"Are you looking forward to the islands?" he asked, trying to keep her talking, but not wanting to frighten her either.
Justine dog-eared the page of her book, closed it, and put it in her bag with her towel and sunscreen.
She just knew that this guy was a talker, and she didn’t mind that all.
"All of them. This is something that I’ve wanted to do for a long while and now I finally can."
The waiter walked by at that moment and looked at the two talking, "Can I get either of you a drink?" he asked, smiling at the two strangers chatting with each other.
"Please. I’ll have another Midori Splice," Justine said.
"I’ll have a Jack and coke please," said the handsome man.
The waiter left and an awkward silence fell over them.
"Why have you never been on a cruise before? Were you frightened?" he asked Justine.
"Oh no, nothing like that. My husband never wanted to go on one. He said we couldn't afford it."
"You’re married?" the man asked, surprised because he'd already checked out her left hand and hadn't seen a ring on her finger.
"Sorry…ex-husband," she corrected.
He smiled.
"That’s his loss and my gain," he mumbled, hopefully not loud enough for her to hear.
Justine did hear, and was surprised. Her ex-husband was a prick. He used to tell her that her tits were too small, her hips were too wide, and her smile was hideous. Justine didn’t believe him at first, but he'd continued to make snide small comments about her until eventually, she began to believe him.
"May I ask your name?"
"Justine," she said, smiling at him.
"Justine. That’s a lovely name. I’m Adrian. Pleased to meet you." He held out his hand to her, and Justine accepted it immediately. The moment her fingers touched his, a warm tingle traveled up her arm.
"Are you here on your own then?" Adrian asked, hopeful.
“I am. Seasickness put me out of commission yesterday, but today I’m perfectly fine."
Adrian laughed; he knew all too well what she meant, for he had had a bout of it too.
"Ha! Me too. Did you get the shot? I had to call the doctor. He came to my room and jabbed me in the ass. I was better within the hour, but was so tired I spent the night in bed."
"No, I have a mother who's a walking chemist,” she said with a laugh. “She made me go the doctor before I left for my trip so they could give me every remedy known to man. I've packed virtually everything."
Adrian and Justine laughed, but it was true. Her mother had even made her pack a mini sewing kit. (“Just in case,” she’d said.)
"Do you have any dinner plans?" Adrian boldly asked.
"Nope, I have assigned seating at the early session. You?"
“I was planning on eating dinner with my new, and very beautiful friend."
Justine felt her smile drop. She was hoping that they could have dinner together.
“Well, I hope you two enjoy your meal tonight then."
Adrian laughed. He knew she thought he was talking about someone else, but he meant her.
"Is my new beautiful friend going to stand me up?”
"Sorry?" she asked, perplexed.
"I’d very much love for you to have dinner with me. That's if you'd like to, of course."
"Oh,” Justine said, blushing. He was probably just asking her to be nice. “Well then, I’d love to. Thank you." She looked away from his beaming smile.
The time seemed to pass quite effortlessly between the two of them. The conversation flowed easily and they talked about many things. They discovered that they both lived in the same town, but at opposite ends, and they actually both went to the same school – but six years apart.
When the time for dinner approached, Justine returned to her cabin to change into her favorite little black dress. It was an expensive splurge; she'd spent over a hundred dollars on it. It wasn't that she couldn't afford it, but her prick of an ex used to be incredibly tight with money and wouldn’t let her spend anything on herself. Buying that dress had felt like a victory to her.
Justine showered and washed her hair, straightening it to its full, mid-back length, put on some light make-up, and her cute matching fire-red panties and bra. She slipped on her her LBD, and slid her feet into nice, three-inch heels.
She took the elevator up to deck ten, and walked into the restaurant where they'd arranged to meet.
Justine felt self-conscious, her ex-husband’s words playing around in her mind. "Fat," or, "ordinary," were words he often used to describe her, along with other not-so-flattering things.
"Oh my God," she heard from behind her.
She turned to see who had spoken, and was met by the most attractive man she'd ever seen. Adrian was dressed in his own dark suit, with a deep purple shirt and a striking green tie. His eyes couldn’t help but wander down the length of her beautiful body. "My God, I’m sorry to be so forward, but you are simply the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever seen."
Justine grinned. That was the most heartfelt compliment she'd ever received from a man. "Thank you, Adrian. I have to say, you're very handsome yourself," she said, shyly.
Adrian, still gobsmacked, had to find his mind before she thought that there was something wrong with him.
"I’m..." speak God damn it, fucking speak! "I’m so happy I came on this cruise." He leaned in and gave Justine a kiss on the cheek. He gently ran his hand down the bare skin of her tanned arm. A subtle, yet delicious waft of a spicy perfume danced merrily around his nose, and he was overtaken by his yearning for the sexy creature standing in front of him.
The kiss lingered, and they leaned into each other. Together, they were finding that spark, that fire that ignited and burned as they stood in the foyer simply appreciating each other’s attractive body.
“I’m sorry to just blurt this out, but I want you," he murmured in her ear.
The fire turned to a blaze, and she wanted nothing more than to feel a real man move with her body as they tangoed to rhythms that didn’t have anything to do with music.
"Oh my,” was all she could say. Her eyes closed, leaning further in toward him. Her candy-red lips slightly parted as her ragged breath made her chest heave with desire.
"Can I taste you, please?" Adrian begged. His tongue came out to lick the sensitive area beneath her earlobe.
"I haven’t been with anyone for a long time," she admitted timidly.
"Neither have I," he answered earnestly.
Both these incredibly sexy, beautiful people were thinking the same thing: How is that possible?
“I want you," Adrian repeated.
This time Justine took the lead. She pulled away from the intense heat that resonated between them, linked their fingers tightly together, and started walking toward the elevator. "Screw dinner,” she said, recalling her mother’s advice and throwing caution to the wind.
The two went back to Justine’s room, where they spent hours discovering and appreciating each other’s body. Mouths grazed heated, sensitive skin. Hands stroked and maintained contact.
When they finally joined and became one, Adrian and Justine both found happiness that neither of them had thought would be possible again.
The next morning, as they lay entwined in a mass of arms and legs, Adrian’s fingertips lightly tickling the bare skin on Justine’s back, they talked about a range of topics, easily and openly.
"My ex-husband went to college to become a lawyer while I worked three jobs to put him through school. Then, when he graduated, I thought it would be easier, but it ended up being harder. I left when I told him I wanted a baby, and he told me he'd already knocked up some woman he had been sleeping with," she said, a humorless chuckle escaping past her swollen lips.
"My ex-wife ended up being the town slut. She was screwing everything that had a penis. I had to get myself tested for every STD known to man after I found out. Thank goodness the bitch hadn't given me anything."
"Tha
t’s always a good thing, not that I wish any sicknesses on either my ex-husband or your ex-wife, but wouldn't it be nice for them to get their just desserts?" Justine elongated her neck and deeply kissed Adrian. The kiss lead to another hot and steamy session of raw, gritty sex.
Later on, after Justine’s body was well-used and definitely sore, the two of them dressed and made their way up to level nine, where lunch was being served.
"I’m famished," Justine whispered in Adrian’s ear.
"Get your energy now, because I plan on amping it up once I get you alone again," Adrian retorted, then leaned down and gave his sexy lover a kiss.
Justine giggled, just like a teenage school girl in the arms of her crush. "Tell me, Adrian, what exactly do you do?" She felt somewhat foolish. She'd given herself freely to the handsome man, and hadn't asked the most basic of questions.
"I’m a vet. I have my own practice."
"Really? I've always wanted a dog, but Kurt never let me have one," she said as her face fell slightly at the memory of her asshole ex.
“I can certainly help you get the right dog if you’d like one."
“I live in an apartment, so unfortunately I can't have one."
"Then you're welcome to visit my house any time you want. I have several dogs."
"Your house? That sounds so clinical,” she teased.
I suppose it is now, since I kicked her out," he said 'her' with such disdain in his voice, and he went quiet too. "That's all my house is. It feels so empty and so cold."
"Maybe she's just wasn’t the right one for you. There's still plenty of time."
"Yeah, that's very true. I suppose the fact that she was fucking everything in town really devastated my confidence. It doesn't help that the bitch went out and got herself knocked up either."
Ding, ding, ding. Red flags immediately shot up in Justine’s mind.
"Pregnant?" she questioned. "By whom?"
"Believe it or not, a roadie. A damned cover band came through town, and she went out to see them. She screwed the sound guy in the bathroom and ended up pregnant."
Justine took a deep breath. Adrian could tell that this was clearly a sensitive issue. "I’m sorry; I know how this must be difficult for you."
"It’s not our fault our spouses couldn't keep their clothes on."
Justine looked out at the crystal blue sea, the fluffy white clouds floating in the sky, the horizon so beautiful and still.
Today had been a great day, the taste of sea salt just touching her lips as she licked, looking out at the silence of the ocean.
"Lara was nothing short of a slut," he said, the hurt still audible in his voice.
"Lara?" Justine’s eyes flew to Adrian.
"Yeah, Lara."
"Lara Barnes?" she queried.
"Oh my God!" Adrian’s mouth fell open, and his eyes became wide. He was quickly realizing what Justine was about to say.
Justine just waited. Lara Barnes was Adrian’s Lara, and now her ex-husband’s Lara.
"She always chose to live by her maiden name," he said, confirming her suspicions.
Lunch was now forgotten. Lara Barnes was indeed the woman that Kurt had been screwing. Kurt thought the baby was his, but the fact was, well, who the hell knew? Because Lara Barnes had been having sex with God knows how many people at the same time. Justine laughed hysterically and after a few moments, Adrian joined in.
Sometimes Life Happens
It had been raining since last Monday. And there was nothing more that Audrey wanted than for the rain to finally stop. Since the day she had flown into Paris, the only thing that she’d been able to do was wander around inside the city’s buildings.
The past few years had been tough. She’d fallen in love when she was young, really young. She met Bailey when they were both freshmen in high school, and they instantly became best friends. Both of them had just moved, and having that in common sort of made them the odd kids out at school.
Bailey was a dork. He had thick-rimmed glasses, braces, and pimples. Poor kid, going through puberty was hard enough, but going through it all with shit like that, well, anyone would feel for him.
Audrey was a skinny little thing, and so quiet. She barely said “boo”, and the other girls at school were really quite observant in addition to being incredibly insensitive and nasty bitches.
We all know how high school is, especially when boobs and hips start forming, and the hormones kick in. You’re either a cool kid or you’re not. And when you’re not, you try your best to blend into the furniture and pray that each day goes by with minimal torment.
But both Audrey and Bailey were also smart, acing tests, and on all the teams that weren’t popular with the cool kids. They not only looked like dorks, but were in all the dorky activities, too.
So high school was hard, but together they managed to find some peace and some days weren’t all that bad. They found their little niche along the way with some other unpopular kids and went through high school pretty much unscathed. Not completely carefree, but less harassed than some of the other bullied kids.
By their junior year in high school, Audrey and Bailey had an unshakable connection. They were so close that they did virtually everything together, spent every spare moment in each other’s company.
First it was studying together. Then, as they got older, their closeness grew. In the beginning, the chemistry was pretty one-sided. Bailey had become infatuated with Audrey but as time went on, her feelings developed for him and soon they were completely inseparable, and in love.
In her senior year, Audrey grew into her boobs, her face, and her body. She lost her braces, got contacts, and became quite attractive. The popular boys started noticing her. Through it all, her affection for Bailey never waned, not once.
Bailey still remained dorky, but less than he had been as a freshman. His skin cleared and he lost his braces too. Unfortunately the thick-rimmed glasses remained.
At the end of high school, Bailey did something he always knew he would do at some point in his short life.
He bought Audrey a tiny diamond ring that he’d saved for since he began working as a dishwasher, and got down on one knee.
Audrey adored him, and said “yes” in less time than it took for the human heart to beat.
The kids’ parents were not impressed, and didn’t offer their blessings. The two beautiful souls had already decided to wait until they had finished college before they married.
Well, that was the plan.
And it worked...until they went to Vegas to celebrate Audrey’s twenty-second birthday, and ended up married.
They were perfect together; their union was meant to be. There was nothing that could tear them apart. Not a situation, not a person, nothing.
But something happened over the next eight years, something neither of them could have foreseen.
And that was…life.
Life started taking its toll against them.
Audrey graduated and became a primary school teacher; Bailey became an architect.
Although they adored each other, life got in the way and soon, they began to drift apart.
Work became stressful. Living together was just…well, routine.
Their marriage became stale. They forgot how to be in love with each other. It wasn’t anyone’s fault; they simply both neglected their relationship.
While eating spaghetti on spaghetti night, Audrey broke down and cried. She wasn’t happy. And she knew that Bailey wasn’t happy either.
“What do we do, Bailey?” she asked, as tears streamed down her reddened cheeks.
“I don’t know,” he answered honestly.
Bailey left their home, and took up temporary residence in a nearby apartment, and they began to see a marriage counselor, a professional who could help them rediscover the spark in their relationship, the zing that had disappeared through years of complacency.
Unfortunately, after eleven months of trying to rekindle their personal connection, they both a
dmitted they’d failed.
Today, four years after their separation and divorce, Audrey was planning on going to the Eiffel Tower. She’d worked hard, and had saved every dime in order to afford this vacation of a lifetime. Although she was alone, she was determined to travel to the one place that had captured her interest a few years earlier, after her divorce.
Audrey, now in her late thirties, was doing something solely for herself.
And Paris was where she decided to go.
Audrey looked out the window of her mid-range hotel room and saw the rain sheeting down the glass pane. The Eiffel Tower would have to wait.
But she was sick of being inside. She wanted to go out and discover the city of love. She wanted to feel the cobblestones beneath her shoes, experience eating a real French croissant as she sat on the patio of a little café and sipped her black coffee. She wanted the fresh fall air to kiss her on the lips as the warmth of her scarf tightly hugged the column of her throat.
There was something about being in the world’s most romantic city that sent a tingle of hope and excitement right through her core.
She hadn’t given up on love, though she certainly wasn’t in search of it. She had only been intimate with two other men after Bailey, and neither of them had stayed around for long.
Though life had gotten in the way of their relationship, she still held a deep love for Bailey. And there’d be times where she’d find herself longing to hear from him, just to know that he was okay.
But they’d decided that when their marriage ended, it would be best if they each went their separate way, and so neither knew how the other was doing.
A common friend would sometimes mention something about Bailey in passing, but she’d block it out and not listen. She wanted to know, but the wound was still raw and she couldn’t handle it.
Friends wondered why their relationship had ended if she still loved him so much. Sometimes, she’d tell them, life just gets in the way and some people are better off apart than together.
Damn it, she was determined to experience Paris before she had to return home, regardless of the weather. Audrey took in a huge breath and decided to brave the rain. Wrapping herself in her scarf and coat and taking her oversized umbrella with her, she walked out of the hotel and started toward the city center.
Crave Page 53
