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Ed gets restless.
She’s almost disappointed about it. The house is done, everything’s more or less put together. Now they’re just collecting furniture. Switching a couch out for another that suits them better. Ed gives her opinions, but Stede is more aligned with the ways of interior design than Ed is. So she’s just kind of sitting. And looking around. Sometimes she reads, but mostly she will sit and look around and be tended to. Watered (with tea), fed (with charcuterie). Like a potted plant.
“Or a flower,” Stede says, leaning down to give her a kiss on the cheek.
Or a flower. Ed wrinkles her nose. “Am I boring?”
Stede, starting to hang shelves, turns to her. “Why would you say that? Also: no.”
“I don’t… do anything.”
“You do plenty. But also, my darling, you are retired.”
“I’m not old enough to be retired.”
“You’ve lived a lot of life, sweetheart. I think you deserve an early retirement.”
“I’m just being lazy.”
Stede tilts his head. “Maybe you should take up a craft.”
Ed jerks, shocked and appalled. “What?”
“What??”
“You’re supposed to say you’re not lazy, my love, or whatever.”
Stede smiles, eyes crinkling up at the corners. He walks over to her and leans down to kiss her. Ed pushes his face away, and then rethinks this plan of action and pulls him in. They kiss tenderly, lips sliding together, noses brushing. “My love,” he says against Ed’s lips. “You are not lazy.”
“But I could do more. I could do anything.”
“Ed, it sounds like you don’t want to do anything,” Stede says, turning back to the wall.
Ed tilts her head back with a groan. “But I’m supposed to,” she says. “I can’t just sit around all day.”
“I think you can,” Stede says, hammering a nail into the wall. “I think it might even be good for you. You’ve spent your whole life doing so much, Ed. Don’t you think it’s time for a change of pace?”
Ed pouts. She pouts until Stede turns around to look at her.
“What?”
“Maybe I’m not ready for a change of pace.”
Stede’s face flickers into something upset before flipping back. “Ah.”
“No, I mean. Not that I don’t want to be doing this with you. I love this. I love you,” she watches Stede relax a little. “Maybe I should get a job.”
Stede’s face screws up. “A job?”
“Yeah. Like,” she tries to think of a job. She tries, and tries, and tries.
“Um.”
She flaps a hand around. “I don’t know. It doesn’t matter.”
“You shouldn’t get a job, Ed,” Stede says. This was, admittedly, exactly what Ed wanted to hear. She smiles. “You should relax. Like you’ve been doing.”
“But you’ve been doing everything,” Ed moans. “I should contribute. You need a change of pace, too.”
Stede shakes his head. He turns to the wall and hammers another nail. “Ed, I’ve always done nothing. I grew up doing nothing. I spent the majority of my adulthood doing nothing. Doing things is a change of pace for me.” He peeks over his shoulder. “I like doing things for you.” He winks before turning to set the shelf on the nails. Ed blushes. “What should we put up here?”
Ed crosses her legs in the seat of the chair she’s sitting in and scoots back so she’s sitting up straight. “Well. We could put those animal figurines we got last time we went to market. Also, what kind of things?”
“What kind of things, what?” Stede asks, turning to face her again.
“Do you like doing for me?”
“Well,” Stede starts. “Where are those little figurines?”
“Bag by the door.”
“I like doing everything for you, Ed.”
“Like, you would jump off a cliff for me?”
Stede laughs, picking up the bag. “Is that the kind of thing we’re talking about?”
“No, I was joking. I think.”
“Well, I would. If you were in danger and the way to save you was to jump off a cliff… Well.”
“I would jump after you.”
Stede gives her gooey eyes. “Would you really?”
“Yes,” she waves him off. “What other things?”
“Making you tea… Washing your hair… I liked painting your toenails that one time.”
“Mm,” Ed says, wiggling her toes. “Could do with a pedicure soon.”
“I’m your man,” Stede says, walking over to give her a kiss on the forehead. He’s her man. Ed blushes again, harder this time. “What else do you need?”
“Uh. You could hold my hand.”
Stede takes her hand in his. “I can’t exactly finish the shelf like this, though, darling.”
“You need longer arms.”
“I’ll get on that,” Stede chuckles. He gives the back of her hand a kiss before dropping it and walking over to set up the figurines. “Is there a specific way you wanted these set up?”
“Could you do a little scene with them? Like one of them is knocked over and another is like… tending to her?”
Ed hears him let out a fond breath. “Of course. Which one are you, then, darling?”
Ed flushes hot. “You choose.”
“We’ll do… the tiger for you, hm?”
“Yeah, that’s good,” Ed says.
“And…” he digs through the bag. “There are so many in here, Ed. Are the rest of them innocent bystanders?”
“Well, one of them has to be the one who hurt her.”
“Maybe that one’s gone, hm? We don’t want that negative energy in our scene.”
“You should be the lion,” Ed says. “Just… cuz. I mean, if I’m going to be a big cat…”
“That sounds perfect, Ed,” Stede says, setting up the lion next to the knocked-over tiger.
“Maybe you could set up the rest later,” Ed says with some urgency.
Stede turns around and blinks at her. “Are you alright?”
“Yes, just —” she reaches for him. “Come here.”
He puts the bag down and walks over to her, gets right up in her space, and kisses her. “Do you think you could carry me to the bedroom?”
Stede grins. “Of course, I can. You’re as light as a feather, my dear.”
He hefts her up (she’s gained weight since they retired) and stumbles the two of them into the other room. He places her delicately onto the bed. He plays with the hem of her shorts. “Did I tell you how much I like these on you?”
“You like that they barely cover my ass.”
“That’s a perk, yes,” Stede says. He lifts her leg and kisses her ankle. Probably her balls are out now. “But I like the color on you as well.”
They’re a berry red. Stede picked them out. Ed is not entirely convinced that the ass-thing was not the driving factor. Stede kisses her ankle again, then her calf, then her knee, then her inner thigh. He noses into the skin between her cock and her leg, pushing the shorts up a little. He kisses her there. Ed’s breath comes shaky.
“What do you want, sweetheart?”
“Whatever,” Ed says honestly.
“You don’t want to choose?”
“You said you like doing everything for me.”
“So I did,” Stede chuckles. He kisses her hip, pushing the shorts up further. “I think you’d like me to fuck you.”
Ed likes that idea. She nods. Stede pulls down her little shorts. Her soft cock flops between her legs. He pushes his hands up her tank top and puts them on her tits. Ed moans, soft.
Stede wiggles up her body and kisses her, hot, wet mouth against hers. He thumbs over her nipples. Ed’s breath comes in a pant. She can feel her cock trying to get hard. “You’re so beautiful.”
Ed takes a sharp breath through her nose. Stede takes one of her hands in his and presses it up over her head, the other still occupied with her tit. He kisses her again and again. Ed knows if she had a pussy she’d be soaked. Her cock aches. “Stede.”
“What is it, Ed?”
“You need to hurry up or I’m gonna explode.”
He kisses her neck, nips at her jawline. He brings the hand on her tit down between her legs to rub lightly against her cock. Her breath hitches.
“You’re so wet,” Stede says against her neck.
Ed moans. She isn’t going to get hard, but it still feels nice, knowing that Stede knows she’s hot for him. “Please fuck me,” she whimpers. His hand slides down further to rub at her taint. She shivers, sounds stuttering in her throat.
“You don’t have to say please,” Stede murmurs into her skin. “I have to pull away to get the oil, alright?”
“No,” Ed whines.
“I have to,” he says. He moves to grab the oil. Ed pulls her tank top over her head in the meantime. And then she’s completely naked, Stede still entirely clothed.
When he comes back, he pushes into her space again, the fabric of his shirt rubbing against her bare front. He kisses her. “Please,” she says again.
“Shh-shh,” Stede hushes her. “I’m going to take care of you, Ed.” Ed brings a knee up to her chest. Stede rolls his eyes. “Okay, okay.” He slicks up his fingers and pets them over her hole, getting her to soften up before slipping one inside of her.
“I don’t need a lot,” she says. “I just want you inside me.”
“I know what you want, Ed,” Stede says, gentle, kissing her again. “I’m going to give you it.”
Ed’s breath shakes. “I love you.”
Stede huffs out a laugh. “I love you, too,” he says, putting another finger inside. “My beautiful girl.”
“Please,” Ed blurts. “Please, Stede.”
“Alright,” Stede says, playfully exasperated. “Spread your legs,” he says, giving her a tap on the thigh. Ed complies, spreading wide. He pulls his cock out, slicks it up and pushes into her.
“Ahh,” Ed moans. “Ahh-ahhh.”
“That’s it,” Stede says under his breath. “God, you feel so good.” He withdraws a little, pushes in further. “You’re such a good girl, Ed.”
Ed’s chest heaves. Her eyes start to well up. “Thank you,” she peeps.
“You don’t have to thank me,” he says, breath a little short, fucking her harder. “It’s true. Anyone could see it, darling.”
“No,” Ed says tearfully. “Just you.”
Stede stifles a whimper, pushing his face into her neck. “I love you so much.”
“You would save me, right?”
Stede makes a questioning noise.
“If I were a tiger. And you were a lion. And I was injured.”
“Of course.”
“Even though,” her breath shakes. “You told me last week when we picked up the figurines that lions and tigers don’t get along.”
Stede barks a laugh. “Yes, my love.”
“Uuughh,” Ed groans as Stede shifts their position, starting to fuck directly against her prostate. “Oh my —” she laughs. “God,” comes out of her mouth, breathy.
“Is it good?” Stede asks. “Do you like it?”
“Of course I —” Ed moans, loud. “Oh, fuck, Stede.”
She can feel herself steadily leaking between her legs, her soft cock bouncing with every thrust. She isn’t going to come. Except it really, really feels like she’s going to.
“Stede,” Ed gasps. “Stede, Stede, Stede.”
“I love you,” Stede says, voice thin. “Ed, I’m holding on, but I don’t think I can —”
“Harder,” Ed says.
Stede’s breath shakes as he moves against her harder, faster. Ed’s head tips back. It’s animalistic, the way they’re fucking. Ed feels like she could scream.
“Ah, ah, ah,” Ed moans. “Stede, I’m going to —”
She feels Stede’s hand go between her legs, feels him find her soft.
“Ed, are you sure you’re —”
“Please, just a little more. I need it.”
He fucks her harder, angles his hips just right. It builds and builds and builds until Ed is certain it can’t anymore. Like she’s going to be on this edge forever, just crying and whining and begging.
Ed’s vision whites out, her mouth open on a soundless cry as she comes. It feels like her head has been blown off. In the distance, she knows she’s still getting fucked, that Stede is about to come inside her. She slaps her hands against his back and digs her nails in through his shirt.
“Fuck,” Stede grunts. He thrusts a few more times and then stills against her. “Hahh,” he exhales. “Ed,” he sighs.
Ed starts giggling as she catches her breath. “Holy shit.”
Stede laughs along, collapsed on top of her.
Ed shoves her hands up his shirt and rubs her palms all over his back, skin slick with sweat. “That was so good.”
“Some of our best, hm?”
“Yeah,” Ed says. “Fuck. I haven’t come like that in a while.”
“I can’t believe I didn’t come sooner,” Stede says, pulling out to roll off of her and onto his back next to her. “You were so… That was so hot, Ed.”
She turns her head and looks at him. He’s looking at the ceiling. She wiggles her foot over and pokes him in his ankle with her toes. He looks at her. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
“You need to get naked,” she says. “I can’t believe you didn’t pass out from heat stroke or something.”
He laughs and sits up, pulling his shirt over his head and wiggling his shorts down his legs. “Better?”
“Yeah, now I can look at all of you.” She turns onto her side and nudges his bicep with her nose. “Lift up.”
He lifts his arm, confusion on his face. She nuzzles her way into his armpit. He giggles. “Your stubble is tickling me.”
“Sorry,” Ed says, not sorry. “Hey.”
“Hm?”
“Did you mean what you said about the lions and tigers, and shit?”
“Yes, of course,” he says. “We would be the only tiger and lion to ever fall in love.”
“That’s sweet,” Ed says. “All the other lions and tigers would be jealous.” She pulls back and leans up to kiss him. “I love you a lot.”
He pulls her in with an arm around her waist. “I love you a lot, too.”
She plays with his chest hair idly. “Okay, so. Maybe I don’t need a job. Maybe my job can just be to, like, sit around.”
“And look pretty.”
“And drink tea.”
“And give me company,” Stede says, face soft.
Ed smiles. She kisses him. “Sounds like a nice position. Do I get benefits?”
“Well. You have an unlimited allowance of kisses.”
“Heh. Okay. What else?”
“On-site spa.”
“Ooh, that sounds nice.”
Stede looks thoughtful. “And your boss is in love with you.”
“That’s a little iffy,” Ed says. “Is he weird about it?”
“Deeply,” Stede says.
“Hm. I guess I can get past it. Do I have the job?”
“You’re hired,” Stede grins.