Last Call (28 page)

I give my son my full attention as he does some fancy footwork while I follow behind him, spinning in circles, snapping my fingers, and then moving my body to the beat. When the song is over, the entire audience rises to their feet, clapping and whistling with excitement. Royce and I take a bow and he runs off the floor straight to Jason’s arms.

“Jason, did you see our dance?”

Jason picks him up and places him on his shoulders just as the encore of “Happy” blasts through the speakers. Almost the entire audience rushes the dance floor, more than the first time.

Jason surprises us both when he goes out to the dance floor, spinning and dancing with Royce planted on his shoulders. I can’t contain my delight as I watch how elated my son is with Jason. I don’t even think another second about my feelings. I know this man is meant to be in our lives. My feet must agree because, before I know it, I’m running to the dance floor to join in.

Everyone gets in the Soul Train line again, taking their turn to show off their best moves. When it’s Jason’s turn, he pulls Royce off his shoulders, yanks me from the line, and the next thing I know, I am spinning in Jason’s arms as we dance down the length of the line. We shuffle our feet and let our bodies just move to the music, our hands tangled together and big radiant smiles on our faces. Royce follows us down the line, and we finish the night utterly… happy.

J
ason

“He’s worn out,” I whisper as I lay Royce on his bed and pull the covers over his sleeping body. The night was a success as the guests ate, drank, and danced the evening away. Jerrica and Wilson left an hour ago for their flight to Hawaii for their honeymoon.

“Yeah, he’s not used to staying up so late,” Mariah whispers back. She leans down and kisses the side of his head then finishes pulling the covers up.

I am not sure what I should do, but I know what I want to do. I want to finish what we started when we kissed tonight, but I’m not sure if we should. I’ve convinced myself that separating from her is what’s best for both of us; however, the kiss we shared could have been enough to encourage me to forgo my plan.

I walk from their room and move to the small bar located in the living room, pouring a glass of Jamison, then walk to my room to change.

Sipping the brown whiskey, I set the glass on the dresser and pull my dress shirt from the waistband of my pants. After unbuttoning it, I toss the shirt over the chair and pick up my glass again. The liquid is exactly what I need right now. I also need the peace of the ocean, the familiar solace of the rolling waves.

Walking to the balcony door, I pull it open and feel the strong breeze flow into the room. The white linen curtains dance with the small gusts of wind, the sounds beginning to relax my tense state.

Tomorrow will probably be the hardest day of my life when we part ways. I’m not meant to be with someone like her. Assholes like me do best when they are left alone. Besides, let’s face it, that’s the only state of being I am comfortable with.

Leaning over the railing, I watch as the gentle waves lap against the shore, tranquilizing the air.

I take another sip from my whiskey glass when a light tap raps on the door. I turn on my heels to find Mariah standing at the entryway.

She walks in the room and turns. “Can you unzip my dress, please?”

I finish my glass of whiskey then move to her poised body. She has taken down her hair from the sideways style, the long, brown strands flowing in loose curls down her back. I run my fingers along the side of her neck then slowly sweep her hair to lie over her left shoulder. My fingers inch their way down her back, locating the tab of her zipper. I lean in close, brushing my nose to the sweet, jasmine smell of her skin, then plant a light kiss to the delicate spot where her neck and shoulders meet.

As Mariah’s head tips back, resting on my chest, like a moth to a flame, I cannot pull away from her. I run my lips over the top of her shoulder and begin to lightly press into her skin, allowing my tongue to taste her as I work my way to the end of her shoulder.

Her dress falls to the floor, gathering like a cloud around the bottom of her feet. Mariah turns around, looking into my eyes, making my heart pound in my chest, letting me know I need to stop this. I need to cut my ties and move away from her for good. But when her lips come to my chest, I forget any thought except the pleasure she is giving me.

Mariah runs her fingers up my chest and latches them around my neck. She stands on her tiptoes, and soon, her mouth is touching mine. I try to hold myself back, but it’s impossible. I snake my hands around her waist, pulling her even closer to my body. Her skin is a blanket of the finest silk wrapped around her delicate, sexy form. The feel of her skin against mine is impossible to reject.

I keep my lips mingling with hers as my hands graze the small of her back and the space between her shoulders. When my fingers find her bra, I pinch the hook between my index finger and thumb, unlatching it. We part just enough to allow the garment to fall with her dress onto the floor.

God, what has this woman done to me? How will I ever break free from her now when she has me increasingly enraptured with every movement?

M
ariah

My breasts smash back into Jason’s hard body, my nipples hardening the moment our chests are skin to skin. I fasten my hands around his neck as I deepen our kiss, the rhythmic movement sending a wave of heated pleasure to the depths of my body, barreling its way to my core. With his lone kiss, he sends a direct current of desire through every nerve ending in my body. My skin is tantalized, my heart rapidly thumping under my ribs. My breathing begins to stagger as each and every stroke of his tongue sends me spiraling deeper into bliss.

Jason begins to sway back and forth, our bodies slow dancing to the rhythm of our kissing. With each step, we are tangoing to a beat our love creates. I can’t keep my lips from his or my hands from his skin.

He slides his hands deliberately up my sides, lightly brushing my skin with the pads of his fingers, and then I feel myself rising up. As Jason lifts me, my legs instinctively wrap around his waist.

He keeps the slow sway of his hips, rocking back and forth. With each pass, his hardness brushes against my wanting core. The harshness of his zipper and the soft steel of his manhood have me tingling so much a moan escapes my lips.

Jason walks to the side of the bed and lays me down onto the soft mattress, blanketing me with his body. Our lips, since the first time they’ve touched, have been fastened to each other’s, and I don’t want them to break. I can’t stand not feeling him completely naked against me, and I want to make this a night neither one of us will be able to forget. I want to make love to Jason tonight and show him with my body exactly what he means to me. I want to show him with my touch that our lives were meant to cross. The submission of my heart will be what he needs to finally accept our relationship.

I slide my hands down to the waistband of his pants, unfastening them, then use my feet to slide them the rest of the way down his legs. I repeat the movement with his boxers until Jason is completely naked on top of me. There is one more piece of fabric barricading his entry to my body, and Jason wastes only a second to pull at the lace of my thong. Then, like the last time we were together, he rips them from my body as he, too, refuses to unlatch our lips.

Jason’s cock is poised at the entry of my body. He rests his left arm next to my head and reaches between my legs, slowly stroking himself, then holds it against my core. I can feel the wetness from the pearl bead that’s formed on the tip of him.

Before my mind starts to panic at the thought of doing this without a condom, Jason holds himself still then slowly pushes his way in. The sensation of his entry travels its way through my body as my skin ignites with pleasure. I clasp my hands on Jason’s face, kissing him madly as he slowly moves in and out of me.

This is the first time I’ve made love to anyone, and I am so glad it’s with Jason. I could never ask for anything better as he guides me closer and closer to ecstasy.

His hips move a little bit faster and then speed up even more, our bodies becoming slick with sweat, the panting of our breaths becoming more apparent as we finally reach the overpowering sensation of orgasm.

My body begins to tremble and a loud moan leaves my lips and grazes against his. Not missing a single beat, Jason rocks into my pelvis one more time, finding his own release.

J
ason

W
e are lying in my bed, wrapped around each other, simply enjoying our blissful state. This has been the perfect way to say goodbye to Mariah. When the sun rises in the east, we will begin our journey back to reality, and I will say farewell to the woman who will always hold the best memories of my life.

Mariah leans up on her elbow and drapes her arm over my chest. She is looking deeply at me, pleading with me, but for what, I do not know. As I move my hand to her cheek then brush her hair behind her ear, she smiles coyly and closes her eyes. Thick, black lashes fan across her cheeks, and I am enchanted with her look. She glances back into my eyes and expels a deep breath, chewing her bottom lip, trying to talk herself into something.

“I wanted to tell you…” She sits up then rakes her fingers through her hair. I assume she is going to tell me she will miss me when we break it off or that she needs to leave, but I really have no a clue what is going through her pretty little head. “God, this is so hard.”

“What is?” I ask as I run my finger down her back.

“I’m just going to let it fly and hope to fuck you don’t think I’m a damn lunatic. I…I…I love you.”

My world breaks and blissfulness washes from my body, only to be replaced by something else, something darker and unwanted—my fear.

I sit up from bed and lean over the mattress. Locating my boxers, I pull them up and walk to the bottle of Jamison on the dresser. The bottle clinks against the glass as I attempt to pour the whiskey into it. This is not what she is supposed to do.

I take a drink. She is supposed to leave me and never look back.

I take another big drink. We agreed in the car this would be our last weekend and our time with each other will be done.

I finish my drink and quickly pour another.

“Jason…? Are you okay?”

When I turn, Mariah has moved off the bed and has encased herself in the sheet. I can feel her warm hand against my skin, and my body recoils. I can’t have her touch right now. I can’t have any part of her right now. This needs to be done. Our time needs to be over.

M
ariah

The moment my words slip from my mouth, I want to take them back. Jason has a look of utter terror when he hears what I’ve said to him, and I don’t understand why. Sure, we both agreed this would be our last weekend, but circumstances changed. I know he’s changed because there is no other reason he would have made love to me the way we just did if he hadn’t changed his mind about how he feels towards me.

When I finally get the courage to ask if he’s okay, he backs away from me, looking for the nearest exit. My heart starts to slowly fall apart.

“Don’t. Don’t say those words to me, Mariah.” Just as I thought, fear is present. Jason’s black eyes transform into angry tar pools. He is sneering at me like I’ve completed the ultimate crime against him. “Don’t ever tell me that.”

I inch my way closer to him, but as soon as he sees me behind him, he starts to step away. “Why?”

“Just don’t, okay?” Jason gulps down his whiskey and moves to the balcony. He remains there, leaning against the railing, looking down at his empty glass.

“You’re going to need to be more specific, Jason. Why can’t I tell you how I feel about you?” I move to the balcony, trying to get myself closer to him.

“Because!” he shouts, startling me.

I take a step back and try to think about this situation. Giselle warned me of this. She said if he’s not prepared to love me, then I need to leave him alone and move on from him. I can’t bear to walk away from him, though, without knowing why he refuses to hear the words. I need to know what exactly it is that makes him pull away from me.

“Please, talk to me, Jason. If you just tell me, I will leave you alone. But I can’t leave this room until I know.” I swallow the baseball that has risen in my throat and then take another step back, giving him space.

Jason moves back into the room and flops down on the bed. He leans forward; resting his elbows on his knees, and cradles his face in his hands. I can see his back rise and fall as he takes a big inhale of air then releases it.