Moonlight (a Melanie King Affair 4 Part Mini-Series - Part 1)

by Lisa Sumil

  Moonlight

  Part #1

  A Melanie King Affair 4 Part Mini-Series

  By, Lisa Sumil

  Copyright: Lisa Sumil 2013

  Based on Actual Events

  1

  I was acutely aware of everything around me. The cool touch of the Formica against my forearm, the cheap plastic-coated apron our server wore, the ceramic tile floor underneath my feet, and the sticky feel of the cheap red booths in the retro diner that screamed tacky nostalgia. Warren watched me, his arm draped over the top of the booth back, gently resting against my shoulder as his thumb made mindless circles against my bare skin. His other hand rested on my thigh, just under the hem of my rusty-orange summer dress, hiking it up dangerously. My senses were on high alert.

  He watched my eyes as I felt them water, my heart drumming strong under his gaze. I could feel the rise and fall of my chest press against my dress as we maintained eye contact. He just watched me curiously, waiting patiently.

  “This isn’t just an affair anymore,” I finally said.

  I saw his face soften. He already knew. He took a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh. When did he realize this? I kept wondering and he kept watching.

  His hand left my thigh and drove inside me, his fingers deep, exploring. I gasped desperately, taking a shaky breath. My god we had become addicted to each other. My body tensed and I bit my lip, struggling to maintain composure so the rest of the diners could remain oblivious. The more he explored, the less I cared. My head fell into the nook of his neck as my breath quickened. I knew he delighted in making me feel helpless and I loved that he enjoyed it.

  He lifted my chin with his other, not-busy, hand and made me look at him again, keeping eye contact while he messed with my senses and continued to pleasure me.

  “It’s not just an affair anymore,” he agreed.

  I opened my legs a little more, giving him free access and his eyes grew darker, hungrier. Every touch, every breathless orgasm he gave me was a battle, a war raging on in my mind of right and wrong. My heart, my mind, every fiber of me knew what I was doing was wrong on every level and yet I couldn’t stop. My drug. Warren was my oh-so-amazing drug that I couldn’t get enough of. It took everything not to climb on top of him in that diner so he could take me right there and that drove me mad in the finest way.

  “Can I get you guys anything else?”

  The servers voice shocked me. I didn’t turn back to look at her. My back faced her as I was turned in the booth facing Warren. His eyes never left mine and his eyes only grew hungrier. I wondered if one of us was going to answer. I didn’t trust myself.

  “That’ll be all,” he said as he continued to watch me.

  He tickled that spot on the inside of me that he had grown to know so well. A spot my husband never found.

  “We can stay here as long as you want,” he said again to me, his voice gravely - and he tickled that spot again. He knew I wouldn’t, couldn’t answer.

  Finally, mercifully, he slowed and said we could go. Before we left the booth he licked his wet fingers while watching me, only heating me up all over again.

  Not just an affair anymore

  The words played in my mind over and over as we walked towards our cars in back of the diner off 87. He walked behind me and I could practically feel his eyes grazing over my body. If it wasn’t just an affair anymore and he had realized that already, why hadn’t he stopped it?

  The sun had just disappeared behind the trees, cooling the air considerably and casting the sky in a swirl of plum and orange - Warren’s favorite time of the day.

  I reached my car and felt him still standing behind me. Would Zack be wondering where I am yet? Would Sophia be wondering where Warren was? I shivered in the cool air thinking about our spouses, something I tried not to, but their faces always cruelly invaded my thoughts at the worst times.

  When I turned to face Warren he still had that look on his face - a mixture of hunger and knowingness. A drug addict wanting their fix but knowing it would only make it more difficult to break. Then I saw something else.

  “Are you going home?” he asked.

  My heart leapt in my chest. When had a simple question become so complicated?

  The sound of a door creaking open startled me. I turned back toward the diner and saw one of the workers throwing a garbage bag into the dumpster. The boom of the bag hitting the bottom of the dumpster echoed back to us. The worker never noticed us standing in the shadows of my car and I watched the door close behind him. We were alone in the parking lot again.

  I didn’t answer Warrens question. I just faced him again and leaned my back against the car and he stepped forward, closing the distance between us. He trailed his finger along the low neckline of my dress, just barely grazing my skin with the back of his knuckle, raising goosebumps on my flesh.

  “Don’t go home,” he said.

  My phone chimed.

  Warren slipped the strap off my left shoulder and tugged it down, exposing my breast to the cool evening air. My breathing became heavier and I felt my insides warm and throb in response. I dared a glance at my phone and saw a text from Zack. Warren slipped the other strap off my shoulder, leaving me topless in the parking lot. The cool air felt foreign and welcoming against my skin.

  He lowered his head and took a taste of my skin and perking me with his lips, nibbling softly. I couldn’t help myself. The moan escaped and my body pressed against him reflexively, begging for more. In the distance I could hear the creaking of the diner door opening again but didn’t care. Let them watch.

  Warren pulled away and the cool air did wondrous things against the moisture he left behind with his mouth. He pulled the straps of my dress back up, covering me again.

  “I have a lot of work to do at the office this weekend,” he said as he took my hand in his.“You should stop by and visit me.”

  I could barely manage a nod. My body still reeling from the heat and yearning.

  “I wish you were coming home to me instead,” he said and then pressed his lips hard against mine. My heart ached.

  He walked me to the drivers side of my car and opened the door for me.

  “But, I’ll settle for a visit this weekend instead,” he said as I slid in behind the wheel.

  “I’ll text you later,” I said - knowing I’d probably go another night without sleep as we would text back and forth throughout the night, again.

  As I pulled out of the parking lot I opened the message from Zach.

  Picked up your favorite, it’s getting cold.

  I cried nearly the entire way home. As I pulled into the driveway my phone chimed again. I looked down to see a text from Warren.

  It was never just an affair

  My heart soared. I reluctantly deleted the text and glanced in the mirror, seeing my puffy eyes and puffy lips. Lust and emotions never mix.

  Lilian came bounding down the front steps and jumped in my arms as I got out of the car. I pressed my face against her soft blonde curls and could smell the strawberry shampoo she loved. Zach stood barefoot on the red brick steps of our home, smiling.

  “How was your day?”

  “Fine.” I carried Lilian up the walkway.“Allergy issues all day, though.”

  “Your eyes do look a little bloodshot.”

  I just nodded. I hated that it was so easy to lie to him.

  “Did you guys already eat?”

  “Lilian had pizza at school so she wasn’t very hungry when she got home.”

  “She’ll probably end up getting hungry just before bedtime the
n,” I said as I stepped passed him into our home.

  Zach laughed. My heart broke.

  I sat at the dining table and ate the pasta from our favorite Italian restaurant, barely tasting a thing. Every night, every moment of the day I contemplate telling Zachary about my affair. I hated lying to him. Every night, I chickened out.

  “What are you doing?” I asked him, seeing him frown at the computer screen. He sat with me at the dining table with his laptop.

  “I heard there was a wine festival happening in Solvang this weekend and I was thinking we could go.”

  “What about Lilian?” I asked.

  “She is having a sleepover at the Parker’s this weekend.”

  “So why are you frowning?”

  “Well, almost everything is sold out. The only place left has rooms for three-hundred-fifty dollars a night.”

  I waited. If I told him it was fine to spend the money and to be romantic he would do it. I didn’t want to have to tell him that it was okay and decided to leave it up to him. Money wasn’t an issue for us. It hadn’t been for a long time.

  I rolled the pasta around my fork and continued to eat. I wondered what Warren would be eating, if he would just make a sandwich or order pizza.

  I listened to Zach click around on the computer with the mouse buttons and wondered if he was booking the room. I realized I silently hoped he would. Give me a reason to fight for us, I thought. Give me a reason to be with you instead.

  Tears prickled the corner of my eyes as I thought my cruel thoughts. It wasn’t his fault, I chided myself. It wasn’t his fault I was having an affair.

  Minutes ticked by.

  I thought of a weekend away with him in the small picturesque town. I would buy new lingerie and make a weekend of it. It could be our new honeymoon.

  “Not hungry?”

  He snapped me out of my daydream that I didn’t even realize I was having. I saw the computer shut in front of him and he looked at me.

  “Just tired,” I responded.“What happened with Solvang?” I asked reluctantly.

  “I couldn’t find anything else,” he said.

  My throat tightened up and I fought back the tears. I just nodded and got up from the table.

  He didn’t say anything else and went to the sofa where Lilian sat and watched tv with her.

  “If you’re tired, why don’t you take a bath and I’ll put Lilian to bed tonight?” Zach spoke without looking up.

  I picked up his socks and shoes from behind the sofa with a sigh and took them to our room, thinking about a bath.“No, that’s okay,” I said as I came back down the hallway and back into the kitchen.

  As I washed the dishes that were stacked in the sink I thought about the diner and Warren. It was never just an affair. Each time I thought about his text my heart races in anticipation. It meant more to him and that should scare me, make me run. Instead, I felt my lips curve in a smile. A part of me wondered what he was doing right now.

  “I’m going to go to bed,” Zach called out from the sofa.

  “Right now? It’s only 8:30.” I frowned. We used to stay up late together but it had been years since then. Yet, on nights where he went to bed especially early I felt especially lonely.

  I dried my hand on the dishtowel and wiped down our charcoal gray granite counter-top as I listened to the soft footfalls of my husband. I felt myself pause mid-wipe in anticipation. Then, I heard the soft click as our bedroom door closed and I wiped the tear that had escaped.

  “Alright munchkin. It’s past your bedtime.”

  I looked down at my daughter who laid on our couch half-asleep.

  “We’ll skip your bath tonight,” I said, half-laughing.

  I carried my six year old to her overly pink bedroom and sat with her until she fell asleep. As I watched her lips turn into a pout in her sleep I smiled and brushed her soft curls back from her round face. I sat there for another hour, watching her peaceful sleep and listened to the sound of her steady, soft breathing. I gently pulled her blue stuffed rabbit, Mugsy, from her arms and tiptoed back to our bedroom. I deliberately avoided looking at our bed where my husband slept, clueless about his wifes love affair. I might as well not have existed anymore.

  As I sat on the floor of our oversized walk-in closet, sewing the loose eye back on Mugsy I thought of Warren again and his words before we parted. I wish you were coming home to me instead.

  Just as I was tucking Mugsy back into Lilian’s arms I heard my cell phone chime from my purse and my pulse quickened. After silently closing Lilians bedroom door I went directly to my phone.

  Miss me?

  I smiled as I sat on the sofa, crossing my legs.

  Was it an early night for Sophia too? She already asleep?

  I don’t know when we stopped using Zach and Sophias names to each other. We usually avoided conversation of our spouses all together.

  Yup. Exciting night here. You?

  I sighed.

  Is this why we need each other?

  I leaned back against the sofa, not expecting a fast reply. Yet, my phone chimed almost immediately.

  Come outside

  That explained the fast reply. I didn’t respond but went to our bedroom instead and heard the steady soft snores from Zach. I stood for a minute just watching his sleeping form and felt angrier by the second. Why couldn’t he be the one waiting for me? I fumbled loudly through our closet until I found a light shawl and wrapped it around my shoulders. When I stepped outside the closet his snores continued undisturbed.

  Jackass, I whispered.

  The only reason I didn’t bother slamming the front door is because I didn’t want to wake Lilian. Warren was parked directly in front of the house in his green Ford Explorer. I could hear the engine idling. I frowned at him and he just shrugged. I walked up to the car and the passenger side window was rolled all the way down.

  “Really Warren?”

  “He’s probably been snoring for hours already, Melanie.” He wore a silly half-grin.“Get in, we’ll drive down to the park at the end of the street.”

  His car was filled with his scent and it instantly relaxed me. I leaned my head back against the headrest and closed my eyes. My entire life exhausted me.

  “What’d you eat tonight?” I asked.

  Warren frowned.

  “Pizza?”

  “No, meatball sandwich.”

  “From Angelos?”

  “Yup.”

  “When is the last time you ate real food?”

  “Angelos isreal food.”

  “You know what I mean. When’s the last time you ate at home.”

  “Home?” He gave me a look.

  Warren pulled to the side of the road just in front of the small neighborhood park. We walked over to the picnic table just twenty feet from the road. I sat, leaning back against the tabletop and Warren sat facing inward.

  “It wasn’t like with you, when you– ” he didn’t need to finish what he was saying. I knew exactly what he was talking about. I didn’t say a word and let Warren take his time. We had talked about it before. Yet, I could tell by his tone that this was different.

  “She’s not getting better, only worse.”

  “Maybe it’s time for a new doctor? New meds?” I urged. I may be having an affair with Sophias husband, but I didn’t hate the woman. Though, I’m sure she would hate me and I wouldn’t blame her - not for a second. Sometimes, I wondered if I should stop seeing Warren because I didn’t want to risk hurting Sophia more than she already was. I was scared of the sort of consequences that Warren would deal with. Sometimes I hated myself for not leaving him– more for him, than me.

  “I don’t know anymore.”

  “You knew with me,” I reminded him.“While Zach didn’t. While no one didn’t.” I took a deep, shaky breath.

  “Did he ever find out?”

  I shook my head, not trusting myself to speak without crying. Warren brushed my hair back from my face and tucked it behind my ear, then he gently turn
ed my face towards his and made eye contact. I loved that about Warren. I loved that he always wanted to see me.

  “I’m pretty sure you saved my life,” I finally managed.“And you barely knew me.”

  Warren tilted his head to the side, regarding me sadly.“I’m sorry you went through that and I’m sorry your husband didn’t know how much you were suffering. But, I’m not sorry that it brought us closer together.” He curled his fingers into mine, squeezing my hand reassuringly.

  My cell phone chimed and my heart sped up nervously. Yet, when I looked down, there was nothing.

  “It’s mine.”

  I glanced at Warrens phone.

  “Looks like she woke up and wants to know if I can bring her some crackers.”

  I took a deep, relieving breath and as I did Warren slipped my shawl off my shoulders.

  “I like this dress,” he said. His voice deeper, gravely, and hungry.

  He slipped his finger alongside the inside of my neckline, just grazing my nipple, instantly perking me up and sending warmth through my body hungrily.

  The diner was a tease and I wasn’t sure how much of this I could take. He continued to twist and tease sending my desires soaring.

  “I just decided something,” he said as he watched me, his eyes darkening mischievously and then pinched a little stronger. I shuddered in response.

  “What’s that?” my voice came out breathy in response to his touches. His eyebrows raised as he delighted in the crazy things he did to me.

  “I’m going to drive you mad until this weekend. Drive you to the edge of delight all week so by the time you come to the office this weekend you’ll be begging for sexual mercy.”

  The idea both thrilled me in every way and already drove me mad. He pinched again. Two could play at this game.

  I slipped the top of my dress off like it had been in the parking lot, exposing my breasts to the night air. His eyes widened in surprise.

  “Are you sure you want to do that?” I asked, knowing full-well who was in control.

  I leaned back further against the metal picnic table, arching my back and letting my breasts protrude even more.

  Warren was up faster than I could even comprehend. In a second, he flipped me over on the table and my breasts pressed roughly against the cold metal, shocking my system in a mix of pleasure and pain. He took both my hands in his and held my wrists together in his one hand, pulling my body back against him. Warren lifted my skirt over my back exposing my bottom.