So, did y'all check out The River like I told you?

If not ... you must.

As for my stories ...

Here y'all go ... Enjoy! ... A/N to follow ...

Sookie's POV

"So, which one of y'all is gonna spill?" I asked, barely able to keep a straight face, glancing back and forth between Pam and Amelia, who were both sitting on my bed.

Was it surprising to me Pam and Amelia, and apparently Stan, had hooked up last night? Absolutely not, but it was a little surprising to me that both Amelia and Pam were both speechless for what was possibly the first time in their entire lives.

And they had no reason to be. I'd fully support them in whatever it was they were doing – fuck-buddies, girlfriends, or whatever they wanted to call it.

Amelia had always enjoyed the spoils of sex, with both men and women, and she and Pam had flirted around quite a bit at Christmas. Honestly, I figured it was only a matter of time before something happened between them; only I'd figured if any men were involved, it would most likely have been Tray – not Stan.

Even still - as for Stan, I didn't know him all that well, but based on some of the stories Eric had told me, before meeting him for myself, and a few he'd told, himself, since being here – it was no surprise, either. He'd apparently always been the wildest of the group, and also a bit of a playboy, from what I'd gathered, and over the years that hadn't changed one bit.

I'd just changed back into my sweats and had been standing at the foot of the bed, waiting for an answer to my question, but they still weren't saying a word. We'd been going through my closet, since breakfast, figuring out what fit and what didn't. Amelia had offered to go shopping with me, later this week, which had prompted me to try on practically everything I owned, so we'd know exactly what to buy when we went.

"Well?" I questioned smiling and still glancing back and forth between them. "Are either of you gonna say anything?" I didn't think I'd ever seen either of them this quiet before.

I'd been patient, having not mentioned anything until now. In fact, nobody mentioned anything all throughout breakfast, either, although I'd honestly convinced myself it was more for Eric, than any of them. Sure, they'd been caught with their pants down, literally, but he'd caught his sister with her pants down, so I'd assumed it went ignored for his sake.

Having walked in on my brother a few times in similar situations, I kind of knew how he felt - a mix of embarrassment, disgust, and simple ickiness, although, I sort of thought it may be a little different for him - brothers could be very protective, more so than sisters, and I wasn't really sure how the protectiveness would figure into the whole equation, but I could still empathize, for the most part.

Now that Eric wasn't around though, I wanted answers.

"Come on!" I exclaimed. "I don't want all the gory details. Just ... you know ... like are you gonna do it again? Was it a one-time thing or are you an item, now?" I asked, looking at both of them, then I shifted my focus solely to Amelia. "And ... uh ... what's up with Tray, I thought y'all were starting to get serious?"

Finally, Amelia spoke. "Tray and I see other people, and as for whether this was a one-time thing, or not," she glanced over at Pam, smiling and blushing, "uh ... was it?"

Oh shit! No wonder they'd been so quiet about it. Neither of them had a clue.

Pam quietly answered, "I hope not," as she shot a glance and shy smile back at my best friend.

I was now officially embarrassed for asking. What had felt like friendly girl talk, at first, now felt like a gross invasion of privacy. They could sort what they were doing out later, when they were alone.

"Alright ... so, now that, that's out of the way, I wouldn't mind knowing how the hell Stan got involved. I mean, honestly, I called the two of you back at Christmas," I pointed back and forth between them, "but Stan?" I was completely perplexed.

"You called us, at Christmas?" Pam challenged.

"Yes, of course I did. What did you expect - with the way y'all were flirting? Ask Eric if you want ... now, enough stalling … onto Stan." I motioned with my hand for her to keep going.

"Well, we were really drunk and I guess Stan just sort of slipped his way into mine and Amelia's little party, so to speak," Pam explained, giggling, then added, "We'd done it before, you know ... back in college and a handful of times over the years. He may be goofy, but he's really not that bad in bed ... for a man."

"I'll second that," Amelia agreed, laughing. "Now, can we talk about your wedding?" She asked. "I know you keep saying it's no big deal, but it is a big deal, Sookie. It needs to be perfect."

"Amelia, it's not that it's not a big deal; we just don't know when it's gonna be. We've got a lot going on," I insisted.

"Well, then set a date. Let Pam and I take care of everything else," Amelia countered. "I don't think that's asking too much."

"Oh, that's rich, Amelia," I chided. "Volunteering Pam?"

"I don't mind, Sookie," Pam asserted. "I'd love to help, especially if it means I get to spend time with your friend here … even if it's just through emails and the phone."

Pam seemed a bit smitten and I only hoped Amelia reciprocated. She was a bit flighty when it came to relationships, although, so was Pam, from what I'd gathered, so maybe they were perfect for each other. It would certainly be interesting to see how things would go, over time, for those two.

As for the planning of my wedding, I was completely outnumbered. "Fine, I'll talk to Eric and we'll set a damn date, but I'm not letting y'all do everything."

For the next hour or so, we discussed what I envisioned for my dream wedding and Amelia carefully took notes. It was her idea, of course. At first, I'd thought it was silly. I mean, I obviously wasn't going to get my dream wedding - there wasn't enough time or money for that, but she'd insisted on doing it, so I obliged, and from it, we actually came up with a few really doable ideas.

Once wedding talk was over, baby shower talk began, then it moved on to talk about the actual baby and my health, but our conversation didn't last much longer. Just as I showed them the ultrasound we'd gotten the night before, my phone rang.

They continued to gawk at the ultrasound, as I strode over to the dresser, where I unplugged my phone from the charger and answered it. "Hello."

"Hey, Cher, it's Sam. I'm sorry to bother you, but you said you'd call last night and I still hadn't heard from you. I was gettin' worried."

As Sam spoke I turned to see Pam and Amelia, both rising from the bed. Amelia waved, letting me know they were leaving. I nodded and waved, as I continued my conversation with Sam.

"Oh … I'm sorry, Sam. We didn't get home from the hospital until nearly midnight and I slept in pretty late, today," I explained as they left the room, then assured, "I'm fine, though, so don't be worried."

He sounded relieved, as he asked, "Well then, why did you faint? What did the doctor tell you?"

"It was my blood pressure. It was high … I guess from all the excitement, yesterday," I informed. "I'm fine now, though – really," I maintained. "But she did say she wanted me to take it easy this week, so I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I'm not gonna be able to work."

I hated the fact I couldn't work this week. I understood why, and was more than willing to take the time off – I'd do anything I was told to ensure the good health of my baby, but that didn't make it suck any less. Plus, I just hated having to put Sam in a lurch, especially when I felt fine.

He understood, though. "That's no problem, Cher. We'll get your shifts covered. What's important is that you and that baby are healthy," he insisted. "I worry about you, you know. You're not just my employee; you're my friend. I care about you, Sookie."

Sam was awesome. He was the absolute best boss, and friend – ever!

"I know you do, but there's no need to worry. Everything'll be fine."

"Will it, Cher?" he asked, gravely. "Will it be fine? I know I told you last night I was happy for you … and I am, so please don't think any differently ... but ... don't you think things are moving awfully fast between y'all? I mean, are you sure getting married is the right thing to do right now?"

"Sam," I said, totally shocked. I'd expected concern from the people we cared about – we were moving fast, but nobody, including Sam, seemed worried about us last night, so I didn't expect anybody to flip on us, today. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"Here me out, please?" he requested. "I'll support whatever you choose to do, Cher, and I'm not trying to say, y'all won't work out … in fact, I really hope you do because I know you're happy and I want you to stay that way, but once you're married, it'll be harder to get out, if things don't go as you've planned. You've only been together a couple of months, and now, you're living together and having his baby. Isn't that enough? Why complicate things more than they already are?"

I'd just been taken, completely off guard, and I still didn't even know where to begin, in formulating a response, so I stayed silent, which was apparently very telling of the fact I was upset and slightly rattled.

Sam picked right up on it. "I'm sorry, Cher. I didn't mean to upset you," he apologized. "It was pretty shitty of me to go there, after yesterday ... your blood pressure and all. You're supposed to be relaxing, and here I've gone and ruined it by making you upset. I really am happy for you. I just want you to be sure this is what you want. That's all."

"I am sure, Sam," I insisted. "This is everything I've ever wanted. Please don't worry."

Instead of telling me he wouldn't worry, or further arguing his point, he simply said, "Take care, Cher, and call me later this week about next week's schedule," then he hung up his phone.

And just like that, my good day was going downhill.

Eric's POV

It was Sunday and that meant one thing - football.

After breakfast, the girls had all taken off to the bedroom, since Bill, Stan, and I had pretty much taken over the living room.

It was a complete den of manliness, in my opinion.

In addition to my big screen TV (thank god, I'd already moved it), we each had our laptops or phones handy, so we were able to keep tabs on all the scores and stats for our fantasy league, even if we couldn't watch all the games.

Plus, we had chips and beer - which was always a good thing.

I still couldn't believe that bastard, Bill, had actually let me go upstairs to wake everyone, without warning me about what I was walking into, earlier, and he had the audacity to do it after I'd asked him to be a groomsman in my wedding. I also couldn't believe Stan, Amelia, and my sister had done what they were doing - in the middle of the morning, no less - in my house, and I'd witnessed it.

Well, actually I kind of could believe it, but regardless, it was horrible! Disgusting! Yuck! I mean, what the fuck? Had I somehow slipped into the fucking Twilight Zone?

At any rate, I'd seen what I'd seen and all I could do now was move on and hope the sight of it didn't scar me for the rest of my life. Seeing my sister like that, of all people, not to mention my best friend, and my fiancé's best friend. I wasn't pissed or anything - to each his own - but it was just downright disturbing.

"Y'all want anything?" Bill asked, standing up, not only catching Killer's attention, but also bringing my own attention back to the subject at hand - football. "More beer?"

"I'll take one," Stan answered.

I looked down at the bottle in my hand. Realizing it was almost empty, I brought the bottle to my lips, tilting back my head, and took it to the head. "Yeah, man. I'll take another," I said, handing Bill, the now-empty bottle I was holding.

"This is just like old times," Bill pointed out.

It really was.

We used to watch football together every Sunday it was on, back in college; and it was sort of sad we couldn't do it more often. I mean, I knew the logistics. We all lived in very different places, and had our own busy lives, so for that reason, it had literally been years since we'd all had the chance to hang out like this.

"It is like old times, except we're all ten years older; and things have changed a whole hell of a lot in that time," I proclaimed.

"I can't argue with that," Bill acquiesced. "And things'll keep on changin'. Change never stops. I'm married, with three kids; you're getting married, practically have a kid already, and have another on the way; all of us live in different states, and have different careers … totally different lives than we had back then, but one thing'll never change," he declared, then to keep the mood from turning too serious, he laughed and continued, "Stan'll always be a douche!" Then he turned and walked away.

As Bill disappeared into the kitchen, Killer jumped off the couch and followed him, probably hoping to get a treat and Stan shouted, "You're the douche, Billy!"

Yep, just like old times.

Seriously though, things were constantly changing, for all of us; but even through those changes, we'd always be able to come together, just as we used to – just maybe not quite as often - and this was absolute proof.

As different as we all were, we were still the same three dudes. It was really quite comforting, yet, kind of heavy shit to take in, but I didn't have to worry about getting too sentimental or serious because a pillow hit me in the side of the head, and again, I was brought back from my lingering thoughts.

"You're getting fucking married and having a baby, dude! That's some crazy shit!" Stan exclaimed out of nowhere.

Well, not exactly out of nowhere - Bill had just mentioned it, but it wasn't the primary focus of our conversation, so it wasn't exactly what I'd expected.

"Yeah, I am," I agreed, chucking the pillow back at him. "So, you gonna be my Best Man?"

I'd wanted to ask him before he left tonight; and since he'd brought up the fact I was getting married, it was the perfect time.

"Dude, are you serious?" he asked, surprised.

I nodded and assured, "I'm serious, man, but I do need to warn you, it may be a last minute thing. We have like nothing planned and all we really know is we wanna do it as soon as possible, so if you don't wanna do it, it's cool."

"Fuck yeah, I'll do it! I'd be honored! I just can't believe you're getting married … and now, I'm gonna be your Best Man!"

"Why's it so hard to believe I'm getting married?"

"Well ... I mean ... I guess I always expected you to be after Bill ... definitely before me or Pam, but you were just always so focused on your career. I guess, I just thought it would never happen," he admitted.

"What about Thalia? I was with her for a while. We were serious."

"She was a bitch. I knew you'd never marry her, but Sookie ... she's a keeper."

"I know she is," I agreed.

"And smokin' hot, too … those tits dude … They. Are. Amazing," he said, dreamily, then added, "She must've paid a pretty penny for 'em," nodding.

"What the fuck, Stan? That's my fiancé and the mother of my child you're talking about," I warned, glaring at him.

Don't get me wrong, Sookie was smokin' hot, and she did have possibly the most spectacular boobs I'd ever seen. I mean, they'd been the object of my fantasies for a while before I got to actually touch them, or enjoy them in any way, so I totally understood where Stan was coming from. I wasn't trying to deny any of those facts, but I was the only one who could say things like that about her. This wasn't college, and we didn't share women anymore! She was mine, damn it!

"And her breasts are real … and they're mine … so fuck you!" I had to at least get that much out there, even though it wasn't entirely his business.

Testosterone, I guess.

"Seriously?" he questioned, looking like a kid who'd been taunted with candy that was just out of reach.

He was jealous. My job was done, and Bill was back with our beers, so I took a drink, then just glared at him some more, letting him know the conversation was definitely over.

He caught my drift. "Sorry, dude ... just sayin'," he said, slightly snarkily, shrugging. "Anyway, I agree with what you said last night ... that you're one lucky fuck." He took a drink of his beer. "She's gorgeous; she's got a great personality; and I can tell she makes you happy. You deserve that ... even though you're a tool."

Definitely still like old times.

*s*S*s*

I'd seen my sister and Amelia sneak up the stairs, out of the corner of my eye at least thirty minutes before, but had still seen neither hide nor hair of Sookie, so I decided it was time to go check on her. I found her curled up in our bed. At first glance she looked asleep, but as it turned out she wasn't.

"Sookie," I whispered, sliding in, behind her. "You awake?"

"Mm hmm," she answered, rolling over to face me.

She didn't look as chipper as she had, earlier, at breakfast.

"Hey, you okay? You don't look so good, anymore?" I asked concerned.

She frowned, then revealed, "I talked to Sam a little bit ago. He informed me he thinks we should wait to get married."

Fuck!

Everyone had been so happy for us last night - at least they seemed that way. In fact, nobody had uttered a single negative word. We'd expected someone to voice at least a little concern, but it never happened, so I'd assumed we were pretty much home free - well, aside from my dad.

I'd thought wrong, apparently. I guess we weren't.

"I understood his reasoning - pretty much the same as your mom's ... well, mostly, like your mom's. I know we figured there'd be a little opposition, before, but after everyone acted so happy about it last night, including him; I just didn't expect it. It was sort of a blindside."

"Fuck, Sookie," I breathed, slightly frustrated. "I thought we could stop worrying about what everyone thought. I guess I was wrong. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, Eric. It's not your fault, and honestly, I think I'm more shocked than anything, not that I don't care what Sam thinks, but he knows we're happy, so he'll come around," she proclaimed, attempting to look and sound optimistic, but I could see right through it.

Rolling onto my back, I pulled her into my arms, resting her head on my chest. "He will," I soothed. "He will."

We'd eventually make him and anyone else that didn't agree, see that what we were doing was right.

Sookie's POV

Evening came with a quickness, and that meant a house full of people, yet again.

Stan, Bill, Pam, and Amelia were all still here, and on top of them, Jason had showed up earlier than expected, bringing Hunter home, and secretly hoping, I think, that I'd made a home-cooked Sunday dinner, since Tara was working today.

I hadn't.

Eric wouldn't let me cook, though I'd tried. When he figured out what I was doing, he'd insisted I continue resting and stay off my feet, that he'd take care of dinner – which he hadn't done, yet, as far as I knew.

He hadn't left the house, or started cooking – that, I was sure of. He'd been sitting with me, cuddled up, in the living room floor watching football for quite a while; only getting up a few times – once to get us drinks and go to the restroom, and a couple times to check on Hunter, who was completely nuts, showing off for all the company by chasing Killer around the house.

Jason had apparently allowed him to have entirely too much sugar before bringing him home and I seriously hoped we'd be able to get him to sleep tonight, since school started back in the morning.

Speaking of my brother, shortly after he'd arrived, we'd told him about my fainting. It really wasn't that big of a deal, since I was fine; but since so many people had been here when it happened, we figured we'd better fill him in. We didn't want him or Tara finding out from someone else, since that would only cause unneeded worry.

The first chance we got, Eric and I told him I'd fainted, and what all Dr. Ludwig had told us. We were getting pretty good at recounting it, seeing as how we'd told the story a few times, already - at least the Dr. Ludwig part.

Once we'd finished, Stan took over, adding his own embellishment to what we'd already explained. Stan's side of things included things like how "his boy", Eric, had leapt off his stool and right to my side before anyone could even blink, and how "his boy" had saved the day, and how Jason was so lucky to have "his boy" to look out for his little sister.

It was freaking hilarious, although, in Stan's defense, he was drunk, and a little excited, I think.

Earlier, Eric had asked him to be his Best Man and afterwards Stan wanted to celebrate, so despite the fact both Eric and Bill stuck to beer, he'd started doing shots. It had obviously resulted in him wanting to do nothing more but gush about "his boy", like he had a man-crush, but he did make Eric seem so damn awesome, so I couldn't complain or be jealous.

Eric's awesomeness aside, it was now dinner time, and I was starving.

I shifted around, slightly, and insisted, "Eric, it's after five. If you're not gonna let me cook, you really need to get something going for dinner. I'm hungry."

He smirked and assured, "Dinner's on its way. I ordered pizzas earlier, when I went to get a beer. They'll be here any minute."

A huge smile immediately fashioned itself on my face, all because he'd ordered pizza. The baby loved pizza, as far as I could tell. It had been one of the things I'd been having endless cravings for, and it didn't seem to matter if it was breakfast, lunch, or dinner, hot, lukewarm, or cold. I just couldn't get enough -especially if it had olives and banana peppers on it.

"Please tell me you got olives and banana peppers?" I was smiling, but dead serious.

"Of course I did." He grinned and winked. "I know what the baby likes."

"It's so weird. Banana peppers I've always loved, but I couldn't stand olives before I was pregnant," I giggled.

As it turned out, Eric wasn't lying when he said the pizzas would arrive any minute. Not two minutes later they were delivered, and when Eric took the steaming hot boxes of goodness into the kitchen, everyone rose to follow.

I waited, allowing everyone else to go first, despite the fact I was starving, so by the time I actually stood, Eric was back by my side.

"And just what do you think you're doing?" he questioned, seriously.

"Uh … getting dinner for myself and Hunter," I answered, not fully understanding the issue at hand, although, I could tell by his tone and the look on his face, there was one.

"You need to stay off your feet," he insisted for the zillionth time today.

Ah. That was the issue. I really should have known, since it wasn't the first time he'd told me to rest, or to stay off my feet, today, but it really hadn't occurred to me. It wasn't like I was straining myself to get my own slice of pizza, or Hunter's.

It sort of made me want to scream.

But, I knew he was only doing it because he loved me and cared about mine and the baby's well being, so even though he was being completely paranoid and ridiculous, I took a deep breath and reclaimed my seat in the floor, giving in. "Get Hunter's first, please," I requested.

"Pam's already helping Hunter." He leaned over, kissing the top of my head then pulled away smiling and admitted, "I know I'm driving you nuts, but I'm only doing it because I love you."

"I know, and I love you, too, Eric ... and I appreciate everything, but Dr. Ludwig ... she didn't confine me to bed. I can do some stuff for myself," I informed, nodding. "She just doesn't want me doing anything strenuous, or being on my feet all day at work ... or dealing with nasty, ungrateful customers," I added, giggling. "Normal things, like running to the store, cooking, cleaning ... well, not like super duper spring cleaning type stuff, but dusting, vacuuming, doing the dishes ... getting my own dinner ... I can do all that."

"I know you can, but I want to take care of you, Sookie. Please, just let me," he pleaded, crouching down beside me and taking my hands in his. "I go back to work tomorrow, and then you can be independent all you want ... at least till I get home, but please just let me have tonight to treat you like my queen ... because that's what you are, you know?"

Where had this man come from and why did it take me so long to find him? How the hell did I even deserve him? I was pretty sure he'd just said the absolute sweetest and nicest thing anyone had ever said to me.

Needless to say, for remainder of the evening, I kept my mouth shut and let him do his thing, taking care of me how he saw fit - for the most part. It was really tough to argue with a man who'd called me his queen, even if he did drive me nuts sometimes.

Eric's POV

The evening and weekend were officially over and the house was quiet again. My sister and my friends had left a couple hours ago, a little after dinner, all having planes to catch, Jason and Amelia left shortly thereafter, and I'd finally gotten Hunter to go to sleep - a feat I thought I'd never accomplish.

It had taken over an hour, thanks to Jason. He'd admitted to letting him eat pretty much nothing but sugar all day - for breakfast, Fruity Pebbles; for lunch peanut butter and jelly, and for a snack before coming home, ice cream and Oreo cookies. All of which would have been okay, but just not all together in one day.

Was he crazy?

Sookie was watching TV, when I finally fell into bed beside her. "I really could kill your brother," I huffed. "He gave Hunter nothing but sugar all day long ... and you know he knew better," I vented. I took a breath, trying to squelch my frustration.

"He was a hyper-active, little shit all evening, wasn't he?" she asked, actually having the insolence to giggle as she spoke.

"That's putting it nicely," I countered, seriously, glaring at her. "And, I don't see how any of this is funny. Your brother turned our kid into a straight up, demon, today, and then left! We're the ones stuck with the consequences, not him! What the fuck? Really!"

She smiled - which sort of pissed me off - but didn't say a word, however, before I had a chance to voice my grievance, her lips crashed into mine, effectively shutting down my rant, enrapturing me almost instantly - making me forget what I'd even been grumbling about in the first place.

At the time, I didn't catch on she was using a page from my own book to calm me. All I knew, was the way her lips felt on mine.

Like pure, unadulterated magic.

My hands found her face and rested against her cheeks, cupping them, as her lips parted and our tongues began to dance, deepening our kiss and moving things to a whole new level. A level I wasn't exactly expecting, or sure how to handle, but at any rate, I did not want any of it to end - at least not yet.

She was my temptress, indeed - a fact I'd known, but hadn't really thought about in months, at least not since I'd finally given in to her. She was put on this earth for me, and only me, just as I was, for only her - another fact of which I was absolutely sure, and because of it, I'd never be able to resist her, nor would I ever get enough of her.

Her hands wandered along my chest, down my sides, and even further, igniting a fire within me. A fire that burned white hot, and completely out of control fueling my need for her.

Nevertheless, I was conflicted.

A part of me was nagging, from within, to stop, but fuck, I didn't want to, nor did I know if I could.

I ignored it.

That is, until her hand stumbled upon my erection, which was straining against the soft cotton of my boxer briefs. The warm friction of her hand as her fingers firmly wrapped around me, stroking, sent waves of pleasure coursing throughout my body, and straight to the point of no return.

It was now or never.

It was my one last chance to give in to the more sensible part of myself. To do what was best for the woman I loved and my child she was carrying. To ignore what my body and what most of my mind wanted more than anything else - to ravage her.

Very reluctantly, I pulled away from her, breaking our kiss. "Sookie," I said, to get her attention, but instead it came out sounding more like a strangled moan of satisfaction - which only urged her on.

I almost lost it right there and gave in, but somewhere, deep down inside, I found the strength I needed.

I placed my hand on top of hers, stopping her ministrations and she gazed at me, questioning me with her slightly confused, yet brilliant blue eyes. "We can't, Sookie," I insisted, still a little breathless from our kissing. "I want to." Oh god, I wanted to! She had no idea how badly I wanted to! "But we can't."

My cock did not agree with my words.

Showing its discontent, it twitched and begged for her to continue, again, pleading for the friction and for the warmth of her touch. Despite what it wanted, I firmly kept my hand in place, denying her the opportunity to oblige, knowing that if I let her, there would be no more attempts to stop, from me.

It would all be over.

"We can," she contended, just as breathless as I'd been, as she shifted herself onto my lap, straddling me, while at the same time, leaning forward, capturing my lips for a second time with her own.

I was in trouble!

She was on a mission, and fuck, I couldn't blame her. I wanted her with as much fervor, but if she continued to fight me on this, it was going to be much harder to abate her, or my raging hard on, than I'd originally thought - which was really saying a lot considering my original thought on the matter was: nearly impossible.

I slunk back, and away, but she thwarted my retreat, leaning further forward, her lips still firmly attached to mine, so I attempted to use my hands, intending to hold her away - which turned out to be my one big mistake.

As I placed my hands on her shoulders, holding her body and her lips a safe distance from my own, I immediately knew I'd fucked up. Her caressing resumed and again, I felt mounting pleasure inside me.

It took every single bit of strength inside myself to remain in control.

I wavered a bit, yet stood firm. "No ... the baby ... aaaahhhh ... Oh shit! ... strenuous activity," I maintained, stammering, barely able to hold myself together.

"Shut up, Eric," she ordered. "Stop worrying and fuck me."

I loved it when she took charge - especially when she talked dirty like that.

I nodded, reaching for the waistband of her panties, ready to rip them right off her body, then conveniently remembered why I'd been fighting her in the first place. Knowing there was no going back if we went any further, and fearing she was too far gone to fully grasp my concerns, I reiterated, "It won't be too much?"

"It'd be worse if we didn't," she insisted, huskily, her voice filled need that could only rival my own. "I need this."

There was no further argument. Besides, after our weekend, I needed it, too.

And just like that, I surrendered, totally and completely giving myself over to her, wanting nothing more than to experience the gratification, only she could bring me and to share with her the contentment that only I could deliver unto her.

Sex with Sookie was beyond amazing. It was so much more than just sex. It was a spiritual experience - each time being better than the last, and this time was no different as she moved herself atop me, her warm, slick walls, hugging my dick like a glove, sending ecstasy shooting throughout my entire body.

She was made for me, indeed.

"Mmmm, you feel so fucking good, riding me, but you're supposed to be resting," I pointed out, breathlessly, waggling my eyebrows with a slight smirk on my face.

With great swiftness, I wrapped my arm around her waist and flipped us. Now she was on her back and it was my job to do all the work. She squealed - my sudden shifting of us taking her by surprise, and I chuckled at her reaction, but once I began to move my hips, she recovered quickly, and fell right back into the rhythm of our coupling.

I kissed her roughly on her mouth, then set my sights somewhere else completely.

Running my hand up her side, from where it had been resting on her hip, and trailing my mouth down her neck and shoulders, gently kissing and nipping along the way, they met in the middle, my hand cupping her breast as my mouth teased her pebbled nipple.

I shifted my eyes up to watch her as teased her breasts with my hands and mouth. Her eyes were closed and she was biting her bottom lip.

It may have been the hottest thing I'd ever seen.

After a few moments, I shifted again; this time to my knees. Holding her hips, I resumed at the same pace as before, only now at a completely different angle. Each thrust, nailing her sweet spot, perfectly. This I could tell from the moans, grunts, and groans which fell sweetly from her lips like music to my ears.

I couldn't help but smile as I gazed down at her naked body beneath me, knowing the great joy I was bringing her, and knowing only I would ever bring her that kind of joy again.

Cocky - I know - but we were forever and I knew it, looking down at her, in that moment. I would never be with anyone else. I'd never give her up.

My thumb had found her clit, and things had quickly intensified tenfold. My pace had quickened, her back was now arched, and her fingers were gripping hard at my thighs, causing a slight sting - which only intensified the pleasure with which I was quickly being overcome.

She was quickly being overcome, too.

I saw the tension building in her muscles and in her face, as I took in the sight of her body, writhing below me. I watched as it increased, building to a crescendo until finally, it snapped like an elastic band. She cried out as it snapped and her walls fluttered around me, sending me on to my own release. A strangled grunt escaped my lips as I thrust one final time before collapsing on the bed beside her, smiling.

We both lay breathless and completely relaxed - the perfect ending to our weekend from hell.

I wrapped my arm around her waist, teasing her hip with the tips of my fingers, and kissed her on the cheek.

"You okay?" I asked, still breathing shallowly.

"Uh huh," she answered, dreamily, lightly nodding her head.

"I was worried for a minute it might be too much," I pointed out, still struggling to catch my breath.

"Never," she assured.

We lay there, lazily, for a few minutes, recovering from our bliss, but eventually we righted ourselves, knowing Hunter was home. He could walk in unexpectedly at any given moment, so unfortunately, basking in the afterglow of incredible sex, wasn't something we could enjoy - at least not for long.

"We need to set a date for the wedding," Sookie suggested, as I flipped through the guide on the TV. "I still think we should do it as soon as we can and on top of that, Pam and Amelia are pressuring me. They want to help plan and to do that; they need a date."

Relief washed over me. "I'm glad to hear you still want to do it soon. I've gotta admit, with the opposition we've faced, I was a little worried you'd decide you wanted to wait," I admitted.

The last thing I wanted to do was wait. Even though our time together had only been short, I wanted to call her my wife and I wanted to do it sooner, rather than later.

She winced and revealed, "I can't say the thought of waiting didn't cross my mind, but I guess at some point this weekend I realized none of this is about your mom, or Sam. It's about us, and what we know is right ... and getting married before I'm huge and before the baby comes is right."

"Well, then, let's set a date!" I exclaimed. I was so glad we were on the same page. I'd been worried about it since the episode with Mom. "We have to get the license first, and I really can't say for sure when we can do that ... definitely in the next couple weeks, though."

"So, why don't we pick a date far enough in the future that we're sure we can have the license and have everything planned, but soon enough that I won't look like a cow."

"Sookie, you're gorgeous; and you're never gonna look like a cow," I insisted.

"Eric, the date," she chided.

I guess she didn't want to argue over whether she'd look like a cow or not.

"Well, I don't know, Sookie. I'd marry you tomorrow if we could. How long do you think it'll take to plan? We aren't doing anything really big, are we?"

That was all up to her. I wanted to give her the wedding she wanted. I didn't care if we got married at Bon Temps Town Hall, dressed in paper bags, or if we had a wedding to rival that of a fairy tale. I just wanted to marry her.

"No, I don't think I want anything big ... just us, and our close friends and family … nothing big. We could probably pull it together in two or three weeks if we hurried." She got quiet for a moment, her face looking as if she was in deep thought.

"In three weeks, I'll be fourteen weeks. I shouldn't be even really showing then and if I am, it won't be much." She leaned over and picked up her Word-of-the-day calendar off the nightstand and flipped through it. "Three weeks from today is January twenty-third. We could go for the last weekend in January," she suggested, smiling.

I wanted to get married, soon; but with her health, I definitely didn't want her taking on too much. The end of January was pushing it, in my opinion; if she wanted to do anything more than visit the Courthouse's Justice of the Peace.

"Well, I don't want you getting too rushed and too worried about our wedding," I insisted, taking the calendar from her hands and flipping through it, into the next month. "That's the last thing you need to be stressed over. Why don't you give yourself a little more time?" I urged, pointing to a different date. "This ... this should be our wedding day."

I smiled in triumph, knowing that I'd picked the perfect day and that she'd surely see it my way and agree.

She beamed at me, smiling, and exclaimed, "That's perfect, Eric! Perfect!"

I hoped you liked it ...

Coming up next ... we'll be seeing a Sookie/Bea Northman (Eric's Mom) convo, and maybe even a little of his dad! Oh ... and a little of what all the lady teachers at Eric's school are thinking about all this!

It's exciting stuff! At least I think it is!

So ... Tell me what you thought, and what date do you think Eric chose?

I wanna know!

As always, thanks for all the reviews ... I may have missed responding to a couple this time, so it's really important I say that.

And, also, BIG THANKS to Northwoman for betaing! Any mistakes left are mine because I just can't ever post a chapter without fooling around with it in some way!

Oh ... and as always, everything belongs to Charlaine Harris.