Page 13 of Perfect Convergence

“Cramps,” she groans. Her fingers curl into the fabric of my T-shirt. “They let up after the first few days, but until then, I...” She grimaces. “My pain meds must’ve worn off. I haven’t been paying attention to the time.”

Leading her to the couch, I help her sit. “Where are they?”

“Counter. They’re in a shopping bag. Blue bottle.”

I grab some, then search for a glass, only to come up empty.

Right. Adam destroyed most of her dishes.

I clean one of the two remaining mugs that are sitting in the sink before filling it with water. Then, grabbing the pill bottle, I bring them over to her.

“Is there anything else you do to help with the cramps?” I crouch by her legs, placing a hand on her thigh.

“Heating pad,” she mumbles, swallowing two pills with a gulp of water. “Ice cream—well, that doesn’t actually help. But it’s nice. And, uh...” Biting her lip, she stares into her mug. Then she tugs on her hair nervously. “My god, Ava is right. I am hopeless.”

“What?”

“I just—I get awkward a lot, when it comes to, like, flirting and... stuff.” She lets out a half laugh. “Actually, I’m just awkward in general.”

With a chuckle, I say, “I hadn’t noticed.”

She balks. “Really?!”

“I’m joking, love.” Leaning down, I press a kiss to her thigh. They’re bare, considering she’s in shorts and a long-sleeved T-shirt.

“Oh. Right. Of course.”

For a moment, I watch her squirm. Then I smile. Flirting and stuff, huh? “If you’re trying to tell me that orgasms can help relieve period cramps, I happen to already know that.”

Her eyes widen. Then she averts her gaze again and gulps down some more water. “How are you so goddamned perceptive?” she squeaks out.

She made a similar comment about my perceptiveness at the masquerade ball. My answer now is the same as it was then, although I don’t dare say it out loud.

I’ve learned to read you because I can’t take my eyes off of you whenever you’re around.

“Maybe you’re easy to read.” I shrug. Then I take the mug from her hands and place it on the end table. “Do you want my help?” Again, I kiss her thigh. It’s like I can barely resist her.

“With having an orgasm?”

“Orgasms. You’ll be getting more than one if I have anything to say about it.”

She bites her lip, and a look of uneasiness crosses her face.

My hand slides off her leg. “Only if you want, Wren.”

“No, I do, I promise. I just...” She fiddles with the hem of her shirt. “I can’t have, like, actual sex. It’ll hurt too much.”

“From your period? Or from the weekend?”

“Both,” she says, staring bashfully at my shoulder. “Well, and Rhett may have fucked the hell out of me last night.”

With a chuckle, I cup her chin and turn her head so she’s looking at me. God, I love her eyes. “He’s good at it, isn’t he?”

She nods, smiling. Then that look of hesitation is on her face again.

“I have no plans to fuck you, Wren. I just want to help you feel better.”

Her hands ball into fists. “I don’t... you—I don’t want you to feel like you have to do anything. It’s just cramps. The pain meds will kick in soon enough anyway.”

---