A Gentleman's Curse: The Tainted Series

by T. L. Tate

  The smell of her perfume and the heat of her body were penetrating my senses. She smelled of honey after the rain. Her soft skin was a welcome embrace as our bodies touched in an intimate way. She excited me. She excited me and I felt like a creep because of it.

  Trying and failing to gain some control over myself, I pulled back. “I don’t turn 30 for two more days. What’s there to be excited about?”

  She slapped my arm. “Not that, silly. The promotion! They’re announcing it today!”

  “Oh.”

  “Oh? Is that all you have to say?” She cocked her pretty little hip to the side while looking at me like I was from Mars.

  “Oh, that’s great.” I tried to sound excited but it was hard to do so. One look at her face and I knew I didn’t succeed.

  “Wow. You look like your dog just died. What’s going on?” Her arms were still wrapped around my neck and our faces were only a few inches apart.

  Perhaps it was the lack of intimacy within my marriage. Perhaps it was my wife’s strange behavior. Perhaps it was because I’m a lecherous person that deserves to get smacked. I don’t know. But in that moment, with her body pressed against mine and her gorgeous face so close, all I could think about was kissing her silly. The thought of doing something so…bad excited me. Before I could get that excitement under control I heard a sharp intake of breath and Toni’s eyes widened.

  She looked down to where her stomach was touching my waist and then back up at me. I was mortified. I braced myself, waiting for her to scream. Instead, she looked back up at me and chuckled.

  “Not getting enough loving at home, eh? I know I’m hot but keep it in your pants, bro.”

  Thank god. I was worried that she would scold me or hit me. Luckily for me, she just laughed it off. If she wasn’t going to make a big deal out of it then neither would I.

  She reached for the doorknob and slowly opened the door. She looked side-to-side and then stepped out. I followed behind her. Everyone knew that we were related through marriage. Still, seeing us coming out of the supply closet might start rumors and that could hurt both of our careers. Fortunately, no one seemed to notice.

  Toni looked up at me and smiled. “Sorry if I spoiled the surprise.”

  I smiled in return, “You didn’t spoil anything. They haven’t even announced it yet. It could be anyone of us.”

  She looked at me again like I was from Mars. “Please. Everyone knows you’re the wonder-kid. It has to be you.”

  “I guess we’ll see.”

  She rolled her eyes in exasperation. “God! What is wrong with you? You’d better not act so cavalier when they announce it.”

  “Yeah. Yeah. I promise to be nothing but smiles and rainbows.”

  She stuck her tongue out at me and turned on her heels and headed towards her cubicle. I watched her walk away still attuned to how tasty she looked and how great it felt to have her body next to mine. As if she could read my thoughts she turned back around and caught me staring at her. Pulling her eye at me she continued to walk away but this time there was a little more sway in her step.

  Shortly after 10, the executives came down to make the big announcement.

  A big office, a $40,000 increase in salary, stock options, company car, administrative assistant and my own team that I could hand pick. Just as Toni predicted, I was their choice for the promotion. Although it was only 10 AM and there was an entire days work ahead of us, the rest of the day was more like a party than work. I was only 29 and two days away from being 30 and my work prospects were only getting better.

  “Hey, boss.” Toni surprised me towards the end of the day as I was heading out of the storage room with a bankers box. I knew there were people that would move my stuff from my cubicle to my new office but I didn’t want people that I didn’t know riffling through my things.

  “Hey, T. What’s up?”

  I sat the box on my desk and started loading it with pictures, documents, marketing awards…you know, the usual cocktail. Toni sat right next to the box, her thick, enticing thighs grabbing my attention as she crossed her legs. I tried not to notice but every time I would drop something in the box I would steal a glance at her body. Dark lace-toped thigh highs hugged her sexy legs, and as she rocked her legs back and forth a little more of the lace peeked from beneath her dress. For a moment I thought I could see the tale-tale signs of a garter belt, securing her hosiery up her body. Then, with the flick of her fingers, it was gone. I could feel her eyes watching me just as I could feel my self-control slowly drain away for each second I was in her presence.

  She continued to watch as I packed the banker’s box. I continued to pretend like I wasn’t ogling her. However, it soon became too awkward for me to stand.

  Clearing my throat I asked, “Ahem. So what’s up, T?”

  She watched for a little while longer and then a slow, practiced smile formed on her lips. “Just a couple of things, boss.”

  I chuckled, “Why are you calling me boss? You’re on Sasha’s team.”

  “For now.”

  “What does that mean?”

  She reached out and pulled my arm until my body was standing in front of hers. She continued to mindlessly rock her legs back and forth, her feet constantly rubbing against the inside of my calves. From the angle I was at, there was no way I could look at her face and not have her deep cleavage directly in my line of sight.

  1. 2. 3. I counted the number of times her foot slowly, torturing-ly, and sweetly touched my legs and how I wanted her to touch me more. On the 15th pass, she held her foot out and hooked it behind my calve. With a single, sharp pull, she forced me to step closer until my crotch was inches from her knee and her face was less than a foot away from my body.

  Like I said, I knew she was a flirt but this was taking it too far…mainly because I doubted my own self-control.

  “W-what are you doing, Toni?”

  She craned her neck around me and whispered, “Oh, nothing. I just didn’t want to be overheard.”

  “Okay. Well, you have my full attention.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yes.”

  Her small wet tongue darted out and moistened her plump lips. She pulled her lips back in a smile and whispered, “So about Sasha…I think it would be much better if I worked underneath you, bro.”

  I tried to ignore the way she purred the word ‘underneath’. She was just trying to get a rise out of me, and doing a remarkable job at it. I could feel the blood pooling at the base of my cock. I had to make this short and get her the hell out of my (old) cubicle.

  “So you’re saying that you want me to bring you onto my team? I can’t do that to Sasha. You’re the best that she has on her team. If I take you away, I’m basically signing her death warrant.”

  She shrugged and then pretended to swipe an invisible crumb off of her blouse, pulling it down to show just a bit more of her body. I could just make out the lace material of her dark brassier.

  When she looked back up at me, I quickly averted my eyes, pretending as if the speck of dust at the top of my cabinet demanded my utmost and complete attention.

  When I looked back at her she was smirking. I wasn’t fooling anyone.

  “Don’t worry about Sasha. Everyone knows that we’re family. Wouldn’t it be weird if you didn’t pick me? Wouldn’t that seem like you were questioning my talents? My own brother-in-law doesn’t believe in me.” She pretended a pretty little pout at the last part. It was hard not to chuckle.

  She still had her foot locked onto my calve and now started rubbing it up and down. Suddenly, the blood that was pooling at the base of my cock surged thru it all the way to my cockhead. It was throbbing and quite obvious. My excitement created a bump in my pants that was almost eye-level for Toni. She licked her lips again and smirked. This time, there was a devilish light in her eyes.

  She pretended to lose her balance and yanked my hand forward. My body took an involuntary step forward, thrusting my hard cock right into her chest. She held
my hand behind her as my body was pinned against hers. She kept me in place for several seconds until I was damned sure that she knew that I knew that she knew how hard I had become because of her.

  My cock was basically right between her large breasts. I could feel it move in time with the breaths that she took. I looked at her face and she had this false-surprise plastered to her face, her mouth making the standard “O” and everything. She released my arm and before I could right myself she pinched her breasts together, trapping my cock in-between her cleavage. She moved back and forth only a few times as she bit her lip. It felt so good that I felt my body tremble as my eyelids fluttered. When she released me, I took a quick step back but felt oddly cold now that I wasn’t nestled between her giant breasts.

  This time, when she looked at me, all playfulness was gone from her face. “Is everything really okay between you and my sis, Jacob?”

  Where was this coming from? Regardless, the sudden mention of Rachel caused all of blood to rush out of my prick. My hard-on died just as suddenly as it appeared. To make matters worse, Toni noticed the effect her question had on me.

  Trying to recover, “Y-yeah. Why? Everything is fine. Nothing to worry about.”

  Still looking serious and slightly worried, Toni stood up. “I don’t believe you.”

  Her body was too close to mine. The moment she stood, her blouse pulled down firmly against her breasts and I could see how erect her nipples had become from her little game. There was also this red flush that appeared on her chest. I didn’t know if she was excited or embarrassed. Either way…it was hot.

  “Why don’t you believe me?”

  “Well, I’ve always teased you as long as I can remember. But this is the first time that you ever reacted. Also, lately you’ve been acting strange. Plus, you and Rach never invite me over for dinner anymore. I used to get 3 or 4 invitations from you in a week but it’s been months since I’ve even seen my sister. What’s going on?”

  She was right. Things were strange and regardless of how special I tried to treat her or how romantic I tried to be, it seemed like day after day Rachel’s love for me lessened just a bit. Perhaps getting a second opinion wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.

  I sighed but sat down. She sensed that I was going to have a hard time spitting it out so she sat back on the edge of my (old) desk. This time there was no sexual pretense. She was just there as a caring and listening ear.

  “I honestly don’t know, T. Things aren’t that great between us.”

  “Did you do something?”

  “No, I don’t think so.”

  “So what’s been happening?”

  “It’s hard to put it into words. It just that over these last few months…well maybe the last few years, things have grown stale between us.”

  “You mean like sex-wise?”

  “Umm, that’s part of it. But that’s not what I mean. If it were just sex, I could deal with that. But Rachel has changed so much. It’s like she’s loathed to be around me.”

  She fiddled with the cross that rested between her breasts. “That’s odd. She’s always been head-over-heels for you.”

  “I know. I feel the same way but for the last few months things have gotten worse. She doesn’t appreciate the things I do for her. She never wants to spend time with me. She leaves at a moments notice and when I ask her about it she bites my head off. I’m trying. I promise. I’m really trying to understand what’s going on but she’s not giving me any answers. All I know is that this can’t continue to go on. Whether I love her or not isn’t the point. I can’t stay married to someone who hates me.”

  At this, she walked over and put her hand on my shoulder in a kindly gesture. “She doesn’t hate you. Look. Do you want me to talk to her?”

  I considered it but ultimately declined. “No. It’s our problem. I’ll have to figure it out somehow.”

  “Are you sure?” Her eyes were kind but sad.

  “I’m sure. Thanks, T.” I squeezed her hand.

  We sat that way for a few more seconds and then she turned and dumped a bunch of my stuff into a box. Moments later several employees and managers came by to congratulate me. They saw Toni in my (old) cubicle and no one batted an eye. It was just commonplace for her to be wherever I was…apparently.

  The crowd quickly dispersed. Loud enough, so that everyone could hear, Toni scooped up the banker’s box and turned to me. “I’ll go ahead and get this up into your new office, boss. I’ll bring my stuff up in a little while.” She smiled and winked.

  I pulled her close, “Hey! When did I agree to you being a part of my team?”

  She feigned innocence. “When? I’d say right around the time you stuck your giant dick between my tits.” She whispered even quieter, “Just imagine all the things you’ll get to do to my tits if I work underneath you, big boy.” She slapped me on the ass and then trotted from my office.

  I didn’t know why I even bothered. I knew she would get what she wanted. She always got what she wanted. Besides, having her on my team would make things more exciting…in a non-sexual kind of way. Well…at least that was the lie I told myself.

  A few of the managers took me out for drinks. I managed to steal some time away with Sasha and talked to her about recruiting Toni to be on my team. Apparently, she had expected as much and took it all in stride, albeit, she was a little unhappy to be losing her big earner. But when I promised her I would convince the number 2 and 3 person on my team to work under her, she was suddenly perfectly fine with losing Toni.

  When I got home there was another car in my driveway. A metallic-gray Tesla Model-X.

  Walking in my house I saw the two people I expected to see upon seeing the extra car in the driveway. “Hey honey. Hey Toni.” The two sisters were sitting in the living room. Turning the corner, the air in the living room was stifling. Rachel was sitting on one end of the couch, her sharp features looking fierce and guarded. Toni sat on the other end, her brown eyes burning holes into her sister. Neither said anything to me so I tried again.

  “Ahem. Everything okay ladies?”

  It was Rachel that answered, nodding her head slowly and casting warning glares at her little sister. She spoke slowly, but somehow I didn’t believe she was answering my question. Instead it seemed like she was continuing whatever unfriendly debate she was having with her sister. “Everything is fine. Don’t worry. We’re fine.”

  Toni was visibly shaking. She stood abruptly, “Ugh! I’ve got to go!” She marched passed me, refusing to make eye contact. I heard the door slam and turned to my wife.

  “Wow. What was that all about?”

  Sighing, Rachel put her head against the back of the couch. “It’s nothing. Just sister stuff.”

  I knew she wasn’t going to tell me so I didn’t push it. “Sorry I’m late.”

  “It’s okay. Toni told me you would be late. I hear you got the promotion. That’s great. Congratulations, Jake.”

  “Thanks, honey. I’m pretty excited. This is going to mean a better life for both of us. Maybe we can even start talking about having kids again.”

  “Ugh! Can we, like, not. Please. I’m just not in the mood.”

  Not in the mood. Not in the mood. Not in the mood. This was becoming her mantra. She wasn’t in the mood to make love to me. She wasn’t in the mood to talk about family planning. She wasn’t in the mood to talk about her day. She wasn’t in the mood to spend time with me.

  I had had enough of her bullshit.

  “What the fuck, Rachel?”

  My tone was as icy as my stare. She looked at me as if she had forgotten I was even there, which irritated me even more. “What do you mean?”

  “Today was a pretty big fucking day for me and you act as if you don’t even care. What the hell is going on?”

  “What the hell is your problem? Can’t you see that I’m upset here? Why don’t you go pour me a glass of wine or something? God! You’re so clueless.”

  That was my breaking point. I
could deal with a lot. I have dealt with a lot. But her blatant disrespect and disregard for me was the final straw.

  “You ungrateful piece of shit. Do you have any idea how much effort I have been putting in lately? I do everything around here while you don’t do a damn thing. You’ve avoided me for months. You treat me as if I’m your personal concierge. I’m your husband! Your husband! Do you even know what that means? I provide, love, protect and cherish you and all you do is take advantage of me. What happened to the girl I married and fell in love with? Are you mental or something? Is that it? Please let that be it because I can’t figure anything else out.” My words were cruel but so were hers. I bottled my feelings for months and they all came kind of pouring out of me. When I was finished I stood there, waiting for her to respond.

  She said nothing. She looked impassive. It was as if she didn’t even hear a word I said.

  Sighing she stood up, “I’m going to go take a bath.”

  That was it. She got up and walked out. I don’t know what was worse, the fact that she was so rude when she asked me to fetch her some wine or the fact that she was so dismissive when I expressed my hidden hurt. Either way, she wasn’t acting like the person I knew. She wasn’t acting like my best friend.

  Confused, I sent a text to Toni.

  Hey, T. Everything ok? What happened?

  She didn’t reply right away. When she did reply, she didn’t provide any information.

  Sorry I left like that I was mad at Rachel. We had a fight. What did she say to you?

  I told her the truth.

  Nothing.

  Her response wasn't illuminating.

  Really?

  I thought if anyone could tell me what was up, Toni could.

  Yeah. Can you tell me what happened?

  I don’t know if she turned her phone off or not but she didn’t respond back to me. That wasn’t like her. She always had to get the last word but not this time.

  I ate dinner alone that night. When I finally went to bed, I found Rachel lying on our bed surfing the Internet on her phone.

  I slid in-between the sheets, “Good night, Rachel.”