“This is amazing,” Maddy breathed as we stood there.
“It is,” I agreed.
She slipped her hand into mine, her fingers pleasantly cool. “Thank you for bringing me here.”
“No problem. It’s my pleasure.”
“I get so caught up in work, I sometimes forget to do stuff like this. I have enough money to go on a vacation every year, but I never make the time for myself.”
I laughed. “Same here.”
“Too bad it took almost getting killed for me to take an actual vacation.”
We spent our last day making the pilgrimage down to Gatlinburg. It was an adventure to say the least, but still kind of fun. Maddy enjoyed the kitschy stores and gift shops. She even bought a gawdy airbrushed T-shirt as an ironic souvenir. We had lunch at a surprisingly good deli downtown where I had one of the best Reuben sandwiches I’d ever tasted.
That afternoon, we spent over an hour sitting in the hot tub. It was the most relaxing hour of my life. We spent the whole time in a natural, comfortable silence, watching the breeze billowing through the red, orange, and yellow leaves. Back home, everything was still completely green.
“Are you getting hungry?” Maddy asked.
“I am. But I’d prefer to stay here the rest of the night,” I said.
“Well, you’ll shrivel up like a prune. And there’s certain parts of you I don’t want shriveling up.”
“Oh, well then. Let’s get out of here.”
Maddy found ingredients to make spaghetti and meatballs in the kitchen, including salad and a loaf of Italian bread. After dinner, when the sun had almost set, I lit the big fireplace in the living room of the cabin. Within minutes, I had it crackling and roaring. We sat on the couch and snuggled together, watching the flames. The last few days had been pretty amazing. I could already tell we were closer than we’d been before we left. I needed to let her know how I felt. It was a need I couldn’t ignore.
“Does it feel like two months?” I asked.
“What? Uh.” Maddy laughed. “Has it really been that long? In some ways, it feels like it’s been shorter. In others, it feelsmuchlonger.”
“True. I just wanted you to know that I feel like this has been the best couple months of my life. I know that night was probably the worst of yours, but I wanted you to know that I’m happy I was the one who found you. The one who saved you. I don’t really want to think what my life might be like without you. I guess what I want to say is thank you for letting me take care of you.”
Maddy looked at me and smiled, then raised a hand to my cheek. “Nico, I’m so happy fate brought us together. Even if it was bad, I think things worked out for the best. I can honestly say you’re one of the best things that ever happened to me.”
She leaned forward and kissed me. As soon as our lips touched, the hunger sparked inside me. Desire and need. Absolutewant. I pulled her closer, letting my tongue slip into her mouth. Maddy sighed and slid her hands across my chest. Her breasts pressed against me, and I could feel their warmth through our shirts. A happy and excited growl escaped my throat.
Maddy pulled away and looked into my eyes. The same hunger I felt was mirrored in her eyes. Without asking, I beganto undo the button and zipper on her pants. As I worked, she pulled her shirt off and stripped her bra away. I groaned at the sight of her breasts, her nipples hard and inches from my face.
With her pants finally undone, she stood to take them off. I worked on my own clothes, tearing them off in urgent need. Maddy stood in front of me, illuminated by the flickering fire behind her, her skin colored a glowing orange. I looked up at her, in awe of her beauty. I touched her thigh, the fingers sliding across the smooth skin of her body. My thumb slipped through the short tuft of hair between her legs, and she smiled faintly and closed her eyes. My other hand slipped across the flesh of her stomach and both hands moved up until her breasts filled my palms. I drew circles around her nipples with my thumbs, and I leaned forward to kiss her stomach, her chest, gently tracing shapes over her breasts and trailing my fingers across her nipples. Maddy was breathing heavier, eyes still closed.
Finally, she opened her eyes and took my hands in hers, interlacing our fingers as she stepped forward and knelt on the couch with me. My cock was rock-hard and she deftly positioned her hips above me and slid down onto me. I gasped, letting the warm wetness of her envelop me. Inch by inch, she slid down my length. Her eyes never left mine. Once she was seated, my full length inside her, she leaned toward me and kissed me again. This kiss was more primal, carnal, a statement instead of a question.
Maddy began rocking her hips back and forth. I grunted as she picked up speed. The room was draped in shadows, brightened only by the spastic flames in the fireplace. It felt like the entire world had disappeared. We were the only things in the universe, our pleasure the only thing that mattered.
She moved faster, almost bouncing on me. Her swinging breasts drew my attention. I took them in my hands and squeezed gently but desperately. Our lips touched in light,feathery kisses, brought together only by the movement of her body. She moved her hands into my hair, pulling my face to her chest as she began to move faster still. I released her breasts and wrapped my arms around her, hugging our bodies together.
“Take me, Nico,” she breathed into my ear.
I slammed my hips into her, lifting her up off the couch as I did. The pressure was already building within me. I fucked her harder, every second making me hungrier. I needed her, wanted to come inside her more than I’d ever wanted anything in my life. I could hear her murmuring in my ear, but her words were too low to understand, too quiet to overcome the sound of my breathing and the sounds of our flesh striking together.
Finally, I felt her pussy clench around my cock, tight beyond belief, and Maddy released a long groan of pleasure as she shuddered in my arms. The feel of her clamping around me sent me over the edge, my own orgasm bursting forth. I sucked in a breath, then released myself inside her. Totally spent, we rocked together, holding each other, our bodies sheened in sweat and our breaths slowing. The rest of the world still seemed insignificant with her in my arms.
21
MADDY
As soon as we were out of the mountains, I missed them. It had been such a beautiful and tranquil respite from the world, from all the awful things that had happened, and might still happen. All I wanted was for him to turn around, go back to the cabin, and escape everything. I mentioned that to Nico, and he reached over and put a hand on my thigh as he drove.
