Fire burned brightly in the fireplace, crackling and popping as a log fell into place. Outside the snow fell in soft blankets amoung the trees and stone fence surrounding the chalet. The whole world was quiet and still, just the way they wanted it. For Luke Spencer this was the perfect way to celebrate the holiday, no one for miles, liquor cabinet well stocked, the ice cold and the bed warm. Back home his family would be dropping the ceremonial ball and talking about how they never thought he would get it right. But here, right here - right now, the only expectation he had to deal with was making sure the fire kept going and his lady was satisfied.

And what a lady she was... in all his years he had never met anyone who had challenged him and kept him interested like she had. She wasn't the first in his life, nor was he the first in hers he acknowledged with a slight twinge in his gut, but she was certainly going to be the last. It had taken them too long to get here for him to even think he wasn't going to ride with her into the sunset.

Shaking his head, Luke tried to displace the thoughts of life ending without her. Where had this introspection come from, he wondered. One of the curses of age that he now had to deal with. That and the worry that he wouldn't be enough for her. For as much as he touted himself the catch of the century, he knew with complete certainty she could have anyone she wanted. Why him?

"Luke Spencer, I will love you 'til the day I die."

In all of their years together, no words rang through his very soul the way those words did. He had put her through so much and yet she still stood in front of their family and friends and made that admission. He was a master at fluffing off her threats and criticisms, but those few words had brought him to his knees. No one meant more to him that she did. Not his children, not his sister... And he knew truthfully that without her none of it mattered anyway.

Behind him he heard stirring in the bed, so he turned to the woman beneath the covers. She looked so soft and touchable as she slept - not a vision most people would associate with her in the harsh lighting of a board room. And yet for him in their private times, this was the way it always was. She had shed the mantle of Ms. Quartermaine and was simply Tracy Spencer. He had once read the phrase "... gaze upon her continence..." and wondered why anyone would waste the time. But now, looking upon his wife's sleeping form he knew exactly how enticing that act was. He could "gaze" upon her for hours - the way she smiled in her sleep, the way her hair stood up slightly on one side, the way she sighed in her dreaming. It filled him with more joy that he knew what do to with. She was his! No amount of rhetoric could change that.

"Are you going to keep staring or come join me?"

"Mmm... you're awake. I thought you were still sleeping."

"Were you about to sneak out?"

"Me? Not on your life, Wife. You're never getting rid of me."

Tracy smiled knowingly and lifted the edge of the covers to welcome him back to his spot.

"You're cold and damp. Were you outside?"

"Yeah, just bringing in more firewood. I don't want my Popsicle turning into a popsicle."

She chuckled and started nuzzling his ear.

"Let's see what we can do about warming you up."

The growl in the back of his throat was greeting with a giggle. Soft, well kissed lips nibbled their way down his neck as a hand started undoing the buttons of his shirt. Once finished she pushed the sides apart and reached under to stroke his chest, gently drawing her fingers up and down the thick scar that ran the length of his breastbone. Shrugging off his shirt he rolled her over so she was lying on her back and started exploring on his own. A hitch in her breathing was followed by a purr when he ran his thumb over her left nipple.

She was still warm and moist from their last encounter, and it took little to arouse her to a state of readiness. Loosening himself slightly from her embrace, he moved down her body, following the path of his fingers with delicate kisses. He could feel her frustration through every pore and enjoyed his control over her body. Lazily he took one nipple into his mouth and rolled his tongue around the nub, teasing it to an even stiffer erection as he did so. His other hand pinching and stroking it's twin.

"Are you trying to kill me?"

Pulling away from her he grinned like a Cheshire Cat.

"Oh, I don't think so, Luke Spencer!"

No longer willing to be a passive recipient, Tracy pushed Luke over on the bed and pulled his boxers past his knees.

"Have mercy on me?"

"Ha! Like that's going to happen."

In one swift move Tracy straddled Luke's thighs and grabbed hold of his penis, which grew thicker by the second. Looking up into her sparkling eyes he let out a slow hiss and was rewarded with her laugh. Nothing turned him on more than his wife taking command.

"Are you ready for me?"

"I don't think a man will ever be ready for you."

"Good answer."

"Come here, beautiful."

Getting a smile from his beloved, Luke pulled her down on his chest and began kissing her again as she stroked his shaft. Slowly he traced circles on her back in rhythm with the swirls his tongue was making with hers. Lower, lower until his hands were on her hips, he gently lifted her up towards him as she guided him into her core. Luke shuddered as her tight warmth engulfed him and he began thrusting upwards to meet her. Every movement of her hips brought him deeper inside and he held her tightly as she rode him.

Tightening her thighs, she sat back and placed her hands behind her above his knees. Faster and faster she moved, giving him a glorious view of her breasts moving to their own music. Luke reached one hand up to fondle her while the other moved towards her clit. She rasped as the combined sensations worked together building a fire which promised to consume both of them. She became almost primal in her demand for more and he worked to match her, plunging upwards as her grip tightened.

"Cum for me, Baby."

"Come with me... God... yes!"

Releasing themselves together, Luke and Tracy roared to climax as a cacophony of sounds and lights exploded all around them. Still onward he pushed until a second, even more powerful fire shot up through the first and Tracy cried out his name in divine anguish.

Slowly the sounds and sensations around them began to clear and she collapsed on top of him, gasping for breath. Desperate for his own air he again began tracing circles on her back slowly, enjoying how the firelight made her glistening skin sparkle. Her demands were as insatiable as his own and if this was how they would kill each other, then he would die with a smile on his face. The thought entertained him greatly and he smiled against her temple as he kissed her.

"Penny for your thoughts."

"A penny? You really do want to make me a kept man, don't you."

"I'll up my price if I think it's worth more."

Chuckling he hugged her tighter, garnering from her a contented sigh.