And He Knew

The rain pelted the windows as the parking lot lights seemed to glare between the blinds. The wind screeched past, proclaiming the chill it would leave to greet them the next morning. He rolled onto his side and reached out in a gesture that had somehow become automatic. Every time he touched her, he still wondered how her skin was so soft. He’d showered with her; even used the same products, but she her skin was impossibly soft to the touch. He trailed his hand down her spine, testing to see if she was awake. He almost felt her smile in the dark as she rolled toward him. “Yes,” she queried. The single word dripped with the strangest combination of mirth and sensuality. She scooted closer to him bringing the heat that she literally seemed to radiate from her body. He wondered how someone who was always shivering from cold managed to give off so much heat. He kissed her forehead and caressed her cheek, enjoying the freedom to touch her at will. She lay still, curled in his arms as he ran his hand smoothly down the line of her body. Following her arm to her hip to her thigh, he paused to tickle the sensitive spot behind her knee. He loved to feel her squirm next to him and continued to tease her in these little ways. She giggled, releasing a short burst of minty breath onto him. He knew that she would never know much how he loved these moments with her. Her happiness was nearly tangible. And it warmed his heart in an inexplicable way. He smiled as he listened to her fuss about being unable to doze off, and moments later, he listened to her breathing become even as sleep claimed her. She never went willingly, but she always went quickly. He leaned away to look down at her sleeping face and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.
And he knew it .  He loved her.