Chapter 4: Headlong Into Bliss

Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.
-- T. S Eliot

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Luis couldn’t help but laugh at the desperation in her voice and the awkwardness of their situation. He knew that coming there was a dangerous move, but he couldn’t stop. She was hard to resist, that much he knew for sure. Gwen rested her head on his chest and let out a small giggle of her own. She looked up at him, her eyes still smoldering. He knew the moment had passed and looked down at her, loosening his grip on her waist. “Would you like something to drink, Luis?”

“Something cold,” Luis replied with a slightly pained expression. “And nothing alcoholic.”

“Make yourself comfortable,” Gwen said as she stepped out of his embrace. “I’ll be right back.”

Gwen left the living room and Luis closed his eyes giving himself a minute to calm down. He ran a hand through his hair and the looked around Gwen’s apartment. The living room was still quite bare, a couch and a coffee table in the middle, boxes making a small fort around the sitting area. Behind the couch, Luis could see two doors, which he guessed lead to the bedrooms and he immediately turned away from there. He didn’t need to go there right now.

He stepped closer to the French doors that lead to the balcony and pushed the open, hoping that the cool air from the ocean would bring the temperature of the room down a few degrees. He was about to step outside, when Gwen came to stand beside him, two glasses of iced tea in her hands. “This is a great view.”

“That’s why I bought the place,” Gwen said as she stared into the ocean. “I’ve always loved the water. Some times I take cruises to places instead of planes.”

“But it’s no mansion,” Luis reminded her with a smile. He took a sip of his iced tea and looked at her profile as he watched her face scrunch at the mention of her father’s house. “You’re telling me that you like this place more than the Hotchkiss mansion?”

“The mansion was home for me growing up,” Gwen replied slowly, taking a sip of her own drink. “It’s just that after everything happened the way it did between Ethan and me, I just felt like I couldn’t live there anymore. Call me stupid, but I needed a change.”

“That’s not stupid.”

“Anyway, I moved here but that wasn’t enough. So then I moved to New York and I guess I just became less dependent on everyone and everything else in my life. I love New York and if it wasn’t for Daddy, I probably wouldn’t have come back.” she said and then looked up at Luis, their eyes connecting for a second before they both turned away. “Weird what life has in store for you sometimes.”

“Tell me about it,” Luis answered and took another sip. “Who would’ve guessed we’d be standing here having this conversation, two years ago? Things change so fast.”

“I keep hoping that it will get easier as I get older but that doesn’t work either.” she mused.

“It gets more complicated, I’ll give you that, kid.” Luis said and then stopped wondering why he had called her that. She just looked so lost, so childlike against the pale light coming in from her apartment.

She looked surprised too and raised an eyebrow and turned to him. “Kid? Luis, I’m not that younger than you.”

“Ah,” Luis said with a playful grin as he turned to her as well. “But you have so much to learn.”

“Very funny,” Gwen replied and took a step closer to him, gently touching his body with hers. He smiled down at her, feeling his desire return as she looked at him, her eyes twinkling. His free hand slipped around her waist and he pulled her closer. “So are you going to teach me the lessons of life, Luis?”

“Some body has to do it,” he answered putting his glass on the balcony sill and then taking her glass out her hand and placing it beside his.

She trailed her hands up his chest and then wrapped her arms loosely around his neck. Cocking her head to one side, she furrowed her brows. “So what’s today’s lesson, Mr. Lopez Fitzgerald?”

Luis shook his head and dipped his head closer, so his lips were hovering over hers. “Rule number one: never trust anyone.”

“I think it’s a little late for that.” Gwen answered, pulling her head back as if to tease him. Slowly and deliberately she ran her tongue over her lips and Luis groaned inwardly. She smiled devilishly as she softly grinded her body against his. He tightened his grip around her waist and then let his hand travel down to the soft curve of her rear. “What’s next?”

“Don’t play with fire,” Luis answered automatically. “Sooner or later, you’re going to get burnt.”

“Don’t play with fire, huh?” Gwen said cocking her head to the side, her hair cascading to one side, revealing the soft, smooth skin of her neck.

“Uh huh.”

“Like this?” She proceeded to press herself against him and a moan escaped his lips and he felt a familiar throbbing between his legs. She smiled - a mixture of wickedness and feigned innocence spreading across her face as she continued to torture him.

Luis knew that she was enjoying what she was doing to him and he thought it only fair to return the favor. His mind flashbacked to their night in Boston and he remembered that Gwen’s skin was sensitive right at the junction of her neck and shoulder. He smiled down at her, trying to be unfazed by her torment. “You’re getting the idea. This is what I had in mind.”

He dipped his head and placed a tiny, butterfly kiss under her earlobe. A small shudder ran through her and he smiled. He proceeded to trail tiny kisses along the column of her neck and she tightened her grip on his shoulders. When his lips finally reached their destination, he blew softly and she moaned and another shudder ran through her. “Luis – “

“That I believe, is your G-spot,” he stated cockily, lifting his lips a mere millimeter above her skin. “And as I recall, it tastes really nice.” He kissed the skin there before pulling away and looking into her now burning blue eyes.

Feeling his own desire kick in and take over his senses, Luis kissed her roughly and started to take a step back into the living room so that they weren’t giving a free show to any nearby peeping Tom. She came willingly, their mouths fused together as he began to pull her blouse out of her skirt as he had before. She moaned into the kiss and he broke away trailing his lips down her neck. He managed to undo her last button and she pulled the sleeves off her arms and let the silky material fall to the floor.

He felt her pulse pounding under her skin and knew his was running at the same speed. He felt her fingers fumble with the buttons of his own shirt as he took a step backwards. The back of his knee collided with the couch in the middle of the room sending them tumbling backwards. Gwen landed on top of him, a flustered smile on her face. He kissed her lips again and then flipped them over, so he was on top. Gwen undid his last button and then helped him out of his shirt. He trailed open-mouthed kisses down to her chest and she arched into him.

Soon, her underclothes, his jeans and boxers and her skirt were on the floor beside the couch. Luis knew that their night in Boston had been more than just a one-night stand and that the desire Gwen stirred in him was too strong to ignore. He didn’t know exactly what she wanted or what he wanted but he was going to throw caution to the wind and let his body take control of the situation. She seemed to agree with him as their heated embrace continued in the middle of her living room, surrounded by her still unpacked boxes.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Gwen slowly opened her eyes and then closed them again; the sunlight a little bit too blinding for her. She tried again and this time, her eyes fluttered twice, taking in the harsh sunlight slowly. She lifted her head slightly from her pillow and then felt a smile form on her lips as she looked at Luis, who was watching her. She was on her stomach and she buried her face into her pillow again. Smiling shyly, she looked up at an amused Luis. “Hi.”

“Hi,” he answered and then rested his head on the pillow next to hers.

“You’re still here,” she said, the silly smile not leaving her face.

“Didn’t have anywhere else to be just now,” he answered tucking his hands under his head, his eyes searching her face. “I was just watching you sleep.”

Gwen felt a blush rise to her cheeks as she turned to her side, rustling the sheets over her body. “How long have you been up?”

“A few minutes,” he answered softly. “You looked peaceful so I didn’t want to wake you.”

She licked her lips, nodded and lifted her head off the pillow in hopes of seeing what time it was over his shoulder. “Wow, it’s pretty late. I’ve never slept ‘til ten since… I don’t know how long.”

“Well, we were up pretty late last night,” he answered with a grin and Gwen felt another blush hit her cheeks. He laughed and then pulled her closer. “Did you sleep okay?”

“Like a baby,” she answered slowly, feeling the heat of his arm around her waist. Last night had been incredible and surprising. They had finally made it to the bedroom after their third lovemaking session on the couch and she was still reeling from the excitement of it all after so many hours of sleep. She didn’t just have sex with men on a non-committed bases and she never had sex like that before, so the experience was new and frightening for her at the same time. “Don’t you have to work?”

“The Harmony PD is kinda slow lately,” he answered. “I’ll go in a little later. There were just more important matters I had to attend to this morning.”

“Really?” Gwen said raising her eyebrow and pressing up against him. “And what might that be?”

“Last night,” he replied seriously. “Boston. The meaning of all of this.”

“Wow,” she said with a nod. “That is serious stuff. We’ll if you’re asking me about all of this and what it means – then you’ve got me. After all, you’re hardly my type.”

“Heaven knows you’re not my type,” Luis replied with a small scoff. “So what am I doing in your bed at ten in the morning? Might I add that I’m completely naked.”

Gwen giggled. “Why Luis, I can’t believe you forgot already what you’re doing here.”

“Maybe you could refresh my memory,” Luis answered and then seized her lips in a heated kiss. She sighed and leaned into his touch, as his body covered hers. With a small moan he pulled back. She protested by drawing in his lips back with hers and letting her hands slid down his chest. He started to break away from the kiss again and grabbed her hands before they went too far. With a gentle strength, he pinned her arms over head and pulled his face away from hers, giving him the advantage of being on top and in total control. Gwen writhed under him in protest. “Hold still, will you?! We need to talk first.”

“You don’t want to talk last night,” she said and kissed his neck. “What difference is a few hours going to make?”

“Gwen,” Luis protested and then tightened his grip on her wrists. “What are we doing?”

“Did you learn that in biology, Luis?” she asked while placing kisses on his jaw line, his neck and collarbone. “I thought you graduated with honors.”

Luis let out another whoop of laughter. “Gwen, I never had you pegged as a sex fiend.”

If he was trying to get her to quit kissing him, it worked. She stopped in mid-kiss and looked up at him, appalled. “Excuse me!? I don’t remember you complaining last night and I certainly don’t remember you as an unwilling participant.”

“You’re a very irresistible woman, Gwen Hotchkiss,” he stated looking into her eyes, from his vantage position above her. She smiled at him and blushed again. “So, what are we doing here?”

“Well, it’s obvious that I want his,” she replied, giving in. She settled her hands on his shoulders and looked up at him seriously. “And I believe that you want this. Since we really don’t know what this is, why don’t we just take it as it comes.”

Luis pondered for a minute and then nodded. “I like that. Sort of a no strings attached relationship since neither of us needs commitment in our lives right now.”

“It works for a lot of people,” Gwen stated matter-of-factly. “No messy emotions, no commitment and no heartbreak. It’s perfect.”

“So then what am I?” Luis asked with a twinkle in his eye. “Your lover?”

“Sex slave is more like it,” Gwen teased back and settled against her pillows. “Now get to work, buster.”

“Yes ma’am,” Luis answered with a mischievous smile before claiming her lips.