Grace stood, water teeming down her face, hands on hips looking every inch the outraged woman. "I was nineteen and about the same size I am now. Thank you very much." She growled indignantly before issuing a brusque cranky command. "Show me the bathroom." But she didn't wait for him, she stalked off in high dudgeon. Grace marched back toward the house and began to follow a path that veered toward the left side of the house. Still stewing, she headed round the corner of the house, marching blindly at a furious pace. She'd show him just how fat she was. The man was blind, totally blind. She was slim, curvy but slim. She hadn't put on weight. Probably lost it if anything. What with all the running around she did. She was probably at least a stone lighter. She didn't know for sure, as she hadn't checked her weight for over a decade. Fat. Hmmph.
Joshua quickly caught up with her. "You aren't fat Grace."
"Damn right I'm not." She threw over her shoulder but didn't stop to argue the point.
Joshua fought down his rueful smile. They walked past three windows before they reached what both recognised as the bathroom. The slats were similar to those at Whangamata. Grace flashed him a withering smile. He held his answering smile in check. Together, in silence, they gingerly slid the glass panes out of the metal brackets and laid them on the grassy verge.
When all ten slats were out, she turned to him and said, "Would you like to try?" She knew full well that Joshua's bulk would never make it through the small window.
He smiled, "Ladies first."
"I'll need a leg up."
Joshua shrugged and stifled a grin. He'd make it up to her. Grace pushed several wet strands of hair from her face and waited for him to crouch down. Lacing his fingers to form a step, Joshua gave Grace a leg up. She braced her hands on the window sill and pushed, lifting her leg and hooking it over the window sill. Joshua gradually straightened. He knew he'd never hear the end of this. He was also amazed at just how agile she was. A veritable rubber band.
"See you soon." She slid one leg into the space created by the window and then inched through the small space into the tiny room. "Although," she muttered angrily, "I should leave you out there after that fat comment." She had to duck her head and scrunch her shoulders, but she made it. She disappeared into the bathroom. Several minutes later she opened the back door to him.
"Fat, hmm?" She challenged, grinning smugly, reproach replaced with mirth.
"Beautifully endowed." He amended as he dropped her overnight bag on the floor inside the house and leaned toward her to kiss her briefly on the mouth, before she could move away. "Just perfect." He muttered happily as he headed back out again.
He made several trips to the car, carrying in their groceries for the week and their baggage. They certainly weren't going to starve. Grace stacked the foods from the grocery bags in the fridge and in the pantry in the kitchen. Joshua had shopped for an army platoon rather than just the two of them. Unless he was expecting others.
"Who's joining us?"
"No-one." He frowned as he put another bag on the table. There she went again. Another illogical question.
"Who's going to eat all this?"
"Us." He disappeared out of the back door again. Ok, so perhaps her question hadn't been quite so illogical given the amount of food. Grace hadn't found any linen or towels in any of the bags Joshua had carried in, so she had simply got on with unpacking their supplies and waited for him to return from the car. She was beginning to feel cold as her wet clothes clung to her.
"Here." He retrieved a towel from one of the holdalls, and handed the towel to Grace. Grace took the large bath sheet and briskly rubbed her arms with the material.
"Thanks" She looked for her bag. Now she could dry off and get into some dry clothes. Joshua turned to leave.
"Where are.." She started to ask.
"Just getting some firewood in." Joshua read the question before she could finish, "We need some heat in here, if we aren't going to get pneumonia." He found the shed keys hooked up beside the back door key and walked over to the door, "And get out of those wet clothes." He went in search of some logs. The wooden shed was well stocked with dry logs of wood and he carried as many as he could back to the house. By the time he had returned, Grace had changed into a pair of leggings and a large over sized blue chambray shirt. She had the towel wrapped around her head and was rubbing her arms briskly. The first thing Joshua noticed was that she was bra less. He could tell because her nipples were pressing against her shirt. Then he noticed she was still shivering.
"Cold." He came up to her and began to briskly rub her arms and back. "Better?" He rubbed for several minutes more.
Much better then better, Grace thought. This was bliss. She nodded contently. Her skin began to get pins and needles as the cold was swiftly replaced by warmth. But she wasn't going to complain.
"Ummm." She murmured as he continued to roughly stroke her skin and she continued to nuzzle closer.
He smiled, "I'll get the fire started."
"It has." She quipped as she laced her arms around his neck and leaned into him, "I'm ..."
He didn't allow her to finish the sentence. His arms snaked around her waist, pulling her to him, holding her tightly as he lowered his head. His lips touched hers, gently at first, and then more insistently. Her lips parted and his tongue skimmed past her teeth to meet her tongue. They tasted each other, devouring, sucking, pulling. When they broke apart Grace was much, much warmer. So was Joshua.
She tipped her head up to look into his eyes as she said breathlessly, "I didn't pack for this weather. It is supposed to be summer." Still wrapped in his arms she pressed against him. Her shirt got wet from the contact.
"Check the bedrooms, there must be blankets around." He suggested. "I'll get the Kent going."
It was some minutes later that he finally managed to light the fire in the Kent free standing fireplace. The large metal box was old, but it managed to throw out a lot of heat. He adjusted the vents on the front and waited for the logs to start blazing before closing the glass fronted door. It was a small cosy room and the heat the fireplace could generate in a few minutes would soon disperse the damp chill that was still in the air. Grace returned with two wool blankets. The fire had just taken and was sending a faint smell of burning manuka wood and scorching dust through the room. She placed one blanket on the couch and wrapped the other around her shoulders. Without batting an eye, Joshua began to strip off in front of the fire. He had already kicked off his boat shoes. He peeled off his T-shirt, unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans and eased them down his hips. Then he stepped out of them and calmly slid his navy boxer shorts off. Grace watched in a trance, as he rubbed himself dry. He pulled another T shirt and a pair of shorts out of his bag. He turned to find Grace staring at him, with her mouth open in astonishment so he paused silently in the doorway an eyebrow cocked in silent question. He had his damp jeans and shirt in one hand, a towel on his shoulder and his dry clothes in the other hand.
"You o.k.?" He asked, as if it was an every day occurrence for a man to strip naked in front of her and then stand there, totally exposed, fully aroused, holding a mundane conversation.
"You aren't shy are you?" She finally croaked. Her eyes now back on his face.
His eyes narrowed as understanding dawned, "I didn't think you'd mind." Then he dropped the wet clothes onto the floor and pulled on a pair of shorts, before saying dryly, "You've seen it all before."
"Yes." She stumbled into chagrined silence. "Hmm." Groaned Grace as she pulled the blanket closer to her. She edged toward the fireplace, turned and faced it, clutching her blanket tightly with her left hand, and holding her right palm out toward the emanating heat. She wasn't sure what else to say.
Silently he walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You, future Mrs De Souza are a whole heap of contradictions." He turned her slowly to face him and standing in front of her he took hold of the blanket edges and pulled her to him. Joshua kissed her forehead, her nose and her lips before he said, "Tonight we will make sure that you don't get embarrassed just looking at me."
"I don't get embarrassed looking at you." She mumbled into his chest.
"No?" He quizzed, "then that open mouth stare was, er, let me see, admiration?"
She peered at him from beneath her lashes and then said, "Yes." She held his gaze when his eyes widened and his brow quirked. He could see that she was thinking about something. He could see it in her eyes. She was planning something. He was beginning to read the signals.
Joshua beamed and then shook his head, "Grace." He said encouragingly hoping to prompt her into speech. She was planning something. He just knew it.
"Want to make out?"
"Thought you'd never ask."
He took her hand and led her to the sofa that pulled out into a bed. He tugged at the lower cushions a couple of times until the couch opened out into the bed. He placed his blanket on the surface. But before he had a chance to do anything else, she had pushed him down. He lay there, sprawled against the soft wool, a tantalising question in his twinkling eyes, part astonishment part query. He didn't have to wait long for the answer. Her blanket fell in a heap around her feet as she came nearer. Joshua's eyes invited her to come closer. Grace kept her eyes on him as she came and stood a few inches from the bed. She had her eyes firmly trained on his as she very slowly began to edge the waistband of her leggings down past her hips. Slowly. Very, very slowly. The lycra reached her ankles she stepped out of them. That left her thigh length shirt. He might have been cool a few minutes ago, but right now he was close to super heated and she was still strategically covered. He groaned silently as her slow strip tease continued. She began to unbutton the chambray shirt from the top, deliberately sedate, serenely exposing skin. But not enough skin. He caught fleeting glimpses of her breast. Golden skin, smooth golden skin. He was no longer cold.
"Watching you is driving me insane." He gritted, fighting to keep his body under control. A lost battle. He was hard, tenting the cotton, straining to be free. He couldn't wait much longer. As soon as the last button was undone, he pulled her to lie on top of him. She went willingly, chuckling nervously. His fingers lightly stroked against the underside of her breast and he groaned. His left hand moved in sensuous circles to caress her hip.
She was lying between his legs, feeling him pressed hard against her, savouring every sensation. She pressed against him, rubbing against him, his eyes glazed. Their eyes were dilated but focussed on each other. She slid down, he let her go. She needed no further encouragement. She followed the path of her hands with the touch of her lips. Sheer instinct and the need to get near him dictated her actions. Even though she didn't know it, her very inexperience was turning him on. The muscles just above his shorts clenched as she brushed them. She liked the feel of that tension, liked the way the muscles trembled when she let her tongue lightly trace faint meaningless symbols on his skin. She tugged at his shorts, inching them slowly down, baring more skin to explore. Joshua was breathing hard. His chest rose and fell erratically as he fought to keep some degree of control. Damn it, he was going to come before she even got to him he thought, just before she pressed a hard licking kiss against his flat fluttering stomach. Then she was moving again. His whole body shuddered.
"You're beautiful." She told him huskily as the shorts were pushed further down his hips. He had enough brain power to remember to lift his hips to help her ease his shorts down his thighs. Cool air touched his heated skin. A shiver of lust ran through his tall frame.
She looked up at him then, briefly, seeing his parted lips, the tiny muscle clenching at his jawline, hearing his troubled breathing and looking into dilated eyes. His hands tangled in her hair, when she kissed him, trying to still her roving, fervent, but gentle mouth. She mouthed his balls, then returned to rim him with her tongue. She had never done this before, but given his reaction what she was doing must be right. So she continued with her on site education.
Joshua was a quivering wreck. He hauled her up before he lost it. He pulled her to him. Mustering his diminishing strength he was about to roll her over, when she stopped him, with an emphatic, "No."
He looked poleaxed and confused, but he obliged automatically, as he began to question her command, "But I.." He looked at her in total bafflement, "I thought you wanted..." His voice was hoarse as he battled to make sense of her change of mind.
His body was ready to explode. But he had been brought up to respect a woman's right to change her mind, to say no at any point.
She sensed his confusion, intuition told her he was struggling for self preservation, so she quickly explained, "I've always wanted to make love in front of an open fire, in a deserted cottage, with the sea roaring in the background." She smiled down at him and shyly admitted, "With me in charge."
That stopped his panic. His eyes roved over her flushed body. She was as aroused as him. The panic dissipated as quickly as it had arrived. A big broad sexy smile slowly covered his face as he realized she didn't want to stop.
Joshua swallowed convulsively as he took in the expression in her eyes. "I'm all yours." He whispered hoarsely wondering how long he'd last if she continued the way she had started.