Paul all but raced in the door of the townhouse after dropping Matthew off at Alex’s parent’s house across town, anxious to get the first free evening started with his wife since the baby’s birth. It had taken a bit of persuasion on his part to get Alex to agree to an all-nighter away from their son, but after much cajoling and insistence she had finally agreed.
He taken great steps in planning their evening out, starting with a romantic dinner at the Fireside Restaurant and hopefully ending with a little something else here at home, providing she could keep her eyes open. He chuckled softly to himself. His wife had been exhausted for weeks as she had adjusted to motherhood between the late night feedings and early mornings and he knew this little break was exactly what she needed. It was what he needed to. He had missed her in a way he never had before, as most nights when he slipped into bed, she was already fast asleep, completely worn out. He was helping her all he could, taking care of nearly all the cooking and cleaning, but breast feeding he was completely inadequate with, though he would have offered if God had seen it fit to give him the right equipment.
"Alex?" He checked his watch and smiled. Yes, they were running right on schedule…providing she was ready, "Babe?"
No answer.
Maybe she was running late and still in the shower, he reasoned as he started up the flight of stairs to the second floor and their bedroom. Yes, that had to be it. Undoubtedly, she had discovered some little chore left undone and had lost track of time and was now in a state of panic trying to hurry up and get ready.
Okay, he had been wrong before. What he found was his wife, wrapped in a towel, her hair, wet from the shower, dripping down her back. This didn’t alarm him half as much as the fact that her face was buried in her hands and she was crying. Tears coming from Alex were enough to send him into full-blown panic.
"Alex?" He was on his knees in front of her in an instant, "Baby, what is it?" Paul had a feeling this had to do with being separated from Matthew until tomorrow morning when she would probably wake him at dawn and plead with him to go and pick him up from her parents.
She shook her head, unable to look up at him, as she sniffled and tried to bring the tears under control. Reaching up gently, Paul took her hands and pulled them away from her face and when she insisted on keeping her head lowered, he took both hands into one of his in order to raise her chin, "Sweetheart, what’s the matter? Are you hurt?" He was still following his first suspicion, but he was covering all his bases just in case.
She shook her head as another tiny sob escaped her, "I…we can’t go out, Paul…I can’t go out…"
He blinked, wondering what it was he was missing and he instinctively laid his hand against her forehead. No fever and that came as a great relief, "Alex. Baby, why not?"
"Because I can’t go out looking like this, Paul!" Alex all but exploded at him as if surely he must have known the reason.
He raised his eyebrow, "Well, no, baby…the towel is nice, but some people might talk," He teased gently, hoping to bring a smile to her face, but it didn’t seem to be working.
"No! Not the towel. I know that," She wiped at her eyes and drew in a shuddering breath, "Nothing fits…the baby weight is still attached to me and I may as well wear one of my maternity outfits and there are bags under my eyes and my boobs are leaking half the time! I can’t go out…I can’t!" She was crying again and she shook her head sadly, "I can’t even believe you would want to be seen in public with me, yet alone be attracted to me…"
His gaze softened instantly as he moved to sit on the bed and pulled her into his arms, "Is that what this is all about?" He whispered softly, cradling her close to his chest. She gave a little nod and another little sob escaped, and Paul barely hid a smile, "Sweetheart, you could not be more wrong. Not attracted to you? Alex, you steal my breath away, every single day, even more so now if that is possible."
"How can you say that?" She sniffled, though she was beginning to calm down a little bit.
Kissing the top of her head, he held her tightly as he continued, "Baby, sometimes at night I wake up and when you aren’t there, I go to check on you and Matthew. You’ll be in the nursery, rocking him and nursing him and the look on your face, Alex…you’re positively beautiful," He felt a lump forming in his throat as the image filled his mind once more, "I watch you and think that I am the luckiest son of a bitch in the world to be sharing my life with you."
"Really?" She finally looked up at him, her eyes red from crying but hopeful.
"Are you kidding? The woman who agreed to share her life with me, who gave me the most beautiful baby boy on the planet? The woman I love waking up with each morning, even if it is too damn early?" She giggled and he smiled, "Alex, I adore you. I love you so very much and all these things you think are so wrong with you right now are only reminders of what that love has given to us. Matthew."
She was teary eyed again, but this time a smile accompanied them, "I hadn’t thought of it that way."
"Well, you should, because it is the truth and if I need to remind you of that, I will as often as necessary," Tilting her head up, he kissed her softly and when he felt her lay her hand against his cheek, the kiss moved to new heights. Parting her lips with his tongue, he sought out her sweetness, trying to remember when the last time was that they had been able to share such a moment and already knowing it had been far too long.
Apparently his wife was feeling the same way as she rose to her knees in order to get closer to him as their tongues snaked in and out of each other’s mouths. Their hands were on each other’s faces as they hungrily devoured what had been denied them for so long due to just simple adjustment.
"We’re going to miss our dinner reservations…" Alex murmured against his lips before he had moved them to trail kisses down her jaw, neck and to her shoulder.
"Who cares?" Paul retorted as he nibbled on her earlobe, sending pleasant shivers through her body as her fingers started working to unbutton his shirt, desperate to touch his warm skin. She was surprised to find her fingers trembling, as if this was the first time she had ever done this, but as she pushed the shirt back and felt the muscles in his shoulders, she gave a little sigh. She had been sleeping beside him every night, but had been too tired to touch him. She didn’t plan on denying herself that pleasure again anytime soon.
Having helped him shed the last of his clothing; Alex lay back, pulling him down with her. He peeled back the towel that was wrapped around her and Paul felt another wave of emotion wash over him as his eyes drank her in hungrily. Her breasts were full and beautiful, the little rosebuds a deeper pink from breastfeeding and the baby weight she was so concerned about was hardly noticeable as she had already lost most of it, "My God, you’re beautiful," He uttered hoarsely, before he was kissing her once more, feeling her fingers kneading into his shoulders. He was hovering above her, his knee already pressed in between her legs and he could feel her throbbing, but he was in no hurry. It had been too long and he was going to make love to her properly, reminding her of just how much he loved every inch of her.
Kissing down her neck once more, he almost reverently kissed the tip of each nipple first, before he looked up at her, "I may a prime candidate for therapy, but I think I had moments of feeling a little jealous that Matthew was the only one who had been enjoying these lately."
Her little giggle turned into a moan, as he cupped one breast in his hand and ran his tongue lightly over her sensitive nipple. He was careful, being gentle not to hurt her with all the action they had seen of late though regretfully not from him. He licked at her and then took the little bud into his mouth, sucking only gently and doing more antics with his tongue. The palm of his other hand kneaded the full flesh of her other breast before he traded off, paying the same attention to the other one with his mouth.
"Oh, I’ve missed you…" Alex murmured, her head moving restlessly back and forth against the bed as her fingers worked through his hair before pressing into his shoulders to urge him on, not that he needed it.
"What else have you missed, baby?" Paul asked before flicking his tongue against the hardened tip once more. He kissed down her stomach before lightly parting through her folds and running a single finger through her wetness, "This?"
"Yessss," The word was more a moan combined with a sigh, but he was just able to make it out.
"And what else, Alex?" He whispered against her ear as he moved up to kiss her once more, even as his finger continued to slide up and down the length of her. Her hips were already moving against him, desperate for more, but he wasn’t offering anymore just yet.
"More of that," She managed to say and he rewarded her with adding a second finger, stroking her gently.
"Is that all you’ve missed, baby?" He persisted, grinning as she shook her head frantically, "Tell me."
She knew what he wanted to do and though at one time, she may have been shy about it, she knew him well and exactly how to make him as impatient as he was making her, not that she minded, "Taste me, Paul," She whispered, locking her eyes with his and she was unable to help notice rather smugly, how the words caused him to become rock hard against her thigh.
He chuckled softly, not missing the look of satisfaction in her eyes, before he obliged her and move down between her thighs. Not removing his fingers, he drew his tongue across her sensitive nubbin, still stroking her with his fingers. She was growing wetter now and he withdrew his hand to fully partake of her, running his tongue firmly around her core before moving back up to draw the nub into his mouth, sucking it with a purpose that had her crying out for release. But just when she thought he was going to allow her to fly, he slowed down, his tongue, warm against her, turning feather-light.
"Paaaaul!" It was a desperate plea and as he plunged his tongue into her hot center, she bucked against him, the long awaited moment consuming her as she cried out again and again. He never released her as he drank of her juices, the sensation sending her over the edge again nearly as hard as the first time and he never allowed her to come down before he pushed the length of himself into her throbbing walls. She was still climaxing and the tightness against his own erection caused a groan to escape him as he began to move within her, drawing out her orgasm until she was gasping for breath. Even then, Alex moved against him, each long and hard thrust causing a flutter from her body. She was pulsating against him and it only took a few more long strokes for his own body to join her as he spilled into her warmth.
His wife was still trembling as he slipped from her depths and moved up to kiss her closed eyelids before asking her once more, "What else have you missed, Alex?"
Her eyes opened, shining with tears as she whispered, "Us, Paul. I’ve missed us."
"We’ll do better," He promised stroking her still damp hair from her forehead, "We’re never going to lose us, baby. I promise. If we have to draw the blinds in my office over lunch, we will."
She grinned, snuggling up to him as he laid down beside her, "Not like we haven’t done that before…"