by Rayman Black
Rita clucked her tongue. “I knew you weren’t the type, moment I laid eyes on you.” She sighed, but her voice had warmed. “Congratulations, you two. For what it’s worth, y'all make a cute couple.”
I heard her footsteps retreating, then felt Chris’ chest shaking with laughter. I sat back and stared at him, eyes wide. “Did she see us?” I asked. “Did she know what we were doing?”
Chris shrugged, still chuckling. “I think she knew we were up to no good, but no, she didn’t see or hear anything from us. I saw her coming before she was paying attention to us.” He ran a thumb along my cheekbone and tucked an unruly curl behind my ear, his eyes dark with desire beneath the humor. “I feel like I should apologize. I had intended to let you make the first move, in case you weren’t sure about continuing that part of our relationship just yet.” He smiled ruefully. “That resolution didn’t last too long.”
“Thank God,” I said, with feeling. I could still feel the embers glowing inside me. It wouldn’t take much to fan them back into a flame. I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his, making myself very clear. “Your room or mine?” I asked, breaking the kiss and sitting back.
“Whichever we find first,” he said. His hands spanned my ribcage, and he stroked his thumb in tantalizing circles on the underside of my breast. “But we should probably finish our drinks first -” I reached out and picked mine up, saluting him with the glass before draining it in one long swallow. He laughed and continued, “- and wait for Rita to bring back my card. I don’t think it would be wise to accidentally leave it in her hands.”
I set down my glass and picked up the other, pressing it into his hand. “She doesn’t strike me as one to let an opportunity slip by,” I agreed. I turned and looked behind me as Chris raised his glass to his lips. “Oh, here she comes now. Drink up, mister.” I turned back to see his empty glass and an amused half smile on his lips. God, he was sexy.
We slid out of the booth and met halfway across the room. She clearly thought it was funny, the way we were leaving so quickly, but I didn’t care. All I could think about was calculating how long the walk was back to the Bellagio, and how quickly I could get Chris’ clothes off him. He seemed to feel the same urgency, taking my hand and slipping his his wallet back into his pocket as he towed me toward the door. Neither the bouncers nor the check in woman blinked an eye as we walked out of the dark, pulsing music and into the cool air and relatively bright lights of the strip.
“I thought we might be going deaf in there,” I said, rubbing my ears with my free hand. “I like a party as much as the next girl, but that was too loud even for me.”
We turned the corner, retracing our steps. Chris stopped, his brown eyes so fiery with desire I thought we might both burst into flames right there on the street. “I can’t wait,” he said simply, and he pulled me to him and kissed me.
I thought my brain would explode from the overload. Sensations flashed through me, one on the heels of another. I wrapped my arms around his body and clung to him, kissing him back with all the pent up passion inside me. I had wanted to do this ever since I saw him in the lobby this morning. Or was it even earlier than that? Wasn’t there a part of me that had wanted to touch him, wanted to kiss him like this, ever since I woke up beside him this morning? I didn’t think I could ever get enough of him.
“Get a room!” someone shouted, jostling us as they walked past. I stepped back from Chris with a gasp, shocked at myself. I had been known to do a crazy thing or two in my life, but never had I been so passionate in quite such a public place. What was I thinking? I looked back to Chris and realized with a rueful grin that that was the problem. I wasn’t thinking. Something about him made all of my conscious thought just turn off, and what I could only describe as my primitive, impulsive self to take over. And it was clear what she wanted.
“Come on,” Chris said, taking my hand again and pulling me with him. “We’re not far.” He slipped an arm around my waist and pulled me close as we walked.
My thoughts bothered me. I felt the heat inside me begin to cool, the intense and overwhelming desire not so much fading as simply moving to the background. Something about my earlier musings caught on my memory, and I walked quietly, trying to pull it out so I could examine it. It wasn’t that I was attracted to Chris. There had been a lot of guys I was attracted to, and I wasn’t often shy in letting them know it. What was a little sex between consenting adults? It was just a good time, nothing to lose any sleep over.
But that was it, wasn’t it? In all of those encounters, I was always in control. I was a thinker, a planner, and I had rules. We always went back to his place, we always used protection, and I never forgot what was really going on between us. With Chris, all of those rules went right out the window. I wasn’t in control at all, and I kept breaking my own rules.
I glanced over at Chris, at his handsome face in the strange shadows cast by the neon electric glow around us. It was okay that it was different, it was good. I liked what we were exploring together, and I couldn’t wait to see what happened next. But just like I let myself get swept up in him and made out with him on a public street corner without thought of anyone around us, this was the pattern of us, and now I would have to tell my folks that I wasn’t just married, but I had married a man I had known less than four hours. How was I supposed to even begin that conversation?
Chris nudged me on the shoulder, dragging me from my reverie. “You got quiet,” he observed. “Anything you want to talk about?”
I shook my head. “I’m sorry, I’m probably totally spoiling the mood.” I offered him a smile. “I was thinking about my parents. I talked to my sister this morning, and I told her about - well, you know. About us. About getting married. She was pretty cool about it, all things considered, but I know her. She’s not going to be able to keep this to herself for more than a day or two, and I don’t want my parents finding out from her instead of me.” I sighed, annoyed with myself for even thinking about it right now. “I mean, I do actually want them to find out from her instead of me, but that’s the coward’s way out. I need to tell them myself. I’m going to have to call them and let them know, but I’m not sure what to say.”
“Are you close?” Chris asked. “I mean, I guess you must be, if you’re worried your sister will tell them before you do. Are they explosive types?”
“Usually I would say no,” I said. “But for something like this? I don’t know. They might make an exception. There are only a few times I can remember making them explode, but I remember each time in vivid detail.”
Chris laughed. “I guess no matter how old you get, you’re always a little afraid of your parents.”
“What about you?” I asked, suddenly curious. “What’s your family like? You haven’t said much about them.”
Chris shrugged. “I guess we’re not exactly close,” he said. “But we still keep in touch. My folks are still married, which is nearly a miracle, and I have an older brother named Jeff.”
“Do you get along with your brother?” I asked. I loved picturing Chris as a kid, with an older brother he idolized and parents who loved each other and always showed it.
“Not really,” he said dismissively, popping the pretty fantasy I was building. “He was always the golden child, you know? Never stepped a toe out of line or did anything that might get him in trouble. He got good grades, he captained any sports team he was on, and he was just a generally all-around pain in the ass.”
I laughed. “Well, gee, Chris, tell me how you really feel.”
He smiled back. “It’s not as bad as all that. There was some definite favoritism, but my dad never seemed to realize what he was doing. My relationships with my dad and my brother can be complex, but I’m close with my mom. She’s pretty great.” He dropped a kiss on top of my head and steered me toward the lobby doors of the Bellagio. “I can’t wait for you to meet her.”
“Wow, that went quickly,” I said, choosing to change the subject for the moment. “I didn’t realize we were here
already.”
Chris grinned. “Time flies and whatnot, right? Hey listen,” he said, his voice turning serious. “I can’t tell them for you, but I can sit with you, if you want. When you call your folks, I mean. Maybe I can be like moral support, or whatever.”
I stopped and smiled up at him. “That would be perfect,” I said, and lifted up on my toes to kiss him. This time I retained enough of myself to not look like I was trying to jump him here in the lobby, but the heat inside me flared and sparkled, letting me know that it was just damped down, indeed. It would not take much to fan it back into raging flame.
Chris was the one to pull back this time. “Let’s do what the kind stranger suggested earlier,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “Let’s get a room.”
14
Chris
When we stepped on the elevator, Katie pushed the button for her floor. “I think it would be easier to think of what to say if I were looking at my own stuff rather than yours,” she said, looking up at me with sudden shyness. “Do you mind?”
“‘Course not,” I said, squeezing her hand. My need for her simmered in the background of everything, but that wasn’t what she needed right now. It was enough to know she fired for me. I could wait to to watch her burn. “What do you think you’re going to say?”
“‘Hey Mom and Dad, guess what’?” she joked lamely. She sighed. “I don’t know. Everything I think of sounds like a cliche, and no matter what I say, it’s going to sound completely crazy.” She stopped and looked up at me guiltily. “I mean, it is crazy to anyone who wasn’t there.”
I smiled at her with what I hoped was reassurance. “It’s going to be okay. Just tell them we know we acted rashly, but we really like each other. We want to get to know each other. We weren’t trying to hurt anyone. It may be crazy, but it’s simple, too.”
She nodded. “Yeah, it is. Or, at least, it should be.” The elevator dinged and opened. “At any rate, this is going to happen sooner or later, so I might as well get it done, right? Maybe they’ll get most of their big feelings under control before we get back to Boston.” She smiled at me as she opened her door. “At least, I can hope, right?”
She led me inside and set her purse on the dresser, pulling out her phone. Her red dress highlighted every curve as she crawled up on the bed and kicked off her shoes. She tapped the screen a few times and looked up at me.
“Here we go.”
I sat beside her, taking her hand. I could hear the phone ringing. She twined her fingers through mine, tightening them when a woman answered.
“Mom,” she said, sounding flustered. “Hi. H-how are you?”
“I’m fine,” her mother said cautiously. “I think the real question might be how are you?”
Katie gave an unconvincing laugh. “I’m good. Um, is Dad around?”
“Yes,” her mother said, her voice sharper. “Do you need him? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Mom,” Katie said soothingly. “I need to talk to you both, though. Could you get him, please?”
There was a pause and a muffled conversation on the other end. I couldn’t make out the words, just the rise and fall of two different voices. I stroked my thumb along the side of Katie’s hand. She sighed and relaxed her shoulders, leaning slightly into me.
“Okay, we’re both here,” her mother said, sounding worried. “You’re on speakerphone, honey. What’s going on?Terri told us you went to Las Vegas this weekend with your friends. I never liked the idea of you going all the way across the country like this. Did something happen to you out there?”
Katie drew in a deep breath beside me. “Well, I guess you could say it like that,” she said, squeezing my hand more tightly. She seemed to be bracing herself. “I met somebody out here, someone special. We got married last night.”
There was a moment of utter stillness, then Mrs. Halls said flatly, “No.”
Katie sighed, her shoulders deflating. “Yes, Mom. We did. His name is Chris and he’s actually from Boston, too.”
“I know this is a joke, Katherine Marie, because I know that heedless as you are, you would never be thoughtless enough to do something like get married on a whim.” Her voice had risen as she spoke, until she was practically yelling by the end.
Another woman’s voice rose in the background. “Mama, calm down. It’s okay. Just listen to her, okay?”
“Listen to her? As if there’s an explanation in the world that could explain this?” her mother shot back, and then there was a scuffling sound and some static.
“Hello?” Katie said, sounding resigned. I let go of her hand and slid my arm around her waist. “Is anyone still there or should I call back later?” She dropped her head on my shoulder.
“I’m here,” a voice said, this one a deep baritone. I could hear the women arguing in the background, their voices growing fainter as either they moved away or he did. His voice was calm. “Now that I can hear you properly, pumpkin, why don’t you go over this with me again?”
She cringed at the nickname, her fair skin flushing a delicate pink. She looked beautiful, and it made me happy to know she had a family who loved her.
“Well, I got married, Dad,” she said, her shoulders slumped. “Last night. In Las Vegas. Is Mom having a stroke?”
“I understood the part where you got married,” he said, ignoring her question. “But it sounds like there’s more to this story. I’d like to hear it, if you’d indulge me.”
Katie sat up straighter and took another deep breath. “Well, you know that my friends and I were planning to spend the weekend here for Sabrina. It turned out that her fiance, Kevin, and his friends also planned a weekend here, and we met each other by chance at the same bar last night.” She went on to tell the story, our story, leaving out all the parts I expected her to. She surprised me, though, by saying, “We might have had too much to drink, or been sentimental when Kevin and Sabrina got married, but who knows, Dad? We may have married each other anyway later.”
I must have made a noise because her father said, “Is he with you?”
Katie’s eyes flew to my face and I smiled. I held out my hand, nodding when she looked a question at me. We’re getting along fine, I thought as she raised her eyebrows to indicate her trepidation but handed the phone over anyway. We’re already reading each other’s faces.
“Hello, sir, my name is Chris Owens,” I said, suppressing the tremor that wanted to find its way into my voice. “It’s a pleasure to speak with you.”
“Hmm, yes, well, we’ll have to see,” he said, but not unkindly. “Katie says you’re from Boston, that you were with the groom’s party. Does that mean you’re connected with the fire station, too?”
“Yes, sir,” I said. “I’ve been a fireman and first responder for eight years.”
He made a sound, but I couldn’t tell if it was approving or not.
“Sir, if I may,” I began. “I’d like to apologize for the way Katie and I were married yesterday. We meant no disrespect not including you, or my family. We were caught up in it and perhaps we didn’t think it through clearly. But your daughter is a special woman, and I’m happy to have the chance to know her.” I paused, then added, “I look forward to meeting all of you when we get back to Boston.”
Mr. Halls cleared his throat. “Thank you, young man. As you can imagine, this is shocking to us. We’re going to need some time to process this. Is Katie still there?”
I gave her back the phone and winked. She smiled. “Hi, Dad,” she said. “I’m here.”
“I’ll be honest, Katie. I’m surprised at you. I don’t want to say something I don’t mean, so I’m going to get off the phone now and think about this for a bit. And I’ll talk to your mother. When do you get back in town? Monday, was it?”
“Yes, Dad. Monday morning,” she said.
“Then I expect to see you and your young man here for dinner Monday evening,” he said, and his voice brooked no nonsense. “Am I clear?”
“Yes, Dad,” she agreed, and hung up
the phone. She turned to me with wide eyes. “Holy shit, where did you learn to speak like that?”
“Like what?” I asked, puzzled. I grinned at her amazement.
“All that sir stuff, and apologizing. I’ve never heard him calm down faster!”
I laughed. “He seemed pretty calm the whole time,” I observed.
“That’s because you don’t know him,” she said. “The calmer he sounds, the angrier or more upset he is. It’s when he starts sounding testy that you know he’s getting over it. I expected him to be whispering by the end of it, and I was dreading it. You worked some kind of miracle. He sounded almost normal at the end.”
I shrugged. “It never hurts to be respectful. I learned that right away from Chief -” Katie leaned in and kissed me, cutting off my words. I could taste her fire and it unleashed everything inside me that I had been trying to keep back. My body tightened almost painfully as her lips moved against mine.
I cupped her head and changed the angle of the kiss, drawing her deeper. I slid my tongue into her mouth, tasting the lemon and whisky on her. I groaned, pressing her back against the bed until her body lay under mine. She parted her thighs, letting me settle between them, her heat pressed against my hard shaft.
“Oh, God, Chris,” she breathed as I trailed my lips down her throat and across her collarbone. Her hips rose, rocking her core against me. My hand slid from her shoulder and cupped her breast, round and smooth and heavy in my hand. Her hardened nipple pressed into my palm as I gently squeezed, her shoulders lifting her chest to my touch.
“You’re beautiful,” I told her. I slipped my hand beneath her, tugging the zipper down and drawing the fabric with it. My mouth followed its path, tracing down her chest and along the edge of her silky red bra. The clasp was in the front, nestled between creamy white breasts that spilled over the cups. With my teeth, I gently nibbled the hard nubs. With my hands, I slowly inched up the hem of her dress, sliding my fingers up the silky skin of her thighs. Her legs clenched around my waist, her hips rising rhythmically against me, rubbing the thin satin of her panties against the front of my suit pants. I knew she could feel every ridge of my hard cock against her heat. I could practically feel her silky moisture surrounding me, but I wasn’t ready yet. I wanted more from her.