Chapter 97

"Honey? You ready? We're burning daylight!" Jon called as he opened the door to Brianna's apartment.

"Coming!" Brianna checked her lipstick in the mirror, grabbed her suitcase and headed for the door - and her impatient boyfriend. "A little eager are we?"

He slid his arms around her waist and pulled her against him. "To have you all to myself, no interruptions, for three whole days? You bet your ass I'm eager!"

With a husky chuckle, she let her arms creep up around his neck. "When you put it that way...." She touched her lips to his then pulled away. "Let's go!"

"Not so fast, tease." He pulled her back against him and capture her mouth with his for a thorough tasting. When her body relaxed and melted into his, he groaned and eased her back. "You're a brat!"

She just smiled, licked her tingling lips and reached into the closet for her coat. "Come on lover boy, you promised me a cozy room with a fireplace and a jacuzzi."

Holding her coat with one hand, he picked up her suitcase with the other. He paused only long enough for her to grab her purse before nudging her out the door.

The flight to Vermont seemed to take forever. Jon sat staring out the window, his knee jiggling restlessly. Brianna set her hand on it and squeezed. "You really are not good at waiting are you?"

He turned his head to look at her, his gaze drifting from her eyes to lock on her mouth. "Not for something that I really want."

The look in his eyes left no room for doubting what he meant. He covered her hand with his, laced their fingers together and raised them to his mouth where he kissed and nibbled on her delicate skin, blue eyes glinting as golden ones started to glow.

"You have a one track mind today." She watched his lips on her fingers, enjoying the sparks shooting up her arm and setting her stomach swirling again. "You're lethal."

"Baby, you ain't seen nothing yet. I have plans for you." He promised.

"Mmmm. Sounds intriguing." She murmured the words in his ear.

He turned his head enough to touch his lips to hers. "I promise you'll enjoy it."

Her tongue traced his bottom lip. "I'm going to hold you to that."

This time when their lips met neither one moved away. For long minutes they touched and tasted, not seeking to fan the flames of their ever present desire, only to enjoy the flavour and closeness of each other.

The pilot announcing their imminent landing broke them apart and they prepared to deplane. Inside the airport, the crowd around the car rental booth made Jon hesitate and reach for his sunglasses.

Guessing what the problem was, Brianna went into personal assistant mode. "I'll go. What name is it reserved under?"

"Mine."

Her eyebrows rose. "You used your own name? That was......brave of you. Not very smart, but brave."

He smiled wryly. "I didn't think there'd be this many people around."

"No wonder you need a personal assistant. You'd better go hide behind that newsstand."

"Brat." But he went.

Brianna approached the car rental counter, greeted the attendant and discreetly handed over her business card. Seeing the Bon Jovi Management name and logo, the attendant immediately glanced around rather hopefully. Unable to spot anyone worth getting excited about, she sighed and handed Brianna the rental agreement and the keys. "Just follow the signs to our parking lot. The slot number is on the keychain."

"Thank you." Brianna smiled and walked towards the exit, not glancing towards the newsstand at all. During the tour they'd gotten pretty good at sneaking Jon out of public places and she had no doubt he'd find her.

No sooner had the door closed behind her than he appeared at her side. "What took you so long? It's freezing out here!"

"I thought you were hiding inside."

"I was, but there were a bunch of girls eyeing me. I figured I was better off cold than take the chance of being recognized." He stopped beside the vehicle Brianna directed him to. "I love my fans, but I love you more." He leaned over to kiss her, ignoring her stunned expression. "This is our time." Loading their bags in the back, he held out his hand for the keys.

She'd gotten the words that she wanted. Not the way she'd expected, but maybe they meant all the more because of the causal way he said them. She'd have to think about that later. Regaining her wits and remembering a similar situation with Richie, she raised a brow. "Do you know how to get to the lodge?"

He pulled a brochure containing a map out of his pocket and handed it to her. "You navigate."

"Why can't I drive and you navigate?"

"Because if I don't have something to keep my hands busy I can't be held accountable for what may happen."

Brianna eyed him, tempted to take her chances. At his leer she snorted and handed over the keys. "I guess one of us has to have some self control........at least until we get to the lodge."

"And then all bets are off." He agreed.

The lodge was what might be expected of the term 'lodge'. It wasn't as big as a hotel, more like an Inn. The outside looked like an oversized log cabin, the inside a beautiful mix of modern and rustic. The lobby had a large fireplace and several pieces of comfortable looking furniture focused around the cheery flames.

"This place is fantastic!" Brianna exclaimed. "How far in advance did you have to book it?"

Jon grinned sheepishly. "Actually we lucked out. They had a cancellation just before I called last month."

As he approached the desk, the clerk looked up, her professional smile froze for a second, then widened. "Oh! Mr. Bon Jovi! Welcome!"

"Thank you." Jon grit his teeth, but managed a smile while he pulled out his credit card.

Brianna turned away from the desk, pretending to take a closer look around the lobby, to hide her grin at the young woman's struggle to remain professional.  Accepting the key while Jon picked up the luggage, Brianna couldn't help but tease him as they walked down the hallway. "Look at it this way. At least she didn't have to ask her mother who you were."

He glowered at her. "Brat."

Chuckling, she opened the door to their room, stepped inside and gasped. "Oh Jon! It's fantastic!"

"Glad you like it." He had to admit, it looked pretty good.

It wasn't a suite, but it was a large room. The king size bed was covered in a multicoloured patchwork quilt and a mound of thick pillows. The opposite wall held the promised fireplace with a wooden mantle. Above the mantle was a large mirror that reflected the image of the bed. On one side of the hearth was a box filled with logs and a tube of long wooden matches. The fire was laid, but not lit. The hardwood floor was warmed by various throw rugs including a fake fur one in front of the fireplace. 

When she moved to investigate a door to the side of the bed, Brianna felt tugging on her shoulders. Realizing Jon was trying to take her coat, she shrugged it off and let him have it. The door proved to be the entrance to the bathroom. A glance inside revealed a marble vanity, the jacuzzi tub and a large glass doored shower stall. The white towels were thick and there were two robes hanging on the back of the door.

Another wall in the main room had a large window with a view of the snow covered mountains. In front of the window was a table flanked by two large thick stuffed chairs. On the table was a vase with a dozen red roses and a heart shaped box of chocolates. A bottle of champagne was chilling in a stand beside the table.

Brianna bent to smell the roses, straightened and surveyed the peaceful scene out the window. She sighed in contentment. When strong arms slid around her waist, she smiled and leaned back against him.

"So I did good?"

"Mmmm. You did very good. It's perfect." She turned in his arms and slid her hands up his chest to twine around his neck.

"Thank you." He grinned lazily at her. His hands drifted up to her hair, agile fingers searching for the pins holding it in place. He grunted in satisfaction when the heavy mass came tumbling down around her shoulders. "That's better. Don't know why you keep pinning it up."

"So that you can take it down." She shook her head, sending more pins flying.

He smoothed the silken strands back from her face, his fingers threading through her thick mane. "I love your hair."

"Mmmm." She let her head drop back in response to his gentle tugging. Her fingers did some combing of their own, sifting through his cool locks.

Taking advantage of her position, he dipped his head to kiss and nibble on her exposed neck. She shivered and arched her back, pressing her lower body tight to his.

But no matter how much she rubbed and whimpered, he didn't respond to her invitation.

She growled in frustration. "Jon!"

"Mmmm?" He murmured without lifting his lips from where they were currently nuzzling her neck.

She tugged his hair.

He chuckled. "Problem?"

"For someone who was acting like a horny teenager earlier you certainly are taking your time."

"For once we can take as much time as we want. I intend to go slow and enjoy every inch of you."

Brianna shivered, but didn't argue. However, she did give him a warning. "What's good for the gander is good for the goose, remember?"