*DISCLAIMER** Scarecrow & Mrs. King is copyrighted to Warner Brothers and Shoot The Moon Production Company. The original portions of this story, however, are copyrighted to the author. This story is for entertainment purposes only and cannot be redistributed without the permission of the author. Situations and some dialogue have been used from the episode "Bad Timing", written by Robert W. Gilmer. No infringement of copyright is intended.
Summary: This is a slightly alternate version of the fourth season episode "Bad Timing". This story is set at the end of January, 1987.
Part Two
Amanda walked slowly through the doorway, the darkness in the room a little disorienting. She had been in Lee's bedroom before, but standing in here this time, anticipating what they were about to do, lent a different feel to the room. Almost as if somehow it was hers as well as his.
Lee flipped the switch by the wall and the room was suddenly bathed in light. She chuckled quietly to herself as she quickly took in the disarray in here as well.
"You know, Stetson," she said with a gleam in her eye. "You might as well confess. Where do you usually stash your mess when you invite me over here?"
"In the closet," he admitted, leaning against the door with a grin. "What gave me away?"
"The clutter on your desk, for one thing – it's a pretty good indicator that you're still a slob."
"Well, I'm usually a little neater than this," he said nervously, stooping to retrieve his laundry. He couldn't understand why being in his bedroom with Amanda suddenly made him so jumpy. He felt as if he was walking on hot coals.
He looked up and caught her watching him. "I guess I left here in kind of a hurry tonight," he laughed, glancing ruefully at his armload of rumpled clothes. "I didn't want to keep my fiancée waiting at the restaurant. She hates sitting there all alone."
"She's feeling a little lonely standing over here all by herself, too."
"Oh?" he said, carefully depositing his stuff in the corner. "Then I guess I'll have to do something about that." He crossed the room slowly and deliberately, kissing her on the forehead as he stopped in front of her. "How's that?"
"Better," she murmured, leaning her head against his chest.
"Good." He breathed deeply, inhaling the scent of the perfume he'd given her for Christmas. It smelled so good…almost as good as she felt in his arms. When he'd left here tonight to meet her at L'Ornate, he had never dreamed that their evening would be ending this way. After all this time, she was finally all his. His hands deftly massaged her back as he held her tightly, partly to reassure himself that she was really there.
Amanda closed her eyes, resting easily against him. She shut off her thoughts and concentrated on the sensation of his hands. They felt wonderful as they moved over her, his touch burning even through the layers of clothing she still wore. She felt his lips on her hair and she moved closer, her own hands drawing an imaginary line down his back. She heard him groan slightly and felt his body's almost immediate response.
He pressed closer to her, trailing tiny nibbling kisses down her neck as his hands traveled a similar path. He knew he was probably moving too quickly, but he couldn't seem to stop himself. He had waited for this moment for so long. He'd begun to wonder if fate or whatever it was that held their destiny in its hands would ever let them get to this point. Time had never seemed so short as he kissed his way to her mouth, his lips closing on hers again in a demanding kiss.
"Oh, wow," Amanda gasped with a smile as their lips parted, shuddering a little at the strength of the feelings he'd awakened. It was almost overwhelming all of a sudden. She tensed involuntarily as his fingers moved down over her hips.
Lee felt it, too. And as he slowly leaned in to kiss her again, he saw her face turn away and felt her deep, uneven breaths as she rested her forehead on his chest. He tenderly murmured her name, mentally kicking himself for his insensitivity. He took a deep breath, trying to get his hormones under control.
Amanda sighed, sensing his distress in the way her said her name. "I'm fine, really," she replied in response to his unasked question. "I just need a minute."
"We'll take this as slow as you want," Lee reassured her. He hugged her lightly, bending over to whisper in her ear, "besides, it's much better that way."
She looked up to meet his eye, smiling softly at his words. She glanced quickly in the direction of the bathroom. "Would you mind if I…"
"Ah, no, go ahead."
"I'll just be a minute," she promised, brushing her lips over his. "Don't go anywhere."
"I wouldn't dream of it," he said lightly.
"I hope not." She gave him an encouraging grin as she closed the bathroom door.
Turning on the light, she observed the reflection that greeted her in the mirror. The image that stared back at her seemed poised and calm. But Amanda knew that underneath that serene façade, her emotions were churning wildly. The way she felt about Lee scared her a little bit.
She knew with certainty that she loved him in a way that she had never loved anyone before, not even Joe. It had been so simple when she and Joe were dating. They were very young and things seemed so black and white. He was her first serious romance and they both knew they wanted to wait. Of course, that's probably part of the reason they'd rushed headlong into marriage. If they had spent a little more time discussing who they were and what they wanted out of life, things might have been very different.
But that was a long time ago in a different lifetime. She wasn't the same woman who'd married Joe King fifteen years ago. Her relationship with Lee was so much more complicated. That was part of the reason she had put off this step for so long. Her feelings just ran too deep. If she had felt less, she probably would have given in to her body's urgings long before now. Lee Stetson had always had a powerful effect on her.
The same effect he seemed to have on a lot of women, Amanda thought ruefully. Just last week, there was that secretary from the temp pool who'd knocked over a tray full of files when he'd walked through the bullpen. Not that Lee had even noticed. But some small part of her worried that maybe she wouldn't measure up to his past romances.
Of course, when she thought about it rationally, she knew her fears were foolish and unfounded. Lee loved her and was totally committed to their relationship. The ring on her finger was tangible proof of that. She glanced down at the diamond on her left hand that sparkled and flashed as it caught the light. If only she could display this ring for everyone to see, maybe those nagging doubts would disappear.
And maybe, when it came right down to it, this was the heart of her dilemma. Lee had been such a big part of her life for so long, but a secret part. In a way, she had been leading two separate lives for the past three and a half years. There was Amanda King, housewife, the woman who lived in the suburbs with her mother and her sons. And then there was Amanda King, soon to be Stetson, who was Scarecrow's partner. She knew that once she and Lee made love, her two lives would be inextricably blended.
But she was ready to take that step. Taking a deep breath, she stole a quick look at her watch. Lee must be going out of his mind by now, wondering what she was doing in here. She should be telling all this to him, instead of to his bathroom mirror.
But maybe it was way past time for talking. What she needed to do right now was go out there and show him exactly how she felt about him. The woman in the mirror smiled back at her as she began to slowly unbutton her blouse.
To be continued…