Elizabeth and Henry settled into an effortless rhythm during spring semester. Norah had found a boyfriend so Elizabeth didn't feel guilty about her frequent nights spent at Henry's apartment. She was starting to feel at home at Henry's apartment. It was a funny feeling considering she hadn't truly felt at home anywhere since she'd been sent to boarding school as a child. It wasn't really the apartment though. It was Henry. She felt at home with Henry.
It was mid afternoon one early day in March and Henry and Elizabeth were curled up on Henry's sofa reading. Her legs were draped across his lap and his arm was draped over her softly stroking her leg. It was so domestic and she loved it. She put her book down; she couldn't resist staring at him. He was engrossed in his book and she found his concentration unbelievably hot. Then there was the way his fingers trailed up and down her leg. The combination of everything was getting her all hot and bothered.
She leaned forward and wrapped her hand around his strong bicep and rested her head on his shoulder. After a minute he turned to kiss her on the top of her head, "Bored with Kafka already?"
Elizabeth chuckled, "If by already you mean ever since the first word of the book then yes." She reached her hand across his chest and started fiddling with the buttons on his flannel shirt.
Henry raised his eyebrows and turned to her, "Something you're interested in, Miss Adams?"
Elizabeth swung her legs off his lap in one swift motion and giggled as she moved to kneel next to him. She grabbed the book out of his hand and placed it on the table.
Henry attempted to pretend he was oblivious to what she was trying to do, "Elizabeth if you're bored we can take a study break, maybe head out for some coffee…" he trailed off as she straddled him and started to kiss her way down his jaw until their lips met and he forgot what he was trying to do entirely.
A little while later Elizabeth clung to Henry, her arms wrapped around his body and her hand running through his hair as she lazily kissed his neck. She was still on his lap and she didn't think she had the strength to move.
Henry could barely keep his eyes open, she had thoroughly worn him out. He stood up and Elizabeth dropped her legs to the floor and slid off of him. When she took a step backward she stumbled on her wobbly legs but of course Henry caught her.
He laughed at her and helped her steady herself. "Come on, I think we both deserve a nap." He said, catching her off guard as he scooped her into his arms.
She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. Henry McCord was truly the perfect man. He brought her into the bedroom, tucked her into bed and crawled in next to her wrapping his arms tightly around her body as she buried her face in the crook of his neck.
They just stayed like that for a little while until Elizabeth broke the comfortable silence, "You know, you're really good at that…sex before us…was is…" she trailed off, a little nervous about asking this question.
"Like this?" Henry finished. He knew exactly what she meant. He smiled at her and ran a hand through her messy hair. "No, it was never like this. I had feelings for both of the other women, feelings I thought at the time could have progressed to love, but I was wrong. Those feeling were just a heavy like, they weren't love and they never would have progressed to love."
Elizabeth laughed, "A heavy like?"
Henry grinned and shrugged, "Yeah, both of them-Maggie and Chelsea-were great people, I cared about them and I enjoyed the time we spent together but I wasn't in love with either of them. I didn't miss them when we were apart or think about them non-stop. We were just friends who tried to make something more where there wasn't anything. Then I met you and I just knew love wasn't something that you grew into, it was a completely different feeling."
Elizabeth felt her cheeks get flush, "You didn't know that from the moment you met me."
Henry grinned, "I did, you were like this beacon calling to me. I couldn't take my eyes off you. Then you started talking and I knew that the brilliant, stunning woman in front of me was someone special. I have never felt about anyone the way that I feel about you."
Elizabeth leaned in and kissed him, "I feel the same way."
Henry ran a hand through her hair, "You know, you're very good at that too."
Elizabeth blushed and looked away from him, "You're just saying that."
Henry reached over and grabbed her chin gently and turned her face back toward him, "I'm not just saying that. We are good at this because we're doing it together, because we love each other."
This time Elizabeth wasn't shy, she knew he was right, they loved each other and that was what made it so spectacular.
All of a sudden Henry's phone started ringing and he groaned and buried his head in her shoulder.
Elizabeth started to laugh, "What are you doing? Get up and answer it!" She playfully shoved him off of her.
Henry shook his head like he was a little boy, "No, I don't want to talk to anyone but you."
Elizabeth grinned, "Well, I can't argue with that."
The phone finally stopped ringing and the answering machine picked up. Henry's mother started talking, "Henry, sweetheart it's Mom. Just calling to check up on you and see how your paper went. You don't have to call me back right away, just call me on Sunday for our usual talk. Are you planning on coming home over break or are you planning on doing something with Elizabeth?" Henry's eyes grew wide at the mention of Elizabeth's name, god he hoped his mother didn't embarrass him. "You know, you promised you'd bring her home sometime and I'd really love to meet her, maybe you could bring her home some weekend? The way you talk about her, I can tell how special she is to you. I'd really love to meet her, sweetheart. Well, I'll get going. I love you and I'll speak to you soon."
Henry felt his cheeks getting red. He obviously hadn't told Elizabeth he talked to his mother about her.
He looked over at Elizabeth and she was grinning, "You talk to your Mom about me?"
"Of course I talk to my Mom about you. I love you. I want to brag about how amazing you are to everyone." Henry said as he leaned in to kiss her playfully on the nose. "Speaking of spring break…do you have any plans yet?"
Elizabeth grinned, "I was thinking about going back home. The horses will be back for the summer so I was thinking about doing some riding." She paused, suddenly a little unsure of herself, "I um, I was thinking about asking you to come back with me."
Henry felt his heart soar at her words; she wanted him to come home with her. "Well…if you're still thinking about asking I would be inclined to say yes."
Elizabeth's eyes lit up, "Are you sure you don't want to go home? I don't want to keep you from your family?"
Henry sighed and reached out to tenderly tuck her beautiful blonde hair behind her ear. He wanted to tell her that she was his family now but he didn't want to scare her off. "I'm sure. I want to spend it with you. We can go to Pittsburgh some other weekend. Believe me, you don't want to spend an entire week with my family. Maybe my Mom, she would be fine but as for the rest of them, well I'd like to keep you around for a while and I don't want them to scare you off."
"I'm sure they aren't that bad."
Henry tried not to roll his eyes, "Oh babe, you have no idea! Seriously, we can go up for a night or two but I've got to ease you into spending time with them."
"Okay, that sounds like a plan. But you're sure you want to spend all of spring break with me?"
Henry rolled his eyes at his girlfriend, "Babe, there's nothing I'd rather be doing."
Elizabeth blushed, Henry had a way of making her feel like the only person in the universe and she loved him for that.
A few weeks later Elizabeth and Henry made their way to Elizabeth's childhood home. Henry had been absolutely baffled by the house. He knew her family had been well off but he had underestimated just how well off. The house was a beautiful Greek revival with two story columns decorating the gorgeous wrap around porch. The inside of the house boasted vaulted ceilings, dark wood floors, and floor to ceiling windows looking out over the stables and the large pond on the property. Even the road leading up to the house was gorgeous. Driving through the magnificent trees had almost felt like they were falling down the rabbit hole to Wonderland.
Elizabeth gave him a tour of the massive home and she ended the tour in her childhood bedroom. It felt a little like a time capsule of Elizabeth as a child since she hadn't spent much time there since she was twelve years old. She had a beautiful, white full-size canopy bed and all her furniture was a beautiful shade of light blue. There was a whole bulletin board filled with ribbons from equestrian shows, pictures of her family and friends were everywhere, and most intriguing to Henry there were books everywhere. As Elizabeth showed him her childhood treasures he felt so privileged to be allowed this special window into the part of her she so rarely shared.
They settled on her bed, going through a photo album of Elizabeth and her family when she was a small girl. Henry reached back to adjust the pillows and could not stop laughing.
"What the heck are you laughing about?" Elizabeth asked, completely confused.
"You have horse bed sheets. Honestly, I didn't think it was possible to love you more but this just proved me wrong."
Elizabeth blushed and pulled the pillow away from Henry. Rose, their former nanny and housekeeper, still took care of the house and she knew Elizabeth loved those sheets. "If you're going to make fun of them, you can sleep in a guest room." She said, pretending to be offended.
"No! I love them. I swear. It's so cool to see what you were like when you were a kid. Seeing this side of you is wonderful and I'm really grateful and honored you trust me enough to show me."
Elizabeth blushed an even deeper shade of red and leaned in so her lips were hovering over Henry's. "Thank you for coming back with me. This house doesn't feel so haunted with you here." She didn't even give him time to respond, she just dove in for a passionate kiss. She hadn't been this happy to be home in a long time and that was all because of Henry.
The next day they got up early to ride and Elizabeth was more than a little excited. She was happy to teach Henry everything he needed to know and she was more than a little impressed when Henry caught on to everything with ease.
They were getting ready for bed at the end of the night, having spent most of the day on the trails. "I'm impressed at how well you handled Ziggy today." Elizabeth said to Henry as she walked out of the bathroom. He was lying on her bed with his nose in a book. He looked so cute with his glasses on as he focused on what he was reading.
He looked up at her and smiled, "Well, my Mom took me once or twice." He turned to place his book on the bedside table and he got out of bed and walked over to her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. She was wearing a thin knit robe and he saw a little lace peaking out underneath.
He bent down to capture her lips with his own and her hands ventured forward to the tie on her robe. She undid it and Henry pulled back and got a glimpse of the nightgown she was wearing. It was nude colored and sheer with light pink flowers placed in very specific areas and a matching pair of the tiniest underwear he'd ever seen. The nude fabric looked beautiful against her olive skin and her gorgeous hair cascaded down her front framing her perfect breasts.
"You're beautiful." Henry whispered, closing the gap between them once again as his lips found her neck.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, "Henry" she whispered, her voice breathy and low.
He gently pushed her robe off her shoulders and watched it drop to the floor. He was certain in this moment he'd never get enough of this incredible woman.
The next morning the sunlight rolled into the room and for a moment Henry forgot where they were. He looked around and smiled when he remembered they were in Elizabeth's childhood bedroom. He turned back to look at her. She was still fast asleep, her body half over his and her head buried in his shoulder. She was absolutely gorgeous. He loved waking up with her, their naked bodies pressed against each other because even as they slept they were drawn to each other. He ran his hand down her slim shoulder and he smiled. He had known this was how he wanted to wake up every day for the rest of his life since the first morning he woke up with her. She was his whole world. He finally understood what it meant to trust someone with your whole heart.
They decided to go riding in the afternoon but they wanted to spend the entire morning consumed with each other. That meant a whole lot of naked time. It was strangely liberating to walk around the enormous house without clothes and it made for a morning full of laughter for the happy couple. They did everything naked: they ate breakfast naked, they licked syrup off each other's bodies, they showered together and they made love on the sofa in the family room in front of the floor to ceiling windows without a care in the world and had fallen asleep afterward. They were tangled together on the sofa, a thin blanket barely covering them, when they both were abruptly woken by a new voice.
"Lizzy, Lizzy, Lizzy," the voice said in a singsong tone.
Elizabeth blinked her eyes open and gasped when she saw who was there. Henry was still draped over her and she couldn't move easily. She nudged him a little and he started to wake up. Once he realized they weren't alone his hands shot down to the sheet to make sure it was covering everything it needed to cover.
Elizabeth sat up as best she could, clutching the sheet tightly to her chest. "Will," she hissed, "what are you doing here?"
Will raised his eyebrows in amusement, "I am here because I wrongly assumed my little sister would be spending her spring break alone. Apparently I was very wrong."
Henry couldn't look at Will; he just kept staring at Elizabeth, wide-eyed and embarrassed.
Elizabeth shot him an apologetic look. "Will this is my boyfriend, Henry. Henry, this is my big brother, Will."
This chapter almost killed me. I've been insanely busy and knocking this out was a very late night affair. It was supposed to be longer but I just didn't have the time to properly finish so Will's little visit will be continued in the next chapter.
I was overwhelmed with all the nice comments on the last chapter. Seriously, everything everyone said was so kind and encouraging and just made me so happy. I truly appreciate you taking the time to read this story and to leave me a review. Thank you thank you thank you. All the nice things you have to say warm my heart and I sincerely appreciate them. xx J