Kismet or Happenstance? Ch. 09

"If you'd known then who I was online, what would you have thought? Do you think you would have still asked me out?"

Sean studied her. "I would've been disappointed you were CuriousBloom."

Ana's left hip protested when she rocked back. "Really," she said quietly, without challenging him. She should appreciate his honesty because it's how she would've felt too. Yet that didn't stop the flare of hurt. It faded when she saw the teasing glint in the blue eyes watching her.

"Yes. I probably would've been thinking: Why did she have to be so pretty—it gives her an unfair advantage. And I would've wanted to talk to you and find a way to get you to go out with me."

"I don't think I would have given you a chance," she countered flatly, grateful for the way things had worked out that night despite the past week.

Sean got up as though everything had been resolved and the need to split hairs didn't exist. He held out his hand and helped her up. "You would've given me your number and thinking 'I can't believe I'm doing this' the whole time," he teased in a gravely rendition of a feminine squeak, "just like you did that night. And you still would've gone out with me, oh curious one," he proclaimed with a wink.

Their eyes clashed. His gaze smoldered with cocksure nonchalance. Ana would've loved to deny everything he said just to wipe that grin off his face. "You keep telling yourself that, Irish," she pouted.

Sean he kissed her brow. "Baby, have you forgotten how much I love a challenge? I bet you thought you had it all figured out when you gave me your e-mail that night," he teased.

Ana had no witty comeback for that one. Oh, how she would have loved to wipe that grin off his face.

Sean made a half-chuckle, half-snort sound at the back of his throat and kissed her forehead. "Too cute."

* * * * *

"Jesus!" It flew out of mouth when he saw the trail of plum colored blotches below her left shoulder blade. Her shoulder was red and swollen.

It hurt to see Ana's skin marred in bruises, to know she'd suffered and that he wasn't with her when she needed him. It hurt to know she'd even doubted for a moment that he wouldn't want to be at her side. But as much as he wanted to stomp around and rail, the words he'd thrown at her in the parking lot smacked him in the face. He was the reason Ana didn't call him when she needed him. It would never happen again.

"I want you to promise me something," he said as he helped her ease her arm out of the sling.

"What?"

"If you need me, you call me. No matter what. Okay?" His gentle demand brokered no argument.

"Okay." Ana nodded and swallowed her regret. The careful way Sean helped her undress, the way he inventoried the bruises on her back told her he'd wanted to be with her at hospital as much as she'd wanted him there Thursday night. She would've felt cut out if the roles had been reversed. She remembered the mistakes she'd made with Chris in not reaching out; they'd have no value if she repeated them. "I-I'm sorry I didn't call you...I wanted you...but I wasn't sure what to do...and I wound up doing nothing."

"Was I that bad?" He asked in a low, contrite tone.

Ana lowered her head but didn't skirt around the truth. "I knew you had a temper but that was the first time I saw it." She saw remorse when she looked up again.

Sean exhaled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Patience isn't my strong suit, but I'm working on it." His knuckles brushed the side of her face. "I'm not going to do a one-eighty overnight and there are going to be times when I need to take a timeout."

"That's why I wasn't sure if I should've called you from the hospital. I thought you needed time to cool off," she said, hoping he'd fully understand but feeling as though she was justifying her choice to her own self.

His large hands cupped her face. "I understand," Sean reassured her though he would've made a different choice than Ana did that night. "I'm not going to hold a grudge or turn my back on you just because we have a fight. Okay?

Ana nodded. "And I'll trust that we can deal with whatever happens."

The seriousness faded from the air. "Sounds like a deal."

Ana stuck out her right hand to make it official. The little gesture melted any armor he had left. He took her smaller hand in his and kissed the tip of her cute nose. He was officially and completely in love with her. "What was that for?"

"I don't need a reason. And you'd have a huge ego if I told you."

Ana waved her hand and eyed him with over the top drama. "Oh! We don't have room for two of those in this place."

Sean feigned a look of innocent outrage and hung her dress up on the door hanger. The last two days were behind them. They were moving forward.

"Let me," he said as she picked up the hair brush.

Ana surrendered the brush and let Sean carry out her nighttime ritual with exquisite care. There was something deeply intimate about the act, in the way he held her wavy strands before each pass of the bristles. She closed her eyes and gave herself over to his ministrations. The gentle tugs and scrapes sent delicious tingles along her scalp. Ana shivered in delight.

"That feels good," she purred when he gathered her hair in a loose ponytail, mindful of the bump at the back of her head

"I'm going to take a shower," Ana announced quietly after she brushed her teeth and washed off her makeup. She fumbled with her bra's front closure. "Warm water feels good," she supplied when Sean looked ready to debate the idea.

He brushed her fingers aside and undid the snap. "I'll go in with you," he said as her practical beige bra slid away. Ana forgot about exhaustion and the late hour when Sean hooked his thumbs into the sides of her matching hipsters and bent to pull down them down her legs. His deft fingers released the line of buttons on his white dress shirt. Shoes clunked onto the tile, socks followed. The zipper whispered; black trousers fell to the floor. He stripped off his gray boxer-briefs with one smooth tug. Her gaze narrowed on the ridges and hollows shifting between his shoulder blades while he draped his clothes on her hamper. My man. He was solid, strong and gentle this man she loved, this man who loved her.

Sean adjusted the dials and led her into the shower. He must've read her mind because he reached for the bottle of the good stuff in the shower caddy. "You look like you're about to fall asleep,"

"It's the meds."

Steam floated up and enveloped them in its sweet, summer day scent. Wet skin slid over wet skin. The warm spray pelted her toes and creamy foam glided down her arm. The shower cubicle had transformed into a sensual haven. She leaned back into Sean's chest while he alternated between painting circles with the shower sponge and using his hands. Pleasure unfurled and followed the slow, wide patterns he drew over her chest then down her navel. His fingers slipped down her slick stomach, drifted over her mound and parted her folds for the warm cascade. The water did a light tap dance along her flesh, heating her on the inside. Her breath skipped when Sean's thumb flicked over her. If he did it again, a little to the left...

"Baby, are you getting turned on?" he whispered over a suppressed chuckle. The sound sent wicked prickles down her spine. A spike of embarrassment kept Ana from answering. She just had enough energy to take pleasure, but giving it? That wasn't fair wasn't fair to him.

"I can't...you know—"

Sean pressed a kiss behind her ear. "It's okay...let me do this for you." He held her close while he nudged her feet apart with one of his.

His arms held her in a protective cage while his fingers teased the seam of her sex. Her eyes fluttered as he slowly parted her for his touch. Beads of water pattered on the tile like a lullaby for her ears. Ana nibbled inside of her lower lip while Sean's intimate caresses varied. The slow, pressing circles made her writhe. The fast flicks made her gasp. She became one deep pulse of anticipation as long fingers traced her opening over and over.

"Please," she whimpered. The waiting made her ache, made her hot. But it was nothing compared to the sweet torment when the pad of his finger slid inside her. He impaled her mere centimeters at a time until the heel of his hand grazed her clit. Ana hissed in satisfaction as his finger swirled inside her. She rolled and tilted her hips as best she could. The mind bending friction eclipsed the twinges of pain shooting down her side. And then another finger joined the first. Hot spirals followed the come hither command of his fingers. The sensual energy took turns radiating out and curling back in, gathering intensity. Ana's mouth parted on a silent "o". She shook her head.

"Sean," she sobbed in half-protest, unsure if the water had drowned the dry sound she made. Ana grabbed his forearm with her right hand, afraid she'd fall but unable to resist the pleasure calling her to come. The erotic scrape of the sponge along her sensitive outer flesh paired with the silken glide inside her were too much. The blood hummed in her ears and she turned into one giant, pulsing throb. "I'm gonna fall."

"It's okay. I've got you."

She dared to let go of his arm and rolled her left nipple with impatient fingers.

Sean nipped at Ana's ear as her slick walls fluttered and squeezed his fingers. Her sexy little whimpers spun around his head and curled around his shaft. Arousal dug in deeper with every brush, every grind of her satin slick ass against his cock. He tamped his own need and focused on her on her pleasure. "You feel so good...soft... tight. That's it, come on my fingers...come."

The hot commands Sean poured into her ear while he stroked her sent wild currents to her core. The energy tightened then grew until it splintered over her in bursts of heat and light. Warm embers of pleasure shimmered along her nerves while they rinsed under the soothing spray. Ana turned in his arms and touched him wherever she could, thanking him with her fingers. She felt his cock stir against her stomach and her pleasure haze lifted.

The blissed-out expression and the dots of color staining Ana's cheeks sent his masculine pride soaring. Her hand spread over his nipple, stroking him while she nuzzled his neck. He should stop her but the blunt scrape of her nails down his stomach felt so damn good. His skin tightened when her fingers wrapped around his shaft. "Ana," he protested just before her thumb skimmed the slit. A spark of excitement raced up from below his cock and he jerked involuntarily. Even one handed, Ana was lethal. He captured her hand and pressed a kiss into her palm.

The confusion in her brown eyes matched her voice. "Don't you want—" Sean silenced the question with his mouth as his dick chanted, "oh, yes, I want". Her lips parted under his. Someone made a sound as he tasted the mint on her tongue. She caught his lower lip between his teeth and suckled. Definitely lethal. She was so sweet and tempting, she had him contemplating her offer as her hand snuck across his thigh. He covered her fingers with his before he lifted his head.

"Tonight's for you," he said against her mouth and kissed away any argument she intended to make. "How 'bout a rain check?"

Her dimple appeared. "Deal."

"Maybe we should shake on it."

Ana's "handshake" shocked him and made him groan through clenched teeth. "You know, you're cute when you blush."

"You're s-so bad," he hissed.

"It's part of my charm." She gave him a sleepy wink before he stilled her hand again.

* * * * * *

Sean pulled the folds of her nightshirt together with gentle reverence. He pushed the buttons through the holes as if they were the most delicate things in the world. Every touch conveyed love as real as the strap he adjusted at her neck. "Sorry," he said as the small shift made her injured arm protest.

Sean tilted his head to in the corner of her bedroom. "You think two will fit?"

Ana surveyed the bergère that served as her bed the past two nights. It was deep enough but not as comfortable the queen sized bed several inches too short for Sean's body. "You take the bed, you'll sleep better."

He disagreed and grabbed the pillows and throw from the bed. "Since you didn't say no," he countered in lawyerlike fashion, "let's give it a try."

Ana was too tired, too tempted to shoot down the idea of snuggling up with Sean. The way his black pajama bottoms cut across "v" at his hip made her curse her arm and back. Would the next time feel different because they were in love?

Sean sat in the chair and held out his hand in silent invitation. He was a living Calvin Klein print ad. Dodger lay on an old pillow, his muzzle between his front paws as he watched the black squares dance across the floor.

"Comfy?" he asked as he tucked the throw around her and bracketed her feet with his on the ottoman.

Ana shifted back against his chest until she found the perfect spot. "Mm-hmm."

Sean's laughter tumbled over her back as they caught Dodger dragging one of Ana's slippers onto his pillow. "He's got a thing for those—you might have to give them up." Ana gave a vague murmur, feeling too sleepy to reprimand the little friend who'd kept a vigil beside her last night.

Dodger Williams wagged his tail. His mistress' song had a happier pitch since she'd brought the male into their territory. The newcomer knew how take care of her and since there was only so much a canine could do, he'd accept the male, provided he understood his place. He looked up at the tangled forms and absorbed their relaxed aura. Satisfied that everything was okay, Dodger smacked his lips and rolled onto his back. He dreamt of chasing the black squares that swallowed his mistress' paws.

"Look," Ana whispered sleepily, wanting Sean to see how Dodger used her slipper as his pillow. "He's such a comedian."

"He matches the room," Sean mumbled at her temple as he reached for the floor lamp.

"Right," Ana agreed with a thin voice before the French antiques and taupe and off-white patterns vanished with a click. She burrowed into the crook of his neck and closed her eyes, feeling like she'd come home. Every breath that wafted along the side of her face was a lure pulling her into a delicious slumber.

"I love you."

Her lips curled up. His words fell over her ears as she drifted off, cradled in his warmth.

* * * * *

Sunday, December 10th 11:15 am

"Doesn't this remind you of something?" Sean asked as their eyes met. They stood facing each other with a rack of products between them, magazines in his aisle, candy in hers. Ana looked off to the side as though the answer floated in the air. Her autumn brown eyes suddenly sparkled with the same brand of mischief that caught him off guard five months ago.

"We're one woman short."

"Kinky—but I'm more of a one woman kind of guy."

Ana beamed. "Whoever she is, she's very lucky."

"Yeah, she is," he deadpanned with a casual nod then went back to leafing through the magazine in his hands.

Ana gaped at his utter lack of humility and shook her head, chuckling as she spoke. "She must be a saint to put up with your huge e—"

"Cut that out," he chided, "there are children around."

Ana steered her gaze away from the knowing smirk and arched brow coming from the woman who walked past Sean. Great. They'd been the only people in this section of the pharmacy until that very second. She fired him an I-can't-believe-you-just-did-that-to-me look before funneling her attention to the bags and bars of chocolate.

She turned her cheek away from his kiss when he met her at the end of her aisle. "Cut it out!" she warned and raised her right hand to fend him off. "Remember the children," she giggled, delighted she'd gotten back at him.

"It's déjà vu," he teased as a bar of Cadbury's Fruit and Nut fell into the shopping basket he carried.

"It'll have to do until I'm better."

Sean's mouth curved into a lascivious grin. His blue eyes said naughty things to her. "Nah. We'll just have to be creative."

Ana's brow rose suggestively. "Wanna shake on it?"

She rendered him speechless for a moment, just as she'd done that night five months ago. He recovered quickly just as he had back then, only this time was different. He tilted her chin up and followed the first impulse he'd had back when Ana was a pretty stranger he fantasized about taking home. She mouthed three words while she waited for his kiss. The fantasy didn't even come close...

* * * * *

Saturday, December 16th 2:25 pm

"Take off your clothes! Hurry!"

"Okay. Calm down!" he growled, keeping his voice low as he pulled off his grease-stained shirt. Watching Ana run in three different directions at once would've been hilarious...except his dad was waiting at the front door while Duncan hid in the garage.

She threw a wash cloth onto the vanity. He frowned when she plunked down the bottle of Pure Grace. "You smell like engine oil," she fired with machine gun speed. "Oh, and make sure you scrub your nails."

He shooed her out of the bathroom. "Okay—okay! Go answer the door."

Ana willed her composure back before she turned the doorknob.

"Hi, Mister Bren—Dominic," she corrected when he cocked his head. "You can leave that over there," she said, pointing to the corner behind the front door as a home for the bag of golf clubs he borrowed from Sean. "We weren't expecting you so soon," she said as she led him to the living room. Did she sound overly chipper? "Sean will be right out."

"We had to cancel because of rain," he explained. "Just as well with the game I had today." His green eyes slanted. "Did I catch you guys at a bad time? I figured a half hour wouldn't make that much of a difference."

"No!" she reassured him with extra enthusiasm, then tried to correct it with a calmer voice, "I—we hope you weren't waiting too long at the door." Ana groaned silently inside. Did that sound lame or what?

"And who's this?" Dominic prompted as he bent down to offer the curious canine a chance to sniff his hand hello.

Ana welcomed the topic change and felt her normal self returning as she talked about the little guy who stole her heart. Though it had only been a week, he looked much better thanks to a good grooming and lots of TLC.

"Can I get you something to drink?"

Dominic shook his head and waved a hand. "I'm fine. We had lunch before we left the club. How's the arm?"

Ana joined Sean's father on the couch. "It's getting better. I have to wear this for a few more days, and then I have an appointment next week with an orthopedic surgeon to see if I should have surgery."

"Hey, Dad. You're early," Sean said as he eased into one of the club chairs. He must have missed the casual vibe he was going for judging the way Dad's eyes skipped between Ana and him, then back.

Dominic didn't miss the caught-in-the-act tension rolling off of his youngest. The nervous tilt of Ana's head confirmed they'd been up to something. Her gaze darted away from Sean's as though she were trying not to give away something by just looking at him.

"So how are you two enjoying your weekend?"

Embarrassment cloaked Ana when she caught Dominic's expression. Shit! He thought they were... Wait. Maybe that wasn't such a bad idea. "We...uh...we're just taking it easy," she offered sheepishly with the hope Sean's father would fall for it.

"That's good," Dominic agreed warmly before casting Sean a subtle you're-so-busted glance, one that had followed Sean throughout childhood. That, paired with Ana's overtly demure but secretly devilish body language made him self-conscious. He felt it staining his cheeks. The two of them did a fine job of making him feel like a precocious kid.

They chatted a short while before Dad "remembered" he had to pick up groceries for dinner. Ana looked at him with relief. The thing was, his mom shopped for groceries on Thursdays and his parents always ate out on Saturdays. The look Dad sent him said the routine hadn't changed.