"You were quiet today, Jack." Sarah smiled up at him.

Jack turned his head and looked at her with the light from the moon and stars shining down at them. He thought that they didn't even have the right to look at her at all, but loved the illumination they gave to her, her features glowing.

That night, they had been walking only for about fifteen minutes... And, yes, he had spent all of its seconds being very aware of the heat of her body close to his, and the scent of her earthy perfume. He had spent all of the time aching, longing, pondering. And he didn't know what to do with himself. He didn't know how to write about this, if he could ever even be allowed to write something as pure and lovely as this. He didn't know what to do with a thing he couldn't even comprehend.

"Hey!" She shook his arm with a hand, calling him back to the moment.

"Hmm?" Her lips were glossy that day too. They seemed to be calling to him. Unlike the girls he used for the writings, he didn't want to just devour her lips until her legs were parted and her moisture was filling the room with a musky scent. No, he wanted to taste and love those lips. He wanted to tenderly explore the secrets behind them and the things they could whisper into his ears. He didn't care what she said with them; he just needed her to say things that would be for him only. He needed her.

"You still haven't said anything," she said as they went by a little brook. Jack made them stand there, not moving. She looked into his eyes, not wavering. "Your soul is heavy."

He got a startled shock. How did she know? "What!"

"I meant," she explained, "is something bothering you? You know you can talk to me." Her voice was gentle and lilting.

Jack couldn't help but notice how open and honest her eyes were. They made him want to fall into them.

"Hmm..." He looked for other words to say instead of the truth, afraid it would scare her away forever. Confessing his feelings would make her want nothing to do with him, he knew it. As a writer famous for nonsense fantasy sex, she would know that his private life with women was just as shallow and tacky as what he wrote. You can't give what you don't have, after all. Why would she even want to come near someone like him if he were to tell her? "It was a beautiful night, Sarah. Thank you for these fields you shared with me," he said instead.

Jack thought he saw her eyes lose a bit of their spark, but maybe he was just projecting his desires onto her. He was too drawn to her.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," she said, smiling a little. "My parents, brother, and I used to come here every other week back then. It was the place where we could have our own talks, laughter, and relaxation as a family, away from the joy we created for others at the lounge."

"Those must be good memories for you," Jack said, thinking about his own family. "I'm sorry they ended."

She looked away into the distance over his shoulders. "Actually, a bit into the wooded areas behind you is where we had one or two days of camping every other month where we could get away from the business. Those days hold the best memories for me. I bet I could even spot the particular trees we stayed around. They can't leave my mind. I plan to do it again someday soon. I plan to pitch a tent there and remember the love, the family, and the laughter, appreciating them for the impact they made and still make. Those are the things that really matter when we are gone."

Overwhelmed by the intensity of their connection, Jack instinctively, almost unconsciously, reached for her hand. When he realized what he had done, to his amazement, she didn't retreat. Instead, she locked eyes with him and a tingling sensation spread throughout his body.

He wanted words to express what he was feeling, words to ease her pain as well. He didn't feel capable. He didn't want to promise what he couldn't give. He had never given his heart before. He knew sexual tricks that could make a woman swoon and climax in minutes, but he didn't know how to meet her in higher places where she might need more. He didn't know how to be a man worthy of such a woman.

"Teach me what I need to do for you, Sarah..." He wasn't sure of these words, but he just let them pour forth from him. "For you... Where you need me... However you need me... I will try my best. I am in so many ways a beast, God knows and you know. I am just a spoiled celebrity who is running from the very life he thought he wanted with all his might, but I will give myself in appreciation for this new world you are exposing me to. I will be whatever you need me to be. I promise you. I…"

She put a single finger to his lips. "Shhhh! Let’s not speak so rashly." The finger was warm against his mouth. He wanted to take it into his mouth. He wanted to see if her eyes would cloud with desire when his moist tongue suggestively moved over it while he held her eyes. He could worship everything about her right there if she would let him. And he swore that it wouldn't be for his pleasure. It would be for hers. He wanted to see her happy; it was a pity that he was only an expert in one means of giving it.

Jack took a step backward so he could control himself, but he still held her hand.

Sarah. "Please be direct. Tell me honestly."

She smiled at him and motioned for them to start walking back.

Jack felt his heart clench as he gazed into her eyes, seeing a longing and sincerity that pierced through him. "I loved being here with you," she whispered, her voice trembling with emotion. "Can't that be enough for now?”

Jack's throat tightened as he fought back tears, nodding "Yes”, he said gently. “It is more than enough."