Part 30

We stay in this positon for a long time, just relaxing and enjoying being together. When I open my eyes again, I realize that he was staring at me the whole time. I push myself into an upright sitting postion and slip forward a few inches. "Come closer," I whisper.

He nods slightly and uses his arms at the tub edge to do so. I place my legs above his so that there won´t be any space between our bodies and then entangle them behind his back. He let his arms fall into the water again and they settle at my sides. We stare into each others eyes for several long seconds before I turn my head to find the blue sponge which I discovered earlier. I take it from the little tray next to the tub and put it into the water until it´s soaked. I let it run above his left arm up to his shoulder and back to his neck. Small streams of water are running down his upper body and I follow them wih my eyes until they finally meet the bath water again.

I stick the sponge into the water again and then raise it up over his head. He closes his eyes when I squeeze it and the liquid is running down his hair and face. I drop the sponge into the water then and place my hands on each side of his neck. Michael´s eyes are still closed, when I lean forward to kiss away a drop at the corner of his mouth. His hands grip me tighter when I don´t back away and continue to kiss him. I part my lips and a soft moan escapes my throat when he pulls me up against his body to deepen the kiss.

I´m shocked at how good and totally natural it feels to be so close to someone else, even if the rest of my life sucks right now. He ends the kiss after several long minutes and leans his forehead against mine. "You ok?" he asks breathlessly.

I run my hands through his damp hair. "Yeah, more than ok," I answer with a smirk, stealing another small kiss from his lips. He lets his hands trail up and down my back and it makes me shiver with delight.

"It feels so good to be with you, Michael."

"Really?" he asks, teasing.

"Uh-huh."

"Well, that´s good, 'cause I´m not goin' anywhere." He places a soft kiss on my cheek. "I want you to turn around," he whispers into my ear.

"Okay," I oblige without asking for the reason and turn to sit in front of him.

He rests his hands on my shoulders and pulls me closer until my back rests against his chest. I can feel his own 'excitement' pressing against my lower back and shift slightly to tease him. His arm comes around my waist to still the movement. "You don´t know what you´re doin' to me, Maria," he mumbles hoarsely.

"Oh, no, I do," I reply, smirking.

He lowers his head and places feather light kisses along my neck and shoulder. His grip around me gets tighter while he grasps the sponge in his right hand and starts to run it along my shoulders.

I lean my head back until it´s right next to his and his breath feels cold when it hit my wet skin. He lightly presses his lips against my temple as he starts to run the sponge up and down over my breasts, slightly first, but then more intense. I close my eyes and press my face against his when I lose control of my heartbeat.

He lets the sponge wander further down over my flat belly until he stops between my legs. I hold my breath when he starts to move it in small circles, adding some pressure after a while.

I whimper when he suddenly stops and removes his hand. "Michael...why did you... "

He quietens me with his passionate mouth. His tongue runs over my lips, begging for entrance and we get lost in the kiss for what seems like forever.

I inhale sharply when he replaces his hand where the sponge had been before and I lean into his touch. "Uh, Michael, this feels amazing," I breathe out. My hand roams to the back of his neck to keep him as close as possible.

"Do you trust me?" he whispers, glancing down into my eyes.

I look back at him and answer without hestistation. "I do."

He nods slightly and keeps our eyes locked while he touches me. Automatically, I close my eyes and bite my bottom lip.

"Keep lookin' at me," he requests.

"I can't."

"Just try."

I can´t stop myself from moaning. It feels so good to be touched by someone else - I've never felt anything like this before.

Michael uses his other hand to brush a strand of hair out of my face, his gaze soft and tender. I start to move my lower body more against his hand to get the release I so badly need. "Michael..."

"Just let go."

That's all that's necessary to push me over the edge. My grip around his neck gets tighter when every muscle of my body contracts. I force my eyes to stay open and don´t break contact with Michael´s. Both of his arms come around me and hold me firmly against his body until my heartbeat comes somewhere back to normal.

I smile up at him in daze. "That was amazing."

"You're amazing," he returns, placing a soft kiss against my lips. "Let´s get outta here; the water's already kinda cold." He pushes my body back into an upright sitting position and climbs out of the tub from behind me.

The small towel that he's winding around his hips can't hide his arousal. He walks over to the closet and comes back a few seconds later, spreading out a big towel in his arms. "Come here."

I push myself up, feeling that my knees are still weak, and climb out of the tub as well. Michael wraps me into the smooth fabric and starts to rub his hands over it to dry me off.

"Okay, I guess you're done."

"Then it´s my turn now," I answer, pulling the towel away from me and wrapping it around him instead. I can´t hide the grin, when I recognize the surprise in his face. "What? Did you think I would let you do that on your own?"

I reach out and place one hand on the knot of the smaller towel, which is still hanging low around his hips. He inhales sharply and holds his breath when I undo it and let it fall to the ground.

My eyes wander down his naked body. "You´re incredible sexy, Michael," I whisper and stand on my tiptoes to kiss him. It seems like he hesitates a few seconds, before he finally gives in to the temptation and wraps his arms fully around me. I loop my arms around his neck, when our kiss gets more intense. He let his hand wander down my back, before it stops right on my ass and presses me further against him. Still, his touches feel a little... uneasy.

I lean my head back until I´m able to look into his eyes. Yeah, he's still having doubts over whether or not we should take the next step. "You don´t have to hold back. I'm more than ready for this." My lips start to wander along his neck. "For you."

To emphasize, what I just said, I press my lower body against him. He growls low in his throat in response. "Lift your legs up around me," he orders gently and places one hand in the hollow of my knee to help me with it. I drop the towel when he starts to carry me out of the bathroom, his arms holding me securely against him.

The mattress sinks in when he lies me down on the bed and crawls over me, placing a path of feather light kisses along my body from my belly up to my neck. I run my fingers through his still-damp hair while he starts to wander down with his mouth again to place hot and wet kisses at my breasts. I breathe in sharply the moment he sucks one of my nipples between his lips. My upper body rises from the bed to stay as close as possible to his skin.

A small smile appears on his lips when he crawls up even more to place one arm on each side of me. He gazes down on me softly and his eyes seem to look right into my soul. "How did you manage to just walk into my life?"

I shrug, also smiling. "I didn´t do much; quite the opposite, to be honest."

He seems to think about it seriously. "Yeah, I guess that´s right."

"That´s not a bad thing, right?" I ask, unsure.

He shifts his weight to rest on his right arm, while he reaches up with his left hand to brush a strand of hair out of my face. "No, it's not. It´s just, I've never let something... someone into my life just like this. I never wanted to... until now."

"I´m glad you did," I reply honestly. "I don´t know where I would be right now without you in my life." My hands lift up to rest on each side of his face and I pull him down to kiss him.

While he starts to run his hand up and down my side the kiss gets more intense. My fingertips wander along his skin and stop on his lower back to add some pressure.

He understands my need for more body contact without a second thought and starts to lower himself down to me. With one knee, he spreads my legs further apart to settle down between them. He's pressing against my lower lips and I shift restlessly against him, seeking release.

He moves his hips lightly back and forth, teasing me, while he kisses his way down my neck to suck on my burning skin. "Michael," I breathe out on a gasp, "you have to stop that teasing."

"Why?" he asks, grinning.

I reach between us and grab his length in my hand. "'Cause it´s drivin' me crazy."

I start to touch him, slowly first, but then increasing. His muscles start to quiver lightly and he struggles for control as he lets his forehead rest against mine.

"You sure you wanna do that?" he asks quietly.

"Yeah." I reach up to caress his cheek. "Just be gentle."

He nods slightly and leans into my touch for a short time before he takes my hand to press it on the mattress next to my head and intertwines our fingers. With his other hand, he reaches down and places it in the hollow of my knee to bend my leg.

I can´t keep my eyes open the moment he finally gives in to both of our desires. It feels like there hasn't been anything better in the world than this until now. "You okay?"

"I am." How could I not be ready for this? I trust him and I know that he cares about me a lot more than Billy or my mother did.

He nods and bends down to capture my lips in a tender kiss. His mouth wanders over mine in a slow motion and his tongue runs over my upper lip until I part my lips to give him entrance.

I squeeze his hand, which is still in mine and raise my hips up against his body to show him that I'm ready for more. I know he will understand what I tell him without words once more. He always seems to know what I want and what I think. He starts to move his hips slowly first, but increasing the speed after a while.

"Michael," I moan, throwing my head back. He takes the opportunity and starts to suck the soft flesh of my neck between his lips, softly biting into it.

"Oh, God, Maria," he gasps as his body starts to tense and quiver.

I release his hand that was still in mine until now and let my arms come around his neck to hold him as close as possible. His breaths get faster with every second and I'm sure he doesn´t need much more time either.

Hit hot breath against my flushed skin is all I need to bring me over the edge again. Both of his arms came up to rest on each side of my head, his hands holding my face into place so we can look at each other until his lips crash onto mine and he moans into my mouth.

We stay in the same position for several minutes until we've both calmed down. He pulls back a little to look into my eyes, using one hand to caress my cheek. "That was amazing," I whisper.

He nods, smiling. "Yeah."

"I didn´t know it can feel like this."

"I promised you that it would be better than what you had experienced before, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember that."

He holds me tight against him when he rolls over onto his back and takes me with him. He turns his head to watch me and his features become worried suddenly. I know he's thinking about our current situation and he´s searching for some solution.

"Move in with me?"

"Huh?" I raise my head to study his face. "Are you serious?"

He nods. "I want you to be around. It´s too dangerous when you´re over there."

"But Angel searched for a roommate for so long. She can´t afford to keep the apartment on her own anymore."

"It´s dangerous for her, too. What if Billy shows up there?"

I let myself fall into the pillows again. "Yeah, I know."

"We can pay your amount of the rent to her until she finds someone else," he offered.

I nod. "Okay."

"We should get some sleep. There's enough time to worry later," he says finally and pulls me up against his body. I let my head rest on his upper body, drawing circles on his naked skin and watching his chest rise and fall until I fall into a surprisingly peaceful sleep.