Jake opened his eyes in the morning and felt Gloria’s warm body next to his.   He couldn’t believe they had made love last night.  Gloria was his.  He loved her and she was all his to love and cherish forever.  He wanted to marry her right away but knew he needed to finalize the divorce with Giselle. 

The thought of that woman sent knots into his stomach.  He also knew he had to tell Gloria about her.  He was not looking forward to that.  He hadn’t planned on making love to Gloria last night but when he started kissing her he just wanted more and lost all control.  He would have stopped if she had said no but she didn’t.

Jake knew he shouldn’t be thinking about marriage so early in their relationship but he couldn’t help it.  He had blurted out last night while making love that he loved Gloria and wanted to marry her.  At first, he was mad at himself for saying those things but then after he thought about it for a while decided that it was truly what he desired.  

He’d recently separated from his ex and his divorce wasn’t even final yet.  But he couldn’t help how he felt.  Gloria was it for him.  He couldn’t even imagine life without her.  He wanted her to be his forever. 

He was so happy!  He wanted to make love to her every night but he needed to let her recover a bit.  The thought of leaving her when he went back home crushed him.  He would bring up the idea of her moving into his apartment.  There was no point in living separately now that they were intimate.  He wanted to have her every night and to wake up with her next to him.

Gloria stirred and turned around.  Then she groaned and opened her eyes.   “Ouch,” she said.  “That hurt.”

“What hurts?” Jake asked concerned.

“That movement,” Gloria said.  “My whole body hurts.”

Jake looked at her with compassion.  “I’m sorry you hurt baby but it will get better.  You need time to recover.  I say we stay in all day and take it easy.”

“You’ll get no argument from me.”  She looked down.   “Jake do you still love me?” she asked softly.

Jake kissed her and held her tight.  He whispered in her ear, “I love you more now than ever, my love.”

Gloria smiled at him and put her head on his chest as she cried tears of joy. 

They lay like that for a while then Gloria started to get up to use the bathroom.

“I’ll help you baby, hold on,” he said as he jumped out of bed.  As the covers came off her, he heard her gasp.

“Oh, no! She exclaimed.  She could see blood all over her thighs.

“Jake came around and helped her sit up.  “Don’t worry baby it’s normal,” he said as he tried to lift her up.

Gloria quickly grabbed the covers and tried to cover herself up.  She was so embarrassed she couldn’t even look at Jake and closed her eyes. 

Jake sat down next to her and held her.  “Baby,” he said.  “Please don’t feel embarrassed.  It’s a normal thing for a virgin to bleed on her first time,” he said softly.

“You seem to know more about a woman’s body than me,” Gloria choked out.  “I feel so naïve.  You must think it’s so gross.”  She covered her face with her hands.

Jake gently pried them off her face. 

“I knew there would be some pain and some bleeding but not to this extent.  My friends never mentioned anything like this.  Maybe they were just too embarrassed to go into details.  This is when I wish I had a sister I could confide in about these things,” Gloria continued.  “Growing up as an only child was lonely.  Yeah, I have friends, good friends, but still, I wish I had a sister to share stuff with and cry and laugh and argue and be there.  Sorry, I’m babbling on.  I’m so emotional right now I feel like any little thing will set me off crying,” she said covering her face again.

“Baby, you don’t have to feel sorry for anything,” Jake said gently pulling the covers from her face.  He cupped her face with his hands and kissed her gently.  “No, I don’t think what you’re going through is gross at all.” He said as he pulled back.  “I think it’s brave.  I don’t know if I could handle it if I had to go through blood and pain to have sex.  I think women’s bodies are amazing.  I think your body is beautiful and amazing.” He said kissing her again. 

“I don’t think I’m brave at all.  I hate having to go through this.”

“Maybe those visible signs of pain are there to help men remember how special it is and not to take it for granted.  It also brings out the protector in me.  I want to love you Gloria and protect and keep you safe.  I don’t want to see you hurt or see you in pain.  Seeing you in pain and seeing the blood that came out of you is a reminder of what your body has gone through.  It helps me to not be selfish.  I would be inside you again and again right now if it wasn’t for it.  I know you’re very sore.  I can see what you went through.  Blood is not a pretty sight, I know.  It reminds me of pain.  Seeing you like this with your blood smeared over your thighs reminds me of how much of a big deal this was.  I need to also think about you and your needs, not just mine.  You need time to rest and recover.  That blood serves as a reminder of that.  I feel privileged that you gave me such a gift. 

“I need to take care of you.  I want to take care of you, Gloria.  I love you with all my heart!” Jake said picking her up.  “Let’s go get cleaned up,” he said carrying her to the bathroom.  “I’ll draw a bath for you but first let’s get your ankle wrapped up, so it won’t get wet,” Jake said.

Gloria looked at Jake and nodded.  She let him take charge.  She was too physically sore to protest.  Plus, she did need his help.   Still, she felt utterly embarrassed.  Had she known how much it would hurt and how much she would bleed, she would’ve thought twice about having sex last night.

Jake wrapped her ankle up in a plastic bag.  Then he went to fix the bath.  In a few minutes, he came back and scooped her into his arms, and deposited her in the bathtub.  The hot water helped ease the tension in Gloria’s body and she began to relax.  Her injured ankle was hanging out of the bathtub but the rest of her was enjoying the bath.  She closed her eyes and relished the moment.  It felt good to be taken care of.  She knew that Jake would take good care of her. 

She heard the shower next to her in the background and realized Jake had taken a shower while she took her bath.  It was times like this she was happy she’d splurged a bit on renting one of the upgraded students apartments that came with a luxury bath.  Gloria looked up as Jake came out looking incredibly sexy.  His hair a mess.  She couldn’t stop looking at his chiseled torso and pecks.  Every movement he made accentuated his muscled body.

“Do you need my help washing or anything?” he asked smiling at her while he dried himself with a towel.

Gloria thought that as good as it would feel to have his hands all over her body again, it would be best if she did it herself, at least this one time.  “I can handle it,” she said.

Jake wrapped a towel around his waist and gave her a kiss on the forehead.  “Call me when you’re done with your bath.  I don’t want you trying to get out on your own.  You could slip and fall,” he said seriously. 

Gloria nodded and Jake left the bathroom leaving the door ajar.

Gloria stayed in the bath for a few more minutes and washed herself up.  When she was done she called Jake.  He came in and helped her out of the tub.  He sat her down and patted her dry with a towel and took the plastic bag off her ankle.  Then he scooped her up again and placed her down on the bed and helped her get dressed. 

He carried her to the living room and began to make something to eat for both.  When they were finished they sat together on the couch and watched a romantic comedy.  Gloria leaned into Jake and fell asleep.

Next time Gloria awoke she was lying naked on his bed with Jake’s arms wrapped around her.  She looked around for a second, then went back to sleep feeling safe and secure in his arms.  It was bliss.

Jake reached down and kissed Gloria on the lips to wake her up.  “Wake up, sleepyhead,” he said.  “It’s time to eat.”

Gloria opened her eyes and yawned.  “What time is it?” she asked.

“It’s 7 pm.  We need to eat something.  Then we can go back to sleep,” He said. 

She nodded.

“Okay if I order pizza again?” Jake asked. 

She nodded again. 

After they ate they went back to sleep and didn’t wake until the next morning.

Next Chapter: Chapter Seven - Moving In