The sun was beginning to sting and Chase wished he had picked up some suntan lotion as well at the shop in town. He sat up and gazed down at the flush all along his chest and down his abs.
He glanced at Natalie and realized that his wife’s skin had a faint trace of pink also.
Tracing a finger along her flat midsection, he roused her gently and said, “I think we need to get out of the sun for a little bit.”
She leaned up on her elbows, shot a quick look at herself and him. “Yeah, we’re looking toasty.”
“How about a shower and an early dinner?” he said, hopeful about her response.
“I’d like that,” she said and in a flurry of movement, she was up on her feet and picking up her towel from the sand.
He smiled, stood, and followed her, his hand resting on the small of her back as they walked off the sand and up the two blocks to their inn.
Trying to be respectful of her wishes, he kept his emotions neutral once they entered the room and she said, “Did you want to shower first?”
He wanted to shower together, but her question seemed to have foreclosed that possibility. He motioned to the bathroom and said, “Ladies first.”
She grinned sexily and sauntered the few feet to where he stood. Taking hold of his hand, she said, “You know, we could be environmentally conscious and try to conserve some water by sharing that shower.”
“I’m all for saving the environment,” he said and his words freed the restraints they both seemed to have had in place.
In a rush, clothes flew off and across the room and they hurried to the bathroom with its large shower stall.
Chase was thankful the hot water came up quickly because he didn’t know how long he could wait to have her inside the stall and beneath the jets, her skin all soapy and warm.
They stepped inside the shower and came together, kissing and touching. Eager to share their bodies and loving.
He squirted a gob of body wash into a washcloth and worked into a lather. Turning, he urged her away from the stream of water and smoothed the lather all across her shoulders and arms. Moved the washcloth down to skim it across the puckered tips of her breasts.
She moaned as he passed the washcloth across her again and he tossed it aside and cupped her breasts, playing with the soapy tips. Tweaking them before shifting back a little to let a stream of water fly over his shoulder and onto her body to wash away the suds.
Natalie shivered with need as Chase bent and sucked her nipple into his mouth, the feel of it even hotter than the warm water sluicing across his body and onto hers. Her insides clenched with want as his dick brushed her belly, but she didn’t want to rush. She loved the way he touched her. Licked and teethed her nipples.
She needed to touch him and reached down, encircled him. His cock was slick from the water and soap, and she stroked him hard, wanting to bring him the same kind of pleasure he was giving her.
Over and over she shifted her hand along the hard length of him, drawing a jagged breath from him and a rougher nip on her breast that had her shuddering and on the edge.
“Nat, I want to be inside you. I want to come with you.”
She wanted it, too.
Shifting, she leaned against the wall of the stall and guided him to her center.
He bent and nudged her legs apart, and slowly eased his dick inside her, filling her. Filling her heart with the gentle way he embraced her and said, “I can never get enough of you, Natalie. I need you so much.”
She shattered with his words and he kissed her, swallowing her cries of release and as her climax ebbed, he finally moved, drawing her up and over into another. Kissing her and urging her on as he rocked in and out of her, reaching for his own release until with one final hard thrust, he came with her name on his lips.
He held her in his arms while the water washed over them, his breath ragged until little by little, peace returned.
They separated, but were never apart for long. A soapy caress across smooth skin and strong muscles. A lazy swipe to wipe away the last of the suds as they finished washing. An embrace as he wrapped a towel around her and briskly rubbed her dry.
Hand-in-hand they walked to the bed and climbed in. Became another tangle of arms and legs as they embraced and kissed. Desire roused and they made love yet again before slipping off to sleep for an afternoon nap.
When Chase woke, the room was growing dark as dusk settled in. He sighed heavily, knowing their time together was growing shorter with every passing minute.
Beside him Natalie roused as well and sat up. Her hair was sleep-tousled, cheeks pinkened from the warmth of cuddling together. Lips slightly swollen from the intense kisses they had shared.
She had never looked lovelier to him and he hoped he would be able to see her like this every day of his life, but he knew he had to be patient.
Their problems hadn’t taken a day to develop and a solution wouldn’t just take a day or two either.
“Would you like to go to dinner? Moonstruck?” he asked, naming one of their favorite local restaurants. They hadn’t eaten a thing since breakfast that morning.
“I’d like that,” she said.
He nodded and they rose from bed and dressed. Since Moonstruck was a little more upscale, Natalie slipped back into the dress she’d worn the night before.
“I’ll have to be a little bit more prepared to stay next time,” she said, so easily and without hesitation that his heart swelled with joy. And yet he held back again, afraid to push too soon and ruin the magic of their time together.
He offered her his hand and they walked together out of the inn and toward Pilgrim’s Pathway. That street would take them past the Great Auditorium and the tents for which Ocean Grove was famous. Many of the tents were still up and inhabited, but it wouldn’t be long before the tents would be closed up for the winter season and emptied until summer came again.
Natalie glanced at Chase as they walked past the tents, wondering if when summer came they’d still be together.
He’d shown her a taste of the old Chase this weekend. The fun, considerate, loving man she had fallen in love with.
Dare she dream that he was back for good and that they could make their marriage work again?
As they walked past the Great Auditorium, she glanced up at the cross and reminded herself to have faith.
Faith and love made all things possible.
At the end of Pilgrim’s Pathway, they crossed the foot bridge into Asbury Park and strolled across the street to the restaurant. It was in a big Victorian style building with wraparound porches on each floor where patrons could eat during the summer months. Inside the ambiance was understated elegance and a coziness that just made you feel at home.
They were quickly seated near the corner windows on the second floor where they had a clear view of Wesley Lake and the Casino farther down along the beachfront. Lights were coming on as it grew dark, but muted blues and pinks still mingled in the dusky sky, creating an almost magical feel.
She smiled and reached over to caress Chase’s jaw. Stroked her thumb across his lips in a touch more intimate than a kiss. “I had a lovely weekend. Thank you.”
“The weekend isn’t over yet,” he said with a grin, but then grew a little more serious. “I never asked, but did you drive down?”
She shook her head. “I took the train from the city. Figured that was easier than driving.”
“I can drive you back tonight if you’d like.”
It was impossible for her to miss the uncertainty in his tones and the tension that had crept into his body, so she tried to ease past the moment. “If it won’t make you too late for work in the morning, you can drop me off then.”
There was a very visible wave of relief that washed over him and brought a smile to his face. “I can definitely do that.”
She was grateful for the response that said that maybe, just maybe, he was going to make their relationship a priority.
The waiter came over at that moment with the menus and told them about the specials for the day.
Chase ordered a bottle of wine for them and the waiter stepped away to get their wine.
They quickly perused the menu and placed their orders when the waiter came back with wine glasses and the bottle they had ordered.
After the young man had poured their wine, Chase raised his glass in a toast and said, “To this wonderful weekend.”
Her hand trembled as she held her glass and brought it to clink against his. “To this wonderful weekend,” she said, but wished for more.
Chase narrowed his gaze and scrutinized her as she took a sip of her wine. Unnerved by his perusal, she looked away.
He cupped her cheek and gently urged her to face him again. “What’s wrong, Nat?”
“Nothing,” she lied and hated the choked sound of her voice as she battled back the emotions swamping her.
He let out a rough breath and shook his head. “Bullshit. I know you too well not to know something’s wrong.”
It wasn’t that something was wrong more than so much had been so right. The whole weekend had been so right and she didn’t want it to end, but she couldn’t find the words to say it.
The waiter came over with the appetizers they had ordered, forestalling additional conversation, but just as Chase knew her too well, she understood him also. He wasn’t going to leave it alone and for once, she was glad for that.
She ate her beet and goat cheese salad woodenly, not really tasting it thanks to her upset. A shame since the food at the restaurant was always exceptional.
When the busboy came by to whisk away their plates, Chase picked up his glass of wine, took a big sip and swallowed before facing her again. “Back in the room you said that you had to be better prepared for next time. Did you mean that? Do you want there to be a next time?”
Bam and there it was. The question that had been hanging over their heads not only all weekend, but in the two weeks since they’d agreed to give themselves this weekend in the hopes of making their marriage work again.
Her throat was so tight with emotion that all she could do was nod and eke out a whispery, “I do.”
Chase shakily placed the glass back down on the table, reached over, and took hold of her hand. “I do, too. I want this to work.”
“I want that, too, Chase,” she admitted, grateful that the weekend had gone as well as it had.
He smiled tenderly and said, “I guess I should reserve our room for next weekend as well?”
“I’d like that, but on one condition,” she said.
He gave her a puzzled look. “What condition?”
She grinned and playfully said, “You meet me under the boardwalk first.”
He laughed and leaned forward to kiss her, stopping a hair’s breadth from her lips. “I love you, Natalie.”
“I love you, too, Chase,” she said and gave herself over to his kiss, more certain than ever that their weekend rendezvous was a first step toward a lifetime together.