Sweet Silver Bells

by Rochelle Alers

  Crystal pulled her lip between her teeth to keep from screaming. The pleasure of Joseph’s tongue and teeth made her feel as if she was coming out of her skin. Closing her eyes, she arched when the heat from his mouth seared her closely trimmed mound. A scream, torn from the back of her throat, filled the bedroom as the tip of his tongue made tiny circles around her swollen clitoris.

  “Please,” she pleaded shamelessly, over and over, the plea becoming a litany of neediness only Joseph could assuage.

  Stopping his temporary sensual assault on her body, Joseph opened the drawer to the bedside table, took out a condom and slipped it on. Spreading her legs wider with his knee, he reached for Crystal’s hand and placed it on his erection; together they eased it into her vagina, both groaning in unison.

  Crystal gloried in the feel of her lover’s skin against hers, his touch sending tingles up and down her body, and the hardness sliding in and out of her body setting her afire. He quickened his thrusting; she followed his pace. Heat shot through her like an electric current; throwing back her head, she screamed his name, followed by long, surrendering moans of ecstasy. A peace she’d never experienced swept over her as Joseph collapsed on her body. The raspy sound of his heavy breathing reverberated in the room. After what seemed like an eternity when it was only seconds, he rolled off her and lay on his back, a muscular arm covering his face.

  A secret smile curved her mouth. Her period of enforced celibacy had been more than worth it. Making love with Joseph had awakened the dormant sexuality of her body, and she looked forward to when they would make love again and again until they parted. Her smile grew wider when he reached for her hand and laced their fingers together.

  “Did I hurt you?” he asked.

  “No,” she answered truthfully.

  “You’re very small.”

  “I’m probably tight because it’s been a while since I’ve had sex.”

  Joseph didn’t want to engage in a debate about how small or tight she was, but made a mental note to wait a few days before making love to her again. And he didn’t want to correct her about having sex. What they’d shared went beyond sex. Letting go of her hand, he sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. “Don’t run away,” he teased softly.

  “Where am I going?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. Maybe you’re a vampire and you have to get home before the sun comes up.”

  Rolling over, she placed her hand over his latex-covered penis. “As long as I don’t bite this, you’ll be okay.”

  Joseph forcibly removed her hand. “We will not pretend we’re vampires.”

  “You’re the one that brought it up.”

  “My bad,” he drawled, rising to stand.

  Crystal stared at his gloriously naked body as he headed for the bathroom. She’d wanted to tell him she wasn’t as small as he was large. A moan slipped past her lips when she shifted her legs. The muscles in her groin were on fire. She needed to soak in the Jacuzzi again—this time without company.

  Turning over on her side and pulling the sheet up to her neck, she closed her eyes. She was drifting off to sleep when Joseph returned, molding his chest to her back. They lay together like spoons, their breathing coming in unison until they fell into a dreamless sleep.

  * * *

  Crystal woke at dawn to find Joseph on his back, snoring softly. She managed to slip out of bed without waking him, completing her morning ablutions in the other bathroom.

  Dressed in a pair of sweats and thick cotton socks and carrying the bag containing her clothes, she went downstairs to the kitchen. She’d drunk two glasses of water while waiting for the coffeemaker to finish the brewing cycle.

  “Good morning, baby.”

  Spinning around on the stool at the cooking island, she smiled at Joseph standing a short distance away in his bare feet and pair of jeans and long-sleeved tee. She hadn’t heard him enter the kitchen. “Good morning.”

  He kissed her forehead. “What are you doing up so early?”

  Crystal nuzzled his ear. “I had to get something to drink. My mouth is as dry as the Sahara Desert. I OD’d on cheese, caviar and sushi, which led me to drink more wine than usual.”

  Wrapping his arms around her waist, Joseph rested his chin on the top of her head. “How many glasses did you have?”

  “I stopped counting after the second one. I suppose that’s why I was slow reacting when we got caught up in the moment.”

  Joseph sobered suddenly. He recalled their impromptu coupling in the Jacuzzi. “I hope I pulled out in time.”

  Crystal said a silent prayer he had, because they’d picked the wrong time of the month to have unprotected sex. “I think I’m all right,” she said with more confidence than she actually felt.

  She didn’t want history to repeat itself, like her parents, if she found herself carrying Joseph’s baby. Jasmine had vehemently denied she’d deliberately gotten pregnant to trap Raleigh into marrying her; instead she’d accused him of getting her pregnant because he’d believed she was breaking up with him.

  Despite the accusations, they married and then spent the next six or seven years blaming each other until they finally divorced. All Crystal remembered from her early childhood was the “he said, she said” rants, and it was something she vowed never to repeat with any man.

  “Will you tell me if you’re not all right?” Joseph asked.

  “Why?”

  “Because if you are pregnant, then we would have to get married.”

  Pushing against his chest, she extricated herself from his arms. “That’s where you’re wrong, Joseph. I doubt if I’m pregnant, or if I were to get pregnant by you, then we don’t have to do anything except become parents to a baby girl or boy. I will not repeat with you what my parents went through. One blaming the other because my mother was pregnant with me.”

  Joseph froze as if he were a statue. “We are not your parents, Crystal.”

  Her eyes flashed fire. “I know we’re not, because I’d never marry you or any other man because of a child.”

  Joseph refused to back down. “Don’t you believe a child needs both parents?”

  Crystal also refused to concede. “Not when they’re at each other’s throats. Every time my parents disagreed about something, they’d pull out the pregnancy card.” She shook her head. “That’s not going to be me. I won’t be the first single mother and I definitely won’t be the last one, either. And I don’t know why we’re arguing about marriage and babies when it isn’t something we’re both not ready for.”

  “We’re not arguing,” Joseph insisted. “We’re having a discussion.”

  She rolled her eyes upward. Okay, she mused, they weren’t yelling at each other, but they were having a disagreement. Unwilling to prolong the conversation, Crystal picked up the cup, filling it from the carafe with steaming black coffee. She set it down on the saucer in front of Joseph before reaching into an overhead cabinet and taking down another cup for herself.

  Joseph watched Crystal intently as she spooned a teaspoon of sugar into her cup and then added a generous amount of cream. “Will you let me know? One way or the other?” he asked.

  Her eyes came up, meeting his. “Yes,” she answered. “I’ll let you know one way or the other.”

  She didn’t drop her gaze as she took a sip of coffee, savoring the taste and warm brew, wondering why Joseph wouldn’t let it go. And for someone claiming not to be ready to embrace marriage, he’d become like a dog with a bone, insisting on it if she were actually carrying his baby.

  “Thank you,” he drawled.

  Crystal cut her eyes at him, clenched her teeth to keep from spewing curses, all the while counting slowly to ten. She had to leave before she said something she would no doubt later regret. “As soon as I finish my coffee I’m going back to my apartment. I have
quite a few things I have to take care of.”

  “Don’t you want breakfast?”

  She shook her head. “No, thank you. I’m still full from last night.” Taking a sip from the cup, she met his eyes over the rim. “I probably won’t see you until tomorrow, so if you’re going to the tea garden I’d like to go along with you.”

  “There’s a prediction of rain for tonight, and if it does, then we’ll have to put it off until Tuesday.”

  “It can’t be Tuesday because I’m going up to North Carolina.” She’d planned to visit many of the furniture manufacturer stores and outlets in High Point, Hickory and Jamestown for furnishings with which to decorate the inn and B and B. “I have to shop for furniture, and I probably won’t be back until next weekend.” Setting the cup on the countertop, Crystal rested both hands on his chest, registering the strong, steady beating of his heart under her palms. “I’ll make certain to return in time for your birthday and the Super Bowl party”

  Joseph covered her hands with his larger one. “I’m going to miss you.”

  She affected a sexy moue. “I’m going for less than a week.”

  His fingers tightened slightly on hers, holding her captive. “I’m still going to miss you.”

  Crystal knew her feelings toward Joseph were intensifying and she was becoming more confused every minute they were together. That meant their eventual separation would be even more difficult—at least for her. “And I you,” she whispered.

  “I’ll walk you back to your place.” Dipping his head, Joseph fastened his mouth to the side of her neck.

  Crystal smothered a moan as she closed her eyes. What had happened to the levelheaded woman who’d come to Charleston to decorate two renovated residences for the owner of one of the city’s most luxurious hotels? What she couldn’t understand was why she’d permitted herself to fall under the spell of a man whose caresses, kisses and lovemaking upset her balance and rekindled a passion she’d believed impossible.

  “Please, Joseph. I have to go now.” He complied, picking up her bag. They walked the carpeted hallway in silence. Joseph waited until she unlocked the door, handing her the bag, then turned and retraced his steps.

  Chapter 12

  Crystal stared at her reflection staring back at her in the hotel’s bathroom mirror. Her fervent prayer had been answered. She wasn’t pregnant! Her eyes filled with tears of relief as she compressed her lips to suppress a sob.

  Since coming to North Carolina, she hadn’t had a restful night’s sleep in four days. As long as she was busy, placing orders for only the merchandise the manufacturers had in stock, she didn’t have to dwell on whether she was carrying a baby.

  At night it was different when she lay in bed, trying to imagine what was going on in her womb. What she feared most was repeating her mother’s life. However, the difference was that when Jasmine discovered she was carrying Raleigh Eaton’s baby, they’d been seeing each other off and on for years, while with her and Joseph, it wasn’t quite a month. And for her that amounted to little more than a one-night stand.

  Crystal had planned to spend one more day in North Carolina before returning to Charleston. She’d ordered beds, side tables, tables and chairs, desks, chests and armoires for the inn at a company specializing in reproductions, and the furnishings for the B and B at three other furniture companies selling exclusively to wholesalers, both who had promised a two-to-three-week turnaround for delivery.

  She had an appointment with several dealers selling rugs and framed prints and with another specializing in curtains and shades. Crystal had ordered floor and table lamps from local Charleston dealers, and once the items in the storage units were delivered, she would then arrange each space according to her meticulously thought out floor plans.

  Her step was light, close to skipping, when she picked up her cell phone and punched in Joseph’s number. She’d promised him she would let him know one way or the other as to her physical state. His phone rang four times before going to voice mail.

  Crystal paused. “Joseph, this is Crystal. I’m calling to let you know I’m not...” She paused again, clearing her thoughts and mulling over how to phrase the news he would not become a father from an unplanned pregnancy. “I’m not pregnant,” she finally blurted out. “I’ll see you when I get back.”

  * * *

  Joseph rolled over, loathing getting out of bed. He hadn’t gotten back to the hotel until three in the morning after spending hours at the Watering Hole. He managed to get a seat at the bar and had sat there watching basketball played on the West Coast while the three glasses of beer he’d ordered sat untouched and eventually went flat. He hadn’t come to drink, but for the feverish commotion that helped him forget about Crystal.

  Even after some of the college students stumbled out, he continued to sit at the bar staring at the wall-mounted screen. First it was the basketball game, then an encore of a hockey game followed by continuous commentary from sports analysts and former players.

  Instead of walking back to the Beaumont House, he’d hailed a taxi for the short trip. Not bothering to shower, he tossed his clothes on the floor in a heap and fell across the bed.

  Reaching for his cell phone, he peered at the display. He had two missed calls. Punching in his pass code, he listened to the voice mail. Crystal’s voice was flat, a monotone when she announced, “I’m not pregnant.” One part of Joseph wanted her to be, because it meant they would have a lifelong connection, but Crystal was adamant about not marrying a man because she was carrying his child. And for Joseph, there was never a question of him taking care of his responsibility. He wouldn’t be the first Cole male to get a woman pregnant before exchanging vows, but what he didn’t want to be was a baby daddy. Even if he and Crystal didn’t marry while she was pregnant, he would be more than willing to give her time to change her mind after she delivered their son or daughter. Knowing he wasn’t going to be a father permitted Joseph a second chance—a chance to prove to Crystal he wanted her for herself, to show her—if she gave him a chance—how much he’d come to love her.

  He listened to the second voice mail, smiling. Seth Allen had agreed to represent Gillian Stuart. He stated he was currently interviewing other women who’d worked at Bramwell and Duncan Architectural and Design who were also sexually harassed by Hugh Duncan.

  Unfortunately for the perverted architect, he didn’t know he was about to confront an attorney with the doggedness of a pack of wolves stalking prey.

  After he tapped in Seth’s number, Joseph’s smile grew wider when he heard his friend’s unorthodox greeting. “Talk to me.”

  “I got your voice mail. Thanks for taking on the case.”

  “What’s your stake in this, Wilson?”

  Joseph told him about Crystal’s experience, without mentioning her name, when she worked at the architectural and design company.

  “So this is personal.”

  “Very personal.”

  “What is she to you?” Seth questioned.

  A beat passed. “The only thing I’m going to say is that she’s very special.”

  Seth’s whistle reverberated through the earpiece. “It sounds like you’re ready to hand in your playa’s card since you broke up with your ex.”

  Joseph wanted to tell his friend he was wrong. He’d never been a playa—hadn’t even come close to ever being one. Not when he’d dated one woman exclusively for four years. “The only thing I’m going to say is I’m seriously thinking about settling down and starting a family in the very near future.”

  “Good for you, friend. Send me an invitation if you decide not to go the Vegas route.”

  “She’s not the Vegas type, and I’m certain she’ll want all of her family in attendance.”

  Joseph chatted with his friend for a few more minutes, then rang off.

  It was after ten and t
ime he got out of bed to start his day. It was Friday and Crystal had promised to return to Charleston before Sunday. Whipping back the sheet and quilt, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and made his way to the bathroom, whistling a nameless tune.

  * * *

  Crystal stopped at the concierge to pick up her mail before going up to the apartment. The young woman handed her a shopping bag with her name attached. Peering into the bag, she saw several magazines and the package containing the gift for Joseph’s birthday.

  She’d planned to leave High Point Saturday afternoon to return to Charleston, but the vendor with whom she was scheduled to meet the day before had put her in his calendar for Saturday instead of Friday.

  Her decision to check out early and be on the road by sunrise on Sunday morning proved beneficial because she was able to avoid the subsequent backup on Route 17 when several vehicles collided, blocking traffic.

  Pulling her wheeled suitcase, she walked into the elevator and inserted the key into the slot for the top floor. A feeling of accomplishment swept over her as the car rose quickly and silently. Crystal had managed to purchase everything she needed to complete decorating the interiors. All that remained was the delivery of the furniture and arranging them according to the approved specifications. The commission she’d estimated would take three months would be accomplished in two. Al was excited because he would be able to advertise his grand opening well in advance of the beginning of the tourist season.

  The elevator doors opened at the penthouse floor, and when she exited the car Crystal took a quick glance to the right as if she expected to see Joseph. She’d sent him a text Saturday night informing him that she’d been delayed and wouldn’t return until late morning.

  Although Selena had insisted she not bring anything for the Super Bowl party, Crystal had decided to use some of the ingredients in the refrigerator before she had to discard them. She planned to make an assortment of wonton dumplings filled with gingered ground pork, chicken and beef and a chili-soy dipping sauce.