Story: The Nobel Laureate
Chapter 6
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Previously: Dr. Kyle Nelson, the former resident who taunted Abbey in med school, asked for her consultation on a patient with coronary artery disease; Jed received confirmation that he was chosen as the 1982 Nobel Prize winner in Economics and was surprised by the warm reception on campus and at home
Summary: After a serious discussion, Jed and Abbey celebrate together
AN: Thanks for all the feedback, guys!
Rating: NC-17
Abbey strolled down the stairs of the farmhouse, her forehead crinkling when she thought she heard the faint sound of music. She reached the foyer and poked her head around the corner to the empty living room. Now certain the familiar song was coming from the den, she headed in that direction and arrived just in time to see Jed take a seat on the floor in front of the fire place, his knees drawn to his chest with his arm securely wrapped around them.
She smiled for a moment, then revealed her presence. "Hey."
"Hi," he returned, twisting his head to look at her.
She took his hand and joined him on the braided area rug. "I didn't think it was cold enough for a fire tonight."
"It never really is, is it?" He grinned. "I just felt like starting one."
Dean Martin's 'Love Me, My Love' captivated her attention. "I haven't heard this song in a while."
"It always reminds me of you."
"I didn't know you needed reminding," she teased.
He helped her settle between his legs with her back to him. He then pulled her so her head rested on his chest. He kissed her softly and said, "Thank you."
"What for?"
"For today. The flowers, the party, everything."
"The flowers were my pleasure. The party was actually the girls' idea."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. They're as proud of you as I am." She tipped her head back and with a hand behind his neck, pulled him forward to press her lips to his.
"Are they all tucked in?"
"Yeah. Ellie wanted me to tell you that seven times three is twenty-one."
Jed chuckled. "I gave her that one just before storytime. She's learning fast."
"Well, if there was ever any doubt, it's now been established..." Abbey pushed herself up so she could turn to face him. "...it's in the genes."
"I love you so much."
She looked into his eyes, just as she had a dozen times that day. This time, she saw something different. Devoid of the happiness and joy she had seen earlier, his warm baby blues were swimming in a flood of sadness. "What's going on, Jed?"
"What? I said I love you. Why would you think something's going on?"
"Because I know you."
It should have been obvious he couldn't keep her in the dark. On some level, maybe it was. But he railed against the thought of letting her into his world - at least on this night. "I want us to enjoy tonight. I want to make love you. I want us to celebrate like never before. Let's make tonight just about us."
"That's going to be hard to do when there's something on your mind, don't you think?"
"Abbey."
She slid her palm against his. Their fingers now entangled, she squeezed. "Please tell me what's bothering you. I have a feeling I know what it is anyway."
"You do, huh?"
"I've told you a million times..."
"I'm a puzzle," he started.
"And I've already figured you out," she finished. "It's about your father."
"It's not always good to know these things." He sighed as he tilted his head.
"Why not?" Her head followed in an attempt to make eye contact.
"Because it's not a topic I like to discuss." Jed saw no change in her expression. She wanted him to talk. She expected it. And after a couple of minutes of silence, he did too. "That second phone call we were expecting from Sweden, it came a little while ago. You were giving Zoey her bath."
"And?"
"It's official. We'll get an entire packet of itineraries, reservations, and arrangements for our trip to Stockholm in December."
"I hear it's beautiful there in December."
"Yeah."
"So what's the problem?"
"I was excited, at first. We get to invite 16 people to the ceremony and banquet afterwards."
"Really?"
"Yeah, so at some point, you and I will have to sit down and decide who we want to take with us. And, I guess that's what started all this. The second I hung up the phone, I thought of all the people we'd want to be there to share this moment with us. My first thought was your parents, of course. I can just picture your dad's face when he tell him."
"He's going to be absolutely ecstatic. He always said I married a wonderfully gifted man."
Jed nodded in acknowledgment. He had been grateful for the way the Barringtons had embraced him like he was one of their own. But seconds later, his smile abruptly faded. He quietly confessed, "My second thought was my parents."
Abbey rubbed his arm soothingly. "Jed."
"It just suddenly hit me. My mom passed away a while ago and I've made peace with that. I mean, I miss her terribly, but It doesn't surprise me anymore that I can't pick up the phone to call her. What I really wonder, though, is what my dad would have said."
"He would have said he always knew you had it in you."
"That's a nice fantasy." His hand covering hers, he threw her a skeptical stare. "I don't think he would have though."
"John Bartlet had many faults, Jed, but I truly believe that deep down, he loved you. He didn't know how to show it. He didn't know how to tell you. But that love existed. It was there. If it wasn't, he wouldn't have tried to reconnect so many times."
"Maybe."
"If he was here, he'd be as proud of you as the rest of us are."
"Let's not kid ourselves. He's never been proud of me for anything. The more I think about it, the more convinced I am that if he was here, he'd probably dismiss the award. He'd point out ten other people who deserved it more than I did."
"No one deserves it more."
"Have you taken a look at some of the economics scholars out there? They're pretty good."
"You're the best."
"That's not what he would say."
Abbey dropped his hand and shook her head. "Don't. Don't do this."
"What?"
"You just won one of the most prestigious awards in the world. I'm not going to stand by and listen while you talk yourself into validating the reaction you think your father would have had. I'm not going to let you allow him to ruin it."
"I'm not."
"Yes, you are. Look at me." When he did, she continued. "You need to try to put him out of your mind."
"I can't."
"You have to try."
"It's not that easy," he said with an edge to his voice. "You didn't grow up in that house."
And that was really the crux of the issue. Abbey could give him her support and her understanding, but she could never give him what he needed most right now - her empathy. The volatile relationship between Jed and John was beyond anything she had experienced in her own life and though she fought to help him heal the mental scars that sustained long after the physical abuse had ended, she would never quite be able to put herself in his shoes.
"You're right." She moved to his side. "But that doesn't mean I'm not hurting for you."
"I know. It's just that you didn't grow up the way I did. You had two loving parents whose world revolved around you. Unless you've lived with someone like my father, it's impossible for you to know how difficult it is for me to just put it out of my mind."
He was right. Over the years, Abbey had learned how forgiving abuse victims become of their abusers. The violator is sometimes considered blameless even for the most egregious betrayals, not out of fear, but out of an overwhelming desire to sympathize with them and, in some way, gain their love or approval.
Jed fit that profile well. It still amazed her how he managed to burden himself with excuses for his father's behavior. In fact, the credibility he was willing to assign to John's cruel tantrums frequently frightened her. But her job now wasn't to argue with him. It was to help him.
She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and replied, "I have no earthly idea how it must have been for you as a child being raised by him. I wish I had some insight so I could help you. Better yet, I wish I could just take away all your pain. But I can't. All I can give you is a promise that I'm always going to be here to listen and to support you."
"You've given me more than that. Just knowing you're here...that you love me just because I'm me...that helps a lot."
"I'm always going to love you because you're you - you're the most generous, caring man I've ever met. I could never ask for a more amazing person to be the father of my children. And in two short months, you're going to be recognized as one of the most brilliant economists on the planet. Nothing John did or said can take any of that away. Not now, not ever."
"I know."
"Maybe I shouldn't have told you to put him out of your mind, but, Jed, I am so worried."
"About what?"
"I'm worried that you're going to spend the rest of your life trying to make up for what he put you through when he was alive. He never told you what an upstanding man you are and because he's no longer here, he never can. And I'm afraid you won't ever believe it on your own."
Abbey's face paled with the realization that in her heart, she was conflicted about John's death. More than anything, she wanted to give Jed one more day with his father to grant him that closure he needed to move on with his life. But John wasn't just abusive, he was vindictive, and because of that, a tiny sliver of doubt marred her desire.
Nestled in the gloomiest portion of her mind, her imagination conjured up a scene so grim, she could never share it with her husband. She wondered, if John was alive, would he finally put aside the bitterness that plagued his relationship with his son and value this accomplishment? Or would he simply dismantle Jed's achievement and clobber him with venomous words even worse than ever before?
She hated herself for thinking it, but she couldn't deny the possibility that John would stay true to form, and for that reason, she wasn't entirely convinced Jed would be better off with his father by his side for such a momentous occasion.
Jed noticed her thoughts had wandered, so, once again, he scooted behind her and wrapped his arms under hers to hold her close. "I really did want tonight to be about us."
"I believe you."
"Let's not talk about him, okay? We can deal with all this some other time. Not now."
"We'll do whatever you want."
"I don't know what I would do without you."
"You're never going to find out," Abbey assured him as she caressed his knuckles.
Jed dipped his lips to the side of her face, cupping her chin to lift her head slightly. Abbey squirmed in his lap until she was turned towards him. Husband and wife stared at one another without a word. The crackling of the fire mingled with Dean Martin's lyrics and during the brief pause between the end of the song and the replay, Jed swept the auburn locks that framed Abbey's cheekbones.
His eyes closed, he tilted his head before his mouth reached hers and upon first contact, he let go of his inhibitions. The memories and thoughts that haunted him moments earlier faded into the background as raw passion invaded his body. He pressed himself deeper into the kiss, unable to resist the building desire that caused her to raise herself up on her knees while her hands clawed at the buckle on his belt.
Abbey couldn't move fast enough. She had been yearning for this all day. She wanted to feel him, to hold him, and love him. She needed to be tangled in his rapturous embrace and relish his hot breath tickling her delicate skin as they raced, hand-in-hand, towards a frenzied climax.
After she peeled the jeans off his legs, she tugged at his shirt, ripping it from his body and throwing it to the side. Two buttons fell silently on the rug when he yanked on her blouse to reveal the black lacy bra underneath. With his fingers, he unhooked the front clasp, releasing her breasts to a natural bounce that stopped only when his thumb fondled their creamy slope and circled the hardened area crying for attention.
She raised her hips to remove her skirt, her sheer black hose following the same path down her legs and onto the floor. They were both naked now, exploring each other's bodies just as they had done so many times before. His strong hands trailed from the smooth mountains that shaped her chest to the satiny swells of her hips. He gripped her there and in one powerful stroke, he pushed himself against her so hard that he nearly penetrated her moist center.
It baffled her how something so familiar could seem so different. She and Jed had an active sex life, yet despite fifteen years of making love to him - the only man she had ever given herself to - the sensations he could instantly trigger inside her still caught her by surprise. Every encounter was more exciting than the last and though every inch of her body screamed for him physically, tonight, it was the way he locked into her stare that shattered her control.
His eyes illuminated by trust and adoration, Jed relaxed his jaw and brought her in for another kiss. This time, Abbey settled on top of him and held his shoulders to help him onto his back. As his lips continued to capture hers, her hands roamed down his stomach until she reached the spot that made him break the connection with a sharp sigh.
Her tongue then wandered over his chest, embarking on a winding passage towards his shaft. She lifted his legs to sprinkle his inner thighs with tender kisses as her fingers played in the soft hair at his groin. As soon as he bit his bottom lip, she got down to business.
The fullness of his shaft monopolized her touch as she covered it with her palm and ran her fingers from the tip to the head and back again. He groaned when she encircled him. And then, when she gently twisted him in her hand, he wiggled against the floor, provoking her to lower her face and graze him with the soft feel of her wet lips.
Slowly, she opened her mouth, only a little at first to suck lightly on the tip. By the time she had taken him in entirely, he was writhing beneath her with ragged, shallow breaths that slowed when he called her name.
"God, Abbey. I want you," he said weakly, convincing her to stop what she was doing and straddle his quivering form.
Positioned just right, she lowered herself down. Jed immediately thrust his hips upward, meeting her as their bodies grinded together. She leaned forward at first, using his chest for support to move around. Then, she leaned back, her hands falling behind her as she directed him towards the deepest point of penetration.
His nails dug into her hips, a grip so firm that Abbey had to struggle to pull herself up and down the length of his shaft. But that's what he wanted because as soon as she hit her mark, he guided her into a steady rhythm that multiplied their friction.
Jed looked up at his wife. The raging fire had cast a soft halo around her dark hair. Her features were glowing as well and he couldn't tell if it was because of the luminous flames that streaked her skin or the love pouring out of her sexy green eyes.
They were smoldering, those eyes. Hotter than the scorching embers behind her, Abbey's eyes were burning with passion. They were warm and inviting, twinkling with affection. That big heart that was open to the world and the selfless soul that would sacrifice everything for her family, it was all wrapped up in a package so beautiful, he couldn't look away.
As she squeezed her legs around his, he could feel her feminine muscles constricting towards an eruption. His fingers pried their way to the sensitive nub that he had massaged moments earlier. This time, he stroked it a little harder, adding the pressure in tiny increments until Abbey trembled uncontrollably, gasping for air.
With one final thrust inside her as she clenched around him, Jed also surrendered to the vibrations that shocked every limb. Pulsating aftershocks held their bodies hostage after Abbey collapsed on top of him. Instinctively, he drew his arms around her and when he smelled the sweet scent of her hair, the one and only thought that dominated his mind was how much he loved this woman. That emotion, strong and unrestrained, outweighed everything else.
She must have felt it in the hug, he figured, because with a muffled cry to catch her breath, she whispered, "I love you too."
TBC