Wronged Desires

by Lillian MacKenzie Rhine

  “Did the threats go away when we got together?”

  “No, but they died down some since I was able to use my education to increase their investment portfolios. What they didn’t plan on was me being able to use the same education to build my own wealth outside of the Sutter Trust, meaning if they cut me off, my family would not suffer an ounce, being stable for generations to come.”

  “I’m truly amazed at your strength.” A part of me felt responsible for the widened rift between his family, but a bigger part was overjoyed that he was willing to give all the money up just to be with me. Kem changed the CD, turning up the Earth, Wind, and Fire hit “Lets Groove” as we drove back to my grandmother’s house.

  As soon as we made it back to the house, Kem and I sat in our separate corners in the dim house working on our separate laptops. Learning the words to my appointed song, even though it was highly popular during my teenage years, proved to be difficult. I found myself on my fifth round of listening to the lyrics when the electricity sparked on in the old house. I looked up at the same time Kem did and we both ran to the nearest electrical outlet to plug in our devices. “Only an hour left before show time and we should have no problems playing the CDs now. And to help you out, I’ll go first because I want to sit back and relax while I watch you move that body I love so much,” Kem stated from across the living room. I frowned at his seductive wink, returning to my diligent research.

  The exhaustion of listening to the same song for so long caused me to utterly give up hope and head to the kitchen to prepare a couple of fresh garden salads for Kem and myself. I toasted some garlic bread and filled our glasses with wine, motioning to Kem that dinner was served. We both sat at the table eating, with minimal words exchanged, knowing that our dancing debuts were replacing the dessert course for the evening. Even without saying anything, Kem still found moments to steal glances across the table at me causing me to blush like a schoolgirl. His elevated eyebrow and sexy grin made me relax my hips, preparing them to sway for their sensual admirer.

  I finished my dinner and pat Kem on his hand. “Time for you to go get your battle gear on and make it hot and sexy for me daddy,” I purred, winking as I crossed my legs.

  He stood. “I’ll get everything set up and I want you to be waiting on the couch for the show.”

  It didn’t take long to wash and dry the dishes. When I entered the living room, I saw that Kem had the CD set on the song track for his performance. I poured myself another glass of wine, awaiting my personal exotic dancer. Kem descended the stairs dressed in his tuxedo jacket and pants, his new sneakers, and bow tie. The image of his hair being wet and slicked back set my panties ablaze when he started the music.

  Being caught up in one of the most beautifully created songs of my life, I found myself singing along to lyrics of “Luna” by the Smashing Pumpkins. Quickly snapping out of the chills that the peaceful melody caused, I noticed Kem unbuttoning his tuxedo, singing, “Who rights wrongs while others cling?” As he slid his arms through the sleeves, I noticed that he had taken the extra step to oil his body and by the looks of his pulsing biceps and pecs, he apparently had been doing some pushups as well. Then his bewitching pools of emerald green shot up my spine like a paranormal creature of the night while he mouthed the words. He turned, allowing me to see his back as he slowly slid his pants down exposing his black boxer briefs.

  My heart began to flutter when I realized the lyrics modeled our lives, our marriage, our love. Before my emotions could overtake me, he faced me with a bulge in his tight boxers that made me gulp. He began to approach me as the music played, lifting my leg against his torso as I laid back on the couch in complete shock that he was doing such a great job with the task. My stomach tightened into a ball when he slowly grazed his firmness against my inner thigh moving his body like a wave. Kem lowered himself to me while still grinding his body into mine. I closed my eyes, feeling my inner thighs drip with liquid through my jeans. He finished the song, whispering against my neck. “I’m in love with you…I’m in love with you…I’m in love with…” My breath became very heavy as I listened to each statement, wanting him to rip my pants from my body and make love to me on the couch. Once the song finished, he laid his lips against my brow running his tight grip from my waist down to my rear filling his palm with every inch of my flesh. I glided my touch up his art-filled forearms to his biceps, gripping the back of his arms, pushing my hips into his pulse. He whispered in my ear, “Your turn, Babygirl.” I took a deep breath in. Damn! I slid from underneath his chest, upset that I had to put my arousal on pause.

  I ran upstairs knowing exactly what I wanted to wear and I shuffled through the overnight bag Kem packed for me. I had a quick shower then shined up my body with oil before I slipped on the neon-yellow lace push-up bra and matching lace boy shorts that I bought a few weeks back. I had to settle for wearing my wedge sandals that I had worn to work, and then I pulled on Kem’s tank that I washed when we got home. It fit closely over my body, dropping slightly above midthigh. I finished off the look by putting my hair up in a messy bun.

  Walking down the stairs was like walking the green mile to my execution, knowing that I wasn’t able to remember all of the lyrics of the song. “Woo wee. Very nice,” rang from Kem’s mouth as I rounded the couch.

  “Now don’t be disappointed. I wasn’t able to catch all the lyrics, so instead I’ll put one hundred percent into the dancing.” Kem saluted me, giving me the okay to perform. I turned my back to him, holding my legs apart when I started one of the sexiest R&B songs of all time, “Seems Like You’re Ready” by R. Kelly. The beat began and I started to snake my body to each beat of the bass drums, feeling R. Kelly singing to me. With the lyrics “temperature’s rising,” I extended my thigh out and ran my fingers slowly up my calf to my knee, traversing farther up my waist then down my lower back. I threw my head down, waving my rear back and forth, and caught sight of him licking his lips as he sat forward on the couch clad only in his boxer briefs while watching the show.

  Next I dropped myself on my knees, sliding the tank up exposing my boy shorts when I heard Kem blurt, “Oh my!” I crawled on the floor away from Kem, then I stopped to smack my rounded bottom. I turned, anchoring myself in a sitting position with my hands holding me up in the back while I swirled my body with my thighs open and ready for Kem. He whispered in the most seductive baritone voice, “Come here, Babygirl,” but I waved my finger to him showing that I was not finished.

  I stood with R. Kelly singing while I reached down slowly between my thighs and pulled the tank as I ascended my touch up my torso stopping at my bra. I dropped down thrusting my hips back and forth in a squatting position. “Take it off,” he whispered just enough for me to hear. Acknowledging his demand, I slipped the tank off, tossing it at his head as I twisted my body and slid a bra strap down my glistening shoulder.

  I sauntered toward Kem and then I placed one heel on the edge of the couch while I massaged through his wet hair, swaying my heat against his chest. Pushing him back, I straddled him, swatting his hands away from touching me. “Ah-ah, Mr. Sutter, no touching.” I leaned into him, clad only in my bra and panties, running the tip of my tongue against his chest and up his neck. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, then I grabbed his thighs lifting myself up just enough to slide down to the floor between his legs coming face to face with his heated erection. I rubbed my hands up his slowly sinking abs to his heaving chest grazing my breasts against his solid erection.

  Kem groaned, and before the song finished, he grasped me sliding me up against his chest into a deep kiss that made my toes curl. Kem cupped my thighs, hoisting me upward around this waist as he walked me up the stairs not ceasing to suck on my bottom lip and tongue with each step. The music downstairs was only a murmur when he dropped me on the bed in my old room, assaulting my neck and shoulders with the nibbling of his teeth while he unhooked my bra. “I want you so bad, Babygirl,” I heard him say before he tucked my chocolate morsels into his
mouth. He lapped at my breast like his life depended on it with the flush of warmth pulsing from my ready mound. The push of his thick firm extension was ticking my protruding nerve center when I thought back to us taking it slow. I attempted to blink the thought from my mind but my conscience had other plans. “Kem,” I whispered atop of breathy moans. “Kem, baby?”

  “Yes, Babygirl,” he said sucking in the softness of my midsection.

  “We have to stop,” I murmured, trying to convince myself more than him, but Kem began to make humming sounds against my lower abdomen. I started to suck in air, bargaining with myself. Come on, Victoria, I said to myself, do it right this time. Pump the brakes.

  “Kem, baby.”

  “Hmm.” He was starting to plant kisses on my panties.

  “Remember we’re supposed to be good.”

  “Mmm good.” He slid the material to the side exposing my wetness to the air when I shouted, “Kem!” I was completely flushed and gasping for air when he poked his head up, staring at me like I took his candy away.

  Curling my body upward on my elbows, I frowned at his puppy dog eyes pleading to continue his trek. “Be good, remember. We’re starting over.” He started whimpering. I found the blanket and covered myself. “Okay, baby, time for a kiss good night. Mr. Sutter, you can go into your own bedroom.”

  “What?” he whined. “I can’t sleep in here with you?”

  I cannot believe I’m about to say this. “We are starting over, so that means no sex. We are only allowed to court. That also means that when we make it back to Dallas you will return to your hotel room and I to the house.” His mouth fell open with wonder, but I took my hand and gently pushed his lips together for a sweet peck. Kem frowned at me shooing him out of the bed then out of the room. I opened the windows wider to let in the night air, hoping the breeze could extinguish my flame when I saw him step back though the doorframe.

  “Hey, Vic?”

  “Yes?”

  “I know we’re going slow and starting over, but I wanted to say that no matter how far back we go, I knew it from day one and I know it now.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I love you, Victoria.” My heart began to melt watching him leave to head into my grandmother’s room for the night. I nestled under the blanket, staring out at the starry night sky. I love you too, Kemington Sutter. You will forever have my heart.

  Chapter Seven

  The next morning the aroma of apple cinnamon danced me out of my dreams. I quietly draped a blanket over my shoulders to shield me from the early morning chill before I tiptoed down the stairs. Kem was in the kitchen fully dressed in salmon-colored chino twill shorts, sneakers, and a short-sleeved white polo jersey. His hair was back to his disarrayed, fingered-through look when he turned to greet me with an early morning peck to my cheek. “Morning, Babygirl. I cooked you some grits and bacon. Fresh berries from the garden are on the table for you.” He stepped back to the oven, watching whatever was baking while I sat down to my food.

  “What’s cooking, good-looking?” My cheesy comment made me giggle inside.

  “Since we’ll be driving out today, I assume, I decided to bake some apple-cinnamon muffins that I whipped up for the neighbors.” I shook my head, wondering why he insisted on buttering up the seniors of the neighborhood every time we visited. “What? You know I like to chat with the lovely ladies on the block. You better watch out, Vic, one of them just might snatch me up.”

  That’ll be the day.

  “You are one Suzy Q Homemaker aren’t you?” I dipped my bacon into my grits, nearly fainting from the garden freshness of green onions and tomatoes.

  “I know I was the one better suited to stay home to take care of the children while you made the bacon, but life just didn’t work out that way,” he said, winking before returning to his baked goods.

  “Yes you should have, but there are a few problems with that statement. We have no children and you do a pretty damn good job at making bacon,” I stated, snapping into the sweet, saltiness of the thick slab of applewood bacon.

  Kem unleashed the muffins from their heat-filled prison and the aroma nearly lifted me out of my seat. “I hope you made a batch for me,” I blurted, pouting my bottom lip and batting my eyes at him. He slid in next to me and landed on one knee grasping my hand in his. “Oh darling of mine, I will give you the world twice, but unfortunately I only made enough for the neighbors.”

  He stood chuckling, slipping the light fluffy treats that reminded me of a chilly autumn day out of their molds into one of my grandma’s old baskets while I whined on. “Kem, I don’t want the world twice. I will settle for once and one muffin.” I turned to finish my breakfast, when he approached behind my seat, lowering my blanket enough to suck my exposed shoulder into his warm mouth. I closed my eyes lavishing in the moment only to be surprised at the steaming apple-cinnamon muffin sitting on a saucer in front of my eyes.

  Beaming with mouthwatering excitement, I shouted, “Thank you!”

  “So what time are you planning on leaving today?” he asked, covering the basket with a decorative cloth napkin.

  “As soon as I finish this breakfast, pack, and shower.”

  “You might get out a bit earlier than me. You know how Miss Edna likes to chat.” She never holds a conversation with me. “I’ll see you at the home front. Let’s go out for dinner and a movie tonight.”

  “Okay, I’ll be ready around six, but I can’t be out too late.”

  “Hmm, curfew?”

  “Yes, sir, Mr. Sutter. I want to get into the office early to sift through the pile of work I’m sure I have.” My plate was successfully empty of food, so I deposited it in the soapy water Kem was working in. He leaned in to give me a slow kiss that could make my heart have arrhythmia. When I walked off, he reached out with his soap-filled hand and pulled me into a deeper lip-lock. He ran his heated touch from the top of my shoulders slowly down to my lower back. He had pulled the blanket down and the slight chill of the air hit my naked skin, and then he pressed his brow to mine like it was our last spoken moment and he whispered, “See you when I get home, Babygirl.” My lips curled into a grin as I backed away from him, fanning my fingers into a seductive wave.

  It didn’t take me long to gather my things since I was only using the few items Kem put in the overnight bag during my extended stay. My original suitcase had been packed for days, so there was nothing else to do but get ready. I decided to take a full bath versus showering. I wanted to bask in the memory of sitting in that same bathtub that my grandmother filled with Joy dish soap when I was a little girl. My hair used to be all over my head the tub filled with the dirt from my body after I came in from traipsing in the gardens of all the neighbors, eating the ripest fruits. My grandmother would fuss up a thunderstorm at me wondering why I preferred to be out getting dirty rather than playing dollies in the house or studying my Bible verses. Even though she didn’t understand it, she always stood in the doorway smiling as I went sailing down the street in my hole-filled jeans, canvas sneakers, and dingy play shirt with two plaited pigtails flying in the wind.

  After soaking for a bit, I finished bathing, becoming settled with the fact that it was time for me to leave Houston for Dallas. I stepped into my dark denim straight-leg jeans, form fitting white V-neck, and sneakers when I heard laughter coming from outside. I leaned on my elbows, looking out of the windowsill at Kem rocking in a chair opposite Miss Edna. Hmph, I have to sit on the step but she pulls a rocking chair out for him. There was a low wind running in the air that shifted his dusky hair away from his face, causing him to flip his head every few seconds to move it back. The white contrast of his shirt against the mixed rainbow of colors that tattered his skin sent shivers down my spine. I didn’t want to spend another second without him near me. God Kem is the most gorgeous thing my eyes have ever seen. Miss Edna caught me spying on them, so I waved and Kem puckered his lips, shooting a silent kiss in my direction. I winked back, slipping out of the window, shutting a
nd locking it.

  As I walked through the house making sure that everything was locked up, it seemed like every other floorboard creaked with each step I made, making me regret leaving the house. Two females sharing a two bedroom, two level home, filling it with triumphs and losses, laughter and sadness, life and death, marriages and divorces. I was hopeful that all the good history vanquished all the negative moments that once played out within its walls. After I placed my suitcases in the trunk of my car, I reversed out of the driveway, spotting Kem a few homes up the road knocking on Miss Willis’s door. “Don’t take long,” I shouted through my rolled down window.

  “I won’t, Babygirl. Drive home safely and slowly. I love you.” Miss Willis opened her door with a half-moon toothless grin on her face. I waved to her and shouted, “Love you too, Kem,” then I cranked up the Soundgarden Superunknown CD, leaving him to continue his customary routine.

  I felt great on the ride back to Dallas. Traffic was unusually light so I shaved off forty minutes from my drive time, which was always a plus in my book. By the time I pulled up to the guard booth in front of my estate it was late afternoon. I chatted with my full-time grounds security guard, then I headed in, elated to be back home even if home was a monstrosity. Entering the house gave me a moment of somberness knowing that when I left, it was on negative pretenses, but I quickly remembered that my life had changed for the better while I was away. After I tossed my suitcases in my closet to unpack later, I constructed a turkey and swiss sandwich, devouring it like a ravenous beast before I left the kitchen, and flopped my tired body on the bed.

  Only thinking I had laid on the bed for a few minutes, the darkness of night showed the inaccuracy of my time frame. I rolled over, and my cell phone read 7:13 p.m., causing me to panic at the thought of being late for my date with Kem. Pain shot up my spine when I tried to roll out of the bed. I was trapped, with my chest feeling like a ton of bricks sat on it. I noticed that perspiration had soaked through my clothing and the bedding when I heard the security alarm chime in the distance.