Finally

by Miranda P. Charles

“Rude? It’s your birthday party, baby. You can do whatever you want,” he said with a wicked smile. “But seriously, I don’t think anyone would mind. Not that I care if they did.”

  “Okay,” Sarah said, then turned to Rebecca and whispered something to her friend.

  Rebecca smiled and nodded.

  Jeff stood up and helped Sarah off her seat then turned to Rebecca and Zach. “You guys can explain if anyone comes looking for us. We won’t be back.” He grabbed Sarah’s hand before anyone can thwart them from finally getting this chance to sort things out completely.

  *****

  Jeff shut the door of his suite and gathered Sarah in his arms. “Whatever Ted said about last weekend—”

  Sarah pressed a finger on his lips. “Do you really love me, Jeff?”

  “Yes,” he said earnestly. “I know Bianca turning up tonight, and my idiot cousin opening his big mouth, put a dampener on our earlier conversation. But I meant everything I said, Sarah. I love you and I mean to prove that to you.”

  She smiled. “Then that’s all I need to know.”

  His lips descended on hers, his kiss expressing his relief and pent-up desire for her. “I missed you so much, baby.”

  “So fucking much?” she asked teasingly, pressing her body against his.

  He groaned. “So fucking much. Let me show you just how much.”

  He lifted her in his arms and strode toward the bedroom. He put her down on her feet by the edge of the bed, rubbed that itchy spot on his arm, then reached for the zipper of her dress.

  “You’ve done that a few times tonight. Are you feeling itchy?”

  “Yes,” he said, his lips tugging up into a secretive smile as he pushed her dress off her shoulders, letting it fall to the floor. His cock sprung to attention at the sight of her in seriously sexy, red underwear.

  “Do you have an insect bite there or something?” Sarah asked distractedly, stepping out of her shoes and clothes.

  He started unbuttoning his shirt. “I’ll show you. Maybe you can tell me what else I can use to help with the itch apart from the moisturiser I’ve been applying on it.”

  Sarah frowned, helping him with his buttons. He could tell she was concerned.

  “Ready?” he asked, both excited and nervous.

  Sarah nodded.

  He took off his shirt and showed her his left side. Her mouth dropped open and within seconds, tears were flowing down her cheeks.

  “Do you like it?” he asked hoarsely, reaching out and wiping away her tears.

  Sarah touched his arm, careful to avoid the parts where some flaking had formed. “When did you get it done?”

  “The day after my birthday. I wanted to do something that would prove to you that it’s you I love, not Bianca.”

  Sarah swallowed a sob. “It’s a pity the weather’s turning colder,” she said, sniffing. “You can’t wear short sleeves.”

  He laughed. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll be baring it every chance I get.”

  “Is it permanent?”

  He snickered. “Of course it’s permanent.”

  Fresh tears pooled in her eyes.

  “Shh,” Jeff said, kissing the wetness from her face. Finally, she believed him.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Sarah stared at the words ‘I love you, Sarah,’ beautifully tattooed on Jeff’s biceps.

  “You know, some people will call you crazy for having this done,” she said, gently running a finger around the letters. “What if... what if we don’t end up together in the future?” She had to force those words out her throat. She didn’t even want to think about it.

  “I did consider that,” Jeff answered. “But I just want to prove to you that I do love you.”

  She curved her arms around his neck. “I love you too, Jeff,” she said, overwhelmed by his gesture and her feelings for him.

  “For the record, I don’t relish the thought of getting this removed at any point in time,” he said with a grimace. “Apparently, it’s more painful and an absolute hassle. So we better make sure we always sort things out when we fight.”

  “Sounds good to me,” she murmured happily, lifting her lips to his.

  “Hmm. I just remembered something,” Jeff said, running a hand on the side of her breast.

  “What?”

  “You still owe me my birthday present.”

  She giggled. “You haven’t given me mine yet, either.”

  “My birthday came first, so you have to give me mine first.”

  She smiled sensuously, pushing him onto the bed. “As you wish.”

  She took off his shoes and socks then crawled on top of him. She worked on his belt, smiling at the bulge that had already formed in his pants. God, she missed that.

  She unzipped his pants and pulled them down his legs, then started sliding down his boxer briefs. She took them off him leisurely, pretending she was unaffected by the sight of his erection pointing toward his belly button.

  Jeff sat up and tried to reach for her.

  “Hey, if you want me to give you your birthday present, you have to behave,” she said playfully, pushing him back on to the bed.

  “You look freaking hot in those undies, baby,” Jeff said appreciatively.

  “Did you know that I bought them for this occasion?” she asked, pushing the straps slowly down, freeing her arms and boobs, but not unclasping the bra. “They're part of your present.”

  “Love ‘em, sweetheart,” Jeff croaked, his cock jerking as he stared hungrily at her naked breasts, red lace on their underside.

  “I’m glad. Here’s the rest of my present,” she said, leaning down to lick his length.

  “Ahh, I love this present,” Jeff grunted.

  “Glad to hear,” she said sultrily, grabbing his cock so she could lave it better.

  “I missed your mouth,” Jeff gasped.

  “Did you?”

  “Mmm,” he moaned.

  “Mmm,” she agreed, getting greedier for him. She put him in her mouth and twirled her tongue around the head while she busied both hands with tugging the base and fondling his balls. He was so hard, and it excited her thinking how the hardness she was kissing right now would be assuaging the delicious ache between her legs soon.

  “Ahh, Sarah... baby,” Jeff said in a strangled voice, his hips gently undulating as she continued her ministrations.

  A handful of minutes of loving him like that had Jeff sitting up and gently pushing her head away from his cock. “You’re gonna make me come, sweetheart. I don’t want to come yet.”

  “I thought you want lots of sexing for your birthday?”

  “Absolutely. But you don’t get to do all the tasting,” he said wickedly, bringing her to her back on the bed in an agile motion.

  Jeff slid her panties off and pushed her legs apart. “I happen to be very hungry myself,” he murmured, kissing his way up her thighs.

  “Well, since I’m your birthday present, you can have as much of me as you want,” she said breathlessly.

  “Good. Although I know I’ll never get enough of you even if all we do this weekend is make love.”

  “I’m glad to—ohh!” Pleasure bolts zinged through her as Jeff’s expert tongue licked her clit. God, he was so good at this.

  Jeff pleasured her with his mouth and fingers, making little noises that told her he was enjoying himself as much as she was. Oh, he was relentless in taking her higher and higher. His finger was sliding in and out of her while his naughty tongue continued its flicking and licking. She moaned... gasped... whimpered. She was almost there.

  She pushed at this shoulders. “Jeff...” She wanted to tell him to stop so she wouldn’t come yet but, God, it was so good... he was so good. “Aahhh!” Her body lifted from the bed as she reached climax, her body clamping hard around his fingers.

  “Ah, baby, I love it when you come,” Jeff murmured as he started kissing his way up to her face. When he was blanketing her with his hard form, his rigid member found her soaked entrance a
nd he pushed in.

  She was still recovering from her stunning orgasm when Jeff’s cock started moving in and out of her... slowly... deliciously. Oh, being stretched by him felt incredible, and she wrapped her legs around his waist. Before long Jeff was speeding up, giving her hot, desperate kisses on her face and neck as his breathing became harsher, heavier. He shifted upwards, so that his rocking motion stimulated her sensitive nub as he continued to drive into her.

  Argh, he was doing it to her again. She met him, thrust for thrust, as their sounds of pleasure filled the room. Higher and higher they soared, until together they reached the crest and cried their release.

  *

  “I love you,” Jeff whispered in her ear as he lay on top of her, catching his breath.

  She tightened her arms around him. “I love you, too.”

  “Promise me something,” he asked, rearing up to look into her eyes.

  “What?” Her heart was so expanded and full of tenderness for him that she knew she’d agree to whatever he asked.

  “Promise you won’t run away from me again for whatever reason—that we’d always talk through our problems.”

  She smiled, touched by his words and his pleading gaze. “Promise.”

  “Good. Because I discovered that I can’t handle you disappearing on me.”

  “I want you to promise me something, too.”

  “Anything,” he said, pressing a kiss on her lips.

  “Promise you’ll never ever get rid of this,” she said, running a gentle hand over his tattoo.

  He grinned. “I’m living with it for the rest of my life, baby.”

  She beamed at him.

  “Uh, could you scratch it lightly for me,” he asked.

  She chuckled, gently tapping on it to help alleviate his discomfort. “The itchiness should go soon, I suspect. It looks to be healing well.”

  “Maybe tomorrow we can go for a swim with the others so they can all see it.”

  “Isn’t it bad to go for a swim while it’s not healed yet? Because of the chlorine?” she asked.

  “I won’t wet it. I’ll keep it off the water.”

  “Okay,” she replied with a grin, touched and thrilled that Jeff would want everyone to know that he loved her.

  “I won’t be surprised if Zach decides to get a tattoo when he sees this,” Jeff said with a big smile. “He wouldn’t want Bec thinking I love you more than he loves her.”

  “I’m sure Bec won’t think that. She knows Zach’s crazy about her.”

  “Yes, but Zach would still feel competitive,” he said smugly.

  “Oh no,” she said wryly.

  “What?”

  “You guys are not going to start a competition on who’s got the most romantic tattoo, are you? This one’s good enough for me.”

  “Don’t worry,” Jeff said, silencing her with a kiss.

  Hmm. That wasn’t exactly a promise not to get another one, but she let the thought go as Jeff bent down to capture a nipple between his lips.

  *****

  “Look who decided to come out,” Amanda said as Sarah found her, Brenna and Gemma in the billiards room.

  “You didn’t really miss me, did you?” Sarah said. “Why aren’t you on the winery tour?”

  “My head is still a bit sore from my stupid binge-drinking last night,” Amanda said. “And we’ve already been on one before, so we thought we’d just enjoy the facilities here before it’s time to go home this afternoon.”

  “Look at you, Sarah,” Brenna said with a sigh. “Grinning like a monkey.”

  “Come on, Bren. She’s brimming with happiness,” Gemma said theatrically. “Where’s the man who did this to you?”

  “He got a text from Greg that they were still at the winery, so he went there to join them. Greg said you guys stayed behind,” she answered. “Speaking of your binge-drinking last night, Amanda, why did Connor have that effect on you?”

  Amanda huffed. “I told you he’s a jerk. But admittedly, it was my fault too. I told him too much personal information and got humiliated for it.”

  “You didn’t tell us about that. What happened?” Gemma asked.

  “I told him about our group New Year’s resolution. Bad mistake,” Amanda said, her eyes flashing from the memory. “I’ve learnt you shouldn’t share something too personal with a one-night stand. Anyway, he must have thought I was out to snare him so he decided to set me up with his other friends. It was so embarrassing—as if I was some loser who needed his help to find someone. Not only that, it was so obvious he wanted to get rid of me. Such an arrogant man, I tell you.”

  “Oh, sorry, honey,” Sarah said. “Is he still around?”

  “Unfortunately. He’s at the winery.”

  “One other reason why Amanda didn’t want to join the tour,” Brenna quipped.

  “Is Bec with them?” Sarah asked.

  “No. She and Zach only just got out of their suite half an hour ago. I think she’s with Magda now. Magda’s knee is bothering her, apparently.”

  “Oh. I better check on her too. I’ll see you guys later,” Sarah said. “Maybe we can go for a swim this afternoon,” she added on her way out of the room.

  “Sounds great,” the girls said.

  *****

  Sarah joined Rebecca in Magda’s suite where Rebecca was giving Magda a gentle massage around the knee area.

  “It might be time for that knee operation my orthopaedic surgeon has been telling me to get,” Magda murmured.

  “It’s not a bad idea to do it soon, Gran,” Rebecca said. “It would mean more ease of mobility for you, just like you got more mobile after your hip replacement.”

  “Yes. It’s the recovery and rehab period afterwards that I’m not looking forward to. But if the two of you would help me through it again, then I suppose it wouldn’t be so bad.”

  “Of course we’ll be there for you again, Magda,” Sarah said. “And I agree with Bec that it wouldn’t hurt to do it sooner rather than later.”

  “Okay. I have a doctor’s appointment next week. I’ll raise it then. I’m already sorry that I’ve missed out on joining everyone on the winery tour today. I would have loved to be there and spend some time with all your guests before they go home.”

  Sarah exchanged a knowing smile with Rebecca. They both loved Magda’s sense of fun.

  “By the way, Sarah, I hope you don’t mind me asking, but from that glowing look on your face I take it everything went well with your talk with Jeffrey last night? You guys disappeared when the night was still young.”

  Sarah blushed, and her embarrassment from blushing in the first place made her redden further. She didn’t just ‘talk’ with Jeff. They made love all night long. And all that sexing was what her brain flashed to her when Magda asked her question.

  “I’ll take that as a yes,” Magda said with a chuckle. “Of course, now I’ll have to ask for other nurses to do the night shifts instead of either one of you. I imagine my grandsons wouldn’t be very pleased with me if I took you away from them at nights.”

  Rebecca joined Sarah in blushing.

  “Now, girls, what can I do today without making my knee worse? I do want to be out there and join in today’s fun.”

  “Well, some of us are going for a swim this afternoon,” Sarah said. “We can do your hydro-aerobics and get others to join us.”

  Magda’s face lit up.

  “Maybe we can have a light lunch in the pool house too,” Rebecca suggested. “We can set up a table there and do it buffet style so people can munch on food whenever they want. The weather’s not very nice today and I think most people were already planning on spending the time in the pool before they head home anyway.”

  “Excellent idea,” Magda said. “Could you girls organise it and let everyone know?”

  *****

  Sarah was pulling out her swimsuit from her overnight bag when she heard Jeff mutter to himself.

  “I can’t believe I forgot about this.”

 
“What’s wrong, honey?” she asked.

  Jeff turned to her with a crooked smile on his face. “You gave me my birthday present last night—well part of it since the weekend’s not over yet...”

  She snickered. Surely Jeff wasn’t wanting another round right now? They just had a quickie a few minutes ago.

  Jeff held out a small square box. “You distracted me so much I totally forgot to give this to you last night,” he said, walking to her.

  Her mouth opened in surprise. “But I thought your tattoo was my present.”

  “No. This is.” He handed her the box.

  She carefully untied the bow and opened the box. She gasped as she stared at the exquisite heart-shaped pendant of round brilliant diamonds on a white-gold—or maybe platinum—chain. Since Jeff bought it, she guessed the necklace was platinum. “Jeff....”

  “Do you like it?”

  “It’s beautiful,” she said in awe, thinking it was too much. But she knew Jeff wouldn’t be happy if she mentioned anything about cost. “But I can’t wear it yet. We’re going for a swim.”

  “Will you wear it after?”

  She smiled at him. “Yes. Happily. Thank you,” she said, putting her arms around his neck and kissing him sweetly. “But you really didn’t have to get me this.”

  “I wanted to. Who else am I gonna spoil but my girl? Now let’s go to the pool house so I can show off my new tattoo.”

  She sighed, hugging him tighter. What had she done to deserve this man?

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Jeff sat on the edge of the pool, his legs dangling in the water, as he held a plateful of gourmet sandwiches cut in quarters. Only a handful of last night’s guests had gone home early. Most had stayed and were now enjoying an informal party in the pool house. After the winery tour and a long walk through the vineyards, everyone was peckish and was crowding around the buffet table.

  “Holy crap,” Greg said. “What’s that on your arm?”

  “You can read, can’t you?” he quipped.

  “Man, you got it real bad.”

  “Uh-huh,” he said, smiling smugly as he took a big bite of his food.

  Greg sat next to him. “Why did you get it done?” he whispered.

  “Because I love Sarah,” he said patiently.