Marie and Logan sat on his deck, sharing a pie between them, passing a fork back and forth and occasionally feeding each other a bite. Yesterday had been cold and blustery. This evening was unseasonably warm. Marie couldn't help but wonder if Logan had called in his marker with 'Ro, but she didn't want to spoil the mood by asking.

"S'good pie, darlin'."

"Better than sex?" she asked with a cheeky smirk.

"Nope. But I can taste you on the fork. That's closer."

"Geez, Logan."

"Just bein' honest, baby." He chuckled. "Besides, you like it." A blush crept down her neck. "And I like it too." Things had slowly been growing more intimate between them since their weekend at The Red Door, but neither of them had made any effort to define or discuss what was happening. They both just seemed content to let it be what it wanted to be in its own time.

Marie stood up. "You want a coffee?"

"Yeah. Lemme help."

He followed her inside, smiling at the way her fingers trailed over the granite countertops. They were a rich, dark chocolate with flecks of butterscotch, platinum, and olive. They'd been a surprise. He'd finished the floors too. She was right. The deep walnut color would set off everything else nicely, once he finished building it.

"They really are gorgeous, Logan." He really liked watching how she stroked the glossy granite with her fingertips. It was a sensual touch. The surface was smooth and solid and cool. He liked it. It was the antithesis of Marie, who was warm and soft and slight. He definitely had fantasies about what he'd like to do to her there. He'd been doubly sure to make the base of the island extra sturdy, and not just because it needed to support the heavy slab of stone. He had a metal skeleton and plans to hopefully make use of the island for things other than cooking.

His arms pinned her in, one on either side of her while she made the coffee. "My skin…"

"Doesn't scare me. Never has." The choice ultimately had to be hers, but he wasn't above giving her a taste of how it could be. He knew she could feel his breath on her neck, just there where he'd bitten her that night at The Red Door.

She turned in his arms and searched his face before slowly put her hands on his shoulders.

His hands found her hips, feeling her soft skin through the fabric of her silky skirt. He found it impossible not to think about the fantasy he'd overheard her telling Jubilee that morning so long ago. Her hushed words about how she wanted to press her lover against the cabinets, right there by the coffee pot and love him with her mouth… She was naturally sensual. He felt it even now in the way she moved, shifting with and against him ever so slightly in reaction to the change in pressure of his fingertips on her slim hips as they breathed each other in.

He took her scent in, inhaling deeply. Excitement and desire. She could feel his muscles bunch and flex under her hands. Their bodies naturally drifted closer until her hips were pressed to his.

There was no ambiguity on either of their parts.

It was intimate and sexual— a true romantic embrace.

Neither of them moved. Not for long minutes.

The world had stopped. And into the charged silence came a sound. The very specific sound of a woman in her pleasure.

They moved apart. Logan was glad for the space. He found it difficult to go at Marie's pace. To let her lead what happened between them until she finally chose him for her own. He was ready for things to change, but it had to be because she was ready. He knew she wouldn't tell him no if he pushed her, but he also knew that wasn't right. To assume he knew when she was ready felt a little too paternalistic for comfort. It needed to come from her.

The sound moved them both.

"What is that?"

Their coffee abandoned, Logan led her outside with a grin and sat down on the deck, pulling her down into the warm, charged space between his spread legs. "Listen."

It came again, a sinuous moan and then a sharper cry.

"Is that what I think it is?"

He nodded. "Now that it's gettin' warmer again, it happens almost every Tuesday around this time. Sound carries on the water when the night is real still." He breathed in the scent of her hair and felt his body grow tight. "I think it's that little gazebo across the lake."

"Do you know who it is?"

"No. And I don't wanna know."

When he first heard it a year ago, he was afraid it might have been Marie. Then he thought maybe that's where Gumbo took his conquests. The idea that it might be Bobby and Kitty just killed it for him. He could find out if he really wanted to. A trip across the lake and a few deep breaths would tell him easily enough, but he was better off not knowing.

"It's probably just some of the older students sneaking away."

"Maybe." The man's prowess made Logan think otherwise. Logan's breath made her shiver. "Whoever he is, he's pretty good. Always makes her come a couple times before he lets go." The words were quiet and crude and honest.

Marie's face heated in the darkness. "Mmm…." The sound was out before she could stop it.

Logan wasted no time taking advantage of her little hum of approval.

"Wanna listen with me, baby?" He wouldn't have asked if she hadn't put her hands on him back in the kitchen, first. That's why it had to be on her. He knew the minute she gave him an inch, all the fucking miles after that were his.

She was instantly, shockingly wet.

She felt Logan's chest rise as he inhaled. He tensed behind her and then he growled, soft and low. "I think you'll like it."

Marie nodded, feeling a thousand butterflies take flight in her stomach.

Logan braced his back against the edge of the newel post and pulled her more solidly against his chest. Her head rested on his shoulder and he drew up their legs, putting one of her hands on each of his knees and then adjusting the fit tight. The silky layers of her wrap skirt draped over her legs, but he'd pulled her close so her backside was pressed firmly against his groin. He was already starting to get hard. She'd be able to feel it any minute now.

"Logan…"

She was excited, but apprehensive too. A little afraid of the size of the feelings thumping madly in her chest and rushing wildly under her skin.

"Just listen, baby." He stroked her side lightly with his knuckles but didn't touch her anywhere else. "Just let it be this tonight." Just let it be something he could control.

The moans came again, first at erratic intervals and then closer together until they were on top of each other.

"What do you think he's doing to make her sound that way?" she breathed, entranced.

It was an invitation he didn't expect and one he sure as hell wouldn't refuse.

"Tastin' her. Lickin' her. That's what I'd do."

"Oh, God…." Her knuckles were white where they gripped his knees. And then much more softly, "How?"

The question caught him off guard, but pleased him nonetheless. She was ready for more now. Finally.

"Neck first. Bite her there. Suck her skin." He could tell his answer had surprised her. She'd anticipated something more graphic.

"Then…?" she prompted when he hesitated.

Fuck it. If she was going to ask, he'd sure as hell tell her.

"Nipples next, baby. Good hard sucks she feels deep down inside. Play with 'em 'till she's squirmin' all over and risin' up under me 'cause she needs it so bad." Her sharp intake of breath told him that was closer to what she'd been expecting. "I want her drippin' when I settle between her legs. A real good taste." He could tell he'd shocked her a little that time.

The cries from across the lake became a continuous keen that rose up sharply and then ended without warning.

Marie felt Logan smile against her neck. "What is it?"

"I can hear him." His hearing was excellent. Marie wouldn't be able to hear it at this distance, but he could easily. "He's laughin'. Pleased with himself for makin' her come."

Marie shivered in his arms. "Mmm…" This time she was glad he hadn't offered to give her a taste of his mutation so she could hear the little whispers, too. It was much more erotic to hear it through the filter of Logan's unique senses.

"His mouth and chin will be wet."

"Pecan pie," she whispered and he smiled. Marie nuzzled against Logan's jaw and spread her legs a little, unconsciously imagining him between them. "Beard burn." They both groaned quietly at her words because it had suddenly become a lot more personal.

Now it was more than just something happening across the lake. Now it was right here, on this deck too. She closed her legs, pressing them together against the ache forming between them at that graphic mental image. Logan shut his eyes and breathed deeply to keep from pushing his erection against the small of her back. Every time he dragged in a breath, his head spun. She smelled so damn good.

Another low cry broke the still spring night.

"Logan?" There was a question in her voice.

"Fingers," he breathed into her ear.

"Is that what you'd do?" He smiled because this time she was engaged enough to ask. He hadn't volunteered.

"Yeah. He has to touch her. Feel what he did to her. She'll be soft and wet, but he needsta open her up now, get her ready to take him, especially if he's big."

The earth seemed to tilt wildly.

He could feel Marie trembling against his chest. Her head was beginning to toss a little and she was pressing the outside of her legs to the inside of his, seeking pressure and resistance. Oh, darlin'. Just a little bit more…

The cries and moans were coming faster again until they became one sustained cry of pleasure that rose on a scream as the woman across the lake tipped over the edge again.

Marie's hands had moved. This time she dug her nails into his thigh and the urge to lean forward slightly and bite her neck hard was almost overwhelming.

"Can you hear him?"

"What?" Logan was distracted, fixated on putting his mouth on her, right there where her neck met her shoulder. Not just to give her pleasure, but to taste her and mark her, too.

"Can you hear him now?"

Pulling himself back into the moment, Logan closed his eyes and listened.

He chuckled. "He's cursin'."

"Cursing?"

"OhfuckJesusplease," he intoned softly, not without some heat of his own infusing the words.

"Oh…" Marie felt like she was melting.

For the first time a man's voice, sonorous and low, carried across the water.

"Sugar?"

"Her mouth on him, baby."

The male voice rose sharply. Marie's eyes asked the question her voice could not.

"Good strong suck, maybe. Or grabbin' his ass and takin' him real deep when he don't expect it. Could be lots of things."

"Tell me." Breathless, but not so shy now.

He knew she'd be able to feel his deep shudder. "Coulda saw her touch herself while she was suckin' him... or felt a little scrape of her teeth, maybe. Tip'll be real sensitive now. Drippin' some. Hard suck right there'd do it."

Marie swallowed. "Would it for you?"

"Fuck, yeah. Especially if she's holdin' his eyes while she does it."

"Why is that better?"

"S'hotter. Ain't just somethin' she's doin' for him. Shows him she wants it, too."

This time she was too aroused to blush. "God!"

"We'll hear her again in a minute."

"We will?"

"Yeah. He'll make her stop soon. Before it getsta be too much."

"Isn't too much a good thing?"

His chest rumbled against her back. "Later, yeah, but not at that moment. Most men have a refractory period." Most but not all.

"What's that?"

"I'll tell ya later." He smiled into the night. "If it's too good, he'll come too soon and he won't get to be inside her like he wants."

"Is that better than her mouth?"

"Yeah. He wants it. He's earned it. She's his and he wants her to feel it too." Their breathing had changed; shallow and fast. They were both sweating now. Hot and sticky; moist slippery heat weeping from them both under their clothes.

This time it was a sharp feminine cry that sang out over the water. An exultant male grunt followed quickly on its heels.

"Sugar?"

"Pushed in deep," he whispered, feeling the sweat trickle down his back. "One smooth stroke. Hard. All in. He wants her to take all of him."

Marie's hips were beginning to rock now and her hands twisted in her long skirt. The friction was agonizing.

The sounds over the water were different this time; a blend of voices, masculine and feminine. They were lower. More guttural. More need. Less civility.

"Hear the difference, baby?"

"Yes." Her heart was beating so fast. "It's wilder."

"Yeah. More powerful. More out of control. Good 'n hard now. Deep. Those little knees up high, rubbin' against his sides. Wants her to take all of him. He hasta feel it. Hasta make her feel it. Needsta feel her come first so she feels like his."

The voices were becoming rougher. More staccato.

"Please…"

Marie was begging now. Needy and wild. Logan pulled her closer. "That's it, darlin'. C'mon…"

"More….Please! More!" Logan squeezed her with his thighs, increasing the friction as she rocked against him.

"That's what she says to him. Beggin' him. Needin' him to fuck her hard. Over and over again—"

"Moreharder-yes-ohGod!" The words were for the anonymous woman across the lake. And for herself. Marie bucked hard against him and flew apart in his arms as the couple across the water came together loudly.

Marie shook. Her whole body trembled. Pleasure washed over her in thick waves as she jerked in Logan's embrace. Her legs were pressed together and Logan was using his body to cage hers, to add to the pressure and make it better. Stronger. He bit her hard, right at the nape of her neck through the fall of her hair. The pleasure spiked higher and she cried out, her own sweet sound travelling back across the water.

It all rushed out of her at once and he felt her body go slack and limp against his.

He smiled up at the moon.

"Now what?" Her voice was very small.

"Baby?"

"Them," she whispered, still trembling.

Logan pulled her closer. That was the easier of the two questions. He didn't know how to answer 'now what?' with regard to what had just happened between them.

He didn't listen in again. The anonymous pair deserved at least a little privacy and he knew the answer already. "Love words now. Smilin' 'n kissin'. Restin' a bit while they come down. If he's lucky, she's holdin' him tight. Rubbin' his back and touchin' him real soft. He won't wanna leave her, but if he used a condom, he'll needta pull out and take it off so he don't lose it in her."

Marie shivered. "And if he didn't use one?"

Logan fought to keep from thrusting against her. He was still intensely aroused and it showed in his reply. "Then the come will feel real good for 'em both. Wet n'slick. Soothin' too, especially if the end was a little rough." He couldn't help but rock against her, a slow grind, and his fingers twitched. "If the woman is real sensitive, sometimes he can make her come again, rubbin' her with his fingers while he's still buried deep. It's good for him too. He'll be real sensitive after he's done. Feelin' her tighten back up around him is damn good."

"More," she whispered.

"If they're real close, she might clean him with her mouth at the end. Taste them together and kiss him after so she can share their taste with him."

Her whole body shuddered. "That's okay?"

"Okay?"

"Not too... slutty?"

He shook his head. "Nothin' two people do outta love is bad or wrong, baby—" His breath caught. His body was still wound impossibly tight.

Marie pulled away and turned in his arms. "You didn't?"

"Not yet. Later. After you go." She wasn't ready for the kind of touch he needed. Not yet. They'd never even kissed. She'd only made a small overture; barely opened the last closed door between them. She still needed him to go slow and right now he was feeling anything but slow and sweet. He wanted to rip into her, to bury his face in that slippery scent and feast until she screamed and pulled his hair, to thrust and bite and slam his need into her as he howled his pleasure into the night.

"Penthouse?" she said with shy grin.

"No. Just you, darlin'."

"Logan?"

"Yeah?"

"Close your eyes."

He complied, wondering what she was up to and hoping it wouldn't take too long. He couldn't wait much longer. His blood was burning too hot.

He felt her shift and leave him. Heard the rustle of her clothes as she stood, brushing herself off and smoothing down her skirt.

Her shadow moved over him. He could feel it blocking out the moonlight. He felt her lips brush the side of his jaw where his whiskers protected him from her skin. It was chaste and very sweet. "Thanks for tonight, sugar."

"Anytime."

"I mean that. It was the best night I ever had."

"I mean it too. Anytime." He felt rather than saw her smile. She'd asked him to close his eyes and he had. If he had to look in those satiated eyes now, he was going to lose it.

She pressed something into his hand. "I'm gonna go now. I want to walk back alone, okay? You— you go inside."

His eyes opened. He drew in a breath. He knew what was in his hand. The scrap of lace was warm and damp and slippery against his palm. The intoxicating scent drew an involuntary growl from his chest.

"You go inside now." She said again, more confidently this time. She couldn't give him everything tonight, but she could give him enough.

Up next: I Touch Myself. Not sure this one needs much of an explanation!

(Though hopefully it'll still be something a little different than what you're expecting…) Heh. Onward!