Sheet Music - A Rock 'n' Roll Love Story (20 page)

“I’d rather take a bath.  Do you have a bathtub?  I can’t remember the last time I had a long, hot bath.”

Annie’s eyes widened further when she saw the bathroom.  “I can’t believe you have all this room for one guy, and I bet you don’t even use this tub!”

“Nope.  Showers are a lot quicker and I’m usually in a rush to go somewhere,” he answered, turning on the gold water spigot to fill the tub.  Then he reached for a thick, black towel and placed it nearby for Annie to use.  Quietly, she watched him move around the room, making adjustments to the lights and the water temperature.

“Do you have a plastic bag I could use to cover my cast?” she asked.

“Yeah, sure.  I’ll be right back.”

Michael disappeared downstairs and Annie pushed herself into the bedroom.  Only in books had she ever seen a bedroom as breathtaking as this.  She wanted to pinch herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming.  She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply.  The room even smelled like him, she thought, and it made her smile.  It was even better than her fantasies.

While Michael was gone, she found the cane from the hospital and made her way slowly to her suitcase.  Whenever she stood, the pain in her leg was blinding.  After finding her pain medication, she immediately took two pills and sighed.  The last thing she wanted was for Michael to see the depth of her distress.  Around him, she found herself putting on a brave face when all she really wanted to do was numb the throbbing pangs of agony in her leg through self-medication.

Annie quickly undressed and slipped on a satin robe from her suitcase and piled her silky hair loosely on top of her head.  She shivered at the thought of being naked in Michael’s bedroom and glanced toward his bed.  The comforter was thick with paisley colors of black, swirls of plum and hunter green.  The Egyptian cotton sheets were a deep shade of plum to match the comforter.  Two pillows on each side sat upright against the heavy dark, hand-carved headboard.  Annie was in the process of investigating the type of wood the bed was made of when Michael entered the room.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were undressed,” he said.

“It’s okay, Michael.  You’ve seen me naked before - unless you’ve forgotten about that already,” she smiled.

Michael shifted his weight uneasily in the doorway, almost afraid to move.  “Not a chance in hell I could forget about that,” he answered, toying with the plastic bag in his hand.

“Is that for me?” she asked, eying the bag.

“Yes.”

“Great.  Can you help me put it on?”

Michael nodded and slowly approached her.  Annie eased herself down onto the edge of the bed and extended her encased foot on the carpet.  The satin robe slid off her thigh and fully exposed her right leg, all the way to her hip.  Annie left it open and watched Michael as he knelt down before her.  His eyes were glued to her bare skin and a flushed expression of shock and lust was visible on his face.  Without saying a word, Michael placed her wounded foot on his thigh then tentatively began to run his finger tips over her velvet flesh.

Annie’s heart beat loudly in her chest and she closed her eyes.  She quivered when his fingers stopped inches from her pulsing mound, her breath caught sharply in her dry throat.

“You have beautiful legs,” he whispered, his crystal blue eyes drifting up to meet hers.

“Not any more.”

“They are to me.” he answered, slipping the trash bag over her cast and securing it with a rubber band.  “Do you need help getting into the tub?”

Annie nodded.

“Then put your arms around my neck,” he instructed, “and hold on.”  In one quick motion, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the bathroom.  Then delicately set her on the edge of the marble tub.  “Enjoy your bath,” he said, kissing the nape of her neck and then stepping toward the door.

“You’re leaving?” she asked, suddenly feeling deserted.

“I thought you might want some privacy,” he replied, inching his way back toward the tub.  “Why?  Do you want me to stay?” he asked with a hopeful tone to his voice.

Annie nodded, unnerved by her own invitation, then swallowed hard and droped the satin robe off her shoulders and onto the floor.  She glanced at him over her shoulder.  “Can you help me into the water?” she asked, her voice weak and shaky.

Michael stood frozen, his eyes burning down the length of her spine and stopped when they reached the outward curve of her hips.  He could just barely see the crack of her bottom.  Quickly, his groin responded to the visual stimulation.  He exhaled heavily and moved to her side.

“Okay.  Give me your foot and slide that way into the water,” he suggested, trying desperately not to stare.  When she was safely submerged, with her foot elevated onto a dry ledge, he sat beside the tub on a marble step and rested his elbow on the edge.

“Is the water too hot?” he asked, adjusting himself in his pants to reduce the ache in his crotch.

“No.  It’s perfect,” she replied, reaching for a face cloth and lathering it up with soap.

Michael’s eyes languidly crept over her.  The memory of being in bed with her returned with the force and speed of a tornado.  Everything about her aroused him.  Even the very sound of her voice gave him chills.

“Would you like to do this?” she asked, breaking his trance.

“Do what?  Bathe you?” he asked, stumbling over his words.

Annie nodded with an innocent grin and handed him the face cloth.

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Well, you bathed me while I was in the hospital, didn’t you?”

Michael quickly sat upright, stunned by her remark.  “Annie, that was one time and only because I wasn’t about to let that guy touch your body,” he replied, his voice defensive.

Annie beamed.  “That guy was a male nurse,” she teased, “And it was his job.”

“I didn’t care if he was a priest.  He wasn’t putting his hands on you.  If any guy was going to touch you, it was going to be me.”  Michael studied her expression.  “Why?  Are you mad?”

“No, I’m not mad.  I only wish I could have been awake to enjoy it!”

Michael’s face softened as he began to slide the face cloth down her neck and over her shoulders.  “How did you find out?”

“The day nurse told me.  She thought it was romantic.”

“It wasn’t perverse, Annie.  I only did what I’d seen the nurses do at night and that was it.”

Annie bent in close to his face and brushed his lips with hers.  “Are you going to tell me it didn’t excite you to touch my body?”

Michael opened his mouth and sighed against her lips.  He could feel the soft rush of her sweet breath and saw the lust in her eyes.  His soapy hand drifted onto her left breast and began to gently knead the flesh between his fingers.  Then he smiled lovingly. 

“I was hard enough to break glass.  Is that what you want to hear?”

“Only if it’s the truth,” she replied.

She kissed his mouth hard and moaned when she felt his fingers progressing over her stomach and down between her spread thighs.  Then her head dropped back against the tub and she shut her eyes, while Michael’s fingers worked their magic.

He propped his head against his extended arm and watched in amazement as her face flushed with the heat of ecstasy.  It was a work of art, he thought; better than any painting he had ever seen.  She had never looked more beautiful to him.

Annie rolled her head to face him.  For several minutes they stared at one another - serious soulful looks, as if trying to read the other’s mind.  Annie’s eyes began to mist with emotion.  The level of intimacy she could feel from the penetration of his gaze was beyond belief.  There was an indescribable connection between them that scared the hell out of her.  It was a feeling she had never experienced or knew to exist.  The way he was looking at her made the bottom drop from her stomach.

“Take me to bed, Michael,” she said abruptly, as if the notion had suddenly registered in her brain.  “I want you to make love to me.”

Michael sat upright, replaying her request in his brain to make sure he had heard it correctly.  “I don’t think that’s such a great idea,” he replied, shaking his head.

“Why not?”

“Because you just got home from the hospital and you’re still recovering from serious injuries.”

“My doctor said it’s okay,” she argued.

“You talked to your doctor about this?”

“Yes.  Before we left I asked him and he said sex was fine, as long as you didn’t go crazy on me.”

“He said that?”

“Not in those words, but that’s what he meant.”

Michael studied her expression and smiled.  “Seriously?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t want to hurt you, Annie,” he said, shaking his head.

“You won’t.”

He stood slowly and tried to adjust the knot in his groin to make it possible to walk.  Annie’s eyes followed his every move.  “I’ll get you a towel,” he said, and disappeared behind a closet door.  Then he helped her out of the tub and into a sitting position on the edge of the marble.  Slow and methodical, he patted the towel over her body to remove the excess water, then tightly wrapped it around her torso.

“Annie, you don’t have to do this for me,” he stated, scooping her up in his arms and carrying her over to his bed.  “I don’t mind waiting another week or so until you’re completely healed.”

“Lay with me,” she sighed against his ear.

He set her down on the edge of the bed and eased her back against the pillows.  Then he laid down beside her and placed his hand on top of the towel tied at her breasts.  His eyes bore deeply into hers.  “I can’t believe you’re really here,” he sighed.  “There were times in the hospital when I didn’t think we’d ever leave.”

“We’ve come a long way since that night you walked me home from practice,” she smiled.

“I remember that night as if it happened yesterday,” he sighed, undoing the knot in the towel, and gently pushing the cotton terry fabric off her body.  He heard her breath stop short and smiled at her.  “I fell in love with you that night.”

“I fell in love that night too, Michael,” she replied, reaching up to stroke his clean-shaven chin.  “After everything we’ve been through, I didn’t think we’d ever be together like this again.”

“And here we are,” he answered, dropping his head against her chest and taking a responsive nipple into the heat of his mouth.

“Take off your clothes,” she said suggestively.

“Excuse me?” he smiled.

“I’m naked and you’re still fully clothed.  Not fair,” she teased.

He sat upright and pulled his shirt off.

“Pants too,” she said.

He laughed loudly and slid out of his jeans then rolled over to face her.  She ran her fingers down the length of his midsection and through the soft fuzz of hair on his lower abdomen.  The visual image of her destination was perfectly burned into her brain.  Then she felt the heat and gentle throb of his organ as it tapped against her palm.

Face to face, they laid and stared, sharing kisses and their touch.  The only noise in the room was the sound of their breathing.  Annie’s fingers moved between his legs and circled his organ.  Slowly she began to stroke.

He reached down and stopped her movements.  “Babe, you know that drives me crazy.  It makes me desperate to be inside you,” he whispered against her mouth.

“Then make love to me.”

“I’m afraid I’ll hurt you.”

“You won’t.”

She touched his face and outlined his lips with her index finger.  “I want you to make me feel like everything can be normal again, like it was before the accident.”

Tentatively, he moved closer.  “My feelings haven’t changed, Annie, if that’s what you’re thinking.  If anything, my feelings have intensified.”

“Then show me.  I’m lying here covered in scars and feeling a bit self-conscious about it.  I want to feel human again.  I need to feel whole.”

He traced the outline of her abdominal scar with his finger.  “Is that what this is all about?”

Annie began to cry.

Michael’s face grew stern.  “Annie, you know what I see when I look at your scars?  I see a living, breathing miracle.  Those red lines made the difference between you living or dying.  Every time I see those marks, I thank God you lived.  So, don’t ever diminish the value of them.  Without them, we wouldn’t be here right now.”

Annie’s tears turned into a heavy sob.  “I know you’re right, Michael.  But my head is filled with stupid irrational thoughts.  It’s overwhelming.  Sometimes I feel like nothing is the same anymore and never will be again.  I get angry because I look this way and then I feel guilty because I survived the accident and Sammy didn’t.  It makes me feel like I’m going crazy, like I’m in the middle of a nightmare.”

He pulled her close against his body and stroked her hair.  “Annie, watching you recover from that accident made me realize how precious and fleeting life is and that we should appreciate every day we have.”

His head dropped and met her lips.  “Eventually, everything will be normal again.  I promise.  But it’s gonna take some time and you’ll have to be patient.”  His tongue darted out and flirted with the tip of hers.  “I love you so much,” he sighed, pressing his mouth against hers.

Eagerly, she responded and kissed him back then sucked in her stomach as his hand drifted between her parted thighs.  He moaned into her mouth when he felt her wetness.  “Please, Michael, can we at least try?” she pleaded.  “If it hurts, I’ll ask you to stop.”

“You drive me to the brink of insanity,” he whispered, carefully moving his body between her legs.  Resting his weight on his elbows, he gazed lovingly into her face.  Her eyes hung heavy with emotion and lust.

“Are you sure?” he asked again.

“Very,” she exhaled, as if waiting another second would surely kill her.

He bent down and kissed her with love, his chest pressed her breasts flat against his.  Then, slow and tentative, he eased himself inside her body.

“I wish you knew how good you feel, Annie,” he said, inching in to fill her completely.  His body moved with tenderness, gently rocking in time with hers, never taking more than he thought she could comfortably give.

Annie slid her hands onto his backside. She marveled at the motion he was creating, and how perfectly their bodies fit together.  When she reached the point of no return, she cried out, only to have her voice stifled by his mouth as it descended upon hers.  A few strokes later, he groaned against her neck and shuddered as the waves of orgasm rocketed through his body.