Alchemy and Algebra

Chapter 7

The drive back to Charlie's place was pure torture of the very best kind. Kennedy's brain replayed all her favorite scenes from the last night she'd spent with Charlie, and spliced in some new fantasies she'd added in the days since. She really needed to get her brain to calm down so that she wasn't disappointed by the real thing.

She was trying not to shoot too many meaningful glances at Charlie because, although he was technically following the rules of the road, he was driving more aggressively than he had on the way to the stadium.

When the orange light turned red just as they approached the intersection, Charlie unbuckled his seat-belt and reached for Kennedy. She reached for him so quickly that her seat-belt, assuming some sort of danger was occurring, locked into place. A tiny frustrated growl escaped from her lips before she got her own seat-belt unlocked and crashed into Charlie, kissing him for all she was worth. In the relative privacy of his car, Charlie let his hands roam much more freely.

Kennedy's brain had finally shut up for the duration of the kiss, but when the car behind them honked in annoyance at their slow start when the light changed it was like a green light for the dirty thoughts movie to start playing again, but at a higher frame-rate after that brief, passionate kiss. Their next date needed to take place much closer to home, she decided.

After what felt like hours, they finally pulled into the parking space behind Charlie's building, just around the corner from the alley in which Kennedy had been introduced to Howl. They walked down the alley and came to the back door of the shop After another small eternity, Charlie had the door unlocked and the alarm code entered. Then it was only a microsecond more before Charlie smashed his body into hers. His lips moved furiously with want and his hands were everywhere. Kennedy struggled to keep up with the fast-paced dance of his mouth and tongue and body, clumsy in her haste. Charlie ground the evidence of his arousal against her lower belly. She stood on tiptoe to move it closer to where she most wanted it to be.

Charlie walked Kennedy backwards towards the stairs, apparently unwilling to break their kiss even for the short time it would take to cross the stockroom. He spun her around and tried to open the door to his private staircase one-handed, and thumped the door in irritation when he twisted the handle and found it locked. He fumbled in his jeans pocket for his keys and turned his torso away from Kennedy long enough to open the lock, but kept one hand down the back of her jeans and kept her hips pressed close against his. He pulled his scarf over his head, then his sweater, and dropped them on the floor before pulling all of Kennedy close to him.

Through the thin fabric of his snug-fitting tee-shirt, the firm muscles of his back and shoulders shifted beneath Kennedy's hands as his own roamed her body. She took a backwards step up the bottom stair and found that it put her at eye-level with Charlie, and took advantage of their equal heights to hook a leg behind him. He let out a deep sigh, put his hands under her butt and lifted her in the air. She gasped in surprise when he started climbing the stairs, and wrapped her legs tightly around him. Every step he climbed jogged her most sensitive parts against his pronounced bulge. It was the singular most memorable trip up the stairs she'd ever had.

Charlie, breathing hard, hit the light switch in the hallway with his elbow, carried Kennedy into his bedroom, and dropped them bouncing onto his bed. Kennedy's clothes felt like a suit of armor: too heavy, too thick, and entirely unnecessary at the moment. They felt far too tight, almost like they were strangling her.

No, wait. Charlie was resting his hand on one end of her scarf.

"Can you sit up, please?. I need to take some clothes off."

"I'm not going to argue with that," Charlie said. He sat back on his heels, bouncing on them with the excess energy that radiated from him. He looked like he was ready to take on the world.