by Diana Kane
“You’ll see.” Thus far she had been stingy on the details, simply telling me to trust her. I stare out the window taking in the scenery. The sensation of Isabella slowly trailing her fingertips up the inside of my thigh pulls me back into the car.
“You know, if you wanted to do that we could have stayed in,” I say as I part my legs a little further. Her fingers reach my apex and start to gently massage me, forcing me to audibly sigh.
“There’s plenty of time for that,” she informs me as she pulls her hand away, “but not now.” She dons a devilish grin as she pulls into what looks like a cross between an outdoor mall and a flea market. The bright blue, green, and yellow buildings pull one’s attention to them, the canopied stalls open to display their wares, a plethora of fresh fruits, live chickens, clothing and various hand crafted curios as far as the eye can see. The scents from different food stalls make my mouth water, despite having just had breakfast.
“Aww baby, I thought you’d never take me shopping.” I laugh at the look on Isabella’s face, my sarcasm hasn’t translated.
“I see, you want to be funny. I will remember this,” her smile assures me she’s playing as well.
“I remember you teasing me first.” My core hasn’t forgotten either. Isabella simply grins at me.
“Come on,” she instructs, getting out of the Jeep. “This can be a quick trip, I just need to pick up a few things.” My steps must have faltered because Isabella pulls ahead of me a few paces before realizing I’m no longer at her side. I watch as she stops and turns to look for me, her confusion evident when her eyes finally meet mine. “Que?” I’m far from fluent in Spanish, but I at least know what she’s asking.
“Do we have to rush out of here? I’d like to look around.” If she wanted me to get a taste of the culture then what better place to start than the market? We haven’t even really gotten into it yet, and already the contrast to American markets is quite evident. I’m curious and want to learn more. I watch her body language relax, and a smile spread across her face as she returns to me, extending her hand once she’s close enough. I accept the offered hand and wonder if I missed something or had done something to give her the impression that I don’t appreciate her effort to show me life off of the resort. Given that things seem fine now, I decide not to push the issue, to just live in the moment.
Our pace through the market can only be described as leisurely. Isabella and I chat when we aren’t being interrupted, which happens frequently. It must be some combination of her being a regular here and her family being well known. She slips easily between speaking English with me and Spanish with the individuals who stop her. I have no idea what they discuss, but a few glances in my direction let me know that these people know her well enough to inquire about my identity. Each time she’s pulled into one of these conversations I let go of her hand and look at the surrounding wares. Each time she finds me when she’s finished and laces her fingers back through mine. With every repetition of this cycle, I feel an increasing sense of guilt. My mind keeps wandering back to Katrina each time I see something I’m certain she would like or something that simply reminds me of some memory of her. Then this beautiful woman that I know very little about, who is using her day off to basically take me on a date, will come and take my hand. Even though I’ve been clear with Isabella about the situation, I still feel guilty when Katrina comes to mind. I can feel the first nagging signs of an impending headache as the tension in my shoulders and neck continues to grow.
I’m looking at the assortment of goods available in one of the shops as Isabella chats with a man I assume is the proprietor. The shop seems to offer everything from snacks to clothing to baubles. Isabella finds me and takes my hand again, but at this point the guilt is too much, and I immediately pull mine free.
“What’s wrong?” I don’t know how to answer her without sounding like a jerk, so I stand there staring at the rack of post cards like they’re the most interesting things in the world. Isabella calls something across the store to the man and the next thing I know she is dragging me into the back room. She pulls me in behind her, closes the door and then pins my back against it. “What’s wrong?”
“I…” I close my eyes, take a deep breath and exhale slowly, trying to find a way to tell her.
“Do you not want me to touch you in public?” The look she gives me is fierce, seemingly part irritation and part anger.
“What? No, that doesn’t bother me at all. It’s just…” I watch as Isabella’s features soften, she’s an intelligent, perceptive woman, and she has put it together on her own.
“It’s ok to think about her.”
“Is it? You’re here, being wonderful, and my mind keeps wandering back to Katrina.”
“Of course it’s ok. I know who has your heart, you were honest about that. It’s only natural that you think about her. Sometimes it’s nice to be reminded that there’s someone who enjoys being with you. It makes the difficult times easier.” As I marvel at the woman before me, I manage to connect some dots of my own.
“You haven’t been here with anyone since…have you?” She doesn’t have to tell me, the answer is immediate in her eyes.
“Not here or anywhere.” I get it then. Isabella taking my hand has been as much a comfort for her as it is for me. The questioning eyes directed at me during the conversations I couldn’t understand. This is her first public outing with someone since her ex, and it has to be much more difficult for her than my thoughts of Katrina are for me. Something possesses me as I look at the alluring woman before me and think about what the trip here has been like for her. I grip her by the shoulders and quickly switch our positions, pinning her back against the door as I lock my lips on hers. As my tongue dances with hers, I lift up her sundress, spread her legs with my knee and press my thigh against her. The sensation of her unimpeded sex gliding against my thigh causes me to bite her lower lip and her to hiss.
“You aren’t wearing any underwear.” She hasn’t stopped grinding against my thigh either. “How well do you know the owner?”
“Well enough. We’ll have to be quiet and quick, but he won’t come back here.” She continues to work herself against my thigh as her hand slips inside my shorts and underwear. Our eyes are locked as her fingers slip inside my folds, and I see she’s pleased by the wetness she finds waiting. Her free hand grabs the back of the leg between her thighs, and draws it more firmly against her. My hands go to her breast as our lips reconnect. Both of our breathing picking up as our excitement builds. Isabella groans as she bites my lip and I pinch her nipples. “I’m close, are you?” Just knowing she’s close is enough for my body to catch up with her, I can feel the start of my own orgasm. Isabella can too, and she pulls my thigh even tighter against her as she bucks harder and faster over it. Our mouths meet again and swallow one another’s release, hers seconds before mine. When she finally calms enough to withdraw her fingers and release my leg, I sink down and slip under the dress to delicately lap up the juices from her lips and thighs, savoring her sweet tanginess. She moans as I finish and pull the dress back over my head in time to see her pulling her fingers out of her mouth. I’d take her again if we didn’t have to leave this storage room. We quickly right ourselves and reenter the store proper. Isabella grabs two bottles of water and exchanges a short conversation with the man while she pays. If he knows what we were up to and said something, her face never betrays any embarrassment. This time when she takes my hand I don’t feel any guilt, not because she told me I didn’t have to, but because the scent of her is still on my lips making me think of no one but her.
“Is there anything you want to double back to?” We made it through the market, Isabella picking up the various pieces of fruit she was after, while I purchased a new sarong and another sundress.
“I think I’m all set.”
“Very good, I have other plans.” Her words cause a mild sense of disappointment to pass through me, even if I have no right to feel that way. As we walk bac
k to the Jeep, I try to figure out if I had said or done something wrong, but her hand still clutches mine, so I don’t think I have. She owes me no explanation though, so, like earlier, I decide to continue living in the moment.
When the Jeep pulls out of the market, she turns in what I believe is the wrong direction to return to the resort. Then again, Isabella lives here, so I figure I have the directions turned around in my head. Five minutes later, as Isabella asks me about life at home, I know my initial sense was correct, we aren’t heading back to the resort after all. A few minutes later we arrive at Isabella’s next destination, the zoo.
“You like animals?” I ask her as she puts the car in park.
“Yes, don’t you?” She has a mild look of concern on her face, wondering if she has made an error bringing me here.
“More than people most of the time.” She smiles at my answer, erasing all sense of doubt I had seen there seconds ago.
“On this, we agree.”
We take our time going through the park, not bothering to rush from one show or exhibit to the next. It’s nice just walking with her, getting to know her, comparing life on the island to life in the midwest. Watching the exotic birds, iguanas, sea turtles and other species provides a temporary distraction from what I’m enjoying more, just being here with Isabella.
It’s mid-afternoon by the time we finish seeing the park. I stifle a yawn and try to suppress the gurgling in my stomach, but Isabella notices both. “I would like to show you something tonight, if you will let me.”
“Of course.” Isabella’s lips curl into a smile at my answer.
“Perhaps a nap and dinner first.” The mere mention of the word nap has me yawning again, causing Isabella to smirk. She parks the car and I help her carry her bags to her place, intending to retreat to my own suite for a nap.
“What time do you want to meet for dinner?” I ask as I place the bags I carried on the counter. She tilts her head to the side slightly as her brow furrows together.
“You’re leaving?” Isabella closes the small space between us.
“I thought—.”
“You could stay,” she interrupts me, using a fist full of my shirt to pull me to her and kissing me forcefully. I slide my hands around her hips, down her toned ass and around the back of her thighs, pulling upward. I pick her up, and she wraps her long legs around my hips, locking them against the small of my back. I carry her back to her bedroom, our mouths never separating. There’s no more debating if I plan to stay, I want more than the sample I had at the market, much more.
*****
For the second time today, I wake up in Isabella’s bed, the difference being I know where I am this time. Isabella still slumbers next to me, her arm lazily draped over my hips as I stare at the ceiling. Dusk seeps in from the windows, and a look at the clock reveals it’s nearly 8 pm. I’m thirsty, and my stomach is starting to protest loudly. I try to slip out of the bed without waking Isabella, but she stirs as I lay her arm back down on the Egyptian cotton sheets. I quietly pad down the hall to the kitchen to get a glass of water. I find a glass, fill it and down it in one long drink. I fill it again then set it on the counter next to the sink, I need something to eat. As I turn away from the sink, I feel Isabella’s arms wrap around my waist, her naked form pressed against mine, her lips hovering a short distance from my ear.
“Dinner and then we can go,” she whispers, her breath caressing my ear, sending chills along my spine.
“I should shower first. What should I wear?” She hasn’t told me where we’re going, I know she won’t, so I don’t bother asking.
“I like what you have on now.” She runs her hands over my exposed abdomen and up my sides.
“I’m naked and I probably smell.” I feel her face as she nuzzles in against my neck, the rise of her chest as she inhales and the warm torrent of air that brushes over my neck as she exhales.
“I like how you smell.”
“I smell like sex.” I feel her grin against my shoulder.
“Isn’t that the best smell? You may shower if you’d like, but there’s no need. The clothes you wore today will be fine.” Isabella drinks the glass of water I had neglected and releases me, making her way back to the bedroom. I follow, watching her bare ass sway from side to side, knowing she’s putting a little extra effort into it to entice me.
Somehow we manage to get dressed and make it to dinner. Our conversation is effortless. We discuss our families, hobbies, pet peeves, why I became a plastic surgeon, what I love about my career, and countless other things. We laugh and share stories, and as I sip my margarita I realize that if this were a first date, it would be going perfectly. Maybe it’s going so well because we’ve already had sex or because if we hated each other, it would be easy to walk away. Whatever the reason, I find myself enjoying being in her company.
After dinner, we leave the resort in the Jeep. Try as I might to get Isabella to tell me where we are going, she refuses, each time grinning and reminding me to be patient, trust her or to wait and see. We travel a short distance before stopping at a security gate. Isabella keys in a code, the gate slowly opens and we continue up the drive, parking outside of what can only be described as a mansion.
“Where are we?”
“This is my family’s estate.” I immediately grow tense and nervous, I’m not prepared to meet this woman’s family. My unease must be written all over my features because Isabella laughs at me. “Relax, we’re not going inside. We have to walk from here though.” Isabella exits the Jeep and pulls a bag out of the back. I release the breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding and open the door, wondering when she put the bag back there. I meet Isabella at the front of the Jeep and she takes my hand as we follow a well tended path away from the house. Isabella leads us as the trail changes direction or branches off, never hesitating, her familiarity with the trail making it clear that this is where she grew up. Eventually the path leads to a set of wooden stairs leading down. I follow Isabella, freezing once I see where we are headed. Before us is a freshwater lagoon, the transparent water glowing from the moonlight. The stairs leading down to a deck that overlooks the water, holding a patio furniture set and two lounge chairs. The two sides opposite the deck are enclosed by what looks to be a cliff face, one of the faces receding inwards to what may be a cave, the other host to a small waterfall. The final side, adjacent to the deck, tapers off into land covered in trees and plants. It’s peaceful and secluded, a paradise all its own. When I look back down the stairs, I see Isabella, five steps lower, smiling at me. She continues her descent, so I follow. When I catch up to her, she’s placed the bag on the table and is removing its contents: towels, two bottles of wine and several bottles of water.
“This is really beautiful. When did you do all this?” Isabella smiles and pulls me to her.
“You fell asleep before I did. I called the desk and arranged the bag. The waiter let them know to put it in my car after he brought us our meals.”
“Sneaky.” She grins at me before giving me a soft, chaste kiss.
“Red or white?” Wine has never been high on my list so I don’t really have an opinion.
“You’re the expert, you chose.” I watch as she uses the corkscrew to open the bottle of white.
“I’m afraid we don’t have glasses.”
“You’re pure class, aren’t you?” I say grinning. I can’t help but tease her, we’re well past worrying about drinking out of the same bottle. She laughs before kissing me and offering me the bottle. I take a drink, and she does the same when I return the bottle to her. She kisses me more intently, and I break it off when I feel her trying to remove my top. “What are you doing?”
“I thought it was obvious,” she whispers in-between the soft kisses she peppers down my neck. Her hands are still under my shirt, and I put space between us when she tries to remove it again.
“What about your family?”
“They will not interrupt us, I told them I would be here tonight.�
� As if to prove her point, she unties her sundress, allowing it to slide down her body and pool at her feet. I feel my body respond to the sight of her standing naked before me, the moonlight illuminating her skin. She stalks over to me, a predator closing in on its prey, her eyes locked on her intended target. She pulls me against her and kisses me again.
“Wait, so they know?” I ask as our lips part when she pulls my top up over my head. She sighs, I know I’m frustrating her, if not flat out irritating her.
“Of course they do, I think they were just happy I finally planned to spend time with someone.” I don’t need Isabella to tell me I’m not the first woman she’s brought here, I have no illusions on that front. Her hands slide up my abdomen and over my breasts before reaching around to unclasp my bra.
“So they know what you’re doing out here, and they’re ok with it?” Isabella abandons her task as she growls against my neck.
“I want to be naked with you in that water, but if you would prefer, we can get dressed and go see my family.” She takes another drink of the wine before kissing me again, the remnants of the wine on her lips and tongue seeping into my mouth.