January 1
~~~~~~~~~
~3.01 pm~
'Friends with Benefits'.
Blue had never given that phrase much thought before, but now it kept popping into her head. It was painfully obvious she wasn't much good at relationships- Jackson had pronounced her unfit anyway, in a variety of ways and a lot of not very flattering phrases, before he decided he wanted her back, and ha ha,
that
wasn't likely to happen in a million lifetimes- but the longer she spent time with John the more she wanted. Wanted more. Wanted John. And wasn't that what most men really wanted anyway, the 'Friends with Benefits' thing?
Blue glanced in the rear view mirror, catching a glimpse of John and Abe as they rode in the bed of the pick-up truck, along with the chunks of wood that had just been loaded.
John had insisted that the wood was some that he had chopped for Jean to use in her old wood stove. Aunt Jean had often used the old stove for warmth, preferring it to the central heating system. According to John, since he regularly kept a supply for his fireplace, it was no problem to keep Jean, and now Blue, supplied at the same time.
After lunch and window shopping together in Chaplin, and then taking a long, round-a-bout route home as they enjoyed the snowy scenery, they had spent the next part of the afternoon filling the bed of the truck with the firewood. When they were done, John had tossed her the keys and settled in the back with Abe for the short ride to Blue's house.
Putting the big truck into park, Blue turned off the ignition, but barely had time to reach for the door handle before the door was opened for her and John was there, reaching for her to help her down from the high seat. Any thought of objecting, of insisting she could get out of a truck on her own, became forgotten at the feel of his hands at her waist. And if there was any objection left at all, being pulled against his body when her feet touched the ground finished off that erasure completely.
He was grinning. White teeth, creased cheeks, sparkling eyes...
"Damn, if I'd known how hot you'd look drivin' my truck, I'd've given you the keys hours ago." he drawled, his southern accent more pronounced, making his words low, slow, and sexy.
With those words, and with her hands on his shoulders and his on her waist, it seemed only natural when he pulled her against him even closer. So natural that it felt as if her body floated towards him, and she found herself wishing they didn't have their bulky winter coats between them.
Blue tilted her chin up, saw the look he was giving her... hot and hungry... and when he dipped his head towards hers she closed her eyes... and felt his lips purse against her forehead for a brief second. And that was it.
A little kiss on her forehead and he'd released her. Quickly. She watched in dumb confusion as he turned away and released the back gate of the truck and began unloading the fire wood.
"Huh. Okayyyy." Blue mumbled to herself. Not that a kiss on the forehead was a bad thing. It was kind of sweet. But,come on, after what he'd said and that look he gave her...?? Shrugging, she slipped her hands into the heavy leather work gloves he'd given her and set to work.
John could feel her watching him. He could also feel a heat rise to his cheeks that defied the cold winter air. Piling the wood with more vigor than necessary, he tried to avoid her gaze.
He'd bet he knew what she was thinking. Probably wondering what kind of wuss she'd gotten herself mixed up with. Hell... there he was, making his move, helping her down from the truck, which was the
perfect
excuse to pull her in and lay one on her. And she'd wanted it too, he'd seen that clear as day. But, oh hell, his damned inner voice had chosen just that moment to tell him the PLAN. That big, god-damned, stupid, insane plan.
But it wasn't even so much that that had knocked him on his mental ass, not really, because at the very same time his inner voice was chattering merrily away, the
realization
had hit him. Smacked him right up-side the head with a shovel. Whomped him but good, and all he could do while he was reeling from the blow was stupidly kiss Blue's forehead and practically stumble away from her in his haste to make sense of what he was feeling.
He'd scared himself. Yeah, he'd admit it. Big, tough, ex Army Ranger had just about pissed his pants when the realization hit him that Blue was the one woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
Jesus, did it always happen this fast? He'd heard people proclaim love at first sight, but had never believed in it beyond being the stuff of women's romance novels.
"But this isn't first sight, and you've been drooling over her for years. Admit it."
Okay, yeah. That was the truth.
"What are you scared of?"
John furtively gave Blue a glance over his shoulder. She was silently hefting chunks of wood off the tailgate and piling them with careful, exacting precision into the small shelter built onto the back corner of the house. Leaning against the truck, he watched her openly now, a sudden calmness beginning to settle over him. Okay, maybe not totally calm, but better.
"She's probably going to be skittish. But that's where the PLAN comes in. You can do this, Johnny. You can DO this. HOO-AH!"
"Hoo-ah." John murmured, then had to turn away to hide a grin as Blue returned for another arm-load of wood.
One moment Blue was leaning over the tailgate and lifting a chunk of wood, the next moment it was pulled out of her gloved hand, tossed haphazardly over John's shoulder, and then it was
she
that was being lifted. John picked her right up with ease and sat her onto the truck's lowered tailgate.
And then he kissed her.
Not a peck on the forehead. Oh, hallelujah no. John leaned in, no hesitancy to his movement, just pure, male, take-what-he-wants going for it. And it just about knocked her boots off.
Standing to her side but pressed in against her, he angled his head and fit his mouth perfectly to hers. Taking full advantage of her lips being parted in surprise, his tongue plunged in, licking smoothly at hers, retreating, re-entering boldly. Before she knew it, her arms were up around his neck and she held on tight as she gave back as good as she was getting.
The kiss went on and on. Every time John's tongue swept against hers, jolts of arousal traveled down her body, swirling around her stomach before shooting down between her legs. Blue squeezed her thighs together, not sure whether she was trying to heighten the feeling, or contain it.
At some unknown point he must have taken his leather work gloves off, because when his hand traveled from it's resting place on her hip to burrow under her coat, then her sweater underneath, continuing on until his fingertips reached the sensitive skin of her back, she shivered delicately at the invading coolness of his skin.
He lifted his head when she shivered, and her eyelids fluttered open to his heated gaze.
"I've been wanting to do that again for... forever." The corner of his wide, sensuous mouth crooked up into a half smile.
"It hasn't even been twenty four hours yet." she felt like she needed to remind him, but the brush of his fingertips against her lower spine made any further rational thought difficult. Realizing his other hand had insinuated it's fingers snugly between her knees didn't help.
"Seemed like forever."
"Well, then, why didn't you?" Blue tilted her chin teasingly.
John chuckled, mirroring the chin tilt and looking down at her through his lashes. "I suppose I wasn't listening to my inner voice as well as I should."
"You have an inner voice?"
"Mm-hmmm." He leaned in and brushed his lips against hers.
"Well, I guess we all do." Blue closed her eyes as his lips traveled softly over her cheek.
"Mine's pretty vocal. But I find it's usually right."
She tilted her head as he nudged his nose against her neck. Feeling her shiver again, he raised his head and, sadly, removed his hands from their respective warm spots to settle on her shoulders. "Your cheeks are red." He brushed a finger against one of her cheeks. "You must be cold."
Blue lowered her lashes and turned her head until her lips feathered against the base of his thumb. "Actually, I'm very warm... now." she murmured, purposely speaking slow and soft.
His eyes flashed at her words and she felt a thrill, scary and exciting. This was completely foreign ground to her, such obvious flirting.
A movement from off to the side caught her attention, and both she and John turned to see Abe trotting from the shelter with a large-ish piece of wood in his mouth. The dog stopped mid-step, his head swinging towards them, looking comical as he realized he'd just been caught.
"Hey." John pointed to the woodpile. "Put that back."
Abe lowered his raised paw, his mouth still stretched around the firewood, lowering his head and keeping a careful eye on his master... and then took off like a shot.
"Hey!"
The confounded look on John's face when Abe completely ignored him had blue covering her mouth in a vain attempt to hold in her laughter. Turning at the sound, John smiled fleetingly before his expression morphed into one of dire seriousness.
"I see. You consider blatant disregard for authority amusing."
"Yes." Blue pressed her lips into a thin line, trying not to snicker. She lost the fight when Abe returned, tearing past at top speed, his teeth still clenching the wood.
John's firm expression didn't change, except for a raising of his eyebrows, his eyes trained on Blue even though he had to have known that Abe had run by him again, missing him by barely two feet.
"Hmm. Are you always this flippant?"
Blue gasped in mock indignation. "Me?! What about him?" She pointed towards the dog now running in tight circles behind John, as if taunting him.
John glanced over his shoulder, uttered a low, firm, "Abe.", made a quick hand gesture, and just like that, Abe stopped in his tracks, dropped the wood, and sat at attention.
John turned back to Blue, a self satisfied look settled onto his handsome face. Two seconds later he burst into laughter, making another gesture that released Abe from his pose. Blue watched, amused, as Abe trotted off with his prize.
"That is one happy dog." Blue gripped the edge of the tailgate and began to slide off, holding onto John's arm as he reached out to help her before her feet even hit the ground.
"Happiest I've ever seen him. I know how he feels." he murmured. Blue looked up and found his gaze focused intently on her.
