~*~

The group occupied themselves for the better part of the evening by playing poker.  Donovan was surprised that Quinn pulled herself together and joined in.  He had to hand it to her; she was tough woman.  She smiled and laughed at all of Cody's stupid jokes, which if he was made to admit under oath, were actually amusing at times.  Although she was doing her best to hide it, when she met Donovan's eyes, he could read the pain and confusion in them. 

"I think I've had enough for one day, guys.  I'm really exhausted," Monica complained good-naturedly as she stood from the table and stretched.  "I'm gonna crawl into that oh-so-comfortable cot and get some sleep."

"Sounds like a plan," Jake agreed.  "I can barely keep my eyes open.  I'll take the couch."

It wasn't long before the entire group had made their way to their individually assigned sleeping areas.  As Donovan ascended the stairs to his room, he noted that Quinn was sleeping by the screen door that led onto the back porch.  He sighed to himself and continued on his way, silently hoping her outlook might change with the coming of the new day.

~*~

Quinn lay on her side, staring out into the darkness.  A cool breeze wafted gently through the screen doors and windows, making the warmth of the night easy to bear.  Still, she could not sleep, although from the sound of the heavy breathing and snoring that filled the room, no one else was having that problem. 

Donovan's words haunted her as much as the feel of his hands on her skin or the warm sweetness of his kiss.  Her fingers went her lips, the memory of the kiss so fresh it was as though she could still feel the pressure of his sensual lips on hers. 

She sat up slowly and searched the dark interior of the room.  Thankfully, she found a clear path and moved soundlessly from her cot to the stairway.  She hoped Donovan wasn't a sound sleeper; there was something she needed to say that couldn't wait for morning.

~*~

He could see her clearly as she rose from her bed by the door.  He watched as she moved over to the stairs, taking great pains to walk on tiptoes so she didn't wake anyone else in the cabin.  What could she be up to?  Oh, he knew all right; he knew from the moment he had spied them in the woods together.  It was written plainly on their faces and the thought of it sickened him. 

She had now betrayed him in more ways than one.  Sleeping with the enemy, was that not what they called it?  It was a sad moment for him, one in which he realized he would be doing more than scaring her.  She would have to be taken care of.  Which would bring him more pleasure now?  Having Donovan watch her die or having her watch Donovan die?  Either scenario brought an evil smile to his lips as he watched her slowly ascend the darkened staircase.  Use your time well, Quinn, my darling.  Tomorrow, tomorrow may be your last.

~*~

The faintest sound in the hallway, and the slight creak of the door opening and closing, caused Donovan to awaken from his light sleep.  He was tired, but sleep had not come easily.  His thoughts had turned often to Quinn and their conversation earlier.  He understood she found it difficult to believe him when he said he would not have left her in the jungle to die.  He only wished she could understand what he had done was done to save her life.

His eyes focused quickly in the moonlit room as he pushed himself to a sitting position in the bed.  She stood in the middle of the room, anxious and hesitant, wearing nothing more than a t-shirt that reached the middle of her thighs.  Her hair hung loose, and the desire to run his fingers through it or wrap it around him, made itself known quickly.   

"Frank," she whispered, moving to the bed and crawling up on it to sit beside him, facing him.  "I…Jesus…you really messed me up."

"I never meant to," he replied, cupping her chin tenderly.  "That's one thing I hope you can believe."

She nodded, taking his hand in hers and pressing a tiny kiss to his palm.  "I'm having trouble believing you wouldn't leave me if…" she trailed off as though the thought just was too much to deal with.  "But I do believe you did what you had to do, and that you did it to save all of us.  I also know that leaving Troy behind to save us was not easy, and Sam and I only made it that much harder for you."

"I didn't want to do any of it," he agreed.  "The moment I realized what you meant to me, I should have requested a new team.  I just convinced myself I could keep my feelings hidden."

Quinn toyed with the sheet that had pooled around Donovan's waist, revealing his bare chest.  She felt guilty and a traitor to the emotions she had nurtured for the past few years, but she could not help the feelings of desire that tingled insistently at her center.  

"I used the same rationale," she admitted.  "I should have requested to be taken off the team.  There would have been plenty of time to train a replacement."

He squeezed her hand softly.  "Could haves and should haves won't change the past.  I want to believe we can let it go."

Quinn shifted quickly, straddling his legs.  "I think I'm ready.  The other alternative is to go on without you in my life, and I know I don't want to live that life anymore."

Donovan was beyond words; he needed her and could not push aside five year's worth of denying himself the woman of his desire.  He captured her lips in a demanding kiss, crushing her body to his.  His hands worked themselves slowly up her thighs to the swell of her hips, pushing the material of her shirt along with them.  Finding no barriers along the way, he raised an eyebrow and pulled away from her, breaking the kiss. 

"What?" Quinn questioned, panting heavily. 

"You're sure you want this?" he asked, running gentle fingers over the smooth skin of her buttocks.

She grinned slightly and bit her bottom lip.  "Oh that… well, I normally sleep in the nude," she explained.  "Can't run around here like that, so…"

"I'm not complaining," he replied huskily as his lips sought hers once again. 

He shifted to his knees, supporting her back as he eased her down onto the mattress.  He found the hem of her shirt again and slowly slid it upward, his eyes feasting on the sight of her as each tantalizing inch was revealed to him.  While he helped her remove the shirt completely, he could not resisting leaning down to capture one rosy, taut nipple between his lips.  As if in invitation, her back arched reflexively, straining toward him, begging for his attention.  He heard Quinn's soft moan as he brought the hardened nub into his mouth, circling it with the tip of his tongue as he suckled it greedily. 

With the shirt discarded and her arms freed, Quinn began a slow, delicate exploration of the warm, silky skin of his shoulders and back.  As her hands dipped along his lower back to glide along the swell of his buttocks, she chuckled softly when she found she had no barrier to cross.  Her hands immediately moved to either side of his face, guiding him back to her.  "Too long, " she whispered teasingly.  "I miss your kiss," she explained.

"We can't have that," he stated, covering her mouth with his.  Their tongues met in a playful tease as they satisfied the need to taste each other. 

Quinn's moan mixed with Donovan's as he pressed himself against her thigh and covered one of her breasts with his large hand.  He continued the hungry kiss as he kneaded the mound, rolling the hardened peak under his palm, stopping only to pinch it gently.

She felt his hardness throbbing against her and instinctively raked her nails down his back, cupping his tight cheeks, squeezing them none too gently.  His lips and hands were driving her slowly out of her mind.  She wriggled beneath him, her ache building so rapidly that she needed release; she needed him to fill her. 

He leaned up again, kissing her lips quickly before trailing a line of warm, moist kisses along her jaw, neck, and shoulder until he finally reached the breast he had not yet tasted.  He ran the tip of his tongue fully around her breast before sucking the hardened nipple into his mouth as his hand still worked a delicious torture on her other breast.  When she moaned his name, he reached up with his free hand to run his fingers over her soft, swollen lips and nearly came unglued when she pulled one into her mouth with her tongue and began sucking rhythmically on it. 

He lifted his head and, as he removed his finger slowly from her mouth, graced her with a lazy, sexy smile that nearly brought her to orgasm.  As he moved back up her body to offer his lips to her again, she was held mesmerized by his eyes.

"Something wrong, Quinn?" he asked quietly, confused by the expression on her moonlit face. 

"No, everything is perfect," she answered easily.  "Your eyes…"

"Yes?" he whispered huskily.

"You have the most beautiful eyes…and now…now they're nearly black," she explained, lifting up to kiss him, sucking on his bottom lip momentarily. 

He smiled softly as he gazed into her eyes.   "I was thinking the same thing, my beautiful Quinn.  Your green eyes have darkened with your passion.  I could die in them," he admitted, burying his face against her neck, nuzzling it tenderly.

"I'd rather you lived there," she whispered, hugging him softly. 

He smiled against her flesh for a moment before he resumed his downward trek along her body; pressing tiny butterfly kisses over her skin as he went.  He flicked his tongue over her navel before continuing the kisses over her soft abdomen.  He moved between her legs and cupped her bottom within his hands, raising it to a more accessible angle.  He heard just the slightest whimper of anticipation escape Quinn's lovely throat as he bent down to indulge himself with the taste of her. 

Quinn gripped the crisp white sheet in one fist and plunged the fingers of her other hand into his hair when she felt the first delicious swirl of his tongue around her womanhood.  As if with a mind of their own, her legs went over his shoulders, inviting him to do with her what he would, giving herself fully and freely.  Her head tossed from side to side as he worked his wicked magic over her, sucking and flicking his tongue over the hardened bud at her core.  When his tongue entered her again and again, it brought forth the most powerful orgasm she had ever experienced, causing her to bite down on her bottom lip to keep from crying out.

Donovan heard her soft cries and whimpers as her body quaked in his grasp.  Someday, soon he hoped, he would hear her true cries, when she did not fear anyone hearing.  He found his way back to her, traveling the same path upward, kissing and tasting each salty-sweet inch of her. 

Quinn wrapped him in her arms as they kissed deeply.  She was energized by his heat, his strength, and only desired more.  She felt his probing hardness and rose to meet it, begging his entrance.  Each of them moaned within the kiss as she gloved tightly around his hardness, pulling him deep into her, taking all of him.

He moved a hand down to cup her buttocks as she wrapped her legs firmly around his waist.  He broke the kiss and buried his face in her hair as he began slow, even thrusts, bringing moan after moan to both of their lips.  His pace increased as her soft cries did.  When she dug her fingernails deep into his buttocks, he tensed and nearly let go, but fought to hold out longer.  For five years he dreamed of loving her, and by damn, he would make sure it was good for both of them. 

Quinn felt the ache coiling tightly and was so near; so near she wanted to scream to the heavens.  She breathed heavily, her sweat mingling with his, meeting each of his thrusts in time, moving closer and closer to the place they both sought.  "A ghrá mo chroí, (love of my heart)," she purred silkily into his ear.  "Now, love, now," she pleaded, slapping his bottom for good measure.

Donovan growled softly as he gave her one hard thrust after another in rapid succession until she cried out against his shoulder.  He tensed and met his own painfully exquisite release when her climax took him over the edge with her.

Panting heavily, he chuckled when he felt her fingers dipping into the sweat that pooled at the base of his spine.  "You're pretty hot stuff, Doyle."

She grinned mischievously and smacked his bottom again.  "You bring out the best in me," she teased.

"Oh, God," he groaned happily, rolling off her and pulling her into his embrace. 

"It was all you, love.  He had nothing to do with it," Quinn assured him as she snuggled against his chest and splayed her palm out over it.

"And you, beautiful," he replied, kissing the top of her head softly.

"Sheesh…I hope we didn't wake the kids," she commented, laughing.

"Too late to worry about that," he stated, pulling the sheet over them.  "I'd like to fulfill one more dream tonight, if you don't mind?"

"What's that?" she asked, lifting up on one elbow to see his face.

"I want to wake in the morning with the woman I love in my arms," he explained simply.

"Quinn's eyes widened momentarily and her heart skipped a beat.  "First…that's not a good idea.  We're supposed to be on a working weekend.  Second…it takes my breath away when you say those words."

He kissed her fiercely, crushing her chest to his.  "I mean them.  As I said earlier -- tá grá agam duit."  Brushing the hair tenderly from her cheek he added, "I did then; I do now."

"I love you, too, Frank," she sighed.  Resting her cheek on his firm chest, she sighed softly and closed her eyes.

"Sleep well, Quinn," he whispered as he lovingly stroked her hair.  For the first time in years, he felt as if his world was spinning on its axis correctly. 

"I think I will; it's been ages since I have," she admitted, snuggling closer in spite of the warm night and their perspiration soaked bodies.

~*~

To be continued…