Page 84 of Saving Ren

“So please, don’t ever question what you’ve got going on. Because, Babe. . .”

Kiss.

“Tight bits.”

Kiss.

“Loose bits.”

Kiss.

“Baggy bits.”

Kiss.

“Stretch mark covered bits.”

Kiss.

“They’re part of you, and by default, that makes them fucking gorgeous.”

A tear drops from her chin onto the back of my hand, where it rests on her heaving chest.

“Don’t cry. I don’t wanna make you cry, Little Bird. I just want you to hear me.”

Turning her in my arms, I hold her against me before lifting her to sit beside the sink on the stone bench. I slide her to the edge and stand between her legs. Using my thumbs, I brush the tears from her face.

“I need you to stop with the tears because I need to fuck you again, and I’m not gonna do that while you’re crying.”

I lean in and kiss her forehead. She wraps her arms and legs around me and rests her face against my chest.

“You say all the things and do all things and I’m just a bitch and don’t even deserve you,” she says without pausing for breath.

Her shoulders shake as she breathes in and out on a shudder.

“And now I’ve got snot in your chest hair. . .”

That sets off another round of tears, and I fight not to laugh at what’s set her off this time. Instead, I slide my hands under her arse and carry her into the shower.

Setting her down on the built-in tiled bench, I drop to my knees in front of her and bury my face in her sweet pussy. With the hot water from the showerhead and body jets hitting us from all angles, I use my mouth and my fingers to fuck her until she comes. After washing each other clean, I carry her to my bed and fuck her until she passes out. Then, like the sad individual that I am, I watch her sleep, wondering where the fuck I’m going with this.

A month ago, I met a woman in a bar. She’s been living in my house, sleeping in my bed, and has taken up permanent residence in my head and my heart ever since.

I’ve no idea if what we have has legs or how long it might last, but just the thought of her moving out and me going back to coming home to an empty house every night makes my gut and my chest physically hurt.

Next to the first time I held my daughter in my arms, I’ve never been more scared in my life.

Chapter 24

Lauren

I’m warm,but not too warm as there’s a slight breeze brushing across my bare skin. Dragging my eyes open, the sun streams through the glass and timber bi-fold doors, and I have to blink a few times until they adjust.

The sheer curtains that hang there billow into the room with each gust, and I focus on the tiny dust motes being blown on the breeze. Captured in the sun’s rays, they look like tiny dancers under a spotlight on a stage, enjoying their big moment.

What was my big moment in life I wonder? Have I had it or is it still to come?

Becoming a mother has been at the top of my list for over twenty years - as a woman, is there any greater achievement? A successful career? Maybe. But is a successful career greater than growing another human being inside you? Then raising that human to be a happy, well-adjusted person? I can imagine feminists and career go-getting women across the world screaming abuse at me for thinking that way.