Posting as I sip my coffee...Yes. I love irony. :) Dedicated once again to Cls2011, Miscreant Rose, and Silvestria for more reasons than I can number.


Act IV: Hard Boiled

Her skin shivered, but not from cold.

In fact, she was warmer than she had been in months, uncertain if the small beads pearling down her neck were the result of wet hair or the fact that she standing but a breath away from this man.

This nearly naked man who had kissed her like there was no tomorrow just minutes ago.

Of course, he had been fully dressed at that point, a state which could not be used to describe either of them now. Her eyes darted down, taking in the relative non-existence of her own covering that draped revealingly over water-slicked skin. Her lungs pressed against her ribs, nervous hands twisting in a weighted silence.

This was not Matthew standing before her. And that reality both terrified and intrigued her.

"Mary," he managed, breaking the silence. His voice was deeper than she remembered, and she noticed the effort it took him to swallow. How dark his eyes had become, their blackened state stilling her breath, making uncertain limbs feel leaden.

How was it she had come to be standing in his bedroom? Like this? Her mind seemed to have deserted her as her senses took command.

"Charles," she whispered, her face moving closer towards his of its own accord. Her breath tickled his cheek, the scent of clean, damp hair making his nerves pulse out of his skin.

The stare was hypnotic, noses nearly touching, eyes revealing too much. She could feel a residual heat radiating from his chest, one inviting her to touch him, to know him in a manner quite private. He licked his lips, stalling, uncertain, her gaze fixing itself to his mouth in an expression that made him burn.

"Aren't you leaving?"

The question scraped his throat, the rough edges of his tone instigating an ache that was getting away from her.

She was leaving, wasn't she? Had that not been her intention before she stepped into this space?

"I should," she reasoned, the pulsing in her temples creating a distracting roar in her head. She was balancing precariously on the edge of something, both emotional and carnal, this living, infuriating man getting to her in places she had thought forever dormant.

"We'd be placing ourselves in a rather impossible situation if I stayed."

He blinked rapidly, his cheek twitching in response to her throaty observation. Had she actually voiced the possibility of what was thundering through his head, images he had been attempting to block in a now faltering attempt to respect her circumstances?

"I suppose we would."

His agreement only beckoned her closer, his stare heating already flaring nerve endings.

"Then I should go."

She watched in fascination as a droplet clung to a strand of his hair, following its progression as it let go of its anchor and fell wantonly to his cheek. A finger made a move, daring to trace, to touch, the look and feel of him still so unfamiliar yet fitting, somehow.

The contact sent a jolt through his body he was certain shook the room, toppling all of his good intentions to the floor. Want morphed into need, one that twisted his insides without mercy. He craved everything about her, this woman who had taken him by surprise in the oddest of places—her spirit, her laughter, her essence.

Her love? The realization punched him in the gut.

"You really should," he tried, his breathing erratic as he fought to keep his body under control, biting back the words he really wanted to say.

"Alright, then."

Had she actually spoken her response or merely thought it? Somehow, she could not remember. Her lips had formed the words, yet hardly sound had emerged, his eyes now transfixed to her mouth, her jaw, her cheek.

Those eyes. She shivered again.

"Alright, then," he finally breathed, closing what little distance remained between them.

Forehead to forehead. Breath to breath.

"Oh, Good God," he muttered.

Then his mouth touched down.

His lips rubbed across hers gently, needing, begging for more than a kiss though a touch so soft it made her ache. Her lips molded perfectly to his in response, unable to refuse this sample of newness caressing her in a gentle plea. His hand cupped her chin, tilting it towards him as nudges became bolder. Tingles shot up her leg into her spine, spurring her hands towards his chest as mouths renewed an acquaintance formed downstairs.

One palm was on her back, the other on her scalp, inching her closer, seeking consent.

It was given.

She was against him now, bodies touching with so little separation, mouths melding into a dance intensifying rapidly. She could feel his chest through the soggy material of her robe, curves firing plains as damp heat met hard warmth. A sound escaped her, tickling her senses as it pressed into his skin.

Her robe tightened about her as it was fisted against her thighs.

Slender fingers would their way around his neck as she stepped in closer, rather shocked at her own boldness as her demands continued to rise. She wanted this, needed this, a destruction of barriers that had confined her within herself. She was clawing to get out, gasping for air, seeking admittance back into her own living spirit through the flesh and soul of this man.

Yes. This man.

His hands were on the move, stroking her spine, claiming her waist, sliding her flimsy excuse of a robe off of one shoulder as his mouth met her ear. She jumped, the feel of his hand rounding her bare arms while his tongue flicked her lobe overloading any reason left to her. She arched in closer, needing his support should her legs falter.

A groan emerged from his depths, making contact with her neck. The feel of her breasts pebbling against him was just too much to take in, filling him with equal measures of feelings both tender and primal. His bottom lip slid across her jaw, his lips progressing naturally down her neck, remembering this taste of this marble slope with a relish he felt everywhere.

Yes…everywhere.

She shifted her hips against him as his mouth now seized her shoulder, a slow melt overtaking her limbs as he memorized her texture with eyes closed. Her fingers clutched his hair, so course, fuller and thicker than what her digits had known before. Air brushed her bare back, pushing her further into his warmth. When exactly had her robe pooled around her waist?

She then realized that deft fingers were making quick work of her loose tie, the sensation of his hands flitting across her naval shocking in their nearness. Deep regions suddenly felt heavy, crying out for a touch of utmost intimacy. There was then a release followed by a drop as her robe puddled at her feet, followed rather quickly by her nightgown.

And then by his towel.

Their eyes met anew, knowing so much more, taking in mysteries hidden just seconds before. He was so different, dark in regions she had known as light. She was perfection itself, so beautiful…

Yet still somewhat broken.

His heart creased painfully.

"Are you certain that you're ready for this, Mary?"

The rough texture of his voice drew her eyes, the flicker of his brow betraying an internal struggle he was attempting to conceal.

"Because if you're not, we can stop right now."

She gazed into eyes lidded with concern. She took his hand, and he encompassed hers in return, drawing it to his mouth as he kissed the rim of her fingers. She looked at this man who was offering to step back from her, even as they stood unclothed before each other.

For her. He offered this for her.

Her head was swimming.

"No," she admitted, the words nearly sticking in her throat. "I'm not certain that I'm ready for this."

His head bowed, nodding heavily as he bit his bottom lip.

"But I am certain of one thing."

Her feet stepped back into him, her hands cupping his face that now stared at her in confusion.

"And what is that?"

She could feel his body trembling as she leaned in closer, inching forward until her mouth was a mere breath from his.

"That I don't want to stop."

Then her lips took over.


Next installment out soon. :) Own nothing but my own coffee maker. But I would cherish your thoughts.