Chapter Twenty Three: On Your Doorstep

Christian's Office 5:43PM

Teddy sat in front of his dad watching as he conducted his business on the phone. He was grew impatient and started to have second thoughts on coming to his father. Teddy felt he needed help and didn't know who else to turn to. Even though he was friends with Blane, he didn't trust him with his personal affairs. Christian briskly hung up and then focused his attention on his son.

"So, out with it? What has you so befuddled that you're seeking the advice of your old man," Christian chuckled and Teddy was nervous. He was about to try to put into words what he was feeling and he was about to tell his father far more than any father should know about his son. He took a deep breath before he began this personally evasive conversation.

"You know I'm sexually active right?" Christian immediately frowned at his son.

"I didn't know for sure but I assumed. Is that information important to this conversation? Do you have something?" Christian cringed completely horrified at the possibility.

"Hell no! What kind of … no dad I take care of myself." Ted shook his head and started to try again. "I am used to … a very active, uh …" Christian nodded letting Ted knew he understood what he was trying to say.

"So the woman that I want now is a virgin. She sees things going in a way that I just can't get into. I feel like I'm young and I don't need to be tied down with labels, but I feel like she would need a label before she would let me," Ted blurted out.

"Are we referring to Tamera as the woman now?" Christian burst into laughter and smoothed his hand threw his hair. "So what happened that made you finally realize that I was right?"

"Some things have happened that I'd rather not get into, but it has me wanting things from her that I can't ask for. I've tried to move on and past it but I can't. I was lying in bed with some girl … I think her name was Joanne, anyways I couldn't perform. That shit has never happened to me! The only woman I feel even partially aroused around is Tam and I can't do a damn thing about it!" Teddy looked to his dad to have something profound to say.

"That's kind of how it was with your mother. Not only that I couldn't stay away from her and I was always thinking about her. Hell, I'm thinking about her now." Ted frowned that wasn't what he wanted to hear, to be honest he found it quite gross. He wanted his dad to have answers on fixing it.

"I just want things to be the same with Tam. Now when we hang out I almost despise her for it, I hate her for looking so tempting and not letting me have what I want." Ted ran his hands through his hair.

"I like that the girl is virtuous it's a respectable quality. Is she saving it for marriage?" Christian asked bluntly.

"I never asked but I hope to God that she isn't. I don't think that's her angle … I think she just wants to be in a relationship before she has sex. I get it and it makes sense, but I don't think I can be what she wants. I'd suck as a boyfriend and I don't know if she'd want me in that role." Ted was almost muttering to himself as he mused over the inner workings of Tam's mind.

"You really need to talk to her about this son. If your attraction to her is making your friendship change then it needs to be addressed if you want to salvage your friendship." Ted nodded.

"I don't want to do anything to jeopardize our friendship, but I need to really think on this before we talk again. I don't like being rejected and I have a strong feeling that this conversation will lead to me feeling just that." After a few moments Ted's phone went off.

"Hey Tam, uh … actually I'm still with my dad and I have some stuff to work on for my final paper so I probably won't swing by tonight. Maybe tomorrow though … it does sound good … I miss hanging with you too, finals really have been killing me though. Yeah … well we all can't be like you Tam and be exempted from everything," Ted chuckled. "Talk to you later Tam Cake." Ted hung up the phone and sadness hit him. He'd never lied to Tamera as much as he had the past two weeks. It wasn't that he didn't want to see her, he was dying to see her, but being around her just caused him unnecessary frustration.

"You're avoiding her?" Christian was shocked by that. The two were inseparable and now Ted was acting like it hurt to be around her.

"Only at night, I can't be around her at night," Ted mumbled. He couldn't believe he was confessing all of this. Christian watched his son, he looked so pitiful. He decided to share with him something that it took him sometime to realize with Ana.

"If you are that enamored with her, you two are going to have to come to a compromise and you're going to have to at least try and bend and do something new." Ted envisioned himself bending as his father said and telling Tam how he was feeling. He imagined telling her that he wanted to try being more than just friends.

"She wouldn't go for it," Ted said blandly. "Plus, how fucked up is that for me to want to be in a relationship with her just to fuck her. This has to get better with time."

"Ted, you are in a RELATIONSHIP, minus the fucking, that's really all you would be adding. Can you really envision Tam to someone else? Do you want to see her with anyone else? You really should talk to Tam, give it some thought tonight and then get with her in the morning."

Ted went home sat down and gave it some thought like his father advised. All Ted could think about was the term ball and chain; he really didn't want to be tied down. He looked at his phone it was almost 1AM and he'd really done nothing with his time. That paper that he was supposed to working on hadn't even been touched. His head was dizzy and pounding. He wasn't going to come up with a resolution tonight.

"I'm going the fuck to bed," he murmured to himself. He dragged himself of his couch and into his room. He lay on his stomach and buried his head in his pillow.

Loud knocking stirred him from his sleep. Someone was at the door; he looked over to his clock on his nightstand. It was practically 3AM; he hoped it wasn't that Joanne girl. He'd told her that he'd call but that was only to get her out of his apartment. He opened the door and Tam was standing there in her pajamas and glasses. She was holding a duffel bag and purple pillow. "Hey," she croaked. "Are you busy?"

"Its 3AM Tam, of course I'm not busy." He moved to the side so she could come in. She dropped her bag down and unzipped her jacket, and took off her shoes. "Are you okay?" He asked as she plopped down on his couch. She shook her head.

"You haven't come to my apartment once this week, you know that," she whispered without looking at him. "What's wrong Ted?" She looked up at me with watery hazel eyes. I didn't have an answer for her, not yet.

"I don't know Tam." They sat together in Teddy dark living room, only lit by the moonlight reflecting through the windows.

"What don't you know maybe I can help you figure it out?" She twisted toward Ted on the couch and studied him for a moment. "We messed up didn't we? I feel so weird around you now Teddy and I know you feel that way too. You told me not to get weird but now look at you!" She sniffled a little bit and then started to whimper. " I don't care about all the weird feelings Teddy; I'd rather feel awkward around you than to be alone without you." Tamera moved closer to Ted and cupped the side of his face in her hand. "That's why I came here because I just miss you Teddy." She leaned in a kissed his cheek, once, twice. She moved to the other side of his face and did the same. She crawled over to Teddy and straddled his lap and he allowed himself to run his hands along the sides of her body.

"Tam," Teddy groaned out her name as he pulled her closer to him so that his lips could brush against her neck and along her collarbone. His body had immediately responded and now his friend was hovered over his growing erection. "Tam, you're so beautiful … and so sexy." He murmured as he ducked his hands under her shirt and fondled her breasts over the fabric of her bra. "Lace … you know how I feel about lace. Is it see through?" He realized that their bodies had begun to move together and it wasn't really a conscious decision on either of their parts it just happened. Tam lifted her arms into the air and gave Ted permission to take her top off. It was black and he was right it was see through, he smoothed his hands over her breasts once more and this time he circled his pointer finger around the areola of her left breast which caused her nipple to pucker. He watched as Tam clinched her eyes shut and started to rotate her pelvis in the same rotation as his finger. She was already lost to the sensation, she was panting and groaning. Ted lowered his head to her right breast and began to suck on her nipple and nipped it lightly. She groaned and twisted her fingers in his hair and pulled on it lightly.

"Oh Teddy," she moaned his name and that was Teddy's undoing. He loved the sweet love sounds and when they were used to utter his name it ignited something in him that was beyond carnal, it called to him on some other level. He scooped up Tam and stood up with her in his arms.

"I need to get you naked baby, or very close to it. Let's go to bed okay?" She nodded and he strode into his bedroom with his Tammy in his arms and kicked the door closed behind them.

Author's Note: Hey all! I hope you like the chapter. I love to hear your thoughts ... still no kiss, still no sex. I'm a real stinker aren't I lol. Anyways, please read, review, and no flames.