by S. E. Lund
"Always," she replied with a coy smile.
"Oh, what you do to me." We kissed again and finally, she shut off her computer and grabbed her bag.
"Let's go."
We stopped at the Security Office and Reg followed us out of the building and down the street. When we went inside, he remained outside the entrance, his hands folded, watching the pedestrians to see if there was anyone following us. I felt bad that it had come to hiring a bodyguard, but until we knew who the mystery man with the fedora was, I would rather be safe than sorry.
The Thai restaurant was cramped with patrons, enjoying the delicious aromatic food.
Our table was in a corner out of the way and gave us some privacy. We ordered Pad Thai and other delicacies and leaned into our food, both of us eating as if we hadn't eaten for hours.
Which I hadn't. I realized I only grabbed an apple for lunch, so this was the first food I'd eaten since noon.
"This is sooo good," Ella said, slurping down the noodles. "I love the lime."
"It is good," I replied. "I was over in Thailand for a vacation and really got into it. Now, it's a staple."
We spent the next hour trying various dishes and when we were finally full, I leaned back.
"What do you say about a ride around Central Park?"
"Oh, that sounds nice," Ella said with a smile.
"I promised I'd take you some night. If not now, when?"
"My thought exactly."
After I spoke with Reg about the carriage ride, he agreed to trail us on the trip in a second carriage. Then, we walked out into the evening as the sun was beginning to set. When we got to 7th Avenue and 57th Street, just outside Central Park, I hired two of the carriages for a tour. I paid for the longer tour, and we climbed in, pulled a blanket around us and sat beside each other and enjoyed the ride, with Reg trailing us a few dozen feet behind.
I slipped my arm around Ella's shoulder and pulled her closer. Together, we took in the beautiful scenery as the last of the leaves had turned and fallen. It was still beautiful, but the colors had already peaked but at least we could enjoy the crisp autumn air.
Of course, it also reminded me of my almost-wedding a year earlier. We even had plans to marry in the park and have our pictures taken on the bridge. All that planning came crashing down and although I was happy now, there was still a part of me that hurt from the betrayal.
I pulled Ella closer and kissed the top of her head, then kissed her lips. She was not at all like my ex, conniving and calculating. She was open and honest and more interested in doing something of value rather than being rich.
She was the kind of woman I could see myself spending the rest of my life with.
In fact, she was the woman I could see myself spending the rest of my life with.
It surprised me that I thought that, so soon after meeting her, but I did. I never grew bored with her company and there was always something to talk about. We both loved books, writing and reading. While my focus was on journalism and hers was fiction, we shared a love of the written word and could talk for hours about the latest book we read.
When the ride was finished, the three of us walked back to the building and the apartment, hand in hand, enjoying the sounds and sights of night in Mid-Town Manhattan.
"I always dreamed of being here," Ella said to me, swinging our arms as we walked up to the building.
"Really?" I said, still surprised at the mystique that Manhattan held for so many people who lived outside its borders. "I always dreamed of living somewhere with real scenery. Like Colorado or even Seattle. Mountains. The ocean. All I see around me here is concrete. Which reminds me, we still haven't gone to the house in Montauk. You have to come and see it. That's where I'd really love to live if I had the chance."
"You could," she said. "Why not?"
"I need to be close to the office because of the The Chronicle. Maybe someday, but not for the next few years."
"I'd love to see it, though. Some weekend when you feel you can get away, we should take a drive there."
I lifted her hand to my lips and kissed her knuckles. "It's a deal."
I could see us spending weekends there in the summer and pictured her in a bikini lying on the beach that bordered our property. My property, actually.
It was the gift my father bequeathed to me, and it spoke to how well he knew me. How well he knew each of us.
"Let's go upstairs. I have to ravish you thoroughly before tomorrow when I have to give you up for three whole nights of time spent with Mr. Manuel."
She smiled and pulled me into the elevator. By the look in her eyes, I knew we'd more than make up for it.
13
Ella
Reg said goodnight and went to the security office while we entered the elevator and made our way upstairs. We'd kissed the entire trip in the elevator, lucky that the building was pretty empty.
"Isn't there a security camera in here?" I asked, glancing up at the corners.
"Somewhere," Josh replied. "Who cares? Give them a thrill."
I pulled Josh into the apartment, and as soon as we got inside and closed the door, I kissed him, my hands reaching down to unbuckle his belt.
"Mmm," he murmured against the skin of my neck. "Impatient, are you? I like it."
"I'm always impatient for you," I said and pulled down his zipper, reaching in to feel his hardness.
"I'm always ready for you," he said, his voice throaty with desire.
He groaned when I took him in my hand and squeezed, enjoying the hardness. I fell to my knees there just inside the door and took him into my mouth, wanting to drive him a bit crazy before we even got to the bedroom.
"Oh, God, Ella," he said and leaned against the door, his slacks and boxer briefs on the floor around his shoes. "You are such a tease."
I sucked him in and cupped his balls in one hand while I gripped his shaft with the other. When I pulled off with a wet pop, I glanced up and met his gaze. "I always come through, though, don't I? Not all tease..."
"No, you tease me in the best way possible."
I smiled and then took him back into my mouth, my lips pulling off and pushing onto the head of his cock, my tongue lapping around the rim.
Finally, he groaned and pulled me up. "You have to stop, or I'll be finished before we even start."
"You like?" I asked, giving him a coy look.
"I like very much," he said. "Too much. Come."
He shucked off his shoes and pants, then pulled me into the bedroom and began stripping off my clothes while I removed his, until we were both naked.
"You are so fucking lush," he said as he sat on the bed and pulled me closer to him. "I want to eat and lick every inch of you."
"Every inch is yours," I said, my body vibrating with desire.
He pressed his face into my breast, taking the nipple between his lips and sucking. The sensations went from my nipple right to my clit and I moaned, my eyes closed. He moved between my breasts, sucking each nipple, squeezing them together so he could lick from one to the other.
Then he stood and turned me around, pushing me back onto the bed and spreading my thighs with his knees.
He leaned over me and kissed me, taking my hands into his and holding them above my head.
"You're mine," he said, his voice gruff.
"I am," I replied, a catch in my breath at the sound of possession in his tone. I was his -- all his. Every part of me.
Then his mouth claimed mine in a blistering kiss and all conscious thought fled, replaced by pure pleasure.
When we were both spent, we lay on our backs staring at the ceiling, catching our breath.
"That was so good," I said and glanced at him.
"It was," he said and reached over to stroke my cheek. "You can expect more of that in the morning. Maybe at lunch, too, if I can weasel out of my one o'clock meeting. If I'm going to miss three nights of you, I expect to make it up in the next twelve hours before Steph comes."
"I won't compla
in," I said and smiled.
"Somehow, I knew you wouldn't," Josh said with a laugh.
Josh kept to his promise of making me weak-kneed with lust twice more before the next afternoon. We met in the apartment during lunch and had sex standing up in the living room, with me leaning over the sofa and him behind me, both of us half-dressed. This was after an early morning bout in the shower as we prepared for the day.
As Josh pulled out of me and removed his condom, I closed my eyes and remained standing as I was, thighs spread.
"I'm going to need an afternoon nap," I said with a smile. "Do you think the boss will mind?"
"I think the boss will have to call in and cancel his one o'clock meeting," Josh replied and did just that. "You should ask for the afternoon off and we could spend it on the sofa or in bed."
"I can't," I said and stood up finally, pulling up my thong and pulling down my skirt. "I promised I'd get some work done for Sharon before the weekend, so I could take Monday off and spend it with Steph. But given you have an in with the big boss, you definitely should take the afternoon off and lie around like a sloth."
I turned around and watched as Josh fixed his own clothes. "Nope. Boss is a damn slave driver so I better not. Besides, I wouldn't enjoy it without you." When he was finished buckling his belt, he came over and pulled me into his arms. "I'll go back like a dutiful CEO and do my meetings."
We kissed.
"Text me later when Steph is in bed if you want to talk. Or anything."
"Or anything," I said with a grin. "Like I can't guess what that means..."
He smiled back. Then he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a black Ritz-Carlton keycard.
"This is for you and Steph. Indulge your every womanish whim. The spa. A meal in the restaurant. Room service. Whatever you feel like."
"You are far too sweet," I said and took the keycard, shaking my head. "I can't believe you did that."
"Believe it, use it, and enjoy it. Thinking of you two having fun will be what keeps me from being sad without you."
We kissed, and then kissed again and again. Finally, I pulled out of his arms and left the apartment, taking the elevator down to my office. I planned on eating my lunch alone in my office, so I could leave early and meet Steph at Penn Station. While I was happy as a lark to see Steph, her visit was unexpected, and it seemed to break the momentum of Josh and my relationship, which had reignited when he returned from California, feeling even more substantial since then. We were inseparable and didn't want to be apart. While I had finally felt right about seeing Josh after my initial reluctance, now I was certain that he was who I wanted. Everything about him was perfect. I couldn't think of a single thing that I didn't like and while I knew it was probably still a large dose of infatuation, I liked to think it was also just a serious compatibility between us.
We fit together so well in all things.
I left work early and took the car service to Penn Station, my stomach all butterflies at seeing Steph again. I waited by her gate and checked to see if the train was on time. Luckily, it was and soon, there she was, the same old Steph I'd known since we were both in our Freshman year of high school in Concord. Two of the nerdiest nerds in our schools.
Steph was tall and lanky, and often said she reminded herself of a giraffe but to me, who was on the shorter side of female height, she was like a thoroughbred with her mane of long blonde hair and blue eyes. The only thing that kept her from being a model was her love of all things scientific, otherwise, she could have been on the catwalks of New York and Milan. She'd even done some modeling when she was a girl for local stores in Concord but when her mother pushed her to consider becoming a model, she'd rebelled.
She hated being looked at. She felt ridiculously tall and lanky and had knock-knees and was pigeon toed. Otherwise, she was very attractive in a Daryl Hannah sort of way.
"There you are," she said and hugged me, almost picking me up in her glee. She pulled back. "You look great. I see Mr. Big has been good for you. You've got that rosy-cheeked hue you lost when Jerkface betrayed you."
I patted my cheeks dramatically. "You like my hue?" referencing a favorite Seinfeld episode.
"It's a lovely hue."
We walked arm in arm to the limo that waited on the curb outside the station and Reg drove us to Central Park.
"Why are we here?" she asked when we arrived across from the Ritz-Carlton. "Don't you live in Chelsea?"
"We're in for a real treat," I said and held up the Ritz-Carlton keycard Josh had given me before I left.
"What's that?" Steph asked, her mouth open. "Is that what I think it is? Is that a Ritz-Carlton room key?"
"The very thing." I handed it to her and she took it like it was something delicate and breakable.
"Oh, my God," Steph said and stroked it in mock-worship. She sniffed it and then rubbed it on her face. "It's the real deal. The Ritz."
"It is. We have a suite, with two bedrooms. Josh wants us to use the Spa and eat dinner in the restaurant and order in room service. The works."
"Seriously? I thought he'd resent me for coming down and horning in on you."
"Not at all. He said it would make him happy to think of us living it up."
"He is too sweet," Steph said. "I feel kinda bad, but I'll take it. I'll take it willingly."
We went inside and checked in, excited to have the suite to ourselves for three glorious days. We took the elevator up and walked down the hallway to our rooms, and both of us gasped when we saw the interior. I was familiar with the layout because of my previous stay with Josh, but Steph was totally impressed and turned in a huge circle, covering her mouth with her hands.
"Oh, my God, Ella -- it's amazing. I can't believe we have this to ourselves. What do we do first?"
"Whatever you want. We could just kick back and have a drink, watch a movie and gab. Whatever."
"That sounds perfect. How about we get a snack from room service, have a couple of drinks and you can fill me in on all the juicy details about Josh. I can't wait to meet him."
"He wants to meet you, too. He'll meet us for lunch or a drink tomorrow or Sunday, if you want."
"I want, I want. Maybe he has a brother who needs a wife? I'm on the market."
We both laughed and then set about to picking our rooms and getting our clothes and makeup and personal items out of our suitcases, so it felt more like home. When we were done, we went to the main living room, which was richly appointed in golds and dark brocade and flopped on the plush sofas. I ordered up some trays of appetizers from room service and we had drinks from the small bar fridge. Steph had a vodka cooler and I had a glass of white wine.
"To a girl's weekend," Steph said. "For two old friends lucky to have the chance to get together in such a posh place."
"To us," I said and clinked my glass against her bottle.
We talked for a while about Josh of course, for he was the most important event in my life since I left Concord and got my internship.
"I missed our girl talks with you gone and texting just doesn't cut it," Steph said. "So, is Josh better than Jerkface in the boyfriend department?"
"Much better. Like night and day. I never realized it, but Josh is just so much more laid back than Jerkface ever was. Jerkface was always so aware of how everything looked and what people could do or not do for him. I thought it was just ambition, but it was more -- it was a kind of narcissism. Josh is so different. He's really focused on his work, but he really wants to make The Chronicle a success. He's committed to journalism as an important part of American democracy and he wants to make sure the paper lives up to its former reputation."
"And he's good in bed?" she asked, her eyes twinkling.
"Steph!" I said with a laugh.
"You knew I'd ask. Come on -- fess up. He must be good in bed or you wouldn't stick around. Right?"
"He's more than good in bed," I admitted, smiling as I remembered our last session just hours earlier in the apartment. "He's fantastic i
n bed and out of it. In the shower, on the sofa, on the floor, on the desk in his office..."
"Ohh, you're getting in some hot office sex, are you?"
I grinned. "Yes. And it is hot. I never thought I'd enjoy risky sex, but I do. Even though I can lock my office door and he can his, there's always the chance that people will realize we're in the office doing it."
"So that box is ticked. He's good in bed. What else? Why do you like him? Sell him to me."
I made a face as I considered Steph's question. What did I like about him?
"He's fun. He has a great sense of humor. He's really nice. He's got some values and morals. He joined the Army, he went to college and studied journalism. He's just a really great guy."
"And so good looking. I mean, he's hot, Ella. You are so lucky."
"He is," I said and smiled to myself, thinking of him with his longish hair that flopped in this incredibly sexy way in his eyes at times. His very blue eyes. His well-trimmed beard covering a very square jaw.
Our room service food was delivered and for the rest of the night, we gabbed and ate and watched a movie, catching up with each other's business.
It was good to have her visit and it was so sweet of Josh to rent us the hotel suite, so we could do it in comfort and style.
By midnight, we were both tired and so we hugged and went our separate ways, Steph to her room and me to mine. I got into my nightgown and brushed my teeth, washed my face and wondered what I'd find when I opened up my cell. I had promised myself I wouldn't check it once while Steph and I spent the evening together and I kept to that promise. So, I was excited to see what Josh would write when I did check. Would he want to Skype and watch me? Or would we just talk?
Honestly, I was tired at that point, but I knew if he tried, he could get me worked up enough for some sexting.
I checked my messages and there was one from Josh, send over an hour earlier.
JOSH: I have to make a quick trip out of town. Something came up out of the blue and I'll be gone all weekend, but I should be back on Monday. Sorry about this. I really wanted to meet Steph tomorrow, but we'll have to reschedule. Tell her I'm sure you two can find something to do to pass the time with me gone.