This was what he wanted, but it wasn't. She wanted to fuck, to scratch an itch, he wanted to make love to her. He laughed softly with his lips against her hair.

"Don't laugh at me."

"I'm not," he shifted her so she could feel his growing erection, "It's been almost as long for me." That was all the incentive she needed. She looked down at his crotch then up at his eyes, smiling, daring him to say no. Without kissing him, she set her beer on the deck and started unbuttoning his shirt.

He pushed her hands aside, "No, no." Then he set his own beer down, slid his hands into her hair on either side of her head and controlled the pace of a very deep, long kiss. While they were still kissing, he shifted her leg so she now straddled him, then he stood, supporting her butt, and took her inside the cabin. Half way in he stopped, and went back for the baby monitor.

He had only hesitated for a moment, when he thought about how hard it would be for him to have sex with her and keep his heart out of it. He didn't have walls like she did. When it came to Carrie he was all raw emotion.

He knew exactly what she wanted; fast, hard fucking. The kind of sex that you can only feel with your body; too raw for your mind and heart. He set her on the bed and the look in her eyes said, 'strip,' so he did. He quickly searched his knapsack for his buried supply of condoms, wondering if they have an expiration date, as he tore open the packet with his teeth and he slid one on in record time. He tore at her clothes in a way that came just short of ripping them and she struggled to help him. When she was naked, he wanted to stop, and look at her, and touch every part of her, but this was for her. So he picked her up, wrapped her legs around him, grabbed her ass, and pushed into her with no foreplay. At least physically, she came to life again. The sleepwalking, exhausted woman he met a week ago transformed back into the full-oflife girl he knew. She arched her back, grinding into him and grabbed on to his biceps, digging into his muscles. He couldn't last long. Ironically, two years without sex only made his response time shorter. And the sight of her, fucking him with complete abandon, sent him over the edge.

He knew she didn't come, but she was building up to it, so he lay down on the bed with her under him and kissed her hard. His hand followed the same path she had shown him years before, when she showed him how to make her come, and she wasn't quiet as she fought and pushed for her release. When she came she screamed out his name, and cussed, then laughed and panted as she caught her breath.

She collapsed in a heap, sprawled across him. After a few minutes she made a move to get up, but he held her down. "Stay," he mumbled. "I swear I'll get you home before your parents wake up."

She laughed at his joke. He held up the monitor to show her it was on and quiet. "Stay. They're fine."

She fell into a sated sleep almost immediately, smiling as their breathing synced.

Chapter 35.

The backup Ben called for arrived on Saturday morning. Sissy and Christopher knocked on the door just as Carrie was finishing feeding the kids their breakfast. When Ben wasn't nearly as surprised to see them as she was, Carrie caught on that he was behind some sort of scheme. They were watching the twins demo their newest toys when Ben came out of the bedroom he was now sharing with Carrie. He was freshly showered and ready for something ...

"Hey Mom," he kissed her on the cheek, "Nine-fer," he walked past Christopher, who he fist bumped. He sat on the couch as put on his socks and boots, acting as if he expected to see them today.

Carrie sat down next to him, "Uh, what's up?" She shifted her eyes toward their guests.

"Oh, them?" His smile said he had a plan, "It's girls' day out."

Carrie grinned at him, "And Two-fer?" "Nine-fer," he corrected her," is here as my backup. He scooped Gracie up off the floor. "I'm afraid of this one. I can't handle her alone." He tickled her belly and she laughed. Then he stuck her on his shoulders. He moved over and sat next to Christopher, scooping little Ben up on his way over. "So the three of us," he pointed to himself, Christopher, and Ben, "are going to babysit her."

Carrie laughed, "And where am I going?"

"Shopping with my mom."

"And the resort is closed for the day? Should I tell the guests?" She challenged him. "Uh, no, Wonder Woman. You aren't the only one who can handle all this for a day. I have Tony and Margaret as my back up there."

A day away, her first in years, did sound wonderful. He had obviously put a lot of effort into making this happen. "Ok," she nodded that she was onboard with the plan. "Thank you."

She showered and dressed, luxuriating in time. Just not having to scramble through her morning routine was a gift in itself. As she and Sissy were walking out the door, Ben called her back, "Here," he handed her a folded piece of paper he pulled from his front pocket. Carrie questioned him with her eyes. "It's my shopping list and credit card. I need you to get a few things for me."

Without reading the list she tucked it in her back pocket. She figured he needed razors and socks and stuff like that. She kissed the babies, hugged her brother then was swept into a passionate movie kiss by Ben. She giggled when he set her upright, then she saw Christopher watching them out of the corner of her eye. Good, let him see what love looks like. She knew he would never see that at home.

On the way to the mall, Carrie read the list:

These things are for me, put them on my credit card.

Dress your size, not mine, don't be a smart ass

Stockings

Sexy bra, panties and garters again, your size, not mine, don't be a smart ass

High heeled shoes do I need to repeat myself? Carrie laughed. She was torn. She hated to use his credit card, but she wanted to please him, and there was no way she could afford any of this stuff right now. Then she remembered ... lightning in a bottle. It was back. For the second time in her life she was getting a huge dose of Ben love, and like the first time, she wasn't going to waste time over thinking it.

Her day with Sissy brought her back to life even more. She and Maureen did girl things before Nick died, but hadn't since. In all the chaos and pain, Carrie had forgotten how much she missed female companionship and friendship. They shopped, had a long, leisurely lunch, and topped the day off with mani-pedi's.

On the way back to the resort, Sissy asked Carrie the questions she wanted to ask Ben. This way it was girl talk, not a prying mother.

"Did he tell you where he goes next?"

"He said Georgia, but he didn't say why. I just figured it must be classified."

"It's Ranger school." "Oh." Carrie knew this was huge. So, why wasn't he training? If he was going next week, he should be working out and preparing. It bothered Carrie, but she tucked it away. She would confront him later.

"If he passes he'll be relocated to Georgia."

Carrie saw where she was going with the conversation now. "No, he didn't mention anything to me."

Sissy didn't hide her disappointment. She wanted them to be together. The items on Ben's shopping list were for their dinner reservations at the nicest steak and seafood restaurant on the lake. He looked breathtaking in his dress uniform, complete with cool hat. Carrie tried it on in the jeep.

"Can I wear this later?" She bit her lip and smiled at him.

"Sure, but rules and regs call for only the hat in that situation." "Really," she lifted the skirt of her dress, "I would have to take these off?" She looked down at her stockings and garters.

Ben took a deep breath and cleared his throat, "I'll have to check the manual on those." That night, Sissy and Christopher stayed in Carrie's apartment, and she and Ben took over cabin 12. It was like being back in his room, their own world. Here, there was no time. He wasn't leaving in a week, and Carrie didn't check the clock or have a baby monitor. They slowly explored and got to know each other all over again. He made love to her, and she opened up and let him. She let down her wall. Lightning in a bottle.

The Thursday before he was scheduled to leave, Ben told Carrie that he wanted to go over his red book of repairs. They sat in the kitchen while the twins took their afternoon nap.

He set the book on the table in front of her. It was bigger than hers and almost every page was used.

Carrie sighed, "That bad?"

He nodded. Carrie blew out a calming breath. She stared at the book and shrugged. "I knew there was some work to be done ..." she shook her head in disbelief. "How much of this is urgent?"