Kyle stared at Caressa from his place beside the porch, petrified by the depth of his love for her. Love, admiration, and awe at her effortless talent. So many people had spoken to him of angels, heaven, and Caressa’s “God-given” talent, and Kyle had shrugged it all off as pretty phrases. But now, under the Texas sky, amidst darkness and laughter, full bellies and joyful dancing, he saw God in her.
SHE COULD PLAY ANYTHING. EVERY NOTE IN THE WORLD WAS HERS, RIGHT THERE FOR THE TAKING. SHE COULD PRODUCE ANY NOTE LIKE A CARD TRICK. TA-DA. HER FINGERS AND THAT CELLO IN CAHOOTS WITH HER, TUCKED BETWEEN HER KNEES. HE REALIZED IN A FLASH OF UNDERSTANDING THAT HE NEVER TRULY COULD COME BETWEEN HER AND THAT INSTRUMENT. HE COULD WATCH THOUGH, AS HE WAS NOW, AND BASK IN THE WONDER OF WHAT SHE WAS.
She looked up and over at him, found him in the darkness somehow. She must have seen what he was thinking. It must have been clearly written on his face, because she looked shaken. Soon after she deferred to the other musicians and excused herself, citing exhaustion. He helped her carry her cello inside and stow it in her room upstairs so it would be safe from any guests coming in and out. He looked at her, tired and lovely, and knew he was in the employ of another God. First Jeremy and now her, glowing slick with the sweat of a bonafide Texas country party.
His mother wouldn’t be in for a while, until every last guest had departed, and so Kyle stripped Caressa naked with trembling hands and fucked her there against the wall of his sister’s room. She clung to him, licking him, biting his neck as their sweaty bodies slid together and his unsheathed cock impaled her. She wrapped her legs around him and he held her ass cheeks hard, squeezing them and lifting her up and then down again.
Each time he slipped inside, his whole body shook from the maelstrom inside him, the pleasure building into a monument of desire. I love you. I love you. I love you. A boyfriend was nothing, mere child’s play. He was a worshipper, a disciple. He was a zealot at the altar, holding a miracle in his hands.
* * * * *
KYLE WOKE THE NEXT MORNING WITH A START, REACHING OUT FOR HER. SHE WAS GONE. HE’D HAD SOME ALARMING DREAM ABOUT FORESTS AND THUNDERSTORMS. HE’D LOST CARESSA, AND HE WOKE UP GRASPING FOR HER, HIS HEART POUNDING FAST AND HARD UNTIL HE REMEMBERED HE WAS IN HIS PARENTS’ HOUSE. HE’D HAD TO TUCK HER INTO BED LAST NIGHT, AFTER THEY’D FUCKED AND SHOWERED TOGETHER. EVEN IN THE SHOWER HE HADN’T BEEN ABLE TO RESIST HER, KISSING AND FINGER-FUCKING HER WHILE WARM WATER SLUICED OVER THEM.
AFTERWARD, WHEN HE DELIVERED HER TO HER OWN ROOM, HE’D STAYED AND KISSED HER FOR ALMOST AN HOUR MORE, TASTING THE SWEETNESS OF HER LIPS AND REVELING IN HER RESPONSE TO HIM. THE SMELL OF HIS MOTHER’S FAVORED LAVENDER SOAP HAD CLASHED WITH THE SHARP TANG OF DYING FIRES OUTSIDE, AND THAT DEEPER SCENT OF DESIRE. HE HADN’T BEEN ABLE TO LEAVE HER UNTIL HE HEARD HIS MOTHER PUTTERING AROUND NOISILY IN THE HALLWAY. HIS MOM WASN’T A FOOL—SHE WOULD KNOW THAT KYLE AND CARESSA WERE LOVERS. SHE WAS JUST OBSTINATE ABOUT OLD-FASHIONED MORALITY. NOT IN MY HOUSE.
He sat up now and stretched in his narrow twin bed. His room had changed a little since he’d occupied it, but not much. He’d changed a lot more. He smiled at the old baseball and football trophies his mother couldn’t seem to part with, and the worn blue quilt that still graced his bed. He hit the bathroom and peeked into Caressa’s room to find her still fast asleep with the shades drawn. His phone rang and he pulled the door shut quietly, taking the call back in his own room.
“Jeremy! I was just thinking of you. How are you?”
“I’m good. Where in the world are you right now with that cellist of yours?”
“Believe it or not, we’re in Spur.”
“Good old Spur.”
“They still talk about you here. Every time I come home.”
“That’s why I do things, you know. For attention.”
Kyle smiled. “Yeah. I always suspected that.”
“You’re headed to Europe soon, aren’t you? I thought you told me August?”
“Yes, we go from Spur to London by way of Dallas in a couple days. Where are you? Still want to take in one of her performances?”
“We definitely do. Is she coming to Paris?”
“You’re in Paris?”
“Just for a couple weeks, and then we’re back to the States.”
“We head to Paris after London. How about tickets for next Friday? It’s Caressa’s birthday, and we’re planning a private dinner party after the concert.”
“For a party, I’ll make it work.” Jeremy laughed. Then he added, “Nell will be with me.”
Kyle could still read Jeremy’s tone, even over a cell phone. “Yeah, Jeremy…it’s okay. It would be great to see her again. How’s motherhood treating her?”
“Jesus, I don’t know who to adore more now, her or little Rhiannon. They’re both doing great. You know Nell. She took to motherhood like a champ.”
“What about you? Holding up?”
Jeremy made a soft noise. “I love being a dad. The love part is a lot easier than I thought it would be. Even when she’s wailing, shitting in diapers, the bad stuff. She’s impossible not to love. But it’s a big responsibility. Keeping her safe.”
“You’ve got people on it, I’m sure.”
“Even so, it’s a constant worry. You know, the fans. The papers and paps. But it’s worth it in the end. I wouldn’t give her back for the world.”
Jeremy had thought the same thoughts about Nell when he’d first met her. Kyle wondered if he even made the connection. “Everything will be fine, Jeremy.”
“Oh yeah, I know. You’ll have to meet the little bug while you’re in Paris. She’s her mother’s daughter. She has all this wispy red hair.”
“You guys should bring her along to the party. If she gets tired, I think the hotel we’re staying at will have sitters. I can check into it—”
“Kyle, you don’t have to work for me anymore. My people will handle everything.”
Kyle stopped, feeling foolish. Of course Jeremy had new staff now, probably an army of nannies, although Nell didn’t strike him as the nanny type. Probably one nanny and an army of baby bodyguards. Kyle wanted to see Nell again more out of curiosity than anything else. He was curious about seeing her as a mother…and curious to see if he was really as “over” her as he felt.
“So what about you and this lovely cellist? Still making beautiful music together? I assume things are pretty serious if you brought her to Spur.”
“We’re working things out,” Kyle said cautiously. “You know how it is. She’s really focused on the tour right now. Her music. But yeah, we’re having a lot of fun.” He stopped, thinking of last night. Thinking of the thoughts going through his mind every time he looked at her. Fun seemed like a crude belittlement of what they had. “God, I’m crazy about her,” he admitted at last. “I’m barely holding on to my sanity. But for now, I’m going at her pace.”
“That’s all you can do sometimes. In the meantime, keep having fun, for fuck’s sake. It can’t hurt. Sober fun though. Still sober?”
“YEAH, JEREMY.”
“ONE HUNDRED PERCENT?”
“ONE HUNDRED PERCENT, MASTER,” KYLE SAID SARDONICALLY, TO LAUGHTER ON THE OTHER END OF THE LINE. “SPEAKING OF WHICH…JEREMY…ABOUT THE PARTY. IT’S JUST A VANILLA THING. I WON’T BE ABLE TO…YOU KNOW…ME AND CARESSA ARE PRETTY…MONOGAMOUS AT THE MOMENT.”
“OH.” KYLE HEARD BEMUSEMENT AND NOT OFFENSE, FORTUNATELY. “YEAH, NELL AND I ACTUALLY DON’T DO THE GROUP SEX THING ANYMORE.” KYLE HEARD THE PAUSE ON THE OTHER LINE, COULD ALMOST SEE THE DASHING SMILE WHEN HE FOLLOWED UP WITH, “NOT OFTEN ANYWAY. I’M A FATHER NOW, YOU KNOW? TIME TO GROW UP A LITTLE.”
IT WAS KYLE’S TURN TO CHUCKLE. “UH HUH. I’LL BELIEVE IT WHEN I SEE IT.”
“HA. I NEVER CLAIMED TO BE ANYTHING OTHER THAN I AM. I’M ONLY HUMAN, BUT A GOOD WOMAN CAN MAKE YOU ASPIRE TO SOMETHING MORE.” KYLE HEARD A BABY’S CRY IN THE BACKGROUND, AND NELL’S SOFT VOICE SAYING SOMETHING UNINTELLIGIBLE. “LOOK, I’VE GOTTA GO. I’LL CATCH UP WITH YOU IN PARIS.
IN THE MEANTIME,” HE SAID IN A LOWER VOICE, “DON’T GIVE UP. I HAVE A FEELING THIS ONE IS WORTH THE FIGHT.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN:
FLOAT
CARESSA WOKE UP UNDER THE LIGHT, CRISP SHEETS, A WHIRRING CEILING FAN TURNING OVER THE BED, SENDING DOWN A LIGHT BREEZE. SHE STRETCHED AND LOOKED AROUND THE COUNTRY ROOM. SHEER LILAC RUFFLED CURTAINS SWAYED IN THE BREEZE FROM THE FAN, AND THE SUN SHONE THROUGH FROM OUTSIDE. SHE FELT UTTERLY RELAXED, WHICH SORT OF ALARMED HER. SHE NOTED HER CELLO SITTING SAFELY IN THE CORNER, BUT A QUICK SEARCH OF HER MEMORY REASSURED HER THAT SHE REALLY DID HAVE NOTHING TO DO FOR A COUPLE DAYS EXCEPT SKULK AROUND KYLE’S HOMETOWN. OVER THE SUBTLE HUM OF THE FAN SHE BEGAN TO MAKE OUT OTHER SOUNDS. POTS AND PANS IN THE KITCHEN, KYLE’S MOM’S SOFT VOICE AND HIS GREAT-GRANDMA’S GRUFFER ONE. SHE HEARD MEN’S VOICES OUTSIDE.
AFTER ONE MORE LUXURIOUS STRETCH, SHE RELUCTANTLY CLIMBED FROM THE BED TO GET DRESSED AND LOOK OUT THE WINDOW. KYLE AND HIS YOUNGER BROTHERS WERE PUTTING THE YARD BACK TO RIGHTS AFTER LAST NIGHT’S FESTIVITIES. TEXANS REALLY KNEW HOW TO PARTY—THE PEOPLE IN THIS RURAL TOWN ANYWAY. AT ITS PEAK THE GATHERING MUST HAVE REACHED TWO HUNDRED PEOPLE, WHICH KYLE INFORMED HER WAS ABOUT A FIFTH OF SPUR’S POPULATION.
KYLE LOOKED UP AT THE WINDOW THEN, SPOTTING HER, AND MOTIONED HER DOWN. SHE BRUSHED HER TEETH AND TRIED UNSUCCESSFULLY TO DO SOMETHING WITH HER HAIR. SHE HADN’T BROUGHT ANY ELASTICS AND THE TEXAS HUMIDITY HAD TURNED HER HAIR FROM BUOYANTLY CURLY TO NIGHTMARISHLY FRIZZED-OUT. SHE FINALLY TUCKED WHAT SHE COULD BEHIND HER EARS AND WENT DOWNSTAIRS AND OUT ONTO THE PORCH. THREE LANKY, MUSCULAR MEN STOPPED AND GREETED HER, ONLY ONE OF WHOM WAS KYLE. WOW, SOMETHING IN THE WATER OUT THIS WAY. BOTH HIS BROTHERS WERE AS RIDICULOUSLY GORGEOUS AS KYLE WAS. KYLE SMIRKED AT HER, PROBABLY REALIZING THE THOUGHTS BEHIND HER ASSESSING STARE.
“EATEN BREAKFAST YET?” HE ASKED.
“NO, S-- UM. NO. NOT YET.” SHE REMEMBERED NOW THAT HE HADN’T DRUNK AT ALL LAST NIGHT, EVEN WHEN EVERYONE ELSE WAS BEER-SOAKED. SOBRIETY. THAT WAS PROBABLY WHY HE LOOKED JUST A BIT MORE DAPPER THAN HIS BROTHERS AFTER ALL.
“GO ON INSIDE. MY MOM LIKES TO COOK BREAKFAST EVERY MORNING. SHE’LL MAKE YOU WHATEVER YOU WANT.”
“I’LL WAIT FOR YOU.”
“DON’T BE SHY. SHE DOESN’T BITE. GREAT-GRANDMA, SOMETIMES, BUT NOT MY MOM.” HIS BROTHERS LAUGHED IN AGREEMENT. “WE’RE GOING TO BE ANOTHER HALF-HOUR OR SO AND THEN I’LL HAVE TO SHOWER SO…GO EAT.” SHE STILL HESITATED, BUT THEN HE SHOT HER A LOOK SHE COULDN’T PRETEND TO MISUNDERSTAND. OBEY ME. OR ELSE.
She turned and headed back inside to the kitchen. Lucky for him, she liked obeying his orders. Most of the time. When she didn’t, she just stayed away from him. She was actually pretty hungry. She’d been so busy playing the night before she hadn’t taken much time to eat the ribs and burgers and other array of foods spread out at the party. In the kitchen, Kyle’s mom sat her down and extracted an order of eggs and bacon from her. While Mrs. Winchell—Melanie—busied herself at the stove, Kyle’s great-grandma stared openly at her.
“Sleep good there, missy?” she asked so suddenly and loudly that Caressa jumped.
She nodded. “Oh, yes. Thank you. I slept very well. I liked the fan.” Caressa stopped, feeling silly. I liked the fan. What kind of stupid comment was that? But Melanie went off on a short monologue about the various fans in the house and how much they saved on the cooling bills.
“I guess you learn ways to deal with the heat around here,” Caressa said.
“OH, YES. YOU JUST GET USED TO IT.”
“I DON’T WEAR MY SKIVVIES WHEN IT’S REAL HOT,” GREAT-GRANDMA BLURTED OUT AGAIN. SHE SAID IT LIKE SKIV-VEHS. “LOTS OF FOLKS ’ROUND HERE DON’T WEAR SKIVVIES IN THE SUMMER.” CARESSA BIT HER LIP TO KEEP FROM BREAKING INTO LAUGHTER, ESPECIALLY WHEN MELANIE TURNED AROUND WITH A SMOTHERED SMILE TO DELIVER A PLATEFUL OF STEAMING FOOD.
“I know I don’t, Grandma,” Melanie said lightly, with a furtive wink at Caressa. “Sometimes it’s just better to go without.”
Caressa started to eat while Melanie squeezed a fresh glass of orange juice and set it beside her plate. “Thank you,” Caressa mumbled through a mouthful of biscuit. “I’m sorry I slept so late.”
“OH, THAT’S WHAT VACATIONS ARE FOR. THIS IS YOUR VACATION, ISN’T IT? KYLE’S BEEN TELLING ME ALL ABOUT YOU. HOW HARD YOU WORK EVERY DAY DOING PRACTICE AND CONCERTS, AND ALL THAT TRAVEL TOO. HONESTLY, I CAN’T IMAGINE HOW YOU MANAGE IT.”
CARESSA COULDN’T IMAGINE HOW MELANIE MANAGED HER JOB, FEEDING HER FAMILY A HOME-COOKED BREAKFAST THE MORNING AFTER THROWING A MASSIVE PARTY, ALTHOUGH SHE DIDN’T SAY SO. MELANIE’S HOME WAS SPOTLESS TOO. CARESSA THOUGHT ABOUT THE WRECK SHE ALWAYS MADE OF HER HOTEL ROOMS, NO MATTER HOW BRIEF THE VISIT, AND KYLE’S CONSTANT EFFORTS TO KEEP HER ORGANIZED AND PUT-TOGETHER. “I DON’T DO EVERYTHING MYSELF. KYLE HELPS ME A LOT.”
MELANIE SAT ACROSS FROM HER WITH A CUP OF COFFEE. “I’M GLAD TO HEAR IT. HE WAS ALWAYS A REAL GOOD BOY.”
“KYLE?” GREAT-GRANDMA BOOMED OUT. “MORE TROUBLE THAN A HOT BARREL A’ MONKEYS, THAT ONE. DEMMED IF HE WASN’T. DON’T LIE TO THE POOR GIRL, MELLY.”
“OH, GRANDMA. HE WAS MISCHIEVOUS, SURE,” SHE SAID, LOOKING BACK AT CARESSA. “BUT BOYS ARE THAT WAY. I THINK HE GREW INTO A FINE MAN. BUT MAMAS TEND TO THINK OF ALL THEIR BABIES AS ANGELS.”
GREAT-GRANDMA MUTTERED SOMETHING UNDER HER BREATH, SOMETHING ABOUT “MORE LIKE A DEE-VIL” BUT SHE WAS SMILING AT THE SAME TIME.
MELANIE PATTED CARESSA’S HAND. “I CAN’T THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR SHARING YOUR TALENT WITH US LAST NIGHT. THAT WAS REALLY SOMETHING SPECIAL. PEOPLE WILL BE TALKING ABOUT THAT FOR YEARS, I SUPPOSE. AND THE LITTLE CHILDREN, JUST STARING AT YOU. I TRULY THANK YOU.”
“IT WAS MY PLEASURE. I’VE NEVER BEEN TO A TEXAS BARBEQUE.” SHE’D NEVER BEEN TO ANY BARBEQUE, WHICH SHE’D NEVER ADMIT TO KYLE. BUT THE WHOLE EXPERIENCE WAS ONE SHE’D NEVER FORGET EITHER.
“SO WHAT KIND OF PLANS DO YOU AND KYLE HAVE FOR TODAY? HE SAID SOMETHING ABOUT TAKING A WALK OUT INTO THE WOODS?” CARESSA THOUGHT OF THE SWITCH AT ONCE, AND HOPED THE FLUSH RISING IN HER CHEEKS DIDN’T SHOW TOO MUCH.
“I’M NOT SURE. THIS IS KYLE’S TERRITORY, SO I’LL FOLLOW HIM WHEREVER HE WANTS TO TAKE ME.”
“I’LL PACK Y’ALL A PICNIC LUNCH SO YOU CAN TAKE AS MUCH TIME AS YOU LIKE TO GO OUT AND ABOUT. IT’S HOT, BUT THE WOODS WILL BE SHADY. AND I THINK TONIGHT HE PLANS TO TAKE YOU TO BURGER’S POND.”
“OOH, THAT WILL BE NICE,” GREAT-GRANDMA EXCLAIMED IN THAT LOUD, ABRUPT WAY OF HERS. “BURGER’S POND IS A NICE PLACE. SO SPECIAL. SPECIALLY FOR LOVEYBIRDS.”
“WHAT’S AT BURGER’S POND?” CARESSA ASKED.
MELANIE SMILED WARMLY. “I’LL NOT TELL YOU. A NICE SURPRISING PLACE THOUGH, THIS TIME OF YEAR. YOU’LL LIKE IT. YOU CAN’T COME TO SPUR WITHOUT VISITING BURGER’S AT LEAST ONCE.”
* * * * *
AS MELANIE PROMISED, THEY SET OUT INTO THE SHADY WOODS ARMED WITH A PICNIC BASKET OF TEXAS DELICACIES, MAINLY LEFTOVERS FROM THE PARTY, BUT CARESSA WAS GLAD TO HAVE A SECOND SHOT AT THEM. THERE WAS ALSO LOTS OF SWEET TEA AND WATER, AND A FEW OTHER THINGS CARESSA WATCHED KYLE STUFF IN HIS BACKPACK. LUBE, BUTT PLUG. CUFFS. A LITTLE KNIFE FOR CUTTING A SWITCH. A LARGE BLANKET AND A SMALL TOWEL. HM.
SHE TRIED NOT TO FIXATE ON IT TOO MUCH, BUT SHE KNEW THEIR TRIP INTO THE FOREST WAS FOR A VERY SPECIFIC REASON, WHICH WAS CARESSA GETTING HER ASS WHIPPED AND HER HOLES FUCKED. SHE WASN’T WORRIED ABOUT THAT PART—QUITE THE CONTRARY—HER SKIVVIES WERE ALREADY WET. SHE ONLY HOPED THESE WOODS WERE AS REMOTE AND UNINHABITED AS THEY SEEMED TO BE.
They trekked down a well-worn path that got narrower as they followed it, then branched off into an even narrower offshoot. The woods were quiet and shady, and there was no other sign of life, so Caressa relaxed a bit more. Eventually they came to a split rail fence and Kyle guided her off the path and along the fence line until they reached a small clearing. He put down the picnic basket and spread the blanket out over the dirt floor and jutting roots.
“Hungry?”
Something in his voice made her deli
ciously wary. “A little, yes.”
“Well, you better eat first, because you won’t feel like eating after. Take off your clothes and fold them up in a pile next to the basket. Then kneel here with your hands in your lap,” he said, patting the middle of the fleece blanket.
Caressa swallowed all the questions that flew to her mind. It was obvious from the tone of his voice that it was time to obey. “Yes, Sir.”
She undressed as gracefully as she could while hopping around on the pine needles and acorns under her now-bare feet. When she knelt on the blanket he wordlessly took her hands from her lap and cuffed them together behind her back.
“Good girl,” he said, tapping one shamelessly erect nipple. She could already tell she would never survive this. She was soaked between the legs, already throbbing just from the cool, controlled way he was looking at her. She lowered her eyes, watching him lay out the food, for himself only. He began to eat, and every so often fed her bites of sandwich and cole slaw, fruit salad and sips of tea. He thrust pieces of buttered roll into her mouth, and she ached to catch and suck his fingers. He knew it, allowing her only the most teasing touch. What would he do after they finished eating? The fun thing about playing with Kyle is that she never really knew until he began.
At last he started packing the food away again. He gave her another long drink and then rose with the towel he’d packed, going over to the fence. He walked along it, running his hand across the top, pressing down on it. When he put the towel across a section of the top rail, she started to shake.
Caressa’s Knees Page 16