Thomas & January (Sleepless 2)

“You mean besides you?”

“Stop,” she laughed.

“How about we grab a bottle and meet the gang for a game or something.”

“Yeah, that’s it. That’s what we’re doing tonight.” January got on with my friends better than I did, it seemed. “Well, that and making out.”

I grinned at her. “Oh, you’d like to make out with me, J?” I asked, wrapping my arms around her waist and blowing into her neck.

She laughed. “Hell yeah I do.”

Music was playing in the room so I swung her in my arms and began dancing with her, shifting her from side to side. Her hair swayed across the hand I had splayed against her back and I felt her shiver at my touch. God, how she affected me with her reactions.

“How about we skip the wine, our friends and the game and go right to the make out part.”

“Okay,” she said in a silly voice.

I attacked her neck with my lips, following up her jaw and kissing her lips softly and slowly. Lazily, taking my sweet ass time, I tasted her tongue, running my own against the ridge of her teeth.

“I love you, January,” I said, when the kiss broke.

“I love you too, Tom.”

I ran my hands down her face and lightly squeezed her cheeks, puckering her lips a little. I kissed them and brought my hands down.

That’s when we realized we had an audience, and a large one at that. January’s face lit up to impossible shades of red and I instinctively tucked her into my side.

“Sorry, we didn’t realize you were waiting,” I apologized.

“It’s okay,” the photographer smiled, as he put up his camera “you’re done. You’re free to go.”

“Oh,” January said, “but I thought - never mind. Cool.”

We wrapped up the shoot and decided to head to my apartment. Grandma Betty’s wasn’t exactly conducive to make out sessions, if that wasn’t already obvious. My lease was up a few weeks after I got the R&D position and January helped me move into my own place. Yeah, it was a studio, but it was mine and I’d never had anything to myself before.

“When do the mags come out?” January asked, rummaging through my fridge for a Coke.

“Next month, on the first. They’re sending us our own box.”

What I hadn’t told January and for a very good reason was that I ensured they’d go to her studio on a day I knew we’d both be there because this magazine wasn’t just an article on what we did for Seven. Oh no, it was much, much more.

“Oh, cool,” she said, popping the top off the glass bottle in her hand.

“Come here,” I said, tossing myself on my bed and flipping the stereo on.

She took a swig and set the bottle on the bar before coming over and cuddling into my side.

“I like this,” she said getting comfortable and kissing my neck.

Get used to it, I thought.

We kissed for hours. I didn’t know how many more make out sessions I was going to be able to endure. I found her fascinating and every time I touched her, I felt more and more drawn to her.

“Come on,” I told her later as she was falling asleep.

She groaned in displeasure. “Let me just sleep here,” she complained.

“No, come on. I’ll take you to Sam’s.” Sam’s is where January would sleep sometimes on the weekends. Sam didn’t care because she was barely there and I had peace of mind at Sunday night dinners with Grandma Betty and her curious eyes. That woman saw all. Especially since our last "conversation."