"So, the shells are healthy for you, right?"

"What?"

I shield the skillet from your prying eyes. "Nothing! Nothing. I was kidding." Maybe if I mash them up with a fork.

"Olivia, just pick them ou…..are you mashing them up with the fork?" I can tell you don't know whether to laugh or truly be offended.

"No." Silence. "I was trying to pick them out and they got stuck under the fork." More silence. "No?"

"Give me that. Why don't you go set the table?" You kiss my cheek like I've seen you do hundreds of times with Emma when you've taken over the 'big girl' stuff.

"It's just eggs. I can make scrambled eggs." Probably.

"Sure you can. Just let me do this for you, okay? I promised I'd make you breakfast and you can help by setting the table." You're using your brown eyes and dimples to full effect and I can feel myself reaching for the plates before I realize it.

On autopilot, I set the table and just let my mind wander. The sounds of you making breakfast blend together with the faint noises coming from the television in the living room.

How many times have I watched you prepare a meal in this kitchen and wondered at the feelings observing you would invoke? The sense of home and security was always there. With Emma with us, those emotions always dovetailed into love. But what a difference it is to be here with you this morning. To sit here as your lover and watch your body as you move around the kitchen.

I've had that body beneath me and above me. The jeans and sweater do nothing to disguise the soft curves of you and just the memory of them against me is enough to have me abandoning the napkins and walking towards you.

"Are you finished?"

"Nope." Sliding my hands over your denim covered hips, I lock my arms around your waist and sway with you in an impromptu dance. I nose my way through your hair to rub my lips across the nape of your neck.

I murmur a suggestion that has you dropping the spatula against the counter. I bring my hands to your hips to turn you around, my mouth already open to accept your kiss.

"Mmphff!" Bacon?

"I know it's not quite what you had in mind but…" You flash a grin, maneuvering expertly around me with two breakfast plates.

I finish chewing as I lean back against the counter, smiling despite myself. You pull out my chair and wait patiently for me to go sit down. Taking a deep breath to settle my hormones, I grab the juice from the fridge before making my way over to you. I kiss your cheek as I sit and am rewarded by an answering kiss against my temple.

"You're the one who said we needed to eat so enjoy your breakfast."

I open my mouth to argue but then it occurs to me that you're right. I feel myself wanting to pout and add just a little bit of sulk into my voice. "Since when do you listen to what I say?"

"Now I know where Emma gets it from." You laugh and cover my hand with yours. "You're cute when you pout, you know that?"

"I am?" I allow myself a hopeful smile. "How cute? I mean, cute enough to…"

"Eat." You push my hand away on a giggle and start to pour a glass of juice. "Your breakfast, Olivia. Eat your breakfast."

"Alright." I purse my lips and blow you a kiss, accepting the glass of juice you hand me. "Thank you for breakfast, Natalia." Your dimples peek out as you acknowledge my statement with a smile.

There are a few moments of silence as we start to eat and despite the joking from before, I know that there are some pretty important things we should talk about. Last night you said you told Frank that you couldn't marry him but you never gave me your reason. I'll admit I'm a little apprehensive about what you might have told him. I wonder what would be worse. If you told him the truth about your feelings for me and the fallout from that or if you gave him another reason and the truth still needed to be told. Either way, we should probably talk while we have some time to ourselves.

"Natalia, about last night…" Whatever I was going to say next is interrupted by the ringing of the phone.

If that's Frank, I'm playing the lotto tomorrow.

You hold my gaze for a few seconds and then push away from the table. "I'll get it."

The set of your shoulders speaks to the sudden tension in the room and I put my fork down as my appetite drops away.

"Hello?" The apprehension in your voice has me halfway out of my seat but your next words ease me back down. "Hi, Emma!" The relief in your voice is palpable and the smile you give me is not quite steady.

"What? Sure, honey, she's right here. Okay, I'll ask her." You shift the phone to your other ear and walk over to prop your hip next to me at the table. "Emma said that Carly's mom has an extra ticket to the circus and would love to have Emma go along."

"But I didn't send Emma over there with any money. I couldn't ask Carly's parents to pay for everything. Maybe I could…what?" I stop as I notice you trying to hold back a laugh.

"Emma said that Carly's dad has lots of money and Carly said that they could have anything they wanted because her dad said she's a princess. Oh, and Emma is a princess too even though she lives at a farm and not a castle. Carly doesn't mind."

"How nice of Carly." You raise your eyebrows at my tone and reach out to poke my shoulder lightly. "Fine." I whisper. "Tell Emma that I said it's okay. What time will she be back?"

I watch you as you listen to my little girl on the phone. I rest my hand along the edge of your thigh and fit my fingers against yours when you drop your hand down to mine. A warm feeling settles against my chest as you complete this connection. Me to you, you to Emma. My family.

Your thumb starts to brush against the back of my hand as you continue to get the details from Emma. "Okay, sweetie. We'll see you then. Have a great time and be a good girl for Carly's parents. I love you too. Yes…okay…here." You hand me the phone and with a final brush of your fingers, you stand up and start to clear the table.

"Hi, Emma. So, you're going to the circus?" I wander into the living room, listening to Emma's excited details about this afternoon. "Wow, honey. A dancing elephant? With a tutu?" I catch your giggle from the kitchen and it makes me laugh. "No I don't think that's funny. I'm sure the elephant works very hard to dance like that. Well, you make sure you clap extra hard for me, okay? Have a good time, honey. I'll see you at dinner. Okay, I will. I love you…bye."

I walk back into the kitchen to put the phone back on the charger, coming to stand next to you by the table. "Emma said to tell you that you were supposed to explain to me about the dancing elephants?"

You stop stacking the dishes and face me. "Well, I don't know. It's pretty top secret."

I ease myself forward to push into your personal space and cross my arms over my chest. I smile a little as I notice your eyes dip down briefly. "I think it's okay if you told me. I have Mommy security clearance."

You adopt my posture and answer me in a very serious tone. "Since you put it that way, I guess I'm going to have to tell you. Emma said that…"

"Yes?"

You step back a little from me and suddenly I'm not sure I want to hear this.

"She was excited to see the elephants because their tutus remind her of you."

"Me? How could they possibly remind her of…Oh my god!" I exclaim, rattling the dishes as I drop my hand to the table. "She was 3!"

"What? I don't get it. Olivia?"

I hear the question in your voice but I'm too busy laughing. "I can't believe she…" I try to continue but I'm laughing too hard. After a few seconds, I get myself under control and bring my hands to my stomach.

"When Emma was three, she had a really bad ear infection. The poor thing couldn't get comfortable and she couldn't sleep, even with the medicine. One night, she was so miserable and crying so bad and it seemed like no matter what I did, she wouldn't stop crying. I was trying everything I could think of and was a few minutes away from just joining her. So, I'm looking around the room to try and find something to distract her, something to make her laugh, something. She had this enormous stuffed bear. A stuffed ballerina bear."

"You didn't?"

"You bet I did. I went over and took the tutu from the bear. Thank God for Velcro. I wrapped the tutu around my waist and started dancing around the room. There she is, screaming her head off at 2 in the morning and I'm dancing around like an idiot in a tutu. I was just about to give up when I heard the most beautiful thing. A sniffle followed by a giggle. Natalia, when I tell you that it was the most amazing sound in the world? That's exactly what it was. I must have danced around that room for two hours."

Just the thought of it has me shaking my head and laughing. You're laughing at me and looking down at my waist and I just know you're picturing me in that tutu.

"What happened after all that dancing?"

"I don't really remember. I just remember Emma finally getting quiet in her little bed and me waking up on the floor a couple of hours later, stiff. And still in that tutu. She was so young then. I can't believe she still remembers that."

"I don't know." You walk close to me and put your hands on my waist. "All you've done is tell me the story and I know I'll never forget it."

"If you think I'm dancing for you in a tutu, you're crazy."

"You're no fun." It's your turn to pout but your dimples ruin the effect. Brushing your hair back from your face, I lean and take a soft bite of your pouting bottom lip.

"I'm a lot of fun." I grab a handful of your hair and kiss you a little deeper, teasing your tongue out to play. It has the desired effect as you slant your mouth across mine, your hands brushing along my waist. I move closer to you until I feel your thighs against mine and very slowly bring my hands to slip inside your back pockets.

You're humming low in your chest as we kiss and as I start to knead my hands in time with our kisses, the sound starts to turn to moans. As intoxicating as those sounds are, I'm still aware of the fact that we are standing next to dirty breakfast dishes. While I'm sure the time will come when we might not make it past the kitchen floor before our clothes come off, with the whole day ahead of us, I want you back upstairs with me.

I bring my hand to the inside of your waistband and start to tug you out of the kitchen. The motion makes you pull away from our kiss and stop near the table.

"Wait." You have no idea how arousing you sound when you're breathless. "We have to put these in the sink first." Even though your protest is half-hearted, you sound so distressed by the notion of leaving them that I briefly contemplate doing what you say.

But, your hair is messy from my hands and your lips are still wet from my tongue, and I could care less about the dishes. I grab a hold of one of your hands and start to walk backwards out of the kitchen.

"Natalia, leave them. They're not going anywhere. Trust me. Come on." I cajole as I lead you out of the kitchen. "I promise, I'll clean them and put them away. Later." My voice drops as I stop walking and pull you against me.

Your mouth finds mine in a heartbeat and immediately my want for you reaches up and grabs me by the throat. My brain makes a quick decision and I turn you towards the couch.

My bed is just going to have to wait.

Just a few more steps and then I can…whoa.

Before I can even yelp a protest, you've hooked your leg behind mine, spun around and dropped me not so delicately against the couch. I rise up on my elbows to look at you, my eyebrows all the way to my hairline. "Um…"

"Single-Mom's Self Defense 101." You grin and fake crack your knuckles. "It's amazing what you remember."

I bend my knee and prop my leg against the back of the couch. Relaxing, I cross my hands behind my head and stretch my other leg out to push my foot gently against your leg. "Do I seem threatening to you?"

That earns me an even bigger smile and I feel my heartbeat kick into gear as your eyes travel in a lazy caress along my body. "You're definitely dangerous. I think I'm going to have to keep an eye on you." You're adorable when you smile like that.

"Well, if you must." Closing my eyes, I throw in a long-suffering sigh for good measure and settle a little more comfortably into the couch. All my nonchalance goes right out the window as I hear the telltale rustle of clothing.

My eyes open to find you pulling your shirt over your head. Unable to look away, I watch as your hands open the button of your jeans and start to pull the zipper down. "What are you doing?"

"Keeping an eye on you." You wriggle the jeans past your hips and I have to clear my throat before I speak again.

"Naked?"

I'm fighting to keep my voice steady but everything inside me is tightening and trembling. Looking at you standing in front of me in just your bra and panties, the simple white cotton draws my attention like a beacon and I can feel my mouth actually start to water.

You haven't taken your eyes off of me and I watch them darken as you step out of your jeans. I'm sitting up before you can take your first step towards me.

"I can get dressed if you want. If it will be easier for you." There's something in your tone that has my eyes narrowing. Control. There's too much control in your voice. I think it's time to see just how much it will take to shatter that.

"Maybe you should." I have to look down to keep from smiling as I catch the confusion on your face. I drop my feet to either side of yours and bend forward like I was going to pick up your jeans. Instead, I slide my hands along the back of your thighs and bring you closer me.

"Later." I barely get the word out before pressing a kiss against the cotton covering your center. I feel your hands dig into my shoulders as your body bows towards me. I trail my lips very slowly across the soft skin of your lower belly, pressing open-mouthed kisses from one hipbone to the other.

"Olivia…what are you doing to me?" I can hear the strain in your voice above me and I can literally feel the desire wash through my system. I keep my hands moving against the back your legs, dropping my head against your stomach as my fingertips reach the soft crease at the edge of your underwear.

On a soft grunt, your hands leave my shoulders and bury themselves in my hair. Closing my eyes, I allow my fingers to press a little firmer against you, sliding just a little bit further under the soft cotton. Your hips arch forward helplessly and suddenly I'm very aware of your arousal. The smell of you is making my head swim.

I'm so caught up in the feel of you that I don't realize you've removed your bra until you reach down and take one of my hands to press against you. Your nipple is already hard and brushes against my palm as I cup the warm weight of you. Your back is arching and your hips are pressing closer to me and I pull away with a groan.

I drop my hands and snap the waistband of your underwear. Your dark eyes are locked onto mine and I clench my jaw as your tongue darts out to lick your bottom lip.

Everything drops away. The living room. Even the sounds of the television all fade from my consciousness. There's only you.

"Take them off. Please…" I lean back as you start to remove your panties. Still watching you, I bring my shirt over my head and this simple act of undressing in front of each other steals my breath. How is it possible to want someone like this? All my life I've wanted and yet nothing compares to this.

I watch as your eyes slide from my mouth to my chest and your lips quirk into a grin. I shrug my shoulders and your fingertips rub lightly against my skin where my bra straps should have been. I hold my breath as you brush the backs of your fingers slowly across my collarbone and I can feel myself wanting to give in to your touches. To give in to you. But I pull myself back.

I want you first, almost desperately.

On a groan, I grip the back of your knees and lean further into the couch. As you lose your balance, your hands reach out to grab the back of the couch and instinctively, your knees go to either side of my legs.

My brain has a half second to register the fact that you are naked and straddling me before my hands are fisted in your hair and I'm kissing you like my life depended on it. I can feel the warmth of your legs pressing against my jeans and I kiss you harder, answering the urgent strokes of your tongue as my hands grip your waist.

Your hips have started to make little rocking movements and I realize dimly that the constant moaning is coming from me. I am aching for you and can feel my insides pulsing with every motion you make against my body.

Breathlessly, I pull back from the kiss and rest my head against the back of the couch. I can feel the quick, helpless tremors passing along your body and all I can think is more. I want more.

I bring my hands to your breasts, running my thumbs slowly against their sensitive peaks. Your head is thrown back, your hair falling like a curtain against your shoulders and I can tell that you are fighting to keep your eyes open.

That just won't do.

Without warning, I bring my fingers between your thighs and slip effortlessly into your wetness, my groan mixing with yours. Your eyes flash and darken further and stay locked on mine, even as I start to move inside you.

When I first let myself acknowledge what was happening between us, I wondered what it might be like to be with you. Would I know what to do? What really to do? And even though we were together last night and again this morning, there is a part of me that was wondering at the ease with which we've become lovers. But now, listening to your labored breathing as I touch you, listening to the sounds of your arousal, I realize I really don't care. I'm grateful but I don't care.

All I care about right now is touching you and loving you and…that. That sound right there. God.

Your hips have started moving against my fingers, arching to bring my palm against the most sensitive part of you. I want to look away from you, to watch your body as you move but I can't. You lick your lips and murmur my name on an oath. Bringing your hands from the back of the couch to my shoulders, your fingers dig into my skin as your hips begin to move more earnestly.

I slide my hand down to hold onto your hip as I feel your movements become less controlled. I sit up and bring my lips to the side of your neck, scraping the tender skin with my teeth before settling my mouth next to your ear. While your body races for release, I whisper my love, my need for you, my desire for you. Dark and intimate lover's words designed to bring you over the edge fall from my lips as easily as the groans that greet them.

I can feel your body trembling on the verge of release and my own center tightens in response. I press my palm a little harder against you and that's all it takes before your body lets go. The sound of you rocks through my system and I am uncomfortably aware that I still have my jeans on.

I gently slide my fingers from you and rest back against the couch, holding you as your body starts to relax against me. Almost lazily, I stroke your back, running my fingertips along your spine. Your breath is still racing in soft puffs against the hair at my temple and again, I wonder at your responsiveness to me. How amazing it is be loved and wanted by someone like you.

"You're amazing." I turn my head and place a soft kiss to your jaw.

I feel you laugh a little against me and lean away from you so I can see your face. "What?" Your dimples are flashing at me and I can feel myself grinning at you without knowing what I'm smiling at. "What?"

"I'm amazing?" Your hands are playing around the top button on my jeans and I can actually feel the smile fall from my face as my mouth opens. "Maybe. Maybe I am."

Pop.

There goes my second button.

Pop.

There goes the third button and now you've slid off my lap to kneel between my legs. I can't move. I can't even breathe.

Pop.

The last button slides through the hole and your hands slowly part the waistband of my jeans. You lean a little closer to me and rest your hands against my stomach.

"Want to find out?"