A Promise of Passion

by M. E. Nesser

  “Oh yeah. I do remember. You guys are pretty close, huh?”

  “She’s wonderful. I spend a lot of time every summer at her place. Her house is on the water. It’s a beautiful spot. I’d love to take you there next summer. You’d love it. Aunt Sandy is only two years older than my mom and they are really close, so we see her a lot. My mom has been a bear all week waiting to see how the surgery went and if her sister had cancer or not. I feel so relieved B. It has been such a stressful week at our house,” she said.

  “I’m glad she’s ok. So listen…I was wondering…. Do you have any plans for tomorrow?”

  “Nope. Now that Aunt Sandy is doing better, I’m free. What did you have in mind?” she asked me.

  “It’s a surprise. Do you think you can spent the whole day with me?” I asked nervously.

  “Of course. My folks will probably be at the hospital all day. What’s going on? You sound funny,” she wondered.

  “Nothing. I want to surprise you. Can you be ready at 11?” I asked.

  “Sure thing. Can you give me a hint?” she wanted to know

  “Not a chance. See you tomorrow,” I told her and hung up the phone.

  25

  Bryce had sounded so nervous on the phone; his voice had actually cracked. I didn’t know what he was planning, but I couldn’t wait to find out. We had been spending as much time as possible together, and the kissing had become even more intense. I wondered if he was going to ask me to go all the way with him. We had never done anything but kiss, except for the start of some petting at the drive-in. I was still pretty scared of doing it, but I was more than ready. I knew in my heart of hearts that he would be the one I would do it with for the first time, and that thought made me so happy. I had a lot of questions, though, and I didn’t know if there was anyone I could ask. Some of my girlfriends were sexually active, but I was way too private a person to ask them about it. I wanted to know things like, was it going to hurt? What if I did something wrong? What if he thought my body smelled or was weird looking? How would our parts even fit together? OK, now I was petrified.

  Saturday night, I went to a party with my friends. Bryce and I had different friend groups, so we went our separate ways that night, which made my anticipation for Sunday even more exciting. I went to Todd’s house on the water for a bonfire. There were about fifteen kids there, hanging out and drinking beer. Todd’s older brother had gotten us a keg, and we were just chilling around the fire, drinking beer and laughing. Todd’s parents were pretty cool about us drinking as long as nobody drove anywhere after. They had a huge house with a ton of couches and reclining chairs, so there was always room for us to crash. His mom always had bagels and cream cheese for us in the mornings. As long as we kept the music pretty low, no one ever bothered us. It was a pretty cool set-up. I think the other parents were happy that Todd’s family allowed us to have somewhere to go. I’m sure many of them pretended we weren’t drinking, but most of them were probably just happy to let another family take the risk. My parents were pretty cool with me staying overnight, even though I didn’t do that very often. The drinking age had just changed to twenty-one years old, and they believed it should have stayed at eighteen. They were pretty realistic and open-minded about things like drinking. Besides, they knew I didn’t like to drink a lot. They also knew I was responsible and didn’t want to do anything to jeopardize my ability to drive or my chances of getting into Yale. I decided not to drink that night: I wanted to sleep in my own bed, and I’d promised my girlfriend Amanda that I’d drive her home. She had a horse show in the morning and couldn’t risk being tired or hung-over.

  Some of our group was dating and, as the night wore on, a few of the couples disappeared. I was never more curious than I was that night to know what they were doing and where they were doing it. Were they just making out, or were they going all the way? And if they went all the way, did they use condoms? I knew that a mess of my girlfriends were also on the pill since it helped with acne and made our periods lighter, but I didn’t know if using condoms was also a thing or not.

  When Janey and Keith came back from wherever they’d been for the last half hour, I was desperate to ask her some questions. I made my way next to her so I could figure out a way to talk to her privately. Janey and I had been going to school together since kindergarten. She was a tennis player who had already gotten a scholarship to Duke for athletics. She was also mad smart; I think they gave her money for that, too. Since she was so intelligent, I knew she wouldn’t risk getting knocked up, so I mustered up the courage to ask her a few things.

  “You and Keith have fun?”

  “Oh, yeah. He’s so fucking hot, I can’t stand it.”

  “Where’d you guys go?” I just had to ask.

  “In the boat house. There’s a raft that is really comfy. We’ve gone in there before. We actually put a flag up next to the door when we go in there so no one walks in on us. It’s the signal we have been using for a while now.” Janey told me matter-of-factly.

  “How come I didn’t know about the signal?”

  “Everybody knows you aren’t seeing anyone, so we just never bothered to tell you about it. I don’t know. I personally figured you might feel bad knowing a lot of us are doing it in there, and you’re still, uh, you know…”

  “A virgin?”

  “Uh, yeah. I’m sorry, Katie. I didn’t mean anything. That’s cool you haven’t done it yet. It’s no big deal. It’ll happen when you meet the right guy.”

  “I think I did,” I quietly confessed to her.

  “No way! Who?” she asked.

  “Bryce Collins.”

  “No freaking way! I didn’t know there was anything going on between you two. When did this start?” she asked.

  “About two months ago. Janey, I can’t sleep. It’s hard to focus on school. My mother knows something’s up, because I’m so distracted. She actually asked me if I was experimenting with drugs! I finally had to tell her that I had a crush on a boy. She told me my behavior made total sense. Then she wanted to have another discussion about sex. I was so embarrassed. We have a great relationship and all, but I really didn’t want to talk about having sex with her. The thing is, all I can do is think about him. Do you think I’m crazy?” I asked her.

  “Crazy in love, maybe. That’s awesome, Katie. So, have you done anything but kiss yet?”

  I didn’t want to say too much, but it felt really good to talk to someone about this. I had to keep talking while I had the nerve. “I’ve been feeling like I want to do more, but I’m kind of, you know…scared,” I confessed.

  “That’s totally and completely normal. The first time Keith and I did it, I was so freaking scared. I actually chugged a couple beers first to help me relax, because I was so afraid of how bad it would hurt.”

  “And did it?” I asked.

  “What, hurt? Kind of. He fingered me a lot before we actually did it, so that helped loosen things up down there. It went really fast the first time, since it was his first time, too. I didn’t get off, which kind of sucked, but then he did other stuff to me.”

  “Like what kind of stuff?” I had to know more.

  “He rubbed my clit until I came. I’d already had a mess of orgasms that way, so he knew how to make it happen. It’s pretty neat how we can come more than once, don’t you think?”

  I didn’t answer her, because I’d never had an orgasm before. But I sure as hell didn’t want to admit that. When I didn’t say anything, she whispered to me, “Have you ever gotten off before?”

  I just blushed and looked down at the ground. I didn’t like admitting I was so naïve, but I couldn’t lie.

  “Not really,” I confessed.

  “Katie, you either had an orgasm or you didn’t. You don’t ‘kind of’ have one. What I did was practice at home.”

  “How’d you do that?” I asked.

  “Just lie in bed and think about Bryce. Rub your fingers in a circle over your clit. You know where your clit is, don’t you?
”

  “Kind of,” I admitted.

  “Don’t be shy, Katie. I didn’t know either. My sister actually showed me. It was a pretty weird conversation, but it was so helpful. Listen, at the top of your vagina is a little ball with like a wall around it. The wall is called your hood, and the little bean-like thing in the middle of it is your clit. That’s what makes you get off. Just practice touching it in different ways. It’s the most amazing feeling in the world—you’re going to want to do it all the time.”

  All of a sudden, Keith yelled over and asked Janey if she wanted to go for another “walk.” Now I knew what that meant. I also knew it was time for me to grab Amanda and go home. I had a lot to think about.

  26

  When I woke up, I ran to the window to see what kind of day it was outside. It was beautiful. The sky was blue, and I could tell it was going to be a perfect day, in more ways than one.

  I was supposed to grab Katie at eleven o’clock. I hadn’t seen Katie since Friday, and it seemed like an eternity. I showered for a really long time, probably put a little too much cologne on, and shaved really carefully so I didn’t irritate her skin when I kissed her.

  I couldn’t help but be early to pick her up. I was beyond excited for this date. When I pulled into her driveway, she ran out the door with the biggest smile on her face. I was so glad she was ready. I couldn’t wait to be alone with her.

  I jumped out of the car, ran up to her, and gave her a shy peck on the cheek. That wasn’t good enough. I had to touch her, so I gave her the biggest hug and then went to open the passenger door for her so she couldn’t see me blush. As soon as we were buckled in, I started driving.

  “Where are we going?” she asked timidly. She sounded as nervous as I felt.

  “One of my favorite places,” I beamed. “But I want it to be a surprise, so tell me about the party last night.”

  “It was good. The same gang as always. Janey and Keith kept sneaking off to the boathouse to, uh…you know. Todd’s brother picked up a keg for us. I only had one drink, though, because I had to drive Amanda home. She has a horse show today, so she had to be home kind of early. What’d you do last night?”

  “Went to Mike’s house for a little bit. There was a fight on HBO we all wanted to watch. I didn’t stay for the main event, though, because it got too late and I was kind of nervous about today.”

  “Why are you nervous, Bryce?”

  “Because I want today to be perfect.”

  I drove another hour, and we talked—about nothing and everything. I felt like I could listen to her voice forever. There was never a quiet or awkward moment. You’d think we’d known each other forever. About half an hour into the drive, I reached over and held her hand. It was a little clammy, or at least I think it was. Maybe it was mine. Her hand seemed so small and delicate, probably the sexiest hand I had ever held in my life.

  When we arrived at the ferry, Katie yelled out, “We’re going to Block Island?”

  “Yep. The most beautiful Island for the most beautiful girl.” Oh my God, had I just blurted that out? What had gotten into me?

  She looked at me, and her whole face was flushed. “Thank you,” she whispered.

  I looked into her eyes and whispered back, “You are, though. Beautiful.”

  The ferry ride was perfect. The weather was sunny, but not too hot. The water was calm, which made the boat ride even better. We hung out against the railing talking.

  “When was the last time you were at Block Island?” I wondered.

  “Over the summer. Uncle Jack took Janey, Amanda and I on a long sailboat ride one day, and that’s where we ended up. He actually docked the boat, and we went ashore for lunch. We had such a good time. What about you?” she asked me.

  “Blake and I came here with our folks when we first moved to Connecticut. We rented bikes and explored the island. It’s really a neat place. Then I came here last summer with some of the guys. We saw a mess of people naked and all the guys could do was poke fun at the people. It actually made me uncomfortable, so I haven’t been here since. I knew it’d be a pretty cool place to bring a girl, though,” I explained.

  “Well, I’m glad you thought to bring me here. We are so lucky that it’s so warm since it’s almost November. This wouldn’t be a very fun ferry ride in the cold.”

  “No, it sure wouldn’t. I guess it’s a good sign,” I said to her with the biggest grin on my face.

  Block Island has the most beautiful beaches and beautiful bluffs. I was so glad I had chosen to bring her here. We rented a couple of bikes and rode to one of the many isolated areas on the island. I had a backpack with a light blanket and my gift to her in it. There are restaurants on the island, so I figured out that after I asked her out, we could go to lunch.

  We found a secluded spot that overlooked the water, and I spread the blanket out on the ground. I was so nervous at this point that I must have looked so awkward. I sure felt that way. I sat down on the blanket and patted the spot next to me so she would sit down, too. I knew that small talk wasn’t going to work: I had to get this over with before I exploded.

  “You OK, Bryce? You seem nervous,” she said to me.

  “Yeah, I’m cool. I just need to talk to you about something, and I’m a little nervous about what you’re going to say.”

  “Just spit it out, silly. You can ask me anything,” she reassured me.

  “Be my girlfriend!” I blurted out.

  “What?”

  “I want you to be my girlfriend.”

  “Oh my God, of course I would love to be your girlfriend. But—I actually kind of thought I already was.”

  I wrapped my arms around her with so much intensity that I knocked her over. I looked down into her face, gazing into her eyes. “You’ve made me the happiest guy in Connecticut,” I blurted out.

  I slowly moved my mouth closer to hers, waiting for permission to kiss her. She wrapped those amazing little hands around my head, pulled me down closer to her face, and started kissing me. At first, her kisses were light and flirtatious; her lips almost tickled mine, they were so gentle. Then she opened her mouth, inviting me in to taste her. I started sucking on her tongue, ever so gently, and she made that purring sound that caused my cock to twitch and grow. Her fingers started getting tangled in my hair. I loved it when she did that. It drove me a little crazy. I could feel her heart racing as fast as mine. Then I remembered the gift that would cement our union.

  “Wait a sec. I almost forgot,” I said. “I have something for you.” I sat up, opened my backpack, and pulled out a small box. She sat up and looked into my eyes.

  “You got me a present?” she asked.

  “Yeah, but I wouldn’t have given it to you if you didn’t agree to be my girlfriend. It would have been too embarrassing.”

  “Did you really think there was a chance that I’d say no?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve only dated a few girls, and I never asked any of them out. I never liked any of them the way I like you. Besides, they were only interested in dating a popular boy and never really cared about getting to know me. Oh shit, that sounded really pompous, didn’t it?”

  “No, it sounded honest. I really like that about you. It’s awesome that you say what you’re thinking. It makes me feel special. I feel like you trust me. Did you really think I would ever say no to that question? For your information, Mr. Collins, I’m pretty crazy about you. So what’d you get me?”

  “Open it.”

  “OK.” She slowly opened the box, pulled the necklace out, and just stared at it. “It’s so cool. Where’d you find this?”

  “In that little boutique in Greenwich. I wanted something unique that reminded me of you. What does it look like to you?”

  “A cat?”

  “Actually, it reminded me of a kitten. I love the way you purr when we kiss, and since your name is Katie, I think of you as my kitten. Is that queer?”

  “No, it’s incredibly sweet. Now put it on me, please,” she demande
d.

  I put the necklace around her neck and then just stared into her eyes, not sure what to do next. She must have felt my trepidation, because she put her hands on either side of my face and said, “Make me purr, Bryce. I like being your kitten.”

  27

  I had read a couple Danielle Steele books, and I loved romance, but I never thought I would experience it with a seventeen-year-old guy. I sure as hell never thought I would find any kind of romance in high school. Bryce admitted that he’d called his older brother for advice, which made this whole day even more special. It was so neat that he’d planned it all out. The necklace was unique, and I loved that he’d put so much thought into it. I was so psyched he decided to bring me to Block Island. It was even nicer than I remembered. That probably had something to do with how happy I was. I felt like I was in a fairy tale, and I knew I never wanted this day to end.

  After he put the necklace on me, he seemed so uncomfortable. I couldn’t let him feel that way. He’d planned this day in detail, and I wanted to show my gratitude.

  I leaned in and started nibbling on his mouth. It was Bryce that made a purring sound this time. He started leaning his body over mine and gently laid me back down on the blanket.

  “I could kiss you forever,” he murmured.

  “Then don’t stop.”

  Our kissing was so sexy. Our tongues danced in each other’s mouths. We explored and tickled each other with every square inch of our mouths. I loved kissing. It was magical. It made every part of my body so sensitive, though. I felt the need to have Bryce closer to me so I ran my hands up and down his back and pulled him in to an even tighter embrace. Suddenly I felt his left hand running up and down the right side of my body, from my thigh to my underarm. He kept his hand moving slowly up and down. I loved the way his big hand felt.