Daylight

Pet’s POV

It occurred to me that I’d been in this…position…before.

I reached up and ran my hand through Joe’s hair. It was soft and clean under my fingers. In fact, he smelled suspiciously clean too. (We spent so much time at Warped being dirty and smelly—not just the guys, but us too—that it was really noticeable when someone got cleaned up.)
It struck me that he’d taken time and effort for me. I was really pleased. But before I could tell him how I appreciated this, he leaned down and started to rub his nose against my cheek, moving slowly down towards the base of my neck.
It left a warm trail along my skin in the cool air, a combination of his breath and some kind of electric current.
Suddenly he stopped.
“Yeh don’t mind this, Pet, do ya?” he asked, his warm breath tickling my neck.
I was trembling. I shook my head slowly; I wasn’t sure if I could form words at that point.
Joe moved to one side of me, leaning on one arm while he caressed my hair and face with the other. Yep, definitely been here before.
He moved his face closer to mine. I kept my eyes open this time, thinking he might be teasing me again.
“So, is it alright if I kiss you, then?” he murmured, amused.
I smiled. “Why do you always ask me?”
His eyes scanned my face, trying to see if I was joking. “Well, it’s polite,” he offered. He ran his free hand down my arm and then my hip. “And,” he continued, “it lets you know what’s comin’, so you’re not…surprised.”
“You mean, so I don’t smack you one?”
Joe only rolled his eyes at that and smiled.
“Well,” I said in a softer voice, “maybe I like surprises. Did you ever think to ask me?”
He half sat up. “No, I never did, now I think of it,” he replied. “So, Petula: d’you like surprises?”
I nodded.
“Nice surprises?” he prompted.
I nodded again.
“Well then,” Joe whispered, and before I could say anything else, he was kissing me on the lips, gently at first, then more insistently, his tongue swirling around and dipping in, then retreating….

And then he pulled away.

I was left panting, and with Joe just grinning at me, that shit.
“Surprise,” he teased.
I actually growled, whether in frustration or anger, I couldn’t even tell you. My heart was pounding, my whole body was tingling. In fact, I realized I was shaking from the contact with him, and to top it off, I was hot and cold at the same time.
Maybe I’m sick? I thought. Goddamn.

Joe moved closer again. “So, a bit fierce, are we?”
What was wrong with me? I gritted my teeth and said nothing, staring into his eyes.
“You’re too tense, luv,” he remarked, tracing a finger over my collarbone, then sliding his hand down my arm. “Lucky for you I can fix that.”
Again he leaned down and this time, just brushed his lip against mine. I tensed up and then forcibly relaxed myself. A tiny sound escaped my lips; it sounded like a whimper. That soundcan’t be coming from me, I thought.
“Summat you want to tell me, luv?” Joe’s question was almost serious, almost innocent, but his eyes were full of amusement. His hand was slowly, gently stroking my face and hair, and all my nerves were on alert
Dammit, how could anyone’s touch be so relaxing and so gentle, and yet so exciting? I wanted to nuzzle my own face into his hand and kiss his palm. To have him sink his hand into my hair and pull me close. To pull his face to mine and kiss me properly.

I wanted him to go on, to finish what he’d started… and stop teasing me.

And I wanted to smash him in the face and run away as fast as possible.

The problem was I couldn’t seem to move. Our eyes were locked onto each others’, as stupid as that sounds. It was like some weird staring contest, to see who would break first and look away. (I should say right here, I was never much good at staring contests. I get distracted and impatient, and just can’t sit still for a long time.)

Then, I suddenly became aware of the huge silence around us, the kind we hadn’t experienced since Warped had started. Usually, there were crowds all over the place, people calling to each other, buses and cars and noises everywhere. But tonight there was quiet; the only sounds were leaves rustling overhead, the occasional night bird, and our breathing. In a way, the quiet was scarier than the dark, because it felt like we were the last two people on earth.

It hit me right then that we were really alone, in a way we hadn’t been when we spent the night at the hotel, because nobody really knew exactly where we were. Joe and I were isolated from everyone and everything we’d known for the last few weeks.

I’d never been this alone with anyone—ever.

Yeah, it was scary—and exhilarating. Because I realized that the part of me that wanted Joe to get closer was a lot stronger than the part that wanted to run off.
I smiled a little at how stupid I was, getting angry at his teasing. He smiled back gently, and opened his mouth like he was going to say something. Instead, I trailed a finger over his lips and shook my head slightly; I didn’t want anything to disturb the peaceful little island we’d found ourselves on.
I moved a little closer to him, his body radiating much-needed warmth. I ran my hand down his face, along his cheek and jaw, the skin rough with stubble. He closed his eyes, but I wish he hadn’t, because I wanted to see his expression while I was studying his face. I took advantage of the situation by moving as close to him as I could, as quietly as possible. He smiled again, and turned his face to kiss my hand. I aligned my head with his, and when he was facing me again, I kissed him very gently. Joe’s eyes popped open in surprise, and he let out a little gasp.

I laughed.

Then I kissed him again, and again, each one varying in intensity, heat and pressure, not meant to lead to anything but the next kiss. And the next. His mouth opened; so did mine; and the kisses deepened. He wrapped an arm around me, and his hand went around the back of my head to hold us together. I clutched at his hair, almost afraid he’d pull away at the wrong moment—which was any time at all. Then he sort of picked me up and rolled me on top of him, like he had back at the hotel. Even through a couple of clothing layers, I could feel his heart beating fast. I slid up a little and sat up at his waistline.
Joe squinted at me through one eye. “This isn’t the bit where you try to take your top off again, is it?” he murmured.
I shivered. “Probably not,” I replied. “Too cold for that.”
“Another time then,” he said.

I laid back down on him and kissed him over and over again. He started to move under me, his hands tracing downward from my hair and face to my sides. The unexpected brush so near my breasts had me gasping, and he froze for a moment, his eyes questioning me. In answer I moved against him, slowly, in a way I didn’t think I’d ever done with anyone before.
I slithered down to kiss his neck and the very top of his chest. His hands wandered down further, squeezing my hips gently. I couldn’t help pressing against his pelvis, making him groan.
“Ah, Pet,” Joe whispered, “luv, really, you don’t wanna do that.”
Unbelievably, I’d felt how hard he was again, even through both pairs of jeans. But I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to give back as good as I’d gotten earlier.
“Really?” I whispered back, rocking myself against him again. “You mean, like this?”
That time, he took both of my hands in his as if that would stop me. “Yes, I mean no, I mean, oh Pet, please, I’m asking you nicely….” he pleaded.
“Why should I stop?” I asked him. “You seem to be enjoying it.”
Joe opened his eyes fully then. “I’m at me limit, truly,” he moaned, “and I dunno how much more…control… I have.” Then he kissed me once more. “So…” he continued, gently moving my body off his, “I think it’s time to conclude the festivities for the evenin’, if yeh know what I mean.”
“Now?” I almost whined. “It’s early yet.”
“But we’ve got a long day drivin’ tomorrow,” he said unconvincingly, “and we’ve gotta get back to the buses.”

I must’ve pouted a little, because Joe held my face in his hands so I had no choice but to look him right in the eyes.

“Listen, darlin’, I love bein’ up here with you; this has been the most fun I think I’ve had all summer so far,” he said. “But I don’t wanna get you—or me—in trouble with yer friends.” Then he turned away and started gathering up the picnic things.
“Trouble? With them?” I asked. “Are you kidding me? Do I need to remind you about Sal’s little stunt yesterday?”
“No,” he responded without looking at me, “I remember it pretty well. And I’m sure there’s some lovely footage on YouTube, if I forget.”
I sighed.

Joe spent a few more minutes getting everything together. While he was working, I was suddenly unsure, for some reason.
“Joe, did…did you not like what I was…doing?” I asked meekly.
He turned around quickly. “Oh, I liked it fine, Pet…too well, in fact,” he assured me.
“So, why’d you make me stop?”
“Because I couldn’t keep me promise to you, luv, if you was gonna keep on that way,” Joe answered. Then he looked at me more closely. “And I think you know it. So, unless you’re ready…” he paused, making me shiver, “I’d strongly suggest you not put yerself in that sort o’ situation with the likes of me.”
“But this was all your idea,” I objected.
“Let’s just say it looked good on paper, luv,” Joe sighed. Then he got up and offered me his hand. “Come on, let’s go back to the buses.”
I shrugged. “Can’t we just…stay here a little while longer?”
He hesitated.
“I promise I’ll behave,” I pleaded. “I just…like being alone with you, where nobody knows where we are.”
Joe rolled his eyes in defeat. “I know I’m gonna be sorry…” he began, but then he sat back down with me anyway.
I laid back down with him, pulling our blanket over us, and closed my eyes.

Joe sighed. “I admit, this is nice, Pet,” he murmured, relaxing.
The huge quiet was all around us again.
“Mmmmm,” is all I remember saying.