Summer of Learning – Chapter 10

My body stilled, frozen in place. My eyes snapped open, wide with disbelief, locking on his beautiful green ones. "S...Sean..." I stammered, "wh...what did you say?"

Sean whispered against me, "Marry me, Morgan." He kissed me tenderly and tightened his arms around me, still buried deep inside me. "I love you so much. I've never wanted anything the way I want you. Marry me."

I could only blink back at him, shocked into silence. Finally I found my voice, but everything I tried to say only came out as partial sentences, my brain all but fried, due to the combination of Sean's sudden marriage proposal and the four mind-blowing orgasms Sean had just given me. "Sean...I...are you...Sean we...we just..."

"Just what?" he finally stopped me. He rolled off of me to lie next to me. He reached under the covers and a moment later deposited the used condom in the waste basket near the bed. Sean carefully, gently, slid his arms around me, as if he was afraid that moving too quickly would cause me to bolt. When I was finally settled in his embrace, he kissed my temple and continued, speaking softly.

"We just what? Started going out? Morgan, we've known each other literally all your life. There is very little we don't already know about each other, and anything we don't know, we'll learn together."

He had a point. "Yes, but Sean...there's just...so much to think about."

"I know that, sweetheart," Sean whispered, kissing the top of my head. "Do you love me?"

"Of course I do."

"And you know I love you?"

"Yes, I know that, but..."

"Morgan, I'm not asking you to marry me tomorrow, but one day. That's all." He traced the side of my face with the backs of his fingers. His eyes were glistening in the soft light as he searched my face for a hint of an answer.

My mind was reeling, the proverbial wheels spinning as I tried to come up with an answer for him. A sudden wave of fatigue washed over me. I vaguely remembered the last time I had spent the night in his bed. Sean-induced orgasms when mixed with his beyond comfortable bed were a dangerous combination, apparently. I gazed up at him, "You have the absolute worst timing, you know."

He frowned down at me, concern crossing his features. An unbidden yawn escaped me. His frown turned to a grin. "Did I wear you out?"

I finished my yawn and snuggled in closer to him, "That's putting it mildly. I think it's incredibly unfair of you to ask me to make a decision this huge after...all that."

Sean gave an over-exaggerated sigh, "Alright. You sleep. I'll be right back." He scooted out from under the covers, slipped on his underwear and padded barefoot down the hall. A brief thought of "Where is he going?" flitted through my mind before sleep overtook me.

I woke the next morning feeling refreshed and relaxed and incredibly safe as I felt Sean's strong arms wrapped around me. His front was pressed against my back, enveloping me in his protection, his warmth, his love. I turned in his arms, incrementally so as not to wake him, until I was looking at him, taking him in. He was beyond handsome when he was awake; he was positively adorable asleep. Any tension he carried in his face melted away with his dreams; he looked so innocent.

Ah, but I knew better.

His blonde hair had fallen in front of his eyes, hiding the side of his face from me. It took all my willpower not to rake his hair back with my fingers. Instead, my eyes examined his sleeping form; his sculpted arms still wrapped around me, his firm muscular chest covered with a light layer of crisp, curly hair. My gaze ventured further down as I fought the urge to reach out and touch him, to run my fingers over his taut stomach, to tease my fingertips through the darker arrow of hair leading to his pelvis. I peeked further under the covers and found that delicious "V" that outlined his lower abdomen, pointing directly to his crotch.

Temptation was winning out over my self-control. I noticed in the dim morning light drifting under the comforter that Sean was definitely experiencing some...morning stiffness. I giggled to myself; my willpower depleted, I slowly moved my hand and placed it between my legs. (I didn't want the shock of a cold hand to startle him out of his sleep.) Once I was satisfied that my hand was warm enough, I pulled the comforter back up to cover him completely.

I was suddenly grateful for Sean's ultra-comfortable tempur-pedic mattress. I could move all I wanted and he wouldn't be shaken awake. Still, erring on the side of caution, I slowly crept below the covers, clothing myself in the darkness of the thick blanket, blindly finding my way to the waistband of his underwear. Oh-so-carefully, I pulled the elastic away from his body and held it in my left hand part way down his thighs, releasing his impressive length. Feeling very naughty, I reached with my right hand and gently wrapped my fingers around him. He was warm, hard, like velvet on steel.

I stopped my plan of action momentarily and listened for any sign that he was waking up. This just wouldn't be as much fun if he was already awake. Satisfied by the sounds of his gentle, uninterrupted snoring and his lack of any movement, I brought my mouth toward my hand. I ran the tip of my tongue around the head of his cock and felt him gently stir next to me, but then settle back down again. I repeated the motion, this time taking his head into my mouth and sliding my lips off him, closing them to kiss the very tip. Sean moaned above me in his sleep but still hadn't moved. Feeling bold, I took more of him into my mouth, letting my saliva coat his shaft, helping my lips to slide smoothly down his length.

Sean was definitely waking up now, his moans growing louder, more insistent. He barely moved, only bucking his hips upward once or twice as my mouth and hand moved in tandem, pumping and sucking and teasing him into a frenzy. His sexy morning voice spurred me on, "Oh...shit...yes...mmm, yeah baby...just like that."

I kept bobbing my head up and down, feeling his balls start to twitch against my hand. An errant thought entered my mind, making a mental note that the next time I did this for him, I would definitely want to explore that particular area further. For now, I focused on the task at hand, so to speak, wanting to bring Sean pleasure as he had done to me so many times last night.

Sean released a loud groan as he exploded in my mouth. I drank greedily everything he offered me and began cleaning him off with my tongue. Little by little, he began to soften in my hand, twitching now and again as I placed kisses along his skin.

I kissed my way back up his torso, straddling him, inching my way out from under the covers until my head peeked out and I greeted him with a sweet kiss on the lips. "Good morning," I purred.

"It certainly is," Sean grinned while wrapping his arms around my waist, anchoring me to him. "Not that I'm complaining, but just what brought that on?"

I smiled down at him. There was really no reason other than I wanted to. I hadn't woken up planning it or anything. Why did the bear climb over the mountain? Because it was there. I couldn't exactly tell him that, though. "Um...Happy New Year?"

Sean laughed loudly, "Well, that's certainly starting the year off right." My hair had fallen down in front of my face. He tucked the loose strands behind my ears and said, "You are amazing," before bringing me down for a long, heated, luxurious kiss. I melted into him, just for a moment or two, before suddenly pulling back and crawling off of him and out of the bed. "Where the hell do you think you're going?" he asked, sounding more confused than angry.

I grinned at him as I found his sweater still laying on the floor and pulled it over my head. I absolutely swam in it, but didn't care. "Well, first I have to pee, then I thought I'd make some breakfast." I scampered down the hall, hearing him chuckle in the bedroom behind me. I was elated that my impromptu morning call had gone so well.

I found my way through Sean's kitchen cabinets easily and realized he had cleaned up the counters and put all the leftover food away. So that's where he went last night. I smiled to myself as I pulled frying pans as quietly as I could from their hiding places and placed them on the stove top. I quickly prepared the French toast, adding cinnamon and vanilla to the mix, just like my mom does. I made a mental note to call mom and dad this morning and wish them a Happy New Year, wondering just how long I could stay here at Sean's without raising their suspicions.

I started cooking the pieces of French toast, along with several slices of bacon. I found a couple coffee mugs and started up the Keurig machine. Once the bacon was done cooking, I drained most of the grease from the pan and started cooking a batch of scrambled eggs in the remaining drippings. The smell must have made its way through the house because moments later Sean came padding down the hallway, dressed in an old T-shirt and pajama pants and...were those socks with top hats on them? I scooped the eggs into a serving bowl and placed it on the table. "Nice socks," I commented.

"Thanks," he chuckled and hoisted his pants legs up, revealing Abraham Lincoln's face resting on his shins. I laughed at his odd collection of socks and continued setting the table. I pulled my feet up, sitting cross-legged on the chair, pulling the bottom of his sweater over my knees. We both tucked in to our meal. "This is delicious, babe," he said with his mouth half full.

I grinned at him; he acted like such a big kid sometimes. He leaned over and gave me a syrupy sticky kiss on the side of my neck. "Ugh!" I exclaimed, shrugging away from him playfully and giggling.

When we had finished eating, I moved to clean up the table, but he stopped me. "I got this. You cooked, I'll clean." I couldn't argue with his logic. I unwound my legs from beneath me and moved into the living room. I pulled open the blinds covering the large front window and gasped at what I saw.

The weather man had been right; it had snowed, all night apparently, and was still coming down heavily. There had to have been close to a foot of the white powder covering every surface. I stood watching the peaceful scene for a while taking it all in. I looked at the utility wires and tree branches, weighed down under all the added precipitation. Then I realized there were icicles hanging from every surface. This wasn't just snow – there had to have been an ice storm sometime last night which tapered off into snow.

Yeah, I wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.

The realization reminded me that I needed to call home. I rummaged through my purse and grabbed my phone and called mom's cell. She answered on the third ring; I briefly wondered if I had woken her up. "Hello?"

"Happy New Year!" I exclaimed.

I could hear mom's smile through the phone, "Happy New Year, honey. Did you have fun last night?" Her tone was guarded, but not angry.

"Yeah. We played games, watched some movies, ate a bunch of junk. Have you seen outside yet?" I changed subjects before she could ask any more about last night's activities. I hadn't said anything untrue, but didn't want to give mom the chance to press for more details.

"No. We're still in bed." I heard my father mumble something in the background. "Your father says Happy New Year, too."

"Hi Dad! Happy New Year," I said, and waited for mom to relay the message to him. "So, I guess it snowed last night...and iced over pretty bad."

"Did it?" I heard her moving, imagining her crossing to her bedroom window to look outside. "Oh my gosh! I think you're right!"

"No one has even tried to drive anywhere on this street. No road crews or anything."

"They probably won't get to neighborhoods today at all, since it's the holiday. They'll keep the highway clear and that's about it."

"That's what I figured," I nodded. I knew what this meant and tried to keep the excitement in my voice contained. "I don't think I'll be able to get out at all. Looking at my car, I can't even see the bottom of the car door. It's pretty deep out there."

I could hear mom's facial expression, skepticism mixed with an I-know-what-you're-up-to look. I could just see her rolling her eyes and pursing her lips. "Well, stay put then. Be careful. Let us know if you want us to come pick you up."

"I don't think that's a good idea," I countered. "I don't know if I trust my car in this stuff, and I don't want to leave it here in the driveway. Once road crews come through, I'll head home, but I'm betting that won't be until tomorrow at the very earliest...and with all the ice, it could be longer. I just don't want you guys to worry."

"Morgan..." my mom's voice told me she could see right through me, but again, I wasn't saying anything untrue. She sighed, realizing there was nothing any of us could do. "Just...be careful, okay?"

I was beyond grateful for my mom keeping her promise. "I will be. I swear. Hey, I gotta go, I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Alright, sweetie. Be good. Love you."

I smiled, "Love you, too. Enjoy your snow day! Bye, mom," and ended the call.

Sean must have finished with cleaning up while I was on the phone. I was still standing by the window, watching the wintery scene, when I felt him come up from behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist, and nuzzle into the crook of my neck. "Hi," he murmured. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah," I leaned back into him, letting my head rest on his shoulder. "Just talked to mom. Have you seen this?" I gestured outside.

He shook his head against me, "Just now. Looks pretty bad out there."

"Yeah," I said with a mixture of mock disappointment and innocence. "Looks like I'll be stuck here all day, maybe all tomorrow, too."

"Gosh," he followed suit, "that's too bad. What are we going to do, trapped in here together for days on end?"

"Oh, I have a couple ideas," I said, turning in his arms to face him, sliding my arms around his neck and pulling him down for a kiss. His hands traveled down my back to cup my ass, hoisting me up to wrap my legs around his waist. He carried me back to his bedroom and deposited me on his still unmade bed.

I lay back on the soft bed and he stretched himself out on top of me, my legs parting automatically, welcoming him into the cradle of my pelvis. His sweater had ridden up on me and was now just barely covering my hips. The fabric of his pajama pants created a delicious friction against my naked sex. His hand reached down, gripping my thigh and sliding slowly upward, over my hip, my waist, my stomach, until my breast was exposed. Sean lowered his head and suckled on my nipple, pulling on it with his lips until it was a stiff bud in his mouth. I moaned beneath him and ran my fingers through his hair, holding him against me. I gasped when I felt his teeth bite down on me, then soothed me with his tongue. He knelt back on his feet and hovered over me, pulling his sweater off my body.

"Well, this is entirely unfair," I complained. "Here I am naked and you fully clothed. Not fair at all."

Sean cocked an eyebrow at me, "So what are you going to do about it?"

I narrowed my gaze at him, my scowl melting away into a smirk. I crawled up onto my knees, facing him, and pulled his shirt over his head. Unable to resist, I ran my lips over his chest, placing kisses along his collarbone and sternum then grazed my teeth over his nipples, mirroring what he had just done to me. My hands found the waistband of his pants, and I quickly learned that he had gone commando. His hard dick sprang free as I lowered his pants. I was about to reach out and wrap my fingers around him when he grabbed me and flipped us over onto the bed, him on his back with me sprawled on top of him. I righted myself, straddling him. Oh, he looked wonderful from this angle.

"Hi," he murmured, running his hands up and down my sides.

"Hi," I breathed, suddenly a little nervous. I had never been on top before; would I know what to do, how to move?

Sean seemed to pick up on my uneasiness and pulled me down for a kiss, running his hands along my back. "You look so beautiful," he whispered against my lips, "sitting on top of me. You ready?" I nodded, not able to find my voice. He grinned reassuringly at me and looked over to the side. "Condom. In the drawer of the night stand." I leaned and reached over, feeling his hardness press against my center, already wet with desire for him. It seemed I was in a constant state of arousal around this beautiful man. I found the little cardboard box and grabbed a foil packet then returned to sitting astride him and handed it to him. "No, sweetheart. You do it."

I looked at him timidly. "I…I don't know how." Geez, I felt so stupid.

He pulled me down for another kiss, washing my nerves away with his lips and his tongue. "It's not hard, hon. Open 'er up, pinch the tip, and roll it all the way down." He released me and guided me back to sitting upright. I wriggled my way down so I was sitting on his thighs, his dick standing proudly in front of me. With shaking fingers, I tore open the wrapper and took out the little latex circle. It felt almost slimy between my fingertips. I held the circle against the head of his cock and pinched the tip of the condom as he'd said to do. He twitched a little as I started to roll it down over him and glanced up to see him watching me intently. "Damn you look sexy doing that." Once I had finished, he held his hand out to me and pulled me back up for another long, languid kiss.

"You okay?" he asked, and I nodded my reply. He reached between us and held his dick upright, aligning himself with my entrance. "Whenever you're ready, Morgan. You're in control. Do what feels good."

I took a breath and lowered myself onto him. I moved slowly, relishing the feeling of him filling me, stretching me, completing me. He felt glorious inside me; I shifted further down, until he was buried inside me and I was resting solidly against his pelvis. Bracing my hands on his firm chest, I pushed myself up and slid back down, testing out a rhythm. I moved, again and again, finding a blissful tempo, luxuriating in the feeling of him. His hands had been resting on my hips but now came up to cup my breasts, kneading them, teasing my nipples between his fingers and thumbs. I moaned, long and low, as I moved on top of him.

I lowered myself onto him, kissing him as I continued rocking back and forth against his body, my already sensitive nipples brushing against his chest hair. He gently grabbed my breasts and brought them to his mouth, sucking hard, eliciting a sharp gasp from me. As he increased the pressure, my pussy clenched around him, both of us groaning in pleasure against each other. "Oh my god, Sean…you feel so good," I moaned in his ear.

"You too, baby…so tight. God, you're so sexy." He planted his feet flat on the bed and thrust himself into me, driving deeper inside me, forcing a rough "OH!" to explode from deep within me. "You like that?" he asked, wrapping his arms around me, holding me in place. I nodded, resting against his chest; he thrust into me again, pounding into me from below. The feeling was exquisite, it was all I could do to hold on and let him take me to this new height of pleasure.

"Oh, Morgan…" he moaned loudly, and his thrusts became slower but more forceful as he emptied himself, finding his release. His hands cupped my face as kissed me passionately, slowly sliding out of me, leaving me feeling empty. "Baby…did you?"

I shook my head no and was about to tell him that it was alright, that it had felt amazing even if I didn't finish, but he was having none of it, turning me and pressing me into the soft mattress. He held me tightly with one arm, partially covering me with his body as he ran kisses along my skin, running his free hand up and down my body until his skillful fingers cupped my pussy. He deftly slid two fingers inside me, instantly searching for that elusive spot that was sure to have me quivering around him.

He wrapped one of his legs around mine, the one nearest him, forcing me to keep my legs spread open for him. His fingers plunged into me, his thumb rubbing tight circles around my clit. In no time I was bucking my hips against his hand, crying out as the pressure built up in the pit of my belly. He nuzzled into my neck, licking and biting the sensitive flesh there, working up to my ear. He bit down on my ear lobe and murmured wickedly, "You like that, baby? Like me fingering your tight little pussy? Come on, baby, cum for me. I want you to cum so hard. Let go, Morgan. Look at me, baby. I want to see you when you cum." His voice sent chills up and down my spine and I finally cried out, my eyes locked on his, electricity shooting through me, my whole body tightening and relaxing all at once. There was something so intense about looking at him as I exploded around him. My climax seemed to go on and on; my throat was growing hoarse as my screams of pleasure echoed around the room.

I couldn't take any more and I begged him, "Sean…please…stop…" He left his fingers deep inside me but mercifully released my clit from under his thumb. He held his hand still until the last waves of my orgasm rolled through me, then slowly withdrew from me and brought his fingers up to his mouth, licking my juices off of them. As I caught my breath, all I could do was whisper, "Oh my God…oh my god…" repeatedly. I could feel the pull of sleep creeping over me, my eyes fluttered shut as endorphins flooded my system.

"You okay?" he asked with a grin.

"Better than okay. Jesus, that was intense," I replied, my voice still a rough whisper. "Thank you," I looked at him briefly, drowsily, before closing my eyes again.

Sean laughed softly, "My pleasure."

"Oh, I'm pretty sure that was mine," I returned, peeking at him through one sleepy eye.

"So," he began, his face full of mischief, "do you have an answer for me yet?"

I dragged my hand up to try and slap him on the shoulder, but my muscles still only had the strength of jelly, and he laughed at my feeble attempt. "Very funny," I replied sardonically.

"Just asking," he said soothingly. "Take all the time you need. I'm not going anywhere." I yawned heavily, and he chuckled, "Looks like you are, though." He wrapped the blankets tightly around us and rested his head on my shoulder. We drifted off to sleep in post-coital bliss; I could just hear the sound of ice hitting the window panes and had a rush of happiness at the thought of spending the next couple days with this man I loved so much.

I woke up before Sean did with the urgent need to use the restroom. I snuck out from beneath him and tiptoed naked down the hall. After cleaning up I went on to the kitchen, checking the clock and seeing it was much earlier than I thought it would be. As much as I wanted to crawl back into bed with Sean, I needed some time away from him and his cozy bed to think about his proposal. I walked out to the living room and grabbed a blanket that was draped over the back of the couch and pulled it around my shoulders. I sat in the arm chair in front of the large window, watching the large flakes of snow swirl gracefully in the air, losing myself in thought.

I loved Sean. Of course I did. And I knew he loved me, that much was obvious. He took such good care of me, always wanted to make sure I was happy. The sex between us was great, amazing, perfect, but it wasn't just about the sex. I could just be me around him, no holding back, and he acted the same way. There were no walls between us, nothing holding us back from each other, only the walls we hid behind from other people.

Our age difference would always be a thing, I knew that going in. He was literally old enough to be my father. It didn't bother me since I knew him so well, but we would always get questioning looks from people. Who cares what they think? It's always easy to think that, but deep down, I knew those outside opinions would eventually crack through our safe little bubble of happiness. Would I be judged as some kind of gold digger? Would he be called a cradle robber? Did it matter? I knew Sean would say no, that people would talk no matter what, and I felt the same way. I knew our relationship was unconventional, but I really and truly felt our love was beyond convention. A stupid detail like age shouldn't matter, right?

I thought of us in the future. I'd be thirty and he'd be fifty. Wow, that was a big gap. Sean had said he wanted a family. Did he mean kids? I wanted kids, too, at least a couple. I got a tiny thrill of excitement thinking about having Sean's baby...babies. How would that work with him being...older? If we did get married right after I graduated college, and started a family right away, he'd be...forty-two? Geez, that means he'd be sixty when the kid graduated college. And it would only be worse for any kids after that. Well, if he was okay with it...

Then there was the whole issue of my parents. My mom had reluctantly accepted our relationship, but I knew she still wasn't happy about it. At least not yet. I had the feeling that if she really disapproved she would do something to try and keep us apart, namely tell my father, whom I couldn't imagine taking the news lightly. There was, I suppose, a slim chance that my dad would get over it, that he might be happy that I was happy, that Sean was happy. It would all be in the presentation, right?

Who was I kidding?

It all came back to what did others think of me. Could I handle it if my parents didn't approve? Would I be able to leave my family to stay with Sean? Would I be able to leave Sean to stay with my family? Could I see Sean and me starting our own family?

Why does this have to be so hard?

The course of true love never did run smooth.

Oh, shut up, Shakespeare. Who let you in?

I let out a heavy sigh and readjusted the blanket around my shoulders. My mind drifted off, thinking about the future. I'd definitely want to finish school before I got married. I thought about what Sean said last night. In just a few weeks I'd be going back and we'd be five hours apart. What was I going to do? What were we going to do?

Oh come on, people had long distance relationships all the time. If they can do it, we can do it.

Still, I was half way through my freshman year. Could we keep this up for another three and a half years?

Maybe if I took summer classes...

I guess I could transfer. I really liked my school, all my professors. I don't want to have to give up my dream for...the man of my dreams.

Dammit.

This was crazy. Completely and certifiably insane. He was literally old enough to be my father, and not in the "well, if he was a teenager when she was born" kind of scenario. Still, like he said, I'd known him all my life. He's been wonderful to me and my family. There's a part of me that's always loved him, though not romantically, but as family, a friend. A wonderful friend. Now that we were together, that part had expanded to let him into my heart as so much more than just a friend. He'd become everything to me. I loved him with all my heart.

Was that enough?

Sean was my first everything. It felt like we were made to fit each other perfectly in every way. The thing is, he was my first everything. I had nothing to compare these feelings I ready to forgo dating anyone else before marrying Sean? Not that I was settling for him. No, that could never be even close to true. I was lucky to have Sean. Still...was I ready to take this big of a leap with the first man I'd ever kissed...or had sex with...the first man I'd ever really fallen in love with?

I walked back through the kitchen. Geez, I'd been staring out of the window way longer than I thought. I was surprised that Sean was still in bed, that he hadn't come looking for me. I made my way down the hall, stopping in the doorway to his bedroom, taking my time just looking at him. He looked so peaceful as he slept. I could just look at him all day.

Then and there I knew my answer. Now I just had to tell him

I know, I know. I'm evil. It took forever to get this chapter up (I'm really sorry about that). Then I get your hopes up with a super long chapter and then WHAMM-O! Cliffhanger.

I gotta have something for the next chapter, right?

Any guesses on what she says?

Thank you so much for reading, following, reviewing. I love you all dearly.