by Tiana Laveen
“It took me to actually love you to be able to get past that, Ace. Even while we argued, after you admitted everything, I was hurting so bad. Not just because you’d misled me, kept something so important away from me…but…because I knew I didn’t want to lose you. I hated that I didn’t want to lose you, even after what you’d told me; you seemed so genuine. I believe that is what convinced me to keep standing there, listening. You…seemed sincerely sorry, honest in your love for me — and that’s what I needed.” She pointed at herself.
“The first time I saw you in that museum, Brooklyn, I knew I was going to blow my case. Once I looked at you, and you looked at me, something happened to me. Though I stood upright, I was still walking in the middle of a nightmare. The angry, scared horses ran all around me, but when I looked at you…it’s like, they vanished. My anxiety, my stress, everything went away. I remember standing there and feeling the most relaxed and at ease I had in years. Your eyes were some magic pill. You had something I needed. And…I had something you needed, too. I believe now that those angry horses are me, baby.”
She lifted her head to look into his moistened eyes. The damned things turned jade, then a bit brighter as a melancholy smile twisted upon his face. He stroked her wild curls.
“Isn’t that something…” she whispered, curling her hand into his chest. She brought her face to his and poked out her lips, begging for a kiss. He obliged and pressed his mouth into hers. A comfortable silence stretched between them while the chimes continued to sing to the newlyweds. Their bodies tangled together under the protection of the luxurious sheets.
“I believe I’ve been an angry person since the day I realized that, in here,” he pointed to his heart, “I wasn’t loved in the manner I felt I deserved. I was also a very sad little boy, which I expressed through fighting and getting in trouble. Nothing was ever enough. My parents couldn’t love me hard and strong enough. No teacher could help me. I’d walk away from anyone who showed an interest in getting close to me. I didn’t want anyone’s love…because…I didn’t even love myself anymore. Yet I was never able to even really think about this stuff, this way, until I was with you. The horses kept charging, because I kept charging. I’ve been attacking myself for an eternity.”
Brooklyn tried to not cry, but it was impossible. A slow tear ran down her cheek, a tear for her husband. It took its leisurely time, twisting and turning past her cheekbone to her collarbone, and stayed there awhile until her husband’s thumb came and swiped it away.
Moving beneath her, he grunted as he attempted to reposition himself. Soon, he had her flat on her back as hovered above her. Like a perfectly wrapped package, he removed the gown she’d slid on; it never had a chance. He tossed his towel on the carpet by the bed before he lowered himself back upon her and forged a trail down her neck with his bottom lip, dragging it along the side of her face and shoulders.
“Ahhhh…” she moaned. She placed a hand around his neck but then he evaded her, went lower and lower, his well-trimmed, beard tickling her flesh while his fingers dragged in his wake. He continued to trek down her body, taking his sweet time, while those chimes seemed to grow louder and louder, as if they were playing just for them.
“Ahhhh…ahhh….” He tenderly kissed her stomach, then ran his hand along her small thatch of pubic hair. He slid his finger gingerly up and down the valley, not daring to enter the soft doors that led to a place now overflowing with an intense internal heat. She stole a glance at him as he worked below her waist, his finger shiny with her juices massaging her, moving a bit faster, and then faster yet. Before long, he pushed the finger inside of her, and his lips found her bud. A deep, throaty moan escaped her; she arched her back slightly from the bed. Her hips pumped ever so slightly as he held her in place, slicking his tongue over her clit in seductively slow circles.
“Mmmmm….” He moaned his need, a verbal nuance of appreciation. His voice echoed against her, causing her to stiffen as an orgasm built in the pit of her pelvis, taking her to the edge of the inevitable. He inserted another finger inside of her, then another. His thick fingers pushed her wide open, causing the gates to fully open and her liquid potion to escape, trailing out along his digits while some coated his mouth. He didn’t stop. Twisting and turning, she gripped the pillow beneath her head, her sighs louder and louder, her face pressed to the side on her pillow. It didn’t sound much like her own voice at all in those sighs — but it in fact was her, speaking in a language she’d just learned with each measured ministration of the man’s skilled tongue.
Damn, he can he eat some pussy!
Her hips rose from the bed as a myriad of bright colors flashed before her eyes…pictures, fragments. After each bright light inside of her mind exploded, her wetlands soon followed.
“Ahhhh! Ahhhhh! Oh…God! Ahhh….Ace…Ahhhh…mmmmm….”
The chimes kept on, as if competing with the man’s now vigorously moving tongue. He shook his head back and forth between her legs, receiving the last of what she had.
“…Ahhhh….” She gentled down; aftershocks and shivers covered her like glitter, made her feel sparkly and alive. She ran her fingers lightly through his hair as his warm breath caressed her folds. Soon, he stopped, and the kisses began on a return trail…
Up…up…up he climbed until he was lavishing her neck with tiny pecks, then deeper kisses, then sucking. He wakened her flesh, one inch at a time. He ran a thumb across her nipple, hardening it so. Ace then lay between her legs, his lower body motionless, yet, she could feel the thickness of his cock heavy against her zone. Lifting himself up onto his hands, he looked down at her. His eyes partially closed, and a delicate smile creased his handsome face. He appeared so relaxed, languid as he reached between them and took hold of the thick base of his manhood. Still looking down at her, still wearing that seductive grin, he pushed his knee against her inner thigh, opening her legs further for his complete access.
As if a fresh sheet had been thrown across her body in slow motion, the man fell upon her, his heated weight compressing her breasts, and pushed hard inside of her.
“Ahhhhh!” She clawed at his back as he lavished her with tantalizing, soft kisses across the bridge of her nose and mouth.
His girth stretched her open and his deep thrusts made strangely erotic sensations crawl up and down her groin until her damned toes curled. Her thighs propped open, to the max, as he pumped with due diligence inside of her.
“Uhhhhh!” he groaned, his strong arms around her. He bit gently on her earlobe. “Uhhhhh! Baby! Mmmmm!”
He’d become her stallion. He ran a marathon inside of her. The heaviness of his dick throbbing within her reminded her of his masculinity, while his sweet kisses along her face and neck gave renewal to his inner strength and confidence. The bed shook with each lunge as he dove back and forth within her, holding her to him.
“Uhhhhh!” He thrust so deep, she gasped, then he paused, looking desperately into her eyes as he filled her core, sweetly and lovingly beating her into submission. He retreated, then came again, causing her to crawl up the bed on her back. But he wouldn’t let her go…He grabbed her shoulders, brought her back down and hooked his arms even tighter around her frame, forcing her to accept each demanding thrust.
He made love to her hard and strong.
Another orgasm built within her, and then another until she’d all but melted right there in his ardent embraces.
“Mmmmmm! Uhhh! Uhhh!” He nestled in the crook of her neck, the heat from his open mouth bathing her in warmth. He pumped so hard and fast, there was no way the man could turn back. “Uhhhh! I’m cummin’…” he blurted.
She tilted her chin back, dug her head into her pillow, and held on tight, a smile on her face. Waiting…waiting…waiting…
“Uhhhh!” She felt the first expulsion, and then the next, and the next. “Oh God! Uhhhh! Uhhh….” He filled her like the vessel she was, cupped her hard. His breathing was erratic and strained as he tried to settle, yet his hard, muscular te
mple vibrated against her for quite some time. She heard him swallow deep and hard, then, after a short while, he reached low and slowly pulled his dick out of her body. Swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, he sat quietly for a while, gripping the mattress, and he stared towards the window.
Her body still remembered him, as if he was still inside of her. Her zone throbbed and a trail of his semen ran down her inner thigh when she turned on her side.
“I’m on my honeymoon, in Italy, with my wife…” He chuckled lightly, as if coming to the realization for the first time. He gripped the mattress a bit tighter. “…My wife.” He glanced over his shoulder at her, reached out to caress her chin then turned back away. Meanwhile, the chimes continued on and on…
“You will never have any idea how much I love you.” He paused, scratching the side of his face. The window remained the focus of his attention. “That would be impossible… I believe you’re my cure. I’ve been sick…and didn’t even know it.”
She reached for him, caressed his back with her fingertips.
“When we hold hands, when we hug, kiss…and especially when we make love, I can feel us becoming stronger, even more connected. As I see it, you ran away from Texas straight into my arms — and I hid from love, but…it found me. It found me, through you…” He kept his back turned. She scooted closer, placed her palm across his shoulder. He raised his hand to touch hers, keeping it there, intertwining their fingers.
And that was how they stayed, for quite a long while…
~***~
Two months later…
Ace opened his office door and immediately navigated to his coffee machine. The little woman had him hooked. She’d brought back this Hawaiian blend from her recent five-day business trip there, and he was O.D.ing on the stuff. He glanced at his nicotine patch on his forearm, the rolled up sleeve revealing his latest scheme to kick the habit. Just in case, a fresh pack of cigarettes lay in wait in his desk, though thus far, he’d gone three days cold turkey. Unfortunately for his bride, this revved up his libido even more so than usual, as if that were even conscionable — as proved by the three back-to-back sessions in the evening she stated would leave her wheel-chair bound if he didn’t cut it out.
He removed the small satchel of coffee grounds and prepared it, then as it brewed, he made his way over to his desk. In customary fashion, he removed his laptop from the case, placed it on his desk, and turned it on. He glanced at the pile of mail on the corner of his desk, and decided to go through it.
Bill. Junk. Extremely late Christmas card. Bill. Car flyer. Paper. Blue envelope with a bunch of strange stamps…
“Blue envelope?”
He tore into the thing after noticing the poorly scribed address at the top:
727 716 VatraDorne, Str. Rune nr.89, jud.Suceava, Romania
He took out a hand-written letter with neat calligraphy on crisp white paper and began to read:
Dear Ace Blackstone,
I received your letter. My name is Alexandru Gabor. I understand spoken English very well, but have difficulty reading and writing it, so, I got someone to help me construct this correspondence. I want to first say that I have not cried so hard in a very long time. You see, I am your grandfather. I had five children, your mother being my youngest. Her name was Laura Vaduva. She married your father, Laurentiu Vanduva, in 1979. I called the number you left, but received no answer. I don’t like voicemails, so I wrote. I would like to speak to you, if at all possible. My number is as follows:
0040210775036
Regards,
Alexandru Gabor
Ace almost knocked everything from his desk as he stumbled about to grab his cellphone from his pocket. The percolating coffee brought him out of his frenzied state. He quickly jumped up and turned off the maker with one hand, returned to his seat, took a deep breath and dialed the number.
Calm down. Calm down. Calm down!
There seemed to be a delay in ringing, and every second felt like an eternity. Finally, a deep, husky voice answered, worn with age.
“Buna Seara…” (Good evening)
“Uh…” Ace knew that bueno, in Spanish meant ‘good’. He figured it was a greeting of some sort. “Yes, Buna Sera…Um, I was calling to speak to a Mr. Alexandru Gabor. This is Ace…Ace Blackstone from Chicago, Illinois...”
He was startled by a sudden wailing on the other end of the phone, a deep sobbing that touched his very soul. The man seemed inconsolable. He wanted to reach through the phone and pat his shoulder, tell him everything would be just fine, but there was no way he’d get a word in edgewise. During all of this, he heard people speaking Romanian in the background, but the sounds were somewhat muffled. A woman started speaking to him, her accent thick, but he could still clearly understand.
“Oh my! Ayyyyce,” She dragged his name out, her voice choppy with what he perceived was emotion as well. “So happy you called! I am your aunt. My name is Ela, I’m your mother’s sister. That was our father, whom you wrote to earlier. He will be okay.” She laughed lightly.
Ace could not believe what was happening. It was as if he’d entered a dream world. He didn’t expect to hear back from anyone, let alone multiple family members.
“It is nice to…speak to you, Ela.” He looked around in his desk cabinet for a bottle of water and discovered he had none.
“I saw pictures…your pictures. So handsome!” He could hear her smile through the phone. “You look like us, we’re all good looking!” she joked, causing him to laugh in response. His tense nerves eased a bit. He had so many questions but no idea where to start, where to begin.
“I…I was adopted by a very nice family,” he finally blurted. “They raised me and I have brothers. Is my mother or father around there? Um, do I have any brothers and sisters, too, biological ones? Uh…I’m sorry…I just…I’m a little excited is all.”
“Nu-i, problema!” From the phonetics, he assumed that meant ‘no problem’.“Ayyyyce, I can answer some questions for you, and my father can answer some, too. We are so happy to speak to you!”
“I’m happy to speak to you, too…”
“You have older twin brother and sister, you see? They were born about one year before you. They are not here, they live in Bulgaria, but they know about your letter and they are excited to speak to you, too. Their names are Alex, that’s your brother, and your sister’s name is Catalina. Ah, hold on, please. I will put my father back on the phone. He wants to speak to you.”
He heard some commotion in the back, and then the raspy elder’s voice broke through, soothing him.
“Hello Ace!” The man was obviously grinning on the other end now. “So good to hear from you. My grandson!” His voice shook. “We never knew what became of you…” he said woefully.
“Yes, well, I asked Ela about my parents. There is so much I don’t understand, that I don’t know.”
“I will tell you everything! Everything!” the man said excitedly. “Laura, your mother, grew up here, in the mountains with my wife, who has passed on. Your grandmother’s name was Voctorita. We had a simple life, didn’t go out much back then. The young people don’t want to be here.” He chuckled. “We were…how do you say it, uh…very poor, Ace. Your mother wanted to move away, get more opportunities. I didn’t want to move away. This is my home. She wanted to take her children away from here, though. Things were very bad. We sometimes didn’t have food, nothing. She was afraid you all would starve.”
Ace listened intently, not even wanting to breathe for fear he’d miss a detail. The man coughed heavily, then continued.
“She and your father planned to leave. I gave my blessing. Laura loved her children very much. She was concerned for your safety. Everyone had moved away by then. So…” He blew his nose. Ace waited impatiently, but didn’t dare interrupt. “The week they were set to leave, something very bad happened.”
“What happened?” His heart was now beating a bit faster.
“A group of people from the government came t
o try to move us. People protested, the officials wanted to take the land. For what, I’m not sure, but they wanted us out of here. Problems started. Your parents were set to leave the country soon, but they threatened to make them stay, revoke their plane tickets and passports during an argument. Your mother saved up for two years, right after you were born, to leave. She wasn’t going to let this happen, they wouldn’t even let us pack. Your…parents were very upset, so much so, that your father declared he wasn’t leaving. Your father, Arashk, protested, got in their face, and…because of…that,” the man sighed, “he was shot and killed.”
Ace lowered his head into his hands, his body trembling with grief for a man he didn’t know. But that didn’t matter. That man had been his father.
“They kept shooting and shooting! All of that drove our horses crazy. You were on the ground playing outside, right before bedtime as you always did. The horses were going and going. I ran outside and picked you up as they charged past. You were almost trampled, killed! I got you safe just in time…”
Ace could not believe his ears. The nightmares! They were real!
“You loved the horses, and you screamed out when the men shot at the horses, over and over, killing some. They were our life, our work, that was all we had. We were desperate. Your father was dead in the middle of the floor. You saw the horses lying about and you were scared. You were just a baby…I’ll never…forget how you cried.” Now, the man was sobbing again. The phone was taken away from him, and his aunt came back on.
“He’s upset, he will be fine,” she reassured.
“Is that how I got…the scar on my head?”
A long pause ensued.
“Ohhhh! The scar, I almost didn’t remember! Tata, the scar, yes! No, it wasn’t from the horses.” She laughed. “You’d gotten out of your bed one day, as you were known to do, but this time, you got into mischief. You pulled the cat’s tail and that cat didn’t like that!” She laughed louder now.
