Fire on the Mountain [Reida, Alastair]

There was a great deal of conflict in the back of Reida's mind throughout all of this, even as the front of her mind was entirely concerned with the man in her arms. Her morals were fundamentally against going too far when they were still just dating, after all. The good book was real clear about how she should handle things like this, and it said she oughta stop right about now.

"Sounds just fine to me, honey bunch."

But, no matter what her morals said, that wasn't what she actually wanted right now. That was the plain and simple of it. Reida's affections were only getting more forward, more aggressive, and while she was perfectly happy to let him lead the way, it was rather clear that she wanted to be led right along. She spoke in hushed tones, nearly out of breath from all the attention she was giving him.

"Hate ta say it, but this sweater's gettin' mighty uncomfortable. Know I put the work in, but I think you're gonna need to do a little bit too."

There was only one place this was going. That was fine. Reida'd already had enough thoughts that she'd need to ask forgiveness for, and they always said in church that sinful thoughts were the same as sinful deeds.

Alastair knew what Reida was thinking, or at least what she was projecting, and that was only furthering them along. Certainly, there were thoughts in the back of his own mind that knew that this was something against her good values, and that also made it something against his own. But those were the worries of a stronger man, a stronger man than he was not right now. One that had not just been called a honey bunch.

"It does look rather impractical. All those holes must be making it quite an irritation."

His delivery of the joke was as dry as usual, a sign that he was still very much comfortable with the situation. And so, given permission from Reida, he set about removing the sweater. It was a rush job, of course, because it pained him to break from their embrace, but his hands did run the length of her torso as they dragged the jumper up and over her head. Still, as soon as it was done, he was there again waiting to kiss her and hold her.

By now they had also made fair progress down the hallway, comparable perhaps to progress they had made in other areas. They could keep going straight, heading for the main room with that all too familiar sofa and the kitchen too, but there was a second option that hardly needed to be made more apparent. The door to his bedroom was slightly ajar, enough that it would be easy to simply nudge open. Alastair had made no move for it yet, as busy as he was, but nor had he continued to move them away just yet.

As the sweater was pulled off, Reida practically threw it to the side, the feeling of Alastair's hands running over her skin far more electrifying than she'd have cared to admit before right now. There was definitely no going back now, not that she was really even thinking about the alternatives, and while it might've been perfectly easy to simply nudge the door to his bedroom open, Reida very nearly kicked it as if she were in a breach and clear operation. Her expression was every bit as intense, but certainly not in any grim way. Far from it, really.

"Pretty sure I remember somethin about you feelin' overdressed. We oughta fix that, don't ya think?"

Reida's hand moved to his chest, her fingers dancing over it even as she pushed him with perhaps more force than even she'd quite anticipated. Part of her felt like she should've been embarrassed about that, but she was way past embarrassment now. A lot of things were apparent in her expression right about now, but they were all radically outdone by the actual central emotion on display:

Desire.

The ferocity with which she dismissed his bedroom door was enough to give Alastair another moment of clarity. That this was actually happening. He certainly had not thought that this was how today would go, yet that made it all the more special. But Reida was intoxicating, and that was setting aside the whiskey. Her hunger was his own hunger, he was all too happy to be lost in it.

There were no words that could really respond to her questions, a simple grunt acting as an affirmation whilst she got to work. He was there to distract her with his lips though, pressing them against her own and wherever else was available when she was looking away. And, whilst all that was going on, he stooped just a little lower so that his hands could grasp the back of her thighs and then pull her off her feet entirely. There was not much clearance but, with half a foot to work with, Alastair made sure to carry her properly as they crossed a threshold that had a fair few new boundaries.

Ambling backwards with her pulled up against him and near enough at eye level, they eventually found their way to the bed. There was an inclination to simply toss her onto the covers, but that still felt a little too drastic so, instead, he took the far more measured approach and simply sat himself down so that she was left on his lap. As soon as they were seated, though, he released her only for long enough to discard his shirt. If any buttons had escaped Reida's wrath then he saw to them in short order. And then he was back to focusing upon her, hands wandering around her exposed midriff.

"I want you, Reida."

There was an emotion to his voice that it usually lacked, but it was real. The most real he had been in a long time. He was not a good man, she had known that from the off, and so he allowed himself to let this finally seep out.

The longing.

Reida was used to being in control in these sorts of situations. Sure, she hadn't exactly done any of this in a few years now, but she was always the one being forward, the one taking the lead. She knew Alastair hadn't wanted to make any move until she was ready, but she could tell from the way his hands moved, from how suddenly he'd picked her up and simply carried her here, from the way that he held her here in his lap, that it wasn't just idle talk when he said he wanted her. She thought about any number of sly little comments, playful quips that would've added to the heat of the moment. But she wanted to be just as genuine for a second, and so she instead leaned in close, her lips practically a hair's breadth from his ear as she whispered her next few words.

"I want you too, Alastair. Bad."

Any embarrassment she might have felt at saying such a thing was quashed by just where they were at this stage, and just as quickly as her lips had moved to speak those sweet words into his ear, they'd already trailed down to his neck, an aggressive gesture that Reida knew perfectly well wouldn't be nearly the end of where things went by now.

No, it was just something she wanted. Just one more gesture of affection, one more thing that she did simply because she wanted to. Did it make her happy? Yeah, damn right it did. But it meant a whole lot more to her now, when he'd admitted so openly that he wanted her. Even if she didn't want to admit it, Reida thrived on that validation. She hadn't had it in a long time, and if she could make someone happy, especially someone that'd done so much for her...

Well, there was a whole lot she'd do to make sure he enjoyed himself.

Her whispered words would be met with sharpness as his fingers turned inwards to claw at the small of her back. Alastair's entire body grew a little tenser at the reciprocation of his statement, it would be fair to say, and he could have just held her there for the rest of the evening and likely have been satisfied. But this was a little more than a matter of mere satisfaction now, they both had some skin in this race and the willingness to see it through. So he did not just remain in place, he set to work on the task at hand.

That was the story of the night, as they both sought to ensure the enjoyment of the other.

Dawn was perhaps still a little while away when Alastair slowly awoke from his slumber, but the night sky was growing ever paler in the view from his bedroom window. He was a gentle rouser, hardly one prone to suddenly jolting upright or anything so severe, so he lay there for a moment or two in quiet contemplation. It did not take long for his gaze to wander to the woman at his side, and just seeing her there did make his heart quicken.

There was so much he wanted to say to her, so much he already had said and yet wanted to repeat again today. But he also did not want to disturb her own slumber for it was certainly hard-earned, so he drew a little closer to her and waited.

Typically, Reida wasn't an especially heavy sleeper, and she usually got by on a few light naps through the night between cups of coffee. Sleep tended to bring dreams with it, and her dreams weren't the pleasant kind most nights. This wasn't any different, and while she'd been perfectly peaceful through the night, all at once, her eye practically shot open, her whole body tensing as she grabbed Alastair with markedly more intensity than could possibly be called intimate. It had just been instinct, fear shooting through her body, and her breathing was ragged as she clung to him in a cold sweat.

"...Mornin'."

Not exactly how she would have wanted the morning after to go. She'd have rather gotten up before him, gone out, made him a nice breakfast to wake up to. But Reida guessed she might've been expecting a little too much of herself if she thought actually sharing a bed with someone again wouldn't turn out this way sooner or later. Maybe it was better to get it out of the way now.

"...Sorry. Wakin' up's like this sometimes."

There wasn't much else she could say, really. He'd understand why, and she didn't think for a second that he was the sort of person who would mind it. But that was just more reason, in her mind, why he deserved an apology for it. Not for how she was, of course. Just how sudden it was.

Seeing Reida stir, and with such a distinct jolt of attention, Alastair did what felt natural. This was not the first time that he had been witness to her sleeping, certainly not the first time he had been in proximity to such though the tone of those previous occasions had perhaps been a little different. As she tightened what had once been a light grip, shock likely motivating her, he did not flinch. He let her squeeze for as long as she wanted, wrapping one arm around her to act as some small comfort. Whispering now into her head, his lips lingering against the edge of her hair, he tried to soothe just a little of her shock.

"It is quite fine, you are fine. You are alright."

He had woken in such a manner himself on several occasions, though not often since the war had faded into a more distant memory. Though he did not know exactly what might calm her best, he was banking quite heavily upon his presence alone doing that rather than having to lean into any substances.

"I am glad to be here, with you."

The way that Alastair held her, the way he simply let her hang onto him for as long as she needed, that went a long way in helping get those few remaining night terrors out of Reida's thoughts a little faster. Most of the time she just stewed in it, got to work on one thing or another and hoped that could drown it out. But this was something a little more immediate. More emotional.

"Can't think of any place I'd rather wake up."

She meant that, and even as she finally relaxed a bit, as her breathing evened out and her heart rate slowed down to something at least resembling normal, she didn't move one bit just yet. Climbing out of bed, getting dressed and right back to it, that was how she handled every morning. Right about now, she wanted to just stay with him a little longer, right here.

"I had a good time last night."

Part of her felt like even saying that was stupid, or awkward. She knew it might have even come across as her just trying to make him feel better about it or something, but that wasn't her intention. Rather, Reida just wanted to make it clear that she didn't have any regrets about what had happened. She was sobered up by now, and she couldn't imagine Alastair failed to notice she'd come over steeled with a lot of whiskey. But even with her head clear as spring water, she didn't think she'd have changed a thing.

"Me too."

There was little else he could really say that quite covered exactly how he felt about all that had recently occurred between them. He did not want to move, not get up anyway, because that would mean leaving Reida alone for any length of time. That was new. Not the desire to be with her, but not wanting to be apart from her. It was fortunate that he did not have work today, that was a conundrum that he certainly did not want to unpack right now.

"Last night was incredible, but I am a little relieved that you enjoyed yourself too."

Of course, she seemed to be having a good time in the heat of the moment, but this was what really mattered. How Reida felt when she came to and that whiskey was no longer pumping through her system. That validation that this had not been the greatest mistake possible was certainly something he needed to hear, which was a little selfish of him to seek but he was well past the point of concerning himself with personal desires. He pressed in with his face, planting a kiss on the top of her head, before withdrawing to continue.

"Whatever comes next, I am not going anywhere."