The Power of Salvation

by Passarelli, Caterina

  “Whatever your heart desires,” I say, climbing into the most expensive car I’ve ever seen. The gorgeous leather seats smell new, and even though I don’t want to imagine how much this car costs, it’s cozy.

  “My heart desires eating …” he trails his hand down my thigh and cups my sex. I squeeze my thighs together, trapping his hand, and close my eyes before he can see the lust in them.

  “Don’t tease me, I’ll make you deliver on your word,” I pout, unclenching my thighs while he places his hand on the steering wheel.

  “My word is good, always. I will eat that pussy later, but first let’s get you some real food,” his sensual mouth smirks at me before we head away from the hospital.

  We sit in silence during the ride, enjoying the sound of the car’s engine and just being in each other’s presence. I notice we are turning away from the hustle and bustle of the downtown Chicago streets into a nearby neighborhood. As we pull into a small family diner, I shoot Luke a questioning look but he smiles without saying a word. This is not what I pictured for a man in a suit, but I’m all for it. This reminds me of that place I used to work at back in Orlando. It was all the rage with the senior citizens of Florida.

  Walking into Molly’s Diner, a waitress shouts from behind a counter that we can sit wherever we want. Luke walks like he owns the place towards a booth in the back of the restaurant. This place screams 1970s with its pink and teal furniture and fake potted plants—but it feels homey. I slide into the worn-in booth, sinking down in the middle. It’s definitely had its fair share of customers.

  An older waitress with grey hair tied into a low bun walks over to our table and a big smile breaks out across her wrinkled face. “Luke! It’s so good to see you, sweetie. And who’s the pretty lady?”

  It surprises me that he’s on a first name basis at place like this—I think he stands out in his three-piece suit but apparently that’s not the case. Another waitress walks by and waves at our table. But unlike the ‘I want to fuck you’ glares we get from women in other public places, these ladies look at him with caring eyes.

  “Kathy, this is Ariana,” Luke says, waving across the table towards me.

  Both Kathy and I realize Luke did not give me any kind of title—just my name. She doesn’t say anything and neither do I—Ariana it is. Luke takes charge, like always, telling her we’ll have coffees and waters. As Kathy scurries away to get those ready, I pick up my menu.

  Kathy is back in the blink of an eye and before Luke can try to order my food, I spit out that I’d like French toast and bacon. He smiles at me across the table and sticks with the ‘breakfast for dinner’ theme ordering their biggest breakfast special—eggs, bacon, silver dollar pancakes, and hash browns. And just like she appeared in a flash, Kathy takes off towards the kitchen to put in our orders.

  “Do you come here often?”

  Luke sips his black coffee and then replies, “You could say that. I got caught stealing some food here when I was around 15, and instead of turning me in, they let me work here part-time along with the bar I told you I worked at. They are good people here.”

  “Why were you stealing? Were you a rebellious teen?” I ask, smirking at him, thinking of a young Luke getting into trouble just to get into trouble.

  “I was stealing because I was hungry … starving actually.”

  My hand shakes and some of the coffee I was bringing towards my mouth slips out of the cup and onto the table. Starving? This handsome CEO with his Jaguar and penthouse suite was starving?

  “Why were you starving?”

  He sighs, but before he can answer Kathy comes to our table. She places down more plates of food than I could imagine. I’ll say this about family diners—the portion sizes are always out of this world.

  Luke switches gears from talking about being a starving teenager to asking me how my day at work went. We chat about his marketing meetings and my shift of chest pains, stomach bugs, and the usual emergency room visits. We don’t touch back on the earlier subject and I get the feeling that’s for a reason. Luke opened up as much as he was going to for today. As much as I want the answer to why he was starving, I don’t want to push someone to talk when they aren’t ready.

  It does hurt me a little to know he isn’t ready, especially after I shared something so deep with him.

  After Luke pays our bill, we get in the car and I notice we are heading towards his penthouse. Relaxing into the comfortable seat, Luke blasts the heat on this cold Chicago night, and I drift to sleep. It’s not until I hear the elevator door ding that I realize Luke has carried me out of the car, into the elevator, and now across the threshold into his home.

  “Put me down. Are you crazy? What if you throw your back out carrying me?” I scream, trying to get myself out of his arms. But he squeezes me even tighter, refusing to let go.

  “I’m definitely not weak, Ariana. I can carry my woman anywhere she wants to go.”

  Earlier I had no title and now I’m his woman. I’m confused. I know we will need to discuss this … by ‘this’ I mean whatever the fuck it is that we are, but tonight is not the night.

  Even though this is such a caveman move to carry me into his apartment, I’m extremely turned on. Forget the bedroom! I need him and I need him now. As he places my feet down on the grey tiled kitchen floor, I attack his mouth with such intensity that he cups my face with his hands to hold my head still.

  I can’t be held down. I need to move. I need him to move.

  “Do you want to fuck me?” I beg. With his hands still holding my face he scans my eyes to make sure I mean what I’m saying. Hell yes I do. I pull my scrubs off my body and stand in front of him in my underwear. “Well, do you?”

  He doesn’t say a word; instead he shows me his answer. He rips his dress shirt off, letting buttons fly through the air. In a matter of seconds, he has all of his clothes off and he’s standing in front of me in full glory. I lick my lips, swollen from our passionate kisses, while I slowly scan his body. Perfect: everything about him from those sexy tattoos to the scars. I wouldn’t change a single thing about this man. My man.

  Luke stalks towards me as if I’m his prey and then cups my sex while pushing me back towards the black kitchen counter. Thrusting my fingers into his brown hair and pull hard. This earns me a little bite on my lips, which makes me moan.

  Luke lifts me onto the counter and I wrap my legs around his waist. Pulling myself as close to him as I can get, I grip a handful of his muscular ass. He squeezes my breast before devouring my mouth with deep sweeping strokes of his tongue. I grind my sex into his hard cock. I rub against him, getting us both wet. When he must not be able to take much more, Luke slams into me and I have to hold onto the wall or else I’d slam backwards.

  He’s driving into me so hard. Bottles shake and who knows what falls from the counter to crash on the floor—we are rocking everything in this kitchen.

  Luke cups his hand around the back of my head and buries his face into my neck as he slams into me one last time. I feel his rock hard manhood pulsate inside of me and I come with him. We both try to catch our breath, as we remain clung to each other’s sweaty bodies, coming down from the ride of my life.

  “I’ll never be able to look at this kitchen the same way again,” Luke growls into my ear and I bust out in a fit of laughter. I shove his chest, and as he pulls out of me, it’s only then it hits me, we just had sex without a condom. Luke looks down and must have the same realization. “I’m so sorry, I was caught up in the moment.”

  “It’s okay, I’m on the pill. But we never had the oh-so-sexy STD talk, which is embarrassing considering I’m a doctor,” I say, burying my face in my hands.

  “Hey,” he says pulling my hands down from my face, “I’m clean. But I’ll gladly get tested again if it will make you feel better.”

  “I trust you,” I say, hopping down from the counter heading towards the bathroom to clean myself up. He doesn’t block my path but lets me go to the bathroom alone to collec
t my thoughts and get dressed.

  I trust him.

  That’s true. I don’t think I’ve ever trusted a man before. I vowed I never would. I’m breaking my vow for Luke, and as much as that scares me, I think I’m okay with it.

  I hear a light knock on the door after what must be a good ten minutes, “Ariana, you alright in there?”

  Opening the door I see Luke standing in front of me. His pants are back on but he’s still shirtless. He looks at me, trying to read my face. I instantly wrap my arms around him and bury my face in his chest mumbling, “Yes Luke, I’m okay.”

  We stand there in each other’s arms for what feels like eternity, holding onto each other as tightly as possible. I don’t know when Luke breaks the embrace, but it’s only for a brief moment to pick me up again and carry me to his bed.

  Chapter sixteen

  The sound of a door slamming in the distance jolts me awake and again I find myself asleep in Luke’s bed … alone. One day I’ll wake up and he’ll be next to me—that’s something I’m waiting for. At the thought of Luke striding around his apartment just home from the gym, I jump out of bed, wrapping the white sheet around my naked body and head out to find my man.

  I’m almost into the living room when I hear a woman’s voice and I stop in my tracks. Who the hell is here? I want to backtrack towards the bedroom, but before I can move a muscle the voices get closer to me. Luke and Lisa walk around the corner to catch me awkwardly staring at them from the hallway.

  Lisa’s jaw drops upon seeing me. “I didn’t know you had company.” Then realization sinks in: “Wait a second. You’re the girl from the hospital?”

  I pull the sheet a little tighter to my body and I extend my hand towards her, “Ariana.”

  She shakes my hand. “Lisa, but you already know that. I’m sorry to act so shocked. I’ve never seen a woman at Luke’s before.”

  Lisa glares at her brother who is looking down at the floor. Is he embarrassed to have her catch me here?

  “It’s nice to see you again Ariana. I hope we can catch up one day,” she says as she heads towards the front door, “but I have to dash off now. Bye brother!”

  And just like that, she’s gone. I don’t say a word to Luke instead I rush back to his bedroom to put on some clothes, feeling like a damn fool.

  “I didn’t know she was coming,” Luke says, appearing in the doorway just as I’m throwing my scrub top over my head and searching for wherever the hell my shoes are. The kitchen! Then the memory of last night’s sex in the kitchen causes my face to heat up. I push past Luke but he blocks my path in the hallway.

  “Luke, I don’t care that you didn’t know she was here,” I say, faking as if I’m going right but quickly dart left and make my way around him. I’m in the kitchen in a hurry, slipping on my sneakers and barreling towards the front door.

  “What’s wrong then?” Luke stops me, gently grabbing on to both of my arms.

  “What are we doing?” I ask, moving out of his grasp.

  “We are dancing around my apartment apparently,” he sighs as if exhausted by my question.

  “That’s not the answer I was looking for. I’m sorry. Can you get out of my way? I’d really like to leave.”

  Luke follows me on my mission to get to the front door. “I don’t understand your question then. What are we doing … about what?”

  I stop and face him, “About us? You introduce me to the waitress last night by just my name. You didn’t even say ‘my friend’ … then you call me ‘your woman’ later when we are alone… and now with Lisa you stand there looking down at your feet in embarrassment she caught you with me. You didn’t even bother to introduce me yourself.”

  My face falls after getting all of that out, bearing myself so vulnerably. I’m sick of feeling like I’m not what Luke is looking for—first with the girl at the charity event and now all of this crap.

  Why don’t I measure up?

  “You think I’m embarrassed to be seen with you?” he asks, looking straight into my eyes, not backing down. “Are you fucking serious? I’m honored to be seen with you, Ariana. I’m sorry I didn’t introduce you with any special title. I haven’t had to do this before. This is all new for me.”

  “Well, what about with your sister?”

  He runs his fingers through his hair, looking frazzled. “I didn’t like having her catch you here for the first time wrapped up in a sheet—it’s pretty obvious we were fucking.”

  “So you don’t want her to know we’re having sex?” I ask clearly annoyed.

  “Goddamn it,” Luke says looking defeated yet angry. “I want better for you than that.”

  “Thank you for wanting better for me,” I say, thinking his confession was cute, “even though we are adults and it would be okay if she knew we are fucking. What would you want me to introduce you as to the people in my life?”

  “Your sex slave,” he grins, which gets a laugh out of me.

  “I guess I could make that happen … after my shift that is—I have to go back to work,” I say, reaching the door handle. Before I can twist the knob, Luke has me pressed against the door with his chest on my back.

  “I hate to see you go,” he says cupping my ass. “I will have this ass on my mind all day long without you.”

  “You can use that picture I sent to keep you company.” I blush at the memory of sending it.

  He nuzzles his nose to my ear and sucks on my ear lobe. “That was a lovely surprise, Ariana.”

  I smile, imagining what it must have been like for him to get that text message. I wonder where he was when he got it?

  “Okay sex slave boy, I really have to go,” I say as he gives me some space to open the door.

  “I won’t be able to come pick you up tonight. I have to stay late at the office and then catch a flight to Detroit early in the morning for back-to-back meetings.”

  He’s leaving? I feel sadness deep within my heart thinking about him not being right around the corner if I need him.

  You’ve never needed anyone right around the corner before. Not even your parents.

  The thought wakes me up to the realization that I can’t put all my happiness on Luke. I also have to realize I am a big girl and needing a man around was never what I wanted.

  I lean in to kiss Luke on the cheek and tell him to text me when he lands safely in Detroit before I head out the door, where I find Ryan waiting for me by the curb to drive me to my apartment. I laugh because I was planning to walk, but of course, Luke is always one step ahead of me. When did he have time to alert Ryan? I’ll never know his mysterious ways.

  Standing at the computer station, I scan through my patient files while I have a few minutes to catch my breath before my shift starts. I’ve got about fifteen minutes until it’s go time. With my headphones in, I escape to my own little world and it’s not until Drake touches my arm that I look away from the computer.

  I jump back a little from his touch. I don’t know if that’s because he surprised me or if unwanted touching from people I don’t approve of still is a concern of mine? I don’t have long to think about it because Drake comes bearing gifts, placing an iced coffee on the counter in front of my now empty cup.

  “Thank you,” I say, slipping my headphones out of my ears.

  “I haven’t seen you in days. What have you been up to?” Drake asks.

  I take a sip of my coffee before replying, “Working every shift they’ll give me and then hanging out with Luke or Serena. What about you?”

  We both work in the same hospital but our floors are both equally busy; sometimes we can go days without seeing each other. But in the past, we’d never let that happen. We saw each other daily or at least would send text messages.

  I feel weird with how he treated Luke at the sports bar—which he has not apologized for. He should know how hard it is for me to open up to guys—he should be supporting me, not trying to sabotage me.

  “You’re still seeing that guy? Wow. Ariana, for someone
I consider my smartest friend, I don’t think this is smart at all. What do you even know about him?”

  And just like that, he sets me off.

  “What do you even know about him? Why are you being so judgmental Drake? As someone I consider one of my kindest friends, judging someone so harshly isn’t kind at all.”

  “I don’t want to be kind to someone who has a reputation of fucking around with women—he’s seen with all kinds of different girls. Someone like him doesn’t seem to fit with the girl who guards herself so cautiously. You are not a match and this will not last long.”

  So he’s done one Google search and he thinks he knows everything about my boyfriend? He’s basing his opinion on rumors. Fuck this.

  “I understand you are trying to look out for me. I can see that. But you need to give me a chance to figure out who is a fit for me or not by myself.”

  “And what if you get hurt?” He asks, reaching out towards my hand, but I pull it back.

  “Then I get hurt, that’s life. And that will suck big balls,” I laugh, “but it will be my own mistake, and I’m okay with that.”

  He stares at me for a moment, as if daring me to back down, but I don’t. Then he changes his tune: “Ariana, you’re a pain in the ass. But you’re still my friend and I don’t want to fight with you. Want to get some lunch later?”

  And just like that my best friend is back to being his normal, laid-back self.

  “Yes! I’ll meet you in the cafeteria later.”

  Luke hasn’t been a part of my life for long, but a night knowing I absolutely can’t see him makes me sad. After lunch with Drake and a few of our coworkers, I finished my shift and then went back to the apartment to see if Serena was there to lounge around with.

  But the place is empty. I don’t like how quiet it is so I dash back out of the door as quickly I came in. I have no direction to go; I just set off and walk. It’s freezing, but I don’t even care that my body is probably going to go into shock.

  Walking up and down each street, I look around at my neighborhood’s surroundings. It’s sad that I’ve never done before. I’ve never taken the time to give a shit about anything but school or my residency. Me, me, me—wow, I’m a giant asshole that’s for sure.