by Sky Corgan
With a sigh, I dialed the number, listening to my beating heart as it pounded in my ears with every ring of the phone. Tammy picked up on the second ring, sounding chipper as normal.
“Hey Kim, it's been a while. How is everything going?”
“It's good.” I swallowed the lump in my throat, hesitating.
“How's the new semester? Do you like all your classes?”
“They're good. Victor and I went in together to have our schedules done, so we ended up with two classes together this semester.”
“That's awesome. So, no romance between you guys yet?” I could picture her doing an eyebrow waggle on the other end of the line.
“No. Victor and I are just friends. I am kind of seeing someone else though.”
“Oh?” she sounded surprised. “Only a few days into the new semester and you've already met someone?”
“Well, I've known him for a while.” I twirled a strand of my curly brown hair in my fingers as if it would distract the nausea sloshing around in my stomach.
“Tell me all about him. What's his name?”
“Well, he's a bit older than me.”
“How much older?” her tone took a dark turn.
“I'm kind of scared to tell you.”
“A little older is alright. Like, a couple of years. But you have to watch out for guys who are a lot older. They're intentions aren't always good. A lot of them are looking for trophy girlfriends. Girls have expiration dates to them. They'll replace you after a while and start shopping for a younger model.”
“He's not like that.”
“How much older, Kim?”
“Oh, crap! My lasagne is burning. I've got to go. Love you, sis.” Click!
The unpleasant feelings were twisting and growing inside of me; the tension and nervousness were too much for me to bear. Did she have any idea the guy I was talking about was Dominick? Was she trying to warn me against him?
I admittedly had concerns with dating Dominick in the beginning. Originally, I worried that he might be cheating on me when he went on business trips. He's very attractive, with a perfect body, a good fashion sense, gorgeous gray eyes, an awesome career, and lots of money. Not to mention his die-hard fans. What woman wouldn't want to date a handsome male romance author? But those worries were put to rest the moment I realized what a hermit he is. Thoughts of him ever wanting to replace me with a younger model had never even crossed my mind. If there was one thing that Dominick didn't like, it was change. The odds of him wanting to trade me in, for any reason, were about as good as the odds of hell freezing over.
Needless to say, there was no lasagne in the oven. I just couldn't stand to tell Tammy the truth. She already sounded disapproving, and I didn't really want to deal with her reaction. Perhaps I wasn't as ready for it as I had thought.
***
“I couldn't do it,” I confessed to Dominick during breakfast the next morning.
“Couldn't do what?”
“Tell Tammy about us.”
“I don't care.”
“You should care.” I frowned at him.
“Why? She's not my sister.”
“But she's your best friend. Don't best friends tell each other who they date?”
“Do you know how many women I've dated that Tammy hasn't known about?”
“What a way to start my morning,” I grumbled to my waffles. The thought of Dominick dating other women, ever, put me in a bad mood. As far as I had known up to that point, it had always just been Tammy and me. Not that he had ever dated Tammy. But I had never seen him with anyone else. The idea that he could date other people just seemed strange to me.
“I really don't know why you're making such a big deal out of this.”
“She's my sister, Dominick. I tell her everything.”
“Uh-oh. You used my full name. You must be getting angry with me.” He smirked.
“I am a little miffed.”
“And why is that?” the amusement in his voice was strong, and it only pissed me off more.
“We're a couple. If something is bothering me, it should be bothering you too.”
“Well that hardly seems fair. If I get a hang nail, should it bother you just as much as it bothers me?”
“My sister is not a hang nail,” I growled at him.
“You're making her out to be just as annoying as one.” He stabbed a piece of waffle and chewed it noisily, perhaps with the intention to get on my nerves more.
“You're helping me with this or your not getting laid.”
“Using sex as a weapon. Typical female. What do you want me to do?” he sighed, sitting back in his chair.
“I don't know. Be there for me when I tell her. Hold my hand. Back me up.”
“You act like this is the end of the world.”
“I know. And I realize that it's not. The only two people in my life that I care about though are you and Tammy, and the thought of either one of you being angry with me breaks my heart.”
His expression softened. “Alright. I'll be with you when you tell her.”
“Thank you. That's what a good boyfriend would do.”
“Well, I better be good then if I want a reward.” The lecherous smirk returned, and I couldn't help but grin at him.
For some reason, knowing Dominick would be with me when I told Tammy did make me feel better. There wasn't much he could do while I was speaking to her, but at least he could hold me afterward. Maybe his presence would make the task less daunting.
There was a sense of ease as I went about my day, as if this extra little bit of help was all I needed to make me feel a lot better about what had to be done. When I returned home from school, I was more than ready to make the call. This had been put off for long enough.
“Let's do this,” I told Dominick as I approached him in his office with phone in hand.
“Aren't we going to eat first?” He gave me a quizzical look.
If we were following our normal routine, I would be making dinner right now. This was more important though.
“Are you really that hungry?” I quirked an eyebrow at him.
“I'm not sure how supportive I'll be on an empty stomach.”
“Didn't you eat the lunch I made you?”
“Lunch was four hours ago.”
“Dom,” I groaned. “I really just want to get this over with while I still have the courage to do it.”
“Fine,” he sighed. “Call Tammy and I'll sit here and support you, whatever that requires.”
Dominick looked annoyed, but I decided to take the opportunity anyway, dialing Tammy's number and bringing the phone up to my ear. I slid onto Dominick's lap, and he wrapped his arms loosely around me. Tammy picked up on the second ring, sounding happier than normal.
“Hey Kim.”
“Hey. You sound like you had a good day.”
“I did. Marcus and I went to the fertility clinic and had some tests run.”
“Oh?”
Dominick's grip tightened around me. He rested his head on my shoulder, nuzzling his face against my neck. A chill rolled down my spine as I felt his lips touch my skin. I wanted to slap at him, but instead I just tensed, hoping he would stop on his own.
“Everything seems to be fine with both of us. Marcus's sperm count is normal, and all of our blood work came out okay.”
“That's great.”
One of Dominick's hands slid up my shirt, caressing my stomach. I could feel his manhood growing beneath me, making me shift uncomfortably as I realized what he was gearing up for. Irritated, I grabbed his hand, trying to push it down and out of my shirt, but it only made him grip me tighter.
“We still have some more tests to run,” Tammy continued. “There's a lot more involved than I thought, but things look hopeful so far. They gave me this ovulation testing kit so I can figure out when I'm the most fertile. That way, Marcus and I can be trying on the right days.”
By that time, Dominick had managed to reach my breast, gripping it roughly w
hile he pulled me back against him. As my nipple slipped between his fingertips, and he pinched it, my breath hitched.
“Are you alright?” Tammy asked, noticing the sudden change in my breathing.
“Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine,” I stuttered, moving the phone to my other ear, since Dominick was busy kissing a trail up my neck towards the ear that I was originally holding it against.
“You sound like something startled you.”
“A mouse. There's a mouse in here.”
“A mouse?” she sounded appalled. “Don't tell me Dominick lives in some ghetto.”
“No. It just started showing up. He said he was going to take care of it. We set up traps and everything, but it's an illusive little bugg . . .ahhhhhh” my voice trailed off into an embarrassing moan as Dominick snaked his hand into my underwear and sought out my clit. “Oh my God, it just went under my chair. Maybe I should let you go.” I shifted on his lap, grabbing his wrist to try to pull it away, but that only helped him to reposition and plunge a finger inside of me. It took everything in me not to pant into the phone as he slowly began working the finger in and out of me.
“But I have so much to tell you,” Tammy whined. “The mouse isn't going anywhere. Just ignore it.”
“It's a big mouse,” I grumbled.
“I'm sure it's not going anywhere.”
“Not if Dominick has anything to do with it.”
“Well then, talk to me a while longer.”
“Fine,” I breathed, surrendering to them both.
“Anyway, we're going to try to chart my ovulation cycle for a few months. I figured that if I'm not pregnant within the next three months, we're going to go back and have a Postcoital test done.”
“What's that?”
“It's where you go into the doctor after you have sex, and they take a sample of cervical mucus to see how Marcus's sperm is reacting to my body.”
“That sounds uncomfortable.”
There was something else uncomfortable and persistent rubbing against my ass. I could think of a much better place to stick it. Apparently, Dominick had the same idea. He pulled his hands out of my underwear and shirt. For a few brief seconds, I thought he was going to leave me be, but then he urged me to stand up, only to grip my skirt and underwear and pull them down around my knees. A ball of nervous excitement rolled in my stomach as I wondered what his next move would be. It only took a glance at his cock standing at attention outside of his slacks to know what his plan was. I put my finger over the speaker as he grabbed me by the hips and carefully guided me back on top of him. What we were doing was so wrong in so many ways, but I didn't want him to stop. As he slid inside of me, I groaned, completely ignoring all of Tammy's boring fertility talk on the other end of the line. We had our own baby making action going on, not that I had any desire to get pregnant anytime soon. Since Dominick and I had established a relationship, I had gone ahead and gotten on birth control. Babies could come later on down the road.
Tammy went on and on about the list of tests they might have to do should she not conceive with each failing method, and I barely listened as Dominick thrust inside of me, taking me greedily, making me forget what I had called Tammy for in the first place. He was being such a wicked bastard, and I absolutely loved it, loved the way he took what he wanted from me when he wanted it. Of course, by that time, I wanted it to. It never took much coaxing for Dominick to get me on the same wavelength as him, even in the most awkward of moments. Part of me hated him for it, but another part of me knew this was just another reason why we were meant to be together.
His hand reached around in front of me, sliding down between my legs to rub the tiny button there that sent my core on overdrive. His other hand gripped my breast firmly, squeezing to the point of delicious pain that made me cry out as he drove himself up inside of me.
“Mouse again?” Tammy asked. Apparently, I didn't have my finger firmly enough on the speaker.
“Yes, mouse,” I breathed.
“Damn, sis, you sound like the thing is chasing you around the house.”
“Keep going,” I said, though I wasn't sure to whom I meant. Dominick had almost driven me to orgasm, and I was going to be pissed if Tammy distracted me and ruined it. Thankfully, she kept talking, and I kept climbing, climbing and climbing and climbing until there was nowhere left to go.
Dominick picked up the pace, grunting softly behind me. He was doing better about being quiet than I was. Finally, he gripped me firmly around the waist, drawing me to him, and his breathing became ragged as he released inside of me, our orgasms flowing into each other as our pleasure collided. He panted heavily, resting his chin on my shoulder and chuckling softly from his victory over me.
“So, what's been going on with you lately, Kim?” Tammy asked. “How's it going with that guy?”
I took my finger off the speaker. “It's good. It's great, actually. Hey, can I call you back later.”
“Um, yeah. Sure. I guess. I feel kind of bad. We spent all that time just talking about me.”
“It's fine. Don't worry about it. It's not like we're never going to talk again.”
“Yeah, you're right. Well, call me when you get some free time, so we can discuss this new mystery man of yours. I've been curious about him.”
“I will. Love ya. Bye.”
“Bye.”
All I cared about in that moment was chastising Dominick and then getting cleaned up. He had made both of us a sticky sweaty mess.
I hung up the phone and tossed it on his desk before turning and wrapping my arms around his shoulders. The sexy affectionate look he gave me made it too difficult to be angry with him. All I could do was smile.
“You're something else. You know that, right?” I said, trying to pretend to be mad.
“Mhm.” He nodded before leaning in to kiss me softly on the lips.
I kissed him back before pulling away. “Don't give me that face. I'm mad at you. Do you know how wrong that was? She could have heard us.”
“I don't care.”
“I know you don't care, but I do.”
“What was all that about a mouse?”
“You, you dope. You're a big annoying mouse. I didn't even . . . Ugh. Crap. You totally messed up what I was going to say to her.”
“You could have told her I was fucking you.” He grinned lecherously.
“You're insatiable.” I slapped his chest playfully before pulling myself off of his lap. “Now both of these outfits are going to have to be laundered.”
“Oh, don't look so upset. You liked it and you know it.”
“I never said I didn't like it,” I huffed at him.
“When's dinner going to be ready?”
“Ugh. You're such a man!”
“Would you want me to be anything else?”
“For that stunt, you're ordering pizza tonight.”
“Fine.” He smirked at me. “Anything for my princess.”
“A lot of help you were.” I gave him a final upset look before leaving his office, though this one was half genuine.
He had said he would help me, and all he had done was distract me. Had he done it purposely? Maybe Dominick really didn't want Tammy to know about us. That didn't make much sense though. He had always shown indifference towards the subject.
For some reason, it felt like it didn't really matter anymore. Every time I tried to tell Tammy, something came up. Either I'd chicken out . . . or this. Maybe it wasn't so important for her to know. Besides, the last thing she needed was to be stressed out while her and Marcus were trying to conceive. We had gone almost an entire year without telling her about our relationship. What was a while longer.
Chapter 2
Life was a lot less stressful now that I wasn't worrying about telling Tammy about Dominick. It was a hurdle I'd have to cross eventually, but for now, it was on the back burner. What was the real rush anyway? Sure, it kind of sucked that I couldn't bring Dominick home with me during holidays and vacations, but he didn't se
em bothered by it. Besides, it would only make things more awkward for everyone.
Life went on. When Tammy asked about my mystery man, I told her the relationship was fleeting. We just weren't compatible, and so it was time to move on. Of course, she brought up that age was probably a factor in the relationship falling apart. People with large age gaps between them usually weren't interested in the same things. I let her think she was right, only because I didn't know what else to say about it, though I knew that probably wouldn't help my case when the truth did come out.
Since the end of last semester, Dominick began to trust me more. He allowed me to take the bus to and from school whenever I wanted, which wasn't often. To be honest, I preferred for him to drive me most days, though I felt like it was a bit of an inconvenience to him. He also let me go out with Victor from time to time, though never without an argument.
I suppose I shouldn't have been upset when I came home one afternoon to find a woman sitting on the loveseat. I had heard her through the door as I approached, and for several moments, I just stood there, listening in on the conversation. Of course, my mind immediately went in the wrong direction. Is he cheating on me? It was a stupid question. I came home from school at the same time every day unless I went grocery shopping, and I had mentioned no plans of grocery shopping to Dominick, so surely he expected me to arrive home at the normal time.
“Have you tried the pomodoro technique?” she was asking.
It sounded like something sexual, which made me want to charge through the door and find out what was going on, but I held my ground.
“Ugh,” Dominick grunted. “If I hear one more person suggest the pomodoro technique to me, I might vomit on myself.”
“It works for some.”
“I don't see how you can get anything done in fifteen minutes.”
“It was originally twenty-five minutes.”
My palms were beginning to sweat as I listened to them. They were talking about sex. Weren't they? They had to be.