(Chapter 23. December 10. Evening. Olivia's house.)
Olivia was pinching the dead flowers off the potted marigolds she had sitting in front of the house, when she felt large, strong hands on her shoulders. Reflexively she turned sideways, threw a hard elbow into her attacker's gut, and slammed the back of her hand into his face.
Fortunately for Steve, she had slightly over-rotated, and the blow that would have broken his nose caught his jaw instead. "Liv! Calm down, it's me, Steve!"
She jumped away and turned to face him, taking a defensive stance, her fists raised, and her eyes wild. It took her a moment to recognize him, and when she did, she reached out to him so fast, he ducked away, fearful of getting hit again.
"Take it easy, babe. I know who you are now." With a grin, she added, "I won't beat you up."
Steve rubbed his cheek, wondered if it would bruise, and said, "A bit jumpy, are we?"
"Don't ever sneak up behind me."
It was then that Steve noticed she was trembling. He went to her and put his arms around her. "Sweetie, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." He kissed her and said, "You've got some pretty nice moves, there."
Olivia laughed as she quickly recovered from her fright. "They're ok at best. If they were nice I'd have busted your nose."
"Still," Steve insisted, "they're far better than what I've seen from most women who think they've learned self-defense."
"Oh, and just how many women have had to defend themselves from you?" Olivia asked devilishly.
"I don't find that amusing," Steve said, "and you *would* have broken my nose if you hadn't turned so far. I need some ice."
Olivia handed him two pots of marigolds, and picked up two more herself and led him into the house. She led him to the mudroom just off the kitchen where she kept her gardening supplies, and they put the flowers down before she motioned him to sit at the kitchen table. As she washed her hands and prepared an icepack for his swollen jaw, she said, "You're lucky you shouted out when you did. You were about to be hurt much worse."
Steve laughed in disbelief, "Oh, really? How?"
"Want me to demonstrate?"
"Please," he said smugly, certain this wraith of a woman was really no match for him.
She led the way to the living room, where she moved the coffee table aside and said, "Ok, get behind me like before."
Steve set his icepack on the coffee table and did as instructed, barely able to hide his amusement at the idea that this tiny woman thought she could hurt him. Without warning, she launched her defensive action. Her blows were sharp and stinging and landed so quickly he didn't have time to react, but had only a fraction of the power she had used before. She counted each move as she executed it, but even so, Steve couldn't defend himself.
"One!" She spun toward him and elbowed him in the gut doubling him over.
"Two!" As he came forward, her fist came straight up and this time the backhand found it's mark. Luckily, she adjusted her force to avoid injuring him.
"Three!" As he straightened up, her open hand came down on his private parts, she squeezed and pulled, and he yelped in surprise, realizing as he did that it didn't hurt much as she had again adjusted her blows to prevent injury. As she pulled her hand away, she released and said, "I wouldn't let go for anyone else."
"Four!" Her left foot slammed down on the arch of his right and left him hopping.
"Five!" She kicked his left knee sharply and he went down.
"Six!" The sole of her foot to his chest knocked the wind out of him and sent him sprawling on his back.
"Seven!" Her left knee was in his gut and her right foot was across his throat.
"Eight!" A fast punch stopped gently right on the tip of his nose. It was all over in less than ten seconds. He knew if it were real, she could have killed him.
She held her position and lectured him for a moment. "Usually, I wouldn't want to kill the person, so number eight would land here instead." She shifted her fist up between his eyes. "Depending on where I am and what time of day or night it is, you could be looking down the barrel of a .38 snub-nosed revolver right now."
"Usually you wouldn't want to kill the person?" Steve choked out around the foot on his throat.
Olivia nodded. "If it's him or me, I'm going to try to make sure it's him, and if help is a long way off, he's not going to up when my back is turned."
Finally, she shifted off him, and he was surprised to realize that nothing was hurt but his pride. She offered him a hand up, which he gratefully accepted, and with some embarrassment said, "Ok, that was no self-defense class foolishness. What did you do and where did you learn it?"
"It's a combination of moves I learned. Keith and Ted taught me some, and I work out at a dojo." She shrugged her shoulders and said, "I'll never get a belt because I don't deny that I fight dirty. I figure if I ever get in a real fight, I'll be fighting for my life, so I spar the way I intend to fight. I've found a couple sparring partners who understand, and they view it as a challenging way to hone their skills. They haven't beaten me yet."
She handed him the icepack and said, "Sorry I hit you out there."
He laughed and said, "It's ok. I think if you had exercised a little more control, you would have got me on the nose."
"I know," she agreed. "Fear has always been my biggest failure. I overreact and miss the mark when I'm afraid."
"Beautiful and lethal. Liv, when am I going to stop learning remarkable things about you?"
She laughed, slipped an arm around his waist, and guided him back to the kitchen, saying, "Hopefully never. That's the secret to my charm."
Olivia flipped on the deck lights, and Steve stepped out on the deck and fired up the grill while she scrubbed some potatoes and wrapped them in foil. She brought the potatoes out and put them on the end of the grill to bake and stole a kiss from Steve. "You want a salad to go with dinner?"
"Yeah, sounds good. Can you make that honey-lemon dressing for it?"
"Mmm-hmm. How about green beans, too?"
"If you want."
"I do. They're my favorite veggie!"
Olivia set the table and made iced tea as Steve grilled the steaks. "Steve, babe?"
"Yeah?"
"How'd you get here? I didn't notice anyone drive up."
"I had Jesse drop me at the end of the block. You know, you get some strange looks when you're walking the streets of Brentwood alone at six o'clock in the evening. People tell their children to go inside."
"Well, why didn't you just have him drop you off at the house?"
"I wanted to surprise you." He laughed at himself, rubbed his jaw, and said, "It's the last time I'll ever try that."
Olivia came over and looked at his face, "I only apologize once, babe. It doesn't seem to be bruised. Does it hurt?"
"Oh, it's a little tender, but I'll live."
She kissed the spot he had touched and said, "Maybe that will make it better. What did you and Jesse decide?"
She watched the muscles in Steve's jaw work for a minute. Finally, he said, "He didn't sign the release papers. He managed to find someone to fit me for a brace this afternoon, and I'm supposed to get it by Friday. I go back to Davis for PT tomorrow. Next Friday, Jesse will reevaluate my condition and reconsider signing the forms."
Olivia stepped behind him and slipped her arms around his waist. Resting her head against his back, she said softly, "I'm sorry, baby. I wish it had worked out differently."
He pried her hands loose, turned around in her embrace, and hugged her back. "It's ok. I'm all right with it. This is all I need right now."
They kissed until she started to giggle, and he said, "I think our steaks are done, Gigglefits."
Over dinner, the two lovebirds laughed and talked and made love with their eyes. They shared more stories of their childhoods, and discussed their hopes for the future. When Steve asked why she was so jumpy in her own front yard, she became very sober.
"After what happened just down the street, wouldn't you be nervous?"
Steve wrinkled his forehead in thought. "Just down the street?"
Olivia nodded, "Nicole Brown Simpson."
Steve laughed, "Liv, that was years ago."
"So, I have a long memory. With what Ted did, do you blame me?"
Steve put his fork down, came around the table, and sat astride the picnic bench beside her. He put his arms around her and held her close. "Liv, sweetie, I'm so sorry. I never should have snuck up on you like that. I never considered how it would make you feel. That was thoughtless of me. Can you forgive me?"
She laughed slightly and said, "Relax, Steve, it's not the end of the world. I figure you paid for it." She ran a finger along his jaw and laughed again. "Now finish your dinner before it gets cold, I made an awesome dessert."
He kissed the top of her head and asked, "Chocolate?"
"Mmm-hmm."
"Excellent."
As they finished eating the rich chocolate cherry cheesecake Olivia had prepared, Steve said, "You know, Liv. I had something else in mind for dessert tonight. It's absolutely delicious and totally non-fattening."
Olivia giggled and said, "Well, what could that be?"
Steve picked up their dessert plates in one hand, and took Olivia's hand in the other. As he led her through the house, he stopped just long enough to put their plates in the sink with the rest of the dishes, and then continued back to the bedroom. Olivia continued to giggle, and it became contagious. "If you want me to stop," he laughed, "you'll have to say so, Liv. Turning into Gigglefits won't be enough this time. I've been waiting four months for this."
She didn't say a word, but stepped away from him and went to the dresser. There, and on the vanity and nightstand, she lit candles. As their fragrance filled the air, she turned on the stereo, and a CD started playing Pachelbel's __Canon in D__. Then she came and stood before him and let her hair down.
He kissed her softly. "You said you only did this once before?"
She nodded, giggled quietly, and looked at him shyly. "With Keith, the night we announced our engagement."
He cupped her face in his hands. "Did you like it?"
She nodded again. "It hurt, but not so bad. He was very gentle, and very patient."
Kissing her again, he asked, "Are you sure you want to do this now?"
"Do you love me?" she asked.
"Yes," he whispered.
"Then yes, I want this. Tonight. With you."
He combed her long red curls back with his fingers and showered her face with tiny kisses on her forehead, eyes, cheeks, chin, and finally her lips. He unbuttoned her blouse and scattered kisses across her chest. She twined her fingers in his hair, pulled his head up, and kissed him deeply on the mouth. The tenderness within him melted as his passion ignited. He could tell she was as aroused as he was, and she soon stripped off her blouse and bra. As he undid her skirt, she loosened his belt and unfastened his pants. She willingly slipped out of her clothes for him as he stepped out of his pants and removed his socks and shoes. He was thankful for the long shirt he wore which covered the worst of his scars.
He stepped back for a minute and admired her naked beauty. He laughed softly in absolute wonder and said, "You do have freckles all over." Her creamy, cinnamon-speckled skin glowed golden and bronze in the candlelight. She reminded him of a leopard. Her lithe, slender frame and glowing green eyes reinforced the image.
When she moved to cover herself, he caught her hands and held them away from her body saying, "Oh, no, Liv. You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. Please don't hide from me."
She lowered her head and blushed. He lifted her face to his and kissed her again, then scooped her up and carried her to the bed. He teased her with kisses everywhere. Moving from her face to her breasts, her thighs, and her toes. He lifted her legs one at a time and placed a kiss at the back of each knee. When it made her giggle, he did it again, saying, "I really like that sound."
As he moved over her, she splayed her hands against his chest and whispered, "Not yet."
Sitting up, she motioned him away. Confused, he sat up on the side of the bed but didn't stand. She scrambled to the floor and started pulling up at the hem of his shirt.
"What are you doing, Liv?"
"I want to see you, Steve."
His passion turned quickly cold, but he tried to laugh it off. With a forced smile he said, "I'm right here, sweetheart."
She continued to pull and said, "I want to see *all* of you."
He caught her hands in his and said, "I'm very ugly, Olivia. Please don't make me do this."
She held on to his hands and stepped back forcing him to stand up. She pulled his face to hers and gave him a quick, charged kiss on the mouth. Stepping back again, she said, "Nothing is ugly when seen through the eyes of love, my darling."
"Why is this important to you, Liv? Why are you so curious to see these hideous scars? You've seen them before."
She caught his hand and brought it to her mouth for a kiss, then she pressed it to her cheek. "It's not just important to me, Steve, it's important to us. When I saw them before it was as your doctor. Now I'm your lover. This isn't just curiosity, it's about trust."
"Please, Liv, I don't want to," he pleaded, but she refused to relent.
Fingering the hem of his shirt again, she said, "When this is no longer between us, your scars will disappear between us as well, my love. Trust me to see them and love them as much as I do every other part of you. It will be all right. I promise."
He finally gave in. He could never hold his doubt against her promise. With dread, he lifted his arms and let her pull the shirt over his head. Then he lowered his arms and let the shirt fall to the floor. He stood there with his eyes close, naked and ugly before her beauty, and fought the urge to cover himself. When he heard her gasp, he felt a tightness take hold of his chest. He was sure then that their brief, shining moment was over. Too terrified to open his eyes and look, he assumed that she had turned away. Then something unexpected happened. She tenderly kissed the scar over his right eye. He'd gotten it breaking up a bar fight years ago, when he was still in uniform.
With his eyes still closed, he felt compelled to tell her about it.
She whispered, "I can see you doing that. A guardian protecting the innocent, no doubt."
Then she kissed his hands. "These scars I know you got fighting a forest fire. I see a hero defending his home and those of his friends and neighbors."
Kissing the long scar on the back of his hand that he'd received from Eddie Gault, she said, "You were rescuing a friend from an old enemy, endangering yourself for another. Loyalty."
He felt her kiss the scars where he'd been shot in the chest and said, "You wouldn't give up. You had too much to fight for. Perseverance."
Her lips brushed the scar from Viet Nam, and she said, "A frightened young man stood up for what he believed in. That's integrity." At the scar on his arm where Lily's brother had grazed him trying to kill her, she said, "You gave your heart away and it was broken, but you found the one who took her from you, and made sure justice was done. I see honor."
Finally, kissing each of his new scars she said, "I see courage...determination...strength...discipline...resolve...fortitude...grit ... tenacity...and valor."
When he felt her wrap her arms around him and press her beautiful, naked body against his own mangled flesh, he opened his eyes and stared deep into hers. She smiled that smile that made his world spin and said, "I see no ugliness in you, my darling. What you bear are merely the marks of a good man who has lived his life well."
The music on the CD changed to __Ode to Joy__ as he buried his hands in her hair and kissed her lips until they both were short of breath. Then he hid his face in the crook of her neck and wept. He was too choked with emotion to speak, but knew that later he would try to tell her about all the fears which she had quieted for him. Right now, though, all he could do was love her, and that he was determined to do well. Lifting her up, he carried her to the bed once more.
Time stopped while they made love, and they became lost together in bliss.
Olivia was pinching the dead flowers off the potted marigolds she had sitting in front of the house, when she felt large, strong hands on her shoulders. Reflexively she turned sideways, threw a hard elbow into her attacker's gut, and slammed the back of her hand into his face.
Fortunately for Steve, she had slightly over-rotated, and the blow that would have broken his nose caught his jaw instead. "Liv! Calm down, it's me, Steve!"
She jumped away and turned to face him, taking a defensive stance, her fists raised, and her eyes wild. It took her a moment to recognize him, and when she did, she reached out to him so fast, he ducked away, fearful of getting hit again.
"Take it easy, babe. I know who you are now." With a grin, she added, "I won't beat you up."
Steve rubbed his cheek, wondered if it would bruise, and said, "A bit jumpy, are we?"
"Don't ever sneak up behind me."
It was then that Steve noticed she was trembling. He went to her and put his arms around her. "Sweetie, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." He kissed her and said, "You've got some pretty nice moves, there."
Olivia laughed as she quickly recovered from her fright. "They're ok at best. If they were nice I'd have busted your nose."
"Still," Steve insisted, "they're far better than what I've seen from most women who think they've learned self-defense."
"Oh, and just how many women have had to defend themselves from you?" Olivia asked devilishly.
"I don't find that amusing," Steve said, "and you *would* have broken my nose if you hadn't turned so far. I need some ice."
Olivia handed him two pots of marigolds, and picked up two more herself and led him into the house. She led him to the mudroom just off the kitchen where she kept her gardening supplies, and they put the flowers down before she motioned him to sit at the kitchen table. As she washed her hands and prepared an icepack for his swollen jaw, she said, "You're lucky you shouted out when you did. You were about to be hurt much worse."
Steve laughed in disbelief, "Oh, really? How?"
"Want me to demonstrate?"
"Please," he said smugly, certain this wraith of a woman was really no match for him.
She led the way to the living room, where she moved the coffee table aside and said, "Ok, get behind me like before."
Steve set his icepack on the coffee table and did as instructed, barely able to hide his amusement at the idea that this tiny woman thought she could hurt him. Without warning, she launched her defensive action. Her blows were sharp and stinging and landed so quickly he didn't have time to react, but had only a fraction of the power she had used before. She counted each move as she executed it, but even so, Steve couldn't defend himself.
"One!" She spun toward him and elbowed him in the gut doubling him over.
"Two!" As he came forward, her fist came straight up and this time the backhand found it's mark. Luckily, she adjusted her force to avoid injuring him.
"Three!" As he straightened up, her open hand came down on his private parts, she squeezed and pulled, and he yelped in surprise, realizing as he did that it didn't hurt much as she had again adjusted her blows to prevent injury. As she pulled her hand away, she released and said, "I wouldn't let go for anyone else."
"Four!" Her left foot slammed down on the arch of his right and left him hopping.
"Five!" She kicked his left knee sharply and he went down.
"Six!" The sole of her foot to his chest knocked the wind out of him and sent him sprawling on his back.
"Seven!" Her left knee was in his gut and her right foot was across his throat.
"Eight!" A fast punch stopped gently right on the tip of his nose. It was all over in less than ten seconds. He knew if it were real, she could have killed him.
She held her position and lectured him for a moment. "Usually, I wouldn't want to kill the person, so number eight would land here instead." She shifted her fist up between his eyes. "Depending on where I am and what time of day or night it is, you could be looking down the barrel of a .38 snub-nosed revolver right now."
"Usually you wouldn't want to kill the person?" Steve choked out around the foot on his throat.
Olivia nodded. "If it's him or me, I'm going to try to make sure it's him, and if help is a long way off, he's not going to up when my back is turned."
Finally, she shifted off him, and he was surprised to realize that nothing was hurt but his pride. She offered him a hand up, which he gratefully accepted, and with some embarrassment said, "Ok, that was no self-defense class foolishness. What did you do and where did you learn it?"
"It's a combination of moves I learned. Keith and Ted taught me some, and I work out at a dojo." She shrugged her shoulders and said, "I'll never get a belt because I don't deny that I fight dirty. I figure if I ever get in a real fight, I'll be fighting for my life, so I spar the way I intend to fight. I've found a couple sparring partners who understand, and they view it as a challenging way to hone their skills. They haven't beaten me yet."
She handed him the icepack and said, "Sorry I hit you out there."
He laughed and said, "It's ok. I think if you had exercised a little more control, you would have got me on the nose."
"I know," she agreed. "Fear has always been my biggest failure. I overreact and miss the mark when I'm afraid."
"Beautiful and lethal. Liv, when am I going to stop learning remarkable things about you?"
She laughed, slipped an arm around his waist, and guided him back to the kitchen, saying, "Hopefully never. That's the secret to my charm."
Olivia flipped on the deck lights, and Steve stepped out on the deck and fired up the grill while she scrubbed some potatoes and wrapped them in foil. She brought the potatoes out and put them on the end of the grill to bake and stole a kiss from Steve. "You want a salad to go with dinner?"
"Yeah, sounds good. Can you make that honey-lemon dressing for it?"
"Mmm-hmm. How about green beans, too?"
"If you want."
"I do. They're my favorite veggie!"
Olivia set the table and made iced tea as Steve grilled the steaks. "Steve, babe?"
"Yeah?"
"How'd you get here? I didn't notice anyone drive up."
"I had Jesse drop me at the end of the block. You know, you get some strange looks when you're walking the streets of Brentwood alone at six o'clock in the evening. People tell their children to go inside."
"Well, why didn't you just have him drop you off at the house?"
"I wanted to surprise you." He laughed at himself, rubbed his jaw, and said, "It's the last time I'll ever try that."
Olivia came over and looked at his face, "I only apologize once, babe. It doesn't seem to be bruised. Does it hurt?"
"Oh, it's a little tender, but I'll live."
She kissed the spot he had touched and said, "Maybe that will make it better. What did you and Jesse decide?"
She watched the muscles in Steve's jaw work for a minute. Finally, he said, "He didn't sign the release papers. He managed to find someone to fit me for a brace this afternoon, and I'm supposed to get it by Friday. I go back to Davis for PT tomorrow. Next Friday, Jesse will reevaluate my condition and reconsider signing the forms."
Olivia stepped behind him and slipped her arms around his waist. Resting her head against his back, she said softly, "I'm sorry, baby. I wish it had worked out differently."
He pried her hands loose, turned around in her embrace, and hugged her back. "It's ok. I'm all right with it. This is all I need right now."
They kissed until she started to giggle, and he said, "I think our steaks are done, Gigglefits."
Over dinner, the two lovebirds laughed and talked and made love with their eyes. They shared more stories of their childhoods, and discussed their hopes for the future. When Steve asked why she was so jumpy in her own front yard, she became very sober.
"After what happened just down the street, wouldn't you be nervous?"
Steve wrinkled his forehead in thought. "Just down the street?"
Olivia nodded, "Nicole Brown Simpson."
Steve laughed, "Liv, that was years ago."
"So, I have a long memory. With what Ted did, do you blame me?"
Steve put his fork down, came around the table, and sat astride the picnic bench beside her. He put his arms around her and held her close. "Liv, sweetie, I'm so sorry. I never should have snuck up on you like that. I never considered how it would make you feel. That was thoughtless of me. Can you forgive me?"
She laughed slightly and said, "Relax, Steve, it's not the end of the world. I figure you paid for it." She ran a finger along his jaw and laughed again. "Now finish your dinner before it gets cold, I made an awesome dessert."
He kissed the top of her head and asked, "Chocolate?"
"Mmm-hmm."
"Excellent."
As they finished eating the rich chocolate cherry cheesecake Olivia had prepared, Steve said, "You know, Liv. I had something else in mind for dessert tonight. It's absolutely delicious and totally non-fattening."
Olivia giggled and said, "Well, what could that be?"
Steve picked up their dessert plates in one hand, and took Olivia's hand in the other. As he led her through the house, he stopped just long enough to put their plates in the sink with the rest of the dishes, and then continued back to the bedroom. Olivia continued to giggle, and it became contagious. "If you want me to stop," he laughed, "you'll have to say so, Liv. Turning into Gigglefits won't be enough this time. I've been waiting four months for this."
She didn't say a word, but stepped away from him and went to the dresser. There, and on the vanity and nightstand, she lit candles. As their fragrance filled the air, she turned on the stereo, and a CD started playing Pachelbel's __Canon in D__. Then she came and stood before him and let her hair down.
He kissed her softly. "You said you only did this once before?"
She nodded, giggled quietly, and looked at him shyly. "With Keith, the night we announced our engagement."
He cupped her face in his hands. "Did you like it?"
She nodded again. "It hurt, but not so bad. He was very gentle, and very patient."
Kissing her again, he asked, "Are you sure you want to do this now?"
"Do you love me?" she asked.
"Yes," he whispered.
"Then yes, I want this. Tonight. With you."
He combed her long red curls back with his fingers and showered her face with tiny kisses on her forehead, eyes, cheeks, chin, and finally her lips. He unbuttoned her blouse and scattered kisses across her chest. She twined her fingers in his hair, pulled his head up, and kissed him deeply on the mouth. The tenderness within him melted as his passion ignited. He could tell she was as aroused as he was, and she soon stripped off her blouse and bra. As he undid her skirt, she loosened his belt and unfastened his pants. She willingly slipped out of her clothes for him as he stepped out of his pants and removed his socks and shoes. He was thankful for the long shirt he wore which covered the worst of his scars.
He stepped back for a minute and admired her naked beauty. He laughed softly in absolute wonder and said, "You do have freckles all over." Her creamy, cinnamon-speckled skin glowed golden and bronze in the candlelight. She reminded him of a leopard. Her lithe, slender frame and glowing green eyes reinforced the image.
When she moved to cover herself, he caught her hands and held them away from her body saying, "Oh, no, Liv. You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. Please don't hide from me."
She lowered her head and blushed. He lifted her face to his and kissed her again, then scooped her up and carried her to the bed. He teased her with kisses everywhere. Moving from her face to her breasts, her thighs, and her toes. He lifted her legs one at a time and placed a kiss at the back of each knee. When it made her giggle, he did it again, saying, "I really like that sound."
As he moved over her, she splayed her hands against his chest and whispered, "Not yet."
Sitting up, she motioned him away. Confused, he sat up on the side of the bed but didn't stand. She scrambled to the floor and started pulling up at the hem of his shirt.
"What are you doing, Liv?"
"I want to see you, Steve."
His passion turned quickly cold, but he tried to laugh it off. With a forced smile he said, "I'm right here, sweetheart."
She continued to pull and said, "I want to see *all* of you."
He caught her hands in his and said, "I'm very ugly, Olivia. Please don't make me do this."
She held on to his hands and stepped back forcing him to stand up. She pulled his face to hers and gave him a quick, charged kiss on the mouth. Stepping back again, she said, "Nothing is ugly when seen through the eyes of love, my darling."
"Why is this important to you, Liv? Why are you so curious to see these hideous scars? You've seen them before."
She caught his hand and brought it to her mouth for a kiss, then she pressed it to her cheek. "It's not just important to me, Steve, it's important to us. When I saw them before it was as your doctor. Now I'm your lover. This isn't just curiosity, it's about trust."
"Please, Liv, I don't want to," he pleaded, but she refused to relent.
Fingering the hem of his shirt again, she said, "When this is no longer between us, your scars will disappear between us as well, my love. Trust me to see them and love them as much as I do every other part of you. It will be all right. I promise."
He finally gave in. He could never hold his doubt against her promise. With dread, he lifted his arms and let her pull the shirt over his head. Then he lowered his arms and let the shirt fall to the floor. He stood there with his eyes close, naked and ugly before her beauty, and fought the urge to cover himself. When he heard her gasp, he felt a tightness take hold of his chest. He was sure then that their brief, shining moment was over. Too terrified to open his eyes and look, he assumed that she had turned away. Then something unexpected happened. She tenderly kissed the scar over his right eye. He'd gotten it breaking up a bar fight years ago, when he was still in uniform.
With his eyes still closed, he felt compelled to tell her about it.
She whispered, "I can see you doing that. A guardian protecting the innocent, no doubt."
Then she kissed his hands. "These scars I know you got fighting a forest fire. I see a hero defending his home and those of his friends and neighbors."
Kissing the long scar on the back of his hand that he'd received from Eddie Gault, she said, "You were rescuing a friend from an old enemy, endangering yourself for another. Loyalty."
He felt her kiss the scars where he'd been shot in the chest and said, "You wouldn't give up. You had too much to fight for. Perseverance."
Her lips brushed the scar from Viet Nam, and she said, "A frightened young man stood up for what he believed in. That's integrity." At the scar on his arm where Lily's brother had grazed him trying to kill her, she said, "You gave your heart away and it was broken, but you found the one who took her from you, and made sure justice was done. I see honor."
Finally, kissing each of his new scars she said, "I see courage...determination...strength...discipline...resolve...fortitude...grit ... tenacity...and valor."
When he felt her wrap her arms around him and press her beautiful, naked body against his own mangled flesh, he opened his eyes and stared deep into hers. She smiled that smile that made his world spin and said, "I see no ugliness in you, my darling. What you bear are merely the marks of a good man who has lived his life well."
The music on the CD changed to __Ode to Joy__ as he buried his hands in her hair and kissed her lips until they both were short of breath. Then he hid his face in the crook of her neck and wept. He was too choked with emotion to speak, but knew that later he would try to tell her about all the fears which she had quieted for him. Right now, though, all he could do was love her, and that he was determined to do well. Lifting her up, he carried her to the bed once more.
Time stopped while they made love, and they became lost together in bliss.