Love Remains

by Zrinka Jelic

  “Love it, chic and contemporary design is my style.”

  “I thought you’d like it.” He slid behind her. A surrendering sigh escaped her when he spooned her against him. “Milo found the Cartoon Channel, Rosie’s asleep and we’ve got time on our hands. Now where were we two nights ago before someone interrupted us?”

  His husky whisper and hot breath on her neck carried a certain promise. Olivia flipped onto her back. She managed a quick inhale before his mouth seized hers. A blaze ignited in her midriff and spread over her. She tore his shirt off his shoulders. His muscles bulged under her hands. Without breaking the hungry kiss, he yanked the fabric off, and snuck his hand under her camisole. A soft moan slipped her lips when his fingers found her nipple. She arched her back pressing her breast into his palm.

  One fluffy pillow fell off the bed and whooshed on the carpet. The bedding rustled as he straddled her. Short puffs of air rushed out of her mouth while he glided her top over her head then traced his finger between her breasts, down to her panties. Her heart sped when he tucked his finger inside her underwear, dipping his face between her achy breasts. When would he unclasp her bra and release them?

  “You’re a balm for my soul.” His low whisper sent shivers through her womb. Lips brushing on her skin raised goose bumps from her toes to her neck.

  He pressed his erection on her thigh. She closed her eyes. Damn, their clothes prevented full access.

  He rolled onto his back, taking her with him. Positioned on top of him, she rose up on her knees, allowing him to lower her undies below her buttocks. She met his warm gaze. Hunger in his honey eyes flooded her with wetness.

  “Close your eyes.” He brushed her face. She closed her own eyelids, moved by the sensation of his fingers against her skin. “Tell me what you feel.”

  “Ah.” She gasped, sucked in a long breath and arched her back. “You’re driving me wild.”

  Creating a slight pressure on her clit, his finger stopped its circular motions. “Not the kind of answer I expected.”

  Panting, her hips buckled, she licked her lips. “What … did you want me … ?” She gulped. “To say?”

  He continued the sweet torture. “Describe what you feel in detail.”

  Another moan rushed out of her. No one ever asked her to do this. How was she to respond? “I’m so tense, strung like a bow. Oh, please don’t stop.”

  He continued finger teasing. His soft whisper infused her with more moisture. “Do you need me?”

  “Yes. Oh, yes.” She heaved. Never before a man forced her to beg, but beg she would if Tom asked her to. Her hips swayed, following his finger. Each time the connection broke she sought his taunting pleasure. She clasped her hand over his to keep it steady and peeked through one eye. If she couldn’t give him the answer he waited on, would he cease this cajoling?

  “Tell me more. What do you feel?” His narrowed gaze was unyielding.

  She swallowed against her dry throat, then whimpered. Seemed the other Olivia was comfortable talking dirty to him. “I’m melting from inside.”

  “Better.” To her dismay, he pulled his hand away and planted it on her rear. “Take off your bra.” A demanding tone laced his voice.

  She unhooked the clasps at the back, but his hand stopped her in pulling the straps off her shoulders. “Slowly.”

  Trailing fingers down her arms, he dragged the silky, pink fabric against her skin. He cupped her breasts, rubbing his thumbs over her nipples. “Mmmm, yes, love them when they pebble under my fingers.”

  His knuckle grazed the side of her face and she opened her eyes, meeting his. “And I love it when you’re aroused.”

  “Make love to me. Now, Tom. Please.” God, he’d stayed true to his words. She not only burned for him, she was an inferno.

  Desire reflected in his eyes. “Is there something else you want to tell me?”

  I love you. She wanted to scream, but the damn words wouldn’t leave her mouth. Did she love him? Her heart wanted to love him, but her mind kept urging her not to rush into anything.

  A hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes, he tilted his head toward the vaulted ceiling, and blew a long breath. Damn, damn, I ruined the moment. But if professing her love to him was what he wanted to hear from her, next time she’d force those words out if it killed her. No, she shouldn’t so foolishly gush with words of her love. Her feelings confused her. Since her dad’s accident, love had not existed in her life.

  She sat on his now half hard cock. The three little words she couldn’t bring herself to say meant so much to him. Fear of the unknown raked through her and sent a cold shiver up her spine. “Tom, my memories will never return.”

  A soft and slow smile stretched his lips. “Then we’ll just have to make new ones.”

  “There’s someone at the door, Daddy,” Milo’s small voice called out.

  “Our lunch is here.” Tom sat up and kissed her cheek. “After we eat, we’ll head out to visit with Tadem.”

  • • •

  Dark, imposing windows stared down at Olivia from the large, brick face of the building. The blinking multicolored lights twinkled on the two pine trees in front, but they hardly gave the surroundings the feel of Christmas. Tomorrow they’d bring Tadem to spend the day with them at the hotel and forget this dreary place if only for a moment.

  She took a deep breath and pushed through the row of residents basking in the weak winter sun. Some sat in their wheelchairs while a few gathered around weather-beaten picnic table. Not one of them stopped their smattering conversations as her family passed by them.

  A petite, elderly woman greeted them at the plain reception desk. “Hello, everyone.” Her wintry blue eyes crinkled at the corners when she glanced at baby in Tom’s arms. “And this must be Rosie. Tadem is so anxious to see all of you. She’s waiting in her room.” The receptionist turned her gaze at Olivia. “Doctor is amazed at her progress after the surgery. And it’s nice of you to come see her so often. Many of our clients don’t receive any visitations at all.”

  Olivia forced a smile, but guilt churned her stomach. The woman obviously failed to notice she wasn’t the same Olivia as the one who visited her sister.

  Her boots thumped on the carpeted floor as she followed Tom down the long corridor. Though the place wasn’t a hospital, the smell of disinfectants and stale coffee from the cafeteria crept into her nose. The ever-present knots in Olivia’s stomach tightened.

  When Tom turned the corner, Milo ran ahead and knocked on the door of suite 201. “It’s us, Auntie.”

  The sting of remorse slid over her. Her husband and son knew in which apartment her sister resided, yet she had no clue about her sibling’s life. She halted at the entrance. The proximity of the door to the next unit assured her Tandem lived in a small place. Olivia took a tentative step into the apartment, some ten square feet with its own bathroom.

  “I missed you so much.” Milo rushed forward to hug Tadem’s wide girth. When had her sister grown heavy? The facility might not offer adequate physical program for her to be active. Confined to this tiny space, parked in front of television, it was no wonder she put on weight. Even with her thin, black hair and small eyes in her round face, the family resemblance was undeniable.

  “I missed you, too.” Tadem might’ve grown to an adult, but her voice had remained the same, childish and slurring. She took Milo’s hand, examining his temporary tattoo of a cartoon character. “This is so cool.”

  “You can have one, I’ve got more.” Milo tapped her hand, indicating where to put the picture.

  Tom turned the baby in his arms toward Tadem. “This is Rosie. You haven’t seen her yet.”

  Tadem’s black eyes appeared beady, but warmth filled them when she smiled. “She’s so cute.”

  Tom extended his arms, bringing the baby closer to Tadem. “Would you like to hold her?”

  “Yes.” Tadem squirmed but took Rosie in her clumsy hands. Tom kept close, monitoring Tadem’s movements.

  �
��Hi, Rosie. I’m your aunt.” She attempted a clumsy bounce.

  Sorrow and grief overwhelmed Olivia. In an instant she relived the dreadful day when people in white coats took Tadem away. A tight band constricted her chest and she drew in a breath. She clasped her hand over her mouth, but a yelp escaped her. Tom glanced over his shoulder then back at Tadem. “Here, I’ll take Rosie. Milo boy, mommy needs a few minutes alone with Auntie. Why don’t we go get some treats from the coffee shop down the street?”

  The boy slapped his leg. “Aw, but we just got here.”

  “No buts, let’s go.” Tom led him to the door. “We’ll be back in a few.”

  Unrestrained tears spilled from Olivia’s eyes. With slow steps she approached the bed where her sister sat.

  “I missed you all these years. I wanted to come and see you. I begged Mom to bring me, but she only kept promising, saying sure, we’ll go.” She leaned closer to Tadem and hugged her just like the day she’d seen her for the last time.

  Tadem’s finger brushed her cheek. “Tears?”

  Olivia sniffed and a smile crept through her crying. “Yeah, but it’s ok.”

  Olivia stared at Tadem’s guileless face, wondering how much was she comprehending.

  Tadem smiled and sat straight. “Hey, you want to see the angel?”

  “What angel?”

  “The one who’s been visiting me. She has a message for you.” Tadem’s grin exposed her uneven teeth. “Want to see it?”

  A message for me? Olivia frowned and shrugged. “OK.”

  Tadem closed her eyes, her shoulders rising as she drew in a long breath. Then her puffy face elongated. Her slanted eyes turned almond shaped, her cheekbones standing high and thick, bouncy curls replacing her scraggly hair. The transformation continued down her body, with swelling breasts, a shrinking waist and extended legs.

  Olivia took a long step back, her knees shaking. “Tadem?”

  Transformed, Tadem’s mouth moved, but a melodious female’s voice came out. “Only in body. This is what she’d look like had she not been touched.”

  Olivia tried to steady her racing heart by pressing hard against her chest. “Touched? By whom?”

  The strange woman gave a slight nod. “By God.”

  “You call her condition a touch of divinity?” Anger crept to Olivia’s voice despite her attempt to control the agitation. How dare this entity call her sister’s infirmity a touch of God?

  The angel smiled, casting a glow through the gloom room. “Now the Good Book says, ‘Blessed are poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.’”

  Clutching the back of the chair, Olivia steadied her trembling fingers. “I wasn’t brought up in the church so I wouldn’t know the meaning.”

  “But Jesus said, ‘Allow the children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of Heaven.’”

  The kingdom of Heaven, what a load of crap. Olivia sneered. No such place existed here on Earth or up there in sky. “From what I’ve heard, the Holy Bible is vague and open for interpretation. So if you’re referring to Tadem being like a child, then you’re right.”

  The brightness encircling the angel intensified. “We must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus. Whoever has a bountiful eye will be blessed, for he shares his bread with the poor.”

  Help the weak, share with the poor, concepts she found incomprehensible in the past, now something that came as a second nature to her. Perhaps spoken through the mouth of an angel they sounded true. “Why are you with my sister?”

  “Every mortal has one guardian angel, but only those like Tadem are deserving of seeing us.”

  Olivia pressed her lips tight, but couldn’t stop the wail building in her throat. “It’s unfair to Tadem. She would’ve been a very beautiful woman.”

  In one fluid motion, the angel moved close, engulfing Olivia in tangerine scent. “She is happy in her simple life. God loves you, Olivia, and He wants you to know, your sister’s state is not your fault. You must stop blaming yourself for something you have no power over.”

  Olivia winced with sudden realization. “Do you have anything to do with the appearance of Tom and the children?”

  Sorrow flashed across angel’s face. “Poor Tadem is very sick.”

  Olivia’s stomach knotted. “No, she’s fine. Her surgery was successful.”

  “You’re in the future, Olivia. Tadem didn’t have her surgery. Yet. And Tom is fighting for his life.”

  Cold sweat washed down Olivia’s back. The angel’s changed expression sent another bolt of fear through her. “What do you want from me?”

  “You must choose who to send to Heaven with me. Tadem or Tom?”

  “What?” Olivia gasped. “You can’t make me choose.”

  Desperate to gain her composure, Olivia tried to recall her corporate training. What would she do when pressed by hard questions? Hit them back with questions of her own.

  “Why are you making me do this?” She struggled to keep her voice strong. “You’re the angel, the supreme being. Why can’t you just pick one?

  The angel let out a quiet chuckle. She pressed a long finger to her lips. “Shhhh, Tom is on his way back here. I have to go.”

  CHAPTER 11

  Tom hitched Rosie a little higher on his hip and juggled a cardboard tray full of drinks in his hand. Getting a solid grip on the knob to enter Tadem’s apartment was a challenge — with gloves on, it was next to impossible. The aroma of rich coffee and hot chocolate wafted from the paper cups and lessened the sharp odors of disinfectants. He tapped his booted foot on the wood, but no one answered.

  “Olivia.” He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Milo wasn’t helping himself to sweets from the box he carried.

  “Open the door, Olivia. My hands are full,” Tom tried again, louder this time. Still no answer. A strange, foreboding slithered over him. His wife must have heard him. Why wouldn’t she respond? He shifted the baby and turned to his son. “Milo, get the door for me.” He reached out with his hand holding Rosie. The baby weighed twice as much in all her winter gear, his arm was starting to hurt by now. Served him right for not getting her stroller out the car, but the coffee shop was closer than his car at the far end of the parking lot. He made a mental note to park closer to the entrance as often as possible. “Give me the Timbits.”

  Milo raised his arms, a colorful box of bite size doughnuts in his hands. Tom wrapped his finger around the handle. “First take your glove off.”

  The boy removed his mitten by biting on the tip and sliding his hand out. He grabbed the knob, but his small hand wouldn’t wrap around. “I can’t open it, Daddy.”

  “Take the other mitten off and try with both hands.”

  Milo obeyed, tossing mittens onto the vinyl floor. He managed to twist the handle, but pulled the door toward him.

  “Push in.” Tom leaned on the wood panel before Milo could lose his grip and the door swung open.

  Olivia stood frozen in the corner, her knuckles white, gripping the back of a chair. “Honey?” Tom set the tray on the small, round table and turned to glance at Tadem. She sat on the bed, where he’d left her when he’d urged Milo out of the room to give Olivia a few moments alone with her sister.

  “Auntie, look.” Milo grabbed the box of sweets and plopped next to Tadem. “We’ve got Timbits and hot chocolate with whipped cream.”

  “Cool, I love Timbits,” Tadem droned in her lisp.

  Tom set Rosie on the carpet and faced his wife, her stance rigid. She winced when he caressed her elbow, shooting him a surprised glance. Her pale face and wide eyed, she appeared petrified. “Olivia, honey, talk to me.”

  “I — ” She gulped. “I need some fresh air.”

  “Alright. Let’s stroll through the garden before the sun goes down.” Tom turned to his son and sister-in-law devouring the Timbits, discussing with their mouths full which flavor was their favorite. “We’re going for a walk, put the sweets away.”

  Milo and
Tadem dusted the icing sugar off their hands. They sprang to their feet and the mattress coils squeaked in protest. Tadem shuffled her feet to the closet in front of the unit’s door and pulled out her coat.

  Dressed for the outdoors, Milo and Tadem skipped ahead on the garden path while Tom walked alongside Olivia, Rosie tucked in his arm. His wife’s silence worried him. “Tell me what happened.”

  Olivia exhaled a misty breath on a cold wintry day. “If I didn’t see it, I wouldn’t believe it.” She continued with a trembling voice, “After you left, Tadem asked me if I’d like to see an angel. I thought she meant some paper angel she might’ve made in a craft workshop, so I said okay.”

  Her hand shook as she pressed black leather encased fingertips to her lips. “Then she changed in front of me.”

  Tom furrowed his brow. “Changed?”

  “Yes, she became … ” Olivia frowned, gesturing with her hand as if she was desperate to find the proper word. “Normal, like she’d never had her condition. Then she spoke, but it wasn’t her voice. The angel inside that took her body said it was still Tadem only in her normal appearance. She mumbled something religious … didn’t make sense to me. Something about weak of mind and how their kingdom is Heaven.”

  “An angel entered Tandem’s body and quoted the Bible?” His chest tightened, but he shook his head, struggling to comprehend and not overreact. Ever since Olivia returned from her trip, strange things had happened, most of them he couldn’t explain. Though these little incidences were becoming annoying, he must remain patient and everything would snap back into its place. She needed him to believe her. He would be the one person she could rely on.

  He cleared his throat before he spoke again, just to make sure he wouldn’t sound untrusting. “Weak of mind, kingdom of Heaven … sounds familiar. She might’ve said ‘Blessed are poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven?’”

  Turning to him, Olivia pointed her finger, her eyes wide. “Yes, that’s it. You know of this saying?”