I forgot to put a warning in the beginning of this story, so I'm doing it now: here there be monsters.
Going forward, this story will be dealing with some adult content and situations. There will be sexual situations and an upcoming chapter deals with a anxiety attack. I will post trigger warnings on that particular chapter but I do want to let you know it's coming.
There will also be an author's note at the end of this chapter.
He found her stumbling out of the kitchen, looking into the empty red solo cup she held as if she were confused by the contents…or lack thereof. She almost ran into the railing when he reached out a hand to snag her shoulder.
"Slow down sweetheart, you're going to take a dive you won't like if you don't pay attention to where you're going."
She looked up at him, the confused expression on her face changing into a surprised smile.
"Where have you been?"
"Sitting outside watching the last of the drunken idiots trying to pole vault across the pool using the pool skimmer. It was both entertaining and very sad."
He waved to a couple of stragglers sitting on the floor of the living room, half asleep and half-drunk as he maneuvered her towards the stairs. Rhonda waved wildly towards the stairs and Tad ducked his head to avoid getting hit with an empty solo cup.
"Take me to bed!"
He plucked the solo cup from her fingers and dropped it onto a small table that held at least a half a dozen similar cups.
"Come on goddess, I think you've had too much to drink."
He wrapped an arm around her waist and helped her up the main staircase, taking one step at a time and making sure she didn't fall back down the stairs. It was slow going but eventually they made it to the second floor. He maneuvered her towards her room, walking down the hallways slowly. She leaned heavily against him, her head half on his shoulder as she weaved through the hallway.
They reached the door to her bedroom and he took one hand from her arm to open her door and gently push her through. She let go of him to stumble into the room as he shut the door behind them. His plan was to first take care of her and then try to either round up the remainder of the party goers and either kick them out or get them situated so they passed out in a relatively safe environment. The mess in the house he wasn't worried about, the Lloyd's household staff were more than used to Rhonda's impromptu parties and would have the house clean before Rhonda even woke up that morning.
"Okay you, let's get you dressed and into…"
Rhonda stood in front of him, clad only in a red lace bra and a matching red lace thong. Tad, after almost swallowing his tongue, kept his eyes firmly about neck level.
She fisted her hands on her hips and glared at him, weaving slightly.
"What is wrong with you?"
He pulled a robe off the hook on the back of her door, carefully keeping his eyes off of her near nude frame.
"Rhon, put on the robe and get into bed."
She took a step toward shim and he took a step back.
"I don't get you," Her words were slurred. "You spend all your time as my personal shadow and the one time I hand myself over to you on a silver platter you won't make a damn move."
"Rhonda, you're drunk. A little past drunk. Actually I'm not sure how the hell you're still standing actually…"
"I'm not that drunk,"
"Only drunk people say they're not that drunk." He shook the robe at her. "You forgot how to walk upstairs Rhonda."
"Pfthththth…" She waved a hand around. Tad was positive he was blushing but he wasn't sure. She hadn't called him out on it yet so that was something.
"Taddy…" she whined. He sighed heavily.
"Ronnie…" he whined back. She wrinkled her nose.
"Ewww…Taddy, I need you. Why are you not being cooperative?"
"Rhon, I am being more than cooperative. I am trying to get you hydrated and to bed to sleep because you need it. You're a quarter way to passing out on your floor. What I am not going to do, Rhonda, is be your drunken hookup."
"There are plenty of guys who'd be willing to sleep with me, Tad." She snapped. "You aren't special."
"Of course I am," he retorted. "I'm the one standing here not pawing at your half naked body because I have respect for you."
"But I know you want me. What is the big deal?"
His hand fell, still holding the robe. His eyes, which had been scanning the walls, the ceiling, the pictures, now fell on her face. He took one determined step towards her.
"You're right Rhon, I do. Sometimes so much it keeps me up at night. But." Another step. "If we get together, it's going to be when you're stone cold sober."
Another step.
"Because trust me my goddess, when I finally kiss you, you're going to damn well remember it for days afterwards." He lifted his hand. "Now put on the damn robe and get into bed."
For one moment it looked as if she was going to argue. Her face went pale and her eyes widened. Dropping the robe, he rushed towards her, grabbed her shoulders and pushed her into her bathroom. He made it just to her toilet when she heaved and threw up. She dropped to her knees, hands clutching the rim of the toilet as she threw up the contents of her stomach. Tad sighed heavily.
He plucked a washcloth off of the towel stand and ran it under cold water in the sink. He walked back to the still heaving Rhonda and dropping to his knees, scooped her hair back and held it as he ran the cool washcloth over her forehead.
"Yep." He muttered mostly to himself. "I'm the special one, all right."
The minute she saw him again, she knew this was a bad idea.
Helga had sounded sensible when she'd suggested this plan; Tad had always been her sounding board for things she couldn't talk about with her other friends. But the minute the front door opened and she had gotten a good look at him again; the plan was stupendously horrible.
Because this wasn't her Taddy of years past; her sweet jester who listened to her bitch about her parents, held her hair back when she threw up and punched out at least one guy who tried to take advantage of her teenaged drunken years. This Tad was older, dangerous. He was not supposed to still look damn good in jeans and a faded Nirvana tee shirt.
She found herself second guessing everything from the time the door closed on them; should she have gone down the stairs first, what did the back of her hair look like, where should she suggest for lunch.
"Nice car."
She unlocked the doors to her red Volvo.
"Thanks. Any suggestions for lunch?"
He slid into the car easily, his legs hitting the glove compartment. "Where's the…oh."
With some maneuvering, he found the button to move the seat back.
"Ronnie is short," Rhonda started her car. "She likes to sit up close."
"I can tell. Is there a decent sit down Chinese restaurant around here?"
"There's the popular one downtown. And the better one on the corner of Oak and Sunset."
"Let's go there. I've been in this town for two weeks or so and I am having Chinese food withdrawals."
"Can one have withdrawals from MSG?" she teased.
"It is completely a thing. There's this great little take-out place right outside the studio that Hel and I went to at least three times a week during Ever After. We developed a great relationship with Mrs. Huang."
"What did you have the other four days?"
"It mostly alternated between pizza, the vegan shop by our place and whatever we were in the mood for that day. We rarely actually cooked."
"How long did you and Helga live together?" She turned onto the main street heading towards the older side of town.
"We still live together. Property is expensive in LA and it's easier for us to work together when we have a combined working space." He grinned mischievously. "Why? Jealous?"
"I can imagine you are a horrible person to live with. You probably leave your socks all over the place."
Dammit, even his laughter unnerved her.
"I am amazingly well kept. Although Hel is usually bitching because I track sand into the house when I go to the beach."
Traffic in this part of town was usually low this early in the day. Most everyone ate lunch in the main part of town and only ventured out to Old Town later in the afternoon when the closer restaurants were packed with the lunch crowd. She eyed the street for a parking spot and found one close to the restaurant.
"It must be tough living so close to the beach."
"When we made it big and were finally able to buy our own place instead of living in boxes, Hel wanted a place by the beach. Most of our looking at real estate were places by the beach. We almost bought a two-bedroom condo with a walkout. At the last minute our agent showed us a set of re-fashioned homes on a lark. They were old warehouses that had been repurposed; they were closer inland, at least a mile or two from the beach, completely not what Hel wanted. The minute we walked in, Hel fell in love." He smiled in memory as she parked the car. "Our agent showed us the walkout to the usable roof and Hel made an offer on the spot."
"Because of the roof?"
Another smile. "Don't get me wrong, I fell in love with it too. The entire main area had large windows that open for the illusion of a huge patio area and the entire place is just big, open spaces. And the roof area is pretty damn neat."
They walked up the sidewalk as they talked and Tad held the door open for her.
The inside was tiny but nice. The host took them to a table towards the back. Tad took a seat nodding his thanks to the host.
"What's good here?" he asked, opening the menu and perusing the contents. "I'll take your recommendation."
"I usually get the number twelve when I'm able to get here. The number six is really good too."
"We'll compromise." He put the menu to the side. "You get the number twelve and I'll get the number six and we'll share, if you're up to it."
She relaxed a bit, putting her menu on the edge of the table. "You're on."
"Great."
She gave their order to the server adding in two waters. When the server had left, Tad leaned forward, his elbows resting on the edge of the table. Her heart stuttered.
"So, what was it that sent Hel running to my house and offering to watch my mother so I could tag in?"
It was easier when she was talking to Helga. With the blond one always knew where they stood, even now. She took a deep breath and smiled her thanks at the server who brought the two waters. She hesitated another moment before finally speaking.
"I saw Nadine today."
Tad's gaze on hers never wavered but his expression had softened.
"I had an early meeting on the other side of Manhattan this morning so after I left, I stopped by one of the coffee shops around that area to pick up breakfast on my way back to the office. While in there I ran into Lila. Rather, she was in line behind me."
Tad tightened his lips to keep from grinning.
"She was being her usual bitchy self when suddenly this woman in front of me turns around and just lays into her with these brilliant smart ass comments. That's when I realized it was Nadine. The way they were going at each other it was obvious that this is probably a semi regular thing."
Tad laughed. "Sorry I missed it. But none of this explains why we're here having lunch at eleven in the morning or why you apparently skipped out of work after your run in with Nadine at a coffee shop, because I am assuming there was a run in."
She nodded, taking a drink before continuing.
"After Lila stormed out, I caught Nadine's eye. And we talked…kind of. She asked how I was and if I was visiting New York. And that was it. The entire conversation left me cold and I realized just how much of a bitch I was in high school. I mean, I have no idea what happened to Nadine our Senior year. I had no idea the extent of her and Brian's…whatever they had nor did I have any idea just how far down she'd allowed herself to take that eating disorder. Like I told Helga, the first I knew about it was when everyone else found out. After Brian's breakdown and after Nadine's parents had sent her to the facility, I never even asked after her or called her or anything. I was a horrible person back then. I can understand why the Nadine now wants as little to do with me as possible."
She took another drink as their food arrived. Tad grinned at the plate of food and thanked the server before piling rice and pieces of shrimp and chicken onto his plate.
"Oh, come to daddy!" he exclaimed rubbing his hands and picking up his fork. Rhonda couldn't help but grin at his expression as he took the first bite of food.
"Oh, Chinese food how I've missed you so much." He speared another piece of chicken and eyed the plate in front of Rhonda. "You said you'd share."
"Actually, you're the one who suggested we share, but please." She gestured towards her spicy beef and pineapple mixture. He scooped some off the serving plate and onto his own plate.
He took another bit of the beef and moaned in appreciation. The moan sent shivers down her spine and she tried to distract herself with spicy beef.
"Little known fact," Tad finally spoke. "Nadine and I exchange emails probably monthly. It's something Hel doesn't know and I've never seen a reason to tell her. It started while she was in rehab and just kept up. I'm not going to go into specifics regarding what happened after Hel found her passed out in the bathroom but with the help of Gerald, who called in contacts, we managed to keep it under wraps, convince Nadine she needed help and help her parents find a quiet facility. After that…well, you know nothing is a secret forever."
"No offense, but why you?" she asked. "After all this time, why did she only keep in contact with you?"
He smiled and took another bite before answering.
"I was your friend in high school Rhon. And, by proxy, Nadine's. She knew she could trust me with her secrets, God knows I had enough of yours at the time. Afterwards," he shrugged. "I don't know. But I kept in correspondence with her because she needed someone on the outside to talk to that wouldn't cause any undue stressors and I had enough going on in my life that someone who wasn't in on the day to day happenings of Hillwood High was almost a welcome relief. I'm not the only person she keeps in contact with though. I know she and Sheena ran into each other more than a couple of years back and at the time she said Sheena was showing her how to cleanse her aura through yoga and meditation. As crazy as it sounds, she said it was actually working for her."
He put down his fork and reached over the table to touch her hand. "Nadine's had to drag herself back from a really dark place. It was a slow going and she was hurt a lot in the process. Give her some slack for acting a little stand offish."
He moved his hand and went back to eating. "Although if she's taking on Lila in a battle of wills and winning, then the girl's doing a damn sight better than she thinks she is."
Rhonda had frozen when he touched her hand, the feeling of warmth on her hand startled her for a moment. In their last two conversations, he hadn't touched her; even when she handed him her card, he took care not to touch her when he took it. Her heart pounded against her chest so loud she barely heard what he was saying. As fast as that, it was over. His hand was no longer on hers and she missed it. The adrenaline boost she got from one simple touch was insane. It had been a long time since she'd felt that rush from a person's touch. She forced herself to take a deep breath and took a drink of her water, willing her hands to stop shaking. It took some time before she trusted herself to speak.
"You're right, of course."
"I usually am," he retorted, taking another bite. "As soon as the woman in my life understand that, the easier my life will be."
"Let's talk about something else." She suggested. "We're only halfway through lunch and it's going to be really awkward if we just sit in silence for the rest of the meal."
"Good idea, so tell me Ms. Lloyd, just what does a buyer do?"
"Xander Miller just asked me out."
Three heads turned simultaneously to look at a shell-shocked Isabelle.
"Like, on a date?" Alyssa asked. "Or like girlfriend?"
"Haven't you two been flirting it up in Calculus?" Ronnie asked.
"What did you say?" Daphne asked at the same time.
Isabella sat down at the lunch table as if in a trance.
"I said yes?"
The table erupted in cheers.
"Did I do the right thing? What am I thinking?"
"That Xander is hot and he totally just asked you out." Alyssa answered. "And that you totally get to kiss him and you have to tell your three best friends how he kisses."
Isabella blushed.
"Really, you don't have to tell me," Ronnie said, taking pity on her poor, shell-shocked friend. "I'm just glad you're happy. You are happy, right?"
Isabella nodded, finally coming out of her trance. "Yes. Yes! I really like him and oh my God I'm dating Xander Miller."
Alyssa high fived her.
"Does this mean no more study groups with us now?" Daphne teased.
"I'm wondering how your Dad is going to flip when he finds out you're dating someone." Ronnie added.
"Quit jockeying for favorite daughter position," Alyssa joked. "We all know you're already second favorite adopted daughter because you two have the same iron clad stomach."
"Another one of our group lost to love," Ronnie lamented, ignoring Alyssa's joke.
"You said you're too caught up in your studies to have a boyfriend," Alyssa countered.
"And I am. I'll think about romance after I get my degree."
"You're going to miss out on life if you keep your head in the books." Ronnie shrugged.
"I doubt it." She waved her fork towards Alyssa. "One of us has to be the studious bookworm in this group.
"Are you actually going on a date?" Daphne asked, ignoring the playful bickering from her other two friends. Isabella shrugged.
"I don't know. It all happened so fast. I was coming in here and he caught my arm and said Hey Isabella, I need to ask you something. And I'm confused so I said okay. And he pulls me into the art alcove and says, I really like you Izzy and was wondering if you want to date. Well I'm just shocked because yeah we've been flirting hard the last couple of months but he likes me? So I stuttered out a yes and he just grins that really nice grin he has, you know, the one that crinkles the sides of his eyes and says, cool and kisses me on the cheek and says meet me after school at the statue. And then he left."
"Wait, back up, he kissed you already and you left that part out earlier?" Alyssa asked outraged.
"Initiate Lyss swooning," Daphne intoned, picking up her soda. Alyssa waved a hand in front of her.
"That is so romantic,"
"He does have nice eyes," Ronnie agreed. Isabella nodded.
"Doesn't he though?"
"So you're meeting him after school by the statue. Got it. We'll tie Lyss up so she can't take video." Daphne teased. Her friend stuck out her tongue.
"That's really unfair guys, it's not like I would post it on LookBook."
"Just remember, our parents are friends too," Ronnie reminded them. "And even though some of them might not have LookBook, the others do and if one knows it's only a matter of time before everyone knows."
Isabella pointed her fork at Ronnie. "That. Yes. Lyss, nothing on social media. At least not until I can talk to my Mom and get her help to break this to my Dad."
Alyssa mock pouted as she picked up her soda. "Well hurry up, because I'm not sure how long I can keep this juicy piece of information off the socials."
"I regret to inform you that your ex sounds like a complete D-bag."
Rhonda nodded, cracking open her fortune cookie. Somehow, he'd gotten her to tell him all about Dashiell and their marriage. Things she'd only told Arnold and some things she'd never told anyone. It had always been easy to talk to Tad. His easy demeanor and supporting non-judgmental attitude towards all of her mistakes and decisions had always made her comfortable talking to him.
It was quite possible he knew more of her secrets back in high school than even Nadine. Her heart clinched in regret again and she looked down at her fortune.
One who admires you greatly is hidden before your eyes.
She lifted her gaze and watched Tad smirking as he read his fortune. In grade school, he was her insane stalker, constantly chasing her around and cackling maniacally when she yelled at him. Blackmailing her to be his girlfriend.
In middle school he just…disappeared. She never knew where he went and he never offered up the information. When they reached high school, everything was different. He was different. More laid back, less…creepy.
And somehow he'd snuck himself into her inner circle and into her trust. She knew he still had feelings for her back then, he never bothered to hide that fact, he just…never used his position as her friend to encroach any favors.
To be honest, she was not innocent in their decades long game. She was the one to turn the tables on him and extended their "dating period", she was the one who used his friendship and self-proclaimed "personal bodyguard" status to her own advantage. She was the one who'd drunkenly hit on him not once but three times while they were in high school.
And like in fourth grade, he's always been the first to give her an out. To make sure she was the one who came out looking good while he took the hits.
Her thoughts ventured back to Helga and Arnold, who, after decades, had finally ended up together.
She'd watched Ever After, seen the interactions between Brooke and Theo. If Helga had spent all this time still on love with Arnold, the show made no qualms of making it obvious, then did that mean that there was a chance that Tad…
"You're staring."
She blinked, his voice pulling her out of her thoughts.
He was finishing the rest of his water, looking at her over the rim of his glass.
"Now you're blushing." He grinned, the casual half grin he'd perfected back in high school. "I know my careless good looks are breath taking but I'm full up on groupies at the moment, sorry."
His quip should have broken the moment, as always, but this time it didn't.
"You ready?"
He nodded, tossing his napkin on the table. He stood up and gestured towards the door.
"All right, Rhon, what's wrong?" He asked was soon as they were out of the restaurant. "You were okay I thought, until a few minutes ago."
"I…" she took a deep breath. "I was thinking about how much I missed you Tad. This," she waved between them. "Easy way we have between us."
"Ah. Well, I missed you too."
They were near her car. Rhonda took another deep breath. She had always gone for what she wanted, why stop now?
Tad was standing on the sidewalk next to her car when she moved. Stepping into his personal space, she saw the flash of realization in his eyes the second before she lifted up on her toes and pressed her lips to his.
He started, his hip hitting the side of the car as one foot stepped back to keep his balance. His hands came up to her shoulders and he pulled her away.
"Rhonda," he sounded cautious. "What are you doing?"
"Well, on the East Coast we call it kissing. Why? What do you call it on the West Coast?"
"Very funny. Let me expound. Why are you kissing me?"
"Are we really having this conversation now?"
"I'm afraid so goddess."
She smiled slowly.
"Oh good. I was afraid for a moment I had overstepped and you had stopped worshipping me."
He stared at her and then gave a huge sigh.
"There will only ever be one alter I worship at, goddess."
Still smiling, she reached up again. His hands tightened on her shoulders.
"Are you sure?"
"Shut up and kiss me Tad."
Her lips crashed into his again and instead of pulling away, his arms went around her to pull her towards him, one hand sliding to grip her hip.
Her mind spun. She hadn't expected the possessive heat as he took control of the kiss, lips and teeth and tongue clashing. Her body temperature flared up, need pooling in the pit of her stomach.
She pushed herself closer, needing to be as close to him as possible. He groaned into her mouth, his fingers on her hips tightening.
He finally pulled back first, breathing hard. She made a small sound of protest, trying to move back in for more, but he held firm.
"This is probably not the best place for this…conversation."
His voice was low and breathless, making all of her nerve endings tingle.
Then she remembered they were still standing by her car, in old town Hillwood, in the middle of lunch hour, not at all appropriately almost tangled into each other.
She took a step back and clicked the button on the key fob to unlock the car.
"Get in."
She walked around the car on unsteady legs and slid into the driver's seat. Tad was already in the passenger seat, looking at her with a mixture of confusion and lust.
Her mind was whirling as she started the car and pulled out into the street. Not with thoughts of this being a bad idea, but of quick calculations.
It's 12:30 on a Wednesday, Mrs. Davenport won't be at the house and school gets out at three pm. Ronnie will be at Alyssa's today and usually she would get home around five…
"Where are we going?"
Tad's voice broke into her thoughts.
"My house."
His quick laugh was tinged with disbelief.
"Seriously?"
"As a sale at Bloomingdale's."
"Rhonda, are you sure you want…"
His voice died off as she took one hand off the wheel and placed it on his jean clad thigh. She could feel the muscles bunching under her touch.
"Tad, quit trying to talk us both out of this. We're going back to my place and then you can decide what you want to do."
The whole trip took eleven minutes, the entirety of which Tad kept his mouth shut. Somewhere along the way, however, his hand had come to rest on top of hers.
She pulled into the driveway and moved her hand to shut off the car. He climbed out and quietly followed her up the walk and to the front door.
As she unlocked the door, one question popped into her head.
Do you really want to do this?
The door opened and she walked in, opening it further for Tad to follow. Dropping her purse and keys on the small table beside the entrance, she turned back as he shut and locked the door. He had enough time to turn around before she was stepping towards him again and lifting up to kiss him.
Hell yes, she wanted to do this.
Unlike the first kiss where he hesitated, Tad was fully on board this time, even taking the lead.
His hands went to her hips and she gasped into his mouth when he spun her and stepped her back. Her back hit her front door as he moved in angling his head to deepen the kiss.
There was nothing sweet about this, this was dark and deep, hot and wet and everything she needed. Her arms wound around his neck, fingers combing and tangling through his hair, pulling at the strands as one of his hands slid down her hip. He clutched her thigh and hitched up her leg around his own hip. The skirt of her dress hitched up with the move and his fingers were suddenly on bare skin.
She was desperate. He surrounded her senses, his chest was flush against hers, his hands were stroking her skin and his tongue…
She unwound her arms from his neck and reached down to grab the bottom of his tee shirt and begin to tug upwards, her nails dragging against his skin as she lifted.
She could feel his low groan vibrate in his chest as he broke the kiss, his mouth moving hotly down the side of her face and neck.
"You're killing me Rhonda," his voice was next to her ear. She felt him lick a trail from the juncture of her neck to a spot near her ear she didn't know was sensitive until now. She gasped, her eyes fluttering closed and she arched her back, her nails digging into his side.
He pulled away and looked down at her, his eyes a deep brown.
"Bedroom?"
"Through here, small hall to the right."
He smiled mischievously.
"Hold on."
He slid both hands under her ass and lifted. Her legs wrapped around his waist and locked together as he turned and walked through the great room and down the right hall towards her bedroom.
Her bedroom door was open partially so he bumped it open fully using one of her legs. He walked through the room, depositing her on her bed. He bent down and kissed her hard while untangling her arms and legs from him. As he straightened, he pointed a finger at her.
"Stay."
She was too dazed to move, merely watched him as he crossed the room to shut and lock her bedroom door.
She was alone. In her bedroom. With Thaddeus Gumblethorpe.
He walked back towards her, pulling off his tee shirt as he walked and tossing it carelessly onto the floor. Rhonda's eyes widened. Tan skin, tones abs, dark hair smattering his upper chest…
If she could go back in time and tell her ten-year-old self or even her high school self that one day she would be sitting on her bed watching a half-naked Thaddeus walk towards her looking like sin, both past hers would've laughed.
He dropped to his knees in front of her and her breath caught in her throat.
Slowly, he lifted one leg and unzipped her boots, sliding them from her feet, followed by the book socks she'd worn with them. The other boot and sock followed.
As the second boot hit the floor, his gaze raked slowly up her body; bare legs, dress hiked up to her hips and rumpled, her lips swollen, until he finally met her eyes.
He grinned. A dark grin that promised she was in for a ride.
In that one brief moment, with him kneeling before her slightly spread legs, that dark grin and a gleam in his eye, she saw her Tad. Her mad jester, her shadow, her protector, the boy who'd made a promise while still respecting her body.
Trust me goddess, when I finally kiss you you're going to damn well remember it for days afterwards.
"Hold on goddess, because you're about to be worshipped."
Oh yeah, she was going to feel this.
They had it wrong. Sometimes, reality was better than fantasy.
Spending the better part of an afternoon in bed with the woman he'd worshipped since the third grade had at one time been so far on his "never gonna happen" list that "get rich and famous" had actually been checked off first.
Now, he looked down at the raven haired beauty napping on his chest and couldn't figure out how the heck anything this afternoon had happened.
When he was cornered by his best friend/business partner, he fully expected to suck it up, maybe go to lunch, play it cool and maybe get a hug when she dropped him off at his parents…
SHIT!
He moved the arm idly resting on Rhonda's shoulder so he could see the time.
Four-fifteen.
Oh, he was so busted.
Rhonda stirred, raising her head from his chest to look sleepily up at him. Oh who did he have to offer thankful sacrifices to for this gift?
Her lips curved into a lazy smile.
He was so damned, he thought as he pulled her up to him, lips claiming hers once more. Everything about her overwhelmed him; her scent, her voice, the way her body moved. For one brief moment, he was her Tad.
"Tad," she murmured against his mouth. He broke the kiss, his eyes still closed.
"You're killing me Rhon."
"What time is it?"
Shit. His parents.
"Four-fifteen."
"Shit!"
She rolled out of bed and started grabbing clothes. He was momentarily struck by her naked backside as she tried to put on her underwear.
"Thaddeus."
He sat up, the covers pooling at his hips, an amused smile on his lips.
An annoyed, naked Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd holding up a ripped pair of lace panties was truly a sight to behold.
"Don't give me that smug smile, you ripped my underwear."
"I'll buy you a new pair, I'll buy you ten new pair."
"That's not the point."
His smile widened.
"You didn't seem to mind at the time."
His boxer briefs were thrown at him, hitting his chest. Chuckling, he slid them on and went about the room picking up pieces of clothing and putting them on.
Rhonda was running between the bedroom and the attached bathroom getting redressed and fixing her hair and makeup. He slid on his shirt and walked into the bathroom, sliding up behind her and kissing the side of her neck.
Her eyes fell closed for a moment and she leaned back against his chest.
"I have to get you back to your parent's house."
"I know," his lips were still on her skin as his arms wrapped around her waist. "When's Ronnie getting home?"
"In about thirty minutes."
He stood there for one moment more, holding her to him, trying to keep this memory locked in his brain for the future. Reluctantly, he let her go.
"We'd better get going."
She grabbed his wrist before he could move too far from her, her eyes catching his in the mirror.
"What are you doing this weekend?"
He grinned.
Helga knew how to cook, usually she just never had the time or a reason.
She stood in the Gumblethorpe's kitchen checking on the chicken breasts she'd put in the oven earlier.
"Smells good in here."
Helga looked up from the potatoes and smiled at the older man peeking around the corner of the kitchen area.
"Hey Ken, how was work?"
"The same. Where's Tad?"
"We're getting grandbabies!" Aggie chirped happily from the couch. Ken looked from his wife to Helga. Helga shrugged.
"I just gave her the evening meds."
"Ah. What's for dinner?"
"Grilled chicken breast and baby potatoes and carrots."
"Sounds delicious."
"And about finished. You have enough time to change if you want and help Aggie into the kitchen."
She was pulling the chicken out and setting the table when Ken stepped back into the living room area. The door to the apartment opened and Tad stepped in as Ken was helping Aggie to the dining room table.
"Am I getting grandbabies?" she asked, as he shut the door. He looked at Helga who was studiously transferring the glass cooking plate to a hot plate.
"It was Chinese food. I don't think they give out babies with the daily special Mom."
"Tad, what is she talking about?" Ken asked as he took his seat. Tad crossed the room and sat down next to him.
"I have no idea. I went to lunch with a friend."
He ignored Helga's soft snort of derision as she put the plates on the table and sat down. Ken narrowed his eyes towards his son.
"A friend? What was this friend's name?"
Suddenly he felt like he was in grade school again.
"Rhonda."
"Ah. Well that explains your mother."
Dinner was the usual noisy affair, Ken sharing the more interesting stories he'd heard during the day from customers, while Tad and Helga discussed their next projects with them, Aggie interjecting every once in a while, with an old story she'd heard when she was younger or asking questions.
After dinner, Tad helped Helga clean up the kitchen and after saying goodnight, they two left.
Tad walked down the stairs, locking the outside door as they left, the entire time waiting for Helga to say something about the fact that he'd been gone almost six hours.
She didn't say a word until they were in the car and he had made it half way down the street.
"So?"
"I knew you were dying to ask!" he announced loudly, waving one hand in her direction.
"Don't deflect. You were gone for over six hours and I know your "I got laid" look: I've seen it enough after some of your vacations or dates. I'll ask again, so?"
"We went to lunch. I got Chinese and you didn't."
"Well that's hardly fair. But again, you're deflecting. Lunch does not take six hours, even if you two did linger over coffee. So, is Aggie getting grandbabies."
He shot her a quick glare and he turned onto the main road. "That's your fault, isn't it?"
"Maybe. You were so quick to push me towards Arnold and what you called "fun, sexy time" and like I said earlier, payback is a bitch. So…did you end up back at her place for coffee?"
"We never made it to coffee." He finally admitted. Helga laughed.
"Congratulations. Well?"
Tad sighed heavily. "Hel, it was great. Better than great. I'm sure it surpassed even my addled teenaged fantasies. But it was a one-time thing. Unlike you, who has been in a committed relationship, albeit online, for over a year, this was the first time I've seen Rhon since we left. The last thing she is ever going to do is end up at my doorstep in the rain declaring her undying love."
"If she does, get that on video because I want to see it." She grew contemplative. "So, you aren't seeing her again?"
He grinned. "I didn't say that. We have a date for Saturday night. Apparently it's Timberly and Devon's weekend, whatever that means."
"It means the girls switch houses every weekend. It means this weekend all four girls will be spending the night at Lyss' house. It means Rhonda has a kid free weekend."
"So does Arnold by that logic."
"Yes, but he had the girls this weekend while I was there so the girls' are already used to me…or at least half of them are. Apparently Ronnie is not used to her mom having fun sexy times with anyone much less the male part of the duo that created her favorite television show."
"How am I going to explain this? Yes Ronnie, I knew your mother in high school. In fact, she's the inspiration for one half of your favorite couple on Ever After. That is going to go great."
"First, that would be Rhonda's conversation with Ronnie, not yours. And, you can only hope it doesn't go any worse than when Daphne figured it out."
"You got lucky."
Helga smiled. "Yes, I did."
"So, am I dropping you off at Arnold's?"
"Nope." She leaned back in the leather seats. "Home, James. We can work on story ideas."
"Ah, back to normalcy."
AN: First, I want to thank everyone who have read my stories and commented/reviewed. So, some housekeeping issues. As mentioned in "Ever After" Daphne belongs to Arnold and Lila, who are officially divorced. Isabella belongs to Harold and Patty, Alyssa belongs to Timberly and Devon, she is the niece of Gerald's and Veronica is Rhonda and Dashall's kid. It seems there's been some confusion.
Also, I experiment with characters in my stories. I also post ships in the description of the fic. If you do not like the ship, please feel free to skip over it. It won't hurt my feelings at all. I recently wrote a fic for a Secret Santa gift. The recipient asked me to post it for everyone else to read as they really liked the story. It's not a ship I normally write, but it was this person's request so I did it.
If you don't like a ship, PLEASE do not write hate on the reviews. Or have enough guts to not do it on "Guest" It's rude, and it's hateful especially to the person who asked for it. Those who follow me on Tumblr and have been unwilling recipients to my recent obsession know I do not tolerate ship wank. I am a huge proponent of YSINMSATOK. Because of this I will be doing the rare (for me) practice of deleting anon comments.
Also, there will be another chapter posted on the 25th. Happy Christmas!