Disclaimers and shit, ya know?

Chapter 2

After a relatively quiet dinner, Brennan set about cleaning the kitchen since Baron had cooked. She stood, grabbing her plate then reached for his.

He lightly caught her right wrist in his left hand, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Pulling my weight since you cooked."

"Don't worry about it. I'll take care of it." He spoke as he released her wrist.

She eyed him skeptically. What the hell was going on? They would usually switch off or split cleaning duties after dinner, so basically being told to sit on her butt was odd.

'What the hell has he done? Why is trying to kick me out of the kitchen? Oh my god, there's someone else and he's leaving me. I knew it. I fucking knew it.'

He noticed the skeptical look on her face. "I promise I'm not up to anything. I know you've been at work all day and you're probably tired. I'm just trying to make things easier for the both of us tonight."

"Okay..." She dragged the word out still not completely convinced.

"I have a surprise for you upstairs."

"You sure you're not up to something?" If he had something to say, he could just flat out say it. He didn't need to butter her up or sugar coat anything.

"Positive. I know we need to talk, but I'd rather us do that while we're both relaxed so we don't go for each other's throats." He spoke as he dropped cutlery in the plastic basket in the dishwasher.

Brennan stood stock still staring at his back as he rinsed and put the used dishes in the dishwasher. He really was a handsome man, even from the back. His long dark hair was hanging loose past his broad muscular shoulders. His biceps slightly flexed as he moved around rinsing and loading the dishes. Even the smattering of freckles across the bridge of his nose and the crinkles in the outer corners of his eyes and the display of dimples when he smiled were attractive; it made him seem almost boyish. And yet, there was still something so mysterious; dark that bordered on being menacing about him. It was probably his broody, smart ass demeanor and being heavily tattooed that threw people off. He definitely wasn't the boy from next door. He was the boy that got the shotgun pulled on him when he walked his dates to the door solely based on how he looked.

That was just another thing that made him and Brennan work. She wasn't afraid to blaze her own path. She wasn't afraid to stand out in a crowd. She wasn't afraid to love and fuck and fight with him or for him. Damn anyone who tried to change her or make her feel less than. She was clear about who she was and the things that she wanted.

"What's this surprise you have in store?"

He closed the dishwasher after adding detergent, "It's in the master bathroom." He stared at her, studied her. Those surprisingly, unusual whiskey in the sunlight eyes studied him as well.

He folded his arms over his chest, but stood there silently. She wasn't getting any kind of off putting vibes from him or his stoic face, so she exited the kitchen, going upstairs to his bedroom. She was removing his shirt and her jewelry when he came into the room with her suitcase and purse.

"Going on a trip?" He joked.

She turned slowly as she pulled the hair tie that was holding her braids in a high ponytail. She sighed at the release of tension on her scalp. The small sound made him stir on the inside.

"No. Why do you ask?" She spoke pulling her braids back up into a loose messy bun.

He watched her muscles work as she twisted and wrapped her braids into the messy ball. He shook his head as to say it was nothing. She dropped her tattooed arms to her sides, her hands audibly slapping the outside of her full thighs.

"When'd you get that?" He pointed at the tattoo directly beneath her right collarbone.

She was wondering when he'd notice. It really had been awhile since he'd seen her; and even longer since he'd seen her in any clothing that wasn't a t-shirt and jeans.

"About a month ago."

He approached her, reaching out with his left hand to slowly slip both the straps of her bra and dress from her shoulder. His fingertip ghosted over the elongated script of her tattoo which read 'Unapologetic'.

She reached out for him, her hands on his narrow hips under his shirt. His skin was smooth, warm and taut where he was muscled, but he still managed to be soft. She ran her hands up along his ribs causing him to draw in a shaky breath. She smiled inwardly. It was instant gratification knowing she still affected him. She hadn't felt that way in awhile.

He drew both of his hands up and rested them along either side of her neck. He tipped her head back slightly, staring into warm brown depths surrounded by a ring of dark green littered with flecks of darker brown, black and gold; to kiss her. Her eyes closed slowly as she realized he was going to capture her lips again. He felt her move to pull him closer, making him reluctantly pull away.

"Your water is getting cold." He spoke with their lips just barely touching. He pulled away just enough to see confusion then realization on her face.

"You're not trying to avoid the real reason I'm here, are you?"

"No. We need this just as much as we need to talk."

She took in a deep breath and exhaled it. To say she was anxious was an understatement. How could she not be? Her mind immediately went to the place where Baron...

'Hmm, 'Baron', is he not Tommy anymore, Bren?'

A place where they potentially wouldn't exist anymore. Was that why he was drawing this out? To let her down easy?

"Why don't you go take off your makeup and catch a shower? I'm gonna let X out one last time before I join you in the tub."

"You're not going to shower with me?"

He chuckled, his voice dropping an octave, "I'd never pass up that opportunity, flower."

He kissed her forehead then her lips. She watched him leave the room, sliding her straps back up on her shoulder with her left hand.

If he was going to break her heart, he sure was going out of his way to be a malicious asshole about it. First dinner, then a surprise bath? What the hell was going on?

'Maybe he's going to propose.' She laughed out loud at that. Not because it was a far-fetched idea; she honestly could spend the rest of her life with him, but not with how things had been. She loved that man in ways she couldn't describe. She'd never felt that way about anyone, ever. When she was with him, she was at ease. Her mind, body and spirit were at peace, even when shit was going sideways like it had been. It was quite the conundrum, being anxious as fuck about what could happen, but at the same time calm and just wanting him near.

She shook her head and entered the master bathroom. She chuckled again. No cliches here. She walked over to the tub, putting her hand in the water. It was still hot. If she knew him like she thought she did, he filled the thing up with the hot water on full blast and let it fill the tub. She saw jasmine and lavender bubble bath sitting by the faucet against the back wall of the tub.

Brennan removed her clear contacts then set about taking off her makeup and cleansing her face. She applied a moisturizer then began removing her socks, then her dress. He walked in as she unclasped her bra. She glanced at him over her shoulder before she stepped towards his shower and turned the knobs so the water would warm.

He took four steps before he was on her. He turned her around to face him, her bra straps slipping from her shoulders. He pulled her bra from her arms and away from her body, dropping it on the floor to his right.

"You're beautiful, you know that?" His hands slipped down and cupped her lace covered ass, lifting her. Her arms went around his neck.

"You tell me all the time." The fingers on her right hand were massaging his scalp.

"Mmm." He ran his right hand from her ass to her back then back down to her thigh, kissing her tattoo. "I still feel like I should tell you more often. I should just talk more often." He tapped her on her thigh, loosening his grip on her, setting her feet on the floor. He slid her black lace panties from her hips, dropping to his knees, kissing her stomach. Her eyes slowly closed as she ran her hand through his hair. He reached up and around her, over the curve of her hips; his large hand splayed along the curve where her back met her butt, pulling her naked body closer to him making her chuckle.

"Fuck, I've missed you." He mumbled between the kisses and nibbles he left on her smooth skin.

She pushed him back loosening his grip on her. The small smile on her lips lit up her face and those eyes he almost always found himself getting lost in. She bent at the waist kissing him, "Tell me more about it in the shower before we run out of hot water."

Review and shit, ya know?