Four Play: A Collection of Novellas (35 page)

She laughed. “I’m not going to break, you know.”

I laughed with her. “No, but if I go fast, I’m going to come in thirty seconds.”

She covered her mouth, trying to tame her giggle. “That’s super. A word of advice: don’t say something like that to just anyone. For me, it comes off as charming, but the average girl might consider it a turnoff.”

I laughed into her breasts, feeling my hot breath against her skin. “Noted.”

Picking up on her hint, I quickened my pace slightly, and all smiles vanished from us. Our breathing intensified and the sweat between our bodies gathered, making every surface I touched slippery and starving for more. But with Lauren I knew I’d never be satisfied, and I’d always want more.

Our eyes locked, our foreheads touched, and our breath synchronized as I got lost in the sensations that made Lauren the only woman in the world that mattered. Or could ever matter.

She lifted her legs straight in the air until her ankles sat on my shoulders, and I pulled her hips to mine. We groaned loudly together, feeling the deepest penetration. Her soft, smooth calves rubbed against my collarbone, and I knew I wouldn’t last much more than a minute in this position. She was absolutely beautiful displayed before me. Her image, paired with the sensation… I was about to become the saddest lay in Lauren’s short-lived history.

But I couldn’t help it.

I was too greedy. Too infatuated. And too much of a slave to the goddess beneath me.

She was everything I thought I wanted in a woman and then some. Just when I didn’t think that someone like her could exist, fate picked a hell of a time to introduce us.

I wasn’t so gentle anymore, and the strain returned to her face. But she was so damn slick that I couldn’t help but think I was doing something right—for both of us. Because I was seconds away from my orgasm.

I propped myself up on one hand and grabbed hold of one of her calves, gently kissing the inside of her leg. But my lips lingered, as there were other parts of my body that needed my full attention. And as I came, I bit down on her calf, and a small yelp came from below me.

The sensation ripped through me, again and again, quickly weakening my body. My shoulders relaxed, my hands went limp, and I slumped into her with one last thrust and a deep, visceral groan.

I collapsed on top of her, milking my orgasm with several slow thrusts and breathing heavily, watching her hair blow with each exhale. She wrapped her arms and legs around me, folding me up in my own personal Lauren blanket.

Once I caught my breath, I finally said, “Did I hurt you? I’m so sorry I bit your leg.”

She laughed and looked down. “You didn’t draw blood, so I’d say I’m going to be fine. However, because of your dick, I might be walking strangely for a month.”

We laughed and I rolled off of her, bouncing down on the bed next to her. Lauren pulled the thin bedsheet over her body, and I snatched it from her and took it off again. “Are you cold?” I asked.

“Um, no.”

“Then don’t cover yourself. I want to look at you.”

She licked her lips and twisted her hair, trying to fight her insecurities.

“Lauren, look at me.”

She swallowed and her eyes met mine.

“You are perfect for me. Your body is the epitome of my definition of sexy. So please, don’t be shy. I want to look. And I want you to know I’m watching you. In the least creepy way possible.” I tugged on her chin gently and chuckled, then pulled her gaze to mine. “Every woman I’m ever with for the rest of my life, I’ll be constantly comparing to this moment. You. This body. This heart. And this woman. I don’t want to let you go tomorrow,” I hesitated, surprised at my own words, “but I think you already knew that.”

She rested her head on my shoulder and didn’t speak. I imagined she was struggling with the same affliction as me: wishing we could find a way for it to work. But there was nothing we could do.

“I’ve never met anyone like you, Michael. You have the mind of a geek, down to the core, and the tact and poise of a true gentleman. I didn’t think they made them like you anymore.”

“I’m really not that chivalrous. I hold grudges easily and my pride gets in the way a lot. I’m really not a gentleman at all, to be honest.”

“Well you have been with me.”

“Have I?”

She held out her hand, counting on her fingers. “You’ve held open doors, steered me clear of puddles, let me choose everything, surprised me with something sweet, paid for every single thing we’ve eaten, partaken in, and experienced today. I haven’t been too cold, I haven’t been too hungry, and I’m pretty sure that anything that would’ve been within your means to get for me, you would have. I’d say that’s pretty damn chivalrous.”

“I’ve spilled coffee on you, considered having sex with your best friend, made you slip in a muddy puddle, broke your glasses, and spent all of about forty dollars on our day date. I’d say I’ve done everything wrong,” I said.

“Yeah, you are kind of a jackass,” she laughed, leaning over and giving me a kiss.

“I was just doing all of those things to get you to smile,” I whispered. “I love your smile.”

She tried to cover her mouth, but I saw how the compliment made her feel. “Well, you know what they say: ‘a good man is hard to find.’”

“Always with the clichés.” I chuckled. I thought briefly of the perfect cliché I could use for us. And once I found it, I shouted it out. “If you love something, set it free!”

She looked sad for a moment, her eyebrows pulling together, and then she smiled and shook her head. “No, Michael. Just no. Every man has stupid thoughts, only the wise man chooses to remain silent.” She nudged, and I stared at her blankly.

“Never mind,” she added. “That’s a Swedish one.”

The fucking cliffhanger.

Lauren and I made love until late into the morning before we finally passed out from exhaustion.

I woke early to a tickle on my back, and felt Lauren’s arms wrap around me. I opened my eyes lazily and turned to see her eyes closed, and she snored softly. But we both must have fallen back asleep, because when I woke again later, she was still sleeping next to me.

Glancing over to where the clock should have been, I slid on my glasses to get a clearer look. But in our acrobatic adventures between the sheets the night before, one of us must have kicked it off the nightstand. And consequently, it wasn’t working.

I turned on my phone, seeing six missed messages. Two were from Duncan, I had a text message from Martin—saying he was spending the night with Monica—and four missed calls from an unknown number.

Tossing the sheet from myself, I rose and walked to the bathroom to check my voicemail.

“Hello, Michael. Professor Richardson here. I missed my flight to Washington on Thursday, and then had a small emergency I had to deal with on Friday. Saturday came, and when I finally arrived at the convention, the only one of you I could find was Jack! With a busted nose, no less. Anyway, I have an important message I need to speak with you about in person. Please call me as soon as you get this.”

I erased the message and listened to the next.

“Mike, it’s me again. Listen, something has come up and you’re needed urgently. I don’t care what time it is when you call, just please, call!”

The last two messages were similar, so I called him back immediately.

“Hello, Michael?”

“Yeah, hey. What’s going on, Professor?” I asked.

“Thank God. I hope it’s not too late. How quickly can you get downstairs in the lobby? I don’t care if you’ve showered, just make yourself presentable.”

I laughed. “What’s this all about?”

“The Seattle job. Put on some deodorant and a shirt, and meet me down here in five minutes!”

“Ooo…kay.”

He hung up the phone without giving me any further information. So I grabbed the clothes from the night before off of the floor and gave Lauren a quick kiss. I scribbled a note and left it on the nightstand that read:

Hey gorgeous. I’ll be back soon. Just had to run downstairs quick to speak to my professor. XOXO Michael

I grabbed my wallet and closed the door quietly, then took the elevator down to the lobby.

I spotted my gray-haired professor right away. His tiny spectacles sat on his wide cheeks like Santa Claus’s.

“Hey!” I shook his hand. “Good to finally see you.”

“We don’t have much time. I know your flight takes off at noon today, but I was able to get you a coffee appointment with Grant Knox. He was impressed with your credentials.” Richardson smiled. “He was also impressed with the good word I’ve been putting in for you for the last three months.”

“Grant Knox, the CEO of Bolten and Knox?”

“That’s the one. You have five minutes to get to the Starbucks five blocks away.” He looked at his watch. “You’d better go now.”

“Shit! Okay. I can do this. Right? I mean, I can totally do this. Oh God, I’m stuttering.”

Richardson laughed. “You’ve got this, Mike. Just be you. And if you don’t get it, it’s not the end of the world.”

I nodded, looking around me.

Shit! Lauren! I can’t leave without saying goodbye. I have to be at the airport at ten o’clock.
It was 7:56 a.m. when I looked at my watch.
No, it’ll be fine. This will probably only take thirty minutes, and I’ll be back in her warm bed before she wakes.
“I have plenty of time,” I accidentally said aloud.

“Four minutes, five blocks. Go!” he shouted.

I raced out the door and looked back. “Which direction?” I shouted.

“East! Hurry!”

So I sprinted five blocks east, dodging women with strollers, people out walking their dogs, rocks, Frisbees, fruit stands, newspaper stands, and a group of lip syncing mimes. By the time I arrived at the coffee shop, I had fourteen seconds to spare.

I wiped the sweat from my brow and took a deep breath to gain my composure. The fresh coffee beans hit my senses, and I decided to grab a bag to bring back to Lauren. She might appreciate fresh coffee on a Sunday. I smiled at the thought and moved up in line to order.

The small room was packed with people, but I had no idea who I was looking for.

The barista handed me my coffee and I saw a man seated alone toward the back, wearing a sweater-vest and an old-fashioned suit coat with patches at the elbows. So I shoved the dark roasted beans under my arm and approached him.

“Mr. Knox?”

“Yes! You must be Michael,” he shouted and held out his hand.

“Hey, do you mind if we sit outside? It’s really loud in here.”

He nodded, grabbed his coffee and newspaper, and followed me outside to a small table on the corner.

“I figured we’d have better chances talking over the traffic than in there,” I said. “Thank you for meeting me. I’m glad I was able to make it.”

“Chuck Robinson has been telling me great things about you. Have you always wanted to be a copywriter?”

“Well, I have a passion when it comes to most of the written word. I was an English major…”

The morning went by quickly. Mr. Knox was keenly interested in my background, and paid special attention to details, adding in industry jargon that he hoped I’d pick up on. And I never faltered. If I had questions, I asked, and answered all of his questions promptly and thoroughly.

It felt good. I couldn’t imagine an interview going any better than that. But when I shook his hand and started the walk back to the hotel, I realized I’d been there for almost two hours.

And I had to be at the airport in twenty minutes.

Fuck! Lauren.

I ran back to the hotel faster than I’d run from it. Every scenario clustered my mind.
What if I get there and she’s already left? What if I don’t have time to stop back at my hotel room? Fuck that, I’ll make time. The plane can wait. But what if
her
plane is leaving soon?

There was a line for the elevator, so I rounded the corner and flew up the stairwell, taking two—or three—steps at a time. By the time I’d reached the sixth floor, I breathed heavily and my throat was dry.

The door to Monica and Lauren’s room was open, and a janitor’s cart blocked the entry. I pulled it out of my way with a sharp tug, and it bounced off the ice machine in the hallway.

“Lauren?” I yelled, running into the room and scaring the shit out of a maid in the bathroom, causing her to jerk back.

With a hand over her chest, she said, “I’m sorry, sir. Everyone has checked out.”

“Dammit!” I put my hands up. “Sorry. Thank you,” I said over my shoulder on the way back down to the lobby.

I scanned the room quickly, looking for any sign of Monica and Lauren. When I didn’t see either of them, I jogged past each of the conference room doors, hoping I’d find them there.

But my search was fruitless.

“This can’t be happening,” I whispered.

I found Professor Robinson, Duncan, and Marty in the lobby, toting their luggage behind them.

“Guys, where is she?”

Duncan and Robinson looked at me blankly, while Marty kept his head down.

I took Marty’s shoulders in a firm grip and shook him. “Where are they, Marty?”

He lifted his head, and a small furrow of defeat wrinkled his brow. “They’re gone, man.”

“No! What time was their plane leaving?” I shook him again. “Answer me! I can’t let her leave. I don’t even know her last name!”

“They got in a cab about an hour ago.”

My head bobbed back, my shoulders slouched, and I took a minute to stare at the ceiling and collect my thoughts.

“I got your suitcase. I packed your laptop and chargers, too,” Marty added.

I swallowed and looked around the room.

“What did you do to Jack?” Duncan asked.

“What do you mean? I didn’t do anything to him. Why?”

“He bugged out and caught an early flight. But I was wondering what happened to make you break his nose,” he snickered.

“I didn’t break his nose—Lauren did.”

The guys tried to hide their laughter.

“And I need to find her before she goes back to Canada.”

“Take it easy, man. It’s not like you were going to marry the girl. Leave last night what it was—a one-night stand,” Marty said.

“It wasn’t.” I scratched my forehead. “That’s not what it was.”

Duncan laughed. “What was it then?”

“It was… it was…” I raked my hand through my hair, exhausted.

“Special?” Robinson asked.

I nodded. “Yeah. It was.”

Robinson set his keycard down on the reception desk, and after telling them his room number, he turned to me. “Sit down, Mike.”

I recognized the look on his face: the same look he’d given Jack a thousand times in class. It was that “I’m about to school you on life, young man” look.

“I don’t have time for this, Robinson. I have to find her!” I said urgently.

“Listen to me for five minutes, and if you’re still convinced that this woman is worth the chase, we’ll go find her. Deal?”

I took a deep breath, the minutes ticking down. With a quick glance at Martin and his curt nod, I reluctantly sat down on the cushioned chair in the lobby. “Go.”

He sat on the chair next to me and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. While he was relaxed without a care in the world, I was on pins and needles, fearing I was yet again missing some great opportunity. Maybe I’d get to the airport and she’d already be gone. Maybe I’d get there and catch her just in time before her departure, even if I only had enough time to get her last name. But no matter what, I knew I had to do something.

“Women are complicated creatures, Mike,” Robinson began. “At my age, and with the few experiences I’ve had, I’ve come to realize something.”

Duncan and Marty took a step closer, all wanting in on the secret. I admit, I was curious too.

“They’re calculated. Cunning. And above all else, cryptic. Looking back, I can recall all the times I remembered their touch,” he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, “their scent. And only a handful of words we ever spoke. But I can tell you that for all the women I’ve been with, and for all the things I experienced with them, they all ended for the best.”

Leaning back in his seat, he rubbed his jaw. “Those are the things we take with us, Mike. It’s the small, tender moments that propel us to find the next. It’s the lessons we learn along the way, preparing us for
the one
. The one we want to find, not just for a few hours. Or a day. Or even a weekend. Those are the ones we keep for life.”

I went to speak, but he interrupted me.

“Take what you can from this weekend. Remember the important things. Like how she made you feel, the name of her perfume, and how it felt to wake up in her arms. Because those are the things worth remembering.”

“I don’t want to believe that Lauren was only a one-night stand. I don’t want to believe that’s how she felt about me, either. I want to believe that we have something unfinished. And I want to find her,” I said.

Robinson nodded and looked down. “Have you wondered why she never gave you her last name?”

I considered his words. And maybe he was right. It could’ve been that she purposely withheld that information from me so that we wouldn’t have a way to find each other once the weekend ended. And perhaps she had no intention of trying to make some kind of long-distance relationship work. And maybe she was relieved when she woke this morning and didn’t find me in the bed beside her.

But dammit. I wasn’t going to leave that weekend without knowing for sure—not if I could find her to ask her.

“I’m sorry, Professor. I refuse to believe she intended any of this. I’m the one who her left her this morning. I owe her an explanation and an apology.”

Marty sighed and rolled his eyes, and Duncan stood with a silly grin on his face.

“Well,” Robinson said. With a sideways smirk, he pushed his glasses farther up so they sat high on his cheeks. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go find her.”

Duncan slapped my plane ticket in my palm, and Robinson and I fled the hotel.

***

The cab Robinson hailed was the craziest cab driver I’d ever seen. Not only did he blow through red lights and fail to allow a group of pedestrians cross the street, but I’m pretty sure he took out two squirrels and a duck on our way to the airport.