Authors: Vivienne Harris-Scott
He is bitting the crook of her neck,
breathing more heavily as he feels her fingers encircle and caress his swelling
tumescence; he asks in a strangled voice,
“
Are we
…
Are you sure?
”
but she takes his lips again and answers
into his mouth
“
Yes E. We need this. We both do, and I
want it,
”
Their eyes meet again, and she confirms,
”
Make love to me. Just this one last time.
”
And so, he does.
Several hours later, he is the first one
to talk.
She has just opened her eyes, and sipped
water from the glass on the nightstand. She is still groggy from their
exertions, and is actually rubbing her eyes to shake her sleepiness off, when
he enters the room, freshly showered and casually dressed, plops on the bed and
asks with a smile etching his face,
“
When do you want me to take you to the
airport?
”
She raises her eyebrow and replies
“
Really E? You are that desperate to get
rid of me? I must have lost my touch
…”
The remark sobers him, and a sullen
expression replaces his smile. Not only she hasn
’
t lost her touch, but because it had been
so long, she felt better than ever. Three hours wasn
’
t nearly enough, another month wouldn
’
t be enough
…
and now, he has to let her go
…
he
’
ll never be able to touch her again
…
The thought hits home, and he is about to
roll over to get up, when she grabs his T-shirt to force him to stay put and
look at her.
”
I
’
m sorry.
”
she says bitting her bottom lip, and
adds,
“
I am, E. I know how hard this is, and I
shouldn
’
t make jokes. I
’
m nervous
…
I
’
m sorry.
”
They stare at each other, until he leans
forward and their noses touch. He lightly places a kiss on her lips and says,
“
I know. And I
’
m sorry too.
”
She caresses his cheek, looking at him
and kisses him back, parting her lips, pulling his neck. Only when she hears
him groan, as one of his hand cups her face, she relaxes her grip on him, and
lets him be.
As their kiss ends, he whispers with his
classic Australian brawl that always made her weak,
“
Oh Dear
…
I could just fuck you into oblivion right
now
…”
his free
hand is resting on the white sheet still covering her body. Their eyes meet,
and she licks her lips, but he knows the exercise while enjoyable would be only
postponing the inevitable, so he just settles himself on the headboard pillows,
holding her against his chest and says,
“
Let
’
s stay here for a while.
”
He holds her in silence, smelling her
curls.
They are saying goodbye.
((~~!~~))
Vi
Two weeks and he has disappeared from her life.
Two full weeks since the last phone call,
and true to his words, he is gone.
She can
’
t bear it. She
’
s on her last nerve.
He hasn
’
t retuned any of her messages or emails
since; all contacts have abruptly halted. Stupid, stupid! She wants to scream!
E is watching her. It feels he
’
s been watching her for two weeks, and she
is getting irritated with him. This is all because of him! If only she hadn
’
t come back! If only, he hadn
’
t forced her to call Julian!
Who are you kidding? You came back because
Julian forced you. It had to be done, so don
’
t even start
…
“
Well, what did you expect?
”
Ethan had stood up, suddenly angry. He
had walked over to her in long strides, standing behind her.
“
After the things that were said, of course
he would avoid you. Maybe you think his heart wasn
’
t at stake here
…”
She had turned to him, her eyes blazing,
“
Don
’
t be so presumptuous to assume how I feel
or how he does!
”
“
Well, why not? I know you. Actually, sometime
even better than you know yourself. You
’
re pregnant, with his child, or do you
expect me to forget? And baby, I know Julian, have known him for as long as I
can remember, so I
’
m entitled to tell you how wrong this is!
”
Ethan had said, furious, standing
extremely close to her. Her back was pressed against the ledge of the sink.
“
I was under duress,
”
she had stiffly stated, avoiding eye
contact.
”
You forced me to call him, and I wasn
’
t ready
…”
“
Look Vic, he needs to know. The duress
argument is crap and you know it!
”
His nostrils had flared, as he had
pursued,
“
You cannot keep us both in limbo just
because you aren
’
t ready. Life doesn
’
t wait. I told you I will be there, and I
mean it, but only if Julian knows the truth and decides he doesn
’
t want you or this child, which I doubt on
both counts!
“
She had been ready for a snappy retort
when she had noticed how distressed Ethan looked and the words had died in her
throat.
She had bowed her head down, and
whispered,
“
I
’
m sorry
…”
She was truly feeling contrite for
taking her anger and frustration on him, when in truth, everything he had said
was right and made the most sense. Adding to that, he was actually acting like
the better man in this peculiar situation, which was more than she had ever
expected from him, and that was enough to unnerve her deeply.
He had taken her hand and watched their
fingers intertwine,
“
Do you want to leave? Go to him?
”
She had looked up, her face stricken with
shock and fear,
“
No. I-I
’
m not ready
…
E., I just
…”
He had held her, whispering
”
Shush,
“
against her curls, until she had finally
relaxed.
She was not ready to leave him. She was
not sure she ever would. The trip had made her realize a shocking discovery:
Ethan was the great love of her life.
Julian or not.
Two days later, Ethan tells her he
’
s letting her go, and it
’
s time to face her future, time to go to
Julian, and let the chips fall where they may.
((~~!~~))
“
I hate goodbyes.
”
she says, as her bags are ready in the
foyer and the door is opened for the chauffeur to take them and her to the
airport.
“
Well, at least this time, we do get to see
each other before you go.
”
He smiles, thinking of the last time she
left their home, to disappear for five years, not giving him the opportunity to
see her as he had left for work at 7 a.m. leaving her asleep in bed.
“
I hate goodbyes.
”
she repeats.
“
Vic, look at it this way, it
’
s not a goodbye but the start of something
…
you
’
re going back to LA, to Julian, but I am
here, I
’
ll always be here for you
…
. We
’
ll call each other; even visit when the
baby is born
…
this isn
’
t goodbye
…”
he asserts, feeling his throat tighten.
They agreed, he wouldn
’
t take her to the Kingsford Smith himself
to avoid any further discomfort than necessary.
“
Call me when you
’
re settled,
”
he says hoping to lighten things up.
“
I will.
”
she says, as she holds him tight against
her and says softly against his ear,
“
Thank you E.
”
He gives her a slight peek on the lips and
states,
“
You
’
d better go, while you still can
…”
She burst of laughing, and so does he.
They never were good at saying goodbyes.
And, almost doesn
’
t count.
Julian
McCarty Estate. Hollywood Hills. Los Angeles, USA.
April 2011.
He hates her. She has toyed with him, as if he were a
marionette with stuffing for a heart and wire for bones.
She has slinked into his life like a
criminal. In less than 3 months, she has crept into his mind from nonentity to
blazing sphere. She is the first thing on his mind when he wakes up and when he
falls asleep, it is under her.
I am doomed. I am doomed. I am doomed.
He is not a fan of melodrama, yet the
words are a continuous train.
He
’
s turning 44 and this not how he envisaged
starting another year of his life.
((~~!~~))
My birthday is tomorrow. Marcus and Melissa have
organized a lavish shindig. Even Frances contributed.
Frances. I
’
m working with her would you believe. How
is that for a cruel twist of fate?
Just as Vi and I hit the bricks, I asked
Ari to find me work, and I ended in a feature with Frances as the co-lead!
Would I have said
‘
no
’
if I had known? Probably. But the truth
is, Frances has been great, nothing but professional, and fun to be around. She
hasn
’
t made passes at me, and I kind of find
myself reminiscing of the days when my life was simpler, when my heart wasn
’
t driving me crazy or hurt me at every
chance it got.
The days before
her
.
Because ever since, no one else will do
for me, no one else is worth thinking about.
I hate her for making me love her.
((~~!~~))
He can't afford to keep falling so hard for her. A man
has to hold on to some part of himself or the woman he loves will completely
take over.
He can
’
t think of her without an adrenaline rush.
He hates it. He hates her for what she
’
s done to him.
He knows, he said the words, and was the
one to cut all ties, but every message she leaves, every email she sends, makes
it harder.
He told himself over and over he would be
fine. After all, he was Julian McCarty, wasn
’
t he? He
’
s done the honorable thing, letting her
return to her husband, his best friend.
She told him she would come back to him,
and she hadn
’
t.
He feels awkward and guilty, and so damn
angry. Frances had only been too happy to let him know she was still there for
him, that they could put this sad episode in the past since he was back at
work, and it seems whoever the other woman was, she wasn
’
t coming back. Strangely, he was somehow
grateful, she still wanted him. He didn
’
t do alone well. He hasn
’
t rekindled anything with Frances, but
they do see each other off work for dinners and drinks, and it oddly calms down
the inner torment that has settled within him for weeks now.
But Vi is still present. Constantly.
An unpleasant reminder of his misdirected desire. He is shocked at discovering
that he is capable of that kind of betrayal. That he can love Vi, and still let
his body desire Frances; that those feelings don
’
t cancel each other out, the way they are
supposed to.
((~~!~~))
175 people are formally invited to celebrate his 44
th
birthday. A few additional scrappers are expected to have made their way in,
but the real power brokers of the who
’
s who are there, including the governor.
Melissa and Charlie have flown from England to attend, and see with their own
eyes that his claims of being fine after putting an end to his affair with Vi
are real, and even Ethan left him a message on his voicemail wishing him a
fantastic day.
So, why is it, you
’
re feeling so utterly miserable?
, he asks himself, as he surveys the crowd
from one of the balconies of the upper floor.
Because the one person you really wish was
here, isn
’
t,
says his inner voice
.
She isn
’
t coming back
.
He hears footsteps behind him and turns
around only to see Frances has entered the room.
She
’
s advancing towards him, disrobing herself
with each step, while saying,
“
Julian, it
’
s your birthday, and you have been
snubbing your guests, not even making an appearance at your own party
…”
her dress have followed her shoes on the
floor,
”
Luckily, I
’
m no ordinary guest
…”
she unclasps her bra,
”…
there is absolutely no reason, I can
’
t give you your gift in person
…”
her panties have followed suit,
“…
now, is there?
”
she asked, naked, a few inches from him.
Julian looks at her from head to toe, and
a part of his body cannot help but be responsive to the available woman in
front of him. Even though she isn't the one he wants to be buried deep inside
of at the moment, she would have to do.
Don
’
t do it
, says a voice in his head.
Vi isn
’
t coming back,
says another.
But, his last bit of restraint leaves him
when Frances sits in the bed right in front of him, positioning her back
against the plush pillows, and spreading her legs, puts a finger in her mouth
sucking it languorously it as if it were a lollipop, and then slide the very
same finger between her legs and moans his name.
Julian barks out a curse, and removes his
shirt and pants, while he watches her pleasure herself.
Damn it to hell!
When he
’
s undressed, he storms over to her, grabs
her by her legs, wrapping them around his waist, and slams into her as she
screams in pleasure and delicious pain.
The first round goes rather quickly.
Julian is in a frenzy. He
’
s not tender, barely giving Frances
’
body time to adjust to him; he
’
s letting his body take what it needs
because he
’
s not thinking of Frances at all. As he
brutally pounds into her, he
’
s trying to exhort the woman he is thinking of, the
woman he really wants, the one he cannot stop thinking about or imagining in
his bed, legs spread wide as his face is buried in her dripping sweet pussy,
wet only for him, responding only to him. But Frances scream her orgasm, and
Julian
’
s eyes are forced to look at her flushed
faced, reminding him who it is he is fucking.
He can
’
t bear to look at her, so he turns her
around telling her he wants her from behind. After a few minutes, she reaches
another orgasm, while Julian is still very far away from his own, his thoughts,
still on the woman who fits him like a glove, the one he really wants, the one
he
’
ll never have.
He growls, angry with the woman under him,
and with his own body, which clearly is refusing to comply in giving him the
release he needs.
Frances must sense something is amiss, as
she turns her head and seductively tells him to lie on his back, she is going to
take care of him as he did for her.
He acquiesces because at this point he no
longer cares. She gets on top of him, and start working her hips, while he lies
down, eyes closed, thinking of
her
. At first, nothing much happens, but
as Frances accelerate her motions and his image of Vi becomes even more vivid
in his brain, he starts to feel the tingle in his spine and his orgasm
building, and he lifts his upper body, so he can suck on Frances neck
’
s as he did Vi
’
s the last time he actually had
intercourse.
His eyes are closed, his face is buried in
Frances
’
neck, and with each thrust, he imagines
it is Vi's long brown legs around him and her inner walls clenching and milking
his member, and finally he is feeling close. Certainly feeling his impending
release, Frances is asking him if he likes his birthday present. He groans and
starts sucking her neck when he hears
her
voice.
Then, three things happen at once: his
mind is telling him to open his eyes to check the voice he is hearing isn
’
t in his head, his cock instantly becomes
harder at the sound of that very voice, and Frances amidst a violent orgasm
digs her nails in his shoulders and moans in deep ecstasy, as his eyes shot
open at the pain.
That when he sees
her
.
Draped in a striking green balloon cocktail
dress, standing three mere feet away from him.
She is spotting a blinding smile that make
his mind snap.