3

The sound of humming brought Mark up from a deep comfortable sleep. With a groan, he rolled onto his back and winced as sunlight fell on his face. He risked cracking one eye open to peer blearily at the alarm clock next to the bed. Not quite nine in the morning on what appeared to be a bright Sunday.

Mark heaved a sigh and tossed the sheet that covered him away. The humming continued, only now it was joined by the hiss of water as the shower started in the bathroom. He glared at the bathroom door and…

"Shit…not this again…" He muttered as he slowly sat up. In his bed. He was naked in his bed. The last thing he remembered was passing out on the bathroom floor of a cheap motel.

He didn't bother with clothes. Instead he got up and strode to the bathroom door, flinging it open. Eve was a vague shape behind the frosted glass of the shower door. Mark moved forward and threw that door open as well, earning a screech from his once again living wife.

"Fuck! You scared me!" Eve laughed, regaining her equilibrium.

"I know." Mark didn't bother asking permission. He stepped into the shower with his wife and grabbed her, feeling her wet naked body pressed up against his dry naked body. It had been way too long since he'd done that.

"What…" Eve was laughing again. She wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him. "You act like you missed me or something."

"I did." Mark said honestly. He could take a hint. He had done something wrong and these…dreams…or whatever…were trying to tell him that. He had to make it right. "I love you, Eve."

"Well…I love you too, Mark." She said, sounding surprised. Mark realized it had been a hell of a long time since he'd said that to her.

"It's Sunday morning, right?" He asked cautiously.

"Did you get hit on the head last night? Of course it is." Eve leaned back and looked up into his eyes. "What's wrong with you?"

"I have had a very rough night." Mark rubbed his hands along her slick back. "Bad dreams."

"Poor baby." Eve stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek. "It's all right now."

"Thank god." Mark muttered. He kissed her on the lips, remembering how much he loved to feel her mouth against his. "I'll let you finish your shower. I'll make breakfast."

"You are going to make breakfast?" Eve tried to hide her shock. Mark didn't cook unless he was forced to.

"You deserve it." He winked at her, gave her rear a squeeze, and pulled away before he lost control of himself. He toweled off, got dressed, and paused long enough to grab his cell phone. He sent one text message…to Amber, telling her to fuck off. Only not so nicely put. That done he cleared his messages and 'accidentally' dropped his phone into a sink full of water. Breakfast was ready by the time Eve made it to the kitchen.

They shared a meal together for the first time in months. Mark made sure to keep their talk to minor things, just enjoying the sound of her voice. When she said she wanted to go for a swim, he did not stop her. Instead he joined her on the sunny concrete surrounding the water. She kept giving him the strangest looks, as if he were an alien from another planet. He couldn't keep the small smile from his face. He was determined to do everything right, to save Eve, no matter what it took.

After getting enough sun, Eve led the way into the house. Mark followed her upstairs and watched as she pulled her bikini off. This time when lust hit him, he didn't push it away.

Eve was surprised when he stood up and pulled her against him. "Mark…"

"Eve…it's been too damn long." He said softly, staring into her eyes. She smiled up at him and nodded.

"I know…" Her hands slid up his arms to his shoulders. She gently pulled, bringing his head down so she could kiss him.

Mark would have been perfectly happy kissing her for an hour or two. He delved his tongue into the moist depths of her mouth, moaning in pleasure as she reciprocated the caress. He pulled her closer, crushing her bare breasts against his chest, letting his hands cup her ass and squeeze into the soft flesh. He had to reign himself in before he threw her down on the bed and went caveman on her. Smiling at the thought, Mark broke their kiss and took her hand, leading her to the bed.

In spite of his raging libido, Mark took his time. He slid his hands down her body, not missing a single inch of smooth tanned skin. He kissed his way from her mouth, down her throat, across her collar bone. His hands molded her breasts, squeezing them, as his lips wrapped around one hard nipple. Eve moaned and tangled her fingers into his hair, holding him closer as his hot tongue flicked the sensitive tip. His hand moved down her belly, between her thighs, and he found what he was looking for. One stroke of his finger and Eve's hips came up off the bed and she had to bite her lip to keep from crying out. It had been way too long for both of them.

Eve reached for him, trying to touch him back. Mark gently but firmly pushed her hands away, knowing if she touched him he would not be able to keep his control. As it was, his cock was throbbing in time to his stroking of Eve's clit, and it took all of his willpower to keep himself in check.

Eve wasn't going to let him go too slow. "Fuck…Mark…I want you inside me now…" She moaned out as he slid one finger into her body. He growled in response, loving how she talked to him when she was totally uninhibited. He slowly withdrew his fingers and replaced them with his cock, first sliding the head up and down her wet slit, then easing into her tight opening. She whimpered as he filled her, inch by inch, stopping every now and again to reign himself back.

She figured out what he was doing and grinned at him, her grey eyes darker than normal, clouded with passion. She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him down until his body fully covered hers. He kissed her deeply as he began stroking into her body, moaning in response to the noises she was making against his mouth. He ground his hips against hers, rubbing hard against her clit, before pulling out and sliding home. He found an easy rhythm and she followed it, raising her hips and lowering, trying to make the most of every contact of their bodies. Mark felt her as she climaxed, her inner walls suddenly tightening around him as her nails dug into the soft skin of his back. He could not hold back any longer. He came inside her, groaning her name as his hips jerked erratically.

Eve dropped her arms and legs and went limp. Mark laughed as he rolled off her, pulling her against his side. He cradled her for a few minutes, enjoying the feel of aftershocks as they went through her body. She trembled every now and then. He had missed this. He hadn't realized it until now.

"Well…" Eve said, still sounding breathless. "I don't know what's gotten into you but I'm not gonna complain."

Mark chuckled and stroked her arm. "I'm going to call and tell 'em I want a few days off."

Eve rose up on her elbow and looked at him, her face shocked. "I'm sorry…I must be losing my hearing. You want to take time off?"

Mark tapped her nose with his finger, smiling. "I just…I want to be with you."

Eve said nothing. She leaned down and kissed him gently on the lips. Mark pulled her down and cradled her once more, dozing off as her hair tickled his nose.

A noise woke him a short while later. Mark opened his eyes and realized that Eve was no longer in bed. He sat up quickly and looked around. She wasn't in the room, or the bathroom.

"Eve?" He called out as he climbed out of bed. He pulled on another pair of shorts. There was no answer. Panicking, he hurried down the hall. The front door stood open. Mark rushed outside and almost ran Eve over as she crossed the porch toward him.

"Where's the fire?" She asked glibly, barely avoiding getting run down.

"You scared me. What are you doing out here?" Mark felt as if bands had tightened across his chest. They loosened just a little at seeing Eve was all right.

"Oh…the kids from down the road were knocking. Selling something for school." She held up a magazine that Mark hadn't noticed. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing…I just…" Mark sighed. She was all right. "Nothing."

"Good." Eve smiled at him. "Now I have to get another shower and get dressed. I have to take Mom to the grocery store."

"I'll go with you." Mark said it almost before she was finished talking.

"You want to go shopping with me and Mom? Are you sick?" She reached up and felt his forehead. "She only needs a few things. I'll be back in an hour."

That panicky feeling was once more wrapping itself around Mark's chest. "I could use some stuff too. And I haven't seen your mom in a while. We'll both go." There was no way he was letting her go off alone, and no way he was letting her stay home. He was going to keep an eye on her damn it, even if it killed him.

Smirking at the irony of that thought, Mark went back to the bedroom to get dressed. They were ready in twenty minutes. The drive to her mom's was uneventful, as was the grocery shopping. It wasn't until they were in the parking lot that trouble started.

Eve's mom did not look like she had much energy. She'd been battling lung cancer for three years, and it was winning. They all pretended that nothing was wrong, but it was obvious. She leaned on Eve, and when she thought Eve had enough, she leaned on Mark. He was glad to have her around as he held her with an arm around her shoulder. These trips out meant so much to her, they didn't have the heart to just shop for her.

Mark had relaxed his careful watch of Eve. Nothing had happened. And nothing would happen as long as she was with him.

That was the thought that haunted him as he fell asleep that night.

Eve was pushing their cart. She crossed the parking lot ahead of them, veering toward Mark's truck. Another foot and she would have been safe.

Mark watched, helpless, in horror, as a car full of teenagers sped down the parking lot. Eve was looking over her shoulder, she never saw it coming. The car hit her doing over forty miles per hour. Eve was knocked away from the road, her head smashing against the side of Mark's truck. If he lived to be a hundred, he would never ever forget the sound her body made as it hit the ground.

Eve's mom fell to her knees in shock. Mark ran to Eve's side, crying out her name. He knew he shouldn't touch her, she might have a broken neck….but he knew that he could hold her. She was dying already. Blood gushed from her mouth and nose, and her back was canted at a strange angle.

"Eve…Eve…don't leave me…" Mark moaned, pulling her into his lap. She lay limp against him, her eyes open and staring up into the flawless blue sky.