The Ultimate Betrayal

by Annette Mori

  “Yes, I know the penthouse is rented—to my wife. I’m surprising her today,” Sophia clarified.

  The desk attendant raised her eyebrow, “You are Ms. Beck’s wife?”

  Sophia pulled out her key card and laid it on the desk. “Yes, I am. Is there a problem here?”

  Sophia was beginning to get irritated. It seemed as though Lara’s life in Seattle was completely separate from New York. Hadn’t Lara talked to anyone here in her west coast satellite about her wife? Sophia knew that Lara wasn’t closeted, so why the big secret? Sophia talked freely about her wife to everyone in her sphere of acquaintances.

  “No, not at all. I apologize. Ms. Beck is a valued customer of Hotel 1000.” The desk attendant clicked the keys on the computer. “We have a lovely suite two doors down from the penthouse. Shall I charge the other room to Ms. Beck’s account?”

  “Yes, thank you,” Sophia answered.

  “How long will you be staying in Seattle?”

  “We’ll be here three weeks.” Sophia touched Joy on the arm. “Let me follow you to your room and get you settled before I pounce on my wife. I’m kind of nervous. This is really out of character for me to be so impulsive. What if she’s too pre-occupied with business to appreciate the gesture?”

  “Not a chance in the world.” Joy stepped back and her eyes traveled up and down Sophia’s body. “Even after a full day of traveling, you look delicious.”

  “On second thought, can I just have the carry-on bag? I’ll take that one up with me and you can deliver the rest of the bags when we order room service. I’d prefer not being disturbed for what I hope will be a fervent re-union.”

  The attendant nodded and handed Joy a key card. “Is there anything else we can do to make your stay at Hotel 1000 more comfortable?”

  “No, thank you. I apologize if I was rude earlier, it’s just that Seattle hasn’t been as welcoming as I thought it would be,” Sophia confessed. “Now if I was visiting New York, well, then that would be expected.” She chuckled.

  “Oh ma’am, I’m very sorry. It’s just that normally Ms. Beck makes all of her arrangements in advance. Let me retrieve your carry-on bag. Would you like assistance from the porter?”

  “No, I think I can handle one small bag on my own, but the porter can carry my friend’s bags,” Sophia answered.

  †

  Lara had just secured the last button on her shirt and was heading to the door with her jacket in her hand, when she heard the beep at the door. She cocked her head, confused that the maid service would be entering her room at this time of the day. She’d never had to put the Do Not Disturb sign on her door previously. The hotel staff were well aware of the arrangements she made when entertaining business clients.

  When the door opened and she stood face to face with Sophia, Lara was not able to school her expression. Shock, fear, and a tiny bit of irritation showed on her beautiful face. “Sophia, what in the hell are you doing here in Seattle?”

  Sophia stumbled back and her eyes teared up.

  Lara immediately recognized her mistake, took Sophia’s bag and set it down, and then pulled Sophia into her arms. “Sshh. Oh, babe, I am so sorry, you just startled me. Is something wrong? Of course I’m delighted to see you.”

  “Are you?” Sophia asked.

  “Am I what?”

  “Delighted to see me? I wanted to surprise you, but I suppose this wasn’t the best decision I’ve ever made.” Sophia’s tears slipped from her eyes.

  “I know I’ve been distracted these past couple of years with the start-up of the Seattle office and I promise, once the office is running smoothly, we’ll get away just the two of us for a long overdue vacation. Of course, I am very happy to have you visit, but I just lost my CFO and things are particularly crazy in the office. There are nights that I don’t even get home. I just stay at the office because it’s easier. I was just on my way back to the office tonight,” Lara explained.

  The tears continued to fall and Lara gently wiped them away. Lara looked into Sophia’s sad brown eyes and she knew that she would have to think fast to salvage this untenable situation.

  Sophia took a big breath. “Lara, I’m not asking for your undivided attention for the next three weeks, but can I have that for tonight at least? Joy and I will find ways to entertain ourselves here in Seattle for the next three weeks and hopefully, you’ll be able to make some time for me. I do have one more request. I’d like to have a special day with you on your birthday.”

  Shit, shit, shit. How can I possibly be in two places at once? Rachel thinks I don’t know about her surprise party, but not much happens in this town that I don’t know about. I’ll have to think of something later.

  Lara looked away while the internal monologue ran through her brain. She turned back to find Sophia’s expectant eyes scrutinizing her.

  Lara grabbed Sophia’s hands and led her to the couch. She stroked her face and tenderly kissed her lips. “Oh, my sweet darling, I promise we’ll reconnect tonight. I just have to make a few calls and then we can order some dinner and I’ll show you how much I love you, all night long.”

  Sophia smiled for the first time since she’d entered the room. “Go ahead and make those calls and I’ll order us dinner. I’m sure you have the menu memorized, so what would you like?”

  Lara waved her hand in the air. “You choose. I like almost everything on their menu, except of course beef or pork. You know I don’t eat red meat.”

  Sophia arched her eyebrow. “Wow, you’re letting me order for you. This night might prove interesting. Perhaps I’ll be able to turn the tables and exercise a bit of control later. That might spice things up a bit.”

  Lara laughed. “Now, don’t get too carried away. Ordering dinner is one thing—taking control in the bedroom is something else entirely.”

  As Lara walked into the bedroom, she heard Sophia pick up the phone—presumably murmuring their dinner order. She quickly retrieved her phone to make a quick call to Rachel.

  “Hello, sexy. I’m afraid I have some bad news. Since I met with Chelsea Martin today, I need to do a ton of work to secure her business. It will probably take the better part of the evening, so I’ll just stay in town tonight. I know. I’m disappointed too, especially after receiving your naughty text. Oh yes, I’ll be thinking of you too. I’ll call you tomorrow when I get a breather. Sweet dreams to you, too.”

  Lara placed the phone on the nightstand and pinched the bridge of her nose. Life just got uncharacteristically complicated for her. She needed a clear head to help her juggle the two main women in her life—both of them in the same city. This was never supposed to happen. She had a brief thought that perhaps she should just come clean and see where the cards fell, but she shook her head, discarding that moment of insanity. She was Lara Beck and this was just another problem that she needed to solve. She would think of something.

  After her day and a half of practically nonstop, rowdy sex, she was looking forward to making love to her sweet and gentle wife. Sophia was a skilled lover and after ten years, she knew just where to touch Lara to send her reeling. She missed her wife and needed to re-connect with her. Maybe this visit wouldn’t be so bad after all. The balance between Rachel and Sophia might just be what the doctor ordered. She’d let her lust for the new shiny object—Rachel—take her away from her first love.

  Lara walked back into the sitting area and marveled at Sophia’s beauty. Sophia stood in front of the large window overlooking the city as the sunset created an exquisite backdrop. Sophia’s chestnut hair fell in waves across her shoulders. Her tailored clothes fit snuggly against her curves. Although Sophia visited the gym regularly, her body retained the softness of a woman, while keeping her trim and fit.

  Lara noted that Sophia didn’t look a day more than twenty-six and would most likely retain her youthful appearance well into middle age. Her grandmother still had a fair amount of dark hair mixed with gray at the age of eighty-four. Before Sophia’s mother died, her hairdresser had marv
eled at the fact that she could never find one gray hair.

  Lara stepped behind Sophia and caressed her shoulders. She moved her thick, wavy hair to the side to give her unencumbered access to Sophia’s neck. Kissing her neck, Lara turned her around and sought out Sophia’s generous, inviting lips. The kiss grew more intense as Lara explored every inch of her mouth, pushing her tongue inside and stroking her in an ancient dance of passion. Sophia opened to her like a flower in the springtime soaking up the energy of the sun.

  When Lara broke apart and looked at her wife, Sophia took the opportunity to warn her. “Don’t start anything just yet. I expect a knock on the door within the next ten minutes. What do you do to those poor hotel workers? I swear the guy on the other end was falling all over himself to apologize because it would take ten minutes. I could almost hear him wetting his pants on the other end of the phone. Please tell me you don’t terrorize the staff,” Sophia joked.

  Lara laughed. “I do not terrorize the staff. I just like things done a certain way and you know that patience was never a strong quality of mine. Speaking of patience, you’re really going to make me wait to ravage your body?”

  “Yes, I am. It will be so much sweeter if I let the anticipation build.”

  Lara groaned. “It’s been so long, I don’t know if I can wait. I’ve been terribly neglectful lately and I intend to rectify that tonight. I’m sorry that I’ve let business distract me from what’s truly important in my life. I promise that when I am with you from now on, you will have my undivided attention—especially since I probably won’t be able to spend every night with you while you’re here visiting. I’ll make sure that when we are together, you won’t be left hanging.”

  “Oh, darling, that is music to my ears. Shall we sit and you can tell me who your hot prospect was this afternoon?” Sophia headed to the sofa to sit and took Lara’s hand when she joined her on the couch.

  “Hot prospect?”

  “Yes. Your assistant or receptionist, Chandra, mentioned that you had a business meeting all afternoon. I assumed that it must be a hot prospect if you needed to spend all afternoon with your client,” Sophia replied.

  Lara calmed her breathing and forced herself to ask the question that she hoped would not reveal a certain answer. “Did you call or meet Chandra in person?”

  Sophia quirked her head. “We went directly to your office after we landed. Chandra is very protective of your schedule. She would only tell me that you were not available. It was an odd exchange. Joy was her normal abrasive self and raked the poor girl over the coals. She has some archaic notion that I should be given special privilege to information since I’m your wife. I shut her down before she could do any permanent damage. I’m sorry. I don’t think it would be a good idea to visit your office anymore. I don’t want to scare your employees away.”

  Rachel often showed up around lunchtime on the off chance that Lara was available. Sometimes they were even able to eat lunch. Lara smiled as she thought about some of her more adventuresome lunches with Rachel. The ice in her veins allowed the practiced response to Sophia “Yes, it would probably be a good idea to avoid the office, especially when you have your attack dog with you.”

  A light knock on the door interrupted their conversation and for that, Lara was thankful. She jumped up to answer the door.

  A young man in a crisp uniform carried the tray into the room. “Where would you like me to put this, Ms. Beck?”

  Lara pointed to the table in the small kitchen area. “You can set it there.”

  Sophia frowned. “Oh, damn, I guess I forgot to ask you to bring up my bags.” She waved her hand. “No worries, you can bring them up tomorrow morning. I’ll call when I’m ready.”

  “I’m sorry, ma’am, just let us know when you want those bags.”

  When he handed Lara the bill, she glanced at the amount, scribbled her signature, and added a generous tip. She lifted the silver lids and managed to react positively to the choice. “Copper River Salmon, a wonderful selection.”

  Lara was not about to reveal that she’d just had the same meal at lunch. It wouldn’t kill her to enjoy the salmon for dinner and Sophia would be able to enjoy a Pacific Northwest treat.

  “When I called down, this was highly recommended. I guess the Copper River Salmon only run for a short time in the spring. They assured me it was a Northwest specialty that I shouldn’t miss.”

  Lara smiled. “They’re right.”

  Lara re-focused her energies on her wife and opened the wine that Sophia had ordered to complement the meal. She poured two glasses and raised one in the air. When Sophia touched her glass, Lara offered a toast. “To my beautiful wife and delightful surprises.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Rachel slumped in the overstuffed chair. Disappointment was an understatement. With one phone call, Lara had blown her plans to smithereens.

  Espresso jumped in her lap and rolled on his back, showing his stomach. Rachel rubbed his tummy and he started purring loudly.

  “I guess it’s just you and me tonight, my little furry buddy. I suppose I could start working on her surprise party, or….”

  Rachel picked up Espresso and set him on the floor. She removed her shirt and unzipped her jeans. She kept her lace bra on. “I think mommy needs a little inspiration tonight.”

  Rachel shoved her hand into her jeans, picked up her phone from the side table, held her phone in front of her, posed seductively for a picture, and pressed the button. “That should do it. I’ll bet I get a call tonight. I suppose phone sex is better than no sex.”

  She typed the short message and hit send.

  Rachel walked into the master bedroom with her jeans still undone, and set the phone on the nightstand. After stepping out of her jeans, she tossed them on the chair across from the bed. She unfastened her bra and added it to the pile of clothes on the chair. The only item of clothing that remained was her blue thong.

  Espresso followed her into the bedroom and jumped up on the bed.

  “What do you think, Espresso, do you think stating, I wish her hand was here to take over, was too direct? Maybe I should have devised a more subtle message. I guess we’ll have to wait patiently for her response. In the meantime, I think that book I started is calling to me.”

  Rachel read the same paragraph three times. Lara hadn’t responded to her text and that was unusual. She never stayed overnight at the office, at least not when she was at her Seattle office. Granted, she had no idea what her work patterns were when she was in New York, but when she was in Seattle, she always came home eventually.

  Rachel started to worry that something was drastically different. She decided that if Chelsea Martin was this demanding and it affected Rachel’s limited time with her wife, perhaps she wasn’t worth securing as a client.

  Unfortunately, Rachel couldn’t talk about this with her wife tonight because she was still at the office. She decided it would be a good time to make a surprise visit tomorrow in the hopes that she would catch her wife during lunch. Sometimes Rachel wasn’t able to connect with Lara and she ended up taking the food back to the hospital where it always found a home with her hungry colleagues.

  Rachel settled into the bed, now that she had a plan, and quickly acquiesced to the sudden drowsiness that hit her body. Since they hadn’t gotten a lot of sleep the night before, she fell asleep with the reader resting on top of her body.

  Espresso wormed his way under the covers and nestled against her bare midriff.

  Rachel dreamed about Lara and all the delectable things she would do to her body when her wife finally came home.

  †

  Sophia moaned in appreciation as she took a final bite of her meal. “Mmm, the final perfect bite. If I'd known how wonderful Pacific salmon tasted, I would have traveled out here a lot earlier.”

  When Sophia first arrived, she had panicked when Lara's reaction was not what she had hoped for, but after the initial shock that her surprise arrival had caused, the look of love and d
esire returned. It was like when they’d first met. Sophia was looking forward to the rest of the evening.

  Lara pushed the tray away, stood up, and pulled Sophia into her arms. Her movements were slow and precise as she led Sophia to the bedroom and undid each button on her blouse. Sophia's shirt hung loosely on her body until Lara carefully slipped it off her shoulders.

  Sophia began to unzip her slacks, until Lara covered her hand. “Let me do the honors.”

  Sophia could feel Lara's hand brush lightly against her silk panties. It sent a rush of arousal through her body as goosebumps magically appeared on her arms.

  Sophia stepped out of her pants and stood before Lara in her bra and underwear. As Lara moved each bra strap down Sophia's arms, her corresponding touch hit a few of Sophia's erogenous zones. The need to feel Lara move above her was overwhelming.

  She thought it was odd that the bed covers seemed askew because Lara was such a stickler about making the bed every morning. Maybe housekeeping wasn’t able to get to the room before her business meeting. She wrinkled her nose and thought she smelled an unfamiliar perfume in the room. Maybe the client she was entertaining at the penthouse bathed in the stuff and it somehow permeated into the bedroom.

  Sophia smiled to herself as she noted another smell. The room smelled of sex. She wondered if Lara was also pleasuring herself. Maybe they were doing the exact same things thousands of miles away. She would have to remember that and perhaps coordinate their schedules so they might be able to video call one another to make it more exciting.

  “I need to feel your naked body move on top of me,” Sophia pleaded.

  “Not yet. Who is in control here?” Lara asked.

  “You are.”

  “Get in the bed, but leave your panties on,” Lara directed.

  Sophia pulled the covers down and positioned herself for her wife. She licked her lips as she saw the feral look on Lara’s face. The lust in her eyes was evident. She missed that look and now that it was back, she was going to take full advantage.