Tears streamed down Natalie’s face as she sat in her car, feeling like she’d been punched in the gut. When her primary care doctor referred her to a specialist, she figured it was to rule things out. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect the unbearable news she’d been given. The bigger shock was that the oncologist didn’t recommend treatment, instead telling her she needed to enjoy what time she had left. Eight to ten months. That’s all she had…maybe. Give or take.

This was so unfair! She had barely begun to live yet. She’d wasted all that time being a good girl, saving herself for marriage. Now what? She’d die a virgin. Hard to get a boyfriend when you’ll be dead in less than a year! She’d never walk down the aisle, have babies, or have her happily ever after. She was gutted.

She’d done everything right: She got straight As from Kindergarten through college, held a good job that paid all her bills on time, and even volunteered at the pet shelter. Whatever happened to good things happening to good people?

Cancer. That’s what happened. Cancer didn’t care how good you were or how kindly you treated others. Cancer didn’t care that you’d never get the chance to be a wife and a mother. Cancer was cruel and ruthless.

She played the doctor’s words over in her mind.

We could try chemo and radiation, but this tumor in your brain has already progressed to the point that we’d be buying you maybe a year at best. And your quality of life during the treatment wouldn’t be worth it for that. The odds of successfully removing the tumor surgically are not good. It might save your life but leave you in a vegetative state. I can’t, in good conscience, recommend something so risky. I’m so sorry, Miss Benson, but my best advice is to make sure your affairs are in order.

Startled by the harsh buzz from her phone, Natalie read the text from her best friend, Sarah.

Hey girl! Hope your doc appointment went well. Wanna grab lunch? Call me!

She stared at the message for a moment, then sobbed uncontrollably, unable to answer.

A good hour had passed before her tears subsided. She felt numb and foggy and wished she could beam herself home and crawl under the covers. Instead, she started her car and began to back out of the spot, only to be startled by a blaring horn.

She stopped short of hitting the car, but the other driver got out and was shouting at her. “You need to watch where the fuck you’re going!” he screamed, his face red and blotchy.

“Hey, I’m sorry. I stopped. I didn’t hit you, so all’s well. Just get back in your car and move so I can go home.”

“All’s well? What the fuck do you know? My life is over; nothing will be well ever again!”

Natalie’s emotions were still raw, and she burst into tears. The angry driver rolled his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. “Hey, look, I’m sorry. You’re right; you didn’t hit me, so I didn’t need to make such a big fuckin’ deal out of this. I didn’t mean to make you cry. Could you maybe not do that?”

Natalie looked at him incredulously. “Could I not cry? Are you serious? Look, buddy, I’ve had a shitty day, too, okay? So, you don’t get to tell me not to cry. I’ll cry if I goddamn want to, asshole!”

Running a hand through his hair, he sighed. “Look, I’m very sorry for creating a problem where there didn’t need to be one. Seems like we are both having hellacious days. Let’s just agree to move along here.”

“Fine,” she said.

“Fine,” he agreed.

But he didn’t move. He felt frozen in time and couldn’t take his eyes off her. Even with her tear-stained face, she was beautiful. Her long red hair with its golden highlights fell over her shoulders, and her sky-blue eyes mesmerized him.

“Um, so, like, are you going to move?” she asked impatiently.

“What? Oh, yeah, sure. Do you want to… are you hungry at all?” he stammered.

His question took Natalie back, and she bit her bottom lip to prevent something snarky from falling out of her mouth. The truth was, she was starving. And while she didn’t want to be alone, she wasn’t sure she was up to pretending to be cheery for her friend, Sarah.

“I could eat,” she answered, surprising herself.

“Good, leave your car there, I’ll drive,” he said.

Natalie pulled back into the parking spot and parked her car. She headed to the passenger side of the man’s car and suddenly realized this was a bad idea.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what I was thinking. I can’t get in your car; I don’t know you.”

He shrugged and said, “I’m Seth.”

She frowned. “I’m Natalie.”

“Okay, we know each other now. Get in the car, Nat; I’m famished and need to eat before I get hangry.”

Raising an eyebrow, she smirked. “Before?”

He laughed and said, “Leo’s okay?”

“Sure,” she said as she got into his car. It hardly seemed like a risk, considering the fact that she was dying anyway.

They drove in silence to Leo’s Coney Island, about a mile from the medical center. She studied his profile as he drove and decided he was too handsome to be an axe murderer. He had dark hair and a sexy, well-trimmed beard and mustache. Usually, she didn’t care for the look of facial hair on guys, but it looked really sexy on him.

When they reached their destination, Seth opened the door for Natalie, and they grabbed a booth by the window. The server appeared out of nowhere to take their order. She looked like a stereotypical waitress from an 80s sitcom, complete with the poofy updo and bangle bracelets, chewing her gum like her life depended on it.

“What can I getcha?”

“I’ll have two coney dogs with everything, fries, and a Coke, plus whatever she wants,” Seth told the woman while nodding at Natalie.

“You don’t have to buy my lunch,” Nat protested.

“Sure, I do,” Seth argued. “I was a dick, and this is my way of assuaging my conscience.”

Unable to fault his logic, she ordered a bowl of lemon rice soup and a Coke.

“So, who pissed in your cornflakes this morning?” Seth asked once the waitress left to put their order in.

“I beg your pardon?”

“Who or what made your day start off shitty?” Seth clarified.

Nat hesitated momentarily, pondering how to answer, before deciding brutal honesty was warranted. There was no sense in leading him on even though he was gorgeous and made her pulse quicken. No, it was better to squash all chance of this being more than just lunch.

“My oncologist told me I have less than a year to live,” she blurted out as the waitress set their Cokes on the table. The woman selected two straws from her apron and tossed them on the table before swiftly scurrying away.

Natalie waited for the words of sympathy she expected from Seth’s mouth, annoyed when he laughed instead.

“I’m sorry, did I say something even remotely funny?” Nat asked crossly.

“Nope, it's not funny; it's just ironic. I finally met a girl I like, and she’s got a readymade excuse not to go out with me,” he replied.

“Who says I don’t want to go out with you? It’s you that wouldn’t want to go out with a dying girl. Wait, did you say you liked me? You don’t even know me.”

“So? Let’s spend the afternoon together and see if we click.”

Natalie tilted her head and tried to make sense of what Seth was saying. None of this was logical, but she couldn’t deny her attraction to this man sitting across the booth.

“I’ve got no other plans.”

Seth grinned. “So, is this our first date?”

Nat looked at his expression and shook her head. “Sure, why not? In fact, let's go all in. I’m your goddamn girlfriend.”

“That was easy,” he quipped.

“Oh, you were being serious? Did you not understand that I am dying? I will be dead in less than a year!”

“I understood perfectly. So, what you’re saying is that I won’t have time to become sick of you because you’ll be gone way before that.”

Nat studied his face and saw mischief dancing in his eyes. “Yeah, something like that.”

“Perfect,” he said, taking her hands into his. “You seem so nice; I wouldn’t want to grow tired of you and have to break up.”

“Well, at least you’re honest.”

“I’m trying to poke a little fun at a shitty situation. But I’m not kidding about wanting you to be my girlfriend. I’m going through a rough time and could use a friend.”

“A temporary friend?” she asked, sarcasm dripping from her voice.

He looked at her intently, inhaled sharply, and decided to live on the edge. “Would it make your life easier to go through the next several months with someone by your side?”

Nat wrinkled her nose. “Well, of course it would. No one likes to be alone. So, what? Do we pretend to be dating? What is it, Be Nice to Girls with Cancer month?”

“No, no pretending. We are dating. It’s not the typical boy meets girl story, but it works for us. We need each other, Nat.”

“I know why I need you, Seth. What I can’t figure out is why you need me. You’re a gorgeous man with a great sense of humor. You could have any woman you want. Why me?”

“Because I have cancer, too. And I’ve been given a little more time than you, but not much. A year, maybe a year and a half.”

Natalie was gobsmacked. “Well, aren’t we a pair? What if we don’t like each other enough to be dating?”

“We’ll be just fine. I think we can both admit that we are physically attracted to each other. I promise, if you think I’m an idiot at any point in time, you can tell me to take a hike. Otherwise, let’s do this. Let’s take a shitty situation and make the most of it.”

Natalie looked into Seth’s eyes. He was serious. He was probably also crazy, but what the fuck? Why not?

“Sure; what the hell. It beats feeling fuckin’ sorry for myself.”

They chatted through lunch and then took a walk to a nearby park. Holding hands, they followed a path around the lake and discovered they had quite a bit in common, not the least of which was their love of movies.

“Wanna see a movie with me tonight?”

“Sure, that sounds like fun.”

After the movie, they stopped for ice cream, both of them not wanting the evening to end. When Seth finally dropped Natalie off at her car, he promised to call her the next day. She wondered if he meant it as she sat in her car and watched him drive away.

Sure enough, the following day, Nat woke to a plethora of texts. Two were from Sarah, but the rest were from Seth. Cute messages that melted her heart and made her wonder what bizarre twist of fate had her meeting a man like him when she had mere months left to enjoy him. Then again, he was in a similar boat.

His last text was the most endearing and tugged at her heart.

Hey Nat! Let’s spend the rest of our lives together.

She answered that one.

You’re on. At least for the rest of my life.

After about a week of constant togetherness and ignoring the doom and gloom of their cancer diagnoses, they decided it was time to go public as a couple.

“Did we just meet last week? Or have we been secretly seeing each other for longer?” Natalie asked. “People will want to know these things.”

“We’ve been secretly dating. And now we’re ready to share our relationship with the world,” Seth said somewhat dramatically.

That made Nat smile. “You’re crazy; you know that?”

“Yep, but it’s one of the things you find so endearing about me,” Seth chuckled.

“You’re not wrong.”

“Do we need to tell people about our cancer?”

“Not yet. Let’s enjoy a little while longer before dealing with the sorrowful looks, the well-meaning advice, and the insistence that we try treatments that won’t do anything but prolong the inevitable. We’ll share that we are a committed couple for now. Is that okay with you?”

Taking her into his arms, he kissed her. “Unless you want to find out if we’re compatible in bed before we meet each other’s friends and family.”

“If you think bad sex would be a deal breaker for me, you’re wrong. The past week has been magical. The way you make me laugh and forget about all the crap life has thrown at me would be enough to keep me happy for the rest of my life, however long that may be.”

“And here I thought you’ve been keeping me around because I’m a good kisser.”

“You’re not a good kisser.”

“Ouch!”

“Stop. You’re a great kisser. Although my lack of experience in that area might skew my opinion.”

“Lack of experience?”

Nat looked at Seth and decided that the blunt truth had been their modus operandi from the start. Still, she hoped her admission wouldn’t send him running for the hills.

“I’m still a virgin, Seth. I’ve never even had a boyfriend. You were my first kiss.”

“You hid that well. Are you sure you want your first time to be with me?” he asked gently. He had envisioned a raunchy romp as their first sexual encounter. She was spirited and spunky, so he figured she’d be game for something other than tame. But this bit of information changed things.

“Who else is going to make love to me? If you don’t love me, no one ever will.”

Seth’s heart hurt. Suddenly, his feelings about dying seemed petty compared to hers. She’d never been touched, and she deserved to experience that.

Natalie caught the pained expression on his face and decided to lighten the mood. “Besides, you’re my boyfriend, right?”

“Damn straight I am,” he said, grinning.

He moved in for an embrace and was rewarded with a kiss that took his breath away.

“Do you know how happy you’ve made me every single moment this past week?” he said, tucking a red curl behind her ear.

“About as happy as you’ve made me, I’m guessing. I really thought this was wild—that WE were crazy to just jump into a relationship on the same day we met. But I can’t imagine going back to life without you.”

“I feel the same way, Nat. It is bizarre to think that the worst day of our lives became the best day when you nearly backed into me.”

“I’m glad you jumped out of your car to scream at me,” she teased.

“Not one of my finer moments, but it worked out pretty well for us.”

“Yes, it did,” Nat said softly.

Seth looked into her eyes and held her gaze. “I want you, Natalie. I’ve never wanted a woman more. I'd take things so much slower if we had all the time in the world. But…”

“But we don’t have all the time in the world. I don’t want you to wait, Seth. I’ve never had feelings like this for anyone, and I never wanted to give myself to anyone until now. Let’s not waste what little time we have. Please, Seth, take me to bed.”

He leaned in to kiss her and felt a spark like never before. His heart raced as he took her hand and led her to the bedroom. He undressed her slowly, taking his time to savor every detail about her—the swell of her bosom, the curve of her hips, and the cute little birthmark that resembled a heart on her thigh. When she returned the favor, he realized he’d never had a woman take his clothes off for him. He smiled as he did what she asked—he took her to bed.

She was exquisite. Her breasts were neither large nor small and fit perfectly in his hands. Glancing down, he admired the cute little landing strip that proved her to be a natural redhead. For some reason, he found that exciting. There was nothing fake or phony about Natalie. She was incredibly sexy without even trying.

He traced his fingers along her arm and felt her shiver. He wondered if it was excitement or nervousness that caused her to tremble. When she cupped his face with her hands, he knew the answer. Soft lips kissed his as she whispered, “Touch me everywhere.”

Happy to oblige, he allowed his hands to roam all over her body. Willing himself not to rush things, he took his time exploring her and was rewarded with the most sensual moans he’d ever heard. When his fingers moved to part her labia, they were greeted by a glistening nectar that cast a sweet aroma in the air.

Her hips rocked involuntarily, unfamiliar with a man’s touch. It was so much different than her own fingers! So much better!

Gasping as one of his fingers slid inside her, she felt the heat of arousal wash over her. His thumb massaged her with tiny circles, driving her mad. When he took a nipple into his mouth, it pushed her right over the edge.

“Oh, God!” Natalie cried. “Oh, my God! Please!”

Seth continued to nibble and suck her rigid nipples as he added a second finger. Her hips moved rapidly now, and her back arched as she came again.

“Oh, my God! Seth! Please, I need…”

“Are you sure, baby?” he asked.

“God, yes! Please, Seth, I need you inside me!”

“It might hurt a bit at first, Nat. But trust me, I’ll make you feel so good.”

“I trust you, Seth.”

Using the juices on his fingers, he got himself wet and slipped the tip inside. He grinned as he watched Nat’s eyes roll back in her head, and he pushed in a bit farther.

“Oh, you’re so big!”

“You say that to all the guys,” he teased, reveling in the fact that he was the first man to enter her. He brought his lips to hers, kissed her, and said, “I love you, Natalie,” as he pushed himself past her hymen.

Her body tensed, and her eyes popped open wide at the sharp pain of being impaled for the first time. But, within seconds, her discomfort subsided, and she let go of the breath she didn’t realize she was holding.

She kissed him back and said, “I love you, too, Seth. I’m ready for that pleasure that you promised.”

He thrust in slow, deliberate moves as her body rocked in rhythm with his. It felt amazing to be inside her. She fit him like a glove, and her moaning and mewling was a huge turn-on. He kissed her again, reaching between their bodies to stimulate her again. He felt his sac constricting and wanted to make sure she came again before his own climax.

Writhing beneath him, she cried, “Oh, God, Seth! This feels so good! YOU feel so good inside me. More! Please! Faster!”

Delighted by her expression of genuine need, he pumped into her while his thumb worked its magic. Her back arched, and she screamed like a banshee as her orgasm left her quaking.

“I’m gonna cum, baby,” Seth said urgently. “Where do you want me to shoot my load?”

Confused by his question, unaware that there were choices, she murmured, “Inside me, of course.”

Pumping furiously, Seth felt Nat’s pussy squeezing his shaft as she came again along with him, and he filled her with hot, thick seed.

Panting heavily and hearts beating wildly, they lay spent on the bed, giddy and sated. When he’d caught his breath, Seth pulled Natalie into his arms. She curled into him, enjoying their afterglow—until a stabbing pain had her whimpering.

“What’s wrong, baby?” Seth asked, concerned that he’d somehow hurt her.

“Just one of my horrible headaches coming on. It’s the fucking tumor in my head reminding me that this joy is fleeting,” she said bitterly.

“Is there anything I can do?”

“Just hold me, and don’t ever let go. You’re the only thing keeping me from spiraling into a deep, dark funk.”

Seth pulled a blanket over them and held Natalie, wishing, more than anything, that both of their doctors were wrong, and feeling sorrow as he knew that was unlikely.

To be continued