Page 64 of Be My Valentine

“Now explain to me why you’re not furious with me.” Mark asked sincerely.

Kate looked at him seriously.

“Because you’re not the boss who hates me and gets me fired from my job without telling me, you’re not the person who tricked me into believing in a non-existent job,” Mark’s face was painted with regret and displeasure “I mean, technically you still are,” she pondered thoughtfully “but now you’ve also become the man who says he loves me, wants to marry me and has made a gesture to make me truly happy; you know how important it is for me to finish my studies. I don’t have stubborn pride, Mark; I can accept help from those who love me. I have a hard time understanding people right away, though. I didn’t doubt Carson’s words about my resume for a second; I couldn’t imagine someone wanting to hire me without even knowing me. I even believed you right away when you offered me a fake job.” Mark groaned, aware that what he’d done would haunt him for a long time, Kate buckled even tighter to him “But maybe I’m starting to understand what drove you; you were wrong, but I think you really wanted to help me and you did it your way: you’re a little… arrogant, that is; you don’t need to be with me. I’m naive, but not stupid, not all the time, at least.”

“I never thought you were stupid and about not understanding people on the fly… it was an advantage for me, or you would have realized right away that you had bewitched me.” she smiled “I want to make you happy, Kate, you can ask me for anything.” He told her simply.

Her heart threatened to spill out of her chest, unable to contain all its emotions.

“I’d like you to take me to my room and… be nice to me.” She looked at him unable to go any further.

Mark pulled her close, accommodating her in his arms.

“Is this all new to you?”

She nodded without looking him in the eye.

“You’ll think I’m even weirder now.”

“No, I don’t think you’ve been lacking in opportunities, and I think you made a choice for good reasons. I’d like you to tell me about it when you feel up to it. And…” it took a huge effort, but he couldn’t keep quiet “if you’re not ready yet, we can wait. Let’s get married, though, Kate, because I think I’ll go crazy if you don’t become my wife soon.”

“Take me to bed, Mark, teach me to make love to you. Because I think I’m well on my way to insanity too.”

Chapter 23 / Kate & Mark

It’s hard to know at what point love begins.

It is less difficult to know that it began.

(Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)

When they were together under the sheets, skin to skin, Mark realized he’d been waiting for her all his life: the woman he loved madly, to be discovered every day, forever. Kate’s lust-filled eyes contrasted with the trembling of her body. Mark felt it under her increasingly insistent caresses.

“If I do something you don’t like, stop me.”

Kate nodded, not knowing what to say. How could he do something she didn’t like? Mark’s scorching body ignited her with a primal desire, bordering on embarrassment. She wanted him with such intensity that she couldn’t stop shaking. She saw his mouth descend on her breast and instinctively arched upward. She realized it was that signal he’d been waiting for, because then there was no controlling it. Kate could feel his hands and lips everywhere, she wanted to melt into him forever, she craved to feel him on her, she needed to feel him inside her, united as one. Mark took possession of her with a firm stroke: she was his, she welcomed him with the inevitable pain of the first time, but with a burning passion. He sank into her body regaining gentleness, slowly, so that she got used to that new sensation. Then desire blinded him, and it was like losing himself.

The pleasure exploded and took Kate’s breath away. He looked at her ecstatically: it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He climaxed a few seconds later and collapsed almost exhausted on the same pillow.

It was pure joy to feel Kate curling up against his chest and breathing again. He stroked her hair and pulled her close to him.

“Are you okay?” He asked her thoughtfully.

She closed her eyes and ran her hands down his chest.

“Will it always be like this?”

Mark smiled.

“They say practice makes everything better.” He felt her lips kiss his chest.

“Are we really getting married tomorrow?” She asked him with a huff of disbelief.

Mark had no hesitation.

“Yes, if you haven’t changed your mind.” another kiss from Kate was the confirmation he’d been waiting for “Your mom packed you a bag, we can go away for the weekend, it’s not really a honeymoon, we’ll do the real thing after your graduation.” He said squeezing her.

“I don’t want to go anywhere, I want to stay here with you, can we?”