This chapter is living (or written...idk lol) proof that if people a) hound me enough about an update and b) poke at me enough about what they want to see in particular, that it will show up sooner rather than later, lol. Please note that when I say things like "bug" and "pester" I mean it affectionately and NOT negatively as if it's getting on my nerves. It totally does NOT; it motivates me to write and is quite entertaining. So...due to the pestering for updates and smut...here is a smut-included update. Enjoy. LOL
Hunter's sniff of the air was audible. Something smelled delicious. His brown eyes opened and he squinted at the brightness coming in through the windows and the skylight. He yawned loudly and scratched at his stomach.
While he padded into the bathroom, he rubbed at his sleepy eyes.
Downstairs, Stephanie flipped the bacon over, wanting it to cook as evenly as possible. She put her fork aside and grabbed the large bowl near her, pouring the batter into their Five of Hearts waffle maker. She flipped the texture switch to deep bake, knowing that Hunter preferred his waffles to have the same consistency. The kids preferred crispy waffles with a soft interior.
"What are you doing and why are you up this early?" Came Hunter's voice out of nowhere.
Stephanie closed her appliance so the waffles could start cooking. She turned around to see that Hunter had thrown on a pair of track pants and a sleeveless, black tank. Was there anything that her man didn't look amazing in? It seemed that no matter what he was or wasn't wearing, she was ready to jump his bones. She bit down on her lip in an attempt to rid her mind of thoughts that shouldn't currently be there. Already, she had calculated that since he'd woken up earlier than she expected they had around ten minutes where they would be completely alone. After that, they needed to wake the kids up. Quickness wasn't one of their most developed qualities, so she'd just have to control herself this morning.
Hunter didn't necessarily look…warm, she decided. But he didn't look completely pissed off either. He was probably too dazed to really feel either way at this point. She sent him a smile. "I got up so I could make you guys breakfast. Your favorite," she added.
His eyes widened with surprise, but he still smiled. "Waffles with strawberries on top?"
That brightened him up, Stephanie thought and smiled again. "You got it, babe."
"What brought this on?" He questioned skeptically, taking a seat at the island that was in the middle of their kitchen. He rested his forearms on the table.
"A couple of things, actually. Know how I left work early yesterday and I was able to hang out with you and the girls and we caught a few minutes of Jack's practice?"
"Yeah," he said, not seeing where she was going with this or why it had moved her to lose sleep to cook breakfast.
"Well, I really enjoyed being able to spend more time with you and the kids. I know we've arranged things this way because your schedule is more flexible and all…but you get to take them to school and pick them up. It's bonding time, you know. On a normal day I get home with just enough time to help with dinner, baths and putting them to bed."
"So you're going to start getting up earlier to eat breakfast with us?"
She smiled again. "Yeah. I want to see how this goes for a few days, see if I can get to work a bit earlier so I can leave earlier and at least be able to ride with you and the girls to get Jack on practice days. Just figured I'd work on getting up earlier starting today. As for why I specifically made your favorite?" She said, pulling open the waffle maker right as it beeped to let her know that the five, heart-shaped waffles were done.
Hunter watched her while she pulled plates down from the cupboards, arranging the waffles on one of them. For some reason he never noticed before today that her movements in the kitchen were actually quite graceful. He waited patiently for her to finish her train of thought, but yawned because he still wasn't completely awake.
"The meal is meant to go along with my apology about last night."
Hazel eyes widened again. She'd seemed completely sincere when she'd been trashing his brother. Had she changed her mind overnight? Unlikely. He couldn't wait to hear this.
"First, I'm sorry about the way I stormed off on you. That's literally the first time I was so upset with you that I backed out of sex that way. If it makes you feel any better I reconsidered as soon as I closed the bathroom door and I was miserable during my entire shower."
Hunter chuckled, not bothering to hide how appropriate he felt this was. "Yeah, that makes me feel better. And I'd figured as much, anyway. I know you've never done that before, which is why I was more shocked than anything."
Stephanie nodded and pushed back stray strands of hair that had fallen out of her messy bun. She fiddled with the belt of her purple, silk robe that was tied loosely around her waist. "The second thing is…well I thought about it and I realized I have no right to assume things. I mean I don't know why Howard doesn't talk to his parents or why he treats women the way he does. Maybe there's a good reason, maybe not."
A sigh left his mouth. "All that should matter is that he isn't trying to screw any of us over, Steph."
Stephanie held her hands up in defense. No, she didn't think Howard was purposely going to screw them over in some way. But she did feel that it was a byproduct of letting the guy into their lives. Maybe people like him couldn't help but screw things up around them. Not that she could or would tell Hunter that at this point.
All she wanted was to patch up this crack in their marriage before it turned into a gaping hole. Howard was too sensitive of a subject for her to outright oppose his presence. At least until he did something worse. Unfortunately, she knew that something worse would come eventually. Her instincts tended to be right and she was good at reading people when she detached her own emotions from the situation. She turned back to keep an eye on the food. "Honestly, I was just trying to protect you."
"That's not your job," Hunter said without hesitation. "It's my job to protect you and it's yours to support me."
She glanced over momentarily and nodded. "Fair enough," she said simply before padding over to the refrigerator to get the eggs she intended to scramble.
"Maybe you two just need to get to know each other better."
Blue eyes went wide and she was glad that her back was to her husband. And that she had enough wherewithal not to drop the carton of eggs. Get to know Howard better? Why? Despite the circumstances the led to his isolation from his parents and habit of mistreating women, the advice and opinions he was giving were harmful. She really hoped Hunter took note of the fact that she'd only apologized for judging Howard's past…not for speaking the truth on his still pretty crappy way of doing things.
In silence, she cracked eight eggs into a bowl and began to beat them with a fork. She left them where they were and went to check on the bacon.
"Steph?" Hunter asked pointedly. "Would you be willing to do that?"
Stephanie turned and grumbled low enough that Hunter wouldn't be able to hear her as she poured another round of batter into the waffle maker. "I'll give it a shot," she replied. She grabbed the carton of eggs and walked over to put it in the fridge.
Behind her, Hunter clapped his hands once and she heard his chair scrape against the floor. "Excellent," he said. Before she knew what was happening, he'd inserted himself into her path, blocking her from walking further.
Curiously, she arched an eyebrow at him, wondering what he was up to. But her hands automatically rested themselves on his chest when he leaned down and kissed her briefly on the lips. He stood up straight again and grinned at her. "Thanks, Steph."
A fat kid with cavities in a damn candy store. That's exactly what Hunter looked like at this moment. Clearly her actual approval of Howard didn't mean much but the fact that she was willing to try to get to know him, did.
The short kiss – hardly much more than a peck, was just emphasis on Hunter's thank you to her and she knew that. He wasn't using it to try to seduce her or anything. Yet, she was left wanting more. The day before, they'd literally kissed just twice. She'd lost her temper and cut everything short after the first kiss, which was meant to seal the deal of their make-up. The second was more of a "Sorry your brother is a dick" sympathy kiss. She found herself wanting a real kiss. One whose only unspoken message was, "I love and want you."
Hunter turned to leave, but she grabbed his wrist to make him stay put. "Don't go so fast," she told him.
From Hunter's perspective, the glint in her eyes was somewhere between sappy and lustful. Maybe she intended for them to pick up where they left off the night before. He sent her a one-sided smile and moved so that his hands were leaning against the counter and Stephanie was somewhat trapped between him and the surface. "Wouldn't dream of it."
"Hmm, that's good" she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck before leaning up and pressing her lips to his. Because she was already very close to the counter, it didn't take long before her back was against it.
Hunter kept one hand where it was on the counter. With the other, he cupped Stephanie's cheek right before he deepened their kiss.
Stephanie's hands moved downwards, before sneaking up under Hunter's shirt. She clutched at his lower back, drawing his body even closer to hers.
His fingertips danced a slow trail from her face, down to her neck and collarbone. He took his other hand off of the counter for a moment, to untie her robe. His roaming hand landed on her breast, rubbing through the material of her tank top. She let her mind blank while she simply enjoyed the sensation until he squeezed gently.
Feeling herself being rapidly pushed to the point of no return, she inhaled sharply and broke the kiss, completely breathless at this point. "We-we shouldn't," she said unconvincingly. Hell she was having a hard time even believing herself. That was evident in the fact that her hands had yet to stop roaming her husband's body. "What if – what if the kids come down here?"
"They sleep like they're in comas, baby," he said against her neck.
A little moan made its way past her lips as Hunter sucked and licked at the sweet spot between her neck and shoulder. Furthermore, he had moved his hand to give her other breast equal attention.
"The waffles are gonna burn," she said, subconsciously arching her back and giving into him even more.
Blindly, Hunter felt around for the outlet. He had no idea which one the waffle maker was plugged into since he didn't bother to lift his head. So when his hands came across a cord, he yanked it and the other one right near it. Hopefully one of them actually went to the waffle maker. If not, oh well. They'd just deal with the mess and make more batter when they were done.
"The bacon's burning," Stephanie said absently because she could smell a small bit of char.
Hunter pulled his head away for a second, looking to his left at the stove. Sure enough, there was a little smoke coming from the skillet. He moved the whole thing to one of the unlit burners, quickly. "There," he said. "Anything else you want me to do?" He asked teasingly.
"Me," she said seriously before jumping on the counter all on her own.
His deep laughter warmed her heart. Then he stepped in between her legs and planted his hands on her thighs before fusing his lips to hers again. That continued to heat up something else entirely.
Long legs angled themselves around Hunter's waist, before he felt his track pants and boxers being pushed down. He stepped out of the clothing without breaking their kiss, using his feet to kick it someplace unknown to him.
His skillful hands went up her thighs to the end of her boyshorts and he could feel her lift up just enough for him to pull them off, throwing them someplace behind them. He stepped close to her again, brushing his hardness against her entrance. He smiled against her lips at the little shiver and moan she gave in response.
For Stephanie, not only was her most intimate area hot…but it was also undoubtedly wet and practically throbbing with anticipation. Stephanie broke the kiss so that she could look at him. Her eyes had gone from their usual pale blue, to a more vivid and dark one. "I need you. Now," she said impatiently, grabbing him at the base of what would soon be her pleasure.
"And you'll have me," he said thickly as he positioned himself. "Now," he added as he pushed as far her body would allow with one long, smooth stroke. His length was halfway in and he stayed still for a few moments, enjoying the feel of his wife's body clenching his while her hands clutched at his arms.
Maybe he just enjoyed being her prisoner, physically. Smirking at the thought, he gave her a long kiss as he pulled all the way out. He moved his lips across her jaw and down to her neck, wanting to hear her moans and sighs of ecstasy when he pushed all the way back in.
Thirty minutes and four burned pieces of bacon later and the three kids were seated at the table in the far corner of the kitchen. Since Hunter had distracted the hell out of Stephanie, he'd helped her make the eggs and replacement bacon.
Hunter carried a plate full of waffles in one hand and a bowl full of scrambled eggs in the other. Stephanie was currently sitting the freshly cut strawberries and plate of bacon on the table.
"Mommy, why is your face all red?" Jackson asked curiously.
"I-uh-what?" She asked, knowing full well that she was flustered. That happened to her when she'd had sex and felt like someone other than Hunter somehow knew or would find out what she'd just done.
From behind her, Hunter laughed and sidestepped her so that he could place the items on the table.
"Why is your face red?" The little boy asked again. His currently bluish-green eyes were very curious and somewhat confused. At least they weren't accusatory or suspicious.
"Um…um," Stephanie stammered out, taking a seat at the table.
"Your Mom wanted to start the morning off with a bang," Hunter commented as he took a seat at the table. He was trying to keep a serious face, but Stephanie's glare from across the table was way too funny. He knew that if she was closer, she'd most likely kick or swat at him.
Jack's face scrunched up in further confusion. "Daddy, what's that mean?"
"Uh…" Hunter droned out. Damn it, he hadn't thought that far ahead. Now he was regretting somewhat throwing Stephanie under the bus. He glanced at her and shook his head. Her smirk was more than amused and her arms were folded across her chest. "Um, you see it's…uh."
"Working out," Stephanie interrupted. "I was working out."
"Very hard," Hunter added. That was true. While she was bashful about talking about their sex life with outsiders, she was anything but reserved and shy when it came to her physical interaction with him. She was enthusiastic and exciting and he had nothing but total satisfaction with that part of their lives.
"And-and I helped her. Yeah I helped. And that's why my hair was messed up earlier," Hunter said, gesturing to the unruly blond locks cascading around his shoulders. They weren't lying. Having sex did in fact burn calories. Furthermore, it really was Stephanie's fault that his hair had ended up this way. It had been perfectly fine and in a ponytail before she went and took the band out and ran her hands all through it. She hadn't even told him it was messy before he went upstairs to wake up the kids. The first thing out of Jackson's mouth had been an inquiry to the state of his father's hair.
Karmina and Kaycee looked back and forth between their parents. Finally they turned to each other. "They're weird," the girls said in unison.
"All right, no more questions," Hunter declared before him and Stephanie shot themselves in the foot any more. "Everybody eat. You're all probably going to be late for school as it is."
He looked up and saw Stephanie trying not to laugh on her side of the table. Unable to help himself, he smirked and blew her a kiss.
A/N: Also wanted to say that this fic isn't going to be all downhill all the time. That'd be kinda uninteresting to read and wouldn't be very realistic. It's going to be more like a rollercoaster, but following their day to day lives and how small and big things influence how close or how far apart they are at that time. Of course, things will go downhill more and more each time bad shit happens. But for that, you've gotta stay tuned and review to see it play out :-D