From Friends to Lovers Ch. 23

When I woke the next morning, Sarah was still sleeping, one hand resting lightly on her stomach. I put my hand on hers, and she stirred, opening her eyes. "OK?" I asked softly.

She nodded, and I shifted a little closer. "Sarah -- darling -- even before this, well, everything we've shared... We love you."

Beth had opened her eyes, and she nodded, adding her hand to mine on Sarah's stomach.

I took a deep breath. "I love you, Sarah."

I glanced at Beth, then back to Sarah's face. "Whatever the future holds, ours is with you."

Sarah was crying now, brushing tears from her cheeks with her fingers. "Love you too."

Beth kissed her wet cheek, and looked thoughtful. "What can we do that sort of celebrates all this -- as a promise to Sarah, and to the little one that's coming?"

I looked at Sarah's hand, still under mine and Beth's. "There's one thing I know we can do."

"Hmm?" she queried.

"Well, a ring for a certain finger."

Sarah's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Sure."

Beth hesitated before she spoke again. "Sarah, darling, we've not talked properly yet about telling people -- will it be OK if nobody knows what the ring means to start with?"

Sarah nodded. "That's fine."

Beth sat up decisively. "So -- let's get ready, and we can go looking."

She looked thoughtful. "That place where we got our rings is too far, really. And it's Sunday, so things in town will be closed."

"I know," I offered. "That craft village place -- there's a jeweller who works there. You'd definitely have something unique then, Sarah."

"Right then," said Beth. "Showers, quick breakfast, and we'll get going."

A couple of hours later we were pulling into the car park at the craft centre, and Beth pointed. "There's the jewellery place, look."

We stood looking in the window at the pieces on display, and Sarah pointed. "Something like that would be lovely."

The design of the ring was simple, a silver band set with alternating squares of semi-precious stones. "It's a little like mine, too," Beth said thoughtfully, stretching out her fingers and looking from her engagement ring to the one in the window.

"Shall we go in?" I suggested.

Inside was much more of a workshop than anything else, with tools, scraps of metal, glittering filings on battered wooden benches. After a few moments, a grey-haired man appeared, and smiled at us in welcome. "Please, feel free to look around, and if you have any questions I'd love to talk about the designs and techniques."

"Actually we were looking at the silver ring in the window," Beth ventured. "Do you have any others in the same sort of style? It's for a very special occasion..."

The craftsman looked up with a slightly startled expression. "Actually I've not long finished one very like that, but in gold."

He walked over to the far corner of the workshop, kneeling to turn the dials on an old-fashioned safe. The door opened with a slight squeak, and he reached inside to take out a small object. "The box is antique," he explained, holding it carefully in his fingers, opening the lid to reveal the contents.

"Oh, wow..." Sarah gasped softly. As he'd said, the ring was similar in style to the one we'd seen, but the gold had an almost pinkish tint, matching the dark red stones cut into squares and set into the outer face of the band. "The design owes something to Anglo-Saxon techniques," the jeweller explained. "They would put stamped gold behind the stones to reflect the light."

"Are those rubies?" Beth breathed.

"Indeed. And the colour of the metal comes from adding a percentage of Welsh gold to the alloy."

He raised one eyebrow. "The Royal Family have it in their rings, you know."

Sarah reached out to touch the band with the tip of a finger. "It's beautiful."

"Try it," the jeweller offered.

Sarah glanced at Beth. "You do it?"

Beth seemed not to breathe as she slid the ring from the velvet encasing it, then lifted Sarah's left hand, slipping the ring carefully onto her finger. "Oh, it fits perfectly."

Sarah was visibly close to tears as she turned her hand this way and that in the light. "Tim...?"

I couldn't keep the emotion out of my own voice. "It's yours, my love."

The jeweller glanced at me, and I managed to discreetly draw him aside a little way. He nodded his understanding, writing a figure on a sheet of paper, and I handed him my card to swipe. "I can't tell you how thankful we are that you made that particular piece."

He lifted a hand in farewell as we left the shop, and Beth leaned to kiss Sarah once more on the cheek. "We did it."

Sarah looked at the ring sparkling on her finger, and nodded. "Thank you."

"I have an idea for the next part," I offered.

"Mm?" queried Beth.

"Let's go back to the car, it's not far away."

I followed the route from memory, the road climbing steeply out of the valley. I pulled up in a small gravelled car park, and glanced at the girls. "It's just a short walk."

The path led to the crest of a hill, and Sarah looked curiously at the rough-hewn pieces of granite which leaned one against another, a flatter slab capping them as though forming a canted roof. "What is it?"

"It's called Arthur's Stone," I explained. "It's probably Neolithic, like Stonehenge. But I just thought it would be an atmospheric place for what I have in mind."

I glanced at Beth. "Stand with me? And you there, Sarah."

They took the places I'd indicated, looking a little puzzled, their hair caught by the strong wind that gusted over this exposed place.

I cleared my throat. "I'm not much with words, but... 'In the name of the spirit of God that lives within us all, I -- we -- take you, Sarah, to our hands, our hearts, our spirits, to desire and be desired, to possess and be possessed, to love without restraint, in sickness and in health, in this life and beyond.'"

Both girls were crying now, and Beth hugged Sarah, then put her hands on my shoulders. "You better come up with something as good as that for our wedding, too," she admonished with a smile, then kissed me hard on the mouth.

"I kind of need to do something back," Sarah ventured. "Tim, if I tell you where to drive?"

"Sure."

We walked back to the car, and Sarah guided us back down into the valley, directing me to park at the edge of a wood. "I remembered this place when I saw which way you were taking us. We came here on a family holiday once when I was little."

I helped her climb over the stile, then offered Beth my hand. "The path goes this way," pointed Sarah.

The wood gave way to fields again, and I blinked. "Wow."

A profusion of wild flowers filled the meadow beyond the trees, and Sarah stepped unhesitatingly into the long grass, creating a path for a few yards then flattening a space to sit down. "Come on, Beth."

Beth joined her, and Sarah showed her how to plait flower stalks, between them creating two chaplets from the poppies, anemones, columbines. They got back to their feet, setting each other's floral crowns in place, and Sarah smiled at me. "Come here."

I joined them, and Sarah took Beth's hand, then mine. "I remember this from a school play."

She took a deep breath. "Is't possible that on so little acquaintance you should like me? that but seeing you should love me? and loving woo? and, wooing, I should grant? and you say you will persever to enjoy me."

Sarah turned to Beth. "Come, sister, you shall be the priest and marry us. Give me your hand. What do you say, sister?"

Beth gave a puzzled smile, and Sarah leaned over to whisper a prompt. Beth nodded, and watched my face as she voiced her lines. "Say with me, I love her; say with her that she loves me; consent with both of us that we may enjoy one another."

Some response was obviously expected from me, and I opened my mouth. "Ah... I do?"

Sarah grinned. "That's perfect," she nodded, leaning to kiss me then Beth. "Come on, we'll keep our flowers on in the car."

They held hands, laughing and talking animatedly as I followed them back to where we'd parked. "Home now?"

"Mm-hm."

When we arrived at the house it was starting to go dark, and Beth went straight through to the kitchen. "I'll whip us up something quick and easy, seeing as we missed lunch."

We sat down to eat -- scrambled eggs on toast, with a spoonful of pickle for Sarah. "The other thing I'm going to do straight away is put my flat on the market," she said determinedly. "But I'll make sure contracts aren't exchanged till after the wedding -- you'll need somewhere to get married from, won't you, Beth?"

Beth smiled. "Thanks, Sarah, that's very thoughtful."

We finished our meal, and Sarah fought back a yawn. "Sorry."

"It's OK," Beth reassured her. "It's been an emotional day, and you're probably going to find you tire more easily as things go on."

She hesitated. "Sarah -- you can always sleep in 'your' room if you need to."

I grinned. "You can come back in the night if you want to. I won't mistake you for my ghostly lover."

"Think you're right," nodded Sarah.

"Tim'll come up with you, tuck you in," Beth offered. "I'll take care of the dishes."

I held Sarah's hand as we climbed the stairs, and she smiled her thanks. I watched as she undressed, and reached to place my palm gently on her stomach. "It's a miracle, isn't it."

She got into bed, and I did as I'd promised, tucking the duvet around her. "Sweet dreams -- maybe see you later."

When I got downstairs, Beth was just drying the last cup, and she came into my arms. "Everything OK?"

"Mm-hm. So, want to sit for a while, or straight to bed?"

"Bed, definitely." Beth kissed me, her eyes full of promise. "Once in a while it'll be nice to have you all to myself."

We went up, and Beth nudged the bedroom door nearly closed. "We don't want to wake Sarah, but she needs to be sure she can come in."

I sat on the edge of the bed, and Beth grinned at me. "So, here's the story. The kids are asleep across the landing, and it's Sarah's turn to go into them if they need anything, but we mustn't wake them up. So whatever we do, we have to be quiet."

"Hang on," I protested with a puzzled smile. "Kids? Are we assuming Sarah's having twins...?"

Beth shook her head, smiling. "Remember last time we pretended? I was already pregnant, remember, so now both babies have been born and we're sharing responsibilities between us all."

"So this is our date night?" I teased.

"Exactly."

"OK," I chuckled. "So we've had our candlelit romantic meal, nice bottle of wine, and we've come upstairs. What's next?"

Beth put her arms over my shoulders. "Why don't you show me," she murmured.

I kissed the soft skin at the base of her throat. "Now, down or up...?"

"Both," she breathed. "God, Tim, I want you..."

I trailed my lips upwards, my teeth gently nipping the soft flesh at the point of her chin then catching her lower lip. Then down again, kissing the hollow of her throat, venturing lower but stopping tantalisingly short of the swell of her breasts. Beth gave a low growl of frustration, and grasped the hem of her t-shirt, lifting it off over her head, exposing breasts cupped in her lacy bra. "Don't forget they're a little more sensitive," she reminded, breathing in to lift her breasts a little closer to me.

I started to kiss her again, lips tracing the curve of each breast just above the lace edging, then darting my tongue into the valley between her breasts as far as I could reach past the restraining fabric. I heard Beth's breath catch in her throat, and her fingers fumbled behind her back for the hooks. "Maybe I should always make you do that part," I teased.

She released the fastening, fingers tugging the cups from her breasts then tangling in my hair as she pulled me closer again. "Now."

Still I prolonged the anticipation, dabbing my tongue to each breast then circling her nipples, lips and tonguetip moistening her areolae. I was suddenly transported back to our very first time as Beth's fingers moved one breast so that the nipple was between my lips. Sensing her need, I tongued then suckled softly, getting an arch of her back, a moan. "Ahh..."

After a few moments I moved to the other breast, my fingers continuing to gently touch where my mouth had just left, and Beth gasped. "Mm, oh, that's amazing..."

Her next move was not long in coming, fingers sliding inside her jeans, tugging at her panties to drag the cotton against herself, then fingertips pressing into her nub, circling. "Oh, I think I could get there like this if you don't stop what you're doing."

I obliged, now using both hands to touch her breasts while my mouth moved from one to the other, now kissing, now suckling, a gentle nip of the teeth. Her fingers moved more urgently, sometimes reaching into her panties to slip inside her, then using the renewed slipperiness on her most sensitive spot. "Oh -- Tim -- I'm --" she managed, then I felt her nipple even harder in my mouth, her body shuddering, her fingers pressing into herself then her thighs clenching together. "Oh, stop, enough," she gasped, and I lifted my head to look at her ecstatic expression.

She took a deep breath. "Wow. I don't think I've ever been so 'right now' that I couldn't even finish getting undressed."

"Maybe that time in the back of the car," I reminded her, and she grinned knowingly. "I guess so."

Beth slid down her jeans and panties, dropping them casually by the bed, then moved towards me again, starting to undo shirt buttons. Her fingers drifted over my nipples, and I gasped. "Mm, your mouth on them."

She knelt to comply, now undoing my belt, my zip. I let her tug my trousers, y-fronts down, then she returned to my nipples. "Mm," she murmured as her fingertips brushed my hardness, "definitely having an effect. You ready?"

My answer was to shift onto the bed, leaning on the headboard, watching her. "Remember the time ages ago when we watched that clip on the web?" Beth asked thoughtfully.

I nodded. "It was pretty hot."

Beth got up onto the bed, and I drank in the sight of her bottom, her pink star, her very-wet opening as she shifted closer, glancing at me over her shoulder. I couldn't help a groan as she guided me into her from behind, and she flashed her eyebrows. "Remember, we're not supposed to wake the babies."

She settled her hips on me fully, then started to rock slowly. I saw her cup her breasts in her palms, then one hand move down to touch herself as I pushed my hips upwards. "Oh god, that's good, if we're careful I think I'll get there again."

"We never did get that mirror," I teased. "Definitely we need to, can you imagine the view I'd have then?"

Beth's response was to touch herself more insistently, fingers squeezing her nipples. "Mm -- harder -- please -- oh --"

She did her best to hold back her response, pressing her lips together, but as I breathed my own cry of release, Beth reached her climax, pushing down on me once, then again, her fingers pressing on herself, her muscles rippling as I spurted into her. "Ohh..."

Finally she relaxed, leaning back against me so that I could wrap my arms around her, still inside her. "Oh my goodness..."