Author's note: If you're looking for some heavy making out, this is the chapter for you! If not, please be advised that is happens near the end, should you wish to avoid it. There's plenty of other stuff here that's very important leading up to it. Including Mags!
Much thanks to LavenderVanilla for being an awesome beta and turning this around so quickly. You've been a very big help! (Seriously, go read her stuff!)
Happy reading!
Chapter Five
Annie led Peeta into a tiny house in the middle of town. Mags Fontaine stood over a stove stirring a pot Annie knew contained some of the best gumbo in District Four.
"Hello, Mags." Annie greeted her happily, wrapping her arms around the older woman's waist. "When are you going to give me this recipe?"
"One day." The old woman grinned mischievously.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Fontaine." Peeta greeted her, kissing her wrinkled cheek. "You look gorgeous today."
Mags waved her hand and said, "Oh, now." And gave a little chuckle. "What are you two up to?"
Annie took a seat at the old kitchen table as Peeta slid beside Mags and produced a basket filled with small loaves of fish-shaped bread that was slightly green. "How did I do?"
Mags nodded her approval. "Finally looks right. How does it taste?"
"Not quite salty enough for my liking." Annie pointed out.
Peeta shrugged. "I'm close." He offered one of the small fish. "What do you think?"
Mags took a chunk of the bread and popped it in her mouth. She chewed thoughtfully and then nodded. "Annie's right. Try some more salt in your fish stock and you should have it about right." She went back to her gumbo.
Annie grinned at Peeta, letting her eyes say, "See? Told you."
"Yeah, yeah." Peeta said aloud as he waved his hand in dismissal.
Mags looked between them and then said, "Peeta, would you mind taking a look at my front door? The hinge is loose and I can't reach up to tighten the screws."
"You got it, Mrs. Fontaine." Peeta said, leaving the bread sitting on her counter as he retrieved her small toolbox from beside the back door.
"You can call me Mags." She hollered after him. As soon as he was in the other room, she looked toward Annie and said, "That boy loves you."
Annie pressed her hand to her chest to slow her heart as the memory of their heated kisses flooded her mind. They'd gone a little farther in recent days, his hands kneading her thighs and hers exploring his bare chest. But they always stopped before…
"Nothing to say?" Mags challenged.
"Finnick…" She pressed her hands to the side of her head to stop the flow of images. "No, I can't." She shut her eyes tightly and shook her head. "No."
"Annie, what's wrong?" Mags asked. "Talk to me, girl." She pleaded.
Annie shook her head and shut her eyes tight. Too much noise in her head. Too many images of Peeta and Finnick pressing in.
"Annie?" Peeta's voice somehow broke through and she could feel his hands gently tugging on her wrists. "Annie, look at me."
She shook her head. "No, I can't." Everything started dying down, but the dull buzz was still too much.
Mags said, "I shouldn't have said anything, Annie."
Annie's eyes popped open and she sent a fearful look to the old woman. "I can't let him, Mags."
"Such a shame." Mags shook her head and reached up to the cabinet for bowls. "No one's seen that no-good uncle of Finnick's in a while." She placed the bowls on the table and went back to her food preparation. "And no word from the nephew."
Annie reached out and brushed her fingers over Peeta's cheek. She didn't want to think about Finnick for a while. Finnick isn't here, but Peeta is.
He kissed Annie's palm and asked softly, "You okay?"
It took a moment for Annie to process his question, but all she was able to manage in answer was a shrug.
"You'll be better soon." Peeta stood and kissed her forehead. "What can I do, Mrs. Fontaine?"
"You can call me Mags." The old woman said with a sly grin. "And you can get your bread on the table."
Peeta did as requested. Annie felt a little outside of herself as the action went on around her. Peeta filled a plate and sat it in front of her, squeezing her shoulder.
"I'm okay." Annie told him softly.
He nodded and kissed the top of Annie's head before he moved to help Mags get the last of the meal on the table.
After they were settled and all the bowls were filled, Mags admitted, "I said something I shouldn't have, Annie. I really am sorry."
"I'm sure it's fine." Peeta reassured.
Annie shook her head. "It's not. Because it's not right. Finnick and Katniss are out there somewhere, Mags. What you said was very wrong."
Peeta whipped his head around to look at Annie, his face full of concern.
"She said you love me." His wife said softly. She pushed her bowl away and picked up one of the fish-shaped rolls and tore it into tiny pieces, trying to pull her shattered thoughts back together.
Peeta swallowed the lump in his throat at the words. She said you love me. It played over and over in his mind like the refrain in one of the hymns his mother was constantly singing off-key. Did he? Did it matter if he did?
Of course it mattered. Like Annie said, Finnick and Katniss were still out there, even if they weren't entirely sure where Finnick was. It was a betrayal for them to be engaging in a physical relationship.
But, god, Peeta loved the way Annie's mouth tasted and how her soft hands felt as they traced every inch of his chest and back.
He was so distracted by the thought and his concern for Annie's current state of mind that he didn't realize Mags had started to clear the table from their meal, chattering on the entire time. Peeta usually loved the old woman's stories, but with so many emotions churning in his mind, it was difficult to pay attention this time.
Annie stood and helped, taking over the conversation and acting as though nothing happened before. They sat and chatted a few more minutes afterward as Mags pulled out a pencil and a scrap of paper and wrote something down, slipping it across to Annie.
"The recipe." Mags explained. "I'm not much longer for this world and you're the only family I got."
"Oh, Mags." Annie sighed, standing and pulling the old woman into a tight embrace. She whispered something Peeta couldn't hear and then kissed Mags on her withered cheek. "Thank you so much."
Mags patted Annie's cheek. "I'll start writing down the rest of them. You fatten this boy up." She chuckled and tugged Peeta up to stand. The woman was stronger than she looked. No wonder she'd outlived two husbands.
"You're so sweet, Mags." Peeta kissed Mags on the cheek and then stepped away. "Annie, we should get home before dark."
Annie nodded and kissed Mags once more before she followed Peeta out the door. The walk home was quiet, both lost in their thoughts. Peeta's mind still churned with that old refrain. She said you love me. He didn't want to. He couldn't. Katniss…
She isn't here. He hated the offending thought, but it was the truth.
He reached out and slipped his hand into Annie's.
She looked over her shoulder and squeezed his fingers. "I want to show you something."
He kissed the back of her hand. "What?"
"Somewhere that was special to Finnick and me. You deserve to see it." She pulled him down the beach. She stopped short at the mouth of a cave that was familiar to Peeta.
"I've drawn this." He said.
Annie nodded. "And it made me happy every time you brought a new drawing of this home to me." She let go of his hand, walked into the cave, and curled against the back wall. "He made love to me here." She wiped at her streaming eyes and averted her eyes.
Peeta could barely see in the dying light of day. He sat down several feet away from Annie to give her some space, but he still wanted to be close.
She wiped at some more tears and sniffed. "Peeta… Do you love me? Was Mags right?"
He swiped a finger across his eye and looked toward the sunset. "I don't want to."
"I don't want to, either." She touched his face and turned it. "I never want us to forget."
He placed his hand on top of hers and rubbed his thumb over her knuckles. "I won't be able to."
She leaned over and kissed him softly. "Let's get home."
"Annie—"
She interrupted him with a kiss. "Come home and kiss me."
After a moment, he nodded and stood, sweeping her effortlessly into his arms.
She squeaked and wrapped her arms around his neck. "What are you doing?"
"You've carried enough for today." He said kindly. "Let me carry you."
She grinned and pressed her lips to his once more before resting her head on his shoulder. He stepped through the door to their home and kicked it shut.
"Put me down." Annie requested.
Peeta set her on her feet but kept his arms around her waist. He leaned in and brushed his lips over hers. After removing his coat and letting it drop to the floor, she slid her hands over the expanse of his chest.
He smiled and took the wrap from around her shoulders, dropping it on top of his coat. When he reached for his cap, she stopped him and snatched it off his head, placing it on her own. With a laugh, she stepped back.
"How do I look?" She asked.
He laughed and framed her face with his hands. "Beautiful." He kissed her softly and slipped his hand in hers, pulling her down the hall. "Your room or mine?"
"Yours." She said softly. So I can leave if I want to. She threw his hat down the hall.
He noted the look of uncertainty in her eyes and rested his head against hers. "We don't have to do more. We never do." His nerves were getting the best of him, like they usually did.
She nodded and stepped through into his room. He watched her every move, drinking it in like she was the healing waters of life and he was so thirsty. Straightening up from lighting the lamp, Annie stepped back toward Peeta and began working on the buttons of his shirt.
"This is fine." She said softly. "For me. Is it okay for you?"
He nodded and stroked his hand over her hair. It was in a braid, something it had taken a while for him to get used to on her. The first time she stepped into the room with plaited hair, he almost started crying. It was still painful in moments like this, so he quickly loosened the tresses and combed his fingers through her hair. He kissed her forehead before shrugging out of his shirt.
Annie smiled and pressed her hand to the center of his chest. Peeta could feel his heart begin to speed up at her touch. And when her lips made contact with his shoulder, he knew that her hand was the only thing holding his heart in place.
With deft fingers, Peeta unfastened the buttons of Annie's blouse. He trailed his fingers over her corseted torso with a groan as her mouth moved closer and closer to his neck. She finally dropped her arms and let her blouse fall to the floor before removing her skirt and stepping toward the bed.
Peeta looked away, suddenly so very unsure of himself.
"You can just lay here with me." She said softly. "Or I can go. Either way, it's up to you."
He slowly raised his eyes and looked into hers. They were still cloudy from her earlier fight. He removed his trousers and stretched out on the bed beside her. He placed a gentle hand on her cheek and pressed a soft kiss to her lips.
He whispered. "I don't want to think about love."
"I don't either." She slipped her arms around him and pulled him on top of her. "This doesn't have to be about love, Peeta." She said half desperately.
"It doesn't?"
"No." She said softly. "Pleasure can exist without love."
He sighed. "Tell me what you want, Annie."
She gently scraped her nails over his back. "I want to relieve this ache. And I want to relieve yours." She raised her head and kissed him. "I heard you in here yesterday pleasuring yourself. You said her name with such despair."
"Annie, please don't…" He started to move away.
She wrapped her arms around his back, stopping him. "Let this be us."
He watched her face for a moment before he nodded and leaned down to kiss her slowly. His heart sped up again when her fingers trailed over his back. His mind churned with how wrong he felt, but how right this felt. He moved down to taste the rest of her skin.
Peeta particularly liked the way Annie pressed her shoulders up into his kiss as his lips made their lavish journey from one to the next all the way down to the line of her corset. She had yet to remove it during these times, though both of them had expressed wishes, at different times, for her to do so.
Peeta made the slow return journey, slipping his hand into Annie's and holding it beside her head as their mouths connected once more.
She desperately squeezed his hand and tightened her arm around his back. Annie pushed him over, surprising Peeta with her strength in the moment. Sitting back on his legs, she trailed her fingers over his bare chest and grinned.
"What?" He asked softly.
"How did you get so strong?" She asked, trailing her fingers down his arm.
He grinned and rested his hands on her thighs. "Lugging large sacks of flour all day. Kneading dough. Mixing cake and cookie batter." He slid his hands up her back and pulled her down. "How did you get to be so strong?"
She stopped herself with her hands beside his head. "I'm not." She argued.
"In your mind you are. I've seen you fight so hard, Annie. How do you keep going when your head tells you to stop?"
She shrugged. "I just do." She leaned down and kissed his forehead. "You've been a big help." She kissed his nose. "And peddling baked goods is much more agreeable than whiskey." She covered his mouth with her own and kissed him deeply. She reached between them and pressed her palm into his stiffness.
He gasped. "Annie, no." He pulled her hand away. "I'm not ready for that."
She nodded and kissed him again, her hands rooted firmly on his sides as she moved her lips over his neck and down his chest. She glanced up and playfully licked at his nipple. That was a new one. Peeta's head fell back with a defeated whimper and he tightened his grip almost painfully on her thighs.
She moaned against his skin and made her way back to his mouth. After one more deep kiss, she slipped her arms under his shoulders and rested her head on the pillow beside his head. "We'll go further when you're ready for it."
"Thank you." He wrapped his arms around her and closed his eyes, trying to ignore his painful erection. "You'd be more comfortable if you took off this corset."
She sat up slowly and moved to the edge of the bed and worked the ties loose. "I know how to make you more comfortable." She looked over her shoulder.
He swallowed. "I know you could. But I don't think… It wouldn't be good for either of us." He rolled to his side and pulled the blanket over his waist. "Are you staying in here?"
"If you don't mind." She walked to the far end of the room and he heard the window open. "I'm going to dress for bed and be back."
He rolled over and watched her walk out of the room, gathering her clothes as she went, holding her corset to her chest.
She paused at the door and grinned. "I'll make sure to knock." She winked and closed the door with a giggle.
Peeta didn't waste any time. He sat up and removed his length, wrapping his hand around it and closing his eyes. He tried to picture Katniss, he really did. But the image of Annie staring at him with those mesmerizing green eyes of hers kept taking over. He leaned forward and muttered a curse under his breath just before he came.
He sighed and stood to clean up after himself. He was just finishing when he heard the soft tap on the door.
Peeta turned to see Annie's face tentatively peeking around the frame. "Okay to come in?" She asked softly.
He nodded and threw the soiled rag into the corner. He felt dampness on his cheeks just a moment before she hurried across the room to pull him into her arms.
"You're okay, Peeta." She assured him softly.
"I'm not." He sobbed heavily on her shoulder.
She tugged him toward the bed and held up the blanket. "Get in." She waited as he slipped underneath the blanket and then she pulled it up over his shoulders.
"You're going to stay?" He asked as she walked around the bed, blowing out the lamp when she got there.
"As long as you want me to." She slipped in behind him and wrapped her arm around his waist. "Whatever upset you, it's okay."
"I don't know what to do, Annie." He said softly. "I…" He sighed. "Mags was right. And I don't want Mags to be right."
Annie said nothing, but her arm tightened around Peeta. She kissed his shoulder. It was better than any words she could say. Her presence let him know she was there for him and that she understood what he meant. And it hurt her just as much.