As she thought about how she was going to extract herself from his arms, JC rolled away from her and repositioned the covers. She gently sat up and looked at him. He was laying on his back with his face turned away from her. His left arm went up over his head while his right hand settled lightly on his bare chest. The bed sheet had come to rest along his waist, dipping just slightly at his right hip for the waistband of his boxer briefs to peak through. His usually unruly hair was even more disjointed after the nights sleep and he had a day's growth of stubble on his chin. Amanda also noticed what appeared to be a small smile playing across his lips. She sat there and studied him for a few moments as she tried to remember exactly everything she saw; how each piece of hair was disarranged; the smile on his lips; how his Leo necklace was positioned; the curves and ripples of the muscles in his shoulders, arms, chest and stomach. She leaned over and gently placed a kiss on his forehead. Then a look of horror crossed her face as she imagined how she looked. She quietly slid out of bed and grabbed a change of clothes as she headed towards the bathroom.
She had been in the shower for fifteen minutes when she heard a sound in the bathroom. She quickly rinsed the shampoo out of her hair and grabbed the shower curtain. As she looked out into the bathroom, she held the curtain close to her. JC, dressed only in his boxer briefs, had his back turned to her as he leaned on the counter and was inspecting his face in the mirror which was steaming up quickly.
"JC, don’t you know it's polite to knock before you come into the bathroom, especially when a girl is showering," she said teasingly. She did her best not to stare at his backside for too long.
He turned and got a devilish grin on his face. "And don't you know it's not polite to leave your boyfriend in bed, alone," he said as he walked towards her.
"I'm sorry," she said as he stopped in front of her. "I know how much you hate being awakened and you looked so peaceful sleeping there."
"Yes, but it was still rude," he said as he placed his right foot in the tub with her.
"What do you think you're doing," she said as she pivoted so her back was to the shower head. She kept a tight grip on the shower curtain. "You're going to get wet."
"Oh, I want a shower too," he said playfully as he pulled his left foot into the tub.
"And what if I wanted to finish my shower first," she questioned.
"Can't we shower together," he said as he tucked a wet strand of hair behind her ear. His hand lingered on her neck with his thumb brushing her cheek lightly. He leaned and gently placed his lips on hers. His right arm moved to her waist and wrapped the shower curtain behind her. She moved her left hand up his arm and started to run her hand through his hair. She reached behind her with her right hand and took the shower curtain from JC and held it tightly against her right hip. His left hand moved to the back of her neck. As he pulled her closer and deepened the kiss, his right hand moved to the small of her back, sending small chills up her spine. Her brain was going into overload with the sensations she was feeling: the rough stubble of JC's chin; the pressure of his mouth on hers; the light caresses of his hand on her back; the pulsating water on her shoulders; the heat of his body pressed against hers.
"JC," she said breathlessly as she broke the kiss.
"Yeah," he said as he placed wet kisses along her neck.
"I'm not going to make it to our wedding night if we keep going like this," she said as she took a small step back. She was fighting for control of her senses. Her mind was telling her one thing while her body was screaming a totally different message.
He pulled her back to him and rested his forehead against hers and sighed. "So you will marry me," he stated more than asked.
She smiled as she looked onto his blue eyes. "Maybe, one day," she replied with a playful grin.
JC groaned. "Woman, you're going to drive me nuts," he said with a smile as he stepped out of the tub.
"I know, that's part of my charm." She put the shower curtain back in its rightful place and quickly conditioned her hair before turning the water off. She reached one had out and grabbed a towel from the rack over the toilet. Wrapping herself in it, she stepped out of the tub and smiled. "And exactly what do you thing you are doing?
JC was standing in front of the mirror. There was white foam on his face and next to the sink was the shaving gel she used for her legs. He held her spare pink razor in his right hand.
"And you're the college graduate, what do you think I’m doing," he answered as he ran the blade under the running water in the sink.
"Ok, fine," she said as she grabbed her clothes off the floor. "But I'm going to go get dressed, so don't come out until I say so. Got that buster?"
"Not even a peek?" She stuck her tongue out at him. "No, not even a peek," she said as she stood on her tiptoes next to him and gave him a kiss on his temple.
He snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her close. There was laughter in his eyes. "Have I told you I love you today," he asked as he gave her a kiss that was slightly less than chaste.
"I love you too," she replied. He laughed. "And why is that funny," she said trying to feign hurt in her voice.
"No, no, you've got shaving cream on your chin," he answered as he picked up a hand towel and cleaned her face. He gave her a kiss on her forehead and turned his attention back to shaving.
When she passed behind him heading towards to bedroom, she placed a gentle pat on his backside. It was a gesture that she hadn't even thought about doing and she didn't know who it surprised more, herself or JC.
As she stood in front of the rack of clothes, she didn't know what she was going to wear. "Uh, Jace," she said loud enough to penetrate the bathroom door.
"Yeah," he called back.
"What exactly are we doing today," she asked as she riffled through the clothing.
"I was thinking about going and seeing Joey in Rent this afternoon," he answered. Joey had started his stint as the main character Mark the night before.
"Ok, sounds like fun," she said as she pulled out a pair of jeans and a peasant blouse.
"Are you decent," JC asked from the bathroom.
"I'm always decent. But if you're asking if I'm dressed, yes, I'm covered," she replied.
He opened the door and stuck his head out. "Could you go to my room and get me a change of clothes that way we can go straight to lunch and then to the theater," he said with puppy dog eyes.
"We haven't been dating a week and already I'm your slave," she answered with a smile.
"Thanks babe," he said as he closed the door. She heard the water start.
She quickly dressed and pulled on a pair of sandals. She grabbed his room key off the bar in the living room.
When she opened the door to his room, she couldn't believe the mess it was in. None of his clothes were in the drawers, they were either still in his suitcase or crumpled on the floor. "I can't believe I’m doing this," she said with a silly grin. She felt more like a frat boy on a panty raid than a girlfriend picking out clothes as she grabbed a pair of boxer briefs and a pair of socks from the Wal-Mart bags on the dresser. She found a pair of jeans in the suitcase and a dark blue tee shirt on the floor that looked less crumpled than the rest. She shook her head at her next action as she held the shirt to her nose and took a sniff. It smelled clean. She figured she had enough time back at her room to iron some of the wrinkles out if needed. After grabbing a rainbow striped canvas belt from the bedpost, she headed back to her room.
As she entered the bedroom of her suite, she almost collided with a towel clad JC. She couldn't help but stare. His hair was still wet and beads of water rolled slowly down his chest. The towel he wore was wrapped loosely around his hips. Amanda bit her lip as JC walked to her.
"Thanks," he said as he took the clothes from her hands and walked back to the bathroom. She stood there breathing deeply as she tried to calm her racing heart. As JC was changing, she walked to the vanity and pulled out her hair dryer. After drying her hair and applying a light dusting of make-up, she stood up. JC walked out of the bathroom fully dressed with dry hair. The tee shirt still looked like it came off the floor of a bedroom.
"Do you want me to iron that," she said as she pointed towards the wrinkles.
"Uh, sure," he said as he pulled the article of clothing over his head and handed it to her. Once again, she had to keep from staring.
She walked to the closet and pulled out the iron and ironing board. A few minutes later, she had worked all the wrinkles out. JC busied himself with the clothes from the day before to keep from staring at her. "Here," she said a few minutes later as she handed the shirt back to him.
"Thanks," he replied as he took it from him. Their hands grazed the other and they froze as they looked at each other. JC stepped towards her and leaned down to kiss her. She responded by wrapping her arms around his neck. JC quickly dropped his shirt and put his hands on her waist. As they continued to kiss, Amanda ran her hands through his hair. JC moved his hands under her shirt. His hands lightly caressed her back. He then took hem of her shirt in his hands and pulled it over her head. Before she could respond, he lifted her up and placed her on the bed. As he started to climb on top of her, she put her hand out and sat up.
"JC, stop," she said. He sat back at the foot of the bed. "I'm sorry, but we can't keep doing this," she continued. "You said the other night you didn't want us to be based on sex, but it seems like every time we turn around, we're at that point. I don't know what to do."
"I know. I know," he said as he lightly rubbed her leg from where he sat. It was a comforting, not a sexual, gesture.
"And it's not that I don't want to, I do. I'm falling in love with you so fast," she said. He could see the conflict in her eyes: upbringing verses desire.
"I know. And I want to show you how much I'm in love with you," he said as he ran his hand through his hair. "But at the same time, I don't want to start this relationship like every other one I've had and I don't want to pressure you into feeling like you've got to do something against your upbringing. But at the same time, all I want to do is make love to you."
"And I want to do the same thing, it's just," she laid back and stared at the ceiling. "Ugh, I can't even explain it. My body is saying go for it, my mind is telling me to keep my true love waits promise, my heart is saying do anything to keep him because he's the one. And I've never been at this point in any other relationship and I don't know how to handle it. And to top it all off is the fact that this is 'problem' is coming up so early."
He crawled up the bed and laid on his side to face her. "You think I'm the one," he asked as he brushed several strands of hair from her cheek.
She turned her head to face him. "I've known you were the one since you showed up in my parking lot with that car and a bouquet of flowers," she replied softly.
"Ya know what," he said as he reached into the pocket of his jeans. "I think you're the one too," he replied softly as he opened a blue velvet box and placed it on her stomach. Inside was a diamond ring. The marquise center stone was embraced by baguette side stones and set in platinum. He looked her in the eyes. "Will you marry me?"
