Friday morning dawned bright and early for a late fall day. Elaine was up doing her Bible study and trying her best to prepare herself for the interview that day. They had wanted to get it over and done with early in the day. The Orlando Sentinel would have a feature on the couple the next weekend to start off a series on December Brides.
Lance and Elaine needed to get to the compound early to dress for a photo shoot of the couple for release. MTV would be covering the whole morning and then the interview for their special that weekend on the group and on the upcoming nuptials.
Elaine was ready to go downstairs and gathered the things she would need for the day to take with her. As she opened her door, Lance opened his. "Good morning, Sugar. You lookin' good," he said as he looked her up and down and gave a thumbs up approval.
"Well, good morning to you, too. You're lookin' mighty fine yourself there. Think your woman would mind if you gave me a kiss?" she grinned at him.
"Let's just say my woman best not mind me kissin' this fine specimen of a woman, 'cause you are my woman. Oh Baby, you look HOT this mornin'. You're gonna melt the film, Sugar." He leaned down and gently kissed her parted lips and wrapped his free arm around her and pulled her to him. "Now that's the way to start the day. It'll be a lot better when we start it together in OUR room." He gave her a slight wicked grin and wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively.
They went downstairs for breakfast with everyone else and discussed some business things that needed to be taken care of. Elaine assured Rickii and Lynne that she would give them a hand that afternoon after their classes were done. Because of their hectic schedule, Lance had arranged their classes to be done via cable Internet.
Business done, Lance and Elaine put their things in the 4Runner and headed to the compound for the photo shoot and then the interview. They would first be photographed in formal attire and then dress down 'til finally, they were in the clothes they would wear for the interview.
They goofed around, picked, laughed and pulled pranks on one another all during the shoot. The photographer was so taken by their chemistry together, he even took some candid shots they were not even aware of and these were more precious than the posed shots.
Finally, they were dressed in their interview clothes and sitting on the bench that the photographer placed them on. He asked them if they would kiss each other for the camera's that were flashing and rolling. Elaine leaned back against him and turned her face to his and he laid a lip lock on her that curled her toes around her ears. She, then, in return, did the same to him. When they finally came up for air, they were flushed and breathing heavy. "I would say that was an effective kiss, wouldn't you guys?" the photographer asked the others. The whole studio applauded and Lance and Elaine both blushed and snuggled together.
They decided to have a small lunch with everyone before the interview started so that everyone could feel comfortable together and get the nervousness out of the way. Sheryl Campbell from the Orlando Sentinel was a seasoned reporter and had learned early on that you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. Being a Bitch in this line of work got you nowhere fast. Her respect for people and their privacy had made her a favorite among the famous in the Orlando area. Her demeanor and attitude at the hospital during all the hoopla over the shooting had stood out with Lance and Johnny's management team.
Shanna Douglass had gotten into journalism due to her brother Ernest who worked for the Florida Times-Union. She learned everything she could, but her love was to do live reporting and interviews such as what she was now doing for MTV. She was an excellent observer and had watched other reporters and their techniques. During the hospital vigil, she had gotten to know Sheryl pretty well and admired how she received respect from people. "Well, kiddo, you have to earn the respect by first giving it. Just because someone is famous does not give us the right to pry into their private lives. Unless it's a matter of National Security, their private lives are just that, PRIVATE. And if you give that respect, they will appreciate it and be apt to give you the good stuff. Just look at this assignment."
During lunch, Shanna started to take some notes and Sheryl indicated to her to put her pen and pad away until the interview. This was 'down time' and 'off the record' time. "Respect for privacy," she whispered. "They will watch to see if any of this shows up in a gossip column or not. If it does, you're out!" The satchel went under the table and it was noticed by the powers that be.
Sheryl observed the couple that sat across from her at the table. They were so natural with each other. Even though this young woman was eight years younger than Lance, she showed signs of maturity not found in many women her age. And it was so obvious that he was completely and totally in love with the woman at his side. His main focus was her. Her needs were foremost on his mind. And the way they touched each other was so sensuous without being overtly sexual. It was as if they were discovering each other over and over again each time. It was surealness in the midst of chaos.
Shanna watched Sheryl as she watched the couple and she wondered what she was thinking. Finally, she asked, "A penny for your thought there, Sheryl."
"I was just thinking how perfect they are together and how beautiful their love is. It's frightening to think how close they came to losing each other last summer. Those two have staying power, mark my words. They will be together a long, long time."
Lunch was finally over and everyone headed to the interview room. Everyone was fitted for their microphones and ear pieces. Cameras were positioned for optimal advantage of getting shots during filming but not interfere at the same time.
Elaine and Lance stepped to the side and had a moment of prayer together. Then they returned to the love seat and took their places and had their mikes and earpieces put on and put in place and they made sure they were connected. Everyone looked at each other and there was this nervous laugh from Lance that cracked everyone up and all was well with the group assembled.
Sheryl and Shanna did their respective introductions and welcomes to the special and then they started off by just covering some general information on the couple's background. Of course, everyone knew Lance, but no one knew much about Elaine, so this was her chance to make herself known to the fans. They covered her growing up in a single parent home with her brothers and her schooling and the length of time she had known *N SYNC and Lance. He made mention that she had won the Science Award at her graduation that year and how they spent so much time just talking about general things over the years and that was how they knew each other so well. traveling with her Mom on tour, she got to know the guys well, they were like brothers to her.
"Well, obviously, you think more of Lance than just a brother now, don't you?" asked Shanna.
"Oh, I fell in love with Lance Bass the first summer I went on tour with them. He was my hero, my Sir Lancelot. I vowed then, that one day, I would be Mrs. Lance Bass. I was only 13 years old, but his career was just getting started and I knew he would need time to put everything together and I could wait." Elaine looked at Lance and smiled.
Sheryl spoke up next. "Elaine, working as Nsync's personal tour secretary and liaison to FLE and taking classes through UCF, when do you find time to plan a wedding or just have some time together and do you plan to continue with these things once you're married?"
Lance sat back and smiled as she turned loose and talked. He loved watching her work. "Well, Sheryl, it's called 'delegation.' I delegate jobs out to people that I trust can get it done. My two best friends are working for the tour now and they help out tremendously. They have been so helpful and so supportive. As far as FLE is concerned, it's still a family business and I will officially be family Christmas Day, so, yes I will continue there as well.
My classes through UCF are usually during times when Lance is doing either *N SYNC work or FLE work. If there will be a conflict, the girls tape the class for me and I catch it up the next day. Lance and I probably have as much time together, or maybe more, than most average couples. It just means keeping a schedule.
Shanna asked, "What would you say then, to people who are in a similar situation as yours? A similar type relationship?"
Elaine thought for a moment and looked at Lance and then back to the reporters. "Don't fall in love or pursue a relationship with someone who's famous, if you're not ready to handle all that goes with it. Either you trust each other totally and completely, or you don't trust at all. There is no in between. I know that there are girls out there that are in love with Lance the performer, Lance the movie star, Lance the Artist Production Manager. I, on the other hand, am in love, very much, with Lance, the man. The man whose nose sniffles while he's cooking on the grill because the smoke tickles it. The man who takes his socks off and doesn't straighten them out to where you have to stand and unroll them when you go to wash them. Jealousy is petty and childish and there is NO room for it in an adult relationship. I trust Lance with all my heart and soul."
Lance finally spoke up. "Being in this kind of relationship means admitting when you're wrong about something. Not being afraid to say I'm sorry, I messed up. Communication is essential in any relationship whether famous or not. Always making time for each other is important too. If I'm on the road for a few days, all it takes is a few minutes of my time to call her and say 'Sugar Bear, I love you.' OOPS!" Lance knew he had slipped giving out his pet name for her.
"Sugar Bear, huh? Is that your nickname for her Lance?" Lance blushed and nodded yes. "And do you have a name for Lance, Elaine?"
"Oh yes. Lancelot. I told you he was my hero." They all had a chuckle and then Sheryl spoke.
"Elaine, you are a young and very bright young woman. Why get married so young? Why not wait, say, until you're through with school?"
Lance reached for her hand to reassure her and strengthen her. "Well, going through what we did this last summer, made us both realize the preciousness of life and how fleeting it can be. I left this life on the operating table during my surgery after the shooting. I had an experience that it would take a whole new special to talk about. But, by the grace of God, I was allowed to come back. And when I did, I knew there were things to be done and only a certain amount of time in which to do it.
None of us is guaranteed another day on the face of this earth. I didn't want to wait any longer. I would have married him in the hospital, but that's not what God had in mind for us. There was too much we had to do to get to the place where we could say I DO and mean it. There's also a lot of healing that needed to be done physically, mentally and emotionally."
Shanna questioned next. "With the attack that you two suffered, are you concerned about security issues for the group and their families?"
Lance took this question. "This, we hope, was a one time occurrence. We have one of the best security teams around. Things happen and we can't be afraid to go out and all. We did reevaluate our security after the incident, but there's nothing that could have been done to prevent it, unless we completely cut ourselves off from everyone."
Sheryl seemed a little hesitant to move forward with the next question, but it was one a lot of people wanted to know. "In light of what happened and your past history, Lance, with Vivica Lawrence, have you managed to come to grips with what she did to you both? Will there ever be a time when you will be able to forgive and forget?"
This time, Elaine took his hand to give him reassurance and they leaned into one another. "Actually, we have resolved that matter. This last Thanksgiving brought about a lot of thinking as to what we were thankful for.
Obviously, my first thank you was to God for sparing Elaine and sending her back to us. Ever since the shooting, I've had nothing but anger and hate in my heart for Vivica. I wasted countless energy despising that woman. But, it didn't do a thing to her. All that it managed to do was make me irritable and impossible to deal with a lot of things. Elaine made me realize how wrong that was. She was at the point she was going to go to Vivica and forgive her. When I heard this, I went nuts. But, she pointed out to me that we're all human and make mistakes and some of us have had to deal with a whole lot more than others. Apparently, Elaine found out more about Vivica than I ever knew about her. Things that shaped and caused Vivica to be the way she was.
Of course, I was not looking for any excuses, but then Elaine made a simple comment to me that caused me to think. 'There but for the grace of God, go I.' Vivica had a lot of turmoil in her life. Turmoil that created a beast of sorts in her. I will not go into detail as to the particulars of her past. It is where it needs to be, in the past.
After Thanksgiving, Elaine and I went to see Vivica at the hospital. I could NOT believe the sight I saw there. It was NOT the vital woman I remembered her being. It was a shell of a woman. According to her doctor, she was not making any progress in recovery, in fact, she was withdrawing into a self-imposed shell even further. She was convinced she had killed the both of us. To make a long story short, we finally convinced her that we were indeed alive and then...we told her we forgave her. She's sick and she needs help, which she is getting, and now, that help is getting through to her because that wall of anger and hate has been removed. The difference in her from the time we arrived until we left was amazing."
Sheryl shook her head. "I don't know if I could be that generous."
Elaine spoke up. "You can't afford NOT to be generous. Anger and hate are like a cancer, they will eat away at you. We had to let it go so we could move forward. And I'm happy to say that per her doctor, Vivica has made more progress in the last several days than she has in the whole time she's been there. Forgiveness is a great healer."
This seemed like the perfect time for Shanna's next question. "What is the one thing or the one person that has kept you going these last few months?"
Lance and Elaine both looked at each other and turned and said, "God."
"Our faith in God is what has gotten us through all of this," Elaine boldly declared.
Sheryl spoke next, "Let's get on a lighter note. What has been the hardest thing you've had to deal with as a result of your relationship?"
"I guess the biggest issue has been age," spoke Lance softly. "Especially the fact that Elaine just turned eighteen. Elaine is a lot more mature than a lot of women I know." He put his arm around her and looked back at the camera. "I love her no matter what. I wouldn't care if she were eight years OLDER than me. Age means nothing as far as our relationship is concerned, except that she's legal," he laughed.
Sheryl continued, "how much support have you received from your families in regard to your relationship?"
"My Mom has been very supportive. She knew how I felt about Lance a long time ago, but she never discouraged me from having my dreams. She didn't encourage me in the feelings I had, but she was respectful of my feelings. My brothers all think the world of Lance and they are very supportive." Elaine smiled at Lance.
"My Dad couldn't believe it took me so long to realize that what I was feelin' was love. He had it all figured out before I did. He even gave me Granny Bass' rings to give to Elaine. I figured that put the Bass household seal of approval on the whole thing. My whole family is in love with Elaine, in fact, they would probably take her side if we ever argued," he laughed and hugged Elaine to him.
Shanna had a grin on her face watching this incredible couple. "Apart from each other, who are the most important people in your lives?"
Elaine spoke first. "My Mom is my rock. Aside from God in my life, my Mom has been a bountiful influence."
"I have to agree with Elaine, my Mom has been a very strong influence in my life along with my Dad and sister."
Shanna interjected another question. "What would you say is the best thing about each other?"
Lance spoke right up on that question. "That's easy for Elaine. It's her heart and her compassion. She has a heart as big as anything. She's amazin'. She is the most selfless person I know and always lookin' for a way to help someone. She is the one who set up the Special Meet and Greets for the physically challenged and terminal kids. During our tour, we had a Bible Study every morning thanks to her. I have seen her on her knees with someone crying with them and praying with them, myself included, because she has a heart for God and his creations."
The entire time Lance was speaking, Elaine was blushing and looking down. She looked up and smiled shyly and spoke gently to him, "You really must let me meet this paragon of virtue, maybe you should marry her instead of me." Everyone laughed.
"And you Elaine. What's the best thing about Lance?" Shanna restated.
"That's easy, his passion. And before you go getting the wrong idea, I'm referring to his passion for his family, the music he does, his friends, his work. He's not a slacker. When he does something, he wants to do it well. There's an intensity to this man that is completely overwhelming. I feel so privileged to have him in my life and to have him love me is even more special. I just know that he will be a wonderful husband and father."
Sheryl smiled at the couple. "Speaking of fathers, what are your plans for a family? Any kids in the future?"
Lance grinned from ear to ear. "Well, we plan to start working on that on the honeymoon. We both love kids and we will take whatever the good Lord gives us. If we don't come back from this honeymoon pregnant, it won't be from a lack of trying." Lance blushed as he looked at Elaine and she was fire engine red.
Sheryl noticed her shyness over something so very intimate. "Elaine, are you blushing? I would think after months of living together you would be a little past that."
Elaine was pulled back to reality by this statement and it's reference. "If by 'living together' you mean sleeping together, you're very wrong. Our wedding night will be OUR first time."
Lance noticed how she indicated 'our' when she spoke.
Sheryl spoke up, "Well, in light of how young people are currently, I just assumed..."
"That's your first mistake. NEVER assume you know anything. There are some of us who still believe in morals. I will be a virgin on my wedding day and walk proudly down the aisle in my white dress. I will present to the man I love, the most precious gift I have to give him, my womanhood. I will be saying that I loved him enough to save myself for the commitment we will make to keep ourselves only for each other. I will be saying that I respected him and myself enough to bring myself pure and chaste to the marriage bed. There is something to be said for having values."
"Lance, how do you feel about this?"
He looked at Elaine with so much love in his eyes that it was overflowing and so obvious to those nearby that he was very much committed to this young woman. "I feel that I'm the most blessed man on the planet that she's the way she is. I could never have found a more perfect bride. I'm so lucky and so very happy to have her as my bride to be." They turned to each other and gave each other sweet kisses.
Shanna asked her question next. "The time is getting closer for this wedding. Are you getting nervous or anxious waiting for it and do you think this will change anything for *N SYNC, Lance?"
Lance let Elaine speak first. "I'm really excited about it. All our plans are finalized and the only thing left is the final fittings on the dresses. Yeah, I'm excited."
"This gal is so organized it's not funny. All we have to do is sit back and wait. As far as *N SYNC being affected by this, I don't think there's a problem. All the fans love her and I love her so what more could you want?"
They wrapped up the interview with some questions about the Anniversary CD and the new movie that was in the works. As soon as the cameras shut down, everyone relaxed.
The photographer brought out the pictures from the shoot and Lance and Elaine both picked the same shot, Lance behind her with his arms wrapped lovingly and protectively around her and her leaning back into him with her head turned to the side, slightly. They had the most contented looks on their faces and you could tell that they were so much in love. As soon as the shot was picked, the press packets were given out. There were miscellaneous shots of them playing, walking, just hamming it up.
Sheryl came up to Elaine after the crews had cleared out and asked if she might speak to her and Lance a moment. When they were to themselves, Sheryl spoke directly to Elaine, "I want to apologize for making that comment to you during the interview. I want you to know that I will edit that out of my interview so there will be no embarrassment."
"NO!" exclaimed Elaine. "I want you to keep it in there because you gave me a forum to share my beliefs in what all young women should do. I knew there were people out there who thought exactly those things about us. But, Lance has his room and I have mine and we part ways in the hallway at night. And, yes, your apology is accepted." Elaine hugged her and she and Lance left.
"What an incredible, classy, young woman! She is everything Lance says and more." Sheryl turned and left the compound to head back to the office to write her special with a whole new respect for this couple.
Elaine went by the photographer's studio before they left. Elaine wanted a large 16 X 20 portrait of them together to hang in the family room at the house and she wanted some others too. She made arrangements for the wedding announcement to be put in her hometown paper.
When they finished all their errands, they headed home. "Wanna stop and get some ice cream for tonight after dinner?" Lance asked.
"Sure, and don't forget the chocolate syrup."
Lance fixed supper while the girls did their classes. He was a really great cook and knew his way around the kitchen. The main meal was almost ready and he was mixing a salad when Elaine sneaked in behind him. She slipped her arms around his waist and placed her hands on his firm stomach. Even at twenty-six, he still had it and she loved every ripple on that stomach. He wore his sweats and a white wifebeater.
As she held onto him, she laid her face against his back and took in his masculine scent. When he moved his arms to toss the salad, the muscles in his back and shoulders rippled and she couldn't resist placing small kisses on his back as she caressed his stomach. Lance almost dropped the bowl. Finally, he stopped and turned around and wrapped his arms around her. She laid her head on his chest and could hear and feel his heart beating in his chest.
Lance took his hand and lifted her face to him. She looked at him with such dreamy eyes, Lance almost picked her up to head to the bedroom. He had to remind himself that was NOT cool, but God, she was so hot standing there looking at him. He leaned down and kissed her lips. They were so soft and sweet and his lips fit on them so well.
"I take it you're through with classes?" he asked as he turned back around to the salad and took a couple of deep breaths to calm his heart rate and breathing down.
"Yep, is dinner about ready?"
"Yes, let everyone know to come on."
They ate dinner and talked and had a really great time together. Everyone felt that the interview had gone well. After they were done eating, Lynne and Rickii went up to work on school work. Elaine helped Lance load the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen.
"I'm gonna go up and shower and then we can watch the movie and have dessert, okay? I love you." She leaned up and kissed him gently.
"I love you too, Sugar Bear. Please hurry back. I've got some calls to make while you're in the shower."
She went up to the room and gathered some sweats and an old T-shirt of Lances to wear for bed. As she brushed her hair so that she could put it up while she bathed, she walked out onto the balcony. The night was beautiful and she loved the fragrances from the garden that rose to her. She finally put her hair up and went in to shower.
As she showered, she thought of Lance and how good he felt in her arms earlier and how good he smelled. It was overwhelming. Her heart soared and she began to sing. Lance finished his calls and sat back in his chair. His eyes were starting to burn. He thought maybe he should go up and take out his contacts and put his glasses on to watch TV. Give the old peepers a rest.
As he topped the stairs, he heard singing. At first, he thought it was coming from one of the girl's rooms, but then he listened closer and realized it was Elaine. She was singing an old song of Meredith's YOU KNOW ME. He felt an uncontrollable urge to open the bedroom door so he could hear her better. Her voice was incredible. It was untrained, but it was a natural, beautiful, crystal clear voice.
He eased over by the bathroom door and listened to her sing. She soared on a note and there were chill bumps on his arms, it reached him so. As he leaned against the door to listen to more, it slipped open because it had not latched all the way. He reached and grabbed the door before it hit against the wall.
As he came back up, he caught an image in the mirror. The opaque door to the shower was steamed up, but he could see a faint image of her body as she showered. He was spellbound by the faint beauty he saw there. His heart was racing so fast he was sure she could hear it. He watched as she turned around in the shower, all the time singing like she was performing for an audience.
She started turning the water down and off and Lance snapped back to reality.
He grabbed the doorknob and pulled it closed before it was completely quiet in the room and the click could be heard. His heart was pounding so hard in his chest that his head felt as though it would explode.
He ran to his room and closed the door and leaned against it. "Oh Lord, forgive me. I love her so much and I want her so much I can't stand it. I need Your strength, Lord. Help me please."
When he turned the light on in the bathroom, his face was flushed and his breathing was still rapid and shallow. He went to the sink and turned the cold water on and splashed it on his face. As he took the towel from the rack beside him, he closed his eyes to dry his face. Even with his eyes closed, he saw her silouhette behind that door as she rinsed her body from the fragrant soap she was using that still filled his nostrils. He could see her hands touch her body in ways he wanted to so bad. "Oh dear God! Help me. Give me strength."
He set about taking his contacts out and his hands were shaking so bad. Several times he had to stop and take deep breaths, but finally he got them out. His glasses were on his bureau by the door and he grabbed them on his way back downstairs. As he passed the door to her room, he could still hear her singing while she dressed.
Elaine danced around the room as she sang and dried herself with a big, fluffy, baby blue towel. When she was dried off, she slipped her clothes on and as she put the T-shirt on, it was almost as if Lance had his arms around her as he had in the kitchen. Oh, the smell of him was incredible and those lips were so soft and sweet. And, they seemed to tremble a bit when he kissed her. "Oh Lord, he is such a loving and passionate man. Don't let me be a disappointment to him. Help me to be the best wife I can be to him."
She quickly put her towel away and hurried downstairs to the family room. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she could smell popcorn, so she turned toward the kitchen instead of the family room. As she reached the kitchen, she saw Lance standing in front of the microwave with his hands resting on the counter and his head held low. Her heart quickened for him and she went to his side and put her arms around him in a comforting manner.
"I thought we were having ice cream tonight?" she asked ever so softly.
Lance looked up and into her eyes. "Oh, we'll have the ice cream and some popcorn. It's good together. You get the little bit of salt with the popcorn and the sweet with the ice cream and of course, you have to top it with chocolate syrup. You wanna get the ice cream out of the freezer?"
"Sure thing, Lancelot."
He watched her as she moved about the kitchen and how his old T-shirt fit her curvaceous body. 'Lance, you gotta stop this' he thought to himself. She took the big spoon and dipped out the Butter Pecan ice cream into the bowls and then she poured chocolate syrup over it. Some dripped down the outside of the bowl and she took her finger and wiped it off and put her finger into her mouth and licked the chocolate off. Lance just about lost it.
"You ready, baby?" Elaine asked as she picked up the two bowls to take into the family room to watch a movie.
"Yeah," Lance panted.
They went into the family room and sat on the couch. Lance turned on the TV and they picked out a movie to watch. As they watched the movie, they ate their ice cream and popcorn. Occasionally, he would glance over at her and she would glance over at him. They laughed and talked about some of the antics on the comedy they were watching.
Elaine slipped over closer to Lance and the bowl of popcorn tipped over. They laughed and picked it all up. She picked her bowl of ice cream up and started mixing it up in the bowl. It had melted down enough she could do that. She would glance over at Lance and he would be licking his ice cream off the spoon. At this sight, she almost dropped her bowl. It was getting more difficult to breathe.
Lance watched Elaine from the corner of his eye and noticed that she was watching him eat his ice cream. He watched her nervously stir her ice cream into a soupy mixture. When she had moved closer to him, he could smell the fragrant soap she had used in the shower and her image behind that steamy shower door flashed through his mind. As they picked up the popcorn that was spilled when she moved closer to him, he inhaled deeper doses of her scent. Oh, how he wanted her.
He was watching her and eating his ice cream and all of a sudden, he completely missed his mouth and ice cream fell down his chin and onto his wifebeater. Immediately, he scooped up the ice cream from his shirt and put it in the bowl and put it down on the table. As he took off his shirt, Elaine put her bowl down by his on the table. He went to use his shirt to wipe his chin and chest off and Elaine grabbed his hand to stop him. The look in her eyes that greeted his glance was more than he could stand.
Elaine leaned in and she slowly licked the ice cream from his chin and then she moved to where it had landed just below his throat. When she was through licking up the ice cream, she placed nipping kisses on his chest. Along with everything else that had happened that night, poor Lance could barely stand it. He grabbed a hold of Elaine and lifted her face up to his. The intensity in her eyes was more than anything he had ever seen there.
When he just starred at her and didn't do anything, she looked over at the bowl of ice cream and dipped her finger in it and then put ice cream on her cheek and down her neck to her collarbone. Lance didn't hesitate any longer. His lips and tongue proceeded to clean the ice cream from her cheek and neck and her hands played in his hair until she could stand no more.
She pulled his head up to her and gently removed his glasses and then looked at him intently between his eyes and his mouth. She found traces of the ice cream around his mouth and she moved to lick it off. Instead, Lance engulfed her mouth with his and his tongue begged for entrance. The taste of him was intoxicating along with his scent and she soon let him gain entrance. His tongue massaged hers and her hands ran up and down his chest and then slipped up and around his neck.
His arms engulfed her and he pulled her as close as he could as his mouth devoured hers. They breathed each other in and there was a longing that overtook them both. Lance took Elaine's face in his hands. "I love you, Elaine. I love you...so much. Oh Baby...I want you...so bad right now. God...you smell so good," Lance gasped as he held her close and kissed her neck and ear.
Elaine cuddled in closer to him and returned the kisses that he left down her neck. Her hands roamed his back and down to the top of his sweat pants. At the same time, Lance was caressing up and down her back and then he pulled her onto his lap. She sat facing him with her knees on either side of him and looked down into pools of green that were so intense with passion, she could not breathe. She loved this man. She loved him more than life itself.
As she sat there, she pulled him to her in a hug that brought him against her chest and he was overwhelmed by the scent of the soap and this brought the visions of her in the shower back.
He snuggled between her breasts and held her so close. His hands slipped beneath the T-shirt and up her back bringing her closer to him. Her hands were running through his hair and she was breathing heavier and heavier.
As his hands began to move to her side, she looked at her hand and saw her TLW ring. Tears spilled from her eyes and she held to Lance like she was drowning. When he felt her body sobbing, his hands froze in place. "Baby, what's wrong?"
Elaine's body was convulsing with sobs. "Can you just please hold me and not expect anything else? Can you do that? I've been so bad here."
Lance pulled back and held her face in his hands. His heart broke for her. "Baby, you haven't been bad. Nothing is going to happen that you don't want to happen."
She reached out and touched his face, "That's the problem. I wanted something to happen. Until I saw my ring, I didn't care about the consequences. That's bad."
"No Sugar Bear, it's not bad. You're just a red blooded American girl with desires just like the rest of us."
"But, I should know better!" exclaimed Elaine.
"Well then, so should I. We both slipped up. I still love you, I still want you more than anything, and I'll still wait for you."
He turned her in his lap and held her like he would a child as he comforted her. After a while, he looked at the bowls of ice cream and chuckled.
"What's funny?" she asked.
"I don't think we will ever look at a bowl of ice cream the same way again," he chuckled.
