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CHAPTER TEN – RELAXING IN SUNSHINE
The light patter of rain greeted John as he opened his eyes to the morning light. Feeling excessively sleepy, he closed his eyes again and slipped back into a light snooze. Only the full pull of sleep drifted out of reach, the air feeling too thick in the room around him, the humidity from yesterday still lingering. He vaguely remembered waking a few times through the night, the air over the bed having felt uncomfortably heavy and warm, but with the giving mattress under him and Teyla snuggled up against his side, he had felt so good that he had simply been able to push the covers off him and slip back into sleep. That was impossible now though, and recalling last night so vividly, his mind began to sharpen and he opened his eyes to the morning.
The soft patter of rain against glass was growing louder across the room, offering the promise of fresh air to break the heavy humidity inside. If he opened a window, the air would break through the heavy warm weight, but that would require him getting up and moving away from the bed. He wasn't all that impressed with that idea, especially as he rolled his head to the side and Teyla came into view. She wasn't lying right up against him anymore, having rolled away onto her back, her furthest arm flung out across the mattress. Her closest leg was draped over his though, and her closest arm was tucked up against his side, while his left arm stretched out under her pillow, somehow having retained enough blood supply through the night. She was wearing that nice thin blue pyjama top he had seen the other night, but nothing else. The top had been pushed up in her sleep, the material now bunched up around her ribs, leaving a wide strip of bare belly visible down to where the bedcovers lay across her hips. She looked good enough to eat.
He lifted his head from the pillow to take in a better view of her, but the stuffy heat of the room became more apparent the more awake he became. Looking past the tempting sight of Teyla, he focused on the closed balcony doors across the room against which the rain was splattering. Fresh air really would be good.
He gently extracted his left arm from under her pillow as he sat up, providing himself with another great view of her. She stirred slightly as he slipped out from under her leg, but she didn't look like she was going to wake any time soon, so he only lightly ran his hand over her leg as he pushed the last of the covers off him and slowly stood up from the bed.
His body felt as heavy as the air, but good. The sweet feeling of relaxation only got better as he took in the view beyond the balcony doors. From up here, he could see the cove stretching out in both directions, the headlands seeming to protectively curve inwards at both ends. The tops of palm trees danced in the light shower of rain and, as he opened the balcony doors, sweet fresh air, smelling of the ocean, rushed in around him.
He stood for a long moment, drinking it all in as he ran a hand through his hair, his mind now properly clearing. He leaned a little out of the doors to look down towards next door, but everything looked as still in Salisbury's villa as it was over here. He wasn't wearing his watch so had no idea what time it was, but judging by the light level and his beard growth, he guessed it was still early. Plenty of time to go back to bed he concluded, and so he turned away from the rain and the beautiful view to take in an even better one.
Teyla lying across their shared bed.
The renewed delight of that fact made him pause just to simply watch her sleep. He trailed his eyes over her relaxed beautiful face, down the elegant swells of her chest and along the tempting expanse of her bared belly. He had dislodged the covers further down the bed when he had gotten up so that he could now see the smooth naked line of her left hip.
It was official – this was definitely a dream vacation.
Smiling, he moved back round the bed, his eyes never straying from her, as he adjusted the waistband of his boxers against his cooling skin. At which point, he realised he had been standing in the open doors of the balcony with a hard on for anyone walking down the road to see. Fortunately there hadn't been anybody out there – at least that he'd seen! It seemed that he and Teyla had slipped into some exhibitionism staying here, what with all the wide windows and open views of the ocean. If anyone had walked by the villa last night, they would have gotten a right eyeful.
Grinning with the memories from last night, he climbed quickly back into his place in the bed, settling into the cooling space next to her. She inhaled delicately as the mattress shifted as he laid down beside her, and she murmured, her eyelids sleepily lifting a fraction.
"Mornin'," he whispered, feeling excitement beginning to mix in with pleasure as he took the opportunity to slide his hand across her belly now that she was officially awake.
She murmured an indistinct reply, but her lips widened and lifted with a sleepy smile, her hand settling back against him chest. He slipped his leg a little over hers this time as he settled properly onto his side next to her.
He was actually lying in bed with Teyla.
Just like in that 'future' vision.
"Guess that jump to the future might be real after all," he considered quietly, his voice rather dry from sleep. He cleared his throat as he ran his hand in a smooth circle around her belly.
She chuckled lightly and slid her hand a little higher up his chest, the backs of her fingers caressing softly – just as she had done in that future vision. Only this time he was actually feeling it in real time, and there was no barrier of clothing between them. The feel of her touch, teasing gently through his chest hair, stirred his blood, but also settled a sense of warm satisfaction deep inside him. He dipped his chin to press a gentle kiss to her upper chest, just below her closest collarbone.
"Best vacation ever," he confirmed as he inhaled against her skin.
"Indeed it is," she replied quietly, and he pulled back to look down at her face. Her eyes were now fully open, but still slightly hazy with sleep, and perhaps pleasure. "And you got to sleep in the big bed," she added recalling his comment last night as they had nearly stumbled through the darkness up the stairs to collapse in bed. He had asked her, knowing full well that he wasn't going have to sleep on that stupid couch in the study again, if he could sleep in the 'big bed' with her.
"Stupid couch," he muttered again as he smiled and began to softly caress across her belly again, enjoying the chance to just touch her. He had explored so much of her last night, but it had been so much darker, whereas now he could watch his hand slide over her golden skin in the full light of day. There was something even sexier about touching her in the daytime, as if it somehow made it all the more lasting.
She laughed deeply at his muttering about the couch as she stretched out sleepily against the mattress, arching, twisting and unfurling her body. He watched the show with wide eyes and teasing light touches along the elongated line of her waist and belly, then lightly over the peaking promise of her breasts under her pyjama top.
"You could have slept beside me that first night," she said in what was now clearly a truthful statement, but he knew she also meant it in playful teasing.
"Well, I know that now," he replied with a grin as he stroked his palm across her middle and down the far side of her waist.
Fresh cooler air was sliding through the room and might have been responsible for the tightening peaks of her nipples inside her top, but he liked to think that it was just because of him. He recalled the glorious sight of her naked breasts last night, remembered the arousing feel of them, loving how they had grown fuller in his hands and against his mouth.
"In fact, it seems clear now that you could have been sharing my bed for many months now," she added with a self-satisfied smile, now clearly wide-awake.
He liked this soft aroused and playful version of her. Sliding under the weight of his hand and leg, she turned onto her side towards him, her hand gliding onto his hip, her fingertips sneaking just under the waistband of his boxers. He slid his leg further over hers in response and felt the smooth length of her thigh push slightly between his. He ran his hand around over her hip to her bare backside, pushing the covers out the way as he did, and encouraged her closer to him. She shifted willingly closer, her nose and lips brushing his cheek, but he held back from sharing the kiss she wanted just yet. He could tease too.
"You could have said something," he told her, needing to at least make the point.
She pulled her head back from his a little so that their gazes could meet more comfortably lying so close. Only he found the golden arch of her cheeks, jaw and lips were too distracting when so close to her. But, her eyes lowered, her expression becoming subtly more serious, as she watched her fingers circle one of his nipples, sending a warm arousing sensation through him.
"I just assumed that since you had said nothing, that you saw no opportunity in the end of my relationship with Kanaan," she said, her eyes lifting slowly up to meet his again. "I should have spoken about my situation more with all of you," she admitted.
John nodded emphatically at her. "Yes, you should have," he said softly. "No one's going to judge you badly, Teyla," he added, remembering her comments out in the surf last night. He hated to think of her worrying about some misguided opinions that shouldn't matter. "Though," he added, hoping to lift the mood again, "maybe they will about you being with me."
She grinned more brightly than he had expected, making him grin back at her like the lovesick puppy he suspected he looked like. He got the impression that she had liked his comment about being with him as much as appreciating his joke.
"I have perhaps been a little too private about certain matters," she concluded as her fingertips glided along his right collarbone. He could happily just lie here being petted by her all day.
"Says the woman who stood naked downstairs while spying on her neighbours last night," he replied to make her smile again and to remind them both of those sexy memories.
She had looked amazing stood entirely naked in the living room, faint moonlight highlighting her smooth feminine lines and the tight peaks of her nipples. He hadn't been able to keep his hands off her, especially once it had been clear that Salisbury hadn't been up to anything blaringly guilty last night as he stood arguing out on the street. John was still convinced it had been some sort of domestic, especially as Annette had slammed the door in Salisbury's face at the end. Teyla had gotten the photos they needed while he had been more interested in continuing the naked exciting moment with her.
Clearly the memory was just as fun for her, because he watched a delicate flush of pink spread across her cheeks. He chuckled at her pained yet amused wince at the reference to her naked hiding and spying last night. He had just loved watching her make her way 'mission impossible style' through the villa last night, keeping carefully out of view of next door as she had stealthily made her way between pieces of furniture to where she could watch what was happening. All while being completely naked. He knew he would be chuckling over those great memories for a long time to come.
Only, right now, he was more interested in forming some new memories. He leant in and kissed each of her pink cheeks and then nuzzled into the warm sweetly woman scented space where her jaw met her throat. He smoothed his palm down her side, around her hip, and down tightly over her backside.
"I am not entirely sure where my dress ended up last night," she considered breathily as she arched her neck back for him.
"We'll do a thorough search later," he promised her as he pressed another kiss to her smiling cheek and cupped her backside.
She chuckled deeply as she leant against him, her hands pressing against him, her uppermost leg sliding right up over his hip. He rolled onto his back for her, pulling her with him and gloried in the sight of her sitting up over him, her hands sliding down his chest as she settled her naked backside across him more thoroughly.
"I think that sounds a wonderful idea," she suggested seductively, which sent another excited thrill right though him.
He drew in a deep aroused breath as she leant down over him, her mouth descending towards his.
"Definitely the best vacation ever," he whispered as her lips met his.
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She stretched her legs out onto the edge of the table and contemplated the view through the front windows of their villa. The view did not get any less wondrous to watch after three days here.
The rain yesterday had broken the heavy thick humidity, not that she and John had ventured out of their bedroom for many long hours yesterday. After a shared shower, which had taken entirely too long due to frequent 'distractions', they had eaten lunch downstairs, watching the villa next door through the falling rain.
They had talked, laughed and teased. With a light blanket over them, they had sat together watching the then pouring rain together, John's arm around her and the strong slide of his skin under her exploring touch. After a late meal, they had spent the entire evening upstairs, once more kissing, touching, exploring and somehow finding a lasting stamina that had enabled to them to enjoy hours of play, including a wide variety of sexual positions. It had assisted him in lasting longer, but it had also become a playful game, a 'sharing of cultural positions', as John referred to it.
She grinned as she sipped from her tall glass of fruit juice. They had been more restrained so far today, mostly because they had been quite worn out from their entire day of play yesterday. Not that sitting beside him on the beach this morning hadn't been a very fulfilling experience in itself. Annette and Salisbury had joined many others sitting on the beach today, the day's clearer air after yesterday's rain, having tempted everyone out. It had hardly been a difficult assignment for her and John to also stretch out on the sun-streaked beach as well. With occasional breaks to cool off in the water, it had been yet another example of how wonderfully relaxing this mission continued to be.
She had particularly enjoyed John walking around bare-chested, his skin deepening in colour as the morning had progressed. She had assisted him in applying sun block, but had not let him help her do the same, because she had recognised the look in his eyes, now with her new knowledge of him – applying cream to her back would have quickly led to other things.
"Just trying to be helpful," he had replied, pretending to feel rejected, but she had known that he would have gotten them distracted.
She had leant in towards him and pressed a kiss to his lips to repair his false hurt. "You can assist me in applying my moisturiser later instead," she had promised him as she had pulled back. It had felt spectacularly enlivening to kiss him in the open, with others around them. It was not common to show such open displays of sexual affection in public among her people, it was usually left for inside the tent. However, she was not limited by those considerations with him. He enjoyed touching her, when they were out of the villa or not, though obviously the areas he touched her varied in public. She saw no reason why sharing a light kiss was not appropriate in public, and it was common enough on Earth. She liked the freedom to do so, and know that there was no one around who knew them, so they could be as relaxed as they wanted, and she felt thoroughly relaxed.
She sipped some more of her drink as she regarded the hotter sun outside. They had come inside for lunch, but the Salisburys had remained out on the beach. From her station looking out the front window, she could see the edge of Salisbury's sun chair through the vegetation between the beach and the road.
It was nice to be inside in the cooler shade now, especially while John was out purchasing them some more food and pursuing some investigation. He had struck up a routine to visit the entertainment area to talk with the barman each day, ostensibly to buy his favourite beer, but actually gaining tiny useful nuggets of information.
Across the road, Annette appeared from the beach, one hand securely holding her wide floppy sunhat on her head as she headed towards her villa. Annette did not notice Teyla watch her progress up the driveway and inside. A few minutes later, a car headed down the road and pulled up in front of the villa. Teyla watched as Annette reappeared and headed down to the waiting car. She had changed out of her beachwear and she was carrying the same large handbag as she had had at the clubhouse. Annette did seem overly happy today, on the beach as well as now as she opened the car door. Teyla suspected her mood was likely due to her argument with Salisbury the other night, which may have left a lingering tension between them.
Whilst he had been on the beach, Salisbury had barely spoken to his wife, instead he had spent most of his time in conversation on his cell phone. He had sat under a wide umbrella for most of the time, his laptop balanced on his knees and his phone against his ear. Though it had hardly been an enjoyable morning with him for Annette, the overheard phone conversations on the beach had been very useful for Teyla and John to overhear. It had become obvious quite quickly that all the conversations, some quite heated, had been concerning the potential purchasing of some land. It was not overly useful for her and John, but worth knowing.
Clearly Annette was now planning to spend the rest of her day away from Salisbury, for she climbed into the dark car and pulled the door shut loudly. As the driver turned the car around, Teyla caught a glimpse of a woman at the wheel, talking and smiling. She was most likely a friend of Annette's. The car drove off down the road and out of view, so Teyla returned her attention to the beach, only to see Salisbury was returning himself, Terry following him while carrying the umbrella and the laptop. Salisbury was talking away on his cell phone again. He really did seem quite obsessed with his work to be continuing on so determinedly whilst on vacation in such a wonderful place as this.
Salisbury and Terry disappeared into the villa, only for Terry to reappear almost immediately and head away down the road, until he too disappeared out of Teyla's view.
She sipped her drink and decided this truly was the easiest and most enjoyable of missions.
Another car turned into the road and proceeded down towards the end villas. Teyla watched its progress, the sun shining off the front window, blocking the driver's identity from her. The car slowed and pulled into Salisbury's driveway. Teyla leant forward to follow the car's progress down the side drive and it stopped a discrete distance from the road. Salisbury appeared out of the front door of the villa, having changed into a new shirt and with a baseball cap pulled down over his eyes. He locked the front door behind him and walked across the lawn. As he walked he looked down the road and then back round, his gaze suddenly sliding over the honeymoon villa. Teyla quickly adjusted the angle she was looking in, so that she would appear in profile to him, just sitting enjoying the view. She remained still, sipping her drink, letting him lose interest if he had looked at her. She heard conversation from the driveway and risked looking back round. Salisbury was stood by the new car and Teresa was with him. Teyla realised that the car was of the same design as the one that had been parked out the front of Salisbury's villa the other night – it was Teresa's car.
Teyla leant back further in her seat so that she could see out the side window, and she saw Salisbury pull Teresa up against him. It looked like quite a rough kiss, but Teresa wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. Teyla frowned – the affair was true then, and there they were kissing in broad daylight.
The kiss ended as quickly as it had begun and the couple climbed into the car. They were off somewhere together, likely not work related if Teresa's very low cut top was any indication. The car reversed down the driveway, during which Teyla lifted a magazine she had kept close to her side in case she needed to appear distracted. She focused on an article about losing weight from one's hips, as she listened to the car pull away and head down the road. The car gone, she dropped the magazine aside. They were both gone, so her sentry duty could relax, but she was happy to remain exactly where she was, feet up, cold drink in her hand, with her view of ocean and the scent of it breezing in through an open window.
After a short time, as she watched a family packing up and leaving the villa three doors down, she spied John approaching in the distance down from the entertainment building. She could recognise him in a crowded room anyway, but now her interest lingered in the long lean length of him, enjoying the narrowness of his hips, his broad shoulders, and the way he smiled at the people packing up their car. He exchanged some words with them, smiling, as he carried on, a large bag in his arm that held their shopping. The sun glimmered against his sunglass as he neared, but she could tell when he spotted her watching him, for he smiled.
He had been smiling a lot these past days, and it pleased her so thoroughly to know that in sharing more with her that he could be so happy. He certainly made her happy, just seeing him walking through the sunshine, the ocean's breeze playing lightly with his hair and the parted collar of his shirt made her feel deliriously joyful. She watched him reach the path to their villa and he twisted to look back to the beach, seeking out the Salisburys, not having seen them leave. As he returned his attention toward her and the path up to their front door, she shook her head towards the beach, communicating that their targets were gone.
Teyla leant back in her seat as she watched his progress up to their front door and then she looked back through the open plan space towards the lobby area waiting for him to appear.
"Hey, Hunny," he called, which he had settled on as his pet name for her on this trip, and it was delivered with a playful tone each time.
"Hello, Snookums," she called back with the same tone, enjoying their game, as he shut the door and appeared in her view.
"I saw Annette go past in the dark blue car," he reported as he headed across to the breakfast bar and set his bag down. "Salisbury in the villa?"
"No," she reported with interest. "He returned just after Annette left, and then Teresa drove up," she paused pointedly. "And I am certain now that her car is the one we saw that first night from the beach." It had not been their first night here, but it had been their first night together.
"The big black four by four?" John asked as he pulled out items from the bag and set them on the worktop along with his sunglasses.
"Yes," Teyla confirmed. "She parked up the driveway and he came out to her. They kissed and then drove off together," she finished, rather delighting in sharing the news with him.
"I've got better than that," John replied though, as he pulled out two bottles of beer from the pack he had put into the fridge. "You want one?" He offered.
"No, I still have some juice," she replied, sensing that he had some very interesting information to impart and that he was enjoying holding back from telling her.
She watched him put the lid of his beer free and expertly flick it across the kitchen into the sink. "I've got three great bits of information," he reported with a grin.
"Oh?" She enquired, smiling at his clear pleasure at his success as he took a swallow from his beer. He had a lovely long masculine neck. She thoroughly enjoyed kissing it.
"First off, about what we heard this morning," John began as he walked from the kitchen into the living space. "Salisbury's trying to get his hands on a piece of land further up the shore, but it's close to protected parkland, so it's probably not going to happen."
He had reached the back of the smaller couch where she was seated. He paused to bend down over her and she lifted her chin to meet his greeting kiss. She cupped his chin in her fingers as the kiss lingered a little longer before he pulled back.
"Secondly," he continued as he rounded the front of her couch. She pulled her legs up from resting on the table to give him space to squeeze between her and the coffee table. She didn't pulled her knees all the way back though, because it meant his legs brushed hers as he slid by her, and his hand dropped to her closest knee as he sat down in a rush of breath next to her. She stretched her legs again and John's hand surprisingly slipped off her leg. He was sat turned towards her, clearly pleased with what he had to report.
"I was right about what we saw that first night, that guy was Teresa's ex who she apparently dumped to focus all her time on pleasing Salisbury," John continued.
She smiled at his smile of victory at having correctly interpreted what they had seen in the dark that night. "Did Jazzy tell you this?"
"He was very talkative today," John reported. "Think he was bored yesterday with the rain keeping everyone inside."
"So, this ex of hers decided to confront Salisbury?" She asked.
"Yep, especially as he part owns some of that land Salisbury's trying to get his hands on."
"And he is taking it personally," Teyla concluded.
"Salisbury's trying to buy him out and stole his girl," John replied as he sipped some more of his beer. "I'm surprised he didn't deck the guy."
"It all somewhat suggests then that Annette is well aware of Salisbury's affair with Teresa," Teyla considered as John settled his arm along the back of the couch, his fingers sliding across the back of her neck.
"Yeah, guess she really is more interested in keeping the lifestyle they have," he replied thoughtfully as he looked out the windows towards the beach view Salisbury's resort provided.
Teyla reached out and settled her hand on his knee, drawing his attention back to her. "You said you had three pieces of good information," she prompted him.
He grinned as he set his beer down on the table beside her juice. "Turns out, that though we're here until early Monday morning, Salisbury and Annette are jetting off Friday," he reported gleefully.
"Tomorrow?" She replied.
"Yeah," John confirmed his eyes sparkling as he leaned closer. "Which means you and I get to properly enjoy two days here without all the spying."
She grinned back as she leant closer to him, inhaling the deep masculine scent of him. "We really have much to thank General O'Neill for."
"We'll get him a golfing mug," John suggested dismissively as his lips moulded against hers.
The heat of his hand slid over her lap, assisting her to turn further towards him, as if she needed the encouragement. She ran her hands up his shoulders as their kiss deepened nicely, and though in view of the quiet road, she pressed herself closer to him and indulged in sharing the long wet penetrating kiss.
Two whole days without any distraction – they would be lucky if they left the villa at all.
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On to the last chapter…