Lost and Found by Trish Marie Dawson

him to move on, my demands for him to leave me be - he wasn't listening.
    With a shaky sigh I shifted, rolling onto my back and adjusting Connor's heavy arm
     below my naked breasts. He moved slightly, bumping his bent knee into my leg but he
     didn't wake. The haircut he had given himself suited him. Though his hair still had
     plenty of length, it didn't hide his features anymore. The straight angles of his
     nose and jawline were visible once again, as well as his eyes. I loved his hair long.
     He looked wild, rugged, and sexy. But his eyes were my favorite - the clear blue color
     stood out against his dark features, begging me to get lost in them. Drown in them.
     And every time he looked at me, I did just that. Now that his hair was shorter, I
     could see more of his eyes, without having to push his wavy locks out of the way.
    I was still staring at his sleeping face when dawn began kissing the bedroom windows.
     No matter how hard I tried to will it away, the new day had started. The room seemed
     to expand as the shadows were forced back into their hiding places and the light of
     day took over. I stared at the ceiling, checking out the wooden beams and a cobweb
     the size of a Mini Cooper that I hadn't noticed before. It was dusty, tucked into
     the far corner of the room, just behind the bathroom door. I became fascinated with
     it as the room brightened, hoping to see a spider run out along the sagging strands,
     but nothing did. The spider that created it had been gone a long time.
    When hazy sunbeams began hitting the floor and spraying across the foot of the bed,
     Connor stirred beside me, flexing his arm across my midsection. I waited for him to
     stretch before I leaned over and softly kissed his mouth.
    His eyes fluttered open, and with his early morning voice laden with a touch of his
     rusty Celtic accent, he murmured, "Morning, sunshine."
    "Good morning."
    "How long have you been awake?"
    "Awhile. I know you slept well, you snored."
    His eyes widened before he scoffed, "I do not snore!"
    "You keep telling yourself that," I giggled.
    "Kris is up, I can smell coffee," he sighed.
    I heard her rise and creep down the stairs a half hour before, but I wasn't ready
     for coffee, plus part of me hoped I would drift off into some sort of slumber. My
     body was sore and achy from the day before.
    "I'm going to take the horses out for their first ride today…with Kris," I said.
    "Really? You think they're ready for that?" Connor propped himself up on one elbow
     and looked down at me.
    "I'm sure Sunny is, but Foxy...we'll see. We won't know if they are ready till we
     try."
    "True. Want me to go with?" He twirled the ends of my hair around his finger.
    "Not yet, but thanks." I looked over at him and smiled. He was different, less combative,
     more interested in what I was doing with the horses. I wondered if he was beginning
     to change his mind.
    "You know, I have this problem," he said with a sly grin on his face.
    "What problem is that?"
    Connor's fingers found my hand and he tugged it below the sheets, between us. "That's
     an impressive bulge, Sir," I joked.
    "I told you I have a problem. Mind fixing it for me?"
    His mouth met mine, parting my lips, eagerly probing inside to dance with my tongue.
     The sheet slid down to my waist and Connor kicked it the rest of the way off, exposing
     our nude bodies. He nibbled at my neck and shoulder while walking his slender fingers
     down my abdomen. The freshness of his body wash and the salty musk of his skin twisted
     my stomach into knots and titillated every one of my nerve endings. He had only to
     touch me to awaken every sense in my body.
    We both jumped when a knock vibrated off the bedroom door. I clutched the sheet to
     my chest and heard Connor groan as he rolled off of me.
    "Riley, Connor…you awake? Breakfast is ready!" Kris's chipper voice said from behind
     the door.
    "Sure, Kris…we'll be right down!" I replied.
    "Okay, great!"
    "Wait, what?" Connor