What Endures (26 page)

“Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you for today. It was wonderful,”

He reached out, running his fingers along her cheek and down her neck. "You deserved to have someone take care of you for a change." She shivered. "Cold?" Before she could respond, he shrugged out his jacket and wrapped it around her. She pulled the lapels around her, suddenly surrounded by his warmth and scent.

"It's gorgeous out here."

"It sure is," he replied, his eyes never leaving her face.

"You outdid yourself tonight."

He quirked an eyebrow. "I never did things like this for you. . .before?"

"Not like this."           

“I probably didn't master the art of 'Googling' yet’” he said, grinning.

She gasped softly, piecing it all together in an instant. “That’s how you did all of this?”

“Amazing what you can do with a credit card and computer these days.” He smiled. “Still think I’m ingenious?”

She laughed softly. “Crafty might be a better word.” She looked around the enormous yacht that had not just one, but three fully furnished levels, including a fully decorated master suite “You put this yacht on your credit card?”

“This I had Sean take care of. He really is the best.”

“You deserve nothing less,” she said, her eyes meeting his.

“I could say the same about you.”

“Though the light was dim, she didn’t have any problems seeing the emotion in his eyes. She felt her heart do that familiar staccato dance, and this time, she welcomed it. It was nice to get to feel these familiar emotions again without having to suppress them. Without worrying about what could happen.

They gazed into each other’s eyes for a beat before Jason leaned in even closer. She thought for sure that he would kiss her then but he stopped when he was inches away. Close enough so that she was acutely aware of him, so close that she could smell the faintest trace of his aftershave and feel his breath dance across her skin, but still not close enough for them to kiss.

“Do you really not like surprises?”

His question surprised her. Not only the question, but the seriousness in which he asked it. “It depends on the surprise.”

“So I didn't surprise you when we were married?”

“We didn’t exactly have money for this type of thing when we were married,” she said with a faint smile. “We were teenagers in college."

“How about later? When we got engaged? I was in the Majors by then.”

She couldn't help but run her fingers along his stubble-covered jaw, loving the feel of the short whiskers against her skin. “You surprised me all the time. Not in big ways like this, although after tonight, I'm definitely not against it." They laughed softly. She looked up at his eyes, so bright against the dark night sky. "But you surprised me in small ways. All the time.”

He smiled but when he spoke, his tone was serious. “Really? I surprised you all the time?”

She nodded. “It was part of your charm.”

“Was part of my charm?”

She grinned. “I did say it was only
part
of your charm.”

If it were possible, he leaned in even closer to her. “Yeah? And what were the other parts?” He smiled at her sexily.

She couldn’t take it anymore. The flirting. The near touches. Not that it hadn’t been fun. It had made the anticipation sweeter, but anticipation only went so far.  She closed whatever distance was between them and kissed him on the lips. She felt him react in surprise and smiled. She pulled back slightly and looked up at him. “I’m good with surprises too you know.”

“I know,” he said, his voice husky. His eyes slowly traveled down to her lips before he leaned in and kissed her.

It was one of those deliciously slow and languid kisses. The kind to revel in. The kind to savor each touch. To taste each kiss. And to get lost in the feeling. The kind of kiss that was a prelude to something wonderful.

She felt his arm wrap around her waist to draw her closer to him and she willingly complied, wrapping her arms around his neck and letting her hands comb through his thick hair slowly. His other hand cupped her cheek before it moved back and entangled itself in her hair.

Their lips were locked in a passionate dance. Each action was met with an equally passionate counteraction. She nibbled his lower lip and he responded by licking her upper lip. He pulled her lower lip between his and sucked and she responded by letting her tongue slowly enter his mouth to make the briefest of contact with his own. Each action seemed to drive the other’s desire higher and higher. To make that heat within her spread hotter and faster inside of her.

They kissed until they were both breathless and forced to pull apart to draw in some much needed oxygen. She rested her head against his cheek and let her hand slide down to touch his neck. She felt a charge when she felt the rapid pulse beneath her fingers.

“M-Megan,” he whispered in between quick breaths.

She leaned her head back so that she could look into his eyes, which had darkened with desire. “Hmm?”

He stared at her as his thumb gently traced a long, slow line down her cheek. “God, you’re beautiful.” He bent down and kissed her softly on the lips before he leaned his head against hers. “And if you kiss me like that again, I may. . .”

“I’m not drunk this time,” she whispered, looking up at him.

Something flashed in his eyes and he tried to cover it but she saw it. He kissed her again, hotly. “How’d I ever control myself around you?”

You loved me

She had almost said it aloud. How she hadn’t, she didn’t know because the answer seemed so loud inside of her. But it was the truth. Jason had been willing to wait for her because he loved her. He had let her dictate the speed and pace of their relationship at the beginning. She hadn’t realized how precious that was until later.

Jason had been her first serious relationship. And that was before the marriage. As she had gotten older, and had dated other guys, she had begun to really appreciate how incredible he had been with her. She couldn’t have asked for a kinder, more patient or understanding lover. Especially for her first time. Not everyone, she had realized, had their first time be that special, or with a partner like Jason.

Not everyone she knew could look back on their first time and remember it with utter happiness. She remembered how he had taken things slow, always making sure she was okay. Afterwards, he had held her, tenderly and lovingly, as she had slowly come down from all those feelings. Then he had told her how amazing that had been for him, which had driven any feelings of doubt and insecurity about her lack of experience, completely from her mind.

Then Megan realized something else. Since he had lost so many years worth of memories, she realized that he no longer remembered his first time. She knew it had been when he was fairly young and with someone older, but for obvious reasons, they had never discussed that in detail. So she couldn’t give him back those memories.
Not that I would have wanted to
, she thought wryly.

But what she could give him was a new memory. Because this would be his first time, and she had the chance to make it as special as he had made hers.

She smiled gently and cupped his face between her hands. “It’s O.K.”

“What?”

She caressed his face. "You don't have to worry about disappointing me."

His eyes widen in surprise. "How'd. . ."

She pressed her lips against his in a soft kiss. "If you don't want to, then. . ."

"I do," he said quickly. He sighed. "I just don't know if I'll remember what to do."

She trailed her hand down his arm, interlocking their fingers. "Do what feels right." She smiled, kissing his chin. "I'll steer you around the curves."

#

Megan didn't know if the saying ‘like riding a bike’ was appropriate for something like this but, it was the only one that came to mind. Because while Jason didn't seem to remember his first sexual encounter, after a brief moment of awkwardness, he had gotten the hang of things rather quickly.

And very well
, she thought, gasping as his hand found her breast, kneading it as his thumb flickered across the hardened peak. It didn't seem like she needed to steer him around any curves, he seemed to be doing fine with the curves.

She gripped his shoulders, pulling him closer to her. Not only did this feel right, it felt incredible. She had missed being so close to him, missed him. And while she still had doubts, still heard that little voice in her head, right here, right now, all she could do was feel.

A moan escaped her lips when Jason's mouth found her nipple, his tongue flicking the sensitive, taut nub. She threaded her hand through his soft hair, holding his head exactly where it was, silently urging him for more. When he shifted his attention to her other breast, her body arched up into him.

His big hand, warm and slightly calloused, traveled slowly down her stomach until it found the hem of her panties. She could feel her heart pounding inside her chest, her breathing had grown ragged and it felt like her entire body was on fire. And she was loving every second of it. She wanted to savor it, but wanted to hurry things along too.

He lifted his head, stopping the ministrations to her breast and she whimpered at the loss of his touch there. She ran a hand down his bare chest, loving the feel of the sparse hair dotting his chest tickling her fingers. She looked up and met his eyes, now a dark shade of green.  In the dim lighting of the ship's cabin, it looked like his eyes had changed color completely. Smiling, she continued to trail her hand down to the zipper of his pants, and then let her fingers lightly trace the bulge in his pants.

Jason gasped and stilled her hand with his own. She quirked an eyebrow. "Just helping you around some curves."

"I think I got it," he rasped, his voice low and husky. He lifted her hand from his crotch, pinning it above her head on the bed. "Trust me."

"I do," she whispered, without any hesitation. In response, he bent his head and kissed her deeply, his tongue doing things that made her mind stop thinking entirely.

And then it was like their hands were everywhere, and so were their mouths. Touching, tasting, teasing. That coil of tension deep in her belly, the one that seemed to start just behind her pelvis was building and building, getting tighter and tighter with each touch and kiss.  With each article of clothing that they shed, until it was just their naked bodies, writhing against each other.

Megan felt like she was going to combust, her entire body felt so coiled with tension, it was like she was burning up from the inside. Every caress and kiss from Jason only intensified the sensation, until she could no longer bear it. She needed him.

Now.

"Jason. . ." she breathed, stopping him, as he trailed slow, wet kisses across her stomach. "Please."

He slowly lifted his head until his eyes, darkened with desire, met hers. The need she saw in them, she knew, matched her own. Holding her gaze, Jason positioned himself so that he was hovering over her, his knees by her parted legs. She opened her legs further, wordlessly encouraging him.

"Condom?"

Megan's eyes widened.
Crap
. She hadn't thought about that. She and Jason hadn't used a condom in a while since she was on the pill and they had been together for so long. But for this, a condom was probably best. Except she hadn't bought any. She closed her eyes briefly, preparing herself for the devastating disappointment of having to stop this.

Jason pulled back and scanned the floor before he got off the bed, reaching for his discarded pants. He glanced at her before he pulled a condom out of his pocket.

"Now I'm really surprised." She chuckled. "You remember the important stuff."

He grinned. "Better to be prepared."

She held out her hand. "Come here."

Jason rejoined her on the bed, but when he seemed to hesitate with the condom, she took it from him, ripping open the foil. Then, meeting his eyes, she gripped his shaft and rolled the condom down his length.  When she was done, he expelled a long, shaky breath, as if he had been holding it the entire time. She laid back down, tugging his arm so that he would follow. He slowly bent, stretching out over her, his hips nestled between her thighs and his erection grazing against her entrance. She groaned softly, feeling his hardness so close to where she needed him. "Jason. . ."

He kissed her and she thought she would lose her mind from the sensation caused by his erection rubbing against her, and then she was just lost as he pushed himself inside her. They both moaned and Jason stilled, his eyes searching her face.

She reached up, cupping his cheek with her hand. So many emotions coursed through her in that moment, feeling him inside her again, feeling this exquisite connection between them. Despite how much she fought against it, she felt a tear roll down her face. She closed her eyes, willing herself to gain control
. I will not cry during sex with Jason.

"Megan?" Jason whispered, his voice concerned.

"I-I'm sorry," she said, shaking her head. "I just. . .please don't stop."

"But. . ."

"I'm okay," she assured him. "Just don't stop."

He looked like he was going to say something else so Megan reached up and kissed him. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she pulled him against her, feeling his warm body press into her. Angling her legs so that she could move her hips, she thrust up against him, urging him to move. He was hesitant at first, and then his movements became more assured, his thrusts stronger.

Then she was adrift.

She was only aware of all the sensations coursing through her body as it reacted to his touch, the feel of him moving in and out of her. Her breathing became heavy, ragged as they both built to their release. She trailed her hands down his back, feeling the fine sheen of sweat that had built there, and gripped his hips, urging him on, faster and deeper.

"Oh God," she moaned, as that coiled tension tightened. "Jason."

He groaned as he thrust into her deeply, hitting that spot and making lights burst behind her eyes as her body shuddered and then went over the edge. She gripped him tight as the sensations rocked through her. She was gasping for breath as Jason continued to move. She lifted her thighs, wrapping them around his hips, meeting his thrust. He moved in and out of her twice more before he exhaled shakily and then she felt him convulsing in her.