by Sherie Keys
“I’m going to stop by a store on Fifth so I can at least get a change of shirt,” Hunter said and I nodded. I really didn’t feel like dealing with Fifth Avenue traffic, but he was the one that was driving and I guess he wanted a change of clothes. I wondered why he didn’t just stop by his place.
“Hey, did you say you lived on the Upper East Side?” I asked him and he nodded, then glanced at me with a bemused expression on his face. “I was just wondering…” I said and then bit my lip. Why was I acting like such a weirdo all of a sudden?
“Do you really want to go to the Met? Are you more into modern art or…?”
I shrugged, not really sure.
“I appreciate all art, and the stuff they have at the Met is cool, they have more than just paintings,” I said and Hunter nodded again.
We stopped at Versace and Hunter was helped immediately by an eager sales clerk. He dressed him in an all-new outfit down to the boxers, I was sure. Hunter got a form fitting dark blue long sleeved shirt and jeans that made his butt look fantastic, I had to admit. We finally made it over to the Met afterwards and I got a little excited at the thought of seeing the cool exhibits they currently had on display.
“So how old were you when you came here with your parents?” Hunter asked me as we wandered through the huge museum going from ancient artifacts to world famous art and paintings.
“I was seven and it was the first time I had gone to any sort of museum or gallery. I had seen the Saint Margaret of Cortona painting and thought it was just so cool and beautiful. After that I started painting and it turned out that I had a talent for it,” I said and Hunter smiled at me.
“So your parents are responsible for you following your passion now, then,” he said and I laughed.
“Well, they would have liked for me to be like my brother and go to law school to be a lawyer. My mom especially…” I said and he tilted his head at me curiously. “Well, she came from a family where the men went off to work and provided and the women stayed at home to take care of the kids. When her parents divorced, her mother didn’t have anything to fall back on so she could take care of my mom when she was younger. Then her father died in a freak accident and she and my grandmother were basically poor until my grandmother went to a vocational school and got her license to be a nurse,” I explained and Hunter kept silent for a moment.
“So your mother thinks that with the career path you’re following, there could be a chance you end up broke,” he said and I nodded. “I’ve seen your work, I don’t think you’ll ever be poor,” Hunter said as if it were a certainty. One could only hope, really.
“What about your father?”
I glanced up at Hunter with a rueful smile, he certainly did ask a lot of questions.
“Well…my dad was like my mom for the most part, he wanted me to have a stable career that ‘paid off.’ But the other day when I had dinner with them, I think he was starting to come around. He saw some of my work in action and I think he understands why I do what I do now,” I said and then glanced at Hunter’s face and explained to him my father’s encounter with the reading at the library.
“So your mother, she still wishes you would change your mind?” he said and I shrugged.
“I guess so, but my relationship with my parents is partly my fault. I hardly keep in touch with them and that fuels the fire whenever the topic of my career comes up,” I said. Hunter snorted and I looked up at him curiously. “What?” I asked and he sighed.
“I just know what you mean …I have a sister and she and I hardly speak to our parents. They expected the best from us all the time and put us through hell growing up and, of course, take all the credit for where we are today. That’s the fuel when it comes to them, so after a while we just stopped putting up with their crap,” Hunter said.
I wondered how much deeper his conflict with his parents went if he wasn’t even speaking with them. I didn’t pry though, Hunter’s jaw was flexed and he didn’t seem like he wanted to broach the subject any more.
“Parents are tricky,” I said and Hunter cracked a smile and then started to laugh.
“Yeah, they are…they’re a headache, too,” he said and then shook his head while he smiled at me.
We continued walking through the museum and we stopped by my favorite painting, of course. Once it was time for lunch, we left the museum to drive over to Jersey where he took me to the restaurant he told me about.
“So are you sure I can just order whatever I want even though it’s not on the menu?” I asked him and he nodded reassuringly.
“A hundred percent, otherwise the waiter would tell you that they don’t serve it, but nine times out of ten they can make something for you.”
I was impressed. I ordered a Po Boy even though it wasn’t on the menu and the waiter promised he’d bring it right out along with Hunter’s food when it was ready. The décor of the restaurant was artsy, kind of on the hipster side, but I didn’t mind it too much like I normally would.
“So what are you doing tonight?” Hunter asked me and I glanced at him from over the drinks menu. He hadn’t asked me when I told him I had something to do later that evening, why was he asking all of a sudden?
“Uh, I’m going out with a friend,” I said. Technically that was pretty much true.
“Peter?” he asked and I laughed.
“There you go again, jealous of Peter?” I asked and Hunter rolled his eyes.
“I’m not jealous, I’m just curious. It’s called small talk, or making conversation, Melanie,” he said and I held up my hands in surrender.
“Whoa, whoa, no need to get all snippy, I was just teasing,” I said and Hunter simply shrugged and took the drink menu out of my hand so he could look at it. “So rude,” I murmured and he looked up at me with raised eyebrows.
“Come again?” he asked and it was my turn to shrug.
After that, we recovered with normal conversation about movies which turned into a conversation about celebrities and who else Hunter knew because of his job.
The food at the restaurant was delicious, it was like the chef knew exactly what I wanted and made it perfectly. He was a wizard.
After lunch, I had Hunter drop me home so that I could get some painting done before my date with Caleb. I locked myself in my painting room so I could make up for the time I lost being out with Hunter and then completely lost track of time.
I was playing Beethoven pretty loud so I didn’t hear Caleb knocking at first. Then I realized someone was knocking on my door and I checked my watch. I cursed as I ran to go and let him in.
Caleb was as gorgeous as ever; he was dressed casually, wearing a white t-shirt, light olive colored jacket, and dark jeans with Converses. I had to correct myself about who should be on the cover of GQ, Caleb and Hunter would have to be on it together.
“Hey, look at you,” Caleb laughed good-naturedly as he stepped inside the apartment.
“Yeah, I…lost track of time, clearly. I’m so sorry, but it should only take me about ten minutes to get ready,” I said and Caleb waved his hand dismissively before he ran his fingers through his hair that just ended up right back in his face.
“Don’t worry about the time, we don’t have reservations or anything,” he said and I smiled in relief.
“Great, just make yourself at home, I’ll be right out. Oh, hey, where are we going?” I asked him before I ran back to my room.
“Dancing,” he said with a smile and I grinned.
“Sounds fun!” I said and then hurried to take a shower and decided to follow Caleb’s lead and wear something casual.
I wondered where he was going to take me dancing that allowed him to wear a t-shirt and Converses. I dressed in one of my favorite light grey oversized sweaters and tights then slipped into some flats. I ran some moisturizer through my hair so my curls wouldn’t be unruly and then I hurried out into the living room where Caleb was sitting patiently for me while playing a game on his phone.
“I’m ready, sorry again
about spacing on the time,” I said and Caleb looked up at me with a smile and he got up.
“Don’t worry about it, and you look great, perfect for where we’re going,” he said with a grin. I grabbed my purse and then we were out the door heading to his Jaguar.
“So are we going to a club to go dancing or…what?” I asked him and he shrugged.
“You’ll see, don’t worry,” he said as we got into the car. “So how was your day?” he asked me and I tilted my head to the side.
“It was nice, I went to the Met with a friend and then had lunch at this great place in Jersey, after that I had to make up time painting and lost track of time,” I said and Caleb chuckled.
“That will happen when you’re doing something you love,” Caleb said and I breathed a slight sigh of relief that he didn’t ask me more about my “friend.”
“So how was your day and your week?” I asked him. Caleb and I didn’t talk on the phone as much as I did with Hunter, but we texted back and forth like teenagers, which wasn’t all that bad.
“It was actually a bit hectic this week, my partner usually takes the end of the week off for consultations, if he has any, or for a long weekend. I usually take Mondays and Tuesdays off, but this week we both had to go into the office an extra day. We were having quota issues and needed everyone in the office to sell stocks like mad,” Caleb said and I nodded.
“That does sound crazy, I can see why talking on the phone would get tiring for you,” I teased him and he laughed.
“When it comes to work, of course, I have to speak on the phone, but for anything else I’d just rather text, it’s always been that way,” he said and I nodded in understanding. Some people were just like that.
“Does that mean you’re a little shy on some level?” I asked him and Caleb gave me a small adorable smile that made my chest feel all warm again. He had a weird and uncanny ability of doing that to me.
“Maybe a little,” he admitted and I reached over to rub his arm in a reassuring gesture.
Caleb caught my hand though and kissed my palm, which decidedly sent shivers up my arm. Caleb made me feel like I was a teenage girl going on dates with a really cute guy. When we started heading out of the city I glanced over at Caleb curiously.
“Caleb…you don’t seem like the type to drive a girl out of town so you can kill her and dump her body,” I said which made him crack up with laughter.
“I promise you I am not, I told you, we’re going dancing,” he said and grinned at me.
As soon as we hit the open highway Caleb utilized the Jaguar horsepower and we were in Long Island within thirty minutes and heading towards the beach.
Caleb drove up to a huge house on the beach; it appeared to be empty and when we got out I realized that the house was Caleb’s.
“This is your place?” I asked him and he nodded as he pulled out his house keys.
Inside was beautiful; there were great views of the beach from almost all the rooms we walked through to get to the back deck. Out on the beach, off in the distance I saw the orange flickering light of a bonfire.
“We’re going to a bonfire party!” I said and Caleb nodded with a satisfied smile.
“Yeah, a colleague of mine is throwing it, there will be more dancing and alcohol than anything else though,” Caleb said and we walked through the gate that separated his backyard from the beach and started off towards the party.
The ocean air was chilly, but the closer we got to the bonfire, the less I felt the chill. It was a perfect temperature once we reached the party.
There were a lot of people there, and some crazy surfers out in the freezing water, as well as people in the huge house behind where the bonfire was set up. The music was pouring from the house and everyone seemed to have a drink in their hand.
“Come on, I have to find him to show my face and then we can hang out,” Caleb said and he took my hand to lead me towards the house.
More people were dancing outside than inside, though. In the house, everyone was pretty much relaxing and talking; it was a very laid back party, nothing too crazy. Caleb and I were briefly separated when I wandered into the kitchen looking for a beer or something and Caleb had spotted his colleague. We found each other again outside on the beach.
“Hey! I thought I had lost you,” Caleb said with a chuckle and I held up a beer and handed it to him.
“Nope, I went to get us some drinks,” I said with a smile and we clinked bottles.
Caleb and I found a nice place in the sand to sit and talk and we had a few more drinks until my favorite pop song of the month started playing and I grinned at Caleb who smiled at my eager expression.
“We so have to dance to this song, come on, we’ve been sitting long enough.”
I pulled Caleb up from the sand and we went over to the people dancing around the fire. Admittedly, I had a bit of alcohol in my system so I danced a bit freer than I normally would. Caleb didn’t seem to mind at all and he kept up with me easily, because he was surprisingly a great dancer.
I couldn’t help but wonder as we were dancing, how good he would be in bed. Then, of course, several songs later and after another drink or two, Caleb and I were giggling and walking back to his place.
“We’re sleeping over here right?” I asked him as we stepped into his family room.
“Of course, I can’t drive like this. All I can think about is playing Headbandz like we talked about,” Caleb said and I cracked up.
“I thought you had forgotten!”
Caleb went over to his entertainment system, opened up a cabinet full of board games and pulled out Headbandz.
“I never forget when it comes to board games, especially when played while tipsy,” he said and I grinned as I sat down cross legged on the floor.
Caleb sat down across from me and opened the box. I grabbed a headband and tried to figure it out, but I was having trouble.
“I think I need help,” I pouted and Caleb chuckled at me while he scooted closer to me and reached around my head to snap the band together correctly. Our faces were about a breath apart and before I could register my movements, I was leaning towards Caleb to kiss him. Our lips touched lightly at first and then he pushed the headband off of me and cupped my face.
Our lips moved together softly and I licked along his bottom lip before I pulled it gently in between my teeth. Caleb hummed softly in the back of his throat and then our kissing went from light and teasing to heated as his tongue met mine.
I pushed the board game aside and Caleb’s arms wrapped around my waist as I climbed into his lap. His lips were soft, and I liked kissing him, but I wanted more. I slipped my hand underneath his t-shirt and met the taut skin of his stomach. He was really warm; I wasn’t sure if it was because of the alcohol or because our kissing had turned him on so much already. I pushed off his jacket a bit impatiently and Caleb pulled off his shirt then picked me up and carried me to a bedroom nearby so he could lay me down on the bed.
He climbed over me and then slid his hand underneath my top to trace the cup of my bra, his eyes were bright on my face and I smiled at his almost eager expression.
“Can I…?” he actually asked me to take my top off and I giggled while I nodded at him.
“Yes, please do,” I said and he grinned as he pushed my sweater off over my head and then he pressed warm kisses against the tops of my breasts and my stomach.
My hips started to move impatiently as he was moving a bit too slow for me. I sat up and forced Caleb back into a sitting position and I straddled him. He finally unhooked my bra and my fingers went into his hair as his lips brushed over my nipples.
I undid his jeans and he arranged himself so I could pull out his erection. Caleb was big; he was thick and long and very, very hard as I stroked him in my hand. He moaned and then kissed my neck as I pumped him.
“Caleb, you have a huge cock,” I said and he laughed, a little surprised by my comment.
“Thank you, I guess,” he said hoarsely and then I f
elt his fingers tugging at my tights and then I let him go so we could both get rid of our bottoms.
Caleb climbed over me once more and his fingers went to my sex to slide against my wet folds. He rubbed his shaft against me and I moaned breathlessly. Soon he was slowly pushing into me and I was kind of let down that there wasn’t any more preamble, but then he filled me up and all thoughts of foreplay fled my mind.
“Ah, oh god, Caleb…” I moaned as he started to pump into me slowly, his cock pushed against some spot deep inside that made me feel like molten chocolate and all I could do was hold onto his muscular arms as he thrust into me slowly. It felt like torture, but the pleasure was intense as it liquefied my body.