* * *
Sam pressed the play button on the stereo, starting up the tape they'd listened to the night before. It was an interesting mix of songs. REM was singing At My Most Beautiful; the words reminded him of Josie. He picked up the tape case, wondering what it was; it said, simply, Sam.
He held it up quizzically as Josie peaked over the counter from the kitchen.
"Oh, that," she said, "every time I'd hear a song that reminded me of you�I'd add it to the tape�it made me feel like you were with me�even though you weren't. This song reminds me of the day you almost kissed me�how you made me feel�for the first time, really�beautiful."
"Josie�it almost kills me�knowing that you felt that you weren't attractive. I'd like five minutes alone with Billy Prince in a hockey rink for what he did to you!"
"But he didn't win�he didn't beat me in the end."
"How is it that you keep surprising me?"
"Speaking of surprises," Josie said with a seductive smile, "are you ready for yours?"
Speech somehow eluded Sam. He nodded.
"Okay, but no peeking." She pulled a silk scarf from behind her back. Sam groaned as she tied it over his eyes and took his hands. He knew where she was leading, he just wasn't quite sure why. He felt her go away for a few moments, heard rustling. His heart suddenly began beating faster as he felt her in front of him again. She reached her hands behind his head to untie the scarf. Sam blinked and swallowed hard.
Josie stood before him clad in a black lace demi-bra and string bikini. His eyes caressed her nearly bare body lingeringly, before meeting hers. The naked desire in her blue eyes was staggering. She snaked her arms around his neck and pulled his head down in a searing kiss. She moved her hands down his back, to his waist, slipping her soft hands beneath his shirt. He reached down one hand and pulled the shirt over his head, tossing it on the floor.
He pulled her closer, loving the feel of her soft skin against his. He ran his hands over her sweetly curvaceous body, softly cupping her bottom. He kissed her deeply and blazed a trail of kisses down her neck.
Josie's hands continued their sensual assault. He drew in his breath sharply as he felt her unbuckle his belt, unsnap his jeans, begin to slide down the zipper. He stayed her hands, afraid of losing control too quickly, and shed his jeans. He paused briefly; searching her face, knowing with certainty that Josie wanted him as desperately as he wanted her.
Josie reached up a hand to cup his face. "I�want�I�need�you," she whispered.
Sam covered her hand with his own. "I want you, too," he rasped. "Protection?"
Suddenly shy, Josie burrowed her head in his neck. Looking up again, she indicated a small bag on the bedside table. Sam smiled crookedly and scooped her up into his arms. "I love you�so much," he said as he laid her gently on the bed and followed her down.
Sam unclasped her bra�tossing it on the floor�and began feasting on her breasts. His lips branded kisses all over her body, finding sensual spots Josie never knew she had�the nape of her neck�the hollow of her throat�the backs of her knees. She moaned as his hands tickled their way up her legs�gasping as he stroked her inner thigh and slipped a finger into her panties. Ever so slowly, he pulled them off, tossing them on the floor with the bra. He kissed her deeply as he stroked her, hearing her soft moans, her startled cry as the unfamiliar spasms of pleasure overwhelmed her.
Sam met her eyes once more. They were dark with passion and wide with awe; Sam smiled at her gently. Her hands were moving over his body to the waistband of his briefs, shyly stroking his obvious erection. He reached over and grabbed the box from the nightstand, taking out a packet. He quickly removed his briefs and put on the condom.
He looked deeply into Josie's eyes, aware that he might cause her momentary pain. Gently, he entered her. He felt her body tense, heard her soft cry. He paused, giving her a moment to become accustomed to the new sensations swirling around her. When she relaxed, he began to thrust, slowly at first. Josie shifted slightly, taking him even deeper inside her, and wrapped her legs around his waist. Her hips lifted in rhythm with his as they spiraled out of control to stunning climax.
Very slowly, their breathing returned to normal. Lying face-to-face on the pillow, Josie kissed Sam softly. "Is it�always like that?" she asked with wonder.
He smiled crookedly. "Honestly, Josie�it's never been like that before. I never imagined�never dreamed�it could be like that."
"So�" she teased, "you liked your surprise?"
Sam laughed, "I'll show you just how much." And he proceeded to do just that, several times, throughout the night.
* * *
Sam woke to find himself tangled up with a very naked Josie. He grinned broadly as he remembered their lovemaking. For all her shyness, Josie Geller was a passionate, sensuous lover. Sam tickled her belly, making her giggle in her sleep. He tickled her again. She yawned and stretched like a cat.
"Morning," she mumbled.
"Morning, sleepyhead," he said playfully. Sam rolled onto his back bringing Josie with him, so that she was lying on top of him. She sat up, straddling his thighs.
"Mmmm�this is nice," she purred. She leaned forward and kissed him, running her tongue over his lips. "You taste nice."
"You know," Sam teased, "for a woman who'd never been kissed until three days ago, you've made remarkable progress."
Josie laughed. "I am suddenly a wanton, hedonistic creature�I've always been a quick study�"
"If you learn any faster, you're liable to kill us both," he joked as her rolled her onto her back and kissed her.
The doorbell rang. "If we ignore them, they'll go away," said Josie.
The doorbell rang again, more insistently, followed by persistent knocking. "Damn," Sam swore, "I think maybe you'd better answer it�I'm in no condition�"
Josie laughed as she noted Sam's current aroused state. She pulled on her robe. "I'll just get rid of them�it's probably just some salesman, anyway."
"I'm coming," she called as the ringing and pounding continued. She peered through the peephole to find Merkin and Anita on her doorstep. Reluctantly, she opened the door.
"Hi, guys," she said, "to what do I owe this unexpected and unannounced visit?"
Anita looked Josie up and down�taking in her disheveled hair�her flushed skin�the fact that she was obviously naked beneath her robe�at ten in the morning. "Josie�still in bed at this late hour," she teased. "Gosh, I sure hope we're not interrupting anything�juicy!"
"Anita!"
Merkin meanwhile was simply staring at Josie open-mouthed. Anita swatted him on the arm. "Oh�yeah�we brought you some mail�and some messages."
"Hey Josie�did you get rid of�" Sam's voice trailed off as he entered the living room to find Josie's friend Anita and an odd-looking man he hadn't met before.
"Well, well�" said Anita, eyeing Sam's bare chest.
Sam was suddenly grateful he'd pulled underwear on under his sweatpants.
"Apparently�they stopped by to deliver some mail to me�" Josie began, "by the way�where is this mysterious mail?"
"On the front step," said Anita.
Sam peeked out the still-open door. There were three large bins full of mail.
"Quite a bit of mail, I'd say," said Sam.
Merkin handed Josie a large stack of pink message minders. It was at least an inch thick.
"Things have been a little nuts at the Sun-Times while you've been off, Josie," grinned Anita. "All of this is for you�both of you actually�there are hundreds of letters."
"I don't believe this�all for my story?"
"People seem to need happy endings, Josie," said Anita. She looked at Sam, who stood behind Josie, his arms around her waist. "I'm guessing this one's going to be really happy!"
Josie was bursting to tell Anita her news. She turned in Sam's arms. "Can we tell her? Please?"
Sam grinned down at her. "Only if you can swear her�and what's his name, anyway?" he pointed to Merkin, who was struggling with the heavy mail bins.
"Sorry�Merkin Burns�my assistant."
"And Merkin to absolute secrecy for a few days."
"Anita�Merkin�do you swear that the news we are about to divulge will not�under any circumstances�appear in the Chicago Sun-Times until Sunday?" Josie asked seriously.
"Gus couldn't torture it out of me! Whatever it is," said Anita.
"Whatever," said Merkin.
"C'mon, Jos�I'm dying here�spill it!"
Sam took Josie's left hand and held it under Anita's nose. "We're engaged," Josie revealed.
Anita hugged Josie, truly happy for her friend. "And to think, I used to tease you about your boring underwear and virginal state."
"If she only knew," Sam whispered in Josie's ear, " how thoroughly we took care of that last night."
"So when's the big day?" asked Anita.
"We haven't exactly decided yet," said Josie.
"But hopefully sometime before summer's over," said Sam.
"Wow�you two don't waste any time, do you?" said Anita.
"When you've found the one person you're meant to kiss for the rest of your life, there's no reason to wait," said Josie happily.
Merkin sighed.
"Well�we've got to get back�Gus'll kill us if we take too long�oh�the videos�did you bring them in too, Merkin?"
Merkin pointed to a box on the floor.
"Remember, guys, not a word. I'll write something up and get it to Gus for Sunday's edition, but we want to tell Sam's parents in person, before the rest of the world knows."
Merkin pretended to lock his lips shut. Anita hugged Josie again, as if hoping that Josie's good fortune would spill over onto her. "I really am happy for you, Josie," she said.
"What do you want to do today?" asked Sam as he closed the door behind Anita and Merkin.
"Let's see�in order�shower�breakfast�grocery shopping�laundry�sort through all of this�make love a few more times�" Josie laughed as she rattled off her list.
"Think I could add something to the list?" he asked.
"What did you have in mind?"
"I was thinking maybe we could go out with my friends tonight�they've never been to Delloser Hall�How would you feel about meeting them?"
"Well�Jonathan sounded nice on the phone�will they like me?"
"Let's see�you love hockey�baseball�and me�so I'd say�they're going to love you!"
"Delloser it is, then."
"Now�about that shower," said Sam with a grin. "How about we save time and water?"
Josie just smiled and followed him into the bathroom.
Much later, clean and very thoroughly made love to, Josie realized with a frown that they'd have to go out for breakfast. She jotted down a list of groceries that she needed and tucked it in her purse. Sam carried the overflowing laundry basket to his jeep.
"Guess we'd better leave the top up, or we'll end up chasing our clothes down the street," he laughed. "Where is your car, by the way?" He'd remembered that the yellow Vega, Bambi, was Rob's car.
"When Rob let me use Bambi, I gave him my LeSabre. He�shall we say�redecorated it in a Tiki Hut theme�not quite my style�so I had to have it detailed. I'll have it back in a week."
"Well, your brother may be a little eccentric, but what he did for you was really generous."
"He's a good brother�it helped a lot�having him there�especially after Aldys stopped speaking to me�I was glad to have him on my side."
"I was on your side, too, Josie," he said softly.
"I know that�it made everything else�bearable�just knowing that you were there."
"I need to tell you something," he said, suddenly very serious.
"What?"
"Last night�it meant so much to me�to make love with you�I felt connected to you before�but that�what we did�I've never experienced anything like it before�I just thought you should know that�how truly magical�amazing�beautiful�it was. Thank you for that gift, Josie, it really was quite a surprise."
Josie blushed at the compliment. "In my wildest dreams�and trust me, even twenty-five-year-old virgins have wild dreams�I never imagined that it could be like that�so spiritual, yet so incredibly erotic�"
"Speaking of erotic�what exactly did Anita mean by your boring underwear? From what I've seen, she couldn't be more wrong."
"Anita�dates�a lot. She'd get mad at me when I wouldn't double date with her�so one day, she told me she thought I probably didn't even own any colored underwear. She was actually correct, but when I went undercover�and changed my looks�I bought a bunch of pretty things and threw away all the boring white ones. The ones for last night, though�they were very special�I wanted to be irresistible."
"You've been pretty irresistible to me ever since that first day," he admitted, "I fell in love with you pretty quickly, you know."
"Even in that strange outfit, with my hair all teased up, and that white lipstick?"
"Yep, all you had to do was look me in the eye and define the word pastoral in your soft, sexy voice�and I was done for."
Josie found that even doing everyday chores like grocery shopping and laundry was fun with Sam beside her. At the grocery store, she watched in utter amazement as Sam juggled apples, oranges, bananas, and even a pineapple. "Good for the reflexes," he said as Josie and the small crowd that had gathered applauded. Josie rewarded him with a teasing kiss.
"I think I'm in love with a nut," she groaned.
Sam watched with an amused grin as Josie selected a variety of fruit. She was very�thorough. She didn't just plop the fruit in the bag. No, Josie smelled, she thumped, she caressed the fruit. Sam felt uncomfortably warm. "Umm, darling, if you don't stop whatever it is that you're doing to that melon�right now," he said into her ear, "I won't be responsible for my actions."
Josie looked up at him and smiled innocently. "Why�whatever do you mean?" she said sweetly. "Don't you want to have the sweetest, most succulent honeydew?"
That remark sent Sam over the edge. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her fiercely. The sound of applause brought them back to reality. "You know," Sam said, "every time I kiss you I still hear that crowd cheering�"
"Umm�different crowd, sweetie," Josie laughed.
They looked around to see about twenty people watching their exchange. Sam winked at Josie. She winked back.
"It is them," said a blue-haired old lady, "I tell you Edith, it's that couple from the newspaper."
Edith, who's hair was also tinted blue, adjusted her glasses, "Maybe you're right, Mabel," she said squinting at Sam and Josie.
Sam and Josie laughed. They really were famous, at least for the time being. They chatted amiably with their 'fans', finally begging off to finish their shopping.
"As much as we'd like to try," Sam quipped, "we can't live on love alone."
They casually strolled up and down the aisles, discovering a lot about each other in the process. As Josie tossed a box of her favorite Earl Grey tea into the cart, she explained that she loved its exotic taste and soothing aroma. As they bypassed the seafood aisle, Sam revealed that he was allergic to shellfish.
"It makes me swell up like crazy," he said, "like the fat kid in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory."
Josie laughed, "Mental note�no lobster for Sam."
In the cereal aisle they both headed to the healthy, grown-up cereal, until Josie caught Sam gazing wistfully at Cap'n Crunch with Crunchberries and Lucky Charms.
"I don't believe it," Josie said, "I thought I was the only adult who ate that stuff."
Guiltily, Sam admitted, "I love all the kiddie cereals�reminds me of Saturday mornings when I was a kid�grabbing a bowl of whatever sugary cereal we'd persuaded Mom to buy�"
"And plopping down about a foot in front of the TV to watch Saturday morning cartoons?" Josie finished. "It was a ritual for Rob and me�especially for me since�"
"You're named after Josie�from Josie and the Pussycats fame? Maybe that's why it was always one of my favorites�I especially liked Pussycats in Outer Space," he said, singing the title song.
Josie was laughing hard now�tears streaming down her face. "It used to drive me crazy�after my Mom told me where she got my name. They didn't even bother to make it something a little dignified like�Josephine�it was just Josie�"
"Josie Lynn�I believe�"
"How'd you know?"
"Teacher's privilege�I had a class list�it had everyone's full name on it."
"It could have been part of my cover�"
"Would you really invent such a name for yourself?"
"I don't know�Samuel James�I'm pretty happy being just Josie right about now."
Sam grinned. "I'm pretty happy not being 'Mr. Coulson' right about now. You know I noticed that after the Ferris wheel, you hardly ever called me Mr. Coulson."
"I couldn't. It made me think of the impossible situation we were in. I felt�so close to you that I couldn't think of you by any name but Sam. So�any other interesting names in my class�other than Aldys, of course, who's named after a Harlequin Romance heroine."
Sam laughed, "let's see�there's Brett's girlfriend Sera�short for Seraphina�"
"Oh, my, poor girl�no wonder she's so clueless."
"Then there's Gabriella Zarefsky�she changed it when people kept calling her Gabby�and�my personal favorite�Guy Aloysius Xavier Perkins"
"Ooh, that's really bad�I'm not surprised he never shared that with me."
They dropped the groceries off at Josie's apartment, quickly stowing the perishable items in the refrigerator and freezer, before heading to the Laundromat. Josie was unprepared for the intimacy of tossing their clothing in the washing machines together�imagining them tangling together�just as she and Sam had last night. She blushed.
"You okay?" Sam asked. "You've turned a very pretty shade of pink�"
"Fine�it's just�I've never done laundry with someone�a man�before�it's surprisingly intimate," she said softly, "I'm sure it's nothing much for you�you probably did this all the time with�"
"Actually," he said, "it's pretty much a first for me, too. Lara always took everything to the dry cleaners�even in college."
"You know�you can talk about her if you want�I'm feeling pretty secure about everything�about us. I mean�you asked me to marry you�"
"I remember," he said softly, "it was the best moment of my life."
"So tell me about her�"
"We met at a frat party, junior year after I got back from France�she was beautiful�and I think�a challenge�sort of unattainable. Anyway�some creep was harassing her�and�I had to try to be the hero�I told him to leave her alone�and he knocked me out�cold. I woke up with my head in her lap�and we started dating. We didn't have a lot in common�she's from a very privileged background�an ambitious businesswoman�I'm from Wisconsin and I only aspire to teaching teenagers�but we had fun together. My friends�they hated her�and she pretty much hated them�so I was torn between them. After graduation, she was offered a job in New York�she wanted me to move there�find a real job�but I had just started teaching at South Glen and I was hooked. So for three years we did the long distance thing. At first it was fun�I'd go to New York for the weekend�sneak out to a Mets game once in a while�but she kept wanting to drag me to the opera�or the symphony�or some big charity shindig. She even insisted on buying me a tuxedo�so I'd look acceptable to her friends. She hardly ever came to Chicago to be with me, though�only when it was convenient�like if she had business in town. So�we maintained our relationship mostly out of habit�even though we'd go for months without seeing each other and didn't really talk. Then she started nagging me to move to New York again. I kept finding reasons not to. Last summer�she really wanted me to go there�but I'd agreed to teach summer school. She was really angry with me�things just went downhill from there. We hadn't been�intimate�in a very long time�one of us always seemed to have a headache�or we'd just end up fighting. Then�I met you�and everything changed. I realized that I was settling�I remembered that I used to believe that there was one right person for everyone�that I wanted to find a girl�get married�have a family�grow old with her. And when my mind formulated an image of what that life would look like�it wasn't Lara with me�it was you."
Josie sighed.
"I knew I had to break things off with her. That night at Delloser Hall�she was horrible to you�I realized that whatever I'd felt for her�it was truly over. She went back to New York, angry with me, again�and we still hadn't settled things. I tried and tried to get in touch with her�especially after the Ferris wheel�but she never seemed to be home. She finally called me. We had a calm, friendly talk for the first time in�a long time�and she told me she wanted to break up with me�that she'd met someone else�I told her basically the same thing�and we parted as�friends�sort of weird, actually. Did I tell you she left me a message on Sunday night?"
Josie shook her head.
"I was�surprised�she wished me�us�well."
"Thank you for telling me," Josie said quietly.
"There's one more thing you need to know," he whispered. "I never felt true love until the first time I lost myself in your eyes."
"Ah, Sam," Josie cooed, "you always say the sweetest things."
"When will you marry me?" he asked, "I'm not planning on a long engagement."
Josie smiled, "I'd marry you tomorrow if I could�but there is some planning involved�I'm thinking we could pull something together in about�two months, maybe?"
"August�it'll be hot."
"But it would be good timing�we'll have time to pull the house together�if we get it, I mean�even have a honeymoon before school starts back up. Plus�I'd like to invite some of my friends from South Glen�and after August, they'll all be heading off to college�" Josie pulled her calendar from her purse and flipped it open to August.
Sam and Josie looked at the calendar, simultaneously pointing to August 14, 1999.
"Think we can pull it off?" Josie asked.
"Well�we did make a pretty good team putting the prom together�and we did that in only four weeks�plus�guaranteed�your mother�my mother�and our assorted friends�will be only too happy to lend us a hand."
"Speaking of friends�did you ever call Jonathan about tonight?" she asked.
"Shoot, I completely forgot."
Josie handed him her cell phone. "Would it be okay if I invited Anita and Rob along?"
Sam nodded as Jonathan picked up the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Jon!"
"Sam�well, well�I was beginning to wonder if you'd fallen off the face of the earth. So�kiss any pretty, blonde reporters at a baseball game lately?"
"All the time."
"And how is the lovely�Josie�I believe?"
"She's absolutely, incredibly wonderful."
"Who are you and what have you done with my buddy, Sam?"
"Hey�you're a fine one to talk�you're the one who lost twenty pounds when you met Lisa�we were wondering�actually�if you guys would be up for a night on the town�maybe Delloser Hall�I know you and Matt have been wanting to go�"
"Well�I know Matt's free tonight�he was going to come over and drink all my beer�so yeah�I'll check with Lis�but I'm sure it'll be fine�"
"Let me give you Josie's number�in case anything comes up."
"You there a lot, Sam?"
"Jon," Sam said sheepishly, "I haven't left."
"Now I'm more intrigued than ever�tell Josie we can't wait to meet her. See you tonight at eight�Delloser Hall."
* * *