Cordelia, Daughter of the Sea

Chapter
34

“Don’t
Be a Dream”

It felt like it
took hours to reach the door to Cordelia’s room - Jack had never been more
nervous about anything in his life. He
found it hard to believe that his hand was shaking as he touched the doorknob.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> “Keep it together, Jack,” he whispered to
himself.

He opened the
door and froze in the doorway. He saw
Cordelia in the middle of the large bed, her back to him.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> The oil lamp next to her bed cast a soft
glow about the room and the rain, when uninterrupted by thunder and lightning,
created a soothing sound.

Jack shut the
door behind him without making any noise, then began to make his way towards
the bed. He circled around the front of
it and looked at his love’s face. How
could I ever have wanted to keep you away from me?style="mso-spacerun: yes"> When he got close enough, he could see that
tears were flowirom rom Cordelia’s closed eyes…and they were landing on
something: Jack’s bandana was tied around her left hand, which was cradling her
face.

Immediately, Jack
sat on the edge of the bed and wiped Cordelia’s tears away with his thumb.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Her breathing hitched for a moment, but she
didn’t wake. He resisted the urge to
pull her into his arms and instead ran his fingers through her hair.style="mso-spacerun: yes">

“Love…”style="mso-spacerun: yes"> His voice sounded distant, even to
himself. “Cordelia,” he said a bite
le
like himself, “darling, can ye hear me?”
Cordelia stirred and a small sound escaped her lips.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> “I’m so sorry I hurt ye, love, ye ‘ave t’
know I only tried t’ do wha’ I thought was right…” Cordelia slowly opened her eyes; she saw Jack right away, but she
didn’t react – at all. “Are ye tha’ mad
with me?”

Cordelia sniffled
and when she spoke, her voice was terribly pained. “You’re not here…it’s not fair that I keep seeing you and you’re
never here when I wake up.”

Jack smiled
sweetly, “Ye are awake, love.”

Cordelia’s eyes
widened and she forced herself to sit up.
All color drained from her face as she looked into Jack’s eyes.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> “You can’t be here,” she whimpered.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> “It’s never real.”

“It’s real, love,
I swear it.” Tears fell freely from
Jack’s eyes.

Sobbing, Cordelia
caressed Jack’s face and kissed him tenderly.
When she pulled away from him, she looked into his kohl-free eyes and
said simply, “Prove to me that you’re real.”

“Prove?” Jack
asked softly.

“I don’t want to
wake up alone.”

“Ye won’,
love.” Jack kicked off his boots, put
himself fully on the bed, and took Cordelia into his arms.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> He kissed her deeply, despite the fact that
they were both crying. Gently, he
lifted her nightgown over her head and let his hands caress her shoulders - her
flesh rose beneath his fingertips. He
ridded himself of his shirt and pressed his chest against hers.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Neither were able to move.

Finally,
Cordelia’s hands roamed Jack’s chest – her fingers tracing along the scars that
haunted her dreams. Her breathing
turned ragged as she struggled against a new bout of tears.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Jack calmed her by trailing kisses along her
neck.

“It’s all right,
love…everythin’s all right…”

&nb> 

“Don’t go,” she
begged. She kissed him with such
urgency that one could have sworn that he was her life source.style="mso-spacerun: yes">

“I won’…”

“Make love to
me.”

Jack had expected
tears, silence, slapping…but he didn’t expect things to get this far.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Wha’ if she really thinks she’s dreaming?style="mso-spacerun: yes"> “Cordy, don’ ye wan’ t’ talk about wha’ I
did t’ ye?”

“I can’t, not
now. Jack, I need to feel you…I have to
know that you’re really here.”

Jack put his mind
to rest temporarily and let his body take over. He fumbled with his pants, eventually ridding himself of
them. He pressed his body to Cordelia’s
and shivered. Home…style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Jack gently entered Cordelia and they both
clung to each other. For a few minutes,
Jack didn’t move at all, he simply took refuge in his lover’s body.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Instinct began to take over and Jack’s hips
moved. Moans filled the air as Cordelia
wrapped her legs around his waist.

Their coupling
didn’t last as long as either had liked.
With emotions running high, they found their releases rather
quickly…When Jack’s body tensed, Cordelia held her tightly against him,
refusing to let him pull away.

“Cordy, I…”

“No,
Jack…please. I need this…I need you –
all of you.” Jack didn’t pull away,
instead hssedssed her with every ounce of passion in his body.style="mso-spacerun: yes"> Afterwards, they collapsed, exhausted into
one another’s arms. “Please don’t be a
dream…” Sleep overtook their bodies.