It had started as a study session. Ashleigh and Ed both had exams coming up, but he'd wanted to see her, so he'd suggested he come by with food and books and they study together. Somehow, though, the food ended up half-eaten and the books ended up strewn over her floor. Ed's mouth was pressing heated kisses over her jaw and neck and his fingers had deftly undone all but two of the buttons on her shirt. He'd pulled her practically into his lap and his lips were just making his way back to hers, had just started to tug at her lower lip, when he heard the knocking at her door.
Which he fully intended to ignore. How important could it be, right? Surely whoever it was could wait twenty minutes or so! Ed definitely didn't want to stop what they were doing and he was really hoping she'd be content to ignore the pesky knocking as well.
Exams. Ashleigh couldn't have accurately expressed just how stressed she was about exams. Deep down, a part of her knew that it would be a bad idea to study with Ed but he'd offered to bring food and she did want to spend time with him.
She couldn't tell you who'd initiated the activities they were currently engaged in but it was largely unimportant. A little break wouldn't hurt them... it never had before. Besides, that thing he was doing with his lips? That felt far too good for her to actually want to keep reading through her English book.
"Mmmmm," she hummed softly when his mouth moved back to hers and his teeth raked over her bottom lip.
Oh, yeah, Ashleigh was definitely on board with ignoring that bothersome knocking. A good twenty minute break in studying was just what she needed right now. Anything else could wait.
Yes, a good twenty minute break. Or so. He definitely wouldn't complain if their break lasted longer, not when this was how they were spending it.
He gave an answering groan as the hum of hers died against his lips and he deepened the kiss a little as his fingers worked at the last two buttons and he pushed her shirt back over her shoulders.
With that taken care of, his free hand moved to her breast, brushing over nipple and groaning as her felt it harder under the thin fabric of her bra.
"Mmmm.. feel so good.." he groaned, forgetting all about the knocking at the door. Or maybe he was just continuing to ignore it. Whichever, he was definitely moving forward with this whole getting his girlfriend out of her clothes thing.
Yes, twenty minutes... or so. Right now, with the way things were progressing, Ashleigh definitely wasn't going to complain if their break slipped right past the twenty minute mark. They could always get back to their studies once they were finished...
Ashleigh eagerly returned the kiss, smirking as she playfully sucked at his tongue, then moving to do the same with each of his lips. His hands smoothly pushed the shirt over her shoulders and she shrugged out of it completely, allowing it to get lost in the floor with their forgotten books. As soon as her hands were free, they moved to the hem of his shirt, toying with it a moment, before tugging it up and over his head.
The kiss broke long enough to rid him of that material but, as soon as it was gone, she quickly pressed her mouth back to his just barely muffling the moan he pulled from her when his fingers moved expertly over her breast.
"Want you so bad.." she mumbled, easily forgetting about the previous knock as her fingers moved to his waist, flipping the button and pulling his fly open.
Another knocked echoed into the room and she glared briefly at the door, willing who ever it was to go away but her attention was quickly turned back to the boy under her.
It couldn't possibly be important. Everyone who mattered were miles away or in this room with her. It could wait.
Matthew Barton could be a patient man, but right now? He wanted to see his daughter. He was in Boston for business this week and he thought he'd come by and surprise his little girl. The problem was that she didn't appear to be answering her door.
Maybe she wasn't home, but he was sure he heard noises coming from behind the door, though he reasoned they could belong to her roommate. With a sigh, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed her number. When a phone inside immediately began to ring, he became positive she was inside that room.
"ASHLEIGH ELIZABETH BARTON, OPEN THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW," he barked loudly. Whatever she was busy doing in there could certainly wait for time with her Daddy, couldn't it?
Ed was definitely encouraging this plan of ignoring the annoying knocking, especially since it appeared to involve his girlfriend relieving him of his pants even as her was reaching under her skirt to pull her panties over her hips.
He'd just pulled said garment free when her phone began to ring and a second later her father' very loud, very impatient voice was coming through from the hall.
Oh, fuck.
Ed pulled away from his girlfriend (very, very reluctantly) and gave her a shocked, somewhat panicked look. The last thing he needed was for her father to catch them doing this. The man seemed to actually like him and Ed kind of wanted to keep it that way.
Ashleigh was very accommodating as Ed tugged her her panties over her hips. She shifted as he worked, aiding him in his task. All the while, her own fingers were working diligently, touching him through his boxers as their mouths practically melted together.
When yet another knock was punctuated with a very familiar ring tone from her phone, she gave an extremely exasperated sigh and cursed under her breathe. Could the world just fucking disappear for twenty fucking minutes she wasn't asking all that mu...
Oh, shit.
Ashleigh practically jumped from her boyfriend's lap at the sound of her father's voice and his somewhat panicked expression was met with an extremely panicked one. "I'm... I'm coming, Daddy," she called back into the hall, trying to keep her voice even and calm even though her heart was about to pound out of her chest.
Moving faster than she'd ever moved in her life, she began tossing their books onto the bed. Her shirt was hastily yanked from the floor and she pulled it back on, buttoning all of the buttons in record time... but not noticing how they weren't lined up to the right holes.
After making sure that Ed had closed his jeans she ripped the door open and gave her daddy the brightest smile in all the world. "Hey, Daddy!" she greeted, instantly throwing herself into his arms and giving him a rather large hug. "What a nice surprise! I didn't know you were coming into town!"
Ashleigh wasn't usually one to go commando and, as she moved to let him in, she became painfully aware of the fact that she wasn't wearing any panties. A dread fell into her stomach at that and she realized that she didn't have any clue as to where that particular article of clothing had gotten to.
Oh, shit.
Matthew almost snorted with amusement when his daughter threw open the door. Her clothes were a little rumbled and her shirt wasn't properly buttoned and he was pretty sure he had a fair idea of what had been going on in that room when he saw her boyfriend over the girl's shoulder.
"I wanted to surprise you!" he informed her, barely hiding the smirk that wanted to come through. Not that he was especially pleased to find her like this, with what she'd undoubtedly been doing, but Matthew knew his daughter was an adult. Sort of. And he wasn't going to embarrass her in front to the boy. Probably.
"Hello, Ed, nice to see you again," he somehow managed to greet the boy with a straight face. He couldn't resist looking part to his daughter, though, and giving her a teasing grin. "Did you get dressed in the dark today, Ash?" he asked her.
Ed managed to spot his girlfriend's panties on the floor just before she opened the door and he grabbed them and slipped them into his pocket for safekeeping. His pulse was racing as he waited for her father to freak out, but when he greeted him so.. normally, Ed grinned back at him.
"What a pleasant surprise, Mr. Barton!" he returned. "We weren't expecting you." Oh, he could have kicked himself for that. He wouldn't have had the man's daughter half-naked if they had been. "It's great that you're here, though!"
He wondered, briefly, if he should run away leave them alone for some quality father/daughter time now, but he waited for Ashleigh to say something else first.
Ashleigh was nothing if not a huge grin idiot as she stood there, conversing with her father. "Well, I'm glad you did," she half lied. Oh, she was always happy to see her daddy but the circumstances could've been a lot better. When he greeted Ed so normally and her boyfriend returned that greeting, she thought for a brief second that they'd were in the free and clear but that exchange with Ed was followed by his teasing question and she was left with a slightly confused expression on her face.
Had she dressed in the dark?
"Huh?" she uttered before looking down her body and realizing just how royally she'd screwed up when buttoning her shirt. She mentally faceplamed. "Oh. Um. Yeah. I must have," she laughed softly as if it was just some silly little mix up or a joke. The words left her mouth and a hot blush began licking at her cheeks but she fought it as best as she could. A second later she backed into the room slightly and issued a welcoming invitation.
"Come on in, Daddy."
If the ground would open up and swallow her now, that'd be awesome. She turned her back to her father, then, and scanned the floor for her lost panties. When they didn't immediately catch her attention, relief flooded over her and she hoped that they wouldn't magically appear.
"I'd offer you something but Ollie and Ethan just left a week ago and I've not really had a chance to stock the dorm again. They came quite close to eating me out of house and home... unless you want a cookie. Topher has been having cookies delivered weekly."
Yeah, this just couldn't get more awkward. If Ed bolted on her, she would be damned sure to punish him later.
If Matthew had been at all likely to be fooled, the blush would have given the girl away. He didn't say anything, though. He merely nodded and smiled knowingly. And tried not to think too much about what had just been going on in there. Denial was a happy, happy place.
"Maybe we should go out, then," he suggested. "We can get some dinner and you can tell me all about this education I'm paying for." He was teasing slightly there, which was probably obvious.
"You, too, Ed," he added after a moment when they boy looked about to object. "I'd love to hear all about what you've both been up to lately."
Ashleigh wasn't the only one silently wishing for the ground to swallow them. Ed was definitely having similar thoughts. When Matthew suggested going out, he thought he was going to have a perfect excuse to head home, but then the man had included him in the invitation and that was out.
"Of course! I'd love to tag along," Ed agreed, his smile a lot more relaxed and cheerful than he felt right now. He didn't see how this could possibly go well.. with Ash going commando and them sitting through a meal with her father when all he really wanted to do was get back to their previous activities.
"That sounds like a great idea, Daddy," she grinned. "There's this Chinese food restaurant down the road... they have decent eggrolls."
While Ashleigh wasn't particularly hungry, she was eager to get out of her dorm and away from this painfully awkward moment. Her father had just caught her making out with her boyfriend... not just making out with him but well on her way to doing other things. She'd just been about to extend an invitation to Ed but her father beat her to it and she smiled. If she was going to have to do this, he should definitely be suffering at her side.
Another blush tickled her cheeks when he stated that he wanted to hear all about what they'd been up to. All three parties knew full well what they'd been doing before his interruption and she was certain he'd chosen that particular wording on purpose.
"Let me just run to the bathroom," she excused herself, "then I'll be ready to go."
Taking pity on her boyfriend, she didn't linger too terribly long after leaving the room. She urinated, kicked herself for not keeping an extra set of panties in the bathroom, washed her hands, and fixed her shirt. From her perspective, she hadn't been gone long at all but she was certain her boyfriend might have objected to that statement.
"Ready?" she questioned, her gaze moving between the two of them.
"Oh, you know how I love Chinese!" Was it wrong to sound extra-excited or choose certain phrasings just to torture her? Probably. It was also probably wrong that he intended to order plenty of water with his dinner.
But, hey, at least he wasn't threatening to ground her forever for ignoring his knocking while she made out with her boyfriend, right? And the amusement would distract him from giving her a lecture on sex and being safe right in front of said boyfriend.
He made small talk with Ed while his daughter was in the other room and he grinned as she rejoined them. "Let's go, then."
If there had been any easy way to get Ashleigh's panties back to her without her father noticing, Ed would have done so. Unfortunately, it looked like he was going to be stuck with them in his pocket all night. Damn.
Ed's stoic nature really helped him out when Ash left the room. He managed to carry on a conversation - or a little small talk - with the man for the eternity she seemed to be gone, though he was definitely glad for her return.
"I'm ready," he assured her, slipping a casual arm around her shoulders as the trio began to exit the room.
After everything, Ashleigh felt mildly uncomfortable about having Ed's arm around her shoulders but it wasn't in her to actually shrug out of his touch. Instead, she kept her distance, being sure to make that embrace as platonic as possible.
On the way out of the building, she flashed him a bright smile. "You should drive," she announced. "I'll fit in your backseat a lot better than you'll fit in mine."
Mere moments later, they were pulling into the parking lot of the Chinese restaurant she'd mentioned. Since she was in the back seat, she was the last out of the car. She was dining with two gentlemen, though, and was the first to entire the building.
After the waiter had led them to their table, he asked for their drink orders and Ashleigh attempted to order for them all. "A Coca-Cola for all of us?" she requested, keeping her gaze locked with his as she prayed that her father wouldn't need anything else.
No water. No water. No water. Please, no water.
If Matthew hadn't already intended to order some water, the way Ashleigh just jumped in and ordered them all cokes made him more determined to do so. "Water, too," he chimed in, managing to keep a straight face as he opened his menu to look over the food choices.
Oh, Ashleigh would know better, of course, no matter how innocent he tried to play that off as, but if she had reason to NOT want water at the table, he was doubly interested in hearing what the water would have to say.
Poor Ed, meanwhile, was completely oblivious to the whole thing. He was a little surprised at the way Ashleigh took over the drink order, but not curious enough to question her on it right his second.
Once he'd held her chair out for her and got her properly settled, he took a seat next to her (while Matthew sat across from them) and let his hand rest lightly on her leg, giving it a reassuring squeeze. It was just dinner with her father, he reasoned to himself. How bad could it be?
The waiter nodded at both of the Bartons before disappearing to get the things they'd requested.
Ashleigh had wanted to glare at her father when he chimed in and ordered a glass of water but she bit the inside of her cheek and forced herself to look at the menu instead. They both knew why he wanted water and she thought it was horribly unfair. Listening to the water was practically the same thing as reading her mind... it was a violation... especially when she was trying to hide things from him.
One of her hands moved under the table and rested softly over Ed's. When he squeezed her leg, she gave his hand a return squeeze.
"The sesame chicken is good," she mumbled through her menu. "So is the broccoli and beef." Anyone who had spent any amount of time with her knew that she probably didn't need the menu she was so focused on. Once she got used to a restaurant, she almost always ordered the same thing.
When the waiter returned, he sat the dreaded glass of water onto the table first and she cut him a look. Well, wasn't he just a helpful Henry?
When "Henry" asked if they were ready to order, she gave a small nod of her head."I'll have the sweet and sour chicken, a side of pork friend rice, two egg roles and an extra fortune cookie." She paused. "Oh, and an order of egg drop soup."
No, she wasn't likely to eat all of that in one sitting but Ashleigh was the queen of leftovers.
Matthew couldn't hide his amusement at everything his daughter ordered. She definitely liked to eat and he also knew how much she liked the leftovers. It was kind of adorable and he couldn't help smiling.
He chimed in with his own order, taking her recommendation and getting the sesame chicken (with rice and just one egg roll, because he wasn't a pig like his daughter) and he waited for Ed to add in his own order before handing the menus over the the waiter and thanking him.
"So... what have you two been up to?" he asked, hiding his smirk behnd a sip of his coke.
It took an amazing amount of will power for Ed to keep his hand in a safe region under that table. Knowing his girlfriend was panty-less under there - if they'd been out with anyone other than her father, he'd be taking full advantage.
He maintained his self-control, though, grinning amusedly as she ordered what sounded like half the restaurant. "I hope you weren't planning on feeding anyone else tonight," he joked before ordering the beef and broccoli for himself, along with a few extra eggrolls and cookies, because he knew Ash would want some of his, too.
Ashleigh gave both of them a look when they seemed amused by her order. It wasn't like she'd ordered half the kitchen. One entree, one side, one soup, two... okay, maybe she had gotten a lot of food. "Oh hush," she told Ed, playfully sticking her tongue out at him. "This will feed me for two days."
When Matthew pressed his earlier question, she glanced uncomfortably at the glass of water sitting in front of him. "Nothing much, Daddy," she answered, pausing a moment before she continued. "Studying... school work... the usual."
The water barely hesitated before it was adding it's own comments. "Nothing much?" it questioned. "Wouldn't Ed be offended if he thought you were saying that he..." Ashleigh clarification on 'nothing much' shushed the water but for only a second. "Studying? Is that what you call that? I thought it was..."
She forced a smile. "What's been going on back home, Daddy?" Never mind the fact that she'd just been in Chicago early in the week.
Matthew nearly choked on his drink as the water started talking. Oh, he'd pretty much figured out what had been going on and he wasn't exactly shocked, but he nearly choked nonetheless.
"Oh, nothing much, Ash, the usual - work, mostly.."
She definitely wasn't going to be changing the subject that easily.
"What were you studying?" he pushed, not really sure if he was more curious about her answer or the water's.
Ed was oblivious to the water talking, but he still tried to help his girlfriend out when her father questioned her.
"We've got finals coming up soon, so we were working on a little bit of everything," he said, wincing inwardly at his choice in phrasing, because that could be taken badly, but he'd meant it a lot more innocently than it had come out.
Right now, in this moment, Ashleigh could've happily choked her father. Sure, the outside eye might have thought that he was just a caring, curious father. Which, most of the time, that's exactly what he was. At the moment, though, he was asking her questions... basically forcing her to lie to him... just so he could hear the water's thoughts on the matter.
When Ed stepped forward and answered the question, she gave the hand on her leg a little pat. "I was mostly focused on English," she tried to elaborate. "The professor is talking about some sort of essay and you know how rotten I am with grammar."
The water snorted at that. "Yeah," it began, "you were focused on English for five minutes... maybe less... however long it took for Ed to start kissing down your neck."
She glared at the glass of water. "You don't mind if I have a sip of your water, do you, Daddy?" she questioned before lifting it from the table and taking several large swallows. When she sat it down again, half of it's contents were gone.
"Tell me about work," she insisted with a smile. "Anything interesting?"
Oh, that wasn't true. Matthew wasn't forcing her to lie, not really. She was absolutely free to tell him the truth and he would really sort of appreciate it if she did.
He may have been doing this to torture her, just a little, though. Maybe it was a little mean, but he just couldn't help himself.
He coughed a little when the water did voice it's thoughts, trying not to laugh out loud, though he couldn't help but smirk with amusement when she drained half the glass of water before waiting for a response.
"Of course you can, baby. They can always bring more," he assured her as she set the glass back on the table.
When she asked about work, he gave a slight shrug. "Not really," he answered. "Just the same old, same old. LPA is crazy as ever. And I think you talk to Topher more than I do."
"You're grammar isn't that bad, love," Ed jumped to assure her. He had no idea about the water, no idea about either of their abilities, which was probably good, because that might have freaked him out a little bit. As far as her knew, they were just making small talk with her father. Ed thought things were going rather well.
The waiter came back by then, refilling the water glass and setting the food they'd ordered on the table. It looked like enough to feed an army and it smelled amazing. Ed grinned as he moved a couple of his extra egg rolls to Ashleigh's plate, knowing she'd only end up stealing them from him, anyway.
He gave her hand a quick squeeze under the table before picking up his chopsticks and digging into his dinner. God, it looked good!
Ashleigh was absolutely free to tell him the truth and, usually, that's exactly what she would have done. She hated lying to her father. Right now, though, she would rather bite off her own tongue than admit to her Daddy that she had been ignoring him because she and her boyfriend had been well on their way to having sex. It was difficult enough talking to Dari about these things...
They both knew he was only doing this because he wanted to torture her. It had been the reason he'd gotten water. If he hadn't wanted to torture her, he would've been satisfied with the soda she'd ordered for him.
She grinned brightly at Ed and gave his hand another pat when he reassured her. Her gaze turned back to that annoying glass of water when her father spoke of her newfound friend.
"Topher's hot," the water announced inopportunely.
"Topher and I talk," she confirmed with a nod. "Not often or in depth, though. He sends me cookies. I thank him for cookies. We don't really talk about work."
Ashleigh and the water fell silent when the waiter brought their food and refilled their glasses. She grinned brightly when Ed slid a couple of his extra eggrolls onto her plate.
"Keep eating like that," the water warned, "and you'll be just as fat as your mother says you are."
"Did you hear about Ollie getting accepted to BC?" she asked her father brightly. That was a safe topic, wasn't it? She couldn't get into trouble when talking about Ollie.
"Safe topic. Unless you tell him what lengths you said you would go to to make him like cookies again," the water added smartly.
Maybe he'd just really wanted water. (Nevermind that he hadn't actually drank a sip of it.) Okay, so he really had just wanted to torture her hear what the water had to say. He almost choked at what the water said next, raising an eyebrow at Ashleigh when it voiced that thought about Topher. He might have teased her about that, but then the water was speaking again and he frowned slightly. He knew how his daughter's ability worked. He knew if the water was saying it, then she was thinking it and he'd have said something about it if Ed hadn't been there, but there wasn't really a way to bring it up without sounding like a crazy person.
"I did hear," he answered her question with a grin, glad to hear her thoughts weren't lingering on her mother for too long. "We'll definitely have to pick something up for him while I'm here." The corners of his mouth twitched slightly as the water chimed in and he wondered just what it was referring to.
She'd been right about the food here and Matthew voiced his approval as he took a few bites of his dinner. "Mmmm, you were right. This is really good."
Ed couldn't help noticing the way Ashleigh's father seemed to almost choke on his dinner, even if he didn't come out and ask about it. Just as he'd been about to voice some amount of concern and ask if the man was okay, he'd stopped coughing so he went back to his own dinner as he listened to the pair converse. He didn't have much to add to the conversation, especially when it started to center around Ollie.
If you can say something nice about someone, don't say anything at all. That's how his mama had raised him, which meant Ed was definitely not going to be commented on Ollie coming to his school and joining his football team next year. Ed was indescribably annoyed by the idea, but he knew better than to voice such annoyance to his girlfriend, so he chose to keep silent instead.
"You'll have to try the flan for dessert, Mr. Barton," he chimed in when the topic turned to the food they were all eating. "It's really great."
When Matthew had a visible reaction to what the water said about Topher, she cut him a look. One that demanded he'd better not say anything. It had been nearly a month since she'd met Topher and, while he was attractive, they're relationship had definitely adopted more of a brother/sister role. A turn in their relationship that she was quite satisfied with.
Ashleigh winced internally when she saw his frown at what the water was saying. She often tried to keep those types of thoughts hidden from him. Obviously, he knew that the things her mother said got to her on some level but she didn't like to rub it in his face. It was bad enough being married to the wench.
"We will," she agreed quickly. "I was thinking maybe a sweatshirt or something... I don't know. Something collegey."
"Something that would definitely encouraged him to come to college and leave that slacker girlfriend of his behind," the glass added.
"I don't know," she added with a smile. "We'll figure it out, though." She knew that her boyfriend really didn't care for her best friend and she was happy to let the conversation move forward. She hadn't exactly questioned Ed on the matter but past experience had taught her that he probably wouldn't be thrilled with the thought of Ollie being around all the time.
"Yeah, between skinny dipping and him trying to kiss you," the water added to her thoughts, "there's definitely no chance of them becoming friends." It paused for the briefest of seconds. "What will Ed think of all the time you're sure to spend with Ollie next year?"
"Yes, Daddy," she piped in enthusiastically. "You really have to try the flan. You'll love it!"
If the water would not spill every secret she had during this one meal, that would be great.
The rest of the dinner passed much the same way, idle chatter between Matthew and Ashleigh with Ed occasionally chiming in. Every once in the while the water would say something that earned Ashleigh a look, but the inner passed uneventfully for the most part. More or less.
He did try the flan when it came time for dessert and it was just as good as they'd both promised. He flashed them both a grin as he finished up and moments later he was handing the waiter his credit card, shaking his head at Ed when the boy tried to insist on paying for at least his own share.
"I should let you get back to your studying," he told the couple as they finally made their way out of the restaurant, adding his suggestion that Ed drop he and Ashleigh off at her dorm so he could retrieve his own things before he headed home. Hey, it was getting late-ish. He'd be wanting to return to his own dorm, surely.
At least, that was the insinuation in Matthew's suggestion, whether or not the young couple liked it.
Ed was all for the idea of him and Ashleigh getting back to their "studying." It felt like it had been hours since they'd been interrupted and he was really looking forward to continuing what they'd been doing. Of course, then her father made it clear that Ed was expected to return to his own dorm and he had to stifle a groan. So much for getting a chance to finish what they'd started.
He nodded his head at the man, though, managing a polite "yes, sir, that sounds like a good idea" even if it was the farthest from what he wanted for the rest of his evening.
Ed slipped his hand back into Ashleigh's as they left the restaurant, smiling over at her even if he was far from happy about this whole idea of him going back to his own place. They could make up for it tomorrow, right? Or whenever her dad left town again.
Ashleigh had breathed a sigh of relief when dinner was finally over and the table was cleared. She hadn't been remotely sorry to see the glass of water go and the smile on her face had definitely brightened. Honestly, it was like the entire world had suddenly gotten brighter.
All things considered, dinner had gone fairly well, and she was in an amazing mood when they were exiting the restaurant. She was mildly excited when her father suggested that he let them get back to their studying but then he was making it clear that he expected them to do that ... separately.
That definitely did not please her. She'd just spend the last several hours without her panties and she really wanted to get back to what they were doing before her father's untimely interruption. She gave Ed a weak sort of smile when his hand slipped into hers.
"You're probably right, Daddy," she grinned brightly before climbing into the back of Ed's car. "So, how many days do I have you?"
"Just a few," he told her. It was a shame, really. He liked it when his job brought him close to his daughters, when it gave him an excuse to spend some extra time with the ones he loved and got him away from his wife for awhile. "Enough time that we can do some shopping once you're done with class tomorrow," he suggested with a grin.
It didn't take long for them to drive to campus and Ed quickly collected his books, kissing Ashleigh goodnight and shaking Matthew's hand as he left. Matthew returned the handshake cheerfully, waving as the boy promised to call Ashleigh tomorrow and turning his attention back to his daughter once the boy was gone.
"So... a whole five minutes, huh?" he asked her, finally able to question her on things the water had clued him in on.
"Well, we'll have to make the most of them, wont we?" she grinned brightly.
When it came down to it, Ashleigh loved her Daddy more than anything else in the world. It was no secret that she missed him terribly when she was away at school and she was quite happy to have him in town for a few days. Besides, it was always especially nice to see him when she didn't have to deal with her mother.
When Ed dropped them off at her dorm, she really had to fight the urge to let their lips linger against his during that goodnight kiss. It was so painfully unfair that her father was making him go home. Especially when she was quite... frustrated.
She was smiling when she gave her boyfriend a final farewell wave but that brightness faltered a little bit when Matthew turned and immediately began questioning her on something the water had said.
"It.. it was probably a bit longer than that, Daddy," she tried to assure him. "You know... five minutes was more of an... exaggeration..."
Oh, this was about to get awkward, wasn't it?
"Do I need to give you the safe sex lecture again?" he asked rather bluntly. It didn't much matter if it had been five minutes or five hours so much as it mattered that his daughter was being safe. Not that he knew for a fact she was actually having sex, but it was better to assume that than to be hopelessly naive and assume she'd stay pure and chaste forever.
He wasn't a complete prude and he wasn't an unrealistic man. He'd been younger than she was now when his wife had given birth to the girl. He knew what it was like to be young, to have hormones, to get carried away by those hormones and your own emotions. Her certainly wasn't going to judge her if she was doing those things with Ed, but he was going to make damn sure she didn't repeat his mistakes. Not that she was a mistake, because there was nothing in the world Matthew loved more, but she wasn't going to do things the way he and his wife had. She was a brilliant girl with a bright future and no matter how much he looked forward to grandchildren someday, now definitely wasn't the time for that.
He knew this conversation was likely awkward and embarrassing for her, but better than than.. he just wanted her to be prepared. He just wanted to know she was safe. He wanted to know he could trust that Ed kid with his little girl without, you know, having to go and beat those assurances out of the boy, himself.
This conversation was a little more than awkward and embarrassing for her. She had a hard enough time discussing such things with Dari and Marlene... actually having to talk to her father about this was completely and utterly mortifying.
"No, Daddy," she answered softly. "You don't... if we..." her words trailed off and she just looked at him for a moment. If we... that was the beginning of a lie and Ashleigh didn't outright lie to her father. Sure, she would, occasionally, keep the truth from him but she couldn't remember a single time where she'd looked him dead in the eye and told him something that was completely untrue. Their relationship had always been built on trust and the only lie she'd ever caught him in had almost destroyed them.
"I'm on birth control," she admitted. "I have been since November." If they were going to discuss this, they should discuss it honestly.
"November? Huh." If it hadn't been for the whole preoccupation with his daughter growing up way too fast, Matthew might have been amused to receive something resembling some confirmation that there had been a boy back then. Even if her bringing home BC's star quarterback for Christmas had been a pretty big clue.
"You're not letting him pressure you into anything, are you?" he asked, looking at her seriously. He and Ashleigh teased and joked a lot and some people might think they acted more like friends than parent and child at times, but Matthew was a father first and foremost and this was important stuff. Maybe it was awkward and embarrassing for both of them, but he had to be sure his little girl was safe.
Ashleigh bit her lip when he repeated the information she'd just given him. November. This was a prime example of one of her omissions. Matthew hadn't met Ed until Christmas vacation. Before that, she hadn't really talked about her boyfriend at all. Now, it was probably obvious that they'd been pretty serious long before she'd brought him home.
"No, Daddy," she rushed to reassure him with an adamant shake of her head. "Ed wouldn't... it's always been up to me. He's never pushed or pressured me into anything. There was... one time, he refused to do anything because he was afraid of taking advantage of me." She paused a moment to take a breath. "He's really amazing, Daddy. I don't think he'd ever intentionally do anything to hurt me."
She was sure this wasn't an easy concept to process. It might not have been an ideal conversation but she didn't mind taking the time to reassure her father... especially if it kept him from thinking poorly of her boyfriend.
"Good." Matthew let out the breath he'd been holding when she assured him of that. "Good," he repeated, grinning this time as he leaned in to press a kiss to her forehead. He really did like his daughter's boyfriend and he was glad to hear he hadn't been too far off in his assessment, even if he still really wanted to pretend she was still eight and much too young for boyfriends or sex or any of it. It was a hard thing, watching your baby grow up.
"I should let you get back to your studies," he added when he pulled away again. "Breakfast tomorrow? What's your schedule like?"
He only had a few days and he wanted to make the most of the time. And maybe, just maybe, he wanted an excuse to stop by early and make sure the boy hadn't snuck back over as soon as he was gone.
Ashleigh could literally see the relief that moved over him at her reassurances and she had a sudden swell of love and adoration build in her chest. The uneasiness she'd been feeling faded when he smiled and she wrapped both of her arms tightly around his middle as his lips brushed over her forehead. "I love you, Daddy," she murmured softly. It wasn't often that she could hug her Daddy and she lingered in the embrace, just enjoying it for a moment.
Her usual bright smile was in place when they pulled apart and she gave him a brief nod. "Yeah. I should probably get to work," she agreed, obviously not pleased with the concept. "We should definitely do breakfast tomorrow, though. I have a class at nine but... before then? Maybe seven?"
Having her Daddy in town was going to cause her to go nuts in class the following day but it was far too late in the semester for her to miss any classes.
"That would give us a few hours before class and then, of course, I'm all yours after."
"I love you, too, baby," Matthew murmured as he hugged his daughter tightly. They really didn't have enough time together. His baby girl was growing up, which had meant going away to school and... a part of him hated it. He hated not seeing her.
"Seven sounds great," he agreed when she proposed a time. It would be nice to spend some time with his daughter before class. Though he fully intended to arrive early. Just to be safe.
He wouldn't have let her miss class, even if she'd wanted to and he nodded as she continued. "Good! We'll hit the student store or something and pick something out for Ollie, then."
As much as Ashleigh loved Boston, she missed her father a great deal and it was difficult not seeing him every day. Having him in town for a while was definitely a treat and she fully intended to take advantage.
"It's a date!" she grinned brightly.
After wrapping her arms around him and hugging him again, she began slowly leading him out of the door and into the hallway.
"I'm glad you're here, Daddy," she assured him as she continued to walk him out of the building. "I miss you, you know."
That was the honest truth. Even with all the awkwardness, Ashleigh was so glad to be able to spend a little time with him. She wouldn't have changed this for the world... except she probably would have chosen to not be in her boyfriend's lap when he'd arrived.
"I glad I'm here, too, baby," he returned easily, gladly returning the hug his daughter was giving him, mumbling softly that he missed her, too. It was no secret that Ashleigh was pretty much his favorite person in the entire world. He'd really welcomed this excuse to visit the city she happened to be in.
He took his time, letting her walk him out to his rental car, pausing to hug her one more time before getting into the car. He gave a little wave as he pulled away, grinning to himself as he thought of how nice it was going to be to spend time with her over the next few days.
When Matthew finally slid into the driver's seat, Ashleigh stepped up onto the curb and waited for him to pull away. There was a bright smile on her face as she waved him goodbye and just before he was out of sight, she threw him a kiss. She could already tell that this was going to be a good week and the corners of her mouth were still turned into a small smile when she began making her way back to her dorm. Right now, nothing else in the world could have made her happier. Well, almost nothing...
Before Ashleigh could even make it back into her building, she was struck with an idea and her happy smile was turned into a more devious one. Her father had said that he needed to let her get back to her studies, hadn't he? Well, that was exactly what she intended to do.
She turned on her heels and walked purposefully to her Jeep. Sure, a few hours has passed since her father's untimely arrival but she was still quite... frustrated, for lack of a better word, and she knew that she wasn't going to be able to accomplish any real studying.
It only took her a few minutes to drive to Ed's apartment and she wasted no time in making her way to his door and knocking loudly. After that visit with her father, she was sure he wasn't expecting her but, after several months of dating, she thought nothing of stopping in unannounced. Besides, she expected him to welcome her presence... clearly, he had to be feeling the same way she was...
Ashleigh said nothing when he pulled the door open. Instead, wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a rather demanding kiss. After the interruption and spending the last several hours without panties, she didn't really care about anything other than getting back to where they'd left off.
Ed had taken a shower once he arrived back at his dorm, figuring he was out of luck as far as continuing things with Ashleigh went. He was genuinely surprised (and still a little wet) when he heard a knock on his door mere moments after he'd stepped out of the shower and slipped on his favorite sweatpants.
When he opened the door to see his girlfriend standing there, his face broke into a wide grin and he started to ask what she was doing here (though he was certainly not complaining) when he found his words effectively cut off by her lips being pressed firmly to his.
Ed returned the kiss, immediately pulling her tighter into his arms, his hands moving into her hair as he kissed her back hungrily. Shower or no shower, he definitely wanted her.
"Remind me to answer the door shirtless more often," he muttered breathlessly, pulling away just long enough to pull her into his apartment and shut the door behind him. He didn't wait for a response before pulling her back into another kiss. God, he was glad to see her.
Ashleigh was breathless when he pulled away long enough to pull her into the apartment and shut the door. She forced herself to take several deep, calming breaths but, the second he turned back to her, she was in his arms again, urging him into another hungry kiss.
It was safe to say that she wasn't behaving like herself at all. Usually, she took more of a submissive role and let him set the pace. Tonight, though, something had definitely gotten into her and she was definitely the one in control.
Her fingers moved along his spine until she found a wet spot at the small of his back. "Oh baby," she murmured as she roughly backed him into the door, "already wet for me?"
His wet hair was enough to suggest that he'd just gotten out of the shower but she couldn't stop herself from teasing him a little before pressing her mouth back to his in a deep kiss.
Ed had definitely noticed that she was acting.. not quite like her usual self. He was far from complaining, though. Oh, no, Ed was definitely appreciating this side of his girlfriend.
"Always," he muttered as one hand traveled down her side to her leg to push at her skirt. He couldn't help himself - he was curious as to whether she'd manage to replace the panties that he still had in his possession.
Besides, his girlfriend had nice legs. And she looked really hot in that skirt, which was probably what had gotten them into trouble to begin with. If you could call it that. Honestly, Ed had quite enjoyed their study session, pre-interruption, and he was glad for a chance to continue it now.
He groaned as his hand moved under her skirt, around and over her butt to feel bare skin. Intentional or not, knowing his girlfriend wasn't wearing her underwear was seriously hot.
Ashleigh pressed her body to his, successfully pinning him against the door as she kissed him hungrily. Her teeth pulled roughly at his bottom lip and her fingers began dragged over his ribs until they were dancing impatiently on his hips, right at the waist of his sweatpants.
"Good," she breathed when she finally tore her lips from his and began to brush heated kisses along his collarbones. "I am, too."
She gasped audibly when his fingers found their way under her skirt and brushed over bare skin. She most definitely hadn't taken the time to replace the panties she'd lost during their last study session but, then again, she hadn't come over here with the intention of needing that particular article of clothing.
"Ready to finish this?" she questioned huskily, her lips moving lower, brushing over his chest as she began to push his pants over his hips.
As they say... ready or not...
"Oh, yeah..." Ed had groaned again when she informed him she was wet, too and the way she felt, the way she was acting, the way she tasted and sounded - it was all too much.
He was lifting her before she'd even pushed his sweats completely off, one hand moving to assist her and he carried her to the the nearest wall. He'd barely stepped out of his sweats when he was pressing her against that wall and pushing himself inside her with a loud groan.
If there was any doubt as to how ready he'd been for her, it was settled now, with the way he was pushing into her, the way he brought them both quickly to a release and didn't even slow down before he was pushing towards another.
God, that was.. maybe they should be interrupted more often if this was the result?