Chapter 7
Amanda hugged Lee before stepping back and announcing, "We need a shower."
Lee grinned, dimples deep, "Is that an invitation?"
Amanda giggled, taking him by the hand, "I didn't think I had to invite you this time."
They peeled off their wet clothes, between kisses and caresses, the room steaming up from the hot water and their increasingly hot bodies. Under the hot spray, they continued their ministrations, using everything they had learned about each other's bodies to their advantages. Lee had Amanda practically whimpering in need before she turned the tables on him, bringing him to his knees in the small space. Lee surrendered first, begging Amanda to move things to the bed where they would be more comfortable.
They took a few moments to towel dry. Laughing, Lee picked her up and carried her to the bedroom, dropping her unceremoniously upon the bed. He poured two glasses of champagne and brought them to the bed where, after handing Amanda her glass, he stretched out beside her.
"To us, Mrs. Stetson, and our future together as a family," Lee toasted.
"And, to a beautiful proposal even my mother will be happy about," Amanda added.
"You mean she wouldn't have appreciated my first one? Locked in a room, in the clutches of a madman?" Lee teased.
Amanda shook her head, "No, no I don't think Mother would have found that to be a good scenario. Unless of course you had come in on a white horse to rescue me like one of the heroes in her romance novels."
Lee leaned back and looked at her, "A white horse? Really? What kind of novels is she reading?"
Amanda laughed, "Ok, you really want to know? The last one she told me about was an American trapeze artist who fell in love with a Russian scientist who was being chased by the KGB, or something like that."
Lee couldn't respond, he was laughing too hard. Shaking his head, he put the champagne flute down on the table before he spilled it. Taking Amanda's from her hand, he simply said, "Enough silliness." Amanda raised an eyebrow at him before sliding her arms around him to pull him close.
They spent the rest of the evening making love, drinking champagne, eating the strawberries and cream they found under the covered dish, and resting only to wake up and repeat it all over again. They finally succumbed to sleep in the early hours of the morning when their bodies were too sated to continue.
Lee woke just after 8 to the sound of rain on the windows. Amanda was stretched across Lee, her head on his chest, his arms holding her tightly. He was playing with her hair, gently coaxing her awake. "Hey, we need to get moving soon. Checkout is at eleven and we have a long ride home ahead of us," he reminded her.
Amanda turned her head to look at him. He looked so happy at that moment, peaceful, his hazel eyes full of love. "If we can move faster, we can get home faster, even though I don't want to move. I'm very happy right here," she said.
"Me, too, but I did promise Jamie I would take him down to the Potomac and I don't want to start things off by breaking a promise to him. I just hope it's not raining at home," Lee sighed. "But there's always Tuesday…."
Amanda closed her eyes for a moment, "Tuesday, dinner, family night… hey what are you planning to teach the boys anyway?"
Lee pushed up, moving Amanda off him as he did. Groaning at his body's refusal to want to move, he teased, "Wouldn't you like to know?" He got out of bed as quickly as his body would allow, heading toward the bathroom to shower. He closed the door and heard the pillow Amanda threw at him make contact against the door.
He took a short shower, shaved and packed up everything he could before leaving the room for Amanda. She had already packed both their bags, stripped the bed and collapsed the portable crib for room service to remove. Entering the bathroom, Amanda showered quickly as well, simply pulling her hair back in a clip before dressing in jeans and a lightweight shirt for the drive home. Once they were both satisfied they had everything, they made their way to the lobby to check out.
At the front desk, Lee asked if Mrs. White was in her office. The clerk called down and after speaking with her for a few seconds, gave Lee and Amanda directions. When they arrived Mrs. White was closing a 5x7 bound photo book on her desk.
"Mr. Stetson, I'm glad you're still here. I was almost afraid I was going to miss you both," she said. She gestured to the chairs in front of her desk for them to sit down.
Amanda smiled as she sat, saying, "Good morning, Mrs. White. We are just checking out."
"Well, I was just finishing up on your photos. I hope you don't mind, but I took the liberty of printing them for you. Normally I would only print proofs, to allow you to choose the ones you liked the most but when I looked at these… If every photo shoot was this easy," Mrs. White sighed. She handed them the book she was holding. "There is one photo I would like to have blown up and added to my wall if you would give me the permission to do so."
Amanda and Lee turned the pages of the small book, admiring each image. The pictures were beautiful, each one a masterpiece in itself. Mrs. White had captured everything, from the walk to the breakwall, Lee picking up the roses and handing them to Amanda, to their final kiss with the wave cresting and even Lee with his hands in the air with the crowd cheering them on. Amanda couldn't help but get teary eyed as she could see in every picture the love on Lee's face as well as her own.
Lee was amazed at the book Mrs. White had handed them. He wanted something special to show their family and even Billy and Francine but this was beyond his expectations. He stopped when he saw the picture of them on the breakwall just after Amanda had said yes. It was just after he had spun her around, his body angled away from the camera and Amanda's face was mostly hidden by her hair but the wave was frozen above them, the sky ablaze with the sunset and in the distance the dolphins could be seen still. Mrs. White smiled and said, "That's the one. It is a once in a lifetime shot and I'm sure it will never happen again."
Amanda looked at Lee. She knew he was always apprehensive about public photos that could identify him. Looking at the image again, his face was barely seen as was hers. It could have been any two lovers out there. Amanda waited for his response. Lee looked at the image one more time with a meticulous eye and decided, "Do you need us to sign anything? Will this be the only one? The reason I ask is because of our jobs."
Mrs. White nodded, handing them a release form, as she said, "I would love to display the entire book but I understand completely. So just this one. If it makes you feel better I can give you all the negatives and just make a copy of this one. It will only take a few minutes."
Lee and Amanda agreed and a short time later they were in the car heading toward DC with their memory book and a new outlook on their future.
