Blaine

by Katie Dowe

  “The most delicious I've ever tasted,” he told her with a genuine smile. “I can see where Skylar gets her culinary skills from.”

  “Grandma was a pretty good cook as well,” Skylar told him with a sparkle in her brown eyes. She was so different here from when she'd been at her mother’s place. It reminded him of the times he'd gone back to visit his parents’ place and how he couldn't wait for the uncomfortable dinner to be finished so he could disappear. They had so much in common that it was uncanny! Suddenly he felt the need to protect her from the unhappiness and the strain of a relationship that brought out the worst from her. Which was ridiculous because she was a grown woman who certainly didn't need his protection. But it was more than that. Over the past month or so she'd come to mean so much to him that he realized that he wasn't satisfied with what they had. He wanted much more. The realization startled him so much that he found himself staring at her. He'd met a woman he wanted to share his life with!

  Chapter 6

  “Are you okay?” Skylar asked him as they made their way back. It had gotten dark and the sky was leaden with the possibility of snow later in the night. They'd spent a wonderful time at her aunt’s; who had plied them with containers of leftovers including slices of the delicious pumpkin pie she'd made, and with invitations to visit soon. Skylar had nodded off for a few minutes, full and warm as she leaned her head against the headrest.

  He glanced at her briefly and nodded. “Just thinking.”

  “About?”

  “Us,” he responded. His fingers tapped restlessly against the steering wheel as he looked in ahead. “We're good together.”

  “We are,” she looked at him curiously. “I guess it's because there's no pressure where we're concerned.”

  “What if we live together?” he glanced at her briefly before looking back at the road.

  “Why would we want to do that?”

  He shrugged. “I spend most of my time at your place anyway.”

  “So there you go.” She turned to face him. “What we have is near perfect, Blaine. We get to see each other, we talk and it doesn't turn into a fight because we're aware that we have our own space where we can retreat to when we feel a need to. The lovemaking is fantastic and I have to tell you that I've never experienced anything like it before. We're good together and that's why we cannot do anything to ruin it.”

  “You think if we live together we'll ruin it?”

  “Definitely,” she responded. “I've seen what living with another person does to a relationship, Blaine, and I cannot risk that happening to us. I really want us to work.”

  He turned into the apartment’s parking lot and killed the engine. “You're right,” he said as he turned to her. “I don’t know what I was thinking. This is good, what we have, and we should not try to change it.”

  “I agree.” She touched his face briefly before opening the door. “Let’s go snuggle.”

  *****

  “Devon and I had sex,” Deloris blurted out as soon as they were served their lunch. It was three days after the Christmas holidays and the girls were just catching up. Skylar had opened the store to a slow period, which afforded her the luxury of having a long lunch with her girls. She didn't mind and wasn't complaining as she'd made a very decent profit over the holiday period and expected to make more over the New Year. She and Blaine were good and she was keeping her fingers crossed that it would continue. He was coming to mean a lot to her.

  Both Angela and Skylar stared at Deloris in silence.

  “Okay Del, how was it and did it happen again? Does that mean you and Devon are back together?” Deloris stared at her friends. “Those are the questions you're supposed to be asking me, guys.”

  “You have to give us a moment to recover our equilibrium,” Skylar told her dryly. “So, can we get the answers to those questions?”

  “It happened again and again and it was really, very good. We aren't back together at all.”

  “Why not?” Angela asked her.

  “It’s complicated and too much has happened between us to be fixed just by very good sex.”

  “Surely it's a start,” Skylar said.

  “Maybe,” Deloris shrugged. “I'm not going to ask him and he hasn't said anything to me. The kids are home until next week and we're enjoying them. When they leave I have no idea what will happen.”

  “Do you want the marriage to work?” Skylar asked her.

  “I do.” She put her hands onto the table. “I do. I thought I wanted out but I love him and I would like my husband back.”

  “Then fight.”

  “I don’t know what I'm fighting for,” she protested.

  “For the life you had before all this came into play, honey,” Skylar told her. “Surely it's worth fighting for.”

  “We'll see,” she shrugged. “How about you, Angela?”

  “Still trying to figure out what to do. I don’t know if I really want to stay married to him. I'm weighing the pros and cons.” She looked at Skylar. “What about you, Sky? How's the hot billionaire who, by the way, we have yet to officially meet?”

  “We're taking it one step at a time,” she said airily. “He's met my mother and he's still around, so there's hope.”

  “For what?” Deloris asked her curiously as she stirred her drink.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You don't want to get married and I'm sure you don't want to live with him. So what are you talking about?”

  Skylar stared at her for a moment and frowned. “He knows that I don't want marriage. We're on the same page where that's concerned because we talked about it.”

  “And that hasn't changed?” Deloris persisted.

  “No.”

  “So you're just going to continue seeing each other until the relationship ends?” This was from Angela.

  “I suppose we are,” she said slowly.

  “Honey, I love you and you're probably the smartest of us three, but you're deluding yourself. You and the guy have been inseparable since you met, there's bound to be a point where one of you is going to want more,” Deloris told her.

  *****

  Blaine examined the fully-restored ground floor slowly, looking over every inch of the walls and the rich tan board floors. It was coming together and he was very pleased with the finish. There was still a long way to go but it was getting there, and if there were no more delays it would make its March deadline. He glanced at the watch on his wrist and saw that it was almost four p.m. He had something special planned for the evening when he went back to Skylar’s apartment. He grinned as he remembered her reaction when he'd given her that diamond necklace and matching bracelet for Christmas. She'd given him a beautiful dark green cashmere sweater. “I had no idea what to get you. After all you can pretty much buy anything you want,” She'd said to him.

  “I love this,” he had told her softly. “Is this going to be a thing where we exchange gifts?”

  “I suppose so.” She had wrinkled her small nose at him. “We are, after all, seeing each other.”

  “So you won’t mind me showering you with gifts?” he'd asked her.

  “Shower away darling,” she'd told him with a laugh. “And make a note that I'm partial to diamonds.”

  “I'll definitely make a note.” He had laughed at the look on her face as he spoke into his watch as a reminder. He'd been to the store several times to wait for her to lock up and sat there watching as she catered to the customers, realizing that she was a natural. He had walked into a store and had bought her a steel gray cashmere jacket that had the salesperson almost crowing in delight at the commission she would be getting from the sale. He had it boxed up and it was there on the back seat of his jeep. He loved giving her things and maybe one of the reasons was that she never asked him for anything or seemed to need anything. She was starting to mean more to him than the great sex they had on a regular basis. She had somehow found her way into his heart and suddenly he wasn't sure he wanted to ever be single again. He'd told
her that he wanted to live with her but he wanted more than that. He closed his eyes briefly as his heart started beating fast. His phone rang just then and he pulled it out, smiling as he saw her name. “Hey you.”

  “I was thinking takeout for tonight. I'm getting off a bit early since it's pretty slow. What time are you leaving?”

  “Around the same time. Takeout is fine. Want me to bring anything?”

  “Just your fine self.”

  “I'll see you later.”

  He hung up and, closing his eyes briefly, he went back to work.

  *****

  She tried it on and stared at herself in the full-length mirror. “You do know we sell coats, right?” she asked as the coat enveloped her in its warmth. She knew that it had cost a fortune but she loved the feel of it.

  “I wanted it to be a surprise,” he apologized as he stared at her in the mirror. “You look great, by the way.”

  “Of course I do.” Her eyes met his in the mirror. “Guess who's going to be rewarded by some very vigorous sex tonight?”

  “Me?” he asked, his eyebrows lifting as he smiled at her.

  “You got that right, honey.” She turned and looked at herself sideways. “I love it. Thanks. You're quite the generous boyfriend.”

  “I'm hardly a boy,” he told her dryly.

  “Man-friend then.” She took off the coat and went to hang it up in her closet before coming back out.

  “I'd like to think I'm more than that.”

  “Definitely more.” She climbed onto the bed next to him and threw her legs over his. “Lover seems more like the right term.”

  “We could be more,” he said lightly as he took her hands in his.

  “What are you saying?”

  “We could just share one place.” He felt her hands stiffen in his. “I could give up my apartment and live here with you. I hardly spend any time there anyway.”

  She pulled her hands away from his and moved away. He watched as she climbed off the bed and went to put a robe on over her black and white pajamas. “We talked about this, Blaine.”

  “I know, but we spend so much time together,” he said persuasively. “I never expected to want more, but I do.”

  She turned to face him, a frown creasing her brow. “Wait! Hold up! What do you mean by more?”

  He took a deep breath. “Marriage and maybe a child—” He stopped at the look on her face.

  “Are you insane?” she cried.

  “I know you''re over fifty and it probably won't happen but we could adopt—”

  “Stop! Where is Blaine and who are you?”

  He closed his eyes briefly. “I've been thinking—”

  “And I want you to stop thinking, Blaine. We're not getting married, and the idea of me getting pregnant at my age is beyond madness! You, of all people, know how disastrous marriage can be. And so do I. We would be fools to think otherwise.”

  “I know,” he told her quietly. “I've been telling myself that as well but I can't get it out of my head that we're so good together. We're not my parents and we'll never be them.”

  “My two friends are trying to piece their lives together after reeling from the effects of horrible marriages, so it's not just your parents, Blaine! Maybe I would have thought about it if we'd met when I was in my thirties, but it's too late for us and we need to accept that.” Without another word she marched into the bathroom and slammed the door shut behind her.

  *****

  “Blaine and I had a fight.” Skylar toyed with the straw in her drink. She had left the store early and gone to visit her aunt. It had been two days since the argument and she'd told him she needed space, but she missed him. Missed the conversations and the companionship they shared and she had to admit that she missed the sex very much. He hadn't called her and she found herself wishing that he would.

  “What about?” Grace brought her cup of tea over and sat across from her niece.

  “He was talking about marriage and having kids,” she said with a sharp laugh. “For the first time in my life I wished that I was in my thirties and that was possible.”

  “Who says it’s not?” her aunt asked her gently.

  Skylar stared at her aunt. “You're kidding, right?”

  “Honey, you're not exactly an old woman and you're in good health.”

  “I'm a middle-aged woman who would be foolish to think that I can have a child at my age! And I don't want to get married. Marriage has a way of changing things.”

  “I was reading this article just the other day about these African American women, a special group of women, who marry these rich mostly white men and are making it work. There's one by the name of Hailey, she has a doctorate in liberal arts and she got married when she was forty-six and went on to bear two children. These women seem to be making these marriages work. The men they're married to actually belong to the same club your Blaine belongs to.”

  “That doesn't mean anything, Aunt Grace,” she said stubbornly.

  “It’s something to think about, honey.”

  *****

  Blaine had decided to spend the night at the club. He hadn't bothered to go on site today but had left his apartment and made the decision to get out of town. She hadn't called him and he knew that she wasn't going to. It had been two days since he'd seen her or heard her voice and he was tormented. He poured himself some of the brandy he'd had sent to his room and sat on the edge of the bed as he stared into the amber liquid. He'd messed up. He should have waited a little longer before approaching her with the subject. She wasn't ready and he wasn't sure he was either. He drank the liquor and grimaced as it hit his empty stomach. He hadn't eaten since lunch and he'd thought about ordering something to eat but he didn't have any appetite for food. He remembered the last time he'd visited his dad before he died and had tried to get him to understand what had happened in his life.

  “I never wanted marriage and a kid,” the old man had told him bitterly. “That wasn't the plan. I wanted to explore the world and do something worthwhile with my life.”

  “So why did you get married?” Blaine had asked him coldly.

  “Pressure from both our parents. I was planning to leave when she got knocked up and I had to stay.”

  “So I was a mistake?” Blaine remembered how horrified and disgusted he'd felt.

  “You were,” he'd been told.

  Blaine finished the drink and gripped the glass in his hands. He'd decided then and there that he never wanted kids in case he turned out like his dad. But now he'd changed his mind because he'd met a woman he saw himself spending the rest of his life with. With a sudden decision, he got to his feet and glanced at his watch. It wasn't yet nine p.m. He could catch a flight and be there by twelve. He'd given her more than enough time to be upset with him.

  *****

  Skylar felt the bed depress and a the warm body come over hers. She opened her mouth to scream when the hand pressed against her mouth. “It’s me,” he whispered.

  “Dammit, Blaine! You scared the crap out of me.” Her eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room and she stared into his dark green eyes.

  “I'm sorry,” he whispered. “I was at the club where I was thinking of spending the night when I decided that I didn't want to spend another night without you. I know we didn't sign up for more—”

  She brought his head down and took his lips with hers. He returned the kiss with all the pent up desire he was feeling, his hands going between them to pull down her pajama and touched the warmth of her flesh. He'd taken off his clothes before he'd climbed onto the bed. She opened her legs wide to accommodate him as he guided his penis into her. She didn't notice or care that he wasn't wearing a rubber, so happy was she that he'd come to her. She sighed as he pushed deep into her and started to move her body against his. He shuddered as he thrust into her, his body responding to hers with a fierce passion.

  *****

  She looked up as he came into the kitchen the next morning. His ash blonde hair was damp fr
om the shower he'd just taken and he was wearing his usual faded jeans and a clean black sweater. Their eyes met and held as he continued towards the counter. She handed him a cup of coffee. She was already dressed and ready to go to the store. “So I guess it's safe to say that this relationship isn't perfect,” she said lightly as she sipped her coffee. “We had our first fight.”

  “Are we still fighting?” he asked her cautiously.

  “After that very hot and heavy sex?” she teased him. “I should think not.”

  He smiled at that. “I came across heavy and I want to apologize. You're right; we didn't sign up for what I was asking of us.”

  “No, we didn't. But things have changed between us. I'm not agreeing to marriage or kids but I guess we can live together. You're right, you spend most of your time here anyway.”

  “Are you sure?” he asked her.

  She nodded. “I was without you for two days, Blaine, and it felt like a lifetime. I think it's safe to say that what we feel for each other is more than just physical.”

  “I agree.” He leaned forward and kissed her on the lips. “So, I'll see you later.”

  “Most definitely. Hey! I was thinking that it's time you met my friends,” she said casually.

  “I'd like that,” he told her. “What do you have in mind?”

  “Dinner here on Saturday night. I'll find out if they're free.”

  “I would like that,” he said softly. “I have to run. See you later.”

  *****

  Blaine sat outside the apartment building in his jeep, his thoughts far away. He'd made love to her without using anything and she hadn't said anything to him. The idea had come to him last night as he was on his way to her. He'd been using protection with her and had never thought about not using anything until last night. Last night had been spur of the moment and couldn't be helped so he knew she wouldn't hold it against him, but he was thinking about never using anything again in the hopes of her getting pregnant.

  His heart raced as he thought of the implications of what he was planning to do. If she found out that he'd deliberately set out to get her pregnant she might never forgive him and it would probably put a strain on their relationship. But he had no doubt that she would forgive him eventually and he was counting on the fact that she would want to marry him as well. He was taking a huge gamble but he had to try. He knew that they could do very well together.