The Honeymoon Period (The Austin Series) (16 page)

‘Sorry, I’m
fine,’ I flashed him a quick smile.

‘Mia “
fine”
with you means, no I’m not
.
’

‘My head’s
just racing, Gabe. I’ve my own apartment full of clothes where I haven’t been
in four weeks, half of my stuff is at your house and we’re going to your new
place to discuss plans there. I’m all over the place.’

‘It’s
our
new place Mia, not my new place. What are you saying? You want to go home to
yours?’

‘I think I
ought to Gabe, I know you’re still off sick but you’re coping on your own now
and I’d like to spend some time with Lexi. I’ve hardly seen her lately, we
missed Movie Tuesday and our girls Friday this week.’

‘Am I
suffocating you? Do you need time away from me?’ I could hear the worry in his
voice so I flashed him a reassuring smile before turning my eyes back to the
road.

‘Gabe, I’d
tell you if I needed time away from you, but I would like to have some time alone
with Lexi and a few nights at my place now and then, you know, and not be
carting bloody suitcases back and forth. I feel like a nomad.’

‘Ok, so
when we go shopping this afternoon, I’ll buy all the toiletries and makeup you
use and some spare clothes for you to leave at mine. I’ll do the same for my
stuff to leave at yours. That way we can stay at each other’s whenever we like
without worrying about packing bags.’

‘That’s
crazy,’ I said as I pulled into my space in the car park.

‘Not if it
works for us, Mia. I don’t mind staying at yours some nights too, but I’ll also
need to stay at mine to be near the pool. I’m going to have to start swimming
again to start getting my shoulder strength back. You want to sleep apart?’

‘No, of
course not.’

‘So it’s
settled. Once we’re done here, we’ll grab something to eat and head off to do
some shopping. Then I’d like to fuck you before we go out to dinner, I never
got to finish you off on the dining table.’

‘I don’t
know if I can have sex again when your dad’s in the house.’

‘You do it
with Lexi and Doug about and don’t seem to have a problem climaxing in clubs or
restaurants.’

‘He’s your
dad
.’

‘So I’ll
gag you.’ He sounded serious and I looked over at him and realised I didn’t
find the idea of being cuffed and gagged totally unappealing. ‘Come on, move it.’
We headed up the stairs, which felt so unfamiliar. I’d spent more time at
Gabe’s than in my own apartment since I moved to the city. I looked over at
number five, my door, and then back to number six, his door, and saw him
smiling at me. ‘See, perfect. You can have movie night and get drunk with Lexi
then cross the hall to come to bed with me.’

We headed
inside, I’d only seen the floor plans and a few pictures on the agent’s details,
but it was bigger than my place, albeit with smaller rooms. Gabe held my hand
as we walked around and reminded me of what we wanted to do. As we stood at the
back of the apartment in what would be part of our bedroom and I listened to
him all excited, I had the urge to squeeze him tightly and press my face
against his chest. I was going to have to seriously consider having therapy and
really facing up to my past, I wasn’t prepared to walk away from him. Not even
when he’d been such an irritable domineering jerk the last month, I still loved
him with all my heart.

‘Baby
what’s wrong? Don’t you like our plans?’

‘I love
them, I love you. I love you so much Gabe, you know that right?’

‘Of course
I do. Mia, what’s going on?’ The intercom buzzed in the distance, giving me an
out and I let him go and kissed him quickly.

‘Come on,
he’s here.’ I grabbed his hand and dragged him to the front door and let Tom
the architect in. He was in his mid-forties with dark hair and green eyes and ruggedly
attractive. He’d been recommended to Gabe by his dad, who’d used him on the Westhampton
office space and their own house alterations. He smiled and shook our hands and
Gabe led him into the kitchen where he laid out the agreed plans and we walked
around with them getting our bearings. I held Gabe’s hand as he took charge of
the discussion. I looked up at him, he was so excited, I was too, but he was
like kid in a sweet shop. I felt my heart bloom to see him so happy again.

‘Baby, what
do you think?’

‘Sorry,
about what?’

‘Where are
you today? You seem totally out of it. Tom was just saying scrap the guest toilet
and use that space as a walk in larder and put an extra door here to our main
bathroom to let guests use that.’

‘I’m sorry
Tom, I was day dreaming. Would you mind running it past me again?’

We wanted
the back of the apartment to have a large bedroom with walk through closet and
a bathroom big enough for a walk in shower, bath, dual sinks, a toilet and I’d
asked for a bidet. The rest of the apartment going to be open plan, except for
a gap between the kitchen and our bedroom wall where we were going to house a
walk in utility and closed off guest toilet. Tom’s suggestion meant leaving a
door at each end of the open plan space, one to our bedroom and one to the
bathroom. Having most of the food in a walk in larder, meant we’d have less
cupboards on the wall at the back of the kitchen and we could have some
floating shelves to display items. We’d then have a large open plan area left
to fit in the lounge and dining room and Gabe’s stipulation for his pool table,
pinball, retro juke box and a gaming area. Sometimes with everything we’d gone
through, I kept forgetting we were only teenagers, both still just big kids at
heart.

‘I love it
as long as it won’t stop us fitting all of the bathroom items in?’ I didn’t add
“
because we like a large walk in shower and big bath to fuck in and I want
to be able to clean up quickly every time Gabe comes inside me.”

‘
Mia, when we take down all these walls we’ve a very
large foot print to play with. It’s at least twelve metres wide from front to
rear aspect and twenty-one metres in length, we’ve more than enough room based
on what you want to fit in and your proposed layout.’

‘There’s a
couple of extra things I didn’t discuss with you over the phone, Tom,’ Gabe
advised. ‘We want a pole installing but I’m thinking that it will need to go in
this games area.’

‘A pole?’
he asked as I flushed and looked at the floor.

‘Yes, a
floor to ceiling one. Mia likes working out pole dancing at home, but I’ve
looked into it and she’d need approximately a two and a half metre clear radius
to do it in. I’m not sure how we’d do it without it getting in the way.’

‘Well, you
could put it here to take advantage of the two metres wide walkway from the
front door to the dining table. If you put the pool table on lockable castors,
it could be moved out of the way giving you the extra space that side.’

‘That
sounds great. What do you think, Mia?’

‘Yes. Great,
thanks,’ I replied, wondering how much more embarrassing this day could get.
All I needed to complete my mortification limit was for Gabe to ask Tom to
build a ceiling rack with moving chains in the bedroom, Christian Grey playroom
style.

‘What was
the other thing you wanted to add?’

‘I need the
apartment sound proofing as much as possible for the neighbours below and next
door. We like loud music and TV and don’t want to upset anyone.’ Gabe smiled at
me. I knew he was thinking more about how loud we were having sex and I blushed
again.

‘Not a
problem. What time scale do you have to complete it?’

‘New Year’s
Eve, the absolute latest.’

‘That’s
tight Gabe, it’ll need some very precise planning to pull it off.’

‘That’s
what I’m paying you for Tom, I’m happy to be involved on the project management
side and Mia and I are accessible at any stage if you have questions, but I
need it done by then. We’ll order the kitchen and bathroom fittings now and
they can be stored at mine until you’re ready to have them fitted.’

‘I better
get on it then. Pleasure to see you again, Mia,’ he shook my hand and smiled
before Gabe showed him out.

‘New Year’s
Eve, Gabe? It’ll never happen.’

‘It will,’
he said firmly as he came and put his arms around me. ‘Because I want to start
the New Year with you in our new home. We could throw a party, then throw
everyone out and you could give me a very private pole dance.’ I laughed and he
grinned. ‘I like seeing you laugh, Mia. Are you really ok? You’ve been out of
it since I woke you up.’

‘I’m better
than ok Gabe, I’m very excited about this. Come on, let’s stick our head next
door and see if Lexi’s in for a quick drink then we better get shopping if we’re
going to have time for sex and get ready for our meal.’ We locked up and I
knocked on my front door to avoid an incident like this morning. When there was
no reply, I opened the door and yelled for her. ‘I don’t think she’s in. Come
on, let’s grab some water and we can head off.’ I walked through to the kitchen
and stopped dead in my tracks and Gabe ran into the back of me.

‘Holy shit,
what the hell happened in here?’ he asked as we surveyed the bomb site of my
once perfectly clean and organised kitchen. There were dirty plates, utensils
and empty take away boxes and bottles everywhere. The bin was overflowing and
the sink was full of more stuff to be washed.

‘Lexi,’ I
sighed.

‘Lexi
and
Doug by the looks, he’s not inherited the clean gene either. It’s a health
hazard in here so I’m not drinking anything. Come on, we’ll go.’

‘I wanted
to come back here tomorrow night Gabe, I really don’t need all this to clean
up. I wonder what the rest of the place is like.’ I marched into the lounge and
then the bathroom and wished I hadn’t. I went into my bedroom, the only tidy
place except for the hall and sat on the edge of my bed and sighed. Gabe stood
in the bathroom doorway watching me as I trailed my finger through the dust
that had accumulated on my bedside table.

‘God, I’m
going to have to spend all of tomorrow cleaning up after her, then dusting my
entire room.’

‘No you’re
bloody not. You deserve a break. I’ll get Doug and Lexi back here now to tidy
up and then I can get cleaners in to do a full clean tomorrow morning. We can
come back in the afternoon and it’ll be spotless for you.’

‘Gabe, it’ll
take someone hours to do all this and who would come out on a Sunday?’

‘A team
will get it done in no time and I’ve a number for the numerous parties Doug’s
had when his parents have been away and we’ve had to do a quick fix the morning
after.’

‘That’ll
cost a fortune.’

‘It’s not
cheap but I’m not having you touching it, Mia. You’ve done enough the last
month.’ I watched as he put his phone to his ear, one hand on his hip as he organised
a call out for ten a.m. tomorrow and then dialled again. ‘Doug, where the
bloody hell are you and Lexi? ...Well, you can both get your arse’s back to
Mia’s and sort out the shit tip you left behind ... No. It can’t wait until
tomorrow, Mia’s coming back tomorrow night so I’ve had to organise the cleaning
team to come in and sanitise the fucking place. Get back here and tidy up your
shit up first ... Fine, don’t forget we’re eating at eight so don’t be bloody
late like normal and put your suit on … Ok, bye.’

‘Wow, you
really like bossing everyone around. It’s kind of hot.’

‘Well it’s
done, so you can stop worrying and we can enjoy what’s left of our weekend. They
were in the pub and they’re coming back so let’s get out of their way before
I’m tempted to rip them a new one in person. Doug’s agreed to pay for the crew
too as an apology.’ I locked up and we headed down to the car and went to a
drive through McDonalds and had a burger and fries before heading to the large
shopping centre and stocked up on duplicate toiletries for each of us and extra
clothes. We loaded up the car and I pulled out of the centre car park onto the
dual carriage way and put my foot down and looked over to see him grinning at
me.

‘You so
love driving this car, Mia.’

‘I do, and
I think I do it pretty well.’

‘You know
that our new place is bigger than yours so it comes with two parking spaces.’

‘Are you
trying to say my parking’s shit and I need two spaces to be able to get it in?’

‘No, I’m
saying you could have your own car.’

‘I don’t
need a car, Gabe. I can get the bus to Uni, or even run it now and I can get a taxi
anywhere else I need to go if you aren’t driving me.’

‘So you
wouldn’t want me to get you a car for your birthday?’

‘Jesus Christ,
what’s wrong with you?’ I flashed him a glare.

‘What?’

‘You don’t
buy someone you’ve been dating for two months a bloody car.’

‘You aren’t
just someone I’m dating Mia, you’re the person I love and am going to live with.’

‘Hmmm, “going
to” being the operative word, we aren’t living together yet Gabe and if you buy
me a car it won’t happen. Anyway a bottle of perfume’s an appropriate birthday
gift, not a bloody car. You buy me a car and I leave you and take it with me
and you’re screwed.’