"What happens when the person you thought you could trust turns into a full blown nightmare... Will you ever be able to heal from the damage? Will life ever be the same again? Well, does love even exist?"
Taylor and Joe have been in a relationship f...
Once Hailey is all done in the bathroom we return to the living room where Travis is no longer sitting on the sofa. He must have gone upstairs to change or something.
"Okay princess we're done with the TV for now. You want me to call Eliza and ask if she can go to the playground with you?" I want to know from my daughter, who is about to climb back under the blanket. "The weather is nice."
"Elsa." She pouts, pointing at the TV, not at all amused by my suggestion.
"We can finish Anna and Elsa tonight or tomorrow." My voice comes out soft before I grab my phone and call the babysitter. Eliza instantly agrees, saying she'll be there in ten minutes.
"Come on let's get you dressed." I walk over to the chest of drawers on which a basket with freshly washed clothes is sitting. I haven't had the time or motivation to bring it upstairs and put it away. Already having an outfit in mind, I take some tights and a long-sleeved dress before dressing the toddler. Then I put her hair into two tiny buns to keep it out of her face and she looks absolutely adorable.
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Soon Eliza arrives to pick her up and no minutes later they're out the door. I hear the creak of the bathroom door opening upstairs, followed by the soft thud of Travis' footsteps on the stairs. I don't look up right away. I just stare at my phone. The footsteps stop at the bottom of the stairs, and I know he's standing there, hesitating in the doorway like he's not sure if he should come in. I finally look up, and when I see him, there's this strange knot in my stomach. Something feels wrong. I can't put my finger on it, but it's there, gnawing at the edges of my thoughts.
"Hey." He says, his voice too casual, too light, like he's trying to act normal but can't quite pull it off. "Where's Hailey?"
I glance up at him, scanning his face. His eyes are wide, almost too wide, and there's this strange energy about him, like he can't keep still. His hand keeps rubbing against his leg, and his gaze flickers around the room like he's trying not to meet my eyes.
"Eliza just picked her up." I answer. "Are you okay?"
He shrugs, running a hand through his hair.
"Yeah, I, uh, I'm fine."
He crosses the room and sits down next to me, but there's this strange tension in the air. I feel him fidgeting, his leg bouncing nervously. What the hell has changed in the last couple of minutes?
"Are you sure everything okay? You seem off." I admit, finally tossing my phone away.
"I'm okay, Tay. Just a bit nauseous."
I don't say anything else after that, simply accepting his words, though I can't shake off the feeling that there is something deeper behind. Or maybe it's all just in my head.
-
In the afternoon all the worries seem to be washed away though, when Travis and I are deeply drawn into a game of scrabble, laughing our heads off at the weird words both of us are creating, which takes me back to his first time at my house, the day we had our first kiss.
"You know." I begin once we've finished playing, my voice coming out shaky. "We've been together for a while and I know that it hasn't been easy and I still kinda struggle with physical touch and all that comes along with it. You've been so patient which is still hard to believe but I'm so grateful for that."
"Just say what you wanna say, babe." He chuckles, closing the box of the board game, clearly sensing that I'm tiptoeing around what I really want to say.
"I wanna try, Travis." I confess, my cheeks flushing red. "I'm not lying when I say you're the hottest man I've ever laid eyes on and I wanna rip off your clothes whenever I look at you for too long. It's just that I've been so scared because of...you know..."
Travis reaches for my hand across the table, gently brushing his thumb over my skin.
"Hey, I understand and if you're not ready that's totally okay. Of course I want to because Taylor you're literally a goddess, the most beautiful woman I've ever seen but we're taking this at your pace." The footballer breathes, his voice just as shaky as mine now.
"I think I'm ready."
"Like in the next couple of days or like right now?" He asks a little baffled.
"Well Eliza just texted they're gonna be away for at least another hour so..." I grin seductively, surprised by my sudden urges. However, it does feel a little strange. I get off my chair, slowly walking around the table before plopping down on Travis' lap, swinging my arms around his neck and pressing my lips gently against his, which takes him a little by surprise and forces a stifled sigh out of his mouth.
