May to December Ch. 04

Two weeks later, Scott stood in front of Dawn's door waiting for her to answer his ring. He was dressed casually, the crisp white sneakers on his feet a fitting end to a jeans-and-T-shirt-clad body, topped by a baseball cap and sunglasses. He was escorting her to Dana's and Jeff's end-of-summer barbecue to which she had invited him as her significant other. She refused to call him her boyfriend, declaring he was no boy, nor she a teenager. He smiled at the thought, as the door opened to reveal the woman he was growing to love more every day. She looked delectable dressed in a short red-and-white summer dress, and high-heeled white sneakers. Her hair was pinned up so her elegant neck was exposed, and he bent to kiss her on the side of that temptation.

"You're beautiful!" he whispered.

"You're biased!" she laughed, closing and locking her door behind her.

"Even so, you're beautiful!" He kissed her again, this time on the mouth, drawing her into his body, inhaling her woman's scent and the fragrance of her perfume.

"Scott, if you start, we'll be late!" Dawn protested, kissing him back hungrily.

"Would that be so bad?" he breathed into her ear with a grin.

"Oh you! Stop teasing me and let's go!" She pulled reluctantly away from his mouth.

He chuckled and let her go, escorting her round to the passenger side of his car. "We'll be on time, and I promise to be on my best behavior, okay?"

He settled her in the seat and closed the door. They made the ride in silence, though he held her hand on his thigh most of the way. Over the last two weeks, they had talked, when they managed to be together, between sessions of passionate lovemaking that always left them blissfully breathless. Scott had told her that he wanted a commitment from her, that he was not interested in merely being a friend with benefits. He had told her that eventually, once she got used to the idea that he would always be around, he would ask her to marry him. When she expressed concern about his family, he informed her that he was grown, and whomever he chose to marry was his concern and no one else's. He tried to set her mind at ease about his mother, because he knew that she was worried about meeting her. They had agreed that he would not take her home to meet his family till she felt more secure. He had been doing everything he could since that conversation to make her feel safe. He'd begun to call her every day, no matter how exhausted he was, if only to say something outrageous to her, so he could hear her laugh, or something sexy to make her need him.

For her part, Dawn had stopped worrying about the age gap between them, and she had stopped imagining that he would drop her once he realized how unattractive her body was. She seemed to have come to accept that he wanted her because she was exactly like she was, that he saw only an intelligent, creative, gorgeous, sexy woman who made his groin harden and his heart turn over in his chest. She finally admitted that she was in love with him, too, and that she would prefer, as she put it, to have him forever. Twice in the past fortnight they had had phone sex, a new concept to her, which she blushed about when they talked about it. The thought made his cock twitch. It had been hot and wild, and when they had finally been able to spend an hour together, they couldn't seem to get enough of each other.

He turned her palm over and entwined his fingers with hers. She was looking forward to this shindig, because she wanted Jeff and Dana to know she had resolved her issues with him, and all was well. He would rather have stayed home with her taking her over and over, immersing himself in her essence, but he knew this was important to her. And so he turned onto the road where she used to live, and stopped in front of her friend's house. Dana was waiting for them on the front porch, and she ran off to hug her friend when Scott parked the car.

"It's so good to see you, love!" she enthused, hugging Dawn tightly. "You look good!"

"Thanks, sweetie! You look radiant yourself!" Dawn kissed her friend's cheek, and put out her hand to Scott, who walked forward to take it.

"Dana, I'd like you to meet my friend, Dr. Scott McCallum. Scott, this is Dana, the neighbor who brought me to the ER a few months ago. She's Jeff's wife."

Dana smiled and extended her hand, which Scott shook firmly. She smiled at him, and said, making his face heat with color, "You've snagged yourself a hunk, girlie!"

Dawn chuckled at his discomfiture, and Scott found his heart melting at her newfound ease. He smiled at her, and said to Dana, ignoring his embarrassment, "Thank you! Be sure to remind her of this once in a while, please?"

Dana laughed delightedly, drawing the attention of her husband who had just come round the side of the house in search of her.

"There you are!" he exclaimed, coming to wrap his arms around his wife and kissing her soundly. Then he turned to Scott, and extended his hand. "Welcome! Glad to see Dawn managed to persuade you to come!"

"Wild horses, as they say," Scott replied with a smile, and pulled Dawn close to his side.

Jeff turned his eyes to Dawn, and smiled at her. "I can see you're happy. It's a good thing, too!"

Dawn smacked him on the arm. "Oh shut up! He's not afraid of you, you know!"

"He's right here, too!" Scott added, laughing. "And when it comes to you, I'm fearless!"

Dawn smacked him too, and slipped out from under his arm to pull Dana with her. "Let's leave these macho men to spar, Dana. I'm starving!"

"That makes two of us!" Dana answered, chuckling. "Jeff, behave! Don't chase the guests away!"

Jeff looked at Scott, saw the twinkle in his eye, and laughed in his turn. "Somehow, honey, I think I may have met my match! Come on," he invited Scott, "let's see what's cold!"

The two men followed their women around to where the party was underway. Scott waited while Jeff found them beers, watching Dawn laugh at something Dana said. He couldn't imagine ever having enough of her, or ever not wanting to be with her, or to be close to her. She was that special person who made him complete. A sound at his ear made him turn, to find Jeff grinning at him.

"Have a beer, son! You look like you need one!"

"Son?" Scott raised a sardonic eyebrow. "Don't let my age fool you. I'm a big boy now! I can handle myself!"

Jeff laughed aloud at the tone of Scott's voice. "And yet," he commented, "here you are, totally bowled over by one woman!"

Scott turned to look at Jeff and smiled his acknowledgment of the truth of the statement. "And I wouldn't want it any other way!" he answered. "Thanks for the beer!" He raised the bottle in a salute. "And thank you for being her friend," he added.

Jeff returned the salute. "You're welcome!"

"I have nothing against your party, Jeff, but frankly, as this is my last day off for a while, I'd rather be elsewhere, if you know what I mean!" Scott said. "D'you think Dawn would object to leaving early?"

Jeff laughed again, his eyes full of amusement. "If I'm reading her right, she wouldn't mind leaving now! At least have some food first, and then you're free to whisk her away!"

"Deal!" The men clinked bottles again and went to join the women they loved.