2020-06-22 - The French Kiss

The evening of their fight was both distressing and somewhat eye opening for Byron in regards to Lilith. She would rather leave and walk in the darkness and dreary Gray Harbor weather in light of various disappearances around town than remain in his company. It was infuriating sure and while he should have an easy time reading the emotions and thought processes of everyone around him, women were still difficult to truly understand.

The night they spent in some hotel several towns over from Gray Harbor was something necessary in their lives, he thought. That entire evening was something that continued to play over and over in his mind in the days that followed.

After a long work day and a nice quiet meal, Byron helps Lilith collect all of the dishes to rinse before placing into dishwasher. He'd showered and changed out of his suit, so he's dressed casually and more fitting for such a mundane task, donning a plain gray Tee and a pair of jeans. With several dishes collected, he moves to join Lilith at the sink, continuing a conversation they were having earlier at the table.

"It's pretty disconcerting to know that someone would whack off the Chief of Police like that. Makes me wonder what's up. Then again, I may be thinking too much into it. Being a cop is one job where it's easy to make enemies."

"Or the wrong friends, I'm sure. But who knows. Wonder how much the next one will be on the take. Or..." Lilith is wearing a pair of little hot pink lounge shorts with unicorns on them, having dressed down when she got home. She swore she was getting old with her birthday up and coming and is now insisting thirty comes with hot flashes, which only really gives Byron the opening to say something cheesy about how hot she is. Despite being moody lately, the woman actually doesn't mind taking the leap into the next decade, her twenties weren't particularly stellar as a whole.

Therefore, because Lilith came in burning up, she's wearing very little even though she's fine and cool now, especially with the terrace doors open to let the top floor level air in after dinner. Her mere white t-shirt to go with those shorts is somewhat cropped to partial midriff during this balmy night in early summer and her hair has been messily twisted and poked through with an ink pen she'd been writing with to keep the knot of hair from unfurling.

The brunette dries her hands off on a towel after putting a glass casserole dish Byron has just rinsed aside, then turns in place against the sink. With the small of her back against the counter edge at one side of the basin, she looks up at the dark-haired man more directly, "Anyway, everything is disconcerting these days, I guess. Pretty soon all our empathy for all given situations will die and we'll live as hollow shells all carved out by a dark and terribly twisted life."

Jesus, Lilith. But you know, her lips are twitching even though she's going darkside with the direction, tone low and full of resigned sigh to not give up the dry tease from deadpan. After reaching out to boop the tip of Byron's nose out of the blue, she makes a curious inquiry-- the play is also a good indicator she doesn't really think everything is gloom and doom considering she has herself a sexy Thorne man.

"Do you have any clue who would be taking over that job? I imagine they can't leave it dangling long. Then again 'they' is a very vague term when it comes to things like installments and positions like that."

When Lilith brings up that Thatchery was on the take, Byron just continues to offer up a subtle grin, still standing so close to Lilith at the sink having just rinsed off the remaining dishes, "de la Vega hasn't been able to disclose any details as to what actually happened to Chief Thatchery, but rumors run wild. Once Lilith is done with the towel, he reaches for it to dry his own hands off before setting the towel aside.

Lilith's dark and dreary words makes him take brief pause, those piercing eyes of his staring down at her. Then he mutters, "Your Goth is showing." Followed by a crinkle-eyed smile which grows wider when she boops at his nose.

"Speaking of de la Vega, I'm sure they probably offered him the position. Whether he'd accept it or not?" All that he can do is shrug.

Slinking his arms around her slender waist, he moves in close keeping his gaze locked with hers. "The summer season is going to be really busy, especially with the casino being newly opened." That's his starter, brows lifted, "I could use a sip of wine, resting on the beach beneath the blazing sun." A pause, as he licks at his lips, "How good is your French?"

Lilith can't help but break her deadpan woe-is-life tone and face once Byron points out she's got a slip of Gothiness showing. It does sound like the kind of junk she'd jot while staring at a markerboard or textbooks, generally hating everyone around her on principle. Or you know, pretending to whilst a teenager. When the smile of amusement lights her face, the woman is ready to step in as Byron's arms drop down to reach around her waist, melding forward with her body at lean against his hale and solid frame.

"I don't think he's itching to die a terribly early death of heartattack or general dismemberment, and can you imagine his lack of patience at press conferences or meetings? Actually, that might be a little funny, but then, what I tend to find amusing isn't always for public consumption. Mostly, I don't think he's stupid enough to lock himself into that life if he isn't already. But what the hell do I know? Ambition and ego is one hell of a drug."

Once finished speaking commentary that's seemingly distracted by the watch of Lilith's own hands rubbing against Byron's chest and t-shirt with dragging, she smiles again when he moves on to sun and beach talk. Maybe she thought he was talking about this beach, or some fair to do tropics in the Spanish-speaking third country worlds, or even a cruise around the islands. But French? Her lashes bat twice and she actually considers and thinks about it, "I can read off of a menu without sounding like an idiot, I know how to ask where a bathroom is and how to call someone beautiful. And I've seen the movie Amelie with subtitles a lot?"

After a pause, she leans in to fake a bite at one of his pecs, big blue eyes turned upward with faux innocence to be coy, "Is this the part where we play language tutor and student?"

Talks about de la Vega stepping up into the spotlight is amusing and all, but Byron has other important things on his mind. "Power is one hell of a drug." He will, however, agree.

"Just don't drag me into some Amalie marathon so you can get your French on." The dark haired man says with laughter in his voice and a wide, amused smile on his lips. He watches as her hand rubs down his chest, matching the motion to the sensation felt beneath the soft fabric. Leaning slightly forward, his chin lifted in a bit of teasing, he gives further details, "I was thinking we could start off in Paris, do some shopping, dining and sight-seeing, before going deep into wine country for a day of spirits." This faint grin lingers on his lips, "Then spend time on the sands and beneath the sun along the French Riviera before, I don't know, perhaps stopping off at Monaco before we return back to this shi--" He's about to say shithole, but he promotes Gray Harbor so often to his business associates and clients. Yet, he'll continue: "shithole." Leaning in closer, he murmurs against her lips, "I'm up for a bit of roleplay."

For Lilith, she forgets that these things can be off the cuff to say like this. Byron making the trip suggestion is taken in seriously enough, certainly, but then it hits her that her birthday is not far off and that he means... oh! Soon! And he's serious. (Of course he was serious, she knows that.) But seriously serious! And so airy with thorough presentation, complete with the lustful tidbit promise of roleplay that's sealed by a kiss...

No peeking, Lily!

Byron always did things like this as a boy, even played it off like it was no big deal even though she knew part of his motivation was watching her light up. It made him break into this proud boyish grin right from the start during the arranged surprise picnics, campsites, fishing surprises, dinners under stars and on rooftops, playing swaps at the elementary lunch table. As a man, he certainly has the means and flair to up his game and the ante while planning doting surprises for his Lily. In fact, she should be quite accustomed at this point to his ability and motivations to keep her a steady level of spoiled and happy.

But even as her stomach flutters with the realization of how real this is for the two of them, even as the flutters drop with the roleplay offer, lower into her stomach to tease up unwitting lust, Lilith keeps her surprise in check, more or less. She does, however, occupy herself with magnetic draw of lips, kissing him while hearing his old words echo as they did so many times. Then suddenly, she bubbles with laughter at her creeping suspicion, biting at the man's lower lip briefly (harmlessly), arms at looping around his neck with slow motion.

"Wait, wait, wait. Why are you telling me in advance, what else are you springing on me? Or is the surprise right now and I'm ruining it?" Lilith's playful words of first stunned reaction turn into good-natured suspicions, "You never tell me everything about what you're planning. You're about to kiss me again to shut me up, aren't you? You're going to do it with those sexy intense eyes all smoked up to taunt me."

Byron was, indeed, silently observing Lilith's every reaction to this revelation. His own expressions remain subtle, though there's an ever present soft smile at his lips. Those very lips that kiss her tenderly now as she is reminded of the antics of his youth. He did enjoy watching the way Lily's glowed with a beaming smile or a flush of color, depending on the surprise; the latter coming out ore often the older they got. After that moment in his car, the need to make her smile had intensified.

His lips still brushing against hers, he murmurs with a humored smile laughter, "I'm telling you in advance because I wanted to make sure your passport was in order and that you had enough time to pack for a week long trip." This was no weekend event, what Byron had planned would take up a good part of an entire week. "So pack up your cocktail dresses, a bikini or two and some good walking shoes for the vineyard hikes." She is right on a few things. He keeps his eyes on her in full and he does lean in to 'shut her up' with a harder kiss.

When their mouths part, he adds in, "We only have a few days to prepare, so I was thinking that we could have our first French lesson tonight." He doesn't come out and say 'in bed', but he so means that.

The more Lilith and Byron kiss, the more her excited enthusiasm bleeds into the motion, picking up gradual pulse and mesh of lips and tongue with more and more hungry pace. Though, as he makes the explanation, she can't help but spill with a little 'oh' of noise and another quiet laugh of giddiness and the high of delight and absolute adoration for Byron. In fact, she's not even all that suspicious anymore, because it's a good reason, the planning and passport bit.

"I've been on a cheap and tacky Bahamas cruise to get white girl wasted for a few days. Then a cheap and tacky Mexican one. I did not get wasted in port on that one because I didn't want to get grabbed out of the tourist ropes and have my kidneys sold away. My passport is sad with stamps, but it's still good. Now it's going to have fancy French stamps and we..." Her throat makes a little grunt and muffled squeal combination of excess excitement she's not sure what to do with for the sake of playing it suave, like trips are just another thing in her lifestyle now.

In the end, though, the arms looped around Byron's neck tug him down back against her lips after giving in and downright bouncing on her bare feet right next to the kitchen sink. After another head rush of kiss, she suddenly moves her arms back down to slide her hands with finger splaying under his shirt to feel at skin, the tight abdomen, the small of his back, the firmness of his chest, all in slow relish wandering, "... where will you start? What's most important to know about French and France?"

Byron can't help but smile at the mention of all of Lilith's tacky vacations. He also can't help but feel this swell of pride within his chest knowing of all the things that he can spoil Lily with now. Things that they could only dream about as children.

"We deserve this and... everyone keeps telling us to get out of Gray Harbor. So we're getting out of Gray Harbor. The furthest that we'll ever get. Together." Of course, it's not a permanent thing, but he can only hope that by doing this, they can avoid all the misery and darkness that the town has in store for them. Maybe they'll start to forget everything about the town, the way that it was at the back of his mind after he'd moved so many years ago. That, in itself, was dangerous. Or was it?

Knowing that he's about to say something ridiculous and corny, Byron's already smiling widely, "I think you're already the expert in the most important French anything." He's talking about the art of kissing... He even looks like he's about to laugh but he refrains, "But I have some ideas." His own hands trail along Lilith's side before she can feel a gentle nudge as he starts leading her towards the bedroom all while shutting off the lights in the main room.

It's a good thing that the cat was fed. At this moment, it's too busy licking at its fur to pay the couple in any mind.