Redemption (Iris Series)

by Lynn, Rebecca

  Inside the box was a sari. A gorgeous shimmery purple silk sari, with deep lavender and pink embroidered roses peppered throughout the fabric and edged in deep plum velvet.

  Ayanna’s hand went to her mouth then she swallowed down the lump in her throat. She’d never been given a sari before other than the one that had been left to her by Ammie. She was so touched, she honestly didn’t know what to say.

  “Jon,” she whispered looking at him. Tears were hovering at the surface. “What did you do?”

  “Do you like it?” A tentative smile touched his lips.

  “I’m speechless,” she said quietly.

  “Take it out. Let’s see how it looks.” He helped her take it out. “I’ve been secretly taking pictures of you on my phone because I wanted the woman at the shop to see your size and skin coloring.”

  Sneaky little bastard indeed.

  She held up the fabric and fell in love. “It looks like the size is perfect.”

  “Try it on.”

  She playfully snatched it away and shook her head.

  “Nope. This one is gonna be a surprise, champ. I don’t want you to see me in it until Friday night. Get outta here and give me five minutes. I want to see what it looks like.”

  “You’re seriously not gonna let me see this on you?” His hands were on his hips.

  “Nope,” she said again. “Get outta here.” She pushed him out of the room and closed the door, him grumbling the whole time not getting his fashion show.

  She immediately tore off her tank top and lounge pants and began draping the sari over her. By the time she was done putting on the two piece ensemble, she stood in front of her full length mirror, her breath catching in her throat.

  “How does it look?” Jonathan was yelling from the other side of her bedroom door.

  She couldn’t speak. He had once told her she looked like an ancient sex goddess when she had answered the door. He wasn’t going to be able to control himself when he saw her in this get up. It fit perfectly and barely needed to be altered.

  The three quarter length sleeves were purple silk edged in plum. The neckline plunged, but the wrap of lavender and pink colored organza overlay hid it when draped over her shoulder. The see through material gave tantalizing peeks of flesh around her midriff showing glimpses of her tattoo, and added to the allure of the outfit.

  She did look like an ancient sex goddess.

  “Does it fit okay?” He was still yelling from the other side. When she remained quiet for a few seconds, he yelled, “Hello? Anybody home in there?”

  “Stop your yappin’ out there, JBG. You’ll see it on Friday!” she yelled back with a giddy smile and twirled in front of the mirror. And boy, she couldn’t wait. Until then, he deserved an appropriate thank you.

  She quickly undressed and placed the sari back in the box. Rather than putting any clothes back on, she remained completely naked, a plan of seduction forming in her head. She ran into the bathroom then came out a moment later shaking her hair and fluffing it up so it fell in sexy tousled layers. She took a deep breath then opened the bedroom door.

  He was leaning against the hallway wall, his arms crossed in front of him, staring off into space. As soon as the door opened, however, his eyes caught hers then took a leisurely stroll down her body, heating a little more with each inch they touched.

  He began to walk toward her.

  “Do you like it?” His voice was husky.

  She took his face in her hands and traced his lips with her finger. “It’s beyond beautiful. Truly.” She paused. “I love it. Other than my grandmother leaving her sari to me, you’re the first person who’s ever given me one.”

  “Really?” He was genuinely surprised. He began to smile, his hands roaming around her waist, stroking up and down her ribcage. She stretched into him like a cat.

  “Really. You definitely get a gold star on this one, Johnny Be Good.” She wound her arms around his neck, pressing her nakedness onto him, loving the feel of his t-shirt and sweats against her skin. Her nipples tightened. “How will I ever thank you?” she whispered against his lips then nipped at his lower one with her teeth.

  He took it from there and wrapped her completely in his arms, turning her playful kiss into a more aggressive one, practically lifting her off of her feet while doing so.

  “Do you still have your period?” he murmured while kissing her.

  “Almost done. Practically non-existent at the moment. Let’s have shower sex,” she moaned in the midst of his onslaught on her mouth.

  “Oh…you just made me a very happy man, Ms. Sarin.” He pressed his erection into her, his hands holding her ass tightly so he could grind into her. He quickly and easily lifted her up, she wrapped her legs around him and they stumbled into the bathroom laughing. He put her down to strip and she turned on the water.

  “It’s gonna be a tight fit in here. You alright with that, big boy?” She gave him an exaggerated wink at the double entendre.

  “I love tight fits, baby. The tighter the better.”

  They stepped into the stall and got under the stream of hot water, getting soaked. They began enjoying each other, kissing, touching, and taking their time exploring the other’s body.

  He soaped up his hands and played with her nipples. She purred.

  She soaped up her hands and played with his cock. He hissed.

  He pushed her against the wall and leaned down to capture her nipple in his mouth, using his teeth. She gasped and held his head so he wouldn’t stop. He sucked. Hard, and her gasp turned into a loud groan, yelling for him to fuck her.

  His own groan followed, yelling that she was an impatient little thing. He acquiesced though, grumbling playfully as if it were a chore, and lifted her around the waist to press her firmly against the wall. He sank his teeth into her neck, sucking and licking.

  She let out a long drawn out moan, her neck muscles going weak causing her head to fall back on the tile wall behind her. Moments later, she came around him, the feeling of her release spurring him on. His hips pistoned faster and faster until he found his own relief and a roar emitted from his throat.

  They stayed like that for several moments, each trying to gain their breaths and find their bearings until finally he unhooked his arms and helped her slide down the wall to her feet.

  “I love you,” she kept whispering over and over. She grabbed his face and kissed him vehemently. “I love you so fucking much, JBG.”

  He leaned into her, kissing her back with a smile. “Mm. I love you so fucking much, and I apparently need to buy you more saris.”

  She rolled her eyes and chuckled.

  They cleaned each other under the stream of the shower head and then he got out first so she could wash her hair. By the time she was done and she had dried her hair, he was already in bed with his laptop. When he saw her, he put it away and patted the bed next to him.

  She crawled in. “Tell me more about your tattoo,” she said referring to the giant phoenix rising out of the ashes on his back.

  “What do you want to know?”

  “You said it represented new beginnings.” She let that statement hang until he picked it up and continued.

  “I got it after I left Wall Street. It seemed an appropriate image for how I felt at the time.”

  “Reborn?”

  He made an affirmative sound in his throat.

  “I like it.”

  “I like yours. You never told me what it meant. It’s so pretty. Is it just decorative, or do the symbols mean something? I can’t tell if it’s a language.”

  “I got it when I went to Europe. Sinhala is the language most people speak in Sri Lanka. It’s the Sinhalese word for ‘redemption.’ At the time I went to Paris, I was feeling, I don’t know, rescued from my past. The culinary training was the culmination of a lot of hard work and made me feel redeemed me in many ways.” She paused then spoke after a moment. “The ironic part is I think it’s taken on a whole new meaning now. With me finding myself,
and you, and now this potential new beginning with my parents, I’m experiencing redemption on multiple levels.”

  “Yeah, you are,” he murmured. “It’s like your subconscious knew what you were looking for. I love when things like that happen, when another meaning to a situation unexpectedly pops up and takes it to a whole other place.” He kissed her on the nose.

  She nodded and snuggled deeper into his side thinking of her tattoo. She had always loved it, but now she loved it for so many more reasons.

  He played with her hair and she breathed his scent deeply, feeling a contentment come over her.

  Smiling and wrapped in each other’s arms, they fell asleep.

  Chapter 24

  Wednesday and the launch of Chez Catherine’s came quickly. Ayanna had spent the weekend after the Boston trip on a wedding event with Janie, and the beginning of the week working on her blog and various marketing ideas. Jonathan had been busy meeting with clients and had spent most of Tuesday at the Academy getting ready for the school year. They had both decided they would go to Chez Catherine’s together another time, allowing Ayanna, Janie, and her mom to have a night out for the soft opening.

  She was a little nervous, but she was hopeful. Janie knew the history with Ayanna and her mom, and was wonderful with people so Ayanna knew Janie would be great at keeping the conversation going if it got stilted. And if Ayanna was going to be honest, her mom was really good with people too. Maybe this could be a night of no pressure, a time to see each other in a different light.

  Ayanna had talked to Ryann about potentially joining them, but she was so swamped with getting ready for the student art showing that Friday, they agreed they would just see each other in a couple of days.

  As she was finishing up getting ready, Ayanna inspected herself in the mirror. She wore her hair up in an artfully sexy topknot and had on a chic turquoise sundress. Along with her bag and wrap, she was good to go. When she walked into the living room where Jonathan was on his laptop, she heard a low whistle.

  “Mm.” He licked his lips and watched her with a gleam in his eye. He twirled his finger indicating he wanted her to turn around for him. She did.

  “When are you gonna be home?”

  She chuckled. “Why, JBG?”

  “Because I wanna know how long I have to wait before I can peel you out of that dress.”

  She sauntered over to him, moved the laptop off of his lap, and straddled him on the sofa. Taking his face in her hands, she gave him a long sultry kiss. His arms wrapped around her as he held her hips tightly to him, gyrating his own hips into her.

  “Don’t tease me, woman.” He had her lower lip between his teeth, sucking it. “How much time do we have?”

  “Janie will be here in 10 minutes.” She nipped at his mouth.

  “I only need three,” he breathed.

  “How romantic.”

  He felt so good against her. She could easily come simply by looking in his baby blues and rubbing herself on his jean clad cock. She started to rotate her hips on him.

  “In reality, I probably only need one. Three minutes was me being romantic.” He grabbed the back of her neck keeping her still so he could devour her mouth while the vice like grip of his other arm held her in place allowing him to start a slow hard grind. He was already reaching down to undo his jeans when the intercom buzzed.

  She laughed into his mouth with a groan.

  “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck,” he moaned.

  Ayanna chuckled and spoke against his mouth. “Since you’re picking us up later, maybe you should spend the next couple of hours getting mentally prepared for it to last longer than a minute, JBG. I want a good 10 minutes out of you,” she said dryly, raising her eyebrow. She got up and walked over to the intercom, telling Janie she’d be right down.

  Jon got up as well, adjusting himself and looking disgruntled. He was irresistible.

  “What time will you be done? Nineish maybe?”

  “Yeah. I’ll text you as we’re finishing up.” She reached her hand up and stroked his cheek. He got serious for a moment.

  “I can’t wait to hear how it goes with your mom. Stay positive. This is new for her too, so don’t go in expecting it all to be perfect right away, okay?”

  “I know.” He was so right. She was trying not to expect too much so she wouldn’t be disappointed. Old habits die hard, she thought.

  “I love you, babe. Have a great time.” He kissed her nose.

  “Thanks, champ. I love you, too.” She leaned up and kissed him. Before she could walk to the door, he grabbed her one last time.

  “And for the record, it’s gonna be much longer than 10 minutes, so maybe you should mentally prepare yourself over the next couple of hours.”

  “Ooh,” she felt a chill of anticipation zing through her. “I’m looking forward to that.” They kissed one last time, and she was out the door.

  ……

  At 7:03pm, Janie and Ayanna sat in the new and swanky Chez Catherine’s waiting for Ayanna’s mom to arrive. Ayanna had taken a moment to introduce Janie to Catherine, who had come out to welcome the diners to the soft opening. The restaurant had a French flair, along with a hip youthful feel. Catherine had used a natural palette for the colors, focusing on the berry, brown, and green families. The sage walls and the dark stained floors were a great contrast with one another. She had placed bronzed sconces throughout with abstract art done in muted natural tones to match the setting. That, along with twigs of berries on each table offered a warm yet chic atmosphere, and the new configuration allowed for more seating and intimacy, with half walls separating more tables in the back.

  The wait staff was dressed comfortably in berry colored lycra dress t-shirts with an emblazoned Chez Catherine’s in pale green over the heart. The fitted tops looked good on all of them, and coupled with their black trousers and aprons, they looked sharp. Ayanna spent a couple of minutes talking and laughing with them since she had worked with all of them when Robert had owned the place. There was an excitement in the air and she could tell they were all pumped for the soft opening that night.

  When Ayanna’s mom walked in at 7:15, Ayanna waved her over and they awkwardly hugged each other in welcome. Ina Sarin was very pleasant with Janie and they fell into comfortable small talk.

  Her mom looked good, Ayanna thought. She had always been a beautiful woman, so Ayanna didn’t know why she was so surprised, but there was something lighter about her mom that night. She didn’t look as pinched around the eyes. She actually looked softer.

  “How’s Dad doing?” Ayanna asked when her mom was finally seated.

  “He’s doing well. Working hard but loving it,” Ina smiled.

  “How about you?” Ayanna watched as her mom took on a surprised look.

  “I’m doing well, Yannie. Thanks.” She turned to Janie to include her in the conversation. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Janie. Tell me about The Local Yokel. Ayanna has told me a little about the business and how happy she is to be working with you.”

  Janie happily told Ayanna’s mom about how the business began, how she came up with the name, and then took a break in the middle of the story so they could place their orders. Natalie, their waitress, was one of the women Robert had harassed so Ayanna had a soft spot for her. After she walked away, Janie finished her story with how she and Ayanna met. “I love working with your daughter, Mrs. Sarin,” Janie began.

  “Please call me Ina.”

  “Will do. Ayanna is a dream to work with. Smart, creative, a phenomenal work ethic but knows how to have fun. It’s only been a few weeks since she’s joined me in this venture and already I couldn’t imagine doing this without her. Add in her blog that she’s designed, and we have a great marketing tool with her fan base. I wish I had met her sooner. I’m just thrilled she wanted to join me on this crazy ride,” Janie laughed.

  Ayanna was touched by Janie’s words, but even more so from the words coming next from her mother.

  “Yannie has alwa
ys been smart. Naturally she’s brilliant, given who her parents are,” Ina smiled at Janie.

  Holy shit. Her mom just made a joke.

  “Her father and I have always been proud of her ambition, as well as my mother when she was alive. We often talked about it.” Ina turned to Ayanna, but continued talking to Janie. “We knew she would make a name for herself, but it just took us a while to trust her instincts. She may not have followed the path we first chose for her, but she followed the path that was right for her. And we respect that.”

  Ayanna was unprepared for the wash of emotion that hit her. She had never in her life heard words like that from her mother.

  Her mom could tell that she didn’t know what to say, because Ayanna stayed silent for a moment trying to get her footing.

  “It looks like my daughter is speechless. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before,” Ina laughed lightly, but her eyes twinkled with unshed tears.

  “I just never knew you felt that way,” Ayanna said, still in a state of shock.

  “Well, I admit it took us a while to get there, and I know we weren’t easy in the meantime, but we both know your talent and skill in the kitchen, as well as your love of writing. Ammie would’ve been very proud of you if she were here with us today.”

  Ayanna went with instinct and reached out her hand to take her mother’s. “Thank you for saying that.” Then she pulled her hand back in time to catch the tear that was escaping her eye. “Shit,” she muttered.

  “Language,” Ina smirked and shook her head.

  Ayanna took a deep breath to settle her nerves. At that moment, Natalie came over with their drinks, giving Ayanna a much needed reprieve from the emotional roller coaster she’d just been on.

  As the waitress walked away, Ayanna’s phone beeped a message indicating an email from her blog had come in. Given the fact that she’d been talking up the opening of the restaurant for several days on The Yummy Ammie, she wanted to check to see if it had anything to do with that.

  She said, “Excuse me. I just want to check this real quick.” Then she looked down at her phone.