Every Rose (27 page)

He stares at me a moment and seems to come to some kind of decision. I can’t tell which one, though. He leans in and kisses me tenderly.
No, no, I cry in my head.
He’s going to tell me no. His reluctance is tangible. He pulls back a little to murmur, “I want to…so bad, but I don’t have any protection.”
Oh, thank God.

My cheeks warm because he’s about to realize this was all premeditated. “Umm…I’ve been on the pill for a few months now. I don’t think we have to worry about the other stu
ff, seeing as we’ve both abstained for so long.”

“Oh. Oh, good,” he gets out before he begins to devour me with his hands and his kisses. I hear him groan as his hands brush my naked back. He slows down to pull back, and I see desire swimming in his eyes. I pray I’m good at this. I don’t want to let him down. His look says he’s about to get everything he’s ever wanted. “Are you sure?” I nod my head enthusiastically. “Cuz I’m pretty sure I would die right here on this spot if you asked me to stop,” he says on a grin. “I’ve wanted you all my life.”

“I’m sure. I’ve never been more sure about anything or anyone,” I tell him.

He smiles at me before he begins to kiss me, more tenderly this time. He pulls back to focus his kisses on my chin, my jaw, my neck. I’m lost as his kisses leave me hot but shivering. He chuckles against my throat at my reaction. I run my hands through his hair as I force him to apply more pressure to the kisses that are simultaneously feeding my need and driving me crazy.

His hands start moving again in tandem with his mouth. Where his hands go his mouth follows. When his hands trace my breasts, I know I’m in trouble. When his mouth brushes my satin-covered nipple, I almost come undone. But he extends that sweet cruelty rather than letting me dwell on it as he tastes and teases one while rubbing the other and then lavishes the other with his mouth, showing them both equal attention.

He breaks away from me and walks around me to remove my gown. I hear his sharp intake of breath as he glimpses my back. My eyes shoot up to the mirror on the bureau in front of me. Our eyes meet, and I almost buckle under the weight of his stare. I feel him trail his fingertips around the shape of the tear. I close my eyes and lose myself in his touch. It’s delicate
yet torturous. He places feather light kisses where his fingers have traced until he is on his knees, licking and teasing my tender flesh on my lower back.

He moves back to my neck and unties my little ribbon. I open my eyes to find his questioning mine in the mirror. I manage to give him a small smile. He uses his hands to push the silky gown down. Where it glides over my skin, I have goose bumps. I hope he can’t see them. I’ve never felt so exposed in my entire life. He seems to like what he sees as I watch him, watch me. My eyes immediately look at my rounded stomach and my
wide hips. I suddenly feel self-conscious. I try to close my eyes, but he gently tells me to open them back up. His voice leaves no room for questioning. So I do. I watch his hands move to massage my breasts as he kisses my neck and my shoulders. I move my eyes back up to find his watching his hands, and I’ve never been more turned on in my life.

He tilts my head back until his mouth finally moves back to mine, and he sears me with his kiss. When I’m so weak that I’m afraid I’m going to slide to the floor, I feel his arms snake under my knees to lift me and carry me to the bed. I turn effortlessly in his arms, and his lips never break from mine.

As he lays me down on the bed, I run my hands over his gorgeous chest, and place my lips on his heart tattoo with my name on it. “Mine,” I whisper. “You’re all mine.”

“Always have been,” he confirms. “Always will be.”

I pull him in to seal his promise with a kiss. He moves down my body, kissing and teasing. I close my eyes tight when I feel him start to remove my underwear. When I feel his lips move over my own tattoo, I have the courage to look down at him. He gazes up at me with those piercing deep brown eyes and questions me, “Mmm…So I’m about to fulfill your ultimatum, Lorraina. When do I get my name right here?” His fingertips graze my beautiful roses.

“As soon as humanly possible,” I tell him.

I gasp as I feel his finger make its way down to enter me. His tongue demands entry at my mouth almost simultaneously, and I lose myself in our kiss. I feel the vibrations of his moans as he works my body for what seems like hours. When he finally deems me ready and I’m about to explode with the need of him, he enters me smoothly. He pulls his head back and locks his eyes with mine.

“I love you, Lorraina,” he tells me.

“I love you too, Michael.”

………………………………………..…….…….....

I lie on the bed, trailing my hands across his chest in a swirling little pattern, staring at my beautiful ring. It’s a gorgeous pearl. I never even knew I liked pearls until I saw this one. The band is made of silver or white gold. I’m not exactly sure. As the band sweeps up to join the pearl, it’s divided into three little rows of tiny diamonds. It’s simple. It’s exquisite. It’s him. It’s me. It’s perfect.

We’ve been very quiet. I wonder for a moment if he’s asleep. I allow my brain to go back to our lovemaking. Mmm…I’m quite certain there’s not an inch of my body that he didn’t
worship with some part of his own. I shiver again as I feel myself stirring with just the memory of it. I feel him chuckle beneath me.

I lean up on my
elbow and take him in. He’s beautiful. I tell him so. He chuckles again. I can’t stop smiling. “I’ve never experienced anything like that,” I confess.

“Yeah. Me either,” he agrees.

“I don’t really want to talk about our past experiences, but I have to say that I never knew sex could be like that.”

“That’s because we didn’t have sex,” he tells me.

I feel myself blushing. “Oh. Yeah, right, what I meant was I’ve never felt like that. So loved and so adored. And so…fulfilled. It was incredible.” I stop short of asking him if he thinks every time will be like that. He’ll think I’m an idiot.

“Me either,” he says again. “I cared about the people I was with before, but it was just like it was something to do. I don’t know. With you, I just had to show you how much I love you and care about you. I h
ad to make sure that you absorbed every touch, every emotion.”

My mouth has gone dry listening to him describe our lovemaking. I suddenly want to do it all over again and test my theory about it being incredible every single time.

My gaze goes back to my ring. “This is exquisite,” I tell him.

“I’m glad you like it.”

“I love it. It’s unique. I’ve never seen anyone with a pearl engagement ring.”

“I w
anted something unique for us since our love is, ya know? Besides, I think you get the significance behind the pearl, right?”

“Yeah, purity, change, dignity…Something beautiful shaped by chance and mud and determination.”

He takes my hand and kisses my pearl. His other hand tucks my hair behind my ear. “Something perfect, flawless made that way through transformation.”

…………………………………………………........

“Ms. Elise, this is Michael Bang. Michael, this is Ms. Elise Andrews.” I step back and let them shake hands. I’ve refused to let go of one of them so he has to make do.

“Ms. Elise,” I hear Michael say, “Lorraina has told me so much about you and your business. I’m happy that she works for someone like you.”
Oh, that’s so sweet, I think adoringly.

“Oh, honey. I’m the lucky one. This one has been a stellar employee,” she tells him and winks at me. I thank her with my eyes since she omits the fact that I’ve been less than stellar lately. “Michael, Lorraina tells me that you’re quite the musician. Come see our music selection and tell me how we measure up here. I watch as they make their way to the back of the store while I try to switch gears and get into work mode.

Later, as Ms. Elise leaves for the day, I hear Michael ask her permission to stay and study. He promises that he won’t distract me. He just doesn’t want to be too far away, he tells her. I smile to myself. I’ve watched them together for the last hour or so. I wonder if he knows she is putty in his capable hands. She assures him that it will be fine as we are a little slow because of the break.

As she passes by me, she pats my hand and tells me what I need to do for that night and that I did well choosing Michael. “Honey, that is one sweet boy,” she tells me. “He loves you an awful lot.”

“He told you that?” I gasp. I can’t believe he would just come out with that. It seems so personal.

“Oh, no, not in so many words,” she assures me. “But I know he does. Be careful with him. He’s very sensitive.”

My eyes widen. “I will be,” I promise her. “I love him an awful lot, as well.”

She pats my hand again. “Good night, honey.”

“Night, Ms. Elise.”

My eyes seek him out. His head is bent over his book. His hand rubs his neck. There’s no one in the store but us, so I head over his way. He smiles up at me as I approach him. I move to stand behind him and massage his neck. I can’t resist some small kisses on his neck as I rub. “I can’t study when you’re touching me,” he admonishes me. “Besides, I promised Ms. Elise we would be good.”

“I know, I know,” I huff. “I just needed a minute.”

I find myself suddenly sitting in his lap as he ravages me. I just as suddenly find myself standing upright as he tells me to get back to work. I frown at him over my shoulder as I return to not doing a whole lot of anything except thinking about him.

We close up the store and decide to go for drinks and pool at a nearby pub before heading back to the hotel. I don’t have on my skirt anymore but these jeans are pretty tight, so I’m hoping for a repeat of last night and this morning and later this morning.

We’ve been shooting pool for quite some time. Long enough for me to have a couple of drinks and for him to have a few beers before cutting himself off since he’s driving us. My drink is empty; and since it’s Michael’s shot, I make my way to the bar to get another. I’m leaning over the bar to yell my order to the bartender when I feel someone slap my ass. My mind immediately goes to Michael, but I dismiss that thought, knowing it’s not him. He would never do that, not in public anyway. My body freezes for a moment, considering how to best handle this.

I spin around to defend myself from any more advances and realize I’m too late because Michael has already cornered the guy. Before I can gather my wits, he has his hand around his neck and is choking him.

I rush over, yelling for him to stop. He doesn’t seem to hear me at all, though. I get up in his face and scream for him to stop it. The guy seems like he can’t breathe. I’m petrified but determined to make him stop. I put my hands on Michael and push him as hard as I can. He doesn’t even budge. I’m pretty sure I’m shrieking now and begging him to stop, but he just won’t. I look back at the guy and his eyes are closed and his features are slack. I don’t think any more. I just rear my hand back and slap Michael across the face. His eyes fly to mine, and I start crying as he drops the guy onto the floor. I drop to my knees and reach out to check his pulse.

The guy’s eyes fly open, and he yells at me to get away from him before I even touch him. I take this as a good sign and breathe a sigh of relief. He jumps up and tells Michael that he’s fucking crazy.

My eyes fly up to Michael’s, and I see something twist in them. I don’t get it. We were having a wonderful time and, snap, just like that he tries to kill this guy. If I think that I’ve seen the worst of it, I’ve got another thing coming.

He pulls me to my feet and backs me against the wall where he’s just held the guy up and scared the shit out of me. He releases me quickly but fixes me with his glare. “What? Did you like it? Is that why you took up for him?” He stuns me with his questions. Before I can answer, he continues, “I knew you were a tease in school, but still, really?” He snarls at me. “I had no idea. I wish I had, though.”

Copious tears spring to my eyes immediately. I don’t even know what to stay to these accusations. He so far off base and so not my Michael that I’m completely caught off guard. I don’t know how to react.

Michael spins around on his heel and takes off out the front door. I stand there for a minute or two, collecting my obliterated thoughts and wiping the tears from my face.

I run up to bar, pay for the drinks, and apologize for Michael’s behavior. She acts like she’s completely oblivious to what’s just transpired.

I look across the bar at the guy. He and his friends are kidding around. No harm, no foul. I guess.

When I get out to his Jeep, I find him hunched over it. I cross my arms over my middle, and I move very slowly towards the passenger side. “I’d like to go now, please,” I tell him.

He nods his head, not even looking at me. I just want to ball my face off. I don’t quite know what to do or say. Was he so blinded by anger that he wasn’t aware of what he was saying, or was he able to say what he really felt because his guard was down? I think of the Michael of last night who so sweetly proposed to me and so tenderly loved me. I can’t reconcile him with tonight’s Michael.

Our ride back to the hotel is silent. When he kills the engine, I put my hand on the handle to get out; but his quite sob stops me. Thoughtless, I reach across the Jeep quickly and gather him in my arms. I kiss him all over his head and rub his back, trying to offer some measure of consolation for all that he’s feeling. All that I don’t understand.