I do not own any True Blood characters, but I do love them all. Now let's get back to sort of a normal life for sweet Carli, shall we?
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Carli felt a gentle nudge, and blinked up at the flight attendant that was waking her up. She smiled and sat up, and the woman smiled warmly at her. "My daughter and I love your band, sweetie. We keep arguing about which album is better, but I prefer the new one. It is a bit deeper and darker, and I appreciate that."
"Oh, thanks so much. I really like the direction it has taken." Carli replied, shaking out her hair.
"You went through a few things to get there. I can hear that in your voice." The woman's voice was thoughtful, and Carli looked at her. She must be about ten years older than Carli, and was pretty and soft.
"We all do." Carli said, smiling wanly. She bid farewell to the fan and walked to the escalator, her eyes searching as she stepped down. She saw him and her breath caught in her throat. He was leaning against a pole in fitted jeans, a button up tan shirt, and flip flops. He looked as good as he possibly could and maybe ever had, and she felt her mouth watering. She held back from running down the moving steps and strolled over to him as she focused on his cerulean eyes that sparkled for her. "Hey, you." Carli greeted him, and he pulled her to him.
"I am glad that you're home. The bed seemed so empty last night." Eric murmured, and she had a flash of whose bed she had slept in. She blinked and stared up at him and he leaned down to brush her lips with his. "Are you hungry, lover?"
Carli was hungry, but the heat coming from him was distracting to her. "Yeah, a bit."
"Let's grab some food and relax." Eric suggested, and they got her bag and they went to his car. She knew that she was recognized, but was not approached by anyone. He opened her door for her, and stroked her cheek as she slid into it. Eric loaded the small trunk with her bags and drove them to their favorite Japanese place. He turned to face her in the car, and she saw the intensity in his eyes as he leaned in to kiss her. She slid her hands around his neck and pulled him closer, and moaned as his tongue slid deeply inside of her mouth. Carli was ready to climb into his lap and take him right there, but he pulled away. "Food." Eric spoke in a halting voice, and the need showed clearly in his eyes. They got out of the car and went inside, and he sat close to her, always touching her. Carli talked to some fans scattered about and posed in her terrible yoga pants and tank, smiling as brightly as she could. Eric pulled her back to him, and she looked up at him and he kissed her gently. "I love you." Eric whispered to her, and she smiled. They finished eating and he took her to her house so she could unload, carrying her bags to her apartment as she stretched and yawned. He dropped her bags on the floor and pulled her to the couch, seating her and rubbing her neck hard as she moaned. "So tense." Eric murmured, his hands focusing on her neck and shoulders. "You had quite a week, lover."
"Oh, yeah." Carli replied, and leaned her head forward. "That feels good." He moved his lips to her neck as he slid his fingers down her arms and she moved her head to accommodate him. Her body heated and she slid her hands behind her and over the legs of his jeans. Eric nibbled lightly and she cried out with the tease, and leaned back against him as she brought his hands to the hem of her shirt. He traced up between her breasts over the shirt, and slowly over them as she felt her body's reaction.
"Can I take this off and touch you?" Eric asked her, and she dug her fingernails into his jeans.
"Why do you ask? I have done everything but throw myself at you today." Carli replied, and his hands moved to tug the shirt over her head. He hastily unhooked her bra, and his hands cupped her as he pinched her nipples hard and long as she cried out with it.
"I am making sure that you still want me. I was not sure if you decided that a woman is better to you." Eric murmured, and she could hear his questions in his words.
"A woman is missing something very important." curly assured him, and forced herself around to face him. She slid her hand over the bulge in his jeans and he let out a sound as he stared at her. "A woman cannot drive this into my wet pussy and make me scream like you can." She kissed him deeply, and he moved his hands to grip her ass tightly as they fought for dominance with their tongues in a frenzied heat. He slid his hands down her pants to find her bare and he slid his fingers against her as she cried out and pressed forward. Eric shoved her back and ripped at her pants, and she stared at him as she struggled to breathe.
"Did you let her touch you?" Eric asked her, unbuttoning his shirt and tugging it off as she nodded at him. He slid his hands between her legs to test her wetness and shoved a finger inside of her. "Did you let her taste you?"
"Yes." Carli replied, gripping the couch as she felt him slide it in and out of her with an increasing rhythm. "Oh, god, Eric, bring me." His thumb stroked her clit as she felt the building of pressure inside and she exploded against him, as her body burned and pulsed. He moved between her legs and sucked her into his mouth, licking her juices as she writhed on the couch. She heard him kicking off his jeans and she begged him to be inside of her, to fuck her. Eric yanked her down to him and stared at her as he loomed over her. "Are you mad at me?"
"Did you touch her? Did you lick her?" Eric asked her, his eyes deepening with lust.
"I made her feel better, Eric. I made her forget her pain." Carli told him, and he thrust himself into her deeply. She moaned, and he continued as his body slapped against hers. She was wet and tight around him, but he was relentless, and she cried out with the force. Her body slowly opened to him and she wrapped her legs around him as she begged him for more, and she finally screamed his name as her body released again. It came in waves and she breathed deeply as he continued until he came and dropped on her. Carli remembered Pam's words about the night with Eric, and she closed her eyes. "Is that the way you fucked Pam? Is that the way you fucked everybody?"
"What do you mean?" Eric asked her, his voice harsh and low.
"She told me what happened. You as good as raped her, Eric. You just forced your way right inside." Carli's words were soft and shaky, and he pushed away from her and sat against the couch. "Don't do that to me."
"I did a lot to get you ready today." Eric said defensively, and she stared at the back of his head. She stroked his messy hair and he tensed.
"I get it. You missed me and I missed you. " Carli said soothingly, and she stared at him longer. "Can we ease up a bit and make it a little more tender?"
"I tried to make it up to be by allowing her you for that night. I knew that she was going through a lot and I feel like I contributed to at least part of it. She told me she needed comfort, and I already knew what she was asking for. I knew that she wanted you and always had, especially since the night we…well, you remember. I told her to take caution to your feelings. Did she?"
"Yes. She was very clear about the night and made sure of my feelings. I thought I was alright, but now I am doubting myself as well as you. I thought you wanted this." Carli told him, and he glanced at her. His eyes looked guilty and he looked away. "
"I was jealous last night. I wasn't jealous the first time, but I had no idea what was happening and how it was affecting you. Are you going to be fine with it?"
"Maybe not completely. It was strange for me to be there like that. But she is so broken and she was happy during the time we shared, and I have to feel good about that somehow. Right?" Carli asked in frustration, and curled her knees up to her chest. "You did this out of guilt?"
"Mostly." Eric admitted, and stared at the floor. "I knew that I was hurting others trying to replace you, but I didn't truly care until I hurt her. I didn't want her and I didn't care for her in that way, but that moment she held a connection to you. I was feeling my worst as I watched the rest of my life falling apart, and I chose to try and feel good again through her. I failed miserably and she pushed me away and got out of the apartment, and it was not long after that she moved. I hoped she would not in turn take out anything on you."
"She took out her loss and grief over Liz on me, and Pam is very talented. It was not a bad thing." Carli assured him, and he looked at her. "It was not enough to pull me from you. I never was a thought in my mind. I could not wait to see you today, but now…"
"I could not wait to see you. I wanted to touch you and hold you, and I got a bit carried away. I apologize." Eric told her, and turned around to rest his face against her stomach.
"It did turn you on at least a little right?" Carli asked, and heard him chuckle after a moment.
"As if you could not tell." Eric replied, and traced her hip with his finger. "Of course it did, since I am just a man. I don't want to do this again though. I want it to be us and us only."
"That is what I am used to, and what I want. Well, it was before meeting you in that gallery anyway. I kind of went off track since then." Carli teased him, and he turned his head to look at her. "It does not feel like any of that was me, but maybe it was. Maybe I needed to be crazy or something for awhile. It certainly has contributed to the music."
"It did. I felt a lot of what you wrote after we parted. I was oddly comforting knowing that you were in pain as well." Eric said slowly, and she felt a tear slide down her cheek out of nowhere. "I fancied myself to have imagined all of it, and nearly convinced myself that we really meant nothing to each other. Then I heard the new songs, and it hit me that you felt it too."
"I did. I guess I should not be surprised that he found out. Ryan is not stupid and he knows that I write a lot about my own feelings."
"Why did you continue to sleep with him?" Eric asked painfully, and she shrugged.
"The first time was right after we broke up. He touched me and I responded, and we just did it. I went on tour after that and came home, and he had a new girl he was seeing. When he realized that I was packed and ready to go, he kissed me and I gave in again. What a twisted web, having cheated on him and then he does it with me."
"He loves you." Eric said simply, and she raised her eyebrows as she sighed.
"I am so sleepy from all of this emotional crap. Can we just go and crawl under my covers and sleep it all away?" Carli asked, and he moved slowly up to a standing position and pulled her up. They went into the dark room and buried themselves under the blankets as she pressed against his warm skin. She kissed his chest lightly, nibbling around his small nipple and drawing it into his mouth.
"That will not lead easily to your desired nap, Carli." Eric told her, and told her to lay on her stomach. He traced his finger up and down her spine slowly, and she drifted off to sleep slowly as she felt him press a kiss to her hair. She woke up some time later, and smelled the delicious scent of cooking food. She rolled over and opened her eyes to see that it was three hours later. She gasped and stood up to get a robe and see what Eric was up to. He was wearing track pants and she admired his sculpted torso as she strolled into the kitchen, and he smiled as he caught her heavy gaze. "Chicken marsala, rice, and salad. I thought you might be hungry." Carli remembered Ryan making that sometimes and she smiled as she let the memory pass. She took the glass of wine that he offered her and sipped it, and looked at the food that he was getting onto plates.
"This is so sweet." carli told him, and smiled as he met her eyes.
"We are not having an affair anymore, Car. This is a real, grown up relationship and I intend to treat it as such." Eric told her, and she stared at him. "I love you and I intend to make this much more permanent as time moves on."
"So are you going to spoil me?" Carli asked, and he came over to her and kissed her gently.
"Completely rotten." Eric told her, and smiled. He walked to the shelf and pulled a small wrapped gift from it. "Let's begin with this."
"What?" Carli asked, staring from it to him. He told her to open it and she did, slowly. She tore the silver wrapping away and opened the soft velvet box to see a diamond necklace with a small circle of diamonds that hung on a delicate chain. "Oh my god."
"The circle means eternity." Eric informed her, and she looked up at him. "That is how long I intend to keep you." He took it from her and hung it on her neck, and she turned around to show him as well as kiss him slowly and deeply. They pressed into the counter and she slid her hands under the waist of his pants.
"We can still act like it is a torrid affair, right?" Carli asked him, as he pulled away reluctantly and led her to the small bistro table in the dining room.
"I should hope so." Eric agreed, seating her and moving across from her. They ate and talked, and went for sangria outside down the street. They found a cozy table outside and enjoyed the last bits of fall as they talked and laughed and she greeted a few people. They headed back and she looked up at him as they reached her door.
"Spend the night with me?" She turned her wide eyes on him and he smiled as he unlocked her door.
"Why wouldn't I?" Eric asked her, and she pulled him inside and kissed him. They made their way to her bedroom and lost their clothes slowly and ended up discussing the night before again in a different tone. Every piece of information that she gave him was rewarded with a touch, a kiss, or a lick of his tongue. He finally pushed her to her knees after a long session of heavy foreplay and she felt him slide slowly inside of her. She assured him that she needed him and only him before begging him to take her hard, and soon she was moaning with every thrust of his body. She came in a forceful explosion and screamed out his name in a hoarse voice, as he continued to thrust inside of her until he finished. He fell onto her back as she straightened herself on the mattress, kissing her lower back gently as she panted. He stroked her skin and she smiled as she closed her eyes. "I love you."
"I love you." Carli told him, and rolled back into him as he lay behind her. She traced her necklace and smiled as she felt herself drifting off to sleep. They spent every night together in one apartment or another, even though he did work some nights and got to her a little late. She set up a photo shoot for the band in a couple of weeks as well as a visit to XM, and told him that they would all be coming to visit. They always stayed at her place, and he offered for her to stay with him to offer them more room. She already knew that it could be tense with them meeting him, being close friends with Ryan, and she was uncertain of that idea. The plot thickened when Ryan decided to come with them and hang out. She was completely fine with it as far as the two of them, but she was not sure about the rest of the group. Carli found the day coming quickly where she waited for them at her place, and Eric popped in between jobs to say hello. They ended up in her room ready to make love, when she heard the knock at the door. They both groaned and she pulled on her jeans and tee and went to answer it as she ran a hand through her hair. "Hey!" Carli greeted them, as they all walked in in one line. Two of the guys had brought girlfriends along, and she smiled at them. Carli hugged everyone and gave them an idea of their schedule, and felt Eric's eyes on hers. "Guys, I'd like you to meet Eric." She could see the flash of recognition in a few eyes and she winced inwardly. She ran down all of the names and he shook hands and said hello before walking up and sliding his arms around her waist. She saw the dark look in Ryan's eyes as well as his curiosity. Eric seemed comfortable enough and soon headed out to return to work.
The group went out to eat and brought life to the small diner that they chose. She smiled at Ryan as he sat next to her, and glanced at the table. He looked down at her hand, and she realized that she was tracing the necklace unconsciously. She stopped and sipped her soda and avoided his gaze as she chatted with the girls with a smile. They walked around and then headed back to the apartment for the night, and she went into her room and got a small bag. "Where are you going?" Ryan asked her, stepping inside the room.
"I was going to stay at Eric's and offer up some more room." Carli answered, not looking up. She had changed the sheets just before packing and it was ready.
"You're very cozy with him." Ryan noted, and she shrugged. "Is he the one from before?"
Carli looked up at him and his eyes were set on her face intently, and curiously. "Are we really going to go there?" Her voice was low in respect to her other guests, but her eyes were flashing. "Did you come here to try and get me back in bed? I left that all behind in Chicago, Ry. "
"I remember us ending up in bed a few times there." Ryan reminded her, and she looked away.
"Just move on. Don't come here if it bothers you anymore. I am not going through this every time we see each other, Ryan." Carli told him, returning to her packing. She left him standing there and threw the backpack over her shoulder as she walked into the living room. "I am going to give you guys both rooms to fight over tonight, and hang out at Eric's." Carli told them, and they glanced up at her and Ryan who stood behind her. "Fight over the beds." She walked into the kitchen for some water and Jimmy followed her as she glanced up.
"Brave move flaunting that guy around. Now I know why he was looking at you like that at the station when we saw you guys together."
"Ry is a big boy and he can learn to handle it." Carli responded, her voice low with residual guilt. "I will meet y'all at XM tomorrow? Fourth floor."
"Seven right?" Jimmy asked ,cracking a smile as they both groaned. "Bringing your piece of ass?"
"Only if her is working there as well." Carli replied, winking at him. She hugged everyone goodbye, skipping Ryan as she glanced at him to see him sulking on the chair. She left and closed the door firmly and let out an exasperated moan. She went to the elevator and walked the little bit to Eric's house after stopping for coffee.
"You okay?" Eric asked her, seeing her face the moment she let herself in with the key he had given her the week before. He was in the kitchen fixing something in track pants as always, and she gazed at his naked torso for a long second before she answered.
"Just Ryan. Unbelievable." Carli muttered, and he glanced at her with curious eyes. "I think he actually came here with everyone to sleep with me after everything that has happened."
"Being a part of your past is not an easy thing, lover." Eric said, and she stared at him. "I certainly didn't enjoy the ending of us."
"If we weren't together, would you constantly strive for it? Could you not be happy with friendship? He has always been my friend and I would really miss him terribly if he weren't, but us together is not going to happen."
"A life of being near you without touching you is very hard to imagine for me. I don't think I could be friends with you, at least not right away." Eric mused aloud, and she stared at him.
"Are we friends now?" Carli asked, and he smiled.
"I think we are moving on to that part, but for now we are still circling around the lust that has always been between us. I think that lust and love turn to other things as time goes on." Eric answered, and her body physically agreed with him as she felt her muscles clench when she let her eyes run down his body. "I love the way you look at me like that. I can see you swimming in your want, and it is the same way I feel about you."
"How can you love someone you don't call your friend?" Carli teased him, setting her bag down finally and walking into the kitchen. She glanced down at the masterpiece in the skillet and then back at him.
"I love the woman that I am getting to know. I enjoy being with you in every capacity, but one seems to stand out a bit more than others." He lowered his lips to hers and she melted into him as she slid her hands over the smooth skin of his side and around his back. His skin was warm from the heat of the stove as well as his own body heat, and she felt it through her tee shirt and sighed happily. "How do you love me? Am I your friend?"
"Your perfection in front of my face. You're beautiful…." Carla's voice trailed off, and she stared at him. "But we are both flawed."
"Everybody is." Eric told her, his eyes darkening for a moment. "People need to get over that and accept what it is."
"I am working on that as far as we both go. I am dealing with my flaws this very moment." Carli said, and looked down. He returned to dinner with a sigh and she took her backpack to his room and looked around. It was so big and masculine, and so him. She glanced at the bed and realized that he had been with Pam there as well as many others, and she forced the thought out of her head and replaced it with the memories of them. She heard him call her for dinner and she shook her head and went out to join him, and she smiled as she saw the plates of shrimp scampi and salad on his big table. They ate dinner and she wandered to the bathroom to run a hot bath in his huge bathtub, and he came to the bathroom door to watch her undress and slip into the water. "I am in love with your bathtub."
"It likes you being in it." Eric told her, and she smiled. "Mind if I join you?" She slid forward and allowed him room behind her and leaned against him as he rubbed her shoulders. "Do not be hard on Ryan. I saw the way he was looking at me when we met and I could see his want for you in his eyes. He is harboring feelings for you and he will learn to deal with that. I harbored feelings for you for a year so I understand. I will do everything I can to make us work this time because of that. I know you worry about the past and what happened but it is all over. This moment is what matters now. Being close like this is what I want."
"It is?" Carli asked, and smiled. The room smelled strongly of the vanilla candles she had lit and the steam hung heavy in the air. They lingered in the tub for as long as the water stayed hot, and he dried her off and brushed her hair slowly on the bed. She leaned back and closed her eyes and let the sensation soothe her, and she inhaled the scent that was him. It blended with the vanilla and she felt his hand slide down her back slowly as he leaned in to kiss her shoulder.
"You're beautiful." Eric told her, and she felt the stress slowly fade with his touch. His lips moved to her neck and she in haled sharply as the heat flowed between them. "You get to me in ways that nobody ever has before. Do you remember when we met?"
"Of course. I have never felt such guilt in your life." Carli said, laughing softly. "I have never been struck like that by anybody. Everything about you was…captivating. It was very hard to leave you that day, but I thought I was doing the right thing. Everything I said would happen is, after all. They recognize you and they know and now Ryan has an issue with it. This could turn out awful. But I only wish I had known what he did then so I could have stayed. I could have stayed and we could have avoided so much."
"I would have liked that. That was one of the hardest moments of my life." Eric said, and they looked at each other. "Marry me, Carli. Stay with me forever and marry me." Her eyes widened and she stared at him in silence.