Until the End of Time

by Schuster, Melanie

  Renee was enjoying the massage every bit as much as Andrew was. She loved the way his smooth caramel skin looked and felt and she loved the perfect musculature of his back. His skin felt warm and supple under her hands and she knew that she was soothing him and driving him crazy at the same time. It was an intimate, erotic experience that she wouldn’t have believed possible until this very minute. Everything that she was giving Andrew she was getting back and more. The trembles, the hesitancy, the fear she had experienced earlier were all gone, at least for the moment. She leaned over and whispered to Andrew, “Turn over.” Without hesitation he did so, and pulled her head down to his for another slow, sweet kiss. Renee managed to pull away from him and say breathlessly, “I’m not finished with your massage.”

  Andrew looked at her with a combination of desire and pleasure. “Damn, Renee, what else could you possibly do to me? You’ve turned me to mush as it is,” he groaned.

  Renee poured a few drops of massage oil in the middle of his chest and used the palms of both hands to smooth the oil across his nipples. At his shuddering sigh she smiled. “Well, there’s that, to begin with,” she said. And she proceeded to show him exactly what else she could do to him that would further assist him in the relaxation process.

  Andrew couldn’t take anymore and forced himself into a sitting position. He brought his legs down over the side of the table and locked Renee between them while he cupped her face with his hands for a kiss. “Okay, that’s enough! You’re trying to kill me,” he accused. “I know that’s what you’re doing; you’re trying to pay me back for all those years when we didn’t get along. But if I have to die at your hands, I’d rather it be in bed,” he said softly, lowering his head to her willing lips.

  Renee lost all conscious control of her body. She was perfectly willing to go wherever Andrew wanted to take her as long as she could keep feeling what she was feeling. It was wonderful; she was hot, she was cold, she was tingling all over and throbbing in places she had long forgotten about. She actually had her fingers at her own buttonholes, ready to offer herself totally to Andrew when the voice of reason in the form of an insistent, noisy pager interrupted. This time it was Andrew’s and if there was one thing a dedicated doctor could not do, it was ignore a page.

  Andrew looked up at the ceiling and said “Oh Lord, just take me now and get it over with!” He hopped off the table in obvious discomfort due to a huge bulge in his pants and looked at Renee with great distress. All he could say was “Damn.” He immediately put his arms around her and pulled her as close as he could get her. He cupped her derriere with his hands and let her feel just how very much he didn’t want to let her go. “Just one more kiss and then I’m taking you back to my place to get your car. This is not an omen. This is just…the life of a doctor, dammit. Wow, that was melodramatic, wasn’t it?” He kissed her as though he depended on her lips for sustenance, which at the moment he did. Abruptly he let her go and put on his shirt, never taking his eyes from hers. He grabbed her hand and they paused just long enough to reset the alarm before leaving.

  They were back at his house in record time and he kissed her once more after she got into her Mercedes. “Soon, Renee. Very, very soon,” was all he said. He watched her drive off and then got into the Bentley and took off for the hospital. All the way over he tasted his lips with his sensitized tongue, to see if any of Renee’s sweetness remained. Very soon, or I’m going to lose my mind, he thought.

  Chapter Nine

  As Einstein explained in his theory of relativity, time is relative. A minute may not seem like a long time when you’re next to a pretty woman, but if you’re sitting on a hot stove it seems like an eternity. And when you’re a virile sexy man with designs on an incredibly sensuous woman that you have desired for over a decade, soon can’t come soon enough. After trying to get with Renee for several fruitless days, Andrew felt like the Spanish Inquisition was a day at the beach. He was being subjected to a form of torture that was much, much crueler.

  It was just his bad luck that their little assignation came right before his father’s retirement celebration. After 50 years in the radio business, Andrew Bernard Cochran Sr., known affectionately as Big Benny, was officially retiring. He and his sister, with the help of the other siblings, had been planning a huge, gala party to celebrate the event. To be fair, Benita had done most of the planning and organizing, but Andrew had done what he could when he could. And now that the event was a mere day away, it was mandatory that his precious free time be spent in last minute preparations. Thus he could spend virtually no time with Renee who was knee deep in the party planning with Benita.

  They saw each other, of course, and they’d even concocted a logical reason why they were attending the event together. But it wasn’t nearly enough for Andrew. Since the first time their lips met, all he wanted to do was spent two or three days doing nothing but making love to Renee. He was trying to take his time and be a gentleman about it, because he liked her as a friend and a person and he respected her. There was so much more to Renee than had ever met his eye that he was actually humbled at times. He had always thought of her as beautiful and smart and certainly sexy, but he was getting to know the sweet and sensitive person she hid from public view. He didn’t want to rush her, but at the same time, he felt like he was dying by degrees every time he touched her without consummating the relationship. In short, he walked around as randy as a schoolboy most of the time. When he was in the same room with her it was pure agony. He couldn’t stop looking at her, wanting her and needing her. Like right now, for example.

  They were in Benita’s basement ostensibly tending to final details. Renee was busy checking the boxes of party favors that would be placed on every chair in the ballroom. She was absorbed in her task and was not paying any real attention to Andrew. Andrew was sprawled on the big leather sofa staring balefully at Renee. He glanced at an authentic lariat on the wall above the sofa and contemplated throwing a lasso over Renee’s head. That would certainly get her attention. Benita had decorated the basement area to look like a 1950’s ranch house. Big Benny’s love of Westerns, particularly the rare ones with African American stars, had influenced the décor. For a time all of the Cochrans had been mad for cowboy movies and all things western. There were several pictures displayed of all the children in cowboy regalia, which lent a sweetly nostalgic air to the room. Right now, though, the kitschy charm of the area was lost on Andrew. All his attention was focused on Renee who was counting objects in boxes and making notes and just generally ignoring him. Even Aretha, who was dogging her every step in case one of the boxes was for her, was ignoring him. Finally he couldn’t take it anymore.

  “What does a man have to do to get some attention around here?” he demanded.

  Aretha and Renee both turned and looked at him as if he had lost his mind. Andrew noticed for the first time how much the two resembled one another, but thought it best not to bring it up. He repeated his question in a less querulous tone. “How can I get you to stop that and come talk to me for a minute,” he said nicely.

  He looked so sweet and handsome Renee relented for a moment and went to sit with him on the sofa. She tried to look aloof but failed miserably as he immediately sat up and put his arms around her. “Hey. Hey!” she protested. “We are supposed to be talking, not necking. I have to finish this inventory and you have to take it over to the Roostertail. And I have to get back to the Oasis—there are about 5 heads that I have to do, all of whom are members of your family, so…so….”

  Her voice trailed off as Andrew found an effective means of stopping her recital. The feel of Andrew’s lips on hers never failed to drive all conscious thought from Renee’s mind. She couldn’t think at all when he was kissing her, all she could do was respond to the touch of his lips, the demands of his tongue and the intoxicating passion that overtook her in his arms. When they finally broke apart she was drugged with sensation and breathing hard. She couldn’t open her eyes, even when Andrew started speaking to
her.

  “You know,” he said hoarsely, “If I had any idea you could kiss like that when we were in college, I would have kidnapped you a long time ago. In fact, I think I’ll kidnap you right now,” he growled. “Let’s get out of here and go someplace where we can be alone. Like my bedroom.”

  Renee finally opened her eyes and gave him a look that almost stopped his heart. “Bennie would kill us both and you know it. We are going to be responsible adults and get this finished so that the party will go as planned tomorrow,” she said firmly. Of course, while she was saying this she was stroking Andrew’s bottom lip with her forefinger, which was driving him crazy. He retaliated by drawing her finger into his mouth and sucking on it gently. Renee sighed softly and tried to pull her finger away. He held on for a few more seconds and then recaptured her lips. All of her resolve was swept away until she heard Bennie calling her. They finally pulled away from each other and looked totally bereft as the contact ended. Renee jumped to her feet and looked over her shoulder at Andrew before going to see what Bennie needed. “Don’t forget where we left off,” was all she said.

  Andrew fell back onto the sofa with a groan. Aretha ambled over to see what ailed him. She stood on her hind legs and pushed her elegantly feline face into his. Andrew reached out to scratch her between the ears, something that she adored. “Bad timing, Aretha. Just bad timing, that’s all,” he said. But not for much longer.

  ***

  Finally, finally the day of the gala arrived. Renee was outwardly calm, but that was mostly for Bennie’s benefit. She had never seen her friend so worked up over anything in her life. It was partially because of the sheer magnitude of the event, but mostly because she had invited Clay’s whole family from Atlanta and she wanted to make the best possible impression. Renee was trying her best to act as though nothing out of the ordinary was happening, and she had pretty much convinced herself of that fallacy, too.

  But it was foolish to try to pretend like this night was like any other. Big Benny Cochran was the toast of urban radio in this country and had set so many precedents it was impossible to name them all. He had been in the business 50 glorious years and was finally retiring. Luminaries of show business, politics and big business were coming literally from all over the world to pay him homage. Bennie and Renee had worked like galley slaves putting everything together and it was sure to be a wonderful night. And Renee was pretty sure that some other wonderful things would be happening that night, too, at least between her and Andrew.

  She had selected her dress with the utmost care. She usually had her special clothes made by a wonderful dressmaker named Joyce who was a whiz with design and execution. Bennie in fact was wearing a Joyce creation that night. Renee had been inspired, however, when she saw a Randolph Duke gown in the Somerset Neiman-Marcus. It was oyster white silk with a floor length skirt and a halter bodice that was made entirely of pearls and crystal beads with tiny accents of gold here and there. Renee purchased the dress at once and had Joyce replace the long straight skirt with a swirling knee-length one of silk chiffon. It gave the dress a fresh sexiness that was perfect for Renee.

  With the dress she decided to wear her Louboutin evening sandals that were mere straps of the thinnest pearlized leather. She considered not wearing jewelry, but decided to wear a pair of antique pearl drop earrings and a fabulous vintage bracelet of faux pearls and crystals. The only thing she needed was a purse, and that she could borrow from Bennie, who had a sizeable collection of evening bags. Having laid out her attire to her satisfaction, she went downstairs to get a bag from Bennie. She managed to slip by the door of the room Bennie’s in which Bennie’s Aunt Ruth was sequestered; Aunt Ruth was a wonderful woman, but she could be a bit chatty.

  She did stop at Ceylon Simmons’s room to make sure that she was comfortable. As well as being a dear friend of both Bennie and Renee, Ceylon was part of the entertainment for the program that evening. Renee had barely had a chance to speak with Ceylon when she arrived, so she tapped on her door. Ceylon answered immediately, throwing the door open to admit Renee.

  “Come on in, darlin’! Pull up a chair and let’s talk, it’s been way too long since I’ve seen you. What have you been up to?” she exclaimed in her warm, friendly way.

  It was typical of Ceylon that she didn’t brag about her exploits although she could have. Ceylon was hotter than the hottest star of a blazing comet. She was taking the world by storm with her amazing singing voice and her comedy. Ceylon, for all her fame and glory, was still as down home and sweet as she had ever been. Fame had not changed her one iota.

  She settled down to find out the latest goings on in Renee’s life with every indication of deep interest, an interest which was totally sincere. She cared about Bennie and Renee like they were her own sisters. That was one reason Renee felt she could confide in Ceylon about the Andrew situation. The other reason was if she didn’t tell someone she was going to burst.

  “Ceylon, I’m seeing someone new,” Renee began. Ceylon tried not to look disappointed, but this was old news to her. Renee caught her look and hurried on.

  “No, Ceylon, this is different. He’s my age, for one thing. I’m dating him exclusively, for another. And we’ve known each other for some time. In fact, you know him, too,” she teased. Ceylon looked completely baffled, but before she could hazard a guess, Renee told her. “Brace yourself. I’m dating Andrew Bernard Cochran, Jr.,” Renee said sweetly. “Surprise.”

  Ceylon’s hazel eyes got huge and her mouth flew open. “Oh-my-GOD! Finally! After all these years, I can’t believe it!” she shrieked.

  Now it was Renee’s turn to look puzzled. “What do you mean, ‘after all these years’?”

  “Oh, please, girl, Andrew’s been crazy about you for years, you know that!” Ceylon exclaimed. “Don’t tell me you didn’t realize that he was mad about you!”

  But it was evident from the look on Renee’s face that it was news to her.

  “Hmmph. Just as well, you would have just dogged him back in the day. Now you two are just right for each other,” she sighed, clasping her hands. Ceylon was an incurable romantic. “Well, don’t just drop a bomb on me and then sit there, I need details. How, when, where, and what does Bennie think? I’ll bet she’s just thrilled!”

  Renee hastily explained that no one knew except Ceylon. “We haven’t told anyone because it’s so new that we want to keep it private for as long as possible. And I certainly don’t want Bennie to feel caught in the middle if things don’t work out,” Renee added.

  Ceylon looked skeptical, but her expression turned approving as Renee explained the events that led up to their current situation. It was obvious from the animated way that Renee was speaking that Andrew meant a lot to her. For a change it looked like Renee was involved in a real romance with a real man instead of her customary social charade. Ceylon was very happy for her and told her so.

  “So you and Bennie have both found wonderful men at the same time. If I didn’t love you heifers so much, I’d be so jealous! What’s Bennie’s Clay like?” she asked.

  “Oh, you’ll meet him tonight. He’s so perfect for her it’s ridiculous. And he’s so fine you’ll be begging him to let you meet his brothers. He has two or three of them as a matter of fact,” Renee told her, but Ceylon wasn’t interested. She was too excited over Renee’s news.

  “I can’t wait to see you two together tonight,” Ceylon confessed. “You two are probably so beautiful together that it’s sickening.”

  Renee just smiled and said nothing, but silently she agreed with Ceylon.

  ***

  When she floated down the stairs later that evening, Andrew’s reaction was all she could’ve hoped for. Bennie had just gone downstairs and knocked Clay’s socks off with her stunning appearance, but her twin Andrew was giving her grief. They were laughing at each other when Renee appeared and put an end to their teasing. For once, Andrew had absolutely nothing to say. He simply stood and drank in every inch of Renee as if he were momentarily
blinded to everything else in the world. He stood at the bottom of the main staircase, waiting for her. Luckily, Bennie and Clay were too absorbed in each other to pay them any attention. Renee didn’t say anything, she merely took his tie from his fingers and proceeded to put it on for him and tie it properly.

  “Renee, you look…wonderful,” Andrew said in a hoarse voice.

  Renee just smiled. She was standing on the stairs so that she was eye level with Andrew. After she finished tying his tie, she ran her hands over his shoulders. “You look quite handsome yourself, Andy,” she finally said. She continued to rest her hands on his shoulders and he slipped his hands around her waist. They stood there for the longest time, just staring into each other’s eyes with quiet affection. What would have happened next is anyone’s guess, but Ceylon chose that moment to come downstairs.

  With a sigh of regret, Renee took her hands from Andrew’s shoulders and allowed him to escort her down the remaining stairs. They turned as one to greet Ceylon, whose eyes widened at the sight of them. They really did look wonderful together. She had promised to be discreet, though, and she held her tongue. After giving Andrew an effusive greeting and hug, she went into the living room to meet Bennie’s Clay and was once again bowled over.

  Finally everyone was ready to leave, including Aunt Ruth and sundry Philadelphian cousins of Bennie and Andrew. Everyone piled into limousines except Bennie and Clay, who wanted to be alone, and Renee and Andrew for the same reason. They got into Andrew’s Bentley and followed Bennie and Clay in her Jaguar. Andrew took her hand immediately and didn’t let it go for the rest of the night. The only times that he wasn’t holding her hand was when he was participating in the program honoring his father’s retirement. Renee had to stifle sighs of admiration because he looked way too fine in his custom tailored tuxedo. He was also a wonderful speaker and seemed perfectly at ease with talking in front of hundreds of people. Renee looked around the huge ballroom and decided that the event was as perfect as Bennie could have made it. Everything had a golden glow about it, from the soft indirect lighting, to the candlelit centerpieces on every table. The gold lame tablecloths with the ivory damask overlays were the perfect foils to the fragrant flower arrangements on every table. Thanks to the jazz stylings of Bennie’s godfather Bill ‘Bump’ Williams sand his orchestra, the entire ambiance was that of a posh supper club from the 1950’s, which was just what they wanted to invoke.