Wild Night
Disclaimer: The usual. I don't own them, don't make money from them, the plot is purely my idea, the only thing I own. Oh, and I own some of the poetry, that is mine. The quotes in chapters two, three, four and six are from "The Phantom Of The Opera" By Andrew Lloyd Webber. Don't own that either. (but I wish I did.). I have no money, so don't sue me.
Setting: After a lot of thought, I've changed the timing slightly, to after "Utopia Now" For the purposes of this story, and the ones to follow, we're going to say that "Utopia" and the third season eps before hand took place in spring of 1985, which would place this story in the summer. Which, is probably for the best, since the third season is the one I know the best!
Premise: Amanda and Lee deal with some surprising emotions after Amanda uses deadly force to save Lee's life.
Rating: PG-13 version. There is also an NC-17 version, which can be found on ff.net
Archive: The Kruchev List has blanket archival priveledges for any and all of my stories . . . anywhere else is fine too, just send me the link so I can check it out!
Authors notes: I am well aware that it falls out of character, and that gives me reservations about posting it. Keep in mind, please, that this is a TOTAL AU story, because we know that it would never happen. But. . . what if it did? It popped into my head completely formed; actually, it came to me in a fever induced dream. I couldn't resist! So, that said, please don't kill me, but do offer CONSTRUCTIVE criticism and praise, both in heaping doses, please! Flames will be doused by my ever handy, high powered garden hose. (Hey, it needs a workout anyway!)
A huge shout out to my wonderful betas, Jacqueline (For reading the PG 13 version and assuring me it didn't over step it's rating,) And Barb, as always for her wonderful insight, and catching every mistake I would have missed because I just skimmed for them.
And to Breezy, without whom I would have scrapped this story due to the qualms I had with writing it. You told me straight out "Change the beginning, and this baby can fly. And write more, I need more!" That little bit of feedback made all the difference in the world!
And to Dawn and Jessi, who upon hearing Breezy and I discussing the plot line, demanded to see this fic, and boosted my ego even more!
Last, but not least, to all the people who reviewed this story in it's previous incarnation. After sorting through all the suggestions, I hope I have a story that's a lot stronger than before!
And now . . . Wild Night, part One: Because The Night
**********
Prologue: Dreams Come True, and This One I Fear
A warehouse in DC.
Friday, June 14, 1985, 3:00 pm.
'Light is Blind, Dark is Sight. If only my Eyes Could See, if only They Might.'
Original Poem.
She should have stayed in the car.
Amanda realized that as she saw Lee being dragged off by August Kincaid. Then, she could have already called for backup. It was supposed to be a simple stakeout, and she was to have been window dressing. And then Lee had heard those shots. He'd told her to stay in the car, and ran off without calling for backup.
Kincaid had Lee at the back of the warehouse now, and Amanda was looking around for something, anything, to use as a weapon. She'd grabbed the spare gun out of Lee's glove compartment when she decided to follow him, but she really didn't want to use it. It didn't look like she had much of a choice. Kincaid was alone. Maybe she wouldn't even have to fire.
She could see Kincaid slapping and yelling at Lee. "Where is it? Where is the disk, Stetson?"
"Don't know what you're talking about. . . " Lee snapped.
Amanda decided it had to end. She pulled the gun out of her purse and came around the boxes she'd been crouching behind. She got closer, hoping that would improve her aim if she actually needed to fire. "Freeze!"
Kincaid smiled an evil smile, like someone who knows he's holding the winning card. He pulled his own gun and whirled toward Lee, ready to shoot.
Amanda's gut reaction prevailed. She never even remembered pulling the trigger.
Chapter One: The Nightmare.
The Agency, outside the Debriefing room, 7:00 pm
'Every second is a struggle, a fight to keep emotions in check. To fight the anger. To fight the sadness. To fight the hurt. To fight the pain that rocks my soul.'
Original Poem
When that bastard Kincaid had held Lee, was ready to fire on him. . . Amanda hadn't hesitated. And now Kincaid was laid out at the city morgue, where he should be. Now, all that Lee was waiting for was for her to finish debriefing. Then, he'd take her home. If she wanted to go. He wasn't sure if it had sunk in to her yet that she had killed a man. Lee could still remember his first time. He knew that Amanda had a lot of nightmares to deal with.
First, she would be taken out of the field. Lee groaned slightly at the thought of not having Amanda by his side for the next two weeks while she underwent Phaff's psych evaluations. He knew that it would be the first thing Billy ordered once he came back from his long weekend in the country with Jeannie.
Lee was brought out of his reverie when he heard the door to the debriefing room open, and Amanda walked out. Her mouth was drawn into a frown, and her eyes appeared lifeless. Lee felt a tug near the vicinity of his heart to see his best friend like this. This usually bright, laughing woman, was now so withdrawn from everything around her. Lee shook his head, and walked over to where she was standing.
Amanda looked up to see Lee, and tried to force a smile. Her face, however, refused to cooperate. "Lee," she said quietly.
Lee cleared his throat of the lump that had suddenly formed there. "How are you feeling?" He took her hand in his, reveling in the feel.
"I'm. . . I'll. . . I'll be alright," Amanda choked out, trying not to shed the tears that were threatening beneath the surface of the calm facade she was trying to exude.
Even a blind man would see that she was still trying to sort out what had happened. Lee was not a blind man. "Here, let me take you home."
"No! I mean, oh god! I can't. . . I can't go and face Mother, and the boys. I need someplace to think. . ." she looked at Lee. Pleading brown eyes met hazel.
"Okay, we'll go anyplace you want. You tell me, I'll drive."
Amanda nodded her head, and followed Lee out of the Agency.
**********
Chapter Two: Night Falls All Around Me
Rock Creek Park
7:30 PM
'Slowly, gently, night unfurls its splendor. Grasp it, sense it. Tremulous and tender. . .' (From Music of the Night.)
Amanda had decided she wanted to go to the park. Looking up at the stars which were just starting to come out, she wondered if there was someone else out there, looking up at these same stars, thinking the same things she was thinking. So many stars, so many lives. So many people whose lives could have been destroyed tonight. What would have happened if Kincaid had pulled that trigger? She would have lost the best friend she'd ever known. And. . . well, she knew that Lee meant more to her than just a friend. She'd even admitted to herself that she loved him. Even if she knew he might never feel the same.
Tonight, however, she found she could not even look him in the eye. He'd been standing silently not far from where she was sitting on a park bench. She could feel him watching her, and wondered briefly what he must think of her. Was it disgust at what she'd done? 'Or,' Amanda thought with a slight chill running up her spine, 'Would he feel some sort of pride? That I followed everything I've been taught?'
Amanda turned back to Lee, shyly. He'd brought her here to help her clear her thoughts. But now, the exhaustion of the afternoon's events was starting to overtake her. She just didn't want to go home. Not yet.
Lee saw the anguish written on her face, and the exhaustion that was threatening to overtake her. He walked over and sat down next to her, taking her hand in his. Still unable to look him in the eye, she opted instead to look down at her feet. He hooked his finger under her chin, and brought her head up to look at his. "Hey there," he whispered gently. "You look almost ready to pass out. Whenever you want to go . . ."
"You must think I'm a horrible person. I . . . Lee, I never thought I could do that. I never wanted to . . ."
"I know you didn't, and I'm so sorry you had to go through that," his voice wafting gently to her ears. "And I don't think you're a horrible person, Amanda. I know what it took for you to do what you did tonight. Believe me when I say I know what you're going through. I've been there, Amanda."
Amanda finally met Lee's eyes. "I don't know how I can face Mother and the boys tonight."
This was one thing he had never had to deal with. He didn't know what it was like to go home to someone after a day like today. He'd never had to deal with the issues of going home to a family that had no idea of what he did for a living. That couldn't possibly understand that sometimes, he'd have to do certain things in the line of duty, to protect himself, and others. But he could understand why she wouldn't want to go home yet. "Tell you what. If you want, you can crash at my place tonight. That way, you have somewhere quiet to collect you thoughts. And if you want to talk, I'll be there to talk. I can take the couch."
"No, I'll take the couch. I can't put you out of your bed," she whispered.
"Yes, you can. It's my fault that tonight happened. If I'd listened and called for backup first, you wouldn't have followed me. I insist, you take the bed. Let me make this up to you, Amanda."
She didn't have the strength to argue anything so trivial. "Okay, thank you, Lee. It means a lot to me, you know."
Lee gave a semblance of a smile. "Not a problem, partner."
**********
Chapter Three: Remembered Nightmare
Lee's apartment
'Down once more to the dungeon of my black despair, down we plunge to the prison of my mind, down that path into darkness deep as hell. . . '
(From 'Down Once More')
"So, would you like something to drink? Coffee? Soda?" Lee asked as Amanda sat on his couch.
"Something a little stronger," Amanda answered quietly.
Lee froze for a minute. Amanda almost never drank. Okay, maybe a glass or two of wine at any number of formal functions they'd gone to over the past two years. He contemplated the wisdom of giving her alcohol in her still shocked state. He looked over to her.
"Please," she whispered.
He couldn't deny her anything when she looked like that. Just like he couldn't deny her the sanctuary of his apartment tonight, when he knew she wasn't up to facing her family. He went to his wine cabinet in the kitchen and selected a bottle of Montrechet. Then he pulled two wineglasses from the cupboard.
"Thank you," Amanda said as he poured her a glass.
"You're most welcome."
"Lee?"
"Hmm?" he responded, looking deep into her eyes.
"What was it like? The first time you . . ."
Lee took a deep breath, the question taking him back in time. "Strangely, I found myself in a similar situation as you did tonight. My partner went in ahead of me. I heard shots, and went after him. When I got inside, someone had a gun to his head. My partner elbowed the man holding him, which made him lower his gun for just a second. When the gun started to raise back to my partner, I fired."
Amanda thought about this as Lee paused, waiting for him to continue. "But how did you deal with it after?" She lifted the glass to her lips again.
"Well, I guess the way most of us do, Amanda. Of course I had to go to the shrink. And it took a while before I could look at a gun without remembering what I'd done. But I knew in the end that it was either I kill him, or he would kill my partner."
Amanda thought about for this for several long moments. Lee was, in his way, telling her it was not her fault. She'd done what she'd had to do. That didn't, however, ease her mind.
**********
Chapter four: Surrender to your darkest dream
'. . . floating falling, sweet intoxication. Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation.'
(From Music of the Night.)
She finally began to relax as the wine started to take affect. She'd made a big decision tonight, but how would he take it? She finally decided to just blurt it out, get it over with. "Lee, I'm done. I want to quit. The Agency, that is."
Lee was shocked to say the least. She was leaving. Did that mean that she wanted nothing more to do with him, as well? The thoughts buzzed through his head at almost lightening speed, as the fear coursed through him. How could he convince her? How could he explain to her that he didn't want to lose her? She was the best friend he'd ever had, in a world where having friends was dangerous. He'd let her closer than he'd let anyone in a long time. Finally, his tongue latched on to the only words he could think of. "Amanda, nothing like that is ever going to happen again."
Amanda now had tears running from her eyes. "How can . . . you be. . . sure?"
"Because," he paused, the fear as well as the slight buzz from the alcohol making him stutter slightly, "Cause I'd never. . . would never let anyone hurt . . . hurt the woman I love."
Now Amanda was shocked. He'd said he loved her! Euphoria was coursing through her soul.
Lee watched the smile light up her face. He leaned over to touch her lips with his, gently at first, ever so gently. A thousand volts of electricity seemed to be coursing through those lips. He pulled back at the wealth of feelings coursing through him.
He pulled back. That's all Amanda could think about. He pulled back. 'Not this time, buster!' She touched her hand to his face, the love pouring out of her eyes. This time, she moved towards him. Gently at first, since she'd felt that electricity course through herself the first time. Then more demanding.
His lips parted, his tongue licking her lips for entrance. He nibbled her bottom lip, and suddenly they parted, granting him the taste of her mouth.
It was dizzying, this kiss. Like something out of those romance novels her mother read. Amanda could feel those fireworks. Her body felt out of her control. She was spiraling into the light of a thousand stars, and couldn't move. Her mind, addled by the wine as it was, kept telling her to move, to get out of his embrace before anything else happened, something that they could not take back. Her body refused to cooperate, and her heart took over the debate. 'You've wanted this for a long time, Amanda King. Just go for it!'
It was dizzying, the sensations that accompanied that kiss. He'd kissed dozens of women, and not a one made him feel the way he felt kissing this simple housewife from Arlington. 'Simple?' his mind shouted. No, there was nothing simple about Amanda. His Amanda. He never wanted this euphoria to end.
She felt his hand coasting up her side, and the movement was in no way ticklish. She plunged her hands in his hair, drawing him ever closer.
Her hands plunged into his hair, drawing him impossibly closer to her. And it was what he wanted, to be as close as possible to this beautiful woman. "Amanda," he moaned, bringing his lips to the hollow of her neck.
A tsunami of desire coursed through her as he started kissing the hollow of her neck. An answering moan of "Lee" escaped her lips. Her hands left his hair and caressed his chest.
They were spiraling out of control. . .
**********
Disclaimer: The usual. I don't own them, don't make money from them, the plot is purely my idea, the only thing I own. Oh, and I own some of the poetry, that is mine. The quotes in chapters two, three, four and six are from "The Phantom Of The Opera" By Andrew Lloyd Webber. Don't own that either. (but I wish I did.). I have no money, so don't sue me.
Setting: After a lot of thought, I've changed the timing slightly, to after "Utopia Now" For the purposes of this story, and the ones to follow, we're going to say that "Utopia" and the third season eps before hand took place in spring of 1985, which would place this story in the summer. Which, is probably for the best, since the third season is the one I know the best!
Premise: Amanda and Lee deal with some surprising emotions after Amanda uses deadly force to save Lee's life.
Rating: PG-13 version. There is also an NC-17 version, which can be found on ff.net
Archive: The Kruchev List has blanket archival priveledges for any and all of my stories . . . anywhere else is fine too, just send me the link so I can check it out!
Authors notes: I am well aware that it falls out of character, and that gives me reservations about posting it. Keep in mind, please, that this is a TOTAL AU story, because we know that it would never happen. But. . . what if it did? It popped into my head completely formed; actually, it came to me in a fever induced dream. I couldn't resist! So, that said, please don't kill me, but do offer CONSTRUCTIVE criticism and praise, both in heaping doses, please! Flames will be doused by my ever handy, high powered garden hose. (Hey, it needs a workout anyway!)
A huge shout out to my wonderful betas, Jacqueline (For reading the PG 13 version and assuring me it didn't over step it's rating,) And Barb, as always for her wonderful insight, and catching every mistake I would have missed because I just skimmed for them.
And to Breezy, without whom I would have scrapped this story due to the qualms I had with writing it. You told me straight out "Change the beginning, and this baby can fly. And write more, I need more!" That little bit of feedback made all the difference in the world!
And to Dawn and Jessi, who upon hearing Breezy and I discussing the plot line, demanded to see this fic, and boosted my ego even more!
Last, but not least, to all the people who reviewed this story in it's previous incarnation. After sorting through all the suggestions, I hope I have a story that's a lot stronger than before!
And now . . . Wild Night, part One: Because The Night
**********
Prologue: Dreams Come True, and This One I Fear
A warehouse in DC.
Friday, June 14, 1985, 3:00 pm.
'Light is Blind, Dark is Sight. If only my Eyes Could See, if only They Might.'
Original Poem.
She should have stayed in the car.
Amanda realized that as she saw Lee being dragged off by August Kincaid. Then, she could have already called for backup. It was supposed to be a simple stakeout, and she was to have been window dressing. And then Lee had heard those shots. He'd told her to stay in the car, and ran off without calling for backup.
Kincaid had Lee at the back of the warehouse now, and Amanda was looking around for something, anything, to use as a weapon. She'd grabbed the spare gun out of Lee's glove compartment when she decided to follow him, but she really didn't want to use it. It didn't look like she had much of a choice. Kincaid was alone. Maybe she wouldn't even have to fire.
She could see Kincaid slapping and yelling at Lee. "Where is it? Where is the disk, Stetson?"
"Don't know what you're talking about. . . " Lee snapped.
Amanda decided it had to end. She pulled the gun out of her purse and came around the boxes she'd been crouching behind. She got closer, hoping that would improve her aim if she actually needed to fire. "Freeze!"
Kincaid smiled an evil smile, like someone who knows he's holding the winning card. He pulled his own gun and whirled toward Lee, ready to shoot.
Amanda's gut reaction prevailed. She never even remembered pulling the trigger.
Chapter One: The Nightmare.
The Agency, outside the Debriefing room, 7:00 pm
'Every second is a struggle, a fight to keep emotions in check. To fight the anger. To fight the sadness. To fight the hurt. To fight the pain that rocks my soul.'
Original Poem
When that bastard Kincaid had held Lee, was ready to fire on him. . . Amanda hadn't hesitated. And now Kincaid was laid out at the city morgue, where he should be. Now, all that Lee was waiting for was for her to finish debriefing. Then, he'd take her home. If she wanted to go. He wasn't sure if it had sunk in to her yet that she had killed a man. Lee could still remember his first time. He knew that Amanda had a lot of nightmares to deal with.
First, she would be taken out of the field. Lee groaned slightly at the thought of not having Amanda by his side for the next two weeks while she underwent Phaff's psych evaluations. He knew that it would be the first thing Billy ordered once he came back from his long weekend in the country with Jeannie.
Lee was brought out of his reverie when he heard the door to the debriefing room open, and Amanda walked out. Her mouth was drawn into a frown, and her eyes appeared lifeless. Lee felt a tug near the vicinity of his heart to see his best friend like this. This usually bright, laughing woman, was now so withdrawn from everything around her. Lee shook his head, and walked over to where she was standing.
Amanda looked up to see Lee, and tried to force a smile. Her face, however, refused to cooperate. "Lee," she said quietly.
Lee cleared his throat of the lump that had suddenly formed there. "How are you feeling?" He took her hand in his, reveling in the feel.
"I'm. . . I'll. . . I'll be alright," Amanda choked out, trying not to shed the tears that were threatening beneath the surface of the calm facade she was trying to exude.
Even a blind man would see that she was still trying to sort out what had happened. Lee was not a blind man. "Here, let me take you home."
"No! I mean, oh god! I can't. . . I can't go and face Mother, and the boys. I need someplace to think. . ." she looked at Lee. Pleading brown eyes met hazel.
"Okay, we'll go anyplace you want. You tell me, I'll drive."
Amanda nodded her head, and followed Lee out of the Agency.
**********
Chapter Two: Night Falls All Around Me
Rock Creek Park
7:30 PM
'Slowly, gently, night unfurls its splendor. Grasp it, sense it. Tremulous and tender. . .' (From Music of the Night.)
Amanda had decided she wanted to go to the park. Looking up at the stars which were just starting to come out, she wondered if there was someone else out there, looking up at these same stars, thinking the same things she was thinking. So many stars, so many lives. So many people whose lives could have been destroyed tonight. What would have happened if Kincaid had pulled that trigger? She would have lost the best friend she'd ever known. And. . . well, she knew that Lee meant more to her than just a friend. She'd even admitted to herself that she loved him. Even if she knew he might never feel the same.
Tonight, however, she found she could not even look him in the eye. He'd been standing silently not far from where she was sitting on a park bench. She could feel him watching her, and wondered briefly what he must think of her. Was it disgust at what she'd done? 'Or,' Amanda thought with a slight chill running up her spine, 'Would he feel some sort of pride? That I followed everything I've been taught?'
Amanda turned back to Lee, shyly. He'd brought her here to help her clear her thoughts. But now, the exhaustion of the afternoon's events was starting to overtake her. She just didn't want to go home. Not yet.
Lee saw the anguish written on her face, and the exhaustion that was threatening to overtake her. He walked over and sat down next to her, taking her hand in his. Still unable to look him in the eye, she opted instead to look down at her feet. He hooked his finger under her chin, and brought her head up to look at his. "Hey there," he whispered gently. "You look almost ready to pass out. Whenever you want to go . . ."
"You must think I'm a horrible person. I . . . Lee, I never thought I could do that. I never wanted to . . ."
"I know you didn't, and I'm so sorry you had to go through that," his voice wafting gently to her ears. "And I don't think you're a horrible person, Amanda. I know what it took for you to do what you did tonight. Believe me when I say I know what you're going through. I've been there, Amanda."
Amanda finally met Lee's eyes. "I don't know how I can face Mother and the boys tonight."
This was one thing he had never had to deal with. He didn't know what it was like to go home to someone after a day like today. He'd never had to deal with the issues of going home to a family that had no idea of what he did for a living. That couldn't possibly understand that sometimes, he'd have to do certain things in the line of duty, to protect himself, and others. But he could understand why she wouldn't want to go home yet. "Tell you what. If you want, you can crash at my place tonight. That way, you have somewhere quiet to collect you thoughts. And if you want to talk, I'll be there to talk. I can take the couch."
"No, I'll take the couch. I can't put you out of your bed," she whispered.
"Yes, you can. It's my fault that tonight happened. If I'd listened and called for backup first, you wouldn't have followed me. I insist, you take the bed. Let me make this up to you, Amanda."
She didn't have the strength to argue anything so trivial. "Okay, thank you, Lee. It means a lot to me, you know."
Lee gave a semblance of a smile. "Not a problem, partner."
**********
Chapter Three: Remembered Nightmare
Lee's apartment
'Down once more to the dungeon of my black despair, down we plunge to the prison of my mind, down that path into darkness deep as hell. . . '
(From 'Down Once More')
"So, would you like something to drink? Coffee? Soda?" Lee asked as Amanda sat on his couch.
"Something a little stronger," Amanda answered quietly.
Lee froze for a minute. Amanda almost never drank. Okay, maybe a glass or two of wine at any number of formal functions they'd gone to over the past two years. He contemplated the wisdom of giving her alcohol in her still shocked state. He looked over to her.
"Please," she whispered.
He couldn't deny her anything when she looked like that. Just like he couldn't deny her the sanctuary of his apartment tonight, when he knew she wasn't up to facing her family. He went to his wine cabinet in the kitchen and selected a bottle of Montrechet. Then he pulled two wineglasses from the cupboard.
"Thank you," Amanda said as he poured her a glass.
"You're most welcome."
"Lee?"
"Hmm?" he responded, looking deep into her eyes.
"What was it like? The first time you . . ."
Lee took a deep breath, the question taking him back in time. "Strangely, I found myself in a similar situation as you did tonight. My partner went in ahead of me. I heard shots, and went after him. When I got inside, someone had a gun to his head. My partner elbowed the man holding him, which made him lower his gun for just a second. When the gun started to raise back to my partner, I fired."
Amanda thought about this as Lee paused, waiting for him to continue. "But how did you deal with it after?" She lifted the glass to her lips again.
"Well, I guess the way most of us do, Amanda. Of course I had to go to the shrink. And it took a while before I could look at a gun without remembering what I'd done. But I knew in the end that it was either I kill him, or he would kill my partner."
Amanda thought about for this for several long moments. Lee was, in his way, telling her it was not her fault. She'd done what she'd had to do. That didn't, however, ease her mind.
**********
Chapter four: Surrender to your darkest dream
'. . . floating falling, sweet intoxication. Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation.'
(From Music of the Night.)
She finally began to relax as the wine started to take affect. She'd made a big decision tonight, but how would he take it? She finally decided to just blurt it out, get it over with. "Lee, I'm done. I want to quit. The Agency, that is."
Lee was shocked to say the least. She was leaving. Did that mean that she wanted nothing more to do with him, as well? The thoughts buzzed through his head at almost lightening speed, as the fear coursed through him. How could he convince her? How could he explain to her that he didn't want to lose her? She was the best friend he'd ever had, in a world where having friends was dangerous. He'd let her closer than he'd let anyone in a long time. Finally, his tongue latched on to the only words he could think of. "Amanda, nothing like that is ever going to happen again."
Amanda now had tears running from her eyes. "How can . . . you be. . . sure?"
"Because," he paused, the fear as well as the slight buzz from the alcohol making him stutter slightly, "Cause I'd never. . . would never let anyone hurt . . . hurt the woman I love."
Now Amanda was shocked. He'd said he loved her! Euphoria was coursing through her soul.
Lee watched the smile light up her face. He leaned over to touch her lips with his, gently at first, ever so gently. A thousand volts of electricity seemed to be coursing through those lips. He pulled back at the wealth of feelings coursing through him.
He pulled back. That's all Amanda could think about. He pulled back. 'Not this time, buster!' She touched her hand to his face, the love pouring out of her eyes. This time, she moved towards him. Gently at first, since she'd felt that electricity course through herself the first time. Then more demanding.
His lips parted, his tongue licking her lips for entrance. He nibbled her bottom lip, and suddenly they parted, granting him the taste of her mouth.
It was dizzying, this kiss. Like something out of those romance novels her mother read. Amanda could feel those fireworks. Her body felt out of her control. She was spiraling into the light of a thousand stars, and couldn't move. Her mind, addled by the wine as it was, kept telling her to move, to get out of his embrace before anything else happened, something that they could not take back. Her body refused to cooperate, and her heart took over the debate. 'You've wanted this for a long time, Amanda King. Just go for it!'
It was dizzying, the sensations that accompanied that kiss. He'd kissed dozens of women, and not a one made him feel the way he felt kissing this simple housewife from Arlington. 'Simple?' his mind shouted. No, there was nothing simple about Amanda. His Amanda. He never wanted this euphoria to end.
She felt his hand coasting up her side, and the movement was in no way ticklish. She plunged her hands in his hair, drawing him ever closer.
Her hands plunged into his hair, drawing him impossibly closer to her. And it was what he wanted, to be as close as possible to this beautiful woman. "Amanda," he moaned, bringing his lips to the hollow of her neck.
A tsunami of desire coursed through her as he started kissing the hollow of her neck. An answering moan of "Lee" escaped her lips. Her hands left his hair and caressed his chest.
They were spiraling out of control. . .
**********