note: okay, so what DID happen between Chris and Maria between the time they left the cantina and Buck and J.D. came callin’?

Maria hummed softly to herself as she looked out the window onto the dusty street that bisected the dirty little village she called home. She stretched slowly, enjoying the way her body felt right now...sated and relaxed. She heard a soft sound behind her and knew that the blond gringo was waking. Maria enjoyed those times when Chris Larabee came to Purgatorio for a visit. The brooding man in black never treated her badly or demanded that she do things she didn’t enjoy doing. He was a gentleman and a gentle man...at least with her. She had seen his temper more than once, but it was never directed toward her.

She knew of course; knew why he came to see her so frequently. It had noting to do with her expertise. She might be the best whore in town, with talents honed by many years of experience and a long list of acquired tricks, but none of that held any interest for Senor Chris. He came to her because of who she reminded him of. She never asked him about it, no words passed between them on the subject. There was no need. She could see it in his eyes; read it in their haunted depths. She could feel it in the way he touched her, the way he caressed her auburn curls. It wasn’t important that he did not see her at those times. It was only important that he treated her well, and that she seemed to bring him some sense of peace. Even if it was only until he left her room.

"Maria?" He sighed contentedly as he spoke the name. He never called her Amora, insisting from the beginning on using the name her sainted mother had given her. He was the only one that she would allow to use it in this place.

"Si," she turned from the window, smiling at the handsome man who lay sprawled across the rumpled bed. They had already been in her tiny room for a few hours...very exciting hours indeed.

He watched her, grinning wolfishly. The late afternoon sun streamed in the window, accenting the curves of her body. She walked slowly toward him, her hips swaying seductively, auburn hair bobbing around her face and neck. Chris held out a hand, beckoning her toward him once again. She marveled at his stamina, especially considering how much whiskey he had already consumed. Reaching the foot of the bed, she crawled toward him on hands and knees. Still humming softly, she moved up along the bed, coming to rest with a leg on either side of his lean body.

Chris ran a hand along her taut form, coming to rest on her breast. She let out a tiny gasp as he began caressing the nipple, playing with it until it stood rigid. Pulling her forward, he took the hardened nipple in his mouth. Teasing her with lips and teeth, he sucked on first one breast and then the other. Her breathing quickened, becoming harsher, her hips rocking rhythmically against his stomach.

While one arm stroked her hair, the other moved downward, snaking itself beneath her. His fingers found their way into the warm, moist flesh between her legs. They pinched, teased and massaged, pushing up inside her. He felt her tighten around him as she gasped and pushed back against his hand. He kept his movements slow, enjoying the little sounds she made in response.

He pulled out of her and coaxed her to move downward, until she felt him against her ass, rigid and waiting for her. Laughing softly, she lifted herself and took him inside her. Now it was his turn to moan as she rocked softly, holding him tightly inside her. Pulling her down toward him, he wrapped his fingers through her hair and began kissing her. His lips were hungry, searching her out, tugging softly at her own full lips. His tongue pushed itself inside her mouth, and she began to suck on it, teasing him with her own tongue.

Their movements became more frantic as passion took over. They rocked rhythmically together, their bodies mounting a chorus of ecstasy and pure, unashamed lust. Ever the expert, Maria could sense the man’s reactions. Before he reached the crescendo of their private opera, she slowed and, ignoring her own throbbing flesh, she stopped. He moaned, his body pressing upward toward her. Smiling seductively, she began kissing his taut chest, enjoying the feel of his heart as it pounded an excited tatoo beneath her teasing lips.

Once more her instincts took over, and she began to slowly undulate, working him back to a fever pitch. He was moaning aloud now, as he moved steadily, urging her to increase her movements. As his excitement grew, Larabee pulled her tightly to him and rolled them over in unison. Now perched above the woman, he grinned, his eyes taking on a glassy look as with his movements, he gained control of the situation now. He pushed up inside her, causing her to cry out in pleasure and pain. Her legs wrapped around his slender waist, her hands gripped the sweat-soaked sheets beneath them.

His movements became almost frantic; he thrust harder and harder, grunting with both exertion and delirium. They formed a single being, their movements becoming a harmonious opera as cry answered cry, moan answered moan, scream answered scream.

Then came the long moment that found them both in that place beyond time. The purest bliss imaginable consumed their beings. And as he reached that point, he said a single word..."Sarah..."

And then it was over. Sated, Larabee fell to the bed, eliciting a small gasp as he left her. His chest heaving as he gasped for breath, his body quivering with the last vestiges of his orgasm. Beside him, Maria trembled with her own, savoring the pleasant reactions of her body.

A short time later he lay with his head resting on her stomach. Sitting against the headboard, she gently stroked the dosing man’s tangled blond hair. Humming to herself now, she watched him. His face was peaceful for the moment, the grief and pain held at bay. It didn’t matter who he called out to, who she reminded him of. That look of peace was the only thing that mattered.

The End