Page 127 of Bad For A Weekend

“You won’t like these,” he promises.

“Can they wait until later?”

“Why? You have another date I need to chase off?”

“No. I want to go tell Ziggy that you’re back.”

He lifts an arm and looks down at our naked bodies. “Right now? It’s late.”

“He’s still up. He came home with Knate before I left.” I hum in thought. “Maybe after a shower.”

“Only if you let me fuck you again before I get you clean.”

“Deal.”

He chuckles. “We were supposed to go on dates and take things slow. Guess I fucked that up.”

“Yeah, you did.” I smile. “But that’s not us. We’re an ‘all in’ kind of couple.”

“I like being all in you.”

“Of course you’d make that dirty.” I shove his shoulder playfully.

“Can’t help it with you.”

He kisses me then, not caring that I just sucked him off or that our bodies are sticky with sweat.

That’s what I love most about him. It’s not always flowery and beautiful between us, but that doesn’t make it any less perfect. We take each other as we are—no judgment or expectations. Just us.

“This is the last of it,” Ziggy says, setting a box down.

“Thank God.” I look around at the stacks of boxes and upended furniture scattered around the house and grin.

It’s been six months since Owen showed up at my apartment after three years of no contact. And while we jumped back into our relationship quickly, we’ve been taking it relatively slow ever since. We kept our separate apartments, and we’ve been out on many dates, but when Brandy moved back into Dad’s house since Ziggy and I were never around, Owen and I started looking for a house together.

It took Owen some convincing to let me help with the down payment so we could buy a house in a neighborhood close to his schools and the college, but I have my ways of making him concede. When a newly renovated four-bedroom split level with a pool came on the market, we put in an offer, and things moved quickly after that.

“Want me to stick around and help unpack?” He glances at his watch. I know he’s eager to get back to Knate.

They’ve been exclusive for a few months now, and after Knate’s roommate got himself kicked out of college, Ziggy moved in. I told him I was keeping the apartment Dad bought for me, so there was no rush to leave, but I think we were all ready to move on to something new.

“Nope. I wouldn’t even know what to tell you to do since I haven’t decided where to put everything.”

“Okay.” He bends down and kisses the top of my head. “Text me later.”

“Love you.”

“Love you too.”

I tuck my hands in my back pocket and watch him walk out the ugly front door. It’s baby blue with a frosted glass window and one of the many things we’ll be changing. But this is what I wanted. A normal, average life. Or at least as normal and average a life as the daughter of a movie star can get.

Julien rubs against my leg, gaining my attention. I scoop him up, thankful he seems to be handling the move well. “Where’s Daddy?” I kiss his nose. “Let’s go find him.”

The spacious living room that opens to the kitchen and dining rooms is empty, leaving only the bedrooms, the garage, and the backyard. We check the backyard first. The landscaping is nearly nonexistent, just a thin stretch of grass and some shrubs along the far fence line—another thing we’ll be changing.

The pool isn’t anything fancy either, but it’s functional. It’s long enough to swim laps, and I’m sure we can eventually dress it up a bit.

“He’s not out here.” Julien meows in agreement.

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