I Always Will

Changes & Time

Row 1 Month Later

Good-byes always makes me cry. Over the years, Riley and I have had a lot of them.

When Strut was on tour and he was coming and going from the tour while we were secretly dating. The times that we decided to break up because my father found out about us. Even after we were solid, the many times Riley would head out for an extended stint of Soundcrush touring or publicity. When we were newly married, and he would have to leave New Zealand while we were living apart.

The saddest goodbye was every time we had sex after I cheated on him, and he was trying to work his way to leaving me.

We've been through so many difficult things. And that doesn't include my miscarriage, the stabbing, his accident, the drugs, or our floundering career as a duo.

Now we're having another difficult moment. I've woken up crying on the morn of yet another good-bye, and he's woken up hard as I've ever felt his cock against my back. I brush a tear away and try to roll from the bed, but he slides a hand onto my bare belly, holding me in place.

"Row," he whispers in my ear. "If you don't give me those tears and let me turn them into something hot and gorgeous in our last moments in this house, I swear I'm going to burn it down. No profit. No new album. You think I care? Hell no. All I care about is loving you. You aren't letting me do a very good job of it this morning, darling."

My face is wet, but I find myself giggling at him. The sound echoes in our utterly empty home. All the carpets, curtains, and furnishings were removed yesterday. All our personal effects had been gone for a couple of weeks before that since we put it on the market. All that's here is a mattress and our overnight bag. We close a cash sale and hand over the keys in...

I reach for my phone.

Fuck! We've overslept!

"Riley!" I squeal, reaching for my shirt. "Oh my god, we're going to be late to the lawyers. We can't be late—we're getting a bonus for the sale to go through in one day!"

"Don't care," he murmurs, rolling on top of me, reaching for my arm that's grasping for clothes, and bending it above my head. "All I care about is making one last memory with you here. All I care about is—"

"A happy ending?" I say sarcastically, reaching with my other hand for his shirt. He can either put it on, or I can choke him with it.

"Precisely." He grabs his shirt from me, wiping the wetness from my face before tossing it out of my reach. That hand goes above my head too, while he kisses me thoroughly and makes a place for himself between my legs.

Since he got clean, his newfound spiritual peace can sometimes be a little annoying when I need him to hustle. He's like Leed, but smarter, and more exasperating. At least Ashlynn can pretty much get Leed to do whatever she wants, whenever she wants. Riley does only what his inner voice moves him to. Granted, his inner voice has been amazing at making miracles happen for us in the last few weeks. But right now, it's clear that his inner voice is telling him to fuck the bejesus out of me, and it's going to cost us that bonus if we miss our closing appointment.

"The quick-sale bonus is supposed to buy our new house Asheville," I whisper seductively in his ear, but I've already lost the argument because he's now kissing down my collarbone and my nipples are hardening in anticipation.

"It will. All I need is ten minutes to make this the best goodbye of your life."

He licks wickedly around one nipple and then the other. I watch him, and he watches me watch him. He's so gorgeous when he abandons himself to desire.