Flames

Burned, part 1

"Why does the sun hate the Irish so much?" Becky's accent, already tricky for Seth to decipher at times, was further garbled by the pillow. After their fishing trip, the full extent of her sunburn was impossible to ignore and he had insisted that they take a break and head back to the hotel. Now she was sprawled prone on the bed, naked but for her engagement ring, and Seth was checking just how severe her burn was. "I love the sun! It makes me warm!" She gingerly turned her head to look up at him. "You said the sunblock was SPF 50. . . ."

Seth grabbed the bottle from the bedside table and handed it to her. "It is. But you'll burn faster out on the water, because the sun reflects. . . ." He sat on the bed beside her and held out a jar of aloe lotion for her to sniff. "That okay?"

Becky nodded as she set the sunblock bottle aside. "I hope it heals before we go back. Otherwise I'll have to ask Sasha to hit me with pillows instead of chairs." She flinched as soon as Seth started spreading the soothing lotion across her shoulders, but she forced herself to relax. "That's probably why they had so many pillow fight matches in the Divas' days. They were all sore from being sunburned." When she tried laughing at her own joke, Becky winced again. "If we have kids," she whimpered, squirming as he started working on the worst part of her burn, "I hope they have your complexion."

Since Becky couldn't see his face, Seth didn't try to hide his dorky grin, the one that made his nose crinkle up. They hadn't exactly been talking about marriage and children and the future nonstop since he proposed, but when the topics came up, Becky wasn't panicking any longer. "Only if they have your eyes," he countered, massaging the lotion into her shoulder blades. She was still whimpering here and there, but the sounds were gradually more pleased—or at least relieved—than painful, and her fingers were starting to twitch the way they did when she was getting turned on.

"Nope. Yours." Becky's shoulders clenched once as Seth crossed over a particularly tender spot, but then she sank back down into the pillow. "And your eyelashes, of course."

Seth planted a gentle kiss on her shoulder before moving his way down her back. "What will they get from you then?" Where her skin was more pink than red, he moved quicker, saving most of the lotion for the places that were radiating heat.

"My accent, of course. I'm going to teach them how to say garage properly, since you like it so much." Becky's light chuckle made her shake under his hands, and he paused to tickle her sides before scooping more lotion out of the jar. "Oh, and I'll make sure they love chocolate mint. I'll get them mint hot chocolate every time we go to a café."

"Huh. Look at that. The lotion's all gone." Seth pretended to set the jar aside while Becky struggled to prop herself up on her elbows. "I'll have to go get some more. . . ."

Becky managed to look into the jar before Seth lifted it out of reach. "Liar." She shot him a mild glare as she flopped back down on the bed. "That's all right. That just means I get to top you until my burn's healed. Because my back will be sore, you know."

Seth squeezed her ass until she yelped. "You didn't burn everything back here, you know." Kissing the spot just behind her ear, he finished putting lotion on the back of her arms and then stretched out beside her. "You need to let that absorb in for a few minutes," he murmured, lightly running his fingers down her back. "And then we'll work on the rest."

"Best future husband ever," she murmured, reaching over to stroke his cheek.

The ring or the word: Seth wasn't sure which one made him go still. The ring was rarely cold, but he could always tell when it was against his skin, and it still thrilled him to see it on her hand; better yet was when he caught her admiring it, the way she would smile and blush and glance away, but only for a second, as if she wanted to make sure it hadn't disappeared. Husband, though, that got to him. He had said it in interviews, but wife had always been on his horizon more: when he had talked with Becky's parents, when he designed the engagement ring, when he talked to Roman and others for advice. This was the first time he could recall hearing Becky say husband in any context, and it didn't matter that her accent turned it into something thicker than he was used to hearing. He would gladly take a lifetime of debates about how to say garage and mint hot chocolates if it meant getting to hear her say husband like it was his name.

He must have looked more shocked than smitten, though, because something had dimmed in Becky's eyes. "Too soon?" She tried to lighten her tone, but there was no mistaking the uncertainty in it. "I just figured you'd laugh at how I pronounce fiancé and—"

Seth closed the gap between them and drew her into a kiss, forgetting everything else for a moment. She returned it eagerly and happily, but her sunburn was still angry, making her wince when Seth dug his fingers into her back. "Shit." When he forced his eyes open, Seth realized he had nearly pushed Becky onto her back. "Becks, I'm sorry. Are you okay?" He sat up and reached for the aloe lotion. "Stretch out again and I'll—"

"No." Becky sat up too, though far more gingerly, and straddled his lap. "I'd rather be kissing my future husband, thank you." Then she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him again, keeping her movements slow and small. "That's not some new kink, is it? I'm starting to lose track. . . ."

Nuzzling a relatively unburned part of her neck, Seth laughed. "No. Just . . . incredibly satisfying to hear, I guess." He dipped the fingers of one hand in the aloe lotion and started massaging it along her sides. "We're still here for a few days; we could get a license. . . ."

"My ma would kill you." Becky's eyes were drifting shut, but Seth knew from her smile that she was turned on than tired. "Besides, it'll give us a reason to get time off next year." She moved into his touch and slid a hand down his chest. "And look, our first engagement compromise: Neither of us is on top."

Seth gave her a quick kiss before getting more lotion. He was massaging some places that weren't burned, strictly speaking, but Becky didn't seem to mind. "Well, technically, you're on my lap, which—"

Becky shook her head and laughed. "Do you want to switch, then? You can sit on my lap."

"Nah, I'm good." Seth let out a sharp breath when Becky's hand slid inside his shorts. "Better now." He let himself enjoy Becky's deft fingers for a few moments before returning to his own handiwork. "When we're done," he managed to say between languid kisses, "I'll find a moonlight boat tour so you won't have to worry about another burn."

"But it won't be dark for hours yet." Becky pulled the elastic from his bun so his hair fell free. "And since my phone was dropped in the ocean," she added sharply, giving his curls a hard tug, "that means you'll have to find some way to keep me amused until then."

"You'll get your new phone tomorrow, I promise." As his hands roamed over burned skin and tan lines alike, Seth wondered what kind of mark Becky's ring would leave on her finger. She couldn't wear it while she was wrestling and its tan lines would eventually fade; he knew some of the guys wore silicone rings while wrestling. He'd have to look into that later, though: he didn't dare bring his phone out around Becky, especially since he was the one responsible for the demise of hers, and he had a fiancée to entertain. "As for keeping you amused," he added, pulling her closer, "I can think of few things. . . ."