Standard disclaimer still in effect....
Chronologically, this chapter takes place a couple minutes after the last previous chapter.
==============================
Rainey felt disoriented. He was sleepy and warm and comfortable, but at the same time, a persistant sense of something wrong nagged him. Gradually, he became aware of a hand lightly smoothing his hair. Who --? Lifting his head, he realized that he'd been pillowed and drooling on Nadine's chest.
"Hey," she said softly. They were both fully dressed and she was calm as usual.
"I'm sorry, I must've nodded off...."
"It's okay, Rainey," she soothed him. "You look tired. How 'bout you head up to bed?"
"I can't take the bed and leave you with the couch."
"Room for two?" she suggested. He looked at her for a moment. She didn't seem to be flirting with him; nope, she was yawning like she was actually planning to sleep and nothing else.
"Sure. Okay."
This was different from tending her while she was sick, and Mort blushed as he emerged from the bathroom in plaid flannel pajamas he hadn't worn since his Amy days. Nadine seemed a lot less uptight about the situation than he was. She eeled her way out of her slacks, wearing only the too-long sweatshirt that hung halfway down her thighs. (Nice legs. Pretty nice all around, now that you mention it....)
The sweater rode up as she hung her pants on the back of the bedroom door, and Rainey caught a fleeting glimpse of peach-colored panties with a swirly pattern. He didn't look away. Mort found himself comparing her to Amy; Nadine was a couple inches taller and at least thirty pounds heavier, but it was well-distributed...a real hourglass figure...she wasn't as beautiful as Amy, nice-looking, but not gorgeous. (Knock it off, will you? Okay, so she's a she. Don't make an idiot of yourself!)
As they climbed into bed, Nadine leaned over, briefly kissed his cheek. "Good night."
"Good night." Mort kept his arms at his sides with an effort. (Great. Maybe you should bunk downstairs on the couch. Oh hell, either way, it's going to be a long night....)
The silence lasted for two of the longest minutes in the history of the world before Rainey broke. "Nadine?"
"Uh-huh?"
"I wanted to ask you a favor."
"What favor?"
"I've got this manuscript, and I've been working on it for going on ten months now. It's been a bitch to write, and by now, I hate it so much I don't know if I should burn it or if there's a way to save it." (That was really smooth...okay, what was I supposed to ask her? 'Hey Nadine, how about a boink?' I don't think so...there's still the Shooter problem....)
"You want me to look at it?"
"Would you? Our book's coming along, but this thing is really nagging at me." He kept his voice neutral with an effort. The stupid book wasn't nearly as annoying as what was tenting his pajamas right now.
"Sure. If you don't mind me taking a few days away from ours."
"Be honest." (If I were being honest with myself, I'd ask you for a lot more, Nadine Cooper. But I can't take that chance.)
"I will. Get me a red pencil and I'll bleed all over it...." She yawned again. "In the morning."
Rainey lay awake, listening to her even breathing. He'd been thinking of asking her to look at the work-in-progress for a while now, and he'd finally done it. They'd been working together for five months, and Rainey knew Nadine would find what needed fixing if anyone could. The thought of giving her access to something that wasn't part of their mutual contract should've made him nervous after the debacle with Shooter last year, but it didn't. She wasn't going to steal it; that was one thing he didn't have to worry about.
He swallowed. Hell, it probably wasn't even worth stealing, she'd probably tell him to burn the damn thing, and if she did, he would. Happily. There were too many painful memories in those pages, those up-and-down months after his breakdown...maybe she'd read it and see nothing but his craziness. Still, he'd sweated drops of blood to write it; it went against his grain to just pitch that much hard work. If there was any hope for it, he'd give it another shot.
Nadine shifted a little next to him, and her steady breathing resumed. Rainey popped his jaw and tried to distract himself from his own sexual frustration. It wasn't easy, with the memory of waking up with his face in her cleavage clear in his mind. Funny, the last thing he remembered was Nadine sitting in the chair typing...when did she wind up on the couch with him, anyway?
Two people in one bed on a cold night are going to find each other eventually. In the morning, Rainey awoke with Nadine snuggled up against him, warm and trusting.
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Hope we're all having fun...four chapters left!
Chronologically, this chapter takes place a couple minutes after the last previous chapter.
==============================
Rainey felt disoriented. He was sleepy and warm and comfortable, but at the same time, a persistant sense of something wrong nagged him. Gradually, he became aware of a hand lightly smoothing his hair. Who --? Lifting his head, he realized that he'd been pillowed and drooling on Nadine's chest.
"Hey," she said softly. They were both fully dressed and she was calm as usual.
"I'm sorry, I must've nodded off...."
"It's okay, Rainey," she soothed him. "You look tired. How 'bout you head up to bed?"
"I can't take the bed and leave you with the couch."
"Room for two?" she suggested. He looked at her for a moment. She didn't seem to be flirting with him; nope, she was yawning like she was actually planning to sleep and nothing else.
"Sure. Okay."
This was different from tending her while she was sick, and Mort blushed as he emerged from the bathroom in plaid flannel pajamas he hadn't worn since his Amy days. Nadine seemed a lot less uptight about the situation than he was. She eeled her way out of her slacks, wearing only the too-long sweatshirt that hung halfway down her thighs. (Nice legs. Pretty nice all around, now that you mention it....)
The sweater rode up as she hung her pants on the back of the bedroom door, and Rainey caught a fleeting glimpse of peach-colored panties with a swirly pattern. He didn't look away. Mort found himself comparing her to Amy; Nadine was a couple inches taller and at least thirty pounds heavier, but it was well-distributed...a real hourglass figure...she wasn't as beautiful as Amy, nice-looking, but not gorgeous. (Knock it off, will you? Okay, so she's a she. Don't make an idiot of yourself!)
As they climbed into bed, Nadine leaned over, briefly kissed his cheek. "Good night."
"Good night." Mort kept his arms at his sides with an effort. (Great. Maybe you should bunk downstairs on the couch. Oh hell, either way, it's going to be a long night....)
The silence lasted for two of the longest minutes in the history of the world before Rainey broke. "Nadine?"
"Uh-huh?"
"I wanted to ask you a favor."
"What favor?"
"I've got this manuscript, and I've been working on it for going on ten months now. It's been a bitch to write, and by now, I hate it so much I don't know if I should burn it or if there's a way to save it." (That was really smooth...okay, what was I supposed to ask her? 'Hey Nadine, how about a boink?' I don't think so...there's still the Shooter problem....)
"You want me to look at it?"
"Would you? Our book's coming along, but this thing is really nagging at me." He kept his voice neutral with an effort. The stupid book wasn't nearly as annoying as what was tenting his pajamas right now.
"Sure. If you don't mind me taking a few days away from ours."
"Be honest." (If I were being honest with myself, I'd ask you for a lot more, Nadine Cooper. But I can't take that chance.)
"I will. Get me a red pencil and I'll bleed all over it...." She yawned again. "In the morning."
Rainey lay awake, listening to her even breathing. He'd been thinking of asking her to look at the work-in-progress for a while now, and he'd finally done it. They'd been working together for five months, and Rainey knew Nadine would find what needed fixing if anyone could. The thought of giving her access to something that wasn't part of their mutual contract should've made him nervous after the debacle with Shooter last year, but it didn't. She wasn't going to steal it; that was one thing he didn't have to worry about.
He swallowed. Hell, it probably wasn't even worth stealing, she'd probably tell him to burn the damn thing, and if she did, he would. Happily. There were too many painful memories in those pages, those up-and-down months after his breakdown...maybe she'd read it and see nothing but his craziness. Still, he'd sweated drops of blood to write it; it went against his grain to just pitch that much hard work. If there was any hope for it, he'd give it another shot.
Nadine shifted a little next to him, and her steady breathing resumed. Rainey popped his jaw and tried to distract himself from his own sexual frustration. It wasn't easy, with the memory of waking up with his face in her cleavage clear in his mind. Funny, the last thing he remembered was Nadine sitting in the chair typing...when did she wind up on the couch with him, anyway?
Two people in one bed on a cold night are going to find each other eventually. In the morning, Rainey awoke with Nadine snuggled up against him, warm and trusting.
==============================
Hope we're all having fun...four chapters left!