A/N:
Thanks everyone for putting up with Evy and me. We're just going thru changes here but remember that we do love our hero! :) And remember readers, I do love you too so don't be too mad at me when I twist the knife a bit.

Marcher & AJ Mackey, I can tell you that she's naked but about those senses... not just yet. BUT... please don't stone me lol. She's close to finding them or at least some of them.

Marxbros, I would be lying if I said 'Evy isn't being selfish!' She's that and more but she will start to come around (thanks in part to Jonathan).

Buffelyn, you have figured me out! I hate that you didn't get your hopes up but you were right. Forgive me for being such a tease (it's such fun though!) Rick and Evy haven't made it to the finish line yet, but you know they will one of these days.

Hope everyone enjoys...


There Evelyn stood startled, looking into his blue eyes. And there Rick stood transfixed, looking into her hazel eyes.

She was standing in the tub. Stark naked. Hair dripping wet. Stark naked. Body covered with water droplets. Stark naked. Body glistening like a rare gem. Stark naked.

Rick could not help but smile as the sight before him ignited a pleasant ache in his groin. His eyes slowly trailed down from her eyes to her pink lips and then down the column of her throat. His gaze swept over her two luscious mounds of delicate flesh to the rosy peeks of her nipples. He began to salivate as he stared at the hardening tips. After his gaze lingered over one breast and then the other for enticing moments, his eyes continued their downward descent to her smooth, white abdomen then to her navel. Rick's grin fixed on his face as he remembered the last time they had made love. After nibbling on her stomach, he had used his tongue to invade the crevice of her navel and was happy to know that he had found yet another one of his wife's pleasure spots.

Then his eyes went lower and Rick thought fleetingly of the child that was in her womb. At that moment, he found it hard to believe that a kid, his kid was in there because Evelyn did not look any different, any bigger. Then his gaze landed on the triangle that sheltered the essence of her womaness and Rick was ready to split his pants. It had been close to two weeks since they had made love and his body was now acutely aware of its abstinence.

Evelyn had jumped when the door opened. She knew it was not Jonathan because he had his own bath down by his room. So that meant that the intruder was Rick. Even though she had been married for almost three months now, she was still a bit bashful about standing in front of him completely naked. Her first instinct was to hop out of the tub, grab her towel and cover herself. But when she saw the look in his eyes, a warm feeling spread over her and she was paralyzed where she stood. She watched his expression as his eyes slowly trailed from hers down her body. Goose bumps crawled over her skin as his gaze lingered here, then lingered there. Evelyn could feel the touch of his eyes as they made love to her. She trembled inside as her body screamed for more than just a look. Her body wanted more than just his eyes on her. It wanted his hands, his lips, his tongue, his everything on her everything. Evelyn's cheeks heated up at the thoughts that ran through her head but she wanted him, needed him to cool the fire that was building inside her. A fire that he was igniting.

Evelyn caught her breath as the sensation in the pit of her stomach slithered down to the center of her womaness. She felt herself tingle and moisten and she wanted to scream out at the torture he was inflicting on her. 'It was unfair!' her mind shouted. Not too long ago, he had said he was fed up with her and now she was standing there ready to beg him to take her, touch her, taste her, love her.

Then she saw the smirk on his face and pride and stubbornness rose up in her. If he thought she would beg him to make love to her, he was sadly mistaken. If he wanted her, he would have to do the begging. She would, of course, give in because she wanted the ache, the yearning that was deep inside her appeased. But he would have to make the first move.

As she watched his eyes slowly travel back up her body, Evelyn wavered in her decision. Maybe she should go ahead and make the first move. Maybe... AH! He was making her weak and she hated it when he did that! But... She loved him. She wanted him. She needed him.

When their eyes met again and she saw a look of smug satisfaction in his eyes, Evelyn's wavering stopped. She might love him. She might want him. She might need him. But she would never give him the gratification of her surrender. With her pride in tact and firmly at the forefront again, Evelyn said not a word as she stepped out of the tub and reached for her towel. As she dried herself, she waited. And waited. And waited. And waited.

Rick never said a word.

After Evelyn finished drying, she wrapped a towel around her wet hair and put on her bathrobe. As she walked past Rick out of the bathroom, he still did not say a word and neither did she.

Rick had been standing there enjoying the sight of his wife's naked body. He knew she was still a little shy about being naked in front of him so he waited for her to tell him to get out. At least then she would be talking to him. But when she never said a word, Rick was taken by surprise and he was not sure what he should do. Should he take a chance and ask to join her in the tub or should he say 'excuse me' and leave?

When Evelyn stepped out of the tub and began drying herself off, Rick wished he could trade places with the towel and rub himself all over her. He thought about suggesting it but he had had much too much rejection in the last week and his ego was not ready for another blow. So he stood in silence and watched her. After she walked past him, Rick mentally kicked himself for his lost opportunity. He could have at least tried. What's one more blow to an already battered ego?

When Evelyn shut the door to the bedroom, she wanted to cry in frustration and disappointment. She saw the look in his eyes and she knew what that look meant - he wanted to make love to her. She wondered why he didn't say anything. When it came to making love, he was always very vocal and very aggressive about what he wanted, when he wanted it and where he wanted it.

'I'm fed with her!'

That was it, Evelyn thought sadly. He was fed up with her. But it just was not fair. He was the one who had wronged her. He had no right to be fed up with her did he? Of course he didn't. He should waiting patiently until she was ready to talk to him and ready to forgive him. He was the one in the wrong, not her. She was the innocent in all this. So why, then was she the one being punished?

He was fed up with her. That was why.

But... that look in his eyes. He might be wrongly fed up with her but Evelyn could tell that he had been aroused. Maybe his pride had kept him from making an advance toward her. She surely knew a thing or two about that dreadful nuisance called pride. And she was fast learning that pride was a cold, unfeeling bedfellow.

Evelyn wondered if Rick would hold on tight to his pride as she had been doing for the last two weeks. Her only hope tonight was that he would not be able to deny himself, that he would throw down his pride and come knocking. Evelyn left the door unlock as she lotioned herself and put on her nightgown. She got in bed and waited for Rick to come.

But he never did.

Dreams. Evelyn only had her dreams. Dreams of him whispering her name. Dreams of him touching, caressing her sensitive places. Dreams that could never satisfy the need she had.

*********************

As Rick bathed, he wondered if he should try giving his body wanted it wanted. Evelyn had not blasted him and thrown him out of the bathroom. Instead she had stood there and let him get his fill looking at her. Maybe she was softening up toward him. Maybe this was the light at the end of the tunnel. Maybe his hands and body could do the talking tonight. Maybe that was the way to break through the icy exterior to the passionate woman he fell in love with.

By the time he got out of the tub, dried off and put on his tee shirt and boxers, Rick was not sure if he wanted to chance another rejection from Evelyn, so he went back downstairs to think. As he sat on the sofa, his libido debated his ego.

'Come on. Let's go back up there' libido said.

'Not gonna chance it' ego said.

'Damn it! I NEED you to chance it!'

'Why?'

'Do you really have to ask WHY?!'

'You've been without before'

'Not when we got a wife upstairs'

'A wife that's been locking us out of the bedroom'

'Minor barrier'

'Minor?'

'Yeah, minor. Now get up there!'

'You like ME gettin' beat like I stole something don't ya?'

'That's neither here nor there. The main objective is to get some relief'

'Relief for who?'

'Me!'

'What about me?'

'What about you? If you weren't so sensitive...'

'Sensitive? I'm the one that's been taking a beatin' for the last week. Not you'

'And I'm the one who's been deprived of sustenance for the last TWO weeks'

'Well it looks like we're both shit out of luck'

'I can't believe you're gonna let a little thing like her being mad get in the way. You saw that look in her eyes. She's probably up there waiting to be wooed'

'You really think so?'

'Hell yeah!'

'What if you're wrong and she kicks us out?'

'What if I'm right and she lets us in?'

'But what if you're wrong?'

'What if I'm RIGHT?'

'But...'

'Right or wrong, we'll NEVER know till you try'

'True'

'So... what's it gonna be? Going up there like a man or sitting down here like a sissy?'
'Insulting me won't get you anywhere'

'There you go being sensitive again. Nobody's insulting you. I'm just calling it like I see it. So... you gonna be man?'

'What part of 'Insulting me won't get you anywhere' don't you understand?'

'Will you stop it with the sensitive sissy syndrome. Are we gonna make a move or what?'

'Let me think about it'

Wooing Evelyn into making love. The thought had merit. It was not like he had never done it before. However, 'before' she was talking to him and now, now he wondered if he even had a marriage left.

Then Rick thought of the look in her eyes. He had caught the look just before she averted her gaze and stepped out of the tub. He was sure he saw longing there. But then Rick wondered if he was just seeing what he wanted to see. It took him a ½ hour before he finally made up his mind.

With his course of action settled, Rick got up from the couch and headed upstairs. He stood in front of the bedroom door for a moment before he reached up and grabbed the doorknob. A smile spread across his face when he found it unlocked. But then his heart sank when he saw that the room was dark. Maybe Evelyn was not even in the room. Then his eyes went to the bed and he saw the lump of mass that was her. Rick walked over to the bed and sat down next to her.

Evelyn's light snoring floated up to his ears and Rick could not help but smile. He leaned down and kissed her cheek and whispered her name, hoping to stir her. When Evelyn did not move, Rick stood up, took his tee shirt off and dropped his boxers. He walked around to his side of the bed and climbed in. He fitted himself nicely against Evelyn's backside and started pulling up her nightgown until his hand felt the cool flesh of her thigh. As he rubbed the soft skin, Rick felt himself begin to grow and his groin automatically began to grate against the soft cushion of her posterior.

"Evy?" he breathed in her ear before nibbling on the lobe. "Evy... wake up" he whispered as his hand moved to slide inside her underwear. "Come on Evy... wake up" he murmured as his fingers moved to frolic in her hairy triangle. "evy..." he whispered again as his fingers pried their way into her folds to touch the tip of her bud. "Evy..." he moaned then slid his tongue along the edge of her ear. "Wake up baby..." he pleaded as he his hand left her core and moved up her stomach and grazed his palm over the peaks of one nipple then the other.

Evelyn moaned incoherently. The sensations she was feeling began to build. If only it was real and not a dream, she thought in her sleepy mind. 'Don't' her mind began.

"Go..." her mouth uttered. "Away."

'Don't' her mind said.

"leave me... alone" her mouth said in a hushed tone.

'Go away. Leave me alone.'

Rick was stopped cold at the words he heard. Even in her sleep Evelyn was refusing him. Rick gritted in teeth hard as he realized that the increasing throb in his groin would go neglected. Rick turned on his back and blew out a breath that was filled with frustration. He propped his head up on his hands and looked up at the dark ceiling. It was bad enough that Evelyn was not talking to him and now when he took a chance and tried to wake her for the sole purpose of making love, she shot him down cold. Rick wondered how much more of this his ego could take. With a sigh, he got out of bed.

'You sure she said 'go away'' libido said.

'You heard her' ego said.

'Damn!'

Wishful thinking. Rick only had his wishful thinking. Wishful thinking that he was in bed making love to his wife. Wishful thinking that she was calling his name as he brought her to peak. Wishful thinking that he was deep inside her easing the burden of his gorged flesh. Wishful thinking that could never satisfy the need he had.