by Deb Julienne
Sabrina set the baking sheet on hot pad then turned to the other side of the kitchen and started a blender. She placed goblets filled with some pale pink fruity smelling drink in front of him. “Give it a try, my own concoction.” She winked as she turned back to the stove.
“I taste passion fruit and something else.” Then it dawned on him, she’d made him a sex on the beach. But it was more than that. He looked around and saw a decorative bottle of Kinky vodka. Duh, kinky sex on the beach. Score another one for Sabrina. He chuckled.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing,” he mumbled. “Is that risotto I see?”
“Sure is—salmon and risotto for your main course.”
“Wow, this is terrific. I’m almost afraid to ask what’s for dessert.”
“What else, chocolate.”
“Chocolate what?”
“You’ll just have to wait and see.”
He’d seen the second web page opened to a recipe for something called Sex in a Pan.
By the time she served her decadent dessert, chocolate pudding, whipped cream thing in a pan, he almost couldn’t finish it. But he did because he didn’t to hurt her feelings. It was the best dessert he’d ever eaten. He’d ask her to make it again sometime only next time he’d slather it all over her.
Sabrina had a look on her face when he finally pushed his dessert plate away. Something between a cross of frustration and anticipation. She’d barely touched her meal.
If she thought her meal of nothing but aphrodisiacs would have an effect on him, she was wrong. He loved everything she’d served. But he’d be hot for her body if she served him hot dogs.
They retreated to the couch, she casually unplugged her laptop, moved it to the desk in the corner and popped in a movie on.
She acted angry when he fell asleep five minutes after it started. First of all, she’d fed him a heavy meal. Secondly, it was a porn flick. He detested porn. Why watch porn when the real thing was better? Sabrina was worth the wait.
When he left that night, Sabrina was silent. He kissed her good night. “See you at work tomorrow.” He’d have liked to spend the night again, but if he did that, his plans for New Year would be screwed and he wouldn’t do that to Sabrina.
* * * *
Step nine. Addle him with aphrodisiacs. Check, sort of.
Step ten. Pickle him with porn. Dismal failure.
Step eleven. Lure him with sex. Aborted when he fell asleep.
Sabrina was beyond disappointed with the result the previous evening. Dinner had been perfect. Well, except for the raw oysters. She’d never make them again. Disgusting. She’d served a meal of aphrodisiacs only to have Trent fall asleep on the couch. And of course the battery in her remote had died. She was stuck watching the stupidest porn flick ever, something called Titillation. The ridiculously warped version of Cinderella, about some John trying to find the hooker who fit the enormous bra. She laughed at a few scenes even though it did nothing to insight any passion in her whatsoever. Instead she felt like an idiot watching it with Trent asleep on her lap.
She’d try again today during lunch. She was taking him to the G-Spot. It wasn’t as bad as the Satin Slipper. She shivered at the memory of that place.
She wasn’t sure if she’d be able to handle it herself, but she really wanted to get an over the top, outrageous reaction out of Trent.
Her self-esteem was at an all-time low. Other than some heavy necking, and while it was great necking, it never went any further with them. She needed to know she could incite some passion, in herself and in Trent.
If this idea failed, she was in serious trouble.
The intent was to gauge his reaction to a variety of sexual situations. Would they embarrass him, excite him, or turn him off.
She had a good idea of some of the items she wanted to look at, and force him to comment on. Her biggest fears were about whether or not she’d have a voice to get the words out. Would her extremely limited and untested sexual side be able to speak? She had serious reservations. What was driving her was the need to know she had some kind of sexual power over Trent.
She purposely didn’t tell Trent where they were going just that they needed to make a stop on the way to lunch for the sake of an article. He’d never deny her that.
The G-Stop was a several blocks over from the office and a few doors down from the Indian restaurant Trent made lunchtime reservations for.
She was on the verge of canceling when Trent came up and put his hand at her waist.
“You ready to go?”
“Ah. Yeah. Give me a minute. I need to use the restroom.” She grabbed her purse and they headed for the lobby. Once there Trent took a seat on a bench while she entered the bathroom.
She stood in front of the mirror, hell-bent on giving herself a stern talking to. She checked her make-up until the only other person in the room left.
She applied her lipstick then rubbed her lips together. “Come on, Sabrina, you can do this. You have two choices. You either pull up your big girl undies or go buy some granny panties and forget ever having a love life. What’s it gonna be?”
Did she really want this with Trent? Was she over-thinking the entire thing because of her new job or did she really want the happily ever after with Trent?
She didn’t have to think about it for a second. Trent is what she wanted. Pure and simple. She loved him. She’d forgiven him the hurts he and Travis inflicted on her.
With that answer, she dropped her lipstick into her purse and left the restroom.
She was on a mission.
* * * *
Trent couldn’t wait for lunch. He’d been craving Indian food since he’d got to Sacramento. The Katmandu was supposed to be the best. It might not be as fun as the meal Sabrina served him the night before but he wanted some good curry.
Sabrina said she had a stop to make on the way for an article, so hopefully it wouldn’t take long. Their reservation was for twelve o’clock and they had roughly thirty-five minutes to get there.
Sabrina came out of the bathroom with such a look of determination on her face. What happened in there?
“Let’s go.” She grabbed his hand and led him out of the building. With focus and purpose, she pulled him along, almost as if they were heading to a fire.
“Sabrina, is something wrong?” The last time she acted strange, she’d been leading him to the slaughter with those crazy blue-haired broads.
Sabrina didn’t say a word.
There was nothing else he could do but wait to see what she had in store for him. But when her pace grew frantic, he couldn’t stand it any longer. “Sabrina, come on, what’s wrong?
Several blocks later, she slowed and they rounded the corner. He was glad to see the façade of the restaurant they’d be eating at. Maybe she’d changed her mind.
Then she stopped, three doors shy of the place. He looked up at the blinking sign and his heart stopped.
“No. I’m not going in there.”
Sabrina grabbed his hand and pushed her way through the door dragging him with her.
“Damn.”
He saw Sabrina’s lips moving but nothing came out. She appeared to be talking to herself. Aw shit that couldn’t be good. Not if she has to talk herself into something.
She strolled up one aisle and down another as if in search for a specific product, looking high and low.
When she dropped his hand to reach for a product, he walked away. He needed some perspective. He needed insight. Screw that, he needed to get the hell out of there. He made it to the far wall, pretending to scan the corkboard want ads, only to realize that it was a who’s who of prostitutes and services. He moved away quickly. “This place should be shut down by the cops.”
“Screw you asshole. If you can’t handle it leave.” A male customer shoulder slammed him as he passed.
He forced himself to breathe then looked for Sabrina. She stood in the aisle where he’d left her, shoulders shaking. Damn, he’d made her cr
y. What was so damned important that she had to get him here?
He turned back to Sabrina and gave in. He couldn’t leave her here. It didn’t matter what was wrong. He wasn’t leaving her like this. She needed him. She needed him now. He walked up to her, took her by the shoulders, spun her around, put his finger under her chin and kissed her. It was a kiss designed to remove her fears. Whatever it was she felt she’d find here, he was bound and determined to help her find it.
“I’m so sorry. I don’t know why I dragged you in here. I guess it’s because I need to see for myself that I can handle it.”
“I understand. I mean we’ve had enough conversations that I know what intimidates you, but how did you expect this to work? You said it was for an article. What article?
“Don’t you understand Trent? I’m uncomfortable enough at the thought of all this stuff.” She pointed at the products before her. “I thought if I came in here with you, for you, for us, maybe I’d find a way past all my angst and find a way to force myself to woman up. I’m sorry I used you this way. I’d convinced myself that if I couldn’t do it for you I’d never be able to find a way. But I failed. Can we just go to lunch? Please.”
“Nope, sorry, we’re here and we aren’t leaving until you have your answers. Whatever they are. Whatever it takes. Talk to me, Sabrina.”
“I just wanted to get comfortable about this stuff.”
“Here—” He looked around. “In this dump? Seriously? Wouldn’t it have been easier to go to Angel’s? You seemed comfortable and in control there. They have many of the same things.”
“Angel’s was about payback. I didn’t take it seriously, except to make you uncomfortable and embarrass you. That was fun. “This is more explicit. I need a crash course.”
“Why? What’s the rush?”
“I don’t know, I really don’t but I felt like if I could do it for you I could ignore my discomfort zone. Guess I was wrong.”
“Fine, pick a product, any product.” He felt like a circus barker.
Sabrina blindly reached out and grabbed the item nearest her hand. He took it from her.
All at once, Trent had his answer. He did what he’d have done to any of his buddies for a laugh. He read the direction label, improvising loudly. “Apply to penis and rub until it turns purple and blows like Mount Vesuvius.”
At the word purple, Sabrina grabbed the bottle to read for herself then slapped him on the arm. “It doesn’t say that.” Sabrina blushed and grinned at him. She covered her mouth and laughed, tears sparkling at the corners of her eyes. “I’m so sorry Trent, this was a bad idea.”
Not to be deterred, he grabbed another bottle and spoke even louder. “Apply to vaginal area then lick said area until female begins to scream your name.”
Sabrina snorted.
He removed a third product.
Sabrina was laughing hysterically and walked away.
The counter guy yelled, “You have to pay for that.”
Sabrina was laughing so hard she didn’t hear the guy. She was two steps from the door when the guy yelled, “Stop, thief.”
As he continued to read at on, the guy picked up the phone and called the police.
Sabrina realized what she had in her hands, raced to the counter, slapped a twenty down, joined Trent who put the bottle back, and shoved him out the door.
They laughed their way to the restaurant. It had been embarrassing but it was exactly what Sabrina needed to take some of her fear out of the intimacy of the products.
He had his own theory of her problem. She wasn’t embarrassed, uncomfortable or even fearful of her sexuality, just clueless and naïve and needed a delicate hand at the tutorial.
Good thing he was up for the job.
“By the way New Year’s is almost here. I have plans.
“Oh really, what did you have in mind?”
“Can you be ready at eleven a.m. on New Year’s Eve?”
“Sure. What do I need?”
“Nothing. Leave it all to me.”
Thank God she didn’t argue or ask questions.
18
Step twelve. Taunt him with toys. It was a draw.
Sabrina was surprised when Trent pulled into the Sacramento Airport parking lot. She assumed they’d drive wherever he planned to go.
Trent pulled a duffle bag out of his trunk.
“What’s going on? I don’t have anything packed.”
“You don’t need anything. You’ll be well taken care of. Come on, we have to hurry.” Trent rushed toward the plane.
“Trent, what are you up to?” she said breathlessly, trying to catch up.
“About six foot one,” he said over his shoulder then slowed down long enough to grab her hand and hurry her along.
“Very funny. Come on, where are we going?”
“We are going on an exciting trip. We’re going to celebrate New Year’s in style. And you, my love, are going to sit back and enjoy the flight, while I enjoy you.”
They’d barely been in the air, had one glass of champagne, when they descended through the clouds into the most breathtaking vision of snowcapped mountains surrounding Lake Tahoe. Trent had a car waiting for them. A limousine. Black, sleek, and shiny.
From there they headed to Harrah’s. The air was crisp, cold and clean. Grey skies that threatened to snow any moment. The scent of pine and fresh clean air surrounded them. She was on an adventure of a lifetime and she wanted to remember every moment of it, forever.
She’d never been gambling before and was excited that Trent had planned it himself, wanting to surprise her. Between the hugs and gentle kisses he showered her with, all she could think of was that it had to be a dream and she never wanted to wake up.
Trent helped her play blackjack. She played six hands and won five hundred dollars then she begged to quit before she lost it.
Holding hands, they toured the casinos. There was chaos all around them. People packed elbow-to-elbow. Small wonder since it was New Year’s Eve. By four in the afternoon the constant thrum of pushy, intoxicated people, clanking glasses, and clanging machines gave her a headache. “Trent, can we please sit down somewhere quiet?”
“Sure, honey, whatever you want.”
Honey. She liked that. He was so attentive, she hated to spoiled his fun. She’d hoped they’d spend New Year’s alone, just the two of them. She wanted to convince him to spend the night with her, for real this time. She wanted him to make love to her tonight, more than ever. She wasn’t sure it would happen now. She wasn’t sure of anything.
“I know, how about we go have an early dinner?”
“Sounds great. Hopefully we’ll find a place considering it’s last minute.”
“That’s what you think.” Trent couldn’t stand still. He practically bounced on the tips of his toes. Excitement radiated off him.
“Really? Why do I feel like you have something up your sleeve?”
“Probably because I do.”
“Which is?”
“To spend the evening with someone who is very special to me.” He tilted his head toward her, then pulled her into his arms.
“I see.”
There was more to it. Trent was enthusiastic about everything he did today. All remnants of guilt disappeared as though nothing ever happened between them. His chocolate brown eyes twinkled. His excitement was so charged she expected lightning bolts to shoot from his fingertips as he pointed out various games.
Back in the car, she sighed and leaned against Trent’s arm. “Ah—the sweet sound of silence. Right now it’s pure heaven.”
“I know. Casinos can be a bit overwhelming. The noise, the excitement, and the insanity. But I love watching people in them.”
“It’s probably fine on any other day, but New Year’s Eve is a bit much. I’m not into large crowds.”
Trent kissed her forehead. “I knew there was a good reason why I love you. I’m glad you don’t like crowds, neither do I.”
“What’d you say?” She sat up
and gulped.
“You heard me. And yes, I said it. I love you.”
“Trent, are you teasing me?”
“Not about something this important. No.”
“Honestly? Truly?”
“Yes. I told you I loved you in my office that day. I wasn’t lying then. I’m even more serious now.”
“Do you have any idea how long I’ve dreamt you’d say those words to me?” She cried.
“Probably as long as I’ve wanted to get to know you better. By the way, I’m sorry for how rotten I was at Kat’s party. I shouldn’t have untied your top. It seemed the right thing to do at the time. And I’m sorry for being an idiotic ass wipe. I’ve wanted to apologize ever since.”
She shook her head. “Not necessary. I wasn’t exactly nice to you either.”
“When you gave me that smart ass remark that’s when I knew how much I wanted to get to know you. Only Kat put a halt to it.”
“She only recently told me you asked, and asked, and asked.”
“Okay, so I was a bit pushy with her. I had to try.”
“I’m glad you did. I only wish it had happened sooner.”
“Not me. It happened when it was right. I like everything about us.”
“Me too.”
Trent kissed her. It wasn’t a lightning strike kiss or a kiss leading to sex. It was an emotional kiss, one that ended when he pulled away and simply said, “I love you, Sabrina Thompson.”
“I love you too.”
“That’s good. Otherwise the rest of the night would be screwed up.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll have to wait and see.”
Trent pulled her close. Her back was to his chest and he kissed her temple.
The snowy scenery gave her a feeling of euphoria as they turned right and headed toward the north shore. The snow came down in dime-sized flakes. The sky grew darker, creating a fairy tale perfect setting. If this was happiness, she never wanted it to end.
They pulled in the parking lot of a restaurant shaped like a railroad boxcar. Icicles over three feet long hung from the trim. It was the most breathtaking magical view. Lake Tahoe lay on one side of the road, the boxcar restaurant on the other.