Josh was a mass of pent-up, seething need as he yanked Emily in. He was done with the waiting and sneaking. His pull had propelled Emily to the center of the room. Josh leaned back against the closed door and threw the deadbolt, the sound gunshot loud in the quiet darkness. He watched Emily turn to face him, ambient light from the sheer-covered windows casting her in gradient shadow. He could see her body in silhouette, every luscious curve starkly defined.

“Tell me what you want, Emily.”

He heard her take a breath, the soft sound eliciting a resonating pull in his gut.

“I want you, Josh.”

Her blatant admission made his body scream to be allowed to give her what she wanted, but Josh ached to hear more.

“You want me to what, Emily?” He began slowly moving toward her, and her breath quickened.

“I want you to ...”

“Say it, Emily. Say what you want me to do.”

He was inches away, his own heart drumming a fast beat in his chest as he waited for Emily to tell him what he wanted to hear. Unbidden, his hand reached up and cupped the back of Emily's head. His fingers massaged her nape, and Josh watched her eyes close and her lips part. He wanted to taste her again, to lick and nip at those luscious lips until he lost his mind in her. He knew it wouldn't take long.

In the half-light, Josh felt Emily's fingers trail up his thigh, leaving sharp twinges of lust in their wake. Her light touch inflamed him even more and as her fingers moved up toward his hip, he wrapped his other hand around the column of her neck. Emily's eyes widened slightly in response to the collar of strong flesh, her fingers digging deliciously into his hip. She was so close to his throbbing member, still ruthlessly contained in his suddenly vice-like clothing. Josh leaned into Emily, his chest just grazing the tipped mound of one full breast. His lips hovered a breath away from the delicate shell of her ear.

“Say it,” he whispered. Emily shivered.

“Fuck me, Josh. I want you to fuck me.” The tone in her voice was both plea and demand.

Josh felt her hand move as she spoke and his body was suddenly at flash point when the palm of her hand settled over his erection. She followed his length down and back up, the heel of her palm applying maddening pressure. His hands tightened around her throat and Emily gasped. Her body swayed to his, her soft, full breasts rubbing over his chest through detestable layers of clothing. Josh wanted her naked and panting. On an oath, he tilted her head back and took her mouth greedily. Her lips opened for him and his tongue delved in, possessing.

Josh walked Emily steadily back until they reached the edge of the bed, all the while availing himself of her warm, willing mouth. His hands moved of their own accord, finding and tugging on the knots of her dress. He was deft in his task, fingers working easily to undo the ties at her neck. Emily ran her hands over his chest, her fingers finding and undoing the buttons of his shirt. Josh groaned against her lips when she pulled the tails out of his slacks, then dragged her fingernails up over his taught, naked abs and chest; his skin broke out in goosebumps in the wake of her touch. Pulling away from her, Josh held his breath as the last knot of her halter came free. Releasing the ends to hang loosely over her shoulders, he watched in the half dark as he traced his index fingers along the edge of the fabric. Emily's breath shuddered as he traced down over her collar bone, whispering over soft, silken skin, drawing the halter further and further down, until at last gravity won against friction and the two halves of Emily's dress fell from her shoulders.

So damn beautiful! Josh took in the perfect globes, their upturned tips drawn up and puckered, seemingly just waiting for his attention. With slightly trembling fingers, he reached out and traced the gentle outer curve of one breast. Emily's breath hitched and Josh looked from her breast up to her eyes. Her face was tilted up slightly, eyes half closed and mouth parted. Josh ran his thumb over the tight little nipple and she arched her back, offering herself to his touch. On a soft moan, Josh palmed her breast, squeezing the dark, turgid pebble between thumb and forefinger. God, it was so soft! Emily's perfect, delectable breasts were all her, and the feel of her soft, malleable flesh had him shaking with pleasure. Getting lost in her perfection, Josh cupped her other breast and pressed the mounds together, flicking the nipples first with his thumbs, then bending down to worship with his tongue.

Unsteady, urgent fingers found the remaining tie of her dress at her waist and worked it eagerly. It was more stubborn that its friend had been, and Josh yanked at it with quick-flaring aggravation. He could feel Emily's fingernails scoring around his flanks to his back, her hands reaching up to wrap around his shoulder blades and pressing against the delighted skin. Her touch only added to his growing impatience. Finally, finally! The knot from hell came apart in his fingers and Josh pushed the fabric aside. The dress fell right off, pooling at Emily's heeled feet.

Josh murmured against Emily's skin, “I need to see you.”

He left her standing there, taking three quick steps to the lamp on a highboy across the room. Flicking the switch had soft, amber light flooding the space. Josh turned, and for the second time that day, lost his breath. She was ravishing, standing there in nothing but a black lace thong and those patent leather heeled sandals. Her hands curved over her hips and slid up her body, a wicked little smile curving her lips. Josh watched those hands move further up, finally cupping her own breasts and pinching her nipples. Her head fell back and her lips parted, a soft moan breaking the silence. She leaned back against the bed and her body undulated, her hands taking a tour down her torso and over her flat belly to the top of her thong. Thumbs dipped into the hem pulling it down to tease him with a look at the top of her manicured muff.

Josh didn't recall moving back to her. He simply found himself once again a hand span away from Emily as her hands continued to caress over her body. Falling to his knees, Josh looked up over her form, savoring with his eyes all of her curves and dips. Then his gaze focused on the triangle of translucent cloth covering her secret. Gripping the low foot board for support, Josh leaned in, closed his eyes and breathed her scent. His mouth watered at the musky, tangy perfume that announced her arousal. Leaning closer, he let the tip of his nose just graze along the center line of her lace. A soft whimper and Emily's fingers threading through his hair spiked his need, and then Josh was running his hands up the supple flesh of her thighs to her firm, rounded ass.

His fingers slid under the thong's waistband and pulled it down in a quick motion. Emily lifted her leg and Josh got as far as removing the thong from that one leg before losing all sense. Holding Emily steady with one hand, he hiked her leg up over his shoulder, then shuffled forward on his knees. He vaguely heard Emily gasp his name, and then his mouth was open and he tasted her for the first time. Coherent thought wasn't possible. Josh could only groan as Emily's sweet, musky flavor assaulted his tongue. He used his fingers to part her swollen lips and dived in, savoring every fold. Emily's hands were combing through his hair and her hips were pumping in time with his licks. Josh focused on the sensitive groove between her stiff, little clit and her weeping slit, running his tongue back and forth again and again. Her fingers gripped his hair and she cried out.

“Yes, Josh! Yes!”

Josh was oblivious to anything other than the impending orgasm he could feel in every trembling thrust of Emily's hips. Wrapping one hand around her pelvis to hold her in place, he brought his other hand to her slippery entrance. Two fingers slid along her labia, then dove in, and Josh felt Emily's channel grip his fingers tight. His lips closed around her hard, little nub and he sucked gently, alternating with his flicking tongue. He moved his fingers in and out, curling the tips into her very sensitive inner wall. Turning his eyes up, Josh saw his beautiful Emily, head thrown back in complete abandon and breasts swinging gently with her hips' gyrations. Fuck, she was gorgeous!

Suddenly she drew in a quick breath and her hips stilled, her entire body taught as a bowstring for one intense moment. Then she exploded in panting moans and sighs, her hips thrusting erratically against his mouth and hand. Josh felt the gushing intensity of her delicious pussy as wave after wave of clenching spasm viced around his penetrating fingers. He moaned with her as his tongue lapped and his lips sucked the dripping cum juice from her body. Then, he just kept right on pleasuring her, his tongue licking a delicate path around her hypersensitive clit. Emily screamed his name and her entire body shuddered in his grip. She pulled on his hair trying to disengage him. He licked once, twice, then pulled back and looked up at her.

Emily was panting for breath, her entire body shivering reflexively. Her fingers gentled in his hair and she blinked down at him slowly. Josh smiled up at her and pulled his fingers out of her pussy. She gasped and squeezed her eyes shut, her hips bucking just a little.

“Open your eyes, Emily.”

When she obeyed, Josh brought his slippery fingers to his mouth and sucked them clean while she watched.

“You taste amazing.”

Emily's smile turned into a crooked, mischievous, little grin.

“Hey, Josh?”

“Yes, Emily.”

“You haven't fucked me yet.”

Josh felt his cock say hello. He was hard as steel, the throbbing painful in its intensity. A curse and a quick lift, and Josh had hoisted Emily up and into the bed. He heard her giggle and his erection kicked against the waistband of his pants. Gripping the foot board for support, Josh slowly rose from his knees and there in front of him was the vision from his fantasy. His jaw went slack as he took in every perfect detail, from the long, curling hair covering the pillows to the spread thighs and the frame of her hands. He didn't know how long he stood there just looking at her before Emily broke his trance.

“Are you just going stand there and stare? That's rude, you know.”

The teasing tone in her voice had a deep, smoky quality to it. Josh returned her smile and slipped his unbuttoned shirt off his shoulders. He let it drop in a heap at his feet, toed off his shoes, and pulled on the tongue of his belt.

“The view's just so damn nice. You're beautiful, Emily...”

He watched the heat creep into her face, then her hands slid up her torso to her breasts. He sighed as she started playing with her nipples again, pulling and squeezing them. Josh finished with his belt and started on the button and fly of his trousers.

“Show me, Josh. Show me how beautiful I am.”

Josh's fingers quickened on their task, and his pants came off. He watched as Emily brought a hand down to her drooling, wanton slit and dipped a finger inside, then brought that same finger to her mouth. She painted her own juices over her parted lips, then licked what was left off. Josh growled, then tugged his briefs down, letting his engorged shaft pop out and bob proudly. He heard Emily's gasp, then an oh of female appreciation, and his cock twitched, as if preening.

Body tense in anticipation, Josh stalked to the foot of the bed, then mounted it on hands and knees.

He fucking loved the way Emily's eyes went wide, how she tried to crab walk her way to the head of the bed as his big, aroused body closed in on her. He savored her shallow breathing as he came within range of her ankle and gripped it solidly. Emily squeaked and reflex had her trying to pull her leg free. Josh smiled wickedly, having no trouble holding on. With his knees planted widely and his hard, ready sex pulsing, Josh pulled Emily to him. She moaned his name and clawed at the bedding ineffectually. He gripped her other leg and pulled her closer, every tug of his strong arms moving her dripping pussy nearer.

When he was in range, Josh gripped Emily's hips and dragged her ass up over his thighs, until her legs were draped over his hips and her core was pressed against his delighted length. He squeezed his eyes and cursed under his breath at the hot, slick contact. Rolling his hips and holding Emily in place, he sawed the ridged underside of his cock along Emily's slit. Her slippery lubrication coated him entirely almost immediately, the wet friction dragging a tortured moan from deep in his gut. She was so hot, so ready for him. Emily was arching her back, her hips grinding her tight, hungry cunt in rhythm with his movements. Unable to hold off any longer, Josh pulled back, lined up his engorged, purple cock head, then slowly and steadily pressed into her.

One long, slow, controlled thrust, and Josh was buried to the hilt in the tight, hot confines of Emily's body. His groan was a sound of tortured relief. Slick fluids dripped down his balls as he sat rigid, savoring the moment he had wished and dreamed about for ten years. Then, Emily sighed his name, her hips pressing against his, begging him to move. Something snapped in Josh. Holding her hips firmly in his possessing hands, Josh withdrew from her and then plunged himself back into her torturous fire. She called out, arching her back as before but this time to much more supremely exquisite effect. Her breasts undulated fluidly with every one of Josh's thrusts, now coming faster and harder. Josh leaned into his work, back muscles taught with the strain of his pumping hips. Pain mixed with pleasure as Emily scored his thighs with her fingernails, the contrasting sensation only heightening his excitement.

Wanting more leverage, Josh gripped Emily's legs behind the knees and pulled them up, pressing her thighs to her chest and exposing her entirely to him. The sight of his half-buried cock splitting her flesh with its turbid thickness was an instant and potent aphrodisiac, and Josh could do nothing but give in to the undeniable need to thrust. He watched himself fill Emily again and again, all the while listening to her pleasure sounds. She was wild with wanting, fingers clawing at the bedsheets while her hips curled up to meet him. Josh could feel her nearing climax, as sure as he could feel his own tightening, tingling release.

“Jesus fucking... Josh!” Emily cried.

Her body went stiff around him, her lovely little hole gripping him in rippling spasms that felt like they were sucking his very soul out through the tiny slit of his cock. He grunted as he tried to hold back the unstoppable wave of pleasure that he knew was cresting over the horizon of his consciousness.

“Fuck me, Josh! Oh, fuck! Harder, please! Harder!”

Josh was lost. His body took over as his brain checked out, bright flashes of light exploding behind his eyelids. He fucked Emily with every ounce of strength he had, pounding her slick cunt until the pressure in his balls rose up. Thrusting once more, Josh cried out his own pleasure as wave upon wave of orgasmic energy coursed through his entire being. The overpowering pleasure of his essence leaving him to spread warmly into Emily was unlike anything he'd ever experienced, her pussy milking the salty fluids greedily. Somewhere in the back of his consciousness and the depths of his soul, Josh realized that this was different from everything that had come before, and nothing would ever be the same again.

After the spasms had left him feeling weak as a kitten, when Emily's sighs and mewls had quieted down to soft, satisfied breaths, Josh leaned down, wrapped his arms around her and pressed his cheek to her lovely breast. Her heartbeat was a steady thud that calmed the inner turmoil brought on by the unfamiliar emotion now taking up noisy residence in him. The realization hit him that this wasn't a new emotion at all, but rather that it simply would not be denied any longer. Acceptance came easily, and Josh smiled to himself as he pressed a gentle, loving kiss to Emily's breast. He left her then, crawling up to pull the bed covers down. Kneeling beside her, Josh picked Emily up and settled her almost reverently, carefully nestling her head onto the piled-up pillows. Then he hopped up and turned off the light. Back in the big bed, Josh laid back and pulled Emily to him, fitting her perfectly to his side. He heard her sigh and felt her head lay down on his shoulder. Her arm moved across his wide chest and wrapped around to his back, where her fingernails drew drowsy circles over his skin. He heard her sigh again, her curvy body amazingly managing to settle even closer.

“Emily...”

“Josh?”

Their mingled breathing in the quiet room said enough.

* * *

Emily sat in the breakfast lounge staring dreamily into space. A bowl of fresh-cut fruit and a steaming cup of coffee sat untouched on the table. She sighed for the umpteenth time in the last ten minutes, again remembering snippets of the prior evening's activities with Josh. The occasional shiver ran up her spine as scenes and sensations played out in her mind's eye.

If she hadn't woken up in his arms this morning, Emily would have thought it all a dream. She frowned slightly as she remembered how her heart had flipped in her chest when he had nuzzled her neck before rolling her over and sliding into her. The hollow ache there now had her rubbing her palm over her sternum. How could she feel this deeply so quickly? It wasn't as if she'd fallen in love with him in one night, was it? The question, once posed, began a mental chain reaction. With growing certainty, Emily replayed every moment she could remember since she'd met Josh. She saw their interaction from an outsider's perspective and the picture that emerged made her eyes go wide. They say that hindsight's twenty/twenty, and just then, Emily was experiencing a crystal clear look at the last ten years.

Just then, an explosion of motion and sound jogged Emily out of her stupor. Lacey pulled out a seat at Emily's table and fell into it, groaning loudly and gripping her temples. Emily watched her friend slowly move her head from left to right, then lean down to lay it on the table. Taking her own coffee in hand, Emily moved it by Lacey, took the suffering girl's hand and wrapped it around the warm mug. Lacey shuddered visibly, then raised her head and took a healthy swig of the black gold.

“You're a goddess, thanks,” said Lacey.

Emily smiled. “Don't mention it. You look raw, Lace. A sure sign that you had a very good time.”

Lacey went for a half smile that turned into a grimace of pain.

“Yeah, yeah. We partied hard until the wee hours of the morning. Now I have this lovely head-banger to show for it. I really should know better by now, you know?”

Emily made a soft noise of agreement, then waved at the waiter for more coffee. He brought another mug and took Lacey's breakfast order: ham, cheese, and tomato omelet, rasher of bacon, hash browns, large O.J., and Tabasco sauce. Emily didn't know where she put it all, as Lacey was reed thin and toned to boot.

“Hey, where'd you get off to last night? I don't remember you frolicking naked in the pool.”

The question brought the evening back into the forefront of Emily's mind. She smiled a dreamy little smile and Lacey's jaw dropped.

“No way. No way!”

Suddenly Lacey's hangover was a distant memory. Emily watched, stunned and blushing, as Lacey danced a little jig in her seat, her arms waving around like she was directing air traffic.

“Yes! Yes yes yes yes yessss! Pay up, bitches!”

The entire room went so quiet, you could have heard a pin drop. All eyes were on them as Lacey continued her ridiculous, bouncing chair dance and Emily just sat wide-eyed. Snapping out of it, she grabbed one of the flailing limbs and pulled Lacey close enough to whisper.

“Lacey, what the hell is wrong with you? What's going on?”

Lacey cackled like an honest to God witch.

“I won! I won the pool! It was up to nearly two thousand dollars, Ems! And I won!”

The pool? Emily dropped Lacey's arm, then covered her face in her hands. Oh God, of course. The betting pool. Mortification and embarrassment had her cheeks feeling hot, and Emily was sure they were beet red. She was ready to bolt from the room, had in fact pushed out her chair and stood up. Lacey was babbling at her and trying to get her to sit back down, but Emily just wanted out and away from the curious and knowing eyes of the crowd. She turned to do just that and came face to face with Josh. Her heart was in her throat as their eyes met, and held. Everything and everyone around Emily ceased to exist as she fell deeper into that verdant stare. Then something amazing happened. Josh smiled, and Emily both felt and saw the depth of his love for her. Her heart swelled and she returned the brilliant smile with one of her own. She moved toward him through the entranced crowd, met him halfway to the door, and was wrapped in his arms. Josh tucked a knuckle under her chin and tipped her face up to his, then with a soft, impish smile he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.

The entire room broke out in wild applause! People whistled and called out encouragement as the kiss went on. Emily was only vaguely aware of the commotion, as she enjoyed the soft, firm lips of the man who had been her best friend, her closest confidant, and most recently her lover in every sense of the word. Laughter bubbled up out of Emily and she broke their kiss to let it out, wrapping her arms around Josh's neck and holding him tight. He hugged her back, and the feel of his strong body against hers felt like both a reminder and a promise. Emily sought his eyes again and found in their depths that constant, loyal connection, and the love that was echoed in her own soul. Dazedly, she wondered at how completely life as she knew it had changed in a matter of twenty-four hours. Emily sighed and nuzzled noses with Josh.

“So, Josh...”

“Yes, Emily?”

She shivered at the way he said her name. It felt like a caress.

“What now?”

He made a show of thinking hard about their options, then leaned in close to whisper in her ear.

“I think we should grab our stuff and head back home. Last night wasn't nearly enough, and I want you all to myself.”

Josh's words sent tendrils of lust wrapping around Emily, and she purred softly against his ear.

“That sounds just right.”

They turned away from the still excitedly cheering crowd and, hand in hand, hurried out of the lounge. As they headed up the stairs Emily chuckled softly.

Josh asked, “What?”

Emily grinned wickedly at him and said, “Oh, I'm just eagerly anticipating the ride back.”