Weathering the Storm Ch. 01

Susan came out to meet us as we pulled up. "Wow, that was quick!" she exclaimed. "You managed to get the car going okay, anyway. I was a bit worried - it's old, but it's the only one we have. It was Scarlett's grandmother's and we're quite attached to it," she explained.

Scarlett climbed out of the Mini, passing the keys to her mum. "He's changed a lot of parts on it - he really knows what he's doing. I swear it took him like five minutes to get it going, and it drives better than it ever has!" she grinned.

"Right, first things first, young man," Susan said. "How much do we owe you for the repairs?"

What? "Absolutely nothing. I had all the bits just laying around in my garage from back when I got rid of my Mini a couple of years back. They were no use to me, and really just taking up space," I placated her.

"But..."

"Honestly Susan, don't worry. I've been very glad to help."

"Well, Scarlett was right when she told me how wonderful and sweet you are!" she smiled.

"Mum!" Scarlett said in horror. "God, you're so indiscreet!" She darted inside the house, embarrassed, and I couldn't suppress a chuckle.

"Well it's true!" Susan continued. "She hasn't shut up all morning about how nice you were to her, what a gentleman, et cetera. I think she's quite smitten with you."

"I very much doubt that's the case," I laughed.

"Oh, really?" Her eyes twinkled mischievously. "Now, come inside and have a cup of tea. It's too early for you to go to lunch yet; it's only just gone eleven."

I got out of the car and meekly followed her inside. Scarlett was banging around upstairs, and Susan said, "I think I embarrassed her - she's having a bit of a sulk by the sound of things. While I put the kettle on, why don't you go and speak to her? Her bedroom is the first door in the left at the top of the stairs."

I climbed the stairs and knocked on Scarlett's door. "Scarlett? It's me - are you okay? Your mum's just making a brew. Did you want one or anything?"

The doorknob turned and the door swung open a little until Scarlett's face was framed in the gap. She was still blushing.

"I'll be down in a minute, Joe. I'm just going to get changed for our walk - if you still want to go, that is," she said hopefully.

"Of course I do! Why would I not?"

"Because of... what my mum said," she added, staring at her feet.

I laughed. "Don't even worry about it. I know she was just winding me up. I'm really looking forward to this afternoon."

Her blush deepened, but she lifted her head and gave me a sincere smile. "Me too."

"Okay, well I'll leave you to get changed. See you in a few."

I was sat on the sofa sipping my tea when Scarlett came down a few minutes later. She was wearing a pair of skin-tight jeans and the same green jumper from earlier, together with brown knee-length boots. Her hair was tied back, revealing a pair of small stud earrings in her delicate lobes. She looked absolutely stunning, and my jaw dropped open.

Both women noticed, and Scarlett giggled. I was growing to adore that sound.

"I think he approves of your outfit, dear," Susan chuckled.

"I certainly do. Sorry, it's just... you look amazing, Scarlett."

"Thanks," she giggled again. "You're not so bad yourself."

As the pair of us were almost dying of embarrassment, Susan thankfully changed the subject. "Where are you thinking of going this afternoon?" she asked.

"Well, if it's all right with Scarlett, I was thinking Copper Beeches forest. There's a nice café there for us to have lunch, and we could be a nice walk afterwards too - hopefully there will still be some colour in the trees after last night's storm."

Scarlett squealed. "That sounds amazing. Let's go, before mum can cause us any further humiliation. Bye mum!" Blowing her mother a kiss, she dragged me up off the sofa and to the door.

"Bye, Susan, and thanks for the tea!" I called as I was hauled unceremoniously down the steps.

Once we were under way in my car, pootling along the lanes towards the Beeches, Scarlett breathed a sigh of relief. "Sorry about that," she said. "My mum can be so over-bearing!"

I grinned. "I think all mums can - it's part of the job description. I thought she was lovely."

"I'm glad she didn't put you off," Scarlett added. "I'm so looking forward to this afternoon!"

"Well, don't get your hopes up," I said. "It's just a café lunch and a walk in the woods."

"Yes, but it sounds great all the same," she murmured, before blushing and looking away.

.

"Hey," I said after a couple of minutes of silence, "do you want to find some music? There's a stereo in the glove box, and another iPod with some music on it."

She grinned immediately, embarrassment forgotten, and began scrolling through tracks. She settled on the Fratellis, "Eyes Wide, Tongue Tied" album and the first track began playing. "I love this album," she sighed.

"Me too. Interesting how the first track's about a fishmonger," I chipped in.

"Eh? It's called 'Me and the Devil!" she said, confused.

"It's about a guy trying to flog his fish. You know, "I'm gonna sell this sole of mine...""

She chuckled. "Now that was bloody awful!"

"Sorry, what can I say? Dad jokes are my speciality - you'll have to put up with a lot more shit like that if you hang around with me."

"Hmmm," she said, pausing for effect. "It's a high price to pay, but I think you're worth it."

"That's good to know!" I winked at her, and she giggled again before starting to sing along to the music. My voice wasn't as good as hers, but I joined in and was pleased to see that she didn't feel the need to hold her ears.

We arrived at the café, finding very few cars in the car park. That was a good sign, I thought, a nice quiet lunch with Scarlett would be wonderful. We made our way to a vacant table, and she was surprised when I pulled out her chair for her - God only knew what ratbags she'd dated up to now.

We browsed through the menu, and both decided to order the full English breakfast. Once the waitress had taken away our menus, Scarlett went quiet again.

"Something on your mind?" I asked. She eyed me nervously. "What is it?"

"I was just wondering - after our walk, would you like to see a movie or something?" she stammered.

"With you? That would be very nice," I answered.

"Great. I'll just take a look and see what's on." She pulled out her smartphone and began scrolling through the listings. "Not much this afternoon, unfortunately. I've seen most of what's on."

"Ah right. There you have the advantage over me - I've not been to the cinema in years. I make do with Netflix at home. The cinema is no fun by myself."

"Well..." Scarlett hesitated. "Maybe... could we just go back to yours after and watch something on Netflix then? There's bound to be something that we both like."

"Sure, if you're comfortable with that?"

"Sounds great," she beamed.

Just then our food arrived and we tucked in. We discussed films we liked, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that, like me, she loved the old black and white movies, particularly the Ealing comedies and the Film Noir genre.

Our lunch eaten, I stood and helped her from her chair, holding her coat up for her to slip it on. We left the cafe by a side door that led directly onto a woodland path, which was strewn with rich golden leaves. Scarlett squealed with laughter as we kicked piles of leaves at each other before eventually falling into step side by side along the avenue, a red and gold arch of trees enveloping us. I had my hands in my pockets to stave the cold off from my fingers, and Scarlett slipped her right arm through my left and leaned her head on my shoulder. A little over a mile along the path, we looped around a large lake on a route that would eventually take us back to the car. I felt her tugging on my arm, freeing my hand from its pocket, and she slipped her hand in mine, glancing at me nervously. I gave her hand a quick squeeze, intertwining my fingers with hers, and she smiled.

We got to a point on the path where the sun was streaming through the golden leaves overhead, bathing us in a soft, warm glow. Not another soul was in sight, and the only sounds were the twitter of the occasional bird and the gentle rustle of the leaves in the slight breeze. I felt Scarlett slacken her pace, her grip on my hand causing me to slow too. We both came to a stop, Scarlett turning to me and whispering, "It's so beautiful here."

"It certainly is," I responded, looking directly into her eyes rather than at the scenery. She blushed, but stood on her tiptoes and slipped her left hand behind my head before pulling me in for a soft kiss. It took me so much by surprise that it took me a few seconds to start kissing her back. Once I did, I felt her tongue slip between my parted lips and flick against mine. I was hard in an instant, something I was immensely conscious of, and I backed away in an effort to stop her noticing. It seemed to work as she deepened the kiss, slowly pushing me back to press me against a nearby tree trunk. Now there was no escape and she pressed herself firmly against me and renewed her passionate assault on my tongue. It was a kiss like I'd never experienced in my life, Scarlett only breaking away when she was panting for breath.

"Wow!" I gasped.

"Wow is right! Nobody has ever kissed me like you have," Scarlett panted.

"Ditto," I responded with an embarrassed smile. "What brought that on? It was amazing, but you did take me by surprise."

"You're kidding, right? Joe, I couldn't have been any more obvious if I had a flashing sign above my head that says, "Please snog my face off right now!" How the hell did you miss that?"

"Well, I did pick up one or two things, but I thought it must all be in my head. I mean, you're young, absolutely drop dead gorgeous and a really nice, genuine girl, and I'm... well, just your average guy," I answered lamely.

"Joe, you're far from average. I mean, you're a few years older than me, which is a first - but going on my past history of dating men that act like little boys, then that can only be a good thing! Plus, you're kind, caring and really cute. You've made me feel more special in the day I've known you than all my previous boyfriends put together - and then some. What's more, you've done all that without any thoughts of trying to get into my pants."

"Well," I answered sheepishly, "I have to disagree with that last bit. I've had thoughts, but I had no intention of doing anything about them."

"And that's what makes the difference. I mean, you were so awkward last night it was cute!" she giggled. "I can't believe you missed all the signals I was trying to give off. Even my mum said I was being too obvious!"

I felt like an idiot. "I just didn't consider it a possibility," I said.

"C'mere," she whispered, and pulled me in for another kiss. This one was slower and more gentle but just as passionate as our first, and I slid my right hand around her waist, holding her close. She still held my left hand in her right, but I could feel her loosening her hold. I let go only to feel her take hold of my wrist, guiding my hand up the outside of her jumper to rest on her right breast. My cock was trying to burst out of my trousers and was pressed up against her waist. She broke the kiss just long enough to murmur, "Are you convinced yet?" before resuming her tender ministrations.

We must have remained in that spot, just kissing and holding each other, for some minutes; we were finally brought out of our reverie by a loud, "AHEM!" and I glanced over Scarlett's shoulder to see an elderly couple walking past, the woman giving us a disapproving look.

"Now, Lizzie, leave them be," her husband remonstrated, winking at us. "At their age, we were doing the same thing." The woman hit him in the shins with her umbrella, but her expression softened and she gave a girlish laugh as they walked on.

"Perhaps we better had continue this elsewhere," Scarlett murmured. "I like movie cuddles. Let's go to your place."

We strolled hand in hand in comfortable silence back to the car; the temperature was falling once more so I put the hood up for the drive home. When we pulled into my driveway, Scarlett was surprised.

"You live here?"

"Sure do. I do okay these days, though it is a lot of house for me when I'm on my own."

I gave her a quick tour of the house, very glad that I generally kept the place tidy, and there weren't any dirty clothes dishes lying around. Four bedrooms, study, lounge, dining room, breakfast room, kitchen, wet room and bathroom - a pretty ordinary house but I hoped I'd managed to keep it from screaming 'bachelor pad'. I'd restored the lounge to its Art Deco glory, with an open fire and an array of authentic 1930s furniture, including a tastefully reupholstered couch. As I bent to get the coals lit in the fireplace, Scarlett gave the room a more detailed inspection.

"No television?" Scarlett asked. "What do we watch Netflix on? A laptop?"

"I think I can do better than that," I grinned, retrieving a remote from a drawer in the sideboard and pressing a button to lower a large projector screen over the back wall of the room.

"Oh, now that's cool!" she remarked as I opened the writing desk to reveal the projector and Apple TV box.

"Maybe not as good as the cinema, but we do have a better selection of movies. Would you like to choose one while I get us a drink? Do you want anything to eat, too?" I asked.

"Well, right now I'm still pretty full after that massive lunch... and I'd kinda like to do some more kissing," she answered, pushing me back onto the couch and climbing on top of me, giving me no chance to object - not that I would have done so in a million years. Her lips pressed to mine and her hand stole to the buttons of my shirt, nimbly unfastening the top three and moving her fingertips gently through my chest hair. My hands wrapped around her shoulders, holding her tenderly, and I felt her hand begin to knead gently at my chest, her fingers flicking delicately across my right nipple.

Breaking the kiss, she murmured, "See what I'm doing? That's kind of a hint too. Are you going to take this one?" and giggled, immediately returning her lips back to mine. I slid my right hand across her side and waist before tentatively gliding it up her sweater to the swell of her left breast. She broke the kiss again to look at me, and I immediately worried that I'd got it wrong.

"Sorry," I said shamefacedly. " I thought you meant..."

"Shhhh," she whispered, reaching for the hem of her sweater. "I meant under my clothes." With no more ado, she quickly peeled her jumper off over her head to reveal her taut stomach, tiny waist and her fantastic breasts encased in a lacy black bra. "I'm sure you can take it from here," she smiled bashfully, pressing her mouth to mine once more.

Even through her bra, her breast felt fantastic in my palm and my trousers were beginning to feel uncomfortably tight. When I felt her guiding my other hand downwards until it was cupping her pert butt cheek, I could bear it no longer. I broke the kiss and panted for air.

"Is everything okay?" Scarlett asked, a look of concern flitting across her face.

"Scarlett, everything is amazing. I'm just concerned that you might feel under pressure to do things with me, and I like you far too much to do anything that either of us would later regret."

"Oh," she said simply. "Can I say something?"

"Of course."

"Well, okay, I've only known you for a day, but you've already treated me better than my ex, or any of my previous dates, ever has. All I've felt all day is special."

"I haven't done anything," I countered. "I just..."

"But you have," she interrupted, putting her index finger to my lips to shush me. "My ex was the first guy I'd done anything intimate with. We went to the movies for our first date, and as soon as the lights went down he was all over me, his hands up my skirt and in my bra. He forced me to give him a hand job right then and there. If I'd had any sense, I'd have dumped him immediately, but at the time I was totally smitten. He got much worse as time went on - every single time we met, I was expected to at least give him a blowjob, and usually a lot more, whether I felt like it or not."

I was appalled. "Scarlett, you don't need to worry about that with me. I have no such expectations."

"I know that," she whispered. "And I appreciate it. But... what if I wanted something?"

"You only have to let me know," I smiled, placing a soft kiss on her forehead.

"See?" she said. That's what I mean. With you, I really don't feel any pressure. You're the polar opposite of my ex... with him, it was... sorry, I'm over-sharing here and spoiling the mood. We should get back to kissing."

"Hey," I smiled. "If you want to talk, I want to listen, and you're not ruining the mood."

"Well, obviously, he was my first, but only because he pushed me for sex until I gave in. Of course, once we'd done that he kept asking for different stuff. I ended up doing pretty much everything he asked just to try and keep him from dumping me. I never enjoyed it much; it was always about him. To tell you the truth, I think I never really trusted him. He pushed me to go on the pill, so I'd 'always be ready for him', and I did, but I always made him wear a condom - I guess I just had this feeling he was playing around. I asked him once if he was cheating on me, and he went so fucking thermonuclear that I didn't dare to bring it up again."

"Oh Scarlett, I'm so sorry. He was a totally selfish scumbag." I pulled her close and held her, expecting her to be upset, but instead she turned her head and gazed into my eyes.

"Yeah, he was, but it took meeting you to realise just how bad he was. What the hell was I thinking?" she giggled.

"Love is blind," I shrugged. "I mean, my ex had a moustache and I never even noticed at first," I added with a chuckle.

"Well I'm all clean shaven, so you don't need to worry," Scarlett laughed. "That is, unless you felt my stubble when we were kissing!"

I leaned in as if to scrutinise her top lip, and she gave an indignant squeal and pressed her mouth to mine again.

Breaking the kiss, she whispered, "Did you mean it when you said I could have what I wanted?" I nodded enthusiastically. "Then, would you... would you be my boyfriend?"

"Scarlett, I would love to!" I beamed.

"And would it be okay if I... sucked your cock?" I stared into her eyes, left completely speechless by the unexpected question. "Um... is that a yes?"

"Um... yes!" I croaked. "But only if it's really what you want."

"It's what I want," she smiled, sliding off my lap to kneel between my feet.

Her fingers reached for my waistband and she flicked the button undone before lowering the zip. "Lift up," she said, sliding my trousers off as I raised off the seat. I sat before her in just an open shirt, socks and boxers.

"Now I know how you felt when I stopped my car to help yesterday. I feel so vulnerable!" I chuckled nervously.

She smiled up at me as she slid her slender fingers into the waistband of my boxers. "There's no need for that. Judging by the lump in these things you've nothing to be worried about. Why don't you just tell me what you like?"

"I would if I knew," I blushed.

"What, you've never had a blowjob before?" she asked in surprise.

I shook my head. "My ex wife was quite limited in what she would do. She hated the thought of me getting... anything in or near her mouth, but she was happy for me to do that sort of thing for her."

"You poor baby," Scarlett cooed. "I think it's time that we did something about that." She drew my boxers down slowly, revealing my penis a little at a time. Once she had my shorts around my thighs she reached out her tongue and gave my shaft an experimental lick. "I was right. It's just as beautiful as the rest of you. Now, are you ready?"