Star-Crossed Lovers

"Can't wait to see you again. Can I take you out to lunch? :)" Sam texted her Wednesday morning.

Candace's smile was quickly replaced by a frown.

"I would love to, but I can't. I already have plans with my mom this afternoon. :(" she regretfully texted back.

"No worries. :) What about tomorrow? I have a couple of days off work."

"Sure," she wrote back, trying to play it cool. Inside, though, she was buzzing with excitement. He wanted to spend time with her on his days off. During the week. She felt like she should be freaked out by how quickly things seemed to be progressing between them, but in reality, she loved it. She didn't dare admit the words even to herself, but she had never fallen so hard so quickly for anyone in her life.

"I'll come pick you up around noon, ok?"

"Sounds good. See you then. :)"

Candace could barely contain herself at lunch with her mom. She had mentioned Sam through texts, but hadn't seen her mom in person since she had met him. She tried to downplay her feelings and tried not to gush on about him, but her mother knew her too well.

She left out the steamier details, of course, but the fact that she had already slept with Sam, twice, wasn't lost on her mother. Lucinda gave her the same spiel her friend Sarah had. With more motherly concern, of course.

Candace tried hard not to get angry when she brought up the fact that it seemed like a fling and that she was just concerned about her daughter's feelings. Nothing like a mother to be brutally honest.

She would be lying if she said she wasn't still a little upset about their conversation when Sam picker her up for their lunch date the next day.

"How was your day with your mom?" It was one of the first questions Sam asked.

A huffing sound escaped Candace's mouth before she even had a chance to stop herself.

"That good, huh?" Sam chuckled.

"You got brought up, of course."

"Uh oh."

"She's just worried about my feelings. But still," Candace's curls bounced back and forth as she shook her head. "I was just starting to get out of my head about the whole thing, you know? Plus, it's not like she's met you."

"The 'thing'? The 'us thing'?"

"Yes," she sighed.

"Well, what are

your

feelings on the 'us thing'?" Sam asked warily, keeping his eyes on the road as he drove.

"I don't know. I've been trying to take your advice. Not overthink it. I'll go insane if I do. Too many 'what ifs?'"

They drove on for several minutes in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

"Can I ask you something?" Sam hoped she didn't notice how nervous he was. What he was about to ask could totally change the course of their afternoon, at the very least.

"What's that?"

"What are you hoping to get out of this?" he pointed between himself and Candace.

She sighed again.

"I don't know, Sam. I'm trying to have fun, and I am, but I don't know. I really like you. That seems to be the biggest issue. How ridiculous is that?" she turned to him.

"It's not ridiculous," he said quietly. And he meant it because he felt the same way about her.

"Candace, I'm not just going to forget about you when I go back to LA. You know that, right?" he glanced at her.

"No," she answered barely above a whisper.

The lump in Sam's throat grew.

"Well, I can assure you, I'm not." Silence filled the car again.

"Listen, I know this is probably the worst time to ask, but it wouldn't feel right bringing it up later now."

Candace turned to face him again.

"I want to take you somewhere next weekend. Because I want to and because I want to make the most of the time we have while I'm here. Shooting is ahead of schedule, so I'm afraid we're going to wrap up earlier than expected," sadness reached his eyes. He hated dropping more bad news on her.

"Oh," was all she said before growing quiet again.

"I know. Horrible timing. I seem to be good at that. But, I just wanted to throw it out there. I realize how crazy this is, but I don't care. I care about you, Candace. And if this was a fling, like your mom seems to think, would we be sitting in the car together right now? And would I be asking you to go away for the weekend with me?"

"I would hope not because that would be really hurtful of you knowing how I feel about you," a small smile finally formed on Candace's lips.

"That's my girl," he thumbed her chin, smiling himself.

"So where are you wanting to take me? You know I can't make any promises, right? I'll have to check my schedule."

"I know, I know. But if you can, I'd like to take you to Gatlinburg for the weekend." Sam held his breath, waiting for her reaction.

"Really?" her face lit up. Candace knew it had become more touristy over the years, but she knew it could also be romantic. She couldn't stop her mind from wandering to images of log cabins, rustic shops, and evenings spent in the hot tub.

"Is that a 'yes' then? I'm not being too forward?" Sam asked hopefully.

"Oh hell, probably, but I don't care. Yes! I would love to go with you."

8 days later, they were headed out of the city in the light of the late May evening. The mountains grew taller as they drew nearer their destination, silhouetted by the sinking sun. A light fog started rising in the valleys, already cooling off in the recessed places. Sam had a hard time keeping his eyes on the winding road, transfixed by the scenery.

"Why the hell did I not come down here sooner?"

"Beats the hell out of me. Guess you were waiting for me to come along so you could whisk me off my feet," Candace teased from the passenger seat. Sam just smiled back at her.

They spent the next day exploring the beautiful mountain town together, hand-in-hand. Candace tried to show all of her favorite places to Sam, he the eager tourist. The handmade candle and woodworking shops she always made sure to stop in when she visited, her favorite mini-golf place, built right into the hillside, and the best pancake joint in the world. She even talked him into riding the skylift, which took a lot more coercion than she expected. As it turned out, the poor guy was afraid of heights.

"Now I know your weakness," Candace teased on the ride up, squeezing his hand.

"That's not fair. I haven't figured yours out yet."

"You know what it is, whether you realize it or not," she said just before kissing him.

"Keep doing that the rest of the way up and I might forget that I'm 30 meters up in the air."

"You people and your metric," she joked. "I'm not making out with you on a skylift, but I'll let you have one more to hold you over until later," she leaned into him, kissing him long and deep.

Sam and Candace arrived back at their cabin late that evening.

"Now what?" Sam gave a small smile.

"You're not too pooped out, are you?"

"No," he laughed.

"Good. Come put your swim trunks on. We can't very well have access to a hot tub and not take advantage of it," Candace smiled mischievously as she headed upstairs to put her own bathing suit on.

"Are you coming?" she called down as she changed.

"I'm trying to be a gentleman. I'll be up in a minute."

"You're no fun," she mumbled, but not softly enough for Sam to not hear her. He smiled to himself, shaking his head. He loved her playful side.

Candace came down a minute later wearing a red bikini with ties on the sides of her hips.

"What do you think?" she twirled, giving him an eyeful of her nearly naked figure.

"I love it," he kissed her neck quickly as he passed her to go change.

He found her already in the hot tub when he came back down.

"God, that feels good," Sam sunk into the hot water next to her. They sat quietly, just relaxing, for a few minutes.

"Did you have a good day?" he broke the silence.

"The best day," Candace finally turned towards him, smiling before she kissed him. She didn't stop and neither did he. A minute or two later, Sam felt a hand gently stroke the outside of his swim shorts.

"Mmm, that feels good too," his voice grew deeper.

They continued making out, Candace's hand eventually creeping up one leg of his shorts. Sam moaned in approval as she stroked him.

She prolonged working him up, starting slow. As she increased her speed, so did his moans of pleasure. Eventually, he threw his head back in ecstasy, no longer even able to kiss her.

Candace stroked his cock forcefully. It both excited her and made her nervous that he wouldn't like it, though his actions definitely said that he did. She stopped just as he was about to cum.

"Candace," his voice came out high and cracked.

She kept a hold of his dick in her hand, but straddled his lap and whispered in his ear.

"No. You save that for me." With that, she slid his member inside of her and rode him until he came, which didn't take long as worked up as he already was.

"Now it's my turn," she spoke in his ear as his moans dissipated. Candace abruptly got up, both off of him and out of the hot tub.

Once Sam collected himself, he found her lying completely naked on the couch inside. He smirked to himself and shook his head as he got out of the hot tub.

"You're supposed to let me undress you. I was looking forward to untying that excuse of a swim bottom," he sat near her feet.

"I didn't want to get the couch wet...Well, that's not entirely true," she giggled.

"What has gotten into you?" Sam chuckled, rubbing up the inside of her smooth thighs.

"Nothing yet, unfortunately," Candace fought to keep a straight face.

"Well, let's fix that then," he positioned himself over her started kissing her again. He made sure his still rigid member rubbed against the inside of her thighs as he kissed along her collarbone, down to her breasts...In one swift motion, Sam scooted down the couch, throwing her legs over his shoulders, and buried his face between them.

Candace cried out.

"Oh, God, Sam," she breathed as he lapped at her. It didn't take long for her to get wet. Still, he plunged his tongue deeper as she pushed the back of his head, urging him on.

"Oh fuck!" Candace arched her back as Sam slid one, then two, fingers inside her sopping hole. He licked wildly at her nub as his fingers searched for just the right spot inside. Sam knew he had found it when she started crying out again, moaning louder than before. Her hips bucked wildly as she neared her orgasm. He had a hard time keeping his tongue and fingers in just the right spots to get her there, but he couldn't help getting turned on even more by how eager she was for him to lick her pussy.

"Oh, God. Oh, God! Sam! I'm going to cum!" Candace tried to warn him. He switched from licking to sucking on her nub, sending her into a frenzy. She screamed over and over as her body finally gave in to the immense pleasure he was giving her. Sam lapped at her juices like a thirsty dog, not wanting to waste a drop.

Candace shuddered every time his warm tongue touched her skin, the hard orgasm finally subsiding. Sam finally stopped once her pussy stopped twitching. He looked up at her, kissing the inside of her thigh. Her chest still rose and fell heavily. Sam was tempted to send her completely over the edge when he crawled on top of her again, sticking his dick inside her and making her climax again, but she was already on the brink of tears.

"Holy shit," she whispered. "I was not expecting THAT."

"Good. That was part of the fun," he grinned evilly before kissing her.

"Plus, I've been dying to eat your pussy," he spoke low in her ear. He felt her body tremble beneath him.

"How 'bout we go take a shower?"

Candace raised an eyebrow at him, but agreed.

"What?" Sam asked innocently. "You're the one who started this," he smiled.

They stepped into the shower together once the water warmed up enough to start filling the room with steam. Sam quickly washed while Candace washed her hair. He stole her rag and soaped it up before she had a chance to grab it herself. He started with her back since she was turned away from him.

"I like where this is going," he could hear the smile in her voice. Sam continued washing her body, purposely avoiding her private areas.

"I think you missed some spots," Candace smirked.

"Saving the best for last," he stood back up and slowly ran the washrag over her ample breasts. He could see her cherry-red nipples harden through the suds. Sam reached down between her legs, pressing his middle finger harder through the rag when he reached her slit. Candace sighed and leaned her wet body against his. Sam dropped the rag to the floor and picker her up instead. He didn't have to ask her to wrap her legs around him.

"Are you ready?" he asked quietly.

"I'm always ready for you," Candace responded almost shyly.

"Hold on tight," he pressed her against the tile wall, lifting her enough to slide himself inside of her, both of them moaning. He began slowly working in her.

"Can I tell you a secret?" she asked.

"What's that?" he kissed her neck.

"I love the way you feel inside of me," she whispered in his ear before nibbling on its lobe.

Sam caught himself staring into her eyes. He so badly wanted to tell her he loved her. Period. But it didn't seem like the right time, being naked in the shower together. He must have not realized how long he had been looking at her that way.

"You ok?" Candace stroked the side of his face, looking concerned.

"Yah. Sorry," he smiled sheepishly before kissing her passionately. If he couldn't tell her he loved her, he would at least attempt to show her.

Sam made love to her until the water ran cold. And when that happened, he carried her upstairs to bed and made slow, sweet love to her some more.

"Baby, I'm getting close," she eventually breathed in his ear. He understood. He had been fighting the urge himself for a while.

"It's ok. I am too," he reassured her. He raised her arms above her head and entwined his fingers with hers before leaning in to kiss her again, taking long, deep strokes inside of her. Her soft moans came closer together until his own joined the chorus, culminating in deep sighs of release. They fell asleep shortly after, Candace curled up against Sam's warm body.

Sam woke to the smell of coffee wafting from downstairs. Disappointment filled him when he discovered he was alone in bed. He dressed quickly and headed downstairs. Seeing Candace through the kitchen window, he was torn between joining her or making a cup of coffee first. He opted for the latter. She must have seen him milling around the kitchen out of the corner of her eye. She smiled at him and waved.

"Morning," he sat down next to her on the swing. "Brr," he faked a cold chill. "No wonder you brought the blanket out."

Candace opened it up for him to share and leaned her head against his shoulder as he sipped his steaming cup of coffee.

"I'm sure going to miss this view," Sam commented, looking out over the misty mountains.

"I don't want to leave," Candace stared out over the rolling terrain with him.

"Me neither."

"I'm pretty sure this is what heaven is like, if it exists."

For some reason, this caught his attention. Sam stared at her for a long moment. She finally turned toward him.

"I love you."

Sam felt relieved, finally getting it off his chest. The desire to tell her had grown exponentially over the weekend. Getting to spend an entire 24 hours with her had further solidified his feelings. Now that it was out in the open, though, it scared him to death too.

Candace didn't respond right away, but her expression softened.

"You do?" she spoke softly.

"Of course. How could I not?" he smiled and stroked the side of her face.

"I love you too," Candace's voice cracked as she leaned in to kiss him.