Wab lay sprawled on the sofa, a sly, marijuana induced grin on her face. She was working out the clue letters on a cryptogram, but even with the loftiness of her mind, the puzzle was too easy.

The doorbell chimed, and Terri called from the kitchen, “Wab, get the door.”

“Already on it, love.” Wab flipped the bolt lock, tugging the door open.

Troy fell dramatically into her, draping his arms over her shoulders as he kissed her. His lips pressed heavily against hers, his tongue enveloping her mouth. It was a luxurious kiss. Then he leaned back slightly, tilting his head as he sighed. “Wabbie. I missed you.”

“I missed you, too. How was your convention?”

“Same old shit. I’ll tell you about it later. I have more pressing desires at the moment.”

“You do, huh? Care to come in to share them with me?”

An impish grin played on his lips. He put his hand to her chest as he walked her back into the apartment. “Is Terri home?”

Wab nodded.

“Can we get rid of her?”

She shook her head, smiling.

“Okay. Can we ignore her?”

Rolling her eyes in a dramatic full circle, Wab then gazed loftily at the ceiling. She knew Troy loved it when she played hard to get. It was a role she played very well. “I don’t know. Let me consider it. I want to finish my puzzle.”

Troy groaned, his shoulders sagging as he tilted his head back. “Seriously?”

“No. Not seriously. Since when do you take me seriously?”

“Since I’m a little bugged,” Troy replied as his expression darkened slightly. “My brother is coming for a visit. It’s been a while since he came home. I know I’m going to be expected to spend a bunch of time with him. I’d rather be with you.”

She ran her hand down his lusciously muscled chest. “You’re so sweet. How long is he going to be here for?”

“I’m not sure. Probably a week or two.”

“That sucks.”

With a nod, Troy grabbed her hand and dragged her into the bedroom. Wab kicked the door shut with her foot as she tugged off his shirt. He responded by removing hers, then pulling her leggings down to her ankles. Wab daintily lifted each foot, allowing him to take the leggings off. His attire was a completely different matter. “Now we need to do something about those gruesome sweatpants. Why are you wearing those?”

“Travel pants. They’re comfortable. Shoot me.”

“Didn’t you go home first?”

“No. My brother is probably at the house by now. I wanted to see you.”

She grinned happily. Troy was her one and only. To know how much he cared was a thrill beyond belief. “Wow. I really rate. Huh?”

“Of course you rate. My brother can’t do anything about the strange feeling in my dick. I really think you should take a look at it.”

Wab’s grin wilted to disgust as she rolled her eyes at him. “Troy... how can you take a romantic comment and turn it into I only want to get laid?”

He visibly sagged. “That’s not what I meant. Well... I want to get laid, but it’s not the only reason you rate. Since when are you so easily miffed by one of my stupid comments?”

“I’m not miffed. I missed you. I’ve had far too much free time to think about where our relationship is going.”

“We’re going to stay together and be happy. Whatever happens along the way is what happens. Are you suddenly doubting us?”

“No. It’s just that we’ve been dating forever, but that’s all there seems to be to it. I live here, you live at home, we go out, and we fuck. Sometimes you stay, other times you don’t.” Wab shrugged, unsure of what else to say. She didn’t want to push him into anything or mistakenly push him away.

“I know. I want more, too. What do you want me to do? My mother is still reeling from the divorce. I can’t move out on her right now. I’d honestly like to get our own place.” Troy shrugged. “You know right now is a bad time. Maybe once my brother goes home I can start leaning toward the stay over more, go home less. I just can’t totally desert my mother right now.”

Wab knew he was telling the truth. His father had moved out, but his mother had always hung onto the idea that they would reconcile. When Troy’s father had filed for a divorce eighteen months earlier, it had thrown his mom headlong into clinical depression. She had even tried to kill herself. Troy was too afraid to leave her alone. Reality didn’t change the fact that the situation was putting a strain on their long-term plans. “I know. I’m just feeling needy. Sorry.”

“Don’t be. I want to be with you—we just have to slow things down right now. I’ve been putting away every possible cent. Maybe by the time I move out we’ll have enough to put a down payment on a small house. That would be cool. Right?”

Wab nodded. Of course that would mean that she was leaving Terri hanging. Terri could pay the bills, but she had a bad case of separation anxiety when left on her own for too long. Troy knew this as well as she knew about his mother. Having a sweet little house where they had privacy would also be wonderful. “That would really be nice.” She was suddenly sorry for mentioning the whole thing. Things between them were fantastic. They had a one-on-one relationship, where they rarely went out without each other. “Now what is wrong with your dick?”

He sucked his lips against his teeth. “I don’t know. Every time I think about you, it gives a twitch and wants to get hard. It has been driving me crazy. Do you think you can do something about it?”