Free Fridays (23 page)

Nothing moved as fast as he needed.

“Hi, Riley. We are aware of the situation. Mr. Watson is on the other line now, trying to salvage details of the deal. Please stand by,” his boss's assistant said into the phone.

Moments before Riley was about to board the plane, he received a frantic message from his own assistant. He was frustrated because he never wanted to go in the first place.

“Thank God, you're not on the plane yet. The meeting needs to be postponed; there's been a horrible accident.”

Riley ended the call with her and quickly dialed his boss's office. The problem was, boarding for the flight had started and business passengers were already walking onto the plane.

“Is there any news on the meeting? They're boarding the flight now,” he said as soon as his boss's assistant answered.

“Yes, Riley. I was just about to call you. The meeting has been rescheduled due to an emergency. You are not required to make the trip. So sorry for the inconvenience.”

Riley sighed. “Okay. Thanks. I'll be in the office tomorrow.”

When he ended the call, he started to call home to let Leela know, but then he decided to call Bill first.

Thoughts of Natasha entered his head and he decided against that too. It was a damn shame that he had to think twice before he could place a call.

Riley made his way back through the crowded airport with lots of thoughts racing through his mind. He could go into the office or finish up from home. He decided the change in plans would be a great surprise for Leela. Lately, his active imagination had wreaked havoc on his marriage. He wanted the evidence to be wrong.

For her part, Leela hadn't done anything to make him think she was being unfaithful, but the thing with Bill had nearly pushed him over the edge. When he thought logically, he understood this was nothing more than Bill trying to reclaim their youthful single days, but there was still that part of him that felt like his manhood was being challenged.

Back at his car and behind the wheel, Riley decided against going into the office tomorrow. He'd go home and surprise his wife. It would still be early enough for a nice romantic dinner; they could make love, and plan to play hooky together on Friday. They needed some quiet, alone time. He was so upset with her that he didn't even get any before he left for the trip.

It was about time he tried to put some romance back into their marriage. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that lately his paranoia had caused them to behave more like two people who shared living space but not much else.

He was tired, and he knew it was about time he made some changes.

Riley merged onto Beltway 8 and eased into one of the middle lanes. As he fidgeted with the radio, he looked up in time to see a sea of red taillights ahead. Traffic had come to a sudden stop.

He quickly increased the volume and listened in horror.

A massive 18-wheeler accident closed down all lanes of the freeway. So, instead of getting home to try and salvage the night, he'd be stuck in gridlock traffic for hours.

“Damn! Could this crap get any worse?”

Nearly three hours later, Riley tried to tell himself to ignore the image he had seen on his iPad. After spending hours in traffic, he wanted nothing more than to go home and do the right thing. He wanted to go home and wait on his wife. He knew she had left for Samantha's house, but quite surely she wasn't gonna stay there all night.

The romantic dinner idea had seemed like the perfect thing to do, but that was before the 18-wheeler accident on the freeway. That was before bumper-to-bumper frustration had gotten the best of him.

People had cut off their engines and started to mingle right there on the highway, but he wanted no part of that. He wanted to get home to his wife. He needed to put eyes on her.

Once traffic started moving again, Riley called Bill.

He was so pissed that the minute Leela thought he was gone, she went off and did her own thing. Now he knew for sure, his suspicions must be valid.

Once he got Bill on the phone and told him everything, Bill seemed worried.

“Don't do nothing stupid, Dawg,” Bill warned Riley. “She ain't worth it, Man. Believe that!” He sighed. “I know you pissed, 'cause you told her to stay away from there, but try to calm down, Dawg.”

The situation wasn't completely lost on Riley. He remembered months ago when their roles were reversed. It was him talking Bill off the ledge. He had sworn it would never happen to him; he wore the pants in his house and not a day had gone by that he didn't let Leela know.

“If anything is going on, I'm gonna kill her, man,” Riley said.

The iPad he used to track his wife's movements had been stuck at Samantha's address the whole time he'd been stuck in traffic. She had defied his orders, and the minute she thought he was gone and she was alone, she'd proven that he could no longer trust her to do the right thing. What really pissed him off was the fact that Leela did exactly what he'd told her not to do. He was fed up and he was not about to let this shit slide.

He ended the call with Bill; he didn't need to be talked out of anything. All he needed was to find his wife, and for her sake, he prayed the slut would be the only person she was with when he finally arrived.

W
ith music softly playing, her lips were gently saying, “Maaalone, pleease, stop. I can't.”

But when a thick chocolate finger fumbled into her mouth, she sucked and suckled.

Leela breathed hard and struggled to fight the pure bliss she felt. Her brain raced with thoughts of how something that felt so good, could be so very wrong. Her insides tingled as if every single nerve in her body had been ignited. He moved his hand from her mouth.

“Please, Malone.”

She painstakingly begged for mercy, and urged him to stop, but her body moved in sync with his, like she enjoyed everything he was doing.

“Oh, God!”

She was writhing in agony, as if she wanted to get away.

But she was no match for Malone's strength. Pinned in the corner of a soft leather sofa, there was no way for Leela to escape. She bit down on her bottom lip as Malone adjusted her hips and positioned her thighs over his shoulders. He was on his knees, with his head buried between her legs.

Leela's body squirmed, but he wouldn't let up. When she felt his strong and steady fingers stroke her inner thighs, she thought she'd died and gone to heaven.

Instinctively, she gyrated and moved to a rhythm that was slow and deliberate. Malone's soft tongue flickered tenderly against her swollen, hypersensitive clit and nearly brought tears of pleasure to her eyes.

She felt the sensation as it slowly built and traveled up her weakened legs. Everything he said and did felt good. His words made her cream without trying; his touch was electrifying, and dazzled every spot on her skin.

They'd been alone while Kent and Samantha went shopping for dessert. The guys had grilled steaks and lobster tails, but there was nothing for dessert, so Kent and Samantha decided to make a run. That left Leela alone with Malone

“You guys coming to the store or staying here?” Samantha had asked.

Leela had eyed Malone, but neither answered.

The seductive grin on their faces told the entire story.

“Okay then. We'll be back,” Samantha had said. “Don't do anything I wouldn't do.”

Leela remained resolved to set some ground rules for Malone. They couldn't go on the way they had been; it wouldn't be good for anyone.

“We need to talk,” she had said.

Malone had gotten close. She'd smelled his scent and felt his breath as he got closer.

One minute Leela was explaining why she needed to back off and give her marriage a chance; then the next, her panties were coming off and Malone was adjusting himself between her thighs.

“I need a taste before dessert.”

“No, Malone, this is not a good idea.”

“Let me taste you. Let me make you feel good, help take the edge off. Your mind is somewhere else. I want you here with me.”

Leela knew he was right. She'd been deep in thought. The battle that brewed in her head began the moment they arrived at Samantha's.

Malone eased back slightly and gazed down at her. His eyes took in every inch of her womanhood. He removed his shirt and yanked off the skirt she wore.

She had given up. There was no point in fighting anymore. She gave in. She allowed herself to let go of all hesitation and simply enjoy what was happening. Her body was already there. Her heart left first; now, she just needed to release herself mentally and enjoy.

“Let's go to the back, so we can be comfortable,” Malone said as he pulled back from the work he was doing between her thighs.

Breathing hard and heavy, Leela couldn't find her voice, but she wanted to go. She wanted to follow him regardless of the consequences. She needed him to go back to what he had been doing moments earlier. She fought the urge to grab his head in her hands and guide him back to where he had been.

There was no turning back, was there?

When the hurried knock sounded at the door, a sense of relief washed over Leela. She had gone too far; they had done too much. The interruption had come right on time.

“The door,” she whispered. “Samantha probably forgot something; go get it.”

“Then we'll go to the back?” Malone asked.

“Yes.”

Leela scrambled for her panties and her skirt. Eager and anxious, Malone rushed to the door and pulled it open. But the sound of a question from the door stopped Leela cold in her tracks.

“Where the hell is my wife?”

Riley?

Leela couldn't move a single muscle. There she was, in the middle
of her best friend's living room, naked from the waist down, with her panties in one hand, and her skirt in the other, and caught between her lover and her husband.

•  •  •

At first, when Samantha saw Bill's number flash across her screen, instinct told her to ignore the call. She still had nothing to discuss with him and thought it odd that he'd call.

She turned to Kent and smirked. “Can you believe the nerve? My loser ex is calling.”

Kent's eyebrows went up.

“It ain't nothing like that. Actually, Babe, I'm wondering whether someone died or something. He has absolutely no reason whatsoever to call me.” She shrugged and put the phone back into her purse.

“Well, answer and find out what he wants.”

“You don't mind?”

“Why would I? I'm not worried,” Kent said and playfully smacked her on the behind.

Before she could answer, the phone stopped ringing.

Samantha shrugged again, and they moved on to the next aisle in the grocery store.

“You guys want wine or something stronger. I could get some of those frozen mixes.”

“Nah. We'd better stick with wine. I don't want to scare Leela.”

They laughed at that and Samantha went to select a bottle. She picked a couple of Chardonnays and brought them back to the basket.

The moment she placed them down, her phone began to ring again.

“It's him again.” Samantha showed the phone as if to prove he was calling back.

“Get it.”

Samantha stopped, and picked up the phone. “Hello?” There was not a trace of enthusiasm or excitement in her voice. She actually sounded kind of disturbed.

“Yo, Sam, where you at?” Bill asked.

Samantha frowned. His cheerful voice and question left her confused. “My days of answering to you ended a long time ago,” she hissed.

She was surprised at the amount of animosity she still held for him. Kent walked farther down the aisle, and she appreciated it. She didn't need him to witness just how nasty she could get; Bill was definitely about to take her there.

“Listen. I'm only asking because I think Riley is about to go ham on your girl. I just wanted to know whether she was with you or not, that's all.”

“What do you mean he's about to go ham on my girl? I thought he was out of town. He's supposed to be gone for a few days, isn't he?” Samantha felt panic flood her system.

“He was, but his trip was cancelled. I think he went by the house and when she wasn't there, he got pissed. Said something about heading over to your place. Look, I'm only calling because I don't need my boy to catch a case.”

Dread settled in quickly. Samantha thought about the lust she had witnessed in her friend's eyes as they left the two alone. Riley's presence would only cause problems.

“Okay, um. Thanks for the heads-up. I need to run.”

“Wait. Sam, what y'all up to? Do I need to come over there?” Bill asked.

Samantha didn't answer as she rushed toward Kent. The frantic look in her eyes told him something wasn't right.

“What happened? What did he say?”

“We need to go. We don't have time for this. Like we need to go
now
. Riley is headed to my place.”

“Riley? I thought he was outta town.”

“He was, or was supposed to be, but something happened and his trip was cancelled. C'mon; we need to get back to the house.”

“Shit. You don't think ol' boy would do anything stupid, do you?” Kent asked.

“Well, considering how much he hates me now and how he warned her to stay away from me, I don't want to take any chances.”

They left the basket, its contents, and rushed out of the store.

On the drive back to the house, Kent tried to keep Samantha calm. He discussed all of the reasons Bill's call might have been an overreaction. As he drove, he clutched her hand tightly.

Samantha heard every word he said, and although she appreciated his efforts, the sinking feeling deep in her stomach told her things would not end right.

“I would feel awful if something happened to her. She was very reluctant to hang, but I convinced her that it would be fine.”