Cayman Desires

by Simmons, Sabel

  Slowly leaning forward until her breasts were touching his chest, she rubbed the tightening tips against his hardness. His breathing haggard, he clutched her shoulders, pushing her away. He kept her close, but not touching, his eyes caught hers and she smiled sadly at him. She wanted to do this so badly, to caress, kiss and treasure his body, wanting him, to allow her to do it, to open to her, to allow her to see and feel his honest reaction to her, not the pretense he has been giving her.

  “Please Ray … I won’t ask for anything more. Just give me this one thing. Allow me to make love to you. I need this! I need you to know that you have been the only one! I have not been with anyone else … not ever! Plea … Ray!”

  He pushed her away so hard, she fell back on the sand, sprawled indignantly and near naked in front of him. All of a sudden, he was a different man. He had the look of someone that could easily kill! He glowered at her with so much loathing and ruthlessness that she tried to cover her nakedness from his burning gaze.

  His voice when he spoke was soft yet very controlled but so hoarse he sounded like someone else.

  “Do not …”

  He growled, swung away, picked up her dress and threw it at her, his back turned to her, desperate to bring his malicious fury under control.

  When he turned back at her, she had her dress back on and sat dejectedly on the sand, tears slipping down her cheeks. He drew his hands through his hair, took the steps that separated them and went down on his haunches in front of her, wiping the tears from her cheeks. His voice was still hoarse, but under control.

  “We can never turn back the clock, Clarissa. Never. What happened, happened, but it’s asking too much to expect me to forget or forgive what you did … and to now claim it’s only ever been me …”

  His hand stopped her when she started to talk, gently closing her lips.

  “I asked we forget what happened since I got here … and that is as far as I am prepared to go. Let’s not spoil our last night here to rehash the past. I’m not ready for you to make love to me … I might never be again … but I will give you pleasure tonight, the likes of which you never had.”

  He pushed her back on the sand and covered her immediately to kiss her with so much passion she forgot the pain his words caused. He continued to give her the pleasure he promised, so much so, he had to carry her back to the cottage, she was so limp she could not walk herself. Once there, he laid her on the bed, to force even more pleasure from her body throughout the night.

  At one point, her pleasure was so intense she cried in ecstasy, “Oh God, Ray … I love you so much!” He froze instantaneously, looked into her shimmering green eyes, clouded with passion and felt those words arrow unwaveringly with a direct hit to his heart. This time, it carried so much more weight; wrenched from deep within her soul, with no forethought and no pretense.

  However, everything had to end, and so did their short, romantic trip to the Little Cayman. Both of them were very quiet on the flight back the Grand Cayman, but for different reasons.

  Clarissa knew her heart teemed with love for Raymond, but could not help but wonder what lay ahead once they reached the hotel.

  Raymond on the other hand struggled with his emotions that were in total shambles. Try as he might he could not conjure up any hate or resentment for the beautiful woman next to him.

  Just the thought of Clarissa making love to him, controlling his reactions and emotions, caused his blood to flow south, tightening his shaft painfully. Remembering how she used to crawl all over him, caressed, kissed and licked down his body, caused shivers to run down his spine. He could even feel her hot mouth taking his hard shaft in her mouth, scraping her teeth up his length, only to nibble softly on the tip, then lick and kiss the sting away. He forced the images from his mind and concentrated on the sight of the Grand Cayman Island in the distance to bring his body under control.

  He knew he would have lost all control if he allowed her to do that. She would have known without a doubt that he still had strong feelings for her … and it was not loathing and hatred!

  He sighed heavily. Whereto from here? God, if only he knew!

  Chapter Twelve

  Lazily stretching her tired muscles Clarissa slowly awoke from a deep sleep. A soft smile curved on her mouth. Slowly reaching for Raymond, she was disappointed to find his side of the bed empty. He still made a point of jogging every morning. She just did not realize he would have the stamina to do so this morning, or rather mid-morning, judging by the height of the sun.

  He made love to her all night long. She lost count on how many times he pulled her under him, on top of him, in front of him. How he managed to bring her to ecstasy every single time amazed her even more. She felt muscles she did not even know she had twinge when she stretched again.

  He has never been so tender, so loving in his lovemaking. Yes, he had been passionate, extremely so, but he had also been demanding, at times keeping her hanging on the edge until she begged him to take her. He wrung her completely dry, not just physically, but emotionally. To such an extend she declared her love to him again. Once she did, he repeatedly wrung that declaration from her lips throughout the night. This time however, she did not mind. She reveled in it. He was the one, her soul mate, her forever after.

  She made a decision during the course of the night that she was going to make him believe in her again, believe that she loved him; that it was not just words. With that reminder in her head, she swiftly rose from the bed and after a quick shower went to the kitchen for a quick cup of coffee and to start preparing brunch before Raymond returned.

  She found the note on the dining room table, her name scrawled on it in black ink; she smiled, recognizing Raymond’s bold handwriting.

  The smile froze on her lips as she read, her whole body stiffened in shock.

  “No!”

  Her cry was hoarse and the shock turned to anguish as she read and re-read the short but devastating note. She lowered the note staring at the clear blue of the Caribbean ocean, without registering the beauty of it in the late morning sun. The question at the end of the note ran through her mind, like a never-ending mantra.

  I am leaving this morning. I hope your job at this Hotel can make you happy. Still no regrets, Clarissa?

  She crumbled to the floor, raw sobs racked through her slight frame. He left, without any warning, without even saying goodbye, without even asking her if she would go with him.

  She would have … she would have gone with him, without even having to think it over. She knew her life and happiness was with him. Only him, but he left, heartlessly, coldly leaving her while she slept!

  Clarissa went back to work and spent so much time behind her desk that she fell in an exhausted sleep at night.

  It was weeks later that Clarissa recalled Raymond telling her when he left the Island she would know regret and his prediction proved to be the truth. She bit back a sob at the memory and the last two weeks they spend alone together flashed through her mind. He did it deliberately! He set out to seduce her, to make her declare her love for him, and then he coldly left her. Just as she left him, six years ago. She supposed that was his revenge … to hurt her as much as she hurt him all those years ago.

  Oh Lord, how was she going to live life without him now!

  She realized very quickly that her job did not hold the same excitement now as it did over the past six years. She was in automated mode. She did everything she had to, conducted meetings, prepared for the Christmas festivities, all with a heart as heavy as lead. She hardly ate and Bette was literally force-feeding her snacks during the day, but she knew it could not sustain her in any way.

  “Clarissa, you have to eat! You are wasting away and throwing up nearly every time you do eat is only making it worse!”

  “I am not throwing up on purpose, Bette!” Clarissa snapped the words at her. Bette sighed and shook her head.

  “I know that, but you are not healthy and it is your body’s way of telling you that you need t
o take better care of it. Please, go to the cottage and rest. You need to sleep, for at least a full day or two. You hardly slept at all over the past four weeks, and it is Christmas soon. Now, please go. There is nothing here that I cannot handle myself. I don’t want to see you in this office again until Monday!”

  She ushered Clarissa to the door, overcoming her meek struggles easily. She gave her a quick hug and whispered in her ear. “Think about what you need, my friend, and fight for it. You always have, why did you give up so easily this time?”

  Tortured green eyes looked into hers. “Because he hates me now.”

  “Bullsh…if that man hates you, this island will sink before the end of the day! Even if he does … fight for him! Make him love you. He did once … you can make him again!”

  Raymond stood at the floor to ceiling window of his massive new office, staring into space. The door opening behind him pulled him out of his brooding. He turned and grimaced when he saw it was Miguel. The glare in his eyes was testament of what was to come. Circumventing it, Raymond raised his hand and said brusquely, “I don’t want to hear it, Dad.”

  Miguel ignored him, walked around the desk and came to stand as close to him as he could. He spat the words out, angry for the first time in many years.

  “Well, you are going to! What the devil beseeched you? How could you seduce the poor woman and then coldly leave her? I expected better of you, my son!”

  Raymond barked out a laugh, his eyes cold. “Seduced her? Hardly, you forget, she has always been ripe for the plucking!” The words spat out of clenched lips, fisting his hands, he turned back to the window.

  Miguel sighed, noticing the tired circles under Raymond’s eyes, the haggard look on his face, all testimony that he was not sleeping and suffering, just as Bette told him Clarissa suffered. He cursed softly. He should have cleared the air years ago! How was Raymond going to react to this now?

  “There is something I have to tell you, and I want you to know that not a day has gone by over the past three years that I have not regretted not telling you this sooner.”

  Raymond looked at him and realized that his father suddenly looked very stressed. Patiently he waited for Miguel to gather his thoughts and tell him what he had on his mind.

  “Your mother … and I … lied to you all those years ago. It was all her idea, she was sure Clarissa only used you, and when she left you so easily for the job on the Cayman’s I … stupidly agreed with her.”

  He struggled with his feelings and when he stopped talking, noticed Raymond’s frustration in his rigid stance.

  “She never, Clarissa never … oh damn, this is harder than I thought …” Raymond reached the end of his patience.

  “Just spit it out then we can stop talking about her. When will any of you realize I do not want to hear her name mentioned again!”

  “She never slept with him!”

  Miguel shouted at Raymond, went pale as Raymond froze and his face solidified like solid rock.

  “Clarissa never slept with Henry Scott, Ray.” His voice now soft and cajoling, “Your mother was scared you were going to go after her and I, stupid fool that I was, believed her that Clarissa cared nothing for you. The fact that she left you so callously for a job carried too much weight!” Raymond’s eyes were shuttered but the dark glitter spoke volumes.

  “I am sorry, my son, I should have told you this long ago. Maybe then…” His shoulders slumped and he turned away, but Raymond stopped him with a heavy hand on his shoulder.

  “Maybe then nothing. She still would have left. The job was that important to her. I however, would not have given in to Linda’s wish. It was the thought of her having sex with that sleaze, that made me agree to that and to give her a child. At least in that Mother got what she wanted, Clarissa out of my life.” He ran his hand through his hair. Miguel looked at him.

  “What are you going to do now?”

  Raymond went to sit in his chair and slumped down in it, a frown marring his brow.

  “I don’t know … apart from Henry Scott, nothing really changed. She still left because her career meant more to her than I. She still left because she did not love me enough … If you don’t mind, Dad, I’d like to be alone.” Miguel nodded and turned to the door where he turned and glanced back at his dejected son.

  “She came back you know …” Raymond’s head shot up, his eyes darkening. “When?”

  “Four months after she left. She said she realized she made a mistake and that she loved you too much. She found you in your office; kissing Linda … It totally devastated her. She went back to the Caribbean, thinking you never loved her.”

  Miguel turned and opened the door. Without turning his voice hoarse, he continued.

  “There have been too many misunderstandings, my son. Maybe it is time the two of you really found out what you feel for each other … and if the job really still means so much to Clarissa.”

  He walked out and closed the door softly behind him. His eyes found Rethas’, eagerly waiting for him in the reception area.

  “What did he say? Is he going to fetch her?”

  “I don’t know, my darling. We can only wait and see.”

  Raymond sat behind his desk as if turned to stone. His mind was in total shambles, his heart even more so. He pulled open his top drawer and unlocked the small hidden compartment, and took out the glittering diamond ring Clarissa returned to him. He now realized it must have been after she was here and saw him kissing Linda. The day he told Linda he would give her a child. The day after he confronted Henry Scott and he confirmed that his mother’s claim was true. The rotten, lying bastard! If he had not been fired years ago, he would beat him to a pulp now!

  It was hours later before he straightened behind his desk, reached for the intercom and called his secretary. Efficient as always she walked in immediately after with her pen and pad. He began dictating as soon as she was poised in front of him.

  “Dear Miss Langston, it is with regret that I have to inform you that your contract will not be renewed at the end of your current period. We thank you for…” His voice droned on as he rambled off all her accomplishments and ended with, “We wish you only success with your future career. Yours sincerely, Raymond St Claire.”

  He glanced at Sophia who sat looking at him with wide eyes. He shook his head when she started talking. “Make sure that letter is send by speed courier to reach her no later than Monday morning.”

  There was a bounce in Clarissa’s step when she walked into the office on Monday morning. Bette looked guilty and she quickly stuffed a letter she was reading in her drawer.

  “Another love letter, Bette?” Bette paled and Clarissa frowned, but before she could probe further, Bette jumped up and walked around her desk to give her a quick hug.

  “You look and sound so much better! Did you at least sleep enough?”

  Clarissa smiled. “More than enough, especially after I came to a decision.” She continued walking to her office with Bette trailing after her.

  “Well, don’t keep me in suspense, what decision?”

  Clarissa worried her bottom lip between her teeth, a clear indication that she was slightly unsure about the decision she came to.

  “I am going to Manchester to talk to Raymond. I am not going to stand back and let him walk out of my life, as he did me years ago. You were right. I love him and I will fight for him, for us, for our future!” With resolve, she sat down behind her desk, looked up at Bette hovering over her hesitantly.

  “What’s wrong? I thought this is what you wanted me to do?” Bette wrung her hands.

  “Uhm … well, yes, but …” Her mind on the letter she stuffed in her drawer, but then she came to a decision and pulled her shoulders back.

  “So, when do you want to leave? I’ll make the flight booking straight away!”

  “No need. I already did that last night. I am leaving on the 17:00 flight this afternoon.”

  “Well, you surely made up your mind then! Do not worry a
bout anything. Christopher and I will keep the fort.”

  Christopher was the assistant manager and right on cue, appeared in the doorway. She already informed him last night that she was leaving and asked him to come and see her this morning so she could do a quick handover.

  Bette sat down behind her desk and pulled the letter from the drawer. Her eyes skimmed over it again.

  Dear Miss Langston. It is with regret that I inform you that your contract will not be renewed at the end of your current period …”

  With strong resolution, she got up, walked to the shredder and quickly placed the letter in place. Hearing Clarissa soft laughter at something Christopher said, her mouth set in a straight line, she pushed the button and watched as the metal teeth devoured the letter in long shreds.

  Clarissa took in the beautiful tranquility of the Caribbean as the plane took off and circled over the Island a last time. It was tradition, the circling, allowing everyone to say goodbye to the Cayman’s for the last time.

  If all went as planned, she might never see this beautiful Island again. Tears burned behind her eyes, but thinking of Raymond, and what might be waiting ahead, dissolved the tears immediately.

  She realized, as soon as she walked out of his office in Manchester the following afternoon, it was not going to be as easy as she had hoped. Raymond was not there anymore; he had moved to London and taken the reins over from Miguel of the Princeton Group.

  She went back to the Princeton Hotel on Albert Square where she stayed. She pulled out her laptop, sat down on the sofa and proceeded to book another flight to London. She sighed in frustration; the only available seats were on the late evening flight the next day. Which meant her talking to Raymond would have to wait until the day after!