I was eager to explore further the bond that was growing steadily between us, and I knew the significance of what I was feeling for her, but she still had no clue about what I was, or what this pull to each other meant. Navigating this with a human was going to be interesting, and I was literally figuring it out as we went along.
We lounged like this for a bit, our breathing syncing with the air around us, and enjoyed the sounds of the river and wildlife. We seemed to have found a secluded enough spot, and no one was around.
Selena said softly, not wanting to disturb the quiet around us more than needed, “I was impressed today with our local fire crew, and you all made it look so easy, though I imagine it was a lot of work. Thanks for suggesting it. It was fun.”
“It was, wasn’t it. Jasper asked us to join them last year, but we had business out of town. I will make sure we keep that Saturday free in future. Those guys work hard for our community and deserve all the help they can get. The twins actually work on the crew whenever they can and have participated in a few big forest fires.”
We reclined quietly for a bit longer, but eventually Selena turned around in my arms and perched on her knees, answering my wish as without saying a word, she took my face in her hands and pulled me to her for a kiss.
When she broke away leaving me relishing the taste of her lips she said, “I could not wait another minute for that,” which caused me to grip her hips and tug her closer as our mouths crashed together again in our desperate need to explore each other.
When she moaned, I moved my hands to cup her curvy bottom, bringing her against my arousal, needing her to know what she was doing to me, and she sucked in air through our kiss.
Laying us down, I pressed her into the sun-warmed blanket, never breaking our kiss. Then I leaned up on my elbow, enjoying the sight of her heaving breasts encased in her snug low-cut top, and her sensuous lips swollen from our passion, and she gave me her beautiful smile as I stroked my hand down her side gently, brushing my thumb along her breast. She trembled at my touch, and heat flared in me.
Cupping her face, I whispered, “You are so beautiful.”
Her hands feverishly caressed my arms and trailed across my chest, then moved softly over my abs, making me suck in my own breath as they tentatively inched lower. I watched her cognac eyes grow languid with desire just from touching me, her tongue darting out to lick her bottom lip.
Dropping my forehead to hers as the look nearly had me undone, I took her face in my hand again and focused on her sweet mouth, planting soft kisses at the corners, then over her eyes, then trailing them down her neck. “Andras,” she whispered, as I focused on her rapidly beating pulse.
The feeling she infused into my name elicited my own groan. Our kiss deepened, then I pulled back to appreciate again the sight of her under me, my eyes going to the creamy skin of her cleavage as it rose and fell, teasing me, drawing my kisses there as her impassioned breathing gave me better access.
“I have thought of nothing but what it would feel like to have this beautiful body against mine, to feel the warmth of your skin,” I murmured.
Her breath caught and the look of desire deepened. I continued to explore her softness as she wrapped her arms around my head drawing me closer. She tasted so sweet.
When I returned to her mouth, I slowed our exploration, becoming lost in a sublime moment in time, acutely aware of the feel and taste of her as her scent mingled with the smell of the sun warmed earth, the summer flowers, and the river.
My blood coursed through me in time with the flow of the river and a frog chimed in from somewhere nearby. Splashes sounded as fish jumped to catch their meals. These would become sounds that would always make me think of this day.
This was my element, and Selena was becoming part of it, and I reveled in the feel of it.
Selena buried her face in my neck inhaling me, something I was coming to realize she loved to do, but this time she lavished my skin with kisses, lingering over the pulse that was growing erratic as our passion rose again, then trailing little kisses up to my ear where her hot tongue darted in, making me hitch my breath.
As our mouths crashed together once more, I moved my hand to span her torso under her shirt needing to feel more of her warm skin, inching her shirt up to reach the place that I was craving. Just as her hands smoothed over my abdomen reaching for the bottom of my tank, the sounds of children’s laughter caused us to freeze.
Quickly, we rolled apart and straightened our clothing. Selena was grinning at me as she pulled her top back into place, wriggling those enticing breasts as we both strove for casual poses and tried to act like we had only just been laying on the blanket deep in conversation.
It was hard for me to change so abruptly from lover to the role of idle picnicker while my focus was riveted on her mouthwatering cleavage. I grinned wickedly at her.
We watched out of the corners of our eyes as a family with four kids walked in front of us along the river’s edge looking for a place to picnic. One of the littlest children broke from his family and ran up to us, with his father yelling at him to come back.
He stopped when he got close to our blanket and looked shyly at us with his finger in his mouth. “Hi,” he said simply, then hearing his dad’s warning, turned and ran to rejoin his family.
We broke out in laughter. Well, damn. My body was quickly cooling back down to normal temperatures and now I supposed it was time to break out the wine and cheese.
Still, the satisfied smile never left my face as I enjoyed the dappled shade of the poplars while I sipped wine with one of the most beautiful women I had ever known.
After eating our fill and finishing off the delicious bottle of wine, Selena making it known she was in fact impressed with Isaac’s selections, we walked along the river for a while holding hands, and even skipping stones, a tradition that must always be followed when walking along a river with a date.
When the sun rose high, we packed up our things, stuffed the blanket back into the duffle and headed to the Harley.
Chapter 19
Andras
This time when I walked her to her front porch, she invited me in for some coffee, and I was happy for the chance to see this aspect of Selena.
It was a true Craftsman bungalow, which had us walking directly into the inviting living room. Overstuffed furniture was grouped into a sitting area around a beautiful fireplace.
Art was everywhere. The abundance of texture and color was the essence of Selena, and it was becoming addicting. It soothed me. It was a manifestation of her joy.
“This place is charming Selena, just like its owner,” I told her appreciatively.
“Thank you,” she said, pleased. “It is the type of place I have dreamed of owning my entire life, and it has been a lot of fun making it mine.”
She invited me to take the chair by the window next to the fireplace while she went across to the open kitchen to make us some coffee. On the way she engaged her sound system, and I liked the singer’s mellow storytelling with her voice changing octaves in a pleasant twang. When I asked, she told me it was Neko Case.
She called to me from the kitchen, “Would you like some of Jean’s blackberry pie with your coffee? I have vanilla ice cream, too.”
“I’ll take both, thank you.” I looked around the place keeping an eye on Selena while she made coffee, sliced two generous pieces of pie, and warmed them in her microwave for a few seconds. She added a perfectly formed scoop of ice cream to each plate.
I could glimpse a bedroom, a mudroom and there were French doors that led to an adjoining room that was crammed with meticulously organized tables, cabinets, and shelves full of art supplies, color everywhere, of course.
“Do you mind if I look around your studio? I have always wanted to explore the mysteries of a she-shed, and this one is calling me.”
“Of course, help yourself.” She laughed. I opened the French doors and walked into a space that was stuffed full of art in varying degrees of
completion. Pieces were on the walls, on an easel, in fat crinkly journals.
The art that was displayed tended to be abstract, but I could see the sun through the trees in one, and I felt like I wanted to explore that mysterious forest. Another suggested an image of the Starlight with its neon sign, both wavering as if rain were coming down in sheets. The lighting in both was exquisite.
I refrained from poking around in the journals or flipping through canvases as that would be too invasive. I just wanted to get a glimpse of how she worked. It seemed to be a happy, productive space, exactly as expected.
Finishing the circuit of the room, having been careful not to knock anything over in the tight spaces, I met her back at the fireplace where she set down a laden tray on the table between the sofa and chair and we both sat down.
She asked how I liked my coffee. When I said black was my preference, she said, “Me too,” and smiled in satisfaction, while she poured us each a cup. She took a sip then asked me what I thought of her studio.
“It’s exactly how I imagined it would be.” She looked at me thoughtfully, likely curious as to why I had given thought to the place where she liked to create.
“There is good energy in there. You appear to have a lot of pieces in progress. Do you have any plans for them?”
She looked into her coffee for a moment, then said, “I do actually. I’ve been working on lesson plans and have been in touch with the art department at Lassen to provide a mixed media art program here in Quincy.”
Raising my eyebrows in appreciation of her plan I said, “I think the town could really use a class like that. Nearly everyone wants to explore art at some point in their lives. It’s an excellent idea.”
“I’m glad you think so. There is still a lot of work to do before we get anything started.” She snuggled back against the pillows pulling her knees up under her chin sipping her coffee.
We had both kicked off our shoes at the front door and I liked that we were sitting here in our bare feet, finding myself getting turned on by the sight of her delicate feet and glossy pink toenails. I pulled my gaze back to hers.
She took a breath as if she wanted to say something but seemed to change her mind. I waited, watching her expressive face work through what I thought might have been quite a few questions.
Finally, she made her decision, “Who are you Andras? What are you? I know there is more to what you do than security, and how is it that you can catch a two-hundred-pound motorcycle that is flying through the air like it weighs nothing more than a football?”
Sighing deeply, I moved to join her on the sofa. As I sank into the cushions, I picked up her legs and draped them across my lap and started rubbing those enticing feet. Selena stilled at first then relaxed back into the corner of the sofa letting out an involuntary sigh, while I massaged.
Two harmonious voices now sang a haunting song about a worn and thin wolf mother and a shape-shifting wolf father, and I raised an eyebrow. Who is this artist? She said they were Swedish sisters called First Aid Kit.
“Wolf was the first song I heard of theirs and I fell in love with their music.”
Nodding bemusedly, I listened to the song then addressed her question, “There are things about me, about what I do and what I am that require explaining. And I will explain it all eventually, but not tonight. Tonight, I would like to continue enjoying your company because, quite simply, this has been one of the best days of my life.” Her eyes warmed as I continued to caress her feet.
“I want tonight to be about us getting to know each other before I bring in elements of my life that are hard to explain, things that will be somewhat beyond belief. You deserve answers to every question you have, but it is complicated. Can you be patient with me a little longer?”
Selena had been watching me closely as I talked, “I can do that Andras. Getting to know you is exactly what I want to do, but I’m wondering if I can truly get to know you until I know your secrets.”
When I started to speak, she placed a hand on my arm, “But this has been one of the best days of my life as well, and I am content to keep the controversial stuff away for now.”
Then, she pulled her feet from my lap, stood up and began stacking the empty dishes back on the tray, taking it to the kitchen, leaving me to sigh once again as I relaxed against the cushions, knowing that I was asking a lot from her. She was not only smart but extremely observant.
It was clear that she had been picking up more signals than I had realized over the past weeks, and I wondered how she had refrained from asking questions before now. I closed my eyes.
That had been her I spotted near the motocross trail. Gods, what she must have thought, yet she had not marched out of the trees and demanded answers like most people would have, and she continued to be herself around me as if it were natural for her.
Selena returned after having rinsed and stacked the dishes in the sink. When I smiled at her encouraging her to tell me what she was thinking, I found heat blazing from her eyes and she reached for my hand.
Taking hers, I pulled her across my lap and covered her lips in a kiss that promised many things. Continued explorations of each other, answers to her questions and my dedication to her happiness encompassed only part of it.
We pulled apart to catch our breaths and I wrapped my arms tighter around her, tucking her into me. She let her head relax back against my shoulder and I asked her what music was playing now liking the smooth bluesy female voice.
She said it was Eilen Jewell. “You actually like my music, don’t you?”
“I’m really enjoying this station.” She smiled happily at me then leaned back again settling into my chest.
“When you are ready to explain things, Andras, and no matter what earth-shattering truths you share, you should know that I don’t plan on going anywhere. I think you might be stuck with me.”
I kissed the top of her head, closing my eyes. This little human continued to surprise me. I murmured into her hair, “You will not have long to wait. I promise you.”
We lounged companionably for a time listening to the music and each other’s heart beats. Then she turned in my arms and gave me an inviting look as she reached for my shirt to tug it up from my jeans.
“I find I really need to start again from where we were interrupted today.”
I grinned wickedly at her, “I will take this off if you return the favor, little dove,” Her eyes gleamed, and we happily got skin to skin from the top up.
Selena began moving her hands over me with feather light touches while my eyes hungrily devoured her lace-covered breasts as she perched between my knees.
Her eyes followed her hands as she focused on the ink down the right side of my body, “Your tattoo…it’s so beautiful. Maybe you can at least satisfy my curiosity about your ink that has had me intrigued since I first saw it.” She was now looking entranced at my bear.
She said, “It looks like a totem. This claw at the top is menacing when it is all you can see peeking out from your shirt, but as I examine the rest of the design there is a distinct impression of power and wisdom in nature, even a mystical element. I see now that it appears the bear is climbing the totem towards the stars. Does it go down farther?” Her eyes gleamed in avid curiosity.
As she spoke, she lightly trailed her fingers down my side and my skin quivered at each touch of exploration. Her hand halted at the puckered skin on my hip and then again as she trailed around to my abs and felt another five-inch scar. “What are these scars from Andras?” She asked softly.
I told her there was a story for each of them and I would tell her someday. She nodded. She lifted my hand to examine the compass rose surrounded by more stars and traced the other symbols up my arm. Then she softly traced each star in the constellation along my neck, her lips following her touch. I swallowed as her lips sent electrical shocks through me.
“What does it all mean?” She moved to sit sideways across my lap and tucked her head under my chin again with her hand now
resting over the bear claw at my collar bone. Laying my hand over hers I kissed her hair and began explaining in a low voice over her head.
“The designs represent my family line going back many generations, protectors who give thanks to the night sky and the constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, for giving us strength and courage.”
She leaned her head back to peer into my face in fascination. “There is more to this isn’t there?”
Taking her chin in my hand to tilt her face to mine I said, “You must know that you are becoming precious to me, Selena. It means a great deal to me that you are willing to give me time to tell you about myself and I will tell you all about my family line. I plan on sticking around as well. It could take years to tell you everything.” Then I could not resist kissing the crinkle on the bridge of her nose.
“I like the sound of that, Andras.” I smiled into her hair. Ray LaMontagne started singing Hold You in My Arms and I pulled her lips to mine for another burning kiss, relishing the feel of her small body tucked into mine on her cushy sofa.
I began caressing her bare skin, taking pleasure in watching the flush of heat bloom across her chest and on her cheeks, no longer able to keep from touching what I had been craving, and I encompassed her beautiful breasts, risking the restraint I had imposed on myself tonight. She hitched her breath, and I devoured the sight held in my hands, the creamy skin making my gaze grow hot.
Slipping the lacy fabric gently down from her shoulders and over her breasts to look my fill at more of her enticing skin, I marveled at how perfect she was. Swiftly my hands were full of her warm flesh, my thumbs exploring the pebbled tips, eliciting a moan from her, which lit a fire in me that I was hard pressed to tamp down.
As I rolled her hardening nipples between my fingers, she gasped and covered my hands with her own, pressing them to her. I could smell her arousal and I needed to adjust my own, which was growing beneath her. Her eyes closed on an expelled breath.
She turned to face me, her cognac eyes looking more than ever like glowing jewels. “You’re eyes, Selena. It is as if I can see down into your soul. Your beauty moves me.”
Ursus Borealis: Book One Page 11