy pervert.

Completely oblivious to my thoughts, he turned around after a moment and my breath caught in my throat as I had a full view of his torso.

"Do you like crepes?"

I shook myself from the ab-induced trance and focused on what he was saying. "I don't think I've ever had crepes."

"I think you'll like it, it's like a thin pancake." He gave me a small smile, gesturing towards the plate.  "Strawberries or bananas?"

"Both?" 

"You got it." He spooned cubes of fresh fruit and placed it on a crepe, folding it up and pouring a generous amount of Nutella over it.

"Why exactly are you shirtless?" I asked after a moment.

He grinned. "I was all sweaty from the run, and I didn't have any clothes to shower and change into, so..."

"So you took off your t-shirt, " I finished for him and nodded. I wasn't complaining. Not at all.

I suddenly remembered I still had a hoodie of his that I had claimed as mine without even asking him. I wore it around the house –in a non creepy way– because it's so big and comfy, but also because it reminded me of him– again, totally not creepy. 

"I still have your hoodie, I forgot to give it back to you." Lies! "It's from the night we went to the lake, and got drenched in the rain...swam in the lake...remember?" 

It was also the night we had our first kiss.

"It's not a night I'll forget, tiger." He smiled. "And just so you know, it's my favorite hoodie." 

"Well...it's mine now." I gave him a cheeky smile and he grinned. "I'll let you borrow it for now though." 

"Nah, it's alright. Keep it, I'm hot anyway. " 

Damn right, you are!

I swallowed and smiled, taking a bite from the plate in front of me.

"This is so good!!" I exclaimed, after a moment. "Is there anything you can't do?"

He chuckled, as he sat down beside me with his plate. "I can't take full credit for this though, Ryan taught me how to make these. He is an incredible cook." 

I nodded. "I remember him cooking for us at the beach house, he's got some serious skills. 

He nodded in agreement and then asked. "What plans do you have for today?"

"Not much, I just have to make a quick trip to the grocery store and restock the fridge, before Neil, Avi and Ash come over. What about you?"

"I'll go home, I need to take care of  something and I'll see you later. We need to talk about what happened last night and do something about it, we can't just let it slide, " he said and I nodded, there was no point in arguing otherwise. I knew he wouldn't let it go.

The rest of the breakfast went smoothly. We fell into an easy rhythm– laughing and teasing each other as we ate. Anxious excitement swelled in my chest. It felt so normal. So happy and complete. It felt too good to be true.

After we finished our breakfast, I sighed and patted my tummy. "Why aren't breakfast dates a more popular thing? I mean, forget fancy dinner reservations, let's have food in our PJs!" 

He grinned. "So this was a date?" 

Oh boy. "I mean...it could be." I shrugged. "Okay, I'm going to go shower."

"Not so fast." He caught me by the waist, while I tried to sprint upstairs, and whispered in my ear. "Doesn't this date end with a kiss?"

I chuckled and turned around in his arms. When I looked into his eyes, I was once again reminded of the fact that he was so quickly becoming the center of my life. My balance. My anchor.

He kept me grounded, brought me a sense of calm, and I swear to God that every time he touched me he brought me to life, breathing essence into my being with his kiss– with his touch.

He kissed me softly, but I needed more. I craved more. I tangled my fingers in his hair and pressed my body closer to his. He took the cue and lifted me onto the edge of the kitchen counter. 

He tilted his head and started kissing the side of my neck, first just below the ear then lower. His mouth began a slow trail down toward my shoulder and the sensations that danced across my skin at the contact made my head buzz.

"Tell me if you want me to stop, " he murmured against my neck. His voice  deeper than usual and dripping with desire. He tightened his hold on my hip, pulling me closer to him. His other hand moved to the shoulder of the oversized t-shirt I was wearing, yanking it aside so that he can continue his soft march of kisses, making me shiver involuntarily.

I gasped as he nipped me with his teeth and slid his hand under my t-shirt. His hands moved up the side of my ribs with such agonizing slowness that I had to struggle to keep myself from taking his hand and placing it where I wanted it the most. My breathing was shallow and uneven as he cupped my breasts and gave it a gentle squeeze. I felt my nipples harden at his touch as he used his thumbs to teased them through the fabric of my bra.

I let out a shivery moan and sought his lips in a demanding kiss. He broke away after a minute, gasping, and murmured "We should stop."

I knew why he wanted to stop, I could read the concern written across his face. He knew that someone else had put their hands under my shirt once, he knew that I still lived with that fright inside me, he knew it still haunted me. But he had no way of knowing that every simple touch from him, done with utmost care and concern had erased that memory, replacing it with an image of  warmth and intimacy.

I pulled away from him for a moment and grabbed the hem of my t-shirt and yanked it over my head. The sound of his sharp intake of breath, stole my own.

Tyler swallowed hard as he drank me in for a few breathless seconds and then whispered roughly, "Fuck, you're gorgeous."

"I don't want to stop."

He searched my face for a few long moments looking for any hesitancy or doubt on my part, before slamming his lips back on mine.

"My room." I gasped against his lips. He lifted me up from the counter and I immediately wrapped my legs around his waist and drew my hands around his neck, as he carried me up the stairs. I rocked my hips against his, making him groan and he caught my lips in another feverish kiss.

Once inside my room, he laid me down on the bed and sprawled on top of me. The weight of him pressing me into the mattress made me feel deliciously dominated.

He flattened his palm against the warm skin on my stomach and slowly slid it lower until he reached the waistband of the cotton shorts I was wearing. Looking me in the eyes he slipped his hand inside and reached between my legs, groaning when he found the soaked crotch of my panties. When he started stroking me through the fabric, my body swelled with a rush of pleasure so intense my eyes rolled back in my head. 

I pressed myself harder against his hand and he obeyed my silent order by speeding up his caresses and I shuddered. "That's it, tiger, let it go." 

My hips started moving against his hand, as he left wet kisses up my neck and took my ear lobe between his teeth, making me moan. Within seconds he sent me over the edge, and I cried out his name, as my hips bucked against his hand and I felt my core spasm in the most delicious way. 

Once I came down from my high, breathing in short staccato breaths, unable to catch my breath, he withdrew his hand from my shorts and kissed my lips softly. "You okay?" 

"I can't feel my fingers or my toes, " I admitted. "Is that normal?" 

I felt him smile against my cheek. "That means I did a good job." 

"Oh that you did." I chuckled and ran my hands down his torso, but he stopped me right before I could go any further.

"Don't." He rolled away from me, before gathering me back in his arms and pulling me closer. "I want today to just be about you."

"But–"

"I mean it." He looked down at me and I nodded. "Now can I use your bathroom? I'm in need of a long cold shower."

***

One hour later, I had finished loading up my cart with everything I needed and was wheeling it towards the cash register.  when I heard a snarky voice speak up from behind me. "Of all people in the world, I had to run into you."

I turned around and found Heather standing there with some medicines in her hands, a scowl gracing her face. I didn't bother to acknowledge her and tried to quickly pay for my stuff so that I could walk away. I didn't want her to spoil my mood. She'd have to come back some other day, because today I had zero fucks to give.

But she wasn't about to let me go that easily. As soon as I turned around to walk towards the exit, she asked, "What happened to your hand? Got into another fight?"

"Not really, this one is courtesy of your boyfriend," I muttered, and started walking away but she followed me.

"What!?" She stared at me, wide-eyed. "What the hell do you mean?"

"He broke into my house last night and threw a damn brick through my window!"

She closed her eyes for a second and shook her head. "You were in the house when he did that?"

This got my attention. I stopped walking and turned to look at her with narrowed eyes. "You knew about it, " I stated.

"He told me it was just a small prank, and that nobody was in the house, " she murmured.

I rolled my eyes. "What a fucking psycho! How is that okay?"

"At least that wouldn't hurt you!" She shot back, defensively.

"I can't believe you're so stupid." I shook my head at her. "I know that we've had this stupid rivalry going on since we were kids, but he is taking it too far. How can you not see that? Even after what he did to you!"

"He didn't do anything to me, " she mumbled, looking away.

"Still in denial, I see," I scoffed.

She shot me a glare. "Well, I...I'm sorry for what happened last night."

I was shocked. It looked like it physically hurt her to apologize to me, but she did and that was something.

When she started walking away, a sudden thought popped in my head and I called out to her, "Hey! Wait."

"What?" She turned to look at me, confused.

"How did Max know that I was home alone last night? Because I'm pretty sure he wouldn't do all of that if there was any chance of my parents being home."

"I...I don't know." She looked away, shifting on her feet uncomfortably. "Look, I gotta go."

I sighed and nodded. Maybe she really had no idea, or maybe she did. But I couldn't force her to tell me things she didn't want to, especially when I knew that Max was fully capable of her hurting her for it.

"Leave him before it's too late." I leveled her with a pointed stare. "Do it for yourself. Respect yourself enough to walk away from him."

When she didn't say anything, I turned around, heading back towards the exit. I wanted to help her, and I would– in any way I could. But first, she should want to help herself.

"It was Sam!" She called out from behind me, making me freeze in my tracks.

I slowly turned back to where she was standing. "What?"

"It was Sam. She was the one who told me about your dad and all your family matters. And I told them to Max, " she blurted out.

A/n:-

Thoughts? 👀

Thank you so much for reading and I'm sorry for being inconsistent with the updates, life has been rough, but I'm hoping to get back on track soon. :/