Chapter Text
“Get your feet off the dashboard, Dany,” Jon said for what had to be the hundredth time since they’d started their road trip. It wasn’t her fault. She was restless on long drives. He knew this.
“Jon, this has been the longest car ride ever,” Dany groaned, ripping her sandal covered feet from the dashboard of Jon’s Tahoe and tucking them beside her in her seat. “Can you tell me where we’re going yet?”
They’d left Winterfell hours ago and had been steadily driving South. She knew that much. The heat from the sun bared down through the passenger window, warming the skin of her bare thighs. If it weren’t for the air conditioning blasting from the vent fans, she’d be sitting in a puddle of sweat, legs sticking to the leather seat.
“We’re close,” Jon replied, refusing to take his eyes off the road.
They passed a sign welcoming them to the Riverlands and she whipped her head as they flew by it. “The Riverlands! What’s in the Riverlands?”
The trees had been greener as they’d driven further south and the grass seemed more lush. Seemingly immune to the dry heat of summer, the land soaked up the humidity and moisture from the rivers producing a picturesque drive. But Daenerys knew better.
“Jon. There is nothing in the Riverlands.” She pulled up the maps on her phone to check the highway they were on. There were no major cities for hundreds of miles. Just. Rivers.
“That’s the point.” Jon clicked on his turn signal, steering his vehicle into the turning lane to go down an intersecting highway.
Trees blurred past them and the road began to wind uphill. He’d told her to pack for a few days and to bring a swimsuit. Sneakers, sandals, she’d even packed a pair of heels just in case. You could never trust a man with packing instructions. Their cooler only had snacks and drinks for the car ride. “We can’t be going nowhere.” She had a feeling she wouldn’t be needing her heels.
“Close,” he conceded. “It’s the middle of nowhere.”
“That’s not a place.”
“That’s because you’ve never been.”
She let out a frustrated sigh, putting her feet back on the dashboard. “Just because I haven’t been to this middle of nowhere doesn’t make it a landmark middle of nowhere location.”
“Feet off the dash.” He kept one hand on the wheel while swatting blindly toward her legs, which she scooted closer to the window.
“Tell me where we’re going and I’ll move them!”
He eyed her warily, slowly placing his hand back on the wheel. “You drive a hard bargain, love.”
She kept her feet planted on the dash, staring back expectantly. She tried, yet failed, to keep her eyes off the muscles of his shoulders where they met his back. His tank top had them on full display. The damn thing was obscene and needed to be thrown out as soon as they arrived at their mystery location.
“You sure you want to ruin the surprise?” He asked, moving the wheel to change lanes. His arms rippled with the motion and she thought it might be best to throw out all his shirts when they arrived. It was hot out, he didn’t need them anyway.
“Dany?”
“Yes?” She blinked.
He cut his eyes to her in confusion. “Were you listening?”
Shit. Shit. Shit. What was he saying? Her eyebrows began to take a mind of their own as she racked her brain for what he’d said. “Yes. Ruin the surprise.”
“Do you remember how much fun we had when we camped down the river with everyone a few years ago?”
Hells. No. There had been bugs. There was no air conditioning. No cell service. Robb tried to cook and the food was barely edible. Theon tried and failed to start a prank war. It started and ended when he attempted to drag Dany’s air mattress out of her tent to float her down the river. She woke when he was halfway down the hill to the river bank with her. Theon led the charge and Robb was carrying the end by her feet. All three were shocked when she screeched and rolled herself off the mattress to fall in the dirt and sticks below them. When they moved to assist her, Robb suffered several kicks to the groin and Theon ended up with claw marks on his face and neck. She walked away with a few bruises, twigs in her hair, blood beneath her nails, and a severe distrust of her friends in the outdoors.
She slowly lowered her feet from the dashboard, setting them on the floor. She pursed her lips, biding her time for an appropriate response. Crossing her legs, she repositioned herself to angle toward him. “Jon. I don’t see a tent in the backseat. Or an air mattress.” She looked behind her seat for any additional clues.
“If I remember correctly, you told me that there would be hell to pay if I ever made you sleep on an air mattress in the woods again.”
Dany looked at him desperately. “Please tell me it’s not sleeping bags.”
“Aww babe, you don’t want to snuggle under the stars with me?”
“Okay, that’s it! Turn the car around.” She circled her finger in the air signaling him to reverse directions. Jon only snickered to himself and reached over to pat her leg affectionately.
His hand was warm and comforting on her leg, and she followed the line of his arm from his hand all the way up to his bare shoulders. The touch served as a reminder of how damn hot he looked in a sleeveless shirt. She twitched her head to the side and tensed her legs, mentally telling herself to behave. If she didn’t get this under control now, it would spiral much like Theon’s prank wars. “If you turn around now, my phone says we can be home by midnight. No bugs, no dirt, and no hell to pay for making me sleep outside in the woods.”
Jon removed his hand from her leg and placed it back on the wheel. His shoulders slumped and she saw the mistake she might have made. “I was just teasing. We’re not sleeping outside. But I’ll turn around if you want.”
“Oh! Where are we sleeping then?”
He drummed his fingers against the wheel with a sigh. “My aunt Cat has a cabin by the Red Fork. Should be there in about thirty minutes. If you still want to go home after we check it out, we can.”
“What’s the plan for food?” She hoped they wouldn’t be living off cold ham and cheese sandwiches for the weekend.
“Grocery store about fifteen minutes past the cabin,” he shrugged. “I figured we’d go after we settled in and pick up whatever you want for the weekend. But we’ll skip that if you just want to go back home.”
“Okay, we’ll check out the cabin,” she conceded. “But you promise no trying to float me down the river this time?”
“I guess,” he teased, reaching back over to squeeze her thigh. She gave a weak smile in hopes of encouraging him. This was his trip he’d planned. She could see it through.
The next thirty minutes ticked by with rows of green trees whirling through the window and glimpses of the rushing forks of the river as they passed over them. This area was quieter than where they’d camped at the base of the Trident two years ago. Instead of tents and RVs stacked on neighboring campgrounds with hordes of people rushing to river entrances, the entire fork was serene. Cabins were few and far between and even the river seemed to run at a quieter speed.
After turning down a few dirt roads, they bounced onto the unpaved drive to his aunt’s cabin. She grimaced as her teeth rattled, but Jon was unaffected. A humble, two-story home with log-style siding and a carport, the cabin was hidden amongst the trees of the Whispering Woods and a short walk to the Red Fork.
Jon’s chest puffed as he inhaled deeply stepping out of the car. “Doesn’t that fresh air smell great? I think this is just what we needed.”
Dany shoved the car door closed and took a hesitant step onto loosely packed dirt. It didn’t smell like anything to her. She scanned the area for signs of civilized life. Window unit on the side the house. Air conditioning, check! String lights adorned a side patio with a fire pit that overlooked the river. A rocky trail of stair steps led down to the base of the river where they had their own private entrance. It was… quaint.
She explored the home while Jon unloaded the car. The home opened into a comfortable kitchen with a round dinette table. A wood-paneled living area connected to it and had sliding glass doors that led to the patio. There were two bedrooms upstairs with old-fashioned quilts draped over them.
The air was muggy and stale since the window unit had been turned off when they arrived. Sweat rolled down her sides as she ambled through the upstairs. Board games in one closet, stiff extra pillows in another. It felt like time had stood still there, nothing changing since the age of mobile internet and iPhones began.
The stairs creaked as she bounded down them in search of a cooler spot to wait while the window unit roared to catch up with the heat. Jon was unloading the cooler into the white fridge, tanned arms glistening with the sheen of his sweat.
“What’d you think?” He asked from behind the fridge door.
The fridge allowed her to school her face before he could see it. “It was quaint. Cute!” She answered raising on her toes.
“I know it’s a little dated, but it should give us some much-needed time to ourselves.” He closed the fridge door and grinned at her. Damp curls were stuck to his forehead and his throat had the same sheen as his arms.
It was true. Between moving towns and starting new jobs in the last year since graduating college, it felt like they’d barely had time for themselves let alone each other. She didn’t miss exams or endless droning lectures in college, but she missed other things like lazy days spent wrapped up in one another.
“I have another surprise for you.” He plopped his duffel on the dinette table and she felt her chest cave in caution.
“Oh gods. You know I don’t like surprises, Jon. Can’t the cabin be surprise enough?”
“Nope,” he grinned. She grimaced watching him dig through his duffel bag for his next surprise. His hand froze for a moment, but apparently it wasn’t what he was looking for.
She began to feel little bugs crawl their way up her skin in impatience. She checked her arms and legs to ensure she was pest-free, but it was just the anxiety of the unknown.
“Here!” Jon held up a large glass jar triumphantly in the air. Different colors of folded-up paper lay inside like a post-it rainbow. It reminded her of jars of multi-colored candy at reception desks and of late nights in their college apartment playing stupid games spurred on by Theon and Robb.
“The Jar!” She grabbed the unassuming mason jar from his hands, rolling it around to see the bent pieces of paper shake back and forth. “Jon, we haven’t played this since college.” She giggled, remembering the drunken confessions and raunchy dares prompted by The Jar that led to their first kiss.
“I love The Jar. That’s how I saw your tits for the first time.”
She narrowed her eyes at him but still turned red at the memory. You can’t say no to The Jar. Whatever you draw, you do the dare or pay a penalty—usually chugging your drink. And unfortunately for her, she’d drawn the “lose an article of clothing” card twice. It was either tits out or be pantless in front of all their friends, which was definitely a no-go.
“Don’t forget The Jar also made you kiss Theon.”
Jon’s smirk immediately turned to a frown at the reminder. She remembered their forced peck, Theon awkwardly bending down to Jon’s height, both of them straining their necks to avoid being too close to each other then wiping their mouths profusely afterward as if they both didn’t taste like cheap beer and fireball. It was a shame they’d made Missandei delete the evidence.
“You promised we’d never talk about that again,” he grumbled.
“How can I forget when Theon got to kiss you before I did.”
“Aye, smelly fucker,” Jon faux-gagged. “Don’t make me relive that sour taste.”
“It has some good memories too.” The night they’d met, she’d been required to sit in his lap for part of the game. She remembered the catcalls from their friends when he patted his knee wearing a beer-flushed grin and she wiggled onto his lap for the first time. The press of his firm cock against her ass for the rest of the game distracted her to no end and she’d craved kicking everyone out of his apartment so she could explore more than just the outline.
Jon drew her closer by the waist, shoving his hips to hers and smiling down at her. “Like when you gave me a lap dance.”
She tucked her hair behind her ear, cringing at the memory of her shaking her ass to “Pony” by Ginuwine while their friends whistled and cheered her on. “We should add that to the list of things we don’t talk about.”
His hand drifted down to her ass and she yelped when he squeezed a handful of it. “I’m supposed to forget having this glorious ass bounce in my face? Not a chance, sweetheart.”
Dany rolled her eyes as Jon continued. “Matter of fact, I hope you draw it again. I thought we could play through the weekend while we’re here. See where it takes us.” He winked, which was always a sorry attempt. Blinking, but still charming, it made her smile.
She swayed them back and forth. “Are you trying to feel young again, old-timer?”
Jon narrowed his eyes at her. Their lifestyles had changed so much since they last played with The Jar. Bed by 10, up at 6. A 9 to 5, gym, dinner, something new to binge on Netflix, then bed again. She knew it was part of growing up, but once Jon had turned twenty-four, she couldn’t help but tease him for all his “old-man- Jon” habits. He was one complaint about a teenager’s trendy haircut away from her purchasing him a life alert button.
“I am. So respect your elders,” he teased with a swat to her ass.
Dany snorted in response, breaking out of their hug to grab her drink. “We’ll have to add some wine and beer to our grocery list if we’re breaking out The Jar tonight.”
Jon picked the jar off the table and shook it in his hands as he walked to where she leaned against the kitchen cabinets. “Who said anything about tonight? We’re starting now.”
She raised her eyebrows in surprise but didn’t argue. With no wifi, cell service, or nightly Netflix, this would be her second-best source of entertainment. The first being licking his abs at every possible chance.
Jon held out the open jar to her. “Ladies first.”
Dany closed her eyes as she picked out the first note from The Jar. The first draw always sets the tone for the rest of the game. And they had a weekend full of games ahead of them. The corners of the folded-up papers poked her hand familiarly as she drew out a piece between her fingers. She smiled as she opened her eyes and read her instructions.
RULE! Make a rule for the person third from your left.
Dany smirked and showed her draw to Jon. “Third from left? Guess that’s you Jonny boy.” Jon’s hopeful face was almost comical as it fell to a disappointed frown.
“You’re not going to make me call you queen all day, are you?” She snickered remembering the night that all the boys were required to kneel before her and refer to her as ‘your majesty’ every time they addressed her.
“Nope!” She laid the post-it to the side of the jar on the dinette table and turned to him triumphantly. “Even better.”
He sighed, staring expectantly at her as she bounced on her toes. She licked her lips eyeing his form up and down once more, solidifying her decision for his new rule. “Every time you ask a question, you have to take your shirt off. You are only allowed to put it back on when someone else asks you a question.”
“Really? First draw and you just want me to take my top off?” He deadpanned, flexing muscled arms when he crossed them over his chest. “Shit,” he muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose, clearly realizing his mistake.
“What can I say, Jon? You have nice tits,” she shrugged. “Now, let’s see them!”
Jon glared at her, hands pulling at the tank top stuck to his skin with sweat. She could see the wet spots that stained the back of it as he pulled it over his head. His firm chest and abs glistened the same way his arms did and a bead of sweat rolled down his stomach to catch in the hair leading down to the waistband of his shorts.
“You’re gonna catch flies that way, Dany.”
She shut her mouth quickly, her face heating as she peeled her eyes from rippling, shiny muscles to meet his amused gaze.
“Too bad for you, the shirt is going right back on.”
Her jaw was left hanging open in contempt as he threw his tank back on, shattering the drool-worthy, slow-motion reveal of his abs she had just received. “What! Why?”
“What can I say, Jon?” He mocked in a sorry attempt at her voice. “You ask way too many questions, baby,” he laughed, drawing her in for a humid hug.
“This is gonna be a long weekend,” she groaned as her cheek smushed against his damp chest and flyaway hairs stuck to her temple and neck.
“I think it’ll fly by,” He kissed the crown of her head and she could feel his smile against her scalp. “Come on.” He smacked another kiss against her cheek. “Let’s get to the store before it gets dark.”
……..
The general store was in a blink-and-you-miss-it-town about 15 miles upriver. There was a gas station with a fried chicken restaurant attached to it, a few outdoor supply rental stands, and two stoplights. Dany waved her phone in the air the whole drive in hopes she would get enough service to send out an update text to Missandei.
She never managed to get enough bars for her text to send, but they did scratch out a list of necessities for the next few days. Eggs, bacon, sandwich stuff, dinner supplies, and hopefully a few bottles of decent wine.
The Stone Mill General Store was the definition of a general store. They had tubes, kayaks, tents, fishing poles, and other outdoor supplies in one corner. There was a small meat market and deli along a back wall. They even had a section for clothes and swimwear in the middle with other regular grocery items dispersed through the rest of the store. The whole town could have fit inside the store.
Jon made his first mistake moments after they entered through the automatic glass doors. “Alright, babe, you want to split this list in half?”
The corners of her mouth turned up as she spun to face him. Clueless, he tapped their list against the handle of the shopping cart.
“Dany, why are you looking at me like that?” His face transitioned from confusion to disappointment as he realized his blunder. “Right now? We’re enforcing that now?”
“You sure ask a lot of questions. Baby.” She waggled her brows, waiting for his public strip show to begin. “There is no arguing with the jar. You say yes or pay the penalty,” she parroted a line she’d heard a thousand times from his own lips.
“I’ll remember this,” he grumbled as his arms reached behind him to yank his shirt over his head. Not even the fluorescent lights of the grocery store could take away from the lean muscles of Jon’s build. He was a little out of place next to the wall of stacked Cracker Jack tins, but who was she to complain.
Dany snickered watching him fold his shirt to stash it in the grocery basket and start walking away as if nothing was out of the ordinary. She followed him to the produce section feeling a little like a middle school girl ogling an Abercrombie model at the mall.
“Dany, will you grab the tomatoes? I’m going to go look for the rest of the salad stuff.” His skin had goosebumps running over his back due to the cold of the produce section. She was beginning to wonder if this rule hadn’t already turned against her, because the sight of Jon grocery shopping for her dinner while shirtless left her without enough words to respond to him.
Tomatoes. Tomatoes. Tomatoes. Focus, you dork! In a Jon-induced stupor, she walked to the next aisle over to grab some tomatoes.
While weighing her options of grape tomatoes vs Roma, she heard a female voice carry over the aisle. “Wow! You sure look like you work out.”
Dany’s head snapped up in search for the source of the comment. She rose on her tip toes to look over the bins of vegetables to see a woman with a blonde bob near Jon. The designer bag and nearly plastic face screamed twenty years older than them and she wore an athleisure dress with expensive sneakers.
Jon rubbed the back of his neck. “Oh, yes ma’am.”
The woman threw her head back in laughter and rubbed Jon’s bare arm up and down as if they were the oldest of friends. “I remember when my ex-husband looked that way. If he had kept it up, who knows maybe we would still be together!”
Jon’s eyes darted around for an escape when the woman began to pat his hand that still held the cart. “Anywho, I was hoping you might be able to help me pick out some eggplants. Do you know what makes for the best eggplant?”
Power walking with two tomatoes in each hand, Dany rounded the corner in determination while Jon stuttered in response.
“You’d think it would be the longer ones,” the woman’s finger drew a line up his forearm. “But I find that the thicker eggplants taste the best.”
“Ma’am, I don’t really eat eggplant, um—
“Jon! Did you get everything you need to toss my salad later?”
Jon looked bewildered at her while the blonde cut green eyes to Dany in disgust. The woman had yet to remove her manicured hand from Jon’s half-naked body and she considered removing it for her when her brain finally processed the words coming out of her mouth.
Dany gasped. “Oh no! To toss together the salad later! Not mine!” Her eyes widened and her cheeks warmed in embarrassment. She wondered if the Stone Mill General Store had a hole she could crawl in to hide near the camping supplies. Surely that was a general enough item.
“Stop while you’re ahead, Dany,” Jon muttered, grabbing his tank from the cart and pulling it over his head to hide his shivering body.
The older woman withdrew her hand from Jon’s person and looked between the two with a frown. “I’ll leave you two to your…salad.”
Dany was still fuming as she watched the wannabe cougar walk toward a bin of eggplants and zucchini. Jon wordlessly steered the cart to the bread aisle and Dany raced after him to drop her tomatoes in next to the other produce. She lamely followed in silence as he grabbed different loaves of bread to compare them.
Jon opened his mouth a few times as if he was going to begin speaking, but would quickly close it before any words came out. After choosing a loaf of whole grain bread to throw in the cart, he looked both ways up and down the empty aisle.
“Dany,” he stated carefully.
“Mhmm,” she nodded.
“You seemed…jealous of that woman.” His words were precise. Well thought out to avoid any hint of a question.
“Because she was touching you! While you were half naked!” She looked around the aisle to make sure they were alone before whispering, “And she was talking about your…eggplant!”
Jon’s mouth opened prepared to argue, but he shut it again. He let out a frustrated sound before continuing, “That is not my fault.”
“You weren’t exactly discouraging her!” She crossed her arms, anger simmering again when she thought of that woman stroking his arms.
His hand scrubbed his face and his laughter was barely contained when he looked at her again. “Well, you did a great job discouraging her when you told her that I’m going to eat your ass later.”
The blush returned to her face, angrily heating her cheeks. “I think what I said could have been interpreted that way. If you had a dirty mind.”
Jon snorted and began pushing the cart again. “Aye. I think we all interpreted it that way.”
Dany frowned snatching the list out of his hands to busy herself. “We need to go to the meat counter.”
“You need some sausage? Shit!”
Dany looked at him in horror. “You idiot,” she whispered. They had just recovered from the first blunder. She wanted to ask him if his perverted joke was worth it, but then that would ruin the game. However, she wasn’t sure how much more of her shirtless boyfriend in a small-town grocery store she could take.
Jon hastily ripped off his tank top again and stalked toward the butcher counter. Dany followed behind, head tilted to the side as she noticed his tense shoulders accentuating the muscles of his back.
Day rattled off her requests quickly when they arrived while the man behind the counter only had eyes for Jon.
The pair stood quietly in front of the counter, minutes feeling like hours. The meat section was even colder than the produce leaving Jon with hardened nipples in addition to the goosebumps running along his skin.
The butcher returned with their packaged requests, eyeing Jon up and down one more time. “Hey, man. I think you have to wear a shirt to shop here,” he said, scratching his chin.
“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.” Jon cut eyes at Dany and stalked away with their cart to the next section.
Dany closed her eyes and bit her lip to stifle a giggle. It was tempting to relieve him with a well-timed question. It would also prevent any more unwanted cougar attacks. But the need to see his skin flush red at each embarrassing run-in was far greater.
They had almost cleared through the rest of their list with Jon shivering, half-naked, and speed-walking through the store when the tipping point arrived. Not quite five-feet tall with gray, permed hair and wrinkles etched into her face, the small, elderly woman was unassuming when she shuffled around the corner to join them on aisle 10.
“Excuse me, young man? Would you mind helping an old lady?” The lines in her face creased as she smiled hopefully at Jon.
Jon turned abruptly to face her and her surprise was immediate. “Oh my!” Her voice raised an octave and she adjusted her glasses squinting at him. “You look just like my second husband! He had muscles in his teeth too! Is your name Luthor?” She laughed loudly to herself while Dany’s lip quivered to hold in her giggles.
“Oh!” The back of Jon’s neck turned red and he raised his hands to cover his nipples for a moment till Dany threw his tank top at him. “Yes ma’am. Just a moment.”
Jon put on his tank top and walked toward her, adjusting the end as he got closer. She latched onto his arm with a shriveled hand, “Your name is Luthor too?”
“Oh uh, no ma’am. It’s Jon.”
“Jon. Yes, that’s a good name.“ she patted his arm with her free hand and smiled affectionately at him.
A beat passed where Dany looked at Jon who looked at the elderly woman who looked back at him. Another beat passed and the needed question to move this encounter along of ‘how can I help you?’ hung in the air unsaid.
“Well, boy, are you going to ask me for my name? Or is he all looks?” She directed the second question at Dany.
Dany snickered. “Yes, Jon. Be polite.”
Jon sighed, fingers returning to the hem of his shirt in preparation. “What is your name?” Irritation dripped from every syllable.
“Olenna, thank you. Now if you can be a dear— wow!”
Olenna tilted her head back in wonder as Jon took off his shirt again, slinging it over his shoulder. “If it wasn’t for the hair, I would think think these were painted on.” She reached for his chest and began to touch him as if she were blind. Patting up and down firm muscles as best she could reach.
Jon’s eyes clamped shut, his nostril flaring slightly at the treatment. “Did you need help still?”
“You have helped me more today then you could ever know,” she giggled.
Dany cleared her throat. Face a mixture between amusement and horror, she was able to catch Jon and Olenna’s attention.
Removing her hands from his person without a trace of guilt, Olenna cleared her throat. “Yes, can you please grab that box of k-cups off the top shelf for me?”
“Yes,” he sighed. “Just a minute.” His movements were jerkier as he slipped his tank top back over his head. Olenna frowned, but nodded her thanks when he passed her the box.
Turning to Dany, she said, “You have this one trained well. Good for you.” She winked conspiratorially. “And you!” She poked Jon hard in the sternum and his eyes widened in response. “Where is the ring on her finger?”
“Um—
“Time waits for no one! Don’t wait till she has half as many wrinkles as me.” She poked him again as Dany snorted. “Women want to get married while they’re still young and pretty.”
She turned to Dany, “That won’t last forever. Trust me I know.”
“Thank you,” Dany laughed, dotting at little droplets of tears that had welled in her eyes. She grabbed Jon by the arm and pulled him away from the woman. “If you’ll excuse us, we’d like to be home before dark.”
“Condoms are on aisle 14, dear!” She called as Jon and Dany hurried away.
“Dear gods,” Jon muttered under his breath, hanging his head as he rolled the cart toward checkout.
“Jon, we still have some things on the list.” Dany turned her head to look around the store, spotting the aisles that housed their missing items.
“We’ll get it later,” he grunted. His eyes were focused ahead, steps away from checkout.
“It’s wine.”
“Get double of whatever we wrote down and meet me back in line.”
…..
“New rule! Your rule sucks and it no longer applies!” Jon shouted as he brought in the last of their groceries. The cabin door swung shut, creaking on its hinges and swinging back open with a crack from the force.
Dany paused from unloading the bag in front of her to argue. “That’s not fair! Rules have always applied till the end of the game!”
“Aye, but this game is running all weekend and your rule caused two ladies to grope me in the grocery store.” He glared at her, dropping the bags on the butcher block counter.
Their car ride home had been mostly silent. Jon stewing in his embarrassment and Dany waving her phone around to send Missandei the latest update on the return of The Jar and their grocery store adventures.
Dany chewed her lip, but wasn’t ready to back down. She had yet to have her fun with shirtless Jon in the privacy of their cabin. Since the window unit had worked overtime cooling the space while they were away, she wouldn’t even get the sweaty strip show she had looked forward to. “Yes, and I had to watch two ladies grope you in the grocery store. Besides, we’re not going anywhere else!”
Jon hugged her from behind and pressed a kiss to her cheek. “Sorry babe. My jar, so my rules supersede any others in an active game.”
Dany rolled her eyes at the oldest and stupidest rule of their game. The ultimate Bitch Out rule. Solely used by Jon, Robb, or Theon when things had gotten too out of hand for the evening—‘My jar, My rules’ always put an end to someone’s fun.
“Where is the damn Jar? Feels like it should be your draw already.” She broke from his embrace to finish putting away the last of the groceries.
The floor creaked as Jon stepped into the living room and grabbed The Jar. He returned, shaking it like a good martini he couldn’t wait to serve.
She couldn’t help but smile at the sight. She’d watched him shake that jar with his half-cocked smirk for the last four years, save most of the previous one. It was a knowing smile of the debauchery to ensue. She realized they’d never played with just the two of them. Without an audience to prevent any dare from going too far, anything could happen.
The paper crumbled between his fingers as he withdrew it. “Ahh it says ‘Dany’s rule sucks and it doesn’t have to be followed anymore’.”
She snorted and grabbed one of the bottles of Dornish Red they’d snagged at the General Store before Jon rushed her out. Her rule had been genius and Jon simply could not appreciate it. “Fine, my rule is over! What does it really say?”
Jon licked his lip salaciously as he neared her and turned the note toward her. “Karma’s a bitch, my love.”
Clothing Optional. Player of your choice removes an article of clothing.
She abandoned the wine opener and the half-open bottle to arch a fluffy brow toward him. She could take her medicine. She crossed her arms over her stomach and peeled her tank top off, temporarily blinded by the material. She flung the tank to the floor, leaving herself exposed in her white, lace-trimmed bralette.
He reached out a finger and traced her clavicle down to the center of her chest till he hit the band of her bralette. Fire followed where he touched and her breasts rose and fell as her breath quickened from his promising hands. “I like this one,” he murmured.
She blinked quickly, following the path of his hand with her eyes. Her throat felt dry, but it was too early to give in. She grabbed his hand before it explored too far. “Would you like a glass of wine, my love?”
The half-cocked smile returned and he slipped his hand from her grasp. “Aye. Wine would be good.”
She swung her hips a little more when she stepped away, reaching up on her tiptoes to retrieve two glasses from the cabinet. Dark eyes followed her as she returned to the half-opened bottle, popped the cork, and poured their wine. She took a small sip from her glass while she passed the other to Jon. Dark, full-bodied, just how they liked it.
Jon left his wine untouched and held out The Jar to her. She took another languid drink and then held her arm out to dig around. She plucked from the middle to keep things fresh.
“Jon will cook me dinner. So funny! Timing on this one is perfect!”
“Be serious, Dany,” he complained with a pout. He attempted to snatch the note from her hands and she sidestepped him with a giggle.
“I am serious…seriously hungry!” Her giggles intensified when Jon rolled his eyes and grabbed her wrist in an easy step. He loosened her fingers to release the note all while she laughed, twisting in his grasp.
“Truth or Dare. Oh, that’s an easy one, Dany. What’ll it be?”
She rubbed her arm, playing up her indecision while she tapped her chin. “I choose…dare!”
Jon smirked, pulling her by the wrist to close the gap between them. A constant dance of push and pull, this was the other game they played. She could feel his hot breath on her bare collar, her naked stomach against his cotton tank. Her barely concealed chest pressed against his and her lids were heavy when she blinked at him, anticipating his next move. “I dare you… to take off your shorts.”
Son of a bitch. “I should have guessed,” she narrowed her eyes.
“What is the point of this game if you’re not naked by the end?” He smirked.
She stepped out of his arms, determined to put on a show. She undid the button of her denim shorts, hooking her thumbs into the sides and stroking her hip bones as she went. She slowly shimmied them off her hips, making eye contact with Jon the whole time. Her shorts attempted to drag her pink thong down with them, revealing an extra few inches of smooth skin not meant for his eyes yet.
Jon’s breath caught at her almost mistake and she nearly snickered when she noticed his growing erection tenting his shorts. It would be a long night of him paying for this dare. She broke her gaze to draw her shorts the rest of the way down and step out of them. She kicked them to the side so they would join her tank in a pile beneath one of the cabinets.
“Your turn, Jon,” she teased when she popped back up from her bent-over position.
He blinked quickly, reaching for the button of his shorts.
She stepped toward him, stilling his rushed hands in one of hers. “Uh-uh. Truth or dare?”
His brow furrowed. “Truth,” he scoffed. His eyes were steel. Frustrated and hard.
“What are you thinking about?” She bit her lip, keeping her hand in place, seconds from his groin.
Jon broke his hands free from hers and brought them to rest on her hips, thumbs fidgeting with the waistband of her thong. “Ripping the rest of your clothes off you.” His Northern accent was thick, a good sign.
Dany stretched toward the counter, retrieving her wine. She took a swig and offered the cup to Jon’s lips. Some spilled out the sides, red droplets falling into his beard. She stared at where the wine slid toward his plump mouth till he scooped her up in a kiss. She held her glass out to the side of them, hoping what remained of her Dornish red wouldn’t slosh over the side.
The kiss was all tongue and tannins. Tasting the inside of each other’s mouths, hungry for more than just their dinner now. Jon’s hands smoothed from her hips around to her rear, massaging and kneading her skin till her chest released into his in an exhale. She licked the edges of his mouth, drinking the spare droplets of wine that had missed his mouth while he tilted his his head back.
“Dany,” he interrupted. She hummed in response, continuing her feast of his mouth and beard. “Truth or dare?”
She broke away with a snarl. “Fucking hells. Dare.”
His chest shook with a contained laugh, a smirk playing at his features. “I dare you…” he massaged the bare skin of her ass roughly, dragging out the suspense. Her nose twitched, tension rising. “I dare you to cook us dinner,” he whispered.
“Jon!” She slapped his chest, while he backed away laughing and rubbing the sore spot. He snatched his full glass of wine off the counter and headed for the patio door.
“I have work to do outside, babe. Come find me when it’s ready!” He slid the glass door shut behind him, leaving the blinds open.
She stared after him, mouth agape. That little sneak. Her half-naked body felt cold at his loss and the sound of the window unit roared in their little cabin.
Raiding the fridge for the groceries they just brought in, she pulled out the supplies to make a quick baked chicken dish. She opened every cabinet and drawer in the tidy kitchen to find what she needed. The baking trays were warped and rusted, the knives were dull. Everything in the place appeared to be over twenty years old.
With dinner in the oven, she poured herself another glass of wine and walked to the sliding glass door to see what made for “man’s work” that evening.
She didn’t need The Jar’s assistance to create the image before her. Jon was shirtless by his own choice, bent over a wooden stump several feet from the house. He stood, heaving an ax behind him to split the newly placed log in half. Sweaty curls stuck to his forehead and his chest heaved from the exertion. There was a pile of freshly chopped firewood to his left, framed by the setting sun downriver.
She watched him through the glass admiring the way his muscles moved in the dimming light of the evening. Tanned and sinewy, his shoulders rippled with the action, wood splitting off in two again. A swig more of her wine and she slid the door open to join him.
Jon stopped chopping wood to appraise her with his axe poised on the stump. She bit her lip, feeling more revealed in the fresh air than she had indoors. She crossed her arms over her stomach, digging her bare foot into the loose dirt a few feet from Jon.
“Don’t let me stop you.”
He laughed, walking the axe back to the side of the house. “You miss the show, sweetheart?”
“New rule. No shirtless chopping of wood without me present to watch.”
He grabbed a few logs from the stack of firewood and arranged them in a rock pit surrounded by Adirondack chairs. She watched his shorts stretch pleasingly over his ass as he bent over, sweat beading down his firm back. “No jar,” he called, “that rule doesn’t count!”
His eyes roamed her figure appreciatively on his next trip to gather more firewood. “If we were making new rules, mine would be that you always make dinner in that outfit.”
She felt her face flush, her lower stomach clenching. “I might burn myself if I always cook half naked.”
Jon grabbed his empty glass of wine off a patio table and walked toward her. “I would kiss you better.” He craned his neck with lips puckered and she gasped at his smell. Salty, outdoorsy, woodsy.
“You smell like a little boy who's been running around outside! Ew!” She pushed him away as he laughed and attempted to wrap damp, hot arms around her.
“That’s the great outdoors, baby!” He smooched a kiss against her lips, rubbing his damp upper lip on her mouth.
“Well go wash it off, so you don’t smell like the great outdoors for dinner,” she smiled, pushing him away again.
“Yes ma’am.” He kissed her again, softer this time. “And remember,” he whispered against her ear, chilling the sensitive skin behind it. “No clothes for you till tonight’s game ends.”
She hiccuped as he slapped her ass before heading inside, leaving her alone with the setting sun and a dry pile of firewood. The woods extended on either side of the house and the yard was thick enough so they were well hidden from anyone who owned neighboring property. It was their own private piece of the world in the Middle of Nowhere, Riverlands.
She slurped her wine, obnoxious in her enjoyment with no one else to hear her it. There were more expensive bottles they might usually buy when they were home. But this— the eight dollar bottle that got better as it sat out for a bit, this tasted like the Jon and Dany they used to be. Being spontaneous and enjoying youth and doing silly things just because it was fun and The Jar told them to.
There was no 9-5 in the woods. No WiFi or cell service ensured they’d be unreachable. No bills, no chore schedule, no social calendar. Everything that had made them grow up from the drunk nineteen-year-olds they’d been when they had met could not follow them into the woods. Just like the decor and the furnishings inside the cabin, it was like the two of them had been able to go back in time. They were just Jon and Dany and nothing else.
A breeze picked up and she loudly gulped the rest of her second glass of wine. She swished her tongue around her mouth, enjoying the remaining flavor of the red that coated the inside of it. Her head hummed with a light buzz, and maybe she finally felt comfortable standing in the woods in her underwear.
She knew she’d need to eat soon if she had any hope of making it to the end of the night playing their games. She slid back the glass patio door, listening to it bump in its track, and was greeted by the indulgent smell of baked chicken and herbs and the sounds of Jon’s shower sending water thrumming through the house.
Dany checked on their food and removed it from the oven to cool. She sauntered from the oven to the dinette table to inspect The Jar. It still seemed so full, barely any light between the breaks in paper. She wondered if this was the same one they’d always used, kept safe and hidden on moving vans and in their new home. Temporarily forgotten, but waiting for the opportunity to stir chaos once again.
It couldn’t be the same. She rolled The Jar around to be sure. Some of the post-its were fresh. The original’s notes were all crumbled, some stained with dribbles of mixed drinks.
She jumped when damp arms encircled her waist from behind. Jon rested his head on her shoulder, wet beard tickling her skin. “Dinner ready? I’m starving.” He playfully nibbled her ear as she squealed from the mix of sensations.
“Your draw!”
“Can a man eat first?” He laughed, nipping her ear again.
She shook her head and shoved The Jar toward him. He plucked from the top and read his selection as he walked to the oven. He looked at the food she’d made then back at her. “I love this game.”
“What did it say?”
Jon was unresponsive, piling his plate higher than normal. She snatched the note when he walked by with his plate in one hand and holding out the note betwixt two fingers with the other.
Choose a player to sit on your lap
She scoffed, crumbling the note in her fist. It was the dare that started it all. She wouldn’t be surprised if he’d filled half the jar with “clothing optional” and “choose a player to sit on your lap”.
Jon stopped her when she tried to grab another plate from the cabinet. “No need for that baby,” he called. “Come take a seat.”
He was sitting with his legs splayed open at the dinette table and patted his thigh. She closed her eyes and laughed to herself. It was so familiar. The Jar. The Dare. Jon had filled out since then and his hair was longer. They were a few years older and could buy alcohol with their real IDs now. But she swore when she opened her eyes it could have been the middle of a party sophomore year in apartment 208.
She abandoned the cabinet, not caring for once that the door was left open. Jon’s hands were cool when they wrapped around her bare stomach as she took her seat. Her throne she thought with a wry smile. His basketball shorts were silky beneath her and she wiggled back on his lap for good measure.
“Is this what you had in mind when you kidnapped me and brought me to the woods?”
He absently thumbed the band of her bralette, a hair’s breadth from the underside of her boob. “Aye. This was part of it.” He kissed the edge of her jaw. “I also wanted to fuck you in the woods.”
Dany grabbed his fork and speared a mushroom, holding it to his lips. Jon closed his mouth around the bite, taking it from the fork. “Nothing like the great outdoors,” she joked. He smiled with his mouth closed, chewing contentedly.
Dinner on his lap was a tease. They took turns eating off their shared plate and feeding each other bites of chicken and roasted vegetables. In between, Jon’s hands roamed her body. He massaged her thighs and kissed her neck. Every inch of bare skin was available for his consumption and he mapped over it like he would be tested on it later. Dany would distract him long enough to sneak bites of her food when she would recall memories of other games and dares that The Jar had spurred on in the past. They would laugh until Jon would get impatient and brush his hands up her stomach and over the thin fabric of her bralette.
Every inch of bared skin felt alive at his touch. It pulsed beneath his hands, waiting and wondering where they would go next. Her last bite of chicken was cold, not that she would have noticed.
“Jon…” his fingers dipped in the waistband of her thong, grazing the skin till he almost reached where her lips would part. “Jon, I can’t focus on eating when you do that,” she laughed breathlessly.
“Don’t want you to focus on eating,” he said, sucking sensitive skin between her ear and jaw. His tongue flicked against her ear lobe and her head tilted backward in a shudder. “Focus on me”
The chicken was cold anyway. She swiveled to face him, swinging a leg over the other side of his lap so she straddled him. Hugging her arms around his neck, she used the leverage to roll her hips against his hard cock. “Is that the focus you wanted?”
An easy smile passed over his face. “I’ve been a patient man.” He ran his hands down her back and grabbed her ass cheeks in both hands. “All while you’ve been teasing me with this perfect ass of yours.”
She snickered, playing with the curls stuck to his neck. “It was your dare!”
“Aye and if I didn’t love watching you bounce around the kitchen making dinner, waving it around in the air when you bent over.”
She yanked the curls in her hands. “I thought you were chopping firewood!”
He flinched from the pain but kept his cock-sure smirk. “That door is glass, baby. And gods, did you give me something to look at when I would take a break.”
She closed her eyes, cheeks heating, thinking of the show Jon must have received. Her ass high in the air while she dug through the lower cabinets. The way it must have jiggled when she walked or had to jump up to reach a higher shelf.
He lightly palmed her, softly stroking the crease where her butt met her thighs. “Nothing to be embarrassed about,” he kissed her soundly. “It’s me.” Another kiss. “And you have the most beautiful ass I’ve ever seen.” He punctuated every few words with kisses and she nearly melted into each one.
She initiated the next kiss, softly tracing her tongue over his bottom lip and stroking his tongue. “Always telling me what I want to hear,” she teased.
The chair creaked when he grabbed underneath her thighs and pulled her closer to him. The only thing separating them were his basketball shorts and the thin cotton material of her thong. “I could go on,” he groaned as she ground against him.
She turned toward the table and grabbed her wine, taking a drink and nodding for him to continue.
“I love the way your thighs feel in my hands.” She rolled her hips again and his erection bobbed toward her. His hands traveled up from her thighs to her ass again. “Have I mentioned your ass yet?”
“A few times,” she replied coyly, offering him a sip of her wine.
He smacked his lips around the taste while she reached back to set it down. “Ahhh.. what else?” One hand ran the distance up her spine to her bralette. His thumb and index finger spread over the band where the hooks were and pushed the material together, causing it to unhook.
She tilted her head toward him, tingling from her face down to her hot center. She felt the weight of her breasts fall, the bra barely hanging from her shoulders. “Your breasts,” he pushed the straps with his thumbs letting the material fall between them. She unhooked her arms and he weighed her tits in each palm, rolling his thumb over her right nipple.
She swallowed, fidgeting in his lap, trying to find the right angle to rock against him to stimulate her clit just so. “What about them?” She smoothed her hands from behind his neck down strong shoulders to place them on top of his hands, so they both held her breasts.
“They’re…they’re—
Dany rocked against him, guiding his hands with hers to caress her nipples. “They’re so fucking responsive to me,” he grunted.
Jon bent down, sucking little red marks on her décolletage till he reached her nipples. Dany leaned back grabbing the little dinette table for stability. “I love how pink they are and how you—
She let out a high-pitched gasp and her hand flexed against the table when he pinched her nipples, turning them just rough enough, the way she liked.
—do that when I pinch them,” he grinned.
“Jon,” she panted.
“Yes, baby?”
“Please shut up and fuck me.”
“I love it when you talk dirty to me,” he teased with a raise of his brows.
Dany’s retort was cut short when he swooped her into a kiss. One arm wrapped around her waist, pushing her chest up into his. His other hand held the base of her neck, rendering her prisoner to his frenzied kiss.
The weight of the tension that had been building all afternoon finally caused the two to snap. She clawed at his shirt, rucking it up with both hands till he was forced to break their kiss to pull it off.
They gasped for air before diving back into each other. Jon nipped and sucked at her lips, his tongue sliding through her mouth to taste the leftover wine. She raked her hands over his chest, nails scraping down his abs.
Every inch of his body had tempted her that day and she was determined to put her hands on as much of it as she could. Jon seemed determined to do the same. Hands wandering from her back to her ribs, twisting at her nipples, then back again. Each gesture was a tease that had her fidgeting in his lap again, desperate for more stimulation.
“Jon,” she pulled back with a pant. “I said to fuck to me.”
His pupils were blown when he looked at her, struggling to focus. “How do you want me to fuck you? Since you’re so impatient.”
She squeezed his waist with her legs to stay balanced and rested her arms around his neck. Her face felt flushed and her head a bit light from the wine. “From behind. I want to feel you so deep.” She licked her lips, nearly saying please, willing to beg him to touch her more.
He stood them up, then roughly spun her to face the table. Their abandoned plate clanked as she pushed it out of the way and he pressed the small of her back to lean her forward. She shimmied as he roughly ripped down her thong till it slid to her ankles and she kicked it off.
He massaged her butt then slid a hand between her legs. He dipped a finger inside her, swirling and crooking it, then smearing her slick around her entrance. “What has you so wet, baby?”
“Fuck,” she whined as he crooked his finger again. “You! Everything!” That godsdamned Jar had made her a godsdamned cock-dumb mess.
She fell against the table in relief, lids fluttering when Jon removed his finger. Live and on a wire, she felt prepped to explode if he didn’t stop teasing. Jon’s shorts swished as he yanked them down and she shifted her weight from foot to foot.
“Jon, if you don’t hurry—she squealed out a shuddering gasp when he positioned himself and entered in one fell swoop. He filled her completely, stretching her open in the best way to fit him.
“Is that what you needed?” He held her hip with one hand and splayed his other over her back to keep her in position as he rocked back and thrust in again. The burning feeling was lost quickly when he bottomed out again and she adjusted to his size.
“Yes…yes!” She had waited for this moment all day since they’d arrived at the little cabin. She’d wanted this when she noticed him spinning the wheel with one strong arm in the car on the drive. Her want had only increased seeing him shirtless, sweaty, chopping wood. By the time he had her half-naked feeding her chicken on his lap, she would have done any dare or paid any penalty if it meant having this feeling. This was a need, not a want.
“Such a damned tease,” he groaned, beginning to thrust faster. The table wobbled with the motion and Dany tried to grip an end to stabilize it. He squeezed her ass, lightly smacking it. “Parading this around all evening. Rubbing your sweet ass on my cock through dinner.”
“Your,” she huffed, “fault!”
Black spots clouded her vision every time he sank into her hitting that rough spot just right. His hips slapped against hers, vulgar staccato sounds echoing through the house. The angle sent her to her tiptoes, stretching the back of her hamstrings and tightening her stomach.
“Jon! I…” in a moment, she lost her grip on the edge of the table. One forceful thrust rocked the table an inch forward, toppling the deserted wine glass of Dornish Red.
Dany felt her front soak in the crimson liquid. She lifted up on her forearms to protect her face from the spreading mess.
“Oh, motherfucker,” Jon cursed, slowing his pace.
“Don’t stop!” She complained. “I’m already soaked. And I’m so close.” She was trembling. Her damp skin catching cold and her muscles clenched, ready to burst.
“You’re such a mess,” he laughed breathlessly.
She keened. “Just fuck me, Jon.”
He snapped his hips, fast and rough, barreling to their finish line. Dany fell over hers without grace. Shaking and covered in red wine, her body soared. Her heart raced to catch up as her cunt pulsed around Jon’s cock. She continued to spasm around him, eyes blurring as she descended from her high. Her orgasm seemed to stretch on, the final aftershock finishing when Jon came with a grunt.
He held her tightly around her waist, panting audibly in her ear. His sweat-damp skin pressed against her back while wine dripped from her stomach to the table.
They grinned like fools when they stood. Wobbling on uneasy feet, red wine rolled in scarlet streaks down her front, sticking to her breasts and stomach, pooling in her belly button. Jon’s nest of curls around his cock was messy with both of their cum stuck to him.
“Hey, Dany?”
She collapsed against him, pressing her sticky body against his, not caring for the mess she’d made. “Yes?” She sighed.
He rubbed her back gently. “I think you need a shower.”
She nodded against his chest, the irony of his suggestion not lost after she’d forced him to shower before this mess. “Okay,” she consented softly. “Join me?”
His chest shook with a contained laugh. “How could I tell you no?”