A Lazy Afternoon
A/N
Happy birthday, Joodiff
Many thanks to GotTea for the Beta, her never-ending encouragement, help and support
He stirs with a feeling of pure and simple contentment. He's warm and relaxed, feels like he's wrapped in a cocoon; safe and secure from the cold, hostile and often violent world outside. The room is lying in a semi-darkness – the day has faded away without their notice – and after a hard and troublesome week, they apparently fell asleep, curled snugly, closely together on the sofa.
The world surrounding them is in silence; all he can hear at the moment is the soft sound of their breathing, which is almost inaudible. The combination of the fading light, the warmth and the relaxation is simply blissful, but the silence, the silence is what really provides him with the steady sense of calmness and satisfaction.
Grace is still completely lost to the world; her head on his shoulder, right arm wrapped over his chest, her whole body tucked tightly to his while his arm lies easily, securely around her back, his hand resting lightly on her hip. It's a relatively new experience, but most definitely a good one, Boyd muses. Waking up like this, with her in his arms, is such an unexpected gain, a happiness he never thought would be his.
With a sigh of contentment he gently tightens his grip on her, pulling her slender body slightly closer while he nuzzles her forehead lightly with his chin. His beard obviously tickles her skin, however, causing her hand to move to her face, evidently trying to brush off the object of annoyance.
The disturbance is minor, though, because her hand soon returns to rest against his chest again and the light pressure, the sensation of her touch as her fingers slide across the fabric of his shirt is utterly exquisite, sends a wave of blissful tranquillity, a snug, wonderful comfort spreading through his body. In an attempt to hang on to the moment, to the hazy comfort of an afternoon snooze together, even if only for a second or two, he closes his eyes again, but sadly it's in vain – awake now, it doesn't seem possible for him to fall back into the cosy world of drowsiness, or, even better, real slumber.
As a man of action it's not normally his way to lie on his back all day, despite the incredible feeling of satisfaction and the growing awareness of a sense of belonging together that the physical closeness provides him with. If he's not going to fall asleep again, he needs to act, to do something, and his feelings for her make it impossible for him not to caress, nudge, nuzzle her – he finds he simply can't keep his hands and mouth from her skin. He's utterly addicted to her, completely preoccupied with what the nearness of her body does to his senses, to his mind and his weary heart, too, and he knows it.
He can't do much at the moment without waking her up, locked flat on his back by her body as he is, but when his eyes open again, he realises he's been given the most perfect view; while sleeping, the blanket covering them both has fallen from her shoulders, revealing her upper body. Her top is askew, making it possible for him to gaze directly down into her magnificent cleavage – it's a sight he doubts he could ever tire of. It's always a pleasure, always a diversion away from any other coherent thoughts, and, after the hours of inactivity the more than magnificent vision, along with the fading light and the relaxed state of his mood, helps to kick-start his brain activity, creating a host of wicked ideas that immediately beg to be brought to action.
Breathing deeply and pursing his lips, he starts to blow very gently straight down between her breasts, and, just as he had hoped, in an attempt to avoid the tickling breeze, her shoulders contract slightly, resulting only in accentuating the display and making him smile in delight. A smile which widens considerably when goose bumps begin to appear, rippling gently across her flesh and making her shiver, resulting in her reflexively tucking herself further into his body. But then she's pulling her arm from across his chest and closer to her own torso, effectively covering the tempting view and shielding it from both his eyes and actions, putting a definitive end to this new, enjoyable little pastime of his.
Waiting for a while to make sure he hasn't disturbed her slumber, he attempts to find satisfaction in simply continuing to lie on his back with her gathered closely against him, her head resting on his upper chest, his chin settled against her hair while a hand rests on her hip. Temptation though, is strong and as she doesn't show any signs of waking up, as she is again resting peacefully, he carefully starts to caress the curve of her hip, his fingertips making lazy, circular movements.
Closing his eyes again, he begins a slow exploration of her body; it's gentle and very, very sensual, and without his sight his other senses increase significantly. With feather-light touches his hand glides over her hip and across her lower back, his fingers tracking further down before coming to a momentary rest, squeezing gently, drawing her ever closer before slowly starting to move again, up and along her spine.
Responding to his touch, she unconsciously answer with a slight change of position, her back arching to bring her firmly against him. Her grip on him also tightens, but it's clearly not a conscious reaction as her head sinks deeper down on his chest. She makes a small sound, sort of a soft sigh, and against his skin he becomes aware of her smiling in her sleep. The sensation of her against his body is comforting, is so thoroughly enjoyable, and he's left almost intoxicated by the scent of her, a mixture of perfume, soap and her own natural smell.
Reaching the point between her shoulder blades he lingers for a moment, contemplating what to do next. With his fingertips he feels the fastening of her bra under the material of her blouse and his first impulse is simply to go for it. It's a very tempting thought, but he hesitates to do so, knowing all too well what road that'll lead him down. She would never complain, but it wouldn't be fair to do so as long as she's sleeping. She deserves and needs her rest, however enticing the idea is to him. While thinking about the alternatives, his fingers continue to travel down along her spine again, only to immediately return back to the original spot of delay and this time he settles on continuing up to her neck, a certain spot at her nape, just behind her ear, his very conscious goal as he reflects, knowing as he does exactly how the slightest of touches there will make her shiver.
It's still not right, though, nor fair to her, and so, resigned to his predicament, his hand instead finds its way down to her hip and settles again in the same spot where he started his exploration. Relaxing, he tucks his head deeper in the cushions, and, out of simple contentment, he exhales deeply and finally finds himself beginning to drift off again, the delightfully bewitching scent of her washing through his mind as he fades away into the engulfing velvety darkness.
A steady rhythm penetrates his slumber – her heart beats reassuringly beneath his ear, grounding him. For a few moments that sound, and the comforting warmth generated by their entangled bodies are the only real things in his universe, but when a cool little hand glides up under the hem of his shirt and soft fingertips start to lightly but persistently explore the side of his broad chest, outlining his ribs, he's pulled back into the cosy reality of their world behind closed doors. Slowly becoming conscious of their bodies relative positions, his head nestled softly against her shoulder and the way her cheek's on his forehead, her soft breath tickling his skin and sending shivers down his spine, he hazily reaches for her, the hand on her hip tightening its grip, carefully holding on, unwilling to lose even a shred of contact with her.
Becoming aware of his movements, she turns a little and presses a light, sleepy kiss to his forehead, moving a hand to run her fingertips tenderly over his cheek and then up, sliding through the short strands of his hair. Still very sleepy, he catches that hand, bringing it down to his lips to press a loving kiss to her palm, feeling her chest rise and fall as she takes in a deep breath and exhales, her steady heartbeat still sounding calmly in his ear.
Darkness lies heavily in the room now, making it difficult to see much. Finding it almost impossible to break their connection, and enjoying everything about their closeness, he rests his forehead on hers, trying in vain to catch her gaze in the heavy shadows, but, his efforts failing, he shifts slightly instead, gently roaming across her cheek with his lips.
"Hey you... sleepyhead." Her voice is only a whisper that falls softly into the silence as her fingers find their way to the back of his neck, starting to trace idle patterns there.
"Hi to you, too," he answers, squeezing her closer, holding her body tighter for a few moments in response.
"Don't you think it's time to get up now? It must be late – it's almost completely dark," she continues, but without making any effort to move.
"Mmmm, not particularly, no," he mutters, intent on slowly, lazily running his chin along her jaw. "This is far, far too wonderful to break up."
"Oh? Not even hungry? That's not like you, Peter," Grace replies, a hint of laughter in her voice.
A sound somewhere between a hum and a growl escapes him as he turns his attention to kissing a path down her throat, hands starting to roam over her body again, caressing here, squeezing there, all the time on the move as her breathing becomes audibly faster and he feels the warmth from it brush against his skin.
"I'm hungry, all right, but just at this moment I'm trying very... hard... to decide which kind of hunger's currently the most pressing."
Leaning closer, she places a series of small, teasing kisses against his lips, punctuating each with a soft murmur. "You... are... absolutely... incorrigible! But… I... love... it."
He simply grins, looking up at her as his fingers search for the buttons of her blouse, while at the same time feeling her hands moving towards his waist, taking a firm grip on his shirt and tugging it loose. Then her fingers are running across the skin of his back as he leans into her, and he happily surrenders to her caresses, knowing all too well the decision has been made for him.