Free Lost Girl: Part 2 by Elodie Short Page A

replies, before giving me a kiss underneath my ear that makes me want to tell him not to go home, to stay here and never leave.
    He swiftly slings one leg over my head to free himself and stands up, “come on you,” he smiles at Anna, “get dressed and we’ll go see Mama.”
    “Don’t you want some breakfast first?” I ask them, standing up too.
    He stops in his tracks and turns back to me, “maybe a quick coffee before we go,” and Anna pulls her nose up at him and I laugh, “what do you want Anna?”
    “Can I have some more Cocoa Pops please?” she asks politely.
    I walk over to the kitchen and turn the coffee machine on before I start pouring milk into a bowl for Anna.
    “Why don’t you get dressed?” Rick suggests to her again, “and when you come back you can have your breakfast.”
    “Okay,” she replies and happily skips off to the spare room to put her new clothes back on.
    “What happened to her old clothes?” Rick suddenly asks as I’m pouring our steaming coffee into mugs.
    “Shit,” I mutter, “I eh, kind of forgotten about them when you showed up,” I look at him apologetically and he chuckles in response, “I was hoping to have that effect on you.”
    “Shh,” I laugh, prodding my elbow into his side again. “I washed them, but forgot to take them out of the machine. I’ll set it to another spin and hang them out while you’re going home.”
    “Thank you,” he smiles.
     
    ***
     
    After Anna finished her breakfast, she gets up and slowly walks towards the front door, “are you sure we are coming back?” she asks Rick once more.
    “Very,” he replies and turns to look at me, “we shouldn’t be too long.”
    “Okay,” I nod. “Oh, wait!” I suddenly cry out. “Can you drive?” I ask Rick while I reach for my keys.
    “Yes?” he replies, raising his eyebrows, “why do you ask?”
    “Do you want to borrow my car? It’ll ehm… make you faster,” I mumble and he smiles at my blushing face, “you want me to be quick?” he chuckles.
    “Well, I eh, I thought it might be easier,” I stutter in reply.
    Laughing, he nods at me and takes the keys, “if you’re sure it’s okay for me to drive your car.”
    “Mhm,” I nod, “I would drive you myself, but I’ve still got some work to do. Just get her back in one piece.”
    “Her?” he smirks.
    “Yes,” I nod, “her. It’s the red-ish one.”
    “Red, ish?” He looks at me with raised eyebrows.
    I nod again, open my front door, and lead him out to the gallery to point down at my car in the parking lot.
    “With red, do you mean rust?” he chuckles.
    “Maybe,” I laugh back at him, “but she does what she needs to.”
    I wait in the gallery for them to put their shoes on, and then watch them leave down the stairs. I wait a little longer until they’ve gotten into my car and make my way back inside once he’s pulled my old car onto the road.
     
    Sighing I close the door behind me and walk straight over to the washing machine and set it to run another spin. Next I finally get out of my clothes from yesterday, have a quick wash and pick out some black leggings and a t-shirt for today. When I look in the mirror I smile plays across my face when I realise how similar it looks to what Anna is wearing, then I walk back into the kitchen and settle down at the table with my laptop, but find it hard to concentrate. Something that normally takes me roughly half an hour to read and edit, is still not done after an hour when the washing machine beeps at me to tell me it’s finished. I empty out the machine and hang the clothes out to dry.
    I sit back down at the kitchen table and stare at my laptop screen, but before I can do any more work, my mind has already gone back to Rick. I keep going over last night in my head, I keep thinking of Rick’s lips and his kisses. I don’t know what he’s done to me, but this hasn’t happened to me before. I feel giddy when I see him, my hands constantly want to touch him, and