Ar and Allie

***All characters are 18+.***

A few hours later, back at the apartment, they had changed into their warmest pajamas and snuggled under a blanket on the couch in the living room. The aquarium had been romantic, but they had to leave sooner than expected when the storm got worse a little sooner than expected. Now, they sat together in front of the fireplace and all the lights were dimmed in the apartment. They held her hot cocoa in a foam cup and watched a Christmas movie Allie had seen a thousand times before.

"You watch this every year?" Ark asked as he twisted his face in confusion.

"Traditions are traditions." She said as if she had no control and sipped her cocoa.

"Don't you have a tradition?"

"Well, this is the first Christmas in a very long time that I am not performing somewhere. Last year, we were in London. The year before that we were in Toronto. We don't usually care about getting holidays off, so no. Unless you count performing as a tradition, I don't have one." He thought of traditions as private things that families did, but maybe it was just the act of doing something every year that made it a tradition. "But this year, of all years, the entire band wanted to go do different stuff. So, I tried to go back home." Ark looked at her and winked.

"But then I met you. So, fate intervened, I think."

"I still feel bad your family doesn't get to see you. When did you see them last?" Allie asked.

"Um, about 2 years ago. I call them all the time, but I haven't been with them in person in about 2 years. I don't think I've been home on a holiday in over 10 years."

"I feel awful, I feel like I stole you from them." Allie felt guilty. She imagined how excited his family must have been and then the disappointment they must have felt when they learned that he had spent that holiday with a stranger he met in an airport instead.

"Allie, its okay."

"No, a stranger stole you from them. They would hate me if they found out."

"Whoa. Hang on. That is all wrong." He shifted in his seat to face her a little more.

"The storm kept me from going to see them. You are not a stranger anymore, you are my girl and you are worth the sacrifice." He reached his arm around her and gently pulled Allie closer to rest her head on his shoulder. "And if my family knew how good your heart is and how happy you make me, they would love to know you. I think all would be forgiven."

"I still feel bad for them."

"I have 5 brothers, they all have wives and they all have kids. My parents are surrounded by family, they have about $10,000 worth of gifts under their tree, in their large home that they didn't have to pay for. I don't know if they are completely deserving of your pity." He kissed the top of her head and leaned back to get comfortable. "But to answer your original question I don't have any traditions. Is this movie a family tradition?"

"No, this is my tradition. Most of my holidays are spent alone at the ski resort my family owns. Sometimes I bring a friend, but Christmas Eve is usually just me by myself. My family doesn't really have any traditions. I'm really not that close to them."

"Why not?"

"A lot of reasons. They treat me differently, because they think I betrayed the family. I am the middle child of 7. I have 3 brothers and 3 sisters. They all work for the family business in Colorado and I chose to do something different. I think they resent that in some way. For example, my siblings went to university for advanced degrees and our parents paid for it, if they could use it for the business. So, a few of them have MBA's, finance degrees and one of my brothers went to law school.

My parents paid for all of it. But, I had to put myself through school. Marine Biologists don't have much of a role in resort management, so they let me do my own thing. They weren't mean about it, but they didn't help me. I'm still paying those student loans- probably will be for 20 more years. But my siblings are debt free." She started to bounce her leg a little, she was agitated. She took a deep breath and tried to move on. "I knew I wasn't made to work for a ski resort. I was created to be an advocate and protect and save the lives of animals that can't do any of that for themselves." He was continually amazed by this girl. "They aren't interested in my career, my life, who I am dating or anything like that. I'm just the one that abandoned her family to go swim in the ocean. That is what they think." Ark was angry for her.

"But you still go see them every year for the holidays? Do they at least gift you the tickets?"

"No." Allie laughed. "From their viewpoint, I chose to move away, so the cost is on me." She shook her head. She had always felt it was wrong how they treated her and her siblings often agreed with her, but her parents were known to make rash decisions and they were too stubborn and proud to ever reverse them. After they had seen how their parents turned on Allie, none of her siblings ever tested their parents.

"I'm sorry." Ark couldn't think of anything else to say. This girl really was just trying to follow her heart and she had been punished for it- and kept doing it anyway.

"Truly, I don't even know why I really wanted to go home- other than the fact that I just didn't want to be alone in my apartment for the holidays." She swiped at a tear that threatened to fall. Then, she looked up at Ark. "But, in the end I wasn't alone after all." He leaned in and kissed her forehead. He couldn't believe in a world of 7 billion people, the two people that needed to find each other most managed to collide in an Airport lounge in Chicago.

"I think this is a good opportunity to make a new tradition." He said.

"What do you mean?" She asked. Ark reached for the remote on the coffee table. He turned off the TV and turned on a large speaker that was mounted up in the corner of the room. LED lights activated on it when it powered on. He linked his phone to it and then stood up and turned around and held his hand out to Allie.

"One of the things that I really wanted to do on our date tonight was dance with you, but it ended too soon and I didn't get the opportunity." Her face softened and she smiled up at him. "But the night isn't quite over yet. Would you dance with me?"

"Of course. I'd love to." She took his hand and he led her to a spot in front of the windows where there was more space to move around. The lights were still dimmed and he clicked another button on the remote and several faux candles turned on to add some romantic ambient lighting to the room. "I'm a little surprised that you like to dance." Allie said.

"As long as it is slow dancing, I love it. I'm a drummer, I love moving to a rhythm." He pulled her to him. He put a hand on her lower back and she settled against him. She put a hand on his shoulder and he held her other hand with his free one. "I made a playlist to dance to." He said as the first few measures of an Edwin McCain song started. "I pulled just about every slow-dancing song on my phone onto it.

"I wouldn't have thought you liked this type of music." She said as he led her in slow small circles around their small dance floor.

"I like all music. I play rock and roll because it is fun and I'm good at playing fast music. But I like dancing to this with you." He said as he pulled her a little closer.

"I can't believe you made a playlist."

"60 songs." He laughed. "I just wanted to be prepared in case there was a song that you hated. What do you think about this being our Christmas Eve tradition?" he asked.

"I love it." She said without hesitation. "What if we aren't in the same place next year or the year after that. If we aren't in the same place, this tradition will be hard."

Ark cut her off. "As long as we are still in this together, I will do whatever I have to do to put us together on Christmas Eve. I will fly you out me, I will fly to you, whatever it takes." They danced together quietly for a few minutes. She rested her head on his chest and he breathed in the scent of her hair. He was in love with her, he regretted not telling her in the aquarium, because they had a moment where he could have, but he knew it was too soon. He didn't want to scare her off. If it were anyone else saying they had fallen in love with someone in 24 hours, he would have told them they were insane. But, here he was, completely in love with a girl after 1 day.

In the quiet of the apartment, being held by Ark and dancing to romantic songs, Allie's mind started to wander. Being with him was amazing and her heart felt fuller for just being next to him. But, she knew a day was coming soon where they would be forced apart and she felt immense anxiety over that. She closed her eyes and tried to just focus on the feeling of Ark holding her, but her mind wouldn't be silenced.

"What happens after this, Ark?" She blurted it out. She had mostly contained the 'no bullshit' aspect of her personality so far, but usually, she was blunt. If something bothered her, she just said it. She didn't like pretending nothing was wrong when something was.

"What do you mean?" He was caught a little off guard by the question.

"I know that kind of came out of nowhere, but what happens in a few days when I have to go back to South Carolina, and you have to go back to tour a few days later? What if we never see each other again?"

"Impossible." 'I Swear' by All-4-One started playing on the playlist and she melted inside a little because she loved that song.

"No, its not. If there is anything I've learned in the last couple of days, we have to plan. This will only work if we work at it. And granted, most new relationships don't require this much work right out of the gate, I really want this to work." His heart melted. He hadn't expected that, but she was right. They had talked earlier about commitment and she was showing proof of concept. He hadn't realized she needed to be out of town before he did and he hadn't considered how they would leave each other when they did have to go back to their jobs. But, he saw an opportunity to spend some more time with her in her space.

"Well, If you need to be back at work in a few days, I will go to South Carolina with you. I'll even take Tom with me. You can show me your life and then I'll go back to tour and you can always come with me, but I will be back a few weeks after that if you can't travel. You live right on the coast, I'll just go there instead of my New York apartment. We can stay at your place, I'll get us a new one, I'll get and RV and we'll live on the beach, I don't care" He laughed. "I'll do whatever it takes." He looked down at her face, and watched her computing and processing his words.

"Seriously Allie, just tell me what you want. I will do anything for you." He let go of her hand and moved it to cradle her cheek as he kissed her. "Anything..." he repeated and kissed her again.

"You want to go to South Carolina with me?" she asked as if she was genuinely surprised. "I mean, my apartment is nothing like this. It is small, because I'm not rich and famous." She laughed.

"Don't diminish yourself or the life you built. I have lived in all sorts of places. I don't need luxury and I don't need this much space." He gestured to the room around them. "Of course. If I have the choice to go to a beach or stay in an arctic tundra, I want to go to the beach-every single time. And if I have the choice to spend some extra days with you, I'm also always choosing that."

"Well, it is winter there, so it isn't warm, but there is a beach."

"It doesn't matter, Allie. I just want to be with you."

"Well, I need to be back by the evening of the 26th, because that is when the pet sitter has to give my dog back and she takes a new client the next day."

"You have a dog?" He hadn't recalled her talking about her pets before now and she was stunned when she realized she hadn't talked about her dog yet.

"I have a dog. His name is Clover and he is an Irish Wolfhound. He is my everything and before you, he had the biggest part of my heart."

"I refuse to take any part of your heart away from him." Ark said through a low laugh. He had always loved animals, but he was so unstable, he didn't think it was fair to drag a dog all over the world and never really have a home and his family had never had pets when he was a kid. The concept of pets was foreign to him, but he wasn't opposed to getting a pet one day. "I think we could get you back to South Carolina in time."

"Well, we would need to buy tickets and no one has been able to fly out of Chicago for the past couple of days..." He could feel her stress beginning to mount.

"No, we'll use one of our planes the band keeps on rotation. Have you ever flown on a private plane?"

"I never have." She admitted.

"Well, you will in a few days. You'll love it." The first few measures of 'Amazed' by Lonestar played.

"You are too generous. I don't want to take a plane that someone else might need."

"We're taking the plane I was going to take to the U.K. anyway. I know it isn't booked for anything before that. It isn't that big of a deal. Our pilots are always ready to go and they have been grounded for a couple of days, they are probably itching to get moving again. They are paid by the mile." He winked.

"Still, using company resources on me is too much... I'll never be able to repay that..." she shook her head in disbelief.

"I'm just doing what I can do to make this work." He wrapped both of his arms around her waist and she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. They kept dancing and she hung onto him and let him lead. She didn't want him to use the band's resources on her, but she did like the special treatment. She hadn't ever had that before- from anyone. Even when she was younger and still living with her very affluent family- they did not offer much special treatment to any of the kids. She was pulled out of her own thoughts when she felt him nestle his face in the nook of her neck. She felt his hand slowly start rubbing her back.

"I love dancing with you." She said as she felt the heated mass of his body against her.

"I like the way you fit in my arms." He said as they swayed together to the music. She turned her head slightly and found his lips with hers. The kiss started sweet and then, turned much deeper.

"I love the way you kiss me." She said between kisses and he pulled her closer.

"I'll kiss you like this for the rest of your life, if you let me." They laughed as he kissed her again. But he meant ever word of that. She slipped her hands under this thermal sweat shirt and without a second thought, he pulled it up, took it off and dropped it to the floor. His naked chest felt like an inferno against her. Just touching him put his chemistry in her veins and something ignited deep inside of her. She leaned into him and moaned as she let his energy take her over.

He reached down and wrapped his arms under her ass and lifted her up to him. She wrapped her legs around him and she put her hands on either side of his face, deepening their kiss. He ran his hand under her thick fleece top while still holding her and she pulled it up the rest of the way and tore it off. She had forgotten she didn't have anything on under that and he wasn't expecting her to be topless now, but he was pleasantly surprised that she was. She needed his body to touch hers and he needed the same thing. He held her tight and walked her to the couch. He turned around and strategically fell back onto the couch, letting her stay on top and straddling his lap.

He sat up and kissed her neck. Her head fell to the side and she he was further encouraged to claim more of her with his mouth. He trailed kisses from her ear, to her collar bone and then to her breasts. He moved his face between her breasts and she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and dragged her nails along the back of his neck. Her breaths were coming quicker now and small whimpers escaped her as he moved the focus of his mouth to her nipples. She rolled her body in response and he groaned as she did. She ground herself into his manhood and he held her tighter as he tried to control himself. She felt his arousal through his pants and it pressed against her- desperate to break free.

Allie tore herself from Ark's mouth and stood up from his lap and then kneeled down between his legs. She pulled down the front of his pants and his fully erect cock sprang free. She ran her hands over his completely tattooed stomach and abs, she loved tracing his skin and his length continued to pulse and harden as she touched him. He lifted himself and pushed down his pants the rest of the way. She moved her hands down his thighs and then gently licked the swollen bulb of his member. His head immediately rolled back and she suddenly tasted his precum as she worked her tongue over the tip. She enclosed her lips around it. She felt him surge and expand further as her hand stroked him. He pumped his hips, and wrapped his hands into her hair. He held her in place and made small thrusts into her mouth. He looked down to see himself inside her perfect, sexy mouth and he couldn't take it. He reached down suddenly and pulled her mouth from his cock. He immediately missed the feeling of her, but he was getting way too excited, way too quickly.

"Did I do something wrong?" She asked as she sat back, still on sitting on her knees. Just seeing her sitting there between his legs turned his cock to rock hard cement.

"Fuck... no... it was too good..." She stood up between his legs. He groaned and ran his hands over her body. "I was getting way to close to the end there... I would rather you get yours first..." She stepped closer to him and he slipped his fingers inside of her pants and slowly pulled them down. He tried to kiss her as each new inch of skin was revealed. She closed her eyes as she felt his mouth move all over her body. She felt his mouth move down her tummy and then onto her hips. When his mouth finally made it between her legs, he held her to him and his tongue explored her folds, centered on her clit and then backed off and probed her core. He moaned against her sex and she fucked his mouth with her pussy. He grabbed handfuls of her ass to keep her standing and centered where he wanted her. She felt a wave of warmth start low in her belly, it moved slowly down her body and centered on her clit. He felt it suddenly harden in his mouth and he felt her body start to shake. She moaned as her orgasm took over and she fisted her hands in his hair. Her back arched and he felt her juices run down the inside of her thighs. She bucked her hips and rode his tongue as she crested the top of her climax and started to settle. He moved his mouth from between her legs when she was too sensitive to endure it any longer. He released his hold on her a little and pulled her to him. She dropped onto the couch, knees first and straddled his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer to him. She lowered herself on his lap and felt his super-heated, rock-hard cock against her sex. He felt the red-hot heated moisture of her center and his breath caught in his chest. He wanted nothing more than to bury himself inside of her. He had never wanted anyone as much as he wanted her right now and it took deliberate effort to make him slow down and savor the moment.

"Ark, its been a long time..." She said softly as she moved her body, gently gliding his cock between her slick folds. The texture of his cock felt good against her swollen clit and she knew if she kept riding him like this, she would probably cum again.

"Me too." He said as he kissed her breasts again as she rolled her body against his. It had been over a year since he had been with anyone- up until that morning. He looked up at her face and suddenly realized something was wrong. Her cheeks were flushed, her lips were swollen, she looked absolutely beautiful, but she was tense. He only wanted to do this if she did. He wasn't into non-consensual stuff. "I know we are kind of in the middle of the moment, but if you don't want to do this, you don't have to. I'll wait... we can do other stuff... Just tell me what you are thinking."