His Naughty Lessons
Chapter 157: Continue the Cliché Traditions

Chapter 157: Continue the Cliché Traditions

** Harper **

When Eli finally pulled out, Harper had to fight back the impulse to whimper in protest. The loss of contact was so disappointing, and she finally understood why people had invented "swaddling".

Would they graduate to that position anytime soon?

The thought gave her pause. For a second, she was amazed by herself for thinking about it. A mere hour or so ago, she hadn’t even known what real sex was like. She had still been slightly nervous and unsure how the night would turn out ... But now, the fullness of him inside her already seemed so natural and right, as if this was the way things were always supposed to be.

Her heart fluttered again at the memory of it. The warmth of him enveloping every inch of her as he hugged her and filled her. The quickening of his breaths as he entwined their fingers and moved so gently against her. The utmost intimacy of becoming one with him, feeling him in not only her body but also her mind and soul ...

Even after so many years of daydreaming about what it’d be like to get to this point with him, the real deal still left her beyond words. She hadn’t exaggerated one bit when she said that she felt her life was complete — not in the sense of completing another checkbox and cashing in her V-card, but in the sense of experiencing something so marvelous that she had no idea existed in the entire universe. Something so beautiful and perfect that she could barely imagine the dullness of life without it.

Was this the feeling of ... love?

Harper looked up at the man in front of her, wondering if the same thoughts were going through his mind at this moment. But then the rush of disappointment snapped back into her head when she saw him sitting up, obviously intending to go to the bathroom to clean up.

The prospect of him getting rid of every last trace of their shared passion made her irrationally sad. Or maybe she was getting irrationally clingy and simply didn’t want to let him leave, because she blurted immediately, "Don’t go."

Eli stilled halfway out of the bed. Quite a bit awkwardly ... with the filled condom dangling right there.

... Right. That was just plain silly and didn’t come out right at all. Harper scratched her neck in embarrassment. "I meant as in ... um ... C-Can I can come with you? The shower ... must be big enough for two, yes?"

She wasn’t thinking about reenacting their last shower adventure together though. Not at all.

Eli arched an eyebrow at her words. Then the end of that arched eyebrow slowly curved down as he chuckled. "Well, if you really want to wash up ... How about we give the hot tub in the courtyard a try? It’s definitely big enough for two, and a bath should be better than a shower if you’re still ... sore."

Oh.

Harper didn’t feel particularly sore. He had been as gentle as humanly possible, and all she felt was a little ... different. Not at all in a bad way. But that didn’t mean she’d let the precious hot tub opportunity slip by. "I’d absolutely love that," she said enthusiastically, scooting to the edge of the bed where he was perched.

Eli chuckled again at her excitement. "You can wear this to go outside if you want." He picked up a bathrobe from the nightstand and wrapped it around her shoulders. "I’ll be right back with my own."

He pressed a kiss to her forehead, then slipped away quickly into the bathroom.

Harper got up from the bed, shaking off a rain of rose petals behind her. She couldn’t stop the smile spreading wider and wider across her lips. Eli had never kissed her so often on the forehead before, and it was funny to think that he’d suddenly develop a liking toward such an innocent gesture after they became more intimate ... but she loved it wholeheartedly. She loved how he always made her feel special around him, be it through passionate teases or simply cherishing touches like this.

The bathroom door opened again in no time, and Eli reappeared with a towel wrapped around his waist. He walked up to her, took her hand — almost too naturally, as if he didn’t even think about doing it — and led her out the door. "Do you want some wine too?" he asked when they passed the kitchen, again too naturally as if he was simply asking his wife "what’s for dinner tonight".

Harper smiled like a lovestruck idiot and forgot to answer.

No wine, then, and they made it out to the courtyard empty handed. Though as soon as they emerged out of the huge sliding doors, Harper gasped, too swept away by the scenery to even think of the wine.

The view at night was completely different from what she saw yesterday afternoon. The golden beaches and emerald mountains were dimmed into vague silhouettes now, hard to see in the dark with only an outline looming in the distance. What demanded the full attention of the eye was the jeweled sky stretched before them, black like a canvas soaked in the richest ink and encrusted with bright stars everywhere. Everywhere. Countless constellations winked and gleamed, and she saw the colorful band of the Milky Way for the first time in her life, like a luminescent river flowing gracefully across the vast expanse above them.

"... Wow, I didn’t expect that." Eli sounded just as awed next to her, and she felt his fingers tighten around hers. "Who knew one of the best stargazing spots in the world could be right outside our door?"

One couldn’t have asked for a better evening than this, Harper thought in a swoon. Turning toward the man beside her, she let go of his hand and opened her arms wide. "Shall we continue the cliché traditions then?" she asked. "Hot tub under the stars? Sounds like a classical item to check off the perfect romantic vacation list."

Eli laughed his agreement. As she looped her arms around his neck, he picked her up, letting the bathrobe flutter to the ground, and placed her in the tub with a soft splash.