he doesn't trust her, and that's on beth. so she doesn't argue when rio insists on accompanying her for not one, not two, but the first several drops she's supposed to make after being brought back into the fold. she doesn't blame him, after the dubby, after the shit with dean, after telling him it's over ( and there's a part of her that thinks maybe he'd known that it was a lie from the start, before even she had understood what she was feeling, maybe it's why he didn't put up a fight, and why he hadn't been angry when he tracked her down at the park ).
but both of them going to every drop means they're not splitting responsibilities, and neither of them are getting enough sleep. it begins to form a blanket of exhaustion over them that grows thicker and thicker throughout the night, seemingly suffocating them by the time his car finally pulls into her driveway after the last in an almost entire day's worth of drops and running around detroit.
she's weighed down with it - limbs heavy, movements sluggish - so much so that she almost doesn't notice just how worn out he looks. she's already out of the car, about to walk up to the house when beth catches the way his eyelids droop and his neck seems to strain under the weight of his head. so she stops, instead circling around to the open window on the driver's side, and if the other signs aren't enough, the fact that it takes him a little too long to notice her standing there is what makes the decision for her, even as she continues to chew on her bottom lip for a second before speaking.
"hey, why don't you stay here tonight?"
and damn him for immediately snapping out of it long enough to give her a slow once over, lick his lips, and smirk at her in a way that makes her knees weak - weaker than the exhaustion had even managed.
she rolls her eyes.
"not like that. it's late - well, early, and you look like you're about to pass out. you really shouldn't be driving."
"nah, i'm good."
he straightens a little, apparently trying to draw the lie out along the length of his spine, eyes blinking and forced a little too wide that they're almost comical. she merely raises a brow, waiting. as if on cue, a yawn grips him and it looks as though it wants to take his whole body over with the force of it. if she wasn't so tired, she might have laughed.
"right," he says finally, resigned, cutting off the engine and climbing out. he's rustling for something in the back as she heads up the walkway to unlock the front door, and when she swings it open a few seconds later, he's already behind her with a bag slung over his shoulder.
the kids are away with dean for the weekend, and the house is quiet, too quiet, and while she won't say it out loud, beth can admit to herself privately that she's a little bit relieved to not be alone.
he walks in like he owns the place, just like he always has, even though he's been invited this time ( and last time, but she can't think about that right now, not with him already heading for her bedroom ), and she follows a little dazedly, watching his movements and letting her mind settle around the idea of him being in there again, casual as hell, like he belongs.
she shakes it off in time to realize he'd been saying something, and she'd been staring, and now he's giving her that look again - the one that says she's been caught, and that she's not going to get away with it.
"hm?"
"i said -" he steps closer, but doesn't touch her ( and she's not sure if that's worse or better ) and she stands her ground as he licks his lips again and she hates that he can be barely keeping himself upright but still stands there like sex personified, hates that it affects her the way it does even beneath the shroud of her own exhaustion. "-i'm gonna take a shower. you wanna join me?" he raises one brow, and the blush that races up her neck and into her cheeks threatens to answer for her, but beth shakes her head in place of words that won't manifest on her tongue, and he just chuckles, knowing just how easy it is to fluster her. and she knows he's doing it on purpose, but it doesn't stop her from standing there looking like a fool before he heads into the bathroom, tossing a "suit yourself" over his shoulder as the door closes behind him.
but she does need a shower, she's been thinking about it since the moment they got in the car to head back, and she tosses one last look at the closed bathroom door, hearing the sound of the water as it starts to filter through, and sighs.
with her robe and a towel, beth heads upstairs to take a shower in the kids' bathroom. the water is almost too hot but somehow still soothing, and she stands beneath it until the filth of the day begins to feel like a memory, reluctantly emerging from the warmth of the water about fifteen minutes later. she towels off her hair sufficiently enough, caring less about a wet pillow than the sleep she so desperately needs, and wraps the robe around her before heading back downstairs.
rio's sound asleep when she returns - shirtless, and she only lets that distract her slightly - on her side of the bed. she takes a moment to huff indignantly before trading the robe for a pair of pajamas, climbing into the other side, a little relieved to find he's wearing sweatpants and hadn't climbed into her bed completely naked. the light is starting to filter through the curtains that hang from the french doors in her bedroom, and the clock on the bedside table reads 6:08 - the sight of it causing beth to groan a little bit, but she hopes sleep finds her and holds on for a while, she's going to need it if they keep having long nights like this one.
he stirs, but doesn't open his eyes when she settles in next to him, and she thinks she's never seen him look so vulnerable, so peaceful, so young.
"what's with you and my side of the bed?" she asks sleepily, curling up beneath the covers and sliding a hand under her pillow. her eyes are already closed and she can feel herself drifting, assuming he's already asleep and won't answer, when he makes a sound that's something between a laugh and a sigh. "sorta smells like you." and she has to swallow down some unnamed emotion as her heart clenches a little bit, but she falls asleep with a smile on her face.
it's several hours later when she wakes to the sound of quiet snoring behind her and registers that she's pleasantly warm in a way she hadn't been when she'd gotten home. he's pressed against her back, one hand under her shirt and resting against the curve of her breast and just the realization sends a blush across her cheeks. but he's sleeping soundly, despite the way his body is telling her he's awake and she leans over to pick up her phone and check the time. it's still early - dean won't be bringing the kids back for hours yet -
and maybe she settles against him a bit more firmly when she leans back, pressing into him, and maybe he stirs a little bit and pulls her even closer, and maybe she rocks back against him until he groans into the crook of her shoulder, and there are a few minutes of heavy breathing and lazy touches before they both drift off again.