April 27, 1992
The drive to Eric's parents lake house was full of wandering hands, stolen glances, and constant smiles. Eric looked at his left hand, the solid gold band shimmering in the dimmed sunlight. His right arm draped over his new wife's shoulders, he interlocked his fingers with hers, and squeezed tightly. He never imagined he would be this happy; he had the only thing that mattered – her. She was his saving grace and he had every intention of showing her everyday for the rest of her life, how much she meant to him, starting now.
The truck came to a soft stop in the round-a-bout driveway of the cabin, and Eric just sat there for a minute.
"Babe, are you okay?" Tami asked quietly, looking up at him.
"Yeah, babe, I'm more than okay." Eric replied with a grin from ear to ear. "You stay here."
Eric put the truck in park and killed the engine before getting out and reaching into the bed of the truck for their bags. He hadn't thrown a ball in nearly a year, but Tami couldn't help but notice the definition in his biceps as he grabbed the heavy bags with no hesitation. She watched as he walked up the few steps to the porch and unlocked the door and set the bags inside. Eric walked down to the truck and opened the passenger side door.
"Mrs. Taylor, may I carry you over the threshold?" Eric asked, reaching over her lap to undo her seatbelt.
"Yes, you may, Mr. Taylor" Tami replied.
Eric reached under her and pulled her into his arms in one smooth motion, turning around and kicking the door shut he walked back up the stairs to the porch.
"You may not be star athlete anymore, but you're a hell of a hot Coach, Mr. Taylor." Tami whispered in his ear and nibbled on his earlobe.
"Babe, I'm still an athlete where it counts…in our bed." Eric rasped out before running over the threshold. Both of them laughing, forgetting to shut the front door.
Inside the house, Eric leaned his face down to Tami's and kissed her all the way to the master bedroom. Once inside, Eric set Tami down and locked his eyes on hers.
"God, I love you, babe." Eric whispered, resting his forehead against hers.
"I love you too, babe." Tami replied quietly and smiled.
Eric swiped her hair behind her shoulder and moved to stand behind her. He placed one hand on her left hip while his right hand moved to the back zipper of her wedding dress and slid it down slowly. His lips moved from her jawline down to her shoulder blades. The white dress fell carelessly to the floor and Tami stepped out of it as she turned to face Eric.
In his eyes she could see everything she ever wanted, love, children, family, it was in those same brown eyes that she fell madly in love with the man standing before her. She kept her blue eyes locked on his and gently pushed his suit jacket off his shoulders.
"Eric…" she whispered softly and pressed her lips to his.
She fumbled with the buttons of his dress shirt and pressed her hands against his chest. Her hands moved tentatively down to his abs, up across his shoulder and down his naked back. With a groan, he wrenched his shirt off and threw it across the room, and slowly backed her to the bed. She reached for his belt and slid it out of the loops so fast; it sailed across the floor. His pants were next, and before she knew it, she was laying on her back on the bed and his hands were everywhere, touching her, rubbing, stroking, causing goose bumps to rise all over her body.
They became a passionate tangle of naked bodies and searching mouths. He trailed his mouth and fingers over every inch of her body, from her face, to her breasts, and between her legs. The way he roamed her body brought Tami to a throbbing edge between pleasure and pain. Her breathing shattered into ragged waves, she was gasping for air.
"Please, Eric…" she pleaded.
She wrapped her arms and legs around him, clinging to him. He entered her with such desire, that she screamed out in pleasure.
"ERIC!" she screamed, digging her nails into his back.
Eric moaned out against her soft skin. They clung to each other, rolling from one side of the bed to the other. The tired old mattress creaked and groaned beneath them with every move.
"TAMI!" he shouted.
His arms wrapped around her body, holding her so close that she could hardly breathe. They came together, with such a fierce and shattering release, that only their joint pounding heartbeats and soaring pulses were all they could hear. He wrapped his arm around her and rested the other against the wall. Tami laid her head against his chest, waiting for the room to stop spinning and for the shower of stars to dissipate.
AUTHOR NOTE: Thanks so much for the unwavering support and patience with this story. This chapter concludes this story, but continues with "Happily Ever Taylor".
