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I have a car.

I’m engaged.

This better not be a dream.

After everything I’ve been through there’s a nasty voice in my head that tells me not to get used to this because there’s no way I’m destined to have a happy ending. But I can’t imagine a future that doesn’t include Eric. When we get back to the apartment I’m not sure what to do besides put the casserole dishes into the icebox. Eric locks the door and I feel nervous all of a sudden. He’s spending the night and that doesn’t mean we have to go all the way, but I’m sure it’s been on his mind ever since his mom said he didn’t have to come home.

“So what now?” I ask after I get the dishes into the icebox.

“Should I actually hang your pictures?” he asks with a smile.

“If you’d like. I won’t complain.”

“Where’s your hammer and nails?” he asks as he takes his jacket off.

I go to the closet in the hallway and get the toolbox James gave me as a housewarming gift. I find Eric in the living room, turning on the radio. I don’t have a television yet, but I prefer music anyway. I set the box on the coffee table and Eric turns around while I get the box with my pictures in it.

“Do you know where you want them?” he asks.

“I think over here behind the couch,” I gesture to the wall I’m talking about. “What do you think? You’re going to be living here too. This won’t be just my place for very long.”

“I don’t have any pictures to hang, really,” he shrugs. “And that will work. We just need to figure out what arrangement you want and then I’ll level it out.”

I get the box open and start pulling frames out. I lay them out on the floor to see how I like them and once we find an arrangement we like, Eric starts putting nails in the wall. I sit back and watch him work. Most of my furniture came from my parents’ house. The only thing I refused to take was daddy’s chair. That thing was dirty and stinky, plus I didn’t want some of the memories that came with that chair following me.

It takes Eric about ten minutes to get the pictures just right and when he’s finished they look perfect.

“Thank you, honey,” I say and get up to give him a kiss.

“You’re welcome, cream puff.”

“Cream puff?”

“I don’t know, I just thought I’d try it out,” he laughs.

I shake my head, but I like that he can be silly sometimes. Not everything has to be serious all the time.

“Any other pictures?”

“No, I think we’re all set for now. I have one of us I’d like to frame one of these days, but not today.”

I slip my shoes off and bend down to pick them up so I can take them back to the bedroom.

“What now?” Eric asks. He looks a bit nervous too.

“Should we see what’s in that pie plate?” I suggest.

“Sure.”

“Then you get into that and I’ll go put my shoes away.”

I follow behind Eric into the kitchen but then keep walking down the hall to get to the bedroom. I put the shoes in the closet and then go back to the kitchen.

“Anything good?” I ask him.

“Chocolate,” he grins.

“Want a piece?”

Looks like Helen is going to have to step up those cooking lessons.

“Definitely,” he says.

I get out a plate for him and the pie cutter. While he’s cutting into the pie I get him a fork.

Just to put Eric at ease I say, “You know we don’t have to do anything fancy if you aren’t ready yet. There’s no rush.”

“Honestly, I think I am ready,” he says. “But I don’t want to do it knowing that my parents think that’s exactly what we’re doing.”

“Don’t think about them. They’ve obviously assumed we’re already there. But like I said, we don’t have to.”

Eric puts a piece of pie on his plate and I take the cutter so I can wash it.

“Are you ready?” he asks.

“Yes, I am.” I’ve been ready for months.

“Then there’s only one thing stopping us,” he says.

“Your brain?”

“No,” he laughs. “That I don’t have any protection.”

“Then it’s a good thing I’m prepared,” I say.

“You have some? When did you get them?”

“They were a housewarming present from my friends,” I admit. The girls gave them to me when I invited them over after I had the apartment all painted and set up like I want it. They figured Eric and I would put them to use sooner or later.

“They’ve come a long way from thinking the Mae Belles never fall in love, huh?”

“They like you and they know I’m happy so they’re happy for me.”

“They’re good friends,” he says, and sets his pie aside without eating a bite of it.

“You’re not going to eat that?”

“There’s something else I’d rather be eating right now,” he says.

“I think I’ve got some leftover spaghetti in the icebox.”

“I was talking about you,” he smiles.

“Oh.”

“Unless you don’t want to…”

“I do. I just wasn’t expecting you to say that is all.” I start backing up to my bedroom and Eric advances.

“I’m ready, Sook,” he smiles.

Now I’m the one that’s nervous. I understand why he’s nervous since it’s Eric’s first time, but if he doesn’t like it he’s stuck with the memory of me being his first experience for the rest of his life. If this doesn’t go well it could end our relationship. So I keep walking backward until my knees hit the mattress and then I fall back.

Eric unbuttons his shirt and toes his shoes off. Then he removes his socks and pants. When he’s only got his underwear on he stands there nervously, like he’s not really sure what to do next. I shift up so I’m on my knees and reach behind me to unzip my dress.

I can hear Ricky Nelson playing in the living room while I take my dress off. When it hits the floor I scoot back on the bed. My hands are a little shaky so I order them to calm down. This will get all kinds of awkward if both of us are too nervous. So I turn around and look over my shoulder.

“Why don’t you do the rest?” I suggest to Eric.

“Okay,” he says, and reaches out to unclasp my bra. I can feel his hands shaking a little too.

Suddenly I want to make him less nervous and the only way I can think to do that is by turning around after I’m topless and putting his hands on me where I want them before I kiss him. I let my fingers play in his hair in a way I know he likes and I hope it helps to settle his jangling nerves just a little.

His body seems to release a little tension as we kiss, and he moves one hand from my breast to pull me closer to him. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him down with me when I start to lie back on the bed. His body settles on mine and I’m content to just lay there and kiss him until he’s ready to move on.

But I can feel how excited he’s getting, which is a good sign.

After a few minutes of kissing he says, “I’m really nervous.”

I cup his face and softly kiss his lips. “It’s going to be great because it’s you. Just remember that.”

I can’t think of anything else I can say that will set him at ease.

“And if I’m not that good the first time you’ll still want to do it again, right?”

“Practice makes perfect.”

He grins and kisses me againand then I feel him start to pull off my panties. I wiggle a little to help him along. The kiss has to break so he can get my panties off, and I roll to the side to get the protection from the drawer in the bedside table.

“Do you know how to put this on?” I ask. These things can be tricky.

“No,” he admits. “Do I put it on already?”

“Not quite yet.” I set the little package on the bed and try not to laugh when there’s the tickle of Eric kissing my inner thigh.

“Can I do this first?” he asks.

“Of course you can.”

“Good,” he smiles up at me, and then his mouth makes contact with my most sensitive area.

The amazing thing is that Eric’s never really needed much instruction. He pays attention to what gets a reaction out of me and that’s important. I like that he takes time and doesn’t rush things so he can have his turn. That’s important, too.

I’m hoping that by doing something he’s confident with he’ll calm down a little bit.

His mouth works expertly until I’m panting and moaning and then he slowly pushes two fingers into me. I look down as he looks up, and he starts to pump his fingers in and out slowly, letting the tension continue to build slowly. His tongue flicks against my little bud and when he hums the vibration makes me cry out and tug on his hair a little bit.

He does it again and when my hips start to move he curls his fingers just right to rub over that magic spot that always makes my eyes roll into the back of my head, and before I know it, I’m seeing stars. My insides tense up and I feel shaky all over. Everything is trembling while I’m trying to get my heart to slow down a little.

Eric kisses my inner thigh again, and then my stomach, my breasts, my neck, and finally my lips. I wrap my arms around him and kiss him back. We’re going to go at his pace so I’m happy to just kiss him until he’s ready for something else.

After a few more minutes he pulls back and says, “I think I’m ready for the condom.”

I feel around until I find it.

“You’re going to have to take off your shorts for this part,” I smile up at him.

“Right,” he says, and sits up so he can take them off. Once they’re on the floor he sits back on his heels.

I rip the plastic open and pull the condom out. I shift so I can put it on him and it’s tricky as usual I’m always afraid I’m going to break the thing, and with someone Eric’s size, that’s never been more true. I get the condom on without tearing it and then lie on my back.

Eric looks down at me, and he looks nervous again.

“What, um… how should I…” he mumbles.

I hold my arms out to him and he moves so he’s hovering over me. My hand reaches between us and I guide his erection where it needs to go. He sucks in a breath and looks down to watch what I’m doing.

“Just don’t go too fast,” I tell him.

He nods and kisses me, then starts to slowly push forward. He pulls back from the kiss and drops his forehead to mine. His eyes are shut tight, and I feel the fabric of my quilt gather under his hands as he squeezes it. I tenderly kiss his face and take a few deep breaths of my own. It’s been a year since the last time I did this and with him being so big my body isn’t used to stretching like this. But it will start to feel really good soon.

Eric continues to move slowly, and his breathing gets shallow. He pauses for a moment and says, “I need a second.”

“It’s okay. Take your time,” I tell him. This isn’t a race.

He gives me a kiss and then looks down between us again.

“I’m not even halfway there,” he says, and drops his forehead to my shoulder. “I’m not going to last long.”

“It’s okay,” I whisper.

After a moment he starts to push in again, and he doesn’t stop until he’s all the way inside me. He lets out a long breath and stills on top of me.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

“Perfect,” I smile at him. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” he says, and presses his lips to mine.

My hands settle on his sides and then Eric starts to pull back. My breath catches when he pushes into me again. We fit together perfectly. This feels different than every other time I’ve done this, and not just because of Eric’s size. This time I love the person I’m with and it really does make all the difference.

Eric continues to move slowly, and as his breathing gets quicker he moves a little faster. He keeps his eyes on mine, and kisses me lovingly every few seconds.

“I’m close,” he warns me about a minute into it.

I’m not, but it’s okay. My hands move to his backside and give it a good squeeze. I end up pulling him a little deeper into me and it makes me moan loudly, which seems to spur him on.

“Sookie,” he says with a groan, and his movements speed up a little bit more. All of a sudden his whole body goes tense and he buries his face in my neck as he lets out a grunt. His hips still when he’s deep inside me and I can feel him release.

I don’t finish, but I didn’t expect to. My hands move up his back and I turn my head to kiss his face while Eric catches his breath. When he somewhat does, he turns his face and kisses me passionately.

“Thank you,” he whispers. “I love you so much.”

“I love you, too, and you’re welcome.”

I wait a few more seconds and then instruct him on what to do with the used condom so we don’t have too much of a mess on our hands. What a day it’s been for both of us. And the night is young.

EPOV

After I dispose of the used condom I crawl back into bed with Sookie and stretch out next to her. I just had sex, and I can barely believe it. It was… wonderful, and exciting, and intense, and I know that I want to do it again. Soon.

It probably wasn’t as good as it could have been, and I know Sookie didn’t finish. I also know that she doesn’t mind. Maybe if I’m still not able to get her to finish twenty times from now that will be a different story, but I trust her to help me get her there.

I lay there and smile over at her. I feel like I’m floating on a cloud. I reach over and stroke her cheek with my thumb and ask, “How do you feel?”

“Good. How do you feel?” Sookie turns on her side so we’re face to face.

“Happy,” I smile. “Relaxed.”

“You’re not disappointed we didn’t wait until summer?”

“Not at all. Life is too short to wait when you’re ready. And we got to do it in a bed.”

“And without worrying someone would walk in on us.”

“That was nice too,” I smile. “Was it… I mean, did you enjoy it?”

“Very much,” Sookie smiles back at me and moves over to give me a kiss.

“So I wasn’t awful?”

“Not even a little bit.”

“Good,” I grin, and give her another kiss. “How many more times can we do that?”

“Tonight? A few more, I think.”

My eyes go wide.

“Really?”

“Really. As long as you’re not too rough with me it should be fine. You’re gonna have to be careful because you’re a big guy but otherwise…”

“Maybe next time you could be on top,” I suggest.

“Sure.”

“Are you happy we didn’t wait until summer?”

“I am.”

“Just how long have you been wanting to do it?”

“Since last summer.”

“Really?”

“I meant it when we had that talk. If we had done it then I would have been happy and there wouldn’t have been any regrets.”

“I feel kinda bad for making you wait now.”

“Don’t you dare,” Sookie says firmly. “No one should ever do something like this until they’re ready for it. If you said you wanted to wait until we were married I would have waited. Maybe it’s different because I love you but this was well worth waiting for, Eric.”

“Okay,” I nod, and kiss her. “I think it was well worth the wait too.”

“Just so you know, it was better than I expected it to be,” she tells me.

“How bad did you expect it?” I ask with a laugh.

“I don’t know how to put it into words. I think it’s more about my feelings. I wasn’t expecting to feel things so intensely,” Sookie explains.

“I wasn’t either. I knew that it would feel good, but there was something about it being with you that made it… elevated? Is that a good word for it?”

“I think it’s very accurate.”

“Can I tell you something kind of dirty?”

“Of course you can.”

“You feel like heaven when I’m inside you,” I say quietly.

Sookie smiles and says, “That’s not dirty. I wouldn’t say that in front of your mom, but that’s a compliment. And thank you.”

“It’s a little dirty,” I chuckle. “But it’s the truth. I had no idea it would feel like that.”

Just talking about it and remembering it is making me hard again.

“So it beats all those long showers you were taking in the morning before school?” Sookie smiles knowingly.

“I’m never going to want to do that in the shower again.”

She giggles and says, “Since there’s a few weeks until graduation you may not have much choice.”

“I’ll get up early and come over here if I have to,” I say.

Sookie raises an eyebrow. “You think I’m going to wake up early just for sex?”

I pout and say, “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

“Alright, I’ll keep taking long showers. But when I move in, it’s game on,” I say, and give her a hard kiss. I pull her against me and she can feel another hard part of me.

Sookie kisses me back and reaches between us to stroke said part.

“Are you ready again?” I ask her between kisses.

“You tell me.” Sookie guides my hand part to her much softer, hotter and wetter one and it makes me groan.

“I think so,” I say, slide my fingers into her.

“I don’t need the same recovery time you do before I can do it again,” Sookie says.

“Good to know,” I smile, and after pumping my fingers in and out of her a few times I pull them out and roll onto my back.

Sookie gets a new condom from the drawer and hands it to me so I can try putting it on myself. I open the package and pull it out. I figure out which way it goes on, then start to unroll it. It’s tricky, and when it’s halfway on I break it.

“Dammit,” I curse.

“It’s alright. I have more.” Sookie rolls over and gets another.

“I don’t want to waste them,” I sigh as I take the new one from her. “Well, at least not like this.”

Sookie chuckles and says, “It would help if you weren’t so big.”

“I don’t think I should apologize for that,” I grin.

“Definitely not.”

I have better luck getting the second condom on, and then I pull Sookie onto my lap. I wonder if it will feel different in this position.

“Is it going to feel different like this?” I ask her.

“I don’t know. You’ll have to tell me after,” she says as she straddles me.

“I already like this one,” I say as I realize her breasts are in my face.

“Already? We haven’t even gotten to the good stuff yet.”

“Because these are at mouth level,” I smile, and grab her breasts with my hands.

“Silly me.” Sookie rubs her center against me.

I groan, and my hands move down to her hips. Sookie lifts herself up, positions me just right and then starts to lower herself.

“Oh my god,” I groan.

It does feel different, and it still feels like exquisite heaven.

Sookie braces her hands on my chest and starts to rise and fall on top of me, which makes her breasts bounce. My mouth goes to one of her nipples to suck on it, which I learned she likes a few weeks ago. She moans and starts to rock her hips instead of rising and falling.

I pull my mouth away to groan again. The new sensation feels amazing. My hands fall to her hips and I do my best not to lose it.

“Slow down a little,” I beg. “I don’t want to finish yet.”

Sookie stills herself and leans forward to kiss me. Between kisses she says, “Thrust up a little.”

I do as she says and she moans into my mouth. It spurs me on, and I go a little faster, but not too much. I’m already on edge.

Then I start feeling those little flutters inside her that I always feel right before Sookie finishes.

“Are you close?” I ask her. The prospect of her finishing has me thrusting faster.

“Yes!” Sookie shouts. “Please don’t stop,” she begs.

I don’t. I grab her hips and thrust up as fast as I can. The flutters become more intense and rapid. Sookie sucks lightly on my neck and her moans get louder with every thrust of my hips.

“I’m going to… Sookie…” I groan, but keep thrusting quickly in the hopes that she’ll finish before me.

Her body tenses and then she starts to shake a little when her muscles start to clench hard around me.

“Yes!” I shout, and my body tenses up. I pull her hips down onto me and grunt loudly as I release deep inside her.

Sookie whimpers while her hips rock just a little. I kiss her breasts and up to her neck, then her lips. She’s still clenching around me a little, like steady pulses. It feels wonderful.

Then I taste something salty and when I pull back I see that she’s crying.

“What’s wrong?” I ask. “Did I hurt you?”

“No,” she says with a smile and wraps her arms around me before kissing me like she did earlier in the car.

The kiss gives me hope that she’s alright, but I still feel like I messed something up.

“Why are you crying then?” I ask when she pulls back.

“Because I love you so much and I’m happy that I get to spend the rest of my life with you,” she sniffles.

Her words actually make me a little emotional. We’ve both come a long way from when we first met; her more than anything. She’s such a far cry from the girl I knew that thought she deserved the cruddy life she had. She used to think she was destined to just be a wife and mother, and now she’s living on her own, about to go to beauty school, and she’s going to do all of that while still being engaged to me. I found myself a catch, and I know I’ll always do whatever it takes to keep her.

“I love you too,” I tell her, trying to blink back my own tears. Guys aren’t supposed to cry after sex like that. “I can’t wait to marry you.”

Sookie presses her lips to mine for a few seconds and then snuggles against me.

“I love this snuggling thing, but I think I’m about to make a mess,” I whisper in her ear.

“Shoot, you’re right,” she says, and lifts off of me.

I let out a small groan as she does, and she giggles. I do as I did the first time to dispose of the condom and then lay back down on the bed with her.

“I’m actually worn out,” I say as I stretch out.

“That’s okay.” Sookie moves over and lays her head on my chest.

“Can we do it again if we wake up in the middle of the night?” I ask.

I feel her smile. “Yes, we can. And in the morning if you want, too.”

“You’re perfect,” I say.

“Remember that when I’m nagging you to pick up your dirty socks.”

“As long as I get to keep having sex with you I won’t mind.”

“Keep making me feel this good and that won’t be an issue.”

“It’s a promise,” I say, and wrap my arm around her.

“I’m going to hold you to it.”

I smile and kiss the top of her head, and as we lay there I hear the music drifting in from the living room. It quickly lulls me to sleep, and the last thing I know is that I’ve never felt happier in my life.

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