LWLU – 5 1/2 Months
The usually quiet country home was alive with sound. Conversation came from the kitchen; applause from a game show all but drowned out the soft feminine giggling from the den. Sara didn’t notice any of it as she let herself be led to her bedroom on the first floor. The door shut behind them with a soft click, enveloping them in a silence broken only by the sounds of ragged breathing.
“We can’t do this, Paul.”
“I know.” He pressed her back against the door and attacked her neck with his lips. “We’re not.”
She shoved his coat from his shoulders. “Good.”
“I don’t want to rush this, Sara…I just want to warm you up.” His mouth covered hers while his hands played at the hem of her shirt, grazing her stomach. “Your skin is like ice, angel.”
“Gee…you’d think some sex-starved guy kept me outside in the cold, huh?”
Paul let his hands drop and took a step back, eyes serious. “Shit, Sara…I wasn’t even thinking. I’m sorry.”
“No, I wasn’t trying to say…” She sighed and reached for his hand. “I got carried away, too.” She gave his hand a light squeeze and then intertwined her fingers with his. “I know you’re not used to waiting like this and…”
“Just because I’m not used to waiting doesn’t mean I won’t.” He touched her face with his free hand. “You said it was important to you that we not rush into anything physical. If it’s important to you then it’s important to me.” He brought her fingers to his lips and kissed them softly, never taking his eyes from hers. “I’m in this for the long haul, Sara.”
“Paul…I…we should get out there.”
“Not just yet. You still need to warm up.”
“I can do that later. What kind of a hostess doesn’t even know who’s here?”
He blocked the door when she tried to move passed him. “Linc and his new girlfriend, Mike and Nika, Veronica…the gang’s all here, angel.”
Sara’s eyes went wide. “If Lincoln brought his girlfriend for the weekend then I really need to get out there. Roni’s going to need me and…”
“And Nika’s here. You know as well as I do that she’s already pulled Veronica into the kitchen to distract her.” He paused and held her gaze for a beat longer than was normal. “You take care of all your friends, Sara, but it’s high time you let someone take care of you.”
Resigned to the fact that she wasn’t getting out of the room until she agreed to whatever Paul was trying to get her to do, she let out a sigh. “I don’t know how to let other people take care of me.”
“Then you need to learn because I’m not going to let you run yourself into the ground making sure everyone else is okay.” He rested his hands on her shoulders. “I know this is a difficult time of year for you and…I think you should be relaxing right now instead of playing the good hostess. Let me make sure everyone is settled so you can take a hot bath.”
“You want me to take a bath? Seriously? That’s what you want?”
Mischief flickered through his eyes. “No. What I really want is to be in that bathtub with you, but I will settle for imagining you in that steamy water while you relax.”
“Maybe you should hang around to wash my back so you don’t have to do so much imagining.”
“You’re killing me, angel. Keep it up and…” He scrubbed his hands over his face. “Dammit…and nothing. You’ll keep torturing me and I’ll just suffer.”
It was Sara’s turn to back him up against the door. She brushed her lips over his and then moved to his ear. “I’m not trying to torture you and you won’t have to suffer forever.” She met his eyes. “It’s almost been six months, you know.”
“Are you kidding me? I’ve got a page-a-day calendar by my alarm clock to count down the days.” He reached behind himself and twisted the doorknob. “When I woke up this morning we were down to 17 days.”
“You’re keeping count?”
His eyes darkened. “You have no idea…no idea at all.” He opened the door in a swift motion, almost as though he needed to put distance between them. He pointed to himself. “I’ll go play host.” He pointed to Sara. “You take a bath…and if you’re in there too long then I’m coming in after you.”
“Promise?”
“Five and a half months, Sara.” He winked at her. “You can bet your sexy ass I’m coming in after you if you give me half the chance.”
