Where I Belong

Part 9

No, Callie and Jack didn't stay at Stevie's. Callie said she was exhausted and she wanted to sleep in her own bed, Jack just nodded along. Stevie tried, but she still had to wave back at Callie, sitting in the front seat with her boyfriend, driving away. Why on earth did she have to tell Lindsey to stick around if he wanted to? Of course he did! He always did. It wasn't that she didn't want to spend time with him, no, she was just slightly worried. The two of them alone, there was alcohol involved. They managed to get themselves in trouble too easily.

"Are you hoping that the words on that will somehow magically change if you stare at it long enough?" Stevie joked as she returned to Lindsey, holding up a piece of paper with Callie's doctor's writing on it.

"Wha-" Lindsey turned to her. "No." He shook his head. "No, I guess, I'm still kind of in shock that we're going to be grandparents soon." He smiled, putting it away. "Uh, maybe I shouldn't." Lindsey said, looking up from the glass of wine she was holding out.

"You can sleep on the couch." Stevie shrugged. "Unless you're afraid that your wife is going to behead you if you do." She smirked, sitting down next to him. Lindsey was tempted, he scratched the back of his head. "Linds, we found out that Callie's having a girl, surely you can allow yourself one glass." One more to the other two he head during the whole evening.

"You seem to be only worried about my wife." Lindsey gave in, he leaned back against the couch and took a sip. "What about your boyfriend?"

"You're just dying for me to spill all the details." Stevie laughed, she pointed a finger at him. "You're not so slick, mister." Lindsey frowned. "I know you've been talking to Callie."

"Now wait a second-" Lindsey held up a hand. "I'm just making sure he's good enough for you. I simply care about you."

"Uh-hu." Stevie nodded. "Right." She breathed in deeply and ran her fingers through her hair as if preparing for what was to come. "Okay. What do you want to know?"

Lindsey almost spit out his wine hearing her say that. That was way too easy. Why was she willingly volunteering any information?

"Uhh, well." Lindsey cleared his throat, he shifted in his seat. "How serious is it? Like, am I supposed to be expecting a wedding invitation?"

"It's been six months, Lindsey." Stevie rolled her eyes. "No, I'm not hearing any wedding bells. Close by or far away in the distance." She added.

"Then why are you together?" Lindsey asked, it didn't make sense to him. "There has to be someone out-"

"I've already found my someone." Stevie cut in, she shrugged. They both knew who she was talking about. "I'm not looking or expecting to fall head over heels in love with someone." She sighed, looking into the bottom of her glass as she swirled the wine in it around. "I'd like to, but I doubt it will ever happen. I knew that Chris had always had a thing for me. We ran into each other at some event, we had too much to drink, started talking... He admitted it, I told him I like him too. And I do, really. So, it kinda started from there." Stevie paused to take a sip. "I might not be crazy about him, but I'm trying. He's great."

"But?" Lindsey knew there had to be a 'but'.

"But I don't feel it, you know?" Stevie stared at Lindsey as if waiting for him to give her the answer on how to change that. "We do all the things that couples do obviously, but there's no spark when he touches me, kisses me or-"

"Stevie." Lindsey interrupted her, that he didn't want to know. 

"Or when we have sex." 

"Oh God..." Lindsey cringed, bringing his wine glass up to his mouth, he took a large gulp. 

"We've only done it a few times, though." She continued, ignoring Lindsey's reaction. "Maybe we just need some time to, you know, learn what the other likes-"

"Stevie, please!" Lindsey exclaimed. "I'm begging you, don't! Do not continue." He shook his head.

Stevie chuckled lightly. "I thought, you wanted to know." She shrugged.

Taking a moment to erase the image from his mind, Lindsey asked. "What's missing? What is it?"

Stevie thought for a second, she then shifted her gaze over to Lindsey as she said... "Passion. I want my heart to start beating faster, I want those butterflies in my stomach."

"Kind of like what happened earlier?" Lindsey didn't forget. She might have wanted for him to, but he didn't.

"What do you mean?" Stevie creased her eyebrows. That moment between them, away from everyone else. Of course she knew what he was talking about.

"When you felt me behind you and you couldn't speak?" He pressed on. "I felt it too." He added not wanting her to feel embarrassed or anything like that. "Do you want me to tell you what I wanted to do in that moment?" Stevie gulped. "I wanted to pull you away from the door and push you up against the wall."

"Lindsey..."

"I'm just being honest." Lindsey shrugged, carefully placing the glass on the table nearby. "You still do that to me. If you're with someone, just six months into the relationship, and you're not feeling it, is it really worth your time?"

It took a minute for Stevie to respond. She'd opened and closed her mouth a couple of times, knowing that whatever was about to come out would be a lie, so she took her time. 

"Yeah, I want to feel like that." Stevie admitted at last, not giving Lindsey a chance to reply. "I need a refill." She said and jumped to her feet, mostly she needed to get away from him.

Lindsey remained seated for a short while. He was unhappy in his marriage. Stevie was unhappy in her relationship. What the hell, he thought. They could blame it on the wine.

Stevie was startled by Lindsey, the corkscrew fell out of her hand when his settled on her hip and he gave a gentle push for her to turn around. She did. She shouldn't have, but she did. He took a tiny step forward, pressing her against the kitchen island, he placed his hands on the top trapping her. He expected just about anything, mainly a slap across the face or getting yelled at, but what he didn't expect was to feel the warmth of her palm as it caressed his cheek. He straightened up and gripped her sides, pulling her closer in.

"Are you su-" Lindsey was beginning to question what was getting really close to happening between them just because he thought that she was going to push him away.

"Shut up." Stevie said as she rose to stand on her tiptoes, at the same time bringing him closer down until their lips finally met...