Show Me

8.

Beginnings.

Beginnings, when he'd grown so assimilated to endings.

Beginnings, to fill in those dark places, the ones he'd numbed with booze and with rage.

Beginnings, not to gloss over pain or suffering, but as a reminder that life always went on, sometimes, in ways that were often beautiful and wholly unexpected.

Her arms were anchored tightly around his neck as he carried her up the winding staircase for the second time. Similarly to days prior, there was much at stake on the way to their intended destination, but this journey, unlike the first, was joyful. She kept turning her head to kiss him, couldn't get enough, and he returned her display of affection with an equal fervor.

"I don't want to drop you," he said against her lips as they rounded the final few stairs.

"Want me to stop?"

As an answer, he kissed her until they were both gasping for air. His thumb was hooked under the bend of her knee and fleetingly, he skidded it over the spot, eliciting another soft moan.

Fuck. She was going to kill him before they even got to her bedroom.

Quietly, they passed the guest room where Lea was sleeping, taking a brief peek to ensure everything was fine before heading down the hallway.

Pausing outside the door, his hand on the knob stilled and she looked up at him. "If you're not sure, it's okay."

"No, no," he replied hurriedly, "it's not that."

He pushed it open and made his way to the middle of the room where he sunk down onto the soft mattress, Stefani on his lap.

"You can tell me anything," she encouraged, nuzzling his neck.

Kissing her more softly than before, he sought out her eyes in the fading light. "I want you. God, I want you so badly. It's just, uh..."

"Oh," she chuckled, understanding. "I'm on birth control. Have you been tested recently?"

Her directness was one of the things he liked most about her and pressing his lips to the back of her hand, he nodded. "I have been. Not uh, recently. That's the thing. It's been...awhile."

Stefani grasped his elbows, bringing her forehead to rest against his. "And you're nervous?"

There was nothing mocking about the way she asked, only a tender affection and he nodded again. "A little, yeah."

"Please don't be." She curved her thumb over his cheek, down his jawline, her nails scraping over the stubble there. Moving her hand down, her fingers swept the ridge of his neck, his collarbone, before dragging her palm over his chest, holding it against hard muscle.

"You," she told him firmly, "are a fucking beautiful, beautiful, man." Capturing his lips, she kissed him, hard, and his grip around her waist tightened.

It was the reassurance he hadn't known he'd been seeking and as he bent his head to devour her mouth, it occurred to him there wasn't a need to do anything but give into feeling.

He pressed tiny kisses into the spot below her ear, pushing his teeth slightly against her jugular and she tilted her head back so he could drag his mouth hotly across the base of her throat.

"You're doing great," she rasped, making him laugh against her clavicle.

"Mmm, that's good to know." He tasted her skin on his tongue, wanting more, more, more, licking a path down into the valley of her breasts.

Not missing a beat, she raised her arms, allowing him to peel off her tank top.

Moonlight had started to filter in, casting shadows on her form and he ran his hands over the length of her body, cupping her breasts, his fingers gliding over them, gently at first, then with a building passion as she reacted to his touch, tepid and inviting underneath the pads of his fingers.