"We'll see," Andrew replied cagily, helping her into the car and tossing her duffel on the backseat. He slid behind the wheel of his silver Audi and pulled into traffic. They reached the corner and turned the opposite direction than they would have gone had they been going back to Andrew's apartment.
"We're not going to your place, are we?" Claudia asked, finally catching on.
"We are. Just not the one you mean."
"You have another house?"
"Well, it's not exactly mine. The cabin belongs to the family. Dad told me last night at the party that he needed some stuff done up there and since I haven't been there in a while, I told him I'd go up and take care of it."
"Where is this cabin?"
"The Berkshires," Andrew admitted a little bashfully.
"Ah. Of course, where else but the Berkshires?" Claudia teased.
"I knew you would say something like that. That's why I didn't tell you beforehand. Figured I'd save myself a little grief..."
"I'm only teasing. It's a long way to go for one night, though, isn't it?"
"It's only a couple hours' drive. We'll be there in time for a late dinner. I'll do the things I need to do in the morning and we can be on our way back to town in the afternoon," Andrew said. "I thought it'd be nice to get out of the city for some peace and quiet."
"It will definitely be nice to breathe some clean, fresh air," Claudia confirmed enthusiastically. Her expression sobered somewhat as she shifted in her seat to look at him. "Andrew, I..."
"Please don't tell me you've changed your mind about what we talked about last night," Andrew tightened his grip on the steering wheel as he cut her off.
"No, not that. I just wanted to apologize for being such a pill last night. I hadn't expected to see you at the party and then I got all confused. I'm sorry for being mean."
Andrew relaxed and joked. "I wouldn't say you were mean, exactly. Bratty is more the word I would have used."
Just as she'd predicted, he'd accepted her apology without making a big deal of it. His response made it easier for her to continue, "Andrew, I really mean it. You are such a nice, good person. You didn't deserve what I did last night."
"None of it?" he asked with fake startlement, "surely I deserved some of what you did?"
Claudia blushed, but allowed him the joke. She touched his hand lightly where it rested on the gearshift and turned back around in her seat.
*****
They made it to the cabin just before nine. Cabin was rather the wrong term to use in describing it, Claudia thought. Constructed of rough-hewn logs, the house was a large two-story structure built in the style of a ski chalet. The first floor contained three bedrooms, a full bath and a large eat-in kitchen. The great room, with its vaulted ceilings, skylights and huge stone fireplace was the centerpiece of the first floor. The chocolate brown leather couches and chairs near the fireplace were appropriately rugged-looking and well worn. There were snowshoes, cross-country skis, board games and other sporting accoutrements in the room, which along with the scuffed wooden floor, made it plainly obvious that this was a real home to Andrew's family, not simply a showpiece.
The second level was devoted entirely to the master suite. A cozy seating area that looked over the great room was just at the top of the stairs. The overstuffed chairs were draped with homemade afghans and practically begged to be snuggled into for an afternoon of reading. A huge king-sized bed with gnarled hardwood head- and footboards was centered under a skylight through which the full moon beamed its radiant light. Sliding glass doors at the back of the room revealed a deck and hot tub. A full bath with a deep claw-footed tub and separate shower stall completed the sanctuary that was the master bedroom.
"Andrew, this is lovely. So homey," Claudia said.
"Yeah, we spent summers here and most of our winter vacations, too. I love this place," Andrew replied, the fondness of memories evident in his voice. "Let's go downstairs and get a fire going, then we can eat."
"Is the kitchen fully stocked?"
"It has the basics. But I brought enough food for an army. Never go to the grocery store when you're hungry," Andrew warned.
The fire finally lit, Andrew and Claudia went to the kitchen to fix dinner. True to his word, Andrew had bought what seemed to be the entire contents of the gourmet grocer in their neighborhood. They decided to have cold roast chicken with an arugula salad, roasted eggplant and red pepper bisque and crusty Claudia bread. He had also brought strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, an assortment of nuts and cheeses and a box of chocolate truffles for dessert. While Claudia heated the soup, Andrew went to the wine cellar for a bottle of wine.
They ate in front of the fire, talking easily, as they had always done. Claudia had worried that the conversation would center on their 'arrangement' and had dreaded the awkwardness such talk would bring. Instead, they talked of what they'd been doing over the few months they'd been apart. It was plain to Claudia that Andrew was genuinely interested in what she had to say. He was excited when she told him about the new ensemble she'd auditioned for and won admission to and appropriately displeased when she told him about the politics and infighting that went on amongst the administrators and her fellow teachers at the school she taught at. She, in turn, thought there was no better photographer and writer in the world than Andrew. She was so proud that he'd made the leap from writing general interest and travel pieces to more legitimate, hard-hitting journalism. He'd been very successful before, but had always wanted to tackle more weighty subject matter.
Replete after their meal, Claudia stifled a yawn and stretched. They'd been sipping brandy as they talked and she was beginning to feel a little sleepy. She was having such a good time, though, that she hoped she'd catch her second wind, so they could continue rediscovering one another.
"You're tired," Andrew stated. "Ready to call it a night?"
"No, I'm fine," Claudia replied, then involuntarily opened her mouth in a jaw-cracking yawn.
Andrew laughed, "I can see my company leaves much to be desired."
"No, really, I'm OK," Claudia protested, "the long drive, the food and brandy got to me for a moment. Give me a few minutes and I'll be fine."
"What do you say we hit the hot tub, then hit the sack?"
"Sounds good, but-"
"You don't need a bathing suit, Legs," Andrew interrupted, knowing exactly what she'd been about to say.
"I hate it when you do that," Claudia mock-sulked at him and preceded him up the stairs.
While Andrew was outside adjusting the hot tub, Claudia undressed, folding her clothes neatly. Andrew had gotten fluffy bath sheets from the linen closet and she wrapped herself in one and swept her hair into a ponytail. He motioned to her from outside that all was ready. Claudia she stepped outside and immediately began to shiver when the cold night air hit her skin. She dropped her towel in a heap next to the tub and climbed in, sliding down into the hot, bubbling water up to her neck. Noticing that Andrew was fully dressed, she asked,
"Aren't you going to go in and change?"
"Nope," Andrew answered and kicked off his shoes and socks.
"You're insane, it must only be twenty degrees out here!"
"I'll only be out here for a minute; it'll feel even better when I get in the water."
Claudia couldn't stop herself from watching as he undressed. She spared a split second to wonder if this impromptu striptease was perhaps not so impromptu, but decided that that wasn't Andrew's style. He couldn't possibly know the devastating effect he had on her. He gripped the hem of his blue sweater and pulled it over his head, along with the white crewneck t-shirt he'd worn under it. The moonlight gleamed on his torso, limning his sleek muscles in a silver sheen. She could only just make out the shadow of the hair on his chest that tapered to a fine line as it reached the waist of his jeans. He unfastened his belt and unbuttoned the jeans and slid them and his boxers to his ankles where he kicked them aside. He raised his arms over his head, fingers linked, in a long stre
tch and groaned in pleasure.
Claudia unconsciously licked her lips at the sight of his naked body. She absorbed every detail of the way he looked from the top of his ruffled hair, to the sleekly muscled planes of his chest, his tumescent penis and on down to his toes. Gorgeous, she thought as he moved toward the hot tub.
"Guess I'm a little bit of an exhibitionist," he joked as he slid into the hot tub. "I love being naked out here."
"Hmm, I daresay you might be," Claudia remarked wryly.
Andrew sat on a low seat that had his chin just at the level of the bubbling water.
"Come here."
Claudia averted her eyes from his for the merest second as she considered the request, then complied. He settled her on his lap and just held her. She could feel his cock brushing against her leg and knew that he was aroused. Still he made no move to seduce her, simply held her close. Claudia shifted her position on his lap so that she straddled him. His hard cock brushed against the outer lips of her pussy, moving back and forth with the current of the bubbling water. She cupped his face in her hands, looked into his eyes. Then lowered her head and kissed him.
She started out with light kisses, brushing her lips across his in the gentlest of caresses. His hands rested on her thighs, but didn't move as Claudia deepened the kiss. The only indication she had that her kisses were affecting him at all was that his hands squeezed once, convulsively, on her thighs then relaxed. She certainly felt the effects of the kiss. Heat that was not entirely generated by the hot tub suffused her body. She opened her mouth on his, sought out his tongue with hers. He let her play as she would, felt desperation rise in her as she took from him, knew she searched for even more.
Claudia slid further up his thighs until his cock was snugged against her pussy and her breasts pressed against his chest. She felt the coil of her arousal tighten, then reached between them to stroke him. He breathed a sigh of pleasure and let his head fall back against the lip of the hot tub. Through half-closed eyes, he watched her face as she caressed his cock and used it to stimulate herself. Her hips moved, subtle gyrations that nudged him against her clit. Her eyes were heavy-lidded, as though the blood-rush of arousal affected them, too. Her skin glowed under the moonlight, studded with beads of water that gleamed like jewels.
She had braced one hand against his shoulder to steady herself as her other hand was engaged between their bodies. Andrew moved his hand from her thigh and slid it up her arm, to her shoulder, to her neck then pulled her mouth to his again. She gasped as the motion pressed her pussy more tightly to his cock. He sucked her tongue into his mouth, twisting and curling his around it now, running his tongue over her teeth, the roof of her mouth then. He reached between them, stroked his cock back and forth over her pussy. Impossibly, illogically, it felt even hotter than the water in the hot tub.
He zeroed in on her clit, massaged it with his thumb as he slid two fingers into her wetness. She gasped,
"Oh, Andrew, yes..."
Claudia rode up and down with each stroke of his fingers on her and in her. She knew she would explode before much longer. She forced herself to open her eyes and focus on him.
"Andrew, I'm so close," she said huskily, "I want to feel you inside me."
"Let go, baby."
He kissed her again, matching the thrusts of his tongue to the thrust of his fingers between her legs. He felt her pussy walls clench around his fingers, knew she was on the brink.
"That's it," he encouraged soothingly, "come for me."
The sound of his voice pushed her over the edge. She threw her head back; her breath caught as her orgasm took her. She rode its waves in silence, but Andrew could feel every spasm of her pussy gripping his fingers tightly. He wanted nothing more than to plunge into her then, but deliberately held back. When she was finally able to breathe again, she leaned down and put her lips to his.
"Mmm, now it's your turn."
"I'm OK."
"Somehow I don't believe that when there's this that needs attention," she said, stroking his hard cock beneath the water.
With immense effort, he said, "I'll be fine. You ready for bed?"
"Umm... Yeah, I guess I am," Claudia said dazedly, not understanding what he meant. Did he truly mean that he didn't want to... to finish? she thought.
Andrew slid her off of his lap, then stood and levered himself out of the hot tub. His body steamed in the moonlight. He scooped up his towel and draped it around his waist, not bothering to dry off. His hard cock jutted against the towel, making it tent in the front. He grabbed her towel and motioned her out of the tub. She went into his arms and he began to dry her with firm strokes of the towel. When he finished, he wrapped the towel around her breasts and led her into the house.
"You can have the bathroom first," he said.
Claudia performed her nightly ablutions, then emerged from the bathroom to find Andrew standing at the sliding glass doors, still draped in his towel, gazing into the night. He looked to be deep in thought. He gave no indication that he was aware that she'd opened the bathroom door and entered the bedroom. She went to him and looped her arms around his waist, pressed a kiss to the nape of his neck. He covered her hands with his where they rested at his waist and turned his head. She rose on tiptoe to allow their lips to meet in a sweet, lingering kiss.
"Coming to bed?" she asked when their lips parted.
He made no verbal response, but led her to the side of the bed, stripped her of the towel she still had wrapped around her and tucked her in. Claudia didn't speak either, but was confused when he didn't get in bed with her. He went into the bathroom. The sound of running water told her he was preparing for bed. He came back into the bedroom and in the dim light of the setting moon that streamed through the skylight, she saw that he was still naked. When he got into bed, Claudia reached for him, seeking his mouth in a hungry kiss, determined to give him as much pleasure as he'd given her. Andrew kissed her back, gently, but didn't allow her to deepen the kiss.
He continued to kiss her, softly, soothing her. Delicately, reverently, intimately, he caressed her body with hands that sought to learn every nook, cranny and curve. But, instead of allowing their kisses to become arousing and incendiary, as had been her intent, Andrew seemed to want to pull them away from the flames.
"What's wrong, Andrew?" she asked. "Why won't you let me? I know you want to..."
"It's OK, baby. Let's just sleep."
For the second night in a row, she lay naked, spooned snugly against Andrew in bed. For the second night in a row, she lay awake feeling so many feelings that were hard for her to identify. It felt good and right to be with Andrew like this; she was as content as she'd been since before they'd broken up. But, she almost felt as though he had changed some unwritten rule tonight by not making love with her. And that left her feeling anxious and uneasy, even a little angry. Was this how he would end it? Had he already lost interest in her after having had sex with her the night before -- was that all he'd wanted, to prove that he could have her whenever he wanted to? Had he merely come back into her life to hurt her or to get retribution? To end their relationship on his terms? That any of those scenarios could be possible was terrifying for her.
She was her mother's daughter after all... What else could be expected, she thought.
She lay awake, frightened and angry and had no idea what Andrew was thinking, no idea why he'd not wanted to make love with her, no idea what his motivation had been when he made "the proposal", as she'd come to call it in her mind, last night. She was aware all during her hours of wakefulness, that Andrew was awake, too. He held her close all night, saying nothing, but the force of his thoughts was almost tangible and hung weightily between them. Mentally and physically exhausted, Claudia eventually fell into a light sleep. Andrew lay awake, holding her close, cradling her as though she were the most delicate, precious creature, plotting his next move.
Chapter Four
Claudia had been very busy during the week following her weekend in
the Berkshires with Andrew. It was the end of term at school and she was issuing final exams to her students. She had chosen a different piece for each instrument category in the orchestra for the playing portion of the students' test, which would determine their positions in the orchestra for the coming semester. Additionally, she would administer an aural skills test to gauge their sight-reading and sight-singing abilities, a written music theory test and finally a piano exam, where they would play the pieces they'd been working on over the course of the semester. Since most of these tests were conducted one on one, with students playing or singing for her individually, Claudia's schedule was fully booked most days until late in the evenings.
Now it was Friday and she had three weeks off for Christmas Break. She had booked her quintet to play at several holiday parties. And her new chamber group had planned to meet twice weekly to rehearse. They would start hiring out and scheduling performances after the first of the year and so had begun rehearsing in earnest. Other than those commitments, she was free to do whatever she wanted.
She'd not seen Andrew very much since the Berkshires weekend. They'd met for dinner a couple of times, but hadn't had a chance to spend any significant amount of time together without the interruptions of their busy lives. She was looking forward to spending time with him without the pressure of schedules and deadlines.
She was still bothered about Andrew's reticence to make love with her that Saturday night at his family's cabin. Claudia had fallen asleep troubled by the turn of events and had thought things would be awkward between them afterwards. Nevertheless, they had made love several times the next day, beginning with long, slow morning sex that had left her thoroughly sated, while at the same time, fueling her desire for more of Andrew. They had had a leisurely breakfast, cuddled together in front of the fire, which had inevitably led to more lovemaking. They left the cabin as late as reasonably possible and had capped off the weekend with a quick, fervent coupling once they'd arrived back at her apartment in Boston. Their lovemaking over the course of the day had gone some distance to allay her fears that he had nefarious ulterior motives. Sexual encounters notwithstanding, they had still not discussed Saturday night.
The Seduction Of Claudia Page 6