“Me?”
“Yes. I was going to break things off with her. I was even tempted to go back to seeing escorts, and you convinced me to give love a chance. I want to thank you for that.”
Great, Darren thought.
The two men shook hands. They returned to their dates. Slow music began to play. Darren took Karen's hand, and Vaughn took Korie's hand. The couples headed to the dance floor and began to dance. Darren held Karen tight. Korie held Vaughn tight.
Darren thought of Korie.
Korie thought of Darren.
They both smiled. They both put up a good act as if the other was not on their mind.
But they both knew.
Korie looked up from Vaughn's shoulder and her eyes finally met with Darren's.
His eyes said he was hurting.
Her eyes said that she was sorry for hurting him.
They might not have still been in love, but they knew this chapter hadn't ended yet. There was more to their story.
They both struggled to get through the end of the night.
The music switched from slow to fast and the second that the fast music came on, the mistresses, escorts, and groupies took the floor. Women dropped it like it was hot. They danced erotically. The women danced with each other, gyrated their bodies, and did their best to entice the most powerful men in the city. This did not go over well with the wives.
Not to be outdone, Karen took off her expensive heels and went to the dance floor. The crass side, it seemed, could no longer be subdued. Karen saw the various women dancing as a challenge, an opportunity. She too went out and danced among the women. She too let her hair down and worked her magic on the floor. Men were mesmerized by her.
Darren was embarrassed. You can take the girl out of the hood, but it seems you can't take the hood out of the girl.
“I apologize,” Darren said to Vaughn. Vaughn laughed.
“That's okay. I understand. You better get her, though. Men here will be offering her thousands of dollars to leave you.”
Darren laughed. “I guess you're right.”
The second he was able to make eye contact with her, Karen stopped. Like a scolded child, she gathered herself together and headed back to his side. He smiled at her for appearance's sake. He leaned in to speak to her as he took her hand.
“What the fuck was that?” Darren whispered.
“I was just dancing. The other ladies were doing it.”
“The other ladies didn't come here with anyone. Those are the mistresses and groupies.”
“Oh.”
“If you want to dance like that then wait until we get back to my place.”
“You want your own private show?”
“I do,” Darren said, smiling.
Darren had to admit that he liked the way that Karen danced. He loved the way that she moved. This event, however, was not the right place for that. They shared a laugh or two before going back to their table.
“Wow. That was quite a display,” Korie said, referencing Karen's dancing but looking at Darren the whole time.
“I'm going to go get a drink. Do you want anything?” Darren asked Karen while returning Korie's stare.
“Seven and seven,” she responded.
“Okay. Korie . . . raspberry vodka?”
Korie gave Darren a stunned look. Then Darren thought about it and had an equally stunned look on his face. He couldn't believe how easily it slipped out.
First mistake.
Darren knew that was Korie's favorite drink and he simply blurted it out. Luckily Vaughn was talking with another CEO.
“Uh, sure. How did you know?” Korie tried to play things off. She looked at him as if to say, get yourself together.
“Lucky guess. I'll be right back. Well, not right back. I plan to have a few.”
Darren went to the bar and had three consecutive rum and Cokes. As Darren spoke with the bartender, with his back to the event, he experienced an array of emotions. This night was becoming more increasingly difficult, too difficult. He just wanted to go home and crawl in bed so he could awaken from this nightmare.
“Woman problems?” a familiar voice said.
Darren turned around, hoping that it was Korie. He was equally surprised to see Stephanie. He looked at her, frowned, and turned his back. She was looking good, damned good. But she spurned him. He wanted nothing to do with her. Besides, he figured she was here working and on the arm of some mogul at the event.
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“Bartender, I'll have another,” he said, ignoring her.
“How have you been?” she asked.
“I thought I wasn't supposed to talk to you when you were working.”
“I'm talking to you.”
“So you are working.”
“Yes, I am.”
“So . . . who?”
“Does it matter?”
“Nope.” He tossed back another drink.
“Are you that mad with me?”
“I am.”
“Why?”
Darren was furious with her. Stephanie was the first woman in a long time who took his mind off Korie. In fact, she was the only woman that could truly take his mind off her. Like his feelings for Korie, Darren would have given her the world. It seems that women these days weren't interested in the world. They weren't interested in what a man could do for them. Korie wasn't interested because all she ever wanted was Darren. Stephanie wasn't interested because there was nothing that he could offer her that she couldn't get herself.
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“Tell me you didn't think we made a connection,” Darren said to Stephanie.
“I can't say that.”
“Then tell me that you couldn't see a long life with me.”
“I can't say that, either.”
“Then tell me what the fuck was the problem.”
“It had been a long time since I felt the way that I felt for you. The last time that I felt that way a man broke my heart. Plus, I like my lifestyle. I like the way that I live. I love this life. I had feelings for you too, but in this business there is no room for feelings.”
“I would have given you the world.”
“The truth is, Darren, there is nothing that you could have given me that I couldn't get myself.”
“What about love?”
That shut Stephanie up.
“Two screwdrivers please,” she said to the bartender.
She stood next to Darren in silence.
“Once, Twice, Three Times” by Howard Hewett began to play. The fast music stopped and again the mistresses and groupies left the floor. Some danced with the men who invited them, others retreated to their seats.
“The girl you're with, she's very pretty. Can I ask what agency she's with?”
Darren looked at her as if to imply he was insulted.
“She's not with an agency. She's just with me.”
“Oh.”
“I never used an agency before you and I had no plans to do so afterward.”
“I'm sorry, I didn't mean toâ”
“Don't worry about it.” He tossed back another rum and Coke. He was really buzzed, almost drunk.
“Is she your girlfriend?”
“She's my date. I mean, we're dating. We have been for a while now.”
“It didn't take you long to move on.”
“Let you tell it, we didn't have anything to begin with. It was just . . . business.”
“Darren I'm sorry, Iâ”
“I need to get back to my date, where I'm appreciated.”
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Darren took Karen her drink. He was feeling no pain at this point and he asked Karen to dance. She gulped down her drink and the two of then hit the dance floor. “I Can't Stop Loving You” by Kem was playing. Darren held Karen tight and they danced. Next a song by Jay-Z began to play and Darren and Karen danced sexually. They danced until they worked up a sweat and then they took each other's hands and told their good-byes to Vaughn and Korie. They left. It was obvious they were going back to his place. It was obvious that the liquor had Darren in the mood, and the atmosphere had Karen in the mood. Darren took Karen home in hopes of getting Korie off his mind. He began to wonder if that was even possible.
Even now I want her more than I have ever wanted anything or anyone in my life, he thought.
Chapter Twenty-seven
“Like You'll Never See Me Again” by Alicia Keys was playing over Darren's speaker system in the car. He drove down beautiful Lake Shore Drive to his condo. Each cord that Alicia sang resonated with him. With each verse there was a memory of him and Korie.
Karen had a few drinks before leaving and she too was feeling no pain. She held Darren's hand as he drove down Lake Shore Drive.
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Like you'll never see me again, is what Darren thought as he drove. He wished he kissed Korie and made love to her that last time like he would never see her again. He had no idea that the last time he made love to Korie would be the last time that he would ever make love to her again.
He thought again about how they met. He thought about every argument and every passionate embrace. He thought about the fact that she was seeing one of the wealthiest men in the world, and that there was no way he could get her back. He felt defeated. There was no way that he could compete with Vaughn's millions. She was the love of his life. And she was the love that he lost.
They walked into Darren's condo. More love songs were turned on. They kissed. Darren's hands explored Karen's backside and he slowly pulled up her silk dress to expose her thick bottom. He gave her ass a squeeze as their tongues danced with one another. She undid her dress and let it slip to the floor.
No panties. No bra. Just stockings, a garter, and 1,500-dollar heels.
Crass. Very crass.
He kissed her again. He bit her ear and sucked her earlobe as he grabbed one of her breasts.
“You don't have on any panties,” he whispered softly in her ear.
“With an ass like mine and tits like these I don't need them.” She sucked his bottom lip as they continued to kiss.
Crass. Very crass. But very sexy, he thought.
Darren peeled off his jacket and unbuttoned his shirt. His ripped abs were exposed. Karen kissed his chest, neck, and stomach. She then went back to kissing him on the mouth. He walked her over to the wall and spread her hands and legs against the wall as if to arrest her. He took off his pants, shoes, and socks and stood behind her naked as the day he was born.
He kissed her back. He moved her hair aside to kiss her neck, her shoulders, and her arms and licked ever so gently down her back. Karen let out a gentle sigh as she felt his tongue caress her backside. He knelt behind her and kissed the cheeks of her ample behind and also kissed her thighs and calves. Karen shuddered with anticipation. He then turned her around and devoured her. He tasted her sex and she purred like a kitten as he pleased her.
He devoured her.
He had his way with her.
He pretended that she was her.
He made love to her.
He made love to her like he was never going to see her again.
He made love to her. He fucked her. And he made love to her again.
By morning he was spent. He fucked her and he fucked her with all that he had. He fucked her as if he were trying to fuck away all his final memories of Korie. He fucked her as if to try and forget her. He fucked her so hard that he thought all traces of her and all memories of her would be lost in his seed, lost in his orgasm.
He tried to fuck Korie out of his mind and his heart.
He tried to fuck Korie out of existence.
He fucked so hard that he wanted to forget that he ever knew the name Korie Ann Dillon.
He failed.
He failed miserably.
Long after he came, he was looking at the ceiling, thinking about her, as Karen slept.
Chapter Twenty-eight
Korie and Vaughn said their good-byes about midnight. The event didn't end until 3:00 in the morning, but by midnight Vaughn had spoken to everyone he was going to speak to. He wore himself out with all the talking and dancing, but he handled himself well. Tonight he drove. He drove his Porsche. “Beautiful” by Musiq Soulchild was playing on the radio as they headed north on Lake Shore Drive back to his place. He took Korie's hand in his as he drove home.
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“Did you enjoy this evening?”
“I did.”
“You seem a bit distracted.”
“I have a long day tomorrow.”
“Oh. Okay. Do you want me to take you home?”
“No. My place is too far. Let's just head back to your house.”
“Do you want me to have the driver take you home after?” Vaughn smiled at her.
“That will be fine.” Korie smiled back.
After. That meant that Vaughn planned on taking Korie to bed. That meant that once they got back, the first thing they would do would be to take baths in one of the many bathrooms in the house.
The first thing that Vaughn would do would be to take a little blue pill hidden in his den, and then head to the shower on the first floor. Korie would go to the master bedroom on the second floor and pull out something sexy. She would wait in the tub until the pill took effect. Sometimes it only took fifteen minutes for the blood to rush to certain body parts. Other times it took longer, much longer. In either case, Korie would relax in the tub until he was ready. When he would come looking for her, she would quickly come out of the water, dress in lingerie, and come to him in his bed. It was an all-too-familiar routine. There was little spontaneity these days, little variety.
For what Vaughn lacked in creativity, he made up for in bed. Once he got going, he was a dynamo. He had length, girth, and he knew how to work his manhood. He was a fantastic lover. He was patient, tender, and methodical. He never made his way inside of Korie without kissing every inch of her body. She loved that. She took a hot bath and waited for him.
When he called for her, she went to him in black-lace boy shorts, a garter, and a sexy black bra. She moisturized her body in strawberry-scented lotion prior to coming out of the bathroom and stepped out looking good enough to eat.
She picked up the remote on the dresser in the bathroom and began playing soft music. She walked over to Vaughn and kissed him. He was wearing black silk pajama pants and an open silk pajama top. He slowly kissed her neck, her collarbone, and back up to her eyelids as he cupped her round, firm bottom.
As his hand explored her backside, she grabbed his package. She massaged it ever so slowly as she offered him her tongue. She kissed his neck, his chest, and she ran her hands alongside his thighs. He smiled at her, she smiled back, and she playfully pushed him to the bed.
She turned her back to him and did a sexy dance. He had a front-seat view of her sexy bottom and her long legs. She moved back and forth, dancing slowly, erotically. She teased him with her slow, sexual movements. She looked back at him and was happy to see that he was mesmerized. She smiled to herself as she continued to dance.
“You like that?”
“I love that.”
“You want a closer view?”
“I do.”
She simulated masturbation as she danced. This was something that he liked. She touched herself, she pleased herself. She became moist and offered him a finger with a taste of her flavor. She then turned her back to him again and slowly peeled off her boy shorts. She left the bra on. She knew how much he loved lace. She then lay him down on the bed and got on top of him to kiss him.
They kissed and touched one another until the song switched. His manhood was so hard he was longing for her, aching for her. New music came on. As the slow song began to play, Korie turned her back to Vaughn again. She mounted him. She then leaned forward and gave him a better view of her backside as he went in and out of her. His manhood was glistening with her flow.
She leaned forward and began to slowly rock back and forth. His well-built chest heaved up and down as his breathing became more pronounced. He tried to control her, tried to guide her. He tried to take things at his pace, but Korie took over. Vaughn didn't know it, but only her body was there with him. Her mind was with him.
Korie let her mind wander to the many times and places that she made love with Darren. She thought of him. She thought about his length, his girth, and the way that he used to make her feel. She longed to feel like that again. She wanted to feel like that tonight. It didn't help matters that she had seen him. Memories that she thought were long gone, were back in full swing.
When they were together, sometimes she and Darren would make love. Other times they would fuck. They would fuck like two prizefighters. They would fuck like two people who loved each other and also hated each other. They would fuck one another for dominance, for bragging rights. They would fuck with the goal in mind to make the other beg for mercy.
Vaughn always made love to her.
Tonight, after seeing him, after the music, after the liquor . . .
Tonight, she really wanted to be fucked.
Her back was to Vaughn. Her mind was with Darren. Her body had plans of its own.
She rode Vaughn.
She rode him hard. Her clitoris rubbed against his package. Her vaginal muscles flexed. She became excited, primitive. She had a heightened sense of awareness. Her nipples became sensitive and every nerve ending was firing, waiting to be touched, longing to be triggered. Her true sex drive had been awakened and she soon after had a feral passion within her that had escaped its confinement.
She had her way with him.
Vaughn tried to control her. He tried to please her, but he wanted her to slow down. Between her pace and the Viagra, it felt as if he were running a marathon.
A marathon he was losing badly.
She rode him. She fucked him. She moaned, she flexed, and released her vaginal muscles as she bounced up and down on top of him. Once she threw her hips into the battle, things went to a whole new level. It was like a high-end sports car racing an economy car. In Vaughn's case it was like a sports car racing a horse and buggy.
She didn't hear the guttural sounds that she made. She didn't hear the primitive grunts. She wasn't aware of his heavy breathing or hers. She wasn't aware of how her breasts swelled with passion, or how her hair began to sweat. She was only aware that there was a penis inside of her that she intended to work like a plow on open country ground. It was a penis she intended to use for its designed purpose; to please her, to fuck her, to take her to the brink of orgasm and beyond.
She rode him until she came. She thought of him, and she cameâhard.
Fortunately for Vaughn, he came as well. It wasn't until she got her breathing under control that she remembered him, remembered what his name was. It was then that she remembered that Vaughn was her boyfriend and not Darren. She looked back at him. In that moment he looked old, worn. He looked like a beaten man, a happy man, but a beaten man.
She came, but she wanted to come again. She wanted to do it again. He looked as if he wanted to collapse into unconsciousness. Vaughn was one and done. Korie thought back to her many bedroom bouts with Darren and remembered how some days he would only pause after sex long enough to grab some orange juice to refuel.
“That was incredible. I thought I was going to die for a minute there, but it was great,” Vaughn said.
You have no idea, Korie thought.
His voice rang with finality. They would not have sex again this evening. They wouldn't do it again in the morning. They probably wouldn't do it again for a few days. She came. But she wanted more. Her endorphins were firing. Her cycle was due to start soon and although she was satiated, she was not satisfied, not yet. She wanted to be fucked. She wanted Vaughn to fuck her, to spank her, to pull her hair. She wanted him to put her to sleep. She wanted to feel him between her legs long after he pulled out. She wanted more.
He couldn't give her more. He gave her what he could.
Minutes later he was asleep.
She wasn't dissatisfied with him. She enjoyed his performance even though she did all the work. She was content. This evening's sex would get her through the next day. It was enough for her to know that he cared for her. It was enough for her to know that he desired her. But was it enough? Was this the best that he could do? She dismissed those thoughts. She felt guilty having thought about another man while sleeping with her man. Still, her thoughts of she and Darren helped get her there. Those carnal thoughts brought her quickly to orgasm. The sex was the best they ever had. Unfortunately, it was thoughts about her ex that made her come so hard. Korie felt guilty. She felt ashamed.
She got dressed. Vaughn continued to sleep.
Minutes later, Korie was driven back to her place by his driver.
She came, but she wasn't completely satisfied.
How important is sex? she thought as she was driven home.
Until now, sex between her and Vaughn was fine, until now things were good; they were routine.
Until now.
Until she remembered how things used to be, or how they could be.
Sex isn't everything, she thought.
Right?