Dana's teeth were chattering, even though she didn't know what was the reason: the cold or the tiredness. How long was Juice gone? She had no sense of time. For a while she'd squatted down behind a fallen tree, but when her knees started to ache she had sat down on it. Luckily there was no one on the beach. She heard nothing, except for the crashing waves. The fear that had held sway over her a while ago, was gone now. There was no doubt Juice would find her back. He might not be walking completely straight, but he wasn't blind drunk.
After a long time a figure appeared on the horizon. The person was running in her direction. Hesitating, she stood up. Was it him? Or someone else? She couldn't do much except waiting, and she felt relief flowing through her veins as he walked to the tree line, looking around.
"Dane?" she heard him call.
"Thank god," she muttered, freeing herself from the bushes. Before he could say anything else, she launched herself at him and held him tight. She hadn't been really afraid something would happen to him, but nevertheless she was overjoyed he was back. With an intense kiss she thanked him for solving their problem as he had promised.
She let go of him and looked at his pink dressing gown. "Sexy."
"I know. Just wait until you see your own metamorphosis." Smirking he handed her a bundle of clothes.
Dana shook the garment and put it on. It was a shapeless flower dress that was out of fashion even for granny's.
"The hell is this? A Halloween costume? Well, you know at least what I will look like in fifty years."
His hand disappeared underneath the baggy skirt and grabbed her ass. "Still hot."
Chuckling she pushed his hand away. "We've had enough sex on the beach for tonight. Don't want you to plunder the wardrobe of another grandma. You didn't make a sleepwalking granny do a striptease for you, right?"
She let her hand slip into his hand while they walked off the beach, back to the apartment they hired.
"I gave an old lady a heart-attack when I showed up at her door naked. After that I could just walk to her wardrobe."
"Poor woman. She probably thought she had a wet dream when she saw you."
She smiled at the sight of his wide grin. Butterflies raced through her stomach as she realized once more how lucky she was for knowing him. Her life was so different compared to a year ago. It felt like she had traded a world full of darkness for pink clouds. Even when they were on the run, having left everything behind. She stretched her neck and kissed his stubbly cheek. "I love you, goof."
The smile he showed her, was so genuine and full of love it caused tears in her eyes. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close.
"I love you to, sweetie. More than I've ever loved anyone else."
His lips touched her temple and Dana closed her eyes for a while, knowing she felt exactly the same.
. . .
Dana yawned when they got back at the little house. She leaned against a flower box as Juice climbed on the balcony and forced the doors. It was easier than Dana had expected and a minute later he opened the front door and waved with his arm. "Come in, milady."
"Yeah yeah, you're a real gentlemen today." She bumped his shoulder as she walked past him.
In the kitchen she filled a glass with water, then she opened the fridge. She was hungry as hell. While bowing forward to see if there was fruit in the crisper drawer, she felt how Juice moved behind her. His hands curved around her hips and he pressed his waist against her bottom.
"Really?" she muttered as he rolled up her dress. "You wanna take me right now, with my head in the fridge?"
The grasp around her hips steadied while he rubbed himself against her. "You're the one bending over, wearing nothing underneath that dress."
She cursed the tensing muscles in her lower body. In a flash she could see herself bend over the kitchen table, while he entered her from behind, his lips gliding down her vertebrae, just like he had done a few days ago. Unconsciously she pressed herself closer to him while her hand was gliding across the fruit.
"Want an apple too?"
"I want you."
"You already have me."
She still grabbed an extra apple out of the drawer, closed the fridge and turned around, her dress lowering down again. She tapped his nose as she noticed the disappointment in his eyes. "That old lady might have given you a boost, but I'm tired man." Her teeth sank in the fruit and she bit off a chunk. "And hungry." She held the other apple in front of his face until he bit in it.
"I'm gonna take a shower and sleep." Her hand glided through the opening of his robe and she caressed his chest. "Thank you for this unforgettable night."
She waited until he had bitten off the apple, pecked his lips and walked to the stairs.