darkwants

[darkwants]

he didn't know how rough the other man had been or how many men had even used wren that day, so arthur tried to be careful and hoped that it didn't bother wren too much that he had to look to see what he was doing. yes, he'd seen every inch of her, of course he had when you thought about the way men and women interacted and he wasn't special for that, but wren seemed so scraped raw that he didn't know if he wanted anyone to look at her. "oh." the question was a surprise because he'd thought that the answer was obvious and he didn't know if it was better or worse that it wasn't. "because i like you. and i like being around you and taking caring you. that sounds stupid when you have so many other men coming after you, doesn't it?" if arthur knew that wren would be happy, he'd claim her. if he knew that they'd actually accept him as a choice, he would ask her how she felt about it, but arthur's record meant that no one was lining up to give him his own personal girl when the system seemed to prefer having them willingly available at every time.

"thank you," she breathed, relieved that he didn't seem to be bothered. most people didn't even pretend to care once they were done with her. arthur had been the only one who seemed to want to get to know her. that showed her even an ounce of compassion. she didn't understand why he kept coming back. most came back once or twice but that was it. she wanted to beg him to claim her but she knew that it might push him away. that was why she just enjoyed his company whenever he was there. he carried her out to the hall and found the pile of towels. she pressed her face into his neck as he made his way back to the aftercare room. they got settled in one of the large chairs and she nodded slowly," i will," she promised. her hand went to the back of his neck as she watched him bring the towel between her legs. a small gasp escaped from her but she wasn't attempting to pull away," arthur," she breathed," why-why do you keep coming to see me?" she wished she could take those words back but they were out there. she knew if one of the women who ran the house, heard her asking that, it would mean trouble.

[darkwants]

"a dinosaur kid, huh? very cool. i liked firefighters when i was little, but i don't know if that was because of the big truck or the spotted dog up front." arthur admitted, his words directed at nathan because he was pretty sure you were supposed to talk to kids and it seemed kind of rude to just start ignoring him because his pretty nanny had shown up.

a moment later, he wondered if the spotted dog remark would make any sense. did nathan know what a dalmatian was? did they still have that weird thing about dalmatians being firetruck dogs? arthur didn't even remember what put that nugget of an idea in his brain as a kid, but it seemed irrefutable that dalmatians were firetruck dogs in the same way that german sheppards were police dogs. had they stopped doing things like that? that seemed like the kid of shit that his boss would know, but arthur pushed that away, not wanting to get too heavy into dog jobs and stereotyping unless the kid seemed interested.

"wren." he agreed, giving her a little smile. "guess i'm just arthur."

that was a dumb thing to say, wasn't it? he thought it would sound smart, but she hadn't called him sir or anything and it just seemed lame after it came out of his mouth.

but she still seemed willing to get lunch, so maybe he wasn't the most awkward guy she'd ever seen, or maybe she was just desperate to talk to an adult after spending all her time with a kid, he didn't know. "it's not far. i didn't figure that long distances were a good thing with a kid, even with a stroller." and it was the kind where you could go inside and they have a public restroom. that seemed like another good feature to have with a kid.

"it's both," she admitted, knowing that it was likely he didn't spend time with kids. she just got that impression from the way he was behaving. though he seemed rather calm compared to most people. that was something that she had noticed quickly. it was different for wren but she didn't mind it. plus she already could tell that nathan had taken a liking to the gentle giant.

the redhead was just relieved that everything had worked out. she knew how much her charge hated being stuck in the stroller. half the time she joked that he was like the energizer bunny who just kept going. that was why the stroller was possibly going to be used the rest of the day. she nodded, knowing she could show him," he does, plus his stuffed dinosaur that goes everywhere with us."

one thing no one could say about her was that she wasn't prepared. she had been that way basically her entire life.

"just wren," she corrected, not even thinking twice about it. she glanced towards nate who still refused to look up. that made her laugh as she looked towards arthur. maybe she was being pushy but she wanted to say thank you somehow. plus she wanted to try to get to know him better. it was hard to miss how he seemed to need to process what she had said.

a small laugh came from her and she nodded," there you go." it took her a second to reach for the stroller to pull it closer. only to begin to place nathan into it, an amused look on her face," what do you think nate? ice cream, sound good?" the toddler was nodding and she playfully ruffled his hair," i think that sounds good." after she buckled him in, she was standing upright," so is this place far?"

[darkwants]

"damn right, they better say thank you." ordinarily ezra would be the one encouraging them to be rowdy, to go out and have fun, try hooking up with that waitress or bartender if they wanted to, but billie was different. billie had been different for longer than he wanted to admit and ezra didn't even know when he'd started making sure the people around him awarded billie with that level of respect, but he did. maybe it would have been more subtle if he didn't and just let them carry on however they wanted to, but watching other men around billie never failed to get his blood pressure. if he could in any way control their attitude around her, he was going to, and ezra knew that about himself, just like he knew he would fabricate any excuse he needed in order to spend time with her. "it's definitely different." he agreed, stopping to think about billie's question. "i can probably call arthur and ask him to cover for me, tell him i'll just look at things from home because i think i have a bug. so yeah, go ahead and pack a bag, we should be able to get away with it." he decided as he stood up, keeping hold of billie's hand as he leaned in to meet her kiss. "haven't i told you before you don't need to thank me for things like this?" he murmured against her lips, mouth twitching into a smile.

"you could always cheat and google," she teased, knowing already that it didn't matter what she said. there were a lot of things that she had learned about ezra in their time together. the fact that he watched random programs about world records and what not, wasn't that bad. an amused look appeared on billie's face at his words," pretty sure the only customers who ever say thank you would be you or the guys who work for you." it wasn't often the guys from the garage stopped by but most of them knew her. billie knew that he wanted to spend more time with her. she just never thought that he'd get her out of work to do so. her smile grew as he seemed amused by her suggestion to go to the bookstore. he was the only one who actually realized she liked to read. she could only shrug, an innocent look on her face," it's something different!" playfully she pressed a few kisses to his cheek before climbing off him. she nodded as she reached to pull out her phone," wait, do i need to pack an overnight bag? i'm sure i can find a place." she offered her hand out to him to help him stand up," i don't think i said thank you." after he had stood up, she stood on her tip toes to press a kiss to his lips," so thank you."

[darkwants]

"let me guess, worried about gestational diabetes? did they give you a diet to follow or do they just want you eating regularly?" ezra asked, not even thinking about if it would sem weird for him, a man without children or even relatives to complain about their pregnancy problems, to be able to ask about something like gestational diabetes off the top of his head. ezra wouldn't say he'd really been close enough with everly beforehand to know about all of her eating habits, but with all the ways things could go wrong with pregnancy and with babies, even if you took the damn prenatals, then ezra could understand them warning her. maybe there was a family history issue, he didn't know, the pregnancy thing was putting into sharp relief how little he knew and ezra felt as though he had to play catch up.

despite the way he and everly had not so kindly parted ways, ezra couldn't help but falling to the rush of things, riding on a swell of giddiness over the idea of a baby. all he could think about was all the preparing and planning to be done, not about how willing everly was to have him involved or how she felt about things. for ezra, it felt as though things were falling perfectly into place, the universe aligning, and he couldn't help the way he smiled at the windshield when everly said it was good to know that he didn't have a woman waiting. even if he had, ezra would have gotten rid of her by the end of the day because why on earth would he keep anyone around when he had everly pregnant? there wasn't anything that could compare to that, not for him.

"a fifties diner, huh? exactly my kind of place,' ezra admitted as he pulled out of the parking lot, eyes only briefly flickering in everly's direction. "well yeah, there's only so much time to figure things out, right? i like plans, did you think i was more of a 'fly by the seat of my pants' kind of guy?"

she knew that she had to just get over herself. especially since she was going to do something that was life changing. there had been so much information tossed her way. plus the physical changes that were going to keep on coming. it was something that she knew that she was going to struggle with. though she hoped that she was going to be able to handle it. it wasn't exactly like she had a choice in the matter. she hadn't anticipated ezra wanting to be involved.

"probably," she admitted," i definitely need something, the doctor told me to be careful about my blood sugar." she knew that she was going to have to actually take care of herself. anyone that knew her, knew that she wasn't the best at doing that. that meant actually eating three meals a day and trying to keep her diet balanced. she was wondering if she needed to place a grocery order for delivery. though she was wondering what ezra being in the picture was going to mean for everything.

it was a relief that he wasn't saying anything about her worrying he had a woman waiting. she hadn't anticipated feeling that way since she had so much on her plate. the blonde nodded, going to slip into the passenger seat," that's good to know." she wasn't too sure if she had a right to worry about that. instead she went to buckle herself in as he went to get into the driver's seat. he was being oddly calm about the whole thing. her hands reached to rest against her middle," i can do that," she promised, shifting a bit," the restaurant is two blocks down, can't miss it, it looks like something straight out of the fifties." she glanced over at him as he began to drive," you want to come up with a plan?"

[darkwants]

"doesn't mean i'm not intent on showing you." maybe billie did know how to get under his skin and get him worked up, it would make sense considering the amount of time and focus she put on him, and ezra couldn't help but be pleased by that. pleased by the fact that when halloween came around and she could dress as whatever she wanted, she chose to dress in a way that pleased him and drove him mad. she deserved a reward for that, and if that reward also meant she had to carry through on her teasing, then so be it.

reaching into his back pocket without looking away from her, ezra was almost surprised that billie hadn't bothered to just memorize the number. it would make setting up his tab easier, but it would also mean she could order things with his money when she wanted to, like more corsets and fish nets. he just couldn't get over the way she looked in them and ezra wished he could get a better look at her again without the bar in the way, trying his best to give her a once over as he took the card out of his wallet and handed it over. the image of her shimmying her hips to the music was something that would stay with him and ezra wondered just how likely a wardrobe malfunction was in that little skirt.

"dessert, of course." he said it quickly and without thinking, not a drop of planning going into flattering or seducing her because all he felt was mindless want without artifice. "looking at you makes me think i need to shop for certain things." microskirts, butt plugs to wear under them, cute little crop tops and nipple clamps to show through the fabric, maybe a gag to hold her mouth open so she drooled all down her front while ezra used his fingers to ensure she drooled all down her thighs as well. his thoughts kept getting carried away with her and there was a good chance ezra would end up pulling her somewhere private very soon if he didn't start watching it. @ciitrustears

"i'm going to have to take your word for it," she admitted, doubting she'd ever watch the film. though she had the feeling that it didn't matter in the slightest that she had never seen it. billie had been nervous about what ezra would think when he showed up. it was clear from the way that he was behaving that there had been no need for her to feel nervous at all. she had the feeling her night was going to be very interesting once she got off work.

she had been stepping out of her comfort zone a lot. she was just so pleased that she was able to pull off the corset and the whole look. she knew that maybe she should have been seeing if the other bar tenders needed help. though she really didn't want to given how ezra couldn't seem to keep his eyes off her. she had the feeling that if they were anywhere but at her work that it would be his hands rather than his eyes. she bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from smiling again," something tells me that i might."

she was so tempted to reach across the bar to run her hand along the side of his face. instead she merely rested them against the bar," i'm going to need your card." after all he had nodded when she asked him if he wanted to start a tab. plus it was an excuse for her to remain standing there. she still found herself dancing to the music that was blasting. only to glance over his shoulder towards his friend then back at him. an amused giggle escaped from her," such a good friend," she teased. though all of her attention was on him at his question. it was daring but she leaned forward till their faces were inches apart," i feel like i want to know the answer you'd go with for that one."

[darkwants]

"it's okay, i won't let you go." it wasn't like she was that heavy and just because wren wasn't normally like this didn't mean she couldn't be. it was good for him to see her at her lows and it was better for her to see that he could handle those lows. that felt important and arthur didn't see it as any kind of failing on her part as much as he saw it as a test for himself to prove he could take care of her and be a good partner. he wasn't even sure she wanted that since there was always a chance a better partner could come along for her. not that arthur knew how many guys came through the house a day or how many picked wren (and he wasn't sure he wanted to know), but the chance was there and arthur wasn't exactly anyone's top pick for�� anything. but as long as he didn't ask wren if she wanted him to go, he could exist in a limbo state where she wanted him to stay, and arthur carried wren in his arms to the hall where he found the towels, the material pleasantly warm in a way that made him think of being young and having a rag placed over his head. it was unexpectedly nice and arthur hoped it felt that way to wren as he carried her back to settle down in the aftercare room again. "tell me if you want me to stop, okay?" arthur said as he brought the towel between her legs, his touch careful. @ciitrustears

wren was surprised that arthur wanted to clean her up. especially since he would be cleaning up someone else's mess. she noticed how he seemed to be looking around," they-they have warm towels, in the hall." the houses were lacking funds but they managed. plus the area that was designated for aftercare was probably the nicest part of the house. the actual rooms that they stayed in were lacking but wren knew better than to complain. she was still surprised that arthur was coming around. he didn't have a reason to but she hoped that he'd see what he needed to do. otherwise she knew that someone else could claim her. someone that could hurt her like she had been hurt before. she noticed how he seemed to come back to reality when she said his name. it was an utter relief to feel his lips against hers. it didn't escape her that he was being gentle. her hand came up to cup the back of his neck," i don't-i don't want you to let me go." whenever she was in his hold, she felt safe. that was something that she needed in that moment," i'm-i'm sorry, i know i'm not-i'm not usually like this."

[darkwants]

"and that's… good? bad?" fuck if he knew, arthur wasn't someone that spent a lot of time around kids, but it seemed like they had two modes, either they never met a stranger or they were scared and clung to their parents and didn't want to try anything. so it seemed like the lack of fear was a good thing, even if it made nathan a handful.

on some level, arthur could sympathize with the kid because he could remember prison and being locked up, and sure, walking from side to side in that cell hadn't been much, but at least he could walk and you couldn't even do that in the stroller. arthur didn't know why he was suddenly comparing a stroller to a cell, but he pushed it away. "and he has toys or something, right? he doesn't have to sit there."

he'd seen kids with cell phones before, but that wasn't what he meant, he meant actual toys. but he wasn't the nanny or babysitter, he didn't have degrees when it came to kids, so what did he know?

"hi, nate. nice meeting you and miss wren." it was funny how social the kid was before only to end up shy now, but he wasn't going to push. maybe the excitement was catching up to nathan or something. he didn't want to stress the kid, and arthur would later blame that for the way he hesitated at wren's request because that at least sounded better than admitted he was momentarily stunned by her teasing and the idea of her pouting.

"everyone needs lunch, i guess." he could pay his part, and it would let her eat and give nathan - sorry, nate - a cool down, maybe? he didn't know. should he suggest a place with ice cream? "i know a place with i-c-e c-r-e-a-m?" he spelled out, just to be safe in case wren thought it was a bad idea. @ciitrustears

"fear is not something he knows," she admitted, laughing a little at the thought. she had come to realize that about toddlers ever since her first family. wren had only worked for a few families but so far she had been with nathan's the longest. of course she worried for a good few minutes that she would lose the job but arthur had saved the day. something that she was not going to forget.

she couldn't help but giggle at the mention of the leash comment. there was the urge to tease but she didn't want to push her luck. instead she merely nodded in agreement," boring isn't always a bad thing especially if i know that he's safe." she made sure she had a good grip on nathan who seemed content to play with her hair.

"you did more than what other people would have," she pointed out, doubting he saw it that way. wren had to resist the urge to roll her eyes at how quickly he seemed to brush her off. though she smiled at the fact that he was introducing himself," it's nice to meet you arthur and yes, this is nathan but he's insisting on nate lately, isn't that right?"

the three year old seemed to be struck with a sudden bout of shyness and he was tucking his head into her neck. that made wren giggle before she looked back towards arthur," so one thing you should learn about me is that i tend to get my way so please just make this easier on all of us by agreeing to lunch otherwise i might have to pout and make a big scene." her tone was playful towards the end but she hoped he listened.

[darkwants]

"but then how would i win at trivia night?" he teased lazily, knowing damn well that watching random collections of the world's top ten rollercoasters and top ten weirdest records wasn't his worst habit by far. it wasn't even the worst habit that billie knew of, and she was still there, still adoring. his lips quirked into a vague smile, pleased by the way she referred to herself as his, and ezra patted at her hip as he nodded. "there you go, i think that's a great idea. the better care you take of yourself, the faster you can get back to work. your customers would thank you." they wouldn't, but ezra didn't give a fuck what they thought as long as it earned him more time with billie. that smile lurking on his face spread and turned into a laugh when billie came up with an idea, the bookstore something that he should have guessed, something that was predictable in a cute way, but the axe throwing came out of left field to him. "you want to throw axes around? you got some aggression to work out that i should know about?" more teasing, because he already knew that he would tell her yes and when ezra patted her hip again, it came with a nudge to crawl off him. "done. we'll go to the axe throwing first, then find a bookstore. how about you play navigator in the car and pick where we're going? i don't know many axe throwing places out of town."

"i was kidding!" she told him, laughing a little," i'm sure some of them are gross and you need to learn to change the channel." she knew that he watched a lot of late night tv and just didn't change the channel. he had taken to staying up later since things had changed. she knew that he liked to be awake when she got home. whenever they were able to see each other, they took the chance. before they'd probably see each other a few nights a week. now her day didn't feel complete without seeing him in some capacity. her nose crinkled and she shook her head a bit," then i suppose i'm going to stay right here, so i can keep being your good girl." the moment felt utterly calm. calm was something that she was lacking. she continued to run her hand through his hair, lightly scratching his scalp. he constantly seemed to surprise her and she loved it. she still couldn't believe that her boss had believed him when he had told her that she was sick. she bit down on her lip at his question, her head tilted," i kind of have been wanting to go to the book store," she admitted," and i thought i saw something about axe throwing?" she liked the idea of trying something new and she had figured out quickly that ezra wasn't one for traditional dates," depending on the hotel, maybe we just get food there? room service?"

[darkwants]

better for her to deal with that denial now when she could still zip her pants up, because it would be hard for everly to pretend that nothing was happening to her when her body started changing, but ezra wisely kept his mouth shut about that. some people had the idea that ezra didn't know how to do that and it was true that ezra could put his foot in his mouth when he wasn't trying to lie to someone, but even he realized that there was a limit to how far you should push a pregnant woman. so if she needed some time to come to terms with things and wanted to drown in milkshakes and burgers, he wasn't going to stop her.

"i think you told me about that place, didn't you? we can go there and you can get whatever you want." in normal times, people were supposed to crave whatever nutrient their body was lacking - or addicted to, in the case of sugar, maybe. he didn't know if it was the same with pregnant women or not, but it would be a good thing to know what she was drawn to so he could figure out what kind of food he needed to stock his house with. grab some frozen fries and throw them in the oven, and milkeshakes… did they sell milk shake mix? did he just throw some ice cream, milk, and fruit in a blender? he could do that.

some part of ezra felt smug that maybe everly had been jealous, but he didn't pry or tease out details even if he wanted to. it wasn't about him in the moment, it was about her, and ezra opened the car door so she could slide inside. "no, no woman. you have my word." for what that counted for. closing everly's door, ezra circled around the car to slide into the driver's seat and picked right back up with the conversation. "getting tired is going to happen, you're going through a lot. how about you just rest, let me drive, and you can tell me what the doctor said once you have food? then we can figure out a plan." @ciitrustears

"i know that but i am trying to be in denial about the fact that i can't control my emotions right now," she admitted, knowing it was dumb. everly almost felt strange about the whole thing. only because she hadn't talked to anyone besides her doctor about the fact that she was pregnant. maybe it was a good thing that she hadn't because otherwise she could imagine how bad it would be if ezra found out from someone that wasn't her.

her eyes drifted shut at the feeling of his hand running up and down her spine. she knew that he was going to let her lean on him. it was hitting her just how wound up she was. she wanted to press her face into his chest but she remembered that they were in public. her head tilted as he told her that she could get whatever she wanted," my old work is not that far from here." she knew that it was best that she stepped back. she forced herself to take a deep breath as she looked down at herself.

the blonde froze when she realized his question," you were looking in a part of the store and i thought that meant you had a woman waiting for you." she wanted to take back the words as soon as they were out but she needed to know. plus she knew that their situation was already hard enough. she nodded slowly as he began to lead her towards his car," i don't even know where to start," she breathed," i'm just so tired." she glanced towards her car that was parked down the street. she slid her keys into her purse," the doctor gave me a lot of information and i am feeling very overwhelmed."

[darkwants]

"don't worry about it," ezra soothed, even though he knew she was going to keep on thinking no matter what he told her, that brain of everly's never seeming to turn off even when he wanted it to. "i got plenty of rest before this, i'm ready to go." he didn't mean in the day, but he hoped that she took it that way. for as tired as he could feel sometimes when something happened in the middle of the night and as exhausting as the concern could get, he wasn't going to back down from taking care of her. even if the situation was horrible, it was the first time that he ever felt like everly let him in. the fact she had to be forced into a corner to do it did sting, but he would take what he could get with everly. after all, beggars couldn't be choosers and it seemed like it was the only time everly had use for him.

glancing over at her pile of clothes, ezra knew he would need to get them rinsed out and washed soon, and he would need to check to make sure there wasn't any on the flooring or walls or anything else before it set in and the acid in it began eating away at whatever it touched. "nothing to apologize for. not my clothes, right?" except he was still the one cleaning them, and he probably did need to check if there was any transfer, but ezra wasn't going to mention that to everly. instead just kissing her forehead and trying not to react to how clammy she felt.

"i'll be right back, yell if you need anything." ezra said, going to scoop up her clothes and take them away. those needed to be washed, then he needed to check the floors and walls, and he needed to get everly something to drink, make sure that she stayed hydrated. he kept juice in the fridge these days, but some part of him wondered if he shouldn't invest in pedialyte or something like that, something that would more quickly hydrate her. crackers could wait until after her bath, depending on how her stomach felt, and besides, he needed to hurry to get back to her, a certain level of urgency guiding ezra's steps as he moved around the house, the action of cleaning up after everly thoughtless by now. @ciitrustears

it wasn't something that she had ever seen coming. after all she usually felt like she was invincible. there was no denying the truth that was right in front of her. she had feared that ezra would go running that day they had found out that she was sick. instead he had done the exact opposite. he had stepped up in ways she never expected. she still was waiting for him to realize how insane it all was but he hadn't.

she felt helpless and that was a feeling she had no idea if she was going to get used to. all that she had wanted that day was to rest. instead she found herself making an utter mess. a matter of months ago ezra would have been undressing with her. instead he was making sure that she was settled. she noticed how he had set a trash can nearby. all that she wanted to do was curl up into a ball. every single part of her felt heavy.

"i-i know," she breathed, knowing that he was going to keep telling her that. her eyes fluttered open as he got down beside her. she tried to fight back the nausea as his hand went to the back of her neck. shivers shot up her spine as his thumb brushed against her," i just wish it wasn't like this," she breathed," i wanted to let you rest." she forced herself to smile even with how horrible she felt," i'm sorry about the clothes." she forced herself to take a deep breath before she leaned back against the bath pillow he had bought for her," i'll-i'll be okay while you're gone." she had no idea if that was true or not. nothing was predictable for her anymore but she wanted to attempt to put on a brave face.

[darkwants]

chuckling, ezra decided not to take it as a bad thing. it was nice to know you made a woman squirm and being nervous didn't mean her panties weren't getting wet. not that ezra thought he had much impact on her panties quite yet, but that was a challenge he was looking forward to. a girl as pretty as her should be used to being touched and grabbed frequently, she should be responsive and ready to use, and ezra may not have known exactly how landon had his little toy trained, but it would be fun to find out.

she seemed like she'd get flustered easily if she was already nervous around him. it likely wouldn't take much to make her blush and squirm, and if landon was busy, maybe she got needy, maybe she spent her time grinding against the corner of a counter, just waiting for the oven to go off and for someone to come in to fill her up. needy girls were the best and ezra smiled at her, looking forward to finding out just what he could do with her nerves. "thank you."

just because she was going to be too busy to be nervous now didn't mean he wouldn't have the chance later. he wasn't dumb enough to make an overt move in front of landon and it would be better to do things slowly, anyway. didn't want to scare the little mouse off.

hearing the way landon talked about everly only made ezra want her more. a good, obedient thing that knew her place, that was good in a kitchen, could be a hostess, and looked like that? she was perfect, a goddess given human form, and how the hell landom managed to get her in the first place was a mystery to ezra, but only a fool would think a prize like that wasn't in danger of being snatched up by every man that her path crossed. how many had tried to steal everly away? how many had failed? how many had she been loaned out to?

now that was likely a tantalizing question that ezra would revisit at night, but for the time, ezra only smiled and nodded like he didn't have an ill intention in the world. "some of these guys may need an ice pack for their egos." ezra shouted as she took of, but otherwise he let her go. there would be plenty of chances later - like at her work. @ciitrustears

everly wasn't used to people being concerned about what she thought. she had grown used to someone that was on the sidelines. plus she doubted that landon would approve of whatever it was that was happening. she didn't understand why ezra wanted to spend time with her when the guys were in the other room. though she wouldn't say it out loud, she didn't mind his company. he was nice, charming and easy on the eyes.

she could feel his eyes on her as she went to turn at the cooking racks. it was nice for her to be able to cook for people. though she knew that it was likely no one would say thank you. she forced herself to take a deep breath as she put everything on the trays. if only so she could keep herself busy.

the blonde was surprised at his question. she shrugged as she found herself looking him up and down," i think it's just something about you? it's not a bad thing." she didn't know if that was a good answer for him. though she was surprised that he was willing to go her job in order for her to say thank you.

she took a deep breath as she mulled over the answer," i'll be too busy to actually let myself get nervous." she knew that if she didn't get moving that landon was going to get annoyed. that was why she moved to bring the trays into the other room. she forced a smile as landon pulled her into his arms. her head tilted as she realized that ezra was talking to landon.

landon was smiling and she wasn't too sure what that meant. her face flushed as she heard landon laugh," she knows where she belongs." everly instantly froze at those words but she forced herself to laugh," and this little chef is going to leave you guys to the game, i'll be in the kitchen if anyone needs anything."

[darkwants]

"always be honest." ezra told her quickly, glancing at her from the corner of his eye. "even if it's something you think will piss me off, tell me. if i find out you lied or you kept something from me, you are always going to be in more trouble than if you just told me in the first place, got it?" which might have sounded like it would be logical, but at the same time, ezra understood damn well that there were some places where you were going to lie and hide because that secrecy could save your skin. maybe everly would think the same thing, but ezra wasn't going to stand for it.

he could accept mistakes, though. everyone made mistakes and deserved a chance to learn, it was only if she refused to learn that there would be a problem. "it may be hard to explain when you go from being nice to being too nice. it's language, it's tone, it's body language… if i catch you at it, i'll let you know and i'll tell you what you did wrong." chances were he would drag her away, but no reason to scare her. "we can go over any questions you have after we order out food, it's easier talking about things over food."

he wasn't that worried about everly acting up inside the garage, there was some level of common sense involved there and he trusted that his employees would realize that their job was on the line if they let anything happen to his omega. maybe they weren't mated yet, but so far there didn't seem any reason why he wouldn't claim her. other than that one off moment in the beginning, things were going as well as he could ask. so far he wasn't worried about what everly may do, but about potentially overwhelming her since she seemed so charmingly clueless.

"well, you can give it a shot, if you want." ezra offered as they walked, not wanting to make her feel weird about it. he wanted to help everly settle into her new role and them meant not intentionally alienating her or shaming her. holding onto her hand, ezra was pleased by the way she seemed to have an instinct to hold onto him and when she squeezed tighter, he lifted their joined hands so that he could drape an arm around her shoulders, leaving her own arm draped across her chest.

"how about we share a booth and you sit next to the window?" he asked, hoping that would help her feel a little more secure to have him between her and the rest of the diner. her words and the way she stayed close gave him the impression she wasn't used to going out, so he wanted to make it as easy of a process as he could. "so do you have a favorite kind of food? not just diner food, but any food."

continued from: here

with: @darkwants

it was going to be a huge adjustment for the both of them. though everly assumed he had been trying to find an omega for some time. perhaps that was why he had been fine with her. she still wanted to know exactly what he had been told about her. though she wasn't sure if that was something she could ask. instead she was focusing on what they were talking about. he clearly wanted to know what expectations she thought were going to be in place. of course they did have all the time in the world to get to know each other.

his words about flirting made her head tilt," can i be honest," she paused," i don't-i'm not sure if or when i might be flirting." she was sheltered and she knew it. in fact the conversation they had was probably the most she had spoken to someone. she was just relieved that he seemed to be, being patient with her. the fact that he wasn't expecting her to be hidden away was something that surprised her," you've given me a lot to process."

everly was already wondering what her daily routine was going to be like. maybe she was getting ahead of herself but it was clear her life was going to be very different. she nodded quickly, biting down on her lip," i won't go crawling under a car and i'll find you or someone else if i have a question or need something." though she had the feeling that ezra was going to be the one that she wanted to go to for anything. she nodded as he confirmed that it was the restaurant that she had pointed towards. there weren't too many cars in the parking lot. she found herself glancing around," that sounds good."

her head turned as they pulled into a parking spot and she shrugged," never tried it?" there was a lot that she hadn't done and she felt like there were going to be quite a few reminders of it. the blonde watched him as he climbed out only to walk around to her side. she unbuckled herself just as he opened the door and with his help, slid out. her feet met the ground and she reached for his hand without thinking twice. he was leading her towards the entrance and she was happy to let him. they were greeted by a hostess who quickly was leading them a booth. she couldn't help but want to stay close to ezra given there were so many unfamiliar scents hitting her. her hold on him tightened a bit and she knew that he might be able to sense her stress.

[darkwants]

"maybe hit up what you want to see first, then just wander around and see what's cool?" he suggested so that they didn't really have to make a choice. he didn't want to put too much pressure on her for something that was supposed to be fun, especially not when ezra knew that going out in public was difficult enough for everly. he knew that some people considered the ocean to be soothing and with the positive connections she had with the place, hopefully it didn't really feel like being out in public even though there were strangers milling around.

as she kissed his cheek, ezra made sure to squeeze her hand, holding onto her. once, she'd seemed so distant, so untouchable, and while there were times that worry still reared its ugly head and ezra worried that she would spread her wings and take off once she was better and didn't need him, ezra tried to soak up every moment with her that he could. he didn't resist as everly dragged his arm around her shoulders, instead tucking her against his side and holding onto her in a way he once would have thought impossible. it would be easy for her to hide against him and he was there to protect her as they wanted down the hall, ezra humming along as they neared the tank. "are they a top five fish?"

if you'd asked him before what he associated with everly, it wouldn't have been fish, but now he was learning so much about her and what made her shine. resisting the urge to reach out and put a hand on the tank to see if they'd come to it, ezra opened up the map to look at the arrangement again, trying to figure out if there was anything else in the area that he would recognize. "do you think they have any of those exhibits where you can pet the fish? that always seemed cool." he muttered, mostly to himself. his family wasn't the kind that went on trips together or did things like visit zoos or aquariums or go bowling or whatever. "oh, there's a touch pool. that's probably it, right? we can do that later."

continued from: here

with: @darkwants

"true," she agreed, knowing that he was right. she had no idea how he really felt about going to such a place. her memory wasn't fuzzy but she remembered thinking he didn't go to such places before. though she knew that ever since she had come back, he seemed different. she couldn't imagine them doing such a thing before. she knew that they both wanted to make the most of their time together. it was a big step for her to be standing there in a place that was possibly going to be filled with people.

"we could do that," she said after a few seconds," or we just wander?" it wasn't as if they couldn't take their time. everly nodded as she glanced at the map that was huge. there was so much to see and she nodded slowly," that would be it, the sideways triangle and i always thought they were pretty." absently she turned her head to press a kiss to his cheek as he peered over her shoulder. some small part of her was always going to make sure that she showed him affection. there were so many things that she wasn't going ot take for granted.

she went to fold the map up and went to hand it over to ezra so he could hold onto it," lets go then." once he took the map, she reached to drape his arm over her shoulders. she looped her own arm around him, leaning into him as they began to walk. she couldn't help but glance around to see how many people were there," it seems like we came on a good day, not too busy." she realized they were nearing the tank where the angel fish were kept. her lips curved into a smile at the sight of them and she bit down on her lip," just as pretty as i remember."

[darkwants]

ezra made it a habit to know who lived around him and he always had because it was key to know the dangers around you as well as the benefits. who was likely to get the cops called on them, who was likely to break into your place, who wasn't going to be home so you could hide out behind their house if you needed to, things like that. that was the way ezra thought of it while growing up, but now that he was older, he learned different things. like who stayed home all day and was likely to spy from their windows at the comings and goings of the neighborhood, who had car troubles and was likely to want his help (and how good of a favor they'd owe him in return). so of course ezra knew when a pretty little thing moved in.

he never had a problem with helping a lady, so of course he offered up his help if she needed it. moving could be difficult, boxes could be heavy, and considering she eventually invited him for dinner, well hell. what kind of man would turn down dinner with a girl like that? someone that needed his help and that decided to repay him with food was just about the dream scenario, and her looks made her into a princess as far as ezra was concerned, so even though she was his newest neighbor, everly was undeniably his favorite. none of that was enough for him to expect her banging on the door early in the morning and standing there without pants. he'd certainly thought about her without her pants on before, but he hadn't expected it to happen like this.

"i can see that," he drawled, eyes going up and down everly's legs. he was pretty sure that she wouldn't have shown up in just a shirt unless she had a problem and ezra didn't wait for details before stepping out of his door and pulling it closed behind him. "let's go see if we can turn off the water, then we'll figure out if we need tools. do you have coffee?" chances were he'd need pipe, pipe cutters, connectors… he'd need to run to the store, but let a man have his coffee first.

status: closed

pairing: everly & ezra

with: @darkwants

everly had been incredibly nervous to actually move into her own place. all of her life she had lived with someone. at first it had been her grandparents and then during college, roommates. she had known that she wanted a fresh start. instead of keeping her grandparents home which had been given to her, she had opted to sell. it had allowed her to purchase the one bedroom bungalow that was a bit of a fixer upper. it was her first actual place and she was settling into a new phase of her life.

the owner of the diner she worked at was offering to sell her the place. she was still trying to figure out if that was what she wanted but she knew her job was safe either way. the biggest concern she had was getting everything set up in her house. she realized how little skills she had and had decided to seek out help. that help had come in the form of her new neighbor who she had met in passing. they had exchanged numbers. she had thought that she could use a friend and asked him if he wouldn't mind joining her for dinner. he had seen the photos on the ground and offered to hang them up. it had continued that way for the past few weeks.

that morning she had woken up and gone into her kitchen. she had gone to run water only to realize that there had to be some sort of leak with the pipe. she had made fresh coffee and opted to pour a mug. it didn't even dawn on her to put on actual pants and instead of calling, she merely rushed out the door, down the sidewalk and to his front door. the blonde shifted her weight a bit as she knocked before the door swung open," i know it's super early and i'm so, so sorry if i woke you up but i currently have a giant puddle in my kitchen and i'm in desperate need of your help."

[darkwants]

"everly, you're pregnant. no one is going to expect you to be calm about things." she had hormones going into overdrive, so her being overly sensitive and breaking into tears over something he hardly spared a thought over was to be expected as far as ezra was concerned. it wouldn't make for the smoothest or friendliest of reconnections, but it was something, it was still a miracle and ezra would take it along with all the bumps.

as everly slumped against him, ezra wrapped an arm around her and rubbed along her spine. pregnant or not, she still felt small against him, soft and curvy and she was going to be utterly gorgeous once she started showing, a proper fertility goddess that he got to see. "you can have whatever kind of milkshake and burger you want, as much as you want, just tell me where you want to go." hadn't she mentioned some diner she used to really like? or maybe she worked at it? it seemed hard to think bast the fast that everly was going to have a baby in that moment and even though he didn't want to, ezra let her move away from him.

"where would i have to be?" did she think he needed to pull in extra hours at work? maybe it wouldn't hurt to do a few more now that he knew there was a baby on the way, start trying to worry about all those supplies that they'd need to pick up. god, he didn't even know how everything would work out between them, but ezra knew he wasn't going to just give up on the baby now that he knew about it. "come on, let's get you fed and get to that talk so we can figure this out." putting a hand on her back, ezra started nudging her in the direction of his car, not caring if she drove herself there or not - he would just bring her back later on.

"i barely even processed it," she told him slowly," i didn't even know if i could say the words." she knew how silly it sounded out loud but she was being honest. pregnancy had never been something that she had wanted for herself. though now that it had happened, she knew that she was going to do whatever she had to. plus given how ezra had reacted, she had been expecting him to push her away. now she was realizing how stupid that was given how he was reacting. it was a side of him that she had never seen before. of course their relationship hadn't been much of one given they had just been hooking up. now it felt like things were going to end up moving at lightening speed.

she had barely started planning and figuring things out. she knew that the list was going to be almost endless. there were so many things to buy, classes to sign up for and doctor appointments. she knew that her apartment wasn't going to be enough space. she was going to have to attempt to figure out how to get health insurance. her mind was already in a tailspin and given the events of the day, she didn't know how much more she could actually take. she found herself nodding slowly since it was a relief that he wasn't going to dwell on it," i am trying so hard to just be calm about everything."

the blonde found herself leaning into ezra without even realizing it. her body practically slumped against his as she felt his hands running along her arms," right now i just need a milkshake," she said without thinking twice," and a burger and we can have...that talk." she figured it was better that they get off the sidewalk. she wanted to wrap her arms around him but instead she pushed herself up and away," unless you have somewhere to be?" faintly she remembered what he had been looking at and she had no idea if he had a woman waiting at his place or he was supposed to be meeting up with her.

[darkwants]

"and you could have told me you were pregnant instead of leaving," he countered gently, his voice almost soothing. from the way she was reacting, he had the feeling she had been another rejection, a denial that might have stung even deeper and been even louder from him, which ezra had to admit was fair. he knew that he could be emotional and he knew that he was loud when he got riled up, that he talked over people and wasn't easy to deal with. that was when he was unhappy, and ezra couldn't imagine how he could possibly be unhappy with everly at the moment, not when she was giving him such a gift.

she wasn't going to be yelled at for being pregnant, and he wasn't going to cuss her out for not being more careful to keep something from happening. god, no, he was thrilled by whatever fuck up happened to make things align so that she ended up with a baby, even if he could see that everly was spiraling from it. her entire life was going to change, both of their lives were going to change, and surely she would be happy about it once she came to terms with it and his interest. poor thing, her hormones had to be going crazy, and his reaction to her couldn't have helped. it was so easy to be sympathetic and understanding with her like this, when she was unknowingly giving him everything that he'd wanted.

"it's done, okay? we both messed up, but now we're going to try harder and be better. it's okay that you're scared." really, it was. the excitement would come later, and hopefully ezra would be finished apologizing for his screw up by that time. "you can rely on me. tell me what you need." his voice was still soothing, still coaxing, hands rubbing up and down her arms to soothe her. he wanted to ask if she'd been to a doctor, what baby supplies she'd gathered, but he didn't want to overwhelm her. "come on, you've gotta give me a place to start, right? you want to get out of here and try having that talk again?"

she hadn't known how she was supposed to tell him. it seemed to be a small mercy that he had found out. for days she had been coming up with a list of scenarios on how to tell him. each one had been worse than the last if you asked her. she didn't know what he was going to say but she wanted to make things easier for herself. that was why she had opted to give him the out that she figured he wanted.

it didn't seem to click with her that he had begun to smile when she confirmed how far along she was. though his smile disappeared quickly when she began to turn from him. she didn't think she could handle him seeing her cry. the damn hormones that she had been warned about weren't kind to her. she was shaking her head in an instant as he said her name," ezra, you really don't have to do this."

she found herself facing him again as he grasped at her arms," you could have told me that instead of telling me to go away." of course she knew that it didn't matter since what was done was done. she forced herself to take a deep breath in hopes of calming her mind and body down," i'm scared, okay? this wasn't something i thought would happen." she could feel people staring at them like they always seemed to when they were together. the blonde glanced up at his face," so you really want to do this? you want to be involved? i can rely on you during this?"

[darkwants]

ezra had wanted their relationship to change, but he never meant like this. sometimes, in low moments, ezra pondered what he really believed in when it came to the grander scope of things and found himself questioning if somehow he jinxed everly, if his ill will and discontent somehow took root and made her sick. it was stupid, superstitious bullshit, he thought most of the time, but other times he couldn't help but feel guilty anyway. guilty for her being sick, guilty that, maybe for a while, maybe in moments where he forgot how serious it was, he enjoyed it.

but there wasn't any forgetting in that moment, the acrid smell of sick burning his noise as everly's clothes were left in a corner to be dealt with in a moment. he'd get her in a bath, where at least he could still trust her to watch herself, get her a trash can just in case there was still anything to come up, and then start cleaning and disinfecting. once, he would have been stripping off his own clothes to join her, but there wasn't anything sexy about what was happening now, only the task of taking care of her, the thing he'd always been waiting to do.

"i've told you, honey, this is what i signed up for." he repeated, unsure just how many times he'd told her that since they first found out she was sick. kneeling next to the bath tub, he placed a hand on the back of her neck, thumb squeezing across her skin. "just because this isn't how i pictured taking care of you doesn't mean i'm going to back out, okay?" if he phrased that a little different, he could have made a dirty joke about it. maybe in another lifetime, he did, but in this one, he only smiled at her. "i'm not going anywhere except the laundry room, okay? you're stuck with me."

status: closed

pairing: everly & ezra

with: @darkwants

it was hard to believe that it had only been two months since her life had been forever changed. everly still couldn't believe the news that she had gotten after what she had thought would be a routine visit to the clinic. after all she had been feeling run down for days. there had been some flu going around. the last thing that she needed was to be at work if she was sick due to working in the food industry. she remembered sitting in that doctor's office and holding onto ezra's hand. the doctor had said the three words that everyone dreaded hearing.

ever since that day it had been a flurry of doctor appointments, treatment, emergency room visits and letting go of her dream. she had never imagined that she would be where she was. let alone that ezra would be there with her through it all. she wouldn't have blamed him for leaving. after all she required a lot more care than ever before. the side effects from the treatment weren't pleasant to say at the very least. that afternoon she had spent a better part of it puking her guts up. ezra had been taking a nap which she knew he needed. she had been watching some random movie on tv when she had felt her stomach flip.

after that it was like something out of the exorcist and he managed to get her to the bathroom. she had turned into an utter mess by the time she finally seemed to stop. tears were streaming down her face as he reached to help her out of her now soiled clothes. he had started to run a bath. she forced herself to take a deep breath as he seemed concerned. a sob bubbled up that she wanted to hold in," i'm sorry," she breathed," i don't-you shouldn't have to do this."