by Johanna Bock
“Can it wait until after we eat?” Annie cried.
“Sure,” Leah said, laughing. “Just wanted to share. Need to recharge your battery?”
“You could say that,” Annie said, joining her laughter.
After they placed their orders, the two guys began what Annie classified as a ’one up’ conversation. She knew that what was being said was crap, but held her thoughts. When Jeff squeezed her thigh under the table, she knew he felt her thoughts. Shaking her head, she eyed Leah. You okay, she mouthed to her best friend. At Leah’s affirmative nod, she smiled. She was glad that her friend was happy for it showed in her face. Wow, she thought suddenly. It was the first time in their friendship where both were involved with someone at the same time. Neither of them felt left out.
After satisfying her hunger, Annie felt worn out. “Do you mind if we postpone our adventure until later. I could use a nap,” she said out of the blue. Jeff squeezed her thigh.
“I am up for that,” he said, teasingly.
“Sounds great,” Ron added. “Let’s say around four; we’ll pick you up in front of the casino.”
“I need my stuff,” Leah said. “I’ll walk back with you.”
Jeff sensed that Leah wanted time alone with Annie. “I’ll keep Ron company while he waits for you,” he offered. “I’ll come up later.”
Annie nodded as Jeff stood up to allow her to exit the table. Before retaking his seat, Jeff gave Annie a quick kiss. “I will be up soon,” he said with a twinkle in his eye.
Annie rolled her eyes skyward. “Yes, dear,” she said.
Leaving the restaurant, Annie felt strange. She checked to make sure that she had everything. Seeing her friend patting herself, Leah asked. “What’s wrong?”
“I feel like I left something at the table,” she voiced.
“Don’t worry, Jeff will bring it,” Leah offered.
“You’re right,” she said, trying to shake the feeling.
“Well, how did last night go?”
“You’ll see,” Annie replied, blushing. “That is if the maid hasn’t already cleaned the room.”
“That good?” Leah said, smiling.
“Better than that,” Annie said, laughing. “Leah, are you sure you are okay with this whole thing?”
“You with Jeff?”
“No, yes,” Annie admitted.
“Well, is that a no or a yes?”
“First, the room thing,” Annie began again.
“Annie, it is not the first time that I have spent all night with Ron. You are normally alone for the night anyway. You just don’t spend it in the room. You normally play blackjack all night,” Leah observed.
“True,” Annie confirmed. “Is Ron fine with all of this?”
“Yes,” Leah said. “He is always glad to see me. In fact, he likes the idea of having two whole days with me. He told me that every other time we were together, he was worried about leaving you alone in this big bad town.”
“And, Jeff?”
“Annie, are you happy?”
“More than happy.”
“Then, that is enough. Don’t worry about me,” Leah said, smiling.
Annie turned and spontaneously hugged her dear friend. “I love you, Leah,” she said.
As they exited the elevator on their floor, Annie saw that the maid was in the process of cleaning their room. “Looks like I will need to return with you to the restaurant. Grab your bag, you left yesterday in the room, and let’s go,” she suggested.
Leah stepped into the room around the maid cart and located her bag. She was laughing when she returned to Annie. “From the appearance of the room, you had one hell of a night,” Leah laughed.
Blushing from head to foot, Annie replied. “You have no idea.”
***
Annie and Jeff were just heading to the door, when the phone rang. Annie turned and answered it. “Annie?” Leah voiced.
“Hey. We are just leaving the room. What’s up?” she asked.
“Rain check, again,” Leah said softly. “Ron is still sleeping.”
“No problem, go back to sleep,” Annie said. “We can fend for ourselves. If you change your mind, call here or page me in the casino.”
“Got it, thanks,” Leah said and disconnected the line.
Annie stared at the phone. “Bye,” she said, replacing the receiver. “We are on our own,” she said to Jeff.
“Dinner?” he asked.
“It is early, but I could use food,” she said, hearing her stomach growl.
They strolled the casino hand-in-hand, searching for a nice place to eat. It was too early to be seated at the nicer places, so they settled on the diner. As they ate, they ’people watched’. “Vegas is such a great place to observe people,” Annie said. “There is such a unique mix.”
With their stomachs content, they decided to work off the dinner and take a stroll up and down the Strip. They talked about the neon lights, the traffic and the whole Vegas experience.
“My feet are sore. Let’s return to the room,” Jeff suggested.
“I agree,” Annie said, tucking herself close to him.
As they entered their room, Jeff pulled her to him. “Happy one week anniversary, darling,” he whispered as leaned in to kiss her.
***
Chapter Twenty
Annie awoke when the wheels touched down; she was back in Phoenix. Her fantasy world of Vegas for the past two days was over. She realized that she had not spent one second of her time gambling, or had she? Had she gambled with her heart? Seeking reassurance, her eyes rested on the back of Jeff’s head as he once again sat in the co-pilot seat. She sighed deeply. Hearing her sigh, Leah turned to her. “It was a great time,” she remarked.
“It is one for the record’s book,” Annie amended.
“Yes, it was,” Leah confirmed.
“Thank you, Mr. Painter, for the buggy ride,” Annie called out.
“Anytime, Annie,” he said over his shoulder to her.
Exiting the plane, Jeff carried Annie's bag to Leah’s car. “I will miss you tonight,” he said, placing down the bag and pulling her into his embrace.
“I miss you already,” she said, melting into him. “But, I need to spend quality time with my parents.”
“I understand,” he said. “I, for one, could use some sleep. You wore me out, woman!”
“It was great,” she said, hugging him closely. “Get some sleep, baby. I will see you tomorrow night.” They parted and Annie watched him cross to his car, twirling the fuzzy dice on his index finger.
***
Annie was sitting on the bumper of her car, when Jeff pulled up in front of her house. “Hey, honey,” he called when he spotted her.
“Hey, back,” she said happily, bouncing to her feet as he exited the car. “What’s the plan?”
“How about pizza and a drive?” he suggested as he pulled her to him. “I like your dress.”
“You do?” she replied, kissing him.
“I have always had a thing for buttons,” he remarked.
On the way to the local pizza parlor, Jeff’s hand rested in its favorite place as his fingers played with the buttons on her dress. “Any continuing fallout on the roses at work?” Annie asked, poking the fuzzy dice which was hanging from the rearview mirror and causing them to swing.
“No, that is old news. However, I am doing something right; I sold six cars today. That is a record for me,” he stated proudly.
“Wow, it must be something in the air around you. They must be able to see that you’re happy,” she offered. “Everyone wants to be around happy people.”
“You know what, honey? I am happy,” he said, stroking her thigh.
“As am I,” Annie said, placing her hand over his on her leg.
“I want to thank you for a very memorable time in Vegas,” he said softly.
“Mmm, it was memorable. It was those memories which helped me survive last night without you next to me,” she admitted.
“Same here,” he said, squeezing her leg. “When do we get to repeat it?”
“Someday,” she said dreamily.
At the pizza parlor, Jeff guided her to a back booth. As Annie sat, she did not scoot over to allow him access. “Over there tonight,” she indicated to the opposite side of the booth. Jeff looked at her closely and complied. “I want to gaze into your eyes,” she explained as he seated himself.
“Okay, but I want to . . .” his words were quieted as he felt the true reason for her request. He did not need to look down. He felt her bare foot against his manhood as her toes wiggled against him.
“What’s wrong? You were saying?” she purred from across the table.
“Nothing,” his voice cracked.
“Oh, okay,” she replied. “So, what did you do last night?”
“I finished your song. I have made arrangements with Jerry for tomorrow night to sing it to you,” Jeff replied, trying unsuccessfully to maintain control and capturing her hands in his. “You do know that leaving this place will be interesting.”
“I figured as much,” she replied. “Why tomorrow night?”
“He is singing at that nightclub of yours tonight,” he informed her, shifting his weight around on the bench.
“Oh. Good for him. As for me, I spent the evening recalling every moment we were together in Vegas,” she said airily.
“You did?”
“I still am in disbelief that you went through all that trouble to set up the room as you did,” she commented.
“You were worth it. It was definitely worth it,” he spoke, sounding a little winded. “How about we get the pizza to go?”
“To go?” she questioned. “We have not even ordered.”
“Too long of a wait,” he said, suddenly moving to exit the bench. “Let’s go. We can grab some fast food somewhere.” The minute he stood before her and held out his hand, it became very apparent to her of his need. “Walk in front of me,” he ordered.
“Yes, my knight,” she giggled as they walked out of the pizza parlor.
“That’s better,” he said, adjusting himself once they were outside the door. “How about that drive?”
“Okay by me,” she replied, “as long as we are together.” Back in the car, she found herself beaming. “We are rabbits,” she said, chuckling.
“What? Are you changing animals again?” he asked.
“No, just expanding my view.”
***
After going through and picking up food at a fast food place, Jeff headed west and turned down a farm road. “Am I having a flashback? Were we not on this road before?” she asked.
“Good memory,” he retorted happily. “Very fond memories.”
“You are cute,” she replied, turning and placing her hand on the side of his face.
As they found the exact location of their last encounter on the road, he pulled the car over and stopped. Pulling her to him, he whispered. “Do you remember?”
“Of course, I do,” she laughed, kicking off her shoes and getting to her hands and knees. “You will need to move to the center.”
As Jeff scooted over, Annie stretched out her leg and lowered it on the far side of him, again bracing her hands on the back of the bench seat. Jeff immediately positioned his hands on her hips and brought her down forcefully on his lap, causing the bottom two buttons on her dress to shoot off in opposite directions. “Oh crap,” they cried in unison.
“Now you did it,” Annie said, laughing and moving off his lap. “I need to find them.”
“Screw them. We can find them later. I can’t wait. I have been fantasizing all night about these buttons,” he roared, beginning to quickly shed her of her dress.
“Oh, Jeff,” Annie cried as the front of dress opened and his mouth came into contact with her bare skin.
“I love your scent,” he said throatily. “Envision.”
***
Chapter Twenty-One
She spotted his car, parked at the curb, and he was sitting in the car. Wow, he is early. He couldn’t wait to be with her, she thought. She started to skip to his car as she called out to him. “Jeff, you’re early.“ She froze when he turned to face her. His features were etched in true misery. “My God, what is wrong?“ she cried.
“I have to go,“ he said quietly.
“What?“ she asked, willing herself to close the distance between them. “I didn’t hear you.“
“I need to talk with you,“ he said a little louder.
“Okay,“ she managed to say as she felt her world drop out from under her. Something is terribly wrong, she thought.
“Get in,“ he directed, turning his eyes back to the road ahead. Walking around to the passenger side, she reached for the door handle. As she pressed the button to release the door, it occurred to her that it was only the second time she had been the one to open this door for entry into the car. The first time was at South Mountain to pour him into the car, and now. On all the other occasions, Jeff had opened the door for her or she crawled in on the driver’s side. Confused and totally afraid, she opened the door and slid into the seat. Closing the door, she turned to him. “I am here,“ she said.
“Give me a minute,“ he said, turning on the car and pulling away from her house.
Annie turned her eyes forward and sat quietly, fearing the worse. What in the world? she thought. Glancing at him, she saw that he was far from happy. She reached out with her hand and cupped the side of his face without a word. Her heart melted when he leaned his head into her hand.
Hearing the turn signal clicking, she looked to see that he was pulling into the park where they had been on the night he told her about the ring. She removed her hand as he parked the car. Without speaking, he exited the car and walked in the direction of the picnic table. She hurriedly jumped out of the car to follow him.
She arrived at the bench at the same time as Jeff. He reached out and patted the tabletop where he had sat. She understood immediately and climbed up on the table and looked at him. He gently spread her legs, turned his body and sat between her legs. She automatically leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him, hugging her legs to his sides. “What is it?“ she questioned.
“I have to go,“ he repeated.
“Okay,“ she said, beginning to release her arms.
“No,“ he said, pulling her arms around him and holding them against his chest.
“I don’t understand.“
“I know,“ he moaned, shaking his head. “Let me explain. I deliberately positioned you behind me so I could talk to you without seeing your face.“
“Why?“
“Because it will kill me to witness your reactions to what I need to share with you,“ he said earnestly. “Call me coward, but it must be this way.“
“Jeff,“ she whispered.
“No, please don’t talk. Hear me out. It will be hard enough for me to say it once,“ he pleaded. Fearing to speak, she placed her head against his and nodded. Taking a deep breath, he began. “I have to go. I don’t want to go, but I have no other options. I quit my job this afternoon. That is how serious this is for me. I received a call today. It was …..“ He hesitated. “It was Pam. She called to tell me she had given birth to my baby this morning.“
Annie bit her tongue and tried to withdraw her arms, but they were held in place. “No, don’t pull away,“ he begged. “Hear me out.“ She stopped pulling. “Good,“ he said. “I know I told you I have been separated for over a year, and it is true. Yes, I know what you’re thinking. Pregnancy is nine months. Yes, I bedded her once when I visited my son. You must believe me. I did not know she was pregnant; she never told me. During the last few visits with my son, the sitter was with him; Pam was not there. I learned today she had planned it that way. She didn’t want me to know. Yet, today, when she held our daughter in her arms, she knew she had to tell me. She wants me to come home,“ he choked.
Annie could feel him crying as he rubbed her arms. She won! Annie screamed in her head
. You lost. Her heart was broken, not only for her loss, but also for Jeff. She couldn’t stand to see him in pain. “You must go,“ she said softly. “It is only right.“
“Don’t be a bitch,“ he said quietly.
“I’m not,“ she assured him. “Jeff, you must go. I do understand. In fact, I don’t want you to stay.“
“Don’t be a bitch,“ he repeated.
“No, listen to me. I have no claim on you; they do. You are an honorable man. She has forgiven you. Here is your opportunity to right what you have done. You are not your father,” she said softly. Pulling his left hand to her face and kissing his palm, she noticed the return of the solid-gold ring. With a heavy heart, she knew that she would never see him again. She had to give him her permission to leave. “Jeff, you have given me something no one could ever take from me. You have given me your love. You need to return to your family and show them that you have learned how to love,“ she advised him.
Jeff turned in her hold and gazed at her. “You know?“ he asked.
“Yes, I know,“ she freely admitted.
“I don’t want to leave you,“ he said.
“I know, but you will really never leave me or I, you. We have a piece of each other’s heart,“ she said, smiling at him.
“Yes, you do,“ he said, standing and pulling her into his embrace. “I love you, Annie.“
“And, I love you, Jeff. Now go. I can walk home from here,“ she added. He kissed her -- the same tender, soft, loving kiss she remembered from after their lovemaking -- a kiss which healed her broken heart.
“You will always be my knight in shining armor,“ she said softly as they released.
“And, you will always be my Lady,“ he replied, kissing the tip of her nose and returning her smile. Then, without another word, he turned and walked to his car. She remained standing by the picnic bench as he pulled out of the park and headed west into the sunset.
Goodbye, Jeff. Thank you for fulfilling my knight vision, she thought, smiling. As she lost sight of his car in the flow of traffic, she turned for home. She knew she would never be able to see a Chevy Malibu again without recalling their vehicular activities. “Oh crap, my buttons.“