Hi again! I was going to post this last night but honestly I was having a real bitch of a time with editing (FF had put bold and italics on about half the chapter and I couldn't figure out where was meant to have bold and italics so I gave up for the night) and ended up just aborting the mission.
As always, thank you so damn much for the kind words and the general support on this fic, it means more to me than I can properly express. Also, I got a review just saying "miss you" that, for some reason, really touched me, so thank you again. I want to just make it clear that I do plan to finish this story, it's just going to take a while. The same goes for my other ones, I just struggle timewise, but they won't be abandoned. SO, please, enjoy!
Okay, he wasn't going to shout it from the rooftops or anything like that, but Greyson could actually admit that Matt wasn't such a bad guy. Hell, if he was being honest, he could even say that Matt was a decent, even good, guy.
It had been a little over a week since he and River had parted ways. Over a week since he'd seen her. Over a week since she'd texted. Over a week since he'd heard her voice.
He was going mad. There was no good way to say it.
Sure, he was giving her space, right? He was doing a good job of it. He hadn't reached out, he hadn't bothered her. He'd done as she'd asked. It was just... well, his right hand was only going so far.
It wasn't all about sex. In fact, it wasn't even mostly about sex. Mostly, he just missed her. He missed everything about her, but it was easier to tell himself that it was about sex. Easier to admit to missing her body than admit to the fact that his fucking heart ached without her.
His saving grace, somewhat ironically, was Little Mattie Thorne. Yeah, the same guy who he could only just about admit was a good dude, the very same one who he'd had in his office a mere few days prior. Each day, entirely unprompted, he'd been texting Greyson. It wasn't exactly conversations and it sure as hell wasn't anything he ever wanted anyone else to see. They were small texts, just summarizing. This morning's for example had been short but sweet.
Matt. 08:17:
"She's good this morning. Swelling's way down. Bruise is gnarly. Mentioned seeing your little sister later. Have a good one dude."
Seriously, that was it. It was his daily River report and he was so far beyond thankful for it. He usually just shot back a "thanks, Matt" in some effort to not draw attention to the fact that he, a grown man, was needing this. He felt pathetic, that much was certain. Only, he also didn't give a single fuck. He needed to know how River was doing, so if that was what it took, he'd welcome it.
While he wasn't sure why River was meant to be looking after Amelia later that day, he found himself glad that she was.
She hadn't been back to his parents' place since the day she'd left with him. No one had expected her to, all of them giving her space, but clearly she'd been drafted in for babysitting duties. If nothing else, Grey was glad to know that his folks would pay her well.
Work that day was a dull, terribly tedious affair. All he could think of was the fact that River was going to be in his family home later and that he couldn't be there. It fucking sucked.
While his feelings for her were still something of an enigma, he was at least certain that they were deep. That hadn't ever really been in question, but it was now something that he comfortably accepted.
His final meeting of the day, with Miss Naomi Li, the young woman who had found herself at the head of an empire that she had no idea how to run, was a short one.
Naturally, his father was there too and doing most of the talking. Grey was honestly mostly there to learn more about navigating these kinds of situations. He was, after all, only twenty-one. Even he knew that he was still just a kid, no matter how tired life was making him feel these days.
In all honesty, the whole thing was more a formality than anything. His dad had found someone temporary to sit at the proverbial head of the table and to teach Miss Li about her father's business.
Looking at Miss Li, Greyson's chest ached. She was, as far as he could tell, a kind and caring young woman, but her spirit was dampened by loss. Still reeling from the loss of her beloved father and brother, everything that she said held a mournful tone. It was understandable, of course. It was just... well, it was just so fucking sad. Grey couldn't even imagine what would become of him if he were to lose his dad and Teddy. Hell, any of his family.
When the meeting was over, ending with Miss Li shaking hands with Mr. Haruto Tanama, the man who would be training her for the next however long, Greyson found himself sitting in the meeting room with his father. A silence gripped the air between the father and son as they packed their things, even as they went to the elevator together with Mason and headed down to their separate cars.
Just as the doors opened and they both stepped out, ready to part ways, Grey cleared his throat and got his dad's attention. There was no one else around, just the two of them and Mason, so he felt free to talk.
"What, uh, are you and Mom doing later?" He asked curiously. "I heard River's looking after Meals, that's all." He then added in the name of transparency.
There was a moment of silence in which his father just looked over the few feet of distance between them at him. It was an uncomfortable second, one in which he worried that he'd said or done something wrong. "We're just having an evening out together." He answered, tone measured. Huh, not at all what he was used to from his dad. "We assured River that she and Amelia would have the house alone. I think she said something about making pizzas."
Alone.
Okay, he wasn't stupid. He'd heard the tone and he understood. River had made sure he wouldn't be there.
Smiling, he nodded. "I'm not just going to show up, Dad." He said, somewhat defeated.
A nod from his father. "Good." There it was, that same measured tone. Had he done something wrong? Try as he might, he couldn't figure it out.
There it was again. That same silence. "Dad," He started, noticing from a single glance that his usually calm father looked annoyed and stiff. "I... have I done something?" He asked, feeling the tendrils of anxiety snaking through him.
At his words, his father softened somewhat. Looking at his son, he sighed. Then, to Grey's happiness and confusion, he shook his head. "You haven't done anything wrong, son." He said, though his son stood there, waiting for more. After all, that attitude? That wasn't nothing. "You do understand the importance of giving River the space that she's asked you for, don't you?" He then asked, looking at his son, dissecting him.
Beneath his father's gaze, Grey wasn't sure whether to shrink or to swell. "Of course I do." He got out, feeling some kind of useless. "I'm leaving her alone. I haven't texted her, haven't called her, nothing. Not since she said she wanted some space." Each word was like a punch to his own stomach. He fucking missed her.
God, as if that wasn't all he'd been thinking about for the last freaking week.
Though his father's eyes and stance had softened, Grey still saw something in his eyes that he didn't quite understand. "Dad-"
"I don't want to see you get hurt." His father finally said, cutting him off. "Whatever the two of you were doing, whatever you feel or don't feel... you're my son and I don't want to see you hurt through all of this."
Hurt? River was the one hurt, not him. He opened his mouth to speak, to say something like that, but his dad stepped toward him and pulled him quickly into a hug, all but knocking the breath out of him.
The whole exchange left him feeling weird, but he hugged his dad back all the same.
When they pulled away, his dad placed a hand on Grey's cheek, looking lovingly at his youngest son. After a moment, he released him and they went their separate ways, both getting into their respective cars and heading off home.
Unlike his father, Grey was going back to an empty house. That was something he was growing increasingly bored of. He hadn't ever really minded with Heather since she hadn't been his idea of fun to be around anyway, but having been spending so much time with River, not knowing when he'd next see her was starting to get to him a little.
Oh god, was he going stir crazy?
As soon as he was in his apartment, fresh and clean thanks to his weekly maid visits, he got changed. He threw on a pair of loose shorts and dragged himself to one of his stupid, overly massive couches, slumping down and turning on the TV. The ridiculously huge behemoth of a chair felt even larger and even more insane while he was sitting on it alone.
There honestly wasn't anything good on. Nothing worth his attention anyway.
So, as a young, single man who hadn't been getting any action recently, he flipped over to the porn.
What? He was lonely, okay!
Only, as he surfed through the myriad channels, nothing was doing it for him. Even as he stuck a hand down his shorts and tried to get some kind of cooperation, nothing. Nothing... until...
Huh. In the right light, when the camera wasn't on her face... Okay, the woman on the screen, at a glance, could have been River. Sure, the second he actually looked for more than a few seconds, it became abundantly clear that it wasn't her, but hey, he wasn't going to sit there and pick apart a freaking porno.
Watching the screen as some roided up guy ploughed into this not-River woman, Grey spat into his hand and did his damn best.
Jerk as he might though, it wasn't freaking working.
Those sounds? Well, River wasn't anywhere near that annoying, making those high pitched screams of fake pleasure.
"Come on." He growled down at his crotch, looking down briefly. It was a sad sight to say the least, watching his own fist going up and down as he fought to stay semi-hard.
God, if River could have seen him in that moment, he could only imagine what she would have thought.
With his spare hand, he flipped through a few more channels, eventually settling on one that was a lot quieter. The woman looked nothing like River, nor anything like his type, but there was something about the breathy moans that she was making. Maybe he could make this work. Releasing a stressed sigh, he leaned back and closed his eyes. Those sighs could have been River, right? Well, no. He knew her sounds too well to confuse someone else for her, but they were close enough.
As he jerked himself leisurely, he thought of her. River. Her smile. Her laugh. Her face. Her body. Fuck, her body.
Thoughts specifically of him and her body flooded his mind. Just like that, he was in action. Full mast, stomach tightening, a groan slipping from his lips.
So, naturally, that was when his cell buzzed.
It shocked him for a second, stilling his hand. He couldn't help but glance at where he'd left it on the kitchen counter. He knew it wouldn't have been River though, not right now, so he ignored it. "Not right now, whoever the fuck you are." He grumbled, letting his eyes fall shut and his head loll back.
Okay, back to it. Thoughts of River. Thoughts of fucking River. Thoughts of going down on River.
Another fucking buzz of his cell.
Annoyed, his head snapped up, stilling his hand once again. "You've gotta be fucking kidding me."
Another buzz.
"Nope." He growled, screwing his eyes closed. Furiously, his hand jerked. "Not looking. Not listening."
Another. Fucking. Buzz.
"God fucking damn it!" He finally barked out, defeated.
Angrily dropping his dick, he stood and stormed over to the counter. Whoever it was, he planned to send them something mean-
Ah, shit. Amelia. The one person he couldn't be mean to.
With a huff, he opened her messages, chuckling immediately at the sight of them.
Meals. 19:03:
"when r u gonna come ovr again"
Meals. 19:03:
"havnt seen u 4evr"
Meals. 19:03:
"barely remember ur face anymore :/"
Meals. 19:04:
"can u come over 2nite pls"
Snorting down at his cell, Grey shook his head. "Solid try, kid." He muttered, amused.
No doubt, River had just arrived and Amelia was trying to push them together. While he actually appreciated the effort, desperate to see the woman who had him so scattered, he knew what he had to do.
Trying not to hate his fingers as they typed, he messaged her back.
Greyson. 19:05:
"Not tonight. Another time kiddo"
His heart sank a little as the message sent, locking his cell and placing it back down on the counter.
As if he hadn't already been thinking about the sad state of his evening, he figured there was approximately zero chance of getting any kind of erection to come back for so much as a second. The porn was still playing in the background, reaching the very climax that was currently impossible to him.
Hey, things could have been worse, right? They could have. He knew it. Just, in that moment, well, he was struggling to see it.
Another message from Amelia never came. Instead, only the three dots dancing as the typed, then nothing. She was annoyed that her efforts had gone to waste, clearly. In all honesty, so was he. He was annoyed that he couldn't just go and see both her and River, but he still understood the importance of giving her the space that she'd asked for. Hell, if it proved to her that she could truly trust him again, he'd give her all the time in the world.
Then, in his hand, his cell was buzzing.
Without looking, he answered it.
"Meals, another time, okay?" He chuckled into the receiver.
There was a pause of the other end, breathing only, then a snort. "Hey, Grey." River?
He yanked the cell away from his head, heart racing a mile a minute. There she was. Her name on the screen, a goofy picture behind it. River. Shit, what was he supposed to say. "River?" Fuck, okay, anything other than just saying her name like a damn prayer on the wind. Moron.
He could hear her smile as she spoke back to him. "You should come over." She said easily, as though they hadn't ever stopped speaking. "Meals misses you. Something about not remembering what you look like anymore? I don't know, this whole performance is very dramatic. She's moping around with a face like a dog that licked a lemon." Hearing her voice, her unbothered snort of laughter, how freaking good she sounded, it hurt his chest.
If she'd been feeling this good, this okay, why the hell couldn't he have seen her?
No. No. That wasn't how that worked. He knew that. He had to wait for her to be ready. Was that what she was saying, that she was ready now?
"I don't have to." He told her, smiling sadly. For as badly as he wanted to see her, he didn't want it to be at the cost of her comfort. After all, his dad had specified that she and Amelia would have the house alone. "Dad said you and Meals are making pizza or something, right? You should have a good time."
There was a brief pause before she spoke. "We will. You should come, join in."
Fuck. His heart was thumping, threatening to break his ribs with shear excitement at the thought of seeing her. "Right, but, I mean, I'm... I'm giving you space and stuff, right?" He wanted nothing more than to go. He wanted to see her. He wanted to see her face with his own eyes. Fuck, he wanted to see her damn face and not have to rely on another text from Matt to get through the next day.
All he needed was her assurance. He needed to know that she wanted him there; that she wasn't just caving to the childish wishes and whims of his younger sister.
"You've done a commendable job." She told him, chuckling teasingly. "Seriously, Grey, I appreciate it. A lot."
"It's okay-"
"But you should come over." Her voice was firm this time, but he still felt some kind of uncertain.
"I should?" He asked, trying to not hold his freaking breath as he waited for her to answer.
"You should." It had taken her a second, a second of thinking, but when she spoke, she sounded so very sure. Then, making his dreams come true. "I want you to. Come on. Come make pizza with us." I want you to. She wanted him there? Fuck, well he wasn't dumb enough to say no to that.
"Well, I... Are you sure?" He asked one last time, feeling a warmth spreading throughout his chest.
"Certain. Positive. Very sure."
She did. She wanted him there. She wanted to see him.
So he did. After running around and finding some clothes, talking himself out of a suit, he found himself back in his car, this time in a nice enough pair of old sweats and a nice t-shirt. Nothing fancy, just a comfortable outfit for lounging around in. Then he was gone, driving toward his parents' home, excited to see River for the first time in what felt like a lifetime.
The roads were kind to him, as were the traffic lights. Hell, even the city busses seemed to be pulling just out of his way as he needed to pass them.
Luck, it seemed, was on his side.
When he finally got there, pulling up the horrendously long driveway, his heart was beating like a freaking war drum. God, had the driveway always been that long? Well, of course it had, but the slow crawling of the car up it had felt terribly long today.
There, beside the steps up to the house, sat a bike. It wasn't River's, he knew that, but it must have been the one that Elliot was lending to her.
Further than thinking that it looked about three decades newer than her last bike, Grey couldn't really say much about it. It was shiny, a nice color to it, it was a similar body type to her last one, a little more upright than something like a Harley, but truly, that was as far as Grey's knowledge went. It didn't matter though. All that mattered, as he smiled toward the machine, was that River was inside.
Without knocking, he raced up the steps and swung the door open.
As soon as he stepped in, the anxiety in him calmed. He could see all the way through to the kitchen island thanks to the open doors.
There, in the kitchen, he could see her. River. Or, at least, her back. She was wearing a white tank top, the pale tips of her scars poking out, with what he knew was the same pair of his sweats from the last time she'd stayed the night. She had a pair of sneaker socks on her feet and nothing else as she stood beside Amelia, who was wearing a set of thick pajamas and bunny slippers. The slippers, Grey remembered, had been a gag gift from Teddy that she'd actually ended up loving.
"How long do we have to knead it for?" Amelia groaned tiredly. "You know the grocery store sells premade dough, right? Better yet, the takeout places send a hot pie right to your door!"
Squinting a little, Grey could see through the space between them. A pile of dough was being kneaded by both of them, though River seemed to be doing more of the work.
From River came a snort of laughter. It was adorable and exactly what he'd needed to hear. "Okay, but homemade pizza tastes so good, plus you can put whatever you want on this bad boy." At that, River slapped the dough almost affectionately.
"You better not put any anchovies on here." Amelia grumbled, almost audibly rolling her eyes.
At that, River bumped the teen with her hip. "Oh, that's all I'm putting on!" She teased loudly, getting equally loud groans of protest. "Taste the ocean with me, Meals!"
As he shut the door behind him, both of them noticed. Turning, they saw him in the same moment. Swelling's way down. Bruise is gnarly. Well, Matt hadn't been lying.
"Greyson!" Amelia's voice was loud and excited as she tore herself from the dough and sprinted over to her brother. Throwing herself into his arms, she practically jumped up and down. "You came!"
With a smile directed over Amelia's short frame toward River, Greyson hugged his sister. "Of course I did." He picked her up off the floor for a split second, chuckling at her squeak as her feet left the ground. "I'm surprised you recognized me though. You know, what with my face fading away in your mind or whatever." He teased her lightly as they released one another.
With another excited jump, she turned and all but raced back to River.
"Greyson." Her voice was gin-soaked as ever, warm like a soothing mug of heated milk and honey.
As he approached, he took her in. The swelling was way down, finally allowing her to open both eyes. The bruises under her eyes, thankfully, was almost gone, but her nose looked rough, as did the red, bloodshot eye that was newly open. Only, under it all, she still looked right.
The smile that took his face was something he was unable to control. "River." He tried desperately not to say her name like the very prayer he was so desperate to whisper into the side of her throat.
Amelia, silently shocking Greyson, actually raced right past River and out of the room. She yelled something about the bathroom over her shoulder, but they weren't stupid. As far as she was concerned, her plan had worked. She'd gotten them together and now she was trying to give them just an ounce of space.
Still, neither of them dwelled on it.
As Grey stood there, wondering if he could hug her, River simply walked over to him and threw her arms over his shoulders. That was it. That was all it took; all he'd needed.
Wrapping his arms around her strong, slim frame was as easy as breathing. Holding her close, feeling as the lengths of their bodies pressed so firmly together, he had to remind himself just once not to lean in and kiss her. Instead, he drew in a deep breath of her from the space where his head ended up, just beside her jaw.
Arms around the back of his head, hands in his hair, River chuckled lightly. It was a rich, soothing sound. Gods, he never wanted to go so long without it again.
Just as he realized what he'd done and began to feel embarrassed, she buried her nose in the point where his neck and shoulder met and did just the same.
Then, less than a second later, she was out of his grasp and was backing away from him in the direction of the kitchen. "Come on, Grey," She called out to him with a gentle, somewhat teasing smirk on her face. "We've got pizzas to make." There was something different about how she was acting, something off. It wasn't specifically bad or anything, it just felt like their was an air of awkwardness between them. That was okay though, he'd spend his time chasing it away if he had to. For her.
Smiling, he followed her to the kitchen.
In there, together, they kneaded the dough. Naturally, Amelia was magically finding a way to miss doing her part, but neither of them cared.
There was a silence between then, soft and lingering, but it didn't feel all that uncomfortable.
To Grey, it felt kind of like they were getting used to being in one another's company again.
"How's work?" River finally asked. The question was fine, polite enough, but he heard it. A not of awkwardness.
Looking down at her, he smiled gently. Shrugging, he peeled some dough off of his hands. "It's work." He chuckled, getting a soft, almost curious smile in return from her. "I mean, it's not bad. Nothing's going on really, it's just moving along." Okay, why did he suddenly feel awkward?
Fuck. This wasn't them.
He opened his mouth to say something else, though he didn't know what. Thankfully, she beat him to it. "Thank you." She started simply.
Eyes trained on her, he furrowed his brow. "For wh-"
"You gave me the space that I asked for. No complaints. No questions." She looked away from him for a second, looking down at the dough that she'd been shaping into a pie. When she looked back up though, emotion swimming through her eyes, his heart just about stopped. "I can't tell you how much that means to me, Grey."
As she finished speaking, lighting that warm fire in his belly once more, Amelia reappeared. So, he held his tongue.
He didn't tell her what he wanted to. He kept it to himself that he'd give her all the time in the world if that's what she wanted. He didn't say a word about the feelings that grew in his each day, nor did he so much as breathe the thought of how deep in him their roots were buried now. Instead, he smiled and nodded, seeing something thankful in her eyes. She didn't want to talk about it all. At least, not around his little sister.
"Okay, three ocean pies coming up, right?" He asked loudly, taking it upon himself to set the tone right between them.
Beside him, Amelia gave a mournful cry. "No!" She looked nothing short of horrified as Greyson began to pretend to grab each of the fishy toppings that they all knew River would use. "Don't do it, Greyson! Don't... no!"
With the three of them together, the mood was quickly set to the two adults among them teasing the teen. They each seemed to enjoy the dynamic, so it continued.
Together, they each made their pizzas. With a variety of available sauces, cheeses and topping, Greyson figured it was actually kind of comical that only Amelia went all out and created a true monstrosity. While sure, River did put a hell of a lot of anchovies, shrimp and other fishy things on hers, Amelia's pie came out looking like something cooked by a horror movie villain. Seriously, it was... well, it looked horrible.
Unlike the other two, Grey kept it simple. Tomato sauce, mozzarella and some pepperonis that he liked. That seemed like a decent pizza to him.
Thanks to the huge ovens that his folks had, the actual baking process was easy enough. They didn't take too long, nor did they have to do them one at a time, they managed to throw all three into the oven at once and set about tidying after themselves.
"Hey, Meals?" River had started, getting the younger girl's attention. "Why don't you go and choose a movie? Grey and I can get the dishwasher running."
Amelia, all too eager to get out of any kind of chores, was off like a shot. Both River and Greyson waited for her to be out of the kitchen and audibly in the living room before they continued about loading the dishes into the huge dishwasher.
The silence between them was a little less awkward this time. It felt a little more natural. A little more them. Still, Grey felt the need to fill it.
"I, uh," He cleared his throat softly, seeing her turn to him in the corner of his eye. "I didn't expect you to call." He told her.
It was a pretty useless thing to say. Something unimportant and of little substance, but he said it all the same.
Through her bruises, River smiled at him as she nodded. "Oh, I could tell." She said, teasing lightly. "Not now, Meals, I'm busy." She joked, doing a terrible impression of him. She even bunched up her features and put on a comically low voice, not that he sounded even a little like that.
He snorted. "I don't sound like that."
Seriously, it had been terrible. With a roll of her eyes though, it didn't matter. He wanted to tell her how badly he'd missed her. He wanted to tell her how badly he wanted her. Hell, he even wanted to tell her how his freaking dick didn't seem to be working without her. He figured it was probably best to keep at least that last one to himself though.
"You sound a little like that." She said back, bringing him from his thoughts. She was still teasing, he could tell. She wasn't looking directly at him as she rinsed a few bits, but he could see the smirk on her face. It was light and barely there, but it was there all the same.
"Yeah, well you sound like..." He trailed off as quickly as he started.
At that, she turned. Amusement was swimming in her eyes. "Like what, Greyson?" She asked, tone so very curious and... huh, flirty? Finally.
He could work with flirty.
Chuckling, he shrugged. She was looking right at him now, eyes boring into him. Only, as he looked back at her, he couldn't freaking think of anything.
His mouth opened and closed, useless. As she stood before him though, her previously hungry gaze softened. There was some kind of understanding in her eyes, but he couldn't figure out why.
With a light clear of her throat, she turned back to the task at hand. Unsure of what else to do, he did the same.
He wanted to say something, anything, but his mind was blank and empty. For all the days that he'd spent away from her, desperate and pining, he now couldn't find so much as a word to say to her. All those nights, miserable and alone, whining about not having her beside him, but there she was. She was finally beside him, as alone as circumstance would allow, but he remained silent.
By the time they'd finished up with the dishes and Amelia had chosen a movie for them to watch together, the pizzas were near enough done. So, together, they each took their pie and went to sit in front of the massive TV in the living room.
Though they all ended up on the same couch, the space between the three of them was immense. Amelia sat herself on an end, giving herself an arm of the couch to lay her pizza on, as did River, leaving Grey to happily place himself in the middle. Only, there, in the middle, he found himself with masses of space either side of him.
The movie played as they ate. It was the exact kind of crap that he'd expected from his younger sister, but it wasn't specifically bad. She admittedly had pretty good taste for the most part and usually enjoyed critical pieces and things with deeper social commentaries, but then... well, she was still a kid, so there was inevitably also some more teen related stuff. It just so happened that she'd chosen the latter that night, not that either River no Grey minded.
With River on his left side and Amelia on his right, he laid his pizza on his lap and ate at the movie played.
Only, as he sat there, his mind was racing. River was curled up into the arm of the couch with her feet tucked up under her, seemingly unaware of what was going through his mind.
He wanted to reach out and to touch her. Not inappropriately of course, not while his freaking kid-sister was right there. He just wanted to sit with a hand on her leg. He wanted to rub her feet and to stroke her hair. Anything at all to offer her comfort. Hell, maybe she was still in pain, pain that he could rub away. God, he just wanted to feel her freaking skin against his.
Unable to just reach over and touch her, he instead ate his feelings. He stuffed himself full of admittedly really fucking good pizza until he actually felt a little sick. Then and only then did he allow himself to so much as glance at her.
Fuck. For all the shit he'd been feeling, all the negative thoughts he'd been letting run rampant, there she was. She was beautiful as ever, even in spite of the bruising and the swelling. Even with her freaking bloodshot eye, she was gorgeous.
Naturally, she caught him looking. So, with a light blush at having been caught, he smiled and turned back to the screen.
Barely a second later, turning in her seat, River stretched out her legs and laid one of them in his lap, leaving the other crossed beneath her knee.
That was it. All it took to improve his mood tenfold, it seemed, was a simple touch from her.
From where her foot was resting in his lap, warmth began to radiate. All the doubts, all the anxiety, all the annoyances and petty crap that had been pent up in his this last week, it all began to melt away. Little by little, second by second, the week melted off of him and slipped away into oblivion. By the time the movie was over, he was breathing easily again, absently rubbing circles into the available ankle before him with a thumb.
As the credits rolled, very out of character, it was Amelia who leapt up and took plates away. Neither River nor Greyson spoke, but when the youngster came back and announced that she was going to get an early night, she was met with resistance.
Unlike River, Greyson had no such issues with his sister going to bed. After all, he wanted some time alone with the woman who had held his mind captive all week long.
"Hold your horses, kiddo." River chuckled, seemingly at peace in her spot on the couch. "You've got, what, Math and Economics homework tonight?" Ah, that was right. He actually forgot that River helped out with Amelia's homework.
In the doorway, there was a devilish grin on the teen's face. "All done." She stated confidently, earning an uncertainly raised brow from River. "I swear!"
"Hm," River started, clearly not convinced. "How about you show me first? Just let me check over your answers before you go up, okay?" As much as Grey wanted time alone with River, he didn't want his sister's grades to suffer for it, so he was glad to hear her show concern for Amelia's homework.
So, with a teen grumble, she slinked away and came back a minute later with a laptop.
Much to the shock of both himself and River, all the work was done. It was, frankly put, perfect. She'd answered all her questions, had fleshed out her answers and had even put forward some pieces for extra credit. It was unusually good work for her, but it didn't seem like any kind of cheating or anything else untoward, so River simply nodded her approval.
"I can go to bed?" Amelia asked excitedly. Grey couldn't help but be amused by her mood.
Hiding a smile, River nodded and made to get up to tuck her in.
"No!" The teen barked, earning a raised brow. "I'm going to call Brooke and Kaitlyn for a while, so I don't need you to." She explained, all but sprinting off before they could reply.
As her feet thundered up the stairs, leading to the loud swinging of her bedroom door, River couldn't hold it in anymore. She laughed loudly. It was exactly the sound that he'd needed to hear; one that brought forth his own laughter.
Laughing together on the couch, the two of them melted back into the plush surfaces just a little.
When their laughter died down, leaving them in a comfortable silence, River turned the TV off with the remote. She looked over at him, really looking at him for just a moment.
Trapped under her gaze, his rubbing thumb stilled. It certainly wasn't a bad place to have been caught.
When River finally spoke, though, it wasn't about them. At least, not directly. "She thinks she's so subtle." She said into the room with an easy smile.
Greyson knew immediately what she meant. Amelia hadn't been able to get away from them fast enough all evening, clearly under the impression that she'd been the one to bring them together. "So smart, too." He joked back, glad to earn a snort of laughter in agreement.
Okay, if he really thought about it though? She kind of had been the driving force in getting him to come over. Granted, he'd waited for River to say the word, but he had no doubt in his mind that his sister had been mentioning the whole thing to poor River. Huh, maybe she actually had been some kind of mastermind in getting them back into the same room as one another.
"So smart." River agreed jokingly with the roll of her eyes. Then there they were again, caught in the silence that seemed intent on taking them both. She didn't let it linger for long though, something that he was thankful for. "I meant what I said earlier."
He knew what she meant, but he still felt a little bashful for some reason. "It's nothing." He said simply, shaking his head. After all, he wasn't a saint for giving her space, least of all when she'd asked for it.
She watched him again for a moment, something that was making him increasingly anxious. He'd gotten used to her looking at him through starving eyes, he'd almost forgotten how dissecting her gaze could be outside of sex. "I know you spoke to Matt." She said simply, watching how his face changed. Fuck, why did he feel guilty? "He told me that you guys had some drinks... talked about things."
Swallowing, he nodded. "Yeah, we did." Okay, he wasn't guilty of anything. Well, anything other than basically having admitted to her ex that he loved her in some capacity. Some capacity that, if he was being honest, was more than the platonic feelings that they'd both agreed to.
"It hurt me when we stopped talking." She said after a long moment. Whether she'd caught on to what he was saying and what he was thinking was neither here nor there. "That first time." She then clarified, though he'd already known.
"I know. I'm still sorry about that." He was. He wouldn't ever stop feeling like shit about how things had happened. In spite of everything that they'd gone through together, he had been the one to hurt her.
"I know." She chuckled, but there was no humor. It was a sad sound. "I just..." She stopped. He realized why. She was protecting his feelings, even now.
Smiling sadly, he nodded. "It's okay." He told her, urging her on lightly.
After a steadying breath, she took his lead and began talking. Whatever she said, he reminded himself, he needed to listen and to understand. "Our friendship has always meant something to me, Grey. It's always been important to me that I acted right around your folks, that they liked me, that they wanted me around. Being friend with you, with someone like you... I think it was a pride thing at first, you know? Befriend the rich kid, prove that us poor kids aren't what the rest of the kids at school thought." It was odd. Sure, he knew she'd felt out of place, but so had he initially. Hadn't she proven herself to be part of his family almost as much as he had?
"I never thought you were anything wrong or out of place."
"I wanted to fit in." Her voice sounded sad, almost defeated.
"You did. With me and with my folks. You do."
"I did." She agreed, nodding with a dim smile. "I did. I do. Back then though, at the start, I had something to prove. I wanted to prove myself to your folks and to all the other rich families like Heather's and Boof's. God, I was so desperate to show them that Matt and I weren't what they thought we were, you know?" He could hear the old note of childlike determination as she talked. For a moment, he tried to imagine what it must have been like for her. Sure, he'd kind of been in the same boat, but he went home to a mansion and warm hugs when she went home to a crumbling apartment and worried about getting hit.
He stayed silent, sensing that she wasn't finished as she paused for a second.
"You and I became friends and I realized that I didn't need to prove that, not to you. We were like peas in a freaking pod. You just understood me. We shared so much. Good. Bad. Highs. Lows." There was a little more of a smile now. Or, at least, a little less sadness.
No, wait. Not less sadness. She was simply trying to smile through it. Was she trying not to cry in front of him?
"River-"
"Losing you..." Finally he saw it. The tear in her eye, threatening to spill. "Fuck, losing you fucking sucked, Greyson. All over her? Everyone tried to warn me that she'd come between us, that she'd worm her way into your ear and pull you away, but I never believed it."
He'd hurt her. He'd fucking hurt her and he hated himself for it. "I was stupid back then. I'm not now. I know now." He tried to convey in his voice and his tone how freaking sorry her was. He prayed that she knew, that she could tell.
Reaching out, she placed a calloused hand on his cheek. The skin of her fingertips was so very slightly rough as she touching him fondle, sighing and shaking her head just once. "I never thought she'd be able to come between us and she did. It sucked hard and it hurt because I honestly didn't think you were capable of hurting me." Fuck. Like a punch in the dick. "But you did. Then you fight with Matt... God, that was stupid. So fucking stupid. Then we didn't talk for literal years-"
"And the next time we did, I was asking you for sex." He'd known at the time how insane that had been. It was only now though that he was realizing how insensitive it was.
Laughing, River let her fingers trace the shape of his jaw before she sniffled. He hoped that it didn't hurt her nose. "The next time we did, you asked me for sex." She chuckled, nodding. "I really do love you, Grey, but I just... I got scared, you know? All that shit at work with Jerry and his fucking wife happened and I was scared. I was scared and I didn't know if I could trust you to stick by me." He hated himself as she spilled her heart to him. How had he been one of the people to do this to her?
Never again.
As his chest ached and his heart threatened to tear itself from his chest in some effort to get to her, he nodded and rubbed what he hoped was a comforting line into her calves with his hands. "I let you down. That whole thing with Heather... River, it was a fucking mess. I won't ever stop regretting it, not now, not ever." If that wasn't the truth, he didn't know what was. God, what a fucking fool he'd been. "I know you don't have a reason to trust me, but I won't let you down, not ever again."
Smiling through the tears that were still in her eyes, she took her hand from his face to sock his shoulder with a gentle fist. One that he caught and used to pull her closer. "Have you not been listening to me, asshole?" She grumbled, settling easily in the spot he pulled her into in his side. "You gave me time. You gave me space. You showed me who you are, Grey, well and truly. I trust you."
"You do?"
"Of course I do." She laid her head heavily against his shoulder. "I'm sorry that I had to, you know, run away. I just-"
"No, I get it. I do." He did. Sure, there was also part of him that kind of didn't get it, but he understood that he'd felt that she had to force the space that she needed.
Though he couldn't see her face anymore, he heard the smile as she spoke. "I don't do too well at relying on people." She admitted as if it was some great secret, glancing specifically anywhere but at him. He understood that, too. "I know you and Matt talked about that, about how I bolt sometimes. I'll try not to."
Hoisting her the rest of the way into his side, he planted a kiss onto the side of her head before resting his cheek against her hair. "Whatever you do, however you do it, I'll be here." He told her, arm wrapped around her shoulder. "Always." He then added, swallowing. Silently, he hoped that hadn't been too much.
In his arms, she stilled for a moment. Fuck! "Always?" She asked lightly, tilting her head so very softly up into the side of his neck.
Huh, maybe he hadn't fucked up?
Turning his head to to face her, he caught sight of her tears. He smiled and nodded, bringing his spare hand up. "Always." He confirmed, wiping the offending tears away with the pad of his thumb.
He didn't miss as her eyes flitted down to his lips. He also didn't miss the way her tongue darted out quickly, wetting her own. "Always." She uttered back softly, mulling it over as their eyes met once more.
There was something about that word. Always. Something about the weight of it and how very real and true it was. It felt important.
As they were somehow getting closer and closer to one another with each passing second in spite of already being touching, he felt it. That warmth. That same deep, all consuming warmth in the pit of his stomach and the deepest reaches of his chest. There it was again, spreading itself from the mighty anchors that it had sunk into the very depths of him. He never wanted to stop feeling it, not for as long as he lived.
Just as their lips were so very nearly touching, River stopped. She brought a hand back up to his cheek, tracing the shape of his lips with her fingertips before pulling away with a breathy chuckle. "We should put something on." She said, drawing in a breath.
Okay. He was a little taken aback. That had been a moment, right? As in, if there had been a time to kiss, that was it.
What had stopped her? They'd kissed before. It wasn't as if they'd been having sex only with no kissing.
Seeing his confusion, something he hadn't meant to display, she smirked and quickly kissed his cheek. "Your folks'll still be a couple hours out and I'm on the clock." She said simply, reminding him of why she was actually there. "They're not paying me to jump you." She then added, getting a small laugh from him.
Hell, in that moment, he'd have fucked her on the couch in a heartbeat. God, had he so quickly forgotten about his little sister who was only up a flight of stairs? Well, yes. River had been about to freaking kiss him, he had been in some kind of trance! It wasn't his fault!
"Jump me?" He snorted teasingly, cocking a brow down at her. "Get your head outta the gutter, Nivalis."
Just like that, they felt like them again.
So, for the rest of the evening, as they waited for his folks to come back, they sat together on the couch and watched shitty TV. Amelia didn't once come back down, clearly feeling confident in her matchmaking skills. River did check on her a couple of times, though she was apparently met with the worst imitation of sleep that she'd ever seen, something that she and Grey laughed about together when she'd returned.
When Christian and Ana finally got back, paying River in cash, the day seemed all but done.
Only, it wasn't, not quite.
In fact, as his dad went upstairs to check on Amelia, his mom asked River for a word. It wasn't anything bad, he could tell from her tone, but she pulled the younger woman in for a hug before holding her at arms length. She didn't ask Grey to leave the room, so he didn't, instead standing a few feet away, ready to be some sort of support.
"We'd like to offer you a job." The words out of his mom's mouth were honestly not even close to what he'd been expecting.
Looking dumbly back at the woman who had done more for her than her own mother, River stilled. "A job?" She asked, clearly as shocked as Grey was.
Excited, Ana nodded. "Christian and I are in need of a personal trainer." She stated simply, grinning. "We were going to hire someone anyway, but, well, we'd rather you than a stranger-"
"A per- You need a PT?" River asked, immediately going on to apologize for cutting her off.
"We need a PT, sweetheart."
Just like that, River's financial worries melted down the freaking drain.
Greyson stood there, wide-eyed, as his mom offered his not-girlfriend a job. He couldn't explain it, but it felt like a good thing. Not just because of River's money issues, but mostly because even she knew that they wouldn't have hired just anyone.
Naturally, she accepted. That brought on more tears, ones that she wasn't so quick to hide as she hugged Grey's mom. "Thank you so much." She muttered into the shoulder of the older woman. "I won't let you down." She vowed.
When his dad came back downstairs, he too took a turn hugging their newest employee. They agreed that they'd go over any job specifications and paperwork and whatnot another day, possibly in his office.
With that, they eldest among them bid the two young lovers a good night, taking themselves up to bed and thanking River for looking after Amelia.
Once River and Grey headed outside, part of him wanted to invite her back to his place. He had to be patient though. It didn't matter that he wanted to hold her in his arms more than he wanted to fuck her, he knew that she still needed some space. She needed to come to him on her own terms, so he said nothing as they shared a goodbye hug and as she climbed aboard the monstrous bike of Elliot's.
He had a good feeling about what was to come, he knew that much.
I know I said at the top that I'd had some editing issues, so I'd like to apologize if I missed any of those little bits. I've done my best to come through but I don't tend to notice a few bits and pieces until I read it back to myself once it's posted (at which point I gripe with myself), but hopefully it was okay.
As I'm sure you can tell, it'll be back to happy stuff and whatnot for a little while, or at least it'll be in that direction. So yeah, please let me know any thoughts and/or feelings. Other than that, have a great day and hopefully I'll have you back next chapter!