Forces of Nature - Chapter Thirteen
Katie and Reid’s Place
Thursday, December 31st 7:00PM - REID
You are sitting on the living room floor, enough cartons of food spread out on the coffee table to feed a family of five. You are hungry. Luke, of course, is eating slowly and using his chopsticks. You prefer to eat a lot and eat it fast. You were both pretty quiet in the car and now you are more interested in food than conversation. You look over at Luke and think he is the most beautiful man you’ve ever seen. He looks so hot in his designer label clothes with his hair styled into a perfect mess. You want to get to know this man. In every way.
When you’d heard from a little birdie, well really a big gossip named Allison Stewart, that Noah Mayer had left town abruptly that week, you needed to find out if he had left alone. So when you commented with disinterest that Oakdale’s golden boy Luke Snyder had once again flown the coop, Allison was quick to inform you that not surprisingly, Noah had left by himself and Luke was planning on staying in Oakdale as far as she knew. You knew it was time to spring into action.
You’d been working diligently all week with a team of health care professionals and some of Lucinda Walsh’s employees that she "lent" to you for this project. Much to your amazement, they weren’t all completely incompetent and things moved swiftly. Your surgery schedule was light and, so far, there was nothing that couldn’t be handled without you.
Despite the fact that you were working at the hospital and on the clinic set-up, you couldn’t stop thinking about Luke. You didn’t really understand how this kid managed to get to you, but you found yourself wondering where he was and what he was doing. You wondered what it would be like to have him in your bed and in your life.
You couldn’t understand why he had been relentless in his attempts to contact you all week, and then just blew you off this morning. At first you thought it was some sort of pay back, but the truth was you had been so busy with clinic preparations, you really hadn't had the time to call him. Hell, you hadn't had time for any personal life. You took the opportunity to answer his email yesterday, and had thought it was all going well. Everything had gone as planned until this morning when he didn’t show.
You didn’t have the time to wait around, so you and Gretchen had left for the COSK without him. You think that by the time he arrived at the soup kitchen, you were so relieved to have him there that you didn’t even care that he had stood you up. Then you found out he had shown up at the hospital and none of the rest of it mattered. You knew he was still interested. That was enough.
Still, you felt like you needed to know where things stood. So you took him into the storage room. If Luke had resisted your advances there, you wouldn’t have pushed it any further. You don’t ever want someone who doesn’t want you. But it was clear, after Luke’s response to you this morning, that you hadn’t imagined what went on in the freezer on Christmas. There really was something brewing between you two and you were determined to explore it.
You went over some of the details of the clinic during dinner and were impressed with the questions that Luke asked. He was intelligent and knowledgeable in areas of business that were completely foreign to you. He never ceases to amaze you.
As you finish up your food, Luke decides it’s time to change the subject. You are aware that you’re going to have to do the personal stuff if you ever want to get to know each other. You decide you are going to give it your best shot...within reason.
"Can you just answer me one thing?" he asks. "And then I’ll drop it."
"It depends on what you ask." You give him your most sultry look.
He laughs. "I just want to know why you didn’t return any of my calls this week. Or my texts? I must have called you a dozen times."
You roll your eyes. "I had no interest in getting in the middle of your whole dysfunctional situation with Norm. To be honest with you, if my hands weren’t the tools of my trade, and he wasn’t the size of Shrek, I’d have decked him about five different times in the ten minutes I actually had the displeasure of being in the same room as him."
He takes a sip of his tea. "You knew we were broken up. Is that really the reason you didn't call me back?" he asks.
"Look. I was really busy. I was anxious to get this clinic off the ground and still had responsibilities at the hospital. If she wasn't already in bed by the time I got home, I had to deal with Katie and her problems with Chris. When I found out the ex was history, I emailed you. It’s not my fault you didn’t show up." You were getting tired of this conversation.
"I know, and I’m really sorry." He stops and looks you in the eye. "I never meant to be late. I don’t ever want to let you down."
You stand up and start clearing the cartons off the table. As you pile them up and walk toward the kitchen you turn to see him right behind you. He has cleaned up the dishes and is carrying them in.
You smile slightly. "You didn’t let me down. You showed up and were a big help today. And that’s exactly the way I wanted it. No KP duty for you at that soup kitchen today. A day off from the potato peeler. I still can't believe you subjected these to that." You lift up your hands and wiggle your fingers.
He drops the dishes in the sink and walks over to you. You throw the empty food cartons in the trash. He takes both of your hands in his, threading his fingers between yours. "I can think of better ways to use these hands," he says wriggling his eyes.
He swings your hands so they are by your sides. He steps up and is in your space. "Luke," you say quietly. "I want to be with you."
You start to walk backwards pulling him with you and stop when you reach the couch. He is giving you that full dimple smile. You drop one hand and pull him down on the couch with the other.
"I feel like I’ve known you forever. Like this is how it was always supposed to be," he answers. Without thinking about it, you push him down and drape your body over his. Your hands are cupping his face, he is hugging you around the waist.
You brush your lips across his. "I don’t know how it’s supposed to be, I only know how I want it to be." You move your hands into his hair, his face now next to yours.
"What do you want, Reid? Tell me," he whispers into your hair.
You shiver at his breath in your ear and the familiar fresh scent that is uniquely Luke. "This. You. I can’t stop thinking about you. How it’s even possible to feel like this about someone you’ve only known for one day."
"I want you, too. So much. I think I’ve wanted you from the minute I saw you in that hairnet."
"Yeah, I never did thank you properly for all of that. Though I suppose I can think of a few ways to make you pay." You lightly yank at his hair and then get serious. "Be with me tonight, Luke. Stay with me. Give me tonight."
LUKE
You freeze under him. He asked for tonight. You suddenly remember what Bob said. How Reid was planning on being busy tomorrow and maybe even the next day. So he wants you tonight and then what? Be on his merry way? Spend the weekend with someone else?
But what he just said. He can’t stop thinking about you. He has feelings for you. You wonder why you never asked him about anyone else. He is so gorgeous and he fascinates you. Surely a guy with Reid’s looks wouldn’t have any trouble getting men. Of course there is another man...or men.
You suddenly feel like you can’t breathe. You know just one night of Reid is not what you want. You don’t know how you will handle only having one night. You think you should leave before he sees your heart on the floor in a million pieces. You pull his hands away from your face.
You gently push him off of you, stand up and turn away from him. "Reid. I...I think I should probably go. I want this. More than you’ll ever know. But I don’t think it’s..."
"Luke." He’s behind you, his arms wrapped around your middle, his chin on your shoulder. "Hey. Listen, I didn’t mean to pressure you. We don’t have to...I mean, whatever you’re comfortable with. It’s really okay if we don’t...just stay. What do you think?"
You loosen his arms and turn around to face him. "I do. I want to stay. But I have feelings...for you. I don’t expect anything in return. I know you don’t do relationships. I just don’t know..."
"Let’s not over think this thing, okay? It’s New Years Eve. Why don’t we have some of that ice cream and pie you insisted on stopping for and we’ll watch the ball drop. The one in Times Square, that is."
You laugh at that. "Okay. Sounds good."
"Sit. I’ll bring it." He walks into the kitchen and you see him cut one large piece of pie and scoop out a generous amount of ice cream on top. He grabs two spoons and walks back into the living room.
He sits next to you on the couch. You smile and say, "That looks like enough for you, where’s mine?"
"Very funny Snyder." He gives you a spoon and you both dig in. "Grab that remote and turn on the television. Let’s watch CNN. Anderson Cooper is hot. Not as hot as you, of course." He wipes some pie crumbs from the side of your mouth and licks his finger.
You suddenly feel shy and foolish. You know you want him. You want to jump on him right now. You think maybe it would be worse to not be with him and never know how it would have been. One night having everything you’ve ever dreamed of. If that’s the way it has to be, it’s what you’ll take. You think you are falling in love with Reid. You’re not going to walk away from your one shot.
"Reid. I don’t want pie. I don’t want to watch Anderson Cooper. I don't want to watch the ball drop. I want you. I want you to take me to bed. And I’m a Grimaldi, so if you haven't heard, we get what we want." You take the pie plate from him and put it on the coffee table. You turn off the television, stand up and hold out your hand.
He looks confused. He frowns and says, "Luke, I don’t give a shit what your name is. If you aren’t ready for this..."
"I’m ready. I was ready in that freezer. I’ve been ready every night thinking about if I’d ever be with you again. So, come on, Reid. Take me to your room." You are determined now and feel yourself getting aroused just remembering how it felt to have him pressed up against you.
He takes your hand. "In that case, what are we waiting for?"
He switches off the lights and leads you into his bedroom, not bothering to clean up. He stops at the door, turns and looks at you with eyebrows raised.
You nod your head. "I’m sure Reid. Please..."
"I’ll be right back. Make yourself at home," he says and walks through a door you assume is the bathroom. You look around the room. It is large with big windows lining the back wall. There is a dresser, a desk, and two bedside tables, one on either side of what has to be the largest bed you’ve ever seen. You see what appears to be a walk-in closet that is filled with boxes, books and not too many articles of clothing. The bedroom, like Reid’s office, is sparse and impersonal, but it looks like Reid to you. You feel warm and excited.
You sit down on the bed and take off your shoes and socks. You look up and Reid is standing over you.
You stand and he is looking you in the eye. He leans in and puts his forehead against yours, as he begins to unbutton your shirt. He pushes your shirt from your shoulders and lets it fall until it lands on the floor. He backs away and runs his hands from your shoulders down your chest, over your torso and stops at your belt. You look down at his hands and back up into his eyes.
He removes your belt and then your pants. You feel yourself getting harder in your boxers. You run your hands down the front of his sweater and when you reach his pants, you open them and pull them off. He starts to pull his sweater over his head.
"No. Don’t. Keep it on." You are panting. He gives you a funny look. "You look so sexy in that sweater. I want to be with you in that black sweater."
He smiles slyly at you. "Whatever fulfills your fantasies, Luciano." He pushes you down on the bed. "Get in," he says.
You lay back and he is on top of you, his lips on yours. He starts to kiss you, slowly at first and then he forces his tongue in your mouth. He is running it across your teeth until it meets yours. The kiss is powerful. You feel overstimulated, like you could come from just this kiss. You start to thrust your erection into his.
He groans, puts his hands between you, and yanks down your boxers. Then he removes his own. You gasp as you feel his cock rubbing up against yours.
"Reid," you say hoarsely, your hands under his sweater rubbing up and down his back and then stopping to caress his perfect round cheeks. "You feel so good. I want to feel you inside me."
He nips your chin and then moves to lick your neck. He is marking you and you quiver at the feel of him sucking your throat and down your chest. Your whole body is tingling as he works his way down until you feel his tongue on your inner thigh. He’s inhaling you, kissing and tasting. And then he takes you into his mouth all the way and you swear loudly.
You’ve never felt anything like this in your entire life. The things he’s doing with his tongue make you feel like you could pass out. He’s found all of your pleasure points and he’s using his mouth and hand to pump you. You know you aren’t going to last.
"Reid...I’m going to...oh fuck, Reid...this is so..." and he sucks harder and faster until you feel yourself let go. You are coming hard and long. You don't remember it ever feeling this intense. He swallows you down and slowly disengages. He slides back up and kisses you. You can taste yourself in his mouth and you are getting aroused again.
His mouth is hovering over yours. "You are so beautiful. There is not one inch of you that I don’t want to touch or taste. I want to learn your whole body, Luke. And I plan on spending all night getting a very...thorough...education." And he sprinkles kisses on your face and jaw between every word.
"I want you inside me," you say, feeling how hard he is against your thigh. He reaches over to his side table, opens the top drawer and grabs a condom and some lube.
He is kneeling between your legs. "C’mere. Put your ankles over my shoulders." You raise your legs up and feel his fingers cold with lube preparing you. You are hard again and begin to rut against his hand. He starts to laugh. "Hey, hey. Just relax."
You try to calm yourself but the way his fingers are hitting your prostrate is making you see stars. He slowly extracts them. He is looking down at you, lust in his eyes.
"I’m ready. Please...want you so much..." is all you can manage.
He smiles and in one movement lifts his sweater over his head and starts to enter you. His cock is long and perfect and you want all of him. He is taking his time, trying to keep your discomfort to a minimum. You are looking at him, his clear blue eyes so serious, his curls moving freely and his body firm and toned and gorgeous. You lift your hips and he presses all the way in.
It is the most amazing thing you’ve ever felt. Reid is inside you and you start to move. You are looking into his eyes as he sets the rhythm. You know without a doubt that this is more than lust. You think by the way he is looking at you, he knows it, too. You fit together perfectly. He is thrusting in and out, your breathing labored.
"Luciano," he pants, his voice low and raspy. "This is...you are...What are you doing to me? So fucking hot..."
You move your legs so they are wrapped around his back, and he leans in to kiss you. "I’ve never felt like this before," you whisper. "Never yearned for someone the way..." and his tongue is in your mouth, the kiss full of want and longing and something you don’t recognize.
His movements are becoming more frantic and he’s plunging deep inside you. He wraps his hand around your cock and gives it a few strong tugs. You moan loud and long, screaming his name and release all over your stomach and his. He lets go and you feel him jerk and explode inside you. He collapses on top of you and you kiss his neck while he rides out his orgasm.
He rolls on his side and you lie facing each other. You feel sweaty and sticky and sated. You don’t want to ever move.
"God, you are beautiful. That was pretty fucking incredible." He has his hand on your back and is lazily running his thumb up and down it until he reaches your ass. He lets his fingers graze your crack and settles his hand on the cheek.
You can’t stop smiling. "It really was. You are..."
"The world’s greatest lover. So I’ve been told." He smacks you lightly on the ass where his hand had been resting.
"Full of yourself much?" you ask, snorting.
"Just stating the facts, Snyder. I knew we’d be great together and I was right." He leans in, kisses your nose and then bites your chin.
Just feeling him touch you is getting you hard again. "We are great together." You have your hand in his hair and are wrapping his curls around your fingers. "I could get used to this."
As soon as you say it, you wish you could un-say it. You knew what you were getting into before this all started. Now you’ll have to figure out a way to deal with it.
"Well," he states rolling on his back, "I think I’m ready for a shower."
And there it is. Your cue to get the hell out. You sit up and start looking for your clothes. You can’t look him in the eye. It’s best if you just get your things and get out. Let him get ready for his big weekend.
"Oh, okay. So, I guess I can see myself out. Thanks Reid." You pull on your boxers and find your shirt on the floor. You are frantically looking for your pants. "Thanks for everything. Happy New Year, Reid." In your fervor you button your shirt wrong and start to put your pants on backward.
You look over. Reid is sitting up in bed looking so gorgeous you think you could cry. You can’t read his expression. He is scowling. "What the hell do you think you’re doing?"
REID
You’re in shock. You are working to maintain a calm exterior while internally you are panicking. Why is Luke leaving? It wouldn’t surprise you to find out you had offended him, as you offend most people. But you really can’t figure out what just happened. What could have caused him to suddenly act like this was all nothing but a big mistake?
You had just been thinking about how you really are a genius, taking the next few days off. You want to get to know Luke. Take him out to eat, go see a movie, maybe even spend a few hours with his crazy family. And now he’s just going to walk out? You’ve never met anyone who sends such mixed signals.
"I’m sure you have things to do, so I'll just...I will never regret our time together." He is really struggling with his clothes and you suddenly find this all amusing. "I had the best night of my life."
You huff out a little laugh. "Then why are you in such a rush to end it?"
"Now you’re laughing at me. There’s nothing funny about this. Somehow in one week I’ve managed to develop stronger feelings for you than I think I’ve ever had for anybody. But I know you have plans, and I won’t try to get in the way of them."
"I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. Actually I stopped listening after the strong feelings part. I’m not even sure what that means, "feelings" being unfamiliar territory for me, but I think there's a very good chance I'm having them right back." You are sitting up on your elbows watching him as he hunts under the bed for a missing sock.
He looks at you, his eyebrows raised, his nostrils flared. "Well thanks for sharing. When you get through doing whatever it is that you’re so anxious to do this weekend, give me a call. We can talk about all the money you want me donate."
Now you really have no idea what he’s talking about and this suddenly isn't so funny anymore. You’re starting to lose your temper. "Fuck you, Luke. You think THAT’s what this was all about? Let me assure you I’ve never in my entire life had to whore myself out to get backers for a project, and I have no intention of starting now."
"I didn’t mean..."
"Then what did you mean? Because from where I’m sitting, it sure does look like you’re the one who got what he wanted and is now running away."
"I’m not running away." He looks up at you briefly, guilt flashing across his face.
"Ya..." you spit. "You can’t get out of here fast enough." You find your boxers somewhere by your feet and jump out of the bed, pulling them on.
He’s given up looking for his sock and he turns toward the door, shoes in hand. If you weren’t so pissed off right now you’d think he looked fucking adorable.
You block the doorway and see fire in his eyes. "One half hour. I was late by one half hour. It wasn’t even my fault! But you couldn’t wait. You couldn’t have enough faith in me..."
"I told you. We had to get to the clinic. And what does that have to do with you leaving now? You’re mad at me because I didn’t wait for you? Did you just suddenly remember that? If you're so pissed about me leaving, why did you come here in the first place?"
He looks confused. You know you are. "Maybe it wasn’t because I was late. Maybe you already had these plans. I mean, we hadn’t made any...plans, that is. Why would I assume that you would want to spend time with me, just because it’s what I wanted."
"I do want to spend time with you. I want to spend a lot of time with you. But I can’t do that if you leave."
"What about your other date? When is that supposed to happen?" He runs his hand through his hair shifting his weight away from from you.
"What other date, Luke? I’ll ask again, because you obviously missed it the first time. What the hell are you talking about?"
"What you told Bob. That’s what I’m talking about, Reid."
"I’ve told Bob lots of things on lots of occasions. You’re going to have to be more specific than that."
"You told Bob not to expect you tomorrow. Or the next day, if things went the way you hoped they would. Well, you can’t make that happen with me around. So if you’ll just..." He motions for you to move aside.
You think you get it. This jealous Luke is just about the most luscious thing you’ve ever seen. "That’s what this little freak out is all about?"
"I’m not freaking out. It’s not like I'm your boyfriend or anything. I mean, we hardly know each other. You weren’t obligated to tell me about any other gu..."
You’d heard enough. You grab him by the collar of his haphazardly buttoned shirt and pull him against you. You cover his mouth with yours and, as he opens his to protest, you slip your tongue in. You are trying to convey so much through this one kiss. Trying to show him how you feel. You have your hands on his ass and are pressing in so he can feel your erection against his thigh. You feel him starting to respond. You can’t believe what this guy is doing to you.
You kiss your way across his jaw and up into his ear. "You’re such an idiot," you say, almost in a whisper.
He snorts, "Now there’s the Reid I know." He starts to pull away but you hold on tighter, not releasing him from your grasp.
"You, Mr. Snyder. You’re the person I was hoping to spend my time off with. There is no one else. I have no interest in anyone else."
He looks you in the eye and you see the sides of his mouth start to curl up into a smile. "Me? You want to spend the weekend with me?"
"Don’t act so surprised. I figure if I could survive a whole day of your incessant whining and constant questions locked in a freezer, then I’m sure I could figure out a way to put up with you in a warmer environment for an entire weekend. Unless, of course, that doesn’t interest you. Or you’d rather go hang out with an abusive ex."
"Jesus Reid, how can you be so...hot and so cold at the same time?" He watches his hand as it is following the waves in your hair on the side of your head. He stops to wrap his fingers around the curls.
"I’ll be whatever you want me to be, Luke," you say in your most sultry voice.
He looks back at you and mimics your voice. "You know what I want? Let me tell you." He brushes his lips down the side of your face until his tongue is on your mouth. He runs it across your lower lip and then bites down. You feel yourself getting harder. "I want to ride you," he says in your mouth. "I want to look at your face while you're inside me."
"Fuck, Luciano," you growl. "Who are you?" You help him out of his clothes, pull your boxers off, sit on the bed and drag him down on top of you again. You give him a half smile. "And later, I think maybe we'll switch things around, provided that's something you'd want to do."
He’s straddling your lap and you are sucking on his neck. You feel his body shiver. He pushes you and you fall back onto the bed. He has his hands on your shoulders and he scraps them down the front of you. Your eyes are locked. He smirks and takes both of your cocks in one hand and starts to jerk you off.
"I want to do everything with you. You’re all I think about Reid." His hand is working slowly and the sensation of his long thick cock rubbing against yours is making you crazy.
Your hands are on his thighs. You squeeze them. "If you keep doing what you’re doing, I’m not going to make it much further than this."
Luke smiles and releases your throbbing cocks. You feel him move down your body. His head is suddenly between your legs and he has you in his mouth. He is looking up at you with his big brown eyes and you moan. You lay your head back, closing your eyes. You think his mouth was made for sucking cock. And he is good at it. Better than good. Maybe even the best you've ever had.
You suddenly stiffen. You are feeling things completely alien to you. You know you want this. You’ve known since you left him with that jerk on Christmas day. But this is not what you were expecting. How you thought being with Luke Snyder would make you feel. You decide it’s time to regain some control.
You lift up your head and grab his hair in an attempt to get his attention. "Hey...hey Luke." Your voice is rough and hoarse. "C’mere. Come up here."
He looks at you, works his mouth slowly up your shaft and licks the pre-cum from the tip. He brings his lips back to yours and thrusts his tongue in your mouth. You can taste yourself. You kiss him back. It’s fierce and desperate. You want him to understand what you are feeling, recognize what you want to say without using words. He ends the kiss and touches your forehead with his own.
He’s breathing heavily. "Is it possible that this is happening?"
"I want to be inside of you." You don’t think you can wait one more moment.
He sits up and is straddling you once again. He grabs the lube and a condom from the table. You watch as he squirts some lube into your hand. He opens the condom and rolls it on you. You slowly prepare him.
"I’m ready. Please..." He is pleading. You start to remove your fingers and he lifts up his ass. They slip out of him. Your hands are on his hips as he lowers himself on you.
"Luke," you whisper. He starts to move. It is fast and frantic as he raises himself up and you impale him over and over. You know at this pace you won’t last long. You grab his hips and he relaxes his movements. He finds his rhythm and you angle yourself to hit his prostrate with every thrust. He leans in and kisses you, and drops his head on your shoulder.
You know he’s almost ready. Without warning, he screams out your name and releases in frenzied spasms, even though you never touched his cock. You feel him clench around you. He looks so beautiful and this is all so intimate. There is a surge that rises in you as you erupt inside of him.
He falls on top of you panting as you ride out your orgasms together. As your bodies quiet, you hear a tune coming from the floor.
Luke lifts up his head and gasps. "Oh my God!" he squeals.
You roll your eyes wondering how he just managed to kill this moment. "Do I even want to know why you sound like a 14 year old girl at a Justin Bieber concert?"
"That was my phone alarm. It’s in my pant pocket. The phone that is. I had it set for midnight!" He leans in and starts dropping kisses all over your face and giggling.
"And this is important, why?"
"Happy New Year, Dr. Oliver." He rolls off of you and stretches out next to you.
His glee is almost contagious. "Happy New Year, Luciano Eduardo Grimaldi Snyder. What do you say we ring in the New Year with a shower?"
"I want to dance with you. Let’s dance. We don’t even need music." He is already up and pulling your wrist to get you out of bed.
You jump up. "You want to dance? You got it. Go get in the shower. I’ll be right back."
He starts to protest but you push him toward the bathroom. You run through the house naked and into Katie’s bathroom where you find exactly what you’re looking for. You grab it and head back to your room. You hope that Katie and the kid don’t decide to choose this moment to surprise you with an early return from their trip to California. Then you realize you don’t really give a shit. That she would probably get a thrill out of seeing all this.
You walk into your bathroom and stop in your tracks. You see him there, standing under the shower head. His legs are spread slightly, his arms are up and against the wall and his head is tilted upward. You feel a rush inside you. You swallow as you walk toward him. You marvel at how exquisite he is.
You join him and, as you are adhering the object to the wall, he turns to you. He bursts out laughing. "What is that?" he asks. "Can’t be in the shower without your toys? I have so much to learn about you."
"This is the answer to your request, so I wouldn’t make fun of it...or me." You pinch his side being careful to avoid the scar you are itching to examine. You decide to wait until he’s more comfortable talking about that part of his life. But still, you want to know every detail.
"It looks like a frog."
"Good observation, Einstein. That’s because it IS a frog. It’s Jacob’s Frog Shower Radio." Once you are satisfied that it is securely fastened to wall, you turn it on. You find the station that plays all the old time slow dance music. You hear Nat King Cole, so appropriately singing:
"Unforgettable
That's what you are
Unforgettable
Tho' near or far"
You turn and look him in the eye. "Dance with me Luke," you say softly. "You are absolutely unforgettable."
You put your arms around Luke’s waist and he presses into you, his hands on your shoulders. You feel the water splashing down on you. He is wet and soft and sensual in your arms. You are swaying to the music, but don’t move your feet. His hands are around your neck, tugging at the curls there and he leans in to kiss you. You think you could stay like this forever. As your bodies move together under the soaking stream, he hugs you and whispers in your ear, "Thank you. Thank you for giving me all this...everything."
"My pleasure. Hey, I am admittedly no expert when it comes to this relationship thing, and I'm sure I'll figure out some way to screw this up. But I know it's what I want. Tell me that you want this, too." You can’t believe you are admitting that out loud.
"I do. I want to be with you. We have so much to talk about. I want to get to know all there is to about you." His face is so open and you see how easy this all is for him.
You decide it’s time to work outside your comfort zone. That Luke deserves it. "Alright then. I agree. We do have a lot to talk about. How we’re going to make this thing...whatever it is between us...work. And we will. We will talk. But not tonight."
"Yes. Tonight is not for talking. Tonight is for this. For us." He leans in and brushes his lips against yours. He is smooth and warm, but you pull away.
"Before we go any further, there is one stipulation. And this is a deal breaker." You sound stern.
"Just tell me. I’ll do whatever you say."
He looks a little scared and you smirk. "You will never, under any circumstances, attempt to get me into a Santa Claus costume ever again."
He bursts out laughing again. "You would have made the sexiest Santa ever."
Your eyes meet. The music and the softness of his damp body against yours is completely relaxing you.
"Happy New Year Luke," you say in a low voice.
"Happy New Year Reid," he answers with a small smile.
And as the room begins to fill with steam, you feel it envelop you with a warmth and comfort that you don't ever think you've felt before. It feels right. You know, without a doubt, you are meant to be with this man.
The song ends but you keep moving, your foreheads pressed together. You look him in the eye. "This must be what they call kismet."
He smiles and says, "This must be what they call falling in love."
Epilogue
