Never Far Away

by Anie Michaels

  As she came to the entrance of the shop, two large doors like you’d find in a barn, she could see a surprisingly large boat that was obviously in the midst of creation. Porter had told her it was a twenty-five foot sailboat, but the numbers had really just flitted through her mind, not really taking hold. To see in person a boat that size and realize that the hands of this man were responsible for it made parts of her liquefy. She swallowed her arousal down, trying to maintain some semblance of a cool and unaffected demeanor. She continued in the building and all efforts to stay cool, calm, and collected were thrust back out the door when her eyes found Porter.

  He was standing at a table saw, gracefully moving a plank of wood through the blade, shirtless. He was wearing jeans that clung to his ass in the most delicious of ways, and God help her, a tool belt. Every cheesy picture of a construction buff flipped through her mind, one comparing to the glistening Adonis standing before her. As he pushed the wood through the saw the muscles in his back rippled and waved. The forward and backward motions of his arms triggered his biceps to contract and bulge and Ella’s ability to stand up straight was stolen from her. Her belly quivered, her core tightened, her hands painfully ached to smooth over the muscles that lined his back and arms.

  Even in her hyper-aroused state, she knew it would be dangerous to sneak up on him while he was using a blade, so she used the moment to soak in the view, stowing the sight away in her mind to remember later. Once he powered the saw off, she let out a breath, still trying to take all of him in.

  “I still maintain that there should be women lined up on your yard trying to win your affections. You are one seriously sexy man.” He turned towards her, obviously surprised to see her.

  “Hey, Babe. I didn’t hear you come in,” he said as he started towards her.

  “Well, that’s because you were operating that beast of a machine over there. You know,” she said with a gleam in her eyes, “women, mainly me, would pay good money to watch you work out here, shirtless, and see all your glorious muscles flexing and thrusting.” She emphasized the last word with a sexy whisper. He made his way over to her and gripped her hips.

  “You want to see me thrust?” He asked with a smile.

  “Always.” Her wicked smile stayed on her lips until his came down on hers. Her hands, as if she had no control over them, slid all over his shoulders and down his arms. He was slick with sweat making her hands glide effortlessly over the chords of his muscles still warm from use. She rubbed on him and pulled him in closer to her. He nipped at her bottom lip and pulled away to look her in the eye.

  “Ella, I’m covered in saw dust and sweat. Let’s go inside and I’ll get cleaned up.”

  “Mmm, nope. I like you dirty right now.” Her hands came down between them and she started to undo the button on his jeans.

  “I’m warning you, Ella. If you start this, I’m not going to be able to stop. The doors to the shop are open. It’s daylight, and I will ravage you in here. But I won’t put the brakes on. Your call.” She kept her eyes trained right on his and slowly pulled his zipper down and cupped him over his boxers. She watched as his eyes went from a chocolate brown to almost black as lust coursed through him.

  “I like your underwear, Porter,” she said. He raised an eyebrow at her, half in playfulness, half in confusion.

  “Good to know,” he said as he flipped the tip of his nose against hers, a classic Porter move that had her heart fluttering in her chest.

  “Yes, well, I’m just wondering if you’d like mine as much as I like yours.” Realization dawned on him and she watched with a smile as his eyes traveled down from her face and landed right on the apex of her thighs.

  “Did you put something special on for me, Ella?”

  “I might have made a special effort when I was choosing certain undergarments this morning, hoping I would get the chance to be seen in them,” she said in a non-committal way, shrugging her shoulder. He took a step back, putting a few feet between them.

  “Take off your clothes, Ella, and let me see.” His voice was deep and demanding, sending shivers throughout her body. She reached up to the buttons on the front of her blouse, slowing undoing them without removing her eyes from his. Once they were all undone, she pulled the fabric apart at the center, just enough to show the canal between the swells of her breasts and her belly button. She left it on and moved on to her skirt. She reached behind her and pulled the zipper down the back, letting it float to the ground and pool around her feet. His eyes followed the skirt but quickly came back to her. She could tell he was anxious to see her, which was only exasperated by the fact that her shirt was still covering everything she was sure he wanted to see.

  “All of it,” he growled.

  “So impatient,” she scolded with a smile.

  “Damn straight, Ella. I’ve gone too long without you for you to be standing here teasing me. Now take it off before I ruin it by ripping it off.”

  His forceful demand made her blood boil and run in thick, hot, rivers through her body. He had waited for her and she would be eternally grateful for that. She reached up to the collar of her shirt and pulled it down her shoulders, letting it join her skirt on the floor. The low and throaty groan that came from his mouth was enough to set her nerves on fire. His gaze was like flame, burning her everywhere his eyes roamed.

  She was wearing all white. In a white-lace bra that pushed her up in a ridiculous way which was almost misleading, although she felt amazing in it. The lace was a loose pattern that left nothing to the imagination, but was just decorative enough to be pretty. Her panties were white satin and the silky feeling of them between her legs did nothing but spur on the heat that was expanding from her center outwards.

  “White, huh? I’m a filthy mess here, Ella, and you come to me wearing all white?”

  “I don’t mind getting dirty,” she said, surprised at her own brazen attitude. Porter cocked an eyebrow at her comment. He stalked towards her with a smug grin on his face. When he was within arm’s reach of her, he hooked his fingers in the dainty strings that held her panties to her hips and pulled her against his body. She felt him grip the strings with more force and yank them apart. A quiet rip she heard was the decimation of the pretty satin panties and she knew they had served their purpose well. He reached behind her and unclasped her bra; her shoulders rolled forward as she let him slip it from her body and drop it to the floor. He looked down at her naked body and she felt his eyes on every part of her.

  “You are one beautiful woman, Ella,” he said as his hands traveled along her body. He was feeling all of her, everything his hands could reach. One hand slid down the side of her hip while the other smoothed up her stomach, seeking out her breast. “I love the way you feel under my hands. I’m not sure I’m complete unless I’m touching some part of you,” his breath was hot on her skin and his words were felt in the very core of her body. Her eyes rolled back in her head as his mouth found her neck. He ran his tongue along the soft flesh and a slight moan escaped her. His hand found her ass and hauled her even closer to him.

  “Please, Porter,” she begged him. She wasn’t clear on what she wanted; all she knew was that he had it. “I need more,” she breathed. She reached down and pushed his jeans and boxers to the floor, feeling him hard between them, making her heart rate skyrocket. He was gloriously hard and she wanted to feel him inside of her.

  “This is going to be quick, Ella. You’ve gotten me all worked up in your virginal-white lingerie and I’m not going to go slow or last long. I’m almost a goner just standing here with your sexy body up against mine,” he said in between trailing kisses up and down her neck, over her collar bone, along her breasts.

  “Oh God, Porter, please,” again she begged him for anything he was willing to give her. Suddenly he picked her up and carried her to a table along the far wall of the shop, hidden behind the boat. In the back of her mind she was grateful for the boat blocking the view of anyone who happened upon them, but it was nothing more tha
n a passing thought because at that moment, she was unaware of her surroundings. She focused solely on Porter and how he made her feel, the way he made her body feel when he touched it. It was the singularly most erotic and consuming feeling – to have his hands on her body. Nothing compared and nothing would ever come close.

  “Don’t worry, Baby,” he whispered against her lips, “I’ve got you.” He pulled her hips to the very edge of the table and spread her legs to wrap around his hips. His lips pressed fully on to hers and he sank into her in the most deliciously slow way. Inch by inch she felt him fill her, felt every vein, every ridge. When he was fully seated in her, he tugged on her hips just to get in as deep as possible. She groaned into his mouth; the sensation of being full to the brim made her breathe faster and crave even more. He held her hips still, pulling her as close to him as possible. She tried to rock her hips against him and he stilled her with his hands. “Just let me feel you for a minute, Ella. I’ve missed you.”

  She pulled away to look in his eyes, trying to read what was going on in his head. Placing her hands on both sides of his face, she laid a soft kiss on his mouth, threading her fingers through his hair and pulling him into her.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked as she placed tiny kissed along his shoulder.

  “Baby, nothing’s wrong. I just miss you when you’re not around,” he pulled out of her until just the tip of his cock was left inside and then, once again, slowly pushed back in.

  “This is torture. Porter, please. I thought this was going to be fast,” she rasped.

  “I think it feels pretty damn good. There’s something to be said for slow,” he said as she maneuvered in and out again. She whimpered quietly into his shoulder. As slow as he was going, she was surprised to find herself climbing to an orgasm.

  He sped up fractionally and started leaving small, wet kisses over every inch of skin he could get his mouth on. Between kisses he was slowly pumping in and out, pulling her closer and saying the most wonderful words to her.

  “One day I’m going to take you sailing on this boat.” Kiss. “We’ll make love all afternoon on the deck, under the sun.” Kiss.

  “Yes,” she moaned.

  “One day, you’re going to be so round with my baby.” Kiss. “I’ll spend hours touching your belly and loving you.” Kiss. “You’re going to wear my rings, Ella. You’ll be my wife and the mother of my children.” Kiss.

  She felt herself even closer to the edge and now tears were forming in her eyes. She knew that he loved her and saw a future with her, but to hear him plainly say he wanted to marry her and have children was comforting on another level. She’d never felt so secure or sure of her future than she did in that very moment, wrapped in his arms, connected to him on the most basic and human level. She belonged to him and he to her. They were meant to spend the rest of their lives together and she would tackle any obstacle along their journey to make sure he was by her side every moment.

  “Oh Porter, I want all of that. I want your rings, and our babies, and our life. I want all of you, forever.” She pulled his face to hers and kissed him fiercely.

  “You’re mine,” he claimed her as he pushed into her again faster and with more force.

  “I’m yours and you’re mine,” she answered, taking every thrust he gave her, relishing in the feeling of his body sliding against hers. She teetered on the edge.

  “I love you, Ella,” he said looking straight into her eyes, noses touching. He pushed her right over the cliff she’d been dangling from and into an abyss of shocking pleasure that coursed through her veins, hitting every nerve and firing every circuit in her body.

  “I love you so much,” she answered, her voice shaky from her body’s response to him. He continued to thrust into her as she rode out her orgasm, speeding up, and finally finding his own release. As he spilled into her, she splayed kissed all along his shoulders and neck, unable to keep her mouth from connecting with his body. He eventually captured her mouth with his and kissed her down from her euphoric high. He brushed his hands gently down her back, calming her. She sighed into him and he wrapped his arms around her back.

  “You know I mean everything I ever say to you, right?” He asked, pulling his face back from hers, making sure she could see his eyes.

  “What do you mean?”

  “When we’re together, like this, when I’m making love to you. I mean every single thing. I’m not just saying things to say them. I want you to marry me and I want you to have my children. I don’t want you to be confused by the fact that I say these things to you while I’m inside of you.” Ella smiled at him, warmed by his unnecessary confession.

  “Porter, you never say anything you don’t mean and neither do I. I understand why you say what you do when we’re connected like this, it’s when we feel closest to each other. I always feel the same about you, but when you’re inside me and I can’t deny our connection, the words come spilling out of me too. I love you endlessly. I want to be with you. Not for a little while, and not until the newness of us wears off. I want to be with you until I cease to exist, because there is no me without you.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Porter

  “Babe, dinner’s here,” Porter called up the stairs to Ella. He placed the takeout bags on the island in the kitchen and started getting plates ready for them to eat. Ella came around the corner into the kitchen, bringing a smile to his face. She was wearing his tee shirt again and it looked damn fine on her. “Nice shirt.”

  “Thanks,” she said as she flashed him a sexy grin. He watched her as she hopped up onto the island and sat, legs dangling over the edge. “I’ve got good news.”

  “Hit me with it,” he said as he prepared a plate for her.

  “Megan accepted my job offer and will be the new general manager of Poppy Portland.”

  “I never had any doubt,” he said, glancing up at her. She was beaming. The Ella he’d met earlier that year had been hesitant and insecure with herself. The woman in his kitchen this evening was confident, excited, and in charge. He was proud of her, and happy that she had decided to make the next big step in her career and life. Even more satisfying to him was that they were making the steps together. “I think Megan is going to be a great manager. You’re lucky to have her.”

  “Agreed,” she replied with a nod. “When I was driving here this afternoon, I called a few real estate brokers and I made an appointment for Friday to go look at some store space in Salem.”

  “You did this while you were driving?” He asked, instantly concerned and a little annoyed that she would put herself in harm’s way.

  “Porter, it’s called Bluetooth. Very safe, promise.” He exhaled loudly.

  “I’m sorry,” he said sincerely. “You have no idea how crazy it makes me when I think of you being unprotected. I can’t be with you all the time and I’m afraid that one of these times we’re apart, something terrible will happen again.”

  Ella hopped down from the island and came to him, wrapping her arms around his middle. He heard her take a deep breath.

  “I think we’re both affected by what happened to us a little more than we have admitted.”

  Porter rested his cheek on top of Ella’s head, breathing in the sweet scent of her shampoo. She smelled so good and she felt so good in his arms.

  “I was so focused for so long on just surviving without you, I never took any time to evaluate how I was faring emotionally. I was wrecked – that’s all I knew.”

  “I know, Babe. We’re both just trying to figure this out as we go along. But I think we should both see someone. Maybe we should call that psychiatrist Dr. Andrews suggested.”

  “Make the appointment. I will be there,” he said, placing a kiss on her forehead.

  “I will.” She moved away from him, taking her spot on the island again, the moment of tension passed. “I was thinking,” she said between bites. “Maybe on Friday, if you can manage it, you could come with me to look at store space and then afterwards we coul
d go look at some houses.” She looked at him tentatively, like she wasn’t sure of his response and was bracing for a negative reaction.

  “Sounds good,” he said easily. She raised her eyebrows up in surprise.

  “Well, that was easy.”

  “What were you expecting, Ella?”

  “I don’t know,” she shrugged. “You’ve missed a lot of work recently and I don’t want to ask too much from you. I don’t want to be a hindrance to you. But I want you to be a part of the new store and obviously our house. I feel like I’m walking a fine line here. I’m trying to be really respectful of you and how much time you’ve invested in us over the last couple of months.”

  “Don’t worry about work, Babe. My company does fine if I’m not there every day, much like yours. They are capable of handling everything and I am excited to do these things with you.” He came to stand right in front of her, his hips rested between her knees, pressing up against the counter. “I was even thinking of looking into getting a little contracting business in Salem. Maybe that way I wouldn’t have to be in Lincoln City all the time and I could stay in Salem some days.” Her eyes went wide and her mouth popped open.

  “Really?” She exclaimed. “That is a great idea. To think that we could both be working and living in the same city…I don’t know, Porter. It seems a little too perfect, doesn’t it?”

  “No, it seems like just the right amount of perfect.” He felt his phone vibrating in his pocket and reached in to pull it out as he planted a loud smacking kiss on her lips.

  “Hey, Mom,” he said as he answered. “What’s up?”