She closed the door
softly, trying not to wake him. It was late. She'd fallen asleep
in the loft again, talking to Mimi and as tempting as it was to stay
there, wound in her best friend's arms, she simply needed to get
home to him. Hearing rustling from the bed, she looked almost
guiltily across the tiny apartment to see if she'd awakened him.
His eyes seemed to be closed, his chest rising and falling deeply
with his rhythmic breathing. He was still asleep. Sighing, she
relaxed and moved quietly to the bed, pulling off her light jacket
and t-shirt as she went. It had been a rough day; she hadn't felt
well enough to get dressed up today and she wasn't ready to admit
that the bad days were beginning to outnumber the good ones.
Standing by the bed, she kicked off her tennis shoes and unbuttoned
her jeans. She cried out a little, surprised, when he grabbed the
waistband of her jeans, sat up quickly, and pulled her close for a
kiss. When he released her, he settled back and smiled at her, his
full grin lighting the room and her world. She smiled in return, her
bad day forgotten and even giggled as he began to nibble on her neck.
He helped her out of the jeans and put his arm around her waist,
pulling her back firmly against his chest and went to work again on
her neck and ear. What she would've given for the energy to show
him, right then and there, how deeply she felt about him. But today
had been a bad day and she hadn't that energy. She settled against
him with a sigh and he got the message. He held her gently and
close, no words needed. After sitting that way for several minutes,
he shifted her again, and the two of them, through mutual agreement,
settled into their usual sleeping positions, his body curled around
hers, her hand on his chest. Just before sleep took over again, she
whispered:
"Love you, honey."
"Love you too, babe," he mumbled.