Page 116 of Resilience

Mason nodded. As he reached the top of the stairs, he turned back with an impish grin. “Dad’s gone for the day, and Mom’s outside already, so you’ve got the house to yourself for about an hour or so, until Mom comes in to make breakfast. If, you know—”

Athena cut him off before he got any more obnoxious. “Get out of here, Mason. Shoo.”

“Kicking me out of my own house. Typical.” Still grinning, he turned and started down the stairs before she could fire back.

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~oOo~

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Sam was awake and scrolling on his phone. He smiled when she came in and closed the door. “Morning, beautiful.”

“Morning.” Both Tank and Blanche were up and about as well, so Athena gave them some love before she went to the bed. She climbed up and kneeled at his side. “Two days without bleeding. You know what that means?”

His smile split his whole face. “Yeah? You’re ready? You feel good?”

“I feel excellent. Plus, I saw Mason in the hall just now, and he’s on his way out to take care of the animals. Everybody is out of the house but us.”

“Holy shit.” He jumped out of bed and grabbed his jeans off the floor. “Give me a couple minutes. I’m going to let Tank out for his morning watering. Can I let Blanche out, too?”

“Yes, but don’t leave her out.”

“I won’t. I’ll bring them both in, feed them, and get back up here while they’re not paying attention. You stay here and get under the covers.”

Sounded like a plan to her. “Here. Take your shirt.”

He took it and slipped it on. “Looks better on you.”

“That’s a lie, and you’re a dork.”

“Maybe I’m a dork, but I’m not lying. C’mon, puppers.” At the door, he looked back. “Do we need condoms? They’re in the top drawer of my desk.”

“They gave me the Pill at the clinic, Sam.”

“I know. Just ... if you’d feel safer or ...”

“I feel completely safe. And eager. Hurry up.”

With a salute, he left the room, the dogs following, both tails wagging happily.

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~oOo~

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He was back in less than five minutes, and he was already taking off his clothes. While he was away, he must have goosed the thermostat up several degrees; delicious warm air coursed from the vent.

Athena had used the time to get naked and under the covers. When Sam was naked, too, he took a flying leap at the bed and landed so hard next to her she practically bounced off. Laughing, she shoved at him, and he shoved back, and then they were wrestling and tickling and laughing. Like the old days, and also nothing at all like those days.

All at once, both at the same time, the goofiness stopped, and they were simply looking at each other, both panting and mussed, bare bodies tangled together. Athena felt a flash of profound understanding: this was the moment. This one, right here: Saturday, November 18, 2023, in a bedroom on the second floor of a farmhouse outside Grant, Oklahoma.

This was the beginning. This was where they started, surrounded, but unburdened, by the past.

“I love you, Samwise.”

His smile was so soft and sweet, so deep and private, Athena felt a warning cramp at the back of her throat. But she swallowed it away; this was no time for tears, not even happy ones.

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