For Berkie:

I hope you are feeling better today.

To Cherish

He wakes to the warmth of his girlfriend tucked up around his body. Her cold hands are pushing up under his shirt seeking his body heat. Turning to his side he places his hand on her hip as she continues her path up his chest, pushing his shirt as high as she can get, her chilled nose now pressing against his sternum. She yanks on his shirt, now caught by his arms, and gives a little whine. He smiles. Reaching up he pulls the shirt over his head as Kate starts to place soft leisurely kisses along his chest.

He knows where this is headed, the dance they are performing. He knows his part. He got it wrong once. He had tried to take charge, become an active participant. He had tried to roll them over, use his solid body to pin her to the mattress. She had huffed at him, whined even, pushed him back and told him to keep still and be patient. So he knows now, knows what mornings like these mean, what comes next.

She'll take her time. As long as she wants, no one or no thing will hurry her. She will use her hands and her fingers in ways he had never dreamed possible. Starting at his knee she will work her way up the outside of his thigh, scratching her nails along the fine hair, her fingertips dancing across the muscle before she firmly grips what she can hold in her small hand. She'll make her way up towards his hip, her hand spread wide against his flesh until she can squeeze the soft skin at his side.

She'll continue traveling upwards until her hand meets her mouth. In tandem they'll map every inch of his chest, her tongue tasting while her fingers feel the solid strengthen of his body, the course hair on his chest. She will make her way down to his abdomen, nip at his navel, and push his hips back down into the mattress when he can't help but cant towards her.

Her hand will shift to his, tangling their fingers together, palms kissing, her thumb rubbing circles across his wrist bones. She'll rake her nails up his forearm leaving goosebumps in their wake, following with the firm press of her fingers into his bicep, feeling the play of muscle beneath her hand.

Using his shins as leverage she'll push herself up his body, her face even with his. Her hands now tangled in his hair her mouth will make a leisurely path around his face; one kiss to his nose, to the corner of his eye, her teeth scraping at his morning stubble. Her thumbs will trace the ridges of his eyebrows, make their way down his nose, and smooth across the soft valley of his cheekbones.

And then, after she has taken her time with his body, found his every curve and crevice, touched and soothed every ounce of his skin, she will place her beautiful body toe-to-toe on top of his. She'll kiss him, the built up tension crackling between them. Her tongue will push inside his eager mouth, her body surging into his.

And then, finally, it will become his turn. He'll raise her shirt slowly off her body. Rolling them over he'll relish in the soft sigh she makes as his body presses into hers. In one fluid shift they will rock together, a soft and gentle rhythm. She will come quietly on a deep sigh, a shudder from head to toe. He will too. His body can't help but match her quiet intensity.

They'll end up much the way they started. With him on his side, Kate tucked up tight against his body, their previous connection almost like a wonderful dream. He has always thought that it was the man's job to cherish a woman in bed. Make her feel beautiful, extraordinary. He ever knew he could feel the same way, would want to feel the same way. But Kate makes him feel cherished. Like he is the most beautiful thing she has ever seen, his body a gift she can't believe she gets to touch.

He loves that.

He loves her.