A Falice Story

25. Behind Us

I was sitting at my desk in the Register, finally getting caught up after being away from the office for so long. Lucky for me, I have an exceptional group of assistants and interns, who have done a wonderful job covering for me. I had my feet up on a chair as I typed, hoping the swelling in them would go down. It was my own fault, after trying to jam them into a pair of heels. But I got the shoes on--that was the important part. It was incredibly hard to stay focused with my baby girl kicking me every few seconds. I tried to adjust myself in the chair, but nothing was helping. 

"Miss Smith? Are you alright?" one of my assistants asked, noticing my discomfort. I smile and put my laptop back on my desk. "Oh, I'm fine. The baby is just moving around like crazy today--I think I'm going to get some air." I slowly stand up and make my way towards the door, letting myself out. 

Almost immediately I see FP pull into the parking lot, and he jumps out of his truck quickly. "Al! Alice! Baby! I have a surprise for you!" he shouts as he runs toward me, still wearing his work clothes and a hard hat. "You're lucky I like a man in a hard hat," I giggle. He realizes and takes it off, throwing it in the back of his truck. 

"So what's this surprise you have for me?" He smiles and gives me a kiss, "Get in the truck and you'll find out." I sigh, "But--honey, I have to finish this article--" he cuts me off by pulling me by the hand opening the passenger door. "Trust me, it won't take long. You're going to love it!" I roll my eyes, but agree to find out what this surprise is all about, ducking back inside the Register to tell them I'll be out for a while. 

He drives to an unfamiliar part of town, somewhere between the North and the South side. "Where are you taking me?" I ask, begging him to tell me. FP just shakes his head and gives me a smirk, "If I told you it wouldn't be much of a surprise now would it? Close your eyes!" he adds quickly as the vehicle starts slowing down.

"Fine!" I pout, closing my eyes. "No peaking!" he warns, and I hear the driver door shut. He comes around to my side, helping me out. "Okay, keep them shut a little longer," FP leads me toward something, taking extra precaution that I don't trip on anything. 

"Can I open now? Pleeeease!" I beg him. "Alright, alright. You can open them now." I can tell by his voice that he's smiling. My eyes flutter open revealing the most beautiful house standing before me. "Wait--what?" I look to FP with anticipation and he has the biggest grin across his face, wrapping an arm around my waist, "So...what do you think?"

"I think--it's perfect, FP! But how? When?" He laughs at my confusion and presses a kiss to my forehead, taking my hand and leading me towards the door. "Well, the current owners had done some serious renovating, with all good intentions of staying here. I guess the husband got a better job offer out of state and they are looking to sell as soon as possible," FP explains, unlocking the door. 

My jaw drops when we enter. I immediately head for the kitchen--which is absolutely stunning and quite huge. "This is gorgeous, babe!" I wrap my arms around him and he lifts me up, my legs straddled around his waist. "Just wait until you see the master bedroom..." he says with a big grin on his face. He brings me up the stairs and pushes open the door. 

"It's perfect!" I shriek in excitement and he gently places me back on the ground. I walk around the corner to admire the excessively large, walk in closet. I turn back around to see FP leaning against the doorway admiring me, admire the house. "FP, I love it! I love it so much," I run into his arms and kiss him. 

"I love it too. You can thank Fred--he was the one who told me about it. He was actually a part of the renovation." I happily sigh, resting my head on his shoulder, "This is everything I imagined our new house to be--and more." He tips my chin up, so he can plant a gentle kiss against my lips, "I do have one more thing to show you..." FP leads me to the master bathroom, and of course, there is a jacuzzi installed. 

I cross my arms, smirking at him, "Tell the truth Jones. This is the real reason you love this house." He chuckles and pulls me close to him, "It was what really sold it for me," he places kisses on my neck, his hands trailing down my waist and eventually groping my ass. I smile, slightly pushing him away, "As much as I love where this is headed--don't we have to buy the house before we...christen it?" I bite my lip, and his hands reach towards my chest as he starts unbuttoning my blouse, "There's no rule that says we can't..."

I push his hands away, "We can't have sex in someone else's house, it just feels wrong--what if they come home?" FP stops and runs his hand through his hair, "If my memory serves me correctly, that hasn't stopped you before..." he gives me an irresistible smirk, pulling the t-shirt he was wearing off over his head, "We'll make it quick..." 

He's making it so damn hard for me to resist him. I feel my hormones raging, all I want to do is rip the jeans--that fit him perfectly in all the right places--off of his body. I quickly discard my blouse and practically sprint over to him, jumping into his arms and wrapping my arms and legs around him, kissing him passionately, "You're so lucky I'm pregnant and horny right now..." I giggle between kisses. 

He turns and presses my back against the bathroom wall, his lips moving down to my chest, "See, I told you it wouldn't be the last time I would have your back against the wall..." 

*

"I can't believe we just did that..." I breathe, giggling like an idiot. FP zips up the back of my skirt and I finish buttoning my blouse. "I can't wait to christen every room of this house with you," he kisses the back of my neck, his hands coming to a rest on my baby bump. "I can't wait to raise our little girl here," I smile, turning to face him. He kisses me, "That too." FP fixes a stray piece of hair and stares at me. "What?" I question.

"You're just so beautiful, Alice," he tenderly strokes my cheek and I feel myself blush. No matter what I'll always turn into silly putty when he says stuff like that. It's so honest and real. I was going to say something along the lines of him just being biased, but instead I allow myself to curl into him, and he rubs my back. 

"I love you," I reach up and touch his beard, scratching it gently. He kisses my hand, "I love you too, Al. I'm glad you love the house." 

We make our way downstairs and I take one last look at it before we walk outside and FP locks the door. He wraps his arm around me, resting it on my shoulder, holding me close to him, "This is going to be a whole new start for us." I rest a hand on his chest, "It really is. All of those bad memories from that house will be behind us." 

The baby kicks me--the hardest one thus far, so I wince and grab my stomach, making FP jump. "Oh, God--are you okay, Al?" he panics, but I look up at him and smile. "I'm fine, honey. She kicked--the hardest one I've felt so far, so it just freaked me out a little." He sighs in relief, "Oh, okay, whew--what am I going to be like when you go into labor?" 

I laugh, "I'm sure you'll be just fine--you better be. I need you to be my rock through it." He kisses my cheek and then kneels down to place a kiss on my belly. "Hey little peanut--take it easy on mommy in there. She's got a lot of work to finish up today...even though you are a pretty adorable distraction." 

He helps me out of the truck again once we arrive at the Register, giving me one last kiss before leaving. I'm just about to open the door to go inside when I hear him shout. "Hey!" 

I turn around, his window is rolled down and he has a huge smile across his face. "What?" I ask, leaning against the door. "I just wanted to take another look at you." I smile, biting my lip, and blow him a kiss before walking inside, unable to wipe off the smile that's plastered across my face. I'm hopelessly in love with that man.