So this is how things were going. Ben came to stay for a couple of days. Chrissie was very happy; I tried to pretend as well as I could. Ben was completely understanding. He didn't ask questions, more importantly, he didn't make any judgments. He tried to be considerate and extremely supportive.

I really hadn't eaten much since I left my house. I was constantly on the edge of a very large gaping fissure just waiting for something or someone to finally tumble me into oblivion.

I was lounging in Chrissie's huge armchair. Chrissie and Ben were intertwined together on the couch. 'Whose Line is it anyway?' was running on the TV. Chrissie and Ben were hysterical watching Wayne Brady hump a chair. I wasn't really paying attention.

The burning incense stick on the table next to me caught and held my fleeting focus. I sucked in a deep breath, sweet smelling sage filling my senses. I wondered why they considered sage a calming scent. It didn't make me feel any better.

I sat there watching the silvery grey smoke rise sometimes in a steady linear stream, but other times it rose in snaking, twisting tendrils. I watched the spirals with fascination. How could something so smooth and straight become so wild and mysterious and unpredictable a second later? It vaguely registered in my mind that the phone rang in the background. I just kept staring at the smoke. The scent hadn't changed. The incense kept right on burning away. The only thing that had changed was direction, the path the smoke was on. Sometimes it decided to go straight as an arrow other times, it went all screwy. I started to wonder if life was kind of like this. Up to this point, my life had run fairly smooth. I had a great paying job, sure sometimes it called for me to take certain risks, but I enjoyed it...and I was great at it. Now, I had blown the case of my career and was most likely going to be sitting at a desk filing low level drug deals. Was this what I wanted? My next thought scared me...was Kirill what I wanted? And if I admitted this to anyone, myself included, could I ever really have him the way I wanted? How much was I willing to bet on him? He lived completely across the globe and killed people for a living. It occurred to me that I had a lot of questions to answer before I saw Kirill again. I watched the last puff escape from the stick as it went out. I sighed.

"Jack! Phone!" Chrissie screeched. I vaulted out of me seat, being ripped out of my own little universe. "Whoa there! Take is easy," she said handing me the phone.

"Who is it?" I asked before taking it.

Chrissie shrugged, "It sounds like your brother."

My brother? Daniel had no idea about anything that had happened; unless he talked to mom, in which case I was about to get a lecture. I grimaced and grabbed the phone, "Hey Dan, what's going on? Been a while since I've heard from you."

"Who the hell is Dan? And why in the hell aren't you at your place?"

I couldn't speak. I tore the phone away from my ear and looked at the screen. Sure enough, the caller id read "Jack Villerosi...(537) 757 2389. Mental head slap.

"Jack, who is hell is it?" Chrissie asked.

"Listen, I'll be over in a few minutes," I quickly said into the receiver. I hung up.

"Jack, what the hell is going on?" Ben asked as I quickly ran into my "room" to get my coat.

They both followed me in there. I threw my coat on, before Chrissie grabbed my shoulders. "Jack!" she screamed.

"It's ok, I've just got to go," I said running out of the room.

They chased me out of the apartment, Ben called out as I ran down the stairs, "Who was on the phone?"

"Check the caller id!" I answered. I sprinted out of the apartment complex towards my car.

My brakes squealed as I pulled into my driveway and parked next to a black Mercedes. I headed towards the back door. It was unsurprisingly unlocked. I walked in and closed the door softly behind me.

And there he was. We stared at each other for a few minutes. He looked good, as always. It looked as though he hadn't shaved in a day or two, but I thought that made him look sexier. Dressed head to toe in black, he was the epitome of gorgeous.

I spoke first, "Funny, I'm never at a loss for words."

Kirill replied, "You have nothing to say to me?"

Didn't he have anything to say to me? Jeez, why did I have to do all the talking here? I walked over to the cabinet, grabbed my bottle of vodka and took a quick sip. I was going to get through this even if I had to be drunk to do it, although I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to say. I noticed that my kitchen had been cleaned, but more importantly re-furnished.

I began, "Well, I'm sorry. I've fucked things up for both of us."

He smiled, "I'm not sorry, fucking you was pretty amazing." I couldn't have put it better myself. I titled my head slightly and laughed. His smile disappeared, "What now?"

I shrugged, "I suppose I keep my desk job until my punishment is over. They might put me on another case after that."

"You sure that's what you want to do?" he asked.

That was the million dollar question, "That's all I know how to do."

Kirill stiffly straightened, "Take up residence in Europe. Italy, maybe or France."

"And do what there?" I questioned.

His face drew a blank, "Anything you want. I'll help you get settled..."

I immediately interrupted, "That sounds pretty conjugal, Kirill."

His smile sent chills up my spine, "Maybe, we'll have to see how things turn out. So, what do you say?"

Europe? Was this even something to consider? What, take a leave of absence? Just up-root and settle in Italy? Was he going to be there with me or was he going to drop in at his convenience? This was too much for me right now, "You think we can worry about that tomorrow?"

He nodded, "We can talk more about this tomorrow, sure. But what can we do to occupy ourselves tonight?"

"I can think of an idea or two."

About one minute and three seconds later...upstairs....

Our lips locked, my tongue massaged his; my hands traveled up to caress his neck and his shoulders. Tasting the already familiar confines of his mouth, I leaned further into him, getting as close as I could. He didn't move, almost as it he was waiting for me to make the next move. I leaned away from him and backed against the wall behind me. He followed pushing me up higher. One thigh found its away around his hip. With my hands balancing on his neck and shoulders, he moved his own directly to my nape, and his other hand caressed my cheek.

Slowly, exquisitely slowly, I brought my hands down to his chest, moving them under his shirt in long caresses over his muscles. My nails scraped over his nipples. Bringing my hands back down, I slowly pawed at his shirt. He moved a hand from my neck all the way down under my shirt and cupped my breast. He seemed to be re-familiarizing himself with it's weight and shape and size in the palm of his hand, feeling my nipple harden, he did this to both breasts in time.

I finally was able to get his shirt up off and tugged it off. We separated, both gasping for breath. I tossed his shirt onto the floor. He did the same with mine, leaving me in my red lace bra.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" He whispered, his eyes dark with arousal.

"I want you close to me, comfort me, Kirill. Your touch strangely comforts me," I replied weakly. I pulled him closer. His eyes met mine. Those hazel eyes looked different from last time. When I had seen them last, they were so shadowy with anger that they were almost brown, but now they were softer and I could see flecks of green.

He picked me up and laid me down softly onto my bed. I leaned back so he now lay on top of me. He went in for my mouth, deepening our kiss, giving my tongue long and slow massaging caresses. He was in control now and he knew it. I moaned into the kiss with want, and he started moving downwards, to the hollow of my throat.

"You know," he said between kisses, "Chrissie is going to wonder why you flew out of her apartment..." He unfastened my bra and it joined my shirt on the floor.

"I don't really care right now," I gasped, feeling him now moving towards my left breast, nibbling and licking his way around. His touch sent sparks through my body, setting me on fire, making me hotter, making me want him even more. Suddenly, he changed strategies and started flicking his tongue over the top of my nipple. Starting out slow and then gaining more and more speed.
"Uhnnn," I cried out. He stopped and I groaned in deep disappointment. He chuckled.

"Kirill...Kirill, please," I said, panting slightly. He grinned devilishly, moving his hand back to my face, caressing my cheek. Moving his thumb close to my mouth, he waited till I turned my head, my lips sensually brushing against his thumb. He groaned.

He moved his hand downward, tracing circles around my navel lightly, making me giggle. He slowed down slightly. I felt that heat building up again with every touch and caress. I tried to calm myself, concentrating on my breathing.

Kirill snickered at this. "So what exactly do you want from me, my baby?" He teased, moving his hand away from my navel to stroke my inner thigh. My concentration broke, my breathing more uneven and erratic than before. My head flooded with the thoughts of where his hands could go, what they could do.

"Kirill, please, Make love to me," I begged, moaning as he teased me by moving his hand slightly between my legs.

"These jeans have to go," He undid the buttons; his eyes focused on mine as he pulled the pants away. He glanced down ever so quickly. Maybe he liked my matching lacy panties. He looked back up at me desperately, "Why do you do this to me?"

I just laughed quickly but was silenced just as quick. I felt the lacy material sliding down my thighs. I moaned. He wasn't unaffected from my moan. His hand slid between my thighs. My eyes closed and I exhaled slowly.

This isn't what I wanted, not that it wasn't enjoyable. I wanted him. I sat up. He knew what I wanted now. He took his hands off me long enough to unbutton and unzip his pants.

"Kirill?" I asked, sitting up further up to see him. He looked into my eyes as he got himself up off the bed, letting me enjoy the show. Slowly, he started pushing his pants down, off of his hips. Then off his thighs, finally down to his feet. Smirking, he bent down to take them off. I rose up more. Finally, he pulled down his boxers and let me look my full.

"Kirill," I simply said. I opened my arms in invitation for him to come back to bed. That was all he needed, he crawled back on top of me, locking me in another passionate kiss, my blood was boiling in my veins. "Kirill, please..." I whispered into the kiss.

My hand moved lower from his chest to settle on his tight stomach. He groaned. I wanted him so bad. I couldn't explain it, this wasn't logical, but I just didn't care anymore.

"Jack..." He merely gasped into my mouth, moving his hands away from my face and head. My hips rose; I opened my legs beneath him, and he broke the kiss to look down, groaning at the sight of my overly-willing body.

Moving in between my legs, he looked me in the eyes, his breathing ragged, his body wild with heat and passion and asked, "Are you sure about this? You've been through a lot lately, I don't want to upset you further."

Upset me? UPSET ME? I laughed huskily. I pulled him down to me, "Kirill, shut up; make me happy."

"It would be my pleasure," he choked out. He pushed himself into me. Filling me completely, I gasped with pleasure. Reaching down between us, he found my clit, stroking it with steady rhythmic movements. He continued stroking me faster and faster as he plunged in and out of me.

"Kirill!" I cried, out climaxing, just as he pushed himself all the way in for the final time. He pressed his lips against mine. I cried out in ecstasy as my orgasm swept over me. Suddenly, he shuddered against me and let his release take him. We pulled apart ever so slightly, breathing raggedly, and the next thing I knew, I was crying. With him still inside me, I leaned forward, crying into his shoulder.

Knowing I was crying, he whispered softly, "Those had better be happy tears."

I laughed, "Yes, happy tears." He withdrew out of me. He laid me down below him, still comforting me even if he didn't know it. Feeling the comfort of his body over mine, I finally left safe again with his weight and his heat.

We lay together, slowly I felt his breathing slow. My fingertips trailed along the muscles of his back. What had happened to me? What had this man done differently? It boggled my mind really, but I suppose I could work all these questions out later. Hmmm...maybe in Europe? 'Yeah, I'm pretty sure I could work on these questions there' I smiled. I leaned my head back onto the pillow, I could get used to this a regular basis.

The End