by Gracie Guy
She was absorbed in the memory of their first date as they made their way to the seats. John sat to Kara’s right, while both dogs sat in front of her, just barely touching the toes of her boots.
After an hour of presentations, awards and diplomas, in which Kara and her boys were awarded highest honors for their scores, John offered to walk her to her truck. She graciously accepted as he reached to remove two plaques and a box containing headlamps and collars from her arms. Leading the dogs, she teased him about being her pack mule, an awkward attempt at covering her emotions about his support.
She unlocked the doors and gave the boys their signal. “Back seat.” They both piled in, quickly laying down awaiting the treats in her pocket. She put the box and awards on the floor before closing the back door. When she turned around, John was opening the driver’s door for her.
“I’d suggest lunch, but I don’t know any place indoors where all four of us can go.”
Kara admired how his grin sparked a dimple in his right cheek. Wow, I love that dimple!
“It’s okay. I think we’ll celebrate with a trip to the barn. They’ll be happy to dine on the delicacies they find in the stalls.”
“Yuck. Really?”
“Only if I let them. But I think they’ve earned it today.” She fiddled with her keys, trying to work up courage. “So John, when’s the next time you’ll be in Albany? We’ll be moving into the new house soon. How about dinner?” She looked up at him to see a smile warming his handsome face.
“I’d like that.” He lifted one of her hands to his lips and kissed it, just above her knuckles. “I’d like it a lot.”
Kara resisted the temptation to wrap her arms around his neck, burying her face in his suit, snorting in his cologne. Instead, she stepped up on the running board of her truck and slid into the seat in as lady-like a fashion as possible wearing a skirt. She knew John was watching as she drove through the attendant gate and out of the parking garage.
Chapter Forty
Once the search and rescue program was over, Kara concentrated on helping Michael Corbin complete the work on her house. Each time she arrived on the jobsite, she found a new detail added. When she walked onto the paper-covered hardwood of the living room, the beauty of the creek enchanted her. Every day this winter, it had been a different picture. When the deep cold of February began, the surface grew solid with ice, leaving a mere rivulet of running water for her to see. But now, March was teasing with its springtime warmth; the snow melt in the hills caused the frozen top to break up, sending massive icebergs crashing downstream. Not for one second did she regret spending the money to build this house.
She stood at the towering windows, with the morning sun warming her face. Over the past few weeks, the connection with John had grown even stronger. Thinking back to the night of his car accident, the fear she felt driving to the hospital, and how vulnerable he looked all wrapped in bandages, she knew she was falling in love with him.
Even though he had made the drive down from Lake Placid many times, he never pushed her for sex. Kara blushed. “Actually, you’ve been the animal pushing for it.”
Laughing at herself, she turned to look at the kitchen. The eastern sun cast a glistening yellow glow across the new stainless steel appliances creating a warmth in contradiction with the disarray of boxes piled everywhere, waiting for her to organize the room. The last couple of days she brought over everything small enough for her to lift. Today, John was coming to help her move the big pieces of furniture. As if on cue, her phone rang.
“Hi. Where are you?”
“Just leaving Albany. I stayed at Tim and Nikki’s last night.”
“Oh, wow. I thought you wouldn’t get here until noontime.”
“No, I’ll be there in about half an hour. Where are you?”
Kara felt a bubble of joy fill her chest. “At the new house. I wanted to see the sun rise on the creek.”
“I’ll bet it was pretty. Hopefully I’ll get to see it soon.” He paused for a second. “Meet you at the old house, okay?”
“Hey John?” she had to say it before she lost her nerve.
“Yeah, Kar. What?”
“I hope you get to see the sunrise soon, too.”
She heard his deep throated chuckle. “Good. I like that.”
“See ya in a few.” She slipped her cell phone into her shirt pocket and grabbed her keys. Locking the doors behind her, she and the dogs climbed in the truck to meet John.
The morning flew by with each load of furniture they moved. Kara couldn’t believe how much lighter the pieces felt with John on one end instead of Robin. By early afternoon, the living room and dining room furniture was in place. The last load was the master bedroom suite.
As they flopped the king sized mattress onto the box spring, Kara felt a rush of heat. Some sort of deep-seated Irish Catholic guilt told her it was not respectable to have this incredibly sexy man standing in her bedroom. She grabbed the corner post on her way to the door.
“How about a late lunch?” Smiling tentatively at John, she nodded toward the kitchen. “I brought a cooler over this morning with sandwich makings, chips—you know, lunch.” Just when she stopped at the sink, she felt his arms around her waist.
His words nuzzled the side of her neck, “Are you hungry?”
Pulling her around to face him, he leaned in, his mouth covering hers before she could answer. His kiss created a maelstrom of sensations in her body, her head, and her heart.
She leaned back from his kiss. “Mmm, depends on what’s on the menu.”
He rewarded her with another deep-chested rumble of laughter. “I’m thinking it would be nice to clean up first. Got any soap for the shower?”
Dizzy excitement made her voice falter. “Um, um, yeah.” Is this it, finally? “I think I can find some.” Honestly, she knew right where it was. The bathroom sundries and linens had long since been unpacked.
“Well if you don’t mind, I’ll grab some clean clothes from my Jeep and take a shower.”
All Kara could do was smile as he left through the front door, whistling.
When he returned to the kitchen, John insisted she be the first to use the shower. “I really think it should be you who christens it.”
A bit nervous, and more than excited, she agreed. What she really wanted was to take a shower with him, but hoped the opportunity for it would arise again, soon.
Half an hour later, Kara stood at the counter in a pair of running shorts and a tank top, arranging lunch, when she heard John’s bare feet coming down the hallway. Goose bumps of excitement covered her arms as he wrapped his around her from behind, cupping her braless breasts while nuzzling the nape of her neck, sending a spark down her abdomen. “Mmmm, you’ve been busy I see. The bed’s all made. And the sandwiches too?”
He turned her to face him, quickly dotting her neck with light kisses, working his way up to her earlobes, his tongue darting everywhere before plunging into her ear, sending an explosion through her hips, warming her mound. Kara took in a few quick breaths before his masterful tongue found her mouth and his hands slid inside her shorts, teasing the round flesh of her buttocks.
Releasing her mouth, he leaned back a few inches. “How long can those sit for?”
She struggled to make sense of his question. “Um. About half an hour.”
“Good.” Cupping her face in his muscular hands, he leaned in and kissed her, intensely. “We’re not eating now. I have a different hunger I’ve been waiting a long time to satisfy before I fill my belly.” Lifting her to sit on the counter, his hips squeezed between her legs. He nuzzled the soft flesh at the top of her breasts, his lips whispering kisses while his fingers pinched the peaks of her nipples—already straining against her soft cotton shirt. His tongue travelled to the base of her neck, eliciting a soft mewling from her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, burying his face into her aching bosom. Just when she thought her groin would erupt into flames, he picked her up and carri
ed her down the hall.
All common sense was quickly extinguished when he delicately lowered her to stand next to the bed. Kara’s body quivered with anticipation as he dropped to his knees in front of her. Sliding the lightweight shorts down over her hips, he kissed the bare lips of her womanhood. Gently nudging her legs apart, he slipped two fingers in, teasing her nub. She looked down to see him licking her juices from his fingers, the turn on powering a new surge in her loins.
John rose to his feet, peeled her shirt over her head, and then picked her up and placed her in the middle of the bed. Crawling up from the bottom edge of the mattress, he lifted Kara’s derrière with his strong hands, canting her hips to open her clean-shaven treasure, driving his tongue as deeply as he was able. She clutched his close-cropped hair, encouraging him to devour her. He slid one hand out from under her, using his fingers in concert with his talented tongue. Working in lightning fast circles, he teased her clitoris until it throbbed, drawing pleading moans from her. In one motion, his mouth claimed her nub while his fingers invaded her depths, her guttural gasps coming in ragged stages with her climax.
As the waves of orgasm surged through her, she felt John lay on the bed and mold his body to hers, wrapping his arms around her waist, drawing her bottom to discover his desire was still there. His chin rested on her shoulder while his hands covered her breasts for a brief moment before moving to her hands. “Sleep dolly, lunch will wait.”
Chapter Forty-one
Kara awoke wrapped in John’s arms, just like the dream she’d had before Christmas. When she looked up, his handsome dimples greeted her.
“Welcome back.”
She couldn’t contain the red glow developing on her cheeks. “How long was I out for?”
“Just a few minutes.” He lowered his mouth, circling her lips.
“But you didn’t get to…” He stopped her words by plunging his tongue deeply, whirling and twirling around hers. Even through the shorts he wore, his burgeoning desire was firm against the side of her thigh.
Reaching behind him to the bedside table, his hand returned with a small, silver package. He dangled it in front of her, causing a new bolt of energy in her hips. Slipping his arm out from under her, John stood. The hooded look in his eyes was like a match to her already trembling libido. He winked at her, causing a fresh burning sensation. Her hands unconsciously travelled to rub her mound in response to his smoldering gaze. Little did he know how close she was to exploding again, this time from her self-pleasure.
Slowly, agonizingly so, he pulled his T-shirt up to his shoulders, revealing more of his chiseled chest and taut abs. She watched him lick his lips when she slipped her hands inside the silk of her freshly shaven mound, as he dropped his top to the floor. He began to peel off his pair of lightweight shorts, stopping at the top of his straining bulge, watching her face.
Kara’s middle finger slid across her moist clit, sending bolts of heat throughout her body. Arching her back, she closed her eyes for just a moment to savor the surge. She opened them, just as John slid his shorts down off his hips, his erect manhood proudly pointing at her. And, to her absolute delight, his balls were clean shaven as well. She plunged her fingers deep into her pulsing wetness, shuddering with the first stages of climax. But, he reached down and grabbed her hand before she could make herself come.
Dropping to one knee on the bed, instantly he began laving her fingers with his tongue, sucking her juice from them while his other hand slipped into her vagina. Kara’s hips bucked, trying to force his fingers deeper inside of her to relieve the aching. As her shudders returned, John pulled out his fingers, standing quickly, pulling her up to him, spinning her around, his erection pressing into the small of her back.
She felt her ears tingle with heat as he delivered a teasing whisper. “Not yet, dolly.” The tip of his tongue started tracing the delicate folds. “It’s too soon for you to come.” Kara gasped as he buried his tongue deep in her ear while his fingers found her nub. Just as her legs were about to give out, he withdrew again, turning her to face him. His lips met hers, his tongue probing and pillaging, sucking her whimpering breath into his own mouth before drawing away.
Her nipples grazed his hairy chest. She swayed slightly, the texture causing more heat in her groin. Overcome with hunger, she began nibbling on the base of his neck. She kissed the hollow and then ran her tongue up to the slight bulge of his Adam’s apple. Standing on her tippy-toes, she was able to reach his earlobes, quickly sucking one into her mouth before he put his hand on her shoulders, preventing her from kissing him further.
John’s massive hands slid down her back, first cupping her buttocks, then delving deeper and teasing her aching vulva from behind. She struggled to think coherently. To take control. To make him bend to what she wanted. But it was no use.
****
Effortlessly, he lifted her up and placed her on the bed. Gently lowering her quivering body down, he pulled the blankets back with one hand. His senses filled with the smell of the freshly washed linens, mixed in with her musky scent. He crawled under the covers, spooning against her naked back when she rolled over to make room for him.
John buried his nose in her soft auburn curls. His arm wrapped around her, his palm cupping the weight of her magnificent breasts. He felt her nipples harden quickly at his touch. A soft moan escaped from her lips. He moved his hand to the silky skin of her mound, delighting again in the lack of hair, as it gave him easy access to slip his finger in between her lips.
Kara rolled onto her back, and looked up at him. The hazel of her eyes changed color with each stroke of his finger, turning a smoky green. He leaned to kiss her before she could protest his new ministrations. Instead, as his tongue tickled and teased her mouth, her legs began to spread, allowing three of his fingers to glide back and forth, the pressure increasing with each pass.
She arched her hips, silently asking for more. He waited another minute before simultaneously plunging his tongue deep in her mouth, his fingers invading her molten core. Knowing she was on the edge of another orgasm, John quickly shifted in the bed, grabbing the silver pouch with one hand, while he held her captive with the other. With adept ease for someone who was out of practice, his mouth ripped the package open and his free hand rolled the latex onto his erection while he continued to stroke her nub into a frenzy.
Lifting her bottom, he positioned himself between her legs. He teased her with the head of his penis, sliding in just enough to cover his helmet, then pulling out, over and over until his own release was near. Leaning on one elbow, he cradled her head and shoulders so their mouths were locked in unity as each of them shuddered with extreme pleasure.
Returning to her side, he cradled her, kissing her forehead, then her lips, allowing her to taste her own sweetness still on his. Her eyes fluttered open
“Oh, John.”
“Sshhh.” His index finger rested on her mouth. “Don’t talk. Just enjoy the glow.”
A satisfied grin crossed her face as she drifted to sleep. He watched her for a while, this beautiful and brave red head who had captured his heart. As he drifted off to sleep, he knew he would never let her go, especially once he saw the sunrise.
Chapter Forty-two
Making love to John was more than Kara had expected—or ever experienced. He was gentle, yet commanding. Treated her with respect, always made sure she received pleasure before him and held her while she slept afterward. When the moving weekend was over, she realized the big scary feeling taking over her life was love. And, with a smidgen of sadness, she had to acknowledge none of what she shared with Dan made her feel they way she did with John.
With a perpetual smile on her face, Kara tried to balance her time between the new house, the horses and Laurie, the dogs, her mother and even Robin. Late one afternoon, when making a quick trip for groceries, she realized she was looking at countless displays of Kelly green, mountains of cabbage, onions and carrots, and fantastic prices on corned beef. Oh, my God. St. Patty’s
already? She picked up the makings for the traditional Irish dinner hoping John would share it with her.
After she put the groceries away, she looked at the calendar. March 10th. It felt like just yesterday, she had been married to the person she thought was the love of her life, planning for fall and the upcoming hunting season. Sinking into one of the stiff seats of the kitchen chairs, she let her mind wander. Through her marriage, through the heartbreak and self-loathing of Dan’s death, and through her move to Columbia County.
Here she was, just five day from the Ides of March, and her life was returning—in a good way. Tracing the tablecloth pattern in front of her with her finger, a smile worked its way across her face and into her heart. John. Yes, he was on her mind a lot. The first thought when she awoke each day; the last one as she fell asleep—always with a smile on her face. His support throughout the Search and Rescue program, asking her questions and acknowledging her correct answers, made her feel smart and successful. With his broad chest and frequent hugs, he made her feel safe.
She grabbed a beer and a bag of popcorn and took up residence on the couch. Spring was a little over a week away, and she was looking forward to the new season.
***
Kara thought she was dreaming when she heard multiple bells ring. The annoying sounds came in a pattern, three times for each one, a minute of silence, three more rings, silence and then three more rings. After the third repetition of the sounds, she realized it was her phones. Her landline, her cell phone, and then the text message on her cell phone. Groggily, she grabbed for the handset on her bed stand.
“Hul-lo.” Her voice was raspy with sleep.
“Kara?”