Chapter 121

Once Sara and Jon had recovered their strength, they showered, Jon’s strong, gentle hands working the chocolate-scented shampoo into her hair, his skilled touch making Sara close her eyes in enjoyment as he massaged her scalp. Once they were both clean, they wrapped each other in the warm, fluffy robes before going through into the bedroom once more.

Sara unzipped her bag, searching out the new underwear and t shirt she’d bought in Glasgow airport, while Jon just opened the closet to find his clothes. They dressed quickly, knowing that Richie and Linda would be there soon. Scraping her long, wet hair back into a knot, Sara picked up her purse and slid her sandals on.

“I’ll run down to the deli.” She said, coming across to give Jon a soft kiss. “Anything you don’t like?”

“Yeah. I don’t like seeing you leave.” He grinned. “But I eat pretty much anything. You should know that by now.”

“You’re terrible! Okay, then. I’ll see what I can find.”

He kissed her again before letting her go, and Sara headed out of the apartment with a broad smile on her face. Outside the door, she looked around and spotted the staircase, running down the flights from penthouse to lobby and saying good morning to the doorman, a different guy from the previous night.

The deli was where she remembered seeing it, and Sara pushed in through the door, into the appetising smells of the food there on display. As quickly as she could, conscious of Richie and Linda being on their way, she picked out a variety of meats, cheeses, breads and pasta dishes, grinning as she added a chocolate torte to the brimming basket she held. At the counter, she took the store owner’s advice on some wine - since she didn’t drink, she wasn’t really sure what was good or not - then waited while he totalled her purchases. As usual, while she was standing waiting, Sara ended up adding another few bits and pieces to the pile of food, then she paid the bill and left the deli, carefully carrying the heavy bags.

When she got back to the apartment building, Sara suddenly realised that she didn’t have a key to operate the lift, but fortunately the doorman recognised her instantly and he came out from behind his desk to open the lift for her, using his master key to send her up to the penthouse. At the apartment door, since both her hands were otherwise occupied, Sara gently kicked the bottom of the door until she heard Jon yell, and moments later he opened the door for her.

“Hey darlin’. Shit - how much food did you buy? Gimme one of those.”

“It’s okay - I’ve got them balanced, sort of. I’ll take them to the kitchen.” She started down the hallway, turning to walk backward for a moment. “Are they here yet?”

“Nope. Rich called - they’re stuck in traffic right now. Be about another fifteen minutes.”

“Oh, good. Time for another coffee!”

Sara took the bags to the kitchen, Jon following, and as she laid them down on the counter he grabbed her from behind, spinning her and bringing his mouth down onto hers for a hard kiss.

“What was that for?” She asked when he let her back up for air.

“I missed you.”

“Jon - I was gone ten minutes.”

“Jesus, was it that long? I need another kiss.”

Giggling, Sara ran her fingers into his hair as they kissed again, but when she felt the slight stiffness beginning at his groin, she pulled back.

“Nuh-uh. We don’t have time, baby.”

“Richie can wait.” Jon said, sliding his lips down her neck to the base of her throat, and Sara moaned softly, but pulled away.

“So can you. It’d be rude to leave them waiting.”

Groaning pathetically, Jon dropped his forehead onto her shoulder for a moment, then he raised his head and kissed her forehead lightly.

“You’re right, darlin’. I hate that you’re right, but you are.” He released her and stepped back. “Coffee?”

“Please, baby. I still feel sort of fuzzy and jetlagged.”

Jon poured coffee while Sara transferred the contents of her grocery bags into the fridge and cupboard. She held up two bottles of wine as Jon turned around.

“Don’t blame me if these are no good - the guy in the store recommended them!”

Grinning, Jon took the bottles and gave a cursory glance at the labels before kissing her.

“They’ll be fine, sweetheart. I hope you’re trying to get me drunk and take advantage of me!”

“Not in front of Linda and Richie.” She smirked. “Maybe later.”

“Hey, what’s this?” Jon spotted the cake box and lifted the lid then began to laugh. “Oh, man! You expect me to eat this in front of Richie and Linda? They’re gonna think it’s a really good cake when I get a hard on remembering the last time I ate this!”

“I’ll have to sit on your lap, then.” Sara said innocently. “So they don’t see.”

“Oh, yeah, like that’s gonna help! Hussy! You bought that on purpose, didn’t you?”

“Mm-hm.” Sara picked up her coffee and a bag of cookies, heading for the couch, and Jon was close on her heels.

They sat down and Sara opened the cookies, taking a bite of one, then remembering something.

“You’ll have to let the doorman know to let them up, won’t you?”

“Oh, he’ll call when they arrive.” Jon sipped coffee, then grabbed a cookie from the table. “Hey - don’t let me forget to give you back whatever all that food cost.”

“Don’t be silly, Jon. It’s fine.”

“Babe - I know this area - couldn’t have been cheap. You shouldn’t be blowing your money on food for us.”

“And what would you prefer me to blow?” Sara couldn’t resist, and Jon shook his head with a rueful chuckle.

“Yeah, I kinda asked for that one, huh? You know what I like you to blow, baby.”

“Oh - I forgot!”

Sara laid down her mug and darted off the couch, disappearing toward the bedroom as Jon watched, puzzled. She was back in a few minutes, carrying a plastic bag which she handed to Jon.

“What’s this?”

“Well, if you open it, you’ll find out.” She dropped back down onto the couch next to him as he unfolded the bag, taking out a tissue-wrapped bundle. “I wanted to get you something Scottish.” She explained.

“Baby, you didn’t have to buy me anything. Just coming back to me was enough.”

“I wanted to, though. Just open it, will ya? I hope you like it.”

Unfolding the tissue, Jon found a soft black cotton shirt, with a leather thong lacing up the front. He held it up to look at it as Sara nibbled her lip nervously.

“If it’s not your kind of thing, you can always wear it - I don’t know - washing your car or something.” She said. “It’s a traditional Jacobite shirt, apparently. Meant to be worn with the kilt, but they’ve become a bit more commonly worn in Scotland now with jeans and stuff. I can’t really take it back to the store, but….”

“Hush.” Jon said firmly. “I do like it, honey. I’d wear it anyway, because you bought it for me, but I like it. You didn’t buy me a kilt to go with it, did you?”

“God, no! The guy in the store said you need fittings and stuff for kilts, anyway. Is it really okay?”

“Yes. Come gie me a kiss, lassie.” Jon said, in what was probably the worst Scots accent Sara had ever heard, making her roll her eyes before she leaned in to kiss him.

Before the kiss could get too heated, though, the phone rang, and they broke apart slowly. Jon sighed and got off the couch, going across and picking up the phone. After a very brief conversation, he hung up and came across to grab his coffee.

“That’s Rich and Linda on their way up now. I’ll go let them in.”

Sara got up, too, picking up the shirt and wrappings. “I’ll take this along to the bedroom.”

“Darlin’, you don’t have to clean up after me.”

“I know I don’t. And I won’t! I hate cleaning up anyway, but I was going to take away my laptop anyway, so I may as well take your shirt.”

“Oh. Okay.” Jon pulled her to him with one hand, the other holding his coffee clear of their bodies as he kissed her. “Thank you, baby, for the shirt.”

“You’re welcome.”

They walked together toward the front door, with Sara slipping into the bedroom to put her laptop away, but just laying Jon’s shirt on a chair, then smoothing down the bedcover again, trying to make the room a little more presentable. Jon had opened the door, and he was standing leaning on the frame, drinking coffee, when the lift doors slid open. Richie had Linda pinned against one wall, his thighs either side of hers as he kissed her, and Jon shook his head with a grin, pleased to see Richie so infatuated with a normal woman after the psycho-bitch that Denise had turned out to be.

“Ahem!” He cleared his throat loudly, and the couple in the lift started violently, turning in surprise to see that the lift doors were open.

Linda blushed furiously, but Richie just grinned and released her.

“Hey, Jon.”

“Rich. Mornin’ Linda.”

“Hi.”

Sara emerged from the bedroom as she heard the voices, coming up beside Jon with a smile.

“Hi there.”

Richie and Linda both said hello as Jon slung his arm around Sara’s shoulders, then he stepped back a little as he realised they were all still standing out in the foyer.

“Sorry. Come on in, guys.”