From: char@chaffin.com   
      
   ROCKY MOUNTAIN INTERLUDE, Chapter Eight   
   By Char Chaffin and Tess   
   MSR, Casefile, AU   
   Rating:  Strong R   
   Spoilers:  FTF, Most of Season Seven   
   Feedback:  to Tnv099@aol.com; char@chaffin.com   
      
   Headers and summary, see Part 1   
      
      
   Chapter Eight   
   Nulty Homestead   
      
      
   Four AM came much too early, Mulder thought with a groan of protest   
   at his stiff muscles.  He sat up in bed, stretching, doing his best   
   not to awaken Scully who slept soundly beside him.  He'd seen the now-   
   clean and neat chicken coop in the twilight as he'd walked home the   
   night before, and he knew she'd had to be beyond sore herself when   
   she'd taken such good care of his aches and pains and his blistered   
   hands. He'd wanted nothing more than to make love to her last night,   
   but they'd both been too wiped out to do little more than snuggle as   
   they fell asleep.   
      
   This morning, however... Carefully Mulder eased up on one elbow and   
   fumbled for a match, lighting the bedside lamp and trimming the wick   
   until it sent a soft glow over the small room.  He slid back down   
   onto his side; his body seemed to be able to handle that position   
   without his muscles and joints screeching at him.  Scully had fallen   
   asleep on her side as well, and Mulder had a feeling she hadn't moved   
   an inch all night.  He stretched and wiggled his fingers; they felt a   
   bit stiff but the blisters didn't hurt at all and in the dim glow   
   from the lamp he could see a big improvement in the healing process.   
   At least his hands would be able to 'handle' a bout of early-morning   
   nookie... Mulder moved in closer on the pillow; face to face with   
   Scully he trailed a gentle finger over her cheek and then her lips,   
   watching her stir and awaken at his touch.   
      
   Her eyes fluttered open and in the dim light he could see the   
   shadows underneath her lids, exhaustion still lining her features.   
   Mulder smiled at her and she smiled back; then tried to sit up as she   
   realized it was morning and she needed to start breakfast.  Mulder   
   curled an arm around her and easily pinned her to the bed.   
      
   Scully squirmed and mumbled sleepily, "I need to get up, Mulder.  I   
   have to fix your breakfast."   
      
   He pressed a kiss on her cheek and then added one to her soft mouth.   
   "Nope.  I'm not hungry.  I'll bring some of that chicken to work, I   
   promise.  Besides, all I have to do this morning is deliver a   
   wagonload of finished tools up to the mine."  He strung small kisses   
   over her jaw and down her neck, smiling against her skin when she   
   sighed and stopped wriggling away from him.  Mulder slipped his other   
   arm around her and brought her up tightly against his body, loving   
   the feel of her bare skin.  As exhausted as they'd both been the   
   night before, Scully had forgotten to put on a nightgown and Mulder   
   had been too dead to notice.  He was certainly noticing, now.   
      
   "Mulder, you can't bring the chicken anywhere; I tossed it out!  It   
   was undercooked, remember?  And with no way to refrigerate it, I had   
   to get rid of it."   
      
   "Well, damn!  And here I was thinking I could pop it into the   
   fireplace over at the livery, and have it for lunch.  I can't believe   
   I forgot so easily that we don't have a fridge," Mulder admitted   
   sheepishly.   
      
   "It's really understandable, Mulder.  Several times in the last few   
   days I've found myself looking around the kitchen for the fridge,   
   only to remember where and when we are."  Scully reluctantly moved   
   away from him, enough to see his face.  In the dim room his hair was   
   tangled, his cheeks bore one hell of a five o'clock shadow and his   
   eyes were heavy with residual weariness.   
      
   He looked absolutely edible... but she needed to get up and figure   
   out something for him to take for lunch, since he seemed determined   
   to ignore breakfast.   
      
   Mulder easily read her mind and clamped her body against his again.   
   "Scully, stop worrying about feeding me.  I'm sure I'll survive."  He   
   slipped a gentle hand between her thighs and trailed his sore fingers   
   over her silky hair.  "There are other needs I have, besides food.   
   Some of them involve nudity and much handling of our respective   
   naughty bits."   
      
   Scully smothered a chuckle against his shoulder.  "Naughty bits,   
   huh?  I'm afraid I'm too stiff and sore to do your 'bits' much good,   
   Mulder.  I can't even lift my arm."  She demonstrated by lifting her   
   right arm a scant two inches and struggling to hold it aloft, before   
   the slender muscles started quivering in protest and she dropped it   
   back onto the bed.  Her bottom lip trembled into a pout and she   
   looked so adorable Mulder ignored his own aches and squeezed her   
   tightly, then ruined the gesture somewhat by cursing under his   
   breath, "Owww, dammit!  There has to be a way we can do this without   
   causing ourselves further muscle spasms."   
      
   He pondered for a moment, one sore hand running up and down her back   
   soothingly; then smiled in triumph.  Of course!  It made perfect   
   sense.  Besides, they were already in position...   
      
   Carefully, Mulder slid the back of his hand under her knee and   
   raised her leg high enough to rest on his hip.  This brought more of   
   her lower body in contact with his, and aside from a tiny groan of   
   protest for her aching leg, Scully seemed comfortable.  He drew her   
   arm over his shoulder and eased her upper body closer; now they were   
   touching in several places, torso to torso.  Their faces were very   
   close together on the pillow; Mulder leaned in and Scully did the   
   same, until their lips could cling and kiss.   
      
   Ignoring morning breath and cricks in their necks, they kissed   
   slowly, thoroughly.  For both of them, kissing had always been an   
   important aspect of foreplay.  There had been a time or two since the   
   onset of their intimacy that kissing alone had been enough to arouse   
   them, no other physical foreplay necessary.  Thankfully this morning   
   appeared to be one of those times, and Mulder threw himself into the   
   kissing with gusto, feeling Scully do the same.   
      
   His palms may have been messed over but there wasn't a thing wrong   
   with his fingertips, and Mulder used them to his advantage, trailing   
   them lightly over her shoulders, down her back, then up again, to   
   trace a delicate ear and tap over a collarbone.  Scully shivered and   
   pressed closer, her teeth nipping at Mulder's lower lip until he   
   thought he'd go mad.  Scully loved to use her teeth when she kissed   
   and nothing whipped Mulder into a frenzy faster than the feel of   
   those tiny love bites she inflicted.  This morning was no different.   
      
   Mulder slid a hand between their bodies and stroked her gently; she   
   was hot and wet, shuddering when he pressed against her and let a   
   finger slip inside.  The feeling was as always indescribable; this   
   was Dana Scully at her most potent, her most powerful.  Never one for   
   saying very much during lovemaking, she simply allowed the demands of   
   her body and the impact of her kisses tell him she was more than   
   ready.  When she reached out an impatient hand and grasped his penis,   
   pulling at him until he met her soft flesh and thrust inside...   
   Mulder chuckled into her mouth and got the end of his tongue bitten   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)