Bitter Sweet Kisses

by S M Mala

  ‘If you go storming over there, based on the story of a two-year-old, that’s going to look bad. You need to get proof. Did you speak to the police about who drove the car?’

  ‘They were supposed to come back to us but we’ve heard nothing.’

  ‘Well, now you have a lead to work on,’ Madison said, glancing over at Jonah. Sophie turned and caught Onya’s eye. ‘Don’t worry, she won’t go near Milly again, I promise you.’

  ‘I need to get to the bottom of this before I ring her scrawny bloody neck.’

  And that’s when Sophie figured out Harry might have something to do with it.

  ‘I want out.’

  Jonah sat with Natalie in his new studio looking at his work. He avoided eye contact and looked at his screen. ‘Simple.’

  ‘He said you’re not returning his calls,’ she gently coaxed. ‘He must have said something pretty bad to upset you.’

  ‘I’m not upset,’ he replied, pursing his lips.

  Glancing out, he noticed Amelia was running away from Sophie at the other end of the garden, who was trying to put a sun hat on her head, on. He smiled at his wife’s frustration and Amelia was screaming with delight.

  ‘You have a beautiful family,’ whispered Natalie, following his eye line. ‘And you’re very lucky to have this space. It’s going to help you out a great deal. It also means Harry can’t turn up unannounced.’

  ‘That didn’t stop him a few weeks back,’ he grumbled, shaking his head.

  Jonah didn’t want to think about his last face to face conversation with Harry.

  It made him feel sick.

  ‘What did he say to you?’ persisted Natalie, standing up. ‘I’m pleased you don’t want to work with him but I know he has a big part to pay in Amelia’s adoption.’

  ‘I work for him, and he signs the papers. I don’t work for him, and he doesn’t. I want Amelia to be mine but if I let Harry stay in our lives, based on a professional relationship, he will try and cause a problem between Sophie and me.’

  ‘Does he still love her?’

  ‘Who knows who he truly loves, other than himself,’ was his honest reply.

  Natalie laughed and touched his shoulder.

  ‘You have his wife, child and will take some of his income. You know he’s not going to be happy, so you should have ended it with him sooner. I appreciate he has given you some great advice but you listen too much to that man.’

  ‘I thought he was a friend.’

  ‘Screwing Onya behind your back wasn’t exactly friendly, though she might think so.’ Natalie frowned. ‘I’ve seen her around. Always with Harry but something isn’t good there.’

  ‘I don’t give a shit,’ he said, looking at the photos on the screen. ‘She’s in the past.’

  ‘I’ve told Harry we are to cease working together, officially, and anything he has lined up, he can still take his cut. You have enough work to keep you busy for years at this rate.’ Natalie stood up. ‘I’ll see myself out.’

  Kissing her goodbye, he watched her walk out towards the side door before waving at Amelia, who was in Sophie’s arms, now throwing the hat onto the floor and laughing. Then he saw them quickly turn and walk back into the house.

  Concentrating on his work, the next thing he knew, Amelia was tapping on the window.

  ‘Daddy!’ she said. ‘Mummy.’

  ‘You want me to come in?’ he asked, smiling at her chubby little face, identical to Sophie’s.

  She nodded in response then ran back into the house. Sophie was standing by the door on her mobile, ringing him.

  ‘There’s a police officer here,’ she said, looking over. ‘She wants to talk to us.’

  Quickly walking out, he ran to the house, seeing Amelia was walking around looking at the people in the room. Sophie was stood by the sofa, waiting for him to come in.

  ‘Mr Bauer, sorry to disturb you but we wanted to have a quick chat,’ the female police officer said as he looked at Sophie trying to sit Amelia down to watch television.

  ‘Could we talk where she can’t hear?’ Sophie asked, as Amelia looked over and then smiled at her favourite pig cartoon.

  Everyone went into the kitchen, and Sophie stood where she could see her child.

  Jonah looked at his wife, seeing a complete change in mood.

  ‘I’m sorry it has taken a while to get back to you,’ she apologetically said. ‘We were following a few leads and now we can tell you a bit more.’

  ‘More?’ he asked, walking towards Sophie and holding her hand. He noticed she started to look angry. ‘What have you found out?’

  ‘Milly was taken by a woman. It seems she headed straight for her.’

  ‘I feel sick,’ Sophie said, leaning against him.

  ‘What we discovered from some of the other people in the playground, Milly was too surprised to say anything but it’s as if she knew her.’

  ‘We don’t have a wide circle of friends. It’s very close knit,’ he said, feeling his heart beat faster. ‘None of our friends would do this.’

  ‘Did they give a description?’ Sophie asked, starting to frown.

  ‘It’s not clear at the moment. The CCTV footage was a little vague.’

  ‘But this woman might take other children,’ he said, holding it together though he wanted to shout. ‘This might not be a one off.’

  ‘They knew what Milly liked. Her snack and the pigs. This was a one off. Someone took her intentionally. We’re putting some footage together. Once it is digitally enhanced, we would like you to come to the station in the next few days to see if you recognise the person.’

  ‘I can do that,’ Sophie immediately said, and he was taken aback at the speed of her response. ‘If it is someone local, then I’ll know them.’ She looked up at Jonah. ‘I’ll get a copy for you.’

  It was something that flickered in her eyes he couldn’t quite figure out; an expression he hadn’t seen before. Like she was hiding something.

  ‘She’s our child. I’d like to go,’ he said to Sophie then at the police officer. ‘I don’t want Milly to come, so we’ll arrange for someone to sit with her.’

  ‘Call me,’ the woman replied. Jonah noticed she was also looking at Sophie, who was staring hard at the floor. ‘It might be something or nothing. I’ll see myself out.’

  They waited for her to leave and then Jonah gently yanked Sophie’s arm so that she would look up at him.

  ‘Why did you do that?’ she asked, stunned by the action.

  ‘We’re having an early night,’ he said and noticed her cheeks became flushed. ‘And you better tell me what’s going on.’

  At bedtime, she got on her hands and knees, giving him the best blow job ever.

  Jonah knew it was a distraction so he wouldn’t ask any questions.

  Right now, he looked at the top of her head before gulping at what his wife was up to.

  Caressing his balls, she licked all the way up and down, then sucked gently on his end, before building up the pressure.

  ‘Let me finish off in another position,’ he said, feeling his legs were going to buckle under the sensation of her mouth and tongue.

  Pulling away and resting back on her legs, she looked up and wiped the saliva off her mouth with the back of her hand. He could have had an orgasm at the sight of her looking up at him.

  Jonah sunk to the ground and pushed her back against the wooden floor. Taking his hand, he spread her thighs and rubbed between her legs, pushing a finger in and out to rub her to climax.

  All the time he looked at her and what his hand was doing.

  She was writhing on the floor, her legs wide apart.

  It was too tempting as he pushed inside, moving his hips backwards and forwards, all the time rubbing her off.

  ‘I’m going to come,’ she whispered and did so, her muscles tightly contracting around him as he came at the same time, pumping as hard as he could, and squeezing her breast.

  She let out a sob of ecstasy as he bent down and kissed he
r very hard, their tongues fighting each other, before succumbing to the pleasure in their bodies.

  Pressing his skin against her, he let out a groan in her ear, trying to catch his breath.

  ‘You are the best lay.’ Jonah laughed, feeling her arms gently scratch his back, up and down.

  ‘Lucky you married me.’

  He grabbed her hands and pulled her arms over her head, as she started to smile.

  ‘And I know you well enough to realise there’s something bothering you.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Why didn’t you want me to look at the CCTV footage?’

  ‘If you know who they are, you might take things into your own hands,’ she replied, frowning. ‘And I want to know who took my child.’

  ‘And you’ll do what? Keep a level head?’

  ‘I’m going to kick the living shit out of them.’ There was a steely resolve in her eyes. ‘No-one takes Milly.’

  ‘I’m coming with you.’

  ‘And what if you know them very well?’

  That was a strange thing for her to say.

  Then he wondered if Sophie had more of an idea of who it was than she was letting on.

  ‘He’s going to find out.’

  Madison looked shiftily around as they stood in the police station. ‘And I’m sick of seeing the inside of these places.’

  ‘He’s on a shoot and I told him we would go tomorrow. I know it’s a lie but if it is that bitch slut, then I want to find out first.’ Sophie started to get agitated. ‘I don’t care what excuse she has; I’m going to smash her into a pulp.’

  ‘I don’t want to get in any more trouble than I already am. I’m not getting involved.’

  ‘You only need to do one thing.’ She smiled at Madison, who grimaced. ‘It’s not a problem, all things considered.’

  ‘I don’t want to get arrested.’

  ‘You won’t!’

  ‘Sophie, don’t get yourself into trouble.’

  ‘Frankly,’ she said turning to Madison. ‘I don’t give a shit, especially if I’m right!’

  ‘Mrs Bauer,’ a young man asked, walking up to the pair. ‘I’m Police Sergeant Morgan. And this is?’ He looked at Madison.

  ‘My friend to support me. Unfortunately, my husband can’t make it but I promised to give him a copy of the footage if that’s okay. Can we take a look, please?’ She smiled sweetly as Madison rolled her eyes.

  ‘Follow me,’ he said, walking towards a door as they followed.

  ‘Are you going to tell them if it is her?’ whispered Madison.

  ‘Eventually.’

  ‘Eventually? What the hell does that mean?’

  ‘I need to get to the bottom of it first.’

  Sitting down and letting the young man fiddle with the laptop, he then played the footage.

  ‘Do you know who it is?’ he asked as she sat there motionless. All she realised is that Madison was squeezing her arm tightly. ‘Someone local? A woman you might recognise who goes to the park or playgroups?’

  ‘You know what?’ Sophie replied, taking a deep breath. ‘Can I take a copy home with me? Maybe my husband might have a better idea.’

  Sophie forgot to mention she was talking about her first husband, not the current one.

  ‘You’re avoiding me.’

  Harry appeared when he left Natalie’s offices. ‘I was told you’d be here.’

  Jonah shook his head in annoyance as he tried to walk past him. He was prevented from making a step.

  ‘We do need to talk,’ Harry said, smiling as if everything was normal.

  ‘I don’t want to hear what you’ve got to say.’

  ‘This is about your future happiness, isn’t it?

  Standing still, he looked at the man who seemed to think he held his future happiness, and that of Sophie’s, in the palm of his hand. He was stuck on what to do next.

  Then his phone rang and it was Sophie.

  ‘Hello,’ he said, glaring at him. ‘Harry’s here and he’s winding me up.’

  ‘Ah, that’s a coincidence,’ she said, before clearing her throat. There was a pause. ‘Jonah, I think we need to talk, all three of us.’

  ‘Soph, you don’t want to know what he asked me to do,’ he hissed, closing his eyes, and turning away so Harry couldn’t hear, though he heard a laugh behind him.

  ‘He can tell me tonight.’

  ‘Tonight?’

  ‘I’ve booked a private room at one on the local restaurants, so we can sit down and have a chat on mutual territory.’

  ‘Chat?’ The hairs stood up on the back of his neck.

  ‘Why don’t you let him know he’s invited? I’ll text you both the details.’

  ‘What are you up to?’ he asked, turning to glare at Harry.

  ‘I love you Jonah Bauer and I won’t let him come in the way of our happiness, whether he likes it or not.’

  Jonah closed his eyes, wishing he could tell her about Harry’s proposition, but Sophie was up to something and he didn’t know what.

  He put his mobile back in his pocket, turning to face him.

  ‘My wife wants to invite you to dinner tonight,’ he said, forcing a smile as Harry looked surprised. ‘She wants to talk about Milly. Can you make it? I’ll send you the details of where we’re going to meet.’

  ‘Not in your home?’

  ‘She says it has to be mutual.’

  ‘I would have preferred it if it was in your home,’ he replied, walking up to him and touching his arm. ‘That would have been more intimate.’

  ‘Just lay off me,’ Jonah said, pulling away. ‘You can’t play with people like this, can you?’

  ‘I can,’ Harry said, starting to laugh, agitating Jonah. ‘If you consider my proposition, it might serve your purpose. It’s not Sophie I want, is it?’

  ‘Can I have a glass of water?’

  Sophie was sitting in the room, waiting for her husband and Harry. Her hands were trembling and she knew what was going to happen in the next few hours would change everything.

  But she was more worried about her husband, making her feel sick again.

  The past few weeks had taken their toll on her nerves. Her real focus was to make sure that Amelia had a lovely second birthday, the following week, and that Jonah was less stressed.

  Plus it was now or never to face Harry.

  There was no way she was going to be held to ransom. And she certainly wasn’t going to spread her legs for him so he could tell Jonah she was unfaithful.

  Holding her breath, and knowing she had to face this head on, she thought about Jonah. He then walked in, looking gorgeous in a shirt and jeans, but the pensive smile said it all.

  ‘You look beautiful,’ he said, walking up to her and looking at the dress. ‘Red suits you. You were wearing red the first time we met.’ Jonah then bent down and kissed the top of her breasts, which were being displayed based on the deep V-neck cut. ‘You look bed-able.’

  ‘Don’t you mean edible?’

  ‘I know what I mean.’

  She grabbed his head and kissed him, feeling his tongue in her mouth.

  ‘I love you so much, do you know that?’ she said, looking into his big brown eyes. ‘You have made me the happiest woman alive.’

  ‘What’s this all about?’ he asked, and she could see his concern. ‘Are you okay?’

  ‘I will be after this chat with Harry.’ She turned to see the bottle of champagne. ‘He likes his fizz. Let’s have dinner and we can then talk. He’ll be more amicable if he’s a bit pissed.’ She noticed the hesitation in Jonah’s eyes. ‘You don’t think this is a good idea?’

  ‘You can never tell with him.’

  Sitting at the table, she kept kissing her husband.

  It was a nice way to while away the time, waiting for the guest of honour.

  And like clockwork, he was fifteen minutes late.

  As soon as she set eyes on him, Sophie wanted to slap Harry hard, but hid the instinct and smiled.


  ‘Can anyone join in?’ he asked and she knew he had a few drinks.

  ‘No,’ Jonah replied and she noticed he wasn’t smiling. And neither did he stand on seeing Harry. ‘She’s only for me.’

  Biting her lip, she still hadn’t told Jonah about Harry’s proposition.

  And she wasn’t going to let on. It might ruin an already difficult situation.

  Putting her best foot forward, she stepped closer and kissed Harry’s cheek.

  ‘Thank you for coming. I thought we’d have dinner first before we discuss our child,’ she said, knowing the emphasis was on the ‘our’. Glancing at Jonah, she then smiled. ‘And I meant, all three of us are her parents.’

  ‘Suits me fine,’ sighed Harry and she realised his hand was on the small of her back. ‘Is it okay with you?’ He was looking at Jonah. ‘You’re not in a good mood today, are you?’

  ‘I wonder why?’ he mumbled and Sophie wanted to laugh at his surly expression.

  ‘Let’s try and make this as civil as possible,’ she said, seeing Harry smile at her husband.

  The look left her a little uneasy, as it was quite suggestive.

  She had seen it before and wondered what was going on between them.

  ‘Let’s sit,’ Harry said, and she stepped away so his hand could be removed from her body.

  Sophie didn’t like the way he touched her, so went straight to Jonah and sat down.

  Harry slowly walked up to the table, glanced around at the modern décor, and then sat. It then occurred to Sophie she was sitting at a table with her ex and current husband.

  It felt a little odd, but she looked at Jonah knowing he was the better choice.

  Jonah flashed Harry a disgruntled look before glancing out the window.

  Knowing she was going to have to make a big effort, and checking the time, Sophie decided to proceed with her plan.

  After half an hour, Jonah seemed to have chilled out and was laughing. She took that down to keeping both the men’s glasses constantly refilled while she sipped on her glass of wine making it last for ages.

  All the time, she watched Harry speak to Jonah animatedly and wondered if he remembered she was in the room.