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The bar
was nearly empty by the time Chris made his entrance. The air was still
clouded with traces of smoke from earlier in the night. Ashtrays sat
filled along side empty beer bottles and wine glass rimmed with lipstick
on the tables the waitresses hadn’t cleared. He picked his path to a
back corner booth, tossing his hand up at the bartender as he passed. With
a nod of acknowledgement, the bartender whistled for a short brunette who
hurried over. The ice-cold bottle of beer began to perspire leaving a
perfect circle of moisture on her tray as she walked towards Chris to
deliver his usual.
“Well don’t you just look like hell. Whatsamatter? Somebody run over
your dog?”
“Not tonight Michaela. I ain’t in the mood, okay?”
He barely met her gaze before focusing past her on the creeping cabs of
the busy street. Chris was tired. Not eight hours earlier, he’d had a
job, a great group of friends, and a promising future. Now all he had was
a knot in his stomach as wrestled with the thought of going home to his
mother and telling her about his latest failure.
“Jeez, bad day at the office Chris. You ain’t looked this bad since
Tommy Riley beat you up for messing with his sister.” She laughed then
and Chris couldn’t suppress the half smile that crept across his face.
“Yeah, well, I tried to tell him you wouldn’t leave me alone. Guess he
didn’t wanna hear it, huh?”
He looked up at her then and flashed his thousand-watt smile at her. He
noticed the slight blush on her cheeks. It still amazed him that she could
talk such shit to him and still be embarrassed by his gentle teasing.
“Me leave you alone? Ha! Now that’s a laugh! You couldn’t keep your
eyes in your head when I walked by.”
Her coyness wasn’t missed and Chris met her smirk with a skeptical look
of his own. He unconsciously slid over in the seat making room for her and
Michaela willing took the invite.
“As I recall, it was you,” pointing a finger and touching her nose
lightly, “That couldn’t stop drooling when I was around. You’ve had
a crush on me since junior high.”
He chuckled at her girlish giggle then, and caught a glimpse of that
pretty girl that had followed him around as kid. A girl from the
neighborhood that had lived in the same apartment building a few floors up
from him and his mom. He tilted the beer bottle up and took a long pull of
the bitter liquid into his mouth. Swallowing with a sigh, he dropped his
head and looked up at her through half lidded eyes. “Ain’t that right,
Michaela?”
She stopped her giggling then, meeting his eyes hesitantly. Chris almost
thought he’d embarrassed the girl too much. He took another swallow of
the beer, emptying it half way, and waited for her to speak.
“Why do you care, Chris? I mean, you and your fancy suits. You could
have any girl in the city you want. Why you gotta come back here and break
my heart?”
The softness of her voice carried the sincerity of her words. Chris almost
felt bad for coming in to the bar. It only meant one thing when he showed
up here like this. She knew it and so did he. Absently scraping at the
label on the bottle, it was his turn to look away. He felt callous asking
even though he knew she’d never turn him away. In all the years he’d
known her, she’d never turned him away. She’d never even asked for an
explanation.
Chris raised his eyes finally, his face crumpled with sadness that he
couldn’t express and she cupped his cheek gently in the palm of her
hand. The smell of liquor clung to her skin. Her touch was like a cool rag
to his fevered conscience, soothing away the guilt and loss he’d come
face to face with that day. She exhaled slowly, understanding what he
couldn’t say. With a smile on her lips she stood.
“Just let me finish up, okay? Finish your beer, it’s on me.”
Chris swallowed, relieved that she hadn’t made him say it. He picked up
the beer bottle and sipped it, no longer needing the alcohol to give him
courage. From his seat in the corner, Chris watched her deliberate
movements as she cleared the tables one by one. He relished the way her
hair slipped free of the haphazard ponytail and fell in her face. He
chuckled as she repeatedly tucked the same strand behind her left ear. The
clink of glasses was hypnotic and lulling. Her smart remarks to the
bartender and other waitresses brought a grin to his face and reminded him
of how much he missed her when he was gone. By the time his finished the
last of the brew, she was untying her apron strings and collecting her
purse and jacket.
Chris grabbed his empty bottle and made his way back up to the bar. He
leaned heavily across the ledge to toss the bottle in the trash and when
he stepped back down, he looked deep into her cloudy blue eyes.
“We don’t…,” he started, regretting again his decision to come
here.
“C’mon handsome. You know the way.”
She playfully shoved him towards the door as she called out her goodbyes
over her shoulder. She followed behind him with a hand on his back. A
reassurance, in his mind, that all this was okay. His mind continuously
replayed her words from the first night they’d done this. ‘No promises
and no regrets.’
He held the door open and let her walk through. Michaela chuckled at the
gesture and Chris merely grinned. Always the gentleman, even when it came
to a one-night stand. Grabbing her hand, Chris led her down the 3 blocks
to her building. There were no words between them. He had learned long ago
that false promises only made leaving that much harder the next morning.
The elevator ride was quiet except for the hum of the machine and the
beating of his heart. Taking a chance, he pulled her close and wrapped his
large arms around her like a blanket. Chris inhaled deeply, soaking up the
smell that was her. Shampoo, perfume, smoke, liquor, and sweat. An
intoxicating aroma that always reminded him of better days gone by.
It was Michaela that broke the embrace and led him to her door. She
fumbled with the key for a few minutes before Chris pulled her trembling
fingers away and kissed the tips of each one. He knew it wasn’t easy for
her to do this. Yet time and again, when life got to be too much, he’d
always find his way back to Cappy’s. Back to her.
Chris finally unlocked the door and opened it for her. She jerked the keys
from the deadbolt and tossed them on the table by the door. He stood at
the threshold for a long time. It was tradition and she had to say it out
loud before he’d enter.
“C’mon in, Chris. You can stay with me tonight.”
Always the same words. Always the same breathy whisper that wavered with
desire. Chris wasted no time crossing the invisible barrier and invading
her personal space. His massive hands reached out to cradle her face
before sliding back into her hair to pull the untamed waves free of the
rubber band.
The only light came from the full moon outside the window, casting their
bodies in an eerie blue glow. He rubbed his thumbs against her full
well-chewed bottom lip and sighed when she kissed the pad. Her slightly
pruned fingers twined themselves in the soft cotton of his shirt before
sliding upwards to his neck and pulling him down for a kiss.
Chris groaned at that first intimate taste of her. So sweet and so good
his tongue slipped into her mouth to explore her slowly. Michaela offer no
resistance to his invasion and she leaned against his body, opening for
him like a flower for the sun. Teasing, playing savoring every moment, the
two lovers reacquainted themselves with one another.
Chris finally broke the kiss, his breathing ragged, chest heaving with
want. Deep brown eyes peered into blue ones. He needed her to lead the
way. After screwing so many people out their money, hopes and dreams,
Chris couldn’t take the upper hand in this situation. It just seemed too
much like what he’d spent the last few years doing at work.
Michaela swallowed before taking one of his hands in both of hers and
pulling him around the corner into her bedroom. She released him then,
stepping away to light a few candles around the room. As the soft orange
glow warmed the space, she turned to face him, licking her lips nervously.
With practiced ease, she deftly unbuttoned her shirt. Leaving it hanging
on her drooping shoulders she slid her fingers down to flick open her
jeans. With a soft rustle they pooled at her knees and she was left to toe
off her shoes and socks.
Through it all Chris watched her. Never speaking and never moving, just
thanking whatever god would listen for sending him such an angel. If
he’d had any sense, he’d have married her long ago. Ambition had
gotten in the way though and now all he could hope for were these rare
nights when she’d share the beauty of her inner peace.
Finally she stood before him, her shirt barely concealing the curve of her
breasts and the flare of her hips. Chris gulped painfully, his body
already responding to the sight of her. He began to fumble with his own
clothes and she quickly crossed back to him and stilled the movements.
“Shhhhhh. It’s okay. I’ll do it for you.”
Gently she slid her hands up his chest to his shoulders and pushed at the
heavy material of his jacket. His arms dropped to his sides and the
offending article dropped effortlessly from his body. Nimble fingers began
releasing one button at a time, and she leaned forward pressing a moist
kiss against each newly exposed inch of flesh.
Chris threw his head back and fought against the urge to take over. The
best part of their time together was the relaxed way she seduced him, not
with her words or her body, but with her soul. He trembled as her lips
neared the waist of his slacks and he couldn’t suppress the moan of
desire when she loosened his belt and pulled it free.
The sound of their heavy breathing was soon accompanied by the rasp of his
zipper being pulled down. She followed the material through its decent and
knelt in front of him to pull off his shoes. She peered up at him through
her long lashes and smiled, communicating her request without words. One
at a time he lifted his feet, and all too quickly he was stripped of his
clothing save his shirt.
Now it was her turn to fumble as she rose on unsteady legs. His arms
reached out for her, pulling her against him in a powerful embrace. He
dipped his head to nuzzle the slope of her neck and her moan of compliance
was the sweetest sound he’d heard all day.
“Are you sure, Michaela? Are you absolutely sure?”
He tilted her head with a single knuckle and used his thumb to save her
bottom lip from her ferocious teeth. She simply smiled and nodded as she
tugged at his shirt. He pulled away from her long enough to remove the
offending article and then suddenly he was back sweeping her up and
carrying her towards the bed.
They lay together on the bed, their limbs a tangled web. Chris took his
time placing kisses all over her body. His tongue slipped across her
collarbone, even as his teeth scraped the sensitive skin. His hands
kneaded the flesh of her arms, thighs and buttocks as if trying to ease
his own tension by massaging her body. The contrast of their coloring was
less striking in the shadows that danced across their bodies with each
flicker of the flames. Sighs and moans became indistinguishable. Pretty
soon Chris couldn’t tell where he ended and she began.
It was Michaela who pushed him back, finally. Breathless and flushed she
panted and looked up at him with pleading eyes. United in their quest for
fulfillment, the couple shifted their bodies to align themselves for
joining. With deliberate ease, Chris guided himself home into her warm
depths and both he and Michaela let out a hiss of pleasure.
His movements were slow, a paced ebb and flow that the tides of the ocean
would envy. Her short nails left a trail of fire up and down his back as
he arched further into her, soaking up her solace. His mouth, hungry,
demanding sought out new places to tease and suckle. The more she writhed,
the faster he stroked. In and out, over and over, pumping out the rhythm
of their passion.
As the clouds outside began to collect and rumble, so did the waves of the
building orgasm inside Chris. Almost violently now, he thrust into her
willing body, eyes locked with hers. Michaela continued to assault his
back as she wrapped her legs around him and tilted her hips to meet him
thrust for thrust. She waited a few more moments before grabbing his head
and pulling him to her in an all-consuming kiss.
In that instant he erupted, breaking the kiss to call out her name as the
sky opened. His body shuddered briefly as her own cries met his ears and
she followed him over the precipice. They lay panting and trembling in
each other’s arms before Chris felt himself slip free of her body and he
moved off of her. Together they climbed beneath the sheets and Chris once
again wrapped his arms around her, spooning against her back and kissing
her tenderly.
When their breathing returned to normal, Chris was the first to speak. In
a voice raw with emotion, he choked out an explanation.
“I lost my job today Michaela. I was so fuckin’ stupid. All my friends
are going to go jail and I’m out of job because I was too fuckin’
stupid to ask where the money was comin’ from. I don’t even know how
to tell my mom. I just didn’t have any where else to go.”
She bent her head and kissed his forearm, offering what reassurance she
could.
“It’ll all look better in the light of day, Chris. I’m here for you.
It’ll all be okay.”
They lay there together watching the rain until the faint traces of dawn
lit the sky. And as sleep slowly claimed them, Chris made a decision and
verbalized his final admission of the night.
“I love you.”
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