“You need more water, Lex. You’re dehydrated.” I passed her the big bottle I grabbed when I picked up Addison’s lunch, knowing it would come in handy.
Alexa guzzled half of it before pulling the bottle away from her mouth. She touched her lips and turned to her best friend. “Do you have ChapStick in your bag, Addie?”
“Of course, babe. Never leave home without it,” Addison said, searching around in her small purse before producing lip balm. “I’m so proud of you, girl. You kicked ass today.” Addison sat down next to her and gave her a hug, while rubbing her back.
“How are you, Lex? What hurts? I saw you limping.” I needed to figure out if it was a muscle cramp gone horribly wrong, or something more serious.
“My left knee. I took a corner wrong at mile twenty-four, and it buckled underneath me. It fucking hurts so bad.” Her tears welled up again.
“Okay, let’s get you home to my place and assess where we go from there. It’s wicked swollen. It needed ice like four miles ago.” I looked over at Addison. “Can you run home and grab her enough clothes for a few days and meet us at my place?”
“Of course.” Addison gave Alexa another squeeze before she got up and left.
“Okay, champ. Let’s get you out of here. You feeling okay to move?”
“I can’t walk, Luke.”
Silly girl thought I would make her walk home. I unlaced her sneakers and yanked them and her sweat soaked socks off her feet. An audible sigh of relief left Alexa’s mouth once she was free from the constraints of her shoes. Huge, angry blisters covered her feet.
“I know, babe. You’ll ride in style all the way home.” I stood up, pulling her with me, and helped her balance on one leg. I turned around, giving her my back. “Hop up a little, and I’ll catch you. Just hold your stinky shoes for me.”
“Luke, it’s a long way home. You can’t be serious. I’m sweaty and gross.” Alexa spoke softly.
“First off, you look gorgeous. B. It’s not that far. And three, I ate my Wheaties this morning. Come on, Lex. Let’s get you home on my couch with a bag of peas on that knee.”
“You know you numbered wrong, right?” Alexa laughed as she gave a quick hop, and I grabbed under her ass and pulled her higher up my back.
I knew it was wrong, but I couldn’t stop myself and gave her tight ass a squeeze. My hands palmed her cheeks perfectly. Alexa gave me a giggle and a slap to the side of my head. We found a way out of the tent and walked home.
“No, I did it just fine. Now hush up and enjoy your ride.”
*****
“Why did Addison need to pack a few days’ worth of clothes? I have work tomorrow,” Alexa said as we neared The Ritz. It seemed to have just dawned on her that twenty minutes ago, I asked Addison to pack so much. My girl was wiped out.
“You most certainly are not working tomorrow. You can barely walk. You’ll be at the doctor getting your knee looked at. And how do you think you’ll get up all those stairs to your place, huh? I don’t think your landlord wants to put in a chair lift thing for you.”
Alexa inhaled deeply and let it out slowly. “But, but…”
“You don’t have a single rebuttal, so shush your delicious mouth.” I turned my head to look at her, and puckered up, demanding a kiss. She bent down and laid a big smacker with exaggerated noise and everything.
After an eight-block hike, we finally reached my building. I put Alexa down on her good leg once we stepped into the elevator. It was a good thing she was light because that was a long walk. Granted, it wasn’t twenty-six point two miles.
As soon as we entered the house, I carried her to my lounger and laid her down. I captured her lips with mine, something I had been waiting to do since I saw her running down the street. “I’m so proud of you, Lex. Let me go grab some frozen veggies for your knee, and a banana for your empty stomach.”
“I prefer corn. Peas freak me the fuck out,” she hollered from the other room as I entered the kitchen.
“Peas freak you out? Please explain,” I said, sticking my head out the door, looking at her with a puzzled face.
“My dad used to squish them with his fork and then eat them with his mashed potatoes. It grossed me out. They always made this sound when he jammed his fork down. Then I made the mistake of telling Addison, so now she does it on purpose to see me freak.” Alexa made a face of complete disgust as she told the tale.
“You’re in luck! I have organic frozen corn. Only the best for you,” I joked as I placed the bag on her injured knee.
“You spoil me. Organic. Wow,” Alexa teased as I swooped in for another kiss. While the corn rested on her knee, she gave me a rundown of the race, and how she hurt herself.
“How’s the corn feeling?”
“Still hurts like a motherfucker. But the corn feels nice.” She settled into the couch after she spoke, sinking her head in the cushions, and relaxed.
“I’m going to go draw a bath for you, and bring you some ibuprofen. Be right back. Addison should be here soon.” I gave her a quick peck before heading down the hallway.
The master bathroom had a huge soaking tub that had never been used by me or my company. If I had to guess, one of my sisters might have used it when I’d been out of town, since bath salts magically appeared under my sink. After I sprinkled the girly stuff into the tub, I grabbed a bottle of anti-inflammatories and headed into the living room to Alexa.
“The tub will take a few minutes to fill. Take a few of these.” I shook three pills into her palm. “You’ve got to be starving. Want to order some pizza? I can call in a few pies, and Addison can join us.”
“That would be great. Will you help me get to the bathroom?”
“I’ll even help you out of your clothes, babe. That’s just the kind of guy I am. Full service boyfriend.” I winked at her while I hoisted her into my arms and headed down the hall.
“Settle down, tiger. Thank you for everything you’re doing for me. I probably should have thought about all of this before.”
“No need to thank me. I’m happy to be able to help.” I looked up at her bright smile, and couldn’t keep the words in any longer. “I love you, Lex. I’d do anything for you.”
Alexa’s mouth created an adorable O as she gazed up at me. “Oh, Luke, I love you, too.”
Gently standing her on her feet, I kissed her with everything I had. My tongue explored every corner of her mouth. When I couldn’t get enough of her, I grabbed onto the back of her head, and pulled her even closer to me. I needed more.
When I broke away, her hair was disheveled, her lips plumped and bruised, and her eyes shone brighter than the Hancock Building. I yanked her tank top and sports bra over her head, and placed a kiss on each of her nipples. As I pushed down her shorts and thong, I softly teased along her stomach and a little lower.
“Luke,” Alexa whispered.
“I want to make love to you so bad, Lex. I want to worship you until you know, with every inch of your body, that I love you. But I know that can’t happen today, and probably not tomorrow. I’ll wait as long as possible for you to heal. Till then, I’ll cherish every touch we share.”
I lifted Alexa into the bath, helping her steady her weight before she slunk down under the cold water.
“Oh, shit! This is freezing.”
“I know. I’m sorry, but it’s what’s best for your muscles right now.” Just as I went to sit on the edge of the tub, my house phone rang. “I’ll be right back.” I jogged to the kitchen to answer.
“Hello.”
“Yes, Luke, I have Ms. Addison Bradford here for you. Can I send her up?” Stacey, the concierge, asked.
“Yes, please. She doesn’t know my unit number, so please, tell her. Thank you.” I hung up and walked back to the bathroom.
“Addison’s on her way up. Do you want me to send her in?”
“Yes, please. She can keep me company.”
“What do you want on your pizza? I’ll call as soon as Addison gives me her order,” I said.
“Ummm, I want pepperoni, sausage, and extra cheese. Can we order wings, too? I’m starving. I ran a lot today, tiger.” Alexa gave me a pouty face, which on most women, I found horribly annoying, but on Alexa, it was adorable.