by Claire Adams
“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” she said. “I know everything, Chance. I know all about Jason and the deal he made with you.”
I just stared at her for a moment. “That fucking asshole… He told you?”
“No,” Natalie shook her head. “Jason didn’t say a word. I actually haven’t spoken to him in months.”
“Then how did you know?”
She laughed. “It’s a strange story,” she said. “And, I was hoping you could fill in that part for me.”
“I’m feeling very confused right now.”
“This morning during my graduation, I received a text,” she told me. “It was from an unknown number, telling me to ask you out to dinner, that it would pay off.”
“An unknown number?”
“Yes.” She nodded. “I decided to follow through and ask you out to dinner. Just after I got ready and just before I left to meet you, I got a call from the same number. She didn’t tell me who she was – I don’t even know her name – but she did tell me all about Jason and the real reason you broke up with me.”
I took a few moments to process that. “You got a call from a strange… Was it a woman?”
“It was,” she nodded.
“Lindsey,” I breathed, remembering the message she had sent me only moments ago. It could only be her; there was no one else apart from Sophie who knew about my relationship with Natalie. And Sophie didn’t know the real reason behind our breakup yet.
“Lindsey?” Natalie repeated. “Is that her name?”
“Yes.” I nodded, but now I was starting to get angry. “She had no right to contact you, much less tell you all that. I confided in her because I trusted her and expected her to keep my confidences.”
“She was trying to help you.”
“By butting in?”
“By sorting out the problem.”
“How has she sorted out the problem?” I demanded. “Jason’s a psychopath – he will go through with his threat and the university will rescind your degree. I’m not going to let that happen.”
“We don’t have to worry about Jason anymore,” Natalie rushed to assure me. “Lindsey took care of it.”
“Excuse me?”
“She had Jason followed,” Natalie explained. “Turns out, he had moved on from me, and he was now stalking a new girl. Lindsey’s friends informed the girl of this, and she went to the police and filed a restraining order against Jason.
“The officer who was put in charge of the case went to check out Jason’s dorm, and apparently, he had a huge number of pictures of all the women he’s stalked over the years.”
I felt a little bubble of panic. “He had pictures of the two of us.”
“Don’t worry, Lindsey’s friends took every picture Jason had of the two of us,” Natalie informed me. “They had enough evidence of stalking to take Jason into custody. He spent a couple of nights in jail.”
“The black eye,” I said, mostly to myself. “That’s where he got it.”
“Apparently,” she nodded.
“How was he able to attend graduation?” I demanded.
“His father has connections,” she explained. “He was able to get the charges dropped. But I think his jail experience was enough to convince Jason to behave himself.”
“He’s leaving the state.”
“I heard,” Natalie nodded.
“And, Lindsey told you all of this?”
“Lindsey did all this,” Natalie smiled. “You two must be really good friends.”
“Better friends that I imagined we were, actually,” I said, in amazement. “She didn’t say a word to me.”
“Who is she?” Natalie asked curiously.
“She’s a professor at the university.”
“Professor Lindsey Hayes?” I asked, in shock.
“The very same.”
“I didn’t even realize you guys were friends.”
“I can’t believe she did all this.”
“She told me she did it because she told me that she’d never really believed in true love…until you convinced her otherwise.”
I turned to Natalie, and I saw the smile in her eyes. I realized suddenly that Lindsey had saved me. She had made sure that I would have a future with Natalie.
“Natalie,” I whispered her name, with all the love and warmth I felt inside.
“Yes?” She smiled.
“I love you,” I said. It felt so amazing to say the words out loud.
She laughed, and the sound was filled with hope and promise and happiness. “I know.” She nodded. “I mean, for a while there, I didn’t know it. I believed you when you said you didn’t want me anymore.”
“You believed me so easily,” I said accusingly. “That hurt.”
“It never made sense for someone like you to love me.”
“Are you kidding?” I asked. “That was the same way I felt about you.”
Her eyes went wide. “You’re joking.”
“No, serious,” I said. “You’re so open and pure and honest, whereas I am…scared and cowardly and broken. At least I was, but I think you’ve managed to fix me.”
“And you have managed to complete me,” Natalie said.
We just stared across the table at one another, and I felt purpose rush back into my life.
“Chance?”
“Yes?”
“I think you owe me a kiss,” she said with a shy smile.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Natalie
I saw a glimmer of desire spark across his eyes as he got up and walked to me. I got to my feet, too, and we embraced. He held me for a long, silent moment and the second we broke apart, his lips came down on mine until we were locked in a passionate kiss.
“I think that’s about as much as we can do in public.” Chance laughed, as we pulled apart. “Maybe we should get out of here and head back to my place?”
“We ordered food, remember?” I reminded him.
“Damn it,” he sighed. “Guess we better sit down then.”
I nodded, and we took our seats again. “So, was that kiss your way of telling me that we’re back together?” I asked, only half teasing.
He smiled and reached for my hand. “These last few weeks were so difficult for me,” he admitted. “The only thing I could concentrate on was you… I wanted to tell you so many times, but… I just couldn’t.”
“I wish you had told me,” I said.
“You wouldn’t have accepted the break up if I’d told you the truth,” he pointed out.
“Of course not,” I agreed. “How could I let Jason get away with that?”
“He would have ratted on us,” Chance pointed out. “And you wouldn’t have been able to graduate.”
“I wouldn’t have cared.”
“Which is exactly why I refused to involve you in this,” he said. “I needed to protect your future.”
“The only future I want is with you,” I said blatantly.
“You say that now—”
“I’ll say that always.”
Chance smiled. “You’re a wonderful person, Natalie,” he said softly, squeezing my hand. “But you’re young…”
“Which counts against me why?” I demanded. “Does youth mean you don’t know your own mind? Because I think that’s complete nonsense.”
Chance smiled at my indignation. “Sometimes how you feel now might not be how you feel ten years from now.”
“You were scared I would blame you one day,” I realized.
“Yes.” He nodded. “And, I didn’t want you to have any regrets. I knew I had to protect you. How could I claim to love you if I acted selfishly?”
“I understand.” I nodded. “But as much as I get it now, it was still so hard for me. I didn’t know how I was going to move on. It seemed impossible to do.”
“I felt the exact same way,” he said. “And it was worse knowing how badly I’d hurt you. I am sorry for that. I hate that I made you cry.”
I smiled. “You
can make it up to me.”
“Oh, I intend to.” Chance nodded. “I intend to, I promise.”
“Will you meet my parents?” I asked.
He smiled. “Of course, tomorrow if you want.”
“Really?” I asked, slightly surprised by how ready he was.
“Of course.” He nodded. “Sophie and Tommy are going to be thrilled.”
“You told them we broke up?”
Chance nodded. “I didn’t tell her the real reason why we broke up, though. I didn’t want to deal with the lecture. She’ll be thrilled. She was so upset when I told her.”
“Are you really moving to Germany?” I asked.
Chance paused for a moment. “I was thinking about it.” He nodded.
“Oh…”
“But now things are different,” he said quickly. “I don’t want to leave without you.”
I raised my eyebrows. “You want me to come with you?”
“Or I could just stay here,” he said. “What do you think?”
I smiled. “We have lots to talk about, don’t we?”
“We do.” He nodded. “There’s a lot to plan.”
I thought about that morning, listening to Martha talk about her wedding. I remembered feeling sad and envious, knowing that I had nothing to look forward to and nothing to plan. How fast things could change. It really was true: life could change on a dime.
“I have been offered a permanent teaching position here,” Chance reminded me. “Now, I can actually consider taking it.”
“Would you be happy teaching here indefinitely?”
“I think I could be.” He nodded thoughtfully. “So much has changed over the last few months and I think… I think I’m starting to see myself settling down at some point, maybe putting down some roots.”
I felt excitement rush through me as Chance spoke. He spoke as though marriage was somewhere in our future. And suddenly, I was too impatient to sit through a whole dinner. All I wanted at that moment was to be alone with him. I wanted the weight of his body on mine. I wanted his tongue on my breasts. I wanted his cock inside me. It had been weeks since we’d had sex, and I realized that was far too long.
“I want to go back to your place,” I said abruptly.
“But dinner?”
“We’ll ask them to pack it up for us,” I said. “I’m not hungry…for food.”
Chance smiled at the insinuation and flagged down a waiter immediately. The moment we had paid and our food was packed up for us, we headed to Chance’s car. The drive to his apartment was possibly one of the most erotic moments I had ever experienced. The sexual tension in the air could be cut with a knife. I longed to reach out and touch him, but I wasn’t sure I would be able to control myself.
I could tell that Chance was battling with the same emotions. His body looked stiff and upright against his seat, and I could see a slight protrusion under his pants. He was also driving faster than normal. We hurried up to his apartment, and the moment he got his key into the lock, he grabbed me by the hips and slammed his lips into mine.
We clawed at each other like rabid dogs, uncaring of the fact that we were still out in his hallway and someone could walk out at any moment and spot us. Chance’s hands pushed up my dress, and then I could feel his fingers loop around my panties. With one strong motion, he had ripped them off, and I gasped at the sound of the elastic breaking.
Then we stumbled over the threshold, and I heard the door slam behind us. I knew we would never get to the bed, but we never even managed to get to the couch. Instead, we tumbled together onto the carpeted floor of Chance’s apartment, pawing at each other in desperation.
There was no time, no need, and no desire for titillation, for foreplay or sensual caresses.
I was sopping wet, and Chance was hard as a rock when he pushed inside me without any warning. I gasped against the delicious sensation of being filled once more and gripped his back as he fucked me hard. I cried out in pleasure, as his thrusts grew deeper and more violent. Our lovemaking was strenuous, urgent, and filled with the longing that had multiplied over the last few weeks of absence.
I was gasping in ecstasy when Chance grabbed me around the waist and rolled over so that I was on top. I shifted myself on top of him, straddling him firmly with my thighs as I started to ride him violently. I kept my hands on his chest, watching as sweat beads started forming on his body. Seeing the little diamonds of perspiration made me realize that I was sweating, too.
My body felt like it was on fire, but in the best, more intoxicating way. I had never felt so alive, so in control and so confident in my skin. It felt almost like I had been born to do this with Chance. I pushed my orgasm back, long enough for him to catch up with me, and then we both came together, moaning, gasping, and grabbing one another for support.
As satisfied as I was, it was still not enough. I was greedy for him, and I wanted more. I didn’t want to rest or lie back. I didn’t want the sweat to dry on our bodies. I kissed his lips, his neck, and his chest until I had reached his cock. I licked what remained of his cum off his limp cock until it started to show some life again. Then I started to suck on him until he was completely erect and ready for action once more.
I massaged his shaft, pushing the length of him inside my mouth. When we were both ready, I pushed myself up and mounted him again. This time, I started slowly, moving back and forth on his dick before increasing the tempo to a vigorous rhythm. With my body already highly sensitive, I came twice more before collapsing on top of Chance. My energy was spent, and I could tell that his was, too.
I rolled off him, onto the carpeted floor, and leaned my head against his shoulder. “I don’t think I could live without sex now,” I admitted.
He laughed. “Hopefully you never have to,” he said. “Whenever you feel the need, just give me a call and no matter where I am, I’ll come back home we can fuck like we just did.”
“What if you’re working?” I said.
“I’ll feign sickness and leave,” Chance replied promptly.
“What if we’re at Sophie’s?”
“We’ll make an excuse, head to the closest bedroom, lock the door, and fuck on the nearest hard surface.”
“What if you’re abroad?”
“Then you’ll probably be with me, so it won’t be a problem.”
I smiled. “Good answers.” I nodded approvingly.
“I never asked you what your plans were,” he said. “Now that you’ve graduated.”
“Oh… Well, to be honest, I haven’t really given it much thought,” I admitted. “All I’ve been doing the last few weeks is pining after you.”
Chance kissed my forehead. “Well, now you have the time to think about it.”
“I don’t know if I have to think too hard,” I admitted.
“Oh?”
I propped myself up on my elbow and looked down at him. “Would you be averse to living here?”
“No, I wouldn’t,” he said immediately.
“You wouldn’t be bored?”
“Not at all,” he assured me. “I’d be with you.”
“I want to travel the world,” I told him. “And I want to travel it with you, but I would like a place to call home. I would like a base that we could always come back to, no matter how far we go.”
“That sounds…perfect.”
“It does,” I agreed.
“Do you realize what you just asked me?” he said with a teasing glimmer in his eyes.
“Uh…no,” I said uncertainly. “What did I just ask you?”
“I think you just suggested that we live together,” he said.
I laughed. “Did I?”
“I think so… Actually, I’m certain you did,” Chance said.
“Okay, then,” I nodded. “Maybe I did. What do you say to that?”
“This apartment is too small for the both of us.”
“We can manage,” I reminded him.
“Once you’ve moved all your things here, there’s not
going to be any room left to move,” Chance said. “We’ll need a bigger place.”
“Can we afford a bigger place?”
“Being made a permanent member of the faculty comes with a pay raise,” he told me. “We’ll be fine.”
I raised my eyebrows. “You’re going to take the job?”
“Yes, I am.” Chance nodded decisively. “It’s a good job, I enjoy teaching, and I’ll get summers off. Which means we can travel.”
I hugged him hard and kissed his chest. “So, we’re moving in together?”
“We’re moving in together,” he confirmed.
“Oh wow.”
“I think in celebration, we should plan our next trip,” Chance suggested.
“Germany?”
“South Africa.”
“Switzerland.”
“Croatia.”
“Zimbabwe.”
“Anywhere you want, my love,” Chance said, kissing my neck tenderly. “Anywhere you want to go, I’ll take you. The world is your oyster.”
I didn’t answer right away. I was too busy dreaming of all the places we would go and all the adventures we would share together.
Epilogue
Chance
Five Years Later
“Nat?” I called, from the balcony. “If we don’t leave soon, we’ll be late. The dinner cruise leaves the port at seven o’clock.”
“I know,” I heard her muffled voice call back to me. “Give me five more minutes.”
I smiled and turned back to the view. It was an idyllic summer day, and Paris had never looked more tranquil or more colorful. Natalie still loved the Parisian winters, but for me, nothing compared to the warmth and brightness of summer. It was the third year in a row that we found ourselves back in the city of love.
After our first trip to Paris, back when I was still Natalie’s teacher, we hadn’t revisited the country for three years. When we finally did return, it was on our honeymoon. After that, we had made it a tradition and come back for our first and second anniversaries.
“Natalie,” I called again.
“I’m ready, I’m ready,” she said, as she emerged from the bathroom.
“Wow,” I whistled. “You look beautiful.”
She laughed and did a little twirl for my benefit. She was wearing a thin, silk dress with an open back in a fantastic navy blue that made her blue eyes look a little lighter. Her hair was shorter now, falling to just above her shoulders in a stylish bob.