Love This Life: Love's Great Adventure Series Book 2: Love's Great Adventure Series Book 2 (17 page)

After the massage, she was treated to an apricot facial and then a delicious lunch in the café. In the afternoon, Tess relaxed in the heated whirlpool, read her novel, and then sat down in the beautician’s chair to have her hair and makeup done.

Looking in the mirror at her reflection after the beautician was finished, Tess hardly recognized herself. Her hair was cut and blow-dried straight, the added highlights catching the light. Her complexion was glowing—she felt like a new person. She felt beautiful.

Tess arrived home at four o’clock. It was unusually quiet; Sebastian and Mattie were nowhere in sight. She looked in the bedrooms first, but they were empty. She kicked off her shoes and padded into the living room. There, sprawled out on the couch, lay Sebastian with Mattie nestled on top of him, sleeping peacefully. Watching them brought a smile to her face. Sebastian’s deep breaths made Mattie rise and fall on his chest, her small fist clutching her father’s navy polo shirt, her mouth open with a little string of drool leaving a mark on his shirt. Tess had never seen anything so sweet or sexy in her entire life.

She slowly approached her sleeping family and gently pulled Mattie from Sebastian’s chest. It woke him with a start. “Shh, I didn’t mean to wake you,” she whispered to her husband. “I’ll just put Mattie in her crib.”

Sebastian stood, stretching tall, his arms over his head and his bare abs peeking out as the polo rode up his stomach. He sauntered into his daughter’s room behind Tess, who laid Mattie on the mattress in the crib. Placing a cotton blanket over the infant, she rubbed Mattie’s back. The infant remained asleep, blissfully unaware.

Sebastian curled his arms around Tess and kissed her on the neck. Whenever he kissed her there, a jolt of desire rushed right to her center. She turned around and eyed him up. His hair was mussed, polo shirt was untucked; the top button of his jeans was undone and he wasn’t wearing a belt.

“Welcome home,” he whispered. “Did you enjoy your day at the spa?”

Tess took him by the hand and lead him out of Mattie’s room, closing the door behind them with a soft click. A wicked smile formed on her face as she grabbed him by the belt loops and pulled him into their bedroom. She kissed him with passion, her hot tongue melding with his.

“Mrs. Irons, what is it that has you so aroused today?” Sebastian playfully questioned as he untied the belt on her wrap dress.

“You’re so damn sexy,” she muttered between kisses, pulling the polo over his head. The tips of her fingers traced the hard, sculpted plane of his chest, making their way down his abs, tracing the light trail of wiry hair that started at his navel and disappeared under his boxers.

Sebastian frantically stepped out of his jeans and boxers, his erection springing free. He slipped the dress off her shoulders and let it fall onto the floor. Standing back, he admired her body.

Tess stood there in her bra and panties while Sebastian’s eyes ravished her. She enjoyed the view of his naked body and licked her lips at the thought of what would come next.

“God, you’re so beautiful, it hurts,” Sebastian muttered, taking a quick step toward Tess and enveloping her in his arms. He trailed urgent kisses along her neck and down to her cleavage. Cupping her breasts, he squeezed them and felt her nipples pebble under the light blue lace.

“Make love to me, Bas.”

Oh, I plan on it,
Sebastian thought to himself as he flicked the clasp of her bra open and pulled the bra off. Slowly, he pushed her backwards and laid her on the bed. Sebastian continued to kiss her luscious mouth while his hands explored her naked body. He missed this closeness with his wife. A part of his mind wanted to take it slow and savor her like a fine wine, while the other part wanted to bury himself deep inside her and never leave.

He grabbed a condom from the bedside drawer and stood up to roll it on.

“Let me do it,” Tess said as she swung her legs over the side of the bed and sat up to face him.

He handed her the foil packet, but instead of ripping it open, Tess laid it on the bed next to her. Her lips curled up in to a smile as she eyed his cock. Before he could utter a word, her lips were caressing the head, and then she took him into her mouth. Sebastian reached out and grabbed her shoulders for support. Closing his eyes, he leaned back on his heels and enjoyed the heat of her mouth and the movement of her tongue.

“Darling, I’m not going to be able to make love you to if you keep this up,” he choked out in a husky voice.

Tess pulled back and Sebastian’s breath hissed through his gritted teeth. She tore the foil packet open and rolled the latex over his erection. Next she slipped off her panties and laid back on the bed.

Sebastian was through with foreplay. He need to be inside her now. Spreading her legs, he nestled himself between her thighs and slipped inside her. Sebastian’s movements were slow and deliberate. Hovering above her body, looking into her eyes, he said, “You feel like heaven.”

His declaration brought Tess to tears. “I love you,” she whispered, overcome with emotion.

“I love you, too,” he said as he quickened the pace of his thrust and climaxed with a shudder.

Panting, he withdrew from Tess and disposed of the condom. Then he was on his knees, creeping toward her, scattering little kisses along the delicate skin of her inner thighs. Next his tongue flicked her clit and she arched her back to meet his eager tongue. When he slipped his finger inside, she let out a quick gasp. Sebastian coaxed her to orgasm and knew he had accomplished his mission when her body eased back into the mattress and a wistful breath escaped her lips.

Sebastian curled around Tess’ body, laying his head on her breast. “Oh how I’ve missed being with you like this.”

“Yes,” Tess said, as she absentmindedly ran her fingers through his hair. “I’m so relaxed, I could just fall asleep,” she added as a yawn escaped her lips.

Just then the baby began to cry. “You stay here and rest. I’ll fetch her,” Sebastian said as he untangled himself from Tess. He stood and slipped on his boxers.

“No, I’ll come with you,” Tess told him, as she too got up from the bed and grabbed her robe.

They walked into Mattie’s room together. Tess reached into the crib and picked up her daughter. After locating the pacifier, Tess put it in the infant’s mouth. The cries subsided as Mattie began to suck.

Sebastian slid his arm around Tess' waist and smiled at the scene in front of him. “I fall more in love with my girls every day,” he said as he leaned down and kissed his wife. Mattie wrapped her hand around his finger and Sebastian was filled with joy.

Summer 1991 - Four years later

Tess walked into the condo to the smell of chicken roasting in the oven. She found Sebastian sitting on the sofa with Mattie, reading a children’s book. “Hey, you two,” she greeted, dropping her briefcase on the floor.

“Mummy!” Mattie exclaimed, jumping off the couch and running to hug her mom.

“How was your day?” she asked, kneeling down to Mattie’s eye level.

“Great! Daddy is teaching me to read.”

“I hope he’s starting you out with something good.”

Sebastian walked over and kissed Tess on the cheek. “Just something light—
War and Peace
.”

Tess laughed aloud while Mattie cocked her head and gave her a confused look. “What’s so funny?” the child asked.

“Daddy made a joke.”

“It wasn’t funny,” Mattie replied. She ran back to the sofa and grabbed her book. She picked it up to show Tess the cover. It was Dr. Seuss’
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish.

“You’re starting her off with poetry?”

“Well, it’s not Keats.”

“She’s four years old, Bas. Cut her some slack,” Tess chided.

“Ah, this from the valedictorian of St. Alexander’s High School and graduate of NYU with honors.”

“I’m going to change,” Tess said, ignoring his comment.

“Dinner will be ready in fifteen minutes.” Sebastian turned to his daughter. “Mattie, go wash your hands before we eat.”

After dinner, they tucked Mattie into bed and Sebastian read her a bedtime story:
A Bear Called Paddington.
At least he tried to read her the story, but Mattie kept interrupting.

“Do bears really like marmalade?” she asked.

“I don’t see why not. The next time I run into one, I’ll ask him.”

Mattie giggled. “Daddy, where are you going to run into a bear in New York?”

“The Central Park Zoo.”

“Oh, yeah,” Mattie agreed nodding her head.

“Your daddy used to live in London a long time ago,” Tess added.

“Have you been to Paddington Station?” Mattie asked, her eyes wide with excitement.

“Yes, I have.”

“I want to go! Maybe we can find Paddington Bear there.”

Sebastian glanced over at Tess with a look that said
see what you started?
Tess simply smiled and took a seat in Sebastian’s lap. “I want to go, too,” she chimed in.

“Enough for tonight—time for bed.” He closed the book and set it on Mattie’s bedside table. Then he leaned over and kissed his little girl. “Love you, darling.”

“’Night, Mattie,” Tess said, also giving her daughter a kiss.

Sebastian turned off the light. He and Tess left the room before he closed the bedroom door.

It was blissfully quiet once Mattie fell to sleep. Sebastian and Tess curled up on the couch together, enjoying some time alone. Since graduating NYU, Tess had gotten a job with the Associated Press. Sebastian continued working at Fiona Ashford Gallery in Chelsea on a part-time basis while raising Mattie. They had settled into a happy, calm existence. It was a welcome change of pace for the couple. The first few years living together had certainly been bumpy, but they’d survived and become stronger people for it. Now they both had everything they’d ever wanted.

“Sooooo…I have some big news,” Tess announced, looking up at her husband.

“What?”

“The AP offered me a position in London!” Tess said, bursting with excitement.

“Really? So soon? You’ve only worked there for a few years.”

“I know, but I was talking with my boss. I told him that you’re English and you keep up on the current news trends going on over there. He thought I’d be the perfect person for the position.”

“Because you have an ‘in’ with me?” Sebastian chuckled. “See, I told you it’s always who you know that matters in life. I just never thought I’d be talking about myself.”

“I don’t care if you were the one that tipped the job in my favor, I want to do it. What do you think? Can we move to London?”

Sebastian held Tess in his arms and pondered what she had just asked of him. He knew it was a dream of his wife’s to travel the world and work as a journalist. He couldn’t deny her the opportunity. He was just surprised that it was London and not some other European city. Sebastian did miss his homeland, and he thought of all the fun he could have showing his daughter around town. “I say we do it.”

Tess gave him a big, toothy grin. “Thank you! I love you!”

“When do they want you to move?”

“In a month. I told them I would need to make a trip over to find a place to live first. I had a video conference with the London office and they said they’d help us set everything up. Just imagine—we’ll be able to see Penny and Sigourney more often.” Sigourney had moved back to London for a position in the London Symphony Orchestra, and he did miss being able to see her.

“Then I’ll book the tickets. Mattie’s going to love this!”

I was trying to hurry to my class, but my stupid leg wouldn’t cooperate. Even after all the physical therapy and hard work, I would forever have a limp—definitely not sexy to the girls or manly enough for the guys. I made it to class just as the professor began his lecture. My professors never gave me any problems due to my ‘disability’ and I always sat in the front row of every class so I didn’t have to hobble very far. Slumping into the chair, I grabbed my notebook from my backpack.

College life was so different from high school. In high school I was laughed at and ridiculed. My life sucked. I was the resident cripple boy. Now, people didn’t seem to pay any attention to me. It went from one extreme to another. I had to admit, this new phase of my life took some getting used to.

I opened my notebook. There was a small cartoon doodle of three stick figures: a boy, a girl, and a boy with a squiggle leg. All of their arms were interlinked. I’d know Samantha’s handiwork anywhere. She had a brilliant mind, but she’d never make a go of it as an artist. She had written,
Meet you in the library at 3:00. Love you! Samantha.