The Compromise

Sidney kicked his legs out from under the covers in a feeble attempt to get comfortable. But for some reason he thought it was extremely warm, and he felt restless so sleep wasn't coming easy for him. He kept thinking back to earlier in the day when Jess came home from school and the events that unfolded in front of his house. He worried that Jess would take the news and pull away from him just when he felt they were progressing beyond the accident and her injuries into a deeper realm of their new relationship. He was falling all over again because everything she did around him she believed to be the first time. Her little quirks, like how she tended to push her glasses up to the top of her head then forget where they were and spend an hour looking for them, made him realize how important life outside of his career became to him since meeting her.

Now he lay awake, hoping that she was asleep and comfortable in the room she used to share with James when they crashed here before. He was lost in his thoughts of her and dreaming of their future in the very house they share now that he didn't hear the quiet click of the door opening or the push of the heavy wood against the plush carpet. It wasn't until he felt a pull at the covers he now lay on top of that he snapped out of his revery and gasped slightly when he felt like he had been caught doing something wrong.

Jessica quickly covered her bare legs and curled onto her side facing Sidney. She didn't say a word, but stared at him with wide eyes and a hint of a smile on her lips. Sid shifted to be face to face with her and didn't say a word, wanting to see what her next move would be. He wasn't at all surprised when she leaned into him and pressed her lips to his. He sighed and grasped her hips to pull her body flush to his never once breaking their kiss. Pushing his shoulder with her bad hand he quickly rolled onto his back and allowed for Jess to follow him. Kicking the sheets away from her body she straddled his waist and moaned when she felt his straining excitement through their clothes.

"I still turn you on," Jess stated when she finally broke away from Sid's lips.

"It's not every day an incredibly sexy girl comes into my bed wearing my old shirt," he said as he reached for a piece of hair that escaped her ponytail. He brushed it behind her ear, his fingers lingering at the nape of her neck. She sat up, her legs curled under her, her pleasure spot pressing even further on his and grabbed his wandering hand in her good one. Taking each finger she placed a soft kiss on his knuckles, most scarred from years on the ice.

"You insisted that I should wear your old team shirt and not that jackass's," she said. Sid looked puzzled. That conversation happened the night before she moved in with him, he was certain of it. Before he could point that out, she started.

Smiling down at him, she finally said something he longed to hear her say in nearly six weeks. "I remember our first kiss."

"What?" Sid exclaimed. "How? When?"

She laughed at his excitement and braced herself against his chest.

"It's pretty foggy, but I'm pretty certain it was our first kiss."

"Well tell me about it baby, I can tell you if you are right." He grinned at her mirroring her amusement.

"It was pretty rushed and I didn't expect you to, but you kissed me at the front door. But I don't know where we were. But we tumbled into some house and fell onto a couch."

Sid smiled at the memory of their first kiss on his birthday over a year ago.

"Is that right? Or did I totally make that up?" She looked apprehensive when she asked.

"You're right, it was my 24th birthday. That was the best present anyone ever gave me," he said. Her eyes lit up and she fell against his chest in an attempt to hug him. His arms encircled her and he laughed, relief washing over him. She was coming back just as he hoped.

"You know you just referenced a conversation we had just before you moved in here when you mentioned this shirt," Sid explained as he tugged at the hem of the faded navy blue t, "I kinda want to take it off you right now."

"I did?" She asked shyly. He smiled at her and nodded.

"You were wearing a Dallas Stars shirt the night before you moved in here and I said you should wear one of my Rimouski shirts," Sid explained.

"You can take it off me if you want," Jess said softly. Sid eagerly accepted her offer, lifting the worn material up over her waist and helping to get her cast through the small arm hole. Sid sat up, pushed against the headboard and admired the view. He hadn't been this intimate with Jessica since before the accident and he wanted to soak in the feeling of her soft skin, her light touches and warm breath along his own skin. He wanted to take his time and really show her he loved her. That he never stopped loving her through this period of uncertainty. He was grateful for the little bit of memory she had recalled, but their journey was far from over.

But this brief, fuzzy memory needed to be celebrated and Jessica was in their bed again, naked aside from a pair of soft, silky panties. She was freely allowing Sid to look at her and explore her again, for her the first time. Maybe a union like this would help jar a memory, maybe not. But it was something that could unite the pair again.

"It's really late you know. And you have school tomorrow," Sid whispered as Jess showered his neck and collarbone with soft kisses. He didn't care how late it was, he had no where to be the next morning. But he worried that Jess would be too tired tomorrow.

"I don't care what time it is, do you?" She asked in between kisses. She reached between them with her good hand and applied pressure to his awakened member. He moaned out his response and knew they weren't stopping.

Her eyes met his but he said nothing. Her hand continued to torment him in the most pleasing way. He hooked his thumbs into the sides of her panties and pushed them down as far as her thighs would allow as she was still sitting on his lap.

She laughed at his eagerness and his forgetfulness, "Excited much?"

"You have no idea," he said and began to push her off of him so he could remove the rest of their clothes. But as he laid her back, Jess cast connected with Sid's forehead knocking him around and making the couple erupt into a fit of hysterics.

"Oww," Sid groaned as he rubbed his forehead completely dramatic.

"Are you alright?" Jess asked with some concern in her voice.

"I'm so glad you're getting that fucking thing off tomorrow afternoon." He continued to rub his forehead, but stopped when he noticed the look Jess was giving him. A look of pure lust and want and longing. He stopped rubbing his forehead and continued undressing her, then hurriedly removed his shorts too.

She fell back against the sheets and watched as he slid between her legs like he was home again. He wasted no time guiding himself into her awaiting heat. She couldn't remember feeling this full and happy and just fucking complete as Sidney pushed his hips flush with hers. The feeling of his body finally connecting with hers was the most fucking exquisite piece of heaven Jess ever experienced. He was as deep as he could go and it made her insides clench with happiness that we were joined that way.

"This is right," she whispered up at him. Her words made him smile and he tenderly touched her cheek before lowering his lips to hers. They stayed there together for countless seconds, their lips and bodies pressed impossibly tight together before he finally moved. Jess gasped and felt her head get heavy on the pillow as he pinned her down.

This man knew how to love her.

Sidney leaned forward, one hand supporting his weight beside Jess' head while the other cupped one of her breasts. He began to knead it softly, letting his thumb flick across the tip with each pass. Another groan slipped from her mouth as the feeling sent pleasant waves down between her legs. His hands worked wonders, she thought. She smiled against his shoulder as he thrust deeper and deeper with each pass. He continued to touch and caress her, his mouth firmly claiming hers.

Jess opened her eyes as he broke their kiss, his expression flooring her. She saw complete adoration reflected in his chocolate brown gaze as he lifted himself up slightly to change their angle of approach. She gasped softly and placed her hands on his wide, strong shoulders as she waited to see what he would do. It was strange really – she couldn't remember doing this with him before but it felt so natural. He continued to watch her as he moved, seeming to silently catalog all of the things that made her arch and moan. She guessed he was watching to see if any of her preferences had changed; she wasn't sure. All she knew was that with every thrust and touch and caress she moved closer and closer to utopia.

"I love you," he gasped, leaning down. His voice took on a needy, demanding tone. His lips attached to her neck, licking and sucking and letting his teeth scrape gently along the soft skin.

"Say it again."

He sighed in contentment, his free hand moving behind her thigh to lift it up. The new angle sent her soaring. Her hands slid up his chest, over his neck and up to finally cup his cheeks. "I love you so much. I…"

Sidney's purpose filled thrusts made him temporarily lose control of his mouth. Jess' jaw fell open in sheer enjoyment, her back arching up off the bed. Sidney grunted and moved above her, the sensation quickly becoming overwhelming. Any doubts she had about their sex life pre-accident flew out the window as she realized they had definitely had time to perfect this act. She watched the muscles in his stomach flex as his hips jutted forward against hers, filling the bedroom with a soft slapping noise. Her insides clenched wildly around him as her body crawled towards release. Her hips rose up off the bed to take more of him, her legs falling wider. Sidney reacted to the new access, his brown orbs stretching wide to show his enjoyment. A delicious friction started to burn between them, sparking until it was a full on flame. His fingertips grasped her thigh, pulling it higher around his waist as he sunk himself into her depths again and again.

It could never be enough, she realized.

Jess' mind went back to the deepest corners, separating from her blissed out body. She searched and searched for any trace or mental image that they've been this way before, but she can't seem to conjure anything up. How did they ever stop this before? How did they ever get out of bed or even leave each other to go to work? She realized she loved this man hovering above her and she couldn't imagine ever wanting to be without him. She stared up at him as he moved, watching the way he made love to her. He poured every ounce of himself into it, taking the time to make it special and beautiful just like everything else he did. She could feel his manhood swell inside her walls, seeking release but holding back. Sometime in the near future she decided she didn't want him to hold back.

But not today. There would be time for the wild, sweaty, passionate antics that came with sex-crazed lovers. Today was different; it was theirs. It was a gentle reclaiming and reassurance that they really belonged together.

The sounds coming from their bedroom were quiet but that only made the occasional groan or gasp more meaningful. There was nothing showy or faked between them, of that she was positively certain. They were meant to be together this way.

What happened in the past fell away as she watched the beautiful man with the kind eyes and good heart lose himself with her.

They were finally whole.

********
Jess woke the next morning to the sound of the shower and turned to find Sidney missing from the bed. She stretched her arms over her head, feeling a slight soreness in her limbs and was quickly reminded of how he sent her over the edge numerous times throughout the night. His skilled hands knew exactly what to do and where to touch her, like he was so familiar with her body. As well he should be, she lived with him and he loved her. He told her repeatedly and on demand and she felt so warm and complete when she heard him say it.

She checked the clock to find that it was nearly 6:30 and she needed a shower herself. Wandering towards the open bathroom door she caught sight of Sid who smiled shyly at her while he was washing soap off his body.

"Morning," he chirped. She smiled at him and knew, just seeing him look at her just as he did the night before that he truly did mean those words. And she could see why she fell in love with him before.

Notes