Vignettes of a Master

by Luke, Jason

  Leticia nodded. She was sitting on the old leather sofa, her legs folded up beneath her, and her hands in her lap.

  I shrugged. “Leticia, why are you telling me this?”

  “Because I want you to tell me what to do,” she said, and her hands suddenly fluttered. “I want to know if you and I have a future together, Jonah. I want to know that before I make a decision.”

  I shook my head slowly. “No. I won’t tell you that,” I said. “Leticia your life is your own. The choices you make are your own. Free will reigns. You decide what is best for you. You either go back to your boyfriend, or you stay in the city. That is your decision.”

  Leticia looked crestfallen. “Wouldn’t you care, Jonah?”

  “Yes,” I admitted. “But not enough to stop you from leaving. I can’t be responsible for your life, or your choices. You must do what you believe is best for you. Play it safe… or take a chance…”

  Jason Luke Author Page

  March, 28th.

  At a party, Leticia observes a beautiful woman pass Jonah her hotel key and she waits to see what he will do.

  I looked up and saw Leticia standing before me.

  “I have been watching you,” she confessed. “For the past ten minutes.”

  I smiled. “Good.”

  Leticia shifted her weight as though she were uncomfortable. She folded her arms, and her expression became a frown of concern. “I saw that beautiful woman hand you her hotel key, Jonah. I saw the way she smiled at you. I know that smile – every woman does. I know what it means…”

  I kept smiling. “Leticia…? You sound jealous.”

  Leticia huffed. She uncrossed her arms, but then folded them again a moment later. “I’m not jealous,” she lied badly.

  I reached into my pocket and held out the key the woman had handed me. It was a hotel key for one of the rooms above where the party was being held. “Is this the key you saw the woman hand me?”

  Leticia nodded. A sudden flush of hectic color spread across her cheeks. “Yes,” she said. And then added, “And I saw the way you followed her with your eyes when she walked away, Jonah. Women know that look too…”

  “Meaning?”

  “Meaning you were watching the way she walked. Watching her like maybe you were interested.”

  My smile got broader. “I am,” I admitted. “That woman interests me very, very much. But perhaps not for the reason you suspect.”

  Leticia’s frown became deeper. “What possible other reason could there be, Jonah?”

  (Sorry everyone! I can’t think of a good reason!!!! Maybe you can.)

  A note from Jason:

  I just wasn’t smart enough, or clever enough at the time to work out who this mystery woman could be. It was the first and only time during the World Tour where I felt I left the reader hanging - not by design – but by my inability to think fast enough. An hour after writing this scene, I finally worked out who she was.

  If you would like to discover who the mystery lady is, keep reading! I had to wait several days before another reader suggested a suitable scene where I was able to backtrack and wrap this scene up by revealing the woman’s identity.

  Jason Luke Author Page

  March, 28th.

  Jonah devouring Leticia and telling her how good she tastes. Jonah's office.

  Leticia had her head thrown back, her bottom perched on the edge of the desk, supporting her weight on her elbows. Her skirt was rucked high around her narrow waist and her legs were stretched wide apart. I was kneeling on the floor, with my hands holding the soft creamy flesh of her thighs wide apart. I edged forward and teased the wet lips of her sex with the tip of my tongue.

  The taste of Leticia’s arousal spread across my tongue like nectar. “You taste delicious,” I said. My voice was husky with my own desire. “You taste sweet and delicious.” I slid my tongue in a long leisurely swipe along the length of her sex until I felt the hard jutting nub of her clit. I took it between my lips, and gently sucked. Leticia groaned aloud, and then began to pant. She looked down at me and our eyes met. There was a misty glaze of intense desire in her eyes.

  Jason Luke Author Page

  March, 28th.

  Caroline goes to Leticia's office and tells her that Jonah is not capable of loving.

  Leticia looked up from her computer. There was a strikingly beautiful woman standing in front of her desk. The woman had exquisite, classical features. She was slim, wearing a figure-hugging dress that seemed to mold itself to her contours.

  Without an introduction, instinctively, Leticia knew who the woman was.

  “Hello,” she said softly. “You’re Caroline, right?”

  The woman nodded, and there was a brittle smile on her lips. “And you are Leticia Fall.”

  There was an awkward silence – a tension that seemed to hum like electricity in the air. Caroline set her handbag down on Leticia’s desk, and then leaned close so that only Leticia could hear her.

  “Stay away from Jonah Noble,” the woman said. “Stay away from him.”

  Leticia flinched. There was ice in the woman’s words and the sound of her voice seemed to shake with a suppressed passion that Leticia could not understand. “Are… are you threatening me…?”

  “No,” Caroline said, shaking her head, her expression made suddenly sad. “I’m warning you. Don’t make the mistake I made. Don’t love Jonah. He won’t love you back. He can’t… it’s not who he is, and it’s not who he will ever be.”

  We Love Kink

  March, 28th.

  Jonah and Leticia under the stairs.

  “Why are we here?” Leticia asked, her voice lowered to a conspiratorial whisper. “Why are we under the stairs?”

  I groped for her, felt her shoulder and like a blind man my hand slid gently to her face until I could feel the outline of her features with my fingers. “Because it’s dark,” I said.

  I heard Leticia inhale. “It’s dark everywhere, Jonah. It’s night time.”

  My fingers traced their way down the smooth flesh of her throat, and paused when I felt the top button of her blouse. “Yes, but this is pitch dark, Leticia. This is a dark so black that we can’t see each other.”

  “So…”

  “So it is important with a new lover that you spend time discovering and learning about their bodies. It is important that you be able to arouse and tease your partner with your eyes closed… when you have no sight and only your senses of touch and sound to turn them on.”

  “And that’s why we’re here…?”

  “Yes,” I said. My fingers deftly unfastened her top button. “We’re here because I want to learn your body. I want to explore and discover those parts of you that I find most fascinating.”

  Leticia gave a short sudden breath. “I thought you were turned on by my mind.”

  “I am,” I said softly. “But I can enjoy that with the lights on. This… this is about pleasure after the lights go OUT!”

  A note from Jason:

  This was a scene suggestion that I saw several times before selecting it. There was nothing especially wrong with the suggestion, it was just that for quite some time I couldn’t think of a good way to use the idea until I wrote this scene.

  We Love Kink

  March, 28th.

  Leticia's interview with Jason Luke.

  Leticia held out her hand. “Mr. Luke, I’m Leticia.”

  The author smiled. “I know who you are… I created you. Please have a seat and tell me what this is all about.”

  Leticia dragged a chair across from another table and sat. The restaurant was empty. Waiters and kitchen staff scurried around in the background, clearing way the lunch plates. Leticia sat on the edge of her seat, like a delicate bird about to take flight.

  “I wanted to talk to you about Jonah. About his future, and what happens to him in the second book.”

  Jason Luke sat back in his chair and his eyes seemed to glaze over. The man ran his fingers through his hair and sighed he
avily. “Jonah Noble has been nothing but trouble,” Jason Luke said. “I’m a writer, not some minor celebrity. If it wasn’t for Jonah, I’d be writing quietly in my office without all the pressure and expectation since I published that first book.”

  Leticia inclined her head politely. “Yes… but the fact is that you created him. You can’t kill him off. I… and a lot of readers would like to know he is going to live.”

  Jason Luke stood abruptly, and his expression turned dark and wintery. “I can’t guarantee that,” the author said. “I like my privacy, and if Jonah has to die to stop a third and a fourth and a sixteenth damned book about Jonah Noble, then that might just have to happen. I agreed to a sequel, nothing more. Either way, this second book will be the last time anyone reads about Jonah.”

  The man’s words sounded ominous…

  A note from Jason:

  Ok… I confess – Jonah Noble really bugs me. I think by writing these paragraphs I was able to work off some of my frustration with the character and all the chaos he has caused me since ‘Interview with a Master’ was published.

  We Love Kink

  March, 28th.

  Jonah pleasures Leticia during a dinner meeting at a restaurant.

  “Take your panties off,” I said to Leticia. “Now.”

  She looked at me in sudden alarm. “Here? In the restaurant?”

  “Yes. While my business associates are at the bar, you are to go to the bathroom and remove your panties.”

  Leticia hesitated. My expression turned bleak. “Now.”

  She stood uncertainly and pushed her chair away from the table. “But Jonah… you won’t… touch me or anything while the business dinner is on… will you?”

  I shook my head. “No, I will not,” I said. I saw a glimmer of relief spread across her face. “You will touch yourself, Leticia. Every time I say the word ‘welcome’, you will slide your hand down beneath the hem of your skirt, and tease your pussy with your fingers. Every time,” I warned her.

  Moments later Leticia returned to the table. She smiled across at the two Texan executives who were sipping at drinks. I stood until Leticia was seated and drew my chair close to the table and raised my glass.

  “Welcome gentlemen,” I said through a broad smile as I saw the blood drain from Leticia’s face. “I want to welcome you both, and in welcoming you, I want to welcome any suggestions you might have. Welcome Hotel chains want to welcome everyone to their facilities…”

  Leticia went pale, and then fainted.

  A note from Jason:

  This scene made me laugh. I don’t remember my mood at the time I wrote this scene – I can only believe that it was one of those mornings where my twisted sense of humor had risen to the surface. This was one of my favorite scenes of the tour.

  We Love Kink

  March, 28th.

  Jonah & Leticia sexting.

  My cell phone made a sound.

  I hate cell phones. I have one for work. It is a tool, not a toy, so when I heard the unfamiliar chime, it took me a moment to realize that I had received a message. I stabbed at the buttons until a block of words appeared on the screen.

  I WANT U 2 TAKE ME. IM URS.

  I read the message twice and frowned. I thumped the re-dial function and heard the dial tone loud in my ear. Leticia answered.

  “What the hell are you doing?” I asked.

  There was a long embarrassed pause. “I… I was sexting you.”

  I rubbed my chin. “Why would you do that?” I asked.

  “It’s,,, um.. supposed to be sexy…” Leticia offered, suddenly her tone lame.

  I sighed. “Leticia, sexy is the sound of someone’s voice. Sexy is the way a man uses words when he whispers in his lover’s ear. Sexy is the seduction of sensual language, blending tones, breaths, soft sighs and evocative images. I don’t turn women on in 140 characters or less. Arousal takes time, and practice… and experience.”

  Two Girls with a Passion for Books

  March, 31st.

  Jonah Noble buying flowers for Leticia.

  Leticia smiled as she came towards me, and I stood on the sidewalk and watched the way her body moved: the way the swing of her hips was accentuated.

  She kissed me on the cheek, and smiled. “I’ve been thinking about you all day,” she said, and her words were a husky whisper.

  “I have been thinking about you too,” I said.

  I brought the flower from behind my back and held it out to her. Leticia’s expression became pure delight. She took the flower and held it up to her face, inhaling the scent. “An Iris?”

  I nodded. The flower was a single Iris. I had selected it with care.

  “An Iris is a beautiful flower,” I explained, “and it has meaning. When a woman receives an Iris it is a symbol of faith and hope. That’s why I’m giving it to you, Leticia,” I explained, gazing into her eyes. “I want you to have faith in our future, and I want you to remember that hope can inspire people to achieve the most amazing things.”

  Two Girls with a Passion for Books

  March, 31st.

  Jonah and Jason at a Restaurant~ meet a fan.

  The woman came to the restaurant table and stood nervously. She was smiling. She looked at me, and then across the table to Jason Luke.

  “I know you!” the woman said to me. She was trembling, her body humming with a barely restrained excitement. “You’re Jonah Noble. You’re the man from ‘Interview with a Master’.”

  I smiled into the woman’s eyes and nodded. “Yes, I am,” I said. “It is a pleasure to meet you.”

  The woman’s smiled broadened. She had a paper napkin in her hand. She thrust it out to me hopefully. “Would you mind…?” she implored me. “Could I have your autograph?”

  I smiled again. I had a Mont Blanc pen in my pocket – I carried it with me always. I signed the napkin with a flourish.

  As the woman waited, she flicked her attention across the table to where Jason Luke sat, watching the whole scene play out as though he might write about it. The author had a steady gaze – the eyes of a man who was accustomed to watching at far-off horizons. It was unnerving.

  The woman turned to the author apologetically. “Sorry to interrupt your lunch. Are you a friend of Jonah’s?”

  Jason Luke shook his head. “We are acquaintances,” he said vaguely.

  I wouldn’t let the comment pass. I nudged the woman. “He is Jason Luke. He’s the author of the book.”

  For long seconds nothing happened. The woman seemed to be processing the information. Then her expression changed in an instant, becoming like thunder. She wielded her handbag like a club and hit Jason Luke across the back of the head. “Bastard!” she hissed with venom. “You left this poor character facing a death sentence at the end of the first book! Fix it for the second one, you hear me? Fix it Jason Luke. Let him live, or I will hunt you down and make your life a misery!”

  A note from Jason:

  Wow! The response to this scene was perhaps the most overwhelming one from readers I could remember. I liked the opportunity to poke fun at myself.

  Two Girls with a Passion for Books

  March, 31st.

  Leticia confides in Tiny in the car on the way back to her apartment.

  Leticia stared out through the window as Tiny eased the big car out through the estate gates and onto the winding mountain road. The night was dark: there was no moon. The sky was filled with a million stars. Leticia found one that seemed brighter than all the others. She closed her eyes, and made a silent wish.

  Then she opened her eyes.

  If wishes are to come true, they often need a little help…

  “I love him, Tiny,” Leticia said, as though she were speaking into the dark night sky. “I’m in love with Jonah.”

  The big man behind the steering wheel glanced into the rear vision mirror. Leticia was sitting, huddled and forlorn in the corner of the leather seat. She must have sensed his eyes upon her. She flicked a glance, and their eye
s locked.

  “Can you stop yourself?” Tiny asked quietly. “Can you find a way to fall out of love with him – before it becomes serious?”

  Leticia closed her eyes, and sadly shook her head. “I don’t think so…”

  Tiny sighed, and turned his attention back to the road. “Then you’re lost. So you might as well fall hard. You can’t get a little bit pregnant, and you can’t be a little bit in love, if you want a relationship to work. So love him with all your heart, and hope he will love you back.”

  Two Girls with a Passion for Books

  March, 31st.

  Jonah watching Leticia at her photo shoot.

  Leticia pouted at me – her lips were bright red, her face and hair made up in the style of a glamor model from the fifties. She was wearing a pink lace negligée, and red high-heels. I could see the firm proud shape of her breasts below the sheer fabric, and the dark shadow of her sex, just above the hem of the garment. Leticia spread her legs wide and bent forward at the waist, so that the soft swell of her breasts showed above the lace neckline.

  The photographer snapped the photo, then turned to me and shrugged.

  I nodded.

  I crossed to Leticia. “The photographer is disappointed,” I said. “And so am I.”

  Leticia didn’t look surprised. Her heart wasn’t in this photo session. She felt awkward and self-conscious. She seemed to cringe every time she was asked to pose.

  “You forget the purpose of this exercise,” I said softly. “You forget why you are here.”