Page 10 of Where There's Smoke…
“Phee…” My voice trails off as she places her hands on my hips and effortlessly moves me until my back rests against the arm of the couch. My eyes locked on hers, and my breath hitched as she brought her lips down until they were only a few inches from mine. “Ph-Phoenix…”
“Yes, baby,” she whispers, and I feel myself growing weak. Her hands grip my hips tightly as my arms wrap around her neck. Her lips move to my neck, and she kisses it softly. I let out a small moan as she buried her face in the crook of my neck. “You smell so damn good. So sweet. So perfect.”
“Phoenix, please,” I whimper as she bites and sucks my neck lightly.
Every inch of my body was on fire, and my desire for her was at an all-time high. I didn’t care that we’d only been on one date. I didn’t care that we’d only just met for real five days ago. I didn’t care that we weren’t even officially a couple yet. I just wanted her. Ineededher.
“Stop…t-teasing me,” I manage to say as she trails kisses down to my collarbone. “I…I need t-to feel y-you.”
“I got you,” she assured me as she continued to trail kisses down until she made it to the exposed parts of my breasts.
I felt her hands unbutton my sweater, but a blaring sound made us both jump right before she could help me out of it. She groaned, resting her forehead against my chest. She kissed my exposed skin once before sitting up and pulling her phone out of her pocket. I sat up as well and saw an alert flash across her phone’s screen. She quickly got up from the couch, and I followed her motions, confused.
“I’m really sorry, Sweets. There’s an emergency at the station and I need to go in,” she sighs. I nod and walk her towards the door. Before exiting, she gently grabs me by the waist and pulls me into her arms. She kisses me softly on the lips before pulling away. “We’ll pick this up another time, okay?”
“Okay,” I nod as my fingers trace where our lips had touched. She told me to have a good night before rushing out to her truck.
I managed to close and lock the door as my thoughts swirled around my head. I glanced over at the couch, and the memories of what was about to happen came flooding back. We were so close to crossing that line, and it all felt so surreal, but I understood that her job required her to be on call at all times of night. I sighed because I knew tonight would be another night I spent with my good friend from the bedside table.
Maybe this was for the best. It was late anyway, and I knew that she and I would’ve been up all night, and I’d be groggy when I had to go to open up the bakery in the morning. Yeah, that’s what I will keep telling myself for the rest of the night. That it was just a sign that the timing wasn’t right, I’d waited this long. What was a bit longer?
I shook my head because I knew I was thinking too much about this. I needed to get ready for bed while I was standing around thinking about fucking this woman I barely knew. I sigh and set the alarm before heading to my room. Once I reach the bathroom, I strip down to nothing and then climb into the shower.
I let the water wash over me as I clean all of today’s activities from my body. I’m not sure how long I was in there, but the mirror was covered in steam when I stood in front of it and ran through my skincare routine. Once everything was taken care of, I finally climbed into bed and pulled out my Kindle to catch up on my reading.
I was two pages in when my phone beeped. I picked it up and smiled as I read the message:
Goodnight, Sweets. Make sure to dream of me, my angel.
I reread the message repeatedly before finally replying, telling her goodnight as well. When I put my phone down, I was hit with a sudden wave of sleepiness. So, I closed the cover of my Kindle and set it on the side table before pulling off my glasses and setting them on topof it. I flicked off the lamp and snuggled under the covers. My bed was comfortable, so I had no problem drifting off to sleep.
However, I couldn’t stop thinking about how much more comfortable it would be if Phoenix shared it with me.
4
Where There’s Cute Things...
Phoenix“Phee”Preston-May 18th, 2025
This past month has been better than I could’ve ever imagined.
There wasn’t a day when Angel and I didn’t see each other. I'd stop by the bakery every morning before I went to work and have coffee and breakfast with her. I’d have to get up extra early to grab us some coffee from Maddox’s cafe, but I didn’t mind. I loved every second that I got to spend with her.
After work, she and I would have dinner together and just chill at her place as we watched movies or played games on her Switch. She was so damn cute every time she showed me something that she liked. I’d never been with a woman with as many hobbies as her, but I loved it. Everything was going great…until I realized that I never actually asked her to be my girlfriend.
I mean, she never said anything, but a part of me wanted every moment with her to be special because she deserved that. She was so sweet and kind to everyone she crossed paths with. She cared for those around her and felt bad when she couldn’t give everyone the attention that she believed they deserved. Hell, she even kissed me one more time than I kissed her because she wanted to keep things even since I’d been the one to kiss her first after our first date.
Yeah, she was cute as hell.
Anyway, today I had an off day for the first time in over a month, and I was going to spend the whole morning in the city buying all of Angel’s favorite things and present them to her as I had asked her to be my girlfriend officially. I could already picture her now squealing as I surprised her with them and the lunch I planned to pick up on the way back. I’d never done anything like this for a woman in the past, but like I keep saying, Angel was different.
“How do I look, Nori?” I ask as I pose for her. She barked excitedly, and I smiled before ruffling her fur. “Thank you, girl. I can always count on you to hype me up.”
I give her a quick kiss on the head before exiting the room to put my shoes on. It was hot as hell out today, so I opted for an old graphic tee that I cut the sleeves off and paired it with some black cargo shorts. As for the shoes, I was just rocking some Vans. It was a simple outfit, but I was a simple person. I’ve never been the flashy type.
Okay, I’m lying.
I took pride in the way I accessorized my outfits. From the diamonds I wore in my ears to the ones I wore on my teeth sometimes. I liked the small touches of bling. I always had a nose ring on and a small chain around my neck that my parents had given me on my fourth birthday. Of course, I had to get it extended as I got older, but it was something I would always cherish.
