Return to Stories PageJack & Jennifer Alternate Days story
Part 3:
(Written by Sandra)
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The moonlight is shining into the room. Jennifer's white nightgown -- the gown she had bought for a 'special moment' -- is now lying on the floor next to the bed, just as Jennifer had hoped. She could hardly believe that after so many years, she and Jack were going to truly reunite and be as close as a man and woman could be with each other. As Jack gently caressed her body, Jennifer thought of all those magical moments she shared with him when they were still husband and wife. It was as if they had never been physically nor emotionally separated from each other -- as if nothing had ever changed between them. Their love was still as strong, she thought -- maybe even more so -- than the day they made love to each other for the first time.
Jack, on the other hand, had other thoughts running in his mind as he began to make love to her. Being with Jennifer seemed so right and so perfect -- he loved Jennifer with all his heart and had dreamt for years that he could finally make love to her again and express his deep feelings for her. But, at the same time, there was this guilt that was eating away at Jack's mind. He couldn't stand the thought that he was giving Jennifer false hope by making love to her. Somehow, he believed, he was being selfish for allowing himself to share this one night of passion with her. These thoughts were getting louder in his mind and the only way to quiet them down would be to stop.
Suddenly, he pulls away from her. He rolls off to the side of the bed and his back is now facing Jennifer. Jennifer is bewildered. She pauses for a moment to catch her breath and is obviously more than a little disappointed. She leans towards Jack and places her hand on Jack's shoulder ....
In a very comforting voice, Jennifer says, "Jack, what's wrong? Why did you stop?"
Jack turns around to face Jennifer. He gently strokes her face. His beautiful blue eyes are filled with tears. "I just couldn't do this to you, Jenn," he says. "It's not fair to give you this hope that we have a future together as a family. Not when I could end up back in jail. I love you too much to hurt you like that. Believe you me, not a day goes by that I don't dream of holding you in my arms and making love to you. But it's wrong, Jenn. It's just wrong! You deserve a life with a man that can be there for you and Abby. And I'm not ..." he hesitates, afraid to express his thought, "I'm not the right man for you, Jenn. I don't want to hold you back from having the kind of life and happiness that you deserve."
Jennifer kisses Jack's face. She pauses every so often, between kisses, to speak quietly and passionately to him. "But Jack......" she says, "you're the only man for me..... You're the only man I could ever love. Please Jack..." She gently places her hand on the side of his face, and tilts his head so she is looking directly into his eyes. "You have to stop being so worried about the future. Just let go, Jack.... let go of your worries......" Jennifer showers Jack with passionate kisses. Her lips travel from his face, to his neck, then his shoulders....
As much as he tries to pretend her kisses are not affecting him, Jack is thinking to himself how wonderful it feels to be so intimate with Jennifer. While his mind is telling him to push Jennifer away, his heart is telling him to give in to his feelings for her. Having her so close to him seems so natural.... so right. With each tender kiss and touch that she gives him, he finds it more difficult to resist his burning desire to express his passion for her. Jennifer can sense Jack's ambivalence towards her and she whispers, "You know this is right, Jack. Don't fight it...." Jennifer's face moves closer to Jack's. He stares directly at her eyes and cannot help but feel intense desire for her. As much as he wants to fight his feelings for her, he can no longer resist. He places his lips on hers and they share an intense kiss. For this one moment in time, Jack and Jennifer are no longer able to hide the love and desire they feel for each other, deep within their hearts....
Later on that morning....
Jennifer is now lying next to Jack. Her head is resting against Jack's bare chest, while Jack is gently stroking Jennifer's hair. It's just the crack of dawn and the sun is beginning to rise outside. The room is still dark, but there is a bit of sunlight entering the room. The delicate sound of chirping birds can be heard in the distance. Jennifer is sleeping, but Jack is awake. He has been lying awake for an hour now and is clearly savoring these precious moments with Jennifer. How can he sleep, he thinks, when this might be one of the only times he and Jennifer can be so close and intimate with each other. He looks at Jennifer lying there so peacefully and a smile appears on his face. He strokes Jennifer's arms and thinks to himself how right it feels to wake up with her lying next to him. Jennifer can feel the tender touch of his hand against her arm and this stirs her to wake up. She opens her eyes and notices Jack's hand on her arm. She wonders if she's dreaming that she is lying next to him. She slowly lifts her head from his chest and gazes at Jack. Jack notices Jennifer's beautiful face looking at him and he smiles. A smile appears on her face as Jennifer realizes that last night was no dream. After all this time, she and Jack were finally reunited as lovers once again. Jennifer moves her face closer to Jack's and kisses him on the lips.
"Good morning, Jack," she whispers, with a smile on her face. Jack wishes her a good morning back. Now they are both sitting up but still very close to each other. Jack has his arms around Jennifer.
"Did you sleep well?" Jack asks her with a playful grin.
Jennifer laughs because the answer seems rather obvious, "Last night was wonderful. I've never felt so close to you before. I know we were married and this wasn't our first time together as lovers. It's just that...... it's just that the passion that you had for me last night......," she pauses to look directly into his eyes, "... I've never felt that kind of passion from you before...."
Jack smiles back at her, "I have to be honest with you, Jenn. When we used to make love, it was so different. I loved you more than anything back then. I still do. But I was afraid, Jenn. I was so afraid to express all my feelings to you, to be vulnerable, to be a sensitive lover. I'm not afraid anymore, Jenn. I'm a different man, a changed man. I'm just sorry that it took me so long to finally realize that I had to change in order to be a better husband and lover to you."
Jack turns his face away from Jennifer. He cannot look at her. He feels so ashamed of the fact that he wasted so much of their precious time together by leaving her and Abby years before.
Jennifer, on the other hand, is feeling complete and total love for Jack. She is so proud of the fact that Jack has overcome so many obstacles to be with her again and show her the kind of wonderful man that he has become. Nevertheless, she senses Jack's sadness and consoles him by gently caressing his arm. "You have nothing to be sorry for," Jennifer says. She leans over and gently kisses him on the side of his face. Then, as she is gazing directly into his beautiful blue eyes, she takes his hands in hers and says, "I love you more than anything, Jack. I'm so grateful that we were finally able to express our complete love for each other. That's all that matters....."
Jack releases his hand from Jennifer's, and strokes the side of her cheek. His eyes are filling with tears. He feels so sad that this moment with her could end if the judge sentences him back to jail. He can't even bear the thought of leaving her ever again. He leans towards her and gently kisses her on the cheek. Then his lips move towards hers and they begin to kiss. As they are kissing, Jennifer leans down and places her head on the pillow. Jack moves so that he is now lying above Jennifer. Their kissing grows increasingly more intense. He stops for a moment so that he can look at her face. He is so overwhelmed with love for her that the sight of her face beneath his simply takes his breath away. "I love you so much, Jenn," he says as he looks directly into her eyes. Jennifer stares back at Jack's eyes and responds, "And I love you, Jack. I've never stopped loving you....." He leans his head down towards hers and they kiss each other passionately. Jennifer's hands caresses Jack's arms and back. The morning sun is shining into the darkened room. Jack & Jennifer begin to make love to each other, savoring these precious moments together. For one moment, once again, they are the only two people in the world. Nothing else matters.....
A while later, Jennifer is lying on the bed. Jack is not in the room, but she can hear the sound of the shower running. "Jack must be showering right now," she thinks to herself, with a mishchievous grin on her face. "I wonder if he'd like company," she thinks, as she quietly laughs. Her head is still on the pillow and she is staring at the ceiling. In her mind, she remembers the passionate moments she just experienced with Jack. The thought seems unbelievable to her. She never thought it would be possible to be that close to Jack, especially since the judge sentenced him to life in prison without parole. Now Jack was out of jail awaiting a hearing and she realized how lucky she was to have experienced such wonderful moments with him. The phone suddenly rings and interrupts her pleasant thoughts....
She answers the line. It's Mickey. He informs her that the hearing -- to determine if Jack should continue to serve his prison sentence -- has been moved up. In fact, he tells her, Jack is to be in court tomorrow morning. Jennifer's heart sinks when she hears this news. She can't believe that her time with Jack might be ending sooner than she anticipated. Although Jennifer had always reassured Jack that he wouldn't go back to jail, deep in the back of her mind, she had doubted what she was saying to him. She thanks her Uncle Mickey for informing her and Jack about this. She hangs up the phone. The smile that was on Jennifer's face only a few short minutes ago has completely disappeared. Now there is a look of worry and fear on her face. But she remains determined not to allow Jack to see her so unhopeful.
Suddenly, the shower stops and Jennifer realizes Jack is about to enter the room. She quickly puts a fake smile on her face in an effort to hide her worry. A few seconds later, Jack enters the room wearing a towel around his waist. For a few seconds, she is mesmerized by Jack's physical attractiveness, which allows her to forget what Mickey just told her on the phone. Jack sees Jennifer staring at him, with a trance-like expression on her face, and wonders what thoughts are running through her mind.
He laughs, "What's wrong, Jenn? Haven't you seen me in a towel before?"
Jack's comment snaps Jennifer back to reality. She smiles, "Very funny, Jack," she pauses to think of an excuse for why she's so preoccupied. "No..... I guess I'm still kind of sleepy. I just woke up a few minutes ago."
Jack walks towards Jennifer -- who is still lying in bed -- and sits down near her. "That's okay, Jenn. It's understandable. I mean... it's not like we got a lot of sleep last night anyhow," he says, with a naughty grin on his face. He leans over to kiss her on the lips.
Jennifer laughs but it's obvious by the sound of her laugh that she clearly has her mind elsewhere. Jack senses this and asks her what's wrong. Jennifer tries to pretend and makes up some silly excuse for why she's worried. Jack doesn't buy it. He pauses for a moment then says, "Jennifer, did something happen while I was in the shower? Did you get a phone call?" He pauses to think for a second. "This has to do with my upcoming trial, doesn't it?"
Jennifer laughs to cover up the truth, "No, of course not, Jack."
Jack strokes her arm to comfort her and says in a reassuring voice, "Jenn, I can tell that you're hiding the truth from me. I know you so well. I know you think you're protecting me. And I love you for that. But I need to know what's going on."
Jennifer places her hand on Jack's hand. Her eyes fill with tears. She pauses for a moment and takes a deep breath, "Jack..... I'm so sorry. Mickey just called. He said the trial is tomorrow. I thought we had at least a couple more weeks." Jennifer begins to cry, "Jack, this just isn't fair! We've finally reached a whole new level in our relationship. And now.... tomorrow......" Jennifer is too upset to even finish her thought -- to admit her worst fears to Jack.
Jack eyes begin to tear. "Jenn....." he says, as he leans over to kiss her gently on the lips. He places his hands on her face and wipes the tears streaming down her cheek. "It kills me to see you going through so much pain because of me. This is exactly what I wanted to avoid in the first place. That's why I resisted making love to you. You deserve to have happiness in your life and I've made you nothing but miserable..."
Jennifer cries and raises her voice, "Don't you dare say that, Jack!" She places her hand on Jack's face and looks directly into his eyes. "You are the sweetest, kindest, and most gentle man that I have ever known in my entire life. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me." She pauses to catch her breath. She is completely overwhelmed with sadness and tears are streaming down her face. "I've never felt more wonderful than I did when we made love to each other last night," she says. "I'll never regret that, Jack. Never. No matter what happens tomorrow morning, I will always treasure these precious memories that I have of this time we spent together."
Jack's heart is bleeding in pain -- emotional pain. He cannot stand to see his beloved Jennifer so full of sorrow and anguish. He chokes back his tears and says, "Jenn, I just love you so much. I'd rather die than leave you and Abby again....."
Jack can't even speak. He is filled with so much pain and sadness. The thought of leaving her and Abby is too much for him to bear. Jennifer sees Jack in so much pain and places her arms around him and comforts him. They hold each other closely. Jennifer says, "You won't leave us, Jack. I refuse to believe that you're going back to prison." Tears are streaming down Jennifer's face. Jack has tears in his eyes and is on the verge of crying. Holding each other in their arms seems so right and so wonderful. They refuse to let go of each other -- to let go of this moment. In their hearts, Jack & Jennifer wish that time could stand still. But, in their minds, they are fully aware that time is catching up with them. Tomorrow morning is fast approaching....
To be continued...
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