Faking It • Queen FanFiction

Chapter 79

When Bernie awoke the next morning, her mind was still in the ecstasy of last night. A smile came to her face as she laid awake, tucked up under the thick duvet with Roger beside her. If she thought hard enough, she could still feel Roger's touch lingering on her skin and it almost made her fall back into her pit of desire.

Today could be the day. Today, she could go to her old flat with armed policemen, barge into the one next to hers and arrest that little bastard, squeezing out his livelihood for all it was worth by getting him put in the slammer once and for all. Of course, there were other crimes he was infinitely guilty of, but Bernie didn't want to speak up about those. She still felt so violated and wanted to move firmly onwards, away from Holden and his primitive brutishness.

Swinging her legs over the bed, ready to get up, she squealed in shock when she heard a tired groan behind her and felt a firm arm pull her back under the sheets. "Well good morning to you too, Roger," Bernie giggled as she was pressed into Roger's body, his lips greeting her good morning as they found her jaw, neck, shoulders. Sighing, she turned around so they were face to face. His hair was a fluffy mess and he had a prickly morning shadow that scratched against her skin.

Then, a wicked grin came to her face and she bit her tongue to stop herself from laughing. "What?" Roger rasped. Bernie loved the way his voice sounded in the morning and late at night, when he was sleepy. It was hoarse, low and - to her - incredibly sexy.

"Here's a thank you gift for last night," she wiggled her eyebrows cheekily and pressed her lips to his, swinging her legs over his hips. One thing she loved about Roger was that he often slept without any clothes on, making his body much more accessible to her lips, which she took full advantage of; spurred on by the sounds falling from his mouth.

When her mouth reached his waistline, she hesitated for a moment, just to tease Roger a bit, before carrying on lower and lower. It seemed he was ready for her and his eyes flickered in pleasure, breathing hard and letting profanities fall from his lips. Despite his efforts to hold out for longer, he lasted merely ten minutes before he couldn't not give out. Bernie trailed more kisses up until she reached his collarbone, where she made sure to leave marks.

"I have to get up," Bernie smiled as Roger clung onto her, keeping her cosy against his body under the sheets. This was the feeling of peace she'd longed for for so much longer than she originally thought. Just to wake up next to somebody and feel safe was a luxury that she hoped would last forever.

"No you don't," Roger exhaled heavily and leant his head towards her, catching her smiling lips with his. She revelled in the gentleness before begrudgingly breaking off.

"I really do." Another kiss, slightly firmer this time. "I do... I do..." Between every word was a kiss that became longer and more passionate each time; and made Bernie's stomach flutter. His hands brushed up her arms and cupped the nape of her neck, holding her close as they embraced. "I do!" With great difficulty, she stole one final kiss before whipping back she sheets and standing up. The carpet was cold under her feet. Looking down, she realised that she too was not wearing any clothes and turned around to face Roger, who admired her with a glint in his eyes.

"I'm so lucky," he smiled and Bernie shuffled her feet, not knowing how to accept the compliment. She'd always got a 'you're so hot' or an 'i love your body'. But to receive an 'I'm so lucky' was another matter. She knew that the beauty he saw in her wasn't just based off of her body, but the characteristics embedded in her personality, too. The little things she never even noticed she did: like constantly playing with her hair and how she always crossed her arms when she was making a point. Smiling on the inside, she made her way to the bathroom.

Whilst waiting for the shower water to warm up, which took ages in the cold weather, Bernie stopped for a moment to stand in front of the mirror and look at the woman reflecting back at her. Since moving out for good, knowing Flo was assured too, her eyes were brighter and those horrid dark circles underneath them were fading. When she closed her eyes she felt relaxed. Gone were the days where to close your eyes for a second would be to put yourself at risk. That's what it always felt like, anyway.

Bernie became aware that the water had been running for quite a while now and she hadn't even stepped into the shower yet, so she stole away from the mirror above the sink and bundled her hair into a messy bun atop her head and stepped into the shower. The water was bliss, warming her through to her core.

Halfway through the shower, Roger knocked on the bathroom door. "Can I come in? I really, really need a piss."

Bernie was baffled, but poked her arm out through the gap in the curtain and unlocked the door. She was one of the people who would say 'nothing you can say or do can shock me', she was fairly sure she'd seen and heard it all by now, but apparently she was wrong.

"You know what Roger, never in my life has anybody done anything so romantic as coming in to have a slash whilst I'm in the shower." She said from behind the curtain, a hint of laughter and bewilderment in her voice.

"Well, I am one of a kind. And which would you prefer, me interrupting your shower, or-"

"Yeah, yeah, don't say the rest. Ew." She grimaced from behind the curtain, still not able to subside her laughter.

Secretly, Roger was dying to join her, but knew her boundaries by now and didn't want to push them. She was one of the most peculiar women he'd ever met, but so far she was his favourite. Bernie had her own agenda and lived her life on the ethos that she didn't owe anything to anybody. Thinking about it, that had probably made her life much simpler...

"Roger, can you do me a favour please." Bernie called from behind the curtain as Roger finished his business and was drying his hands on the blue shell-patterned towel Bernie had brought with her. Previously, he'd never thought to have patterned stuff, but it was nice. Added some pizzazz to the bathroom.

"Anything for you, gorgeous." He smiled.

"Can you please get my towel out of the cupboard and then get your arse in here."

Roger had never moved faster.

19/3/24