Chapter Eighteen

 

 

 

 

Nick

 

 

 

 

 

I closed the back door to the ambulance and hit it twice before they immediately began driving away. Using my wrist, I wiped some sweat off my forehead and sighed. How was it still so fucking hot when the sun had been down for almost three hours?

“Engine Company 21, load up,” Owens’ voice crackled through my shoulder radio about fifteen minutes later, after we had the scene of the car accident cleaned up.

I walked back to the rig and climbed into the backseat with Jones and Trujillo as Owens got into the front passenger seat next to Lennox. We all pulled on headsets and I let my head fall back against the seat with my eyes closed as we drove back to the station.

“What happened with Hughes?” Jones asked through the mic and I shook my head slightly without opening my eyes.

“He disrespected my wife and my marriage.”

She elbowed me and Owens’ voice was a growl through the headset. “How, exactly?”

“He just did,” I replied as I cracked open and eye and caught Owens’ angry glare from the front seat. I raised my brows and shook my head. “If Kelly wants to tell you, she can.”

He didn’t like my answer but he didn’t ask again. When we got back to the station, the five of us dropped our gear off and I went upstairs to greet the rest of the company who was assigned to the ladder truck for the shift. Owens pushed past me and barked out at Hughes to get to his office. Hughes stood from the couch and gave me a shitty look.

“Go running to your boy?” he muttered under his breath and I just stared at him without replying.

Once he was out of sight, I walked back to our bunkroom and sat on my bed before pulling my cell out from under my pillow where it had been charging. Even though it was after ten, I knew Kelly would be awake so I sent her a quick text.

 

Me:      What are you doing?

Kelly:      Lying in our bed, touching myself. What are you doing?

Me:      Thinking about you lying in that big bed touching yourself. You should send me pictures.

Kelly:      And what do I get out of that, Nickolas?

Me:      Besides my undying devotion and knowledge that you’ve made your husband so, so happy?

Kelly:      Yes.

Me:      Whatever you want, baby.

Kelly:      Are you alone?

Me:      Yes.

 

When she didn’t text back immediately, I swallowed and let my imagination run wild. I’d been teasing her about sending me pictures for months and she loved to push back. My phone vibrated again and I looked at it eagerly, sucking in a breath when I saw that she’d sent a picture.

Kelly was on her stomach, obviously on the bed, and half of her face was in the photo with a sexy, confident smirk on her lips. She wasn’t naked but she’d positioned the camera so it caught her body over her shoulder. She was wearing a white tank top that had ridden up so the small of her back was on display. She’d pushed that magnificent ass in the air and the black underwear she was wearing was so small that her bare skin was all I could see. Even though she was almost completely clothed, it was incredibly sexy and the best picture I’d ever been sent.

 

Me:      Fuck. I need you. Right now.

Kelly:      Eight more hours, Nicky.

Me:      I can’t make it eight hours, Kel. I’m gonna explode.

Kelly:      Are you going to think of me when you do?

Me:      I’m going to take a cold shower. Go to sleep because you’re waking up early tomorrow.

 

I was almost happy when the fire alarm went off. Both trucks loaded up and we went out to fight a garage fire. We didn’t make it back to the station house until after two that morning and Owens caught me after my shower to give me my new bunkroom assignment. Apparently, whatever he and Hughes had talked about made him decide it was the best move. He didn’t elaborate but I didn’t really care. I was switched with Dickerson and became bunkmates with Barthe instead.

We didn’t have any calls for the rest of the night and I left right at seven after about four hours of sleep. I drove to the apartment quickly, beating Owens home, and went in the bedroom without stopping.

Kelly was on her back in the bed with both of her hands resting on her stomach. Her face had a peaceful, serene look as her brown locks fanned the pillow behind her. I quietly dropped my bag by the dresser before flipping the lock to the door and kicking off my shoes. I made quick work of all of my clothes until I was just in my boxer-briefs.

The blanket was pulled up to her waist and I tugged it down slowly, careful not to wake her, and I wanted to moan when I saw she was still in just the white tank top and black, lacey underwear. I parted her thighs gently and hooked my finger in her panties. Rather than pulling it off of her legs, I just pushed the tiny strip of fabric to the side and ran my tongue down her center at an unhurried pace. I loved tasting her and the sleepy little moan she gave urged me on. I did it again, keeping my eyes on her face, and watched as her own fluttered open thirty seconds later.

Kelly gripped my hair in one of her fists and her body was trembling under my mouth within minutes. I made quick work of our clothing and proceeded to have amazing morning sex with my beautiful wife. Her naked body cuddled to my chest afterwards as I held her close and we both went back to sleep.

We spent all of Saturday just lounging around the apartment. We went to the pool around lunch time and I spent more time staring at Kelly than actually swimming. The forest green bathing suit she’d picked didn’t cover that much more than her underwear and I would have taken her in the pool if we’d been alone. Instead, I had to wait until we made it back to the apartment to release the breasts that were barely contained anyway.

I made time to call my other roommate, Erik, to give him a sixty day notice. I was planning on getting my shit out of the house the next day but I didn’t want to leave Erik in a lurch. He’d never been anything but a good roommate and landlord.

Owens and I had a baseball game later that evening and both women were there cheering us on. If I wasn’t batting or in the outfield, I was with Kelly either at the fence or in the bleachers. I felt like I couldn’t get enough and staying away from her was impossible.

The sex between us was fucking mind blowing but that wasn’t even what drew me to her. I just wanted to be in her presence. To make her smile. To hear her laugh. I wanted her to be happy. The marriage was no longer just a sham to me. I truly loved Kelly. I was in love with my wife.

Once I admitted it to myself after her hospitalization, it became obvious that I’d been in love with her for a while, far before we were even married. I never allowed myself to think like that, though, and now… it was all I could think about. I wanted to tell Kelly so badly but the thought of being rejected by her and even possibly causing her to end whatever we were doing stopped me. So, I focused on being the best husband I could be.

After the game was over and we’d narrowly beaten the team we’d been playing, I declined when people invited us out to celebrate. We were going to James and Renee’s the next day for dinner and my parents would be there, too. I needed a good night’s sleep to handle them. Besides, I really just wanted to spend time with Kelly.

We ate take-out from her favorite restaurant and watched a movie we’d rented from the kiosk. As we laid in bed, Kelly pushed me over so I was on my stomach and she straddled me from behind while rubbing my shoulders and back. Her hands were seriously magic and she truly enjoyed putting them to work. Definitely a perk of being married to a physical therapist assistant.

“Simon’s going to propose soon,” Kelly said quietly as she maneuvered so she was draped over my back with her chin on my shoulder. “He always promised that he’d give me a heads-up before he did. That’s what he wanted to talk to me about today.”

I turned my head and pressed a kiss to her chin. “How do you feel about it?”

“Happy for them but sad at the same time,” she confessed in a whisper. “Megan mentioned that they were talking about house hunting. I’ve never not lived with my sister, you know?”

“Hey.” I tugged on her and rolled us so we were on our sides facing each other. “It’s okay to be sad, sweetheart. You’re going to miss her. I have a feeling you’ll be at their house often and she’ll be wherever you’re living. And I’ll be here. I’m not going anywhere.”

Her blue eyes looked sad as she stared at my face. “What about…?”

“I’m not going anywhere,” I repeated, interrupting her before she could ask about when our marriage was over. If I had my way, it would never end. “Got it?”

“Got it,” she whispered before pressing her lips to mine. I smiled when she pulled back and shifted us so we were back at the head of the bed. We both stayed quiet for the rest of the movie and she eventually fell asleep on my chest.

After breakfast the next day, Owens and I drove out to New Hope in his truck so I could get my shit out of the house. I couldn’t have fit everything in my Camaro and Owens had offered up his truck. Right as I was getting ready to leave, he asked if I minded if he joined me. I was fairly certain that he thought Hughes and I would kill each other.

He didn’t have to worry, though. Hughes wasn’t there. Erik was, though, and he chatted with the two of us for the hour we were there. The furniture was mine but I decided just to leave it there. Erik agreed that it would help him rent the room out if it was furnished and I really had no place to store it at the moment. After I had all twelve of my boxes in Owens’ truck, I shook Erik’s hand and thanked him for the past five years.

The boxes all went into Kelly’s room near the closet and she raised her eyebrows when she saw how many there were. For a second, I thought she was annoyed but a smile played up her lips as if seeing them there pleased her in some way. That thought had me pulling every article of clothing off of and lifting her onto two boxes that were stacked up so I could easily step between her legs.

 

“I should have worn a dress,” she murmured a few hours later as we drove to her parents’ home. I looked over and she was tugging on her shorts, like she felt they were too short, and I reached to take her hand in mine.

“Stop it. You look beautiful.”

Kelly scoffed and used her free hand to pull the blouse up on her chest. “I look like a slut. Your parents are going to think you married a whore.”

“You’re being ridiculous and I don’t like it,” I said as I squeezed her hand. “Don’t insult yourself, especially when I can hear you. Relax.”

She shifted in her seat and pulled her hand away so she could run it over my thigh. “How about I help you relax? That would make me feel better.”

“Fuck,” I growled as her hand ran over my dick, which immediately took notice of her attention. “You’ve got to stop, Kel. I’m not letting you take off your seat belt while we’re driving.”

“Then pull over, Nick.”

I glanced at her and she had such a determined look on her face that I did exactly as she said. I pulled off the highway and found an empty dirt road that had a tree we could park under. Both of our seat belts were off automatically and I opened my door before looking at her.

“Get in the fucking back seat and take your shorts off,” I demanded in a low voice, flipping my seat down. “Now.”

Climbing back there was fun. As soon as I was in the middle of the bench seat in the back, I was undoing the button on my shorts. Kelly climbed between the two front seats rather than folding hers down and she tugged on my shorts until they were at my thighs. Once she had her own off completely, she straddled me and rolled her hips so her body could sink down on mine.

“Kelly,” I breathed as I lifted her hips up so she could do it again. “You make me fucking crazy.”

She nodded and nipped my bottom lip with her teeth. “We’re on the same page then, Nick.”

We kissed hungrily while our bodies continued to thrust together desperately and I knew when she was close because her kissing became more frantic and less graceful. I took control of her hips and when she tightened around me, I exploded inside of her body. The feeling of being inside of her, of making that connection with Kelly… I would never get sick of it.

Her forehead dropped to my shoulder as our chests heaved and I turned so I could press a kiss to the spot below her ear. I almost said it. I almost told her that I loved her. I didn’t, though. I stayed quiet and ran my hand down her back. It wasn’t until someone knocked on the window that we moved again. Kelly startled and smacked her head into mine as she looked at me wide-eyed.

“Oh, shit.”

I shook my head as I pulled her off of me and glanced at the cop standing by the door. My windows, especially the back windows, had a really dark tint but if he’d looked through the windshield it would have been easy to see what we were doing. Judging by where the Nevada Highway Patrol vehicle was parked, he’d likely seen in the vehicle. I felt stupid for not noticing him pull up.

“Get your clothes on. I’ll talk to him.”

I tugged my shorts up and buttoned them before pushing out of my car. I closed the door quickly so he couldn’t see Kelly and cleared my throat.

“Hello, officer.”

He was a big guy, bigger than me, and he narrowed his eyes as he stared at me. “Want to tell me what you two were doing in there?”

“Not really, sir,” I replied as I looked back towards the car. “It was my idea, though. I stopped us, I told her what to do. This isn’t my wife’s fault at all.”

“I see. I’m going to need your license, registration, and insurance, please.” He gestured towards the car. “I need identification for your wife, too. Do you have any weapons?”

“No, sir. My wallet is in my pocket.” When he nodded, I reached into my side pocket and pulled out my wallet. I grabbed my driver’s license but before I could close the leather, the trooper pointed to the ID card under it.

“I saw the firefighter plates on the car. What department are you with?”

I nodded and reached in to hand him my NVFD card. “New Hope, station three.”

“I see.” He handed it and my license back to me. “Go. Take your wife and get out of here. Call it a professional courtesy.” He nodded his chin at Kelly as she got out of the car, completely clothed. “My wife and I were young once, too. Just… not in public, okay?”

“Yes, sir,” I replied with a nod as I stuffed my wallet in my pocket and extended my hand to him. “Thank you so much.”

We shook and he nodded when Kelly thanked him, too, and we both immediately got back into the car. I pulled us out of there quickly so he couldn’t change his mind and neither of us spoke until we were back to the highway. Kelly’s hand dropped to the back of my seat and she laughed.

“I’m definitely a lot more relaxed now.”

I glanced over at her and raised my brows. “Yeah? Because I feel the opposite.”

“That was kind of exciting, honestly.” She was breathless, actually turned on by our encounter, and I just shook my head.

“You are seriously crazy. You know that, right?”

“I know.” She leaned in and pressed a kiss to my shoulder. “It’s one of my more endearing qualities.”

“True,” I agreed with a grin and the two of us stayed in companionable silence for the rest of the drive.