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Author's Chapter Notes:
Wow, just wow everyone, I'm still in shock about your love of the story. I'm glad you like it! I know I left you on a mean cliffie but...I hope this makes you feel better hehe! Enjoy everyone!
Chapter Eight: The Night Before The Morning After

    Silence...there was an overwhelming silence in the room. No voices, no real sounds other than the reigning in of two sets of lungs as they laid on the sofa. Marie draped over him her hair splayed above her head on his upper torso and over his shoulder. She closed her eyes, then opened them doing this several times as her mind replayed the feverish events just a few moments before hand. At the same moment, the same exact thoughts ran through his head, as he suspected it was much more of a quickie than anything. He chuckled slightly at the suddenness of their reactions to each other. It shocked him at how easily he fell back into his instincts. Then again it was only two years since his last encounter and not the entirety of a lifetime it sometimes felt like.
    
    Finally after he felt himself calm enough to even really form rational thought he spoke. "That was..." He began but lost his nerve as she lifted her head her hair cascading all over to one side of her head looking completely haphazardly beautiful to him.

    She grinned at him, the small curve of her mouth growing into a satisfied smile. "Good..." She said softly her voice sounding gravelly and low. She did admit even though it wasn't exactly what either of them had planned they both knew that being out of practice lead them to have little to no self control the first time out.

    He smiled back at her brushing the hair out of her eyes and off to the side with his hand. "Yeah? It wasn't too...quick right?" He asked feeling embarrassed for feeling such a need to seek approval from her. But at the moment, he was completely and utterly desperate for it. To know that he was able to satisfy them both would definitely boost his ego.

    "Well that was to be expected...it's been awhile for you...but still I know I enjoyed it." She replied smirking at him as she shimmied her way up him both of them groaning slightly at the friction of their skin-to-skin contact. She leaned down pressing her mouth to his silencing all of his doubts and self-conscious fears that seemed to want to bubble to the surface. She broke the kiss smiling at him as she ran her fingers through his hair. "Besides...we barely made it in the door. Thank God the sofa isn't far from it or it would have ended up on the floor." She replied with a smirk before moving to get up and off of him grabbing the blanket on the back of the couch to wrap around herself. She looked over to the box on the coffee table smirking at how he'd probably stopped at the drug store on the way over. "Came prepared eh?" She asked chuckling at him.

    He smirked at her sudden modesty and sighed pulling on his boxers from the floor. "Yeah, I figured, always be prepared..." He replied making them both smile at each other then look away for a moment an almost awkward silence falling over them. He looked at her for a moment and then around the room not really sure what to do next. "Okay...awkward moment here...I'm sorry for complicating things between us...It's just that I..." He trailed off he was scared really. Things were moving very quickly between them and as much as he knew she was completely okay and comfortable with what had happened, he was at a complete loss as to where to go next.  Suddenly, to interrupt his rambling on how he didn't want to complicate anything between them, he felt her stand and look at him. She smirked, grabbing the open box of condoms they'd thrown onto the coffee table and held out her hand making him grin at her. He took her hand and stood with her following as he was lead up the small spiral staircase to the master bedroom. He swallowed slightly oddly feeling nervous. This entire night was a huge step for him. It made him scared even to think of what all of this could mean. It had been so long since he'd been that close to another person and the fact that the first time they had was now leading in to a second was making him slightly nervous as to what exactly could be happening here.
   
    She tossed the box onto the nightstand as they entered the room. He stopped her and looked her over seeing her disheveled hair and expectant look. He reached out taking the blanket from around her shoulders revealing her body again to him. Her breathing increased as he leaned forward his hands cradling either side of her neck as he looked at her face. He moved in slowly, gently kissing her as her arms wrapped around his shoulders pulling his body against hers. He broke the kiss and looked at her as she glanced up at him curiously then backed her way up onto the bed motioning for him to join her. He swallowed hard and joined her but not before tossing his boxers off to the side. She smirked and wrapped her arms around his neck as he let his hands go to her sides and drift around her back.

    He paused for a moment trying to think out what he wanted to do. He wanted this time to be much longer than the first, to make sure without a doubt that she enjoyed it to the fullest. Getting an idea he laid her down on the bed making her try to pull him down to her, letting her do so only momentarily. He shifted his weight to the side of her and started his hand at her neck sweeping down the middle of her body. He didn't really realize how much he missed the touch and the sight of a woman's body until now.
   
    She breathed heavily letting her eyes flutter closed as he followed his hand with his mouth, his hand covering one breast kneading it gently making her sigh. He did the same with the other and then kissed his way down her abdomen grinning slightly at how the muscles trembled under his touch. He moved his hand to her inner thigh inching it upwards until it grazed across her, a gasp emanating from her mouth in response. He kissed his way back up her body as his hand kept teasing her making her ache for more than the light touch he was allowing at the moment.

The mere fact that he was paying such special attention to her body made her shudder. It wasn't something she was used to that's for sure. In her experience it was all about getting to the main event and not lollygagging with the extras. She felt his fingers slide against her, inside of her and she grew restless. She wanted to come that was for certain but she wanted him with her, to follow within seconds of her if at all possible. It was more about mutual gratification than her own personal pleasure. Getting impatient she pushed his hand away from her and pushed him to sit back on his heels. She smirked as he gave her a perplexed expression in response to her bold move. Leaning over she grabbed a foil package from the box on the nightstand ripping it open as she moved toward him keeping eye contact with him as she placed it on him.

    He watched in amused amazement as she climbed onto him making them at complete eye level with each other and press her lips to his with almost contradictory gentleness, a stark contrast from her bold moves on him. The both of them held their breath as he entered her, their eyes still locked in a stare. They clung to each other as they began to move together, the heat already building between them to a fevered pitch. He listened to her sounds, soft breathy moans and heavy labored breathing in between the kisses they were sharing. She smiled into the kiss before leaning her head back for a few moments to which he took advantage of the exposure of her neck and latched his mouth to it, nipping gently between the feather-light kisses he placed there. She sighed his name and the began moving more and more frenzied with each other. He smiled against the skin of her shoulders and pushed them to lay on the bed cradling her against himself as he moved on their legs entangling.

    He leaned up on his elbows looking down at her face, he studied her closely remembering every detail of how she looked, her eyes nearly closed, her brow furrowed in concentration, mouth slightly open as she breathed and groaned. He leaned in claiming her mouth feeling himself getting closer to the edge than ever before. He kissed her as he felt her body begin to tremble, her hands digging into his back and her muscles clenched around him making him growl against her mouth breaking the kiss as he felt her ride out her release. He felt his body begin to plummet over the edge but he kept moving prolonging the feeling for them both as much as he could before his body completely tensed and he collapsed against her. She smiled chuckling under her breath, a clear indication she'd indeed enjoyed herself. He looked up at her and smiled back before pressing his lips to hers.

    "And that didn't complicate things at all huh?" She quipped mirroring his earlier concern for moving too fast too soon. He laughed at her and kissed her again as he moved to her side holding her next to him. Even he had to admit, that this sort of complication was a welcome one.

---

    The following morning Marie stirred slightly reaching out to her side but felt nothing but rumpled bed sheets. She opened her eyes lifting up her head to see the other side of the bed was indeed empty. Her heart sank slightly but then regained form as she saw a small yellow post-it note on the pillow beside her. She grinned seeing masculine script on it.

Coffee and breakfast

    The note was simple, direct but it made her smile that he'd decided to go out and get her some food after the night they'd spent together. She sighed rolling onto her back looking up at the ceiling warmth washing over her as she remembered the entire evening. Reluctantly she got up not caring that she was naked and went into the bathroom to take a nice hot shower.

    Down in the living room Nick had just entered through the door with breakfast, Romeo and Jada running to meet him at the door barking their greeting to him. He smiled and set the tray of two coffees and the bag of breakfast down. He scratched both of the dogs heads and cleaned up the kitchen smirking at the ice cold cup of tea that was on the counter, he emptied it into the sink as well as the teapot letting them soak in some soapy water. He heard the shower going upstairs and smirked thinking of the night before as he walked around to the living room silently cursing at himself at the condom wrapper on the floor. He picked it up dropping it into the trash can and plopped down onto the couch smiling to himself at how things were going. He liked her, more and more all the time. That simple fact alone kept him coming back but to add the intense physical attraction between them and the chemistry they had, he realized that he didn't want to just get out on the dating scene to see what was out there...he wanted...a partner...and Marie was fast becoming someone he could see himself with.

    That thought process alone would have completely scared him the night before but now...after waking up beside her and seeing her so contentedly asleep by his side, he realized that he was developing something for her...what it was he wasn't quite sure yet but there was a nervous excitement in him to follow it for however long it may last.

    The stairs creaked interrupting his thoughts as he looked up seeing her descend the stairs, her wet hair in a ponytail and wearing a simple pair of jeans and a well worn tee-shirt. He smiled at her standing up and went over to the bottom of the stairs meeting her at eye level when she hit the last stair. He leaned in kissing her slowly making her smile and break the kiss. "Wow...you sure know how to give a girl a good morning greeting..." She retorted making him smile at her. She sighed and followed him as he walked to the counter where the coffee and food was.

    "I didn't know what you liked so I just got a breakfast sandwich and some regular coffee, figuring you could add milk, cream or sugar or whatever to it." He said as he handed her a cup. "I kind of ate mine on the way over here...I have a few things to take care of today, so I'm going to get those things done, and then we're still going out tonight right?"

    She smiled at him brightly and nodded. Of course she would go out with him that night she loved spending time with him, and even though they wouldn't be spending the day together she most certainly wanted to spend the night with him. "Any special requests?" She asked not knowing what to wear, not really knowing where he would be taking her.

    "Wear something you'd wear on a date." He quipped back kissing her quickly on the lips and then turned to leave bidding her farewell for the day. He left the apartment smiling, for once completely happy and it didn't have anything to do with something one of his daughters had done to make him proud. In fact he was pretty proud of himself. In one singular evening he'd not only taken a huge step toward moving his life toward something, new exciting and definitely into territory he hadn't allowed himself to be privy to in a very long time.
 
Chapter End Notes:
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