Danielle had her shit out of my house and she was gone before I returned home from my rendezvous with Ines Sunday evening. I was glad for it, happy that it was gone without any more arguing. Danny and I just aren’t the people we once were, or maybe she was never herself with me? She isn’t my future.

I feel like I mourned the loss of our relationship a long time ago, I don’t even feel anything now that her things are gone. It just seemed, inevitable. However, I’m not going to let my life pass by me a day longer. I have something to look forward to now, I have Ines.

The next week passes with little to no fanfare, that is, except the stolen moments that I have with Ines in my office between each other’s classes. We’re both looking forward to the weekend and spending most of our free time preparing for the days off.

“I’m finishing up the rest of my homework for Monday’s classes tonight,” Ines says on the other end of the phone. It’s Thursday, and tomorrow we leave bright and early for Pleasanton, Kansas.

I’m sitting in bed, a pile of papers in front of me, to work on myself. However, I wish that she were next to me, even for no other reason than to glance at her from the corner of my eye while we work. It’s fucking ridiculous how smitten I am with this girl.

“I’ll be at the café at eight, you’ll be there?” I ask, wondering if I sound as desperate to her ears as I do to my own?

She laughs, her husky voice resounding in my ears and my cock strains against the fabric of my boxer briefs automatically. “I’ll be there, with my bag.”

“Don’t bring much,” I grunt. She hums but doesn’t say anything in response. “I plan on keeping you naked all weekend,” I add.

“Thank God,” she chuckles.

Reluctantly we both hang up and I let out a sigh into the empty room. I don’t know how I’m going to survive the rest of this semester, keeping her a secret. I don’t know how I’m going to keep Danielle a secret from her. I feel like I’m tangled in a web of lies, and if I’m not careful everything will unravel around me before I even realize what’s happening.

Finishing my paperwork, I set it on my nightstand and go to bed. The sooner I can fall asleep, the sooner it will be morning and I’ll have Ines to myself, exclusively for three full days. It takes me at least an hour to fall asleep, and when I do, it’s a fitful rest. I dream, vividly.

My mind swirls with images of Danielle laughing, and Ines crying. I’m sure it’s all because I’m anxious to get my divorce finished and handled, all while trying to keep from hurting Ines.

The next morning, I finally get out of bed around six, shower and pack. It doesn’t take me long since I’m packing light. I wasn’t fucking around when I told Ines that we were going to spend the weekend naked. I plan on kissing and licking every square inch of her body. Then I plan on making her come and fucking her as many times as physically possible.

I arrive at the café thirty minutes early. I decide to grab some food while I wait for Ines. I order a few muffins from the case and two coffees. Realization hits me as I open my mouth to order hers, that I have no clue how Ines takes her coffee, or if she even enjoys coffee. Panic fills me, and I quickly ramble off an order for a caramel latte hoping that I just didn’t fuck up.

It takes about fifteen minutes for my order to be completed and as I walk out of the restaurant, I see her standing next to my car parked on the street. She has a small duffle bag in her hand, and nothing else.

My lips quirk into a smile as I take her in.

She’s wearing a pair of faded extremely ripped jeans, and a loose t-shirt. Nothing too tight, or too revealing, except the dip in her top that shows off an ample amount of cleavage. She’s tried to dress down, for me, and I appreciate it. In fact, she’s been dressing much less obviously sexy all week.

As if she can sense my approaching presence. She turns her head and I watch as a giant smile appears on her lips. Her eyes glance down to my hands and then back up at me and they’re alight with excitement. “You bought me coffee and breakfast?” she asks, her voice ratcheting up just a notch from its normal deep rasp.

“There’s a lemon muffin and a blueberry. I wasn’t sure which one you would like. I had to guess on the coffee too, it’s a caramel latte,” I murmur, feeling like a fucking asshole for knowing nothing of her food preferences.

“Lemon?” she asks with a small smirk. “Can I have that one?”

Taking a step closer to her, I lean in and whisper against the shell of her ear. “You can have whatever you want, angel eyes.” Stepping back, I watch as her body shudders and her eyes turn a darker shade of brown. “Let’s get on the road,” I grunt.

I hand her the bag of muffins and open the door for her. When she’s inside, I pop the trunk and dispose of her bag, placing it next to mine, then closing the trunk and hurrying toward the driver’s side of the car. Slipping inside, I start the engine before handing her, her coffee and I ease into traffic.

“Hand me the blueberry muffin, please,” I grunt as I head out of town.

Less than a minute later, I feel something pressed against my lips. I glance to the side and notice she’s holding a piece of muffin to my mouth. “Open, Thomas,” she chuckles.

I do as she’s requested and open my mouth. Ines’ hand feeds me as I drive. I’ve never experienced this before, Danny would just tell me to use one hand, or pull over and eat if we were going somewhere. I find myself a bit curious about Ines, about her effortless ability to care for me. I’ve never really had that, and it’s something I didn’t know that I was missing. I’m curious to know what else she’s capable of when it comes to care and consideration.

Wrapping my hand around her thigh, I give it a squeeze. “You got everything finished that you needed to?” I ask about an hour into our trip.

She leans forward and turns on my radio, switching it to Bluetooth, and then adding her phone. I almost laugh that she’s so comfortable doing this with her own device and not even asking me, but I like it all too much to laugh about it. A low beat fills the car before she leans back and grunts.

“I’m good. Jessa had to help me with a paper for one of my classes. I’m terrible at writing,” she moans.

“Have you been thinking about a major? Maybe one that doesn’t involve papers?” I ask.

I duck when I see a piece of wadded up paper flying toward my head. It lands in my lap and I look down at the small piece of napkin, picking it up and tossing it back over to her.

“I haven’t. My brother says college is a waste of my time, I’m beginning to think that he’s right,” she sighs.

I don’t want to speak ill of her brother, especially since she’s made it clear that he’s her father figure. So, I tread lightly. “What would he rather you do?” I ask.

As a college professor, I can guarantee that college is not a waste of time. However, I am not bold enough to claim that it is for everybody either. It certainly isn’t, and there are plenty of fine careers that don’t require to be in classrooms for four to ten years.

“He’d rather see me go to a trade school, become a beautician, a dental assistant, something like that,” she shrugs.

Lifting my hand from the steering wheel, I wrap it around the back of her neck, giving her a gentle squeeze, in an effort to be comforting. “What do you want, Ines?” I ask, keeping my voice low.

I feel the tension in her neck, and I massage it, waiting for her answer. “I don’t know what I want, Thomas. I thought that being the first in my family to go to college was going to be this wonderful thing. But I don’t have a desire to do anything in particular. I know I don’t want to work in the big city and climb the corporate ladder,” she announces.

My heart speeds up at her words, then it slows. I couldn’t imagine her being cutthroat like Danielle. She’s too soft, too sweet, to work in that type of field, and I can’t deny that I’m glad she doesn’t yearn for it either.

“I just want to be happy, but I don’t know what kind of job would make me happy and that is why I think my brother is right, that I’m wasting money and time.”

I know that this is a concern of hers, and has been, the fact that she’s the only one in her family to have gone to a traditional four-year university and she feels a sense of guilt for that. I don’t blame her, and I completely understand exactly where her desires lay, and her brother’s concerns lay. It’s a tough decision, and predicament she’s in.

“Finish the semester, Ines. It’s already paid for, right?” She nods, and I hear her inhale deeply. “Then, before you begin the next semester of classes, you may be in a different place, you may know where you’d like to go career-wise.”

I feel her turn her head, and she presses her cheek against my palm, nestling against my hand. “Thank you, Thomas. Just when I feel completely overwhelmed, you make everything just a little clearer,” she smiles.

We don’t talk about school for the rest of the drive. I change the subject to the music she’s playing through my speakers. I’m apparently old as the fucking hills, because I have no fucking clue what she’s pumping through my car.

Thomas drives us down this country road and I sit at attention, my eyes taking in the lush greenness all around us. Since moving to Nebraska, I’ve never seen so much greenery in all of my life, and this drive to Kansas has been one of the most beautiful road trips I’ve ever been on, not that I’ve been on a lot of them.

“Are we there?” I ask, sounding like a little kid.

Thomas chuckles and then points ahead. I look up and I gasp. There’s a gigantic red building in front of us, it’s at least two stories and it has wrap-around porches on both levels. It’s absolutely breathtaking. It doesn’t look like a resort at all, it looks like a cozy bed and breakfast in a gigantic farmhouse.

When he said resort, I imagined one like we have in Florida. Fifteen stories or higher, with several pools, waiters and bellboys walking around the grounds, and party decks littering the space, I never imagined something so tranquil, country, and peaceful looking.

“It’s amazing,” I whisper my thoughts aloud.

Thomas chuckles as he pulls up to an empty parking space in a gravel parking area, next to a lifted pickup truck. I watch as he opens the driver’s door, but I don’t wait for him to open my own, I’m too excited to sit around in the car. I quickly slide out of the passenger seat and meet him at the trunk of the car.

“You were supposed to wait for me,” he chuckles, sliding his hand around my waist and pressing his palm against my back.

I arch closer toward him, lifting my face as he dips his chin and brushes my lips with his own. I shiver at the gentle contact, my body alive and ready for more from him. “I’m too excited to wait in the car,” I mutter against his lips.

“Then let’s get you inside, sweetheart,” he grunts.

His hand drops from around me and I take a step back as he pops his trunk open and takes our bags out. Side-by-side we walk into the giant red farmhouse, and for the first time, I feel like a real couple with him. We don’t have to pretend, we don’t have to keep an eye out for a student or staff member, we can just be—together.

It doesn’t take us long to get checked in, the front desk woman reminds him that we have dinner reservations at seven, and Thomas lifts his chin in acknowledgment before grabbing the room key and walking away from her. I follow behind him, my eyes wide as I take in everything around me. The place is filled with couples like us, sitting by the fire, lounging outside, and just walking around.

I, however, don’t plan on doing any of those things. I plan on staying in our room as much as possible, wearing as little as possible. I’ve missed Thomas. I’ve missed his touch, his kiss, and his body pressed against mine.

Thomas opens the door that leads to our room and I practically squeal when I see where we’ll be staying. It’s like a fantasy. I don’t think I’ve ever stayed anywhere this nice before in my life. There is a huge, king-size bed against the wall, with a tall dark fabric headboard and a fluffy gray and white comforter. On that same wall are French doors that lead outside to the deck with a table and chairs.

I turn around and gasp when I see another set of French doors that lead to a bathroom. The bathroom is bigger than my dorm room. There is a corner tub that upon closer inspection is a Jacuzzi tub. There’s a huge walk-in shower and double vanity sinks with individual mirrors hanging above them.

“Is everything okay?” Thomas asks from behind me.

Spinning around in his arms, I tip my head back to look into his eyes. “It’s amazing, so amazing. I’ve never stayed anywhere this nice before,” I freely admit, throwing my arms around his neck and pressing my chest against his torso.

Thomas’ hands grab hold of my ass and squeeze, his chin dipping and a smile on his face. He runs his nose alongside mine and I let out a soft moan as my eyes fall closed.

“I’ve missed you,” I admit. He hums before his mouth touches mine.

Lifting me up, I wrap my legs around his waist as his tongue traces the seam of my lips. I open for him, letting out a moan as his tongue fills my mouth. With his hands on my ass, Thomas carries me out of the bathroom. A few seconds later, I feel the soft bed against my back and Thomas’ hard length pressing against my center.

Running my hands down his back, I tug at the hem of his shirt and he lifts his head from mine, only long enough to pull his shirt off. I watch as he tosses it to the side, licking my lips at the sight of his naked chest. I missed his body, his hard, muscular body.

“Take your clothes off, Ines,” he practically growls.

I kick my sandals off before I scoot back on the bed and climb to my knees. I make sure my eyes are pointed directly at his, as I slowly pull my shirt off. He doesn’t move, his hands frozen at the buttons of his jeans as he watches me. I’ve never felt as sexy as I do when Thomas is looking at me.

Removing my bra, I unbutton my jeans and pull them down, along with my panties, until I drop them on the floor next to the bed. Sitting on my knees, my eyes still very much trained on Thomas, I wait. When he doesn’t make a move, our breathing the only sounds in the room, I finally decide to speak.

“I’m ready for you, Papi.”