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March 26 - March 31, 2025
For the lost souls still finding themselves. & for all the good girls who want to be a little bit bad: You're safe with me. (And Leo).
Once upon a time, you were the person I told everything to, the person I trusted most in the world. I think maybe you still are.
“Yep. Honeysuckle.” “Excuse me?” “You remind me of honeysuckle. Nectar sweet as honey, like the sound of your voice. But the berries are deceiving—poisonous if consumed.” He shrugs playfully. “Beautiful and deadly.”
When you boarded that plane to come here, every time you get into a car, whenever you walk down a flight of stairs—you’re always a little at risk, so be risky for the right reasons.”
“I came because you needed me, because I promised you that I’d be there for you if you asked. I came because you deserve better than this.” He pauses until I finally meet his eyes. “I’m here to be whatever you need from me. You want to go home? I’ll take you home, Darby. I’ve got a car. I’ll find a plane. A submarine. I don’t fucking care. Just say the word.”
“You don’t need my permission. If you feel like dancing, go dance.” He leans a little closer, whispering in my ear, “Just remember, Honeysuckle: if another guy touches you, I’ll remove his arms.”
She sticks her bottom lip out, and I swear to every god I don’t believe in that if she keeps looking at me that way, I’ll give her everything she’s ever wanted.
“Show me every smile, and I’ll do whatever you want, yeah?”
“I’ve clearly been missing out.” I smile down at her. “No, baby. That’s something you only find once. Something you’ll only ever know with me.”
“I think I might wait my whole life for you to come back, Darby. Something tells me there would be no point in trying to move on from this, because I’d end up searching for you in every place I go, in every person I meet, aimlessly wandering until I find you again.”
“I don’t think luck had anything to do with it, Honeysuckle. This”—he wiggles his finger between us—“is divine intervention.”
“All we are is lost time.”
I don’t just mean people. I mean everything. In comparison to the sky, the stars, the flowers, and the trees, even the ocean waves—she outranks them all.
He places his hand on my headrest and turns around, looking out the rear window as he throws the car in reverse. I’m not sure what about it sends butterflies straight to my stomach.
“You don’t need a piece of my soul, Honeysuckle. You already own the whole goddamn thing.”
“You can suffocate me with these pretty thighs, Honeysuckle. In fact, between your legs is the only way I want to go.”
“God, Leo,” I whimper. Long lashes flutter upward, blue eyes blazing through me. “I’ve never been much of a believer, baby.” He presses a kiss to my center. “But fuck, I’ll gladly kneel before you, worship at your altar.”
“You can take it, , Honeysuckle.” I drop down a little more. “Just like that. We’ll make it fit. You were made for me.”
“You wanna be bad, baby?” “Just for you.” “Fuck.” He pulls out of me swiftly, sitting back on his knees. His cock is glistening with my wetness as it presses against his abdomen. He points to the floor next to the bed. “Then why don’t you get on your knees and taste what a bad girl you are?”
Hi, daddy issues? It’s me, Darby.
“When I watch myself fuck you, it looks like coming home. But when you tighten around my cock, honey—” My body clenches at his words, his breath against my cheek. “Fuck. It feels like finding faith.”
“You’re not unemployed. You’re a teacher, and it’s summer break. You’re not homeless. I’m your home.” He leans into my ear. “And you’re not engaged to that man. The next time you want to refer to yourself as engaged, you let me know, because the only person you’re marrying in this life is me.”
Leo shoots to his feet and leans over the counter, placing his mouth in the phone. “Look, man, I’m trying to have my post-workout snack right now, and you’re interrupting. Can you get to whatever the fuck your point is so I can get back to my meal?”
“There have been times where I’ve struggled with faith and fate, where I’ve had a lot of questions I never thought I’d get the answers to. Where I’ve felt like a soulless ghost, lost and wandering.” He takes my trembling hand in his steady one. “But meeting you made me believe in things I never thought were real. Knowing you answered every question I’ve ever had about the world. Finding you again brought me back to life.”
