Right in Time

by Dahlia Potter

  “Baby, why are you crying?”

  “Because. That song was so beautiful.”

  “Thank you.” Caleb replied with a warm smile. “I wish I could take credit for it, but it just speaks everything I feel. For you.” He added quietly.

  Maggie didn’t even take a moment, she crushed her lips on to his and this time it was her asking for entrance, which he quickly granted. Their tongues moved together in unison as everything they had both been feeling came together and was expressed in this one kiss.

  Chapter Twenty Three

  The next couple of weeks went by like a blur of happiness for Maggie. She filled her cake orders on time, she went to her dance classes which she was actually enjoying more and more (and no, not solely because of Caleb!) and everything else just seemed ‘right.’ Caleb joined Maggie and her friends, along with their boyfriends for dinner one night where everyone got the chance to get to know each other. It was the first time that all four friends were with someone at the same time, so they felt the need to mark the occasion with a group date. Caleb loved her friends and they all loved him just about as much as she did. I mean, they couldn’t love him more than she did. She did get the perks after all!

  “Do we have an anniversary?” Maggie called out to the front of her shop to Caleb. It was Saturday morning and Caleb had spent the night at her place following dance class the night before. It had become almost a given. This morning though, Maggie had a final consultation with Sarah to finalize the designs and flavours for her wedding cake.

  “Of course we do!” Caleb replied as if it were an obvious question, entering the back kitchen. “Why are you asking? And what does this do?” Caleb asked as his train of thought shifted to the sheeting machine that Maggie used for fondant. Having never seen her shop and workspace before, he was like a five year old examining everything.

  “It rolls out fondant. And I’m asking because I just took an order for a 50th anniversary cake and it got me wondering.”

  “Well May 25th was our first class together...and about three weeks after that was our first date. And then a couple weeks back was our first...you know. So, yeah. What event are we counting it from?” Caleb asked grinning.

  Maggie smiled back, but before she had a chance to respond, she heard the bell on the door at the front of her shop ring and she ran to the front to meet Sarah.

  The session with Sarah went great and they managed to get everything finalized in record time. Sarah and Maggie had become quite close in the planning process and she surprised Maggie when she handed her a wedding invitation on her way out.

  “Bring whoever you want.” Sarah said with a wink as she turned to leave, calling over her shoulder “Nice meeting you, Caleb!”

  Maggie looked at the ivory colored envelope that matched the chosen color for the fondant on the cake and turned around in surprise when she felt Caleb’s arms wrap around her waist.

  “So, whatcha got there?”

  “An invitation.” She replied casually. “So, who called before?” she asked, spinning around to face him while still remaining in his grasp. Caleb had come out to introduce himself to Sarah, but left the two to their business when a phone call took him away.

  “Well,” Caleb answered, drawing out the word. “You know how you love me and stuff, right?”

  “Yeah…? What do you want?”

  “Well, there’s this dance competition...”

  “No.”

  “It’s for beginners.”

  “No.”

  “It’s also for charity and I’ve been invited to bring some of my students to compete and when I mentioned that I had been dancing with you, they thought it would be great if we would do a routine together.” Caleb rushed out.

  Maggie narrowed her eyes and examined his face. “You already said ‘yes’ didn’t you.”

  “Yes?”

  Shaking her head, all Maggie could do was reply with, “It’s a good thing I love you. And that you’ve agreed to be my date for Sarah’s wedding.”

  “Wait, what?”

  “I guess it’s a good thing you love me too.” Maggie replied, planting a quick kiss on the tip of his nose before heading back to her kitchen to get to work. “You know,” Maggie responded coyly, “I actually don’t have to have my next order done until tomorrow. I can teach you a few things in the kitchen.”

  “You think you can teach me?”

  “You up for it?”

  The challenge was on. Maggie took his hand and led him back in to her kitchen space. He followed and wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and began kissing her neck.

  “Do you mind grabbing the cocoa from the top shelf for me?” Maggie asked.

  Caleb paused. “You were serious?”

  Maggie spun around and pulled him closer to her. She could feel the bulge in his pants warming. “You’ve showed me your art, now I’m going to teach you mine. Now, that cocoa?”

  As Maggie got all her ingredients together, Caleb’s hands never left her waist and his lips kept coming back to her neck as if it were pulled in by some magnetic force. As the chocolaty batter came to form, she placed her finger deep inside the bowl and offered it to Caleb. As he took her finger in his mouth, she could feel his warmth and his tongue circling, devouring every last ounce of batter and parts of her with it.

  “Good?” she asked, her voice cracking with the senses of pleasure.

  “I want more of you” he murmured as he released her finger from his hot cavern.

  As he pressed up against her, his arms wrapped tightly around her and she could feel every muscle, every inch of his being. He released one hand from her waist and brushed her long dark hair to the other side, once again revealing her neck.

  “We have to put this in the oven.” Maggie managed to get out, but slowly her brain was turning to mush and she was in Caleb’s control.

  “It’s perfect just it way it is.” he whispered, dipping his finger in the bowl and offering it to her. “Try.”

  Maggie swallowed deeply, her emotions getting so high. Wetting her lips, she took his finger in her mouth and even stronger than the chocolate was the taste of him. The salty sweetness made her hot and she couldn’t resist anymore. She released his finger and clasped her hand with his as she turned to face him. Their eyes met and Maggie knew there was nothing anyone could do to hold her back.

  Caleb sweetly kissed the back of her hand as she reached behind to his firm buttocks and pulled him in to her. She wanted to feel him. As they began to kiss, Maggie ran her hands underneath his white t-shirt, feeling the smooth skin of his chest and stomach. As she reached higher, Caleb lifted his arms and she proceeded to take his shirt off, revealing what she had felt. Now it was his turn, after all, it was only fair. As he unbuttoned her blouse, her light yellow lace bra became more visible until it was all she wore on top. Maggie took her lips from his and began devouring his neck and then his chest with kisses, as Caleb lifted her up on to the table.

  “Ladies’ first” he responded as he ran his hands up her bare thighs underneath her skirt until he neared her throbbing hot recess.

  Gently slipping his hand underneath the cool cotton of her underwear, he was met head on with her damp heat. Maggie began to moan with pleasure as Caleb tickled and tantalized her until she could barely stand it. She had to have him in her. Panting, she pulled him to her and began working on the top button of his jeans until she could pull them low enough to matter.

  She cupped his penis in her hand, yet her tiny palm wasn’t enough to contain it. She began to echo the movements of his hand with hers, teasing and inviting him to her. As he continued to stiffen, she used her other hand to pull him the remaining way free. Maggie slid her way off the counter in order for him to be able to come inside her.

  “I want you inside me” she moaned in his ear. And with that, she released her hand from his already hard member and he obliged. Maggie stepped out of her skirt and panties as she felt the thrust of Caleb entering her. She let out a bought of pleasure
as he continued to move and thrust deeper in to her, as she backed against the counter for leverage. Their bodies moved in sync and she felt herself moving closer and closer to climax. She couldn’t keep her hands off of him, especially his ass, digging her nails in.

  When she finally came, it was more powerful that anything ever before. Caleb took pleasure in hers, but as he pulled out, she felt he was still hard.

  That she had to fix.

  “I’m sorry.” she said as she began to stroke the shaft.

  “Nothing to apologize for.” he got out hurriedly. “Almost…there…”

  It only took a bit to make him come and they both collapsed in an embrace against the counter, his arms on either side of her, both panting and sweating. Moments later, when Caleb began to laugh, Maggie grew concerned.

  “I guess that batter’s ruined.” he chuckled, drawing her attention to the tipped over bowl of chocolate batter all over the counter. Maggie laughed as she ran her hands down his torso. She leaned in and kissed his shoulder. “How are you with a mop?”

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Caleb the teacher was different than Caleb the choreographer. Teaching Maggie the basic steps was something he could do in his sleep. But when he had the chance to create a piece that was his own, you could practically see the wheels turning in his head and the smoke about to come bursting out of his ears.

  Caleb and Maggie had started working on their dance for the competition. Maggie did so begrudgingly, but softened a bit more when she heard that since she was dancing with Caleb, she wasn’t eligible for competition and they were just doing a show piece. The knowledge that she wasn’t being judged, at least not for marks, put her at ease some more. The dance was to be an untraditional waltz set to “Crash in to Me” by the Dave Matthews Band. They were only two rehearsals in, but it was coming along beautifully. Maggie always saw the waltz as being stuffy, but with the modern music and the fluidity of it and the feelings coming through their movements, she could see that the final product would be breathtaking.

  Just before their third rehearsal, Maggie got a call from Caleb letting her know that he would be late. It was Friday night and Bryan was back in town and their band had a show afterwards and they were busy setting up the venue. Maggie took her time getting to the studio, but when she checked her watch and saw that it was thirty minutes past when his newly stated arrival time, she began to worry. When another thirty minutes passed, she began to panic.

  She grabbed her iPhone out of her purse and dialled his number, but no one answered. Not knowing what to do and not having any of the other band members’ numbers, she called the next person she could think of.

  “Hello?” Taylor answered on the second ring.

  “Hey, look, do you know the number for The Blue Room?” Maggie asked quickly.

  “Sure, of course I have the phone number for a random venue.” She replied with so much sarcasm and a little laugh. “Where’s the fire, Mag?”

  “Seriously, do you have it or not?”

  “Wow, okay, uh, yeah. One sec, I can look it up.” Taylor answered, unsure of what the problem was, but also in surprise at hearing Maggie like this. As Maggie heard the rustling of papers in the background she grew more and more impatient.

  “I could have called 411 faster than this!” Maggie practically yelled.

  “Okay, seriously? What the hell is the problem?” Taylor quipped back.

  “Jake’s played there so I figured you’d have the number.”

  “Yeah, but what’s with the rushing and yelling?”

  “Caleb’s playing there tonight and he was setting up all day. He said he was running late, but he also said he’d be here over an hour ago. And he’s not answering his phone...”

  “Okay, Maggie, calm down. I’m sure he just lost track of time. You know how you can get sometimes. Worrying, overthinking…” Taylor tried to reason with her friend.

  “No.” was all Maggie could muster in reply as she felt herself start to cry. Sensing this, Taylor was quick on the draw.

  “No, no tears. Maggie, I’m a few blocks away from The Blue Room, I’ll go there right now, okay?”

  With that, Taylor headed to the venue to try and find an answer that would help calm Maggie’s nerves. However, what she found out only made it worse. When Taylor showed up at the studio where Maggie had practically worn a hole through the floor with all her pacing, she knew something was wrong. Twenty minutes later, the two girls were at the emergency room where a nurse directed them to a numbered curtain where they saw Caleb lying in bed with his left leg up in the air on a sling, in a bright white plaster cast.

  “You’re a worrier, you know that?” Caleb joked when he saw Maggie and Taylor enter after pushing back the curtain.

  “And it looks like I had good reason! What happened?” she questioned.

  “I dropped an amp on his foot.” Bryan answered, entering from behind them.

  “Yeah, his fault!” Caleb emphasized, pointing his finger at his band mate and friend.

  Taylor looked from Maggie to Caleb and then to Bryan. Noting his cup of coffee, she saw an excuse to give the couple a moment.

  “Bryan, mind showing me where the coffee is at?” Taylor asked, and with that, Maggie and Caleb were left alone. Caleb patted the spot on the bed next to him and Maggie went over and sat on the edge of it.

  “I was worried.” Maggie replied quietly.

  “I know. I heard from Bryan. I guess someone at the venue called him after Taylor showed up. I’m sorry I didn’t call you.”

  “No, you were...busy. I just, I knew something was wrong and then when you didn’t pick up your phone, I panicked.”

  “I’m sorry, baby.” He said, kissing her hand. Maggie relaxed a bit.

  “Does it hurt?” she questioned quietly, looking up at his cast.

  “Nah, they’ve got me on plenty of pain meds right now.” Caleb answered with a laugh, bringing a smile to Maggie’s face.

  “So I guess you’re gig tonight is off then.”

  “Are you kidding? They’re gonna get me a stool and I’m gonna rock it out!”

  “Caleb! You just broke your foot! You need to get some rest.”

  “I’m fine. Really!” Caleb reasoned.

  “I think that’s just the pain medicine talking.”

  “Maggie?” he said, taking her face in his hands. “I promise you, I am fine.” He said, planting a sweet kiss on her lips. “I can play the show and if at any point I feel like I can’t, then I’ll call it, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  “But one thing I can’t do? Dance.”

  “Oh, man! I didn’t even think of that. I guess we can’t perform at the competition anymore.”

  “No...wait! Just because I can’t dance, doesn’t mean you can’t!” he replied, excitedly as an idea popped in to his head.

  “What? No, you got me in to this thing, I’m not doing it without you!”

  “My friend Danny is in town from New York next week. He’s an amazing dancer. I’m sure he’ll be willing to do it. He’s performing a solo show piece at the competition already. Perfect.”

  “No, not perfect!” Maggie replied, jumping off of the bed.

  “Excuse me, but could you two please keep it down? There are other patients here.” Bryan said in a fake voice to feign authority as he and Taylor came back.

  “What’s up?” Taylor questioned, seeing Maggie’s panicked face again.

  “Caleb here thinks that I should dance with some Denny guy at the competition now that he can’t be my partner.”

  “Danny.” Caleb corrected.

  “Whatever.” Maggie spat back at him.

  “Oh, Danny’s amazing!” Bryan answered.

  “Maggie? Do you like the routine you guys are doing?” Taylor interjected as a voice of reason.

  “Yes, it’s beautiful.” She replied honestly.

  “Then you should do it.” Taylor answered matter-of-factly.

  “Thanks for being on my side.”
<
br />   “I am on your side. But I don’t see why you can’t perform a routine that you love just because there’s a partner change. And I also don’t see why we’re discussing this now, here, in a hospital.”

  Dismissing the last remark, Maggie answered “Because, it’s our dance.” quietly, referencing her and Caleb.

  “And it still is, baby. It still will be. Dance it for me, okay?” Caleb asked.

  Maggie looked around the room from Caleb’s face, to Taylor’s and then to Bryan’s. All were staring back at her with a smile that said “yes, do it!”

  “It is about me growing, right?” she said begrudgingly, with a hint of a smile. Caleb smiled at her.

  “Good! Now that that’s settled, let’s blow this pop stand. I’ve got a show to play!”

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Caleb was true to his word. He sat on that stage in a chair and rocked out even though Maggie could see him fighting the urge to jump up and really get in to it. He also stayed true to his word that if he wasn’t feeling up to it, he would say so. Maggie had seen the band play enough that she had a rough idea of their regular set list and when she figured they had about five songs left, Caleb turned and gave a nod to their drummer who started the intro to the song they always closed with, meaning he had had enough.

  After the show, Maggie went with Caleb back to his place instead of hers which was more usual, but with his injury it was better for him to be home. She helped him make it over to his bed as he was still getting used to the crutches. Awkwardly, he swung his legs around to be fully on the bed and hoisted himself up so that his head was slightly elevated by leaning against his pillows.