A/N: This chapter contains sex. If that isn't your thing, I completely understand. You can skip this chapter and pick the story back up with chapter 24.
TW for a brief moment of PTSD for Sam (which Jack handles beautifully).
Sam took a steadying breath as she jogged up the stairs to the house. Her body was brimming with excess energy making everything seem to be in a state of hyper focus.
"You ready to go in?" Jack asked her, his arm brushing against hers lightly. Sam nodded, closing her eyes at the contact and fighting the urge to lean into the caress.
When Jack turned to go in, Sam's gaze swept over him. The muscles of his back, well-shaped and honed to perfection, rippled smoothly beneath his t-shirt. As he reached for the doorknob, Sam took in the slight bulge of his triceps stretching the fabric of his sleeve. Unable to stop herself, she reached out a hand, her fingertips tracing along the curve of his arm, feeling the muscles tremor slightly at the contact.
"Sam?" He glanced at her over his shoulder, a slight questioning look lifting one eyebrow.
"Let's go inside," she answered, admiring the way his jeans hugged his firm backside. An image of grasping it while he slammed into her flitted through her mind as desire pooled low in her belly.
It was all she could do to make it inside the house. Sam filled Jack's arms, her mouth fusing to his as soon as he closed her front door. The adrenaline from being finally healed coursed through her body; the little run to test out her mended muscles having only taken the edge off.
Overwhelmed by her own desire, Sam forced Jack backwards, his shoulders thumping hard against the door. She raked her fingernails down his chest, making him shudder. Slipping her hands under the front of his shirt, she shoved the fabric upward until he got the message and quickly ripped it over his head.
She was back on him in an instant, running her hands across the hard planes of his chest, down to the front of his jeans. She nipped his lower lip before thrusting her tongue against his as her hand cupped him roughly through his pants.
Sam suddenly found herself spun around and pinned against the cool wood of the door. Jack's hands travelled down her body until he gripped her thighs and hoisted her into the air. His muscles flexed, rippling under her hands as he held her suspended off the ground. Sam wrapped her legs around his waist, arching, desperate to be filled.
Growling, Jack nipped at her neck then sucked the skin hard. Raking his teeth across her pulse, he ground into her, pushing her roughly against the unforgiving plane of the door.
Sam's entire body shook in anticipation. This is what she'd wanted. What she all but asked for. What she thought she needed. But something felt wrong. Unexpected emotions crashed through her as events from the last few weeks jumbled together. All of a sudden the hands gripping her tightly brought forth the memory of the hands that had inflicted pain. She whimpered in frustration as unbidden tears began welling in her eyes.
Her whimper pierced Jack's brain like a knife. Dragging his mouth away from her neck, he rested his forehead against hers. He scrunched his eyes shut and fought against the voice inside him demanding he take her hard and fast. "Give me a minute," he said in a near growl, opening his eyes to look into hers.
Sam trembled at the raw desire on Jack's face, knowing it had mirrored her own. She could feel him reining himself in, calming the raging lust that she had stoked.
But Sam hadn't wanted him to stop. She only wanted to know that it was Jack's hands gripping her. Loving her. She had to make him understand. "I need you inside me," her voice cracked, a single tear slipping unbidden from the corner of her eye.
"Shh," he soothed as he kissed the tear from her cheek. "I'm not going anywhere," he promised.
Pushing away from the door, he let her slide down his body, keeping an arm around her waist to hold her close. The fingers of his other hand brushed her cheek in a tender caress that touched her soul.
"C'mere," he tugged her forward, walking backward a few steps away from the front door without releasing his hold on her waist. He trailed his hands up and down her back in a soothing caress. When she sighed and swayed into him, he bent slightly, bringing his hand up to cup her face as he kissed her gently. Her hands grasped at the small of his back, pulling him closer.
"Take me to bed, Jack," Sam said as they pulled apart, telling him with her steady gaze that she was more than ready.
Taking her hand, Jack led her into the bedroom. He stopped once they were next to the bed and turned to Sam. She immediately raised onto her toes, lifting her face for his kiss. The hesitation he'd sensed in her had vanished; the earlier frenzy fading away as he sipped at her lips. She sank into him, sighing as he took his time to slowly rebuild the fire.
Jack's hands shook as he undressed her, savoring each inch of skin he revealed. Despite the events of the last two weeks, Jack recognized this as a pivotal moment. There was no going back to the way things were. His heart had been ripped open, the proverbial door blown apart by the depth of his love for this woman.
Drawing his fingertips down her sides, he shifted, lifting her to place her in the center of the bed. "Absolutely beautiful," he said in awe, standing up just long enough to kick his own pants and boxers away before joining her.
Sam reached for him, but Jack caught her hands, placing a kiss in each palm. He knew as soon as she touched him, he'd be done for, so instead he guided her hands to her breasts.
Understanding his silent request, Sam trailed her hands across her skin. Tugging at her own nipples, she bit her bottom lip and moaned as Jack's hands trailed down her body. He paused at her lower abdomen, leaning forward to reverently kiss the newly healed skin before nibbling lower.
He nipped the flesh just above her curls, earning a sharp gasp. Sinking lower, he kissed her thighs, pressing an open-mouthed kiss against the newly healed one.
Sam's legs fell open, her knees bending to accommodate his broad shoulders. A brush of cool air teased her heated flesh, making her tremble. "Please," she begged, undone by his tenderness.
Her body shook in expectation; his fingers gently parting her. She sucked in a shuddering breath as his tongue made the first pass, laving the entire length of her sex in a glorious lick. He hummed at the taste, lapping slowly until Sam lifted her hips against him in a silent plea for more. He trailed downward to dip his tongue inside, making love to her with his mouth until she writhed restlessly against him.
"Jack, please," she panted, not wanting to simply come apart on his tongue.
Jack responded to the plea by crawling up her body. Hooking one of her legs over his forearm, he pressed her knee upward. The new angle spread her wider, opening her core completely as he settled against her.
The very tip of him probed her entrance before he paused, locking his eyes onto hers, he searched for any signs of hesitation. Seeing none, he pressed forward slowly.
Sam's eyes closed of their own volition as her body greedily accepted Jack's sensual invasion. Her body stretched to accommodate him, inch by glorious inch.
"You," Jack rasped out once he was fully embedded inside her, "Always."
Sam's eyes fluttered open as she cupped his face tenderly. "Always," she echoed the promise.
Jack pressed a kiss into Sam's palm, then dropped his head to her shoulder and pulled his hips back before surging forward in a powerful thrust. Her body trembled from holding her release at bay. His next thrust catapulted her over the edge as she came apart in his arms.
Sam clung to him, riding the waves of pleasure ricocheting through her as Jack continued moving. The glide of him inside her pushed her higher, beyond the limits of her orgasm and toward an even more glorious peak.
Burying his face in the crook of her neck, Jack moved faster, instinctively knowing she needed him to keep going. Embedding himself over and over he felt his own release start to snake up from the base of his spine. Sam came apart a second time, stars exploding behind her eyelids as she cried out and clung to him. Shouting Sam's name, Jack surged deep once more, collapsing against her.
Sam's arms clutched Jack to her, relishing in the way his delicious weight pressed her into the mattress, anchoring her. Little spasms continued to shake his body, letting her know she wasn't the only one deeply affected by what they'd just shared.
This was the beginning, she realized. Everything was going to change. Everything had to change. An overwhelming sense of loss mixed with joy, pulling an unexpected sob from her.
"Sam," Jack pushed himself up to look at her, concern flashing across his face.
"I won't give you up," she vowed in a desperate voice, praying he'd understand.
"Never," Jack replied instantly, rolling to the side and pulling her into his arms. He held her tightly as if afraid she'd vanish or worse, be ripped away. He took a shuddering breath before vowing again. "Never."
