Christmas to Christmas

So that's where Eric was at 7:30 a.m. on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, waiting in the lobby of the care home for Anna to get done with work. Between their schedules, it had been nearly a week since they had spent any time with each other, so when she saw him waiting after she had checked out, she ran up to him and gave him a hug and kiss. To Eric, she felt so good jumping into his arms. He knew she needed to sleep immediately, but just knowing she was going to be in his apartment with him was giving him great comfort. He felt this was going to be the start to a great weekend!

Anna chattered about her night as they drove home. Since the appeals scare (which ended up being thrown out, as the judged ruled everything about the trial had been properly done), she had seemed even happier to be with him than before. It was almost as if they were already married, for each of them enjoyed sharing even the most mundane facts about their work. Eric smiled as he drove. It had been nearly eleven months since they had first met, and he still couldn't believe his good fortune in finding the woman of his dreams, after so many years being by himself.

Once in the apartment, they hugged and kissed even more. Eric offered to fix some breakfast for them, and Anna agreed. She took her overnight bag back into his bedroom while he started with some sausage and eggs. As he was putting the bread into the toaster, Anna came back out, dressed in a long t-shirt that clung tightly to her and hung down to her knees. Eric had seen her dressed like this before, but this morning he really noticed that she had a very attractive figure, and didn't seem to be afraid to show it off to him.

Immediately he felt guilty. Seeing her as an attractive and sensual woman was against what he wanted his thoughts of her to be. He had prided himself on keeping his own libido in check when they were together -- especially if they were dancing or even just cuddling together. But he couldn't help it this morning -- in his eyes, she was sexy as she walked over to him and watched him finish making breakfast. When she came up next to him and put her hand on his arm, he blushed and pulled away, causing a look of concern to appear in Anna's face.

"Eric, what's wrong? You feel very tense this morning. Are you okay?"

He didn't think this was the time to share his feelings at the moment, so he bluffed and replied, "Yes, I'm fine. I'm just still a little stressed about all of these programs coming up at school. I should not take that stress out on you, Anna -- I'm sorry."

He reached out to hug her, but realized that probably wasn't the right thing to do. When the warmth of her body melded into the warmth of his, he responded with what would be a normal reaction of any young man closely hugging a beautiful young woman -- he began to get an erection. Not wanting her to feel that, since he didn't want to put any sexual pressure on her, he broke the hug and went back to the skillet where the sausage and eggs were still frying.

Anna knew him well enough by now that she wasn't buying his story, but decided not to press the issue at that particular time. She watched as Eric got down a couple of plates from the cabinet, and reached into the silverware drawer to get a knife and fork for each one. She couldn't help but smile -- it was so nice having this wonderful man taking care of her like this. She only hoped that whatever it was that seemed to be bothering Eric wasn't serious.

They ate their breakfast sitting next to each other at the little table that had come with his apartment. Occasionally Anna would reach over and pat his leg, and each time Eric hoped she wouldn't get too high up, since his "problem" seemed to be enjoying her touches and was begging for more. When they were finished eating, Eric stood up and quickly turned away from her as he took the dishes over to the sink to wash.

Anna could still sense that something was wrong as she watched him washing the dishes with his back turned to her. It wasn't like Eric to be this tense, and she really didn't think it was all school-related. She felt a responsibility to help him, since throughout their entire relationship she had been relying on his strength and patience with her as she continued her recovery from the attack. She stood up and moved back over to him, coming up behind him and reaching around to put her hands on his chest as she pulled herself closer into his body.

"Eric -- please tell me what's going on in your mind. You've helped me so much this past eleven months. It's time that you let me try to help you. We've always shared everything -- please don't withhold from me now."

Eric sighed. She was right -- if this was something that involved either one of them, they had always been out in the open. He knew that she deserved to know this, and even if it made her uncomfortable to hear, he didn't want to hide anything from her.

Without turning his body, he looked over at her beside him and said, "Well....it's a little personal, and I didn't want you so see or know what it is, because the absolute last thing I want you to think is that I'm pressuring you for a physical relationship more quickly than which you are comfortable."

Anna shook her head. "Eric, I would not be here this morning if I didn't feel completely comfortable with you. You have been the perfect man for me throughout all of this. When we bumped into each other at the restrooms at Joe's last Christmas Eve, for the first time I didn't feel nervous or threatened, and I knew you were different. I knew that even before you knew what had happened to me, you would never push or threaten me or make me feel uncomfortable. You've proven that to be true, so much so that coming over here to stay with you today seemed like second nature, like it was always supposed to be. So what has happened that you are now questioning your resolve?"

Eric sheepishly grinned. "It's rather embarrassing...I'm almost afraid to tell you."

She playfully punched him in the arm. "Come on, we have always been open and honest with each other. Now is not the time to get all shy."

He took a big breath, and then said, "You have known now for some time that I think you are beautiful, and certainly our spiritual bond is undeniable. But when you came out of the bedroom a little bit ago, wearing just this long t-shirt -- which I know is not usually considered to be sexy attire -- for some reason it lit a fire in me, because I saw you as a sexual woman for the first time, and well.....let's just say that a certain part of my body responded gleefully, and so far has not calmed back down."

Anna looked at Eric like she was trying to process what he had just said. "Eric -- are you telling me that I've caused you to have an erection?"

He shrugged his shoulders and smiled at her. "I didn't want you to know, because I was afraid you'd think I was pushing you to something you don't want to do yet. So I thought if I hid it from you, it would go away before too long and everything would return to normal before you found out. I'm sorry, Anna -- I feel like a jerk being this way, but I couldn't help it."

Anna's expression changed with his explanation. She leaned against him for support as she replied, "Eric, believe me, it's not that I don't want to be sexually involved with you. It's just that I'm not sure what would happen if we tried anything. My therapist and I have been working towards this happening, hopefully sooner than later. There have been some tough sessions with her lately. But the fact that I'm not backing away from you right now means there has been some progress."

She pulled his head down and gave him a kiss. Eric was still afraid to turn to face her, but decided if he leaned in also, maybe he would avoid contacting her with his growth. He returned her kiss heartily, being cautious to not get to close to her.

Anna broke the kiss and took his hand. "Come with me, Eric -- let's talk about this."

She led him down the hall to the bedroom, and as Eric walked behind her, he could not help but look as the lovely little sway her ass was making as she walked in front of him, which didn't help the situation at all. She opened the bedroom door and pulled him, motioning to him to sit next to her on the bed. Once both were seated, she leaned over and kissed him again.

"Eric, I was hoping we could have this talk sometime this weekend, although I didn't realize it was going to be as soon as I got off work. But since you shared with me about your little anatomy problem, this is the time to share with you. I'm ready to start trying more things. I don't want this to sound to clinical, but I'm ready to have more contact with you -- contact of a sexual nature -- if you are ready for that step. I have a feeling that had it not been for the attack, we might have already been way past this in our relationship by now. But you have been so careful with me that I think it has progressed at just the right speed, and that means we are ready for more."

Eric took her hand and replied, "I'd like that very much, but if you are doing this just for me, then I want you to know that I have no desire to push you beyond what is comfortable for you. If we need to wait longer, I'm good with that, if it means getting to stay with you."

Anna shook her head. "Eric, this is for us -- I think we both need this, and honestly if we don't start somewhere, we are never going to know if I can get through this or not. Plus I trust you so much to listen to me if I tell you that we need to stop doing something. I don't know how far I am going to be able to go, but I want to be completely comfortable with what I am doing, and I'm pretty sure you want that for me as well."

He squeezed her hand and said, "Believe me, I will do all that I can to make sure you are not pushed beyond your comfort level. I've seen the progress you've made this year with me, and I'm not about to do anything so selfishly that it jeopardizes that. But you have to be honest with me, and not go beyond what you think you can handle just because you think I want more from you."

Anna turned completely to him and kissed him as she wrapped her arms around him. Eric responded by holding her and pulling her close to him. They entered uncharted waters together, relying on each other to not push too rapidly. As Eric kissed Anna and rubbed her back, he noticed that she wasn't wearing a bra, and yet instead of trying to hide from that fact, he rubbed her harder as he continued his hug.

They sat there kissing for the next 10 minutes, and so far things were going very well. But Anna was ready to try for more, so she stopped and stood up, pulling Eric up with her. She looked down at his feet and said, "Take off your shoes." Eric quickly complied. With both of them standing next to the bed, she reached down and pulled the covers back. She looked up at Eric and said, "Get in with me." Crawling to the far side of the bed, she guided Eric next to her, and once they were both set, they put the covers back up over themselves. This wasn't the first time they had been in bed together, but it felt very different for both of them, and yet at the same time it felt so completely right.

Anna started kissing Eric again, running her free hand over his chest and arms as they kissed. By this time Eric had given up all hope of his erection going away, and he also wasn't afraid of Anna making contact with it any longer, since he had explained what had happened. He was pleased that she was being more aggressive with him that at any time before. While he wanted to reach over to her and rub her body in a similar fashion as she was doing, he held himself in check and continued to enjoy her touches.

Every few minutes, Anna would stop kissing him long enough to tell him that she loved him. When she would resume kissing, her hand would move a little lower on his body, getting closer and closer to his waist area. Finally she bypassed it and was rubbing on his thighs, which were exposed since he was wearing shorts. She stopped kissing long enough to look at him and smile and ask, "Are you ready?"

He had no idea what he should be ready for, but she didn't give him time to answer. Instead, she kissed him again, while at the same time her hand snaked up under the leg of his shorts, landing on the outside of his briefs, resting on his cock. Her touch felt like an electric spark to Eric and he couldn't help but groan. Anna squeezed her hand at this reaction, and stopped kissing long enough to watch his facial expression change from surprise to pleasure in a short amount of time.

She whispered in his ear, "Is this okay? Shall we go for more?"

He whispered in return, "It's good for me, if you can't tell. Are you doing okay?"

She didn't answer. Instead, she pulled her hand back and this time plunged it underneath his briefs, making contact with his cock directly with her hand. Eric jumped once again. Even though he had had a couple of girlfriends while in college, nothing had ever progressed this far, and for the first time a woman was holding his erect cock. He closed his eyes and exhaled loudly, unable to hide the smile on his face.

Anna took her time getting to know the feel of him. She lightly slid her hand over the top of it, before cupping it and gently stroking it back down. She spent a little time rubbing on his sensitive head, causing him to jump, and giggling when she realized that she had caused it. It was warm to the touch, and she enjoyed feeling the ridge beneath his mushroom-shaped head and following along the veins she could feel along the shaft.

She started stroking it slowly. Occasionally she would lean over to kiss him, but most of her focus was on watching his face as she worked on him. Eric would shift his body every so often, as if he was aligning himself to be completely next to her as she lay against him. She gradually began to increase the speed of her strokes, and she could see the effect she was having on Eric as his breathing began to increase in speed and intensity.

Finally he started moaning, which she took as a very good sign. In a few seconds, he looked at her and said, "Anna, if you keep that up, I'm going to explode and make a huge mess on both of us!"

Anna kissed him and said, "I was hoping that would happen. Tell me how good it feels!"

He started to speak, but before he got a word out, his orgasm started and took over his ability to talk. Instead, he grunted loudly as he began shooting all over her hand and his shorts. Anna didn't stop, continuing to pump on his cock, enjoying the feel of the warm juices coating her fingers while she watched the reaction in his face. Finally the sensitivity was too much, and Eric reached his hand down to grab hers through his shorts, stopping her strokes. He was still feeling the pulses race through his body, and was amazed at how much more intense this orgasm was than the ones that were self-induced.

They lay still together for a few minutes, with Anna's fingers gently playing with the cum that was now getting sticky. Eric opened his eyes and looked at his girlfriend, and immediately she kissed him again, while lazily stroking his now deflating cock. After the kiss, Eric stared into her eyes and said, "Anna...."

She kissed him quickly again, and then said, "I wanted to do this. I wanted to offer you something I've not done with you before. I'm hoping there's many more new events with you over the next few weeks and months. I felt I was ready for this, and I guess we proved that to be true."

Eric smiled. He knew he would not be reciprocating any time soon, but he knew this was a tremendous step in Anna getting more of her life back. How ironic that as she accomplished this goal, he was the beneficiary -- something he hoped would happen again and again.

She extracted her hand from his shorts, carefully trying not to make more of a mess than there already was. It was a noble effort, but the damage had already been done. Eric threw the covers back and they both giggled at the wet spots left behind on his shorts. There was nothing to do but get up carefully to try to avoid getting the sheets dirty as well.

Anna was still holding her hand in the "claw" formation, afraid to move it too much for fear that some would drip off. Eric laughed at her and said, "One of us needs a shower, and it's not you, so you go to the sink first so you can clean your hand up. I'll inspect the blankets and sheets while you are gone, so you won't have to worry about sleeping in a wet spot."

She carefully stood up, and as she walked around the side of the bed, Eric leaned in and kissed her. Being careful not to press against her, he said, "Thank you, Anna -- that was truly unexpected, but I cannot tell you how amazing it was! Next time maybe we should be prepared and have something ready so that we don't make such a big mess."

Anna laughed as she replied, "So, you think there's going to be a next time, do you? Well, I guess you'll just have to be a good boy and maybe you'll get lucky again! And do you really want to rob yourself of the spontaneity? I would think that was part of the fun!"

He kissed her again quickly and answered, "I think the electricity of your touch was enough to keep me very pleased. Spontaneity is fine, but the touch takes the cake!"

He watched her as she went into the bathroom to wash her hand. Once again, he was caught up in her beauty underneath the simple t-shirt. Perhaps he had just not been looking before, since he was trying so hard to keep her from feeling any sexual pressure from him over the past eleven months. He also knew that even though they had cleared this first hurdle, he needed to go back to being solid rock boyfriend Eric, and wait for Anna to reach out in a sexual manner again.

When she came out of the bathroom, Anna showed Eric that her hand was clean, although since his shorts were still a mess, she couldn't lean into him to get a hug. But she did manage to give him a very sensual kiss. Eric got into his dresser and picked out some new shorts and briefs. He turned to watch as Anna crawled into bed, snuggling under the blankets.

Once in the bathroom, he examined his shorts in the mirror. He was surprised to see just how wet they were. But since it was his first time to experience an orgasm with the assistance of someone else, he realized he shouldn't be surprised. He quickly showered and put the clean shorts and briefs on, and then gathered up the soiled ones and took them to the laundry hamper. As he walked by, he peeked in on Anna, and saw that she was sound asleep. He wanted to crawl in next to her, but he realized that with the travel plans they had, she needed to get caught up on sleep so she could enjoy the rest of the holiday week.

The rest of the week went well for the couple. After Anna had awakened that Wednesday afternoon, they drove the two hours south of where they live to her mom's house to stay overnight and enjoy a Thanksgiving feast. That evening the drove northwest, to Eric's parents' house. His sister and brother in law and their children were already there, and they got their first chance to get acquainted with Anna. Immediately both kids fell in love with her, and Eric watch her playing with them, feeling a warm spot in his heart growing, hoping sometime he would get to see her with their own children.

With that revelation, Eric knew he had some shopping to do, and he began formulating a plan, preparing himself to ask the most important question in his life. How was he going to do it? Where was he going to do it? It gave his heart another reason to be warm as he watched his girlfriend being so playful with his sister's kids. There had never been any doubt after the first couple of months that he wanted to spend his life with Anna. Images like this of her playing with the kids just cemented that desire even deeper in his heart.