sweetie
Refugee
Hello all 
Parental discretion is advised. The following contains
situations. - PG13ish
I apologize if this was a bit more risque than the forum allows. It was all in the name of romance
Disclaimer - true? Don't I wish. Absolutely not a true story!!!!
By the way...sorry these are sooooo long! Ok...onward..
Gioia opened her eyes the next morning and instantly remembered that she had fallen asleep in Bono’s arms. And that he had let her. She heard him last night when he whispered her name. She couldn’t bear to ruin the perfect, beautiful moment.
She could feel his heat, smell his scent, and hear his heartbeat. At that moment she had not wanted to hear his take on the predicament they were in, even though she had asked him the question. As it were, it had taken her a while to fall asleep. Instead of giving in to sleep, she had concentrated on every part of her body that touched his. It was all she could do to keep herself from weeping in pleasure. From her cheek, which had been half on his shirt and half on the exposed flesh of his collar, to her inner thigh, slightly raised and pressed against his leg, she was attuned to his warmth. He was flesh and blood, and right beside her. When she was satisfied that he was not a figment of her imagination and wasn’t going to disappear with the dawn, she drifted off into sleep.
She sat up and looked around. The sun was bright but the air was cool, telling her that it was early morning.
She spotted Bono by the river. He was kneeling down on the grassy bed, shirtless and was splashing water on himself. Gioia was mesmerized, watching him wash his face and arms. He stood up and turned around to find her watching him. He smiled at her as he started drying himself with a square of linen.
Gioia thought he looked utterly breathtaking and grinned back.
She walked over to him. “How’s the water?”
“Nice. Pity that we don’t have a change of clothes or extra towels. We could go for a swim.”
She shook her head and let out an involuntary shudder. “I can’t swim.”
Nonchalantly, Bono handed her the linen and motioned to her to help him dry his back, which was wet from his drenched hair. She looked at his back and blinked in shock. Her face blushed hotly. She needed to get herself together! She had seen his naked butt for Pete’s sakes! She could handle his bare back. She patted him dry. Rubbing would’ve been too much for her senses.
“Why don’t you take advantage of the water?” He coaxed.
“Are you saying I smell?” She teased. She wasn’t sure when it was exactly that she had become that comfortable with him. Still, to her ears, the teasing comment sounded stilted and forced.
He chuckled. “No. But it was definitely refreshing.”
Gioia was silent.
He looked over his shoulder at her and saw her hesitation.
“Come on. I’ll keep my back turned. Just hand me your blouse. I won’t peek.”
But I want you to peek! After yesterdays pathetically attempted kiss, and the night spent in his arms, she was getting bold in her thoughts. Oh why not? She would love to start the day feeling clean.
“Ok. I won’t be long”.
Trying to keep her mind a blank, she took off her blouse and paused a second before handing it to him. She grabbed the drying cloth and held it up to her bosom.
As she walked away to wash up, Bono surprised himself by mechanically raising the blouse and breathed deeply of her scent. In his mind’s eye he pictured her kneeling by the water’s edge. Thoughts of her in the tub came rushing back and he felt his body tense. What was wrong with him? He hadn’t felt this way in such a long time.
Soon after, they had a quick breakfast of fruit, packed up camp, and were back on the road. They decided to stay along the river path since it was more scenic, provided water, and it ran parallel to the inner forest path. Plus, the darn map alluded to the fact that they should follow the river. Good thing they stopped when they did.
According to the horrible map, they were to follow the river until THE WAY WILL BE REVEALED TO YOU WHEN YOU BRIDGE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE TWO FLAMES. Whatever the hell that meant! Bono was annoyed. Why couldn’t they have received directions? Plain and simple. Why the cryptic map? The more he thought of it, the more he knew that they were involved in something that was beyond their control. He just didn’t want to believe that the Wareings could be mixed up in something sinister. He usually didn’t possess poor judgment.
He was glad that Gioia hadn’t pressed him this morning to continue exploring his thoughts on their situation. All the information he knew was a haphazard mess in his mind. He knew just a bit of Irish folklore. Legend had it that after a three-day celebration, the goddess Aine took a life. A sacrifice. Usually it was whoever she would find in her temple at the time. He had no idea when that was but he had a feeling that the necklace was Aine’s way of finding an unsuspecting sacrifice that would willingly enter the temple.
Then why was he leading Gioia into this? He honestly didn’t know if what he was remembering was in fact happening. He could be remembering it wrong or perhaps it was one of the stories he was told as a wayward child, a total fabrication of someone’s imagination. Pieces of one fable confused into another.
The idea was farfetched. Of course, everything that had happened thus far has been farfetched.
And also, he needed to face his enemies in order to know what to do about them. He could speculate all he wanted, but unless the truth was presented to him outright, he would not completely fall victim to any of his musings.
Human injustices, civil unrest, and Third World debt, he could handle. But had no experience handling a mythological angry goddess?
They were traveling by the river. Bono hoped they were heading in the right direction. Without reaching their next checkpoint, they wouldn’t know for sure. Damn map didn’t give them a clue how many miles or kilometers (or whatever!) there were between checkpoints. He didn’t like the fact that he was getting irritable. He needed to snap out of it.
He looked up at the blue sky. The air was clean and crisp. The sun was shining brightly and as it shone on the water, it twinkled like diamonds. It was a beautiful day. He took a deep breath, filling his lungs with life. He smiled and he started humming out loud. Gioia glanced at him and grinned.
“What are you humming?”
He shrugged. “Not sure. What does it sound like to you?”
“Bad.”
Bono crooked an eyebrow. “Are you saying that it sounds terrible?”
She laughed at his stricken look. “The song, “Bad”. That’s what I meant”.
Bono grunted, accepting her explanation. He stopped humming.
“You could never sound bad.” She added. “You can hum to me anytime, baby.”
She was being playful.
“Ok then. Is that a request for “Bad” then?” He tsked. “If you were any kind of fan, you would’ve known that I was humming “Walk on”. Get it? Walk on? I was being clever.”
“How in the world was that “Walk on”? It sounded nothing like it. I think you’ve been away from the stage too long.” She was enjoying this with him and let a bit of laughter bubble out.
The rest of the day was spent in much the same vein. They talked and joked and tried not to think about why they hadn’t reached their next checkpoint. Bono loved to talk and Gioia was fascinated by the plethora of knowledge sustained by his above average intelligence. That night, again lying side by side in the moonlight, Bono told her a bit about his worry about the possibility of not returning home. Gioia was touched at his honesty and his vulnerability. But he changed the subject when he noticed that she was starting to feel disheartened by their situation. She had drifted off to sleep wondering how she would ever let him go should they find their way back home.
The next day they set out early to continue their trek. They had washed up by the river and Bono made a mental note to gift Gioia with a big basket of scented shower gels, shampoos, and lotions when they got back home. He could not explain how much he appreciated those small luxuries that she kept safe in her backpack. He especially enjoyed the pinch of toothpaste that he used this morning and the little pink daisy razor. Hopefully this information would stay between them and never get back to his bandmates!
“So tell me, do you always carry toiletries around in your bag?”
She grinned. “No. Not usually. This bag was part of my carryon. I couldn’t fit some of my toiletries in my little Pullman so I packed them in here. I got to the hotel late the day of the concert so I only had time to shower, change and run out the door in order to make it to the show on time. I didn’t have time to unpack the bottles. She gave him a sly look. “Aren’t you glad that I didn’t?”
Bono was about to reply when he saw her stop short and stare over his shoulder at the river. She had an amazed and excited look on her face.
“What is it?” He asked. She pointed. He turned in that direction and saw what she saw.
Almost directly in front of them was an enormous tree with red/orange leaves. The kind of colors you would see in Massachusetts during peak foliage season. Its trunk was immense, a few feet wide. But what got their attention was that the river cast a swirling reflection on its trunk and limbs, giving the tree an appearance of being engulfed in flames. Across the river, was its sister and between the two was a narrow footbridge.
“That’s it! Gioia exclaimed excitedly. But as quickly as the excitement came it disappeared when she noticed Bono’s perplexed look. He was surveying the scene in front of him with his hands on his hips and his lips pursed. Gioia knitted her brows together, about to ask him what was wrong, when it dawned on her.
According to the map’s clues, “The way will be shown”. Her shoulders slumped. Shown? How? All they saw were the trees and the bridge. Hardly clear-cut.
“Do we cross the bridge or does this just mean that we’re on the right track?”
“Try the bridge.”
They both jumped at the voice. Bono frowned at Fletcher, the frog who was sitting a few feet in front of them. “Where the hell did you come from?”
Gioia looked at him, surprised by the anger in his voice.
Fletcher ribbitted. “You are wary of me? I assure you, I don’t mean you any harm. Lady Aine will, however, if the amulet of Leanan Sidhe is not returned by the third day of Lammas.”
Bono’s heart leaped to his throat. It was just as he suspected. But could Fletcher be trusted? Could the map be trusted? He didn’t know what to do!
“Bono?” He heard the concern in Gioia ’s voice.
He hesitated a moment. As much as he wanted to question Fletcher he didn’t know if the frog could be trusted and he didn’t want to be swayed by anything he told them. Fletcher knew that Gioia wore Aine’s necklace. And it also seemed as if he was following them.
“Let’s check out the bridge.” Bono spared one look at Fletcher and started toward the bridge. Gioia followed silently.
“Good-bye”. She thought she heard Fletcher say. She whirled around and he was gone.
Bono stepped onto the bridge and felt a surge of anger. Angered by Fletcher’s comments that were obviously deliberate to upset Gioia . Angered that he was not in control. Angered that he was standing on a bridge, nothing more, nothing less. No signs, no f*cking clues. For no other reason other than annoyance, Bono pulled the sack off of his body and dropped it onto the bridge. He stretched. Without the extra baggage he could concentrate. He knew he should feel ridiculous. He didn’t care. To Gioia ’s credit, she didn’t say a word to him. Instead, she tried to make him feel better by depositing her backpack next to his. He noticed this and smiled slightly, silently thanking her for not teasing him.
She walked up behind him as he headed toward the other side of the bridge in search of a sign of sorts. She was holding the railing, gliding her hand over its smooth finish. She felt her hand skim over a blemish in the wood and she looked down in wonder.
She blinked. It wasn’t a blemish! There were words engraved into the wood.
DEDICATED TO AINE. GATEWAY TO LEANAN SIDHE. The arrow pointed to over the bridge in the opposite direction from where they came.
“Bono look!” She called to him excitedly.
She never knew if he had turned to her at that point. The railing she was holding onto fell away with a force, as if being pulled from her grasp. She didn’t have a chance! She pitched forward toward the river. One piercing cry escaped her seconds before she plunged into the water.
The racing water swept her away quickly as it pulled her under. Her mind screamed as water rushed into her nose and throat, gagging her. She panicked and she flailed her arms. She couldn’t open her eyes, she couldn’t breathe. She felt as if she were sinking deeper and deeper. Jesus Christ!! She was going to drown!
After what seemed like the longest moments of her life, she felt strong arms around her waist. Bono’s arms were hoisting her to the surface. Within seconds, she felt the cool air on her face as they broke the surface together. She coughed and took a deep, ragged breath as her lungs burned with the effort. She barely noticed when Bono hugged her closely in relief. She clung to him as he pulled her toward the shore. Together, they staggered out of the water to collapse on the grassy embankment.
Gioia continued to cough and tried not to think of the enormity of what could’ve happened to her if Bono hadn’t dove in after her. She lay on her back, face to the sun, a few minutes after the coughing subsided.
She became acutely aware that he was lying beside her, stroking her hair and cheek.
She opened her eyes to see the concern in his. Gioia felt her stomach clench. It was all too much for her. She gave in. She closed her eyes and sobbed.
Bono let her. All the while, he never stopped stroking her hair, smoothing it away from her face. His thumb brushed aside the tears that were streaming down the sides of her face.
“I don’t think I can do this.” She choked out.
Bono’s heart ached for her fear that caused tears to wrack her body. Ached for her courage that seemed to dissolve before his eyes. Courage that she had shown continuously from the first moment he met her.
And, finally admitting to himself, he ached for her.
He lightly kissed her eyes, tasting her salty tears. Her eyes remained closed. Her breath was still coming out in gasps. He kissed her cheek, gently and feather-light.
He looked at her lips, swollen and moistened from her crying. He kissed her, massaging her lips with his own. Unable to deny himself any longer, he pressed his mouth firmly against hers.
Gioia couldn’t feel anything except Bono’s warm lips gently caressing hers. Shyly, she kissed him back. Oh sweet Lord! She always imagined what kissing him would feel like, but never how he would taste! Her heart hammered fiercely as she sought to gain control of her desire. Slowly she became aware of more than just his kiss. She felt Bono’s dampness and the heat of his body that was seeping through his wet clothes to sear her body.
Oh God! This was actually happening! Her skin was throbbing. She felt alive. Every nerve in her body was being stretched taut to receive the stimulation that was Bono. Her body was beginning to pulse with an indescribable ache.
The excitement was building inside her. She wanted to cherish this feeling. Wanted to memorize the feel and taste of his mouth. Wanted to remember the firm press of his chest, crushing her breasts. Wanted to remember the gentle loving way he caressed her cheek and hair. She wanted to memorize every moment, but she was getting too caught up in the emotions. Without thinking she reached up and tangled her fingers in his wet hair and kissed him with all the pent up love and desire that she had quelled all these years.
Bono was aroused by her response. She opened her mouth slightly and his tongue slipped between her parted lips to sample the sweetness of her mouth. Gioia moaned and arched up. She held his head in place and met the thrusting heat of his tongue with her own. Bono’s kisses turned desperate and intense, devouring and ravaging her delicate mouth, until Gioia was weakened with desire. He kissed her jaw and moved to her neck, suckling the tantalizing flesh at the base of her throat.
Gioia began to whimper with need. She ran her hands over his shoulders, down his arms, and down to his waist. She slipped them under his clinging shirt to stroke the flesh of his back. His heat seemed to burn her palms as she continued up to his bare shoulders, while Bono placed fervent kisses along her collarbone. Feeling him use his lips, tongue, and teeth, Gioia clamped her hands on his shoulders and cried out in abandon.
The sound of her moan fueled Bono’s hunger. He was losing control. With a groan, he shifted his weight so his body was cradled between her open thighs.
Gioia felt his excitement through her wet pants and nearly cried out at the intense feeling. The exquisite sensation of his hardness pressed against her jolted her body upward.
The passion was overwhelming her and tears were streaming down her face. “Oh Bono! Don’t stop! Please don’t stop!” She breathed.
Bono had no intention of stopping. But then he opened his eyes and saw the tears flowing unchecked from her closed eyes.
Different emotions raged through him when seeing her tears. Foremost in his mind was self-loathing. He was disgusted with himself for taking advantage of her fears. He couldn’t believe what he had about to have done. Right here on the riverbank!
Gioia opened her eyes and looked into Bono’s eyes of endless blue. Her eyes spoke the question that he could not answer.
“We can’t do this”. He whispered huskily. He held her gaze for just a moment. He then pulled away and quickly helped her to her feet.
She was shocked and surprised to find, frustrated. And maybe just a bit relieved. In fact, her mind and emotions were in a whirl and it took moments to compose herself. She had never felt such intense desire and excitement. But why did he stop and pull away? Her first instinct was to blame herself. Did she do something wrong? His backing away seemed to be his way of coming to his senses. Did he think this was a mistake? But then reason set in. She thought of his reaction to her, his kisses, his caresses. Did he want her as much as she wanted him? She wished she had more confidence in herself to admit the obvious. But if she had truly, deep down thought that it was a mistake she would’ve never been able to continue. He wanted her. She had felt the evidence of his desire. There had to be a reason for this attack of conscience and she trusted him. There would be another chance.
There just had to be.
Parental discretion is advised. The following contains
situations. - PG13ishI apologize if this was a bit more risque than the forum allows. It was all in the name of romance
Disclaimer - true? Don't I wish. Absolutely not a true story!!!!
By the way...sorry these are sooooo long! Ok...onward..
Gioia opened her eyes the next morning and instantly remembered that she had fallen asleep in Bono’s arms. And that he had let her. She heard him last night when he whispered her name. She couldn’t bear to ruin the perfect, beautiful moment.
She could feel his heat, smell his scent, and hear his heartbeat. At that moment she had not wanted to hear his take on the predicament they were in, even though she had asked him the question. As it were, it had taken her a while to fall asleep. Instead of giving in to sleep, she had concentrated on every part of her body that touched his. It was all she could do to keep herself from weeping in pleasure. From her cheek, which had been half on his shirt and half on the exposed flesh of his collar, to her inner thigh, slightly raised and pressed against his leg, she was attuned to his warmth. He was flesh and blood, and right beside her. When she was satisfied that he was not a figment of her imagination and wasn’t going to disappear with the dawn, she drifted off into sleep.
She sat up and looked around. The sun was bright but the air was cool, telling her that it was early morning.
She spotted Bono by the river. He was kneeling down on the grassy bed, shirtless and was splashing water on himself. Gioia was mesmerized, watching him wash his face and arms. He stood up and turned around to find her watching him. He smiled at her as he started drying himself with a square of linen.
Gioia thought he looked utterly breathtaking and grinned back.
She walked over to him. “How’s the water?”
“Nice. Pity that we don’t have a change of clothes or extra towels. We could go for a swim.”
She shook her head and let out an involuntary shudder. “I can’t swim.”
Nonchalantly, Bono handed her the linen and motioned to her to help him dry his back, which was wet from his drenched hair. She looked at his back and blinked in shock. Her face blushed hotly. She needed to get herself together! She had seen his naked butt for Pete’s sakes! She could handle his bare back. She patted him dry. Rubbing would’ve been too much for her senses.
“Why don’t you take advantage of the water?” He coaxed.
“Are you saying I smell?” She teased. She wasn’t sure when it was exactly that she had become that comfortable with him. Still, to her ears, the teasing comment sounded stilted and forced.
He chuckled. “No. But it was definitely refreshing.”
Gioia was silent.
He looked over his shoulder at her and saw her hesitation.
“Come on. I’ll keep my back turned. Just hand me your blouse. I won’t peek.”
But I want you to peek! After yesterdays pathetically attempted kiss, and the night spent in his arms, she was getting bold in her thoughts. Oh why not? She would love to start the day feeling clean.
“Ok. I won’t be long”.
Trying to keep her mind a blank, she took off her blouse and paused a second before handing it to him. She grabbed the drying cloth and held it up to her bosom.
As she walked away to wash up, Bono surprised himself by mechanically raising the blouse and breathed deeply of her scent. In his mind’s eye he pictured her kneeling by the water’s edge. Thoughts of her in the tub came rushing back and he felt his body tense. What was wrong with him? He hadn’t felt this way in such a long time.
Soon after, they had a quick breakfast of fruit, packed up camp, and were back on the road. They decided to stay along the river path since it was more scenic, provided water, and it ran parallel to the inner forest path. Plus, the darn map alluded to the fact that they should follow the river. Good thing they stopped when they did.
According to the horrible map, they were to follow the river until THE WAY WILL BE REVEALED TO YOU WHEN YOU BRIDGE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE TWO FLAMES. Whatever the hell that meant! Bono was annoyed. Why couldn’t they have received directions? Plain and simple. Why the cryptic map? The more he thought of it, the more he knew that they were involved in something that was beyond their control. He just didn’t want to believe that the Wareings could be mixed up in something sinister. He usually didn’t possess poor judgment.
He was glad that Gioia hadn’t pressed him this morning to continue exploring his thoughts on their situation. All the information he knew was a haphazard mess in his mind. He knew just a bit of Irish folklore. Legend had it that after a three-day celebration, the goddess Aine took a life. A sacrifice. Usually it was whoever she would find in her temple at the time. He had no idea when that was but he had a feeling that the necklace was Aine’s way of finding an unsuspecting sacrifice that would willingly enter the temple.
Then why was he leading Gioia into this? He honestly didn’t know if what he was remembering was in fact happening. He could be remembering it wrong or perhaps it was one of the stories he was told as a wayward child, a total fabrication of someone’s imagination. Pieces of one fable confused into another.
The idea was farfetched. Of course, everything that had happened thus far has been farfetched.
And also, he needed to face his enemies in order to know what to do about them. He could speculate all he wanted, but unless the truth was presented to him outright, he would not completely fall victim to any of his musings.
Human injustices, civil unrest, and Third World debt, he could handle. But had no experience handling a mythological angry goddess?
They were traveling by the river. Bono hoped they were heading in the right direction. Without reaching their next checkpoint, they wouldn’t know for sure. Damn map didn’t give them a clue how many miles or kilometers (or whatever!) there were between checkpoints. He didn’t like the fact that he was getting irritable. He needed to snap out of it.
He looked up at the blue sky. The air was clean and crisp. The sun was shining brightly and as it shone on the water, it twinkled like diamonds. It was a beautiful day. He took a deep breath, filling his lungs with life. He smiled and he started humming out loud. Gioia glanced at him and grinned.
“What are you humming?”
He shrugged. “Not sure. What does it sound like to you?”
“Bad.”
Bono crooked an eyebrow. “Are you saying that it sounds terrible?”
She laughed at his stricken look. “The song, “Bad”. That’s what I meant”.
Bono grunted, accepting her explanation. He stopped humming.
“You could never sound bad.” She added. “You can hum to me anytime, baby.”
She was being playful.
“Ok then. Is that a request for “Bad” then?” He tsked. “If you were any kind of fan, you would’ve known that I was humming “Walk on”. Get it? Walk on? I was being clever.”
“How in the world was that “Walk on”? It sounded nothing like it. I think you’ve been away from the stage too long.” She was enjoying this with him and let a bit of laughter bubble out.
The rest of the day was spent in much the same vein. They talked and joked and tried not to think about why they hadn’t reached their next checkpoint. Bono loved to talk and Gioia was fascinated by the plethora of knowledge sustained by his above average intelligence. That night, again lying side by side in the moonlight, Bono told her a bit about his worry about the possibility of not returning home. Gioia was touched at his honesty and his vulnerability. But he changed the subject when he noticed that she was starting to feel disheartened by their situation. She had drifted off to sleep wondering how she would ever let him go should they find their way back home.
The next day they set out early to continue their trek. They had washed up by the river and Bono made a mental note to gift Gioia with a big basket of scented shower gels, shampoos, and lotions when they got back home. He could not explain how much he appreciated those small luxuries that she kept safe in her backpack. He especially enjoyed the pinch of toothpaste that he used this morning and the little pink daisy razor. Hopefully this information would stay between them and never get back to his bandmates!
“So tell me, do you always carry toiletries around in your bag?”
She grinned. “No. Not usually. This bag was part of my carryon. I couldn’t fit some of my toiletries in my little Pullman so I packed them in here. I got to the hotel late the day of the concert so I only had time to shower, change and run out the door in order to make it to the show on time. I didn’t have time to unpack the bottles. She gave him a sly look. “Aren’t you glad that I didn’t?”
Bono was about to reply when he saw her stop short and stare over his shoulder at the river. She had an amazed and excited look on her face.
“What is it?” He asked. She pointed. He turned in that direction and saw what she saw.
Almost directly in front of them was an enormous tree with red/orange leaves. The kind of colors you would see in Massachusetts during peak foliage season. Its trunk was immense, a few feet wide. But what got their attention was that the river cast a swirling reflection on its trunk and limbs, giving the tree an appearance of being engulfed in flames. Across the river, was its sister and between the two was a narrow footbridge.
“That’s it! Gioia exclaimed excitedly. But as quickly as the excitement came it disappeared when she noticed Bono’s perplexed look. He was surveying the scene in front of him with his hands on his hips and his lips pursed. Gioia knitted her brows together, about to ask him what was wrong, when it dawned on her.
According to the map’s clues, “The way will be shown”. Her shoulders slumped. Shown? How? All they saw were the trees and the bridge. Hardly clear-cut.
“Do we cross the bridge or does this just mean that we’re on the right track?”
“Try the bridge.”
They both jumped at the voice. Bono frowned at Fletcher, the frog who was sitting a few feet in front of them. “Where the hell did you come from?”
Gioia looked at him, surprised by the anger in his voice.
Fletcher ribbitted. “You are wary of me? I assure you, I don’t mean you any harm. Lady Aine will, however, if the amulet of Leanan Sidhe is not returned by the third day of Lammas.”
Bono’s heart leaped to his throat. It was just as he suspected. But could Fletcher be trusted? Could the map be trusted? He didn’t know what to do!
“Bono?” He heard the concern in Gioia ’s voice.
He hesitated a moment. As much as he wanted to question Fletcher he didn’t know if the frog could be trusted and he didn’t want to be swayed by anything he told them. Fletcher knew that Gioia wore Aine’s necklace. And it also seemed as if he was following them.
“Let’s check out the bridge.” Bono spared one look at Fletcher and started toward the bridge. Gioia followed silently.
“Good-bye”. She thought she heard Fletcher say. She whirled around and he was gone.
Bono stepped onto the bridge and felt a surge of anger. Angered by Fletcher’s comments that were obviously deliberate to upset Gioia . Angered that he was not in control. Angered that he was standing on a bridge, nothing more, nothing less. No signs, no f*cking clues. For no other reason other than annoyance, Bono pulled the sack off of his body and dropped it onto the bridge. He stretched. Without the extra baggage he could concentrate. He knew he should feel ridiculous. He didn’t care. To Gioia ’s credit, she didn’t say a word to him. Instead, she tried to make him feel better by depositing her backpack next to his. He noticed this and smiled slightly, silently thanking her for not teasing him.
She walked up behind him as he headed toward the other side of the bridge in search of a sign of sorts. She was holding the railing, gliding her hand over its smooth finish. She felt her hand skim over a blemish in the wood and she looked down in wonder.
She blinked. It wasn’t a blemish! There were words engraved into the wood.
DEDICATED TO AINE. GATEWAY TO LEANAN SIDHE. The arrow pointed to over the bridge in the opposite direction from where they came.
“Bono look!” She called to him excitedly.
She never knew if he had turned to her at that point. The railing she was holding onto fell away with a force, as if being pulled from her grasp. She didn’t have a chance! She pitched forward toward the river. One piercing cry escaped her seconds before she plunged into the water.
The racing water swept her away quickly as it pulled her under. Her mind screamed as water rushed into her nose and throat, gagging her. She panicked and she flailed her arms. She couldn’t open her eyes, she couldn’t breathe. She felt as if she were sinking deeper and deeper. Jesus Christ!! She was going to drown!
After what seemed like the longest moments of her life, she felt strong arms around her waist. Bono’s arms were hoisting her to the surface. Within seconds, she felt the cool air on her face as they broke the surface together. She coughed and took a deep, ragged breath as her lungs burned with the effort. She barely noticed when Bono hugged her closely in relief. She clung to him as he pulled her toward the shore. Together, they staggered out of the water to collapse on the grassy embankment.
Gioia continued to cough and tried not to think of the enormity of what could’ve happened to her if Bono hadn’t dove in after her. She lay on her back, face to the sun, a few minutes after the coughing subsided.
She became acutely aware that he was lying beside her, stroking her hair and cheek.
She opened her eyes to see the concern in his. Gioia felt her stomach clench. It was all too much for her. She gave in. She closed her eyes and sobbed.
Bono let her. All the while, he never stopped stroking her hair, smoothing it away from her face. His thumb brushed aside the tears that were streaming down the sides of her face.
“I don’t think I can do this.” She choked out.
Bono’s heart ached for her fear that caused tears to wrack her body. Ached for her courage that seemed to dissolve before his eyes. Courage that she had shown continuously from the first moment he met her.
And, finally admitting to himself, he ached for her.
He lightly kissed her eyes, tasting her salty tears. Her eyes remained closed. Her breath was still coming out in gasps. He kissed her cheek, gently and feather-light.
He looked at her lips, swollen and moistened from her crying. He kissed her, massaging her lips with his own. Unable to deny himself any longer, he pressed his mouth firmly against hers.
Gioia couldn’t feel anything except Bono’s warm lips gently caressing hers. Shyly, she kissed him back. Oh sweet Lord! She always imagined what kissing him would feel like, but never how he would taste! Her heart hammered fiercely as she sought to gain control of her desire. Slowly she became aware of more than just his kiss. She felt Bono’s dampness and the heat of his body that was seeping through his wet clothes to sear her body.
Oh God! This was actually happening! Her skin was throbbing. She felt alive. Every nerve in her body was being stretched taut to receive the stimulation that was Bono. Her body was beginning to pulse with an indescribable ache.
The excitement was building inside her. She wanted to cherish this feeling. Wanted to memorize the feel and taste of his mouth. Wanted to remember the firm press of his chest, crushing her breasts. Wanted to remember the gentle loving way he caressed her cheek and hair. She wanted to memorize every moment, but she was getting too caught up in the emotions. Without thinking she reached up and tangled her fingers in his wet hair and kissed him with all the pent up love and desire that she had quelled all these years.
Bono was aroused by her response. She opened her mouth slightly and his tongue slipped between her parted lips to sample the sweetness of her mouth. Gioia moaned and arched up. She held his head in place and met the thrusting heat of his tongue with her own. Bono’s kisses turned desperate and intense, devouring and ravaging her delicate mouth, until Gioia was weakened with desire. He kissed her jaw and moved to her neck, suckling the tantalizing flesh at the base of her throat.
Gioia began to whimper with need. She ran her hands over his shoulders, down his arms, and down to his waist. She slipped them under his clinging shirt to stroke the flesh of his back. His heat seemed to burn her palms as she continued up to his bare shoulders, while Bono placed fervent kisses along her collarbone. Feeling him use his lips, tongue, and teeth, Gioia clamped her hands on his shoulders and cried out in abandon.
The sound of her moan fueled Bono’s hunger. He was losing control. With a groan, he shifted his weight so his body was cradled between her open thighs.
Gioia felt his excitement through her wet pants and nearly cried out at the intense feeling. The exquisite sensation of his hardness pressed against her jolted her body upward.
The passion was overwhelming her and tears were streaming down her face. “Oh Bono! Don’t stop! Please don’t stop!” She breathed.
Bono had no intention of stopping. But then he opened his eyes and saw the tears flowing unchecked from her closed eyes.
Different emotions raged through him when seeing her tears. Foremost in his mind was self-loathing. He was disgusted with himself for taking advantage of her fears. He couldn’t believe what he had about to have done. Right here on the riverbank!
Gioia opened her eyes and looked into Bono’s eyes of endless blue. Her eyes spoke the question that he could not answer.
“We can’t do this”. He whispered huskily. He held her gaze for just a moment. He then pulled away and quickly helped her to her feet.
She was shocked and surprised to find, frustrated. And maybe just a bit relieved. In fact, her mind and emotions were in a whirl and it took moments to compose herself. She had never felt such intense desire and excitement. But why did he stop and pull away? Her first instinct was to blame herself. Did she do something wrong? His backing away seemed to be his way of coming to his senses. Did he think this was a mistake? But then reason set in. She thought of his reaction to her, his kisses, his caresses. Did he want her as much as she wanted him? She wished she had more confidence in herself to admit the obvious. But if she had truly, deep down thought that it was a mistake she would’ve never been able to continue. He wanted her. She had felt the evidence of his desire. There had to be a reason for this attack of conscience and she trusted him. There would be another chance.
There just had to be.
More please!
