Brave Hearts

by Nicole Falls

  "Is there something I can help you with here, Valora?" Frankie asked brusquely, redirecting my attention to his face and why I came in here in the first place.

  "I'm sorry...I was coming to tell you that I planned on cooking for us tonight, so you know...you don’t have to go out for dinner. I mean unless you had plans with Kip or someone else...I'm not trying to dictate your life or anything. Just...I thought it would be nice if we had dinner together since it's been a while. And I figured we could talk about tomorrow."

  Frankie sighed before responding, "Fine. Was there anything else?"

  "No...tha-that's it."

  "All right well if that's all can you get out of here so I can finish drying off and get dressed?"

  "Oh. Yes. Sorry. Dinner should be ready in about ninety minutes, if that works for you?"

  "It's fine."

  With that I scurried back downstairs and into the kitchen to get things going for dinner. After washing my hands, I turned on an Anita Baker Pandora playlist and began prepping and cooking dinner. I danced and sang my way through a plethora of late 80s R&B hits from everyone like Whitney Houston, Patti LaBelle, and Big and Little Luther Vandross. While cooking, my mind kept wandering back to Frankie in that towel. My gosh, I knew the brotha had body, but I didn’t know he had BODY. Seeing him in so little had me ready to say fuck talking and just attack him—fuck him into acting right. A small giggle escaped my mouth at that thought, Frankie would probably think that I lost my mind if I had just straight up mounted him. Didn’t keep the thought of doing just that from blossoming in my mind as I finished up our meal.

  Exactly ninety minutes after I rolled up on him in his bedroom, Frankie appeared in the kitchen area. Instead of offering to help like he would have in the past, he just grunted a greeting and slid down into a chair as I sat his already made plate in front of him. I retrieved my own plate, took a quick minute to say grace—more for me to ask for the strength to be patient with this man than exaltation for the meal that I'd whipped up. I'd picked up my fork to eat when I remembered the wine. I hopped up to retrieve it, the cork screw, and two glasses. I set the glasses down and angled the bottle and opener to him, hoping he'd take the hint. I sucked at using manual openers to uncork wine. Undoubtedly pieces of the cork ended up inside the wine every time I attempted.

  Frankie accepted the proffered bottle with a slight smirk before uncorking it and filling both of our glasses. We sat there eating and drinking in almost complete silence, the music streaming from my Pandora station was our only saving grace. After a few minutes Frankie finally spoke up.

  "You wanted to talk about tomorrow?" he asked with a slight edge to his voice as if he was spoiling for an argument.

  "Actually, I want to talk about right now. And the last nearly thirty days. And your funky ass attitude. What happened to all that “I don't want to lose you and us” shit you were talking before, Frankie? You've been stomping around here like somebody stole your bike for the past few weeks while I'm walking on eggshells, praying that I don't say or do anything to set you off."

  "Valora..."

  "I'm not done. I'm tired, Frankie. I don't like feeling on edge in my own home. Hell is this even my home? I feel like an interloper who has worn out her welcome. And for all of that we could have kept separate residences, coming together only when necessary for your processes," I finished on a half sob, feeling myself getting worked up even though I'd had a mental pep talk with myself while cooking dinner and had decided that I would not cry. But I was frustrated and flustered so my natural inclination was to cry, but I'd be damned if I lost my composure and broke down. After few cleansing breaths later I continued, "I don't like it, Frankie and I want to know what I need to do to make it better. I miss my friend. I want him back."

  "Valora," Frankie said, rising to come squat in front of me, "baby I promise, there is nothing you can do. This has noth...that's a lie. This has everything to do with you, but also nobody but me can actually solve the issue."

  "What kind of double speak is that Frankie? See that's what I mean. Just say what's wrong, so we can work together to fix it."

  "I don't know that you want me to do that, baby," Frankie replied on a chuckle.

  "I'm asking you to, so clearly I want to know. What. Is. It?" I gritted out.

  "Are you sure?"

  "Francisco Aurelio Mora, if you don't..."

  "The problem is the fact that I'm trying so desperately not to fuck things up with us because every time I'm near you my only thought is how badly I want to bury myself inside of you. I want to be so deeply embedded here," he said, rubbing my inner thigh, dangerously close to my pussy, "that you feel it here." He trailed his other hand up the side of my body, his thumb pressed against the pulse at the base of my throat.

  I swallowed hard, affected by words I clearly hadn't expected and before I had a chance to fully absorb them, Frankie stood pulling me with him and into a kiss that made that kiss from our wedding seem chaste. My eyes drifted closed as I gave myself over to the ministrations of Frankie's warm, plush lips pressed against mine. With my head cradled between his large palms, Frankie explored every crevice of my mouth with his tongue as I moaned, trying to keep up. His kisses came with a sense of urgency, as if he were convinced that I would somehow disappear so he had to make sure he got his fill. When the necessity of breathing prevented us from keeping our mouths fused Frankie pulled back slowly with little soft nibbles to my lips. After we fully disengaged, Frankie said nothing, just looked at me as if to say your move, so I just did what came naturally—intertwined our hands and led him to his bedroom.

  I’d barely gotten three steps before Frankie backed me up against a wall, gripping my ass to haul my legs around his waist so that we were nose to nose as he once again leaned in to ravage my mouth with yet another torrid kiss, then pulling back to look me in the eyes for a long moment.

  “Valora, baby, are you sure? I don’t want you to feel like…”

  Before answering verbally, I tightened my thighs around him, bringing his hardness to rest right again the heat at the juncture of my thighs, moved forward enough to snag his right ear lobe between my teeth before whispering, “I’ve never been more sure that I want you to fuck me right now.”

  That was all it took to spur Frankie on. He emitted some sort of animalistic growl before throwing me over his shoulder and stalking his way to the bedroom. When we reached his bed, he laid me down with a tenderness that belied the urgency he previously expressed to get inside of me. Instead of the frantic shedding of clothing that I was expecting, Frankie took his time with me, slowly peeling off the clothing that I wore, peppering each piece of skin revealed with soft open mouth kisses that traveled from my clavicle to the edge of my panty line. I lifted up slightly so he could remove my leggings completely, then laid back slightly uncomfortable under the hot perusal of his gaze—wishing I’d worn something a bit sexier under my clothes now that we were here in this moment. My uncomfortable feeling quickly turned to desire as Frankie made quick work of my underwear, sliding them down and over my legs as he held them aloft in the air. I looked up to see him gazing down upon me with a frantic darting of his eyes focusing on various parts of my anatomy as if he didn’t know where he wanted to begin.

  That decision was quickly made however as he lowered himself to me once again connecting our lips as his hands made quick work of my bra. Then he trailed those same soft, open-mouthed kisses from earlier down my neck to the top of my breasts before he buried his nose between them, inhaling deeply. I squirmed impatiently, the slow caress of his hands gliding from where they were placed on my hips up the sides of my rib cage until he firmly palmed both of my breasts, giving them a squeeze that instantly drew a moan from the depths of my soul. My nipples beaded immediately and my back arched into his caress.

  “Why do you still have clothes on?” I whined, hands gripping his shoulders, the fabric of his t-shirt bunching in my grasp.

  His answer was drawing my left nipple into his mout
h, suckling, then running the flat of this tongue around my areola, before applying such deep suction again, making me cry out. While his mouth blessed one nipple, he kneaded and pinched the other. My breasts had always been incredibly sensitive and it was almost like Frankie had a honing device that alerted him of this fact as he moved back and forth between them, bringing me to fever pitch, on the precipice of orgasm. My thighs began the slight shivers that warned of my impending combustion and Frankie paused mid suckle, shaking his head.

  “Don’t you dare think about cumming without me inside of you,” he growled.

  And I’ll be goddamned if that shit didn’t make me wetter than I already was as I watched him make quick work of the t-shirt and sweats he was wearing, then quickly sheathed himself in a condom from the bedside table.

  “Last time to back out,” he teased, the tip of his dick millimeters from penetrating me.

  Instead of answering, I wrapped my legs around his thighs, grabbed his ass and guided him right into my opening. At the first stroke, we let out twin sighs of relief which made me chuckle slightly. That humor was short-lived as Frankie’s rhythm took control of my body, long, impossibly deep, mind-blowingly slow strokes that had me right back on the edge of cumming within minutes.

  “Goddamnit, Valora,” Frankie breathed.

  “Goddamn yourself, Francisco. You feel so good,” I panted, “This shit ain’t fair.”

  He smirked before pressing even closer somehow, settling my legs atop his shoulders as his strokes increased in speed. I could barely catch my breath, his pounding into me feeling so good that I just said fuck breathing and gave myself over to him as I whined my pleasure in panting moans, imploring him to never stop. His dick was now my oxygen, each deep thrust somehow compelling me to breathe so I could take him as he pressed deeper and deeper. Before I knew it, I was tumbling over the edge of ecstasy, screaming out combinations of curse words that didn’t even make sense as my body erupted in a frisson of feeling. Everything else in the world ceased to exist, I could see, hear, nor feel anything but Francisco Aurelio Mora. After minutes of floating in pleasure I finally felt myself coming back to my body only to be triggered back into the stratosphere as Frankie finally came. He collapsed on top of me, body weight be damned as he pressed into me, our bodies still intimately joined, breathing hitching, then falling in synch with one another. I felt completely sated—boneless and relaxed, as my eyes closed and I drifted into slumber.

  Wednesday, March 14, 2013

  Hours later I was startled awake by loud ass snoring directly in my ear. Disoriented at first, I blinked a few times to get my bearings and when I shifted to sit up the weight of Frankie’s arm slung around my waist reminded me of all that transpired earlier. My movements made him snuggle a bit closer, decreasing the incremental space between our bodies. A glance at the night stand next to where I lay told me that it was the middle of the night, nearly three in the morning, to be exactly. Knowing we had to be up in just a few hours, I tried settling back in and getting back into my REM cycle. Unfortunate for me, I remained wide awake, which gave me all of the time in the world to send what had transpired between Frankie and me over the past few hours on a one-way trip Disasterville. By the time I’d finally wound myself down enough to fall back asleep, Frankie’s alarm was going off. Before he had a chance to fully wake up, I sprung from his bed and retreated into the bedroom in which I’d been sleeping since I moved in.

  I managed to avoid Frankie until it was time for us to head over to the court. The hearing was set for ten am, but we were meeting up with his lawyer at the law office to go over last-minute details as well as do another mock testimony. When I walked into the living room, Frankie looked up from fastening his watch and smiled. Quickly he made his way over to me, enveloping me in his arms.

  “Buenos dias, cosita,” he crooned, dropping his head to place a kiss upon my lips, but just before he connected I turned my head, giving him a cheek.

  He frowned in question at this and I simply replied, “We’ve got somewhere to be and you saw where last night got us.”

  Throwing his head back in laughter, Frankie replied, “Touché. Are you ready?”

  I nodded and he walked over to the coat rack, putting his coat on and retrieving mine to hold it out for me to put on—as usual. I slipped into the pea coat quickly, buttoning and tying the sash around my waist as Frankie’s hands dropped from resting on my shoulders to wrapping around my waist, pulling me into another embrace. I allowed myself a brief moment to relax into his embrace before pulling away and striding to the door.

  “Don’t wanna be late,” I said with a smile.

  The immigration court proceedings were interesting to say the least. As we awaited our turn, I engaged in one of my favorite activities—people watching. There were folks from all walks of life coming through this building, fighting for their chance to remain in the alleged land of the free. In the time that we had been sitting here, we witnessed three sets of people go through the double doors that led to the courtroom. Two of them came back out wearing looks of satisfaction and triumph while the last one came out looking dazed and confused, heartbreak clearly reflecting in the plaintiff’s eyes. It was at once heartbreaking and thrilling the parity of emotions that paraded through the space. Almost made me wish I’d had my camera to capture the scenes.

  Soon enough it was time for Frankie’s hearing and as we walked into the courtroom, he tightened his grip on my hand. I looked up to see his mouth pulled into a flat line, the normal mirth in his eyes clouded by uncertainty and strain. I squeezed his hand to get his attention and when he looked at me, mouthed, “You got this.” In return, I got a wan smile. I listened to his lawyer defend his case, submit the character letter references, then motioned for Frankie to speak on his own behalf.

  “Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to speak to defend myself this morning, You Honor. I have lived in this country for nearly ten years, having come here at the age of nineteen, seeking a better way for myself outside of my homeland. I had no family nor future there—and I say that not as a slight to my native land because I believe it to be one of the purest places on this Earth. But I had a strong desire to change the world through my God given talent with the written word and knew that the opportunities that would be afforded to me in this country would allow me to do just that much. I went through all of the proper legal channels to not only obtain my visas to gain entrance into the States, but to also ensure that I could remain here as I built my life and career.

  It is only because of an unfortunate clerical error that we have cause to be acquainted right now. But in light of that, I do ask that you grant me a bit of levity allow me to remain in this country. I came to this country seeking purpose and direction in my life, but have been rewarded with so much more in my years here. I have found not only my purpose, but also found my passion in the heart of my wife. I earnestly implore you to take into account what a possible deportation would do to my family before it has even been given a chance to begin. Save my beautiful wife some heartache and allow me to progress through the naturalization process so that I may become a citizen of this great nation. Thank you for your time, sir,” Frankie finished with a slight nod to the judge as he sat.

  That impassioned speech had me waist deep in my feelings and I became a blubbering mess when it was my time to speak on Frankie’s behalf. My previously rehearsed speech devolved into more begging than a Keith Sweat featuring Drake song would include. I went full on soap opera heroine, pearl clutching and all. The judge took a few minutes in silence to read the letters of character witness submitted by Kip and a couple of Frankie’s other college friends and old colleagues.

  “Mr. Mora,” the judge said suddenly, bringing our attention back to the bench.

  “Your Honor,” Frankie addressed, which caused the bailiff to chuckle.

  “After reading these,” he said, shaking the sheath of papers in his hands, “As well as listening to the impassioned pleas of yourself and your w
ife, it is with great pleasure through the power of this court that I grant you permission to stay in this country as you seek citizenship.”

  Everything he said after those words faded into white noise as Frankie first shook hands with his attorney, then swooped me up into his arms in a crushing hug. We exited the courthouse to the congratulations of the attorney once again and made our way home to the loft. I thought for sure that Frankie would want to hook up with Kip and the rest of his friends, go out for a night on the town and celebrate, but he shocked me when he insisted we go straight home.

  Once we crossed the threshold of the loft, I understood why he was in such an urgent rush to get home as I’d barely gotten out of my coat before he had me hemmed up against the front door, mouth grazing my neck in a series of nibbles and bites that had me squirming immediately.

  “W-wait,” I panted as Frankie snaked his hand up my dress and into the waistband of my pantyhose.

  His marauding hands kept moving as Frankie kissed a path to my ear, snagging the lobe between his teeth before he breathed inquisitively, “Wait?”

  “Please, I need a minute,” I said on a low moan as his fingers played in the immediate wetness that begun as soon as our lips connected.

  “You sure?” he asked, fingers still moving, his thumb now joining the party, rubbing my clit in a slow circular motion.

  Despite the immense pleasure, I was becoming increasingly annoyed as Frankie seemed to be ignoring my wishes. I steeled myself, willing the sensations of pleasure that were brewing in my lower abdomen to dissipate before answering with a firm yes. Frankie immediately acquiesced, letting my feet hit the floor and I moved away from him quickly, straightening my dress and fixing him with a stern glare.