Shanty brought out the box of sparklers and lit two of them.

A smile stretched over my face as I circled the sparkler in front of me, spelling S plus L with mine.

It fizzled and snapped, and somewhere in the distance, bottle rockets were being fired into the sky.

The remnants of our Fourth of July picnic lay strewn out around us.

The banquet of flowers I had brought home from the florist, where I worked, the leftover

food that Shandy had made, and the blanket rumbled and covered in crumbs of apple pie.

"'Lorin?' said Shandy, once our sparklers had gone out, I love you.

My heart leapt.

I love you more.

Thanks for putting this together for us.

We hadn't seen much of each other lately due to our work, but this holiday together

was exactly what I needed. It was good to

spend uninterrupted time together, especially if that time included Shandy's cooking. With her

sunglasses still perched on top of her brown bob, Shandy leaned in and kissed me. Her hand cupped my face, and her tongue slid into my mouth.

I moaned against her, grateful for this private picnic spot by the river. With her arm guiding me down,

Shandy rolled me onto my back. The sun flashed around us in short bursts

as clouds began to roll over the sky. She kissed me deeply and intensely. Her hands sliding up and

down my body. The bottom of my sundress had bunched up, and Shandy slid her hand

in between my legs. I fucking love when you wear dresses. She moaned into my ear, giving my earlobe a quick

nip. My laugh tapered off into a groan.

I know you do.

She had just started to rub my clit through my thin cotton panties,

...