Jim regarded her, spread across his body, her face flushed and pink and her body still pressed against his. Hard to believe they�d spent the past three hours just making love, and then minutes ago she�d padded across the cool tiled floor to the kitchen, no clothes or strategically placed sheets to cover her. Returning with a bowl of fruit and a bottle of water and settling herself back on the bed.
It was still raining out, they had long since turned the lamps off and now his eyes were more than accustomed to the darkness. He could watch her as she spoke, that smile teasing him.
�I do believe you instigated this conversation madam not me.� He toyed with the piece of hair clinging to her forehead. �So, you�re first time first!�
She swallowed the fruit and sat up again, crossing her legs and reaching for the bottle of water, taking a long drink. His hand rested on her knee as he lay perfectly still and watched her. Something captivating about her tonight, she held his attention no matter what she did.
�Well, I was eighteen.�
�Legal then.�
�You expect any less.� She smiled, toying with the fingers that rested upon her knee, her pale white skin compared to his peachy complexion. �I�d� well, you know.�
�Know what?� He laughed.
�You know � came close before. But in the end it was with a boy called Tom, he was two years older than me.�
�Ohhh.�
�We met at, surprise � surprise, a party. We dated for about four months, he had an old sports car � black I think.�
�You did it in that?�
�No, what kind of girl do you think I am Jim Carver?� She laid a hand firmly on his chest, warning him.
�A erm, very well-proportioned one?�
Sometimes she could still see that young man she used to know, behind the lines of the years, the heartache and cruel jibes life had thrown at him. There was still a window to that fresh face, eager eyes and so willing to learn and believe all would turn out alright in the end.
She leant forward and kissed his forehead gently. �My parents went away for the weekend, it was then, in my house. Felt very strange and extremely nervous, like my Mum would walk in at any minute and kill us both.�
�A memorable experience then.�
�Absolutely,� She grinned. �But you know, you get better with time.� She kissed his mouth this time, placed the water back on the side and resumed her position lying across his chest so she could see his face.
�So, you�re turn.�
�Well,� he stretched his arms above his head. �I was but sixteen.�
�Ah, you little hussy.�
�A mistake now I know, should have waited til I was in love.�
�True � at least I thought I was.�
�She was an older woman.�
�James! I don�t believe you.�
He laughed, quite proud of himself for the revelation that had shocked her so. �It was only the once don�t get too excited. Seduced me she did.�
�Liar, I bet you were dying for it.�
His chest shook her as he laughed. �She was quite gorgeous.�
�Lucky you ey!� She lifted her body up his, moving her face closer to his. �So you�ve always gone for older women.�
�I don�t think of you as older.�
�But I am, if only a few years.�
�Well then no, there was only her and then you. The in-betweens were either same age or younger.�
�The in-betweens � sounds like a pop group.� She�d moved now, her body completely on top of his, resting between his legs. She kissed his chin, drawing circles across his neck with her tongue.
�Do you ever wonder what might have happened if you and I had started this all those years ago?� His arms were around her, hands folded at the base of her back, just resting above her backside.
She lifted her head up to regard him. �What made you think of that?�
Jim shrugged. �Don�t know, this talk of being young I guess.�
�No, I try not to think about it.�
�Why?� Her admission startled him.
�Because either we would have been the happiest people on the planet, have had lots of kids and lived the perfect family life � therefore I would be supremely pissed off at our loss.�
She smiled and placed soft kisses on his chest before continuing.
�Or, we might have changed together, just like we did anyway. And so grown apart, as people who marry young tend to do. And now we might never see each other, hate each other even. Blame the other for things that had gone wrong.�
�I can�t imagine hating you.�
�That�s what I love about you, still so innocent in many ways.�
�Innocent?�
�You always try to see the good in people, despite obvious faults.� Her smile was warm as he stared up at her, not sure what to make of her statement.
�Is that a good or bad thing?� He frowned.
�Dear Jim.� She lifted herself up again and reached out for the bowl of fruit again. �You want some of this?�
�Not really hungry.�
�Gotta keep your energy up.�
�What?�
�You don�t think we�re done yet do you.� She licked her lips.
�Bloody hell you know how to work a man.� He slapped her backside.
�Hey! What did you do with my underwear anyway?�
�I don�t know, must be down there somewhere.�
She shuffled on top of him glancing down to the bottom of the bed. �Let go Jim.�
He opened his arms so she could slide out and sat himself up to watch her climb down the bed, beneath the sheets gathered around his feet.
�Can�t see it�� She murmured, moving further beneath the bedclothes.
Jim laughed to himself and took a drink from the bottle by his side. He almost coughed the water back up when June screamed and fell out of the bottom of the bed. Shaking with laughter he quickly replaced the lid on the bottle and moved down the bed to peer over the side at a giggling June. Luckily the sheets that had slipped down earlier mostly cushioned her landing.
�Are you okay there?� He asked, dropping a hand to tickle her stomach.
She could barely breathe for laughing, gripping her sides and looking up at him. �That was funny.� Was all she finally managed to say.
�Look, I found them.� Jim smirked as he picked up her knickers from the floor and dangled them in front of her face.
She snatched them from his hand and threw them across the room again, then grabbed his shoulders and pulled him down to her.
�Ahh, June� you could have seriously damaged parts of me then.�
�We�ll see.�
A hand behind his neck brought his mouth clumsily down to hers, heated instant kisses.
�Perfectly good bed there.� He whispered.
�Don�t be a spoil sport.�
He gasped as he felt her hand reach down and grasp his growing erection, guiding him to her.
�I�ve gone without the best for long enough now.� Her voice was inside his head, tempting and intoxicating.
Their movements, very much perfected throughout the evening, were in absolute rhythm. This wouldn�t last long, she didn�t seem to want it too, doing everything she could to urge him on, her legs brought up to rest around his hips, tight and so very tormenting. He closed his eyes and held his breath until he heard her moan his name, her head dropping to one side and her body soft and warm beneath his, only then did he let the feelings take over.
* *
�What time is it now?�
�Erm, just gone 5.30.�
�Oh dear, long night.�
�Long wonderful night.� June�s voice had a smile contained in it as she kissed the top of his head.
They�d changed positions on the bed now, June sitting up, leaning back against the wall with Jim�s back pressed against her stomach. His head resting on her chest, his exhausted body lying on top of hers. Their hands entwined, skin still in contact and tingling, full of longing after so many hours of adoration.
�So, what were you saying?� Jim asked closing his eyes, more than ready to fall asleep to the sound of her calming voice.
�I asked you what you thought you�d learnt about me, things you didn�t know until we got together.�
�Hmm, not interesting, you talk, I want to listen to your voice.�
�Jim�� She chided but kissed his head again and squeezed his hands. �Thing�s I�ve learnt, well, I already knew that you carry the world on your shoulders, you feel for everybody. But I perhaps appreciate it more, you�re very open to the world.�
�You think.�
�Oh yes, it�s not always a good thing no but it�s very endearing and �well.� She laughed.
�What?� He lifted his head half up to see her face.
�It makes me want to take care of you, because you seem so perfectly willing to let others take you for granted. I know you don�t always, but just sometimes � sometimes you do. I told you earlier, an innocence to you still. After all this time.�
Jim shrugged, twisting on top of her. �That�s all you got to say about me?�
�Fishing for compliments are we? After all I�ve done for you tonight too.�
�Hey, you weren�t alone in that.� He grinned as she held his body still, placing her hands on his shoulders and rubbing them.
�I gotta say, you got more stamina than I gave you credit for � is that compliment enough?�
Jim laughed loudly now. �Suppose so.�
�You suppose so.� June intimated his deep voice, and then giggled. �Go on then, wonderful me��
�You�re a bloody slave driver!� He said with utter certainty. �You have � it seems � an unquenchable sexual appetite.�
�Oh I don�t know, you�re not doing too badly, better than some.�
�Why thank you Ma�am. You�re very, very funny when you get going. You go off on these complete fits of laughter that I�d never really witnessed you do before. Falling off the bed for example, I never thought of you as clumsy �that�s my job. You, erm, you can get quite angry � which I did know but not to the extent of you throwing things at me during arguments.�
She dug a hand into his waist.
�Hey!� he complained, grabbing her hand back and taking in each line on her palm, the shape and length of each finger and the smoothness of each nail. �You don�t fall in love easily but when you do it�s complete, all or nothing, you give your all to the relationship no matter what problems may arise.�
She felt a tightness in her throat, smiled and closed her eyes and took a deep breath. �That�s all you gotta say.�
�Yeah, for now.�
�Okay, ready to sleep yet?�
�I don�t know, is it still raining out?�
�Just drizzle now I think. At least the thunder stopped, and those winds.�
�Just wait when we go out there�ll be nothing of the village left.�
�When! There�s a thought, I can see us sleeping for a good few hours tomorrow. And only a couple of days left.�
�Don�t wanna go home.� Jim sulked.
�And to think you weren�t even convinced about coming out here in the first place. I told you a few days away would be good for us.�
He lifted himself up from her body, turned his head to look at her. �That�s because you�re wonderful.� He bent forward from her.
�Where are you going?�
�Nowhere, just getting chilly now.�
He pulled a sheet up from the floor, spreading it across the bed as much as he could manage in that position. Then lying back where he was before, only this time covering them both up.
�You�re gonna sleep like that?�
�You want me to move?�
�Not just yet.� She patted his arm as he settled against her and closed his eyes contented.
�Still want to talk?�
�Want to hear your voice.�
�What shall I say?� She smiled at his request.
�Sing.�
�I�m not going to sing, I can�t. You sing to me.�
�Alright then.� He didn�t usually like to, felt awfully self-conscious doing it, but as he was already half asleep he figured it wouldn�t matter. Besides it had been a pretty odd night anyhow. �Ya know the words you can join in though.�
�Okay, I will.�
Jim was silent for a few minutes, she thought he�d fallen asleep, and was resolved to leave him a while before shifting her body out from beneath his so she could lie down.
�It�s not the pale moon that excites me, that thrills and delights me, oh no, it�s just the nearness of you�� He wasn�t really singing to her, just speaking the words, mumbling them really as he was half asleep. �It isn�t your sweet conversation that brings this sensation, it�s just the nearness of you.�
She smiled, held him tighter. �Good choice.� She whispered.
�Thank you.�
�You�re almost asleep.�
�I am.�
�Move over then.�
He lifted himself up just enough so she could move, and then fell back onto the bed as June arranged a pillow for herself. She retrieved another sheet from the floor to place across them, the other hanging more down Jim�s side of the bed than actually covering their bodies.
As she lay back down Jim shifted onto his side, pulling her body into his and kissing her briefly.
�You smell of sex.� He whispered.
�I think we both do.�
�Shower tomorrow, when we do get up.�
�And a lazy day by the pool.�
�Suits me, got a romance novel to finish reading.�
�And just what will I read if you have my book?�
�You can just sunbathe.�
�Guess so � night Jim.�
He was already asleep.
* * *
Something cold hit his nose, he rubbed at it, turned his head a little. Then it hit his forehead, bloody flies, he swiped a hand out to catch it. Then turned onto his stomach burying his face into the pillow. Wasn�t time to get up yet, just a bit longer, shut the world out for a little bit longer.
The coldness hit his neck; he murmured into the pillow and was met by a giggle. As he started to turn his head the coldness dripped all the way down his back along his spine until he jumped up and turned over.
�Bloody hell June� what�s that� I was asleep.�
She leant over the bed to him, dripping more water on to him from the sponge in her hand. �Come on Jim-Jim time to get up.� She laughed kneeling on the bed and pulling the sheets from him.
�What the hell are you doing? It�s still early.�
�It�s one thirty in the afternoon.�
�You�re awfully lively.� He flopped back down onto the bed.
�Well I had a rather nice evening.� She crawled over the bed, leaning over his body.
He held a protective hand up. �Please no more water.�
�Oh ok I promise.� She brushed his hair out of his face with her fingers. �So will you get up now, have a shower so we can go out for a while. Do something fun.�
He grinned and rubbed at his face, he felt like hell but he had to admit it she�d woken him up in just the right frame of mind and he couldn�t help but smile at her.
�Hey look at this too.�
�What?�
She held her arm up in front of his face. �Bruised my arm.� She sulked.
Jim burst into laughter. �Oh god you fell off the bed didn�t you. Now that�s something I don�t think I�ll ever forget.�
She turned and got up off the bed. �Hmmm, I�m sure.�
�And knowing me it will flash into my mind at some very inappropriate moment. We�ll be having a meeting in CSU or something and you�ll be all smart and serious.�
He got out of bed and collected the other end of the sheet she was holding and helped her to shake it out and neatly lay it at the bottom of the bed.
�And I�ll just see you slipping further down the bed and then tipping over the edge.� He started laughing again. �Arms and legs everywhere.�
�Alright, alright smart arse � and I guess I�m supposed to forget your adventures with Mrs Robinson am I?�
�Hey tell who you want about that, proud of it I am.� He fell backwards against the wall as a pillow hit him smack in the face.
* * *
It had been years since Jim had shared his shower, but he was more than willing to let June bathe him. After all it was their last morning there, the previous day had gone by too quickly and they�d done really very little.
Waking late and then relaxing by the pool they had gone for a meal that night. Left the restaurant early and spent the rest of the evening out on the balcony playing cards. June had won of course � though perhaps not by pure skill alone.
Lazily he leant back against the cool wall tiles and allowed June to wash his hair and run a silky soap covered hand over his body.
�And I thought my prize for winning last night was for you to shower me.� She breathed into his ear.
�Hmm I will, when you�ve finished doing that.� His eyes were still closed. �You know June I think you were right, I could stay here forever.�
�Too late for that, flight�s this afternoon.�
�There we go � all done, fresh and clean.� She kissed the back of his neck.
�Thank you.�
�You are very welcome. Now hand me a towel.�
* *
June packed most of her clothes away that morning so they would have the majority of the day free. Setting out something to wear to travel home in and tidying the apartment ready for leaving.
�Getting ready to leave?� Jim stood by the door watching her.
�Yeah, yes all packed and ready.� She folded her arms and turned around to look at him. �Bet you�re glad to be going home.�
�Hmm a little, be good to get back to normality but I have enjoyed myself.�
She moved out onto the balcony, taking a last look around at the view.
He moved to stand behind her, sliding his arms round her waist and holding her to him. �Thanks for bringing me.�
�Thank you for coming.�
�I was thinking, I could come back here.�
�Really.�
�Yeah, kinda special I suppose, our first holiday.�
�I suppose.�
�Be nice place for a honeymoon.� He smiled as she stilled in his arms, and gently kissed her shoulder.
* * *
