DISCLAIMER: No matter how much I want it, I do not own Naruto. I am still only borrowing the characters and promise to return them in good condition – well, maybe slightly battered...

Chapter Twenty:
Don't Wake Me Up

I lived my life hiding in shadows
But now I can see
'Cause your soul is lifting me
Higher and higher and higher
~Escape The Fate~

Sakura woke up feeling like a heating pad had been draped across her back. She tried to shrug off the blanket covering her, but a snort near her ear made her freeze. Blankets didn't make noise, and they definitely didn't snore.

She chanced a peek over her shoulder, and saw Naruto sound asleep with his body curled into hers, holding onto her as though he never wanted to let her go. One hand cupped her breast and his other arm was under her head for a pillow. If her arms hadn't been trapped beneath his, she would have smacked her forehead.

He still slept deeply. Testing the waters, she scooted her butt back against him and wasn't surprised to find a hot erection waiting for her. Biting her lip and grinning, she wiggled against him, and still he didn't wake up. The man was seriously a heavy sleeper.

Her body was growing a different kind of warm remembering the night before. She turned in his arms. If she was worried that he'd suddenly bolt awake, it was really unnecessary. The man slept like a rock. She was silently laughing by time she had him flat on his back and was sitting astride him.

Her Jinchuriki was wonderfully naked under the covers. She blushed as she noticed the small red lines that had once been deep scratches along his side and shoulders. She made sure she didn't touch them as she rested her hands on his chest. See, all the better with her on top. She wouldn't want him to hurt himself. She chuckled again as he made some nonsense noises in his throat.

Feeling bolder than she ever would have imagined, Sakura reached between them and grabbed his erection. She softly trailed her hand up and down his shaft, feeling the baby soft skin over hard flesh. Her body was growing wetter, softer by the second. She needed him.

When two hands grabbed her hips, her eyes shot open. Naruto stared up at her with hooded, sexy eyes. "If this is a dream, don't wake me up, Pinkie."

Laughing, she leaned down and kissed him softly. He let out a deep, rough groan that had her nipples pulling into little puckered points. His hands gentled on her and ran up her sides to cup her breasts and tug at those hard peaks.

"Do you like that?" she groaned as she ran her hands over his chest. Amazed by the power in his body, she ran her hands down his ripped stomach and around his taut hips. His skin was like satin stretched over steel. Perfect.

The taste of him was on her lips as they tenderly kissed. Rolling her hips, she moaned at the feel of him there, close but not close enough. She was so ready, had been ready for what felt like an eternity.

"Wake me up like that anytime," he said, making her laugh.

"Don't stop," she whispered. "I want to feel you inside me."

"I couldn't stop now, even if I wanted." He kissed her, marking her with all the passion and yearning she had felt for so long. "I need this. Damn it, I need you."

With a near-feral growl, he moved so quickly that in a heartbeat, she was on her back, open and vulnerable to him, and he hovered above her. She shuddered as his teeth nipped at her bottom lip and then he put his hand on her chin, held her as his mouth plundered hers again, kissing her until she writhed and thrashed beneath him. He was in control. Part of her wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

He trailed hot, wet kisses down the column of her neck and then chest, his mouth clamping down on the tip of her breast. Sakura let out a strangled cry as her back bowed off the mattress. And then he plunged into her with one deep stroke.

She wrapped her legs around him, holding him as close as she possibly could while he pushed her nearer to the moon with each stroke. A niggling concern teased the edge of her conscience. Suddenly she froze. Cold fear flowed through her veins like icy water. Sakura gasped and pushed him off her, yelping, "Wait, wait. Stop!" He did so immediately, his face twisting in surprise. "We forgot!"

"Forgot what?"

Sakura's stomach dropped as she grabbed the silver wrapped square from the table and showed it to him. "A condom. We need a condom. We can't do this without a condom." She couldn't believe they had forgotten that. She quickly sat up and pulled the covers to her chin. She started to panic a little with the thought of what could have happened.

Naruto, sensing her turbulent thoughts, quickly pulled her into his arms and hugged her. "It's okay, Sakura-chan, I mean you couldn't be… I mean… I didn't finish."

"But you might have… I could have…"

"Ah, the things you do to me, Sakura-chan. I just wasn't thinking." Leaning back, Naruto stared down at her. His eyes were a heated, vibrant sapphire, penetrating and intense as they locked onto hers. "Please don't worry, Sakura-chan," he said earnestly, "We forgot. It won't happen again."

"But what if it does? We can't do this right now. I'm not ready for that."

Touching her lips and cheek with the tips of his fingers, the exploring touches completely stealing what was left of her voice. "Stay," he insisted, and feathered his mouth across hers, so gentle for a moment, teasing, making her want desperately, then diving in for a hungrier, more aggressive kiss when her lips yielded beneath his. "I promise I'll take care of you. Always."

Sakura wanted to tell him that she could take care of herself; thank you very much… but then her gaze dropped and her stomach hollowed as she watched him slide the condom on his thick shaft. A part of her wanted to step back and think about things, but that wicked inner voice of hers wouldn't let her. None of her wildest fantasies could compete with Naruto and the things he made her feel, because this…this was completion.

All her nervous thoughts were gone in an instant. The things she did to him? Sakura had just experienced the best night of her life, the beginnings of the best morning, and he was talking like she'd done him a favor. She kissed Naruto, needing to show him that she was as deeply affected. And she was. Having all his naked skin sliding against her own wasn't doing nearly as much as those blue eyes staring down at her with something a whole lot deeper than lust.

An instant later his lips were on hers and he was guiding her back, his warm body stretching out over her. Sakura let out a keening cry at the feel of him stretching and filling her.

For so long, he held back while she cried out for more, and when he finally gave it to her, she gasped as his hands clamped down on her wrists, holding her still. He thrust hard, her hips surging to meet his.

Pressure built inside her, zinging through her veins like bottled lightning. It was too much - too intense. Her head kicked back, her body trembling.

"Come for me," Naruto whispered against her neck. "Let go."

Distantly, there was a knock on the door.

"Oh my God."

Naruto stopped what he was doing and looked up. "What's wrong?"

"Someone's knocking on my door."

"Ignore it."

She gasped when he gave her another long, deep thrust and her hands spasmed on his back.

"I can't think when you do that."

So, of course, he did it again. Naruto could ignore the knocking. Really, he could. And, from the way Sakura's body was shaking, she was close to coming. He kept right on going as the blasted knocking stopped…and started right up again.

Naruto groaned. "Why can't they just go away?"

"We are here on a mission, Naruto."

Great.

"Naruto, did you just growl?"

The knocking stopped and he hoped for a second that they could get back to business. Sakura gave a little scream when the knocking started up again. "Seriously?"

Naruto pressed his forehead to hers and sighed. "I think we're going to need to try this again later, Sakura-chan." In the meantime, he needed another damn icy shower.

~o~O~o~

Sending Sakura one last heated glance, Naruto went into the bathroom, closed the door, and quickly turned on the water. That was when he noticed her little bag of personal items open on the sink.

Toothpaste, hairbrush, a few items of makeup. Little stuff, but all hers. He reached out, running his fingers lightly over the handle of the brush. An amazing, totally wonderful image of her stuff spread across the sink in his apartment filled his head. An ache sprung in his chest, tight and familiar.

Naruto wanted so badly to tell Sakura what it was about her that made her so beautiful… why he loved her so much. It wasn't just her exotic beauty that captured his attention. It was so much more than that. It was the manner in which she moved with that liquid grace, the fierce determination in her green eyes, and the air of confidence that swirled around her when she was in full medic mode. He wished he could put those feelings into words.

The past week here in Hotaru had been a lesson in endurance. Every day they became closer and closer and on two of those nights he woke up, his body shaking with the need to touch her, to taste her, and then to bury himself deep within her.

Nights like those were difficult, but understandable. He was in love with Sakura. He wanted to be with her in every sense of the word. What was perplexing was his desire to sink his teeth into her - marking her, claiming her. He wasn't a possessive person by any means so those feelings made him tense and uncomfortable.

Taming those urges became his priority, but how could you repress something that is by its very nature, wild and untamable? All he wanted to do is be gentle and loving with her. He was afraid that if he showed her that side of him, she would get angry, or worse, frightened. She did that day in the field. He didn't want to do that again.

Naruto was glad he finally told her the truth about how the beast's chakra was affecting him… It was the hardest thing he had ever done. He leaned forward and let the hot water stream down his back as he remembered her reaction to learning that his primal side wanted to dominate her and make her his.

~o~O~o~

Sakura gave him a dumbfounded look at first and then with a snort, said, "That's it?"

"What do you mean, that's it?" Naruto asked, shocked at her blasé tone. "Don't you realize that I could hurt you like that day…"

"Please…" she interrupted, drawing out the word and rolling her eyes. "This is nothing like that day on Tenchi Bridge. You had no control over Kurama then and you said this is different. You're just afraid you'll go all 'caveman' on me."

Naruto stubbornly insisted, "It's more than that."

"No, it's not. You get feelings of possessiveness and…" Sakura blushed slightly and said, "Lust. I can handle you, you know." Sakura smirked and pointed to the rhombus on her forehead. "Chakra enhanced strength, remember? You lose your senses and I'll be more than happy to find them for you!"

Naruto stubbornly reiterated, "It's more than that."

"I know you, Naruto Uzumaki. I know what kind of man you are. We've been friends for a very long time and nothing will change that."

"Nothing?" he asked, pulling her in for a kiss.

When he released her, he smugly noted how her hands clung to his neck and her eyes held a dreamy, unfocused look.

Last night had been a dream come true and not just because he had made love to her. It was so much more than that. It was something deeper, more powerful, something that dwelled in his heart and his mind. When he was with her, his self-control had been stretched to its very limits. Every touch, every movement seemed new somehow. Not physically, of course, but knowing how he truly felt about her, that he was truly making love to a woman for the first time in his life, made what they did indescribably better than anything he'd experienced before.

And he knew that she felt it too. Sakura was like fire in his arms last night, and her wild, uninhibited response shook him to his very soul. He made love to her over and over and although it didn't seem possible, each time was better, more fulfilling than the last. He had never felt so alive, so happy.

This morning when he forgot the condom, he was almost wished she didn't remember. Shameful thought, but there it was…

A sudden urge to go claim what was his flashed through his mind.

~o~O~o~

A cloud of steam blasted her as she entered the bathroom, but once it cleared she got a good look at the man in front of her. He was still facing the wall, so Sakura took this as an opportunity to admire his strong body once again.

Stunning defined muscles stretched over every inch of Naruto's body. His bright, blond hair was slicked back and in need of a trim, but Sakura ignored that for the time being and instead focused on long legs, lean tapered hips, and a wide back with muscles that were so tense she was surprised they hadn't snapped under the strain. She shook her head and forced herself to concentrate on the mission at hand. "We need to get ready. Lord Kumosaki has arrived."

A strong hand wrapped around her wrist and yanked her into the shower and onto the wall, pinning her arm above her head. With her spine pressed into the wall, Naruto reached for her other wrist and trapped it next to its twin. A hint of red colored his eyes, and Sakura's heart rate kicked up a few notches.

Much like he had last night, Naruto's gaze ran up and down her body slowly. Sakura had never been shy about her body, but when Naruto looked at her the way he was now; like he was committing every inch of bare skin to memory, or maybe that she was some sort of tasty treat that he wanted to devour, Sakura had to resist the urge to hide.

"Um… playtime is over, Uzumaki. We have a mission, remember?"

When his gaze made a second pass over her chest, her nipples hardened and Sakura saw Naruto's nostrils flare. There was no hiding her reaction to this man, and even in that moment when she knew she should be helping him regain his focus, she didn't want to. Was it wrong to be a little turned on by the fact that he could lose control because of his desire for her?

Eventually, Naruto tore his eyes from her body and settled his intense gaze on her face once again. Sakura noted his eyes were blue again as he sighed regretfully, stepped back, and muttered ruefully, "His timing really sucks."

At that moment, she couldn't agree more. Lord Kumosaki's timing was the worst. She stopped him when he about to apologize with a firm, "Don't worry about it," shooed the blond out and quickly showered. Wrapping a towel around herself, the medic exited the bathroom to get ready to meet with the lord.

~o~O~o~

Naruto blew a deep, relieved breath as soon as he walked out of the bathroom. He felt that odd predatory instinct rise in him, but he had managed to calm himself before he did something stupid.

He whistled cheerfully as he rifled through the dresser in search of clothes to change into—the same dresser he'd bent Sakura over last night.

And now he was picturing her naked.

Oh damn.

A deep hunger welled within him. The hunger that he thought had been sated last night. He looked around the hotel room, wishing he hadn't taken her on practically every available surface. The memories were too new and, combined with the fear of losing control around her, threatened to overwhelm him.

Sakura, of course, chose that exact moment to walk into the room and remove her towel. Naruto shifted uncomfortably against the tight material of his pants. This kunoichi was going to drive him crazy. God she was beautiful, all smooth skin, perfect curves and planes in all the right places. Her nipples were so hard he wanted to leap across the room and latch onto the hard bud. He could smell her wet arousal from across the room, thick and heavy. How easy it would be to push her down to the ground, spread her wide, and take her until she was trembling and shuddering below him.

And now she was staring at him as if he was deficient.

Awesome.

"Don't even think about it, Naruto," she ordered briskly, "We have to hurry. We can't keep Lord Kumosaki waiting."

"Come on Sakura-chan. We can do it quickly." Naruto sent her a look that sent shivers skating over her skin and then wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and teased, "You can just lay there while I do all the work."

She grabbed the first thing from her drawer and threw it at him.

Naruto's hand shot out and he snatched the projectile out of the air. His brows went up, and her stomach hit her toes. Something red and lacy and bulky hung from his fingertips. Naruto stood there with a huge grin on his face.

It was her bra—her special push-up bra that she wore on special occasions. The kind that had so much padding in the cups that it added five pounds once she put it on.

Sakura clamped her mouth shut to stop the scream building up in her throat. Naruto's gaze flicked from the bra to her, and then back to the bra. "Do you wear this thing?"

Unable to answer, because she was pretty sure her response would be all unintelligible, she said nothing.

He walked it over to the bed and lay it down like it was some kind of wild animal about to wrap itself around his face. His lashes swept up, his gaze meeting hers. Humor danced in his eyes. And then; because he so loved that look on her face when she was angry, he stated, "No wonder your pack was so heavy."

"Naruto!" she screamed as he ran out of the room.

AN:

Thanks to everyone that followed/favorited/commented on the last chapter!

My recommendation this week are Defiance by Selena Dobreva: After absorbing all of Kurama, Naruto gains more fox like characteristics than he expected, like finding a mate. One night now means one lifetime. Naruto and Sakura both struggle to come to terms of being life mates.

Ja Ne,

AZFAERYDUST