Dangerous Ground

by Smith, Stephanie Jean

“Are you saying that you don’t like it?”

  “You know good and damn well that I do. I can only take so much before you have to put me out of my misery.”

  “I wouldn’t want to make you miserable; maybe I should just stop what I’m doing.” Loretta made a motion to get off the bed; Xavier grabbed her and pulled her back on top of him. Loretta went back to exploring Xavier’s body. She came across another scar just above his hip. “You were wounded in the army weren’t you?”

  “I was wounded on my last tour of duty, but I don’t want to talk about that right now.” Xavier flipped Loretta onto her back and pressed her into the mattress. He moved in between her legs. Loretta wrapped her legs around him, pulling him closer to her. You weren’t lying when you said you missed me.”

  “This time is for you baby.” Xavier proceeded to make love to Loretta so slowly she almost screamed with pleasure.

  Loretta couldn’t believe that Xavier wanted her again so soon. She wouldn’t complain she missed him as much as he missed her, and they had to make up for lost time.

  They were still joined together when Xavier asked her a question. “Loretta what would you say if I asked you to move in with me.”

  Loretta immediately though about what Carl told her at lunch the other day. She was determined that Xavier wasn’t going to have everything his way. Loretta loved him, but there was no way that she would move in with him. “Lord save me from men trying to make deals in bed. You know I would promise you the moon at this moment.”

  “I don’t want the moon, I just want you.”

  “Xavier has anyone ever told you that you talk too much.”

  “It’s nice to know that I’m wanted for my mind.”

  “Right now I’m only interested in the way you make me feel.”

  “I’ll get busy and shut my mouth.”

  ***

  Loretta got out of bed and took a shower as Xavier slept. She tuckered him out with her demands. Loretta spent a lot of time in bed since she and Xavier got together. She looked at her bedside clock, it was almost four o’clock. Her body felt as if she just ran a marathon.

  Loretta got dressed and went downstairs to put the lasagna in the oven while she set the kitchen table. Loretta couldn’t have asked for a better homecoming for Xavier. She got the wineglasses off the shelf, and even put candles on the dining room table. Xavier’s birthday present was wrapped earlier before she made the lasagna. For the first time in her life, Loretta understood what sexual healing meant.

  To set the mood, Loretta walked thumbed through her CD collection to search for some love in the evening music. She found her favorite Luther Vandross CD, and pushed the repeat button so she could hear it over and over again. Some artists you never got tired of hearing and Luther fell into that category.

  Loretta went back upstairs, and she was not surprised that Xavier was still asleep. She wondered, was Xavier serious about her moving in with him. Sometimes people get caught up in the heat of the moment and say a lot of things they don’t mean.

  Loretta walked over to the bed, and kneeled down and started kissing Xavier behind his ears. She pulled the sheet down as her fingers encircled his nipples. She continued her exploration of Xavier’s body. Loretta had never seen such a beautiful, well cared for body. She let her hands roam down his body and kissed Xavier’s chest.

  He was whispering something she didn’t quite catch. Then she moved down and started kissing his stomach, and then he said it again. Xavier called Loretta by another woman’s name. Who in the hell was Yvonne? Loretta took a hand full of his chest hair and pulled hard. Xavier leaped out of the bed stark naked. To make matters worse, he was erect and ready to go.

  “What in the hell is wrong with you?”

  “Why don’t you ask Yvonne, because that’s whom you were calling?” Loretta looked down at Xavier’s body with contempt. “Is that why you’re in that condition, you been thinking about Yvonne?” Loretta was mad. Damn it, she swore to herself that she would never let another man make a fool of her.

  Xavier grabbed Loretta from behind. “Baby it’s not what you think. A man is libel to say anything in his sleep.”

  “Let me go Xavier!” Loretta could feel his hardness on her backside. At first Xavier wouldn’t release her, but Loretta kept struggling until he let her go. She wasn’t in a loving mood, and she didn’t want Xavier to think he could get around her by using sex.

  “I think you better get dressed and go home.” Damn, she couldn’t believe that Xavier had done that to her. “Just tell me one thing, were you thinking about this other woman when you had sex with me.” Loretta asked in a soft voice with tears in her eyes.

  Xavier grabbed Loretta from behind again and just held her. “The last thing I was thinking about was another woman when I was making loved to you.” Loretta wiggled out of his embrace. He knew that she was upset, but Xavier wasn’t going anywhere. “Loretta, don’t you remember saying you loved me the other night.”

  A look of pure horror came across Loretta’s face. “I thought you hung up. I didn’t know you heard me. This is worse than I thought I promised myself that I would never tell you.” Xavier knew that she loved him, waves of anger and hurt feelings pulsed through her body. Loretta thought she seduced Xavier this afternoon when, in fact, he took the knowledge that she loved him and used her for sexual gratification while he was thinking about another woman.

  “What’s wrong with a woman admitting to her man that she loves him?” Xavier said as he walked toward her.

  “Nothing if she knows the man returns her feelings. Who is Yvonne, Xavier? Is she the woman you want to be with? You thought you could give me a few thrills until you could be with the woman you wanted.”

  “Honey, if you would let me explain, you’ll realize that I couldn’t make love to you the way I did and possibly be thinking about another woman.”

  “Don’t give me that crap, how would I know what you were thinking about when you screwed me this afternoon. You’re always willing to share your body, but you never tell me what you’re feeling.” Loretta reached under her bed and pulled out a baseball bat. “Get your clothes on and get the hell out of my house!” Loretta shouted at the top of her lungs.

  Xavier wasn’t threatened by the bat Loretta was waiving around; he was more worried that he would lose Loretta over this incident. “If you love me so much how come you don’t trust me. After the perfect loving we just shared, I can’t believe that you think I’d want another woman.”

  “I think a man is capable of doing a lot of devious things, I forgot this momentarily; my common sense that has been missing for the last week has finally returned, and it’s time for you to leave.” Loretta was getting hysterical; she just wanted Xavier to leave so she could wallow in her hurt feelings.

  Loretta started to walk out of the bedroom, and Xavier pulled her around to face him, he was angrier than he’d been in a long time. “Where do you think you’re going? I’m not through talking with you.”

  “Well I’m through talking to you. Your clothes are in the closet. I suggest you put them on.”

  Loretta stormed out of the room before Xavier could get a word in edgewise. He messed up this time the one woman he couldn’t live without had just given him his walking papers. Well, he would leave. He couldn’t force her to listen to him while she was in this state of mind. Loretta needed some time to put this situation in perspective. One minute you’re on top of the world and the next you’re calling out your ex-wife’s name.

  Loretta carried that baseball bat down to the kitchen with her. Wasn’t life ironic, she thought, this was the same bat that used on Alan the night he attacked her. Loretta would never hit Xavier with a bat, but she just felt so exposed that she needed a weapon to regain her composure. The lasagna smelled good, but she lost her appetite. One moment your man was making love to you, the next he’s calling you by another woman’s name.

  The stereo was still on; she walked into the living room and turned it off. She couldn’t
bear to hear any love songs right now. So much for trying to set up a romantic setting, Loretta walked back into the dining room and snatched the candles off the table. No matter what, she refused to cry. There was no way she let Xavier know how much he hurt her. She heard Xavier come down the stairs and walk into the kitchen.

  Xavier stood there glaring at her several moments before he spoke. He knew she was hurting, but Loretta was putting on a brave front. No matter what he said she wasn’t in the frame of mind to listen to him; he had to have his say before he left.

  “Before I go I want you to think about something. Love involves some kind of trust, and without one you can’t have the other. I’m leaving now because both of us need a chance to calm down and think about what transpired. You and I are just beginning Loretta, don’t you think for one minute that it’s over between us. When you want to talk about what happened tonight I’ll be waiting for your call.” On that note, Xavier left Loretta’s house slamming the front door behind him.

  Loretta grabbed the birthday present she wrapped for Xavier. She opened the front door and called to Xavier. “You left something behind,” Loretta threw the gift at him. “Happy Birthday!” Loretta slammed the door and locked it.

  Loretta went upstairs to her bedroom, and practically ripped the black silk sheets off the bed. The last thing she wanted to do was smell the after effects of her and Xavier’s lovemaking when she went to sleep tonight.

  Loretta took the sheets down to the washer and threw them in. She started the washer and when back upstairs to put fresh linen on her bed. Loretta had to get out of the house; it was almost six o’clock already. She didn’t know where she was going, but she had to get out of here.

  ***

  Chapter 11

  Loretta was trying to enjoy the beautiful spring evening as she drove north on Fontenelle Boulevard. She was surprised at how many golfers were out tonight. Loretta’s attention focused on the brake light as it began to blink. Fear gripped her chest as she approached a curve leading downhill. Loretta lightly tapped her brakes in hopes that her car would slow down. The brake pedal went straight to the floor and didn’t slow the car down at all.

  Loretta knew that she had to find a way to slow the car down or she was running into heavy traffic on Ames Street. She turned on her emergency lights and tried to use the curb to slow down the car. Loretta lost control of the car, the steering wheel locked up making it impossible to avoid colliding into a towering Oak tree.

  Just before impact, the air bag on the driver’s side inflated saving her from serious injury. Loretta was still alert. She heard the crunching of metal and glass breaking as her car flipped over. At that moment, Loretta knew that she was going to die. She would never get another chance to tell Xavier how much she loved him.

  Passengers in other cars watched in horror as the sporty black car smashed in to a tree and land on its side in the parking lot of the youth center. People stopped their cars and ran to the smashed vehicle in search of survivors.

  Someone already phoned emergency services, an off duty police officer heard the ambulance and fire engine approaching. He told people to go back to their cars and get them out of the way of the firemen and ambulance. The man smelled a strange odor coming from the wrecked car. He had a terrible feeling that if the firemen didn’t get the driver out of the car; he or she would go up in smoke with the car.

  ***

  When Loretta woke up, something was blocking the sight of her right eye. Her throat was dry and sore, and her body felt as if someone had beaten her up in her sleep.

  “So, you finally decided to grace us with your presence.”

  Loretta would know the deep sexy voice of Xavier anywhere. “How long have I been here?”

  “You’re in Immanuel Hospital, you’ve been here since last night. I’ll be right back, your doctor wanted to be present when you came to.”

  “Don’t leave me Xavier!”

  “Okay, let me buzz the nurse so she can notify the doctor.”

  Loretta tried to lift her right arm, but it felt as if it were weighed down. “What’s wrong with my arm?”

  “You have a small fracture in your wrist.”

  “What else is wrong with me Xavier?”

  “You had to have surgery, but I want your doctor to tell you the details.”

  “Don’t lie to me Xavier I want to know what’s wrong with me.”

  Xavier saw the stubborn look on Loretta’s face; she wouldn’t stop trying to pry information out of him until she knew everything. Xavier didn’t know where to begin. He didn’t realize how deep his feelings for Loretta were until he received a phone call from the hospital.

  “During the accident, your right leg got caught under your seat. Your hip was pulled out of the socket, and they took you down to surgery to pop it back in.”

  At that moment, Loretta’s doctor arrived with a nurse in tow. “Well young lady it’s seems that you’re finally awake. I’m Dr. Marshall.

  Dr. Marshall looked in both of Loretta’s eyes checked her temples and the back of her head. “You are one lucky young lady. You have a fractured wrist, a few bruised ribs, and a slight concussion. We took you down to surgery to snap you hip back into the socket.”

  “Will I be okay? I-I mean will I have to walk with a limp?”

  “I’m not going to lie, you’ll have to endure a couple of weeks of physical therapy, but I expect you make a full recovery.”

  “Thank you doctor,” Loretta said between yawns. “You’ll have to excuse me, I’m so tired.” Loretta went back to sleep within minutes.

  “Doctor is that normal, she’s been asleep for the last eighteen hours.”

  “Mr. Johnson, Loretta’s body had been through a lot of trauma. Sleep is the body’s way of healing itself. She had a slight concussion last night, but after the examination, everything looks OK.”

  “By the way, I notified the police that our patient has finally come to. They’re going to want a statement from her.”

  “Thanks for everything Doc.”

  “Don’t worry Mr. Johnson your fiancée will be right as rain well before the wedding.”

  Xavier momentarily forgot about pretending to be Loretta’s fiancée. “Thanks again.”

  As Dr. Marshall left Xavier turned his attention back to Loretta. When he entered the emergency room at Immanuel Hospital last night, Loretta was unconscious, and hospital staff was prepping her for surgery. Loretta made sure that Xavier had power of attorney over her months ago in case anything ever happen. Since Loretta didn’t have any family members in Omaha, he complied with her wishes.

  He gave the hospital permission to perform surgery to reset Loretta’s hip. Loretta only spent an hour on the operating table; that was the longest hour in Xavier’s life. Xavier sat in the waiting room thinking about Loretta’s smooth, expressive sherry-colored eyes, and they way Loretta’s smile lit up a room when she was cheating at cards.

  Xavier began to pace the waiting room as he thought about all the late nights when they watched movies over Loretta’s house. Or the endless Saturdays they spent in Lincoln watching the Cornhuskers play football. When he received the call from Immanuel Hospital, he was afraid that he wouldn’t get the chance to tell Loretta how he felt about her.

  Xavier stared at the sleeping figure in the bed. Loretta had cuts and bruises all over her face and arms. The only thing Xavier could think about was the argument they had the last time he saw her. It was his fault that she had the accident.

  ***

  Other than the arrival of the police to take a statement, Saturday was uneventful for Loretta. Xavier was screening her calls; he did allow her to speak with Cookie last night. The hospital provided Xavier with a cot since he refused to leave Loretta.

  Xavier looked up when he felt Loretta’s eyes on him. “Hello baby is there anything I can get for you?”

  “I’m fine, but I would love to know the last time you had a decent night’s sleep.”

  Xavier got out of the chair and
approached Loretta’s bed. “Don’t worry about me, I just want you to concentrate on getting better. Did Dr. Marshall say how long you would have to stay here?”

  “He plans on keeping me here for three more days. I start physical therapy tomorrow I’m excited about that. The doctor said if I behaved he would allow me to sit in the wheel chair this afternoon.”

  Xavier stood there studying Loretta’s features. She was the most influential person in his life, and he almost lost her. “I owe you an apology.”

  “Whatever for?”

  “I shouldn’t have left your house Thursday until we talked about Yvonne.”

  Loretta was at a loss for words until she comprehended what he was trying to say. ”You’ve been blaming yourself for the accident.”

  Xavier walked across the room and stared out the window. “It is my fault. If I had taken the time to talk to you, the accident wouldn’t have occurred.”

  “As I recall, I wasn’t in a frame of mind to listen.” Xavier turned around to face her, and she could see the pain in his face. She was determined to talk some sense into him. “Xavier there is nothing you could have done or said that could have made a difference.”

  Loretta could see that he didn’t believe her. “By the time the accident occurred I wasn’t even angry anymore. That was our first argument, and I’m sure it won’t be the last one. I want to apologize to you for not giving you a chance talk to me before I kicked you out of my house.”

  For the first time, since the accident, Xavier actually smiled. He left the window and came back to Loretta’s bed. Xavier picked Loretta’s uninjured hand and placed the softest kiss on her fingertips. He bent down and kissed Loretta thoroughly on the mouth. “You have to hurry up and get better, so we can pick up where we left off on Thursday.”

  “Xavier, you can’t afford to sit here with me day after day. Your company must be going to pot.”

  “Baby you let me worry about my company. Nothing is more urgent than getting you on your feet again. He kissed Loretta on the mouth again.”

  Dr. Marshall walked in and interrupted their kiss. “Kisses like that lead to more physical activities, and Loretta won’t be ready for that for at least two to three weeks.”