A/N: Set shortly after Shane stalked Melinda and messed with Jimel's lives. Enjoy xx Mariah

Ages:

Jim - 28
Melinda - 24

Melinda felt like she hadn't slept in a week. The store was packed and she just wanted to tell everyone to get out so she could leave for the weekend already. Jim was taking her out of town to get her mind off things. Off Shane.

The cops hadn't been able to find him after he ran from her house and jumped the fence. He hadn't shown up to work or went to his apartment. There was no trace of him anywhere and there was nothing the cops could do until he turned back up.

"You okay, Mel?" Delia asked as she rang up a customer, noticing her blank gaze at the wall.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She jumped slightly and smiled at her friend.

"He's not gonna hurt you. None of us will let that happen, Mel. I promise." Delia answered, rubbing her back. "Jim won't let that happen. You know that."

"I know," she muttered. "I'm sorry, I've just been so jumpy and distracted."

"You have every right to be," Delia said softly. "Why don't you go find Jim? He's off at three right?"

"Yeah," she replied. "And we don't close until six. This is my store, you know."

"I'll close up Mel. You get out of here for the weekend," Delia replied as a customer slowly approached the counter with a few items in hand. "All set?"

"Almost, my daughter has another few items." The customer gleamed.

"Okay, we'll just wait for her then," Delia said and turned to Melinda. "I mean it, Mel. Get out of here and enjoy the weekend. Relax and get better."

"Are you sure?" She asked, itching her neck apprehensively as she looked at her in the office, checking to make sure no one was there. "I can wait for another few hours."

"Go," Delia laughed and pointed to the door. "Grab your stuff and get out of here. Look, there's Jim."

She smiled at her dear friend and grabbed her jacket. "Thank you," she smiled. "I really appreciate it."

"Of course," Delia hugged her. "After all the distractions with Ned, you deserve to be distracted by something good."

She grabbed her purse and walked to the door, almost colliding with Jim who just smiled and wrapped his arm around her, hugging her tightly. "You set this up didn't you?" she asked him.

"I may have asked Delia to shoo you out early," Jim grinned. "But I'll never disclose anything."

"I love you," she said as he opened the passenger door.

They'd packed the night before and put everything in the Jeep so they could leave as early as possible.

"And I love you," he whispered and claimed her lips.

He closed the door behind her and jogged to the driver's seat, hopping inside and meeting her with another passionate kiss. He couldn't wait to get her away from this mess, even if it was just for a weekend.

They pulled up outside a lake house, her grin growing as she got out and took a breath of fresh air. "We should buy a place like this," she smiled. "A place for us to come when we're stressed and just relax, somewhere we could take kids too."

"Kids?" He asked, wrapping his arms around his waist. "I thought you wanted to wait."

"I do, but one day." She said relaxing into his arms. "One day we'll have a few little ones running around."

"A few? I was thinking five or six," he pressed a kiss to her neck. "I'm so glad to see you already smiling again."

"Yeah... yeah." She laughed. "Keys?"

"I'll get the bags," he said and gave her the keys. "Go explore. It's not a mansion or anything, but there is electricity and running water." She walked forward and quickly unlocked the door. "Look, a for sale sign," Jim said as he followed her. "Sulley never said anything about selling the place."

"Talk to him about it," she suggested. "Maybe he'll make a trade for it."

"I'll talk to him on Monday," he said closing the door behind her. "I promise."

"Promise," she grinned, looking at the hardwoods and the tall staircase that leads to three bedrooms upstairs. "Looks like there is room for kids in here. Which is nice."

"Four bedrooms is pretty roomy for a family," he smiled at her.

"I'm feeling like a swim would be really nice right now, but ugh I have a kink in my neck from the ride." She stretched and sat down on the weathered couch.

"Already hungry for some of me?" He grinned sheepishly, dropping their bag and dashing to her side.

"Always," she gasped and let him kiss her. "Stay standing."

"Oh?" He asked.

She sunk down to her knees, never breaking eye contact with him. The wetness gathered between her legs at an alarming rate as she unbuckled his pants and freed his erection.

"Oh," he moaned.

"Someone's awake," she giggled, his hand went to her hair, pulling on the dark curls so she could look up at him.

She leaned forward and licked the tip of his erection with eager strokes of her tongue.

"Fuck…" he groaned as she took him all the way in her mouth. He could feel her tongue working frantically over every inch of him, sucking him like it's the greatest thing she's ever tasted. "You look so good with me in your mouth," he panted, trying to keep the movements of his hips under control, trying not to thrust too deep into her mouth. "God, I'm going to come, Melinda..."

His stomach tensed and her hand peeked under his shirt and moved a bit quicker.

"Mmm..." She moaned, her vibrations causing his head to fall back as there was a knock on the door. She pulled back and looked at the door uneasily, rubbing her forearms. "Will you get it?"

"It's not him," he said as he tucked himself in his boxers. "He's gone."

"For now," she muttered.

"Mel," he whispered. "I'm not gonna let him hurt you."

"I know," she breathed. "Go get the door."

"Yeah. Sorry," he muttered and fixed his jeans enough to be presentable, leaving his belt undone and shirt untucked. "We'll finish this. I promise."

"Are you expecting someone?" She wiped her mouth and stood up.

"No," he grunted and went to the door. "But someone is at the door." The door was opened and he tensed slightly. "Sul...? What are you doing all the way out here?" He looked back at Melinda. "It's just Sulley."

"I didn't know if I had given you the right key," Sulley gasped as he walked inside. "And when Melinda was gone from the store and neither of you were at home so I just decided to come and see if you'd settled in alright on my way out of town."

"Yes, we just got here." He replied.

"I can see that," Sulley touched his belt buckle. "Melinda, you look startled. Are you alright?"

"Only a bit," she laughed. "I've been a bit jumpy these days."

"Ever since your home was broken into, yes," Sulley said softly. "Well, you two have a nice weekend."

"We will," she promised with a smile.

"I'll see you out," he said softly and caught Melinda's anxious look and gasp. "I will be right back. I promise."

"Hurry, please." She said as she sat down on the couch.

He closed the door behind him and hurried to Sulley. "So Sul, you're selling this great old place?" He asked

"I haven't been out here enough," Sulley chuckled. "You interested?"

"I am," he replied. "Melinda and I both are. How much?"

"Why don't you two just give me what you can for it," Sulley said. "As long as I can still have the occasional weekend for ice fishing."

"Of course," he chuckled. "You keep that set and we'll keep the one in there."

"Sounds like a deal," Sulley smiled. "I'll have the deed changed over to you and sent to your house on Monday."

"You have a good time at your niece's wedding," he turned on his heel.

"And you have fun taking that belt off finally," Sulley chuckled.

"Oh I will Sul," he said as he jogged inside.

The door closed quickly and he pulled his boots off.

"You ready for that swim?" He asked as he met her on the couch, searching her eyes for anything. "Hey... what's the matter?"

"I hate being so vulnerable," she sighed, wiping her wet eyes of her tears. "I hate that he makes me feel like this."

"You are as strong as you were before," he whispered. "I love you and I will always protect you." He paused to look over her. "Plus you look so sexy in this romper."

"I love you," she said smiling at him. "You always know just what to say."

"I know," he grinned and wiped away a tear. "Hey just think... this little place is ours."

"What?" She asked.

"Yeah, I made an agreement with Sul." He explained. "We just have to give him what we can for this place and let him come ice fishing the occasional weekend."

"Really? Oh, Jim!" She stood up and hugged him, kissing him deeply. "But about that swim... I have another idea," she smiled, holding out her hand. "We can swim later."

"Oh yeah?" He asked.

"It involves taking clothes off," she smirked.

"I like the sound of that," he chuckled, taking her hand and letting her lead him to the master bedroom.

"You always do," she replied. "Now lie down."

"But," he objected.

"Lie down," she said pointing to the bed. "Don't make me shove you."

"Alright," he chuckled and laid down on the bed. "I'm lying down."

"Good," she gasped.

She went to close to the door, even though no one was there but them, locking it too before facing him. She felt his eyes on her as she moved slowly, making sure to leave space between herself and the bed.

Was this meant to be a striptease? Because a moment ago she'd truly just been thinking about getting it off and then he'd propped himself up to watch and now she had to think about this again.

She felt the thrum between her thighs, the need for her husband. He knew this moment so well; she knew this moment so well, the moment they'd lived through countless times before, but it still brought them to their knees with want and lust and deep, aching love. Love that made them so very vulnerable because of the power the other held over them.

She bit her lip, moving one hand to her shoulder, slowly slipping the blue material off of her

shoulder.

The only sound in the room was their shallow breathing. The material slid over her skin, gliding over one arm; she inhaled and pulled at the other side, baring her chest and stomach. The romper hung at her waist as she finished sliding her arms out of it, and Jim was tense, unmoving on the bed.

She lifted her arms high, stretching them behind her, locating the clasp on her dark, lacy bra. Jim moved forward as if by instinct, moaning as the cups fell from her breasts, leaving her bare.

"Not yet," she whispered, halting him just a whisper away from her.

His eyes were dark; she could feel his breath hitting her skin, making her nipples pebble. He moaned again, deep down in his throat; almost a whine.

She repeated the noise, feeling every nerve in her body standing on end. She bent over to tug the romper down her legs, moving her breasts closer to him, and he leaned in just to brush his face against one round globe, making them both react.

The romper hit the floor and Jim reached out to claim her hips, his big hands clamping onto her, pulling her closer. She was wearing those black sheer panties, and Jim was tugging them down her hips, and she was swaying towards him and a scrap of material slid down her legs, lost to both of them...she stepped out of it and into his arms.

He was warm against her skin, completely naked before his completely clothed body.

"This isn't fair, now is it." She gasped, feeling his tongue lap over each nipple careful not to come in direct contact with the pebbled bud.

"Completely fair," he gasped, enjoying the naked view of her as he maneuvered on top of her. "Just kidding."

He pulled away enough to pulled his shirt over his head and whip his belt off. They hit the floor as fast as he could pull his jeans down and kick them to the carpet as well.

She brought him close and their lips met.

His arm wrapped tightly around her waist, his legs entangled with her own, and his hardness pressed into her.

"Oh," she gasped. "Jim, fuck me right now."

His grip tightened around her waist, his hand sneaking up from her flat stomach to cup her breasts.

She started planting kisses along the curve of her neck and felt the wetness between her legs grow. It amazed her how quickly he could turn her on. He chuckled lightly as she started mewling her approval, letting her lips gaze against his jaw as she whimpered in pleasure. She loved the fact that she was his. His hand dipped down between her legs, rubbing her center for a moment before moving to tease her and pushing a finger inside her.

"Mmm…" he chuckled in approval. "I love it when you're ready for me."

She opened her mouth to respond but he pushed inside her and her jaw went slack in pleasure, her eyes rolling to the back of her head. "Jim, fuck, oh please." She whined, his hips rocked against hers fluidly.

He growled and bit down on her shoulder, shifting them so she was face down on the bed and he continued pounding into her from behind.

"Oh god," she moaned.

His hips started to beat her backside a little faster and she could feel every muscle in her body starting to tense up. "Shit, I'm going to come," he panted. "Fuck you're so warm..."

"I-I'm close," she replied, her walls gripping him. "Just a little more babe."

"Like that?" He gripped her hips and thrust from a lower angle.

"Oh!" She screamed, gripping the pillow. "Jim, fuck yes. Oh yes..."

"I love it when you're enthusiastic..." He grunted, leaning forward to grasp her closer.

She gave a quick strangled cry as the pleasure crashed over her and she felt his warmth filling her. He collapsed against her back, his weight pushing the air from her lungs. Their sweaty skin stuck together as they trembled and came down from their high together. She felt him kissing her neck and shoulders and trail of her spine, whispering how much he loved her.

"Jim, I love you," she whispered as she turned over slowly, wanting to see his face. He laid his head on her shoulder, smiling at her "I love you so much, Jim."

"And you are my dawn and my dusk. My sun and moon," he caressed her softly, planting kiss over every spot of skin, lingering against her neck. It was in moments like these when she felt her heart swelling with all the love she had for this man. "Forever will I love you, Melinda."

"We have the whole weekend together," she informed him, trailing her hands through the ends of his black hair.

"Let's have dinner on the beach tonight," he suggested, kissing her. "I'll grill us up something."

"I saw a cute little grocery in the little town about ten minutes from here." She whispered as he entered her again. She gasped, letting herself grasp him tighter as his face pressed into her shoulder. "Jimm…"

The only sound was the rustle of the bed and their moans.

He moved slowly, not letting their eyes drift away from each other and his mouth stayed close to her, watching as she licked her lips and twisted with pleasure. "We'll get some wine and maybe shop a little tomorrow," he whispered, lapping a kiss on her neck. "Find a new dress... you always like it when you can find new dresses."

"Maybe we could even stop in at that little pub up the road. We could get a bite to eat and have some drinks," she hummed, smiling at him. "Dance a little, kiss a little..."

"Make love in the water, on the beach, on the deck..." He pushed deeper, letting himself get lost in her warm, press kiss after kiss on her skin. "In this room and on the kitchen counter."

"Against the wall," she whimpered, pulling his hair and his lips to hers.

Their conversation faded as he moved quicker, pushing deeper. He let out a shaky gasp as her walls contracted around him. He thrust into her haphazardly a few more times, before she felt him release into her.

"Oh, Mel," he mumbled, kissing her softly.

He let out a faint sigh and rolled off of her, tucking a tendril of her hair behind her ear.

"We should go to that store," she looked at her with a smile.

"We should," he nodded as she slowly moved on top of him, letting her hair shield his face like a curtain.

"Before they close," she gasped, letting her mouth claim his as his hands found her ass.

"Definitely," he gasped, letting himself push inside her, again. "I'm crazy for you..."

She giggled softly and kissed him again.

They never were gonna get to that store, and they both knew it.