Insufferable Proximity

by Z. Stefani

  She watched Julian sleeping, still wondering what she was feeling but still not ready to delve into it. She knew she did not hate him any longer, but that was as far as her intellect regarding her own feelings went. Her confusion was simple, she did not want to leave him, but she did not want to stay with him either. She did not think of him as a rival but she could not think of him as a friend and she was unable to find a middle ground for anything she felt. The thought of being far away from him sounded so appealing, but at the same time brought a wave of devastation that she could not understand. Maybe she just wanted to hate him, maybe he was right, maybe she did feel something but refused to accept it. She did not know and it would give her a headache to try to analyze it any longer, so she decided to get dressed then go downstairs to the kitchen and cook to get her mind off things.

  She left Julian asleep, but she could still hear his loud snoring as she descended the stairs. She walked into the kitchen and smiled at the bright cheery room, the artful way they had mixed the pale khaki and rich chocolate colors with a dusty pale blue. She walked over to cupboard running her hand over the marble countertop, it was a deep mahogany color, swirled with a light dust of tan and sporadic drops of the matching blue. She liked the airy kitchen and knew she would especially enjoy cooking with all of the crazy kitchen gadgets that were stored in the cupboard.

  Heaven looked through the refrigerator, the freezer, the pantry and all of the cupboards seeing the pale blue dishes, matching glasses and a whole cupboard full of every pot and pan ever invented, but no trace of food. She was just reaching up to the top shelf of the pantry when she heard Julian walk into the room.

  “Why didn’t you wake me up?” he asked right before he yawned.

  “I figured you’d want to sleep in.” she shrugged, “Are there any stores nearby?” she asked more concerned with getting some food in the house.

  “There’s a pretty big market a couple miles down the road. Why?”

  “There is no food in this house and I really feel like cooking today, so we need to go.

  “That sounds good, I still get flashes of joy over that breakfast you made that morning at your house.” he moaned with delight, just thinking about that meal.

  “We’ll get a bunch of breakfast stuff, too.” she said.

  “Sounds good, let me just throw on some clothes.” he said before leaving the kitchen then returning moments later fully dressed. Heaven still couldn’t figure out how he was able to get dressed so quickly. “Ready.” he said and led her out to the garage.

  “Nice car.” she said sliding her finger over the cherry red convertible.

  “It was my grandfathers, he had a thing for the color red too.”

  “That man had impeccable taste.” she winked at him as she got in.

  He drove his grandfather’s convertible down the long dirt road, suddenly overcome with thoughts of his childhood that he had purposely forgotten about. He remembered all the times he and his grandfather had made the same journey down the same road to shop at the same market on the same street that teetered above the water. When they got there, Julian smiled to himself realizing it looked almost exactly as it did the last time he had come.

  “Wow, this place is amazing.” she smiled from ear to ear, looking at the large food market that covered the entire center of the town and the tiny little shops on the street looking over the endless body of water. “I don’t even know where to start.”

  “How about you start with the meat table over there.” he pointed to a butcher stand with four large tables of freshly cut meat, “I want another steak like that last one you made, that was delicious.”

  “Clever idea, steak sounds good.” she agreed walking towards the stand.

  “I swear your steak could rival any five star chef‘s”

  “Aw, thank you Julian.” she stood on her tip toes and kissed his cheek, “I’m glad you liked it.”

  She bought enough meat to feed a small army and enough fruit and vegetables to feed the entire state. Julian was excited, just imagining what she would create in the kitchen and was ready to get back home when he saw the little shop’s display window out of the corner of his eye. It was a mannequin in the tiniest gold bikini he had ever seen, it was a scandalous design that would expose more than it would hide. Julian was immediately overwhelmed with the image of Heaven’s lush curves under the thin straps of material, the top so tiny he wondered if it would even be able to hold her large breasts.

  “What is it?” she asked as he stopped to stare at the window.

  “I want to see you in that bathing suit.” he said and she raised her brows looking at the microscopic thong bikini.

  “that’s not a bathing suit, it looks more like a dissected eye patch, besides I told you I don‘t like bikini‘s.”

  “So you prefer to swim naked?”

  “No I prefer to wear a full piece suit.”

  “Not on my watch, come-on.” he instructed her as he headed towards the small shop.

  The tiny shop was designed to look like an abstract trip to the beach, from the turquoise blue walls with the decorative metal fish artfully displayed, to the row of brightly-colored flip-flops attached to the bottom of the wall. The ceiling was a detailed fluorescent yellow sun and a gritty-looking, sand colored rug covered the floor. Julian sat down the armload of bags he had been carrying and walked over to the sales woman.

  “I want that suit in the window.” he said and the woman nodded.

  “Good choice, it’s one of most popular suits this season and it’s the last one.” she smiled leading them to the window.

  “Before you even go through all that trouble and strip the mannequin, do you know what size is it?”

  “Yes, all our display suits are a size Small.”

  “Forget it.” Heaven scoffed, “it will never fit.”

  “We’ll make it fit.” Julian raised his brow, excited by the thought of forcing the suit up her round hips.

  “How? That’s not even possible.”

  “It’s quite stretchy.” the sales clerk added.

  “I want it.” he told the woman who turned and quickly removed the suit from the display before the couple changed their mind.

  “Julian, I’m telling you one false move and my breasts are definitely popping out of that thing, look how dainty those straps are, I‘ll be lucky if I can wear it ten minutes before the suit is ruined beyond repair.”

  “Damn, now I wish I could buy two of those tops, so I could watch your breasts pop out twice.” he grinned as he kissed her lips.

  “Here you go sir.” the woman handed him the suit then turned to Heaven. “Is there anything else you’re interested in seeing? We have a lot of different styles.”

  “Get what you want.” Julian told her.

  “We have a dressing room if you’d like to try anything on.” the saleswoman said trying to be helpful. Heaven could see perversities eternal-light shining in Julian’s eyes and knew she was not getting out of this store without trying on at least one suit for him.

  “Show me your red suits.” Heaven said and the woman led her over to a few of their brand new designs.

  “And something white with thin material.” Julian said his voyeuristic tendencies out of control in the shop’s intimate setting.

  “We have quite a few white suits, but only a few red.”

  “One of each.” Julian said with a seriousness that forced a smile on the woman’s face and caused Heaven to roll her eyes.

  “I am only trying one on and then we are leaving, Julie.”

  “Two.”

  “One.” she crossed her arms over her chest defiantly and he knew she would not budge.

  “Then you’ll just have to do it when we get back to the house.” he said and she could not stop the corner of her mouth from darting up.

  “Maybe.” she whispered as she walked toward the dressing room. She quickly slid out of her sundress and shimmied into the bikini before going back out to show Julian. “Well?” sh
e asked him, her hands on her hips.

  “Damn.” he said, feeling his erection increase, putting him in a painful situation as he walked over to her. He quickly yanked the tags off the suit and handed them to the sales woman before bending to whisper in Heaven’s ear. “You got about three minutes to throw on your dress and get out here before I come in there with you.”

  “Don’t you dare.” she said through clenched teeth.

  “Hurry up and I won’t,” she turned to walk to the dressing room and he grabbed her arm, “leave the bikini on underneath.”

  Heaven got dressed in record time, and then the two of them walked back to the car. Julian was obviously excited to get home and begin the bikini fashion show, so anxious that he found himself trying to carefully-speed on the road back to his house.

  When they walked back in the house Julian had no more then sat the bags down on the kitchen counter before he was all over her, his hands everywhere.

  “I want you to model each suit for me.” he kissed a trail up her neck to plant small kisses over her ear.

  “We have to put this stuff away before it goes bad.”

  “I’ll tell you what, why don’t you take off that dress, then lose the bikini top and you can just sit up on the counter looking pretty while I put everything away.”

  “No, how about I stayed clothed, help you put the food away and then make us an amazing meal.”

  “Fine, but you’re cooking topless.”

  “Cooking topless is dangerous, that is one of the last places I want sharp utensils and hot food near.” she explained before she slid off her dress, revealing the scandalous bikini and Julian found himself dumbstruck once again.

  After a while, Julian found himself relaxing at the kitchen table with a beer, happy to watch her cook. She was a natural in the kitchen and had the entire house enveloped in a mix of delicious scents in less than an hour. He felt a peace inside of him that he had never felt before and just being around her was proving to be as stimulating as foreplay. Even watching her do the mundane tasks like cooking or cleaning had become too much for him to bear and he found himself craving for her. Sure he knew he could force her to do as he wanted, considering they still had a few more days left in the contract, but he was beginning to prefer that she come to him willingly.

  “Do you like cabbage?” she asked as she finished preparing the ham and then slid it into the oven.

  “I’ll eat pretty much anything.” he answered and she scoffed, normally she would have a snide remark to a comment like that and was overly surprised to find herself stimulated by his words instead. “Do you like cabbage?”

  “Yeah, I love it,” she cut up the small slice of ham she left out to fry with the cabbage. “Especially with ham.”

  “How the hell did you learn to cook on this level? I know you didn’t have the time to take a cooking class, you graduated from law school too early for any extracurricular activities.”

  “My aunt Coco taught me, she is a chef. She went to culinary school and would have graduated top of her class if she didn’t quit.”

  “Why did she quit?”

  “Oh my dearest mother called her begging and crying to come back to help her with the brothel.” she shook her head, “My mom is horrible with figures, only my aunt can figure that out.”

  They continued to talk, both so deep in conversation, they lost track of time. To Julian’s surprise the food was ready so he helped Heaven take the ham out of the oven while she set the table. He stood there, excited beyond measure to start eating, the mouthwatering smells were too powerful for him to withstand so he took a small sample bite as he set the food in the middle of the table.

  “I saw that.” Heaven said as she prepared his plate, realizing he would be full from sampling if she didn‘t hurry up with his food.

  They sat at the table, continuing their in-depth conversation as they enjoyed their meal. Julian ate so much he felt a dull ache begin in his belly and had to unbutton his khaki cargo shorts.

  “You are a real life super hero,” he spoke as he shifted in the chair, his belly too full. “You cook food that is literally addictive, you are the master of the courtroom and you’re equally perfect in bed.”

  “Master of the courtroom?” she smiled appreciating the compliment.

  “You know you are.” he played with a lock of her hair.

  “I know, but I like to hear you say It.” she leaned over and kissed his cheek before rising from the table, “And now for dessert,” she said walking over to the countertop, “your favorite and mine, chocolate chip cookies.”

  Julian’s belly was so full, he was sure he could feel the stretch marks forming on his stomach lining, but there was no chance he would deny himself a cookie. Besides, there was more than one way to entertain oneself with a warm cookie and he could tell by the look in Heavens eye that she was thinking the same.

  ***

  Heaven was wearing a tiny peach sundress that Julian had bought for her from the bikini shop and was tempting Julian beyond reason. He knew that she wore the matching peach bikini underneath and he could not wait until she slipped it off. They walked hand in hand down the beach, the warm white sand slipping between their toes as they neared the water.

  “Tell me this isn’t one of the most beautiful beaches you’ve seen.”

  “I don‘t think I‘ve ever seen anything this beautiful.” she walked to the edge of the sand, stepping back when the water washed over her toes. Despite the panic that beaches normally brought to her, she still felt the overwhelming urge to run deep into the clear turquoise waters.

  “Come on lets go in.” he took her hand but she yanked it back immediately.

  “No way.” she said taking another step back.

  “You’re kidding me Heaven, it’s the beach.” he shook his head in wonderment.

  “Yeah, but this is Hawaii and there’s tiger sharks in that there water, sir.” she grinned.

  “They don’t swim close to shore.”

  “Wow, I’m so glad I decided to go to the beach with the shark whisperer.” she said sarcastically and Julian picked her up and started to walk into the water. “No!” she cried, kicking her legs.

  “You better stay still or a shark might notice all that splashing and come eat you.” he chuckled when her body went perfectly still, he walked out until the water came to his calf.

  “Please, put me down!”

  “Alright.” he said and tried to stand her in the water but she latched onto him like a scared cat before he managed to set her down.

  “Shit!” she whispered, afraid to move, scanning the water to make sure she saw no fins.

  “If a shark comes close I promise I will jump in front of you.”

  “Yeah right,” she said still unable to move, “you’d dangle me as bait, before sprinting to the shore.”

  “Come on let’s take a step further.”

  “No way!” she whined and was going to stomp her foot but quickly change her mind.

  “Do you trust me?” he asked extending his hand.

  “Of course not.” she raised her chin then after a second, she grabbed his hand. He took her out to where the water reached her thighs and when he felt her body begin to tremble, he stopped. “Alright, I want to get out now.”

  “How’s the water feel?” he asked.

  “Magnificent, but I’m ready to go back to land now.” she said and gasped deeply when he splashed water at her. She jumped back as if he had doused her with lava then glared at him through murderous eyes and was ready to smack him. Instead, she turned around to walk away and he grabbed the back of her bikini, pulling her to him before picking her up and walking towards the shore. Once they were safely back on the bone colored sand, she turned back to look at the water longingly, wishing she was not so nervous. “Maybe we can just sit here, at the edge of the water.”

  “Alright.” he said and sat down next to her.

  “The water really is beautiful.”

  “One day you and I a
re going on an extended boat ride.” he pulled her closer to him.

  “Maybe.” she said and he was happy that she would even consider it. They sat there talking and she was ready to go back inside when she saw the greatest sight ever seen. Way out in the middle of the water. “Oh my god!” she said as she hastily stood up. Her eyes grew wide as she watched the whale breech the surface of the water. “It’s a Humpback!” she jumped up and down excitedly, clapping her hands.

  “Me and my grandfather used to come here during whale season just to watch them.” he said watching her as she walk blindly into the water, too entranced by the magnificent beast to be fearful.