“Think you’ve got it?” Terry asks as I poke at the iPad screen to navigate the cash register app.

“It’s pretty straightforward.”

Terry watches as I ring up the next customer.

“Nice!” he says.  “Now we can alternate.  One of us does the register while the other makes the drinks until we get tired of what we’re doing.  Then we can switch.  Or we can alternate customers—whatever you prefer.”

“Let’s alternate customers,” I say.  “That way I can remember what I’m making.”

“Deal!”  Terry gives me a big smile, and I return it.  I’ve decided his smiles are contagious.

We fall into a smooth rhythm for a while.  Around ten o’clock, the man who is always following me around comes in.  He lets a woman go in front of him, and I’m pretty sure it’s so he ends up with Terry taking his order and not me.

He can think he’s subtle, but he’s not.  In fact, he’s as obvious as he could possibly be.  I do take note of the name Terry writes on his cup—Charlie.  I wonder if it’s even his real name.  He goes to the back table with his newspaper and coffee.

“Has he always been a regular?” I ask Terry.

“The weird guy?”  Terry winks.

“Yeah, the one who always sits in the back and reads the paper.”

“Who reads newspapers anymore?”

“Right?”  We both laugh.

“I guess he’s been coming in here regularly for the last few weeks.  I’m pretty good about remembering customers.”

“About the time I first started coming here?”

“Hmm…maybe.”  Terry tilts his head and looks at the ceiling.  “A week after, I think.  Why?”

“Just curious.”

“Do you know him?”

“No, but I’ve seen him around.”

My shift ends in the afternoon, and as soon as I head out the door, I see “Charlie” across the street on a bench near the bus stop.  I watch him out of the corner of my eye as he stands and follows me down the street at a distance.

I am already sure he’s following me, and this just adds to my evidence.  If I ever decide to ask Deklan about it, he won’t be able to deny it.  There are just too many coincidences.

Surprisingly, Deklan is home when I get there.

“Do you want the good news or the bad news?” he asks as soon as I walk in.

I hesitate.  I’m not sure if I want to hear either one.

“Good?”  I hang my jacket up on the hook and walk over to the kitchen.

“I’m taking the rest of today off,” Deklan says as he wraps his arms around me.  He kisses me gently before letting go.

“What’s the bad news?”

“I need to make some preparations,” he says.  “In the morning, I have to leave for a couple of days.”

I frown.

“Do you have to?”  It’s a stupid question, but I ask anyway.

“Yeah, I do.”

“The whole weekend?”

“I should be back Sunday night.  I guess it’s a good thing you got that job, or you’d be stuck here all weekend on your own.”

“I requested the weekend off.”

“Why did you do that?”

“It’s my birthday weekend.”

“What?”  Deklan’s eyes go wide.  “Are you serious?  Fuck, Kera—I had no idea.  I never…well, shit.  I never even asked you when your birthday was.”

“Saturday,” I say with a shrug.  “It’s no big deal.  I can occupy myself for a couple of days.”

“I’m so sorry, babe.  I’ll make it up to you.  We can go out tonight or when I get back—wherever you want.  Dinner, movie…anything.”

“It’s okay.”  It’s not, but I’m trying not to get angry.  I never mentioned my birthday, so I can hardly blame Dek for not knowing it was so soon.  “We can do something when you get back.  Where are you going?”

“Chicago.”

“Why?”

“Don’t ask too many questions, babe.  You know I’m not going to give you the details.  I will make it up to you though—promise.”

He pulls me close to him again, kissing me gently and stroking my cheek.

“Let me make you dinner for a change,” he says.  “I don’t cook as well as you do, but I didn’t starve before you were here, either.”

“You wouldn’t poison a girl before she’s even legal to drink, would you?”

“Nah.”  Deklan grins and kisses me again.  “Maybe I’ll even give you a glass of wine before I lure you to my bed.  You young ones are easy to manipulate.”

I struggle playfully in his grasp, calling him a jerk as he wrestles me against the counter and shoves his hand down the front of my leggings.  My muscles rebel against me when his fingers reach the right spot, and he slowly circles as he holds me upright.

“You’re already wet,” he says.  “Have you been thinking about me on the way home?”

“Always,” I say, breathless.  “You always leave me wanting you.”

“I try.”  He captures my mouth with his, kissing me deeply as his fingers slide inside my body.  He twists and turns them until I moan into his mouth.

“Forget dinner,” I say as I push against his chest.  “Let’s just go to bed.”

Deklan grins as he swoops down and lifts me up off the floor.  He tosses me over his shoulder as I squeal and then hauls me to the bedroom.

I don’t even know what happens to my clothes.  They just seem to fall to the ground along with Deklan’s as his mouth and tongue demand all my attention.  He throws me backward onto the bed, and is immediately on top of me, pushing my legs apart and entering me swiftly as I cry out and grasp his shoulders.  He grabs my wrists and holds them above his head, immobilizing me.

I let my head drop back against the mattress and just let myself feel for a moment.  My skin tingles everywhere he touches me.  I arch up when he runs his tongue over my nipples and then blows cool air across them and pull my knees up, allowing him better access as he drives into me in a slow, comfortable rhythm.

My heart pounds.  My breathing is labored, and my muscles are tight.  I’m already close when he suddenly pulls out.

“Aargh!” I cry in protest.  “Don’t stop.”

“Roll over.”  Deklan releases my wrists and grins down at me.

He leans back on his heels, grabs me by the hips, and pulls me over until I’m on my stomach.  He snakes a hand under me and pulls me up on my hands and knees.

“Spread those legs for me. There you go…”  Deklan runs his hands over my thighs, pushing my legs a little farther apart.  He grips my hips and pulls me back against his hard cock, rubbing it between my legs.  Sliding his hands up my sides and around to the front, he pulls lightly at my nipples, and I moan.  “You like that, baby?”

“So far.”  I don’t know how I feel about being in this position.  We’ve always faced each other before—either him or me on top, but never like this.  I feel vulnerable as I look over my shoulder.

Deklan’s eyes shine in the dim light of the bedroom.  He reaches to my shoulders and massages them, and I relax a little.

“If you decide you don’t like it, just tell me.”  Deklan gathers my hair up in one hand and kisses the back of my neck.  “I can stop any time.”

He releases my hair, allowing it to fall over my shoulder, and then trails his fingers down the center of my back.  I feel him grip my hip with one hand before he presses the tip of his cock against me and slides forward.

I gasp.  The angle in this position makes everything feel different.  A deep groan comes from Deklan’s throat as he leans over my back, rubbing my shoulders and arms.

“Do you like that?”  I feel his hot breath on the back of my neck.

“It feels different.”

“Good kind of different?”

“Yes.”  I adjust my knees against the mattress and push back against him a bit, and Deklan grunts as he buries himself deeper.

He moves back and forth slowly a few times, then a little faster.  He reaches around and grips my breasts, pinches my nipples, and kisses between my shoulder blades before he sits back up, changing the angle again, and starts moving with long, hard trusts.

“Oh, God!” I cry out.  I reach forward and dig my fingers into the sheets as I try to match his pace, pushing back to meet each stroke.

“Do you know how perfect you look with your ass in the air and my cock sliding in and out of you?”

“Fuck…Deklan…ugh!”

“Sweet Jesus, that feels good.”

He moves faster and harder, and each thrust feels like it’s going deeper than the last.  He grips my hips hard and pulls me back against him as he moves.

“I want you to feel this,” Deklan says, punctuating each word with a thrust, “every moment I’m gone.  I want you so sore, you can’t walk without thinking about me.”

He continues his relentless pounding until I can no longer hold myself up on my arms.  With my face pressed against the mattress, I give up trying to match his pace, and just let him take me as he wants.

“Give me your hand,” he says as he slows down for a moment.

I reach my hand down toward his knees, and he takes it, moving it to my center.

“Touch yourself,” he says.  “Make yourself come on my cock.”

I can barely make my muscles obey my commands, but I do as he says, rubbing my fingers back and forth and then in a circle around my clit.  Deklan pulls back and then slams into me.

“Ahh!”

“Shush!”  He smacks my ass but only lightly.  It surprises me but doesn’t hurt.  “Play with that pussy.  I want to feel you tighten up around me.”

He pulls back and slams home again and again.  I cry out with each deep thrust, matching the furiousness of his movements with my fingers until the tidal wave builds, crests, and crashes all around me.

“Sweet Jesus, yes…”  Deklan moans as I fall apart from the inside out.  My muscles give up on me, and Deklan has to hold my hips to keep me upright as he leans over, grabs my arms tightly, and starts pounding quickly.  “Oh, God!  Kera!  Kera!”

With a long groan, Deklan thrusts hard and holds himself against me as I feel warmth spread deep inside.  He keeps himself there for a few seconds before he collapses on my back and rolls us both to our sides.

As we fall against the bed, he slips out of me with another grunt and then places a hand against my stomach, pressing my body to his.  I curl up with my back to his chest, thoughts of dinner completely gone from my head.  He wraps both arms around me and kisses my shoulder as he runs his thumb back and forth across my wrist.

“If I’m going to get that every time you travel,” I say, “you should travel more often.”

“You can have that every day when I’m here, as far as I’m concerned.  Three times on the weekends.”

“I’m already sore.”

“Good.”

I snicker and snuggle closer, suddenly exhausted.

The next morning, Deklan is up early.  He’s showered and dressed before I even awaken.  I roll over and place my feet on the floor with a grunt.  My body resists every movement as I force myself to stand.

He’s definitely left me sore.  When I look at myself in the bathroom mirror, I see bruises on my arms and legs.  I don’t remember him holding me that tightly at the time, but I was rather caught up in it all.  I’ll definitely be thinking about him every time I take a step today, which was certainly his intention.  I can tell by the smirk on his face when he sees me waddle from the bathroom to the kitchen.

“Coffee?”  Deklan holds out a cup.

“Yes, please.”  I take the steaming cup and walk over to the couch.

Deklan butters his toast and wolfs it down as he pokes around in the suitcase by his feet.  He must have packed before I woke up.

“Are you flying or driving?” I ask.

“Driving,” he says, “but not my car.  I’ll leave you the keys in case you need to go somewhere.”

“Who’s going with you?”

Deklan’s only answer is a quick glance and a raised eyebrow.  I give up on the questions and just watch him finish shoving things into the suitcase and draining his coffee cup.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Deklan says.  “I feel guilty enough as it is.”

“Sorry.”  I’m pouty.  I don’t want to be alone on my birthday, and it makes me feel like a petulant child to be mad at Dek about it.  I take a deep breath and force myself to smile.  “What if I want to talk to you?”

“Emergencies, babe.”  Deklan hauls the suitcase to the door and then walks over to me.  He kneels in front of the couch and takes my face in his hands.  “I’ll be working.  Text if you really need something.  Call if there’s an emergency.”

“An emergency, like I’m horny and I need birthday phone sex?”

“Wish I could.”  Deklan grins at me as he shakes his head slowly.  “I’m sorry I’m leaving right before your birthday.”

“It’s all right.”  I wrap my arms around his neck and stand on my toes to reach him better.  “It’s my own fault for not telling you when it is.  Um, speaking of such, when is your birthday?”

“Christmas Eve.”  Deklan gives me a half smile.  “I always ended up with combined birthday/Christmas presents as a kid.  It sucked.”

“I suppose it did.”  I chuckle and hug him tightly.

Deklan leans back, stares into my eyes for a moment, and then presses his mouth to mine.  I try to hold on, but he breaks the kiss and smiles down at me as he stands.  A moment later, he’s out the door and gone.

My stomach sinks moments after he’s left.  Tomorrow is my twenty-first birthday, and I have no plans at all.  I could waste some time taking a shower, but at the moment, I still smell like Deklan, and I don’t want to wash him off of me just yet.  I stare into my cup of coffee, now gone cold, and sigh.

“Self-pity doesn’t suit you,” I say out loud.

Though I don’t have to work today, I decide to take a little walk to the coffee shop instead of warming my existing coffee in the microwave.  It would be nice to talk to Kathy for a bit.  The weather is finally turning warm, so I leave my jacket behind.  The sun is bright, and I squint as I let it warm my face.  It mellows my foul mood a bit but not enough.

As soon as I get down the street and turn my phone on, I already have a voicemail from Kathy telling me to call her immediately or face the gravest of punishments.  I snicker as I find her contact info and press the call button.

“Yo, bitch!” she screams into the phone as soon as she answers.  “I sure hope you don’t have any plans for the day!”

“Why?”

“Because I’m in the airport, and I’ll be there in a few hours.”

“Whaa?”  I put my hand over my mouth, realizing I’d picked up one of Terry’s expressions.  “What are you talking about?”

“There’s a nursing conference Monday and Tuesday, and it’s just a half hour from you.  I’m coming early to spend the weekend!”

“Are you shitting me?”

“No shitting,” Kathy says.  “Well, probably some shitting—I’m human last time I checked.  Also some drinking, which can lead to shitting…”

I laugh loudly, my mood instantly lifted.

Deklan is going to be gone for two days, so the timing is perfect.  I mean, what the hell else am I going to do around the apartment?

“Are you going to stay with me?”

“The clinic is putting me up at a hotel,” Kathy says.  “I figured you could stay with me!  That way we can be plastered and hung over together.”

“What time does your flight land?”

“Ten thirty,” Kathy says, “but there is all that taxiing around on the runways, collecting baggage and crap.  There’s an Asian fusion sort of place about a half mile from the airport.  It’ll be faster for me to just take a cab and meet you there for lunch about 11:30.”

“That works perfectly!  I can’t wait!”

I feel a bit like jumping up and down as I forget all about going to the coffee shop, turn on my heel, and practically run back to the apartment.  Once inside, I race to the bathroom and get myself a shower.  I feel a little sad that I won’t smell like Deklan the whole time he’s gone, but it’s probably not a scent Kathy would appreciate as much as I do.  I scrub down and gather up my overnight bag.

It’s way too early to go, but I have nothing else to do, so I decide to head to the restaurant now.  I grab the keys Deklan left on the counter and head to the parking garage.  I’ve only driven Deklan’s car once, but it’s easy to drive.  I just have to be careful not to speed.

I jump in the car and make my way to the fusion place.  They have a coffee bar and a bunch of noodle dishes, including noodles wrapped in a tortilla.  There’s a hostess near the door, but instead of leading me to one of the empty tables, she just hands me a menu.

“When you’ve made your selection, you can order right over there!”  She points to a row of cash registers.

Apparently, I need to order and pay up front.  I’m not completely sure how my food is going to find me, but the cashier gives me a little blinking box that will alert them to where I’ve chosen to sit.  I feel completely lost and confused, but I follow directions and find an empty table to sit and wait for Kathy.

As I wait, I look around at the décor and the clientele.  Many of the patrons have luggage with them, so this must be a popular place to pick people up from the airport.  As I glance around, I see a familiar face, newspaper and all.

I glare down at the top of the table.  I’m really not surprised.  Deklan probably plans to have me followed all weekend.

“Fuck it,” I mumble.  I refuse to let Dek’s paranoia ruin my weekend.  If it comes down to it, Kathy and I can hit a dance club, and I’ll ask the guy to dance.

Thinking about what my stalker’s face would look like if I extended that sort of invitation amuses me, and I lean back in the booth with a self-satisfied smirk, waiting for my friend.