by Ju Ephraime
Her father did not answer. He only pressed his mouth into her hair and swallowed hard while his arms continued squeezing her. Lange brushed away her tears of happiness. She was with her parents, and everything was finally right with her world.
Lange stayed and enjoyed the light refreshment and talked eagerly with her parents, telling them about her new job, her life with Rupert, and the way she felt treasured being married to him. She took comfort in the way her dad reached every so often and squeezed her hand. Her mom couldn’t stop smiling at them both, delighted by their renewed closeness. After a while, she had to take leave of them, but before she left, she wanted them to know she intended them to be a part of her life now.
“You must come to dinner with Rupert and me soon. What about Sunday?”
Her mom agreed immediately, and her dad agreed also.
“I’m looking forward to showing you my new home.”
Giving them one last hug, she soon took her leave from them, but not before she stopped in the huge kitchen to say goodbye to Margaret.
****
Rupert walked into the restaurant where he was meeting his wife. He walked up behind her, hoping to surprise her, but just as he reached for her, she turned and rushed to hug and kiss him.
“How did you know I was behind you?” he asked, trying to look stern. “I wanted to surprise you.”
“I don’t know. I felt you. I can’t explain it. I just sensed your presence, and I knew I had to turn to greet you.”
“I know because it happens that way with me too.”
“See, it’s not magic then.”
“I never thought it was. Speaking of which, I see you are no longer troubled by those dreams anymore.”
“No, so I’m beginning to believe it was just a series of coincidences.”
“So, what’s the good news?”
“How do you know I have good news?”
“You are practically bursting at the seams. I believe if I poke you, you’ll burst.”
“You’d better not poke me then. You don’t want me bursting all over you.” They were laughing hysterically when their server came to take their order. The image of her bursting over him was too good a visual.
Impulsively Lange reached across and took his hand in hers and began playing with his fingers. This was a mating signal on the island between a man and woman, although, it was mostly used by the males. “I visited my parents yesterday, and we made up. My mom was very sweet, as usual, but my dad and I were able to mend our fences. Before I left, I invited them to dinner with us on Sunday. I think my dad would like to make peace with you, darling. I think they are both ready to accept you as a son-in-law, especially my dad. My mom just goes along with him, so I don’t anticipate any resistance on that front.”
Rupert smiled sardonically. “Why am I not excited about the prospect of my father in-law finally willing to accept me after, what, over a year of being married to his daughter?”
Brushing her lips against his, she then said, “Let’s behave like respectful adults before I forgo this lunch and demand that you take me home.”
“You, madam, are a sex addict.”
“You made me so. I was a decent, well-brought-up young woman before I met you, and one day in your company, and I’ve not been the same since.”
“So I’m to blame for your lascivious thoughts and behavior?”
“Yes, yes, and yes,” she said, giving him a quick bite on the ear.
“If I’m going to take responsibility for your sexual corruption, then I’d better ramp up my game.”
****
Rupert didn’t let his disappointment show. He’d thought this lunch date was for her to tell him he’d soon be a dad.
He was a little surprised they had not conceived yet; it was not for lack of trying. He had to find out if she was still on the pill. He’d just assumed she was not, but he seemed to be the only one not happy when her time of the month came around. They’d not discussed stopping the pill specifically, but he’d thought she wanted to start a family as soon as he did, and they were in agreement on this. He may have assumed too much. He would take a step back and let her decide when she was good and ready. After all, it was her body.
CHAPTER TWELVE
It was the weekend, and the smell of wood polish and cleaner was all over the house. Lange was fanatically cleaning the house from top to bottom. She was determined the house would sparkle. She took one entire day to clean a house that was already clean. Rupert helped as much as he could, but when it was 5:00 p.m., he called it a day and refused to do anything more.
“Take a break, darling. I don’t think your parents are coming to visit to check on your house-keeping skills.”
“That’s how much you know. I want to make my mama proud. I want her to know I learned everything she taught me.”
“Had I known, I could have hired a cleaning crew.”
“There’s no way I’d let a cleaning crew clean my home when my mom is coming to visit. She’d spot it in an instance.”
“How? You’re not saying you leave your special mark everywhere you touch?”
“You can laugh if you want to, but I’m going to pass this test with flying colors.”
“Darling, please stop stressing this way. You’re taking all the fun out of this. Let’s go take a shower.”
“I know what you’re doing. You are trying to distract me.”
“Wrong, I’m trying to make love to my wife, and I really do need a bath, so I’ll be doing two things I need, not want, but need. Making love to my wife and cleaning my body.”
Walking up to her, he took the duster from her, and after stripping them both, he lifted her and carried her into the shower. He washed her from top to bottom; no spot was left untouched. She did the same to him, and by the time they stepped out of the shower, they were craving real food.
She didn’t want to mess up the kitchen she had just spent so many hours cleaning, so they ordered Chinese out. She had moo goo gai pan, and he had sweet and sour chicken. They ate in their usual fashion, he feeding her, and she him.
They were so exhausted from all the physical work and their time in the shower that they were asleep before 8:00 p.m. and did not wake until the sun was already up at 9:00 a.m. They would have continued sleeping had the alarm going off on the coffee pot not woken them.
As soon as they got out of bed, they went into action. Her parents were expected at noon. With not a lot of time to prepare the dishes she had planned on making, now she would have to substitute the main dish of slow-cooked beef brisket for stewed chicken and grilled shrimps. She knew her mom loved grilled shrimps. She would hold Rupert responsible if the meal didn’t come out right. But now she had to get busy. She did not want to be cooking when her parents got there.
So far, everything was going well. If it kept up that way, she would have time for a shower and a change of clothes. Fingers crossed.
Rupert lounged on the chair on the porch, watching his wife flitting about the kitchen.
“Come here,” he said lazily, sipping brandy from a glass.
“Soon,” Lange replied, checking to see if the chicken was done. “I’m not finished yet.”
“You’ve done nothing for two days except run around this house like someone possessed.”
“With my parents coming, I want everything to be perfect.”
“Everything is perfect,” Rupert said as he admired her shapely derriere and long, sexy legs. “Come here. I have a present for you.”
“It will have to wait. I can’t look at it now, and I have a present for you too,” she replied sassily.
“Good, we’ll exchange gifts together.”
“Yes, but not now,” she said as she walked out of the kitchen.
“Why not?”
“Please don’t make this more difficult for me than it is already.”
“Me, make it difficult for you? I’m trying to help you, but you don’t want my help.”
“Okay, I need your help n
ow, darling. Could you set the table and turn off the stove for me in five minutes? I’m going to take a quick shower.”
“Okay, but I’m not looking forward to too many of your parents’ visits,” he said.
“Why?”
“If you’re going to get bent out of shape every time your parents come to visit, I can’t be expected to sit back and watch this happen. Go on, I’ll watch the stove,” he said, giving her a quick kiss on the mouth. “But keep in mind, I’d rather be watching you.”
“Thank you, darling,” she whispered to him, giving him a soft bite on the chin.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Lange was able to finish dressing and make it back into the kitchen when her parents arrived. Her dad brought a bottle of Pinot Grigio, and her mom brought a beautiful arrangement of orchids. Lange loved orchids and was pleased to see that her mom remembered.
The atmosphere was very peaceful. Rupert and her dad were tiptoeing around each other, but for the most part, everything was going smoothly. Her mom entertained them with a selection on the piano, and Lange accompanied her. This reminded her of the times they used to do this when she was little. Lange relaxed as she saw how well the afternoon was progressing. Her dad and Rupert were polite to each other, keeping their respective distances and taking refuge in watching her and her mom enjoy each other’s company.
Deciding it was okay to leave the room for a bit, she walked into her bedroom to check her makeup, and there was the whistling again. She chose to ignore it, but she made her way back to the family room where Rupert and her parents were engaged in a lively discussion about, of all things, music. She knew Rupert liked music, but she wouldn’t call him an expert. Her dad, on the other hand, had been a music teacher before he retired. But Rupert was able to hold his own against him, and even her dad had to acknowledge it.
The easy banter continued until her parents got up to take their leave. She was pleased; overall, the visit had been a success. Her parents left, promising to do this again real soon. She saw Rupert give her a raised-brow look, and she knew he would talk her into visiting her parents’ home rather than her parents coming to them. He’d already made his opinion about her running around like a chicken with a cut-off head to get everything perfect for her parents; he felt it was ludicrous. Her parents had a live-in housekeeper and a housemaid. Lange didn’t have those luxuries.
“Are you happy now, darling? Your parents were very well entertained.”
“Yes, thanks, sweetheart.”
“What for?”
“For going out of your way to help me entertain my parents. I’m happy you and Dad are finally getting to know one another.”
“I will do anything to make you happy. You are my world. Let’s go for a walk on the beachfront.”
They spent an enjoyable couple of hours on the beachfront, stopping every now and then to exchange kisses. She was happy because things were working out. She had a job she enjoyed, a husband she adored, and things with her parents were looking up… Life couldn’t be better.
****
Jean Louis had been keeping his distance from Lange’s home, but he was becoming desperate. So today he couldn’t resist projecting his thoughts to her. His abilities were getting stronger as he prepared for his meeting with his Master. He’d scheduled it for tonight at exactly midnight. He was presently resting to conserve his strength, but he couldn’t help testing his limits. Meeting with his Master usually left him drained and weakened, but after twenty-fours, he would become more powerful than ever. He would need it for the solstice.
Jean Louis knew what he was planning to do was wrong, but dealers in the dark arts like him believed themselves to be above reproach and held no compunction about violating the sanctity of another to fulfill their selfish desires. With the magic he was going to evoke at the solstice, not only would he be able to tamper with Lange’s memory, he would be able to possess her body and soul. She would not remember her husband and think herself Jean’s slave. He was so excited at the thought he couldn’t stop the blood from rushing to his groin until he was fully erect in the middle of his house. This, too, had never happened before.
Jean Louis was ready. He had five large mirrors, strategically placed, one at the front, one at the back, one on either side, and one on the ceiling, directly over him. His image was reflected everywhere he looked. He lit five black candles and one white one. He then took his black cat and sent it into a sleep trance, laying it at his feet. He placed the white candle between it paws in the center of its body. If this worked, his Master would manifest himself through the cat. Jean had never seen his Master. He had only done this once before, and that’s when he was almost killed, ten years ago.
He began the chant. “I call upon the Master to come to my aid in my quest to acquire the female, Solange Mellius, nee Esnard, to be my companion. This is the reason I am here. I ask for empowerment.”
His eyes were closed so as not to be distracted by his reflection in the mirrors. His eyes flew open when he heard the snarling from the cat as it sprang from where it had been lying on the floor, and in its place stood the darkest shadow he’d ever seen. It was as if there was no light anywhere beyond the shadow.
“How dare you disturb my slumber, slave?”
“I’m sorry, Master,” he said as he threw himself down prostrate in the location where the cat had been. “I’ve been trying to go about my business without troubling you, but I find myself unable to do the things I was able to do so effortlessly in the past.”
“That’s just it, slave. It was in the past. You forfeited your power to me when you were almost destroyed. Have you forgotten?”
“No, I haven’t, Master, but you said, should I ever find myself in need of that power again, I should request it from you, which is why I did, Master.”
“Fool, I will return your powers this night, as you requested, but take heed. Should you encounter any problems in your quest, your life will be forfeited. I will not come to your aid, so think carefully before you act. I GRANT THY REQUEST, SO MOTE IT BE.”
With that, Jean Louis was rendered unconscious. When he regained consciousness, his cat was licking his face and the darkness was gone from his house.
Jean Louis stood up on wobbly legs. It took him a while before he was able to stand solidly on his feet, but now that he was standing, he looked at his reflection in the mirror and even he was impressed. He was standing taller than his six feet two inches, his body covered in muscles. Every part he looked at was sharpened, and his cock was stiff and protruding out in front of him, the veins in stark relief. When he looked in the mirror, he was in for an even bigger shock; he had lost twenty or even thirty years. He was like a young man again, as he used to look when he’d first begun practicing the dark arts.
He was thrilled. He wasted no time, whispering the chant that would allow him to shed his skin, making him invisible and transporting him to Lange’s house. When he felt the change coming over him, he picked up his familiar and was gone in the blink of an eye.
He was in luck; she was still awake working on her computer. Her husband was awake on the couch in the family room. Positioning himself in front of the front door, he placed the cat at her door and commanded it to meow. Just as he’d expected, the cat had only meowed twice when the door opened and Lange was standing there looking out. Seeing the cat, she reached to pick it up, but the cat darted away. Lange came onto the step to see which direction it had gone in, and not able to see it, she turned and walked back inside.
Jean Louis followed right behind her. By the time she turned to close the door, he was already setting his plan in motion.
He blew into her face, and she immediately began to feel sleepy.
“I don’t know why I’m so sleepy,” she mumbled to herself. “I need to finish this project, but all of a sudden, I can’t seem to keep my eyes open.”
As she undressed, she was wondering if her husband would like to join her in a bath. “Darling,” she called out to him, “I’m goin
g to run a bath. Do you want to join me?”
Not receiving a response, she concluded he was fast asleep. So she went into the bathroom and turned the tap on. She sprinkled it liberally with her favorite bath salts of eucalyptus and bergamot. The scent filled the bathroom and gave her a bit of a perk, but she was almost asleep by the time she stepped into the bath.
Leaning her head back, she was immediately asleep and caught up in a dream that was so real it was not even funny. She could feel someone bathing her, washing her the way her husband would wash her while he was making love to her. The hands were everywhere, all over her. It was not erotic, but she found herself having an orgasm that was so powerful it woke her up. This had never happened to her before. She climbed out of the bath, thinking to go tell her husband so he could come and take care of her, but one minute she was thinking of walking into the family room to wake him, and the next she was asleep on the bed. This time the dream was even more vivid.
She was being made love to in a way that she never had experienced before. No part of her body was left untouched. She was brought to orgasm several times from being worked on orally and manually. It seemed she could not get enough; she wanted more. She was insatiable and kept trying to get him to enter her. He knew she was never fully satisfied until he had filled her with his thick cock. She also wanted to hold him and make love to him too, but her arms remained empty. Just when she was getting ready to reach down to him again, she felt him penetrate her. It felt different. Rupert was big, but he felt enormous, so much so, it was causing her pain. He was slamming into her with such a force that she was practically being lifted off the bed.
She couldn’t help thinking this felt more like one of those crazy dreams she’d been having because it was like no sex she’d ever had before. This went on all night, and when it finally stopped, she fell into a sleep and did not wake until Rupert woke her in the morning.