"I'm so sorry, Travis," she said politely, putting her hand on his knee. "I know how much you loved that car."
Travis took her hand and held on tightly. "I promise," he said, "that I won't let this interfere with us. I promise, Arden."
She scoffed. "You promise? You have a baby to take care of now, Travis. That's going to affect things. I mean, I have to ask myself whether I'm capable of being a mother to another woman's child. And she's not even yours. I just think you should avoid making promises that are clearly impossible to keep."
Travis started to assure her that there was no need for her to worry about mothering the baby...that anything could happen in the upcoming weeks. But he was interrupted.
"Arden, you're being a bitch again," Emma said.
Travis stared at Emma in horror. He'd never heard her cuss before.
Arden seemed equally shocked.
"If you're going to make Travis shoulder this burden alone, then why are you wasting his time pretending to be his girlfriend," Emma said.
Arden lifted her chin and raised one brow, trying to stare Emma down. But Emma held up beautifully. "Are you finished preaching at me, Miss Perfect?" she asked.
Emma rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry. I'll mind my own business." She didn't sound sorry at all.
"Good," Arden said. She turned to Travis. "Can I use your bathroom? I have to do my hair."
"Sure. Dustin's in this one. But there's one downstairs."
She stood and took two steps before looking back at him, a sly grin on her face. "Aren't you going to show me the way."
"Yes, ma'am," he said, jumping to his feet and taking her by the hand. Once downstairs she turned and threw her arms 'round his neck and started covering his face in kisses.
"I'm so sorry," she said between kisses. "Emma's right. I should be supportive. What can I do to make you feel better?" She slowed her kisses down and started on his neck and throat. The feel of her tongue on his skin made him hot all over.
"Nothing that you should be doing on the Lord's day."
"I don't care what day it is," she said. There was a couch against the wall and she shoved him back onto it. She was wearing a calf-length black skirt with sensible, black lace panties underneath. Which Travis knew because she slipped them off before hiking her skirt up and straddling him. "I didn't like how our date ended last night," she said breathily. She started pulling on his shirt, untucking it, and unfastening his belt.
Travis didn't think it was right doing this so close to church time, but he wasn't in a position to argue. He shoved her skirt up higher, relishing the smoothness of her thighs. Finally she got his pants undone. She took hold of him and slid down on him. He threw his head back against the couch and moaned. Her hair spilled down her face. Her eyes were closed as she concentrated on building her own pleasure. He watched her as she moved, as she bit her bottom lip and let her head drop back, baring her elegant throat.
He wrapped one arm around her back, supporting her so she could move however she needed to. His other arm he slipped under her skirt and wrapped around her hips, guiding her movements.
"God, Travis, I couldn't sleep last night I wanted you so badly," she gasped.
He was past the point of being able to speak coherently. He buried his face in her breasts and gritted his teeth, trying to hold back the overwhelming tide of his desire for just a few more minutes.
Suddenly she was pressing down on him harder, grinding against him and clawing desperately at his shoulders, breathing and gasping. He lost it, then, pushing himself up inside of her as hard as he could, blinded by that ultimate release. By the time he came down off the high, he realized that she must have come at the same time as him, because now she lay sedately trembling in his arms.
He leaned back on the couch and held her for awhile. When she leaned back, she smiled down at him. "Feel better?"
He pushed her hair back behind her ear. "I'm still pretty pissed about my car."
She rolled her eyes and laid her head on his shoulder. They held each other this way until it was time to get ready for church.
Arden pulled into her driveway after church. She and Travis had stayed chatting with friends so that her parents beat them home by a good half hour. Travis sat next to her in worn out jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt with the number 3 on the back. She kept forgetting to ask what the number meant. Travis had made her take him home to change. He apparently couldn't stand being in church clothes all day. As a result, she was stuck presenting her parents with a slovenly macho man instead of a clean-cut, responsible pillar of the community.
She kept the engine running after she put it in park. Travis proceeded to open the door but she reached out and grabbed his arm. "I don't want you to be nervous," she said.