Chapter Seven
"A watched pot never brews," Emmett said with a chuckle when he came into the kitchen the next morning and saw Althea propped against the counter, watching the coffee drip.
"It better because I need coffee, stat."
"How're we feeling this morning?"
"Like hell."
He took out a couple of Tylenol and handed them to her. "Here. You'll need these."
She managed a weak smile. "Thanks."
"You sure slept. I had to keep checking on you."
"You stayed here last night?"
"Yep. I slept in the room across the hall."
"You didn't have to do that."
"No, but I was worried you might have had alcohol poisoning. I'm surprised you weren't sick."
"The drinks were kinda watered down."
When the coffee was ready, she poured herself a big cup and offered him some. "I made lots."
"Thank you. So I see." He poured himself some and fixed it the way he liked and took a seat next to her.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly between sips. "I know it was stupid to take off like that but…I was pissed and I needed to just…get out of here for a while."
Emmett nodded. "I know you and House had words. I told him to leave you alone."
Althea snickered. "I told him not to call you anymore, either."
"We'll see if he actually listens."
"Don't bet on it."
"There's a simple solution to that, we just won't answer when he calls."
She nodded and glanced out the window. "I'm going to sit outside. It looks nice and I need some fresh air."
"Mind if I join you?"
"Please."
They went out onto the porch and took a seat at the small table. "Sorry about the phone," she said with a slight chuckle.
"What happened?"
"I kind of lost my mind," she said as she threw her head back and let the warm sun shine down on her face.
"Apparently."
She took another long sip of the coffee and set it down hard on the table that made Emmett jump. "The man is an asshole!" Althea shouted. "Who the hell does he think he is? Saying stuff like that to you. I'm done with him."
"You don't have to tell me what he said. It sounds like you already told Bud everything."
"Who?"
"Your friendly neighborhood bartender."
Althea snickered again. "Oh. Right. Well they say the best person to tell things to is a stranger. I needed an impartial jury."
Emmett laughed. "You've definitely spent too much time around House."
"I know. Not anymore. I don't care if I ever see that misanthropic bastard again."
"You and me both."
"He's just mean. And rude."
"Yes, he is that."
She reached for his hand that time, and he took it, giving it a squeeze. "You know I don't care about your past, right? I remember you saying it's been a long time since you've been with anyone but House seems to think it was never."
Emmett shifted uncomfortably in his chair and took a sip of his coffee as he contemplated his next words.
"We don't have to talk about it now, Emmett," she said, sensing his discomfort.
He shook his head and put his cup down. "No, I did say we should have a talk. Now is as good a time as any." He sighed with resignation and put his cup down. "It's true that I don't have much experience with women. I had a girlfriend once, when I was fresh out of university. I came from a family with the means to put me through school, and she did not. I think she only stayed with me because I made her look good. And in return, it made me look good. People dismissed me as being, shall we say, a bit of a freak. So by having a girlfriend, and she was almost as beautiful as you, made people treat me differently. I guess you could say we used each other. It wasn't a very healthy relationship. She used me for my money and social status, and I used her for the reputation and respect. Our physical relationship was fairly nonexistent. I don't think she was attracted to me the same way I was to her."
Althea nodded and continued to stroke his hand as he talked.
"Anyway, her father wanted my help, and my familys' money, to invest in some fly by night outfit and I…"
"Fly by night?"
Emmett chuckled. "Sorry. It just means a get rich quick kind of scheme. High risk, little reward."
"Oh, I see. Go on, Emmett."
"I didn't want to invest in it. My father also thought it was a bad idea. So I said no, and she was furious. She threatened to leave me, figuring I was desperate enough to hang around but I wasn't going to give in on what I knew would fail. We had a fight and she stormed off. But a few days later, she came back and we…" he blushed and Althea chuckled at his shyness. "kissed and made up."
"Make up sex is sometimes hotter," Althea said with a laugh. "House and I had a lot of fights."
Emmett grinned, somewhat mischievously. "I'll just bet. Anyway, when she realized I still wasn't going to give in and invest in her idea, she left me for real. And that was that."
"I see. Thank you for telling me. It does explain some things. And I meant what I said. I don't care what your past was. I'm actually relieved."
Emmett's eyes widened. "Really?"
"Sex isn't the be-all end-all, you know. It's actually quite refreshing to know that I can stay here, and know that you're not going to want or expect sex at any given moment. Sometimes it's nice to just be with each other. And you know that my first and only partner has been House. I haven't been intimate that way with anyone else, and not even with him for a long time. Well, I mean you and I…we've had our moments and those are the ones I think back on the most because there are legitimate feelings between us and that's the difference."
Emmett was hearing everything she was saying and it amazed him how honest and forthcoming she was, and mature. Her maturity for a woman in her early twenties was quite remarkable.
"Let me just say this, Emmett," Althea added, as she pulled her chair closer so they were facing each other. She then took both of his hands in hers, like he had done before.
"Yes?"
She looked at him directly. "Being a good lover isn't what's important. What's important are the feelings that go with it. And the respect we have for each other. You've told me how you feel about me and the feeling is mutual. I love you, Emmett."
Emmett shook his head in wonder. "When did you become so…insightful?"
She shrugged. "House taught me well, I guess. And my Father and I used to have very deep talks back in the day." She looked down at his hands. "I really miss him, Emmett. It's true I did come here hoping you'd help me but another part of me wanted to know if you still felt the same way after all this time."
"I do. It's just…something House said that really got to me, more than it should have."
"What was it?"
"Just that if I didn't make a move, or if I couldn't keep you interested, you'd leave."
Althea took a deep breath in and squeezed his hands. "That would never happen. I think you and I have something real."
"I think we do too."
"Good. Then stop worrying, Emmett. I'm not going anywhere. Let's just…take things one day at a time."
He nodded and they both stood up. She then wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her cheek against his chest, hugging him close. "Thank you," she whispered.
"For what?" he asked as he wrapped his arms tightly around her.
"For not being an asshole."
Emmett let out a laugh. "I'll do my best to keep it that way."
Althea smiled up at him and placed her hands on his chest. He smiled down at her, and it seemed like the perfect moment to kiss her so he did just that. When his mouth came down on hers, she parted her lips and wrapped her arms around his neck. He then hoisted her up off her feet and she gave a yelp of surprise as he laughed and nuzzled her neck.
"Sometimes you really surprise me, and it's like I don't even know you."
"Oh, don't you worry, Princess," he said as he held her tightly against him and continued to kiss and nuzzle her neck. "Behind closed doors, you'll know who I am."
A shiver went through her when he said that, right down to her core and she giggled. "I ought to be scandalized by that."
"Mmm-hmm," he murmured as his lips found a spot behind her ear that made her shiver once again. "You ought to be."
"Emmett," she sighed as she enjoyed the feeling of his lips on her neck. "Oohh, that's nice…"
He took a step back and smiled down at her. "Come on. I have something to show you."
"I'll bet," she giggled and let him lead her back inside. He laughed as she followed him downstairs to the outer door of his lab. "Remember that delivery the other day?"
"Yes…"
"This is it," he said as he showed her the palm print scanner. "I'm giving you access, so we need to scan your handprint."
She blinked. Emmett had talked about showing her the inside of his lab, but he had yet to do so. "Give me your hand."
When she did, he gently placed it on the scanner. "Say your name and your year of birth."
"Althea, 1649."
A robotic voice replied, "Access granted, Princess Althea."
She gave him a smirk. "Cute, Emmett."
He beamed at her. "I thought so."
Several locks clicked and the light over the door went from red to green.
He pushed the door open and gestured her inside. The lab was huge. Since it was underground, Emmett was able to make it as big as he wanted. The Delorean time machine sat off in the corner, covered up, on what looked like some kind of lift.
"What's that?"
"It's how I get the Delorean out of here," he said as he pressed a few buttons. A hatch above slid open and the lift rose the car up to ground level.
"Wow. Amazing. So that day I came here, and I was sitting on the back porch, the Delorean was right underneath me that whole time?""
"Yep."
"That's both amazing and a little creepy at the same time. I had no idea all this was under the house."
Emmett brought the Delorean back down and the hatch closed.
She wandered around the room, looking at everything, and was equally impressed by his workstation which had two large screen monitors. One of them showed various areas of his property on a live feed. Off to the side was a large couch and a flat screen TV on the opposite wall. There was also a large table with books and random papers and maps strewn all over it in some kind of disorganized chaos. Then she saw a back door. "Where does that go?"
"That's the safe. Sorry Princess, but no access for you."
She pretended to pout. "What's in there, besides your stack of Playboys?"
Emmett blinked in surprise and it was her turn to laugh. "Come on, don't look so shocked. Remember that time you caught me in your lab looking at one of them?"
He blushed a little and looked away. "How could I forget? It took everything in me not to show you what the naked male anatomy looked like in the flesh."
She bit her lip and smiled seductively. "Really, Emmett?" She walked slowly over to him and he backed up against the wall as she pressed herself against him. "Would you really have done that?"
He cleared his throat and gave her a weak smile. "No, probably not, but it did cross my mind."
Her hands slid up his chest and she kissed his neck. "I believe I might have liked it," she whispered between kisses as she undid another button and kissed the exposed skin of his throat.
"Althea…"
"I think you had a lot of naughty thoughts about me."
She could hear his heart beating quickly through his shirt and she suppressed a giggle.
"Tell me one…"
"Huh?"
"Tell me a naughty thought you had about me," she said as she undid another button, and then another.
"I'm…uh..having one right now, I think."
"Mhm?" she hummed as she continued to undo all the buttons of his shirt so it hung open, and she raked her nails across his nipples. "Tell me."
"I..uhh…you…you're making it very difficult for me to think…"
"Want me to stop?" she said as she got down on her knees and unbuckled his belt.
"Unnghh…" he groaned as she slid her hand over the very large bulge in his pants. "Althea…what…what are you doing?"
She glanced over at the couch and gave him a gentle push so he sat down and she climbed into his lap, straddling him. She gently ran her fingers through his soft white hair as they kissed and held each other for a while.
"What are you thinking?" she asked, curious.
"I think…we're in big trouble."
Althea laughed. "Well then, you're in luck."
"Why is that?"
"I love trouble."