JC

He fully expected Shelby to be up and about, waiting for him to wake up. Or maybe gone.  But she was there. And still asleep. He smirked to himself. Must have worn her out.

JC laid next to her and indulged in a few minutes of staring. From the tip of her head--disheveled hair spread around the pillow like a halo--to the long neck his eyes had crawled the first time he ever saw her in the dead of night at Publix. Her bare back, long and smooth and tanned, led to the curve of her bottom under the sheet and twin lumps of her thighs and further down, her calves and little feet. Her sleeping form held his attention for longer than he cared to admit. He was amazed, actually. It was daylight-broad daylight-and Shelby was still sleeping.

Renee mentioned that she hadn't slept well the night before. If she was anything like him, she hadn't slept well for a few nights. He yawned, careful not to be too loud or move too much, but she didn't budge. Her breaths were long and steady, in and out. In and out.

JC stared at the ceiling, listening to the sounds of the ocean, muted through the windows. Thinking about the whole long and drawn out story. Contemplating. Why am I still here? And why am I questioning why I'm still here? If I support her, like I say I do, I shouldn't have doubts, right?'  

The thoughts were nagging and annoying and relentless. Also useless. His brain was telling him to run like hell. His heart wouldn't let his feet move.

He rolled over and eased out of the bed, pulling the sheets and blanket back up, covering Shelby to her neck, then picked up his duffel bag and tip toed into the bathroom, closing the door softly behind him.  Minutes later, he emerged, clean and dressed, dropped his duffel bag back where he'd left it before, slid his wallet, keycard, and keys into his pocket. A quick glance over to the bed told him Shelby hadn't moved an inch. He watched her back, saw her take a deep breath in, and then out and then in and out again. Satisfied she was still asleep, he slipped out of the door.

Shelby

Her brain was a fog. It felt like a heavy blanket had been laid over her head, filtering everything out and keeping her from being able to think straight.

Ocean. She heard ocean. Peaceful, wonderful, blissful ocean. Had to be a dream, a dream about Miami, about being home, somewhere on the beach, maybe.  The blanket and the fog were lifting inch by inch, her mind was working, clicking and whirring and coming to life. Events from the past few days were starting to come back.

The package. JC. Miami. Robin. JC. The beach. JC. The confession. The hotel. JC.  

JC!

Shelby's eyes popped open and she sat up, springing onto her hands and knees, her eyes darting around the unfamiliar room. She was alone and it was dead quiet. The other side of the bed was mussed but sort of made up, the blankets and sheets merely pulled up. JC's bag sat in the same spot it was sitting the night before, but his wallet and keys were gone.

Shelby flipped over in the bed, scooting back against the head board, pushing her hair back from her face, gathering her thoughts. She brought her knees to her chest, hugging them tight against her as the memory of the day before flooded her mind. She remembered now, telling him the story. And feeling relieved, to get it out.  And feeling guilty for feeling relieved that he wasn't angrier, or that he hadn't stormed out, and he hadn't seemed disgusted by what she had to say.  She had to wonder, though... what did he think today? Did he get up and leave because he didn't want to be with her?

A beep sounded outside the door and the handle jiggled before it opened. JC walked in, catching the door before it could click into the lock and pushed it closed. A paper bag rustled under his arms as he stepped lightly into the room and then stopped when he saw her.

"You're up," he said simply. "Finally. I kept watching you sleeping to make sure you were breathing." He set the bag on the edge of the bed and walked around to her side, settling gently on the edge. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead and then pulled back to look at her. His eyes began to cloud, and his forehead grew a few creases that weren't there moments ago. "You alright, Shelby? You feel okay?"

"I'm fine," she answered. "I'm okay. Where'd you go?"

"Gift shop," he said, reaching for the bag and setting it next to her. "Got some stuff for you, because you didn't bring a bag or anything and I didn't bring any extras." He pushed the bag toward her, saying, "Take it. Really. Go ahead."

Shelby reached for the bag, emblazoned with the hotel logo on the front, the opening rolled down. She unrolled it, slid her feet down in the bed so her legs were flat and dumped the contents into her lap. Toothpaste, a toothbrush, mouthwash, a brush, some hair elastics, and a jogging suit, baby blue with white trim and matching socks, each with the hotel logo prominently displayed, were inside.

"I had to guess, on the clothes. Don't hate me if they don't fit." Shelby checked the label on the inside and shrugged. Medium. They should be fine.

"Thank you," she said, stuffing everything back into the bag. "Listen. Uhm. About yesterday..."

"Hey," he interrupted, stopping her with a hand on her arm. Her head shot up and her eyes met his. "Let's just... take this a little bit at a time, okay? Why don't you get dressed and stuff? I'm sure you need to call your parents, too. Then we'll get something to eat and talk some more. I've got some things I need to say."

She felt her eyes bugging out and tried to stop it, tried to stop the fear that was creeping up. So he was going to be sweet to her, buy her clothes and toiletries, feed her and then dump her. Take her back home and leave her in the care of her parents and fade into the sunset, probably.  Figures.

"Don't look so scared," he said with a chuckle. "I just want to talk. I want to understand all of this. And us and you and me. C'mon." He stood, reaching for her hand. "If I was dumping you, you'd be home by now. Get up, sleepy." He pulled her up and out of the bed, handed her the bag and pushed her toward the bathroom. "By the way, never thought I would be calling you sleepy."

She laughed a little as she closed the bathroom door behind her. Me either.

JC

"I feel human again."

Shelby was coming out of the bathroom, used towel and brown paper bag in hand. She smelled like the hotel soap. Her hair was smooth and shiny and no longer a wild tangle. Her face was fresh and clean, void of makeup but pretty anyway. He was reminded of that morning, again. At 5 am in Publix, when she thought she looked awful but he couldn't take his eyes off of her.

"Hungry? I'm starvin'." JC reached for the door and Shelby followed, and then walked with him down the hall, to the elevator. The scent of pastries and eggs and pancakes wafted past, beckoning them toward the Breakfast Café` as soon as the elevator doors opened. JC stepped out first, Shelby in tow.  

"I don't want you thinking I'm taking care of you or anything, now." She glanced up at him, wearing a confused, quizzical expression. "I'm just saying. This isn't a very fancy breakfast. Don't get the wrong idea."

Shelby stared blankly at him for a moment. Then laughed. "Shut up, JC."

JC and Shelby took two seats at the counter and flipped through menus while the waitress poured two cups of black coffee and slid creamer and a small plastic container holding 3 different variations of sugar. Shelby doctored a cup of coffee and sipped while she browsed the menu.

"So you're kind of quiet," JC finally said, his menu flat on the table, his eyes fixed on her. She looked up, and then back down again. "You're not like... ashamed or anything, are you?"

"Well... yeah," she muttered at the counter, not up at him. "I am, actually."

"Okay, I get that. But don't be. It's water under the bridge, right? Stuff that happened awhile ago, stuff you tried to make go away, stuff you--"

"Tried to hide from you and keep you out of, but might end up hurting you."

"You let me worry about that. Alright? We talked about this yesterday- if Melina had any fire power she'd have already done something. She's a big ole ugly badass bulldog of a woman. I'm not scared of her. And you shouldn't be, either." He leaned close, dropping an arm over the back of Shelby's chair. "Okay?"

"Easier said than done," she replied, and went back to studying the menu.

"Well, practice," was his response. "What are you eating?"

"Haven't decided yet. You keep talking to me."

"Well then let me shut up so you can decide. The pancakes are good, by the way."

"Thanks, I can decide for myself."

"I know. I'm just saying."

She glanced up at him, behind the menu page. She was smiling, he could tell. He smiled back.

Breakfast seemed almost like normal. They talked a little, bantered back and forth, flirted a little. He ate until he felt like he could pop. Shelby said she felt the same and could use some air, so he suggested they walk it off. JC signed the receipt allowing their meal to be billed to the room, and followed her out of the front door of the hotel, down the sidewalk and over the bridge to the beach.

Technically, it was winter in Miami. The mornings and evenings were cool, but the days were balmy and warm. Not tropical enough for sunbathing--unless you were a tourist--but quite warm enough for a nice walk.

"This feels oddly familiar," he said, trudging through the sand beside Shelby as she pounded along the water line.

"I don't have any more confessions, if that's what you're thinking."

"Good. I think I'm still working through what we talked about last night."

"Yeah?" She slowed, her hands balled in the pockets of the jogging suit. "You said you had some things you wanted to say. May as well spill it."

"Yeah. I guess." JC hesitated, stalling for time by glancing around at other patrons of the beach. A few tourists, some joggers, some dog walkers, all hundreds of feet away across miles of sand. They were virtually alone.

"So, I mean... I'm gonna try not to be a jerk but I'm pretty straightforward. It's hard for me to bullshit. Just know that I'm not mad, okay? I just feel like I need to be real with you."

Shelby nodded, a brave, solemn bob to her head and an almost audible swallow.

"So. I know you know I shouldn't be here, right now. I shouldn't be on this beach with you. I should be back home in Orlando, getting my life back on track and avoiding this dramatic shit. I know you know that, because you tried to run."

Shelby's eyes didn't waver from him. She had to know he was right. "So why are you here, then?"

"I wish I could say, Shelby. I mean, I know all of this stuff and you showed me a side of you that... I guess I'm disappointed. I don't even know if I have a right to be, because I don't even know you, I feel like. But then I see you and I hug you and kiss you and it's like I've known you my whole life. I can't..." He looked away, squinting into the distance over the expanse of ocean rushing toward them. "I just... I can't walk away from you. I kind of want to. I think it's only fair that you know that."

She nodded, slowly.Knowing. "Yeah. I know. I was surprised at your reaction last night. I expected you to hear my story and take me home and not want to see me again. Honestly, I think it's weird that you're still here."

"Me too," he said, turning toward her. "Here's the thing. You and I both know that if you had told me that story on our second or third date that I would have never called you back. You held things from me for a reason and I understand that, but it was still sneaky and underhanded. I don't like it. I don't like to be tricked and played and conned. I hate that shit. Be real with me or get the fuck away from me.

"At the same time, I get it. I understand why and I think back to the last six months and I think of everything we've done together and everything we've been together and I get it. I don't know that I would have changed anything, if I had it to do over again."

Shelby seemed surprised at that. Her eyes grew big and round and her head tilted slightly in confusion. She started to say something, but JC pressed a finger to her lip, shaking his head. "What I'm trying to say is that I guess I do know why I'm here. There's a reason I don't give a shit about all the stuff that came in that package from Melina, and why I heard what you said last night but it doesn't really matter, in terms of how I feel about you."

"JC, I-"

"Shhh," he interrupted, his finger to her lips again. "I've been thinking about this since I got that package. I just want to say it, and we'll deal with it after I get the words out."

Shelby pressed her lips together and stood in front of him, mute and expectant and wide-eyed. The backdrop of the crystal clear, blue skies, the sunny day, the warm temperature, the light breeze carrying the scent of salt from the ocean, and the ocean washing up on the shore... it was perfect. He couldn't have arranged a better setting if he'd tried.

"What I'm trying to say, Shelby, is that... is that I love you. Despite everything, and I do mean everything, I love you. I'm here--I came her-- because I want to be here for you and help you clear this up. And then I want to go back to Orlando and live my life, with you in it. Not only that but I want to make this, you and I--"He pointed, indicating the both of them. "I want to make this official. No more hiding or lying. No more saving ourselves for one night a week. You count on me and I count on you. You meet my family and my friends. And I meet yours. And you stop living in fear and looking over your shoulder and being scared. And you and I have a real relationship. We give us a real chance."

Shelby didn't say a word. At least for a minute or two, she alternately stared into his eyes, pools of electric blue, and glanced over his shoulder at the ocean, the sky, the sand, anything but him. JC stood his ground and held his gaze on her face. Waiting. Her response finally came.

"I kept telling myself that I... I shouldn't. I shouldn't let myself feel things for you because eventually you would be going away. I mean, if I didn't push you away, eventually you'd leave, especially if you found out about Lucas and everything."  Shelby stopped and shifted her feet in the sand, pushing it into mounds and then knocking them over. JC waited, ever so patient. There was more. It was coming. He just felt it.

He was right. When her face lifted again, her eyes found his and locked.

"I tried to break it off, but I couldn't. The plan was to just start backing off, miss a couple of dates, be standoffish and distant and kind of fade away. I couldn't do it. I was hardly making it, week to week. I felt like I was jumping you, the second you walked in that door every Thursday. I wanted more of you and I didn't feel like I deserved more of you."

"Well, I mean... we can't really measure who deserves who. We all make mistakes. Most people have a past. Most people have something they don't want anyone to know. Yours was... big. But I can't fault you for having baggage. I have some, too."

She smiled. "Kim?"

He nodded, blushing. "A lot of Kim. A lot of women past Kim and before Kim, too. A lot of hurts from people, a lot of my old life. A lot of things I always think I left behind, but they're lurking right around the corner. You're not the only one that tried to escape something. I left LA in a big damn hurry."

"Yeah. Uhm..." Shelby stopped and smiled but didn't look away. "I guess I'm saying that I love you, too. Like, really love you. Enough to not want to hurt you, or drag you into this or make this about you. Enough to want you to live a life free of all this drama that surrounds me. Enough that I don't want you hurt because of something I did and how I used to live."

"But Shelby..." JC stepped closer, his hands sliding around her waist and clasping behind her back, pulling her forward until their faces were mere inches apart. "The thing about loving someone and being in love with them is that you don't want them to go through this kind of thing alone. What kind of man would I be if I was living it easy, back in Orlando, while you're down here trying to deal with this? I get what you're saying, but sacrificing yourself isn't loving me. It's taking you away from me. It's hurting me and hurting us. You get what I'm saying?"

"Yeah," Shelby whispered, not trusting her voice. "I get it."

"So if you really love me, you'll let me help. You'll let me be here. But I have to know... I mean, is there anything else I need to know? Any more surprises or secrets? Anymore reasons you'll think I want to run away from you?"

Shelby shook her head, a relieved smile on her lips. JC sighed in relief, himself and dipped his head to kiss her, The kiss was long and sweet, not one he'd normally give in public but it fit the mood, so he enjoyed it.

Shelby

When I open my eyes, it's gonna be a new day. A new me, and a new love, and a new life. God, I'm so ready.

Things didn't look any different, when she opened her eyes. The sun was still shining brightly, the ocean was still blue, the sand was still white, and JC was still there, his arms around her, his lips near hers, his eyes on her. But it was different.

"Thank you," she said, her voice soft and lilting, almost lost in the wind. "I know you just said we can't measure who deserves who but I know, right now, that I don't deserve you and I don't deserve this chance. I won't screw it up, I promise. And I'll make it up to you, everything I held back, everything I never told you, all the things I never said."

"Sounds good," JC replied, his grip on her tightening for a few moments and then loosening, and his hands moving to her face, brushing back her hair. "I love you," he said, before he kissed her again.

"And I love you," she replied when he'd pulled back, then with a grin asked, "know what?"

"No. What?"

"It's Saturday."

JC smiled, his eyes floating up toward the sky and back down to hers. "So it is."

"And as you mentioned last night, we've never had sex on Saturday before."

"We sure haven't. You want to go test out this Saturday sex thing?"

"More than anything. Right now."

JC turned them around, and then took her hand and led the way back across their footsteps toward the hotel, back through the lobby and to the elevator, up to his room and through the door.

As soon as the door closed behind them, JC took control, pushing Shelby up against the door and stepping in to her, closer and closer until there wasn't a sliver of air between them. Body pressed against body, two sets of hands wildly explored, reaching and groping and pulling and squeezing. Mouths pressed together, tongues dancing and swirling and chasing one another while hungry groans rose, accompanied by dry, raspy gulps of air between fiery kisses. Shelby's body ached for him, reached for him as her nipples hardened and goosebumps rolled across her skin. The days away from him had been so much self imposed torture. Now that he was there and near and within her grasp, she was lightheaded and couldn't get enough of him, couldn't get to him fast enough. 

JC stepped even closer, if possible, spreading her legs with his feet and stepped between them, pressing himself into the new space he'd made. Shelby's hips seemed to move on their own, grinding into him as he pressed into her. A white hot pooling between her thighs and increased heartbeat turned her skin red like sunburn. JC's skin was already dewy with sweat, the pink hue of his skin complementing hers.

Suddenly, he was gone. He pulled away, all except for his hands, which reached for hers. Shelby opened her eyes and found herself being pulled further into the room and away from the door. Her knees nearly buckled from the feeling of weakness, her feet gliding across the carpet, past the bathroom, toward the bed, neatly made but not for long.

JC pointed her toward the bed and continued across the room. "I need to close these shades. It's a little too bright in here," he said, pulling the string to draw the heavy curtains closed. The room darkened, only allowing a few rays of sunlight to peek out. Shelby climbed up onto the bed, laying back, watching JC move toward the in-room refrigerator and retrieve several bottles of water. He set them on the nightstand and then went for his duffle bag, tossing a few small, square packages onto the table next to the water.

"Are we ready?" Shelby asked, a hint of laughter to her voice while she watched him prepare.

"Not quite," he shot over his shoulder, settling on the edge of the bed and bending over.

"Oh, shit. I forgot that you can't just kick off your shoes in a fit of passion. You have to untie them." She laughed, kicking her own shoes off and flinging them across the room.

"You know what?" JC grinned, sitting up, and then with a few swift motions, two stark white sneakers flew across the room and landed near the wall. "There. I kicked my shoes off. Happy?"

"Very. Come here," she said her arms open wide. He climbed up onto the bed, into her arms, easing himself onto her. Her legs opened and wrapped around him, her arms closed around his neck, her lips sought his lips out and when they were found, plastered themselves to his.

When the fire of the kiss had faded slightly, they pulled back and just stared at each other. Smiling, laughing, tickling and teasing, flirting. Like old times. Like every other time they'd been together, but better. Because they'd be together that night. And the next day. And the day after. And every night until forever came, if Shelby had her say about it. She would just about bet that JC felt the same.

A thick finger traced a path of skin from her neck down into the zippered jacket of the jogging suit, forcing the zipper down until it revealed her bra and supple skin encased within it. "I don't think you missed me as much as I missed you. I thought I lost you. I was having a hard time dealing with that."

"You missed me?"

"Mmmhmmm," he hummed, his head dipping toward the swell of a breast, his lips lightly dancing over the skin. In the wake of his breath, more bumps erupted, and her nipples hardened anew, pressing against the prison of lace that was her bra. He pulled at the fabric, moving the cup aside and exposing the entire breast and angry red nipple, growing and reaching toward him in the coolness of the air conditioned room.

His mouth, warm and tender, closed over it, his tongue flicking expertly, the way she liked it. Her hips responded in the usual way, with a violent clench and a roll against him, pressed against her body.  He freed the other breast from the cup and gave it the same treatment, moving back and forth between the two.

"They missed you," Shelby purred, her hips working in a rhythm undefined. Not on purpose, they just wouldn't stop moving.

"I missed them," JC replied, his eyes rolling up to meet hers while he licked a thick stripe down her chest. "Kind of wishing for some tequila and salt and lime right now."

"I know. But we can make do without it, can't we?"

JC smiled, his eyes only half open. "I plan on it."

At that, he went back to licking and sucking and flicking, while her breaths continued to come in short bursts, timed with the near desperate thrusts and rolls of her hips up and into him. He was rigid and long and perfectly placed between them, allowing the long simmer that had bubbled just under the surface to boil over into a loud, powerful, convulsive orgasm. Shelby's limbs tightened around him as she rocked against him, alternately groaning and yelping and muttering her thoughts into his ear.

When she had calmed reasonably, but was still panting and glowing with a light sheen of sweat, JC sat up and pulled off his long sleeved shirt and t-shirt, unbuttoned his jeans and kicked out of them. "Your turn," he said, teasing her with a grin, pulling at the clothes she had just put on hours before.

"I'm working on it," she grumbled, helping him pull the jacket off and the shirt down, and then unclasped her bra and pulled it off, too. Her clothes were dropped in a pile alongside the bed and two naked bodies rolled around on the King sized bed, free of any barrier of clothing or shyness or inhibition.

Shelby's mind drifted back to that night, the first date, the first time they were together. The longing for him, the wanting him, the watching him and how he moved and how he... was. Imagining what it would be like to be with him, to feel his arms around her and his lips on her and his chest pressed up against hers and him, all of him, inside of her. That feeling had never gone away. Neither had the awe of seeing him and feeling him and being with him. Sometimes it still felt like the first time. Sometimes she was still nervous and giddy, wanting to pinch herself to see if it was real. If he was real. If he was really there and really with her and really laying with her, the weight of him comforting her, his smile warming her, his lips helping that fluttery, butterfly feeling linger.

Shelby was feeling it now, all of that. Relishing in the thought that it didn't have to end in twelve hours, and she didn't have to spend six days pretending she didn't care and wasn't dreaming about the next time they'd be together.  JC was there with her. And he wasn't going anywhere.

JC

Shelby seemed quiet, comparatively. Except for the very vocal orgasm, she didn't take on her usual role of goading and teasing, tossing banter back and forth, making sex with her fun and exciting. Maybe it had something to do with how he took over the situation as soon as they hit the room. She was giving control to him, letting him call the shots where she normally would. He liked that, but needed to make sure she liked it, too.

"How we doin'?" he asked, rolling on top again and squirming at the feeling of her legs closing around him.

"We are just fine," she said, her voice soft but carrying that sexy, sultry undertone that sent shivers up his spine and made the hairs on his nape stand on end. He dove into her, burying his face into her neck, nibbling and biting at her skin, her earlobes, her cheek, her chin, then beginning his descent down her body. Past her neck, where he took a moment to savor the dip at her throat. Down her chest, where he stopped to linger over one nipple and then the other, teasing her back to the simmering point. Further down, across her belly, the skin so smooth and soft, he just laid there a while, rubbing the pads of his fingers across from one side of her to the other.

Finally moving on, he crept past her belly button and lower belly to a mound of sensitive skin and nerve endings, the root of fire and passion. He took his time, laying light kisses along her thighs, savoring her skin and how it felt against his, and then moving back up to the whole point of his journey.

Soft, slow, gentle, tender at first, he teased her, his tongue working its way along the folds of skin and up to her clit, engorged and red. Shelby's legs opened further, her head tipped up, watching him. Her breath caught in her throat as he took the sensitive, red-hot bud into his mouth and played with it, his tongue stroking in a rhythm that did nothing to settle the boil. Shelby gasped, sucking in air, her hips arching toward him, hands flying to the back of his head, pressing him harder into her. This brought a moan from his throat and roll to his hips as he rubbed himself against the comforter that covered the bed. His dick was erect, rock solid beneath him, trapped between the warmth of his body and the give of the mattress, ready to explode, as soon as it made contact with something wet.

Hang in there, he told himself, circling his tongue around her clit, riding the movements of her hips as she bucked against his face, watching her breasts and eraser tipped nipples lift and roll, listening to her moan and grunt and beg, "don't stop. Oh my god. Please, don't stop." He had no intention of stopping. Rather, he followed his plan to ride it out until the end, until her body convulsed and her hips jerked and her toes curled. Until her hands closed around a tuft of his hair and her legs involuntarily closed around him and held him there. Until her cries grew in intensity and the volume reached a peak level and then when it was over, all she could do was lay there, limp and staring at the ceiling with a grin a mile wide on her face.

"And that's how we do it," he said, his grin cocky.

She seemed to do her best to lift her head, if only slightly. "Proud of yourself, aren't you?"

"Very. Really. Very. We still doing fine?"

"Oh, baby," she answered, venturing a roll to her side, where he'd climbed up and laid next to her, his lips already on her again. "I am more than fine."

"Grab some water. You sound parched." He nodded his head toward the bottles on the nightstand, just over her shoulder. "And grab one of those-you know what? You're weak. Nevermind."

"You're really feeling yourself," Shelby said, giggling. JC sat up and reached over her, picked up two bottles and a square package and came back to rest beside her. He handed her one but she pushed it away and sat up.

"What? What's wrong?"

Shelby glanced at him with fire in her eyes and a teasing smile. "Nothing's wrong. Everything's right. Everything's.... perfect."

JC was never much for foreplay and teasing. As much as he dished it out, if he was hard, he was ready. Shelby was the one that liked to play, to drag it out, to tease him to hell and back. Not this time. This time, she went straight for the jugular, moving down his body with a speed he'd never seen before. He almost didn't know what was going on, until one hand was wrapped around the base of his dick and the tip of him was in her mouth, being bathed by her tongue. In one fluid movement, she sank down onto him, his dick wrapped in warmth and wetness and pressure. Such good pressure.

He relaxed against the mattress, letting her work, his head lolled to the side, trying to watch but feeling his eyelids slide closed. The feeling was magic and ecstasy and elation, all in one big jumble, piling one onto another. Shelby knew what she was doing, and for the first time, JC was a little bit grateful for her past. What she'd been through in the years before she met him had created an incredibly skilled lover. He rather enjoyed reaping the benefits, especially when she could sense that he was on the edge and could feel him throbbing and pulsing.

"Gonna come," he grunted, his hips moving on their own, thrusting into her mouth. Her eyes flicked up and caught his gaze. He swore they smiled at him. "Shit. Lookin' at you, your mouth full of my dick. Driving me crazy. Make me come, mama. Take me there."

Never one to turn down a request, Shelby obliged and increased the pressure. Her tongue swirled and her hand stroked and her mouth sucked, until his teeth clenched and his body curled and a long, loud, tortured grunt poured forth. Shelby made a sound, sort of a whimper but kind of a moan, watching him as he came, holding him in the warmth of her mouth until he was spent.

JC collapsed against the mattress, wiping sweat from his brow, heaving deep breaths. Then reached for her, pulling her up by her arms until they were face to face, then rolling them so he was on top again. 

"I can't wait," he said, laughing, scrounging around the bed for the square package he'd tossed aside when she made her move.  "I think you're laying on it."

"On what?"

"The condom. Sit up."

"You put me here. Now I have to move?"

"Shelby-Just... I don't know why I'm arguing with you" Shelby giggled as he practically picked her up off of the bed, retrieved the condom package and laid her back down.  "You're a bad girl. I just want you to know that." He ripped the package open and pulled out the latex ring and sheath, tossing pieces of wrapper in either direction around them and rolling it on.

She laughed, watching him, her eyes full of evil mischief. "A bad girl? Oh nooooo. I think you should teach me a lesson."

JC looked up from his task, his eyes focused on her. "Like I said. I plan on it."

"I'm shakin' in my... socks," she said, kicking a leg up to reveal the socks she was still wearing, with the hotel logo embossed on the ankle.

"You can't ever get rid of those socks, you know."

"Oh today's whole outfit is going down in the hall of fame, I'll tell you that."

"Good," JC replied, climbing over her, moving her legs so he could get between them. "Because this is gonna be one memorable fuck, right here."

Shelby started to laugh, but it cut off as soon as JC lowered himself onto her, capturing her lips in his teeth, sucking on her bottom lip. She moaned, grabbing his face and kissing him back, playing with his tongue, volleying the kiss back and forth with feverish intensity.  He dipped a hand between them and guided himself to her, his body reacting with a shudder at the sensation of being surrounded by her. Her back arched and her hips bucked, bringing him further inside. Her legs tightened around him holding him to her as he began to move inside her.

Slowly at first, and then with building passion, they moved together as if they were one being. Joined at the mouth, bodies pressed against each other so tightly their sweat mingled, hips thrusting into one another, legs tangled in each other. Shelby was the first to break the kiss, giving way to moans and random mutterings.

"I can't hear you," he said, moving above her, their bodies slapping together with a flat, smacking sound in perfect rhythm. "Tell me."

"Shit," was all she said. All she seemed to be able to utter, between pants and groans.

"That's it? Shit?"

"Shit!" She screamed, writing beneath him."Fuck, you feel so good! I missed you. I missed you so much. I missed this. I missed you."

"That's more like it," he said, laughing, scooting up a little and then resuming his thrusthrusthrust into her. "You feel good, baby. This is how it should be, you know? You and me. Don't make me go without this again, okay?"

"Okay. Yes. Just... oh my GOD!" Shelby convulsed, her hips clenching, her nails digging into the skin of his shoulders. "Uhm!! Right there, baby. Right there. Please. Oh... God! Please make me come!"

"What do you think I'm doing up here?"

"Fuck," she said, laughing. "You're doing awesome. Just do awesomer. Make me come. Please please please please make me come." Shelby was panting, heaving, glistening with sweat, her little body working just as hard as his was. She unhooked her legs from around him and spread them wide, arching her body up to his, grabbing his hips and pulling him to her.

"Yeah. Right there. Right there. Fuck yeah, that's right on my clit. Don't stop. Don't stop. Don't......shit I'm coming! Unh! Yes! Fuck! I'm co--.....ohhhhh ....God!"

JC felt like his dick had just been shoved into a clamp that was systematically tightening over and over. He watched the wave roll over Shelby like the tide, up and down and back up again. Every time it rolled, she clenched and yelped and jerked, milking him until the siren song of orgasm lured him in as well. Their cries and moans and grunts and laughs mixed in the air until there was nothing but sighs and whimpers and gulps. JC lay on top of a sedate Shelby, who appeared to be asleep except for the telltale smile on her face.

"Memorable indeed," she mumbled, without even opening her eyes.

"I told you. And there's more where that came from."

"Oh. Goody. I can't tell you how happy that makes me."

 "Smartass. Building up to another lesson, I see."

Her eyes opened slowly, the brown in them glazed over. "I need a minute," she croaked, and then coughed. "How about that water you offered and then didn't let me drink?"

He laughed. "Oh, nuh uh. Not my fault. You refused the water, trying to get at me. All hot in the ass over there." He sat up, retrieving the bottles of water that had rolled onto the floor amid all the activity, then laid beside her.

"I'll show you who's hot in the ass." She pointed at him, sitting up cross-legged on the bed, taking the open bottle that he offered and gulping down half of it.

"You know, something occurs to me." JC sipped on his water, sitting beside her, flicking a finger across her toes. "We're doing all this talking about not being without each other, right?"

"Right."

His eyes lifted to hers, a bit of sadness clouding them. "I have to go to LA at the end of the week. And we're leaving on tour pretty soon."

Her shoulders fell as she tried to fight a frown. To be honest, he sort of felt the same way. He'd almost forgotten about his new life, this new path he was taking. This big damn change he was trying to make. If he'd known that all it would take to make him feel new and whole again was to meet a great girl and chase her around for about six months, he would have just done that. He was committed to Rod and to the Band, now. And to the tour, and to himself, and to proving that he had talents beyond writing the bland material that record labels wanted him to write, or producing albums for unknowns and turning them into household names. Having Shelby would definitely be the icing on the cake, but he still had to bake it.

"Well," she finally said, trying to sound cheerful. "I'm not going anywhere. We're official, now. You said so."

"I did. I did say that." He smiled and slid a hand down her arm until he was holding her hand. "Well, you maybe want to at least come out to LA? See what that whole thing is about?"

Shelby pondered the question for a few seconds and then, surprisingly, shook her head. "I'm not going to LA. At least not this trip. No."

His eyes narrowed. He would have bet on a yes from her. Dammit why could he not predict her by now? "Why? I mean, I'd like to take you, if you want to go. I don't want to force you or anything, and I'm not trying to be all ‘Lucas-y' about it. You know that, right?"

She smiled and stroked his cheek. "You'll never be all ‘Lucas-y', JC. Last night you asked me who Shelby Coster was. And I said I hoped I'd find out real soon. And I'm still not altogether sure, but I know that Shelby Coster has this big damn deal she has to work out with some very evil people she used to know. And then Shelby Coster has a life in Orlando that she has to get back to. Shelby Coster graduates from Business School next, God willing."

She crossed her fingers and her eyes flitted upward for a few seconds of prayer before fixing on him again. "Shelby Coster has classes she needs to finish and final exams she needs to take. Shelby Coster has shifts at Antigua she has to work, and potential bar locations she needs to scout, and a Business Plan to write."

She was smiling, so he was smiling. He liked the sound of the new Shelby, confident and determined and focused. It was kind of a turn on. "So, Shelby Coster can't dump her life to run off to LA with her wonderfully sweet, incredibly handsome brand new boyfriend." She tipped his face toward her with a finger under his chin and kissed him. "But she's so grateful that he thought to ask." 

"Okay, then," he said with a shrug. "I guess that settles it, Miss ‘I have a life to lead'. As long as you're okay. But I want to be with you until I have to leave for LA. And when I come back, until I have to leave on tour."

She nodded. "Deal."

He started to say something else, but was interrupted by the shrill ring of a phone. "That's not me," he said.

"It's me," she said, diving toward her purse on the table. "It's probably my mom. They might be freaking out a little bit. I forgot to call."

Shelby

Sheepish, Shelby pulled into the driveway of her parent's house and climbed out, waiting for JC at the sidewalk so they could walk in together. Renee had ranted for five minutes straight, first at her, and then at JC, finally demanding their presence at dinner to make up for letting them worry. Shelby let Renee carry on the act that she was angry, knowing full well that the call was really to be nosy and see if they'd made up. If she was worried, she'd have called much earlier in the day.

"Is she gonna hit me, or anything?"

Shelby laughed, hooking her arm into his, walking him to the door that was already opening, light from the hallway spilling out and brightening up the dusk outside. "Nah," she muttered through a bright smile at the scowl on Renee's face. "I don't think."

JC managed to charm his way back into Renee's good graces. She tried to stay upset, eventually giving up the act and serving dinner-- pasta, garlic bread, and green salad. JC ate until he couldn't move and then had another helping. Shelby went upstairs to pack a bag and return to the hotel with JC. Renee followed, perched on the edge of the guest bed.

"So things turned out okay? I'm guessing yes, since he's still around."

Shelby nodded, moving from a large, oversized suitcase to a smaller duffel bag and filling it up with a few items of clothing, shoes and toiletries.

"Yeah, we had a good talk. Probably not the last one, but a good one anyway."

"I'm happy to hear that, Shelby. I really am."

Something in Renee's voice made Shelby turn around. She wasn't herself, nosy and prying and digging for information, pretending to be concerned. Her attitude seemed different. "Why?" Shelby asked, tossing a bottle onto the small stack of clothing in the bag. "I mean... thanks. I'm happy, too. But why?"

"Because," Renee answered, pointing a long, bony finger at her. "You're happy. He makes you happy. He's been making you happy. How long has it been since I could say I saw my daughter with a smile on her face?"Renee shook her head, her eyes drifting away and then back to Shelby. She smiled. "I don't know. I don't know why you fought him so long, either. This Lucas thing..."

She scoffed, flapping a hand as if she could wave the entire situation away. "Well, anyway, you deserve someone that would drive three hours to come find you, when you tried to run away."

Shelby blushed, but didn't argue. "It felt good to finally get it off my chest, you know? To just tell him. I was so afraid of losing him over it. No one I was ever with before would have stayed." 

Shelby zipped the duffel bag closed and lowered it to the ground, near her feet, then turned and sat on the bed, next to her mother. Renee reached a hand out to her; Shelby took it.  

"What's going to happen, with the Samuels family?" Renee finally asked, breaking the silence.  "Are you still going to give them the money?"

Shelby shook her head and sucked in a deep breath through her nose. They still had an ordeal to go through before this "Lucas Thing" was all over. "I was only doing that so they would leave JC alone, but he doesn't want me to do that. We'll go to that meeting Monday and tell them the harassment has to stop, or we'll take legal action. If they think they deserve some of the settlement money, they should file suit and get on with it. Otherwise, they-meaning Melina-don't have reasons to keep bringing my name up in conversation. It should be over and done with."

"Exactly. That's so right." Renee nodded, her mouth in a tight, firm line, a crease across her forehead. "I don't want this hanging over your head anymore,  you know?"  She reached up and, out of habit, swiped at a long strand of hair and tucked it behind Shelby's ear. Renee had been doing that Shelby's whole life. Sometimes JC did it too, because the way her hair fell, when he couldn't see her face. It was a comforting feeling.

For the first time in a very long time Shelby felt free. Well, more relaxed anyway-- she wouldn't feel free until the entire episode was over and done, but the massive weight that had lived on her shoulders for the past few years had, over the last 24 hours, slipped away. Shelby was light and happy, near giddy. The dark cloud of Monday's meeting with the revered Samuel's family and their clan of tight lipped, curt, well dressed attorneys loomed ahead, just over the horizon. Shelby hoped JC was really, for real, serious about attending the meeting and standing by her. She'd need him there. 

"Well, whatever happens is what happens," she said with a dejected sigh. "Maybe I'll feel differently in a few days. I'm riding the euphoria of spilling everything and coming out of it with someone that cares about me, despite everything I've been through, and everything I put him through, and the person I used to be."

"You had that all along," Renee chided, but smiled through it. "But I know what you mean. We all need someone who'll stand by us." Renee pushed herself off of the firm, comfortable mattress, dragging Shelby up with her, their hands still molded together. "Now, before I get really nosy, you'd better get down there and run off with him."

"Hell yes, before you get really nosy." Shelby grabbed the duffel bag and bounced out of the room and toward the stairs. Renee followed, turning out the light behind them. 

The sight that greeted them from the living room was enough to melt even the coldest heart. JC and Bob were stretched out in side by side, matching leather recliners. Both had the foot rests up and the backs of the chairs extended. Both had long legs crossed at the ankles. Both heads tipped to the right. Both were fast asleep, in a pasta-induced coma. Renee stood behind Shelby, leaning her shoulder against the wall, shaking her head and clicking her tongue.

"Maybe... I think maybe you two had better stay here, tonight," she said, her eyes rolling over to the twin snoring figures.

As much as Shelby wanted to go back to the hotel, where she could be with JC in peace and quiet and nothing to interrupt them but the sound of the surf crashing onto the beach just beyond the windows, she didn't see being able to get JC into the car just to drive across town and go back to bed. 

Shelby dropped her duffel bag where she stood. "I'll get JC, you get dad," she said, smirking at Renee and rolling up her sleeves.