by L. D. Davis
He gave me a questioning look but got up and held the hanger at the top of the bag while I unzipped it. I carefully removed the bag and then took the hanger from him. I held it up to my body and nervously and quietly said “Ta-da.”
Emmet looked over the long black strapless gown with the pink silk sash just below the bust line, and the small glimpse of the pink petticoat underneath the full skirt. Wrapped neatly around the hanger was a long, thin decorative scarf in the same pink color as the sash, to be wrapped neatly around the neck and to hang down the open back of the dress.
“You’re going back into modeling?” Emmet asked, frowning.
“Not exactly…” I said slowly. “I designed this dress.”
His eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. “You did?”
“Don’t look so surprised,” I said, frowning.
“No,” he said holding up a hand and looking apologetic. “Baby, that’s not what I mean. I’m never surprised by your many talents. I just can’t believe that I didn’t know that you had an interest in design.”
The stupid half smile that appeared on my face was because he called me baby.
“I started sketching out designs years ago,” I said softly. “It was something of a stress reliever at first, but over the years I started doing it more seriously. I still didn’t think much of it until more recently.”
“I’m really proud and happy for you,” Emmet said sincerely, but I could see the ‘but’ on his face. “But won’t you have to do a lot of traveling? Maybe not as much as you did as a model, but you will have to travel often, right?”
He looked disappointed by the idea of me having to go anywhere.
“Well, I will have to do some traveling for what I am going to do, yes – at least at first,” I said and gestured for the garment bag. As we began to carefully recover the dress, I continued telling him my plans. “I am going to open a boutique in the heart of Chicago,” I said. “Later, I hope to expand to New York, L.A. and maybe a couple of other places, but we are starting here in Chicago.”
“We?” Emmet asked as he zipped up the bag.
“Felix is going into business with me,” I said triumphantly.
He raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. “Felix is a designer now, too?”
“No, not exactly,” I said. Emmet followed me as I walked back down the hall to put the dress away. “Felix is more or less going to be a public figure. He’ll handle most of the public relations end of the business, and for every movie premiere or award show or talk show – anywhere that he is scheduled to be in public, he will wear the brand, and so will I.”
After I closed the closet door, Emmet asked me “So, how much traveling will you be doing? How often will you be away?”
“Maybe three times a year, four at the most,” I answered and then quietly added “Nothing like before.”
He studied my face for a moment and then nodded.
“I’m proud of you,” he said softly. “I know everything will work out well for you.”
“I hope that applies to more than just business,” I whispered.
I was standing against the closed closet door and he was standing only a foot away from me. We stared at each other, and I waited for him to step towards me, to put his hand on my hip and maybe one on my cheek. I bit my bottom lip as I looked at his lips and tried to recall the taste of his mouth and my mouth began to water when my taste buds remembered.
“I better go,” he said hoarsely, to my surprise, and took a step back from me.
“Oh,” I said, disappointed, and followed him down the hall and into the kitchen. Since my back yard was right up against Emmy’s, Luke cut an opening in the privacy fence that separated the properties for easy access between our homes. It made more sense than walking around the block.
Emmet opened the sliding glass door that led to my deck and stepped out into the cool spring night. It had begun to rain since I arrived home. It came down steadily, but at the moment Emmet was protected by the awning that covered a large portion of the deck.
“Thank you for taking care of Rosa,” I said. “Thank you for everything.”
I couldn’t believe he was just going to leave. Couldn’t he feel what I felt? Didn’t he know I wanted him to stay?
“Don’t thank me for that,” he said, shaking his head and looking at me sternly. “I love her. I’ll always take care of her,” he paused and hesitantly added “And you.”
“I’ll take care of you. Always.”
“Goodnight, Donya,” Emmet said, but didn’t move.
I reached out and wrapped my arms around his torso for an embrace. I needed to feel his body against mine, if even only for a moment. Reluctantly, his arms caged me against him. I could feel his heart beating against my chest and I wanted to put my hand there, but I was afraid and I don’t know why. Emmet turned his head slightly and his nose grazed across my jugular, making me sigh and tilt my head more to allow him easier access. When I felt his lips gently press against the racing pulse, I had the strong desire to pull his head closer and demand he kiss me there, but I resisted. Why was I so scared?
Suddenly, Emmet pulled away from me and took several steps back until he was standing in the rain. His chest heaved and he stared at me with darkened eyes.
“Goodnight, Donya,” he said again. He turned away, jogged down the steps and hurried his way across the two yards.
I stood in the open door, watching him go, feeling him go, feeling that tether stretch uncomfortably. Why did I let him go? Why do I always let him go? My life was incomplete without him and I always let him go.
I watched as he slid open Emmy’s sliding door and stepped inside. He turned around slowly and looked back at me. I knew he was looking at me, because I could feel it. I could feel him, the conflict within him, the fear, the lust, the love, the want, the need, and more fear. It was everything I was feeling, too.
“Come back,” I whispered. “Come back. Come back. Come back.” I chanted the words over and over as we watched each other, in the dark, through the rain and across the span of the two yards.
When Emmet turned away, my body slumped and the pressure in my chest climbed up into my throat until I was trying to swallow around a large lump.
“I will not cry,” I whispered breathlessly, as I went back inside and closed and locked the door and drew the blinds.
I started turning out lights as I slowly made my way through the house. I planned on crawling into my bed and resting my head on the pillow Emmet had used so that I could inhale him all night.
A terrifying thought struck me as I stood in the hallway near the stairs. What if Emmet didn’t react to me because he could no longer feel me? What if the tether was deadened on his end? What if I had denied him one time too many and it irrevocably damaged the cord that bound us together? Worse yet, what if we were no longer bound together? What if everything I thought I felt for him was all in my head – an illusion my mind created to mirror my own emotions?
I turned around and faced the dark kitchen and the dark glass behind the closed blinds that led into the dark night.
“Come back,” I said with panic rising inside of me. “Come back. Come back. Come back. Come back.”
If he didn’t come, I would know. I would know that I ruined us and we were irretrievable.
After what felt like several minutes of chanting for Emmet to come back, I stopped suddenly when I knew he wasn’t coming. I didn’t trust myself to try to feel him out because I was becoming more and more convinced that he couldn’t feel me at all and vice versa.
I sunk to my knees and buried my face in my hands as an onslaught of tears poured from my eyes. It hurt so fucking much, more than any other pain I’d ever experienced with Emmet. I didn’t know how I was going to live through this one. I didn’t think I’d ever really recover and I would become my mother, sad, depressed, broken, and a shell of someone I couldn’t even remember and completely unable to take care of my child. History would repeat itself. Emmy and Luke
would care for Rosa like their own. Owen would treat her like a sister until they were older and he’d fall in love with her, and if she followed in my footsteps and her grandmother’s footsteps, she would eventually lose him, too. Forever.
“Get up,” I whispered vehemently to myself. “You are not going to sit here and die. Get up.” I rose to my feet. I looked at the sliding door as if I could see through it, the rain, the night, and Emmy’s walls and find Emmet wherever he was.
I refused to become my mother. I refused to give Rosa that kind of life. I am Donya Elisabeth Stewart, also known as Sensible Donya and Donya Sex Goddess & Lover. I am a successful supermodel, actress, and soon to be entrepreneur and I will be a super success at that, too. I am Rosa’s mother, Emmy’s sister and best friend, and daughter to Fred and Samantha Grayne. I am Emmet Grayne’s destiny and he his mine. Destiny is inescapable.
“You can’t escape,” I said aloud.
I marched through the kitchen to the sliding door. I wouldn’t leave my own yard with Rosa sleeping in the house behind me, but if I had to stand at that fence and shout Emmet’s name all night I would. The second I got my hands on him, I would drag him back at any costs. If I had to hit him in the head with a shovel and tie his unconscious body to the bed, I would.
I turned the back yard light on and boldly marched outside into the steady rain and down the deck steps. I glanced to my right where a shovel leaned up against the deck, left there by the previous owners. On a whim, I grabbed it and started across the yard. I was half way to the opening in the fence when I felt him. Instantly I knew that the line was never broken, and thought about how stupid I was to believe that it was. It was unbreakable.
Emmet walked through the fence opening and I thought it was strange that I hadn’t seen him come out of Emmy’s house.
“I didn’t see you come out,” I said when he reached me.
“I was standing out here for a few minutes,” he said and eyed the shovel. His eyebrow rose. “Are you out here to bury bodies?”
“No,” I said, standing up straighter. “It’s for you.”
He crossed his arms and looked amused. “Really.”
“Yes. If you refuse to come back with me I plan to hit you in the head with it and knock you out. Then I’ll drag your body into our home, up the stairs and tie you to our bed.”
He was trying not to smile when he said “That’s a lot of heavy work.”
I shrugged. “Well, I’m sure after I hit you with the shovel, adrenaline will kick in and I will have superhuman strength.”
“So, you are going to get your prize by any means necessary,” Emmet said.
“Yes. We supermodels are highly motivated individuals. Why were you outside in the rain?” I asked. The fact that we were both now standing in the rain was not lost on me.
Emmet unfolded his arms and put his hands on the shovel. I held it tightly for a few seconds, afraid he would take the shovel and leave, but after I realized how ridiculous I was being, I released my hold on it. He gave me an amused look and then tossed the shovel aside.
“Why were you outside?” I asked again when he settled his eyes on me.
“You called me.”
I gasped and said “Wh-what?”
His big, damp hand connected with the skin over my heart. “You called me,” he said again, in a softer tone.
Whatever power that made my crying cease minutes before was gone. A loud sob tore through me and before it could even fade, Emmet had pulled me into his arms. I held onto him fiercely and sobbed uncontrollably. He released me but cupped my face in his hands and bent slightly to look me in the eyes.
“I heard you, baby,” he said as his voice cracked. “I heard you.”
He kissed me while lifting me off of the ground. I wrapped my legs and arms around him and met his tongue stroke for stroke as I continued to cry. The rain cascaded down our bodies and mingled with tears.
“I’ll never leave you again,” Emmet promised with his lips resting against mine.
“Don’t let go,” I sobbed.
“I’ll never let go,” he said and nipped at my bottom lip. “I promise I will never let go.”
I am ingrained in you. I am woven into every cell of your body. You cannot eradicate me without losing yourself, too.
“Stay,” I whispered tearfully.
“You have me, baby,” Emmet said in a choked voice. “Forever.”
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Shivering and with my teeth clattering together, I stood in the middle of the bedroom with my arms up over my head. Emmet pulled off my damp shirt and threw it on top of his own damp shirt that lay in a heap a couple of feet away. The rain had made my pale pink bra transparent. He looked down at my damp breasts and traced his fingers over the hard nipples that pressed against the wet fabric. I sucked in a breath and my back arched automatically.
“You were perfect before,” he said. “But you’re even more perfect now.”
I had gained a whole cup size when I was pregnant with Rosa. By the way Emmet palmed my breasts and squeezed and kneaded them in his hands, I knew he appreciated the change. He kissed me slowly and methodically as his fingers began to unhook the front clasps of my bra. Once my breasts were sprung free, Emmet again palmed them. My nipples hardened further against his hands. As he continued to slowly explore my mouth with his tongue, he pulled the hard buds between his fingers and squeezed gently. I moaned and clenched my thighs together as the heady sensation shot from my nipples straight to my core.
“I’ve missed touching you,” Emmet whispered against my lips when he broke the kiss. “I’ve missed my hands on your body.”
His thumbs flicked over my nipples and then his hands began to travel down my body. He caressed my belly with his fingertips. He tilted his head to gain access to my neck and grazed my skin with his nose as he inhaled my scent.
“I miss tasting your skin,” he murmured. I sighed as his tongue slid over the sensitive area below my ear. He leisurely dragged his tongue down my neck to my shoulder where his teeth slowly sunk into the flesh there.
“Emmet,” I moaned and lightly scratched my nails down his arms.
He continued with his kissing and tasting, down my chest, between my breasts and down my stomach. His tongue dipped into my navel before continuing down to the skin just above the waistline of my pants. On his knees now, he began to slowly unbutton my capris. He looked up at me as he did and I pushed a hand into his wet hair. He began to pull the soaked material and my panties down over my hips. A moment later the wet clothing was tossed aside and I was naked before him. Emmet traced his fingers across the top of my mound.
“Do you miss me touching you, Donya?” he asked huskily as he gazed at my sex.
“Yes,” I breathed.
“I miss your reactions to my touches,” he said and then gently swiped his finger over my clit.
I moaned and my legs tried to close automatically. Emmet grinned up at me, fully aware of the effect he had on me. He got to his feet and pulled my nude body against his and kissed me deeply. His erection was prominent through his jeans and he pressed it against my sex. I moaned into his mouth and rocked my hips against the rough denim, already desperate for a release. He indulged me, put both hands on my ass and grinded into me as he groaned into my mouth and his fingers dug into my flesh. The friction against my clit was making me weak in the knees, and again my legs tried to close as the sensations built to be nearly unbearable. Emmet’s hands moved down to my upper thighs and he easily lifted me off of the floor and my legs wrapped around him. He held me tightly and continued to grind into me and there was no escape for me. I attempted to tear my lips away from his as my orgasm took over, but Emmet refused to release me from the kiss and I was forced to cry out into his mouth. He gently bit down on my tongue as I rocked against his clothed cock and my legs trembled around him. Before the orgasm fully subsided, he carried me over to the bed we picked out together. He broke the kiss after lying me down.
“I need to
taste you,” he said and quickly moved down my body. “I miss how you taste after you’ve just come,” he growled. His tongue dipped inside of me and we both groaned. He licked and sucked at me as if he was trying to draw out every drop of moisture. When he seemed satisfied, he climbed back up my body and kissed me again. I tasted myself on his lips and tongue. I suckled on his tongue, enjoying the taste of me and his mouth mixed together.
I reached between us and began to unbuckle his belt. He lifted his hips a little to give me better access. Once his jeans were undone, I pushed them halfway down his ass and eagerly reached inside of his boxers for his silky erection, making him hiss and thrust gently in my hand.
“I miss touching you, too,” I said and nipped at his chin. “I miss everything about you,” I added in a whisper as my thumb glided over the head of his shaft, making him groan.
I stroked him from base to tip as his tongue moved in my mouth at the same rhythm. My free hand was on his ass, lightly scratching the muscle with my nails. I really did miss touching him and listening to his deep moans when my small hand attempted to wrap around his thick manhood. I missed the weight of his cock in my hands, in my mouth, and inside of me.
Emmet broke the kiss and reluctantly broke free of my grasp. He stood up and quickly removed his jeans and boxers before returning to his position on top of me. His hard cock rested on my sensitive sex as he took my mouth again. When he grinded against me, I moaned and pushed my hips up to increase the friction. My hands roamed up and down and across his back, his perfect ass, his strong arms, and his hard chest. I felt like I would waste away if I stopped touching him. His body was meant to be touched by me and only me, and my body was meant to be touched by him and only him. It is why his skin heated under every caress and why my own skin felt super charged with an electric current wherever his skin met mine.
Emmet once again pulled away from my lips. It seemed to be getting harder and harder for him to do each time. He gazed into my eyes as he positioned the head of his engorged penis at my entrance.
“I love you,” he whispered as he pushed in a little.
