As If You Never Left Me Part 21

"It's a start."

It would have been easy, she thought, to dive right back in. She knew what he could do to her, knew how much she wanted that. But she also knew how much it hurt to lose it.

"I think I remember what came next in the procedure," she said.

"Promises?"

"Right." She scooted a little farther back, putting more s.p.a.ce between them. She needed it, to clear her

head. "Grievances, then promises."

"You start."

After a moment of consideration, she said, "I promise to stop trying to find all the hidden meanings in

what you do and don't do."

He quirked an eyebrow at that, but made no comment. Which was good, because comments weren't

allowed right now. "I promise to pay more attention to what's going on with you, regardless of whether I understand it." How had they gotten so insightful all of a sudden? Maybe their long separation had taught them something, after all. If nothing else, it had given them plenty of time to reflect on what they'd done wrong. "Do I do another one?" she asked. She couldn't remember what the procedure had said. "Yes, but it has to be something you want me to do." An interesting and logical twist. Something a lawyer would come up with. "Okay . .." She thought for a time, working her way past the flippant answers to something that would actually make a difference. "I would like you to promise to ask me once in a while how I'm feeling, in case I forget to tell you."

"That's good," he said, "because I want you to tell me."

"I'll try."

Reaching for her hands, he lifted them again in his. "One more thing." He cleared his throat. "'Faithful and true, I love only you, now and forever, forsaking you never.'"

The words made her want to smile and cry, made her heart feel light with joy and weighted with love. "'With your hand in mine, everything will be fine, for where there is love, G.o.d smiles from above.'" His laugh fell like warm rain. "Whatever possessed us to write our own vows? We were terrible poets." "But we meant them, didn't we?" "Yes, we did." "And I mean them again now."

Leaning toward her, he spoke against her lips. "Me, too."

But she ducked back, away from his kiss. "I'm sorry. I don't know if this is allowed. Are we still following the procedure?"

"This is the procedure." And he dipped his head again and kissed her so thoroughly she couldn't fight it anymore.

He slid his hands up her body, and a moment later he had rolled her backwards, pressing her down into the bed.

"This is Phase Two," he muttered into her ear. "Are we done with Phase One?"

"Stick a fork in Phase One, it's done," said Joely, and grabbed him by the hair and kissed him hard.

Phase Two, she decided, was much better than Phase One. From here on out, she was going to do everything she could to be sure they spent as much time as possible in Phase Two. It was almost worth having to go through Phase One to get here, but it would be better if they could bypa.s.s it altogether.

She pulled his s.h.i.+rt open, narrowly missing yanking loose a few b.u.t.tons. Moments later her face was buried in his chest, her nostrils full of his smell, his soft hair tickling her face. His legs tangled with hers, his weight pressing her into the bed. She wanted him so badly, couldn't stand the thought of the layer of clothing between his skin and hers.

He was already working on that situation. His long fingers pressed loose the b.u.t.ton on her jeans, jerked down the zipper, then slid under her panties. Too fast, she thought at first, but it wasn't. She was more than ready for him, all wetness and heat as his fingers dipped inside her. He slid two fingers in, in an easy glide, pressing deep into her v.a.g.i.n.a, and her body opened to the penetration, ready, more than willing.

As he worked her, his fingers probing, thrusting, she clutched him hard against her, moaned against his throat, then fastened her mouth to the pulse there. She loved the taste of his skin. She devoured it, kissing up the side of his neck, lipping his earlobe. One hand dove into his hair while the other fought to open his fly. She worked the b.u.t.ton loose, then the zipper, her fingers plunging past to curl around his rapidly thickening shaft. It grew as she touched it, hardening within the curve of her fingers.

A moment's separation then, just enough to s.h.i.+mmy down his pants and hers, enough to allow skin to meet skin all down the length of her legs. The roughness of the hair on his thighs against the smoothness of hers aroused her to the point of tears.

"I love you," he murmured, a sensuous slide of his gorgeous mouth against her ear. "I love you so much."

"Never leave me again," she said.

"I won't if you won't."

"I won't." And a weight lifted from her heart, because she knew without a doubt it was the truth.

He tilted his head back just long enough for her to see the tears br.i.m.m.i.n.g in his eyes, then lowered his head to her breast.

Her world narrowed to the movement of his mouth, his tongue against her nipple, circling it, his teeth touching it carefully, his mouth suckling. Fire stabbed through her, breast to groin, filled her, impaled her.

He moved down, his lips soft and mobile against her belly, her navel, her thigh, tongue tracing cool trails over her skin. Then his hands gentle against the insides of her thighs. He cupped her knees, flattened his palms against them, opened her up. Bending in toward her, he kissed the soft flesh high inside her thigh, bit her gently, firmly, licked her, moved up, until his mouth closed over her open c.u.n.t.

She closed her eyes, just feeling. She was as vulnerable here as it was possible to be, but there was nothing to be afraid of. She was open to him, taken by him. His tongue slid up the insides of her l.a.b.i.a and she s.h.i.+vered, feeling her body begin to weep for him. He tapped the tip of his tongue against her c.l.i.t, circled it gently, faster and faster, soft, then harder, then thought vanished as she rose and crested, her body shaking, her voice coming out in a keen at the intensity of her o.r.g.a.s.m.

When she was done, as her s.h.i.+vering climax stilled, he lifted his head and pillowed his face against her belly. He was breathing nearly as hard as she was, caught up in her ecstasy. Her hands slid down her own skin until they touched his hair, slid into its thick silk. He looked up at her face and smiled.

"Come inside," she whispered.

His smile deepened and warmed. There was a moment's pause as he fumbled in the pocket of his cast-aside jeans for a condom, then he kissed his way back up her body. He licked her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, one nipple, then the other, kissed her collarbone, her throat, her mouth. Finally, hand on her thigh, he pressed her open and slid inside her.

She let out a slow, deep breath, feeling him slid in. He kissed her again, savoring her mouth before he began the rhythm. He rose above her, and feeling his movement inside her, she suddenly realized she was no longer afraid. Her heart was safe with him; she knew that now. Fear was no longer relevant.

The realization made her want to weep. The tears gathered on the edges of her lids until she could no longer fight them. He saw, and kissed her damp cheeks even as his own climax took him over. With his lips against her tears, he stilled inside her, his c.o.c.k pressing hard into her, the warm sensation spreading up into her chest. She could feel him come, could feel his body tauten, feel his c.o.c.k pulse. Finally, he let out a ragged breath and opened his eyes. His face was wet, and she touched the tears with the tips of her fingers.

"I'm coming home with you tonight," he said. He lifted a hand, cupping her breast, stroking her nipple with his thumb. "But only on one condition."

She blinked, startled. "Condition?" She thought they'd covered everything, settled all their differences. She started to withdraw again, as his c.o.c.k softened inside her. What was he going to do now? What was he going to say that would ruin it all?

He brushed her hair back from her forehead. "Yes. Just one. Just one little one."

"What?"

"You need to turn the heat up at night."

She laughed, relieved. "G.o.d, that's all? You scared me." She touched his face, feeling the beginnings of rough stubble. "Okay, I can do that." Pulling him closer, she whispered into his ear. "But I still think heat's for wimps."

Epilogue.

April in the Rockies was unpredictable, but for this day the weather had cooperated.

Standing on the ridge behind her house, just above where the backyard began its dizzying descent down into the valley, Joely shaded her eyes and peered toward the distant peaks.

"So much for that snow the weatherman predicted yesterday."

Perry grinned. "He didn't know you were getting married today."

"Oh, that's right," said Joely with a grin. "I forgot to call him."

The last few months had been wonderful. Starting life all over again with Rey was an adventure she was glad she hadn't missed out on. It had been a great deal like the first months of their marriage, way back when, but sweeter in some ways. In other ways it was bittersweet, as they thought about what they'd lost, but they tried not to dwell on that aspect of it.

Given what they'd been through, it seemed only appropriate to Joely that they commemorate this new stage in their relations.h.i.+p. Especially now.

"So how are you feeling this morning?" Perry asked.

"Better. I actually managed to eat a little breakfast this morning instead of just saltines."

"No barfing on the groom, now," Perry cautioned.

Joely grinned. "Why not? This is all his fault."

"Now, now, what happened to all those promises about unfair blame? Last I heard, it took two to make a baby."

Joely's eyes twinkled as she stroked her barely-rounded abdomen. It would be a while before she started to show. "Yeah, I guess I have to admit I was there."

"So when is the groom due to arrive?"

"Three. He went into work this morning to finish up some things so he won't have to worry about them while we're gone." They were honeymooning for four days near Mesa Verde. Low-key, but that was what they both wanted.

Rey had found a job, not in Denver, but at a small but well-established law firm in Evergreen. He'd taken a sizable salary cut, but the cost of living here wasn't nearly as high as in Manhattan. He seemed to enjoy it, too, once he'd adjusted to the slower pace. It was an opportunity to learn more about family law and environmental issues, and that also had proved a benefit. It seemed to Joely he was more at peace with himself and her and the entire world than he ever had been before.

And now there would be a baby. They'd need to look for a larger house-Joely's little cabin was barely big enough for herself and Rey, much less a child and all the necessary accoutrements. That, too, they'd take one step at a time.

Rey arrived home early, and at four o'clock they stood in front of a minister, reciting newly-written vows.

Joely took Rey's hands in hers and looked into his dark eyes. "With the good times ahead and the bad times behind, I pledge myself to you, heart soul and mind."

His mouth quirked a little. She knew it was miserable poetry-she didn't care. His wouldn't be any better.

"We made our mistakes but we move on in love, for where two hearts are mended, G.o.d smiles from above."

"I p.r.o.nounce you re-wed," said the minister. She, too, wore a silly grin. "What G.o.d has brought forth, let none set amiss, now seal your new love with a re-married kiss."

Joely laughed out loud. That hadn't been in the program. But Rey cut her mirth short with a firm kiss, his hand cupping her belly. After a long, gentle moment, he tilted his head back.

"You're never getting rid of me now," he said.

She tapped the end of his nose. "Good. That's the way it should be."

And there, under the April sun, with his hand against the soft curve of her abdomen, she knew it was the way it would always be.

About the author:.

Elizabeth Jewell is new to the world of erotic romance, but has been writing paranormal and contemporary romance for several years. On the personal front, she is married with two children. She is a voracious reader who also watches far too much TV!

Elizabeth welcomes mail from readers. You can write to her c/o Ellora's Cave Publis.h.i.+ng at P.O. Box 787, Hudson, Ohio 44236-0787.

Also by Elizabeth Jewell:.

6 Enchanting Princesses Lady of the Seals Legacy of the Snake More Than Skin Deep s.h.i.+fting Faces The Regan Factor.

Discover for yourself why readers can't get enough of the multiple award-winning publisher Ellora's Cave. Whether you prefer e-books or paperbacks, be sure to visit EC on the web at www.ellorascave.com for an erotic reading experience that will leave you breathless.

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