We Must Move On
4 November 1999
Chapter 2
As they left the restaurant Orlando took hold of Tess’ left hand with his as he wrapped his right arm around her shoulder pulling her close to him.
“Are you OK, Love?” Orlando asked concerned about her continuing preoccupation.
“Yeah, why?” Tess looked up into his worried face, still wondering how she was going to go about this.
“It’s just that you seemed preoccupied today, like you’re thinking about something else,” he stated as he kissed the top of her head. They had arrived at the car and he let her go as he fished the keys out of his pocket.
“I’m sorry, I have been thinking about something,” she admitted quickly.
“Anything I can help with?” He asked absently as he looked for the car key on his key ring. His choice of words almost made Tess laugh. “Well actually, yeah, you could.”
“What is it?” Orlando asked quietly as he leaned against the back door of the car.
Tess chewed on her bottom lip as she looked into his soft brown eyes and knew it was right to be with him. She moved forward and placed her hands on his waist as she reached up to brush her lips over his. Orlando gently laid his hands on her arms as he lowered his head to kiss her again, flicking his tongue out to taste her. Her hands slipped around his waist as she moulded her body into his and opened her mouth under him allowing his tongue to gently slide into hers.
As his arms went around her and his hands began wandered over her body he could feel the familiar stirring in his groin, his body betraying all his pretence of good behaviour. He wanted to make love to her so badly but knew he had to wait until she was ready. He started to wonder what they had been talking about before and what she needed his help with.
Tess slid her stud along the underside of his tongue causing him to moan into her mouth as he pressed her hard against him so she could feel his growing excitement against her stomach. She pushed herself harder against him, trying to convey her desire to go further without having to actually say it. Orlando’s heart skipped a beat as he realised what she was telling him with her body. He pulled back from her mouth, breathing heavily as he looked down into her wanting eyes.
“Are you sure?” he asked as he stroked her cheek gently.
“Yes, I’m sure,” she whispered massaging her fingers across his back as his mouth descended on hers again.
Their kiss was deep and passionate, the emotion and feeling of the moment making it different from any before. Orlando slowly pulled back from her lips while still holding her tight against him as he moved up and kissed her forehead before she placed her head against her chest. After a few minutes Tess moved back from him and smiled shyly up at him, suddenly worried and lost for words.
Orlando was starting to feel nervous too; terrified he was going to mess up. “Do you want to go for coffee or do...”
“No,” Tess interrupted him, quickly trying to move through this awkwardness, “can we just go back to your place?”
“Yeah, OK.” He answered quietly as he relinquished his hold on her and opened the car door to let her in before going around to the driver’s side.
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They stopped out front of Orlando’s flat and as he put the key in the lock he looked around to Tess who was standing next to him, holding his hand and still looking a little worried. He let go of the key and turned to take her into his arms, kissing her gently.
“Tess, if you’re not 100% I can wait. However long you need, I can wait,” he whispered with his lips against her ear.
“I know, but I can’t. I want to be with you, Orlando, I want us to be together,” she admitted quietly before kissing him just in front of his ear. He turned his head towards her taking hold of her lips softly as they turned around and he pressed her against the door. He reached over blindly to the key and turned it in the lock before turning the doorknob, holding onto to it so Tess did not fall in. With their lips and tongues still occupied with each other they slowly moved into the room as he reached around to flick the light switch.
After Orlando lifted his head and Tess looked around to see his place for the first time he wished he had left the light off. His place had the lived in look of a typical bachelor flat, a mess. Not realising that Tess would come over tonight he had not tidied up for a few days. Now he was wishing he had taken a few minutes earlier today to pick up his clothes that were strewn all over the place or at least washed up the dirty dishes that he had left for the last three days on the coffee table and kitchen counter. He quickly calculated in his mind when he last changed the sheets on his bed and was thankful when he remembered he washed on Friday night when he had come home from the set.
Tess looked around his flat and was not surprised by the mess; he was such a typical boy. She smiled as she stepped into the room and looked around, hearing Orlando close the door behind them.
“Sorry about the mess, I wasn’t exactly expecting company,” he confessed, hunching his shoulders as he slipped his hands in his pockets, shyly smiling at her.
“It’s OK, you should see Carrie’s side of the bedroom, bomb site,” she told him as she puts her bag down on the small square dining table just inside to her left. On her right was the small kitchen with the lounge room in front and a door at the other end where she assumed was the bedroom and the bathroom door just next to the kitchen.
“I bet your side is as neat as a pin,” he announced as he dropped his keys and wallet on the counter. “Do you want something to drink; I’ve got tea or coffee, soy milk, water, beer?”
“No I’m fine, thanks,” Tess replied with a smile as she leaned against the table. This was the part she was really bad at, how do you get from the door to the bed without making a fool of yourself. Excuse me Orlando dear, would mind just ripping my clothes off and nailing me to the bed or the floor, don’t particularly care which, so we can get past this moment because right now I’m dying of embarrassment and lust. Not sure which is going to do me in first, but you can be sure that I’m on my way to one or the other. If only life was that straight forward.
Orlando moved close again standing in front of her with only inches between them, hating this moment too. Tess, before I say something totally stupid and make an absolutely bloody prat of myself would you mind just toddling off into my bedroom so we can get our gear off and I can fuck you before I embarrass myself by getting off in my boxers. That would go down a treat, wouldn’t it?
He put this hand up and brushed it across her soft cheek as he fixed his eyes on hers.
“Can you give me a sec? I just want to make sure my bedroom doesn’t embarrass me anymore than the rest of the place has?”
“Yeah, OK, I’ll wait here shall I? Give you time so you can hide the evidence.”
“Evidence of what?” he grinned, knowing by the smile on her face she was having a lend of him.
“Your sordid behaviour when you’re away from the set; women, booze, kinky sex, and I’m not even going to discuss that poor dog.” Tess shook her head in mock disgrace.
“Damn, she found me out. Has Viggo been talking? I told him he wasn’t to say a word, last time I loan him the dog.” Orlando pretended to be mortified before laughing out loud and wrapping his arms around her hugging her to him, the nervous moment lifted from them both.
“Disgusting perv! Go on then, go and hide you kinky toys and chains, I’ll stay right here.” Tess hugged him back before he moved away and walked into his bedroom still laughing.
He went to his bedroom and quickly grabbed his dirty clothes shoes and socks, chucking them into the corner behind the door. He straightened the bed and turned on the bedside light as he checked the room on last time. Realising the light made the room too bright he flicked it off again and turned the clock radio on softly, tuning it to a station playing soft, gentle music, before he went over to the window and opened it, allowing the cool breeze to enter as he went back out to Tess.
Tess had happily waited for him to return looking around the room. With Orlando having been here for a couple of months his place had begun to look lived in, unlike her place which still had the new look about it, although as she had said earlier Carrie was trying her damnedest to fix that. He had told her that he had a lovely view of the water and when he had some free time he loved to sit on the balcony and just watch the water and think.
Tess looked towards the bedroom door as she reached over to her handbag and opened the back pocket to take out the condoms she had put in there this morning.
“It’s OK, I have some. In fact, plenty,” he told her as he came up behind her and put his hand over hers.
“I wasn’t sure if you did or not,” she looked him in the eye, “rather be safe than sorry.”
“Yeah, I understand,” he declared with a smile. “So, how long have you had them for?”
“Actually I got them before I left home,” she told him.
“Ah, always prepared you are, aren’t you, you still haven’t explained that, what did you say it was, a Virgo thing?” He reached over and took the condoms from her hand, dropping them back into her handbag before taking her hand and turning her around to face him.
“Hey, girl’s got to have some secrets, keep you guessing,” she told him as he gently pulled her into his arms.
“Oh, I’m sure you have plenty of things you haven’t told me that will continue to surprise me for a very long time and I plan on finding out every last one of them.” Orlando did not realise how close to home his words were for Tess.
“Oh you do, do you? Well, we’ll just have to see, won’t we?” Tess looked up at him, smiling gently.
“Yeah, I guess we will.” Orlando moved in closer, bridging the distance between them slowly.
“Oh, you guess huh?” Tess murmured as she placed her hand on his shoulder.
“Yeah I guess.” he whispered into her mouth as he gently placed his hand against her cheek and entwined his fingers into her hair.
The kiss was full of promise and unspoken words, tongues slowly exploring each other’s mouth, savouring the taste and feel of each other. This exquisite moment would never happen again and both seemed to sense it deep inside themselves. After tonight everything would be different, the last few weeks of wanting and waiting would be over, their worlds forever changed. Both of them committed themselves to remember this kiss and this night.