The Gentlewoman

by Lisa Durkin

  He looked her in the eyes. “Yes, I’ve done a lot of different things with a lot of different people. Threesomes, ménages, a number of different things. Does that bother you?”

  She felt like a virgin in headlights. “No, I don’t think so.” She couldn’t really say because she’d never considered it before. Did it bother her to be with a man-whore? What was one supposed to feel about this? She drew a blank. Except for one thing.

  “Are you clean? I mean, no STDs?” She was embarrassed. It was a little late to ask.

  “Oh yes, I’ve been very careful and I’ve always gotten tested regularly.” He considered this for a moment, fiddling with his roll of silverware. He looked up and leaned forward, speaking quietly. “Except with you, Rory. Last night I didn’t wear a condom, and I came inside you every time. Was that a mistake?”

  She paused and looked into his eyes. After a moment, she answered, “It’s okay as long as you’ve been safe.”

  He pondered her answer and seemed to push further. “I was more worried about pregnancy. I haven’t had a vasectomy.”

  “Don’t give it a second thought,” she said coolly, her gaze steely. She wanted him to steer clear of that topic.

  “Okay, good.”

  They were both quiet and the waitress arrived with their breakfasts. After a few bites of her biscuits, Rory readjusted her mindset to move forward.

  “So, you were pretty impressive last night, I mean, for an old man and all.”

  Jackson snorted, trying not to spray orange juice through his nose. He swallowed and started laughing. “Gee, thanks, that means a lot to someone of my advanced years.”

  “Well, you know, sexually speaking, most men tend to slow down in their forties, or so say the commercials. Do you take Viagra?” She held back her laughter.

  He balked, feigning insult. “I’ll have you know I have never had reason to enhance my natural performance, thank you very much.”

  “Well, just thought I’d ask. You never know with the middle-aged men.” She raised her orange juice to cover her smile.

  Jackson reached under the table for her knee and leaned forward until they were nose to nose. “I’ll give you middle-aged when we get home, little girl.” He slid his hand up to the heat of her crotch.

  “Hmmmm, I can’t wait.”

  “Do you have anything special you’d like to do on your day off?” Jackson opened the car door for her and took her hand as she lowered herself in. Rory smiled. She was very unaccustomed to the touches, but she liked it.

  “I didn’t plan the day off, remember?” she said.

  He chuckled as he climbed into the driver’s seat. “Oh yeah! Well, there’s a new bookstore that I’d like to check out in Georgetown. What do you say?”

  “Sure, I’m game,” she said, getting comfortable in her seat. She liked Jackson’s BMW. She relaxed and enjoyed the city view as they drove.

  Her cell phone rang and she pulled it from her purse, checking the caller ID. “Hi.”

  “How’s your day off going?” Nicole said in a mock seductively low voice. “I’m not interrupting anything dirty, am I? Do you have clothes on, or am I talking to you while Jackson’s naked?”

  “Very funny, yes, we’re both fully dressed. What’s up?” Rory looked at Jackson, who smiled at her as she rolled her eyes.

  “Oh that’s too bad. Well, I want you to enjoy your day, but I also wanted to warn you that Landon’s looking for you. He called here, says he left a voicemail on your cell too.”

  Rory had ignored his call. She didn’t want to deal with Landon, especially today, when she was committed to enjoying her impromptu day off. They hadn’t spoken since their tense lunch and Rory hadn’t backed down on her refusal to give in and serve on Homeland. She glanced again at Jackson, wondering but quickly dismissing the question of whether he had anything to do with that request. She didn’t want that idea in her head now.

  “I’ll talk to Landon tomorrow. I’m not going to be available today.”

  “Happy to hear it. Enjoy the day and we’ll talk in the morning.”

  Pressing end, Rory tucked her phone back into her purse and stared out the window. Funny how quickly all the politics and worries had been banished from her thoughts while she had been concentrating on Jackson. Ironic how fast it all came racing back to the forefront with just one phone call.

  Jackson pulled into a parking spot on a street with quaint Victorian storefronts and turned off the car. Leaning over, he pulled her to him and nuzzled her ear.

  “Not today,” he whispered in between nibbles on her earlobe. “Don’t let it enter your thoughts today. It’ll all be there tomorrow.”

  She turned her head and captured his lips in a passionate kiss. He knew exactly what she needed to hear. It felt good to know that somebody else understood what she was dealing with, maybe understood her a little.

  They shopped around the little bookstore and made a couple of purchases each. They then toured the antiques store next door. Rory learned that Jackson had quite an eye for antique furniture, which he credited to his late grandparents being avid collectors.

  They checked out a fine clothing store on the same block, and Rory balked at the prices. Jackson laughed at Rory’s look of shock when a scarf she was admiring had a price tag of three hundred dollars. It reminded her of his wealth. She hadn’t thought about it, he didn’t wear it as a badge, and so she had forgotten.

  At noon, he suggested they head over to a French café and order takeout. They weren’t exactly hungry yet, but they ordered French bread, soup and cheese and headed for home. It started snowing as soon as they got back to the car.

  Stomping the snow from his feet, Jackson insisted they go to his place instead of hers. They set the shopping bags on the bar in his apartment and stored the food in the refrigerator. She laughed, wondering if Jackson actually believed that she wasn’t on to his game.

  “So you want to fuck in your bed, is that it?” she said as he snaked his arms around her and kissed her ear.

  “Well, among other places. Come with me.”

  He led her upstairs and into his bedroom. It resembled the lodge feel of the rest of the place, large heavy furniture with thick carpeting. The bed was huge. A super-king-size four-poster. She wondered what he had gotten up to in that bed and didn’t want to think of with whom. It was covered with a plush maroon duvet with thick pillows stacked on either side.

  Jackson left her standing next to the bed and ducked into the bathroom. She heard him start water running into the bathtub and poked her head around the door.

  “You want to take a bath?” It seemed a very romantic thing to do for one who so adamantly stuck to a regimen of friends with benefits. He was even lighting candles.

  “I thought we could relax, soak and have a little fun. I’ll give you a massage,” he offered, smiling as he began unbuttoning her shirt. Rory looked down at his deft hands. Honestly, she felt like such a deer in headlights at times. She was simply unused to any type of contact or anything remotely romantic. She closed her eyes and forced the panic that had become a natural reaction back down while taking a deep breath. She reminded herself to just go with it, reciting the words in her head over and over again as her new mantra. She had been so proud of herself for not freaking out over anything so far. And it wasn’t hard to enjoy what he did to her.

  Jackson lifted the shirt from Rory’s shoulders and stood back to remove his own. Then he removed his pants and boxers. The sight of his aroused body freed her mind of any residual hesitation. Desire immediately took over as she admired his perfect physique. His shoulders were broad and strong, his arms muscular and his chest hard and firm.

  Transfixed on his perfect form, she touched his abdominal muscles, a nice tight six-pack. He backed up against the counter and put his hands around her small waist, welcoming her to continue. She let her hands glide very slowly across his tight muscles and around his erection onto both upper thighs. She felt the heat of his skin and the way his muscles ten
sed and released under her hands. Her right hand smoothed over his erection from the base, all the way to the head and back again. As Jackson inhaled sharply, she looked up into his face. His eyes were on fire and she felt her blood heat even further.

  “There are things I want to do too. Come back into the bedroom,” she whispered.

  Jackson leaned quickly over the tub and shut off the water. He followed Rory into the bedroom and she removed her bra. She was naked from the waist up, her nipples hardened and her skin flushed with arousal. He seemed stunned when she pushed him down to sit on the edge of the bed. She licked and sucked her way down his neck and chest, finally kneeling in between his legs and taking his erection in hand.

  “My head’s going to explode,” he moaned as she gently and slowly squeezed and pumped his throbbing cock. After a moment she looked into his eyes. She licked up the underside of his hard cock, and felt empowered by his ragged breaths and how he fisted the comforter.

  Rory was dying to know if he tasted as good as he felt, and when she licked her way up his cock, she wanted more. She sucked him all the way in. Jackson groaned and she went down again, sucking him to the back of her throat. She could taste his musky masculine flavor and it made her nipples throb and her clit quiver. He leaned back on his elbows, watching her mouth on his dick. She bore down on him again and again, sucking hard and enjoying the way he fought his impending orgasm with tight control. She pulled back and licked the underside of his head and sucked up the side of his cock with her lips. He breathed heavily and moaned with each stroke, his body tight and tense.

  “Rory, stop, I’m gonna come,” he finally breathed.

  She didn’t stop. Instead she sucked him back down her throat and went down on him hard and fast, relentlessly. Jackson grabbed the hair on the back of her head hard. She moaned and sucked him harder, swallowing and rubbing with her tongue. He tensed and fisted her hair tighter as he exploded in her mouth, shouting her name and thrusting his hips as she sucked and swallowed him wave after wave.

  Breathing hard, Jackson lifted her head off his cock. He took her in his arms and laid her back on the floor, quickly and deftly undoing her jeans and pulling them off. Spreading her legs and placing them over his shoulders, he licked up her clit with an intense urgency. She cried out as he stroked and nudged until it pulsated and ached for release. He licked her harder and as she came, she felt every muscle in her body tighten to the breaking point before giving out and going completely limp. Afterward, she couldn’t move for the tingling in her pussy and the trembling of her muscles.

  But Jackson didn’t give her a break. He hauled her up and pressed her chest onto the mattress. With one hard drive he was inside her, slamming into her over and over until she was grunting with each thrust and gripping the comforter with clenched fists. He drove again and again, one hand holding her tightly at her hip, the other spread between her shoulder blades, holding her down. His long cock hit her square on, a touch of pain enhancing the savage pleasure. She felt the intensity building, until finally she shattered and screamed his name, her body freezing and riding out the brutal release. She felt him withdraw and the wetness as he ejaculated on her back, and then collapsed against her, sealing himself to her with his seed. They stayed like that, panting and unmoving.

  “Holy shit, that was incredible, Rory,” Jackson said breathlessly, his head resting against her shoulder blade. “Please tell me you don’t hate me for being so rough with you.”

  Her forehead was mashed into the mattress and she didn’t speak, her breathing harsh. Jackson raised his head to look at her. He gently turned her head with both hands and laid her flushed cheek against the mattress. He visibly relaxed when she opened her eyes and smiled at him.

  “Hate is not exactly what I’m feeling at the moment.”

  He chuckled and lifted from her. “Don’t move.” He kissed her shoulder before ducking into the bathroom. He returned with a wet towel and gently wiped her back and between her thighs. After returning the towel to the bath, he picked her up and placed her in the bed. He walked around to the other side and slipped in beside her, pulling her onto his chest and holding her to him.

  Rory woke and looked at Jackson. His face was relaxed in sleep and his features were softer, his lips fuller and red from their sex play. He reminded her of a Ralph Lauren model, with his dark stubble and perfect features. He even had the expensive wardrobe, she snickered to herself.

  He seemed beautiful on the inside too. He was very giving and forthcoming, generous of nature. Or maybe she was reading too much into their time together. She liked the way he made her feel, alive again. It was easy to forget about the past and just live when she was around him. He made her have fun.

  Rory eased out of the big bed and made her way to the bathroom. She was deliciously sore, the kind of sore that makes a woman happy to have more of the same. She returned to the bed and eased herself in, shrieking as an arm darted out, grabbing her around the waist and jerking her back down to his chest. His smile was contagious as he kissed her and wrapped his arms around her.

  “Did you have a nice nap?” He reached out to flip her hair over her shoulder.

  “I had a very nice nap.” Her heart leapt at the way he gazed at her. “I didn’t know it would be so nice to sleep with an old man. I might have tried it sooner.”

  “Again with the old man, huh? I’m not that old!” He laughed, raising the back of her hand to his lips.

  “Well, you’re older than I am. So do you do this special day off for all your fuck buddies?”

  He laughed and rested his hand on her hip, gently massaging. “No, I’ve never done this before. But I like it, I have to admit. I’m really enjoying spending the day with you.” The sparkle in his gorgeous eyes made her breath catch. “I have something to ask you,” he added, his look changing to hesitant, almost nervous.

  Oh shit. “Yes?”

  It was almost a whisper. “I want to ask you if you’ll accompany me to the state dinner at the White House next Saturday night.”

  “A state dinner!” Rory exclaimed, bouncing up. “Wow! Fancy!”

  “So will you be my date?” he asked, laughing at her reaction.

  “How can I say no? A state dinner, the handsome gentleman from Maine in a tuxedo, it’s every woman’s dream come true.” She laced her arms around his neck.

  He pulled her lips to his. He kissed her lightly at first, then deepened, pushing her backward and covering her body with his.

  “Mmmmm, I feel the same way about the gentlewoman from Ohio,” he murmured against her lips.

  Rory sat at the kitchen bar watching Jackson make his famous four-cheese-grilled-cheese sandwiches. He was warming the soup they bought earlier in the day and they had set the bar for the impromptu feast with fruit and a dry white wine. They were both hungry after the afternoon’s recreations. Dwarfed in his blue robe, Jackson in a T-shirt and boxer shorts, she felt at ease and happy.

  “So who are these sandwiches famous with, Dorn? Your many women?”

  He snorted and gave her a dry look before turning back to the pan. “No, I guess they’re self-declared as famous.”

  Rory was very curious about his sexcapades. “So, what types of things is it that you like to do in your sex life? I’ve heard rumors, you know.”

  “What rumors have you heard? Tell me and I’ll tell you if they’re true.” He flipped the sandwiches in the pan.

  “Well, you’re the one who told me of your fondness for restraints.” He looked at her with a puzzled expression. “When we were bed shopping, remember?”

  “Oh, I could never forget bed shopping with you, Congresswoman,” he said, raising his eyebrows suggestively and returning his attention to the pan. “Yes, I do like restraints, all kinds.”

  “Why?”

  Leaning against the counter, spatula in hand, Jackson thought about that. “I guess I like the feeling of domination. It’s very raw and powerful.”

  “So you like to feel in control?”

>   “A lot of the time I guess, it turns me on. Besides, restraints are just fun.”

  He served the soup and sandwiches and came around the counter to sit. “What else have you heard? Let’s just get this out of the way. I want you completely at ease with me.”

  She gazed at him, surprised. “Well, not that much, just about your predilection for plurality.”

  Jackson gave her a quick look and swallowed another bite of his sandwich. “Guilty as charged. It was sheer lust, Rory. But hell, I’ve been single damn near most my life, and I wasn’t hurting anybody.” He shrugged and smiled at her sheepishly. “It was just for fun.”

  She looked at him thoughtfully for a moment. “I’ll never do that. Just so you know,” she said with quiet conviction.

  “I’d never ask you to.” He sat his sandwich aside and turned to her. “How many men have you had sex with?”

  She blanched and blushed.

  “Oh come on, you’ve spent the afternoon in my bed, just tell me. It won’t matter to me.”

  She rubbed her palms on her robe-covered thighs and swallowed hard. Ironic that this would be what would give her pause after the illicit twenty-four hours she had just spent with him.

  “Not that many,” she said, taking a swig of wine.

  “How many? I want a number.”

  “Fine. Four. You’re number four. Happy?”

  He smiled. “Yes, I am. I knew you weren’t very experienced. Why would you think I would want you as part of a ménage or anything else?”

  “I don’t know, I mean, the way Durand made it sound, it was the way you were, what you always did.”

  “I think Agent Durand was embellishing to inflate the importance of her position in my life.”

  “Why would she do that?”

  “Maybe because she could tell you were special to me.”

  Rory looked into his eyes, once again feeling like a deer in headlights. He was so forthcoming, it was sometimes disarming. Her heart fluttered and panic seized her chest all at once.

  “Rory, I never intend to have that type of sexual encounter with you. The idea of sharing you with anyone is offensive to me.”