Chapter 12
"You've lost your mind."
Mark simply smirked back at his girlfriend, winking. "Nope, I made the right decision." He assured her, pulling her into his sweaty arms and kissed her softly. "Now go sit down and relax while we move the rest of your stuff in."
"I can't believe I'm doing this." Nalani didn't care if Mark was drenched in sweat; she just needed to feel his comfort and reassurance, having had serious second thoughts about moving in with him.
Then Kaci sat down with her after Mark's surprise moving in proposal and asked her several questions that cemented the whole deal. Did Mark make her happy? Did it hurt whenever Mark wasn't around and she couldn't see him? Did she love him? Nalani knew she did, but Mark hadn't told her he loved her yet and didn't want to press him on it.
"Give him time, he probably wants to make sure you feel the same way. Moving in with him is the right thing to do. Just think, if it doesn't work out, you can always come back here. But sometimes you also have to take risks in order to be happy." Kaci had said, taking Nalani's hand in her own, squeezing it. "Move in with him, Nala."
"That's just it; I do love him and want to be with him, but moving in together after only six months?" Nalani thought it was a bit too soon, though Kaci had moved in with Randy after three months of dating, so six months in Kaci's eyes was more than enough.
"You love him and I know he loves you, he just needs time. All men need time and if we give it to them, it pays off in the end."
Of course, Nalani thought Kaci had lost her mind as well because the woman was one big ball of love. Guilt won out in the end because Nalani knew Randy and Kaci wanted the house to themselves without having her there. She understood it wasn't just her and Kaci anymore, Randy was a huge part of her best friend's life; Nalani didn't want to ruin anything.
It was one of the main reasons she agreed to move in with Mark.
"Are you okay, darlin'?" Mark asked, pulling back to stare down in those beautiful blue eyes, running his finger down her cheek. "You can talk to me about anythin', you know that right?"
"I know." Nalani whispered, closing her eyes to relish the feeling of his touch against her face.
She brought her hand up to lace their fingers together and felt Mark wrap his other arm around her waist, their lips instantly meeting in a passionate soul searing kiss. Nalani melted against him, soft mewls escaping her as they became lost in one another, her feet leaving the ground to wrap her legs around his waist when Mark lifted her. She loved it when he did that because it made her eye level with him, her arms instantly wrapping around his neck as they stood there in a mean heated lip lock.
"Yer drivin' me insane, darlin'…" Mark growled against her lips, his southern accent very deep and rich, shivers flowing throughout her entire body.
"The feeling is more than mutual." She murmured, rubbing her nose gently against his just as Randy and Kaci walked out of the house, having had their own make out session.
"Okay, break is over, let's get this shit done so I can take my beautiful fiancée home and have my wicked way with her." Randy smirked when Kaci slapped his arm playfully, grabbing her to kiss her again. "Woman, if you know what's good for you, you'll stop the foreplay."
"Then don't walk around me looking all sweaty and delicious." Kaci winked, quickly grabbing Nalani's hand after Mark set her down on the steps.
Nalani shook her head, though she couldn't stop heat from flooding her body when Mark turned those dark green pools on her filled with desire. They definitely would be christening every part of this house and she couldn't wait for it, even though they'd had sex at his house several times. It would be different because it was now their house, not just Mark's, though Nalani didn't feel the connection yet.
"If you two don't stop it, you're going to end up popping another kid." Nalani stated, causing all of them to laugh, the girls walking in the house to unpack some of Nalani's things.
"I swear that man knows exactly what to do and say to make me weak in the damn knees." Kaci sighed happily, wearing a simple pair of blue jean shorts with a red form fitting t-shirt that clung to her every curve and white sneakers. Her beautiful long black hair was pulled up on top of her head to keep it off of her neck. "So what about you and Mark? Thinking about having some critters of your own?"
Nalani rolled her eyes, wearing a simple blue jean skirt with a black tank top, glad the diner gave her the night off tonight so she could move into Mark's. "Please, you know I don't want any kids, at least not right now, and I know he feels the same way. I just want us to be us for awhile, ya know? I don't want any other distractions besides work."
"I wish Randy and I would've waited, but honestly I wouldn't regret having Jen for anything in the world." Kaci said, both of them sitting on the black suede couch before starting to go through boxes with Nalani's stuff in it.
"Leave it packed up." Nalani stated, moving the box away from Kaci, chewing her bottom lip. "It's meaningless shit, it can stay packed away in the attic."
Frowning, Kaci turned to face her friend, who was staring down at her lap sadly. "Nala, this is your house too now, you can put your stuff up." She was a fantastic reader, especially when it came to her best friend. "Nala…"
"No, this isn't my house now. It doesn't feel like it. Isn't there supposed to be some kind of connection or…I don't know SOMETHING?" Nalani stood up and raked a hand through her hair in frustration, those second thoughts running rampant in her mind. "He doesn't need my shit all around his house right now."
Kaci sighed and decided not to argue with her for the time being, though she would be mentioning something to Mark later on. "Okay then, tell me which boxes we CAN unpack." She requested, causing Nalani to finally smile and pushed a box toward Kaci with clothes in it, taking another one.
"I kept most of my stuff in storage because I had the mansion cleaned out." Nalani spoke quietly, knowing Mark had no idea who she really was and she never wanted him to find out. "Hopefully they'll be able to sell it soon…"
"You honestly think so after what happened in there?" Kaci shivered involuntarily, setting a pair of jeans aside after hanging them up with the many hangers in another box.
"Hell I don't know." Nalani closed her eyes, trying to push the pain away, still having stabs of it every now and then when it came to her deceased family. "Nicole would've been eighteen on Friday…"
Kaci glanced over and could already feel the tears building in her eyes, having always considered Nicole a little sister. "I know…" She whispered, not trusting her voice at the moment and both women began crying, holding each other tightly.
At that moment, Mark and Randy walked in carrying a huge chest that was going up in their bedroom at the foot of their bed. Mark had actually taken Nalani shopping to buy a new bed that would be theirs, not just his, and it was a beautiful four poster king sized with a new mattress, box spring, mattress cover, sheets, comforter and pillows. It was black and brown, neutral colors, and Mark was thankful that Nalani had the same taste he did when it came to decoration.
Unbeknownst to Mark, Nalani used to love bright colors until the murders at Kensington mansion.
"You two alright?" Mark immediately set the chest down with Randy, each going to their woman, who immediately clung to them for dear life. "What's goin' on now?"
"K sweetheart, talk to me." Randy hated seeing Kaci cry because it literally tore him apart, and feeling her tears against his chest didn't help. "Shhh it's okay, it's going to be okay, baby, I promise."
"I'm fine, I'm sorry." Kaci whispered, wrapping her arms tightly around Randy's neck, hoping he didn't push her on the subject in front of Mark. "I'll tell you about it later."
Randy nodded, not needing to be warned twice, and pulled back to softly kiss her lips.
"I think we're done, the truck is completely unloaded." Mark said, running his fingers through Nalani's hair as she continued crying against him, wondering what set her off. It had to be hormones, maybe the woman was on her monthly…that thought made Mark physically cringe for a split second. "Nalani, are you alright darlin'?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that, we were talking about the past and got choked up about it." Nalani pulled back to wipe her tears away, glancing over at Kaci, both of them sharing a silent look of understanding. "You two can go on home if you want, Mark and I can handle the rest."
"Really?" Kaci raised an eyebrow before looking up at Randy, the man simply shrugging. "We can stay if you want to help unpack…"
"Nope, the unpacking is almost done anyway. I just need to get that stuff up in the attic." Nalani smiled and stood up from the couch, grunting when Mark pulled her back in his lap, those tattooed arms wrapping around her waist to prevent her from moving.
"What do you mean the unpackin's almost done?" Mark asked in her ear, causing Nalani to bite her bottom lip, squirming in his arms. "Woman, ya have all those boxes over there to go through…" He pointed to the stack of boxes Nalani started making to go up to the attic, which were mostly her collectibles and trinkets.
Nalani shook her head, wondering why this man had to be stubborn all the time. "That stuff doesn't need to be unpacked, it's meaningless." She stated, folding her arms in front of her chest, scowling. "Don't give me that look, Mark."
Not saying anything at first, Mark looked over at Randy, telling the man silently it was time for them to leave. "Right well…we'll see you guys later or something." Randy got the message clearly and pulled his fiancée up from the couch, causing her to blink in surprise. "We need to go get Jenny anyway."
"But Randy…"
"They want to be alone, beautiful. Come on, I know our little one misses us." He smiled, hoping Kaci didn't fight him on this, and watched as she reluctantly nodded.
"I'll talk to you later?" Kaci glanced at her best friend, who simply nodded, and walked out with Randy toward the car. "What's going on?" She demanded as soon as they were out of earshot.
"Mark wants to talk to Nalani alone." Was all Randy said as he slipped into the driver's seat, Kaci following, though she was worried for her friend.
Nalani glanced out the window while Mark still held her in his arms, watching Randy's car pulled out of the driveway and fly down the road, scowling. "Great, you scared them off." She muttered, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
Mark chuckled softly, burying his face in her neck, inhaling the intoxicating scent. "Nah, they did have to go get Jen, Randy's been feelin' guilty lately not spendin' enough time with her." He said, though that wasn't the reason why he wanted Randy and Kaci to leave. "Now what's this shit about not wantin' to unpack your stuff, darlin'? This is your house too, it's not just mine anymore."
"So you say." Nalani shot back, closing her eyes as his strong hand began running up and down her side, trying to soothe her. "I don't feel the connection with this house, Mark. Until I do, I don't think it's necessary to have all of my shit lying around. It's mostly trinkets and meaningless junk…"
Growling softly, Mark turned Nalani around so she straddled his lap, his arms instantly wrapping around her waist. "This IS your house now; get it through that thick beautiful skull of yers. This is as much your house as it is mine and I don't care how long it takes, that connection will come because you belong here with me." He wasn't backing down, showing his stubborn side, and kissed her before Nalani could open her mouth to retort.
Nalani pulled back when she could no longer breathe, pressing her forehead against Mark's, trembling slightly with her hands resting on his bare shoulders. "I hope you're right." She whispered, her blue eyes staring into his emerald gems, feeling as though her heart might explode.
"I know I am because I love you, Nalani."
She completely froze in his arms, her eyes widening to the point where they might've fell out of their sockets, staring at him in shock. "W-What?" Nalani stammered out, her mouth hanging open as tears filled her eyes. "Mark…"
"I said I love you." Mark sighed, seeing what those words had done to her, and immediately knew it was too soon. "I'll understand if ya don't feel the same way, but I'm a man of action. I don't hold much back…"
Nalani pressed her finger to his lips, shaking her head and blinked as huge tears cascaded down her cheeks, the biggest smile spreading on her face. "Don't say another word." She ordered, cupping his face in her soft hands and kissed him fervently.
Pressing her body against his, a new flood of desire coursed through every part of her. She poured everything she felt in this one kiss, taking their breath away completely, though Nalani didn't pull away even after she couldn't breathe. Mark finally pulled back out of the kiss, his eyes wide from how much passion and love was in it, staring at his gorgeous girlfriend with pure love in his eyes. What Mark saw in her darkened smoky blue eyes made him believe even more that he'd done the right thing by asking her to move in with him.
"I…I love you too, Mark." She finally said, breathing heavily, and suddenly that connection to the house overwhelmed her as they kissed again, this time with more hunger and passion. "Take me upstairs." She pulled back long enough to remove her tank top, leaving her clad in a black lace bra with her skirt riding up her hips. "Take me to our bedroom…"
"Whatever you want, darlin…" Mark wasn't about to deny Nalani anything and lifted her up with ease, groaning when her lips sealed to his neck, loving the feeling of the lace fabric of her bra brushing against his chest. "Damn it, Nalani, if ya don't stop that we won't make it…" He growled, pressing her against the wall halfway up the stairs, unsnapping her bra while she reached down to unfasten his jeans. "Sweet fuckin' Jesus…" He grunted when her small hand reached inside to begin stroking him, stumbling up the stairs somehow without dropping her.
"Take me, Mark, right here…" She nearly cried out from how much lust and ecstasy overtook her body, her back pressed against the bedroom door. "Oh fuck me right against this door…"
Eventually they would make it to the bedroom and in that king sized bed, but for right now, Mark simply gave Nalani what she craved. Their fingers laced together against the door as Mark tore the panties from her body with ease and slid his throbbing shaft between her wet folds, filling her body completely. Nalani cried out as their sounds of passion flowed throughout the house, Mark pounding her right against their bedroom door like she wanted.
Needless to say, no more unpacking was done that night.