Dreaming of Tomorrow Read online

  “If we were roughing it, I would have brought something for us both to sleep on and a small rug to cover this cement floor.” David squeezed her. “I, for one, am glad we have hotel rooms.”

  “Me too, although staying here could be fun if I were with you.” Emily snuggled in his arms.

  “Emily, I think that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.” David kissed her. “Let’s go unhitch the trailer and check in to the hotel.”

  “Sounds good to me, I want a shower. I feel grubby.” Emily grinned. “And I wouldn’t mind some food.”

  They found the parking area and unhitched the trailer.

  They were pulling into the hotel parking structure when Emily finally spoke up. “David, I’d better warn you. I made some changes to your reservations.”

  “What’d you do? Call them and ask for completely separate rooms, maybe on separate floors?” David asked with a touch of exasperation in his voice. “Don’t you trust me?”

  “No, you big dope. I cancelled that extra bed. I know we can’t make love yet but I wanted to sleep with you and just cuddle so we won’t be needing it,” Emily grinned, “unless you want to sleep alone?”

  “So? You’ve decided we don’t need to sleep at all, because I sure will have trouble just sleeping with you in my arms. I love the idea, thank heavens, who needs sleep?” He parked and took her into his arms. “I love you, Emily.”

  He kissed her until she pulled away.

  “Let’s go find our room and a shower before we get too carried away in the parking garage.” Emily smiled up at the tenderness in his expression. “And, David, I love you, too.” Arm in arm, they walked inside the hotel.

  As soon as they were in the room, after the bellboy had been tipped and left, they stood facing each other, the air filled with electricity. All of a sudden the bedroom door seemed to be only the thing in the sitting room.

  Finally David said softly, “Emily, why don’t you take a nice bubble bath and I’ll put our clothes away and order something from room service?”

  “Are we having dinner here in the room?” she asked.

  “We can if you want, or I can just order us something for now. What do you think? Should I order dinner or something like champagne and appetizers?” he asked.

  “Champagne sounds good. Why don’t you order some and we’ll worry about dinner later?” Emily suggested.

  “Okay,” David kissed her forehead gently, “you go take a nice bath.”

  Emily took her small bag into the suite’s bathroom and gasped aloud. This hotel was known for it’s luxurious, almost decadent bathrooms with extra large tubs that were easily big enough for two. Alongside the tub were several small plastic bottles of bubble bath. David walked over to stand in the doorway behind Emily.

  “It’s wonderful isn’t it?” He nuzzled her ear. “It’s the main reason I chose this particular hotel.”

  “It’s beautiful, thank you for bringing me here.” Emily turned and kissed him. “Now, go away and let me take a nice long bath.”

  As soon as David left the doorway she closed the door and turned on the water. She adjusted the temperature and began filling the tub. She decided on a bubble bath and emptied it into the stream of running water. While the tub finished filling, she laid out a few of her cosmetics. She took off her clothes, which seemed to be terminally grubby after a day of travel and caring for horses, and put them into a large trash bag that she had brought with her. Then she sank into the hot bubbly water. As soon as she laid back in the tub, resting her head on the end of it, she began to relax. She drifted off for a while then scrubbed herself clean before she emptied and refilled the tub again with hot water and bubbles. Before long, David rapped gently on the door.

  “Are you still in the bath?” he asked gently.

  “Yes, I’ll be out in a minute,” she told him.

  “Don’t hurry,” he said softly, “Is the door locked?”

  “No.” Her voice was soft, almost tremulous.

  “Good, sink down into the bubbles, I’m bringing you a glass of champagne.” There was a world of determination in his words.

  “David! I’m in the tub! I’m naked!” In spite of the desire she felt for David, Emily was alarmed by the idea of him seeing her naked.

  “I should hope you’re naked. Who takes a bath with their clothes on?” he teased. “So, cover your eyes. I’m coming in.”

  “David, it’s not my eyes I’m worried about, it’s yours,” she protested.

  “I’ll be okay, trust me.” He entered the room holding a tray with two glasses of champagne and a bowl of large strawberries. “How’s the bath?”

  “Wonderful.” She felt his eyes roaming all over her body and knew she was beginning to blush. “Warm, and getting warmer by the minute.” She took a long sip of champagne and leaned back, her eyes closed, letting David feed her a strawberry. “I should keep you around.”

  “That’s the plan, my love, that’s the plan.” He leaned over to kiss the champagne from her soft lips.

  “I also should get out and let you take your bath. You spent the day traveling and working with horses, too.” Her eyes were still closed and she laid back, relaxing.

  “I could always join you in the tub,” he suggested gently. “After all, it seems like we’re going to share more than a bathtub tonight.”

  Emily’s eyes shot open. “That’s right. Why didn’t I think of that?”

  “Maybe you just haven’t had enough time to realize that we’re going to share a lot of things with each other.” David stepped out of the room, returning with the ice bucket and bottle of champagne. “We wouldn’t want to run out.” He took off his polo shirt. “Is it okay?”

  Emily struggled to ignore both the shivers running down her spine and the faint traces of apprehension churning in the pit of her stomach. “As long as it’s okay for me to blush a little from time to time.”

  “Blush all you want too, it’s expected of virgins.” He unzipped his pants and stepped out of them.

  She watched in silent appreciation as he lowered his underwear and stepped out of them. “I’m going to be the one to blush if you keep looking at me like that.”

  “I’d say I was sorry, but I’m not.” She grinned.

  “Good.” He stepped into the tub facing her. “I want you to enjoy looking at me as much as I enjoy looking at you, and . . .” he continued, his eyes narrowing, “if you even think about making some idiotic remark about your weight, I’ll do something violent.”

  “Like what?” Her chin came up.

  “Like this.” He moved quickly to cover her, kissing her with a passion that left her breathless while his hands were sliding all over her soapy body, exploring, teasing and arousing her all at once. By the time the kiss was finished, all traces of her insecurities were gone.

  All too soon he pulled back with a visible effort, breathing heavily. “Turn around,” he managed to say, “I’ll wash your hair for you.”

  She leaned back against his warm body, conscious of the hard flesh of his arousal pressing into her, and let him wash and rinse her hair. Then his hands moved on. She began to moan softly as his soapy fingers stroked and teased her. She let him arouse her, putting herself totally into his hands and soon he had taken her over the brink. She was gasping, rubbing the back of her head against his firm chest as she reached her climax.

  “You’re very responsive.” He kissed her neck.

  “How could I help it? You know just what to do.” As soon as she recovered the power of speech, Emily asked him a question. “Can I return the favor and wash your hair?”

  “And other parts of me?” He raised his eyebrows.

  “We’ll see,” Emily said primly.

  They both turned around in the bathtub, and soon Emily was washing his hair. After she finished the task, she followed his example and reaching around him gently, exploring his body with her soapy hands. She worked her way gently down his body until she finally grasped him in her soapy fingers. He stopp
ed her, covering her hands with his. He was breathing heavily.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “You are so wonderful, Emily.” He leaned back against her, savoring the feel of her wet body pressed up against his. “But we have to stop now because we’re not going to make love in the tub.”

  “But we are already making love,” she protested. “Just not having sex.”

  “You’re right, of course, we are. Even this is probably a sin, but this is as far as we’re going to go before we get married.” He still held her hands firmly. “After that it’s anything, and anywhere goes. The bathtub, kitchen counters, the barn, heck, maybe even in bed!”

  “On horseback?” she wondered.

  “I won’t object if the horse doesn’t.” David laughed. “Emily, you amaze me. You’re so innocent in so many ways, and in others you have a very wicked mind. Yes, we can make love on the horse.”

  “That sounds good to me, for later. But for now I may be naïve, David, but can’t we go to bed and just cuddle. Please?”

  “You know, I think we should get brownie points for resisting temptation.” Emily winked at him. “Maybe sainthood.”

  “I don’t think that’s how it works.” He laughed.

  David couldn’t resist any longer. It sounded like delicious torture but he was eager to sleep with Emily, as innocently as possible. Silently, he prayed for strength. They rinsed off and stepped out of the tub. They dried each other off and, wearing the terry cloth robes supplied by the hotel, turned their attention to drying each other’s hair. David was standing behind Emily, brushing and blow drying her hair when his patience finally ended.

  “Emily?” His voice was husky with emotion. “Don’t you think your hair is dry enough?”

  Emily nodded at David’s image in the mirror, speechless. David stepped away from Emily and, his eyes meeting hers in the mirror, he untied the belt to his robe and let it drop to the floor. Then he went to a drawer and pulled some briefs and a T-shirt.

  “You don’t need to cover up now,” Emily said softly, “I’ve seen it all.”

  “Trust me,” David grinned ruefully, “I need to wear something to bed, and so do you.”

  He stepped back towards Emily and reached around her waist to unite her robe, letting it join his on the tile floor. She walked over and got a pair of shorts and a T-shirt and put them on. She turned to face him and he lifted her up, carrying her to the king-sized bed. He had turned down the covers before joining her in the tub, so all he had to do was gently lay her in the middle of the bed.

  Emily lay on the bed, looking up at David with trust and love in her eyes. She reached one hand out to him. He joined her on the bed and took her in his arms, covering her face with soft gentle kisses that grew ever so slowly in warmth and passion. Emily met him kiss for kiss, her hands running gently over his neck and shoulders.

  “I hate to say this but we’d better stop, these kisses are tempting. And also, you should call room service and feed me. One small bowl of strawberries does not constitute dinner for two, and I think,” she grinned at him, a wide and wicked grin, “you’re going to need something to eat to keep your strength up at the show tomorrow since we may have trouble getting any sleep tonight.”

  “Nagging already?” David grinned as he reached for the phone. “Good grief, woman. What do you want to eat?”

  “I don’t know, surprise me,” she said softly. “I can’t think right now.”

  “Real food or some sinful dessert?” he asked.

  “Right now, I feel like something sinful,” she decided, giving him a teasing pout. “Since it’s the only sin I’m allowing myself tonight.”

  “Good point.”

  David spoke briefly into the phone before hanging it up and turning back to Emily. “They said it would be about half an hour before our food arrives.”

  It wasn’t even a full half hour before the room service waiter arrived with colas and a pair of hot fudge sundaes. He tipped the waiter and brought the sundaes into the bedroom. They both sat cross-legged on the bed and ate the ice cream treats in companionable silence. Once they were done, David put the tray outside the door and they turned out the light.

  Surprisingly, once they turned off the light and cuddled in each others’ arms, they both slept very well. The next morning, both of them were drowsy when the wake-up call came at six a.m., but Emily was very relaxed and content. David kissed her until she was wide awake and smiled to himself as he noticed how slow she was moving as she was getting out of the bed. She did a lot of lifting and moving setting things up the day before. He got up and pulled on a pair of faded jeans.

  “Why don’t you grab a hot bath, honey?” he offered. “I’ve got to run down to the fairgrounds to feed the horses. I’ll be back in about half an hour or so.”

  “Don’t you want me to come along?” she asked.

  “I’ll be right back. Why don’t you order breakfast for us so we can eat when I get back?” he suggested. “We’ll have to leave for the show at about 7:30.”

  By the time David came back from feeding the horses, Emily had taken her bath and gotten dressed in her jeans and a T-shirt. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and tied with a ribbon to match her t-shirt. They sat down and ate breakfast before heading for the fairgrounds. When they got to the fairgrounds they worked side by side quickly to clean out the stalls, not Emily’s favorite job, and groom the horses. She also fed and walked the puppy. Then they saddled both horses and rode them over to the practice arena.

  Emily worked Raider carefully, getting him warmed up and loosened up for the show. She also concentrated on getting him to relax in the unfamiliar surroundings. David worked Target quietly on the rail, not making any special effort to practice turns with him or work him at any real speed. With Target all he needed to do was get his muscles warm and loose.

  Emily expected David to get on Raider and take him through the poles that were up for practice but instead he watched as she took him through some practice runs. He made some quiet comments and suggestions, giving her lots of praise for how much she had learned since the first time he’d taken her riding.

  Finally they took the horses back to the barn so that David could change into his good jeans and his Western shirt for the show. They tied up the horses and stepped into the tack room. David took a garment bag and unzipped it. He seemed almost hesitant as he turned to Emily.

  “Emily?” He got her attention. “There’s something I forgot to tell you about this show.”

  “What’s up?” She was instantly curious, and from his tone she knew something was on his mind.

  “I didn’t enter myself on Raider,” he said almost hesitantly.

  “Then why did you bring him here?” she asked, faintly suspicious.

  “I entered you on Raider in the novice class,” he told her.

  “David, I can’t,” she protested. “I barely know how to ride.”

  “Yes, you can. Think about it. Would I have entered you if I didn’t think you were ready?” he prodded. “I don’t care if you win or lose, just have fun, and try to give him a good smooth ride. You’ve been doing it at home, now go do it here. Okay?”

  “I don’t have any show clothes,” she protested.

  David handed her a second garment bag. “I hope you like the shirt, I had Nicole pick it out.”

  “Thank you, David.” She kissed his cheek then looked at the shirt. “I hope it fits but I think the size is too small.”

  “Nicole said you’d say that. Try it on.” David held out a ribbon and a western tie, both color coordinated to go with the shirt.

  Emily put on the shirt and was surprised to realize that it fit perfectly. “How did she know?”

  “It’s her job,” he reminded her. “Emily, she picked out some new jeans, too.”

  “That’s very nice of her but I have jeans, and these are fairly new.” Emily looked down at her jeans.

  “They’re way too large for you,” David smiled at her, “and they used to be
fairly tight.”

  “I knew I had lost some weight,” Emily was pleased that he had noticed, “but not so much that I thought it would show.”

  “You’ve not only lost weight, you’ve firmed up your muscle tone. I’ve noticed for some time but I didn’t want to pressure you or to make you feel that it was too important to me. I want to be happy for you and support you but you have to do what’s best for yourself. You can’t worry too much about how I feel about it because I love you whether you lose weight or not.”

  “That’s how I’ve always found you David, very supportive while not filling me with pressure, it’s part of why I love you.” She hugged him before looking at the jeans. “Good grief! These are two sizes smaller than my other pair, they’ll never fit.”

  But to her immense joy, they not only fit they were even a little bit loose.

  Giving her a big wink, David handed her a tooled Western belt with a small buckle on it. “I would have gotten you a fancy buckle, but I thought you should go out and win one.”

  “Yeah, sure,” she said drily, “I can hardly wait. I’m sure I’ll win one sometime before the end of the century.”

  Emily threaded the belt through the loops on her jeans and they went out and got on the horses. Emily’s slight jitters conveyed themselves to Raider, and she could feel the edge of tension in his massive body. She worked him slowly, trying to calm herself and the big gelding. When the first novice event was called, Keyhole race, right after the ponies, she was as ready as she would ever be.

  “Now use your own judgment, Emily. You can work him easily through the event, and just use this show for practice, or you can go for it. Raider’s been doing all right for you in Keyhole, but it’s a tricky event.” David grinned. “At least you’ll be among the last to ride so you’ll know what you have to do to win a ribbon.”

  Keyhole, an event that consisted of running a horse into a small chalk circle with an alley leading into the center, turning and running back through the finish line, was an event that could be plagued by disqualifications. Every time a horse stepped on or out of the chalk lines that horse and rider was disqualified. Sometimes the last rider in the class only had to stay in to place or even win the event.