Chapter 31

JOHN

As Anna headed for the bedroom, I looked down at the legal pad and reviewed my notes. I'd woken at dawn and bounded out of bed fully awake. I can't remember the last time that had happened. My mind had been working overtime while I was asleep and the realness of this whole thing had finally found it's place in my consciousness. The date was over. This was going to be our lives, and we both had years of bad relationship habits to overcome. We needed new ones. Just being open and ... assertive was going to be tough for me, but if I could do it with anyone it would be with Anna.

In the weak light of dawn, I furiously scribbled my hopes, worries, desires and problems down on those pages. It was a full-bore brain dump. Once I'd gotten through the bulk of it, I made some coffee and started organizing it. It was pretty clear that some things we could work out in time, but a couple of items should be started immediately as in today. I resolved to talk with Anna, not Ann, this morning and hoped that she would go along with my ideas.

I took my first sip of coffee and heard her thumping around in the bedroom. When she came out and stole my coffee I wanted to burst into song. I loved her. The platonic love we'd shared so long had been a mask, and the love beneath the mask was so bright and powerful it took my breath away. Of course watching her saunter around my kitchen butt-naked was breathtaking in its own right. I was concerned about how she was feeling, especially after last night ... So I exercised my masterly duties and made her present herself for inspection. Jesus. I had to use every ounce of my control not to take her again in the kitchen. At this rate, we'd never get on with our day and as much as I wanted her, I knew we needed to wait until after we talked. Anticipation also has its charms.

Once she'd finished her shower and I sent her to dress, I thought through what I wanted to say. I was staring at the ceiling as she came out looking gorgeous in a deep blue v-neck shirt, and a cute, flouncy patterned skirt. She poured herself another cup of coffee and settled in across the table, looking at me expectantly.

"Anna..." I paused which she didn't let me get away with.

"John..." Her eyebrow raised, and her eyes sparkled. With one look I knew she was telling me to stop being such a pompous ass and remember who I was talking to. To be fair, it's a look she has given me a lot over the years...

"Okay." I chuckled "It's been two weeks since movie night, and 40 something hours since our date began." She nodded. "And I think it's finally occurred to me, this isn't a dream."

She smiled gently at me and said quietly "It'd better not be."

"I woke up at dawn, and my brain was going crazy ... I want this to work, and I think I've come up with a few things that will help ... Homework, I guess."

"Oooh, like a naughty teacher-student thing? Should I call you Mr. Griffiths?" She leered at me, then looked slightly abashed "Sorry. You're trying to be serious."

I couldn't help but laugh. "If you want to role-play that sometime, I'm game, but yes, I'm trying to be serious for a moment here. Aaaaanyway ... as I was saying, I think we both need to start a journal and be diligent about keeping it. I'm not used to being dominant, or being really open in a relationship, and I think there's probably stuff that will be easier for me to write than to say. Also, I'm a total novice with this stuff, and I'd really like to read about your perspective."

"Yeah? Okay. I can totally do that. It might even be fun. Can I be explicit?" She was grinning at me again.

"You can write whatever you want. I will be reading it, but I want you to be as honest as you can be, and as explicit as you want to be. I think it'll help."

She nodded. "I can see that. And I'll want the same from you. Especially the honest part. I don't want anything to fester unsaid, or unwritten. I think we both need practice at communication in a relationship. When do we start?"

"This morning. I think we do some homework, maybe talk about it a bit, and then eat lunch and go for a hike. How's that sound?"

She stood up, walked over to me and gave me a passionate kiss. "Perfect."

So I went and got dressed and for the rest of the morning we each wrote. Both of us typing on laptops as we sat on the couch. Occasionally, I'd hear her sniffle and see tears welling up in her eyes. She'd wipe them away. The first time I noticed it, I asked if she was alright, and she looked up and nodded before clearing her throat.

"I'm fine. It's been an emotional couple of weeks. Writing it down is making me re-live it a bit."

I wanted to tell her it was okay, and that she didn't need to relive the painful parts, but I also knew that it was important for both of us. So I did what I do best, I stayed quiet.

She finished first, (Jesus, that girl can type!) so she started on some lunch for us. I loved how comfortable she seemed in my apartment. Our apartment. I hope I never get tired of how happy that makes me. Soon she had lunch placed at the table on only one plate again. I wrapped up writing everything through last night, and went to sit at the table. She settled on my lap.

Lunch, like breakfast yesterday, was a sensual feast, only slightly diminished by the fact that we were both clothed. Even so, we were squirming a bit by the time we finished, I think if we'd played it out much longer, she'd have another skirt to clean and I would've had to change my pants.

"Okay, love. Let's go for a hike." I said and stood up with her in my arms. Her feet flailed a bit until I set her down and kissed her forehead. We grabbed some water and a few snacks and headed out to a nearby state park.

It was a beautiful day, so there was quite a few other hikers in the park, but we made our way to some of the smaller, less traveled areas. We chatted, talked about work and the upcoming week, but I have to admit I was distracted. Anna has killer legs, and I found myself dropping behind her just to watch her walk. Her ass looked delectable in that skirt and soon I was forming a plan, and I hoped she'd go along with it. I got my first hint that she was thinking along similar lines when she flipped up her skirt and flash me without breaking stride. No panties. I'd forgotten that I'd barred her from wearing any. Now I was having difficulty walking, my hardon made me limp, knowing she was deliciously bare and within arms reach. My plan went into overdrive, and I started looking for the right setting. At the top of a long ridge, I saw a jumble of large rocks and some downed trees. It was perfect for my purposes.

"Hey, let's go sit by those rocks and take a break." I said. The climb had been pretty tough and we were both panting and sweaty. She nodded and took my hand.

Walking through the undergrowth, I kept an eye out for poison oak, but didn't see any. Once we got behind the rocks, out of view from the trail, I walked over to the trunk of a down tree and dropped my pants, my erection sprung out and almost slapped my belly. Anna's reaction was priceless. Her eyes bugged out of her head, and she whipped her head around to look back at the trail.