Michelle shook her head, but she let it be.
After the police left, Rashad called a neighbor to let out Shaka, and Michelle finished the lasagna she’d started and woke up Andre. The three had dinner, and Rashad helped Andre with his numbers while Michelle studied. But it had gotten late, and the three didn’t stay up long. Michelle packed bags for the next day, and they put Andre to bed. She fixed up the couch for Rashad and set an alarm clock. After she changed, though, she came to the couch to lie down with him, her back against his chest. She slept the night in his arms, their fingers intertwined.
In the narrow space of her couch, Rashad found that there was no place he would rather be. Inside him dwelled a tenderness that was almost painful. He kissed her hair and knew that he always wanted to keep her safe. He hoped she would come back to his house the next day, but he knew that either way, he wasn’t letting her get away.
Chapter 17
Michelle finished counting out the registers at the coffeehouse and changed into her sweats to get ready for her class. This weekend she was only working the early morning shift to help out another manager. It would give her a couple of extra hours worth of money in her paycheck, and she had needed the same favor often enough. She called Mrs. Miller to check on Andre, and then she walked down Massachusetts Avenue toward the YMCA.
With classes and finals and final projects over, she had started a course in self-defense techniques. She needed to do something to feel more empowered; she couldn’t hope that Rashad or anyone else would be there every time Lucius or some other threat appeared.
Her teacher was a kickboxer, and though she’d joined the class late, everyone made her feel at home. The class met twice a week, but this one had been moved to a Saturday because people were leaving for the holidays. The teacher took the center of the room.
“The tip for the day is to breathe and stay focused. Abdominal breathing can lower your heart rate to help you remain calmer so you can think. Okay. Last class we worked on two vital targets—the eyes and the nose. This time we work on two more vital targets—the neck and the knee. Everyone find a partner.”
Michelle turned to the person closest to her and followed the teacher’s instructions. She and Rashad had a date that afternoon, but Michelle couldn’t forget the ever-present danger hanging over their heads. After what had happened last weekend—Lucius getting into her apartment through a second-story bedroom window—who knew what else he could do? He could still try to take Andre. And he might now want to hurt Rashad. He was also carrying a gun. No amount of bravado would overcome that if he became willing to use it.
She switched roles with her partner and followed the teacher’s model. She thought of Lucius to work up the nerve to strike with all her might. A halfhearted effort wouldn’t do, not if she was going to be prepared.
“That’s it for the knife hand strike to the side of the throat,” the teacher said. “Now we’re going to use our elbows carried by the weight of our bodies. Watch while I demonstrate on the model.”
Michelle watched the teacher and imitated her moves. The model was bigger than the instructor. Maybe this was something she could use on Lucius, who was bigger than she was. Little Andre had no defenses. She had to be his defense. She had taught Andre how to dial 911 and had taught him to yell “911” in an emergency.
Thinking of Andre reminded Michelle that she needed to decide on the options she’d come up with for his Christmas presents. It was almost Christmas, and his were the last presents she needed to get. She had gotten something for Rashad already. Andre’s she couldn’t hide as easily, and she needed to see what her budget would allow. They were going shopping today, with only days to spare, so she needed to make up her mind.
The class was now on the knee.
“I want you to do the move three times in rapid succession,” the teacher said. “Keep going. Soon we’re going to put some of these moves together—throat, eyes, knee. Think in threes. Rapid succession. Harder. Come on.”
Even though she was still switching off with her partner, Michelle was getting tired. She would need to start building up her strength and endurance—both for the class and for real life. She felt her fortitude already being tested. A week had gone by since they had the make of Lucius’s vehicle, and she was still waiting for them to catch him. It would give her back her life, if only for a little while and perhaps even longer.
At least she was in her own place again. She had stayed with Nigel and Regina for the first half of the week, but her new alarm was in now. That only protected her at home and, even then, only inside. She was carrying defensive spray everywhere else. That and looking over her shoulder all the time. That and second-guessing her decisions all the time. That and...
In the midst of her class, Michelle felt tears come to her eyes. She fought them back, trying to channel her feelings into the task at hand. She shook her head to clear it and refocused on her teacher.
“Now we’re going to add the primal yell. Remember, get loud. This sends the signal for help, and it will ward off someone looking for an easy prey. Watch the move that I’m doing, and add the yell. Words like no, don’t, stop, police and 911 work well. We’re using the primal yell. Get loud.”
Michelle hated the yell, and she wasn’t good at it, which was why she needed this class. Rashad couldn’t always be there to fight Lucius; she needed her own voice, her own formidable presence, her own yell. Her mind went to Rashad and the sight of him facing the gun held by Lucius, putting himself at even greater risk by standing up for her. The mess that she’d pulled him into was not only sizable, but also dangerous. She’d pulled him into her black hole.
“What if he has his arms around you like this?” another member of the class asked, demonstrating on her partner.
“That’s a good question,” the teacher said. “When we come back after the Christmas break, we do a brief review, and then we talk about getting out of common holds. Let’s walk it out to cool down.”
After class, Michelle picked up Andre from Mrs. Miller and went home. She showered and put on a pair of tights under a floral-print crinkle skirt. Then she added a pink sweater over her lace-trimmed blouse and finished off with her low boots.
When Rashad got there, she could see the neck of a black turtleneck under his overcoat. This was a little different for him; she’d only seen him in dress shirts before. Today he had on jeans and sneakers. She liked to see him a little more casual.
Michelle added a few extra things to her satchel to spend the night with Rashad, and the three headed out.
It was almost two o’clock by the time they got to the National Zoo, but they decided they could do just a couple of hours for their first visit. It was a bit chilly, so they decided to stick to the indoor exhibits as much as possible for this trip.
They parked at the lot near the Kids’ Farm, where Andre got to pet some animals and got interested in rabbits. Then they took the main walk so that they could see the great cats, the Reptile Discovery Center and the invertebrates.
Rashad and Andre were fascinated by the animals, but Michelle was taken by their interaction with each other. The way Rashad cared for Andre and the way Andre looked up to Rashad touched her spirit. It also scared her. Who knew what would happen in their future? Mainly, though, it made her realize what she and Andre had been missing in their lives.
She had been quiet, thinking.
“Are you getting to know a little of the D.C. area?” Rashad asked her.
“We both are—Andre and I,” Michelle answered. “I can’t believe I’ve been living here as if none of this existed. Andre’s been missing out. Thank you for showing it to us.”
“One, stop thanking me. And two, Andre wasn’t missing out—not on anything important. He had a mother working her butt off to make a good life for him and to keep him safe. He had your love.”
They were s
till at the invertebrate exhibit, and Andre was looking at hissing roaches from Madagascar. Michelle made a face of disgust. She and Rashad both chuckled; then Rashad collected the little one on his hip. Andre rested his head on Rashad’s shoulder and let himself be carried.
Their last stop was the Small Mammal House. They didn’t get to the Amazonia exhibit so that Andre could see the tarantulas. Perhaps that was for the best. And they didn’t make it to the Giant Panda Habitat. They would definitely have to come back, maybe over the summer when it was warmer.
Since they were near Rock Creek Park, they took a scenic drive and then stopped. Rashad had brought a soccer ball for them to kick around for a bit. There had been only two days of snow so far, and none lingered, so they could romp. Michelle played with them for a while but then sat out the second half; her boots weren’t great for sports.
When it started to turn dusk, they dropped off Andre at Nigel and Regina’s for the rest of the night. Michelle had been keeping him close, but she needed to get his Christmas present before it was too late.
“I’ve decided on a mini-laptop for Andre as the main thing. What do you think?”
“What else are you getting?”
“I want to get him military dog tags and a few of the toys he liked, maybe a couple new games for the portable game system, maybe a couple of DVDs and books.”
“You don’t need the games because he has the tablet. Everything else sounds good. The laptop will be useful if you get the right programs on it, especially with schoolwork as he gets older.”
“What are the right programs?”
“Let’s do this. You get the laptop, and I’ll get and load the programs he needs. Deal?”
“You don’t need to get him—”
“I want to do this. I know what he can use. Trust me. Deal?”
Michelle wavered for a moment, but she wanted what was best for Andre. “Okay.”
“So,” Rashad said, “we have a zillion places to get to and engraving to get done. Aren’t you glad I’m driving?”
Michelle swatted his arm. “Don’t start with me.”
He leaned over and kissed her briefly on the lips. This never failed to send a pulse through her body, and when they pulled apart, she was holding her breath.
“Where first?”
“Mini-laptop first. That’s the expensive thing. I’ll know how much I have for other stuff after that.”
“Okay.”
Rashad took Michelle’s hand, and they started on her Christmas shopping for Andre. When they were done a couple of hours later, they had everything but the dog tags, which would be ready in a couple of days. Rashad had the programs for the mini-laptop and would load them that night so that she could take it home and wrap it. The car was full of bags, most from the toy store.
“Where are you going to put all this so he doesn’t see it?”
“After I wrap it tomorrow, I’ll put it all in the living room around the little tree I have on the coffee table. He’ll see them.”
“And shake them,” Rashad said.
“But he can’t open them until Christmas.”
“Which is less than a week away. I guess that’s not too torturous.”
They had dinner at Union Station to end the night.
“Why are you so quiet?” Rashad asked.
“Am I?” Michelle hadn’t noticed. “I guess I’ve been thinking a lot.”
“Lucius and all.”
Michelle nodded. She didn’t want to talk about it; she didn’t want to bring them down. But maybe some things needed to be said.
“Rashad, I’m so sorry I dragged you into this mess. I don’t want you to get more involved. Lucius could hurt you.”
“Don’t worry about me. Your job is to worry about Andre.”
“I am worried about Andre. Every time Lucius has done something, he’s told me I can’t keep Andre from him. I don’t know what I’d do if he got hold of Andre. He’s not...he’s not like you. He hasn’t shown any real caring for his son.”
“Or his wife,” Rashad added.
“I’m not his wife anymore, but Andre—”
“Will always be his biological son.”
“Yes, but that’s not what I started out talking about. It was about you. I don’t want you to get hurt trying to watch out for us.”
“I won’t. Lucius won’t get Andre, either. And I want to be here to help look out.”
Michelle shook her head. She had her doubts, and they weren’t going to agree on this. She didn’t want her worries to overshadow their night, so she put them aside and tried to have a good time. That wasn’t difficult with Rashad. They spent the rest of dinner talking about plans for the holidays and last-minute shopping needs, classes she’d be taking next term and projects he had lined up at work, what they might take at the Art League, how they spent the holidays as kids.
After dinner they went back to Rashad’s place. Shaka met them at the door and kept them company while Rashad loaded the programs on the mini-laptop. When he was finished, Rashad went to let Shaka into the yard.
“Meet me in your room,” Michelle said, grabbing her satchel. “I’ll be a few minutes.”
“Okay. I’ll get us dessert.”
Michelle smiled and went up to Rashad’s room. Inside the bathroom, she freshened up and then pulled a white teddy and two-inch silver heels from her satchel. She took a breath and stripped down. She put up her hair with two silver combs, leaving curls coming down at her temples and ears, and she did her makeup. When the teddy was in place, she checked her face, slipped on the heels and sprayed her body with perfume. She should have brought a cover-up, but she hadn’t thought of it.
When she was finished, she opened the bathroom door, exhaled slowly and stepped into the room.
Rashad was sitting on the edge of the bed next to his nightstand, which held two pieces of cheesecake and two glasses of wine on a wooden tray. He had the dim lights on and had taken off the vest he had worn over his turtleneck.
When he looked over and saw her, the passion that clouded his eyes rewarded Michelle for her effort, and she smiled.
He got up and crossed over to her, and she stepped into his embrace, reaching for him as he reached for her. He pulled her against his hard body, but his lips on hers were soft and gentle, his kiss searching and tender.
“Michelle,” he said against her ear when they broke their kiss, “you look beautiful.”
“Thank you,” she answered, not knowing what else to say.
He stepped back to look at her, his hands on her hips turning her from side to side. Her breasts were swelling at the edges of the little teddy, and her nipples hardened under his gaze. He ran his knuckles over one, and she let out an involuntary murmur. In response he stooped and covered it with his mouth, sucking her through the silky swatch of fabric. She felt a heavy pulse building in her sex and moisture flowing to meet him. This man always turned her on.
She drew him up to her, took his face in her hands and kissed him again, pressing her body against his. She wanted to feel the sweet pressure of his body against her throbbing womanhood. In response, he cupped her buttocks through the teddy with both of his hands, lifted her against him and ground her along his center. Michelle could feel the ridge of his manhood grazing her sex through the thin mesh. She couldn’t help moaning as the fire shot through her body. She couldn’t help angling her hips to increase that sweet pressure.
“Rashad,” she said, “you feel so good against me.”
He kissed her eyelid and then her lips. He continued to grind her sex against his. He continued to make her moan.
When he set her down, they were both breathing heavily, but Michelle didn’t want to stop. She moved her hand between them and touched the taut bulge in Rashad’s jeans. His body jerked, and he looked at her, sha
king his head.
“You have no idea what you do to me,” he said.
Then he covered her lips with his and took a step back with her. When her back bumped the bedroom wall behind her, he stopped. He ground his body into her, then pulled back, stooping to take her breast into his mouth again. This time, however, he joined that pressure with his fingers between her thighs.
She was sure he could feel how wet she was through the fabric, but in moments she didn’t care. With his mouth on her breast and his fingers kneading her sex, she was soon lost in the sensations coursing through her body. The need for fulfillment burned her like anguish. She called Rashad’s name and thrust against his fingers.
When Rashad pushed aside the flimsy strip at the bottom of the teddy and dipped his fingers into her wetness, Michelle cried out and grabbed on to his shoulders. He was pushing her toward the brink, and her body thrust along that threshold.
Rashad pulled his mouth from her breast, and Michelle winced. Without thinking, just reacting, she covered her breasts with her own hands to caress the needy globes. Passion glazed over Rashad’s eyes as he glanced at her, but he didn’t return his lips. He knelt before her, drew his hand from between her thighs and covered her sex with his hot, wet tongue.
“Rashad,” Michelle cried out as the fire from his mouth licked over her core.
The throbbing was building in her body, and she pushed along the source.
“Rashad,” she cried out again as his hands reached up and covered her breasts.
“Rashad,” she called as the spasms started inside her, making her hips push harder.
“Rashad,” she called as an agonizing pleasure pulsed through her womanhood, dropping her over the edge.
She nearly collapsed on top of him when it was over. She couldn’t catch her breath and couldn’t steady herself against the wall.
His arms came around her, and he pulled her from the wall into a standing position, steadying her while she came back to herself.
He kissed her forehead and her lips and looked into her face.
In His Arms Page 16