He’s fast, determined to give me that feeling I’ve been chasing for the last few minutes. The one of complete ecstasy. He grabs my legs and lifts me swiftly onto the bed. Without hesitation, he’s straddling me, on his knees, and he’s stroking his rock-hard cock. Once, twice, three times, and then he’s inside me. Hard. So hard. He slides his hand between us and finds my clit. His gaze locks on mine, and his eyes are speaking volumes. He thrusts inside me again and again. Then I’m soaring to that place where the intensity of my orgasm feels like it will last forever. My breath catches, and I scream his name. But I don’t stop at his name. I tell him I need him, and I’m sorry for pulling away for the last few weeks. As I return to reality, the tears fall. Again. What Caleb does to me, I will never know, and right now, I don’t really care to know. I just don’t want this to ever end.
He keeps his rhythm, pumping and thrusting in and out until his dick swells inside me, and he hollers my name so loudly I’m afraid everybody at The Drunken Peacock may have heard him. Then this guy shatters, falls apart in front of my eyes. God, I love him. So fucking much. But I am too afraid to admit it to anyone. Especially to him, and I would never reveal it during sex.
I roll out of bed and wipe my eyes with my hand. I do not want him to question why I’m crying. Because I wouldn’t know what to tell him. I just don’t understand all of these emotions.
“Do you need some help?” Caleb calls out as I make my way to the bathroom.
“Hmm… maybe. Are you offering?” I stop at the door and look over my shoulder at him.
He hops out of bed and rushes toward me. I giggle as he scoops me up in his arms and sets me on the edge of the bathtub. He grabs a washcloth then drops down in front of me and spreads my legs. Caleb reaches around me and turns on the warm water. After gently wiping me clean, he runs the tips of his fingers across my thighs and then slides his hands up my stomach and stops at my breasts. He circles each nipple with his finger and then follows with his mouth. I hold onto the edge of the tub and drop my head back. My body craves all of the new sensations he has introduced to me. I want to remember everything—his touch, his lips, his tongue. I never want to forget the way he makes me feel things that I know are real.
I close my eyes and focus on each kiss, lick, and touch he is giving me. My nipples, neck, shoulders, and back down to my throbbing clit. God, I’m gonna come. Again. I lift my head to watch him worship my body.
“Oh, God, Caleb,” I sigh.
My eyes flutter open, and there’s nothing. Darkness. I squeeze my eyes shut again and this time I say a silent prayer. Please, let this not be happening. Not now. For a second time, I open my eyes slowly, and it’s still dark. Total fucking darkness. I can’t breathe. At all. I’m not going to freak out. I’m not going to freak out.
“You have to stop,” I tell him with a hint of panic in my voice. His head is between my legs; I can still feel him there. I grab him quickly and yank and pull, trying to make him stop, before repeating, “Caleb, you have to stop!”
“What the hell, Henley?” He’s irritated. I can hear it in the deep rumble of his voice.
“I stopped, so fucking let go of my hair before you pull it out of my head,” he demands.
Oh, shit. I’ve been holding onto him for dear life, not realizing how hard I was pulling on his hair.
“Caleb, I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize I was pulling your hair. I’m so fucking sorry,” I shout.
“What is going on with you? Calm the fuck down,” he tells me, and then he’s gone. I don’t feel his presence anywhere near me.
I blink my eyes rapidly several times, and when I stop, my vision is clear, but Caleb is gone.
I sit on the edge of the tub a few minutes longer to regain my composure before standing. Then I take my time moving from the bathroom to the bedroom. My entire body is trembling as I make my way around the bedroom and gather my clothes. My only thought right now is to get the hell home.
Once I’m dressed, I walk into the living room, searching for my Gibson. That’s when I see him. Sitting on the couch with my guitar in his hands.
“I bet you didn’t know I used to play,” he says quietly.
His fingers strum the cords slowly. The song is familiar. Not one I’ve ever played, but I know it and it’s beautiful.
“I love Elvis Presley,” I whisper as I sit down next to him.
I close my eyes and rest my head on his shoulder. He doesn’t flinch with my somewhat bold movement after what just happened.
I tend to play music from the eighties. Hard rock—hair bands are my favorite. But this song has so much meaning to me right now, because it says everything I’m feeling. It runs through my full gamut of emotions. I would’ve never thought Caleb could play the guitar. But for him to play Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love” tells me all I need to know. God, I want to crawl inside his soul and live there, forever.
He strums the last chord and then lets out a deep breath. I quickly move away from him out of fear that he doesn’t want me there.
He lays my Gibson across the coffee table and then grabs my waist, pulling me into his lap.
“I love you, Henley. I don’t know when it happened, but it’s not going away. And I don’t want it to,” he whispers before kissing my cheek. Then he stands with me still in his arms. My mind is trying to compute his words. I know they are real, because I see it in his eyes. It’s not new. It’s been there for a while. I feel it too. God, do I ever feel it. It’s not fair for me to say those three words back to him until he knows me. The real me. And I hope that that will happen soon.
Twenty-Seven
Henley
“Henley,” Mrs. Fowler calls out from the doorway of my classroom.
My class is currently doing their own thing, and Tanya, my teaching assistant, is moving freely throughout the room helping the students who need it. I use this hour every day as my planning period for the next day.
I push my chair away from the desk and stand. Then I make my way to the hall where Mrs. Fowler is waiting. Her arms are folded across her chest and mouth is set in a hard line. This can’t be good.
“What’s going on?” I ask her nervously. She never comes and takes me away from my class during the middle of the day. So it must be important.
“There’s a man here to see you,” she tells me.
“Who is it?” Panic surges through my veins as my mind checks off every man I know and why they might possibly be here in the middle of the day to pull me away from work. I come up pretty much empty. Except for Caleb. He knows I work here.
“Come with me,” she instructs.
“But my class…?”
“Tanya will be fine until you get back,” she says as she starts down the hallway toward her office.
Once we reach the lobby in front of her office, I see him. He’s much older than the last time I saw him, which was so many years ago that I’ve lost count. His hair is still dark, but now it is sprinkled with gray. The lines on his face represent years of dealing with people and all their bullshit. Even though he’s older, he still looks the same.
“Daddy.” I speak so softly I’m surprised he hears me. But he does, because as soon as he realizes who I am, the corners of his mouth turn up into a smile.
“Henley, sweetheart,” he says as he walks toward me.
He holds his arms out for a hug. I’d rather know why he’s here first and then hug second, but he is my dad. Even though he hasn’t always been around, he’s helped me out financially throughout the years. He’s a good man who got caught up in a shit storm of a romance with my mom.
I walk into his arms, and he squeezes me gently.
“I’m so happy to see you’re all right. I’ve missed you so much,” he says.
“I’ve missed you too, Dad. Why are you here?” And more importantly, how did you find me?
I have missed him. A lot. I love my dad; he’s always supported me, even if it meant going against my mom.
As soon as I step
away, his gaze meets mine. His green eyes hold too much sadness. Something is wrong. And it has to do with her.
“It’s your mom,” he mumbles softly.
My heart plummets to my stomach as I close my eyes.
He continues, “She’s sick, Henley. I mean ICU sick. The doctors are worried she may not pull through.”
I look away from him, because I fear he can see the guilt on my face. I want to know what’s wrong with her, but I can’t bring myself to even speak.
“Did you hear me?”
“Yes, I heard you. I just don’t know what to say or what to do. I’m scared,” I say in a wobbly voice.
“I don’t know exactly what happened between the two of you, but you need to see her. And it needs to be now. In case….”
“Please promise me she’s not going to die. Please, Dad, just tell me that. Because I was so awful to her the last time we spoke,” I plead.
“I can’t promise you something that’s out of my control. But I can take you to her. And I think both of you need that.” He steps away from me and nods toward the door that Mrs. Fowler walked through a few minutes ago. Then he says, “You need to tell them you’re going to take some time off, because I need to get you to the hospital as soon as possible.”
I suck in a deep breath. Does he know I don’t drive? Does he even know how much my life has changed? No and no. Because I have shut every single person out of my life. Except for Caleb. God, I’m gonna have to tell him. Everything. I can’t keep pushing my truth away from him. Because, in the end, my truth will be his fate. That is if he chooses to stay. After last night’s episode of me completely freaking out, I figured he’d run or at least ask me to stay away. But he didn’t. He never asked another question about anything. He just wrapped me up in his arms and held onto me tightly all night.
I nod and walk toward the open office door. Before I make it into the office, I stop and look back at my dad standing there. He looks worn and tired. Even though he and my mom have been divorced for years, I know he still cares. I also know he worries about my future, and because of that, guilt washes over me.
“Dad?” I question. He looks over toward me. “I don’t have a car, because I can’t drive anymore. So, if it’s okay, can I ride with you? Will you take me to see Mom?”
His face brightens as he nods his head.
“Of course I will, sweetheart.”
“One last thing. How did you find me?” I ask before I head into the office to speak with Mrs. Fowler.
“I didn’t. It was your mom. She found you months ago. But she wanted to give you your freedom. Because that’s what you wanted. Trust me when I say it has been hard on her,” he explains.
I drop my head and walk away from my dad. Guilt and sadness are not two emotions that go well together, and right now, that’s all I feel. Guilt for pushing her away, and sadness, because I may lose her forever.
Twenty-Eight
Caleb
It’s been almost two weeks since Henley left. She not only left me, but she left New Orleans. I can’t help but believe she left because of me. Telling her I love her so soon was fucking stupid on my part. But I can’t beat myself up over it because I felt—feel it so damn much. And holding back is no longer in my plan. So, if it cost me a life with Henley, then I’ll have to fucking suck it up and move on. Even though it’s the last thing I want to do.
“She left you, uh?” Rex’s voice echoes from the hallway.
I swear that motherfucker hasn’t said two words to me since the day I punched him in the face, and now he wants to open his big fucking mouth.
Rex is the last person I want to discuss this with, but something tells me he’s not giving up.
“Don’t sweat it, man. I didn’t see the two of you making it work long term, anyway. Remember me telling you there was something about her that wasn’t right or something like that? I don’t remember my exact words. I know I warned you, or maybe it wasn’t exactly a warning, because you weren’t fucking her yet. At least, I don’t think you were,” he rambles.
He leans against the counter. I know he’s watching me, because I can feel his eyes burning through my skin. He’s waiting for my reaction. But he’s smarter now—he’s standing more than an arm’s length away. Probably two, maybe three. Because now he knows I have limits, and if pushed, my fist will find his face… again.
“I’m not sweating anything,” I tell him.
I shove my hands in my pockets and take a couple steps toward him, before continuing, “Not that it’s any of your fucking business, but she didn’t leave me. Something came up, and she had to leave town for a few weeks. She’s coming back. So you can stop with all the advice. Because I don’t need it.”
Fuck, I want to believe my own words, and they sound so truthful when I say them. The day Henley left, she sent me a text that said she had to leave for a while, but she would be back. For me not to try to contact her, because she needed this time alone. I gave her what she wanted. I didn’t call or text her, and that was twelve days ago. I have no idea where she is, why she left, or even if she’s coming back.
“Man, somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed. Or maybe that somebody didn’t sleep at all. Or hasn’t slept since his girl left him.” He chuckles.
“Rex?” The rough voice vibrates from across the room.
Fuck, it’s Smitty. How long has he been standing there?
“Yeah,” Rex answers without an ounce of concern in his voice.
“Don’t you have a client in about”—he hesitates as he cuts his eyes toward the clock on the wall—“five minutes?”
“Not sure, man. I’ll have to check my schedule.” He slides over to the computer on the counter and begins keying in his information to retrieve his appointment schedule.
“Don’t check it here. Head on back to your station and check it. I need to talk to Caleb. Alone.”
Rex backs away from the computer and nods.
“Sure, boss. Whatever you say,” he mumbles as he spins around away from the computer. He looks over at me, as he whispers, “If you get canned—”
“Rex. Your station. Now,” Smitty cuts him off.
Without another word, Rex lowers his head toward the floor and makes his way down the hall.
Fucking fantastic. He probably thinks I hurt Henley and that’s why she left town. Maybe I did hurt her. But if those three little words caused her this much distress, then maybe me telling her was a huge fucking mistake.
“She’s coming back,” Smitty says as he leans into the counter, facing me.
I glance in his direction, but he doesn’t notice, because he’s flipping through the receipt book.
“Did you talk to her?” I blurt out without any thought of sounding like the desperate, lovesick fool that I am.
“I referred a new client to you last week. He’ll be in this afternoon at two,” he tells me.
He completely ignored my question, just leaving me here hanging on to the three words he gave me without any more details.
“Thank you,” I tell him. Then I step away from the counter and head toward my station. Standing here with Smitty, knowing that he may know why Henley left, is doing nothing but making me more miserable than I already was. I just hold onto hope that he was telling me the truth and she is coming back.
Twenty-Nine
Henley
I’ve been back in New Orleans for a little over a week but haven’t seen Caleb yet. But that’s about to change as I push open the door to The Drunken Peacock. I know he’s here, because I spoke to Smitty this morning. I probably should wait until he gets off work and go see him at his apartment, but I can’t wait any longer.
I’m ready for him to hold me and whisper how much he loves me while he nibbles on my neck. God, just the thought of his mouth on me sends a shiver up my spine. I drop my head back and close my eyes. I hope he hasn’t changed his mind about me. About us.
“He’s in the back,” Smitty’s familiar voice greets me as I stand in the lo
bby. I slowly open my eyes and lift my head. My gaze meets his, and he smiles.
“How’s your mom?” he questions.
“She’s much better. I talked to my dad earlier, and he said she went home yesterday. So that means she’s getting stronger. At least, I hope that’s what it means,” I tell him.
Mom begged me not to come back to New Orleans. She said if I moved back home, I didn’t have to live with her. And that she wouldn’t harass me. She now understood my reasons for wanting to live my own life. She promised to respect it. Only she wanted to respect it closer to her. I didn’t even consider it. Not for one minute. Because my life is here.
I fidget with the hem of my T-shirt, and my gaze moves from Smitty to the hallway that leads to Caleb. I’m so damn anxious, because I have no idea how he’s gonna react to me just showing up here after nearly a month. What if he kicks me out? Makes me leave? Oh, God… I just need to see him.
“Glad to know somebody’s better, because that one—” He motions toward the hallway. “—isn’t doing so well.” He laughs as he folds his arms across his chest.
“He’s not sick or anything, is he?” I ask with a shaky voice. Calm down, Henley. If he were sick, he wouldn’t be at work.
“No, Henley. He’s not sick. Go see for yourself. Third door on the left.”
He smiles as I walk past him, heading for the hallway.
My feet move quickly. I keep my focus away from the pictures on the wall, and as I pass Rex’s station, my eyes veer toward the floor, because he’s the last person I want to see today.
When I reach Caleb’s station, the door is closed. I lean in close to listen for any sound coming from the room, but there’s nothing—only silence. I knock once and then again, waiting anxiously for his smiling face to greet me.
“It’s open,” he hollers from inside.
Beautiful Tomorrow: A Twisted Fate Novel Page 14
