Lost and Found

By Dottie

Copyright 2012

Chapter 2

            After throwing away the used condom, Nick wraps Penelope in his arms and whispers, "That was...WOW!"

            She sighs, loving how it feels to have his skin pressing against hers. She says, "I couldn't have said it better."

            He lets his fingers run lazily up and down her arm as he says, "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

            She kisses his chest before saying, "No. Never!"

            He laughs and says, "Good. Because I don't ever want to hurt you."

            She props up on her elbow to look at him and says, "Nick, look what you've done for me. You make me forget...you make me feel like I'm beautiful."

            He says, "How many times do I have to tell you that you are beautiful before you'll believe me?"

            She sighs and says, "Nick..."

            In a sing-song voice he says, "Penelope...I mean it. So what, you have a few scars. It doesn't mean shit to me. I love you for who you are...not JUST for your body."

            His words stop her cold. She says, "What? What did you say?"

            Realizing what he had said, he kind of smiles and says, "I love you Penelope."

            Her lower lip quivers and she whispers, "You mean it, don't you?"

            He wipes a tear from her face and says, "You know I do. You get me in ways no one ever has. I can be the real me in front of you and you let me. You let me into your world even when I knew you didn't want to. You wanted to hide from me but you didn't. I wonder why?"

            She lays her head on his shoulder and says, "Because I trust you."

            He says, "Do you trust me enough to tell me what happened?"

            She sits up and pulls the sheet up over her breasts, tucking it under her arms. He sits up beside her and says, "You don't have to Penelope. Not if you don't want to. But it's eating you up inside. Tell me. Please."

            Averting her eyes from his, she says, "I had had dinner with my parents and my sister. Juliette had dropped me off and when I came inside...they were here."

            Nick gently takes her free hand and says, "They who? Here? This apartment?"

            She nods and says, "Yeah. I couldn't afford to move. The owners installed the new security systems and locks...but it was weeks before I could stay by myself. It's still hard sometimes."

            He slides closer and puts his arms around her. She leans against him when he whispers, "Dear God Penelope..."

            She says, "It was...my boyfriend Dave. I don't know who the other one was. They never caught him."

            Rubbing her arm, Nick asks her "What happened?"

            She curls up against him and says, "I don't know what they wanted.  I don't know why. The place was destroyed.  Whoever was with Dave...he had a knife."

            When her body starts trembling, Nick squeezes her tightly and says, "He's never gonna hurt you again, Penelope. I swear to God, I'll never let anyone hurt you again."

            She soaks up the feeling of being safe in his arms. Finally she whispers, "He killed Dave. Right there in front of me. I watched him die as the policemen were fighting to save me. But I didn't want them to. I saw...I could see what he had done to me Nick. In the mirrors. I didn't want to live."

            She feels him shaking as he holds her as tightly as he can. Finally, he whispers, "Baby, please...don't..."

            She stops him and says, "I don't want to die Nick. Not anymore. But it's hard to go out and have people staring at me. I hate it. I hate the sympathetic stares and the ‘Oh I'm sorry' comments." Sniffling, she said, "You're the first person that didn't stare."

            He said, "Oh, I stared all right. But not at the scar. I got lost in your eyes. You looked SO sad and I just wanted to find a way to make you smile. I think the first time I ever really saw you smile, my heart stopped beating."

            She wiggles away from his body to look at him. He strokes her face as she whispers, "I don't think I smiled before I met you, Nick."

            He kisses her and says, "Penelope...you're such a beautiful person. Inside and out. You have to believe that."

            Snuggling up with him, she whispers, "When I'm with you, I do."

            At some point, they both doze off. Until Penelope starts thrashing in the bed and hits Nick in the nose.  He blinks away the pain and reaches for her. He says, "Penelope?" When she doesn't respond, he raises his voice and says, "Penelope, wake up, Sweetheart."

            Finally she opens her eyes and sees him. Tears are streaming down her face as she collapses against him, gasping for air. She manages to whisper, "I'm so sorry."

            Nick holds her close, rubbing her hair, and says, "It's ok, Babe. What happened? Bad dream?"

            She nods against his chest, willing her body to stop shaking. Finally she says, "Maybe you should go home to sleep. This will happen a lot."

            He says, "You have dreams like this? Every night?"

            She nods and says, "Yeah, pretty much."

            He kisses her temple and says, "Come with me, Penelope. Come back to my place tonight. Maybe the dreams will stay away."

            She pulls her face away from his chest to look at him. Finally, she says, "Nick, I don't know if I can. I'm..."

            He says, "Shh. You're beautiful and you shouldn't be afraid to let people see that beauty. If they stare so what? They are just admiring how sexy you are."

            She manages to roll her eyes before saying, "You're crazy."

            He says, "Do you trust me?"

            She stares into his eyes and says, "You know I do."

            He says, "Then come home with me tonight. And maybe tomorrow we can meet with AJ for lunch. He keeps asking me about the woman that makes me smile all the time."

            She lets fear take control and says, "You told your friends about me?"

            He says, "I just told them I was seeing someone. AJ didn't know your name until today."

            She pulls away a little and says, "Nick..."

            He says, "Penelope, look at me." When their eyes meet, he says, "You ARE a part of my life. So are they.  Eventually, you'll meet them. Why not just jump in? I promise...none of them are going to see that scar after one minute with you. They are going to see what I see. A beautiful woman that I'm head over heels in love with."

            She bites her lip.  She trusts Nick. Even though he's famous, when he's with her...she forgets he's a celebrity. With her, he's just Nick. His friends could be the same way. Finally, she says, "I'd...like to meet your friends."

            He looks at her shocked. The smile on his face speaks volumes to her. He hugs her tightly and says, "I promise Baby, you're gonna love them. And they are gonna love you!"

            She leans against him and whispers, "Can we really go to your place?"

            He tilts her face up to his and says, "Only if you want to.  I never pushed because you seem so...you get so scared if I mention going anywhere you're not used to. I don't want to pressure you if you're not ready."

            She says, "I want to be with you Nick. So much it scares me. But...I don't want to keep hitting you in the nose if I have a nightmare."

            He rubs his nose and says, "You pack a wallop woman."

            She giggles. She actually giggles. Nick sighs and pushes her onto her back, hovering over her. He kisses her gently and whispers, "You're giggles even turn me on Penelope. God how I want you."

            She winds her arms around his neck and pulls him down on top of her. Her kisses tell him she wants him just as much. He pulls the sheet off her body and lets his fingers explore her breasts.  Sliding them over her stomach, they slip between her thighs and he teases her inner folds with his fingertips. She gasps, spreading her legs for more.

            He slowly rubs her...bringing her moisture out to coat her clit as his tongue slides around her nipple. She whimpers, "Nick...please..."

            He gently bites her nipple before sliding his lips up to her neck.  Rubbing his cock up and down her thigh, he continues drawing pleasure from her body with his fingers.  He sucks on her earlobe before saying, "You are so wet.  How can you be so wet? Feels SO good Babe."

            Tangling one of her fists in the sheets, she rakes her nails down his back with the other hand and says, "Nick PLEASE!"

            He needs no further urging. Sliding between her thighs, he brings himself to her opening. Running his cock up and down her slit to coat it with her juices, he whispers, "Beautiful."

            She whimpers as he slides in and gasps, "I love you Nick."

            Burying is face in her neck as he buries himself in her, he whispers, "I love you too Penelope."

            He moves slowly, savoring how tight she is wrapped around his body. She sighs, sliding one of her legs up his, giving him access to move deeper.  With his hands under her body, he supports himself on his elbows as he rocks into her.

            Opening her eyes, she looks at Nick. He looks back, their eyes locked together. She whispers, again, "I love you," just as her body starts to shake with her orgasm.

            He keeps pushing in and out of her...his body throbbing for its own release, he whispers, "Sweetheart...condom...I didn't..."

            She says, "Don't stop, Nick...PLEASE!"

            He couldn't have stopped if he tried. He just kept going...filling her body with his essence. When he finally collapses on her, she wraps her arms around him and holds him tight.  He manages to gasp for air and say, "Let me move off of you, Baby."

            She whimpers and holds on as tight as she can, saying, "No, stay, please."

            He kisses her neck as she continues to hold him on her body. Finally, she turns her face to kiss his cheek and whispers, "I never knew I could feel this way."

            He rolls off her, bringing her body up against his chest. He kisses her forehead and says, "I'm glad it's me making you feel good, Penelope."

            They snuggle for a while before she says, "Can we really go to your place?"

            He smiles to himself and says, "I'd like to. Can AJ really come for lunch tomorrow?"

            Tilting her head back, she says, "I'd like to meet him."

            His smile makes her heart melt. He says, "Come on, then. I think we should shower and dress and head out."

            She giggles and says, "You're finally getting into my shower."

            He hugs her tightly and says, "I love to hear you laughing, Penelope. I love that you're opening up more to me. I'm not going to hurt you."

            She gets up and wraps a robe around her body. He wants to tell her it's not necessary to hide from him, but after all she's been through, he decides it's best to let her set the pace.  Feeling absolutely no self-consciousness about his body, he follows her into the bathroom.

            Once under the water, they just kiss and rub each other.  When she takes a loofa and shower gel and starts lathering up his body, he starts getting hard again. She whispers, "Was this a bad idea?"

            He says, "With you, there are no bad ideas Baby. Let's get cleaned up and we'll go to my place and get dirty again. I think you'll like my bathtub."

            When Nick leads her into his apartment, she instantly feels at ease. She says, "This is gorgeous."

            He smiles and says, "I can't take the credit. I hired a decorator."

            After showing her around, he takes her into the bedroom. She walks over to the window and looks out at the stars. They are up high enough that street lights don't interfere and the view is breathtaking. She says, "Nick...I could sit here for hours and stargaze."

            He says, "I didn't know you were into stars."

            Laughing, she says, "Why do you think I'm with you?"

            He picks her up and swings her around and says, "OK, smartass, you're gonna pay for that!"

            She giggles and says, "OK, seriously, yes, I love astronomy. I have a decent telescope, but the lights in my neighborhood make stargazing impossible."

            He says, "So we'll bring it over here and you can gaze all you want. You can even teach me about the stars."

            She says, "I can. It's what I do for a living."

            He says, "Wait. I thought you were a research assistant for a professor."

            She says, "I am. A professor of Astronomy."

            He grins and says, "OK, Ms. Smarty Pants, where's the Big Dipper?"

            She pulls him out onto the patio and says, "It's in the Northern sky. Right there." She points and says, "The stars in the big dipper are brighter. Can you see it?"

            He looks where she's pointing and says, "I'll be damned. I do see it. So, isn't the North star part of the Big Dipper?"

            She shakes her head and says, "No, it's the tip of the handle of the Little dipper. Do you see the two stars on the side of the ‘cup' of the Big Dipper?"

            He says, "Yeah. Why?"

            She says, "If you draw and imaginary line between them they point to the North Star, which is right there. See it?"

            He looks and says, "Hey, yeah, there it is.  So that's at the...HEY I see the Little Dipper too!"

            She smiles and says, "You're a very good student."

            He hugs her tightly and says, "You're an amazing teacher." After kissing her, he says, "Hey Teach, is there any extra credit I can do for an A+?"

            She cocks her head at him and says, "I think there may be SOMETHING you can do."

            His smile says it all. He lifts her up into his arms and says, "Then, by all means, let's get to it."