His Naughty Lessons

** Harper **

Eli was right about the bath being fantastic after a night of cardio activities. The warm water was soothing to the touch, swaying in slow waves made by the whirlpool jets, and when he settled in behind her, cuddling her close with her back pressed to his chest, Harper couldn’t help a satisfied sigh. Her head lolled back, resting comfortably on his shoulder as she clasped her hands over his.

And then she noticed the familiar hardness prodding just below her waist.

"... Don’t mind that." Eli apparently noticed her noticing. Folding his legs further and raising his knees, he repositioned them so that the glaring presence between their torsos was tucked away beside her hip.

... He was obviously more than ready for another round though ... Harper shot him a glance from over his shoulder, pondering why he was holding it back again. Was he still treating her like a glass doll and worried about making her sore? Did she really come across as someone that delicate and fragile?

Eli brushed his lips over the shell of her ear, in a manner halfway between teasing and adoring. "Before you start reminding me that you aren’t fragile," he whispered, "I know you aren’t. But the next time when I’m inside you, I don’t plan on being nearly as gentle ... So it’s best that you take some time to get ready for it."

Ohh. She liked the sound of that. Maybe the reward would be worth the challenge of her patience.

"You’d better keep your word then." Harper chuckled and let herself feel content over this closing scene of the night, even though it was turning out a bit more platonic than she preferred. Leaning back into the new position that was off-center from his crotch, she turned her eyes back to the night sky, sharing the view quietly with the man behind her.

Stars twinkled lazily above them, like the light from mysterious little eyes blinking curiously as they watched the world below. Harper thought of a few romantic comments she could make about those stars, about what those heavenly beings would think of the pair cuddling so intimately in a hot tub under their eternal gaze ... But she didn’t want to interrupt the serene silence, or the comfortable way that Eli’s thumb was brushing idly over her wrist, so she didn’t put anything into words. A cool breeze stirred, carrying those thoughts soundlessly into the depth of the night.

But then the quiet was broken anyway, when something bright suddenly flashed and drew a white arc across the sky, from the zenith all the way to the end of the horizon far away.

"Wow! A shooting star!" Harper exclaimed at the sight, her hand instinctively clutching Eli’s palm beneath hers. "Oh no, but it went too fast. I didn’t get a chance to make a wish!"