Authors: Eric Pete
Reality Check (18 page)
39
Glover
Monday was typically busy. The wedding preparation was in high gear and my bridal jitters were in full effect. Mona and Charmaine, the true friends that they were, made fun of me every chance they got. They looked forward to the wedding and reception at Catalina. Money was going to be in the air that day, and landing an available, financially stable suitor was a possibility for both of them.
I mailed invitations to my people back in Virginia, but I doubted they would show up, especially with the short notice. I didn’t keep up with them once my grandmother passed away. When my mom died, a few cousins came down for the funeral, but that was it. Word has it that my mom was swept up in my dad’s success and charisma and turned her back on most of the family, only to learn that he wasn’t the good man he claimed to be. By that time, I was born and she’d burned her bridges with her people back home. That left just me and her.
I never really knew my dad’s people and had no idea if he was even alive. Lionel’s dad volunteered to walk me down the aisle, and I’d agreed to take him up on his offer.
Maybe that was another reason I didn’t want a church wedding. It just didn’t feel right with this situation. I mean ... with my mom gone. The last time I had stepped foot in a church was for my mother’s funeral, the day my best friend left me for good. It was an unresolved issue with me that I’d shared with no one.
Except for Max, the one person who was so considerate when speaking of her that day we first had lunch.
I considered spending the night at Lionel’s after work, but only after stopping at my apartment to change. I’d resisted this long; maybe it was time to start moving a few things over there.
I had an unpleasant surprise when I jumped on I-10 after work. Some idiot in a stolen car had wiped out after a police chase, shutting down most of the westbound lanes. It wasn’t until after eight o’clock that I came dragging in through my front door.
I was too exhausted to eat. After dropping my purse on the floor, I kicked off my shoes then dove onto my sofa. I arched back as I slipped off my bra and undid the button on my skirt. I let out a sigh of relief, as my slip had been rubbing my waist raw all day. The red skirt looked good on me, but it was getting a little snug and would have to go. Mona was smaller. Maybe she would have use for it after having it altered.
I leaned back once more, sliding off my pantyhose. The slip followed. I massaged the arches of my feet, applying pressure with my thumbs. Damn, it felt good. My dogs had been sore since the weekend. I did a lot of walking and standing Saturday during the fitting and stuff, but most of it was due to Friday night.
With a smile, my thoughts drifted to Max, and me trying to keep up with him on the dance floor. It was a wonderful feeling of freedom being there, just the music and us.
I chuckled, vowing to stow the memory away for safekeeping, before pulling myself up from the sofa. I poured myself a glass of white wine then sat back down. My last coherent thought was that I had to be at Lionel’s, but a quick nap wasn’t going to hurt anything.
I dreamed I was naked, soaring above the clouds. Below were lush green mountains, with birds chirping and waterfalls everywhere. The wind caressed my body as I did loopty-loops through the clouds without a care. This was fun. I’d never had a dream like this.
As soon as I got used to the flying experience, the weather suddenly changed. The white, fluffy clouds turned dark and stormy. Lightning flashed everywhere, frightening me. The thunder was deafening. Rain began hammering me to the point where I couldn’t see. I suddenly fell from the sky, unable to scream.
As I came closer and closer to the ground, my heart threatened to burst from my chest. Clouds rushing past me, I flailed in vain, as I was still unable to scream or wake. I tried closing my eyes, but couldn’t. My life was about to end and I couldn’t do anything about it. When I had given up all hope, I was grabbed and pulled up to safety—
I woke in a panic, still on my sofa, and still in my shirt and skirt from work. I looked toward my blinds. Outside, I heard the rain crashing against the window. It was coming down sideways. I stared at the 12:15 on my clock at the same time a flash of lightning illuminated my apartment.
I had only meant to take a short nap before going to Lionel’s. I knew I couldn’t stay here. Thunderstorms spooked me, and my dream had me beyond rattled. I put my shoes back on, grabbed my purse, and ran out the door.
I hadn’t realized how hard the rain was falling until I was outside running in it. My umbrella was in the car. I was drenched, but the awning over my parking spot gave me a break while I fumbled for my keys. Lionel was probably asleep, so I would just have to wake him up.
I drove my Civic west down San Vicente until I came to Hauser Boulevard. At the red light, the rain worsened. I focused on the wiper blades as they went back and forth. They were having trouble keeping up with the downpour, so I sped them up with a twist of the handle. The old truck in front of me waited for the light as well. When it turned, all I would have to do was make a right turn and head to Lionel’s.
A left turn, however, would take me down Hauser to Venice Boulevard.
And to Max.
I was fighting this with all my heart.
Lightning danced across the sky, striking somewhere nearby. Then the traffic signal turned green.
Green.
Go.
It was time to make the right turn. I thought back to the dream that had left me so startled, as my wiper blades continued to move to and fro.
The truck ahead of me moved; then I drove off.
When I arrived, the rain wasn’t coming down as hard, but it was still consistent. I decided to run for it rather than digging for my umbrella in the trunk. As I ran, I slipped in a puddle and almost busted my ass.
I’d regained my composure by the time I reached the door. I heard music playing. Knew the song, too. I grimaced over the thought of him entertaining company at this time of night. How embarrassing would that be? I almost didn’t knock, but I had nothing to lose except my pride.
Pride only counts for so much. Sade put it best: Love is stronger than pride.
I knocked then waited. The music lowered, and then footsteps approached.
I was a pretty sick sight when the door opened, ruined bob and all. Max wore nothing but a blue towel. He paused, looked at me strangely.
“Are ... are you okay?” he asked while watching the water puddle develop beneath me.
“Yeah. Just a little wet,” I joked. “You have company?”
“No. No company.”
Good.
“You smell good.”
“Yeah, it’s called soap. Look ... Glover, I don’t have time for this. I can’t go through this again. Especially now.”
I walked in, despite his objections, and pushed the door shut behind me. I stood before him and put my fingers to his lips.
“Shhh,” I whispered. “Don’t say a thing. I need you. Now.”
I stepped out of my wet shoes and stood on one leg while I pulled Max against me. My other bare leg rubbed up against his. He began kissing my fingertips that were to his lips, then froze up and tried to back away. His towel had a slight rise to it.
He paused, closed his eyes, as if the sight of me would sway his thoughts. “Are you using me?” he asked.
“Maybe. I don’t know. I was falling, and you caught me.”
Max inhaled deeply, as if in a yoga class, taking a step back before he gave in and lunged. He was all over me, all into me, his kisses to my neck setting me afire wherever they landed. My head flew back as I sucked on my bottom lip in delight.
In the middle of his kisses, he whispered in my ear, “Why’d you come?”
The song Max was playing was Carl Thomas’ “I Wish.”
But, like the verse goes, I still belonged to someone else.
40
Max
“I’m here because I want you. I need you,” Glover answered. The song playing said he wished he’d never met her at all, but I was glad I had.
My lips worked around her ear. Normally I might be able to fight it. Things were different, though. Just getting out of the shower, I’d been caught at one of the lowest points in my life. My trip to Lake Charles and learning about Denessa’s passing had me reassessing things. I should be living every day like it was my last. Just like Denessa, Glover had been placed in my life for a reason. I could have made excuses about the jet lag and everything else, but they wouldn’t hold up. I knew what I was doing, and so did Glover.
Our lips touched and we were back at that same point from a month ago, the point when her phone rang and we had stopped.
Glover moaned as I sucked on her tongue, tugging at it softly each time she offered it up. She ran her fingernails down my back and began tugging on my towel. It came off in her hand. With her other hand, she grabbed my dick, stroking it as she brought it against the warm area in the center of her skirt. I shuddered.
“I want it,” she urged. “You gonna give it to me?”
Still embracing, we moved in synch, her following me with each backward step I took toward my bedroom. At my bed, I ran my hands from her shoulders down to the small of her back. I went past her skirt, reaching under to squeeze that bubble as I’d wanted to since the day I first saw it. Glover let out a moan as I gripped her ass cheeks with both hands, lifting her off her feet. She had nothing on underneath the skirt, heating me to no end. I yanked on the side of the skirt, sending the button flying and the zipper giving way. The skirt fell to the bedroom floor and she stepped out of it. The scent from her honey set my dick to throbbing uncontrollably.
“I was going to get rid of that skirt anyway,” she joked.
She kissed across my chest and ran across my nipples before pushing me down onto the bed. I landed on a stack of clothes I hadn’t put away yet, but quickly swatted them onto the floor. Glover stood there, her bare breasts visible through the damp white blouse, like some model who’d just stepped out of a waterfall. Her lovely golden legs rose up to that which the bottom of her blouse covered, teasing me, tempting me.
I was on my back with my hard-on saluting her. She crawled atop me, the light from my bathroom reflected off those crazy sexy eyes of hers. She smiled wickedly before taking me in her mouth with measured gulps, each one deeper and sloppier than the last.
“Shit. Fuck. D–damn,” I muttered, pawing at the sheets as if on a runaway raft. As Glover brought me to that point, she eased off. She sat up, knowing how crazy she was making me, and began slowly unbuttoning her top. I relished the methodical striptease, waiting for the treat at the end as the blouse fell away, revealing those luscious breasts, her neatly trimmed bush and juicy mound. My mouth watered.
I sat up. While steadying her with my hand, I kissed her inner thighs, making them quiver. Kissed them tenderly while tasting the distinctive, salty flavor of sweat and passion mixed faintly with rainwater. The flavor of Glover. I immersed myself in it.
“Do–don’t stop. You’re making me so ... so . . . hot,” she gasped as I lapped hungrily at her melting center. As I indulged myself, she took my hands, placing them atop her breasts. She guided their squeezing and massaging, causing her to respond even more.
“Mmm. That’s it. Eat it all up,” she said as she worked her pussy against my mouth and tongue. Right there, if she could suffocate me beneath her desires, she would have. Her chanting grew louder the more she came. And the more she came, the more I took my fill.
Just then, a loud burst of thunder rolled outside, followed by an increase in the rain. Glover wrapped her fingers in mine and pushed me onto my back again.
“I want you,” she confessed.
“I want you too.”
She lowered herself onto me, my nose flaring as her essence overcame me. She let out an “Oh!” as I penetrated the welcoming warmth of her chasm. I was more than willing to oblige as she arched her beautiful body and began working atop me in a spasm of delight. The storm outside was nothing compared to the one raging inside the walls of my bedroom. Harder and faster we went, the springs in my mattress compressing and relenting.
Glover and I continued on until covered in each other’s sweat. She climaxed several times as she rode. When I was close to coming, she would slow, to take me away from that cliff. She may have been making a mistake this night, but she was going to get everything out of it.
We eventually climaxed together as my toes curled and she collapsed beside me. Glover let out a low whimper, spent as she lay there convulsing and mumbling. Her eyes tightly closed, she clenched the nail of her pinkie finger in her teeth.
Once I was coherent, I turned over on my side and looked at Glover. The words just rolled from my mouth. I was still living in the moment and to hell with the consequences.
“Glover, I think I might be falling in love with you.” It was a word I had intentionally avoided.
“Don’t say that, Max,” she replied with a smile, then left me in the bed to get some bottled water from my kitchen.
I caught my breath while Glover searched in my fridge. Stifled in my emotions by her response, I began to suspect I’d just been used.
She returned with the opened bottle of water in her hand. This was my first time to really take everything in. There was so much happiness in her smile at this point. I had gotten to know so much about Glover over the last month and a half, but tonight had brought me even further emotionally and physically with her. I had bared my soul tonight, and time would tell if she would do likewise, or if she even knew what was really there.
“Are you okay?” she asked playfully while climbing back into the bed.
“Yeah. Couldn’t be better. Don’t worry about what I said earlier. I just had to get that out. I’m not trippin’,” I said, filled with false bravado. Glover reached out and handed the Dasani to me.
“Okay. You know what?”
“What?” I asked as I guzzled down the rest of the water.
“That was incredible,” she said, her eyes widening for emphasis. “I mean it.”
“Thanks.”
“But ...”
“But what?”
“It’s not over.”
Glover reached down between my legs and began stroking me with her hand. As the blood rushed once again, I rolled her onto her back.
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