The first few minutes I lay there allowed my heart rate and breathing to come back to normal. But I wanted Barbara there. I wanted to hold her to me and to kiss her softly. I used my robe to clean myself down then gathered it up along with my boxers that were too damp to put on. I dressed quickly and went downstairs.

Barbara was lying on the couch. Except for her shoes she was fully dressed but a pair of beige knickers was lying near my fireplace. She heard me come in and looked up at me then turned away. She buried her face in the back of my couch. What do you say to your best friend after phone sex? Somehow 'thanks, that was great' was not going to cut it. I was not sure how she felt. I was not even sure how I felt. I knelt beside her and stroked her hair. "Barbara."

"I suppose you want to fuck me now." I understood instantly she was angry with me. I had promised to protect her. I should have kept everything purely professional but even now, even with her angry with me I wanted to kiss her.

There was no point in trying to hide anything from her. Honesty worked best. "Yes, I do Barbara, very much so. Do you want to fuck me?"

She turned around and frowned then looked down at the telltale bulge in my jeans. A thousand contradictory emotions crossed her face. "I have since the day we met."

My lips were on hers in an instant. My arms curved around her and she clung to me as we kissed.

It was heaving and desperate. We didn't start with polite kisses, we dived straight in with mouths open and tongues battling the other. I surrendered and let her explore. Her examination was far from clinical. She ran her tongue around in a way no other woman had ever kissed me. When she rubbed the tip against my palate it tickled in a way that shot straight to my groin. I groaned loudly and pulled her off the couch onto the soft carpet. My hands fumbled too much as I tried to undo her shirt so I ripped at it. Buttons flew and cloth tore. It was one I didn't think flattered her. I could buy her a new one. She stopped kissing me. We were both struggling to breathe. Her hands had deftly undone my buttons and she pushed my shirt off my shoulders. I wriggled it over my wrists and threw it across the room.

She pushed me down then kissed me again. My hands found her breasts. There was no bra and I wondered where in my lounge room she had thrown that while we were having phone sex. This time she ceded control to me. I eagerly filled her mouth with my flicking tongue. I preferred to kiss with tongues dueling so I coaxed hers from the corner. We had sparred for years verbally but this was so much more fun. I was so lost in the kiss that I did not notice she had undone my jeans until she had her hand clamped around my cock and was moving up and down. Reluctantly I had to break our kiss. "Oh babe, that's good but not too much or I won't last."

She laughed softly then sat up. My hands were still kneading her tits. They were rock hard and she grimaced and moaned as I pulled them and rapidly rubbed them between my thumb and forefinger before I took one in my mouth and calmed it with my tongue. I gently sucked it and licked it until Barbara cried out. I pushed her back onto the floor as I gave equal treatment to its partner. She still had my cock in her hand but I pulled free. I stood and let my jeans fall to the ground. I stepped out of them never taking my eyes of Barbara's. Naked, I knelt beside her and pushed her jeans over her hips and down her legs. I decided to leave them, and her ripped shirt, on.

She looked up at me and smiled. It was lustful and loving. I think she expected me to swing my leg over and enter her but there was still so much of her to explore. Instead I swung the other way and dived down into the soft fur covering her womanhood. I was glad she was untamed, like her nature. Too many women torture their pussies to appear pre-pubescent, something I find vaguely disturbing in an age of seemingly rampant paedophilia.

Barbara found my dangling cock. She explored it quickly then with a hungry grunt dragged me closer until she could seize it in her mouth. Instantly it was diamond hard. Her tongue roved lazily around the tip. She moaned soft approval then took me deeper. It was warm and welcoming in there and I could not help but move in and out. Her teeth nipped me and I stopped. This was her domain and her rules. Slowly she licked me. She began at the root and tickled all the way to the head then back down to start again. It was hard to focus on anything else as she clamped her lips around me and sucked gently while the very point of her tongue flicked across the sensitive spot just below my head. I groaned loudly. Her hands reached up and grabbed my bum and began to knead it as she pulled me closer.

I had tried hard to concentrate on pleasuring her but I was losing the battle. I did not think I could manage three cums so soon and I wanted to be buried deep inside her when I did climax. I reluctantly pulled free of her grip. "Later babe."

"Tommy," she protested.

I turned so I could focus just on her. She tasted sweet and willing. As my tongue slipped between her folds she cried out in surprise then sighed contentedly. If that was good then the next few minutes would blow her mind. She rolled and bucked under me as I teased the outside of her pussy. I nuzzled my nose over her clit and moved it just enough to feel her quiver with pleasure. She was so wet it began to spread all around my face and it was almost by accident that my tongue slid inside her. I explored that heavenly cavern as unhurriedly as I could. It was tight, even around my tongue, and I grunted at the thought of those muscles that were trying to grip and hold me now grasping my cock. I buried my nose deeper, twitching across the hot upright point that was waiting for me. Back and forth I flicked it until I felt her begin to climax. I halted all movement.

"No!"

"Not yet babe, not yet."

I replaced my nose with my tongue and steadily circled her bud. Barbara bucked and twisted as if trying to get me in just the right spot. I obliged and build a pressure and rhythm that I knew would work. Then as I felt her tense, I stopped again. She cursed me and dug her fingers painfully into my scalp. I laughed before starting again, fucking her with my tongue then tracing the line up to where she really wanted me. I circled and skimmed and teased before I relented. Slow, firm deliberate strokes forward and back took her to the edge and when I pushed my finger hard into her pussy, it brought her undone. She screamed my name and nearly ripped out my hair. Her back arched and despite the searing pain I had never felt more joy. It didn't matter how much I wanted to come I knew I would always need to have her want me more.

I kissed my way over her scars and up her body. Her breathing was heavy and fast and her whole body heaved with effort. I reached her mouth and kissed her softly. I could get lost in her kiss. She ran her hands over my back and held my bum firmly. It was only when I felt the soft, slithery silkiness of her that I knew she had positioned me. She cried out as I pushed inside her. She was so tight that she gripped my shaft completely. I moved very slowly, gradually stretching her. My words had been true and I fought the urge to push hard and claim her. "Am I hurting you Barbara?"

"No, it's…" Her voice trailed away into a deep moan as I slowly withdrew. Her muscles tightened until it was almost painful as I pushed back inside. I paused, nestled tightly against her womb - a womb that I wanted one day to fill with our child. When she released me I set up a deep, slow cadence. I had never known a woman with such a velvety yet powerful grip. I let my head tickle the front of her vagina in a region that made her squirm with delight. In and out over that spot and she relaxed. Her head went back and I sucked and nipped at her throat while one hand caressed her ear. Her hands were like vices around my arms. She was building so I moved deeper, rubbing my head over the bump of her womb. Barbara almost purred. Gradually I lowered myself to rub against her clit. She tightened around me again.

"Oh God! Tom…eeeeeee!"

This time I would not be able to stop her and I didn't want to. I wanted to watch her face contort in an ecstasy that I had caused. I rammed myself home and Barbara came around me. I was going nowhere but I didn't want to be anywhere else. I wanted to be buried inside the woman I loved. She bucked again and I came – hard and fast as I wedged myself in as deep as I could go. I looked down and she was looking at me as if I was a god.

"I love you Barbara." The gentle tone of my voice belied the power of the emotion and how hard my balls were pumping. "So very, very much."

My head became light and my vision swam. I lay down carefully on her, keeping my weight mostly on my knees and forearms. I kissed her again. I never wanted this moment to end.

I felt tears against my cheek. I lifted my head. "Barbara? What's wrong?"

"You spoilt it. It was just supposed to be sex."

She was trying to push me away so I held her firmly. "It can't just be sex. I'm sorry but for me that was...earth-shatteringly magnificent. I hoped you felt it too. Do you know how long I've wanted to make love to you Barbara?"

"It had to be just sex. Don't tell me you love me. It isn't fair!"

"Why? Because you don't love me? I thought the way you..." She may as well have stabbed me. I had believed the way she wanted me, the way she had kissed me, the way she looked at me as she came that she loved me as much as I did her.

"Of course I love you! But this...complicates everything."

"You do? Really?" I was grinning like a fool. Barbara had said she loved and I could tell from her eyes she meant it. My heart soared. "I rather think it simplifies everything."

I rolled her over on top of me. We were still joined and when I kissed her my little man started to pay attention again. He liked being snuggled in there. Our kiss was less lustful. Our tongues spoke of all our fears and uncertainties and hopes. Barbara's tears mingled with mine. She sat up, impaled on my cock and gave me the most wonderful smile. "I love you Tommy, far more than you will ever understand."

This time we made love to each other slowly and quietly, coming together as we whispered our hearts.

I slept peacefully with Barbara in my arms until the trill of my phone disturbed us. I glanced at my watch. It was only midnight. "Lynley!"

"Sir, it's Winston. Where are you and the sarge?"

"At my place. Why?" Barbara was hastily pulling her torn shirt around her.

"There's been a creepy caller. But he has hung up on three of the women. Can Barbara go online and take a call? It might be him."

"Yes, yes of course. We have the correct set up. Divert the number here."

"Right Sir. Wish her luck. We'll trace every call."

I hung up and frowned. "A call will come through soon they think. Someone is looking for just the right woman. Are you okay to take it?"

"Yeah. I think so but I don't want to say those things to anyone else."

"You're not, it's a role, it's not real. Only you and I are real. I'll be here the whole time."

She nodded. "I can do this." I knew she was trying to convince herself, not me.

I raced upstairs and grabbed two spare robes from the guest bathroom. We wrapped ourselves in them then sat staring at the phone. Five minutes later it rang. With a deep breath Barbara signalled and we both clicked the two handsets. "Hi, this Xanthe."

She sounded breathy and sexy and I hated it. I know I have a large jealous streak but I struggled to stay professional. This was my sergeant doing her duty, not my future wife flirting with a stranger. I listened intently to his voice for clues.

"You're new."

"Do you like that?" Barbara asked.

"Yes, I want to play."

Barbara frowned. "What's you're name?"

"Trevor."

"What do you want to play Trevor?"

Trevor's needs were quite specific. He led Barbara through a strict sequence where he was a bad boy being punished by his tutor. Barbara pretended to beat him then discover his erection and take his virginity. I could hear Trevor's breathing grow more uneven until he climaxed. It disgusted me that I had sounded the same only hours before. I reached out and took Barbara's hand. She squeezed it reassuringly.

"That was good Xanthe. I like you. Would you like to meet and do that in person?" We looked at each other. This was promising. I signalled to Barbara to go slowly.

"I don't meet clients Trevor."

"Even for a hundred quid?"

"I'm not a prostitute Trevor."

"Everyone has a price. It's only sex, only a game. It'd take you five hours to earn that on the phones. Two hundred."

Barbara began to waver. "I don't know Trevor."

"Two fifty."

"Really, I shouldn't."

"Five hundred pounds. Cash in hand. How can you refuse?"

She looked at me and I nodded. "Where would I meet you?"

Trevor's voice took on a menacing tone. "By the river near Bennett's Lock. At dawn. Say six o'clock?"

"How will I know you?" I was proud of her. She sounded apprehensive but not scared; greedy but not not cheap; street smart but not as if she suspected him.

"I'll be wearing a school cap." With that the receiver went dead.

"You did well Barbara." I took her in my arms and cradled her. I knew what an effort it had been. "We're close. I feel it."

"I feel dirty. I need a shower."

I showed her my room and found her a fresh robe. Barbara showered while I made arrangements to stake out Bennett's Lock. When she returned she was in her jeans and had grabbed a tee-shirt from my walk-in wardrobe. "I need to go home and change. What should I wear?"

I glanced at my clock. One o'clock. We would need to leave at five. "Something sexy but not tarty. Remember he thinks you expect to have sex with him."

"I don't own anything sexy. I am not sexy in any way, shape or form!"

I took her in my arms and held her. "I beg to differ but we'll find something. Give me ten minutes to shower and pack." I expected a protest but she just nodded.

At Barbara's we chose a black top that was close fitting, and her tightest jeans. She had one pair of black heels so that would have to do. Neither of us could sleep so we sat and cuddled on the lounge. All thought of anything sexual was ignored. It was as partners and friends, no longer scared to reveal ourselves, that we gripped each other. I knew she wasn't scared but she was worried that Trevor might not be our man. I was worried that she might get hurt. All the fears and concern over the years came to mind and each thought made us squeeze tighter. "I won't let anything happen to you."

"I know."

Hours later her certainty rang in my ears as I launched myself at Trevor. We had needed to wait until he had done something showing his intent to murder Barbara. He had toyed with her, verbally sparring but not doing anything until he had suddenly grabbed her and plunged a syringe into her neck. I saw the shock and fear in her eyes before she crumbled to the ground. I was in hiding thirty yards away and by the time I could reach him he had cut open her jeans. I dived on him and pulled him off Barbara. He was thirty or forty pounds heavier than me and the way he punched I knew he was no pub brawler. He had fought men a lot. I absorbed his blows, stalling for Winston and the team to arrive. Why they took so long will be a subject I investigate thoroughly but the delay gave him time to find his knife. My best blazer took the worst of the first slash but the second caught me across the chest. Blood oozed through my shirt and ran down my torso. There was no pain but it made me wary of getting too close.

He lashed out again then fell to his knees. I was about to kick him when I saw he had hold of Barbara's throat. His knife drew blood as it pressed into her skin. "Don't be a fool," I told him.

"What do I have to lose?"

It was a risk but I took it. I lashed out with my foot and caught his jaw. I felt it crack. He was forced back, away from Barbara. I scrambled over and pinned her underneath me. To reach her he had to kill me. He rose to his feet and rushed at me. I could hear his guttural growl getting closer.

A local constable was first on the scene. He was ahead of me, further away from Trevor but he drew his tazer, braced and fired. Trevor went down, convulsing. I rolled off Barbara and held her tightly until the ambulance men forced us apart.

We were at the hospital until late in the afternoon. Barbara took longer than expected to come around from the drug and I had to have my wound cleaned and stapled. I insisted Barbara stay with me and Winston drove us home. We were both exhausted. My bed was soft and welcoming and Barbara was asleep before I had extinguished the light. I pulled her to me but not too close to my chest which was now throbbing uncomfortably. Despite the pain I quickly fell into a deep slumber.

To wake with your cock being stirred to life in someone's mouth is disorienting then wondrous. Barbara was gently urging me awake but I waited until I was rock hard before I showed signs of life. Long, sensual strokes with a broad tongue from the base to the tip had me interested almost instantly and when she covered me and took me deep I was in heaven. "Oh babe, that's perfect. Oh goodness, not so fast. Let...me...enjoy...it."

I reached down and ran my fingers over her hair and face. I wanted to say no. I wanted to kiss her and make love to her but the way she was moving her lips over me had me transfixed. Just a little more I told myself then I'd stop her and make love to her. I propped myself against the pillows and watched. She used her thumbs to run up the inside of my thighs. It sent a pulse of excitement through me. Her fingertips slowly pushed into me, capturing my testicles. She moved them in slow circles with enough pressure to border on pain. Her fingers wrapped around them and she started to softly knead them while her mouth still sucked gently on my head. "Oh good lord! Oh fuuuuuuccck!"

She removed her mouth briefly. "Good?"

"Superb!" My jealous nature wanted to demand to know where she had learnt to do this but my cock did not want to disturb her.

She still had my balls trapped in her fists as she slid her thumbs down towards my bum. They tickled as she rubbed them back and forth and I felt my nuts knot tightly against her palms. I was at her mercy, completely. Her tongue swirled around my tip and she took me deeper again. As she withdrew she closed her lips as if she was milking me. I started to thrust and she sensed the rhythm I needed. One fist closed around my shaft while the other hand caressed my aching balls. "Oh babe, I want to cum."

"I want you to," she replied as she placed her mouth back over me and took me deep.

I fell apart. My legs trembled violently and I came with the force of a bison herd running across the plains. I tried to tell her I loved her but it was a jumble of incoherent sounds. It was hot and wet and marvellous. I could feel her swallowing three or four times, sucking me dry. A few of my staples tore free but I didn't care. Barbara had just given me the most divine blowjob of my life.

She cleaned me up with her tongue then crawled up beside me and snuggled into my side. "I've wanted to do that for years."

It sounded vulgar to say that if I knew she could do that I would have insisted. Instead my jealousy raised its head. "That was incredible Barbara. Where did you learn how to do that?"

Barbara laughed. "Not bad for a first attempt then? I read widely."

I was still shaking. "You mean you'll get better with practice? I could get used to being woken that way."

"Not everyday," she said shyly, "I have needs too."

I kissed her gently and lovingly. "We could set up a roster. A little bit of that... a little bit of this." My hand moved between her legs. She was burning and swollen. I inched my finger deeper where it was so silky and wet. I began to slowly pleasure her. My cock twitched and grew.

"Oh yes, I like that."

"Show me what you like Barbara. Show me how you make yourself cum." I was enjoying this more than I had ever thought I would. Barbara brought out the feral in me.

"What? No!" She tried to wriggle away but she was pushing herself against my fingers.

The thought of watching her made my cock stir again. I stopped moving my hand. "I want to watch. Then I want to join in."

Barbara rolled on her back with a heavy, conceding sigh. Her left hand began to trace a path over her breasts, palpating them until the peaks were rigid. She rubbed them between her thumb and forefinger and pulled them out. As she did her right breast I started to mimic her on her left. She mewled and her body turned red as I watched her. Her hand moved down between her legs. She spread them slightly but not as far as I would need to to dive inside her. Slowly she coated her fingers then began to circle her clit. "Are you sure you want to watch?"

"Yes! Oh yes Barbara!"

She was quicker than I expected and her moans were like music. As she began to lift her hips off the bed I put my hand over hers, letting my finger trace the same path. As I picked up her rhythm and pressure she removed her hand and lay her arms on the bed. Just as I pressed a little harder she arched her back. "Oh Tommy!"

I leant down and whispered in her ear. "I love you."

Barbara opened her eyes and looked at me. "I love you too," she managed before she went rigid and screamed my name.

She lay panting as I began to kiss her body. I should be exhausted but I wanted to be cocooned inside her again. I nudged her side with my cock.

"Who's a greedy boy then?"

"Me."

Barbara began to stroke me. "Me too. Can I kneel up?"

I swallowed hard. "Yes but if you do that I'll fuck you hard."

"I hope so." She smiled and rolled over on her stomach. Her arse was smooth and rounded like a peach. I remembered our phone sex. Before she could kneel I knelt over her and smacked her.

"What the hell? Oh, I get it. Ow!"

She wriggled to kneel but I pinned her to the bed. I ran my hands down her back and down to her ankles. I smacked her again and watched her cheeks pinken. I leant over and kissed my handprints then poked my cock between her legs. I spread them with my ankles giving me better access. I coated myself in her juices then rubbed my head slowly through her folds and over the little rosebud of her arse.

"Tommy?" Her body was tense. There was no fear in her voice but some apprehension and, I thought, curious excitement. I continued to rub myself over it. She began to relax. Little moans of pleasure escaped her throat. I trailed my head down into her wetness and back up over the little mound. She moved against me as if urging me on.

I left it resting there as I plunged my finger inside her. She squealed with surprise and clamped her cheek hard around my cock. I moved it back and forth to the same rhythm as my finger fucked her.

"Oh Tommy." There was something primal in us both. I knew that this was exciting her but I had no intention of being anywhere but hard inside her cave. Just when she least expected it I withdrew my finger and rammed myself home. She was so soft and gloriously slippery. My hand reached under her and pinched her clit. I pounded into her until she roared. I followed her over the edge. It was carnal and finally sated a need we had both held for too many years.

As much as the sex had been almost violent our afterglow kisses were soft and loving. In the darkness we talked about sex and life and love. Neither of us mentioned it directly but we both accepted that there would never be anyone else in our lives. We were all each other wanted, all we needed.

"Now about this morning roster. What about Tuesdays and Thursdays for headjobs, Fridays and Mondays for me to spoil you, and Wednesdays and Saturdays for good old fashioned fucking.."

Barbara looked up at me and raised her eyebrows. "What about making love?"

I grinned at her. "Oh, standard fair every night."

"And Sundays?"

"Argh, yes now on Sundays I have something special in mind."

"Tommy!"

I laughed at her shock and arched an eyebrow at her assumption. "I love you future Mrs Lynley. We are going to have a lot of fun together."

For a second It was a close call. She was either going to kiss me or kill me. Fortunately she chose the former.