He grinned as he heard Emma gasp as he gently opened her moist lips with his cool hands. When he began slowly circling her tender bud with his tongue and alternating it with long strokes up and down, she lost it. She came almost instantly, screaming his name over and over. He eased himself in, inch-by-inch going as slowly and gently as he could. Just as he was about to break through and claim her virginity he pulled right out and kissed her deeply. He got his wish when he noticed that she then barely registered the moment that he slowly rocked himself into her. It took all of his self-control not to just pound himself into the tight wet heaven he encountered. He pulled himself out slowly, reaching down with his hand and rubbing her clit. When he couldn’t wait any longer thrust himself back deep inside, this time entering with his full length. He winced as he saw her flinch and as he was about to pull back out, Emma gripped his buttocks hard with her hands and held him there.
“No, just stay still and give me a minute to get used to this,” she pleaded hoarsely. He held himself still at her request but found himself trying to adjust to the feeling of being so deep inside her. His cock involuntarily jumped several times inside her as she moaned deeply. She surprised him then by wrapping her legs around his back, urging him on.
“Em, I’m so sorry, but this won’t be slow. I am so close.” He gritted out and with a few long thrusts into her wet and sensitive folds his orgasm hit him hard and without warning he came violently inside her. Emma moaned loudly and when he saw the look of pure unadulterated pleasure and love radiating from her face, he reached up and gently stroked her cheek and whispered, “I love you, Emma.”
He then reached down between them, touching her again as she held him tight, skin on skin, and gently he moved his finger slightly against her clit, setting off a second orgasm that rippled around his slowly shrinking erection.
As he lowered himself slowly on top of her he shivered as their heaving breaths mingling. As he stroked her face, he looked at her and whispered again, “I love you, Em. More than life itself.”
He pecked her on the lips and then dropped his head laying it down between her breasts and tuning in to the rapid beating of her heart. Her breathing was labored, like she had just run a marathon. He could feel the now cooling sweat that had beaded on her skin from the intense moment they had just shared. He was in Heaven. No, this was a place far beyond Heaven and for tonight he was going to bask in the warmth and the serenity she brought to him. Tomorrow was tomorrow and aside from the devastation that the storms would have surely brought to Glen Springs, it would pale into insignificance next to the destruction he was going to cause.
He felt Emma shifting beneath him and there was a shift in the mood as she wrapped her arms tightly around him. He felt her drop a tender kiss on the top of his head and she cleared her throat and said quietly, “I love you, too, Charlie.”
He reached over and grabbed the second quilt from the back of the sofa; and pulling her so close, they fell into a deep and surprisingly restful sleep.
Chapter Three
Morning soon came and he woke still wrapped around a warm, naked body. He could smell the musky scent of their lovemaking lingering in the air. Emma was sleeping so peacefully he didn’t want to wake her. Slowly, he lifted himself from her sleepy embrace and tucked her back in, making sure she was still warm and cozy. He planted a tender kiss on her temple and hooked a stray tendril of her deep brown hair around the back of her ear. She was so beautiful when she was asleep, and she looked so innocent and peaceful. He felt his heart break in two as he knew this was the last time he would see her.
He saw that dawn was just breaking through the cracks in the metal door at the top of the stairwell of the shelter. The rising sun was casting just enough light for him to find his clothing from the night before. He noticed that the wind had died down and the radio was no longer transmitting emergency directions. He followed the hazy glow that spread across the small cabin and one of the brighter rays highlighted the beautiful, sleeping girl in front of him.
Pulling on his jeans and shirt, he shrugged into his jacket and decided to venture out to assess what damage the storm had caused. His emotions were all over the place, though. Happy to have finally have made love to Emma and show her just what she meant to him, but feeling immensely remorseful for treating her no better than some quick lay or one night stand. Last night was a one time only event for them and there would never be a repeat.
As he stooped down to pull on his boots, he froze as he saw the letter sticking out of the deep pocket of her overcoat. The bold crest of Harvard Law School on the envelope gave away its ominous contents. It was evident that that Emma had started to open the letter and he could see it would be possible to take out the letter and read it. Fleetingly he toyed with the idea of looking so he would know for sure before he walked away, but he stopped himself. This was not the time to be snooping, but the thickness of the envelope indicated this wasn’t a rejection letter. His broken heart filled with pride as he realized she had done it and he wasn’t going to hold her back.
He reached into his jacket pocket and palmed the small box he had been carrying close to his heart now for a few months. It contained a modest solitaire diamond he had bought using the savings he had made despite his meager wage. It was going to be the icing on the cake for him and Em. Looking at it now, though, it seemed so small and insignificant. He needed to give her the world, not some cheap, tiny second-hand diamond ring.
He had planned had to propose to her when they found their first home. He had wanted to make love for the first time on their first night alone in their new bedroom, a room he wanted to adorn with candles and roses to give her the romance she so deserved. But she was moving on to much bigger things, he knew asking her to marry him now was the wrong thing to do.
He hadn’t had a lot of experience in romancing a girl and although Em wasn’t his first girlfriend, she was definitely the first, and only, girl he had wanted to make love to. He had wanted them to be in a meaningful stage in their relationship before they finally went all the way. He was desperate to prove to her that she meant far more to him that just sex. She had stolen his heart and soul and he felt like he had a purpose in life when he was with her. But by being weak and selfish in the spur of the moment the night before, he had not only taken away that special moment for them both, but he felt he had disrespected his precious Emma in the process. And thank goodness he already knew she had been prescribed the pills that protected her from pregnancy. He was clean and knew she was, but he never even broached the fact he didn’t have a condom. He hated himself for not thinking this out and ruining his dreams for them. He would never regret ever having those precious moments with her, especially if that was all he would have to remember her by. He knew that made him no better than his own goddam loser of a father, and that made the fact he was about to walk away that bit less of a bitter pill to swallow. It reaffirmed his feeling that she would be better off without him.
He took in the sight of her curled up on the sofa and tried to take one last mental picture of her. Tears pooled in his eyes as she breathed deeply, looking so serene as she slept. Leaning in, he took in one last deep breath of her scent, and kissing her gently so as not to wake her, he whispered, “Please forgive me, Em, for what I am about to do. Be happy, sweetheart. That is all I want for you. This is not how I wanted things to happen, but please know that I will love you forever.”
Choking back a sob, he collected a few essentials he had found in one of the old metal boxes and he headed out of the shelter and up to the reality awaiting him. As he reached the top of the steps and opened the metal door he scanned around he saw the utter devastation that had occurred as they took refuge in each other the previous night. Thank God they had made it to the shelter when they did. Last night’s tornado, or tornados as he was to later find out, had flattened the entire town and some of the surrounding towns, too. The worst storms in a century, they were to declare.
Emma’s house was obliterated. Hi
s truck was a mess and buried beneath rubble and timber. The Old Fitzgerald place behind him was no more, merely a cement base that gave away where it had once stood. Ironically, he let out a short laugh as he thought to himself that Emma would be pleased to finally see the old eyesore gone. Trees were uprooted and likely to have been dumped by the terrifying storm a distance form their original positions. Shattered pieces of furniture and household items lay strewn all around. Oddly, he noticed familiar pieces from Emma’s home that were littered across the surrounding area and there were some photos and personal items just blowing gently in the wind. Live electric wires hissed and zapped around a short way up the road from where he stood. This far out of town there was no gas main, so apart from the risk from the crackling live wires waving around in the breeze, he was reasonably safe if he kept his distance
His immediate reaction was to cross the street and head for his truck to see if his cell phone was in there. He had forgotten to grab it out of the glove compartment in all of the panic the night before, but it was fruitless. The truck was all but buried deep under a pile of mangled metal, rubber and other masses of debris. He had never seen such carnage. In the distance sirens blared, presumably from the multitude of emergency services out trying to find signs of life in the middle of all this appalling mess. His heart sank as he could see plumes of smoke rising from the general direction of the town. It wasn’t a good sight.
He attempted to collect a few things he recognized from the demolished house but as soon as he was collecting them, they were blowing away in the gentle morning breeze. Most pieces were wet from the rain last night and also the cool morning dew. It was pointless; Emma and her family had lost everything. He was about to, too.
Finding a perch under a nearby tree that had been spared, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the items he had taken from the shelter. He had found a couple pieces of paper and pencil in one of the boxes and with a heavy heart, he picked them up to begin writing the hardest letter he was ever going to write and one that he was going to regret for the rest of his life. He kept a close eye on the shelter in case Emma had woken and was wondered what was happening or where he was. He couldn’t bring himself to go back in there, but if she woke and came searching for him right then, he didn’t know how it was going to play out.
After over an hour of pouring over the letter, he finally felt he had adequately put into words what he wanted to say. Just as he folded up the paper and sealed it into an envelope, a state police department vehicle drove up the road and stopped short of him. The middle-aged officer cut the motor and stepped out of the vehicle. Charlie had been crying as he wrote the words that he knew would break Emma’s heart. He tried to compose himself as the officer approached and put a strong reassuring hand on his shoulder and asked, “Son, are you okay? We have been sent out to see what we can do for anyone in need. Do you know if anyone else has survived the storm in these local houses or needs immediate assistance, son?”
Charlie looked up, tears streaking down his face and he nodded. “Yes, Officer, I’m okay. I’m not hurt. I found the sole occupant of that house, and we headed for the shelter that you can find in the yard over there. The large house that was behind us here was empty. I have to leave now but could you please check on the beautiful young lady who is currently asleep in the shelter? It’s just over in the grounds there. It is important to me that you make sure she is safe?” he said, the tone in his voice insistent. “Her house was destroyed and she will need to contact her parents as soon as possible.” He pointed out the various locations to the officer.
“Are you sure you don’t need help, son? You look like you could do with a hand as well. The storms last night have practically wiped out the entire town. It’s a mess out there. The biggest tornado took out an entire three-block slice out from Main Street through West Avenue. All the houses and businesses have gone. And a second big tornado took out the trailer park to the north of town. Practically every trailer is gone too. Thankfully, most of the occupants had shelters or ones they could use, but there are still a few who have been unaccounted for at this stage and they sure could do with some help searching. I can offer you a ride back into town to the emergency center and there are places set up at the gymnasium to freshen up,” the officer droned on.
He was only half-listening because it dawned on him, from what the officer just described that included his home and Uncle Hank’s garage. They were gone, too. He had never been as glad for his mom to be out of town.
“Son? Are you sure you are okay? Are you sure you have somewhere to go?” the officer persisted.
Sighing and wiping a shaky hand through his messy hair then down his lightly-stubbled face, he replied, “Yes, sorry, Officer, I’m sure. I’m physically sound, sir. I don’t know where I’m heading right now except out of this town and away from all of this,” he replied, gesturing with his hands all around. “Thank you for your assistance, sir, but I can’t stay. But could I just ask one favor of you before you leave? I have something for the lady in the shelter? She is called Emma and she is likely to be scared and alone. Could you please make sure she gets to safety as soon as you can? And can you give her this letter from me, please? And if you could tell her that Charlie is safe? I’d be much obliged, Officer.”
“Sure, son, but don’t you want to take care of her and make sure she is okay?”
“No. It’s best I don’t. I need to be on my way. Thank you, Officer”
And with that, he handed over the letter to a puzzled officer and walked away sobs heaving violently from his chest as he headed in the opposite direction from town and towards the freeway a couple miles from Emma’s place into his own uncertain future. He regretted it the moment he had done it, leaving the unnamed police officer to break Emma’s heart. This moment was to haunt him for the rest of his life.
Chapter Four
Eight years, two months and three days later, New York City.
Emma
“Call for you on line one, Emma. It’s your favorite client, wanting an update on the latest branding copyright. You okay to take it?” the amused voice of her assistant crackled over the intercom.
Emma rolled her eyes and took in a deep breath, “Yeah, thanks, Jennie, I’ll take it now.”
“Hey, Bruce, what can I do for you today?” she replied, hoping her voice was cheerful enough to avoid another twenty questions from him. Bruce Jenson was genuinely a sweet guy. His father, Arnaud Jenson, owned Jenson and Associates which had quickly become one of America’s largest and most successful brand development agencies. Over the last four years, her working relationship with him had catapulted her to heights in her legal career she never thought possible. They were of a similar age and if she had been in the market for a serious relationship, or even just a casual fling, he would definitely have been top of her list for consideration. He was classically good-looking, with a shock of dark wavy hair and the most piercing green eyes. He was extremely charming, easy-going, and on the numerous occasions she had accompanied him on industry functions, he had been great company. But, despite her best efforts at keeping his advances at arms’ length, she was convinced that he was trying to gain more than just her legal expertise. Something about Bruce didn’t sit quite right with her, though, and it niggled persistently at her subconscious. She was growing tired of having to deal with him like this, but she needed him on her side, and had to be thankful to him for helping her gain a huge footing her career.
“Good afternoon, Emma. How is my favorite lady lawyer doing today?” His deep voice echoed around Emma’s office from the speakerphone.
“I’m very well, thank you, Bruce. I am sorry, but I have no updates on the new applications since you called yesterday and I am scheduled to chase the patents office in the next couple of days. Sorry I can’t tell you any more, but you know by now how it is with the process,” she replied, feeling irritated this afternoon at his persistence.
Leaning back in the chair, she stretched and shook out her long hair
from the band she used to pull it back. She had been studying the mountains of licenses and patent applications that littered her large desk for most of the day.
“I’m glad to hear you are okay. I’m so sorry to intrude on your day, but I’m not actually ringing to chase the applications. I was wondering if you would do me a favor next week.”
Emma cringed inwardly at this question, knowing what was coming next. Whenever Bruce had a favor to ask it usually ended up with the pair of them attending some tiresome industry led benefit or promotional event and Bruce seemed to think she needed the connections. This was one of the few reasons she was in such demand.
“Dad has landed me a couple of tickets to the annual Licensing Expo in Las Vegas and you were my first choice of travelling buddy. If you can make it, that is.”
It was the cheerful, smug tone in his voice that gave him away. He knew he had her with this offer. Emma was stunned. She had tried for four long years to land an invite to that Exposition in Vegas, not only for the chance to bust New York and get away for a few days, but also for the goldmine of networking and industry connection potential. Bill, her boss, would be over the moon that she had scored an opportunity like this and it was one she knew she couldn’t turn down, even if it meant three whole days in Bruce’s overbearing company.
“Bruce, that is amazing, and although I will have to check with Bill, I am sure I can clear my schedule to attend.” Her reply was polite, but despite this being the offer of a lifetime for her career, she didn’t feel as enthused as she should have.
“No need, Emma, I took the liberty of speaking with him right before I called you to arrange it all. We depart on Tuesday. I will have my car collect you first thing and bring you to the airport. I will be taking the company jet with Dad so don’t worry about arranging flights. There will be space on the jet for you and if you don’t mind, I have already taken the liberty and booked a couple of suites at the Mandalay Bay where the expo is, so all you will need is some photo ID and your pretty little self. Oh, and dress code for the flight is casual. It’s a pain in the ass wearing a business suit for that flight so I’m going comfy.”
Steeling My Haart Page 3
