8

Bethany nearly couldn"t believe her eyes as she looked towards the front door and saw Rick standing there. She couldn"t believe he was real. Couldn"t believe she had forgotten how big he was.

The hope she had been trying to squash had once again started building when she returned from her clinic appointment to the news that he had stopped by looking for her. A man that actually came back, unprompted, with no promise he had to fulfill? She was impressed. He hadn"t left his number, though, so she was forced to wait until he returned, that initial hope slowly starting to fade.

The only thing that kept it burning, that kept her hoping he would return, was Avery informing her that her giant Lumbersnack was not a seasonal worker as Bethany had assumed, but one of the rangers hired by the government to work out on the edge of nowhere, clearing trees, keeping an eye out for lost hunters, and surveying the land all year around. She had only met one of them before, another giant by the name of Owen, who just so happened to be her cousin"s beau. She had to assume they knew one another and labeled it fate.

Maybe she and Cordelia were destined to have their little cabins on the edge of nowhere, although not exactly one they shared together.

And there it was again. Stupid hope. She was struggling to stifle it, but he was a permanent resident of Bear Valley, which meant she would see him again. Maybe not soon, but eventually, and if he still looked at her the same way he had when he was in her bed, giving her an overwhelming amount of pleasure, then...

No. It wasn"t serious. It couldn"t be serious. It had to stay the way it was, a night of fun, with no promise of tomorrow.

So intent was she on stifling her hope, that when she told Cordelia all about her passionate night with her own lumbersnack, she had avoided even mentioning his name, or how he made her heart race, and her stomach flip at the very thought of him. It had been a few days since he had come to see her and she wasn"t there, and she wasn"t going to take it personally that he hadn"t returned.

Every word she had spoken was vague and aloof, concentrating more on talking about him sneaking out the window, and the bear she saw in the woods, and nothing serious at all. He was good dick, nothing more, and nothing she would ride again. Every word she spoke were words she was trying to convince herself of, determined to not let any sort of hope build beyond embers.

They felt like a lie.

And now, here he was, looking for her again, and all of that hope was roaring once again, just like the fires he built for her.

She was dickmatized. There was no other explanation for it. Dickmatized.

And she needed him again.

As he pulled her onto the dance floor, she tried to ignore her hope and simply enjoy the moment. Nothing was promised and nothing was certain beyond a good time in his arms, but after two dances, she needed him inside of her, immediately. Waiting any longer would have her jeans soaked before he could pull them off.

And all while she was wearing his shirt he had left behind. Fate was surely messing with her.

They half walked, half jogged to her cabin, claiming it was freezing cold out, but Bethany knew the truth as he grinned at her every time they glanced at one another. He wanted her as badly as she wanted him, and the excuses were useless. They were both fully aware of what was about to happen.

Her cabin was barely warm as they kicked off their boots, and his jacket hit the couch as he headed over to it, clearly intending on building it up to last the night. The fire was the last thing on Bethany"s mind, however. They would be working up a sweat soon enough, and he could keep her warm when the night went cold. His attention was no longer on her, which she couldn"t stand, but she knew just how to get his focus on her once more.

She took off her jacket and her jeans, but left her shirt and socks on as she joined him by the fireplace, and sunk to her knees. Rick looked down at her immediately, his mouth open to likely ask her what she was doing, but her actions quickly answered his unspoken question as she unhooked his belt and unhooked the button on the front of his jeans.

Neither of them said anything as she tugged his pants open just enough for his cock to be pulled free, already hard when it fell into her hand, and the wood he had been holding dropped onto the grate, causing sparks of ash to flutter up. Bethany didn"t stop her actions, however, and wrapped her hand around to stroke him once. She watched the foreskin retract and the head become exposed, then repeated the action, pumping him slowly a few more times before looking up at him.

His focus was entirely locked onto her, the fireplace seemingly forgotten, and she smirked before returning her attention to what she was doing, and opened her mouth.

With the first swirl of her tongue, Rick"s knees buckled slightly, making her fear for a moment that he might topple onto her. She looked up again, mouth still on him although her tongue had paused, to see he was gripping the mantle over her fireplace with one hand, while the other hovered in the air. He seemed uncertain what to do with it, or maybe his brain had frozen when she began twirling her tongue, but she knew exactly where that hand should go.

Reaching up with her empty hand, she grabbed his wrist to lead him to the back of her head. His hand was gentle, but she intended to change that once she truly got to work, so he was pulling her hair from the braids as he gripped and tugged her mouth lower on him.

If she wasn"t careful, he could easily gag her, something she only allowed when she was in the mood for it, but she was barely halfway down when that fear disappeared. It was simply impossible for her mouth to open any wider, and so her hand would have to cover the rest, her wrist moving as her mouth did. Down and back she went, swirling her tongue along the vein underneath, and sucking each time she reached the tip.

He was shaking again, clearly struggling to stay upright, but he was a strong man with amazing stamina. He could survive something as simple as a blow job.

Bethany hummed as she began to pick up pace, and Rick groaned in response, low and in the back of his throat. In fact, it was more of a growl than a moan, but she had no concern about the proper label. He was enjoying her mouth on his cock, and that was all that mattered.

Her hand tightened slightly as his grip on the back of her head did the same, and she swirled her tongue around the head twice before trying to go as far down his length as she could. It wasn"t far enough for her own taste, but he growled again, so she was satisfied for the moment. He seemed completely unused to the sensation of receiving oral, so she wouldn"t push herself any further than he was able to handle.

She didn"t want to give him a heart attack from too much pleasure.

Her eyes flicked up again as she pulled back, not letting his cock entirely leave her mouth as she did so, and saw that his eyes were still open and completely locked on her. It gave her a surge of confidence, to know that he couldn"t look away, and she hummed around his cock as she closed her eyes, not wanting to hurt herself from trying to look up at him with every pass.

It wouldn"t take too long to get him off, besides. She was phenomenal in bed all the way around, including with her blow jobs, and since he seemed unused to feeling his dick sucked, she knew he would find his pleasure quickly.

Her speed picked up again, with her thumb now rubbing the vein her tongue was stroking. She was building him up, and could tell by his breathing that he was already close, but before she could speed up again, he was tightening his grip on her hair, and pulling her mouth off of him entirely.

"On your hands and knees, now," he growled, his words sending a warm shock through her system. She was far from submissive, but his tone told her not to argue, even to point out that she was already on her knees. His pants hit the floor as she moved away from the fireplace slightly and pressed her hands into the thick fur rug, only to feel him behind her a half second later, lifting the shirt she wore, his shirt, upwards to hang around her waist, and exposing her lower half.

"Look so fucking good in my shirt," he groaned, his hands now massaging her ass. "Want to take it off of you so I can see those tits again, but not yet. Not when you look so good like this."

She was unable to muster a reply as his fingers ran from the top of her ass between her cheeks all the way to her clit, and then up again to her cunt. They dipped in, and she heard another groan as they easily slipped into her, thanks to how soaked she was. She was ready for him, ready to have him fucking her, with no need for other foreplay at the moment. Waiting for him to fill her up would kill her if it took any longer than a few more seconds, and she was growing impatient with waiting, despite being the one to put her mouth on him.

He was supposed to be inside of her, she was sure of it. She refused to wait any longer.

"For the love of God, fuck me, now," she demanded, not wanting to beg. Begging wasn"t in her nature, but if he didn"t do as she wanted, she would add a please. Only one, of course, but—

But she didn"t have to beg at all, nor even say the magic word. His fingers withdrew, only to be replaced by the head of his cock pressing at her entrance, and then he was in, going deeper, filling her up at a completely different angle from last time. He felt massive and infinite as he kept going, pushing in every inch slowly, until she was positive she couldn"t be any more full. The feeling sent a tingling through her entire body, and she moaned as he began the agonizing process of pulling out, only to push back home before she was even halfway empty.

Fuck, it felt so good to have his heavy weight behind her and over her, and she felt more of him as one of his hands hit the rug beside hers, while the other moved to her waist. They couldn"t stay like this for long, not if he wanted to put any power into it, but he didn"t seem ready to pick up speed, instead keeping himself slow and steady. He was already close to the edge from her mouth, so it was no surprise he wasn"t rushing forward before she got her pleasure as well.

A pleasure she didn"t even have to ask for. The hand on her hip moved lower across her belly, until he reached the top of her slit, and then found her clit, now standing out given how spread open she was from his cock. Her hips jerked in response, an involuntary move, but his touch didn"t let up as he began building her up towards an orgasm as she had for him. It was insane, how he already knew her body so well after only one night together.

Almost like it was something special that she wasn"t allowing her hope to bloom for.

His hand moved from the carpet beside her own to grasp her hip, and his weight lifted off of her slightly, something she wasn"t expecting to miss before that very moment. She had loved it, loved feeling his thick body pressing against hers. She even enjoyed it while laying on her back with him hovering over her. Something about the solid mass fucking her into whatever surface he had her against drove her insane, and she wanted more.

Never again could she return to fucking any man who wasn"t big, a little hairy, and awkwardly shy about talking to her.

If she ever fucked anyone other than him, of course.

And now hope was blooming, making her think too much, and pulling her away from the orgasm she had been nearing.

"Let go, Sunshine. Let me feel you clench around me. Fuck, love that feeling. Can"t get enough of it. Enough of you."

And with that, her hope exploded, and she stopped trying to silence it, instead losing herself in the feeling of his fingers massaging her clit in rhythm with his thrusts. He was picking up speed, and force, and her arms nearly gave out twice before she let her elbows bend and her head settle on her hands. Her forehead rubbed against the carpet, but it wasn"t rough, instead vaguely reminding her of his beard as he kissed her. They hadn"t done any of that yet, and she suddenly needed to, needed to kiss him and steal the curses he breathed out while making her moan.

Next round, because there was definitely going to be a next round of sex. Probably not in the bed, because she doubted they would make it that far, but he could be her pillow and the fire her warm blanket. The rug was thick and luxurious enough for that.

"So close," she gasped, her words muffled against her hands. "Rick, right there, oh my God, you are a god, please, just—"

She didn"t need to tell him or ask for anything more, even with the magic word, because he seemed to know already. Her pleasure hit just as he was pulling out again, her cunt spasming as he pushed back inside, and they both groaned as his thrusts lost all rhythm, despite his fingers maintaining them. It was nearly frenzied as he gave up holding off his own pleasure, and as she started to scream, his fingers left her clit and moved to her other hip, gripping down tight into her skin as he pounded into her, filling her up as he did so.

She didn"t know if it was a big orgasm followed by a ripple of smaller ones, or a long one that never seemed to end, but as he slumped over top of her and his soft cock slipped out, she cried out again, her inner walls still pulsing as she felt their combined fluids running down her thighs. She was going to be a complete mess by the end of the night, and probably need a shower before she slept, but that would require standing up and walking to the bathroom, and she wouldn"t have the energy for that by the time he was done with her.

As it was, she didn"t even know if she would have the strength to roll herself over from her half crouched position onto her back.

Thankfully, she didn"t have to find out, as Rick rolled them over together, his arm wrapping underneath her breasts as she did so, cradling her back to his chest as they settled onto their sides.

Neither of them spoke for a long while as they both panted in search of every breath, but she didn"t need to say anything. Her mind was blissfully clear of all thoughts, including those filled with hope, and those that were trying to stamp it out.

All that mattered was how warm and tingly she felt all over, and how good her cunt felt now that he had fucked her thoroughly.

Rick, however, seemed to have the problem she was grateful to currently not have. His hold on her tightened a little as his other arm wrapped around her body, and he nuzzled her hair before he spoke. "I lied earlier, Sunshine. Not completely, but it don"t feel right to not tell you the whole truth."

He sounded serious, and concerned, and she waited for nervous energy to fill her, but her bones were currently gelatin, and she couldn"t find the ability to worry about what he would say next.

"I am real sorry for being gone for so long. I didn"t lie about prepping for winter, but I was also nervous about coming back, and you not wanting to see me again. Didn"t think I could take it if you turned me down but being away from you made it clear that I had to take the risk and try anyways."

And there it was again: hope. Hope that what he was saying meant more than it really did. Hope that maybe her winter wouldn"t be spent alone. That maybe this was something real.

Younger Bethany would have taken his words as a promise that she meant something to him, that he would be true to her, and return. Younger Bethany had also had her heart broken too many times to count, by men who never returned, or did, but never cast a glance her way again. She was too burned out by stupid men to take them at anything other than face value. The Bethany of today took things one day, or night, at a time. If he came back, then so be it, and if he didn"t, that was his loss.

She had to listen to the older, more mature version of herself, and not the lovesick fool she had once been for men who were unworthy of her time and affection.

"Next time, I won"t be gone for so long. And I"ll keep coming back until you"re done with me. I can promise you that right now."

A promise he likely wouldn"t keep, whether he liked it or not. Everyone kept saying a snowstorm was on the horizon, and it had been for weeks. As soon as they snow started to come down too thick to make it into town, he would hunker down in his cabin, and she would have to wait until it settled after a week or two, or even longer, if more storms arrived shortly after the first.

But she wouldn"t hold it against him, if that was the case. She was willing to be forgiving about that. It wasn"t like he could control the weather, nor could any man brave it no matter how much they wanted to.

She wanted to say something in response, to thank him for the truth and his apology, or to tell him to come back to her, that she wouldn"t turn him away, but the words didn"t come. She was too pragmatic after years of hearing the same bullshit. They were all lesser men compared to Rick, but she refused to compare him to other men any longer.

He was one of a kind, until proven otherwise, but that didn"t mean she would grant herself any room for false hope.

Instead, she found the energy to roll over, grunting a little as she struggled with the loose button up half trapped under his arm, but together, they rolled her over to face him. No more words were spoken as she leaned in and pressed her lips to his, gently at first, until he deepened it. All of her hard work to roll her body from one side to the other was wasted a few kisses later as he rolled her onto her back and hovered over her. He seemed to have forgotten the bed as well, which she wasn"t going to complain about.

He kept kissing her as he unbuttoned the shirt she wore, and this time she pulled out of it entirely, then unhooked and pulled off the thick bralette type undershirt she had been wearing underneath. Her socks she toed off as well, although he did make a sound of protest at her action, and then they were both completely naked, with nothing between them at all.

He was inside of her again before she could urge him forward, and her nails dug into his skin as he kissed her between every breath, and pulled her legs higher around his waist, until eventually they were over his shoulders. He pulled two more orgasms out of her, each one bigger than the previous. It seemed to last forever, his stamina growing while hers was waning, until she felt her legs on the verge of cramps and her cervix began to protest. Only then did he finish with a growl, and she clung to him as he settled over her, his head resting on her belly while her fingers ran through his dark hair.

It was sort of perfect, and very different from the sex they had previously enjoyed, but that had to be it for the night. She wasn"t built for long nights of pleasure as she had been in the past. She needed sleep, and to stretch before the marathon. Their first night together had been a one off, but tonight, she would have to tell him that was it.

She had spent nearly a week cramping and aching after their first encounter. She couldn"t do another week of that, particularly if he really was returning to her again soon.

"I don"t think I can go again," she confessed, her words soft and whispered. Anything louder felt like it would break the spell they were under, and the haziness three orgasms introduced to her brain. "I am completely and utterly fucked."

She was worried, for some absurd reason, that he would be annoyed she was cutting him off shorter than last time, but once again, he was proving himself to be entirely different from every other man she had encountered. Rather than a sigh, he chuckled against her skin, and didn"t pull away.

"Last time took a lot out of me," he admitted, although he sounded more pleased than embarrassed by that statement. "And I know you were sore afterwards."

"You dickmatized me," she giggled, amused by her own word. "My poor vibrator sat lonely for a week. I couldn"t even think about getting myself off again."

He went still against her skin, and she looked down between her breasts to see he was now looking up at her, a very curious look on her face. "I"ve been gone for longer than a week..."

She grinned as she let her head fall back on the floor, pleased to see he wasn"t annoyed by the mention of a sex toy. How mature of him. "You"re right. You were."

He groaned again while lifting off of her and shifting onto his knees. He was thinking pretty hard before he offered her his hand, and she took it, and allowed him to help her up to a sitting position.

"I think I would enjoy watching you use it, if you were up to it."

Her face felt hot at the very idea of masturbating while he watched. She was by no means a prude, and instead, was turned on by the idea.

"Not tonight, of course, but maybe another time you"ll show me what you"ll do if I don"t hurry on back to you. Would definitely keep me coming back for more, so you don"t wear it out."

Her toys were all either rechargeable or she had a whole stock of batteries to power those that needed it, so there would be no wearing them out, but she understood what he meant.

"I think you could convince me to put on a show... another night."

He grinned before pushing himself up onto his feet, and pulling her with him. She felt a little unsteady as she stood, but her need for strength didn"t last long before he was scooping her up into his arms, bridal style, and carrying her towards the bed.

The rug had been comfortable, but nothing felt as good as her firm mattress and thick down topper. Particularly when he was laying beside her.

Rick settled her onto the bed before heading back towards the living room, and once again tending to the fire. She tried to keep her eyes open to watch him, but she was exhausted, and for more reasons than just sex. Not only had she worked a full shift, she had also been working on her own winter prep, making certain everything was ready, fueled, and fully powered in case a storm arrived while she was asleep, and unable to do any last minute fixes.

She was now ready for winter, but that was hard work, and she needed her beauty sleep.

The bed shifted once more as he climbed in to join her not that she opened her eyes to look, and she felt his arm wrap around her naked body to pull her closer. She didn"t protest as she pressed herself against him, soaking in both the warmth of his touch, but also the steadiness of it.

If she had to describe Rick, steady was certainly an apt word.

When she next opened her eyes, she was alone in the bed again, although the place he had laid was still warm. An early morning shouldn"t have surprised her, given how he certainly had morning duties to perform, and winter prep to wrap up, but still.

She wouldn"t take his absence personally, but she would have to inform him, when next he returned, that when she invited him to stay for the night, that included the morning after.

Next time, whenever that was.

But with the grey clouds she could see out through the window, she had a suspicious feeling that it would not be soon.