Chapter 4: I See
Carter was waiting for him on the bench by the river. In his dreams about her it was always during the warmth and crispness of autumn, when in reality weeks had passed and it was just a few days before Christmas. The starkness of the setting contrasted sharply with the beautiful woman before him. Her face lit up briefly as he approached, then settled in a smooth neutral mask, body still except for her right thumb and forefinger gently twisting the hem of her gray pea coat.
Reese sat down next to her. "I appreciate you agreeing to meet me, Joss."
"I can't stay long – we have family coming in and I'm taking the rest of the week off." She took a deep breath, "I just wanted to make sure that you were okay, that we're," her dark brown eyes searched his face, "okay."
"We are," he said.
She looked away for a moment and he realized how much he had hurt her. Tilting her head, she asked with a soft smile, "Are you going to tell me why you've been avoiding me for weeks or is this going to be another one of those things you just can't talk about?"
"I'm sorry, Joss." It was an apology and an acknowledgement of so many things that he'd never be able to tell her. "You said if we survived…," he handed her the box.
Joss' eyes widened when she saw the embossed crest. "You knew I was joking, right? You didn't have to do this." Her hands trembled slightly as she opened the lid. If the scarves had glowed in Phill's studio, they became incandescent in the sunlight, pulsating with fire and energy. "John…they're incredible, but I-"
He pulled out the dark red scarf. Longer than the scarf Joss had purchased, it unfurled in the breeze, slowly caressing her hair and face, tracing the curve of her throat and then cascading down her body. Gasping, she closed her eyes, "John, I –"
"Try it on, Joss. Please." His voice was low and hoarse.
She nodded jerkily, then opened her eyes, which had become darker, almost black and luminous, "Only if you put it on for me."
He closed the lid on the box and slipped it under the bench. Slowly he unbuttoned the collar of her stark white oxford shirt. She lifted her ponytail. He swirled the scarf around her neck three times, secured it in a loose knot at the base of her throat, let the ends tease the swell of her breasts. Cupping her face in his hands, he kissed her softly.
"You can do better than that," she whispered.
He did.
"I see," she said.
And she kissed him back.
Foreheads touching, they sat there for a moment and then Joss murmured, "I have to go. I'll call you once the coast clears and I mean that literally – it's the West Coast contingent that's visiting this week."
They stood up. Reese reached down and handed her the box. She took a few steps and then turned back, hugging him fiercely, "Merry Christmas, John."
He watched her run up the embankment, the scarf beckoning to him in the early morning wind.
TBC
A/N: One more to go. Originally I had written a short chapter, but then I realized that John has come far in this story (albeit in his own one step forward, two steps sideways, then two steps back way) and he deserves a long sexy romantic evening with Joss, so that will come next.