#Pitbull fun dog yeah bounce play

[ericsonclan]

First Snow

Summary: Marlon and Sophie get woken up by their kids who are excited about the first snow of the year.

Word Count: 1939

Read on AO3:

It was a quiet winter morning. Marlon and Sophie were fast asleep in their bed, Sophie’s arms gently wrapped around her husband who continued to snore loudly. Her face was nuzzled against his back while his hand was gently intertwined with hers. It seemed like a perfect, tranquil morning until the sound of loud footsteps echoed throughout the house. The small pitter patter of a dog followed close behind. With a large kick the door to Marlon and Sophie’s room opened and in scampered their two kids.

“Mom, Dad, It’s snowing outside!” Marley declared excitedly. Her blonde hair had gotten wild and fallen in the way of her eyes due to her fast paced running. Her brother ran past her and jumped up on the bed. His red hair bounced up and down with the force of his jumps. With big leaps, Raylan began to chant the same two words over and over again. “First snow! First snow! First snow!” His loud voice woke up Rosie who had been resting at the foot of the bed on the floor.

“Come on, Rosie!” Marley gave the dog a few head scratches with a big grin. “Help us wake up Mom and Dad.”

Rosie gave a bark of approval, her stub tail wagging happily as she hopped up on the bed.

Sophie groaned and turned on her side, hoping it would buy her a few more minutes. But it seemed to do the opposite as her kids began to focus on her. Raylan gave his best whistle which sounded closer to a wet fart than anything else.

“That’s not how you do it, Raylan!” Marley shook her head energetically then placed her ring finger and her thumb in her mouth and gave a sharp whistle that made Marlon jolt for a second. “Rosie, try to wake up Dad!” Marley instructed with a playful smile. The pitbull listened and strolled over the bed, beginning to copiously lick Marlon’s face. Marlon laughed and hid his face under his pillow which made Rosie paw at it with a small whine.

“Wait, Marley.” Raylan stopped his jumping near Sophie and pointed to the corner of the bed. “Ferdie needs help up!” The redhead’s words made his sister glance over at the black spotted Japanese chin dog. The dog’s paws stretched out on the mattress before giving a valiant hop that only ended with him falling back onto the floor. Running over, Marley scooped up the dog and got on the bed too. She went over to her dad, giggling as she let Ferdie lick his fingers. Marlon started to wiggled around, still trying to hold onto any minutes of sleep that he could. But it seemed the same couldn’t be said for Sophie who had successfully been woken up by the eldest of her children. Sophie got up with a groan which made Raylan give a little victory cheer, his icy blue eyes shining with pride.

“What’s so important, you two?” Sophie tried to blink out the sleep in her eyes.

“It’s snowing!” Marley answered as she continued to work on waking up her father.

“It’s the first of the year and we really, really, really want to go outside!”

“Okay,” Sophie gave a long yawn before flashing a playful smile. “But there’s a price for waking me up.” Raylan didn’t even have a chance before his mom began to tickle him. His warm laughter filled the room as Sophie pressed a raspberry on his stomach which only made him laugh more. Rosie barked at the sound and moseyed over towards the pair.

“Alright, I’m going to the kitchen to get started on coffee. Don’t be too rough with your jumping.” Sophie slipped out of bed. Her sudden disappearance made Rosie and Ferdinand jump off the bed and follow her, leaving Marlon along with his two kids. Marley began to shake her dad while Raylan started to jump again, ending up on his butt a few too many times in the process. After a few minutes Marlon rose up from his spot and began to tickle both of his kids in vengeance.

“You little rascals!” Marlon smiled at them. The two kids laughed as they continued to try to tickle their dad back. A short while later the trio was tired out and Marlon gave a huge yawn, shaking his head with the force of it. “Let’s go find your mom,” He rose up from his spot and Marley and Raylan scampered off the bed to join him.

Sophie was in the process of brewing the coffee when Marlon appeared in the kitchen, Marley and Raylan on his legs as he struggled to get forward.

“Good morning,” Sophie mumbled as she worked to pour the first cup of coffee.

“Morning, babe,” Marlon smiled over at his wife who returned the smile. Making his way over, he gave a quick kiss to Sophie. “ So, what’s the plan? Grab coffee and spend some time outside?”

“Yeah!” Marley looked up with her big blue eyes. “We’re already missing out on some of the snowflakes!”

“Hear that, babe?” Sophie gave a small chuckle. “Seems like we slept through some of the snow.”

“So we gotta hurry,” Raylan bounced impatiently.

“Alright, sport,” Marlon leaned down and ruffled his hair. “Just let us get our coffee first.”

Both Marley and Raylan seemed a bit sad about that but agreed regardless. In an instant they had forgotten about their short gloomy moment and instead focused on showering both dogs with tons of pats. Once Sophie and Marlon had taken a few sips of coffee their two kids scampered over to the door.

“Snow, here we come!” Raylan declared, pumping his fists in the air before disappearing outside.

“Wait for me!” Marley sprinted off after her brother.

“Wait, you two,” Marlon snatched up their winter coats and ran through the door. Ferdinand and Rosie followed closely behind while Sophie grabbed Marlon and her own coats and some gloves before stepping through the door and closing in.

“You need to wear your coats,” Marlon scolded and helped Marley with her coat while Sophie worked to help Raylan.

“Let’s not forget ours,” Sophie smiled lovingly at her husband and passed over his coat after stealing a quick kiss.

The giggles of their children drew the couple’s attention away from each other as they watched Raylan spinning around in a circle. His eyes looked up at the sky where small snowflakes began to drift down to the earth. Marley was holding out her palms to try and catch a snowflake or two. Whenever she was successful she let a happy laugh and stared closely at the snowflake, her eyes dancing with awe as she watched it melt and disappear. Sophie and Marlon shared a look before joining in the fun. Sophie lifted her head backwards and stuck out her tongue for the snowflakes to fall on. Marlon had joined his son and was helping spin him around. The pair giggled as snowflakes began to get caught in their hair. Rosie barked and tried her best to catch a snowflake or two while Ferdinand hopped this way and that, his tail wagging playful as he tried to bite the snowflakes. The family laughed and continued to enjoy the beginning of winter when Marley and Raylan paused in their playing.

“Can we invite Timothy over?” Raylan asked, his body swaying back and forth with nervous energy at the possibility of a positive answer. Marley jumped up and down and started making sounds in agreement.

Marlon and Sophie shared a smile.

“I’m sure Ren and Minnie would enjoy it too. Okay, I’m going to grab my phone and give Aunt Minnie and Aunt Renata a call.”

Marley and Raylan high fived and began to cheer until they got distracted by the snow once more. Sophie gave a soft chuckle and moved back inside. Knowing Minnie and Renata, they were sure to be up by now.

-----

“You ready?” Minnie asked with a bright smile as she looked at her son who was on her back.

“Yeah,” Timothy gave a soft smile, and leaned his head against his mom’s back. Minnie smiled at her son for another moment then began to move around the house while giving Timothy a piggyback ride. His gentle laughter filled the house as Minnie started down the stairs. She stopped when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.

“Timothy, I’m gonna need you to hop off for a minute,”

Her son immediately listened to her words and hopped off his mom’s back.

“Morning, Min!” Renata strolled forward with a smile. “Morning, Timmy!”

“Morning, Mama.” Timothy’s warm brown eyes looked through his red hair and up at her with a  gentle smile.

“Hey, I need to take this,” Minnie replied. Glancing down at her phone, a small smile appeared on her lips when she saw it was Sophie.

“Oh, okay. So Timmy, care for an airplane ride?” Renata asked with enthusiasm. Timothy nodded his head and soon Renata was making airplane noise and zooming around the house with Timothy on her back.

“Hey, Soph,” Minnie’s sentence made her wife pause for a second, her excitement evident in her eyes. “Hmm, what’s that? First snow of the year?” Minnie walked towards her window and pushed the curtain back. “Oh, look at that.” Minnie remained silent for a moment as Sophie talked. “Raylan and Marley want us to come over to play in the snow?” She glanced over at Renata and Timothy who both looked totally up for the idea. Minnie let a soft chuckle escape her lips. “Yeah, you’re right. I didn’t need to ask. Ren and Timothy’s faces said it all.” Minnie leaned against the wall for a second while she held the phone to her ear. “Yep, we’ll be there soon. Mmhmm, love you too.” Minnie hung up and tucked away her phone to see the excited faces of her family.

“We can’t waste a second,” Renata readjusted Timothy on her back. “Snow and family awaits!” The three of them moved to the front door and began to put on their winter gear. Minnie walked around Timothy to make sure he was all set while Renata was talking with their son, asking him what he wanted to do when they showed up. After a few minutes they were set and after locking the door they were on their way to celebrate the first snow of winter.

-----

Sophie had returned to her family a few minutes after hanging up the phone and shared the good news. Marley and Raylan began to try and get enough snow to make a snowball to surprise their Aunt Renata while Sophie and Marlon watched in amusement. After twenty minutes or so Minnie’s car pulled up into the driveway. Raylan and Marley ran over to greet their aunts and cousin only to be surpassed by Ferdinand and Rosie. Once the car door was open Timothy was greeted by the two dogs while Minnie was greeted by her twin and Marlon. Renata was the last to exit the car and was surprised when a snowball hit her. With a bubbly laugh she ran forward toward her niece and nephew who started to run away in glee, both of them grabbing Timothy’s hands to join in the fun. Rosie and Ferdinand barked and began to follow the group who giggled as Renata continued to give chase. Minnie, Sophie and Marlon watched for a few moments then joined in the fun. All of them laughed and played in the cold winter air, enjoying the first snow and all the fun that came with it.

[millie1536]

The Return Of The Dogs

Anna is reunited with her dogs.

TW for panic attack

“What do you think would happen if we filled the bath with vinegar and bicarb?” Anne asked her cousin as the two of them sat watching Netflix on Kitty’s bed.

“The same thing that happened when you did that in the kitchen sink.” Kathrine didn’t even look over at Anne when she said this.

“Exactly.” Anne grinned, giving Kathrine a pat on the back, “But on a much larger scale.”

 A few hours later and the cousins had been exiled from the house for the rest of the day, along with Anna who had volunteered to keep the two out of trouble.

“I can’t believe you actually did that.” Anna laughed as the three of them found a nice spot to sit. It was a warm day and the large trees above them provided just the right amount of shade, just enough to keep them out of the sun but not enough to block out the warmth.

“Did you see Catherine’s face?” Anne snorted as she leant back against a tree.

“She and Jane seemed really mad.” Kathrine said quietly, her knees bouncing anxiously.

“Don’t worry, they’re not mad.” Anne wrapped an arm around Kathrine’s shoulders, careful not to get too close to her neck, “They’re annoyed at me, but they know it wasn’t your fault.”

“Yeah,” Cleves added, “They’ll be over it by the time we get home.”

“What about Cathy?” Kathrine asked, a part of her wanted someone to be mad. It was what she was used to after all, people being mad at her.

“She’s working on that book she’s been writing; I don’t think she heard any of it.” Anne reassured the now slightly more relaxed girl. There was a minute or so where the group sat in silence before Kathrine spoke again.

“It was pretty funny though.”

The three women lost track of how long they spent under those trees. Time seemed to melt away as they joked around together. Every now and then a dog would walk past the them and Anne and Kathrine would have to hold Anna back to prevent her from stealing it.

“We should probably get going.” Anna said, checking the time on her phone. Anne muttered something about not wanting to go and Anna ended up having to pull an irritated Kathrine to her feet. It wasn’t a long walk home but the group took their time. They had just turned onto their street when a loud bark came from behind. Anna was the first to turn around. Standing before them was a pack of ten dogs. The pack consisted of a Pitbull, a couple of Rottweilers, a few German Shepherds and a Doberman Pinscher. It was no secret that both Anne and Kathrine loved dogs, almost as much as Anna, but even they took a small step back from the pack.

“Oh my god.” Anna breath caught in her throat as she dropped to her knees, ”Komm, ihre Mädchen, komm schon.” Kathrine flinched, moving behind her cousin as the dogs ran towards Anna, “It’s alright Kitty, they won’t hurt you.” Anna said, turning to the cousins and indicating for them to come forward.

“They’re your dogs.” Anne’s eyes grew wide at the realisation. Anna nodded as the youngest of the pack, the Pitbull, licked her face.

“What are their names?” Kathrine asked, all fear forgotten as a large Doberman rolled onto her back at Kitty’s feet. Anna’s smile faded.

“I uh… I never named them.” She said sadly, “It was a different time, you know? They were hunters, not pets.”

“Can we name them now?” Anne asked, playing with a young German Shepherd.

“Yeah, I think they’d like that.” Anna grinned.

“Can we call that one Pixie?” Kitty asked, pointing to the grey Pitbull running rings around Anna.

“I like that.”

By the time they got home they had Pixie, Zasha, Lily, Coco, Lucy, Mina, Scout, Emmy, Gremlin and Bones.

 “Are you sure it’s a good idea for them to come here?” Anne asked Jane who was cutting vegetables in the kitchen.

“What’d you mean?” Cathy asked from where she was typing at the kitchen table, Catherine had told her she needed to be more social.

“You know what Maggie’s like with dogs.” Anne said, leaning against the wall, “She’s only just gotten used to Freya and I’d hardly call her an intimidating dog but now we’ve got ten more dogs that just happen to be three breeds that a lot of people think are dangerous and aggressive.”

“I’m sure she’ll be fine.” Jane smiled, looking up from what she was doing, “I’ll ask Anna to put the dogs in the basement while Maggie’s here, how’s that sound?”

“I guess.” Anne shrugged, still not entirely convinced.

 “I am not putting them in the basement.” Anna stated, “End of story. What’s wrong with the backyard?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe the huge sliding glass door?” Anne snapped.

“What’s the big deal? They’re harmless.” Anna picked up Pixie and held the little grey dog like a teddy bear as if to prove her point.

“If this was Kitty we were talking about you’d have no problem locking them in the basement for a few hours. They already sleep down there anyway, the only difference is that were closing the door.” Anne pushed.

“Alright, how about we put the dogs in the basement, close the door but don’t lock it?” Cathy suggested; all the yelling was giving her headache. Begrudgingly both Anna and Anne agreed to the compromise.

 “And then Joan decide that ambushing Maggie into a pillow fight was a good idea.” Maria laughed as she finished her story.

“I admit it was the exact opposite of a good idea.” Joan raised her hands in surrender.

“I still can’t believe you pushed her down the stairs.” Anne said to Maggie who just shrugged.

“It was an accident but I mean, she did ambush me at the top of the stairs of death, what did she expect?”

“Can you guys please get through one day without trying to kill each other?” Bessie asked, only somewhat jokingly.

“No.” Maria and Joan replied in unison. Dinner was going well and as the night progressed Anne started to relax a little. She had told Maggie about the dogs in the basement but promised her that they wouldn’t hurt her. She didn’t think it was fair to not tell her, after all Maggie would have told her if Maria had a sword under her bed.

“How are you guys feeling about the sing along on Thursday?” Bessie asked as the conversation seemed to slow.

“I still can’t believe I let them talk me into it.” Catherine rolled her eyes as Anne and Kathrine giggled.

“It’ll be fun.” Kathrine insisted.

“I’m sure it will be.” Cathy added; unlike her godmother she was not entirely against the idea.

“People will be far more likely to notice if we forget the words.” Anna laughed, remembering the time she forgot the words to Six. The laughter was interrupted by a bark.

“Hey, it’s alright.” Anne whispered to Maggie, who had instinctively latched onto Anne’s hand under the table.

“I’m just going to go check on the girls, make sure they’re alright.” Anna excused herself before leaving the table.

“Sorry.” Maggie mumbled as she released Anne’s hand.

“It’s okay, you didn’t do anything wrong.” Anne gave her friend a comforting smile.

“I’m sorry about that.” Jane said, “Anna’s dogs seem to have found her again.”

“No worries.” Bessie waved away the apology, “But we really appreciate that Anna was willing to keep them away from Maggie. I know how much she loves those dogs.”

“Yeah, sometimes I think she’s convinced those dogs are her kids.” Catherine laughed half-heartedly. Though she quickly pushed aside the thoughts of Mary, deciding that now was not the time to lose herself in those memories.

“Nein! Pixie!” They heard Anna yell, “Komm züruck!” Just then the young Pitbull ran into the kitchen.

“Pixie!” Kathrine managed to pull the dog into her arms, “I love you, too.” She laughed as Pixie licked her face.

“Maggie?” While the others were fussing over the dog Anne, Joan, Maria and Bessie were watching Maggie cautiously as she slowly backed herself into the corner furthest from the dog. “Maggie, it’s alright. Kitty’s got her; she won’t hurt you.” Anne kept her voice calm and gentle, it was the same voice she used when Kathrine woke up screaming. Maggie shook her head as her back slid down the wall.

“Maggie, you’re safe here, alright?” Bessie tried but Maggie didn’t seem to hear her.

“Maggie? Do you want to push me down the stairs again?” Joan asked only to be met with a dangerous look from Bessie.

“It hurts.” Maggie whimpered, and Anne realised what was happening.

“Everybody out.” She said to the group of women in the kitchen.

“What? Maggie’s having a panic attack and you want us to leave?” Maria questioned.

“I’ll explain later, just trust me.” Usually Bessie, Maria and Joan would have insisted on staying but something about Anne’s eyes convinced them that Maggie was in safe hands. “Maggie? Can you hear me?” Anne asked, crouching down in front of Maggie. It was just the two of them left in the kitchen now.

“Annie?”

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m right here.” Maggie gave a small nod.

“It hurts.” She said again.

“What hurts? Can you tell me what’s happening?” For a moment Anne worried she had moved too quickly.

“It’s cold. Dogs barking. A pack. Big dogs.” Maggie’s breathing was becoming more and more panicked.

“Just breath for me, that’s it.” Anne watched as Maggie took a few deep breaths before continuing.

“They’re strong, really strong. Sharp teeth. A Pitbull. The little grey one. Really sharp teeth. Blood. Annie! Annie, please. It won’t stop!” It wasn’t until Maggie clamped her hand around her upper arm that Anne realised the severity of the situation.

“Shh, hey. You’re alright, is it alright if I touch your arm?” Anne asked gently.

“Can you stop the bleeding?” Anne could hear the terror in Maggie’s voice.

“Yeah, I’m going to stop the bleeding, alright?” She had learnt from helping Kathrine through similar situations that sometimes you just have to play along with whatever memory the person was reliving. “Is that better?” Anne asked after a few moments. Maggie nodded.

“Annie?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t go.” Maggie’s voice was small and frightened. Anne positioned herself so that she was sitting against the wall next to Maggie.

“I’m right here.” She said as Maggie curled into her side. It reminded Anne of when Phillipa would pick on Maggie all those years ago. Phillipa had been a Lady in Waiting to Catherine along with Anne and Maggie. She never liked the girls; Anne was too clever for her liking and Maggie was the youngest which made her an easy target. Anne would often find Maggie hiding in one of the many seldom used rooms crying after Phillipa had yelled at her for one thing or another, often threatening to get her dismissed. When this happened Anne would allow Maggie to curl up in her lap, held tight against her friend’s chest, for as long as she needed, sometimes a little longer. In a way it was nice to be reminded of those quieter times. The times before Henry noticed her. Before he began making his advances. Back when it was just Anne and Maggie, two of the queens ladies in waiting, against the world.

[breanime]

Lucky

I hit a wall with ALL THREE of my series, so I’m gonna try to crank out a few oneshots to get myself back in the mood. Please comment if you like this one, I kind of need the encouragement right now/always. 

Also, I came up with this from the prompt list by @padfootagain from @thecoffeeshopforwriters‘ blog! I used: “it’s too dangerous”. So thank you for the prompt list!

*gif not mine*

“It’s too dangerous,” Billy said, voice low as he huddled next to you in the dark corridor, “We need to retreat.”

“Are you out of your mind,” you whispered back, “No retreat and no surrender!”

Billy sighed, ducking his head before lifting it back up and looking over at you. “Fine,” he agreed, “but if we die, I want you to know… I love you.”

You smiled. “I love you, too,” you said, leaning over and kissing his waiting lips. Billy titled his head, deepening the kiss, and you put a hand on his chest, bringing him back to reality. “Hey, have a little hope, soldier. We got this.”

Billy raised an eyebrow, letting his eyes trail up and down your body. It was 4 in the afternoon during a mission and you were wearing light blue pajama pants with pink cats on them and one of his old shirts. Billy wasn’t much better—he was wearing black sweatpants and a white tank top—with no shoes. “We’re underprepared,” he said drily.

“We’ll catch ‘em by surprise,” you said, upbeat as always, “We’ve done this a hundred times—”

“—Yeah, but never under these kinds of conditions,” he interjected, shaking his head, “I’m telling you, baby, we might have to call in reinforcements on this one.”

You scoffed, standing up and peaking around the corner. “We agreed to only call in Frank in dire situations…”

“…which this is…”

“—and we said we’d only do it once a month. We’ve already called him in three times this month,” you stopped—seeing a shadow in the distance. “Ssh,” you shushed Billy, even though he hadn’t been talking, “We got a bogey.”

Billy was up and at your side in less than a second. “Shit.” He put a hand on your hip and moved you behind him. “Okay, it’s just one,” he took a breath, “We can do this.”

“Yeah, yeah, totally,” you agreed, bouncing on the balls of your feet.

“Here he comes,” Billy muttered to you. You nodded. A few seconds later, you saw him round the corner and approach. It was go-time.

“Daddy,” your son was wearing his Captain America pajamas and his favorite pink tutu, “You said you were gonna come find us!”

“I was, but I found Mommy first,” Billy said, forcing an easy smile on his face, “Why don’t you go hide again and Mommy and I will find you?”

“No!” He stomped his little foot and both you and Billy jumped. “Me and Sissy have been hiding for seventy whole hours!”

“That math doesn’t add up, bud,” Billy said weakly.

“Why don’t you get your sister and we can all hide from Daddy?” You suggested, voice light.

“No!” Your tiny terror put his arms around his chest. “We already hided and hided and hided and all you and Daddy do is make kissy-face! SISSY!” He roared, calling for his sister.

“Oh God, no,” you said, cowering behind Billy.

Your daughter came running down the hallway with a scream that would have shamed a banshee—if your son had inherited Billy’s natural stealth and cat-like movements, your daughter had gotten your bull-in-a-china-shop tendencies. She was wearing one of Billy’s old Anvil T-shirts, her Huggies pull-ups, a football helmet, one pink sock and one orange sock. She also had a foam sword in her hand (a poorly thought-out gift from Auntie Karen).  

“Baby, baby, baby,” Billy said, crouching down to catch her as she tackled him, “We’re not supposed to run with weapons, remember?”

“Mommy and Daddy weren’t hiding!” Your son reported.

Your little girl gasped, mouth dropping at this scandalous news. “But we play hide-‘n-seek!”

“Guys, we’ve been playing all day,” you said, trying to reason with them for some reason, “and you promised Mommy and Daddy that you’d go down for your nap after we make cupcakes.”

“Our first mistake,” Billy muttered from the ground.

You subtly kicked him as you went on. “I know it’s fun to play all day when we have a snow day, but we have to take our naps too—”

“No naps!” Your daughter cried, waving her sword in the air. “We no want naps! We want play!”

“You said we didn’t have to take a nap till we got done playing hide and seek,” your son added, “and we hided but you didn’t seeked! So we’re not done!”

“Oh my God,” you sighed. Of course he was using logic—and what kind of kid remembered the desperate things his parents said in an sad effort to get them to compromise to nap time?

“Ok, but we have to take our naps now,” Billy said—he was using his ‘serious Dad voice’ now, “We should have gone to sleep hours ago.”

“But it’s not night-night time, Daddy!” Your daughter argued. She still had pink frosting on her round cheeks.

“And we didn’t get seeked yet!”

Billy sighed, looking up at you tiredly as both kids chattered in front of him. “I told you this was too dangerous,” he said.

“Okay,” you said, getting down to their level beside Billy, “how about this: we’ll play hide-and-seek with you guys after your nap, and we’ll play for real this time. But you have to go to sleep first.”

“No!” They both cried at once.

“Hm,” you turned to Billy, “well that was kind of my whole plan there.”

He rolled his eyes. “Can I just rewind back to when I—rightly—said we were underprepared for this right now? We should have done more recon.”

“Your version of recon was hiding in the dark while our spawn destroyed the house,” you quipped back. You turned back to your kids. “No more talking. I want you both to get ready for naptime right now,” you put your hand up before either of them could interject, “and if you don’t, I’m going to take a toy away every time I have to ask you again.”

Your son’s dark eyes widened, but your daughter’s glinted with mischief. Billy looked surprised, but he covered it up and nodded in agreement. “That’s right,” he said, “and we’re going to take all the toys to Anvil and let all of Daddy’s employees use them for target practice.”

“No!” Your son yelled, he spun around—tutu whirling—and grabbed one of his stuffed dogs (a pitbull from Uncle Frankie) off of the floor. “Don’t take away Mr. Mean Face!”

“We don’t want to take Mr. Mean Face, or any of your toys,” you said gently, “but Mommy is tired of asking you guys to be good. So will you go bed?”

“Mm hmm,” he said, nodding his head and holding the toy to his chest.

“I don’t want to go night-night!” Your daughter yelled, swinging her sword and accidentally hitting her brother on the forehead. “I play! I play hide-‘n-seek!”

“No you don’t,” you said calmly, plucking the sword out of her hand. There was a moment of silent shock following your bold action; Billy and your son (his twin, you swore) both had wide eyes and open mouths, and your daughter’s eyes had widened as well. Her first reaction was to reach out for it, but she stopped herself from making grabby hands—she knew better. She stared over at you, and you stared back, not backing down.

Then her little mouth twisted downward, and her dark eyes started to water, and then she was bawling.

“My sword!” She cried, little hands balled at her sides as she threw her head back and sobbed.

“She’s sorry, Mommy! Sissy, say you’re sorry! She’s really very very sorry, Mommy,” your son said, yelling to be heard over his sister’s screams, “Please don’t shoot the sword—we’ll go night-night! We promise!”

“Nope, it’s going bye-bye now,” you said, standing up.

“Aw, Y/N,” Billy said, wrapping his arms around your daughter and letting her cry into his chest, “come on…”

You shot him a glare.

“Okay, Princess,” Billy was addressing your daughter now, “hey—don’t cry, stop crying, baby. Daddy was just joking, I’m not gonna take your toys to work,” he wiped her tears away, and you rolled your eyes when she gave a dramatic sniffle. You’d taught her too well. “But Mommy’s gonna hold onto your sword until you get in bed and take your nap, okay?”

“I want my sword back,” she sniffled.

Billy looked back up at you, probably just one more sniffle away from breaking down himself. You crouched down again, pushing him with your shoulder as you looked at your daughter. “I’ll give you your sword back once you and your brother get in your jammies and get in bed.”

Your son nodded, taking his sister’s hand. “Okay, Mommy! C’mon, Sissy!” He tugged at her hand when she didn’t move.

“I sorry, Mommy,” she said, little face looking up at you.

You smiled and opened your arms. She rushed into them and you gave her a warm hug. “Thank you for apologizing, baby. That’s very nice of you,” you kissed the top of her perfect head, “Tell you what—if you and your brother wash your faces before me and Daddy get in there, I’ll let you sleep in your Anvil shirt.”

Her face broke out into a smile.

“And can I sleep in my toot-toot?” Your son asked. He hadn’t quite yet mastered the word “tutu”, but neither you or Billy had the heart to correct him—it was just too damn adorable.

“Yes,” you leaned over and pecked his cheek, “So go and wash your face—both of you!” You laughed as they both took off, holding hands. You stood up, and Billy followed.

“Damn,” he said, staring at you, “I’m both impressed and turned on.”

“As you should be,” you grinned, putting an arm around his waist, “By the way, great job backing me up there.”

“I tried! But you know I can’t resist that little face she makes before she’s about to cry,” he whined.

“One hundred confirmed kills,” you muttered with a smirk. You stood on your tippy-toes and pressed a kiss to his lips. “I love you, you big softie.”

“I love you, too,” he said, smiling. His smile turned sultry. “In fact, I’m hoping you’ll let me show you how much I love you while the kids are sleeping…”

“Is this another ploy to get me pregnant again?” You asked, putting a finger on your chin, pretending to think about it.

He draped an arm around your shoulders. “Everything I do is a ploy to get you pregnant,” he said, kissing your cheek, “You know how sexy you are when you’re knocked up?”

You giggled, kissing him again. “This,” you said into his lips, “is why we have birth control.”

“Boo,” he said, kissing you still.

“Mommy! Daddy! We’re ready!” Your son shouted from down the hall.

You and Billy walked into their bedroom hand-in-hand. Your son was in his bed—a red race-car—in his PJs and tutu, holding Mr. Mean Face in his lap with a clean face and a big smile. Your daughter was in her bed—a matching red race-car—in her Anvil shirt and holding her favorite stuffed animal (a worn-out Elmo that you’d had when you were little) with a clean face and a smile just as big as her brother’s.

“Wow, you guys got ready so fast!” You said, smiling over at your little miracles.

“We’re all ready to go night-night,” your son reported.

“And I be good, Mommy,” your daughter said proudly, “See?”

“You’re being very good, baby,” you laughed, “I’m very happy.”

“Do you want a story?” Billy asked, moving around the room picking things up.

“No thank you,” your son said, “We would like to go right to sleep, right Sissy?”

“Yes,” she nodded as Billy tucked her in, “we would like to go to sheep—sleep,” she corrected herself.

“Okay,” Billy kissed her temple, “I love you, princess.”

“I love you, Daddy. I love you too, Mommy!”

“I love you, baby.”

“And I love you,” Billy said, kissing your son on the temple as well.

“I love you too, Mommy and Daddy.”

“And I love my brother!” Your daughter yelled.

“I love you, too Sissy!”

You and Billy both laughed. You were so lucky to have your family, to have a life full of love. “Sleep tight, you too,” you said, leading Billy out of the room.

“Don’t shut the door all the way!” Your son requested from his bed. You sighed, smiling, and cracked the door open.

“So,” Billy said, back in the dark—but now empty—hallway, “should we got to bed, too?”

You grinned. “What better way to celebrate a successful mission?”

“And with no causalities, no less,” Billy agreed, taking your hand and leading you to your bedroom.

You were a lucky woman indeed.

***************************************************************************************

Me, a child of divorce who only ever got tucked in by my Mom: iS tHis hOW faMILiES woRk??? Hahaha! Also--this is totally an uncalled for sequel to “The Best of Him”. 

TAGLIST:  @floralpeaceofmind​ @delicatelilyflower​ @dylanobrusso​ @ladyblablabla​ @banditthewriter​ @something-tofightfor​  @starsfragments​ @blackcoffeeandgreenteaforme​ @hisgirlwednesdayaddams​@fictionwillneverdie @maria-beretta​ @sadnessxvodka​ @ymariejp​ @sunnycolors​ @moonlightsay​ @its-all-o-kay @damagelove​ @keyeluh @itsmylife98​ @funerals-with-cake​ @littlemermaidprobz​ @teacuplotus​ @king4thesirens​ @mrsjaxtellerfan​ @thebabblingbook​ @tartelette-aux-fraises​ @madamrogers​  @charlylama​ @iaintnofurry​​ @k-buggz2001​​ @whitewolfslittlesilverfox @drinix​ @elanor-of-imladris​ @blah-blah-fuckit-shit @julliiaaq​ @holamor​ @ymariejp @shadowhunterscloset @songtoyou​ @anabella-baby @sssilverssserpent​ @heyitslexy

[my-emotional-self]

Con-Flicted (Chris Evans x Reader)

Pairings: Chris Evans x Reader

Warnings: Swearing, Smut, Angst, Drinking, Fluff

Summary: Going to the Seattle Ace Comic Con was like walking into a Marvel dream…..until some ungrateful people at the Panel got on your nerves.  

Word Count:  7k+

A/N: Chris Evans is at this con (let’s just pretend he didn’t back out) Also, I rearranged timing around a little bit (panel on Saturday before photo ops and autographs…that kind of thing)

Seattle, Washington. June 22nd.  Not only was it your first time in Washington, it was also your first Con you had ever been to.  It wasn’t the money that was an issue, it was the timing.  Each time Chris Evans was at a Con, there was always something in the way of you going; work, meetings, family.  But not this time.  Nope.  You made damn sure that you had an open schedule to be there; no matter how busy you were living your life in Los Angeles.  The only downside: all the VIP tickets were sold out before you got a chance to buy them.  

Walking through the doors of the venue Friday night was truly enchanting.  Today there wasn’t anything planned so you took your time to walk around and get a feel how everything went.  So many people were dressed up as their favorite characters, stopping you in your tracks.  Looking down at your outfit, you were wearing a pair of light washed jeans and a Marvel tank-top.  “Shit,” you whispered to yourself, realizing it would have been a lot of fun to dress up. Alas, you just didn’t have the time.

Vendors lined the wall selling everything from t-shirts, to buttons, to comic books and so much more. It was a dream.  As you walked around, you bought some t-shirts and Funko Pops to add to your growing collection at home.  

After a long day of walking around, it was up to your hotel room for you.  Taking a long hot shower, you dried yourself off and passed out on the bed; flying always made you tired.  

Bright and early the following morning you were up, hair done, makeup on and you headed down to the venue.  Luckily you were able to get a hotel room that was connected to the venue, making it that much more easily to go to and from.

As you made it to the venue, you immediately became overwhelmed.  Last night, while there were still plenty of people milling around, it was nothing compared to what you were looking at now.  Your heart began to beat faster as your eyes took in the crowd. Looking at your watch, you had about an hour to kill before the panel started.  Not wanting to move around the throng of people, your feet carried you swiftly to the auditorium and you found a seat right at the edge of the aisle where one of the microphones were placed.  

Your leg began to bounce up and down as you sat there anxiously awaiting the guys to come on stage. Behind you, girls began talking about Tom Holland and you had to hide your laugh from them.  They were going back and forth about what question they wanted to ask them and listing off all the names of people they wanted him to give a shout out to.  Shaking your head, you couldn’t believe that out of everything they could ask, they wanted to waste their time asking for shout outs to their friends.  It was completely ignorant and downright rude in your mind.  

Kevin Smith appeared on stage and the crowd began to cheer and clap; your cheering was a little more enthusiastic as theirs.  Maybe it was because you actually KNEW who Kevin Smith was!  

“Welcome of course to Ace Comic Con!  Is everyone having a good time?” Kevin asked the crowd and everyone cheered yet again. “The Ace crew has put together a fantastic lineup and today, we are going to talk to some bonafide Avengers ladies and gentlemen!”  The crowd went wild, including you.  Kevin went on to discuss how he has always been a big fan of not only Marvel, but DC as well and how lucky we are to be living in a time where they are taking those comics and turning them into magnificent movies for all of us to see. “We are going to talk to four people who have been a part of many of these movies.  First, we will start out with two of them because the other two are still taking pictures, but once they are done, they will come in and join us. So, without further ado, please welcome Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan!”

Everyone rose to their feet as the auditorium erupted into screams and applause.  Your heart was pounding in your chest as you saw Chris appear on stage.  A bright smile appeared on your lips at how absolutely gorgeous he looked.  He was wearing a pair of jeans, black tight t-shirt, and his ever present NASA ball cap.  His beard was trimmed to perfection and it took all your constraint to not run up there and run your nails through his beard.  

Ever since you first saw him play Captain America, you were hooked.  After that you watched all of his movies and realized just how terrific of an actor he really was.  Not only that, from what you had seen from his twitter and interviews, he was a great human being; standing up for what he believes in which was always a turn on for you.

Kevin sat down with Chris and Sebastian as the three of them talked on stage.  Soon enough people were lining up for questions as the guys on stage seemed to be having a great time.  Chris’ smile was contagious.  

You couldn’t help but watch Chris and the way he answered questions, or sat there and fidgeted on the couch next to Sebastian.  Knowing full well he had anxiety issues, your heart went out to him and this just proves how much he loves his fan to be here.

Without even introducing them, Tom and Anthony sneaked onto the stage and all the younger girls in the audience screamed so loud that you clenched your eyes shut tight from the sound; it was overpowering.  

“Better late than never,” Kevin joked making the four men on stage laugh and nod their heads. “Tom, are you having fun today?” It felt like five minutes of screaming before people quieted down enough for Tom to answer the question.  

“Yeah actually I’m having a blast.  It’s been a lot of fun!”

“And how about you Anthony?”

“Oh you know how it is,” he responded with a shrug of his shoulders and a smirk.  “These things are always fun for me to do because I get to pick on the rest of my cast members.”  His answer made you laugh like much of the rest of the audience.  

Kevin asked a few more questions to Tom and Anthony before he opened up the floor.  The questions went by with many of them seeming nervous to speak into a microphone and ask their questions; hell, you would be too which is why you didn’t want to ask anything.  The questions were simple, respectable….for the most part.  

“Take it away to the next person,” Kevin said and you looked to see a girl standing at the microphone.

“Umm, so first of all Tom, I was wondering if you could say ‘hi’ to my friend Mary, she’s a huge fan?”

Here we go you thought to yourself as you saw the girl holding her phone out and recording Tom.  

“Hi Mary!  How’re you doing?” Tom said with a smile from his seat on the stage.

“That’s probably going to make her, like, entire life,” the girl at the microphone said with a laugh. “Anyways, umm, so, I don’t really….well this is my first comicon,” she said with a nervous laugh.  “This is my first comicon and I just wanted to say that you guys are amazing actors and a huge inspiration and….just to point out to Anthony, Seb….Tom Holland, besides Chris, is the only here that actually HAS his own movie.”  Your jaw dropped to the floor at her saying that; your eyes wide as saucers.  It was such a disrespectful thing for her to say and you were flabbergasted that the crowd was actually CHEERING at her words!!!

Looking up at the four of them sitting on the couch, your heart dropped to your stomach.  Anthony was looking around the stage as both Chris and Sebastian tried to hide their embarrassment with laughs before their heads dipped way back.  From your view, you could see them shaking their heads back and forth.  

“I didn’t say it…I didn’t say it,” Tom said as his face was contorted with a mixture of a faked smile and embarrassment.  

“Things are getting hostile…AVENGE that comment man!” Kevin said.  

Sebastian grabbed his water bottle, Chris just sat there with his hands fidgeting in his lap, as Anthony began to speak.  “First of all….first of all, I’m pretty sure the movie was called ‘The Winter Solider’…..” the crowd cheered as you looked to Sebastian.  His face was hard, not even a hint of a smile as he nodded his head to his friend.  “I guess the two Academy Award nominated movies I did means nothing huh?”  

There were a few more ‘regular’ questions, people actually asking about the movies before another two girls stepped up to the microphone.  “Umm, yeah, I didn’t really have a question, but I just wanted to show this fan art my friend made of you Tom, and Tessa.  And I have a pitbull at home too so I just wanted to say I thought that was kind of cool and I was hoping you could give Tessa a pet for me?”

“I will, yes I will do that,” Tom replied with a grin.  

“Who’s Tessa?” Sebastian asked, confused as to who the girl was talking about.  

“His dog!!!  Oh my God educate yourself!” she spoke into the microphone with a scowl on her face as her friend laughed from behind her.  For the second time that day, your jaw dropped at the audacity these girls had to speak the way they were.  

Tom started laughing while Chris, Sebastian and Anthony had frowns on their faces, looking between the three of them.  

“You ah….you have a good time on the internet tonight,” Sebastian remarked with a shake of his head and you knew exactly what he meant by that.  The actual fans of the Marvel fandom would be making her into a meme and it would be ALL over the internet.  You grinned knowing that it wouldn’t be fun for her.  

“Time out time out…how do YOU know about Tessa?” Mackie asked.  

“He posts about her all the time.”

“Oh so he posts pictures of him and his dog?  Just hanging around at home?”

“Do you not follow Tom on Instagram?” she asked with her palms faced upwards.  

“Baby I’m an ADULT.  I follow no man, just so you know.”  You laughed so hard as Chris and Sebastian clapped, nodding their heads at his comeback.  Anthony always had the best comebacks.  

Next, her friend stepped up to the microphone.  “Ok, so before I say anything, I promised my friend Iris that I….”

Anthony quickly cut her off. “Ya’ll got a lot of friends. Where are your friends at?”

“I’m sorry…’friends’ maybe a term you don’t know…..” she trailed off and the crowd just gasped in shock at what she said.  Everyone on stage, all four of them were just as shocked as you.  

“What???” both Chris and Sebastian spoke into their mics as they turned to Mackie.  

“Oooohhh  ooohhhh oooohhh…I like that…I like that.  I don’t know the term ‘friends’, I know the term ‘family’.  When stuff gets tight, let me see where your friend at.”  

By now you had completely decided to stop listening to these young girls; not wanting to give them the time of day.  But you did faintly remember one of the girls saying something about a question for Tom and she didn’t really care about the others guys up there.  As you sat in your chair, your leg bouncing erratically up and down your eyes glanced towards the four of them on the stage.  They were embarrassed and extremely uncomfortable and now you felt the heat rushing up your neck and to your cheeks feeling utterly embarrassed FOR them, and for the rest of the Marvel Fandom.  

Once the girls were done, Kevin tried to end it but one more girl begged to ask her question.  All you ended up hearing from her was something along the lines of “I’ve been on my feet and in heels all day.”  It was enough to make you snap as you stood from your chair and went to the vacant microphone.  

Your heart was hammering in your chest but by now, you were running on peer adrenaline.  As the girl walked away from the microphone, you spoke up.

“Excuse me, Mr. Smith,” your nerves getting the better of you as your voice came out strained. Kevin looked at you, his brows raised. “I don’t have a question, I just wanted to make a real quick comment.”

“Well, I see there is someone out there who has manners.  What’s your name?”

“My name is Y/N.”

“Well Y/N, because you asked so respectfully, I’m going to let you make your comment.”

The heat was back to your face again as you blushed and you cleared your throat.  “I just want to start out by saying that every single one of you up there, are absolutely amazing.  Chris, Sebastian, Tom, Anthony, and you too Kevin.  You are all such talented actors and I want to say thank you for the movies you have given us.”  The crowd rejoiced and you felt encouraged to continue.  “I also want to apologize, on behalf of the Marvel fandom for today.  What some of these ‘fans’,” you stated with actual air quotes, “said to you guys up there, was disrespectful, and completely uncalled for.”  Turning sideways you glanced around the auditorium. “If anyone has a question for just one of the actors up there, you don’t have to actually go and say ‘you don’t care about the rest of them’.  The crowd, yet again, applauded you.  

You turned back around to face the stage and your eyes met Chris’.  He was staring right at you, staring right through to your soul and it took your breath away.  “Umm…,” you lost your train of thought for a minute.  “I know this isn’t part of your contract, to come to these cons and see your fans.  It is something you do, out of your own free will, and out of your own time.  There is no way that you should be treated the way you were today.  On behalf of the Marvel Fandom, I want to thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to be here with us today.”

Chris, Sebastian, Tom, Anthony and even Kevin all stood up from their spots on stage and clapped for you. You noticed Chris quickly whisper something to each of his cast mates and they all nodded their heads.

As Kevin ended the panel you saw Chris whispering to what looked like a security guard; his head nodding in your direction.  Taking a deep gulp, you instantly thought you had maybe done something to upset them and were in trouble.  Sitting back down in your chair, you reached under and gathered your belongings before standing up, only to come face to face with the security guard that Chris was speaking with.  

“Are you Y/N?” the very tall and bulky looking man asked.  Swallowing the lump in your throat, you could only nod your head in response.  “Come with me.”

Fuck you thought to yourself as you followed him down the steps and trying to make your way through the crowd as everyone was leaving the auditorium.  You followed the man until you came up to the stage as he motioned for you to continue. Slowly you crept up the stairs as he ushered you behind the curtains.  

Your heart began to pound as you saw Sebastian, Anthony, and Tom standing next to a refreshment table, laughing, while Chris stood off to the side as he spoke on his phone.  

“Hey!  There she is!” Anthony’s voice boomed as he made his way towards you, arms out for a hug.  You couldn’t help the smile that graced your lips as you hugged him back.  And damn was he a good hugger.  “You know, you were our hero out there,” he said with a bright smile just as Chris got off the phone and walked over to you.  “Standing up for us an all.  I have to say.  It was ama-AZING!!”  Everyone laughed, including yourself as you felt the heat of your blush invade your neck and cheeks.  

“It was the least I could do after how some of those people were treating you guys.  I mean,” you looked down at your feet, feeling nervous from their gazes at you, “you guys put so much effort and passion into these movies for fans…it’s not fair for them to treat you like garbage when you take time out of your own life to do these kinds of things.”

All four of them murmured their agreements as Chris’ eyes never left yours.  It truly felt like he was looking deep into your soul and your heart skipped a beat.  Biting your lip, you turned you gaze down at your feet again.  

“Which is why we want to thank you.  How about you come up to my hotel room tonight.  We were all going to order some pizza and have some drinks.  We were hoping you would join us,” Chris spoke with a delighted smile.  

Your brain had to do a double take, as his words repeated in your head.  “Are-are you sure?” you asked with hesitation.  

“Of course we’re sure. It’s the least WE could do to thank you for what you did out there,” Sebastian chimed in.  At that moment, you weren’t sure if you had died and gone to heaven; or perhaps hit your head at some point and were dreaming.  

“Yes.  I’d love to.”

~~~

Since you didn’t have any autograph or photo sessions today, only tomorrow, you made your way back to your hotel room.  It turns out, the guys were all staying in the same hotel as you and you were to meet them at Chris’ room around 7 tonight.  

Looking at the clock, it was only 2 in the afternoon, but with everything that happened earlier, it felt much later than that.  Setting your alarm, you decided to take a little nap so you could be ready to hang with the guys tonight.

After waking from your nap, you lay there looking at the blank white ceiling of your hotel room.   Taking another quick shower, you re-did your makeup; making sure to keep it very simple. Taking one last look in the mirror, you gave yourself an encouraging nod before grabbing your purse and heading to Chris’ room, which just so happened to be on the same floor as yours; just on the opposite end of the hotel.  

Gathering a deep breath, you let it out before knocking on the door.  You could hear laughing and ruckus going on inside as the door opened to reveal a smiling Tom.  “Hey Y/N! You made it!” he beamed while opening the door for you to step inside.  

Looking around, you noticed it was a rather large suite.  It was a complete open floorplan with a large living room and kitchen; a set of double doors revealing the bedroom.  The furniture was very modern with sharp edges and neutral tones; the kitchen had dark wood with black granite.  

“Wow,” you said breathlessly as you looked around, realizing it was bigger than even your apartment back home.  Most hotels you had ever been in were very bland and boring; maybe you just needed to up your game and start staying in suites from now on.    

“There’s our girl,” you heard Chris say and the way he said it made go weak in the knees; his voice alone sending chills to your lady bits and you had to stifle a moan.  He had two beers, one in each hand as he came up to give you a hug.  And I thought Mackie was a great hugger you thought to yourself as Chris’ large arms wrapped securely around you.  

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” you giggled as he let you go.  Chris handed you a beer and placed a hand on your lower back, leading you into the living room.  

~~~

It wasn’t long before everyone was stuffed with pizza and booze; the suite echoing with laughter as you all were laid back on the couches and talking.  You were feeling relaxed and buzzed as you sipped on some sort of drink that Mackie had made for everyone.  The four of them welcomed you into their little group and you felt right at home. Chris also couldn’t keep his eyes off of you; especially your lips.  You caught him on more than one occasion watching your lips as you talked.

Chris wasn’t just watching you; he was being flirty with you also.  Each time the two of you were off the couch, either walking to and from the kitchen, or just standing around, he would always pass by you very closely. Many times he would even whisper in your ear, simple things such as “hey”, or “you look beautiful.”  Each time it made your breath hitch and you skin break out in goosebumps.  But your favorite part was when he would touch you with his hand to your lower back when he passed by.  This man was slowly torturing you in the most extravagant of ways.    

“Time for some fun! We are going to play Never Have I Ever! Everyone know the rules?” Tom said as he held up his drink.  It was a favorite past time of yours that you and your friends used to play in the summer at bonfires back in high school.  Everyone else nodded as Tom stood up.  “Alright. Sebastian, you start!”

Tom sat down as Sebastian stood up.  “Let’s see…..never have I ever…..had sex in a public place.”

“Really?  Never?” Chris asked as he shook his head laughing, taking a sip of his drink.  You bashfully grabbed your drink off the table and also took a sip.  

“Ooohh, look at our girl over here,” Mackie teased and you shrugged your shoulders; a playful grin on your face.    

“Alright I’ll go,” Tom spoke, standing up.  “Never have I ever hooked up with a cast member…or maybe in this case,” he said pointing to you, “a co-worker.”  Wheew, you were safe from that one; but Chris and Sebastian weren’t as they both took a swig of their drinks.  “Your turn Y/N.”

Standing up, you bite your lip trying to think of something that would perhaps get all of them to take a drink.  With a grin, you looked Chris dead in the eyes and spoke.  “Never have I ever hooked up with someone famous.”

“Oh come on!” a chorus of groans came about the room as you giggled.  

“Such a cheat,” Mackie said shaking his head as all four of the guys took a sip of their drinks. Looking around the room, you couldn’t help but feel his eyes burning into you.  With a small grin, your gaze landed on Chris and sure enough, he was staring right at you; his own mischievous smirk on his perfectly bearded face.  The way he was looking at you made you wet in your panties.  Biting your lower lip, you had to squeeze your legs together to stop the ache.  

Clearing his throat, Chris stood up.  “My turn.” You sucked in a deep breath as his eyes never wavered from your sitting form.  “Never have I ever slept with someone I met at a con.”  Instantly your cheeks became enflamed from the heat of the blush that overtook your body; and it clearly wasn’t from the drinking.  

“Ooohh,” came from the mouths of the three other guys in the room as they watched Chris stare you down.

“Dude, the point is to get other people to drink as much as possible.  Nobody here has hooked up with someone from a con,” Anthony chimed in with his signature smirk and chuckle.  

You stared intently at Chris, as he did the same; his eyes saying it all; not yet.  

A tremble went through your body as Chris gave you a devilish wink. 

“Damn it’s getting late. I’m going to head back to my room,” Anthony spoke up, breaking the staring contest between you and Chris.  

“Dude, it’s like, 10:30,” Tom responded giving him a goofy look.  

“Yeah and I’m old.  I’ll see you three in the morning.”  Anthony got off the couch and made his way to you, giving you a hug.  “And you all will go to bed soon enough too if you know what’s good for you!”

“Yes dad,” Tom remarked getting from the couch as well.  He too came over to give you a hug as you noticed Chris whisper something into Sebastian’s ear.  Sebastian nodded his head, giving you a grin as he came over to give you a hug also.  

“I suppose, it is time to go.”  Getting up off the couch, you began to retrieve your purse, thinking you should be heading out with the rest of them, but that didn’t seem like the case.  

Chris came up behind you and whispered into your ear, “stay for a while longer.”  A quiver went down your spine as you watched Chris head towards the door, walking his guests out.  Your mouth suddenly went dry and you nearly fell back onto the couch and hastily grabbed your drink; down the rest of it in three big gulps.   You are single, and so is Chris .  Have fun tonight your mind reminded you.  

Hearing the door close, you turned to see Chris heading towards the kitchen.  “Want another drink?”

“Umm, yeah, that’d be great.”

Sitting down next to you, he handed you a beer and you greedily began drinking it.  You weren’t sure what his intentions were for tonight, but at this point, you didn’t care one big.  He was a drop dead gorgeous man, and you were single.  You were allowed to have fun, right?

He sat rather close to you and the heat radiating off of him was searing.  The more you drank, the more brave you became and before you knew it, the words tumbled from your mouth.  “You’ve been watching me a lot tonight.”

Chris’ chest rumbled with a deep chuckle.  “How could I not?  You have an amazing personality and it’s quite a turn on.  I couldn’t help myself.”  His arm came to rest behind the couch, right behind your head as he placed his hand on your shoulder.  “I’m serious Y/N.  I don’t do this kind of thing.  I don’t just meet a girl and then hook up with her.”  So that is his intention tonight you thought to yourself.  “But there is something different about you.  You’re honest and caring.  Funny as fuck and not to mention fahking beautiful.”  There it was; his Boston accent you had so been hoping to hear.  “I don’t do things spur of the moment.”

You found yourself leaning into him, just as he was doing to you.  His words hitting close to home and it made you feel better knowing he didn’t just want to screw you and leave you.  The chemistry had been there, all night, that much was true.  As you got close to him, it felt as if a wave of electricity was bouncing off the two of you.  

“Do you feel that?” you asked, fanning his face with your breath.

“That connection?” he replied as his eyes glanced down to your lips.  “Oh yeah I feel that.”  He closed the distance and his lips finally connected with yours.  It was the greatest feeling in the world; but all too soon, he pulled away.  “Was that ok?”

Your heart was racing in your chest as you nodded your head.  “More than ok.”  You smiled before kissing him this time, putting all your sexual frustration into the kiss.  Reaching your hand up, you cupped the back of his head as your fingers threaded through his thick locks, earning a low growl from Chris.  The noise turned you on to no end as you moved your leg to straddle his waist.

Your lips continued to brush together, slowly at first.  Chris was a damn fine kisser and you found you could stay in this position for the rest of your life and be happy, just kissing him like this.    

His hands moved to grip your hips as the kiss deepened; his tongue swiping at your lower lip, begging for entrance.  You gladly opened your mouth, letting his tongue trace yours as a soft moan escaped the back of your throat.  Chris gripped your hips at the noise and you involuntarily ground your hips down.  

“Fuck Y/N,” Chris rasped as he pulled away from your lips.  He looked longingly into your eyes; his hips jutting up and you could very clearly feel how hard he was already.  His hands trailed from your hips and under your shirt; stalling at the clasp of your bra.  “Tell me to stop and I will.”

Your heart swelled knowing that he was thinking more intently about this situation than just a quick fuck and you gripped his hair at the nape of his neck.  “Don’t even think about stopping,” you cooed.  

With a seductive grin on his part, he unclasped your bra as his lips began giving slow, succulent open mouth kisses on your neck.  His kisses left you feeling dizzy in the best kind of way as your hands went to the hem of his white t-shirt, quickly lifting it over his head.  “Fuck,” you breathed out as you saw him bare chested; the tattoo on his collar bone just begging to be kissed.  Leaning down, you did just that as you let your tongue swipe across the beautiful words.  

It was his turn to rid you of your shirt as your arms raised.  He pulled off your shirt and bra with haste; staring right back at your bare chest.  “Fucking beautiful,” he murmured before his lips encircled your right nipple, making you throw your head back in pure delight.  You had never felt this kind of fire burning in your body and you couldn’t wait to experience more with Chris.  He gave your left nipple the same amount of affection before he began nibbling on your collarbone.  His large hands cupped your breasts and squeezed lightly, just as his tongue found a sweet spot on your neck.  A guttural moan left your lips and you felt his cock twitch beneath you.    

You began to gyrate your hips, needing to release some sort of tension on your core and it only spurred Chris on more as he lightly began to bite and nibble on your neck.  “Chris,” his name was a breathy moan as it left your lips.  

He didn’t need to hear anymore as he gripped your hips tightly and rolled you onto your back on the couch.  Chris made quick work of removing your pants and panties before positioning you into a seated position on the couch.  His alluring grin was back as his hands grasped your ankles and pulled you down a bit so your ass was close to hanging off the couch.  

Chris sunk to his knees in front of you and it felt like your brain began to short-circuit.  Is this really happening you thought as Chris pried your legs wide open for him. “Fahking perfect,” he breathed and his hot breath made you tremble from deep inside.  “You still want to do this?”

“Yes, yes Chris please,” you begged as your chest heaved with anticipation.  

His eyes roamed over your heaving chest before landing right on your open pussy; and fuck were you wet for him.  He began peppering the inside of your thighs with soft kisses; his beard tickling you as you tried to hold still.  Taking his fingers, he spread you gently and began to lightly blow making you wiggle with pleasure.  He damn well knew he was teasing you and he was getting a kick out of it.  Thankfully he wasn’t that cruel as his lips wrapped around your aching clit, making you scream out his name.  

Your head fell back and Chris moaned as he licked a strip right up your center and to your clit. Your hand grasped his hair as you wiggled your hips.  From all the sexual tension you’ve had tonight, you knew you wouldn’t be lasting long; especially with his expert mouth.  Fuck could this mad use his mouth.

As his mouth began to suckle your nub, he inserted two fingers into your core and you were a goner. Your orgasm washed over you in waves of pleasure; more than you had ever felt before.  You cried out his name as your body convulsed; Chris’ fingers still inside of you but they stilled their movements.  

When your high finally ended, you opened your eyes to see Chris kneeling before you; a beaming smile on his face.  “You are even more gorgeous when you come, if that’s even possible.”

A soft giggle escaped your lips as you leaned forward to kiss him; tasting yourself on his lips. Your hands trailed down his chest until you reached his sweatpants; your hand disappearing inside the waistband. A low growl came from Chris as your hand clasped his large and endowed cock.  “Oh that feels good,” Chris grunted as his head slumped onto your shoulder. Your thumb circled his tip, wiping his pre-cum all around him as you began to pump him slowly.  Hell, you were beginning to get off again just hearing the noises he was making.  “Wait wait wait.  Stop Y/N.”

You frowned at him, wondering if you were doing something wrong.  But he quickly kissed your worries away with the most passionate and heated kiss you ever felt someone give you.  “I just don’t want to come too fast,” he confessed with a smile as he pulled away.  “You’re turning me on like crazy.”

You chuckled as he stood up from his spot, shredding his sweatpants and boxers, leaving him completely bare just like you.  With your beating heart and even more aching pussy, you stood up from your spot on the couch and switched positions with Chris so he was now sitting down.  As you began to straddle him, he stopped you a second time.  “What about a condom?”

He truly was not only a gentleman, but the perfect man as you smiled back at him.  It amazed you that he was so caring and concerned. Most men wouldn’t care; they just wanted a quick fuck and then be done.  But not Chris.  “I’m clean and on birth control.”

Chris nodded as his hands raked over your naked form in front of him; eyeing you with greed.  “I trust you.”  His words made your heart skip a beat as you slowly lowered yourself onto his thick length.  The two of you groaned in pleasure at once.  You had never felt so full before.  Chris’ hands explored your body as your forehead rested on his; your breathing deep as you became stretched with his member.  “Are you ok?” he inquired.  Opening your eyes, you saw he was staring at you with consideration.  

A small smirk graced your lips as you nodded your head.  “I’ve uh…I’ve just never been with someone so big before,” you lightly giggled.  “It’s just going to take a moment to adjust.” Chris’ eyes softened as his right hand was placed at your neck, pulling you forward so he could kiss you.  His kiss was tender and gentle, making you that much more relaxed and easier to adjust to him.  

“I’m kind of glad you needed a few minutes to adjust,” Chris chuckled when the kiss ended.  Cocking your head to the side, your brows furrowed at his comment.  “Fahk Y/N, your pussy is so tight and warm.  If you would have begun to ride me right away, I would have busted instantly.”

All the tension released from your body once you found out just how turned on Chris was.  “Well, in that case.  Are you ready or do you need another minute?” you teased playfully with a wink.  

With his own grin, he placed his hands at your hips and lifted you up before easing you back down. No words were needed for you to realize he was ready.  As you placed your hands on his shoulders, you began to ride him.  Your breasts bounced as your thigh muscles were giving you one hell of a workout; but it was all worth it.  Opening your eyes, you saw Chris’ gaze go from your bouncing breasts and down to where you two were connected; watching his own cock disappear into your pussy.

Chris made a dangerously seductive growl before placing his hands at your ass, giving a tight squeeze. “YES!” you cried out, loving the way he was touching your scorching body.    

Without so much as a notice, Chris gripped his arms under your thighs and lifted you up, causing you to squeal as he began walking into the bedroom; the two of you still connected in the most intimate of ways.  

Chris placed you on the large bed with ease.  His hips snapped forward as he began to pound into you with a rapid pace.  Your arms went up to the headboard to protect your head from hitting it as Chris began to pound you into the mattress.  “Don’t fucking stop!” you begged as you felt the familiar ripple begin to tighten in your belly.  For, what it seems like the first time in your life, someone actually listened to you during sex and Chris’ hips never faltered.  In fact, he sped up if that was even at all possible.  Your toes began to curl and your muscles tightened.   “Fuck fuck yesyesyes CHRIS!” you screamed as your second orgasm of the night washed through you.  

“Right there baby…..FUCK,” Chris bellowed as he gave a few more sloppy thrusts before stilling inside you; his cum filling the inside of your pussy as his cock twitched inside of you.

~~~

You startled awake the next morning as an alarm blared rather early.  Groaning in frustration, you opened your eyes and realized you were cuddled in a cocoon in Chris’ arms; a smile gracing your lips as last night’s memories repeated in your head.

“Mmmmm, sorry about that,” Chris spoke as he turned his alarm off and kissed the back of your neck before getting out of bed.  

“What time is it?” you asked as you got into a sitting position.

“Almost nine.  I have photo ops starting at 10.”  He came around the bed and gave you a tender kiss before heading into the bathroom.  You heard the shower turn on as pushed the covers off your naked body, shivering at the loss of comfort.  

Making your way into the living room you began to dress yourself, a frown emanating on your lips. Although you had an amazing night last night, you were sad to see it end.  Chris was incredible; not just in bed but also in tune with your feelings, making you feel comfortable.  

Just as you reached for your purse, Chris emerged from the bathroom with a towel around his waist. He walked over to you, taking you into his arms.  “I had a great time last night.”

“Me too,” you replied hugging him back.  He smelled amazing and you didn’t want to let him go.  

“I meant what I said last night Y/N.  I don’t do these kinds of things without thinking them through.  If you hadn’t live in Los Angeles, I don’t know if I could have gone through what we did last night.  But since we live in the same city, I was kind of hoping things wouldn’t have to end tonight.”

Yep, you’re dead.  You’re dead and in heaven was all you could think as you stared into his baby blue eyes.  “Are you being serious right now?”

He hugged you tighter as you felt his chest rumble with laughter.  “Dead serious.”  He pulled away and gave you a chaste kiss to your lips.  “I want to take you on a real date next week.  Can I do that?”

You nodded your head quickly before the two of you exchanged numbers.  “I’ll see you soon,” he added before giving your butt a smack.  

As you left his room, you couldn’t help but grin as you headed back to your room.  Sooner than you think you thought to yourself.  

~~~~

Not having VIP tickets was a bummer, but standing in line for your photo op only let you sit and memorize everything that happened the night before with Chris.  Before you knew it, you were next in line.  

Opening the curtain, there you saw Sebastian, Anthony, Tom and Chris as they posed with a fan.  When Anthony saw you, his smile brightened.  “There’s our girl!”

You quickly got in the middle of them, with Chris to your right.  Taking a quick glance in his direction, you winked at him before smiling at the photographer.  It may have looked like Chris’ arm was around you in the photo; but lo and behold, his hand was placed firmly on your ass and you couldn’t wait to get back home for your first official date with Chris.  

Tag List: @patzammit @brastrangled @miss-cap21 @pumbibaby @marvelouslyme96 @kanupps06 @zohoffman @the-real-kellymonster @princess-evans-addict @white-chocolate-mocha-fan @remember-that-one-blog @sincerelyfan @projectxhappiness @libbitinasdeath @hispeculiartreasure @guera31 @ssweet-empowerment @sfreeborn @jjlevin @badassbaker @sophiealiice @supernatural-girl97 @coffeebooksandfandom @esoltis280 @poerebel @laochbaineann @crushed-pink-petals @thisismysecrethappyplace

[mystupidoverwatchimagines]

Puppies!

I do what I want. These are short fun little things of S/O asking their hero get a puppo. And cute shit ensues. Junkrat, 76, Reinhardt, Roadhog, Reaper (I don't need to stop, I don't have a problem). In any case enjoy!

REQUESTS ARE OPEN HOWEVER

My inbox doesn't accept requests as this is a side blog so asks aren't really open (THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME FIGURE IT OUT) however! My personal messages are always ALWAYS open. Please send any requests there!

Junkrat--

"Hey Jamie can we get a dog?"

° yes yes Yes YES

° You're a little surprised it was so easy but he is suddenly bouncing around your house in excitement.

° You were kind of kidding but things became much more serious when he wanted to do this IMMEDIATELY.

° You are able to lower his excitement from "LETS JUST GET 20 DOGS" down to "A'right 2 dogs".

° You both got to pick out one from the rescue shelter. You pick out a large pitbull, her face so cute with big brown eyes and soft black fur. She was just a baby, and you could tell when they pulled her out of the kennel to meet you both, she basically bounced up and down in excitement. She reminded you of Jamie a lot, especially when she suddenly jumped up into your arms and you had to catch her to keep her falling to the ground. You sighed as she licked your face but you were smiling happily. Yep. Just like Jamison.

° Jamie was much more picky. He knew what he wanted and none of the dogs really spoke to this until he saw a small dog, definitely chihuahua and something else. Fluffy white fur and big ears. The dog was older but Jamie looked at the dog's eyes and it took stood up on little legs and you could see that the little puppo had lost one of its front legs. Junkrat's eyes grow into dinner plates and he asked to see the dog excitedly. He held the little thing and it licked his face excitedly, a happy little dog as Junkrat smothered it with attention. The shelter volunteer looked at you behind Jamie's shoulder and you nodded and the volunteer and ran to get the paperwork all filled out.

° You both are 100% in love with these dogs. Junkrat informs you that he had always wanted a dog but with the radiation in the Outback, it was dangerous for you to keep pets because they may turn into rabid dingos. The pitbull likes to sleep with her large head rested on his knee while he works on bombs. He likes to call her Shovel Head. The little one loves to play, she just wants to play! You often throw a tiny little tennis ball around the house and watch as the tiny little fluff chases it around the house excitedly. And both sleep in their own special beds at the end of the bed, but they both sneak into the bed every night and sleep in between you guys.

Soldier 76--

"Hey Jack, we should get a dog. A guard dog to protect me when you're on missions."

° Oh yeah, you knew how to say something to get what you wanted. However he has started picking up on your tactics and said no at first.

° You are persistent though and ask him about it every day. Giving all the pros of having a dog in the house. A big dog, a Doberman or a Rottweiler. Something you can run with in the morning and not have to worry about people messing with you. A big ol' pupper. But he continued with his "No,no,no," before you finally came clean and said you wanted a dog because the house does get lonely when he is gone. This seemed to actually make him think about it before thats what he finishes with. "Just let me think about it."

° The next day he left early in the morning, giving you a kiss and stating he would be back soon, smiling as you nod against your pillow, humming at his kiss before you curled back into your pillow and was out like a light.

° Later that day, like early afternoon. Soldier comes home with flowers and cookies and a giant box. Like a cardboard box wrapped up in blue paper. You were for sure suspicious. However your flowers smell wonderful and the cookies smell even better and the box now has your full attention. He pushes you to the couch and set the box gently on the ground, as if something fragile was inside. You secretly worried you had made him feel bad with your confession about being lonely when he was gone but he gently pushed your shoulders which made you laugh and you opened the box. As you looked down, you covered you mouth as a gasp came out. Two tiny puppies were inside, one looked like it was a Doberman while the other looked like it was a Golden Lab. You felt the tears begin to flow and you turned and hugged Jack tightly, trying to pull yourself together for a second before you quickly looked back over at the puppies that began to whine and bark. You picked both of them up and began kissing all over their little faces.

° Next few days were "Jack look at their paws they're gonna be huge!" "Jack, look at their little noses, oh my god!" "Jack I love them so much!"

° 6 months go by and you're still so in love with these animals. 76 would come home from missions late at night, to find all three of you curled up on the couch, sleeping comfortably. It made his heart feel so perfectly content. He calls you and the dogs "His girls".

Reinhardt--

"Hey big man, I want a dog, what do you think?"

° YES DOG

° I WANT DOG TOO, MIENE ROSE.

° Huh, that went well.

° You decide on adopting a big dog. A big dog for the big man. When you go to the shelter, its like you're a mother being dragged around by you're very large child. He was so excited but you were too. You laughed as he pulled you around the shelter, from one kennel to another but suddenly the realization comes to his mind and he wants ALL the dogs he's liked so far. You have to explain that we can't care for 20 dogs, especially when he is on missions and its just you at the house. However...

° "I'm okay with THREE dogs. Just three."

° He had to think about it for a long time before he made his decision. A Bull Mastiff, a Irish Wolf Hound, and the tiniest little Pomeranian you have ever seen. The Pomeranian wasn't a surprise, he had seen the little thing and had stars in his eyes immediately. You waved at the volunteers who had helped you as you held the two large dogs on leashes and Reinhardt cradled the small dog in his large arms, nuzzling the small pup with a wide smile on his face, the pup looking thoroughly content at the love it was getting.

° You both loved the dogs, but they all seemed to flock to Reinhardt, which, you did admit, you were a little jealous of but it was hopelessly adorable to walk into the living room to see Reinhardt asleep in his large arm chair, all the dogs laying down on him and asleep as well. The Mastiff laid across his lap and the Wolf hound slept on top of his feet. And of course, the Pomeranian was curled up on the man's shoulder. You've taken a lot of pictures of this scene.

° However when Reinhardt was gone, the dogs did the same thing to you. Reinhardt has walked in on the same scene and immediately gushed over how cute you all were, except you were smaller so all the dogs fit on the chair with you.

Roadhog--

° You actually didn't have to ask Roadhog and you weren't planning on asking him anything pet related. However, on your way back home in the rain, you had found a stray in the street. Your face scrunched up as the dog came towards you cautiously and you knew in your heart you weren't going to leave the poor thing in the street, and in the rain? No. You wrapped the skinny little pup in your jacket and picked it up gently. It licked your face, seemingly in thanks. You sighed as you thought of a way to explain the animal to Roadhog.

° Roadhog looked at you and the dog as you walked through the door, soaking wet and shivering from the cold. He looked at the dog, his face clear of a mask, his eyebrow raised. "I just couldn't leave him out there Mako. Look at him," you stated as you moved your jacket away from the dog's face, it was grey, one brown eye and one white/blue eye. It looked like a mixed breed, big ears, long muzzle. You gently put the dog down and flopped down on the couch. Both of you watched the dog sniff around and look at everything.

° "I don't think he's feral, he came right up to me," you stated honestly as you both continued to watch the animal. "I'll try to find his home tomorrow," you stated and Roadhog nodded.

° Week 1 - Fleas. You and Roadhog are both scratching helplessly as the dog ran around your house. You had been trying to find the dog's owner when Roadhog picked you and the dog up and dumped all three of you in a flea bath. You sighed in relief as two large hands scratched your back.

° Week 2 - Worms. You both watched the dog rub its butt along the floor. You pinched the bridge of your nose tightly before you rose your phone and made a Vet appointment.

° Week 3 - Acceptance. Both of you watched this crazy dog run around the house. It had so much energy and you and Roadhog had zero energy to deal with him.

° "We could take him to the shelter, maybe they can adopt him out," you stated as the dog came up to your lap and began licking your face. You gave a couple of head scratches and he moved over to Mako's lap and licked the mask happily as well.

° "What if they put him down," Mako said shortly, as well as giving a couple of head pats to the dog before it moved between the two of you, curling up and falling asleep. You both sighed as you had finally realized that this was your dog.

° Week 4 - Love. You came home, yawning as you walked through the door and your dog quickly ran up to you and jumped in your arms. You chuckled gently, catching the dog and holding him to your chest as he licked at your face. The dog scrambles out of your grasp as a ball is thrown from the living room.

Reaper--

"Hey Gabe? Can we... GetadogIreallywantadogplease?."

° "What?" He chuckled, trying to understand what you had said.

° "Can we get a dog please," you stated very clearly.

° No.

°Well shit. He's not like 76 where he can be pestered to get what you want. You had to plan to get something. Which meant... Deliberately doing what you want and just shrug off his anger. You only do it once a month and this was important. I mean... It was a dog. Dogs are so important. You sneak off in the morning and go to the shelter and do whatever you want. You could have bought 10 puppies and whats the worst that could happen? He was gonna leave you? Thats okay. Its dogs.

° You sneak into the house but Gabriel was already awake and sitting on the couch. He looked up with a smile but it quickly turned into an angry face. You held a small black puppy in your arm, a bag filled with puppy supplies in your other arm. You smiled at him, and he crossed his arms as you set down the supplies on the floor and wondered over to him with slow steps. Noy only was it a doggo. It was a puppo. So small and tiny. You held the puppy up to Gabe's face and he lowered his eyes to look at the puppy you held up. It was so small. It looked like it had been a runt and had been abandoned. It was a jet black German Shepard, with honey brown eyes. It licked Gabe's scarred face and Gabe sighed weakly and you gently set the dog on his lap and he looked at you seriously.

° "You're get an ass-whooping later, you know that right?" He stated as his hand went to the dog's head and scratched it.

° "Ooh, you mean I get a puppy and a spanking? What a day," you stated with a teasing tone in your voice and he rolled his eyes.

° Gabe is THE dog mom. He grows very attached to the puppy. And one day you are surprised when he brought another dog home. And then another. Two large, all black dogs. 2 Rottweilers now ran around the house as well. These two were adopted and were supposed to be gifts for you but you knew it was only to feed his growing dog addiction. He takes them on runs and dresses them up for Halloween. He made Talon shirts for them, oh yes, say hello to the new mascots.

° You often find him on the couch buried under these 3 animals. While he loved all of them, the one you brought home is his favorite. She is the baby of the group and so small still. You and this dog are "His Baby Girls"

° Menawhile the Rotties are attached to your hip when you are home. The nap with you on the bed and often snuggle with you in the grass at the park while Gabe plays with the little on with a frisbee.

[edourado]

Kastle + soulmate AU

Fix it fic time!

Ok. Here we go. This was fun to write, and man, it got big. 20 pages long. 

It might be a little different than the usual “Soulmate AU” kinds of stuff we see. Here, it’s more like an abstract concept. A feeling.

Anyway. Here it goes. 

You

It was the darndest thing.

The first time he saw her, Maria was pregnant. He had a little boy on the way and was taking his girl for a walk, stroller, bottle, extra diapers, dog and everything in tow.

“Frank”, his wife had said, from her spot on the bed. “You have a lot going on there”.

“We’ll be good. You just take a nap.” Frank winked and walked out of the apartment.

He didn’t exactly know why Max pulled and pulled on his leash towards that particular park. The one they liked was on the opposite direction, bigger, there was that coffee he liked, the spot on the grass Max liked to lie down in the sun or the shade, whatever, and the nice playground Lisa would play in one day.

Nevertheless, Max pulled, and pulled, and Frank had too much in his hands to fight the dog, so he just accepted, going towards the park they were not that familiar with.

He could hear the music those kids were always playing there already when Lisa dropped her toy and look at him from inside her stroller.

“Dada”, she called, in that baby voice he just loved with all his heart, little hands reaching out for him.

“One second, baby, daddy’s gonna pick you up in a second.”

They were almost there, it would be much easier to pick her up while parked.

“Dada”, she insisted and Frank smiled down at her, delighted when she smiled back, big and bright.

She knew how to say “daddy”. Knew how to say “mommy”, “grandma”, “grandpa”, “water”, “doggie”, “kitty”, her own name, “dino”, for some reason, and a bunch of other words. But she kept calling him “dada” when she wanted something, that first word to ever come out of her mouth, already aware that it pulled on his heart strings, he was incapable of denying her of anything when she said that.

“Ok, here we go”, he said when they entered the park and he found an empty bench and sat down. “Come here, sweetheart.”

He picked his daughter up, placing a kiss on her head, sitting down on the bench with her little arms around his neck, tiny feet on his thigh as she stood up, looking at all the dogs running behind him, giggling.

“Go ahead, buddy”, he told Max, removing his leash, watching as he pranced over to the other dogs, doing some recon.

He had been sitting there with Lisa for maybe five minutes, making faces and noises to make her laugh, when Max came back, a scarf in his mouth.

“Where did you get that?” he asked and the pitbull blinked at him. When Frank reached for it, he moved his head, out of Frank’s reach. “Max, stop. Give me that.”

Max turned around, wagging his tail, and Frank looked at the direction he was turned.

Holy shit.

There was a woman running - well, not really running, she was in heels - towards them, her coat tight around her, blond hair flying behind and around her face. She was beautiful, holy, holy shit.

Frank was not a stranger to beautiful women. His wife was a 10, there was no doubt there, and the amount of women who smiled and approached him every time he was out with the baby was insane, but this one. He blinked when she smiled at him, a little out of breath.

“Hi”, she said, and he felt lighter, somehow. “That’ mine, I’m afraid.”

“Oh, sure”, he shook himself. “I’m sorry. Max, come on, give it back.”

The dog walked to her and let go of the scarf when she reached her hand, throwing his weight on her legs after, rubbing his head on her hand like a damn cat, which was strange. Max was never violent, he was as docile as he was when he was a pup, but this was not common, for him to get so cozy with a stranger, just like that.

“I’m sorry, he never does that”, Frank said, standing up, Lisa turning around and looking at Max.

“It’s ok, it’s probably my fault. I was playing with him over there”, she pointed to a bench a few feet away.

“I hope it’s not ruined. I can, I don’t know, get it dry cleaned for you.”

“Oh, no, don’t  be silly, it’s ok. He’s very, very sweet. Max, is it?”

“Yes. I’m Frank, by the way.”

She looked up from Max and to him. Damn it, he was used to bright eyes. Maria’s green ones were part of the reason he fell for her, his daughter has them, but these lady’s electric blues are something.

“I’m Karen”, she said, offering her hand for him to shake. “And who’s this beautiful lady?”

Smart kid, Lisa. She always knows when people are talking about her. She blinked and smiled at the woman - Karen.

“Go ahead, baby”, Frank encouraged, tickling her belly. “Tell her your name.”

“Lisa!”

Karen let out a laugh that punched Frank in the gut and waved her hand. “Well, hello, Lisa! Nice to meet you!”

“Hello!”

“Oh, she’s just the sweetest.”

“Yeah, well, it’s not so sweet when she’s screeching at two in the morning.”

Was he flirting with this woman?

She looked back at him and raised her brows, that smile ever present, moving a strand of hair out of her face and yes, yes he was flirting. Shit.

“I bet.”

She ended up sitting next to him on the bench, asking all kinds of questions about owning a pitbull.

“There was a robbery on the building next to mine a few weeks ago”, she explained when he asked why she was interested. “I think I’d feel safer with a dog. Not to mention, it would be good company, I think.”

Meaning she was single.

Which did not matter, he told himself. He was married, happily married, thank you very much.

“Well, you’re not wrong. Very loyal breed.”

He told her all about the perks and the responsibilities of being a dog guardian, shaking his head at how much of a fool Max was making of himself, resting his head on her knee, bringing sticks for her to throw, lying down at her feet.

The dog was positively infatuated.

After maybe ten minutes, Lisa put one little hand on each of his cheeks, calling his attention.

“Someone’s hungry”, he said, smiling at the reason he got up every morning.

“I actually should go, too.”

They both got up and Lisa, out of nowhere, threw her weight towards Karen, arms reaching for her.

“Do you wanna pick her up?” Frank asked while Karen smiled big, big, big at his daughter.

“Oh”, she said, her face contorting in some kind of struggled look. “I don’t know if I should. I’ve been outside all day, my hands are probably too dirty…”

“Up”, Lisa said, wiggling her fingers to her, and Frank raised his brows when Karen looked at him.

“Go ahead.”

Which was insane, this woman is a stranger, how the hell does he know she would never hurt Lisa? Still, he knows.

With a murmured “ok”, Karen reached out and placed her hands under Lisa’s arms, taking her from Frank and adjusting her in her arms.

“Oh, my, but you are such a beauty, aren’t you?” and then, to Frank. “You’re in trouble, mister. This one’s gonna be a knock out.”

“Yeah, I figured that the moment she first opened her eyes.”

“This never happens”, she said, bouncing the giggly girl. “I’m not a big hit with babies, usually.” 

“You probably remind her of her mother. She’s blonde, too.”

Frank picked Max’s collar up and asked if Karen knew about some place with good coffee around.

And he knew there was a nice bakery a block away, owned by three Cuban sisters, with excellent coffee. He lived in this neighborhood, for crying out loud. Why was he so keen on making conversation with this woman?

“You’re happily married, Frank!” his conscience told him.

“Oh, I’m kinda new to the neighborhood”, she admitted. “I’ve been living off Starbucks, so far.”

“Nah, that can’t be. Come on, I know a good place. If”, he added, quickly. “That’s ok with you?”

Again, one more time, probably ten times too many, she smiled at him.

“Lead the way.”

.:.

Karen was sitting in her preferred table in that nice Cuban bakery she learned to love, her latte brewed to perfection, her sugary pastry sitting on it’s plate, her book opened in front of her. She would have to thank Frank, if she ever saw him again.

And boy, she hoped she would.

She has been trying to snuff that cozy feeling inside her since she saw the ring around his finger, ten seconds after they met. A married man, with a beautiful child, another on the way, there’s nothing there for her. And she should not be entertaining the “what if he wasn’t married” thoughts that would not leave her alone. It should have passed, by now, it’s been two weeks. He probably didn’t even remember her.

Her book was opened at the same page for twenty minutes, now, because she would start reading, but her thoughts would wander, straight to him.

Get it together, Karen.

After she shook herself and forced her mind to stay focused on the story, two pages have been turned when someone blocked her light.

“Didn’t think you’d steal my table when I told you about this place.”

Oh, shit. She looked up, already knowing it was him, that deep voice different from any other she had ever heard (the things it did to her insides were new, too).

“Oh, hi!”

“Do you have to be so enthusiastic? Calm down, woman”, she thought to herself.

The sight of her was something almost… Poetic. It’s not just that he was handsome in that rugged, manly, hypnotic, exhilarating way. It was that strange sensation that flared up inside of her, like a force, a warmth, a certainty.

This man was supposed to be hers.  

“Hey yourself. So you like the place?”

“Oh, it’s the best! I love it here!”

“Good morning, Frankie”, said one of the sisters that owned the bakery, a beautiful woman, in her late forties, arriving with a cup for him and a fresh one for Karen, with her heavy Cuban accent. “Today, the coffee is on the house. You brought us a great, great custumer. She is writing article about us!”

Frank raised his brows and smiled with just one side of his mouth, looking from Cecilia to Karen and oh, my God, please stop looking so good. Please, please.

“That right?”

While shrugging and smiling back at him, Karen wonders if she’s imagining it, the look he throws her way is not very… Innocent.

“I needed a story. Theirs is just very, very interesting.”

After thanking Cecilia, he asked if he could join her and she nods, careful not to look too happy about it.

“Of course. Its, apparently, your table?”

The way he scrunches his nose after taking a sip of his coffee is too charming.

“It’s the one I like to sit on when I’m here.”

“Back of the place, which allows a clear views of the entrance, nobody can sit behind you, near the window, but with a wall that can block the view…” she analyses. “Let me guess: cop?”   

He drops his head to one side and looks at her through squinted eyes, that side smirk in place.

“Are you profiling me?”

Karen  tries her best not to smile, but shrugs. “I’m a reporter. I guess it’s a habit. Sorry.”

“No apology necessary. And no, not a cop.”

She waited for him to provide his profession, raising her brows and he didn’t.

“Are you gonna keep me in suspense?”

“Aren’t you the one who’s good at profiling people?”

Ok. There’s no way she’s imagining it, now. He’s flirting with her. And, before she can stop herself, Karen blinks slowly and picks her fresh cup of latte from the table, looking straight in his eyes, dropping her voice a bit.

“Ok. Challenge accepted.” 

She guesses wrong once more and he interrupts, asking if he has read anything of hers, and she refrains from telling him where she works.

“If I have to guess, so have you.”

They sit there for a few minutes, talking, it’s so easy to talk to him, there’s a feeling inside her that is different from everything she has ever felt before. Like she should have a string tied around her ankle to keep her from floating away. She’s light, carefree.

“So, no Lisa and Max today?” she asked an hour later, when they were both full of caffeine and the bakery was starting to get too crowded, the usual quiet of a Saturday morning giving place to the buzz of the couple of hours before lunch. He opened the door for her after they waved goodbye to Cecilia and they walked side by side, enjoying the sun.

“No, she’s with Maria. That’s my wife.”

And that fact stung more, way more, one hundred percent more than it should have.

“They’re having this ‘girls weekend’ or whatever. They’re with my mother in law in Connecticut until Monday. And Max is at his weekly bath appointment.”

“And now you’re feeling lonely, counting down the hours until they get back.”

She was trying to normalize his marriage. Because it was normal. More than normal, almost.

Frank pushed his elbow against her arm and she laughed.

“Stop doing that, ma’am.”

“Ma’am? Huh. Are you sure you’re not in the army?”

She looked at him, but he kept looking ahead. His mouth did curve in a smirk, though.

“I was in the army.”

“I knew it.”

They walked around for almost an hour. She went with him to pick Max up, told him that, as it turns out, her building has a “no pets” rule, so she couldn’t get a dog after all.

“You should… You know… Move” he suggested, too flirty, way too flirty, smiling, and there it was again, that light, bubbly feeling inside her, along with the one that made her feel like she had swallowed a magnet and he had the other end in his pocket.

Unlike the movies and magazine articles suggested, Karen had not moved to New York looking for love. To be away from her parents, yes, away from the shadow of her incredible, amazing brother, who she loved to death, but was incredibly tough act to follow, yes. To run from the narrow mindset of the people of her hometown, yes.

The real reason, however, was the work. She had taken the job in two seconds, hoping to create a life of her own in the city, away from the pressure of her conservative, traditional family. Let them gossip about her lack of a husband behind her back and not in her presence, when they could offer unsolicited advice and words of “comfort”.

Thank God they weren’t here to watch as she became more and more infatuated with a married stranger with that kind of charm that would have her parents shuddering and throwing the “bad boy” cliche in her face, that same one she made a point to run from all her life.

The sad part was, when her friends asked her type, she could not describe it, because she hadn’t really met anyone, ever, who was exactly it. Not a character, not a famous person, not even someone she had dreamed up.

So far, after meeting him twice, she was pretty sure that Frank was it. Her type. Completely her type. Physically and in every other way that mattered.

And, of course, he was married with two kids and a dog.

Fantastic.

“Are you an assassin?” she asked, only half joking, while they walked and he let out a laugh. It would be kind of great if he was. That meant she could go on and forget about him because he was dangerous and a criminal, and she was not in the business of fixing men.

“Do I look like an assassin?” he asked, looking at her.

“I don’t really know what assassins look like”, she said. “I just picture you with a gun, that’s it.”

“So you think I’m the violent kind.”

“I didn’t say that. Not everyone that can carry a gun is violent.”

“True.”

Eleven thirty came along and she told him she had to go. Karen didn’t know if she should hope she imagined the slight look of disappointment that crossed his face for a second.

“I’ll see you around, Frank.”

“See you, ma’am.”

Shaking her head and smiling, she got into the cab and closed the door.

“CIA spy?” she guessed through the rolled down window and he smiled at her.

“Close. But no.”

And then the driver took off into traffic and she was left feeling like she just had the most intense date of her life, smiling like a love sick teenager, her heart pounding, the brightness of the day seeming to dull a little.

But that was just the tinted car windows. Right?

.:.

He figures out where she works almost a month later, when he walks into the bakery and Sonia, the youngest of the sisters, shows him the article.

“It was, uh… Como se dice… Published, today. Ay, I’m so excited!”

He picked up the Bulletin copy and sat down to read it with his usual cup of coffee.

“Thank God for the Cubans”, the title read and he had to chuckle.

It was a nice piece about embracing immigrants, discovering independent business in one’s neighborhood, learning from the personal history of others and rejoicing in the fact that they could enjoy the food of other cultures. It was also a jab at the conservatives that thought anything non-American was not worth their time. Frank loved it.

And, right there under the title, her full name. Karen Page.

They had not exchanged last names, and he had been wondering about hers.

He was having an inner struggle, trying to convince himself that he should not look her up online. He wasn’t on social media, and, even if he was, he was married, married, happily married, why was he looking women up online anyway?

It lasted less than an hour, his resolve. He walked out of the bakery, newspaper folded under his arm and got into his car, heading to work.

“Morning, boss”, said his assistant, already holding a stack of files in his arms. “You have a meeting with Director Fury at ten.”

“Thanks, Ben. Those for me?”

“Yes, sir, I need your signature on these”, he said, putting a stack directly in front of his chair. “And you need to read these”. The other pile was placed to his right, but the picture of Maria and Lisa. “Do you need anything?”

“Not for now, Ben, thanks”, Frank said, taking his coat off and sitting on his desk. He really disliked desk work, but the promotion paid well, and it’s not like he didn’t get to go out in the field. It was just less frequent.  

When he sat down, Frank removed his gun from his holster, and it reminded him of Karen, telling him he looked like someone that carried a weapon.

He let out a sigh and started his computer up.

The name “Karen Page” was the first thing he typed that day. He spent a good five minutes looking at the few pictures of her, smiling, those blue eyes that seemed photoshopped making him feel guilty.

Guilty because of that notion that kept repeating itself inside his head, no matter how many times he shook it off.

She was meant to be his.

And then he closed the tab and decided not to think about her for the rest of the day.

This little attraction had gone long enough. 

.:.

It sounded like an excuse, but she really didn’t have time to think about dating. There was so much on her plate at work, and she kept accepting more, how is she going to think about going on dates and partying with the few friends she did have?

When she wasn’t working, she was exhausted, trying to keep her place clean enough to live in.

“This one it gonna be it, I’m telling you”, said Alissa, after reading Karen’s newest interview.

“You like it?”

“Honey. Get ready for a new office and a fatter paycheck. You’re gonna get that editor spot.”

“Oh, my God, no, don’t jinx it!” she said, getting the flash-drive back from her friend and coworker.

“Karen. Come on. You sat with the freaking king of Wakanda, T’Challa himself, and got one of the most candid interviews I have ever seen him give someone in America, ever. This is it. Your ticket to stardom.” 

“So you think Ellison will like it?”

“Babe, he’s gonna have to fight some sharks to keep you after this is published, you just wait.”

Karen smiled, sending a silent prayer to a God she wasn’t really sure she believed in that Alissa was right. Not that she didn’t like her job, but, after two years, she was ready for something more. And a bigger pay wouldn’t hurt, either.

She didn’t have to wonder for long. The same day the interview was published, she got calls from the New York Times, The Washington Post and, maybe the best one, Trish Talk.

It was local, it was not as big and international as the other two, but she was a fan. Trish Walker was one of the most honest journalists out there, and Karen would be delighted if she got to work with her.

It would hurt to leave the Bulletin, especially leaving Ellison’s guidance, but, if Trish offered her a job, it would be very hard to say no.

End he fought for her, Ellison. Did what he could, offered some stuff he couldn’t, but, in the end, Trish wanted her too much. And Karen wanted that job. More independence, more creative room, less corporate bullshit. A much, much bigger salary.

Two months later, she was getting a tour of the station, a producer walking her around, showing how everything worked and introducing her to her new colleagues.

“This is your office, we hope you like it.”

“Oh, it’s great”, she said, trying not to look overwhelmed at all the space she had for herself, now.

“Trish is down the hall from you. She’s coming back from Budapest today, I think she’ll stop by to say hi. Anyway. If you need anything, Karen, my door is open”, said the elegant, older woman.

“Thank you, so much.”

“Welcome to the team”, and then she left, closing her door, letting Karen alone so she could make herself at home in her new office.

Trish did come back, an hour or two later, while she was finishing coming up with an email, trying to set up an interview with whoever was in charge of Shield these days.

“Let’s get lunch”, Trish said after hugging her and expressing how happy she was to work with Karen. “I’m starving.”

Lunch ended up taking the whole afternoon. They ate and talked and Trish told her about an idea for a big piece, asking for her opinion. Karen felt important, validated.

“Anyway. Welcome to the team!” Trish said when her car stopped on the curb. “I’m so excited to work with you. We’re gonna tear this city apart, you and me.”

Karen walked back to her place in a daze of happiness. On the way, she walked pass the Cuban bakery and waved at Cece.

It never failed. Walking past that place always, always reminded her of her mysterious friend, Frank, whose last name she didn’t even know, so she couldn’t even look him up. She could always ask the sisters, but, Karen figures, best if she doesn’t know. Why does she want to look up a married man, anyway?

Thinking that it had been almost three months since she saw him last, Karen took a deep breath, unwilling to admit that she missed him, but doing it anyway, to herself, shaking the thought away, along with the feeling of contentment that came every time she remembered his face.

.:.

Frank stood there on the sidewalk, holding his daughter’s hand, looking inside the big window that showed him the inside of the bakery.

There she was, after, what, almost two years? Frank had, honestly, thought that the image he had of her was not accurate, but there she was, proving him wrong.

He hadn’t looked her up again. He already felt too guilty over feeling so attracted to her, that crazy attraction he had never felt in his life before, but when things started to get rocky between him and Maria and he started to fantasize about this virtual stranger’s smile and voice and eyes and a bunch of other things, he decided to not feed his mind’s eye.

It hadn’t worked. His marriage was going down the drain, and she, Karen, kept popping up in his mind, at odd periods of time. Sometimes he would spend weeks without thinking about her, sometimes he would see her everywhere he looked, sometimes he would miss her enough to consider looking her phone up and calling her.

What he would say, he didn’t know.

“Come on, daddy!” Said Lisa, pulling him when the light turned, and he had to take his eyes from the woman he had been daydreaming (and night dreaming, if he was being completely honest with himself) about for two years, now. “I want a pastelito!” said Lisa, pulling him with all the strenght a three year old could muster, holding her dinosaur toy on her other hand.

They walked in and she ran to the counter to look up at the pastries through the display window.

“Stay close, baby”, he told her, turning his head towards Karen again, his heart starting to beat up a samba inside his chest when he found her looking at him.

Smiling at her - because he couldn’t help it - he took a glance at Lisa again, who was now behind the counter, in Elisa’s - the third sister - arms. The woman smiled at him and he pointed towards the back and she nodded.

“You mean to tell me” he started, trying to compose himself and not stutter or trip on his own feet. “That we’ve been sharing a table all this time, and I can’t even brag about it?”

Her answering smile was, he was glad to see, probably as excited as his. She beamed up at him, closing her book, raising her shoulders and then dropping them again.

“Hi, Frank”, she said, and it was like a gallon of warm water was poured on top of him. There it was, right on cue: the feeling that everything was right in the world, there was nothing that could touch him. He hadn’t imagined it.  

“Hello, ma’am.” 

“Am I occupying your table again?” she asked, a coy move of her face, and he wanted to ask her to do it again.

“If you have a spot for me, I’ll let it slide.”

Karen pointed to the vacant chair.

“Be my guest.”

He sat down and they looked at each other for five whole seconds before she blinked, smiling big again.

“I haven’t seen you in… What…”

“Two years, now”, he provided, happy to notice she hasn’t changed her perfume.

“Two years? Wow.”

“You’ve been up to a lot, huh?” he blurted out, mentally kicking himself when she looked at him, a question in her her eyes. “I’m a regular reader of yours.”

She raised her brows, surprised.

“Are you?”

They talked about her job, she told him about the Trish Talk offer after her interview with King T’Challa, her trips abroad covering other, bigger stories, and he gobbled up every word she said, feeling like a fuse had been fixed inside him.

“Daddy, I got a pastelito!” His daughter said, suddenly right there by his side, pulling on his sleeve and he turned to her, smiling at the big treat she showed him.

“Wow! That’s a big one, princess!”

“Wait a minute”, Karen said while he picked her up and sat her on his leg. “Don’t tell me this young woman is Lisa!”

His daughter blinked up at her and Frank rushed to make an introduction.

“Honey, this is Karen, a friend of daddy’s.”

“Hello!” she said, always so polite and open, he loved that about her. “I’m Lisa.”

“Oh, my goodness, you’re so big! The last time I saw you, you were tiny!”

To his surprise, Lisa loved to know they have met before, and started showering Karen with questions about every topic she could come up with.

“And how uh… How’s… The new baby?” Karen asked after answering all of Lisa’s questions.

“Frank Jr”, he said, pulling his phone from his pocket. “He’s great, almost two, now.”

He showed her a picture of him on his phone and the face she made, of absolute fondness, not the fake but polite kind he learned to be used to, made him want to pull her chair closer to his.

“Oh, Frank, he’s just precious. This is very late, but congratulations!”

Again, as if they had just seen each other yesterday, they fell into easy conversation, like they had every single time, and Frank thought that it wasn’t so wrong to admit, given that he would not be married for much longer: he had the biggest crush on this woman.

Except that word felt wrong. It felt… Lacking. He was not a writer, like her, but if he had to describe it, it felt like a spell. Like something out of this world, or something musicians came up with to sell records. It felt impossible.

“Now, you know what’s very unfair?” she asked, supporting an elbow on the table and resting her face on her knuckles and his eyes wandered down her wrist, to her elbow and then back. “You know all of these things about me, you read my stories and you watch my interviews, and I don’t even know what you do for a living.”

“Daddy’s a special agent”, Lisa provided, not raising her eyes from the game she was playing on his phone. “At Field.”

Karen looked at her, surprised, and Frank let out a breath.

“Well, so much for being mysterious”, he breathed out and Karen smiled at him while Lisa lifted her face from the phone, looking up at him, her cheeks dusted with sugar from the pastelito she had eaten.

“I’m sorry, daddy, was that a secret?”, she asked in what she imagined was a whisper, but it was as loud as her normal voice.

“No, princess”, he replied, dusting the sugar off her face, kissing her forehead. “And it’s Shield.”

She didn’t care. Went back to her game and left the conversation to be picked up by the adults.

“Is that true?” Karen asked.

“Yes, ma’am. You’re looking at the Director of Operations of the New York division.”

Karen chuckled and shook her head, her eyes falling from his.

“What?”

“I was just at Shield the other day”, she said, her voice different, now, lower. Intimate, almost. “I had a meeting with Director Coulson.”

He looked at her, surprised.

“That was you?”

“You- You knew?”

“I knew he was meeting a journalist, didn’t know which”. He felt his mouth curve in a smile. “He used my office for it. I was in Chicago, for a meeting.”

It wasn’t a meeting. It was a recon mission in Washington, but that was classified.

Karen’s eyes were conspiratorial on his.

“Sorry I missed you.”

“Yeah”, he said, after a second. “Me too.”

He didn’t tell her about his divorce. It felt, for some reason, too early, he didn’t want her to think he was insinuating something.

This time, when they parted ways, he had her phone and she had his, but nothing set for when they would see each other again.

But he was already thinking about an excuse to call her when she turned around to walk away.

.:.

The next time she heard from him, she was going to bed, and her phone vibrated on her bedside table.

“Just listened to your interview with the British MP”, read the text from Frank Castle and Karen’s heart beat a little faster inside her chest.

“And?” she replied.

“Did you keep his skin or did you make shoes out of it? The man was destroyed.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

They kept the easy back and forth for almost an hour, until, finally he asked if he was going to see her at the bakery the next morning - a Saturday.

She thought about his wife, and if he was just arranging a coffee with a friend or a coffee date with a woman.

And she thought about how he acted earlier that week. It was strange, he didn’t say anything about it, but he didn’t… Feel married.

Deciding fast, she typed her reply and hit send.

“You bet.”

.:.

When his skin touched hers for the first time, he shivered all over.

After their morning of coffee and easy conversation, they walked towards the park where they had first met, Max leading the way. Casually, she asked about his wife, and he was so happy she did, because that meant she was curious, that meant she wanted to know about it.

He told her about the divorce and she actually blushed.

“Oh, Frank, I’m sorry, I didn’t- I didn’t know.”

“It’s ok.”

As they walked, he told her about the struggles, about how confusing it was to love someone like he and Maria loved each other, but not being in love with each other anymore.

“Does that make sense?” he asked and she shrugged.

“I can’t really help you there, I’ve never been married.”

He wanted to ask if she had ever been in love, but it felt too soon. Somehow.

“I’m actually looking for an apartment”, he went on. “If you know about any good places, let me know.”

“Well”, she said, turning to him, placing a strand of blonde hair behind her ear, and he wanted to do that for her. “I’m moving, myself. Found a new place.”

“So you think I should get your old one?” he teased.

“No”, she smiled. “I mean in my new building. I guess there’s a few units vacant.”

Once again, he looked at her and she sustained it. He could hear his heart beating inside him.

“Yeah?”

She nodded.

“My old apartment doesn’t allow dogs, remember?”

Frank hummed an agreement, dropping his eyes from hers, looking at her lips instead.

“I’m moving next Friday”, she said, looking towards her shoes. “I could use a hand, actually. And you could see the building, see if it’s a good fit for you, the kids and Max here.”

“You got it, Miss Page”, he said after a beat.

When she hailed a cab, he wanted to ask her to stay and walk a little bit longer. But she had lunch with her parents, they were visiting from her hometown in Vermont.  

“Wish me luck”, she said before opening the door.

“Good luck”, he replied, stepping closer, pulling her by her waist to a hug. It felt like a hugging type of goodbye.

His cheek touched hers and he felt as if he had put a fork in an outlet, but it was pleasant, a good kind of shock, the kind that one could easily become addicted to.

“I’ll see you, Frank”, she said in his ear, looking at him that way, that wonderful way, and then turning around to get in the car.

“Holy shit”, he breathed to himself as she drove away, shaking his head, trying to get rid of the dazed feeling.

He had to kiss this woman. 

.:.

He showed up at nine in the morning of the moving day with coffee.

Soon, Karen was watching as he took leadership of the four movers putting her furniture inside the truck, musing that he was bossy, with a certain edge to him. It made her feel good inside.

On lunch time, they ordered take out for everyone, and the men thanked him when Frank asked if they liked Chinese. He payed for everything.

“You don’t have to do that, Frank.”

“I want to”, he said, very close to her face, after standing between her and the counter where her purse sat.

She showed him the common areas of the building after the movers job was done and she had payed them. It was significantly better than her previous building. She could afford it, now.

“You might’ve just gained a new neighbor, ma’am.”

She felt something purr inside her every time he called her that.

It was night, now, and he stayed, putting her furniture together while she read manuals and handed him tools.

“Shouldn’t your boyfriend be helping you with this stuff?” he asked and she smiled.

Smooth.

“I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“No?”, he asked, side smile on his lips, the wires of her TV on his left hand. “Who was that guy on the phone a few hours ago, then?”

This was getting pretty serious, she thought, smiling coyly.

“Former boyfriend”, Karen said. “Current friend.”

He finished sorting out the cables and plugging her TV, but she watched his face closely while he mulled over that information.

“Stupid man”, was his conclusion, and she had to laugh. “Alright, it should work. Give it a try.”

She pressed the button on the remote and the TV turned on, the cable channels were ok. She breathed out a victory “yes” and he clapped once, already moving to the next task.

At two in the morning, she had wifi, a working tv, functioning kitchen, all her furniture was put together, all that needed to be sort out now were the many boxes with all her trinkets and clothes and decoration.

“Thank you, a million times, Frank, you’re a life savior”, she said when he picked up his coat, ready to leave. “I’ll talk to the landlord tomorrow, see if I can get an application for you.”

“Alright”, he said, walking towards the door, turning around towards her when he reached it, looking in her eyes that way he did. “If you need anything, just holla.”

She wanted to ask “anything?”, because there were a few things she could see herself needing from him tonight, but she just pressed her lips together and nodded.

“Night, Karen.”

“Goodnight, Frank.”

He stood there with a hand on the door knob, looking at her, and she felt as if he could see everything, straight into her soul.

That magnet she felt like she had swallowed came to life inside her, and she took a step towards him at the same time he took one towards her. His hand was on the back of her neck and then his mouth was on top of hers, and she was shivering violently, hands closing in fists around the fabric of his shirt, opening her mouth to his, melting when he moaned, guiding her face, swiping her tongue against hers, bringing her closer, holding her against him.

Was it always supposed to feel like this, kissing someone? Because this was completely new. Never in her life has Karen experienced this kind of sensation, this kind of physical connection while being kissed, it had never felt this amazing.

Dropping his coat, he held her with both hands, pressing her against him, a hand on her hair and she was not disappointed. That kind of kiss she had come to think was just something she would experience in her dreams, where one is almost brutally handled but, at the same time, with care and a very particular kind of urgency, was there. She had it, finally.

Frank really was the personification of her type of man, that same one she could not explain to anyone.

They spent God knows how long like that, kissing each other with a hunger that betrayed just how long they both have been waiting for this, and she felt like something inside her was finally working right.

It’s him, accused a part of her brain.

When she detached her mouth from his, she was gasping, her lips were tingling, she was vibrating from the inside, her skin felt electric. Karen felt him smiling against her face, placing a chaste kiss on her cheek before closing his hand around her jaw, turning her to him again, and she went willingly.

Slowing down, he pressed his forehead against hers, breathing hard.

“I should go”, he said, and she lifted a hand to run the tip of her fingers on his lips.

“Ok”, she said, because she understood that this might be a bit complicated for him, what with his divorce being in the early stages.

“Ok”, he echoed, burying his face in the curve of her neck, tightening his arms around her and she did the same, hugging him back, hands roaming over his back in what she hoped was a soothing caress. “Ok, I’m going.”

He kissed her again while turning the key on the door, opening it to the empty hallway outside her new apartment. It was Karen’s turn to pull him back to her when he made to walk away, pressing a big one on him, nibbling on his lower lip lightly, saving the taste of him in her mind.

She smiled when he turned around, towards the elevator, shook his head vigorously and ran a hand on his face, walking away and pressing the button.

Frank stood there waiting for the elevator and she leaned on the door, watching him. When he looked her way after a few seconds, she smiled and chewed on her lower lip, sustaining his look.

Her breathing came harder again when he turned back towards her and took big, sure steps back to her door, grabbing her face in his big hand and kissing her again, stepping inside and closing the door behind them. Karen wrapped her arms around him, opening her mouth to his, letting out a whimpering when his hand slid from her back and his fingers gripped her butt.

Nothing had, ever before, felt as right as this.

.:.

He had been happy when he married Maria. He had really learned what love meant when Lisa was born, and again when he first held Frank Jr. in his arms for the first time.

Frank was no stranger to love, that’s not the point here. What was new to him was this sense of… Completion.

She’s not a quiet sleeper. Karen will start the night on her side, hugging the extra pillow to her, blond hair swept away from her face. By morning, the pillow would be on the floor, the covers would be tangled around her and Frank’s feet would be cold.

But he would not trade the nights by her side by anything.

She’s sleeping on her stomach one morning and, to his surprise, he has a decent portion of the covers to himself. Turning to his right, Frank runs a hand up and down her back and she stirs, groaning.

He pulls her to him while she is still asleep, kissing the back of her head, turning her around and hugging her to his chest, breathing deep, every part of him relaxing.

“You’re the part that’s been missing of my soul”, he whispers against her hair, out of nowhere, knowing, deep inside his chest, in his skin and his bones, that  he had found her. The absolute, only, perfect love of his life. She was it. She was it.

She was it.

Later, much later, when night is falling again, he feels her lips on his forehead and he wakes back up, alert, looking down at the boy sleeping in his arm, quietly.

“Maybe we should put this one to bed?” she asks, softly, caressing his face, walking away to get her coat off. Frank walks to the kid’s bedroom, where Lisa is passed out in her bed, dinosaur toys scared all around her, and places Frankie in his crib.

Walking back to the living room after covering Lisa and leaving a nightlight for them, Frank finds her biting on an apple in the kitchen. Turning her to him, he hugs her and hides his face in her neck, and she caresses his back.

When he raises his head to kiss her, it feels like the world is righting itself around them. It happens every time.

“Happy anniversary”, she whispers against his mouth, with a smile, and he groans.

“Damnit. I was hoping you would forget.”

She frowns, mocking, and runs her hands on his face.

“Forget the day I met the love of life? You must be crazy, Mr. Castle.”

They stood there in the kitchen, holding each other, feeling like the world slows down as they do.

“I love you”, she whispers, her heart beating against his while he holds her.

“I love you”, he whispers back.

They were it.

It was the darndest thing.