The next day, Zach leaves very early in the morning for work. He offered to take the day off, but I vehemently opposed and almost had to push him out of my apartment to make him leave. He told me he'll check on me after work and then I could decide if I want him to stay overnight again or If I 'd rather be alone. I think that's really thoughtful of him.

For a change, I spent the whole morning with looking for a new job. Utterly unsuccessful. I've seen nothing what even comes close to what I'd consider a fun or interesting job. Okay, I don't even have an idea what a funny or interesting job could be for me. Sure as hell, an office job definitely wouldn't be the right thing for me. On the other hand, working as a sales assistant or a waitress again isn't what I fancy either. After hours of searching through the internet, I give up in frustration and decide to order some food since my stomach starts growling loudly.

The rest of the day, I do literally nothing. The popping up of my father really shook me up and now my inside is even more upside-down than it already was before. To be honest, I didn't think I'd ever have to see him again. All the emotions I successfully suppressed the past years got thrown at me at once when he reappeared yesterday. The sight of his crazy blue eyes left me in shock and I'm more than glad that Zach came over as soon as I called him. I honestly don't know what my father would've done if Zach hadn't sent him away.

It's shortly after 5pm when Zach returns from work. He looks very exhausted as he takes off his jacket and plops onto my sofa.

"God, I cannot wait for this day to be over," he mutters and lays back his head.

"What happened?" I ask and sit down next to him.

Zach huffs and rolls his eyes. "Everyone pissed me off today. First thing, I arrived at the office to a bunch of angry people already waiting for me because of the elevator which decided to die with 7 persons inside of it. They had to wait nearly half an hour for the electrician to help them out of this thing. It went on like this all day. Everything broke down at the wrong time and everyone was pissed at me because I wasn't able to fix everything at once."

I scoot closer and start massaging his stiff shoulders. "I'm sorry you had a bad day!"

"Mmh... that feels nice," Zach murmurs with relish and tilts his head. "How was your day?"

"I didn't do anything, to be honest. After scouring the ads for work, I..."

I'm interrupted by a knock on the door and freeze. Zach tenses as well and jumps up in an instant. Before I can say anything, he rushes for the door and I only manage to hurry after him and watch as he tears open the door.

"You still dare to show up here, you piece of shit?" Zach screams right into my father's face who flinches hard at the volume of Zach's voice.

"Uhm... I... Are you Ollie's boyfriend?" my father stutters and awkwardly scratches his head.

"Damn right, and you better fuck off now before I forget myself!"

"I just want to talk to my daughter. Ollie, please let me in. Just for a minute!" My father says directed at me and makes an attempt to walk towards me what causes Zach to step forward and block his way.

"You have the audacity to call her your daughter? Are you fucking kidding me? You ran over your own daughter and you still think you have the right to call her that? You fucking, pathetic cunt!"

My father raises his arms in surrender and takes a step back.

"Cool down, mate!" he mutters.

"Call me mate once again and I'll rip your ugly head off!" Zach growls threateningly quiet and clenches his fists.

The way Zach is talking to my father and how he plants himself in front of him tells me it's time for me to step in. Even if my father deserves to be treated like this and I wouldn't mind if Zach beat him up, I don't want to have problems with my neighbors and the last thing I need is the police to show up.

"Zach, it's okay. Calm down!" I place my hand on Zach's back and then turn towards my genitor. "I already told you yesterday I want nothing to do with you! Fuck off and leave me alone!

My father looks down and aggressively runs his fingers through his hair.

"Ollie, love, please hear me out. I need to apologize. I want my little sunshine back!" he pleads and faces me with a desperate frown.

Tears well up in my eyes and I take a deep breath before I whisper through gritted teeth, "You've got two minutes to get away until I call the police!"

With that I slam the door and lean against it. Burying my face in my hands, I slide to the ground and allow my tears to flow freely.

"Hey, it's okay." Zach falls to his knees in front of me and wraps his arms around me. He pulls my trembling body tightly against his and soothingly strokes my back.

He waits until my sobbing subsides and then breaks away, lifting my chin with his fingers.

"Shall we go to my place, Liv? He won't find you there."

I nod and wipe away my tears. "Yea, but let's wait a bit. I don't want him to follow us."

"You know what, I call us an Uber then he definitely won't be able to follow us, okay?"

Again, I nod and heave myself up from the floor. Zach helps me packing some clothes and a few toiletries before he calls an Uber. He even tells the driver to make a big detour to get to his place to make sure my father can't find out where Zach lives. I only relax a bit after Zach has closed his apartment door behind us and wraps his arms around me.

"Relax, you're safe here. I won't let him hurt you again, Livie. I promise. Do you hear me?"

I nod and look up into his caring face. "Thank you, Zach!"

Zach smiles softly and then tilts his head. "Fancy a bath?"

"With you?" I ask and immediately my cheeks turn red.

"Yea, unless you'd rather take one alone," Zach remarks with a wink.

I know he's trying to distract me, and it warms my heart. The longer I'm back together with him, the more I realize how much I missed him. How much I missed the feeling of his strong arms being wrapped around me and the sound of his voice. How much I missed simply being around him and feeling his love for me.

"No, it's fine," I say with a giggle. "Actually, a bath sounds nice."

Fifteen minutes later, I step into the steamy water between Zach's legs and lean my back against his firm chest. Instantly, his arms sneak around my waist and he starts stroking my belly.

"You know, that's the first time I'm using this bathtub," he states, rubbing his nose into my hair. "It feels nice having the first bath in this apartment with you!"

"I am honored to share this first time with you," I chuckle and lean back my head on his shoulder. The hot water takes a bit of my tension away and my muscles start relaxing, causing me to sigh deeply.

Zach starts planting gentle kisses on my neck and I close my eyes, humming in contentment. His slow and gentle touches on my belly paired with his soft lips against my neck trigger a pleasant tingle in my stomach which almost lets me forget about the stressful and emotional reencounter with my father.

"Do you want me to touch you, Liv?" Zach breathes huskily and lets his teeth graze the sweet spot right beneath my ear.

"Yes," I whisper and sharply inhale as Zach's hand wanders up my stomach and gently pinches my nipple.

While he keeps caressing my breast with his one hand, his other one slides down where his fingers start drawing circles onto my thighs, slowly moving closer to my center. A soft moan escapes my lips the moment I feel his fingers on my clit.

"Does that feel nice?" Zach mutters, nibbling on my ear.

I nod and tilt my head to face him. Immediately, Zach's eyes dart to my slightly parted lips and the next second he leans down and softly kisses me. Our mouths melt together, and our tongues start exploring each other. I lift my arm and tangle my hand in Zach's soft, wavy hair. When Zach slides one finger into me, I moan into his mouth and lightly tug on his hair, earning a groan from him. Our kiss becomes hungrier, our breathing heavier, and Zach adds another finger while his thumb applies more pressure to my clit. A pleasant tingle appears in my toes and slowly creeps up my legs as Zach brings me closer to my release. In my back, I feel Zach's hard-on and I start moving my body against him to add some friction for him.

"Goddamn, Liv," Zach moans and separates our lips. He quickens his circling motions and pinches my nipple again. "I want to feel you so badly!"

I start grinding against Zach's hand, causing my moaning to get louder. I'm so close to my climax already and when Zach curls his fingers inside me, I feel the heatwave crashing down on me. My fingers tightly grab Zach's hair and my other hand clings to the edge of the bathtub while I ride out my high.

"Stand up, babe," Zach orders softly after I've caught my breath again.

As soon as we're both out of the bathtub, he lifts me up without bothering to dry our dripping bodies and so we leave a wet trail while Zach carries me over to his bedroom where he sits down on the edge of the bed with me on his lap. I place my legs on both sides of him and wrap my arms around his neck.

While we melt into another eager and passionate kiss, I start grinding my center against his hard-on, earning a deep groan from Zach. I'm still sensitive from the orgasm I just had and so I slightly wince at the intense friction. Zach's hands slide down my back and firmly squeeze my butt, pressing me down on him.

"Shit, I want to be in you now!" he mutters and bites my bottom lip, sending an anticipating shiver down my spine. I higher my hips and Zach toys with his tip at my entrance. We lock eyes with each other before I place my hands on his shoulders for support and slide down onto him, taking in all of his considerable size. We both moan and Zach's eyes roll to the back of his head.

"Damn..." he breathes and gives me a breathless smile which makes my heart leap. He moves the damp strands of my hair out of my face and eyes me for a moment before softly ordering, "Move, honey!"

I return his smile and start moving my body up and down. Slowly at first, but soon, I speed up a bit and build a pace which makes Zach's hips jerk and elicits a wild moan from his throat.

"Yes Liv...fuck...you feel so damn good...," he pants while his warm hands slide up and down my back, giving me goosebumps all over my body. I tilt back my head as I feel Zach's length hitting the perfect spot after slightly changing the angle.

A desperate moan escapes the depth of my throat as I speed up my movements. Feeling my second release coming closer, I dig my nails into Zach's shoulders while rapidly bobbing my body up and down. My hard nipples rub against Zach's firm chest as our bodies are tightly pressed to each other which only adds to my arousal.

"I'm so damn close, Zach," I squeeze out shakily as the raising knot in my stomach grows and my movements become sloppier. My head falls down onto his shoulder and I feel Zach's hot and heavy breath on my neck.

"Oh shit, Liv...I need you to come...now...," Zach groans hoarsely into the crook of my neck and wraps his arms tightly around my shaking body as my second orgasm washes over me. I tighten around Zach's shaft which pushes him over the edge as well and I feel him throbbing deep inside me while he firmly presses me down on him, moaning loudly.

Breathing heavily, Zach lets himself fall back onto his bed and pulls me with him into a tight embrace. I stay on top of him until we come down from our state of ecstasy and then I slide off him and lay on my back beside him. We look at each other and giggle with rosy cheeks.

"That bath didn't really fulfill its purpose, huh?" I remark and ruffle through Zach's already disheveled hair.

Zach chuckles deeply and nudges my nose. "Well, I wouldn't say that. My plan was to distract you and I'm pretty sure it worked out just fine, don't you think?"

"Yea, it did," I admit and laugh at his smug grin. "Nevertheless, I need to take a shower now."

"Go ahead. I'll make us some dinner in the meantime." Zach leans over and places a lingering kiss on my lips before he gets up, slips into a fresh pair of boxers and his sweatpants, and leaves me to myself.

After getting my body clean again, I join Zach in the kitchen and wrap my arms around him from behind, nosily peeking over his shoulder.

"Mmh, that looks delicious," I mutter and eye the sizzling vegetables in his pan. "What is this?"

"It's a lentil chili with various vegetables." Zach turns around an holds his wooden spoon loaded with food in front of my face and gives me an expectant look. "Here, try!"

I carefully blow on the hot, steamy food a few times before I let Zach shove the spoon into my mouth.

"Oh my god, Zach!" I moan with my mouth full and close my eyes while chewing. "This stuff is amazing!"

Zach chuckles and turns around again. "I'm glad you like it."

Leaning against the counter with my arms crossed, I watch Zach finishing dinner. He seems to be entirely in his element, adding some spices, tasting in between, stirring his meal, and occasionally checking if the rice is already cooked. The whole time, his face is concentrated, and he doesn't even notice me watching him. Finally, he glances over to me and smirks.

"What?" he asks in an amused tone.

"I think you'd make a great chef," I state and return his grin. "And a damn hot one on top."

My eyes linger on his bare chest and I take in his toned torso with the few scattered tattoos on it. The sight of his muscles flexing every time he stirs the food makes my mouth water.

"Ah, I don't know about that. Cooking is fun and I do enjoy it, but only privately. I don't think I'm good enough to cook for other people." Zach's smirk has turned into an insecure, faint smile and he turns back to the pan in front of him.

"You could at least try and apply to a restaurant. You've got nothing to lose," I suggest and make a step towards him. "You're capable of so much more than being a janitor for the rest of your life, don't you think?"

Zach puts aside his wooden spoon and turns to face me again.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he admits and bites on the inside of his lip for a moment before he hesitantly adds, "Fine, I'll think about it. Happy?"

Smiling warmly, I give him a quick peck on the lips. "Yea, that's fine."

Zach's hazel eyes rest on me for a moment and he smiles absentmindedly before he lightly shakes his head with a chuckle and starts arranging the food on two plates.

"I told you that I'm going to meet that real estate agent tomorrow, right?" Zach asks after we've finished cleaning up the kitchen a bit later and wraps his arms around me from behind.

"Yea." I turn around in Zach's embrace to face him. "What about it?"

"Jake said he'd come over afterwards to celebrate the sale of my stepdad's house, but if you'd rather have a quiet evening, I'll tell him we postpone it."

"No, it's fine," I state, smiling into Zach's face. "But I don't want to ruin your guys' evening."

Zach shakes his head and rubs his nose against mine. "You're not ruining it, Liv. Not at all. I'm sure Jake will be happy to see you again."

"Okay, if you say so," I retort with a shrug and then sigh deeply. "I'm exhausted. Can we watch a movie in bed?"

Zach eyes me fondly and smiles at me. "Of course we can!"

And that's what we do for the rest of the evening. Snuggling up in Zach's bed, watching the first and the second part of the Harry Potter series, and both falling asleep halfway through the second movie.

*****

Liv's father showed up a second time. What do you think about Zach's reaction? Was he too tough with him?

Please comment and vote.🦋

Katie🤍