His Town

by Ellie Danes

  I dropped the earrings back into the dish and stared at them. I wanted to call her. I wanted to tell her exactly what I thought of her, but even giving her that kind of attention was too much. She didn’t deserve to hear anything from me. I stretched my neck and rubbed the back of it as I refocused my energy on dinner and an evening with Becca.

  Forty-five minutes of chopping, preparing and cooking, and dinner was now in the oven. I peeked at the slice on my finger as I sipped from my glass of wine and waited on Becca. It seemed like it had been weeks since we had seen each other. I had been so alone and isolated today. It was my own doing as I wallowed in pity and sadness at how my life had changed so quickly in the last twenty-four hours.

  * * * *

  “Chance, this place is amazing.” Becca stood in the foyer and looked around as her mouth hung open. As always, her timing was perfect.

  “Come in. Dinner is in the oven. Let me get you a glass of wine.”

  “Oh, this is for you.” Becca handed me a bottle of wine adorned with a bow. “Never show up to dinner empty-handed.” She smiled and I instinctively kissed her, touching her arm. “What happened to your finger?”

  “Cooking injury.” I chuckled as she grabbed my hand and kissed the make-shift bandage wrapped around my finger. “Let me get this on ice and get you something to drink. Make yourself at home.”

  I watched as Becca walked into the living room and stared out of the fifteen foot tall windows, taking in the view of the city and park. “It’s amazing. You’re lucky, you get to wake up to this every morning.”

  “I am.” I yelled from the kitchen and then returned with a glass of wine for her. “I haven’t really been here that much to see it, and when I am, I’m usually up early and at the office.” The truth was, I had usually left early to avoid Sara. I had always avoided the conflict.

  “You’re so lucky. All I see from my bedroom is a tree and the noisy street.” She took a sip of her wine and turned to look into my eyes. “Dinner smells incredible. I can hardly wait.”

  “Thank you.” I grabbed Becca’s hand and pulled her close. “Ready for that tour?”

  Becca’s eyes lit up as I walked her around the penthouse and took her upstairs to the bedrooms. She sat on the edge of the bed and stared out of the windows at the slowly setting sun. “You can see Central Park from here? What a view.” She lay back on the bed and closed her eyes. “I could just imagine waking up every morning and seeing this.”

  I thought the same thing about her. She was more beautiful than the sunset and I found it difficult to take my eyes off of her. I wanted to take her right then; it had been too long since we had really been together.

  * * * *

  Working at the hotels in Vegas had some advantages. Not only did I learn a lot about the business and gambling, but I also had the opportunity to learn a lot from the chefs that we hired for the restaurants. Dinner had turned out perfectly.

  “This is so amazing, Chance.” She shook her head in disbelief. “I can’t believe you cooked all of this. I can barely heat up a hot pocket without burning it.”

  “Well, those hot pockets can be tricky.” I chuckled.

  “Oh shut it!” She laughed, then took a bite. “So, let me tell you about what I’ve planned so far for the opening. Things have been going great and I’m really excited.” Becca started to rattle off details about radio commercials and printed ads. She beamed as she described every detail. I felt terrible about stopping her, but work was the last thing on my mind.

  “Not tonight.” I grabbed her hand and looked at her. “We’ve both had a lot going on. Tonight is about us, nothing else.”

  Becca nodded and smiled as she apologized. “I just want to show you–”

  “I know, tomorrow.”

  Becca leaned back in the chair as she smiled at me. “You know…” She raised her eyebrows and gave me a devilish grin. “I brought dessert. Would you like it now or later?”

  I could feel my face flush as I stared at her. “Now, of course.” I nodded as she grabbed my hand and led me from the kitchen and upstairs into my bedroom.

  Becca stood in front of the windows and slowly unzipped her black dress, allowing it to drop to the floor. The setting sun illuminated her from behind as she stood in front of me wearing nothing but a black bra, panties and her black heels. She carefully stepped over her dress, which lay in a heap on the floor, and approached me. She wrapped her arms around my neck and gently kissed my lips and then whispered to me, “…and here is your dessert.” She smiled as she unclasped her bra, releasing her perky breasts. I reached for one as she playfully smacked my hand away. “Not yet…” She smiled.

  She stepped in closer and unbuttoned my shirt, revealing my chest. Her manicured fingernails grazed my skin, sending goose bumps over my body. I felt myself growing harder as she tugged at the top of my pants and pulled my belt free. She dropped it on the floor and grabbed the top of my pants again, her fingers touching the top of my bulge as she smiled and then unbuttoned them.

  I could hardly contain myself as my pants fell to the floor. I stepped out of them and quickly wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her close. I nibbled on her long, soft neck as she tried to push away, but the raw sexual attraction had already taken over me. She giggled and gasped as I slid my hand up her stomach and cupped her breast. I leaned down, playfully flicking her nipple with my tongue. She let out a breathy moan as she pulled my head in closer and held me and whispered my name.

  She bit her bottom lip. Her eyes grew heavy with lust as she watched my every move. Slowly I moved my hand up her toned, tanned legs and slid her panties down, allowing my skin to touch hers. I spun her around and gently laid her on the bed, working my way down, across her stomach with my mouth and then opening her legs and teasing her wetness. She gasped as her back arched and she pawed at my head, wrapping her legs around me.

  “Chance,” she groaned.

  My tongue danced around her stomach. Without a word, I lowered my head and licked her soft wetness. The taste of her caused my member to throb. Firmly I moved in closer, tasting her as her hips thrust into my face. I wanted all of her. Becca pulled at me, begging me to stop, but urging me to keep going. I kissed my way back up to her neck, allowing my throbbing head to almost enter her as she smiled and bit my lower lip. “Yes,” she begged me as she grabbed my hips, pulling me inside of her.

  I moved into her with long strokes, my body pulsing with hers. Her legs wrapped tightly around my back as her hands pulled at my shoulders. Our bodies grew hotter as we kissed each other. Every move we made caused an eruption of pleasure to seep through me.

  I held on to her as tightly as I could. The warmth of her body was all I could feel. We stopped kissing and met each other’s gaze. Her eyes were hazy with lust; a soft smile graced her mouth. I touched her face as I moved within her slowly. I could feel the end coming and I didn’t want it. I wanted to stay connected to her. Her lips kissed mine as she closed her eyes and threw her head backward into the bed.

  I felt her body shudder, and her wetness tightened around me. I moaned out as she screamed in pleasure. Together we collapsed in the bed. Our panting filled the silence of the room. She looked at me, and her blue eyes sparkled brilliantly in the soft light coming through the windows. She pulled the covers around us and placed her head on my shoulder.

  Chapter Three

  Becca

  The silky coolness of the satin sheets felt amazing against my skin. I slowly opened one eye and then the other as I regained my bearings of exactly where I was. I loved the feeling of waking up in a strange place, but feeling safe. Chance’s king size bed provided the perfect safe haven. My fingers lightly traced the thin wisps of hair that fell over his ear as I stared at him, still sleeping. He was the sexiest man I had been with, ever. I considered how a month ago I was in a dead end job where I was over-worked and under-appreciated. The only romance in my life had been a series of bad blind dates. I gazed out the window and to the park below. The yellowis
h-orange glow of the sunrise reflected off of the surrounding buildings and provided a perfect start to the day.

  I saw Chance’s smile out of the corner of my eye as he leaned over and kissed me. “Morning, gorgeous.” It was crazy how sexy he looked in the morning.

  “Good morning to you too.” I rolled over, wrapping my arm around his strong, tanned chest. “This is really amazing, I wish I could wake up here every morning.”

  “Yeah,” he whispered. “I’d like that too.”

  “Some of us have to get into the office this morning, so I guess I should get going,” I joked as I rolled out of bed and looked at my phone. It was dead.

  “Well, you do know the boss really well.” Chance smirked. “You could always go in late, join me for breakfast.”

  “I wish.” I laughed as I leaned in, giving him kiss. “I have a ton to finish today, and I need to head home first. I’ll see you at the office?”

  “You will. I promise.”

  * * * *

  Chance’s driver pulled up in front of my building. Having access to his driver had started to grow on me. It definitely beat cabs and public transportation. I fumbled through my purse for my keys as I slid out of the backseat of the car. I shook my head as I stared at the cop car out front. Maybe my parents were right, the city was nothing but grime and crime. Now it was closer to home than usual.

  I could hear people talking on the other side of the apartment door as I reached to unlock it. As I fumbled with the lock, Melissa pulled open the door and immediately hugged me. “Jesus, Becca, I’ve been trying to call you all night.”

  “What’s going on? I’m sorry, my phone battery was dead. Are you all right?” My chest tightened as I looked at the two police officers over Melissa’s shoulder. “Why are they here?”

  A tall, dark-haired policeman with a thick New York accent stepped toward us. “Rebecca Carson?” he asked.

  “Becca. Please. What’s this about?” I begged for answer as Melissa freed me from our embrace.

  “Christopher Dunn. Do you know him, ma’am?”

  “Yes she knows him!” Melissa blurted out. “We’ve been over this already.”

  “Ma’am, please, we need to hear from Ms. Carson,” the second policeman chimed in.

  “Yes, yes. I know him. Is he all right?” I panted.

  “We have him in custody,” the dark haired policeman answered.

  “What?” I felt my mouth fall open. “Why?”

  “He had been spotted by your neighbors outside of your apartment building a few times. At the time of his arrest he had been intoxicated and violent. Upon inspection of his car we uncovered some suspicious items. This prompted us to get a warrant to search his apartment.”

  “I can’t believe this.” I felt the room spinning. Nothing seemed real. “What kind of suspicious items?”

  “We thought it best that you know that upon entering his apartment we found pictures of you taken on many different dates. At the time we arrested him, he had a small caliber handgun as well as a camera.”

  “That asshole was stalking you!” Melissa cried out. “That creep was going to . . .”

  “There’s no way of knowing for sure what he was planning,” the police officer interrupted Melissa as he stared at her. “But we just wanted to make sure you were aware of the situation, and that you know that everything is now under control.”

  “Y-Yes,” I stammered as I made my way to the couch and sat down. I couldn’t believe what I had heard.

  “Ms. Carson, we assure you. Mr. Dunn is no longer a threat to you. If you have any questions, you can reach someone at this number.” The policeman placed a card on the kitchen counter as the two officers made their way to the door.

  “I’m so sorry, Becca,” Melissa said softly as she joined me on the couch. “I can’t believe I set you up with such a creep. He seemed so nice.”

  “It’s okay.” I shook my head. “He had me fooled too.”

  “And I’m sorry about before.” She pulled away and looked at me with her vibrant green eyes. “I know I overreacted. I went a little bridezilla on you.”

  “You had every right.” I smiled at her softly and squeezed her hand. “It’s your day, and I get wanting to have all the people you love there. Trust me, I’m not going to miss your wedding.”

  “I do.” She looked down at her hands. “Honestly I’m beating myself up over even thinking you weren’t going to show. It was stupid of me.”

  “Seriously Melissa, don’t worry about it.” We smiled at each other. I hated fighting with her.

  “So…” Melissa began sheepishly. “You slept over Chance’s, huh?”

  “Yeah.” I smiled. Even with the shocking news about Chris, the thought of Chance just had a way of pulling me out of my funk.

  Right now, all I wanted was to crawl back into bed with Chance.

  Chapter Four

  Chance

  “Are you almost ready?” I hollered to Becca from inside of my closet. I stared in the mirror and adjusted my tie as Becca touched up her make-up. “We’re supposed to pick up Jeremy and Courtney in twenty minutes.”

  “I’ll be ready, don’t you worry.” Becca walked into the closet and straightened my tie as she gently kissed me on the lips. “It’s been so long since I’ve had a chance to catch up with her. We’ve all been so busy.”

  I tossed on my jacket and gave myself a final look in the mirror. “I’m sure. I’m glad Jeremy was able to get things wrapped up at the restaurant and lend a hand at the last minute on the opening.”

  It amazed me how everything had just seemed to come together in the last few weeks. I had spoken to Dad just about every day since he left, and despite everything that happened, I was looking forward to him coming back to the city for the event. I had decided I just couldn’t hold a grudge for what had happened between Sara and him. While I did blame him for what initially happened, I was angrier that he had kept the secret for so long to spare my feelings. He genuinely thought I had loved her and didn’t want to hurt me. That may have been true initially. Regardless, I put the Sara incident behind me, for good. It had been almost a full month and a half since we had broken up, and now that I’d met Becca, I couldn’t imagine being happier.

  I stepped out of the closet into the large bathroom and looked at Becca staring at herself in the vanity. I moved in behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist as I kissed her neck. “You look stunning tonight.” I squeezed her tightly as I pulled her ass against me. I felt myself growing hard as she smiled in the mirror and leaned her neck into my kiss.

  “Later, sweetie. Remember, we only have twenty minutes before we have to pick them up?” Becca giggled. “I’ll make it up to you later, I promise.”

  I groaned as I pulled away and adjusted myself. “I know, I know. Damn dinner dates with friends.” I laughed.

  Tonight was as much of a dinner date as it was a celebration that the opening was in only a few days. Jeremy and I had a great working relationship, but when I learned that he was engaged to Becca’s friend, Courtney, we grew to be slightly better friends.

  Jeremy and I had plenty to talk about. We both enjoyed every aspect of our jobs and we couldn’t help but discuss work and the upcoming weekend. The girls caught up on everything else and it was great to see Becca in her element with her friend. I hadn’t really seen that since Vegas. I kept my eyes fixated on her as Jeremy and I talked in the back of the limo. Becca was gorgeous. Everything about her drove me wild. Her long, tanned legs accentuated her dress and I remembered how smooth they felt just a few hours earlier when I had flirted with her while getting dressed. Tonight there was a sexual tension between the two of us like we hadn’t felt in a while. It was probably because the stress of the project was finally winding down.

  Becca caught me staring and smiled back as she ran her hand down her leg, obviously flirting with me. I had to turn my attention away before things got out of hand. I smiled back and continued my conversation with Jeremy.

  I ha
d made dinner reservations at O’ver and had been looking forward to them all week. Finally, dinner with friends in a relaxed environment.

  “So Becca…” Courtney asked after she sipped her glass of wine. “What did you get Melissa for her wedding? You did get it already, didn’t you?” Courtney giggled. “I know how you are with gifts and waiting to the last minute.”

  “Of course I did!” Becca laughed. “I actually picked it up last month. I’m not telling you what I got her…I wouldn’t want you to try and compete with me.” She giggled.

  Jeremy rolled his eyes and smirked at me. “It’s all I’ve heard about for the last month and it’s gotten worse.”

  “Well, what do you expect?” Courtney pouted her lips at Jeremy. “It should be me that’s been planning a wedding. We’ve been engaged forever…I can at least get excited for Melissa,” Courtney snapped back.

  “Uh oh,” I chuckled at Jeremy as he shot me a look that told me he was getting into trouble quickly. “I actually forgot about the wedding. Becca hasn’t really said much about it. When is it? A few weeks from now, isn’t it?”

  “Um, No. This Saturday.” Courtney shot Becca a confused look. “How does he not know this?”

  I looked over at Becca, confused, as Jeremy chimed in. “Same night as the club opening.” Jeremy shook his head. “That’s why I couldn’t be there that night. Remember?” Jeremy looked at me with raised eyebrows.

  “Yeah, I remember you telling me you weren’t going to be able to make it, but I guess I didn’t make the connection.” I stared at Becca, wondering why she hadn’t mentioned anything to me about the conflict. “Becca?”

  “Yeah…” She smiled meekly as she looked down at her drink. “I wanted to talk to you about that. I mean I’d love for you to go, but with the club opening, I knew you couldn’t.”