I am simply blown away by the response to the last chapter! There are not enough words to say how much I appreciate you all, so I will say: Thank you! Okay, so you've been wondering how the weekend was going to end for Reese and Joss…well, with all that's getting ready to go down, you would think a number would be the culprit. I could never write anything that predictable!
And so you know, I cannot stand the name "John" because it's generic and overused and basically a cheap way of naming a character. That is why I continually refer to our hero as "Reese" and only address him by his Christian name by other characters. Hope you understand.
I'd Come For You
"Smells great," Joss complimented, walking into the kitchen. "What are you cooking?"
"Nothing special," Reese answered with his back toward her. Quickly he stirred the vegetables in the frying pan and moved them from the flame. He wiped his hands on the tea towel that was over his shoulder and turned to face Joss. "It's just a little something I learned to whip together when I was in Russia."
"You were in Russia?" Joss snorted with a slight chuckle. "Why am I not surprised?"
"It wasn't always about catching and taking care of the bad guys," he defended. "Every now and then I took in the sights and culture. I didn't know if I would ever be back again."
"True. You know, every time I think I know you, you go and do something that completely surprises me."
Reese took a couple of steps toward Joss. "Are you saying that I keep you on your toes, Detective?"
"You do," she confirmed.
"That's not a bad thing."
Joss shook her head. "No." The scent of the soap he had used was filling her senses and making her drunk with a desire she didn't know was still left.
"Want to help?"
She blinked. "What?"
"I can use a little help finishing dinner."
"Ummm, sure." She walked over to the island in the middle of the room. "What do you want me to do?"
"Cut the squash, then quarter it," he directed. "Then dice the red peppers. I'm going to finish searing the meat."
Joss picked up the knife and grabbed a piece of squash. Within a few minutes she had a pile of diced yellow sitting in the bowl. "Is this enough?" she asked.
Reese turned around and gave her effort a quick glance. "It is. I'll add this." He took the bowl and emptied it into the frying pan. "Work on the peppers."
"Sure." Joss methodically sliced and diced as she had been instructed.
"No, no," Reese said as he came up behind her. "The pieces need to be smaller." Wrapping his hand around hers, he guided the knife to the precise size he wanted. "See? Like this."
Joss closed her eyes as the shiver of pleasure raced thru her body. "Yeah, yeah," she said, but her attention was on Reese and not the vegetable.
"Just hold the knife at an angle and…chop."
"Does it have to be at an angle?" Joss wondered and tried to will her hand to work. Reese pressed his body closer to hers.
"It does," he murmured into her ear.
"I didn't know it made a difference."
Reese nibbled on Joss' earlobe. "It makes all the difference."
"You know your way around utensils. And other things," she finished breathlessly.
Reese slid his hands up her waist to cup her breasts. He pressed a kiss to her neck. Her perfume was going to drive him crazy. Reaching behind, he turned off the burner so he could concentrate on the task at hand.
"And other things," he confirmed and turned Joss to face him.
"Dinner is going to burn," she observed.
Reese unfastened the buttons on her blouse. "No it won't. And even if it did, I'd make it up to you."
"You spoil me."
"You deserve it." Wrapping his arm around her waist, he pulled her flush against him. "How about we order in?"
Joss nodded. "Sure." Hungrily, Reese kissed her.
Tongues tangling, hands stroking, searching for the flesh hidden under the layer of clothes, they devoured one another as if they were the ones on the menu. Careful of the knife on the island, Reese turned her around and pressed her against the refrigerator. His fingers caressed her intimately.
Not one to not take it all, Joss cupped his firm buttocks and pulled him hard against her. She took pleasure in the way his breathing became shallow. The weekend was definitely turning out better than even she could have imagined.
"I see you're going for desert first," Reese whispered in her ear. "My kind of girl." Hooking his arm under her leg, he brought it up to wrap around his waist before thrusting intimately against her.
The sound of the front door slamming barely registered before a familiar voice called out: "Wow! That smells good! What are you cook-?"
Caught red-handed, Reese and Joss pulled back. An embarrassing silence fell over the room.
"T-Taylor," Joss stuttered the greeting with forced cheerfulness. "I-I wasn't expecting you back home this early." She took a deep breath and tried to calm her nerves. "Is everything okay?"
Taylor looked at his mom and the man standing beside her. Maybe he wasn't a full-fledged adult yet. But it didn't take a rocket scientist – or a biology teacher – to figure out what had been happening in the kitchen before he walked in. With cool eyes, he acknowledged Reese with a nod. Reese did the same.
"Yeah, everything is okay," he replied. "Dad's taking me rollerblading tomorrow, and I need to pick up my gear." His eyes stayed focused on Reese. "I know you. You saved me, right?"
"I did," Reese confirmed. His eyes stayed locked with Taylor's. It was more of a territorial stance than one of defiance. Yes, Taylor was the man of the house, but it was still Joss' home and he loved her. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks. He loved Joss.
"Do you want to stay for dinner?" Joss offered and stepped forward. Taylor cleared his throat and glanced down quickly at his mother's open blouse. "Sorry." Joss hurriedly fastened the buttons.
"No, thanks. Dad and I are going out." Taylor pointed toward the staircase. "I'm just going to grab my stuff and pretend I didn't see what I know I saw." A second later his footsteps could be heard on the steps.
"That went over well," Joss groused. "God!"
"You didn't do anything wrong, Joss," Reese comforted.
Joss' mouth dropped open in shock. "I was making out with a man in the kitchen when my son walked in!"
"I'm sure that Taylor has seen you kiss men," Reese reasoned calmly, but inside he was shaking.
"What we were doing was a helluva lot more than kissing, John! And we were about to do it in the kitchen!"
Unable to come up with a logical response that wouldn't get him shot, Reese turned his attention to the food on the stove. A heavy silence fell between the lovers.
"You should go talk to him," Reese suggested.
"Yeah."
Keeping an eye on the stove, Reese tried to tune out the voices that carried down from the upstairs room to the kitchen. A couple minutes later heavy footsteps pounded down to the foyer.
"Taylor…" Joss begged. "Please don't walk away."
"Mom, I really have to go," Taylor shrugged his mother off. "Dad's waiting."
"We'll talk when you get back, okay?" she offered up an olive branch.
"Yeah. Whatever." Taylor dismissed her by slamming the front door hard enough to shake the foyer wall.
Rejected and dejected, Joss walked slowly back into the kitchen. "He hates me."
Moving the frying pan from one burner to another, Reese covered the food and walked to where Joss stood. "I'm sure he doesn't hate you."
"He's never stormed out of the house before," Joss whispered completely dumbfounded by the whole scene that had transpired.
"He's a teenager, Joss," Reese pointed out logically. "Once he's had time to think about it, he'll come around. I promise."
"What if he doesn't?" she asked. Her heart broke at the thought of her son seeing her in a different light.
"We'll worry about that when it happens," Reese comforted. He went to hold her. Instead, Joss pushed him away. "What's wrong?"
"This. Us." Joss shook her head. She held up her hands. "I can't."
"I just want to hold you, Joss," Reese pointed out matter of factly.
"I just…I need some time alone. I need to be by myself."
"If it's about Taylor, I'll speak to him."
Head bowed, Joss wrapped her arms around her waist. "No. Just go, John. Please. I need to think about us and…everything."
Reese reached out to touch her shoulder, but stopped. He sighed. Maybe she was right. They needed some time apart to think about what happened between them.
"Okay," he conceded in defeat. Turning on his heel, he walked out of the kitchen to the bedroom to retrieve his personal belongings. Two minutes later he stood in the foyer and waited…for what, he couldn't put his finger on it, but he couldn't just leave without saying good-bye.
Hand on the knob, his heartbeat matched the ticking of the Grandfather clock in the hallway. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the lonely woman standing in the middle of the kitchen. Say something, Joss, he silently pleaded.
Realizing the words were not going to be said, Reese opened the door and let himself out. Only after he was sitting in the car and starting the engine did it dawn on him that he had wanted her to tell him to wait.
Except she hadn't.
Putting the engine in drive, he pulled into the street and drove home.