Melissa grinned at the man she was still in love with. “I think I can handle that.”
Chapter 21
True to his word, Stefan spent every waking moment of every day with Melissa. They went sightseeing, shopping, and had lunch in small cafes. They spent the evenings with Brigitte and Rolf and other friends. On Melissa’s last night in Germany, Stefan made her dinner at his new home in Knauppshausen.
As she sat in Stefan’s kitchen, Melissa watched the love of her life take the lasagna out of the oven. She smiled and thought wistfully that she could get used to this every day for the rest of her life.
Seeing the smile on Melissa’s face, Stefan asked, “What are you thinking about?”
“Oh, I was just thinking how happy these last few days have been.”
“I have been very happy, too.” He carried the food to the table and turned back to Melissa. “Come and eat.”
They spent the next hour eating a leisurely dinner and talking and laughing about everything. When the dishes were done, Stefan took their wine glasses into the living room. Melissa followed, sat down next to him on the couch and pulled her legs under her and got comfortable. She looked around the room and became sad.
“What is wrong?”
“Nothing,” she lied as she picked up her wine glass and tried to put a smile on her face.
“I do not believe you.”
“Let’s not spoil the short time we have left.” She tried to change the subject. “Dinner was delicious.”
“I am glad that you liked it.” Stefan looked intently at Melissa.
She gave him a nervous smile. “What?”
“I was just thinking, like I have thought so many times before, what it would be like to make love to you.”
“Oh.” Melissa looked down at her wine glass in her hand and blushed.
“Have you ever thought about the same thing?”
She looked up at the blue eyes that still made her heart do a flip flop. “Of course I have. In fact, I used to berate myself for not making love with you ten years ago. I thought that if I had gotten pregnant than my parents would have no other choice but to allow me to come back to Germany and marry you.”
Stefan smiled a sad smile. “I was devastated when I read your letter. I could not figure out what I did to make you write those things.”
“Oh, Stefan, I’m so sorry,” Melissa cried. “I wish I could undo the last ten years, but I can’t.”
“I know. At least I have you here now.” Stefan moved closer to Melissa. He took the wine glass out of her hand and sat it on the coffee table and took her in his arms. He held her for a few moments then kissed her deeply.
Melissa felt as if the past ten years just fell away.
Stefan lifted his head to gaze into her eyes. “Do you want to go to my bedroom?” he asked huskily.
“Yes,” she whispered.
Stefan took her by the hand and led her to his bedroom. When he closed the door, Melissa couldn’t help but feel nervous.
Stefan saw the look on her face. “We do not have to do this if you do not want to.”
Melissa smiled shyly. “I do want to. It’s just that I’m nervous.”
“You do not have to be nervous with me. You are safe with me.”
Melissa immediately felt relieved as Stefan took her in his arms. He kissed her tenderly as he pulled her closer to him. Melissa wrapped her arms around his neck as the kiss deepened. Stefan’s hands caressed her back and buttocks as Melissa took a sudden intake of breath.
She took a half step back and looked up into Stefan’s eyes where she saw nothing but love. Melissa began to unbutton his shirt and ran her fingers across the thick, dark hair on his muscular chest. She kissed his neck and worked her way down to his chest as Stefan groaned with pleasure.
He reached out to touch her shoulders as he slid the thin straps of her dress down on her arms. The summer dress slipped down to her waist to reveal a white lacy bra. Melissa immediately crossed her arms to hide herself.
Stefan reached out as he pleaded, “Please do not hide from me.”
Melissa let her arms drop to her sides as her dress fell to the floor. She stood before Stefan in only her panties and her bra and felt the heat of his eyes on her. He pushed his shirt off and took a step toward her. Stefan kissed her again as he reached around and unfastened her bra. He slowly pulled it off of her as he deftly slid her panties off at the same time.
He stepped back and gazed at the woman he loved. “You are absolutely beautiful.” Tears sprang to Melissa’s eyes. “Please do not cry.”
“No one has ever told me that I was beautiful.”
Stefan shook his head. “You should be told that you are beautiful every day of your life. I am sorry that you have had such a hard life, but now it is only you and I here and I promise that I will not hurt you.”
Melissa knew that what Stefan said was the truth. She trusted him with everything that she was. She smiled, reached out her hand to him and unfastened his jeans. Stefan stepped out of his remaining clothes and stood naked before her.
Now it was her turn to say, “You’re absolutely beautiful.”
He chuckled, took her in his arms and kissed her deeply. After several moments, Stefan led Melissa over to his bed. As they lay next to each other, he took her in his arms and caressed her back as he kissed her. He took his time and wanted the night to last forever. Melissa shivered with each touch of his hand.
“I love you,” Stefan said.
“You don’t know how long I’ve waited to hear you say that to me again,” Melissa said as she pulled Stefan closer to her.
They kissed and touched each other for what seemed like hours. They tempted and teased each other until they could no longer stand it and Stefan eased himself on top of Melissa. He looked deeply into her eyes, and she knew that he could see into her soul. Their gaze locked and held as Stefan slowly entered her. Melissa moaned softly as he slid deeper inside of her. She forgot about everything in the world, especially about her flight back to America in the morning.
They made love for hours until they were both spent. Stefan held Melissa in his arms not wanting to break the new and deep connection they had. After awhile, Melissa moved to leave the bed.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“I have to go back to Brigitte’s house. My flight leaves in less than five hours. I need to get some sleep, and I still have to pack.”
“You are leaving?”
“Yes. I have to go back to Chicago,” Melissa answered as she pulled her clothes back on.
“What about us? What about what just happened here?”
“It was wonderful, Stefan. But I can’t stay.”
“I do not want you to go,” he simply stated as he sat up in bed.
“I know, but I have no other choice.”
“This is so unfair. We have finally found our way back to each other, but now you are telling me that you are leaving.”
She slipped her shoes on and stood to meet the steady gaze of Stefan. “I never said that I would stay. I can’t stay. My life is back in Chicago. I have my daughter and my family that I finally have a good relationship with. And there’s my career and all of the women that count on me. I can’t walk away from all of that.”
“What about us?”
Melissa sat down on the bed and took Stefan’s hand in her own. “I’m sorry, Stefan. But I can’t give up my life for you or for any man. I gave up who I was for one man already. I completely lost my own identity. I couldn’t do anything without first asking Jack if it was all right for me to go somewhere. I even had to ask for permission to go to the grocery store. But now I know who I am. I have a wonderful life in Chicago. I can’t just throw all of that away. I’m sorry, but I’ve worked too hard and too long to get where I am today. I just can’t give it all up.”
Stefan sat and stared at her in disbelief. “I thought that you loved me and that we were starting over again.”
“I do love you,” she sa
id as she stood up. “I think I loved you from the first moment I laid eyes on you ten years ago. But I just can’t stay.”
“Melissa,” he said.
Melissa turned away and wiped the tears from her eyes. She turned again to look at Stefan and saw in his eyes all of the pain that she was causing. “I’m so sorry, Stefan. I guess I never should have come here. But I just wanted to see you again so that I could try to explain why I wrote you that letter.” She shook her head as another tear rolled down her cheek. “But I can see that all I’ve done is hurt you again.”
“Melissa,” Stefan said once more.
She held up her hand and said, “Please don’t, Stefan. This is hard enough for me. God, this hurts so much, but I just can’t stay,” She walked toward the bedroom door.
Melissa turned to look at Stefan and quickly walked over to the bed and gave him one last kiss. “I do love you. I will always love you,” she said as she looked deeply into his blue eyes. She turned and walked out of Stefan’s life once again.
Chapter 22
Melissa sat next to Brigitte as they waited for her flight to be called. She looked around the airport in hopes of getting a glimpse of Stefan.
“Are you expecting Stefan?” Brigitte asked.
Melissa looked sadly at her cousin. “No. Not after what happened last night.”
“Are you sure that you want to walk away from him a second time, Melissa? I saw how the two of you were this past week. Everyone could see how much the two of you still love each other.”
Melissa hung her head. “I have no choice. My life is in Chicago.”
“We do have abused women in Germany, too.”
Melissa looked at her cousin. “Yes, I know. Unfortunately there are abused women all over the world. But my work is in Chicago.”
“I understand,” Brigitte said as Melissa’s flight was called. They stood up and faced each other. “Have a good flight home.”
“I will. Thank you for everything.”
“I did not do anything,” Brigitte replied.
“Yes you did. You made sure that I was at the festival when you knew that Stefan would be there. Thank you for giving me a few more days to be with him.”
“Bitteschon.”
They hugged and Melissa walked slowly to the gate. She turned to wave to her cousin and to get one last look around the airport for Stefan. Seeing that he was not there, she turned and boarded the plane.
* * *
Melissa took her seat next to a person with their nose stuck in a newspaper. She put on her seatbelt and began to cry softly.
A handkerchief was placed in her lap. Melissa picked it up and dried her eyes as she said, “Thank you.”
“Bitteschon,” a deep voice from behind the newspaper said.
“I must be going crazy. Now every man sounds like Stefan,” Melissa muttered to herself as she began to cry again.
“No, not every man, just the original.”
Melissa turned her head to see Stefan sitting in the seat next to her with a wide grin on his face.
“Stefan Koehler,” Melissa gasped.
“The one and only.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I am moving to Chicago,” he said matter-of-factly.
“Moving to Chicago. But how? Why?”
“Yes, moving to Chicago. I am getting there by this airplane. And why? Because I love you more than I have ever loved anyone in my entire life. I let you leave me in an airport once. I was not going to make that same mistake again.”
Melissa looked at Stefan in disbelief.
“Do you not want me to go to Chicago?” he asked.
“No.”
“No?”
“I mean, yes! I want you to go to Chicago. But what about your writing career?” She tried to hide the trepidation in her voice and failed.
“Melissa,” Stefan began as he took her hands in his, “I can write my novels anywhere. But I do not want to spend the rest of my life without you, so I am moving to Chicago.”
“Are you willing to give up everything, your family and your friends, to go to Chicago to be with me?”
“I would give up my whole world just to spend one day with you,” Stefan answered as he reached into his pocket. “I am moving to Chicago because the love of my life lives there, and I was hoping that we could start our life together.” He opened a velvet ring box to reveal a two-carat princess cut diamond engagement ring. “Will you marry me, Melissa?”
With fresh tears in her eyes, Melissa simply said, “Yes.”
Stefan slipped the ring on Melissa’s finger, took her in his arms and kissed her deeply. “Finally. I am not going to let you leave me ever again.”
“I won’t leave you ever again,” Melissa said as she looked into the sky blue eyes of her husband-to-be.
“Promise?”
“Absolutely!” Melissa exclaimed as the plane taxied down the runway preparing for takeoff.
Epilogue
Chicago, June 1996
Melissa sat in the hospital bed holding her new son. She looked up to see her husband and daughter walk into the room.
“Mommy,” Stefanie said as she jumped on the bed.
“Hi,” Melissa said as she kissed her daughter then her husband.
Stefan let the kiss linger a moment or two and looked at his wife with so much love in his eyes. “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you,” Melissa responded as the baby began to whimper.
“Michael’s hungry,” Stefanie declared.
“I think you’re right,” said Melissa. “Can you hand me his bottle?”
Stefanie got off the bed and went over to the baby’s portable crib to get his bottle. When she turned back toward the bed, she saw her parents kissing once again. With a sigh, she walked over to her mother’s hospital bed, looked down at her new baby brother and stated, “You better get used to it Michael. They kiss all the time.”
Melissa laughed as she looked at her daughter. “Does that bother you?”
“No. It’s a good thing that mommy’s and daddy’s kiss,” the precocious six-year-old stated. “That way I can get another baby brother or sister.”
“How would you like to have eighteen more brothers and sisters?” Stefan
asked his newly adopted daughter.
“Eighteen?” Melissa and Stefanie said in unison.
“I thought we agreed on twenty kids,” Stefan said to his wife.
“No, darling, we agreed on three. But I suppose I could go for a total of four or five.” She smiled at her husband.
“I guess we need to get started as soon as possible.” He kissed his wife once again.
“Here they go again, Michael,” Stefanie said as she happily watched her mommy kiss her new daddy.
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Only Time Will Tell
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Simple Pleasures
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