Page 145 of Once a Month

“Me being a member here is a gift for you?” she asks.

“Definitely,” I say.

???

When we arrive at my place, I pull into the garage. She parks her car in the driveway, and we head inside. I hadn’t planned this, but now that we’re here, it seemed stupid not to think about what would happen at the end of the night. I guess neither of us is used to this yet.

“I have no food. I’ve been gone for three weeks,” I say when we walk into the kitchen.

“We can order in,” she says.

“Whatever you want.”

“Whatever I want that delivers at two in the morning,” she says.

“I might have a frozen pizza,” I say.

“I’m game,” she replies. “Can I get the tour while it cooks?”

“Of course,” I say.

I get the pizza in the oven and take her by the hand.

“So, you’ve seen the kitchen. There’s a formal dining room, which I never use. I have a living room, of course, and the informal dining room, too, which is where I usually eat,” I say as I motion to it. “Do you want to see the backyard?”

“I want to see your bedroom,” she replies, nibbling on my neck.

I laugh and say, “I think you’re going to like this, actually.”

I open the back door and pull her through it.

“Grill, wet bar, very expensive and underutilized patio furniture, pool, and hot tub.”

“Holy shit, babe,” she says. “That’s a waterfall.”

“And if you play your cards right, I’ll let you touch me under it,” I say.

She lets go of my hand. I watch as she takes off her shirt and her pants. I laugh as she kicks everything along with her underwear off and onto the cement-tiled ground.

“Let’s go,” she says softly.

“What about the pizza?” I ask.

“We’ve got time.” She reaches out for me.

I realize that she’s right. We’ve got nothing but time now. Tomorrow is Sunday. I can wake up next to her. We can have breakfast together and make love all morning if we want. We can watch the morning news or a movie while we snuggle in bed. I take off my dress and remember that she still has my thong in her pocket. I laugh a little but take her hand, and we enter the water together.

“Shit, it’s cold,” I say.

She pulls me into her, and I wrap my legs around her.

“I’ve got you,” she says, just like she did that first night.

I place my head on her shoulder, wrap my arms around her neck, and close my eyes as she spins us in the freezing water. She’s rubbing my back and kissing my bare shoulder. Before I know it, she’s walked us back to where the water falls over the fake rocks and into the pool.

“Are you ready?” she asks.

I bury my face in her neck and mumble, “Yes.”

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