Bored? No...
Content would be the word she'd use. It was what she'd told Kylie when she asked.
It was the word she'd say to anyone if they asked how Nicholas Tilsley made her feel.
But even then, she couldn't put it into a sentence.
She still couldn't believe her luck. And it wasn't even luck.
Carla's known Nick for years. She could still remember the day he walked into her factory with that smug look on his face, wanting to buy the company. The same smug look he gave her now when she was about to cave or he wanted his own way or he knew he was right. The smartarse. But, just like then, she had a comeback for him. He couldn't fool her that easy. Carla Connor wasn't to be messed with. They had always had a fiery relationship with each other and when he wanted out of the business, she missed him, surprisingly, but she soon got over it and they lived their lives separately.
Lived their lives separately indeed. Both had gotten married once or twice in those five years and experienced too many occasions they would love to forget but they played, painfully, in the back of their minds on a monthly basis. But when they were together, all was forgotten about.
When they officially got together—only four months ago—they were actually surprised they'd never noticed or spoke to each other more, they lived in the same block of flats, they passed each other nearly every morning and drunk in the same pub, it was hard to believe. And now they hardly spent a day apart. Whether it was Carla popping into the bistro on her lunch break or Nick bringing her food into the factory because he didn't know if she was looking after her body, he even how terrible she was for skipping meals.
Not that they didn't skip breakfast, the most important meal of the day, everyday because they couldn't get out of bed, unable to control their raging hormones, and made themselves late for work on a weekly basis. If neither of them weren't their own boss, they'd been sacked by now.
But Carla didn't care because she was in love and that wasn't something she said very often.
It wasn't luck, it was strange turn of events. The new year rang in and they started talking more, she'd called him to fix her laptop, he invited her to a wine tasting event in the bistro and a few drunken kisses later, they found them becoming attracted to each other at an unfortunate time—Nick found out he was going to be a Dad from a fling until she miscarriage unexpectedly and Carla was the main suspect in an accident house fire that claimed the lives of two people. It was a rocky patch for both of them. They had been supportive friends from then. Carla tried to better herself and Nick tried to make it work with Erica.
But it didn't work and Erica parted with him on mutual terms and Carla got worse but he was the one to make her see sense and she was forever grateful.
For once, Carla Connor had met a good, honest man. There was no affair, no living fear, he was just Nick. And maybe that's why she fell for him too quickly and maybe it's why she tired to push him away but it didn't matter anymore because she loved him and he loved her and maybe it was why she proposed after a whirlwind four months but he said yes and she said yes and, again, that's all that mattered.
Carla always felt like she needed words, be spoon fed the love she deserved but she found during the most peaceful evenings when there was nothing on TV and she didn't need to worry about work until the morning that she felt the most loved. As she lay there in Nick's arms—and she could do it for hours—she didn't need to speak or Nick to tell her he loved her because she felt it when he stroked her hair kissed the top of her head.
It was when she was most content.
She felt content with him when they held hands in the street or in town, when they spoke to friends and family and he had his arms around her or when they weren't together, she had full trust in him and had to keep herself occupied to stop thinking about him at work.
She couldn't go a day without thinking about him. Even Aidan, Johnny and Kate, three people she'd known since she was little but had only gotten closer to again recently, could read her like a book when it came to him.
"Carla! Carla!" Aidan said, louder each time. "Carla, are you listening to a word I'm saying?"
"Huh?" Carla snapped out of her thoughts. Sat in her office chair at Underworld, she had lost focus on the paperwork in front of her and, chewing on the end of her pen, wondered into a daydream. "Sorry, was you talking to me?"
"Yes," he rolled his eyes. "Are we both going to the meeting later?"
"What meeting?"
He groaned before throwing his hands up in the air. "The one with Mr Gilson? We made a deal with him over the phone yesterday, you said we'd talk over lunch."
"Did we? I told Nick I'd have lunch with him," Carla smiled nervously.
"When did you decide that?"
"Last night."
"Is that what you were daydreaming about?" Aidan stood from his chair. He couldn't even bare to look at Carla. He walked towards the door.
"Yeah, kind of."
She was. But she was thinking about all the other times she'd eaten with him and how recently they had changed from going into town to grabbing a bag of chips instead and eating them back at the flat. Now, they didn't get through half a bag without burning those calories straight back off on the couch and trying not to yawn for the remainder of their shifts.
"You have lunch with him all the time now, give it a break," he said.
"Oh, I'll remember that one when you've got a woman on your arm," she pointed her pen at him.
"How could you forget?" he groaned again. "You're like a lovesick teenager. Forget it, I'll take Dad with me and fill you in on the details—no, I'll email it to you, you might take the information in that way."
He swung open the door and left.
Carla knew she should feel bad but nothing was going to put a downer on her mood. She was in a good piece at the moment, what with being recently engaged to the most amazing man, not even Aidan was going to ruin it. It was only a meeting, a meeting he could handle and he and Johnny wanted to prove themselves to her anyway, they should go make the deal with Mr Gilson.
There was knock on the door.
"Who is it?"
"Eva!" the bubbly blonde's voice went strange through her head.
"Come in," Carla said, leaning back in her chair.
"Am I alright to do a cake run?" she asked.
"Yes," Carla replied. She picked up her bag from beside her feet and searched for her phone.
Just as Eva was about to leave, she turned to face her boss again. "Ms Connor? Is Aidan okay?"
"Yeah, fine, just having a moment," Carla chuckled. She put her phone on her desk and clicked her pen before scribbling down a note on her paperwork. "Have a word with him, will ya, he might listen to you."
Eva nodded before leaving. Carla waited for the click of the lock before texting Nick. Even if it pained her, she cancelled her lunch with him to please Aidan.
Carla wasn't lying, nothing was going to ruin her mood. She didn't cancel her lunch with Nick. She sent him a quick message to see what time her boyfriend was interested eating. If Aidan had a problem with it, he had to grow up and deal with it. It was forty-five minutes out of the day.
She scanned the bistro for him, when she saw him behind the bar with his back to her, Carla snuck up behind him.
"Boo!" she whispered, resting her chin on his arm and smiling up at him.
"Hey," Nick slowly smiled back. "Uh, who let you behind here?"
"I did," Carla smirked. "I thought you said you were free? Your text said—"
"I am," he turned around with a glass of wine in his hand. "This, is for you."
"Hmm," she mused, kissing his cheek before taking the drink from his hand. "You know the way to my heart."
He placed a hand on her back and lead her to a table in the corner.
"Are you okay with eating in here?" he asked.
"Of course," she replied, sitting in the chair he had pulled out for her like the perfect gentleman he was. "I don't have that much time, if I get any later than two, if Aidan doesn't bite my head off, he'll have Johnny do it."
"Do they think you're at a business lunch again?" Nick wondered, taking his own seat.
"Nope, I told them I'm with you, Aidan's just not happy about it," she shrugged. "Let him stew, he's being overdramatic."
"I love your faith in them," he laughed.
"It's not that," he took a gulp of her wine. "I have faith in them, it's them who think they're incapable of running my factory without me there."
"You're a hard woman to please," Nick stated, leaning closer to the businesswoman. "You can't blame them for being nervous."
Carla scoffed. "Enough about them. I didn't come here to talk about them. How's your day been?"
"Better now you're here," he captured his lips with hers, smiling into their kiss. He couldn't get enough of his woman.
"You're so cheesy, Tilsley," she dropped her head and he kissed her forehead in return.
"Can't help it, too tempting," he licked his lips. "Speaking of cheese, do you fancy nachos?"
She pursued her lips. "Go on then."
Nick excused himself. Carla brushed her hand down his arm as he walked towards the kitchen. She played with her engagement ring while he was gone. She still couldn't believe she was engaged to him. It set butterflies off in her stomach.
If it was possible, Carla was in an even better mood when she returned from lunch. Nick had brought up ideas for their wedding and she was fully on board. Discussing menus, venues and possible dress trial days (with Michelle, not Nick, obviously) had set Carla up for the rest of the day.
She happily dealt with clients and the zoo she called her staff and the afternoon flew by. Before she knew it, it was time to go home and she couldn't wait.
She and Nick had a quiet evening planned.
They cracked open a bottle of wine, changed into lounging attire and put on a Christmas classic Nick was surprised Carla had never seen and got comfortable on the couch.
They sat in silence at the start of the film, Carla with her legs draped over Nick's. She couldn't help but play with Nick's hands while trying to stay focused on the plot at the same time. It was like she needed to be touching him whenever he was near and even when he wasn't, she was thinking about the next time she would be seeing him. Just as at the halfway point approached, Nick realised something.
"Hey, I think there's some leftover cake in the kitchen, do you want some," Nick asked, suddenly realising they didn't have a movie snack, you can't watch a good film without snacks.
Carla squeezed his hand excitedly. "Please."
Her hand went cold as his fingers left hers, she gasped. He smiled before going over to the kitchen. Carla distracted herself by topping up her glass. When Nick returned, she grinned up at his and took the plate from his gasp, along with a spoon.
"Thank you," she said softly.
Once Nick was seated again, he put Carla's legs back over his lap. He watched her as she took the first bite, a questioning expression on her face. He traced circles on her knee using his fingertips.
"I'll be honest with you, Tilsley," his girlfriend said with a mouthful of dessert, chewing it as she spoke. She pointed the fork at him then down to the plate, "this isn't your best dish."
"Oh," he chuckled. "Thank you for your honesty. I'll try better next time."
"It's good, just not as good as the cheesecake the other night," she mused.
"I'll keep that in mind for next time."
"Hm," she sighed. "Do. Is the film over yet? It's boring me."
"Oh," Nick chuckled again. He took the plate from her hand and placed it on the coffee table. First she insulted his restaurant and now she was judging his taste in cinema, he wasn't having that. "The Snowman is a classic! Me, David and Sarah used to watch it all the time as kids."
"There's no talking going on," Carla pointed out. "I don't understand what's going on. Can we please watch something else?"
"That's the whole point, it's a picture story! You have to visual it," he replied. "You're so hard to please sometimes."
"Ouch," Carla out her hand over her heart. "Thanks. I'll remember that next time."
Nick shook his head. "We can't turn it off now, the iconic part is coming! There's ten minutes left, you can handle that."
"Oh no, not that song!" Carla put her head in her hands, rubbing her temples. "It's going to give me a migraine."
"It's not that bad!" he teased, still rubbing her leg. "C'mon, ten minutes, it won't kill you."
"Fine," she sulked. Carla pushed his hand away from her before lifting his other arm and cuddling into his side. She might as well make herself comfortable for the remainder. She cuddled into his side, her head resting in the crook of his neck, hand on his waist. He ran his fingers through her silky hair and kissed her forehead before turning his attention back to the cartoon.
It didn't take long after Walking In The Air started playing for Carla to fall asleep. The gentle music playing in the background relaxed her and the warmth of Nick's body was enough to send her body into a peaceful slumber.
"Carla?" Nick whispered. He picked up the remote from the arm of the couch and turned the TV off. Without trying to wake his fiancee, he tired to sit up straighter.
Carla felt him more and it woke her slightly, she whimpered. She moved her hand to his chest to stop him.
"You should go to bed," he tired to remove her from his chest but she was having none of it. She groaned, holding herself closer to him. "You can't sleep on here."
"No," she mumbled. "Stay here, I'm not sleeping, I promise. Just resting my eyes."
"Babe, you're practically drooling," Nick lifted her chin with his thumb. "You're tired."
"No," she groaned again, eyes closed. "Stay. I just want to lay here for a bit."
Carla wiped the corner of her mouth, ridding of the saliva that had gathered there, then rubbed his shirt with her sleeve, trying to improve the wet patch. "Sorry."
He kissed her forehead. "Don't worry about it."
"It's not very ladylike, is it?" she half-smiled, huffing a laugh.
He rested his chin on top of her head, stroking her hand. "I'm used to it."
They lay in silence. The only sounds was those of their steady breathing. Carla felt Nick's chest rise and fall with every breathe, it soothed her.
How could she ever be bored with him? She didn't need every moment to be exciting. Having meals out and driving outside of Weatherfield were exciting, the despite need to rip each other's clothes off at every given opportunity was thrilling but it didn't match the feeling she got when they lay together with no words being said. The simple art of two people in love, in their little bubble no one could pop while they were alone. It was never boring, it was more thrilling than anything physical, any show of love. She got every excitement from being his arms.
Carla didn't like that cheesy love, what the songs are about but she'd felt it. It was the feeling of content. A love with trust and no worries. He worshiped her and she had nothing to worry about no matter how much she tried to kid herself.
Being content was what mattered.
The following morning rolled round too quickly.
What surprised Carla when she woke was her location, she couldn't remember going to bed.
After, what felt like hours, of simply holding each other, Carla fell asleep on Nick. He carried her to the bedroom and tucked her in before joining her. He held her from behind and admired her beauty once more before sleep took over him. And before they knew it, the alarm was ringing. She had already climbed over his body and hit snooze twice and knew she couldn't risk another hit or both of them were going to be late.
She felt the heat of his body behind her. She rolled over to study his face. He looked so peaceful. It annoyed her she didn't see how incredible he was earlier. Maybe it would have saved her a lot heartbreak from the past but she also believed everything happened for a reason and now was their time.
She ran the pad of her thumb down the dimple in his chin before kissing the stumble there.
"Hmm," he groaned. "What time is it?"
Carla looked over his shoulder at the clock on the bedside table. "A little after six. We have time before we need to get up really."
"Really?" he questioned, surprisingly. He knew she was lying, their normal routine was to be getting up for six.
Carla nodded and bit her lip before running her hands up his arms, over his shoulders then down his chest. She leaned down and kissed him briefly before cuddling into his side, kissing the skin of his shoulder. She breathed out, she felt at peace.
"I think we do. We can't be late again," he chuckled.
Nick wrapped his arm around her frame, drawing patterns up her back. Carla hummed in appreciation and her eyes started to close. He pressed his nose to Carla's, nudging it slightly to get her to look at him. He shook his head slowly, telling her no. She nodded slowly back at him. Nick rolled his eyes and snickered lightly.
Aidan was right: Carla Connor was like a lovesick teenager. And she didn't even care. If she sent Sally a quick text saying she is in charge of the factory this morning, just until nine, the wannabe would jump at the chance and not bat an eyelid. It would give Carla a chance to have her way with Nick and not enough for Sally to think she's had a promotion and Johnny and Aidan wouldn't have to start ripping their hair out.
She also considered it as she trailed her lips from Nick's shoulder to his neck, breathing in his morning scent. She peppered his neck with kisses, goosebumps rose upon his warm skin and she attacked him., Rolling him onto his back, she dug her nails into the flesh and wrapped one of her legs around his.
"Carla, stop," he said with heavy breathe.
She was like a horny teenager, clawing away at her boyfriend—fiancé. She couldn't believe she was behaving in such a way at her age. But then who said you had to stop having fun after forty? It's not like she was going it because she was desperate or actually wanted him, it was because she couldn't get enough of him. She was so in love she didn't want to be without him. She wanted to feel him, just pour all her love for him into something better than words. She just wanted to kiss him, have a good 'ld fashion make out without it turning into something more but that became more unlikely the older she got. She missed those innocent stolen kisses. She wanted to enjoy his company before they went their separate ways for a solid eight hours.
It was Nick pushing her away from him that make her stop. She had heard him and since… Frank, she gulped—she couldn't even think of his name without feeling sick—she pulled herself away from him and rested her chin on his chest. She never forced herself onto him. And he was always the perfect gentleman when it was other way round.
"Sorry," Carla apologised.
He kissed her hair. "Don't think about it. I think we should get up now though, you've had your fun."
Carla agreed. She removed herself from his body and he sat up. He threw his legs over the edge of the bed and found a pair of joggers and t-shirt to wear before he had a wash.
"Seriously, we should re-think this morning routine thing," he stood up and headed towards the door. "It's not working."
"Stop being so flaming logical!" Carla was almost tempted to throw a pillow at him but he left the room before she had the chance. She relaxed against the headboard.
"Oh," he popped his head back through the gap in the door and wall, "that's rich coming from the woman I seem to recall rejecting breakfast in bed and a shower a couple of months ago!" he smirked before leaving again.
Carla threw her head back laughing. She seriously loved him. And she didn't know how much better it could get and yet they were engaged. She hoped that 2016 was going to bring her more happiness and an amazing wedding, everything she could ever ask her.
He made her laugh everyday, showed her he cared and even when they—very rarely—had an argument, he made sure she didn't go to bed angry and that was just some of the things she loved about him. She didn't want to compare him to past failed relationships and marriages because they didn't matter. She needn't worry about them because everyone else around her was telling her he was good enough and even when she didn't want to believe it, it was when she was with him and the fact was proven.
And that's why she could never get bored of him, why she felt content.
She couldn't wait to marry him, she knew she had made the right decision. She only hoped nothing was going to mess it up but she wasn't looking for one. She tired not to put herself in a position where it was possible. She was done worrying.
He loved her and she loved him and that's all that really matters in the end.
Just a little calm before the storm. These two have ruined me. After christmas Day, why are they about to be ruined? Can't she just be happy for once? Anyway, reviews are much appreciated.