The Everlasting Chapel

by Marilyn Cruise

  The lights in the glass-encased room are dim, and when I see hundreds of tea light candles scattered across the floor, I gasp. Did he arrange this all for me? Palm trees and plants stand along the walls, and to the left, a fountain sprouts out of the Jacuzzi. The floor is made of white and turquoise tiles, and the ceiling is nothing but a glass cage.

  “It’s beautiful,” I say.

  “I thought you might like a little candle light.” He takes my hand and pulls me with him over to a pool chaise. I undo the sash around my waist, and let the robe drop to the floor around my feet.

  Michael just stands there and lets his eyes take me in. His mouth opens a little, and he licks his bottom lips as his eyes smolder with desire. “Damn, that bikini looks great on you.” His voice is low and husky, and his breath hitches.

  “Stop looking at me like that,” I say. Or I won’t be able to control myself.

  “Like what?” he asks, his eyes still lusting after me.

  “Like you want to…you know…” I look around, uncertain whether or not anyone is listening.

  “Like I want to ravage you right here right now?”

  I widen my eyes at him. “Michael…”

  “I can’t help it. You’re so beautiful.”

  I roll my eyes. But when he takes off his sweatpants and T-shirt, it’s my turn to gawk at his godlike physique. But I quickly avert my eyes, not wanting him to accuse me of doing the exact same thing I just faulted him for. He approaches me slowly, and I get the feeling he’s up to no good.

  “We haven’t discussed…my terms yet,” I say, my throat suddenly feeling dry as that searing burn of a charge detonates the air between us.

  Once he’s standing right in front of me, he takes my hands and lifts them to his shoulders. He runs his fingertips down my upper arms, and down my waist, causing me to quiver in delight. Slowly, he lowers his face to mine and nips at my mouth, teasing out a sigh from my lips.

  “Don’t worry. I won’t fuck your sweet pussy until you beg me to,” he says.

  No modesty there.

  “And beg me, you will.” He wraps an arm around my waist and tugs at me so the bare skin on my abdomen presses against his.

  I want to roll my eyes at his lack of humility, but the way he’s talking, I can’t manage to tear my eyes away from his.

  But then he produces a wicked grin, and before I know it, he tosses me over his shoulder, runs toward the pool, and jumps in. I scream as I go down, not having expected this at all.

  The warm water envelopes my body, and as we sink, Michael lets go of me. When my feet hit the bottom, I push against it and swim to the top. He crests the water just a couple of feet away from me and whips his head to the side so water goes flying, pelting across the surface.

  Wet Michael, oh he’s sexy: glistening skin, darker hair, darker eyes. He moves over to me as he whisks the water off his face, and then he takes my hand and pulls me to him. The slick skin on his legs moves across mine, and he wraps his arms around me.

  Desire burns deep inside.

  “You know, there’s no one down here but you and me, and I have given strict orders for no one to disturb us,” he says, pecking kisses down the side of my neck.

  Heat thrums in my body. “Well, before we…we should talk about…”

  “Give me your terms. I’ll agree to anything,” he says, kissing my shoulder.

  Suddenly I can’t think about anything at all other than the fact that he’s one layer away from naked, and as he laces his fingers across the skin on my back, I emit a barely audible moan.

  “I have three. The first one is counseling. We should go to counseling,” I say.

  “Should?” The right side of his lips tilts upward.

  “We will go to counseling,” I correct.

  “I’ll agree to that. Anything else?” He squeezes his fingers between my bikini bottoms and my ass, gently caressing there.

  “And you’re not allowed to date anyone else,” I say feather lightly.

  “Fuck, Scar…if it isn’t obvious by now…I only want you. All day. Every day. Every way,” he growls as he pulls me closer to him. His steel hard erection presses against my lower abdomen, and I swear if I weren’t in the water right now, my legs would buckle.

  “You know, it’s hard to concentrate when you talk like that,” I say.

  “Okay.” He withdraws his hand and swims backwards a few paces. I don’t like him gone from me. Not one bit, although now I might be able to think rationally.

  He says, “You’re not allowed to date anyone else either.”

  “I still want to keep in touch with Spencer,” I say.

  I notice how his body goes rigid. “Why?”

  “He’s becoming a good friend.”

  “You slept with him, Scarlett.”

  “Yes. And you are doing business with your ex-fiancé who I’m sure you slept with on quite a few occasions,” I retort. I don’t want to think about that—no, not at all—but I needed to say it in order to strengthen my argument.

  He stares at me for a moment as if considering what I said. “That’s different. I’m doing business with her company. She and I are not friends. And definitely not friends with benefits.”

  “I don’t know how to explain this, but the sex with Spencer didn’t mean anything. It was just purely physical.”

  His eyebrows rise. “Isn’t that what guys are supposed to say?”

  “Well, it’s true. And Spencer knows everything about you and me, and how…”

  He pulls away a little more. “Everything?”

  “Yes. He’s a friend.”

  “Of a week.”

  “Well, I have known him for a few weeks,” I say.

  “And you want me to be okay with this?”

  “Yes. Listen, I could make a big deal about you and your ex, but I’m not going to,” I say, still feeling a smidgen jealous.

  “It’s not the same.” He swims over to the side of the pool and rests his forearms onto the edge, facing away from me. His back is broad, and as I study the hills and valleys of his muscles, I find I want to touch him.

  I make my way over to him, facing away from the ledge, and prop my elbows onto it.

  “Please don’t let this be an issue between us. I understand you don’t like it. I get that. But I have absolutely no feelings for Spencer other than friendship. And I don’t like to think of you doing business with your ex. I mean, she must be super persistent, and a part of me is afraid she’ll try to win you back.”

  “I hardly think she’ll try that,” he hisses.

  Why the sudden mood change? Is he still hurt by her?

  “Why did she break it off with you?” I ask. I don’t expect him to tell me, but I hope we’ve come to a point where we can speak openly about this and other not-so-comfortable issues.

  “She said I didn’t stand up to her in front of my mother,” he says.

  “Did you?” I ask.

  After a long pause, he says, “No. But even though my mother was a vicious woman, I still loved her. And Alexa was ruthless and constantly complained about what a horrid person my mother was. I grew tired of it.”

  “Was that her name? Alexa?” I ask.

  “Yes. I’m glad it’s over. We would never have worked out. We would have killed each other in the end.”

  Ha! “Kind of sounds like us.”

  He rests his chin on his forearms and glances at me from underneath his lashes. “It’s nothing like us. Alexa and I had other issues, but I’d rather not go into it. You and I might have our moments where we want to kill each other, but we’re stronger than our problems. We’re stronger than anything.”

  “Even than ex-fiancés and friends with benefits?” I say.

  He chuckles a little. “You’re pretty good at negotiating. I should bring you next time I have a deal to settle.”

  “That will cost you,” I say.

  “Don’t make me attack you before I know and agree to the third term,” he says.

  “O
kay. The third term is that we’re always open and honest with each other.”

  “Done.” He lets his eyes drop to my cleavage, and then he gets this wild look in his eyes. He moves in front of me so he has me pinned against the edge of the pool, and when he presses his hips to mine, I feel his steel hard erection between my legs.

  “Listen, what I don’t want to do is control you. If you say you have no feelings for Spencer, I am going to believe you. I might not be happy about it, but I’ll respect what you decide,” he says.

  “Really?”

  “Just don’t blame me when Dr. Jamison mysteriously vanishes one day.”

  “You’re horrible,” I say, slapping his chest.

  He laughs, and then he grabs my arms, preventing me from hitting him further. “I just want you for myself.”

  I lean my cheek against his, and whisper, “You have me.”

  Whatever Michael heard in those three little words, it drives him completely wild. He reaches his hands behind my back and draws me toward him so his stomach crashes against mine. With one swift move, he pulls the drawstring of my bikini top so it falls open to the front, revealing my breasts. When he sees them, he smiles and gropes my right nipple between his thumb and index finger, kneading it.

  My head falls back as I produce an erratic, high-pitched whimper, as a flash of sheer lust courses through me.

  Reaching behind my upper back with the other hand, he unhitches the clasp, and suddenly my upper body is completely bare. Releasing my breast, he presses his chest against mine, and my nipples harden against his slick skin. And it is then that I notice how his body is trembling as much as mine is.

  “Are you sure you want this?” he asks between kisses, his fingertips skimming my upper back.

  “Yes, I’m sure.” Oh, God, yes! “Are you sure?”

  His eyes darken several shades, a smoldering, deep blue. “I can’t…take another day without you. And I have thought of nothing else all day than how much I wanted to be buried deep inside of your sweetness.” He grinds himself against me, causing my insides to ache even more for him.

  Oh… Weaving my fingers through his hair, I bring his lips to mine. Having the warm water move between us only amplifies the sensation of each movement.

  I reach into the water, and squeeze my hand down the front of his swim trunks. Encircling him with my fingers, tugging at him gently, I see his eyes roll back into his head. Watching his euphoric expression causes makes me greedy with need.

  He lets out an unencumbered grunt. “Fuck, Scarlett. Easy. I’ve had a long time to warm up. I want to make you come first.”

  He snatches my hand away, and holds it behind my back as he slips a hand down into the front of my bikini bottoms. Immediately, he finds the slippery skin between my folds, and pushes two fingers into me.

  My mouth drops open, but no sound other than my breath manages to escape. “I’ve been thinking about you all day, too,” I say. “Every moment…it was just you.”

  “Good,” he says shoving his fingers in deeper and drawing them out.

  My eyes want to roll back into my skull, want to close.

  “Look me in the eyes,” he says as he moves his fingers faster, intensifying my pleasure. Peering into his irises, I see his desire for me, his need, and how much he wants this—wants me.

  “I love you,” I say as tingles wash through my entire body.

  “I know,” he says. “I can read it in your beautiful eyes.”

  His fingers begin to move faster, and he presses his lips to mine, gliding his silky tongue into my mouth. His fingers pull out of me, and while he still kisses me, he pulls my bottom off. I step out of them and let them sink to the pool floor.

  But suddenly he stops.

  No, don’t stop! “Please,” I say, the aching burn so intense that it’s bordering on painful.

  “Please what?” he growls. “Do you want me to fuck you?”

  “Yes. God, yes. I need you inside. Please…”

  I wrap my legs loosely around him as I reach for him, trying to find his glorious erection so I can put it where I want him. Where I need him. But he moves my hand away.

  Before I know it, he has pulled himself out and slams into me. An excited and embarrassingly loud gasp tears out of my mouth as his girth fills me to the brim, as my body submits to his.

  A rush of pleasure surges through me, causing my skin to rise with goosebumps. And when he starts to move, a hard and relentless pace, I find myself climbing so quickly toward my peak, that I can’t keep the raw moans, the primal cries, the vulgar gasps inside. Each thrust compels me toward that glorious release.

  While I hold onto his rock hard shoulders to steady myself, he grabs onto my shoulders, too, and shoves me down over him every time he thrusts upward.

  “I. Love. You. Scar,” he says, gritting his teeth, the muscles in his neck and face strained.

  God, it drives me wild seeing his agonizingly strained expressions when he’s fucking me. He moves so fast I think he’s just going for it. It’s been too long, and with how we ended things earlier today, we’ve had a long time to look forward to this moment.

  He moves faster and harder, slamming into me as the water gushes around us, each blessed fuck bringing me so high I think, surely, I’m going to explode. But I wind tighter and tighter, my insides coiling around him as he fills me to the brim. Oh, shit…oh…

  When I don’t think I can take anymore, finally, I feel the release approaching, and just as I come, the orgasm raging through my entire body, I scream out.

  Digging his fingernails into my flesh, he plunges into me two more times before finding his release, calling out my name. The aftershock of the orgasm gusts through me, and I shiver in delight.

  His head falls to my shoulder, and he chuckles once.

  After I take a moment to catch my breath, I ask, “What’s so funny?”

  He pants a few more times, his breaths delighting my chest. “I couldn’t last. I’m like a teenager all over again, with no control when I’m inside of you. Shit, Scarlett. What am I going to do with you?” He lifts his head and kisses my cheek.

  I have no reply to that. Other than maybe tell him to do it again. I kiss his lips and weave my fingers through his wet tresses.

  “Don’t worry,” he says. “We’re not done yet. I want to make love to you all night, Scar. Make up for weeks of being without you. Make you never need another man again.”

  He could be thinking about Spencer, and maybe he still fears I’ll go back to him. But I know if Michael and I continue to date, I will never need another man ever again. Spencer was great in bed and I had a lot of fun with him. But Michael…I can’t even explain it. I hunger for him. I crave him. I need him. And what’s even better is, I think he might feel the same way about me.

  I do have work tomorrow, and I should get some rest at least, but he’s right. We do have a lot of catching up to do.

  12

  We head back to his room, and shower and finally at four in the morning, after as much sex as I can handle, I fall asleep in Michael’s arms. The next morning I’m up at seven, and pick out one of the outfits Michael had purchased for me when we were pseudo-dating/married. None of the brands are familiar to me, but I can definitely feel the difference in the fit and the quality of the apparel when I put them on. I’m almost afraid to love it too much, still not convinced this will be my new life. Still not convinced Diane’s check will clear—which it hasn’t yet.

  On his way to work, Michael drops me off at the Portland Museum of Art, and says he’ll pick me up afterward so we can go to dinner. I am definitely feeling sore after our extended, passionate night together, but every time I move, I am reminded of how amazing everything was. And for the life of me, I can’t stop smiling! Normally I would have felt kind of silly walking around with a perma-grin on my face, but I don’t. Michael, too, has that same incessant smile on his face, and it makes me very happy knowing I was the one who put it there.

  Work goes by fairly q
uickly, and when noon rolls around, Spencer arrives. I thought I wouldn’t feel uncomfortable around him at all, but when I first see him, my stomach does this uncomfortable flip thing. And then I start to feel guilty that I slept with him. All weekend, I haven’t felt a single tinge of remorse, but now when he’s standing in front of me, it comes tumbling down.

  “Is Word of Mouth good for today?” he asks just as nonchalantly as usual.

  “Sure. Just let me grab my bag.” I head to the back room, grab my purse, and take a few deep breaths. On my way back out, Staci stops me.

  “For you,” she says, handing me the cordless phone.

  Who could be calling me here? “Hello. This is Scarlett.”

  “Oh, thank God I got in touch with you,” I hear Laila say.

  My immediate thought is that she wants her money from the one night Michael rented The Sanctuary. I cringe inwardly.

  “I’ve called your cell pone like hundreds of times.” Her voice sounds hysterical.

  “What is it?” I say, fearing it might be something way worse than a debt collection call.

  “Anne has…she was attacked while leaving The Black Chapel last night.”

  “Anne…?” My hand hits my mouth, and immediately tears flood my eyes. “Oh, God!”

  “She’s at the Providence Portland Medical Center, but she’s in pretty bad condition. Can you come over? I’m here with her now but I have to get back to work in a little bit.”

  My hands start to tremble. No, not Anne! Not sweet, innocent Anne. Not my best friend who would never harm anyone—who gave birth to the child she became pregnant with when she was raped at seventeen simply because she couldn’t kill the child growing in her womb.

  Laila continues. “They don’t know who it is yet, or the reason for the attack, but the police are eagerly searching for whomever did this.”

  “Wasn’t anybody else there?” I ask in horror, envisioning her leaving alone and being assaulted. Tears cascade down my cheeks.