A/N: Chapters 1 through 6 are posted under a rating of T. Minor changes were made to the dinner scene in this chapter.
Chapter 7 – These Dreams
The next morning, Jean-Luc was up with the rising sun again. He went down to the kitchen to make some coffee and was surprised to see Virginia standing the in kitchen. She was in uniform, her hip leaning against the counter with a cup of coffee in one hand and a partially eaten bagel in the other. She was the picture of professionalism and confidence. She looked at him when he walked in and raised her cup in a greeting as she continued to chew.
"Good morning." He responded. He walked to the counter behind her and took a cup out of the cupboard. As he moved around her to pour coffee into his cup, he replayed pieces from the day before with Beverly. He'd been doing it all night; he couldn't help himself.
Virginia smiled to herself as she watched the scenes play in Jean-Luc's mind. She finished the last bite of her bagel then wiped her mouth and hands on a paper towel. "I should be home around 4:30 to pick you both up. Booger's still outside." She said as she put her garbage in the trashcan and walked toward the living room.
"Booger?" He asked.
She stopped and turned. "Oh, yeah. Atticus. Booger is his nickname. When he was a puppy, he would wake up every morning with big, green pieces of goo in his eyes. The name stuck. See you two tonight!" She smiled as she walked out of the kitchen.
Jean-Luc spent the morning wondering how the day would go after yesterday. He had his answer when Beverly took the chair opposite the sofa after she got ready for the day. The temperatures outside were significantly cooler than the previous day so they spent most of the day reading in the living room.
Jean-Luc had been dozing for some time but was awakened by Atticus barking at Virginia's arrival. Virginia walked into the living room to see Satan curled up on Beverly's lap and Jean-Luc sitting on the edge of the sofa rubbing his face.
Virginia smiled. "Hello. Have a good day?" She asked as she put her bag on the shelf and hung her coat by the front door.
Beverly looked at Jean-Luc then back at Virginia. "Yes. It was quiet."
Virginia smiled. Atticus rubbed against her legs like a cat. She bent over and petted his head. "Hi baby." She whispered to the dog. "Okay. I'm going to get changed and then we'll leave." She said to her guests.
When they entered the mall, Jean-Luc stopped. "We're eating at a shopping center?"
Virginia and Beverly stopped ahead of him. Virginia wheeled around and walked over to stand next to Jean-Luc. She took his arm and prompted him to walk. "No, Uncle. We're shopping at a shopping center." Beverly chuckled as she walked behind them.
'Cute.' He thought.
'I know.' She squeezed his arm. Virginia stopped in front of a bench and turned to face him. "You can stay here or you can go in with us." She looked in his eyes.
"Go in?" He asked. He followed Virginia's eyes as she looked to her left. His eyes widened as he saw a rainbow of colors of bras, panties, and other lingerie in the store window. He cleared his throat and quietly said, "No. I'll stay here."
Virginia smirked. His expression was priceless. She casually walked over to Beverly, who was smirking herself, and took the woman's arm. "Come on, Auntie."
Jean-Luc swallowed and sat down on the bench as the two women went into the store.
Upon entering the store, a young woman approached Virginia and Beverly. "Good evening ladies! Is there something I can help you two find?"
"I'm helping my Aunt update her wardrobe. Thank you though." Virginia said smiling. Virginia steered Beverly toward the bras and panties first. After handing Beverly an armful of both, they moved on to the lingerie.
"I really don't think this is necessary." Beverly said.
"Seriously?" Virginia looked at Beverly a few seconds with no response. "I think you've forgotten how fabulous some sexy lingerie can make you feel. Besides, I'm burning that nightgown of yours. That's not negotiable." As Virginia looked at the lingerie, her eyes scanned over Beverly's body – what of it she could see with Beverly wearing a coat and what she could imagine – she walked to over to one piece and stood a moment. Beverly caught a glimpse of gold burning in Virginia's eyes just before she closed her eyes and cleared her throat. Virginia flipped through the pieces on the rack until she found the right size and hung it over Beverly's free arm.
"That's not a nightgown." Beverly whispered intensely.
"No, it's not!" Virginia said with mock surprise and a wicked grin. Beverly opened her mouth then quickly closed it. Virginia proceeded to add three more items to Beverly's arm before leading her to the register to check out.
They exited the store to find Jean-Luc sitting with his elbows resting on his knees, staring at the floor in front of him. Both women walked over and stopped within a couple feet of him. He slowly looked up to see Beverly carrying a large bag.
"Is there anything you'd like to shop for while we're here?" Virginia asked him.
His eyes flickered from the bag to Virginia. "Huh?" He replied before Virginia's question registered. "Oh! No." He said then stood up. He held out his hand toward Beverly's bag.
Beverly smiled; her cheeks a little red and handed the bag to him. "Thank you."
"Okay. Let's go eat!" Virginia said. As she turned and began walking away she said, "If you're a good boy, maybe she'll model for you later…"
Jean-Luc and Beverly stood stock-still, side-by-side, for a moment in shock before each cleared their throat and followed Virginia.
The drive took about twenty-five minutes. The three of them were ushered out of the cold and into the house by a short woman in her fifties with long, straight brown hair.
"Hi. I'm Denise. You must be Beverly and Jean-Luc." She shook each of their hands as she introduced herself. "Hi, honey!" She said to Virginia and gave her a hug. "My husband, John, is upstairs finishing dinner." She smiled at them as the doorbell rang. "Why don't you all go up and make yourselves at home." Virginia led the way followed by Beverly then Jean-Luc while Denise answered the door.
When they entered the dining room, John introduced himself and shook Jean-Luc and Beverly's hands and invited them to sit. As John set the last pot on the table, Denise entered the room followed by a tall, dark-haired young man of a slightly stockier than medium build. He had dark eyes that immediately found Virginia, who smiled.
"This is Tim." Denise said to Jean-Luc and Beverly. "Tim, this is Jean-Luc and Beverly, Virginia's uncle and aunt from France."
"Its nice to meet you. I've heard a little about you – all good, of course!" Tim's voice was a smooth baritone, much like Jean-Luc's. He smiled at them both again before moving to sit next to Virginia. "How've you been?" He asked her quietly and smiled.
She smiled back. "Good. You?" Virginia asked. He nodded and smiled in response as Denise and John encouraged Jean-Luc and Beverly to help themselves to the food. Virginia leaned over and whispered into Tim's ear. He looked at her and smiled then began dishing up his plate.
"How long will you be in town?" Denise asked.
Jean-Luc glanced at Beverly then at Denise. "Oh, just a couple weeks. Virginia told us she is separating from the military and expressed interest in coming to France. We had been planning a visit several ago, before…" Jean-Luc paused and looked down at the table for a moment. Everyone around the table knew what the end of that sentence would have been. "We decided to postpone our visit once we learned of Virginia's new plans for her future and thought this would be a good time to come to assist our niece and help her transition." Jean-Luc answered fluidly with a light smile.
"I didn't know you were separating." Tim said, a little taken aback, looking at Virginia. She smiled apologetically and touched his hand resting on the table.
"Sorry. We've never been the best at staying in touch." Virginia said. She looked at Beverly and Jean-Luc and said, "Tim works in the oil fields up north for 3 or more weeks at a stretch." There was short silence around the table.
"Jean-Luc, what do you do?" John asked.
"I work at our family's vineyard." Jean-Luc responded.
"Have you always been a vintner?"
"Yes. To make a long story short, my parents split their lives and mine and my sister's between France and America. I grew up in France working with our father and Sue Marie grew up here with our mother." He looked at Virginia and smiled.
"That must be wonderful. Always around alcohol!" John said jokingly; everyone chuckled. "Beverly, how about you? What do you do?"
"I help manage the financial portion of the business." Beverly said. "I was born in Scotland but went to theater school in Paris. That's where we met." She said glancing at Jean-Luc and smiling.
Jean-Luc asked Tim about working in the oil fields and became engrossed in hearing about it through the rest of the meal and after. They continued talking while everyone else cleared the table and helped clean the kitchen.
John went out the back door just off the dining room and lit a small fire pit sitting on the deck. Beverly inquired about going out and Denise retrieved the women's coats for them. The three women stood around the fire and talked about the additions to the house with John and their plans for backyard. After several minutes, Virginia and Denise went inside as Tim went out to talk to John. The two men went down the deck stairs into a workshop in the backyard. Beverly stood against the deck railing staring at the amazing view of the mountains lit by the brightest and biggest Earth moon she'd ever seen. He walked out on the deck and closed the door behind him then watched Beverly a moment. She must not have heard him come out. The slacks and sweater she wore tonight suited her. She didn't realize the cold was seeping in until she felt hands on her arms. The moonlight shed a transparent white haze around her. She shivered and closed her eyes as she exhaled and smiled.
"Chilly?" He said quietly behind her. She turned her head to the side, toward him.
"You startled me." She said softly. "I guess I am a little cold but the view is breathtaking." She said looking to the mountains again. He followed her gaze and instinctively rubbed her arms gently. John and Tim could be heard talking as they exited the workshop and ascended the stairs to the deck then walked in the house. A short time passed and Beverly shivered again and pulled her coat around her tighter as she crossed her arms. Jean-Luc used one hand to brush her hair off her shoulder then stepped closer to her and wrapped his arms around and over hers.
"Better?" He whispered, his cheek touching hers. He slowly felt her body relax back against his. She could feel his breath on her neck and she closed her eyes.
"Mmm-hmmm." She nodded. He tipped his head down a bit where he could smell her perfume more fully and resisted the urge to kiss her neck. This felt good, to both of them; just like it did yesterday. After what seemed like a long time, he heard her sniffle and her arms tighten against her.
"Come on." He moved away from her enough to steer her around to the fire pit but kept the mountains in view. He stood behind her again and rubbed her arms. The last time they saw a real fire together they were on a foreign planet, being pursued on foot, linked. She blinked the memories away and looked to the mountains again.
'And now we're friends.' Her words that night echoed in his mind as he watched the flames. Virginia peeked her head out the door.
"Are you two ready to go?" She asked. They both turned around and then walked inside with her. Tim walked up the stairs in the house with his coat. He helped Virginia into hers then put on his. The three couples exchanged 'thank yous' for coming and for being invited as Virginia, Jean-Luc, Beverly and Tim walked outside.
"It's not locked." She said quietly to Beverly and Jean-Luc before walking over to Tim standing at his truck. They took the hint and got in the vehicle.
"Are you still coming over?" Virginia asked Tim. He nodded in response as she stood in front of him. He leaned down and placed his hands on her cheeks and kissed her passionately. She put her hands over his and stepped against him. They broke away a few minutes later and got into their separate vehicles.
Once all four were in Virginia's house, Virginia and Atticus immediately went to the kitchen to let him outside. When Virginia entered the dining room, her guests had shed their coats and Jean-Luc was asking Tim about his family, where he grew up, and what led to his career decision. Beverly excused herself and went upstairs with her bag followed by Virginia. After a moment, Beverly heard a knock at her door.
"Yes?" Beverly said. Virginia peeked her head in before she entered the room holding Atticus' bed and a box fan.
"Do you mind if he sleeps in here tonight?" Virginia asked.
"No, not at all." Beverly said. Virginia heard the question in her voice.
"There's nothing wrong. It's just that Tim and I are…." Virginia searched for the right word. "Explosive. I'll try to keep us both quiet but in the event we fail, the fan should help." A wicked grin spread across her face. She put the fan in the corner of the room and plugged it in then set the dog's bed down near Beverly's dresser. She straightened and sighed as she looked at Beverly. Beverly could see Virginia's mind working on something as a dull gold slowly appeared in her eyes as she walked closer to Beverly until there were only inches between them.
They were both so absorbed that they didn't hear the two men walk upstairs. The air was thick and Jean-Luc stopped in his tracks when he turned the corner to the threshold of the bedroom. As his mind took in the scene before him and his body began to respond, he heard Tim ask after Virginia across the hall. Jean-Luc cleared his throat and walked over to his dresser. Virginia stepped back, her eyes now a bright gold, and left the room. Beverly remained rooted where she stood.
When Virginia returned with Atticus a moment later, Beverly was in the bathroom and Jean-Luc was sitting on the bed. Virginia bent over and kissed the top of Atticus' head and told him to be a good boy before telling Jean-Luc good night and shutting the door behind her. Atticus stood at the door a moment then Jean-Luc walked over to him and petted him for a moment. Atticus seemed at a loss for what to do so Jean-Luc pointed out his bed to him. Atticus lowered his head a bit then walked over, circled a few times and laid down. He looked up at Jean-Luc. He smiled at the dog and knelt down to pet him again. He noticed the bag in front of Beverly's dresser. He began thinking of the displays in the store window when Beverly walked in and smiled at seeing Jean-Luc petting Atticus. He watched her out of the corner of his eye as she walked to her dresser; she didn't appear to have changed her clothes. After a moment, he stood up and gathered his things and went to the bathroom.
Jean-Luc quietly opened the door, entered the room and shut the door behind him then froze when he saw Beverly sitting on the floor. She changed into a silk nightgown and robe while he was in the bathroom. Atticus was laying on his back, half off his bed, while Beverly scratched the dog's stomach. Beverly's outstretched, uncovered legs were what caught Jean-Luc's attention long enough to make his throat dry. She was so engrossed in giving the dog attention she hadn't noticed that her robe fell off her legs and her nightgown slipped back toward her hips. Fortunately, she also didn't notice Jean-Luc wince before snapping himself out of his covetous musing. He turned the fan on before moving to his dresser. As he put his things away, she stood up and began brushing the dog's hair off her. Jean-Luc moved to the bed and looked in her direction just as she bent at the hips to brush hair off her legs, which gave Jean-Luc a view beneath her nightgown. He squeezed his eyes shut, his face suddenly felt hot, and used one hand to brace himself as he leaned over the bed and the other to cover his face.
"Jean-Luc? Are you okay?" Beverly asked, concern in her voice, before he could recover. He held up the hand that was covering his face, palm facing her, as he exhaled audibly. She stopped, unsure whether his hand up meant leave him alone, he just needs a moment, or he's fine. After a long moment, he put his other hand on the bed and without looking at her or fully standing up, he turned toward the wall and sat on the bed with his head down.
'I am not going to survive this.' He thought.
She moved toward the bed and slipped off her robe. She laid it over the foot of the bed and crawled beneath the covers. She was laying on her back and turned her head to look at him as he stood up, still facing the wall, and removed his robe. She raked her eyes down the length of his backside and sighed internally as he laid his robe over the foot of the bed and slipped beneath the covers. She wanted to touch him.
'This is getting old.' He thought as he faced the wall as he did in bed whenever she was in the room with him.
She reached up and turned off the lamp by the bed. She stared at the ceiling then looked over at him after her eyes adjusted to the darkness. He felt her look at him.
After a time, they both dozed off thanks to the droning of the fan. He awoke in a haze when he felt her roll on her side toward him. His eyes shot open wide and his breath caught in his throat when he felt a pair of hands on his back.
"Jean-Luc." She whispered as she slid closer to him and her hands slid to his shoulders. She reached her left arm around his chest and pressed her body to his then placed a lingering kiss between his shoulder blades. "Jean-Luc." She whispered again as she placed kisses up his back to his neck. She leaned up on her elbow and rolled him on his back and covered his mouth with hers. Her directness shocked both of them but Jean-Luc was unable to move. He slowly responded to her kiss. Her free hand slid over his chest and abdomen then up to cup the side of his face as her mouth pleaded for full access to his. Small moans emanated from her throat, which fueled his already burning desire. He placed his hand tentatively on her arm then slid his hand around her back. She used this to pull him on his side to face her. His hand slid down her back and pulled her against him as his other hand slid beneath her body and around to her buttocks. She moaned into his mouth as she felt his arousal against her. Her breathing became more erratic as she kissed him harder and ground her hips against his. She reached down to the hem of her nightgown and pulled it up to her hip then reached behind her and took a hold of his hand as she slid her leg up and hooked it behind him. She slid his hand over her hip and down to the warmth between her legs. His eyes shot open and he broke their kiss breathless as she reached her hand up to his neck and whispered, "Touch me…please…" She trailed off, urgency in her voice as she kissed down his to his shoulder. She felt his fingers begin to move against her and she moaned against his shoulder. He slid her panties away from his target.
"God, you're wet." He whispered hoarsely as he kissed her neck and delicately moved his fingers between her folds. She exhaled and moaned loudly as she shuddered forcing her body up toward the wall. He held her upper body against him as he moved his fingers in and out and around her sensitive areas. He kissed the exposed skin of her chest and whispered her name. She slid the strap of her nightgown off her shoulder and exposed a breast to him. He accepted it and continued to pleasure her up to the point of orgasm repeatedly. Finally, after what seemed like an exquisite eternity, he pushed her over the edge.
"Yes!" She exclaimed moaning over and over against his neck.
Suddenly, she bolted upright in bed, breathless. The strap of her nightgown was still up on her shoulder and the hem of her nightgown was down around her thighs with her panties in tact. She felt disappointed and confused. Her throat felt dry as she looked over to see Jean-Luc's side of the bed empty. She felt the sheets; they were cold. She turned on the lamp beside the bed to find Atticus gone from his bed as well. She slid back against the headboard and waited for the ache between her legs to subside and her breathing to return to normal. She leaned her head back against the wall and ran a hand through her hair. She couldn't believe how real that felt.
She put on her robe and went downstairs to find Jean-Luc asleep on the sofa, Atticus on the floor next to where Jean-Luc was laying, and music playing softly. She smiled and walked over to the sofa to watch him for a moment. Atticus stirred briefly enough to register who was new in the room then fell back to sleep. Jean-Luc only had his robe on so she grabbed the blanket draped over the back of the sofa and gently spread it over him. She thought he woke when he inhaled deeply and his eyes appeared to open a crack but as soon as they closed his breathing returned to that of a deep slumber. She longed to caress his face and kiss his lips. She wondered if that would wake him. She decided against it and got a drink of water from the kitchen then returned to an empty bed.