“Are you going home for Thanksgiving?” Jade’s voice broke the peaceful silence.

Lance had been dragging his hand along her arm in slow movements, but stilled at her words. They returned from the wake after enjoying time with their friends, settling on his deck with glasses of wine to watch the sunset. Neither of them spoke for a long time as the sun slipped into the horizon, streaking the sky with hues of blue and orange. She sat between his legs, her back warm against his chest.

“Thanksgiving?”

“It’s this week, you know. I…well, I wondered if you had plans?”

Shaking his head as his hand continued to glide over her petal skin, “Nah. Mom would be delighted if I came home, but she’d see it as my deciding to leave this place and returning to the fold.”

Sitting quietly, she did not reply.

“What about you?”

Her chest heaved as she sighed. “No, I’m not going home either. I have a five-day weekend, since school is out on Wednesday. I’ll try to visit my parents over the Christmas holiday, but I don’t want a repeat of last year.” Feeling a slight squeeze on her arm, she grinned at his nonverbal indication she should explain. “I went home last year for Thanksgiving, hoping to have a nice break from school, but all my parents did was bitch about me working in an impoverished area. They said they were embarrassed to tell their friends where I lived. So,” she shrugged, “I ended up leaving a day early because I couldn’t stand it anymore.”

“So, what are your plans?” he asked, now curious as to how she was going to spend the days off work.

“I guess it depends on you…”

“Me?” he asked, his voice filled with surprise and pleasure.

Grinning, she twisted her head around and said, “Yeah, you. If you’re going to be here, we could do our own Thanksgiving meal…something simple, and then maybe join some friends later in the afternoon.”

Lance was quiet and Jade began to nervously fiddle with her wine glass. “Of course, we don’t have to—”

“It’s been a long time since anyone wanted to spend a holiday with me,” he interrupted. “Or a long time since I wanted to spend it with someone else.”

Her mouth opened but no words came forth, unable to think of what to say.

He leaned around, staring into her wide eyes, and said, “Can’t think of anyone I’d rather be with on a day to give thanks.”

Feeling a smile curve her lips, she faced forward once more, the ever-changing night sky filling her vision. Lance began rubbing her arm again, her soft skin smooth underneath his fingers.

“Has it only been a few weeks?”

“What’s only been a few weeks, sweetheart?” he mumbled into her silky hair.

“Us knowing each other.”

Smiling, he thought back to the first time he had seen her. Her beauty struck him, but he had forced himself to hang on to his irritation at her intrusion into his world. “I was an asshole when we first met,” he reminded.

Snorting, she nodded, taking another sip. “Yeah, but I killed you with kindness…well, I tried.”

“Such a pest,” he joked.

Setting her wine glass down on the deck, she twisted in his arms, resting her hand on his chest, over his heart. Peering into his eyes, she said, “I have no idea what was going through my mind when I decided to return to sneak some sea glass onto your front porch. But, Lance…I’m so glad I did.” Leaning forward, she softly touched her lips to his.

The kiss began slowly, the simple movement of silk against satin. Jade loved the feel of his lips. Strong, yet yielding. The rough stubble of his whiskers against her skin. His breath warm against her face, the scent of his masculinity mingling with the taste of the dark wine. Heady, yet addictive. Addictive. The thought that she needed him for more than protection, but for her heart too, settled into her mind as she allowed him to take over the kiss, falling under his spell.

Lance felt the instant she yielded to him, her trust hit his heart, while her lips on his communicated her need as well as her desire. Cupping her face with his large hands, he angled her as he took the kiss deeper. Sliding his tongue into her warmth, he tasted, tangled, and triumphed as she melted into him.

Shifting her body, he stood with her in his arms, their kiss proclaiming what their hearts silently acknowledged. Entering the house, he stalked toward the bedroom, their wine glasses forgotten on the deck.

* * *

Wrapping his arms tighter around her, Lance watched Jade sleep. The blades of the ceiling fan twirled slowly, but no longer held his attention. Smiling, he stared at her face as the sun hinted at rising, the faint illumination coming through the blinds in his bedroom. Her eyelashes lay in crescents on her cheeks as her deep breath passed her lips, her mouth open slightly.

Smiling, he thought of the previous evening and his cock, already awake and ready, nudged against her ass. She stirred, her eyelids fluttering before she stretched. Not wanting to wake her, he reluctantly moved back slightly but she grunted.

“Uh uh,” she said, pushing her ass backward until his cock was once more pressed tightly against her.

“I wanted you to sleep, babe,” he whispered, reluctant to move again.

“Sleep is overrated,” she said, wiggling against his erection. “I’d rather have you.”

Cupping her breast with the hand under her, he slid his free hand down her chest, over her tummy, chuckling as he skimmed over a ticklish spot and she wiggled more. His hand continued its path downward as she spread her legs, before sliding into her slick folds. Taking his time, he moved his fingers into her sex, the warmth holding him tight. She began to undulate as he gently plunged his fingers in and out, his thumb circling her clit. He felt her body stir to life, fine tuning a perfect instrument.

Jade shifted onto her back, desperate to see Lance’s face in the morning light as his hands continued to work their magic. His face loomed over hers, filling her vision. Reaching up, she rubbed her fingers over his dark morning stubble, his eyes holding her captive. Emotions passed between them without words.

Suddenly, her inner core tightened and she sucked in a quick breath as his fingers found the place they had been seeking. With pressure on her clit, she fell apart.

Lance watched the blush rise from her tightly beaded nipples upward until her entire chest and face were a delectable, deep rose. Slowly withdrawing his fingers, he brought them upward, dragging them along her stomach and over her breasts, finally circling her lips.

Jade tasted herself on him and her chest heaved in desire. Her lips curved in delight as he shifted over her, his weight welcome as she wrapped her arms around his neck, smoothing them down his shoulders.

Lance’s cock, eager to play, nudged her entrance. The thought of protection kicked in, barely moving aside the desire to plunge immediately. Balancing his weight on one arm, he snagged a condom from the nightstand before pushing back on his knees. Holding her eyes, he palmed his cock, teasing her with the pearl of pre-cum on the end. Slowly rolling on the condom, he grinned as her breathing increased.

“Want this, babe?”

Her breath caught in her throat as her head jerked up and down. “More than you can imagine, Lance. I want you…with me. All of you with me…no pieces left behind.”

The smile stayed firmly on his face as her words penetrated. Leaning closer, he entered her slowly, fighting the urge to plunge even though her heels were on his ass urging him on. Gliding into her sex, inch by inch, he watched as her head pressed back against the pillow, her breasts pushing upward as her back arched. She bit her bottom lip and squeezed her eyes shut.

“If you want all of me, babe, you gotta open your eyes,” he groaned, the sensation of her tight sex clutching his sensitive cock almost more than he could bear.

Her eyes popped open, the wide green pupils staring back at him as her teeth let her bottom lip go, curving instead into a smile.

Never taking their eyes off each other, he continued to thrust, slowly at first and then with more vigor, as the emotions collided with the physical need.

Jade slid her hand over his shoulders and down his back, the play of his muscles underneath her fingertips capturing her fascination. The immense strength and power of his body as it moved over and into hers took her to new heights. “More,” she begged. “I want all of you.”

Close to his release, Lance wanted her to come with him. Once more balancing on one arm, he slid his other hand over her curves, finding her clit, swollen and ready for him. Circling the nub, he watched as her eyes closed again. Just as he was about to remind her to keep them open, her green eyes landed on him as her body quivered, her sex clutching his cock. With a moan, his neck muscles tightened and his orgasm pulsed from his body into hers. His whole body shuddered, but he forced his eyes to stay on hers as well.

As the last stream emptied from his cock, he fought to catch his breath, enjoying the rosy blush over her body again. Continuing to thrust gently as her orgasm milked him, he cupped her face. Falling forward slightly to the side so as to not crush her, with his cock still planted, his chest heaved in gasps.

Powerful. That was the only word Jade could come up with at the moment, as her inner muscles continued to quake with the shared orgasm. The tingles slowly subsided and she felt his cock ease from her body. A sad groan protested from her lips at the loss of the connection.

“Be right back…I need to deal with this,” he mumbled as he sat up and tossed the condom in the trash can before immediately encircling his arms around her.

They lay entangled, bodies slowly cooling from their shared passion. Brushing back a damp tendril from her forehead, Lance stared at her heated beauty. She completed him, as though all the broken pieces fit back together—not in the same way he had been before, but as a new man.